Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-10-21

the center OF the city the American
Institute Fair Exhibition, with every
variety of American machinery and pro.
ducts, and its great model pneumatic
railroad the shipping, the interlocked
stream Of carriages, heavy vehicles
and pedestrians; the gay laces, gor
geous shop windows and ugly women,
make up charming, exciting and in
s,ructive medley. The magnificent
Black Crook exhibition astonishes the
beholder, and Barnum's fat baby, happy
family, and big monkey, named gorilla,
fully attest that some things can be done
as we'll as others while Barnum's hum
bugs are so complete that you laugh at
your simplicity, and wonder that he does
not send to Memphis and purchase its
educated hog" that his chapter Of
humbugs may be complete.
No one should pass Washington with
out view of the Smithsonian Institute,
where curiosities, rarities and relics in
infinite number abound, with individual
specimens amounting to almost COM
plete variety of the wild and tame
animals, serpents, fishes, and birds of
America. A week, instead of an hour
which we gave to it, would be we'll spent
in surveying the valuable collections 10
be found there. Having but day to
spare, many of our party we're too much
fatigued to look thoroughly through the
patent office, and too dizzy to climb the
more than three hundred feet TO the
highest practicable point of the Capitol
dome. We had only time left to pay eur
respects to the President whom we found
altogether cordial, sensible, gentemanly
and retieent. He has spoken enough
already, and may hereafter better let good
deeds speak for him. The President was
quite impressed with the sprightly young
master Wicks of our party, and presented
him with his photograph, and predicted
his future greatness. And the ladies
having been shown through the library,
and the celebrated green and other rooms,
and shown how the great lords and
foreign ministers sit and eat in the state
dining room, with other matters OF
equally grave Importance, and having
seen one live lord and eaten with another,
we babe the President adieu, and away
for the Metropolitan and the cars.
The trip home was pleasant, the
weather and the scenery delightful,
through what is called the great Central
Southern route. The variegated foliage
of the Alleghenies is most remarkable
Furnished, as we we're by the kind prov
idenee Of our guide, still with sleeping
cars for the whole return way, we arrived
with continued comfort over our southern
roads, and without an incident to mar
| the pleasure of the trip. We saw but
two novel inventions after entering the
provinces, although we had Heen so
many Yankee notions in the States,
But this may be owing to our eagerness
to advance, when we had turned home :
ward. One was machine we discovered
not thousand miles from Stephenson,
which seemed to be propelled by furi-
GUS wind, with smoke and tiery heat,
comirig from an avenue leading from the
domain of Epicurus or Vulcan, and
which had the power of distributing
knives, forks, plates, cups and spoons
in shower, to such great delight OF
those who were waiting with empty
stomachs to be fed, as to put all their
risible faculties in confusion and uproar,
maniiesting infinite delight, and almost
instantly satisfying the appetite, without
the trouble of eating, This is certainly
a very valuable and economical inven-
tion. 1t actually seemed to be alve.
tThe other was discovered somewhat
further on this end Of our route,
and was like unto it in principle,
or in this, that it did much the
same thing with jerk. To operate this
machine it was nece ssary for the boarder
to "bear hand for himself, and obey
instructions and in this it differed
slightly from the first. 1t consists OF
double table, so cons tructed that if you
will sit down, cross your feet, place your
left hand directly in front, and stretch
your left arm as far as possible, and at the
same time seize the upper table with your
right hand and give both jerk at the
same time, without moving from your
position, the astonishing fact will be ex-
hibited, that while Immediately under
your nose you will find plenty to eat, you
will also find a coffee cup in your LETT
hand ready to be filed from cotfee'pot,
which suddenly deseeDds for that pur-
pose from about the top of your head,
calling your attention by grazing the
right ear in its descent The whole ope-
ration was called turning and retch-
ing l. e., you turn the table for the
food and "retch " for the cup, and then
alrs right
And now, having described these two
great and startling southern Inventions,
and arrived somewhat at climax, we
must close, leaving the half Of our story
untold. II is impossible to tell every
bedy everything, even if one has seen
the cattle on q thousand plains IN llh-
nois and Michigan, and contrasted
them with his own stricken and
IMPOVERISHED land. We have not
the heart to do it, though room was
abundant 1t seems too much like eat
ing up the orange in the presence OF a
famished child. We wish no i'll TO our
neighbors; only liberty, industry, and
its rewards. Aud we hope TO see the
day when the cottou-cursed south may
be laden with the fruits, cereals and stock
Of the favored and pampered north,
which, with good government and cui-
ture, may yet outrival that country
I stunlf