The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1868-12-05

the fashion seemed complete. The streets were filled
with Ladies in the full gicries of the bend and Of it,
accouirefaents.-the hi-h-hcelei shoes and the i'm
mense .FAnier> that were builiel upon their
ir,s-s ia the rear. Ike loads plel upon a cauel's
hump. The most pron0uncel cases oi the bend
looked n If they had been = doubled up" with a
a sudden attack Of the collie. The laugh began \
general chorus II fun commenced NJ the expense Of
tie "a Gneeian Bend" The very name Of it, a novel
amt taxing phrase, supplied q convenient baSe Of OP-
eratious against the fashion. y "G-eciln Bend
Publishing Company was started, which issued
cIrieatBr,s II five ladies' pr0menaling IN ali the re-
gala Of the . Bend" The negro minstrels and
opera burle>guers took up the idea, and drew crowded
houses 10 see the fashion, most laiierousty exagEer-
atcI. upon tie stage. The walls are covered with
m@ous,rOus haGdtills, printed in colors, illustrating
the " Bend in every absurd shape. "Grecian
Bend waltzes and .'Ggecian Bend Stationery -
appeared. IL became a matter Of some nerve for q
fashionable lady TO encounter the notice OF the street.
The attitude, the = paniers, the hish-heelei shoes,
all formed a combination which was too humorvu>ly
suggestive for any but the most stole mind. The
ladies found themselves pretty thoroughly laughed At.
Slme II the more timorous began 10 sound the note
Of retreat. There was a division for a time among
the ladies OF the ton but the party Of the conserys-
tives gradually prevailed, and the " Bend began
to disappear from the Fifth Avenue and the Broad
way promenade. The makers of =. paniers and the
rest of the apparatus Of the " Bend " were in despair.
1t was a clear case Of a lost cause. Within 4 few
weeks the party Of the Benders was reduced by de
sertions to a few heroic spirits who were imperyious
10 ril:cule, and to a larger number whose business it
is to attract attention upon the streets. But as a
fashion, the Grecian Bend may now be pronounced a
failure. 1t died Of being laughed at.
our third sensation is just commencing. 1t IS the
yelocipedc. Like the bend, it is an old invention, and
like that. it has been revived by the French, who are
using it for purposes Of business and of pleasure
introducing it even into their postal service; FOR 1t is
found that le;;er-carriers perform their rounds in
the suburbs Of Paris, mounted upon their uutamed
steei, IN less than half the time there Is required on
foot. \ skill.ul yelociPelist viii make fifteen or
twenty miles al hour, upon a good round. \ few Of
these cOatriyances have appeared in our streets, and
created much interest. They are the simplest Of We
hicles. Two wheels, Il emall one in front aud a large
one in tLe rear, connected by . long elastic rod which
bears q cushioned seat, compose them They are
propelled by the action Of the feet upon a lever, and
stecrelby lateral movement Of the front wheel. They
are held upright by their momentum difficult, piece
Of management for the beginner. until lac has attain
ell the art Of making pretty good time upon the
NE4tillclt. blc Nou.A not expect u q iHIoAl ul Il
wooden horse; yet this is u frequent accident in the
case Of the yelocipele. But the sensation is delight
ful. when one has attained skill in the management
Of this animal. The speed, the lightness, the free
dom Of the movement, are quite equal to that Of
horseback riding; and it is proposed to use the con-
trivance largely in the Central Park, the solid,
smooth. and well-kept roads of which offer the great
est advantages for its use.
One enthusiast has gone 81 FIR SO as 70 urre the
adoption of the velocipele in our infantry regiments.
lie urges that it is the most docile, swift, and mex
pensiye Of steeds, requiring neither grooming nor
fodder; and pictures the demoralizing effect Of a
charge of infantry mounted upon velocipedes. and
advancing at the speed OF twenty miles an hour,
with wild yells, upon the enemy.
Another mechanical continuance has been attract
ing considerable attention from the curious. II Is a
German invention, and known by the extraordinary
title Of the Patent Resurrection Coffin 1t Is a
conrrivance designed TO give a man a chance to get
out Of his grave ia case he should chance to be
buriei alive. \ wooden tunnel connects the head of
the coffin with the upper air; in this Is placed a bell.
with IA cord attached to the hand of the burial per-
son; 80 that if he should arouse from n trance, after
burial, rs il has occasionally happened TO people to
be inferred before their time, he can announce his
return to Consciousness by ringing. One can imagine
NA"AN - SeNAA+.AE NAlNAANLNf II At-uS tt u utAI the Z
dead mems bells beginning to ring all around, as
one passed through a graveyard. But this method
Of iuterment is not likely to prevail; it would let the
ghosts loose too easily; and what if a rich mans bell
should be heard to ring after his will had been open
ei to the satisfaction Of his heirs? Not one of them
would bulge, l fear, toward his tomb, ring he never
50 loudly.
The Democratic procession Of last week was a great
success. The vote Of New York, n usual, will show
heavy majority in favor of Seymour and Blair,
next March. But the Democrats themselves cannot
conceal their chagrin at the reverses fore>hadowei by
the recent Maine elections, and by the equally signi-
hcant triumph Of day before yesterday in Pennsylya-
Ohio, and Indiana. Yesterday was a day Of re-
ioicing among New York Republicans. Political
events are powerfully uncertain; if anything can be
beforehand IL Is but the success of the Repub-
lean ticket, in the coming Presidential election.
There has seldom been, at a similar stage in this con-
50 little apparent doubt Of its result. New York
has many conservative Republicans, who preferred
Chase as a Presidential candidate, and were disap-
pointed at the nomination Of Grant; but these are
reconcilcl to the soldier candidate.
The student Of Physiognomy viii hardly, however,
an ideal Presidents lineaments in the features
Of Grant. The unfinching viii, the honesty Of pur-
pose. the tenacity, courage, and endurance which
have made up his military record are there; but not
the broader and serener qualities which one likes 10
find in the leading parsonage Of a great nation. For,
disguise il rs we Will, our American system Of self
IS not Yet - perfect, nor are our people
- tIr developed into tie true spirit Of a Republic,
tina; we clu dispense with a commanding central
character.-a ruler by virtue IF innate merit aud
power. such a figure we had in some Of the earlier
Presidents such a figure We may have again under
more favorable conditions Of development. Mean
while, it j. hardly to be doubted that Grant viii
make a strong and faithful Executive, il not the
leader, Of the popular viii.
The political campaign is not the only one that is
opening with the cool weather. The artists are
gathering in the city, the musical societies have re-
assembled and there i new stirring IN the riyalries
Of literary politics. The German and other choral
societies are particularly active al present. Prepa-
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