The Portland daily press., 1868-09-05
ariet1cs.


Recent letters from Simmons, the sculp-
tor, state that himself and wife are in excellent
health, being now at Florence where he has
already begun work on study for his statue
of Roger Williams. Simmons will leave for
Rome in October.
The extracts from leading London papers,
reported by the Atlantic cable, show pat John
Bull is very much dissatisfied with the Chi
nese-American treaty. That class of English
merchants who think GLAND should be dom
iuant in China, and eventually rule it as she
does India, are of course il-pleased to see the
United States establish powerful influence
there. 1t is gratifying, however, 10 read the
Times's magnanimous declaration that Eng
land will not go to war with us for making
such treaties with other powers as we please.
Mr. Charles Reade is again on the ram
page. He has written letter to the editor of
Once Week, in which he belabors with his
fiercest epithets those journals which have Cir
culated the story that his novel of "Foul Play
was plagiarism from French drama, and
threatens very loudly to sue them for libel.
Mr.. Reade appears to be fond of libel suits, but
one would hot suppose that his experience
kind to encourage further attempts of the
kind. The truth is Reade is the vainest man
alive, unless it be Alexander Dumas, and the
latter has the advantage of being perfectly
good -natured, while Reade is as fractions as a
poodle dog, and cannot bear word of censure
or ridicule. This is the way in which he talks
about his little stealings:
great work of fiction is written: it is rich
in invention and novel combination; but, as
men OF genius have a singularly keen appre-
citation of all that is good, and can pick out
pearls where obscure scribblers could see moth
ing but rubbish, the author has, perhaps, bor-
rowed one or two things from other written
sources, and Incorporated them happily with
the bulk of his invention.
How cruel to call that plagiarism
The following is Soames Jenyns's epitaph
on Johnson:
"Here lies Sam johnson reader have a care,
Tread lightly, last you wake a sleeping bear;
Religious, moral, generous and humane
He was but ,elfsufficient, prond and vain;
Fond Of, and Overbearing in dispute,
A Christian and a scholar-but brute"
"A Wisconsin paper says lynx chas-
ed little girl through Agoma street.
in Oshkosh, the other day. The girl took
refuge in a neighborng cabin, and the lynx
was treed by dog and finally shot by sports
man who chanced to he passing
The Boston Transcript denies, on authors
| ty, the statement that the late Thomas Starr
King ever wrote play for Miss Salle Brown
son Goodrich, or anybody else.
| The dangers and accidents of Alpine trav-
ell are greater than usual this year, the sum-
mer having been unprecedented for length and
severity of the hot weather. The glaciers
have melted rapidly, and the Rhone has been
in a high flood for many weeks But already
on the 7th OF August the sixth party of tour
lists for this year made the grand ascension"
| to the summit of Mont Blanc.
The British Association for the advance
ment af Science began its thirty-eighth annu-
| al session at Norwich, England, on the 10Th f
| August. The opening address, delivered y
DIR. Hooker, president of the. Association, t.
| traeted much attention, in consequence of its
bold discussion of controverted points. DIR.
Hooker discussed the position now held in the
scientific world by Mr.. Darwin's theory of the
origin of species by natural selection, and con-
tended that the treatise was not, as had been
asserted, declining in scientific favor but so
| far from being thing of the past, was an ac-
cepted doctrine with every philosophical natu-
ralist, was elsewhere gaining adherents steadi-
| ly, and was an avowed favorite with the rising
schools of naturalists. This assertion was
borne out by elaborate statements and illus
trations, by which objections taken to the sys-
tenn on geological, astronomical, physical, and
metaphy ysical grounds were answered.
| "A German publisher advertses transla-
ton OF Oliver Wendell Holiness last novel
/ A.. no hot eb of
work has given him exclusive authority to is
sue a German version of the book.
DIR. Nelaton Ihas been made a Senator Of
France He is the first practicing physician
who has received that honor.
The Chicago Republican of Monday says:
s'The cattle disease is now abating The 'pe-
cific poison, whatever it was, which pervaded
the system of those unsound cattle, is now yield
ing to medical treatment, and any cattle in
the neighborhood of Chicago affected by the
disease are in a fair way of being cured by
proper treatment
Discomfort is apparent among the lower
classes in Rome. Tnere has been a strike OF
the bakers, followed by strike of the fish,
| vendors, and now troubles have broken out in
the printing Office of the Apostolic Chamber,
where the workmen, hitherto prov rbial for
their loyalty, are said to entertain revolutiona-
rv sentiments The authorities are very un-
easv and the Roman police daily make arrests
in the suburban osterids, or public houses.
As George II. Pendleton, of Ohio, was
leaving the platform recently, after delivering
one of his most vigorous speeches, he was ac-
costed by a one-armed man. who stepped up
to him and said: "Mr. PeDdleton, allow me to
congratulate you on the excellence of your
speech. 1 can well appreciate it, as lost this
arm in defence of the principles you advocate,
at the same time holding up to view the stump
of his arm. "Ah" said Mr.. Pendleton with
bland smile. "Yes, sir" said the ex-soldier,
81 lost that arm while fighting in the South
ern army against the Abolition Government.
Mr.. Pendieton walked Off rather confused
but the soldier reflected his sentiments truly.
A fellow at Liege did not want to fight, so
he dressed himself as girl and went out to
service to avoid CONSUMPTION.