The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1869-04-11
ARTS, scIENcEs, ETC.

( an Underground Riper.-Midway between
I Donegal and Ballyshannon q very singular
phenomenon may be- seen, Running
| through the grounds of Major Hamilton is
a small river, which bores its way under
ground, from cavern to cavern, for nearly
/ two miles. The cayerns are formed in the
! limestone, and the power of petrifaction
| possessed by the wateris very astonishing.
| Sticks, straws, leaves, etc, are soon coated
and crusted over, and by degrees hardened
/ into stone and so rapid is this process,
that we may see one half of the same leaf
or moss green and growing, and the other
half crusted over in the process of petri-
faction. The caves are, some of them, very
beautiful, and when lighted up by the aid
of fragment of magnesium wire, the
effect is most brilliant and striking, the
walls sparkling as though studded by connt-
less diamonds In one CT them the river
makes a fine waterfall. The roof of the
cavern is broken, and as the spectator
stands in the subdued green light looking
up through mass of ferns and stems of
trees, with the hoarse roar of the waterfall
plungipg into ansunseen depth, through a
cloud of mist at his feet, the dim cave
partially lighted up around, but dark and
mysterious in it's recesses, the effect is in
expressibly charming-it lisa perfect cham
Der of romance, and one can fancy super
stition formerly holding high court here.
Almost equally striking, in another way,
is the manner in which the river once more
makes its appearance into the light; yelling
up from a dark unfathomable- looking hole
under o wide rift of rock: stealthily emer-
ging from the ground, it oozes forth in a
stitl elaek stfeatf-ss vcrfitubfg kgfpie 8 hole,
about which, if legends do not exist,Zit=is
certainly high time that they did, as most
eligible opportunity has been hitherto IN
aecountabfy neglected..
The French Sir Manufacture.--The art
of weaving was not introduced into
nr,til I'D Nf
century. Louis XII. naturalised the art in
France, and established small mandatory
at Lyons. In 1470 a colony of italian
weayers founded a mandatory at Tours =
this is still in existence, but it was owing
to Francis /. that the Lyons trade received
a stimulus which led to efforts and success
es that have given France the first place
among silk manufacturing nations. In
dignant ut the idea of hiscountry's inferior
ity to italy in the aftSof silk-weaving, he
increased the privileges granted by Louis
XII, and made(the attractive offer of ex-
emption from taxation, license to carry
swords, and the valuable parliamentary
privilege of freedom from arrest for debt.
This evidently proved too great a tempta-
ton for the Italians, whe, headed by
Turqueti and Nariz, tlocked into France,
and in 1900 the Due de Sully devoted
considerable exeTtions to the extension of
the Lyons trade. He planted the mulberry
trees at Paris, Orleans, Tours, and sent
boys to Italy to learn the art. These lads
were apprenticed at the government ex-
pense; thus, on their return, a new impetus
was given to the trade, but the throwing
loom of DaugOn, and the Jacquard loom of
the famous inventor, "made," in modern
parlance, the silk trade of Lyons.
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The popularity of their Church bill viii
not countervail the great dissatisfaction
with which the conduct of the Government
is regarded, both in the case of the political
rnr-isnlners AND Nth rnfarnnnn In the antnsa