The Portland daily press., 1869-03-01
Varieties.

Where do we find the earliest mention of
free admission to the theatre? When Joseph
was led into the pit by his brethren for moth
ing.
I'm Paris it was proposed to issue a medal
on the discovery of the hundredth asteroid;
but before it was half finished two or three adj
ditional ones were discovered. The English
Nautical Almanac now contains one hundred
and five. The stock of classical feminine
names having run out, they are now designat-
ed simply by numbers.
-Jo Daviess County, Illinois, was named in
honor of Joseph Hamilton Daviess of Ken
lucky, who was killed at the battle of Tippe-
canoe. The States of Indiana, Kentucky, and
Missouri have each Daviess County named
in honor of the same person. Some foolish
persons in Illinois are anxious to strike off
the "Jo" from the name of their county, but
1t is to be hoped they will not succeed.
"A practical and economical chaplain at
Madras proposes to cut up the surplicesof his
choir to make shirts for the school children,
and Ritualism is aghast, f.-f
Two "high-toned" gentlemen in Texas re-
Gently had little argument with pistols in
the street, and succeeded in killing q small
boy who was passing.
"A sentimental poet in one of our ex-
changes, who probably intended to speak of
dimples, is made by the vandal printer to say:
"Littls gimgtss 50 sweet and soft,
"A Munich paper says the cheers for Napo-
leon and Eugene at Stuttgart were paid for at
the rate of $5 apiece.
Howard Paul was charged, in ap-Pngnsn
inn, for sheet of paper on wbis,>ne wrote
pass to his performance - tue hnoioru.
w. M. Rossetti = preparing new edition
of Sbellev's -.rKs, with life of the poet. 1t
il assa-.sd that Mrs. Shelley was prevented
s-sm writing her husbands life by the mean
ness of her uncle-in-law, Sir Somebody Shell
ley, who threatened to cut off her loans, on
which she depended for the education of her
son, if she wrote any such book.
Sidney Smith was always pleased with
good retort whether it hit himself or another.
Here is one which he was fond Of relating.
He had been conversing, in the half-bantering
manner in which he was inimitable, with his
vis-a-vis at table, Swiss gentleman Of educa-
ton, connected with his country's embassy at
the Court Of st. James, upon the relative mer-
its of Swiss and English soldiers, and urged
the superiority of the latter, inasmuch as they
fought for honor, while the Swiss fought for
money. 'The fact is" answered the Swiss
gentleman, 1--WE each of us fight for what each
most lacks"
"A very modest and charming lady" re-
Gently confessed to the editor of the Richmond
Enquirer that when visiting New York shs
had seen the notorious "Black Crook" He
asked her whether she thought the exhibition
Objectionable; to which she wittily replied
that she saw no objection to ladies going"
Edmund About wrote the article which
brought prescription upon the Paris GauIOis.
1t was a supposed conversation between
Charlemagne and the Prince Imperial.
-Schul, the French oculist, who recently
died, ordered that he should have no funeral.
"Carry my corpse to the dissecting-room," said
he, "For do not want people in the streets to
salute my carrion."
-"Mr. Kullen," who figures in the last chap
tsrs of Mr.. Owen novel, in Lippincott's Mag
azine, is William j. Mullen, the PHILADELPHIA
prison agent-a character in his way, quite az
peculiar as any in novels.
lie Sage's novel of "Gil Bias and Bull
wers romance of "Riepza," have been respsc-
lively converted into operas by French COM
posers,
"A story is told by Southern gentleman
which runs something like this: During the
attack on Fort Donelson "hard-shell" ex-
horter was holding forth in exalted strains, de-
claring that the Lord fought on the side OF the
South, that Jehovah was encamped around
about the Confederate army, and that it was
impossible for the invading army to conquer
them. Just at the close Of one of those clever
statements man dashed up to the cnurcn on
horseback and cried out "The Yankees hvae
cantured Fort Donelson, and are coming up
the riyer!" "Then, my BRETHREN resumed
tho "usrdsbell," "save yourselves, for the
Lord has got lickedF'
~Tbe Missouri Lunatic Asylum is provided
,r;,b a green house in which there are at all
times. flowers in full bloom. Some of the se-
yerest cases of insanity in men brought to the
institution in irons, and manifesting the most
violent symptoms of this most terrible disor-
der, have been suddenly calmed down to con-
dition bordering on sanity by the presentation
OF bouquet gathered from the greenhouse.
Music is known to possess the power OF calm
ing the most violent lunatic. Between music
and flowers it would appear that all cases Vi
ravng madness can be modified ana anchor
ated, If not thoroughly cured