The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1871-05-10

Chinese ackno aladged they did no,
maEs it. They brought it homo from
some foreign conquest. Asd that il
not singular in Chiacso history for
the celebrated astronomical glasses OF
the Chinese Of which we used to Q I'd
10 school days were not made by them
showing that they stole them, and did
not make them.
Tho second story is Roman. 1t was
in the reign of Tiberias who was
contemporary with St. Paul. A
S1nished Roman claimed his pardon
because hs brought to the Emperor
g.eat curiosity. 1t Wan glass cup
which he flung down on the pavement
and it was broken, but crushed by the
hloR. He took it up, aud with IL
hammer restored it to shape. 1t was
mallcablo glass, transfhte4t but
not brittle. ! VAS making this
statement once in Now Haven
ii the presence of the eldor
Professor Silliman. He was kind
enough, after I had fni i,hed; to corhe
to tho platform aid said he was fam,l.
lar with most of my statements but
referring to malleable glasss. he re-
marked, 81 cannot conceive the
amount Of evidence that would lead
me II believe it,. its possibility" l
could only remind him ,EHt re, got
chemistry from the Arabiaus. They
brought it into Spain eight centuries
ago, and in their books the Arabs
claimed that they cculd make mallea-
bio glass. AZ the present moment in
Frauce there is a kind Of glass three
huudred years old. You take a piece
Of il and fasten the ends together, and
it will form into an arch like bit Of
lead. 1t is three hundred years cid,
brilliant and transparent, aud yet il
can be beut like metal. Either
originally il had this quality, or iu
the lapse of years it has acquired it.
But these two are statements.
When you 90 to Rome they viii shS9a
you bit Of glass like the bottom tF
this ,umbler solid glass. 1t is about
as large a crab apple. You may ring
it as you would any bit Of unaawed
glass. II has no crack no joint, no flaw
in it ; hnt ~hen you lock g! it, in the
centre is drop Of glass about as large
as marrow-fat pea, shaped like duck,
exquisi,c,y modelled, and the colors
of the pIumage beautifully rendered.
A miniature pencil could not do it
better. One wing is slightly lifted.
When You put the whole mass under
microscope, you perceive that the
feathcred edge Of this wing, aud the
bill Of tho little creature, are not dull
like the edge Of this tumbler. All
glass put through the anncaliug fur
mace is dull. This is not dull, it is
sharp-sharp as the edges Of cameo
Now, evidently, the little creature
must have been made and then this
liquid glass poured arouud it, much
greater degree of heat than that Of an
annealipg furnace, and yet he retains
his sharp odge.
When I was at Naples. I saw
n glass cameo about as large as my
hand. The groundwork was purple !;
the figures were whi,o. 1t was god
dss5. atteudcd by her nymphs. The
outline, and obviously the edges of the
hair, were all sharp, and could not
have been filed no appearance of n
file, but sharp and yet, the last pro.
cess Must have been annealing. They
mahaged to combine the beauties Of
the gem with the beauties Of glass,
which we cannot do. Then, again, the
very imitation Of gems, their color
et glass is beyond US. The Jews, in
Paris, will almost deceive the most
cunning dealcr ia gems and yet
their limitations of gems are utterly
inferior to those that remain of the
Egyptaihs :, J..
, churches. We have fine specimens Of
them here. In Europe. they hare
still moro splendid specimens You
have seen windows half as large as
! the walI Behind tpsi repres ,n.iug the
Colossal figure of tho Apostles, or q
series of illustrations of stories from
tho Gid Testament or the New.
These are the. windows of who'll the
| Italians say, "Man never made them
God let them down from heaven for
the delight OF ht5 saints.', Those
arc the winduTs Of WHICH Milton
says:
ri love the hisf embowed roof.
With nntic pillars massey proof.
And s'oried windows, richly digit
| Casting dim. religious light"
Now, wherc an accident or storm has
broken p,ne or two, and the modern
artist has replaced them, the now gidss
German or Freuch, is utterly insipid
ia the neighborhood of tho old. and
that has borne the storms Of three
hundred ears. Aud that is nothing
to tho Egyptian. Youmay take a b,i
of Egyptian glass as large as my hand
| with picture on it; you may saw j,
into layers as you divide book int.
losves, aud every layer will have {
nerfecG picture /: showing that the,