substances would crowd together in the cen- Sea and Gulf of Mexico, the boilers; the tre, where there is the least motion. So it is Gulf-stream, the conducting-pipe; from the in the great basin of the Atlantic, where the Banks of Newfoundland to the shores of Sargasso Sea forms the centre of the whirl Europe is the great hot-air chamber, spread caused by the circular motion of the equa- out so as to present a large surface. Here torial current and the Gulf-stream. This sea, the heat, conveyed into this warm-air chamsituated about midway in the Atlantic, in ber of mid-ocean, is taken up by the prevailthe triangular space between the Azores, ing west winds, and dispensed over our own Canaries, and Cape de Verd Islands, covering and other countries, where it is so much rea space equal in extent to the valley of the quired. Such, in short, is the influence of Mississippi, is so thickly matted over with a the Gulf-stream upon our climate, that Irepeculiar weed (Fucus natans), that the speed land is clothed in robes of evergreen grass; of vessels passing through it is often greatly while in the very same latitude, on the retarded. To the eye, at a short distance, it American side of the Atlantic, is the frostseems substantial enough to walk upon, and bound coast of Labrador. In 1831, the harcountless hosts of small crustacea dwell on this bor of St. John's, Newfoundland, was closed curious carpet of the ocean. Columbus sailed with ice so late in the season as June; yet through it, on his first voyage of discovery, the port of Liverpool, two degrees further in spite of the terrors of his less adventurous north, has never been closed by frost in the companions, who believed that it marked the severest winter. The Laplander cultivates limits of navigation; and its position has not barley in a latitude which, in every other altered since that time. This Sargasso, or part of the world, is doomed to perpetual Sea of Lentils, as the Spaniards first termed it, has a historical interest. In the celebrated bull of Pope Alexander VI. in 1493, when he divided the world between the Spaniards and the Portuguese, he decreed that the Sargasso Sea was to be their mutual boundary to all eternity!

The waters of the Gulf-stream do not, in any part of their course, touch the bottom of the sea. They are everywhere defended from so comparatively good a conductor of heat by a cushion of cold water, one of the best of non-conductors. Consequently, but little heat is lost, and the genial warmth is carried thousands of miles to fulfil its destined purposes.

sterility. The benefit thus conferred on our country by the Gulf-stream is a remarkable accident in our condition. It obviously depends on the Gulf of Mexico continuing to be a gulf, which, however, it might easily cease to be. A subsidence of the Isthmus of Panama to the extent of a couple of hundred feet

-and such subsidences have taken place in geological times all over the world would allow the equatorial current of the Atlantic to pass through into the Pacific, instead of being reflected back to our coasts. Britain would then become a Labrador, and cease to be the seat of a numerous and powerful people.

While the Gulf-stream is covering our On a winter-day, the temperature of the shores with verdure, ripening the harvests stream, as far north as Cape Ilatteras, is from of England and the vintage of France, its intwenty to thirty degrees higher than the fluence is equally beneficial at its fountainwater of the surrounding ocean. Even after head in the western world. The Caribbean flowing 3000 miles, it preserves in winter the Sea and the Gulf of Mexico are encompassed heat of summer. With this temperature it on one side by the chain of West India crosses the fortieth degree of north latitude, Islands, and on the other by the Cordilleras and there overflowing its liquid banks, spreads of the Andes, contracting with the Isthmus itself out, for thousands of square leagues, of Darien, and again expanding over the over the cold waters around, covering the plains of Central America and Mexico. On ocean with a mantle of warmth, to mitigate the extreme summits of this range are the the climate of our high northern latitude. regions of eternal snow; next in descent is Moving now more slowly, but dispensing its the tierra templada, or temperate region; and genial influence more freely, it at last meets lower still is what the Spaniards truly and the British islands. By these it is divided, emphatically have termed tierra caliente, the one part going into the polar basin of Spitz- burning land. Descending still lower is the bergen, the other entering the bay of Biscay; level of the sea, where, were it not for this but each with a warmth considerably above wonderful system of aqueous circulation, the the ocean temperature. peculiar features of the surrounding country Modern ingenuity has suggested a well-assure us we should find the hottest and most known method of warming buildings, by pestilential climate in the world. But as means of hot water. Now, the north-western the waters become heated, they are carried parts of Europe are warmed, in an exactly off by the Gulf-stream, and replaced by similar manner, by the Gulf-stream. The cooler currents entering the Caribbean Sea. torrid zone is the furnace; the Caribbean The surface-water flowing out is four degrees

warmer than the surface-water entering to supply its place.

As in a hot-water apparatus for warming a building to keep up the simile the tucket whaling-captain named Folger, who water cooled in the hot-air chamber flows back to the boiler; so one part of the waters of the Gulf-stream, after giving out their heat, flow towards the equatorial current, the other to the polar basin of Spitzbergen. The secrets of the arctic regions are hidden by impenetrable ice; but we know that a returncurrent, bearing immense icebergs, comes down from the dreary north, through Davis' Strait, and meets the Gulf-stream at the banks of Newfoundland. Scoresby counted at one time six hundred icebergs starting off on their southward journey by this current, which, pressing on the waters of the Stream, curves its channel into a "bend," in shape resembling a horse-shoe, and some hundreds of miles in This bend is the great receptacle or harbor of the icebergs which drift down from the north, and are here melted by the warm waters of the Stream. Who dare say that, in the course of ages, the Banks of Newfoundland have not been formed by the earth, stones, and gravel carried down to that spot by these very icebergs?

area.

Such is the distinctness kept up between the warm and cold water, that, though the northern current forms a large bend or indenitation in the Gulf-stream, it does not commingle with it; the former here divides into two partsone actually under-running the stream, the other flowing south-westerly between it and the coast of America. It is this last branch of the cold current that affords the citizens of the United States a refreshing sea-bathing in summer, and an unlimited supply of the finest fish. In all parts of the world, the most plentiful supply and most delicious quality of fish are found in cold water. The habitat of certain kinds of fish unerringly indicates the temperature of the water; and it is highly probable that cold currents are the great pathways along which migratory fishes travel from one region to

another.

and badly-manned vessels, to say nothing of the extra distance between London and Falmouth. He accordingly consulted a Nanhappened to be in London at the time. Folger immediately explained the mystery by stating, that the Rhode Island trading-captains were acquainted with the course of the Gulf-stream, while those of the English packet-service were not. The latter kept in it, and were set back from sixty to seventy miles per day, while the former merely ran across it. At the request of Franklin, the Nantucket whaler traced the course of the stream, and the doctor had it engraved, and sent copies to the Falmouth captains, who treated the communication with contempt. This course of the Stream, as laid down by Folger, has been retained in our charts almost to the present day. Who, we might ask, taught this unscientific Nantucket whaler so correct a course of this mighty current, then so little known? It was the whales, the gigantic prey he followed in the ocean. The right whale (Balæna mysticetus), as seamen term it, never enters the warm water of the Gulf-stream: it, as well as the warm waters of the torrid zone, is as a wall of fire to these creatures. But they delight to congregate, seeking for food, along the edges of the Stream; and thus Folger, through the experience of many voyages, was enabled so correctly to denote its course.

Our space warns us to conclude, ere we have scarcely passed the threshold of this interesting subject. But we must observe, that the Gulf-stream of the Atlantic has its counterpart in the Pacific. The latter flows out of the Straits of Malacca, just as the Atlantic current flows out of the Straits of Florida. The coast of China is its United States; the Philippines, its Bermudas; the Japanese islands, its Newfoundland. The climates of the Asiatic coast correspond with those of America along the Atlantic; and those of Columbia, Washington, and Vancouver, are duplicates of those of Western Europe and the British islands; the climate of California reThough the Gulf-stream was noticed by sembles that of Spain; and the sandy plains Sir Humphrey Gilbert in the sixteenth cen- and rainless regions of Lower California retury, we are indebted to the celebrated Dr. mind us of Africa. The course of this China Franklin for the first chart of its course. Stream has not yet been traced out, but it Being in London in 1770, his attention was sets southwardly along the coast of Califorcalled to a memorial which the Board of Cus-nia and Mexico, as the Gulf-stream does along toms at Boston had sent to the Lords of the the west coast of Africa to the Cape Verd 18Treasury, stating that the Falmouth packets lands. This current, too, has its Sargasso were generally a fortnight longer on their Sea; to the west, from California, of the voyage to Boston than common trading-vessels southwardly set, lies the pool in which the were from London to Rhode Island. They drift-wood and sea-weed of the North Pacific therefore begged that the Falmouth packets are gathered. Inshore of, but counter to, should be sent to Providence instead of to the China Stream, along the eastern shores Boston. This appeared very strange to of Asia, is found a current of cold water, reFranklin, as the traders were deeply-laden sembling that between the Gulf-stream and

the American coast. It, too, like its coun- is a new world spread out when he enters on terpart, is the nursery of most valuable fish- his first voyage. As his education has fitted, eries. The fisheries of Japan are as valuable so will he perceive, year by year, that his in the east as those of Newfoundland in the west. Thus the people of widely distant regions are indebted for their supplies of excelfent fish to the cold waters which the currents of the sea carry to their shores.

COMING EVENTS IN ROME.-'T IS ALL ONE TO ME.-AUTUMN. 557

From "Egeria, and other Poems," by CHARLES MACKAY.

COMING EVENTS IN ROME.
ROME imperial! Rome majestic!
Shade of greatness, vanished all-
Looking down th' abyss of ages
To behold thy rise and fall,
We can trace upon thy forehead,
Queen and wonder of thy day,
Broadly marked the awful sentence
"Pass away!'

Great, but wicked-fair, but cruel-
Sceptered mischief, worshipped long:
Never yet did men or nations

Prosper finally in wrong.
Justice did her work upon thee,
Mightier than thine her sway,
'Twas her voice pronounced thy judgment-
"Pass away!"

He who has money has cares not a few,
And he who has none can sleep the night through.

He who has money can squint at the fair,
And he who has none escapes from much care.

He who has money can go to the play,
And he who has none at home can stay.

He who has money can travel about,
And he who has none can go without.

He who has money can be coarse as he will,
And he who has none can be coarser still.

He who has money can eat oyster meat,
And he who has none the shell can eat.

He who has money can drink foreign wine,
And he who has none with the gout will not pine.

He who has money the cash must pay,
And he who has none, says, " Charge it, pray!"

He who has money keeps a dog if he please,
And he who has none is not troubled with fleas.
He who has money must die one day,
And he who has none must go the same way.

O, 't is all one to me, all one,

Whether I've money, or whether I've none !

AUTUMN.

BY JOHN MALCOMB.

SWEET Sabbath of the year,

While evening shades decay,
Thy parting steps methinks I hear
Steal from the world away.

Amid thy silent bowers

'Tis sad, but sweet, to dwell;

Where falling leaves and drooping flowers
Around me breathe "Farewell."

Along thy sunset skies

Their glories melt in shade;

And, like the things we fondly prize,
Seem lovelier as they fade.

A deep and crimson streak

Thy dying leaves disclose;
As on Consumption's waning cheek,
'Mid ruin, blooms the rose.
Thy scene each vision brings
Of beauty in decay;
Of fair and early-faded things,
Too exquisite to stay;

Of joys that come no more,

Of flowers whose bloom is fled,
Of farewells wept upon the shore,
Of friends estranged or dead;
Of all that now may seem,
To Memory's tearful eye,
The vanished beauty of a dream,
O'er which we gaze and sigh.

From The Spectator.

TAYLOR'S VISIT TO INDIA, CHINA, AND

JAPAN.*

not been seen before, and under more advantageous conditions of leisure. He however

saw things with an American eye; which is a source both of novelty and interest. He has also the skill or knack of a practised littérateur, and knows what to select from the objects that pass before him, as well as how to present them in a forcible and lively manner. It is scarcely possible to separate the descriptions of travel from the character of the traveller; and not the least continuously interesting portion of Mr. Taylor's narrative

THE two years and four months travel of which this volume forms the closing part, exhibit the same resolute energy as the author's Views Afoot, when, through many hardships and privations, he performed the grand tour of Europe as a pedestrian, from lack of means to employ a more expensive mode of locomotion. Central Africa and the White Nile formed the first field of exploration in his present travels of fifty thousand miles. The is that where he had the least opportunity of more familiar regions of Palestine, Sicily, and Spain, occupied his second volume. The third and last embraces the overland voyage to Bombay, extensive journeying in India, a visit to China, and a voyage to Loo Choo and Japan.

The resolute go-ahead character of the man is the most prominent characteristic of the volume. Mr. Taylor had made up his mind to see the Himalayas and visit the principal cities of India. When he began to count the cost at Bombay, he found he had not the means to travel in the usual manner. Nothing daunted, he resolved to proceed without a servant, trusting to about twenty words of Hindostanee he had picked up, and making his first journey to Indore in a banghy cart. a sort of" parcel express." It was a springless vehicle, with very indifferent sitting accommodation; pursued its journey day and night with a few occasional halts, some of them caused by a break-down; and thus, over mountain, through jungle, or along table-land, our author performed his first stage of 375 miles. From Indore to Agra he travelled in the mail-cart, a quicker but not more comfortable vehicle. After viewing the wonders of the city of Akbar, he departed for Delhi and the Himalayas; though he had only a month to do the mountains, Lucknow in the kingdom of Oude, Allahabad, Benares, and Calcutta, before starting in the steamer for Hongkong. And Mr. Taylor did them all; abandoning on the great trunk-road his previous mode of travel for dawk- that is, a palanquin with relays.

seeing much,- namely, his journeys day and
night in the parcel and mail carts, when the
rapidity of movement, the frequent small ad-
ventures, and the endurance of the traveller,
sustain the reader's attention.
There are
many other passages of mark. The first
glimpse of the Himalayas is a piece of descrip-
tion, real, distinct, and graphic; so are some
of the nearer views. The sketches on the
roads and in the larger towns bring the dense
and busy population of India well before the
mind. The numerous Hindoo antiquities are
vividly described-perhaps more favorably
than they deserve. Of the Hindoos Mr.
Taylor seems to have formed a worse opinion
than has been formed by many with better
means of judging. Familiarity, however,
affects the judgment both ways.
If it brings
out virtues which are at first overlooked, it
blunts the perception to customary vices.
There are some remarks on the pros and cons
of British rule in India, moderate in them-
selves, and prefaced by an apology for the
short time and scanty opportunities possessed
by the writer. This is the first broad con-
clusion:

My previous notions of English rule in India were obtained chiefly from the articles on the subject in the progressive newspapers of England, and were, I need hardly say, unfavorable. The American press is still more unsparing in its denunciations, though very the nature of the wrongs over which they grow few of the writers have any definite idea of so indignant. That there are wrongs and abuses which call for severe reprehension, is undeniable; but I have seen enough to satisfy me that, in spite of oppression, in some instances of the most grinding character; in spite of that spirit of selfish aggrandizement which first set on foot and is still prosecuting the subjugation of India, the country has By Bayard Taylor, author of Life and Landscapes from prospered under English government. Egypt, &c. &c. Published by Low and Co. far from regretting the progress of annexa

A rapid journey under such circumstances must of necessity be superficial in its observation. Mr. Taylor could see little that had

A Visit to India, China, and Japan, in the year 1853.

So

2