paintings of the Sixtine Chapel, and had retreated with his arms folded on his breast, to contemplate his immortal work, did not feel a livelier or a deeper joy.

"If the beautiful lady could see the portrait of Fido!" said he to himself, "perhaps she would be satisfied with me."

was.

To do him justice, this feeling of intoxication lasted but a few days. He soon understood how inferior and unworthy his dog the sketch really He effaced it, and tried to draw a sheep. In this he succeeded somewhat better. He had already gained experience; nevertheless, the charcoal crumbled away between his fingers, and the badly-planed plank destroyed the correctness of his outline.

"If I had paper and pencil," thought he, "I should do better; but how can I get them ?"

Petit Pierre had forgotten his riches. He recollected them; and one day, confiding his flock to the care of a comrade, he went boldly to the nearest town, entered a bookseller's shop, and asked for the necessary materials for drawing. The shopkeeper, wondering, gave him paper, and pencils of various kinds. Petit Pierre, happy in having accomplished so heroic and difficult a task, returned to his sheep, and, without neglecting his duty, gave to drawing the whole of the time that the other shepherds employed in playing the pipe, in carving in wood, or in laying snares for birds.

Without knowing why, he often conducted his flock to the place where he had sat for the young lady, but long without seeing her again. Was Petit Pierre, then, really in love with her? No, certainly, not in the sense which is generally attached to the word. Such a love was far too impossible; for the humblest and the timidest heart must have a gleam of hope to grow towards; and Petit Pierre, a simple shepherdboy as he was, felt there was an insurmountable abyss between the poor, ragged, ignorant rustic, and the beautiful and rich young lady. Can any one but a madman ever think of loving a queen? Is any one but a poet unhappy at not embracing the moon or stars? Petit Pierre never even thought of love. The lady, as he always called her, appeared to his mind's eye as a radiant and celestial creature, with a gold pencil in her hand; and he adored her with the fervent devotion that the Catholics of the middle ages had for the holy Virgin. was the Beatrice and the Laura of his muse.

She

One day he heard the gallop of a horse among the stones. Fido gave a loud bark, and in a few minutes he saw a lady whipping a furious horse, that had ran away with her, endeavouring to turn him back to his road; but the untractable and, probably, affrighted animal, careless of whip or rein, continued his course towards the dale, and at last, with a violent effort, threw his lovely burden against a stone, just as Petit Pierre, who had hastily sprang down the hill, came near him. The violence of the blow caused her to swoon, and Petit Pierre, paler than the unfortunate object of his pity, hastened to a pool and, to the great fright of a little green frog who had chosen the spot for his bathing place, took up a little of the pure water, which he threw over the colourless features of the lady. Sorrowfully he perceived a slight stream of red mingling with the blue veins of her temples, and he hastily pulled out his little check handkerchief, and attempted to stop

the blood, which now began to flow apace. For a moment, her senses returned. She opened her eyes, and threw our young hero a glance of thankfulness, which penetrated his very soul,

This scene, however, was not of long duration; for soon her friends arrived at the spot, placed her in their carriage, and all disappeared. The shepherd carefully preserved the precious relic, so unexpectedly obtained, and in the evening went to the great house to enquire for the lady. The wound was not dangerous. The good news once more calmed the poor fellow, who, since he had seen the young lady carried away, pale and inanimate, seemed to have lost all hope.

The season advanced; the inhabitants of the Chateau returned to Paris, and Petit Pierre, although he only saw the departure at a distance, felt himself friendless and lonely. His only consolation, henceforth, was, in his moments of sorrow, to pull out the handkerchief he had used to stop the effusion of blood and kiss the stains it had made. He drew incessantly, and had nearly exhausted his stock of paper. His progress had been rapid for he had had no master, nor any system to interpose between him and nature. He drew whatever he saw, and effaced and corrected with assiduity. True, his drawings were still very rude, very barbarous, yet full of simplicity and feeling; for his pure heart and his melancholy gave him, in the midst of his solitude, that without which no artist can ever excel-sentiment. Sometimes, in his dreams, he saw the beautiful lady would lend him the gold pencil with the sparkling point, and he then sketched the most marvelously beautiful pictures; but in the morning, all had vanished. His pencil rebelled, the forms he drew from had become indistinct, and his efforts to reproduce them failed.

(To be concluded in our next.)

STONEHOUSE MECHANICS' INSTITUTE.

WE feel great pleasure in announcing, that the question of forming a Mechanics' Institute is now being agitated in Stonehouse. We will not at this moment enlarge upon the value and importance of such institutions to the public, as in some late numbers of our last volume we published a series of valuable papers on that subject. Stonehouse is, for its own interest, unfortunately situated, as it has on either side a large and populous town. From its locality, it is necessarily a second-rate town, and this fact has a very depressing effect on the general exertions of its inhabitants. No fact can more clearly demonstrate the truth of this remark than this;- Stonehouse with ten thousand inhabitants, including a great number of wealthy and highly respectable individuals, having also three important government establishments, the Naval Hospital, the Military Barracks, and the Victualling Yard,-has no public institution; no Mechanics' Institute, no Dispensary, no Hospital, no Orphan Asylum,-nothing to give it weight or influence excepting the character of its inhabitants generally. Stonehouse affords a very large amount of support to most of the institutions in the neighbouring towns. Could it not apply its own funds primarily to its own aggrandizement, to increase its own im

portance? Like many of our parliamentary towns, it has, unfortunately, been the arena for the exhibition of a vast deal of party-feeling, party-animosities, and party-recrimination. Hence a broad line of demarcation exists between the various political classes of its inhabitants. This is a state of things greatly opposed to the well-being of the town, and, we are happy to say, greatly deplored. The formation of a Mechanics' Institute offers a good opportunity for an entire reconciliation of the above parties. An institution so eminently calculated for the moral, social, and intellectual improvement of the inhabitants generally, will, we sincerely trust, prove a standard which all will, with one heart and voice, support. "Since trifles make the sum of earthly things," let mutual forbearance and good judgment be exercised, Let the exertions of all prove but one shoulder; and with such mighty help, the wheel must turn smoothly and with efficiency.

Plymouth and Devonport will, we hope and believe, aid in the good cause, uninfluenced by any consideration of a selfish character, and afford, with their intellect and talent, that support which a newlyfledged institute must naturally require.

Why should the youth of Stonehouse be obliged to go nearly a mile and half to hear a lecture of a winter's night? Why should parents permit such an hiatus to be felt in Stonehouse? Why, if they wish to read the periodicals, must they go to their sister towns?

Stonehouse has already talent which is made available by the adjoining institutions. Much more, it is well known, it is able to boast of; but we ask, is there not in Stonehouse-is there not in every town-latent or dormant talent, which only requires the encouragement afforded by a literary institution to be developed?

We heartily wish the promoters of this scheme success; and we say, let them not be too greatly elated by sanguine promises of support, so as to relax in their energy; neither let them be too depressed by the lukewarmness or open opposition of a few, if such they should experience.

GUN COTTON.

THE first public announcement of the discovery was made at the meeting of the Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society, held at Falmouth, in the first week of September last.

It was stated that it had been the intention of Professor Schoubein to have introduced it to the meeting personally, but that an engagement to test its value for ordnance purposes, on the part of the government, prevented his anticipated visit.

A sample of the gun cotton which had been forwarded by the Professor was experimented on privately. Its properties were generally discussed; but it was not exhibited in public.

At the meeting of the British Association held at Southampton in the same month, Professor Schoubein himself exhibited the properties of this remarkable substance.

The general impression from the manner of announcement was that it was a perfectly new discovery; but early in October, the attention of the public was directed to the fact that a substance possessing similar

properties to the gun cotton might be manufactured by a process described as far back as 1833 by Braconnot, and again in 1838 by Pelouze in the Comptes Rendus. The substance produced was called Xyloidine. Pelouze says, "it is very combustible, taking fire at 356° Fahrenheit, burning with great rapidity, and almost without residue."

66

This property has led me to an experiment which I think susceptible of some applications, especially in artillery. By plunging paper of sp. gr. 1·5, leaving it there the requisite time for the acid to permeate the paper, which is usually accomplished in two or three minutes, then withdrawing it, and lastly washing it in water, we obtain a kind of parchment, impermeable to moisture and extremely combustible.

"The same thing happens with tissues of linen or cotton. The paper or the tissues thus submitted to the action of the nitric acid, owe their new properties to the Xyloidine which covers them." The Xylodine was in the first place prepared by dissolving starch in nitric acid and added to the solution water, which causes the precipitation of it in the form of a white powder.

M. Dumas, in his "Traite de Chimée appliquée aux Arts," published in 1843, describes Xyloidine, proposes to call it Nitramidine, and adverts to its utility in fire-work pieces and fires for mines.

From these facts, then, it would appear that unless Professor Schoubein's gun cotton is made in some other manner than by the process now generally adopted, which is a modification of Pelouze's process, he can have no claim either as the original discoverer of the substance, or as the suggester of its application to artillery, and for blasting in mines. Whatever may be the agent he employs for converting the cotton wool into an explosive substance, yet it clearly appears that this substance was previously used as the base of an explosive agent.

Although the gun cotton was brought under the notice of the public early in September, yet it appears that the Professor did not obtain a patent for it until the 10th of October. He has stated in the public prints, that his gun cotton is an entirely different substance from the gun cotton which has been so much experimented with in public recently. If this be the case, we shall eventually see more than one sort of gun cotton in the market, for the patent will serve only to protect that of which he is himself the bona fide discoverer.

It appears that Messrs. Hall, of Dartford, gunpowder manufacturers, have purchased the patent, and they have advertised the sale of it at an early period.

The manner in which Professor Schoubein brought the matter before the public, induced many persons to incur considerable expense in experimenting, with a view to render the article practically useful. The announcement of his having applied for and obtained a patent at so late a period, occasioned no small amount of surprise.

M. Morel has obtained a patent for the gun cotton in France; but Dr. Otto, Professor of Chemistry in Brunswick, published the process, disclaiming any desire to obtain a patent.

Gun cotton may be prepared from the strong nitric acid alone; but it is obtained of best quality when prepared by soaking well-dried and carded cotton wool, in equal measures of nitric acid, sp. gr. 1·45 to 1.52, and of sulphuric 1.82 to 1.86. Half a minute is sufficient for its im

mersion, the acid should then be pressed out, and the excess of acid immediately washed off under a strong stream of water.

Immersion finally in a weak solution of common washing soda, and rincing through water, insures the complete removal of the excess of acid, and produces a better article than can otherwise be obtained.

As much water as possible should be removed by compression, and it should then be slowly dried by exposure, in thin layers in a dry warm room. When of good quality, it cannot at first sight be distinguished from the raw material; but on handling it, it is found to have a harsher feeling than the raw cotton. If tolerably dry, the slightest friction will cause a considerable crackling sound, and in the dark, abundant bright scintillations of electrical light are observable. Saw-dust may be prepared in the same manner, only allowing a longer time for its immersion in the mixed acids; but it cannot be obtained of as great explosive power as the cotton. White blotting paper prepared in the same manner, undergoes a remarkable change, being converted into a parchmentlike substance, peculiarly distinguished for its electrical properties. If a strip of the prepared paper be simply drawn through the thumb and finger, it becomes so highly electrical, that it is immediately attracted by surrounding objects; and if allowed to pass over to the wall, it will adhere to it for some time. Cotton thread prepared in this manner, is found to be a better insulator than silk.

Gunpowder explodes at a temperature of 600° Fahrenheit, the gun cotton at 356°.

A portion of the gun cotton placed on a heap of powder, may be exploded without igniting the latter.

The gun cotton produces neither smoke nor smell; and if properly prepared by carding, leaves not the slighest residue when fired on white paper. It may be exploded by a flame or spark, at a temperature of 356° without_access to flame, by the electrical spark, or by galvanic electricity. It may be kept any length of time under water without injury, or if wetted after being prepared for use, its power may be restored by simply drying it. Under similar circumstances, gunpowder would be irremediably damaged.

The absence of smoke and smell in its explosion, renders it peculiarly valuable for blasting in mines, where frequently the operations of the miner is much impeded by the air being rendered unfit for the support of life by the explosion of gunpowder.

The power of the gun cotton may be rendered five times as great as that of the best sporting powder, and more than ten times as great as that of the common blasting powder.

In a series of experiments conducted by Mr. R. Oxland, at Mr. Sparrow's lime-stone quarries, Catte Down, in the presence of the Earl Morley, and many other gentlemen, a charge of seven ounces of the gun cotton disturbed about fifty tons of stone, making crevices in the rock large enough to thrust in the hand. A rock of upwards of ten tons weight was charged with one ounce of the gun cotton, and fired with safety fuze. The charge exploded with but a slight noise; no fragments were thrown into the air; but twenty seven large fragments driven a considerable distance asunder, attested the irresistible power of this curious substance. Another rock of five tons weight was charged