features in detail, and that all his available knowledge of the person's visible appearance amounts to a very dim idea of height, color of hair, and complexion, with some clearer notion perhaps of certain unimportant peculiarities which may happen to have specially impressed him. Nor is this deficiency in the intellectual understanding of a face in its relations to general types of face and feature the only thing noticeable. It might likewise be shown that the observer lacks even a distinct mental image of the face in question. Psychologists are agreed that visual impressions are the most durable, in the form of images, of all the sensations; and it may be remembered that Mr. Mill makes a very interesting use of this fact in accounting for the instantaneous self-evidence of geometrical axioms. Yet we very much doubt whether ordinary persons are able to recall distinct mental pictures of the faces of their friends. This seems to follow from the errors most persons make with respect to identity. It is probable, in spite of such artistic fictions as one permits in comedy-as, for example, in the charming confusion of the Twelfth Night-that no two human faces (omitting other parts of the appearance) are so precisely alike as to leave an exact observer long in doubt about a person's identity. Ants appear to be hopelessly undistinguishable to the human eye, and yet Mr. Darwin speaks of individual ants being recognized by their fellow-ants after a separation of four months. In like manner, it may be presumed, it is only inattention to minute differences that ever puzzles a person in the case of two similar men or women. There is a familiar game that owes all its point to this inattention. One or two well-known acquaintances in the company are hidden behind the window-curtains, the eyes only being exposed for a brief view to the rest of the company, who have to discover their owners. Yet, though this is the feature supposed to be most accurately known, we have seen most laughable confusions of identity resulting from the experiment. How very misty are most persons' images of the faces of their friends, must be known to every artist. When he draws an outline in chalks of a lady's head, her relations will frequently pass the most ignorant criticisms on the form of the several parts. And, obviously, inability to recognize a recently-taken photograph shows ignorance of the form of the face concerned. These and a host of other facts prove pretty conclusively that ordinary people do not retain distinct images of their friends' faces. There being in the mind nothing but a very hazy, undefined, residual picture with which comparison of the present impression may be made, nearly everybody who has not had some special artistic training is liable to an occasional blunder.-Saturday Review. The Theatre of the Hindus.-The drama of the Hindus is of native growth, and seems to have been developed by Hindu poets quite independently of foreign influence. It has little in common with the great masterpieces of Greek art; in fact, tragedy finds no place among its productions. Schlegel, to whom it was known only by the translation of Sakuntala, says that "it presents through its Oriental brilliancy of coloring so striking a resemblance on the whole to our roman tic drama, that it might be suspected the love of Shakspeare had influenced the translator, if other Orientalists had not borne testimony to the fidelity of his translation." The judgment of this acute critic is fully confirmed by the contents of the, volumes before us. They contain neither tragedy nor comedy, but pictures of life in which the serious and the amusing are pretty equally blended. Never exhibiting scenes of high and thrilling interest, never descending to farce, they belong to that class of writings which, for want of a more specific term, we are accustomed to call plays or dramas. The origin of the Hindu drama is lost in the ages of a fabulous antiquity; but its invention is ascribed to those ancient saints and sages to whom the Hindus ascribe all that they revere and admire. Neither is it possible to assign any positive date to the plays which survive. The oldest of the dramatists is Kálidása, whose period is enveloped in doubt and obscurity. A century or two before, or a century or two after the commencement of the Christian era, is the vague time to which the translator refers the composition of his three plays. His works contain many cumulative proofs that they cannot be assigned to any comparatively modern age. Bhavabhúti, who is held second in estimation, and who also produced three plays, seems to have lived about the eighth century A.D. The number of plays of which the translator gives the titles is about sixty, but several of these are known only by name. No doubt there were many of which no remnant has come down, as the number is small for such a voluminous literature as that of the Hindus. As might be expected, the plots of the plays are most frequently drawn from mythology, and represent some episode already · known to the spectators. Some, however, derive their plots from history or from real life, and these are the most interesting to Europeans. Like the dramatic representations of Greece, they were performed only on great occasions of festivity, and as only one play was performed at each time, they are some of them very long. A Fortunate Death.-The Pekin correspondent of the Journal de St. Pétersbourg announces the death of Vo-yen, the most dangerous enemy of the Europeans in China. He was the tutor of the late Emperor, and consequently possessed great influence at the Chinese Court, and was the chief of the literary class in China, which is known for its hatred of everything European. His family was of Mongolian origin, but had long been settled in China. The late Emperor, on ascending the throne, gave him the important post of Governor of Moukden in Mantchouria-a dignity which is much sought after in the Empire, as Moukden is the cradle of the reigning dynasty. While holding this post Vo-yen was a witness of the war in which China was beaten by England and France, and this inflamed the hatred which he had previously felt for all foreigners into a sort of frenzy. When, shortly after, he became tutor to the present Emperor, he repeatedly laid before the Sovereign reports against Europeans, and in one of these he went so far as to declare that he would not die happy until after eating the flesh of the foreigners and lying on a couch made of their skins. protested strongly against the establishment of a He school of science and foreign languages at the Pekin Foreign Office, and against the Burlingame mission, on the ground that a foreigner had been placed at its head, and that the subordinate posts, were filled by Chinese dignitaries. Vo-yen was very popular among his countrymen on account of his charities, his disinterestedness, and his simple mode of life. His household was conducted on a modest scale, and a considerable part of his fortune was devoted to the relief of the poor and the main tenance of a school for giving gratuitous instruction to those who could not afford to pay for their education. Ulm.-But of all scenes of military history which a visit to Ulm recalls, the most impressive The would have been the surrender of General Mack's army to Napoleon, almost without a battle, in 1805. We can best convey an idea of this event by saying that it was to Austria what Sedan lately was to France. It occurred two days before the battle of Trafalgar, and destroyed Pitt's hope of military resistance to France as completely as Nelson's victory annihilated Napoleon's scheme of naval hostility to England. The Archduke Charles was at this period employed in Italy. But in 1809, when Austria again tried her fortune against Napoleon, he was in supreme command upon the Danube. The upper valley of that river was now for military purposes French territory, so that the campaign began to the east of Ulm, in the triangle formed by the Danube and the Isar, and by a line drawn from Ratisbon to Landshut. Archduke had the advantage of the first blow, and ought, if he had been the general of 1796, to have annihilated a French corps at Ratisbon before it could be withdrawn or supported. The journey of Napoleon from Paris to Strasburg, and thence to Donauwörth was thought in those days a miracle of celerity. He was only just in time to remedy the blunders of Berthier, who, by a process of selection which might have been called Austrian, had been placed in command over Massena and Davoust. Napoleon has said that the campaign which followed was the best thing he ever did. Within a month he had broken up the Archduke's army and occupied Vienna. It must always be remembered to the honor of the Archduke and his army that after these tremendous disasters they were still able to bring Napoleon to the verge of ruin at Aspern, and to fight a great battle, which was almost a victory, at Wagram. There is perhaps no place which more than Ulm impresses the mind with admiration for Napoleon; yet the sympathy of an English visitor to that place will not be with the French conqueror, but with the brave, blundering Austrians who defiled before him. Recent Inventions.-It is said that a firm in London is now constructing the most economical steam-engines in the world. For their mill engines these manufacturers guarantee a consumption of less than two pounds of coal per horse-power per hour, and they claim that in some cases these engines in practice have brought the figure as low as one pound of coal per horse-power per hour. To realize the importance of this improvement, it must be considered that ordinary steam-engines, in many cases, burn as much as ten pounds of coal per horse-power per hour. This is common when the boiler admits of the evaporation of only six pounds of water for every pound of coal. When engines are supplied with Cornish boilers, so celebrated for their economy-since they evaporate twelve pounds of water for every pound of coalthe ordinary consumption is five pounds of coal per horse-power per hour; and the reduction of this amount to three or even two and a half pounds has thus far been considered something extraordinary, the best result in fact to be practically obtained. That there is, however, still room for improvement, is evident from the theory of the me chanical equivalent of heat. The best engineers, in place of obtaining, as heretofore, only one-tenth or twentieth of the theoretical equivalent of the heat consumed, are reported to have reached nearly one-fifth, which, according to the Technologist, is a wonderful advance. Most engineers are agreed on the main features of the most economical engines. They are proportionally large boilers, with large heating surfaces, and proper grates; heating of the feed water in the condenser; high pressure in connection with proper cut-off arrangements, so as to utilize the expansion; careful protection from loss of heat by radiation; and above all things, intelligent and faithful engineers and firemen. Many moderately good boilers and engines lose all claim to reasonable economy by improper treatment in firing. TO AN INCONSTANT MISTRESS. I LOV'D thee once, I'll love no more; He that can love unlov'd again, Nothing could have my love o'erthrown, When new desires had conquer'd thee, Yet do thou glory in thy choice,— |