our camp-all wanting to laugh and shout, but utterly without the breath required in such exercises.

When we were on our feet again the lunch came out and we had a merry time in consuming it. The guides danced and rolled about on the snow, and sang rattling French songs with a perfect abandon, as if delighted to have come down Monte Rosa once more alive. We were still a great way from the hotel not less than eighteen miles. The guides said it could not be done in less than three hours, and we made up our minds to see if we could accomplish it in that time. The rope which had been taken off at lunch came out again, and we were all tied together once more in a line: -and now the problem was to slide down in one hour the glacier which had cost us five in the morning. We stood up straight, and steered with our alpenstocks; the strong arms of the guides served for rudders, stays, and breaks; and down we went at a tremendous speed. Do not think, however, it was mere sport. My legs would now and then tremble under the exertion to keep them in place, my breath would give out, and after fifteen minutes of such rapid descent we would have to lie down and get ready to try it again. The steep places were passed sledwise. The ladies had gone up to the top of Gorner Grat about 1 P. M., to watch our progress, and there beside having one of the finest views in Switzerland to enjoy, had the full sight of our novel method of descent. Some gentlemen were with them who had made the ascent themselves and were able to show them where to point their glass in order to find the exceedingly small black specks they were looking for. It last these were discovered refreshing themselves at the bottom of the dangerous peaks, and then sliding down hill at an unheard of rate; and finally they disappeared among the rocks in the moraine of the glacier, when they were lost for the time, and not again seen till they appeared at the hotel, some two hours from the place. I believe the distance up and down is rated at forty miles. We were absent from the hotel thirteen hours and a quarter; of which three hours and a half were consumed in the halt on the summit and those for breakfast and the other lunches up and down. Silliman's Journal.

CRYPTOGRAPHY.

CHILDREN'S papers abound in puzzles, which afford an innocent, and, perhaps, a profitable amusement. Any puzzle or enigma, which teaches the mind to reason closely and analyze carefully, must at least afford a healthful mental exercise. To this class belongs the deciphering of cryptographic symbols. In reading the works of the poet Poe, a few years since, we first became interested in the modes of deciphering cryptograms, in which he is said to have possessed a wonderful power. We give below a specimen of cryptographic writing, which we hope will not vex the printer, and will interest the reader. Mr. Poe classes such cryptograms among the easier kinds to decipher.

85..†.4; 5—6—(266.X85.(—‡1×—†85.(.8(.—85—63.—7†85.2(X.(16.[=. 99.†8—†X85.—(4;161†+1†.6±1(1862.f|21.65236:(.–86)199–†+3(−)(;

÷.†61÷.9] 185 85.+27(858.†85—†×851(81.85 2+27 (68—8. —†×61 [285.( (14.†86—2).(685.(.8(.—8÷.†37(†6.X.]199‡(28.—827( (1÷58÷÷.†4==9. 99-†199 622+4..876-†x].+..9 67(. 2+6+.8; —†x) 1=82(;

By what mental process, now, shall we read the above cipher? We will give a few hints, after Mr. Poe's method of analysis: 1st. Observe the great frequency of the dot. Now as e is our most frequent letter, it is probable that. means e. 2d. Observe how frequently the combination 85. occurs. as it ends with a dot, and as the article the is the most frequent word in our language, it is probable that 85. means the, that is, 8 means t, and 5 means h.

Now

3d. Observe the frequency of 85, that is th, in the middle of the cryptogram, and at regular intervals. Now as th is frequent in numerals, like fourth, fifth, sixth, etc., this may be an enumeration of dates, or regiments, or something else.

4th. Observe the frequency of the doubling of the cypher 9. Now as 9 is only moderately frequent and is often doubled, it probably means the letter l.

5th. Observe, near the last, the combination=9.99, which, if our hypothesis is correct, is lell, preceded by a double letter. Can this be bblell? No. There is no such combination. Well, then, can it be cclell? Let us repeat it and sound it over, and see if it gives forth any familiar accents. Yes. We have it, McClellan.

6th. The combination before McClellan is .t, his title, Gen., and the enumeration above refers to regiments, probably.

7th. All the inferences above seem to afford confirmation of each other. Did they not, we should throw them away, or a part of them, and start anew. But we are evidently on the right track, and having found that means a, that means c, that 9 means 7, that means e, etc., etc., the whole is now easily solved and read. Cryptograms, like the above, in which the symbols represent the letters of the words of plain English sentences, in which no attempt is made to present special difficulties, could be studied out, we believe, by a bright boy or girl, and would afford them an interesting and profitable mental exercise.

A LEAF FROM MY SCHOOL DIARY.

"STOP that!"

I was bending over a desk, illustrating a principle to one of the boys. It was a half-suppressed exclamation, yet easily distinguished. "Sebut, that was you."

"Yes, sir," was the reply. Why did you say it?"

"Because I wanted to."

"What reason had you for saying it?"

"No reason, sir, only that I wanted to."

"But no one utters exclamations without a reason. If it is proper I must know the cause of it."

The latter sentence was spoken firmly, bnt the boy was obstinate. He only repeated,

"No reason, sir, only that I wanted to."

Both surprised and vexed-surprised that a boy, who, for two winters, had been one of my best, should now be suddenly disobedient, vexed at the seeming insolence of the replies-I sent him forward to the desk, determined to whip him until he should tell the cause of the exclamation. But the determination was hardly taken before it was put aside. A phase of his character, which I

had never seen before, was now for the first time revealed to me. I would not act hastily, therefore. I feared, too, that, if I attempted to conquer him, I myself would be the conquered party in the end. I had seen, when a boy, a schoolmate, one possessed of high moral qualities, an affectionate boy, yet obstinate as a rock, whipped one whole hour in the attempt to force him to do something which he had refused to do. But I had no desire to whip the boy — he had been too good. I had asked the question, too, a proper one-and it must be answered. I chose what I thought then to be, and which afterwards proved to be, the wiser course. I told him he might be seated and remain with me after school. I thought I would try to persuade him by reason and appeal, to make him if possible conquer himself, and use the rod only as a last resort.

The school was dismissed. I called him to my side, spoke to him kindly, reasoned with him, appealed to his sense of right and natural goodness, a large share of which I knew him to possess. For three-quarters of an hour he remained firm, a long time, twice I had almost given up-then I heard a choking in his throat, he turned his head aside, and with bursting tears gave me the answer. Then he opened his whole heart, and told me why he had refused to answer the question before. With a word or two, thanking him, and telling him how much better it was for him, and how much pleasanter now for both of us, I dismissed him.

I thought that evening while going home that a lesson had been learned worthy of record. My mind went back to when I, too, was only a schoolboy of fourteen winters, and the heavy blows-it seemed to me, then, merciless ones - many an obstinate schoolmate had received from his teacher, who had neither the desire nor the patience to appeal to the higher motives of his nature, that he might conquer him. How many natures, too, those blows had made no better, but worse!

The next day there was placed upon my table the largest Baldwin apple I ever saw, cherry and mellow. It explained itself. Who shall say that from this time there was not a warmer and stronger attachment between the teacher and pupil?

MARK MILES.

VERDICT OF A JURY OF BOYS.

WHEN Dr. Nathaniel Prentice taught a public school in Roxbury, he was very much a favorite; but his patience at times would get very much exhausted by the infractions of the school rules by the scholars. On one occasion, in rather a wrathy way, he threatened to punish with six blows of a heavy ferule the first boy detected in whispering, and appointed some as detectors. Shortly after, one of these detectors shouted:

66

Master, John Zeigler is whispering."

John was called up, and asked if it was a fact. (John, by the way, was a favorite both of his teacher and schoolmates.)

"Yes," answered John; "I was not aware of what I was about; I was intent on working out a sum, and requested the one who sat next to reach me the arithmetic that contained the rule which I wished to see."

The Doctor regretted his hasty threat, but told John that he could not suffer him to whisper or escape the punishment, and continued:

"I wish I could avoid it, but can not, without a forfeiture of my word, and the consequent loss of my authority. I will," he continued, "leave it to any three scholars you may choose, to say whether or not I omit the punishment."

John said he was agreed to that, and immediately called out G. S., T. D., and D. P. D. The Doctor told them to return a verdict, which they soon did (after consultation), as follows:

"The master's word must be kept inviolate — John must receive the threatened six blows of the ferule; but it must be inflicted on voluntary proxies — and we, the arbitrators, will share the punishment by receiving each of us two of the blows."

John, who had listened to the verdict, stepped up to the Doctor, and with outstretched hand, exclaimed:

"Master, here is my hand; they shan't be struck a blow; I will receive the punishment."

The Doctor, under pretense of wiping his face, shielded his eyes, and telling the boys to go to their seats, said he would think of it. I believe he did think of it to his dying day, but the punishment was never inflicted. Middlesex Journal.