mountains gradually smoothed away into detached spurs and broken ground, until they met the vast prairies, which stretched far as the eye could reach, and hundreds of miles beyond-a sea of seeming barrenness, vast and dismal. A hurricane of wind was blowing at the time, and clouds of dust swept along the sandy prairies, like the smoke of a million bonfires. On the mountain-top it roared and raved through the pines, filling the air with snow and broken branches, and piling it in huge drifts against the trees. The perfect solitude of this vast wilderness was most appalling. From my position on the summit of the dividing ridge I had a bird's-eye view, as it were, over the rugged and chaotic masses of the stupendous chain of the Rocky Mountains, and the vast deserts which stretched away from their eastern bases; while, on all sides of me, broken ridges, and chasms and ravines, with masses of piled-up rocks and uprooted trees, with clouds of drifting snow flying through the air, and the hurricane's roar battling through the forest at my feet, added to the wildness of the scene, which was unrelieved by the slightest vestige of animal or human life. Not a sound, either of bird or beast, was heard-indeed, the hoarse and stunning rattle of the wind would have drowned them, so loud it roared and raved through the trees." if we halted for a short time to adjust the mulepacks or water the animals, he sat down quietly until we resumed our march. But when I killed an antelope, and was in the act of butchering it, he gravely looked on, or loped round and round, licking his jaws, and in a state of evident self-gratulation. I had him twenty times a day within reach of my rifle, but he became such an old friend that I never dreamed of molesting him." CONTENTMENT BETTER THAN RICHES.-" In the early part of the night, when the storm was at its height, I was attracted to a fire at the edge of the encampment by the sound of a man's voice perpetrating a song. Drawing near, I found a fire, or, rather, a few embers and an extinguished log, over which cowered a man sitting cross-legged in Indian fashion, holding his attenuated hands over the expiring ashes. His features, pinched with the cold, and lank and thin with disease, wore a comically serious expression, as the electric flashes lighted them up, the rain streaming off his nose and prominent chin, and his hunting-shirt hanging about him in a flabby and soaking embrace. He was quite alone, and sat watching a little pot, doubtless containing his supper, which refused to boil on the miserable fire. Spite of such a situation, which could be termed anything but cheering, he, like Mark Tapley, evidently thought that now was the very moment to be jolly, and was rapping out at the top of his voice a ditty, the chorus of which was, and which he gave with peculiar emphasis, 'How happy am 1! From care I'm free: Oh, why are not all Contented like me?' PIKE'S PEAK AT DAYBREAK.-"Daybreak in this wild spot was beautiful in the extreme. While the deep gorge in which I lay was still buried in perfect gloom, the mountain-tops loomed gray and indistinct from out the morning mist. A faint glow of light broke over the ridge which shut out the valley from the east, and, spreading over the sky, first displayed the snow-covered peak, a wreath of vapory mist encircling it, which gradually rose and disappeared. Suddenly the dull white of its summit glowed with light like burnished silver; and at the same moment the whole eastern sky blazed, as it were in gold, and ridge and peak, catching the refulgence, glittered with the beams of the rising sun, which at length, peeping over the crest, flooded at once the valley with its daz-ket, and raised my head to assure myself that zling light." A TRAVELLING COMPANION.-"From Rio Colorado we had been constantly followed by a large gray wolf. Every evening, as soon as we got into camp, he made his appearance, squatting quietly down at a little distance, and after we had turned in for the night, helping himself to anything lying about. Our first acquaintance commenced on the prairie where I had killed the two antelopes, and the excellent dinner he then made, on the remains of the two carcasses, had evidently attached him to our society. In the morning, as soon as we left the camp, he took possession, and quickly ate up the remnants of our supper and some little extras I always took care to leave for him. Shortly after he would trot after us, and, Not for an instant intending it as a satire upon himself, but singing away with perfect seriousness, raising his voice at the third line, 'Oh, why are not all,' particularly at the 'Oh,' in a most serio-comical manner. During the night I occasionally shook the water out of my blan the animals were safe, lying down to sleep again, perfectly satisfied that not even a Pawnee would face such a storm, even to steal horses. But I did that celebrated thieving nation gross injustice; for they, on that very night, carried off several mules belonging to the other train of wagons, notwithstanding that a strict guard was kept up all the night.' A NIGHT IN THE SNOW.-"The way the wind roared over the prairie that night-how the snow drove before it, covering me and the poor animals partly-and how I lay there, feeling the very blood freezing in my veins, and my bones petrifying with the icy blasts which seemed to penetrate them-how for hours I remained with my head on my knees, and the snow pressing it down like a weight of lead, expecting every instant to drop into a sleep from which I knew it was impossible I should ever awake-how every now and then the mules would groan aloud and fall down upon the snow, and then again struggle on their legs-how all night long the piercing howl of wolves was borne upon the wind, which never for an instant abated its violence during the night-I would not attempt to describe. I have passed many nights alone in the wilderness, and in a solitary camp have listened to the roarings of the wind and the howling of wolves, and felt the rain or snow beating upon me, with perfect unconcern; but this night threw all my former experiences into the shade, and is marked with the blackest of stones in the memoranda of my journeyings. "Once, late in the night, by keeping my hands buried in the breast of my huntingshirt, I succeeded in restoring sufficient feeling into them to enable me to strike a light. Luckily my pipe, which was made out of a huge piece of cotton-wood bark, and capable of containing at least twelve ordinary pipefuls, was filled with tobacco to the brim; and this, I do believe, kept me alive during the night, for I smoked and smoked until the pipe itself caught fire, and burned completely to the stem. "I was just sinking into a dreamy stupor, when the mules began to shake themselves, and sneeze and snort; which hailing as a good sign, and that they were still alive, I attempted to lift my head and take a view of the weather. When with great difficulty I raised my head, all appeared dark as pitch, and it did not at first occur to me that I was buried deep in snow; but when I thrust my arm above me, a hole was thus made, through which I saw the stars shining in the sky, and the clouds fast clearing away. Making a sudden attempt to straighten my almost petrified back and limbs, I rose, but unable to stand, fell forward in the snow, frightening the animals, which immediately started away. When I gained my legs I found that day was just breaking, a long, gray line of light appearing over the belt of timber on the creek, and the clouds gradually rising from the east, and allowing the stars to peep from patches of blue sky. Following the animals as soon as I gained the use of my limbs, and taking a last look at the perfect cave from which I had just risen, I found them in the timber, and, singular enough, under the very tree where we had cached our meat. However, I was unable to ascend the tree in my present state, and my frost-bitten fingers refused to perform their offices; so that I jumped upon my horse, and, followed by the mules, galloped back to the Arkansas, which I reached in the evening, half dead with hunger and cold." How IT MAKES ONE FEEL.-"Apart from the feeling of loneliness which any one in my situation must naturally have experienced, sur rounded by stupendous works of nature, which in all their solitary grandeur frowned upon me, and sinking into utter insignificance the miserable mortal who crept beneath their shadow, still there was something inexpressibly exhilarating in the sensation of positive freedom from all worldly care, and a consequent expansion of the sinews, as it were, of mind and body, which made me feel elastic as a ball of Indian rubber, and in a state of such perfect insouciance that no more dread of scalping Indians entered my mind than if I had been sitting in Broadway, in one of the windows of Astor House. A citizen of the world, I never found any difficulty in investing my resting-place, wherever it might be, with all the attributes of a home; and hailed, with delight equal to that which the artificial comforts of a civilized home would have caused, the, to me, domestic appearance of my hobbled animals, as they grazed around the camp, when I returned after a hard day's hunt." COMFORTABLE LODGINGS.-"The night before reaching Caw River we encamped on a bare prairie, through which ran a small creek, fringed with timber. At sundown the wind, which had blown smartly the whole day, suddenly fell, and one of those unnatural calms succeeded, which so surely herald a storm in these regions. The sky became overcast with heavy inky clouds, and an intolerably sultry and oppressive heat pervaded the atmosphere. Myriads of fire-flies darted about, and legions of bugs and beetles, and invading hosts of sandflies and mosquitos, droned and hummed in the air, swooping like charging Cossacks on my unfortunate body. Beetles and bugs of easy squeezability, Brobdignag proportions, and intolerable odor, darted into my mouth as I gasped for breath; while sand-flies with their atomic stings probed my nose and ears, and mosquitos thrust their poisoned lances into every part of my body. Hoping for the coming storm, I lay without covering, exposed to all their attacks; but the agony of this merciless persecution was nothing to the thrill of horror which pervaded my very bones when a cold, clammy rattlesnake crawled over my naked ankles; a flash of lightning at the moment revealing to me the reptile, as with raised head it dragged its scaly belly across my skin, during which time, to me an age, I feared to draw a breath lest the snake should strike me. Presently the storm broke upon us; a hurricane of wind squalled over the prairie, a flash of vivid lightning, followed by a clap of deafening thunder, and then down came the rain in torrents. I actually revelled in the shower-bath; for away on the instant were washed bugs and beetles; mosquitos were drowned in millions and the rattlesnakes I knew would now retire to their holes, and leave me in peace and quiet." G. W. P. A WORD ON TREACHERY has always a mixture of duplicity and dishonesty, and no man can justly be styled a traitor, who maintains an open and steady opposition to any power. He, we think, is the real traitor who enters into a cause in order to betray it; or who vacillates in his duty and allows his affection to go over to the enemy. He, too, is a traitor of the blackest dye, who abuses his country's confidence, or employs its revenues or its power in unlawful enterprises his treachery is of a character more to be feared and abhorred than that of an Arnold, for it is more subtle, more difficult to detect and punish, and works evil on a grander scale. He, too, is a subtle traitor, who misrepresents the finances or the designs of the government in his official correspondence with the people: citizens do not vote men into office to give them an opportunity of carrying out their private schemes; they are there to do their duty, to work for the people, and not to manufacture false estimates, or hatch schemes of conquest. It is a very common notion, that to be a traitor, one must have given up a fortress, or surrendered a body of troops, or sent information to the enemy, or the like overt acts; but this is only a vulgar and visible kind of treason: is not he also your enemy, who injures and insults you by false information of your affairs? and being in your confidence, and bound to tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth; is he not a true and genuine betrayer of you, if he does otherwise? The information is necessary to you; you cannot exercise your prerogative as a freeman, to decide in your private thoughts, or give your public opinion upon the course government should take; you cannot vote correctly or do anything rightly as a citizen, without a true and full account of the condition of your government. He, then, to me is a traitor, who deceives me in particulars so important to me, and I write him down as such n my remembrance. Or, to put another case, imagine that you know of a man, who, for the sake of proconsulship over a conquered province, vill make use of you and your free govrnment, established for your benefit and TREACHERY. comfort, to defend you against enemies from without, and traitors within-to urge you into a war that you hate, that brings no honor to yourself, and entails debt and tyranny upon your children; does he not stand in the shoes of a traitor? It is for himself only, and not for you, that he bestirs himself so briskly, and puffs so many fine speeches in your ears, stuffed with epithets of honor and fame. Ten thousand brave men and good soldiers are led into the field against a rabble of thieves and Indians, to be swept down by grape-shot, or to die of fever and rheumatic cramps, and all to please the vile ambition of a few aspiring gentlemen. Was it for our good that all this ravage was committed? Or was it to satisfy a private ambition? But if to satisfy a private ambition, then of what character was that ambition? of a treacherous, or of a patriotic character? Do these ambitious gentlemen suffer any of the ills which they inflict? Did they lie down with our brave troops and spirited officers in the wet ditches, to die there-or rise from a feverish couch at beat of drum, to be swept down by the hateful shot of the Mexican? He, we think, is the real traitor, who deceives the people and betrays them to death; and he the true patriot, who, when his country is in danger, rushes to the front rank in her defence. Never yet have this people endured so bitter an insult as that speech addressed to them by their President, when he stigmatized the opposers of this Mexican War with the name of traitor. His country will never forget nor forgive it-NEVER! Nor is this shuffling Report of the Treasurer a less disgraceful affair-a worthy fellow to the message that preceded it; yet it excites less indignation, because it discovers a cowardly fear of public opinion; the Treasury is afraid to tell how much money it has spent, and means to spend, and so gives the people an under estimate. This is like the proceedings of dishonest jobbers, who cheat a bargainer with underrating the cost; a proof that they respect neither themselves nor the man with whom they have to deal. FOREIGN MISCELLANY. By the arrival of the Hibernia we are in possession of news from London to the 29th January. Specie still continues to be received in England, and by the weekly account of the Bank, issued on the 27th January, we find the | amount in its vaults has increased to the sum of £13,176,812, and its notes in active circulation to be 19,111,880. On the 27th, the | Directors gave notice that their rate of discount would be reduced from five to four per cent.; a measure supposed necessary to prevent their being excluded from the discount market, some large establishments in that line having intimated to their depositors that three per cent. was their maximum rate. Three per cent. consols had risen to 891. The prices of this stock during last year will show the fluctuations in Government securities. On the 1st January, 1847, the stock (which was then closed for the January dividend) was sold for the opening at 937 to 94, exclusive of the dividend. Soon after, the failure of the crops and the state of Ireland, caused a depression. In March, the loan of £8,000,000 was taken at 891; but on the 1st of April this loan fell to 1 discount. At the June shutting of consols, the price was 88, from which period it fell rapidly. On the 19th of October, some few bargains were done for money, at from 783 to 791. On the publication of the letter of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to which we have before referred, a rapid improvement of nearly 3 per cent. took place; and since that time, with some slight reactions, prices gradually advanced; and on the 1st of January last, consols for the opening were at 85 ex. div. The trade and commerce of the country show symptoms of improvement; accounts from the manufacturing districts show a gradual increase of the employment of operatives. Some few failures have taken place during the last fortnight; but they are stated to be of minor importance, and the demand for most articles of foreign and colonial produce has been extensive, and at improved prices. The cotton market was steady, but not active, and a slight depression had taken place in the price of bread stuffs. A grave question affecting the Church of England, has arisen in consequence of the nomination of Dr. Hampden to the vacant See of Hereford. On the receipt of the congé d'élire, by the Dean and Chapter, the former and a portion of the Chapter commenced a strong opposition to the nominee, on account of some tenets Professed by him; the election, however, was | | | formally completed, and Dr. Hampden was confirmed by the Vicar General of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who, on that occasion, refused to entertain an opposition which was then attempted. The objectors have since had recourse to the Court of Queen's Bench, and the question to be decided by that tribunal appears in fact to be, whether the nomination by the crown is imperative on the Dean and Chapter, and the election consequently a mere form; or whether the latter body have the right of rejection; in other words, whether, in the appointment of Bishops, the Church is or not under the entire control of the Sovereign. Considerable excitement has been raised on the subject of the national defences. The Duke of Wellington has written a letter setting forth their entire inadequacy in case of a war, and states, that from the use of steam navies, the country would be at the complete mercy of the French, who, in a few days from the announcement of hostilities, would be able to land such a force as could not be prevented from reaching London. This opinion appears to be entertained by several other military men, and the erection of defensive works, on the south and east coasts, is strongly urged; in consequence of which, surveys are being made, which will doubtless lead to the construction of some very costly works. This panic has crossed the Channel, and the French appear inclined to pursue a similar course, in order to protect themselves from invasion from England. There are numerous accounts of shipwrecks and disasters at sea. The British steam frigate "Avenger," a firstclass war-steamer, of 650 horse power, built in 1845, was wrecked on the Sorelli Rocks, near Tunis, and totally lost. A portion of her crew reached the latter place, but it is feared the greater part perished. Accounts have also been received, that the British brig of war "Snake was wrecked, and became a tota loss, on the 29th of August, on a reef nes Mocambo, ten miles south of the island of Mozambique. The influenza has been for some time on the decline in England. From the of ficial report, it appears that the deaths in the metropolitan districts, for the week ending 2 January, were 1401, being an excess of 29. over the winter average; only 89 deaths occur red that week from influenza. McQueen, his" Statistics of the British Empire," stat that in that kingdom "there are 2,250,0 horses, of the total value of £67,000,000,0 which more than 1,500,000 are used in agricu ical Society, and of the Royal Irish Academy. Some years since the Gold Medal of the former Society was awarded to her. The present Astronomer of that name was her favorite nephew. In Ireland the trial of offenders is progressing under the Special Commissions, and notwithstanding the state of the disturbed districts, the administration of justice is not impeded. Eleven persons have been capitally convicted, and a large number, found guilty of crimes, have been transported or committed to prison for various terms. Assassinations and threat latter have been received by Catholic priests. The law restricting the right of possessing arins is being enforced. In some parts, fever and influenza, both of a malignant description, prevail, and local destitution still continues. In the counties of Meath and Cavan, numbers of small farmers are disposing of their property with a view of emigrating in the spring; and there are numbers holding respectable positions in society, who intend leaving for America or the British Colonies. ture, and that their value is £45,000,000. The number of black cattle in the kingdom is about 14,000,000 to 15,000,000, of the value of £216,000,000; the number of sheep 50,000,000, whose value is estimated at £67,000,000. The number of pigs of all ages, breeding and rearing, is calculated to be upwards of 18,000,000, which, taking one-third at £2 each, and the remainder at 10s. each, gives a value of £11,870,000 as the capital invested in pigs alone; making the total amount of capital invested in the above species of agricultural stock, £346,270,000." The estimated amount of forening notices still continue, and some of the eign grain, corn and meal imported into Great Britain, from the 5th of July, 1846, to the 10th of October, 1847, exceeded 12,926,907 quarters, at the cost to the importers, of £33,452,775. Isaac D'Israeli, author of " The Curiosities of Literature," and other celebrated works, died on the 19th of January, of influenza, at his country seat, Bradenham House, in Buckinghamshire, aged 82 years. He was the only child of Benjamin D'Israeli, a Venetian merchant, who resided at Enfield, near London. His collegiate studies were pursued at Amsterdam and Leyden, where he acquired several modern languages and much classic knowledge. In 1786 he proceeded to France, and there turned his attention to French literature. He returned to England and commenced authorship, by writing some verses in the Gentleman's Magazine, and in 1791, wrote a "Defence of Poetry," which he soon suppressed. Being in a situation of pecuniary independence, be devoted his whole life to letters. His "Commentary on the Life and Reign of Charles I." procured him the Honorary Degree of D. C. L. from the University of Oxford. In 1839 he was struck with blindness, but this calamity did not prevent his publication of the "Amenities of Literature," which his daughter's aid enabled him to produce. Miss Caroline Lucretia Herschell, sister to the celebrated Astronomer, Sir William Herschell, died at Hanover on the 9th of January, at which place she was born on the 16th of March, 1750. She was the constant companion and sole assistant of her brother in his astronomical labors, to the success of which her indefatigable zeal, diligence, and singular accuracy of calculation, not a little contributed. She performed the whole of the laborious duties of his astronomical assistant, attending both his daily labors and nightly watches; and executed extensive and laborious numerical calculations necessary to render his labors available to science, as well as a multitude of others, relative to objects of theoretical and experimental inquiry, in which, during his long and active life, he was engaged. For the performance of these services she was in receipt of an income, granted to her by George the Third, sufficient for her singularly moderate wants and retired habits. She was an Honorary Member of the Royal Astronom The Princess Adelaide, sister to the King of the French, died on the 28th of December, after a few days' illness; her disease was the grippe, but no serious apprehensions had been entertained. By her death the King loses a counsellor, on whose judgment he was accustomed to place great reliance. The hesitation of the Duchess of Orleans to consent to her husband's accepting the crown, when offered to him, was overcome by the firmness of the princess, and since that period she had been consulted on all questions in which the family interest was concerned. She died in possession of great wealth, the bulk of which goes to the Duke of Montpensier. The Journal des Debats states that the defensive works (in anticipation of an English invasion) which are resolved to be executed will cost 64,195,700 francs. On the 1st January there were 306 manufactories of domestic sugar in operation; the quantity manufactured, or lying over since last year, was 39,903,489 kilogrammes; that sold for consumption, 20,514,994; and the duty levied on the article, 19,388,495 francs. The customsduties on imports and exports, for the last year, amounted to 134,117,730 francs, being a diminution of 19,841,178 francs, as compared with the year previous. A debate in the Chamber of Deputies on a motion, having for its object to inculpate M. Guizot with having encouraged and sanctioned the sale of an office of Refendary in the Court of Accounts, terminated in favor of the ministry by a vote of 225 to 146. On the 1st Jan., intelligence reached Paris of the arrival of the celebrated Abd-el-Kader at Toulon. The the Ex-Emir, hemmed in between the troops of Emperor of Morocco, and the French cavalry, under General Lamoriciere, surrendered to the latter on condition that he should be allowed to fix his residence in Egypt or Syria. These |