ABOUT two hundred coins of the Roman emperors-Gordian, Antoninus Pius, Gallienus, and Valerian-were found recently in digging for a railway near Villefranche, in France. The medals stuck together, and appeared to have been deposited in a vase. Near them were a quantity of human bones, and among them several men's jaws containing teeth in a fine state of preservation. Local antiquaries suppose that the bones may have belonged to the slain in the grand battle between Severus and Albinus, which was fought in those parts, A. D. 198; but it is, perhaps, more probable that they were buried there after some battle in the middle ages.

At a late meeting of the American Geographical and Statistical Society, in this city, Dr. Kane, under whose charge an expedition to the Polar Seas has been organized, delivered an address. The society at once resolved that funds should be procured for the purpose of securing the services of a practical and scientific assistant to accompany the expedition.

There are now in operation in the United States eighty-nine main and branch lines of telegraph, whose united length is 16,729 miles. The cost of construction averages $150 per mile. Total length of the Bain line, 2,012 miles; of the House line, 2,400 miles; the balance is mostly Morse's, whose instruments can transmit 8,000 to 9,000 words per minute.

M. Mare, of Nantes, France, has patented a new process of tinning iron articles. The process is as follows: The articles are scoured with sulphuric acid, and when quite clean are placed in warm water, then dipped in a solution of muriatic acid, copper, and zinc, and finally plunged into a tin bath in which has been placed a small quantity of zinc. When the tinning is completed the articles are taken and dipped into boiling water, and lastly are placed in a warm sand-bath, which last process softens the iron.

Mr. Hind, the distinguished astronomer at Regent's Park, London, has recently discovered another planet, the seventh first seen by him, and the twenty-first now known to exist between Mars and Jupiter. The new planet when first found was in the constellation Taurus.

Mr. L. B. Swan, of Rochester, has discovered a new solution for the Galvanic Battery, which promises a saving of seventy-five per cent. in the material used by telegraph companies, independent of its saving labor and time. The solution produces an electric and galvanic current of uniform power and intensity, without the rapid decomposition of the metals and acids hitherto unavoidable. The solution discovered

does not act chemically on the mercurial amalgam; and during a trial test by Mr. Barnes, the operator at Rochester, of forty-five days, this solution was used without alteration, or fresh amalgram or acids, and without perceptible destruction of mercury or zinc.

tra), and is called "Getah-Mata-Buay." When mixed with gutta percha, it can be adapted to purposes of great utility. Among the other articles presented was the specimen of the seed of a new tree, the Paulonica Imperialis, which would prove a valuable addition to our shade trees. This tree grows rapidly, has a large sunflower-like leaf, and blossoms with a delightful fragrance in the month of June. It attracts no insects whatever.

We learn from the Tribune that the second

trial trip of the caloric ship Ericsson, recently made up New-York bay, proved fully, and beyond the possibility of doubt, the existence of a new motive power as sure and efficient as steam, while it is free from all danger of accident, and is vastly cheaper and more manageable. The owners of the caloric steamer Ericsson are so well satisfied with their experiment, that they announce their intention of building on the same principle, during the present season, six ships of four thousand tons each.

He

The Evening Post says that all the power used in Captain Ericsson's engines is obtained from the expansion of the atmosphere by heat. uses no water and makes no steam, but employs the atmosphere very much as the steamers employ water, with this difference, that instead of throwing away the heat after it has been used, as the steam engine does by condensation, he separates it from the escaping air, and uses it over again in heating each new change of air which is supplied to his cylinders. This economy of the heat, of course, results in a corresponding economy of fuel, furnace-rooms, and firing equipage, equal, it is supposed, to a difference, in point of expense, of five parts in every six.

In the Academy of Sciences at Paris, at a late meeting, it was announced that M. Goldsmith, a German gentleman, residing in that city, had discovered another new planet, different from that of Mr. Hind. It is between the eighth and ninth magnitude. On M. Arago's sug gestion it has been named Lutetia, in honor of Paris. The planet recently discovered at Marseilles had been definitely named Massilia, with the consent of M. de Gasparis, who had some share in the discovery.

Quite a large number of spectators assembled at the Hippodrome, in Paris, lately, to witness another experiment in aërial navigation. The aërostatic machine which was to ascend on this occasion is the invention of M. Giffard. It is an oblong cylinder, somewhat in the form of a fish, of about one hundred and twenty feet in length, and about twenty feet in diameter at its thickest part, and gradually tapering off at both ends. The directing apparatus is a very small and beautifully-finished steam-engine, setting in motion a propeller resembling in form the screw used in steam vessels. This is suspended, at twenty feet beneath the balloon, from a long boom which is attached to it, and which supports at its extremity a triangular

BAYARD

AYARD TAYLOR was born on the 11th

Square, Pennsylvania, where he resided until his nineteenth year. Who and what his parents were has not transpired, save that they were, and we believe still are, inembers of the society of Friends. From his earliest years he was fond of writing verses, and of poring over books of travel and adventure; now deep in the antique Munchausenisms of Mandeville and Marco Polo, now with Crusoe and his man Friday on their desert island, and anon in the charmed region of poesy, enraptured with Milton and Wordsworth, (still his prime favorites,) or bewildered in the maze of his own ambitious rhymes. His VOL. II, No. 4.-W

TAYLOR. young life was full of dreams, yet he him

bright-eyed, but sickly and useless; on the contrary, he was a strong-limbed and active boy, foremost in all athletic exercises and games of strength, and much addicted to long walks. Walking seems never to have tired him, exposure never to have affected his health, he was so stout and hardy. By-and-by he enters the office of a country newspaper, to learn the art and mystery of printing and now behold him at the "case," with his sleeves rolled up, and his quick-moving fingers dingy with the smut of mysterious bits of lead; now "setting up" a President's Message, or an account of the last mam

moth turnip; and now some of his own verses, which he palms off on the unsuspecting public as Bryant's. So pass the days and the months, and he becomes a printer; but he does not give up his long walks, and his dreams of travel and adventure, nor yet his habit of writing poetry; for now he is becoming known, having scraped acquaintance with Willis and other literati.

About this time-say in '42 or '43-we, as individuals, first heard the name of Bayard Taylor. Youthful ourselves, we were always on the look-out for youthful talent, and the first source to which we used to turn was the "Weekly Mirror," now defunct, but then edited by Willis and Morris. One day we saw a paragraph in it about a young poet in Pennsylvania, accompanied with a poem from

his pen. The poet was named Bayard Taylor, and the poem in question was entitled, "To a Friend." From the tenor of it, the "friend" was evidently a lady. The poem is to be found in Bayard Taylor's first volume; the lady only in heaven! (but of that by-and-by.) A year or two later, in 1844, from another source, we came across another paragraph about Bayard Taylor, and a volume of his, which had just appeared,-"Zimenia and other poems." We could not at that time procure it, but we made a note of it for future reference. It lies before us now, a small duodecimo of eighty-four pages. It is cleverly and smoothly versified; imitative, of course; a little remarkable for its fine rhetoric, but not otherwise note-worthy. The usual themes of young poets are treated in their usual manner. The narrativemeasure of Scott and Byron is copied in "Zimenia," which, by-the-way, is a Spanish story, and Mrs. Hemans tinges the "other poems." Had Bayard Taylor written nothing else, the world would never have heard of him. The first volumes of poets are not generally interesting, save as incidents in their lives, and as foot-prints by which their progress can be marked. "Zimenia" was of little importance to Bayard Taylor, and he has doubtless forgotten it. Not so his first tour in Europe-that he cannot forget while his memory holds her seat. The importance of that tour in forming his character, and in establishing his literary reputation, must not be overlooked. It was the result of his boyish reading of the

old travelers the realization of all his desires and dreams. But for that he would in all probability be still at the "case." For two years after reading the review of "Zimenia," alluded to above, we heard no more of Bayard Taylor; at the end of that time we saw him announced as among the latest arrivals from Europe, and shortly after that he had a book of travels in the press-" Views a-Foot,”—with a preface by N. P. Willis. We purchased the book in due season, and were delighted with it; and so were the public also, for it jumped at once into popularity, and ran through seven editions in less than two years. Prefixed to Willis's preface was the following letter; in it Bayard Taylor speaks for himself far better than we could speak for him :

"TO MR. WILLIS.

MY DEAR SIR,-Nearly three years ago (or the beginning of 1844) the time for accomplishing my long-cherished desire of visiting Europe seemed to arrive. A cousin, who had long intended going abroad, was to leave in a few months; and, although I was then surrounded by the most unfavorable circumstances, I determined to accompany him at whatever hazard. I had still two years of my apprenticeship to serve out, I was entirely without means, and my project was strongly opposed by my friends as something too visionary to be practicable. A short time before, Mr. Griswold advised me to publish a small volume of youthful effusions, a few of which had appeared in Graham's Magazine, which he then edited; the idea struck me that by so doing I might, if they should be favorably noticed, obtain a newspaper correspondence which would enable me to make the start.

"The volume was published; a sufficient number was sold to enable my friends to defray all expenses, and I was charitably noticed by the Philadelphia press. Some literary friends, to whom I confided my design, promised to aid me with their influence. Trusting to this I made arrangements to leave the printing-office, which I succeeded in doing by making a certain compensation for the remainder of my time. I was now fully confident of my success, feeling satisfied that a strong will would always make itself a way. After many applications to different editors, and as many disappointments, I finally succeeded, about two weeks before our departure, in making a partial engagement. Mr. Chandler, of the United States Gazette, and Mr. Patterson, of the Saturday Evening Post, paid me fifty dollars each, for twelve letters, to be sent from Europe, with the probability of accepting more if these should be satisfactory. This, with a sum which I received from Mr. Graham for poems published in his magazine, put me in possession of about one hundred and forty dollars, with which I determined to start,

trusting to future remuneration for letters, or,

if that should fail, to my skill as a compositor, for I supposed I could, at the worst, work my

way through Europe like the German handwerker. Thus with another companion we left home, an enthusiastic and hopeful trio.

"I need not trace our wanderings at length. After eight months of suspense, during which time my small means were entirely exhausted, I received a letter from Mr. Patterson, containing the engagement for the remainder of my stay, with a remittance of one hundred dollars from himself and Mr. Graham. Other remittances, received from time to time, enabled me to stay abroad two years, during which I traveled, on foot, upward of three thousand miles in Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and France. I was obliged, however, to use the strictest economy,-to live on pilgrim fare, and do penance in rain and cold. My means several times entirely failed; but I was always relieved from serious difficulty through unlooked-for friends, or some unexpected turn of fortune. At Rome, owing to the expenses and embarrassments of traveling in Italy, I was obliged to give up my original design of proceeding on foot to Naples, and across the peninsula to Otranto, sailing thence to Corfu, and making a pedestrian journey through Albania and Greece. But the main object of my pilgrimage is accomplished; I visited the principal places of interest in Europe, enjoyed her grandest scenery and the marvels of ancient and modern art; became familiar with other languages, other customs, and other institutions; and returned home after two years' absence, willing now, with satisfied curiosity, to resume life in America. Yours most sincerely, "BAYARD TAYLOR."

We quite agree with Willis in his preface, when he calls this " a fine instance of character and energy," and with the public in their appreciation of the "Views a-Foot." Bayard Taylor's method, or rather the method of his poverty, poor fellow, though not exactly en règle, is the only method of really becoming acquainted with other lands and nations. Putting up at fashionable hotels in large cities, visiting cafés and places of public amusement, hurrying from place to place by coach or diligence, and "doing up" the continent generally in a month or two, is all well enough in its way, though rather expensive; but not the way to study men and manners, and to gain a knowledge of the world. The world, the peculiarities of a nation are to be found elsewhere-in lanes, and courts, and alleys, and above all in the rural districts, among what is commonly considered "low people." It was among these that Shakspeare discovered inexhaustible mines of character in his time; and it is among these that Dickens, the most genial of humorists since Shakspeare, discovers them to-day. Bayard Taylor traveled through Europe, while others have only visited it. The "Views

a-Foot" were literally written during his wanderings, partly by the way-side when resting at mid-day, and partly on the rough tables of pleasant inns, in the stillness of deserted ruins, or amid the sublime solitude of the mountain-tops. times, and in such places, were also At such written many of the poems in "The Rhymes of Travel," published in 1848, Bayard Taylor's next volume; dating respectively from London, Aix-la-Chapelle, Heidelberg, Frankfort, Vienna, Munich, Florence, Rome, Paris, and London. One of the sweetest poems in "The Rhymes of Travel" is headed "In Italy," and addressed to the lady-friend we have already alluded to:

"IN ITALY.

"Dear Lillian, all I wish'd is won!
I sit beneath Italia's sun,

Where olive orchards gleam and quiver
Along the banks of Arno's river.
"Through laurel leaves, the dim green light
Falls on my forehead as I write ;
And the sweet chimes of vesper, ringing,
Blend with the contadina's singing.

"Rich is the soil with fancy's gold;
The stirring memories of old
Rise thronging in my haunted vision,
And wake my spirit's young ambition.
"But as the radiant sunsets close
Above Val d'Arno's bowers of rose,
My soul forgets the olden glory,
And deems our love a dearer story.

66

Thy words in memory's ear outchime
The music of the Tuscan rhyme;
Thou standest here-the gentle-hearted-
Amid the shades of bards departed!

"Their garlands of immortal bay
I see before thee fade away,
And turn from Petrarch's passion-glances
To my own dearer heart-romances.

"Sad is the opal glow that fires
The midnight of the cypress spires;
And cold the scented wind that closes
The hearts of bright Etruscan roses.
"The fair Italian dream I chased,
A single thought of thee effaced;
For the true clime of song and sun
Lies in the heart which mine hath won!"

After publishing the "Views a-Foot," Bayard Taylor went back home into the country again, and was for a while connected with some newspaper there, either as editor or proprietor. Not succeeding very well, he came to New-York, and eventually became connected with The Tribune daily newspaper in the capacity of editor, attending to the city department.