The New York Herald Newspaper, September 10, 1872, Page 4

4 THE HASSLER EXPEDITION. —_-—— FROM PANAMA TO SAN FRANCISCO. Acapulco---The Beauties of the Bay and Drawbacks of the Town. THE PROFESSOR AND THE SNAKE CHARMER Orchilla Gatherers and Their Staple. San Diego and the Stars and Stripes. A Visit to the Ruins of the First Catholic Mission. THROUGH THE GOLDEN GATE AT LAST. An Astonishing Array of Specimens Secured--- 3,500 Gallons of Alcohol Consumed. END OF AGASSIZ’S GREAT WORK. Untrep STATES COAST SURVEY STEAMER HASSLER, SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 2, 1872, We left Panama early on the morning of July 4, glad to resume our voyage, although our stay there had been both pleasant and profitable. The Morning was spent in an unsuccessful search for some rocka reported to exist in the vicinity of Bona Isiand. Failing to find them we departed about Noon and, continued on our course to the north- ‘ward. A short stop was made onthe following Morning while we hauled the dredge in 600 fathoms ‘of water. The bottom was found to consist of dark bDiue mad containing A FEW ANNELIDS, BUT NO OTHER ANIMAL LIFE. Then We ran on, usually in full sight of the Mexi- an shore when it was not obscured by rain storms, passing Montuosa, Nicanta and Coiba Islands, and venjoying the beauty and variety of the coast ecenery, the freshness-and verdure of the near hills contrasting with the grandeur and sublimity of the more distant volcanic peaks. On the afternoon of the Sist a steamer was Sighted standing to the southward, which proved to be the California, belonging to the Pacific Mail Steamship Company. When we had neared her sufficiently one of our boats was Jowered and an officer boarded her, returning ‘with the latest newspapers, a lump of ice and the compliments of her captain. We proceeded on our way after the usual interchange of nautical @ivilities by “dipping” to each other. The next morning we reached the locality where, in 1863, ‘Her Majesty’s steamer Tartar struck on a shoal off ‘the coast of Mexico. No chart of it has since been published, and no accurate knowledge of its posi- ‘tion or extent had ever been obtained. Vessels coming down the coast went miles out of thélr way to avoid it, those of the Pacific Mail Steamship ‘Company running from fifteen to eighteen miles from land, when four miles would have been a per- fectly safe distance. The Hassler was ANCHORED ON THE STAI, @nd the succceding two days were passed in the work of surveying it, running in that time perhaps ‘Mfty or sixty miles of soundings in all directions, ‘and fixing wit! masiderable accuracy its limits Bnd configuratiol.”*About sunset on the second day a furious storm came up from the southward, which was decidedly the most severe that we have encountered on this coast, and only to be com- pared in our experience with the ‘“willivaws” of the Straits. The rain which accompanted it came in horizontal instead of vertical Bheets. The ship was heeled over several degrees by its violence, and some petrels and cormorants were dislodged from their places of refuge on the rigging and were blown out to sea. Je was fortunately of but short duration and did no Berlous damage. The next morning we ran up Blong the coast in the direction of Acapulco. As ‘We approached the shore, standing in for this har- bor, the breeze which came over tie land would Blone have sufficed to inform us of our proximity. it was perfumed as though fresh from a thousand hot-houses, ODOROUS WITH TROPICAL BLOSSOMS, and was a dclightful assurance of the luxuriance (of vegetation, of which we soon had more tangible Proofs. Late in the afternoon we passed in be- tween two igh hills and entered the Bay of Aca- pulco, said to be one of the safest in the world; certainly one of the most beautiful. It is land- locked on every side, completely encircled by high Mountains so covered with forests from base to summit that hardly @ bare rock is visible. It ts only about three miles long and one and a half wide, but its very diminutive- mess serves to rendei its exquisite beauty more prominent. The rich green of the mountain sides, the smooth blue waters of the bay, the Broves of graceful cocoa trees and spreading yans along the shores, the picturesqueness of the old fort which commands the town and harbor, and the general alr of repose and placidity combine to make the place wonderfully attractive, and, in the opinton of more than one of us, to exceed in beauty even the world-renowned Bay of Rio. The town, however, presents a sad contrast to the natural advantages of the harbor, and an equally sad ex- ample of the pitiful, indolent, incompiete CUARACTER OF TROPICAL CIVILIZATION. Tho streets are dirty, irregular and almost un- paved; the houses of one story, built of adobe, and Wihitewashed on the outside, furnished in the case of the natives with a chair, table and hammock, or often with a hammock sione, No business what- ever seems to be prosecuted which does not de- pend directly upon te steamships which visit the | port, and then it consists principally of the sale of fruits and fancy Shell work to the passengers, On the evening of our arrival the Montana, which happened to ve at anchor there, was completely surrounded by the long, narrow canoes of the Batives, who were shouting and gesticulating, try- ing to underbid each other, waving flaming pine torches in one hand while displaying their wares in the other, and keeping the whole place im an up- roar until her departure. On walking through the streets one is occasion- ally requested to buy some triding article, but ts never beset with any energy, and @ refusal seems to be accepted witii about as much satisiaction as gn assent. The town market is held in the plaza, | In front of the old tamble-down cathedral, meat, Osh, fruit and vegetables being set out under little booths or directly on the ground, while sellers and purchasers chaffer and squabble with more energy than they exhibit in any other occupation, The Gatives are not uncomely, THE YOUNGER WOMEN ESPECIALLY being remarkable for symmetry of form and the ‘base and grace of their bearing, They are scantily clothed, as belts the climate, and spend most of their time lounging in the shade or swinging in hammocks. The only communication of any im- portance which this port has with the interior is by means of a road which runs over the mountains, atan elevation of 8,000 fect, and then descends ‘across the level plains to the old city of Mexico, A few of our party, who took ride over the frst ‘ten miles of this road, were well repaid by its rich- ness and beauty. At first it runs between leat hedges, bounding fields, half cultivated wit the yuca, banana or maguty, the proprictora residing in little bamboo or cane huts by the roadside; then, after crossing several shallow brooks, it passes by large groves of cocoa-paims, where we stopped to refresh ourselves with the cool, sweet milk from the buts, and were waited on by @ swarthy damsel, who RELUCTANTLY LEFT ARR HAMMOCK for that purpose, Then the path begins to grow | Diego to OcaDE, Darrower, and ascends the hillside, often cueving the beds of mountain brooks and winding thro! foresta of oaks, ironwood, gigantic tree ferns, poe pom oleanders, and aa indescribable variety profusion of vegetation, while here and there, by leaving the road for a short distance, superb panoramic views of the nay and its monntain cradie could be obtained. We had been led to be- Meve that excursions of this sort were dangerous, from the greed and lawlessness of the natives, but we found them ably polite and respectful. ‘A MEXICAN SWELL. The costume of the few of the better classes whom we saw was very striking. A short embroid- ered velvet jacket, a broad sombrero, breeches of velveteen, @ gay colored serape thrown over one shoulder, shoes of fancy leather, with immense spurs, making a musical clinking against a long steel machette, ane the i eae, ed inse| ble rtton wien he is ponding, ves & Mexican of this class a highly picturesque appearance. In company with one of these gentlemen, whose acquaintance we made on the road, we stopped to rest at the ranche of an old woman living in a little hovel on the hill side, and whose personal ap- pearance woud not alone have suiticed to entice us into drinking the “liquid fire’ which she offered us under the name of mezoal, She proved, how- ever, to be A GENUINS BRROINA, in spite of her unpleasant surroundings and Me- phistophelian beverage. Our friend, who had been an officer tn the late war, informed us that oes had been of jore dangers and shown more bravery, than dozen men in the army, and that she hed been rcs tuated b; ly patriotic motives, At his request she exhibi with perceptible pride @ portrait of General Alvarez, eee nee with @ note from h in which he calls her “brave, faithful and devoted friend,” and subscribes himself her “respectful servant.” Of course this inspired us with more re- spect for her than we had previously fe!t, although of we were perhaps exc: le in not discovering @ en of Arc &@ poor, ignerant Mexican half- re THE FORT OF SAN DIEGO, which stands on a rocky bluff just north of the town, is @ curious old place, apparently interme- diate in its architecture between feudal and mod- ern times—between the epoch of battering rams and crossbows and that of gunpowder and breecn- loaders, An avenue, shaded by noble banyan tree: leads up to it from the town and makes a beautiful promenade, while the fort itself, with its moat and causeway, its eacarps and embrasures, tts bastions, barbicans and banquettes; its venerable walls, grass-grown and scarred more by time than by battle, and, above all, with the unsurpassable landsca| spread out below its ramparts, is well worth @ visit. While we wero at Acapulco the natives were unusually active in fishing and collecting, having learned that thero was a good market for specimens on board the Hassler, and we were beseiged from hpgennsips to night with their canoes filled with a great varicty of fishes, echiniand molusca. Au amusing incident occurred on the day of our departure. A man came on board about noon and announced himseli as A PROFESSIONAL SNAKE CHARMER, He brought with him a box containing tho rep- tile, whose bite, he said, was instantly and in- evitably fatal. After producing a bottle of antidote and making elaborate prepara- tions to guard agatost accident he cautiously opened the box. Professor Agassiz, who was ree ent, remarked immediately that there was nothing poisonous about that serpent, and that any one could handle tt with impunity. The would-be in- trepid perlormer was denying this vehemently when another of our party, wlio had not been pres- ent during the preliminaries, came up, and thinking it was a specimen for our collection, and recy like the Professor, its harmless character, picket it Op carsieanls: and began to examine it, ‘the snake chatmer’s performance proceeded no further; prestige had vanished, and he packed up his case and disappeared dejectediy Over the side amid the Li ee of his audience, previously 80 credulous and admii ring. That afternoon (August 7) we got under way and steamed out of the bay, passing through the Boca Chica, @ litle channel leading to the northward. For the next week we ran along eujoying beauti- ful weather, crossed the mouth of the Gulf of Cali- fornia and met cool northerly winds, delightful after the heat of Acapulco, and on the morning of the 13th entered MAGDALBNA BAY, on the Lower California coast. The harbor {s an extremely large one, protected from the swell and storms of the ocean principally by Santa Margarita $1 20 r gallon. The buildin; used as @ chu by the old priests is a very dilapidated condition, but shows traces of original strength, beauty and even elegance. The front wall is more than seven feet thick, and ts still firm and solid, doors were once INLAID WITH SILVER AND BRONZE PLATES, which have been torn of by later occupants, the buildings having been used as barracks. The body of the church has been divided into two floors—tho Uaper one bare and desolate, with walls covered with rude charcoal sketches and caricatures; the lower one used cipally a8 @ stable. rectangular The row of little ceils, forming wing to the main building, and in which the priests used to live, is now roofiess, and on looking in the low arched doorways one is grected with the grunt- ing of olive-fattened swine in place of the gentle benediction of some holy fatner. From the narrow windows in the thick walls the most lovely views of the adjoining valleys and distant hills were obtained—landscapes set in a frame of masonry and softened and mellowed by an almost imperceptible haze. ‘The settlement here was always entirely self-de- ndent—the grain, fruits and game of their own ands affording the priests and their converts @ generous subsistence. In one corner of the olive orchard an old tree is growing, a species of thorny acacia, from the seeds of which, by bruising macerating with scraps of rusty iron, they Wey enough tannic acid to supply them with ink. A da; epan sailing along the edge of the kelp bed, of int Lima, Selllag for and catching a long, slender fish, once cl: by Cuvier with the perch, but long ago shown by Professor Agassiz to constitute @ separate family, THE SPHYRENICTE, closely allied to the mackerels; a gunni excur- sion to@ canyon, about ten miles from the city, ere & number of quails and snipe were obtained, more than a few visits to @ little ranch, cele- brated for Its tobacco, tomatoes, mint and hospital- ity, were a few of the pleasures of our stay in this port. The zoological collection received numerous and valuable additions, very many star fishes, echini and molusca being brought to us by the Chinese fishermen, while more than fifty species of fish were secured, several of them belng entirely new. We were detained there rather longer than was anticipated, while the Hassler went on another unsuccessful search after a reported rock, said to be about one hundred miles north of the island of Guadaloupe, but which eprobanly never existed, On the afternoon of the 28th we regretfully left our many friends—new, indeed, in the duration of an acquaintanceship, but old when the time 1s reck- oned by their acts of kindness—and proceeded on onr way. After a pleasant run of three days, pro- tracted somewhat by heavy fog banks, we PASSED THROUGH THE GOLDEN GATE early on the morning of Saturday, the 3ist, and soon after dropped anchor in San Francisco harbvor. The cruise is now virtually atan end; the mem- bers of the scientific party leave the ship for their re- spective homes, aud her officers remain with her at this port until they go upon their regular surveying duties. As to the pleasure and enjoyment of the voyage there can be but one opinion, We have vis- ited many interesting places, many far out of the line of ordinary travel, and, owing to the presence of Professor Agassiz, have had numerous and un- usual courtesies shown us, and extraordinary facil- ities afforded for our investigations, It has been invariably the case since our release from quarantine at St. Thomas uj here that the Professor's name alone has been suffi- cient to insure us marked attention from every one, and individuals of all classes and ranks have always shown themsclves not only willing but eager to give us every possible assistance. THE SUCCESS OF THE EXPEDITION has, upon the whole, been a decided one, Owing to circumstances beyond the control of any one on board, there has not been ag much done in the direction of deep-sea dredging as was desired and anticipated; but the very loss of the opportunities for this work afforded others for observations, which, like those mado by Professor Agassiz on the geology of the southern extremity of our Continent, are of the highest peepee scientific importance, The re- sults of the ppeestigations upon the penetration of light and the actinic rays are also extremely valuable, as establishing the first accurate data ever obtained upon the subject. Other work was carried on throughout the voyage in vari- ous directions, chemical, photographic and hydro- Metric, and should be taken into account. In the department of zoology the results have been wonderful, both ir the number and variety of the animals secured. Probably over filty thousand fishes have been obtained, and it would hardly be an exaggeration to say that, including the inverte- brat one hundred and fifty thousand specimens to our reception Isiand, which closes the entrance. The hills skirting its shores vary height from three hundred to twelve hundred feet, and are barren and desolate, supporting only a few sti cacti and bushes, unre- leved by anything m or fresh-looking, We drew the seine and collected along the beach near the foot of Mount Isabel with moderate success. The next day we ran up towards the head of the bay for about nine miles, aud hove to opposite a settlement of ORCHILLA GATHERERS, sending a party ashore to obtain specimens while dredging was conducted from the vessel. The settlement consistrd of two dwelling houses and a couple of warerooms tor storing the orchilla, of which there were hundreds of pales ye up Song wie “Deacks meee Ae a Stren re wo et occupied in packing it and preparin, for _ship- ment on board of one of the Pacitic ‘Matt steamers, Which stop infor that purpose. It is taken to Panama and across the Isthmus and thence to Liverpool, one firm there having contracted for the entire quantity gathered. Little or none is sent to the United States. The supply seems to be very great, et it is probable, from the slow rate of growth of lichenous plants, that it would not take long to exhaust it. The dye obtained from the weed is said to be beautiful, permanent and in- expensive. The success of the seining party at this place was remarkable, In two hauls of the net more than three barrels of fish were obtained, and hundreds, for which we had no use, were carried off by the settlers or thrown back into the water. In the afternoon we resumed our voyage, and ran on for four days with pleasant weattier, general!, in sight of land. On Sunday, the lith, we passe the monument of granite marking THE BOUNDARY LINK BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES, and about four o'clock came to anchor in the har- bor of San Diego, the first port for nearly nine Months where we found the American flag fying, where the habits and and interests of the people were identical with our own, where we could obtain our mail and transact our business without innumerobvie delays and where the gen- erous, corlial aospitality of our reception made us feel that we actually reached home again. The town of San Diego is now only four years old, and of a size posreesanne to its age; but it has lately assumed considerable impor- tance as the future tcrminus of the Texas Pacific Railroad. The near approach of the time when the work of grading and laying out the road at this end of the route must be commenced has thrown the Population tnto a fever of excitement and expecta- tion. A great deal of the land in the vicinity is owned by men who have worked and waited patiently for years in the belief that at some time more or leas remote the necessities of our Asiatic commerce would demand another port on the Western coast, and that the RICH MINERAL AND AGRICULTURAL REGION comprising Southern California, Southern Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico would require a commer- cial centre somewhere in the 1,300 miles between San Francisco and Mazatlan. The claims of San this position are undoubtedly pre- eminent. The harbor is one of the finest and most secure in the world, and wilt accommodate with ease a fleet of 1,000 ships. The surrounding coun- try, though suffering at the time of our visit from the effects Of a protracted drought, gave ample evi- dences of its great fertility when once supplied by ir- Tigation or otherwise with the requisite moisture. \ The climate is soft, mild, yet invigorating, and cer- tainly one of the best adapted in the world for those having pulmonary affections, as it is almost uniform pens el the entire year and would in- volve no weal me change of residence or danger- ous travelling irom place to place. The site of the town is an excellent one, the land sloping sum- ciently for purposes of drainage, but not so much as to hecessitate grading. Altogether it ts far from robable that San Diego may become before by ycars have passed THE RIVAL OF 84N FRANCIECD " on this coast In size and Commercial Inportance, and whatever our expectations in the matter may be our wishes are certainly that the little town and its kindly inhabitants may have all the saccess | which they deserve. Among the many pleasant ex- | cursions which were taken at this place one of the most interesting was a Visit to the site of THE FIRST MISSION established by the Catholic Church in Lower Calt- fornia. It is about seven miles from the city, the road leading through broad flelds staked of into streeta | and town lots, though far out of sight of any | houses, and then through a@ littie canyon Into the | Mission Vailey, the bed of the San Diego River, | which mythical stream is supposed to empty into the bay @ few miles above the town. The view from this point isa beautiful one. There is none of the richness and variety of vegetation which we had seen further south; but the colors of the hills themselves are bright and well harmonized, and are brought out by the dark gray background of mountains. The former course of the river may be marked by @ broad band of light green willowy shrubs curving from side to side of the valley and contrasting Speneie wath the dark brown of the bushes growing on the drier portions of the plain. Looking up the valley the white wails of tue old Mission show hike @ speck against the hilisides, while to tne left the Ddiue waters of False Bay shine over the edge of the sand hills. The valley ts intersected by ditches for- merly used for irrigation, castor oil plants grow in great profusion among the cacti and s.ge8, and the Whole locality appeared to have been atone time under careful cultivation. Directly opposite THR RUINS OF THE MISSION 1s the largest and oldest olive orchard in California, containing 370 trees, many of which are eighty or one hundred years of age. It still belongs to the Church, and is leased from the Bishop of Los An- geles by the present residents, Some of the trees are from eighteen inches to two feetin diameter and from twenty to forty feet in height. They are propagated by cuttings and make a growth of about ten feet in the first three years. ‘They bloom in Apri] and May, and the olives ripen and are Renee from September until the succeed. ing May. They are then immersed in cold water which | is changed Cally for @ month or more, are put in lime for a few days and are then ready for eating. ‘The oil ts obtained by pressure only from those whic’ are full Li ana have been thoroughly dried, mashed and soaked, About ten gallons of olives Produce ono gallon of oll, at @ cost of have been sent home during tne cruise, THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED GALLONS OF AL- COHOL © 8G gee den Peving been used in their preservation. Many of them have been hitherto unknown and undescribed, and their discovery and examination wili aid in the solution of long-mooted problems of natural science. I think it is safe to say that the breaking up of our little party will be attended with many regrets, Qnd that there will be more pain than pleasure to most of usin separating after our long sojourn to- gether, although we have all been looking forward ‘with more or leas eagerness to our return home, TB OFFICERS OF THE HASSLER. Of the indebtedness of the scientific party to Cap- tain Johnson and the officers under bis command it would be idle to speak, for whatever work has been accomplished and whatever valuable results have been gained are as much due to their active agsistance, cordial co-operation and untiring energy as to any other causes, and there is no word of commendation that could be spoken of the expedition which does not compliment them at least equally with those who have been their pas- sengers. PROFESSOR AGASSIZ, with one or two assistants, will remain in San Francisco long enough to make some collections from the bay and its vicinity, and will then return to Cambridge. THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE FAIR. ae The Great Invention Show—Music Day and Evening—A Sparse Attendance—A Fine Exhibition of Machinery. The annual fair of the American Institute may now be fairly said to have been opened. Nominally the doors of the Rink were thrown open over a week ago to such of the public as would choose to Pay fifty cents a head admission to the curious in- ventions heaped together in the enormous struc- ture, which is @ compound of barn and railroad depot. An addition has been made to the rear of the Rink for the accommodation of machinery and re- treshment rooms, and under this shea may be ob- served, in working order, @ number of new and Magnificent engines, the prodacts of skilful brains. The enormous metal statue on the sola water fountain, eighteen or twenty feet high, star- tles the beholder by its size, and the band on the platform gives forth a series of crazy and wheezy strains to the two or three hundred people who are Present in the vast edifice walking wearily about and gazing at the complicated io- ventions of third-rate geniuses. Girls never could on would understand — machinery or anything else as abstruse, and althongh they will pretend to be interested at all the things they see they are really heedless of such things. ‘The dear creatures are more interested in the gum drops and bonbons at the conlectlonery stands than they could possibly be in the revolving wheels, cogs and cranks of the whirring machinery, There are in the fair milliners’ booths, jewellers’ stands, Medical instrument cases, kitchen and laundry utensils, and all kinds of merchandise ; works of art and of virtu, besides the latest improvements in every branch of mechanical skill. As yet the fair has not been crowded very much. There have been too much dust and fuss succeeding the opening of the fair; but all that is now bein: done away with and the Kink looks quite clean an the goods are arranged in @ neat manner. ‘The art galiery contains @ couple of dozen of photo- gerne and a number of indifferent chromos, is very badly ventilated, and the air is so vitiated in the pak ad that a visitor gasps for breath while stvolliug through it. The fair ts opened at ten o'clock each morning, and continues open until ten in the evening. Two concerts are given daily by the band, one during the afternoon aud one during the evening. OBSEQUIES OF ANDREW CARRIGAN, Grand Requiem Mass—Eulogy by Arch- bishop McCloskey in the Charch of St. Francis Xavier. The mortal remains of Andrew Carrigan were yesterday consigned to earth in St. Patrick’s Ceme- tery after a grand panegyric was paid to them. At ten o'clock, the appointed hour for the requiem mass, the church was filled with mourners and friends of the deceased. The most noticeadle among those who composed the vast cortege that accompanied the remains from the residence of the deceased to the church were the orphans of the Fifth avenue and Prince street asylums, to whom Mr. Carrigan was a _ benefactor indeed. The church was very tastefully draped to render the ceremonies appropriate to the occasion. After the cortége arrived at the chureh the coin, attended by sixteen palibearers, Was taken in and placed upon a catafalque in front of the altar, after which the celebration of the mass was commenced. The mass selected for the occa- sion by the very eminent organist of the church of St. Francis avier was Cherubini’s requiem, which was rendered with great skill and powerfu effect, At the conclusion of the mass the Most Rev. Archbishop McCloskey ascended the altar steps and delivered a befitting eulogy im memor: of the deceased. The coffin was then remove: tr the hearse, which proceeded to St. Patriek’s Cemetery ler escort of the following pall-bearer William F, Havemeyer, A. T. Stewart, Wilson G. Hunt, Wililam O'Brien, James Ulwell, Thurlow Weed, Lewis J. White, Dr. Scott, Hugh Kelly, Eugene Kelly, Cyrus Curtiss, James B, Nicholson, James Stuart, Dr. Chalmers, Jauies Kerigan and John Hennessy, followed by the family of the deceased, the Com- missioners of Emigration, the Trustees of the Irish Emigrant Society, the ‘trustees of the Catholic Orphan Asylums, the Trustees of St. Patrick's Cathedral, the orphan children under the charge of the Sisters of Charity, and @ cortége of citizens which lined the sidewalks of the streets and ave- hues through which the funeral passed, At the wae tho remains were deposited in the family rr NEW YUKK HERALD, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1872—TRIPLE SHEET. THE WEATHER. Yesterday was another acorcher, and hundreds of Summer resorters, who had arrived in town on Saturday to stay, under the impression that the backbone of the heated term had been broken by the brief cold snap of last week, took the first boat or train for the country yesterday. The fact is, as the more than usually crowded churcheson Sunday amply testified, a very large number of city reai- dents had packed up their duds and stowed them selves away in their own houses in town last week,and among this class especially the intense heat of yesterday and the day previous created a feeling which can only be appropriately described by the tll-used term—consternation. They had an idea that a full-Nedged period had been putto their fashionable out-of-town hotel bills and that even from the start of the present month they could safely count upon @ comfortable time in the city, with no prospect of the August furnace weeks to make them meditate suicide in an ice house or a voyage to the North Pole, with no other provision a8 a standby than cracked Ice and hard tack, chop- ped up into a sort of Esquimaux salad. But Sum- mer resorters are like all other humans. They pro- pose, and the Clerk of the Weather disposes things Just ag the humor of the moment takes him. Up to noon yesterday his humor was of the most perspir- ingly exacting kind, and tne eorNrny was & regular early Juiy hegira from the city of the fat men and their wives and the out-of-town clubs gen- erally, who had made miscaiculations as to what September was to do for them ina refrigeratorial way as compared with sweltering August. Still we all know that one man’s misfortune in every department of life is some other man’s opportunity, and the sudden upshot of the mercury during the past two days proved that thore is no exception to the rule among the hotel keepers in the country. It is true ie er poars to sutfer from the heat as much as anybody else; but while the disappointed city people, fresh trom the country, cursed their precipitate haste in leaving the Summer resorts so suddenly and at such an unfortunate time, and suffered all the more from the heat because of the knowledge of the cool comforts they had lett behind, the country hotel men in town suifered with all the spirit of martyrs who knew that the cause of their sufferings was certain to bring its golden reward at once even though the “season” was nearly at an end and the “regulars” had fown away to their city haunts, As to the city people who so far have been unable to get out of town at all, they went about their business as diligently and as regardless of fate as ever, knowing that they had seen the worst of the hot weather, had gone through it safely and that they had already reached a point of endurance that defled all future terms of the “hundred in the shade” complexion. The rain that began to fall late in the afternoon was a godsend, howover, in its way and did much to alleviate the suiferings of the city-bound thou- sands, even though it did catch the business com- munity on its homeward-bound trip and gave many as Fe len as it may have been a welcome shower The following record will show the changes in tho temperature for the past twenty-four hours com- red with the corresponding day of last ye iT, OS indicated by the thermometer at Hudnut’s Phar. macy, HERALD ee — 1871, 1872, 3A. 6 12M. Avert y Average temperature for corresponding date LaSt Year... .cecsevee Sunstruck. Julius HefMfler, twenty-seven years of age, resid- ing at 509 Eleventh avenue, was prostrated by the heat yesterday while at work at the corner of Madl- son avenue and Forty-fifth street. He was taken to his home. John Murther, six years of age, residing in Elghty- ninth street, between Fourth and Fifth avenues, was found suffering badly from sunstroke yesterday morning in Fighty-ninth street, and was taken to Bellevue Hospital. The following cases of sunstroke were reported fre o e Police Central Oftice, in Mulberry street, yes- rday :— Michael Dewer, aged thirty, of 928 East Twenty- fourth street, sent to Bellevue Hospital. William Etch, of 87 Sheriff street, in Thirty-eighth street, near Tenth avenue. Cared for at the Twen- tieth precinct station house and left for home. George Yonintut, aged twenty-four, of Hudson City, in Dey street. Taken home by friends, John Hopkins, aged twenty-seven, of 162 Wash- Ls street, in West street. Sent to Park Hospi- Joseph Scott, aged thirty-nine, of 321 West Twenty-first street, while riding io a Tenth avenue car. Sent to Bellevue Hospital. Struck by Lightning. About five o'clock last evening, while the thunder storm was raging about Staten Island, the schooner J. B. Johnson, Rose master, was struck by light’ ning off the Upper Quarantine landing. The light- ning shaft struck the foretopmast just below the topgallant stay earring and splintered the topmast severely. It then jumped down to the foremast, striking about six feet below the mast head, and tore the mast almost to pieces. For a distance of twenty-five fect down its length great slices were pianed and ripped of the mast and the timber was split open for ten or twelve feet through the heart of the mast, so that daylight could be seen through the crack. The vessel hails from Port Republic, N. J., and was bound to Richmond with a cargo of coal. Her foremast 1s utterly de- stroyed, and she will be compelled to have a new one put in before starting on her voyage. She had only an hour before run into harbor for safety from jethe threatening storm. No one on board was in- jured. During the thunder storm yesterday afternoon @ house situated just outside the entrance to Cal- vary Cemetery was struck by lightning and in- stantly destroyed. The outhouses also caught fire and were consumed. It has not yet been ascer- tained whether any lives have been lost. BEATEN TO DEATH. A Big RaMfian Kills a Boy by Blows from a “Billy”—The Murderer Escapes—Great Excitement and Indignation. MaRtINSBURG, Va., Sept. 9, 1872. Late yesterday evening two young mea, between eighteen and twenty years of age, named respec- tively O'Leary and Collins, white under the infu- ence of liquor, got into an altercation which re- sulted in the murder of U’Leary by an uncle of the boy Collins. It appears from the evidence before the Coroner's inquest this morning that the two boys were about to fight when Mr. John Collins, uncle to the boy of that name, interfered and finally Pate @ billy from his pocket, knocked O'Leary down, bake upon him and actually beat him to death. He then fled, and has not yet been captured, Young Coliins raised up the lifeless body of O'Leary with the help of some other boys and car- | Tied it home to his mother, who is a poor widow de- pending solely upon the boy’s labor for support. She has nearly lost her mind at the terrible death of her son. Ofmicers have been despatched in pur- suit of the murderer, and telegrams have been sent to all parts of the country to facilitate his arrest, The excitement and indignation of the people here are great. Collins, the murderer, is an Irishman, about twenty-six years of age, near six feet high and finely bulit. His victim was only @ boy in age and size, which adds mueh to the enormity of the crime. The verdict of the Coro- ner’s jury was that O'Leary came to his death by blows from a billy in the hands of Collins, and that the young a Collins was accessory. He has been arrested and bound over to answer the charge. O'Leary's funeral took place this evening, and was attended by a large concourse of citizens. FATAL RUNAWAY IN HOBOKEN, At eight o'clock yesterday evening a sad occur- rence took place on the road between Hoboken and Union Hill. Mr. Stefred Gohde, of 106 Bloom- field street, accompanied by Officer Becker, of one of the German steamships, was driving his wagon homeward, when the horse suddenly took fright and dashed headlong ata furious rate. In a few moments Mr. Becker was hurled from his seat and thrown head foremost against a stone, producing a frightful gash along his skull and knocking him in- sensible, Shortly afterwards the wagon was upset and shattered, when Mr. Gohde was pitched out and sustained much injury. He was taken to his home, when it was found that his wounds might not prove fatal. Becker was carried to St. Mary's Hospital, and there is little hope of his recovery. SUIOIDE BY HANGING, About seven o’clock yesterday morning the dead body of Charles Brush, a German, forty years of age, was found hanging by the neck in the cellar o his residence, 47 Clinton street. Deceased had hung himself during the night, but the cause whichf [de ge the act was not made known to the ‘enth precinct police. Coroner Keenan was noti- fied, It is supposed deceased was insane. SHOT BY HER SON-IN-LAW. Boston, Sept. 9, 1872, Charles Bassett shot his mother-in-law, Mrs, Harrison Staples, in Lakeville, Mass.,on Saturday, inflicting @ dangerous wound. He gave himself up tothe town constable. Bassett alleges that his wife, to whom he had been married three years, ‘was parted from him through her mother’s infu- ence, and that being refused admission to see her he was provoked to commit the acte " a revival spirit and the revival meetings which THE METHODIST PREACHERS, Necessity and Usefainess of District Con- ferencesDr. Curry Local Preachers; They are Ecclesiastical “Bummers.” This body of @erics met yesterday and quietly discussed the tendencies and the results likely to flow from the adoption of the District Conference Plan proposed by the last General Conference, which met in Brooklyn. The talking was confined mainly to Dr. Curry, who, in the General Confer- ence, was chairman of the committee that fathered and presented the plan. He went over the ground a8 thoroughly as time would permit, and showed the neceasity for just such a gathering of ministers {nd laymen as the plan recommends, ‘There ia too great a chasm between the Quarterly and the Annual Conferences, which ought to be spanned by ® District Semt-annual Conference. There are too many local preachers in the Methodist Church he thought, and there will be so long as five or six or @ dozen men in a Quarterly Conference can license them to preach, They carry their licenses from year to year and do nothing. Theyare merely BOCLESIASTICAL “SUMMERS,” The tract, Sunday school, missionary, Church ex- tension and other connectional interests of the Church demand a conference of the laborers en- gaged in these kinds of work, and they can have it only in the proposed District Conferences. These would greatly relieve annual conferences and give the members thereof time for religious and social improvement, such ag they had in olden times; but which the growth of the Church and the preas of business in annual conferences now deprives them of. The pore to license and to continue local preachers being given to the district confer- ences composed of from seventy-five to 160 men will ensure @ better class of such preach- ers, and hence @ better class of ministers in the travelling connection, since the latter are almost invariably chosen from among (6 former. He be- leved and he had no doubt that abundant testi- mony could ve had to prove tt, that there are in the itinerant ministry ae men who are totally unfitted to be there. But they have a call to preach or think they have—it may be nothin; more than a desire—and straightway they repeat ii to others, and by ; pasaing it around it receives en- couragement and becomes a conviction, and the half dozen personal friends, perhaps, who com- pose the quarterly conference are e: induced to icense to their young brother. The dis- rict conferences will abolish all this, Rey. D. L. LULL said there was a vague idea in the minds of old church officers that in some way or other this plan is going to interfere with the QUARTRELY CONFERENCES, and the presiding Eldership, and to make them nonentities in the Church, own quarterly con- ference was the first to which it had been pre. sented, and, after carefully considering 1t, ie: laid i¢ over until their next meeting. Mr. Lull Soyans too much attention was paid in these days to the intellectual acquirements of ministers and too little to their natural capabilities. He regretted to perceive that the eee to exhort was rapidiy Separting from the ‘Methodist ministry, and, feeli: it in his own person, he had determined to stop and to cultivate this faculty more and more. Ho regretted also that the accumulation of business in the annual conferences had done away with the they formerly nad at such gatherings, when they never broke up without being able to count thirty, any or one hundred converts. He longed for the district conferences to restore all this. The office of class leader in the church he thought would be greatly benefited also by the adoption of this dis- trict plan, Rev. Mr. WiaTetey, of White Plains, said his quarterly conference had last Saturday unant- mously resolved in favor ofthe district conferences. The discussion waa continued over to next Mon- day, when Rev. C. ©. Leigh will vindicate the local Preachers trom the character of “bummers.”” THE GERMAN OATHOLIOS OF JERSEY OITY. An entertainment was given last evening at Tur- ner Hall, Jersey City, under the auspices of the pastor and trustees of the German Catholic church in First street, near Jersey avenue. The proceeds of the entertainment will be applied to the fund for maintaining the Sisters of St. Dominic, lately introduced into St. Boniface’s parish. The rae mission of the good sisters will be the educa- ‘ion of the youth of both sexes in the parochial school, The pastor, Father Kraus, has labored with such zeal and sit Dandie for several years that from a small beginning he has upa humerous congregation, including many re- pectable American and Irish families, all of whom are sincerely attached to him. The entertainment consisted of music by @ brass band, singing. and dancing. The audience after- wards partook of a repast in St. Boniface's school. The affair passed off very Menem and afforded ope encouragement to those noble self-denyin; el who devote their lives to a great work o: charity. HORSE NOTES, The trotting match between J. J. Bradley and Charley Green for $5,000, mile heats, best three in five, in harness, has fallen through for the present by J. J. Bradley becoming lame. The beautiful and fast young California mare Au- Tora, recently purchased by Governor Stanford, of Sacramento, for $6,000, trotted five heats in a con- test on the 31st ult. against Hayward’s Lady Blan- chard, making the fourth mile in 2:27. Aurora haa had but six months’ Eenlne R. Robinson, of Brooklyn, has the pap of carriage horses in this country, and he is ling to match them against any gentieman’s matched team cai . ‘Phe team are bay mares, sixteen hands high, and powerfully built. They can trot to Mr. Robinson’s double-seated wagon, with four men in it, in less than three minutes to the mile. GREAT RACE MEETING AT NEW ORLEANS, At @ meeting of the subscribers of the $20,000 | purse for the four-mile race over the Fair Grounds Course, at New Orleans, in the Spring of 1873, held the 23d of May, the following programme was adopted :— The races to take place the Saturday before or after the “Spr! Meeting, 1873" of the Louisiana Jockey Club, day and Por track. First Race—Sweepstake, for all ages; dash of one mile; entrance $50, p. p.; subscribers to add $500, Second Race—Sweepstake, for all 3; dash of two miles; entrance $50, p. p.; subscribers to add third Race—Heats of four miles, purse $20,000, free for all ages and the world; $14,000 to first horse, $4,000 to second horse and $2,000 to the third horse; entrance $250, to go to subscribers; four to, enter and three to start; horse distancing the fleld entitled to first money only. The races to be run under the old rules, which allow a horse to start in each heat, unless dis- tanced, until the race 1s decided. Entries name and close 1st January, 1873, PIGEON SHOOTING, Pigeon shooting was announced to come off at Hall's Driving Park, on the Coney Island road, yesterday afternoon, and a number of amateur shooters were on the ground at the time arranged for the sport to commence, Messrs. Walton and Bryer shot a match at three birds for a beginning,,and tying, they agreed to shoot until one of them missed a bird, Mr. Bryer missed his fifth bird, and Mr. Walton won the match. The pigeons were active and the shooting ver, good. The second event was a sweepstakes, with seven contestants, at five birds each. The gentlemen engaged were Messrs. Walton, Bryer, Kobertson, Hartshorn, Steele, Wingert and Ca hae fi but before the sweepstakes was conciuded a deluging rain fell, which put an end to the sport for some time. When the rain ceased Messrs, Hartshorn and Bryer pees a@match of five birds each, Hartshorn win- ning. The arrangements for shooting at Hall's Park areas fine as could be desired, and numbers of good shots meet there once and sometimes twice a week to dispiay their skill with the gun. The following are the scores of the shooting that came off during the afternoon :— FIRST MATOH. Mr. Walton—1, 1, 1—10, Mr. Bryer—1, 1, 1—11. THE SWEEPSTAKES. Walton—1, 1, 1, 1, 1—5. Hartshorn—1, 1, 1, 1, 0—4, Bryer—1, 0, 1, 1, 0—3. Robinson—t, 1, 0, 0—2. Steele—o, 0, 0, 0—0, Wingert—0, 0—0, Cadley—0, 0, 1—1, SECOND MATCH. Hartshorn—t, 1, 1, 1-4 Bryer—1, 1, 1, 0, 6—3, BOAT BACE, ALBANY, N. Y., Sept. 9, 1872. One of the handsomest boat races that was ever witnessed here took place this afternoon between the Matual and Beaverwyck Clubs of this city. ‘The course was three miies in length, on the river, in front of the city, and the boats were six oared gigs. The boats kept nearly side by side four-fifths 0! the course, when the Mutuals shot a little ahead, and won the race by about five feet. Time, 17 min- utes and 31 seconds. ————<— ye ORIOKET IN CANADA, Toronto, Ontario, Sept. 9, 1872, In the scratch match between the Englishmen And Canadians, who were divided, in the second inning Grace was out for twenty-seven—ono leg before the wicket, The “Eleven” have been most hospitably entertained in Toronto, and express themselves delighted with their visit, They will Play to-day ia Logdon, Qatario TROUVILLE. The Season at the Fashionable French Watering Place. M. Thiers on His Vacstion—How He is Lodged and How He Looks—Business Never So Pros perous—A Good Harvest and @ Contented Peasantry—A Visit to the Villages om the Shores of Normandy. TROUVILLE, August 20, 1812, ‘The villa, or rather the chalet Cordier, now cele- brated as the residence of the President of the French Republic, has been famous for a long time past—at least in the fashionable world. The bed- room, with large windows and furnished in tae style of the sixteenth century, is a celebrity in ite way. The villa is the property of Mme. Cordier, the wife of the Receiver General at Tours and the sister of Mme. Gallifet, the wife of the wholesale butcher of Communists. Mme. Cordier is the daughter of Lafitte, the banker, and was formerly married to the banker Erlanger, and divorced from him by Special decroe of the Pope. She ts immensely rich, both by herself and through her two husbands, an@ the President could certainly not have found at Trouville a more appropriate residence for THE HEAD OF THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT. But, apart from the external elegance of the reai- dence, there is nothing in his manner of living thas would exceed tho style of living ofa well-to-do middle class man. He is reported even not to have brought his cook from Versailles, and to be satisfied with one engaged at the watering place itself. He is often to be seen walking about along the shore in company with the Minister of War, and with General Forgeot and General Valajé. He is dressed always in black, and wears agray silk hat, with long nap, such as English sportsmen used to wear some twenty-five years ago, and such as no one wears now, except M. Thiers, M. Guizot and Odilon- Barrot. He came to Trouville for the sake of hav. ing @ little rest, and consequently triea to avold business as much as possible. Still there are daily several audiences tobe given and reports to be listened to, and a big portfolio is daily brought from M. Barthélemy Saint-Hilaire, who car- ries On business at Versailles. The grand days for M. Thiers were those of the artillery experiments in which he took, as, indeed, he takes in all military matters, the highest intereat. He pranced about the shore where the battery was ea tablished, as if he were a captain of thirty years of age at the outside, and our elegant ladics pos- sessed of husbands of the same age as M. Thiers point out to their companions in life the advan- tages the President has over them inall respects except size. The variegated tollets exhibited on the shore, as well as at the Casino, are something bewildering, and would make one disbelieve that we ate soatcely out of @ disastrous invasion, fol- lowed by a civil war, and that we intend living un- der an economical Republic. It seems ag if the olden days of the Empire had come back again, and the presence ot ladies like the Countesa of Pour- tales and Madame Magnan is calculated only to POE yl such a holief. The confidence which M. Thiers’ places in his friend, M. Barthélemy St. Hilaire, remaing still a theme for all sorts of jokea. The other day I went to Tréport, and the firat ques- tion a lady friend addressed to me was:—‘Well, you gome from Trouville, what is Monsieur le resident doing? Is ne taking his sea baths bim- self, or fa M. Barth¢lemy taking them for himt’’ RACES AND BALLS, As & matter of course we have some racing here and endless picnic parties, but the President is net to be secn ateithor. On the evening of the two days of Deauville races balls were given at the Casino, but I must avow that neither the beaw ‘monde nor the lady visitors from the neighboring towns and watering places enjoyed the dance much. At about ton o'clock several of the Parisian Camélias aj id in Caper § luxurious toilets and the majority of the ladies witharew. ALONG THE SHORES OF NORMANDY. Now and then, as I said, I make excarstons along the coast, and in the last fortnight I have vis- ited nearly every village of the shores of Normandy, and these visits beget a stronger and stronger conviction that our harvest of this year isto be something quite marvellous, The peasants of Nor- mandy are rather shrewd and hard people, but even they cannot help avowing toat “God has spread old all over the flelds this year.” Straw and oata have already fallen in price about twenty per cent. bread is to be reduced bya penny a pound, and vegetables are to be had really for nothing. Speak- ing generally, I notice a remarkablo ‘CONTENTMENT OF EVERYBODY AND EVERY ONE. Trades people of Trouville made fortunes under the Empire, and were always pompiaiing, about the progress of business, and now they say they are flourisning and cannot meet all demands. ‘here Gabe se peopel came: font irae is rere to i erstand. Shops at Trouville, except the pastry cook of La Grande Rue, where the briliant ladies of the Empire used to go in the afternoon to eat a fow tai a lacréme, were never so crowded as they are now. Is it the two years’ standstill and desola- tion that make things look better, or is it really some magical improvement, attributable to causes that will be probably known only later. HONFLEUR. Should you Matt Rs hes ea one oat font, miss a walk to Honfleur. Itts real 1e pre’ ai that the coast of Normandy Aeon hy Day after day do I take that direction and cannot sufficiently admire the taste of the late Morny, who created both Trouville and Honfleur, and whose statue has now been taken away from its pedestal and hidden somewhere. He surely did not deserve a monu- ment as a man, but did deserve it as a patron of these two now delightful watering places. At Etretot, which is also close by, you can see some- thing of celebrities that do not care about politica and the President. These are endless artistes, singers, painters, literary men, and you can often see Faure walking close by Offenbach. ‘A STUPID JOKE. The story about which has been made so much Noise, of some gentlemen on a yachting excursion having cried, ‘Vive U’. irl Thiers!” is quite a stupid one and certainly did not deserve the expense of ea. TG it has been honored with. The foreignet Ephrassi, M. Errazzu and M. Rumine hada lunch on board—a lunch, it seems, and well washed down—and thought it a good joke to frighten the coast guard with such ex- clamations. The coast guard did not get fright- ened, but arrested them on their landing, and the Commissaire of Police sent them before the Pro- cureur, and that was all. If Prince Orloff had not found it necessary to interfere, on account of M. Rumine's eine being a Russian vessel, the whole thing would have passed unnoticed. SPAIN SHOWING HER STRENGTH. Two More Iron-Clads Coming to the Port-The Numancia Preparing to Leave. Within aday or two at most the port of New York will find itself honored by the presence of one of the most powerful squadrons of foreign war vessels that has visited this harbor in many years. ‘The Spanish steam frigates Isabel la Catotica and Arapites are now hourly expected here en route to Spain from Martinique to go out of commission. ‘These vessels are iron-clads of the first class and mag! , and one of them, the Isabel, is ta, much resembling the Numanc Both have been about four years shij on the West India station, chiefly, of course, in the vicinity of Cuba. They visited Martinique for overhauling on the docks at that place prior to starting on the voyage. No sickness of the yellow fever order i8 expected to be found on either frigate. The Numancia is taking in coal and provisions in the Lower Bay preparatory to leaving for Spain, No new cases of yellow fever have been developed on board her within the Vang ten days, though prior to that time and since the cases last reported in the HERALD some two or three new cases had broken out and a couple of deaths had taken place. She will leave for Spain next week. All her crew are now fit for duty, and the late cool weather doubtless drove out the last remnants of fever virus from among them. A DOCTOR IN TROUBLE. Deputy Sheriff Gale, on Saturday evening, ar- rested Dr. John M. Berger, of 142 Second street, om complaint of John Froman, occupying rooms in the same house, Froman charges in his affidavit that on the 16th of August the Doctor asked his daugh- ter Barbara if she was Ul, and, on being answered in the affirmative, induced her to call at his office, where, by misrepresentations as to her disease an the cure required, he accomplisned her ruin. He charges that the act was yermaver until the girl became sick and was unable to attend to her household duties, Judge Lowe, of the Gourt of Jommon Pleas, granted an order of arrest in a civit suit for aam: Clerk Judson Jarvis adunitted the accused to bail in $1,500 to answer. ‘BUN OVER BY A CAR John Flynn, recently a driver in the employ of the Belt Ratiroad Company, died in Bellevue Hoa pital on Sunday last. Flynn was thrown over the dashboard of his own car, which passed over his body, fatally crushing him. The case will be in vestigated before Coroner Keenan, Deceased Uuyed gt 390 Madisdy street