by his assistant, the grazier nearest him,
spreading out the tails of his coat, tried to place himself between the
staff and the telescope, in order to intercept all vision, and at the
same time commenced shouting violently to his comrade, desiring him to
make haste and knock down the staff. Fortunately for Mr. Gooch, although
nature had made this amiable being's ears longer than usual, yet they
performed their office very badly, and as he could not see distinctly
what Mr. Gooch was about--the hedge being between them--he very simply
asked the man at the staff what his (the enquirer's) brother said. "Oh,"
replied the man, "he is calling to you to stop that horse there which is
galloping out of the fold yard." Away went Clodpole, as fast as he could
run, to restrain the unruly energies of Smolensko the Ninth, or whatever
other name the unlucky quadruped might be called, and Mr. Gooch in the
meanwhile quietly took the sight required--he having, with great
judgment, planted his level on ground sufficiently high to enable him to
see over the head of any grazier in the land; but his clever assistant,
as soon as he perceived that all was right, had to take to his heels and
make the shortest cut to the high road.

In another instance, a reverend gentleman of the Church of England made
such alarming demonstrations of his opposition that the extraordinary
expedient was resorted to of surveying his property during the time he
was engaged in the pulpit, preaching to his flock. This was accomplished
by having a strong force of surveyors all in readiness to commence their
operations, by entering the clergyman's grounds on the one side at the
same moment that they saw him fairly off them on the other, and, by a
well organised and systematic arrangement, each man coming to a
conclusion with his allotted task just as the reverend gentleman came to
a conclusion with his sermon; and before he left the church to return to
his home, the deed was done.

--Roscoe's _London and Birmingham Railway_.

SANITARY OBJECTIONS.

Mr. Smiles, in his _Life of George Stephenson_, remarks:--"Sanitary
objections were also urged in opposition to railways, and many wise
doctors strongly inveighed against tunnels. Sir Anthony Carlisle
insisted that "tunnels would expose healthy people to colds, catarrhs,
and consumption." The noise, the darkness, and the dangers of tunnel
travelling were depicted in all their ho