resolutely refusing to admit
pernicious publications among his stock. He can well afford to pay the
heavy fee he does for his privilege; for his novel speculation has been a
decided hit--of solid advantage to himself and of permanent utility to
the public."

--_Athanaeum_, Sept. 5, 1851.

A RESIDENT ENGINEER AND SCIENTIFIC WITNESS.

Shortly after the first locomotives were placed on the London and
Birmingham Railway, a scientific civilian, who had given very positive
evidence before Parliament as to the injury to health and other
intolerable evils that must arise from the construction of tunnels, paid
a visit to the line. The resident engineer accompanied him in a
first-class carriage over the newly-finished portion of the works. As
they drew near Chalk Farm the engineer attracted the attention of his
visitor to the lamp at the top of the carriage. "I should like to have
your opinion on this," he said. "The matter seems simple, but it
requires a deal of thought. You see it is essential to keep the oil from
dropping on the passengers. The cup shape effectually prevents this.
Then the lamps would not burn. We had to arrange an up-cast and
down-cast chimney, in order to ensure the circulation of air in the lamp.
Then there was the question of shadow;"--and so he continued, to the
great edification of his listener, for five or six minutes. When a
satisfactory conclusion as to the lamp had been arrived at, the learned
man looked out of the window. "What place is this?" said he. "Kensal
Green." "But," said the other, "how is that? I thought there was one of
your great tunnels to pass before we came to Kensal Green." "Oh,"
replied the Resident, carelessly, "did you not observe? We came through
Chalk Farm Tunnel very steadily." The man of science felt himself
caught. He made no more reports upon tunnels.

--_Personal Recollections of English Engineers_.

EXTRAORDINARY SCENE AT A RAILWAY JUNCTION.

A most extraordinary and unprecedented scene occurred on Monday morning
at the Clifton station, about five miles from Manchester, where the East
Lancashire line forms a junction with the Lancashire and Yorkshire. The
East Lancashire are in the habit of running up-trains to Manchester, past
the Clifton junction, without stopping, afterwards making a declaration
to the Lancashire and Yorkshire Company of the number of passenger