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    A LIFE OF LINNiBUS , . 1 Life of Linnceus . By Miss Brightwell , of Norwich . Van Voorst OrrosiTie to the river front of Chelsea College has newly risen out of n swamp and iinsifflVtl y ^ riiaish lands , drained , till of late only , by primitive dildies ' one of the ornaments of the metropolis , connected with the northern bank of the Thames by as handsome a bridge as any which crosses our noble river As we loiter along the newly made gravel walks of Battcrsea Park , and admire the flowers , following the stream upwards , two stately cedars stand out in bold relief on the opposite bank , westwards of ( lie

    hospital . Those cedars mark the site of the Botanical Gardens at Chelsea , the first garden in Great Britain which was laid out according to the S 3 "stem of a young Swede , who visited London in 1730 , and whom the older and celebrated naturalists or the day openly ' accused of " confounding all botany . " The curator of those gardens at this time was a practical man , whose Cardencr ' s J ) ictiu ) iarj / lias made the name of l'hilip Miller familiar to lilost of us . Unlike Sir Hans Sloauc , who viewed the innovations of the young stranger with suspicion and dislike , and all but snubbed him , notwithstanding his being the bearer of a letter of introduction to him from the celebrated Boerhaave , which anv one

    mav ' :-till sec in the British ^ Museum , . and which is alike , honourable to the writer and tho bearer , Miller showed him every attention , supplied him witli many rare plants , and forwarded the objects of his journey by every means in bis power . Ainonust other naturalists who welcomed Liniuvus to our shores—for the \ oung . Swede was no other thimtlie great botanist himself—were Dr . Shaw , the Oriental traveller , and the celebrated Dillenius , whose , Ilkt' "' , ' / c . f JIosxcs and Corals is still a text book on t hose branches of ' natural history . Dillenius had been as much opposed to the . '' innovations" ot ' Linna ; us as ' any man , and when the latter presented to him his letters ofintroduction at . Oxford , he

    treated him with all but nulcne > s , using the woras , we have quoted , to a ¦ friend present on the occasion — " See , this is the vountr . mau who confounds all botany . " Linmeus did not understand English , but the siiuilaritv in sound of the obnoxious word to the Latin coitftouh-rr iruve him a elite to-the meaning and before he left . Oxford he took occasion , to seek an explanation . Upon this , Dillenius took him to his library and showed him a sheet of the - Centra PUnttavuin , which Uruiiovius had forwarded to him from lloll . uul . It was marked

    in . sundry places with notes of query . ' >>«)« signify those marks ? ' asked Linmvus . " They signify all the false gcneni of plants in y « nir book , " was the reply . This challenge led to an explanation , in wtacb Linnaeus proved his accuracy in every instance . \ m result was tin entire change on the part of Dillenius , who afterwards detained Linnajiis with him a muiitu ; and found so much satisfaction in his company , tlmtiio kept him always inclose coiivcr . se , scarce leaviujj mm an hour to himself . At last he parted from him witii tears in his eves , after makl . i tf him the i . iliT to stay » share hid salurv , which would have siitUced tor uicm

    both . But if scientific men , with all the pr ejudices ot seienUlic men to bo overeome , became , thus Innmy converts to the novel classification of p hials , itwitt not so with the fair . sex , Linnuuis had cast jisuica barbarous Latin jargon , and substituted m nspwa an easy and descriptive nomenclature , anil tlio ow " conjuration of hobgoblins , " as Kousscau Ims na > pilv { ermed the fonner , Inut by bis humus becoi J extinct ., and the delighU ' ul . sliuly of boliuiy tliuf , rendered attractive by the substitution ol more appropriate names for herbs mid garden ( lower * , » t « came a new source of rational inioynieiil ¦> . * ¦« - easy and plenum ! , nielhod introduced by Imn , \ wnu brought this delightful . study within the »»'' » m Ll J of nil Mho loved ' it , and the fair sex were umoiin si

    his earliest converts . Lmly Ann Monson in London , and Mr * . " 1 ild * bMr "' ' \ Ox lord , wore among this number , and ho had a » oiitlitiMlurttla uilmlrur hi J \ li « . s June CoKU-u "'/>" ' ' who wan introduced to his notico by ow ol m * «« ri | iuiii 1 antrt , n .-i tliu only hid v then known to ho *« K' » ' ' * uorjunliiloil with tho Mnniuan ey * tom . bho » ' ¦ ' '" fc and deacrihod four hundred plants , accord int . » method , uoinij JCiif / lMi turns . Pleased with t >» ih j . nillntorost thus nuuillVstod , Llnnanis ncknowUUb « * on * Q of them by proHurvlnff tho iminw «• " n M U , M ho IiiiMm In the vegetable kingdom ! »'"' ' unoll > ° ' . V ' oldonominutnl two beautiful plants , Moiwoniu iina v dO Ti 1 lloc ( 1 , it may truly bo suidtliui , previous toT ^ inntoiiM . I ho forms V animals und p lant » wore oil » i clussillod nor arranged so us to meet the m «» ib

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    Ctirioaitios qf Literalhvu . Hy O'Ihi-hqH , Son . Vol . II . ( Routlodgo nnd Cq . ) -tNo ono will fool othonvlao than grateful to Messrs . WoiitloU «« for tho rapidity with which they nro pushing forward tho publication of those volumes , so full of curious and . Iiwtruotivo innttur . Wo may notice that tho ianuo ia In n cheap form , nnd thoroforo tho work is nouoaslble to n wide circle of readers .

    1092 THE LEADER . [ No . 447 , October 16 , 1858 . brid of boats the 2 Jth of November

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    JOURNAL OF AN ENGLISH OFFICER IN INDIA . Journal of an English Officer in India . By Major Xorth , 60 th Rifles , Deputy Judge Advocate-General , and -Aide-de-Camp to General Havelock , &e . Hurst and Blaclvett . In May , 1857 , Major North was' at Calcutta , enjoying a consideraole sense of insecurity , when the news arrived of the Meerut outbreak . His own corps Was at that station , nine hundred miles off , and he started to join it in company . with the headquarters of H . M . 84 th Regiment , via Raneegunge , Benares , Allahabad , and Cawnpore , at which last ¦ p lace they were to relieve Sir Hugh Wheeler . At Allahabad they fell in with General Havelock , who was preparing the Allahabad , movcable column with the same object . They passed and Were again overtaken by him at Arrahporc . Here they heard of the Cawnpore tragedy of June 2 S , and here Major North volunteered into the 7 Sth Highlanders . At Futtehpofe , before which a smart action took place , the Major was tossed by a wounded bullock and severely contused . He was soon on his legs again , bore a part in the battle near Kullianpore , and reached the ruins of the station at Cawnporc on the 17 th July . Here he describes what he saw ., and his feelinsrs : —

    Tortured by the nerce thirst for revenge , and penetrated by the sense of their suffering , strange v . ild feelings awoke ^ tithin us . Panting , eager , maddened , we sped onwards to the dreary house of martyrdom , where their blood was outpoured like water ; the clotted gore lay ankle deep on the polluted , floor , and tho long tresses of silken hair , fragments of female -wearing apparel , hats , boots , children ' s tiny boots and toys , were scattered about in terrible confusion . And this was the Work of twelve -thousand Sepoys who , under their leader N . itna Sahib , abandoned the position of Cawnpore when the faces of tho avengers appeared over the ridges of Guilianpore . Of Wheeler and his position at Cawnpore lie speaks feelingly : — ' . _ '

    ... Had one regiment only , like am--of ( hose winch compose this band of Havelock '? , been present here with Sir Hugh . Wheeler , he might have made a ? staml till ; the arrival of relief . Poor victim of hope deferred , as much as of infernal treachery , hie had been led to believe that reinforcements would have been sent to his u'iil by the loth of June . . Relying on this fatal relief he selected the buildings nearest to the direct road from Allahabad , from whence the relieving troops were expected to advance . Hence his exposed position . "What eager agonised looks must have been turned to that road as day after day swept past and , reinforcements cimo not , and the hopes of the slender , overtasked garrison became

    fainter and fainter , while bodily strength wasted aw . iy , and , in addition to the savage foe , hunger also glared upon them . What wonder that reason tottered , and credulity awoke and whispered of the Nnna ' s foregone hospitality , the intimate relations which had originally subsisted between him and the beleaguered fmv , and his incapacity to betray trust reposed in his honour . On the 18 th of September , the army of Havelock and Outram finally left Cawnpore for the relief of Lucknow , where they arrived , with a loss of live hundred and fifty \ younclcd men and sixty ollieor .--, and minus a garrison of two hundred and fifty left in the Alumbagh , on the 25 th and 2 G ! liof September . Here the author resigned the post , of Deputy Judge-Advocate , and adopted tlmt of instructor in cartridge-making . He shared the perils

    pore ge on under fire , regained the small encampment which was all we could call our own at . that once splendid station . Here his health soon gave way . lie had for some time been supporting physical by mental energy , and when the latter ceased to play , the former gave way , and he was obliged to return borne on sick leave , bearing with him the public thanks of the Governor-General in Council , and the honourable mention of Sir James Outram . There is as little expression , of opinion , upon Indian or military topics in the volume before us as attempt at word-painting . The Major had ioo much to do during the progress of the Allahabad movable column to look after anything but military matters , and is clearly too much of a soldier to confer with or enlighten the British public about these : The opinions he docs offer mostly coincide with those that many other men of standing have published on the subjects of the mutiny nnd the war . He delivercd-liis opinion , as long ago as the 21-th of Julv , 1 S 57 , that the entire population of Oude was against us , and ' tbat tlie annexation of that province' was at the bottom of all . Nothing ( he says ) can exceed the virulence of the old Sepoys against us , and , compared with them , the armed people of Oude are mild as sucking-doves .

    The Sepoys , in fact , fought with baiters round their necks , while tbcOudcaus , hostile as they were , fought for the most part only as'the vassals of feudal chiefs or upstart zemindar .--. The lax state of discipline ( hf says again ) observed in the native army , i-on . pled with the annexation of Ou > le , h : iS mainly led to rebellion . A native army should be allowed to number only one-third of our forces , and the strictest discipline' should bo maintained by officers , whose sole interest should be in their several regiment * .

    Although quite agreeing with the author with respect to the bearing-upon the rebellion ' . of our relaxed discipline and of the annexation of Oude , we can li ; irdlv sec bow— - knowing as be must the system-iliac pn-vuils in the- India Service , and the changes th . it the P > rilish Ho-rto Guards are most likely to introduce into it—he can-vciituiv upon t lie hope that the sole infcrest : of oineer * -should be in their respective regiments , lie must know , we imagine , that heretofore the great object cf nearly every ollieer has been to get . detached or stall appointment as soon as practicibie , for the very natural reasons that , such appointments bring not . only the

    probability of earlier honour' than the comjvajuy otTiccr may hope , for , but also the certainty of increased emoluments and higher recognised position . ltcgimenl . nl duties have been , under the old regime , to some extent neglected by men whose influence at Leadcnhall-strect made it worth their while to study for staffappoiuf incuts , and discipline has been relaxed by such as had no hope , as well as by those who had ho ambition and no real industry or love of the profession . For mere regimental pay , without the stimulus of hope or ambition , such men as liavo honoured their country in tho present war will no I . be found roady to tempt run pa . dn yu / ri / iwd cholera . There will soon be sunn : ditlicuH cards to p lay about the Indian army , for the evil of this restlessness of regimental ollieers i . s widely recognised . The authorities at home will , in all probability , be gltid enough to avail themselves , if peace ensues , of the pretence it will offer to confer military appointments of value , upon Queen ' s ollieers from home , and to withdraw thos-o of the native army from political agencies they now enjoy , subsjil ulin . cr , of course , nominees of jnllm .-ntial people here . Then we ; niny expect heartburning , ji :: ilou > y , bittornessof spirit , and indiU ' ercnce . indeed , unless , us bi'l ' o . 'e said , we draw our ollieers for India from a lower gradu of society , perhaps from the ranks themselves . "Without , reference , however , to thcsci or suchlike questions of policy , we can heartily recommend the gallant odieer ' s pages to our readers . II . in simple ami unad ' eeted narrative , written in fragments during the campaign , is free from all trace of lilcrary artilleo . It reveals ju ovevy page the mnii of feeling , and , if other proof be wanting , his resignation of the well-paid and nearly sinecure judyi'ship for the foari ' iil olllco of practical cartridge ! -maker general , speaks volumes elsewhere , in addition to what bus already been published , for his bravery and devotion .

    and miseries of the Lucknow blockade , and , on the relief by Lord Clyde , finally left the Jiaillie guardhouse on tho 21 st of November . As prize agent he had charge of riches , tlic nicro muster-roll ot which would make tho mouth of a Sidonia to water , although they could hwdly purchase him an extra pound of sugar , or a candle , when his much-prized stock of three was exhausted . They consisted of nionqy , precious stones , ivory , silver , copper and other metals , besides n vast . qunutity of linen infinitely valuable for hospital purposes . The extent of those richos may be gucssod from the fact , that on the relief holiad "to look ai'tor no loss than ono hundred and eighteen ammunition boxes of tho king ' s trcusure , aiiul the crown jewels , besides eight barrels of precious stones , altogether occupying thirty-six ourts and tumbrils . "

    The lino of retreat—for wo oan hardly call it tho march—from the Alumbagh to Cawnporo , though tho army was certainly in possession of tho spolia opinui , was so encumbered , and Sir Colin ' s force so small , that the author was not oven , allowed a Enropoan guard for all this properly . To the honour of all concerned , let us add , no accomplished his task with only ono cavalry sergeant , nnd a sergeant ' s party of Sikhs , and , crossing tlio Ouwn-

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Oct. 16, 1858, page 1092, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2264/page/12/