vided with very bright uniforms, the most popular being that of the Zouave. They were incessant in their demands for music, and what with the din of brass bands, and the boisterous demonstrations of undisciplined troops, the whole country was kept in an uproar. The very children, dressed in the Zouave costume, were let loose to beat their mimic drums in the street, or to charge with tiny bayonets the unwary guests in the corridors of the hotels; so completely was the whole population given up to the war excitement.
It was gratifying to find one man engaged in the peaceful pursuits of science; but even in Mr Clarke's sanctuary, the curse of war had cast its shadow. For, when allusion was made to the commercial aspect of his great undertaking, we found that we had touched upon a delicate subject. The great telescope was ordered by the University of Mississippi, and a munificent price was agreed upon; but the war banished all thoughts of telescopes, and of obligations of Southern to Northern States. This southern institution was ambitious of possessing by far the most powerful telescope in the world; but, by the stern exigencies of war, the money that was to be paid for this expensive toy must go to purchase bread and bullets.
The case of Mr Clarke is one of many illustrations that, in the grinding and polishing of lenses and specula, the amateur often surpasses the professional
