more especially committed to them the
great work of evangelizing mankind. This discourse sounded like the
political essay of an able enthusiast, and fell strangely on my ears
from the lips of a Christian minister, whose province, I had always been
taught to consider, was rather to foster humility than to inflame
vanity. It is to be presumed he knew his congregation well, and felt
that he was treading the surest road to their dollars and cents.

Among other curiosities in this town is a human one, known as the Golden
Man, from the quantity of that metal with which he bedizens waistcoat,
fingers, &c. During my stay at New Orleans, he appeared decked with such
an astounding gem, that it called forth the following notice from the
press:--

ANOTHER RING.--The "gold" individual who exhibits himself and any
quantity of golden ornaments, of Sunday mornings, in the vicinity of
the Verandah and City Hotels, will shortly appear with a new wonder
wherewith to astonish the natives. One would think that he had already
ornaments enough to satisfy any mortal; but he, it appears, is not of
the stuff every-day people are made of, and he could not rest
satisfied until his fingers boasted another ring. The new prodigy is,
like its predecessors, of pure solid gold. It is worth 500 dollars,
and weighs nearly, if not quite, a pound. This small treasure is
intended for the owner's "little" finger. It is the work of Mr. Melon,
jeweller and goldsmith, on Camp-street, and is adorned with small
carved figures, standing out in bold relief, and of very diminutive
size, yet distinct and expressive. The right outer surface represents
the flight of Joseph, the Virgin, and the infant Jesus into Egypt.
Joseph, bearing a palm-branch, leads the way, the Virgin follows,
seated on a donkey, and holding the Saviour in her lap. On the left
outer edge of the ring is seen the prophet Daniel, standing between
two lions. The prophet has not got a blue umbrella under his arm to
distinguish him from the lions. The face of the ring exhibits an
excellent design of the crucifixion, with the three crosses and the
Saviour and the two thieves suspended thereto. This ring is certainly
a curiosity.

There is a strong body of police here, and some of their powers are
autocratically autocratic: thus, a person once committed as a vagrant is
liable to be re-imprisoned by them if met in the street unemployed. Now,
as it is impossibl