r less confidence in the character
of the bills drawn. We have no doubt they are all sound and solvent. We
know nothing now to the contrary. The drafts can be obtained in any city
in the Union, for any amount, from 1s. sterling upwards, drawn upon some
place in Europe; and drafts can be obtained in various European cities
payable in any city of the United States.--_Abridged from the New York
Herald._

FOREST-TREES.

In contemplating the length of life of one of the reverend and hoary
elders of the forest, we are apt to forget that it is not to be measured
by the standard of man or of the higher animals; for it is really not
the measure of an individual existence, but, as it were, of the duration
of an empire or a nation. A tree is a populous community, presided over
by an oligarchy, of which the flowers are the aristocracy, and the
leaves the working-classes. The life of the individual members of the
commonwealth is brief enough, but the state of which they are members,
has often a vast duration; and some of those whose ages we have referred
to, could they take cognisance of human affairs, would look with
contempt upon the instability and irregularity of human governments and
states, as compared with the unchanging order and security of their
own.--_Professor Forbes in Art-Journal._

WHISKY AND MISERY.

Whisky and misery, whichever be cause, whichever be effect, always go
together. There has been, as is well known, a failure of the
potato-crop, and consequently a famine, in the West Highlands and
Hebrides. In the island of Mull, about L.3000 of money raised in charity
was spent in the year ending October 10, 1848, for the eleemosynary
support of the people. In the same space of time, the expenditure of the
people on whisky was L.6009! We do not know how much had previously been
spent on whisky in that island; but we may judge from the fact
ascertained regarding Skye. In the year ending October 10, 1850, the sum
paid in the latter island for whisky was L.10,855--considerably more
than _double the amount expended in relief by the Destitution Fund_, and
_more than double the consumption of the same district in 1845_, the
year before the distress commenced! 'That is,' says the _Quarterly
Review_, which quotes the facts from excellent authority, 'the increased
consumption of whisky exactly tallies with the extraneous aid received;
in other words, the whole amount of charitable assistance _went in
whisky_