Littell's Living Age/Volume 131/Issue 1695/Miscellany
Popular Feeling in 1854 and 1876. — The Herald of Peace says: "The British people at the time of the Crimean War, misled by those who professed to be their guides, were deaf and blind to every representation made that did not chime in with the passion of the hour. It was the time when Lord Palmerston declared that Turkey, within the last thirty years, had made greater progress in every possible way than was ever made by any other country during the same period; when Lord Shaftesbury used to expatiate in glowing terms on the religious liberty which existed in Turkey (!); when Lord Russell used to allege it as a good reason for going to war with the emperor Nicholas, that he had suppressed the Bible Society in Russia, which was utterly untrue; when John Bright was burnt in effigy at Manchester; when Richard Cobden was opposed and outvoted by his own Liberal constituents at Leeds; when Joseph Sturge was charged with hoarding quantities of grain to enhance its value, because the war had sent up the price of corn; when Mr. Henry Richard was placarded over the town of Cardiff as a Russian spy; when ecclesiastical and religious bodies could not meet without sounding aloud the tocsin of war; and all to prevent the emperor of Russia having the right to protect the members of the Greek Church in Turkey from the fanatical hatred of their Mahommedan rulers. Well, it is certainly meet that the English people should awaken, as they are now very effectually doing, to a sense of the fraud that was practised upon them when they were led to believe that in fighting for the Turks they were fighting the battle of freedom, justice, and civilization. It is no wonder if they are almost mad with the shame, the dishonor, the infamy, of being regarded by the whole civilized world as the special patrons and protectors of the Bashi-Bazouks, whose exploits in Bulgaria have filled the earth with horror and execration. The danger now is that they should rush into an opposite extreme, and be so inflamed with resentment that they will clamor for a war of vengeance on their former protégés. Nor is there any necessity to have recourse to war. If the western powers will only let their own foolish and wicked mutual jealousies sleep, and agree to speak with one voice to the Turks, there is no doubt they must listen and obey. The danger now arises mainly, we believe, from the suspicion of Russia, which is a mere monomania with some of our countrymen. It was this that led to the Crimean War, which gave a new lease of twenty years to the brutalities of the Turks, under English guarantees. It is the duty of the people of this country, if they would wipe the infamy of being the patrons of the Turks forever from the national escutcheon, to insist that this policy of suspicion be laid aside, and that our government should join loyally and cordially with other Christian governments in undoing the mischief that was done by their jealousies and dissensions twenty years ago."
Singular Property of Tomato Leaves. — "I planted a peach orchard," writes M. Siroy, of the Society of Horticulture, Valparaiso, "and the trees grow well and strongly. They had but just commenced to bud when they were invaded by the curculio (pulgon) which insects were followed, as frequently happens, by ants. Having cut some tomatoes, the idea occurred to me that by placing some of the leaves around the trunks and branches of the peach-trees, I might preserve them from the rays of the sun, which were very powerful. My surprise was great upon the following day, to find the trees entirely, free from their enemies, not one remaining, except here and there where a curled leaf prevented the tomato from exercising its influence. These leaves I carefully unrolled, placing upon them fresh ones from the tomato vine, with the result of banishing the last insect and enabling the trees to grow with luxuriance. Wishing to carry still further my experiment, I steeped in water some fresh leaves of the tomato and sprinkled with this infusion other plants, roses, and oranges. In two days these were also free from the innumerable insects which covered them, and I felt sure that, had I used the same means with my melon patch, I should have met with the same result. I therefore deem it a duty I owe to the Society of Horticulture to make known this singular and useful property of the tomato leaves, which I discovered by the merest accident.
Colors of Animals. — Despite the popular notion that the chameleon and other animals can change their color at will, Professor Garman says there is a want of scientific evidence in favor of the belief. Drawing up for consideration a schedule of animals in two groups of comparative brilliance and paleness, we find that light or darkness of habitat determines the color as a whole. The amount of light in their surroundings is in inverse relation to the brilliance of color. The dark colors are found in forests and on dark soils; the light colors on plains and snow. The bleaching process applies to the lower surface, to the ventral portions of animals by reflection. In the water the same is true, the rivers with muddy bottoms being peopled by dark forms; the brilliant colors are found in hot and sunny waters or transparent lakes. This was shown in a great variety of instances.