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SEA OF SAHARA. The project for inundating the Desert of Sahara, and thus changing it into a new oceanic empire, is the most astunishing of all the gigantic enterprises of the age. We are inclined to favor it because of its very boldness and prandeur, Mr. R. W. Wright publishes in the New Haven Journal and Courier a protest against this project. Among the objections, Mr. Wright mentions the following: 1, The existing desert is “a great radiator of heat, many times greater in fact than the Gulf Stream.”’ It operates, like that oceanic current, to force the “thermal equator’ northward and to change it as proposed would affect the mean temperature of all Europe, and might seriously modity its area of civilization. 2. ‘The desert acts “as a great zrial sponge,” absorbing atmospheric moisture over a wide and rainless region, and thus ameliorating the climate of a large portion of the Eastern hemisphere. 3. ‘This vast sand plain acts as a “storm barrier,” arresting and breaking up the tornadoes on their way from the tropics to devastate Europe. Itis a mistake to suppose these destructive winds to be generated amid the solitudes of the desert. ‘The cause ofthe simoom, which often takes on the alarming form of a huge sand spout, is the fact that when a tornado strikes the desert it begins at once to lap up the particles of sand, until it has thus gathered into iteelt ‘thousands ot tons, which finally load it down beyond its carrying power, and it falls with its burden and finds it fury spent. 4. The sands of Sahara act asa great “absorbent of malaria,’’ thus preventing the fatal maladies of Africa from invading Europe. ‘The desert is known tobe abso- lutely free from malaria, for the good reason that it contains nothing to produce it. The equatorial regions south of the desert breed the most dredful diseases known on the globe. Substitute an inland sea for the Waste of sand, and the pestilential winds would sweep more swiftly across to pre- cipitate their plague-germs on the population of Europe. 5. Mr. Wright's greatest objection is that it would create a ‘‘deed sea,” similar to that of Palestine, only on a far larger scale. There would be an artificial inlet, but no outlet. ‘Ihe waters would be hopelessly stagnant, receiving no fresh water streams from the African watershed, and out of the way of the oceanic currents. The Tunisian canal would let in the salt water from the Mediter- ranean, which would become more and more briny by constant evaporation, increased further by the extensive natural deposits of salt already known to exist in portions of the desert. The inevitable result would be the creation of a lifeless, terrible waste of * dead waters, environed by dreary salt hills and dismal marshes like those that now surround the site of ancient Sodom. — AT SEA. One does not seem really to have got out of doors till he gets to sea. On the land he is shut in by the hills or forests, or more or less housed by the sharp lines of the horizon ; but at sea he finds the roof taken off, the “walls taken ‘down; he is no longer in the hollow of the earth’s hand, but upon its naked back, with nothing between him and the immensities. He is in the great cosmic out of doors—as much so as if voyaging to the moon or to Mars. An astronomic soli- tude and vacuity surrounds him, his only guides and landmarks are stellar; the earth has disappeared; the horizon has gone; he has only the sky and its orbs left; this cold vitreous, blue black liquid through which the ship plows is not water, but some denser form of the cosmic ether. He can now see the curve of the sphere which the hills hid from him; he can study astronomy under im- proved conditions. If he was being borne through the interplanetary spaces on an im- mense shield, his impressions would not perhaps be much different. He would find the same vacuity, the same blank or negative space, the same empty, indefinite, oppressive out of doors. It must be admitted that a voyage at sea is more impressive to the Imagination than to the actual sense. ‘he world is left behind; all standards of size, of magnitude of distance, are vanished; there isno size, no form, no perspective; the universe has dwindled to a little circle of crumpled water, that journeys with you day by day, and to which you seem bound by some enchantment. The sky becomes a shallow close fitting dome, or else a pall of cloud that seems ready to descend upon you, You cannot see or realize the vast and vacant surroundings; there is nothing to define or set it off. ‘Three thousand miles of ovean space are less impressive than three miles bound by rugged mountain walls. Indeed the grandeur of form, of magnitude, of dis- tance, of proportion, ete. are only upon shore. A voyage across the Atlantic is only a ten days sail through vacancy. ‘There is no sensible progress; you pass no fixed points. Is it the steamer that is moving, or is it the sea? or is it all a dance and illusion of the troubled brain? Yesterday, to-day, to-morrow you are in the same parenthesis of no-where. he 300 or more miles the ship daily makes is ideal not real. Every night the stars dance and reel there in the same place amid the rigging ; every morning the sun comes up from behind the same wave, and staggers slowly across the sinister sky. ‘lhe eye becomes hungry tor form, for permanent lines, for a horizon wall to lift up and keep off the sky, and give it a sense of room. One understands how sailors be- come an imaginative and superstitious race; it is the reaction from this narrow horizon in which they are put—this ring of ‘fate surrounds and oppresses them. ‘They escape by invoking the aid of the supernatural. In the sea itself there is far less to stimulate the imagination than in the varied forms and colors of the land. How cold, how merciless, how elemental it looks!—From John Bur- roughs, in April Century. RUMSEY TRIUMPHANT. A. R. Rumsey went to New York some time ago in the interest of the Vessel Owners’ Association of this city, to secure men to ship on the lakes. Among others whose services he engaged was Frank Messau. This man had no money and owed a $3 board bill. Rumsey paid the bill and purchased the man a railroad ticket to this city, taking his baggage as security for the debt. ‘This baggage was ckecked to this city. ‘The man, having arrived here, found that the Sailors’ Union received more pay than the Vessel Owners’ Association had offered him, 30 he joined the union. He then replevined the N. Y., P. & O. Railroad to secure his bag- gage, but as he could produce no checks for it, of course he could do nothing. Run- sey in the meantime had secreted the fbag- gage, and Messau brought suit before Justice Coates tor damages. Messau did not deny that he had received the money, and failed to show that he was making any provision to pay it back. The Justice dismisged the case at Messau’s cost.—Cleueland Leader. A POET, The United States census, two or three decades, ago, in its summary of various occupations included a poet. He lived in Arkansas, if I remember rightly, but may have perished from want, for I have looked in vain for him in later issues of the census reports. [I have often thought of him, how- ever, when speculating about the conditions of authorship in America, and have admired the courage with which he made his confes- sion. He was the only poet in America to stand up boldly and be counted. ‘Te rest us sheltered ourselves in the census behind such evasive titles as journalist, or protessor, or editor, or if especially courageous, liter- ary man. Mr. Carlyle, in his celebrated petition wrote himself down asa maker of books; but every one feels that Mr. Car- lyle’s was a case of affected humility and bluntnoss. If he had had the nerve of the man from Arkansas. he would have sub- scribed himself a genius, or a man that turns the world upside down. $$ Only a very few years ago no lake vessel had ever carried 100,000 bushels of grain, and when the iron propeller Java managed to take 100,000 bushels of oats from Chicago to Buffalo the feat was hailed as a notable one which marked a new era in our inland commerce. Now the great steamship Onoko, builtin this city last year, has landed a cargo of 160,500 bushels of oats at Buffalo, and with some changes in her hold the huge ship could undoubtedly carry a few thousand bushels more. ‘'he commerce of the lakes is yet in its infancy.—Leader. WHARFAGE DECISION, Decision has been rendered by the Su- preme Court of the United States in the case of the Parkersburg and Ohio river ‘Transpor- tation Company, appellant, against the City of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and others. This case, which is one of consider- able Importance to all cities and towns along the Ohio and Mississiy pi rivers, arises out of the following state of facts: ‘The City of Parkersburg, West Virginia, built a wharf and established certain rates of wharfage, which the Parkershurg and Ohio ‘Uranspor- tation Company cémplained of as extortion- ate, and as being merely a pretext for levy- ing duty on tornage. ‘The company there- upon filed a bill in the Circuit Court of the United States to restrain proceedings in the suit brought in the State Court for the pur- pose of collecting wharfage, and to have the wharfage ordinance declared illegal and void. ‘This court holds, tirst, that as the or- dinance, on its face, imposed charges for wharfage only (though these charges might be unreasonable and exorbitant), the court will not entertain an averment that they were in reality not intended as wharfage, but asa duty on tonnage. An inquiry into the secret intent of the body which imposes the charges is inadmissable. Whether it is one thing or the other must be determined by the ordinance or regulation itself. 2. That wharfage is a charge for the use of the wharf, made by the owner thereof by way of rent or compensation, while duty of tonnage is tax or duty charges for the privi- lege of entering or trading or lying in port or harbor, and can be imposed only by the Government. : 3. That, whether charge of wharfage or a duty ot topnage, there is a question, not of intent, but of fact and law. 4. That although wharves are related to commerce and navigation as aids and con- veniences, yet, being local in their nature, and requiring special regulations for partic- ular places, control of them (in the absence of Congressional legislation on the subject) belongs to the states in which they are situ- ated. 5. That the suit will not lie in the Circuit Court of the United States for relief against exhorbitant wharfuge as a case arising un- der the Constitution. or iaws of the United States, even though it be alleged that the wharfage was intended as duty of tonnage. Decree of court below, in tavor ot the City of Parkersburg, is theretore affirmed. Ppinion of Justice Bradley, Justice Har- lan dissenting. MARINE LAW. The Chicago Inter Ocean of May 16, says: Judge Moran, of the Circuit Court, decided the case of Ann Halsted against the South Town Collector, which is of considerable in- terest to vessel owners. ‘lhe facts were that in February last Mrs. Halstead filed her bill to enjoin the collector from collecting taxes on the schooners Homer and F. B. Gardner, owned by herand which had been asvessed by Mr. Drake at $2,800. She is a resident of the North Town and returned the vessels as part of her personal property, and they were valued by Mr. Chase at $1,100. ‘The taxes were extended on the South Town Asses- sor’s assessment at $166.20. ‘he schooners were enrolled at the custom house, situated in the South Town, in accordance with the United States Navigation laws. Mrs. Hal- sted claimed that the taxes should have been extended on the North Town assess- ment, because See. 7 ot Chapter 120 of the Revised Statutes provides that “personal property, except such as is required in this act to be listed and assessed otherwise, shall be listed and assessed in the county, town, city, village, or district where the owner re- sides.’ Section 13 of the same act: provides that “all persons, companies and corpora- tions in this State owning steamboats, sail- ing vessels, wharfboats, barges and water craft, shall be required to list the same for assessment and taxation in the county, town, city or village in which the same may be en- rolled, registered, or licensed, or kept when not enrolled, registered or licensed.” ‘The schooners were not permanently located in the town of South Chicago, and the own- er is a resident of the North Town, The Court did not agree with the reading of the act, but held, taking sections 7 and 13 together, that the Legislature intended that a vessel must be listed for taxation in the assessment district where she is enrolled, and where she is registered and licensed if these ure done; or if she is not registered or licensed, then she must be assessed where she is kept. Another point made is that un- der Section 23 the county board has author- ity to decide where vessel shall be assessed, and in the exercise of this authority decided that vesseis belonging to residents in the North Town should be assesed in the North Town, Tne Court did not think it was the intention of the Lepislature to give the county board legislative authority, but where there arises a difference about a spe- cific piece of property the county board may judicially determine where it shall be as- sessed. ‘The board had not power to say where a clas» of property should be assessed, Had it determined where the vessels in question should be assessed its decision would have been final. The relief asked for would therefore be denied. The Treasury Department has decided that after a vessel has surrendered its register and enrollment papers, and changes its name during such undocumented period, the change will not be considered valid when application is made for a new register and enrollment. The Supreme Court of the United States has decided that a passenger on a vessel can recover salvage for services under certain conditions. It says that a passenger may leave a vessel at any time and seek his own safety, but for “extraordinary services and the use of extraordinary means not tur- nished by the equipment of the ship herself, by which she is saved from imminent dan- ger he may have salvage.” The Detroit Free Press says: The tug M. Swain was fined $20 for coming from. Buffa- lo to Detroit without a clearance, as was the Wm. A. Moore Monday. The tugs started down to look for tows on Lake Erie, and finding none put in here for the same pur- pose. The collector held that as they had nothing in tow they must have clearances. Tug men say that at no other port is this made and feel sore over it. Both fines were paid under protest, and the matter will be investigated. AMERICAN FABLES. , A carp which had been hooked by a fish- erman looked up with tears in its eyes and called out: “Pray spare my life! I am small and bony and shall not make over two bites for you!” “I tully realize that,”’ replied the. fisher- man, as he tossed his victim into his pail, “but the man who throws away carp in hopes to secure bass, will go home: to-eat bean soup.” ; DOMESTIC ECONOMY. The wife ot a peasant who.had been in the habit of borrowing her neighbor’s coffee _ mill one day broke the article beyond re- pair, and when her husband came in she eried out in despair: “Alas! We are financially ruined for the excursion season! I have broken Mrs. Blaak’s coffee miil, and it will cost us thirty cents to replace it!’ “Ah! but you are, indeed, a poor finan- cier?’ replied the husband. Send the re- mains home by the servant girl and get mad atthe lady. Then you will not be expected to pay damages, and she will not dare ask for your fiat-irons.” THE SELFISH HUNTER. A wolf having chased a hunter across fields and through forests for several miles, at Jength had the mortification of seeing his prey escape him by climbing a tree. “Are you coming down?” he asked as he looked up and licked his chops. “Not very fast!” “LT don’t complain of that,’ panted the wolf, “but what hurts my feelings is the fact that you didw’t climb a tree on the start, ‘in- stead of giving me this useless chase. Pray have some respect for other people’s feelings hereafter.” THE HONEST CLERK. A merchant who that his profits were not as large as his trade warranted looked over his books one Sunday and then inter- viewed his clerk with: , “John Henry, you haye taken $500 of my money since January.” “Thavs so. [used it to buy futures in cotton, and 1 lost. “And [must send you to State Prison !.? “Oh, nol Previous to January L took $800 of your money and bought wheat, and my profits have been so large that [can return all your money and have enough left to buy arace horse, But for my business tact you would have lost all. You'd better go visit- ing and give me full charge !’—Detroit Free Press. :