608 The Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal. [Mar. with all these good qualities, it is of such a nature, that, unlike other fine locks, it is not liable to get out of order by use. It is susceptible of innumerable combinations. The inventor has testimonials from the Master Machinist of the United States Mint, and many eminent practi- cal mechanics in his branch. FOREIGN ITEMS. The newly -built American Methodist Mission Institute at Frankfort-on-the- Main was dedicated on Sunday, the 17th of January, 1869. It is to be under the charge of the Rev. Drs. Hirst and Nip- pert, and Bishop Jacoby. The Rev. Dr. Cramer, brother-in-law of General Grant, is expected to be present. Dr. Cramer is U. S. Consul at Leipsic. This institution has been founded through the liberality of T. T. Martin, Esq., of Brooklyn, N. Y., who has devoted about 250,000fr. to put up the edifice. It is a large three-story brick building, beau- tifully situated by the river Main, and commanding a fine view of the country about Frankfort. In the short gallery at the South Ken- sington Museum may now be seen the Townshend bequest of pictures to the nation. Several important pictures are to be found in this collection, the most noticeable by far being the " Upas, or Poison-tree of Java," the celebrated composition painted by P. Dauby, in the year 1820. This is a highly charac- teristic specimen of Mr. D tnb} T 's poeti- cal mind, and is admirably true in all the details of the subject. The subscriptions for the statue to Yoltaire in Paris amount to 35,909fr , which is considered sufficient. The model selected is that of Houdon en- larged, and the site promised by the authorities has been fixed at the end of the Rue de Rennes, nearest to the In- stitute. The idea of the statue was first started bj' the late M. Havin, chief editor of the Siecle. Evening Schools of Art, fifty in num- ber, with upwards of 4,000 pupils, are maintained in Paris. Prizes for profi- ciency are given by the municipal au- thorities, and, where the skill of the pupil is very remarkable, rewards are bestowed by the Emperor. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED Van Nostrand's Eclectic. — We have received the first number of this new Engineering Magazine, and hail it as a very useful aid to information on the great and exten- sive subject it gleans from. In an energetic nation, such as ours, every man is concerned in the enlargement of thought, and the propagandism of invention. If there is a new idea in science the whole land should know it. Not a hint should be lost for want of the means of communi- cating it broadcast. Therefore, we say we hail Van Nos- trand's Eclectic with pleasure, for we know its mission to be an useful one; and, judging from the sample we have in this first number, we doubt not that its selecting aud critical coadensing power will give to the community the very cream of useful eugineering science. It presents an octavo form of 96 pages of double column, close mat- ter, clearly printed on good paper. New York is its place of birth, and its office is 192 Broadway. Stable Fixtures, &c. — The specimen books put forth by the great manufacturers of iron aud other materials, and distributed gratuitously, are something to delight the eye of the conuoisseur and the artist. We have been put in possession of several of them, both European and American, and without any undue admiration for those of our own ilk, we must conscientiously say, that the Specimen Book of Articles now on exhibition at the Ware-rooms of Messrs. J. L. Jackson & Brother, is in- comparable for the artistic execution of the engraviugs, aud the elegant style in which they are printed on tint. The designs throughout are such as to draw forth admira- tion ; the illustrations of them cannot fail to fix it perma- nently. Colman's Kcral World. — We have received several numbers of this really excellent farming journal, which cleverly holds its own amid the crowd of publications of a similar character in the Great West. Missouri is a vast agricultural State ; and its importance in this respect is increasing wonderfully We are, therefore, glad to see St. Louis sending forth an aid to information so likely to disseminate practical science broadcast, as the Kural World has for many years done, and we hope for an in- definite term may continue so thoroughly to do. The Canadian Builder. — We are favored with the initial number of this enterprise, which has London, Ontario, for its place of birth. We wish it every success. The Ga^:.sner'3 Monthly.— This useful little serial grows, blossoms and flourishes as it should do under the nursery care of its practical editor, Mr. Thomas Meehan.