Punchinello, Volume 1, No. 04, April 23, 1870 | Page 5

already admitted to a seat in the
OEcumenical Council. Pope Pius remarked kindly that he was the only
person there who honestly told what he came for. His Holiness enjoyed,
also, a hearty laugh at his first interview; the subject being the proper
title and costume of our delegate. It was concluded, as he was
somewhat dark in complexion, to dub him Bishop of 'Ngami; which,
you know, is one of those places that LIVINGSTONE (is he living,
though?) found out. When any body questioned him, the said delegate
was immediately to talk 'ngammon Latin; and His Holiness would
interpret it to the council, as being the African for infallibility. It's
wonderful how well this jolly dog gets on, with his dogmas and dog
Latin together.
Now for news. After all, the most remarkable event has happened on
your side of the water; but as Philadelphia is further from New York
than New York is from Philadelphia, (the latter is so slow,) I don't
believe you have heard it yet. There is a railroad, well known
thereabouts, going to _Germantown._ Well, the event is, that the board
of directors of that road have--will you believe it? I hardly do--ordered
a _new car_--a palace-car! The way it happened was that, owing to the
large use of cattle-cars on the Pacific Railroad, no more second-hand
cars could be got for a month or two, bad enough for the directors to
buy; and there wasn't a builder in the country willing to make their kind
of cars to order.
On this side of the "big pond" we have had nothing so laughable as the
MORDAUNT case. The charge of the presiding judge to the Prince of
Wales has not been correctly reported. I am told that he spoke thus:

"Your Royal Highness is advised that, on this occasion, it is not
expected that your Royal Highness should tell the truth, unless your
Royal Highness pleases; indeed, your Royal Highness is rather advised
not to tell the truth. Now, will your Royal Highness, acting under this
advice, please to say, whether he did, or did not, ever do any thing
naughty?" Some one said to me at the time--are there not some
mordants that will dye beyond whitewashing? But I believe that Wales
always was moral, is moral, and always will he moral, (Balmoral!)
Now, this last assertion I call news! Is it reliable?
More about Yokohama. An English sailor, from Captain EYRE'S
vessel, is said to have murdered a Japanese, in cold blood, to rob his
house. A court sat upon the case; and, after trial, pronounced this
decision: "We regret to be obliged to find, that the man, CHAN-JUN,
lost his life by an incision of his throat; and that the knife which made
the incision was in the hand of the sailor called BILL BLINKS, of the
Bombay. While, therefore, it would have been, undoubtedly, much
better if the man CHAN-JUN, and his house, had been out of the way
of the said BILL BLINKS, who by their proximity was placed under a
temptation, we are unwillingly compelled to regret that BLINKS
should have made an unfortunate incision of this kind. We are therefore
of the opinion that the said WILLIAM BLINKS ought not to be
allowed to have any grog for at least six days." This very severe
sentence was, we are told, afterward remitted by request of Captain
EYRE.
Our Roman delegate sends me word to-day, that, the Pope's gardener at
the Vatican setting out a variety of early spring plants, every one of
them came up a Hyacinth! One after another was sent to pot; but,
hydra-headed, still they come! By the way, it is said that two newly
noted people in the church are Frère JONQUIL and Soeur DAFFODIL;
another is a negro priest, black as two ravens, and he is called Father
CROCUS.
ROCHEFORT, we learn, the other day refused to eat any thing,
because his prison food was at the cost of the Emperor's government.
M. OLLIVIER forthwith sent him a polite autograph note of

congratulation; telling him that this was the first act of his, public or
private, of which he approved; and in the result of which the
government, people, and world would take satisfaction. ROCHEFORT,
after reading the note, twisted it up to light a cigarette, and then told his
jailer to bring in his dinner! You _can't_ please that man.
M. CHASLES has just been appointed Curator of Autographs at the
Bibliothèque Impériale at Paris, with VRAIN LUCAS as his secretary.
This gives general satisfaction.
Miss ANNE B----, of Philadelphia, who lives at Rome, has just written
a charming song, with music for the piano, entitled, "Liszt, O Liszt!"
The most famous aria, however, there now, is the malaria. Rome is
sick. The