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We told you about the Holland, the new submarine boat which has just been launched at Elizabeth-port.

It will interest you to know that she has had a partial trial, which has proved very satisfactory.

While she was still at the wharf an attempt was made to submerge her.  On the turning of the lever she sank, inch by inch, until only her tower was out of water.

A day or two after she was taken for a spin down Staten Island Sound.

She attracted a good deal of attention among the seamen, who looked rather askance at the strange cigar-shaped craft that shot through the water.

From all accounts it would appear that her crew do not regard her with very much favor.

It is said that the swish of the waters against her sides can be heard very distinctly in the engine-room, and that the crew feel somewhat nervous about her seaworthiness.

Several of these fish-like boats are being made just now.  One has just been completed in Wisconsin, in which it is hoped to explore the bottom of Lakes Michigan and Huron.

Like the Holland, this boat can move on the surface of the water or dive beneath it at will.  But this vessel is arranged with a view to remaining under water for a whole day without causing any inconvenience to the inmates.

This is not the only kind of curious vessel that has been built lately.

A ship has been devised, and is said to be actually building in Toronto, Canada, which is intended to roll across the Atlantic Ocean.

The description of this boat says that it looks exactly like a long gas-pipe.  It has neither masts nor funnels, but is made of two cylinders, one inside the other.

The outer case revolves, and is fitted with paddles to propel the vessel through the water.  It is claimed that by this means a very high rate of speed can be secured.

The inner cylinder is so arranged that it remains stationary, and in this are the cabins, staterooms, and engine-rooms.  Both cylinders have openings at the ends, and it is through these openings that the fresh air is communicated to the staterooms.

Between the inner and outer cases are compartments for the cargo, which revolves with the outer cylinder.

It is claimed that this ship will make the trip from Liverpool to New York in forty-eight hours.

The boat is to be completed in a few weeks, and then we shall see for ourselves how much truth there is in this startling assertion.

G.H.  Rosenfeld.

NEW BOOKS.

We have received two very attractive books from Ginn & Co., Boston.

“Short Stories from English History,” by Albert F. Blaisdell (price, by mail, 50 cents), is a collection of very attractive stories of English history, and a book that our boys and girls will be much interested in.