The Spectrum, an unpretending paper, published at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, made its first appearance just after our second number. It seems hardly strong enough to have a long life, but by careful nursing it may grow and flourish. It wisely ascribes its paternity, not to the whole Institute, but to the class of '75, thus relieving three classes of quite a burden. The best article in it is the editorial, short, well written, and so closely resembling in ideas and language the initiatory one in the Magenta, that we are forced to admire it.

There was much difficulty and discussion before the name which it now bears could be decided upon. This we learn from decidedly the best piece of poetry in it, two verses of which we give to illustrate their tribulations as well as the quality of the poetry.

"O, what shall it be? We want one unique.

'The Transit,' says Brown of seventy-five,

'You might as well call it "The Theodolite."

'That is to engineering y, man alive!'

"So The Spectrum it is: and here let me say,

That it is not spectre-um nor ghostly at all;

And we hope that our paper may be a success,

And may meet with the approbation of all."

Engineeringy is good! Moreover, it is only one of those words which impart such a vague flavor of Physics and Mathematics to the whole number. The column headed "Spectrum Lines" shows conclusively that the editor's "lines have not fallen in pleasant places," for the wit and point in its jokes are carefully concealed. In other respects the paper is quite commendable.

The second number has just been received, and it is but justice to say that it is a great improvement on the first.

THE University Echo, Oakland, California, in the language of the honest miner, appears to have seen itself and gone four pages better; or, on second thoughts, suppose we say larger! It has a good deal of news, a superabundance of poetry, and one very entertaining article on "Roads and Railroads," some portions of which may be useful to our readers. "From numerous widely extended and highly scientific observations on the subject, we deduce the following laws: -

FIRST. The cost of one vote in a public body varies inversely as the whole number of votes in that body.

SECOND. The cost of a vote varies directly as the amount of money to be made out of the scheme.