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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and
+Instruction, by Various
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction
+       Vol. 19. No. 575 - 10 Nov 1832
+
+Author: Various
+
+Release Date: April 3, 2004 [EBook #11888]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MIRROR OF LITERATURE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Gregory Margo and PG Distributed
+Proofreaders
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE MIRROR OF LITERATURE, AMUSEMENT, AND INSTRUCTION.
+
+Vol. 20 No. 575.] SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1832. [PRICE 2d.
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+FRAMLINGHAM CASTLE.
+
+
+    Castle of Ancient Days! in times long gone
+  Thy lofty halls in regal splendour shone!
+  Thou stoodst a monument of strength sublime,
+  A Giant, laughing at the threats of Time!
+  Strange scenes have passed within thy walls! and strange
+  Has been thy fate through many a chance and change!
+  Thy Towers have heard the war-cry, and the shout
+  Of friends within, and answering foes without,
+  Have rung to sounds of revelry, while mirth
+  Held her carousal, when the sons of earth
+  Sported with joy, till even _he_ could bring
+  No fresh delight upon his drooping wing!
+
+JAMES BIRD.
+
+(_From a Correspondent_.)
+
+
+This Castle is said to have been founded by Redwald, or Redowald, one
+of the most powerful kings of the East Angles, between A.D. 599 and
+624. It belonged to St. Edmund, one of the Saxon monarchs of East
+Anglia, who, upon the invasion of the Danes, fled from Dunwich, or
+Thetford, to this castle; from which being driven, and being overtaken
+at _Hegilsdon_, (now Hoxne, a distance of twelve miles from
+Framlingham,) he was cruelly put to death, being bound to a tree and
+shot with arrows, A.D. 870. His body, after many years, was removed to
+a place called _Bederics-gueord_, now St. Edmund's Bury. The castle
+remained in the hands of the Danes fifty years, when they were brought
+under the obedience of the Saxons. William the Conqueror and his son
+Rufus retained the Castle in their own possession; but the third son
+of William, Henry I., granted it, with the Manor of Framlingham, to
+Roger Bigod.--The castle continued in this family till Roger Bigod,
+the last of the race, and a man more turbulent than any of his
+predecessors, was compelled to resign it to King Edward I.; Edward II.
+gave it to his half-brother, Thomas Plantagenet, surnamed De
+Brotherton; from whom it descended to Thomas de Mowbray, twelfth Baron
+Mowbray, created Duke of Norfolk 29th of September, 1397. From the
+Mowbrays it descended to the Howards, Dukes of Norfolk, Sir Robert
+Howard having married Margaret, daughter of Thomas Mowbray, first Duke
+of Norfolk. His son, John Howard, was created Earl Marshal and Duke of
+Norfolk, 28th of June, 1483. He was slain at Bosworth Field, 1485; and
+his son, Thomas, Earl of Surrey, being attainted, the castle fell into
+the hands of King Henry VII., who granted it to John de Vere,
+thirteenth Earl of Oxford, from whom it again returned to the Howards.
+Thomas Howard, third Duke of Norfolk, being attainted, (38 Henry VIII.
+1546,) it was seized by the king, who dying the same year, his
+successor, Edward VI., granted it to his sister, the Princess,
+afterwards Queen Mary. King James I. granted it to Thomas Howard,
+first Baron Howard de Walden, youngest son of Thomas, fourth Duke of
+Norfolk, created Earl of Suffolk 21st of July, 1603; but his lordship
+making Audley Inn his seat, the castle fell into decay, and his son,
+Theophilus, second Earl of Suffolk, sold it in 1635, with the domains,
+to Sir Robert Hitcham, knight, senior sergeant to James I.; who by his
+will, dated 10th of August, 1636, bequeathed it to the master and
+scholars of Pembroke College, in trust for certain charitable uses;
+the advowson of the living, the castle and the manor, he bequeathed to
+the college for its own use; since which time the castle has remained
+in a dismantled state.
+
+Loder, in his _History of Framlingham_, thus describes the former
+state of the structure: "This castle, containing an acre, a rood, and
+eleven perches of land, within the walls now standing, but anciently a
+much larger quantity before the walls enclosing the same were
+demolished, was in former ages very fair and beautiful, standing
+within a park (long since disparked) on the north side of the town;
+fortified with a double ditch, high banks, rampires, and stone walls
+44 feet high and 8 feet thick; in these walls were thirteen towers, 14
+feet higher than the walls, built four-square--whereof two were
+watch-towers, one looking towards the east and the other towards the
+west: and the rooms within the castle were very commodious and
+necessary, capable to receive and contain abundance of people.
+
+"In the first court was a deep well, of excellent workmanship,
+compassed with carved pillars, which supported its leaden roof, and
+though out of repair, was in being in the year of our Lord 1651. A
+chapel stood in the same court, adjoining to the east watch-tower;
+which in the reign of Henry VIII. was hung with cloth of arras, of the
+history of Christ's passion; and a lamp of the value of seven
+shillings was usually burnt before the altar there. On the side of the
+court, towards the west watch-tower, was the hall, covered with lead;
+and over the gate thereof were formerly cut in stone the arms of
+Brotherton impaled with Bouchier, quartering Louvain, supported with a
+lion and an eagle. Divers other arms there were in the rest of the
+buildings, some cut on stone and some on timber, to be seen in the
+year of our Lord 1651--as Bygods, Brothertons, Seagraves, Mowbrays,
+Howards, and St. Edmund's, the king and martyr. Between the hall and
+chancel, fronting the great castle gate, was a large chamber, with
+several rooms, and a cloyster under it, pulled down A.D. 1700; for
+which, when standing, in the reign of King Henry VIII., there was one
+suit of hangings of the story of Hercules; which are supposed to be
+those still remaining at the seat of Lord Howard, of Walden.
+
+"Out of the castle were three passages--one a postern, with an iron
+gate, on the east side over a private bridge into the park, where
+there were arbours, pleasant walks, and trees planted for profit and
+delight. Another passage was on the west side, leading to a dungeon,
+and forth on to the mere, now filled up with mire and weeds. But the
+largest passage and most used was, and is, that towards the south and
+town; there being formerly a portcullis over that gate, which was made
+in one of the strongest towers, and a drawbridge without, defended by
+an half-moon of stone, about a man's height, standing in the year
+1657."
+
+These splendid buildings within the walls have long since been
+demolished, so that scarcely a vestige remains; but with their
+materials a workhouse has been built for the poor. The only armorial
+bearings traceable are three shields over the castle-gate.
+
+    Over the centre of the gate is a large one; the arms and
+    quarterings of John Howard IV., first Duke of Norfolk, who
+    died in 1485; and with lions for supporters. Crest--a lion
+    passant-guardant.
+
+    1. A bend between six cross crosslets, for ... Howard.
+
+    2. Three lions passant-guardant in pale--England, for ...
+       Brotherten.
+
+    3. Checky ... Warren.
+
+    4. A lion rampant ... Mowbray.
+
+    5. A lion rampant crowned ... Seagrave.
+
+    6. Seme de cross crosslets fitchy, and a lion rampant, double
+       queue ... Broes, or Bruce.
+
+    All within the garter.
+
+    On the west side, a shield, quarterly--1. Howard--2.
+    Brotherton--3. Mowbray--4. Seagrave.
+
+    On the east side, quarterly--1. Brotherton--2. Warren--3.
+    Seagrave--4. Broes.
+
+This venerable and majestic remain of antiquity, when viewed at a
+distance, has certainly more the appearance of a castle than the ruins
+of one, the outward walls being almost entire, and presenting nearly
+the same appearance they did thirty years ago.
+
+Framlingham Church is a fine structure, and was built by the Mowbrays;
+and the Chancel by the Howards, wherein are several stately monuments
+of this noble family.
+
+EDWARD DUNTHORN.
+
+The original of the annexed Cut is a lithograph frontispiece to
+_Framlingham_: a Narrative of _the Castle_--a poem of very
+considerable merit, by Mr. James Bird, of Yoxford: the introduction to
+which furnishes the following impassioned apostrophe to Framlingham
+and its decaying Castle:--
+
+    Heir of Antiquity!--fair castled Town,
+  Rare spot of beauty, grandeur, and renown,
+  Seat of East-Anglian kings!--proud child of fame,
+  Hallowed by time, illustrious Framlinghame!
+  I touch my lyre delighted, thus to bring
+  To thee my heart's full homage while I sing!
+  And thou, old Castle!--thy bold turrets high,
+  Have shed their deep enchantment on mine eye,
+  Though years have changed thee, I have gazed intent
+  In silent joy, on tower and battlement,
+  When all thy time-worn glories met my sight;
+  Thou have I felt such rapture, such delight,
+  That, had the splendour of thy days of yore
+  Flashed on my view, I had not loved thee more!
+  Scene of immortal deeds! thy walls have rung
+  To pealing shouts from many a warrior's tongue;
+  When first thy founder, Redwald of the spear,
+  Manned thy high towers, defied his foemen near,
+  When, girt with strength, East-Anglia's king of old,
+  The sainted Edmund, sought thy sheltering hold,
+  When the proud _Dane_, fierce Hinguar, in his ire
+  Besieged the king, and wrapped thy walls in fire,
+  While Edmund fled, but left thee with his name
+  Linked, and for ever, to the chain of fame:
+  Then wast thou great! and long, in after years
+  Thy grandeur shone--thy portraiture appears
+  From history's pencil like a summer-night,
+  With much of shadow, but with more of light!
+
+    Pile of departed days!--my verse records,
+  Thy time of glory, thy illustrious Lords,
+  The fearless Bigods--Brotherton--De Vere,
+  And Kings, who held thee in their pride, or fear,
+  And gallant Howards, 'neath whose ducal sway
+  Proud rose thy towers, thy rugged heights were gay
+  With glittering banners, costly trophies rent
+  From men in war, or tilt, or tournament,
+  With all the pomp and splendour that could grace
+  The name, and honours of that warlike race.
+  Howards! the rich! the noble! and the great!
+  Most brave! most happy! most unfortunate!
+  Kings were thy courtiers!--Queens have sued to share
+  Thy wealth, thy triumphs--e'en thy _name_ to bear!
+  Tyrants have bowed thy children to the dust,
+  Some for their worth--and some who broke their trust!
+  And there was _one_ among thy race, who died
+  To Henry's shame!--his country's boast and pride:
+  Immortal Surrey!--Offspring of the Muse!
+  Bold as the lion, gentle as the dews
+  That fall on flowers to 'wake their odorous breath,
+  And shield their blossoms from the touch of death,
+  Surrey!--thy fate was wept by countless eyes,
+  A nation's woe assailed the pitying skies,
+  When thy pure spirit left this scene of strife,
+  And soared to him who breathed it into life:
+  Thy funeral knell pealed o'er the world!--thy fall
+  Was mourned by hearts that loved thee, mourned by all--
+  All, save thy murderers!--thou hast won thy crown:
+  And _thou_, fair Framlinghame! a bright renown,
+  Yes! thy rich temple holds the stately tomb,
+  Where sleeps the Poet in his lasting home,
+  Lamented Surrey!--hero, bard divine,
+  Pride, grace, and glory of brave Norfolk's line.
+  Departed spirit!--Oh! I love to hold
+  Communion sweet with lofty minds of old,
+  To catch a spark of that celestial fire
+  Which glows and kindles in thy rapturous lyre;
+  Though varying themes demand my future lays,
+  Yet thus my soul a willing homage pays
+  To that bright glory which illumes thy name,
+  Though naught can raise the splendour of thy fame!
+
+Mr. Bird is also advantageously known as the author of the Vale of
+Slaughden; Poetical Memoirs; Dunwich, a tale of the Splendid City; and
+other poems, which abound with vivid imagery, life-breathing
+incidents, and interesting narrative; though it is but late justice to
+recommend his _Framlingham_ to the admirers of fervid verse.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+SPIRIT DRINKING.
+
+
+  "Nothing like the simple element dilutes
+  The food, or gives the chyle so soon to flow."
+
+The direful practice of spirit-drinking seems to have arrived at its
+acme in the metropolis. Splendid mansions rear their _dazzling heads_
+at almost every turning; and it appears as if Circe had fixed her
+abode in these superb haunts. Happy are those who, like Ulysses of
+old, will not partake of her deadly cup. If the unhappy dram-drinker
+was merely to calculate the annual expense of two glasses of gin per
+day, he would find a sum expended which would procure for him many
+comforts, for the want of which he is continually grumbling. If this
+sum is expended for only two glasses of spirits, what must be the
+expense to the habitual and daily sot, who constantly haunts the
+tap-room or the wretched bar? to say nothing of the loss of time,
+health, and every comfort.
+
+Dr. Willan says--"On comparing my own observations with the bills of
+mortality, I am convinced that considerably more than one-eighth of
+all the deaths which take place in persons above twenty years old,
+happen prematurely, through excess in drinking spirits."
+
+Spirits, like other poisons, if taken in a sufficient quantity, prove
+immediately fatal. The newspapers frequently furnish us with examples
+of almost instant death, occasioned by wantonly swallowing a pint or
+other large quantity of spirits, for the sake of wager, or in boast.
+
+Dr. Trotter says--"We daily see, in all parts of the world, men who,
+by profligacy and hard-drinking, have brought themselves to a goal;
+yet, if we consult the register of the prison, it does not appear that
+any of these habitual drunkards die by being forced to lead sober
+lives." And he contends, that "whatever debility of the constitution
+exists, it is to be cured by the usual medicinal means which are
+employed to restore weakened organs. But the great difficulty in these
+attempts to cure inebriety is in satisfying the mind, and in whetting
+the blunted resolutions of the patient; and this is, doubtless, more
+easily accomplished by a gradual abstraction of his favourite
+potations."
+
+Dr. Lettsom mentions a person who usually drank twelve drams a day;
+but being convinced of his approaching misery, took the resolution to
+wean himself from this poison. He always drank out of one glass, into
+which he daily let fall a drop of sealing-wax. By this means he had
+twelve drops less of spirit every day, till at length, his glass being
+filled with wax, his habit was cured.
+
+"In the drunkard," says Dr. Willan, "the memory and the faculties
+depending on it, being impaired, there takes place an indifference
+towards usual occupations, and accustomed society or amusements. No
+interest is taken in the concerns of others--no love, no sympathy
+remain: even natural affection to nearest relatives is gradually
+extinguished, and the moral sense obliterated. The wretched victims of
+a fatal poison fall, at length, into a state of fatuity, and die with
+the powers both of body and mind wholly exhausted. Some, after
+repeated fits of derangement, expire in a sudden and violent phrenzy;
+some are hurried out the world by apoplexies; others perish by the
+slower process of jaundice, dropsy," &c.
+
+P.T.W.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+A SCENE ON WINDERMERE.
+
+
+  "Beautiful scene! how fitted to allure
+  The printless footsteps of some sea-born maid."
+
+
+  It was a holy calm--the sunbeams tinged
+  The lake with gold, and flush'd the gorgeous brow
+  Of many a cloud whose image shone beneath
+  The blue translucent wave; the mountain-peaks
+  Were robed in purple, and the balmy air
+  Derived its fragrance from the breath of flow'rs
+  That seem'd as if they wish'd to close their eyes,
+  And yield their empire to the starry throng.
+  The wind, as o'er the lake it gently died,
+  Bequeath'd its cadence to the shore, and waked
+  The echo slumbering in the distant vales,
+  Diversified with woods, and rural homes.
+  The calm was lovely! and o'er such a scene
+  It brooded like a spirit, softening all
+  That lay beneath its blessed influence!
+
+  On Windermere--what poetry belongs
+  To such a name--deep, pure and beautiful,
+  As its trout-peopled wave!--on Windermere
+  Our skiff pursued its way amid the calm
+  Which fill'd the heart with holiest communings.
+  On Windermere--what scenes entranced the eye
+  That wander'd o'er them! either undefined
+  Or traced upon the outline of the sky.
+  Afar the lovely panorama glow'd,
+  Until the mountains, on whose purple brows
+  The clouds were pillow' d, closed it from our view.
+  The fields were fraught with bloom, on them appear'd
+  The verdant robe that Nature loves to wear,
+  And rocky pathways fringed with bristling pine,
+  O'er which the wall of many a cottage-home
+  Graced with the climbing vine, or beautified
+  With roses bending to each passing breeze,
+  Attracts the eye, and glistens in the sun--
+  Were interspersed around; while in the vale
+  The streamlet gave a silver gleam, and flow'd
+  Beneath the hill, on whose majestic brow,
+  Dimm'd with the ivy of a thousand years,
+  The rural fane, encircled with its tombs,
+  Displayed its mouldering form. Amid the light
+  And harmony of this enchanting scene,
+  'Tis sweet to have a temple that recalls
+  The heart from earth's turmoil, and hallows it
+  With hopes that soar beyond the flight of time.
+
+  Beautiful Lake! most lovely Windermere!
+  Thou mirror to the mountains that enclose
+  Thy shores with zone magnificent;--in storm,
+  Or calm--when summer wantons with thy waves,
+  Or winter clouds thy crystal brow with gloom,
+  Oh! mayst thou still entrance the wanderer's eye,
+  And keep congenial quiet in his soul.
+  Thy fairy haunts, where solitude pervades
+  The feelings like a spirit, might allure
+  Some visionary youth to muse beneath
+  The rocks empurpled with the sunny beam,
+  And blend the music of his harp with thine
+  In gentlest murmurs,--consecrated Lake!
+
+G.R.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+NEW BOOKS.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+PETER THE GREAT.
+
+(_Concluded from page 303._)
+
+
+His attention was forcibly attracted to the magnificent building of
+Greenwich Hospital, which, until he had visited it, and seen the old
+pensioners, he had some difficulty in believing to be any thing but a
+royal palace. King William having one day asked him how he liked his
+hospital for decayed seamen, the Tzar answered, "If I were the adviser
+of your Majesty, I should counsel you to remove your court to
+Greenwich, and convert St. James's into a hospital."
+
+It being term time while the Tzar was in London, he was taken into
+Westminster Hall; he inquired who all those busy people in black gowns
+and flowing wigs were, and what they were about? Being answered, "They
+are lawyers, sir;"--"Lawyers!" said he, with marks of astonishment,
+"why, I have but _two_ in my whole dominions, and I believe I shall
+hang one of them the moment I get home."[1]
+
+    [1] Gentleman's Mag. vol. vii.
+
+In the first week of March, vice-admiral Mitchell was ordered to
+repair forthwith to Spithead, and, taking several ships (eleven in
+number) under his command, hoist the blue flag at the fore-topmast
+head of one of them. It is not stated for what purpose these vessels
+were put under his command, nor was any public order given. But the
+_Postman_,[2] under date of 26th March, says, "On Tuesday the Tzar of
+Muscovy went on board admiral Mitchell, in his Majesty's ship the
+Humber, who presently hoisted sail and put to sea from Spithead, as
+did also his Majesty's ships the Restauration, Chichester, Defiance,
+Swiftsure, York, Monmouth, Dover, Kingston, Coventry, Seaforth, and
+Swan." And the _Flying-post_, or _Postmaster_,[3] has the following
+intelligence: "The representation of a sea engagement was excellently
+performed before the Tzar of Muscovy, and continued a considerable
+time, each ship having twelve pounds of powder allowed; but all their
+bullets were locked up in the hold, for fear the sailors should
+mistake." It is stated in the logs of the Humber and the Kingston that
+they had two sham fights; that the ships were divided into two
+squadrons, and every ship took her opposite and fired three
+broad-sides _aloft and one alow_ without shot. The Tzar was extremely
+pleased with the performance. It is said, indeed, he was so much
+delighted with every thing he saw in the British navy, that he told
+admiral Mitchell he considered the condition of an English admiral
+happier than that of a Tzar of Russia.[4]
+
+    [2] Postman, No. 441.
+
+    [3] Postmaster, No. 449.
+
+    [4] Nestesuranoi. Mottley.
+
+On returning from Portsmouth, Peter and his party stopped at Godalming
+for the night, where, it would appear, from the bill of fare, they
+feasted lustily. Among the papers of Ballard's Collection, in the
+Bodleian Library, is one from Mr. Humphrey Wanley[5] to Dr.
+Charlett,[6] which contains the following passage:--"I cannot vouch
+for the following bill of fare, which the Tzar and his company,
+thirteen at table, and twenty-one in all, ate up at Godalming (or
+Godliming), in Surrey, in their way home, but it is averred for truth
+by an eye-witness, who saw them eating, and had this bill from the
+landlord. At breakfast--half a sheep, a quarter of lamb, ten pullets,
+twelve chickens, three quarts of brandy, six quarts of mulled wine,
+seven dozen of eggs, with salad in proportion. At dinner:--five ribs
+of beef, weight three stone; one sheep, fifty-six pounds; three
+quarters of lamb, a shoulder and loin of veal boiled, eight pullets,
+eight rabbits, two dozen and a half of sack, one dozen of claret."[7]
+
+    [5] Author of "Wonders of the little World."
+
+    [6] Master of University College.
+
+    [7] There are among our countrymen those who are scarcely
+        outdone by the Tzar of Russia and his companions. At the
+        same place, and probably at the same house, long known as
+        _Moon's_, two noble dukes, the one dead, the other yet
+        living, stopped, as they intended, for a moment, while
+        sitting in their carriages, to eat a mutton chop, which
+        they found so good that they each of them devoured
+        _eighteen_, and drank five bottles of claret.
+
+It would appear, indeed, from all accounts, that the Tzar was a
+prodigiously hard drinker, in his younger days. In a letter from Mr.
+A. Bertie to Dr. Charlett, and in the same collection, he says, "The
+Tzar lay the other night at Mr. James Herbert's, being come from
+Deptford to see the Redoubt,[8] which the justices have suppressed, by
+placing six constables at the door. Upon that disappointment he fell
+to drinking hard at one Mr. Morley's; and the Marquess of Carmarthen,
+it being late, resolved to lodge him at his brother-in-law's, where he
+dined the next day; drank a pint of brandy and a bottle of sherry for
+his morning draught; and after that about eight more bottles of sack
+and so went to the playhouse."[9]
+
+    [8] It is presumed some notorious place of ill fame.
+
+    [9] Ballard's Collection. Bodleian.
+
+The King having given a grand ball at St. James's, in honour of the
+Princess's birthday, Peter was invited; but instead of mixing with the
+company, he was put into a small room, from whence he could see all
+that passed without being himself seen. This extraordinary aversion
+for a crowd kept him away from all great assemblies. Once, indeed, he
+attempted to subdue it, from a desire to hear the debates in the House
+of Commons, but even then the Marquess of Carmarthen could not prevail
+on him to go into the body of the house.
+
+Having dined with the King at Kensington, he was prevailed on to see
+the ceremony of his Majesty passing four bills; but, it appears from a
+note of Lord Dartmouth, that here, as in the Commons, he avoided going
+into the house. His Lordship says, "He had a great dislike to being
+looked at, but had a mind to see the King in parliament; in order to
+which he was placed in a gutter upon the house-top, to peep in at the
+window, where he made so ridiculous a figure, that neither king nor
+people could forbear laughing, which obliged him to retire sooner than
+he intended."
+
+From the same authority we learn that Peter was, at another time,
+placed in an awkward situation. "The King made the Tzar a visit, in
+which an odd incident happened. The Tzar had a favourite monkey, which
+sat upon the back of his chair; as soon as the King was sat down, the
+monkey jumped upon him, in some wrath, which discomposed the whole
+ceremonial, and most of the time was afterwards spent in apologies for
+the monkey's misbehaviour."[10]
+
+    [10] Lord Dartmouth.--Note in Burnet's History of his own
+         Times.
+
+The Tzar is said to have paid a visit to the University of Oxford; but
+not a trace appears on any of the records of that university of his
+having ever done so. His body physician, Posnikof, who stayed in
+England some months behind his master, is, however, known to have been
+there. Mr. Wanley writes thus, from London, to Dr. Charlett;--"I will
+wait on the doctor (Posnikof,) and if you had been pleased to have
+given me orders, I would have been at Oxford before now, for his sake,
+and returned hither with him again. His master (the Tzar) gave the
+King's servants, at his departure, one hundred and twenty guineas,
+which was more than they deserved, they being very rude to him; but to
+the King he presented a rough ruby, which the greatest jewellers of
+Amsterdam (as well Jews as Christians) valued at ten thousand pounds
+sterling. 'Tis bored through, and when it is cut and polished, it must
+be set upon the top of the imperial crown of England."[11]
+
+    [11] Ballard's Collection. Bodleian. With plain downright
+         simplicity and free from all ostentation Peter carried
+         this valuable ruby to the king in his waistcoat pocket,
+         and presented it wrapped up in a piece of brown paper.
+
+He was introduced to the archbishop of Canterbury, at his palace of
+Lambeth, and having expressed a desire to see the different churches
+of the capital, and to observe the mode in which the service was
+conducted, the archbishop recommended bishop Burnet to gratify his
+curiosity in this respect; and to give him all the information, of
+which none was more capable, that he might require on ecclesiastical
+matters. From this dignitary of the church we have some information
+respecting the manner and appearance of this extraordinary character.
+
+The bishop says he wrought much with his own hands, and made all about
+him work at the models of ships. Who he had with him, besides
+Menzikoff and Golownin, does not anywhere appear, but the
+_Postman_[12] of the 29th March says, "The Tzar of Muscovy is returned
+from Portsmouth to Deptford, where his second ambassador is arrived
+from Holland." The two principal Russian workmen in Holland, of rank,
+were Menzikoff and the Prince Siberski, the latter of whom is said to
+have been able to rig a ship from top to bottom. The object in
+remaining at Deptford would appear to have been, as before stated,
+chiefly to gain instruction how to lay off the lines of ships, and cut
+out the moulds; though it is said, on the testimony of an old man, a
+workman of Deptford yard some forty years ago, that he had heard his
+father[13] say, the Tzar of Muscovy worked with his own hands as hard
+as any man in the yard. If so, it could only have been for a very
+short time, and probably for no other purpose than to show the
+builders, that he knew how to handle the adze as well as themselves.
+
+    [12] No. 442.
+
+    [13] Mr. James Sibbon, who was a journeyman shipwright in
+         Deptford yard when the Tzar was there; he died in 1769,
+         aged 105 years.--_Annual Register_ for 1769.
+
+When residing at Deptford he requested to see the celebrated Dr.
+Halley, to whom he communicated his plans of building a fleet, and in
+general of introducing the arts and sciences into his country, and
+asked his opinion and advice on various subjects; the doctor spoke
+German fluently, and the Tzar was so much pleased with the
+philosopher's conversation and remarks, that he had him frequently to
+dine with him; and in his company he visited the Royal Observatory in
+Greenwich Park.
+
+As in Amsterdam, so also in London, he visited the manufactories and
+workshops of various artificers, and purchased whatever he deemed
+either curious or useful; and among other things "he bought the famous
+geographical clock made by Mr. John Carte, watchmaker, at the sign of
+the Dial and Crown, near Essex-street in the Strand, which clock tells
+what o'clock it is in any part of the world, whether it is day or
+night, the sun's rising and setting throughout the year, its entrance
+into the signs of the zodiac; the arch which they and the sun in them
+makes above or below the horizon, with several other curious
+motions."[14] He was very curious in examining the mechanism of a
+watch, and it is said he could take one of these ingenious machines to
+pieces, and put it together again, before he left London.
+
+    [14] Postman, No. 136.
+
+The king had promised Peter that there should be no impediment in his
+way of engaging, and taking with him to Russia, such English
+artificers, and scientific men, as he might desire, with such
+instruments as their trade or profession required.
+
+The number of all descriptions of persons that finally left England,
+when the Tzar returned to Holland, is stated to have been nearly as
+follows:--Three captains of ships of war, twenty-five captains of
+merchant ships, thirty pilots, thirty surgeons, two hundred gunners,
+four mast-makers, four boat-builders, two master sail-makers and
+twenty workmen, two compass-makers, two carvers, two anchor-smiths,
+two lock-smiths, two copper-smiths and two tinmen; making, with some
+others, not much less than five hundred persons. However uncouth the
+manners of Peter may have been, he was a great favourite with King
+William, and the Tzar had also a high opinion of his Majesty, whom he
+visited frequently, and consulted on all important occasions. The king
+engaged him to sit for his portrait to Sir Godfrey Kneller, who
+painted a very good picture, said to be a strong likeness, which is
+now at Windsor, and the portrait at the head of this volume is
+engraved from it.
+
+(The reader will recollect Peter at Zaandam. In after-life he visited
+this place,) and the little cottage in which some nineteen years
+before he had dwelt, when learning the art of ship-building: he found
+it kept up in neat order, and dignified with the name of the _Prince's
+House_. This little cottage is still carefully preserved. It is
+surrounded by a neat building with large arched windows, having the
+appearance of a conservatory or green-house, which was erected in 1823
+by order of the present Princess of Orange, sister to the late Emperor
+Alexander, who purchased it to secure its preservation. In the first
+room you still see the little oak table and three chairs which
+constituted its furniture when Peter occupied it. Over the
+chimney-piece is inscribed
+
+    PETRO MAGNO
+    ALEXANDER,
+
+and in the Russian and Dutch,
+
+    "_To a Great Man nothing is little._"
+
+The ladder to the loft still remains, and in the second little room
+below are some models and several of his working-tools. Thousands of
+names are scribbled over every part of this once humble residence of
+Peter the Great.
+
+On entering this cottage, Peter is said to have been evidently
+affected. Recovering himself, he ascended the loft, where was a small
+closet, in which he had been accustomed to perform his devotions and
+remained there alone a full half-hour; with what various emotions his
+mind must have been affected while in this situation, could be known
+only to himself, but might easily be imagined. It could hardly fail to
+recall to his recollection the happy period when he "communed with his
+own heart" in this sacred little chamber, and "remembered his Creator
+in the days of his youth,"--days which he might naturally enough be
+led to compare and contrast with those of the last nineteen years of
+his life, filled up as they had been with many and varied incidents,
+painful, hazardous, disastrous and glorious.
+
+Every one was anxious to bring to his recollection any little
+circumstance in which he had been concerned,--among others, a
+beautiful boat was brought to him as a present, in the building of
+which he himself had done "yeoman service." He was delighted to see
+that this ancient piece of the workmanship of his own hands had been
+preserved with such care. He caused it to be put on board a ship bound
+for Petersburg, but she was unfortunately captured by the Swedes; and
+the boat is still kept in the arsenal of Stockholm.
+
+With his old acquaintance, Kist, the blacksmith, he visited the
+smithy, which was so dirty that the gentleman of his suite who
+attended him was retreating, but Peter stopped him to blow the bellows
+and heat a piece of iron, which, when so done, he beat out with the
+great hammer. Kist was still but a journeyman blacksmith, and the Tzar
+out of compassion for his old acquaintance made him a handsome
+present.
+
+[The Editor's conclusion, or brief summary, is sketched as follows.]
+
+The character of Peter the Great, as has been shown in the course of
+this memoir, was a strange compound of contradictions. Owing to the
+circumstances in which he was placed, and the determination to execute
+the plan he had conceived of remodelling the customs and institutions
+of his country, he had to maintain a constant struggle between his
+good and evil genius. Nothing was too great, nothing too little for
+his comprehensive mind. The noblest undertakings were mixed with the
+most farcical amusements; the most laudable institutions, for the
+benefit and improvement of his subjects, were followed by shaving
+their beards and docking their skirts;--kind-hearted, benevolent, and
+humane, he set no value on human life. Owing to these, and many other
+incongruities, his character has necessarily been represented in
+various points of view and in various colours by his biographers. Of
+him, however, it can scarcely be said, that
+
+  The evil which men do lives after them,
+  The good is oft interred with their bones.
+
+With the exception of a few foreign writers, who have generally
+compiled their memoirs from polluted sources, the reverse of the
+aphorism may be applied to Peter. His memory, among his countrymen,
+who ought to be the best judges, and of whom he was at once the
+scourge and the benefactor, is held in the highest veneration, and is
+consecrated in their history and their public monuments to everlasting
+fame. The magnificent equestrian statue, erected by Catharine II.; the
+waxen figure of Peter in the museum of the Academy founded by himself;
+the dress, the sword, and the hat, which he wore at the battle of
+Pultowa, the last pierced through with a ball: the horse that he rode
+in that battle; the trousers, worsted stockings, shoes, and cap, which
+he wore at Zaandam, all in the same apartment; his two favourite dogs,
+his turning-lathe and tools, with specimens of his workmanship; the
+iron bar which he forged with his own hand at Olonitz; the Little
+Grandsire, so carefully preserved, as the first germ of the Russian
+navy; and the wooden hut in which he lived while superintending the
+first foundation of Petersburg;--these, and a thousand other tangible
+memorials, all preserved with the utmost care, speak in most
+intelligible language the opinion which the Russians hold of _the
+Father of his Country_.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+THE NATURALIST.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE DODO.
+
+
+Every reader of popular natural history must recollect the figure of
+this extraordinary bird; although he may not be aware that it is
+considered to have become extinct towards the end of the seventeenth
+or beginning of the eighteenth century. The conditions of this
+disappearance are self-evident.[15] Imagine a bird of the gallinaceous
+(_gallus_, cock, or pheasant) tribe, considerably larger than a
+turkey, and consequently adapted for food, totally incapable of
+flying, and so unwieldy as to be easily run down, and it must be quite
+obvious that such a bird could not long continue to exist in any
+country to which mankind extended their dominion. This will account
+for its being found only in those islands of the Indian Ocean which,
+on their being first discovered by Europeans, were uninhabited, or
+difficult of access to the nearest people. The group which is situated
+to the eastward of Madagascar, consisting of Bourbon, Mauritius, and
+Roderigue, were almost the only islands of this description met with
+by the early circumnavigators of the Cape; and it is there that we
+find the last traces of this very remarkable bird, which disappeared,
+of course, from Bourbon and the Mauritius _first_, on account of their
+being more visited and finally colonized by the French; and lastly
+from Roderigue, an island extremely difficult of access, and without
+any safe bay or anchorage for shipping.
+
+    [15] We are aware that the destruction or total extinction of
+         any of the species of animals of contemporaneous creation
+         with man, is a point of much controversy among
+         philosophers. The best reply to this doubt is the
+         repeated discovery of the fossil remains of animals
+         entirely different from the existing species; proving
+         their extinction to form a part of the scheme of creative
+         wisdom.
+
+We obtain these particulars from a paper in the _Magazine of Natural
+History_,[16] by John V. Thompson, Esq. F.L.S. This gentleman, during
+a residence of some years in the above islands, in vain sought for
+some traces of the existence of the Dodo there; he discovered,
+however, a copy of the scarce and curious voyage of Leguat, who, and
+his companions, appear to have been the first inhabitants of
+Roderigue: and from their journal he has translated the following
+account of the Dodo.
+
+    [16] Vol. i. p. 442.
+
+[Illustration: _The Dodo._]
+
+"Of all the birds which inhabit this island, the most remarkable is
+that which has been called Solitaire (the solitary), because they are
+rarely seen in flocks, although there is abundance of them.
+
+"The _males_ have generally a greyish or brown plumage, the feet of
+the turkey-cock, as also the beak, but a little more hooked. They have
+hardly any tail, and their posterior, covered with feathers, is
+rounded like the croup of a horse. They stand higher than the
+turkey-cock, and have a straight neck, a little longer in proportion
+than it is in that bird when it raises its head. The eye is black and
+lively, and the head without any crest or tuft. They do not fly, their
+wings being too short to support the weight of their bodies; they only
+use them in beating their sides, and in whirling round; when they wish
+to call one another, they make, with rapidity, twenty or thirty rounds
+in the same direction, during the space of four or five minutes; the
+movement of their wings then makes a noise which approaches
+exceedingly that of a kestrel (Crecerelle), and which is heard at more
+than 200 paces distant. The bone of the false pinion is enlarged at
+its extremity, and forms, under the feathers, a little round mass like
+a musket-bullet; this and their beak form the principal defence of
+this bird. It is extremely difficult to catch them in the woods; but
+as a man runs swifter than they, in the more open spots it is not very
+difficult to take them; sometimes they may even be approached very
+easily. From the month of March until September, they are extremely
+fat, and of most excellent flavour, especially when young. The males
+may be found up to the weight of 45 lb.; Herbert even says 50 lb.
+
+"The _female_ is of admirable beauty. Some are of a blond, others of a
+brown, colour; I mean by blond the colour of flaxen hair. They have a
+kind of band, like the bandeau of widows, above the beak, which is of
+a tan colour. One feather does not pass another over all their body,
+because they take great care to adjust and polish them with their
+beak. The feathers which accompany the thighs are rounded into a
+shell-like form, and, as they are very dense at this place, produce a
+very agreeable effect. They have two elevations over the crop, of a
+somewhat whiter plumage than the rest, and which resemble wonderfully
+the fine breast of a woman. They walk with so much stateliness and
+grace combined, that it is impossible not to admire and love them; so
+much so, that their appearance has often saved their life.
+
+"Although these birds approach, at times, very familiarly when they
+are not chased, they are incapable of being tamed; as soon as caught,
+they drop tears, without crying, and refuse obstinately all kind of
+nourishment, until at last they die. There is always found in their
+gizzard (as well as in that of the males) a brown stone, the size of a
+hen's egg; it is slightly tuberculated (raboteuse), flat on one side,
+and rounded on the other, very heavy and very hard. We imagined that
+this stone was born with them, because, however young they might be,
+they always had it, and never more than one; and besides this
+circumstance, the canal which passes from the crop to the gizzard, is
+by one-half too small to give passage to such a mass. We used them, in
+preference to any other stone, to sharpen our knives.
+
+"When these birds set about building their nests, they choose a clear
+spot, and raise it a foot and a half off the ground, upon a heap of
+leaves of the palm tree, which they collect together for the purpose.
+They only lay one egg, which is very much larger than that of a goose.
+The male and female sit by turns, and it does not hatch until after a
+period of seven weeks. During the whole period of incubation, or that
+they are rearing their young one, which is not capable of providing
+for itself until after several months, they will not suffer any bird
+of their own kind to approach within 200 paces of their nest; and what
+is very singular is, that the male never chases away the females;
+only, when he perceives one, he makes, in whirling, his ordinary
+noise, to call his companion, which immediately comes and gives chase
+to the stranger, and which she does not quit until driven without
+their limits. The female does the same and allows the males to be
+driven off by her mate. This is a circumstance that we so often
+witnessed, that I speak of it with certainty. These combats last
+sometimes for a long time, because the stranger only turns off,
+without going in a straight line from the nest; nevertheless, the
+others never quit until they have chased them away."[17]
+
+    [17] Voyage de Francois Leguat, Gentilhomme, Bressan, 1708.
+
+Mr. Thompson finds this evidence strengthened by the facts and
+statements of a paper by Mr. Duncan, in the _Zoological Journal_ for
+January, 1828; and infers that a bird of corresponding size and
+character did actually exist, of which the only remains are a bill and
+foot in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, and a foot in the British
+Museum, all of which Mr. Thompson examined on his return from the
+Mauritius in 1816. The specimen, which in part remains at Oxford, was
+originally in the museum of Tradescant, at Lambeth, which was
+purchased and removed to Oxford by Dr. Ashmole; the _entire bird_ is
+proved to have been in the Museum in 1700; and in a catalogue of the
+collection drawn up since 1755, the disappearance of all but the bill
+and foot of the Dodo is explained by an order of a meeting of the
+visitors in the last-named year. Tradescant, it will be recollected,
+was gardener to Charles the Second; and in the portrait of him still
+preserved is introduced a Dodo, which belonged to him when alive.
+Another painting of the bird, to be seen in the British Museum, is
+stated by Mr. Duncan, to have been executed from a living bird, sent
+from the Mauritius to Holland, the Dutch being the first colonists of
+that island; but, Mr. Thompson thinks, "to dissipate all doubts as to
+its accuracy, it should be collated with a description taken from the
+Ashmolean specimen, should such be found to exist."
+
+Mr. Thompson is inclined to consider Leguat's natural history of the
+Dodo as "the only one that was ever penned under such favourable
+circumstances. No doubt this first colony, in so small an island,
+considerably reduced the number of the Dodo; but when they finally
+disappeared, does not seem to be anywhere recorded." The most
+interesting consideration connected with their disappearance is their
+being "the only vertebrated animals which we can make certain of
+having lost since the creation. If we seek to find out what link in
+the chain of Nature has been broken by the loss of this species, what
+others have lost their check, and what others necessarily followed the
+loss of those animals which alone contributed to their support," Mr.
+Thompson thinks "we may conclude that, the first being seen by the
+Omniscient Creator, at least no injury will be sustained by the rest
+of the creation; that man, its destroyer, was probably intended to
+supplant it, as a check; and that the only other animals which its
+destruction drew with it, were the intestinal worms and pediculi
+peculiar to the species."
+
+Buffon, Latham, and Gmelin have three species of Dodo, while we find
+it difficult to establish the existence of one. Indeed, it is
+improbable that the three islands of the Mauritius group possessed
+each a distinct type of so singular and unique a bird.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+MOUNT ARARAT.
+
+
+Ararat is celebrated as the resting-place of Noah's ark after the
+Deluge, and as the spot whence the descendants of Noah peopled the
+earth. It rises on the Persian frontier, on a large plain, detached,
+as it were, from the other mountains of Armenia, which make a long
+chain. It consists, properly speaking, of two hills--the highest of
+which, where the ark is said to have rested,[18] is, according to
+Parrot, 2,700 toises, or 17,718 feet above the level of the ocean.[19]
+The summit is covered with perpetual snow; the lower parts are
+composed of a deep, moving sand; and one side presents a vast chasm
+tinged with smoke, from which flames have been known to issue.
+
+    [18] The precise spot is controverted, as will be seen in an
+         extract from the ingenious work on Scriptural
+         Antiquities, quoted in vol. xix. of _the Mirror_, p. 382;
+         where are notices of the mountain by Morier and Sir
+         Robert Ker Porter. The latter describes Ararat as
+         divided, by a chasm of about seven miles wide, into two
+         distinct peaks, and is of opinion that the ark finally
+         rested in this chasm.
+
+    [19] Edin. New Phil. Journ. By Professor Jameson. No. 23, p.
+         156.--Note to a paper by Humboldt, on the Mountain Chains
+         and Volcanoes of Central Asia. Ararat is referred to in
+         Genesis, viii. 4. Its distance and bearing from
+         Jerusalem, 650, N.E.b.N.; Lat. North, 39.40. Long. East,
+         43.50. Country, Erivan; Province, Mahou.--_From the
+         General Index to the Biblical Family Cabinet Atlas._
+
+[Illustration: _Mount Ararat, from a drawing, by Sir Robert Ker Porter._]
+
+Perhaps the most recent visit to this wonder of the East will be found
+described in Mr. J.H. Stocqueler's Journal of _Fifteen Months'
+Pilgrimage through untrodden Tracts of Khuzistan and Persia_, in 1831
+and 1832:--
+
+"We mounted our horses," says the enthusiastic traveller, "soon after
+sunrise, and had proceeded for about four hours over numerous
+acclivities, and through a territory of undulations resembling the
+waves of the sea deprived of motion, when the southern peak of Ararat
+(for there are two), snow-clad and 'cloud-clapt' suddenly burst upon
+my view! At first I scarcely dared venture to believe we were so near
+this celebrated mount, though its situation and the distance we had
+journeyed from Tabreez left no doubt of the fact. I even questioned
+the guide, and on his answering that it was the summit of Agri-Dagh
+(the name by which Ararat is called by the Turks), I involuntarily
+clasped my hands in ecstacy! Who can contemplate this superb elevation
+without a mixture of awe and admiration, or fail to recur to the page
+of sacred writ illustrative of Almighty wrath and the just man's
+recompense? Who can gaze upon the majesty of this mount, towering
+above the 'high places' and the hills, and turn without repining to
+the plains beneath, where puny man has pitched his tent and wars upon
+his fellow, mocking the sublimity of Nature with his paltry tyranny? I
+felt as if I lived in other times, and my eye eagerly but vainly
+sought for some traces of that 'ark' which furnished a refuge and a
+shelter to the creatures of God's mercy when the 'waters prevailed,
+and were increased greatly on the earth,' till 'all in whose nostrils
+was the breath of life, and all that was in the dry land, died!'
+
+"Though distant forty miles at least from the base of Ararat, the
+magnitude of the mountain, of about the centre of which our elevated
+position now placed us abreast, caused it to appear contiguous to our
+route, and produced that indefinable thrill and sense of humility
+which the immediate presence of any vast and overpowering object is so
+eminently calculated to generate. I continued to gaze until the
+decline of day warned us to seek a shelter, and Phoebus, casting a
+parting glance at the crystal summit of the noble glacier, for a
+moment diffused over all a soft rosy tint,[20] then sunk into the west
+and left the world in darkness."
+
+    [20] This peculiar effect of the setting sun on snow-covered
+         mountains has been observed by other travellers in other
+         regions. In Switzerland the phenomenon is by no means
+         rare.
+
+           "And sun-set into rose hues sees them wrought."
+
+         _Byron._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+NUTRIA FUR.
+
+(_To the Editor._)
+
+
+I read with much pleasure the article in your Number, 574, on Nutria
+Fur: it was, to me, particularly acceptable, as I have been connected
+for the last ten years with an establishment where, on an average,
+150,000 Nutria Skins are annually manufactured, and the wool cut for
+the use of hatters. I have searched every book of travels in Brazil,
+&c., that I could procure, and the chief English works on zoology,
+without being able to gather any description of the scientific name or
+habits of the animal. All the information I could collect was from the
+captains of various vessels that had visited Buenos Ayres, and brought
+cargoes of skins; but their accounts were extremely vague and
+unsatisfactory.
+
+I perceive, however, that you have overlooked a peculiarity generally
+attributed to the animal, which, if true, is, in my opinion, deserving
+notice: viz.--the position of the female's teats, which are not placed
+on the belly, as with most animals, but on the side, approaching to
+the back, by which means it is enabled to suckle its young on both
+sides at once, whilst swimming on the surface of the water; and it
+presents, I have understood, a singular group to the observant
+traveller.
+
+I have sent the skin of a female Nutria herewith, for your inspection,
+as regards the teats, &c. (from which the fur has been cut by
+machinery,) with a small sample of the belly fur, prepared for the
+covering of a hat; the wholesale price of the latter is now three
+guineas per lb.: it is used as a substitute for beaver-wool on
+second-rate hats. Our French correspondents term the skins
+"Ratgondin."
+
+BENJAMIN NORRIS, JUN.
+
+_Windsor Place, Southwark Bridge Road._
+
+*** We thank our intelligent correspondent for this communication, as
+well as for the skin and fur. The skin is rather above the usual size:
+its length is 26 inches, the tail being cut off; as is always done
+before the skins are exported: the width of the skin is 15 inches; the
+teats, nine in number, are in two rows, each row being about 2-1/2
+inches from the centre of the back, and about 5 inches from the centre
+of the belly; so that they are, as our correspondent observes, _on the
+side_, approaching to the back nearer by half than to the belly. This
+position of the teats appears to correspond with the animal's habit of
+suckling its young whilst swimming.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE CHOLERA MOUNT.
+
+_Lines on the Burying-Place for Patients who have Died of Cholera; a
+pleasant eminence in Sheffield Park._
+
+_By James Montgomery, Esq._
+
+
+  In death divided from their dearest kin,
+  This is "a field to bury strangers in:"
+  Fragments lie here of families bereft,
+  Like limbs in battle-grounds by warriors left;
+  A sad community!--whose very bones
+  Might feel, methinks, a pang to quicken stones,
+  And make them from the depths of darkness cry,
+  "Oh! is it naught to you, ye passers by!
+  When from its earthly house the spirit fled,
+  Our dust might not be 'free among the dead?'
+  Ah! why were we to this Siberia sent,
+  Doom'd in the grave itself to banishment?"
+
+    Shuddering humanity asks--"Who are these?
+  And what their sin?"--They fell by _one_ disease!
+  (Not by the Proteus maladies, that strike
+  Man into nothingness--not twice alike;)
+  By the blue pest, whose gripe no art can shun,
+  No force unwrench--out-singled one by one;
+  When like a timeless birth, the womb of Fate
+  Bore a new death, of unrecorded date,
+  And doubtful name. Far east its race begun,
+  Thence round the world pursued the westering sun;
+  The ghosts of millions following at its back,
+  Whose desecrated graves betray'd their track;
+  On Albion's shore, unseen, the invader stept;
+  Secret, and swift, and terrible it crept;
+  At noon, at midnight, seized the weak, the strong,
+  Asleep, awake, alone, amidst the throng,
+  Kill'd like a murder; fix'd its icy hold,
+  And wrung out life with agony of cold;
+  Nor stay'd its vengeance where it crush'd the prey,
+  But set a mark, like Cain's, upon their clay,
+  And this tremendous seal impress'd on all,
+  "Bury me out of sight, and out of call."
+
+    Wherefore no filial foot this turf may tread,
+  No kneeling mother clasp her baby's bed;
+  No maiden unespoused, with widow'd sighs,
+  Seek her soul's treasure where her true-love lies;
+  --All stand aloof, and gazing from afar,
+  Look on this mount as on some baleful star,
+  Strange to the heavens, that with bewildering light,
+  Like a lost spirit, wanders through the night.
+
+    Yet many a mourner weeps her fall'n estate,
+  In many a home by them left desolate;
+  Once warm with love, and radiant with the smiles
+  Of woman, watching infants at their wiles,
+  Whose eye of thought, while now they throng her knees,
+  Pictures far other scene than that she sees,
+  For one is wanting--one, for whose dear sake,
+  Her heart with very tenderness would ache,
+  As now with anguish--doubled when she spies
+  In this his lineaments, in that his eyes,
+  In each his image with her own commix'd,
+  And there at least, for life, their union fix'd!
+
+    Humanity again asks, "Who are these?
+  And what their sin?"--They fell by _one_ disease!
+  But when they knock'd for entrance at the tomb,
+  Their fathers' bones refused to make them room;
+  Recoiling Nature from their presence fled,
+  As though a thunder-bolt had struck them dead;
+  Their cries pursued her with the thrilling plea,
+  "Give us a little earth for charity!"
+  She linger'd, listen'd; all her bosom yearn'd;
+  The mother's pulse through every vein return'd;
+  Then, as she halted on this hill, she threw
+  Her mantle wide, and loose her tresses flew.
+  "Live!" to the slain she cried: "My children live!
+  This for an heritage to you I give;
+  Had Death consumed you by the common lot
+  Ye, with the multitude, had been forgot;
+  Now through an age of ages ye shall _not_."
+
+    Thus Nature spake;--and as her echo, I
+  Take up her parable, and prophesy:
+  Here, as from spring to spring the swallows pass,
+  Perennial daisies shall adorn the grass;
+  Here the shrill skylark build her annual nest,
+  And sing in heaven, while you serenely rest;
+  On trembling dewdrops morn's first glance shall shine,
+  Eve's latest beams on this fair bank decline,
+  And oft the rainbow steal through light and gloom,
+  To throw its sudden arch across your tomb;
+  On you the moon her sweetest influence shower,
+  And every planet bless you in its hour.
+  With statelier honours still, in Time's slow round,
+  Shall this sepulchral eminence be crown'd;
+  Where generations long to come shall hail
+  The growth of centuries waving in the gale,
+  A forest landmark, on the mountain's head,
+  Standing betwixt the living and the dead;
+  Nor, while your language lasts, shall travellers cease
+  To say, at sight of your memorial, "Peace!"
+  Your voice of silence answering from the sod,
+  "Whoe'er thou art, prepare to meet thy God!"
+
+_Blackwood's Magazine_.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE STEAM ENGINE SIMPLIFIED.
+
+
+It is a universal property of matter, that by the application of heat,
+so as to raise its temperature, it suffers an increase in its
+magnitude. Also in different substances, when certain temperatures are
+attained by the application of fire, or other methods of heating, they
+undergo a change of form. Solids, at certain temperatures, are
+converted into liquids; and liquids, in like manner, when heated to
+certain degrees, become aeriform fluids or gases. These changes are
+familiar to every one in the ordinary phenomena attending water. Below
+the temperature of 32 deg. of the common thermometer, that substance
+exists in the solid form, and is called _ice_. Above that temperature
+it passes into the liquid state, and is called _water_; and when
+raised to the temperature of 212 deg., under ordinary circumstances, it
+passes into the aeriform state, and is called _steam_. It is to this
+last change that we wish at present principally to call the attention
+of the reader. In the transition of water from the liquid state to the
+state of vapour or steam, an immense change of bulk takes place. In
+this change, a solid inch of water enlarges its size about 1,700
+times, and forms 1,700 solid inches of steam. This expansion takes
+place accompanied with a certain force or pressure, by which the
+vapour has a tendency to burst the bounds of any vessel which contains
+it. The steam which fills 1,700 solid inches at the temperature of
+212 deg., will, if cooled below that temperature, return to the liquid
+form, and occupy only one solid inch, leaving 1,699 solid inches
+vacant; and, if it be included in a close vessel, leaving the surfaces
+of that vessel free from the internal pressure to which they were
+subject before the return of the water to the liquid form. If it be
+possible, therefore, alternately to convert water into vapour by heat,
+and to reconvert the vapour into water by cold, we shall be enabled
+alternately to submit any surface to a pressure equal to the elastic
+force of the steam, and to relieve it from that pressure, so as to
+permit it to move in obedience to any other force which may act upon
+it. Or again, suppose that we are enabled to expose one side of a
+movable body to the action of water converted into steam, at the
+moment that we relieve the other side from the like pressure by
+reconverting the steam which acts upon it into water, the movable body
+will be impelled by the unresisted pressure of the steam on one side.
+When it has moved a certain distance in obedience to this force, let
+us suppose that the effects are reversed. Let the steam which pressed
+it forwards be now reconverted into water, so as to have its action
+suspended; and at the same moment, let steam raised from water by heat
+be caused to act on the other side of the movable body; the
+consequence will obviously be, that it will now change the direction
+of its motion, and return in obedience to the pressure excited on the
+opposite side. Such is, in fact, the operation of an ordinary
+low-pressure steam-engine. The piston or plug which plays in the
+cylinder is the movable to which we have referred. The vapour of water
+is introduced upon one side of that piston at the moment that a
+similar vapour is converted into water on the other side, and the
+piston moves by the unresisted action of the steam. When it has
+arrived at the extremity of the cylinder, the steam which just urged
+it forwards is reconverted into water, and the piston is relieved from
+its action. At the same moment, a fresh supply of steam is introduced
+upon the other side of the piston, and its pressure causes the piston
+to be moved in a direction contrary to its former motion. Thus the
+piston is moved in the cylinder alternately in the one direction and
+in the other, with a force equivalent to the pressure of the steam
+which acts upon it. A strong metal rod proceeds from this piston, and
+communicates with proper machinery, by which the alternate motion of
+the piston backwards and forwards, or upwards and downwards, in the
+cylinder, may be communicated to whatever body is intended to be
+moved.
+
+The power of such a machine will obviously depend partly on the
+magnitude of the piston or the movable surface which is exposed to the
+action of the steam, and partly on the pressure of the steam itself.
+The object of converting the steam into water by cold, upon that side
+of the piston towards which the motion takes place, is to relieve the
+piston from all resistance to the moving power. This renders it
+unnecessary to use steam of a very high pressure, inasmuch as it will
+have no resistance to overcome, except the friction of the piston with
+the cylinder, and the ordinary resistance of the load which it may
+have to move. Engines constructed upon this principle, not requiring,
+therefore, steam of a great pressure, have been generally called
+"low-pressure engines." The re-conversion of the steam into water
+requires a constant and abundant supply of cold water, and a fit
+apparatus for carrying away the water which becomes heated, by cooling
+the steam, and for supplying its place by a fresh quantity of cold
+water. It is obvious that such an apparatus is incompatible with great
+simplicity and lightness, nor can it be applied to cases where the
+engine is worked under circumstances in which a fresh supply of water
+cannot be had.
+
+The re-conversion of steam into water, or, as it is technically
+called, the _condensation_ of steam, is however by no means necessary
+to the effective operation of a steam-engine. From what has been above
+said, it will be understood that this effect relieves the piston of a
+part of the resistance which is opposed to its motion. If that part of
+the resistance were not removed, the pressure of steam acting upon the
+other side would be affected in no other way than by having a greater
+load or resistance to overcome; and if that pressure were
+proportionately increased, the effective power of the machine would
+remain the same. It follows, therefore, that if the steam upon that
+side of the piston towards which the motion is made were not
+condensed, the steam urging the piston forwards on the other side
+would require to have a degree of intensity greater than the steam in
+a low-pressure engine, by the amount of the pressure of the
+uncondensed steam on the other side of the piston. An engine working
+on this principle has therefore been called a _high-pressure engine_.
+Such an engine is relieved from the incumbrance of all the condensing
+apparatus and of the large supply of cold water necessary for the
+reduction of steam to the liquid form; for instead of being so
+reduced, the steam is in this case simply allowed to escape into the
+atmosphere. The operation, therefore, of high-pressure engines will be
+readily understood. The boiler producing steam of a very powerful
+pressure, is placed in communication with a cylinder furnished in the
+usual manner with a piston; the steam is allowed to act upon one side
+of the piston so as to impel it from the one end of the cylinder to
+the other. When it has arrived there, the communication with the
+boiler is reversed, and the steam is introduced on the other side of
+the piston, while the steam which has just urged the piston forwards
+is permitted to escape into the atmosphere. It is evident that the
+only resistance to the motion of the piston here is the pressure of
+that portion of steam which does not escape into the air; which
+pressure will be equal to that of the air itself, inasmuch as the
+steam will continue to escape from the cylinder as long as its elastic
+force exceeds that of the atmosphere. In this manner the alternate
+motion of the piston in the cylinder will be continued; the efficient
+force which urges it being estimated by the excess of the actual
+pressure of the steam from the boiler above the atmospheric pressure.
+The superior simplicity and lightness of the high-pressure engine must
+now be apparent, and these qualities recommend it strongly for all
+purposes in which the engine itself must be moved from place to place.
+
+The steam-engine therefore consists of two distinct parts,--the
+boiler, which is at once the generator and magazine of steam, and the
+cylinder with its piston, which is the instrument by which this power
+is brought into operation and rendered effective. The amount of the
+load or resistance which such a machine is capable of moving, depends
+upon the intensity or pressure of the steam produced by the boiler,
+and on the magnitude of the surface of the piston in the cylinder,
+upon which that steam acts. The rate or velocity of the motion
+depends, not on the power or pressure of the steam, but on the rate at
+which the boiler is capable of generating it. Every stroke of the
+piston consumes a cylinder full of steam; and of course the rate of
+the motion depends upon the number of cylinders of steam which the
+boiler is capable of generating in a given time. These are two points
+which it is essential should be distinctly understood, in order to
+comprehend the relative merits of the boilers used in travelling
+steam-engines.
+
+The motion which is primarily produced in a steam engine is a
+reciprocating or alternate motion of the piston from end to end of the
+cylinder; but the motion which is necessary to be produced for the
+purposes to which the engine is applied, is rarely or never of this
+nature. This primary motion, therefore, is almost always modified by
+some machinery interposed between the piston and the object to be
+moved. The motion most generally required is one of rotation, and this
+is accomplished by connecting the extremity of the piston-rod with a
+contrivance constructed on the revolving axle, called a _crank_. This
+contrivance does not differ in principle from the common winch, or
+from the key which winds a clock. The motion of the piston-rod
+backwards and forwards turns such a winch. At each termination of the
+stroke, the piston, from the peculiar position of the crank, loses all
+power over it. To remedy this two cylinders and pistons are generally
+used, which act upon two cranks placed on the axle at right angles to
+each other; so that at the moment when one of the pistons is at the
+extremity of its stroke, and loses its power upon one crank, the other
+piston is at the middle of its stroke, and in full operation on the
+other crank. By these means an unremitting force is kept in action.
+
+_Edinburgh Review._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+SONG.
+
+BY ROBERT GILFILLAN, AUTHOR OF "ORIGINAL SONGS."
+
+
+Tune.--"_Gin a body meet a body._"
+
+  Bonnie lassie, fairest lassie,
+    Dear art thou to me;
+  Let me think, my bonnie lassie,
+    I am lov'd by thee!
+
+  I speak na of thy ringlets bright,
+    Nor of thy witching 'ee;
+  But this I'll tell thy bonnie sel',
+    That dear art thou to me!
+
+  O! beauty it is rare, lassie,
+    And beauty it is thine,
+  Yet my love is no for beauty's sake,
+    'Tis just I wish thee mine!
+
+  Thy smile might match an angel's smile,
+    Gif such, save thee, there be;
+  Yet though thy charms my bosom warms,
+    I'll tell na them to thee!
+
+  Thy sunny face has nature's grace,
+    Thy form is winsome fair;
+  But when for long thou'st heard that sang,
+    O! wherefore hear it mair?
+
+  Thy voice, soft as the hymn of morn,
+    Or evening's melodie,
+  May still excel, as a' can tell,
+    Then wherefore hear't frae me?
+
+  Bonnie lassie, fairest lassie,
+    Think na't strange o' me,
+  That when thy beauty's praised by a',
+    Thou get'st nae praise frae me?
+
+  For wha wad praise what none can praise?
+    Yet, lassie, list to me;
+  Gie me thy love, and in return
+    I'll sing thy charms to thee!
+
+_Metropolitan._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+ANECDOTE GALLERY.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+RECORDS. BY THE AUTHOR OF "MONSIEUR TONSON."
+
+
+_An Odd Angler_.
+
+Dr. Birch was very fond of angling, and devoted much time to that
+amusement. In order to deceive the fish, he had a dress constructed,
+which, when he put it on, made him appear like an old tree. His arms
+he conceived would appear like branches, and the line like a long
+spray. In this sylvan attire he used to take root by the side of a
+favourite stream, and imagined that his motions might seem to the fish
+to be the effect of the wind.--He pursued this amusement for some
+years in the same habit, till he was ridiculed out of it by his
+friends.
+
+_Jack Spencer_.
+
+It is said that he once contrived to collect a party of hunch-backed
+men to dine with him, some of whom indignantly quitted the table.
+Another whimsical party which he assembled at his house consisted
+merely of a number of persons all of whom stuttered; but this meeting
+at first threatened serious consequences, for each supposed he was
+mocked by the other, and it was with great difficulty that their host
+restored peace, by acknowledging the ludicrous purpose of his
+invitation.
+
+_Dr. Johnson._
+
+Dr. Johnson was long a bigoted Jacobite. When he was walking with some
+friends in Kensington Gardens, one of them observed that it was a fine
+place. "Phoo," said Johnson, "nothing can be fine that belongs to a
+usurper." Dr. Monsey assured me, that once in company, when the
+conversation was on the age of King George the Third, he heard him
+say, "What does it signify when such an animal was born, or whether he
+ever existed?" Yet he afterwards said, in his account of his interview
+with His Majesty, that it was not for him "to bandy compliments with
+_his sovereign_."
+
+_Cards._
+
+Mr. Murphy told me also, that he was once present at Tom's
+Coffee-house, in Russell Street Covent Garden, which was only open to
+subscribers, when Colley Cibber was engaged at whist, and an old
+General was his partner. As the cards were dealt to him, he took up
+every one in turn, and expressed his disappointment at every
+indifferent one. In the progress of the game he did not follow suit,
+and his partner said, "What! have you not a spade, Mr. Cibber?" The
+latter, looking at his cards, answered, "Oh, yes, a thousand;" which
+drew a very peevish comment from the General. On which Cibber, who was
+shockingly addicted to swearing, replied, "Don't be angry, for ---- I
+can play ten times worse if I like."
+
+_All on one Side._
+
+Major Grose told me that when he was quartered in Dublin, he ordered
+an Irish sergeant to exercise the men in shooting at a mark. The
+sergeant had placed a pole for them to take aim, stationing a certain
+number on one side, and an equal number on the other, in direct
+opposition. The Major happened to reach the spot just as they were
+going to fire, stopped them, and expressed his surprise that the
+sergeant should have placed them in so dangerous a position, as they
+must necessarily wound, if not kill each other. "Kill each other!"
+said the sergeant, "why, they are all our own men." As the men so
+contentedly remained in the dangerous position, it may be inferred
+that they were as wise as the sergeant. This story illustrates that of
+Lord Thomond's cooks, which when the keeper let loose, were fighting
+each other,--much to his surprise he said, as they belonged to one
+person, and were "_all on the same side_."
+
+_Vails to Servants._
+
+It is said that this practice prevailed to such a degree, even at the
+house of the great Lord Chesterfield, that when he invited Voltaire a
+second time to his table, the French wit in his answer declined the
+invitation, alleging that "his lordship's _ordinary_ was _too dear_."
+
+Another evil practice of servants to the higher orders, at that time,
+was carried to such a height that it wrought its own cure. It was
+usual at the old Italian Opera-house to allot a gallery to the
+footmen, that when their masters or mistresses had appointed the time
+to leave the theatre, their servants might be ready to attend. But
+these _livery-men_ took it into their heads to become critics upon the
+performances, and delivered their comments in so tumultuous a manner,
+that the managers found it absolutely necessary to close the gallery
+against them, and to assign it to those only who paid for admission.
+
+Just before the abolition of this _party-coloured_ tribunal, a wag who
+was fond of music, but who had more wit than money, appeared at the
+gallery door, when the porter demanded the name of his master. The wag
+boldly answered, "I am the Lord Jehovah's servant," and was admitted,
+one of the door-keepers saying to the other, "I never heard of that
+man's master before, but suppose it is some scurvy Scotch lord or
+other."
+
+_New Reading._
+
+Mr. John Kemble used to relate many whimsical anecdotes of provincial
+actors whom he knew in the early part of his life. He said that an
+actor who was to perform the character of _Kent_ in the play of "King
+Lear," had dressed himself like a doctor, with a large grizzle wig,
+having a walking-stick, which he held up to his nose, and a box under
+his arm. Being asked why he dressed the Earl of Kent in that manner,
+he said, "People mistake the character; he was not an earl, but a
+doctor. Does not Kent say, when the king draws his sword on him for
+speaking in favour of Cordelia, 'Do kill thy _physician_, Lear;' and
+when the king tells him to take his 'hated trunk from his dominions,'
+and Kent says, 'Now to new climes my old trunk I'll bear,' what could
+he mean but his _medicine chest_, to practise in another country?"
+
+_Absence._
+
+The first Lord Lyttleton was very absent in company, and when he fell
+into a river, by the oversetting of a boat, at Hagley, it was said of
+him that he had "sunk twice before he recollected he could swim." Mr.
+Jerningham told me, that dining one day with his lordship, the earl
+pointed to a particular dish, and asked to be helped of it, calling
+it, however, by a name very different from what the dish contained. A
+gentleman was going to tell him of his mistake. "Never mind,"
+whispered another of the party; "help him to what he asked for, and he
+will suppose it is what he wanted."
+
+Arthur Murphy, whose mind was chiefly occupied by dramatic subjects,
+after he became a barrister, dining one Sunday at the chaplain's
+table, St. James's Palace, being too early, strolled into the Chapel
+Royal during the service, and desiring a seat, he thus addressed one
+of the attendants on the pews, "Here, _boxkeeper_, open this _box_."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+CURIOUS LAWS RELATING TO CAPS.
+
+
+In England, in the year 1571, it was enacted, "that every person above
+seven years of age should wear on Sundays and holidays a cap of wool,
+knit-made, thickened and dressed in England, by some of the trade of
+cappers, under the forfeiture of three farthings for every day's
+neglect, excepting maids, ladies, and gentlewomen, and every lord
+knight, and gentleman, of twenty marks of land, and their heirs, and
+such as have borne office of worship in any city, town, or place, and
+the wardens of the London Companies."
+
+In France, those who had been bankrupts were obliged ever after to
+wear a green cap, to prevent people from being imposed on in any
+future commerce. By several arrets, in 1584, 1622, 1628, and 1688, it
+was decreed, that if they were at any time found without their green
+cap, their protection should be null, and their creditors empowered to
+cast them into prison; but this practice is not now continued.
+
+Among the formation of the different domestic trades of the metropolis
+into fraternities, or companies, were the _Capellarii_, or Cappers.
+Respecting these, Hugh Fitz-Otonis, the city _custos_, in the 54th of
+Henry III., made certain ordinances, in the presence of the aldermen,
+as that none "should make a cap but of good white or grey wool, or
+black; that none dye a cap made of white or grey wool into black, they
+being apt, so dyed, to lose their colour through the rain," &c.
+
+P.T.W.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+WRESTLING.
+
+
+At Hornchurch, in Essex, there is a singular custom on Christmas Day
+of wrestling for a boar's head, which is provided by the occupier of
+Hornchurch Hall. This custom is said to have originated in some
+charter, with which a correspondent, (H.B.A.,) is totally
+unacquainted.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+PERSECUTION OF THE JEWS
+
+
+Mr. Turner has collected (_Hist. Eng._) many curious facts relative to
+the condition of the Jews, especially in England. Others may be found
+dispersed in Velly's _History of France_; and many in the Spanish
+writers, Mariana and Zurita. The following are from Vaissette's
+_History of Languedoc_:--It was the custom at Toulouse to give a blow
+on the face to a Jew every Easter;--this was commuted, in the twelfth
+century, for a tribute. At Beziers another usage prevailed--that of
+attacking the Jews' houses with stones, from Palm Sunday to Easter. No
+other weapon was to be used; but it generally produced bloodshed. The
+populace were regularly instigated to the assault by a sermon from the
+bishop. At length, a prelate, wiser than the rest, abolished this
+ancient practice, but not without receiving a good sum from the Jews.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+THE GATHERER.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+_Crusades._--Mr. Hallam, in his excellent _History of the Middle
+Ages_, (vol. iii. p. 359), gives the following view of these
+misconceived glories of history:--"The crusades may be considered as
+martial pilgrimages on an enormous scale; and their influence upon
+general morality seems to have been altogether pernicious. Those who
+served under the cross would not indeed have lived very virtuously at
+home; but the confidence in their own merits, which the principle of
+such expeditions inspired, must have aggravated the ferocity and
+dissoluteness of their ancient habits. Several historians attest the
+depravation of morals which existed both among the crusaders, and in
+the states formed out of their conquests."
+
+_Slave Trade in England._--In England it was very common, even after
+the conquest, to export slaves to Ireland; till, in the reign of Henry
+II., the Irish came to a non-importation agreement, which put a stop
+to the practice. William of Malmesbury accuses the Anglo-Saxon
+nobility of selling their female servants as slaves to foreigners. In
+the canons of a council at London, in 1102, we read--"Let no one from
+henceforth presume to carry on that wicked traffic, by which men of
+England have hitherto been sold like brute animals." And Giraldus
+Cambrensis says that the English, before the conquest, were generally
+in the habit of selling their children and other relations, to be
+slaves in Ireland, without having even the pretext of distress or
+famine, till the Irish, in a national synod, agreed to emancipate all
+the English slaves in the kingdom.
+
+_Opulent English Merchants._--Some idea of the ancient commercial
+wealth of Great Britain may be gathered from a glance at the rapid
+increase of English trade from about the middle of the fourteenth
+century. Thus, in 1363, Ricard, who had been lord mayor, some years
+before, entertained Edward III. and the Black Prince, the Kings of
+France, Scotland, and Cyprus, with many of the nobility, at his own
+house in the Vintry, and presented them with handsome gifts. This
+eclipses the costliest entertainments of our times, at the public
+expense. Philpot, another eminent citizen in Richard II.'s time, when
+the trade of England was considerably annoyed by privateers, hired one
+thousand armed men, and dispatched them to sea, where they took
+fifteen Spanish vessels with their prizes. We find Richard obtaining a
+great deal from private merchants and trading towns. In 1379, he got
+5,000_l._ from London, 1,000 marks from Bristol, and in proportion
+from smaller places. In 1386 London gave 4,000_l._ more, and 10,000
+marks in 1397. The latter sum was obtained also for the coronation of
+Henry VI. Nor were the contributions of individuals contemptible,
+considering the high value of money. Hinde, a citizen of London, lent
+to Henry IV. 2,000_l._ in 1407, and Whittington one half of that sum.
+The merchants of the staple advanced 4,000_l._ at the same time. Our
+commerce continued to be regularly and rapidly progressive during the
+fifteenth century. The famous Canynges, of Bristol, under Henry VI.
+and Edward IV. had ships of 900 tons burden.
+
+_Gold-beating._--Reaumur asserts, that in an experiment he made, one
+grain of gold was extended to rather more than forty-two square inches
+of leaf-gold; and that an ounce of gold, which in the form of a cube,
+is not half an inch either high, broad, or long, is beat under the
+hammer into a surface of 150 square feet. The process is as
+follows:--The gold is melted in a crucible, and taken to the
+flattening mills, where it is rolled out till it becomes of the
+consistence of tin; it is then cut into small square pieces, and each
+piece is laid between a leaf of skin (known by the name of
+goldbeaters-skin); two parchment bands are then passed over the whole,
+and each band is reversed; it is then hammered out to the size of the
+skin, taken out, cut and hammered over again, and so on till it is
+sufficiently thin; when it is placed in books, the leaves of which are
+rubbed with red ochre, to prevent the gold adhering to them. There are
+gold leaves not thicker, in some parts, than the three hundred and
+sixty thousandth part of an inch. BURTON.
+
+_Ancient Pitch-in-the Hole._--A soldier was brought to Alexander to
+exhibit a trick which he had acquired, of pitching a pea into a
+distant hole, which just fitted it;--when the reward which the great
+conqueror bestowed upon the soldier for his useless application of
+time was a peck of peas. P.T.W.
+
+_Pekin._--Balducci Pegalotti, a Florentine writer upon commerce, about
+the year 1340, describes Pekin (under the name of Cambalu) the capital
+city of China, as being one hundred miles in circumference. He also
+states the journey from the Genoese territories to Pekin as of rather
+more than eight months, going and returning; and he assures us it was
+perfectly secure, not only for caravans, but for a single traveller,
+with a couple of interpreters and a servant.
+
+_Mercers and Drapers._--Among the trading companies into which the
+middling ranks were distributed on the continent, in the twelfth
+century, those concerned in silk and woollens were most numerous and
+honourable. None were admitted to the rank of burgesses in the towns
+of Aragon who used any manual trade, with the exception of dealers in
+fine cloths.
+
+_Usury._--The interest of money was exceedingly high throughout the
+middle ages. At Verona, in 1228, it was fixed by law at 12-1/2 per
+cent.; at Modena, in 1270, it seems to have been as high as 20. The
+republic of Genoa, towards the end of the fourteenth century, when
+Italy had grown wealthy, paid only from 7 to 10 per cent. to her
+creditors. But in France and England the rate was far more oppressive.
+An ordinance of Philip the Fair, in 1311, allows 20 per cent. after
+the first year of the loan. Under Henry III., according to Matthew
+Paris, the debtor paid 10 per cent. every two months; but this is
+absolutely incredible as a general practice.
+
+_Worsted._--Blomefield, the historian of Norfolk, thinks that a colony
+of Flemings settled, as early as the reign of Henry II., at Worsted--a
+village in that county--and immortalized its name by their
+manufacture. It soon reached Norwich, though not conspicuous till the
+reign of Edward I.
+
+_The Lord's Prayer in Arawaak._[21]--Kururumanny--haamary caleery
+oboraady--bachooty deweet bossa--baynse parocan, bayin so
+pareeka--yahaboo ororoo adiako--meherachehbeyn dacotooniah--Ebehey
+nebehedow wakayany odomay--Mayera toonebah dayensey--Boboro
+talidey.--_Hedouainey._--_Jour. Geog. Soc._
+
+    [21] An Indian nation, settled in British Guiana.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+*** Our Correspondent E. has been misinformed. The translation of the
+Letter of Lord Byron, inserted in our Number 575, as the first, will
+be found in Moore's Life of Byron, vol. vi. p. 147, new edit.--but
+without the subscription of "Peer of England."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+_Printed and published by J. LIMBIRD, 143, Strand, (near Somerset
+House,) London; sold by G.G. BENNIS, 55, Rue Neuve, St. Augustin,
+Paris; CHARLES FUGEL, Francfort; and by all Newsmen and Booksellers._
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Mirror of Literature, Amusement,
+and Instruction, by Various
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+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MIRROR OF LITERATURE ***
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