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diff --git a/old/54396-0.txt b/old/54396-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2f1a274..0000000 --- a/old/54396-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1535 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. 21, -November 21, 1840, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. 21, November 21, 1840 - -Author: Various - -Release Date: March 20, 2017 [EBook #54396] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL *** - - - - -Produced by Brownfox and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by JSTOR www.jstor.org) - - - - - - - - - - - THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL. - - NUMBER 21. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1840. VOLUME I. - -[Illustration: THE SOUND AND ISLAND OF DALKEY, COUNTY OF DUBLIN.] - -The little rocky island of Dalkey forms the south-eastern extremity of -the Bay of Dublin, as the bold and nearly insulated promontory of Howth -forms its north-eastern termination. It is separated from the mainland of -the parish from which it takes, or to which, perhaps, it gives its name, -by a channel called Dalkey Sound, which is about nine hundred yards long, -three hundred and eight yards wide at its south entrance, and two hundred -and nine yards wide at its north entrance; the soundings in mid-channel -varying from ten to five fathoms. This channel was anciently considered -a tolerably safe and convenient harbour, and was the principal anchorage -for ships frequenting the little castellated seaport town of Dalkey, from -which merchandise was transferred to Dublin, as well by boats as by cars. -Hence also the harbour of Dalkey was frequently used in former times on -state occasions for the embarkation or landing of the Irish viceroys and -other state officers. The Lord Deputy Philip de Courtney landed here -in 1386, and Sir John Stanley, the deputy of the Marquis of Dublin, in -the following year. In 1414, Sir John Talbot, then Lord Furnival, and -afterwards the renowned Earl of Shrewsbury, landed here as Viceroy of -Ireland; and in 1488, Sir Richard Edgecombe embarked at this harbour -for England, after having taken the homage and oaths of fidelity of the -nobility who had espoused the cause of Lambert Simnel. Here also landed -Sir Edward Bellingham, Lord-Lieutenant in 1548, and Sir Anthony St Leger -in 1553; and it was from this harbour that the Earl of Sussex, in 1558, -embarked a large body of forces to oppose the Scottish invaders at the -isle of Rathlin; and lastly, again, it was here that the unfortunate Sir -John Perrot landed as viceroy in 1584. The conversion of this sound into -an asylum harbour was at one time contemplated by government, and a plan -for the purpose was proposed by the Committee of Inland Navigation; but -from certain objections which were made to it, the project was abandoned. -The situation would certainly have been a more imposing and magnificent -one than that ultimately chosen. - -The island of Dalkey is of a nearly oval form, having a very irregular -surface, in part rocky, and in part consisting of a fertile salt marsh, -very valuable for the cure of sick cattle, who by feeding on it quickly -recover and fatten. It is five hundred and twenty-eight yards long from -north to south, and three hundred and eight yards wide from east to west, -and comprises about twenty-nine acres of pasture. Its shore is rocky, -and in some parts precipitous, and it commands the most beautiful views -of the bays of Dublin and Killiney. Among several springs of fresh water -on it, one on its south-west side has long been considered to possess -sanative properties, and was formerly much resorted to for the cure of -scurvy and other diseases. On the same side there are the roofless walls -of an ancient church dedicated to St Benet or Benedict, the patron of -the parish; and at its south-eastern extremity there is a battery, and a -Martello tower which differs from all the other structures of this class -erected on the Irish coast, in having its entrance not at the side but -on its top. It is traditionally stated that during the remarkable plague -which visited Dublin in 1575, many of the citizens fled to this island -for safety. - -Dalkey island has several smaller ones contiguous to it, one of which, -denominated Lamb Island, is covered with grass, while the others present -a surface of bare granite. Of the latter islets one is called Clare Rock, -and another the Maiden Rock, an appellation derived from a tradition said -to be of twelve hundred years’ antiquity, that twelve young maidens from -Bullock and Dalkey having gone over to this rock to gather _duilisk_, -they were overtaken by a sudden storm so violent as to prohibit -assistance from the larger island, and all miserably perished. To the -north of these islands is situated the group of rocks called the Muglins, -extending one hundred and thirty-two yards in length, and seventy-one in -width. On those rocks, in 1765, the pirates Mac Kinley and Gidley were -hanged in chains for the murder of Captain Glass. - -Most of the features we have thus noticed, together with a portion of the -adjacent shore of the bay, are exhibited in our prefixed illustration; -and to the older citizens of our metropolis, as well as to many others of -our countrymen, they must, we think, awaken many stirring recollections -of the striking changes in the appearance of the scenery in many -districts adjacent to the city, as well as in the character of the -citizens themselves, which have taken place within the present century. -It does not, indeed, require a very great age for any of us Dublinians -to remember when the country along the southern shore of our beautiful -bay, from Dunleary to the land’s-end on Dalkey common, presented a -nearly uniform character of wildness and solitude--heathy grounds, -broken only by masses of granite rocks, and tufts of blossomy furse, -without culture, and, except in the little walled villages of Bullock -and Dalkey, almost uninhabited. The district known as the Commons of -Dalkey, which extended from the village to the eastern extremity of the -bay, “the Sound,” or channel lying on its north-east, and the rocky hill -of Dalkey on its south--this in particular was a locality of singularly -romantic beauty, a creation of nature in her most sportive mood, and -wholly untouched, as it would appear, by the hand of man. Giant masses of -granite rocks, sometimes forming detached groups, and at others arranged -into semicircular and even circular ledges, gave the greatest variety and -inequalities of surface, and formed numerous dells of the greenest sward, -so singularly wild and secluded that the elves themselves might justly -claim them as their own. To these natural features should be added those -of the rocky iron-bound coast, with its little coves, commanding from its -cliffs the most delightful views of Killiney Bay, the Sound, the Island -of Dalkey, and the Bay of Dublin. These latter features still remain, -and can never change; but of all the others which we have noticed, what -is there left? Scarcely a vestige that would remind the spectator of -what the locality had been. The rocks have been nearly all removed, or -converted into building materials for an assemblage of houses of all -kinds of fantastic construction, surrounded for the most part by high and -unsightly stone walls; and, except in the views obtained from some spots -in it, the picturesque beauty of Dalkey common is gone for ever. - -The common of Dalkey is now a place of life--a suburb, as we might -say, of the city; but at the period to which we have alluded, it was -ordinarily a scene of the most desert solitude. A few cottages stretching -from the village along its southern boundary, and a solitary cabin -originally built by miners, and which still remains, were the only -habitations to be seen. But though thus uninhabited, it was not at all -times a scene of loneliness. On Sundays and other holidays its rocks and -dells were peopled with numerous pic-nic or sod parties of the middle -class of the citizens. The song went round, and the echoes were startled -by the merry notes of the fiddle or the flute, to which the several -groups of happy dancers footed the Irish jig and country dance. Nor -were such pic-nics confined exclusively to the citizens of the middle -class--the sporters of jaunting cars and jingles. Parties of the higher -ranks occasionally assembled here on week days, and had their rural fetes -on a larger and more magnificent scale. It was our own good fortune to be -an invited guest to one of these, of which we may be permitted to give -some account, as an example of a state of manners and usages of society -in Ireland now no longer to be found in persons of the class to which we -refer. It was a pic-nic party given by the Alexanders, the Armits, and -the present popular and deservedly honoured veteran the Commander of the -Forces in Ireland--then lieutenant-colonel of the 18th or Royal Irish -Fusileers, which were at the time quartered in Dublin. On the morning of -as beautiful a day in June as ever came, the inhabitants of the leading -thoroughfares of the city, and those along the road side from Dublin to -Dunleary, were surprised by the unusual crowds of open carriages of all -kinds conveying the youth and beauty of the aristocracy of the metropolis -to the chosen scene; and when the fine band of the Fusileers, in their -magnificent full-dress uniforms of blue and gold, were seen to pass along -on the same route, innumerable parties of the inferior ranks of the -inhabitants of the city and south-eastern suburbs were hastily formed to -follow in their wake. At noon, or a little after, not only the majority -of the original party were assembled in a beautiful and extensive -green amphitheatre, surrounded by rocky cliffs, but those cliffs were -themselves covered by a crowd of smaller parties--tributary stars around -the more splendid galaxy that occupied the centre of the brilliant scene. - -Two splendid marquees were erected at an early hour in the morning--one -for the accommodation of the ladies, the other for the dinner party; and -two beautiful pleasure-yachts which conveyed a portion of the invited -to the scene, rested at anchor in the Sound, and with their white sails -and coloured streamers contributed their share of life and beauty to the -landscape. Let the reader then imagine what a spectacle was presented -when the groups of quadrille-dancers--the beauty and gallantry of the -metropolis and its vicinity--commenced dancing on the greensward to the -music of one of the finest of military bands--what a delight to the happy -multitude of spectators who looked on at the graceful and tempered gaiety -of high life! The mind of the accomplished painter Watteau, in his finest -pictures of the _fetes champetres_ of the French, never conceived any -thing so exquisitely beautiful and romantic. - -This party did not disperse till after sunset. After an early dinner, -dancing was again resumed; and it is worthy of remark that throughout -the day there was not a single instance of rudeness or indecorum on the -part of the uninvited spectators--no attempt even to approach beyond the -natural rocky boundary which they had chosen for themselves--and that -the festivities were concluded with mutual pleasure to all the parties -who had participated in them. Alas! of the gay party then assembled--the -gentle maidens in all the bloom of youthful beauty, the frank young -soldiers, the men of fortune, the delighted parents--of all these how -many now lie low! More, reader, than you could possibly imagine! Nor can -we avoid exclaiming again, alas that such scenes of rational pleasure, in -which the higher and the humbler classes came together in healthful and -innocent enjoyment, are not now to be seen in our country as they were -heretofore! - -But while our memory with changeful feelings of pleasure and of pain -fondly lingers on the brilliant scene we have attempted to sketch, we -must not forget that our subject requires of us a notice of festivities -of a very different character of which Dalkey was in former times the -scene--when Dublin and its suburbs poured forth their crowds to enjoy -the fun and drolleries of the crowning of Dalkey’s insular king!--when -Dalkey, its Common, its Sound, and its Island, on a June day annually -for several years, presented a spectacle of life, gaiety, good-humour, -and enjoyment, such perhaps as was rarely ever exhibited elsewhere. -What a glorious day was this for the Dunleary, Bullock, and Dalkey -boatmen! Generous fellows! they would take over his majesty’s lieges -to his empire for almost nothing--frequently for nothing; but, being -determined enemies to absenteeism, they would not allow them to depart -on the same terms, but would mulct those with taxes _ad libitum_ who -desired to abandon their country. And again, what a glorious day was -this for the jingle-drivers of the Blackrock, the noddy-drivers, and the -drivers of all other sorts of hired carriages in Dublin! Has it never -occurred to the Railroad people to revive these forgotten frolics? What -a harvest they might reap! But what do we say? The thing is impossible. -The mirthful temperament, the thoughtless gaiety, the wit and humour -that characterised the citizens in those days, are gone for ever. The -Dublinians have become a grave, thoughtful, and serious people--we had -almost said, a dull one. Their faces no longer wear a cheerful and happy -look; the very youths of our metropolis seem to be ignorant of what -merriment is, or at best to suppose that it consists in puffing tobacco -smoke! - -Ah! very different were the notions of their predecessors, the nobility -and gentry of his Majesty the King of Dalkey! Smoking would not at all -have suited their mercurial temperament: it would have been the last -thing that they would have thought of to have had their tongues tied and -their mouths contorted into ugliness in the ridiculously serious effort -to hold a cigar between the lips, and look absurdly important! These -fellows thought that mouths were given for a very different purpose--to -sing the manly song, to throw forth, not clouds of tobacco smoke, but -flashes of wit and humour; and we are inclined to think they were right. - -We are not about to describe the annual ceremony of the coronation of the -Dalkey king, though we should gladly do so if we had the power, for the -memory of it, as an interesting illustration of the character of Irish -society in days not very remote, should not be allowed to die. We have -indeed been an eye-witness of some of these brilliant follies, but we -were young at the time, and our memory only retains a general impression -of them. We can recollect that the green island figured in our woodcut, -as well as the common, presented one mass of living beings, gaily dressed -and arranged into groups of happy parties, each with its own musicians. -We can recollect also that the dress of the ladies was almost invariably -white, with green silk bonnets--a costume that gave a singularly -brilliant effect to the scene. A large marquee was erected about the -centre of the island for the use of his Majesty and attendant nobles, and -a cordon was drawn around it, within which none others were permitted to -enter. There was a military band in attendance upon the royal party; and -while the noblemen and ladies of the court danced upon the sod within the -bounds, to the music of the state minstrels, the subjects of the monarch -danced outside. - -But these were only the evening festivities. The day was devoted to -graver purposes--the landing of his Majesty and nobles from the royal -barge under a salute of twenty-one guns, the band playing “God save -the King,” and the assembled multitude rending the air with their -acclamations! Then the ceremony of his coronation, and afterwards -his journey through his dominions, attended by his nobles! At an -early hour the monarch with his court proceeded in ludicrously solemn -procession from the palace to the church--the roofless ruin figured in -our cut--in which the ceremony was performed with a mock gravity which -was, however thoughtlessly profane, still irresistibly humorous. The -nobles, with painted faces and a profuse display of stars and ribbons, -had their titles and appropriate badges of office. There was the grand -chamberlain, with his bunch of old rusty keys--the archbishop with his -paper mitre and his natural beard of a month’s growth! The very titles -of these great personages were conferred in a spirit of drollery, and -made characteristic of the peculiarities of the individuals who bore -them. Thus there was a Lord of Ireland’s-eye--a grave-looking gentleman -who had lost one of his visual organs; a Lord Posey--a gentleman who -was remarkable for his habit of carrying a bunch of flowers at his -breast; and so on. All the nobility were wits, orators, and generally -first-rate vocalists, and the royal visitors were similarly gifted. -Charles Incledon, the prince of ballad-singers of his time, here sang his -“Black-eyed Susan” and other charming ditties, and John Philpot Curran, -the greatest wit of the world, set the table in a roar with his meteor -flashes. But the prime spirits of the court were his Majesty himself, -Stephen Armitage, his Lord High Admiral Luke Cassidy, and his archbishop ----- Gillespy. The long coronation sermon of the latter was one of the -richest treats of the day, and produced effects such as sermon never -produced before. - -During this august and imposing ceremony, the church was not only -crowded to excess, and its ruined walls covered with human beings, but -it was also surrounded with a dense mass of anxious listeners. As to his -Majesty himself, he was at times the gravest and at times the merriest -of monarchs, much of his humour consisting in the whimsical uncertainty -of his movements, for there never was a crowned head more capricious -or changeable in disposition than the King of Dalkey. He would set -out attended by his court on a journey to some distant region of his -dominions, change his mind in a minute and alter his route elsewhere, and -again change it within a few minutes; and all these mutations of purpose -were most loyally approved of and sympathised in by his majesty’s nobles -and subjects. Another trait in King Stephen’s character was his love for -song; and when the word ran through his empire that at the royal banquet -his majesty had commenced or was about to commence his favourite “Love is -my passion and glory,” there was scarcely one of his subjects, male or -female, who did not make a rush to get within earshot of him. Peace be -with thee, Stephen! thou wert a king “of infinite jest, of most excellent -fancy;” and though thy reign was short and thy dominions small, thou -madest more of thy subjects truly happy than many monarchs whose reigns -were as much longer as their possessions were more extensive! - -Imperfect as these recollections of the Dalkey festivities are, they will -perhaps convey to many who have not hitherto heard of them some slight -idea of their character; and they will, we trust, excite some surviving -actor in them to preserve their memory in a fuller and more graphic -record. They were, it will be seen, a sort of extemporaneous acted drama -of the Tom Thumb kind, admirably preserving the unities of time and -place--the time being one day, and the place--his majesty’s empire! As to -the theatre on which it was acted, it was most admirably adapted for the -spectacle, and had the most abundant accommodation for the audience. The -scenery too was real scenery--not painted canvass, that required distance -to give it the effect of reality: the greensward, the blue sky and bluer -sea, the rocky islands, the distant hills and mountains, were painted -by the hand of the greatest of all Artists; and the theatre, instead of -miserable foot-lights, had its illumination from the glorious sun, the -greatest of all His visible works! - -It may be supposed that these annual festivities must have been -productive of scenes of drunkenness and quarrelling, and we cannot state -of our own knowledge whether they were so or not: but we have been -informed that they did not lead to such results; and the statement would -seem true, from the fact that no accident ever occurred to any of those -engaged in them--a singular circumstance, if we consider the dangers to -which so many persons were exposed in consequence of having to cross the -sound in crowded boats at a late hour in the evening. - - P. - - * * * * * - -It was not till after the preceding article had been in type that we were -informed that a notice of the Dalkey festivities had recently appeared -in the preface to the first volume of the beautiful edition of the poems -of our own national poet, Moore, just published; and as it adds some -interesting facts to those furnished by our own recollections, we gladly -present them to our readers, in the perfect confidence that they will be -read with that intense pleasure which his writings have rarely failed to -afford. - -“It was in the year 1794, or about the beginning of the next, that I -remember having for the first time tried my hand at political satire. In -their very worst times of slavery and suffering the happy disposition of -my countrymen had kept their cheerfulness still unbroken and buoyant; -and at the period of which I am speaking the hope of a brighter day -dawning upon Ireland had given to the society of the middle class in -Dublin a more than usual flow of hilarity and life. Among other gay -results of this festive spirit, a club or society was instituted by some -of our most convivial citizens, one of whose objects was to burlesque, -good-humouredly, the forms and pomps of royalty. With this view they -established a sort of mock kingdom, of which Dalkey, a small island -near Dublin, was made the seat; and an eminent pawnbroker named Stephen -Armitage, much renowned for his agreeable singing, was the chosen and -popular monarch. - -Before public affairs had become too serious for such pastimes, it -was usual to celebrate yearly at Dalkey the day of this sovereign’s -accession; and among the gay scenes that still live in my memory, there -are few it recalls with more freshness than this celebration on a -fine Sunday in summer of one of these anniversaries of King Stephen’s -coronation. The picturesque sea views of that spot, the gay crowds along -the shores, the innumerable boats full of life floating about, and -above all, the true spirit of mirth which the Irish temperament never -fails to lend to such meetings, rendered the whole a scene not easily -forgotten. The state ceremonies of the day were performed with all due -gravity within the ruins of an ancient church that stands on the island, -where his mock majesty bestowed the order of knighthood upon certain -favoured personages, and among others I recollect upon Incledon the -celebrated singer, who rose from under the touch of the royal sword with -the appropriate title of Sir Charles Melody. There was also selected -for the favours of the crown on that day a lady of no ordinary poetic -talent, Mrs Battier, who had gained much fame by some spirited satires -in the manner of Churchill, and whose kind encouragement of my early -attempts in versification were to me a source of much pride. This lady, -as was officially announced in the course of the day, had been appointed -his Majesty’s Poetess Laureate, under the style and title of Henrietta -Countess of Laurel. - -There could hardly be devised a more apt vehicle for lively political -satire than this gay travestie of monarchical power and its showy -appurtenances so temptingly supplied. The very day indeed after this -commemoration there appeared in the usual record of Dalkey state -intelligence, an amusing proclamation from the king, offering a large -reward in _cronebanes_ (Irish halfpence) to the finder or finders of his -Majesty’s crown, which, owing to his ‘having measured both sides of the -road’ in his pedestrian progress from Dalkey on the preceding night, had -unluckily fallen from the royal brow.” - - - - -IRISH SUPERSTITIONS--GHOSTS AND FAIRIES. - -BY WILLIAM CARLETON. - -(First Article.) - - -We have met and conversed with every possible representative of the -various classes that compose general society, from the sweep to the peer, -and we feel ourselves bound to say that in no instance have we ever met -any individual, no matter what his class or rank in life, who was really -indifferent to the subject of dreams, fairies, and apparitions. They are -topics that interest the imagination in all; and the hoary head of age is -inclined with as much interest to a ghost-story, as the young and eager -ear of youth, wrought up by all the nimble and apprehensive powers of -early fancy. It is true the belief in ghosts is fast disappearing, and -that of fairies is already almost gone; but with what new wonders they -shall be replaced, it is difficult to say. The physical and natural we -suppose will give us enough of the marvellous, without having recourse -to the spiritual and supernatural. Steam and gas, if Science advance for -another half century at the same rate as she has done in the last, will -give sufficient exercise to all our faculties for wondering. We know a -man who travelled eighty miles to see whether or not it was a fact that -light could be conveyed for miles in a pipe under ground; and this man to -our own knowledge possessed the organ of marvellousness to a surprising -degree. It is singular, too, that his fear of ghosts was in proportion to -this capacious propensity to wonder, as was his disposition when snug in -a chimney corner to talk incessantly of such topics as were calculated to -excite it. - -In our opinion, ghosts and fairies will be seen wherever they are much -talked of, and a belief in their existence cultivated and nourished. -So long as the powers of the imagination are kept warm and active by -exercise, they will create for themselves such images as they are in the -habit of conceiving or dwelling upon; and these, when the individual -happens to be in the appropriate position, will even by the mere force of -association engender the particular Eidolon which is predominant in the -mind. As an illustration of this I shall mention two cases of apparition -which occurred in my native parish, one of which was that of a ghost, and -the other of the fairies. To those who have read my “Traits and Stories -of the Irish Peasantry,” the first which I shall narrate may possess some -interest, as being that upon which I founded the tale of the “Midnight -Mass.” The circumstances are simply these:-- - -There lived a man named M’Kenna at the hip of one of the mountainous -hills which divide the county of Tyrone from that of Monaghan. This -M’Kenna had two sons, one of whom was in the habit of tracing hares of -a Sunday, whenever there happened to be a fall of snow. His father it -seems had frequently remonstrated with him upon what he considered to -be a violation of the Lord’s day, as well as for his general neglect of -mass. The young man, however, though otherwise harmless and inoffensive, -was in this matter quite insensible to paternal reproof, and continued to -trace whenever the avocations of labour would allow him. It so happened -that upon a Christmas morning, I think in the year 1814, there was a -deep fall of snow, and young M’Kenna, instead of going to mass, got down -his cock-stick--which is a staff much heavier at one end than at the -other--and prepared to set out on his favourite amusement. His father -seeing this, reproved him seriously, and insisted that he should attend -prayers. His enthusiasm for the sport, however, was stronger than his -love of religion, for he refused to be guided by his father’s advice. -The old man during the altercation got warm; and on finding that the son -obstinately scorned his authority, he knelt down and prayed that if the -boy persisted in following his own will, he might never return from -the mountains unless as a corpse. The imprecation, which was certainly -as harsh as it was impious and senseless, might have startled many a -mind from a purpose which was, to say the least of it, at variance with -religion and the respect due to a father. It had no effect, however, upon -the son, who is said to have replied, that whether he ever returned or -not, he was determined on going; and go accordingly he did. He was not, -however, alone, for it appears that three or four of the neighbouring -young men accompanied him. Whether their sport was good or otherwise, is -not to the purpose, neither am I able to say; but the story goes that -towards the latter part of the day they started a larger and darker hare -than any they had ever seen, and that she kept dodging on before them -bit by bit, leading them to suppose that every succeeding cast of the -cock-stick would bring her down. It was observed afterwards that she -also led them into the recesses of the mountains, and that although they -tried to turn her course homewards, they could not succeed in doing so. -As evening advanced, the companions of M’Kenna began to feel the folly of -pursuing her farther, and to perceive the danger of losing their way in -the mountains should night or a snow-storm come upon them. They therefore -proposed to give over the chase and return home; but M’Kenna would not -hear of it. “If you wish to go home, you may,” said he; “as for me, I’ll -never leave the hills till I have her with me.” They begged and entreated -him to desist and return, but all to no purpose: he appeared to be what -the Scotch call _fey_--that is, to act as if he were moved by some -impulse that leads to death, and from the influence of which a man cannot -withdraw himself. At length, on finding him invincibly obstinate, they -left him pursuing the hare directly into the heart of the mountains, and -returned to their respective homes. - -In the mean time, one of the most terrible snow-storms ever remembered -in that part of the country came on, and the consequence was, that the -self-willed young man, who had equally trampled on the sanctions of -religion and parental authority, was given over for lost. As soon as the -tempest became still, the neighbours assembled in a body and proceeded -to look for him. The snow, however, had fallen so heavily that not a -single mark of a footstep could be seen. Nothing but one wide waste of -white undulating hills met the eye wherever it turned, and of M’Kenna no -trace whatever was visible or could be found. His father now remembering -the unnatural character of his imprecation, was nearly distracted; -for although the body had not yet been found, still by every one who -witnessed the sudden rage of the storm and who knew the mountains, escape -or survival was felt to be impossible. Every day for about a week large -parties were out among the hill-ranges seeking him, but to no purpose. -At length there came a thaw, and his body was found on a snow-wreath, -lying in a supine posture within a circle which he had drawn around him -with his cock-stick. His prayer-book lay opened upon his mouth, and his -hat was pulled down so as to cover it and his face. It is unnecessary to -say that the rumour of his death, and of the circumstances under which -he left home, created a most extraordinary sensation in the country--a -sensation that was the greater in proportion to the uncertainty -occasioned by his not having been found either alive or dead. Some -affirmed that he had crossed the mountains, and was seen in Monaghan; -others, that he had been seen in Clones, in Emyvale, in Fivemiletown; -but despite of all these agreeable reports, the melancholy truth was at -length made clear by the appearance of the body as just stated. - -Now, it so happened that the house nearest the spot where he lay -was inhabited by a man named Daly, I think--but of the name I am -not certain--who was a herd or care-taker to Dr Porter, then Bishop -of Clogher. The situation of this house was the most lonely and -desolate-looking that could be imagined. It was at least two miles -distant from any human habitation, being surrounded by one wide and -dreary waste of dark moor. By this house lay the route of those who had -found the corpse, and I believe the door was borrowed for the purpose of -conveying it home. Be this as it may, the family witnessed the melancholy -procession as it passed slowly through the mountains, and when the place -and circumstances are all considered, we may admit that to ignorant and -superstitious people, whose minds even under ordinary occasions were -strongly affected by such matters, it was a sight calculated to leave -behind it a deep, if not a terrible impression. Time soon proved that it -did so. - -An incident is said to have occurred at the funeral which I have alluded -to in the “Midnight Mass,” and which is certainly in fine keeping with -the wild spirit of the whole melancholy event. When the procession had -advanced to a place called Mullaghtinny, a large dark-coloured hare, -which was instantly recognised, by those who had been out with him on the -hills, as the identical one that led him to his fate, is said to have -crossed the road about twenty yards or so before the coffin. The story -goes, that a man struck it on the side with a stone, and that the blow, -which would have killed any ordinary hare, not only did it no injury, but -occasioned a sound to proceed from the body resembling the hollow one -emitted by an empty barrel when struck. - -In the meantime the interment took place, and the sensation began like -every other to die away in the natural progress of time, when, behold, -a report ran about like wildfire that, to use the language of the -people, “Frank M’Kenna was _appearing_!” Seldom indeed was the rumour -of an apparition composed of materials so strongly calculated to win -popular assent or to baffle rational investigation. As every man is not -a Hibbert or a Nicolai, so will many, until such circumstances are made -properly intelligible, continue to yield credence to testimony which -would convince the judgment on any other subject. The case in question -furnished as fine a specimen of a true ghost-story, freed from any -suspicion of imposture or design, as could be submitted to a philosopher; -and yet, notwithstanding the array of apparent facts connected with it, -nothing in the world is simpler or of easier solution. - -One night, about a fortnight after his funeral, the daughter of Daly, -the herd, a girl about fourteen, while lying in bed saw what appeared -to be the likeness of M’Kenna, who had been lost. She screamed out, and -covering her head with the bed-clothes, told her father and mother that -Frank M’Kenna was in the house. This alarming intelligence naturally -produced great terror; still, Daly, who notwithstanding his belief in -such matters possessed a good deal of moral courage, was cool enough to -rise and examine the house, which consisted of only one apartment. This -gave the daughter some courage, who, on finding that her father could -not see him, ventured to look out, and she _then_ could see nothing of -him herself. She very soon fell asleep, and her father attributed what -she saw to fear, or some accidental combination of shadows proceeding -from the furniture, for it was a clear moonlight night. The light of -the following day dispelled a great deal of their apprehensions, and -comparatively little was thought of it until evening again advanced, when -the fears of the daughter began to return. They appeared to be prophetic, -for she said when night came that she knew he would appear again; and -accordingly at the same hour he did so. This was repeated for several -successive nights, until the girl, from the very hardihood of terror, -began to become so far familiarised to the spectre as to venture to -address it. - -“In the name of God,” she asked, “what is troubling you, or why do you -appear to me instead of to some of your own family or relations?” - -The ghost’s answer alone might settle the question involved in the -authenticity of its appearance, being, as it was, an account of one of -the most ludicrous missions that ever a spirit was dispatched upon. - -“I’m not allowed,” said he, “to spake to any of my friends, for I parted -wid them in anger; but I’m come to tell you that they are quarrellin’ -about my breeches--a new pair that I got made for Christmas day; an’ as -I was comin’ up to thrace in the mountains, I thought the ould ones ’ud -do betther, an’ of coorse I didn’t put the new pair an me. My raison for -appearin’,” he added, “is, that you may tell my friends that none of them -is to wear them--they must be given in charity.” - -This serious and solemn intimation from the ghost was duly communicated -to the family, and it was found that the circumstances were exactly as it -had represented them. This of course was considered as sufficient proof -of the truth of its mission. Their conversations now became not only -frequent, but quite friendly and familiar. The girl became a favourite -with the spectre, and the spectre on the other hand soon lost all his -terrors in her eyes. He told her that whilst his friends were bearing -home his body, the handspikes or poles on which they carried him had -cut his back, and _occasioned him great pain_! The cutting of the back -also was found to be true, and strengthened of course the truth and -authenticity of their dialogues. The whole neighbourhood was now in a -commotion with this story of the apparition, and persons incited by -curiosity began to visit the girl in order to satisfy themselves of the -truth of what they had heard. Every thing, however, was corroborated, -and the child herself, without any symptoms of anxiety or terror, -artlessly related her conversations with the spirit. Hitherto their -interviews had been all nocturnal, but now that the ghost found his -footing made good, he put a hardy face on, and ventured to appear by -daylight. The girl also fell into states of syncope, and while the -fits lasted, long conversations with him upon the subject of God, the -blessed Virgin, and Heaven, took place between them. He was certainly -an excellent moralist, and gave the best advice. Swearing, drunkenness, -theft, and every evil propensity of our nature, were declaimed against -with a degree of spectral eloquence quite surprising. Common fame had -now a topic dear to her heart, and, never was a ghost made more of -by his best friends, than she made of him. The whole country was in -a tumult, and I well remember the crowds which flocked to the lonely -little cabin in the mountains, now the scene of matters so interesting -and important. Not a single day passed in which I should think from ten -to twenty, thirty, or fifty persons, were not present at these singular -interviews. Nothing else was talked of, thought of, and, as I can well -testify, dreamt of. I would myself have gone to Daly’s were it not for -a confounded misgiving I had, that perhaps the ghost might take such a -fancy of appearing to me, as he had taken to cultivate an intimacy with -the girl; and it so happens, that when I see the face of an individual -nailed down in the coffin--chilling and gloomy operation!--I experience -no particular wish ever to look upon it again. - -Many persons might imagine that the herd’s daughter was acting the part -of an impostor, by first originating and then sustaining such a delusion. -If any one, however, was an impostor, it was the ghost, and not the girl, -as her ill health and wasted cheek might well testify. The appearance of -M’Kenna continued to haunt her for months. The reader is aware that he -was lost on Christmas day, or rather on the night of it, and I remember -seeing her in the early part of the following summer, during which time -she was still the victim of a diseased imagination. Every thing in fact -that could be done for her was done. They brought her to a priest named -Donnelly, who lived down at Ballynasaggart, for the purpose of getting -her cured, as he had the reputation of performing cures of that kind. -They brought her also to the doctors, who also did what they could for -her; but all to no purpose. Her fits were longer and of more frequent -occurrence; her appetite left her; and ere four months had elapsed, she -herself looked as like a spectre as the ghost himself could do for the -life of him. - -Now, this was a pure case of spectral illusion, and precisely similar to -that detailed so philosophically by Nicolai the German bookseller, and to -others mentioned by Hibbert. The image of M’Kenna not only appeared to -her in daylight at her own house, but subsequently followed her wherever -she went; and what proved this to have been the result of diseased -organization, produced at first by a heated and excited imagination, was, -that, as the story went, she could see him with her eyes shut. Whilst -this state of mental and physical feeling lasted, she was the subject of -the most intense curiosity. No matter where she went, whether to chapel, -to fair, or to market, she was followed by crowds, every one feeling -eager to get a glimpse of the girl who had actually seen, and what was -more, spoken to a ghost--a live ghost. - -Now, here was a young girl of an excitable temperament and large -imagination, leading an almost solitary life amidst scenery of a lonely -and desolate character, who, happening to be strongly impressed with -an image of horror--for surely such was the body of a dead man seen -in association with such peculiarly frightful circumstances as filial -disobedience and a father’s curse were calculated to give it--cannot -shake it off, but on the contrary becomes a victim to the disease which -it generates. There is not an image which we see in a fever, or a face -whether of angel or devil, or an uncouth shape of any kind, that is -not occasioned by cerebral excitement, or derangement of the nervous -system, analogous to that under which Daly’s daughter laboured. I saw -her several times, and remember clearly that her pale face, dark eye, -and very intellectual forehead, gave indications of such a temperament -as under her circumstances would be apt to receive strong and fearful -impressions from images calculated to excite terror, especially of the -supernatural. It only now remains for me to mention the simple method of -her cure, which was effected without either priest or doctor. It depended -upon a word or two of advice given to her father by a very sensible man, -who was in the habit of thinking on these matters somewhat above the -superstitious absurdities of the people. - -“If you wish your daughter to be cured,” said he to her father, “leave -the house you are now living in. Take her to some part of the country -where she can have companions of her own class and state of life to -mingle with; bring her away from the place altogether; for you may rest -assured that so long as there are objects before her eyes to remind her -of what happened, she will not mend on your hands.” - -The father, although he sat rent free, took this excellent advice, even -at a sacrifice of some comfort: for nothing short of the temptation of -easy circumstances could have induced any man to reside in so wild and -remote a solitude. In the course of a few days he removed from it with -his family, and came to reside amidst the cheerful aspect and enlivening -intercourse of human life. The consequences were precisely as the man -had told him. In the course of a few weeks the little girl began to find -that the visits of the spectre were like those of angels, few and far -between. She was sent to school, and what with the confidence derived -from human society, and the substitution of new objects and images, she -soon perfectly recovered, and ere long was thoroughly set free from the -fearful creation of her own brain. - -Now, there is scarcely one of the people in my native parish who does -not believe that the spirit of this man came back to the world, and -actually appeared to this little girl. The time, however, is fast coming -when these empty bugbears will altogether disappear, and we shall -entertain more reverend and becoming notions of God than to suppose such -senseless pranks could be played by the soul of a departed being under -his permission. We might as well assert that the imaginary beings which -surround the couch of the madman or hypochondriac have a real existence, -as those that are conjured up by terror, weak nerves, or impure blood. - -The spot where the body of M’Kenna was found is now marked by a little -heap of stones, which has been collected since the melancholy event of -his death. Every person who passes it throws a stone upon the heap; but -why this old custom is practised, or what it means, I do not know, unless -it be simply to mark the spot as a visible means of preserving the memory -of the occurrence. - -Daly’s house, the scene of the supposed apparition, is now a shapeless -ruin, which could scarcely be seen were it not for the green spot that -was once a garden, and which now shines at a distance like an emerald, -but with no agreeable or pleasing associations. It is a spot which no -solitary schoolboy will ever visit, nor indeed would the unflinching -believer in the popular nonsense of ghosts wish to pass it without a -companion. It is under any circumstances a gloomy and barren place, but -when looked upon in connection with what we have just recited, it is -lonely, desolate, and awful. - - - - -Un Ghrain̄eog.--(THE HEDGEHOG.) - - -Some twenty years ago it was not unusual in the south of Ireland to -see boys assembled about a fire of straw, loudly exulting over a -flame-surrounded victim, whose attempts to escape, rendered nugatory -by a timid retraction as it were into himself, served but to call -forth louder shouts of triumph from his persecutors, who thought they -justified their savage deed by proclaiming its hapless object as a -witch, a robber of orchards, and a sucker of cows. Leaving to our -antiquarian friends to discover whether the cruel act in question was -not a holocaust originating in the mystic rites of Pagan times, it is -for us to vindicate the wronged, and show the absurdity of the charges -by which wrong has been maintained, and at the same time to indicate -such matter as may serve to direct kindness to that innocent victim of -ignorance, the inoffensive Hedgehog. That it is not a witch according to -the old law, may be proved in a court of justice spite of the popular -opinion and in defiance of the authority of Shakspeare, whose witches -in Macbeth are warned that the proper time had come to commence their -infernal incantations by “thrice and once the hedge-pig whined.” We have -no witness that a hedgehog ever rode a broomstick or vomited knives, -skewers, coals of fire, or any such like legal proofs of witchcraft; -neither, perhaps you exclaim, is the writer of so much nonsense a -witch. True it is that the creature so named has its place nowhere in -the classification of a zoologist, yet still an undefined idea of its -existence floats in the imagination of the most ignorant, and it is not -_extraordinary_ that an opinion once universal should still linger in -unenlightened minds. In no way do we consider superstitious prejudices -can better be extinguished than by inducing accuracy of observation of -natural phenomena, which shows that nothing supernatural exists. The -second charge, that the hedgehog is a robber of orchards, is a very old -one. Pliny, as translated by Holland, states--“Hedgehogs make their -provision beforehand of meat for winter in this wise: they wallow and -roll themselves upon apples and such fruit lying under foot, and so catch -them up with their prickles, and one more besides they take in their -mouth, and so carry them into hollow trees.” - -Now, this has no foundation in fact. True it is that the hedgehog is -very often found in the neighbourhood of orchards; but then this may be -accounted for by the fact that the fences of such places are usually of -exactly the thick and unfrequented kind the animal best likes to inhabit. -Our repeated experience has never enabled us to discover that a hedgehog -will eat apples; on the contrary, in early youth, when imbued with the -general belief that this fruit was their diet, we have in more than -one or two instances (most cruelly as we now believe) starved to death -unfortunate specimens, which we shut up in a box with an ample supply -of apples, not one of which they ever ate. That a magpie will steal and -hide silver spoons, or a raven silk stockings, we know, and may use it -as an argument that animals steal what they do not want; but that a -hedgehog steals apples in the way stated, experiment will at once prove -to be untrue, for, from the varied position of the points of the spines -when fixed, it is impossible to fasten an apple upon them; and when they -are not fixed, they yield at once to the pressure made in the attempt. -Though domesticated hedgehogs can easily be brought to feed on bread -and milk or dressed vegetables, yet all our observation goes to prove -that in a state of nature, or when permitted to stray in a garden, they -never eat any but animal food. This is at variance with the generally -received opinion, which is supported by the authority of White, who, in -his admirable History of Selborne, complains that hedgehogs injured his -garden by boring with their long snouts under the plantain that grew -in his grass walks, eating off the root upwards, leaving the tufts of -leaves untouched, and defacing his grounds by making unsightly holes. -He then immediately goes on to prove that these identical animals used -beetles as no inconsiderable portion of their food. Now, it strikes us -that his previous observation was not made with his usual accuracy, and -that the hedgehogs did not eat the roots of plantain, but dug up where -they had been to catch the larvæ of beetles that had just devoured -them. Thus rooks have been charged with wantonly plucking up grass, -while the truth is, that they only pull up plants attacked at the root -by the larvæ of the cockchaffer or some other of the _Phytophagous -coleoptera_ (as vegetable-eating beetles are called), catch in the fact -the destructive insect, and so stop its ravages; thus rendering important -services to those who, for lack of accurate observation, falsely accuse -and mischievously shoot them. Trusting we have satisfied you that the -hedgehog does not steal apples, we come to the next charge, that he -sucks cows. To refute this we have the best possible evidence in the -animal’s mouth, the structure of which is completely unsuited to the -accomplishment of such an object. That he will drink milk with avidity -when domesticated, is certain, but this is only a taste he acquires in -common with hundreds of other animals: there is scarcely one that may -not be induced to relish such diet. Having thus cleared our hero (a name -he fully deserves, as he wins battles by passive resistance) from the -charges brought against him, we proceed to give some anecdotes of our -personal knowledge, and shall finish with a few interesting facts in -his history, for the information of those who take pleasure in accurate -acquaintance with nature’s works. - -We have before mentioned our starving of hedgehogs by endeavouring -to make them eat apples. In one of these cases we suffered no small -retribution. We were at school in these days, and a practice existed -amongst us called “slating.” It was an innocent imitation of the -murderous attacks made in Dublin by short-sighted combinators on such of -their fellow tradesmen as refused obedience to their mischievous laws. -With us it consisted in waylaying each other in the dark passages, and -striking with the open palms the hats or caps of the surprised over the -eyes. Having been thus treated many times, we bethought ourselves of -turning our starved hedgehog to account, and proceeded to skin him with -the intent of making a cap; so that when again “slated,” the attacking -party would find reason to call out in the words of Chaucer, - - “Like sharpe urchins his hair was growe.” - -Accordingly, having hanged the animal up against a tree, we were -essaying, by pulling, to effect a solution of continuity, as a surgeon -would call it, between his body and skin, when the nail gave way, and -he came down with considerable force on our forehead, accupuncturating -us most awfully. The pain at the time was very great, and considerable -soreness continued for several days, so much so that we were induced -to suspect that some poisonous virus existed. We introduce this story -for the purpose of calling attention to the effects of the spines when -brought into action. Though experience induces us to believe that their -punctures are more painful than those of pins and needles, we have not -been able to ascertain why they should be so. Disabled in our attempt, we -abandoned the skin, and it became common property. It was for some time -used as one of the instruments for initiating the Johnny Newcomes into -the mysteries of school life. Not a few will recollect how, when chilled -by a previous salting or seasoning, as we called it, of snow crammed -into the mouth, eyes, nose, and down the back, their sense of vitality -was aroused, when escaping to bed they threw themselves on its thorny -pre-occupant. Many, doubtless, then heartily wished themselves again -within the zone of mamma’s apron-string; but the affair usually ended by -storing up vengeance for, and the implement for executing it on, the next -comer. A few years afterwards we procured another hedgehog, and provided -him with earthworms, which he munged with great gusto. We mixed a few of -them with bread and milk, and thus initiated him into this new diet. We -tried him with frogs, mice, sparrows, and various other animal matters, -of all of which he partook freely, and he soon became quite domesticated. -We provided him a bed made in an old footstool in the kitchen; in this he -remained during daylight rolled up in a ball of hay, from which it was -quite a troublesome matter to extricate him; he could not be disentangled -from it at all, without picking it carefully from his spines. Yet when -he pleased himself to move, he came forth quite free, and did not drag -a single filament out with him. He soon acquired a habit of making his -appearance when tea was being served; the hissing of the water in the urn -seemed to be his signal that his only meal was ready, for he regularly -followed the servant who bore it into the tea-room, where he was indulged -with a saucer of bread and milk on the rug before the fire. Having eaten -as much as he desired, he commenced trotting about the room, taking -precisely the same course round the legs of chairs and tables each time; -and so he continued without a moment’s cessation to the latest hour -the household remained up. Like the Guinea-pig, he seemed to have the -greatest dislike to running across the room. In the morning he was always -found snug in his bed. At length he disappeared, but previously did good -service by devouring the cockroaches and beetles which infested the -house. The desire of the hedgehog to pursue a beaten track was further -evidenced by one we kept in a garden, which continued for months the -course he first took, though a portion of it consisted in climbing with -difficulty over some tiles, which a few inches on either side would have -avoided. We often put things in his path, and watched his proceedings: he -shrunk at first on finding the obstruction, and then tumbled over it in -the best way he could. - -Again we got another, and having heard that he may be at once tamed -by indulging him in whisky, we mixed some in a saucer with sugar, and -dipping his nose into it, he licked his chops, then ventured to make a -lap at the enticing material, and, “startled at the sound himself had -made,” he shrunk in, but came out again presently and lapped away most -eagerly. The spirit soon showed its power, and like other beasts that -indulge in it, he was any thing but himself; and his lacklustre leaden -eye was rendered still less pleasing by its inane drunken expression. -He staggered towards us in a ridiculously get-out-of-my-way sort of -manner; however, he had not gone far before his potation produced all its -effects; he tottered, then fell on his side; he was drunk in the full -sense of the word; he could not even hold by the ground. We could then -pull him about by the feet, open his mouth, twitch his whiskers, &c.: -he was unresisting. There was a strange expression in his face of that -self-confidence which we see in cowards when inspired by drinking. We put -him away, and some twelve hours afterwards found him running about, and, -as was predicted, quite tame, his spines lying so smoothly and regularly -that he could be stroked down the back, and handled freely. We turned him -into the kitchen to kill the cockroaches, and know nothing further of -him. - -Having given you so much of his manners, let us turn to his structural -peculiarities. He is a small animal, not much larger than a rat when -stripped of his spines and the muscular apparatus connected with them. -It is this that enables him to roll himself up so as to present a -_chevaux-de-frize_-like defence, impregnable to all ordinary enemies; -and as there is much singularity in it, we will endeavour to describe -it. On the back of the animal, between the skin and ribs, there is a -large oval muscle with thickened edges, partially attached to the skin -and spines. From this spring certain muscular bands, which are fixed -firmly at the other ends to the head, tail, breast, and other parts of -the body. The whole may be likened to a sort of elastic mantle, kept on -the back by straps. When the owner wishes to roll up, he bends his body, -then tightening the straps, he pulls the edge of the elastic mantle -over, which contracting, draws it in as if it were a running string in -a bag; at the same time the spines are fixed rigidly for defence by -the straining of the muscles. There are many other interesting points -in his anatomy. He possesses, as we do, well developed clavicles or -collar-bones, which only exist in a rudimentary form in many quadrupeds. -The peculiarities of his structure have exposed him to much, we will -not say wanton cruelty, as its object was the increase of knowledge; -it therefore should not be heavily censured, while so many unmeaning -barbarities exist under the name of sports. It is stated as a proof of -his endurance, that he has died without a groan under the slow process of -zootomy inflicted upon him while nailed to a table. Such practices are -seldom if ever engaged in at the present time. - -The hedgehog is certainly a very apathetic creature, and at a low -temperature becomes torpid; when in this condition he is doubtless -devoid of feeling. Torpidity in many animals seems to stand in the place -of migration in others, as a necessary condition when provision of -food depends on season: in this case the fact seems to argue in favour -of our position--that the hedgehog is in a state of nature strictly -insectivorous; were it not so, torpidity would not seem necessary, as -roots of vegetables could be had with facility as well at one season as -the other. The hedgehog while torpid loses weight rather rapidly, so that -the power of its remaining in this state is limited perhaps to a very few -months. - -The French academicians maintained long since that there were two species -of hedgehog in their country. In reference to this, Ray, with his usual -sagacity, after describing the common species, expresses a disbelief of -there being another in Europe; a doubt since fully confirmed: for the -dog and hog urchin, as the supposed species were called, have no more -existence than the dog and hog badgers of our sportsmen have as distinct -animals. Old authors notice several species under the name of hedgehog; -but it appears by more accurate observation that but two of the animals -mentioned by them are entitled to this name, viz. the one in question and -the long-eared urchin of Siberia. - -Since 1832, at least three other species have been enrolled in the -records of science. It is said that when hedgehogs are born, their ears -as well as their eyes are closed, and the former circumstance is noticed -as a unique fact; however, another instance of imperforate ears occurred -to us, in the case of a black bear cubbed at the gardens of the Royal -Zoological Society of Ireland: it lived but a few hours. The ear of the -hedgehog, in the structure of its bony parts, presents some peculiarities -strikingly different from most other quadrupeds. - -The hedgehog is said to feed occasionally on cantharides; a single beetle -of which would occasion death or serious injury to most animals. If this -be true, it is only another example of what often occurs in nature, -illustrating the old proverb “what is one’s meat is another’s poison.” -In addition to the use of the hedgehog as the destroyer of cockroaches, -his skin was an important monopoly in the time of the Romans, being used -both as a clothes-brush and an instrument for hackling hemp. His calcined -eyes formed part of an ointment which the ancients tell us had such a -wonderful efficacy as to enable persons using it to see in the dark. His -gall was used to take off hair, his fat to put it on, &c. - -He is still eaten in the south of Europe; but, judging from his food and -appearance, we would not recommend the practice here. The hedgehog, or -urchin, as he is sometimes called, belongs to the order of Insectivora, -and possesses much of the character and habits of shrews. His scientific -name is Erinaceus Europæus; but we have headed this article with his -Irish appellation, which is perhaps the only one not inserted in our -popular authors. - - B. - - - - -WATERPROOFING OF CLOTH, SILK, &c. - -TO THE EDITOR OF THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL. - - -SIR--I would feel happy should the few remarks I will at present offer -be found worthy of insertion in your columns--it is on the subject of -waterproofing cloth, or other fabrics, cotton, silk, leather, &c. - -When the matter first came before the public, being determined if -possible to ascertain the secret, after many unsuccessful experiments I -found all the requisite properties to consist in a concentrated solution -of acetate of alumina, which can be procured at a cheap and a moderate -rate, by mixing equal quantities of sulphate of alum (common alum) and -acetate of lead (sugar of lead), and dissolving them in water: one pound -of each may be purchased for one shilling, which may be dissolved in -one gallon and a half of boiling water, and well mixed; when cold, the -supernatant liquid should be removed from the sediment, which consists of -sulphates of lead, potash, &c. Any article of dress, no matter how slight -the fabric, if well saturated in it, and allowed to dry slowly, will -bear the action of boiling water, and not permit it to pass through: it -is a remarkable fact, and there are many others connected with the same -solution well worthy of investigation. I should be glad if some of your -learned correspondents would favour us with the reason why the boiling -water will not pass through, and the steam of the water will. Thinking it -a subject not totally unworthy of examination, I remain, Sir, your most -obedient servant, - - THOMAS IRWIN, - Apothecary and Chemist, 48 Cuffe St. - - - - -A SCENE AT SEA. - - - “I saw the ship go dancing on before the favouring gale, - And like the pinions of a swan was spread each swelling sail; - But ere again uprose the sun, rose many a shriek and wail; - Ere morn the gallant ship was gone--vanished the snowy sail!” - - The ship rode far upon the silent main; ’twas night, - A beautiful, still night; no moon was there, - But the bright stars were hanging overhead - In golden clusters; and the breathless sea - Gave them all back; while the tall vessel seemed - A fairy home, suspended ’twixt two heavens. - And there were happy hearts within her then; - That eve they had descried the distant shore - Of their own land; and all had gone to rest - In the dear hope that ere another day - Their feet would press again their native soil; - Then the rich merchant dreamed how his gay stores - Would well reward his exile; and the youth - Thought of his loved one, and in fancy touch’d - Already her rose-lips; while the fond sire - Dreamed of his wife and children, and his hearth - With their bright faces gathered round, like stars, - To hearken to the marvels of his voyage. - - … - - There is a stillness over sea and heaven-- - A placid calm, a holy peace; alas! - Whence is that sudden cry--that rising flame - That bursts from the fair vessel? ’Tis no fire - Of heaven, no angry lightning, that hath struck - And blasted it! A moment, and the scene - That was so fair is changed; the heavens above - And still as ever; but the death-fire glows - Upon the burnished waters! Groans and prayers - Rise up all vainly! There’s a sudden shriek, - Like to an earthquake; and the hopes and fears - Of many hearts, the vessel and its freight, - Are vanished--scattered into nameless things, - And all is swallowed up and lost! - - --_From the Knickerbocker._ - - * * * * * - -TRUE CHARITY.--The lowest order of charity is that which is satisfied -with relieving the immediate pressure of distress in individual cases. -A higher is, that which makes provision on a large scale for the relief -of such distress; as when a nation passes on from common almsgiving to -a general provision for the destitute. A higher still is, when such -provision is made in the way of anticipation, or for distant objects; as -when the civilization of savages, the freeing of slaves, the treatment -of the insane, or the education of the blind and deaf and mutes, is -undertaken. The highest charity of all is, that which aims at the -prevention rather than the alleviation of evil. It is a nobler charity to -prevent destitution, crime, and ignorance, than to relieve individuals -who never ought to have been made destitute, criminal, and ignorant. - - * * * * * - -EMPLOYMENT FOR THE UNHAPPY.--The unhappy are indisposed to employment: -all active occupations are wearisome and disgusting in prospect, at a -time when every thing, life itself, is full of weariness and disgust. -Yet the unhappy must be employed, or they will go mad. Comparatively -blessed are they, if they are set in families, where claims and duties -abound, and cannot be escaped. In the pressure of business there is -present safety and ultimate relief. Harder is the lot of those who have -few necessary occupations, enforced by other claims than their own -harmlessness and profitableness. Reading often fails. Now and then it -may beguile; but much oftener the attention is languid, the thoughts -wander, and associations with the subject of grief are awakened. Women -who find that reading will not do, will obtain no relief from sewing. -Sewing is pleasant enough in moderation to those whose minds are at -ease the while; but it is an employment which is trying to the nerves -when long continued, at the best; and nothing can be worse for the -harassed, and for those who want to escape from themselves. Writing is -bad. The pen hangs idly suspended over the paper, or the sad thoughts -that are alive within write themselves down. The safest and best of all -occupations for such sufferers as are fit for it, is intercourse with -young children. An infant might have beguiled Satan and his peers the -day after they were couched on the lake of fire, if the love of children -had chanced to linger amidst the ruins of their angelic nature. Next to -this comes honest, genuine acquaintanceship among the poor; not mere -charity-visiting, grounded on soup-tickets and blankets, but intercourse -of mind, with real mutual interest between the parties. Gardening is -excellent, because it unites bodily exertion with a sufficient engagement -of the faculties, while sweet, compassionate nature is ministering cure -in every sprouting leaf and scented blossom, and beckoning sleep to draw -nigh, and be ready to follow up her benignant work. Walking is good, -not stepping from shop to shop, or from neighbour to neighbour, but -stretching out far into the country, to the freshest fields, and the -highest ridges, and the quietest lanes. However sullen the imagination -may have been among its griefs at home, here it cheers up and smiles. -However listless the limbs may have been when sustaining a too heavy -heart, here they are braced, and the lagging gait becomes buoyant again. -However perverse the memory may have been in presenting all that was -agonizing, and insisting only on what cannot be retrieved, here it is -first disregarded, and then it sleeps; and the sleep of the memory is -the day in Paradise to the unhappy. The mere breathing of the cool wind -on the face in the commonest highway is rest and comfort which must be -felt at such times to be believed. It is disbelieved in the shortest -intervals between the seasons of enjoyment; and every time the sufferer -has resolution to go forth to meet it, it penetrates to the very heart in -glad surprise. The fields are better still: for there is the lark to fill -up the hours with mirthful music; or, at worst, the robin and the flocks -of fieldfares, to show that the hardest day has its life and hilarity. -But the calmest region is the upland, where human life is spread out -beneath the bodily eye, where the mind roves from the peasant’s nest -to the spiry town, from the schoolhouse to the churchyard, from the -diminished team in the patch of fallow, or the fisherman’s boat in the -cove, to the viaduct that spans the valley, or the fleet that glides -ghostlike on the horizon. This is the perch where the spirit plumes its -ruffled and drooping wings, and makes ready to let itself down any wind -that heaven may send.--_From Deerbrook, a Tale, by Harriet Martineau._ - - * * * * * - -CHILDHOOD.--Childhood is like a mirror, catching and reflecting images -from all around it. Remember that an impious or profane thought, uttered -by a parent’s lips, may operate on the young heart like a careless spray -of water thrown upon polished steel, staining it with rust which no after -scouring can efface. - - * * * * * - - Printed and published every Saturday by GUNN and CAMERON, at - the Office of the General Advertiser, No. 6, Church Lane, - College Green, Dublin.--Agents:--R. GROOMBRIDGE, Panyer Alley, - Paternoster Row, London; SIMMS and DINHAM, Exchange Street, - Manchester; C. DAVIES, North John Street, Liverpool; J. DRAKE, - Birmingham; SLOCOMBE & SIMMS, Leeds; FRAZER and CRAWFORD, - George Street, Edinburgh; and DAVID ROBERTSON, Trongate, - Glasgow. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. -21, November 21, 1840, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL *** - -***** This file should be named 54396-0.txt or 54396-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/4/3/9/54396/ - -Produced by Brownfox and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by JSTOR www.jstor.org) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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