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Title: Ten Thousand Wonderful Things
Author: King, Edmund Fillingham
Language: English
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TEN THOUSAND
WONDERFUL THINGS
COMPRISING
WHATEVER IS MARVELLOUS AND RARE, CURIOUS
ECCENTRIC AND EXTRAORDINARY
IN ALL AGES AND NATIONS
ENRICHED WITH
_HUNDREDS OF AUTHENTIC ILLUSTRATIONS_
EDITED BY
EDMUND FILLINGHAM KING, M.A.
LONDON
GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS, LIMITED
BROADWAY, LUDGATE HILL
MANCHESTER AND NEW YORK
1894
STANDARD WORKS OF REFERENCE.
_UNIFORM WITH THIS VOLUME._
LEMPRIÈRE'S CLASSICAL DICTIONARY.
WALKER'S RHYMING DICTIONARY.
MACKAY'S THOUSAND AND ONE GEMS OF ENGLISH POETRY.
D'ISRAELI'S CURIOSITIES OF LITERATURE.
BARTLETT'S FAMILIAR QUOTATIONS.
CRUDEN'S CONCORDANCE TO THE BIBLE.
THE FAMILY DOCTOR.
PREFACE.
A BOOK OF WONDERS requires but a brief introduction. Our title-page
tells its own tale and forms the best exposition of the contents of the
volume.
Everything that is marvellous carries with it much that is instructive,
and, in this sense, "Ten Thousand Wonderful Things," may be made useful
for the highest educational purposes. Events which happen in the
regular course have no claim to a place in any work that professes to
be a register of what is uncommon; and were we to select such Wonders
only as are capable of familiar demonstration, we should destroy their
right to be deemed wondrous, and, at the same time, defeat the very
object which we profess to have in view. A marvel once explained away
ceases to be a marvel. For this reason, while rejecting everything that
is obviously fictitious and untrue, we have not hesitated to insert
many incidents which appear at first sight to be wholly incredible.
In the present work, interesting Scenes from Nature, Curiosities
of Art, Costume and Customs of a bygone period rather predominate;
but we have devoted many of its pages to descriptions of remarkable
Occurrences, beautiful Landscapes, stupendous Water-falls, and sublime
Sea-pieces. It is true that some of our illustrations may not be
beautiful according to the sense in which the word is generally used;
but they are all the more curious and characteristic, as well as
truthful, on that account; for whatever is lost of beauty, is gained by
accuracy. What is odd or quaint, strange or startling, rarely possesses
much claim to the picturesque and refined. Scrape the rust off an
antique coin, and, while you make it look more shining, you invariably
render it worthless in the eyes of a collector. To polish up a fact
which derives its value either from the strangeness of its nature, or
from the quaintness of its narration, is like the obliterating process
of scrubbing up a painting by one of the old masters. It looks all the
cleaner for the operation, but, the chances are, it is spoilt as a work
of art.
We trust it is needless to say that we have closed our pages against
everything that can be considered objectionable in its tendency; and,
while every statement in this volume has been culled with conscientious
care from authentic, although not generally accessible, sources, we
have scrupulously rejected every line that could give offence, and
endeavoured, in accordance with what we profess in our title-page, to
amuse by the eccentric, to startle by the unexpected, and to astonish
by the marvellous.
INDEX TO ENGRAVINGS
PAGE
ABYSSINIAN ARMS, 509
---- LADIES, 492
---- ORNAMENTS OF, 493
---- LADY TATTOOED, 496
ALTAR-PIECE OF SAN MINIATO, 601
AMULET WORN BY EGYPTIAN FEMALES, 452
AMULET BROTCHE, 332
ANCIENT METHOD OF KEEPING A WASHING ACCOUNT, 3
---- NUT-CRACKERS, 236
---- SNUFF-BOXES, 210
ANGLO-SAXONS, SEPULCHRAL BARROW OF THE, 27
APTERYX, THE, OR WINGLESS BIRD, 308
ARCH, A BEAUTIFUL, IN CANNISTOWN CHURCH, 433
---- OF TRAJAN AT BENEVENTUM, 445
ARCHITECTURE FOR EARTHQUAKES, 324
ARMLET, AN ANCIENT, 425
ARMOUR, ANCIENT, CURIOUS PIECE OF, 341
ASH, THE SHREW, 397
AZTEC CHILDREN, THE, 37
BAGPIPES, 505
BANDOLIERS, 560
BANNERS AND STANDARDS, ANCIENT, 584, 585
BASTILLE, STORMING OF THE, 195
BEAU BRUMMELL (A), OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY, 61
BECTIVE ABBEY, 392
BEDESMEN IN THE TIME OF HENRY VII, 593
BELLOWS, A PRIMITIVE PAIR OF, 637
BELL SHRINE, AN ANCIENT, 348
---- OF SAINT MURA, 412
BIBLE USED BY CHARLES I. ON THE SCAFFOLD, 271
BILLY IN THE SALT BOX, 181
BLACKFRIARS, PARIS GARDEN AT, 465
BLIND GRANNY, 70
---- JACK, 23
BOAT, A BURMESE, 668
BOOK-SHAPED WATCH, 328
BRACELET, A MAGICIAN'S, 345
BRAMA, THE HINDOO DEITY, 556
BRANK, THE, 2
BRASS MEDAL OF OUR SAVIOUR, 241
BRITANNIA TUBULAR BRIDGE, 173
BROOCH, ANCIENT SCANDINAVIAN, 401
BRICKS OF BABYLON, 613
BRIDGE OVER THE THAMES, THE FIRST, 428
---- A CHINESE, 440
---- CROMWELL'S, AT GLENGARIFF, 648
BUCKINGER, MATTHEW, 53
BUCKLER OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY, WITH PISTOL INSERTED, 30
BUNYAN'S (JOHN) TOMB, 157
BURMESE PRIEST PREACHING, 266
BUST, AN ANCIENT ETRURIAN, 677
CAMDEN CUP, THE, 250
CANDLESTICK, A REMARKABLE, IN FAYENCE, 592
---- OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS, 436
CARFAX CONDUIT, 333
CARRIAGE, A TURKISH, 656
CASCADE DES PELERINES, 135
CATACOMBS AT ROME, 87
CAVE, PORT COON, 516
---- THE TIGER, AT CUTTACK, 361
CHAIR BROUGHT OVER TO AMERICA BY THE PILGRIM FATHERS, 186
---- DAGOBERT'S, ANCIENT, 421
---- HENRY VIII.'S, 488
---- THE DUCHESS OF LAUDERDALE'S, 401
CHAPTER-HOUSE, A, IN THE TIME OF HENRY VII., 600
CHARLEMAGNE, CROWN OF, 377
CHIEFTAIN, ANCIENT SCOTTISH, 500
CHINESE METHOD OF FISHING, 316
---- PUNISHMENT OF THE KANG, OR WOODEN COLLAR, 134
CHRISTMAS, PROCLAIMING THE NON-OBSERVANCE OF, 19
CISTERN OF MAJOLICA WARE, 597
COFFEE POT, IN STONEWARE, A CURIOUS, 649
COIN, THE FIRST, WITH BRITANNIA ON IT, 468
COLLARS, ANCIENT STONE, 665
COLUMN AT CUSSI, 533
COMB, A CURIOUS INDIAN, 657
CORAL REEFS, 74
CORPSE BEARER DURING THE PLAGUE, 284
COSTUMES, ANCIENT, 18, 71, 78, 86, 212, 213, 220, 296, 297
---- GERMAN, OF THE 16TH CENTURY, 548
COSTUME, FOREIGN, IN 1492, 543
---- OF A GERMAN NOBLE, 536
COUTEAU-DE-CHASSE, 633
CRADLE OF MOSS, 325
---- HENRY V., 416
CROSBY, SIR JOHN, HELMET OF, 520
CROSS OF CONG, 457
---- MUIREDACH, 369
CUCKING STOOL, 1
CUPID OF THE HINDOOS, THE, 552
CURFEW BELL, THE, 33
CURIOUS FIGURES ON A SMALL SHRINE, 203
DAGGER OF RAOUL DE COURCY, 263
---- AN ANCIENT, 673
DAGOBERT, ANCIENT CHAIR OF, 421
DANCING NATIVES OF NEW SOUTH WALES, 225
DARNEY (JENNY), A HARMLESS ECCENTRIC OF THE YEAR 1790, 187
DERVISHES DANCING, 669
DIAL AND FOUNTAIN IN LEADENHALL STREET, 553
DINNER PARTY IN THE 17TH CENTURY, 609
---- TABLE, AN EGYPTIAN, 537
DIOGENES IN A PITHOS--NOT TUB, 524
DOG-WHEEL, THE OLD, 101
DRINKING CUP, A CURIOUSLY SHAPED, 413
---- EARLY GERMAN, 460
---- VESSEL, A DECORATIVE, 336
---- GLASS, ANCIENT, 153
DROPPING WELL OF KNARESBOROUGH, 143
DRUID'S SEAT, THE, 464
DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS, OR ORNITHORYNCHUS PARADOXUS, 273
DYAK WITH HEADS, SKULL HOUSE, AND HOUSE OF SEA DYAKS, 276, 277
---- WAR BOAT IN BORNEO, 540
DYAKS OF BORNEO, WAR DANCE OF THE, 541
EAST INDIA HOUSE, THE FIRST, 206
EDDYSTONE LIGHTHOUSE, 109
EGYPTIAN TOYS IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM, 130
EMBROIDERED GLOVE, PRESENTED BY MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTLAND,
TO AN ATTENDANT ON THE MORNING OF HER EXECUTION, 263
EXTRAORDINARY CATARACT, 224
---- SITUATION FOR A TREE, 313
---- TREE, 183
FASHIONABLE DISFIGUREMENT OF THE TIME OF CHARLES I., 213
FAWKES HALL, OLD MANOR HOUSE OF, 380
FETE OF THE FEDERATION OF THE NATIONAL GUARDS OF
FRANCE, 1790, 289
FIGG (JAMES), THE CHAMPION PRIZE-FIGHTER OF 1733, 113
FISH, SHOOTING, 432
FISHERMAN, BULGARIAN, 497
FLOATING CITY OF BANKOK, 309
FONT AT KILCARN, THE, 417
FRENCH ASSIGNATS, FAC-SIMILE OF THE FORMS IN WHICH THEY
WERE ISSUED TO THE PUBLIC, 254
FULLERTON'S (COLONEL) DEVICE FOR PASSING A MOUNTAIN TORRENT, 194
FUNEREAL JAR, 481
GARDEN, EGYPTIAN, 349
GARRICK'S CUP, 232
GATE, THE, ON OLD LONDON BRIDGE, 561
GAUNTLET OF HENRY, PRINCE OF WALES, 661
GIANT TREE, 229
GLAIVE, A, 504
GRACE KNIVES, 641
GRAVES OF THE STONE PERIOD, 364
GREAT WALL OF CHINA, 233
GREY MAN'S PATH, THE, 528
GUN, A CELEBRATED, 568
GUY, THOMAS, PORTRAIT OF, 605
HACKNEY COACHMAN OF THE TIME OF CHARLES II., 258
HACKNEY COACH, THE EARLIEST, 211
HEAD-BREAKER, A, 665
---- ORNAMENT, ANTIQUE, 393
HEART OF LORD EDWARD BRUCE AND CASE, 246, 247
HELMET, AN EARLY ENGLISH, 632
HELMET OF SIR JOHN CROSBY, 520
HENRY V., CRADLE OF, 516
---- VII., BEDESMEN IN THE TIME OF, 393
---- VIII., CHAIR OF, 488
---- I. (KING) DREAM OF, 26
---- VIII.'S WALKING STICK, 30
HINDOO ADORATION OF THE SÁLAGRÁM, 588
HOLY-WATER SPRINKLER, 532
HOOPS, LADIES', IN 1740, 6
HUDSON, JEFFERY, THE DWARF OF THE COURT OF CHARLES I., 472
IMPLEMENTS USED IN BUDDHIST TEMPLES, 621
INCENSE CHARIOT, AN ANCIENT, 513
INSTRUMENTS OF TORTURE:--THE EXECUTIONER'S AXE; THE BLOCK
ON WHICH LORDS BALMERINO AND LOVAT WERE BEHEADED; THE
SCAVENGER'S DAUGHTER; SPANISH BILBOES; MASSIVE IRON
COLLAR FOR THE NECK; THUMB SCREW. BRAND FOR MARKING
FELONS: IMPRESSION OF BRAND; PUNISHMENT FOR DRUNKARDS,
FORMERLY IN USE AT NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE; THE WHIRLIGIG,
A MILITARY METHOD OF PUNISHMENT; PILLORY, STOCKS, AND
WHIPPING-POST FORMERLY ON LONDON BRIDGE, 60, 90
IRRIGATION, TURKISH MACHINE FOR, 681
JAMES I., CURIOUS JEWEL WHICH BELONGED TO, 456
---- II., AND THE CHURCH OF DONORE, 557
JEWEL PRESENTED BY MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS, TO EARL HUNTLEY, 243
JOHNSON'S (DR. SAMUEL), RESIDENCE IN INNER TEMPLE LANE, 48
---- OLD STAIRCASE IN, 49
JOY (WILLIAM), THE ENGLISH SAMPSON, 177
KING'S STONE, THE, 461
KNIGHT'S COSTUME OF THE 13TH CENTURY, 480
LAMPS, ANCIENT ROMAN, 437
LOCOMOTIVE, THE FIRST, 96
---- THE PRESENT, AND TRAIN, 97
LORD OF MISRULE, 15
LOUIS XII., IVORY SCEPTRE OF, 476
LOUIS XVI., EXECUTION OF, 255
LUTHER'S (MARTIN) TANKARD, 150
LYNCH'S CASTLE, GALWAY, 581
MAGICIAN'S MIRROR, 344
---- BRACELET, 345
MAY-POLES, 101
MAIL, ANCIENT SUIT OF, 484
MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS', CANDLESTICK, 436
MEDMENHAM ABBEY, 429
MILITARY HATS IN THE OLDEN TIME, 75
MILL AT LISSOY, 469
MIRROR, A MAGICIAN'S, 344
MONSOONS, 180
MONSTROUS HEAD-DRESS OF 1782, 242
MONUMENTS, WAYSIDE, 588
---- ROCK CUT, OF ASIA MINOR, 444
MORAYSHIRE FLOODS, 126
MOSQUE OF OMAR, 317
---- ST. SOPHIA, 104
MUMMERS, OR ANCIENT WAITS, 14
MUMMY CASES, 409
MUSICAL INSTRUMENT, HINDOO, 684
---- ---- A CURIOUS BURMESE, 628, 629
---- ---- EGYPTIAN, 405
NAORA, THE, 636
NEBUCHADNEZZAR, MASK OF, 105
NECKLACE, ANCIENT JET, 529
NELL GWYNNE'S LOOKING-GLASS, 237
NEWTON CHURCH, DOORWAY OF, 473
NEWTON'S (SIR ISAAC) OBSERVATORY, 10
---- HOUSE, ST. MARTIN'S STREET, 11
NORMAN CAPS, 44
NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN WAR DESPATCH, 45
OLD LONDON BRIDGE, GATE ON THE, 561
---- ---- SIGNS, 120
ORNAMENTS ABYSSINIAN FEMALE, 493
---- ANTIQUE HEAD, 393
---- FEMALE, OF THE IRON PERIOD, 400
---- EGYPTIAN FEMALE, 448
---- PERSONAL, OF EGYPTIANS, 453
---- OF FEMALE DRESS IN THE TIMES OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS, 79
PAGODA, THE GREAT SHOEMADOO, 572
PAILOOS, CHINESE, 625
PAPYRUS ROLL, FROM A SPECIMEN IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM, 82
---- SYRIAN, WITH AND WITHOUT FLOWERS, 83
PARIS GARDEN AT BLACKFRIARS, 465
PASS OF KEIM-AN-EIGH, 329
PENN'S (WILLIAM) SILVER TEA SERVICE, 202
PENNSYLVANIA JOURNAL, FAC-SIMILE OF THE HEADING OF
THE LAST NUMBER, 1765, 63
PEST HOUSE DURING THE PLAGUE IN TOTHILL FIELDS, 573
PETER THE GREAT, HOUSE OF, AT ZAANDAM, 545
PLOUGHING, ANCIENT MODE OF, 66
POISON CUP, THE, 485
PONT DU GARD, THE GREAT AQUEDUCT OF, 312
POPE'S CHAIR, 577
POPULAR AMUSEMENTS IN 1743, 56
PORCELAIN FIGURES, 517
POTTERY IN CHINA, THE ART OF, 321
POWERSCOURT FALL, PHENOMENON AT, 305
PREACHING FRIAR, 221
PRE-ADAMITE BONE CAVERNS, 199
PRIESTS OF SIKKIM, 664
PRINCE RUPERT, HEAD QUARTERS OF, DURING THE SIEGE
OF LIVERPOOL, IN 1644, 292
PULPIT OF JOHN KNOX AT ST. ANDREW'S, 270
PUNISHMENT, ANCIENT INSTRUMENT OF, 680
PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT, 131
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S STATE COACH, 198
---- ---- SIDE SADDLE OF, 340
RAFFAELLE, TOMB OF, 569
RALEIGH'S (SIR WALTER) ANCIENT RESIDENCE AT BLACKWALL, 161
REVOLVER, A, OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY, 30
RING, FORMERLY THE PROPERTY OF CHARLES I., 263
RINGS, CALCINATED, 408
---- SARDONYX, WITH CAMEO HEAD OF QUEEN ELIZABETH, 372
---- A TOAD STONE, 424
ROCK OF CASHEL, THE, 352
RUINS OF CLONMACNOIS, 612
SACK-POT, OLD ENGLISH, 521
SAINT GEORGE, TOMB OF, 281
SAINT GEORGE'S HALL, GIBRALTAR, 7
SALAGRAM, HINDOO ADORATION OF THE, 589
SARDONYX RING, WITH CAMEO HEAD OF QUEEN ELIZABETH, 373
SCEPTRE, IVORY, OF LOUIS XII., 476
SCHOOL, A CHINESE, 525
SCRIPTURAL ANTIQUITIES:--DRUM, OR TIMBREL; DRUM IN USE
IN THE EAST; HARP; LUTES; INSCRIBED STONE; SANDALS;
DISTAFF; ROMAN FARTHING; STONEMONEY-WRIGHTS; HAND
MILL; EASTERN WINE AND WATER BOTTLES, 217
SELKIRK (ALEXANDER) AND THE DANCING GOATS, 22
SEPULCHRAL VASE, 320, 608
SHAKESPEARE'S JUG, 576
SHIELD, ANCIENT DANISH, 420
SHRINE OF ST. SEBALD AT NUREMBERG, 604
SILVER LOCKET IN MEMORY OF THE EXECUTION OF CHARLES I., 263
SNAKE CHARMER, 300
SOUTH STACK LIGHTHOUSE, 240
SPANISH DAGGER OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY, 263
SPIDER, THE TRAP-DOOR, 384
---- NEST OF THE, 385
ST. WINIFRED'S WELL, 304
STAMP, MEDICINE, ANTIQUE ROMAN, 449
STANDARDS, EGYPTIAN, 396
---- ASSYRIAN, 584, 585
STEAM BOAT, FAC-SIMILE OF THE FIRST, 301
STICKS, OLD WALKING, 388
SWORD BREAKER, ANCIENT, 672
---- AN EXECUTIONER'S, 676
---- CURIOUS ANTIQUE, 596
---- THE HAWTHORNDEN, 353
---- THE SETON, 357
SUMMERS' MAGNET, OR LOADSTONE, 41
TEMPLAR'S BANNER, CALLED BEAUSEANT, 565
TEMPLE AT SIMONBONG, INTERIOR VIEW OF, 620
THRASHING CORN, ANCIENT METHOD OF, 67
TILBURY FORT, WATER-GATE OF, 190
TOILET BOXES, EGYPTIAN, 381
TOMB, ANCIENT GREEK, INTERIOR VIEW OF, 617
---- A CHINESE, 508
---- OF RAFFAELLE, 569
TOMB OF CÆCILIA METELLA, 477
TOPE, THE SANCHI, 389
TORTURE CHAMBER AT NUREMBERG, 616
TOWER OF THE THUNDERING WINDS, 93
TRAJAN, ARCH OF, AT BENEVENTUM, 445
TREATY STONE AT LIMERICK, 564
TRIPOD, AN ANCIENT, 549
TUMBREL, THE, 2
TUNISIAN TURNER, A, 652
TYRIAN PURPLE, THE SHELL FISH FROM WHICH IT IS OBTAINED, 644
UMBRELLA, ANGLO-SAXON, 624
VASES, ANCIENT, 337
---- GREEK, 501
---- ROMAN, IN BLACK WARE, 372
---- A SEPULCHRAL, OF ANCIENT EGYPT, 608
VASES TEUTONIC, HUT-SHAPED, 580
VAUXHALL, 380
VESSEL, A CURIOUSLY SHAPED, 376
VESUVIUS, CRATER OF, IN 1829, 165
VISHNU, THE GOD, 645
VOLCANO OF JORULLO, MEXICO, 161
WAR CHARIOT OF EGYPT, 365
WATCH, ANTIQUE, 368
---- PRESENTED BY LOUIS XII. OF FRANCE TO CHARLES I.
OF ENGLAND, 640
---- PRESENTED BY MARY OF SCOTLAND TO MARY SKATON, 285
WATER CARRIER OF THE OLDEN TIME, 259
WEAPON, AN ANCIENT, 660
---- A POISON, 672
WEAVER BIRD, SOCIAL NEST OF, 441
WIGS OF VARIOUS PERIODS, 31
INDEX.
PAGE
Abbey Buildings, The Arrangement of, 658
Abraham and Sarah, 101
Abyssinian Ladies, Dress of the, 491
Abyssinian Lady, Tattooed, 495
Advertisement, an American, 111
Advertisements, Curious, 406, 447, 455, 478
---- in the last Century, 207
---- of a Dying-speech Book, 116
---- New Style of, 249
---- a Pudding as an, 228
---- of a Fleet Parson, 116
A False Find, 31
A Female Sampson, 62
A Fine Old Soldier, 314
A Floating City, 308
A Funeral appropriately conducted, 235
Aged Persons, instances of many Dying, 283
Ages of Celebrated Men, 102
A Great Marvel seen in Scotland, 138
A Happy Family, 28
A Harmless Eccentric, 186
Albertus Magnus, Receipts from, 91
Ale Too Strong, 267
Alexandria, Pharos at, 274
Algerine Invasion of Ireland, 176
A Last Chance, 103
All Humbugs, 85
A Lucky Find, 6
A Man in a Vault Eleven Days, 69
---- Carries his House on his Head, 290
---- Selling his own Body, 95
---- aged One Hundred Years, 256
A Monster, 287
Ambassador, French, Entry into London, 262
---- why Held by the Arms, 162
Amphitheatres, 102
Amulets worn by Egyptian Females, 120
---- Brotche, 332
Amusements in the 15th Century, 254
---- in 1743, Popular, 56
An apparent Singularity accounted for, 93
An Eccentric Tourist, 139
Ancients, Credulity of the, 144
Anglo-Saxons, Sepulchral Barrow of, 26
Animals, Food of, 24
---- Communication between, 294
Animation, Suspended, 374
Anne Boleyn, Execution of, 375
Antimony, 570
Antipathies, 391
---- Unaccountable, 196
Antiquities, Egyptian, 642
Apollo, Oracles of, in France, 675
Arabian Horses, 291
Arabs, Horses of the, 498
Archbishop, an, Washing Feet, 5
Arch, A Beautiful, 433
A remarkable Old Man, 214
Armlet, Ancient, 425
Armour, Ancient, Curious Piece of, 341
Arms, Abyssinian, 509
Artists, Duration of Life amongst, 196
A Sea above the Sky, 81
Ash, the Shrew, 397
Ass, The, 116
Assiduity and Perseverance, 304
Attar of Roses, Origin of, 343
Attar of Roses, 298
A Woman takes the Lighted Match, 40
---- Defends a Post singly, 52
Authors, some Learned, Amusements of, 137
A Unique Library, 211
Aztec Children, 37
Babes of Bethlehem, The, 660
Bagpipes, Irish, 505
Ballot, Origin of the, 673
Bandoliers, 560
Bank, A Mattrass for a, 323
Banner, The Templars', called Beauseant, 564
Banquets of the Ancients, 439
Bara, a Machine used in Sicily, 415
Barbers, 94
Barometer, Incident connected with, 136
Bartholomew Fair in 1700, Handbill of, 148
Bastille of Paris, Storming of the, 194
Bazaar, a Turkish, 614
Bear, a Shaved, 17
Beard, Care of the, 503
Beau Brummell (a) of the 17th Century, 61
Bective Abbey, 392
Bedesmen in the time of Henry VII., 593
Bedford Missal, The, 407
Bee, The Queen, 25
Bees, Obedient to Training, 95
Beggars, Severe Enactment against, 302
---- selected as Models by Painters, 281
Bell, The Great, of Burmah, 559
---- of Rouen, 650
Bells, 193
---- of the Ancients, 279
---- of St. Mura, 411
Bell-Shrine, an Ancient, 347
Bellows, Primitive Pair of, 637
Bible, 118, 372, 490
---- Bunyan's, 121
---- Summary of the, 169
---- used by Charles I. on the Scaffold, 271
Billy in the Salt-box, 181
Birds, The Ear of, not to be Deceived, 228
Blind Jack, 23
---- Granny, 70
---- Workman, 155
Boat, Burmese, 667
Bobart, Jacob, 22
Boiling to Death, 663
Bolton Abbey, Origin of, 273
Bombardier Beetle, The, 68
Bones, Adaptation of to Age, 52
Book-shaped Watch, 328
Boots an object of Honour, 232
Boydell, Alderman, 9
Brama, the Hindoo Deity, 555
Bramins, Philosophy of the, 371
Brank, The, 2
Brass Medal, of our Saviour, 241
Breakfasting Hut in 1745, 158
Bribery, 141
Bricks of Babylon, The, 612
Bridge, Old London, The Gate of, 561
---- Chinese, 439
---- Suspension, at Freybourg, 166
Britannia Tubular Bridge, 172
British Islands, Size of the, 245
Brooch, Ancient Scandinavian, 401
Bruce, Lord Edward, Case containing the Heart of, 215
Brunswick, House of, Anecdote of the, 459
Buckinger, Matthew, 53
Buddist Temples, Instruments used in, 621
Bumper, 153
Bunyan's, John, Tomb, 156
Burial Places of Distinguished Men, 390
Burmah, Elephant God of, 537
Bust, Etrurian, An Ancient, 677
Byng, Admiral, Execution of, 182
Cader Idris, 118
Cagots, The, 638
Calculation, Interesting, 474
Cambridge Clods, 20
Camden Cup, 250
Camel, as a Scape-Goat, 522
Cameleon, The Eye of the, 479
Candles in the Church, 449
Cannon, Ancient, raised from the Sea, 40
---- at the Siege of Constantinople, 69
---- First Iron, 320
Canute, The Discovery of the Body of, 176
Cardinals, Colour of the Hat for, 234
Cards, Games with, in the 16th Century, 618
Carfax Conduit, 333
Carronades, 149
Carrara, Francis, Cruelty of, 504
Carriage, Turkish, 655
Cascade des Pelerines, 135
Cat, Instinct in a, 353
Catacombs at Rome, 87
Cataract, Extraordinary, 223
Cat-Clock, A, 631
Cats, White, 51
---- with Knotted Tails, 238
Caves, The Hawthornden, 382
Chaffinch Contest, 651
Chalice, Iona, The Golden, 422
Changes of Fortune, 371
Chaplain, Instructions to a, 458
Chapter-House in Henry VIIth's time, 599
Charing Cross, Autobiography of, 128
Charity instead of Pomp, 407
---- Rewarded by a Mendicant, 257
Charlemagne, Clock presented to, 145
Charles I., Anecdote relative to, 174
---- II., Privy Purse, Expenses of, 234
Cherry Tree, 458
Chess, in India, How it Originated, 305
Chieftain, Ancient Scottish, 500
Chilcott, the Giant, 71
Child, Test of Courage in a, 132
Children of Aged Parents, 319
China, Origin of the Great Wall of, 233
Chinese Dainties, 91
---- Ivory Balls, 144
---- Method of Fishing, 315
---- Punishment of the Kang, 134
---- Ladies, Small Feet of, 475
---- Mirrors, 425
---- School, 525
---- Therapeutics, 369
Chocolate, Early use of, 52
Christmas Customs, Bygone, 14, 19
Christening, Novel Mode of Celebrating a, 393
Chronology of Remarkable Events, 218
Church of Donore, James II. and the, 557
Cigars, Extraordinary Fashion in, 274
Circumstance, a Curious, 430
---- Extraordinary, 15
Cistern of Majolica Ware, 597
Clock at Hernhuth, Watchmen Imitating, 20
---- Wonderful, 167
Clocks, Early, 171
Clonmacnois, Ruins of, 289
Coachmen of the Time of Charles II., 257
Cock Fighting at Schools, 219
Coffee, 153
Coffee and Tea, 122
Coffee-house in London, the First, 4
---- Attractions in 1760, 41
Coin, The First, with Britannia on it, 468
Coinage, Variations in the, 650
Coincidences, some Curious, 434
Collars, Stone, Ancient, 665
Column at Cussi, 533
Comb, Curious Indian, 657
Conecte, Thomas, 433
Confectionary Art in 1660, 373
Conjuring, Public Taste for in 1718, 122
Conway Church, Inscription in, 112
Coral Reefs, 73
Coronations, Prices for Seats at, 160
---- Expenses at, 283
Corpulent Man, 78
Corpulence, Cure for, 80
Cost of Articles in the 14th Century, 330
Costume, Ancient Female, 71, 78
Costumes, 395, 437, 536, 544, 547, 630, 651
Couteau-de-Chasse, Ancient, 633
Cranmer's (Archbishop) Dietary, 137
Credulity, Extraordinary Instance of, 311
Cricket-Matches, Extraordinary, 408
Criminal, a Rich and Cruel, 450
Criminals, Old Custom Relating to, 598
Cromwell's Bridge at Glengariff, 648
Cross of Cong, The, 457
---- ---- Muiredach, 369
---- Ordeal of the, 463
Crown of Charlemagne, 377
Cucking-Stool, The, 1
Cupid, The, of the Hindoos, 230
Curious Feats, 181, 239
---- Law, 8
---- Manuscript, 214
Curiously-shaped Vessel, 376
Curiously-shaped Drinking Cups, 413
Curiosities, Strange, 457
Custom, Means of attracting, 683
Customs, Singular Local, 653
Daffeys' Elixir, 173
Dagger, An Ancient, 673
Dagobert, Ancient Chair of, 421
Dance, Curious Provincial in France, 679
Dances, Fashionable of the last Century, 220
Dancing Rooms, 57
Dead, Fashions for the, 523
Dead Bodies, Preservation of, 251, 280, 638
Death, Boiling to, 663
---- Lunar Influence in, 346
---- Pressing to, 515
Decorative Drinking Vessel, 336
Della Robbia Ware, 601
Demons, Bribing the, 531
Dervishes, Dancing, 669
Desolation, Scene of, 329
Destitute Cats, Asylum for, 280
Dial and Fountain in Leadenhall Street, 553
Dilemma, 499
Dinner, an Egyptian, 537
---- in China, 596
---- Party in the 17th Century, 609
Diogenes in a Pithos, not Tub, 101
Disorders Cured by Fright, 307
Dispute and appropriate Decision, 140
Dog (A) Extinguishing a Fire, 20
---- Combination of Instinct and Force, 284
---- A Sensible, Refusing to Bait a Cat, 76
---- Persevering, 80
---- Friendship, 84
---- A Piscatorial, 367
---- Sensible, 376
---- in Japan, 622
---- Figures of on Ancient Tombs, 682
Dog-wheel, The Old, 101
Dole in consequence of a Dream, 503
Doles, 399
Down among the Dead Men, 185
Dress, Forty years ago, 212
Dress in London, 18, 114, 253, 295
---- Fastidiousness at an Old Age, 243
---- of the Ancient Britons, 79
Drinking Bouts in Persia, 547
Drinks, Intoxicating, Antiquity of, 611
Dropping Wells, 142
Druids' Seat, 464
Drunkenness, the Offspring of, 666
Duns in the Mahratta Country, 379
Dyaks of Borneo, 275
Ears, Character Indicated by, 65
Earthenware, English, 575
Earthquake Panic, 520
---- Swallowed up by an, 329
---- at Lisbon, 200
---- Nottingham, in 1816, 280
Earthquakes, 398, 432
East India House, the First, 206
Eating for a Wager, 4
Eccentric Englishman, An, 438
Eccentrics, a Couple of, 318
Echo, Extraordinary, 341
Eddystone Lighthouse, 108
Edicts against Fiddlers, 328
Eel, Large, 10
Egypt, 491
---- Pyramids of, 130
Egyptian Toys in the British Museum, 129
Elephant Detects a Robber, An, 99
Elephants Frightened at Pigs, 9
Energy, A Triumph of, 193
England before the Romans, 86
Englishman, A Fat, 28
Epitaph, an Inculpatory, 268
Etna, Mount, Great Eruption of, 451
---- Changes of, 406
Europa, Ruins of, 567
Exchequer-bills, Origin of, 676
Execution, in 1793, 84
Extraordinary Tree, 183
Extravagance at Elections, 149
---- Oriental, 499
Eyam, The Desolation of, 226
Fallacy of the Virtues of a Seventh Son, 315
False Accusers, Punishing, 230
Farmers, Illustrious, 304
Fashionable Disfigurement, 213
Fayence, The, of Henry II. of France, 591
Feasts, Anglo-Saxon, 517
Federation, Fête of the, 288
Female Intrepidity, Extraordinary, 248
Ferrers, Earl, Execution of, 107
Figg, Champion, 113
Finger Rings, Porcelain, 486
Fire at Burwell, Cambridgeshire, 293
Fire-arms in the Tower of London, 29
Fire-engines, When first made, 223
Fish, Shooting, 432
---- High Price of, in London, 312
---- Extraordinary Ponds and, 561
---- Tame, 659
---- Wonderful, 542
Fishermen, Bulgarian, 497
Fleet Marriages, about 1740, 299
Floods, the Morayshire, 126
Flying Coach, 228
Fog of 1783, The Great, 414
Font at Kilcarn, The, 417
Food of the Ancients, 450
Foot-Racing in 1699, 457
Foreigners in London in 1567, 371
Fortune, Change of, 371
Fox Killed by a Swan, 4
Francis I., Funeral Oration of, 363
Franklin's Celebrated Letter to Strahan, 39
Frederick the Great at Table, 579
French Dress, 102
---- Assignats, the Origin, 253
Friars, Preaching, 221
Frost Fairs, 67
---- Extraordinary, 209
Funeral, an Eccentric, 395
---- Jar, 481
---- Obsequies, Strange, 108
Game Preserves at Chantilly, 362
Gamblers, Chinese, Playing for Fingers, 593
Gambling, Legalised, 141
---- Extraordinary, 359
Gaming, a National Taste for, 267
Gander, an Old, 27
Garden, an Egyptian, 349
---- at Kenilworth, when in its Prime, 641
---- Love of, 419
---- Sacred, 420
---- The Hanging, of Babylon, 558
Garrick's Cup, 232
Gauntlet of Henry, Prince of Wales, 661
George II., Proclamation for, 200
Georgians as Topers, 511
Giant Tree, 229
Gibraltar, Siege of, 6
Gigantic Bones, 248
Glaives, 504
Glove Money, 503
Gloves, Anne Boleyn's, 600
---- Origin of "Pin Money", 275
Grace Knives, 641
Graham Island, 443
Graves of the Stone Period, 363
Greek Vases, 501
Gretna Green Marriages, 159
Grey Man's Path, The, 528
Grinning for a Wager, 13
Groaning Boards, 66
Groat, a Castle for a, 470
Grotto, Remarkable, and Story connected with it, 625
Guillotine, Decapitation by the, 8
Gun, Celebrated, 568
Gunpowder, Making a Candlestick of, 249
Hackney Coach, The Earliest, 211
Hair, Ancient, Quantity and Colour of the, 4
---- Price of Human, 242
---- Remarkable Preservation of, 122
---- Transplantation of, 40
---- Turned Grey by Fright, 327
---- Two of the Fathers, on False, 24
Hamster Rat, The, 265
Handbills, Distributing, 178
---- from Peckham Fair, in 1726, 72
Hanging a Mayor, 140
"Happy Dispatch" in Japan, The, 578
Head Breaker, A., 338
Head-dress, Monstrous, 242
---- Ornament, Antique, 393
Hejirs, The, 222
Helmet, Early English, 632
---- of Sir John Crosby, 520
Henry I., Dream of, 26
---- II., Stripped when Dead, 39
---- V., Cradle of, 416
---- the VIIIth's Chair, 488
---- VIII., Curious Extracts from the Household Book
of Lady Mary, Daughter of, 399
Highlander, A Remarkable, 238
Highwaymen in 1782, 5
Hindoo Computation, 507
---- Rites, Cruelty of, 627
Historical Anecdote, 156
Holy Water Sprinkler, 532
Homer in a Nutshell, 127
Hooking a Boy Instead of a Fish, 319
Hoops, in 1740, 6
Horse, A, Getting himself Shod, 76
Horse-race, Indenture of a, 52
Horses of the Arabs, 498
Horses, Different Sorts of, in the 16th Century, 634
---- Feeding one another, 368
---- Vicious, Novel Way of Curing, 174
Hot Cross Buns, 251
House, Novel Way of Designating a, 539
---- of Hens' Feathers, 646
Household Rules of the 16th Century, 518
How Distant Ages are Connected, 200
Hudson, Jeffery, the Dwarf of the Court of Charles I., 472
"Humbug," Origin of the Term, 97
Hume, David, on his own Death, 215
Hundred Families' Lock, 435
Hunting Party, a Regal, 391
Husband, Novel way of Purchasing a, 275
Hydra, Extraordinary Reproductive Power of the, 490
Ice, Ground, 506
Ignorance and Fear, 290
Impostor, An, 50
Impudence or Candour? Which is it? 239
Incense Chariot, An Ancient, 513
Incremation, Instance of, 353
Indian Jugglers, European Balancing, 293
Inhumanity, Extraordinary Instances of, 436
Innkeeper's Bill in 1762, 431
Insects, Wonderful Formation of the Eye in, 467
Insect Life, Minuteness of, 338
Instinct of Animals, 410
Insurance Agent, Canvass of an, 465
Interesting and Fanciful Relique, 243
Inventors, The Perils of, 141
Irrigation, Turkish Machine for, 349
"It's much the same Now", 94
James II. and the Church of Donore, 557
James II., Spent by the Corporation of Coventry at the
Entertainment of, in his Progress through Coventry, 378
Javanese, Superstition of the, 244
Jenny's Whim, 174
Jewel, A Curious, which belonged to James I., 456
Jews, Wealth of the, 359
Johnson, Dr., A Visit to the Residence of, 48
Joy, William, the English Sampson, 176
Judas Iscariot, Legends of, 339
Judges attending Public Balls, 303
---- Salaries, 446
Jugglers in Japan, 529
---- of Modern Egypt, 342
Kildare, Death of the Earl of, 172
Killed by eating Mutton and Pudding, 73
King Edward I., Household Expenses of, 231
---- Fine for Insulting a, 149
---- of Kippen, The, 139
---- John and Pope Innocent, 463
King-Maker, Warwick the, 527
King's Bed, Ceremonial for Making the, 562
---- Cock Crower, The, 137
---- Dishes with the Cook's Name, 235
---- Stone, The, at Kingston, 461
Kitchen, Spacious, 383
Knight's Costume of the 13th Century, 480
Knives and Forks, 133
Knox, John, The Pulpit of, at St. Andrews, 269
Lady, Origin of the Word, 147
Lagmi, and the Use made of it, 623
Lambeth Wells, the Apollo Gardens, 272
Lamps, Roman, 437
Land, Change in the Value of, 196
Landslip at Colebroke, Shropshire, 184
Lantern, Curious, 100
Lauderdale, The Duchess of, 403
Law of the Mozcas, 454
Law and Order in the Streets of London, 131
Laws, a Hundred years ago, Severity of, 234
Leadenhall Street, Old Dial and Fountain in, 553
Legend, A Superstitious, 351
Legends among Savage Nations, 146
Length of Life without Bodily Exercise, 274
Lepers, Treatment of, in England, 493
Leprosy, Lazars, and Lazar Houses, 169
Letter, Extraordinary, 322
Lettsom's (Dr.) Reasons, 71
Lewson, The Eccentric Lady, 221
Life, An Eventful, 427
---- in Death, 443
Lighting the Streets, Bequests for, 310
Lightning, Calmuc's Opinion of, 63
Living, Style of, among the Nobility of the 15th Century, 533
---- in the 16th Century, 357
Lizards, Swallowing, 41
Loaf Sugar, 166
Locomotives, the First, 96
Locusts, 151
London Localities in the 16th Century, 526
London Water Carrier in Olden Time, 258
---- in 1756, State of, 147
London Resorts a Hundred Years Ago, 197
Longevity, 269
Long Meg and her Daughters, 394
Lord Mayor's Feast in 1663, 551
Lotteries, 619
Louis XVI., Execution of, 258
Luther's (Martin) Tankard, 149
Luxury in 1562, 418
Lynch's Castle, Galway, 581
Mackarel, Price of, 576
Madness, Sudden Recovery from, 168
Madyn, the Capital of Persia, Magnificence of,
when invaded by the Saracens A.D. 636, 554
Magic Rain Stone, 168
Magician's Mirror and Bracelet, 344
Magnet, The Summers' or Loadstone, 41
Magnificence of Former Times, 111
Magpie Stoning a Toad, 92
Mahomet, Personal Appearance of, 571
Mail, Ancient suit of, 483
Malady, Extraordinary, 670
Mandrin, the Smuggler, 167
Manners, Ancient, of the Italian, 585
Man without Hands, 77
Manufacture, One of the Effects of, 142
Marat, Funeral of, 375
Marriage Custom, Curious, 543
---- Lottery, 91
---- Vow, 419
Mary, Queen of Scots, her First Letter to English, 370
Mary Queen of Scots, her Candlestick, 436
Maternal Affection in a Dumb Woman, 140
May-pole in the Strand, 534
---- Fate of the Last, in the Strand, 682
May-poles, 100
Mecca, The Black Stone at, 550
Medmenham Abbey, 429
Memento-Mori Watch, 285
Mental Affection, A Curious, 335
Merman, A, 16
Mexican Tennis, 375
Michaelmas-day, Origin of eating Goose on, 198
Military Hats in Olden Time, 75
Mill at Lissoy, 469
Miraculous Escape, 266
Misers, Two, 459
Missal, The Bedford, 163
Mob Wisdom, 294
Monasteries, Libraries of destroyed, 334
Monkeys Demanding their Dead, 415
Monkish Prayers, 383
Monks, Gluttony of the, 347
---- and Friars, 680
Monsey (Dr.) bequeaths his own Body, 93
Monsoons, 179
Monument, Rock-cut, of Asia Minor, 441
Monuments, Wayside, 587
Mosque of Omar, 316
Mother Mapp, the Bone Setter, 158
Mountains, Height of, 148
Mouth, Character of the, 106
M.P.'s and Mayors, Privateers, 176
Mulgrave, Origin of the House of, 602
Mullet and Turbot, with the Romans, 488
Mummy Cases, 409
Murderess, a Young but Cruel, 392
Music, Effect of, on a Pigeon, 64
---- of the Hindoos, 683
---- ---- ---- Sea, 351
Musical Instrument, A Curious, 628
Musical Instruments, Burmese, 629
---- ---- Egyptian, 404
Names, Strange Custom about, 295
Naora, The, 635
Narrow Escape, 121
Nature, Wonderful Provision of, 55
Nebuchadnezzar, Gold Mask of, 105
Necklace, Ancient Jet, 529
Negro, Bill of Sale for a, in 1770, 39
Nell Gwynne's Looking-Glass, 237
Never Sleeping in a Bed, 331
Newspapers, Vacillating, 514
New South Wales, Dances of the Natives of, 225
Newton, A Visit to the Observatory of, 10
New Zealand, The Wingless Bird of, 307
Norman Caps, 44
North American Indian War Dispatch, 45
Nose, Effect of a New, 102
Nostrums, 63
Nun, The First English, 330
Nut Crackers, Ancient, 236
Oaks, Extraordinary, 310, 426, 466, 455
---- Remarkable, 405
Old Age, Dying of, at Seventeen Years, 47
Old Books, 360
Old London Signs, 118
Opera, The First, 567
Opium, Best Position for Smoking, 675
Oræfa Mountain, in Ireland, 356
Ornaments, Personal Antique, 293, 400, 447, 452
Orthography in the Sixteenth Century, 17
Pagoda, The Great Shoëmadoo, 572
Pailoos, Chinese, 625
Panama, Isthmus of, Passage through, 148
Paper, 619
Papyrus, The, 82
Parental Authority, Too Much, 513
Paris Garden at Blackfriars, 465
Parlour Dogs, 320
Passport, A Traveller's, 679
Pastimes, Popular, 514
Pâtés de Foies Gras, 142
Peacocks, 366
Pear-Tree, Great, 454
Pearls, British, 363
---- Fondness of the Romans for, 208
Pedestrian Feat, Wonderful, 327
Peg Tankards, 43
Penn, Tea Service which belonged to, 201
Penny Post, Origin of the, 47
Pennsylvania Journal, 63
Perfumes, 253
Persecution, 430
---- in the Reign of Queen Mary, 587
Perseverance rewarded by Fortune, 287
Persia, Drinking Bouts in, 547
Personal Charms Disclaimed, 118
Peru, Condor in, 170
Peruvian Bark, 51
Pest-house, during the Plague, in Tothill Fields, 573
Pestilence, The Black, 402
Peter the Great at Zaandam, 544
Physic, A Friend to, 267
Physick for the Poor, Choice Receipts for, 117
Pigeon Catching near Naples, 437
Pig, Roast, Advertisement of, in 1726, 46
Pike, An Old, 667
Pilgrim Fathers, Chair belonging to, 186
Pillory for Eating Flesh in Lent, 68
Plague in England, The, 183
---- Corpse Bearers during the, 283
Plantagenets, Yellow Hair in the Time, 103
Plate, Use of, in the time of Henry VIII., 523
Platypus, the Duck-billed, 273
Playbill, Curious, 227
---- in the time of William III., 530
Ploughing and Threshing, Ancient, 66
Poets, English, Fates of the Families of, 471
Pogonias Vocal Fish, 478
Poison Cup, The, 485
Poisoning the Monarch, 12
Police, London, Disgraceful State of, 193
Pont du Gard, Great Aqueduct of, 312
Pope's Chair, 577
Porcelain, Anecdote in, 517
Port Coon Cave, 516
Poet Haste One Hundred Years ago, 182
"Postman," The, Paragraph from, in 1697, 219
Pottery in China, Art of, 321
Powerscourt Fall, Phenomenon at the, 304
Prayers, Unusual Locality for Saying, 171
Praying by Machinery, 314
---- by Wheel and Axle, 539
Pre-Adamite Bone Caverns, 199
Precocious Children, 64
Presence of Mind--Escape from a Tiger, 330
Priests in Burmah, Knavery of the, 266
---- of Sikkim, 663
Prince of Wales, Origin of the Crest of the, 115
Prince Rupert, at Everton, 291
Prolific Author, 320
Proteus Anguinus, The, 152
Psalm, Value of a Long, 512
Pterodactylus, The, 360
Pulpit, Refreshments for the, 262
Punishing by Wholesale, 680
Punishment, Ancient Instrument of, 680
---- Russian, 654
---- and Torture, Ancient Instruments of, 58, 88
Puritan Zeal, 579
Purple, Tyrian, 643
Quackery in the Olden Time, 671
Queen Elizabeth, Banquets of, 414
---- ---- Dresses of, 501
---- ---- Old Verses on, 204
---- ---- saddle of, 340
---- ---- State Coach of, 128
---- ----'s Laws, 151
Raffaelle, Tomb of, 568
Raffle, A, in 1725, 47
Raleigh, Sir Walter, Residence of, 160
Ranelagh, 204
Ranz des Vaches, 173
Rats, Destructive Force of, 463
Ravilliac, Execution of, 132
Receipts, Quaint, 153
Red Sea, Luminous Appearance of the, 454
Regiments, The Modern Names of, 639
Reichstadt, The Duke de, 435
Relics, 393
---- A Group of, 261
---- Rescued, 618
Remarkable Events and Inventions, 145
Revenge, New Mode of, 423
Rheumatism, Strange Cure for the, 201
Rhinoceros, First in Europe, 655
Richardson, the Showman, 251
Ringing the Changes, 192
Rings, Calcinated, 408
Rites, Hindoo, Cruelty of, 627
Roads in 1780, 327
Rock of Cashel, 352
Romans in Britain, Dress of Native Females at that Period, 86
Rouen, The Great Bell of, 650
Royal Touch, The, 42
Royal Giants, Specimens of, 121
---- Prisoner, Expenses of, 260
Sack Pot, Old English, 521
Sacro Catino, The, 608
Sadler's Wells, 112
Saint George, Tomb of, 281
Saint Lawrence, 464
Sálagrám, Hindoo Adoration of the, 589
Sand Columns in Africa, 610
Sandwiches, Origin of the, 563
Sardonyx Ring, with Cameo Head of Queen Elizabeth,
in the possession of Rev. Lord Thynne, 373
Scape Goat, Camel as a, 190
Sceptre, Ivory, of Louis XII., 476
School, Chinese, 525
School Expenses in the Olden Time, 427
Science and Perseverance, Triumphs of, 123
Scottish Wild Cattle, 278
Scriptural Antiquities, 215
Sea, Phosphorescence of the, 418
Sea Serpent, Immense, 42
Sea-Urchin, Wonderful Construction of, 475
Second Sight, 65
Seeing Two Generations, 211
Self-Nourishment, 315
Selkirk and the Dancing Goats, 22
Sepulchral Vase from Peru, 320
Sermons, Anecdotes in, 147
Serpent, Anecdote of a, 85
Seven, The Number, 354
Sèvres Porcelain, Prices of, 487
Sex, Change of, 189
"Sforza," Origin of the Title, 554
Shakspeare's Jug, 575
Sham Prophets, 319
Sharks, The Queen's, 203
Sheba, The Queen of, 518
Sheep Killer, Hunting a, 268
Shell Fish, in 1675, Price of, 178
Shetland, The Noss in, 324
Shield, Ancient Danish, 420
Shilling, Cutting a Wife off with a, 359
Shocking Depravity, 117
Shoes, Long-toed, Origin of, 646
Shrine, Curious Figures on a, 202
Shrine of St. Sebald at Nuremberg, 271
Simoom, The, 662
Skin, Human, a Drum made of, 398
Slave Advertisements, 25
Slave Trade, Iniquities of the, 175
Slaves, Recent Prices of, 435
Sleep, Protracted, 483
---- State of the Mind during, 350
Sleeper, An Extraordinary, 28
Smoking, Attachment to, 322
Snake Charmers, 299
Snakes, Power of Fascination in, 64
Snow Storm, Memorable, 327
Snuff Boxes, Ancient, 209
Snuff, Time Wasted in taking, 512
Something like a Feast, 129
Somnambulism, 72
Sound, Phenomena of, 367
Southcottian Delusion, A Phase of the, 230
South-stack Lighthouse, 239
Spain, Wealth of, under the Moors, 235
Spider, Bite of the Tarantula, 13
Spiders Fond of Music, 157
Spirit Drinker, An Aged, 228
Spontaneous Combustion, 431
Sports of the Lower Classes, 155
Sportsman, A Royal, 443
Springs, Intermittent, 455
Stage Coach in 1760, 155
Stag-Hunt in the 16th Century, 511
Stags like Cattle, Driving, 208
Stamps, Antique Roman, 448, 643
Standards, Ancient Banner and, 396, 583
State Coach in 1796, 156
Statue, Metal, the Largest in the World, 454
Steam boat, Facsimile of the First, 301
Stevens's Specific, 50
St. George's Cavern, 421
St. James's Square, 123
St. Paul's, Old, 162
St. Paul and the Viper, 125
St. Winifred's Well, 303
Sticks, Old Walking, 387
Stirrups, 571
Stomach Brush, 55
Stoneware, 649
Strasburg, Curious Custom at, 185
Strength, Feats of, in 1789, 9
Street Cries of Modern Egypt, 401
Stuff Ball at Lincoln, Origin of the, 49
Sultan, City of the, 103
Sun and Moon, Worship of the, 81
Superstition in 1856, 538
---- Curious, 424
---- Death caused by, 124
---- in France, 519
---- Vitality of, 474
Sweating Sickness, 110
Sweets, Artificial, 579
Sword, Curious Antique, 596
---- Executioner's, 340
---- The Hawthornden, 353
---- The Seton, 356
---- Fish and Whales, 565
Sword-Breaker, An Ancient, 672
Taking a Man to Pieces, 79
Tapestry, The Bayeux, 642
Tar and Feather, Notices to, 38
Taxation, Universality of, 318
Tea, 94
Tea-Drinkers, The First, Puzzled, 532
Teapot, The, 482
Temple of Pou-tou, The, 673
---- at Simonbong, 620
Temples of Brambanam, 442
Terrier, Anecdote of a, 358
Thames, Frost Fair on the, 106
---- The First Bridge over the, 428
Thanksgiving Day in 1697, 527
Theatre, Roman, at Orange, 366
Theatres in the Time of Shakespeare, 597
The First Hermits--Why so Called, 125
The Ruling Passion, 32, 188
Theodora de Verdion, 207
Thief Caught in his own Trap, The, 77
---- Singular Discovery of a, 115
Thugs, The, 574
Tiger Cave at Cuttack, 361
Tilbury Fort, 189
Time, Division of, in Persia, 633
Tobacco, Origin of the Use of, 57
Toilet, Absurdities of the, 536
---- Boxes, Egyptian, 381
Tomb, Chinese, 508
---- of Cæcilia Metella, 477
---- of Darius, 560
Tomb of the Emperor Maximilian at Inspruck, 590
"Too Late," quoth Boice, 489
Tope, the Sanchi, 389
Topers, Georgians as, 511
Toping in the Last Century, 314
Torture, 639
---- Chamber at Nuremberg, 615
Tower of the Thundering Winds, 93
Trajan, Arch of, at Beneventum, 112
Trance, A, 354
---- at Will, 462
Trap-door Spider, 383
Travelling, Common, 220
---- in Olden Times, 108,162
---- in the United States, 208
Treaty-Stone at Limerick, 563
Tree, Extraordinary Situation for a, 313
Trees, Age of, 521
---- that Grow Shirts, 62
Tripod, Ancient, 549
Trivial Circumstances, A Great Result from, 605
Tumbrel, The, 2
Tunisians, Ingenuity of the, 652
Turban, The, in Arabia, 618
Turkish Mode of Reparation, 326
Twin-Worm, Extraordinary Formation of the, 136
Types, the Invention of, 152
Umbrella, Anglo-Saxon, 624
Upas Tree, 123
Useful and the Beautiful, 647
Vampire, The Blood-sucking, 417
Varnish-Tree of the Japanese, 615
Vases, Ancient, 337
---- Greek, 169
---- Greek, Prices of, 385
---- Roman, in Black Ware, 373
---- Sepulchral, of Greek Pottery, 616
---- Sepulchral, of Ancient Egypt, 607
---- Teutonic, Hut-shaped, 580
Vauxhall, 380
Venetians, The, 428
Vengeance, Novel Mode of taking, 586
Ventriloquist, a Female, 62
Vesuvius, Crater of, in 1829, 165
Vinegar on the Skin, Effect of, 115
Vishnu, Incarnations of, 645
Volcanic Eruption in Japan, 601
Volcano of Jurullo, Formation of the, 163
Volition, Suspended, 199
Voltaire, English Letter of, 422
Vow, Singular Hindoo, 658
Wagers, Curious, 373
Walking-Sticks, Old, 387
Wall, Governor, Execution of, 154
Wallace, the Hero of Scotland, 99
War Boat, A Dyak, in Borneo, 540
---- Dance of the Dyaks of Borneo, 540
---- Chariot of Ancient Egypt, 365
Warwick, the King-Maker, 527
Washing Account, Method of Keeping, 3
Washington, 583
Watch, An Antique, 368
---- presented by Louis XIII. to Charles I. of England, 640
Watches, the First in England, 515
Water for Old London, Supply of, 282
---- Preservative Power of Coal-pit, 25
---- Supply of, for London, in Olden Times, 546
---- Snakes, Battle of, 470
"We hae been", 47
Weapon, Ancient, 660
---- A Poison, 672
Weaver-Bird, The Sociable, 440
Wedding, A, A Hundred Years Ago, 640
Weight, Reducing, 85
Whipping Prisoners, 175
Whitehall, Ceiling of, 121
Whitsuntide, at Durham Cathedral, 8
Why a Man Measures more in the Morning than in the Evening, 75
Wife, Diving for a, 479
Wigs, 17, 31
Will, Eccentric, 209
William the Conqueror, Courtship of, 555
Willow, Weeping, Introduction of the, 148
Wind Mills, The First, 577
Witch-Testing, at Newcastle, in 1649, 21
Wolves in England, 441
Woman, The Hairy, of Burmah, 677
Woman's Cleverness, 260
Women of England, The, 159
---- in Former Times, 127
Wonderful Escape, 215, 300
Wren's (Sir Christopher) Cost of Churches, 171
---- ---- ---- Report, 183
Writing Materials, 481
Writings, Terra Cotta, 466
Yorkshire Tike, The, 24
Yorkshire in the Last Century, 283
TEN THOUSAND WONDERFUL THINGS.
PUNISHMENTS IN PROVINCIAL TOWNS IN THE OLDEN TIME.
The instruments most in vogue with our ancestors were three--the
cucking-stool, the brank, and the tumbrel.
The Cucking-stool was used by the pond in many village greens about one
hundred years ago or little more, and then deemed the best corrective
of a scolding woman.
[Illustration: The Cucking-stool.]
By the sea, the quay offered a convenient spot. The barbican, at
Plymouth, was a locality, doubtless terrible to offenders, however
careless of committing their wordy nuisance of scolding. Two pounds
were paid for a cucking-stool at Leicester in 1768. Since that it
has been placed at the door of a notorious scold as a warning. Upon
admission to the House of Correction at Liverpool, a woman had to
undergo the severity of the cucking-stool till a little before the year
1803, when Mr. James Neild wrote to Dr. Lettsom. The pump in the men's
court was the whipping-post for females, which discipline continued,
though not weekly.
_Kingston-upon-Thames._ _s._ _d._
1572, The making of the cucking-stool 8 0
Iron work for the same 3 0
Timber for the same 7 6
Three brasses for the same, and three wheels 4 10
-----------
£1 3 4
At Marlborough, in 1625, a man had 4_d._ for his help at the
cucking of Joan Neal.
_Gravesend._
1636, The porters for ducking of Goodwife Campion 2 0
Two porters for laying up the ducking-stool 0 8
[Illustration: The Brank.]
The Brank, for taming shrews, was preferred to the cucking-stool in
some counties, and was used there for the same purpose. The brank was
in favour in the northern counties, and in Worcestershire, though there
were, notwithstanding, some of the other instruments of punishment
used, called in that county gum-stools.
The brank was put over the head, and was fastened with a padlock. There
are entries at Worcester about mending the "scould's bridle and cords
for the same."
The cucking-stool not only endangered the health of the party, but also
gave the tongue liberty 'twixt every dip. The brank was put over the
head, and was fastened with a padlock.
[Illustration: The Tumbrel.]
The tumbrel was a low-rolling cart or carriage (in law Latin,
_tumberella_) which was used as a punishment of disgrace and infamy.
Millers, when they stole corn, were chastised by the tumbrel. Persons
were sometimes fastened with an iron chain to a tumbrel, and conveyed
bareheaded with din and cry through the principal streets of towns.
_Court of Hustings Book, 1581._ (_Lyme._)
"The jury present that the tumbrel be repaired and maintained from time
to time, according to the statute."
In 1583, Mr. Mayor was to provide a tumbrel before All Saints Day,
under a penalty of 10_s._
ANCIENT METHOD OF KEEPING A WASHING ACCOUNT.
Shakerley Marmion, in his "Antiquary," says:--
"I must rev'rence and prefer the precedent
Times before these, which consum'd their wits in
Experiments; and 'twas a virtuous
Emulation amongst them, that nothing
Which, might profit posterity should perish."
[Illustration: [++] Washing Tablet.]
Without a full adherence to this dictum, we would nevertheless admit
that we are indebted to the past for the germ of many of our most
important discoveries. The ancient washing tablet, although of humble
pretensions to notice, is yet a proof of the simple and effective means
frequently adopted in olden times for the economy of time and materials.
A reference to the engraving obviates a lengthened explanation. It
will there be seen that if the mistress of a family has fifteen
_pillow-covers, or so many collars, or so many bands_, to be mentioned
in the washing account, she can turn the circular dial, by means of
the button or handle, to the number corresponding with the rough
mark at the bottom of the dial, above which is written _sheets_,
_table-cloths_, &c. This simple and ingenious contrivance, obviates the
necessity of keeping a book.
The original "washing board," from which the engraving is taken, was of
a larger size, and showed the numbers very distinctly. Similar dials
may be made of either ivory or metal.
THE HAIR.
The quality and colour of the hair was a subject of speculative theory
for the ancients. Lank hair was considered indicative of pusillanimity
and cowardice; yet the head of Napoleon was guiltless of a curl!
Frizzly hair was thought an indication of coarseness and clumsiness.
The hair most in esteem, was that terminating in ringlets. Dares, the
historian, states that Achilles and Ajax Telamon had curling locks;
such also was the hair of Timon, the Athenian. As to the Emperor
Augustus, nature had favoured him with such redundant locks, that no
hair-dresser in Rome could produce the like. Auburn or light brown
hair was thought the most distinguished, as portending intelligence,
industry, a peaceful disposition, as well as great susceptibility to
the tender passion. Castor and Pollux had brown hair; so also had
Menelaus. Black hair does not appear to have been esteemed by the
Romans; but red was an object of aversion. Ages before the time of
Judas, red hair was thought a mark of reprobation, both in the case
of Typhon, who deprived his brother of the sceptre of Egypt, and
Nebuchadnezzar who acquired it in expiation of his atrocities. Even the
donkey tribe suffered from this ill-omened visitation, according to the
proverb of "wicked as a red ass." Asses of that colour were held in
such detestation among the Copths, that every year they sacrificed one
by hurling it from a high wall.
THE FIRST COFFEE HOUSE IN LONDON.
Coffee is a native of Arabia, supposed by some to have been the chief
ingredient of the old Lacedemonian broth. The use of this berry was not
known in England till the year 1657, at which time Mr. D. Edwards, a
Turkey merchant, on his return from Smyrna to London, brought with him
one Pasquet Rossee, a Greek of Ragusa, who was used to prepare this
liquor for his master every morning, who, by the way, never wanted
company. The merchant, therefore, in order to get rid of a crowd of
visitants, ordered his Greek to open a coffee-house, which he did in
St. Michael's Alley, in Cornhill. This was the first coffee-house
opened in London.
EATING FOR A WAGER.
The handbill, of which the subjoined is a literal copy, was circulated
by the keeper of the public-house at which the gluttony was to happen,
as an attraction for all the neighbourhood to witness:--
"_Bromley in Kent_, July 14, 1726.--A strange eating worthy is to
perform a Tryal of Skill on St. James's Day, which is the day of our
_Fair_ for a wager of Five Guineas,--viz.: he is to eat four pounds of
bacon, a bushel of French beans, with two pounds of butter, a quartern
loaf, and to drink a gallon of strong beer!"
FOX KILLED BY A SWAN.
At Peusey, a swan sitting on her eggs, on one side of the river,
observed a fox swimming towards her from the opposite side; rightly
judging she could best grapple with the fox in her own element, she
plunged into the water, and after beating him off for some time with
her wings, at length succeeded in drowning him.
HIGHWAYMEN IN 1782.
On Wednesday, the 9th January, 1782, about four o'clock in the
afternoon, as Anthony Todd, Esq., Secretary to the Post-office, was
going in his carriage to his house at Walthamstow to dinner, and
another gentleman with him, he was stopt within a small distance of his
house by two highwaymen, one of whom held a pistol to the coachman's
breast, whilst the other, with a handkerchief over his face, robbed
Mr. Todd and the gentleman of their gold watches and what money they
had about them. As soon as Mr. Todd got home all his men-servants were
mounted on horses, and pursued the highwaymen; they got intelligence
of their passing Lee-bridge, and rode on to Shoreditch; but could not
learn anything farther of them.
The same evening a gentleman going along Aldermanbury, near the church,
was accosted by a man with an enquiry as to the time; on which the
gentleman pulled out his gold watch. The man immediately said, "I
must have that watch and your money, sir, so don't make a noise." The
gentleman seeing nobody near, he delivered his gold watch and four
guineas, with some silver. The thief said he was in distress, and
hoped the gentleman would not take away his life if ever he had the
opportunity.
Sunday, the 13th January, 1782, about twelve o'clock, a man was, by
force, dragged up the yard of the French-Horn Inn, High Holborn, by
some person or persons unknown, and robbed of his watch, four guineas,
and some silver; when they broke his arm and otherwise cruelly treated
him. He was found by a coachman, who took him to the hospital.
AN ARCHBISHOP WASHING THE FEET OF THE POOR.
In the _Gentleman's Magazine_, we find the following
observance:--_Thursday, April 15, 1731_.--Being Maunday-Thursday, there
was distributed at the Banquetting-house, Whitehall, to forty-eight
poor men, and forty-eight poor women (the King's age 48) boiled beef
and shoulders of mutton, and small bowls of ale, which is called
dinner; after that, large wooden platters of fish and loaves, viz.,
undress'd, one large old ling, and one large dry'd cod; twelve red
herrings, and nineteen white herrings, and four half quartern loaves;
each person had one platter of this provision: after which was
distributed to them shoes, stockings, linnen and woolen cloath, and
leathern bags, with one penny, two penny, three penny, and four penny
pieces of silver, and shillings: to each about £4 in value. His Grace
the Lord Archbishop of York, Lord High Almoner, performed the annual
ceremony of washing the feet of a certain number of poor in the Royal
Chapel, Whitehall, which was formerly done by the Kings themselves, in
imitation of our Saviour's pattern of humility, &c. James II. was the
last King who performed this in person. His doing so was thus recorded
in the _Chapel Royal Register_.--"On Maunday Thursday April 16 1685 our
gracious King James y{e} 2{d} wash'd wip'd and kiss'd the feet of 52 poor
men w{th} wonderful humility. And all the service of the Church of
England usuall on that occasion was performed, his Maty being psent all
the time."
A LUCKY FIND.
_Sunday, April 1._--A few days ago, Sir Simon Stuart, of Hartley, in
Hampshire, looking over some old writings, found on the back of one
of them a memorandum noting that 1,500 broad pieces were buried in a
certain spot in an adjoyning field. Whereupon he took a servant, and
after digging a little in the place, found the treasure in a pot, hid
there in the time of the late civil wars, by his grandfather, Sir
Nicholas Stuart.--_Gentleman's Magazine_, 1733.
HOOPS IN 1740.
[Illustration: [++] Ladies Hoops in 1740.]
The monstrous appearance of the ladies' hoops, when viewed behind, may
be seen from the following cut, copied from one of Rigaud's views.
The exceedingly small cap, at this time fashionable, and the close
up-turned hair beneath it, give an extraordinary meanness to the head,
particularly when the liberality of gown and petticoat is taken into
consideration: the lady to the left wears a black hood with an ample
fringed cape, which envelopes her shoulders, and reposes on the summit
of the hoop. The gentleman wears a small wig and bag; the skirts of his
coat are turned back, and were sometimes of a colour different from the
rest of the stuff of which it was made, as were the cuffs and lappels.
SIEGE OF GIBRALTAR.
Gibraltar had been taken by a combined English and Dutch fleet in 1704,
and was confirmed as a British possession, in 1713, by the peace of
Utrecht; but in 1779 it was assailed by the united forces of France
and Spain, and the siege continued till the 2nd of February, 1783. The
chief attack was made on the 13th September, 1782. On the part of the
besiegers, besides stupendous batteries on the land side, mounting two
hundred pieces of ordnance, there was an army of 40,000 men, under the
command of the Duc de Crillon. In the bay lay the combined fleets of
France and Spain, comprising forty-seven sail of the line, beside ten
battering ships of powerful construction, that cost upwards of £50,000
each. From these the heaviest shells rebounded, but ultimately two of
them were set on fire by red-hot shot, and the others were destroyed to
prevent them from falling into the hands of the British commander. The
rest of the fleet also suffered considerably; but the defenders escaped
with very little loss. In this engagement 8,300 rounds were fired by
the garrison, more than half of which consisted of red-hot balls.
During this memorable siege, which lasted upwards of three years, the
entire expenditure of the garrison exceeded 200,000 rounds,--8,000
barrels of powder being used. The expenditure of the enemy, enormous
as this quantity is, must have been much greater; for they frequently
fired, from their land-batteries, 4,000 rounds in the short space of
twenty-four hours. Terrific indeed must have been the spectacle as the
immense fortress poured forth its tremendous volleys, and the squadron
and land-batteries replied with a powerful cannonade. But all this
waste of human life and of property was useless on the part of the
assailants; for the place was successfully held, and Gibraltar still
remains one of the principal strongholds of British power in Europe.
[Illustration: Saint George's Hall, Gibraltar.]
During the progress of the siege, the fortifications were considerably
strengthened, and numerous galleries were excavated in the solid rock,
having port-holes at which heavy guns were mounted, which, keeping up
an incessant fire, proved very efficacious in destroying the enemy's
encampments on the land side. Communicating with the upper tier of
these galleries are two grand excavations, known as Lord Cornwallis's
and St. George's Halls. The latter, which is capable of holding several
hundred men, has numerous pieces of ordnance pointed in various
directions, ready to deal destruction on an approaching enemy.
KEEPING WHITSUNTIDE AT DURHAM CATHEDRAL.
The following curious account of the consumption of provisions in the
cathedral of Durham, during Whitsun week, in 1347, together with the
prices of the articles, is taken from the rolls of the cellarer, at
present in the treasury at Durham:--six hundred salt herrings, 3s.;
four hundred white herrings, 2s. 6d.; thirty salted salmon, 7s. 6d.;
twelve fresh salmon, 5s. 6d.; fourteen ling, fifty-five "kelengs;"
four turbot, 23s. 1d.; two horse loads of white fish, and a "congr,"
5s. 10d.; "playc," "sparlings," and eels, and fresh water fish, 2s.
9d.; nine carcases of oxen, salted, so bought, 36s.; one carcase and
a quarter, fresh, 6s. 11-3/4d.; a quarter of an oxe, fresh, bought in
the town, 3s. 6d.; seven carcases and a half of swine, in salt, 22s.
2-1/4d.; six carcases, fresh, 12s. 9d.; fourteen calves, 28s. 4d.;
three kids, and twenty-six sucking porkers, 9s. 7-1/2d.; seventy-one
geese with their feed, 11s. 10d.; fourteen capons, fifty-nine chickens,
and five dozen pidgeons, 10s. 3d.; five stones of hog's lard, 4s. 2d.;
four stones of cheese, butter, and milk, 6s. 6d.; a pottle of vinegar,
and a pottle of honey, 6-1/2d.; fourteen pounds of figs and raisins,
sixteen pounds of almonds, and eight pounds of rice, 3s. 7d.; pepper,
saffron, cinnamon, and other spices, 2s. 6d.; one thousand three
hundred eggs, 15s. 5d.--sum total, £11 4s. Similar consumptions took
place during the week of the feast of St. Cuthbert, and other feasts,
among the monks of Durham, for a long period of years.
CURIOUS LAW.
The following curious law was enacted during the reign of Richard I.
for the government of those going by sea to the Holy Land:--"He who
kills a man on shipboard, shall be bound to the dead body and thrown
into the sea; if the man is killed on shore, the slayer shall be bound
to the dead body and buried with it. He who shall draw his knife to
strike another, or who shall have drawn blood from him, to lose his
hand; if he shall have only struck with the palm of his hand without
drawing blood, he shall be thrice ducked in the sea."
DECAPITATION BY THE GUILLOTINE.
A gentleman of intelligence and literary attainments, makes, in an
account of his travels on the continent, the following most singular
remarks on an execution he witnessed, in which the culprit was beheaded
by the guillotine:--"It appears," says he, "to be the best of all
possible modes of inflicting the punishment of death; combining the
greatest impression on the spectator, with the least possible suffering
to the victim. It is so rapid, that I should doubt whether there were
any suffering; but from the expression of the countenance, when the
executioner held up the head, I am inclined to believe that sense and
consciousness may remain for a few seconds after the head is off. The
eyes seemed to retain speculation for a moment or two, and there was a
look in the ghastly stare with which they stared upon the crowd, which
implied that the head was aware of its ignominious situation."
ALDERMAN BOYDELL.
It was the regular custom of Mr. Alderman Boydell, who was a very early
riser, at five o'clock, to go immediately to the pump in Ironmonger
Lane. There, after placing his wig upon the ball at the top of it, he
used to sluice his head with its water. This well-known and highly
respected character, who has done more for the British artist than all
the print-publishers put together, was also one of the last men who
wore a three-cornered hat.
FEATS OF STRENGTH IN 1739.
April 21.--The following notice was given to the public:--"For the
benefit of Thomas Topham, the strong man, from Islington, whose
performances have been looked upon by the Royal Society and several
persons of distinction, to be the most surprising as well as curious
of any thing ever performed in England; on which account, as other
entertainments are more frequently met with than that he proposes, he
humbly hopes gentlemen and ladies, &c., will honour him with their
presence at the Nag's Head, in Gateshead, on Monday the 23d of this
instant, at four o'clock, where he intends to perform several feats of
strength, viz.:--He bends an iron poker three inches in circumference,
over his arm, and one of two inches and a quarter round his neck; he
breaks a rope that will bear two thousand weight, and with his fingers
rolls up a pewter dish of seven pounds hard metal; he lays the back
part of his head on one chair, and his heels on another, and suffering
four men to stand on his body, he moves them up and down at pleasure;
he lifts a table six feet in length, by his teeth, with a half hundred
weight hanging at the further end of it; and, lastly, to oblige the
publick, he will lift a butt full of water." "Each person to pay one
shilling." This "strong man" fell a victim to jealousy, as is proved by
the following:--"August 10th, 1749, died, Mr. Thomas Topham, known by
the name of the strong man, master of a publick house in Shoreditch,
London. In a fit of jealousy, he stabbed his wife, then cut his own
throat and stabbed himself, after which he lived two days."
ELEPHANTS FRIGHTENED AT PIGS.
"Then on a tyme there were many grete clerkes and rad of kyng
Alysaunder how on a tyme as he sholde have a batayle with ye kynge
of Inde. And this kynge of Inde broughte with hym many olyphauntes
berynge castelles of tree on theyr backes as the kynde of the is to
haue armed knyghtes in ye castell for the batayle, them ne knewe
Alysaunder the kynge, of the olyphauntes that they drad no thynge more
than the jarrynge of swyne, wherefore he made to gader to gyder all
ye swyne that myghte be goten, and caused them to be dryuen as ny the
olyphauntes as they myghte well here the jarrynge of the swyne, and
thenne they made a pygge to crye, and whan the swyne herde the pygges a
none they made a great jarrynge, and as soone as the olyphauntes herde
that, they began to fle eche one, and keste downe the castelles and
slewe the knyghtes that were in them, and by this meane Alysaunder had
ye vyctory."--_Liber Festivalis, printed by W. Caxton in_ 1483.
A VISIT TO THE OBSERVATORY OF SIR ISAAC NEWTON.
The memory of a great and good man is imperishable. A thousand years
may pass away, but the fame that has survived the wreck of time remains
unsullied, and is even brighter with age.
"The actions of the just
Smell sweet, and blossom in the dust."
In an age of progress like our own we have frequently to regret the
destruction (sometimes necessary) of places associated with the genius
of the past; but in the case of Sir Isaac Newton we have several
relics existing, none of which, perhaps, are more interesting than
the house in which he resided, still standing in St. Martin's Street,
on the south side of Leicester Square. The engravings of the interior
and exterior of this building have been made from drawings made on
the spot. The house was long occupied as an hotel for foreigners, and
was kept by a M. Pagliano. In 1814 it was devoted to the purposes of
education. The Observatory, which is at the top, and where Sir Isaac
Newton made his astronomical researches, was left in a dilapidated
condition until 1824, when two gentlemen, belonging to a committee of
the school, had it repaired at their own expense, and wrote a brief
memoir of the philosopher, which was placed in the Observatory, with a
portrait of him.
[Illustration: Interior of Sir Isaac Newton's Observatory.]
[Illustration: House of Sir Isaac Newton, St. Martin's Street,
Leicester Square.]
In this house Sir Isaac Newton resided for many years; and it was
here, according to his biographer, that he dispensed, under the
superintendence of his beautiful niece, an elegant hospitality. Our
sketch gives a good idea of the appearance of the exterior of the
house at the present day; the front, it will be seen, has been well
plastered, which, although clean and pleasant-looking to some eyes,
seems to us to destroy the character of the building. The old doorway,
with a projecting top, has also been removed. The interior of the
house is in excellent repair, and has undergone very little change.
The cornices, panelling, and the spacious staircase, are not altered
since the days of Newton. The rooms are very large. Tradition states
it was in the back drawing-room that the manuscript of his work, the
"New Theory of Light and Colours," was destroyed by fire, caused by a
favourite little dog in Sir Isaac's absence. The name of this canine
incendiary was Diamond. The manner in which the accident occurred is
thus related:--The animal was wantoning about the philosopher's study,
when it knocked down a candle, and set fire to a heap of manuscript
calculations upon which he had been employed for years. The loss was
irretrievable; but Sir Isaac only exclaimed with simplicity, "Ah,
Diamond, Diamond, you little know what mischief you have been doing!"
Passing upstairs, and looking slightly at the various rooms, which
are all well panelled, but which do not require particular notice, we
reached the little observatory shown in the engraving. There, in the
room in which Sir Isaac has quietly studied, and in which he may have
held conferences with the most distinguished of his contemporaries,
we found two shoemakers busily at work, with whom we had some
pleasant conversation. Our artist has represented the interior of
the observatory, with its laborious occupants, worthy sons of St.
Crispin. Shoemakers are well known to be a thoughtful class of men,
although sometimes they unfortunately do not make the best use of their
knowledge. Brand, the historian and author of the excellent book on
"Popular Antiquities," was at one time a shoemaker; so was Bloomfield,
the poet, who, when working at the "last" in Bell Alley, near the Bank,
strung together the charming recollection of his plough-boy life. We
could give a long list of shoemakers who have been eminent for talents.
We have not the exact date at which Newton came to reside here, but
certainly he was living in this house, at intervals, after 1695, when
he was appointed Warder of the Mint, of which establishment he rose to
be Master in the course of three years. The emoluments of this office
amounted to £1200 a-year, which enabled him to live in ease and dignity.
In 1703 he was chosen President of the Royal Society--an honourable
post, to which he was annually elected until the time of his death.
POISONING THE MONARCH.
An idea of the popular notions about poisoning in the middle of the
seventeenth century, may be formed from the following extract from an
old tract, published in 1652, with the title of "Papa Patris, or the
Pope in his Colours":--"Anno Dom: 1596; one Edward Squire, sometimes a
scrivener at Grenewich, afterwards a deputy purveyor for the Queene's
stable, in Sir Francis Drake's last voyage was taken prisoner and
carried into Spaine, and being set at liberty, one Walpole, a Jesuite,
grew acquainted with him, and got him into the Inquisition, whence
he returned a resolved Papist, he persuaded Squire to undertake to
poyson the pummell of the Queene (Elizabeth's) saddle, and, to make
him constant, made Squire receive the Sacrament upon it; he then gave
him the poyson, showing that he should take it in a double bladder,
and should prick the bladder full of hoales in the upper part, when he
should use it (carrying it within a thick glove for the safety of his
hand) should after turne it downward, pressing the bladder upon the
pummell of the Queene's saddle. This Squire confest. Squire is now in
Spaine, and for his safer dispatch into England it was devised that
two Spanish prisoners taken at Cales should be exchanged for Squire
and one Rawles, that it might not be thought that Squire came over but
as a redeemed captive. The Munday sennight after Squire returned into
England, he, understanding the horses were preparing for the Queene's
riding abroad, laid his hand, and crushed the poyson upon the pummell
of the Queene's saddle, saying, 'God save the Queene,' the Queene
rode abroad, and as it should seem laid not her hand upon the place,
or els received no hurt (through God's goodnesse) by touching it.
Walpole, counting the thing as done, imparted it to some principall
fugitives there, but being disappointed of his hope, supposing Squire
to have been false, to be revenged on him sent one hither (who should
pretend to have stolne from thence) with letters, wherein the plot of
Squires was contained; this letter was pretended to be stolne out of
one of their studies. Squire, being apprehended, confessed all without
any rigor, but after denied that he put it in execution, although he
acknowledged he consented to it in the plot, at length he confessed the
putting it in execution also."
GRINNING FOR A WAGER.
_June 9, 1786._--On Whit-Tuesday was celebrated at Hendon, in
Middlesex, a burlesque imitation of the Olympic Games. One prize was a
gold-laced hat, to be grinned for by six candidates, who were placed on
a platform, with horses' collars to exhibit through. Over their heads
was printed in capitals,--
Detur Tetriori; or
The ugliest grinner
Shall be the winner.
Each party grinned five minutes _solus_, and then all united in a
grand _chorus_ of distortion. This prize was carried by a porter to a
_vinegar_ merchant, though he was accused by his competitors of foul
play, for rinsing his mouth with _verjuice_. The whole was concluded
by a hog, with has tail shaved and soaped, being let loose among nine
peasants; any one of which that could seize him by the _queue_, and
throw him across his shoulders, was to have him for a reward. This
occasioned much sport: the animal, after running some miles, so tired
his hunters that they gave up the chase in despair. A prodigious
concourse of people attended, among whom were the Tripoline Ambassador,
and several other persons of distinction.
BITE OF THE TARANTULA SPIDER.
A Neapolitan soldier who had been bitten by a tarantula, though
apparently cured, suffered from an annual attack of delirium, after
which he used to sink into a state of profound melancholy; his face
becoming livid, his sight obscure, his power of breathing checked,
accompanied by sighs and heavings. Sometimes he fell senseless, and
devoid of pulsation; ejecting blood from his nose and mouth, and
apparently dying. Recourse was had to the influence of music; and the
patient began to revive at the sound, his hands marking the measure,
and the feet being similarly affected. Suddenly rising and laying hold
of a bystander, he began to dance with the greatest agility during
an uninterrupted course of four-and-twenty hours. His strength was
supported by administering to him wine, milk, and fresh eggs. If he
appeared to relapse, the music was repeated, on which he resumed his
dancing. This unfortunate being used to fall prostrate if the music
accidentally stopped, and imagine that the tarantula had again stung
him. After a few years he died, in one of these annual attacks of
delirium.
BYGONE CHRISTMAS CUSTOMS.
------------"Now, too, is heard
The hapless cripple, tuning through the streets
His _carol_ new; and oft, amid the gloom
Of midnight hours, prevail th' accustom'd sounds
Of wakeful _waits_, whose harmony (composed
Of hautboy, organ, violin, and flute,
And various other instruments of mirth),
Is meant to celebrate the coming time."
[Illustration: The Mummers, Or Ancient Waits.]
The manner in which this period of the year has been observed has often
varied. The observances of the day first became to be pretty general
in the Catholic church about the year 300. By some of our ancestors
it was viewed in the double light of a religious and joyful season of
festivities. The midnight preceding Christmas-day every person went
to mass, and on Christmas-day three different masses were sung with
much solemnity. Others celebrated it with great parade, splendour, and
conviviality. Business was superseded by merriment and hospitality;
the most careworn countenance brightened on the occasion. The nobles
and the barons encouraged and participated in the various sports: the
industrious labourer's cot, and the residence of proud royalty, equally
resounded with tumultuous joy. From Christmas-day to Twelfth-day there
was a continued run of entertainments. Not only did our ancestors make
great rejoicings on, but before and after Christmas-day. By a law in
the time of Alfred, the "twelve days after the nativity of our Saviour
were made festivals;"[1] and it likewise appears from Bishop Holt, that
the whole of the days were dedicated to feasting.
[1] Thus we have the origin of Twelfth-day.
Our ancestors' various amusements were conducted by a sort of master
of the ceremonies, called the "Lord of Misrule," whose duty it was to
keep order during the celebration of the different sports and pastimes.
The universities, the lord mayor and sheriffs, and all noblemen and
gentlemen, had their "lords of misrule." These "lords" were first
preached against at Cambridge by the Puritans, in the reign of James
I., as unbecoming the gravity of the university.
[Illustration: The Lord of Misrule.]
The custom of serving boars' heads at Christmas bears an ancient date,
and much ceremony and parade has been occasionally attached to it.
Henry II. "served his son (upon the young prince's coronation) at the
table as server, bringing up the _boar's head_ with trumpets before it."
The custom of strolling from street to street with musical instruments
and singing seems to have originated from a very ancient practice
which prevailed, of certain minstrels who were attached to the king's
court and other great persons, who paraded the streets, and sounded the
hour--thus acting as a sort of watchmen. Some slight remains of these
still exist, but they no longer partake of the authoritative claim
as they originally did, as the "lord mayor's music," &c. It may not,
perhaps, be generally known, that even at the present day "waits" are
regularly sworn before the "court of burgesses" at Westminster, and act
under the authority of a warrant, signed by the clerk, and sealed with
the arms of the city and liberty; in addition to which, they were bound
to provide themselves with a silver badge, also bearing the arms of
Westminster.
In the north they have their _Yule log_, or _Yuletide log_, which is
a huge log burning in the chimney corner, whilst the Yule cakes are
baked on a "girdle," (a kind of frying-pan) over the fire; little lads
and maidens assemble nightly at some neighbouring friends to hear the
goblin story, and join in "fortune-telling," or some game. There is a
part of an old song which runs thus:
"Now all our neighbours' chimneys smoke.
And _Christmas logs_ are burning;
Their ovens they with baked meate choke,
And all their spits are turning."
Among the plants usual to Christmas are the rosemary, the holly, and
the mistletoe. Gay says:
"When _rosemary_ and _bays_, the poet's crown,
Are bawled in frequent cries through all the town,
Then judge the festival of Christmas near--
Christmas, the joyous period of the year.
Now with bright _holly_ all your temples strow,
With _laurel_ green and sacred _mistletoe_."
A MERMAN.
"The wind being easterly, we had thirty fathoms of water, when at ten
o'clock in the morning a sea monster like a man appeared near our ship,
first on the larboard, where the master was, whose name is William
Lomone, who took a grappling iron to pull him up; but our captain,
named Oliver Morin, hindered him, being afraid that the monster would
drag him away into the sea. The said Lomone struck him on the back, to
make him turn about, that he might view him the better. The monster,
being struck, showed his face, having his two hands closed as if he
had expressed some anger. Afterwards he went round the ship: when he
was at the stern, he took hold of the helm with both hands, and we
were obliged to make it fast lest he should damage it. From thence he
proceeded to the starboard, swimming still as men do. When he came
to the forepart of the ship, he viewed for some time the figure that
was in our prow, which represented a beautiful woman, and then he
rose out of the water as if he had been willing to catch that figure.
All this happened in the sight of the whole crew. Afterwards he came
again to the larboard, where they presented to him a cod-fish hanging
down with a rope; he handled it without spoiling it, and then removed
the length of a cable and came again to the stern, where he took hold
of the helm a second time. At that very moment, Captain Morin got a
harping-iron ready, and took it himself to strike him with it; but
the cordage being entangled, he missed his aim, and the harping-iron
touched only the monster, who turned about, showing his face, as he
had done before. Afterwards he came again to the fore part, and viewed
again the figure in our prow. The mate called for the harping-iron; but
he was frightened, fancying that this monster was one La Commune, who
had killed himself in the ship the year before, and had been thrown
into the sea in the same passage. He was contented to push his back
with the harping-iron, and then the monster showed his face, as he had
done at other times. Afterwards he came along the board, so that one
might have given him the hand. He had the boldness to take a rope held
up by John Mazier and John Deffiete, who being willing to pluck it out
of his hands, drew him to our board; but he fell into the water and
then removed at the distance of a gun's shot. He came again immediately
near our board, and rising out of the water to the navel, we observed
that his breast was as large as that of a woman of the best plight.
He turned upon his back and appeared to be a male. Afterwards he swam
again round the ship, and then went away, and we have never seen him
since. I believe that from ten o'clock till twelve that this monster
was along our board; if the crew had not been frighted, he might have
been taken many times with the hand, being only two feet distant.
That monster is about eight feet long, his skin is brown and tawny,
without any scales, all his motions are like those of men, the eyes
of a proportionable size, a little mouth, a large and flat nose, very
white teeth, black hair, the chin covered with a mossy beard, a sort of
whiskers under the nose, the ears like those of men, fins between the
fingers of his hands and feet like those of ducks. In a word, he is a
well-shaped man. Which is certified to be true by Captain Oliver Morin,
and John Martin, pilot, and by the whole crew, consisting of two and
thirty men."--_An article from Brest, in the Memoirs of Trevoux._--This
monster was mentioned in the Gazette of Amsterdam, October 12, 1725,
where it is said it was seen in the ocean in August, same year.
A SHAVED BEAR.
At Bristol I saw a shaved monkey shown for a fairy; and a shaved
bear, in a check waistcoat and trousers, sitting in a great chair
as an Ethiopian savage. This was the most cruel fraud I ever saw.
The unnatural position of the beast, and the damnable brutality of
the woman-keeper who sat upon his knee, put her arm round his neck,
called him husband and sweet-heart, and kissed him, made it the most
disgusting spectacle I ever witnessed! Cottle was with me.--_Southey._
THE ORIGIN OF WIGS.
As for the origin of wigs, the honour of the invention is attributed
to the luxurious Sapygians in Southern Italy. The Louvain theologians,
who published a French version of the Bible, affected, however, to
discover the first mention of perukes in a passage in the fourth
chapter of Isaiah. The Vulgate has these words: "Decalvabit Dominus
verticem filiarum Sion, et Dominus crinem earum nudabit." This, the
Louvain gentlemen translated into French as follows: "Le Seigneur
déchèvelera les têtes des filles de Sion, et le Seigneur découvrira
leurs perruques;" which, done into English, implies that "The Lord will
pluck the hair from the heads of the daughters of Sion, and will expose
their periwigs."
DRESS IN 1772.
[Illustration: [++] Maccaronies.]
The year 1772 introduced a new style for gentlemen, imported by a
number of young men of fashion who had travelled into Italy, and
formed an association called the Maccaroni Club, in contradistinction
to the Beef-steak Club of London. Hence these new-fashioned dandies
were styled Maccaronies, a name that was afterwards applied to ladies
of the same genus. The accompanying cut delineates the peculiarities
of both. The hair of the gentleman was dressed in an enormous toupee,
with very large curls at the sides; while behind it was gathered and
tied up into an enormous club, or knot, that rested on the back of
the neck like a porter's knot; upon this an exceedingly small hat
was worn, which was sometimes lifted from the head with the cane,
generally very long, and decorated with extremely large silk tassels;
a full white handkerchief was tied in a large bow round the neck;
frills from the shirt-front projected from the top of the waistcoat,
which was much shortened, reaching very little below the waist, and
being without the flap-covered pockets. The coat was also short,
reaching only to the hips, fitting closely, having a small turn-over
collar as now worn; it was edged with lace or braid, or decorated
with frog-buttons, tassels, or embroidery; the breeches were tight,
of spotted or striped silk, with enormous bunches of strings at the
knee. A watch was carried in each pocket, from which hung bunches of
chains and seals: silk stockings and small shoes with little diamond
buckles completed the gentleman's dress. The ladies decorated their
heads much like the gentlemen, with a most enormous heap of hair, which
was frequently surmounted by plumes of large feathers and bunches of
flowers, until the head seemed to overbalance the body. The gown was
open in front; hoops were discarded except in full-dress; and the gown
gradually spread outward from the waist, and trailed upon the ground
behind, shewing the rich laced petticoat ornamented with flowers and
needlework; the sleeves widened to the elbow, where a succession of
ruffles and lappets, each wider than the other, hung down below the
hips.
CHRISTMAS OBSERVANCES PUT DOWN BY THE PURITANS.
During the Commonwealth, when puritanical feelings held iron sway
over the rulers of the land, and rode rampant in high places, many
strong attempts were made to put down what they were pleased to term
superstitious festivals, and amongst these was that of Christmas
Day. So determined was the Puritan party to sweep away all vestiges
of evil creeds and evil deeds, that they were resolved to make one
grand attempt upon the time-honoured season of Christmas. The Holly
and the Mistletoe-bough were to be cut up root and branch, as plants
of the Evil One. Cakes and Ale were held to be impious libations to
superstition; and the Roundheads would have none of it.
[Illustration: Proclaiming the Non-observance of Christmas.]
Accordingly, we learn that, in the year 1647, the Cromwell party
ordered throughout the principal towns and cities of the country, by
the mouth of the common crier, that Christmas Day should no longer
be observed--it being a superstitious and hurtful custom; and that
in place thereof, and the more effectually to work a change, markets
should be held on the 25th day of December.
This was attacking the people, especially the country folks, in
their most sensitive part. It was hardly to be expected that they
would quietly submit to such a bereavement; nor did they, as the
still-existing "News-letters" of those days amply testify.
THE MANNER OF WATCHMEN INTIMATING THE CLOCK AT HERRENHUTH IN GERMANY.
VIII. Past eight o'clock! O, Herrenhuth, do thou ponder;
Eight souls in Noah's ark were living yonder.
IX. 'Tis nine o'clock! ye brethren, hear it striking;
Keep hearts and houses clean, to our Saviour's liking.
X. Now, brethren, hear, the clock is ten and passing;
None rest but such as wait for Christ embracing.
XI. Eleven is past! still at this hour eleven,
The Lord is calling us from earth to heaven.
XII. Ye brethren, hear, the midnight clock is humming;
At midnight, our great Bridegroom will be coming.
I. Past one o'clock; the day breaks out of darkness:
Great Morning-star appear, and break our hardness!
II. 'Tis two! on Jesus wait this silent season,
Ye two so near related, will and reason.
III. The clock is three! the blessed Three doth merit
The best of praise, from body, soul, and spirit.
IV. 'Tis four o'clock, when three make supplication,
The Lord will be the fourth on that occasion.
V. Five is the clock! five virgins were discarded,
When five with wedding garments were rewarded.
VI. The clock is six, and I go off my station;
Now, brethren, _watch yourselves for your salvation_.
A DOG EXTINGUISHING A FIRE.
On the evening of the 21st February, 1822, the shop of Mr. Coxon,
chandler, at the Folly, Sandgate, in Newcastle, was left in charge of
his daughter, about nine years of age, and a large mastiff, which is
generally kept there as a safeguard since an attempt was made to rob
the shop. The child had on a straw bonnet lined with silk, which took
fire from coming too near the candle. She endeavoured to pull it off,
but being tied, she could not effect her purpose, and in her terror
shrieked out, on which the mastiff instantly sprang to her assistance,
and with mouth and paws completely smothered out the flame by pressing
the bonnet together. The lining of the bonnet and the child's hair only
were burnt.
CAMBRIDGE CLODS.
About sixty years since, two characters, equally singular in their way,
resided at Cambridge: Paris, a well-known bookseller, and Jackson, a
bookbinder, and principal bass-singer at Trinity College Chapel in that
University; these two gentlemen, who were both remarkably corpulent,
were such small consumers in the article of bread, that their
abstemiousness in that particular was generally noticed; but, to make
amends, they gave way to the greatest excess and indulgence of their
appetites in meat, poultry, and fish, of almost every description. So
one day, having taken an excursion, in walking a few miles from home,
they were overtaken by hunger, and, on entering a public-house, the
only provision they could procure was a clod of beef, weighing near
fourteen pounds, which had been a day or two in salt; and this these
two moderate bread consumers contrived to manage between them broiled,
assisted by a due proportion of buttered potatoes and pickles. The
landlord of the house, having some knowledge of his guests, the story
got into circulation, and the two worthies were ever after denominated
the Cambridge Clods!
WITCH-TESTING AT NEWCASTLE IN 1649.
March 26.--Mention occurs of a petition in the common council books
of Newcastle, of this date, and signed, no doubt, by the inhabitants,
concerning witches, the purport of which appears, from what followed,
to have been to cause all such persons as were suspected of that crime
to be apprehended and brought to trial. In consequence of this, the
magistrates sent two of their sergeants, viz.--Thomas Shevill and
Cuthbert Nicholson, into Scotland, to agree with a Scotchman, who
pretended knowledge to find out witches, by pricking them with pins, to
come to Newcastle, where he should try such who should be brought to
him, and to have twenty shillings a piece, for all he should condemn as
witches, and free passage thither and back again. When the sergeants
had brought the said witch-finder on horseback to town, the magistrates
sent their bellman through the town, ringing his bell and crying,
all people that would bring in any complaint against any woman for a
witch, they should be sent for, and tried by the person appointed.
Thirty women were brought into the town-hall, and stripped, and then
openly had pins thrust into their bodies, and most of them were found
guilty. The said reputed witch-finder acquainted Lieutenant-Colonel
Paul Hobson, deputy-governor of Newcastle, that he knew women whether
they were witches or no by their looks; and when the said person
was searching of a personable and good-like woman, the said colonel
replied, and said, surely this woman is none, and need not be tried,
but the Scotchman said she was, and, therefore, he would try her; and
presently, in the sight of all the people, laid her body naked to the
waist, with her cloathes over her head, by which fright and shame all
her blood contracted into one part of her body, and then he ran a pin
into her thigh, and then suddenly let her cloathes fall, and then
demanded whether she had nothing of his in her body, but did not bleed!
but she being amazed, replied little; then he put his hands up her
cloathes and pulled out the pin, and set her aside as a guilty person,
and child of the devil, and fell to try others, whom he made guilty.
Lieutenant-Colonel Hobson, perceiving the alteration of the aforesaid
woman, by her blood settling in her right parts, caused that woman to
be brought again, and her cloathes pulled up to her thigh, and required
the Scot to run the pin into the same place, and then it gushed out of
blood, and the said Scot cleared her, and said she was not a child of
the devil. The witch-finder set aside twenty-seven out of the thirty
suspected persons, and in consequence, fourteen witches and one wizard,
belonging to Newcastle, were executed on the town moor.
ALEXANDER SELKIRK AND THE DANCING GOATS.
The adventures of Alexander Selkirk, an English sailor, who, more than
one hundred and fifty years since, was left alone on the island of Juan
Fernandez are very wonderful.
This extraordinary man sought to beguile his solitude by rearing kids,
and he would often sing to them, and dance with his motley group around
him. His clothes having worn out, he dressed himself in garments made
from the skins of such as run wild about the island; these he sewed
together with thongs of the same material. His only needle was a long
slender nail; and when his knife was no longer available, he made an
admirable substitute from an iron hoop that was cast ashore.
[Illustration: [++] Alexander Selkirk.]
Upon the wonderful sojourn of this man, Defoe founded his exquisite
tale of "Robinson Crusoe," a narrative more extensively read and better
known than perhaps any other ever written.
JACOB BOBART.
A curious anecdote of Jacob Bobart, keeper of the physic garden at
Oxford, occurs in one of Grey's notes to _Hudibras_--"He made a dead
rat resemble the common picture of dragons, by altering its head and
tail, and thrusting in taper sharp sticks, which, distended the skin on
each side till it resembled wings. He let it dry as hard as possible.
The learned immediately pronounced it a dragon; and one of them sent
an accurate description of it to Dr. Magliabecchi, librarian to the
Grand Duke of Tuscany; several fine copies of verses were wrote on so
rare a subject; but at last Mr. Bobart owned the cheat. However, it was
looked upon as a masterpiece of the art; and, as such, deposited in the
Museum."
BLIND JACK.
[Illustration: [++] Blind Jack.]
The streets of London, in the reigns of Queen Anne and Georges I. and
II., were infested with all sorts of paupers, vagabonds, impostors,
and common adventurers; and many, who otherwise might be considered
real objects of charity, by their disgusting manners and general
appearance in public places, rather merited the interference of the
parish beadles, and the discipline of Bridewell, than the countenance
and encouragement of such persons as mostly congregated around common
street exhibitions. One-eyed Granny and Blind Jack were particular
nuisances to the neighbourhoods in which the first practised her
mad-drunk gambols, and the latter his beastly manner of performing on
the flageolet. John Keiling, alias _Blind Jack_, having the misfortune
to lose his sight, thought of a strange method to insure himself a
livelihood. He was constitutionally a hale, robust fellow, without
any complaint, saving blindness, and having learnt to play a little
on the flageolet, he conceived a notion that, by performing on that
instrument in a different way to that generally practised, he should
render himself more noticed by the public, and be able to levy larger
contributions on their pockets.
The manner of _Blind Jack's_ playing the flageolet was by obtruding
the mouthpiece of the instrument up one of his nostrils, and, by long
custom, he could produce as much wind as most others with their lips
into the pipe; but the continued contortion and gesticulation of his
muscles and countenance rendered him an object of derision and disgust,
as much as that of charity and commiseration.
THE YORKSHIRE TIKE.
Ah iz i truth a country youth,
Neean us'd teea Lunnon fashions;
Yet vartue guides, an' still presides,
Ower all mah steps an' passions.
Neea coortly leear, bud all sincere,
Neea bribe shall ivver blinnd me,
If thoo can like a Yorkshire tike,
A rooague thoo'll nivver finnd me.
Thof envy's tung, seea slimlee hung,
Wad lee aboot oor country,
Neea men o' t' eearth booast greter wurth,
Or mare extend ther boounty.
Oor northern breeze wi' uz agrees,
An' does for wark weel fit uz;
I' public cares, an' all affairs,
Wi' honour we acquit uz.
Seea gret a moind is ne'er confiand,
Tu onny shire or nation;
They geean meeast praise weea weel displays
A leearned iddicasion.
Whahl rancour rolls i' lahtle souls,
By shallo views dissarning,
They're nobbut wise 'at awlus prize
Gud manners, sense, and leearnin.
TWO OF THE FATHERS ON FALSE HAIR.
Tertullian says, "If you will not fling away your false hair, as
hateful to Heaven, cannot I make it hateful to yourselves, by reminding
you that the false hair you wear may have come not only from a
criminal, but from a very dirty head; perhaps from the head of one
already damned?" This was a very hard hit indeed; but it was not nearly
so clever a stroke at wigs as that dealt by Clemens of Alexandria. The
latter informed the astounded wig-wearers, when they knelt at church
to receive the blessing, that they must be good enough to recollect
that the benediction remained on the wig, and did not pass through
to the wearer! This was a stumbling-block to the people; many of
whom, however, retained the peruke, and took their chance as to the
percolating through it of the benediction.
FOOD OF ANIMALS.
Linnæus states the cow to eat 276 plants, and to refuse 218; the goat
eats 449, and declines 126; the sheep takes 387, and rejects 141;
the horse likes 262, and avoids 212; but the hog, more nice in its
provision than any of the former, eats but 72 plants, and rejects 171.
SLAVE ADVERTISEMENTS.
The following announcements are curious, as showing the merchandise
light in which the negro was regarded in America while yet a colony of
Great Britain:--
_FRANCIS LEWIS, Has for SALE_,
A Choice Parcel of Muscovado and Powder Sugars, in Hogsheads,
Tierces, and Barrels; Ravens, Duck, and a Negro Woman and Negro
Boy.--The Coach-House and Stables, with or without the Garden
Spot, formerly the Property of Joseph Murray, Esq; in the Broad
Way, to be let separately or together:--Inquire of said Francis
Lewis.
_New York Gazette_, Apr. 25, 1765.
* * * * *
This Day Run away from _John M' Comb_, Junier, an Indian Woman,
about 17 Years of Age, Pitted in the face, of a middle Stature and
Indifferent fatt, having on her a Drugat, Wastcoat, and Kersey
Petticoat, of a Light Collour. If any Person or Persons, shall
bring the said Girle to her said Master, shall be Rewarded for
their Trouble to their Content.
_American Weekly Mercury_, May 24, 1726.
* * * * *
A Female Negro Child (of an extraordinary good Breed) to be given
away; Inquire of Edes and Gill.
_Boston Gazette_, Feb. 25, 1765.
* * * * *
_To be Sold, for want of Employ._
A Likely Negro Fellow, about 25 Years of Age, he is an
extraordinary good Cook, and understands setting or tending a
Table very well, likewise all Kind of House Work, such as washing,
scouring, scrubbing, &c. Also a Negro Wench his Wife, about 17
Years old, born in this City, and understands all Sorts of House
Work. For farther Particulars inquire of the Printer.
_New York Gazette_, Mar. 21, 1765.
PRESERVATIVE POWER OF COAL-PIT WATER.
The following is extracted from the register of St. Andrew's, in
Newcastle:--"April 24th, 1695, wear buried, James Archer and his son
Stephen, who, in the moneth of May, 1658, were drowned in a coal-pit
in the Galla-Flat, by the breaking in of water from an old waste. The
bodys were found intire, after they had lyen in the water 36 years and
11 months."
THE QUEEN BEE.
Reaumur relates the following anecdote of which he was a witness:--A
queen bee, and some of her attendants, were apparently drowned in a
brook. He took them out of the water, and found that neither the queen
bee, nor her attendants were quite dead. Reaumur exposed them to a
gentle heat, by which they were revived. The plebeian bees recovered
first. The moment they saw signs of animation in their queen, they
approached her, and bestowed upon her all the care in their power,
licking and rubbing her; and when the queen had acquired sufficient
force to move, they hummed aloud, as if in triumph!
DREAM OF KING HENRY I.
A singular dream, which happened to this monarch when passing over
to Normandy in 1130, has been depicted in a manuscript of Florence
of Worcester, in Corpus Christi College, Oxford. The rapacity and
oppressive taxation of his government, and the reflection forced on
him by his own unpopular measures, may have originated the vision. He
imagined himself to have been visited by the representatives of the
three most important grades of society--the husbandmen, the knights,
and the clergy--who gathered round his bed, and so fearfully menaced
him, that he awoke in great alarm, and, seizing his sword, loudly
called for his attendants. The drawings that accompany this narrative,
and represent each of these visions, appear to have been executed
shortly afterwards, and are valuable illustrations of the general
costume of the period. One of them is introduced in this place.
[Illustration: [++] King Henry I. Dreaming.]
The king is here seen sleeping; behind him stand three husbandmen,
one carrying a scythe, another a pitchfork, and the third a shovel.
They are each dressed in simple tunics, without girdles, with plain
close-fitting sleeves; the central one has a mantle fastened by a
plain brooch, leaving the right arm free. The beards of two of these
figures are as ample as those of their lords, this being an article
of fashionable indulgence within their means. The one with the scythe
wears a hat not unlike the felt hat still worn by his descendants in
the same grade: the scroll in his left hand is merely placed there to
contain the words he is supposed to utter to the king.
SEPULCHRAL BARROW OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS.
The engraving on the next page is copied from a plate in Douglas's
_Neniæ_ and represents one of the most ancient of the Kentish barrows
opened by him in the Chatham Lines, Sept. 1779; and it will enable the
reader at once to understand the structure of these early graves, and
the interesting nature of their contents. The outer circle marks the
extent of the mound covering the body, and which varied considerably in
elevation, sometimes being but a few inches or a couple of feet from
the level of the ground, at others of a gigantic structure. In the
centre of the mound, and at the depth of a few feet from the surface,
an oblong rectangular grave is cut, the space between that and the
outer circle being filled in with chalk, broken into small bits, and
deposited carefully and firmly around and over the grave. The grave
contained the body of a male adult, tall and well-proportioned, holding
in his right hand a spear, the shaft of which was of wood, and had
perished, leaving only the iron head, 15 inches in length, and at the
bottom a flat iron stud (_a_), having, a small pin in the centre, which
would appear to have been driven into the bottom of the spear-handle;
an iron knife lay by the right side, with remains of the original
handle of wood. Adhering to its under side were very discernible
impressions of coarse linen cloth, showing that the warrior was buried
in full costume. An iron sword is on the left side, thirty-five and
a quarter inches in its entire length, from the point to the bottom
of the handle, which is all in one piece, the wood-work which covered
the handle having perished; the blade thirty inches in length and two
in breadth, flat, double-edged, and sharp-pointed, a great portion of
wood covering the blade, which indicates that it was buried with a
scabbard, the external covering being of leather, the internal of wood.
A leathern strap passed round the waist, from which hung the knife and
sword, and which was secured by the brass buckle (_b_), which was found
near the last bone of the vertebræ, or close to the os sacrum. Between
the thigh-bones lay the iron umbo of a shield, which had been fastened
by studs of iron, four of which were found near it, the face and
reverse of one being represented at (_c_.) A thin plate of iron (_d_),
four and a half inches in length, lay exactly under the centre of the
umbo, having two rivets at the end, between which and the umbo were
the remnants of the original wooden (and perhaps hide-bound) shield;
the rivets of the umbo having apparently passed through the wood to
this plate as its bracer or stay. In a recess at the feet was placed a
vase of red earth, slightly ornamented round the neck with concentric
circles and zigzag lines.
[Illustration: [++] Anglo-Saxon Sepulchral Barrow.]
AN OLD GANDER.
Willoughby states in his work on Ornithology, that a friend of his
possessed a gander eighty years of age; which in the end became so
ferocious that they were forced to kill it, in consequence of the
havock it committed in the barn-yard. He also talks of a swan three
centuries old; and several celebrated parrots are said to have attained
from one hundred to one hundred and fifty years.
EXTRAORDINARY SLEEPER.
M. Brady, Physician to Prince Charles of Lorraine, gives the following
particulars of an extraordinary sleeper:--
"A woman, named Elizabeth Alton, of a healthful strong constitution,
who had been servant to the curate of St. Guilain, near the town
of Mons, about the beginning of the year 1738, when she was about
thirty-six years of age grew extremely restless and melancholy. In
the month of August, in the same year, she fell into a sleep which
held four days, notwithstanding all possible endeavours to awake her.
At length she awoke naturally, but became more restless and uneasy
than before; for six or seven days, however, she resumed her usual
employments, until she fell asleep again, which continued eighteen
hours. From that time to the year 1753, which is fifteen years, she
fell asleep daily about three o'clock in the morning, without waking
until about eight or nine at night. In 1754 indeed her sleep returned
to the natural periods for four months, and, in 1748, a tertian ague
prevented her sleeping for three weeks. On February 20, 1755, M. Brady,
with a surgeon, went to see her. About five o'clock in the evening,
they found her pulse extremely regular; on taking hold of her arm it
was so rigid, that it was not bent without much trouble. They then
attempted to lift up her head, but her neck and back were as stiff as
her arms. He hallooed in her ear as loud as his voice could reach; he
thrust a needle into her flesh up to the bone; he put a piece of rag
to her nose flaming with spirits of wine, and let it burn some time,
yet all without being able to disturb her in the least. At length, in
about six hours and a half, her limbs began to relax; in eight hours
she turned herself in the bed, and then suddenly raised herself up,
sat down by the fire, ate heartily, and began to spin. At other times,
they whipped her till the blood came; they rubbed her back with honey,
and then exposed it to the stings of bees; they thrust nails under her
finger-nails; and it seems these triers of experiments consulted more
the gratifying their own curiosity than the recovery of the unhappy
object of the malady."
A FAT ENGLISHMAN.
Keysler, in his travels, speaks of a corpulent Englishman, who in
passing through Savoy, was obliged to make use of twelve chairmen. He
is said to have weighed five hundred and fifty pounds, or thirty-nine
stone four pounds.
A HAPPY FAMILY.
A gentleman travelling through Mecklenburg, some years since, witnessed
a singular association of incongruous animals. After dinner, the
landlord of the inn placed on the floor a large dish of soup, and gave
a loud whistle. Immediately there came into the room a mastiff, an
Angora cat, an old raven, and a remarkably large rat, with a bell about
its neck. They all four went to the dish, and, without disturbing each
other, fed together; after which the dog, cat, and rat, lay before
the fire, while the raven hopped about the room. The landlord, after
accounting for the familiarity of these animals, informed his guest
that the rat was the most useful of the four; for the noise he made had
completely freed his house from the rats and mice with which it was
before infested.
ANCIENT FIRE-ARMS IN THE TOWER OF LONDON ARMORY.
We have just now before us a drawing of an old piece of ordnance,
formed of bars of iron, strongly hooped with the same material, which
forms a striking contrast with the finely-wrought cannons which may be
seen in store at Woolwich Arsenal, and elsewhere, at the present day.
The exact date and manner of the introduction of cannon is a matter
which has caused much dispute. The earliest mention of the use of
cannon on shipboard is in Rymer's "Foedera." It is an order to Henry
Somer, Keeper of the Private Wardrobe in the Tower, to deliver to Mr.
Goveney, Treasurer to Queen Philippa, Queen of Sweeden, Denmark, and
Norway, (who was then sent by her uncle, Henry the Fourth, to her
husband, in the ship called the Queen's Hall,) the following military
stores: 11 guns, 40 petras pro gunnes, 40 tumpers, 4 torches, 1 mallet,
2 fire-pans, 40 pavys, 24 bows, 40 sheaves of arrows.
After the old cannon composed of bars of iron, hooped together, had
been some time in use, hand-cannon, a simple tube fixed on a straight
stake, was used in warfare, charged with gunpowder and an iron bullet.
This was made with trunnions and casabel precisely like the large
cannon. In course of time, the touch-hole was improved, and the barrel
cast in brass. This, fixed to a rod, had much the appearance of a large
sky-rocket. What is now called the stock was originally called the
frame of the gun.
Various improvements were from time to time made in the hand-gun,
amongst which was a pan fixed for containing the touch-powder. In rainy
weather, this became a receptacle for water; to obviate which, a small
piece of brass made to turn on a pin was placed as a cover. This done,
there was a difficulty in preserving the aim in consequence of the
liability of the eye to be diverted from the sight by the motion of the
right hand when conveying the lighted match to the priming. This was,
to a certain extent, prevented by a piece of brass being fixed to the
breech and perforated. The improved plan for holding the lighted match
for firing the hand-guns is shown in the engraving of the Buckler and
Pistol; it consists of a thin piece of metal something in shape of an S
reversed, the upper part slit to hold the match, the lower pushed up by
the hand when entended to ignite the powder.
After the invention of the hand-cannon, its use became general in a
very short space of time in most parts of the civilized world.
Philip de Comines, in his account of the battle of Morat, in 1476, says
he encountered in the confederate army 10,000 _arquebusiers_.
The arquebusiers in Hans Burgmain's plates of the "Triumph of
Maximilian the First," have suspended from their necks large powder
flasks or horns, a bullet bag on the right hip, and a sword on the
left, while they carry the matchlock in their hands.
Henry the Eighth's Walking-stick, as the Yeomen of Guard at the Tower
call it, is a short spiked mace, in the head of which are three short
guns or pistols, which may be fired at very primitive touch-holes by a
match.
The Revolver has four barrels, and although clumsy in construction, is
not very different in principles from those recently introduced.
[Illustration: 1. Henry the Eighth's Walking-stick. 2. A Revolver of
the Fifteenth century. 3. Buckler, with Pistol inserted.]
The use of the pistol inserted inside the buckler is obvious as the
latter affords protection to the person while using the former.
WIGS.
[Illustration: [++] Wigs.]
In 1772 the Maccaronies, as the exquisites of that time were called,
wore wigs similar to 1, 2, 3, with a large toupee, noticed as early as
1731, in the play of the _Modern Husband_: "I meet with nothing but a
parcel of _toupet_ coxcombs, who plaster up their brains upon their
periwigs," alluding to the pometum with which they were covered. Those
worn by the ladies in 1772 are given as 4, showing the rows of curls at
the sides. The pig-tails were worn hanging down the back, or tied up in
a knot behind, as in 5. About 1780 the hair which formed it was allowed
to stream in a long lock down the back, as in 6, and soon afterwards
was turned up in a knot behind. Towards the end of the century, the
wig, as a general and indispensable article of attire to young and old,
went out of fashion.
A FALSE FIND.
At Falmouth, some years ago, the sexton found coal in digging a grave;
he concluded it must be a mine, and ran with the news and the specimen
to the clergyman. The surgeon explained that they had stolen a French
prisoner who died, and filled his coffin with coal that the bearers
might not discover its emptiness.
BELLS.
As far back as the Anglo-Saxon times, before the conclusion of the
seventh century, bells had been in use in the churches of this country,
particularly in the monastic societies of Northumbria; and were,
therefore, in use from the first erection of parish churches among us.
Those of France and England appear to have been furnished with several
bells. In the time of Clothaire II., King of France, and in the year
610, the army of that king was frightened from the siege of the city of
Sens, by ringing the bells of St. Stephen's Church. They were sometimes
composed of iron in France; and in England, as formerly at Rome, they
were frequently made of brass. And as early as the ninth century many
were cast of a large size and deep note.
Weever, in his work on funeral monuments, says--"In the little
sanctuary at Westminster, King Edward III., erected a clochier, and
placed therein three bells, for the use of St. Stephen's Chapel. About
the biggest of them were cast in the metal these words:--
"King Edward made mee thirty thousand weight and three;
Take me down and wey mee, and more you shall find mee."
"But these bells being taken down in the reign of Henry VIII., one
wrote underneath with a coal:--
"But Henry the Eight,
Will bait me of my weight."
This last distich alludes to a fact mentioned by Stow, in his survey
of London--ward of Farringdon Within to wit--that near to St. Paul's
School stood a clochier, in which were four bells, called _Jesus'
bells_, the greatest in all England, against which Sir Miles Partridge
staked an hundred pounds, and won them of Henry VIII., at a cast of
dice.
Matthew Paris observes, that anciently the use of bells was prohibited
in time of mourning. Mabillon adds, that it was an old practice to
ring the bells for persons about to expire, to advertise the people
to pray for them--whence our passing-bell. The passing-bell, indeed,
was anciently for two purposes--one to bespeak the prayers of all good
Christians for a soul just departing; the other to drive away the evil
spirits who were supposed to stand at the bed's foot.
This dislike of spirits to bells is mentioned in the Golden Legend, by
Wynkyn de Worde. "It is said, evill spirytes that ben in the regyon
of thayre, doubte moche when they here the belles rongen; and this is
the cause why the belles ben rongen when it thondreth, and when grete
tempeste and outrages of wether happen; to the ende that the fiends and
wycked spirytes shold be abashed and flee, and cease of the movynge of
tempeste." Another author observes, that the custom of ringing bells at
the approach of thunder is of some antiquity; but that the design was
not so much to shake the air, and so dissipate the thunder, as to call
the people to church, to pray that the parish might be preserved from
the terrible effect of lightning.
Warner, in his history of Hampshire, enumerates the virtues of a bell,
by translating the lines from the "Helpe to Discourse:--
"Men's death's I tell by doleful knell;
Lightning and thunder I break asunder.
On Sabbath all to church I call;
The sleepy head I raise from bed;
The winds so fierce I doe disperse;
Men's cruel rage I doe assuage."
[Illustration: The Curfew Bell.]
Four of the bells of the ancient Abbey of Hexham were dedicated or
baptised; and although the old bells no longer exist, the legends upon
the whole six have been preserved, and a free translation given by Mr.
Wright, is as follows:--
1. Even at our earliest sound,
The light of God is spread around.
2. At the echo of my voice,
Ocean, earth and air, rejoice.
3. Blend thy mellow tones with mine,
Silver voice of Catherine!
4. Till time on ruin's lap shall nod.
John shall sound the praise of God.
5. With John in heavenly harmony,
Andrew, pour thy melody.
6. Be mine to chant Jehovah's fame,
While Maria is my name.
These epigraphs or legends on bells, are not uncommon. The Rev. W. C.
Lukis, in his notices on church bells, read at the Wilts Archæological
Meeting, gave the following instances:--
At Aldbourne, on the first bell, we read, "The gift of Jos. Pizzie and
Wm. Gwynn.
"Music and ringing we like so well,
And for that reason we gave this bell."
On the fourth bell is,--
"Humphry Symsin gave xx pound to buy this bell,
And the parish gave xx more to make this ring go well."
A not uncommon epigraph is,--
"Come when I call
To serve God all."
At Chilton Foliatt, on the tenor, is,--
"Into the church the living I call,
And to the grave I summon all.
Attend the instruction which I give,
That so you may for ever live."
At Devizes, St. Mary, on the first bell, is,--
"I am the first, altho' but small.
I will be heard above you all."
And on the second bell is,--
"I am the second in this ring,
Therefore next to thee I will sing."
Which, at Broadchalk, is thus varied:--
"I in this place am second bell,
I'll surely do my part as well."
On the third bell at Coln is,--
"Robert Forman collected the money for casting this bell
Of well-disposed people, as I do you tell."
At Bath Abbey, on the tenth bell, is,--
"All you of Bath that hear me sound,
Thank Lady Hopton's hundred pound."
On the fifth bell at Amesbury is,--
"Be strong in faith, praise God well,
Frances Countess Hertford's bell."
And, on the tenor,--
"Altho' it be unto my loss,
I hope you will consider my cost."
At Stowe, Northamptonshire, and at St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford, we
find,--
"Be it known to all that doth me see,
That Newcombe, of Leicester, made me."
At St. Michael's, Coventry, on the fourth bell, is,--
"I ring at six to let men know
When to and from their work to go."
On the seventh bell is,--
"I ring to Sermon with a lusty bome,
That all may come and none can stay at home."
On the eighth bell is--
"I am and have been called the common bell
To ring, when fire breaks out to tell."
At St. Peter's-le-Bailey, Oxford, four bells were sold towards
finishing the tower, and in 1792 a large bell was put up, with this
inscription:--
"With seven more I hope soon to be
For ages joined in harmony."
But this very reasonable wish has not yet been realized; whereas at St.
Lawrence's, Reading, when two bells were added to form a peal of ten,
on the second we find--
"By adding two our notes we'll raise,
And sound the good subscribers' praise."
The occasion of the erection of the Westminster Clock-tower, is said
to have been as follows:--A certain poor man, in an action for debt,
being fined the sum of 13s. 4d., Radulphus Ingham, Chief Justice of
the King's Bench, commiserating his case, caused the court roll to
be erased, and the fine reduced to 6s. 8d., which being soon after
discovered, Ingham was amerced in a pecuniary mulct of eight hundred
marks, which was employed in erecting the said bell-tower, in which
was placed a bell and a clock, which, striking hourly, was to remind
the judges in the hall of the offence of their brother. This bell was
originally called Edward; "but," says a writer in the "Antiquarian
Repertory," "when the Reformation caused St. Edward and his hours to
be but little regarded; as other bells were frequently called Tom, as
fancied to pronounce that name when stricken--that at Lincoln, for
instance, and that at Oxford--this also followed the fashion, of which,
to what I remember of it before it was hung up, I may add another proof
from a catch made by the late Mr. Eccles, which begins--
"'Hark, Harry, 'tis late--'tis time to be gone,
For Westminster Tom, by my faith, strikes one."
Hawkins, in his "History of Music," says,--"The practice of ringing
bells in change, or regular peals, is said to be peculiar to England:
whence Britain has been termed the _ringing island_. The custom seems
to have commenced in the time of the Saxons, and was common before the
Conquest. The ringing of bells, although a recreation chiefly of the
lower sort, is, in itself, not incurious. The tolling of a bell is
nothing more than the producing of a sound by a stroke of the clapper
against the side of the bell, the bell itself being in a pendant
position, and at rest. In ringing, the bell, by means of a wheel and
a rope, is elevated to a perpendicular; in its motion, the clapper
strikes forcibly on one side, and in its return downwards, on the
other side of the bell, producing at each stroke a sound." There are
still in London several societies of ringers. There was one called the
College Youths (bell-ringers, like post-boys, never seem to acquire old
age). Of this it is said Sir Matthew Hale, Lord Chief Justice of the
King's Bench, was, in his youthful days, a member; and in the life of
that upright judge, by Burnet, some facts are mentioned which favour
this relation. In England the practice of ringing has been reduced to
a science, and peals have been composed which bear the names of their
inventors; some of the most celebrated of these were composed about
fifty years ago by one Patrick. This man was a maker of barometers.
In the year 1684, one Abraham Rudhall, of the city of Gloucester,
brought the art of bell-founding to great perfection. His descendants
in succession have continued the business of casting bells; and by a
list published by them at Lady Day, 1774, the family, in peals and odd
bells, had cast to the amount of 3,594. The peals of St. Dunstan's
in the East, St. Bride's, London, and St. Martin's-in-the-Fields,
are among the number. The following "Articles of Ringing" are upon
the walls of the belfry in the pleasant village of Dunster, in
Somersetshire. They are dated 1787:--
"1. You that in ringing take delight,
Be pleased to draw near;
These articles you must observe,
If you mean to ring here.
"2. And first, if any overturn
A bell, as that he may,
He forthwith for that only fault
In beer shall sixpence pay.
"3. If any one shall curse or swear
When come within the door,
He then shall forfeit for that fault
As mentioned before.
"4. If any one shall wear his hat
When he is ringing here,
He straightway then shall sixpence pay
In cyder or in beer.
"5. If any one these articles
Refuseth to obey,
Let him have nine strokes of the rope,
And so depart away."
BILL OF SALE FOR A NEGRO IN 1770.
"Know all Men by these Presents, That I, Elizabeth Treat, of Boston,
in the county of Suffolk, widow, in consideration of the sum of £25
13s. 4d. to me in hand, paid before the ensealing hereof by Samuel
Breck, of Boston aforesaid, merchant, the receipt whereof I do hereby
acknowledge, have granted, bargained, and sold, and by these presents
do fully and absolutely grant, bargain, and sell unto the said Samuel
Breck, my Negro man named Harry, aged about forty years, with his
apparel, to have and to hold the said Negro man Harry, with his
apparel, unto the said Samuel Breck, his executors, administrators,
and assigns, to his and their only proper use, benefit, and behoof for
ever; And I, the said Elizabeth Treat, for myself, my heirs, executors,
and administrators, do covenant, that at the time of ensealing, and
until the delivery hereof, I am the true and lawful owner of the said
Negro man, and that he is free from all former sales, charges, and
incumbrances whatsoever, and that I will warrant and defend the said
Negro man unto the said Samuel Breck, his heirs, and assigns for ever,
against the lawful claims and demands of all persons whomsoever.
"Witness my hand and seal, this tenth day of October, Anno Domini, one
thousand seven hundred and seventy, in the tenth year of His Majesty's
reign.
"Signed, sealed, and delivered in presence of us.
"THOMAS MELVILLE.
"MARY WHITE.
"ELIZABETH TREAT."
THE AZTEC CHILDREN.
[Illustration: The Aztec Children, As Exhibited in England.]
Among the animated curiosities which are occasionally exposed to
the gaze of the wonder-loving public, we may prominently notice the
AZTEC CHILDREN--two singular Lilliputians who were recently exhibited
throughout the kingdom. Maximo and Bartolo (for by these names the two
Aztec children have been baptized) are by some medical men supposed
to be of the respective ages of twenty-two and sixteen. Professor
Owen, stated them to be ten or twelve, and seven or nine in 1853. The
height of the boy (the elder is about three feet, and the girl does
not reach quite two feet six inches). Their limbs, though slender,
are proportionate and well formed, and the general development of
their figures is remarkably graceful. The cranium is peculiar, being
narrower than that of any other races of beings known to the world;
and though the face is somewhat prominent, the features are regular
and the countenances agreeable, and, after a short acquaintance,
highly interesting. Each has a beautiful head of jet black hair, which
flows gracefully in curls. They are lively and intelligent, showing
considerable aptitude for mental training, and have already learned to
give utterance to several expressions which can be readily understood
by visitors.
Since the arrival of these prodigies from the United States, they have
been the objects of curious ethnological speculations. Dr. Latham does
not consider them as a new species of the _genus homo_. Professor Owen
regards them as instances of impeded development, and Dr. Conolly was
struck with their resemblance to idiots.
NOTICES TO TAR AND FEATHER.
The original handbills of the committee for Tarring and Feathering
subjoined, are of singular interest, as they were the earliest
emanations of the spirit that led to England's losing her American
colonies, and the consequent rise of the United States:--
_To the Delaware Pilots._
The Regard we have for your Characters, and our Desire to promote your
future Peace and Safety, are the Occasion of this Third Address to you.
In our second Letter we acquainted you, that the Tea Ship was a Three
Decker; We are now informed by good Authority, she is not a Three
Decker, but an _old black Ship_, _without a Head_, or _any Ornaments_.
The _Captain_ is a _short fat_ Fellow, and a little _obstinate_
withal.--So much the worse for him.--For, so sure as he _rides rusty_,
We shall heave him Keel out, and see that his Bottom be well fired,
scrubb'd and paid.--His Upper-Works too, will have an Overhawling--and
as it is said, he has a good deal of _Quick Work_ about him, We will
take particular Care that such Part of him undergoes a thorough
Rummaging.
We have a still _worse Account of his Owner_;--for it is said, the Ship
POLLY was bought by him on Purpose, to make a Penny of us: and that
_he_ and Captain _Ayres_ were well advised, of the Risque they would
run, in thus daring to insult and abuse us.
_Captain Ayres_ was here in the Time of the Stamp-Act, and ought to
have known our People better, than to have expected we would be so mean
as to suffer his _rotten_ TEA to be funnel'd down our Throats, with the
_Parliament's Duty_ mixed with it.
We know him well, and have calculated to a Gill and a Feather, how much
it will require to fit him for an _American Exhibition_. And we hope,
not one of your Body will behave so ill, as to oblige us to clap him in
the Cart along Side of the _Captain_.
We must repeat, that the SHIP POLLY is an _old black Ship_, of about
Two Hundred and Fifty Tons burthen, _without a Head_, and _without
Ornaments_,--and, that CAPTAIN AYRES is a _thick chunky Fellow_.--As
such, TAKE CARE TO AVOID THEM.
Your Old Friends,
THE COMMITTEE FOR TARRING AND FEATHERING.
_Philadelphia, December 7, 1773._
_To Capt. Ayres, of the Ship Polly, on a Voyage from London to
Philadelphia._
SIR,
We are informed that you have, imprudently, taken Charge of a Quantity
of Tea; which has been sent out by the _India_ Company, _under the
Auspices of the Ministry_, as a Trial of _American_ Virtue and
Resolution.
Now, as your Cargo, on your Arrival here, will most assuredly bring you
into hot water; and as you are perhaps a Stranger _to these Parts_,
we have concluded to advise you of the present Situation of Affairs
in _Philadelphia_--that, taking Time by the Forelock, you may stop
short in your dangerous Errand--secure your Ship against the Rafts of
combustible Matter which may be set on Fire, and turned loose against
her: and more than all this, that you may preserve your own Person,
from the Pitch and Feathers that are prepared for you.
In the first Place, we must tell you, that the _Pennsylvanians_
are, _to a Man_, passionately fond of Freedom; the Birthright of
_Americans_; and at all Events are determined to enjoy it.
That they sincerely believe, no Power on the Face of the Earth has a
Right to tax them without their Consent.
That in their Opinion, the Tea in your Custody is designed by the
Ministry to enforce such a Tax, which they will undoubtedly oppose; and
in so doing, give you every possible Obstruction.
We are nominated to a very disagreeable, but necessary Service.--To our
Care are committed all Offenders against the Rights of _America_; and
hapless is he, whose evil Destiny has doomed him to suffer at our Hands.
You are sent out on a diabolical Service; and if you are so foolish and
obstinate as to compleat your Voyage; by bringing your Ship to Anchor
in this Port; you may run such a Gauntlet, as will induce you, in your
last Moments, most heartily to curse those who have made you the Dupe
of their Avarice and Ambition.
What think you Captain, of a Halter around your Neck--ten Gallons of
liquid Tar decanted on your Pate--with the Feathers of a dozen wild
Geese laid over that to enliven your Appearance?
Only think seriously of this--and fly to the Place from whence you
came--fly without Hesitation--without the Formality of a Protest--and
above all, Captain _Ayres_ let us advise you to fly without the wild
Geese Feathers.
Your Friends _to serve_
THE COMMITTEE _as before subscribed_.
_Philadelphia, Nov. 27, 1773._
B. FRANKLIN'S CELEBRATED LETTER TO STRAHAN.
As a sequel to the foregoing notices, we give Dr. Franklin's celebrated
letter, written in the actual heat of the first outbreak.
Philadelphia, July 5, 1775.
Mr. STRAHAN,--You are a member of Parliament, and one of that majority
which has doomed my country to destruction. You have begun to burn our
towns, and murder our people. Look upon your hands! They are stained
with the blood of your relations! You and I were long friends; you are
now my enemy, and
I am, yours,
B. FRANKLIN.
HENRY II. STRIPT WHEN DEAD.
1189. Immediately upon his death, those that were about him applied
their market so busilie in catching and filching awaie things that
laie readie for them, that the king's corps laie naked a long time,
till a child covered the nether parts of his body with a short cloke,
and then it seemed that his surname was fulfilled that he had from his
childhood, which was Shortmantell, being so called, because he was the
first who brought short clokes out of Anjou into England.
TRANSPLANTATION OF HAIR.
The Signor Dottore Domenico Nardo addressed a letter to the Academy of
Padua, in 1826, on the subject of the growth of hair after death, and
even after its separation from the body. The latter property had been
previously observed by Krafft. The Signor Nardo recounts the results of
experiments made on his own person in the transplantation of hair, and
relates, that by transplanting quickly a hair, with its root, from a
pore of his head, into a pore of his chest, easily to be accomplished
by widening the pore somewhat with the point of a needle, introducing
the root with nicety, and exciting within the pore itself, by friction,
a slight degree of inflammation, the hair takes root, continues to
vegetate, and grows; in due season changes colour, becomes white, and
falls.
ANCIENT CANNON RAISED FROM THE SEA.
A fisherman of Calais some time since, drew up a cannon, of very
ancient form, from the bottom of the sea, by means of his nets. M. de
Rheims has since removed the rust from it, and on taking off the breech
was much surprised to find the piece still charged. Specimens of the
powder have been taken, from which, of course, all the saltpetre has
disappeared after a submersion of three centuries. The ball was of
lead, and was not oxidized to a depth greater than that of a line.
COFFEE-HOUSE ATTRACTIONS IN 1760.
The great attraction of Don Saltero's Coffee-house was its collection
of rarities, a catalogue of which was published as a guide to the
visitors. It comprehends almost every description of curiosity, natural
and artificial. "Tigers' tusks; the Pope's candle; the skeleton of
a Guinea-pig; a fly-cap monkey; a piece of the true Cross; the Four
Evangelists' heads cut on a cherry-stone; the King of Morocco's
tobacco-pipe; Mary Queen of Scot's pincushion; Queen Elizabeth's
prayer-book; a pair of Nun's stockings; Job's ears, which grew on a
tree; a frog in a tobacco-stopper;" and five hundred more odd relics!
The Don had a rival, as appears by "A Catalogue of the Rarities to be
seen at Adams's, at the Royal Swan, in Kingsland Road, leading from
Shoreditch Church, 1756." Mr. Adams exhibited, for the entertainment
of the curious, "Miss Jenny Cameron's shoes; Adam's eldest daughter's
hat; the heart of the famous Bess Adams, that was hanged at Tyburn with
Lawyer Carr, January 18, 1736-7; Sir Walter Raleigh's tobacco-pipe;
Vicar of Bray's clogs; engine to shell green pease with; teeth that
grew in a fish's belly; Black Jack's ribs; the very comb that Abraham
combed his son Isaac and Jacob's head with; Wat Tyler's spurs; rope
that cured Captain Lowry of the head-ach, ear-ach, tooth-ach and
belly-ach; Adam's key of the fore and back door of the Garden of Eden,
&c., &c." These are only a few out of five hundred others equally
marvellous.
A WOMAN TAKES THE LIGHTED MATCH FROM A BOMB.
During the siege of Gibraltar, in 1782, the Count d'Artois came
to St. Roch, to visit the place and works. While his highness was
inspecting the lines, in company with the Duke de Crillon, they both
alighted with their suite, and all lay flat upon the ground, to avoid
the effects of a bomb that fell near a part of the barracks where a
Frenchwoman had a canteen. This woman, who had two children in her arms
at the time, rushed forth with them, and having seated herself, with
the utmost _sang-froid_, on the bomb-shell, she put out the match,
thus extricating from danger all that were around her, many of whom
witnessed this courageous and devoted act. His highness rewarded this
intrepid female by bestowing on her a pension of three francs a day,
and engaged to promote her husband after the siege; while the Duke de
Crillon, imitating the generous example of the prince, ensured to her
likewise a daily payment of five francs.
THE SUMMERS MAGNET, OR LOADSTONE.
[Illustration: [++] Summers Magnet.]
Among the great naval officers of Elizabeth's reign must be ranked
Sir George Summers, the discoverer of the Bermudas, often called the
Summers Islands from that circumstance. Here is a representation given
of what the descendants of Sir George Summers call the "Summers magnet,
or loadstone." It is in the possession of Peter Franklin Bellamy, Esq.,
surgeon, second son of Dr. Bellamy, of Plymouth. The tradition in the
family is that the admiral before going to sea used to touch his needle
with it. The stone is dark-coloured, the precise geological formation
doubtful. This curious stone, with armature of iron, was probably an
ancient talisman.
SWALLOWING LIZARDS.
Bertholin, the learned Swedish doctor, relates strange anecdotes of
lizards, toads, and frogs; stating that a woman, thirty years of age,
being thirsty, drank plentifully of water at a pond. At the end of a
few months, she experienced singular movements in her stomach, as if
something were crawling up and down; and alarmed by the sensation,
consulted a medical man, who prescribed a dose of orvietan in a
decoction of fumitory. Shortly afterwards, the irritation of the
stomach increasing, she vomited three toads and two young lizards,
after which, she became more at ease. In the spring following, however,
her irritation of the stomach was renewed; and aloes and bezoar being
administered, she vomited three female frogs, followed the next day by
their numerous progeny. In the month of January following, she vomited
five more living frogs, and in the course of seven years ejected as
many as eighty. Dr. Bertholin protests that he heard them croak in her
stomach!
IMMENSE SEA SERPENT.
A species of sea-serpent was thrown on shore near Bombay in 1819. It
was about forty feet long, and must have weighed many tons. A violent
gale of wind threw it high above the reach of ordinary tides, in which
situation it took nine months to rot; during which process travellers
were obliged to change the direction of the road for nearly a quarter
of a mile, to avoid the offensive effluvia. It rotted so completely
that not a vestige of bone remained.
THE ROYAL TOUCH.
For many ages one of the regal prerogatives in this country was to
touch for the cure of _regius morbus_, or scrofula; a disease too
well known to need any description. At different periods hundreds of
persons assembled from all parts of the country annually to receive
the royal interposition. Lists of the afflicted were published, to
afford a criterion for determining as to its success; and from Edward
the Confessor to the reign of Queen Anne, its efficacy appears to have
obtained a ready and general belief.
The ceremony was announced by public proclamations; one of which we
copy from "The Newes," of the 18th of May, 1664. "His Sacred Majesty"
(Charles II.) "having declared it to be his royal will and purpose to
continue the healing of his people for the Evil during the month of
May, and then to give over until Michaelmas next, I am commanded to
give notice thereof, that the people may not come up to town in the
interim, and lose their labour."
An extract from the "Mercurius Politicus" affords additional
information. "Saturday," says that paper, "being appointed by His
Majesty to touch such as were troubled with the Evil, a great company
of poor afflicted creatures were met together, many brought in chairs
and flaskets, and being appointed by His Majesty to repair to the
banqueting-house, His Majesty sat in a chair of state, where he stroked
all that were brought unto him, and then put about each of their necks
a white ribbon, with an angel of gold on it. In this manner His Majesty
stroked above six hundred; and such was his princely patience and
tenderness to the poor afflicted creatures, that, though it took up
a very long time, His Majesty, who is never weary of well-doing, was
pleased to make inquiry whether there were any more who had not yet
been touched. After prayers were ended, the Duke of Buckingham brought
a towel, and the Earl of Pembroke a basin and ewer, who, after they
had made obeisance to His Majesty, kneeled down, till His Majesty had
washed."
This sovereign is said to have touched nearly one hundred thousand
patients.
With Queen Anne the practice was discontinued. But so late as the
28th of February, 1712, little more than two years before her death,
the following proclamation appeared in the "Gazette":--"It being Her
Majesty's royal intention to touch for the Evil on Wednesday, the
19th of March next, and so to continue weekly during Lent, it is Her
Majesty's command that tickets be delivered the day before at the
office in Whitehall; and that all persons shall bring a certificate
signed by the Minister and Churchwardens of their respective parishes,
that they have never received the royal touch." Dr. Johnson, when
an infant, was brought, with others, for this purpose; "and when
questioned upon the subject, confessed he had a faint recollection of
an old lady with something black about her head."
A religious service, of which Dr. Heylin, Prebendary of Westminster, in
his "Examen Historicum," has given us the particulars, accompanied the
ceremony; which, as a document of pious interest, we transcribe:--"The
first Gospel is the same as that on the Ascension-day, Mark xvi. 14,
to the end. At the touching of every infirm person these words are
repeated: 'They shall lay their hands on the sick, and they shall
recover.' The second Gospel begins with the first of St. John, and ends
a these words: (John i. 14:) 'Full of grace and truth.' At the putting
the angel about their necks were repeated, 'That light was the true
light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.'
"'Lord, have mercy upon us.'
"'Christ have mercy upon us.'
"'Lord have mercy upon us. Our Father, &c.'
"'_Minister._--O Lord, save thy servants:'
"'_Response._--Which put their trust in thee.'
"'_M._--Send unto them help from above:'
"'_R._--And ever more defend them.'
"'_M._--Help us, O God, our Saviour!'
"'_R._--And for the glory of thy name sake deliver us: be merciful unto
us, sinners, for thy name sake!'
"'_M._--O Lord, hear our prayer:'
"'_R._--And let our cry come unto thee.'
"'_The Collect._--Almighty God, the eternal health of all such as
put their trust in thee, hear us, we beseech thee, on the behalf of
these thy servants, for whom we call for thy merciful help; that they
receiving health, may give thanks unto thee in thy holy Church, through
Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen.'
"'The peace of God,' &c."
PEG TANKARDS.
The pegging, or marking the drinking cups, was introduced by St.
Dunstan, to check the intemperate habits of the times, by preventing
one man from taking a larger draught than his companions. But the
device proved the means of increasing the evil it was intended to
remedy; for, refining upon Dunstan's plan, the most abstemious were
required to drink precisely to a peg or pin, whether they could soberly
take such a quantity of liquor or not. To the use of such cups may be
traced the origin of many of our popular phrases. When a person is much
elated, we still say, "He is in a merry pin;" and, "He is a peg too
low," when he is not in good spirits. On the same principle we talk of
"taking a man down a peg," when we would check forwardness.
NORMAN CAPS.
There is nothing more amusing to the traveller on the continent, than
to observe the extraordinary variety of those head-appendages, many
of them heirlooms for generations in some families, all more or less
prized according to the richness of materials employed upon them, and
the peculiarity of shape. There is no article of dress more important
to the _Normande_, whatever may be her means, than the cap which so
jauntily and triumphantly asserts the dignity of the wearer. The
wives of fermières who can afford such luxuries as expensive lace and
trimmings, spend a little income in the decoration of their caps.
Many cost upwards of three thousand francs for the materials and
manufacture; and these, as we have before observed, are handed from
mother to daughter through successive years, and are highly prized.
[Illustration: [++] Norman Caps.]
In the primitive villages of Normandy, on some holidays, it is a
pleasing sight to see the dense army of caps, with flaps fanning the
air, and following the gesticulatory movements of their talkative and
volatile owners. When the weather is doubtful, the cap-wearers take
care to be provided with a red umbrella of a clumsy construction,
remarkably heavy, and somewhat similar, perhaps, to the original with
which Jonas Hanway braved the jeers of a London populace in first
introducing it.
NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN WAR DESPATCH.
The following is a _facsimile_ of a gazette of a tribe of North
American Indians, who assisted the French forces in Canada, during the
war between France and England:--
[Illustration: [++] Gazette of North American Indians.]
_Explanation of the Gazette, giving an account of one of their
expeditions. The following divisions explain those on the plate, as
referred to by the numbers_:--
1. Each of these figures represents the number ten. They all signify,
that 18 times 10, or 180 American Indians, took up the hatchet, or
declared war, in favour of the French, which is represented by the
hatchet placed over the arms of France.
2. They departed from Montreal--represented by the bird just taking
wing from the top of a mountain. The moon and the buck show the time to
have been in the first quarter of the buck-moon, answering to July.
3. They went by water--signified by the canoe. The number of huts, such
as they raise to pass the night in, shows they were 21 days on their
passage.
4. Then they came on shore, and travelled seven days by
land--represented by the foot and the seven huts.
5. When they arrived near the habitations of their enemies, at
sunrise--shown by the sun being to the eastward of them, beginning,
as they think, its daily course, there they lay in wait three
days--represented by the hand pointing, and the three huts.
6. After which, they surprised their enemies, in number 12 times 10, or
120. The man asleep shows how they surprised them, and the hole in the
top of the building is supposed to signify that they broke into some of
their habitations in that manner.
7. They killed with the club eleven of their enemies, and took five
prisoners. The former represented by the club and the eleven heads, the
latter by the figures on the little pedestals.
8. They lost nine of their own men in the action--represented by the
nine heads within the bow, which is the emblem of honour among the
Americans, but had none taken prisoners--a circumstance they lay great
weight on, shown by all the pedestals being empty.
9. The heads of the arrows, pointing opposite ways, represent the
battle.
10. The heads of the arrows all pointing the same way, signify the
flight of the enemy.
RECEIPTS FROM ALBERTUS MAGNUS.
_If thou wylt make a Carbuckle stone, or a thyng shyning in the
nyght._--Take verye many of the lyttle beastes shyninge by nyghte, and
put them beaten smale in a bottel of glasse, and close it, and burye
it in hoate horses doung, and let it tarye xv dayes, afterwarde thou
shalte destyll water of them Peralembicum, which thou shalt put in a
vessel of Christal or glasse. It giueth so great clearnesse, that euery
man may reade and write in a darke place where it is. Some men make
this water of the gall of a snale, the gal of a wesel, the gall of a
feret, and of a water dogge: they burie them in doung and destyll water
out of them.
_If thou wylt see that other men can not see._--Take the gall of a male
cat, and the fat of a hen all whyte, and mixe them together, and anoint
thy eyes, and thou shalt see it that others cannot see.
If the hart, eye, or brayne of a lapwyng or blacke plover be hanged
vpon a mans necke it is profitable agaynste forgetfulnesse, and
sharpeth mans vnderstanding.--"_Albertus Magnus._" _Black Letter: very
old._
ADVERTISEMENT OF ROAST PIG IN 1726.
"On Tuesday next, being Shrove Tuesday, there will be a fine _hog
barbyqu'd_ whole, at the house of Peter Brett, at the Rising Sun, in
Islington Road, with other diversions.--_Note._ It is the house where
the ox was roasted whole at Christmas last."
A hog barbecu'd is a West Indian term, and means a hog roasted whole,
stuffed with spice, and basted with Madeira wine. Oldfield, an eminent
glutton of former days, gormandised away a fortune of fifteen hundred
pounds a-year. Pope thus alludes to him,--
"Oldfield, with more than harpy throat endu'd,
Cries, 'Send me, O, gods, a whole hog _barbecu'd!_'"
DYING OF OLD AGE AT SEVENTEEN YEARS.
March 19th, 1754, died, in Glamorganshire, of mere old age and a
gradual decay of nature, at seventeen years and two months, Hopkins
Hopkins, the little Welchman lately shown in London. He never weighed
more than seventeen pounds, but for three years past no more than
twelve. The parents have still six children left, all of whom no way
differ from other children, except one girl of twelve years of age, who
weighs only eighteen pounds, and bears upon her most of the marks of
old age, and in all respects resembles her brother when at that age.
"WE HAE BEEN."
In Ayrshire there is a tradition, that the family motto of De
Bruce--"We have been," originated from a lady named Fullarton, married
to a cadet of the family of Cassilis. They had been gained to favour
England during the chivalrous achievements of Wallace, and still
continued zealous partisans of Edward. Before Bruce avowed his purpose
to emancipate his country, he came, disguised as a palmer, to acquaint
himself how far he could rely on aid from the people. A storm compelled
him, and a few faithful adherents, to take shelter on the coast of
Ayrshire. Extreme darkness, and the turbulence of the billows, deprived
them of all knowledge where they landed; and as, in those unhappy
times, the appearance of a few strangers would create alarm, the chiefs
dispersed in different directions. Bruce chanced to go into the house
of Mr. Kennedy, where the servants treated him with great reverence.
The lady had gone to bed, and the prince wished they would not disturb
her, but permit him to sit by the fire till day; however, one damsel
had given her immediate notice of the visitor. He was ushered into her
presence. She eyed him with scrutinizing earnestness. "We hae been--we
hae been fause," said she, in the Scottish dialect, "but a royal ee
takes me back to haly loyalty. I seid ye, mes royal de Bruce, I ken
ye weel. We hae been baith untrue to Scotland, but rest ye safe: and
albiet a' that's gane, Meg Fullarton wad dee in your cause."
ORIGIN OF THE PENNY POST.
The penny-post was devised in 1683, by one Mr. David Murray, an
upholder in Paternoster Row. It soon became an object of attention to
Government; but so low were its profits that one Dockwra, who succeeded
Murray, had a pension of only £200 a year given him in lieu of it. This
occurred in 1716.
A RAFFLE IN 1725.
May 8. The following copy of an advertisement, in the _Newcastle
Courant_ of this date, may be considered curious:--"On Friday in the
race week, being the 28th of May, at the Assembly House, in Westgate,
will be raffled for, 12 fine Fans, the highest three guineas, the worst
5s., at half a Crown per Ticket. Note: the lowest throw is to have the
second best Fan, value £3, the other according to the height of the
numbers which shall be thrown. There will be an assembly after for
those who raffle."
A VISIT TO THE RESIDENCE OF DR. JOHNSON, IN INNER TEMPLE LANE, LONDON.
In one of the dreary, old-fashioned houses leading from the arched
entrance to the Temple, which almost every passenger through Temple
Bar must have remarked, whether he is a stranger, or a resident in the
metropolis, Dr. Johnson, who occupies one of the most distinguished
positions in the literature of our country, resided for several years.
[Illustration: Dr. Johnson's Residence in Inner Temple Lane.]
It was in this place that Dr. Johnson became acquainted with his future
biographer, Boswell, who thus describes their first meeting:--
"A few days afterwards I called on Davies, and asked him if he thought
I might take the liberty of waiting on Mr. Johnson at his chambers
in the Temple. He said I certainly might, and that Mr. Johnson would
take it as a compliment. His chambers were on the first floor of No.
1, Inner Temple Lane, and I entered them with an impression given me
by the Rev. Dr. Blair, of Edinburgh, who described his having found
the giant in his den. He received me very courteously; but it must be
confessed, that his apartment, and furniture, and morning dress, were
sufficiently uncouth. His brown suit of clothes looked very rusty; he
had on a little, old, shrivelled, unpowdered wig, which was too small
for his head; his shirt neck and knees of his breeches were loose, his
black worsted stockings ill drawn up, and he had a pair of unbuckled
shoes by way of slippers;--but all these slovenly particulars were
forgotten the moment he began to talk."
The "den" in which the "giant" lived, the staircase leading to it, and
indeed the whole appearance of the locality, has recently undergone
demolition, and its interesting features knocked down to the highest
bidder, to be, let us hope, preserved in some museum or other place of
safety.
[Illustration: Old Staircase in the Residence of Dr. Johnson.]
Dr. Johnson resided at various times in Holborn, the Strand, and other
places, and died, as it is well known, in No. 8, Bolt Court, Fleet
Street, in 1784. His remains were placed in a grave under the statue
of Shakspere, in Westminster Abbey, and near the resting-place of his
friend and companion, David Garrick.
ORIGIN OF THE STUFF BALL AT LINCOLN.
During the want of employment in the manufactories in 1801, Mrs.
Chaplain, of Blankney, in Lincolnshire, formed a patriotic institution
for the encouragement of the local trade of the district. A ball was
given at Lincoln for the benefit of the stuff manufactory, at which
ladies were admitted gratis, on their appearance in a stuff gown and
petticoat, spun, wove, and finished within the county, and producing a
ticket signed by the weaver and dyer at Louth, one of which tickets
was delivered with every twelve yards of stuff. The gentlemen were
required to appear without silk or cotton in their dress, stockings
excepted. The impulse thus given to trade, was of the most signal
service in relieving distress, and at the same time promoting habits of
industry.
STEVENS'S SPECIFIC.
In the reign of Charles II., Dr. Jonathan Goddard obtained 5,000_l._
for disclosing his secret for making a medicine, called "_Guttæ
Anglicanæ_." And in 1739, the Parliament of England voted 5,000_l._ to
Mrs. Stevens for a solvent for stone.
The celebrated David Hartley was very instrumental in procuring this
grant to Joanna Stevens. He obtained also a private subscription to the
amount of £1,356, published one hundred and fifty-five _successful_
cases, and, by way of climax to the whole, after eating _two hundred
pounds weight_ of soap! David himself died of the stone.
AN IMPOSTOR.
From the Testament of Jerome Sharp, printed in 1786:--"I entered,"
says the narrator, "with one of my friends, and found a man resembling
an ourang-outang crouched upon a stool in the manner of a tailor. His
complexion announced a distant climate, and his keeper stated that he
found him in the island of Molucca. His body was bare to the hips,
having a chain round the waist, seven or eight feet long, which was
fastened to a pillar, and permitted him to circulate out of the reach
of the spectators. His looks and gesticulations were frightful. His
jaws never ceased snapping, except when sending forth discordant cries,
which were said to be indicative of hunger. He swallowed flints when
thrown to him, but preferred raw meat, which he rushed behind his
pillar to devour. He groaned fearfully during his repast, and continued
groaning until fully satiated. When unable to procure more meat, he
would swallow stones with frightful avidity; which, upon examination
of those which he accidentally dropped, proved to be partly dissolved
by the acrid quality of his saliva. In jumping about, the undigested
stones were heard rattling in his stomach."
The men of science quickly set to work to account for these feats,
so completely at variance with the laws of nature. Before they had
hit upon a theory, the pretended Molucca savage was discovered to
be a peasant from the neighbourhood of Besançon, who chose to turn
to account his natural deformities. When staining his face for the
purpose, in the dread of hurting his eyes, he left the eyelids
unstained, which completely puzzled the naturalists. By a clever
sleight of hand, the raw meat was left behind the pillar, and cooked
meat substituted in its place. Some asserted his passion for eating
behind the pillar to be a proof of his savage origin; most polite
persons, and more especially kings, being addicted to feeding in
public. The stones swallowed by the pretended savage were taken from
a vessel left purposely in the room full of them; small round stones,
encrusted with plaster, which afterwards gave them the appearance of
having been masticated in the mouth. Before the discovery of all this,
the impostor had contrived to reap a plentiful harvest.
PERUVIAN BARK.
In 1693, the Emperor Kanghi (then in the thirty-second year of his
reign, and fortieth of his age) had a malignant fever, which resisted
the remedies given by his physicians; the emperor recollected that
Tchang-tchin, (Father Gerbillon), and Pe-tsin, (Father Bouret) two
jesuit missionaries, had extolled to him a remedy for intermittents,
brought from Europe, and to which they had given the name of chin-yo
(two Chinese words, which signify "_divine remedies_;") and he proposed
to try it, but the physicians opposed it. The emperor, however, without
their knowledge took it, and with good effect. Sometime afterwards,
he experienced afresh several fits of an intermittent, which, though
slight, made him uneasy; this led him to proclaim through the city,
that any person possessed of a specific for this sort of fever, should
apply without delay at the palace, where patients might also apply to
get cured. Some of the great officers of his household were charged
to receive such remedies as might be offered, and to administer them
to the patients. The Europeans, Tchang-tching, (Gerbillon) Hang-jo,
(Father de Fontenay, jesuit) and Pe-tsin, (Bouret) presented themselves
among others, with a certain quantity of quinquina, offered it to the
grandees, and instructed them in the manner of using it. The next
day it was tried on several patients, who were kept in sight, and
were cured by it. The officers, or grandees who had been appointed
to superintend the experiment, gave an account to the Emperor of the
astonishing effect of the remedy, and the monarch decided instantly on
trying it himself, provided the hereditary prince gave his consent.
The prince, however, not only refused, but was angry with the grandees
for having spoken so favourably of a remedy, of which only one
successful trial had been made; at last, after much persuasion, the
Prince reluctantly grants his consent, and the emperor takes the bark
without hesitation, and permanently recovers. A house is given by the
emperor to the Europeans, who had made known the remedy, and through
the means of Pe-tsin (Father Bouret) presents were conveyed to the King
of France, accompanied with the information, that the Europeans (that
is, the French jesuits) were in high favour.--_Histoire Generale de la
Chine, &c._ tome xi. p. 168, 4to. Paris, 1780.
WHITE CATS.
In a number of "Loudon Gardener's Magazine," it is stated that white
cats with blue eyes are always deaf, of which extraordinary fact there
is the following confirmation in the "Magazine of Natural History," No.
2, likewise conducted by Mr. Loudon:--Some years ago, a white cat of
the Persian kind (probably not a thorough-bred one), procured from Lord
Dudley's at Hindley, was kept in a family as a favourite. The animal
was a female, quite white, and perfectly deaf. She produced, at various
times, many litters of kittens, of which, generally, some were quite
white, others more or less mottled, tabby, &c. But the extraordinary
circumstance is, that of the offspring produced at one and the same
birth, such as, like the mother, were entirely white, were, like her,
invariably deaf; while those that had the least speck of colour on
their fur, as invariably possessed the usual faculty of hearing.
A WOMAN DEFENDS A FORT SINGLY.
Lord Kames in his "Sketches of the History of Man," relates an
extraordinary instance of presence of mind united with courage.
Some Iroquois in the year 1690, attacked the fort de Verchères, in
Canada, which belonged to the French, and had approached silently,
hoping to scale the palisade, when some musket-shot forced them to
retire: on their advancing a second time they were again repulsed, in
wonder and amazement that they could perceive no person, excepting
a woman who was seen everywhere. This was Madame de Verchères, who
conducted herself with as much resolution and courage as if supported
by a numerous garrison. The idea of storming a place wholly undefended,
except by women, occasioned the Iroquois to attack the fortress
repeatedly, but, after two days' siege, they found it necessary to
retire, lest they should be intercepted in their retreat.
Two years afterwards, a party of the same nation so unexpectedly made
their appearance before the same fort, that a girl of fourteen, the
daughter of the proprietor, had but just time to shut the gate. With
this young woman there was no person whatever except one soldier, but
not at all intimidated by her situation, she showed herself sometimes
in one place, sometimes in another, frequently changing her dress,
in order to give some appearance of a garrison, and always fired
opportunely. In short, the faint-hearted Iroquois once more departed
without success. Thus the presence of mind of this young girl was the
means of saving the fort.
INDENTURE OF A HORSE-RACE BETWIXT THE EARLS OF MORTON AND ABERCORN AND
THE LORD BOYDE.
As indicating the state of the English language amongst the nobility of
Scotland in 1621, the following is curious:--
"_Ane Indentour of ane Horse-raise betuix my Lords Mortoun, Abercorne,
and Boyde._--The erle of Mortoun obleissis himselff to produce George
Rutherfuirdis Barb Naig: The erle of Abercorne obleissis him to produce
his gray Naig: My lord Boyd obleissis him to produce his bay horse;
Upone the conditions following. Thay ar to run the first Thursday
November nixtocum, thrie mett myleis of Cowper raise in Fyff. The
waidger to be for euery horse ten dowbill Anegellis. The foirmest horse
to win the hail thretty. Ilk rydare to be aucht scottis stanewecht.
And the pairtie not comperaud, or refuisand to consigne the waidger,
sall undergo the foirfaltour of this sowme, and that money foirfaltit
salbe additt to the staik to be tane away be the wynner. Forder, we
declair it to be lesum to ony gentilman to produce ane horse and the
lyk waidger, and thay salbe welcum. Subscrybith with all our handis, at
Hammiltoune the fyfteine day off August 1621. MORTON, ABERCORNE, BOYDE."
EARLY USE OF CHOCOLATE.
An advertisement in "The Public Adviser," from Tuesday, June 16th, to
Tuesday, June 23d, 1657, informs us that "in Bishopsgate-street, in
Queen's-head-alley, at a Frenchman's House, is an excellent West India
drink, called _Chocolate_, to be sold, where you may have it ready at
any time, and also unmade, at reasonable rates."
MATTHEW BUCKINGER.
[Illustration: [++] Matthew Buckinger.]
Of all the imperfect beings brought into the world, few can challenge,
for mental and acquired endowments, any thing like a comparison to
vie with this truly extraordinary little man. Matthew Buckinger was
a native of Nuremberg, in Germany, where he was born, June 2, 1674,
without hands, feet, legs, or thighs; in short, he was little more
than the trunk of a man, saving two excrescences growing from the
shoulder-blades, more resembling fins of a fish than arms of a man. He
was the last of nine children, by one father and mother, viz. eight
sons and one daughter; after arriving at the age of maturity, from the
singularity of his case, and the extraordinary abilities he possessed,
he attracted the notice and attention of all persons, of whatever rank
in life, to whom he was occasionally introduced.
It does not appear, by any account extant, that his parents exhibited
him at any time for the purposes of emolument, but that the whole of
his time must have been employed in study and practice, to attain the
wonderful perfection he arrived at in drawing, and his performance on
various musical instruments; he played the flute, bagpipe, dulcimer,
and trumpet, not in the manner of general amateurs, but in the style of
a finished master. He likewise possessed great mechanical powers, and
conceived the design of constructing machines to play on all sorts of
musical instruments.
If Nature played the niggard in one respect with him she amply repaid
the deficiency by endowments that those blessed with perfect limbs
could seldom achieve. He greatly distinguished himself by beautiful
writing, drawing coats of arms, sketches of portraits, history,
landscapes, &c., most of which were executed in Indian ink, with a pen,
emulating in perfection the finest and most finished engraving. He was
well skilled in most games of chance, nor could the most experienced
gamester or juggler obtain the least advantage at any tricks, or game,
with cards or dice.
He used to perform before company, to whom he was exhibited, various
tricks with cups and balls, corn, and living birds; and could play
at skittles and ninepins with great dexterity; shave himself with
perfect ease, and do many other things equally surprising in a person
so deficient, and mutilated by Nature. His writings and sketches of
figures, landscapes, &c., were by no means uncommon, though curious;
it being customary, with most persons who went to see him, to purchase
something or other of his performance; and as he was always employed
in writing or drawing, he carried on a very successful trade, which,
together with the money he obtained by exhibiting himself, enabled
him to support himself and family in a very genteel manner. The late
Mr. Herbert, of Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire, editor of "Ames's History
of Printing," had many curious specimens of Buckinger's writing
and drawing, the most extraordinary of which was his own portrait,
exquisitely done on vellum, in which he most ingeniously contrived to
insert, in the flowing curls of the wig, the 27th, 121st, 128th, 140th,
149th, and the 150th Psalms, together with the Lord's Prayer, most
beautifully and fairly written. Mr. Isaac Herbert, son of the former,
while carrying on the business of a bookseller in Pall-Mall, caused
this portrait to be engraved, for which he paid Mr. Harding fifty
guineas.
Buckinger was married four times, and had eleven children, viz., one
by his first wife, three by his second, six by his third, and one by
his last. One of his wives was in the habit of treating him extremely
ill, frequently beating and other ways insulting him, which, for a
long time, he very patiently put up with; but once his anger was so
much aroused, that he sprung upon her like a fury, got her down, and
buffeted her with his stumps within an inch of her life; nor would he
suffer her to arise until she promised amendment in future, which it
seems she prudently adopted, through fear of another thrashing. Mr.
Buckinger was but twenty-nine inches in height, and died in 1722.
WONDERFUL PROVISION OF NATURE.
The insects that frequent the waters, require predaceous animals to
keep them within due limits, as well as those that inhabit the earth;
and the water-spider (_Argyroneta aquatica_) is one of the most
remarkable upon whom that office is devolved. To this end, her instinct
instructs her to fabricate a kind of diving-bell in the bosom of that
element. She usually selects still waters for this purpose. Her house
is an oval cocoon, filled with air, and lined with silk, from which
threads issue in every direction, and are fastened to the surrounding
plants. In this cocoon, which is open below, she watches for her prey,
and even appears to pass the winter, when she closes the opening. It
is most commonly, yet not always, under water; but its inhabitant has
filled it for her respiration, which enables her to live in it. She
conveys the air to it in the following manner: she usually swims on her
back, when her abdomen is enveloped in a bubble of air, and appears
like a globe of quicksilver. With this she enters her cocoon, and
displacing an equal mass of water, again ascends for a second lading,
till she has sufficiently filled her house with it, so as to expel all
water. How these little animals can envelope their abdomen with an
air-bubble, and retain it till they enter their cells, is still one
of Nature's mysteries that has not been explained. It is a wonderful
provision, which enables an animal that breathes the atmospheric air,
to fill her house with it under water, and by some secret art to clothe
her body with air, as with a garment, which she can put off when it
answers her purpose. This is a kind of attraction and repulsion that
mocks all inquiries.
STOMACH BRUSH.
One of the Court Physicians, in the reign of Charles II., invented an
instrument to cleanse the stomach, and wrote a pamphlet on it; and
ridiculous as a chylopoietic-scrubbing-brush may appear, it afterwards
got a place among surgical instruments, and is described as the
_Excutor Ventriculi_, or cleanser of the stomach; but the moderns not
having _stomach_ for it, have transferred it to the wine merchant, who
more appropriately applies it to the scouring the interior of bottles.
Heister gives a minute description of it, and very gravely enters on
the mode and manner of using it: the patient is to drink a draught
of warm water, or spirit of wine, that the mucus and foulness of the
stomach may be washed off thereby: then, the brush being moistened in
some convenient liquor, is to be introduced into the oesophagus, and
slowly protruded into the stomach, by twisting round its wire handle.
When arrived in the stomach, it is to be drawn up and down, and through
the oesophagus, like the sucker in a syringe, till it be at last
wholly extracted. Some recommend plentiful drinking in the operation,
to be continued till no more foulness is discharged. But though this
contrivance is greatly extolled, and said to prolong life to a great
age, especially if practiced once a week, month, or fortnight; yet,
there are very few (probably, because tried by very few) instances of
its happy effects.
POPULAR AMUSEMENTS IN 1743.
In _Merrie England of the Olden Time_, we find the following copy of a
handbill announcing performances:--
By a company of English, French, and Germans, at Phillips's New Wells,
near the London Spa, Clerkenwell, 20th August, 1743.
[Illustration: [++] Rope Dancing.]
This evening, and during the Summer Season, will be performed several
new exercises of Rope-dancing, Tumbling, Vaulting, Equilibres,
Ladder-dancing, and Balancing, by Madame Kerman, Sampson Rogetzi,
Monsieur German, and Monsieur Dominique; with a new Grand Dance,
called Apollo and Daphne, by Mr. Phillips, Mrs. Lebrune, and others;
singing by Mrs. Phillips and Mrs. Jackson; likewise the extraordinary
performance of Herr Von Eeckenberg, who imitates the lark, thrush,
blackbird, goldfinch, canary-bird, flageolet, and German flute; a
Sailor's Dance by Mr. Phillips; and Monsieur Dominique flies through
a hogshead, and forces both heads out. To which will be added The
Harlot's Progress. Harlequin by Mr. Phillips; Miss Kitty by Mrs.
Phillips. Also, an exact representation of the late glorious victory
gained over the French by the English at the battle of Dettingen, with
the taking of the White Household Standard by the Scots Greys, and
blowing up the bridge, and destroying and drowning most part of the
French army. To begin every evening at five o'clock. Every one will be
admitted for a pint of wine, as usual.
DANCING ROOMS.
Dancing rooms were much frequented a century or so ago in London, which
was then pretty well supplied with this means of recreation. We find
that there were rare dancing doings at the original dancing room
in the year
at the _field_-end of King-Street, Bloomsbury, 1742
Hickford's great room, Panton-Street, Haymarket, 1743
Mitre Tavern, Charing-Cross, 1743
Barber's Hall, 1745
Richmond Assembly, 1745
Lambeth Wells, 1747
Duke's long room, Paternoster Row, 1748
Large Assembly Room at the Two Green Lamps, near Exeter Change,
(at the particular desire of Jubilee Dickey!) 1749
The large room next door to the Hand and Slippers, Long-lane,
West Smithfield, 1750
Lambeth Wells, where a _Penny Wedding_, in the _Scotch_
manner, was celebrated for the benefit of a young couple, 1752
Old Queen's Head, in Cock-lane, Lambeth, 1755
and at Mr. Bell's, at the sign of the Ship, in the Strand, where, in
1755, a _Scotch_ Wedding was kept. The bride "to be dressed without any
linen; all in ribbons, and green flowers, with Scotch masks. There will
be three bagpipes; a band of Scotch music, &c. &c. To begin precisely
at two o'clock. Admission, two shillings and sixpence."
ORIGIN OF THE USE OF TOBACCO.
"Maister John Nicot, Counsellor to the Kyng, beeyng Embassadour for
the Kyng in Portugall, in the yeres of our Lorde, 1559, 60, 61, wente
one daye to see the Prysons of the Kyng of Portugall, and a gentleman
beeyng the keeper of the saide Prisons presented hym this hearbe, as
a strange Plant brought from Florida; the same Maister Nicot, hauyng
caused the saide hearbe to be set in his garden, where it grewe and
multiplied marveillously, was vpon a tyme aduertised, by one of his
Pages, that a young man, a kinne to that Page, made a saye of that
hearbe bruised, both the herbe and the joice together upon an ulcer
whiche he had vpon his cheeke nere vnto his nose, coming of a _Noli
me tangere_ whiche bega to take roote already at the gristles of the
Nose, wherewith he founde hym self marveillously eased. Therefore the
said Maister Nicot caused the sicke yong man to be brought before hym,
causing the said herbe to be continued to the sore eight or tenne
daies, this saide _Noli me tangere_, was vtterly extinguished and
healed: and he had sent it, while this cure was a working to a certaine
Physition of the Kyng of Portugall of the moste fame, for to see the
further workyng and effect of the said _Nicotiane_, and sending for the
same yong man at the end of tenne daies, the said Phisition seeyng the
uisage of the said sicke yong man certified, that the saide _Noli me
tangere_ was utterly extinguished, as in deede he never felt it since.
Within a while after, one of the Cookes of the said Embassadour hauyng
almost cut off his Thombe, with a great choppyng knife, the steward
of the house of the saide gentleman ranne to the saide _Nicotiane_,
and dresssed him there with fyve or sixe times, and so in the ende
thereof he was healed: from that time forwarde this hearbe began to
bee famous throughout all _Lisborne_, where the court of the Kyng of
Portugall was at that presente, and the vertue of this saide hearbe was
preached, and the people beganne to name it the Ambassadour's hearbe!
Wherefore there came certaine daies after, a gentleman of the country,
Father to one of the Pages of the Ambassadour, who was troubled with
an vlcer in his Legge, hauyng had the same two yeres, and demaunded
of the saide Ambassadour for his hearbe, and vsing the same in suche
order as is before written, at the ende of tenne or twelve daies he
was healed. From that time fourth the fame of that hearbe encreased in
such sorte, that manye came from all places to have that same herbe.
Emong all others there was a woman that had her face covered with a
Ringworme rooted, as though she had a Visour on her face, to whom the
saide L: Ambassadour caused the herbe to be given her, and told how she
should vse it, and at the ende of eight or tenne daies, this woman was
thoroughleye healed, she came and shewed herself to the Ambassadour,
shewing him of her healyng. After there came a captain to presente
his sonne, sick of the Kinges euill to the saide L: Ambassadour, for
to send him into France, vnto whom there was saye made of the saide
hearbe, whiche in fewe daies did beginne to shewe greate signes of
healing, and finally was altogether healed of the kinges euill. The
L: Ambassadour seeing so great effectes proceeding of this hearbe,
and hauing heard say that the Lady Montigny that was, dyed at Saint
Germans, of an vlcer bredde in her breast, that did turn to a _Noli
me tangere_, for which there could never be remedey bee founde, and
likewise that the Countesse of Ruffe, had sought for all the famous
Phisitions of that Realme, for to heale her face, unto whom they
could give no remedy, he thought it good to communicate the same into
Fraunce, and did send it to Kyng Fraunces the seconde; and to the
Queen Mother, and to many other Lords of the Courte with the maner of
governyng the same: and how to applie it vnto the said diseases, even
as he had found it by experience; and chiefly to the lorde of Jarnac
governour of Rogell, with whom the saide Lorde Ambassadour had great
amitie for the service of the Kyng. The whiche Lorde of Jarnac, told
one daye at the Queenes Table, that he had caused the saide _Nicotiane_
to be distilled, and caused the water to be dronke, mingled with
water _Euphrasie_, otherwise called eyebright, to one that was shorte
breathed, and was therewith healed."--_Joyfvll News ovt of the newe
found worlde, &c._, 1577.--_Black Letter._
ANCIENT INSTRUMENTS OF PUNISHMENT AND TORTURE IN THE TOWER OF LONDON.
There are few things among the valuable collection of antiquities
preserved in the Tower of London, which excite so much interest as the
grim-looking objects forming the group figured in the accompanying
engraving.
With the executioner's axe, that long list of unfortunates who have met
their fate within the walls of the Tower, or on Tower Hill, since the
time of Henry VIII., have been beheaded. Among them may be enumerated
Queen Anne Boleyn, whom Henry first presented to his people as their
Queen while standing with her on the Tower Stairs, after she had been
conveyed thither from Greenwich with every possible pomp. Crowds of
gilded barges, with gay banners waving at their sterns, then lined the
stream. The noblest of the land were in the young Queen's train or were
waiting to receive her. Loud rounds of cannon, and soft, merry strains,
announced her arrival; and the burly King stepped forward to kiss her
in the sight of the assembled multitude. On the same day, three short
years afterwards, she was led forth to execution within the Tower
walls. The good Sir Thomas More and the chivalrous Earl of Surrey, Lady
Jane Grey and her young husband, the gallant Raleigh, and a host of
others, also perished by that sad symbol of the executioner's office.
The block is said to be of less ancient date, but is known to have been
used at the execution of three Scotch lords--the unfortunate adherents
of the Pretender--a little more than a century ago. On the top part of
the block, there are three distinct cuts, two of them very deep and
parallel, and the other at an angle and less effective.
The horrible instrument of torture called the "Scavenger's Daughter,"
was, in the "good old days," used as a means of extorting confession.
The head of the culprit was passed through the circular hole at the
top, and the arms through those below. The whole of this part of the
machine opens in somewhat the same manner as a pair of tongs, the upper
part being fixed round the neck and arms, and the semicircular irons
placed on the legs. The body was then bent, and a strong iron bar was
passed through the irons connected with the head and arms, and those
in which the legs were placed. "The culprit would then," as one of the
"Beefeaters" who attends on visitors makes a point of observing, "be
doubled up into very small compass, and made exceedingly uncomfortable."
The Bilboes need little explanation, being only a strong rod of iron,
with a nob at one end, on which are two moveable hoops, for the purpose
of holding the legs; these being fixed, and a heavy iron padlock put on
the proper part--the wearer was said to be in a _Bilboe_. Instruments
of this description were much used on board of ship for the purpose of
securing prisoners of war.
The Iron Collar is a persuader of a formidable description, for it
weighs upwards of 14 lbs., and is so made that it can be fixed on the
neck and then locked. Such a necklace would, we think, be sufficiently
inconvenient; but it is rendered still more uncomfortable by sundry
prickles of iron knowingly placed.
The Thumb-screw, also preserved in the Tower, is a characteristic
example of a species of torture at one time much resorted to. The
engraved example has been constructed so as to press both thumbs;
nevertheless, it is a convenient little instrument, which might be
easily carried about in the pocket. We have met with varieties of the
thumb-screw in several collections--some for the accommodation of one
thumb only. In the Museum of the Royal Antiquarian Society of Scotland
there are some thumb-screws which are said to have been used upon the
Covenanters.
[Illustration: 1. The Executioner's Axe. 2. The Block on which Lords
Balmerino, Lovat, &c., were beheaded. 3. The Scavenger's Daughter. 4.
Spanish Bilboes. 5. Massive Iron Collar for the Neck. 6. Thumb-Screw.]
Times have changed for the better since the "Scavenger's Daughter," and
the other matters represented, were amongst the mildest of the methods
used for the purposes of punishment and intimidation. The stocks,
the public whipping-posts, boilings, and burnings in Smithfield and
elsewhere, the exhibition of dead men's heads over gateways, the boot,
the rack, the pillory, the practice of making men eat their own books
in Cheapside, drawing on hurdles to the place of execution, and then
hanging, drawing, and quartering, chopping off hands and ears, and
other revolting punishments, have gone out of use, and it is gratifying
to know that we are all the better for it.
A BEAU BRUMMELL OF THE 17TH CENTURY.
[Illustration: [++] Picture of an English Anticke.]
This very curious representation of a first-rate exquisite is copied
from a very rare broadside, printed in 1646, and styled _The Picture
of an English Anticke, with a List of his ridiculous Habits and apish
Gestures_. The engraving is a well-executed copperplate, and the
description beneath is a brief recapitulation of his costume: from
which we learn that he wears a tall hat, with a bunch of riband on
one side, and a feather on the other; his face spotted with patches;
two love-locks, one on each side of his head, which hang upon his
bosom, and are tied at the ends with silk riband in bows. His beard on
the upper lip encompassing his mouth; his band or collar edged with
lace, and tied with band-strings, secured by a ring; a tight vest,
partly open and short in the skirts, between which and his breeches
his shirt protruded. His cloak was carried over his arm. His breeches
were ornamented by "many dozen of points at the knees, and above them,
on either side, were two great bunches of riband of several colours."
His legs were incased in "boot-hose tops, tied about the middle of the
calf, as long as a pair of shirt-sleeves, double at the ends like a
ruff-band; the tops of his boots very large, fringed with lace, and
turned down as low as his spurres, which gingled like the bells of a
morrice-dancer as he walked;" the "feet of his boots were two inches
too long." In his right hand he carried a stick, which he "played with"
as he "straddled" along the streets "singing."
PRAYING FOR REVENGE.
In North Wales, when a person supposes himself highly injured, it is
not uncommon for him to go to some church dedicated to a celebrated
saint, as Llan Elian in Anglesea, and Clynog in Carnarvonshire, and
there to offer his enemy. He kneels down on his bare knees in the
church, and offering a piece of money to the saint, calls down curses
and misfortunes upon the offender and his family for generations to
come; in the most firm belief that the imprecations will be fulfilled.
Sometimes they repair to a sacred well instead of a church.
A FEMALE SAMPSON: FROM A HANDBILL.
September 4th, 1818, was shown at Bartholomew Fair, "The strongest
woman in Europe, the celebrated French Female Hercules, Madame
Gobert, who will lift with her teeth a table five feet long and
three feet wide, with several persons seated upon it; also carry
thirty-six weights, fifty-six pounds each, equal to 2,016 lbs., and
will disengage herself from them without any assistance; will carry
a barrel containing 340 bottles; also an anvil 400 lbs. weight, on
which they will forge with four hammers at the time she supports it
on her stomach; she will also lift with her hair the same anvil,
swing it from the ground, and suspend it in that position to the
astonishment of every beholder; will take up a chair by the hind stave
with her teeth, and throw it over her head, ten feet from her body.
Her travelling caravan, (weighing two tons,) on its road from Harwich
to Leominster, owing to the neglect of the driver, and badness of the
road, sunk in the mud, nearly up to the box of the wheels; the two
horses being unable to extricate it she descended, and, with apparent
ease, disengaged the caravan from its situation, without any assistance
whatever."
TREES THAT GROW SHIRTS.
"We saw on the slope of the Cerra Dnida," says M. Humboldt, "shirt
trees, fifty feet high. The Indians cut off cylindrical pieces two feet
in diameter, from which they peel the red and fibrous bark, without
making any longitudinal incision. This bark affords them a sort of
garment which resembles a sack of a very coarse texture, and without
a seam. The upper opening serves for the head, and two lateral holes
are cut to admit the arms. The natives wear these shirts of Marina
in the rainy season; they have the form of the ponchos and manos of
cotton which are so common in New Grenada, at Quito, and in Peru. As in
this climate the riches and beneficence of nature are regarded as the
primary causes of the indolence of the inhabitants, the missionaries
do not fail to say in showing the shirts of Marina, 'in the forests of
Oroonoko, garments are found ready made upon the trees.'"
A FEMALE VENTRILOQUIST.
A female ventriloquist, named Barbara Jacobi, narrowly escaped being
burnt at the stake in 1685, at Haarlem, where she was an inmate of
the public Hospital. The curious daily resorted thither to hear her
hold & dialogue with an imaginary personage with whom she conversed
as if concealed behind the curtains of her bed. This individual, whom
she called Joachim, and to whom she addressed a thousand ludicrous
questions, which he answered in the same familiar strain, was for some
time supposed to be a confederate. But when the bystanders attempted to
search for him behind the curtains, his voice instantly reproached them
with their curiosity from the opposite corner of the room. As Barbara
Jacobi had contrived to make herself familiar with all the gossip of
the city of Haarlem, the revelations of the pretended familiar were
such as to cause considerable embarrassment to those who beset her with
impertinent questions.
CALMUC OPINION OF LIGHTNING.
The Calmucs hold the lightning to be the fire spit out of the mouth of
a dragon, ridden and scourged by evil Dæmons, and the thunder they make
to be his roarings.
THE HEADING OF THE EXPIRING PENNSYLVANIA JOURNAL.
Journalism has had its trials and difficulties in England as well as in
America; but we do not remember to have ever seen a more quaint last
Number, than the subjoined _facsimile_ exhibits:--
[Illustration:
The TIMES are
Dreadful
Dismal,
Doleful
Dolorous, and
Dollar-less.
An Emblem of the Effect
of the Stamp
Of the Fatal Stamp
Adieu Adieu to the LIBERTY OF THE PRESS
Thursday, October 31. 1765
NUMB. 1195
THE
PENNSYLVANIA JOURNAL;
AND
WEEKLY ADVERTISER.
EXPIRING: In Hopes of a Resurrection to LIFE again.
I am sorry to be obliged to acquaint my Readers, that as The
STAMP-ACT, is fear'd to be obligatory upon us after the _First of
November_ ensuing, (the _fatal To-morrow_) the Publisher of this
Paper unable to bear the Burthen, has thought it expedient TO STOP
awhile, in order to deliberate, whether any Methods can be found to
elude the Chains forged for us, and escape the insupportable Slavery;
which it is hoped, from the last Representations now made against the
Act, may be effected. Mean while, I must earnestly Request every
Individual of my Subscribers, many of whom have been long behind Hand,
that they would immediately Discharge their respective Arrers, that I
may be able, not only to support myself during the Interval, but be
better prepared to proceed again with this Paper, whenever an opening
for that Purpose appears, which I hope will be soon.
WILLIAM BRADFORD.]
NOSTRUMS.
Unsuccessful gamesters used formerly to make a knot in their linen, of
late years they have contented themselves with changing their chair
as a remedy against ill-luck. As a security against cowardice, it was
once only necessary to wear a pin plucked from the winding sheet of a
corpse. To insure a prosperous accouchement to your wife, you had but
to tie her girdle to a bell and ring it three times. To get rid of
warts, you were to fold up in a rag as many peas as you had warts, and
throw them upon the high road; when the unlucky person who picked them
up became your substitute. In the present day, to cure a toothache, you
go to your dentist. In the olden time you would have solicited alms in
honour of St. Lawrence, and been relieved without cost or pain.
PRECOCIOUS CHILDREN.
Baillet mentions one hundred and sixty-three children endowed with
extraordinary talents, among whom few arrived at an advanced age. The
two sons of Quintilian, so vaunted by their father, did not reach their
tenth year. Hermogenes, who, at the age of fifteen, taught rhetoric to
Marcus Aurelius, who triumphed over the most celebrated rhetoricians of
Greece, did not die, but at twenty-four, lost his faculties, and forgot
all he had previously acquired. Pica di Mirandola died at thirty-two;
Johannes Secundus at twenty-five; having at the age of fifteen composed
admirable Greek and Latin verses, and become profoundly versed in
jurisprudence and letters. Pascal, whose genius developed itself at ten
years old, did not attain the third of a century.
In 1791, a child was born at Lubeck, named Henri Heinekem, whose
precocity was miraculous. At ten months of age, he spoke distinctly;
at twelve, learnt the Pentateuch by rote, and at fourteen months, was
perfectly acquainted with the Old and New Testaments. At two years
of age, he was as familiar with Ancient History as the most erudite
authors of antiquity. Sanson and Danville only could compete with him
in geographical knowledge; Cicero would have thought him an "alter
ego," on hearing him converse in Latin; and in modern languages he was
equally proficient. This wonderful child was unfortunately carried off
in his fourth year. According to a popular proverb--"the sword wore out
the sheath."
EFFECT OF MUSIC ON A PIGEON.
Bingley gives a singular anecdote of the effect of music on a pigeon,
as related by John Lockman, in some reflections concerning operas,
prefixed to his musical drama of Rosalinda. He was staying at a
friend's house, whose daughter was a fine performer on the harpsichord,
and observed a pigeon, which, whenever the young lady played the song
of "Speri-si," in Handel's opera of Admetus (and this only), would
descend from an adjacent dove-house to the room-window where she sat,
and listen to it apparently with the most pleasing emotions; and when
the song was finished it always returned immediately to the dove-house.
POWER OF FASCINATION IN SNAKES.
Some animals are held in universal dread by others, and not the least
terrible is the effect produced by the rattle-snake. Mr. Pennant
says, that this snake will frequently lie at the bottom of a tree,
on which a squirrel is seated. He fixes his eyes on the animal, and
from that moment it cannot escape: it begins a doleful outcry, which
is so well known that a passer by, on hearing it, immediately knows
that a snake is present. The squirrel runs up the tree a little way,
comes down again, then goes up and afterwards comes still lower. The
snake continues at the bottom of the tree, with his eyes fixed on the
squirrel, and his attention is so entirely taken up, that a person
accidentally approaching may make a considerable noise, without so
much as the snake's turning about. The squirrel comes lower, and at
last leaps down to the snake, whose mouth is already distended for
its reception. Le Vaillant confirms this fascinating terror, by a
scene he witnessed. He saw on the branch of a tree a species of shrike
trembling as if in convulsions, and at the distance of nearly four
feet, on another branch, a large species of snake, that was lying with
outstretched neck and fiery eyes, gazing steadily at the poor animal.
The agony of the bird was so great that it was deprived of the power of
moving away, and when one of the party killed the snake, it was found
dead upon the spot--and that entirely from fear--for, on examination,
it appeared not to have received the slightest wound. The same
traveller adds, that a short time afterwards he observed a small mouse
in similar agonizing convulsions, about two yards from a snake, whose
eyes were intently fixed upon it; and on frightening away the reptile,
and taking up the mouse, it expired in his hand.
SECOND SIGHT.
About the year 1725, the marvellous history of a Portuguese woman
set the whole world of science into confusion, as will be found by
referring to the "Mercure de France." This female was said to possess
the gift of discovering treasures. Without any other aid than the keen
penetration of her eyes, she was able to distinguish the different
strata of earth, and pronounce unerringly upon the utmost distances at
a single glance. Her eye penetrated through every substance, even the
human body; and she could discern the mechanism, and circulation of
all animal fluids, and detect latent diseases; although less skilful
than the animal magnetisers, she did not affect to point out infallible
remedies. Ladies could learn from her the sex of their forthcoming
progeny.
The King of Portugal, greatly at a loss for water in his newly built
palace, consulted her; and after a glance at the spot, she pointed out
an abundant spring, upon which his Majesty rewarded her with a pension,
the order of Christ, and a patent of nobility.
In the exercise of her miraculous powers, certain preliminaries were
indispensable. She was obliged to observe a rigid fast; indigestion, or
the most trifling derangement of the stomach, suspending the marvellous
powers of her visual organs.
The men of science of the day were of course confounded by such
prodigies. But instead of questioning the woman, they consulted the
works of their predecessors; not forgetting the inevitable Aristotle.
By dint of much research, they found a letter from Huygens asserting
that there was a prisoner of war at Antwerp, who could see through
stuffs of the thickest texture provided they were not red. The
wonderful man was cited in confirmation of the wonderful woman, and
_vice versâ_.
CHARACTER INDICATED BY THE EARS.
According to Aristotle, large ears are indicative of imbecility; while
small ones announce madness. Ears which are flat, point out the rustic
and brutal man. Those of the fairest promise, are firm and of middling
size. Happy the man who boasts of square ears; a sure indication of
sublimity of soul and purity of life. Such, according to Suetonius,
were the ears of the Emperor Augustus.
GROANING BOARDS.
Groaning boards were the wonder in London in 1682. An elm plank was
exhibited to the king, which, being touched by a hot iron, invariably
produced a sound resembling deep groans. At the Bowman Tavern, in
Drury Lane, the mantel-piece did the same so well that it was supposed
to be part of the same elm-tree; and the dresser at the Queen's Arm
Tavern, St. Martin le Grand, was found to possess the same quality.
Strange times when such things were deemed wonderful; even to meriting
exhibition before the monarch.
ANCIENT PLOUGHING AND THRESHING.
The ancient plough was light, the draught comparatively easy; but then
the very lightness required that the ploughman should lean upon it with
his whole weight, or else it would glide over the soil without making
a single furrow. "Unless," said Pliny, "the ploughman stoop forward,
to press down the plough, as well as to conduct it, truly it will turn
aside."
[Illustration: Ancient Mode of Ploughing.]
Oxen were anciently employed in threshing corn, and the same custom is
still retained in Egypt and the east. This operation is effected by
trampling upon the sheaves, and by dragging a clumsy machine, furnished
with three rollers that turn on their axles. A wooden chair is attached
to the machine, and on this a driver seats himself, urging his oxen
backwards and forwards among the sheaves, which have previously been
thrown into a heap of about eight feet wide and two in height. The
grain thus beaten out, is collected in an open place, and shaken
against the wind by an attendant, with a small shovel, or, as it is
termed, a winnowing fan, which disperses the chaff and leaves the grain
uninjured:--
"Thus, with autumnal harvests covered o'er,
And thick bestrewn, lies Ceres' sacred floor;
While round and round, with never-wearied pain,
The trampling steers beat out th' unnumber'd grain."
HOMER.
Horace further tells us, that the threshing floor was mostly a smooth
space, surrounded with mud walls, having a barn or garner on one side;
occasionally an open field, outside the walls, was selected for this
purpose, yet uniformly before the town or city gates. Such was the void
place wherein the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, sat
each of them on his throne, clothed in his robes, at the entering in of
the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets prophesied before them. In
the marginal reading we are informed, that this void space was no other
than a threshing floor; and truly the area was well adapted for such an
assemblage, being equally suited to accommodate the two kings and their
attendants, and to separate them from the populace.
[Illustration: Oxen Threshing Corn.]
Eastern ploughshares were of a lighter make than ours, and those who
notice the shortness and substance of ancient weapons, among such as
are preserved in museums, will understand how readily they might be
applied to agricultural uses.
FROST FAIRS.
In 1788-9, the Thames was completely frozen over below London-bridge.
Booths were erected on the ice; and puppet-shows, wild beasts,
bear-baiting, turnabouts, pigs and sheep roasted, exhibited the
various amusements of Bartholomew Fair multiplied and improved. From
Putney-bridge down to Redriff was one continued scene of jollity during
this seven weeks' saturnalia. The last frost fair was celebrated
in the year 1814. The frost commenced on 27th December, 1813, and
continued to the 5th February, 1814. There was a grand walk, or mall,
from Blackfriars-bridge to London-bridge, that was appropriately
named _The City Road_, and lined on each side with booths of all
descriptions. Several printing-presses were erected, and at one of
these an orange-coloured standard was hoisted, with "_Orange Boven_"
printed in large characters. There were E O and Rouge et Noir tables,
tee-totums, and skittles; concerts of rough music, viz. salt-boxes
and rolling-pins, gridirons and tongs, horns, and marrow-bones and
cleavers. The carousing booths were filled with merry parties, some
dancing to the sound of the fiddle, others sitting round blazing fires
smoking and drinking. A printer's devil bawled out to the spectators,
"Now is your time, ladies and gentlemen,--now is your time to support
the freedom of the press! Can the press enjoy greater liberty? Here you
find it working in the middle of the Thames!"
MAGIC RAIN STONE.
The Indian magi, who are to invoke Yo He Wah, and mediate with the
supreme holy fire that he may give seasonable rains, have a transparent
stone of supposed great power in assisting to bring down the rain, when
it is put in a basin of water, by a reputed divine virtue, impressed on
one of the like sort, in time of old, which communicates it circularly.
This stone would suffer a great decay, they assert, were it even seen
by their own laity; but if by foreigners, it would be utterly despoiled
of its divine communicative power.
THE BOMBARDIER BEETLE.
The bombardier beetle (_Carabus crepitans_) when touched produces a
noise resembling the discharge of a musket in miniature, during which
a blue smoke may be seen to proceed from its extremity. Rolander says
that it can give twenty discharges successively. A bladder placed near
its posterior extremity, is the arsenal that contains its store. This
is its chief defence against its enemies; and the vapour or liquid
that proceeds from it is of so pungent a nature, that if it happens to
be discharged into the eyes, it makes them smart as though brandy had
been thrown into them. The principal enemy of the bombardier is another
insect of the same tribe, but three or four times its size. When
pursued and fatigued it has recourse to this stratagem; it lies down in
the path of its enemy, who advances with open mouth to seize it; but on
the discharge of the artillery, this suddenly draws back, and remains
for a while confused, during which the bombardier conceals itself in
some neighbouring crevice, but if not lucky enough to find one, the
other returns to the attack, takes the insect by the head, and bears it
off.
THE PILLORY FOR EATING FLESH IN LENT.
Even in this kingdom, so late as the Reformation, eating flesh in
Lent was rewarded with the pillory. An instance of this occurs in
the "Patriot King," the particulars of which, quoted in "Clavis
Calendaria," are somewhat amusing. Thomas Freburn's wife, of
Paternoster-row, London, having expressed a particular inclination
for pig, one was procured, ready for the spit; but the butter-woman
who provided it, squeamish as to the propriety of what she had done,
carried a foot of it to the Dean of Canterbury. The Dean was at
dinner, and one of his guests was Freburn's landlord, and Garter King
at Arms, who sent to know if any of his family were ill, that he ate
flesh in Lent. 'All well,' quoth Freburn, (perhaps too much of a
Dissenter for the times,) 'only my wife longs for pig.' His landlord
sends for the Bishop of London's apparitor, and orders him to take
Freburn and his pig before Stocksly, the Bishop, who sent them both
to Judge Cholmley; but he not being at home, they were again brought
back to the Bishop, who committed them to the Compter. Next day, being
Saturday, Freburn was carried before the Lord Mayor, who sentenced
him to stand in the pillory on the Monday following, with one half
of the pig on one shoulder, and the other half on the other. Through
Cromwell's intercession, the poor man at last gained his liberty by a
bond of twenty pounds for his appearance. The mischief-making pig was,
by the order of the Bishop, buried in Finsbury-field, by the hand of
his Lordship's apparitor; but Freburn was turned out of his house, and
could not get another in four years. Hence we may infer his ruin.
HUGE CANNON AT THE SIEGE OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
In 1432, several kinds of artillery are mentioned, cannons, bombards,
vulgaires, coulverins. The vulgaires were ordinary artillery. In the
year 1460, James II. of Scotland was killed by the accidental bursting
of a cannon. The artillery of the Turks, in the year 1453, surpassed
whatever had yet appeared in the world. A stupendous piece of ordnance
was made by them; its bore was twelve palms, and the stone bullet
weighed about 600 lbs.; it was brought with great difficulty before
Constantinople, and was flanked by two almost of equal magnitude:
fourteen batteries were brought to bear against the place, mounting 130
guns; the great cannon could not be loaded and fired more than seven
times in one day. Mines were adopted by the Turks, and counter-mines
by the Christians. At this siege, which was in 1453, ancient and
modern artillery were both used. Cannons, intermingled with machines
for casting stones and darts, and the battering-ram was directed
against the walls. The fate of Constantinople could no longer be
averted: the diminutive garrison was exhausted by a double attack; the
fortifications were dismantled on all sides by the Ottoman cannon;
a spirit of discord impaired the Christian strength. After a siege
of fifty-three days, Constantinople, which had defied the power of
Chosroes, the Chagan, and the Caliphs, was subdued by the arms of
Mahomet II.
A MAN IN A VAULT ELEVEN DAYS.
_St. Benedict Fink._--"1673, April 23, was buried Mr Thomas Sharrow,
Cloth-worker, late Churchwarden of this parish, killed by an accidental
fall into a vault, in London Wall, Amen Corner, by Paternoster Row,
and was supposed had lain there eleven days and nights before any
one could tell where he was, _Let all that read this take heed of
drink._"--Truly, a quaint warning!
BLIND GRANNY.
[Illustration: [++] Blind Granny.]
This miserable, wretched, drunken object, who was blind of one eye,
used to annoy the passengers in the streets of London, while sober,
with licking her blind eye with her tongue, which was of a most
enormous length, and thickness; indeed, it was of such a prodigious
size, that her mouth could not contain it, and she could never close
her lips, or to use a common expression, keep her tongue within
her teeth. This wonderful feat of washing her eye with her tongue
was exhibited with a view of obtaining money from such as crowded
around her, and no sooner had she obtained sufficient means, but
she hastened to the first convenient liquor-shop, to indulge her
propensity in copious libations, and when properly inspired, would
rush into the streets with all the gestures of a frantic maniac, and
roll and dance about, until she became a little sobered, which was
sometimes accelerated by the salutary application of a pail of water,
gratuitously bestowed upon her by persons whose doorway she had taken
possession of, as shelter from the persecuting tormentings of boys and
girls who generally followed her.
ANCIENT FEMALE COSTUME.
[Illustration: [++] costume of a female of the higher classes.]
A good specimen of the costume of a female of the higher classes is
here given, from an effigy of a lady of the Ryther family, in Ryther
church, Yorkshire, engraved in Hollis's _Monumental Effigies_. She
wears a wimple, covering the neck and encircling the head, the hair
of which is gathered in plaits at the sides, and covered with a
kerchief, which falls upon the shoulders, and is secured by a fillet
passing over the forehead. The sleeves of the gown hang midway from
the elbow and the wrist, and display the tight sleeve with its rows of
buttons beneath. The mantle is fastened by a band of ribbon, secured
by ornamental studs. The lower part of the dress consists of the wide
gown, lying in folds, and completely concealing the feet, which have
been omitted, in order to display the upper part of this interesting
effigy to greater advantage.
CHILCOTT, THE GIANT.
1815. Died at Trenaw, in Cornwall, a person known by the appellation
of Giant Chilcott. He measured at the breast six feet nine inches, and
weighed four hundred and sixty pounds. One of his stockings held six
gallons of wheat.
DR. LETTSOM'S REASONS FOR DISMISSING A SERVANT.
The Doctor was in the practice of carrying the produce of his fees
carelessly in his coat-pocket. His footman being aware of this, used to
make free with a guinea occasionally, while it hung up in the passage.
The Doctor, having repeatedly missed his gold, was suspicious of the
footman, and took an opportunity of watching him. He succeeded in
the detection, and, without even noticing it to the other servants,
called him into his study, and coolly said to him, "John, art in want
of money?" "No;" replied John. "Oh! then, why didst thou make so free
with my pocket? And since thou didst not want money, and hast told me a
lie, I must part with thee. Now, say what situation thou wouldst like
abroad, and I will obtain it for thee; for I cannot keep thee; I cannot
recommend thee; therefore thou must go." Suffice it to say, the Doctor
procured John a situation, and he went abroad.
HANDBILL FROM PECKHAM FAIR IN 1726.
Our ancestors just 133 years ago had but limited opportunities for
gratifying a taste for Natural History if we may judge from the supply
of animals deemed sufficient to attract attention in 1726:--
"_Geo. I. R._
"To the lovers of living curiosities. To be seen during the time of
_Peckham Fair_, a Grand Collection of Living Wild Beasts and Birds,
lately arrived from the remotest parts of the World.
"1. The _Pellican_ that suckles her young with her heart's blood, from
Egypt.
"2. The Noble _Vultur Cock_, brought from _Archangell_, having the
finest tallons of any bird that seeks his prey; the fore part of his
head is covered with hair, the second part resembles the wool of a
Black; below that is a white ring, having a Ruff, that he cloaks his
head with at night.
"3. An _Eagle of the Sun_, that takes the loftiest flight of any bird
that flies. There is no bird but this that can fly to the face of the
Sun with a naked eye.
"4. A curious Beast, bred from a _Lioness_, like a foreign _Wild Cat_.
"5. The _He-Panther_, from Turkey, allowed by the curious to be one of
the greatest rarities ever seen in _England_, on which are thousands of
spots, and not two of a likeness.
"6 & 7. The two fierce and surprising _Hyænas_, Male and Female, from
the River _Gambia_. These Creatures imitate the human voice, and so
decoy the Negroes out of their huts and plantations to devour them.
They have a mane like a horse, and two joints in their hinder leg more
than any other creature. It is remarkable that all other beasts are to
be tamed, but _Hyænas_ they are not.
"8. An _Ethiopian Toho Savage_, having all the actions of the human
species, which (when at its full growth) will be upwards of five feet
high.
"Also several other surprising Creatures of different sorts. To be seen
from 9 in the morning till 9 at night, till they are sold. Also, all
manner of curiosities of different sorts, are bought and sold at the
above place by John Bennett."
SOMNAMBULISM.
Some years ago a Hampshire Baronet was nearly driven to distraction
by the fact that, every night, he went to bed in a shirt, and every
morning awoke naked, without the smallest trace of the missing garment
being discovered.
Hundreds of shirts disappeared in this manner; and as there was no fire
in his room, it was impossible to account for the mystery. The servants
believed their master to be mad; and even he began to fancy himself
bewitched. In this conjuncture, he implored an intimate friend to
sleep in the room with him; and ascertain by what manner of mysterious
midnight visitant his garment was so strangely removed. The friend,
accordingly, took up his station in the haunted chamber; and lo! as the
clock struck one, the unfortunate Baronet, who had previously given
audible intimation of being fast asleep, rose from his bed, rekindled
with a match the candle which had been extinguished, deliberately
opened the door, and quitted the room. His astonished friend followed:
saw him open in succession a variety of doors, pass along several
passages, traverse an open court, and eventually reach the stable-yard;
where he divested himself of his shirt, and disposed of it in an old
dung-heap, into which he thrust it by means of a pitchfork. Having
finished this extraordinary operation, without taking the smallest heed
of his friend who stood looking on, and plainly saw that he was walking
in his sleep, he returned to the house, carefully reclosed the doors,
re-extinguished the light, and returned to bed; where the following
morning he awoke as usual, stripped of his shirt!
The astonished eye-witness of this extraordinary scene, instead of
apprising the sleep-walker of what had occurred, insisted that the
following night, a companion should sit up with him; choosing to have
additional testimony to the truth of the statement he was about to
make; and the same singular events were renewed, without the slightest
change or deviation. The two witnesses, accordingly, divulged all they
had seen to the Baronet; who, though at first incredulous, became of
course convinced, when, on proceeding to the stable-yard, several
dozens of shirts were discovered; though it was surmised that as many
more had been previously removed by one of the helpers, who probably
looked upon the hoard as stolen goods concealed by some thief.
KILLED BY EATING MUTTON AND PUDDING.
_Teddington._--"James Parsons, who had often eat a shoulder of mutton
or a peck of hasty pudding, at a time, which caused his death, buried
March 7, 1743-4, aged 36."
CORAL REEFS.
Coral reefs are produced by innumerable small zoophytes, properly
called _Coral-insects_. The Coral insect consists of a little oblong
bag of jelly closed at one end, but having the other extremity open,
and surrounded by tentacles or feelers, usually six or eight in number,
set like the rays of a star. Multitudes of these diminutive animals
unite to form a common stony skeleton called _Coral_, or _Madrepore_,
in the minute openings of which they live, protruding their mouths
and tentacles when under water; but suddenly drawing them into their
holes when danger approaches. These animals cannot exist at a greater
depth in the sea than about ten fathoms, and as the Coral Islands often
rise with great steepness from a sea more than three hundred fathoms
deep, it would seem that a great alteration must have taken place in
the depth of the ocean since the time when these little architects
commenced their labours. Throughout the whole range of the Polynesian
and Australasian islands, there is scarcely a league of sea unoccupied
by a coral reef, or a coral island; the former springing up to the
surface of the water, perpendicularly from the fathomless bottom,
"deeper than did ever plummet sound;" and the latter in various stages,
from the low and naked rock, with the water rippling over it, to an
uninterrupted forest of tall trees.
"Every one," says Mr. Darwin, "must be struck with astonishment when
he first beholds one of these vast rings of coral rock, often many
leagues in diameter, here and there surmounted by a low verdant island
with dazzling white shores, bathed on the outside by the foaming
breakers of the ocean, and on the inside surrounding a calm expanse of
water, which, from reflection, is of a bright but pale green colour.
The naturalist will feel this astonishment more deeply after having
examined the soft and almost gelatinous bodies of these apparently
insignificant creatures; and when he knows that the solid reef
increases only on the outer edge, which, day and night, is lashed by
the breakers of an ocean never at rest."
[Illustration: [++] Coral Reefs.]
Coral being beautiful in form and colour, is sought after for purposes
of ornament; and its fishery or gathering gives employment to many
persons in the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Mediterranean, and other
places. In the Straits of Messina, the rocks which yield coral are from
about 350 to 650 feet below the surface of the water. The coral here
grows to about the height or length of twelve inches, and requires
eight or ten years to come to perfection. In the general mode of
fishing for coral, the instrument used consists of two heavy beams of
wood, secured together at right angles, and loaded with stones to sink
them.
MILITARY HATS IN OLDEN TIME.
[Illustration:
No. 1, Charles I.
No. 2, William III.
No. 3, Nivernois.
No. 4, Kevenhuller.
No. 5, Ramilies.
No. 6, Wellington.]
WHY A MAN MEASURES MORE IN THE MORNING THAN IN THE EVENING, &c.
There is an odd phenomenon attending the human body, as singular as
common: that a person is shorter standing than lying; and shorter in
the evening when he goes to bed, than in the morning when he rises.
This remark was first made in England, and afterwards confirmed at
Paris, by M. Morand, a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences in
France, and by the Abbot Fontana likewise.
The last-mentioned person found, from a year's experience, that
ordinarily in the night he gained five or six lines, and lost nearly as
much in the day.
The cause of which effect, so ancient, so common, but so lately
perceived, proceeds from the different state or condition of the
intervertebral annular cartilages.
The vertebræ, or joints of the spine, are kept separate, though joined
by particular cartilages, every one of which has a spring. These yield
on all sides, without any inflexion on the spine, to the weight of
the head and upper extremities; but this is done by very small and
imperceptible degrees, and most of all when the upper parts of the body
are loaded with any exterior weight. So that a man is really taller
after lying some time, than after walking, or carrying a burthen a
great while.
For this reason it is that, in the day and evening, while one is
sitting or standing, the superior parts of the body that weigh or press
upon the inferior, press those elastic annular cartilages, the bony
jointed work is contracted, the superior parts of the body descend
towards the inferior, and proportionably as one approaches the other,
the height of the stature diminishes.
Hence it was, that a fellow enlisting for a soldier, by being measured
over-night, was found deficient in height, and therefore refused; but
by accident being gauged again the next morning, and coming up to the
stature, he was admitted.
On the contrary, in the night-time, when the body is laid a-bed, as
it is in an horizontal situation, or nearly so, the superior parts
do not weigh, or but very little, upon the inferior; the spring of
the cartilages is unbent, the vertebræ are removed from one another,
the long jointed work of the spine is dilated, and the body thereby
prolonged; so that a person finds himself about half an inch, or more,
higher in stature in the morning than when going to bed. This is the
most natural and simple reason that can be given, for the different
heights of the same person at different times.
A SENSIBLE DOG REFUSING TO BAIT A CAT.
A dustman of the name of Samuel Butcher, residing at Mile-end, who
kept a large dog, having taken it into his head to divert himself and
others, a few days ago, by the cruel sport of cat baiting, which the
dog refusing to perform to the satisfaction of his master, was beat by
him in a most brutal manner, when the animal at length, in retaliation,
flew at his unmerciful keeper, and inflicted very severe wounds about
his face, limbs, and body, in some instances tearing large mouthfuls of
his flesh quite clean out, and at one time clung so fast to the man,
that before he disengaged from him the animal's throat was obliged to
be cut. The man was promptly conveyed to the London Hospital, and there
died of the injuries he received.
A HORSE GETTING HIMSELF SHOD.
A horse having been turned into a field by its owner, Mr. Joseph Lane,
of Fascombe, in the parish of Ashelworth, was missed therefrom the
next morning, and the usual inquiries set afoot, as to what could have
become of him. He had, it seems, been shod (all fours) a few days
before, and _as usual_ got pinched in a foot. Feeling, no doubt, a
lively sense of proper shoeing, and desirous of relieving the cause of
pain, he contrived to unhang the gate of his pasture with his mouth,
and make the best of his way to the smithy, a distance of a mile and a
half from Fascombe, waiting respectfully at the door until the bungling
_artist_ got up. The smith relates that he found him there at opening
his shed; that the horse advanced to the forge and held up his ailing
foot; and that he himself, upon examination, discovered the injury,
took off the shoe, and replaced it more carefully, which having done,
the sagacious creature set off at a merry pace homewards. Soon after,
Mr. Lane's servants passed by the forge in quest of the animal, and
upon inquiry, received for answer--"Oh, he has been here and got shod,
and is gone home again."
MAN WITHOUT HANDS.
The following account is extracted from a letter sent to the Rev. Mr.
Wesley by a person named Walton, dated Bristol, October 14, 1788:--
"I went with a friend to visit this man, who highly entertained us at
breakfast, by putting his half-naked foot upon the table as he sat,
and carrying his tea and toast between his great and second toe to
his mouth, with as much facility as if his foot had been a hand, and
his toes fingers. I put half a sheet of paper upon the floor, with a
pen and ink-horn: he threw off his shoes as he sat, took the ink-horn
in the toes of his left foot, and held the pen in those of his right.
He then wrote three lines, as well as most ordinary writers, and as
swiftly. He writes out all his own bills, and other accounts. He then
showed how he shaves himself with a razor in his toes, and how he combs
his own hair. He can dress and undress himself, except buttoning his
clothes. He feeds himself, and can bring both his meat or his broth to
his mouth, by holding the fork or spoon in his toes. He cleans his own
shoes; can clean the knives, light the fire, and do almost every other
domestic business as well as any other man. He can make his hen-coops.
He is a farmer by occupation; he can milk his own cows with his toes,
and cut his own hay, bind it up in bundles, and carry it about the
field for his cattle. Last winter he had eight heifers constantly to
fodder. The last summer he made all his own hay-ricks. He can do all
the business of the hay-field (except mowing), as fast and as well,
with only his feet, as others can with rakes and forks. He goes to the
field and catches his horse; he saddles and bridles him with his feet
and toes. If he has a sheep among his flock that ails anything, he can
separate it from the rest, drive it into a corner, and catch it when
nobody else can. He then examines it, and applies a remedy to it. He is
so strong in his teeth, that he can lift ten pecks of beans with them.
He can throw a great sledge-hammer as far with his feet as other men
can with their hands. In a word, he can nearly do as much without, as
others can with, their arms. He began the world with a hen and chicken;
with the profit of these he purchased an ewe; the sale of these
procured him a ragged colt (as he expressed it) and then a better;
after this he raised a few sheep, and now occupies a small farm."
THE THIEF CAUGHT IN HIS OWN TRAP.
A man having, some years since, stolen a sheep at Mitcham, in Surrey,
tied its hind legs together, and put them over his forehead to carry it
away, but in getting over a gate the sheep, it is thought, struggled,
and, by a sudden spring, slipped its feet down to his throat; for they
were found in that posture, the sheep hanging on one side of this gate
and the man dead on the other.
COSTUME OF THE LADIES IN THE TIME OF THE PLANTAGENETS.
The ladies' costume may be seen to advantage in the annexed engraving
from the Sloane MSS., No. 3983. A wimple or gorget is wrapped round
the neck, and is fastened by pins at the sides of the face, which are
covered above the ears; a gown of capacious size, unconfined at the
waist and loose in the sleeves, trails far behind in the dirt. The
under-garment, which is darker, has sleeves that fit closely; and
it appears to be turned over, and pinned up round the bottom. The
unnecessary amount of stuff that was used in ladies' robes rendered
them obnoxious to the satirists of that period.
[Illustration: [++] proud woman who wore a white dress.]
In Mr. Wright's collection of Latin stories, published by the Percy
Society, there is one of the fourteenth century, which is so curious an
instance of monkish satire, and is so apt an illustration of the cut
before us, that I cannot resist presenting it to my readers. It runs
thus:--
"_Of a Proud Woman._--I have heard of a proud woman who wore a white
dress with a long train, which, trailing behind her, raised a dust as
far as the altar and the crucifix. But, as she left the church, and
lifted up her train on account of the dirt, a certain holy man saw a
devil laughing; and having adjured him to tell why he laughed, the
devil said, "A companion of mine was just now sitting on the train of
that woman, using it as if it were his chariot, but when she lifted her
train up, my companion was shaken off into the dirt: and that is why I
was laughing."
CORPULENT MAN. NOTTINGHAM, 1819.
November 10.--Death of Mr. Henry Bucknall, confectioner,
Chandlers-lane, aged forty-nine. He was excessively corpulent, weighing
more than twenty-five stone, and died very suddenly, immediately after
eating a hearty breakfast. In Lord Howe's memorable engagement, on the
1st of June, 1794, he had served as a marine on board the Brunswick.
His interment, at St. Mary's New Burial-ground, on the 14th, drew
together a large concourse of spectators. The coffin was of enormous
size, and nearly equalled the body in weight. It was made of excellent
oak, was 6 feet 8 inches in length, and 2 feet 11 inches across the
breast; the bottom was 2-1/2 inches thick, the sides 1-1/2, and the
lid 1. The whole, including the body, considerably exceeded five
hundred-weight.
TAKING A MAN TO PIECES AND SETTING HIM UP AGAIN.
"Don John, of Austria," says Staveley, "Governor of the Netherlands for
Philip the 2d of Spain, dying at his camp at Buge (Bouges, a mile from
Namur), was carried from thence to the great church at Havre, where his
funeral was solemnised, and a monument to posterity erected for him
there by Alexander Farnese, the Prince of Parma. Afterwards his body
was taken to pieces, and the bones, packed in mails, were privately
carried into Spain, where being set together with small wires, the
body was rejointed again, which being filled or stuffed with cotton,
and richly habited, Don John was presented to the king entire, leaning
on his commander's staff. Afterwards the corpse being carried to the
church of St. Laurence, at the Escurial, was there buried near his
father, Charles V., with a fitting monument for him."
ORNAMENTS OF FEMALE DRESS IN THE TIMES OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS.
[Illustration: [++] Necklace of Beads.]
Fig. 1 is a necklace of beads, each bead being cut so as to represent
a group of several, and give the effect of many small round beads to
what are in reality long and narrow ones. Fig. 2 is a necklace of
simpler construction, consisting of a row of rudely-shaped beads, its
centre being remarkable for containing a rude attempt at representing a
human face, the only thing of the kind Hoare discovered of so ancient
a date in Britain. Fig. 3 is another necklace, consisting of a series
of curious little shells, like the hirlas horn used by the Britons,
which are perforated lengthways, and thus strung together. Fig. 4 is a
pin of iron, supposed to have been used as a fastening for a mantle; it
is ornamented with two movable rings. Fig. 5 is a small gold ornament,
checkered like a chessboard, and suspended from a chain of beautiful
workmanship, which, in taste and execution, bears a striking similarity
to our modern curb-chains. Fig. 6 is an ear-ring, a bead suspended
from a twisted wire of gold. Fig. 7 is a brass ornament, and Fig. 8 a
similar one of gold: such ornaments are usually found upon the breasts
of the exhumed skeletons of our barrows, and were probably fastened on
their clothes as ornaments. Their cruciform character might lead to a
doubt of their high antiquity, if we were not aware of the fact, that
the symbol of the cross was worn, as an amulet or ornament, ages before
the Christian era.
LARGE EEL.
Lately, near Malden, an eel was taken, measuring _five feet six inches
in length, seventeen in girth_, and weighing _26 pounds_, the largest
of the species ever caught, or described in natural history.
PERSEVERING DOG.
A boast being made of the obedience of a Newfoundland dog in fetching
and carrying, the master put a marked shilling under a large square
stone by the road side, and, having ridden on three miles, ordered
the dog to go back and fetch it. The dog set off, but did not return
the whole day. He had gone to the place, and being unable to turn the
stone, sat howling by it. Two horsemen came by and saw his distress,
and one of them alighting removed the stone, and finding the shilling,
put it in his pocket, not supposing that the dog could possibly be
looking for that. The dog followed the horses for upwards of twenty
miles, stayed in the room where they supped, got into the bed-room, got
the breeches in which the fatal shilling had been put, made his escape
with them, and dragged them through mud and mire, hedge and ditch, to
his master's house.
CURE FOR CORPULENCE.
A few years ago, a man of about forty years of age, hired himself as a
labourer, in one of the most considerable ale-breweries in the City: at
this time he was a personable man; stout, active, and not fatter than a
moderate-sized man in high health should be. His chief occupation was
to superintend the working of the new beer, and occasionally to set up
at night to watch the sweet-wort, an employment not requiring either
activity or labour; of course, at these times, he had an opportunity of
tasting the liquor, of which, it appears, he always availed himself;
besides this, he had constant access to the new beer. Thus leading a
quiet inactive life, he began to increase in bulk, and continued to
enlarge, until, in a very short time, he became of such an unwieldy
size, as to be unable to move about, and was too big to pass up the
brewhouse staircase; if by any accident he fell down, he was unable to
get up again without help. The integuments of his face hung down to
the shoulders and breast: the fat was not confined to any particular
part, but diffused over the whole of his body, arms, legs, &c., making
his appearance such as to attract the attention of all who saw him. He
left this service to go into the country, being a burthen to himself,
and totally useless to his employers. About two years afterwards he
called upon his old masters in very different shape to that above
described, being reduced in size nearly half, and weighing little
more than ten stone. The account that he gave of himself was, that as
soon as he had quitted the brewhouse he went into Bedfordshire, where
having soon spent the money he had earned, and being unable to work,
he was brought into such a state of poverty, as to be scarcely able to
obtain the sustenance of life, often being a whole day without food;
that he drank very little, and that was generally water. By this mode
of living he began to diminish in size, so as to be able to walk about
with tolerable ease. He then engaged himself to a farmer, with whom he
stayed a considerable time, and in the latter part of his service he
was able to go through very hard labour, being sometimes in the field
ploughing and following various agricultural concerns, for a whole day,
with no other food than a small pittance of bread and cheese. This was
the history he gave of the means by which this extraordinary change was
brought about. He added, his health had never been so good as it then
was.
WORSHIP OF THE SUN AND MOON.
The Sun was first worshipped, probably, as a bright manifestation of
God, but soon began to be regarded as the Deity himself. The Moon,
in the absence of the Sun, and next in splendour, would succeed
it in superstitious attention. And so we find the Romans, as well
as the Saxons, dedicating the first and second days of the week
respectively to these "great lights." Formerly, festivals were held
on the appearance of a New Moon; and in some parts of England it is
still customary to bless it, and in Scotland at the same time to drop
a courtesy. And in times not long past, the influence of the Moon was
considered to be so great as to regulate the growth of air, and the
effect of medicine, and to cause steeples and other elevated buildings
to bend from their upright positions.
A SEA ABOVE THE SKY.
This belief is curiously illustrated by two legendary stories preserved
by Gervase of Tilbury. "One Sunday," he says, "the people of a village
in England were coming out of church on a thick cloudy day, when they
saw the anchor of a ship hooked to one of the tombstones; the cable,
which was tightly stretched, hanging down from the air. The people were
astonished, and while they were consulting about it, suddenly they saw
the rope move as though some one laboured to pull up the anchor. The
anchor, however, still held fast by the stone, and a great noise was
suddenly heard in the air, like the shouting of sailors. Presently a
sailor was seen sliding down the cable for the purpose of unfixing the
anchor; and when he had just loosened it, the villagers seized hold of
him, and while in their hands he quickly died, just as though he had
been drowned. About an hour after, the sailors above, hearing no more
of their comrade, cut the cable and sailed away. In memory of this
extraordinary event, the people of the village made the hinges of the
church doors out of the iron of the anchor, and 'there they are still
to be seen.'--At another time, a merchant of Bristol set sail with
his cargo for Ireland. Some time after this, while his family were at
supper, a knife suddenly fell in through the window on the table. When
the husband returned, he saw the knife, declared it to be his own, and
said that on such a day, at such an hour, while sailing in an unknown
part of the sea, he dropped the knife overboard, and the day and hour
were known to be exactly the time when it fell through the window.
These accidents, Gervase thinks, are a clear proof of there being a sea
above hanging over us."--_St. Patrick's Purgatory. By Thos. Wright._
1844.
THE PAPYRUS.
Paper as we now have it, that is to say, paper made of the pulp of
fibrous materials, pressed into thin sheets, dried, and, when intended
for writing or printing purposes, sized, is of comparatively modern
introduction to Europe and Western Asia; although the Chinese appear to
have formed paper out of silk pulp, mixed with the inner pith of the
bamboo, as early at least as 95 A.D.:--not from time immemorial, as
some authors have stated, because the circumstance is well attested,
that in the time of Confucius, the Chinese wrote with a style on the
inner bark of trees.
[Illustration: Papyrus Roll, from a Specimen in the British Museum.]
Before the invention of paper, the surfaces employed for writing upon
were numerous. Surfaces of lead or other metal; tables covered with
wax, skins of animals,--(parchment in fact)--all were used; but no one
of these was ever so extensively employed as the Egyptian papyrus,
whenever the latter material could be obtained. So soon, however, as
the Saracens in the seventh century conquered Egypt, the exportation of
papyrus was at an end; and writing surfaces became so scarce in Europe
that many ancient documents of great value were erased in order to
render them adapted for being written on once more. Thus perished many
treasures of antiquity.
As the Saracens closed the avenue of supply for the ancient papyrus,
so they compensated to Europe for this deprivation by discovering the
manufacture of ordinary paper--at least paper made in the ordinary
modern fashion,--though the material was cotton, not linen. This
discovery was made some time anterior to the year 706 A.D., for at
that period a manufactory of paper existed at Samarcand. In the
eighth century the Saracens conquered Spain, and introduced into the
Peninsula, amongst other arts, that of the manufacture of paper, which
art was a long time finding its way into other parts of Europe,--in
Italy not until the eleventh or twelfth century. The vast amount of
papyrus which must have been employed in Italy, may be inferred
from the number of rolls or _scapi_ of this substance discovered in
Herculaneum and Pompeii; also from a perusal of many existing documents
bearing directly or indirectly on this branch of commerce. Even so late
as the commencement of the sixth century, Cassiodorus congratulated the
world on the abolition, by King Theodoric, of the high duty on papyrus
from Egypt; and he spoke in high flown terms of the great utility of
the material. The latest papyrus roll known is of the twelfth century,
containing a brief of Pope Paschal II., in favour of the Archiepiscopal
see of Ravenna.
[Illustration: Syrian Papyrus Without Flowers.]
[Illustration: Syrian Papyrus With Flowers.]
The various species of papyrus plants belong to the natural order
"Cyperaceæ," or sedges, of botanists; a main characteristic of which is
a certain triangularity of stem. The method of constructing a writing
surface from these stems was as follows:--The available portion being
cut off (it was seldom more than twelve inches in length), and split,
or, more properly speaking, unfolded into thin sheets, which were glued
together transversely in such a manner that the original length of the
papyrus stem became the breadth of the future sheet; the length of
which might be increased at the pleasure of the operator. Frequently
the manufactured scrolls were more than thirty feet long. As different
methods prevail in the manufacture of our ordinary paper, so in like
manner there were different processes of fashioning the papyrus into
shape. The rudest manufacture appears to have been that of Egypt, and
the best papyrus sheets appear to have been made in Rome during the
Augustine Æra. The preceding sketch represents a papyrus roll, copied
from a specimen in the Egyptian Room of the British Museum.
Considering the numerous pieces entering into the composition of the
roll, of which our illustration represents a portion, the lines of
juncture are remarkably well concealed, only a sort of grain being
visible. The surface, moreover, is smoothed, and its colour very
much like that of India paper. The hieroglyphics are coloured as is
usual, red is the predominant tint, and the colours are no less well
demarcated and separate than they would have been on glazed paper.
Our preceding wood-cuts represent the Sicilian or Syrian papyrus,
hitherto termed _cyperus papyrus_, in two states of development--one
with flowers, the other without. In order that inflorescence may take
place, the plant requires to be well supplied with water.
EXECUTION IN 1733.
_Friday, March 9_--Was executed at Northampton, William Alcock, for the
murder of his wife. He never own'd the fact, nor was at all concerned
at his approaching death; refusing the prayers and assistance of any
persons. In the morning he drank more than was sufficient, yet sent and
paid for a pint of wine, which being deny'd him, he would not enter
the cart before he had his money return'd. On his way to the gallows
he sung part of an old song of "Robin Hood," with the chorus, "Derry,
derry, down," &c., and swore, kick'd, and spurn'd at every person that
laid hold of the cart; and before he was turn'd off, took off his
shoes, to avoid a well known proverb; and being told by a person in the
cart with him, it was more proper for him to read, or hear somebody
read to him, than so vilely to swear and sing, he struck the book out
of the person's hands, and went on damning the spectators and calling
for wine. Whilst psalms and prayers were performing at the tree he did
little but talk to one or other, desiring some to remember him, others
to drink to his good journey, and to the last moment declared the
injustice of his case.
DOG FRIENDSHIP.
At Bishops Stortford there were two dogs, which belonged to nobody, and
lived upon the quay of the river or canal there. They took the greatest
delight in rat hunting, and when the maltsters went about at night to
see that all was safe, these dogs invariably followed them. Their mode
of proceeding was very ingenious. As soon as the door of the malt-house
was unlocked, one rushed in and coursed round the warehouse, not
chasing any rat which might start, but pursuing its way among the malt.
The other stood at the door and snapped at the rats as they endeavoured
to escape. The one standing at the door was known to kill six rats,
all of which had rushed to the door at the same time. The next room
they came to, they would change posts; the one which hunted before,
now standing at the door and seizing the prey. By this means the dogs
killed in the malting-houses of one maltster alone, upwards of 2,000
rats in the course of one year. One of them on one occasion killed
sixty-seven in less than five minutes. They seemed to pursue the sport
simply for their amusement.
ALL HUMBUGS.
Just as a strolling actor at Newcastle had advertised his benefit, a
remarkable stranger, no less than the _Prince Annamaboo_, arrived, and
placarded the town that he granted audiences at a shilling a-head. The
stroller, without delay, waited on the proprietor of the _Prince_, and
for a good round sum prevailed on him to command his Serene Highness
to exhibit his august person on his benefit night. The bills of the
day announced that between the acts of the comedy _Prince Annamaboo_
would give a lively representation of the _scalping operation_, sound
the _Indian war-whoop_ in all its melodious tones, practice the
tomahawk exercise, and dine _à la cannibal_. An intelligent mob were
collected to witness these interesting exploits. At the conclusion of
the third act, his _Highness_ marched forward flourishing his tomahawk,
and shouting, "_Ha, ha!--ho, ho!_" Next entered a man with his face
blacked, and a piece of bladder fastened to his head with gum; the
_Prince_, with an enormous carving-knife, began the scalping part of
the entertainment, which he performed in a truly _imperial_ style,
holding up the piece of bladder as a token of triumph. Next came the
war-whoop, an unearthly combination of discordant sounds; and lastly,
the banquet, consisting of raw beef-steaks, which he rolled up into
rouleaus, and devoured with right royal avidity. Having finished
his delicate repast, he wielded his tomahawk in an exulting manner,
bellowed "_Ha, ha!--ho, ho!_" and made his exit. The _bénéficiaire_
strolling through the market-place the following-day, spied the most
puissant _Prince Annamaboo_ selling penknives, scissors, and quills,
in the character of a Jew pedlar. "What!" said the astonished _Lord
Townley_, "my _Prince_, is it you? Are you not a pretty circumcised
little scoundrel to impose upon us in this manner?" Moses turned round,
and with an arch look, replied, "_Princh_ be d--d! I _vash_ no Princh;
I _vash_ acting like you. Your troop _vash_ Lords and Ladies last
night; and to-night dey vil be Kings, _Prinches_, and Emperor! I _vash
humpugs_, you _vash humpugs_, all _vash humpugs_!"
REDUCING WEIGHT.
A gentleman, of great respectability in the mercantile world, who
weighed thirty-two stone nine pounds, put himself upon a strict diet of
_four ounces of animal food_, _six ounces_ of bread, and _two pounds
of liquid_, in twenty-four hours. In one week he lost thirty pounds
weight, and in six months he was diminished the astonishing quantity of
one hundred and thirty-four pounds. His health and spirits were much
improved, and considering his remaining size of twenty-three stone, he
was very active.
ANECDOTE OF A SERPENT.
Lord Monboddo relates the following singular anecdote of a serpent:--"I
am well informed of a tame serpent in the East Indies, which belonged
to the late Dr. Vigot, once kept by him in the suburbs of Madras. This
serpent was taken by the French, when they invested Madras, and was
carried to Pondicherry in a close carriage. But from thence, he found
his way back again to his old quarters, though Madras was above one
hundred miles distant from Pondicherry."
ENGLAND BEFORE THE ROMANS.
[Illustration [++] Shoes of Raw Cow-Hide.]
Before the Roman invasion, the dress of its chieftains consisted of
a close coat or covering for the body, called by Dio a tunic, and
described as checkered with various colours in divisions. It was open
before, and had long close sleeves to the wrist. Below were loose
pantaloons, called by the Irish _brigis_, and by the Romans _brages_
and _bracæ_; whence the modern term "breeches." Over their shoulders
was thrown the mantle or cloak, called by the Romans _sagum_, and
derived from the Celtic word _saic_, which signified a skin or hide,
and which was the original cloak of the country. Diodorus tells us
that it was of one uniform colour, generally either blue or black, the
predominating tint in the checkered trousers and tunic being red. On
their heads they wore a conical cap, which derived its name from the
"cab," or hut of the Briton, which was of similar form. On their feet
were shoes made of raw cow-hide, that had the hair turned outward, and
which reached to the ankles. Shoes so constructed were worn within the
last few years in Ireland; and we engrave two from specimens in the
Royal Irish Academy. One is of cow-hide, and drawn together by a string
over the foot; and the other has a leather thong, which is fastened
beneath the heel inside, and, passing over the instep, draws the shoe
like a purse over the foot. It is of untanned leather.
ROMANS IN BRITAIN--DRESS OF NATIVE FEMALES AT THAT PERIOD.
[Illustration: [++] Female Roman Shoes.]
The British _gwn_, from whence comes the modern "gown," descended to
the middle of the thigh, the sleeves barely reaching to the elbows:
it was sometimes confined by a girdle. Beneath this a longer dress
reached to the ancles. The hair was trimmed after the Roman fashion;
and upon the feet, when covered, were sometimes worn shoes of a
costly character, of which we know the Romans themselves to have
been fond. An extremely beautiful pair was discovered upon opening a
Roman burial-place at Southfleet in Kent, in 1802. They were placed
in a stone sarcophagus, between two large glass urns or vases, each
containing a considerable quantity of burnt bones. They were of
superb and expensive workmanship, being made of fine purple leather,
reticulated in the form of hexagons all over, and each hexagonal
division worked with gold, in an elaborate and beautiful manner.
[Illustration: The Catacombs. Rome.]
Amid the ruins of stately temples, and numerous remains of the "Eternal
City," there are no objects which have such great and general interest
as the subterranean churches, dwellings, and places of sepulchre of the
early Christians, which perforate, by a network of excavations, the
neighbourhood of Rome.
The great increase in the extent and magnificence of Rome during
the times of the Republic, led to the formation of quarries in the
surrounding parts. The peculiar nature of the soil has caused the
excavations to be made in a manner similar to that used in the working
of coal, iron, stone, lime, &c. The useful material has, in fact, been
cleared away, leaving long ranges of dark caves and passages. After
the stone had been removed from these underground quarries, it was,
for many centuries, customary to work out the sand for the purpose of
making cement. Vitruvius has stated that the sand obtained from the
Esquiline pits was preferable to any other. Ultimately the quarries
and sandpits extended to a distance of upwards of fifteen miles on
one side of Rome. Parts of this large range of excavations were from
time to time used as burial-grounds by such of the Romans as could not
afford the cost of burning the bodies of their dead relations. And, in
addition, the Esquiline hills became infested by banditti, and was from
these various causes rendered almost impassable.
In these excavations, it is said, that not only persons, but cattle,
contrived to support existence; and although it was well known that
large numbers were lodged in these dismal dwellings, their intricacy
and numberless entrances rendered them a comparatively secure retreat.
It is related that attempts were made to cover the galleries with
earth, in order to destroy those who were concealed within.
[Illustration: [++] Inscription in the Catacombs.]
In course of time the catacombs became, with the exception of one or
two, neglected and filled up with rubbish, and remained for a period
of upwards of one thousand years untouched and almost unknown. In the
sixteenth century the whole range of the catacombs were reopened, and
numerous inscriptions and other matters connected with the struggles
and hardships of the early Christians brought to light. The annexed
brief memorial will show the general style of the lettering.
OBSOLETE MODES OF PUNISHMENT.
Ante page 60, we gave representations of some ancient instruments of
punishment and torture, all more or less terrible in their character,
the use of which, for many a long year, has been happily abandoned. As
a companion to this group, we have engraved a few of the instruments
of punishment by which criminals of a vulgar character were sought
to be reformed. The first of these is the felon's brand, the mark of
which rendered a man infamous for life. Figure 1, p. 90 represents the
instrument itself. Figure 2, the mark branded in, which latter has
been engraved the exact size. The device, which is deeply cut into the
metal, is a gallows, such as was used before the invention of the Drop
and the Wheel for Execution and torture.
The Stocks and Whipping-post, although long since removed from London
Bridge, may be met with in retired country places. We have noticed
some characteristic examples in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire,
where some of the may-poles, day-wheels, and other curious relics, may
still be seen.[2] In some instances the Stocks and Whipping-posts were
richly carved, and clamped with iron work of an ornamental character.
We remember seeing the stocks used within the last thirty years, once
at Newcastle-on-Tyne, and once at Gateshead, the adjoining town. The
culprit in the one instance was an elector, who, in the excess of zeal
and beer, during an old-fashioned contested election, rushed into one
of the churches during the Sunday's service, and shouted out, "Bell
(one of the candidates) for ever." He was speedily taken hold of,
and placed for several hours in the stocks in the churchyard; and,
as the stimulating effect of the strong drink passed away, he looked
a deplorable object, decked as he was with numerous cockades, the
"favours" of the candidate, whose cause he so indiscreetly supported.
[2] A good specimen was demolished at Tottenham not long ago.
The punishment of the barrel we should think to have been adapted for
drunkards who could preserve a perpendicular position.
In the histories of London, it is mentioned that bakers and other
dealers caught giving false weight, or in any other ways cheating the
poor, were exhibited occasionally in this manner; but more frequently
they were placed in the parish dung-cart, and slowly drawn through the
streets of the district.
The Whirligig, a circular cage which could be moved swiftly round on
a pivot, was, in bygone days, in use for offenders in the English
army. There was another instrument used for the same purpose called
the Horse, which was made in rude resemblance of the animal whose
name it bore. The body was composed of planks of wood, which formed a
sharp angle along the back. On this the soldier was seated, and his
legs fastened below to several heavy muskets. This is said to have
been a very severe and dangerous punishment. In addition to the above,
and flogging, imprisonment, &c., there were three ancient methods of
punishment in the English army--viz., beheading, hanging, and drowning.
The latter of these, according to Grose, was in use only in the reign
of Richard I. This author observes that, some centuries ago, capital
punishment was rare in our army, the men having generally property,
which was confiscated in case of ill conduct. He, however, refers
to some terrible means which were resorted to for the purpose of
preserving discipline. Hanging was chiefly confined to spies; who were
taken to a tree in sight of the camp, and yet sufficiently distant, and
there hung up. In many instances, when a corps or a considerable body
of men were guilty of crime, for which the established punishment was
death, to prevent too great a weakening of the army, the delinquents,
Grose says, "were decimated, that is, only every tenth man was taken. A
number of billets, equal to that of the body to be decimated, were put
into a helmet, every tenth billet being marked with the letter D, or
some other character signifying death; the helmet was then shaken, in
order to mix them, and the soldiers, filing off singly from the right,
passed by the commanding officers, before whom, on a table, stood the
helmet; as they passed, each drew a billet and presented it to an
officer placed to receive them. If the billet had the fatal mark; the
soldier was seized and marched into the rear."
This wholesale method of capital punishment must have been a solemn
affair. At times, it was customary to punish the man at the right hand
of companies; without giving them the chance of the billet--on the
principal that these were the most influential persons, and must, from
their companionship with the others, have been acquainted with and have
possessed the means of checking or giving information, which would
prevent dangerous offences.
[Illustration: 1. Brand for Marking Felons. 2. Impression of Brand. 3.
Punishment for Drunkards, formerly in use at Newcastle-on-Tyne. 4. The
Whirligig, a military method of punishment. 5. Pillory, Stocks, and
Whipping Post, formerly on London Bridge.]
The regulations of the English army during the time of Henry VIII., and
previous reigns, may be met with in "Grose's Military Antiquities."
ORIGIN OF THE TERM "HUMBUG."
This, now, common expression, is a corruption of the word Hamburgh, and
originated in the following manner:--During a period when war prevailed
on the Continent, so many false reports and lying bulletins were
fabricated at Hamburgh, that at length, when any one would signify his
disbelief of a statement, he would say, "You had that from Hamburgh;"
and thus, "That is Hamburgh," or Humbug, became a common expression of
incredulity.
MARRIAGE LOTTERY.
It has often been said figuratively that marriage is a lottery; but we
do not recollect to have met with a practical illustration of the truth
of the simile, before the following, which is a free translation of an
advertisement in the Louisiana Gazette:--"A young man of good figure
and disposition, unable, though desirous to procure a wife, without
the preliminary trouble of amassing a fortune, proposes the following
expedient to attain the object of his wishes. He offers himself as
the prize of a lottery to all widows and virgins under 32. The number
of tickets to be 600, at 50 dollars each. But one number to be drawn
from the wheel, the fortunate proprietor of which is to be entitled to
himself and the 30,000 dollars."
CHINESE DAINTIES.
The common people of the country seem to fare hardly and sparingly
enough, but one of our envoys praises much of the good cheer he found
at the tables of the great men. They had pork, fish, and poultry,
prepared in a great variety of ways, and very nice confectionery in
abundance. The feasts, moreover, were served up in a very neat and
cleanly manner. But there was one dainty which much offended their
nostrils, and nearly turned their stomachs when it was named to them.
It was not stewed dog or fricaséed pup. No; it consisted of three
bowls of _hatched eggs_! When the Englishmen expressed some surprise
at the appearance of this portion of the repast, one of the native
attendants observed that hatched eggs formed a delicacy beyond the
reach of the poor--a delicacy adapted only for persons of distinction!
On inquiry, it was found that they cost in the market some thirty
per cent. more than fresh eggs. It seems that they always form a
distinguished part of every great entertainment, and that it is the
practice, when invitations are sent out, to set the hens to hatch.
The feast takes place about the tenth or twelfth day from the issuing
the invitations,--the eggs being then considered as ripe, and exactly
in the state most agreeable and pleasant to the palate of a Chinese
epicure.
RECEIPTS FROM ALBERTUS MAGNUS.
"Bubo a shrick owle, is a byrd wel inough knowen, which is called
Magis of the Chaldes, and Hysopus of the Greekes. There bee maruaylous
vertues of this Fowle, for if the hart and ryght foote of it be put
upon a man sleeping, hee shall saye anone to thee whatsoever thou shalt
aske of him. And thys hath beene prooued of late tyme of our brethren.
And if any man put thys onder his arme hole, no Dog wyll barke at hym,
but keepe silence. And yf these thynges aforesayde ioyned together with
a wyng of it be hanged up to a tree, byrdes wyl gather together to that
tree."
"When thou wylt that thy wyfe or wenche shewe to thee all that shee
hath done, take the hart of a Doove, and the heade of a Frog, and drye
them both, and braie them vnto poulder, and lay them vpon the brest of
her sleeping, and shee shall shew to thee all that shee hath done, but
when shee shall wake, wipe it awaye from her brest, that it bee not
lifted vp."
"Take an Adders skyn, and Auri pigmentum, and greeke pitch of
Reuponticum, and the waxe of newe Bees, and the fat or greace of an
Asse, and breake them all, and put them all in a dull seething pot full
of water, and make it to seeth at a slowe fire, and after let it waxe
cold, and make a taper, and euery man that shall see light of it shall
seeme headlesse."--_The Secreetes of Nature, set foorth by Albertus
Magnus in Latine, newlye translated into English._ Imprinted at London
by me Wyllyam Copland. No date. _Black letter_, very old.
THE MAGPIE STONING A TOAD.
There is a story told of a tame magpie, which was seen busily employed
in a garden, gathering pebbles, and with much solemnity, and a
studied air, dropping them in a hole, about eighteen inches deep,
made to receive a post. After dropping each stone, it cried, Currack!
triumphantly, and set off for another. On examining the spot a poor
toad was found in the hole, which the magpie was stoning for his
amusement.
ADAPTATION OF BONES TO AGE IN THE HUMAN FRAME.
Growth produces in the species a somewhat remarkable change in the
mechanical qualities of the bones. This important part of our organism
consists of three constituents--fibre, cartilage, and the earthy matter
already mentioned called _phosphate of lime_. From the fibre they
derive their toughness; from the cartilage their elasticity; and from
the lime their hardness and firmness. Nothing can be more admirable
in the economy of our body than the manner in which the proportion of
these constituents adapts itself to the habitudes of age. The helpless
infant, exposed by a thousand incidents to external shocks, has bones,
the chief constituents of which being gristly and cartilaginous, are
yielding and elastic, and incur little danger of fracture. Those of the
youth, whose augmented weight and increased activity demand greater
strength, have a larger proportion of the calcareous and fibrous
elements, but still enough of the cartilaginous to confer upon the
solid framework of his body the greatest firmness, toughness, and
elasticity. As age advances, prudence and tranquil habits increasing,
as well as the weight which the bones have to sustain, the proportion
of the calcareous constituent increases, giving the requisite hardness
and strength, but diminishing the toughness and elasticity.
While the bones thus change their mechanical qualities as age advances,
they diminish in number, the frame consequently having fewer joints
and less flexibility. The bones of a child, whose habits require
greater bodily pliability, are more numerous than those of an adult,
several of the articulations becoming ossified between infancy and
maturity. In like manner, the bones at maturity are more numerous than
in advanced age, the same progressive ossification of the joints being
continued.
It has been ascertained by anatomists that, on attaining the adult
state, the number of bones constituting the framework of the human body
is 198; of which 52 belong to the trunk, 22 to the head, 64 to the
arms, and 60 to the legs.
TOWER OF THE THUNDERING WINDS.
[Illustration: [++] Tower of the Thundering Winds.]
The Great Wall is certainly a wonderful monument of ancient times; but
it is almost the only one that we read of in China, except a famous
Temple, or Tower, partly in ruins, which stands on an eminence in
the neighbourhood of Hang-chow-foo. It is called the "Tower of the
Thundering Winds," and is supposed to have been built about 2,500 years
ago.
DR. MONSEY BEQUEATHS HIS OWN BODY.
This eccentric person died at the great age of 96, and was for half
a century, physician to Chelsea Hospital. He left his body for
dissection, and a few days before he died, wrote to Mr. Cruikshanks,
the Anatomist, begging him to know, whether it would suit his
convenience to do it, as he felt he could not live many hours, and Mr.
Forster, his surgeon, was then out of town. He died as he predicted,
and his wishes with respect to his body, were strictly attended to.
TEA.
A folio sheet of the time of Charles II. entitled "An Exact Description
of the Growth, Quality, and Virtues of the Leaf Tea, by Thomas Garway,
in Exchange Alley, near the Royal Exchange, in London, Tobacconist, and
Seller and Retailer of Tea and Coffee," informs us that "in England
it hath been sold in the leaf for six pounds, and sometimes for ten
pounds the pound weight; and in respect of its former scarceness and
dearness, it hath been only used as a regalia in high treatments, and
entertainments, and presents made thereof to princes and grandees till
the year 1657. The said Thomas Garway did purchase a quantity thereof,
and first publikely sold the said Tea in leaf and drink, made according
to the direction of the most knowing merchants and travellers in those
eastern countries: and upon knowledge and experience of the said
Garway's continued care and industry, in obtaining the best Tea, and
making drink thereof, very many noblemen, physicians, merchants, and
gentlemen of quality, have ever since sent to him for the said leaf,
and daily resort to his house, in Exchange Alley, to drink the drink
thereof."
IT'S MUCH THE SAME NOW.
The following lines, from the _Gentleman's Magazine_ of 1733, will give
us some idea of what fashionable life was at that period:--
_The Town Lady's Answer to_,--"_What tho' I am a Country Lass_."
What tho' I am a London dame,
And lofty looks I bear, a?
I carry, sure, as good a name,
As those who russet wear, a.
What tho' my cloaths are rich brocades?
My skin it is more white, a
Than any of the country maids
That in the fields delight, a.
What tho' I to assemblies go,
And at the Opera's shine, a?
It is a thing all girls must do,
That will be ladies fine, a:
And while I hear Faustina sing,
Before the king and queen, a
By Eyes they are upon the wing,
To see, if I am seen, a.
My Peko and Imperial Tea
Are brought me in the Morn, a.
At Noon Champaign and rich Tokay
My table do adorn, a.
The Evening then does me invite
To play at dear Quadrille, a:
And sure in this there's more delight,
Than in a purling rill, a.
Then since my Fortune does allow
Me to live as I please, a;
I'll never milk my father's cow
Nor press his coming cheese, a.
But take my swing both night and day,
I'm sure it is no sin, a:
And as for what the grave ones say,
I value not a pin, a.
BARBERS.
The barber's pole, one of the popular relics of Merrie England, is
still to be seen in some of the old streets of London and in country
towns, painted with its red, blue, and yellow stripes, and surmounted
with a gilt acorn. The lute and violin were formerly among the
furniture of a barber's shop. He who waited to be trimmed, if of
a musical turn, played to the company. The barber himself was a
nimble-tongued, pleasant-witted fellow. William Rowley, the dramatist,
in "A Search for Money, 1609," thus describes him:--"As wee were but
asking the question, steps me from over the way (over-listning us) a
news-searcher, viz. a _barber_: hee, hoping to attaine some discourse
for his next patient, left his baner of basons swinging in the ayre,
and closely eave-drops our conference. The saucie treble-tongu'd knave
would insert somewhat of his knowledge (treble-tongu'd I call him, and
thus I prove't: hee has a reasonable mother-tonger, his barber-surgions
tongue; and a tongue betweene two of his fingers, and from thence
proceeds his wit, and 'tis a snapping wit too). Well, sir, hee (before
hee was askt the question,) told us that the wandring knight (Monsier
L'Argent) sure was not farre off; for on Saterday-night hee was faine
to watch till morning to trim some of his followers, and its morning
they went away from him betimes. Hee swore hee never clos'd his eyes
till hee came to church, and then hee slept all sermon-time; (but
certainly hee is not farre afore, and at yonder taverne showing us
the bush) I doe imagine hee has tane a chamber." In ancient times the
_barber_ and the _tailor_, as news-mongers, divided the crown. The
barber not only erected his _pole_ as a sign, but hung his _basins_
upon it by way of ornament.
BEES OBEDIENT TO TRAINING.
Though it is customary in many rural districts of England, when bees
are swarming, to make a clanging noise with metal implements, under the
impression--an erroneous one we believe--that it will induce the swarm
to settle, it is not generally supposed that bees are susceptible of
being trained to obey in many respects the orders of their teacher.
Such, however, is the fact, and an instance of it occurs in the
following advertisement, which we have copied from an old newspaper. We
give it as we find it, but it is not very clear what locality is meant
by "their _proper_ places":--
"At the Jubilee Gardens, Dobney's, 1772. Daniel Wildman rides, standing
upright, one foot on the saddle, and the other on the horse's neck,
with a curious mask of bees on his face. He also rides, standing
upright on the saddle, with the bridle in his mouth, and, by firing a
pistol, makes one part of the bees march over a table, and the other
part swarm in the air, and return to their proper places again."
A MAN SELLING HIS OWN BODY.
Anatomists and surgeons have frequently incurred the odium of being
precipitate in their post mortem examinations. It has been charged
upon the illustrious Vessalius, and, in more modern times, on Mons. de
Lassone, and others; nay, credulity has gone so far, as to suppose,
that subjects have occasionally been kept till wanted; nor is such
a notion altogether extravant, when we find an article of this kind
offered to Joshua Brookes, the anatomical lecturer, in the following
terms:--
"Mr. Brooke, i have taken it into consideration to send this poor man
to you, being greatly in distress, hopeing you will find sum employment
for him in silling the dead carcases; and if you can find him no
employment, the berer of this wishes to sill himself to you, as he is
weary of this life. And I remain your humble servant,
"JOHN DAVIS."
THE FIRST LOCOMOTIVES.
[Illustration: The First Locomotive.]
It is little more than thirty years ago, when, on the river Tyne, a
large fleet of peculiarly-formed vessels was to be seen daily employed
in the carriage of coals to the ships from the "staiths," which
projected into the river from the various colliery tramways. At that
period, there was only one very small and ill-constructed steam-packet
for the conveyance of passengers between Newcastle and Shields, and
against which so much prejudice existed, that the majority of persons
preferred the covered wherries, which, for some centuries before,
had been in use; yet so slow and uncertain was this means of transit
between the two towns, that persons in a hurry often found it advisable
to walk the intervening distance, which is about eight miles.
[Illustration: The Present Locomotive and Train.]
The collieries situated away from the river had tramways of wood let
into the ordinary roads, in such a manner as to form wheel-tracks for
carriages. These, drawn by horses, were the only means thought of for
bringing the coals to the river bank. Some of these tramways were
nearly as old as the times of Queen Elizabeth or James I., when the
increase of London and other causes began to overcome the prejudice
against the use of "sea-coal." Many of the tramways passed amid green
and shadowy woods and other pleasant places, and we have often thought
when wandering through them, of the difficulties that beset travellers
at that time. Even at a more recent date, in 1673, day coaches were
considered dangerous, and it was suggested that the multitude of them
in London should be limited, and not more than one be allowed to
each shire, to go once a week backwards and forwards, and to perform
the whole journey with the same horses they set out with, and not to
travel more than thirty miles a day in summer, and twenty-five in
winter. The arguments advanced in favour of these proposals were, that
coaches and caravans were mischievous to the public, destructive to
trade, and prejudicial to the land--because, firstly, they destroyed
the breed of good horses, and made men careless of horsemanship;
secondly, they hindered the breed of watermen, who were the nursery of
seamen; thirdly, they lessened the revenue.
In 1703, the road from Petworth to London (less than 50 miles) was so
bad that the Duke of Somerset was obliged to rest a night on the road.
In March, 1739 or 1740, Mr. Pennant, the historian, travelled by the
_stage_, then no despicable vehicle for country gentlemen, and in the
first day, with "much labour," got from Chester to Whitechurch--twenty
miles; and, after a "wondrous effort," reached London before the
commencement of the sixth night.
Without entering into an account of the rapid improvement of the
English roads soon after the time of Pennant, we may mention that,
at about the date 1765, the colliery tramways underwent considerable
improvement, by plating the wooden rails in many parts with iron:
stone-ways were tried in some instances, but were not found successful;
and in course of time the old tramways were covered with cast-iron
rails laid on the old foundations. Inclined planes, with fixed
steam-engines, also came into use; and at the same time the idea of
a locomotive engine was attracting attention in various directions.
In 1805 a machine was used on a tramway near Merthyr Tydvil, and soon
after this the "Iron Horse," shown in the engraving, was placed upon
the wagon way of the Wylam Colliery, from Wylam to Newburn, on the
Tyne, near Newcastle, and greatly astonished all who saw it drawing
along, at the rate of three miles and a half per hour, from fifteen to
twenty wagons of coals, making all the while a horrible and snorting
noise, difficult to describe, and sending forth at the same time fire
and dense clouds of black smoke. George Stephenson was then beginning
to make way, and had provided several improved locomotives for Heaton
Colliery. In 1816-1817, patents for improvements in locomotives were
taken out by George Stephenson, in connexion with Messrs. Dodd and
Losh; and in 1825 the projection of the Liverpool and Manchester
Railway afforded a further opportunity for their development. The
opposition to the use of steam-engines on this line of railway seems
singular enough at the present day; still it was very great. The use of
horses was, however, found to be too expensive, and George Stephenson
having stated that he could work a locomotive with safety at a rate
of from six to eight miles an hour ("I knew," said he, "that if I
told them more than that, they would look upon me as more fit for a
lunatic house than to give evidence in the House of Commons"), a reward
of 500_l._ was offered for the best locomotive engine. A trial took
place in October, 1829--_only twenty-seven years ago!_--of the steam
locomotive engines which were offered in competition. Of these, one
was withdrawn at the commencement of the experiment. The "Novelty," by
Braithwait and Ericsson, met with an accident; and the "Sanspareil," by
Hackworth, attained a velocity of fifteen miles an hour, with a gross
load of nineteen tons, but at length gave way, owing to an accident;
the remaining engine, constructed by Robert Stephenson and Mr. Booth,
succeeded in performing more than was stipulated.
The contrast between the date mentioned at the commencement of our
article and the present time is remarkable: the old and clumsy fleet
has vanished from the Tyne; a railway carries passengers from Newcastle
to Shields in a few minutes; numerous steam vessels sail upon the
river, some of large size; which travel to various and distant ports.
On the colliery railway hundreds of locomotives are at work, and
hundreds of thousands of miles of iron rails spread over a wide extent
of the civilized world; and, in addition to other wonders, the electric
telegraph will, ere long, outrival the power of Puck, the fairy, and
"put a girdle round the world in (less than) forty minutes."
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE THE HERO OF SCOTLAND.
1305.--This year was marked by the capture of Sir William Wallace.
It appears that the King of England had anxiously sought to discover
his retreat, and that, tempted by the prospects of the rewards his
baseness might earn for him, Ralph de Haliburton, one of the prisoners
taken a short time previously at Sterling, had proffered his services
for that purpose. Upon being seized, he was conveyed to the castle
of Dumbarton, and thence to England. He was brought to London, "with
great numbers of men and women," says Stow, "wondering upon him. He
was lodged in the house of William Delect, a citizen of London, in
Fenchurch-street. On the morrow, being the eve of St. Bartholomew, he
was brought on horseback to Westminster, John Segrave and Geoffrey,
knights, the mayor, sheriffs, and aldermen of London, and many others,
both on horseback and on foot, accompanying him; and in the great
hall at Westminster, he being placed on the south bench, crowned with
laurel--for that he had said in times past that he ought to bear a
crown in that hall, as it was commonly reported--and being appeached
for a traitor by Sir Peter Malorie, the king's justice, he answered,
that he was never traitor to the king of England, but for other things
whereof he was accused, he confessed them." These circumstantial and
minute details, inartificially as they are put together, and homely or
trivial as some of them may be thought, are yet full of interest for
all who would call up a living picture of the scene. Wallace was put to
death as a traitor, on the 23rd of August, 1305, at the usual place of
execution--the Elms in West Smithfield. He was dragged thither at the
tails of horses, and there hanged on a high gallows, after which, while
he yet breathed, his bowels were taken out and burnt before his face.
The barbarous butchery was then completed by the head being struck
off, and the body being divided into quarters. The head was afterwards
placed on a pole on London-bridge; the right arm was sent to be set
up at Newcastle, the left arm to Berwick, the right foot and limb to
Perth, and the left to Aberdeen.
AN ELEPHANT DETECTS A ROBBER.
An officer in the Bengal army had a very fine and favourite elephant,
which was supplied daily in his presence with a certain allowance of
food, but being compelled to absent himself on a journey, the keeper of
the beast diminished the ration of food, and the animal became daily
thinner and weaker. When its master returned, the elephant exhibited
the greatest signs of pleasure; the feeding time came, and the keeper
laid before it the former full allowance of food, which it divided into
two parts, consuming one immediately, and leaving the other untouched.
The officer, knowing the sagacity of his favourite, saw immediately the
fraud that had been practiced, and made the man confess his crime.
MAY-POLES.
[Illustration: [++] Village May-pole.]
The May-pole, decked with garlands, round which the rustics used to
dance in this month, yet stands in a few of our villages through the
whole circle of the year. A May-pole formerly stood in the Strand,
upon the site of the church by Somerset House, but was taken down in
1717. The village May-pole we engrave still remains by the ruins of St.
Briavel Castle, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, and forms an object
of considerable interest to the visitor. Several in the village could
remember the May-day dancers, and the removal and setting up of the
May-pole. No notice whatever of this old English festival has, however,
been taken for some years. The May-pole is about sixty feet high; about
half-way up is the rod to which it was usual to fasten the garlands
and ribbons. Let us observe, that in many parts of Dean Forest, those
who love to trace the remains of old manners and customs will find
ample employment. The people are civil and hospitable; their manner of
address reminds us of the wording of the plays of Shakspere's times;
and in most houses, if a stranger calls, cider and bread are offered,
as in the olden time.
THE OLD DOG WHEEL.
[Illustration: [++] Old Dog Wheel.]
About a century and a half ago, the long-backed "turnspit" dog, and
the curious apparatus here shown, yclept the "Old Dog Wheel," were
to be found in most farm houses; simple machinery has, however, now
been substituted for the wheel which the dog was made to turn round,
like the imprisoned squirrels and white mice of the present day; and
not only the dog wheels, but also the long-backed "turnspit" dog have
almost disappeared. That which we engrave, however, still exists, and
may be seen by the curious, at the Castle of St. Briavel, which stands
on the borders of the Forest of Dean, in Gloucestershire.
ABRAHAM AND SARAH.
The Talmudists relate that Abraham, in travelling to Egypt, brought
with him a chest. At the custom-house the officers exacted the duties.
Abraham would have readily paid them, but desired they would not open
the chest. They first insisted on the duties for clothes, which Abraham
consented to pay; but then they thought by his ready acquiescence that
it might be gold. Abraham consents to pay for gold. They now suspect
it might be silk. Abraham was willing to pay for silk, or more costly
pearls--in short, he consented to pay as if the chest contained the
most valuable of things. It was then they resolved to open and examine
the chest; and, behold, as soon as the chest was opened, that great
lustre of human beauty broke out which made such a noise in the land
of Egypt--it was Sarah herself! The jealous Abraham, to conceal her
beauty, had locked her up in this chest.
AGES OF CELEBRATED MEN.
Hippocrates, the greatest physician the world has ever seen, died at
the age of one hundred and nine, in the island of Cos, his native
country. Galen, the most illustrious of his successors, reached the
age of one hundred and four. The three sages of Greece, Solon, Thales,
and Pittacus, lived for a century. The gay Democritus outlived them
by two years. Zeno wanted only two years of a century when he died.
Diogenes ten years more; and Plato died at the age of ninety-four,
when the eagle of Jupiter is said to have borne his soul to heaven.
Xenophon, the illustrious warrior and historian, lived ninety years.
Polemon and Epicharmus ninety-seven; Lycurgus eighty-five; Sophocles
more than a hundred. Gorgias entered his hundred and eighth year;
and Asclepiades, the physician, lived a century and a half. Juvenal
lived a hundred years; Pacuvius and Varro but one year less. Carneades
died at ninety; Galileo at sixty-eight; Cassini at ninety-eight; and
Newton at eighty-five. In the last century, Fontenelle expired in
his ninety-ninth year; Buffon in his eighty-first; Voltaire in his
eighty-fourth. In the present century, Prince Talleyrand, Goethe,
Rogers, and Niemcewicz are remarkable instances. The Cardinal du Belloy
lived nearly a century; and Marshal Moncey lately terminated a glorious
career at eighty-five.
EFFECT OF A NEW NOSE.
Van Helmont tells a story, of a person who applied to Taliacotius to
have his nose restored. This person, having a dread of an incision
being made in his own arm, for the purpose of removing enough skin
therefrom for a nose, got a labourer, who, for a remuneration, suffered
the skin for the nose to be taken from his arm. About thirteen months
after, the adscitious nose suddenly became cold, and, after a few days,
dropped off, in a state of putrefaction. The cause of this unexpected
occurrence having been investigated, it was discovered that, at the
same moment in which the nose grew cold, the labourer at Bologna
expired.
FRENCH DRESS.
Sigebert was buried in St. Medrad's church, at Soissons, where his
statue is still seen in long clothes, with the mantle, which the Romans
called _chlamys_. This was the dress of Colvil's children, whether as
more noble and majestic, or that they looked on the title of Augustus
as hereditary in their family. However it be, long clothes were, for
several ages, the dress of persons of distinction, with a border of
sable, ermine, or miniver. Under Charles V. it was emblazoned with all
the pieces of the coat of arms. At that time, neither ruffs, collars,
nor bands were known, being introduced by Henry II. 'Till this time
the neck of the French king was always quite bare, except Charles
the _Wise_, who is everywhere represented with an ermin collar. The
short dress anciently worn in the country and the camp, came to be the
general fashion under Louis XI. but was laid aside under Louis XII.
Francis I. revived it, with the improvement of flashes. The favourite
dress of Henry II. and his children was a tight, close doublet, with
trunk hose, and a cloak scarce reaching the waist. The dress of French
ladies, it may be supposed, had likewise its revolutions. They seem
for nine hundred years, not to have been much taken up with ornament.
Nothing could require less time or nicety than their head-dress, and
the disposition of their hair. Every part of their linen was quite
plain, but at the same time extremely fine. Laces were long unknown.
Their gowns, on the right side of which was embroidered their husband's
coat of arms, and on the left that of their own family, were so close
as to shew all the delicacy of their shape, and came up so high as to
cover their whole breast, up to their neck. The habit of widows was
very much like that of the nuns. It was not until Charles VI. that they
began to expose their shoulders. The gallantry of Charles the VII.'s
Court brought in the use of bracelets, necklaces, and ear-rings. Queen
Anne de Bretagne despised those trinkets; and Catherine de Medicis made
it her whole business to invent new.
A LAST CHANCE.
John Jones and Jn. Davis, condemn'd for robberries on the highway,
were executed at Tyburn. Davis feign'd himself sick, and desir'd he
might not be ty'd in the cart: But when he came to the tree, while the
hangman was fastening the other's halter, he jumpt out of the cart,
and ran over two fields; but being knock'd down by a countryman, was
convey'd back and hang'd without any more ceremony. Jones confessed
he had been confederate in several robberies with Gordon, lately
executed.--_Gentleman's Magazine 1733._
A convict running away over two fields at Tyburn, and then being caught
by a countryman! How strange this seems, when we look at the streets
and squares which now cover the locality, and when the only countrymen
now seen there are those who come up from the rural districts!
YELLOW HAIR IN THE TIME OF THE PLANTAGENETS.
Yellow hair was at this time esteemed a beauty, and saffron was used by
the ladies to dye it of a colour esteemed "odious" by modern ladies.
Elizabeth also made yellow hair fashionable, as hers was of the same
tint. In the romance of _King Alisaunder_, we are told of Queen
Olympias:--
"Hire yellow hair was fair atyred
With riche strings of gold wyred,
And wryen hire abouten all
To hire gentil myddel small."
THE CITY OF THE SULTAN.
[Illustration: The Mosque of St. Sophia.]
The Mosques of Constantinople are the most wonderful objects of
that renowned city. More than 300 are picturesquely distributed in
conspicuous parts, and form a most attractive feature to the eye of
the traveller. The city itself is built upon seven gentle hills,
which is the main cause not only of its grandeur of appearance, but
also of its salubrity and comparative cleanliness. There are fourteen
chief or imperial mosques, all lofty, and magnificent in their general
dimensions, and built from base to dome, of enduring materials, chiefly
of white marble, slightly tinged with grey. Some of these have two,
some four, and one (that of Sultan Achmet) has even six of those light,
thin, lofty, arrowy, and most graceful towers called minarets. The
mosque of Santa Sophia was once a Christian cathedral, and is rich in
historical recollections. This mosque ranks as one of the grandest
edifices. The ridge of the first hill on which the city stands, setting
out from the north eastern part, is covered by the Serai or palace of
the Sultan, behind which, a little on the reverse of the hill, the dome
of Santa Sophia shows itself. The colleges and hospitals, which are
generally attached to or near the great mosques, offer no striking
architectural features; but some of the detached chapels or sepulchres
(_turbés_), where sultans, viziers, and other great personages repose,
are handsome.
GOLD MASK FROM THE BANKS OF THE EUPHRATES.
[Illustration: Mask of Nebuchadnezzar.]
This interesting relic of remote antiquity is at present preserved in
the Museum of the East India Company. It was found by Colonel Rawlinson
while engaged in prosecuting the discoveries commenced by Layard and
Botta, at Nineveh and Babylon; and is supposed to have belonged to
King Nebuchadnezzar. In exhuming from the mounds of these long-lost
rival cities, the instructive remains of this once gigantic Power, the
Colonel discovered, in a perfect state of preservation, what is well
believed to be the mummy of Nebuchadnezzar. The face of the rebellious
monarch of Babylon, covered by one of those gold masks usually found in
Assyrian tombs, is described as very handsome--the forehead high and
commanding, the features marked and regular. The mask is of thin gold,
and independent of its having once belonged to the great monarch, has
immense value as a relic of an ancient and celebrated people.
The Arab tribes encamping about Wurka and other great mounds search
in the loose gravel with their spears for coffins. Gold and silver
ornaments, which have been buried in these graves for centuries, are
worn by the Arab women of the present day; and many a rare object
recovered from them is sold and melted by the goldsmiths of the East.
The Arabs mention the discovery, by some fortunate shepherd, of Royal
tombs, in which were crowns and sceptres of solid gold.
FROST FAIR ON THE THAMES.
"I went crosse the Thames," says Evelyn, January 9, 1683-4, "on the
ice, which now became so thick as to bear not only streetes of boothes,
in which they roasted meate, and had divers shops of wares, quite
acrosse as in a towne, but coaches, carts, and horses passed over.
So I went from Westminster Stayres to Lambeth, and din'd with the
Archbishop. I walked over the ice (after dinner) from Lambeth Stayres
to the Horseferry.
"The Thames (Jan{y} 16) was filled with people and tents, selling all
sorts of wares as in a citty. The frost (Jan{y} 24) continuing more and
more severe, the Thames before London was still planned with boothes
in formal streetes, all sorts of trades and shops furnished and full
of commodities, even to a printing-presse, where the people and ladyes
took a fancy to have their names printed on the Thames. This humour
took so universally, that 'twas estimated the printer gained £5 a-day,
for printing a line only, at sixpence a day, besides what he got by
ballads, &c. Coaches plied from Westminster to the Temple, and from
several other staires to and fro, as in the streetes, sleds, sliding
with skeates, a bull-baiting, horse and coach races, puppet playes and
interludes, cookes, tipling, and other lewd places, so that it seem'd
to be a bacchanalian triumph, or carnival on the water."
"It began to thaw (Feb. 5), but froze againe. My coach crossed from
Lambeth to the Horseferry at Millbank, Westminster. The booths were
almost all taken down; but there was first a map, or landskip, cut
in copper, representing all the manner of the camp, and the several
actions, sports, and pastimes thereon, in memory of so signal a frost."
THE CHARACTER OF THE MOUTH.
We give the following extract from a very old work; not only because
it contains several shrewd observations, but also because it is a good
specimen of the spelling and diction which prevailed in the sixteenth
century, at which period there is internal evidence that the book was
written, though it bears no date on the title page:--
"The mouth greate and wyde betokeneth wrath, boldnes and warre.
And such men are commonly glottons. A wyde mouth withoute meesure,
as thought it were cutte and stretched out, sygnifieth ravening
inhumanitie, wickednes, a warlyke hart and cruell, like unto beastes
of the sea. Such men are greate talkers, boasters, babblers, enuious,
lyars, and full of follye. The mouthe that hathe but a lyttle closynge
and a lyttle openynge, sygnyfyeth a fearful man, quyet, and yet
unfaithfull. The mouthe that is verye apparent and rounde with thycknes
of lyppes, sygnyfyeth vnclenlynes, follye, and cruelltye. The mouth
whyche hath a quantitie in his sytuation with a lyttle shutting, and
smylynge eyes wyth the reste of the face, sygnyfyeth a carnall man,
a lover of daunces, and a greate lyar. When the mouthe turneth in
speakinge it is a sygne that it is infected with some catarre or murre
as is manyfest ynough. The long chynne declareth the man to be very
lyttle subiecte to anger, and of a good complexion: and yet he is
somewhat a babbler and a boaster of hymselfe. They that have a lyttle
chinne, are much to be avoyded and taken heede of, for besydes all
vices with the whyche they are fylled they are full of impietye and
wyckednes and are spyes, lyke unto serpents. If the ende of the chynne
be round it is a sygne of feminine maners and also it is a sygne of a
woman. But the chynne of a man muste be almoste square."--"_The most
excellent, profitable, and pleasant booke of the famous doctour and
expert Astrologien Arcandam or Aleandrin._" * * *. _Now ready turned out
of French into our vulgare tonge, by Will. Warde. Black letter. No
date._ Printed by J. Rowbothum.
EXECUTION OF EARL FERRERS FOR MURDER, 1760.
Lord Ferrers was hung for the deliberate and cruel murder of his
steward, Mr. Johnson, and his execution at Tyburn furnishes a curious
instance of the exhibition of egregious vanity in a man who was just
about to meet an ignominious death, and of misplaced pride in his
family who could actually decorate the scaffold with the emblems of
respectful mourning.
His lordship was dressed in his wedding-clothes, which were of light
colour, and embroidered in silver. He set out from the Tower at nine
o'clock, amidst crowds of spectators. First went a large body of
constables, preceded by one of the high constables; next came a party
of grenadiers and a party of foot; then the sheriff, in a chariot
and six, the horses dressed with ribbons; and next, Lord Ferrers, in
a landau and six, escorted by parties of horse and foot. The other
sheriff's carriage followed, succeeded by a mourning-coach and six,
conveying some of the malefactor's friends; and lastly, a hearse and
six, provided for the purpose of taking the corpse from the place of
execution to Surgeons' Hall.
The procession was two hours and three-quarters on its way. Lord
Ferrers conversed very freely during the passage. He said, "the
apparatus of death, and the passing through such crowds of people,
are ten times worse than death itself; but I suppose they never saw a
lord hanged, and perhaps they will never see another." He said to the
sheriff. "I have written to the king, begging that I might suffer where
my ancestor, the Earl of Essex, the favourite of Elizabeth, suffered,
and was in great hopes of obtaining that favour, as I have the honour
of being allied to his Majesty, and of quartering part of the royal
arms. I think it hard that I must die at the place appointed for the
execution of common felons."
The scaffold was hung with black by the undertaker, at the expense of
Lord Ferrers' family. His lordship was pinioned with a black sash,
and was unwilling to have his hands tied, or his face covered, but
was persuaded to both. On the silken rope being put round his neck,
he turned pale, but recovered instantly. Within seven minutes after
leaving the landau, the signal was given for striking the stage, and in
four minutes he was quite dead. The corpse was subjected to dissection.
STRANGE FUNERAL OBSEQUIES.
The following, taken from an old magazine, is a singular manifestation
of eccentricity in a person who, from the books he selected to be
buried with him, was evidently a man of an educated and refined mind:--
Died, May 4, 1733, Mr. John Underwood, of Whittlesea, in
Cambridgeshire. At his burial, when the service was over, an arch was
turn'd over the coffin, in which was placed a small piece of white
marble, with this inscription, "_Non omnis moriar_, 1733." Then the six
gentlemen who follow'd him to the grave sung the last stanza of the
20th Ode of the 2d book of Horace. No bell was toll'd, no one invited
but the six gentlemen, and no relation follow'd his corpse; the coffin
was painted green, and he laid in it with all his cloaths on; under his
head was placed Sanadon's "Horace," at his feet Bentley's "Milton;"
in his right hand a small Greek Testament, with this inscription in
gold letters, "eimientôbaus [Greek: ei mi en tô bausa], J. U," in his
left hand a little edition of "Horace" with this inscription, "_Musis
Amicus_, J. U.;" and Bentley's "Horace" under his back. After the
ceremony was over they went back to his house, where his sister had
provided a cold supper; the cloth being taken away the gentlemen sung
the 31st Ode of the 1st Book of "Horace," drank a chearful glass,
and went home about eight. He left about 6,000_l._ to his sister, on
condition of her observing this his will, order'd her to give each of
the gentlemen ten guineas, and desir'd they would not come in black
cloaths. The will ends thus, "Which done I would have them take a
chearful glass, and think no more of John Underwood."
QUICK TRAVELLING IN OLD TIMES.
Saturday, the seventeenth day of July, 1619, Bernard Calvert, of
Andover, about three o'clock in the morning, tooke horse at St.
George's Church in Southwarke, and came to Dover about seaven of the
clocke the same morning, where a barge, with eight oares, formerly sent
from London thither, attended his suddaine coming: he instantly tooke
barge, and went to Callice, and in the same barge returned to Dover,
about three of the clocke the same day, where, as well there as in
diverse other places, he had layed sundry swift horses, besides guides:
he rode back from thence to St. George's Church in Southwarke the
same evening, a little after eight o'clock, fresh and lusty.--_Stow's
Annals._
EDDYSTONE LIGHTHOUSE.
[Illustration: The Eddystone Lighthouse.]
As the arts and sciences improved, so did the construction of
Lighthouses, until one of the greatest accomplishments of engineering
skill, ever attempted upon such works, was exhibited in the
construction of the Eddystone Lighthouse, which is, indeed, much
more entitled than the Pharos of Alexandria to be considered one of
the wonders of the world. The rock on which this tower is built is
placed about twelve miles south-west of Plymouth, and consists of a
series of submarine cliffs, stretching from the west side (which is so
precipitous that the largest ship can ride close beside them) in an
easterly direction, for nearly half a mile. At the distance of about
a quarter of a mile more is another rock, so that a more dangerous
marine locality can hardly be imagined. Both these rocks had proved the
cause of many fatal shipwrecks, and it was at last resolved to make an
attempt to obviate the danger. In the year 1696, a gentleman of Essex,
named Winstanley, who had a turn for architecture and mechanics, was
engaged to erect a lighthouse upon the Eddystone rock, and in four
years he completed it. It did not, however, stand long, for while some
repairs were in progress under his direction in 1703, on the 26th
November, a violent hurricane came on which blew the lighthouse down,
and Mr. Winstanley and all his workmen perished--nothing remaining of
the edifice but a few stones and a piece of iron chain.
In the spring of 1706 an Act of Parliament was obtained for rebuilding
the lighthouse, and a gentleman named Rudyerd, a silk mercer, was the
engineer engaged. He placed five courses of heavy stones upon the
rock and then erected a superstructure of wood. The lighthouse on the
Bell Rock, off the coast of Fife, and the one placed at the entrance
of the Mersey on the Black Rock, are similarly constructed, so that
there seemed to be good reason for adopting the principle. Mr. Smeaton
thought that the work was done in a masterly and effective manner; but
in 1755 the edifice was destroyed by fire, and he was next retained as
the engineer for this important building.
The result of his labours has justly been considered worthy of the
admiration of the world, for it is distinguished alike for its
strength, durability, and beauty of form. The base of the tower is
about twenty-six feet nine inches in diameter, and the masonry is so
formed as to be a part of the solid rock, to the height of thirteen
feet above the surface, where the diameter is diminished to nineteen
feet and a half. The tower then rises in a gradually diminishing curve
to the height of eighty-five feet, including the lantern, which is
twenty-four feet high. The upper extremity is finished by a cornice, a
balustrade being placed around the base of the lantern for use as well
as ornament.
The tower is furnished with a door and windows, and the whole edifice
outside bears the graceful outline of the trunk of a mighty tree,
combining lightness with elegance and strength. Mr. Smeaton commenced
his labours in 1756, and completed the building in four years. Before
commencing operations he took accurate drawings of the exterior of the
rock, and the stones, which were brought from the striking and romantic
district of Dartmoor, were all formed to fit into its crevices, and so
prepared as to be dovetailed together, and strung by oaken plugs. When
put into their places, and then firmly cemented, the whole seemed to
form, and does indeed constitute, a part of the solid rock.
SWEATING SICKNESS.
The Sweating Sickness first visited England Anno Dom. 1483, and
repeated its visitations 1485, 1506, 1517, 1528, and last of all, 1551.
This epidemic disease raged with such peculiar violence in England,
and had so quick a crisis, that it was distinguished by the name of
_Ephemera Britannica_. This singular fever seems to have been of the
most simple, though of the most acute kind, and notwithstanding princes
and nobles were its chief victims, the physicians of the day never
agreed upon the method of treating it.
The splendid French embassy, which arrived in England in 1550, found
the court-festivities damped by a visitation of that strange and
terrific malady.
"This pestilence, first brought into the island by the foreign
mercenaries who composed the army of the Earl of Richmond, afterwards
Henry VII., now made its appearance for the fourth and last time in
our annals. It seized principally, it is said, on males, on such as
were in the prime of their age, and rather on the higher than the
lower classes: within the space of twenty-four hours, the fate of the
sufferer was decided for life or death. Its ravages were prodigious;
two princes died of it; and the general consternation was augmented,
by a superstitious idea which went forth, that Englishmen alone were
the destined victims of this mysterious minister of fate, which tracked
their steps, with a malice and sagacity of an evil spirit, into every
distant country of the earth whither they might have wandered, whilst
it left unassailed all foreigners in their own."
AN AMERICAN ADVERTISEMENT.
The following is an early specimen of that system of poetical
advertising which in recent times has become so common. It is always
interesting to note the origin of customs with which we subsequently
become familiar:--
_Notice to the Public, and especially to Emigrants, who wish to settle
on Lands._--The Subscriber offers for Sale, several Thousand Acres
of Land, situated in well settled Front Townships, in Lots to suit
Purchasers.
Particulars about Location,
May be known by application.
For quality of soil, and so forth,
Buyers to see, on Nag must go forth.
This much I'll tell ye plainly,
Of big trees ye'll see mainly.
'Bout Butter Nut and Beach,
A whole week I could preach;
But what the plague's the use of that?
The lands are nigh, low, round, and flat.
There's rocks and stumps, no doubt enough,
And bogs and swamps, just _quantum-suff_
To breed the finest of Musquitoes;
As in the sea are bred Bonitos,
No lack of fever or of ague;
And many other things to plague you.
In short, they're just like other people's,
Sans houses, pigsties, barns, or steeples
What most it imports you to know,
'S the terms on which I'll let 'em go.
So now I offer to the Buyer,
A Credit to his own desire,
For butter, bacon, bread, and cheese,
Lean bullocks, calves, or ducks and geese,
Corn, _Tates_, flour, barley, rye,
Or any thing but _Punkin-Pie_.
In three, four years, _Aye, five or six_,
If that won't do, why let _him_ fix.
But when once fix'd, if payment's slack,
As sure as Fate, I'll take 'em back.
THOMAS DALTON.
Kingston Brewery, (Canada,) Nov. 2, 1821.
MAGNIFICENCE OF FORMER TIMES.
_Account how the Earl of Worcester lived at Ragland Castle in
Monmouthshire, before the Civil Wars, which began in 1641._
At eleven o'clock in the forenoon, the Castle gates were shut, and the
tables laid; two in the dining-room; three in the hall; one in Mrs.
Watson's apartment, where the chaplains are, (Sir Toby Mathews being
the first;) and two in the housekeeper's room for the lady's women.
The Earl came into the dining-room attended by his gentlemen. As soon
as he was seated, Sir Ralph Blackstone, Steward of the house, retired.
The Comptroller, Mr. Holland, attended with his staff, as did the
Sewer, Mr. Blackburne; the daily waiters, Mr. Clough, Mr. Selby, and
Mr. Scudamore; with many gentlemen's sons, from two to seven hundred
pounds a year, bred up in the Castle; my Lady's Gentleman Usher, Mr.
Harcourt; my Lord's Gentlemen of the Chamber, Mr. Morgan and Mr. Fox.
At the first table sat the noble family, and such of the nobility as
came.
At the second table, in the dining-room, sat Knights and Honourable
Gentlemen, attended by footmen.
In the hall, at the first table sat Sir Ralph Blackstone, Steward; the
Comptroller, Mr. Holland; the Secretary; the Master of the Horse, Mr.
Delewar; the Master of the Fish Ponds, Mr. Andrews; my Lord Herbert's
Preceptor, Mr. Adams; with such Gentlemen as came there under the
degree of a Knight, attended by footmen, and plentifully served with
wine.
At the second table in the hall, (served from my Lord's table, and with
other hot meats,) sat the Sewer, with the Gentlemen Waiters and Pages,
to the number of twenty-four.
At the third table in the hall, sat the Clerk of the Kitchen, with the
Yeomen Officers of the House, two Grooms of the Chamber, &c.
Other Officers of the Household were, Chief Auditor, Mr. Smith; Clerk
of the Accounts, Mr. George Wharton; Purveyor of the Castle, Mr.
Salsbury; Ushers of the Hall, Mr. Moyle and Mr. Croke; Closet Keeper,
Gentleman of the Chapel, Mr. Davies; Keeper of the Records; Master of
the Wardrobe; Master of the Armoury; Master Groom of the Stable for the
War Horses; Master of the Hounds; Master Falconer; Porter and his man.
Two Butchers; two Keepers of the Home Park; two Keepers of the Red Deer
Park.
Footmen, Grooms, and other menial Servants, to the number of 150. Some
of the footmen were brewers and bakers.
Out Officers.--Steward of Ragland, William Jones, Esq.; the Governor of
Chepstow Castle, Sir Nicholas Kemys, Bart.; Housekeeper of Worcester
House, in London, James Redman, Esq.
Thirteen Bailiffs.
Two Counsel for the Bailiffs to have recourse to.
Solicitor, Mr. John Smith.
SADLER'S WELLS.
"T. G., Doctor in Physic," published, in 1684, a pamphlet upon
this place, in which he says:--"The water of this well, before the
Reformation, was very much famed for several extraordinary cures
performed thereby, and was thereupon accounted sacred, and called
Holywell. The priests belonging to the priory of Clerkenwell using to
attend there, made the people believe that the virtue of the water
proceeded from the efficacy of their prayers; but at the Reformation
the well was stopped, upon the supposition that the frequenting of
it was altogether superstitious; and so by degrees it grew out of
remembrance, and was wholly lost until then found out; when a gentleman
named Sadler, who had lately built a new music-house there, and being
surveyor of the highways, had employed men to dig gravel in his garden,
in the midst whereof they found it stopped up and covered with an arch
of stone." After the decease of Sadler, Francis Forcer, a musician of
some eminence in his profession, became proprietor of the well and
music-room; he was succeeded by his son, who first exhibited there the
diversions of rope-dancing and tumbling, which were then performed in
the garden. The rural vicinity of the "Wells," long made it a favourite
retreat of the pleasure-seeking citizens.
[Illustration: Champion Figg.]
James Figg, a native of Thame, in Oxfordshire, was a man of remarkable
athletic strength and agility, and signalized himself greatly over any
of his country competitors in the art of cudgel-playing, single-stick,
and other gymnastic exercises. Having acquired a considerable knowledge
of the broadsword, he came to London, and set up as master in that
science, undertaking to teach the nobility and gentry of his day
the noble art of self defence; and championed himself against all
comers. He took a waste piece of ground, the corner of Wells and
Castle-streets, Oxford-road, and erected a wooden edifice, which,
in imitation of the Romans, he denominated an amphitheatre; and
established here a regular academy, to train pupils in the practice of
cudgeling, broadsword, &c. &c., as well to use it, on fixed occasions,
for the exhibition of prizefighting. He had many followers, and we find
him commemorated and praised by most of the wits of his time. "The
Tattler," "Guardian," and "Craftsman," have equally contributed to
preserve his memory, as have several writers. Bramstone, in his "Man of
Taste" tells us:--
"In Figg the prize-fighter by day delight,
And sup with Colley Cibber every night."
Another writer notices him in the following lines:--
"To Figg and Broughton he commits his breast,
To steel it to the fashionable test."
Sutton, the pipe-maker of Gravesend, was his rival, and dared the
mighty Figg to the combat. Twice they fought, with alternate advantage;
but, at the third trial, a considerable time elapsed before victory
decided for either party; at length the palm of victory was obtained
by Figg. In short, neither Ned Sutton, Tom Buck, nor Bob Stokes, could
resist, or stand against his skill and valour. He was never defeated
but once, and then by Sutton, in one of their previous combats, and
that was generally supposed to have been in consequence of an illness
he had on him at the time he fought.
When Faber engraved his portrait from a painting by Ellys, he was at
a loss what he should insert, as an appropriate motto, and consulting
with a friend what he should put, was answered, "_A Figg for the
Irish._" This was immediately adopted, and the print had a rapid sale.
Figg died in 1734. William Flander a noted scholar of his, fought at
the amphitheatre, in 1723, with Christopher Clarkson, from Lancashire,
who was called the Old Soldier. The fashion of attending prizefighting
matches had attained its highest zenith in Figg's time, and it was
looked upon as a very great proof of self-denial in an amateur if he
failed a meeting on those occasions.
From Figg's theatre he will not miss a night,
Though cocks, and bulls, and Irish women, fight.
Figg left a widow and several children; so recently as 1794 a
daughter-in-law of his was living, and resided in Charles-street,
Westminster, where she kept a house, and supported herself very
decently by letting lodgings, aided by a very small income.
DRESS IN 1573.
The wardrobe of a country gentleman is thus given from a will, dated
1573, in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, in Brayley and Britton's
_Graphic Illustrator_--"I give unto my brother Mr. William Sheney
my best black gown, garded and faced with velvet, and my velvet cap;
also I will unto my brother Thomas Marcal my new shepe colored gowne,
garded with velvet and faced with cony; also I give unto my son Tyble
my shorte gown, faced with wolf (skin), and laid with Billements lace;
also I give unto my brother Cowper my other shorte gowne, faced with
foxe; also I give unto Thomas Walker my night gown, faced with cony,
with one lace also, and my ready (ruddy) colored hose; also I give
unto my man Thomas Swaine my doublet of canvas that Forde made me, and
my new gaskyns that Forde made me; also I give unto John Wyldinge a
cassock of shepes colour, edged with ponts skins; also I give unto John
Woodzyle my doublet of fruite canvas, and my hose with fryze bryches;
also I give unto Strowde my frize jerkin with silke buttons; also I
give Symonde Bisshoppe, the smyth, my other frize jerkyn, with stone
buttons; also I give to Adam Ashame my hose with the frendge (fringe),
and lined with crane-coloured silk; which gifts I will to be delivered,
immediately after my decease."
ORIGIN OF THE CREST OF THE PRINCE OF WALES.
The loss of the French at the battle of Creçy was immense. There fell
1,200 knights; 1,400 esquires; 4,000 commissioned officers; 30,000 rank
and file; Dukes of Lorraine and Bourbon; Earls of Flanders, Blois,
Harcourt, Vaudemont, and Aumale; the King of Bohemia; the King of
Majorca. The English lost one esquire, three knights, and less than one
hundred rank and file. Here did they first use field artillery; and
on this battle-field did the young Prince of Wales adopt the ostrich
plumes and motto of the slain King of Bohemia, who, being blind,
desired to be led at a gallop between two knights into the thick of
the fight, and thus met death. Those feathers and the two words "Ich
dien," "I serve," are to this day the heraldic bearings of the Prince
of Wales, whom God preserve! So much for Creçy or Cressy!
SINGULAR DISCOVERY OF A THIEF IN 1822.
On February 20, as a servant in the employ of J. L. King, Esq., of
Stogumber, was entering a field, his attention was attracted by a
magpie, which appeared to have escaped from a neighbouring house. The
bird spoke so uncommonly plain that the man was induced to follow it.
"_Cheese for Marget, Cheese for Marget_," was its continual cry, as
it hopped forward, till it stopped behind a hay-stack, and began to
eat. On inspection, a number of hams, a quantity of cheese, &c., were
discovered, which had been stolen, a short time previously, from Mr.
Bowering, of Williton. The plunder was deposited in sacks, on one of
which was marked the name of a person residing in the neighbourhood,
which led to the apprehension of four fellows, who have been committed
to Wilton gaol.
EFFECT OF VINEGAR ON THE SKIN.
By the use of vinegar the Spanish General Vitellis, made his skin hang
about him like a pelisse; but of the wonderful dilatability of the
skin, no instance equals the Spaniard who showed himself to Van-Horn,
Silvius, Piso, and other learned men at Amsterdam. Taking up with his
left hand the skin of his right shoulder, he would bring the same up
to his mouth: again he would draw the skin of his chin down to his
breast like a beard, and presently put it upwards to the top of his
head, hiding both his eyes therewith; after which, the same would
return orderly and equally to its proper place.
ADVERTISEMENT OF A DYING SPEECH BOOK IN 1731.
Newgate literature was more popular in the last century than it is now.
The following is an advertisement in the _Gentleman's Magazine_ of the
above date:--
"A General History of Executions for the year, 1730. Containing the
lives, actions, dying speeches, confessions and behaviour, of sixty
malefactors executed at Tyburn, and elsewhere; particularly three
unfortunate young gentlemen, viz., Mr. Goodburn, a Cambridge scholar,
Mr. Johnston, and Mr. Porter, son to the late Lord Mayor of Dublin:
and of several notorious highwaymen, foot-pads, street-robbers, and
housebreakers, as Dalton, Everet, Doyle, Newcomb, &c., and of the five
young highwaymen taken at Windsor, said to have formed a design to rob
the Queen there. To which is added, the trial of William Gordon at
Chelmsford for a robbery on the highway; an account of the incendiaries
at Bristol, and the apprehending John Power, for sending threatening
letters, and firing Mr. Packer's house; also the life of Col. Ch--s.
Together with an alphabetical list of all the persons indicted or
tried at the Old Bailey, the year past. With the judgment of the court
respectively passed upon each, referring to the pages in the session
books for the trials at large. Printed for R. Newton at St. John's
Gate, and sold by the booksellers price bound 2_s._ 6_d._"
ADVERTISEMENT OF A FLEET PARSON.
In the last century, when marriages were allowed to be transacted--we
cannot say solemnized--in the Fleet Prison, and the adjacent taverns,
the profligate wretches who disgraced their sacred profession by taking
part in such iniquities, were obliged to bid against one another for
custom--here is one of their advertisements:--
G. R.
At the true Chapel
at the old Red Hand and Mitre, three doors from Fleet Lane and
next Door to the White Swan;
Marriages are performed by authority by the Reverend Mr. Symson
educated at the University of Cambridge, and late Chaplain to the
Earl of Rothes.
N.B. Without Imposition.
THE ASS.
In all countries, this sure-footed and faithful animal is adopted as
an emblem of stupidity, from the patience with which it submits to
punishment and endures privation. A pair of ass's ears is inflicted
upon a child in reproof of his duncehood; and through life we hear
every blockhead of our acquaintance called an ass. Whereas the ass is
a beast of great intelligence; and we often owe our safety to its sure
and unerring foot beside the perilous precipice, where the steps of the
man of science would have faltered.
The Fathers of the Church, and the Disciples of the Sorbonne, persuaded
of the universal influence of the Christian faith, believed the dark
cross on the back of the ass to date only from the day on which our
Saviour made his entry into Jerusalem. The ass of the desert was an
animal of great price. Pliny mentions that the Senator Arius paid
for one the sum of four hundred thousand sesterces. Naturalists have
frequently remarked the extraordinary dimensions of an ass's heart,
which is thought an indication of courage; and it is the custom of the
peasantry of some countries to make their children wear a piece of
ass's skin about their person. The ass's skin is peculiarly valuable,
both for the manufacture of writing-tablets and drums; which may be
the reason why a dead ass is so rarely seen. It is too valuable to be
left on the highway. In many places, the ass serves as a barometer.
If he roll in the dust, fine weather may be expected; but if he erect
his ears, rain is certain. Why should not these animals experience the
same atmospheric influences as man? Are we not light-hearted in the
sunshine, and depressed in a heavy atmosphere?
CHOICE RECEIPTS FROM "PHYSICK FOR THE POOR. LONDON, 1657."
_To make any one that Sleepeth answer to whatsoever thou ask._--Take
the heart of an oul, and his right legg, and put them upon the breast
of one that sleepeth, and they shall reveal whatsoever thou ask them.
_To know any Man or Woman's minde when they are Asleep._--Take the hart
of a dove, and the legg of a frog, dry it well, and beat them to powder
in a morter, put this up in a linnen cloth, with three or four round
pibble stones, as big as wallnuts, then lay this upon the parties pit
of their stomach, and they shall tell you all things that they have
done, if there is anything remarkable that troubles them.
_To make the Nose Bleed._--Take the leaves of yerrow, put it up in thy
nose; this will make the nose bleed immediately.
_To make a Tooth Drop out._--Mizaldus saith that if you make a powder
of earth-worms and put it in the hollow of a rotten tooth, it will
immediately drop out.
How strange must have been the education and intelligence of the
period, when people could write, publish, and practice such incredible
trash!
SHOCKING DEPRAVITY.
The following account, from an old magazine, affords a strange and
lamentable instance of a wretch just about to die, being only intent
with his latest breath to defame his own mother:--
Mary Lynn, condemn'd last Assizes for the County of Norfolk, was burnt
to ashes at a stake, for being concern'd in the murder of her mistress;
and Smith, the principal, was hang'd for the same fact. She deny'd her
being guilty, and said Smith could clear her if he would. She behaved
with decency, and died penitent. Smith was drunk at the gallows; and
seem'd to have but little sense either of his crime or punishment;
however, desired all masters to pay their servants' wages on Saturday
night, that they might have money to spend, and not run in debt. Said,
"My mother always told me I should die in my shoes, but I will make her
a liar;" so threw them off.
PERSONAL CHARMS DISCLAIMED.
If any human being was free from personal vanity, it must have been
the second Duchess d'Orleans, Charlotte Elizabeth of Bavaria. In one
of her letters (dated 9th August, 1718), she says, "I must certainly
be monstrously ugly. I never had a good feature. My eyes are small, my
nose short and thick, my lips broad and thin. These are not materials
to form a beautiful face. Then I have flabby, lank cheeks, and long
features, which suit ill with my low stature. My waist and my legs
are equally clumsy. Undoubtedly I must appear to be an odious little
wretch; and had I not a tolerable good character, no creature could
endure me. I am sure a person must be a conjuror to judge me by my eyes
that I have a grain of wit."
CADER IDRIS.
On the very summit of Cader Idris there is an excavation in the solid
rock, resembling a couch; and it is said that whoever should rest a
night in that seat, will be found in the morning either dead, raving
mad, or endued with supernatural genius.
OLD LONDON SIGNS.
Some notion of the houses and shops of old London may be gathered by
a visit to Bell Yard, near Temple Bar; Great Winchester Street, near
the Bank; the wooden houses near Cripplegate Church; and a few other
districts which were spared by the Great Fire of 1666. In Bell Yard,
for instance, the national feeling for improvement has from time to
time effected changes; the lattices of diamond-shaped lead-work, carved
pendants, and the projecting signs of the various tradesmen, have
disappeared, and here and there sheets of plate glass have been used,
to give a somewhat modern appearance to the places of business. Still
the projecting and massive wood-work of the shops, and the peculiar
picturesque appearance of the houses, cannot be altogether disguised;
and if any of our readers, who may be curious in such matters, will
walk up Bailey's Court, on the west side of Bell Yard, he will there
see a group of wooden buildings exactly like the great mass which was
cleared by the fire. In some of the pictures of London of about this
time, the shops of the various tradesmen were chiefly unglazed, and
above the door of each was suspended the silver swans; the golden
swans; the chained swans; the golden heads; mitres; bells--black, red,
white, and blue; rising and setting suns; moons of different phases;
men in the moon; sceptres; crowns, and many other devices, which, even
at that time, were necessary to distinguish one shop from another. The
chequers; St. George and the dragon; royal oaks; king's heads; and
double signs, such as the horseshoe and magpie; bell and crown; bell
and horns, and such like, were more particularly set apart for the use
of the various hostelries. Everyone, however, who had a London shop of
any kind or consequence, had his sign. Many of them were well carved in
wood, and ornamented with emblazonry and gilding.
No doubt if it were possible to find at the present time the same
picturesque architectural displays as were to be met with in London in
Queen Elizabeth's days, our artistic friends would be able to pick up
many a nice subject for their pencils, but in those days there were
plenty of drawbacks; the pavement was bad, the drainage was worse, and
from the eaves of the houses and pents of the shops, streams of water
ran down in wet weather upon the wayfarers, and, by lodging in the
thoroughfares, made the London streets something in the same state as
those of Agar Town and some other neglected parts of the metropolis.
We must not forget that in the days to which we allude there were no
flagged footpaths, and that the only distinction from the horse and
cart roads, and that for the foot passengers, was a separation by
wooden posts, which, in genteel places, were made supports for chains.
People, however, got tired of this bad state of things, and measures
were taken to put a stop to the streams of water from the roofs, &c.
After the Great Fire, an enactment was made for an alteration in
the spouts, &c.; all barbers poles, and projecting signs, and other
projections were to be done away with, and other changes made for the
better. Up to the reign of Queen Anne, we find, by reference to views
of Cheapside and the neighbourhood of the Monument, that the projecting
signs were still in use; and that even at that recent date, many of
the London shops in the important neighbourhoods above mentioned were
without glazing, and looked much like some of the greengrocers' sheds
in use now in Bermondsey and some other places.
Severe measures seem to have been at length taken against the
projecting signs, and most of them disappeared, and then it became
a most difficult matter either to address letters, or find a man's
shop. In Dr. Johnson's day, he and other persons gave the address
"over against" a particular sign, or so many doors from such a sign.
In consequence of this uncertainty, many houses in London, which from
their association with eminent men would possess much interest now,
cannot be pointed out; and it was a wonderful benefit to the metropolis
when the plan of numbering the houses in each street was hit upon. But
for this, considering that the population has doubled in the last fifty
years, it is difficult to know how the genius of Rowland Hill would
have worked his plan of London post-office delivery, or business could
be carried on with any kind of comfort.
The booksellers and publishers seem to have been the last, with the
exception of the tavern-keepers, to give up the old signs. After the
Great Fire, some of the ancient signs which were cut in stone, and
which had escaped the conflagration, were got out of the ruins, and
afterwards placed in the front of the plain, yet solid, brick buildings
which were erected after that event. Some of these--the "Chained
Bear," the "Collared Swan," the "Moon and Seven Stars," and "Sun," in
Cheapside, and some others which we now engrave--are still preserved.
The carved wooden sign of the "Man in the Moon," in Wych Street,
Strand, is a rare example; and the "Horse-shoe and Magpie," in Fetter
Lane, is one of the last of the suspended signs to be now found in the
City.
[Illustration: [++] Painted Signs of London Taverns.]
Amongst the painted signs of London taverns worth notice, is one in
Oxford-street (nearly opposite Rathbone-place), said to have been
painted by Hogarth. The subject is "a man loaded with mischief." He has
a stout woman on his shoulders, together with a monkey, magpie, etc.
The male figure shown in this street picture seems to bear up pretty
well under his burden.
NARROW ESCAPE.--CALM RELIANCE ON PROVIDENCE.
In the year 1552, Francis Pelusius, of sixty-three years old, digging a
well forty foot deep in the hill of St. Sebastian, the earth above him
fell in upon him to thirty-five foot depth; he was somewhat sensible
before of what was coming, and opposed a plank, which by chance he had
with him, against the ruins, himself lying under it; by this means he
was protected from the huge weight of earth, and retained some room
and breath to himself, by which he lived seven days and nights without
food or sleep, without any pain or sorrow, being full of hope, which
he placed in God only. Ever and anon he called for help, as being yet
safe, but was heard by none, though he could hear the motion, noise
and words of those that were above him, and could count the hours as
the clock went. After the seventh day, he being all this while given
for dead, they brought a bier for his corpse, and when a good part of
the well was digged up, on a sudden they heard the voice of one crying
from the bottom. At first they were afraid, as if it had been the
voice of a subterranean spirit; the voice continuing, they had some
hope of his life, and hastened to dig to him, till at last, after they
had given him a glass of wine, they drew him up living and well, his
strength so entire that to lift him out he would not suffer himself to
be bound, nor would use any help of another. Yea, he was of so sound
understanding, that, jesting, he drew out his purse and gave them
money, saying _He had been with such good hosts, that for seven days it
had not cost him a farthing_.
CEILING OF WHITEHALL.
The celebrated painting on the roof of the Banqueting House, has been
restored, re-painted, and refreshed, not fewer than three times. In the
reign of James II., 1687, Parrey Walton, a painter of still life, and
the keeper of the king's pictures, was appointed to re-touch this grand
work of art, which had then (as appears by the Privy Council Book)
been painted only sixty years. Walton was paid £212 for its complete
restoration, which sum was considered by Sir Christopher Wren, "as very
modest and reasonable." It was restored a second time by the celebrated
Cipriani; and for a third time by a painter named Rigaud.
BUNYAN'S BIBLE.
John Bunyan's Bible (printed by Bill and Barker) bound in morocco, and
which had been his companion during his twelve years' unjustifiable
confinement in Bedford gaol, where he wrote his "Pilgrim's Progress,"
was purchased at the sale of the library of the Rev. S. Palmer, of
Hackney, March, 1814, for the late Samuel Whitbread, Esq., for the
sum of £21. This Bible, and the "Book of Martyrs," are said to have
constituted the whole library of Bunyan during his imprisonment.
SPECIMENS OF ROYAL GRANTS.
In 1206, King John grants to W. de Camville a licence to destroy game
in any of the royal forests, which proves the origin of the Game Laws.
1238. Henry III. gave 500_l._ to Baldwyn, Emperor of Constantinople.
1342. King Edward III. forgives to the mayor and citizens of London the
indignation and rancour of mind that he had conceived against them.
1344. The king grants to Adam Thorp, the trimmer of his beard, certain
lands at Eye, near Westminster. The scrupulous attention which Edward
III. paid to that ornament of his face, may be seen in his bronze
effigy in Westminster Abbey, which was taken from a mask after his
death.
1409. The king settles on Joan of Navarre, his queen, 10,000_l._ per
annum.
1417. Henry V. grants to Joan Warin, his nurse, an annuity of 20_l._
during life.
1422. The jewels which had belonged to King Henry V., and were valued
at so large a sum as 40,000_l._, were delivered to Sir Henry Fitz Hugh,
and his other executors, for the payment of his personal debts.
1422. The "Pysane," or great collar of gold and rubies, was pawned by
the king to his uncle, Cardinal Beaufort, who is supposed, at the time
of his death, to have amassed more wealth than any subject in England.
COFFEE AND TEA.
The bill for attendance at the Dorchester Assizes in 1686 of Mr. John
Bragge, the town-clerk of Lyme, presents this novelty--the article
_coffee_ is charged 2d. This may have been drunk at a coffee-house.
Coffee was introduced from Turkey in 1650.
An advertisement in the "Mercurius Politicus," Sept. 30, 1658,
instructs how "That excellent and by all physitians approved _China_
drink, called by the Chineans Tcha, by other nations, _tay_ alias
_tee_, is sold at the Sultana's Head Coffee-house, in Sweeting's-rents,
by the Exchange, _London_.--"
There was a "cophee-house" in St. Michael's-alley, Cornhill, about
1657. Tea, coffee, and chocolate were placed under the excise. There
was no tax upon these commodities when imported, but when made into
drink, as tea was, at 8d. a gallon, and sold at these houses.
REMARKABLE PRESERVATION OF HUMAN HAIR SINCE THE NORMAN PERIOD.
In 1839 a coffin was discovered in the abbey church of Romsey, which
had originally contained the body of a female of the above early time.
The bones had entirely decayed, but the hair, with its characteristic
indestructibility, was found entire, and appeared as if the skull had
only recently been removed from it, retaining its form entire, and
having plaited tails eighteen inches in length. It is still preserved
in a glass case, lying upon the same block of oak which has been its
pillow for centuries.
PUBLIC TASTE FOR CONJURING IN 1718.
One of the amusements of 1718 was the juggling exhibition of a
fire-eater, whose name was De Hightrehight, a native of the valley
of Annivi in the Alps. This tremendous person ate burning coals,
chewed flaming brimstone and _swallowed_ it, licked a red-hot poker,
placed a red-hot heater on his tongue, kindled coals on his tongue,
suffered them to be blown, and broiled meat on them, ate melted pitch,
brimstone, bees-wax, sealing-wax, and rosin, with a spoon; and, to
complete the business, he performed all these impossibilities five
times _per diem_, at the Duke of Marlborough's Head, in Fleet-street,
for the trifling receipts of 2s. 6d., 1s. 6d., and 1s. Master
Hightrehight had the honour of exhibiting before Lewis XIV., the
Emperor of Germany, the King of Sicily, the Doge of Venice, and an
infinite number of princes and nobles--and the Prince of Wales, who had
nearly lost this inconceivable pleasure by the envious interposition of
the Inquisition at Bologna and in Piedmont, which holy office seemed
inclined to try _their mode of burning_ on his _body_, leaving to him
the care of resisting the flames and rendering them harmless; but he
was preserved from the unwelcome ordeal by the interference of the
Dutchess Royal Regent of Savoy and the Marquis Bentivoglia.
THE TRIUMPHS OF SCIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE.
Distance seems not to have entered into the calculations of the
engineers who built those monuments of human skill--carriage-roads
over the Alps. They were after a certain grade, and they obtained it,
though by contortions and serpentine windings that seem almost endless.
Thus the Simplon averages nowhere more than one inch elevation to a
foot, and, indeed, not quite that. Thirty thousand men were employed on
this road six years. There are six hundred and eleven bridges in less
than forty miles, ten galleries, and twenty houses of refuge, while
the average width of the road is over twenty-five feet. The Splugen
presents almost as striking features as the Simplon. From these facts,
some idea may be gathered of the stupendous work it must be to carry a
carriage-road over the Alps.
CHRISTMAS PIE.
The following appeared in the _Newcastle Chronicle_, 6th January,
1770:--
"Monday last was brought from Howick to Berwick, to be shipped for
London, for Sir Henry Grey, bart., a pie, the contents whereof are as
follows:--2 bushels of flour, 20 lbs. of butter, 4 geese, 2 turkeys, 2
rabbits, 4 wild ducks, 2 woodcocks, 6 snipes, 4 partridges, 2 neats'
tongues, 2 curlews, 7 blackbirds, and 6 pigeons: it is supposed a very
great curiosity, was made by Mrs. Dorothy Patterson, housekeeper at
Howick. It was near nine feet in circumference at bottom, weighs about
twelve stones, will take two men to present it at table; it is neatly
fitted with a case, and four small wheels to facilitate its use to
every guest that inclines to partake of its contents at table."
THE UPAS, (POISON) TREE.
We give here an instance of the extravagancies of ancient travellers,
this tissue of falsehoods being taken from "Foersch's Description of
Java:"--
The _Bohon Upas_ is situated in the Island of Java about twenty-seven
leagues from Batavia, fourteen from Soulis Charta, the seat of the
Emperor, and between eighteen and twenty leagues from Tinkjoe, the
present residence of the Sultan of Java. It is surrounded on all sides
by a circle of high hills and mountains; and the country round it,
to the distance of ten or twelve miles from the tree, is entirely
barren. Not a tree, nor a shrub, nor even the least plant or grass is
to be seen. I have made the tour all around this dangerous spot, at
about eighteen miles distant from the centre, and I found the aspect
of the country on all sides equally dreary. The easiest ascent of the
hills is from that part where the old Ecclesiastick dwells. From his
house the criminals are sent for the poison, into which the points of
all warlike instruments are dipped. It is of high value, and produces
a considerable revenue to the Emperor. The poison which is procured
from this tree is a gum that issues out between the bark and the tree
itself, like the _camphor_. Malefactors, who for their crimes are
sentenced to die, are the only persons who fetch the poison; and this
is the only chance they have of saving their lives. After sentence is
pronounced upon them by the Judge, they are asked in Court, whether
they will die by the hands of the executioner, or whether they will go
to the Upas-tree for a box of poison? They commonly prefer the latter
proposal, as there is not only some chance of preserving their lives,
but also a certainty, in case of their safe return, that a provision
will be made for them in future by the Emperor. They are also permitted
to ask a favour from the Emperor, which is generally of a trifling
nature, and commonly granted. They are then provided with a silver or
tortoise-shell box, in which they are to put the poisonous gum, and are
properly instructed how to proceed while they are upon their dangerous
expedition. They are always told to attend to the direction of the
wind, as they are to go towards the tree before the wind; so that the
effluvia from the tree is always blown from them. They go to the house
of the old ecclesiastick who prepares them by prayers and admonitions
for their future fate; he puts them on a long leathern cap with two
glasses before their eyes, which comes down as far as their breast; and
also provides them with a pair of leather gloves. They are conducted by
the priest, and their friends, and relations, about two miles on their
journey. The old Ecclesiastick assured me that in upwards of thirty
years, he had dismissed above seven hundred criminals in the manner
described, and that scarcely two out of twenty have returned. All the
Malayans consider this tree as an holy instrument of the great prophet
to punish the sins of mankind, and, therefore, to die of the poison of
the Upas is generally considered among them as an honourable death.
This, however, is certain, that from fifteen to eighteen miles round
this tree, not only no human creature can exist, but no animal of _any
kind_ has ever been discovered, there are no fish in the waters, and
when any birds fly so near this tree that the effluvia reaches them,
they drop down dead.
DEATH CAUSED BY SUPERSTITION.
In Hamburg, in 1784, a singular accident occasioned the death of a
young couple. The lady going to the church of the Augustin Friars,
knelt down near a Mausoleum, ornamented with divers figures in marble,
among which was that of Death, armed with a scythe, a small piece
of the scythe being loose, fell on the hood of the lady's mantelet.
On her return home, she mentioned the circumstance as a matter of
indifference to her husband, who, being a credulous and superstitious
man, cried out in a terrible panic, that it was a presage of the death
of his dear wife. The same day he was seized with a violent fever,
took to his bed, and died. The disconsolate lady was so affected at
the loss, that she was taken ill, and soon followed him. They were
both interred in the same grave; and their inheritance, which was very
considerable, fell to some very distant relations.
ST. PAUL AND THE VIPER.--THE CHURCH AT MALTA.
Not far from the old city of Valetta, in the island of Malta, there
is a small church dedicated to St. Paul, and just by the church, a
miraculous statue of the Saint with a viper on his hand; supposed to be
placed on the very spot on which he was received after his shipwreck
on this island, and where he shook the viper off his hand into the
fire, without being hurt by it. At which time the Maltese assure us,
the Saint cursed all the venomous animals of the island, and banished
them for ever; just as St. Patrick treated those of his favourite isle.
Whether this be the cause of it or not, we shall leave to divines to
determine, though if it had, St. Luke would probably have mentioned it
in the Acts of the Apostles; but the fact is certain, that there are no
venomous animals in Malta.
THE FIRST HERMITS--WHY SO-CALLED.
Hermits, or _Eremites_, (from the Greek [Greek: _erêmos_], a desert
place,) were men who retired to desert places to avoid persecution;
they lodged in caves and cells:--
"Where from the mountain's grassy side,
Their guiltless feast they bring;
A scrip with herbs and fruit supply'd,
And water from the spring."
The first hermit was Paul, of Thebes, in Egypt, who lived about the
year 260; the second, was St. Anthony, also of Egypt, who died in 345,
at the age of 105.
ST. JAMES'S SQUARE.
The author of _A Tour through the Island of Great Britain_ (Daniel
Defoe), second edition, 1738, gives us the following particulars of
this aristocratic locality:--"The alterations lately made in St.
James's Square are entitled to our particular notice. It used to be in
a very ruinous condition, considering the noble houses in it, which are
inhabited by the first quality. But now it is finely paved all over
with heading-stone; a curious oval bason full of water, surrounded with
iron rails on a dwarf wall, is placed in the middle, mostly 7 feet
deep and 150 diameter. In the centre is a pedestal about fifteen feet
square, designed for a statue of King William III. The iron rails are
octagonal, and at each angle without the rails, is a stone pillar about
9 feet high, and a lamp on the top. The gravel walk within the rails
is about 26 feet broad from each angle to the margin of the basin.
It was done at the expense of the inhabitants by virtue of an act of
parliament. The house that once belonged to the Duke of Ormond, and
since to the Duke of Chandos, is pulled down and makes three noble
ones, besides fine stables and coach-houses behind, and two or three
more good houses in the street leading to St. James's Church. This
noble square wants nothing but to have the lower part of it, near Pall
Mall, built of a piece with the rest, and the designed statue to be
erected in the middle of the basin.
"His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales has taken the Duke of Norfolk's
house, and another adjoining to it, which are now (October, 1737),
actually repairing for his town residence; Carlton House being too
small for that purpose."
THE MORAYSHIRE FLOODS.
[Illustration: [++] The Morayshire Floods.]
In the month of August, 1829, the province of Moray and adjoining
districts were visited by a tremendous flood. Its ravages were most
destructive along the course of those rivers which have their source
in the Cairngorm mountains. The waters of the Findhorn and the Spey,
and their tributaries, rose to an unexampled height. In some parts
of their course these streams rose fifty feet above their natural
level. Many houses were laid desolate, much agricultural produce
was destroyed, and several lives were lost. The woodcut in our text
represents the situation of a boatman called Sandy Smith, and his
family, in the plains of Forres. "They were huddled together," says
the eloquent historian of the Floods, "on a spot of ground a few feet
square, some forty or fifty yards below their inundated dwelling. Sandy
was sometimes standing and sometimes sitting on a small cask, and, as
the beholders fancied, watching with intense anxiety the progress of
the flood, and trembling for every large tree that it brought sweeping
past them. His wife, covered with a blanket, sat shivering on a bit of
a log, one child in her lap, and a girl of about seventeen, and a boy
of about twelve years of age, leaning against her side. A bottle and
a glass on the ground, near the man, gave the spectators, as it had
doubtless given him, some degree of comfort. About a score of sheep
were standing around, or wading or swimming in the shallows. Three cows
and a small horse, picking at a broken rick of straw that seemed to be
half-afloat, were also grouped with the family." The account of the
rescue of the sufferers is given with a powerful dramatic effect, but
we cannot afford space for the quotation. The courageous adventurers
who manned the boat for this dangerous enterprise, after being
carried over a cataract, which overwhelmed their boat, caught hold
of a floating hay-cock, to which they clung till it stuck among some
young alder-trees. Each of them then grasping a bough, they supported
themselves for two hours among the weak and brittle branches. They
afterwards recovered the boat under circumstances almost miraculous,
and finally succeeded in rescuing Sandy and his family from their
perilous situation.
TREATMENT AND CONDITION OF WOMEN IN FORMER TIMES.
From the subversion of the Roman Empire, to the fourteenth or fifteenth
century, women spent most of their time alone, almost entire strangers
to the joys of social life; they seldom went abroad, but to be
spectators of such public diversions and amusements as the fashions of
the times countenanced. Francis I. was the first who introduced women
on public days to Court; before his time nothing was to be seen at
any of the Courts of Europe, but grey-bearded politicians, plotting
the destruction of the rights and liberties of mankind, and warriors
clad in complete armour, ready to put their plots in execution. In
the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries elegance had scarcely any
existence, and even cleanliness was hardly considered as laudable. The
use of linen was not known; and the most delicate of the fair sex wore
woollen shifts. In Paris they had meat only three times a week; and
one hundred livres, (about five pounds sterling,) was a large portion
for a young lady. The better sort of citizens used splinters of wood
and rags dipped in oil, instead of candles, which, in those days,
were a rarity hardly to be met with. Wine was only to be had at the
shops of the Apothecaries, where it was sold as a cordial; and to ride
in a two-wheeled cart, along the dirty rugged streets, was reckoned
a grandeur of so enviable a nature, that Philip the Fair prohibited
the wives of citizens from enjoying it. In the time of Henry VIII. of
England, the peers of the realm carried their wives behind them on
horseback, when they went to London; and in the same manner took them
back to their country seats with hoods of waxed linen over their heads,
and wrapped in mantles of cloth to secure them from the cold.
HOMER IN A NUTSHELL.
Huet, Bishop of Avranches, thus writes in his autobiography:--"When
his Highness the Dauphin was one day confined to his bed by a slight
illness, and we who stood round were endeavouring to entertain him by
pleasant conversation, mention was by chance made of the person who
boasted that he had written Homer's Iliad in characters so minute,
that the whole could be enclosed in a walnut shell. This appearing
incredible to many of the company, I contended not only that it might
be done, but that I could do it. As they expressed their astonishment
at this assertion, that I might not be suspected of idle boasting, I
immediately put it to the proof. I therefore took the fourth part of
a common leaf of paper, and on its narrower side wrote a single line
in so small a character that it contained twenty verses of the Iliad:
of such lines each page of the paper could easily admit 120, therefore
the page would contain 2400 Homeric verses: and as the leaf so divided
would give eight pages it would afford room for above 19,000 verses,
whereas the whole number in the Iliad does not exceed 17,000. Thus by
my single line I demonstrated my proposition."
AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF CHARING CROSS AND CHEAPSIDE CROSS.
The following interesting "Autobiographies" of the Old London Crosses,
are extracted from Henry Peacham's _Dialogue between the Crosse in
Cheap and Charing Cross, confronting each other, as fearing their fall
in these uncertaine times_, four leaves, 4to. 1641.
"_Charing Cross._--I am made all of white marble (which is not
perceived of euery one) and so cemented with mortar made of the purest
lime, Callis sand, whites of eggs and the strongest wort, that I defie
all hatchets and hammers whatsoever. In King Henry the Eighth's daies
I was begged, and should have been degraded for that I had:--Then in
Edward the Sixe, when Somerset-house was building, I was in danger;
after that, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, one of her footmen had
like to have run away with me; but the greatest danger of all I was in,
when I quak'd for fear, was in the time of King James, for I was eight
times begged:--part of me was bespoken to make a kitchen chimney for a
chiefe constable in Shoreditch; an inn-keeper in Holborn had bargained
for as much of me as would make two troughes, one to stand under a
pumpe to water his guests' horses, and the other to give his swine
their meate in; the rest of my poore carcase should have been carried
I know not whither to the repaire of a decayed stone bridge (as I was
told) on the top of Harrow-hill. Our royall forefather and founder,
King Edward the First you know, built our sister crosses, Lincolne,
Granthame, Woburne, Northampton, Stonie-Stratford, Dunstable, Saint
Albanes, and ourselves here in London, in the 21st yeare of his raigne,
in the yeare 1289."
"_Cheapside Cross._--After this most valiant and excellent king had
built me in forme, answerable in beauty and proportion to the rest,
I fell to decay, at which time one John Hatherley, maior of London,
having first obtained a licence of King Henry the Sixt, anno 1441, I
was repaired in a beautiful manner. John Fisher, a mercer, after that
gave 600 markes to my new erecting or building, which was finished
anno 1484, and after in the second yeare of Henry the Eighth, I was
gilded over against the coming in of Charles the Fift Emperor, and
newly then gilded against the coronation of King Edward the Sixt, and
gilded againe anno 1554, against the coronation of King Philip. Lord,
how often have I been presented by juries of the quest for incombrance
of the street, and hindring of cartes and carriages, yet I have kept my
standing; I shall never forget how upon the 21st of June, anno 1581,
my lower statues were in the night with ropes pulled and rent down, as
in the resurrection of Christ--the image of the Virgin Mary, Edward
the Confessor, and the rest. Then arose many divisions and new sects
formerly unheard of, as Martin Marprelate, _alias_ Penrie, Browne, and
sundry others, as the chronicle will inform you. My crosse should have
been taken quite away, and a _Piramis_ errected in the place, but Queen
Elizabeth (that queen of blessed memory) commanded some of her privie
councell, in her Majesties name, to write unto Sir Nicholas Mosely,
then Maior, to have me againe repaired with a crosse; yet for all this
I stood bare for a yeare or two after: Her Highness being very angry,
sent expresse word she would not endure their contempt, but expressly
commanded forthwith the crosse should be set up, and sent a strict
command to Sir William Rider, Lord Maior, and bade him to respect my
antiquity; for that is the ancient ensigne of Christianity, &c. This
letter was dated December 24, anno 1600. Last of all I was marvellously
beautified and adorned against the comming in of King James, and
fenced about with sharp pointed barres of iron, against the rude and
villainous hands of such as upon condition as they might have the
pulling me down, would be bound to rifle all Cheapside."
It is scarcely necessary to say that both crosses have long since
disappeared, and their sites become uncertain, although the name of
Charing Cross still distinguishes an important London district.
SOMETHING LIKE A FEAST.
Leland mentions a feast given by the Archbishop of York, at his
installation, in the reign of Edward IV. The following is a
specimen:--300 quarters of wheat, 300 tuns of ale, 100 tuns of wine,
1,000 sheep, 104 oxen, 304 calves, 304 swine, 2,000 geese, 1,000
capons, 2,000 pigs, 400 swans, 104 peacocks, 1,500 hot venison pasties,
4,000 cold, 5,000 custards hot and cold. Such entertainments are a
picture of manners.
EGYPTIAN TOYS IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM.
The truth of the old proverb, that "there is nothing new under the
sun," will be recognised on an examination of the interesting group
which forms the subject of our engraving. Here are dolls of different
shapes, some of them for good children, and some, perhaps, for bad;
foot-balls, covered with leather, &c., the stitches in parts still
firmly adhering; models of fishes and fruit; and round pellets, which
the "small boys" of the present day would call "marbles." These toys
have been played with by little Egyptians who have been dead and buried
three or four thousand years.
Many of the toys that hold places in the English and other markets
are, so far as fashion is concerned, of considerable antiquity, having
been made, without any alteration in pattern, by certain families for
several generations. In the mountainous districts of the Savoy and
Switzerland, large numbers, both of children and grown persons, are
constantly employed in the manufacture of Noah's-arks, milkmaids &c.
Some of the animals carved in wood, and sold here for small prices,
show considerable skill in the imitation of the forms of nature, and
could only be produced at their present cost, owing to the cheapness of
living in those districts, and to the systematic division of labour.
[Illustration: [++] Egyptian Toys.]
Near the birthplace of Prince Albert is a very large manufactory of
military toys, such as drums, trumpets, helmets, &c.; and in parts of
Holland--
"----The children take pleasure in making
What the children of England take pleasure in breaking."
THE PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT.
The Pyramids of Egypt, especially the two largest of the Pyramids of
Jizeh, are the most stupendous masses of building, in stone, that human
labour has ever been known to accomplish. The Egyptian Pyramids, of
which, large and small, and in different states of preservation, the
number is very considerable, are all situated on the west side of the
Nile, and they extend, in an irregular line, and in groups, at some
distance from each other, from the neighbourhood of Jizeh, in 30° N.
lat. as far south as 29° N. lat., a length of between 60 and 70 miles.
All the Pyramids have square bases, and their sides face the cardinal
points.
[Illustration: [++] Pyramids of Jizeh.]
The Pyramids of Jizeh are nearly opposite to Cairo. They stand on a
plateau or terrace of limestone, which is a projection from the Libyan
mountain-chain. The surface of the terrace is barren and irregular,
and is covered with sand and small fragments of rock; its height,
measured from the base of the Great Pyramids, is 164 feet above the
Nile in its low state, taken at an average of the years 1798 to 1801.
The north-east angle of the Great Pyramid is 1700 yards from the canal
which runs between the terrace and the Nile, and about five miles from
the Nile itself.
Herodotus was informed by the priests of Memphis that the Great Pyramid
was built by Cheops, King of Egypt, about 900 B. C., or about 450 years
before Herodotus visited Egypt. He says that 100,000 men were employed
twenty years in building it, and that the body of Cheops was placed
in a room beneath the bottom of the Pyramid, surrounded by a vault
to which the waters of the Nile were conveyed through a subterranean
tunnel. A chamber under the centre of the Pyramid has indeed been
discovered, but it does not appear to be the tomb of Cheops. It is
about 56 feet above the low-water level of the Nile. The second Pyramid
was built, Herodotus says, by Cephren, or Cephrenes, the brother and
successor of Cheops; and the third by Mycerinus, the son of Cheops.
TEST OF COURAGE IN A CHILD.
In the education of their children, the Anglo-Saxons only sought to
render them dauntless and apt for the two most important occupations
of their future lives--war and the chase. It was a usual trial of a
child's courage, to place him on the sloping roof of a building, and
if, without screaming or terror he held fast, he was styled a stout
herce, or brave boy.--_Howel._
EXECUTION OF RAVILLIAC, WHO ASSASSINATED HENRY THE FOURTH OF FRANCE.
The scene is thus described in a volume published in 1728:--
"This Francis Ravilliac was born in Angoulesme, by profession a lawyer,
who, after the committing of that horrid fact, being seized and put
upon the rack, May 27; the 25th he had sentence of death passed on him,
and was executed accordingly in the manner following. He was brought
out of prison in his shirt, with a torch of two pound weight lighted in
one hand, and the knife wherewith he murdered the king chained to the
other; he was then set upright in a dung-cart, wherein he was carried
to the greve or place of execution, where a strong scaffold was built;
at his coming upon the scaffold he crossed himself, a sign that he dyed
a Papist; then he was bound to an engine of wood made like St. Andrew's
cross; which done, his hand with the knife chained to it was put into
a furnace, then flaming with fire and brimstone, wherein it was in a
most terrible manner consumed, at which he cast forth horrible cries
yet would he not confess any thing; after which the executioner having
made pincers red hot in the same furnace, they did pinch the brawn of
his arms and thighs, the calves of his legs, with other fleshy parts of
his body, then they poured into the wounds scalding oil, rosin, pitch,
and brimstone melted together; but to make the last act of his tragedy
equal in torments to the rest, they caused four strong horses to be
brought to tear his body in pieces, where being ready to suffer his
last torment, he was again questioned, but would not reveal any thing,
and so died without calling upon God, or speaking one word concerning
Heaven: his flesh and joints were so strongly knit together, that
these four horses could not in a long time dismember him, but one of
them fainting, a gentleman who was present, mounted upon a mighty
strong horse, alighted, and tyed him to one of the wretch's limbs, yet
for all this they were constrained to cut the flesh under his arms
and thighs with a sharp razor, whereby his body was the easier torn
in pieces; which done, the fury of the people was so great, that they
pulled his dismembered carcass out of the executioner's hands, which
they dragged up and down the dirt, and, cutting off the flesh with
their knives, the bones which remained were brought to the place of
execution, and there burnt, the ashes were cast in the wind, being
judged unworthy of the earth's burial; by the same sentence all his
goods were forfeited to the king. It was also ordained that the house
where he had been born should be beaten down, a recompence being given
the owner thereof, and never any house to be built again upon that
ground; that within fifteen days after the publication of the sentence,
by sound of trumpet in the town of Angoulesme, his father and mother
should depart the realm, never to return again; if they did, to be
hanged up presently: his brethren, sisters, and other kindred were
forbidden to carry the name of Ravilliac, but to take some other, and
the substitute of the king's attorney-general had charge to see the
execution of the sentence at his peril."
KNIVES AND FORKS.
"In all ancient pictures of Eating, &c. knives are seen in the hands of
the guests, but _no Forks_."--_Turner's Saxons._
"Here I will mention a thing," says Coryat in his 'Crudities,' "that
might have been spoken of before in the discourse of the first Italian
toun. I obserued a custome in all those Italian cities and townes
through which I passed, that is not vsed in any other country that
I saw in my traules, neither doe I think that any other nation of
Christendome doth vse it, but only Italy. The Italians, and also most
strangers that are commorant in Italy, doe alwaies at their meales vse
a _little forke_ when they cut their meate. For while with their knife,
which they hold in one hand, they cut their meate out of the dish, they
fasten their forke, which they hold in their other hand, upon the same
dish, so that whatsoever he be that sitting in the company of others at
meate, should vnaduisedly touch the dish of meate with his fingers from
which all at the table doe cut, he will give occasion of offence unto
the company, as hauing transgressed the laws of good manners, in so
much that for his error he shall be at the least broue-beaten, if not
reprehended in words.
This form of feeding, I vnderstand, is generally vsed in all places of
Italy, their forkes being for the most part made of yron or steele, and
some of siluer; but those are used only by gentlemen. The reason of
this their curiosity is, because the Italian cannot by any means indure
to have his dish touched with fingers, seeing all men's fingers are
not alike clean. Hereupon I myself thought good to imitate the Italian
fashion by this forked cutting of meate, not only while I was in Italy,
but also in Germany, and oftentimes in England, since I came home:
being once quipped for that frequent vsing of my forke, by a certain
gentleman, a familiar friend of mine, one Mr. Laurence Whitaker, who
in his merry humour doubted not to call me at table _furcifer_, only
for vsing a forke at feeding, but for no other cause."--_Coryat's
Crudities_, 1611.
Even when Heylin published his Cosmography, (1652,) forks were still a
novelty. See his Third Book, where having spoken of the ivory sticks
used by the Chinese, he adds, "The use of silver forks, which is by
some of our spruce gallants taken up _of late_, came from thence into
Italy, and from thence into England."--_Antiquarian Repertory._
CHINESE PUNISHMENT OF THE KANG OR WOODEN COLLAR.
The Chinese are very quiet and orderly; and no wonder, because they are
afraid of the great bamboo stick.
[Illustration: [++] Kang or Wooden Collar.]
The mandarins (or rulers of towns) often sentence offenders to lie upon
the ground, and to have thirty strokes of the bamboo. But the wooden
collar is worse than the bamboo stick. It is a great piece of wood with
a hole for a man to put his head through. The men in wooden collars are
brought out of their prisons every morning and chained to a wall, where
everybody passing by can see them. They cannot feed themselves in their
wooden collars, because they cannot bring their hands to their mouths;
but sometimes a son may be seen feeding his father, as he stands
chained to the wall. There are men also whose business it is to feed
the prisoners. For great crimes men are strangled or beheaded.
CASCADE DES PELERINES.
[Illustration: [++] Cascade des Pelerines.]
There is a waterfall in Chamouni which no traveller should omit going
to see, called the Cascade des Pelerines. It is one of the most curious
and beautiful scenes in Switzerland. A torrent issues from the Glacier
des Pelerines, high up the mountain, above the Glacier du Bossons, and
descends, by a succession of leaps, in a deep gorge, from precipice
to precipice, almost in one continual cataract; but it is all the
while merely gathering force, and preparing for its last magnificent
deep plunge and recoil of beauty. Springing in one round condensed
column out of the gorge, over a perpendicular cliff, it strikes, at
its fall, with its whole body of water, into a sort of vertical rock
basin, which one would suppose its prodigious velocity and weight would
split into a thousand pieces; but the whole cataract, thus arrested,
at once suddenly rebounds in a parabolic arch, at least sixty feet
into the air; and then, having made this splendid airy curvature,
falls with great noise and beauty into the natural channel below. It
is beyond measure beautiful. It is like the fall of divine grace into
chosen hearts, that send it forth again for the world's refreshment,
in something like such a shower and spray of loveliness, to go winding
its life-giving course afterwards, as still waters in green pastures.
The force of the recoil from the plunge of so large a body of water, at
such a height, is so great, that large stones, thrown into the stream
above the fall, may be heard amidst the din striking into the basin,
and then are instantly seen careering in the arch of flashing waters.
The same is the case with bushes and pieces of wood, which the boys
are always active in throwing in, for the curiosity of visitors, who
stand below, and see each object invariably carried aloft with the
cataract, in its rebounding atmospheric gambols. When the sun is in
the right position, the rainbows play about the fall like the glancing
of supernatural wings, as if angels were taking a shower-bath. If you
have "the head and the legs of a chamois," you may climb entirely above
this magnificent scene, and look out over the cliff right down into the
point where the cataract shoots like the lightning, to be again shot
back in ten thousand branching jets of diamonds.
INTERESTING INCIDENT CONNECTED WITH THE BAROMETER.
In navigation, the barometer has become an important element of
guidance, and a most interesting incident is recounted by Capt. Basil
Hall, indicative of its value in the open sea. While cruising off the
coast of South America, in the Medusa frigate, one day, when within
the tropics, the commander of a brig in company was dining with him.
After dinner, the conversation turned on the natural phenomena of the
region, when Captain Hall's attention was accidentally directed to
the barometer in the state-room where they were seated, and to his
surprise he observed it to evince violent and frequent alteration. His
experience told him to expect bad weather, and he mentioned it to his
friend. His companion, however, only laughed, for the day was splendid
in the extreme, the sun was shining with its utmost brilliance, and
not a cloud specked the deep blue sky above. But Captain Hall was too
uneasy to be satisfied with bare appearances. He hurried his friend to
his ship, and gave immediate directions for shortening the top hamper
of the frigate as speedily as possible. His lieutenants and the men
looked at him in mute surprise, and one or two of the former ventured
to suggest the inutility of the proceeding. The captain, however,
persevered. The sails were furled; the topmasts were struck; in short,
everything that could oppose the wind was made as snug as possible. His
friend, on the contrary, stood in under every sail.
The wisdom of Captain Hall's proceedings was, however, speedily
evident; just, indeed, as he was beginning to doubt the accuracy of his
instrument. For hardly had the necessary preparations been made, and
while his eye was ranging over the vessel to see if his instructions
had been obeyed, a dark hazy hue was seen to rise in the horizon,
a leaden tint rapidly overspread the sullen waves, and one of the
most tremendous hurricanes burst upon the vessels that ever seaman
encountered on his ocean home. The sails of the brig were immediately
torn to ribbons, her masts went by the board, and she was left a
complete wreck on the tempestuous surf which raged around her, while
the frigate was driven wildly along at a furious rate, and had to scud
under bare poles across the wide Pacific, full three thousand miles,
before it could be said that she was in safety from the blast.
ARCHBISHOP CRANMER'S DIETARY.
In this curious document, quoted by Warton (Hist. of Poet, iii., 177,
edit. 1840) an archbishop is allowed to have two swans or two capons in
a dish, a bishop one; an archbishop six blackbirds at once, a bishop
five, a dean four, an archdeacon two. If a dean has four dishes in
his first course, he is not afterwards to have custards or fritters.
An Archbishop may have six snipes, an archdeacon two. Rabbits, larks,
pheasants, and partridges, are allowed in these proportions. A canon
residentiary is to have a swan only on a Sunday; a rector of sixteen
marks, only three blackbirds in a week.
THE KING'S COCK CROWER.
A singular custom, of matchless absurdity, formerly existed in the
English Court. During Lent, an ancient officer of the crown, styled the
King's Cock Crower, crowed the hour each night within the precincts
of the Palace. On the Ash Wednesday, after the accession of the house
of Hanover, as the Prince of Wales (afterwards George II) sat down to
supper, this officer abruptly entered the apartment, and in a sound
resembling the shrill pipe of a cock, crowed past ten o'clock! The
astonished prince, at first conceiving it to be a premeditated insult,
rose to resent the affront, but upon the nature of the ceremony being
explained to him, he was satisfied. Since that period, this silly
custom has been discontinued.
CHINESE DELICACIES.
The Chinese eat, indiscriminately, almost every living creature which
comes in their way; dogs, cats, hawks, owls, eagles and storks, are
regular marketable commodities: in default of which a dish of rats,
field-mice, or snakes, is not objected to. Cockroaches, and other
insects and reptiles are used for food or for medicine. Their taste
for dogs' flesh is quite a passion. Young pups--plump, succulent, and
tender--fetch good prices at the market-stalls, where a supply is
always to be found. A dish of puppies, prepared by a skilful cook,
is esteemed as a dish fit for the gods. At every grand banquet it
makes its appearance as a hash or stew. A young Englishman attached to
our Canton factory, dining one day with a wealthy Hong merchant, was
determined to satisfy his curiosity in Chinese gastronomy by tasting
all or most of the numerous dishes which were successively handed
round. One dish pleased him so well that he ate nearly all that was put
before him. On returning homewards some of his companions asked him
how he liked the dinner, and how such and such dishes; and then began
to imitate the whining and barking of half a dozen puppies. The poor
young man then understood, for the first time, that he had been eating
dog, and was very angry, and very sick at the stomach. Other Europeans,
however, have been known to declare that they succeeded in conquering a
prejudice, and that a six weeks old pup, properly fattened upon rice,
and dressed _à la Chinoise_, was really a _bonne bouche_.
A GREAT MARVEL SEEN IN SCOTLAND.
The following strange and almost incredible account is given by
Lindsay, of Pitscottie:--"About this time (the beginning of the
sixteenth century) there was a great marvel seen in Scotland. A bairn
was born, reckoned to be a man-child, but from the waist up was two
fair persons, with all members pertayning to two bodies; to wit, two
heads, well-eyed, well-eared, and well-handed. The two bodies, the
one's back was fast to the other's, but from the waist down they were
but one personage; and it could not be known by the ingene of men
from which of the bodies the legs, &c., proceeded. Notwithstanding
the King's Majesty caused great care and diligence on the up-bringing
of both bodies; caused nourish them, and learn them to sing and play
on instruments of music. Who within short time became very ingenious
and cunning in the art of music, whereby they could play and sing two
parts, the one the treble, and the other the tenor, which was very
dulce and melodious to hear; the common people (who treated them also)
wondered that they could speak diverse and sundry languages, that is
to say, Latin, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, English, and Irish.
Their two bodies long continued to the age of twenty-eight years, and
the one continued long before the other, which was dolorous and heavy
to the other; for which, when many required of the other to be merry,
he answered, "How can I be merry which have my true marrow as a dead
carrion about my back, which was wont to sing and play with me: when I
was sad he would give me comfort, and I would do the like to him. But
now I have nothing but dolour of the having so heavy a burthen, dead,
cold, and unsavoury, on my back, which taketh all earthly pleasure from
me in this present life; therefore I pray to God Allmighty to deliver
me out of this present life, that we may be laid and dissolved in the
earth, wherefrom we came, &c."
Buchanan, who relates the same strange tale, avers that he received it
from "many honest and credible persons, who saw the prodigy with their
own eyes." He adds that the two bodies discovered different tastes
and appetites; that they would frequently disagree and quarrel, and
sometimes would consult each other, and concert measures for the good
of both; that when any hurt was done to the lower parts, each upper
body felt pain; but that when the injury was above the junction, then
one body only was affected. This monster, he writes, lived twenty-eight
years, but died wretchedly; one part expiring some days before the
other, which, half-putrified, pined away by degrees.
THE KING OF KIPPEN.
The following anecdote is valuable, inasmuch as it gives us an idea of
the manners which a King of Scotland could practice without offence to
his subjects:--
King James V. was a very sociable, _debonnaire_ prince. Residing at
Stirling in Buchanan of Arnpryor's time, carriers were very frequently
passing along the common road with necessaries for the use of the
king's family. One of these being near Arnpryor's house, and he having
some extraordinary occasion, ordered him to leave his load at his house
and he would pay him for it; which the carrier refused to do, telling
him he was the king's carrier, and his load was for his majesty's use.
To which Arnpryor seemed to have small regard, compelling the carrier,
in the end, to leave his load; telling him, if King James was King of
Scotland, he was king of Kippen, so that it was reasonable he should
share with his neighbour king in some of these loads so frequently
carried that road. The carrier representing this usage, and telling the
story as Arnpryor spoke it, to some of the king's servants, it came
at length to his majesty's ears, who, shortly thereafter, with a few
attendants, came to visit his neighbour king, who was, in the meantime,
at dinner. King James having sent a servant to demand access, was
denied the same by a tall fellow with a battle-axe, who stood porter at
the gate, telling him there could be no access till dinner was over.
This answer not satisfying the king, he sent to demand access a second
time; upon which he was desired by the porter to desist, otherwise
he would find cause to repent his rudeness. His majesty finding this
method would not do, desired the porter to tell his master that the
good man of Ballangeich desired to speak with the King of Kippen. The
porter telling Arnpryor so much, he, in all humble manner, came and
received the king, and having entertained him with much sumptuousness
and jollity, became so agreeable to King James, that he allowed him to
take so much of any provision he found carrying that road as he had
occasion for; and, seeing he made the first visit, desired Arnpryor in
a few days to return him a second at Stirling, which he performed, and
continued in very much favour with the king, always thereafter being
termed King of Kippen while he lived.
AN ECCENTRIC TOURIST.
Sir Hildebrand Jacob, of Yewhall, in Oxfordshire, died at Malvern
in 1790. He succeeded his grandfather, Sir John, 1740, his father,
Hildebrand, having died in 1739. He was a very extraordinary character.
As a general scholar, he was exceeded by few; in his knowledge of the
Hebrew language he scarcely had an equal. In the earlier part of his
life, one custom which he constantly followed was very remarkable. As
soon as the roads became pretty good, and the fine weather began to
set in, his man was ordered to pack-up a few things in a portmanteau,
and with these his master and himself set off, without knowing whither
they were going. When it drew towards evening, they enquired at the
first village they saw, whether the great man in it was a lover of
books, and had a fine library. If the answer was in the negative,
they went on farther; if in the affirmative, Sir Hildebrand sent his
compliments, that he was come to see him; and there he used to stay
till time or curiosity induced him to move elsewhere. In this manner
Sir Hildebrand had, very early, passed through the greatest part of
England, without scarcely ever sleeping at an inn, unless where the
town or village did not afford one person in it civilized enough to be
glad to see a gentleman and a scholar.
HANGING A MAYOR.
On the right of the road leading towards Caergwrle, and about a mile
from Mold, is an old structure, which presents a singular specimen
of the style of domestic architecture during the ages of lawless
violence in which it was erected: it consists of an ancient square
tower of three stories, and appears to have been designed as a place of
fortified habitation. During the wars between the houses of York and
Lancaster, it was inhabited by Reinallt ab Gruffydd ab Bleddyn, who was
constantly engaged in feuds with the citizens of Chester. In 1495, a
considerable number of the latter came to Mold fair, and a fray arising
between the hostile parties, great slaughter ensued on both sides; but
Reinallt, who obtained the victory, took the mayor of Chester prisoner,
and conveyed him to his mansion, where he hung him on the staple in
his great hall. To avenge this affront, a party of two hundred men
was despatched from Chester to seize Reinallt, who, retiring from his
house into the adjoining woods, permitted a few of them to enter the
building, when, rushing from his concealment, he blocked up the door,
and, setting fire to the house, destroyed them in the flames; he then
attacked the remainder, whom he pursued with great slaughter; and such
as escaped the sword were drowned in attempting to regain their homes.
The staple on which the mayor was hung still remains fixed on the
ceiling of the lower apartment.
MATERNAL AFFECTION IN A DUMB WOMAN.
Mary, Countess of Orkney, was both deaf and dumb; she was married in
the year 1753, by signs. Shortly after the birth of her first child,
the nurse, with considerable astonishment, saw the mother cautiously
approach the cradle in which the infant was sleeping, evidently full
of some deep design. The Countess, having perfectly assured herself
that the child really slept, raised an immense stone which she had
concealed under her shawl, and, to the horror of the nurse, (who
was an Irishwoman, and like all persons of the lower orders in her
country, and indeed in most countries, was fully impressed with an
idea of the peculiar cunning and malignity of "dumbies,") lifted it
with an apparent intent to fling it down vehemently. Before the nurse
could interpose, the Countess had flung the stone,--not, however, as
the servant had apprehended, at the child, but on the floor, where,
of course, it made a great noise. The child immediately awoke, and
cried. The Countess, who had looked with maternal eagerness to the
result of her experiment, fell on her knees in a transport of joy. She
had discovered that her child possessed the sense which was wanting
in herself. She exhibited on many other occasions similar proofs of
intelligence, but none so interesting.
THE PERILS OF INVENTORS.
The dangers which inventors have frequently to encounter are very
great. Among many instances we may mention the following:--
Mr. Day perished in a diving bell, or diving boat of his own
construction, at Plymouth, in June, 1774, in which he was to have
continued for a wager, twelve hours, one hundred feet deep in water,
and probably, perished from his not possessing all the hydrostatic
knowledge that was necessary. Mr. Spalding was professionally
ingenious in the art of constructing and managing the diving bell,
he had practised the business many years with success. He went down,
accompanied by one of his young men, twice to view the wreck of the
Imperial East Indiaman, at Kish Bank, in Ireland; on descending the
third time, in June, 1783, they remained about an hour under water, and
had two barrels of air sent down to them, but on the signals from below
not being repeated, after a certain time, they were drawn up by their
assistants, and both found dead in the bell.
BRIBERY.
The triumphant exposure and punishments of corrupt bribe-takers on a
grand scale belongs to the close of the seventeenth century. In 1695
Sir John Trevor, the Speaker of the House of Commons, was compelled
to put the question himself that he should be expelled. A bill for
securing the right application to poor orphans of freemen of London of
funds belonging to them could not be carried without purchasing the
support of influential members and of the Speaker himself, at a bribe
for the latter of 1,000 guineas!
Sir Thomas Cook, the governor of the East India Company, paid £167,000
in one year for bribes to members of the House, of which Sir Basil
Firebrace took for his share £40,000. Corruption was universal,
therefore deemed venial.
LEGALISED GAMBLING.
The following statement shows the extent to which lotteries encouraged
a spirit of gambling among the people, and we may hence appreciate the
soundness of the policy which dictated their suppression:--
The _Post Boy_ of December 27, says:--"We are informed that the
Parliamentary Lottery will be fixed in this manner:--150,000 tickets
will be delivered out at 10_l._ each ticket, making in all the sum
of 1,500,000_l._ sterling; the principal whereof is to be sunk, the
Parliament allowing nine per cent. interest for the whole during the
term of 32 years, which interest is to be divided as follows: 3,750
tickets will be prizes from 1,000_l._ to 5_l._ per annum during the
said 32 years; all the other tickets will be blanks, so that there
will be 39 of these to one prize, but then each blank ticket will be
entitled to fourteen shillings a year for the term of 32 years, which
is better than an annuity for life at ten per cent. over and above
the chance of getting a prize." Such was the eagerness of the publick
in subscribing to the above profitable scheme, that Mercers'-hall was
literally crowded, and the Clerks were found incompetent to receive the
influx of names. 600,000_l._ was subscribed January 21; and on the 28th
of February, the sum of 1,500,000_l._ was completed.
ONE OF THE EFFECTS OF MANUFACTURES.
How greatly does the introduction of a manufacturing establishment into
a town where none previously existed, alter its whole character and
condition!
It is said that the burgh of Lanark was, till very recent times, so
poor that the single butcher of the town, who also exercised the
calling of a weaver, in order to fill up his spare time, would never
venture upon the speculation of killing a sheep till every part of
the animal was ordered beforehand. When he felt disposed to engage
in such an enterprise, he usually prevailed upon the minister, the
provost, and the town-council, to take shares; but when no person came
forward to bespeak the fourth quarter, the sheep received a respite
till better times should cast up. The bellman or _skellyman_, as he
is there called, used often to go through the streets of Lanark with
advertisements such as are embodied in the following popular rhyme:--
"Bell-ell-ell!
There's a fat sheep to kill!
A leg for the provost,
Another for the priest,
The bailies and deacons,
They'll tak the neist;
And if the fourth leg we connot sell,
The sheep it maun leeve and gae back to the hill!"
PÂTÉS DE FOIES GRAS.
Strasbourg is the great market for _pâtés de foies gras_, made, as it
is known, of the livers of geese. These poor creatures are shut up
in coops, so narrow they cannot turn round in them, and then stuffed
twice a day with Indian corn, to enlarge their livers, which have been
known to swell till they reached the enormous weight of two pounds and
a half. Garlick, steeped in water, is given them, to increase their
appetites. This invention is worthy of the French nation, where cooks
are great as nobles.
INSCRIPTION IN CONWAY CHURCH.
Here lyeth the body of Nicholas Hookes, of Conway, gentleman, (who was
the forty-first child of his father, Wm. Hookes, Esq., by Alice, his
wife,) the father of twenty-seven children, who died the 27th day of
March, 1637.
DROPPING-WELLS.
If you journey through Yorkshire, be sure to stop opposite the ruins
of Knaresborough Castle, because, on the south-west bank of the river
Nidd, you will observe the petrifying spring of Knaresborough,--the
celebrated dropping-well--where the peasants and the needy crowd to
make their humble fortunes by afterwards retailing small sprigs of
trees, such as the elder or ash, or pieces of the elegant geranium, the
wild angelica, or the lovely violet, turned into "obdurate stone."
[Illustration: [++] The Petrifying Spring of Knaresborough.]
Every spring does not possess the petrifying properties of that
of Knaresborough; but there are, doubtless, many dropping-wells
distributed over the earth's crust; and some of these are well known
to possess the property of petrifying various objects submitted to the
action of their waters. For example: we have seen birds' nests, with
the eggs, and delicate sprigs of moss surrounding them, and even the
fibres of wool turned into stone, aye, and delicate flowers. Whence is
this extraordinary power? From the soil over which the waters flow!
The limpid streams absorb the silicious particles, and deposit them in
the intimate structure of the materials submitted to the action of the
waters; and thus we find the materials of which the earth's crust is
composed, always undergoing a change.
Twenty gallons are poured forth every minute from the top of the
Knaresborough cliff, and the beauty of the scene can only be
appreciated by those who have stood upon the margin of those "stony
waters" and beheld the crystal fluid descend from above with metallic
fall.
CHINESE IVORY BALLS.
Nothing can afford a greater proof of the patience and perseverance,
as well as of the taste of a Chinese handicraftsman, than one of these
elegant baubles, each ball being exquisitely carved, and no two alike
in pattern. Each of the balls rolls freely within that which encloses
it, and is visible through apertures; so that however many there be,
the beauties of each can be examined, and the number of the whole
counted. Much time is spent upon the carving of these toys, for the
cleverest artist will employ a whole month in the execution of each
separate ball; consequently the labour of two years is not unfrequently
bestowed on the production of a single toy, which is formed out of a
solid globe of ivory, and has no junction in any part. The outside
of this globe is first carved in some very open pattern, and is then
carefully cut with a sharp, fine instrument, through the openings, till
a complete coating is detached from the solid part inside, as the peel
of an orange might be loosened with a scoop from the fruit, without
being taken off. One hollow ball is thus formed, with a solid one
inside of it. The surface of the inner ball is then carved through the
interstices of the outer one, and when finished, is subjected to the
same operation as the first; and thus a second hollow ball is produced,
still with a solid one of smaller dimensions inside. This process is
repeated again and again, the difficulties increasing as the work
proceeds, till at length only a small ball, of the size of a marble, is
left in the centre, which is also ornamented with figures cut upon it,
and then the ingenious but useless bauble is complete. This process is
said to be performed under water.
CREDULITY OF THE ANCIENTS.
The credulity of even the learned men in the early ages may be judged
of by the following facts:--
Marcus Varro writeth, that there was a town in Spain undermined with
rabbits; another likewise in Thessaly by moles or molewharps. In Africa
the people were compelled by locusts to leave their habitations;
and out of Gyaros, an island, one of the Cyclades, the islanders
were forced by rats and mice to fly away; moreover in Italy the city
of Amyclæ was destroyed by serpents. In Ethiopia there is a great
country lies waste and desert, by reason it was formerly dispeopled
by scorpions; and if it be true that Theophrastus reporteth, the
Treriens were chased away by certain worms called scolopendres.
Annius writes, that an ancient city situate near the Volscian Lake,
and called Contenebra, was in times past overthrown by pismires, and
that the place is thereupon vulgarly called to this day, the Camp of
Ants. In Media, saith Diodorus Siculus, there was such an infinite
number of sparrows that eat up and devoured the seed which was cast
into the ground, so that men were constrained to depart from their old
habitations, and remove to other places.
CLOCK PRESENTED TO CHARLEMAGNE.
The French historians describe a clock sent to Charlemagne in the
year 807, by the famous eastern caliph, Haroun al Raschid, which was
evidently furnished with some kind of wheelwork, although the moving
power appears to have been produced by the fall of water. This clock
was a rather wonderful affair, and excited a great deal of attention
at the French court. In the dial of it were twelve small doors forming
the divisions for the hours, each door opened at the hour marked by the
index, and let out small brass balls, which, falling on a bell, struck
the hours--a great novelty at that time. The doors continued open
until the hour of twelve, when twelve figures representing knights on
horseback came out and paraded round the dial plate.
REMARKABLE EVENTS, INVENTIONS, &c.
Memnon, the Egyptian, invents the letters, in the year 1822, _before_
Christ.
The Alexandrian library, consisting of 400,000 valuable books, burnt by
accident, B. C. 52.
Silk first brought from India, 274: the manufactory of it introduced
into Europe by some monks, 551: first worn by the clergy in England, in
1534.
Glass invented in England by Benalt, a monk, A. C. 400.
The University of Cambridge founded A. C. 915.
Paper made of cotton rags was in use, 1000; that of linen rags in 1170:
the manufactory introduced into England, at Dartford, 1588.
Musical notes invented, 1070.
Justices of the Peace first appointed in England in 1076.
Doomsday-book began to be compiled by order of William, from a survey
of all the estates in England (and finished in 1086), 1080.
Glass windows began to be used in private houses in England in 1186.
Surnames now began to be used, first among the nobility, in 1200.
The houses of London and other cities in England, France, and Germany,
still thatched with straw in 1233.
Tallow candles so great a luxury, that splinters of wood were used for
lights, 1298.
Wine sold by apothecaries as a cordial, 1298.
Gunpowder and guns first invented by Swartz, a monk of Cologn, 1340;
Edward 3rd had four pieces of cannon, which contributed to gain him the
battle of Cressy, 1346; bombs and mortars were invented in the same
year.
Cards invented in France for the king's amusement in 1391.
Windsor Castle built by Edward 3rd, 1386.
Guildhall, London, built 1410.
About 1430, Laurentius, of Haarlem, invented the art of Printing,
which he practised with separate wooden types. Guttenburg afterwards
invented cut metal types: but the art was carried to perfection
by Peter Schoeffer, who invented the mode of casting the types in
matrices. Frederick Corsellis began to print at Oxford, in 1468, with
wooden types; but it was William Caxton who introduced into England the
art of printing with fusile types, in 1474.
Shillings first coined in England, 1505.
Silk stockings first worn by the French King, 1543; first worn in
England by Queen Elizabeth in 1561.
Tobacco first brought from Virginia into England, 1583.
Watches first brought into England from Germany, in 1597.
Regular Posts established from London to Scotland, Ireland, &c., 1635.
The Plague rages in London, and carries off 68,000 persons, 1665.
The great fire of London began, September 2nd, and continued three
days, in which were destroyed 13,000 houses, and 400 streets, 1666.
Tea first used in England, 1666.
The Habeas Corpus act passed, 1678.
William Penn, a Quaker, receives a charter for planting Pennsylvania,
1680.
Bank of England established by King William 1693.
The first public Lottery was drawn same year.
The first British Parliament, 1707.
The Cathedral Church of St. Paul, London, rebuilt by Sir Christopher
Wren, in 37 years, at one million expense, by a duty on coals, 1710.
Westminster Bridge, consisting of 15 arches, begun 1738, finished in
1750, at the expense of 389,000_l._, defrayed by parliament.
Commodore Anson returns from his voyage round the world, 1774.
The British Museum erected at Montagu House, 1753.
149 Englishmen are confined in the black-hole at Calcutta, in the East
Indies, by order of the Nabob, and 123 found dead next morning, 1755.
LEGENDS AMONG SAVAGE NATIONS.
It is curious to note how savages endeavour to account for the
prodigies of nature. In the island of Samoa, one of the Sandwich group,
there is the following legend.
Mafuie is their god of earthquakes, who was deemed to possess great
power, but has, according to the Samoans, lost much of it. The way in
which they say this occurred is as follows:--One Talago, who possessed
a charm capable of causing the earth to divide, coming to a well-known
spot, cried, "Rock, divide! I am Talago; come to work!" The earth
separating at his command, he went down to cultivate his taro patch.
His son, whose name was Tiitii, became acquainted with the charm, and
watching his father, saw him descend, and the earth close after him. At
the same spot, Tiitii said, "Rock, divide! I am Talago; come to work!"
The rock did not open, but on repeating the words and stamping his foot
violently, the earth separated, and he descended. Being a young man,
he made a great noise and bustle, notwithstanding the advice of his
father to be quiet, lest Mafuie would hear him. The son then asked,
"Who is Mafuie, that I should be afraid of him?" Observing smoke at
a distance, he inquired the cause of it. Talago said, "It is Mafuie
heating his oven." Tiitii determined to go and see, notwithstanding
all the persuasions of his father, and met Mafuie, who inquired who he
was, "Are you a planter of taro, a builder, or a twister of ropes?" "I
am a twister of ropes," said Tiitii; "give me your arm, and I shall
show you." So, taking the arm of Mafuie, he twisted it off in a moment.
Such a practical illustration of his powers soon made Mafuie cry out,
"Na fia ola, na fia ola!"--I desire to live, I desire to live! Tiitii
then took pity upon him, and let him go. The natives, on feeling an
earthquake, exclaim, "Thanks that Mafuie has but one arm! if he had
two, he would shake the earth to pieces."
ORIGIN OF THE WORD LADY.
It was the custom at the time of the Plantagenets, and previously, for
ladies of distinction and wealth regularly to distribute money or food
to the poor. The title of _lady_, is derived from the Anglo-Saxon, and
literally signifies _giver of bread_. The purse, with similar meaning,
was named as a receptacle for _alms_, and not as an invention for the
preservation of money.
ANECDOTES IN SERMONS.
The fashion which once prevailed of introducing historical anecdotes
into addresses from the pulpit, is illustrated by the following extract
from a sermon by the Martyr Bishop Ridley:--
Cambyses was a great emperor, such another as our master is; he had
many lord-deputies, lord-presidents, and lieutenants under him. It is
a great while ago since I read the history. It chanced he had under
him, in one of his dominions, a briber, a gift-taker, a gratifier of
rich men; he followed gifts as fast as he that followed the pudding,
a hand-maker in his office, to make his son a great man; as the old
saying is, "Happy is the child whose father goeth to the devil." The
cry of the poor widow came to the emperor's ear, and caused him to flay
the judge quick, and laid his skin in his chair of judgment, that all
judges that should give judgment afterward should sit in the same skin.
Surely it was a goodly sign, a goodly monument, the sign of the judge's
skin: I pray God we may once see the sign of the skin in England.
STATE OF LONDON IN 1756.
The state of the police regulations in the metropolis at the above
date, is exhibited in the following extract from an old magazine:--
"At one o'clock this morning (Oct. 4, 1756), the Hon. Captain Brudenel
was stopped in his chair, just as it entered Berkeley-square, from
the Hay-hill, by two fellows with pistols, who demanded his money; he
gave them five-sixpences, telling them he had no more, which having
taken, they immediately made off. The captain then put his purse and
watch under the cushion, got out, drew his sword, and being followed
by one of the chairmen with his pole, and the watchman, pursued them
up the hill, where the Hon. Captain West, who was walking, having
joined them, one of the fellows having got off, they followed the other
into Albemarle-mews, where finding himself closely beset, he drew a
pistol, and presented it, upon which the captain made a lunge at him,
and ran him through the body. The fellow at the same time fired his
pistol, which, the captain being still stooping, went over his head
and shot the watchman through the lungs; at the instant the pistol was
discharged, while the fellow's arm was extended, the chairman struck
it with his pole and broke it; he was then seized and carried with
the watchman to the round-house in Dover-street, where Mr. Bromfield
and Mr. Gataker, two eminent surgeons, came; but the captain would
not suffer the villain to be dressed, till he discovered who he and
his confederates were; when he acknowledged they were both grenadiers
in Lord Howe's company. The poor watchman died in half an hour after
he was shot; and the soldier was so disabled by his wound that he was
carried in a chair to Justice Fielding, who sent him to New Prison,
where he died."
FROM A HANDBILL OF BARTHOLOMEW FAIR IN 1700.
The following extract is worth notice, inasmuch as it shows that in the
matter of amusement, the tastes of the lower orders of the present day
are not much improved since the last century:--
"You will see a wonderful girl of ten years of age, who walks backwards
up the sloping rope driving a wheelbarrow behind her; also you will see
the great Italian Master, who not only passes all that has yet been
seen upon the low rope, but he dances without a pole upon the head of a
mast as high as the booth will permit, and afterwards stands upon his
head on the same. You will be also entertained with the merry conceits
of an Italian scaramouch, who dances on the rope with two children and
a dog in a wheelbarrow, and a duck on his head."
PASSAGE THROUGH THE ISTHMUS OF PANAMA SUGGESTED THREE HUNDRED TEARS AGO.
_Ancient Globe._--In the Town Library (_Stadt Bibliothek_) of Nuremberg
is preserved an interesting globe made by John Schoner, professor of
mathematics in the Gymnasium there, A.D. 1520. It is very remarkable
that the passage through the Isthmus of Panama, so much sought after in
later times, is, on this old globe, carefully delineated.
HEIGHT OF MOUNTAINS.
The perpendicular height of Snowdon is, by late admeasurements, 1,190
yards above the level of the sea. This makes it, according to Pennant,
240 yards higher than Cader Idris. Some state Whernside, in Yorkshire
to be the highest mountain in South Britain, and more than 4,000 feet.
Helvellyn is 3,324 feet, Ben Lomond 3,262. Mont Blanc rises 15,680
feet; the American Chimborazo is 20,909 feet, the highest ground ever
trodden by man; and the mountains of Thibet above 25,000 feet, the
highest at present known.
INTRODUCTION OF THE WEEPING WILLOW INTO ENGLAND.
The _Salix Babylonica_, that is the Willow of Babylon, or our English
weeping Willow, is a native of the Levant, the coast of Persia,
and other places in the East. The manner of its introduction into
England is curious; the account is as follows: Pope, the celebrated
poet, having received a present of Turkey figs, observed a twig of
the basket, in which they were packed, putting out a shoot. The twig
he planted in his garden: it soon became a fine tree, and from this
stock, all our weeping Willows have descended. This species of Willow
is generally planted by a still pool, to which it is a beautiful
appropriate ornament; and when in misty weather, drops of water are
seen distilling from the extremities of its branches, nothing can be
more descriptive than the title it has obtained of _the weeping Willow_.
FINE FOR INSULTING A KING.
The use of gold and silver was not unknown to the Welsh in 842, when
their laws were collected. The man who dared to insult the King of
Aberfraw, was to pay (besides certain cows and a silver rod) a cup,
which would hold as much wine as his majesty could swallow at a
draught; its cover was to be as broad as the king's face; and the whole
as thick as a goose's egg, or a ploughman's thumb-nail.
CARRONADES.
This species of great gun, so much used on board of ships, is generally
accounted a modern invention, taking its name from the Carron foundry
where they were made. In the patent office, however, will be found
a notice dated September, 1727, to the following effect: "That his
Majesty was pleased to grant to Henry Brown, Esquire, a patent for the
sole use and benefit of his new invention of making cannon and great
guns, both in iron and brass, which will be much shorter and lighter,
and with less powder will carry farther than those of equal bore now in
use, and which, it is said, will save great expense to the public."
EXTRAVAGANCE AT ELECTIONS.
On the death of Sir James Lowther, his son William stood for the shire
of Cumberland, and entertained 3,650 gentlemen freeholders at a dinner,
at which were consumed 768 gallons of wine, 1,454 gallons of ale, and
5,814 bottles of punch. Sir James appears to have been eccentric in
some of his habits, for after his decease £30,000 in bank notes were
discovered in a closet, and £10,000 in the sleeve of an old coat.
MARTIN LUTHER'S TANKARD.
This interesting relic of the great Reformer is of ivory, very richly
carved, and mounted in silver gilt. There are six medallions on its
surface, which consist, however, of a repetition of two subjects. The
upper one represents the agony in the garden, and the Saviour praying
that the cup might pass from Him; the base represents the Lord's
Supper, the centre dish being the incarnation of the bread. This
tankard, now in the possession of Lord Londesborough, was formerly in
the collection of Elkington of Birmingham, who had some copies of it
made. On the lid, in old characters, is the following inscription--"C.
M. L., MDXXIIII." This drinking vessel, which, independent of its
artistic merit, was no doubt highly valued as a mere household
possession, brings to mind many recollections of the life of him who
raised himself from a very lowly position to one of great power and
usefulness.
[Illustration: [++] Martin Luther's Tankard.]
Martin Luther, who was the son of John Lotter or Lauther (which name
our Reformer afterwards changed to Luther) and Margaret Lindenen, was
born in the little town of Islebern, in Saxony, on November 10th,
1483. His father was a miner. Luther died in 1546, and princes, earls,
nobles, and students without number, attended the funeral of the
miner's son in the church of Islebern. On this occasion, Melancthon
delivered the funeral oration.
HOT CROSS BUNS.
How strange the following reads from an old journal! and how odd the
state of things to give rise to such an intimation!
1793.
_Wednesday, 27th March._
ROYAL BUN HOUSE, CHELSEA, GOOD FRIDAY.
_No Cross Buns._
Mrs. Hand respectfully informs her friends, and the public, that in
consequence of the great concourse of people which assembled before her
house at a very early hour, on the morning of Good Friday; by which her
neighbours (with whom she has always lived in friendship and repute,)
have been much alarmed and annoyed; it having also been intimated, that
to encourage or countenance a tumultuous assembly at this particular
period, might be attended with consequences more serious than have
hitherto been apprehended; desirous, therefore, of testifying her
regard and obedience to those laws by which she is happily protected,
she is determined, though much to her loss, not to sell _Cross Buns_ on
that day, to any person whatever; but Chelsea Buns as usual.
Mrs. Hand would be wanting in gratitude to a generous public, who, for
more than fifty years past, have so warmly patronized and encouraged
her shop, to omit so favourable an opportunity of offering her sincere
acknowledgments for their favours; at the same time, to assure them she
will, to the utmost of her power, endeavour to merit a continuance of
them.
LOCUSTS.
The locusts are remarkable for the hieroglyphic that they bear upon the
forehead. Their colour is green throughout the whole body, excepting a
little yellow rim that surrounds their head, and which is lost at the
eyes. This insect has two upper wings, pretty solid. They are green,
like the rest of the body, except that there is in each a little white
spot. The locust keeps them extended like great sails of a ship going
before the wind. It has besides two other wings underneath the former,
and which resemble a light transparent stuff pretty much like a cobweb,
and which it makes use of in the manner of smack sails, that are along
a vessel. But when the locust reposes herself, she does like a vessel
that lies at anchor; for she keeps the second sails furled under the
others.
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S LAWS.
The following extract from a very old book is truly curious:--
"Queene Elizabeth, in the xiiii and xviii yeres of hir gracious rayne,
two Actes were made for ydle vagrante and maisterlesse persons, that
vsed to loyter, and would not worke, should for the first offence
haue a hole burned through the gristle of one of his eares of an
ynch compasse. And for the second offence committed therein, to be
hanged. If these and such lyke lawes were executed iustlye, treulye,
and severelye (as they ought to be,) without any respect of persons,
favour, or friendshippe, this dung and filth of ydlenesse woulde
easily be reiected and cast oute of thys Commonwealth, there woulde
not be so many loytering ydle persons, so many Ruffians, Blasphemers,
Swinge-Buckelers, so many Drunkards, Tossepottes, Dauncers, Fydlers,
and Minstrels, Dice-players, and Maskers, Fencers, Theeves,
Enterlude-players, Cut-purses, Cosiners, Maisterlesse Seruantes,
Jugglers, Roges, sturdye Beggars, counterfaite Egyptians, &c., as there
are, nor yet so manye Plagues to bee amongst vs as there are, if these
Dunghilles and filthe in Commonweales were remooued, looked into, and
cleane caste oute, by the industrie, payne, and trauell of those that
are sette in authoritie, and haue gouernment."--"_A Treatise against
Dicing, Dauncing, Vaine playes or Enterluds._" _Black Letter; no date._
THE INVENTION OF TYPES.
The honour of the invention of movable types has been disputed by
two cities, Haarlem and Mentz. The claims of Haarlem rest chiefly
upon a statement of Hadrien Junius, who gave it upon the testimony
of Cornelius, alleged to be a servant of Lawrence Coster, for whom
the invention is claimed. The claims of Mentz, which appear to be
more conclusive, are in favour of Peter Schæffer, the assistant and
son-in-law of John Faust, better known as Dr. Faustus. The first
edition of the _Speculum humanæ salvationis_ was printed by Coster at
Haarlem, about the year 1440, and is one of the earliest productions of
the press of which the printer is known. The celebrated Bible, commonly
known as the Mentz Bible, without date, is the first important specimen
of printing with moveable metal types. This was executed by Gutenberg
and Faust, or Fust, as it is sometimes spelt, between the years 1450
and 1455. The secret of the method then becoming known, presses were
speedily established in all parts of Europe, so that before the year
1500 there were printing-offices in upwards of 220 different places in
Austria, Bavaria, Bohemia, Calabria, the Cremonese, Denmark, England,
Flanders, France, Franconia, Frioul, Geneva, Genoa, Germany, Holland,
Hungary, Italy, Lombardy, Mecklenburg, Moravia, Naples, the Palatinate,
Piedmont, Poland, Portugal, Rome, Sardinia, Upper and Lower Saxony,
Sicily, Silesia, Spain, Suabia, Switzerland, Thessalonica, Turkey,
Tuscany, the Tyrol, Venice, Verona, Westphalia, Wurtemberg, &c.
This vast and rapid extension of the art, combined with the skill which
the earlier printers displayed in it, seems to be totally incompatible
with the date assigned to the invention, and it is more than probable,
that the art having been long practised in private under continued
attempts at secrecy, it at length broke into publicity after it had
already attained a considerable degree of perfection.
THE PROTEUS ANGUINUS.
It has been satisfactorily proved that the polypus cannot see its
prey, but is only aware of its presence by the actual agitation of
the water, from its remaining altogether passive when a thin piece
of glass is interposed between them. There are many Monads, which,
without possessing any trace of an eye, are yet susceptible of light.
An equally extraordinary phenomenon presents itself in the Proteus
Anguinus. This singular animal is found in the subterranean lakes of
the interminable stalactital caverns in the limestone range of the
Carniolan Alps, where the author saw it. In appearance it is between a
fish and a lizard; it is of a flesh-colour, and its respiratory organs,
which are connected with lungs, so as to enable it to breathe above or
below the water, form a red crest round the throat, like a cock's comb.
It has no eyes, but small points in the place of them, and light is so
obnoxious to it, that it uses every effort to exclude it, by thrusting
its head under stones. It is reported also to exist in Sicily, but is
known nowhere else.
BUMPER.
[Illustration: [++] A Bumper.]
The jolly toper is so fond of the thing we call a _bumper_, that he
troubles not himself about the name, and so long as the liquor is but
fine and clear, cares not a farthing in how deep an obscurity the
etymology is involved. The sober antiquarian, on the contrary, being
prone to etymology, contemplates the sparkling contents of a full glass
with much less delight than he does the meaning, the occasion, and the
original of the name. The common opinion is, that the _bumper_ took
its name from the _grace-cup_; our Roman Catholic ancestors, say they,
after their meals, always drinking the Pope's health in this form, _au
bon Pere_. But there are great objections to this; the Pope was not the
_bon Pere_, but the _Saint Pere_; amongst the elder inhabitants of this
kingdom, the attribute of sanctity being in a manner appropriated to
the Pope of Rome, and his see. Again, the grace-cup, which went round
of course, after every repast, did not imply anything extraordinary,
or a full glass. Drinking-glasses were not in use at the time here
supposed, for the grace-cup was a large vessel, proportioned to the
number of the society, which went round the table, the guests drinking
out of one cup, one after another.
COFFEE.
From a number of the "_Public Advertiser_," of May 19 to May 26, 1657,
we have 'In Bartholomew-lane, on the back side of the Old Exchange, the
drink called _Coffee_ is advertised as to be sold _in the morning_, and
at _three of the clock_ in the afternoon.'
QUAINT RECEIPTS.
The following Receipts are taken from a work entitled, "_New
Curiosities_ in _Art_ and _Nature_, or a _Collection_ of the most
valuable _Secrets_ in all _Arts_ and _Sciences_. Composed and
Experimented by Sieur Lemery, Apothecary to the French King. London:
John King, Little Britain. 1711."
_To make one Wake or Sleep._--You must cut off dexterously the head of
a toad alive, and at once, and let it dry, in observing that one eye be
shut, and the other open; that which is found open makes one wake, and
that shut causes sleep, by carrying it about one.
_Preservative against the Plague._--Take three or four great toads,
seven or eight spiders, and as many scorpions, put them into a pot well
stopp'd, and let them lye some time; then add virgin-wax, make a good
fire till all become a liquor, then mingle them all with a spatula, and
make an ointment, and put it into a silver box well stopp'd, the which
carry about you, being well assured that while you carry it about you,
you will never be infected with the plague.
We give the above as indicating the delusions which prevailed with
respect to certain nostrums as late as the year 1711.
EXECUTION OF GOVERNOR WALL IN 1802.
As the following account, by a gentleman who witnessed the scene,
avoids all disgusting details, we give it as containing a description
of some of the circumstances which attended the execution, at the
commencement of the present century, of a criminal of the higher class.
The wretched man was hung for murder and barbarity: his victims were
the men he had under his charge as Governor of the Island of Goree:--
"As we crossed the Press-yard, a cock crew; and the solitary clanking
of a restless chain was dreadfully horrible.
"The prisoner entered. He was death's counterfeit, tall, shrivelled,
and pale; and his soul shot so piercingly through the port-holes of
his head that the first glance of him nearly petrified me. I said in
my heart, putting my pencil in my pocket, God forbid that I should
disturb thy last moments! His hands were clasped, and he was truly
penitent. After the yeoman had requested him to stand up, 'he pinioned
him,' as the Newgate phrase is, and tied the cord with so little
feeling that the governor, who had not given the wretch the accustomed
fee, observed 'You have tied me very tight;' upon which Dr. Ford,
the chaplain, ordered him to slacken the cord, which he did, but not
without muttering, 'Thank you, sir,' said the governor to the doctor:
'it is of little moment.' He then observed to the attendant, who had
brought in an immense iron shovel-full of coals to throw on the fire,
'Ay, in one hour that will be a blazing fire,' then turning to the
doctor, questioned him: 'Do tell me, sir: I am informed I shall go down
with great force; is it so?' After the construction and action of the
machine had been explained, the doctor questioned the governor as to
what kind of men he had at Goree:--'Sir,' he answered, 'they sent me
the very riff-raff.' The poor soul then joined the doctor in prayer;
and never did I witness more contrition at any condemned sermon than he
then evinced.
"The sheriff arrived, attended by his officers, to receive the prisoner
from the keeper. A new hat was then partly flattened on his head,
for owing to its being too small in the crown, it stood many inches
too high behind. As we were crossing the Press Yard, the dreadful
execrations of some of the felons so shook his frame that he observed,
the clock had struck; and quickening his pace, he soon arrived at the
room where the sheriff was to give a receipt for his body, according to
the usual custom. Owing, however, to some informality in the wording of
this receipt, he was not brought out as soon as the multitude expected;
and it was this delay which occasioned a partial exultation from those
who betted as to a reprieve, and not from any pleasure in seeing him
executed.
"After the execution, as soon as I was permitted to leave the prison,
I found the Yeoman selling the rope with which the malefactor had
been suspended, at a shilling an inch; and no sooner had I entered
Newgate-street, than a lath of a fellow, passed threescore years
and ten, who had just arrived from the purlieus of Black Boy Alley,
woe-begone as _Romeo's_ apothecary, exclaimed, 'Here is the identical
rope at sixpence an inch.'"
STAGE-COACH IN 1760.
_Ayscough's Nottingham Courant_ of this date, contained the following
advertisement:--The flying machines on steel springs set off from the
Swan with Two Necks Inn, Lad-lane, London, and from the Angel Inn in
Sheffield, every Monday and Thursday morning at five o'clock, and lies
the first night from London at the Angel Inn in Northampton, the second
at the Blackmoor's Head Inn, Nottingham, and the third at Sheffield.
Each passenger to pay 1_l._ 17_s._, and to be allowed fourteen pounds
of luggage. Performed (if God permit) by John Hanforth and Samuel
Glanville.
BLIND WORKMAN.
A young man, in Greenock, of the name of Kid, who was blind from his
infancy, finished the model of a sixty-four gun ship, of about five
feet keel, planked from the keel, with carriages for the guns, and
every necessary material and apparelling of a ship of that rate,
without any assistance whatever, or other instrument than a small knife
and hammer.
SPORTS OF THE LOWER CLASSES IN 1749.
The following handbill is curious, on account of the light it sheds on
what was considered attractive to the million a hundred years ago:--
"_According to Law. September 22, 1749._ On Wednesday next, the 27th
inst., will be run for by _Asses_ (!!) in _Tothill Fields_, a purse
of gold, not exceeding the value of Fifty Pounds. The first will be
entitled to the gold; the second to two pads; the third to thirteen
pence half-penny; the last to a halter fit for the neck of any ass in
Europe. Each ass must be subject to the following articles:--
"No person will be allowed to run but _Taylors_ and _Chimney-sweepers_;
the former to have a cabbage-leaf fixed in his hat, the latter a
plumage of white feathers; the one to use nothing but his yard-wand,
and the other a brush.
"No jockey-tricks will be allowed upon any consideration.
"No one to strike an ass but the rider, lest he thereby cause a
retrograde motion, under a penalty of being ducked three times in the
river.
"No ass will be allowed to start above thirty years old, or under ten
months, nor any that has won above the value of fifty pounds.
"No ass to run that has been six months in training, particularly above
stairs, lest the same accident happen to it that did to one nigh a town
ten miles from London, and that for reasons well known to that place.
"Each ass to pay sixpence entrance, three farthings of which are to be
given to the old clerk of the race, for his due care and attendance.
"Every ass to carry weight for inches, if thought proper."
Then follow a variety of sports, with "an ordinary of _proper
victuals_, particularly for the riders, if desired."
"_Run, lads, run! there's rare sport in Tothill Fields!_"
STATE COACH AT THE PROROGATION OF PARLIAMENT IN 1796.
Never was a greater assemblage of persons collected together than on
this occasion: in the Park and in Parliament-street there were at least
20,000 people. By the repair of the state coach, which has undergone
several material alterations since the damage it received at the
opening of the last session, the king is now secluded from the sight.
Hitherto, the upper pannels of it had always been of glass, so that
the multitude could see the king in all directions, through the front,
through the sides, as well as through the windows in the doors: it has
been newly glazed, and the whole of the carriage is lined with sheet
copper, musket proof; between the crimson lining of the carriage is a
wadding of fine wool, coated with buffalo skin, the nature of which is
so close that no bullets can penetrate it.
HISTORICAL ANECDOTE.
On the dollars, stivers, &c., coined at the town of Dordrecht in
Holland, is the figure of a milk-maid sitting under her cow, which
figure is also exhibited in relievo on the water-gate of the place. The
occasion was as follows: In the noble struggle of the United Provinces
for their liberties, the Spaniards detached a body of forces from the
main army, with the view of surprising Dordrecht. Certain milkmaids,
belonging to a rich farmer in the vicinity of the town, perceived as
they were going to milk, some soldiers concealed under the hedges.
They had the presence of mind to pursue their occupation without any
symptoms of alarm. On their return home they informed their master of
what they had seen, who gave information to the Burgomaster, and the
sluices were let loose, by which great numbers of the Spaniards were
drowned, and the expedition defeated. The States ordered the farmer a
handsome revenue for the loss he sustained by the overflowing of his
lands, rewarded the women, and perpetuated the event in the manner
described.
TOMB OF JOHN BUNYAN.
"Who has not read the "Pilgrim's Progress," "that wonderful book,"
writes Mr. Macaulay, "which, while it obtains admiration from the most
fastidious critics, is loved by those who are too simple to admire it?"
We can remember our own delight on reading, for the first time, the
precious volume. This was in the days of our childhood, when we were
deeply imbued with the fairy lore which at that time was so plentifully
supplied, and so eagerly devoured.
John Bunyan was buried in Bunhill Fields burying-ground, City-road; and
the tablet on his tomb, which the engraving very correctly represents
is as follows:--"Mr. John Bunyan, author of the 'Pilgrim's Progress,'
ob. 12 Aust. 1688, æt. 60." Formerly there were also the following
lines:--
"The Pilgrim's Progress now is finished.
And death has laid him in his earthly bed."
[Illustration: [++] Tomb of John Bunyan.]
Bunhill Fields burying-ground was opened as a suburban cemetery
in 1665, in the time of the great plague, and was a favourite
burying-place with the Dissenters. Here are buried Daniel Defoe; Dr.
Isaac Watts; Joseph Ritson the antiquary; Dr. Thomas Goodwin, the
chaplain who attended Cromwell's death-bed; George Fox, the founder
of the Quakers; the mother of John Wesley; Lieut.-General Fleetwood,
son-in-law of Oliver Cromwell; Thomas Stothard, R.A., and other eminent
men.
SPIDERS FOND OF MUSIC.
Spiders hear with great acuteness, and it is affirmed that they are
attracted by music. Disjonval relates the instance of a spider which
used to place itself on the ceiling of a room over the spot where a
lady played the harp, and which followed her if she removed to another
part; and he also says that the celebrated violinist Berthome, when a
boy, saw a spider habitually approach him as soon as he began to play,
and which eventually became so familiar that it would fix itself on his
desk, and on his arm. Bettina noticed the same effect with a guitar, on
a spider which accidentally crossed over it as she was playing.
BREAKFASTING HUT IN 1745.
This quaint announcement, in a handbill of the time, shows how cheaply
those who lived a century or so past could enjoy suburban pleasures in
merrie Islington:--
"This is to give notice to all Ladies and Gentlemen, at Spencer's
original Breakfasting-Hut, between Sir Hugh Middleton's Head and St.
John Street Road, by the New River side, fronting Sadler's Wells, may
be had every morning, except Sundays, fine tea, sugar, bread, butter,
and milk, at fourpence per head; coffee at threepence a dish. And in
the afternoon, tea, sugar, and milk, at threepence per head, with good
attendance. Coaches may come up to the farthest garden-door next to the
bridge in St. John Street Road, near Sadler's Wells back gate.--_Note._
Ladies, &c., are desired to take notice that there is another person
set up in opposition to me, the next door, which is a brick-house,
and faces the little gate by the Sir Hugh Middleton's, and therefore
mistaken for mine; but mine is the _little boarded place_ by the river
side, and my backdoor faces the same as usual; for
I am not dead, I am not gone,
Nor liquors do I sell;
But, as at first, I still go on,
Ladies, to use you well.
No passage to my hut I have,
The river runs before;
Therefore your care I humbly crave,
Pray don't mistake my door.
"Yours to serve,
S. SPENCER."
SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION.
In Leroux's Journal de Medicine, is an account of a very fat woman,
twenty-eight years of age, who was found on fire in her chamber, where
nothing else was burning. The neighbours heard a noise of something
like frying, and when the body was removed it left a layer of black
grease. The doctor conceives that the combustion began in the internal
parts, and that the clothes were burnt secondarily.
MOTHER MAPP THE BONE-SETTER.
She was the daughter of a man named Wallis, a bone-setter at Hindon, in
Wiltshire, and sister to the celebrated "Polly Peachem," who married
the Duke of Bolton. Upon some _family quarrel_, Sally Wallis left
her professional parent, and wandered up and down the country in a
miserable manner, calling herself "Crazy Sally," and pursuing, in her
perambulations, a course that fairly justified the title. Arriving at
last at Epsom, she succeeded in humbugging the worthy bumkins of that
place, so decidedly, that a subscription was set on foot to keep her
among them; but her fame extending to the metropolis, the dupes of
London, a numerous class then as well as now, thought it no trouble
to go ten miles to see the conjuror, till at length, she was pleased
to bless the afflicted of London with her presence, and once a week
drove to the Grecian Coffee-house, in a coach and six with out-riders!
and all the appearance of nobility. It was in one of these journeys,
passing through Kent-street, in the Borough, that being taken for a
certain woman of quality from the Electorate in Germany, a great mob
followed and bestowed on her many bitter reproaches, till Madame,
perceiving some mistake, looked out of the window, and accosted them in
this gentle manner, "Confound you, don't you know me? I am Mrs. Mapp,
the _bone-setter_!" upon which, they instantly changed their revilings
into loud huzzas.
TWO CERTIFICATES OF GRETNA-GREEN MARRIAGES AT DIFFERENT DATES.
"This is to sartfay all persons that my be consernid, that A B from the
parish of C in the County of D and E F from the parish of G and in the
county of H and both comes before me and declayred themseless both to
be single persons, and now mayried by the form of the Kirk of Scotland,
and agreible to the Church of England, and givine ondre my hand, this
18{th} day of March 1793."
"Kingdom of Scotland
"County of Dumfries
"Parish of Gretna
"These are to certify, to all whom it may concern, that John N....
from the parish of Chatham in the County of Kent, and Rosa H.... from
the Parish of St. Maries in the County of Nottingham, being both here
now present and having declared to me that they are single persons,
but have now been married conformable to the Laws of the Church of
England, and agreeable to the Kirk of Scotland. As witness our hands at
Springfield this 4th day of October 1822.
"Witness "Witness me.
Jane Rae David Lang.
John Ainslie." John N....
Rosa H...."
THE WOMEN OF ENGLAND.
The women here are generally more handsome than in other places,
sufficiently endowed with natural beauties, without the addition of
adulterate sophistications. In an absolute woman, say the Italians,
are required the parts of a Dutch woman, from the girdle downwards; of
a French woman, from the girdle to the shoulders: over which must be
placed an English face. As their beauties, so also their prerogatives
are greater than any nation; neither so servilely submissive as the
French, nor so jealously guarded as the Italians; but keeping so true a
decorum, that as England is termed the Pergatorie of Servants, and the
Hell of Horses, so is it acknowledged the _Paradise_ of _Women_. And it
is a common by-word amongst the Italians, that _if there were a bridge
built across the narrow seas, all the women in Europe would run into
England_. For here they have the upper hand in the streets, the upper
place at the table, the thirds of their husband's estates, and their
equal share of all lands; privileges with which other women are not
acquainted. They were in high esteem in former times amongst foreign
nations, for the modestie and gravitie of their conversation; but of
late so much addicted to the light garb of the French, that they have
lost much of their ancient honour and reputation amongst knowing and
more sober men of foreign countries who before admired them.--_Peter
Heylin's Cosmographie_, 1652.
PRICES FOR SEATS AT CORONATIONS.
On consulting Stowe, Speed, and other antiquaries, it appears that the
price of a good place at the coronation of William the Conqueror was
a _blank_; and probably the same at that of his son William Rufus. At
that of Henry I. it was a _crocard_, and at King Stephen's and Henry
the Second's a _pillard_. At King Richard's and King John's, it was a
_fuskin_; and rose at Henry the Third's to a _dodkin_. In the reign of
Edward I. the coins began to be more intelligible; and we find that for
seeing his coronation a Q was given, or the half of a _ferling_, or
farthing, which was, as now, the fourth part of a _sterling_, or penny.
At the coronation of Edward II. it was a farthing; and at that of
Edward III. a halfpenny, which was very generally given. In the reign
of Richard II. it was a penny, and continued the same at that of Henry
IV. But at that of Henry V. it was two pennies, or half of a _grossus_,
or groat; and the same at that of Henry VI. and of Edward IV.; nor do
we find it raised at the coronation of Richard III. or that of Henry
VII.
At that of Henry VIII. it was the whole _grossus_, or groat, nor was
the price altered at those of Edward VI. and Queen Mary; but at Queen
Elizabeth's it was a _teston_, _tester_, or sixpence. At those of James
I. and Charles I. a shilling was given; which sum was advanced to half
a crown at the coronations of Charles and James II. At King William's
and Queen Anne's, it was a crown; and at George the First's the show
was seen by many at the same price.
At the coronation of George II. some gave half a guinea; but at that
of George III. and Queen Charlotte, anno 1761, curiosity seems to
have risen to an amazing height. On this occasion the price given for
single seats were almost incredible; in some houses ten guineas, and
in ordinary houses five guineas. Great and universal anxiety prevailed
to see this grand spectacle, from the reflection how improbable
it was that many who were there could ever have an opportunity of
witnessing the like again. As an instance of this extreme anxiety, it
is confidently related, that a gentleman was prevailed on to take a
room for his lady, at the price of one hundred and forty guineas; but
the appointment of the solemnity of the coronation falling unluckily at
the exact time when she expected to be delivered, she actually further
prevailed on her husband to let a skilful man-midwife, nurse, &c.,
attend her, and to hire another room, lest the hurry of the day should
bring on her labour, when it might be impossible for her to be removed
without endangering her life.
ANCIENT HOUSE AT BLACKWALL--SAID TO BE THE RESIDENCE OF SIR WALTER
RALEIGH.
The house shown in the engraving is interesting from two causes; first,
that it was the house in which Sir Walter Raleigh smoked his first
pipe of tobacco in England, and secondly, that it is one of the few
relics remaining of those picturesque old houses of the days of Queen
Bess. The house is built of strongly framed timber, which, in recent
years, has been plastered over; and the carved heads that ornament the
gables, and which are good both in design and execution, show that this
house is at least 350 years old.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient House at Blackwall.]
At the present time a tavern has been built between this house and
the river. Formerly, however, there was, no doubt, a trimmed garden
and terrace towards the Thames, from which the inhabitants may have
watched the progress of Queen Elizabeth from the Tower to her palace at
Greenwich.
It is singular to notice the fashion of these old houses, arising from
the value of space within walled towns; each floor projects over the
other, so that the upper apartments have more room than the lower.
While, in an artistic point of view, we cannot help regretting the
disappearance of the venerable and quaint gables, for sanitary and
other reasons we must be content with the change.
AMBASSADORS--WHY HELD BY THE ARMS AT THE OTTOMAN COURT.
A dervise addressed Bajazet, emperor of the Turks, 1495, for alms, and
while the charitable Sultan searched for his money, the treacherous
beggar wounded him with a dagger, and was instantly slain by the
royal attendants. This incident is rendered memorable by its having
occasioned the ungracious restraint under which even the ambassadors of
Christian powers were subject to in former times when they received an
audience from the Ottoman Emperor.
They were held by the arms by two attendants, when they approached the
throne, nor were their arms loosed till they had quitted the presence.
TRAVELLING IN 1760.
The nobility and gentry were accustomed to make their long journeys in
ponderous family-carriages, drawn by four horses. These vehicles would
be laden at the top with an array of trunks and boxes, while perhaps
six or seven persons, with a lapdog, would be stowed within. The danger
of famine on the road was averted by a travelling larder of baskets of
various condiments; the risk of thirst would be provided against by
bottles of usquebaugh, black cherry-brandy, cinnamon-water, sack, port,
or strong beer: while the convoy would be protected by a basket-hilted
sword, an old blunderbuss, and a bag of bullets and a great horn of
gunpowder.
OLD ST. PAUL'S.
In the old cathedral was a tower of stone, in height from the ground
260 feet, on which was a spire of wood, covered with lead, 274 feet
high. In the tower was a celebrated peal of bells; and somewhat above
the stone-work was a "faire dial," from which there was order taken in
the eighteenth year of Edward III. that the rich chasing and gilding
should be always kept in good preservation. On this dial was the figure
of an angel pointing to the hours of both day and night--a device more
appropriate than most of the clock-hands in present use. From this
lofty steeple, which formed such an important feature of old London,
the chimes rung merrily on saints' days and holidays; and at times the
choristers mounted up aloft and chaunted forth their orisons at dawn
and sunset--a custom still observed at Durham Cathedral. Before the
fire of London, the spire of St. Paul's was more than once destroyed or
damaged by fire and lightning.
On Candlemas Eve, 1444, about two o'clock in the afternoon, the
lightning fired the steeple. The citizens came forth and succeeded in
overcoming the fire; it, however, broke forth again at night, and but
little of the spire was saved. In the year 1561, in the month of June,
there fell a prodigious quantity of rain, attended with thunder and
lightning. St. Paul's steeple was struck within a yard of the top. At
first, a little fire appeared, resembling the light of a torch, and
in eight minutes the weather-cock fell; and the wind rising high, the
fire within an hour afterwards destroyed the steeple down to the very
battlements, and then, in consequence of the mass of burning timber
that fell from the spire, burnt so violently that the iron-work and
the bells melted and fell upon the stairs in the church; the east and
west roofs catching fire communicated with the north and south, and
destroyed them all. Much damage was also done to other parts.
The spire was again reared, and the damaged bells properly replaced.
In addition to the bells in the tower of old St. Paul's there was a
common bell, the property of the city, hung in a suitable building,
closely adjoining to the Cathedral, which was rung that the inhabitants
might assemble at wardmotes and other important occasions. Another fire
damaged the ancient church, and then the great fire of 1666, swept
steeples, bells, churches, and all before it.
THE BEDFORD MISSAL.
In January, 1786, when the Bedford Missal was on sale, with the rest
of the Duchess of Portland's collection, King George III. sent for
his bookseller, and expressed his intention to become the purchaser.
The bookseller ventured to submit to his majesty, that the article in
question, as one highly curious, was likely to fetch a high price. "How
high?" exclaimed the king. "Probably two hundred guineas," replied the
bookseller. "Two hundred guineas for a Missal!" exclaimed the Queen,
who was present, and lifted up her hands with astonishment. "Well,
well," said his Majesty, "I'll have it still; but since the Queen
thinks two hundred guineas so enormous a price for a Missal, I'll go no
further." The biddings for the royal library did actually stop at that
point; and Mr. Edwards carried off the prize by adding three pounds
more. The same Missal was afterwards sold at Mr. Edwards's sale, in
1815, and purchased by the Duke of Marlborough, for £637 15s.
FORMATION OF THE VOLCANO OF JORULLO.
The Mexican volcanoes of Orizaba, Popocatepetl, Jorullo, and Colima
appear to be connected with each other, being placed in the direction
of a line running transverse to the former, and passing east and west
from sea to sea.
As was first observed by Humboldt, these mountains are all situated
between north latitude 18° 59' and 19° 12'. In an exact line of
direction with the other volcanoes, and over the same transverse
fissure, Jorullo was suddenly elevated on the 29th of September, 1759.
The circumstances attending the production of this volcano are so
remarkable, that we shall here notice them in some detail.
[Illustration: Volcano of Jorullo, Mexico.]
An extensive plain, called the Malpays, was covered by rich fields of
cotton, sugar-cane, and indigo, irrigated by streams, and bounded by
basaltic mountains, the nearest active volcano being at the distance
of eighty miles. This district, situated at an elevation of about 2600
feet above the level of the sea, was celebrated for its beauty and
extreme fertility. In June, 1759, alarming subterranean sounds were
heard, and these were accompanied, by frequent earthquakes, which were
succeeded by others for several weeks, to the great consternation of
the neighbouring inhabitants. In September tranquillity appeared to
be re-established, when, in the night of the 28th, the subterranean
noise was again heard, and part of the plain of Malpays, from three to
four miles in diameter, rose up like a mass of viscid fluid, in the
shape of a bladder or dome, to a height of nearly 1700 feet; flames
issued forth, fragments of red-hot stones were thrown to prodigious
heights, and, through a thick cloud of ashes, illumined by volcanic
fire, the softened surface of the earth was seen to swell up like an
agitated sea. A huge cone, above 500 feet high, with five smaller
conical mounds, suddenly appeared, and thousands of lesser cones
(called by the natives _hornitos_, or ovens,) issued forth from the
upraised plain. These consisted of clay intermingled with decomposed
basalt, each cone being a _fumarolle_, or gaseous vent, from which
issued thick vapour. The central cone of Jorullo is still burning,
and on one side has thrown up an immense quantity of scoriaceous and
basaltic lavas, containing fragments of primitive rocks. Two streams,
of the temperature of 186° of Fahrenheit, have since burst through the
argillaceous vault of the hornitos, and now flow into the neighbouring
plains. For many years after the first eruption, the plains of Jorullo
were uninhabitable from the intense heat that prevailed.
CRATER OF VESUVIUS IN 1829.
[Illustration: [++] Crater of Vesuvius.]
The crater Stromboli, which has been in activity since the most
ancient times, presents at present the same appearances as those which
were described by Spallanzani, in 1788. It is constantly filled with
lava in a state of fusion, which alternately rises and falls in the
cavity. Having ascended to ten or twelve yards below the summit of the
walls, this boiling fluid is covered with large bubbles, which burst
with noise, letting enormous quantities of gas escape from them, and
projecting on all sides scoriaceous matter. After these explosions, it
again subsides, but only to rise again and produce like effects--these
alternations being repeated regularly at intervals of some minutes.
In craters where the lava is less fluid than in that of Stromboli, new
cones are sometimes formed in the midst of the Crater, which first
rise in the form of a dome, and then burst out so as to form a small
active volcano in the middle of the crater of the great one. This
phenomenon is often presented within the crater of Vesuvius, and was
more particularly witnessed in 1829.
LOAF SUGAR.
In 1553 a sugar-loaf was presented to Mr. Waldron, of Bovey House,
which weighed 7 lbs., at 1s. 1d. per lb. (7s. 7d.)
The late Lord Rolle married the last of that branch of the Waldron
family. The house remains about ten miles west of Lyme. The sugar-loaf
was charged at a high rate, considering the greater value of money
in Queen Mary's reign. This article began to be highly prized. The
sugar-cane, which had been grown from the year 1148 in Sicily, had
been imported into Madeira A.D. 1419. About the year 1503 the art
of refining sugar, before called "blanch powdre," was discovered by
a Venetian; before which the juice, when selected instead of honey
for sweetening, was used as it came from the cane. Only twenty-seven
years from this date, in 1526, it was imported from St. Lucar in Spain
by Bristol merchants. Let not the present of the Mayor of Lyme be
considered as a cheap article produced in abundance in the islands of
the West Indies. The sugar-cane was not imported thither into Barbadoes
from the Brazils till the year 1641. How surprising the result of
official inquiries in the year 1853 into the consumption of sugar! It
amounted to 7,523,187 cwts., or 30 lbs. each individual of the United
Kingdom.
SUSPENSION BRIDGES AT FREYBOURG.
There are two suspension bridges in Freybourg; one remarkable for its
great length, the other for its extreme beauty. The latter connects
the top of two mountains, swinging over a frightful gulf that makes
one dizzy to look down into. There are no buttresses or masonwork in
sight at a little distance; shafts are sunk in the solid rock of the
mountains, down which the wires that sustain it are dropped. There
it stretches, a mere black line, nearly three hundred feet in the
heavens, from summit to summit. It looks like a spider's web flung
across a chasm; its delicate tracery showing clear and distinct against
the sky. While you are looking at the fairy creation suspended in
mid-heaven, almost expecting the next breeze will waft it away, you
see a heavy waggon driven on it; you shrink back with horror at the
rashness that could trust so frail a structure at that dizzy height;
but the air-hung cobweb sustains the pressure, and the vehicle passes
in safety. Indeed, weight steadies it; while the wind, as it sweeps
down the gulf, makes it swing under you. The large suspension bridge
is supported on four cables of iron wire, each one composed of one
thousand and fifty-six wires. As the Menai bridge of Wales is often
said to be longer than this, I give the dimensions of both as I find
them in Mr. Murray:--Freybourg: length, nine hundred and five feet;
height, one hundred and seventy-four feet; breadth, twenty eight feet.
Menai: length, five hundred and eighty feet; height, one hundred and
thirty feet; breadth, twenty-five feet. A span of nine hundred and five
feet, without any intermediate pier, seems impossible at first, and one
needs the testimony of his own eyes before he can fully believe it.
WONDERFUL CLOCK.
Towards the end of the last century, a clock was constructed by a
Genevan mechanic named Droz, capable of performing a variety of
surprising movements, which were effected by the figures of a negro,
a shepherd, and a dog. When the clock struck, the shepherd played six
tunes on his flute, and the dog approached and fawned upon him. This
clock was exhibited to the King of Spain, who was highly delighted with
the ingenuity of the artist. The king, at the request of Droz, took an
apple from the shepherd's basket, when the dog started up and barked
so loud that the king's dog, which was in the same room, began to bark
also. We are moreover informed that the negro, on being asked what hour
it was, answered the question in French, so that he could be understood
by those present.
MANDRIN THE SMUGGLER, 1757.
Mandrin was the son of a peasant in Dauphiny who dealt in cattle. His
first employment was buying and selling horses, by which he subsisted
several years. But having on some occasion committed a murder, he was
obliged to fly from justice, and in his absence was condemned by the
Parliament of Grenoble to be broken on the wheel. Being now a fugitive,
and destitute of employment, he learned to counterfeit money, and
by this fraud made considerable gain, till, being discovered, the
officers of the Mint at Lyons issued a warrant for apprehending him,
and he was again obliged to quit the country. While he was wandering
about from place to place, and hiding himself in caves and woods,
he became acquainted with a gang of smugglers, and associating with
them was, after some time, made their captain. As this gang was very
numerous, he was less cautious of being seen, and having at length
lost his sense of fear by habitual danger, he frequently entered towns
and cities, raised contributions on the king's officers by force, and
spread the same terror among others that others had brought upon him.
But in proportion as he became more formidable he was, in fact, less
secure; for the Government found it necessary to detach after him such
a force as he could not resist, and the Farmers-General offered 48,000
livres reward for taking him. After many times attacking his party in
a running fight, in which several were cut off, Mandrin, with eight of
his men, took shelter in a castle on the frontiers of Savoy. They were
closely pursued by several detachments, under the command of Colonel
de Molière, who entered the King of Sardinia's territory after him,
without having first obtained leave. Molière was immediately opposed by
a great number of peasants: whether they were instigated by Mandrin, or
whether they were jealous of their privilege, is not known; but all his
expostulations being fruitless, and being determined not to relinquish
his prey, for whom he hoped to receive so considerable a reward, he
forced his way against them, killing twelve and wounding many others.
Mandrin waited the issue of this contest in his castle, where he was
soon besieged by 150 men, who attacked the place with great vigour.
Mandrin and his partisans defended themselves like men who had nothing
to fear in a battle equal to being taken alive; and after several of
them were killed, and the castle gates burst open, they retreated,
fighting from chamber to chamber, and from story to story, till,
reaching the garret, and being able to proceed no further, they were at
last overpowered by numbers, having killed twenty of their adversaries,
and spent all their ammunition. Mandrin, with those that survived of
his little party, were carried prisoners to Valence in Dauphiny. * * *
Mandrin was examined every day from the 13th of May to the 25th,
in order to discover his accomplices. In the mean time several of
his associates were put to the torture to discover what they knew of
him, and were afterwards broken on the wheel, that death might give a
sanction to their testimony.
He himself was subjected to torture, but without eliciting anything
further than he had previously revealed. Throughout he steadfastly
refused to betray his comrades, and conducted himself with much dignity
and heroism. On the day of his execution he received absolution
from Father Gasperini, a Jesuit, who had administered to him the
consolations of religion during his confinement.
Before he was led out of the prison, his shoes and stockings were taken
from him; but, though barefooted, he walked along with great firmness
and a good grace. When he came to the cathedral to perform the _amende
honorable_, he asked forgiveness of the monks and priests for his want
of respect to their order, and was then conducted to the scaffold. He
mounted with great composure, and addressed himself in a short and
pathetic exhortation to the spectators, especially the young persons
of both sexes; he then sat down on the nave of the wheel, and loosened
the buttons of his shirt-sleeves himself. Then he entreated pardon of
the custom-house officers, whom he had so often and so grossly injured;
and turning to the penitents who surrounded the scaffold--with his
confessor and two other eminent persons of his order--he earnestly
recommended himself as the object of their prayer, and immediately
delivered himself up to the executioner. He received eight blows on
his arms and legs, and one on his stomach, and was intended to have
been left to expire of the wounds; but as the executioner was going
down from the scaffold, an order came to strangle him; the bishop
and all the considerable persons at Valence having interceded for
this mitigation of his punishment. Mandrin was twenty-nine years of
age, about five feet five inches high, well made, had a long visage,
blue eyes, and sandy chesnut hair; he had something rough in his
countenance, and a strong robust port; he was perpetually smoking
tobacco, with which he drank plentifully of any liquor that was at
hand, and ate till the last with a good appetite.
SUDDEN RECOVERY FROM MADNESS.
The following extraordinary account is taken from the _Gentleman's
Magazine_ of 1784:--"About six years since, a seafaring person was
taken into the Asylum for Maniacs at York; during the space of five
years and six months he never expressed any desire for sustenance,
and was fed in the manner of an infant. The servants undressed him at
night, and dressed him in the morning; he never spoke, and remained
with his body bent all day, and was regarded by all about him as an
animal nearly converted into a vegetable. About the middle of May,
1783, he suddenly astonished the people round him with saying, 'Good
morrow to you all.' He then thanked the servants for the care they had
taken of him, and appeared perfectly sane. A few days after, he wrote a
letter to his wife, in which he expressed himself with great propriety.
On the 28th of May following he was allowed to leave the hospital, and
return to his family; and has now the command of a ship in the Baltic
trade, and is in full enjoyment of perfect health, both in mind and
body. This very singular case is attested by Dr. Hunter, F.E.S., of
York, in a letter to Dr. Percival, of Manchester, and by the servants
now at the Asylum in York."
SUMMARY OF THE BIBLE.
The following table is published, as containing accurate particulars of
the English version of the Bible:--
_In the Old Testament._| _In the New Testament._| _Total._
Books, 39 | Books, 27 | Books, 66
Chapters, 929 | Chapters, 260 | Chapters, 1,189
Verses, 23,214 | Verses, 7,959 | Verses, 31,173
Words, 592,493 | Words, 181,253 | Words, 773,746
Letters, 2,728,100 | Letters, 838,380 | Letters, 3,566,480
The middle chapter and the shortest in the Bible is the hundred and
seventeenth Psalm; the middle verse is the eighth of the hundred and
eighteenth Psalm. The twenty-first verse of the seventh chapter of
Ezra, in the English version, has all the letters of the alphabet
in it. The nineteenth chapter of the second book of Kings and the
thirty-seventh chapter of Isaiah are alike.
THE LEPROSY.--LAZARS.--LAZAR-HOUSES.
That loathsome disorder, leprosy, was introduced into England in the
reign of Henry I., and was supposed to have been brought out of Egypt,
or perhaps the East, by means of the crusaders. To add to the horror,
it was contagious, which enhanced the charity of a provision for such
miserables, who were not only naturally shunned, but even chased by
royal edict, from the society of their fellow-creatures.
Lepers, or Lazars, were sick persons removed out of monasteries to
cells or hospitals, always built out of cities and towns. Their
usual maintainence was, from liberty allowed them to go upon every
market-day, to the market, where with a dish, called a _clap_ dish,
they would beg corn.
Their sickness and loathsome appearance giving great disgust, many
withheld their charity, upon which account they were afterwards
restrained from begging at large, but permitted to send the proctor
of the hospital, who came with his box one day in every month to the
churches, and other religious houses, at time of service; and there
received the voluntary charity of the congregations. This custom is
said to be the origin of the present practice of collecting briefs.
The leprosy was much more common formerly, in this part of the globe,
than at present. It is said, that there were in Europe fifteen thousand
hospitals founded for them. Perhaps near half the hospitals that were
in England were built for lepers.
Lepers were so numerous in the twelfth century, that by a decree of
the Lateran Council under pope Alexander III., A.D. 1179, they were
empowered to erect churches for themselves, and to have their own
ministers to officiate in them. This shows at once how infectious and
offensive their distemper was.
And on this account, "In England where a man was a leper, and was
dwelling in a town, and would come into the churches, or among his
neighbours when they were assembled, to talk to them to their annoyance
or disturbance, a writ lay De Leproso amovendo."--What follows is
remarkable. The writ is for those lepers "who appear to the sight
of all men, they are lepers, by their voice and their sores, the
putrefaction of their flesh, and by the smell of them."
And so late as the reign of Edward VI. multitudes of lepers seem to
have been in England; for in 1 Edw. 6. c. 3. in which directions are
given for carrying the poor to the places where they were born, &c. we
read the following clause: "Provided always, that all _leprous_ and
poor _bed-red_ creatures may, at their liberty, remain and continue in
such houses appointed for lepers, or bed-red people, as they now be in."
1184 to 1191.--The leprosy was at this period, and long after, a cruel
epidemic in our country, possibly brought by the crusaders from the
Holy Land, and spread here by filth and bad diet. It was supposed to
be infectious, and was shunned as the plague; so that, had it not been
for these pious institutions, multitudes must have perished under this
loathsome disorder.
Among other wild fancies of the age, it was imagined that the persons
afflicted with leprosy, a disease at that time (1327, Edward II.) very
common, probably from bad diet, had conspired with the Saracens to
poison all springs and fountains; and men being glad of any pretence
to get rid of those who were a burthen to them, many of those unhappy
people were burnt alive on the chimerical imputation.
Every one of the lazar-houses had a person, called a _fore-goer_, who
used to beg daily for them.
THE CONDOR IN PERU.
Dr. Pickering, of the United States Antarctic Expedition of 1839,
being in the vicinity of the Andes, attempted the ascent of one of the
summits; by noon he had reached a high elevation, and looking up, he
espied a huge condor soaring down the valley. He stopped to observe the
majestic bird as it sailed slowly along. To his surprise it took a turn
around him, then a second and a third, the last time drawing so near
that he began to apprehend that it meditated an attack. He describes
himself as being in the worst possible condition for a fight, his
strength being exhausted by climbing, and his right hand having been
lamed for some days from a hurt. The nature of the ground, too, was
anything but favourable for defence; but there was nothing left but to
prepare for a fight, and with this intent he took a seat and drew his
knife. At the instant, as if intimidated by the sight of the weapon,
the bird whirled off in another direction. Dr. Pickering confessed,
however humiliating the acknowledgment, that he was at the time very
well satisfied with the condor's determination to let him alone.
COST OF SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN'S CHURCHES.
The following is an account of what the undermentioned churches cost
building, the designs for which were furnished by Sir Christopher
Wren:--
£ s. d.
St. Paul's 736,752 2 3-1/4
Allhallows the Great 5,641 9 9
---- Bread-street 3,348 7 2
---- Lombard-street 8,058 15 6
St. Alban's, Wood-street 3,165 0 8
St. Anne and Agnes 2,448 0 10
St. Andrew's, Wardrobe 7,060 16 11
---- Holborn 9,000 0 0
St. Antholin's 5,685 5 10-3/4
St. Austin's 3,145 3 10
St. Benet, Grailchurch 3,583 9 5-1/4
---- Paul's Wharf 3,328 18 10
---- Fink 4,129 16 10
St. Bride's 11,430 5 11
St. Bartholomew's 5,077 1 1
Christ Church 11,778 9 6
St. Clement, Eastcheap 4,365 3 4-1/2
---- Danes 8,786 17 0-1/2
St. Dionis Back Church 5,737 10 8
St. Edmund the King 5,207 11 0
St. George, Botolph-lane 4,509 4 10
St. James, Garlick-hill 5,357 12 10
---- Westminster 8,500 0 0
St. Lawrence, Jewry 11,872 1 9
St. Michael, Basinghall 2,822 17 1
---- Royal 7,455 7 9
St. Michael, Queenhithe 4,354 3 8
---- Wood-street 2,554 2 11
---- Crooked-lane 4,641 5 11
---- Cornhill 4,686 5 11
St. Martin, Ludgate 5,378 18 8
St. Matthew, Friday-str 2,301 8 2
St. Margaret Pattens 4,986 10 4
---- Lothbury 5,340 8 1
St. Mary, Abchurch 4,922 2 4-1/2
---- Magdalen 4,291 12 9-1/4
---- Somerset 6,579 18 1-1/4
---- at Hill 3,980 12 3
---- Aldermanbury 5,237 3 6
---- le Bow 8,071 18 1
---- le Steeple 7,388 8 7-3/4
St. Magnus, Lond. bridge 9,579 19 10
St. Mildred, Bread-street 3,705 13 6-1/4
---- Poultry 4,654 9 7-3/4
St. Nicholas Cole Abbey 5,042 6 11
St. Olav, Jewry 5,580 4 10
St. Peter's, Cornhill 5,647 8 2
St. Swithin, Canon-street 4,687 4 6
St. Stephen, Wallbrook 7,652 13 8
---- Coleman-str 4,020 16 6
St. Vedast, Foster-lane 1,853 15 6
EARLY CLOCKS.
The first clock which appeared in Europe, was probably that which
Eginhard (the secretary of Charlemagne), describes as sent to his royal
master by Abdalla, King of Persia. "A horologe of brass, wonderfully
constructed, for the course of the twelve hours, answered to the
hourglass, with as many little brazen balls, which drop down on a sort
of bells underneath, and sounded each other."--The Venetians had clocks
in 872, and sent a specimen of them that year to Constantinople.
SINGULAR SPECIMEN OF ORTHOGRAPHY IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The following letter was written by the Duchess of Norfolk to Cromwell,
Earl of Essex. It exhibits a curious instance of the monstrous
anomalies of our orthography in the infancy of our literature, when a
spelling book was yet a precious thing:--
"My ffary gode lord,--her I sand you in tokyn hoff the neweyer, a
glasse hoff Setyl set in Sellfer gyld, I pra you tak hit in wort. An hy
wer babel het showlde be bater. I woll hit war wort a m crone."
Thus _translated_:--
"My very good lord,--Here I send you, in token of the new year, a glass
of setyll set in silver gilt; I pray you take it in worth. An I were
able it should be better. I would it were worth a thousand crown."
DEATH OF THE EARL OF KILDARE.
In 1513, died the most powerful baron and active soldier of his age,
Fitzgerald, Earl of Kildare. He had been, during thirty years, at
different times, chief governor of Ireland, and was too potent to
be set aside, otherwise his strong attachment to the house of York
would probably have been his ruin. The untameable spirit of the earl
sometimes involved him in trouble, from which he was extricated by a
lucky bluntness; as when once, when charged before Henry VIII. with
setting fire to the cathedral of Cashel, "I own it," said the earl,
"but I never would have done it had I not believed that the archbishop
was in it." The king laughed, and pardoned the ludicrous culprit. The
Bishop of Meath was his bitterest foe. He accused him to Henry of
divers misdeeds, and closed his accusation with "Thus, my liege, you
see that all Ireland cannot rule the earl." "Then," said the perverse
monarch, "the earl shall rule all Ireland," and instantly made him
lord-deputy. The English loved the earl because he was brave and
generous, and because his good humour equalled his valour. Once, when
he was in a furious paroxysm, a domestic who knew his temper, whispered
in his ear, "My lord, yonder fellow has betted me a fine horse, that
I dare not take a hair from your lordship's beard; I pray, my lord,
win me that wager." The earl's features relaxed, and he said to the
petitioner, "Take the hair, then, but if thou exceedest thy demand, my
fist shall meet thy head."
THE BRITANNIA TUBULAR BRIDGE.
This is one of the most remarkable structures in the world, the design
of the celebrated architect, Sir R. Stephenson. This bridge is on the
line of the Chester and Holyhead Railway, crossing the Menai Straits,
within sight of Telford's Chain Suspension Bridge. It is made of cast
iron of a tubular form, in the tube of which the railway passes. Four
of these span the Strait, and are supported by piles of masonry; that
on the Anglesea side is 143 feet 6 inches high, and from the front
to the end of the wing walls is 173 feet. These wing walls terminate
in pedestals, on which repose colossal lions of Egyptian character.
The Anglesea pier is 196 feet high, 55 feet wide, and 32 feet long.
In the middle of the Strait is the Britannia Rock, from which the
bridge derives its name; on this the Britannia pier is raised. It is
equi-distant from the Anglesea and Carnarvon piers, being 460 feet in
the clear from each, and sustains the four ends of the four long tubes,
which span the distance from shore to shore. There are two pairs of
short and two of long tubes, the lengths of these pairs being 250 feet
and 470 respectively. The Egyptian lions are 25 feet 6 inches long, 12
feet 6 inches high, 8 feet wide, and weigh 80 tons. Two thousand cubic
feet of stone were required for each lion. The total quantity of stone
in the bridge is 1,400,000 cubic feet. The weight of malleable iron in
the tubes is 10,000 tons; of cast iron, 1,400 tons. The whole length of
the entire bridge, measuring from the extreme front of the wing walls,
is 1,833 feet, and its greatest elevation at Britannia pier, 240 feet
above low-water-mark. The total cost of the structure is £601,865. This
wonderful structure was begun April 13, 1846, and completed July 25,
1850; opened for traffic Oct. 21, 1850.
[Illustration: [++] The Britannia Tubular Bridge.]
DAFFEY'S ELIXIR.
In the _Postboy_, Jan. 1, 1707-8, is the following curious
advertisement:--"Daffey's famous _Elixir Salutis_ by Catherine Daffey,
daughter of Mr. Thomas Daffy, late rector of Redmile, in the valley
of Belvoir, who imparted it to his kinsman, Mr. Anthony Daffy, who
published the same to the benefit of the community and his own great
advantage. The original receipt is now in my possession, left to me by
my father. My own brother, Mr. Daniel Daffy, apothecary in Nottingham,
made the Elixir from the said receipt, and sold it there during his
life. Those who know it, will believe what I declare; and those who do
not, may be convinced that I am no counterfeit, by the colour, taste,
smell, and operation of my Elixir. To be had at the Hand and Pen,
Maiden-Lane, Covent Garden."
JENNY'S WHIM.
"This was a tea garden, situated, after passing over a wooden bridge on
the left, previous to entering the long avenue, the coach way to where
Ranelagh once stood. This place was much frequented, from its novelty,
being an inducement to allure the curious, by its amusing deceptions,
particularly on their first appearance there. Here was a large garden,
in different parts of which were recesses; and if treading on a spring,
taking you by surprise, up started different figures, some ugly enough
to frighten you--a harlequin, a Mother Shipton, or some terrific
animal. In a large piece of water, facing the tea alcoves, large fish
or mermaids, were showing themselves above the surface. This queer
spectacle was first kept by a famous mechanist, who had been employed
at one of the winter theatres, there being then two."--Angelo's _Pic
Nic or Table Talk_, p. 106.
Horace Walpole, more than once alludes to this place of entertainment
in his Letters; and in 1755 a 4to. satirical tract appeared entitled
_Jenny's Whim; or a Sure Guide to the Nobility, Gentry, and other
Eminent Persons, in this Metropolis_.
ANECDOTE RELATIVE TO THE MASKED EXECUTIONER OF CHARLES I.
It is universally known, that, at the execution of King Charles I., a
man in a vizor performed the office of executioner. This circumstance
has given rise to a variety of conjectures and accounts. In the
Gentleman's Magazine for November, 1767, and January, 1768, are
accounts of one William Walker, who is said to be the executioner.
In the same magazine for June, 1784, it is supposed to be a Richard
Brandon, of whom a long account is copied from an Exeter newspaper.
But William Lilly, in his "History of his Life and Times," has the
following remarkable passage:--"Many have curiously inquired who it
was that cut off his [the king's] head: I have no permission to speak
of such things: only thus much I say, he that did it is as valiant and
resolute a man as lives, and one of a competent fortune." To clear up
this passage, we shall present our readers with Lilly's examination (as
related by himself) before the first parliament of King Charles II. in
June, 1660.
"At my first appearance, many of the young members affronted me highly,
and demanded several scurrilous questions. Mr. Weston held a paper
before his mouth; bade me answer nobody but Mr. Prinn; I obeyed his
command, and saved myself much trouble thereby, and when Mr. Prinn put
any difficult or doubtful query unto me, Mr. Weston prompted me with
a fit question. At last, after almost one hour's tugging, I desired
to be fully heard what I could say as to the person that cut Charles
I.'s head off. Liberty being given me to speak, I related what follows,
viz.:--
"That the next Sunday but one after Charles I. was beheaded, Robert
Spavin, Secretary to Lieutenant-General Cromwell at that time, invited
himself to dine with me, and brought Anthony Pearson, and several
others, along with him to dinner. That their principal discourse all
dinner-time was only who it was that beheaded the king; one said it was
the common hangman; another, Hugh Peters; others were also nominated;
but none concluded. Robert Spavin, so soon as dinner was done, took
me by the hand, and carried me to the south window: saith he. 'These
are all mistaken; they have not named the man that did the fact; it
was Lieutenant-Colonel Joice. I was in the room when he fitted himself
for the work, stood behind him when he did it; when done, went in with
him again. There is no man knows this but my master, viz., Cromwell,
Commissary Ireton, and myself.'--'Doth Mr. Rushworth know it?' saith
I.--'No, he doth not know it,' saith Spavin. The same thing Spavin
since has often related to me when we were alone."
WHIPPING PRISONERS.
Mr. Ellesdon, Mayor of Lyme, in 1595, paid for--
_s._ _d._
Four yards of canvas to make a coat to whip the rogues in 3 0
Making the same 0 6
Whipping of three of the ship boys for stealing of Mr.
Hassard's salmon fish in the Cobb 1 0
(N.B.--Salmon was plentiful in the west at this epoch.)
The charge of fourpence made for whipping a boy continued for many
years the same. The whipping of a woman who was a stranger was little
more costly; but the inflicting such a punishment upon a townswoman
was remunerated at a higher rate, as may well be supposed, from a
consideration of several circumstances. To take a violent, noisy woman
from her chamber, tie madam to the tumbrel and whip her round the town,
was an undertaking that demanded assistance and protection to the
official or hireling that wielded the thong. In the Town Accompt Book
are found such entries as those which are given in illustration:--
_s._ _d._
1625. For whipping William Wynter's boy 0 4
" Agnes Abbott twice 2 4
1644. Paid two soldiers to attend the whipping of a woman 2 6
Paid to whipping four women 4 0
THE INIQUITIES OF THE SLAVE TRADE.
We may form some idea of the temptations which the trade in human
beings held out, even to people who held an honourable position in the
world, from the fact that the captain of a frigate, within a few years
before the slave trade was abolished, was known to purchase slaves in
the West India market, have them entered as able seamen, and compel the
artificers to teach them a trade; so that when the ship returned each
was sold at a high rate as a valuable piece of property. The worst,
however, has to be told. Upon sailing from Portsmouth, some of the
best men were sent away upon duty in a ship's boat, in order that they
might be returned "run," by which they lost pay and clothes, but made
room for the negroes lately kidnapped, who were entered, though they
did no work for the ship, as able seamen! We have all heard of a naval
officer who had his pocket picked at a Westminster election, and who
openly professed his vow, which he rigidly performed, of flogging every
Londoner that joined his ship for this act. This, it is said, was no
idle vow!
DISCOVERY OF THE BODY OF CANUTE THE GREAT.
In June 1766, some workmen who were repairing Winchester Cathedral
discovered a monument, wherein was contained the body of King Canute.
It was remarkably fresh, had a wreath round the head, and several other
ornaments of gold and silver bands. On his finger was a ring, in which
was set a large and remarkably fine stone; and in one of his hands a
silver penny. _Archæologia_, vol. iii. The penny found in the hand is
a singular instance of a continuance of the pagan custom of always
providing the dead with money to pay Charon.
M.P.'S AND MAYORS PRIVATEERS.
William Morfote, who represented Winchelsea in Parliament in 1428, was
a privateer with a hundred men under him. He found it necessary to
obtain the king's pardon in 1435, by the advice of Parliament, there
being a legal difficulty about his having broken prison at Dover Castle.
Two merchants of Sherborne in Dorsetshire were robbed of their cargo,
worth £80, A.D. 1322, by Robert de Battyle. This transaction did not
lose him the good opinion of his townsmen, who chose him Mayor of
Winchelsea a few years later.
ALGERINE INVASION OF IRELAND.
The Algerines landed in Ireland in 1627, killed 50 persons, and carried
off about 400 into slavery. One vessel captured by them was worth
£260,000. They made purchases of stores and provisions they wanted in
the western parts of Ireland by Baltimore, and in 1631 carried off 100
captives from that town. They landed their poor captives at Rochelle,
and marched them in chains to Marseilles. Twenty-six children are said
to have been carried off at one time from Cornwall. In 1633, Lord
Wentworth, appointed lord deputy of Ireland, named noted pirate vessels
off the coast of Ireland and their captures. Persons in their wills
used to leave sums of money for redeeming well-known captives from
bondage in Algiers and other places.
WILLIAM JOY, THE ENGLISH SAMPSON.
[Illustration: [++] William Joy.]
William Joy was a native of Kent, and born May 2, 1675, at St.
Lawrence, a small village one mile from Ramsgate, in the Isle of
Thanet. When very young, he distinguished himself among his juvenile
companions and playmates, by his amazing superiority in strength,
over any antagonist that dare to come in competition with his power,
whether in play or earnest When about twenty-four years of age, he
first began to exhibit in public his astonishing feats, in a display of
personal prowess inferior to none but the Hebrew champion recorded in
holy writ. Among many other of this man's extraordinary performances
may be recorded:--1. A strong horse, urged by the whip to escape his
powerful rein, is restrained and kept from escape solely by the check
of his pull, aided by a strong rope, and this without any stay or
support whatever. 2. Seated upon a stool, with his legs horizontally
elevated, solely by muscular power, he jumps clearly from his seat.
3. To prove the agility and flexibility of his joints, he places
a glass of wine on the sole of his foot, and, in an erect posture,
without the least bending of his head or body, raises the glass to
his mouth, and drinks the contents, turning his foot with both hands,
to accommodate his draught. 4. Aided by a strong leather girdle, or
belt, and supporting himself by pressing his arms on a railing, he
lifts from the ground a stone of the enormous weight of 2,240 lbs. 5.
A rope fastened to a wall, which had borne 3,500 lbs. weight, without
giving way, is broke asunder by his amazing strength. The celebrity
of this man attracted the curiosity of King William III., before whom
he exhibited at Kensington Palace; likewise before George, Prince of
Denmark, and his royal consort, the Princess, afterwards Queen Anne,
and their son William, Duke of Gloucester, called the Hope of England.
He also went through a regular course of performances at the Duke's
Theatre, in Dorset-gardens, Salisbury-square, which was attended by the
first nobility and gentry in the kingdom.
PRICE OF SHELL-FISH IN 1675.
A bill for shell-fish enables us to ascertain the prices paid in
Charles II.'s reign for these delicacies. Mr. Walter Tucker, mayor of
Lyme, Dorset, paid for the judges, for--
30 lobsters £1 10 0
6 crabs 0 6 0
100 scallops 0 5 0
300 oysters 0 4 0
50 oranges 0 2 0
-------
£2 7 0
DISTRIBUTING HAND-BILLS.
The month of July 1736 afforded a singular _popular explosion_,
contrived in the following strange manner:--A brown paper parcel,
which had been placed unobserved near the side-bar of the Court of
King's-bench, Westminster-hall, blew up during the solemn proceedings
of the Courts of Justice assembled, and scattered a number of printed
bills, giving notice, that on the last day of Term five Acts of
Parliament would be publicly burnt in the hall, between the hours of
twelve and one, at the Royal Exchange, and at St. Margaret's hill,
which were the Gin Act, the Smuggling Act, the Mortmain Act, the
Westminster Bridge Act, and the Act for borrowing 600,000_l._ on the
Sinking fund.
One of the bills was immediately carried to the Grand Jury then
sitting, who found it an infamous libel, and recommended the offering
of a reward to discover the author.
RANZ DES VACHES.
The "Ranz des Vaches," which is commonly supposed to be a single air,
stands in Switzerland for a class of melodies, the literal meaning
of which is cow-rows. The German word is _Kureihen_--rows of cows.
It derives its origin from the manner the cows march home along the
Alpine paths at milking time. The shepherd goes before, keeping every
straggler in its place by the tones of his horn, while the whole herd
wind along in Indian file, obedient to the call. From its association
it always creates home-sickness in a Swiss mountaineer, when he hears
it in a foreign land. It is said, these melodies are prohibited in
the Swiss regiments attached to the French army, because it produces
so many desertions. One of the "Ranz des Vaches" brings back to his
imagination his Alpine cottage--the green pasturage--the bleating of
his mountain goats--the voices of the milkmaids, and all the sweetness
and innocence of a pastoral life; till his heart turns with a sad
yearning to the haunts of his childhood, and the spot of his early
dreams and early happiness.
The Swiss retain their old fondness for rifle-shooting, and there is
annually a grand rifle match at some of the large towns, made up of the
best marksmen in all Switzerland. There are also yearly contests in
wrestling, called _Zwing Feste_, the most distinguished wrestlers at
which are from Unterwalden, Appenzel, and Berne.
MONSOONS.
These are periodical winds which blow over the Indian Ocean, between
Africa and Hindustan for nearly six months from the north-east, and
during an equal period from the south-west. The region of the monsoons
lies a little to the north of the northern border of the trade-winds,
and they blow with the greatest force and with most regularity between
the eastern coast of Africa and Hindustan. When the sun is in the
southern hemisphere a north-east wind, and when it is in the northern
hemisphere, a south-west wind blows over this sea. The north-east
monsoon blows from November to March. It extends one or two degrees
south of the equator. It becomes regular near the coasts of Africa
sooner than in the middle of the sea, and near the equator sooner than
in the vicinity of the coasts of Arabia. This wind brings rain on the
eastern coasts of Africa. The south-west monsoon does not extend south
of the equator, but usually begins a short distance north of it. It
blows from the latter end of April to the middle of October. Along the
coast of Africa, it appears at the end of March; but along the coast
of Malabar, not before the middle of April; it ceases, however, sooner
in the former than in the latter region. The rainy season on the west
coast of Hindustan commences with the first approach of the south-west
monsoon. The monsoons prevail also on the seas between Australia and
China.
[Illustration: [++] Mpnsoons.]
The effect of the struggle which precedes the change in the direction
of the wind in this part of the world is thus described in "Forbes's
Oriental Memoirs." The author was encamped with the English troops:
"The shades of evening approached as we reached the ground, and just
as the encampment was completed, the atmosphere grew suddenly dark,
the heat became oppressive, and an unusual stillness presaged the
immediate setting-in of the monsoon. The whole appearance of external
nature resembled those solemn preludes to earthquakes and hurricanes
in the West Indies, from which the East in general is providentially
free. We were allowed very little time for conjecture. In a few minutes
the heavy clouds burst over us. I had witnessed seventeen monsoons
in India, but this surpassed them all in its awful appearance and
dreadful effects. Encamped in a low situation on the borders of a lake
formed to collect the surrounding water, we found ourselves in a few
hours in a liquid plain; tent-pins giving way in a loose soil--the
tents fell down--and left the whole army exposed to the contending
elements. It requires a lively imagination to conceive the situation of
a hundred thousand human beings of every description, with more than
two hundred thousand elephants, camels, horses, and oxen, suddenly
overwhelmed by this dreadful storm in a strange country, without any
knowledge of high or low ground, the whole being covered by an immense
lake, and surrounded by thick darkness, which rendered it impossible
for us to distinguish a single object except such as the vivid
glare of the lightning occasionally displayed in horrible forms. No
language can adequately describe the wreck of a large encampment thus
instantaneously destroyed, and covered with water, amid the cries of
old men and helpless women, terrified by the piercing shrieks of their
expiring children, unable to afford them relief. During this dreadful
night more than two hundred persons and three thousand cattle perished
miserably, and the morning dawn exhibited a shocking spectacle!"
UNUSUAL LOCALITY FOR SAYING PRAYERS.
Francis Atkins was porter at the palace gate, at Salisbury, from the
time of Bishop Burnet to the period of his death in 1761, at the age
of 104 years. It was his office every night to wind up the clock,
which he was capable of performing regularly till within a year of his
decease, though on the summit of the palace. In ascending the lofty
flight of stairs, he usually made a halt at a particular place and said
his evening prayers. He lived a regular and temperate life, and took a
great deal of exercise; he walked well, and carried his frame upright
and well balanced to the last.
BILLY IN THE SALT BOX.
Political caricatures are generally well worth preserving, they
familiarize us with the features and peculiarities of celebrated men,
and they tell us what was the popular feeling of the day. We regret
that in general they are too large for our pages, but now and then we
meet with a small one which we are glad to present to our readers.
[Illustration: [++] Billy in the Salt Box.]
Mr. Pitt's budget of 1805 was not allowed to pass without severe
remarks, and a heavily increased duty on salt excited general
dissatisfaction. People said that the grand contriver of taxes had
visited every corner of the house above stairs, and that he had now
descended into the kitchen; and the annexed caricature, by Gilray,
which was published at this period, represents the premier alarming the
poor cook by popping his head out of the salt-box, with the unexpected
salutation--"How do you do, cookey?" The person thus apostrophised
cries out in consternation, "Curse the fellow, how he has frightened
me!--I think, on my heart, he is getting in everywhere!--who the deuce
would have thought of finding him in the salt-box?"
DANGEROUS FEAT.
An extraordinary instance of the rash feats which men with cool
heads and courageous hearts will sometimes perform, was witnessed at
Nottingham on January 22, 1789.--The vane at the top of St. Peter's
spire, which was placed there in 1735, and measured thirty-three inches
in length, having become insecure, the parish officers agreed with Mr.
Robert Wooton, of Kegworth, to take it down and reinstate it.
This venturous man, henceforth known as "_the steeple climber_,"
commenced his undertaking by placing a ladder against the steeple, and
securing it to the wall with tenters: he then mounted that with another
on his shoulder, which he fastened above it in like manner; and so on
till he reached the top. To prevent himself falling, he was girded
round with belts, which he connected with the ladders by means of
hooks. In this manner he replaced the vane and cock, and rebuilt four
yards of the steeple.
The celerity with which the man placed the ladders was remarkable. He
began to affix the first at eleven in the morning, and brought the
vane down in triumph by two in the afternoon. The bells were then set
a-ringing, the congregation of people became very great, and Wooton
re-ascended the spire, to exhibit his daring. He extended himself on
its summit, only thirteen inches in diameter, and spread out his arms
and legs. He afterwards balanced himself on the uppermost stave of
the top ladder, and for a quarter of an hour capered about in every
imaginable posture, the admiring crowd beneath expecting momentarily to
witness his descent in a manner much less agreeable than precipitate.
Subsequently, when his undertaking was accomplished, to excite
admiration and obtain money, he again balanced himself on the apex
of the spire, beat a drum, and drank a bottle of ale, in the sight
of thousands of people, on a market-day; but the reprobation of the
man's temerity so far preponderated over public approval, as in a
considerable degree to diminish his expected reward.
POST-HASTE ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
Glasgow is now within one minute of London; in the last century it was
scarcely within a fortnight of it. It is a positive fact that when the
post arrived there a hundred years ago, the firing of a gun announced
its coming in. The members of the clubs who heard it tumbled out of
bed, and rushed down to the club-room, where a tankard of hot herb ale,
or a beverage which was a mixture of rum and sugar, was ready for them
before breakfast. How forcibly do these things bring before us the size
of Glasgow at that time, and the habits of its citizens.
EXECUTION OF ADMIRAL BYNG.
The horrid details of the execution of criminals are wholly unfitted
for our pages, but Admiral Byng was not a criminal; his life was
sacrificed to party spirit and party interests, and an account of his
murder--for such it really was--is therefore highly interesting, as it
enables us to see the dauntless manner in which a brave man can meet
a dreadful fate, which he knew to be wholly undeserved. The execution
took place on board the "St. George," man-of-war in Portsmouth harbour,
on the 14th of March, 1757. The Admiral, accompanied by a clergyman who
attended him during his confinement, and two gentlemen, his relations,
walked out of the great cabin to the quarterdeck, where he suffered, on
the larboard side, a few minutes before twelve o'clock. He was dressed
in a light grey coat, white waistcoat, and white stockings, and a large
white wig, and had in each hand a white handkerchief. He threw his hat
on the deck, kneeled on a cushion, tied one handkerchief over his eyes,
and dropped the other as a signal, on which a volley from six marines
was fired, five of whose bullets went through him, and he was in an
instant no more. The sixth went over his head. From his coming out
of his cabin could not be two minutes till he fell motionless on his
left side. He died with great resolution and composure, not showing
the least sign of timidity. The _Ramillies_, the ship the admiral had
in the Mediterranean, was riding at her moorings in the harbour, and
about half an hour before he suffered, she broke her mooring chain, and
only held by her bridle, which is looked on as a wonderful incident by
people who do not consider the high wind at that time.
EXTRAORDINARY TREE.
[Illustration: [++] Banyan Tree.]
The Samoan group of islands in the South Sea lies between the latitudes
of 13° 30' and 14° 30' S, and the longitudes of 168° and 173° W. In
some of these islands there is a most remarkable tree which well
deserves a place in our roll of extraordinary productions. It is a
species of banyan (_Ficus religiosa_), and is called by the natives
Ohwa. Our sketch gives a good idea of some of these trees. The pendant
branches of many of them take root in the ground to the number of
thousands, forming stems from an inch to two feet in diameter,
uniting in the main trunk more than eighty feet above the ground, and
supporting a vast system of horizontal branches, spreading like an
umbrella over the tops of the other trees.
THE PLAGUE IN ENGLAND.
The Register of Ramsay, in Huntingdonshire, mentions 400 people who
died there of the plague, in or about February 1665, and that it
was introduced into the place by a gentleman, who first caught the
infection by wearing a coat, the cloth of which came from London: the
tailor who made the coat, with all his family, died, as did no less
than the number above mentioned.
But the ravages made by the plague in _London_, about 1665, are well
known: it was brought over from Holland, in some Levant goods, about
the close of the year 1664: its progress was arrested, in a great
degree, by a hard frost which set in in the winter; but as the spring
of 1665 advanced, its virulence advanced. Infected houses were shut
up and red crosses painted on the doors, with this inscription, "Lord
have mercy upon us." Persons going to market took the meat off the
hooks themselves, for their _own_ security, and for the _Butcher's_,
dropped their money into pans of vinegar; for it was supposed that even
their provisions were tainted with the infection. In the months of
August and September the greatest mortality occurred; for the deaths
of one week have been estimated at 10,000! It may be supposed, that no
great accuracy existed in the Registers, to afford a correct estimate;
for, in the parish of Stepney, it is said they lost, within the year,
116 sextons, grave-diggers and their assistants; and, as the disorder
advanced, the churchyards were incapable of holding more bodies, and
large pits were therefore dug in several parts, to which the dead
were brought by cartloads, collected by the ringing of a bell and the
mournful cry of "Bring out your dead." Add to this, that these carts
worked in the night, and no exact account was kept, as the clerks
and sextons were averse to a duty exposing them to such dangerous
consequences, and often carried off before such accounts as they had
taken were delivered in. All the shops were shut up, grass grew in the
most public streets, until about December 1665, when the plague abated,
and the citizens who had left their abodes for the country, crowded
back again to their residences. The computation is, that this horrible
disease carried off 100,000 persons in London: it is singular, that the
only parish quite exempt from infection was St. John the Evangelist, in
Watling Street.
LANDSLIP AT COLEBROOK, SHROPSHIRE.
A most remarkable circumstance happened there in the morning of the
27th of May, 1773, about four o'clock. Near 4,000 yards from the river
Severn stood a house, where a family dwelt; the man got up about three
o'clock, heard a rumbling noise, and felt the ground shake under him,
on which he called up his family. They perceived the ground begin to
move, but knew not which way to run; however, they providentially and
wonderfully escaped, by taking an immediate flight, for just as they
got to an adjacent wood, the ground they had left separated from that
on which they stood. They first observed a small crack in the ground
about four or five inches wide, and a field that was sown with oats
to heave up and roll about like waves of water; the trees moved as
if blown with wind, but the air was calm and serene; the Severn (in
which at that time was a considerable flood) was agitated very much,
and the current seemed to run upwards. They perceived a great crack
run very quick up the ground from the river. Immediately about thirty
acres of land, with the hedges and trees standing (except a few that
were overturned), moved with great force and swiftness towards the
Severn, attended with great and uncommon noise, compared to a large
flock of sheep running swiftly. That part of the land next the river
was a small wood, less than two acres, in which grew twenty large oaks;
a few of them were thrown down, and as many more were undermined and
overturned; some left leaning, the rest upright, as if never disturbed.
The wood was pushed with such velocity into the channel of the Severn
(which at that time was remarkably deep), that it forced the waters up
in columns a considerable height, like mighty fountains, and drove the
bed of the river before it on the opposite shore, many feet above the
surface of the water, where it lodged, as did one side of the wood;
the current being instantly stopped, occasioned a great inundation
above, and so sudden a fall below, that many fish were left on dry
land, and several barges were heeled over, and when the stream came
down were sunk, but none were damaged above. The river soon took its
course over a large meadow that was opposite the small wood, and in
three days wore a navigable channel through the meadow. A turnpike road
was moved more than thirty yards from its former situation, and to all
appearance rendered for ever impassable. A barn was carried about the
same distance, and left as a heap of rubbish in a large chasm; the
house received but little damage. A hedge that was joined to the garden
was removed about fifty yards. A great part of the land was in confused
heaps, full of cracks, from four inches to more than a yard wide.
Several very long and deep chasms were formed in the upper part of the
land, from about fourteen to upwards of thirty yards wide, in which
were many pyramids of earth standing, with the green turf remaining on
the tops of some of them. Hollows were raised into mounts, and mounts
reduced into hollows. Less than a quarter of an hour completed this
dreadful scene.
CURIOUS CUSTOM AT STRASBOURG.
At Strasbourg they show a large French horn, whose history is as
follows:--About 400 years ago, the Jews formed a conspiracy to betray
the city, and with this identical horn they intended to give the enemy
notice when to attack.
The plot, however, was discovered; many of the Jews were burnt alive,
the rest were plundered of their money and effects, and banished the
town; and this horn is sounded twice every night from the battlements
of the steeple in gratitude for the deliverance.
The Jews deny the fact of this story, except the murdering and
pillaging their countrymen. They say the whole story is fabricated to
furnish a pretext for these robberies and murders, and assert that the
steeple of Strasbourg, as has been said of the Monument of London,--
"Like a tall bully lifts the head and lies."
DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MEN.
The following is an extraordinary instance of the recklessness of
sailors when in the pursuit of what they call pleasure. In the year
1779, a Mr. Constable, of Woolwich, passing through the churchyard
there at midnight, heard people singing jovially. At first he thought
they were in the church, but the doors were locked, and it was all
silent there:--on looking about he found some drunken sailors who had
got into a large family vault, and were regaling with bread, cheese,
tobacco, and strong beer. They belonged to the Robust, man of war,
and having resolved to spend a jolly night on shore, had kept it up in
a neighbouring alehouse till the landlord turned them out, and then
they came here to finish their evening. They had opened some of the
coffins in their dare-devil drunkenness and crammed the mouth of one
of the bodies with bread, and cheese, and beer. Constable, with much
difficulty, prevailed on them to return to the ship. In their way one
fell down in the mud, and was suffocated, as much from drunkenness as
the real danger. The comrades took him on their shoulders, and carried
him back to sleep in company with the honest gentlemen with whom he had
passed the evening.
CHAIR BROUGHT OVER TO AMERICA IN THE MAYFLOWER BY THE PILGRIM FATHERS.
[Illustration: [++] John Carver's Chair.]
How frequently do we obtain, from the ordinary articles of domestic
life which they were accustomed to use, a correct idea of the habits
and tastes of whole communities which have long since passed away.
A striking instance of this is the chair, of which the above is a
correct sketch. It belonged to John Carver, who was one of the band of
single-hearted men who constituted the Pilgrim Fathers, and who after
first setting out from Holland, eventually sailed from Plymouth in
England, in August, 1620. They landed in Cape Cod Harbour, New England,
on the 9th of November following. Carver, was one of the chief spirits
of the band, and the chair which we have sketched was one of his best
articles of furniture, which he took with him in the Mayflower. He
was elected the first governor of the community, and died in the year
following his election. How forcibly does it show the simplicity of
taste, and the freedom from pomp and vanity which characterised the
devoted and fearless men who left their native shores, and sought
"freedom to worship God" in a land to them unknown, that they should
have selected as their first governor, an individual, the best chair in
whose house was the homely article which we have here depicted.
A HARMLESS ECCENTRIC.
[Illustration: [++] Jenny Darney, a Harmless Eccentric.]
The annexed cut represents a singular character who was well known
about the year 1790 in the southern part of the county of Cumberland.
Her appearance is thus described by a correspondent of the Gentleman's
Magazine of that date:--"Though I have seen her at various times, and
frequently conversed with her, for these 20 years, I have never been
able to learn any particulars respecting her family, friends, or name.
The country people know her by the appellation of Jenny Darney, from
the manner, I presume, in which she used to mend her clothes. Her
present garb is entirely of her own manufacture. She collects the small
parcels of wool which lie about the fields in sheep farms, spins it on
a rock and spindle of her own making; and as she cannot find any other
method of making the yarn into cloth, she knits it on wooden needles,
and by that means procures a warm comfortable dress. In the lifetime of
the late Charles Lutwidge, Esq., of Holm Rook, she took possession of
an old cottage, or rather cow-house, on his estate, in which she has
ever since been suffered to continue. Her intellects seem at certain
times greatly deranged, but her actions are harmless, and her language
inoffensive. On that score she is caressed by all the villagers, who
supply her with eatables, &c., for money she utterly refuses. She
seems a person in her lucid intervals, of much shrewdness, and her
understanding is above the common level. This has also been improved
by a tolerable education. Her appearance has been much the same for
these 20 years, so that she must now be nearly 90 years of age; but of
this, as well as her family and name, she is always silent. She seems
to have chosen out the spot where she now lives, to pass the remainder
of her days unknown to her friends, and in a great measure from a
distaste of a wicked world, to 'prepare herself,' as she often in her
quiet hours says, 'for a better.'"
THE RULING PASSION.
A remarkable instance of the irresistible strength of the ruling
passion was to be seen a few years ago in a Londoner, who had kept are
retail spirit-shop, and retired into the adjoining county when he had
made a fortune, to enjoy himself. This man used to amuse himself by
having one puncheon filled with water, and measuring it off by pints
into another. There was also another retired cit who used every day to
angle in his round wash-hand-basin sized fish-pond for gold-fish. One
fish he knew, because it had once lost its eye in being caught--and he
used to say "Confound that fellow, this is the fifth, sixth, &c., time
that I have caught him this season." It used to provoke him.
INTERESTING REPORT WRITTEN BY SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN.
In the history of public buildings and monuments, it is always
curious to note the original plans of those who designed them, and to
mark the different proposals and suggestions which were taken into
consideration. On this account our readers will no doubt be gratified
by perusing the following Report of Sir Christopher Wren, on the
ornament which it would, in his opinion, be most desirable to place on
summit of the Monument, on Fish Street-hill. The Report was drawn up
for the use of the Committee of City Lands:--
"In pursuance of an Order of the Comittee for City Landes, I doe
heerwith offer the several designes which some monthes since I showed
His M{tie}. for his approbation; who was then pleased to thinke a
large Ball of metall, gilt, would be most agreeable, in regard it would
give an Ornament to the Town at a very great distance; not that His
M{tie}. disliked a statue; and if any proposall of this sort be more
acceptable to the City, I shall most readily represent the same to His
M{tie}.
"I cannot but comend a large Statue, as carrying much dignitie with it,
and that w{ch} would be more valewable in the eyes of Forreiners and
strangers. It hath been proposed to cast such a one in Brasse, of 12
foot high for £1,000. I hope (if it be allowed) wee may find those who
will cast a figure for that mony of 15 foot high, w{ch} will suit the
greatnesse of the pillar, & is (as I take it) the largest at this day
extant, and this would undoubtedly be the noblest finishing that can be
found answerable to soe goodly a worke in all men's judgements.
"A Ball of Copper, 9 foot diameter, cast in severall peeces with the
Flames and gilt, may well be don with the iron worke and fixing for
350lb., and this will be most acceptable of any thing inferior to a
statue, by reason of the good appearance at distance, and because one
may goe up into it, & upon occasion use it for fireworkes.
"A Phoenix was at first thought of, & is the ornament in the wooden
modell of the pilar w{ch} I caused to be made before it was begun; but
upon second thoughtes I rejected it, because it will be costly, not
easily understood at that highth, and worse understood at a distance,
and lastly dangerous, by reason of the sayle, the spread winges will
carry in the winds.
"The Belcony must be made of substantial well forged worke, there being
noe need at that distance of filed worke, and I suppose (for I cannot
exactly guesse the weight) it may be well performed and fixed according
to a good designe for fourscore & ten poundes, including painting, All
w{ch} is humbly submitted to your consideration.
"July 28, 1675.
"CHR. WREN."
CHANGE OF SEX.
Connected with the plumage of birds is an extraordinary problem which
has baffled all research, and towards the solution of which not the
slightest approach has been made. Among certain of the gallinaceous
birds, and it has been observed in no other family, the females
occasionally assume the male plumage. Among pheasants in a wild state,
the hen thus metamorphosed, assumes with the livery a disposition
to war with her own race, but in confinement she is spurned and
buffeted by the rest. From what took place in a hen pheasant in the
possession of a lady, a friend of the late Sir Joseph Banks, it would
seem probable that this change arises from some alteration in the
temperament at a late period of the animal's life. This lady had paid
particular attention to the breeding of pheasants. One of the hens,
after having produced several broods, moulted, and the succeeding
feathers were exactly those of a cock. This animal never afterwards
laid an egg. The pea-hen, has sometimes been known to take the plumage
of the cock bird. Lady Tynte had a favourite pea-hen, which at eight
several times produced chicks. Having moulted when about eleven years
old, the lady and her family were astonished by her displaying the
feathers peculiar to the other sex, and appearing like a pied peacock.
In this process the tail, which was like that of the cock, first
appeared. In the following year she moulted again, and produced similar
feathers. In third year she did the same, and then had also spurs
resembling those of the cock. The bird never bred after this change of
her plumage.
TILBURY FORT.
The chief fame of Tilbury rests on the formation of the camp here, in
the reign of Queen Elizabeth, to defend London against the Spanish
invasion. Although it is unnecessary to recount the well-known
circumstances which led to the formation of the Tilbury camp, it may
not be out of place to give the famous speech of Queen Elizabeth on the
occasion of her visit:--
"My loving People,--We have been persuaded by some that are careful of
our safety, to take heed how we trust ourselves to armed multitudes
for fear of treachery; but assure you I do not desire to live to
distrust my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear. I have always
so behaved myself that under God I have placed my chiefest strength
and safeguard in the loyal hearts and goodwill of my subjects; and
therefore I am come among you at this time, not as for my recreation or
sport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live
or die amongst you all--to lay down for my God, and for my kingdom, and
for my people, my honour and my blood even in the dust. I know that I
have but the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart of a
king, and a king of England too; and I think foul scorn that Parma or
Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of
my realms to which, rather than any dishonour shall grow by me, I will
myself take up arms--I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder
of every one of your victories in the field."
The most full description of Elizabeth's reception at Tilbury is
printed in a sort of doggrel poem, headed, "Elizabetha Triumphans,
briefly, truly, and effectually set forth, declared, and handled by
James Aske."
The poem mentions, that when about 20,000 well-appointed men had
arrived at Tilbury, orders were sent to the various shires to cause the
troops in each to remain until further notice; and so great was the
desire to meet the enemy, that one thousand men of Dorsetshire offered
£500 to be allowed to march to the camp at Tilbury.
The alarm of the Spanish invasion was, however, not the last to
threaten the Londoners, and direct attention to Tilbury.
On the 8th of June, 1667, Ruyter, the Dutch admiral, sailed out of
the Texel with fifty ships, and came to the mouth of the Thames, from
whence he detached Vice-Admiral Van Ghent, with seventeen of his
lightest ships and some fire-ships. Van Ghent in the same month sailed
up the Medway, made himself master of the fort of Sheerness, and,
after burning a magazine of stores to the value of £40,000, blew up
the fortifications. This action alarmed the City of London; so that
to prevent similar mischief, several ships were sunk, and a large
chain put across the narrowest part of the Medway. But by means of an
easterly wind and a strong tide, the Dutch ships broke through the
chain, and sailed between the sunk vessels. They burnt three ships,
and carried away with them the hull of the "Royal Charles," besides
burning and damaging several others. After this they advanced as far as
Upnor Castle, and burnt the "Royal Oak," the "Loyal London," and the
"Great James." Fearing that the whole Dutch fleet would sail to London
Bridge, the citizens caused thirteen ships to be sunk at Woolwich, and
four at Blackwall, and platforms furnished with artillery to defend
them were raised in several places. The consternation was very great,
and the complaints were no less so. It was openly said the king, out
of avarice, had kept the money so generously given to him to continue
the war, and left his ships and subjects exposed to the insults of
the enemy. After this exploit, Ruyter sailed to Portsmouth, with a
design to burn the ships in that harbour; but finding them secured,
he sailed to the west, and took some ships in Torbay. He then sailed
eastward, beat the English force before Harwich, and chased a squadron
of nineteen men-of-war, commanded by Sir Edward Spragg, who was obliged
to retire into the Thames. In a word, he kept the coasts of England in
a continual alarm all July, till he received news of the conclusion of
peace.
[Illustration: Water-gate of Tilbury Fort.]
This daring attack was no doubt the cause of Tilbury Fort being made
to assume its present form. It is now a regular fortification, and
may be justly looked upon as the key to the City of London. The plan
of the building was laid out by Sir Martin Beckman, chief engineer to
Charles II., who also designed the works at Sheerness. The foundation
is laid upon piles driven down, two on end of each other, till they
were assured they were below the channel of the river, and that the
piles, which were pointed with iron, entered into the solid chalk rock.
On the land side, the works are complete; the bastions are faced with
brick. There is a double ditch, or moat, the innermost of which is 180
feet broad, with a good counterscarp, and a covered way marked out
with ravelins and tenailles. There are some small brick redoubts; the
chief strength, however, of this part of the fort consists in being
able to lay the whole level under water, and, by that means, make it
impossible for an enemy to carry on approaches that way. On the river
side is a very strong curtain, with the picturesque water-gate shown
in our engraving in the middle. Before this curtain is a platform, in
the place of a counterscarp, on which are planted cannon of large size.
These completely command the river, and would no doubt cripple the
ships of an enemy attempting to pass in this direction. A few years ago
there were placed on the platform 106 cannon, carrying from 24 to 46
pounds each, besides smaller ones planted between them. The bastions
and curtains are also planted with guns.
The circular tower shown in the engraving was in existence in the time
of Queen Elizabeth, and was called the Block-house.
RINGING THE CHANGES.
It is curious to note the number of changes which may be rung on
different peals. The changes on seven bells are 5,040; on twelve
479,001,600, which it would take ninety-one years to ring at the rate
of two strokes in a second. The changes on fourteen bells could not
be rung through at the same rate in less than 16,575 years: and upon
four-and-twenty, they would require more than 117,000 billions of years.
DISGRACEFUL STATE OF THE LONDON POLICE IN 1724.
That notorious burglar, Jack Sheppard, finished his disgraceful career
at Tyburn in the year 1724, and we notice the event, not with the view
of detailing the disgusting particulars of an execution, but because
the outrages which were allowed to take place after the dreadful scene
was over, exhibit in a striking light the miserable police regulations
which existed at that period, and the manner in which the mob were
allowed to have it nearly all their own way. The Sheriff's officers,
aware of the person they had to contend with, thought it prudent to
secure his hands on the morning of execution. This innovation produced
the most violent resistance on Sheppard's part; and the operation was
performed by force. They then proceeded to search him, and had reason
to applaud their vigilance, for he had contrived to conceal a penknife
in some part of his dress. The ceremony of his departure from our
world passed without disorder; but, the instant the time expired for
the suspension of the body, an undertaker, who had followed by his
friends' desire with a hearse and attendants, would have conveyed it to
St. Sepulchre's churchyard for interment; but the mob, conceiving that
surgeons had employed this unfortunate man, proceeded to demolish the
vehicle, and attack the sable dependants, who escaped with difficulty.
They then seized the body, and, in the brutal manner common to those
wretches, beat it from each to the other till it was covered with
bruises and dirt, and till they reached Long-acre, where they deposited
the miserable remains at a public-house called the Barley-mow. After
it had rested there a few hours the populace entered into an enquiry
why they had contributed their assistance in bringing Sheppard to
Long-acre; when they discovered they were duped by a bailiff, who
was actually employed by the surgeons; and that they had taken the
corpse from a person really intending to bury it. The elucidation of
their error exasperated them almost to phrensy, and a riot immediately
commenced, which threatened the most serious consequences, The
inhabitants applied to the police, and several magistrates attending,
they were immediately convinced the civil power was insufficient to
resist the torrent of malice ready to burst forth in acts of violence.
They therefore sent to the Prince of Wales and the Savoy, requesting
detachments of the guards; who arriving, the ringleaders were secured,
the body was given to a person, a friend of Sheppard, and the mob
dispersed to attend it to the grave at St. Martin's in the fields,
where it was deposited in an elm coffin, at ten o'clock the same night,
under a guard of soldiers, and with the ceremonies of the church.
A TRIUMPH OF ENERGY.
After the accession of Tippoo Saib to the throne of Mysore in 1782,
the English made overtures for a termination of the war which had been
commenced by his father; but flushed by the possession of a large
army, a well-filled treasury, a passion for war, and an inordinate
sense of his own importance, Tippoo refused all terms of pacification,
and left the English no alternative but to battle against him as they
could. Lord Macartney, who was at that time the Governor of Madras,
on becoming acquainted with the determination of Tippoo, resolved to
prosecute hostilities with the greatest vigour, and having placed Col.
Fullerton at the head of his force, he provided him with an army,
collected from various parts, of 16,000 good troops, and afforded that
excellent officer all available assistance in carrying the war into
Tippoo's territory. Fullerton laid his plans with considerable skill;
he encouraged the natives to bring and sell provisions to him on his
march, effectually checked devastation and plundering, scrupulously
respected the religious opinions of the Hindus, consolidated and
improved the mode of march, and availed himself of the subtle cunning
and nimble feet of the natives to establish a remarkably complete
courier-system, whereby he could receive and communicate intelligence
with a rapidity never before attained by any European officer in
India. He had to choose between two systems of strategy--either to
march through the Mysore territory, and frustrate Tippoo in his
siege of Mangalore; or boldly to attack Seringapatam, in order to
compel Tippoo to leave Mangalore as a means of defending his own
capital. The colonel decided on the adoption of the latter course, as
promising more fruitful results. Being at Daraporam, 200 miles south
of Seringapatam, Fullerton resolved to divert the route, and take a
circuit nearer the western coast, where the capture of the strong
fort of Palagatcherry would afford him a valuable intermediate depôt,
commanding one of the chief roads from the Malabar to the Coromandel
coasts. On the 18th of October he started. After capturing a few small
forts, he ascended to high ground, where dense forests, deep ravines,
and tortuous water courses embarrassed every yard of his progress:
to fill up the ravines before he could drag his artillery over them,
to throw trees across them where the depth was too great for filling
up, to clear gaps through forests with the axe, to contend against
tremendous rains--were only part of the difficulties he had to meet;
but he met them like a skilful commander, reached Palagatcherry on
the 5th of November, and captured the fort on the 15th, obtaining
with it a welcome supply of money, grain, guns, powder, shot, and
military stores. When the difficulties which Colonel Fullerton had
to encounter, and the triumphant manner in which he overcame them,
are taken into consideration, it will be readily admitted, we think,
that his enterprise is well deserving of being recorded as a striking
example of what may be accomplished by a union of professional skill
and invincible energy. Our engraving represents one of the devices
which Colonel Fullerton employed for the purpose of enabling his forces
to pass over a mountain torrent.
[Illustration: [++] Bridge over Mountain Torrent.]
STORMING OF THE BASTILLE AT PARIS.
[Illustration: [++] The Bastille.]
The great Revolution in France, at the close of the last century, was
full of wonderful events, many of which might be appropriately recorded
in our pages. One of the most striking among them was the storming and
capture of the Bastille, a vast state-prison which was begun to be
built in 1369 by Charles V., and finished by his successor in 1383.
The demolition of this fortress was the first triumph of the armed
populace of Paris, and it rendered the progress of the revolution
irresistible. As the day closed in on the evening of Monday, the 14th
of July, 1789, a reckless multitude of rioters, after seizing 30,000
muskets and several pieces of artillery at the Hotel des Invalides,
rushed in wild excitement to the Bastille, rendered hateful to the
people by the political imprisonment of many hapless men in past times,
although less frequently applied to similar purposes under the milder
rule of Louis XVI. An armed mob of at least 100,000 men, aided by
troops who joined them in whole regiments at a time, had not long to
contend against the old fortress. The governor, De Launay, made such a
defence as a brave officer might at such a juncture; but his few troops
were bewildered and wavering; he received orders from the Hotel de
Ville which he knew not whether to obey or resist, but no instructions
from the court or the ministers; and the military aid to the mob became
stronger than any force he could bring to bear against them. The chains
of three drawbridges were broken by hatchets; straw, wood, oil, and
turpentine were brought and kindled, to burn down the gates; and after
many volleys from the mob had been answered by a few from the fortress,
De Launay, seeing no hope of succour, resolved to blow up the place
rather than yield. In this he was prevented by the Swiss guards, who
formed a part of the small garrison, and who, after a parley with
the insurgents, opened the gates, and surrendered. The Bastille was
taken. The ruffians, heeding nothing but their own furious passions,
disregarded the honourable rules of capitulation; they beheaded De
Launay in a clumsy and barbarous manner, and putting his head on a
spike, carried it through the streets shouting, laughing, and singing;
they were prevented only by an accidental interruption from burning
alive a young lady whom they found in one of the court-yards; they
hung or maltreated many of the Swiss and invalid soldiers; and they
fearfully hacked the bodies of three or four officers in the endeavour
to decapitate them. The prisoners within, only seven in number, were
liberated, and treated with a drunken revel; while the Châtelet and
other prisons became scenes of renewed disorders. The sketch which we
give above, of the attack on the Bastille, is taken from a medallion by
Andrieu.
DURATION OF LIFE AMONG ARTISTS.
In Gould's Dictionary of Artists, published in 1839, the names, with
the ages, of 1,122 persons are given; which furnish the following
remarkable facts as to the longevity of this class of men. Died under
60 years old, 474; 60 years and under 70, 250; 70 years and under 80,
243; 80 years and under 90, 134; 90 years and under 100, 19; above 100,
1. The mean age at death of the whole number being 55 years; from which
it would appear that the pursuit of the fine arts has a tranquilizing
effect upon the spirits, and a tendency to moral refinement in the
habits and manners of its professors extremely favourable to the
prolongation of life.
CHANGE IN THE VALUE OF LAND.
At Brighton, within the present century, a spot of ground was offered
to a hair-dresser in fee, upon condition of shaving the possessor for
life. The terms were declined, and the land soon became of immense
value.
UNACCOUNTABLE ANTIPATHIES.
The following are a few of the more striking manifestations of that
unaccountable feeling of antipathy to certain objects, to which so many
persons are subject, and with instances of which--in a modified form
perhaps--most people are acquainted with:--
Erasmus, though a native of Rotterdam, had such an aversion to fish,
that the smell of it threw him into a fever.
Ambrose Paré mentions a gentleman, who never could see an eel without
fainting.
There is an account of another gentleman, who would fall into
convulsions at the sight of a carp.
A lady, a native of France, always fainted on seeing boiled lobsters.
Other persons from the same country experienced the same inconvenience
from the smell of roses, though they were particularly partial to the
odour of jonquils or tuberoses.
Joseph Scaliger and Peter Abono never could drink milk.
Cardan was particularly disgusted at the sight of eggs.
Uladislaus, king of Poland, could not bear to see apples.
If an apple was shown to Chesne, secretary to Francis I., he bled at
the nose.
A gentleman, in the court of the emperor Ferdinand, would bleed at the
nose on hearing the mewing of a cat, however great the distance might
be from him.
Henry III. of France could never sit in a room with a cat.
The Duke of Schomberg had the same aversion.
M. de Lancre gives an account of a very sensible man, who was so
terrified at seeing a hedgehog, that for two years he imagined his
bowels were gnawed by such an animal.
The same author was intimate with a very brave officer, who was so
terrified at the sight of a mouse, that he never dared to look at one
unless he had his sword in his hand.
M. Vangheim, a great huntsman in Hanover, would faint, or, if he had
sufficient time, would run away at the sight of a roasted pig.
John Rol, a gentleman in Alcantara, would swoon on hearing the word
_lana_, wool, pronounced, although his cloak was woollen.
The philosophical Boyle could not conquer a strong aversion to the
sound of water running through a pipe.
La Mothe le Vayer could not endure the sound of musical instruments,
though he experienced a lively pleasure whenever it thundered.
The author of the Turkish Spy tells us that he would rather encounter
a lion in the deserts of Arabia, provided he had but a sword in his
hand, than feel a spider crawling on him in the dark. He observes, that
there is no reason to be given for these secret dislikes. He humorously
attributes them to the doctrine of the transmigration of the soul; and
as regarded himself, he supposed he had been a fly, before he came into
his body, and that having been frequently persecuted with spiders, he
still retained the dread of his old enemy.
LONDON RESORTS A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
In addition to the regular theatres, there were many places of
amusement, such as the Vauxhall and Ranelagh Gardens, the site of the
latter being now occupied by the houses that hem in Chelsea College;
the Rotunda, famous for its music, its gardens, and its piece of water;
Bell-size House and Gardens on the Hampstead Road, where tea, coffee,
and other refreshments could be had, together with music, from seven in
the morning,--with the advantage of having the road to London patrolled
during the season by twelve "lusty fellows," and of being able to ride
to Hampstead by coach for sixpence a-head; Perrot's inimitable grotto,
which could be seen by calling for a pot of beer; Jenny's Whim, at the
end of Chelsea Bridge, where "the royal diversion of duck-hunting"
could be enjoyed, "together with a decanter of _Dorchester_" for
sixpence; Cuper's Gardens, in Lambeth, nearly opposite Somerset House,
through which the Waterloo Road was ruthlessly driven; the Marble
Hall, at Vauxhall, where an excellent breakfast was offered for one
shilling; Sadler's Wells, celebrated both for its aquatic and its
wire-dancing attractions; the Floating Coffee-House, on the river
Thames, the Folly House at Blackwall, Marybone Gardens, the White
Conduit House, and a multitude of others, to enumerate which would be
tedious and unprofitable. On Sunday, we are told, the "snobocracy,"
amused themselves by thrusting their heads into the pillory at Georgia,
by being sworn at Highgate, or rolling down Flamstead Hill in Greenwich
Park. Some regaled their wives and families with buns at Chelsea and
Paddington; others indulged in copious draughts of cyder at the Castle
in the pleasant village of Islington; while the undomestic cit, in
claret-coloured coat and white satin vest, sipped his beer and smoked
his pipe at Mile End, or at the "Adam and Eve" in Pancras, or "Mother
Red Cap's" at Camden.
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S STATE COACH.
[Illustration: [++] Queen Elizabeth's State Coach.]
The accompanying engraving is taken from a very old print representing
the state procession of Queen Elizabeth on her way to open Parliament
on 2nd April, 1571. This was the first occasion on which a state coach
had ever been used by a Sovereign of England, and it was the only
vehicle in the procession; the Lord Keeper, and the Lords Spiritual and
Temporal, all attending on horseback. It was drawn by two palfreys,
which were decked with trappings of crimson velvet; and, according
to an old authority, the name of the driver was William Boonen, a
Dutchman, who thus became the first state coachman.
THE ORIGIN OF EATING GOOSE ON MICHAELMAS DAY.
Queen Elizabeth, on her way to Tilbury Fort on the 29th of September,
1589, dined at the ancient seat of Sir Neville Umfreville, near that
place; and as British Bess had much rather dine off a high-seasoned
and substantial dish than a simple fricassee or ragout, the knight
thought proper to provide a brace of fine geese, to suit the palate
of his royal guest. After the Queen had dined heartily, she asked for
a half-pint bumper of Burgundy, and drank "Destruction to the Spanish
Armada." She had but that moment returned the glass to the knight who
had done the honours of the table, when the news came (as if the Queen
had been possessed with the spirit of prophecy) that the Spanish fleet
had been destroyed by a storm. She immediately took another bumper,
in order to digest the goose and good news; and was so much pleased
with the event, that she every year after, on that day, had the above
excellent dish served up. The Court made it a custom, and the people
the same, ever since.
PRE-ADAMITE BONE CAVERNS.
Among the wonders of the world, the bone caves of the pre-Adamite
period deserve a prominent place. It is to this period that the
extensive remains of Mammiferæ found in the strata of the Pampas
of Buenos Ayres, and in the caverns which are scattered in such
vast numbers over the continents of Europe and America, and even in
Australia, are to be ascribed. We regret that we can find room for a
description of only one of these caverns, but it is a most extensive
one, and among the first which attracted attention. It is situated
at Baylenreuth, in Franconia, and the engraving which we here give
represents a section of it.
[Illustration: [++] Pre-Adamite Bone Cavern.]
The entrance of this cave, about seven feet in height, is placed on
the face of a perpendicular rock, and leads to a series of chambers
from fifteen to twenty feet in height, and several hundred feet in
extent, in a deep chasm. The cavern is perfectly dark, and the icicles
and pillars of stalactite reflected by the torches present a highly
picturesque effect. The floor is literally paved with bones and fossil
teeth, and the pillars and corbels of stalactite also contain osseous
remains. Cuvier showed that three-fourths of the remains in this and
like caverns were those of bears, the remainder consisting of bones of
hyenas, tigers, wolves, foxes, gluttons, weasels, and other Carnivora.
HOW DISTANT AGES ARE CONNECTED BY INDIVIDUALS.
Mr. Robert Chambers, in a curious and interesting chapter in the
"Edinburgh Journal," entitled "Distant Ages connected by Individuals,"
states, in 1847, "There is living, in the vicinity of Aberdeen, a
gentleman who can boast personal acquaintance with an individual who
had seen and conversed with another who actually had been present at
the battle of Flodden Field!" Marvellous as this may appear, it is not
the less true. The gentleman to whom allusion is made was personally
acquainted with the celebrated Peter Garden, of Auchterless, who died
in 1775, at the reputed age of 131, although there is reason to believe
that he was several years older. Peter, in his young days, was servant
to Garden, of Troup, whom he accompanied on a journey through the north
of England, where he saw and conversed with the famous Henry Jenkins,
who died 1670, at the age of 169. Jenkins was born in 1501, and was of
course twelve years old at the period of the battle of Flodden Field;
and, on that memorable occasion, bore arrows to an English nobleman
whom he served in the capacity of page. "When we think of such things,"
adds Mr. Chambers, "the ordinary laws of nature seem to have undergone
some partial relaxation; and the dust of ancient times almost becomes
living flesh before our eyes."
THE EARTHQUAKE AT LISBON.
On the 1st of November, 1755, a few minutes before 10 a.m. the
inhabitants of Lisbon were alarmed by several violent vibrations of
the ground which then rose and fell several times with such force that
hundreds of houses came toppling into the streets, crushing thousands
of people. At the same time the air grew pitchy dark from the clouds of
dust that rose from the crumbling edifices. Many persons ran down to
the river side, in the hope of escaping to the shipping; but the water
suddenly rose some yards perpendicularly, and swept away everything
before it. The quay, with nearly 200 human beings standing on it,
all at once disappeared. Large ships, which were lying high and dry,
floated off, and were dashed against each other or carried down the
river. In every direction the surface of the water was overspread with
boats, timber, casks, household furniture and corpses. The scene on
dry land was yet more horrifying. Churches, government buildings, and
private houses, were all involved in the same ruin. Many thousands
of trembling fugitives had collected in the great square, when it
was discovered that flames were spreading in every quarter. Taking
advantage of the universal panic and confusion, a band of miscreants
had fired the city. Nothing could be done to stay the progress of
the flames, and for eight days they raged unchecked. Whatever the
earthquake had spared fell a prey to this new calamity. "It is not to
be expressed by human tongue," writes an eye-witness, "how dreadful
and how awful it was to enter the city after the fire was abated; and
looking upwards, one was struck with horror in beholding dead bodies,
by six or seven in a heap, crushed to death, half buried and half
burnt; and if one went through the broad places or squares, nothing was
to be met with but people bewailing their misfortunes, wringing their
hands, and crying, 'The world is at an end.' If you go out of the city,
you behold nothing but barracks, or tents made with canvass or ship's
sails, where the poor inhabitants lye."
Another eye-witness is still more graphic. "The terror of the people
was beyond description: nobody wept,--it was beyond tears;--they ran
hither and thither, delirious with horror and astonishment--beating
their faces and breasts--crying '_Misericordia_, the world's at
an end;' mothers forgot their children, and ran about loaded with
crucifixed images. Unfortunately, many ran to the churches for
protection; but in vain was the sacrament exposed; in vain did the poor
creatures embrace the altars; images, priests, and people, were buried
in one common ruin. * * * The prospect of the city was deplorable.
As you passed along the streets you saw shops of goods with the
shopkeepers buried with them, some alive crying out from under the
ruins, others half buried, others with broken limbs, in vain begging
for help; they were passed by crowds without the least notice or sense
of humanity. The people lay that night in the fields, which equalled,
if possible, the horrors of the day; the city all in flames; and if
you happened to forget yourself with sleep, you were awakened by the
tremblings of the earth and the howlings of the people. Yet the moon
shone, and the stars, with unusual brightness. Long wished-for day at
last appeared, and the sun rose with great splendour on the desolated
city. In the morning, some of the boldest, whose houses were not burnt,
ventured home for clothes, the want of which they had severely felt in
the night, and a blanket was now become of more value than a suit of
silk."
STRANGE CURE FOR RHEUMATISM.
Bridget Behan, of Castle-waller, in the county of Wicklow, Ireland,
retained the use of all her powers of body and mind to the close of
her long life, 110 years, in 1807. About six years preceding her death
she fell down stairs, and broke one of her thighs. Contrary to all
expectation, she not only recovered from the effects of the accident,
but actually, from thence, walked stronger on this leg, which,
previously to the accident, had been a little failing, than she had
done for many years before. Another remarkable circumstance relating
to this fracture was, that she became perfectly cured of a chronic
rheumatism of long standing, and from which on particular occasions she
had suffered a good deal of affliction. A short while before her death
she cut a new tooth.
SILVER TEA SERVICE WHICH BELONGED TO WILLIAM PENN.
[Illustration: [++] Silver Tea Service.]
Articles of ordinary use, however small may be their intrinsic value,
which have once been the property of men who have been good and
great--how rare the conjunction!--are always invested with a peculiar
interest. They often afford a clue to the tastes of those who once
possessed them. On this account we have great pleasure in laying
before our readers a representation of the silver tea-service which
belonged to the celebrated William Penn, the founder and legislator
of Pennsylvania, whom Montesquieu denominates the modern Lycurgus.
He was the son of Admiral Penn, was born at London in 1644, and was
educated at Christchurch, Oxford. At college he imbibed the principles
of Quakerism, and having endeavoured to disseminate them by preaching
in public, he was thrice thrown into prison. It was during his first
imprisonment that he wrote "_No Cross, no Crown_." In March, 1680-81,
he obtained from Charles II. the grant of that territory which now
bears the name of Pennsylvania. In 1682 he embarked for his new
colony; and in the following year he founded Philadelphia. He returned
to England in 1684, and died in July, 1718. He was a philosopher, a
legislator, an author, the friend of man, and, above all, a pious
Christian. In addition to the reasons above given, the sketch of
the tea-service is an object of curiosity, as showing the state of
silversmith's work in England, at the close of the seventeenth century,
for articles of domestic use.
CURIOUS FIGURES ON A SMALL SHRINE.
[Illustration: [++] Soldiers Watching the Body of Our Lord.]
The figures here given are copied from a curious little bronze,
strongly gilt, which was engraved in the "Gentleman's Magazine" for
1833, accompanied with a description, by A. J. Kempe, Esq., the author
of the letterpress to "Stothard's Monumental Effigies," whose intimate
knowledge in these matters enables him to well authenticate dates; and
he considers this relic may safely be attributed to the early part of
the twelfth century; it was discovered in the Temple Church, and had
originally formed a portion of a pyx, or small shrine, in which the
consecrated host was kept. Our engraving is more than half the size of
the original, which represents the soldiers watching the body of Our
Lord, who was, in mystical form, supposed to be enshrined in the pyx.
They wear scull-caps of the Phrygian form, with the nasal like those in
the Bayeux Tapestry; and the mailles or rings of the hauberk appear,
as in the armour there, sewn down, perhaps, on a sort of gambeson, but
not interlaced. They bear kite-shaped shields, raised to an obtuse
angle in the centre, and having large projecting bosses: the third of
these figures is represented beside the cut in profile, which will
enable the reader more clearly to detect its peculiarities. On two of
these shields are some approaches to armorial bearings; the first is
marked with four narrow bendlets; the second is fretted, the frets
being repeated in front of his helmet, or _chapelle de fer_: all the
helmets have the nasal. A long tunic, bordered, and in one instance
ornamented with cross-lines, or chequered, appears beneath the tunic.
The sword is very broad, and the spear carried by the first figure,
obtuse in the head,--a mark of its antiquity. The shoes are admirable
illustrations of that passage of Geoffry of Malmesbury, where,
representing the luxury of costume in which the English indulged at the
time when Henry I. began his reign, he says: "Then was there flowing
hair, and extravagant dress; and then was invented the fashion of shoes
with curved points: then the model for young men was to rival women in
delicacy of person, to mimic their gait, to walk with loose gesture,
half-naked." The curvature of the points of the shoes in the little
relic before us, in conformity with the custom censured by Malmesbury,
is quite remarkable. One turns up, another down; one to the left,
another to the right; and scarcely any two in the same direction.
THE QUEEN'S SHARKS.
The harbour of Trincomalee swarms with gigantic sharks, and strange to
relate, they are all under British protection; and if any one is found
molesting or injuring them, the fine is £10, or an imprisonment! How
this ridiculous custom originated, it is hard to say; but we are told,
that in the early days of British conquest in the East, sailors were
apt to desert, and seek refuge in the then inaccessible wilds of the
interior; and of later years, when civilisation has unbarred the gates
of Cingalese commerce to all nations of the world, the soldiers of
the regiment stationed at Trincomalee, discontented with their lot in
life, were wont to escape from the thraldom of the service, by swimming
off to American and other foreign vessels, preferring chance, under a
strange flag, to a hard certainty under their own. Thus the Queen's
sharks are duly protected as a sort of water-police for the prevention
of desertion both from the army and navy.
OLD VERSES ON QUEEN ELIZABETH.
The following quaint and curious verses are taken from a very old
volume, entitled _A Crowne Garland of Goulden Roses, Gathered out of
England's Royall Garden, &c., &c. By Richard Johnson_.
A SHORT AND SWEET SONNET MADE BY ONE OF THE MAIDES OF HONOR UPON THE
DEATHE OF QUEENE ELIZABETH, WHICH SHE SOWED UPON A SAMPLER IN RED SILKE.
_To a new tune, or "Phillida flouts me."_
Gone is Elizabeth,
Whom we have lov'd so deare;
She our kind mistres was
Full foure and forty yeare.
England she govern'd well,
Not to be blamed;
Flanders she govern'd well
And Ireland tamed.
France she befrended,
Spaine she hath foiled,
Papists rejected,
And the Pope spoyled.
To princes powerfull,
To the world vertuous,
To her foes mercifull,
To her subjects gracious.
Her soule is in heaven,
The world keeps her glory,
Subjects her good deeds,
And so ends my story.
RANELAGH.
Ranelagh, of which no traces now remain, was situated on part of
Chelsea Hospital garden, between Church Row and the river, to the east
of the Hospital. It takes its name from a house erected in 1691, by
Viscount Ranelagh. This house, in which the Viscount had resided from
the period of its being built, was sold in 1733 to an eminent builder
named Timbrell for £3,200, who advertised it for sale in the following
year, as a freehold with garden, kitchen garden, and offices, and a
smaller house and garden with fruit trees, coach-houses, &c., &c. These
were the first vicissitudes of Ranelagh, preparatory to its conversion
into a place of public amusement.
Walpole, in one of his entertaining letters to Mann, April 22nd, 1742,
thus speaks of the gardens, which were then unfinished:--
"I have been breakfasting this morning at Ranelagh Garden; they have
built an immense ampitheatre, with balconies full of little alehouses;
it is in rivalry to Vauxhall, and cost above twelve thousand pounds.
The building is not finished, but they got great sums by people going
to see it and breakfasting in the house: there were yesterday no less
than three hundred and eighty persons, at eighteen-pence a piece."
Again, under the date May 26th, 1742, he writes to his friend as
follows:--
"Two nights ago, Ranelagh Gardens were opened at Chelsea; the prince,
princess, duke, much nobility, and much mob besides were there. There
is a vast ampitheatre, finely gilt, painted, and illuminated; into
which everybody that loves eating, drinking, staring, or crowding, is
admitted for twelve pence. The building and disposition of the gardens
cost sixteen thousand pounds. Twice a week there are to be ridottos at
guinea tickets, for which you are to have a supper and music. I was
there last night, but did not find the joy of it. Vauxhall is a little
better, for the garden is pleasanter, and one goes by water."
"The only defect in the elegance and beauty of the ampitheatre at
Ranelagh," says the _London Chronicle_ for August, 1763, "is an
improper and inconvenient orchestra, which, breaking into the area
of that superb room about twenty feet farther than it ought to do,
destroys the symmetry of the whole, and diffuses the sound of music
with such irregular rapidity, that the harmonious articulations escape
the nicest ear when placed in the most commodious attitude; it also
hurts the eye upon your first entry.
"To remedy these defects, a plan has been drawn by Messrs. Wale
and Gwin, for adding a new orchestra, which being furnished with a
well-proportioned curvature over it, will contract into narrower bounds
the modulations of the voice, and render every note more distinctly
audible. It will, by its form, operate upon the musical sounds, in the
same manner as concave glasses affect the rays of light, by collecting
them into a focus. The front of this orchestra being planned so as
to range parallel to the balustrade, the whole area also will be
disencumbered of every obstruction that might incommode the audience
in their circular walk. There is likewise provision made in this plan
for a stage capable of containing 30 or 40 performers, to officiate as
chorus-singers, or otherwise assist in giving additional solemnity on
any extraordinary occasion."
"At Ranelagh House, on the 12th of May, 1767," says the _Gentleman's
Magazine_, "were performed (in the new orchestra) the much admired
catches and glees, selected from the curious collection of the Catch
Club; being the first of the kind publickly exhibited in this or any
other kingdom. The entertainments consisted of the favourite catches
and glees, composed by the most eminent masters of the last and present
age, by a considerable number of the best vocal and instrumental
performers. The choral and instrumental parts were added, to give the
the catches and glees their proper effect in so large an amphitheatre;
being composed for that purpose by Dr. Arne."
The Rotunda, or amphitheatre, was 185 feet in diameter, with an
orchestra in the centre, and tiers of boxes all round. The chief
amusement was promenading (as it was called) round and round the
circular area below, and taking refreshments in the boxes while the
orchestra and vocalists executed different pieces of music. It was a
kind of 'Vauxhall under cover,' warmed with coal fires. The rotunda
is said to have been projected by Lacy, the patentee of Drury Lane
Theatre. "The _coup d'oeil_," Dr. Johnson declared, "was the finest
thing he had ever seen."
The last great event in the history of Ranelagh was the installation
ball of the knights of the Bath, in 1802, shortly after which the place
was pulled down.
THE FIRST EAST INDIA HOUSE.
[Illustration: [++] The First East India House.]
The tradition is, that the East India Company, incorporated December
31st, 1600, first transacted their business in the great room of the
Nag's Head Inn, opposite St. Botolph's Church, Bishopsgate Street.
The maps of London, soon after the Great Fire of 1666, place the
India House on a part of its present site in Leadenhall Street. Here
originally stood the mansion of Alderman Kerton, built in the reign of
Edward VI., rebuilt on the accession of Elizabeth, and enlarged by its
next purchaser, Sir W. Craven, Lord Mayor in 1610. Here was born the
great Lord Craven, who, in 1701, leased his house and a tenement in
Lime Street to the Company at £100 a year. A scarce Dutch etching, in
the British Museum, of which the annexed engraving is a correct copy,
shows this house to have been half timbered, its lofty gable surmounted
with two dolphins and a figure of a mariner, or, as some say, of the
first governor; beneath are mecrhant ships at sea, the royal arms,
and those of the Company. This grotesque structure was taken down in
1726, and upon its site was erected the old East India House, portions
of which yet remain; although the present stone front, 200 feet long,
and a great part of the house, were built in 1798 and 1799, and
subsequently enlarged by Cockerell, R.A., and Wilkins, R.A.
ADVERTISEMENTS IN THE LAST CENTURY.
The following strange advertisements have been culled at random from
magazines and newspapers _circa_ 1750. They give us a good idea of the
manners and tastes of that period:--
"Whereas a tall young Gentleman above the common size, dress'd in a
yellow-grounded flowered velvet (supposed to be a Foreigner), with a
Solitair round his neck and a glass in his hand, was narrowly observed
and much approved of by a certain young lady at the last Ridotto. This
is to acquaint the said young Gentleman, if his heart is entirely
disengaged, that if he will apply to A. B. at Garaway's Coffee House in
Exchange Alley, he may be directed to have an interview with the said
young lady, which may prove greatly to his advantage. Strict secresy on
the Gentleman's side will be depended on."
"A Lady who had on a Pink-coloured Capuchin, edged with Ermine, a black
Patch near her right eye, sat in a front seat in the next Side Box but
one to the Stage on Wednesday night at Drury Lane Playhouse; if that
Lady is single and willing to treat on terms of honour and generosity
of a married state, it would be deemed a favour to receive a line
directed to C. D., at Clifford's Inn Old Coffee House, how she may be
address'd, being a serious affair."
"To be seen this week, in a large commodious room at the George Inn, in
Fenchurch-street, near Aldgate, the Porcupine Man and his Son, which
has given such great satisfaction to all that ever saw them: their
solid quills being not to be numbered nor credited till seen; but give
universal satisfaction to all that ever saw them; the youth being
allowed by all to be of a beautiful and fine complexion, and great
numbers resort daily to see them."
"A Bullfinch, that pipes 'Britons rouse up your great magnanimity,' at
command, also talks, is to be sold at the Cane Shop facing New Broad
street, Moorfields; likewise to be sold, two Starlings that whistle and
talk extremely plain.
"Great variety of fine long Walking Canes."
THEODORA DE VERDION.
This singular woman was born in 1744, at Leipsic, in Germany, and
died at her lodgings, in Upper Charles-street, Hatton Garden, London,
1802. She was the only daughter of an architect of the name of Grahn,
who erected several edifices in the city of Berlin, particularly the
Church of St. Peter's. She wrote an excellent hand, and had learned
the mathematics, the French, Italian, and English languages, and
possessed a complete knowledge of her native tongue. Upon her arrival
in England she commenced teaching of the German language, under the
name of Dr. John de Verdion.
In her exterior, she was extremely grotesque, wearing a bag wig, a
large cocked hat, three or four folio books under one arm, and an
umbrella under the other, her pockets completely filled with small
volumes, and a stick in her right hand. She had a good knowledge of
English books; many persons entertained her for her advice relative
to purchasing them. She obtained a comfortable subsistence from
teaching and translating foreign languages, and by selling books
chiefly in foreign literature. She taught the Duke of Portland the
German language, and was always welcomed to his house, the Prussian
Ambassador to our Court received from her a knowledge of the English
language; and several distinguished noblemen she frequently visited
to instruct them in the French tongue; she also taught Edward Gibbon,
the celebrated Roman Historian, the German language, previous to his
visiting that country. This extraordinary female has never been known
to have appeared in any other but the male dress, since her arrival in
England, where she remained upwards of thirty years; and upon occasions
she would attend court, decked in very superb attire; and was well
remembered about the streets of London; and particularly frequent in
attending book auctions, and would buy to a large amount, sometimes a
coachload. Here her singular figure generally made her the jest of the
company. Her general purchase at these sales was odd volumes, which she
used to carry to other booksellers, and endeavour to sell, or exchange
for other books. She was also a considerable collector of medals
and foreign coins of gold and silver; but none of these were found
after her decease. She frequented the Furnival's Inn Coffee-house,
in Holborn, dining there almost every day; she would have the first
of every thing in season, and was as strenuous for a large quantity,
as she was dainty in the quality of what she chose for her table.
At times, it is well-known, she could dispense with three pounds of
solid meat; and we are very sorry to say, she was much inclined to the
dreadful sin of drunkenness. Her death was occasioned by falling down
stairs, and she was, after much affliction, at length compelled to make
herself known to a German physician, who prescribed for her, when the
disorder she had, turned to a dropsy, defied all cure, and finished the
life of so remarkable a female.
DRIVING STAGS LIKE CATTLE.
Buried at Disley, Cheshire, June 2nd, 1753, Mr. Joseph Watson, in the
105th year of his age. He was born at Moseley Common, in the parish of
Leigh, in the county of Lancaster; and married his wife from Etchells,
near Manchester, in the said county. They were an happy couple 72
years. She died in the 94th year of her age. He was park-keeper to
the late Peter Leigh, Esq., of Lime, and his father used to drive and
show red deer to most of the nobility and gentry in that part of the
kingdom, to the general satisfaction of all who ever saw them; for he
could have driven and commanded them at his pleasure, as if they had
been common horned-cattle. In the reign of Queen Anne, Squire Leigh was
at Macclesfield, in Cheshire, in company with a number of gentlemen,
amongst whom was Sir Roger Mason, who was then one of the members for
the said county; they being merry and free, Squire Leigh said his
keeper should drive 12 brace of stags to the Forest of Windsor, a
present to the Queen. Sir Roger opposed it with a wager of 500 guineas,
saying that neither his keeper, nor any other person, could drive 12
brace of red deer from Lime Park to Windsor Forest on any account. So
Squire Leigh accepted the wager from Sir Roger, and immediately sent
a messenger to Lime for his keeper, who directly came to his master,
who told him he must immediately prepare himself to drive 12 brace
of stags to Windsor Forest, for a wager of 500 guineas. He gave the
Squire, his master, this answer, that he would, at his command, drive
him 12 brace of stags to Windsor Forest, or to any part of the kingdom
by his worship's direction, or he would lose his life and fortune. He
undertook, and accomplished this most astonishing performance, which
is not to be equalled in the annals of the most ancient history. He
was a man of low stature, not bulky, of a fresh complexion, pleasant
countenance, and he believed he had drank a gallon of malt liquor a
day, one day with another, for above sixty years of his time.
ECCENTRIC WILL.
The following will, as an exhibition of strange eccentricity, is not
inappropriate to our pages. Mr. Tuke, of Wath, near Rotherham, who died
in 1810, bequeathed one penny to every child that attended his funeral
(there came from 600 to 700); 1s. to every poor woman in Wath; 10s.
6d. to the ringers to ring one peal of grand bobs, which was to strike
off while they were putting him into the grave. To seven of the oldest
navigators, one guinea for puddling him up in his grave. To his natural
daughter, £4 4s. per annum. To his old and faithful servant, Joseph
Pitt, £21 per annum. To an old woman who had for eleven years tucked
him up in bed, £1 1s. only. Forty dozen penny loaves to be thrown from
the church leads at twelve o'clock on Christmas day for ever. Two
handsome brass chandeliers for the church, and £20 for a set of new
chimes.
EXTRAORDINARY FROST.
As an instance of great rarity in England of the severity of a frost,
it is worth notice, that in January, 1808, the rain froze as it fell,
and in London the umbrellas were so stiffened that they could not be
closed. Birds had their feathers frozen so that they could not fly, and
many were picked up as they lay helpless on the ground.
ANCIENT SNUFF-BOXES.
These ancient snuff-boxes furnish proof of the love of our ancestors
for the titillating powder. An admiring writer of the last century,
reflecting on the curious and precious caskets in which snuff was then
imprisoned, asks--
"What strange and wondrous virtue must there be,
And secret charm, O snuff! concealed in thee,
That bounteous nature and inventive art,
Bedecking thee thus all their powers exert."
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Snuff Boxes.]
But every age, since snuff was in use, appears to have cherished
great regard for the beauty and costliness of its snuff boxes, and
even at the present time, the snuff box is the recognised vehicle of
the highest honour a corporation can bestow. Those here represented
are not so much boxes as bottles. They are richly and elaborately
ornamented with sporting subjects, and no doubt once belonged to some
famous personage. Judging of their very antique form and figures, we
are inclined to think they must have been in use earlier than it is
generally supposed that snuff was introduced into this country.
SEEING THE FIRST AND THE LAST OF TWO GENERATIONS.
Frances Barton, of Horsley, Derbyshire, died 1789, aged 107. She
followed the profession of a midwife during the long period of eighty
years. Her husband had been sexton of the parish seventy years; so that
this aged pair frequently remarked, that _she_ had twice brought into
the world, and _he_ had twice buried, the whole parish. Her faculties,
her memory in particular, were remarkably good, so that she was enabled
well to remember the Revolution in 1688, and being present at a merry
making on that glorious occasion.
THE EARLIEST HACKNEY-COACH.
[Illustration: [++] The Earliest Hackney-Coach.]
The above is a correct representation of one of the earliest forms in
which coaches for hire were first made. They were called Hackney, not,
as is erroneously supposed, from their being first used to carry the
citizens of London to their villas in the suburb of Hackney, but from
the word "hack," which signifies to offer any article for sale or hire.
Hackney coaches were first established in 1634, and the event is thus
mentioned in one of _Strafford's Letters_, dated April in that year:--
"One Captain Bailey hath erected some four _Hackney-coaches_, put
his men in livery, and appointed them to stand, at the May-pole in
the Strand, giving them instructions at what rates to carry men into
several parts of the town, where all day they may be had. Other
hackney-men seeing this way, they flock to the same place, and perform
their journeys at the same rate. So that sometimes there is twenty of
them together, which disperse up and down; that they and others are to
be had everywhere, as watermen are to be had by the water-side. * * *
Everybody is much pleased with it."
A UNIQUE LIBRARY.
A singular library existed in 1535, at Warsenstein, near Cassel; the
books composing it, or rather the substitutes for them, being made of
wood, and every one of them is a specimen of some different tree. The
back is formed of its bark, and the sides are constructed of polished
pieces of the same stock. When put together, the whole forms a box;
and inside of it are stored the fruit, seed, and leaves, together with
the moss which grows on the trunk, and the insects which feed upon the
tree; every volume corresponds in size, and the collection altogether
has an excellent effect.
DRESS FORTY YEARS AGO.
Caricature, even by its very exaggeration, often gives us a better idea
of many things than the most exact sketches could do. This is more
especially the case with respect to dress, a proof of which is here
given by the three caricatures which we now lay before our readers.
They are copied from plates published at the period to which they
refer, and how completely do they convey to us a notion of the fashions
of the day!
[Illustration: [++] Caricature of Dress.]
With the peace of 1815 commenced a new era in English history; and
within the few years immediately preceding and following it, English
society went through a remarkably rapid change; a change, as far as
we can see, of a decidedly favourable kind. The social condition of
public sentiment and public morals, literature, and science, were all
improved. As the violent internal agitation of the country during the
regency increased the number of political caricatures and satirical
writings, so the succession of fashions, varying in extravagance,
which characterised the same period, produced a greater number of
caricatures on dress and on fashionable manners than had been seen at
any previous period. During the first twelve or fifteen years of the
present century, the general character of the costume appears not to
have undergone any great change. The two figures here given represent
the mode in 1810.
A few years later the fashionable costume furnished an extraordinary
contrast with that just represented. The waist was again shortened, as
well as the frock and petticoat, and, instead of concealment, it seemed
to be the aim of the ladies to exhibit to view as much of the body
as possible. The fops of 1819 and 1820 received the name of dandies,
the ladies that of dandizettes. The accompanying cut is from a rather
broadly caricatured print of a dandizette of the year 1819. It must
be considered only as a type of the general character of the foppish
costume of the period; for in no time was there ever such a variety of
forms in the dresses of both sexes as at the period alluded to.
We give with the same reservation, a figure of a dandy, from a
caricature of the same year. The number of caricatures on the dandies
and dandizettes, and on their fopperies and follies, during the years
1819, 1820, and 1821, was perfectly astonishing.
[Illustration: Dandizette.]
[Illustration: Dandy.]
FASHIONABLE DISFIGUREMENT.
[Illustration: [++] Patching of the Face.]
The extent to which people may be led to disfigure themselves by a
blind compliance with the fashion of the day, was never more strikingly
displayed than in the custom of dotting the face with black patches of
different patterns. It might easily be supposed that the annexed sketch
is a caricature, but such is not the case; it is a correct likeness of
a lady of the time of Charles the First, with her face in full dress.
Patching was much admired during the reign of that sovereign, and for
several succeeding years. Some authors think that the fashion came
originally from Arabia. No sooner was it brought to England and France,
than it became an absolute _fureur_. In the former country, old and
young, the maiden of sixteen and the grey-haired grandmama, covered
their faces with these black spots, shaped like suns, moons, stars,
hearts, crosses, and lozenges; and some even, as in the instance
before us, carried the mode to the extravagant extent of shaping the
patches to represent a carriage and horses.
A REMARKABLE OLD MAN.
Mr. Ingleby, of Battle Abbey, Sussex, died 1798, aged 117. He had
been for upwards of ninety-five years a domestic in the family of
Lady Webster. The following narrative of this remarkable man is by a
gentleman who visited him in the autumn of 1797:--
"To my great surprise," he says, "I found Mr. Ingleby in a situation
very far removed from the luxuries of life, or the place which might
be deemed necessary for his years. He was in an antique outbuilding,
near the Castle Gate, where his table was spread under an arched roof;
nearly the whole of the building being filled with billet-wood, and
scarcely affording room for the oaken bench on which this wonder of
longevity was reclining by the fire. His dress was a full-bottomed
wig, and a chocolate-coloured suit of clothes with yellow buttons. His
air and demeanour was pensive and solemn; though there was nothing
in his look which impressed the mind with the idea of a person more
than fourscore years old, except a slight falling of the under jaw,
which bespoke a more advanced age. We were introduced by a matron, who
served as a sort of interpreter between us--Mr. Ingleby's deafness
not permitting any regular conversation. When the nurse explained
our errand, he replied, in a very distinct but hollow voice, 'I am
much obliged to the gentlemen for the favour they do me; but I am not
well, and unable to converse with them.' He then turned his face to
the higher part of the bench on which he reclined, and was silent.
In each of his withered hands he held a short, rude, beechen walking
stick, about three feet high, by the help of which he was accustomed
not only to walk about the extensive premises in which he passed the
most part of his life, but also to take his little rambles about the
town; and once (for, occasionally, the old gentleman was irascible,)
he set out on a pedestrian excursion to Hastings, _to inquire for
another situation in service_, because his patroness desired him to
be more attentive to personal neatness. It is but justice to the lady
alluded to, to add, that the uncouth abode in which Mr. Ingleby dwelt
was the only one in which he could be persuaded to reside, and which
long familiarity had rendered dear to him. The choice appeared very
extraordinary; but such persons, in their conduct, are seldom governed
by the fixed and settled rules by which human life is ordinarily
regulated."
CURIOUS MANUSCRIPT.
A very curious manuscript was presented to the Antiquarian Society
of Yorkshire in 1828. It contains sundry rules to be observed by
the household of Henry the 8th, and enjoins the following singular
particulars:--"None of his Highness's attendants to _steal_ any
locks, or keys, tables, forms, cupboards, or other furniture, out
of noblemen's, or gentlemen's, houses where he goes to visit. No
herald, minstrel, falconer, or other, to bring to the Court any boy or
_rascal_; nor to keeps lads or rascals in Court to do their business
for them. Master cooks not to employ such scullions as shall go about
_naked, or lie all night on the ground_ before the kitchen fire. Dinner
to be at _ten_, and supper at _four_. The Knight Marshal to take
care that all such unthrifty and common women as follow the Court be
banished. The proper officers are, between six and seven o'clock every
morning, to make the fire in and _straw_ his Highness's Privy Chamber.
Officers of his Highness's Privy Chamber to keep secret every thing
said or done, leaving hearkening or inquiring where the King is or
goes, be it early or late, without grudging, mumbling, or talking of
the King's past time, late or early going to bed, or any other matter.
Coal only allowed to the King's, Queen's, and Lady Mary's Chambers.
The Queen's Maids of Honour to have a chet loaf, a manchet, a _gallon
of ale_, and a chine of beef, for their _breakfasts_. Among the fishes
for the table is a porpoise, and if it is too big for a _horse-load_, a
further allowance is made for it to the purveyor." The manuscript ends
with several proclamations. One is "to take up and punish strong and
mighty beggars, rascals, and vagabonds, who hang about the Court."
WONDERFUL ESCAPE.
In 1809, a barge was going along the new cut from Paddington with
casks of spirits and barrels of gunpowder. It is supposed that one of
the crew bored a hole in a powder-barrel by mistake, meaning to steal
spirits; the gimlet set fire to the powder, and eleven other barrels
were driven to the distance of 150 yards; but only the single barrel
exploded.
DAVID HUME ON HIS OWN DEATH.
The letter which we here lay before our readers was addressed by David
Hume to the Countess de Boufflers, and is supposed to be the last
that was ever written by that great historian, as he died only five
days afterwards, August 25th. With what calmness did that illustrious
philosopher contemplate the rapid approach of his own death!
The letter was torn at the places where the words are printed in
italics:
"Edinburgh, 20th of August, 1776.
"Tho' I am certainly within a few weeks, dear Madam, and perhaps within
a few days, of my own death, I could not forbear being struck with the
death of the Prince of Conti, so great a loss in every particular. My
reflection carried me immediately to your situation in this melancholy
incident. What a difference to you in your whole plan of life! Pray,
write me some particulars; but in such terms that you need not care, in
_event_ of decease, into whose hands your letter may fall.
"_My_ distemper is a diarrhoea, or disorder in my bowels, which has
_been_ gradually undermining me these two years; but within these six
months has been visibly hastening me to my end. I see death approach
gradually without any anxiety or regret. I salute you with great
affection and regard for the last time.
"DAVID HUME."
SCRIPTURAL ANTIQUITIES.
[Illustration: A. Drum, or Timbrel, of Baked Potter's Clay.--AA. Drum
in use in the East.--B. Harp.--C. Lutes.--D. Inscribed Stone.--E.
Sandals.]
The rude musical instruments here represented, have been collected by
modern travellers, and are but little changed from the ancient forms.
The drum or timbrel marked A, is made of thin baked clay, something in
the shape of a bottle, with parchment stretched over the wider part. On
being struck with the finger, this instrument makes a remarkably loud
sound. These relics are lodged in the London Scriptural Museum, and are
all ticketed with the texts they serve to illustrate. This arrangement
is very judicious, and gives a great additional interest to the sacred
objects while under inspection.
[Illustration: 1. Distaff.--2. Roman Farthing.--3. Stone Money
Weights.--4. Hand Mill. 5. Eastern Wine and Water Bottles.]
The distaff was the instrument which wrought the materials for the
robes of the Egyptian Kings, and for the "little coat" which Hannah
made for Samuel; by it, too, were wrought the cloths, and other fabrics
used in Solomon's temple. By reference to the above engraving, it will
be seen that nothing can be more simple than this ancient instrument,
which is a sort of wooden skewer, round which the flax is wrapped; it
is then spun on the ground in the same manner as a boy's top, and the
thread wrought off, and wound upon a reel shown in the foreground of
the picture. "Querns," or stone hand-mills of various sizes, similar
to that represented in our engraving, have been repeatedly found
in connection with Roman, Saxon, and other ancient remains in this
country. They are still to be met with in constant use over the greater
part of India, in Africa, and also those districts of the East which
are more particularly associated with Holy Writ. It may be worth while
to mention that this description of mill is an improvement upon the
method of simply crushing the corn laid on a flat stone with another
held in the hand. The "Quern" is a hard stone roughly rounded, and
partly hollowed, into which another stone, which has a handle, is
loosely fitted. The corn required to be ground is placed in the hollow
receptacle, and the inner stone is moved rapidly round, and, in course
of time, by immense labour, the wheat &c. is ground into flour. The
Scripture prophecies mention that of two women grinding at the mill,
one shall be left, and the other taken--the two-handled mill will
explain the meaning of this passage.
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF REMARKABLE EVENTS.
The following curious table is extracted _literatim_ from Arthur
Hopton's _Concordancie of Years_, 1615:--
1077.--A blazing star on Palm Sunday, nere the sun.
1100.--The yard (measure) made by Henry I.
1116.--The moone seemed turned into bloud.
1128.--Men wore haire like women.
1180.--Paris in France, and London in Englande, paued, and
thatching in both left, because all Luberick was spoiled
thereby with fire.
1189.--Robin Hood and Little John lived. This yeare London
obtained to be gouerned by sheriffes and maiors.
1205.--By reason of a frost from January to March wheate was sold
for a marke the quarter, which before was at 12 pence. _Anno
Regni_ 6. John.
1209.--London bridge builded with stone; and this yeare the
citizens of London had a grant to choose them a maior.
1227.--The citizens of London had libertie to hunt a certain
distance about the citie, and to passe toll-free through
England.
1231.--Thunder lasted fifteen daies; beginning the morrow after
St. Martin's day.
1233.--Four sunnes appeared, beside the true sunne, of a red colour.
1235.--The Jews of Norwich stole a boy and circumcised him,
minding to have crucified him at Easter.
1247.--The king farmed Queene-hiue for fifty pounds per annum, to
the citizens.
1252.--Great tempests upon the sea, and fearful; and this year the
king (Henry III.) granted, that wheretofore the citizens of
London were to present the maior before the king, wheresoeuer
he were, that now barons of the exchequer should serue.
1292.--The Jewes corrupting England with vsury, had first a badge
giuen them to weare, that they might be knowne, and after were
banished to the number of 150,000 persons.
1313.--This yeare the king of France burned all his leporous and
pocky people, as well men as women: for that he supposed they
had poysoned the waters, which caused his leprosie. About this
time, also, the Jews had a purpose to poyson all the
Christians, by poysoning all their springs.
1361.--Men and beasts perished in diuers places with thunder and
lightning, and fiends were seene speake unto men as they
trauelled.
1372.--The first bailiffes, in Shrewsbury.
1386.--The making of gunnes found; and rebels in Kent and Essex, who
entred London, beheaded all lawyers, and burnt houses and all
bookes of law.
1388.--Picked shooes, tyed to their knees with siluer chaines were
vsed. And women with long gownes rode in side-saddles, like
the queene, that brought side-saddles first to England; for
before they rode astrid.
1401.--Pride exceeding in monstrous apparrell.
1411.--Guildhall in London begun.
1417.--A decree for lantherne and candle-light in London.
1427.--Rain from the 1st of Aprill to Hollontide.
1510.--St. John's College in Cambridge being an ancient hostell, was
conuerted to a college by the executors of the Countesse of
Richmond and Derby, and mother of Henry VII., in this yeare, as
her will was.
1552.--The new service book in English.
1555.--The first use of coaches in England.
1606.--The cawsies about London taken down.
1610.--Britaines Bursse builded. Hix Hall builded. Aldgate builded
new. Sutton's Hospitall founded. Moore fields new railed and
planted with trees. Westminster palace paued.
COCK-FIGHTING AT SCHOOLS.
Many years ago the scholars at our large schools had regular
cock-fights, which would appear to have been an affair of the school,
recognised by the masters, and the charges for which were defrayed
by them, to be afterwards paid by the parents, just as some innocent
excursions and festivities are managed now a days. The credit of the
school was, without doubt, often involved in the proper issue of the
fight.
Sir James Mackintosh, when at school at Fortrose in 1776-7, had this
entry in his account, in which books were charged 3s. 6d.:--
To cocks'-fight dues for 2 years, 2s. 6d. each, 5s.
Associated are three months' fees at the dancing-school, minuet,
country-dances, and hornpipe, &c. Cock-fighting up to the end of
the last century was a very general amusement, and an occasion for
gambling. It entered into the occupations of the old and young.
Travellers agreed with coachmen that they were to wait a night if
there was a cock-fight in any town through which they passed. A battle
between two cocks had five guineas staked upon it. Fifty guineas, about
the year 1760, depended upon the main or odd battle. This made the
decision of a "long main," at cock-fighting an important matter. The
church bells at times announced the winning of a "long main." Matches
were sometimes so arranged as to last the week. When country gentlemen
had sat long at table, and the conversation had turned upon the
relative merits of their several birds, a cock-fight often resulted, as
the birds in question were brought for the purpose into the dining-room.
COMMON TRAVELLING.
[Illustration: [++] Common Travelling Dress.]
We have here the common travelling dress in use at the commencement
of the 12th century, _tempus_ Henry I. and Stephen. The original is
intended for the Saviour meeting the two disciples on the road to
Emmaus. The Saviour wears an under tunic, and his mantle, fastened by a
narrow band across the chest, is held up by the right hand. The figures
of the disciples are, however, the most curious, the central one
particularly so, as he would seem to wear a dress expressly invented
for travelling: his large round hat, with its wide brim, seems to be
the original of the pilgrim's hat so well known in later times, and
which formed so distinguishing a mark in their costume. His short green
tunic, well adapted for journeying, is protected by a capacious mantle
of skin, provided with a "capa" or cowl, to draw over the head, and
which was frequently used instead of a hat. He wears white breeches
ornamented with red cross-stripes; they end at the ankle, where they
are secured by a band or garter, the foot being covered by close shoes.
His companion wears the common cap so frequently met with, and he has
his face ornamented to profusion by moustaches and beard, each lock
of which appears to be most carefully separated and arranged in the
nicest order. He has an under-tunic of white, and an upper one of red,
and a white mantle bordered with gold; he also wears the same kind of
breeches, reaching to the ankle, but he has no shoes, which frequently
appears to have been the case when persons were on a journey.
FASHIONABLE DANCES OF THE LAST CENTURY.
The style of dancing which was fashionable at the latter part of the
last century, may be seen from the following advertisement from a
dancing-master, which we have copied from a newspaper of the year
1775:--
"At Duke's Long Room, in Paternoster Row, Grown Gentlemen or Ladies
are taught a Minuet, or the Method of Country Dances, with the modern
Method of Footing; and that in the genteelest, and most expeditious,
and private Manner. And for the greater expedition of such gentlemen,
as chuse to dance in company, there's a complete Set of Gentlemen
assembled every Monday and Wednesday evening for the said purpose.
Gentlemen or Ladies may be waited on at their own Houses by favouring
me with a line directed as above. Likewise to be had at my House, as
above, a Book of Instructions for the figuring part of Country Dances,
with the Figure of the Minuet annex'd thereon, drawn out in Characters,
and laid down in such a Manner, that at once casting your Eye on it,
you see the Figure directly form'd as it is to be done; so that a
person, even that had never learnt, might, by the help of this book,
soon make himself Master of the figuring Part. Such as reside in the
Country, I doubt not, would find it of immediate Service, as they have
not always an Opportunity of having Recourse to a Dancing Master. Price
10s. 6d. N. Dukes, Dancing Master."
PREACHING FRIARS.
[Illustration: [++] Preaching Friar.]
In the romance of "St. Graal," executed in the fourteenth century, we
have this representation of one of these preaching friars in his rude
portable pulpit. From the contrast afforded by their mendicancy, and
enthusiasm in teaching, to the pride and riches of the higher clergy,
and their constant mixing with the people, they became excessively
popular. The preacher in the cut has a crowded and attentive audience
(though one lady seems inclined to nap); the costume of the entire
body, who are all seated, after a primitive fashion, on the bare
ground, is worthy of note, and may be received as a fair picture of the
commonalty of England about the year 1350.
THE ECCENTRIC LADY LEWSON.
Mrs. Jane Lewson, widow, of No. 12, Coldbath Square, London, died 1816,
aged 116. Mrs. Lewson, from the very eccentric style of her dress,
was almost universally recognised as _Lady_ Lewson. She was born in
Essex Street, Strand, in the year 1700, during the reign of William
and Mary; and was married at an early age to a wealthy gentleman then
living in the house in which she died. She became a widow at the early
age of 26, having only one child, a daughter, living at the time. Mrs.
Lewson being left by her husband in affluent circumstances, though
she had many suitors, preferred to remain in a state of widowhood.
When her daughter married, being left alone, she became very fond of
retirement, and rarely went out or permitted the visits of any person.
For the last thirty years of her life she had kept no servant, except
one old female, who died in 1806; she was succeeded by the old woman's
granddaughter, who was married about 1813; and she was followed in
the situation by an old man, who attended the different houses in
the square to go on errands, clean shoes, &c. Mrs. Lewson took this
man into her house, and he acted as her steward, butler, cook, and
housemaid; and with the exception of two old lap-dogs and a cat, he was
her only companion. The house she occupied was elegantly furnished,
but after the old style; the beds were kept constantly made, although
they had not been slept in for about fifty years. Her apartment was
only occasionally swept out, but never washed; the windows were so
encrusted with dirt that they hardly admitted a ray of light to pass
through them. She had used to tell her acquaintances that if the rooms
were wetted, it might be the occasion of her taking cold; and as to
cleaning the windows, she observed that many accidents happened through
that ridiculous practice; the glass might be broke, and the person
wounded, when the expense of repairing the one, and curing the other,
would both fall upon her. A large garden at the rear of the house was
the only thing connected with her establishment to which she really
paid attention. This was always kept in good order; and here, when
the weather permitted, she enjoyed the air, or sometimes sat and read
by way of pastime; or else chatted on times past with any of the few
remaining acquaintances whose visits she permitted. She seldom visited
any person except Mr. Jones, a grocer at the corner of the square,
with whom she dealt. She was so partial to the fashions prevailing in
her youthful days, that she never changed the manner of her dress from
that worn by ladies in the reign of George the First. She always wore
powder with a large _toupée_ made of horsehair on her head, nearly
half a foot high, over which her front hair was turned up; a cap over
it, which knotted under the chin, and three or four curls hanging down
her neck. She generally wore silk gowns, the train long with a deep
flounce all round, a very long narrow waist, very tightly laced up to
her neck, round which was a ruff or frill. The sleeves of her gown, to
which four or five large ruffles were attached, came below the elbow;
a large straw bonnet, quite flat, high-heeled shoes, a full-made black
silk cloak trimmed round with lace, and a gold-headed cane, completed
her every-day costume for the last eighty years of her life, and in
which habiliments she occasionally walked round the square, when she
was uniformly spoken of by all spectators as _Lady Lewson_. She never
practised ablutions of any kind, or hardly in any degree, because, as
she alleged, those persons who washed themselves were always taking
cold, or laying the foundation of some dreadful disorder. Her method
was to besmear her face and neck all over with hog's lard, because
that was soft and lubricating; and then, because she required a little
colour in her cheeks to set off her person to advantage, she had used
to paint them with rose-pink. Her manner of living was so methodical,
that she would not take her tea out of any other than a favourite
cup. She was equally particular with respect to her knives, forks,
plates, &c. At breakfast she arranged, in a particular manner, the
paraphernalia of her table: at dinner she always observed a particular
rule as to the placing of the two or three empty chairs, by which the
table was surrounded, but herself always sat in one favourite chair.
She constantly enjoyed an excellent state of health; assisted at all
times in regulating the affairs of her household; and never, until a
little previous to her decease, had an hour's illness. She entertained
the greatest aversion to medicine; and, what is remarkable, cut two
new teeth at the age of 87, and was never troubled with the toothache.
Towards the close of her life her sight failed her. She lived in five
reigns, and was believed to be the most faithful living chronicler of
the age. A few days previous to her decease, an old lady who was her
neighbour died suddenly, which had such an effect upon her that she
frequently said her time was also come, and she should soon follow.
She enjoyed the use of all her faculties till that period, when she
became weak and took to her bed; but steadily refused all medical aid.
Her conduct to a few relations was extremely capricious; and she would
never see any of them; and it was not until a few hours before her
dissolution that any relaxation in her temper was manifested. She was
interred in Bunhill Fields burying-ground.
WHEN FIRE ENGINES WERE FIRST MADE.
The Phoenix was the first fire-office established, in 1682. There were
used, in towns, squirts or syringes, for extinguishing fire, which
did not exceed two or three feet in length. These yielded to the Fire
Engine, with leathern pipes, which was patented in 1676. Water-tight,
seamless hose was made in Bethnal Green in 1720. About this date--
£ s. d.
A fire engine and pipe for Lyme cost 6 0 0
A square pipe, 23 feet long 1 18 0
12 leather fire-buckets 2 3 3
A Fire Engine was considered an appropriate present for an aspirant to
a borough. At Lewes, in 1726, T. Pelham, Esq., gave one, and having
been chosen representative in 1731, he presented a second.
EXTRAORDINARY CATARACT.
[Illustration: [++] Cataract in Pulo Penang.]
In the Island of Pulo Penang, in the Straits of Malacca, there is a
cataract which is surpassed by very few in the four quarters of the
earth. It is rarely visited, and, therefore, has been but seldom
described; but those who have been fortunate enough to witness it all
agree in the opinion that it forms one of the wonders of the world.
The stream which supplies it is of considerable volume, and after
traversing a long tract of comparatively level country, is suddenly
precipitated almost without a break into a ravine nearly two hundred
feet below the summit of the fall. The annexed engraving gives an
excellent representation of the scene. The stream descends with a
mighty roar, and rushes on with a lightning speed. If you take the
trouble of bringing a small looking-glass in your pocket, and come
here about an hour before noon, you will be able to produce some very
beautiful artificial rainbows. But, whatever you do, never attempt to
clamber to the top of the rocks; for though, doubtless, the scenery
is very sublime up there, the pathway is slippery and dangerous in
the extreme; and the guides can tell how two hapless youths, officers
belonging to a regiment stationed here some twenty years ago, clambered
up that hill, and how they shouted with triumph on reaching yon summit,
and waved their handkerchiefs bravely; but they can also tell the
gloomy and disastrous end of all this; how the wild screams echoed far
and wide, as both slipped and fell headlong into the surging torrent,
and the sun shone brightly upon the bright red uniforms as they were
hurried over the precipice, and dashed from rock to rock; and, whilst
yet the horror-stricken spectators gazed with speechless agony and
terror, the bodies of the poor young men were borne away and hid by the
blood-stained waters from human recovery.
DANCES OF THE NATIVES IN NEW SOUTH WALES.
[Illustration: [++] Festival Dance.]
The manners and customs of the uncivilized are always legitimate
objects of wonder and curiosity to the civilized. It is on this account
that we give the above sketch of one of the festival dances of the
natives of Australia.
These dances are not only the usual close of their combats, but are
frequent in time of peace. They appear almost necessary to stir up
their blood; and under the excitement they produce, the whole nature
of the people seems to be changed. To a spectator the effect of one of
these exhibitions almost equals that of a tragic melo-drama.
A suitable place for the performance is selected in the neighbourhood
of their huts. Here a fire is built by the women and boys, while
such of the men as are to take a share in the exhibition, usually
about twenty in number, disappear to arrange their persons. When
these preparations are completed, and the fire burns brightly, the
performers are seen advancing in the guise of as many skeletons. This
effect is produced by means of pipe clay, with which they paint broad
white lines on their arms and legs, and on the head, while others of
less breadth are drawn across the body, to correspond to the ribs. The
music consists in beating time on their shields, and singing, and to it
the movements of the dancers conform. It must not be supposed that this
exhibition is a dance in our sense of the word. It consists of violent
and odd movements of the arms, legs, and body, contortions and violent
muscular actions, amounting almost to frenzy. The performers appear
more like a child's pasteboard supple-jack than anything human in their
movements.
This action continues for a time, and then the skeletons, for so they
appear to be, since they truly resemble them, suddenly seem to vanish
and reappear. The disappearance is effected by merely turning round,
for the figures are painted only in front, and their dusky forms are
lost by mingling with the dark background. The trees, illuminated by
the fire, are brought out with some of the figures in bold relief,
while others were indistinct and ghost-like. All concurs to give an
air of wildness to the strange scene. As the dance proceeds, the
excitement increases, and those who a short time before appear only
half alive, become full of animation, and finally are obliged to stop
from exhaustion.
A PUDDING AS AN ADVERTISEMENT.
The following fact is interesting, inasmuch as it gives us an insight
into the popular tastes of the period, and the power of mob-law:--
In 1718, James Austin, inventor of the Persian ink powder, invited his
customers to a feast. There was a pudding promised, which was to be
boiled fourteen days, instead of seven hours, and for which he allowed
a chaldron of coals. It weighed 900 pounds. The copper for boiling it
was erected at the Red Lion in Southwark Park, where crowds went to
see it; and when boiled, it was to be conveyed to the Swan Tavern,
Fish Street Hill, to the tune of "What lumps of pudding my mother gave
me." The place was changed to the Restoration Gardens in St. George's
Fields, in consequence of the numerous company expected, and the
pudding set out in procession with banners, streamers, drums, &c., but
the mob chased it on the way and carried all off.
THE DESOLATION OF EYAM.
The ancient custom of hanging a garland of white roses, made of writing
paper, and a pair of white gloves over the pew of the unmarried
villagers who die in the flower of their age, prevailed up to the year
1837 in the village of Eyam, and in most other villages and little
towns in the Peak of Derbyshire. In the year 1665, the plague was
conveyed to this unfortunate village, which for a time had been chiefly
confined to London. The infection, it appears, was carried in a box of
woollen clothes; the tailor, to whom they were directed was, together
with his family, the immediate victims of this fatal importation;
and a few days sufficed to confirm the fact, that the entire hamlet
was deeply infected. A general panic ensued, the worthy and truly
christian Rector, the Rev. William Mompesson, at this eventful and
awful crisis, summoned the parish, and after energetically stating the
case, and declaring his decided intention of remaining at his post,
induced his hearers to adopt the measures he was about to propose, if
not for their own preservation, at least for the more important cause,
the preservation of the surrounding country. Eyam, from this moment,
like a besieged city, was cut off from the living world, and to the
zeal and fidelity of this ever-to-be-respected minister was confided
the present, as well as eternal welfare of those who were about to
prove to posterity, that devotion to their country, as well as to
their God, was combined in the truly christian creed taught them by
this reverend man. But alas! it was the will of the Almighty that the
ranks of this devoted flock should be rapidly thinned, though Mr. and
Mrs. Mompesson had been hitherto spared; but in August, the latter
was carried off by the fatal disease, in the 27th year of her age;
her monument may still be seen at no great distance from the chancel
door. A number of grave-stones, bearing date 1666, in the churchyard,
show that for a time, at least, the dead had been deposited there in
the usual manner. Soon after the death of Mrs. Mompesson, the disorder
began to abate, and in about two months might be said to have entirely
ceased. The pious and amiable Rector was graciously preserved.
CURIOUS PLAY BILL.
The following remarkable theatrical announcement is worth preservation,
inasmuch as it forms a curious effusion of vanity and poverty, in the
shape of an appeal to the taste and feelings of the inhabitants of a
town in Sussex:--
(_Copy._)
At the old theatre in East Grinstead, on Saturday, May 5th, 1758, will
be represented (by particular desire, and for the benefit of Mrs. P.)
the deep and affecting Tragedy of Theodosius, or the Force of Love,
with magnificent scenes, dresses, &c.
Varanes, by Mr. P., who will strive, as far as possible, to support the
character of this fiery Persian Prince, in which he was so much admired
and applauded at Hastings, Arundel, Petworth, Midworth, Lewes, &c.
Theodosius, by a young gentleman from the university of Oxford, who
never appeared on any stage.
Athenais, by Mrs. P. Though her present condition will not permit her
to wait on gentlemen and ladies out of the town with tickets, she
hopes, as on former occasions, for their liberality and support.
Nothing in Italy can exceed the altar, in the first scene of the play.
Nevertheless, should any of the Nobility or Gentry wish to see it
ornamented with flowers, the bearer will bring away as many as they
choose to favour him with.
As the coronation of Athenais, to be introduced in the fifth act,
contains a number of personages, more than sufficient to fill all
the dressing rooms, &c., it is hoped no gentlemen and ladies will be
offended at being refused admission behind the scenes.
N.B. The great yard dog, that made so much noise on Thursday night,
during the last act of King Richard the Third, will be sent to a
neighbour's over the way; and on account of the prodigious demand for
places, part of the stable will be laid into the boxes on one side, and
the granary be open for the same purpose on the other.
_Vivat Rex._
THE EAR OF BIRDS NOT TO BE DECEIVED.
The sense of hearing in birds is singularly acute, and their instinct
leads them instantly to detect the slightest variation in the song
of those of their own kind. The following is a laughable instance of
this:--
A bird-catcher, wishing to increase his stock of bullfinches, took
out his caged bird and his limed twigs, and placed them in such a
situation of hedge and bush as he judged favourable to his success. It
so happened that his own bird was one of education, such as is usually
termed a piping bullfinch. In the first instance a few accidentally
thrown out natural notes, or calls, had attracted three or four of his
kindred feather, which had now taken their station not far distant
from the cage. There they stood in doubt and curiosity, and presently
moving inch by inch, and hop by hop towards him and the fatal twigs,
they again became stationary and attentive. It was in this eager and
suspended moment that the piping bullfinch set up the old country-dance
of "Nancy Dawson." Away flew every astounded bullfinch as fast as wings
could move, in such alarm and confusion as bullfinches could feel and
they only can venture to describe.
FLYING COACH.
If the _Exeter Flying Stage_ arrived from London at Dorchester in two
days, and at Exeter at the end of the third day, about 1739, the speed
must have been considered surprising. Those who made use of such a
conveyance were doubtless looked upon as presumptuous, neck-or-nothing
mortals.
There was a "Devizes chaise" from London at this time which took a
route through Reading, Newbury, and Marlborough.
There is a good house at Morcomb Lake, east of Charmouth, now no longer
in the road, owing to this having been diverted. This was a road-side
inn, where the judges slept. The Fly Coach from London to Exeter
_slept_ there the fifth night from town. The coach proceeded the next
morning to Axminster, where _it_ breakfasted, and there a woman barber
_shaved the coach_.
AN AGED SPIRIT DRINKER.
Daniel Bull M'Carthy, of the county of Kerry, Ireland, died 1752, aged
111. At the age of eighty-four he married a fifth wife, a girl little
more than fourteen years of age, by whom he had twenty children--one
every subsequent year of his life. It was remarked that he was scarcely
ever seen to expectorate; nor did any extent of cold ever seem to
affect him. For the last seventy years of his life, when in company, he
drank plentifully of rum and brandy, which he always took neat; and, if
in compliance with solicitations he took wine or punch, always drank
an equal sized glass of rum or brandy, which he designated _a wedge_.
The temperature of his body was generally so hot that he could bear but
little clothing, either by day or night upon his person.
GIANT TREE.
[Illustration: [++] Giant Tree in Pulo Penang.]
There are few trees in the world like the giant tree in the island
of Pulo Penang, of which the annexed engraving is a correct
representation. It is one of the various kinds of palm, and some idea
may be formed of its height from the fact that it is twice as tall,
and quite as straight, as the mainmast of a line-of-battle ship; there
are no branches, no twigs anywhere to be seen, save just at the very
summit, and here they bend over gracefully, something like what one
would imagine a large-sized palm-tree to be if gazed at through Lord
Rosse's telescope. It is a only specimen of its kind to be met with in
the whole island.
PUNISHING FALSE ACCUSERS.
Wisdom may sometimes be learned at a Quarter Sessions, and it would
be advantageous if we occasionally took a hint from our ancestors.
The magistrates at sessions in Charles the First's reign could and
did address themselves to questions arising between parties moving in
humble life, very important to them, and who could now-a-day in vain
seek redress in the same quarter. A modern Bridget might continue
to charge men with a breach of promise of marriage without legal
measures being available against her. This was not so in 1626. Her
case was considered, and her injurious conduct and mode of life were
duly estimated, with what result we shall learn from the following
entry in the minute book of a quarter sessions in Devonshire of that
date:--"Forasmuch as it hath appeared unto this Court that Bridget
Howsley of Langton, spinster, liveth idly and lewdly at home, not
betaking herself to any honest course of life, and hath lately falsely
and scandalously accused one [left blank in the original] of Honiton,
in Devon, challenging a promise of marriage from him, which tended
much to his disgrace, and that she is a continual brawler and sower
of strife and debate between her neighbours, inhabitants of Langton
aforesaid, this court doth therefore think fit and order that the said
Bridget Howsley be forthwith committed to the House of Correction,
there to be set on work and remain for the space of six whole months,
and from thenceforth until she shall find very good sureties for her
appearance at the next Sessions, after the said six months shall be
expired, or until she shall procure a master that will take her into
service."
A PHASE OF THE SOUTHCOTTIAN DELUSION.
One of the most remarkable cases on record of combined knavery,
credulity, and superstition, is the belief which so extensively
prevailed about fifty years ago in the mission and doctrines of Joanna
Southcott, and of which, strange to say, some traces remain even to
the present day. Is it not astonishing that so recently as the year
1814, August 3rd, the following paragraph--which we believe gives a
correct statement of the facts--should have appeared in the _Courier_
newspaper? "Joanna Southcott has lately given out that she expects in
a few weeks to become the mother of the true Messiah. She is nearly
seventy years of age. A cradle of most expensive and magnificent
materials has been bespoken by a lady of fortune for the accouchement,
and has been for some days exhibited at the warehouse of an eminent
cabinet maker in Aldersgate-street. Hundreds of genteel persons of both
sexes have been to see this cradle, in which her followers believe the
true Messiah is to be rocked. The following has been given us as a
correct description: 'A child's crib, three feet six inches, by two
feet, of satin wood, with brass trellis, side and foot board; turned
feet, carved and gilt, on castors; a swing cot, inside caned, to swing
on centre; at each end gilt mouldings, top and bottom for gold letters;
a canopy cover, with blue silk; carved and gilt under it, a gold ball,
and dove, and olive branch; green stars at each corner, gilt; blue silk
furniture; an embroidered celestial crown, with Hebrew characters, gold
letters; a lambs'-wool mattress, with white fustian down bed, down
pillow, and two superfine blankets.'"
HOUSEHOLD EXPENSES OF KING EDWARD THE FIRST.
Edward the First kept three Christmasses at Rhuddlan castle, in
Flintshire; and it is a fact not generally known, that his queen
Eleanor, exclusively of the young prince Edward, born at Caernarvon,
was delivered of a princess there in 1283. This shows that his entire
household must have been transferred into Wales, at the time his
policy was directed to complete the annexation of the principality of
Wales to that of England. In an ancient record in the tower of London,
dated 1281-2, and translated by Samuel Lysons, Esq., is a curious roll
of Edward's expenses when at Rhuddlan. It consists of four sheets,
containing the particulars, under proper heads, of the sums of money
paid for the maintenance of his household. The sum of the expenses in
this roll is £1,395 10s., which sum, with the expenses of the other
roll of the queen's household is £2,220 2s. 10-1/2d. The roll is very
curious, but too long to be inserted here. We append the following as a
specimen of the various items it contains:--
Paid on the day of the queen's churching in oblations to
mass £0 3 0
The queen's gift to divers minstrels attending her churching 10 0 0
The queen's gift to a female spy 0 1 0
A certain female spy, to purchase her a house as a spy 1 0 0
For the brethren at the hospital at Rhuddlan 0 1 1
For a certain player as a gift 0 8 0
For the celebration of mass for the soul of William de Bajor 0 1 10
For the messenger carrying letters to the king at London,
to be sent to the court of Rome, for his expenses 0 1 0
Paid sundry bailiffs at the castle 0 4 10
For the carriage of 80 casks of wine from the water to
the castle 0 22 0
For a cart bringing lances and cross bows from Ruthlan
to Hope 0 1 4
For the carriage of £3,000 from the king's wardrobe to
the queen's wardrobe 0 10 5
For 600 turves, to place about the queen's stew pond in
the castle 0 1 0
Carriage of figs and raisins to Aberconway 0 0 1
Paid wages for 1,060 archers at twopence, with 53 captains
at fourpence, with 10 constables of cavalry at 12d.
a day 68 8 6
Paid the same for 1,040 archers, &c. &c. 67 4 0
GARRICK'S CUP.
[Illustration [++] Garrick's Cup.]
This celebrated Shakspearean relic was presented to David Garrick,
by the Mayor and Corporation of Stratford-upon-Avon, in September,
1769, at the Jubilee which he instituted in honour of his favourite
Bard. It measures about 11 inches in height. The tree from which it
is carved was planted by Shakspeare's own hand, in the year 1609,
and after having stood 147 years, was, in an evil hour, and when at
its full growth and remarkably large, cut down, and cleft to pieces
for fire-wood, by order of the Rev. Francis Gastrell, to whom it had
become an object of dislike, from its subjecting him to the frequent
importunities of travellers. Fortunately, the greater part of it fell
into the possession of Mr. Thomas Sharp, a watchmaker of Stratford,
who, "out of sincere veneration" for the memory of its immortal
planter, and well knowing the value the world set upon it, converted
the fragments to uses widely differing from that to which they had been
so sacrilegiously condemned. Garrick held this cup in his hand at the
Jubilee, while he sung the beautiful and well-known air, which he had
composed for the occasion, beginning
"Behold this fair goblet, 'twas carved from the tree,
Which, O my sweet Shakspeare, was planted by thee;
As a relic I kiss it, and bow at the shrine,
What comes from thy hand must be ever divine!
All shall yield to the Mulberry tree,
Bend to thee,
Blest Mulberry;
Matchless was he
Who planted thee,
And thou like him immortal be!"
QUICK WORK.
Mr. John Coxetter, of Greenham Mills, Newbury, had two South down sheep
shorn at his factory exactly at five o'clock in the morning, from the
wool of which, after passing its various processes, a complete damson
coloured coat was made, and worn by Sir John Throckmorton, at a quarter
past six in the evening, being two and three-quarter hours within the
time allotted, for a wager of 1,000 guineas. The sheep were roasted
whole, and a sumptuous dinner given by Mr. Coxetter.
ORIGIN OF THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA.
[Illustration [++] Great Wall of China.]
As has been invariably the case in the early history of all the leading
nations of the earth, great confusion and civil discord existed in
the empire of China in its first stages. It was divided into petty
princedoms, each prince striving to outwit the other, and all anxiously
aiming at the supreme power of the land, till the Emperor Chi-hoang-ti,
who came to the throne about three hundred years before the Christian
era, conquered the whole of the jealous petty princes, and united
their states into one vast empire. But no sooner had he achieved this,
than the Tartars began to be troublesome, and, hoping effectually
to exclude their invasions, this emperor caused to be constructed
the often-read-of great wall of China, a stupendous work of masonry,
extending from the sea to the western province of Shensee and carried
over a tract of fifteen hundred miles, comprising high mountains, deep
valleys, and broad rivers, the wall being supported over the latter
by gigantic arches. Fortified towers were erected at every hundred
yards, and its summit admitted of six horsemen riding abreast. This
sovereign is said to be the founder of the Hau dynasty. The wall proved
an insignificant barrier to the Huns or Tartars, who harassed the
princes of the Hau dynasty, and were a very scourge to the farmers of
the frontier provinces. About the year 264, the Hau dynasty gave way
to the Tsin, which latter was founded by a lineal descendant, through
many generations, of the builder of the great wall. In the sketch which
we have given, our chief object has been to show the extraordinary
inflexibility of the Chinese in carrying their wall strictly along
their frontier line, in spite of the stupendous obstacles which,
intervened in the shape of mountains and valleys.
PRIVY PURSE EXPENSES OF CHARLES II.
Malone, the well known editor of Shakespeare, possessed a curious
volume--an account of the privy expenses of Charles II, kept by Baptist
May. A few extracts from this MS., taken from Malone's transcripts, are
here offered:--
£ s. d.
My Lord St. Alban's bill 1,746 18 11
Lady Castlemaine's debts 1,116 1 0
Sir R. Viner, for plate 850 0 0
For grinding cocoa-nuts 5 8 0
Paid Lady C., play money 300 0 0
For a band of music 50 0 0
To the footman that beat Teague 5 7 6
To Mr. Pears, for the charges of a body
dissected before the king 5 1 0
Lady C., play money 300 0 0
To the Morrice Dancers at Ely 1 1 0
Lady C., play money 300 0 0
Mr. Knight for bleeding the king 10 10 0
For a receipt of chocolate 227 0 0
Mr. Price, for milking the asses 10 0 0
To one that showed tumblers' tricks 5 7 6
For weighing the king 1 0 0
Paid Hall for dancing on the rope 20 0 0
The Queen's allowance 1,250 0 0
Paid Lord Lauderdale for ballads 5 0 0
To a bone-setter attending the Duchess
of Monmouth 10 0 0
Paid Terry for waiting on the king swimming 10 0 0
For 3,685 ribbons for the healing 107 10 4
Mrs. Blague, the king's valentine 218 0 0
Nell Gwyn 100 0 0
Lost by the king at play on Twelfth-night 220 0 0
Paid what was borrowed for the Countess of
Castlemaine 1,650 0 0
COLOUR OF THE HAT FOR CARDINALS.
Innocent IV. first made the hat the symbol or cognizance of the
cardinals, enjoining them to wear a _red_ hat at the ceremonies and
processions, _in token of their being ready_ to spill their blood for
Jesus Christ.
SEVERITY OF THE LAWS A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
Two lads were hanged for stealing a purse containing two shillings
and a brass counter. Of ten criminals convicted at one sessions,
four were hanged and six transported. Very often half a dozen were
sentenced to death at a single sessions. On the 17th March, 1755,
eight malefactors were hanged together at Tyburn. It was recorded as a
matter of surprise, that, "only six convicts received sentence of death
at Gloucester Assizes." One of these was a woman named Anne Ockley,
who was executed on the following day, on the charge of murdering an
illegitimate child. To the last she denied her guilt, except in not
having called in medical advice for her infant after a bad fall. She
took the Sacrament, and begged for more time to prepare herself for the
change; this favour being denied, she remained praying for two hours on
the drop before she would give the signal.
MARKING THE KING'S DISHES WITH THE COOK'S NAMES.
King George II. was accustomed every other year to visit his German
dominions, with the greater part of the officers of his household, and
especially those belonging to the kitchen. Once on his passage at sea,
his first cook was so ill with the sea-sickness, that he could not
hold up his head to dress his majesty's dinner; this being told to the
king, he was exceedingly sorry for it, as he was famous for making a
Rhenish soup, which his majesty was very fond of; he therefore ordered
inquiry to be made among the assistant-cooks, if any of them could make
the above soup. One named Weston (father of Tom Weston, the player)
undertook it, and so pleased the king, that he declared it was full
as good as that made by the first cook. Soon after the king's return
to England, the first cook died; when the king was informed of it, he
said, that his steward of the household always appointed his cooks, but
that he would now name one for himself, and therefore asking if one
Weston was still in the kitchen, and being answered that he was, "That
man," said he, "shall be my first cook, for he makes most excellent
Rhenish soup." This favour begot envy among all the servants, so that,
when any dish was found fault with, they used to say it was Weston's
dressing: the king took notice of this, and said to the servants, it
was very extraordinary that every dish he disliked should happen to be
Weston's; "In future," said he, "let every dish be marked with the name
of the cook that makes it." By this means the king detected their arts,
and from that time Weston's dishes pleased him most.
This custom was kept up till late in the reign of George III.
PARLOUS DAYS.
Bloodletting, considered during the last century to be necessary for
every one in health or not, at spring and fall, was an operation
performed by the country surgeons on the labourers on a Sunday morning,
at a charge of 6d. each. Bleeding in bed by a barber was, in the reign
of Charles II., sometimes charged, for a lady, so high as 10s., and
for a gentleman, 1s. and 2s. 6d. The operator perhaps barboured the
patient at an additional charge. Barbouring by the year was charged
16s. Superstition had marked certain days in each month as dangerous
for bloodletting, which were called _parlous_ days. In July, the 1st,
7th, 13th, 12th, 25th, and 20th were of the above kind.
As the whole population had recourse to bloodletting twice a year,
bleeders or barbers were in constant demand.
A FUNERAL APPROPRIATELY CONDUCTED.
During the year 1700, the minister of a parish in Kent was interred
at the age of 96 years; the gentleman who preached his funeral sermon
was 82; he who read the service 87; the clerk of the parish was the
same age; the sexton was 86; in addition to which list of aged persons,
there were several present from the adjacent parishes 100 years old
each, and upwards.
ANCIENT NUT-CRACKERS.
[Illustration [++] Ancient Nut-Crackers.]
The two quaint instruments pictured in our engraving, of about the
time of Charles I. or II., are made of hard wood rather rudely carved;
and look as if in their time they had seen good service. The grotesque
heads, with the mouth, affording the means of cracking the nuts, are
examples of the fitness of design for a particular purpose, which
characterize many of the objects in domestic use in the middle ages,
and up to the reign of Queen Anne, after which ornamental art for
household uses seems almost to have been disused. Even in the time of
George III., our chairs, tables, side-boards, &c., were made heavy,
very ugly, and without any attempt at appropriate pattern.
NELL GWYNNE'S LOOKING-GLASS.
[Illustration [++] Nell Gwynne's Looking-Glass.]
This glass is in the possession of Sir Page Dicks, of Port Hall. It
bears the likeness of Nell Gwynne and King Charles, which are modelled
in wax; and also the supporters, or crest, which Nell assumed, namely,
the lion and the leopard. The whole is curiously worked in coloured
glass beads, and the figures, with the dresses, made to project in very
high relief; indeed, they are merely attached to the groundwork. In the
upper compartment is Charles in his state dress; and the bottom one,
that of Nell Gwynne, in her court dress--the pattern of which is very
tasteful. On the right is Charles in his hunting dress. The beads have
retained their colours, which are very appropriate to the subject, and
must have been a work of considerable time and patience; but whether
done by Nell or not, there is no record.
A REMARKABLE HIGHLANDER.
In August, 1827, John Macdonald expired in his son's house, in the
Lawnmarket, Edinburgh, at the advanced age of one hundred and seven
years. He was born in Glen Tinisdale, in the Isle of Skye, and, like
the other natives of that quarter, was bred to rural labour. Early
one morning in his youth, when looking after his black cattle, he was
surprised by the sight of two ladies, as he thought, winding slowly
round a hill, and approaching the spot where he stood. When they came
up, they inquired for a well or stream, where a drink of water could be
obtained. He conducted them to the "Virgin Well," an excellent spring,
which was held in great reverence on account of its being the scene of
some superstitious and legendary tales. When they had quenched their
thirst, one of the ladies rewarded Macdonald with a shilling, the first
silver coin of which he was possessed. At their own request he escorted
them to a gentleman's house at some distance, and there, to his great
surprise and satisfaction, he learned that the two "ladies" were Flora
Macdonald and Prince Charles Stewart.
This was the proudest incident in Macdonald's patriarchal life; and,
when surrounded by his Celtic brethren, he used to dilate on all the
relative circumstances with a sort of hereditary enthusiasm, and more
than the common garrulity of age. He afterwards turned joiner, and
bore a conspicuous part in the building of the first Protestant church
which was erected in the island of North Uist. He came to Edinburgh
twenty-three years before his death, and continued to work at his trade
till he was ninety-seven years of age.
Macdonald was a temperate, regular-living man, and never paid a
sixpence to a surgeon for himself, nor had an hour's sickness in the
whole course of his life. He used to dance regularly on New-year's day,
along with some Highland friends, to the bagpipe. On New-year's day,
1825, he danced a reel with the father, the son, the grandson, and
great-grandson, and was in more than his usual spirits. His hearing was
nothing impaired, and till within three weeks of his demise he could
have threaded the finest needle with facility, without glasses.
CATS WITH KNOTTED TAILS.
We extract the following paragraph from the narrative of a voyager in
the Indian Ocean, because it contains an account of a rarity in natural
history with which few, we believe, are acquainted.
"The steward is again pillowed on his beloved salt fish, and our
only companion is a Malacca cat, who has also an attachment for the
steward's pillow. Puss is a tame little creature, and comes rubbing
herself mildly against our shoes, looking up in our faces, and mewing
her thoughts. Doubtless she is surprised that you have been so long
looking at her without noticing the peculiarity in her tail, which
so much distinguishes her from the rest of the feline race in other
quarters of the globe. Take her up in your lap, and see for yourself.
Did you ever observe such a singular knot--so regular, too, in its
formation? Some cruel monster must have tied it in a knot whilst puss
was yet a kitten, and she has outlived both the pain and inconvenience.
But here comes a kitten, all full of gambols and fun, and we find
that her tail is in precisely the same condition. So, then, this is
a remarkable feature amongst the whole race of Malayan cats, but
for which, no one we meet with, is able to give us a satisfactory
explanation."
CURIOUS FEATS.
In 1553, the following extraordinary exhibition was performed
in the presence of Queen Mary, in her passage through London to
Westminster.--It is thus described by Holinshed, in his "Chronicle,"
printed 1577:--"When shee didd come to Sainte Paule's churchyarde,
Maister Haywood sat in a pageant under a vine, and made to her an
oration in Latine; and then there was one Peter, a man of Holland,
who didd stand upon the weathercocke of St. Paule's steeple, holdyng
a streamer in his handes of five yardes long, and waving thereof. Hee
sometimes stood on one foot and shock the other, and then hee kneeled
on his knees to the verie grate marvel of al the people. Hee hadd
made two scaffolds under him--one above the cross, having torches
and streamers sett upon it, and another over the ball of the cross,
likewise sett with streamers and torches which could not burne, the
wind was so greate." Our chronicler further informs us, that "Peter
didd have xvi pounds xiii shillings and iii pence given to him by the
citie of London for his costes and pains, and for all his stuffe."
IMPUDENCE OR CANDOUR, WHICH IS IT?
The following advertisement appeared in the _St. James's Chronicle_ of
1772. "Wanted immediately, fifteen hundred, or two thousand pounds,
by a person not worth a groat; who, having neither houses, land,
annuities, or public funds, can offer no other security than that
of simple bond, bearing simple interest, and engaging the repayment
of the sum borrowed in five, six, or seven years, as may be agreed
on by the parties. Whoever this may suit, (for it is hoped it will
suit somebody), by directing a line for A. Z. in Rochester, shall be
immediately replied to, or waited on, as may appear necessary."
THE SOUTH STACK LIGHTHOUSE.
[Illustration [++] South Stack Lighthouse.]
Though not so celebrated as the Eddystone, the South Stack Lighthouse
is unquestionably one of the marvels of science, and as such may be
appropriately described in our pages. It is erected on the summit of
an isolated rock, three or four miles westward from Holyhead, and
separated from the main land by a chasm ninety feet in width. This
splendid structure was raised in the year 1808. The elevation of the
summit of the rock on which it is erected is 140 feet above the level
of the sea at high-water mark; the height of the tower, from the base
to the gallery, is sixty feet; and the lantern is twelve feet high
from the gallery; making the total elevation of the light 212 feet
above high-water mark. The light is produced by twenty-one brilliant
lamps, with powerful reflectors, placed on a revolving triangular
frame, displaying a full-faced light every two minutes, which, in clear
weather, is distinctly visible at a distance of ten leagues. Latterly
there has been an addition of three red lights placed at the rock,
which are more distinctly visible in foggy weather than the lighthouse
lights. The rough sea caused by the strong tides about the head
rendered the communication by boat very precarious. In order to obviate
the danger, a passage was contrived by means of two ropes thrown across
the gulf, along which the individual was drawn in a box or cradle, by
the assistance of pulleys affixed at each end. This plan was superseded
by a bridge of ropes, which was used some years after, though always
considered unsafe, on account of the constant wear of the ropes. In
1827, a modern suspension chain-bridge was thrown over the sound, the
span of which is 110 feet, the chains being firmly bolted in the rock
on each side, and carried over two massive stone pillars erected for
the purpose. The chain supports a platform of timber five feet wide,
and seventy feet above high-water mark. The bridge is attained by
descending the Holyhead mountain in a zigzag direction by a flight of
380 steps.
BRASS MEDAL OF OUR SAVIOUR.
In 1702, the late Rev. H. Rowlands, author of _Mona Antiqua_, while
superintending the removal of some stones, near Aberfraw, Wales, for
the purpose of making an antiquarian research, found a beautiful
brass medal of our Saviour, in a fine state of preservation, which he
forwarded to his friend and countryman, the Rev. E. Llwyd, author of
the _Archeologiæ Britannica_, and at that time keeper of the Ashmolean
library at Oxford.
This medal, of which an engraving is subjoined, has on one side the
figure of a head exactly answering the description given by Publius
Lentulus of our Saviour, in a letter sent by him to the emperor
Tiberius and the senate of Rome. On the reverse side, it has the
following legend or inscription, written in Hebrew characters, "This
is Jesus Christ, the Mediator or Reconciler;" or "Jesus, the Great
Messias, or Man Mediator." And being found among the ruins of the chief
Druids resident in Anglesea, it is not improbable that the curious
relic belonged to some Christian connected with Brân the Blessed, who
was one of Caractacus's hostages at Rome from A.D. 52 to 59, at which
time the Apostle Paul was preaching the gospel of Christ at Rome. In
two years afterwards, A.D. 61, the Roman General Suetonius extirpated
all the Druids in the island. The following is a translation of the
letter alluded to, a very antique copy of which is in the possession of
the family of Kellie, afterwards Lord Kellie, now represented by the
Earl of Mar, a very ancient Scotch family--taken from the original at
Rome:--
"There hath appeared in these our days, a man of great virtue, named
Jesus Christ, who is yet living among us, and of the Gentiles is
accepted as a prophet, but his disciples call him 'the Son of God.' He
raiseth the dead, and cures all manner of diseases; a man of stature
somewhat tall and comely, with very reverend countenance, such as the
beholders both love and fear; his hair the colour of chesnut, full
ripe, plain to his ears, whence downwards it is more orient, curling,
and waving about his shoulders. In the midst of his head is a seam or a
partition of his hair after the manner of the Nazarites; his forehead
plain and very delicate; his face without a spot or wrinkle, beautified
with the most lovely red; his nose and mouth so formed that nothing
can be reprehended; his beard thickish, in colour like his hair,
not very long but forked; his look, innocent and mature; his eyes,
grey, clear, and quick. In reproving, he is terrible; in admonishing,
courteous and fair spoken; pleasant in conversation, mixed with
gravity. It cannot be remarked that any one saw him laugh, but many
have seen him weep. In proportion of body, most excellent; his hands
and arms most delicate to behold. In speaking, very temperate, modest,
and wise. A man, for his singular beauty, surpassing the children of
men!"
[Illustration [++] Brass Medal of Our Saviour.]
The representation of this sacred person which is in the Bodleian
library, somewhat resembles that of the print of this medal, when
compared together. It was taken from a likeness engraved in agate, and
sent as a present from the sultan for the release of his brother, who
was taken prisoner. There is a well-executed drawing of this at the
Mostyn library, much worse for age.
MONSTROUS HEAD-DRESS.
[Illustration [++] Head-Dress of 1782.]
At no period in the history of the world was anything more absurd in
head-dress worn than that here depicted, which was in vogue with the
fashionables of 1782. The body of this erection was formed of tow, over
which the hair was turned, and false hair added in great curls, bobs,
and ties, powdered to profusion; then hung all over with vulgarly-large
rows of pearls, or glass beads, fit only to decorate a chandelier;
flowers as obtrusive were stuck about this heap of finery, which was
surmounted by broad silken bands and great ostrich-feathers, until the
head-dress of a lady added three feet to her stature, and the male
sex, to use the words of the _Spectator_, "became suddenly dwarfed
beside her." To effect this, much time and trouble was wasted, and
great personal annoyance was suffered. Heads, when properly dressed,
"kept for three weeks," as the barbers quietly phrased it; that they
would not really "keep" longer may be seen by the many recipes they
give for the destruction of insects which bred in the flour and pomatum
so liberally bestowed upon them. The description of "opening a lady's
head," after a three weeks' dressing, given in the magazines of this
period, it would be imagined, would have taught the ladies common
sense; but fashion could reconcile even the disgust that must have been
felt by all.
PRICE OF HUMAN HAIR.
Long flaxen hair was bought from the head at 10s. the ounce, and any
other fine hair at 5s. or 7s. the ounce in 1662.
Within the present century the heads of hair of whole families in
Devonshire were let out by the year at so much rent per poll. An Exeter
perriwig maker went round periodically, cut the locks, and oiled the
numskull of each thus left in stubble.
INTERESTING AND FANCIFUL RELIQUE.
[Illustration [++] Enamelled Jewel.]
The enamelled jewel, of which we give an engraving, was presented by
Mary, Queen of Scots, to George Gordon, fourth Earl of Huntley. The
precise period at which the gift was made is not now known, though
the time was not improbably during the residence of the Queen in
France, when the Order of St. Michael was conferred on the Duke of
Chatelherault, the Earl of Huntley, and several other Scottish nobles,
about 1548. The lock of Mary's hair which is attached to the small
ivory skull, is of a light auburn, inclining to a gold-colour; and if
allowance be made for some fading in the course of years, and for the
hair of the Queen having generally become darker as she advanced in
life, the accuracy of Melvil will be confirmed, when, in speaking of
her after her return to Scotland, he says, "her hair was light auburn;
Elizabeth's more red than yellow." In this particular little reliance
can be placed upon the portraits of Queen Mary; since it is well known,
that in the latter part of her life, it was a fashionable practice to
wear false hair of various hues, though in some of her pictures the
colour of the locks is nearly similar to the hue of that represented in
the present. The skull, from which it issues is connected by a twisted
skein of silk with the figure of a Cupid shooting an arrow, standing on
a heart enamelled red, transfixed with a dart. On one side the heart is
a setting for a precious stone, now vacant; and, on the other, in white
letters, the words "Willingly Wounded." From the point of the heart is
a pendant, containing on one side a small ruby, and having the other
enamelled blue with an ornament in white. Our engraving represents one
side of the jewel, of the exact size of the original.
FASTIDIOUSNESS IN DRESS AT AN OLD AGE.
Jonn Benbow, of Northwood, in the parish of Prees, Salop, died 1806,
aged 107. His occupation was that of a maker of clocks and watches.
His steadiness of hand, clearness of intellect, and complete command
of all his faculties, were such that, till within a very few years of
his decease, he was enabled to execute the most intricate and delicate
manipulations connected with his business. He lived in three centuries;
and, at the time of his decease, had a son, a grandson, and several
great-grandchildren, living in the house with him. He was remarkable
for industry, sobriety, early rising, and soon retiring to rest,
and was universally respected for his integrity and ingenuity. His
favourite beverage was "small beer" brewed of molasses. To the very
close of his life he was remarkable for his extreme attention to his
dress and everything relating to his personal appearance, as will be
seen by the following anecdote. About three years before his death, his
tailor brought him home a new coat; on examining which he discovered
that the man, either through not being provided with the necessary
material or inadvertence, had substituted a cloth collar for a velvet
one, which he was accustomed to have added to his garment. Mortified at
this circumstance, and learning that the tailor had not velvet of the
necessary quality by him, he took up his walking-stick and straitway
went off to Whitchurch, a distance of seven miles, to purchase the
materials proper to make a new collar, and, to the astonishment of all
his family, returned home in a few hours.
SUPERSTITION OF THE JAVANESE.
Nowhere has superstition a greater power over the human mind than among
the inhabitants of Java.
When the proper chord is touched, there is scarcely anything too gross
for the belief of these islanders. Mr. Crawfurd relates that some
years since, it was almost accidentally discovered, that the skull of
a buffalo was superstitiously conveyed from one part of the island to
another. The point insisted upon was, never to let it rest, but to keep
it in constant progressive motion. It was carried in a basket, and no
sooner was one person relieved from the load than it was taken up by
another; for the understanding was, that some dreadful imprecation was
denounced against the man who should let it rest. In this manner, the
scull was hurried from one province to another, and after a circulation
of many hundred miles, at length reached the town of Samarang, the
Dutch governor of which seized it and threw it into the sea, and thus
the spell was broken. The Javanese expressed no resentment, and nothing
further was heard of this unaccountable transaction. None could tell
how or where it originated.
The same writer relates a still more extraordinary instance of
infatuation. During the occupation of Java by the English, in the
month of May 1814, it was unexpectedly discovered, that, in a remote
but populous part of the island, a road, leading to the top of the
mountain of Sumbeng, one of the highest in Java, had been constructed.
An enquiry being set on foot, it was discovered that the delusion which
gave rise to the work had its origin in the province of Banyunas, in
the territories of the Susunan, and that the infection had spread
to the territory of the Sultan, and thence extended to that of the
Europeans. On examination a road was found constructed twenty feet
broad, and from fifty to sixty miles long, and it was wonderfully
smooth and well made. One point which appears to have been considered
necessary, was, that this road should not cross rivers, and in
consequence it wound in a thousand ways. Another point as peremptorily
insisted on was, that its straight course should not be interrupted by
any private rights; and in consequence trees and houses were overturned
to make way for it. The population of whole districts, occasionally
to the amount of five or six thousand labourers, were employed on the
road, and, among a people disinclined to active exertion the laborious
work was nearly completed in two months--such was the effect of the
temporary enthusiasm with which they were inspired. It was found in
the sequel that the whole work was set in motion by an old woman, who
dreamt, or pretended to have dreamt, that a divine personage was about
to descend from heaven on the mountain in question. Piety suggested
the propriety of constructing a road to facilitate his descent; and
it was rumoured that divine vengeance would pursue the sacrilegious
person who refused to join in the meritorious labour. These reports
quickly wrought on the fears and ignorance of the people, and they
heartily joined in the enterprise. The old woman distributed slips of
palm-leaves to the labourers, with magic letters written upon them,
which were charms to secure them against sickness and accidents. When
this strange affair was discovered by the native authorities, orders
were issued to desist from the work, and the inhabitants returned
without a murmur to their wonted occupations.
SIZE OF THE BRITISH ISLANDS.
The exact size of our own country is a legitimate object of curiosity.
We believe the following will be found strictly accurate:--
The area of England is estimated at 31,929,340 acres.
" Wales 4,320,000 "
" Scotland 16,240,000 "
" S. Isles adjacent to the coast 1,055,080 "
" W. Isles 851,200 "
" Orkneys 153,606 "
" Shetlands 643,840 "
CASE CONTAINING THE HEART OF LORD EDWARD BRUCE.
Lord Edward Bruce was eldest son of Sir Edward, baron of Kinloss,
so created by James I. in 1603, to whom the king gave the dissolved
abbey of Kinloss, in Ayrshire, after he had been instrumental in his
succession to the crown of England; whither accompanying the king, he
was made master of the Rolls in 1604, died in 1610, and was buried
in the Rolls chapel. His son, the lord Edward, killed in duel by Sir
Edward Sackville in 1613, was succeeded by his brother, who was created
Earl of Elgin in 1633, and an English baron in 1641.
Sir Edward Sackville, by whose hand the Lord Edward Bruce fell, was
younger brother to Richard Sackville, Earl of Dorset, on whose death
he succeeded to the title. He was lord president of the council, a
joint lord keeper, and filled several other distinguished offices under
Charles I., to whom he adhered, by whose side he fought at the battle
of Edge-hill, and whose death he took so much to heart, that he never
afterwards stirred out of his house in Salisbury-court, but died there
on the 17th of July, 1652.
[Illustration [++] Case Containing the Heart of Lord Edward Bruce.]
Between these noblemen there arose a quarrel, which terminated in their
duel; and all that is, or probably can be known respecting it, is
contained in the following correspondence, preserved in a manuscript in
Queen's college library, Oxford.
_A Monsieur, Monsieur Sackvile._
"I that am in France, hear how much you attribute to yourself in this
time, that I have given the world leave to ring your praises; and for
me, the truest almanack, to tell you how much I suffer. If you call
to memory, when as I gave you my hand last, I told you I reserved the
heart for a truer reconcilliation. Now be that noble gentleman, my love
once spoke, and come and do him right that could recite the tryals you
owe your birth and country, were I not confident your honour gives
you the same courage to do me right, that it did to do me wrong. Be
master of your own weapons and time; the place wheresoever, I will wait
on you. By doing this, you shall shorten revenge, and clear the idle
opinion the world hath of both our worths.
"ED. BRUCE."
_A Monsieur, Monsieur Baron de Kinloss._
"As it shall be always far from me to seek a quarrel, so will I always
be ready to meet with any that is desirous to make tryal of my valour,
by so fair a course as you require. A witness whereof yourself shall
be, who, within a month, shall receive a strict account of time, place
and weapon, where you shall find me ready disposed to give honourable
satisfaction, by him that shall conduct you thither. In the mean time,
be as secret of the appointment, as it seems you are desirous of it.
"E. SACKVILE."
_A Monsieur, Monsieur Baron de Kinloss._
"I am at Tergose, a town in Zeland, to give what satisfaction your
sword can render you, accompanied with a worthy gentleman for my
second, in degree a knight. And, for your coming, I will not limit you
a peremptory day, but desire you to make a definite and speedy repair,
for your own honour, and fear of prevention; at which time you shall
find me there.
_Tergose, 10th of August, 1613._
"E. SACKVILE."
_A Monsieur, Monsieur Sackvile._
"I have received your letter by your man, and acknowledge you have
dealt nobly with me; and now I come, with all possible haste, to meet
you.
"E. BRUCE."
The combat was fierce, and fatal to Lord Bruce.
It has always been presumed that the duel was fought under the walls of
Antwerp; but the combatants disembarked at Bergen-op-Zoom, and fought
near that town, and not Antwerp.
[Illustration [++] Silver Case Shaped Like a Heart.]
In consequence of a tradition, that the heart of Lord Edward Bruce had
been sent from Holland, and interred in the vault or burying-ground
adjoining the old abbey church of Culross, in Perthshire, Sir Robert
Preston directed a search in that place in 1808, with the following
result:--Two flat stones, without inscription, about four feet in
length and two in breadth, were discovered about two feet below the
level of the pavement, and partly under an old projection in the wall
of the old building. These stones were strongly clasped together
with iron; and when separated, a silver case, or box, of foreign
workmanship, shaped like a heart, was found in a hollow or excavated
place between them. Its lid was engraved with the arms and name "Lord
Edward Bruse;" it had hinges and clasps; and when opened, was found to
contain a heart, carefully embalmed, in a brownish coloured liquid.
After drawings had been taken of it, as represented in the present
engravings, it was carefully replaced in its former situation. There
was a small leaden box between the stones in another excavation; the
contents of which, whatever they were originally, appeared reduced to
dust.
Some time after this discovery, Sir Robert Preston caused a delineation
of the silver case, according to the exact dimensions, with an
inscription recording its exhumation and re-deposit, to be engraved on
a brass plate, and placed upon the projection of the wall where the
heart was found.
It is a remarkable fact, that the cause of the quarrel between Lord
Bruce and Sir Edward Sackville has remained wholly undetected,
notwithstanding successive investigations at different periods. Lord
Clarendon, in his "History of the Rebellion," records the combat as an
occurrence of magnitude, from its sanguinary character and the eminence
of the parties engaged in it. He does not say any thing respecting the
occasion of the feud, although Lord Bruce's challenge seems to intimate
that it was a matter of public notoriety.
The exact day of the duel is not known, but it was certainly in 1613,
and most probably in August from the date of one of the above letters.
EXTRAORDINARY FEMALE INTREPIDITY.
Early on the 24th of January, 1822, the turnpike-house, about four
miles from Basingstoke, on this side of Overton, was attacked, with
intent to enter, by two men, who had taken off some tiles at the
back part of the premises (the roof being very low) to effect their
purpose. These villains knew, it would appear, that a lone woman, Mrs.
Whitehouse, received the tolls at this gate, and that her husband
attended a gate as far distant as Colebrook. Mrs. Whitehouse, however,
very fortunately possessed three loaded pistols, one of which she
fired--then a second, and a third, without effect. These determined
ruffians (notwithstanding being thrice fired at) were, it appears,
resolved not to depart without accomplishing the projected robbery.
Mrs. Whitehouse's little boy, only 11 years of age, in the mean time
had re-loaded a brace of pistols, one of which Mrs. Whitehouse fired,
and wounded one of the desperadoes full in the face--he fell, and the
blood flowed profusely; yet, strange to relate, the accomplice had
hardihood enough to drag away the wounded robber! On observing this,
Mrs. Whitehouse fired the fifth pistol at them, but missed them. The
fellow who received the contents of the fourth pistol being supposed to
have been killed, and some persons residing at a considerable distance
from the spot having heard of the circumstance, assembled, and made
diligent search at daybreak to discover the body of the deceased; but,
although the blood could be traced some distance from the house, the
body could not be found; nor were those concerned in the attack ever
found out. The successful resistance, however, deserves to be recorded.
GIGANTIC BONES.
Whenever any bones of unusual magnitude were discovered, it was
invariably the custom to ascribe them to some giant. This was always
so up to recent years, and no wonder it was intensely the case at the
early period of 1660. About that period, when the brook or rivulet
from which the town of Corbridge, in the north of England, derives its
name, had been worn away by some impetuous land-flood, a skeleton,
supposed to be that of a man of extraordinary and prodigious size,
was discovered. The length of the thigh bone was nearly six feet, and
the skull, teeth, and other parts proportionably monstrous, so that
the length of the whole body was computed at twenty-one feet. It is
conjectured, by the more enlightened men of modern times, that these
strange bones belonged to some large animal that had been sacrificed
by the Romans at the altar dedicated to Hercules, which was found
here some years ago. Notwithstanding that the superstition of our
forefathers has lost nearly all its credit and influence, a singularly
large bone found here is now exhibited in the Keswick Museum as the rib
of the giant Cor.
NEW STYLE OF ADVERTISEMENT.
The following editorial announcement is taken from the Philadelphia
_Weekly Mercury_, of November 30, 1752, because it forms a complete
novelty in its way, and also affords us an insight into the degree of
communication which existed at that period between the large towns
and the provinces in America. It is, moreover, a curious jumble of
information, strangely mixing up the starting of the stage coach with
the news of the day:--
On _Monday_ next the Northern Post sets out from _New-York_, in order
to perform his Stage but once a Fortnight, during the Winter Quarter;
the Southern Post changes also, which will cause this Paper to come
out on _Tuesdays_ during that Time. The Colds which have infested the
Northern Colonies have also been troublesome here, few Families having
escaped the same, several have been carry'd off by the Cold, among whom
was _David Brintnall_, in the 77th Year of his Age; he was the first
Man that had a Brick House in the City of _Philadelphia_, and was much
esteem'd for his just and upright dealing. There goes a Report here,
that the Lord _Baltimore_ and his Lady are arrived in _Maryland_,
but the Southern Post being not yet come in, the said Report wants
Confirmation.
MAKING A CANDLESTICK OF GUNPOWDER.
A marvellous escape from destruction is related in the MS. Life of
Alderman Barnes.--"One of his brother-in-law's (Alderman Hutchinson's)
apprentices, stepping up into the back-lofts to fetch somewhat he
wanted, in his heedlessness and haste, stops his candle into a
barrel of gunpowder whose head was struck off, to serve instead of a
candlestick. But the man reflecting what he had done, was struck with
affrightment, his heart failed him, nor durst he stay any longer,
but running down stairs, leaves the candle burning in the gunpowder
cask, and with horror, trembling, and despair, tells the family what
indiscretion he had committed; they were all immediately as their
wits' end, and well they might, for the lofts were three stories
high, very large, and stowed full with whatever is combustible, as
brandy, oil, pitch, tar, rosin, flax, alum, hops, and many barrels of
gunpowder. Had the candle fallen to one side, or had the least spark
fallen from the snuff into the cask, the whole town had been shaken,
and the whole of the house immediately blown up and in a blaze; but
one of the labourers, a stout fellow, ran forthwith into the loft, and
joining both his hands together, drew the candle softly up between
his middlemost fingers, so that if any snuff had dropped, it must
have fallen into the hollow of the man's hand, and by this means was
Newcastle saved from being laid in ashes." This must have happened
about the year 1684.
THE CAMDEN CUP.
The subjoined engraving represents the Silver-gilt Standing Cup
and Cover bequeathed by the celebrated historian, William Camden,
Clarenceux King at Arms, to the Worshipful Company of Painter
Stainers'. Camden's will is recorded in the Prerogative Court
of Canterbury (in the register designated III Swann 3, probate
granted November 10, 1623), and it has been printed by Hearne in
his _Collection of Curious Discourses_, Ox. 1720. After directing
the sum of eight pounds to be given "to the poore of that place
(Chislehurst) when it shall please God to call me to his mercie,"
Camden continues--"I bequeath to Sir Foulke Greville, Lord Brooke,
Chancellor of the Exchequer, who preferred me gratis to my Office, a
peece of plate of ten pounds; Item, to the Company of Painter-Stainers
of London, to buy them a peece of plate in memoriall of mee, sixteene
pounds;" the inscription upon which is directed to be--"_Guil. Camdenus
Clarenceux, filius Sampsonis, Pictoris Londinensis, dono dedit_."
[Illustration [++] The Camden Cup.]
This stately and richly-decorated cup and cover is used on Corporation
Festivals, in memory of the illustrious donor. In height, it is
altogether twenty-three inches and a quarter, the cover only being
eight inches and three-quarters; and the cup, independent of the
stand, five inches and a-half, its greatest diameter being five inches
and a-half. The inscription encircles the upper rim of the cup; and
directly under it is an engraved escutcheon of Camden's arms; _Or_, a
fess engrailed, between six cross crosslets fitchée, _Sable_. The cover
presents an object of much elegance, a richly ornamented open pyramid,
based on the heads of birds, the breasts bending gracefully with
cartouche ornaments: the pinnacle of the pyramid surmounted by a female
figure, the right hand resting on a shield, charged with the same arms
as shown on the side of the cup. The birds' heads have apparently a
reference to the phoenix heads in the second and third quarters of the
armorial ensigns, and to the crest of the Company of Paper-Stainers.
RICHARDSON, THE SHOWMAN.
This eccentric individual, who died in 1836, left behind him upwards of
£20,000. He was born in the workhouse of Marlow, Bucks, but ran away
from that place in order to seek his fortune in London. After various
vicissitudes, he became the landlord of the Harlequin public-house, in
Drury-lane, where he saved some money, which he embarked in fitting up
a portable theatre, and was known for forty years as the "Prince of
Showmen," and used frequently to boast that Edmund Kean and several
other eminent actors were brought out by him. His property, after
various legacies to the itinerant company which had attended him for
many years, descended to two nephews and a niece, and he desired by
his will to be buried in Marlow churchyard, in the same grave as his
favourite "spotted boy," a lad who, some years before, was exhibited
by him, and attracted great notice in consequence of the extraordinary
manners in which he was marked on various parts of his body. Some years
since the scenery, dresses, and decorations of Richardson's theatre
were exposed for auction by Mr. George Robins, and £2,000 were bid
for them. They were bought in; the "old man," as he was technically
denominated, considering them to be worth at least £3,000.
PRESERVATION OF DEAD BODIES.
There is an arched vault, or burying-ground, under the church of
Kilsyth, in Scotland, which was the burying-place of the family
of Kilsyth, until the estate was forfeited, and the title became
extinct in the year 1715; since which it has never been used for that
purpose, except once. The last Earl fled with his family to Flanders,
and, according to tradition, was smothered to death about the year
1717, along with his lady and an infant child, and a number of other
unfortunate Scottish exiles, by the falling in of the roof of a house
in which they were assembled. What became of the body of the Earl is
not known, but the bodies of Lady Kilsyth and her infant were emboweled
and embalmed, and soon afterwards sent over to Scotland. They were
landed, and lay at Leith for some time in a cellar, whence they were
afterwards carried to Kilsyth, and buried in great pomp in the vault
above mentioned. In the spring of 1796, some rude regardless young men,
having paid a visit to this ancient cemetery, tore open the coffin of
Lady Kilsyth and her infant. With astonishment and consternation, they
saw the bodies of Lady Kilsyth and her child as perfect as in the hour
they were entombed. For some weeks this circumstance was kept secret,
but at last it began to be whispered in several companies, and soon
excited great and general curiosity.
"On the 12th of June," says the Minister of the parish of Kilsyth,
in a letter to J. Garnet, M.D., "when I was from home, great crowds
assembled, and would not be denied admission. At all hours of the
night, as well as the day, they afterwards persisted in gratifying
their curiosity. I saw the body of Lady Kilsyth soon after the coffin
was opened; it was quite entire. Every feature and every limb was as
full, nay, the very shroud was as clear and fresh, and the colours of
the ribbons as bright, as the day they were lodged in the tomb. What
rendered this scene more striking and truly interesting was, that the
body of her son and only child, the natural heir of the title and
estates of Kilsyth, lay at her knee. His features were as composed as
if he had been only asleep. His colour was as fresh, and his flesh as
plump and full, as in the perfect glow of health; the smile of infancy
and innocence sat on his lips. His shroud was not only entire, but
perfectly clean, without a particle of dust upon it. He seems to have
been only a few months old. The body of Lady Kilsyth was equally well
preserved; and at a little distance, from the feeble light of a taper,
it would not have been easy to distinguish whether she was dead or
alive. The features, nay the very expression of her countenance, were
marked and distinct; and it was only in a certain light that you could
distinguish anything like the ghastly and agonizing traits of a violent
death. Not a single fold of her shroud was decomposed nor a single
member impaired.
"Let the candid reader survey this sketch; let him recal to mind the
tragic tale it unfolds; and say, if he can, that it does not arrest the
attention and interest the heart. For my own part, it excited in my
memory a thousand melancholy reflections; and I could not but regret
that such rudeness had been offered to the ashes (remains) of the dead,
as to expose them thus to the public view.
"The body seemed to have been preserved in some liquid, nearly of
the colour and appearance of brandy. The whole coffin seemed to have
been full of it, and all its contents saturated with it. The body
had assumed somewhat the same tinge, but this only served to give it
a fresher look. It had none of the ghastly livid hue of death, but
rather a copper complexion. It would, I believe, have been difficult
for a chemist to ascertain the nature of this liquid; though perfectly
transparent; it had lost all its pungent qualities, its taste being
quite vapid.
"The head reclined on a pillow, and, as the covering decayed, it was
found to contain a collection of strong-scented herbs. Balm, sage,
and mint were easily distinguished; and it was the opinion of many,
that the body was filled with the same. Although the bodies were thus
entire at first, I confess I expected to see them crumble into dust;
especially as they were exposed to the open air, and the pure aromatic
fluid had evaporated; and it seems surprising that they did not. For
several weeks they underwent no visible change, and had they not been
sullied with dust and drops of grease from the candles held over them,
I am confident they might have remained as entire as ever; for even a
few months ago (many months after), the bodies were as firm and compact
as at first, and though pressed with the finger did not yield to the
touch, but seemed to retain the elasticity of the living body. Even the
shroud, through torn by the rude hands of the regardless multitude, is
still strong and free from rot.
"Perhaps the most singular phenomenon is, that the bodies seem not to
have undergone the smallest decomposition or disorganization. Several
medical gentlemen have made a small incision into the arm of the
infant; the substance of the body was quite firm, and every part in
its original state." To the above remarkable instance we may add the
following:--The tomb of Edward the First, who died on the 7th July,
1307, was opened on the 2nd of January, 1770, and after the lapse of
463 years, the body was found not decayed; the flesh on the face was a
little wasted, but not putrid.
The body of Canute the Dane, who got possession of England in the year
1017, was found very fresh in the year 1766, by the workmen repairing
Winchester Cathedral. In the year 1522, the body of William the
Conqueror was found as entire as when first buried, in the Abbey Church
of St. Stephen, at Caen; and the body of Matilda, his wife, was found
entire in 1502, in the Abbey Church of the Holy Trinity in the same
city.
No device of art, however, for the preservation of the remains of the
dead, appears equal to the simple process of plunging them over head
and ears in peat-moss.
In a manuscript by one Abraham Grey, who lived about the middle of
the 16th century, now in the possession of his representative, Mr.
Goodbehere Grey, of Old Mills, near Aberdeen, it is stated, that
in 1569, three Roman soldiers in the dress of their country, fully
equipped with warlike instruments, were dug out of a moss of great
extent, called Kazey Moss. When found, after a lapse of probably about
fifteen hundred years, they "were quite fresh and plump."
PERFUMES.
So perfect were the Egyptians in the manufacture of perfumes, that some
of their ancient ointment, preserved in an alabaster vase in the Museum
at Alnwick, still retains a very powerful odour, though it must be
between 2,000 and 3,000 years old.
FRENCH ASSIGNATS--THEIR ORIGIN.
Extraordinary devices for raising money are legitimate subjects for
our pages. Of these devices, the French Assignats are not the least
remarkable. They originated thus--in the year 1789, at the commencement
of the great Revolution in France, Talleyrand proposed in the National
Assembly a confiscation of all church property to the service of the
state. The Abbé Maury opposed this project with great vehemence, but
being supported by Mirabeau, it received the sanction of the Assembly
by an immense majority on the 2nd of November. The salaries fixed
for the priesthood were small, and, moreover, were not sufficiently
guaranteed; whence originated much misery to all classes of priests,
from the archbishops down to the humble cures; and as monastic
institutions were treated in the same way, monks and nuns were suddenly
placed in precarious circumstances regarding the means of subsistence.
Here, however, an unexpected difficulty sprang up; the National
Assembly were willing to sell church property, but buyers were wanting;
conscience, prudence, and poverty combined to lessen the number of
those willing to purchase; and thus the urgent claims of the treasury
could not be satisfied. Applications for loans were not responded to;
taxes had been extinguished; voluntary donations had dwindled almost to
nothing; and 400,000,000 of livres were necessary for the vast claims
of the year 1790. The municipalities of Paris and other cities sought
to ameliorate the state of affairs by subscribing for a certain amount
of church property, endeavouring to find private purchasers for it, and
paying the receipts into the national exchequer. This, however, being
but a very partial cure for the enormity of the evils, the National
Assembly fell upon the expedient of creating state-paper or bank-notes,
to have a forced currency throughout the kingdom. Such was the birth
of the memorable assignats. Four hundred millions of this paper were
put in circulation; and a decree was passed that church property to
that amount should be held answerable for the assignats. Our sketch
represents several of the different forms in which the Assignats were
issued to the public.
[Illustration [++] French Assignats.]
EXECUTION OF LOUIS XVI.
The judicial murder of Louis XVI. was the climax of the Revolution in
France. The Convention voted his death at three o'clock on the morning
of the 20th January, 1793, and he was taken to execution in twenty-six
hours afterwards.
[Illustration [++] Execution of Louis XVI.]
The guillotine was erected in the middle of the Place Louis XV.,
a large open square, having the Champs Elysées on one side, and
the gardens of the Tuileries on the other. The Place bristled with
artillery, and every street and avenue leading to it was crowded with
troops and armed multitudes, who had cannon with them charged with
grape-shot; while the carriage was surrounded by picked men, who
had orders to despatch the king with their carbines in case of any
rescue being attempted. At about half-past ten, the king, who had been
engaged in prayer during the ride, arrived at the spot; he descended
from the coach, and his confessor followed him. Three executioners
approached to remove his upper garments, but he put them back, and
performed that simple office for himself. He resisted somewhat the
indignity of having his hands tied, and only yielded on the entreaty
of his confessor; and had also to yield on the subject of cutting off
his back hair. He ascended the steps that led to the platform with
a firm bearing, still followed by M. Edgeworth. When on the top, he
made a sudden movement towards the edge of the scaffold, and exclaimed
with a loud and firm voice: "Frenchmen, I die innocent; it is from
the scaffold, and when about to appear before my God, that I tell
you so. I pardon my enemies; I pray that France"----Here Santerre, on
horseback, raised his right hand, and cried: "Drums! Executioners, do
your duty!" Several drummers immediately began by their noise to drown
the sound of the king's voice: and six executioners brought him to the
centre of the scaffold. He exclaimed again: "I die innocent; I ever
desired the good of my people;" but his voice could be heard only by
the executioners and the priest. He then knelt down, in order to place
his head in the appointed spot; the confessor, bending over him said:
"Son of St. Louis, ascend to heaven!" The spring of the machine was
touched, the heavy axe descended in its grooves, and the once royal
head was severed from the body. Samson, the chief executioner, took
up the bleeding head by the hair, and walked three times round the
scaffold, holding it up at arm's-length to show it to the people. The
troops and the spectators shouted: "Vive la République!" put their hats
and caps upon their bayonets and pikes, and waved them in the air,
with prolonged and re-echoing cries of "Vive la République!" "Vive la
Nation!" "Vive la Liberte!" Many of the savage men standing near the
scaffold dipped their pike-heads into the king's blood, and others
their handkerchiefs--not as a sacred memento, but as a symbol of the
downfall of all kings; they even paraded these gore-stained objects
before the windows of the Temple, that perchance the queen and her
children might see them. The headless trunk of Louis was put into a
large wicker-basket, placed in the coach, and carried to the cemetery
of La Madeleine; where, without coffin or shroud, it was thrown into a
deep pit, partly filled up with quicklime. On that same morning, one
Benoit Leduc, a tailor, who had on some occasions worked for Louis,
presented a petition to the Convention, praying to be allowed, at his
own expense, to bury the body of the king by the side of his father,
Louis XV., and under the monument raised to that prince by the city
of Sens; but the Convention rejected his petition, and ordered the
executive council to see that Louis was buried like other criminals.
A MAN AGED ONE HUNDRED YEARS CLAIMING A BOTTLE OF WINE.
John Bull, of London, stock-broker, died 1848, aged 100 years. When
at the age of about 93, and in the employ of Messrs. Spurling,
stock-brokers, he left by mistake in the office of the accountant of
the Bank of England, a large number of bank notes. On discovering
his loss, after diligently searching for the missing parcel, he went
back to the accountant's office, partly to acquaint Mr. Smee with the
circumstance, and partly as a last hope that he might there find the
missing treasure. To his great joy he found the parcel safe in the
accountant's possession, whom he earnestly implored to keep the secret,
lest his employers should think his faculties were failing. Mr. Smee
of course gave him the required assurance, and goodnaturedly added,
that when Mr. Bull should attain the age of 100 years, he would treat
him to the finest bottle of wine in his cellar. Some time before his
becoming a centenarian, he was pensioned off by his employer, and Mr.
Smee had, in all probability, quite forgotten the affair; when, true
to the engagement, the venerable, but still active old clerk, made his
appearance at the bank on the important day, and claimed the promised
bottle of wine. The claim was promptly allowed; and the last birthday
of the aged official was one of the happiest among his friends of the
long list of such events which had been its precursor. After continuing
vigorous and active, and almost free from indisposition up to this
time, he, along with many other aged persons, fell a victim to that
fatal influenza which prevailed so extensively throughout the country,
and more especially in London and its suburbs, during the autumn of
1847 and the winter of 1848.
CHARITY REWARDED BY A RICH AND LIBERAL MENDICANT.
Within the present century, a beggar in Moorfields used daily to
have a penny given him by a merchant on his way to the Exchange. The
penny was withheld, and the appearance of the merchant manifested his
embarrassment and distress. The beggar at length spoke to him, offered
him a loan of £500, and another of the same sum if it were required. It
re-established his affairs.
HACKNEY COACHMAN OF THE TIME OF CHARLES II.
The print from which the engraving on next page is taken, is one of
a set published by Overton, at the sign of the "White Horse" without
Newgate; and its similarity to the figures given by Francis Barlow in
his _Æsop's Fables_, and particularly in a most curious sheet-print
etched by that artist, exhibiting Charles the Second, the Duke of
York, &c., viewing the Races on Dorset Ferry, near Windsor, in 1687,
sufficiently proves this Hackney Coachman to have been of the reign of
that monarch.
The early Hackney Coachman did not sit upon the box as the present
drivers do, but upon the horse, like a postillion; his whip is short
for that purpose; his boots, which have large open broad tops, must
have been much in his way, and exposed to the weight of the rain. His
coat was not according to the fashion of the present drivers as to the
numerous capes, which certainly are most rational appendages, as the
shoulders never get wet; the front of the coat has not the advantage of
the present folding one, as it is single breasted.
His hat was pretty broad, and so far he was screened from the weather.
Another convincing proof that he rode as a postillion is, that his
boots are spurred. In that truly curious print representing the very
interesting Palace of Nonsuch, engraved by Hoefnagle, in the reign of
Queen Elizabeth, the coachman who drives the royal carriage in which
the Queen is seated, is placed on a low seat behind the horses, and has
a long whip to command those he guides. How soon, after Charles the
Second's time, the Hackney Coachmen rode on a box we have not been able
to learn, but in all the prints of King William's time the coachmen are
represented upon the box, though by no means so high as at present;
nor was it the fashion at the time of Queen Anne to be so elevated as
to deprive the persons in the carriage of the pleasure of looking over
their shoulders.
In 1637, the number of Hackney Coaches in London was confined to 50,
in 1652 to 200, in 1654 to 300, in 1662 to 400, in 1694 to 700, in
1710 to 800, in 1771 to 1,000, and in 1802 to 1,100. In imitation of
our Hackney Coaches, Nicholas Sauvage introduced the Fiacres at Paris,
in the year 1650. The hammer-cloth is an ornamental covering of the
coach-box. Mr. S. Pegge says, "The coachman formerly used to carry a
hammer, pincers, a few nails, &c., in a leather pouch hanging to his
box, and this cloth was devised for the hiding of them from public
view."
[Illustration [++] Hackney Coachman.]
It is said that the sum of £1,500, arising from the duty on Hackney
Coaches, was applied to part of the expense in rebuilding Temple Bar.
A LONDON WATER-CARRIER IN OLDEN TIMES.
The conduits of London and its environs, which were established at
an early period, supplied the metropolis with water until Sir Hugh
Middleton brought the New River from Amwell to London, and then the
conduits gradually fell into disuse, as the New River water was by
degrees laid on in pipes to the principal buildings in the City, and,
in the course of time, let into private houses.
When the conduits afforded a supply, the inhabitants either carried
their vessels, or sent their servants for the water as they wanted it;
but we may suppose that at an early period there were a number of men
who for a fixed sum carried the water to the adjoining houses.
The figure of a Water-carrier in the following engraving, is copied
from one of a curious and rare set of cries and callings of London,
published by Overton, at the "White Horse" without Newgate. The figure
retains the dress of Henry the Eighth's time; his cap is similar to
that usually worn by Sir Thomas More, and also to that given in the
portrait of Albert Durer, engraved by Francis Stock. It appears by this
print, that the tankard was borne upon the shoulder, and, to keep the
carrier dry, two towels were fastened over him, one to fall before him,
the other to cover his back. His pouch, in which we are to conclude he
carried his money, has been thus noticed in a very curious and rare
tract, entitled, _Green's Ghost, with the merry Conceits of Doctor
Pinch-backe_, published 1626: "To have some store of crownes in his
purse, coacht in a faire trunke flop, like a boulting hutch."
[Illustration [++] Water-Carrier.]
EXPENSES OF A ROYAL PRISONER TWO HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
The following curious document is a return, by the Parliamentary
Committee of Revenue, of the expenses of Charles the First and
his retinue, during a residence of twenty days, at Holdenby, in
Northamptonshire, in the year 1647, commencing February the 13th and
ending March the 4th inclusive. Sir Christopher Hatton had built a
splendid mansion at Holdenby in the time of Queen Elizabeth, and
to it King Charles was conveyed a prisoner by the Parliamentary
Commissioners, after he had been given up to them by the Scottish
army:--
His Majestie's diet of xxviij dishes at xxxl. per diem £700
The Lords' diet of xx days 520
For the Clarke of the green cloth, kitchen, and spicery,
a messe of vij dishes 40
Dyetts for the household and chamber officers, and the guard 412
Board wages for common houshold servants, pott and scourers,
and turnbroaches 36
Badges of Court and riding wages 140
For linnen for his Majestie's table, the lords and other diets 273
For wheat, wood, and cole 240
For all sorts of spicery store, wax-lights, torches,
and tallow-lights 160
For pewter, brasse, and other necessaries incident to all
officers and carriages 447
WOMAN'S CLEVERNESS.
It is a singular fact that on one occasion the lives of thousands,
probably, of the Irish Protestants, were saved by a clever device,
which the unaided wit and presence of mind of a woman enabled her to
plan and execute.
At the latter end of Queen Mary's reign, a commission was signed for
the purpose of punishing the heretics in that kingdom, and Dr. Cole,
Dean of St. Paul's, was honoured with this _humane_ appointment, to
execute which, he set off with great alacrity. On his arrival at
Chester, he sent for the mayor to sup with him, and in the course of
conversation related his business; then going to his cloak-bag, he took
out the box containing the commission, and having shewn it, with great
joy exclaimed, 'This will lash the heretics of Ireland.' Mrs. Edmonds,
the landlady, overheard this discourse, and having several relations
in Ireland, who were Protestants as well as herself, resolved to put a
trick upon the doctor; and while he went to attend the magistrate to
the door, took the commission out of the box, and in its room placed a
pack of cards, with the knave of clubs uppermost. The zealous doctor,
suspecting nothing of the matter, put up his box, took shipping,
and, arriving safe in Dublin, went immediately to the Viceroy. A
council was called; and, after a speech, the doctor delivered his box,
which being opened by the secretary, the first thing that presented
itself was the knave of clubs. This sight surprised the Viceroy and
the council, but much more the doctor, who assured them that he had
received a commission from the Queen, but what was come of it, he could
not tell. 'Well, well,' replied the Viceroy, 'you must go back for
another, and we will shuffle the cards in the mean time.' The doctor
accordingly hastened across the channel; but at Holyhead he received
the intelligence of the Queen's death, and the accession of Elizabeth,
who settled on Mrs. Edmonds a pension of forty pounds a year, for
saving her Protestant subjects in Ireland.
DRESS IN THE PROVINCES IN 1777.
In the days when mail-coaches had not begun to run, and when railroads
and telegraphs had not entered into the imagination of man, the style
of dress in the provinces was often very different to what it was in
London, and on this account the following paragraph is deserving of
record. We have taken it from a copy of the _Nottingham Journal_, of
September 6, 1777, where it is headed "Ladies undress."--"The ladies'
fashionable undress, commonly called a _dishabille_, to pay visits in
the morning, also for walking in the country, on account of its being
neat, light, and short, consists of a jacket, the front part of which
is made like a sultana; the back part is cut out in four pieces; the
middle part is not wider at the bottom than about half an inch; the
sides in proportion very narrow. The materials most in vogue are, white
muslins with a coloured printed border chintz pattern, printed on
purpose, in borders about an inch deep. The silks, which are chiefly
lutestrings, are mostly trimmed with gauze. The gauze is tuckered upon
the bottom of the jacket, and edged with different-coloured fringes.
The petticoat is drawn up in a festoon, and tied with a true lover's
knot, two tassels hanging down from each festoon. A short gauze apron,
striped or figured, cut in three scollops at the bottom, and trimmed
round, with a broad trimming closely plaited; the middle of the apron
has three scollops reversed. The cuffs are puckered in the shape of a
double pine, one in the front of the arm, the other behind, but the
front rather lower. To complete this dress for summer walking, the most
elegant and delicate ladies carry a long japanned walking-cane, with
an ivory hook head, and on the middle of the cane is fastened a silk
umbrella, or what the French call 'a parasol,' which defends them from
the sun and slight showers of rain. It opens by a spring, and it is
pushed up towards the head of the cane, when expanded for use. Hats,
with the feathers spread, chiefly made of chip, covered with fancy
gauze puckered, variegated artificial flowers, bell tassels, and other
decorations, are worn large."
A GROUP OF RELICS.
The Dagger of Raoul de Courcy, of which a representation is included
in the cut over leaf, is an interesting relic, and its authenticity
can be relied upon. Raoul de Courcy, according to the old French
chroniclers was a famous knight, the lord of a noble castle, built
upon a mountain that overlooks the Valée d'Or, and the descendant of
that haughty noble who took for his motto: "Neither king, nor prince,
nor duke, nor earl am I, but I am the Lord of Courcy"--in other words,
greater than them all. He fell in love with the wife of his neighbour,
the Lord of Fayel, and the beautiful Gabrielle loved him in return.
One night he went as usual to meet her in a tower of the Château of
Fayel, but found himself face to face with her lord and master. Raoul
escaped, and Gabrielle was ever after closely guarded. Still they found
the opportunity for numerous interviews, at which they interchanged
their vows of love. At length, Raoul, like a true knight, set out to
fight beneath the banner of the Cross, for the possession of the Holy
Sepulchre. Ere he went, at a stolen meeting, he bade the fair Gabrielle
adieu, giving to her "a silken love-knot, with locks of his own hair
worked in with the threads of silk." She gave him a costly ring,
which she had always worn, and which he swore to wear till his last
breath. What tears were shed--what kisses were exchanged at this last
meeting!--for the Holy Land was very far from France in the Middle Ages.
On his arrival in Syria, Ralph de Courcy became known as the "Knight of
Great Deeds," for it seems he could only conquer his love by acts of
daring valour. After braving every danger, he was at length wounded in
the side by an arrow, at the siege of Acre. The king of England took
him in his arms with respect, and gave him the kiss of hope, but the
arrow was a poisoned one, Raoul felt that he had little time to live.
He stretched out his arms towards France, exclaiming, "France, France!
Gabrielle, Gabrielle!"
He resolved to return home, but he was hardly on board the ship that
was to waft him there, ere he summoned his squire, and begged of him
after he was dead, to carry his heart to France, and to give it the
Lady Fayel, with all the armlets, diamonds, and other jewels which he
possessed, as pledges of love and remembrance.
The heart was embalmed, and the squire sought to deliver his precious
legacy. He disguised himself in a mean dress, but unluckily met with
the Lord of Fayel, and, not knowing him, applied to him for information
as to how admittance into the château could be gained. The Lord of
Fayel at once attacked and disarmed the poor squire, who was wounded in
the side with a hunting-hanger. The precious packet was soon torn open,
and the heart discovered. The Lord of Fayel hastened home, and, giving
it to his cook, desired that it might be dressed with such a sauce as
would make it very palatable.
Raoul's heart was served up at table, and the fair Gabrielle partook of
it. When she had finished eating, the Lord of Fayel said--"Lady, was
the meat you eat good?" She replied, that the meat was good. "That is
the reason I had it cooked," said the Castellan; "for know that this
same meat, which you found so good, was the heart of Raoul de Courcy."
"Lord of Fayel," said Gabrielle, "the vengeance you have taken
corresponds with the meanness of your soul; you have made me eat his
heart, but it is the last meat I shall ever eat. After such noble food
I will never partake of any other."
She fainted, and only recovered her consciousness a few minutes before
death. Such is the history of Raoul de Courcy and the Lady Gabrielle,
as told in the language of the old chroniclers.
[Illustration: 1. Dagger of Raoul de Courcy. 2. Embroidered Glove,
presented by Mary Queen of Scotland, on the Morning of her Execution,
to one of her Attendants. 3. Spanish Dagger of the Sixteenth Century.
4. Ring, with Inscription, "Behold the End," formerly the Property of
Charles I. 5. Silver Locket, in Memory of the Execution of Charles I.]
The glove shown in the engraving is said to have been presented by
the unfortunate Queen Mary, on the morning of her execution, to a
lady of the Denny family. The embroidery is of tasteful design, and
may be useful as a contrast with many of the patterns for needlework
at present in fashion. Moreover, the sight of this memorial brings
to recollection a few particulars in connection with this somewhat
important part of both male and female costume.
The ancient Persians wore gloves, and the Romans, towards the decline
of the empire, began to use them. In England they seemed to have been
introduced at a very early period. In the Anglo-Saxon literature we
meet with _glof_, a covering for the hand, and in the illuminated MSS.
of that period the hands of bishops and other dignitaries are shown
encased in gloves which, in many instances, were ornamented with costly
rings; while on the tombs of kings and queens, &c., the hands are shown
almost invariably covered.
It is related of the patron Saint of Brussels, who lived in the sixth
century, that she was famous for only two miracles: one consisted
in lighting a candle by means of her prayers, after it had been
extinguished; the other happened in this way--the fair saint being in a
church barefooted, a person near, with respectful gallantry, took off
his gloves and attempted to place them under her feet. This comfort she
declined; and, kicking the gloves away, they became suspended at some
height in the church for the space of an hour.
On opening the tomb of Edward the First, some years ago, in Westminster
Abbey, the antiquaries assembled on that occasion were surprised to
find no traces of gloves. It has been suggested that in this instance
linen or silk gloves had been used at the burial of the king, but which
are supposed to have perished with age.
The practice of throwing down a glove as a challenge, is mentioned by
Matthew Paris as far back as 1245; and a glove was worn in the hat or
cap as a mistress's favour, as the memorial of a friend, and as a mark
to be challenged by an enemy.
At a time when the Borders were in a state of incessant strife, Barnard
Gilpin, who has been so justly called "the Apostle of the North,"
wandered unharmed amid the confusion. On one occasion, entering a
church (we believe that of Rothbury, Northumberland,) he observed a
glove suspended in a conspicuous place, and was informed that it had
been hung up as a challenge by some horse-trooper of the district. Mr.
Gilpin requested the sexton to remove it; who answered, "Not I sir, I
dare not do it." Then Gilpin called for a long staff, took down the
glove, and put it in his bosom, and in the course of his sermon, said,
"I hear that there is one among you who has even in this sacred place
hung up a glove in defiance;" and then producing it in the midst of
the congregation, he challenged them to compete with him in acts of
Christian charity.
Gloves, in former times, were common amongst other gifts offered to
friends at the new year; and they were received without offence by
the ministers of justice. It is related that Sir Thomas More, as Lord
Chancellor, decreed in favour of Mrs. Crooker against the Earl of
Arundel. On the following New-year's day, in token of her gratitude,
she presented Sir Thomas with a pair of gloves containing forty angels.
"It would be against good manners," said the chancellor, "to forsake
the ladies' New-year's gift, and I accept the gloves; the lining you
may bestow otherwise."
The custom of the presentation by the sheriff of a pair of white gloves
to the judge on the occasion of a maiden assize is still in vogue; and,
judging from the reports in the newspapers, such presents appear to be
of frequent occurrence.
"Gloves, as sweet as damask roses," were highly prized by Queen
Elizabeth, and, in her day, formed such an important item of a lady's
expenses, that a sum was generally allowed for "glove money."
The old fashioned gloves have now a considerable value amongst the
curious. At the sale of the Earl of Arran's goods in 1759, the gloves
given by Henry VIII. to Sir Anthony Denny, sold for 38_l._ 17s.; those
given by James I. to Edward Denny, sold for 22_l._ 4s.; and the mitten
given by Queen Elizabeth to Sir Edward Denny's lady, for 25_l._ 4s.
Some of the English towns which formerly were famous for the
manufacture of gloves, still keep up their character. Amongst these
Woodstock, Yeovil, Leominster, Ludlow, and Worcester may be mentioned.
The Spanish dagger formerly belonged to a governor of Castile, in the
sixteenth century, as is shown by the perforated fetter-lock on the
blade; and although the initials are engraven there also, we have
not been able to discover any particulars of the original owner. The
workmanship and style of the dagger are of great beauty.
The little ring with the inscription "Behold the end," was once the
property of Charles I., and was presented by him to Bishop Juxon on the
morning of his execution. The silver lockets, on which are the emblems
of death, were extensively manufactured and sold after the execution of
Charles I. They generally bore the date of the king's death.
THE HAMSTER RAT.
There are various kinds of rats, and one of these is the Hamster, of
the genus Cricetus of Cuvier. Though rare in Europe to the west of
the Rhine, it is widely spread from that river to the Danube on the
south-west, and north-easterly through a vast extent of country into
Siberia. We notice it in our pages on account of its extraordinary
habits. Its life appears to be divided between eating and fighting.
It seems to have no other passion than that of rage, which induces it
to attack every animal that comes in its way, without in the least
attending to the superior strength of its enemy. Ignorant of the art
of saving itself by flight, rather than yield, it will allow itself to
be beaten to pieces with a stick. If it seizes a man's hand, it must
be killed before it will quit its hold. The magnitude of the horse
terrifies it as little as the address of the dog, which last is fond of
hunting it. When the hamster perceives a dog at a distance, it begins
by emptying its cheek-pouches if they happen to be filled with grain;
it then blows them up so prodigiously, that the size of the head and
neck greatly exceed that of the rest of the body. It raises itself on
its hind legs, and thus darts upon the enemy. If it catches hold, it
never quits it but with the loss of its life; but the dog generally
seizes it from behind, and strangles it. This ferocious disposition
prevents the hamster from being at peace with any animal whatever. It
even makes war against its own species. When two hamsters meet, they
never fail to attack each other, and the stronger always devours the
weaker. A combat between a male and a female commonly lasts longer
than between two males. They begin by pursuing and biting each other,
then each of them retires aside, as if to take breath. After a short
interval, they renew the combat, and continue to fight till one of them
falls. The vanquished uniformly serves for a repast to the conqueror.
KNAVERY OF THE PRIESTS IN BURMAH.
[Illustration: Burmese Priest Preaching.]
The manner in which an uncivilized people will calmly submit to be
duped by the extortionate rascality of their priests, is strongly
exhibited in the kingdom of Burmah. The people who are there held in
the highest estimation are the priests. Any one who pleases may be
a priest. The priests pretend to be poor, and go out begging every
morning with their empty dishes in their hands; but they get them well
filled, and then return to their handsome houses, all shining with
gold, in which they live together in plenty and in pride. They are
expected to dress in rags, to show that they are poor; but not liking
rags, they cut up cloth in little pieces, and sew the pieces together
to make their yellow robes; and this they call wearing rags. They
pretend to be so modest, that they do not like to show their faces, and
so hide them with a fan, even when they preach; for they do preach in
their way, that is, they tell foolish stories about Buddha. The name
they give him is Guadama, while the Chinese call him Fo. They have
five hundred and fifty stories written in their books about him; for
they say he was once a bird, a fly, an elephant, and all manner of
creatures, and was so good whatever he was, that at last he was born
the son of a king. Is it not marvellous that a whole people should, for
generation after generation, not only submit to be thus scandalously
cheated, but should also hold those who cheat them in the highest
esteem? A curious fact, indeed, in the history of mankind.
MIRACULOUS ESCAPE.
One of the most singular circumstances occurred a few years ago that
ever came within our observation. Mr. Charlton, surgeon, of Wylam, near
Newcastle-on-Tyne, having at a late hour been called upon in haste
to give his attendance at Ovingham, borrowed a spirited horse of a
friend, that he might proceed with the least possible delay. He had
not gone above half a mile when he perceived his horse stumble, and
he immediately threw himself from the saddle. It was fortunate he did
so, for the next instant his horse had fallen down a precipice of near
seventy feet; and, incredible as it may seem, the animal sustained no
injury, but immediately dashed into the Tyne, and swam to the opposite
side. Search was made after him, and hearing his master's voice, he was
heard to neigh even across the water in token of recognition, and was
ultimately restored without speck or blemish.
A NATIONAL TASTE FOR GAMING.
It is a remarkable fact that a taste for gaming appears in some cases
to pervade a whole people, and to become one of the chief national
characteristics. No where is this more manifest than among the
inhabitants of the Asiatic Islands.
Games of hazard are the favourites of these islanders. Some of them
they have learned of the Chinese, the most debauched of gamesters, and
others of the Portuguese. The only game of hazard, of native origin,
among the Javanese consists in guessing the number of a certain kind of
beans which the players hold in their hands.
But of all the species of gaming that to which the Indian islanders
are most fondly addicted is betting on the issue of the combats of
pugnacious animals, and particularly the cock. The breed in highest
estimation is the produce of Celebes. The people of Java fight their
cocks without spurs; but the Malays and natives of Celebes with an
artificial spur, in the shape of a small scythe, which, notwithstanding
its barbarous appearance, is in reality less destructive than the
contrivance employed among ourselves.
Quail fighting also is extremely common in Java. The most famous breed
of this bird is found in the island of Lombok; and it is a singular
fact, that the female is used in these bitter but bloodless combats,
the male being comparatively small and timid. Neither do the Javanese
hesitate to bet considerable sums on a battle between two crickets,
which are excited to the conflict by the titillation of a blade of
grass judiciously applied to their noses. They will likewise risk their
money on the strength and hardness of a nut, called _kamiri_; and much
skill, patience and dexterity, are exercised in the selection and
the strife. At other times two paper kites decide the fortune of the
parties; the object of each in this contest being to cut the string of
his adversary. On a favourable day fifty or sixty kites, raised for
this purpose, may sometimes be seen hovering over a Javanese city.
A FRIEND TO PHYSIC.
Mr. Samuel Jessup, who died at Heckington, Lincolnshire, in 1817,
was an opulent grazier and of pill-taking memory. He lived in a
very eccentric way, as a bachelor, without known relatives, and at
his decease was possessed of a good fortune, notwithstanding a most
inordinate craving for physic, by which he was distinguished for the
last thirty years of his life, as appeared on a trial for the amount of
an apothecary's bill, at the assizes at Lincoln, a short time before
Mr. Jessup's death, wherein he was defendant. The evidence on the trial
affords the following materials for the epitaph of the deceased, which
will not be transcended by the memorabilia of the life of any man. In
twenty-one years (from 1791 to 1816) the deceased took 226,934 pills
(supplied by a most highly respectable apothecary and worthy person
of the name of Wright, who resided at Bottesford), which is at the
rate of 10,806 pills a year, or 29 pills each day; but as the patient
begun with a more moderate appetite, and increased it as he proceeded,
in the last five years preceding 1816, he took the pills at the rate
of 78 a-day, and in the year 1814, he swallowed not less than 51,590.
Notwithstanding this, and the addition of 40,000 bottles of mixture,
and juleps and electuaries, extending altogether to fifty-five closely
written columns of an apothecary's bill, the deceased lived to attain
the advanced age of sixty-five years.
AN INCULPATORY EPITAPH.
The following epitaph at West Allington, Devon, is deserving a place in
our record of curiosities, inasmuch as it appears to be a successful
attempt in making a monumental stone, both a memorial of the deceased,
and also a means of reproving the parson of the parish:--
"Here lyeth the Body of
Daniel Jeffery the Son of Michael
Jeffery and Joan his Wife he
was buried y{e} 22 day of September
1746 and in y{e} 18{th} year of his age.
This Youth When In his sickness lay
did for the minister Send + that he would
Come and With him Pray + But he would not ate{nd}
But When this young man Buried was
The minister did him admit + he should be
Caried into Church + that he might money geet
By this you See what man will dwo + to geet
money if he can + who did refuse to come
pray + by the Foresaid young man."
HUNTING A SHEEP KILLER.
It has been remarked, that when once a dog acquires wild habits, and
takes to killing sheep, he does far more mischief than a wild beast,
since to the cunning of the tamed animal he adds the ferocity of the
untamed. A remarkable case of this sort is mentioned in the following
paragraph, which we have copied from the _Newcastle Courant_ of the
year 1823. It is also curious to note the account of the chase, and of
the joy which the whole country-side seems to have manifested at the
slaughter of the animal.--September 21--A few days ago a dog of a most
destructive nature infested the fells of Caldbeck, Carrock, and High
Pike, about sixteen miles south of Carlisle. Little doubt remains of
its being the same dog which has been so injurious to the farmers in
the northern parts of Northumberland, as no less than sixty sheep or
upwards have fallen victims to its ferocity. It was thought proper to
lose no time in attempting to destroy it, and Tuesday last was fixed
upon. Sir H. Fletcher, Bart., of Clea Hall, offered his pack of hounds,
and several other dogs with about fifty horsemen set out from Hesket
New-market. Several persons with firearms were stationed at different
parts. The dog was descried upon an eminence of Carrock-fell, and on
sight of the pursuers set off by way of Hesket New-market, Stocklewath,
and Barwick-field, then returned by Cowclose, Castle Sowerby, and
attempted to gain the fells again, when Mr. Sewell, farmer at Wedlock,
lying in ambush at Mossdale, fired, and succeeded in shooting him. He
appears to be of the Newfoundland breed, of a common size, wire-haired,
and extremely lean. During the chase he frequently turned upon the dogs
which were headmost, and so wounded several as obliged them to give up
the pursuit. The joy manifested on this occasion was uncommon, insomuch
that on the day following about thirty persons sat down to a dinner
provided at Mr. Tomlinson's, Hesket New-market. Upon the most moderate
computation, excluding the various windings, the chase could not be
less than thirty miles, and occupied no less than six hours.
LONGEVITY.
Henry Jenkins, of Ellerton-upon-Swale, Yorkshire, died 1670, aged 169.
He remembered the battle of Flodden Field, fought between the English
and the Scotch, September 9, 1513, when he was about twelve years old.
He was then sent to Northallerton with a cartload of arrows, but an
older boy was employed to convey them to the army. At Ellerton there
was also living, at the same time, four or five other old men, reputed
to be of the age of one hundred years and thereabouts, and they all
testified that Jenkins was an elderly man when first they knew him.
Jenkins was once butler to Lord Conyers; he perfectly remembered the
Abbot of Fountain's Dale before the dissolution of the monasteries.
In the last century of his life he was a fisherman, and often swam in
the river after he was a hundred years old. In the King's Remembrancer
Office in the Exchequer, there is a record of a deposition in a cause,
taken April, 1665, at Kettlewell, Yorkshire, where Henry Jenkins, of
Ellerton-upon-Swale, labourer, aged 157 years, was produced, and made
deposition as a witness. He was buried at Bolton, Yorkshire. In 1743,
a monument, with a suitable inscription, was erected to perpetuate his
memory.
THE PULPIT OF JOHN KNOX AT ST. ANDREW'S.
John Knox, the great precursor of the Protestant Reformation, having
been driven from Edinburgh by the threats of his opponents, reluctantly
withdrew to St. Andrew's, in the county of Fife, where he continued
with undiminished boldness to denounce the enemies of the reformed
faith. It was in that place that he had first discoursed against the
degeneracy of the Church of Rome, and there he occupied the Pulpit
represented in the accompanying engraving; and the following curious
and characteristic anecdote connected with his preaching in it, is
related in the Manuscript Diary of James Melville, then a student at
the college of St. Andrew's, and subsequently Minister of Anstruther.
"Of all the benefits I haid that year (1571) was the coming of that
maist notable profet and apostle of our nation, Mr. Jhone Knox, to St.
Andrew's: who, be the faction of the Queen occupying the castell and
town of Edinburgh, was compellit to remove therefra, with a number
of the best, and chusit to come to St. Andrew's. I heard him teache
there the Prophecies of Daniel that simmer, and the winter following;
I haid my pen and my little buike, and tuk away sic things as I could
comprehend. In the opening up of his text he was moderat the space of
an half houre; but when he onterit to application, he made me so to
_grew_ (thrill) and tremble, that I could not hold a pen to wryt. He
was very weak. I saw him every day of his life go _hulie and fear_
(hoolie and fairly--slowly and warily) with a furring of marticks,
(martins) about his neck, a staffe in the ane hand, and gud godlie
Richard Ballanden, his servand, haldin up the uther _oxier_ (arm-pit),
from the Abbey to the Parish-Kirk; and be the said Richart and another
servant lifted up to the Pulpit, whar he _behovit_ (was obliged) to
lean at his first entry: bot er he had done with his sermone he was sa
active and vigourous, that he was lyk to _ding the pulpit in blads_
(beat it into shivers) and flie out of it."
[Illustration [++] Pulpit of John Knox at St. Andrew's.]
The interesting relique commemorated in this curious extract, is
of that stately style of carving which was introduced towards the
close of the sixteenth century in Protestant preaching-places; and
continued, though of a more heavy character, throughout the whole of
the succeeding century. A scroll-bracket remaining on the preacher's
left hand, and some broken pieces at the top of the back, appear to
indicate that it was once more extended, and had probably a canopy or
sounding-board.
THE BIBLE USED BY KING CHARLES THE FIRST ON THE SCAFFOLD.
[Illustration [++] Bible Used by Charles the First on the Scaffold.]
There is so much external evidence of the genuineness of this very
beautiful and interesting relique, that no doubt can exist as to its
perfect authenticity, though the circumstance of the King having a
Bible with him on the scaffold, and of presenting it to Dr. Juxon, is
not mentioned in any contemporaneous account of his death. The only
notice of such a volume, as a dying gift, appears to be that recorded
by Sir Thomas Herbert, in his narrative, which forms a part of the
_Memoirs of the last Two Years of the Reign of that unparalleled Prince
of ever-blessed memory, King Charles I._ London, 1702, 8vo, p. 129, in
the following passage:--"The King thereupon gave him his hand to kiss:
having the day before been graciously pleased under his royal hand,
to give him a certificate that the said Mr. Herbert was not imposed
upon him, but by his Majesty made choice of to attend him in his
bed-chamber, and had served him with faithfulness and loyal affection.
His Majesty also delivered him his Bible, in the margin whereof he
had with his own hand, written many annotations and quotations, and
charged him to give it to the Prince so soon as he returned." That this
might be the book represented in our engraving, is rendered extremely
probable, by admitting that the King would be naturally anxious, that
his son should possess that very copy of the Scriptures which had been
provided for himself when he was Prince of Wales. It will be observed
that the cover of the volume is decorated with the badge of the
Principality within the Garter, surmounted by a royal coronet in silver
gilt, inclosed by an embroidered border; the initials C. P. apparently
improperly altered to an R., and the badges of the Rose and Thistle,
upon a ground of blue velvet: and the book was therefore bound between
the death of Prince Henry in 1612, and the accession of King Charles
to the throne in 1625, when such a coronet would be no longer used by
him. If the Bible here represented were that referred to by Herbert,
the circumstance of Bishop Juxon becoming the possessor of it might
be accounted for, by supposing that it was placed in his hands to be
transmitted to Charles II. with the George of the Order of the Garter
belonging to the late King, well known to have been given to that
Prelate upon the scaffold, January 30th, 1648-9.
LAMBETH WELLS, THE APOLLO GARDENS, AND FINCH'S GROTTO.
Among the numerous public places of amusement which arose upon the
success of Vauxhall Gardens, which were first opened about 1661, was
one in Lambeth Walk, known as Lambeth Wells. This place was first
opened on account of its mineral waters, which were sold at a penny
per quart. The music commenced at seven o'clock in the morning, and
the price of admission was three pence. A monthly concert under the
direction of Mr. Starling Goodwin, organist of St. Saviour's Church
Southwark, was afterwards held here, and Erasmus King, who had been
coachman to the celebrated Dr. Desaguliers, read lectures and exhibited
experiments in natural philosophy, the price of admission being raised
to sixpence.
This place was open before 1698, and existed as late as 1752, when "A
Penny Wedding after the Scotch fashion, for the benefit of a young
couple," was advertised to be kept there.
Lambeth Wells at length becoming a public nuisance, the premises were
shut up, and ultimately let as a Methodist Meeting-house. The music
gallery was used as a pulpit; but the preacher being greatly disturbed
in his enthusiastic harangues, he was obliged to quit, when the
premises were converted to various purposes, except the dwelling, which
is now known by the sign of the Fountain public-house.
On the site of Messrs. Maudslay's factory, in the Westminster Road,
formerly stood the Apollo Gardens. This place of amusement was opened
in 1788, by an ingenious musician named Clagget, who published, in
1793, a small quarto pamphlet, entitled "Musical Phenomena: An Organ
made without Pipes, Strings, Bells, or Glasses; the only Instrument in
the world that will never require to be re-tuned. A Cromatic Trumpet,
capable of producing just Intervals, and regular Melodies in all Keys,
without undergoing any change whatever. A French Horn answering the
above description of the Trumpet."
The Apollo Gardens had one spacious room elegantly fitted up, and
decorated in taste suitably to its intention. The gardens consisted
of a number of elegant pavilions or alcoves, well adapted for the
accommodation of different companies; they were ornamented chiefly with
a succession of paintings, relating to romantic histories, particularly
the different adventures of Don Quixote. It had a fine orchestra
erected in the centre of the gardens. The place being ultimately
converted into a receptacle for loose and dissolute characters, the
magistracy very properly suppressed it about the year 1799.
In Gravel Lane, Southwark, was Finch's Grotto, a public garden and
place of amusement, so named from William Finch, the proprietor. The
Grotto was opened to the public in 1770 upon the plan of Vauxhall
gardens. An orchestra and a band of musicians, added to the rural
character of the place, and drew a numerous body of visitors.
Very little is known about the Grotto, but it is supposed to have been
closed early in the present century.
THE DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS, OR, ORNITHORYNCHUS PARADOXUS.
[Illustration [++] Duck-billed Platypus.]
Of the genus _Ornithorynchus_ only one species--the _Paradoxus_--has
yet been discovered in the whole world, and it is, therefore, one of
the great curiosities of animal life. It appears to be a union of a
quadruped and a bird, and is only to be found in New Holland, where it
inhabits the reeds by the side of rivers. Our engraving represents it
very accurately. It is about twenty inches long, having a flattened
body, somewhat like the otter, and is clothed with a dark soft fur.
The elongated nose very much resembles the beak of a duck, like which
these animals feed upon water insects, shell-fish, and aquatic plants.
The feet are five-toed and webbed, and in the fore-feet this membrane
extends beyond the nails: the male is armed with a spur on each hind
leg. This curious animal, in which a duck's beak is united to the body
of a quadruped, rolls itself up like a hedgehog, when it sleeps in its
burrows on the banks of the streams whence its food is derived.
ORIGIN OF BOLTON ABBEY.
About midway up the Vale of Bolton, amidst the gloomy recesses of
the woods, the Wharfe, which is otherwise a wide and shallow river,
is suddenly contracted by two huge rocks, which approach each other
so nearly, that the country folk, or rather the villagers, call it
the _Strid_, because adventurous people stride or leap from one rock
to the other. In ancient days, the whole of this valley belonged to
Baron Romillie, whose eldest son having died, left a younger brother,
of the name of EGREMONT, sole heir of the domains and inheritance of
this family. One day, however, when this young man, familiarly called
the "Boy of Egremont," was returning from hunting with the hounds in
the _leash_, he, as he had done many times before, was going to leap
the _Strid_, when, just as he had attempted it, the hounds held back,
and precipitated him headlong into the deep and awful chasm, which the
impetuous fall of water (thus produced by the sudden contraction of the
river) had worn in the base of the two rude rocks, and he was never
seen afterwards. The Baron, being now left childless, built the Abbey,
and endowed it with the domains of Bolton.
LENGTH OF LIFE WITHOUT BODILY EXERCISE.
The Rev. William Davies, Rector of Staunton-upon-Wye, and Vicar of
All Saints, Hereford, died 1790, aged 105. The life of this gentleman
displays one of the most extraordinary instances of departure from all
those rules of temperance and exercise, which so much influence the
lives of the mass of mankind, that is, probably to be found in the
whole records of longevity. During the last thirty-five years of his
life, he never used any other exercise than that of just slipping his
feet, one before the other, from room to room; and they never after
that time were raised, but to go down or up stairs, a task, however, to
which he seldom subjected himself. His breakfast was hearty; consisting
of hot _rolls well buttered_, with a plentiful supply of tea or coffee.
His dinner was substantial, and frequently consisted of a variety of
dishes. At supper he generally eat hot roast meat, and always drank
wine, though never to excess. Though nearly blind for a number of
years, he was always cheerful in his manners, and entertaining in his
conversation, and was much beloved by all who knew him. He had neither
gout, stone, paralysis, rheumatism, nor any of those disagreeable
infirmities which mostly attend old age; but died peaceably in the
full possession of all his faculties, mental and corporeal, save his
eyesight. Like most long livers he was very short of stature.
EXTRAORDINARY FASHION IN CIGARS.
A taste for tobacco in some form or other seems to extend over the
whole inhabitable globe. In this respect it matters not whether nations
are civilized or uncivilized; and however completely they may differ
from each other in everything else, they all agree in a fondness for
"the weed." In the mode, however, of indulging in the luxury, there is
the greatest diversity, and no where is this more strikingly manifested
than in the Philippine Islands.
"It is not till evening that the inhabitants of the higher class begin
to stir; till that time they are occupied in eating, sleeping, and
smoking tobacco, which is no where more general than on the island of
Luzon; for children, before they can walk, begin to smoke segars. The
women carry their fondness for it to a greater height than the men;
for, not content with the usual small segars, they have others made
for them, which are a foot long and proportionably thick. These are
here called the women's segars, and it is a most ludicrous sight to see
elegant ladies taking their evening walk, with these burning brands in
their mouths."
How widely does the fashion in Luzon differ from the fashion at Paris!
NOVEL WAY OF PURCHASING A HUSBAND.
The following paragraph, which we have copied from a magazine of 1790,
not only gives us a curious instance of female determination in the
pursuit of a husband, but tells us of the price which human hair was
worth at the period when ladies wore such monstrous head-dresses of
false curls.
"An Oxfordshire lass was lately courted by a young man of that country,
who was not willing to marry her unless her friends could advance
50_l._ for her portion; which they being incapable of doing, the lass
came to London to try her fortune, where she met with a good chapman
in the Strand, who made a purchase of her hair (which was delicately
long and light), and gave her _sixty pounds_ for it, being 20 ounces
at 3_l. an ounce_; with which money she joyfully returned into the
country, and bought her a husband."
GLOVES.--ORIGIN OF "PIN MONEY."
Gloves were very common as New Year's gifts. For many hundreds of years
after their introduction into England in the 10th century, they were
worn only by the most opulent classes of society, and hence constituted
a valuable present. They are often named in old records. Exchange of
gloves was at one period a mode of investiture into possession of
property, as amongst the ancient Jews was that of a shoe or sandal; and
"glove-money" is to this day presented by High Sheriffs to the officers
of their courts, upon occasion of a maiden assize, or one in which
no cause is tried. Pins, which at the commencement of the sixteenth
century displaced the wooden skewers previously in use, became a
present of similar consequence; and at their first introduction were
considered of so much importance in female dress, that "pin-money" grew
into the denomination of dower, which, by the caution of parents, or
justice of a consort, was settled upon a lady at her marriage.
HABITS AND HABITATIONS OF THE DYAKS OF BORNEO.
It is impossible to appreciate properly the courage, determination,
and skill which have been displayed by the gallant Sir James Brooke,
unless we make ourselves acquainted with the character and habits of
the extraordinary race of men over whom he triumphed. The Dyaks are a
savage people who inhabit Borneo. They lived there before the Malays
came, and they have been obliged to submit to them. They are savages
indeed. They are darker than the Malays; yet they are not black; their
skin is only the colour of copper. Their hair is cut short in front,
but streams down their backs; their large mouths show a quantity of
black teeth, made black by chewing the betel-nut. They wear but very
little clothing, but they adorn their ears and arms, and legs, with
numbers of brass rings. Their looks are wild and fierce, but not
cunning like the looks of the Malays. They are not Mahomedans; they
have hardly any religion at all. They believe there are some gods, but
they know hardly anything about them, and they do not want to know.
They neither make images to the gods, nor say prayers to them. They
live like the beasts, thinking only of this life; yet they are more
unhappy than beasts, for they imagine there are evil spirits among the
woods and hills, watching to do them harm. It is often hard to persuade
them to go to the top of a mountain, where they say evil spirits dwell.
Such a people would be more ready to listen to a missionary than those
who have idols, and temples, and priests, and sacred books.
[Illustration: Dyak With Heads.]
[Illustration: Head of a Dyak.]
Their wickedness is very great. It is their chief delight to get the
heads of their enemies. There are a great many different tribes of
Dyaks, and each tribe tries to cut off the heads of other tribes. The
Dyaks who live by the sea are the most cruel; they go out into the
boats to rob and bring home, not _slaves_, but HEADS!! And how do they
treat a head when they get it? They take out the brains, and then they
dry it in the smoke, with the flesh and hair still on; then they put a
string through it, and fasten it to their waists. The evening that they
have got some new heads, the warriors dance with delight,--their heads
dangling by their sides;--and they turn round in the dance, and gaze
upon their heads,--and shout,--and yell with triumph! At night they
still keep the heads near them; and in the day they play with them,
as children with their dolls, talking to them, putting food in their
mouths, and the betel-nut between their ghastly lips. After wearing the
heads many days, they hang them up to the ceilings of their rooms.
No English lord thinks so much of his pictures, as the Dyaks do of
their heads. They think these heads are the finest ornaments of their
houses. The man who has _most_ heads, is considered the _greatest_ man.
A man who has _no heads_ is despised! If he wishes to be respected, he
must get a head as soon as he can. Sometimes a man, in order to get a
head, will go out to look for a poor fisherman, who has done him no
harm, and will come back with his head. When the Dyaks fight against
their enemies, they try to get, not only the heads of men, but also
the heads of women and children. How dreadful it must be to see a poor
baby's head hanging from the ceiling! There was a Dyak who lost all
his property by fire, but he cared not for losing anything, so much as
for losing his precious heads; nothing could console him for his loss;
some of them he had cut off himself, and others had been cut off by his
father, and left to him!
[Illustration: House of Sea Dyaks.]
[Illustration: Skull House.]
People who are so bent on killing, as these Dyaks are, must have many
enemies. The Dyaks are always in fear of being attacked by their
enemies. They are afraid of living in lonely cottages; they think it a
better plan for a great many to live together, that they may be able
to defend themselves, if surprised in the night. Four hundred Dyaks
will live together in one house. The house is very large. To make it
more safe, it is built upon very high posts, and there are ladders to
get up by. The posts are sometimes forty feet high; so that when you
are in the house, you find yourself as high as the tall trees. There
is one very large room, where all the men and women sit, and talk,
and do their work in the day. The women pound the rice, and weave the
mats, while the men make weapons of war, and the little children play
about. There is always much noise and confusion in this room. There are
a great many doors along one side of the long room; and each of these
doors leads into a small room where a family lives! the parents, the
babies, and the girls sleep there, while the boys of the family sleep
in the large room, that has just been described.
The Hill Dyaks do not live in houses quite so large. Yet several
families inhabit the same house. In the midst of their villages, there
is always one house where the boys sleep. In this house all the heads
of the village are kept. The house is round, and built on posts, and
the entrance is underneath, through the floor. As this is the best
house in the village, travellers are always brought to this house to
sleep. Think how dreadful it must be, when you wake in the night to see
thirty or forty horrible heads, dangling from the ceiling! The wind,
too, which comes in through little doors in the roof, blows the heads
about; so that they knock against each other, and seem almost as if
they were still alive. This is the Dead-house. Such are the men whom
the Rajah Brooke subdued!
SCOTTISH WILD CATTLE.
The wild white cattle, a few of which are still to be found in
Chatelherault Park, belonging to the Duke of Hamilton, in Lanarkshire,
are great objects of curiosity, inasmuch as they are identical with the
primitive source of all our domestic cattle.
The following description of their habits is abridged from an article
by the Rev. W. Patrick, in the Quarterly Journal of Agriculture:--
"I am inclined to believe that the Hamilton breed of cattle is the
oldest in Scotland, or perhaps in Britain. Although Lord Tankerville
has said they have 'no wild habits,' I am convinced, from personal
observation, that this is one of their peculiar features. In browsing
their extensive pasture, they always keep close together, never
scattering or straggling over it, a peculiarity which does not belong
to the Kyloe, or any other breed, from the wildest or most inhospitable
regions of the Highlands. The white cows are also remarkable for their
systematic manner of feeding. At different periods of the year their
tactics are different, but by those acquainted with their habits they
are always found about the same part of the forest at the same hour of
the day. In the height of summer, they always bivouac for the night
towards the northern extremity of the forest; from this point they
start in the morning, and browse to the southern extremity, and return
at sunset to their old rendezvous; and during these perambulations they
always feed _en masse_.
"The bulls are seldom ill-natured, but when they are so they display
a disposition more than ordinarily savage, cunning, pertinacious,
and revengeful. A poor bird-catcher, when exercising his vocation
among the 'Old Oaks,' as the park is familiarly called, chanced to be
attacked by a savage bull. By great exertion he gained a tree before
his assailant made up to him. Here he had occasion to observe the
habits of the animal. It did not roar or bellow, but merely grunted,
the whole body quivered with passion and savage rage, and he frequently
attacked the tree with his head and hoofs. Finding all to no purpose,
he left off the vain attempt, began to browse, and removed to some
distance from the tree. The bird-catcher tried to descend, but this
watchful Cerberus was again instantly at his post, and it was not till
after six hours' imprisonment, and various bouts at 'bo-peep' as above,
that the unfortunate man was relieved by some shepherds with their
dogs. A writer's apprentice, who had been at the village of Quarter on
business, and who returned by the 'Oaks' as a 'near-hand cut,' was also
attacked by one of these savage brutes, near the northern extremity of
the forest. He was fortunate, however, in getting up a tree, but was
watched by the bull, and kept there during the whole of the night, and
till near two o'clock the next day.
"These animals are never taken and killed like other cattle, but are
always shot in the field. I once went to see a bull and some cows
destroyed in this manner--not by any means for the sake of the sight,
but to observe the manner and habits of the animal under peculiar
circumstances. When the shooters approached, they, as usual, scampered
off in a body, then stood still, tossed their heads on high, and
seemed to snuff the wind; the manoeuvre was often repeated, till they
got so hard pressed (and seemingly having a sort of half-idea of the
tragedy which was to be performed), that they at length ran furiously
in a mass, always preferring the sides of the fence and sheltered
situations, and dexterously taking advantage of any inequality in
the ground, or other circumstances, to conceal themselves from the
assailing foe. In their flight, the bulls, or stronger of the flock,
always took the lead! a smoke ascended from them which could be seen at
a great distance; and they were often so close together, like sheep,
that a carpet would have covered them. The cows which had young, on the
first 'tug of war,' all retreated to the thickets where their calves
were concealed; from prudential motives, they are never, if possible,
molested. These and other wild habits I can testify to be inherent
in the race, and are well known to all who have an opportunity of
acquainting themselves with them."
BELLS OF THE ANCIENTS.
Bells were known in the earliest ages of which we have any certain
account. But the bells of the ancients were very small in comparison
with those of modern times, since, according to Polydore Virgil, the
invention of such as are hung in the towers, or steeples of Christian
churches, did not occur till the latter end of the fourth, or beginning
of the fifth century; when they were introduced by Paulinus, Bishop of
Nola. The Jews certainly employed bells, since they are spoken of in
Scriptures; and the mention of them by Thucydides, Diodorus Siculus,
Suidas, Aristophanes, and other ancient writers, proves that they
were used in Greece; while Plautus, Ovid, Tibullus, Statius, and a
variety of Latin authors, speak of bells as in use among the Romans.
But these bells of the ancients were all made for the hand; or were
of a size to be affixed to other musical instruments, like those
which were occasionally appended to the drum. Whether, when detached
from other instruments, they were used on other occasions, or only in
particular ceremonies, or as signals, is not known; nor have we any
clue by which to guess whether they were tuned in concordance with any
scale, or whether they were unisons to each other, or not formed to
any particular pitch, but merely used as sonorous auxiliaries to other
instruments, without any regard to their agreement of tone, either with
one another, or with the instruments they accompanied.
EARTHQUAKE AT NOTTINGHAM IN 1816.
Earthquakes are providentially occurrences of great rarity in England.
The one which took place on the 17th of March, 1816, was one of the
most dangerous that has ever been experienced in this kingdom. It
extended over a vast area of country, and in some localities its
effects were felt very severely. As a proof of this, we have copied the
following paragraph from a Nottingham paper of the day:--
Nottingham, in common with a great part of the North Midland district,
experienced a smart shock of an earthquake. It was felt at half-past
twelve p.m., and as Divine service, it being Sunday, was not over
at the churches, great alarm was expressed by the congregations. At
St. Peter's and St. Nicholas's, the consternation was so great, that
service had to be suspended for a few seconds, and one lady was borne
out in a state of insensibility. The pillars supporting St. Mary's
tower shook very visibly, but, fortunately, the attention of the
crowded congregation was so engrossed by the eloquence of the sheriff's
chaplain, and the presence of the Judge and his retinue, that the alarm
was but slight, or the rush and loss of life might have been great.
In various parts of the town and neighbourhood, glasses were shaken
off of shelves, articles of domestic use displaced, window-casements
thrown open, and other indications manifest of the influence of the
subterranean movement.
SINGULAR STATE OF PRESERVATION OF A DEAD BODY.
According to a statement in Holinshed, in 1495, while digging for a
foundation for the church of St. Mary-at-hill, in London, the body of
Alice Hackney was discovered. It had been buried 175 years, and yet the
skin was whole, and the joint pliable. It was kept above ground four
days without annoyance, and then re-interred.
ASYLUM FOR DESTITUTE CATS.
Of all the curious charitable institutions in the world, the most
curious probably is the Cat Asylum at Aleppo, which is attached to
one of the mosques there, and was founded by a misanthropic old Turk,
who being possessed of large granaries, was much annoyed by rats and
mice, to rid himself of which he employed a legion of cats, who so
effectually rendered him service, that in return he left them a sum
in the Turkish funds, with strict injunctions that all destitute
and sickly cats should be provided for, till such time as they took
themselves off again. In 1845, when a famine was ravaging in all
North Syria--when scores of poor people were dropping down in the
streets from sheer exhaustion and want, and dying there by dozens per
diem before the eyes of their well-to-do fellow creatures, men might
daily be encountered carrying away sack loads of cats to be fed up and
feasted on the proceeds of the last will and testament of that vagabond
old Turk, whilst fellow creatures were permitted to perish.
TOMB OF SAINT GEORGE.
The tomb of Saint George, England's patron-saint, is situated in the
Bay of Kesrouan, between the Nahr-et-Kelb and Batroun, surrounded by
luxuriant gardens and groups of romantic-looking villages and convents.
The Arabs venerate St. George, whom they style Mar Djurios, and point
to a small ruined chapel (as in our engraving), originally dedicated to
him to commemorate his victory over the dragon, which, they say, took
place near to the spot. The tradition is, that the dragon was about to
devour the king of Beyrout's daughter, when St. George slew him, and
thus saved the lady fair; and the credulous natives point to a kind of
well, upwards of sixty feet deep, where they stoutly affirm that the
dragon used to come out to feed upon his victims.
[Illustration [++] Tomb of Saint George.]
All this is very curious, inasmuch as it gives an Arabian interest to
the career of the patron saint of England, whose portrait, in the act
of slaying the dragon, constitutes the reverse of most English coin,
and is regarded as the embodiment of English valour.
BEGGARS SELECTED AS MODELS BY PAINTERS.
Michael Angelo Buonarotti often drew from beggars; and report says,
that in the early part of his life, when he had not the means of paying
them in money, he would make an additional sketch, and, presenting it
to the party, desire him to take it to some particular person, who
would purchase it. Fuseli, in his life of Michael Angelo, says that "a
beggar rose from his hand the patriarch of poverty." The same artist,
in one of his lectures, delivered at the Royal Academy, also observes,
that "Michael Angelo ennobled his beggars into Patriarchs and Prophets,
in the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel."
Annibal Caracci frequently drew subjects in low life. His _Cries of
Bologna_, etched by Giuseppe Maria Mitelli: pub. 1660, in folio, are
evidently from real characters. It will also be recollected, that some
of the finest productions of Murillo, Jan Miel, and Drogsloot, are
beggars. Callot's twenty-four beggars are evidently from nature; and
among Rembrandt's etchings are to be found twenty-three plates of this
description.
Sir Joshua Reynolds frequently painted from beggars, and from these
people have originated some of his finest pictures, particularly
his "Mercury as a Pickpocket," and "Cupid as a Link-boy." His Count
Ugolino was painted from a paviour, soon after he had left St. George's
Hospital, from a severe fever. Mr. West painted the portrait of a
beggar, on the day when he became a hundred years old; and considered
him as a pensioner for several years afterwards. The same person was
used also as a model, by Copley, Opie, &c. Who can forget the lovely
countenance of Gainsborough's "Shepherd's Boy," that has once seen
Earlom's excellent engraving from it? He was a lad, well known as a
beggar to those who walked St. James's-street seventy years ago. The
model for the celebrated picture of the "Woodman," by the same artist,
died in the Borough, at the venerable age of 107.
Mr. Nollekens, in 1778, when modelling the bust of Dr. Johnson,
who then wore a wig, called in a beggar to sit for the hair. The
same artist was not equally fortunate in the locks of another great
character; for on his application to a beggar for the like purpose, the
fellow declined to sit, with an observation that three half-crowns were
not sufficient for the trouble.
SUPPLY OF WATER FOR OLD LONDON.
Leaden pipes conveyed spring water to London city from Tyburn in 1236;
and in 1285 the first great conduit of lead was begun there. In 1442
Henry VI. granted to John Hatherley, Mayor, license to take up 200
fother of lead. The pipes from Highbury brought in the water in 1483.
We may learn how much was thought of this useful work by the fact that
the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and many worshipful persons used to ride and
view the conduit heads at Tyburn; and after dinner there, somewhat
different from recent sportsmen, they hunted a fox.
The water-works at London Bridge were established in 1512. In 1534,
two-fifteenths were granted by the Common Council for defraying the
expense of bringing water from Hackney to Aldgate to a conduit. But
Peter Morris did not bring his supply of water to the highest parts of
London till the year 1569, and Sir Hugh Middleton's far-famed New River
was only rendered available in 1618, that is, a space of sixty-eight
years after the introduction of a stream of pure water into the western
parts of the town of Lyme in Dorset.
COMBINATION OF INSTINCT AND FORCE OF HABIT IN A DOG.
A dog which had been accustomed to go with his master regularly for
some time to Penkridge church, still continued to go there by himself
every Sunday for a whole year, while the edifice was under repair, and
divine service was not held. Whenever he could, he would get into the
family pew and there pass the proper time. His instinct enabled him to
perceive the occasion, and to measure the regular time, but it could
carry him no further. A remarkable exemplification of the difference
between instinct and reason.
YORKSHIRE IN THE LAST CENTURY.
Anecdotes which are apparently trifling in themselves, are often of
importance, as exhibiting in a striking light the dialect and social
condition of the people, and the period they refer to. An instance of
this is the following, which has been recorded as the bellman's cry at
Ripon, on the occasion of a great frost and fall of snow, about 1780:--
"I is to gie notidge, that Joanie Pickersgill yeats yewn to neit, to
moarn at moarn, an to moarn at neit, an nea langer, as lang as storm
hods, 'cause he can git na mare eldin."
_The Translation._
I am to give notice, that John Pickersgill heats his oven to-night,
to-morrow morning, and to-morrow at night, and no longer as long as the
storm lasts, because he can get no more fuel.
INSTANCE OF MANY AGED PERSONS DYING ABOUT THE SAME DATE.
The following is taken from a copy of Nile's "Weekly Register,"
published at Baltimore, in the month of January, 1823. It is the list
of deaths which had been notified to the paper within one week, and we
give it, as a singular instance of the decease of so many persons above
one hundred years old being announced in the same paragraph.
"In Franklin co. Pennsylvania, Elizabeth Campbell, aged 104--several
of her relatives had reached 100.--At Troy, N. Y., Ann Fowler,
100.--At Tyngsboro', N. Y., Abigail Hadlock, 104.--At Somers, N. Y.,
Michael Makeel, 103.--At Rutland, Oswego, N. Y., Mrs. Buroy, 110.--At
Brunswick, Maine, Gen. James W. Ryan, 107--his wife is yet living,
aged 94; they were married together 75 years before his death.--At
Georgetown, Col. Yarrow, a Moor, (supposed) 135!--At the city of New
York, a woman, a native of St. Domingo, 106. At Sargus, Mass., Mrs.
Edwards, 101.--In Edgecomb county, N. C., William Spicer, aged about
112.--In Boston, William Homer, 116."
CORPSE BEARERS DURING THE PLAGUE.
Of all the calamities with which a great city is infested, there can
be none so truly awful as that of a plague, when the street doors of
the houses that were visited with the dreadful pest were padlocked up,
and only accessible to the surgeons and medical men, whose melancholy
duty frequently exposed them even to death itself; and when the
fronts of the houses were pasted over with large bills exhibiting red
crosses, to denote that in such houses the pestilence was raging, and
requesting the solitary passenger, to pray that the Lord might have
mercy upon those who were confined within. Of these bills there are
many extant in the libraries of the curious, some of which have borders
engraved on wood printed in black, displaying figures of skeletons,
bones, and coffins They also contain various recipes for the cure of
the distemper. The Lady Arundel, and other persons of distinction,
published their methods for making what was then called plague-water,
and which are to be found in many of the rare books on cookery of
the time; but happily for London, it has not been visited by this
affliction since 1665, a circumstance owing probably to the Great Fire
in the succeeding year, which consumed so many old and deplorable
buildings, then standing in narrow streets and places so confined, that
it was hardly possible to know where any pest would stop.
[Illustration [++] Corpse Bearer.]
Every one who inspects Agas's Plan of London, engraved in the reign of
Elizabeth, as well as those published subsequently to the rebuilding
of the City after the fire, must acknowledge the great improvements
as to the houses, the widening of the streets, and the free admission
of fresh air. It is to be hoped, and indeed we may conclude from the
very great and daily improvements on that most excellent plan of
widening streets, that this great city will never again witness such
visitations.
When the plague was at its height, perhaps nothing could have been more
silently or solemnly conducted than the removal of the dead to the
various pits round London, that were opened for their reception; and it
was the business of Corpse Bearers, such as the one exhibited in the
preceding engraving, to give directions to the carmen, who went through
the city with bells, which they rang, at the same time crying "Bring
out your Dead." This melancholy description may be closed, by observing
that many parts of London, particularly those leading to the Courts of
Westminster, were so little trodden down, that the grass grew in the
middle of the streets.
A MEMENTO-MORI WATCH.
The curious relic, of which we herewith give an engraving, was
presented by Mary, Queen of Scots, to her Maid of Honour, Mary Seaton,
of the house of Wintoun, one of the four celebrated Maries, who were
Maids of Honour to her Majesty.
"Yestreen the Queen had four Maries,
The night she'll hae but three;
There was Marie Seaton, and Marie Beaton,
And Marie Carmichael and me."
[Illustration [++] Memento-Mori Watch.]
The watch is of silver, in the form of a skull. On the forehead of the
skull is the figure of Death, with his scythe and sand-glass; he stands
between a palace on the one hand, and a cottage on the other, with
his toes applied equally to the door of each, and around this is the
legend from Horace "_Pallida mors æquo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas
Regumque turres_." On the opposite, or posterior part of the skull, is
a representation of Time, devouring all things. He also has a scythe,
and near him is the serpent with its tail in its mouth, being an
emblem of eternity; this is surrounded by another legend from Horace,
"_Tempus edax rerum tuque invidiosa vetustas_." The upper part of the
skull is divided into two compartments: on one is represented our first
parents in the garden of Eden, attended by some of the animals, with
the motto, "_Peccando perditionem miseriam æternam posteris meruere_."
The opposite compartment is filled with the subject of the salvation
of lost man by the crucifixion of our Saviour, who is represented as
suffering between the two thieves, whilst the Mary's are in adoration
below; the motto to this is "_Sic justitiæ satisfecit, mortem superavit
salutem comparavit_." Running below these compartments on both sides,
there is an open work of about an inch in width, to permit the sound to
come more freely out when the watch strikes. This is formed of emblems
belonging to the crucifixion, scourges of various kinds, swords, the
flagon and cup of the Eucharist, the cross, pincers, lantern used in
the garden, spears of different kinds, and one with the sponge on its
point, thongs, ladder, the coat without seam, and the dice that were
thrown for it, the hammer and nails, and the crown of thorns. Under all
these is the motto, "_Scala cæli ad gloriam via_."
The watch is opened by reversing the skull, and placing the upper
part of it in the hollow of the hand, and then lifting the under jaw
which rises on a hinge. Inside, on the plate, which thus may be called
the lid, is a representation of the Holy Family in the stable, with
the infant Jesus laid in the manger, and angels ministering to him;
in the upper part an angel is seen descending with a scroll on which
is written, "_Gloria excelsis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonæ
volu----_" In the distance are the shepherds with their flocks, and one
of the men is in the act of performing on a cornemuse. The works of
the watch occupy the position of the brains in the skull itself, the
dial plate being on a flat where the roof of the mouth and the parts
behind it under the base of the brain, are to be found in the real
subject. The dial plate is of silver, and it is fixed within a golden
circle richly carved in a scroll pattern. The hours are marked in large
Roman letters, and within them is the figure of Saturn devouring his
children, with this relative legend round the outer rim of the flat,
"_Sicut meis sic et omnibus idem_."
Lifting up the body of the works on the hinges by which they are
attached, they are found to be wonderfully entire. There is no date,
but the maker's name, with the place of manufacture, "Moyse, Blois,"
are distinctly engraven. Blois was the place where it is believed
watches were first made, and this suggests the probability of the
opinion that the watch was expressly ordered by Queen Mary at Blois,
when she went there with her husband, the Dauphin, previous to his
death. The watch appears to have been originally constructed with
catgut, instead of the chain which it now has, which must have been
a more modern addition. It is now in perfect order, and performs
wonderfully well, though it requires to be wound up within twenty-six
hours to keep it going with tolerable accuracy. A large silver bell, of
very musical sound, fills the entire hollow of the skull, and receives
the works within it when the watch is shut; a small hammer set in
motion by a separate escapement, strikes the hours on it.
This very curious relic must have been intended to occupy a stationary
place on a _prie-dieu_, or small altar in a private oratory, for its
weight is much too great to have admitted of its having been carried in
any way attached to the person.
A MONSTER.
It is almost incredible that such a monster, as the one we are about
to describe should have been allowed to continue his wicked career for
some years, in a civilized country like France, little more than a
hundred years ago, but the following paragraph is copied from a Paris
journal of that period--1755, January the 17th--and there is every
reason to believe that it is strictly correct. "What was his fate we
do not know, but can hardly doubt.--The Marquis de Plumartin, whose
execrable crimes are known over all France, has at last been taken
in his castle, by 300 men of the King's Own regiment of foot, and
carried to Poitiers, loaded with irons. The king is going to appoint
a commission to try him. This monster turned away his wife some years
ago, and became the terror of Poitou. Neither woman nor man durst
appear in the neighbourhood. Having one day lost a cause in one of the
king's courts, he caused the usher and his man, who came to intimate
the sentence to him, to be burnt alive. Some days after, having drawn
six of his creditors into his castle, where he had shut himself up with
several of his crew, he ordered some of his people to drag them into
a pond, tied to the tails of horses, and afterwards fastened them to
a stake near a great fire, where three expired, and the other three
died a few days after. Thirty of the Marshalsea guards, who were sent
to apprehend him, having beset his castle, he barricaded the doors
and fired on them from the garret window, killing the commanding
officer and five others. After which he left the kingdom, but absurdly
imagining that his crimes were forgot, he lately returned."
PERSEVERANCE REWARDED BY FORTUNE.
We have copied the following paragraph from the pages of a local
historian, because it gives us a striking instance of what perseverance
and good fortune will accomplish, in raising a man to comparative
distinction from the humblest walks of life.
August 26, 1691--Sir John Duck, bart., departed this life, being
Wednesday at night, and was buried upon the Monday after, being the
31st of August. The wealthiest burgess on the civic annals of Durham.
Of Sir John's birth, parentage, and education, the two first have
hitherto remained veiled in impenetrable obscurity; as to the third,
he was bred a butcher under John Heslop, in defiance of the trade and
mystery of butchers, in whose books a record still exists, warning
John Heslop that he forbear to sett John Ducke on worke in the trade
of a butcher. John Duck however grew rich, married the daughter of his
benefactor, and was created a baronet by James II. He built a splendid
mansion in Silver-street, where a panel still exists recording his
happy rise to fortune. The baronet, then humble Duck, cast out by
the butchers, stands near a bridge in an attitude of despondency; in
the air is seen a raven bearing in his bill a piece of silver, which
according to tradition fell at the feet of the lucky John, and was
naturally calculated to make a strong impression on his mind. He bought
a calf, which calf became a cow, and which cow being sold enabled John
to make further purchases in cattle, and from such slender beginnings,
to realise a splendid fortune. On the right of the picture is a view of
his mansion in Silver-street, and he seems to point at another, which
is presumed to be the hospital he endowed at Lumley. He died without
issue, and was buried at St. Margaret's, where his wife, Pia----
Prudens---- Felix, lies buried beside him.
On Duck the Butchers shut the door;
But Heslop's Daughter Johnny wed:
In mortgage rich, in offspring poor,
Nor son nor daughter crown'd his bed.
TRAVELLING IN THE UNITED STATES EXACTLY ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
The American advertisement, of which we here give a literal copy,
is deserving of preservation on account of the quaintness of the
inn-signs, the peculiarity of the spelling and diction, the "shifting"
of the passengers which it announces, and the general idea it gives us
of the way in which travelling was performed in America at the time
when it was issued.
Philadelphia STAGE-WAGGON, and New-York STAGE BOAT
performs their Stages twice a Week.
JOHN BUTLER, with his waggon, sets out on Mondays from his House,
at the Sign of the Death of the Fox, in Strawberry ally, and drives
the same day to Trenton Ferry, when Francis Holman meets him, and
proceeds on Tuesday to Brunswick, and the passengers and goods being
shifted into the waggon of Isaac Fitzrandolph, he takes them to the
New Blazing-Star to Jacob Fitzrandolph's the same day, where Rubin
Fitzrandolph, with a boat well suted, will receive them, and take
them to New-York that night. John Butler returning to Philadelphia
on Tuesday with the passengers and goods delivered to him by Francis
Holman, will again set out for Trenton Ferry on Thursday, and Francis
Holman, &c. will carry his passengers and goods, with the same
expedition as above to New-York.
_Weekly Mercury._
March 8, 1759.
FÊTE OF THE FEDERATION. PARIS 1790.
[Illustration [++] Fête of the Federation.]
The leading events of the great Revolution in France, may be fairly
classed with the marvellous, and among our "Ten Thousand Wonderful
Things" there will be found few more wonderful than the civic festival
of the general federation of the National Guards of France, which took
place on the 14th of July, 1790, and of which the above is a correct
representation, taken from a view by Duplessis Bertaux. The proceedings
of that memorable day had in them a mixture of religious celebration
apparently singular among a people who had lately so much trampled on
religion; but as this celebration was more pagan than Christian in
its character, the singularity becomes less marked. On the preceding
evening, a _Hiérodrame_ was performed at the cathedral of Nôtre Dame--a
kind of sacred drama, made up by M. Désaugiers of scraps from the
Bible mixed with other matter, and set to music; it professed to tell
the story of the taking of the Bastille, and to typify the sadness,
trouble, confusion, joy, and alarm of the Parisians. Then succeeded a
_Te Deum_, chanted in presence of some of the principal federal and
municipal bodies. Early in the morning of the 14th, amid dense clouds
and heavy rain, the National Guards from all the eighty-three
departments of France, together with deputations from the state army
and navy, began to assemble, and speedily formed an immense line from
the Porte St. Antoine to the Porte St. Martin; whence they marched,
with bands playing and colours flying, to the Champ de Mars, regaled
and cheered by the Parisians on the route. On reaching the great square
of the Tuileries, the procession was headed by the municipality of
Paris and the members of the National Assembly, and followed by a body
of gray-headed veterans. The procession traversed the Seine by one of
the bridges, greeted by salvos of artillery drawn up on the quays, and
entered the Champ de Mars under a triumphal arch almost hidden by flags
and patriotic inscriptions. One o'clock had arrived before the various
bodies forming the procession had taken their destined places in the
enclosed parallelogram, surrounded by nearly 300,000 spectators on
the raised terraces, most of whom were by this time drenched by the
continuous rain. In the centre of the area was a lofty altar, half
pagan, half Catholic in its adornments; and around this altar the
provincial National Guards danced and sang in very excited fashion.
The royal family appeared at three o'clock. In an immense gallery near
the altar, the National Assembly were seated, with the king and the
president on two chairs of state exactly equal in height and richness,
and the queen and the rest of the court seated behind--a significant
interpretation of the decree just announced. At the instant of the king
taking his seat, the air was rent with cries of _Vive le Roi! Vive la
Nation!_ The banners were unfurled; 1,800 musicians burst forth with
jubilant strains; cannon poured out continuous volleys; Talleyrand,
as bishop of Autun, assisted by sixty chaplains of the Paris National
Guards, performed mass at the altar; and the banners were blessed by
sprinkling with holy-water. Then Lafayette, dismounting from his white
charger, received from the hands of the king a written form of oath;
he swore to this oath at the altar, and with his raised arm gave a
signal for the countless host to do likewise--every one raising his
right hand, and saying _Je le jure!_ The king took the oath prescribed
to him; and the queen held up the dauphin in her arms, as if to denote
that he also, poor child, had sworn to defend the national liberties.
At five o'clock the royal family retired, and the crowd began to
leave the Champ de Mars. Twenty-five thousand federates or provincial
deputies went to a royal château about a mile distant, where a dinner
had been prepared for them by order of the municipality of Paris,
with Lafayette as chairman of the banquet. At night all Paris was
illuminated; and for three or four days the feastings, reviews, and
celebrations were numerous, including a grand dance on the site of the
demolished Bastille. On the 18th, Lafayette reviewed the provincial or
federate National Guards, and on the 19th they were reviewed by the
king. Paris was intoxicated for an entire week, each man displaying at
once his delight and his vanity.
A MAN CARRIES HIS HOUSE ON HIS HEAD.
Simeon Ellerton, of Craike, Durham, died 1799, aged 104. This man,
in his day, was a noted pedestrian, and before the establishment of
regular "Posts," was frequently employed in walking commissions, from
the northern counties to London and other places, which he executed
with singular fidelity and despatch. He lived in a neat stone cottage
of his own erecting; and what is remarkable, he had literally carried
his house on his head; it being his constant practice to bring back
with him from every journey which he undertook, some suitable stone, or
other material for his purpose, and which, not unfrequently, he carried
40 or 50 miles on his head.
IGNORANCE AND FEAR.
In the year 1712, Whiston predicted that the comet would appear on
Wednesday, 14th October, at five minutes after five in the morning, and
that the world would be destroyed by fire on the Friday following.
His reputation was high, and the comet appeared. A number of persons
got into boats and barges on the Thames, thinking the water the safest
place. South Sea and India stock fell. A captain of a Dutch ship threw
all his powder into the river, that the ship might not be endangered.
At noon, after the comet had appeared, it is said that more than one
hundred clergymen were ferried over to Lambeth, to request that proper
prayers might be prepared, there being none in the church service.
People believed that the day of judgment was at hand, and acted some
on this belief, more as if some temporary evil was to be expected.
There was a prodigious run on the bank, and Sir Gilbert Heathcote, at
that time the head director, issued orders to all the fire offices in
London, requiring them to keep a good look out, and have a particular
eye upon the Bank of England.
ARABIAN HORSES.
It is a singular circumstance, that it is to the Arabian that England
is indebted for her improved, and now unrivalled, breed of horses for
the turf, the field, and the road.
The Arabian horses are divided into two great branches; the Kadischi
whose descent is unknown, and the Kochlani, of whom a written genealogy
has been kept for 2000 years. These last are reserved for riding
solely, they are highly esteemed and consequently very dear. They are
said to derive their origin from King Solomon's studs. However this
may be they are fit to bear the greatest fatigues, and can pass whole
days without food. They are also said to show uncommon courage against
an enemy. It is even asserted, that when a horse of this race finds
himself wounded and unable to bear his rider much longer, he retires
from the fray, and conveys him to a place of security. If the rider
falls upon the ground, his horse remains beside him, and neighs till
assistance is brought. The Kochlani are neither large nor handsome but
amazingly swift. The whole race is divided into several families, each
of which has its proper name. Some of these have a higher reputation
than others on account of their more ancient and uncontaminated
nobility.
We may not believe, perhaps, all that is told us of the Arabian. It has
been remarked that there are, on the deserts which his horse traverses,
no milestones to mark the distance, or watch to calculate the time;
and the Bedouin is naturally given to exaggeration, and most of all
when relating the prowess of the animal which he loves as dearly as
his children; yet it cannot be denied that at the introduction of the
Arabian into the European stables, there was no other horse comparable
to him.
HEAD-QUARTERS OF PRINCE RUPERT AT EVERTON, DURING THE SIEGE OF
LIVERPOOL, IN 1644.
Prince Rupert, assisted by the Earl of Derby, having taken Bolton
by storm, and refreshed his army there for some days, advanced on
Liverpool, where the Parliament had a strong garrison under the command
of Colonel More, of Bank-hall; and finding on his approach to the
town, the high ground near it favourable to his design, compared it
to a crow's nest, probably imagining it would be taken with as little
difficulty; but the resistance he met with, induced him to declare it
was more like an eagle's nest, or a den of lions.
[Illustration [++] Head-Quarters of Prince Rupert.]
The siege began about the 2nd of June, and the view exhibits his
head-quarters from that time till the reduction of the place. His main
camp was established round the beacon, about a mile from the town,
and his officers were placed in the adjoining villages, from whence a
detachment marched every day, being relieved every twenty-four hours,
to open trenches and erect batteries. From these advances Prince
Rupert frequently attacked the besieged and their works in the way of
storm, but was constantly repulsed with great slaughter of his men. At
length, Colonel More, finding the town must of necessity surrender, and
desirous of ingratiating himself with the Prince, for the preservation
of his house and effects at Bank Hall, gave such orders for his
soldiers to retire, that the works on the enemy's side were abandoned,
and the royalists entered the town at three o'clock in the morning of
June 26, putting to the sword all they met with, till they arrived
at the High Cross, which then stood on the site where the Exchange
now stands. Here the soldiers of the Castle, drawn up in line, beat a
parley, and demanded quarter, which, on their submitting as prisoners
of war, and surrendering the Castle to the Prince, was granted. The
soldiers were then sent to the tower, St. Nicholas's Church, and other
places of security; but the Parliament-army, soon after the siege,
repossessed themselves of the Castle, and appointed Col. Birch, as
governor.
FIRE AT BURWELL, CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 1727.
Some strollers brought down a puppet-show, which was exhibited in a
large thatched barn. Just as the show was about to begin, an idle
fellow attempted to thrust himself in without paying, which the people
of the show preventing, a quarrel ensued. After some altercation,
the fellow went away, and the door being made fast, all was quiet;
but the same man, to gain admittance privately, got over a heap of
hay and straw, which stood near to the barn, and accidentally set it
on fire. The spectators of the show, alarmed by the flames, which
had communicated to the barn, rushed to the door; but it happened
unfortunately that it opened inwards, and the crowd pressing violently
against the door, there could be no escape. Thus the whole company,
consisting of more than 160 persons, were kept confined till the roof
fell in, and covered them with fire and smoke: six only escaped with
life; the rest, among whom were several young ladies of fortune, were
reduced to one undistinguishable heap of mangled bodies, totally
disfigured. The friends of the dead, not knowing which were the remains
they sought, caused a large hole to be dug in the churchyard, and all
the bodies were promiscuously interred together, and a tablet erected
in the church to perpetuate this most melancholy event.
AN APPARENT SINGULARITY ACCOUNTED FOR.
It is generally well known that birds are very active agents in the
extension of vegetation, and that fruit and flowers are, to a great
extent, rendered prolific by the insects which visit their blossoms;
but few people are aware of the means through which fish are formed
in lakes and ponds, which are not connected with other waters. Here,
also, an insect is the principal agent. The large water-beetle, which
is in the habit of feeding upon the spawn of fish, occasionally in
the evening climbs up the stems of rushes, &c. out of the water,
sufficiently high to enable it to take wing; in these circumstances it
has been caught, and, putting it into water, has been found to give out
the spawn with which it had gorged itself previous to taking flight,
both in a digested and undigested state; so that, on trial, it has been
found that it produced fish of various kinds.
EUROPEAN BALANCING EQUAL TO THE INDIAN JUGGLERS.
The astonishing dexterity of the Indian jugglers is known to all,
but many years ago a Spaniard named Cadenas made himself equal, if
not superior to them. He may be truly said to be superior to them,
inasmuch as several of his feats have never been attempted by them. Don
Cadenas extended himself flat on his back on a large table. He then
elevated his legs until they were at right angles with his body; he
was assisted in keeping this position by a sort of pyramidal cushion,
which was placed under him, a little below the lower end of his back.
His feet and ankles were covered with boots, on which were many small
castanets and little bells. The tranca, which is a round piece of
wood, about 8 feet long and five inches in diameter, handsomely
painted, was then laid horizontally on the soles of his feet, his legs
being perpendicular. Having exactly balanced the tranca, he alternately
struck his feet against it, the castanets, &c., keeping time with the
music. In proportion to the strength with which he struck the tranca,
with one foot or both feet, was the height to which he elevated it,
always catching it, in its descent, with great accuracy, on the soles
of his feet. Sometimes by bending his knees and then striking out with
his limbs, he threw the tranca several feet into the air, catching it,
in its descent, on his feet, with as much neatness and more certainty
than the Indian jugglers used to catch the brass balls in their hands.
He concluded the performance with the tranca, by exactly balancing it
on the sole of his left foot, and then by repeated strokes of his right
foot set it rapidly in motion like a horizontal fly-wheel.
MOB-WISDOM.
A singular instance of a mob cheating themselves by their own headlong
impetuosity, is to be found in the life of Woodward, the comedian. On
one occasion, when he was in Dublin, and lodged opposite the Parliament
House, a mob who were making the members swear to oppose an unpopular
bill, called out to his family to throw them a Bible out of the window.
Mr. W. was frightened, for they had no such book in the house, but he
threw out a volume of Shakespere, telling the mob they were welcome to
it. They gave him three cheers, swore the members upon this book, and
afterwards returned it without discovering its contents.
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ANIMALS.
The means by which animals contrive to communicate their ideas to each
other is a phenomenon which has never been satisfactorily explained.
The two following instances of it are very curious. A gentleman who
was in the habit of occasionally visiting London from a distant county
performed the journey on horseback, accompanied by a favourite little
terrier dog, which he left at an inn at some distance from London
till his return. On one occasion on calling for his dog the landlady
told him that it was lost; it had had a quarrel with the great house
dog, and had been so worried and bit that it was thought he would
never recover, but at the end of a few days he crawled out of the
yard, and no one saw him for almost a week, when he returned with
another dog bigger than his enemy, on whom they both fell and nearly
destroyed him. This dog had actually travelled to its own home at
Whitmore in Staffordshire, had coaxed away the great dog in question,
which followed him to St. Alban's to assist in resenting the injury
of his friend. The following story is related of a little spaniel
which had been found lame by a surgeon at Leeds. He carried the poor
animal home, bandaged up his leg, and after two or three days turned
him out. The dog returned to the surgeon's house every morning till
his leg was perfectly well. At the end of several months, the spaniel
again presented himself in company with another dog, which had also
been lamed; and he intimated, as well as piteous and intelligent looks
could intimate, that he desired the same assistance to be rendered to
his friend as had been bestowed upon himself. The combination of ideas
in this case, growing out of the recollection of his own injury, and
referring that to the cure which had been performed; the compassion he
had for his friend to whom he communicated the occurrence, and induced
to seek relief under his guidance, together with the appeal to the
humane surgeon, is as extraordinary a piece of sagacity as can be found
in all the annals of animals.
STRANGE CUSTOM ABOUT NAMES.
The following anecdote forcibly illustrates the absurd custom which
prevailed many years ago in America, of giving children names, made up
of Scripture sentences. We record the anecdote as being descriptive
of a curious local custom. About the beginning of the present
century a New England sea captain having some business at a public
office, which required him to sign his name, was rather tedious in
performing the operation, which did not escape the observation of
the officer, who was a little impatient at the delay, and curious
withal to see what sort of a name it could be that required so long
a time to spread it upon paper. Perhaps the captain had a long
string of titles to grace it, such as honorable, esquire, colonel of
militia, selectman of the town of ----, &c., which he chose to make
an ostentatious parade of; or perhaps it was his whim to subscribe
the place of his nativity and that of his residence, together with
his age, height, and complexion. He was mistaken; for the captain
had subscribed nothing but simply his name, which, when he had
done, the officer, after some trouble in decyphering, found to read
thus:--Through-Much-Tribulation-We-Enter-Into-the-Kingdom-of-Heaven
Clapp. "Will you please to tell me, Captain Clapp," said he, with as
demure a face as his violent inclination to indulge in a hearty laugh
would allow him to put on, "what might your mother have called you
in your infancy, to save herself the trouble of repeating a sermon
whenever she had occasion to name her darling?" "Why, sir," replied
Captain Clapp, with laughable simplicity, "when I was little they used
to call me Tribby, for shortness."
DRESS IN LONDON DURING THE LAST CENTURY.
The seven illustrations which accompany this article represent
the progress of dress in London from 1690 to 1779. They speak for
themselves, and tell their own tale far better than any description
in words could tell it for them. The scale in society to which the
persons depicted in the engravings belong, is what may be called the
upper middle class, and we thus obtain a more correct idea of the
general style of dress, than we should have done had we confined our
observations solely to the higher ranks.
[Illustration: Dress 1690-1715.]
[Illustration: Dress 1721.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1735--common Life.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1738.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1752.]
[Illustration: Dress Circa 1773, 1778.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1779.]
It is, however, very curious to notice the value placed upon dress
during the period indicated; and how frequently its loss is recorded.
Thus we find it mentioned that Lady Anderson, whose house was robbed
at a fire in Red Lion Square in 1700, lost a gown of orange damask,
lined with, striped silk. The family of George Heneage, Esq., at the
same time, and by the same casualty, lost "_a head_, with very fine
looped lace of very great value, a Flanders' laced hood, a pair of
double ruffles and tuckers, two laced aprons, one edged with point
lace, and a large black scarf embroidered with gold." At the same
period the ladies wore Holland petticoats, embroidered in figures with
different coloured silks and gold, with broad orrice at the bottom.
In 1702 diamond stomachers adorned the ladies; they were composed of
that valuable stone set in silver, and sewed in a variety of figures
upon black silk. The men imported the Champaign wig from France. They
were made very full, curled, and eighteen inches in length to the
point, with drop locks. In the _Post Boy_, of November 15, 1709, there
were advertised as stolen, "A black silk petticoat, with red and white
calico border, cherry-coloured stays, trimmed with blue and silver, a
red and dove-coloured damask gown, flowered with large trees; a yellow
satin apron, trimmed with white Persian, and muslin head-clothes, with
crow-foot edging; a black silk furbelowed scarf, and a spotted hood."
Black and beaver hats for ladies were advertised in 1719, faced with
coloured silks, and trimmed with gold and silver lace. A man of fashion
in 1720 wore the full flowing curled wig, which fell in ringlets
half-way down his arms and back, a laced coat, straight, formal, with
buttons to the very bottom, and several on the pockets and sleeves; his
shoes were square at the toes, had diminutive buckles, a monstrous flap
on the instep, and high heels, a belt secured the coat and supported
the sword. Perukes were a highly important article of dress in 1734.
Fans were much used, ladies seldom appeared without this useful
ornament in their hands. The hoop underwent many important changes;
sometimes it projected at the sides only, or, like its ancestor, the
fardingale, it spread itself all round in imposing majesty. High-heeled
shoes maintained their place. In 1740 tight sleeves with full ruffles,
small pointed waists, enclosed in whalebone, loose gowns, called
sacques, and cloaks with hoods, named cardinals, were _la grande
monde_. Among the gentlemen's costumes, the most striking was the
_Ramilies_ tail, which was a plaited tail to the wig, with an immense
bow at the top and one at the bottom. Claret coloured clothes were
considered as handsome; and light blue with silver button-holes, and
silver garters to the knees, was very fashionable between 1740 and
1751. The change to wearing the natural hair instead of wigs took place
about 1765. From that date the female dress altered by degrees: the cap
was enlarged to an enormous size, and the bonnet swelled in proportion.
Hoops were entirely discontinued. Hats and bonnets of straw, chip, and
beaver, became well proportioned, and velvet pelisses, shawls and silk
spencers were contrived to improve rather than injure the form. The
male dress also insensibly changed from formality to ease, and thus, by
degrees, the fashion became what our illustrations represent it to have
been in 1779.
ATTAR OF ROSES.
Lieutenant Colonel Polier gives a full history of extracting this
essential oil, in vol i. p. 332, of the _Asiatic Researches_. The roses
grow, cultivated near Lucknow, in fields of eleven acres each. The
oil is procured by distillation; the petals of the flowers only are
used; and in that country no more than a quantity of about two drachms
can be procured from an hundred-weight of rose leaves, and even that
in a favourable season, and by the process being performed with the
utmost care. The oil is by accident of different colours; of a bright
yellow, of a reddish hue, and a fine emerald. It is to the mother of
Mebrul Nessa Begum, afterwards called Nourjehan Begum, or, _Light
of the World_, that the fair sex is indebted for this discovery. On
this occasion the emperor of Hindostan rewarded the inventress with a
string of valuable pearls. Nourjehan Begum was the favourite wife of
Jehangir, and her game the fiercest of India. In a hunting party she
killed four tigers with a matchlock, from her elephant, and her spouse
was so delighted at her skill, that he made her a present of a pair of
emerald bracelets, valued at a lack of rupees, and bestowed in charity
a thousand mohurs.
FLEET MARRIAGES ABOUT 1740.
Many of the early Fleet weddings were _really_ performed at the
chapel of the Fleet; but as the practice extended, it was found more
convenient to have other places within the Rules of the Fleet, (added
to which the Warden was compelled by act of parliament not to suffer
them,) and thereupon many of the Fleet parsons and tavern-keepers in
the neighbourhood fitted up a room in their respective lodgings or
houses as a chapel. The parsons took the fees, allowing a portion to
the plyers, &c., and the tavern-keepers, besides sharing in the fees,
derived a profit from the sale of liquors which the wedding party
drank. In some instances the tavern-keepers kept a parson on their
establishment at a weekly salary of twenty shillings; while others,
upon a wedding-party arriving, sent for any clergyman they might please
to employ, and divided the fee with him. Most of the taverns near the
Fleet kept their own registers, in which (as well as in their own
books,) the parsons entered the weddings.
EFFECTS OF THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE AT LISBON.
The earthquake happened on November the 1st, 1755, and its sphere of
action embraced many cities and states. St. Ubes was totally destroyed.
At Cadiz the sea broke down the outer wall, flooded the town, and
drowned some hundreds of persons. The Cathedral of Seville was
seriously damaged, several houses overthrown, and many persons injured.
The shock was felt, indeed, throughout the whole of Spain, except in
Catalonia, and also in Germany. In many parts of Great Britain the
water in lakes and ponds was violently upheaved, and ebbed and flowed
over the banks. A solemn Fast was consequently commanded to be observed
on the 6th of February next ensuing, in the hope to avert, by prayer
and penitence, a similar calamity from this country. A ship at sea,
100 leagues to the westward of Lisbon, had her cabin windows shattered
to fragments, and many vessels in deep water quivered as if they had
struck against a rock. In Morocco the effects of the shock were most
disastrous. In Mequinez two-thirds of the houses were destroyed, and
above 300 in Fez. A caravan of 200 persons going along the coast
from Sallee to Morocco were overwhelmed by the sea, and a still more
numerous caravan was swept away by the sudden rise of the inland
rivers. In France and Holland earthquakes were repeatedly felt during
the entire month of November, and occasionally even in December.
SNAKE-CHARMERS.
In the East Indies, the Pambatees, or snake-charmers, come from the
mountains called the Ghauts. They make a trade of catching serpents,
training them and exhibiting them for money. These reptiles are
commonly the _cobra-di-capello_, the hooded or spectacle serpent, and
of other similar species. A Pambatee will sometimes carry eight or
more of them in a low round basket, in which the serpents lie coiled
round one another.
As soon as the lid is removed from the basket, the serpent creeps
out of it. The master plays on an instrument somewhat resembling the
bagpipe, and the snakes are taught to mark the cadence by the motion
of their heads, till at length they fall asleep. In order to rouse
them, the Pambatee suspends his music and shakes a ring round his arm
to which a piece of red cloth is fastened. The irritated serpent darts
at the ring; but as the master has taken care to extract the pouch
containing the poison, and to file his teeth, he can do no harm.
[Illustration [++] Snake-Charmer.]
The musical instrument just mentioned is called _magootee_. It is
composed of a hollow calebash, to one end of which is fitted a
mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. To the other extremity is
adapted a tube perforated with several holes, which are successively
stopped by the fingers, like those of the flute, while the player blows
into the mouthpiece. In the middle of the instrument is a small mirror,
on which the serpents fix their eyes while dancing. The above engraving
will convey a correct idea of the Pambatee and his instrument.
WONDERFUL ESCAPE.
In 1785, at Winster, in Derbyshire, a show being exhibited at a
public-house, some gunpowder being scattered on the floor of an upper
chamber, took fire, and communicated to the remainder of a barrel,
by which the whole upper part of the house was blown up; about sixty
persons were below, and not one hurt.
FAC-SIMILE OF THE FIRST STEAM BOAT.
[Illustration [++] First Steam Boat.]
The triumph of steam navigation is one of the wonders of science; and,
traversed in all directions as the navigable waters of the earth now
are, by vessels propelled by steam, it is not a little curious to look
at the first rude effort, and to examine the attempt which has been
followed by such extraordinary success.
The world stands indebted, not for the discovery, but for the
successful application of steam power to navigation, to Robert Fulton,
who was born in Pennsylvania in 1765, being the son of a poor Irish
labourer who had emigrated to America. He came to London in 1786,
and subsequently, in the character of an inventor and projector,
proceeded to Paris, where, however, he did not meet with much success
or encouragement. It is evident, from the following letter to a friend,
that while residing in the French capital, that his attention was even
then turned to the subject of propelling vessels by mechanical power:--
Paris, the 20th of September, 1802.
TO MR. FULNER SKIPWITH.
Sir,--The expence of a patent in France is 300 livers for three years,
800 ditto for ten years, and 1500 ditto for fifteen years; there can
be no difficulty in obtaining a patent for the mode of propelling a
boat which you have shewn me; but if the author of the model wishes
to be assured of the mirits of his invention before he goes to the
expence of a patent, I advise him to make the model of a boat, in which
he can place a clock spring which will give about eight revolutions;
he can then combine the movements so as to try oars, paddles, and the
leaves which he proposes; if he finds that the leaves drive the boat a
greater distance in the same time than either oars or paddles, they
consequently are a better application of power. About eight years ago
the Earl of Stanhope tried an experiment on similar leaves in Greenland
Dock, London, but without success. I have also tried experiments on
similar leaves, wheels, oars, paddles, and flyars similar to those of
a smoak jack, and found oars to be the best. The velocity with which a
boat moves, is in proportion as the sum of the surfaces of the oars,
paddles, leaves, or other machine is to the bow of the boat presented
to the water, and in proportion to the power with which such machinery
is put in motion; hence, if the sum of the surfaces of the oars is
equal to the sum of the surfaces of the leaves, and they pass through
similar curves in the same time, the effect must be the same; but oars
have this advantage, they return through air to make a second stroke,
and hence create very little resistance; whereas the leaves return
through water, and add considerably to the resistance, which resistance
is increased as the velocity of the boat is augmented: no kind of
machinery can create power; all that can be done is to apply the manuel
or other power to the best advantage. If the author of the model is
fond of mechanics, he will be much amused, and not lose his time, by
trying the experiments in the manner I propose, and this perhaps is the
most prudent measure, before a patent is taken.
I am, Sir, with much respect, yours,
ROBT. FULTON.
In the following year, 1803, he appears to have made an experiment in
France of propelling a vessel by mechanism, and though it failed in
consequence of the timbers of the boat being too weak, it served to
convince him so completely of ultimate success, that he immediately
gave instructions to Watt and Boulton to prepare a suitable steam
engine for him, and send it to New York. Having returned to that city
in 1806, he set about building a boat, and having received the engines
he had ordered, he successfully started the first steam-boat in the
world on her trial trip to Albany from New York in August, 1807.
Her name was the "_Clermont_," and the above engraving is a correct
representation of her. She was in length 133 feet, in depth 7, and in
breadth 18.
SEVERE ENACTMENT AGAINST BEGGARS.
At the commencement of the reign of Edward VI., a most severe and
extraordinary statute was made for the punishment of vagabonds and
relief of poor persons. It does not appear who were the contrivers
of this instrument, the preamble and general spirit of which were
more in accordance with the tyrannical and arbitrary measures of the
preceding reign, than with the mild and merciful character of the
infant sovereign, who is well known to have taken a very active part
in the affairs of government. It repeals all the former statutes on
this subject, and enacts, that if any beggar or other person, not being
lame or impotent, and after loitering or idly wandering for the space
of three days or more, shall not offer himself to labour, or being
engaged in any person's service, shall run away or leave his work, it
shall be lawful for the master to carry him before a justice of peace,
who, on proof of the offence, shall cause the party to be marked with
a hot iron with the letter V on the breast, and adjudge him to be his
master's slave for the space of two years, who shall feed him "on bread
and water, or at his discretion, on refuse of meat, and cause the said
slave to work by beating, chaining, or otherwise in such work or labour
(how vile soever it be) as he shall put him unto." If the slave should
run away or absent himself for a fortnight without leave, the master
may pursue and punish him by chaining or beating, and have his action
of damage against any one who shall harbour or detain him. On proof
before the justice of the slave's escape, he is to be sentenced to be
marked on the forehead or ball of the cheek with a hot iron with the
letter S, and adjudged to be his master's slave for ever; and for the
second offence of running away, he is to be regarded as a felon and
suffer death. The children of beggars to be taken from them, and, with
other vagrant children, to be apprenticed by the magistrate to whoever
will take them; and if such children so apprenticed run away, they are
to be retaken, and become slaves till the age of twenty in females,
and twenty-four in males, with punishment by chains, &c., and power
to the master to let, sell, or bequeath them, as goods and chattels,
for the term aforesaid. If any slave should maim or wound the master,
in resisting correction, or conspire to wound or murder him, or burn
his house or other property, he is to suffer death as a felon, unless
the master will consent to retain him as a slave for ever; and if any
parent, nurse, or bearer about of children, so become slaves, shall
steal, or entice them away from the master, such person shall be liable
to become a slave to the said master for ever, and the party so stolen
or enticed away restored. If any vagrant be brought to a place, where
he shall state himself to have been born, and it shall be manifest that
he was not so born there, for such lie he shall be marked in the face
with an S, and become a slave to the inhabitants or corporation of the
city for ever. Any master of a slave may put a ring of iron about his
neck, arm, or leg, for safe custody, and any person taking or helping
to take off such ring, without consent of the master, shall forfeit the
sum of ten pounds.
This diabolical statute, after remaining for two years, was repealed,
on the ground that, from its extreme severity, it had not been enforced.
JUDGES IN THEIR ROBES ATTENDING PUBLIC BALLS.
That the ideas of good taste and propriety which now prevail are
greatly in advance of those which our ancestors entertained, is
strikingly manifested by the fact, that the dreadful scenes which
followed the last business of a county assize did not prevent a festive
beginning of the same. On the commission day at each county town was
held an assize ball. The judges attended in black silk gowns with band
and two-curl bob-wig. They did not dance, but usually played at whist.
What would be thought now-a-days of judges who went to a public ball
room on commission day, and played at whist in their robes?
ST. WINIFRED'S WELL.
The most copious spring in Great Britain is St. Winifred's Well, near
the town of Holywell, in Flintshire. The well is an oblong square,
about twelve feet by seven. The water passes into a small square court
through an arch; it has never been known to freeze, and scarcely ever
varies in quantity either in drought or after the greatest rains. The
water thrown up is not less than eighty-four hogsheads every minute.
[Illustration: St. Winifred's Well.]
This sacred well is the object of many pilgrimages, even in the present
day, and several modern miracles are related of the influence of its
waters. Pope Martin V. especially enjoined such pilgrimages, and the
monks of Basingwerk were furnished with pardons and indulgences to sell
to the devotees. James the 2nd visited the well in 1686, and Leopold,
King of the Belgians, in 1819. Apart from all superstitious notions,
its waters doubtless possess many curative properties.
Over the well, Queen Margaret, the mother of Henry VII., erected a
beautiful chapel, whose elegantly fretted roof, and graceful columns
and arches, are generally admired as examples of good architecture. Our
engraving is a correct representation of the interior.
INSTANCE OF ASSIDUITY AND PERSEVERANCE.
The Rev. Wm. Davy, a Devonshire curate, in the year 1795, begun a
most desperate undertaking, viz., that of printing himself twenty-six
volumes of sermons, which he actually did, working off page by page,
for fourteen copies; and continuing this almost hopeless task for
twelve years, in the midst of poverty! Such wonderful perseverance
almost amounts to a ruling passion.
PHENOMENON AT THE POWERSCOURT FALL.
[Illustration [++] Powerscourt Fall.]
The Powerscourt Fall, of which the annexed is an engraving, is formed
by the river Dargle, and is situated in the county of Wicklow. When
the river is full, it presents a very grand appearance. The stream
precipitates itself over a nearly perpendicular cliff, 300 feet in
height, and falls into a natural basin or reservoir, encircled by
rocky masses of considerable magnitude, whilst the whole scene is
backed by mountains. This fall exhibits rather a singular phenomenon,
in the different degrees of velocity with which the water descends
in different parts of the cascade. Thus, on one side, the water may
be observed to pour down with considerable velocity; while, on the
other side, the fall, in the upper part, presents the appearance of
a continued stream of frothy foam, gliding slowly down the face of
the cliff, though the lower part moves with greater velocity. This
circumstance is, however, readily accounted for; being, in fact, mainly
attributable to the comparatively small body of water which forms the
cascade. The water, on the one side, that which descends with the
greater velocity (and this forms by far the larger portion of the
cascade) meets with no interruption in its descent, but falls, almost
from the top, to the bottom in an unbroken sheet. On the other side,
however, the cliff in the upper part deviates from the perpendicular,
and the consequence is, that, owing to the slope or inclination of
the rock over which it flows, the progress of the water is checked
in that particular part, though lower down, where the cliff is again
perpendicular, it regains its velocity. If the body of water in this
cascade were greater, this phenomenon would not occur.
HOW CHESS ORIGINATED IN INDIA.
By the unanimous consent of all nations, chess holds the first place
among social amusements. The history of this game has exercised
many able pens. According to Sir William Jones, it is decidedly
of Hindoo invention. "If," says he, in a learned memoir on this
subject inserted in the second volume of the _Asiatic Researches_,
"evidence were required to prove this fact, we may be satisfied with
the testimony of the Persians, who, though as much inclined as other
nations to appropriate the ingenious inventions of a foreign people,
unanimously agree that the game was imported from the west of India
in the sixth century of our era. It seems to have been immemorially
known in Hindoostan by the name of _Cheturanga_, the four _angas_, or
members of an army, which are _elephants_, _horses_, _chariots_, and
_foot-soldiers_; and in this sense, the word is frequently used by epic
poets in their description of real armies. By a natural corruption
of the pure Sanscrit word, it was changed by the old Persians into
_chetrang_; but the Arabs, who soon after took possession of their
country, had neither the initial nor the final letter of that word in
their alphabet, and consequently altered it farther into _shetranj_,
which presently found its way into the modern Persian, and at length
into the dialects of India, where the true derivation of the name is
known only to the learned. Thus has a very significant word in the
sacred language of the Brahmins been transformed by successive changes
into _axedrez_, _scacchi_, _echecs_, chess, and by a whimsical
concurrence of circumstances given birth to the English word _check_,
and even a name to the _exchequer_ of Great Britain."
Of the origin of this game various accounts are given. Some Hindoo
legends relate, that it was invented by the wife of Ravanen, king of
Lanca, or Ceylon, to amuse her husband with an image of war, when
Rama, in the second age of the world, was besieging his capital. The
high degree of civilization which the court of Ravanen had attained
at so remote a period is worthy of notice. An ancient Hindoo painting
represents his capital regularly fortified with embattled towers. He
there defended himself with equal skill and valour, whence he and
his subjects were denominated magicians and giants. Ravanen seems to
have been the Archimedes of Lanca; and his science must have appeared
supernatural to the invader, Rama, and his wild horde of mountaineers,
who were termed in derision satyrs or apes, whence the fable of the
divine Hanooman.
According to another account, the occasion of this invention was as
follows:--Behub, a young and dissolute Indian prince, oppressed his
people in the most cruel manner. Nassir, a Brahmin, deeply afflicted
by his excesses, and the lamentations of his subjects, undertook to
recal the tyrant to reason. With this view he invented a game, in which
the king, impotent by himself, is protected only by his subjects, even
of the lowest class, and frequently ruined by the loss of a single
individual.
The fame of this extraordinary invention reached the throne, and the
king summoned the Brahmin to teach him the game, as a new amusement.
The virtuous Brahmin availed himself of this opportunity to instil
into the mind of the young tyrant the principles of good government,
and to awaken him to a sense of his duties. Struck by the truths which
he inculcated, the prince conceived an esteem for the inventor of the
new game, and assured him of his willingness to confer a liberal
remuneration, if he would mention his own terms. Nassir demanded as
many grains of wheat as would arise from allowing one for the first
square, two for the second, four for the third, and so on, doubling
for each square of the sixty-four on the chessboard. The king, piqued
at the apparently trivial value of the demand, desired him somewhat
angrily to ask a gift more worthy of a monarch to bestow. When,
however, Nassir adhered to his first request, he ordered the required
quantity of corn to be delivered to him. On calculating its amount, the
superintendents of the public granaries, to their utter astonishment,
found the demand to be so enormous, that not Behub's kingdom only, but
even all Hindoostan would have been inadequate to the discharge of it.
The king now admired the Brahmin still more for the ingenuity of his
request than for the invention, appointed him his prime-minister, and
his kingdom was thenceforward prosperous and happy.
The claim of the Hindoos to the invention of chess has been disputed in
favour of the Chinese; but as they admit that they were unacquainted
with the game till 174 years before Christ, and the Hindoos
unquestionably played it long before that time, the pretensions of the
latter must naturally fall to the ground.
DISORDERS CURED BY FRIGHT.
Fabritius makes mention of a gentleman, with whom he was familiar,
who, being unjustly suspected, was tortured upon the rack, and, when
released, found himself quite cured of the gout, which was, _before_
this violent remedy, rather troublesome. Again, we have instances of
disorders being cured by fright. We find, in the Journal de Henri IV.,
that, "On Friday, June the 9th, 1606, as Henry IV. of France, and his
Queen, were crossing the water in the ferry-boat of Neuilly, the Duke
of Vendome being with them, they were all three in great danger of
being drowned, especially the queen, who was obliged to drink a great
deal more than was agreeable to her; and had not one of her footmen,
and a gentleman called La Chatagnieraie, who caught hold of her hair,
desperately thrown themselves into the water to pull her out, she
would have inevitably lost her life. This accident cured the king of a
violent toothache; and, after having escaped the danger, he diverted
himself with it, saying he had never met with so good a remedy for that
disorder before, and that they had ate too much salt meat at dinner,
therefore they had a mind to make them drink after it."
THE WINGLESS BIRD OF NEW ZEALAND.
One of the chief wonders of the world of Ornithology is the Apteryx,
a bird which is found only in New Zealand, and even there, is rapidly
becoming extinct. It is a creature so strange, that no imagination
could have fancied a bird without wings or tail, with robust legs,
and with claws which are suited for digging, and are actually used
in forming excavations, in which this singular bird lays its eggs,
and hatches its young. If the Apteryx were to become extinct, and all
that remained of it, after the lapse of one or two centuries, for the
scrutiny of the naturalist were a foot in one Museum, and a head in
another, with a few conflicting figures of its external form, the real
nature and affinities of this most remarkable species would be involved
in as much obscurity and doubt, and become the subject of as many
conflicting opinions among the ornithologists of that period, as are
those of the Dodo in the present day.
The Apteryx is not larger than a full-grown fowl, and has only a
rudimentary wing, so covered with the body feathers as to be quite
concealed; the terminating slender claw may, however, be discerned on
examination.
[Illustration: The Wingless Bird.]
The bill is long and slightly curved, having the nostrils at the
extremity; its feathers, the sides of which are uniform in structure,
do not exceed four and a-half inches in length, and are much prized as
material for mantles or cloaks by the chiefs. It is a nocturnal bird,
using its long bill in search of worms, upon which it principally
feeds; it kicks with great power, and burrows at the root of the rata,
at the base of which tree is also found the extraordinary Sphæria
Robertsia, a species of vegetating caterpillar. Retaining the form
of the caterpillar, the fungus pervades the whole body, and shoots
up a small stem above the surface of the ground, the body of the
caterpillar being below the earth in an erect position. The Apteryx
frequently leans with its bill upon the earth--one of its chief
characteristics--and thus, when viewed from a distance, appears to be
standing on three legs.
By the natives of New Zealand, these birds are called Kiwis, from the
cry they utter, and they are frequently caught by a cunning imitator of
their tone, who, when they approach, dazzles and frightens them with
a light previously concealed, and throwing his blanket over them thus
secures them.
A FLOATING CITY.
[Illustration: Floating City of Bankok.]
One of the most wonderful cities in the world is Bankok. It is the
capital of Siam, and is situated on--or rather in--the great river
Meinam. Our engraving represents a portion of this unique metropolis,
and we find the following graphic account of it in a volume of recent
travels--"The capital of Siam! Did you ever witness such a sight in
your life? On either side of the wide, majestic stream, moored in
regular streets and alleys, and extending as far as the eye can reach,
are upwards of seventy thousand neat little wooden houses, each house
floating on a compact raft of bamboos; and the whole intermediate space
of the river presents to our astonished gaze one dense mass of ships,
junks, and boats, of every conceivable shape, colour, and size. As we
glide along amongst these, we occasionally encounter a stray floating
house, broken loose from its moorings, and hurrying down the stream
with the tide, amidst the uproar and shouts of the inhabitants and
all the spectators. We also observe that all the front row of houses
are neatly painted shops, in which various tempting commodities are
exposed for sale; behind these again, at equal distances, rise the
lofty and elegant porcelain towers of the various watts and temples.
On our right-hand side, far away as we can see, are three stately
pillars, erected to the memory of three defunct kings, celebrated for
some acts of valour and justice; and a little beyond these, looming
like a line-of-battle ship amongst a lot of cockle-shells, rises the
straggling and not very elegant palace of the king, where his Siamese
Majesty, with ever so many wives and children, resides. Right ahead,
where the city terminates, and the river, making a curve, flows
behind the palace, is a neat-looking-fort, surmounted with a tope of
mango-trees, over which peep the roofs of one or two houses, and a tall
flag-staff, from which floats the royal pendant and jack of Siam--a
flag of red groundwork, with a white elephant worked into the centre.
That is the fort and palace of the prince Chou Fau, now king of Siam,
and one of the most extraordinary and intellectual men in the East.
Of him, however, we shall see and hear more, after we have bundled
our traps on shore, and taken a little rest. Now, be careful how you
step out of the boat into the balcony of the floating house, for it
will recede to the force of your effort to mount, and if not aware of
this, you lose your balance and fall into the river. Now we are safely
transhipped, for we cannot as yet say landed; but we now form an item,
though a very small one, of the vast population of the city of Bangkok.
We take a brief survey of our present apartments, and find everything,
though inconveniently small, cleanly and in other respects comfortable.
First, we have a little balcony which overhangs the river, and is about
twenty yards long by one and a half broad. Then we have an excellent
sitting-room, which serves us for parlour, dining-room, and all; then
we have a little side room for books and writing; and behind these,
extending the length of the other two, a bed-room. Of course we must
bring or make our own furniture; for, though those houses inhabited
by the Chinese are pretty well off on this score, the Siamese have
seldom anything besides their bedding materials, a few pots and pans
to cook with, a few jars of stores and fishing-net or two. Every house
has a canoe attached to it, and no nation detests walking so much as
the Siamese; at the same time they are all expert swimmers, and both
men and women begin to acquire this very necessary art at a very early
age. Without it a man runs momentary risk of being drowned, as, when a
canoe upsets, none of the passers-by ever think it necessary to lend
any aid, supposing them fully adequate to the task of saving their
own lives. Canoes are hourly being upset, owing to the vast concourse
of vessels and boats plying to and fro; and, owing to this negligence
or carelessness in rendering assistance, a Mr. Benham, an American
missionary, lost his life some twelve years ago, having upset his own
canoe when it was just getting dusk, and though surrounded by hundreds
of boats, not one deemed it necessary to stop and pick the poor man up."
BEQUESTS FOR LIGHTING THE STREETS.
There cannot be a greater contrast than between the present and the
ancient mode of lighting the streets of London. What a picture do the
two following bequests present to us of the state of things a hundred
years ago!
John Wardall, by will, dated 29th August, 1656, gave to the Grocers'
Company a tenement called the White Bear, in Walbrook, to the intent
that they should yearly, within thirty days after Michaelmas, pay to
the churchwardens of St. Botolph, Billingsgate, £4, to provide a good
and sufficient iron and glass lantern, with a candle, for the direction
of passengers to go with more security to and from the water-side, all
night long, to be fixed at the north-east corner of the parish church
of St. Botolph, from the feast-day of St. Bartholomew to Lady-Day; out
of which sum £1 was to be paid to the sexton for taking care of the
lantern. This annuity is now applied to the support of a lamp in the
place prescribed, which is lighted with gas.
John Cooke, by will, dated 12th September, 1662, gave to the
churchwardens, &c., of St. Michael's, Crooked Lane, £76, to be laid out
to the most profit and advantage, for various uses, and amongst them,
for the maintenance of a lantern and candle, to be eight in the pound
at least, to be kept and hanged out at the corner of St. Michael's
Lane, next Thames Street, from Michaelmas to Lady-Day, between the
hours of nine and ten o'clock at night, until the hours of four or five
in the morning, for affording light to passengers going through Thames
Street, or St. Michael's Lane.
EXTRAORDINARY INSTANCE OF CREDULITY.
To the honour of the lords of the creation, there are _some_ husbands
who so grieve at the death of their partners, that they will not part
with them when actually dead; and even go so far as to wish, and try
hard, for their resurrection; witness Sir John Pryse, of Newtown,
Montgomeryshire, who married three wives, and kept the first two
who died, in his room, one on each side of his bed; his third lady,
however, declined the honour of his hand till her defunct rivals
were committed to their proper place. Sir John was a gentleman of
strange singularities. During the season of miracles worked by Bridget
Bostock, of Cheshire, who healed all diseases by prayer, faith, and an
embrocation of fasting spittle, multitudes resorted to her from all
parts, and kept her salivary glands in full employ. Sir John, with a
high spirit of enthusiasm, wrote to this wonderful woman to make him
a visit at Newtown Hall, in order to restore to him his third and
favourite wife (above mentioned), now dead. His letter will best tell
the foundation on which he built his strange hope, and very uncommon
request:--
_Purport of Sir J. Pryse's letter to Mrs. Bridget Bostock, 1748._
Madam,--Having received information, by repeated advices, both public
and private, that you have, of late, performed many wonderful cures,
even where the best physicians have failed, and that the means used
appeared to be very inadequate to the effects produced, I cannot but
look upon you as an extraordinary and highly-favoured person; and why
may not the same most merciful God, who enables you to restore sight to
the blind, hearing to the deaf, and strength to the lame, also enable
you to raise the dead to life? Now, having lately lost a wife, whom
I most tenderly loved; my children an excellent step-mother, and our
acquaintances a very dear and valuable friend, you will lay us all
under the highest obligations; and I earnestly entreat you, for God
Almighty's sake, that you will put up your petitions to the Throne of
Grace, on our behalf, that the deceased may be restored to us, and
the late dame Eleanor Pryse be raised from the dead. If your personal
attendance appears to you to be necessary, I will send my coach and
six, with proper servants, to wait on you hither, whenever you please
to appoint. Recompense of any kind, that you could propose, would be
made with the utmost gratitude; but I wish the bare mention of it is
not offensive to both God and you.
I am, madam, your obedient, &c.
JOHN PRYSE.
(_Pennant's Wales_, vol. 3, p. 190.)
HIGH PRICE OF FISH IN LONDON.
It is on record that on January 4, 1809, there being only four cod-fish
in Billingsgate, a fishmonger gave fourteen guineas for them, and
salmon soon after was sold at a guinea a pound!
THE GREAT AQUEDUCT OF PONT DU GARD.
[Illustration [++] Acqueduct of Pont du Gard.]
The remains of Roman aqueducts, of great extent and massiveness,
occur in various parts of Europe, over which the Roman dominion once
extended. Among these, the most celebrated are the Pont du Gard,
near Nismes, in the Department du Gard, in the south of France; the
aqueduct over the Moselle, near Metz; and the aqueduct of Segovia, in
Old Castile. The Pont du Gard (of which we here give an engraving)
was designed to convey the waters of the fountain of Aure to the town
of Nismes, the ancient Nemausus. This aqueduct crosses the beautiful
valley, and the stream of the river Gardon, uniting two steep hills, by
which the valley is bounded at this place. It consists of two tiers of
large arches, the lower of which are eighty feet in span, and a third
tier of small arches, which support the trunk of the aqueduct. The
channel for the water is above four feet wide, and five deep, and is
lined with cement three inches thick, and covered with a thin coating
of red clay. The whole work, with the exception of the above-mentioned
channel for the water, is built without mortar or any other cement;
and its elevation above the bed of the river Gardon, is not less than a
hundred and fifty feet. The extremities of this splendid structure are
in a dilapidated condition, but the remainder is in a very good state
of preservation.
EXTRAORDINARY SITUATION FOR A TREE.
[Illustration [++] Tree in Abbey of Muckross.]
The Lower and Middle Lakes at Killarney are separated by a peninsula,
upon which stands the ruin of the Abbey of Muckross, which was founded
in 1440, and re-edified in 1602. The ruin, which consists of parts
of the convent and church, is not remarkable either for extent, or
for beauty of workmanship, but its preservation, seclusion, beauty
of situation, and accompanying venerable trees, render it one of the
most interesting abbey remains in Ireland. The entire length of the
church is about 100 feet, its breadth 24. The cloister, which consists
of twenty-two arches, ten of them semicircular, and twelve pointed,
is the best preserved portion of the abbey. In the centre grows a
magnificent yew-tree, as represented in our engraving, which covers
as a roof the whole area; its circumference is thirteen feet, and its
height in proportion. It is more than probable that the tree is coeval
with the abbey, and that it was planted by the hands of the monks who
first inhabited the building. It is believed by the common people that
any person daring to pluck a branch, or in any way attempting to injure
this tree, will not be alive on that day twelvemonth.
PRAYING BY MACHINERY.
Mr. Moorcroft informs us, in his "Journey to Lake Manasawara, in Undés,
a province in Little Thibet," that the inhabitants used the following
most extraordinary way of saying their prayers:--It is done by motion,
which may be effected by the powers of steam, wind, or water. A large
hollow cylinder, like a drum, is erected, within which is inclosed all
the written prayers the people choose to offer, and then it is set
going, by being whirled round its own axis; thus saving the trouble
of repeating them. Mr. Turner, whose travels in Thibet are before the
public, corroborates the account of these whirligigs. They are common,
also, among the Monguls, the Calmucs, and the Kalkas; so that the
engineers for these pious wheels must have a tolerably extensive trade,
as this national mode of worship is naturally liable to wear out.
But even this mode is innocence itself, compared with that of a set
of savages, who _pray people to death_; for Lisiansky, in his Voyage
round the World, gives us an account of an extra-religious sect, in
the Sandwich Islands, who arrogate to themselves the power of praying
people to death. Whosoever incurs their displeasure, receives notice
that the homicide-litany is about to begin; and such are the effects of
imagination, that the very notice is frequently sufficient, with these
weak people, to produce the effect, or to drive them to acts of suicide.
TOPING IN THE LAST CENTURY.
At a Somersetshire hunt dinner, seventy years since, thirteen toasts
used to be drunk in strong beer; then every one did as he liked. Some
members of the hunt occasionally drank a glass of wine at the wind up,
who were not themselves previously wound up. In country towns, after a
dinner at one o'clock P.M., friends used to meet to discuss the local
news over their glasses of strong beer, the merits of which furnished
a daily theme. At Bampton one knot of gentlemen took four times the
duration of the Trojan war, and even then failed to settle which of the
party brewed the best beer.
A FINE OLD SOLDIER.
Jeremiah Atkins, of the Scar, near Bromyard, Herefordshire, died in
1796, aged 102. He had been a soldier through all the earlier periods
of his manhood, and had seen much service; was present at the taking
of Martinico, and at the Havannah; and, on one occasion, being taken
prisoner by the Indians of North America, was very near being scalped,
as he was only rescued at the moment they were about to perform the
operation. He was likewise at the taking of Crown Point, in America,
and in the battle of Fontenoy with the Duke of Cumberland, whom he also
accompanied in his resistance to the advance of the Scotch rebels,
being in several of the skirmishes and battles fought on that occasion.
He afterwards went again to America, and took part in the storming of
Quebec, when Wolfe was killed. The last battle in which he was engaged
was that of Tournay, in Flanders. This extraordinary man retained the
full use of all his natural faculties, save hearing, to the very close
of his life.
POPULAR FALLACY OF THE VIRTUES OF A SEVENTH SON.
It is believed that a seventh son can cure diseases, but that a
seventh son of a seventh son, and no female child born between, can
cure the king's evil. Such a favoured individual is really looked
on with veneration. An artist visiting Axminster in 1828, noticing
the indulgence granted to one urchin in preference to others, and
seeing something particular in this child, addressed his mother as
follows:--"This little man appears to be a favourite: I presume he is
your little Benjamin." "He's a seventh son, sir," said the mother.
Affecting an air of surprise, I expressed myself at the instant as
being one very anxious to know what a _seventh_ son could do? The
mother, a very civil woman, told me that "she did think, to cure all
diseases, should be the seventh son of a seventh son; but _many folk
do come to touch my son_." In April, 1826, a respectable looking woman
was engaged in collecting a penny from each of thirty young women,
unmarried; the money to be laid out in purchasing a silver ring, to
cure her son of epileptic fits. The money was to be freely given,
without any consideration, or else the charm would have been destroyed.
The young women gave their pence, because it would have been a _pity_
for the lad to continue afflicted _if_ the charm would cure him.
SELF-NOURISHMENT.
That animals may sometimes be kept alive for a long time solely on
nourishment supplied from their own bodies, is evident from the fact
that after a great fall of earth on one occasion from the cliff at
Dover, which buried a whole family, a hog was found alive five months
and nine days after it had thus been buried! It weighed about seven
score when the accident happened, and had wasted to about thirty
pounds, but was likely to do well.
CHINESE METHOD OF FISHING.
There is nothing more extraordinary in the history of the different
nations of the world than the ingenuity of the Chinese. They are the
most handy people on the face of the earth, and the lower orders are
just as clever as the higher. A proof of this may be seen at a fishing
village which is contiguous to the town of Victoria, in Hong Kong. It
remains in much the same state as that in which it existed prior to
the British occupation of the island. Old worn-out boats, and torn
mat-sails, bamboos and dried rushes,--these are the principal materials
employed in the construction of their domiciles. The fishing boats are
most ingeniously built. Each of these has a long projecting bamboo,
which is rigged out from the stem in the form of a bowsprit, only
working on a pivot. From the extremity of this outrigger, a strong
rope communicates with a balance-board, that exactly poises the bamboo
outrigger, when the net is immersed in water, and the fisherman has
only to walk up and down this plank to raise the net and let it drop
again in the water. But opposite to the island, and on many of the
little insular rocks which constitute the "ten thousand isles," of
which the emperor of China, amongst his vast pretensions to titles,
lays claim to be lord, fishing is conducted on a larger scale, though
worked upon the same principles. Huge poles are driven into the ground
where the water is comparatively shallow, and leading ropes, which pass
over a block-wheel inserted in the tops of these poles, communicate at
one end with large circular nets, (constructed somewhat in the shape
of a funnel, the upper rim being attached to floats, whilst from the
centre are pendant weights,) the other end being fastened on shore to a
balance plank, which the weight of one man suffices to work.
[Illustration: Chinese Method of Fishing.]
MOSQUE OF OMAR.
The opposite engraving represents the Great Mosque at Jerusalem. It is
built on the exact site of Solomon's Temple, and takes its name from
its original founder, the Caliph Omar. It is a Turkish edifice, and is
devoted to the worship of Mahomet.
Titus having taken Jerusalem in the second year of Vespasian's reign,
not one stone was left upon another of that Temple where Christ
had done such glorious things, and the destruction of which he had
predicted. When the Caliph Omar took Jerusalem, in 636 A.D., it appears
that the site of the Temple, with the exception of a very small part,
had been abandoned by the Christians. Said-Eben-Batrick, an Arabian
historian, relates that the Caliph applied to the Patriarch Sophronius,
and enquired of him what would be the most proper place at Jerusalem
for building a mosque. Sophronius conducted him to the ruins of
Solomon's Temple. Omar, delighted with the opportunity of erecting a
mosque on so celebrated a spot, caused the ground to be cleared, and
the earth to be removed from a large rock, where God is said to have
conversed with Jacob. From that rock the new mosque took its name
of Gameat-el-Sakhra, and became almost as sacred an object to the
Mussulmans, as the mosques of Mecca and Medina. The Caliph El-Oulid
contributed still more to the embellishment of El-Sakhra, and covered
it with a dome of copper, gilt, taken from a church at Balbeck. In the
sequel, the crusaders converted the Temple of Mahomet into a sanctuary
of Christ; but when Saladin re-took Jerusalem, he restored this edifice
to its original use.
[Illustration: Great Mosque at Jerusalem.]
The form is an octagon, either side being seventy feet in width; it is
entered by four spacious doors, the walls are white below, intermingled
with blue, adorned with pilasters, but above, it is faced with glazed
tiles of various colours. The interior is described as paved with grey
marble, the plain walls are covered with the same material in white.
It contains many noble columns, in two tiers. The dome is painted, and
gilt in arabesque, whence depend antique vessels of gold and silver;
immediately beneath it stands a mass of limestone, reported to have
fallen from heaven when the spirit of prophecy commenced. On this sat
the destroying angel, during the slaughter caused by David's numbering
the people. From this Mahomet ascended to heaven. Within the storied
walls, moreover, are the scales for weighing the souls of men, the
shield of Mahomet, and other relics, besides the entrance to the
infernal regions; seventy thousand angels ever guard the precious stone.
Entrance to this hallowed edifice has been gained only by two or three
Europeans; indeed, the Turks will not allow infidels to approach the
sacred enclosure around it, which measures about sixteen hundred feet
in length, by one thousand in width, and is adorned with fountains,
orange, cypress, and other trees.
The mosque itself is esteemed the finest piece of Saracenic
architecture in existence, far surpassing St. Sophia in beauty. Its
view, combined with the distinguished monuments in the City of the
Sultan, in Egypt, Greece, and Italy, strongly induces a belief in the
accuracy of an able article in the _Quarterly Review_, in which the
origin of the five predominant styles of architecture throughout the
world, viz., the Byzantine, Chinese, Egyptian, Grecian, and Gothic are
assigned respectively to the convex and concave curves, to the oblique,
horizontal, and perpendicular lines.
A COUPLE OF ECCENTRICS.
Mr. Day, the eccentric founder of Fairlop fair, had a housekeeper, who
had lived with him for thirty years, and was equally eccentric. She had
two very strong attachments; one to her wedding-ring and garments, and
the other to tea. When she died, Mr. Day would not permit her ring to
be taken off; he said, "If that was attempted, she would come to life
again;" and directed that she should be buried in her wedding-suit, and
a pound of tea in each hand; and these directions were literally obeyed.
THE UNIVERSALITY OF TAXATION.
The following extract, from the _Edinburgh Review_, is not
inappropriate to our pages, inasmuch as it is both a rare specimen
of effective composition, and also serves to show us what the state
of taxation was in England even within the last forty years.--Taxes
upon every article which enters into the mouth, or covers the back,
or is placed upon the feet--taxes upon every thing which it is
pleasant to see, hear, feel, smell, or taste--taxes upon warmth,
light, and locomotion--taxes on everything on earth, and the waters
under the earth--on every thing that comes from abroad, or is grown at
home--taxes on the raw material--taxes on every fresh value that is
added to it by the industry of man--taxes on the sauce which pamper's
man's appetite, and the drug that restores him to health--on the ermine
which decorates the judge, and the rope which hangs the criminal--on
the poor man's salt, and the rich man's spice--on the brass nails of
the coffin, and the ribands of the bride at bed or board, _couchant_
or _levant_, we must pay;--the schoolboy whips his taxed top--the
beardless youth manages his taxed horse, with a taxed bridle, on a
taxed road:--and the dying Englishman, pouring his medicine, which has
paid seven per cent., into a spoon that has paid fifteen per cent.,
flings himself back upon his chintz bed, which has paid twenty-two
per cent.--makes his will on an eight-pound stamp, and expires in the
arms of an apothecary, who has paid a license of an hundred pounds
for the privilege of putting him to death. His whole property is then
immediately taxed from two to ten per cent. Besides the probate, large
fees are demanded for burying him in the chancel; his virtues are
handed down to posterity on taxed markle; and he is then gathered to
his fathers--to be taxed no more.
SHAM PROPHETS.
William Hackett, a fanatic of the sixteenth century, after a very ill
life, turned prophet, and signified the desolation of England. He
prophesied at York and at Lincoln; where, for his boldness, he was
whipped publicly, and condemned to be banished. He had an extraordinary
fluency of speech, and much assurance in his prayers; for he said,
that if all England should pray for rain, and he should pray to the
contrary, it should not rain. Hackett had two brother-prophets joined
with him, Edward Coppinger, named the prophet of mercy, and Henry
Arthington, the prophet of judgment. Coppinger, the merciful prophet,
declared that Hackett was the sole monarch of Europe; and at length
they proclaimed him, July 16, 1592. On the 28th of the same month,
however, the monarch of the whole earth, who had also personated
divinity, was hanged and quartered. Coppinger famished himself in
prison, and Arthington was pardoned. Fitz Simon relates, that in a
quarrel Hackett had at Oundle, "He threw down his adversary, and
bit off his nose; and, instead of returning it to the surgeon, who
pretended to set it on again, while the wound was fresh, ate it."
Hackett, on the scaffold, made a blasphemous prayer, which is recorded
by Fitz Simon and Camden, too horrid to be repeated. He hated Queen
Elizabeth, and tried to deprive her of her crown; he confessed to
the judges that he had stabbed the effigies of this princess to the
heart, with an iron pin; and a little before he was hanged, being an
accomplished swearer, he cursed her with all manner of imprecations.
HOOKING A BOY INSTEAD OF A FISH.
About five and thirty years ago, as Mr. George Moor was fishing in the
river Tyne at Pipewellgate, Gateshead, he espied something in the water
which seemed like a drowned dog, but the day being clear, and the sun
shining, he thought he perceived a face, upon which he threw his line
to it (which had but three hairs at the hook) and hooked a coat, by
which he found it was a boy, but the hook loosing hold, he again cast
his line and struck him in the temple and drew him to the shore, and in
less than quarter of an hour he revived.
CHILDREN OF AGED PARENTS.
Margaret Krasiowna, of the village of Koninia, Poland, died 1763, aged
108. The following extraordinary circumstances are stated, by Eaton,
as connected with the life of this woman:--"At the age of ninety-four
she married her third husband, Gaspard Raycolt, of the village of
Ciwouszin, then aged one hundred and five. During the fourteen years
they lived together she brought him two boys and a girl; and, what
is very remarkable, these three children, from their very birth, bore
evident marks of the old age of their parents--their hair being grey,
and a vacuity appearing in their gums, like that which is occasioned
by the loss of teeth, though they never had any. They had not strength
enough, even as they grew up, to chew solid food, but lived on bread
and vegetables, they were of a proper size for their age, but their
backs were bent, their complexions sallow, with all the other external
symptoms of decrepitude. Though most of these particulars," he adds,
"may appear fabulous, they are certified by the parish registers. The
village of Ciwouszin is in the district of Stenzick, in the palatinate
of Sendonier. Gaspard Raycolt, the father, died soon after, aged 119."
SEPULCHRAL VASE FROM PERU.
[Illustration [++] Sepulchral Vase of Peru.]
The vessel of which the annexed is an engraving, was taken from the
tomb of one of the ancient inhabitants of Peru; the subjects of the
Incas, or princes who ruled over that country before it was conquered
by the Spaniards. Vases of this sort were probably placed in the
sepulchres of the Peruvians to contain the ashes of the dead, or
offerings to their disembodied spirits;--usages which are familiar
to us through the frequent allusions to them which we meet with in
the works of the poets of ancient Rome, and the discovery of urns and
lachrymatories in Roman tombs which have been in our own and other
cemeteries. The specimen which we have engraved is quadruple, but forms
one vessel.
FIRST IRON CANNON.
The first cannon was cast in Sussex in 1535. In after years bonds were
taken in £1,000 from the owners of the charcoal furnaces, that none
should be sold till a license for the sale or issue of the ordnance had
been procured. Fears were entertained that the enemy would purchase
them.
PROLIFIC AUTHOR.
No one need despair, after the following instance, of shining in
quantity, if not in quality:--"Hans Sacks was a Nuremberg shoemaker,
born there in 1494; he was instructed, by the master-singers of those
days, in the praiseworthy art of poetry; he, therefore, continued to
make verses and shoes, and plays and pumps, boots and books, until
the seventy-seventh year of his age; when he took an inventory of his
poetical stock in trade, and found, according to his narrative, that
his works filled thirty folio volumes, all written with his own hand;
and consisted of four thousand two hundred mastership songs, two
hundred and eight comedies, tragedies, and farces (some of which were
extended to seven acts), one thousand seven hundred fables, tales, and
miscellaneous poems, and seventy-three devotional, military, and love
songs; making a sum total of six thousand and forty-eight pieces, great
and small." Out of these, we are informed, he culled as many as filled
three massy folios, which were published in the year 1558-61; and,
another edition being called for, he increased this three volumes folio
abridgement of his works, in the second, from his other works. None but
Lope de Vega exceeded him in quantity of rhyme-making.
THE ART OF POTTERY IN CHINA.
[Illustration: 1. 2. 3.]
The Chinese traditions carry back the practice of the potter's art to a
very remote epoch. Father Entrecolles, a French missionary, resided in
China at the beginning of the last century, and his letters published
in Paris, in 1741, supply some curious and interesting information
on this subject. Writing in 1712, he says that at that time ancient
porcelain was very highly prized, and bore large prices. Articles were
extant which were reputed to have belonged to the Emperors Yao and
Chun, two of the most ancient mentioned in the Chinese annals. Yao
reigned in 2357 and Chun in 2255 before Christ. Other authorities place
the reign of Chun in 2600 before Christ. It appears from the researches
of M. Stanislaus Julian that, from the time of the Emperor Hoang-ti,
who reigned 2698 to 2599 before Christ, there had always existed a
public officer bearing the title of the Intendant of Pottery, and that
it was under the reign of Hoang-ti that the potter's art was invented
by Kouen-ou. It is also certain that porcelain, or fine pottery, was
common in China in the time of the Emperors Han, 163 B.C.
In digging the foundations of the palaces, erected by the dynasties of
Han and Thang, from 163 B.C. to 903 A.D. great quantities of ancient
vases were found which were of a pure whiteness, but exhibited little
beauty of form or fabrication. It was only under the dynasty of Song,
that is to say, from 960 to 1278 A.D., that Chinese porcelain began to
attain a high degree of perfection.
Further evidence of the antiquity of the potter's art in China, as well
as of the existence of intercommunication between that country and
Egypt, is supplied by the discoveries of Rossellina, Wilkinson, and
others, who found numerous vases of Chinese fabrication, and bearing
Chinese inscriptions, in the tombs at Thebes. Professor Rossellini
found a small vase of Chinese porcelain with a painting of a flower
on one side, and on the other Chinese characters not differing much
from those used at the present day. The tomb was of the time of the
Pharaohs, a little later than the eighteenth dynasty.
This vase, with its Chinese inscription, is represented in Fig. 1, from
an exact cast made by Mr. Francis Davis.
Another of the Chinese vases, found in the Theban tombs, is represented
in Fig. 2. This is preserved in the Museum of the Louvre. The shape of
the vase is that of a flat-sided flask. A side view is given in Fig. 3.
These flasks are very small. The engravings represent them of their
proper dimensions. Mr. Wilkinson thinks it probable that they were
brought to Egypt from India, the Egyptians having had commercial
relations with that country at a very remote epoch, and that they came
not as pieces of porcelain, but as vessels containing some articles of
importation.
STRONG ATTACHMENT TO SMOKING.
The following is a curious case of extreme fondness for smoking in a
very poor and very old man. In the year 1810, there died in Dartford
workhouse, aged 106, one John Gibson. He had been an inmate of the
house for ten years, and till within two months of his death used daily
to perambulate the town. His faculties were entire to the last. He was
so much attached to smoking, that he requested his pipe, together with
his walking-stick, might be placed in his coffin, which request was
complied with.
EXTRAORDINARY LETTER.
The following strange and curious epistle, we are assured, was sent to
a surgeon of eminence by a malefactor who had been sentenced to death.
It has a degree of character and quaintness about it which is rarely
found in the letters of convicts. Whether or not the surgeon complied
with his request we do not know.
"Sir,--Being informed that you are the only surgeon in this county, in
the habit of dissecting dead bodies--being very poor, I am desirous of
passing what remains to me of life, with as much comfort as my unhappy
condition admits of. In all probability I shall be executed in the
course of a month; having no friend to intercede for me, nor even to
afford me a morsel of bread, to keep body and soul together till the
fatal moment arrives, I beg you will favour me with a visit; I am
desirous of disposing of my body, which is healthy and sound, for a
moderate sum of money. It shall be delivered to you on demand, being
persuaded that on the day of general resurrection, I shall as readily
find it in your laboratory, as if it were deposited in a tomb. Your
speedy answer will much oblige your obedient servant,
JAMES BROWN."
A MATTRESS FOR A BANK.
In the month of April, 1822, Mrs. Motley, broker, Bedford-street,
North Shields, purchased an old mattress for 2s. from a shipowner,
who was going to reside with his daughter; in arranging some papers a
few days ago, he found a document in the hand-writing of his deceased
wife, not intended for his perusal, but that of her son by a former
husband, in which it was stated that property to a considerable amount
was deposited in the said mattress. His daughter in consequence waited
on Mrs. Motley, and offered her a few shillings to return it. Mrs.
M. naturally supposed that this seeming generosity was not without
a cause, but having sold it to a Mrs. Hill for 3s., for a small
consideration she regained possession of the prize, but on entering her
house the original proprietor and a constable were ready to receive
her, and without ceremony cut open the mattress, when a purse, said to
contain 100gs., two gloves filled with current silver coin, several
valuable rings, trinkets, silver spoons, &c., were discovered. Mrs.
Hill had considerably reduced the mattress to fit a small bedstead
without finding the hidden treasure.
ARCHITECTURE FOR EARTHQUAKES.
Sumatra is one of the largest islands in the Indian Archipelago, and
the houses of the inhabitants are deserving of notice, inasmuch as
they furnish a correct and curious specimen of the style of building,
which the frequent occurrence of earthquakes renders the safest in the
countries where such visitations are common.
The frames of the houses are of wood, the under-plates resting on
pillars six or eight feet high, which have a sort of capital, but no
base, and are wider at top than at bottom. The people appear to have no
idea of architecture as a science, though much ingenuity is often shown
in working up their materials. The general appearance of their houses
is accurately represented in the annexed plate. For the floorings they
lay whole bamboos, four or five inches in diameter, close to each
other, and fasten them at the ends to the timbers. Across these are
laid laths of split bamboo, about an inch wide and of the length of the
room, which are tied down with filaments of the rattan, and over these
are usually spread mats of different kinds. This sort of flooring has
an elasticity alarming to strangers when they first tread on it.
The sides of the houses are generally closed in with bamboo, opened
and rendered flat by notching or splitting the circular joints on the
outside, chipping away the corresponding divisions within, and laying
it to dry in the sun pressed down with weights. This is sometimes
nailed to the upright timbers or bamboos, but in the country parts
it is more commonly interwoven or matted in breadths of six inches,
and a piece or sheet formed at once of the size required. In some
places they use for the same purpose the inner bark procured from some
particular trees. When they prepare to take it, the outer bark is first
torn or cut away; the inner is then marked out with a proper tool to
the requisite size, usually three cubits by one; it is afterwards
beaten for some time with a heavy stick to loosen it from the stem, and
being peeled off, laid in the sun to dry, care being taken to prevent
its warping. The bark used in building has nearly the texture and
hardness of wood; but the pliable and delicate bark of which clothing
is made is procured from a bastard species of the bread-fruit.
[Illustration [++] Sumatran House.]
The most general mode of covering houses is with the leaf of a kind of
palm called _nipah_. These, before they are laid on, are formed into
sheets about five feet long, and as deep as the length of the leaf will
admit, which is doubled at one end over a slip or lath of bamboo. They
are then disposed on the roof so that one sheet shall lap over the
other, and are tied to the bamboos which serve for rafters.
THE NOSS IN SHETLAND.
Off Bressay is the most remarkable of the rock phenomena of Shetland,
the Noss, a small high island, with a flat summit, girt on all sides
by perpendicular walls of rock. It is only 500 feet in length, and
170 broad, and rises abruptly from the sea to the height of 160 feet.
The communication with the coast of Bressay is maintained by strong
ropes stretched across, along which a cradle or wooden chair is run, in
which the passenger is seated. It is of a size sufficient for conveying
across a man and a sheep at a time. The purpose of this strange
contrivance is to give the tenant the benefit of putting a few sheep
upon the Holm, the top of which is level, and affords good pasture.
The animals are transported in the cradle, one at a time, a shepherd
holding them upon his knees in crossing.
[Illustration: Cradle of Noss.]
The temptation of getting access to the numberless eggs and young
of the sea-fowl which whiten the surface of the Holm, joined to the
promised reward of a cow, induced a hardy and adventurous fowler, about
two centuries ago, to scale the cliff of the Holm, and establish a
connexion by ropes with the neighbouring main island. Having driven
two stakes into the rock and fastened his ropes, the desperate man was
entreated to avail himself of the communication thus established in
returning across the gulf. But this he refused to do, and in attempting
to descend the way he had climbed, he fell, and perished by his
foolhardiness.
SWALLOWED UP BY AN EARTHQUAKE AND THROWN OUT AGAIN.
A tombstone in the island of Jamaica has the following inscription:--
"Here lieth the body of Lewis Galdy, Esq., who died on the 22nd of
September, 1737, aged 80. He was born at Montpellier, in France, which
place he left for his religion, and settled on this island, where, in
the great earthquake, 1672, he was swallowed up, and by the wonderful
providence of God, by a second shock was thrown out into the sea,
where he continued swimming until he was taken up by a boat, and thus
miraculously preserved. He afterwards lived in great reputation, and
died universally lamented."
CUSTOMS OF THE BORDER BETWEEN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND.
In the courts held by the lords wardens of the Marches, a jury was
established: the English lord chose six out of Scotland, and the Scotch
six out of England. The defendant, upon the trials, was acquitted
upon his own oath; these oaths are singular: we transcribe them.--1.
JUROR'S OATH. You shall clean no bills worthy to be fouled: you shall
foul no bills worthy to be cleaned; but shall do that which appeareth
with truth, for the maintenance of truth, and suppressing of attempts.
So help you God.--2. PLAINTIFF'S OATH. You shall leile (little) price
make, and truth say, what your goods were worth at the time of their
taking, to have been bought and sold in the market, taken all at
one time, and that you know no other recovery but this. So help you
God.--3. DEFENDANT'S OATH. You shall swear, by heaven above you, hell
beneath you, by your part in Paradise, by all that God made in six days
and seven nights, and by God himself, you are whart and sackless, of
art, part, way, witting, ridd, kenning, having, or reciting, of any of
the goods and chattles named in this bill. So help you God. These oaths
and proceedings arose from the frequent incursions of both Scotch and
English, on both sides the wall, to where they had no right.
TURKISH MODE OF REPARATION.
On April 25th, 1769, at Constantinople, the Turks were removing the
standard of Mahomet, making a grand procession through the city; all
Christians, upon this occasion, were forbid to appear in the streets or
at their windows. But the wife and daughter of the Imperial minister,
being excited by curiosity, placed themselves at a secret window to
observe the procession; which was no sooner discovered by the Turks,
than they attacked the ambassador's house, and endeavoured to force an
entrance. But the servants of the minister opposing them, well-armed,
a dreadful fray ensued, in which no less than one hundred persons lost
their lives, and the ambassador's lady was very severely treated.
Some of the rioters dragged her down into the court-yard, and made
preparations to strangle her; when a party of Janissaries, who were
despatched to her assistance by an aga in the neighbourhood, happily
came and preserved her. Upon complaint being made of this outrage, by
her husband, to the grand vizier, that minister expressed great sorrow
for the insult that had been offered, and assured him he should have
all the reparation it was possible to procure. A few hours after the
vizier sent the Imperial minister a rich present of jewels for his
lady, _and a bag, which was found to contain the heads of the three
principal rioters_.
HAIR TURNED GREY BY FRIGHT.
There is an interesting anecdote of a boy, in one of the rudest parts
of the County of Clare, in Ireland, who, in order to destroy some
eaglets, lodged in a hole one hundred feet from the summit of a rock,
which rose four hundred feet perpendicular from the sea, caused himself
to be suspended by a rope, with a scimitar in his hand for his defence,
should he meet with an attack from the old ones; which precaution was
found necessary; for no sooner had his companions lowered him to the
nest, than one of the old eagles made at him with great fury, at which
he struck, but, unfortunately missing his aim, nearly cut through the
rope that supported him. Describing his horrible situation to his
comrades, they cautiously and safely drew him up; when it was found
that his hair, which a quarter of an hour before was a dark auburn, was
changed to grey.
MEMORABLE SNOW-STORM.
The following characteristic account is taken _literatim_ from the
parish register of the village of Youlgrave in Derbyshire:--"This year
1614-5 Jan. 16 began the greatest snow which ever fell uppon the earth,
within man's memorye. It cover'd the earth five quarters deep uppon the
playne. And for heapes or drifts of snow, they were very deep, so that
passengers, both horse and foot, passed over yates hedges and walles.
It fell at ten severall tymes, and the last was the greatest, to the
greate admiration and fear of all the land, for it came from the foure
p{ts} of the world, so that all c'ntryes were full, yea, the south
p'te as well as these mountaynes. It continued by daily encreasing
until the 12{th} day of March, (without the sight of any earth, eyther
uppon hilles or valleys) uppon w{ch} daye, being the Lordes day, it
began to decrease; and so by little and little consumed and wasted
away, till the eight and twentyth day of May, for then all the heapes
or drifts of snow were consumed, except one uppon Kinder-Scout, w{ch}
lay till Witson week."
ROADS IN 1780.
A squire from the neighbourhood of Glastonbury, journeying to Sarum in
his carriage, about 1780, took care that his footman was provided with
a good axe to lop off any branches of trees that might obstruct the
progress of the vehicle.
WONDERFUL PEDESTRIAN FEAT.
Captain Cochrane, who set out from St. Petersburg in May, 1820, to walk
through the interior of Russia to the east of Asia, with a view of
ascertaining the fact of a north-east cape, travelled at the rate of
_forty-three miles a day for one hundred and twenty-three successive
days_. He afterwards walked upwards of four hundred miles without
meeting a human being. Wherever he went he seems to have accommodated
himself to the habits of the people, however rude and disgusting.
With the Kalmucks, he ate horse-flesh, elks, and wolves; and with
the Tchutski he found as little difficulty in pasturing upon bears,
rein-deer, and _raw frozen fish_, the latter of which he considered a
great delicacy.
BOOK-SHAPED WATCH.
[Illustration [++] Book-Shaped Watch.]
The unique curiosity, of which the annexed is an accurate
representation, was one of the choicest rarities of the Bernal
collection, and is, therefore, highly appropriate to our pages. It once
belonged to, and was made for, Bogislaus XIV., Duke of Pomerania, in
the time of Gustavus Adolphus. On the dial-side there is an engraved
inscription of the Duke and his titles, with the date 1627, and the
engraving of his armorial bearings; on the back of the case there
are engraved two male portraits, buildings, &c.; the dial-plate is
of silver, chased in relief; the insides are chased with birds and
foliage. This watch has apparently two separate movements, and a large
bell; at the back, over the bell, the metal is ornamentally pierced
in a circle, with a dragon and other devices, and the sides are
pierced and engraved in scrolls. It bears the maker's name, "Dionistus
Hessichti."
THE RULING PASSION.
Mr. Henry Stribling, farmer, who died at Goodleigh, near Barnstaple,
August 1st, 1800, in the eightieth year of his age, was one of the
greatest fox-hunters in Devonshire, and had collected such a number
of foxes pads, all of which he had himself cut off when in at the
death, that they entirely covered his stable door and door-posts. At
his own particular request, a pad was placed in each of his hands
in his coffin, and he was attended to the grave by the huntsmen and
whippers-in of the packs with which he had hunted.
EDICTS AGAINST FIDDLERS.
An idea may be formed of the strictness with which all popular
amusements were prohibited when the Puritans had the ascendancy, from
the fact that in 1656-7 Oliver Cromwell prohibited all persons called
fiddlers or minstrels from playing, fiddling, or making music in any
inn, alehouse, or tavern, &c. If they proffered themselves or offered
to make music, they were to be adjudged to be rogues, vagabonds, and
sturdy vagabonds, and were to be proceeded against as such.
SCENE OF DESOLATION.
[Illustration [++] Pass of Keim-an-eigh.]
The pass of Keim-an-eigh is one of the numerous wonders of nature.
It is situated on the road from Macroom to Bantry, in the county of
Cork, and winds through a deep and narrow rocky defile, about two
English miles in length. Its name means, in Irish, "The Path of the
Deer." Perhaps, in no part of the kingdom, is there to be found a
place so utterly desolate and gloomy. A mountain has been divided by
some convulsion of nature, and the narrow pass is overhung on either
side, as seen in our engraving, by perpendicular cliffs clothed in wild
ivy and underwood, with, occasionally, a stunted yew-tree or arbutus
growing among them. At every step advance seems impossible--some huge
rock jutting out into the path, or sweeping round it, seeming to
conduct only to some barrier still more insurmountable; while from
all sides rush down the "wild fountains," and forming for themselves
a rugged channel, make their way onward, the first tributary to the
gentle and fruitful Lee. Nowhere has Nature assumed a more apalling
aspect, or manifested a more stern resolve to dwell in her own
loneliness and grandeur, undisturbed by any living thing; for even the
birds seem to shun a solitude so awful, and the hum of bee or chirp of
grasshopper is never heard within its precincts.
THE FIRST ENGLISH NUN.
Face, widow of Edwin, king of Northumberland, is said to have been the
first English nun; and the first nunnery in England appears to have
been at Barking, in Essex, which was founded by Erkenwald, Bishop of
London, wherein he placed a number of Benedictine or black nuns. The
most rigid nuns are those of St. Clara, of the order of St. Francis,
both of which individuals were born and lived in the same town: the
nuns are called poor Clares, and both they and the monks wear grey
clothes. Abbesses had formerly seats in parliament. In one, held in
694, says Spelman, they sat and deliberated, and several of them
subscribed the decrees made in it. They sat, says Ingulphus, in a
parliament held in 855. In the reigns of Henry III. and Edward I. four
of them were summoned to a national council, viz. those of Shaftesbury,
Barking, Winchester, and Wilton.
PRESENCE OF MIND--ESCAPE FROM A TIGER.
In 1812, a party of British naval and military officers were dining in
a jungle at some distance from Madras, when a ferocious tiger rushed in
among them, seized a young midshipman, and flung him across his back.
In the first emotion of terror, the other officers had all snatched
up their arms, and retired some paces from their assailant, who stood
lashing his sides with his tail, as if doubtful whether he should seize
more prey, or retire with that which he had already secured. They knew
that it is usual with the tiger, before he seizes his prey, to deprive
it of life, by a pat on the head, which generally breaks the skull;
but this is not his invariable practice. The little midshipman lay
motionless on the back of his enemy; but yet the officers, who were
uncertain whether he had received the mortal pat or not, were afraid
to fire, lest they should kill him together with the tiger. While in
this state of suspense, they perceived the hand of the youth gently
move over the side of the animal, and conceiving the motion to result
from the convulsive throbs of death, they were about to fire, when, to
their utter astonishment, the tiger dropped stone dead; and their young
friend sprung from the carcass, waving in triumph a bloody dirk drawn
from the heart, for which he had been feeling with the utmost coolness
and circumspection, when the motion of his hand had been taken for a
dying spasm.
COST OF ARTICLES IN THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY.
The following article is taken from Martin's _History of Thetford_.
It is copied from an original record in that borough, when John le
Forester was mayor, in the tenth year of Edward the Third, A.D. 1336.
It is so far curious, as it exhibits an authentic account of the value
of many articles at that time; being a bill, inserted in the town book,
of the expenses attending the sending two light-horsemen from Thetford
to the army, which was to march against the Scots that year.
£ s. d.
To two men chosen to go into the army against Scotland 1 0 0
For cloth, and to the tailor for making it into
two _gowns_ 0 6 11
For two pair of gloves, and a stick or staff 0 0 2
For two horses 1 15 0-1/2
For shoeing these horses 0 0 4
For two pair of boots for the light-horsemen 0 2 8
Paid to a lad for going with the mayor to Lenn (Lynn),
to take care of the horses (the distance between
Thetford and Lynn is 53 miles) 0 0 3
To a boy for a letter at Lenn (viz., carrying
it thither) 0 0 3
Expenses for the horses of two light-horsemen for four
days before they departed 0 1 0
LAW AND ORDER IN THE STREETS OF LONDON IN 1733.
What an extraordinary state of things does the following extract from
the _Weekly Register_ of December 8th, 1733, disclose! The stages and
hackney-coaches actually made open war upon private carriages. "The
drivers," says the paragraph, "are commissioned by their masters to
annoy, sink, and destroy all the single and double horse-chaises they
can conveniently meet with, or overtake in their way, without regard
to the lives or limbs of the persons who travel in them. What havoc
these industrious sons of blood and wounds have made within twenty
miles of London in the compass of a summer's season, is best known by
the articles of accidents in the newspapers: the miserable shrieks of
women and children not being sufficient to deter the villains from
doing what they call their duty to their masters; for besides their
daily or weekly wages, they have an extraordinary stated allowance for
every chaise they can reverse, ditch, or bring by the road, as the term
or phrase is." Verily, we who live in the present day have reason to
rejoice that in _some_ things there is a decided improvement upon "the
good old times."
NEVER SLEEPING IN A BED.
Christopher Pivett, of the city of York, died 1796, aged 93. He was
a carver and gilder by trade; but during the early part of his life
served in the army, and was in the retinue of the Duke of Cumberland,
under whose command he took part in the battle of Fontenoy, as he did
at the battle of Dettingen under the Earl of Stair; he was likewise
at the siege of Carlisle, and the great fight of Culloden. His house,
after he had settled at York, being accidentally burnt down, he formed
the singular resolution of never again sleeping in a bed, lest he
should be burned to death whilst asleep, or not have time sufficient,
should such a misfortune again befall him, to remove his property; and
this resolution he rigidly acted upon during the last forty years of
his life. His practice was to repose upon the floor, or on two chairs,
or sitting in a chair, but always with his clothes on. During the
whole of this period he lived entirely alone, cooked his own victuals,
and seldom admitted any one into his habitation: nor would he ever
disclose to any the place of his birth, or to whom he was related. He
had many singularities, but possessed, politically as well as socially,
a laudable spirit of independence, which he boldly manifested on
several trying occasions. Among other uncommon articles which composed
the furniture of his dwelling, was a human skull, which he left strict
injunctions should be interred with him.
AMULET BROTCHE.
The subjoined engraving represents an ancient Gaelic Brotche, which was
made in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and once belonged to a Highland
Chief, Maclean of Lochbuy in the Isle of Mull, being formed of silver
found on his estate. It is of circular form, scolloped, and surrounded
by small upright obelisks, each set with a pearl at top; in the centre
is a round crystalline ball, considered a magical gem; the top may be
taken off, showing a hollow, originally for reliques. On the reverse
side of the brotche are engraved the names of the three kings of
Cologne, with the word _consummation_. It was probably a consecrated
brotche, and worn not only for the purpose of fastening the dress, but
as an amulet.
[Illustration [++] Gaelic Brotche.]
THE GOLYNOS OAK.
This wonderful tree grew on the estate from which it takes its name,
about four miles from Newport, Monmouth. It was purchased by Thomas
Harrison, Esq., in the year 1810, for 100 guineas, and was felled and
converted by him the same year. Five men were twenty days stripping
and cutting it down; and a pair of sawyers were employed 138 days in
its conversion. The expense of stripping, felling, and sawing was £82.
The trunk of the tree was 9-1/2 feet in diameter, and no saw could
be found long enough to cut it down; two saws were therefore brazed
together. The rings in its butt being reckoned, it was discovered that
this tree had been improving upwards of 400 years! and, as many of its
lateral branches were dead, and some broken off, it is presumed it must
have stood a century after it had attained maturity. When standing
it overspread 452 square yards of ground, and produced 2,426 feet of
timber. When all its parts were brought to market they produced nearly
£600.
[Illustration [++] Golynos Oak.]
CARFAX CONDUIT.
[Illustration [++] Carfax Conduit.]
In the grounds at Nuneham Courtenay, near Oxford, belonging to Mr.
Harcourt, on one of the slopes that ascend directly from the river
Thames, stands the ancient and far-famed Carfax Conduit, which formerly
stood as a kind of central point to the four principal streets of
Oxford. Certain alterations requiring its removal, it was, with the
most perfect propriety, presented to the Earl Harcourt.
It was built in 1610, by Otho Nicholson--a liberal and enterprising
gentleman--in order to supply the city with pure water, brought from
a hill above North Hinksey; and although the conduit is removed, the
pipes still remain, and afford a partial supply that will be superseded
by the new City Waterworks. It is a square, decorated in accordance
with the taste of the time--mermaids holding combs and mirrors, and
dragons, antelopes, unicorns, being scattered about, while the Empress
Maude is introduced riding an ox over a ford, in allusion to the
name of the city. The letters O. N., the initials of the founder,
are conspicuous; while above the centres of the four arches are the
cardinal virtues--Justice, Temperance, Fortitude, and Prudence.
Carfax is from a Bishop of that name, who presided over the diocese of
Tours in France, and died in the year 399. He was canonized, and is the
tutelar saint of Carfax, or St. Martin's church, in the city of Oxford.
DESTRUCTION OF LIBRARIES IN THE TIME OF HENRY VIII., AT THE DISSOLUTION
OF THE MONASTERIES.
It is a circumstance well known, to every one at all conversant in
English history, that the suppression of the lesser monasteries by that
rapacious monarch Henry the Eighth took place in 1536. Bishop Fisher,
when the abolition was first proposed in the convocation, strenuously
opposed it, and told his brethren that this was fairly shewing the
king how he might come at the great monasteries. "And so my lords,"
continued he, "if you grant the king these smaller monasteries, you do
but make him a handle whereby he may cut down all the cedars within
your Lebanon." Fisher's fears were borne out by the subsequent act
of Henry, who, after quelling a civil commotion occasioned by the
suppression of the lesser monasteries, immediately abolished the
remainder, and in the whole suppressed six hundred and forty-five
monasteries, of which twenty-eight had abbots who enjoyed seats in
Parliament. Ninety colleges were demolished; two thousand three hundred
and seventy-four charities and free chapels, and one hundred and ten
hospitals. The havoc that was made among the libraries cannot be better
described than in the words of Bayle, Bishop of Ossory, in the preface
to Leland's "New Year's Gift to King Henry the Eighth."
"A greate nombre of them whyche purchased those superstychouse mansyons
(monesteries) reserved of those librarye bookes, some to serve theyr
jokes, some to scoure thyr candlestyckes, and some to rubbe theyr
bootes. Some they solde to the grossers and sope-sellers, and some
they sent over see to the book bynders, not in small nombre, but at
tymes whole shyppes full to the wonderynge of foren nacyons: yea ye
universytes of thys realme are not alle clere in this detestable fact,
but cursed is that bellye whych seketh to be fedde with suche ungodlye
gaynes, and so depelye shameth hys natural conterye. I knowe a merchant
manne whyche shall at thys tyme be namelesse, that boughte ye contentes
of two noble lybraryes for forty shyllinges pryce: a shame it is to be
spoken: Thys stuffe hath he occupyed in the stede of grey paper by the
space of more than these ten yeares and yet he hath store ynoughe for
as manye yeares to come. A prodygyouse example is thys to be abhorred
of all men whych love thyr nacyon as they shoulde do. The monkes kept
them undre dust, ye ydle headed prestes regarded them not, theyr latter
owners have most shamefully abused them, and ye covetouse merchantes
have solde them awaye into foren nacyons for moneye."
CURIOUS MENTAL AFFECTION.
Singular faculties have been developed during somnambulism in the
mental condition. Thus a case is related of a woman in the Edinburgh
infirmary who, during her paroxysm, not only mimicked the manner
of the attendant physicians, but repeated correctly some of their
prescriptions in Latin.
Dr. Dyce, of Aberdeen, describes the case of a girl, in which this
affection began with fits of somnolency, which came upon her suddenly
during the day, and from which she could at first be roused by shaking
or by being taken into the open air. During these attacks she was in
the habit of talking of things that seemed to pass before her like
a dream, and was not at the time sensible of anything that was said
to her. On one occasion she repeated the entire of the baptismal
service, and concluded with an extempore prayer. In her subsequent
paroxysms she began to understand what was said to her, and to answer
with a considerable degree of consistency, though these replies were
in a certain measure influenced by her hallucination. She also became
capable of following her usual employment during her paroxysm. At one
time she would lay out the table for breakfast, and repeatedly dress
herself and the children, her eyes remaining shut the whole time. The
remarkable circumstance was now discovered, that, during the paroxysm,
she had a distinct recollection of what had taken place in former
attacks, though she had not the slightest recollection of it during the
intervals. She was taken to church during the paroxysm, and attended
the service with apparent devotion, and at one time was so affected
by the sermon that she actually shed tears; yet in the interval she
had no recollection whatever of the circumstance, but in the following
paroxysm she gave a most distinct account of it, and actually repeated
the passage of the sermon that had so much affected her. This sort of
somnambulism, relating distinctly to two periods, has been called,
perhaps erroneously, a _state of double consciousness_.
This girl described the paroxysm as coming on with a dimness of sight
and a noise in the head. During the attack, her eyelids were generally
half shut, and frequently resembled those of a person labouring under
amaurosis, the pupil dilated and insensible. Her looks were dull and
vacant, and she often mistook the person who was speaking to her. The
paroxysms usually lasted an hour, but she often could be roused from
them. She then yawned and stretched herself like a person awakening
from sleep, and instantly recognised those about her. At one time, Dr.
Dyce affirms, she read distinctly a portion of a book presented to her,
and she would frequently sing pieces of music more correctly and with
better taste than when awake.
DECORATIVE DRINKING VESSEL.
[Illustration [++] German Decorative Vessel.]
The above represents a German decorative drinking vessel of the early
part of the seventeenth century. It is a stork bearing in its beak an
infant; in accordance with the old German nursery tale that the king
of the Storks is the bringer and protector of babies. It is of silver,
chased all over; the eyes are formed of rubies; and one wing takes off
that liquid may be placed in the body, and imbibed through the neck,
by a hole in the crown of the bird. It was probably a quaint fancy for
some German noble nursery.
EXAMPLES OF ANCIENT VASES.
The Vases which are grouped in the annexed engraving are highly
deserving of a place in our collection of curiosities, inasmuch as they
are truly unique and beautiful specimens of the degree of perfection
to which the art of glass-making had been carried at the period when
Rome was mistress of the world. They all belong to that period, and in
elegance of form and skill of workmanship they equal--we had almost
said, surpass, the most artistic productions of the present day.
[Illustration [++] Ancient Vases.]
Figure 1 is that celebrated vase which for more than two centuries was
the principal ornament of the Barberini palace at Rome. It was thence
generally known as the "Barberini Vase;" but having been purchased
by Sir W. Hamilton, and then sold by him to the Duchess of Portland,
it was at her death munificently presented by her son, the Duke of
Portland, to the British Museum, where it has ever since remained as
one of its choicest gems, and is now known as the "Portland Cinerary
Vase." It was found about the middle of the sixteenth century, enclosed
in a marble sarcophagus, within a sepulchral chamber under the Monte
del Grane, two miles and a half from Rome, on the road to Frascati. The
tomb is believed to have been that of the Emperor Alexander Severus,
and his mother Mammæa. The vase is made of purple glass, ornamented
with white opaque figures in bas-relief. The execution of the design
is most admirable. In the first place, the artist must have had the
aptitude to blow in purple glass a beautiful form of vase, with
handles attached: and, even thus far, this is considered in our day a
masterpiece of skill at our best glass-houses. Secondly, with the oxide
of tin forming an opaque white glass, the artist managed to cover the
whole of the purple vase with this white opaque glass, to at least
the thickness of a quarter of an inch. The artist then, in the manner
of cutting a cameo on the onyx stone, cut the opaque glass away,
leaving the white figures and allegory embossed upon the purple. The
figures in relief are in two groups: in the former of these, a female
is represented in a recumbent posture, with a cupid hovering above her
head, and a serpent in her lap; a young man on one side supporting her
stretched out arm, and on the other a bearded personage of more mature
age, attentively regarding her. The latter group, on the opposite side
of the vase, consists of a female reclining on a pile of tablets, with
her right hand placed on her head, and holding in her hand a lighted
torch with the flame downwards--a young man being seated on a pile on
one side of her, and a female, holding a rod or staff in the right
hand, sitting on the other. The subject of the bas-relief has created
much difference of opinion, but it is generally supposed to have
reference to the birth of Severus. A few years ago this vase was broken
by a madman, but it has since been repaired in a most artistic manner.
Figure 2 is the "Alexandrian Vase," of the Museo Borbonico, Naples.
Figure 3 is the "Pompeii Vase," also of the Museo Borbonico. It was
discovered in a sepulchre of Pompeii in 1839, and is of the same
character in the colours and quality of the glass as the Portland Vase,
but of a more recent date. It is probably the production of Greek
artists working in Rome.
Figure 4 is the "Aldjo Vase," which was found in 1833 at Pompeii, in
the house of the Fauna. The ground of the vase is of a deep sapphire
blue, on which, in opaque white glass, the ornaments are cut. It was
found broken. Part is in the possession of Mr. Auldjo; the other in the
British Museum. The shape of this vase is elegant, the handle and lip
of exquisite form, and the taste and execution of the ornamental work
in the purest style.
MINUTENESS OF INSECT LIFE.
As the telescope enables the eye of man to penetrate into far-distant
space, and reveals to him myriads of suns and systems which otherwise
would have remained for ever hidden from his natural sight, so
the microscope opens up a world of life everywhere around us, but
altogether unsuspected, astounding us as much by the inappreciable
minuteness of its discoveries, as the former by the stupendous
magnitude and remoteness of the objects. If we go to any ditch or pool
which the summer sun has covered with a mantle of stagnant greenness,
and lift from it a minute drop of water, such as would adhere to
the head of a pin, we shall find it, under a high magnifying power,
swarming with living beings, moving about with great rapidity, and
approaching or avoiding each other with evident perception and will.
"Vain would it be," observes Professor Jones, "to attempt by words
to give anything like a definite notion of the minuteness of some
of these multitudinous races. Let me ask the reader to divide an
inch into 22,000 parts, and appreciate mentally the value of each
division: having done so, and not till then, shall we have a standard
sufficiently minute to enable us to measure the microscopic beings upon
the consideration of which we are now entering. Neither is it easy to
give the student of nature, who has not accurately investigated the
subject for himself, adequate conceptions relative to the numbers in
which the _Infusoria_ sometimes crowd the waters they frequent; but
let him take his microscope, and the means of making a rough estimate,
at least, are easily at his disposal. He will soon perceive that the
animalcule-inhabitants of a drop of putrid water, possessing, as many
of them do, dimensions not larger than the 2,000th part of a line, swim
so closely together, that the intervals separating them are not greater
than their own bodies. The matter, therefore, becomes a question for
arithmetic to solve, and we will pause to make the calculation.
"The _Monas termo_, for example--a creature that might be pardonably
regarded as an embodiment of the mathematical point, almost literally
without either length, or breadth, or thickness--has been calculated to
measure about the 22,000th part of an inch in its transverse diameter;
and in water taken from the surface of many putrid infusions, they are
crowded as closely as we have stated above. We may therefore safely
say, that, swimming at ordinary distances apart, 10,000 of them would
be contained in a linear space one inch in length, and consequently
a cubic inch of such water will thus contain more living and active
organized beings than there are human inhabitants upon the whole
surface! However astounding such a fact may seem when first enunciated,
none is more easily demonstrated with the assistance of a good
microscope."
The term _Infusoria_ has been by some naturalists applied to these
diminutive animals, because they are invariably found in the infusions
of vegetable or animal substances. They can thus be obtained at all
times, by simply steeping a little hay, or chaff, or leaves or stems of
any plant, in a vessel of water, and placing the infusion in the sun
for a week or ten days.
LEGENDS OF JUDAS ISCARIOT.
It was believed in Pier della Valle's time, that the descendants of
Judas Iscariot still existed at Corfu, though the persons who suffered
this imputation stoutly denied the truth of the genealogy.
When the ceremony of washing the feet is performed in the Greek Church
at Smyrna, the bishop represents Christ, and the twelve apostles are
acted by as many priests. He who personates Judas must be paid for it,
and such is the feeling of the people, that whoever accepts this odious
part, commonly retains the name of Judas for life (Hasselquist, p. 43).
Judas serves in Brazil for a Guy Faux to be carried about by the
boys, and made the subject of an auto-da-fe. The Spanish sailors hang
him at the yard arm. It is not long since a Spaniard lost his life
at Portsmouth, during the performance of this ceremony, by jumping
overboard after the figure.
The Armenians, who believe hell and limbo to be the same place, say
that Judas, after having betrayed our Lord, resolved to hang himself,
because he knew Christ was to go to limbo, and deliver all the souls
which he found there, and therefore he thought to get there in time.
But the Devil was cunninger than he, and knowing his intent, held him
over limbo till the Lord had passed through, and then let him fall plum
into hell. (Thevenot.)
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S SIDE-SADDLE.
In a retired part of the county of Essex, at a short distance from the
road, in a secluded and lovely spot, stands the picturesque residence
called Horeham Hall. The mansion is in the parish of Thaxted, and is
about two miles south-west of the church. It was once in the possession
of the important family of the De Wauton's; it afterwards belonged to
Sir John Cutts, and eventually it became the property of Sir W. Smijth,
of Hill Hall, in whose family it has remained up to the present time.
Of the learned Sir Thomas Smijth, the secretary to King Edward VI.
and Queen Elizabeth, there is still preserved an ancient portrait on
panel, which is let into a circle over the carved fire-place of one of
the parlours. It is remarkable as being one of the very few portraits
painted by Titian.
[Illustration [++] Queen Elizabeth's Side Saddle.]
Another interesting relic is represented in the annexed cut. It is
preserved in the Great Hall, and is the side-saddle of Queen Elizabeth;
the pommel is of wrought metal, and has been gilt; the ornament upon
it is in the then fashionable style of the Renaissance; the seat of
velvet is now in a very ruinous condition; but it is carefully kept
beneath a glass case, as a memento of the Queen's visits to this place.
When princess, Elizabeth retired to Horeham as a place of refuge during
the reign of her sister Mary; the loveliness of the situation and its
distance from the metropolis rendered it a seclusion befitting the
quietude of one anxious to remain unnoticed in troublous times. A room
on the first floor in the square tower is shown as that in which Queen
Elizabeth resided. She found the retirement of Horeham so agreeable,
that often after she had succeeded to the throne she took a pleasure in
re-visiting the place.
THE WINFARTHING OAK, IN NORFOLK.
A writer in the "Gardener's Magazine" gives the following account of
this remarkable tree:--"Of its age I regret to be unable to give any
correct data. It is said to have been called the 'Old Oak' at the
time of William the Conqueror, but upon what authority I could never
learn. Nevertheless, the thing is not impossible, if the speculations
of certain writers on the age of trees be at all correct. Mr. South,
in one of his letters to the Bath Society (vol. x.) calculates that an
oak tree forty-seven feet in circumference cannot be less than fifteen
hundred years old; and Mr. Marsham calculated the Bentley Oak, from its
girting thirty-four feet, to be of the same age. Now, an inscription on
a brass plate affixed to the Winfarthing Oak gives us the following
as its dimensions:--'This oak, in circumference, at the extremities of
the roots, is seventy feet; in the middle, forty feet, 1820.' Now, I
see no reason, if the size of the rind is to be any criterion of age,
why the Winfarthing should not, at least, equal the Bentley oak; and
if so, it would be upwards of seven hundred years old at the Conquest;
an age which might very well justify its then title of the 'Old Oak.'
It is now a mere shell, a mighty ruin, bleached to a snowy white; but
it is magnificent in its decay. The only mark of vitality it exhibits
is on the south side, where a narrow strip of bark sends forth a few
branches, which even now occasionally produce acorns. It is said to
be very much altered of late; but I own I did not think so when I saw
it about a month ago (May 1836); and my acquaintance with the veteran
is of more than forty years' standing: an important portion of _my_
life, but a mere span of its own."
CURIOUS PIECE OF ANCIENT ARMOUR.
[Illustration [++] Bascinet.]
The above engraving represents a helmet, of the time of Richard II.,
which was termed by ancient armourers a bascinet. This extremely rare
specimen was obtained from Her von Hulshoff, at his castle, near
Munster, in Westphalia. The visor lifts upward on a hinge, and its
position may be further regulated by the screw which slips in the
groove above it. The row of holes on the lower edge of the bascinet was
made to secure the _camail_, or tippet of chain-mail which covered the
neck of the wearer.
EXTRAORDINARY ECHO.
Beneath the suspension-bridge across the Menai Strait in Wales, close
to one of the main piers, is a remarkably fine echo. The sound of a
blow on the pier with a hammer, is returned in succession from each
of the cross beams which support the roadway, and from the opposite
pier, at a distance of 576 feet; and in addition to this, the sound is
many times repeated between the water and the roadway. The effect is
a series of sounds, which may be thus described:--The first return is
sharp and strong from the roadway overhead, the rattling which succeeds
dies rapidly away; but the single repercussion from the opposite pier
is very strong, and is succeeded by a faint palpitation, repeating the
sound at the rate of twenty-eight times in five seconds, and which,
therefore, corresponds to a distance of 180 feet, or very nearly the
double interval from the roadway to the water. Thus it appears, that
in the repercussion between the water and the roadway, that from the
latter only affects the ear, the line drawn from the auditor to the
water being too oblique for the sound to diverge sufficiently in that
direction. Another peculiarity deserves especial notice,--viz., that
the echo from the opposite pier is best heard when the auditor stands
precisely opposite to the middle of the breadth of the pier, and
strikes just on that point. As it deviates to one or the other side,
the return is proportionably fainter, and is scarcely heard by him when
his station is a little beyond the extreme edge of the pier, though
another person stationed on the same side of the water, at an equal
distance from the central point, so as to have the pier between them,
hears it well.
JUGGLERS OF MODERN EGYPT.
Performers of sleight-of-hand tricks, who are called _hhowa'h_ (in the
singular, _hha'wee_) are numerous in Cairo. They generally perform in
public places, collecting a ring of spectators around them; from some
of whom they receive small voluntary contributions during and after
their performances. They are most frequently seen on the occasions of
public festivals; but often also at other times. By indecent jests and
actions, they attract as much applause as they do by other means. The
hha'wee performs a great variety of tricks, the most usual of which
we will here mention. He generally has two boys to assist him. From a
large leather bag, he takes out four or five snakes, of a largish size.
One of these he places on the ground, and makes it erect its head and
part of its body; another he puts round the head of one of the boys,
like a turban, and two more over the boy's neck. He takes these off,
opens the boy's mouth, apparently passes the bolt of a kind of padlock
through his cheek, and locks it. Then, in appearance, he forces an
iron spike into the boy's throat; the spike being really pushed up
into a wooden handle. He also performs another trick of the same kind
as this. Placing the boy on the ground, he puts the edge of a knife
upon his nose, and knocks the blade until half its width seems to have
entered. The tricks which he performs alone are more amusing. He draws
a great quantity of various-coloured silk from his mouth, and winds
it on his arm; puts cotton in his mouth, and blows out fire; takes
out of his mouth a great number of round pieces of tin, like dollars;
and, in appearance, blows an earthen pipe-bowl from his nose. In most
of his tricks he occasionally blows through a large shell (called the
hha'wee's zoomma'rah), producing sounds like those of a horn. Most
of his sleight-of-hand performances are nearly similar to those of
exhibitors of the same class in our own and other countries. Taking a
silver finger-ring from one of the bystanders, he puts it in a little
box, blows his shell, and says, "'Efree't change it!" He then opens the
box, and shows, in it, a different ring: shuts the box again; opens
it, and shows the first ring: shuts it a third time: opens it, and
shows a melted lump of silver, which he declares to be the ring melted,
and offers to the owner. The latter insists upon having his ring in
its original state. The hha'wee then asks for five or ten fud'dahs to
recast it; and having obtained this, opens the box again (after having
closed it, and blown his shell), and takes out of it the perfect ring.
He next takes a larger covered box; puts one of his boy's skull-caps
in it, blows his shell, opens the box, and out comes a rabbit: the cap
seems to be gone. He puts the rabbit in again; covers the box; uncovers
it, and out run two little chickens. These he puts in again, blows his
shell, uncovers the box, and shows it full of fatee'rehs (or pancakes),
and koona'feh (which resembles vermicelli): he tells his boys to eat
its contents; but they refuse to do it without honey. He then takes a
small jug, turns it upside-down, to show that it is empty; blows his
shell, and hands round the jug full of honey. The boys, having eaten,
ask for water to wash their hands. The hha'wee takes the same jug, and
hands it filled with water, in the same manner. He takes the box again,
and asks for the cap; blows his shell, uncovers the box, and pours out
from it, into the boy's lap (the lower part of his shirt held up), four
or five small snakes. The boy, in apparent fright, throws them down,
and demands the cap. The hha'wee puts the snakes back into the box;
blows his shell, uncovers the box, and takes out the cap. Another of
his common tricks is to put a number of slips of white paper into a
tinned copper vessel (the tisht of a seller of sherbet), and to take
them out dyed of various colours. He pours water into the same vessel;
puts in a piece of linen; then gives to the spectators, to drink, the
contents of the vessel, changed to sherbet of sugar. Sometimes he
apparently cuts in two a muslin shawl, or burns it in the middle, and
then restores it whole. Often he strips himself of all his clothes,
excepting his drawers; tells two persons to bind him, hands and feet,
and put him in a sack. This done, he asks for a piaster; and some one
tells him that he shall have it if he will put out his hand and take
it. He puts out his hand free; draws it back, and is then taken out of
the sack, bound as at first. He is put in again, and comes out unbound,
handing to the spectators a small tray, upon which are four or five
little plates filled with various eatables; and, if the performance be
at night, several small lighted candles placed round. The spectators
eat the food.
ORIGIN OF ATTAR OF ROSES.
"In the Histoire Generale de l'Empire du Mogol, (_T._ 1, _p_, 327,)
compiled by Catrou the Jesuit, from Manouchi's papers, this perfume is
said to have been discovered by accident. Nur-Jahan, the favorite wife
of the Mogul Jahan-Ghur, among her other luxuries, had a small canal of
rose water. As she was a walking with the Mogul upon its banks, they
perceived a thin film upon the water,--it was an essential oil made by
the heat of the sun. They were delighted with its exquisite odour, and
means were immediately taken for preparing by art a substance like that
which had been thus fortuitously produced."
A MAGICIAN'S MIRROR AND BRACELET.
A strange blending of pure science and gross superstition is remarkably
illustrated in the history of the celebrated Dr. Dee. Born in London
in 1527, John Dee raised himself at an early age to a great reputation
for his learning, in the mathematical sciences especially, in the most
celebrated universities in his own country and of the continent. He is
said to have imbibed a taste for the occult sciences while a student at
Louvain, but there was evidently in his temper much of an enthusiastic
and visionary turn, which must have given him a taste for such
mysterious pursuits, without the necessity of an external impulse. One
of the oldest and most generally credited of magical operations, was
that of bringing spirits or visions into a glass or mirror, a practice
which has continued to exist in the East even to the present day, and
which prevailed to a very considerable extent in all parts of Western
Europe during the sixteenth century. The process was not a direct one,
for the magician did not himself see the vision in the mirror, but
he had to depend upon an intermediate agent, a sort of familiar, who
in England was known by the name of a _skyrer_, and whose business
it was to look into the mirror and describe what he saw. Dr. Dee's
principal skyrer was one Edward Kelly, and during his connexion with
him, Dee kept an exact diary of all his visions, a portion of which was
printed in a folio volume by Merio Casaubon in 1659. In this journal
more than one magical mirror is evidently mentioned, and that which we
here engrave is believed to have been of the number. It is now in the
collection of Lord Londesborough.
[Illustration [++] Magician's Mirror.]
It is a polished oval slab of black stone, of what kind we have not
been able to ascertain, but evidently of a description which was not
then common in Western Europe, and Dr. Dee, who died in 1608, may have
considered it as extremely precious, and as only to be obtained by
some extraordinary means. It was one of the ornaments of the museum
of Horace Walpole at Strawberry Hill; and Walpole has attached to it
a statement of its history in his own hand-writing, from which we
learn that it was "long" in the possession of the Mordaunts, earls
of Peterborough, in whose catalogue it was described as "the black
stone into which Dr. Dee used to call his spirits." It passed from
that collection to Lady Elizabeth Germaine, from whom it went to
John Campbell, Duke of Argyll, whose son, Lord Frederick Campbell,
presented it to Horace Walpole. This interesting relic was bought at
the Strawberry Hill sale for the late Mr. Pigott; and at the more
recent sale of that gentleman's collection, it passed into the hands
of Lord Londesborough. Its history and authenticity appear, therefore,
to be very well made out. The family of the Mordaunts held a prominent
place in English history during the whole of the seventeenth century,
and it is hardly probable that they would have received an object like
this without having good reason for believing that its history was
authentic. It is believed that Butler alluded to this identical stone
in his well-known lines:--
"Kelly did all his feats upon
The devil's looking-glass or stone,
When, playing with him at bo-peep,
He solv'd all problems ne'er so deep."
_Hudibras._ Part II. Canto 3.
[Illustration [++] Magician's Bracelet.]
The regular fitting out of the magician at this period was a
complicated process. He required his implements of various kinds, and,
in addition to these, various robes, made especially for the occasion,
with girdles and head-pieces, and magical rings and bracelets. A
very curious example of the last-mentioned article of the magician's
accoutrements, is represented in the preceding cut, about one-third
the size of the original. It was purchased by Lord Londesborough in
1851, and had formerly been in the possession of Charles Mainwaring,
Esq., of Coleby, near Lincoln. It is of silver, the letters of the
inscription round the bracelet being engraved and filled with niello.
This inscription may be distinctly read as follows:--
+ IONA + IHOAT + LONA + HELOI + YSSARAY + || +
MEPHENOLPHETON + AGLA + ACHEDION + YANA +
BACHIONODONAVALI M[*] ILIOR + || BACHIONODONAVALI M[**] ACH +
Some explanation of this mysterious inscription might, no doubt, be
obtained by a diligent comparison of some of the numerous works on
magic compiled in the age of Dr. Dee, and in the seventeenth century.
The bracelet has had four pendants on it, of which three still remain,
with the silver setting of the fourth. One of the pendants which remain
is a brownish pebble, secured by three flat bands of silver; another is
an oval cage of strong silver wire, containing a nut of some kind and
some other vegetable substance; the third has on one side a circular
convex pebble set in silver, and on the back three smaller pebbles.
LUNAR INFLUENCE IN DEATH.
Many modern physicians have stated the opinions of the ancients as
regards lunar influence in diseases, but none have pushed their
inquiries with such indefatigable zeal as the late Dr. Moseley; he
affirms that almost all people in extreme age die at the new or at full
moon, and this he endeavours to prove by the following records:--
Thomas Parr died at the age of 152, two days after the full moon.
Henry Jenkins died at the age of 169, the day of the new moon.
Elizabeth Steward, 124, the day of the new moon.
William Leland, 140, the day after the new moon.
John Effingham, 144, two days after full moon.
Elizabeth Hilton, 121, two days after the full moon.
John Constant, 113, two days after the new moon.
The doctor then proceeds to show, by the deaths of various illustrious
persons, that a similar rule holds good with the generality of mankind:
Chaucer, 25th October, 1400, the day of the first quarter.
Copernicus, 24th May, 1543, day of the last quarter.
Luther, 18th February, 1546, three days after the full.
Henry VIII., 28th January, 1547, the day of the first quarter.
Calvin, 27th May, 1564, two days after the full.
Cornaro, 26th April, 1566, day of the first quarter.
Queen Elizabeth, 24th March, 1603, day of the last quarter.
Shakspeare, 23rd April, 1616, day after the full.
Camden, 2nd November, 1623, day before the new moon.
Bacon, 9th April, 1626, one day after last quarter.
Vandyke, 9th April, 1641, two days after full moon.
Cardinal Richelieu, 4th December, 1642, three days before full moon.
Doctor Harvey, 30th June, 1657, a few hours before the new moon.
Oliver Cromwell, 3rd September, 1658, two days after full moon.
Milton, 15th November, 1674, two days before the new moon.
Sydenham, 29th December, 1689, two days before the full moon.
Locke, 28th November, 1704, two days before the full moon.
Queen Anne, 1st August, 1714, two days after the full moon.
Louis XIV., 1st September, 1715, a few hours before the full moon.
Marlborough, 16th June, 1722, two days before the full moon.
Newton, 20th March, 1726, two days before the new moon.
George I., 11th June, 1727, three days after new moon.
George II., 25th October, 1760, one day after full moon.
Sterne, 13th September, 1768, two days after new moon.
Whitfield, 18th September, 1770, a few hours before the new moon.
Swedenburg, 19th March, 1772, the day of the full moon.
Linnæus, 10th January, 1778, two days before the full moon.
The Earl of Chatham, 11th May, 1778, the day of the full moon.
Rousseau, 2nd July, 1778, the day after the first quarter.
Garrick, 20th January, 1779, three days after the new moon.
Dr. Johnson, 14th December, 1784, two days after the new moon.
Dr. Franklin, 17th April, 1790, three days after the new moon.
Sir Joshua Reynolds, 23rd February, 1792, the day after the new moon.
Lord Guildford, 5th August, 1722, three days after the full moon.
Dr. Warren, 23rd June, 1797, a day before the new moon.
Burke, 9th July, 1797, at the instant of the full moon.
Macklin, 11th July, 1797, two days after full moon.
Wilkes, 26th December, 1797, the day of the first quarter.
Washington, 15th December, 1790, three days after full moon.
Sir W. Hamilton, 6th April, 1803, a few hours before the full moon.
The doctor winds up this extract from the bills of mortality by the
following appropriate remark: "Here we see the moon, as she shines on
all alike, so she makes no distinction of persons in her influence:
"----æquo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas,
Regumque turres."
GLUTTONY OF THE MONKS.
King John, pointing to a fat deer said, "See how plump he is, and yet
he has never heard mass!" John might have alluded to the gluttony of
the monks, which was notorious in his days; for Giraldus Cambrensis
says, that from the monks of St. Swithin's, Winchester, Henry II.
received a formal complaint against the abbot for depriving his priests
of three out of thirteen dishes at every meal. The monks of Canterbury
exceeded those of St. Swithin; they had seventeen dishes every day, and
each of these cooked with spices and the most savoury and rich sauces.
ANCIENT BELL-SHRINE.
The annexed engraving represents one of the most valuable and curious
ecclesiastical relics of the early Christian Period that has ever been
discovered. It consists of a bronze bell-shrine and bell, found about
the year 1814, on the demolition of the ruined wall at Torrebhlaurn
farm, in the parish of Kilmichael-Glassrie, Argyleshire, and now one of
the most valued treasures in the Museum of the Scottish Antiquaries.
[Illustration [++] Bronze Bell-Shrine and Bell.]
That it must have been deposited in the wall where it was found,
for the purpose of concealment at a period of danger and alarm,
seems abundantly obvious; but of the occasion of this concealment no
tradition has been preserved. Within the beautiful case is a rude
iron bell, so greatly corroded that its original form can only be
imperfectly traced; yet this, and not the shrine, was obviously the
chief object of veneration, and may, indeed, be assumed, with much
probability, to be some centuries older than the ornamental case in
which it is preserved. Whether it shall be thought to have been an
ancient reliquary or a mass-bell, or whatever else may be conjectured
of its nature and use, it may fairly be presumed to have remained
in the neglected spot in which it was found since the subversion
of the Roman Catholic worship in the sixteenth century, when the
favoured objects of external adoration and reverence, under the
former superstition, came to be regarded with impatient contempt and
abhorrence.
It is deserving of attention that the figure of our crucified Saviour
in invested with a regal crown, and not with a crown of thorns, as
is usually the case. The brass chain or collar, of rude workmanship,
about three feet six inches long, now attached to the case, and the
extremities of which are connected with a small cross of the same
metal, was discovered at the same time, not far from the case.
EGYPTIAN GARDEN.
The diagram which accompanies this article is an Egyptian sketch of
an Egyptian garden; and it is expressly curious, both as an example
of the pictorial art of the period, and as giving us an idea of the
pleasure-gardens of Egypt in its most flourishing days.
[Illustration [++] Egyptian Garden.]
The garden here represented stood beside a canal of the Nile, with
an avenue of trees between it and the bank, on which side was the
entrance. It was surrounded by an embattled wall, through which a noble
gateway gave access to the garden. The central space was occupied by
the vineyard, surrounded by its own wall, in which the vines were
trained on trellises supported by slender pillars. At the further end
of the vineyard was a building of three storeys, the windows from which
opened over the luxurious foliage and purple clusters, regaling the
senses both of sight and smell. Four large tanks of water kept the
vegetation well supplied with nutritive moisture; and, with the smooth
and verdant turf which borders them, the water-fowl that sported over
the surface, and the lotus-flowers that sprang from their clear depths,
added a new beauty to the scene. Near the tanks stood summer-houses,
overlooking beds of various flowers, and sheltered from the sun by
surrounding trees. Two enclosed spaces between the tanks, being filled
with trees, were probably devoted to some species of particular rarity,
or remarkable for the excellence of their fruit. Rows of date trees and
Theban palms, alternating with other trees, bordered the whole garden,
and environed the vineyard wall.
The very numerous allusions to gardens in the Sacred Scriptures show
that the Hebrews inherited the same taste as the Egyptians. In these
allusions we find the same characteristics that are so observable in
those depicted on the monuments; such as the absolute necessity of
water, the custom of having pools in them, the advantage of a situation
by the side of a river, the practice of enclosing them from intrusion,
and appropriation of enclosures to particular productions.
With the early Egyptians the love of flowers seems to have been almost
a passion; they appear to have been in constant request in offerings to
the gods, and as ornaments of the person, as decorations of furniture;
as graceful additions to several entertainments, they occur at every
turn. Flowers were painted on walls, furniture, dresses, chairs, boxes,
boats, and, in short, on whatever was wished to be ornamental. Wreaths
and chaplets were likewise in common use among the Egyptians, and
artificial flowers were not uncommon.
STATE OF THE MIND DURING SLEEP.
The following is an instance of phantasms being produced by our
associations with bodily sensations, and tends to show how alive our
faculties continue during sleep to the highest impressions:--
The subject of this observation was an officer in the expedition to
Louisburg in 1758, who had this peculiarity in so remarkable a degree,
that his companions in the transport were in the constant habit of
amusing themselves at his expense. They could produce in him any kind
of dream by whispering in his ear, especially if this was done by a
friend with whose voice he had become familiar. One time they conducted
him through the whole progress of a trial, which ended in a duel; and
when the parties were supposed to have met, a pistol was put into
his hand, which he fired, and was awakened by the report. On another
occasion they found him asleep on the top of a locker in the cabin,
when they made him believe he had fallen overboard, and exhorted him to
save himself by swimming. They then told him that a shark was pursuing
him, and entreated him to dive for his life. He instantly did so, and
with so much force as to throw himself from the locker upon the cabin
floor, by which he was much bruised, and awakened of course. After
the landing of the army at Louisburg, his friends found him one day
asleep in his tent, and evidently annoyed by the cannonading. They
then made him believe that he was engaged, when he expressed great
fear, and showed an evident disposition to run away. Against this they
remonstrated, but at the same increased his fears by imitating the
groans of the wounded and the dying; and when he asked, as he often
did, who was hit, they named his particular friends. At last they
told him that the man next himself in his company had fallen, when he
instantly sprung from his bed, rushed out of the tent, and was only
roused from his danger and his dream by falling over the tent-ropes. A
remarkable thing in this case was, that after these experiments he had
no distinct recollection of his dreams, but only a confused feeling of
oppression or fatigue, and used to tell his friends that he was sure
they had been playing some trick upon him. It has been observed that
we seldom feel courageous or daring in our dreams, and generally avoid
danger when menaced by a foe, or exposed to any probable peril.
MUSIC OF THE SEA.
The mysterious music that is heard in the bay at West Pascagoula,
is described by those who have listened to it as being singularly
beautiful. "It has, for a long time," says Mrs. Child, an American
authoress, "been one of the greatest wonders of the south-west.
Multitudes have heard it, rising, as it were, from the water, like the
drone of a bagpipe, then floating away, away, away, in the distance,
soft, plaintive, and fairy-like, as if Æolian harps sounded with richer
melody through the liquid element; but none have been able to account
for the beautiful phenomenon. There are several legends touching these
mysterious sounds; but in these days few things are allowed to remain
mysterious." These strange sounds, which thus assume the beauty and
the harmony of regular music, are stated to proceed from the cat-fish.
A correspondent of the _Baltimore Republican_ thus explains the
phenomenon:--"During several of my voyages on the Spanish main, in the
neighbourhood of Paraguay and San Juan de Nicaragua, from the nature of
the coast, we were compelled to anchor at a considerable distance from
the shore; and every evening, from dark to late night, our ears were
delighted with Æolian music, that could be heard beneath the counter of
our schooner. At first I thought it was the sea-breeze sweeping through
the strings of my violin (the bridge of which I had inadvertently left
standing); but after examination I found it was not so. I then placed
my ear on the rail of the vessel, when I was continually charmed with
the most heavenly strains that ever fell upon my ear. They did not
sound as close to us, but were sweet, mellow, and aerial, like the soft
breathings of a thousand lutes, touched by fingers of the deep sea
nymphs, at an immense distance. Although I have considerable "music in
my soul," one night I became tired, and determined to fish. My luck,
in half-an-hour, was astonishing. I had half filled my bucket with
the finest white cat-fish I ever saw; and it being late, and the cook
asleep, and the moon shining, I filled my bucket with water, and took
fish and all into my cabin for the night. I had not yet fallen asleep,
when the same sweet notes fell upon my ear; and, getting up, what
was my surprise to find my cat-fish discoursing sweet sounds to the
sides of my bucket! I examined them closely, and discovered that there
was attached to each lower lip an excrescence, divided by soft wiry
fibres. By the pressure of the upper lip thereon, and by the exhalation
and discharge of breath, a vibration was created, similar to that
produced by the breath on the tongue of the Jews' harp."
THE ROCK OF CASHEL.
Any work which professed to be a record of what is rare and curious,
would surely be incomplete if it did not contain an account of the
celebrated Rock of Cashel; for the venerable buildings which crown
its summit are, from their number, variety, preservation, and site,
decidedly the most interesting ruins in the Emerald Isle, and, to
use the words of Sir Walter Scott, "such as Ireland may be proud
of." Cashel, which is distant about one hundred miles from Dublin,
appears to be a place of high antiquity, and was long the residence
of the kings of Munster; but as its early history is involved in much
obscurity, it is uncertain at what period it became a diocesan site. It
is stated that previous to the year 1101 the buildings on the Rock were
occupied as a royal residence, and that in that year the hitherto royal
seat was dedicated solely to ecclesiastical uses.
[Illustration [++] Rock of Cashel.]
The buildings consist of a round tower, Cormack's chapel, cathedral,
castle and monastery; the latter is a few yards detached, and the least
remarkable of the number; all the former are closely connected. The
Round Tower, the date and uses of which are in common with those of all
other similar structures involved in much obscurity, raises its tall
and yet scarce dilapidated head far above its younger and more decaying
companions. It is fifty-six feet in circumference, and ninety feet
in height. Cormack's Chapel, which, with the exception of the Round
Tower, is the most ancient structure of the group, was built by Cormack
M'Carthy, king of Munster, in 1136. It is roofed with stone, and in its
capitals, arches, and other features and details, the Norman style is
distinctly marked. The numerous ornaments, grotesque heads, and other
curious sculptures, which adorn the arches, columns, and pilasters,
are all in uniformity of style. The building altogether is a perfect
gem, and the architectural antiquary and the artist will find in it
a most valuable addition to their studies. The cathedral is a noble
remnant of what is usually termed the pointed Gothic, and contains many
interesting relics.
The rock, which is here presented as it appears from the plain below,
has the buildings we have just mentioned on its very summit; it rises
abruptly from a widely extended fertile country, to a considerable
height above the town, and from many parts at a distance it forms a
very striking object. On the top of the rock, and around the ruins,
an area of about three acres has been enclosed, which is open to the
public.
INSTANCE OF INCREMATION.
Last night (26th September, 1769), say the chronicles of the day, the
will of Mrs. Pratt, a widow lady, who lately died at her house in
George Street, Hanover Square, was punctually fulfilled, by the burning
of her body to ashes in her grave, in the new burying-ground adjoining
to Tyburn turnpike.
THE HAWTHORNDEN SWORD.
The great antiquity of the Scottish claymore is proved by its being
figured in the sculptures both of Iona and Oronsay, with considerable
variety of details. In some the blade is highly ornamented, and the
handle varies in form, but all present the same characteristic, having
the guards bent back towards the blade. A curious variety of this
peculiar form is seen in a fine large two-handed sword preserved at
Hawthornden, the celebrated castle of the Drummonds, where the Scottish
poet entertained Ben Johnson during his visit to Scotland in 1619. It
is traditionally affirmed to have been the weapon of Robert Bruce,
though little importance can be attached to a reputation which it
shares with one-half the large two-handed swords still preserved. Our
engraving is a correct representation of it.
[Illustration [++] Hawthornden Sword.]
The handle appears to be made from the tusk of the narwhal, and it
has four reverse guards, as shown in the cut. The object aimed at by
this form of guard, doubtless, was to prevent the antagonist's sword
glancing off, and inflicting a wound ere he recovered his weapon, and,
in the last example especially, it seems peculiarly well adapted for
the purpose.
INSTINCT IN A CAT.
The following anecdote almost places the cat on a level with the
dog:--"A physician of Lyons was requested to inquire into a murder
that had been committed on a woman of that city. In consequence of
this request he went to the habitation of the deceased, where he
found her extended lifeless on the floor, weltering in her blood. A
large white cat was mounted on the cornice of a cupboard, at the far
end of the apartment, where he seemed to have taken refuge. He sat
motionless, with his eyes fixed on the corpse, and his attitude and
looks expressing horror and affright. The following morning he was
found in the same station and attitude, and when the room was filled
with officers of justice, neither the clattering of the soldiers' arms,
nor the loud conversation of the company, could in the least degree
divert his attention. As soon, however, as the suspected persons were
brought in, his eyes glared with increased fury, his hair bristled, he
darted into the middle of the apartment, where he stopped for a moment
to gaze at them, and then precipitately retreated under the bed. The
countenances of the assassins were disconcerted, and they were now, for
the first time, abandoned by their atrocious audacity."
A TRANCE.
Mrs. Godfrey, sister to the Duke of Marlborough, had nearly been
buried alive; the physicians all declaring that the breath of life was
irrecoverably gone. Her husband, Colonel Godfrey, had, however, the
pleasure to see her revive, seven days after (that day week, and same
hour), and what is more, she never knew till the day of her death the
length of her trance, or sleep.
THE NUMBER SEVEN.
The number is composed of the first two perfect numbers, equal and
unequal, 3 and 4; for the number 2, consisting of repeated unity, which
is no number, is not perfect, it comprehends the primary numerical
triangle or trine, and square or quartile conjunction, considered by
the favourers of planetary influence as of the most benign aspect.
In six days creation was completed, and the 7th was consecrated to
rest. On the 7th day of the 7th month, a holy observance was ordained
to the children of Israel, who feasted 7 days, and remained 7 days
in tents; the 7th year was directed to be a Sabbath of rest for all
things; and at the end of 7 times 7 years commenced the grand jubilee.
Every 7th year the land lay fallow; every 7th year there was a general
release from all debts, and all bondmen were set free. From this law
may have originated the custom of our binding young men to 7 years'
apprenticeship, and punishing incorrigible offenders by transportation
for 7, twice 7, and three times 7, years. Every 7 years the law was
to be read to the people. Jacob served 7 years for the possession of
Rachael; and also other 7. Noah had 7 days' warning of the flood, and
was commanded to take the fowls of the air in by 7, and the clean
beasts by 7. The ark touched ground on the 7th month; and in 7 days the
dove was sent out, and again in 7 days after. The 7 years of plenty,
and 7 years of famine were foretold in Pharaoh's dream by 7 fat and 7
lean beasts, and the 7 full and 7 blasted ears of corn. Nebuchadnezzar
was 7 years a beast; and the fiery furnace was 7 times hotter to
receive Shadrach, &c. A man defiled was, by the Mosaic law, unclean 7
days; the young of both animals was to remain with the dam 7 days, and
at the end of the 7th was to be taken away. By the old law, man was
commanded to forgive his offending brother 7 times; but the meekness
of the revealed law extended his humility to 70 times 7: if Cain shall
be avenged 7 times, truly Lamech 70 times 7. In the destruction of
Jericho, 7 priests bore 7 trumpets 7 days; on the 7th they surrounded
the wall 7 times; after the 7th, the walls fell. Balaam prepared 7
years for a sacrifice; and 7 of Saul's sons were hanged to stay a
famine. Laban pursued Jacob 7 days' journey. Job's friends sat 7 days
and 7 nights, and offered 7 bullocks and 7 rams, as an atonement for
their wickedness. In the 7th year of his reign, King Ahazuerus feasted
7 days, and on the 7th deputed his 7 chamberlains to find a queen,
who was allowed 7 maidens to attend her. Miriam was cleansed of her
leprosy by being shut up 7 days. Solomon was 7 years in building the
Temple, at the dedication of which he feasted 7 days; in the Temple
were 7 lamps; 7 days were appointed for an atonement upon the altar,
and the priest's son was ordained to wear his father's garments 7
days. The children of Israel eat unleavened bread 7 days. Abraham gave
7 ewe-lambs to Abimelech, as a memorial for a well. Joseph mourned 7
days for Jacob. Naaman was cleansed of his leprosy by bathing 7 times
in Jordan. The Rabbins say that God employed the power of this number
to perfect the greatness Of Samuel, his name answering the value of
the letters in the Hebrew word, which signifies 7; whence Hannah his
mother, in her thanksgiving, says, the barren hath brought forth 7. In
Scripture are enumerated 7 resurrections: the widow's son, by Elias;
the Shunamite's son, by Elisha; the soldier who touched the bones of
the prophet; the daughter of the ruler of the synagogue; the widow's
son of Nain; Lazarus, and our Lord. The apostles chose 7 deacons.
Enoch, who was translated, was the 7th from Adam; and Jesus Christ was
the 77th in a direct line. Our Lord spoke 7 times on the cross, on
which he was 7 hours; he appeared 7 times; and after 7 times 7 days
sent the Holy Ghost. In the Lord's prayer are 7 petitions, contained in
7 times 7 words, omitting those of mere grammatical connexion; within
this number are concealed all the mysteries of apocalypse revealed
to the 7 churches of Asia. There appeared seven golden candlesticks
and 7 stars in the hand of him that was in the midst; 7 lambs before
the 7 spirits of God; the book with 7 seals; the lamb with 7 horns
and 7 eyes; 7 angels with 7 trumpets; 7 kings; 7 thunders; 7,000 men
slain. The dragon with 7 heads and 7 crowns; and the beast with 7
heads; 7 angels bearing 7 plagues, and 7 vials of wrath. The vision of
Daniel was of 70 weeks and the elders of Israel were 70. There were
also 7 heavens, 7 planets (query), 7 stars, 7 wise men, 7 champions
of Christendom, 7 notes in music, 7 primary colours, 7 deadly sins,
and 7 sacraments in the Catholic church. The 7th son was considered
as endowed with pre-eminent wisdom; and the 7th son of a 7th son is
still thought to possess the power of healing diseases spontaneously.
Perfection is likened to gold 7 times purified in the fire; and we
yet say you frightened me out of my 7 senses. The opposite sides of a
dice make 7, whence the players at hazard make 7 the main. Hippocrates
says the septenary number, by its occult virtues, tends to the
accomplishment of all things, to be the dispense of life, and fountain
of all its changes; and, like Shakespeare, he divided the life of man
into 7 ages; for as the moon changes her phases every seven days,
this number influences all sublunary beings. The teeth spring out on
the 7th month, and are shed and renewed in the 7th year, when infancy
is changed into childhood; at twice 7 years puberty begins; at three
times 7 the faculties are developed, and manhood commences, and we are
become legally competent to all civil acts; at four times 7 man is in
full possession of all his strength; at five times 7 he is fit for the
business of the world; at six times 7 he becomes grave and wise, or
never: at 7 times 7 he is in his apogee, and from that time decays;
at eight times 7 he is in his first climacterick; at nine times 7, or
63, he is in his last or grand climacterick, or year of danger; and
ten times 7, or three score and ten, has, by the royal prophet, been
pronounced the natural period of human life.
SUPERSTITIOUS LEGEND.
We are told that when St. Helena, of pious memory, had discovered the
true Cross of Christ, she permitted various fragments to be taken from
it, which were encased, some in gold, and some in gems, and conveyed to
Europe, leaving the principal or main part of the wood in the charge
of the Bishop of Jerusalem, who exhibited it annually at Easter, until
Chosroes, king of Persia, plundered Jerusalem in the reign of the
emperor Phocas, and took away this holy relic.
Before this fatal event we are taught to believe, by Rigordus, an
historian of the thirteenth century, that the mouths of Christians used
to be supplied with 30, or in some instances, no doubt according to
their faith, with 32 teeth; but that _after_ the Cross was stolen by
the infidels no mortal has ever been allowed more than 23!
ORÆFA MOUNTAIN IN ICELAND.
This mountain, which is the loftiest in Iceland, has been rendered
celebrated by an eruption which took place about a century ago. Nothing
can be more striking than the account given of this calamity by the
aged minister of the parish. He was in the midst of his service on
the Sabbath, when the agitation of the earth gave warning that some
alarming event was to follow. Rushing from the church, he saw a peak of
the neighbouring mountain alternately heaved up and sinking; till at
last, the stone, of which this portion of the mountain was composed,
ran down in a melted state into the plain, like melted metal from a
crucible, filling it to such a height, that no more of the mountain,
which formerly towered to such a height, remains, than about the size
of a bird; volumes of water being in the meantime thrown forth in a
deluge from the crater, and sweeping away whatever they encountered in
their course. The Oræfa then broke forth, hurling large masses of ice
to a great distance; fire burst out in every direction from its side;
the sky was darkened by the smoke and ashes, so that the day could
hardly be distinguished from the night. This scene of horror continued
for more than three days, during which the whole region was converted
into utter desolation.
THE SETON SWORD.
[Illustration [++] Seton Sword.]
The two-handed sword, which was introduced later than the claymore,
though still so familiar to us, is perhaps the most interesting, in an
archaeological point of view, of all the military relics pertaining
to the Medieval Period. The huge, ponderous, and unwieldy weapon,
seems the fittest emblem that could be devised, of the rude baron of
the thirteenth century, who lived by "the good old rule" of physical
force, and whose hardy virtues, not unsuited to an illiterate age--are
strangely mistaken for a chivalry such as later ages have not seen.
Calmly reasoning from this characteristic heirloom, we detect in it the
evidence of just such hardy, skilless, overbearing power, as history
informs us was the character of the medieval baron, before the rise of
the burgher class readjusted the social balance by the preponderance
of rival interests. The weapon figured here is a remarkably fine and
unusually large specimen of the old Scottish two-handed sword, now in
the possession of George Seton, Esq., representative of the Setons of
Cariston. It measures forty-nine inches in the blade, five feet nine
inches in entire length, and weighs seven and a half pounds. But the
chief interest of this old relic arises from the well-authenticated
family traditions which associate it with the memory of its first
knightly owner, Sir Christopher Seton of that Ilk, from whom some of
the oldest scions of the Scottish peerage have been proud to trace
their descent. He was married to Christian, sister of King Robert
the Bruce, whom he bravely defended at the battle of Methven. He was
shortly after taken prisoner by Edward I., and basely hanged as a
traitor.
STYLE OF LIVING IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The most perfect notion of the living and domestic arrangements of
the old English nobility and gentry will be found in the entries of
what were called the Household Books of the times. One of the most
celebrated of these records is the _Northumberland Household Book_,
being the regulations of the establishment of the fifth earl of
Northumberland, at his castles of Wrenill and Lekinfield, in Yorkshire,
begun in 1512. No baron's family was on a nobler or more splendid
footing. It consisted of one hundred and sixty-six persons, masters
and servants; fifty-seven strangers were reckoned upon every day; on
the whole two hundred and twenty-three. During winter they fed mostly
on salt meat and salt fish; and with that view there was a provision of
one hundred and sixty gallons of mustard per year; so that there cannot
be any thing more erroneous than the magnificent ideas formed of "the
roast beef of _Old_ England." On flesh days, (that is, when meat was
not forbidden by the Catholic religion), through the year, breakfast
for my lord and lady was a loaf of bread, two manchets, a quart of
beer, a quart of wine, half a chine of mutton, or a chine of beef
boiled. On meagre days (or when meat was forbidden), a loaf of bread,
two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, a dish of butter, a
piece of salt fish, or a dish of buttered eggs. During Lent, a loaf
of bread, two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, two pieces
of salt fish, six baconed herrings, four white herrings, or a dish of
sprats. There was as little variety in other meals, except on festival
days; and this way of living was, at the time, high luxury. There were
but two cooks to dress victuals for two hundred persons; and fowls,
pigeons, plovers, and partridges were prohibited as delicacies, except
at my lord's table. The table-cloth was washed about once a month; no
sheets were used; and only forty shillings were allowed for washing
throughout the year. The family rose at six in the morning, dined at
ten, and supped at four in the afternoon; and the castle gates were
shut at nine. Mass was said in the chapel at six o'clock, that all the
servants might rise early. The earl passed the year at three country
seats, but he had furniture only for one: he carried every thing along
with him, beds, tables, chairs, kitchen utensils; and seventeen carts
and one waggon conveyed the whole: one cart sufficed for all his
kitchen utensils, cooks' beds, &c. There were in the establishment
eleven priests, besides seventeen persons, chanters, musicians, &c.,
belonging to the chapel. No mention is made of plate, but only of the
hiring of pewter vessels. Wine was allowed in abundance for the lord's
table, but the beer for the hall was poor indeed, only a quarter of
malt being allowed for two hogsheads. The servants seem all to have
bought their own clothes from their wages. Every thing in the household
was done by order, with the pomp of proclamation; and laughable as it
may now seem, an order was issued for the right making of mustard,
beginning "It seemeth good to us and our council."
ANECDOTE OF A TERRIER.
A terrier, known to Professor Owen, was taught to play at hide and seek
with his master, who summoned him, by saying "Let us have a game;" upon
which the dog immediately hid his eyes between his paws, in the most
honourable manner, and when the gentleman had placed a sixpence, or a
piece of cake in a most improbable place, he started up and invariably
found it. His powers were equalled by what was called a fox-terrier,
named Fop, who would hide his eyes, and suffer those at play with
him to conceal themselves before he looked up. If his play-fellow
hid himself behind a window-curtain, Fop would, for a certain time,
carefully pass that curtain, and look behind all the others, behind
doors, etc., and when he thought he had looked long enough, seize the
concealing curtain and drag it aside in triumph. The drollest thing,
however, was to see him take his turn of hiding; he would get under a
chair, and fancy that he was not seen; of course, those at play with
him pretended not to see him, and it was most amusing to witness his
agitation as they passed. When he was ill he had been cured by some
homoeopathic globules, and ever after, if anything were the matter with
him, he would stand near the medicine box, and hold his mouth open.
CUTTING A WIFE OFF WITH A SHILLING.
In the year 1772, died at Lambeth, J---- G----e, Esq. In his will was
found the following remarkable clause:--"Whereas, it was my misfortune
to be made very uneasy by Elizabeth G----, my wife, for many years,
from our marriage, by her turbulent behaviour; for she was not content
with despising my admonitions, but she contrived every method to make
me unhappy; she was so perverse in her nature, that she would not
be reclaimed, but seemed only to be born to be a plague to me; the
strength of Sampson, the knowledge of Homer, the prudence of Augustus,
the cunning of Pyrrhus, the patience of Job, the subtlety of Hannibal,
and the watchfulness of Hermogenes, could not have been sufficient to
subdue her; for no skill or force in the world would make her good;
and, as we have lived several years separate, and apart from each other
eight years, and she having perverted her son to leave and totally
abandon me; therefore I give her one shilling only."
WEALTH OF THE JEWS.
About the year 1707, the Jews offered Lord Godolphin, Minister of Queen
Anne, to pay £500,000, (and they would have made it a million,) if the
government would allow them to purchase the town of Brentford, with
leave of settling there entirely, with full privileges of trade, &c.
Lord Godolphin did not comply with the request, and a curious reason
is assigned by Dean Lockier, because it would provoke two of the most
powerful bodies in the nation, the clergy and the merchants. The Jews
had better success with Oliver Cromwell: they offered him £60,000 to
have a synagogue in London. He took the money, and they had their
temple.
GAMBLING EXTRAORDINARY.
The following instance of frantic or drunken gambling appeared in the
_Times_ of April 17, 1812:--
"On Wednesday evening an extraordinary investigation took place at
Bow Street. Croker, the officer, was passing the Hampstead Road; he
observed at a short distance before him two men on a wall, and directly
after saw the tallest of them, a stout man about six feet high,
hanging by his neck from a lamp-post, attached to the wall, being that
instant tied up and turned off by the short man. This unexpected and
extraordinary sight astonished the officer; he made up to the spot with
all speed, and just after he arrived there, the tall man who had been
hanged, fell to the ground, the handkerchief with which he had been
suspended having given way. Croker produced his staff, said he was
an officer, and demanded to know of the other man the cause of such
conduct; in the mean time the man who had been hanged recovered, got
up, and on Croker interfering, gave him a violent blow on the nose,
which nearly knocked him backward. The short man was endeavouring to
make off; however, the officer procured assistance, and both were
brought to the office, when the account they gave was, that they worked
on canals. They had been together on Wednesday afternoon, tossed up
for money, and afterwards for their clothes, the tall man who was
hanged won the other's jacket, trowsers and shoes; they then tossed
up which should hang the other, and the short one won the toss. They
got upon the wall, the one to submit, and the other to hang him on
the lamp-iron. They both agreed in this statement. The tall one who
had been hanged said, if he won the toss, he would have hanged the
other. He said, he then felt the effects on his neck at the time he
was hanging, and his eyes was so much swelled that he saw double. The
magistrates expressed their horror and disgust, and ordered the man who
had been hanged to find bail for the violent and unjustifiable assault
upon the officer, and the short one for hanging the other. Not having
bail, they were committed to Bridewell for trial."
OLD BOOKS.
The Pentateuch and the history of Job are the most ancient books in
the world; and in profane literature the works of Homer and Hesiod.
The first book known to have been written in our own vernacular was
"The Confessions of Richard, Earl of Cambridge," _temp._ 1415; and the
earliest English ballad is supposed to be the "Cuckoo Song," which
commences in the following style:--
"Sumer is icumen in
Lhudé sing cuccu,
Groweth sed, and bloweth med,
And springth ye wedé nu:
Singe cuccu."
FOSSIL REPTILE; THE PTERODACTYLUS.
The pterodactylus was a flying animal. It had the wings of a bat, and
the structure of a reptile; jaws with sharp teeth, and claws with long
hooked nails. The power which it had of flying was not by means of its
ribs, nor by wings without fingers, as in birds, but by wings supported
by one very elongated toe, the others being short and furnished with
claws. The remains of this animal were brought under examination by M.
Collini, director of the Museum of the Elector Palatine at Manheim.
There was at first some discussion as to the actual character of the
animal. M. Blumenbach supposed it to be a bird, and M. de Soemmering
classed it among the bats. M. Cuvier, however, maintained that it was
a reptile, and showed that all its bones, from the teeth to the claws,
possessed the characters which distinguish that class of animals. But
still it differed from all other reptiles in possessing the capability
of flying. It is probable that it could at pleasure fold up its wings
in the same manner as birds, and might suspend itself on branches
of trees by its fore toes, though it possessed the power of sitting
upright on its hind feet. This is the most anomalous of all the fossil
reptiles.
TIGER CAVE AT CUTTACK.
The geographical distribution of the rock-cut caves of the Buddhists in
India is somewhat singular, more than nine-tenths of those now known
being found within the limits of the Bengal Presidency. The remainder
consist of two groups, those of Behar and Cuttack, neither of which
are important in extent, in Bengal; one only, that of Mahavellipore,
in Madras; and two or three not very important groups which have been
traced in Afghanistan and the Punjaub.
One of the most remarkable of these caves is that at Cuttack, which is
called the Tiger cave--being in fact a large mass of rock, carved into
a form intended to represent the head of that animal, whose extended
jaws form the verandah leading into a small apartment excavated in the
interior of the skull: our engraving is a correct representation of it.
[Illustration [++] Tiger Cave at Cuttack.]
Generally speaking, these single cells have a porch of two pillars
to protect the doorway, which leads into a small room, 10 or 12 ft.
square, constituting the whole cave. Buildings on precisely the same
plan are still very common in India, except that now, instead of being
the abode of a hermit, the cell is occupied by an image of some god or
other, and is surmounted by a low dome, or pyramidal spire, converting
it into a temple of some pretensions. The lower part, however, of these
small temples is very similar to the rock-cut hermitages of which we
are speaking.
THE JEWS IN ENGLAND.
William the Conqueror permitted great numbers of Jews to come over from
Rouen, and to settle in England in the last year of his reign. Their
number soon increased, and they spread themselves throughout most of
the cities and capital towns in England where they built synagogues.
There were fifteen hundred at York about the year 1189. At Bury, in
Suffolk, is a very complete remain of a Jewish synagogue of stone in
the Norman style, large and magnificent. Hence it was that many of the
learned English ecclesiastics of those times became acquainted with
their books and their language. In the reign of William Rufus, the Jews
were remarkably numerous at Oxford, and had acquired considerable
property; and some of their Rabbis were permitted to open a school
in the university, where they instructed not only their own people,
but many Christian students in Hebrew literature, about the year
1094. Within 200 years after their admission or establishment by the
Conqueror, they were banished from the kingdom. This circumstance was
highly favourable to the circulation of their learning in England. The
suddenness of their dismission obliged them for present subsistence,
and other reasons, to sell their moveable goods of all kinds, among
which were large quantities of all Rabbinical books. The monks
in various parts availed themselves of the distribution of these
treasures. At Huntingdon and Stamford there was a prodigious sale of
their effects, containing immense stores of Hebrew manuscripts, which
were immediately purchased by Gregory of Huntingdon, Prior of the abbey
of Ramsey. Gregory speedily became an adept in the Hebrew, by means
of these valuable acquisitions, which he bequeathed to his monastery
about the year 1250. Other members of the same convent, in consequence
of these advantages, are said to have been equal proficients in the
same language, soon after the death of Prior Gregory, among whom were
Robert Dodford, Librarian of Ramsey, and Laurence Holbech, who compiled
a Hebrew Lexicon. At Oxford a great number of their books fell into the
hands of Roger Bacon, or were bought by his brethren the Franciscan
friars of that university.
GAME PRESERVES AT CHANTILLY.
The establishment at Chantilly, which formerly belonged to the great
family of Condé, included 21 miles of park, and 48 miles of forest. The
horses, when the family were at that place, were above 500. The dogs,
60 to 80 couple: the servants, above 500. The stables the finest and
best in Europe. We shall now present to the sporting and un-sporting
reader, for both will lift up their eyes, a list of game killed, year
by year, through a series of thirty-two years--beginning with the year
1748, ending with the year 1779:--
_List of the Game._
54,878 24,029 37,209 19,932
37,160 27,013 42,902 27,164
58,712 26,405 31,620 30,429
39,892 33,055 25,994 30,859
32,470 50,812 18,479 25,813
39,893 40,234 18,550 50,666
32,470 26,267 26,371 13,304
16,186 25,953 19,774 17,566
Now let us give (of birds and beasts) their bill of mortality; that
is the numbers, in detail, of each specific description, registered
as below, and detailed to have been killed at Chantilly, in the
above-mentioned series of years. Hares, 77,750; rabbits, 587,470;
partridges, 117,574; red ditto, 12,426; pheasants, 86,193; quails,
19,696; rattles (the male quail), 449; woodcocks, 2,164; snipes, 2,856;
ducks, 1,353; wood-piquers, 317; lapwings, 720; becfique (small birds
like our wheatear), 67; curlews, 32; oyes d'Egypte, 3; oyes sauvage,
14; bustards, 2; larks, 106; tudells, 2; fox, 1; crapeaux, 8; thrushes,
1,313; guynard, 4; stags, 1,712; hinds, 1,682; facons, 519; does,
1,921; young does, 135; roebucks, 4,669; young ditto, 810; wild boars,
1,942; marcassins (young boars), 818. A magnificent list of animal
slaughter, carefully and systematically recorded as achievements.
BRITISH PEARLS.
The river Conway, in North Wales, was of considerable importance,
even before the Roman invasion, for the pearl mussel (the _Mya
Margaritifera_ of Linnæus) and Suetonius acknowledged that one of his
inducements for undertaking the subjugation of Wales was the pearl
fishery carried forward in that river. According to Pliny, the mussels,
called by the natives _Kregindilin_, were sought for with avidity by
the Romans, and the pearls found within them were highly valued; in
proof of which it is asserted that Julius Cæsar dedicated a breastplate
set with British pearls to Venus Genetrix, and placed it in her temple
at Rome. A fine specimen from the Conway is said to have been presented
to Catherine, consort of Charles II., by Sir Richard Wynne, of Gwydir;
and it is further said that it has since contributed to adorn the regal
crown of England. Lady Newborough possessed a good collection of the
Conway pearls, which she purchased of those who were fortunate enough
to find them, as there is no regular fishery at present. The late Sir
Robert Vaughan had obtained a sufficient number to appear at Court with
a button and loop to his hat, formed of these beautiful productions,
about the year 1780.
FUNERAL ORATION OF FRANCIS THE FIRST.
Pierre Duchatel, in a funeral oration on the death of Francis I.,
published 1547, took upon himself to affirm, that the soul of the king
had gone _direct to Paradise_. This passing over of purgatory gave
offence to the doctors of the Sorbonne, who sent a deputation to warn
him of his error. The prelate being absent, one of his friends received
them, and, in reply, gaily said--"Be not uneasy, gentlemen, every one
knows that the late king, my master, never stopped long in any one
place, however agreeable. Supposing, then, that he went to purgatory,
be assured that his stay would be very short." This pleasantry disarmed
the severity of the doctors, and the affair went no farther.
GRAVES OF THE STONE PERIOD.
Stone Chambers, which once formed places of interment, are frequently
discovered within large barrows of earth raised by the hands of man.
They are to be referred to the period of the Danish Invasion, which
is generally termed among antiquaries the "Stone Period," because the
use of metals was then in a great measure unknown; and while a few are
to be found in Great Britain, there are many more of them in Denmark.
These tombs, which are covered with earth, have most probably contained
the remains of the powerful and the rich. They are almost all provided
with long entrances, which lead from the exterior of the mound of
earth to the east or south side of the chambers. The entrances, like
the chambers, are formed of large stones, smooth on the side which
is turned inwards, on which very large roof-stones are placed. The
chambers, and even the entrances, which are from sixteen to twenty
feet in length, are filled with trodden earth and pebbles, the object
of which, doubtless, was to protect the repose of the dead in their
graves, and the contents which are found in them consist of unburnt
human skeletons (which were occasionally placed on a pavement of flat
or round stones), together with implements and weapons, and tools of
flint or bone, ornaments, pieces of amber, and urns of clay. In some
cases smaller chambers have been discovered, annexed to one side of the
passage which leads to the larger chamber, and one of these smaller
chambers we have engraved as a specimen of the sort of tombs we are now
describing.
[Illustration [++] Stone Chamber in a Barrow.]
The above sketch represents a chamber which was discovered in a barrow,
situated near Paradis, in the parish of the Vale, in the island of
Guernsey. On digging into the mound, a large flat stone was soon
discovered; this formed the top, or cap-stone, of the tomb, and on
removing it, the upper part of two human skulls were exposed to view.
One was facing the north, the other the south, but both disposed
in a line from east to west. The chamber was filled up with earth
mixed with limpet-shells, and as it was gradually removed, while the
examination was proceeding downwards into the interior, the bones
of the extremities became exposed to view, and were seen to greater
advantage. They were less decomposed than those of the upper part;
and the teeth and jaws, which were well preserved, denoted that they
were the skeletons of adults, and not of old men. The reason why the
skeletons were found in this extraordinary position it is impossible to
determine. Probably the persons who were thus interred were prisoners,
slaves, or other subordinates, who were slain--perhaps buried alive--on
occasion of the funeral of some great or renowned personage, who was
placed in the larger chamber at the end of the passage; and this view
of the case is considerably strengthened by the fact that the total
absence of arms, weapons, or vases, in the smaller chamber, denotes
that the quality of the persons within it was of less dignity or
estimation.
WAR CHARIOT OF ANCIENT EGYPT.
This chariot, which is mentioned in various parts of Scripture, and
more especially in the description of the pursuit of the Israelites
by Pharaoh, and of his overthrow in the Red Sea, was a very light
structure, consisting of a wooden framework strengthened and adorned
with metal, and leather binding, answering to the descriptions which
Homer has given of those engaged in the Trojan war.
[Illustration [++] War Chariot.]
The sides were partly, and the back wholly open; and it was so low that
a man could easily step into it from behind; for there was no seat, the
rider always standing in war or hunting, though when wearied he might
occasionally sit on the sides, or squat, in eastern fashion, on his
heels. The body of the car was not hung on the axle _in equilibrio_,
but considerably forward, so that the weight was thrown more upon the
horses. Its lightness, however, would prevent this from being very
fatiguing to them, and this mode of placing it had the advantage of
rendering the motion more easy to the driver. To contribute further
to this end, the bottom or floor consisted of a network of interlaced
thongs, the elasticity of which in some measure answered the purpose of
modern springs.
The Egyptian chariots were invariably drawn by two horses abreast,
which were richly caparisoned; it is, perhaps, to the extreme elegance
and magnificence of their trappings, no less than to their own beauty,
that allusion is made in the Song of Songs (1-9), where the royal
bridegroom addresses his spouse thus: "I have compared thee, O my love,
to a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariots." The chariot of Egypt
ordinarily carried two persons, one of whom acted as the warrior,
the other as the charioteer. Occasionally we find three persons in
a chariot, as when two princes of the blood, each bearing the royal
sceptre, or flabellum, accompanying the king in a state procession,
requiring a charioteer to manage the reins.
PEACOCKS.
India, says Mr. Pennant, gave us peacocks, and we are assured by Knox,
in his "History of Ceylon," that they are still found in the wild
state, in vast flocks, in that island and in Java. So beautiful a bird
could not be permitted to be a stranger in the more distant parts; for
so early as the days of Solomon (1 Kings, x. 22) we find among the
articles imported in his Tarshish navies, apes and peacocks. A monarch
so conversant in all branches of natural history, would certainly not
neglect furnishing his officers with instructions for collecting every
curiosity in the country to which they made voyages, which gave him
a knowledge that distinguished him from all the princes of his time.
Ælian relates that they were brought into Greece from some barbarous
country, and that they were held in such high estimation that a male
and female were valued at Athens at 1,000 _drachmæ_, or £32 5s. 10d.
Their next step might be to Samos, where they were preserved about the
temple of Juno, being the birds sacred to that goddess; and Gellius, in
his "_Noctes Atticæ_" commends the excellency of the Samian peacocks.
It is, therefore probable that they were brought there originally for
the purposes of superstition, and afterwards cultivated for the uses of
luxury. We are also told, when Alexander was in India, he found vast
numbers of wild ones on the banks of the Hyarotis, and was so struck
with their beauty as to appoint a severe punishment on any person that
killed them.
Peacocks' crests, in ancient times, were among the ornaments of the
kings of England. Ernald de Aclent (Acland) paid a fine to King John
in a hundred and forty palfries, with sackbuts, _lorains_, gilt spurs,
and peacocks' crests, such as would be for his credit.--Some of our
regiments of cavalry bear on their helmets, at present, the figure of a
peacock.
ROMAN THEATRE AT ORANGE.
One of the most striking Roman provincial theatres is that of Orange,
in the south of France. Perhaps it owes its existence, or at all events
its splendour, to the substratum of Grecian colonists that preceded the
Romans in that country. Its auditorium is 340 ft. in diameter, but much
ruined, in consequence of the princes of Orange having used this part
as a bastion in some fortification they were constructing.
The stage is tolerably preserved. It shows well the increased
extent and complication of arrangements required for the theatrical
representations of the age in which it was constructed, being a
considerable advance towards the more modern idea of a play, as
distinguished from the stately semi-religious spectacle in which the
Greeks delighted. The noblest part of the building is the great wall at
the back, an immense mass of masonry, 340 ft. in extent, and 116 ft. in
height, without a single opening above the basement, and no ornament
except a range of blank arches, about midway between the basement and
the top, and a few projecting corbels to receive the footings of the
masts that supported the velarium. Nowhere does the architecture of
the Romans shine so much as when their gigantic buildings are left to
tell their own tale by the imposing grandeur of their masses. Whenever
ornament is attempted, their bad taste comes out. The size of their
edifices, and the solidity of their construction, were only surpassed
by the Egyptians, and not always by them; and when, as here, their mass
stands unadorned in all its native grandeur, criticism is disarmed,
and the spectator stands awe-struck at its majesty, and turns away
convinced that truly "there were giants in those days." This is not, it
is true, the most intellectual way of obtaining architectural effect,
but it is the easiest and the most certain to secure the desired result.
A PISCATORIAL DOG.
Mr. Jukes, in his "Excursions in and about Newfoundland," speaks of a
dog which appeared to be of the pure breed, and which he thought to
be more intelligent than the mixed race. This animal caught his own
fish, for which purpose he sat on a projecting rock, beneath a fish
stage, on which the fish were laid to dry, watching the water, the
depth being from six to eight feet, and the bottom quite white with
fish-bones. On throwing a piece of cod-fish into the water, three or
four heavy, clumsy-looking fish, called in Newfoundland _sculpins_,
would swim to catch it. The instant one turned his broadside towards
him, he darted down, and seldom came up without the fish in his mouth.
He regularly carried them as he caught them to a place a few yards off,
where he deposited them, sometimes making a pile of fifty or sixty in
the day. As he never attempted to eat them, he appeared to fish for his
amusement.
PHENOMENA OF SOUND.
In the gardens of Les Rochas, once the well-known residence of Madame
de Sevigné, is a remarkable echo, which illustrates finely the
conducting and reverberating powers of a flat surface. The Château
des Rochas is situated not far from the interesting and ancient town
of Vitre. A broad gravel walk on a dead flat conducts through the
garden to the house. In the centre of this, on a particular spot, the
listener is placed at the distance of about ten or twelve yards from
another person, who, similarly placed, addresses him in a low and, in
the common acceptation of the term, inaudible whisper, when, "Lo! what
myriads rise!" for immediately, from thousands and tens of thousands
of invisible tongues, starting from the earth beneath, or as if every
pebble was gifted with powers of speech, the sentence is repeated with
a slight hissing sound, not unlike the whirling of small shot passing
through the air. On removing from this spot, however trifling the
distance, the intensity of the repetition is sensibly diminished, and
within a few feet ceases to be heard. Under the idea that the ground
was hollow beneath, the soil has been dug up to a considerable depth;
but without discovering any clue to the solution of the mystery.
ANTIQUE WATCH.
[Illustration [++] Antique Silver Watch Shaped Like a Duck.]
The above engraving represents a fancy silver watch of the time of
Queen Elizabeth. It is shaped like a duck; the feathers chased. The
lower part opens, and the dial plate, which is also of silver, is
encircled with a gilt ornamental design of floriated scrolls and
angels' heads. The wheels work on small rubies. It has no maker's
name. It is preserved in the original case of thin brass, covered with
black leather, and ornamented with silver studs, as represented in the
woodcut below. It forms one of the curiosities in the Museum of Lord
Londesborough.
[Illustration [++] Watch in Original Case.]
HORSES FEEDING ONE ANOTHER.
M. de Bossanelle, captain of cavalry in the regiment of Beauvilliers,
relates in his "Military Observations," printed in Paris, 1760, "That,
in the year 1757, an old horse of his company, that was very fine and
full of mettle, had his teeth all on a sudden so worn down, that he
could not chew his hay and corn; and that he was fed for two months,
and would still have been so had he been kept, by two horses on each
side of him, that ate in the same manger. These two horses drew hay
from the rack, which they chewed, and afterwards threw before the
old horse; that they did the same with the oats, which they ground
very small, and also put before him. This (adds he) was observed and
witnessed by a whole company of cavalry, officers and men."
CROSS OF MUIREDACH.
[Illustration [++] Cross of Muiredach.]
From the rude pillar-stone marked with the symbol of our
faith, enclosed within a circle, the emblem of Eternity, the
finely-proportioned and elaborately-sculptured crosses of a later
period are derived. In the latter, the circle, instead of being simply
cut on the face of the stone, is represented by a ring, binding, as it
were, the shaft, arms, and upper portion of the cross together. There
are two beautiful specimens of this style of cross at Monasterboice,
near Drogheda, about thirty-five miles from Dublin. The smaller, more
beautiful, and more perfect of these we here engrave. The figures and
ornaments with which its various sides are enriched appear to have been
executed with an unusual degree of artistic skill. It is now almost as
perfect as it was when, nearly nine centuries ago, the artist, we may
suppose, pronounced his work finished, and chiefs and abbots, bards,
shanachies, warriors, and ecclesiastics, and, perhaps, many a rival
sculptor, crowded round this very spot full of wonder and admiration
for what they must have considered a truly glorious, and, perhaps,
unequalled work. An inscription in Irish upon the lower part of the
shaft, desires "A prayer for Muiredach, by whom was made this cross,"
and there is reason for assigning it to an abbot of that name who died
in the year 924. Its total height is exactly fifteen feet, and it is
six in breadth at the arms. The shaft, which at the base measures in
breadth two feet six inches, and in thickness one foot nine inches,
diminishes slightly in its ascent, and is divided upon its various
sides by twisted bands into compartments, each of which contains either
sculptured figures, or tracery of very intricate design, or animals,
probably symbolical.
CHINESE THERAPEUTICS.
In the treatment of disease, the Chinese, so fond of classification,
divide the medicinal substances they employ into heating, cooling,
refreshing, and temperate: their _materia medica_ is contained in
the work called the _Pen-tsaocang-mou_ in fifty-two large volumes,
with an atlas of plates; most of our medicines are known to them and
prescribed; the mineral waters, with which their country abounds,
are also much resorted to; and their emperor, Kang-Hi, has given an
accurate account of several thermal springs. Fire is a great agent, and
the _moxa_ recommended in almost every aliment, while acupuncture is in
general use both in China and Japan; bathing and _champooing_ are also
frequently recommended, and bloodletting is seldom resorted to.
China has also her animal magnetisers, practising the _Cong fou_, a
mysterious manipulation taught by the bonzes, in which the adepts
produce violent convulsions.
The Chinese divide their prescriptions into seven categories:
1. The great prescription.
2. The little prescription.
3. The slow prescription.
4. The prompt prescription.
5. The odd prescription.
6. The even prescription.
7. The double prescription.
Each of these receipts being applied to particular cases, and the
ingredients that compose them being weighed with the most scrupulous
accuracy.
Medicine was taught in the imperial colleges of Pekin; but in every
district, a physician, who had studied six years, is appointed to
instruct the candidate for the profession, who was afterwards allowed
to practise, without any further studies or examination; and it is
said, that, in general, the physician only receives his fee when
the patient is cured. This assertion, however, is very doubtful, as
the country abounds in quacks, who, under such restrictions as to
remuneration, would scarcely earn a livelihood. Another singular, but
economical practice prevails amongst them--a physician never pays
a second visit to a patient unless he is sent for. Whatever may be
the merits of Chinese practitioners both in medicine and surgery, or
their mode of receiving remuneration, it appears that they are as much
subject to animadversion as in other countries:--A missionary having
observed to a Chinese, that their medical men had constantly recourse
to fire in the shape of moxa, red-hot iron, and burning needles; he
replied, "Alas! you Europeans are carved with steel, while we are
martyrized with hot iron; and I fear that in neither country will the
fashion subside, since the operators do not feel the anguish they
inflict, and are equally paid to torment us or to cure us!"
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS TO SIR FRANCIS KNOLLYS, FROM BOLTON, SEPT. 1ST,
1568: HER FIRST LETTER IN ENGLISH.
(MS. Cotton. Calig. C. I. fol. 161 b. _Orig._)
Mester Knoleis, y heuv har (I have heard) sum neus from Scotland; y
send zou the double off them y vreit (wrote) to the quin (queen) my
gud Sister, and pres (pray) zou to du the lyk, conforme to that y
spak zesternicht vnto zou, and sut hesti ansur y refer all to zour
discretion, and wil lipne beter in zour gud delin (dealing) for mi,
(me) nor y kan persuad zou, nemli in this langasg (language) excus
my ivil vreitin (writing) for y neuver vsed it afor, and am hestit
(hasted). Ze schal si my bel (bill) vhuilk (which) is opne, it is sed
Seterday my unfrinds wil be vth (with) zou, y sey nething bot trests
weil, and ze send oni to zour wiff ze mey asur schu (she) wald a bin
weilcom to apur (poor) strenger hua (who) nocht bien (not being)
aquentet vth her, wil nocht bi ouuer bald (bold) to vreit bot for the
aquentans betuix ous (us: _i_. _e_. herself and Sir Francis Knolles). Y
wil send zou letle tokne (token) to rember (remember) zou off the gud
hop y heuu (have) in zou guef (gif--if) ze fend (find) a mit (meet)
mesager y wald wish ze bestouded (bestowed) it reder (rather) apon her
non (than) ani vder; thus effter my commendations y prey God heuu zou
in his kipin.
"Zour asured gud frind.
"MARIE R.
"Excus my ivel vreitin thes furst tym."
PHILOSOPHY OF THE BRAMINS.
The order of creation, which is described in the Institutes of Menu
(c. 1, pp. 75-8), is remarkable. "First emerges the subtle ether, to
which philosophers ascribe the quality of conveying sound: from ether,
effecting a transmutation in form, springs the pure and potent air,
a vehicle of all scents; and air is held endued with the quality of
touch: then from air, operating a change, rises light, or fire, making
objects visible, dispelling gloom, spreading bright rays; and it is
declared to have the quality of figure: but from light, a change being
effected, comes water, with the quality of taste: and from water is
deposited earth, with the quality of smell; such were they created in
the beginning." This passage bears at least as strong a resemblance to
the chemical philosophy of our days, as certain parts of the Hindoo
fables bear to the mysteries of the Christian religion. But it is more
difficult to account for the philosophy, (if, indeed, it be any thing
more than mere theory,) than to explain how the distorted traces of
Christianity found their way into the fables of Hindostan.
FOREIGNERS IN LONDON IN 1567.
"We learn from the Bishop of London's certificate, that, in December,
1567, there were then in London and its immediate vicinity, or places
which are now included in the word 'London,' 3838 Dutchmen; 720
Frenchmen; 137 Italians; 14 Venetians; 56 Spaniards; 25 Portuguese; 2
Grecians; 2 Blackamores; 1 Dane; and but 58 Scots! making a total of
4851 foreigners."
CHANGES OF FORTUNE.
In 1454, Sir Stephen Forster was Lord Mayor of London. He had been long
in prison and penury, on account of his inordinate profuseness. It
chanced that a most fantastical widow, who knew not how to get rid of
her immense wealth, saw him begging at the gate; she admired his fine
person, learnt his history, paid his debts, and married him; asking
of him only this one favour, that he would lavish away her fortune as
fast as he could. Forster, probably from perverseness, became a sober
husband and a prudent manager, and only expended large sums in adding
a chapel and other advantageous appendages to Ludgate, where he had
suffered so many hardships.
ROMAN VASES IN BLACK WARE.
The principal subjects represented on vases of ancient Roman pottery
of black ware are hunting scenes--such as dogs chasing stags,
deer, hares,--also, dolphins, ivy wreaths, and engrailed lines;
and engine-turned patterns. In a few instances men with spears are
represented, but in a rude and debased style of art. The principal form
is the cup of a jar shape, sometimes with deep oval flutings, as on one
found at Castor; but dishes, cups, plates, and mortars are not found in
this ware.
[Illustration [++] Roman Vase in Black Ware.]
Some of the vases of this ware have ornaments, and sometimes letters
painted on them in white slip upon their black ground, as represented
in our engraving. They are generally of a small size, and of the nature
of bottles or cups, with inscriptions, such as AVE, hail! VIVAS, may
you live! IMPLE, fill; BIBE, drink; VINVM, wine; VIVA, life; VIVE BIBE
MVLTIS; showing that they were used for purposes purely convivial. Such
are the vases found at Etaples, near Boulogne, the ancient Gessoriacum,
and at Mesnil.
Some rarer and finer specimens from Bredene, in the department of Lis,
have a moulding round the foot. Great quantities are found in England,
Holland, Belgium, and France. It is found on the right bank of the
Rhine. A variety of this ware has been lately found at a spot called
Crockhill, in the New Forest, together with the kilns in which it was
made, and a heap of potter's sherds, or pieces spoilt in the baking.
The paste was made of the blue clay of the neighbourhood, covered with
an alkaline glaze of a maroon colour, perhaps the result of imperfect
baking; for the pieces when submitted again to the action of the fire,
decrepitated and split. They were so much vitrified as to resemble
modern stone ware, yet as all of them have proofs of having been
rejected by the potters, it is probable that this was not the proper
colour of the ware. Almost all were of the pinched up fluted shape, and
had no bas-reliefs, having been ornamented with patterns laid on in
white colour. The kilns are supposed to be of the third century of our
era, and the ware was in local use, for some of it was found at Bittern.
FRENCH BIBLE.
There was a French Bible, printed at Paris in 1538, by Anthony
Bonnemere, wherein is related "that the ashes of the golden calf which
Moses caused to be burnt, and mixed with the water that was drank by
the Israelites, stuck to the beards of such as has had fallen down
before it; by which they appeared with gilt beards, as a peculiar mark
to distinguish those which had worshipped the calf." This idle story
is actually interwoven with the 32nd chapter of Exodus. And Bonnemere
says, in his preface, this French Bible was printed in 1495, at the
request of his most Christian Majesty Charles VIII.; and declares
further that the French translator "has added nothing but the genuine
truths, according to the express terms of the Latin Bible; nor omitted
anything but what was improper to be translated!" So that we are to
look upon this fiction of the gilded beards as matter of fact; and
another of the same stamp, inserted in the chapter above mentioned,
viz., that, "Upon Aaron's refusing to make gods for the Israelites,
they spat upon him with so much fury and violence that they quite
suffocated him."
SARDONYX RING WITH CAMEO HEAD OF QUEEN ELIZABETH, IN THE POSSESSION OF
REV. LORD THYNNE.
[Illustration [++] Sardonyx Ring.]
This is said to be the identical ring given by Queen Elizabeth to
Essex, and so fatally retained by Lady Nottingham. It has descended
from Lady Frances Devereux, Essex's daughter, in unbroken succession
from mother and daughter to the present possessor. The ring is gold,
the sides engraved, and the inside of blue enamel; the execution of the
head of Elizabeth is of a high order, and whether this be _the_ ring or
not, it is valuable as a work of art.
CURIOUS WAGERS.
There have been travelling wagers, and none of the least singular of
such was that of Mr. Whalley, an Irish gentleman (and who we believe
edited Ben Johnson's works), who, for a very considerable wager (twenty
thousand pounds, it was said,) set out on Monday the 22nd of September,
1788, to walk to Constantinople and back again in one year. This wager,
however whimsical, is not without a precedent. Some years ago a baronet
of good fortune (Sir Henry Liddel) laid a considerable wager that he
would go to Lapland, bring home two females of that country, and two
rein-deer, in a given time. He performed the journey, and effected
his purpose in every respect. The Lapland women lived with him about
a year, but desiring to go back to their own country, the baronet
furnished them with means and money.
CONFECTIONERY ART IN 1660.
The following is extracted from a work on Cookery, by Robert May,
published in 1660. It is entitled the "_Accomplisht Cook, &c., &c._
"Triumphs and Trophies in Cookery, to be used in Festival Times, as
Twelfth Day, &c.:--Make the likeness of a ship in pasteboard with flags
and streamers, the guns belonging to it of kickses, bind them about
with pack-thread and cover them with paste proportionable to the
fashion of a cannon with carriages; lay them in places convenient, as
you see them in ships of war, with such holes and trains of powder that
they may all take fire. Place your ships firm in a great charger; then
make a salt round about it, and stick therein egg-shells full of sweet
water; you may by a great pin take out all the meat out of the egg by
blowing, and then fill it with rose-water. Then in another charger have
the proportion of a stag made of coarse paste, with a broad arrow in
the side of him, and his body filled up with claret wine. In another
charger at the end of the stag have the proportion of a castle with
battlements, percullices, gates, and drawbridges, made of pasteboard,
the guns of kickses, and covered with coarse paste as the former; place
it at a distance from the ship to fire at each other. The stag being
placed betwixt them, with egg-shells full of sweet water (as before)
placed in salt. At each side of the charger wherein is the stag, place
a pie made of coarse paste, in one of which let there be some live
frogs, in the other live birds; make these pies of coarse paste, filled
with bran, and yellowed over saffron, or yolks of eggs: gild them over
in spots, as also the stag, the ship and castle; bake them, and place
them with gilt bay leaves on the turrets and tunnels of the castle and
pies; being baked make a hole in the bottom of your pies, take out the
bran, put in your frogs and birds, and close up the holes with the
same coarse paste; then cut the lids neatly up to be taken off by the
tunnels. Being all placed in order upon the table, before you fire the
trains of powder, order it so that some of the ladies may be persuaded
to pluck the arrow out of the stag; then will the claret wine follow,
as blood running out of a wound. This being done with admiration to
the beholders, after some short pause, fire the train of the castle,
that the pieces all of one side may go off; then fire the trains of
one side of the ship as in a battle; next turn the chargers, and by
degrees fire the trains of each other side, as before. This done, to
sweeten the stink of the powder, the ladies take the egg-shells full of
sweet waters, and throw them at each other, all dangers being seemed
over, and by this time you may suppose they will desire to see what
is in the pies; when lifting first the lid off one pie, out skip some
frogs, which makes the ladies to skip and shriek; next after the other
pie, whence comes out the birds; who by a natural instinct flying at
the light, will put out the candles; so that what with the flying
birds and skipping frogs, the one above, the other beneath, will cause
much delight and pleasure to the whole company: at length the candles
are lighted and a banquet brought in, the music sounds, and every one
with much delight and content rehearses their actions in the former
passages. These were formerly the delights of the nobility, before good
house-keeping had left England, and the sword really acted that which
was only counterfeited in such honest and laudable exercises as these."
SUSPENDED ANIMATION.
David Beck, the celebrated portrait painter, and pupil of Vandyke,
travelling through Germany, was suddenly taken ill, and to all
appearance died, and was laid out as a corpse. His servants, sitting
round the bed, grieved heartily for the loss of so good a master; and,
as grief is thirsty, drank as heartily at the same time. One of them,
becoming more fuddled than the rest, then addressed his companions
thus: "Our master when alive was fond of his glass, let us now, out of
gratitude, then give him one now he is dead." Assent was given, the
head of the dead painter was raised up, and some wine poured down or
spilt about, the fragrance or spirit of which caused Beck to open his
eyes; upon which the servant, who, being drunk, half forgetting his
master was dead, forced down the remainder of the glass. The painter
gradually revived, and thus escaped a living interment.
FUNERAL OF MARAT.
The funeral of Marat was celebrated at Paris, July 17th, 1793, with the
greatest pomp and solemnity. All the sections joined the procession.
An immense crowd of people attended it. Four women bore the bathing
machine in which Marat was standing when he was assassinated; his
shirt, stained with blood, was carried by a fury, in the shape of a
woman, at the top of a pike. After this followed a wooden bedstead,
on which the corpse of Marat was carried by citizens. His head was
uncovered, and the gash he had received could be easily distinguished.
The procession was paraded through several streets, and was saluted on
its march by several discharges of artillery.
EXECUTION OF ANNE BOLEYN.
In Houssaie's "Memoirs," Vol. I. p. 435, a little circumstance is
recorded concerning the decapitation of the unfortunate Anne Boleyn,
which illustrates an observation of Hume. Our historian notices that
her executioner was a Frenchman of Calais, who was supposed to have
uncommon skill; it is probable that the following incident might
have been preserved by tradition in France, from the account of the
executioner himself. Anne Boleyn being on the scaffold, would not
consent to have her eyes covered with a bandage, saying that she had
no fear of death. All that the divine who assisted at her execution
could obtain from her was, that she would shut her eyes. But as she
was opening them at every moment, the executioner could not bear their
tender and mild glances. Fearful of missing his aim, he was obliged to
invent an expedient to behead the queen. He drew off his shoes, and
approached her silently; while he was at her left hand, another person
advanced at her right, who made a great noise in walking, so that this
circumstance drawing the attention of Anne, she turned, her face from
the executioner, who was enabled by this artifice to strike the fatal
blow without being disarmed by that pride of affecting resignation
which shone in the eyes of the lovely Anne Boleyn.
MEXICAN TENNIS.
The Mexicans had one singular law in their play with the ball. In the
walls of the court where they played certain stones, like mill-stones
were fixed, with a hole in the middle, just large enough to let the
ball pass through; and whoever drove it through, which required great
skill, and was, of course, rarely effected, won the cloaks of the
lookers-on. They, therefore, took to their heels to save their cloaks,
and others pursued to catch them, which was a new source of amusement.
CURIOUSLY-SHAPED VESSEL.
[Illustration [++] Vessel in the Shape of a Lion.]
There is a singular class of Northern relics, of the Christian Period,
of which analogous types have been found in Scotland, which well
deserve our attention. The relics of which we speak consist of a
curious variety of vessels, presumed to have been designed for holding
liquors, but invariably made in the form of some animal or monstrous
hybrid. The annexed figure represents one of these, in the collection
of Charles Kirkpatrick Sharp, Esq., and found by him among a hoard of
long-forgotten family heirlooms, in a vault of his paternal mansion
of Hoddam Castle, Dumfriesshire. Of its previous history nothing is
known. It is made of bronze. The principal figure is a lion, without a
tail, measuring fourteen inches in length, and nearly fourteen inches
in greatest height. On the back is perched a nondescript animal, half
greyhound, half fish, apparently intended for a handle to the whole,
while from the breast projects a stag's head with large antlers. This
has a perforation in the back of the neck, as if for the insertion of
a stop-cock, and it appears probable was designed for running off the
liquid contained within the singular vessel to which it is attached. A
small square lid on the top of the lion's head, opening with a hinge,
supplies the requisite aperture for whatever liquor it was designed to
hold. A similar relic, possessed by Sir John Maxwell, Bart., was dug up
a few years since on the Pollock estate; and another, in the collection
of the late E. W. A. Drummond Hay, Esq., was also in the form of a lion.
A SENSIBLE DOG.
Professor Owen was walking with a friend, the master of the dog,
by the side of a river, near its mouth, on the coast of Cornwall,
and picked up a small piece of seaweed. It was covered with minute
animals, and Mr. Owen observed to his companion, throwing the weed
into the water,--"If this small piece afforded so many treasures, how
microscopically rich the whole plant would be! I should much like to
have one!" The gentleman walked on; but hearing a splashing in the
water, turned round and saw it violently agitated. "It is Lion!" both
exclaimed. "What can he be about? He was walking quietly enough by our
side a minute ago." At one moment they saw his tail above the water,
then his head raised for a breath of air, then the surrounding element
shook again, and at last he came ashore, panting from his exertions,
and laid a whole plant of the identical weed at Mr. Owen's feet. After
this proof of intelligence, it will not be wondered at, that when Lion
was joyfully expecting to accompany his master and his guest on an
excursion, and was told to go and take care of and comfort Mrs. Owen,
who was ill, that he should immediately return to the drawing-room, and
lay himself by her side, which he never left during the absence of his
owner; his countenance alone betraying his disappointment, and that
only for a few minutes.
THE CROWN OF CHARLEMAGNE.
As the emblem of sovereignty which once adorned the brows of one of
earth's mightiest men, and as a unique specimen of the state at which
the goldsmith's art had arrived as early as the ninth century, we here
present our readers with an engraving of the crown of Charlemagne.
[Illustration [++] Crown of Charlemagne.]
This great man was the eldest son of Pepin the Short, and grandson of
Charles Martel, and was born at the castle of Ingelheim, near Metz,
in the year 742. His father dying in 768 he succeeded to the crown in
conjunction with his brother Carloman, whose death in 771 left him sole
monarch of the Franks. By his alliances, negociations, and principally
by his numerous and glorious wars, he so enlarged his dominions, that
at length they extended from the Ebro to the mouth of the Elbe, from
the Atlantic to the mountains of Bohemia and the Saal, and from the
British Channel to the Volturno. In the year 800 he was crowned at
Rome, as Emperor of the West, by Pope Leo III., and died of a pleurisy
in 814, at Aix-la-Chapelle, in the cathedral of which city he was
buried with extraordinary magnificence. Equally illustrious in the
cabinet and in the field, a wise legislator, and a great warrior, the
patron of men of letters, and the restorer of learning, Charlemagne
has united in his favour the suffrages of statesmen and soldiers, and
of ecclesiastics, lawyers, and men of letters, who have all vied with
one another in bestowing the homage of their praise on the celebrated
founder of the Western Empire.
The crown of this illustrious man, of which our engraving is a correct
representation, is now preserved at Vienna in the Imperial Treasury.
It is composed of eight plates of gold, four large and four small,
connected by hinges. The large ones, studded with precious stones, form
the front, the back, and the intermediate points of the crown; the
small ones, placed alternately with these, are ornamented with enamels
representing Solomon, David, King Hezekiah seated on his throne,
and Christ seated between two flaming seraphim, such as the Greeks
usually represent them. The costume of the figures resembles that of
the Emperors of the Lower Empire, and although the inscriptions which
accompany the figures are in Latin, the whole bears the impress of
Greek workmanship. The ground of the figures is formed by the metal
itself, which has been hollowed out to receive the enamel; but all the
details of the design are traced out with fine fillets of gold. The
flesh-tints are in rose-coloured enamel; the colours employed in the
draperies and accessories are deep and light blue, red, and white. The
crown has unquestionably been retouched at various periods, but yet
there is nothing to invalidate the tradition which assigns the more
ancient portions to the time of Charlemagne. The enamels must belong to
the same early period.
SPENT BY THE CORPORATION OF COVENTRY AT THE ENTERTAINMENT OF KING JAMES
II. IN HIS PROGRESS THROUGH COVENTRY, 1687.
(Mr. Richard Haywood, Treasurer.)
£ s. d.
Gave a gold cup 171 17 6
Mr. Septimus Butt, mayor, for sweetmeats 27 17 0
Meat 13 14 0
Wine 21 12 6
Homage fee 41 6 8
King's cook 10 0 0
City cook 9 8 6
Steward Fielding, for making a speech to his Majesty 5 7 6
For linen spoiled, borrowed of Mrs. Smith, Spon-street 2 12 6
The aldermen that went to Worcester to invite him 3 18 9
Several companies for waiting on the King 27 9 4
Alderman Webster, for meat 3 6 0
Alderman Bradney for corn 3 5 6
His Majesty's clerk of the market 1 1 6
The King's trumpeters 2 0 0
Richard Howcott, for carrying the city streamer 0 7 0
The city bailiff's bill for fish, fowl, and wine 88 18 2
-------------
£434 2 9
TRAVELLING EXPENSES IN THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY.
Of travelling expenses in the thirteenth century, a roll is in
existence, and is too interesting to be passed over. It contains
a steward's accompts of the daily expenses of a person of rank in
the reign of Edward I, on a journey from Oxford to Canterbury,
and during his sojourn in London, about the year 1289; while the
record throws much light upon the mode of our ancestors' living,
at a period concerning which we have very few similar memorials.
One day's expenses are as follow: "In bread, sixpence. Two gallons
of wine, a gift of hospitality from the rector of Berton. Item in
bread, sixpence. Two gallons of wine, a gift of hospitality from the
rector of Mistern. Beer, sixpence. Herrings, threepence. Stockfish,
fourpence. Porpoise and fish, fourpence. Perch and roach, seven-pence.
Large eels, seven-pence. Vegetables, threepence farthing. Figs and
raisins, twopence. Fuel, five-pence. A bed for two nights, twopence.
Hay for seven horses, seven-pence. A bushel of oats, twenty-pence.
Apples, a halfpenny. Sum, six shillings and eight-pence halfpenny."
The most expensive day in the roll is on a Sunday, "in expenses of
my lord at Westminster, when he held a breakfast there for knights,
clerks, and squires. Bread, two shillings. Beer, twelve-pence. Wine,
three shillings and eight-pence. Half a salmon, for the standard,
with the chine, three shillings and eight-pence. A fresh conger eel,
three shillings. Three fat pikes, five fat eels, and twenty-seven fat
roaches, twelve shillings and fourpence. Half a hundred lamprorns,
twelve-pence. Oysters, threepence. Vegetables, twopence. The hire of
a boy to prepare the breakfast, one penny. Fare to Westminster, one
penny. A basket, one penny farthing. On the same day at the inn: bread,
five-pence farthing. Beer from the store. Two gallons of beer for the
boys, twopence. Fish from the store. Candles, a halfpenny. Fuel, a
halfpenny. Hay bought, five-pence three farthings. Straw, sixpence.
Two bushels of oats, eight-pence. Two pair of shoes for my lord,
twelve-pence. Sum, thirty shillings and threepence farthing."
DUNS IN THE MAHRATTA COUNTRY.
The Mahratta mode of recovering debts is curious. When the creditor
cannot get his money, and begins to see the debt as rather desperate,
he sits _dhurna_ upon his debtor; that is, he squats down at the door
of the tent, and becomes, in a certain mysterious degree, the master
of it. No one goes in or out without his approbation. He neither eats
himself, nor suffers his debtor to eat; and this famishing contest is
carried on till the debt is paid, or till the creditor begins to _feel_
that want of food is a greater punishment than the want of money. This
curious mode of enforcing a demand is in universal practice among the
Mahrattas; Scindiah himself, the chieftain, not being exempt from it.
The man who sits the _dhurna_, goes to the house, or tent, of him
whom he wishes to bring to terms, and remains there till the affair
is settled; during which time, the one under restraint is confined to
his apartment, and not suffered to communicate with any persons but
those whom the other may approve of. The laws by which the _dhurna_
is regulated are as well defined and understood as those of any other
custom whatever. When it is meant to be very strict, the claimant
carries a number of his followers, who surround the tent, sometimes
even the bed of his adversary, and deprive him altogether of food;
in which case, however, etiquette prescribes the same abstinence to
himself: the strongest stomach, of course, carries the day. A custom of
this kind was once so prevalent in the province and city of Benares,
that Brahmins were _trained_ to remain a long time without food. They
were then sent to the door of some rich individual, where they made a
vow to remain without eating, till they should obtain a certain sum of
money. To preserve the life of a Brahmin is so absolutely a duty, that
the money was generally paid; but never till a good struggle had taken
place, to ascertain whether the man was staunch or not; for money is
the life and soul of all Hindoos.
VAUXHALL.
[Illustration [++] Vauxhall.]
The trees seen above the houses at the foot of the Surrey side of
Westminster Bridge are those of Vauxhall Gardens, the site of which
will soon be covered with buildings. These grounds were once the glory
of English pleasure-gardens, frequented by the highest in the land
from the gay days of Charles II. to those of "the Regency," and were
celebrated in musical history for talent of the highest kind here
introduced. In the old orchestra, whose towering summit may be seen
from the Thames, the greatest musical celebrities have sung. Handel,
Dr. Arne, and Hook superintended its concerts; and Hogarth decorated
its walls with paintings. It obtained its name from a very old mansion
that once stood near it. This old manor-house of Fawkes Hall, as it
existed in the reign of Charles I., is shown in our engraving; at that
time it was described as a "fair dwelling-house, strongly built, of
three stories high, and a pier staircase breaking out from it nineteen
feet square." This staircase occupied one of the towers, in accordance
with the ancient plan, and the house was a curious specimen of the old
timber houses of the gentry in the sixteenth century.
It appears to have obtained its name from Foukes de Breut, who married
the heiress of the manor, the Countess of Albemarle, sister to Baldwin,
Archbishop of Canterbury; and it was granted by the name of the manor
of Foukeshall, by Edward III. to his favourite Hugh le Despenser. In
1615 the records of the Duchy of Cornwall prove the premises known as
Vauxhall Gardens to have been the leasehold property of Jane Vaux,
widow of John Vaux, citizen and vintner of London, and a benefactor
to the parish of Lambeth. It has always remained, with the manor of
Kennington, as the property of the crown, and belongs to the Prince of
Wales as part of his Duchy of Cornwall. Vauxhall Gardens closed for
ever on July 25th, 1859, with an _al fresco fête_.
EGYPTIAN TOILET BOXES.
[Illustration [++] Egyptian Toilet Boxes.]
The ladies of ancient Egypt were very fond of having their apartments
set off with a profusion of knick-knacks, and among other articles of
that sort, they usually had several different kinds of toilet-boxes
on their dressing-tables. The above engraving represents a group of
them. They have been found in considerable numbers among the ruins
of the palaces, and they form interesting objects among the Egyptian
curiosities in many of our museums. They were made of wood, or of
ivory, often inlaid, and always elaborately carved. Sometimes they
partook of the nature of spoons, the containing part being shallow,
at the end of a long solid handle; the handle was carved into the
most fanciful forms--a grotesque human figure, a woman, a fox, or a
fish--and the spoon part was generally covered with a lid, which turned
on a pivot. In one of those in the engraving, the spoon takes the
form of a fish, the cover being carved to resemble its scales, while
another, also in the form of a fish, has two cavities, the one covered,
the other permanently open. Sometimes the body of a goose formed the
box, either trussed for the table, or in the posture of life, and other
forms were devised from the fancy of the artist. Some of these shallow
boxes are supposed to have been used for holding small quantities of
ointments and cosmetics upon the toilet-table.
SPACIOUS KITCHEN.
One of the most spacious kitchens in England is that of Raby Castle,
the magnificent seat of the Duke of Cleveland. It is a square of thirty
feet, having three chimneys, one for the grate, a second for stoves,
and the third, (now stopped up,) for the great cauldron. The roof
is arched, with a small cupola in the centre: it has likewise five
windows, from each of which steps descend, but only in one instance to
the floor; and a gallery runs round the whole interior of the building.
The ancient oven is said to have allowed a tall person to stand upright
in it, its diameter being fifteen feet. It has since been converted
into a wine cellar, the sides being divided into ten parts, and each
holding a hogshead of wine in bottles. Vast as is this kitchen, it must
have been but suitable to the hospitality of former ages: for, in one
of the apartments of Raby Castle, seven hundred knights are stated to
have been entertained at one time.
THE HAWTHORNDEN CAVES.
In almost every country on the earth there are natural or artificial
caves, which have supplied hiding-places, retreats for anchorites, and
even permanent native dwellings. Such caves abound in Scotland, and
especially along the coast, but in general their interest arises rather
from the associations of popular traditions, than from any intrinsic
peculiarity of character pertaining to them. Few such retreats are more
remarkable, either for constructive art, or historic associations,
than the well-known caves beneath the old tower of Hawthornden, near
Edinburgh. They have been hewn, with great labour and ingenuity, in
the rocky cliff which overhangs the river Esk. No tradition preserves
the history or date of their execution, but concealment was evidently
the chief design of the excavators. The original entrance is most
ingeniously made in the shaft of a very deep draw-well, sunk in the
court-yard of the castle, and from its manifest utility as the ordinary
and indispensable appendage of the fortress, it most effectually
conceals its adaptation as a means of ingress and communication with
the rock chambers beneath. These are of various forms and sizes, and
one in particular is pierced with a series of square recesses, somewhat
resembling the columbaria of a Roman tomb, but assigned by popular
tradition as the library of its later owner, Drummond, the Scottish
poet. Whatever was the purpose for which these were thus laboriously
cut, the example is not singular. A large cave in Roxburghshire, hewn
out in the lofty cliff which overhangs the Teviot, has in its sides
similar recesses, and from their supposed resemblance to the interior
of a pigeon-house, the cavern has received the name of the _Doo-cave_.
Authentic notices of the Hawthornden caves occur so early as the reign
of David II., when a daring band of Scottish adventurers made good
their head-quarters there, while Edward held the newly-fortified castle
of Edinburgh, and the whole surrounding district. In the glen of the
little river Ale, which falls into the Teviot at Ancrum, extensive
groups of caves occur, all indicating, more or less, artificial
adaptation as human dwellings; and in many other districts similar
evidences may be seen of temporary or permanent habitation, at some
remote period, in these rude recesses. Along the coast of Arran there
are several caves of various dimensions, one of which, at Drumandruin,
or Drumidoon, is noted in the older traditions of the island as the
lodging of Fin M'Coul, the Fingal of Ossian, during his residence in
Arran. Though low in the roof, it is sufficiently capacious for a
hundred men to sit or lie in it. In this, as in other examples, we find
evidences of artificial operations, proving its connexion with races
long posterior to those with whose works we have chiefly to do in this
section of archaeological inquiry. In the further end a large detached
column of rock has a two-handed sword engraved on it, surmounted by
a deer, and on the southern side of the cave a lunar figure is cut,
similar in character to those frequently found on the sculptured
pillars and crosses which abound in Scotland. It is now more frequently
styled the king's cave, and described as the retreat of Robert the
Bruce, while he lurked as a fugitive in the Western Isles; but, like
many other traditions of the Bruce, this seems to be of very recent
origin. Other caves in the same island are also of large dimensions,
and variously associated with popular traditions, as, indeed, is
generally the case where subterranean retreats of any considerable
extent occur. Some are the supposed dwellings of old mythic chiefs,
whose names still live in the traditional songs of the Gael. Others
are the retreats which the primitive confessors of Scotland excavated
or enlarged for their oratories or cells. Of the latter class are
the caves of St. Molio, on the little island of Lamlash, or the Holy
Isle, on the east coast of Arran; of St. Columba and St. Cormac, on
the Argyleshire coast; of St. Ninian, in Wigtonshire; of St. Serf,
at Dysart, on the Fifeshire coast; and the celebrated "ocean cave of
St. Rule, in Saint Andrew's Bay." This last oratory consists of two
chambers hewn out of the sandstone cliffs of that exposed coast. The
inner apartment is a plain cell, entered from the supposed oratory of
the Greek saint. The latter is nearly circular, measuring about ten
feet in diameter, and has a stone altar hewn in the solid rock on its
eastern side.
MONKISH PRAYERS.
The Monks used to pray heartily, or rather say their prayers no less
than seven times in the twenty-four hours. We will give their names:--
1st.--Nocturnal, at cock-crowing, or two o'clock in the morning.
2nd.--Matins, at six o'clock in the morning.
3rd.--Tierce, at nine o'clock in the morning.
4th.--Sext, at twelve o'clock at noon.
5th.--None, at three o'clock in the afternoon.
6th.--Vespers, at six o'clock in the afternoon.
7th.--Compline, soon after seven.
Quarles has a neat epigram on the subject:--
For all our prayers th' Almighty does regard
The judgment of the _balance_, not the _yard_;
He loves not words, but matter; 'tis his pleasure
To buy his wares by _weight_, and not by _measure_.
THE TRAP-DOOR SPIDER.
[Illustration: Trap-door Spider.]
There are few insects of such extraordinary habits as the Trap-door
Spider, and the following account of it by Professor Jones is so
interesting, that we are glad to extract it from his excellent work on
insect Architecture:--
In the Ionian islands, and also in the West Indies [as well as
in the south of France, and in Corsica], there are found certain
spiders (_Cteniza_) commonly known as Trap-door Spiders, which make a
cylindrical nest in the earth, and cover the entrance with a door of
their own construction, framed of alternate layers of silk and earth,
and fastened to the opening by a hinge of stout silk. These spiders
also line their nests throughout with numerous layers of silken web
to the thickness of stout cartridge paper, and finish it with the
greatest care. This beautiful lining is yet further strengthened in
particular parts, where the nest is likely to be exposed to danger. But
the greatest amount of skill and care is bestowed upon the trap-door
and its silken hinge. The door is about the eighth of an inch thick,
rough on the outside, not much unlike an oyster-shell, which it also
resembles in being thick and strong near the hinge, but thinner towards
the circumference. The breadth of this hinge is various, but sometimes
it is very considerable, as shown in the figure accompanying. It also
possesses great elastic force, so that, on being opened, it closes
again of itself. This is principally accomplished by a fold or doubling
of the web, at each end of the hinge, which permits the door to be
opened nearly to a right angle with the aperture, but no further,
unless violence be used. The underside of the door is perfectly smooth
and firm, being shaped so as to fit accurately, and yet to offer no
resistance when pushed open by the insect.
[Illustration: Section of Nest.]
[Illustration: Nest of Trap-door Spider.]
[Illustration: Trap-door Opening by a Lever.]
As might be expected, there are varieties in the shape and size of
these nests. Some specimens found in the island of Zante had the silken
layers of the lid extended into a sort of handle, or lever, just above
the hinge, on pressing which, in ever so slight a degree, the trap-door
opened. From this it would appear, that the entrance to such a nest
could be effected as easily by the enemies of the spider as by the
spider itself; this, however, is not the case; for repeated observation
has shown that the spider keeps guard at the entrance, and actually
holds the door with her fore-feet and palpi, while the hind-feet are
extended down the side of the nest, and the mandibles are thrust into
the opposite side near the door. By this means the insects gets such
power as to resist with considerable force the opening of the door. If
it be asked how this is known, we are able to refer to the experiments
of careful observers, who extracted a number of nests from the ground,
and opening them at the lower end, looked up, and saw the spider so
occupied. A section view of the nest will show that the curved form of
the cover, and the shape of the side walls, must favour this method of
keeping the door shut. In some cases, small hollows were formed round
the interior edge of the lid, into which the spider thrust its feet
when keeping guard. It is a curious fact, that when several of these
spiders enclosed in their nests were kept as a matter of curiosity
in a box of earth, and the doors frequently opened to examine their
proceedings, one or two of them, as if wearied at these repeated
interruptions, effectually closed their doors by weaving a piece of
silken tapestry, which was spread over the interior of the opening, and
rounded like the inside of a thimble. This was so strongly attached to
the door and to the side walls, that no opening could be made without
destroying the nest.
PRICES OF GREEK VASES.
In the ancient times of Rome the vases of Greek pottery bore a high
value, and sold for enormous sums to connoisseurs, which has also
been the case in modern times. Cleopatra spent daily, on the fragrant
or flowery ware of Rhossus, a Syrian town, six minæ. Of the actual
prices paid for painted vases, no positive mention occurs in classical
authorities, yet it is most probable that vases of the best class, the
products of eminent painters, obtained considerable prices. Among the
Greeks, works of merit were at all times handsomely remunerated, and it
is probable that vases of excellence shared the general favour shown to
the fine arts. For works of inferior merit only small sums were paid,
as will be seen by referring to the chapter on inscriptions, which
were incised on their feet, and which mentioned their contemporary
value. In modern times little is known about the prices paid for these
works of art till quite a recent period, when their fragile remains
have realised considerable sums. In this country the collections of
Mr. Townley, Sir W. Hamilton, Lord Elgin, and Mr. Payne Knight, all
contained painted vases. A sum of £500 was paid in consideration of
the Athenian vases in Lord Elgin's collection, which is by no means
large when the extraordinary nature of these vases is considered, as
they are the finest in the world of the old primitive vases of Athens.
£8,400 were paid for the vases of the Hamilton collection, one of the
most remarkable of the time, and consisting of many beautiful specimens
from southern Italy. The great discoveries of the Prince of Canino, in
1827, and the subsequent sale of numerous vases, gave them, however,
a definite market value, to which the sale of the collection of Baron
Durand, which consisted almost entirely of vases, affords some clue.
His collection sold in 1836 for 313,160 francs, or about £12,524. The
most valuable specimen in the collection was the vase representing
the death of Croesus, which was purchased for the Louvre at the price
of 6,600 francs, or £264. The vase with the subject of Arcesilaus
brought 1,050 francs. Another magnificent vase, now in the Louvre,
having the subject of the youthful Hercules strangling the serpents,
was only secured for France after reaching the price of 6,000 francs,
or £240: another, with the subject of Hercules, Dejanira, and Hyllus,
was purchased for the sum of 3,550 francs, or £142. A _crater_, with
the subject of Acamas and Demophoon bringing back Æthra, was obtained
by M. Magnoncourt for 4,250 francs, or £170. A Bacchic amphora, of the
maker Execias, of the archaic style, was bought by the British Museum
for 3,600 francs, or £142 in round numbers. Enough has, however, been
said to show the high price attained by the most remarkable of these
works of art. The inferior vases of course realised much smaller sums,
varying from a few francs to a few pounds; but high prices continued
to be obtained, and the sale by the Prince of Canino in 1837, of some
of his finest vases, contributed to enrich the museums of Europe,
although, as many of the vases were bought in, it does not afford a
good criterion as to price. An _oenochoe_, with Apollo and the Muses,
and a _hydria_, with the same subject, were bought for 2,000 francs,
or £80 each. A _cylix_, with a love scene, and another with Priam
redeeming Hector's corpse, brought 6,600 francs, or £264. An amphora
with the subject of Dionysius, and a cup with that of Hercules, sold
for 8,000 francs, or £320 each. Another brought 7,000 francs, or £280.
A vase with the subject of Theseus seizing Helen, another with the
arming of Paris, and a third with Peleus and Thetis, sold for 6,000
francs, or £240. Nor can the value of the finest specimens of the art
be considered to have deteriorated since. The late Mr. Steuart was
offered 7,500 francs for a large _crater_, found in southern Italy,
ornamented with the subject of Cadmus and the dragon; 3,000 francs, or
£120, were paid by the British Museum for a fine _crater_ ornamented
with the exploits of Achilles: 2,500 francs, or £100, for an amphora of
Apulian style, with the subject of Pelops and OEnomaus at the altar of
the Olympian Zeus. For another vase, with the subject of Musæus, 3,000
francs, or £120 were paid, and 2,500 francs, or £100, for the Athenian
prize vase, the celebrated Vas Burgonianum, exhumed by Mr. Burgon. At
Mr. Beckford's sale, the late Duke of Hamilton gave £200 for a small
vase, with the subject of the Indian Bacchus.
The passion for possessing fine vases has outstripped these prices
at Naples; 2,400 ducats, or £500, was given for the vase with gilded
figures discovered at Cumæ. Still more incredible, half a century back,
8,000 ducats, £1,500, was paid to Vivenzio for the vase in the Museo
Borbonico representing the last night of Troy; 6,000 ducats, or £1,000,
for the one with a Dionysiac feast; and 4,000 ducats, or £800, for
the vase with the grand battle of the Amazons, published by Shultz.
But such sums will not be hereafter realised, not that taste is less,
but that fine vases are more common. No sepulchre has been spared when
detected, and no vase neglected when discovered; and vases have been
exhumed with more activity than the most of precious relics.
OLD WALKING STICKS.
It would seem that at the present time the fashion of carrying
walking-sticks has to a considerable extent "gone out." So great
is the bustle in our city thoroughfares, that the use of a staff,
except by those who are lame, is seldom adopted by business people.
Professional men still affect the custom, however; and your City man,
although he may repudiate the use of a walking-stick in town, straps
a good sapling to his portmanteau whenever he has a chance of getting
amongst the woods and green fields. About a century and a-half ago
everybody carried a cane. Dr. Johnson, Oliver Goldsmith, and a host
of others, considered a good stick as necessary as a coat; and a
collection of these staves would, if they could be had at the present
day, be valuable, not only as relics, but also as an indication of the
characters of the owners, perhaps.
In former times, a golden-mounted stick or staff was commonly used by
both the male and female heads of families. Queen Elizabeth carried one
of these towards the end of her life. They were then more frequently
used, however, as a sign of authority than for any other purpose.
The staff was a weapon long before flint-headed arrows and such-like
instruments were invented. Sheriffs, and others high in authority, have
wands or staffs borne before them on important occasions; the bishops'
pastoral staff is as old as episcopal authority.
In former times the running footmen, who, in a body of half-a-dozen,
on each side of a carriage ran to alarm robbers and to assist the
lumbering vehicle out of the ruts, were well armed with stout
staves. At the present time they are still carried by the Plush
family, although the use of them is not so clear. In the royal state
processions, the footmen with their staves walk as in former days, and
we should be sorry were these little bits of ceremony dispensed with,
inasmuch as they bring to recollection a former condition of things,
which makes us feel comfortable by comparison.
The monstrous sticks shown in the engraving are drawn from specimens
which have been preserved by dealers in London, and put as a sort of
sign at the doors of umbrella and walking-stick dealers. These were,
however, a century ago, common enough, and might have been seen by the
hundred together, borne by tall footmen behind ladies dressed in the
old hooped dresses which we are trying now to imitate. At that time
there was also a taste for various kinds of monsters, in China, wood,
and other materials. Monkeys and pug-dogs were made pets of, and the
sticks of the footmen fashioned into such ugly forms as no modern bogey
ever dreamed of.
These clubs, sticks, maces, or whatever they may be called, were about
six feet high, and were in parts painted and gilt. The centre one is
an elm-sapling, and the natural bumps have been taken advantage of by
the artist to model a sort of Moorish head, with ornamental covering;
lower down, the knobs are fashioned into terrible heads, in which are
mounted glass eyes of various and impossible colours.
[Illustration [++] Old Walking Sticks.]
No doubt before long these staffs, which might be necessary for
the protection of the ladies from the "Mohawks" of the time, will
have disappeared, and people will look with curiosity at Hogarth's
representation of them. Perhaps good specimens of such objects, which
have passed out of use, would be worthy of a place in our national
museum. One of the old-fashioned tinder-boxes would be a curiosity
there now. Although but a few years have passed since the introduction
of lucifer matches, it is no easy matter to get one of those
old-fashioned machines.
THE SANCHI TOPE.
Under the name of topes are included the most important class of
Buddhist architecture in India. They consist of detached pillars,
towers, and tumuli, all of a sacred or monumental character. The word
is a corruption of the Sanscrit _sthupa_, meaning a mound, heap, or
cairn.
By far the finest as well as the most perfect tope in India is that
of Sanchi, the principal one of those opened near Bilsah, in Central
India. It is uncertain whether it ever contained relics or not, as it
had been dug into in 1819 by Sir Herbert Maddock, since which time it
has remained a ruin, and may have been plundered by the natives. At any
rate it must have been a spot of peculiar sanctity, judging both from
its own magnificence, and from the number of subordinate topes grouped
around it. In fact there are a greater number of these monuments on
this spot, within a space not exceeding 17 miles, than there are, so
far at least as we now know, in the whole of India from the Sutlej to
Cape Comorin.
[Illustration [++] Sanchi Tope.]
The general appearance of the Sanchi Tope will be understood from the
annexed view of it. The principal building consists of a dome somewhat
less than a hemisphere, 106 feet in diameter, and 42 feet in height,
with a platform on the top 34 feet across, which originally formed the
basis of the _tee_ or capital, which was the invariable finish of these
monuments.
The dome rests on a sloping base, 14 feet in height by 120 in
diameter, having an offset on its summit about 6 feet wide. This,
if we may judge from the representations of topes on the sculptures,
must have been surrounded by a balustrade, and was ascended by a
broad double ramp on one side. It was probably used for processions
encircling the monument, which seem to have been among the most common
Buddhist ceremonials. The centre of this great mound is quite solid,
being composed of bricks laid in mud; but the exterior is faced with
dressed stones. Over these was laid a coating of cement nearly 4 inches
in thickness, which was, no doubt, originally adorned either with
painting or ornaments in relief.
The fence by which this tope is surrounded is extremely curious. It
consists of stone posts 8 ft. 8 in. high, and little more than 2 ft.
apart. These are surmounted by a plain architrave, 2 ft. 4 in. deep,
slightly rounded at the top. So far this enclosure resembles the outer
circle at Stonehenge; but between every two uprights three horizontal
cross-pieces of stone are inserted of an elliptical form, of the same
depth as the top piece, but only 9 in. thick in the thickest part. This
is the only _built_ example yet discovered of an architectural ornament
which is found _carved_ in every cave, and, indeed, in almost every
ancient Buddhist building known in India. The upright posts or pillars
of this enclosure bear inscriptions indicating that they were all given
by different individuals. But neither these nor any other inscriptions
found in the whole tope, nor in the smaller topes surrounding it
(though there are as many as 250 inscriptions in all), contain any
known name, or any clue to their age.
Still more curious, however, than even the stone railing are the four
gateways. One of these is shown in our view. It consists of two square
pillars, covered with sculptures, with bold elephant capitals, rising
to a height of 18 ft. 4 in.; above this are three lintels, slightly
curved upwards in the centre, and ending in Ionic scrolls; they are
supported by continuations of the columns, and three uprights inserted
in the spaces between the lintels. They are covered with elaborate
sculptures, and surmounted by emblems. The total height is 33 ft. 6 in.
One gateway has fallen, and if removed to this country would raise the
character of Indian sculpture, as nothing comparable to it has yet been
transported from that part of the world to Europe.
BURIAL PLACES OF DISTINGUISHED MEN.
Chaucer was buried in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey, _without_
the building, but removed to the south aisle in 1555; Spenser lies
near him. Beaumont, Drayton, Cowley, Denham, Dryden, Howe, Addison,
Prior, Congreve, Gray, Johnson, Sheridan, and Campbell, all lie within
Westminster Abbey. Shakspeare, as every one knows, was buried in the
chancel of the church at Stratford, where there is a monument to his
memory. Chapman and Shirley are buried at St. Giles'-in-the-Fields;
Marlow, in the churchyard of St. Paul's, Deptford; Fletcher and
Massinger, in the churchyard of St. Saviour's, Southwark; Dr. Donne, in
Old St. Paul's; Edward Waller, in Beaconsfield churchyard; Milton, in
the churchyard of St. Giles', Cripplegate; Butler, in the churchyard
of St. Paul's, Covent Garden; Otway, no one knows where; Garth, in the
churchyard at Harrow; Pope, in the church at Twickenham; Swift, in St.
Patrick's, Dublin; Savage, in the churchyard of St. Peter's, Dublin;
Parnell, at Chester, where he died on his way to Dublin; Dr. Young, at
Welwyn, in Hertfordshire, of which place he was the rector; Thomson,
in the churchyard at Richmond, in Surrey; Collins, in St. Andrew's
Church, at Chichester; Gray, in the churchyard at Stoke-Pogis, where
he conceived his "Elegy;" Goldsmith, in the churchyard of the Temple
Church; Falconer, at sea, with "all ocean for his grave;" Churchill,
in the churchyard of St. Martin's, Dover; Cowper, in the church at
Dereham; Chatterton, in a churchyard belonging to the parish of St.
Andrew's, Holborn; Burns, in St. Michael's churchyard, Dumfries; Byron,
in the church of Hucknall, near Newstead; Crabbe, at Trowbridge;
Coleridge, in the church at Highgate; Sir Walter Scott, in Dryburgh
Abbey; Southey, in Crosthwaite Church, near Keswick.
A REGAL HUNTING PARTY.
The following is an account of the destruction of game in Bohemia, by
a hunting party of which the Emperor Francis made one, in 1755. There
were twenty-three persons in the party, three of whom were ladies;
the Princess Charlotte of Lorraine was one of them. The chase lasted
eighteen days, and during that time they killed 47,950 head of game,
and wild deer; of which 19 were stags, 77 roebucks, 10 foxes, 18,243
hares, 19,545 partridges, 9,499 pheasants, 114 larks, 353 quails, 454
other birds. The Emperor fired 9,798 shots, and the Princess Charlotte
9,010; in all, there were 116,209 shots fired.
ANTIPATHIES.
Certain antipathies appear to depend upon a peculiarity of the senses.
The horror inspired by the odour of certain flowers may be referred to
this cause. Amatus Lusitanus relates the case of a monk who fainted
when he beheld a rose, and never quitted his cell when that flower
was blooming. Scaliger mentions one of his relations who experienced
a similar horror when seeing a lily. In these instances it is not the
agreeableness or the offensive nature of the aroma that inspires the
repugnance; and Montaigne remarked on this subject, that there were men
who dreaded an apple more than a musket-ball. Zimmerman tells us of a
lady who could not endure the feeling of silk and satin, and shuddered
when touching the velvety skin of a peach. Boyle records the case of
a man who felt a natural abhorrence to honey. Without his knowledge,
some honey was introduced in a plaster applied to his foot, and the
accidents that resulted compelled his attendants to withdraw it. A
young man was known to faint whenever he heard the servant sweeping.
Hippocrates mentions one Nicanor who swooned whenever he heard a
flute: our Shakspeare has alluded to the effects of the bagpipe. Julia
daughter of Frederick, king of Naples, could not taste meat without
serious accidents. Boyle fainted when he heard the splashing of water;
Scaliger turned pale at the sight of water-cresses; Erasmus experienced
febrile symptoms when smelling fish; the Duke d'Epernon swooned on
beholding a leveret, although a hare did not produce the same effect.
Tycho Brahe fainted at the sight of a fox, Henry the Third of France
at that of a cat, and Marshal d'Albert at a pig. The horror that whole
families entertain of cheese is generally known. Many individuals
cannot digest, or even retain certain substances, such as rice, wine,
various fruits, and vegetables.
A YOUNG BUT CRUEL MURDERESS.
On the 3d of July, 1772, was executed at Lisbon, pursuant to her
sentence, Louisa de Jesus, for the murder of the thirty-three infants,
that were at different times committed to her care by the Directors
of the Foundling Hospital at Coimbra; for which (as appears by the
sentence published) she had no other inducement but six hundred reals
in money, a coverda of baize, and a cradle, that she received with each
of them. She was but twenty-two years of age when executed. Going to
execution, she was pinched with hot irons, and at the gallows her hands
were struck off; she was then strangled, and her body burnt.
BECTIVE ABBEY.
Bective Abbey, the ruins of which form the subject of the annexed
engraving differs in its general arrangement from every other monastic
structure in the kingdom. It was, in fact, a monastic castle, and,
previous to the use of artillery, must have been regarded as a place of
great strength. It is for this reason that we select it as one of our
"Wonderful Things."
[Illustration [++] Bective Abbey.]
The ruins are in the immediate neighbourhood of Trim, and about thirty
miles from Dublin.
The ruins combine a union of ecclesiastical with military and domestic
architecture in a remarkable degree. Their chief feature is a strong
battlemented tower, the lower compartment of which is vaulted, placed
at the south-west corner of the quadrangular space occupied by the
various buildings, and in the centre of which the cloisters remain
in excellent preservation. The cloister arches are late in the first
pointed style, and are cinque-foiled. The featherings are mostly
plain, but several are ornamented with flowers or leaves, and upon
one a hawk-like bird is sculptured. A fillet is worked upon each of
the clustered shafts, by which the openings are divided, and also
upon their capitals. The bases, which are circular, rest upon square
plinths, the angles of which are ornamented with a leaf, as it were,
growing out of the base of the moulding.
Of the church there are scarcely any remains. As the northern wall
of the cloister is pierced with several windows, which have now the
appearance of splaying externally, it is extremely probable that it
also served as the south wall of the church, no other portion of which
can at present be identified. Those buildings which were for the most
part devoted to domestic purposes are for the most part situated upon
the east side of the quadrangle. Their architectural details are of a
character later than those of the tower and of the other portions, but
additions and alterations have evidently been made.
NOVEL MODE OF CELEBRATION.
Upon the occasion of the christening of the 21st child of Mr. Wright,
of Widaker, near Whitehaven, by the same woman, in the year 1767, the
company came from 21 parishes, and the entertainment consisted of 21
pieces of beef, 21 legs of mutton and lamb, 21 gallons of brandy, three
times 21 gallons of strong ale, three times 21 fowls, roasted and
boiled, 21 pies, &c.
ANTIQUE HEAD ORNAMENT.
[Illustration [++] Bronze Head Ornament.]
The annexed engraving represents an exceedingly beautiful bronze
relic, apparently of the class of head rings, in the collection of the
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, which was discovered in the year
1747, about seven feet below the surface, when digging for a well, at
the east end of the village of Stitchel, in the county of Roxburgh.
It bears a resemblance in some respects to relics of the same class
in the Christiansborg Palace, yet nothing exactly similar to it has
yet been found among Scandinavian relics; while some of its ornamental
details closely correspond to those which characterize the British
horse furniture and other native relics of this period. One of its most
remarkable peculiarities is, that it opens and shuts by means of a
hinge, being clasped when closed by a pin which passes through a double
catch at a line intersecting the ornament; and so perfect is it that
it can still be opened and secured with ease. It is probable that this
also should rank among the ornaments of the head, though it differs
in some important respects from any other object of the same class.
The oval which it forms is not only too small to encircle the head,
but it will be observed from the engraving that its greatest length is
from side to side, the internal measurements being five and nine-tenth
inches by five and one-tenth inches.
RELICS.
At the commencement of the seventeenth century there was a crucifix
belonging to the Augustine friars at Burgos in Spain, which produced a
revenue of nearly seven thousand crowns per annum. It was found upon
the sea, not far from the coast, with a scroll of parchment appended
to it, descriptive of the various virtues it possessed. The image
was provided with a false beard and a chesnut periwig, which its holy
guardians declared were natural, and they also assured all pious
visitors that on every Friday it sweated blood and water into a silver
basin. In the garden of this convent grew a species of wheat, the grain
of which was peculiarly large, and which its possessors averred was
brought by Adam out of Paradise. Of this wheat they made small cakes
called pançillos, kneaded with the aforesaid blood and water, and
sold them to the credulous multitude for a quartillo a piece. These
cakes were an infallible remedy for all disorders, and over those
who carried them the devil had no power. They sold also blue ribands
of the exact length of the crucifix, for about a shilling each, with
this inscription in silver letters, "La madi del santo crucifisco de
Burgos." These ribands were a sovereign cure for the headache.
LONG MEG AND HER DAUGHTERS.
As there is something remarkable or out of the way in this family of
heavy stone, we present it to the reader. This venerable Druidical
monument, which is by the country-people called Long Meg and her
Daughters, stands near Little Salkeld, in the county of Cumberland.
It consists of 67 massy stones, of different sorts and sizes, ranged
in a circle of nearly 120 paces diameter; some of these stones are
granite, some blue and grey limestone, and others flint; many of them
are ten feet high, and fifteen or sixteen feet in circumference:
these are called Long Meg's Daughters. On the southern side of this
circle, about seventeen or eighteen paces out of the line, stands the
stone called Long Meg, which is of that kind of red stone found about
Penrith. It is so placed, that each of its angles faces one of the
cardinal points of the compass; it measures upwards of eighteen feet
in height, and fifteen feet in girth; its figure is nearly that of a
square prism; it weighs about sixteen tons and a half. In the part
of the circle the most contiguous, four large stones are placed in a
square form, as if they had been intended to support an altar; and
towards the east, west, and north, two large stones stand a greater
distance from each other than any of the rest, seemingly to form the
entrances into a circle. It is remarkable that no stone-quarry is to
be found hereabouts. The appearance of this circle is much hurt by
a stone wall built across it, that cuts off a considerable segment,
which stands in the road. The same ridiculous story is told of these
stones, as of those at Stonehenge, _i. e._, that it is impossible to
count them, and that many persons who have made the trial, could never
find them amount twice to the same number. It is added, that this was
a holy place, and that Long Meg and her Daughters were a company of
witches transformed into stones, on the prayers of some saint, for
venturing to prophane it; but when, and by whom, the story does not
say. Thus has tradition obscurely, and clogged with fable, handed down
the destination of this spot, accompanied with some of that veneration
in which it was once undoubtedly held, though not sufficiently to
protect its remains from the depredations of avarice; the inclosure
and cultivation of the ground bidding fair to destroy them. These
stones are mentioned by Camden, who was either misinformed as to, or
mis-reckoned their number; unless, which seems improbable, some have
been taken away. "At Little Salkeld, (says he,) there is a circle of
stones seventy-seven in number, each ten feet high; and before these,
at the entrance, is a single one by itself, fifteen feet high. This the
common people call Long Meg, and the rest her Daughters; and within
the circle, are two heaps of stones, under which they say there are
dead bodies buried; and, indeed, it is probable enough that this has
been a monument erected in memory of some victory." The history of the
British Druidical Antiquities having been thoroughly investigated,
since Camden's time, these circles are now universally agreed to have
been temples and places of judgment, and not sepulchral monuments.
Indeed his editor has, in some measure, rectified his mistake, by the
following addition: "But, as to the heaps in the middle, they are no
part of the monument, but have been gathered off the ploughed lands
adjoining; and (as in many other parts of the county) thrown up here in
a waste corner of the field; and as to the occasion of it, both this,
and the Rolrick stones in Oxfordshire, are supposed by many, to have
been monuments erected at the solemn investiture of some Danish Kings,
and of the same kind as the Kingstolen in Denmark, and Moresteen in
Sweden; concerning which, several large discourses have been written."
CURIOUS PARTICULARS RELATIVE TO DRESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE
FIFTEENTH CENTURY.
Cloth of gold, satin, and velvet, enriched by the florid decorations
of the needle, were insufficient to satisfy the pride of nobles; robes
formed of these costly materials were frequently ornamented with
embroidery of goldsmiths' work, thickly set with precious stones;
and the most absurd and fantastic habits were continually adopted,
in the restless desire to appear in new inventions. John of Ghent is
represented in a habit divided straight down the middle, one side
white, the other half dark blue; and his son, Henry IV., on his
return from exile, rode in procession through London in a jacket of
cloth-of-gold, "after the German fashion." The dukes and earls who
attended his coronation wore three bars of ermine on the left arm, a
quarter of a yard long, "or thereabouts;" the barons had but two: and
over the monarch's head was borne a canopy of blue silk, supported by
silver staves, with four gold bells, "that rang at the corners." "Early
in the reign of Richard II. began," says Stowe, "the detestable use of
piked shoes, tied to the knees with chains of silver gilt; also women
used high attire on their heads with piked horns and long training
gowns. The commons also were besotted in excesse of apparel; in wide
surcoates reaching to their loines; some in a garment reaching to their
heels, close before and sprowting out at the sides, so that on the
backe they make men seeme women, and this they call by a ridiculous
name--_gowne_. Their hoodes are little, and tied under the chin."
ECCENTRIC FUNERAL.
Mr. John Oliver, an eccentric miller of Highdown Hill, in Sussex, died,
aged eighty-three, the 27th of May, 1793. His remains were interred
near his mill, in a tomb he had caused to be erected there for that
purpose, near thirty years ago; the ground having been previously
consecrated. His coffin, which he had for many years kept under his
bed, was painted white; and the body was borne by eight men clothed in
the same colour. A girl about twelve years old read the burial service,
and afterwards, on the tomb, delivered a sermon on the occasion, from
Micah 7, 8, 9, before at least two thousand auditors, whom curiosity
had led to see this extraordinary funeral.
EGYPTIAN STANDARDS.
The engraving which we here lay before our friends, represents a group
of Egyptian standards, as they were used in the army in the time of
Pharaoh.
[Illustration [++] Egyptian Standards.]
Each regiment and company had its own peculiar banner or standard,
which were therefore very numerous, and various in their devices. A
beast, bird, or reptile, a sacred boat, a royal name in a cartouche,
or a symbolic combination of emblems, were the most common forms. As
they appear to have been objects of superstitious veneration that were
selected for this purpose, they must have contributed greatly to the
enthusiasm so highly valued in battle; and instances are common in
all history of desponding courage revived, and prodigies of valour
performed, on behalf of those objects which were so identified with
national and personal honour.
Allusions to standards, banners, and ensigns are frequent in the Holy
Scriptures. The four divisions in which the tribes of Israel marched
through the wilderness had each its governing standard, and tradition
has assigned to these ensigns the respective forms of the symbolic
cherubim seen in the vision of Ezekiel and John--that of Judah being
a lion, that of Reuben a man, that of Ephraim an ox, and that of Dan
an eagle. The post of standard-bearer was at all times of the greatest
importance, and none but officers of approved valour were ever chosen
for such a service; hence Jehovah, describing the ruin and discomfiture
which he was about to bring on the haughty King of Assyria, says, "And
they shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth."
THE SHREW ASH.
[Illustration [++] Shrew Ash.]
At that end of Richmond Park where a gate leads to Mortlake, and near
a cottage in which resides one of the most estimable gentlemen of the
age--Professor Owen--there still lives and flourishes a tree that has
been famous for many ages: it is the Shrew Ash, and the above is a
correct engraving of it. It stands on rising ground, only a few yards
beyond the pond which almost skirts the Professor's lawn. White, in
his Natural History of Selborne, describes a shrew-ash as an ash whose
twigs or branches, when gently applied to the limbs of cattle, will
immediately relieve the pains which a beast suffers from the running
of a shrew-mouse over the part affected; for it is supposed that a
shrew-mouse is of so baleful and deleterious a nature, that wherever it
creeps over a beast, be it horse, cow, or sheep, the suffering animal
is afflicted with cruel anguish, and threatened with the loss of the
use of the limb. Against this evil, to which they were continually
liable, our provident forefathers always kept a shrew-ash at hand,
which, when once medicated, would maintain its virtue for ever. A
shrew-ash was made potent thus:--Into the body of a tree a deep hole
was bored with an auger, and a poor devoted shrew-mouse was thrust in
alive, and plugged in, no doubt with several quaint incantations, long
since forgotten. The shrew-ash in Richmond Park is, therefore, amongst
the few legacies of the kind bequeathed to their country by the wisdom
of our ancestors.
Our readers will perceive that across the hollow of the tree near the
top there is a little bar of wood. The legend runs that were this
bar removed every night, it would be replaced in the same spot every
morning. The superstition is, that if a child afflicted with what the
people in the neighbourhood call "decline," or whooping-cough, or any
infantine disease, is passed nine times up the hollow of that tree, and
over the bar, while the sun is rising, it will recover. If the charm
fails to produce the desired effect, the old women believe that the sun
was too far up, or not up enough. If the child recovers, of course, the
fame of the tree is whispered about. There is a sort of shrew-mother to
every shrew-ash, who acts as guide and teacher to any young mother who
has an afflicted child and believes in the charm. The ash in Richmond
Park is still used, and still firmly believed in.
A DRUM MADE OF HUMAN SKIN.
John Zisca, general of the insurgents who took up arms in the year 1419
against the Emperor Sigismund, to revenge the deaths of John Huss,
and Jerome of Prague, who had been cruelly burnt to death for their
religious tenets, defeated the Emperor in several pitched battles. He
gave orders that, after his death, they should _make a drum of his
skin_; which was most religiously obeyed, and those very remains of
the enthusiastic Zisca proved, for many years, fatal to the Emperor,
who, with difficulty, in the space of sixteen years, recovered Bohemia,
though assisted by the forces of Germany, and the terror of Crusades.
The insurgents were 40,000 in number, and well disciplined.
EARTHQUAKE IN JAMAICA.
The Earthquake of Jamaica, in 1692, is one of the most dreadful that
history has to record. It was attended with a hollow rumbling noise
like that of thunder, and in less than a minute all the houses on one
side of the principal street in the town of Port Royal sank into a
fearful gulf forty fathoms deep, and water came roaring up where the
houses had been. On the other side of the street the ground rose up
and down like the waves of the sea, raising the houses and throwing
them into heaps as it subsided. In another part of the town the street
cracked along all its length, and the houses appeared suddenly twice
as far apart as they were before. In many places the earth opened
and closed again, so that several hundred of these openings were to
be seen at the same time; and as the wretched inhabitants ran out of
their tottering dwellings, the earth opened under their feet, and in
some cases swallowed them up entirely; while in others, the earth
suddenly closing, caught them by the middle, and thus crushed them
to death. In some cases these fearful openings spouted up cataracts
of water, which were attended by a most noisome stench. It is not
possible for any place to exhibit a scene of greater desolation than
the whole island presented at this period. The thundering bellowing
of the distant mountains, the dusky gloom of the sky, and the crash
of the falling buildings gave unspeakable horror to the scene. Such
of the inhabitants as were saved sought shelter on board the ships in
the harbour, and remained there for more than two months, the shocks
continuing with more or less violence every day. When, at length, the
inhabitants were enabled to return, they found the whole face of the
country changed. Very few of the houses which had not been swallowed
up were left standing, and what had been cultivated plantations were
converted into large pools of water. The greater part of the rivers had
been choked up by the falling in of detached masses of the mountains,
and spreading over the valleys, they had changed what was once fertile
soil into morasses, which could only be drained by cutting new channels
for the rivers; while the mountains themselves had changed their shapes
so completely, that it was conjectured that they had formed the chief
seat of the earthquake.
CURIOUS EXTRACTS FROM THE HOUSEHOLD BOOK OF LADY MARY, DAUGHTER OF THE
KING, IN VARIOUS YEARS, FROM THE 28TH TO THE 36TH OF HENRY VIII. ROYAL
MSS. BRIT. MUS.
"Item, geven to George Mountejoye drawing my Layde's Grace to his
Valentine, xl{s}.
"Item, geven amongs the yeomen of the King's guard bringing a Leke to
my Lady's Grace on Saynt David's Day, xv{s}.
"Item, geven to Heywood playeng an enterlude with his children before
my Lady's Grace, xl{s}.
"Item, payed for a yerde and a halfe of damaske for Jane the fole,
vij{s}.
"Item, for shaving of Jane fooles hedde, iiij{d}.
"Payed for a frountlet lost in a wager to my Lady Margaret, iiij{li}.
"Item, payed for a brekefast lost at bolling by my Lady Mary's Grace,
x{s}."
GIVING DOLES.
A bishop of Durham, in the reign of Edward III, had every week
eight quarters of wheat made into bread for the poor, besides his
alms-dishes, fragments from his table, and money given away by him
in journeys. The bishop of Ely, in 1532, fed daily at his gates two
hundred poor persons, and the Lord Cromwell fed the same number.
Edward, earl of Derby, fed upwards of sixty aged poor, besides all
comers, thrice a week, and furnished, on Good Friday, two thousand
seven hundred people with meat, drink, and money. Robert Winchelsey,
archbishop of Canterbury, gave, besides the daily fragments of his
house, on Fridays and Sundays, to every beggar that came to his door,
a loaf of bread of a farthing value; in time of dearth he thus gave
away five thousand loaves, and this charity is said to have cost his
lordship five hundred pounds a year. Over and above this he gave on
every festival day one hundred and fifty pence to as many poor persons,
and he used to send daily meat, drink, and bread unto such as by age
and sickness were not able to fetch alms from his gate; he also sent
money, meat, apparel, &c., to such as he thought wanted the same, and
were ashamed to beg; and, above all, this princely prelate was wont to
take compassion upon such as were by misfortune decayed, and had fallen
from wealth to poor estate. Such acts deserve to be written in letters
of gold.
FEMALE ORNAMENT OF THE IRON PERIOD.
[Illustration [++] Beaded Torc.]
One of the most beautiful neck ornaments of the Teutonic or Iron Period
ever found in Scotland is a beaded torc, discovered by a labourer
while cutting turf in Lochar Moss, Dumfriesshire, about two miles to
the north of Cumlongan Castle; and exhibited by Mr. Thomas Gray, of
Liverpool, at the York meeting of the Archæological Institute. We here
annex an engraving of it. The beads, which measure rather more than
an inch in diameter, are boldly ribbed and grooved longitudinally.
Between every two ribbed beads there is a small flat one formed like
the wheel of a pulley, or the vertebral bone of a fish. The portion
which must have passed round the nape of the neck is flat and smooth
on the inner edge, but chased on the upper side in an elegant incised
pattern corresponding to the ornamentation already described as
characteristic of this period, and bearing some resemblance to that on
the beautiful bronze diadem found at Stitchel in Roxburghshire, figured
on a subsequent page. The beads are disconnected, having apparently
been strung upon a metal wire, as was the case in another example
found in the neighbourhood of Worcester. A waved ornament, chased
along the outer edge of the solid piece, seems to have been designed
in imitation of a cord; the last tradition, as it were, of the string
with which the older necklace of shale or jet was secured. Altogether
this example of the class of neck ornaments, to which Mr. Birch has
assigned the appropriate name of beaded torcs, furnishes an exceedingly
interesting illustration of the development of imitative design, in
contradistinction to the more simple and archaic funicular torc, which,
though continued in use down to a later period, pertains to the epoch
of primitive art.
CURIOUS LANTERN.
In 1602, it is related that Sir John Harrington, of Bath, sent to James
VI King of Scotland, at Christmas, for a new year's gift, a dark
lantern. The top was a crown of pure gold, serving also to cover a
perfume pan; within it was a shield of silver, embossed, to reflect
the light; on one side of which were the sun, moon, and planets, and
on the other side, the story of the birth and passion of Christ, as
it was engraved by David II King of Scotland, who was a prisoner at
Nottingham. On this present, the following passage was inscribed in
Latin--"Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom."
ANCIENT SCANDINAVIAN BROOCH.
[Illustration [++] Shell-Shaped Brooch.]
The characteristic and beautiful ornament, usually designated the
shell-shaped brooch, and equally familiar to Danish and British
antiquaries, belongs to the Scoto-Scandinavian Period. In Scotland many
beautiful examples have been found, several of which are preserved
in the Museum of Scottish Antiquaries. From these we select the one
represented in the annexed engraving, as surpassing in beauty of design
and intricacy of ornament any other example of which we are aware. It
consists, as usual, of a convex plate of metal, with an ornamental
border, surmounted by another convex plate of greater depth, highly
ornamented with embossed and perforated designs, the effect of which
appears to have been further heightened by the lower plate being gilded
so as to show through the open work. In this example the gilding
still remains tolerably perfect. On the under side are the projecting
plates, still retaining a fragment of the corroded iron pin, where it
has turned on a hinge, and at the opposite end the bronze catch into
which it clasped. The under side of the brooch appears to have been
lined with coarse linen, the texture of which is still clearly defined
of the coating of verd antique with which it is now covered. But its
peculiar features consist of an elevated central ornament resembling a
crown, and four intricately-chased projections terminating in horses'
heads. It was found in September, 1786, along with another brooch of
the same kind, lying beside a skeleton, under a flat stone, very near
the surface, above the ruins of a Pictish house or burgh, in Caithness.
It measures nearly four and a half inches in length, by three inches
in breadth, and two and two-fifth inches in height to the top of the
crown. Like many others of the same type, it appears to have been
jewelled. In several examples of these brooches which we have compared,
the lower convex plates so nearly resemble each other, as to suggest
the probability of their having been cast in the same mould, while the
upper plates entirely differ.
STREET CRIES OF MODERN EGYPT.
The cries of the street hawkers in Egypt at the present day are very
singular, and well deserve a place in our repertory of curiosities.
The seller of _tir'mis_ (or lupins) often cries "Aid! O Imba'bee!
aid!" This is understood in two senses: as an invocation for aid
to the sheykh El-Imba'bee, a celebrated Moos'lim saint, buried at
the Imba'beh, on the west bank of the Nile, opposite Cairo; in the
neighbourhood of which village the best tir'mis is grown; and also as
implying that it is through the aid of the saint above mentioned that
the tir'mis of Imba'beh is so excellent. The seller of this vegetable
also cries, "The tir'mis of Imba'beh surpasses the almond!" Another
cry of the seller of tir'mis is, "O how sweet are the little children
of the river!" This last cry, which is seldom heard but in the country
towns and villages of Egypt, alludes to the manner in which the tir'mis
is prepared for food. To deprive it of its natural bitterness, it is
soaked, for two or three days, in a vessel full of water; then boiled,
and, after this, sewed up in a basket of palm-leaves (called _furd_),
and thrown into the Nile, where it is left to soak again, two or three
days; after which, it is dried, and eaten cold, with a little salt. The
seller of sour limes cries, "God make them light [or easy of sale]!
O limes!" The toasted pips of a kind of melon called '_abdalla'wee_,
and of the water-melon, are often announced by the cry of "O consoler
of the embarrassed! O pips!" though more commonly, by the simple cry
of "Roasted pips!" A curious cry of the seller of a kind of sweetmeat
(hhala'wee), composed of treacle fried with some other ingredients,
is, "For a nail! O sweetmeat!" He is said to be half a thief: children
and servants often steal implements of iron, &c., from the house in
which they live, and give them to him in exchange for his sweetmeat.
The hawker of oranges cries, "Honey! O oranges! Honey!" and similar
cries are used by the sellers of other fruits and vegetables; so that
it is sometimes impossible to guess what the person announces for sale;
as, when we hear the cry of "Sycamore-figs! O grapes!" excepting by
the rule that what is for sale is the least excellent of the fruits,
&c., mentioned; as sycamore-figs are not so good as grapes. A very
singular cry is used by the seller of roses: "The rose was a thorn:
from the sweat of the Prophet it opened [its flowers]." This alludes
to a miracle related of the Prophet. The fragrant flowers of the
hhen'na-tree (or Egyptian privet) are carried about for sale, and the
seller cries, "Odours of paradise! O flowers of the hhen'na!" A kind of
cotton cloth, made by machinery which is put in motion by a bull, is
announced by the cry of "The work of the bull! O maidens!"
THE BLACK PESTILENCE.
The black pestilence of the fourteenth century caused the most terrific
ravages in England. It has been supposed to have borne some resemblance
to the cholera, but that is not the case; it derived its name from
the dark, livid colour of the spots and boils that broke out upon
the patient's body. Like the cholera, the fatal disease appeared to
have followed a regular route in its destructive progress; but it did
not, like the cholera, advance westward, although, like that fearful
visitation, it appears to have originated in Asia.
The black pestilence descended along the Caucasus to the shores of the
Mediterranean, and, instead of entering Europe through Russia, first
appeared over the south, and, after devastating the rest of Europe,
penetrated into that country. It followed the caravans, which came
from China across Central Asia, until it reached the shores of the
Black Sea; thence it was conveyed by ships to Constantinople, the
centre of commercial intercourse between Asia, Europe, and Africa. In
1347 it reached Sicily and some of the maritime cities of Italy and
Marseilles. During the following year it spread over the northern part
of Italy, France, Germany, and England. The northern kingdoms of Europe
were invaded by it in 1349, and finally Russia in 1351--four years
after it had appeared in Constantinople.
The following estimate of deaths was considered far below the actual
number of victims:--
Florence lost 60,000 inhabitants
Venice " 10,000 "
Marseilles " in one month 56,000 "
Paris " " 50,000 "
Avignon " " 60,000 "
Strasburg " " 16,000 "
Basle " " 14,000 "
Erfurth " " 16,000 "
London " " 100,000 "
Norwich " " 50,000 "
Hecker states that this pestilence was preceded by great commotion
in the interior of the globe. About 1333, several earthquakes and
volcanic eruptions did considerable injury in upper Asia, while in the
same year, Greece, Italy, France, and Germany suffered under similar
disasters. The harvests were swept away by inundations, and clouds of
locusts destroyed all that floods had spared, while dense masses of
offensive insects strewed the land.
As in the recent invasion of cholera, the populace attributed this
scourge to poison and to the Jews, and these hapless beings were
persecuted and destroyed wherever they could be found. In Mayence,
after vainly attempting to defend themselves, they shut themselves up
in their quarters, where 1,200 of them burnt to death. The only asylum
found by them was Lithuania, where Casimir afforded them protection;
and it is, perhaps, owing to this circumstance that so many Jewish
families are still to be found in Poland.
THE DUCHESS OF LAUDERDALE.
Few mansions are more pleasantly situated than Ham House, the dwelling
of the Tollemaches, Earls of Dysart. It stands on the south bank of
the Thames, distant about twelve miles from London, and immediately
opposite to the pretty village of Twickenham. It was erected early in
the seventeenth century; the date 1610 still stands on the door of
the principal entrance. Its builder was Sir Thomas Vavasour, and it
subsequently came into the possession of Katherine, daughter of the
Earl of Dysart, who married first Sir Lionel Tollemache, and for her
second husband Earl, afterwards Duke, of Lauderdale.
The Duchess of Lauderdale was one of the "busiest" women of the busy
age in which she lived. Burnet insinuates that, during the life time
of her first husband, "she had been in a correspondence with Lord
Lauderdale that had given occasion for censure." She succeeded in
persuading him that he was indebted for his escape after "Worcester
fight" to "her intrigues with Cromwell. She was a woman," continues
the historian, "of great beauty, but of far greater parts. She had
a wonderful quickness of apprehension, and an amazing vivacity in
conversation. She had studied, not only divinity and history, but
mathematics and philosophy. She was violent in everything she set
about,--a violent friend, but a much more violent enemy. She had
a restless ambition, lived at a vast expense, and was ravenously
covetous, and would have stuck at nothing by which she might compass
her ends." Upon the accession of her husband to political power after
the Restoration, "all applications were made to her. She took upon her
to determine everything; she sold all places; and was wanting in no
method that could bring her money, which she lavished out in a most
profuse vanity."
This Duchess of Lauderdale--famous during the reigns of four
monarchs--the First and Second James, and the First and Second Charles,
and through the Protectorship of Cromwell--refurnished the house at
Ham, where she continued to reside until her death at a very advanced
age.
Among other untouched relics of gone-by days, is a small ante-chamber,
where, it is said, she not only condescended to receive the second
Charles, but, if tradition is to be credited, where she "cajoled"
Oliver Cromwell. There still remains the chair in which she used to
sit, her small walking cane, and a variety of objects she was wont to
value and cherish as memorials of her active life, and the successful
issue of a hundred political intrigues.
[Illustration [++] Chair of the Duchess of Lauderdale.]
MODERN EGYPTIAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.
[Illustration: Sa'ga't (1), Ta'r (2), and Dar'abook'keh (3).]
The durwee'shes, who constitute a sort of religious mendicant order in
Egypt, often make use of, in their processions and in begging, a little
tubl, or kettle-drum, called _ba'z_; six or seven inches in diameter;
which is held in the left hand, by a little projection in the centre
of the back, and beaten by the right hand, with a short leather strap,
or a stick. They also use cymbals, which are called _ka's_, on similar
occasions. The ba'z is used by the Moosahh'hhir, to attract attention
to his cry in the nights of Rum'ada'n. Castanets of brass, called
_sa'ga't_ are used by the public female and male dancers. Each dancer
has two pairs of these instruments. They are attached, each by a loop
of string, to the thumb and second finger, and have a more pleasing
sound than castanets of wood or ivory. There are two instruments which
are generally found in the hharee'm of a person of moderate wealth,
and which the women often use for their diversion. One of these is
a tambourine, called _ta'r_, of which we insert an engraving. It is
eleven inches in diameter. The hoop is overlaid with mother-of-pearl,
tortoise-shell, and white bone, or ivory, both without and within, and
has ten circular plates of brass attached to it, each two pairs having
a wire passing through their centres. The ta'r is held by the left or
right hand, and beaten with the fingers of that hand and by the other
hand. The fingers of the hand which holds the instrument, striking only
near the hoop, produce higher sounds than the other hand, which strikes
in the centre. A tambourine of a larger and more simple kind than that
here described, without the metal plates, is often used by the lower
orders. The other instrument alluded to in the commencement of this
paragraph is a kind of drum, called _dar'abook'keh_. The best kind is
made of wood, covered with mother-of-pearl and tortoise-shell, &c. One
of this description is here represented with the ta'r. It is fifteen
inches in length, covered with a piece of fishes' skin at the larger
extremity, and open at the smaller. It is placed under the left arm;
generally suspended by a string that passes over the left shoulder; and
is beaten with both hands.
REMARKABLE OAKS.
The oaks most remarkable for their horizontal expansion, are, according
to Loudon, the following:--"The Three-shire Oak, near Worksop, was
so situated, that it covered part of the three counties of York,
Nottingham, and Derby, and dripped over seven hundred and seventy-seven
square yards. An oak between Newnham Courtney and Clifton shaded a
circumference of five hundred and sixty yards of ground, under which
two thousand four hundred and twenty men might have commodiously
taken shelter. The immense Spread Oak in Worksop Park, near the white
gate, gave an extent, between the ends of its opposite branches, of
an hundred and eighty feet. It dripped over an area of nearly three
thousand square yards, which is above half an acre, and would have
afforded shelter to a regiment of nearly a thousand horse. The Oakley
Oak, now growing on an estate of the Duke of Bedford, has a head of an
hundred and ten feet in diameter. The oak called _Robur Britannicum_,
in the Park, at Rycote, is said to have been extensive enough to cover
five thousand men; and at Ellerslie, in Renfrewshire, the native
village of the hero Wallace, there is still standing 'the old oak
tree,' among the branches of which, it is said, that he and three
hundred of his men hid themselves from the English."
CURIOUS ADVERTISEMENT.
A few years ago the following actually appeared in one of the London
papers: certainly a most economical speculation for the use of soul and
body:--
"Wanted, for a family who have bad health, a sober, steady person,
in the capacity of doctor, surgeon, apothecary, and man-midwife. He
must occasionally act as butler, and dress hair and wigs. He will
be required sometimes to read prayers, and to preach a sermon every
Sunday. A good salary will be given."
CHANGES OF MOUNT ETNA.
Signor Maria Gemmellario has given, from a meteorological journal kept
at Catania, a very interesting view of the successive changes of Mount
Etna, at a period in which it was in the phase of moderate activity;
and no description could convey so accurate a conception of the
ever-changing phenomena.
On the 9th of February, 1804, there was a sensible earthquake. Etna
smoked ninety-seven days, but there was no eruption nor any thunder.
On the 3rd of July, 1805, there was an earthquake. Etna smoked
forty-seven days, and emitted flame twenty-eight days. There was an
eruption in June, but no thunder.
There were earthquakes on the 27th of May and 10th of October, 1806.
The mountain smoked forty-seven days, flamed seven, and detonated
twenty-eight: little thunder.
On the 24th of February and 25th of November, 1807, there were
earthquakes. Etna smoked fifty-nine days: little thunder.
In August, September, and December, 1808, earthquakes were frequent.
Etna smoked twelve days, flamed one hundred and two, and often
detonated. Thunder storms were frequent.
From January to May, and during September and December, 1809, there
were thirty-seven earthquakes. The most sensible shock was on the 27th
of March, when the mountain ejected lava on the western side. This
eruption lasted thirteen days, and part of the Bosco di Castiglione was
injured. The mountain smoked one hundred and fifty-two days, flamed
three, and detonated eleven. Little thunder.
On the 16th and 17th of February, 1810, there were four earthquakes.
On the 27th of October, Etna was in a state of eruption on the eastern
side, and the lava flowed into the Valle del Bue. There were about
twenty thunder storms.
1811, no earthquakes, but the mountain continued until the 24th of
April to eject lava from the east. At this time the Mount St. Simon was
formed. No thunder.
Earthquake on the 3rd and 13th of March, 1813. The mountain smoked
twenty-eight days. On the 30th of June, and on the 5th of August, St.
Simon smoked. There were twenty-one thunder storms.
On the 3rd of November, 1814, there was an earthquake, preceded by a
discharge of sand from that part of the mountain called Zoccolaro.
There were twelve thunder storms.
On the 6th of September, 1815, there was an earthquake. The mountain
smoked forty-two days, and there were eleven thunder storms. On the
6th, 7th, and 11th of January the lightning was tremendous.
1816, no earthquakes. On the 13th of August a part of the interior side
of the crater fell in. Ten thunder storms.
There was an earthquake on the 18th of October, 1817. The mountain
smoked twenty-two days. There were eight thunder storms.
During 1818 there were twenty-five earthquakes. The most violent was
in the neighbourhood of Catania, on the 20th of February. The mountain
smoked twenty-four days. No thunder.
CHARITY INSTEAD OF POMP.
According to the "Annual Register" for August, 1760, there were
expended at the funeral of Farmer Keld, of Whitby, in that year, one
hundred and ten dozen of penny loaves, eight large hams, eight legs
of veal, twenty stone of beef (fourteen pounds to the stone), sixteen
stone of mutton, fifteen stone of Cheshire cheese, and thirty ankers of
ale, besides what was distributed to about one thousand poor people,
who had sixpence each in money given them.
THE BEDFORD MISSAL.
One of the most celebrated books in the annals of bibliography, is the
richly illuminated Missal, executed for John, Duke of Bedford, Regent
of France, under Henry VI.; by him it was presented to that king, in
1430. This rare volume is eleven inches long, seven and a-half wide,
and two and a-half thick; contains fifty-nine large miniatures, which
nearly occupy the whole page, and above a thousand small ones, in
circles of about an inch and a-half diameter, displayed in brilliant
borders of golden foliage, with variegated flowers, etc.; at the bottom
of every page are two lines in blue and gold letters, which explain the
subject of each miniature. This relic, after passing through various
hands, descended to the Duchess of Portland, whose valuable collection
was sold by auction, in 1786. Among its many attractions was the
Bedford Missal. A knowledge of the sale coming to the ears of George
III., he sent for his bookseller, and expressed his intention to become
the purchaser. The bookseller ventured to submit to his majesty the
probable high price it would fetch. "How high?" exclaimed the king.
"Probably, two hundred guineas," replied the bookseller. "Two hundred
guineas for a Missal!" exclaimed the queen, who was present, and
lifted her hands up with astonishment. "Well, well," said his majesty,
"I'll have it still; but since the queen thinks two hundred guineas
so enormous a price for a Missal, I'll go no further." The biddings
for the Royal Library did actually stop at that point; a celebrated
collector, Mr. Edwards, became the purchaser by adding three pounds
more. The same Missal was afterwards sold at Mr. Edwards' sale, in
1815, and purchased by the Duke of Marlborough, for the enormous sum of
£637 l5s. sterling.
CALICINATED RINGS.
[Illustration [++] Calicinated Ring.]
There is a particular class of antique gold ornaments, belonging to
the Bronze Period, which is deserving of especial attention, from
the circumstance that the British Isles is the only locality in
which it has yet been discovered. These ornaments consist of a solid
cylindrical gold bar, beat into a semicircle or segmental arc, most
frequently tapering from the centre, and terminated at both ends with
hollow cups, resembling the mouth of a trumpet, or the expanded calix
of a flower. A remarkable example of these curious native relics is
engraved in the "Archæological Journal." The cups are formed merely by
hollows in the slightly dilated ends; but it is further interesting
from being decorated with the style of incised ornaments of most
frequent occurrence on the primitive British pottery. It was dug up at
Brahalish, near Bantry, county Cork, and weighs 3 oz. 5 dwts. 6 grs.
In contrast to this, another is engraved in the same journal, found
near the entrance lodge at Swinton Park, Yorkshire, scarcely two feet
below the surface. In this beautiful specimen the terminal cups are
so unusually large, that the solid bar of gold dwindles into a mere
connecting-link between them. The annexed figure of a very fine example
found by a labourer while cutting peats in the parish of Cromdale,
Inverness-shire, somewhat resembles that of Swinton Park in the size of
its cups. It is from a drawing by the late Sir Thomas Dick Lauder, and
represents it about one-half the size of the original. Similar relics
of more ordinary proportions have been brought to light, at different
times, in various Scottish districts.
EXTRAORDINARY CRICKET MATCHES.
Every day in summer wagers are made at Lord's cricket ground, upon
matches there to be played; but there have been more extraordinary
matches elsewhere relative to this exercising game; for a cricket match
was played on Blackheath, in the year 1766, between eleven Greenwich
pensioners who had lost each an arm, and eleven others who had lost
each a leg. The former won with ease. And again, on the 9th of August,
1796, a cricket match was played by eleven Greenwich pensioners with
one leg, against eleven with one arm, for one thousand guineas, at the
new cricket ground, Montpelier gardens, Walworth. At nine o'clock
the men arrived in three Greenwich stages; about twelve the wickets
were pitched, and they commenced. Those with but one leg had the first
innings, and got 93 runs; those with but one arm got but 42 runs
during their innings. The one-leg commenced their second innings, and
six were bowled out after they had got 60 runs; so that they left off
one hundred and eleven more than those with one arm. Next morning the
match was played out; and the men with one leg beat the one-arms by
one hundred and three runs. After the match was finished the eleven
one-legged men ran a sweep-stakes of one hundred yards distance for
twenty guineas, and the three first had prizes.
MUMMY CASES.
[Illustration [++] Mummy Cases.]
The annexed engraving represents a set of Egyptian mummy cases, several
of which were used for the interment of one body, the smaller one being
enclosed within the larger. On the death of a king in Egypt, "three
score and ten days" was the period that intervened from his departure
to the termination of the embalming operations; the earlier and more
important of which, exclusive of the soaking in natron, occupied forty
days. The coffin, or wooden case, in which the embalmed body of Joseph
was preserved, till at the exodus it was carried from Egypt, was,
doubtless, of such a form and appearance as those with which we are
familiar at our museums. An account of some specimens of these, and
of the internal shells which were considered requisite for persons of
rank, will be read with interest.
Before the better kind of mummies were put into their wooden cases,
they were placed in a shell in the following manner:--Nine thick layers
of hempen or linen cloth were well gummed together, so as to make a
strong flexible kind of board, something like a piece of papier mâché.
This was formed into the shape of the swathed mummy, which was inserted
in it by means of a longitudinal aperture on the under side, reaching
from the feet to the head. The two sides of this long aperture were
then drawn together by a coarse kind of stitching, done with a large
needle and thin hempen cord. The inside of this hempen case was covered
with a thin coating of plaster, and the outside was also covered with
a similar sort of plaster, on which were painted rude figures of
beetles, ibides, &c., &c., apparently with ochrous earths tempered
with water; they could be easily rubbed off with the finger, except
where they were fixed by an outer coating of gum. On the upper part of
this case a human face was represented, and for the purpose of giving
additional strength and firmness to that part of the hempen covering, a
considerable quantity of earth and plaster was stuck on the inside, so
that it would be more easy to mould the material on the outside, while
still flexible, into a resemblance of the human form. The face was
covered with a strong varnish, to keep the colour fixed. The outer case
was generally made of the Egyptian fig-sycamore wood, and the parts of
it were fastened together with wooden pegs. This wood was used by the
Egyptians for a variety of purposes, as we find even common domestic
utensils made of it. The pegs of the sycamore cases were not always of
the sycamore wood, which, when cut thin, would hardly be so suitable as
some more closely-grained wood; the pegs, therefore, of the inner cases
were of a different wood, generally of cedar. Bodies embalmed in the
highest style of fashion, had, in addition to the inner coffin which we
have described, an outer wooden box, such as Herodotus mentions, with
a human face, male or female, painted on it. Some of these cases were
plain, and others highly ornamented with figures of sacred animals, or
with paintings representing mythological subjects.
The wooden case which contained the body was sometimes cut out of
one piece of wood, and the inside was made smooth, and fit for the
reception of the painted figures, by laying on it a thin coat of fine
plaster. This plaster was also used as a lining for the wooden cases
which were not made of a single piece. There was often a second wooden
case, still more highly ornamented and covered with paintings secured
by a strong varnish. These paintings were intended to embody the ideas
of the Egyptians as to the state of death, the judgment or trial which
preceded the admission into the regions below, and other matters
connected with the ritual of the dead and the process of embalming.
The upper part of each of the wooden cases was made to represent a
human figure, and the sex was clearly denoted by the character of
the head-dress, and the presence or absence of the beard. Both the
head-dress and the ornaments about the neck, as far as the bosom, were
exactly of the same character as those which we see on the sculptures
and paintings. The brief remark of Herodotus, that the friends put the
swathed mummy "into a wooden figure made to resemble the human form,"
is amply borne out.
INSTINCT OF ANIMALS.
Gall and various observers of animals have fully ascertained that the
attention of dogs is awakened by our conversation. He brought one
of these intelligent creatures with him from Vienna to Paris, which
perfectly understood French and German, of which he satisfied himself
by repeating before it whole sentences in both languages. A recent
anecdote has been related of an old ship-dog, that leaped overboard
and swam to shore on hearing the captain exclaim, "Poor old Neptune! I
fear we shall have to drown him!" and such was the horror which that
threat inspired, that he never afterwards would approach the captain
or any of the ship's company, to whom he had previously been fondly
attached. It must, however, be observed that in the brute creation, as
in ours (sometimes more brutal species), peculiar attributes, that do
not belong to the race, distinguish individuals gifted with what in
man we might call a superior intellect, but which in these animals
shows a superiority of what we term instinct. Spurzheim relates an
instance of a cow belonging to Mr. Dupont de Nemours, which, amongst
the whole kindred herd, was the only one that could open the gate
leading to their pastures; and her anxious comrades, when arriving
at the wished-for spot, invariably lowed for their conductor. It is
also related of a hound, who, unable to obtain a seat near the fire
without the risk of quarrelling with the dozing occupants that crowded
the hearth, was wont to run out into the court-yard barking an alarm
that brought away his rivals in comfort, when he quietly re-entered
the parlour, and selected an eligible stretching-place. This animal
displayed as much ingenuity as the traveller who, according to the
well-known story, ordered oysters for his horse for the purpose of
clearing the fireside.
BELL OF ST. MURA.
[Illustration [++] Bell of St. Mura.]
This curious relic, engraved over leaf, two-thirds the size of the
original, is remarkable as a work of art, as well as a genuine
relic of the most venerable antiquity; it was formerly regarded
with superstitious reverence in Ireland, and any liquid drunk from
it was believed to have peculiar properties in alleviating human
suffering; hence, the peasant women of the district in which it was
long preserved, particularly used it in cases of child-birth, and a
serious disturbance was excited on a former attempt to sell it by its
owner. Its legendary history relates that it descended from the sky
ringing loudly; but as it approached the concourse of people who had
assembled at the miraculous warning, the tongue detached itself and
returned towards the skies; hence it was concluded that the bell was
never to be profaned by sounding on earth, but was to be kept for
purposes more holy and beneficent. This is said to have happened on
the spot where once stood the famous Abbey of Fahan, near Innishowen
(County Donegal), founded in the seventh century by St. Mura, or
Muranus, during the reign of Abodh Slaine. For centuries this abbey
was noted as the depository of various valuable objects, which were
held in especial veneration by the people. Amongst these were several
curious manuscripts written by St. Mura, his crozier, and this bell;
which ultimately came into the possession of a poor peasant residing
at Innishowen, who parted with it to Mr. Brown, of Beaumaris, at whose
sale in 1855 it was purchased by Lord Londesborough. The material of
the bell is bronze, and its form quadrangular, resembling other ancient
Irish bells, and leading to the conclusion that it is the genuine
work of the seventh century. The extreme feeling of veneration shown
towards it in various ages is proved by the ornament with which it is
encased. By the accidental removal of one portion of the outer casing,
a series of earlier enrichments were discovered beneath, which were
most probably placed there in the ninth century. The portion disclosed
(the lower right hand corner) consists of a tracery of Runic knots
wrought in brass, and firmly attached to the bell by a thin plate of
gold;--whether the remainder of these early decorations, now concealed,
be similar, cannot be determined without removing the outer plates.
These exterior ornaments consist of a series of detached silver plates
of various sizes diversely embossed in the style known to have
prevailed in the eleventh century. The centre is adorned with a large
crystal, and smaller gems have once been set in other vacant sockets
around it, only one of amber remaining. The two large spaces in front
of the arched top were also most probably filled with precious stones,
as the gold setting still remains entire. The best workmanship has been
devoted to these decorations; the hook for suspending the bell is of
brass, and has been covered with early bronze ornament which has been
filled in with niello, the intervening space being occupied by silver
plates ornamented like the rest of the later decorations which cover
its surface. From the absence of any traces of rivets on the back
or sides of the bell, the decoration it has received may have been
restricted to the casing of the handle and the enrichment of the front
of this venerated relic.
CURIOUSLY-SHAPED DRINKING CUP.
Drinking cups of a fantastic shape were very much in vogue in the
sixteenth century. Sometimes they assumed the shape of birds, sometimes
of animals. In general it is the head that takes off, and serves as
a lid or cover; but sometimes the orifice is in another part of the
body, as, for example, on the back. The specimen now before us is from
Lord Londesborough's collection.
[Illustration [++] Drinking Cup in the Shape of a Stag.]
The stag is of silver, gilt all over; the collar set with a garnet.
Silver bands encircle this curious figure, to which are appended
many small silver escutcheons engraved with the arms and names of
distinguished officers of the Court of Saxe Gotha, the latest being
"Her Von Maagenheim, Camer Juncker und Regierung Assessor in Gotha,
d. 15 Augusti, A{o} 1722." It has probably been a prize for shooting,
successively won by those persons whose arms decorate it.
BANQUETS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH.
Few English sovereigns were so well acquainted with their dominions
as was Queen Elizabeth: she may be said to have visited every corner
of her empire, and in these royal journeys or "progresses," as they
are called, her loyal subjects strove to outvie each other in the
splendour of their receptions. Nothing could surpass the magnificence
of the entertainments thus planned for the queen's gratification,
either as respects the splendour of show, or the costliness of the
more substantial banquet. These occasions are too numerous to mention;
and we can only notice one of the queen's visits to the palace at
Greenwich, as described by a German, who travelled in England in 1598.
It was Sunday, and after attending service in the chapel, the queen
prepared for dinner. A gentleman entered the room bearing a rod, and
with him another bearing a table-cloth, which, after they had both
kneeled three times, he spread upon the table, and after kneeling
again, they both retired: then came two others, one with the rod
again, the other with a salt-cellar, a plate, and bread, which, after
kneeling, they also placed on the table: then came an unmarried and a
married lady, bearing a tasting-knife, and having stooped three times
gracefully, they rubbed the table with bread and salt. Then came the
yeomen of the guard, bringing in, at each time, a course of dishes,
served in plate, most of it gilt; these dishes were received by a
gentleman, and placed upon the table, while the lady-taster gave to
each guard a mouthful to eat of the particular dish he had brought, for
fear of any poison. During the time that this guard (which consisted
of the tallest and stoutest men that could be found in all England,
being carefully selected for this service) were bringing dinner, twelve
trumpets and two kettle-drums made the hall ring for half an hour
together. After this a number of unmarried ladies appeared, who lifted
the meat from the table, and conveyed it to the queen's inner and more
private chamber, where, after she had chosen for herself, the rest was
sent to the ladies of the court. The queen dined and supped alone, with
very few attendants.
THE GREAT FOG OF 1783.
It prevailed over the adjoining continent, and produced much fear that
the end of all things was at hand. It appeared first at Copenhagen on
the 29th of May, reached Dijon on the 14th June, and was perceived
in Italy on the 16th. It was noticed at Spydberg, in Norway, on the
22nd, and at Stockholm two days later; the following day it reached
Moscow. On the 23rd it was felt on the St. Gothard, and at Buda. By
the close of that month it entered Syria; and on the 18th of July,
reached the Altai Mountains. Before its appearance at these places the
condition of the atmosphere was not similar; for in this country it
followed continued rains; in Denmark it succeeded fine weather of some
continuance; and in other places it was preceded by high winds. The sun
at noon looked rusty-red, reminding one of the lines of Milton. The
heat was intense during its continuance, and the atmosphere was highly
electric. Lightnings were awfully vivid and destructive. In England
many deaths arose from this cause, and a great amount of property was
lost. In Germany public edifices were thrown down or consumed by it;
and in Hungary one of the chief northern towns was destroyed by fires,
caused by the electric fluid, which struck it in nine different places.
In France there were hailstones and violent winds. In Silesia there
were great inundations. The dry fogs of 1782-83 were accompanied by
influenza; at St. Petersburgh 40,000 persons were immediately attacked
by it, after the thermometer had suddenly risen 30 degrees. Calabria
and Sicily were convulsed by earthquakes; in Iceland a volcano was
active, and about the same time one sprung out of the sea off Norway.
The co-existence of dry fogs with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
had been previously observed--_e.g._, in the years 526, 1348, 1721; and
since then, in 1822 and 1834.
A somewhat similar fog overspread London before the cholera of 1831,
and the influenza of 1847. Hecker ("Epidemics of the Middle Ages")
has collected notices of various phenomena of this kind, which
have preceded the great continental plagues, and have often been
characterised by offensive odours.
MONKEYS DEMANDING THEIR DEAD.
Mr. Forbes tells a story of a female monkey (the Semnopithecus
Entellus) who was shot by a friend of his, and carried to his tent.
Forty or fifty of her tribe advanced with menacing gestures, but stood
still when the gentleman presented his gun at them. One, however, who
appeared to be the chief of the tribe, came forward, chattering and
threatening in a furious manner. Nothing short of firing at him seemed
likely to drive him away; but at length he approached the tent door
with every sign of grief and supplication, as if he were begging for
the body. It was given to him, he took it in his arms, carried it away,
with actions expressive of affection, to his companions, and with them
disappeared. It was not to be wondered at that the sportsman vowed
never to shoot another monkey.
BARA.
Mr. Howel, in his descriptive travels through Sicily, gives a
particular account of the magnificent manner in which the festival of
the Assumption of the Virgin is kept by the Sicilians under the title
of Bara, which, although expressive of the machine he describes, is
also, it appears, generally applied as a name of the feast itself.
An immense machine of about 50 feet high is constructed, designing
to represent Heaven; and in the midst is placed a young female
personating the Virgin, with an image of Jesus on her right hand;
round the Virgin 12 little children turn vertically, representing so
many Seraphim, and below them 12 more children turn horizontally,
as Cherubim; lower down in the machine a sun turns vertically, with
a child at the extremity of each of the four principal radii of his
circle, who ascend and descend with his rotation, yet always in an
erect posture; and still lower, reaching within about 7 feet of the
ground, are placed 12 boys, who turn horizontally without intermission
around the principal figure, designing thereby to exhibit the 12
apostles, who were collected from all corners of the earth, to be
present at the decease of the Virgin, and witness her miraculous
assumption. This huge machine is drawn about the principal streets by
sturdy monks; and it is regarded as a particular favour to any family
to admit their children in this divine exhibition.
CRADLE OF HENRY V.
Most of our readers have probably seen, in the illustrated newspapers
of the day, sketches of the magnificently artistic cradles which
have been made for the children of our good Queen, or for the Prince
Imperial of France. It will be not a little curious to contrast with
those elaborately beautiful articles the cradle of a Prince of Wales in
the fourteenth century. We here give a sketch of it.
[Illustration [++] Cradle of Henry V.]
It was made for the use of Henry Prince of Wales, afterwards King
Henry V, generally called Henry of Monmouth, because he was born in
the castle there in the year 1388. He was the son of Henry IV of
Bolingbroke, by his first wife Mary de Bohun. He was educated at
Queen's College, Oxford, under the superintendence of his half uncle,
the great Cardinal Henry Beaufort. On the accession of his father to
the throne, he was created Prince of Wales, and, at the early age
of sixteen, was present at the battle of Shrewsbury, where he was
badly wounded in the face. After having greatly distinguished himself
in the war against Owen Glendour, he spent some years idleness and
dissipation, but on his coming to the throne, by the death of his
father, April 20, 1413, he threw off his former habits and associates,
chose his ministers from among those of tried integrity and wisdom in
his father's cause, and seemed everywhere intent on justice, on victory
over himself, and on the good of his subjects. After a short but
glorious reign of ten years, in which the victory of Agincourt was the
principal event, he expired at the Bois de Vincennes, near Paris, on
the last day of August, 1422, in the thirty-fourth year of his age. He
was engaged at the time in a war with the Dauphin of France. His heart
was warm as his head was cool, and his courage equal to his wisdom,
which emboldened him to encounter the greatest dangers, and surmount
the greatest difficulties His virtues were not inferior to his
abilities, being a dutiful son, a fond parent, an affectionate brother,
a steady and generous friend, and an indulgent master. In a word,
Henry V., though not without his failings, merits the character of an
amiable and accomplished man, and a great and good king. Such was the
sovereign, for whose infant years the plain, but still not tasteless,
cradle was made, which we have here engraved, as it is preserved in the
castle of Monmouth, his birthplace.
THE FONT AT KILCARN.
The venerable old church at Kilcarn, near Navan, in the county of
Meath, contains a font of great rarity, and we have selected it as a
fitting object for our work, inasmuch as it is a striking instance of
the union of the beautiful with the curious.
[Illustration [++] Font at Kilcarn.]
Placed upon its shaft, as represented in the cut, it measures in height
about three feet six inches; the basin is two feet ten inches in
diameter, and thirteen inches deep. The heads of the niches, twelve in
number, with which its sides are carved, are enriched with foliage of
a graceful but uniform character, and the miniature buttresses which
separate the niches are decorated with crockets, the bases resting upon
heads, grotesque animals, or human figures, carved as brackets. The
figures within the niches are executed with a wonderful degree of care,
the drapery being represented with each minute crease or fold well
expressed. They are evidently intended to represent Christ, the Virgin
Mary, and the twelve apostles. All the figures are seated. Our Saviour,
crowned as a King, and holding in his hand the globe and cross, is in
the act of blessing the Virgin, who also is crowned, the "Queen of
Heaven." The figures of most of the apostles can easily be identified:
Saint Peter by his key; Saint Andrew by his cross of peculiar shape;
and so on. They are represented barefooted, and each holds a book in
one hand.
THE BLOOD-SUCKING VAMPIRE.
Captain Stedman, who travelled in Guiana, from 1772 to 1777, published
an account of his adventures, and for several years afterwards it
was the fashion to doubt the truth of his statements. In fact, it
was a general feeling, up to a much later period than the above,
that travellers were not to be believed. As our knowledge, however,
has increased, and the works of God have been made more manifest,
the reputation of many a calumniated traveller has been restored,
and, among others, that of Captain Stedman. We shall, therefore,
unhesitatingly quote his account of the bite of the vampire:--"On
waking, about four o'clock this morning, in my hammock, I was
extremely alarmed at finding myself weltering in congealed blood,
and without feeling any pain whatever. Having started up and run to
the surgeon, with a firebrand in one hand, and all over besmeared
with gore, the mystery was found to be, that I had been bitten by the
vampire or spectre of Guiana, which is also called the flying dog
of New Spain. This is no other than a bat of monstrous size, that
sucks the blood from men and cattle, sometimes even till they die;
knowing, by instinct, that the person they intend to attack is in a
sound slumber, they generally alight near the feet, where, while the
creature continues fanning with his enormous wings, which keeps one
cool, he bites a piece out of the tip of the great toe, so very small
indeed, that the head, of a pin could scarcely be received into the
wound, which is consequently not painful; yet, through this orifice he
contrives to suck the blood until he is obliged to disgorge. He then
begins again, and thus continues mucking and disgorging till he is
scarcely able to fly, and the sufferer has often been known to sleep
from time into eternity. Cattle they generally bite in the ear, but
always in those places where the blood flows spontaneously. Having
applied tobacco-ashes as the best remedy, and washed the gore from
myself and my hammock, I observed several small heaps of congealed
blood all around the place where I had lain upon the ground; upon
examining which, the surgeon judged that I had lost at least twelve or
fourteen ounces during the night. Having measured this creature (one of
the bats), I found it to be, between the tips of the wings, thirty-two
inches and a-half; the colour was a dark brown, nearly black, but
lighter underneath."
LUXURY IN 1562.
The luxury of the present times does not equal, in one article at
least, that of the sixteenth century. Sir Nicholas Throckmorton, the
Queen's ambassador at Paris, in a letter to Sir Thomas Chaloner, the
ambassador at Madrid, in June, 1562, says,
"I pray you good my Lord Ambassador sende me two paire of parfumed
gloves, parfumed with orrange flowers and jacemin, th'one for my
wives hand, the other for mine owne; and wherin soever I can pleasure
you with any thing in this countrey, you shall have it in recompence
thereof, or els so moche money as they shall coste you; provided
alwaies that they be of the best choise, wherein your judgment is
inferior to none."
SINGULAR PHENOMENON--PHOSPHORESCENCE OF THE SEA.
The sea has sometimes a luminous appearance, a phenomenon that has
been observed by all sailors, who consider it the forerunner of windy
weather. It is said to occur most frequently in the summer and autumn
months, and varies so much in its character, as to induce a doubt
whether it can always be attributed to the same cause. Sometimes the
luminous appearance is seen over the whole surface of the water, and
the vessel seems as though floating upon an ocean of light. At other
times, the phosphorescence is only seen immediately around the ship.
A portion of water taken from the sea does not necessarily retain its
luminous appearance, but its brilliance will generally continue as long
as the water is kept in a state of agitation. Some naturalists imagine
the phosphorescence of the sea to arise from the diffusion of an
immense number of animalculæ through the medium, and others attribute
it to electricity. Dr. Buchanan has given an account of a very
remarkable appearance of the sea, observed by him during a voyage from
Johanna to Bombay. About eight o'clock in the evening of the 31st of
July, 1785, the sea had a milk-white colour, and upon it were floating
a multitude of luminous bodies greatly resembling that combination of
stars known as the milky way, the brightest of them representing the
larger stars of a constellation. The whiteness, he says, was such as
to prevent those on board from seeing either the break or swell of
the sea, although, from the motion of the ship and the noise, they
knew them to be violent, and the light was sufficiently intense to
illuminate the ropes and rigging. This singular phenomenon continued
till daylight appeared. Several buckets of water were drawn, and in
them were found a great number of luminous bodies, from a quarter of an
inch to an inch and a half in length, and these were seen to move about
as worms in the water. There might be, he said to Dr. Buchanan, four
hundred of these animals in a gallon of water. A similar appearance had
been observed before in the same sea by several of the officers, and
the gunner had seen it off Java Head, in a voyage to China.
MARRIAGE VOW.
The matrimonial ceremony, like many others, has undergone some
variation in the progress of time. Upwards of three centuries ago,
the husband, on taking his wife, as now, by the right hand, thus
addressed her:--"I. N. _undersygne_ the N. for my wedded wyfe, for
better, for worse, for richer, for porer, yn sickness, and in helthe,
tyl dethe us departe, (not "do part," as we have erroneously rendered
it, the ancient meaning of "departe," even in Wickliffe's time, being
"separate") as holy churche hath ordeyned, and thereto I plygth the my
trowthe." The wife replies in the same form, with an additional clause,
"to be buxom to the, tyl dethe us departe." So it appears in the first
edition of the "Missals for the use of the famous and celebrated Church
of Hereford, 1502," fol. In what is called the "Salisbury Missal," the
lady pronounced a more general obedience: "to be bonere and buxom in
bedde and at the borde."
LOVE OF GARDENS.
Louis XVIII., on his restoration to France, made, in the park in
Versailles, the _facsimile_ of the garden at Hartwell; and there
was no more amiable trait in the life of that accomplished prince.
Napoleon used to say that he should know his father's garden in Corsica
blindfolded, by the smell of the earth! And the hanging-gardens
of Babylon are said to have been raised by the Median Queen of
Nebuchadnezzar on the flat and naked plains of her adopted country,
to remind her of the hills and woods of her childhood. We need not
speak of the plane-trees of Plato--Shakspeare's mulberry-tree--Pope's
willow--Byron's elm? Why describe Cicero at his Tusculum--Evelyn at
Wotton--Pitt at Ham Common--Walpole at Houghton--Grenville at Dropmere?
Why dwell on Bacon's "little tufts of thyme," or Fox's geraniums? There
is a spirit in the garden as well as in the wood, and the "lilies of
the field" supply food for the imagination as well as materials for
sermons.
ANCIENT DANISH SHIELD.
[Illustration [++] Ancient Danish Shield.]
In Asia, from whence the greater number, probably all, of the European
nations have migrated, numerous implements and weapons of copper
have been discovered in a particular class of graves; nay, in some
of the old and long-abandoned mines in that country workmen's tools
have been discovered, made of copper, and of very remote antiquity.
We see, moreover, how at a later period attempts were made to harden
copper, and to make it better suited for cutting implements by a slight
intermixture, and principally of tin. Hence arose that mixed metal
to which the name of "bronze" has been given. Of this metal, then,
the Northmen of "the bronze period" formed their armour, and among
numerous other articles, three shields have been discovered which
are made wholly of bronze; and we here give a sketch of the smallest
of them, which is about nineteen inches in diameter, the other two
being twenty-four. These shields are formed of somewhat thin plates
of bronze, the edge being turned over a thick wire metal to prevent
the sword penetrating too deeply. The handle is formed of a cross-bar,
placed at the reverse side of the centre boss, which is hollowed out
for the purpose of admitting the hand.
SACRED GARDENS.
The origin of sacred gardens among the heathen nations may be traced
up to the garden of Eden. The gardens of the Hesperides, of Adonis, of
Flora, were famous among the Greeks and Romans. "The garden of Flora,"
says Mr. Spence (Polymetis, p. 251), "I take to have been the Paradise
in the Roman mythology. The traditions and traces of Paradise among the
ancients must be expected to have grown fainter and fainter in every
transfusion from one people to another. The Romans probably derived
their notions of it from the Greeks, among whom this idea seems to have
been shadowed out under the stories of the gardens of Alcinous. In
Africa they had the gardens of the Hesperides, and in the East those of
Adonis, or the _Horti Adonis_, as Pliny calls them. The term _Horti
Adonides_ was used by the ancients to signify gardens of pleasure,
which answers to the very name of Paradise, or the garden of Eden, as
_Horti Adonis_ does to the garden of the Lord."
ANCIENT CHAIR OF DAGOBERT.
[Illustration [++] Chair of Dagobert.]
The chair which we here engrave claims to be regarded as a great
curiosity, on two separate grounds: it is the work of an artist who
was afterwards canonized, and it was used by Napoleon I. on a most
important occasion. Towards the close of the sixth century the artists
of France were highly successful in goldsmith's work, and Limoges
appears to have been the principal centre of this industry. It was at
this time that Abbon flourished--a goldsmith and mint-master, with whom
was placed the young Eloy, who rose from a simple artizan to be the
most remarkable man of his century, and whose virtues were rewarded by
canonization. The apprentice soon excelled his master, and his fame
caused him to be summoned to the throne of Clotaire II., for whom
he made two thrones of gold, enriched with precious stones, from a
model made by the king himself, who had not been able to find workmen
sufficiently skilful to execute it. The talents and probity of St.
Eloy also gained him the affection of Dagobert I., who entrusted him
with many important works, and among them, with the construction of
the throne, or chair of state which is the subject of this article. It
is made of bronze, carved and gilded, and is a beautiful specimen of
workmanship. The occupant of the chair would sit upon a cloth of gold
suspended from the two side bars. For a long time it was preserved in
the sacristy of the royal church of St. Denis, at Paris; but it was
subsequently removed to the Great Library, where it now is. It was upon
this chair that Napoleon I., in August, 1804, distributed the crosses
of the Legion of Honour to the soldiers of the army assembled at
Boulogne for the invasion of England. Napoleon caused the chair to be
brought from Paris for the express purpose.
ST GEORGE'S CAVERN.
Near the town of Moldavia, on the Danube, is shown the cavern where St.
George slew the Dragon, from which, at certain periods, issue myriads
of small flies, which tradition reports to proceed from the carcass of
the dragon. They respect neither man nor beast, and are so destructive
that oxen and horses have been killed by them. They are called the
Golubacz's fly. It is thought when the Danube rises, as it does in
the early part of the summer, the caverns are flooded, and the water
remaining in them, and becoming putrid, produces this noxious fly. But
this supposition appears to be worthless, because, some years ago, the
natives closed up the caverns, and still they were annoyed with the
flies. They nearly resemble mosquitoes. In summer they appear in such
swarms as to look like a volume of smoke; and they sometimes cover a
space of six or seven miles. Covered with these insects, horses not
unfrequently gallop about until death puts an end to their sufferings.
Shepherds anoint their hands with a decoction of wormwood, and keep
large fires burning to protect themselves from them. Upon any material
change in the weather the whole swarm is destroyed thereby.
ENGLISH LETTER BY VOLTAIRE.
The subjoined letter is copied literally from the autograph of
Voltaire, formerly in the possession of the Rev. Mr. Sim, the editor of
Mickle's Poems:--
"Sir,
"j wish you good health, a quick sale of y{r} burgundy, much latin, and
greeke to one of y{r} Children, much Law, much of cooke, and littleton,
to the other. quiet and joy to mistress brinsden, money to all. when
you'll drink y{r} burgundy with m{r} furneze pray tell him j'll never
forget his favours.
But dear john be so kind as to let me know how does my lady
Bollingbroke. as to my lord j left him so well j dont doubt he is so
still. but j am very uneasie about my lady. if she might have as much
health as she has Spirit and witt, sure She would be the strongest body
in england. pray dear s{r} write me Something of her, of my lord, and
of you. direct y{r} letter by the penny post at m{r} Cavalier, Belitery
Square by the R. exchange. j am sincerely and heartily y{r} most humble
most obedient rambling friend
"VOLTAIRE.
"to
"john Brinsden, esq.
"durham's yard
"by charing cross."
THE GOLDEN CHALICE OF IONA.
A chalice, as used in sacred ceremonies, is figured on various early
Scottish ecclesiastical seals, as well as on sepulchral slabs and other
medieval sculptures. But an original Scottish chalice, a relic of
the venerable abbey of St. Columba, presented, till a very few years
since, an older example of the sacred vessels of the altar than is
indicated in any existing memorial of the medieval Church. The later
history of this venerable relic is replete with interest. It was of
fine gold, of a very simple form, and ornamented in a style that gave
evidence of its belonging to a very early period. It was transferred
from the possession of Sir Lauchlan MacLean to the Glengarry family,
in the time of Æneas, afterwards created by Charles II. Lord Macdonell
and Arross, under the circumstances narrated in the following letter
from a cousin of the celebrated Marshal Macdonald, Duke of Tarentum,
and communicated by a clergyman (Rev. Æneas M'Donell Dawson), who
obtained it from the family of the gentleman to whom it was originally
addressed:--
"The following anecdote I heard from the late bishop, John Chisholm,
and from Mr. John M'Eachan, uncle to the Duke of Tarentum, who died at
my house at Irin Moidart, aged upwards of one hundred years:--
"Maclean of Duart, expecting an invasion of his lands in Mull, by
his powerful neighbour the Earl of Argyll, applied to Glengarry for
assistance. Æneas of Glengarry marched at the head of five hundred men
to Ardtornish, nearly opposite to Duart Castle, and crossing with a few
of his officers to arrange the passage of the men across the Sound of
Mull, Maclean, rejoicing at the arrival of such a friend, offered some
choice wine in a golden chalice, part of the plunder of Iona. Glengarry
was struck with horror, and said, folding his handkerchief about the
chalice, 'Maclean, I came here to defend you against mortal enemies,
but since, by sacrilege and profanation, you have made God your enemy,
no human means can serve you.' Glengarry returned to his men, and
Maclean sent the chalice and some other pieces of plate belonging
to the service of the altar, with a deputation of his friends, to
persuade him to join him; but he marched home. His example was followed
by several other chiefs, and poor Maclean was left to compete,
single-handed, with his powerful enemy."
Such was the last historical incident connected with the golden
chalice of Iona, perhaps, without exception, the most interesting
ecclesiastical relic which Scotland possessed. Unfortunately its
later history only finds a parallel in that of the celebrated Danish
golden horns. It was preserved in the charter-chest of Glengarry,
until it was presented by the late Chief to Bishop Ronald M'Donald, on
whose demise it came into the possession of his successor, Dr. Scott,
Bishop of Glasgow. Only a few years since the sacristy of St. Mary's
Roman Catholic Church in that city, where it was preserved was broken
into, and before the police could obtain a clue to the depredators,
the golden relic of Iona was no longer a chalice. Thus perished, by
the hands of a common felon, a memorial of the spot consecrated by
the labours of some of the earliest Christian missionaries to the
Pagan Caledonians, and which had probably survived the vicissitudes
of upwards of ten centuries. In reply to inquiries made as to the
existence of any drawing of the chalice, or even the possibility of a
trustworthy sketch being executed from memory, a gentleman in Glasgow
writes:--"I have no means of getting even a sketch from which to make a
drawing. Were I a good hand myself, I could easily furnish one, having
often examined it. It was a chalice that no one could look on without
being convinced of its very great antiquity. The workmanship was rude,
the ornamental drawings or engravings even more hard than medieval ones
in their outlines, and the cup bore marks of the original hammering
which had beaten it into shape."
NEW MODE OF REVENGE.
Monkeys in India are more or less objects of superstitious reverence,
and are, consequently, seldom or ever destroyed. In some places they
are even fed, encouraged, and allowed to live on the roofs of the
houses. If a man wish to revenge himself for any injury committed
upon him, he has only to sprinkle some rice or corn upon the top of
his enemy's house, or granary, just before the rains set in, and the
monkeys will assemble upon it, eat all they can find outside, and then
pull off the tiles to get at that which falls through the crevices.
This, of course, gives access to the torrents which fall in such
countries, and house, furniture, and stores are all ruined.
CURIOUS SUPERSTITION.
The ring of which we here give a sketch has been selected by us as
a subject for engraving and comment, because it embodies a curious
superstition which was very prevalent in England in the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries.
[Illustration [++] Fifteenth Century Ring.]
The setting is of silver, and the jewel which it carries is called
a toadstone. This stone was popularly believed to be formed in the
heads of very old toads, and it was eagerly coveted by sovereigns,
and by all persons in high office, because it was supposed to have
the power of indicating to the person who wore it the proximity of
poison, by perspiring and changing colour. Fenton, who wrote in 1569,
says--"There is to be found in the heads of old and great toads a
stone they call borax or stelon;" and he adds--"They, being used as
rings, give forewarning against venom." Their composition is not
actually known; by some they are thought to be a stone--by others,
a shell; but of whatever they may be formed, there is to be seen in
them, as may be noticed in the engraving, a figure resembling that of
a toad, but whether produced accidentally or by artificial means is
not known, though, according to Albertus Magnus, the stone always bore
the figure on its surface, at the time it was taken out of the toad's
head. Lupton, in his "1000 Notable Things," says--"A toadstone, called
crepaudina, touching any part envenomed, hurt, or stung with rat,
spider, wasp, or any other venomous beast, ceases the pain or swelling
thereof." The well known lines in Shakespeare are doubtless in allusion
to the virtue which Lupton says it possesses:--
"Sweet are the uses of adversity;
Which like a toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head."
Ben Jonson also in the _Fox_, has,--
"Were you enamoured on his copper rings,
His saffron jewel, with the loadstone in't?"
And Lyly, in his _Euphues_--
"The foule toad hath a faire stone in his head."
The ring we have engraved is a work of the fifteenth century; it forms
one of the many rare curiosities of the Londesborough Collection, and
is considered to be a very perfect specimen.
ANCIENT ARMLET.
In May, 1840, some workmen were employed at Everdale, near Preston,
in carrying earth to replace the soil which had been washed away from
behind a wall formerly built to protect the banks of the river Ribble.
In digging for this purpose, they discovered, at a distance of about
forty yards from the banks, a great number of articles, consisting
of ingots of silver, a few ornaments, some silver armlets, and a
large quantity of coins. An attentive examination of all these, and
especially of the coins, leads to the conclusion that this mass of
treasure was deposited about the year 910, and the articles must be
considered such as were worn at the time of King Alfred, or perhaps
somewhat earlier.
[Illustration [++] Ancient Armlet.]
The armlets, which were all of silver, vary in breadth from a quarter
of an inch to an inch and a quarter, and perhaps more. They are
generally ornamented, and almost all the ornaments are produced by
punching with tools of various forms. The patterns are numerous, but
the forms of the punches are very few, the variations being produced by
combining the forms of more punches than one, or by placing the same
or differently-formed punches at a greater or less distance from each
other, or by varying their direction. In the specimen which we have
here engraved the punch has had a small square end, and the ornament is
formed by a series of blows in transverse or oblique lines. Patterns of
the period and localities to which these ornaments belong are scarcely
ever found finished by casting or chasing. It would appear, also that
the use of solder to unite the various parts of objects was either
little known or little practised; for the ends of these ornaments are
tied together, and, upon other occasions where union is necessary,
rivets are employed.
CHINESE MIRRORS.
There is a puzzling property in many of the Chinese mirrors which
deserves particular notice, and we may give it, together with the
solution furnished by Sir David Brewster:--"The mirror has a knob in
the centre of the back, by which it can be held, and on the rest of
the back are stamped in relief certain circles with a kind of Grecian
border. Its polished surface has that degree of convexity which gives
an image of the face half its natural size; and its remarkable property
is, that, when you reflect the rays of the sun from the polished
surface, the image of the ornamental border and circles stamped upon
the back, is seen distinctly reflected on the wall," or on a sheet of
paper. The metal of which the mirror is made appears to be what is
called Chinese silver, a composition of tin and copper, like the metal
for the specula of reflecting telescopes. The metal is very sonorous.
The mirror has a rim (at the back) of about 1-4th or 1-6th of an inch
broad, and the inner part, upon which the figures are stamped, is
considerably thinner.
"Like all other conjurors (says Sir David Brewster), the artist has
contrived to make the observer deceive himself. The stamped figures on
the back are used for this purpose. The spectrum in the luminous area
_is not an image of the figures on the back_. The figures are a copy
of the picture which the artist has _drawn on the face of the mirror_,
and so concealed by polishing, that it is invisible in ordinary lights,
and can be brought out only in the sun's rays. Let it be required,
for example, to produce the dragon as exhibited by one of the Chinese
mirrors. When the surface of the mirror is ready for polishing, the
figure of the dragon may be delineated upon it in extremely shallow
lines, or it may be eaten out by an acid much diluted, so as to remove
the smallest possible portion of the metal. The surface must then be
highly polished, not upon pitch, like glass and specula, because this
would polish away the figure, but upon cloth, in the way that lenses
are sometimes polished. In this way the sunk part of the shallow lines
will be as highly polished as the rest, and the figure will only be
visible in very strong lights, by reflecting the sun's rays from the
metallic surface."
THE CADENHAM OAK.
Amongst the many remarkable trees in the New Forest in Hampshire, is
one called the Cadenham Oak, which buds every year in the depth of
winter. Gilpin says, "Having often heard of this oak, I took a ride to
see it on the 29th of December, 1781. It was pointed out to me among
several other oaks, surrounded by a little forest stream, winding round
a knoll on which they stood. It is a tall straight plant, of no great
age, and apparently vigorous, except that its top has been injured,
from which several branches issue in the form of pollard shoots. It
was entirely bare of leaves, as far as I could discern, when I saw it,
and undistinguishable from the other oaks in its neighbourhood, except
that its bark seemed rather smoother, occasioned, I apprehended, only
by frequent climbing. Having had the account of its early budding
confirmed on the spot, I engaged one Michael Lawrence, who kept the
White Hart, a small alehouse in the neighbourhood, to send me some of
the leaves to Vicar's Hill, as soon as they should appear. The man,
who had not the least doubt about the matter, kept his word, and sent
me several twigs on the morning of the 5th of January, 1782, a few
hours after they had been gathered. The leaves were fairly expanded,
and about an inch in length. From some of the buds two leaves had
unsheathed themselves, but in general only one. One of its progeny,
which grew in the gardens at Bulstrode, had its flower buds perfectly
formed so early as the 21st of December, 1781.
"This early spring, however, of the Cadenham oak, is of very short
duration. The buds, after unfolding themselves, make no further
progress, but immediately shrink from the season and die. The tree
continues torpid, like other deciduous trees, during the remainder of
the winter, and vegetates again in the spring, at the usual season.
I have seen it in full leaf in the middle of the summer, when it
appeared, both in its form and foliage, exactly like other oaks."
Dean Wren, speaking of this tree, says, "King James could not be
induced to believe the [Greek: to toi] (_reason_) of this, till
Bishop Andrewes, in whose diocese the tree grew, caused one of his
own chaplaines, a man of known integritye, to give a true information
of itt, which he did; for upon the eve of the Nativitye he gathered
about a hundred slips, with the leaves newly opened, which he stuck in
claye in the bottom of long white boxes, and soe sent them post to the
courte, where they deservedly raised not only admiration, but stopt the
mouth of infidelitye and contradiction for ever. Of this I was both
an eye-witness, and did distribute many of them to the great persons
of both sexes in court and others, ecclesiastical persons. But in
these last troublesome times a divelish fellow (of Herostratus humour)
having hewen itt round at the roote, made his last stroke on his own
legg, whereof he died, together with the old wondrous tree; which now
sproutes up againe, and may renew his oakye age againe, iff some such
envious chance doe not hinder or prevent itt; from which the example of
the former villaine may perchance deterr the attempt. This I thought
to testifie to all future times, and therefore subscribe with the same
hand through which those little oakye slips past."
SCHOOL EXPENSES IN THE OLDEN TIME.
Of the expenses incurred for schoolboys at Eton early in the reign of
Elizabeth, we find some curious particulars in a manuscript of the
time: the boys were sons of Sir William Cavendish, of Chatsworth, and
the entries are worth notice, as showing the manners of those days.
Among the items, a breast of roast mutton is charged ten-pence; a
small chicken, fourpence; a week's board, five shillings each; besides
the wood burned in their chamber; to an old woman for sweeping and
cleaning the chamber, twopence; mending a shoe, one penny; three
candles, nine-pence; a book, Esop's Fables, fourpence; two pair of
shoes, sixteen-pence; two bunches of wax lights, one penny; the sum
total of the payments, including board paid to the bursars of Eton
College, living expenses for the two boys and their man, clothes,
books, washing, &c., amounts to twelve pounds twelve shillings and
seven-pence. The expense of a scholar at the university in 1514 was but
five pounds annually, affording as much accommodation as would cost
sixty pounds, though the accommodation would be far short of that now
customary at Eton.
AN EVENTFUL LIFE.
It is much to be feared that on the field of battle and naval actions
many individuals, apparently dead, are buried or thrown overboard. The
history of François de Civille, a French captain, who was missing at
the siege of Rouen, is rather curious. At the storming of the town he
was supposed to have been killed, and was thrown, with other bodies, in
the ditch, where he remained from eleven in the morning to half-past
six in the evening; when his servant, observing some latent heat,
carried the body into the house. For five days and five nights his
master did not exhibit the slightest sign of life, although the body
gradually recovered its warmth. At the expiration of this time, the
town was carried by assault, and the servants of an officer belonging
to the besiegers, having found the supposed corpse of Civille, threw it
out of the window, with no other covering than his shirt. Fortunately
for the captain, he had fallen upon a dunghill, where he remained
senseless for three days longer, when his body was taken up by his
relatives for sepulture, and ultimately brought to life. What was still
more strange, Civille, like Macduff, had "been from his mother's womb
untimely ripp'd," having been brought into the world by a Cæsarean
operation, which his mother did not survive; and after his last
wonderful escape he used to sign his name with the addition of "three
times born, three times buried, and three times risen from the dead by
the grace of God."
FIRST BRIDGE OVER THE THAMES.
[Illustration [++] First Bridge over the Thames.]
The humble village bridge which we here engrave is well deserving
of a place in our pages as being the first of that grand series of
bridges whose last member is London-bridge. What a contrast between
the first bridge over the Thames and the last! Thames Head, where
the river rises, is in the county of Gloucester, but so near to its
southern border, that the stream, after meandering a mile or two,
enters Wiltshire, near the village of Kemble. On leaving this village,
and proceeding on the main road towards the rustic hamlet of Ewen,
the traveller passes over the bridge which forms the subject of our
woodcut. It has no parapet, and is level with the road, the water
running through three narrow arches. Such is the first bridge over the
mighty Thames.
THE VENETIANS.
The Venetians were the first people in Italy who had printed books.
They originated a Gazette in the year 1600, and the example was
followed at Oxford in 1667, and at Vienna in 1700. They also undertook
the discovery of America, and the passage to India by the Cape of Good
Hope.
MEDMENHAM ABBEY.
On descending the river Thames, from Henley, after passing Culham Court
and Hambledon Lock, the adjacent country become exceedingly beautiful,
varied by alternate mills, islands, meadows, and hills, with every
now and then ornamental forest trees hanging over the stream, and
giving pleasant shade to the current on its downward flow. The wood
of Medmenham soon comes in sight; the ruined Abbey is seen among the
trees, and close beside it is a pretty ferry, with the pleasant wayside
inn of Mrs. Bitmead--a domicile well known to artists, her frequent
guests, one of whom, who has since become famous, painted a sign-board
which hangs over the door, and is of so good a quality that it might
grace the exhibition of the Royal Academy. The Abbey has been pictured
a hundred times, and is a capital subject seen from any point of view;
the river runs close beside it; there is a hill adjacent--Dane's Hill;
dark woods and green meadows are at hand; gay boats and traffic barges
are continually passing; the ferry is always picturesque, and the
artist is constantly supplied on the spot with themes for pictures;
especially he has before him the venerable ruin--"venerable," at least,
as far as the eye is concerned. Time has touched it leniently; some of
its best "bits" are as they were a century ago, except that the lichens
have given to them that rich clothing of grey and gold which the
painter ever loves, and added to it, here and there, a green drapery of
ivy.
[Illustration [++] Manor of Medmenham.]
The manor of Medmenham was, in the reign of King Stephen, given by
its lord, Walter de Bolebec, to the Abbey of Cistercian Monks he had
founded at Woburn in Bedfordshire; and in 1204 the monks placed some
of their society here, on this pleasant bank of the Thames. Here arose
a small monastery, being rather--as the writers of the order express
themselves--"a daughter than a cell to Woburn." In 1536 it was annexed
to Bisham. At the Dissolution, according to returns made by the
commissioners, "the clear value of this religious house was 20_l._ 6s.;
it had two monks designing to go to houses of religion; servants, none;
woods, none; debts, none; its bells worth 2_l._ 1s. 8d.; the value of
its moveable goods 1_l._ 3s. 8d.; and the house wholly in ruin." It
must have undergone considerable repair early in the sixteenth century,
and probably very little of the original structure now exists, although
relics of antiquity may be traced in many of its remains. That portion
which fronts the Thames is kept in proper repair, and a large room is
used for the convenience of pleasure parties. The property belongs to
the Scots of Danesfield, a mansion that crowns a neighbouring hill.
Medmenham derives notoriety from events of more recent date than the
occupation of its monks, without goods and without debt. Here, about
the middle of the last century, was established, a society of men of
wit and fashion, who assumed the title of the Monks of St. Francis,
and wore the habit of the Franciscan order. Although it is said
that the statements contained in a now forgotten but once popular
novel--"Chrysal; or the Adventures of a Guinea,"--were exaggerated,
the character which the assumed monks bore in the open world was
sufficiently notorious to justify the worst suspicions of their acts
in this comparative solitude. Their principal members were Sir Francis
Dashwood (afterwards Lord Le Despencer), the Earl of Sandwich, John
Wilks, Bubb Doddington, Churchill, and Paul Whitehead, the poet. The
motto--"Fay ce que voudras," indicative of the principle on which the
society was founded--still remains over the doorway of the Abbey House.
Tradition yet preserves some anecdotes illustrative of the habits of
the "order," and there can be little doubt that this now lonely and
quiet spot was the scene of orgies that were infamous.
PERSECUTION.
Grotius, an historian celebrated for moderation and caution, has
computed that in the several persecutions promoted by Charles V., no
less than a hundred thousand persons perished by the hands of the
executioner. In the Netherlands alone, from the time that his edict
against the reformers was promulgated, he states that there had been
fifty thousand persons hanged, beheaded, buried alive, or burned, on
account of their religion. Indeed, during the reign of Philip the
Second, the Duke of Alva boasted that in the space of nine years he
had destroyed, in the Low Countries, 36,000 persons by the hands of
the executioner alone. At the massacre of Paris, on the feast of St.
Bartholomew, King Charles the Ninth of France assisted in person, and
boasted that he had sacrificed in one night 10,000 of his subjects;
for that massacre the Pope had "Te Deum" sung in the chapel of the
Vatican and issued a bull for a jubilee to be celebrated throughout
France on the 7th December, 1512, in commemoration of what he termed
the _happy success of the king against his heretic subjects_, and
concluded by writing with his own hand a letter to Charles the Ninth,
exhorting him to pursue this salutary and blessed enterprise. In the
short reign of Queen Mary, there were in this realm burned at the stake
one archbishop, four bishops, twenty-one ministers, and nearly three
hundred persons of all classes, of whom fifty-five were women, and four
were children, one of whom sprang from its mother's womb while she was
consuming, and was flung into the flames by the spectators. In 1640
the same spirit of papal bigotry occasioned in Ireland the butchery of
40,000 Protestants, under circumstances of aggravated atrocity which a
Christian will shudder to peruse. Lewis XIV., the most Christian king
and eldest son of the church, starved a million Huguenots at home, and
sent another million grazing in foreign countries.
INNKEEPER'S BILL IN 1762.
The following innkeeper's bill was sent in to the Duke de Nivernois,
who supped and breakfasted at an inn in Canterbury, in 1762; and
considering the value of money at that time, must be deemed extremely
moderate:--
£ s. d.
Tea, coffee, and chocolate 1 4 0
Supper for self and servant 15 10 0
Bread and beer 3 0 0
Fruit 2 15 0
Wine and punch 10 8 8
Wax candles and charcoal 3 0 0
Broken glass and china 2 10 0
Lodging 1 7 0
Tea, coffee, and chocolate 2 0 0
Chaise and horse, for next stage 2 16 0
There were only twelve persons in the whole company.
SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION.
Joseph Battaglia, a surgeon of Ponte Bosio, relates the following case:
Don. G. Maria Bertholi, a priest of Mount Valerius, went to the fair of
Filetto, and afterwards visited a relation in Fenilo, where he intended
to pass the night. Before retiring to rest, he was left reading his
breviary; when, shortly afterwards, the family were alarmed by his
loud cries and a strange noise in his chamber. On opening the door, he
was lying prostrate on the floor, and surrounded by flickering flames.
Battaglia was immediately sent for, and on his arrival the unfortunate
man was found in a most deplorable state. The integuments of the arms
and the back were either consumed or detached in hanging flaps. The
sufferer was sufficiently sensible to give an account of himself.
He said that he felt, all of a sudden, as if his arm had received a
violent blow from a club, and at the same time he saw scintillations
of fire rising from his shirt-sleeves, which were consumed without
having burned the wrists; a handkerchief, which he had tied round his
shoulders, between the shirt and the skin, was intact. His drawers were
also sound; but, strange to say, his silk skull-cap was burnt while his
hair bore no marks of combustion. The unfortunate man only survived
the event four days. The circumstances which attended this case would
seem to warrant the conclusion that the electric fluid was the chief
agent in the combustion.
SHOOTING FISH.
[Illustration: Horned Chætodon.]
Our shores have produced a few specimens of a richly-coloured fish
called Ray's Sea Bream (_Brama Rayi_), interesting because it
represents a family, almost confined to the tropical seas, of very
singular forms and habits. The family is named _Chætodontidæ_, from
the principal genus in it. They are very high perpendicularly, but
thin and flattened sidewise; the mouth in some projects into a sort
of snout, the fins are frequently much elevated, and send off long
filaments. They are generally adorned with highly-contrasted colours,
which run in perpendicular bands. They are often called scaly-finned
fishes, because the dorsal and anal are clothed, at least in part, with
scales, so as not to be distinguished from the body. The tubular snout
of some, as of a little species which we here represent, is applied to
an extraordinary use, that of shooting flies! The fish approaches under
a fly which it has discovered, resting on a leaf or twig, a few feet
above the water, taking care not to alarm it by too sudden a motion;
then, projecting the tip of its beak from the surface, it shoots a
single drop at the insect with so clever an aim, as very rarely to
miss it, when it falls into the water and is devoured. Being common
in the Indian seas, it is often kept by the Chinese in vases, as we
keep golden-fish, for the amusement of witnessing this feat. A fly is
fastened at some distance, at which the fish shoots, but, disappointed
of course, and wondering that its prey does not fall, it goes on to
repeat the discharge for many times in succession, without seeming to
take in a fresh stock of ammunition, and scarcely ever missing the
mark, though at a distance of three or four feet.
EXTRAORDINARY EARTHQUAKES.
Around the Papandayang, one of the loftiest mountains in Java, no less
than forty villages were reposing in peace. But in August 1772, a
remarkable luminous cloud enveloping its top aroused them from their
security. But it was too late; for at once the mountain began to sink
into the earth, and soon it had disappeared, with the forty villages
and most of the inhabitants, over a space fifteen miles long and six
broad. Still more extraordinary, the most remarkable on record was an
eruption in Sumbawa, one of the Molucca islands, in 1815. It began on
the fifth day of April, and did not cease till July. The explosions
were heard in one direction nine hundred and seventy miles, and in
another seven hundred and twenty miles. So heavy was the fall of ashes
at the distance of forty miles that houses were crushed and destroyed.
The floating cinders in the ocean, hundreds of miles distant, were
two feet thick, and vessels were forced through with difficulty. The
darkness in Java, three hundred miles distant, was deeper than the
blackest night; and, finally, out of the twelve thousand inhabitants of
the island, only twenty-six survived the catastrophe.
BEAUTIFUL ARCH.
One of the rarities of architecture is the beautiful arch in the choir
of Cannistown Church, not far from Bective, near Trim, in Ireland. Down
to the very latest period of Gothic architecture, the original plan of
a simple nave, or nave and chancel, was followed, and the chief or only
difference observable in churches of very late date, from those of the
sixth and seventh centuries, consists in the form of the arch-heads,
the position of the doorway, the style of the masonry, which is usually
much better in the more ancient examples, and the use of bell-turrets,
the cloigeteach, or detached round tower, having answered this purpose
during the earlier ages. A beautiful and highly characteristic example
of an early pointed church is that at Cannistown. As usual, it consists
of a nave and chancel, and there are the remains of a bell-turret upon
the west gable, the usual position. The choir arch is represented in
the annexed cut.
[Illustration [++] Arch in the Choir of Cannistown Church.]
There are numerous examples of churches of this style scattered
over Ireland, but they are usually plain, and the choir arch is
generally the plainest feature in the building. As example, we can
refer our readers to the churches of Kilbarrack, Dalkey, Kinsale, and
Rathmichael, all in the immediate neighbourhood of Dublin.
THOMAS CONECTE.
There was a Carmelite friar, Thomas Conecte, who, previous to his
being burnt as a heretic at Rome, in 1434, excited the admiration of
all Flanders by his vehement sermons against the luxury of the women.
His satire was chiefly levelled against their head-dresses, which rose
to so enormous a height, that the most exalted head-dresses of a late
day were but dwarfs to them. Juvenal des Ursins, who lived at that
period, declares that, notwithstanding the troubles of the times, the
maidens and married ladies rose to prodigious excess in their attire,
and wore hair of a surprising height and breadth, having on each side
two ears of so unaccountable a size, that it was impossible for them
to pass through a door. Their dresses were the hennins of Flanders,
which the worthy Carmelite was so inveterate against. He made them
dress themselves in a more modest manner. But, alas no sooner had Friar
Thomas left the country than the head-dresses shot up to a greater
height than ever. They had only bowed their heads like bullrushes
during the storm. Poor Thomas attacked the infallible church itself,
and they, in default of better arguments, burnt him.
CURIOUS COINCIDENCES.
On the 21st of April, 1770, Lewis XVI. was married.
21st of June, 1770, fifteen hundred people were trampled to death at
the _fête_.
21st of January, 1782, _fête_ for the birth of the Dauphin.
21st of June, 1791, the flight to Varennes.
21st of September, 1792, the abolition of royalty.
21st of January, 1793, the unfortunate monarch's decapitation.
AMPHITHEATRES.
The deficiency of theatres erected by the Romans is far more than
compensated by the number and splendour of their amphitheatres, which,
with their baths, may be considered as the true types of Roman art. It
seems almost certain that they derived this class of public buildings
from the Etruscans. At Sutri there is a very noble one cut out of
the tufa rock, which was no doubt used by that people for festal
representations long before Rome attempted anything of the kind. It is
uncertain whether gladiatorial fights or combats of wild beasts formed
any part of the amusements of the arena in those days, though boxing,
wrestling, and contests of that description certainly did; but whether
the Etruscans actually proceeded to the shedding of blood and slaughter
is more than doubtful.
Even in the remotest parts of Britain, in Germany, and Gaul, wherever
we find a Roman settlement, we find the traces of their amphitheatres.
Their soldiery, it seems, could not exist without the enjoyment of
seeing men engage in doubtful and mortal combats--either killing one
another, or torn to pieces by wild beasts. It is not to be wondered at
that a people who delighted so much in the bloody scenes of the arena
should feel but very little pleasure in the mimic sorrows and tame
humour of the stage. It fitted them, it is true, to be a nation of
conquerors, and gave them the empire of the world, but it brought with
it feelings singularly inimical to all the softer arts, and was perhaps
the great cause of their debasement.
As might be expected, the largest and most splendid of these buildings
is that which adorns the capital; and of all the ruins which Rome
contains, none have excited such universal admiration as the Flavian
amphitheatre. Poets, painters, rhapsodists, have exhausted all the
resources of their arts in the attempt to convey to others the
overpowering impression this building produces on their own minds.
With the single exception, perhaps, of the Hall at Karnac, no ruin has
met with such universal admiration as this. Its association with the
ancient mistress of the world, its destruction, and the half-prophetic
destiny ascribed to it, all contribute to this. Still it must be
confessed that
"The gladiator's bloody circus stands
A noble wreck in ruinous perfection,"
and worthy of all or nearly all the admiration of which it has been the
object. Its interior is almost wholly devoid of ornament, or anything
that can be called architecture--a vast inverted pyramid. The exterior
does not possess one detail which is not open to criticism, and indeed
to positive blame. Notwithstanding all this, its mass, its form, and
its associations, all combine to produce an effect against which the
critic struggles in vain.
The length of the building, measured along its greatest diameter, is
620 ft., its breadth 513, or nearly in the ratio of 6 to 5, which may
be taken as the general proportion of these buildings, the variations
from it being slight, and apparently either mistakes in setting out
the work in ancient times, or in measuring it in modern days, rather
than an intentional deviation. The height of the 3 lower stories is
120 ft.; the total height as it now stands, 157 ft. The arena itself
measures 287 ft. in length by 180 in breadth, and it is calculated that
the building would contain 80,000 spectators; 50,000 or 60,000 would be
much nearer the truth, at least according to the data by which space is
calculated in our theatres and public places.
HUNDRED FAMILIES' LOCK.
A common Chinese talisman is the "hundred families' lock," to procure
which a father goes round among his friends, and, having obtained from
a hundred different parties a few of the copper coins of the country,
he himself adds the balance, to purchase an ornament or appendage
fashioned like a lock, which he hangs on his child's neck, for the
purpose of locking him figuratively to life, and making the hundred
persons concerned in his attaining old age.
THE DUKE DE REICHSTADT.
At the Imperial Palace of Schönbrun, about five English miles from
Vienna, is shown the window fractured by the bullet of the enthusiastic
student who shot at Napoleon while he was reviewing the Imperial Guard,
and also the apartment he occupied when he made this his head-quarters,
instead of entering the city. An additional interest is imparted to the
place, by the circumstance of the Duke de Reichstadt having, when taken
ill, chosen the identical chamber and spot in which his father Napoleon
had slept, to close his mortal career: and by a singular coincidence,
the remains of the young prince were subjected to a post-mortem
examination upon the same table at which the Emperor had held his
councils. In imitation of the military hardihood of his sire, the young
duke was in the habit of exposing himself to all weathers, and keeping
guard during successive nights, a practice which often called forth
from his surgeon, Dr. Malfati, the expressive words, '_Rappelez vous,
mon Prince, que vouz avez un Coeur de Fer dans un Corp de Verre_.'
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS' CANDLESTICK.
Almost every article, however trifling its intrinsic value, and however
homely its appearance, which once belonged to a celebrated individual,
is always regarded as an object of interest, and we have, therefore,
no hesitation in presenting our readers with the annexed engraving
of one of a pair of candlesticks which were once the property of the
unfortunate Mary, Queen of Scots.
[Illustration [++] Mary Queen of Scots' Candlestick.]
They are made of brass, each of them of eleven and a-half inches in
height. They are of French manufacture; the sunk parts are filled
up with an inlay of blue, green, and white enamel, very similar to
that done at Limoge. These extremely elegant and curious articles are
the property of Lord Holland, and are preserved at Holland House,
Kensington.
Holland House is associated "with the costly magnificence of Rich,
with the loves of Ormond, the councils of Cromwell, and the death
of Addison." It has been for nearly two centuries and a-half the
favourite resort of wits and beauties, of painters and poets, of
scholars, philosophers, and statesmen. In the lifetime of the late Lord
Holland, it was the meeting-place of "the Whig Party;" and his liberal
hospitality made it "the resort, not only of the most interesting
persons composing English society--literary, philosophical, and
political, but also to all belonging to those classes who ever visited
this country from abroad."
EXTRAORDINARY INSTANCES OF INHUMANITY.
In 1534, in the wars of Edward III. with France, Fordun relates that a
Frenchman purchased from the Scots several English prisoners, and that
he beheaded them to avenge the death of his father. This sentimental
cruelty can perhaps be paralleled by that of Coccinas, who, at the
massacre of Paris, bought many Huguenots, that he might torture them
to death for his private satisfaction. Philip Galeas Visconti, Duke of
Milan, was a man of a nature so timid, that thunder threw him into
agonies; yet was he so inhuman, that he could _enjoy the shrieks of
a female stretched upon a rack_. Wenceslaus, the German Emperor, say
Mezeray, Voltaire, and others, _roasted his cook alive_, for dressing
his dinner amiss; and never had so intimate a friend in Prague as the
common executioner; and even _him_ he put to death at last, for not
taking him at his word, when he once had bid him cut his head off, and
actually knelt down to receive the stroke.
ANCIENT ROMAN LAMPS.
The earliest lamps fabricated by the potters of ancient Rome have an
open circular body, with a curved projecting rim to prevent the oil
from spilling, and occur both in terra-cotta, and also in the black
glazed ware found in the sepulchres of Nola. Many have a projecting
hollow pipe in the centre, in order to fix them to a stick on the top
of a candelabrum. These lamps have no handles. They may have been
placed in the sacella or lararia, and were turned on the potter's wheel.
The shoe-shaped is the most usual, with a round body, a projecting
spout or nozzle having a hole for the wick, and a small annular handle,
which is more or less raised.
[Illustration [++] Ancient Roman Lamp.]
A singular variety of lamp, well adapted for a table, was fitted
into a kind of small altar, the sides of which were ornamented with
reliefs. Several however, from their unusual shape, maybe considered
as fancy ware, the upper part, or the whole lamp, being moulded into
the resemblance of some object. Such are lamps in the British Museum in
the shape of a female head surmounted by a flower, or of the head of a
negro or Nubian with open jaws, through which the wick was inserted.
Most of these lamps appear to have been made between the age of
Augustus and that of Constantine. The style, of course best at the
earlier period of the empire, degenerates under the later emperors,
such as Philip and Maximus, and becomes at last Byzantine and bad.
Most lamps had only one wick, but the light they afforded must have
been feeble, and consequently some have two wicks, the nozzle for
which project beyond the body of the lamp. In the same manner were
fabricated lamps of three, five, and seven wicks. If more were required
the nozzles did not project far beyond the body of the lamp, which
was then moulded in a shape adapted for the purpose, and especially
the favourite one of a galley. Sometimes a conglomeration of small
lamps was manufactured in a row, or in a serrated shape, which enabled
the purchaser to obtain what light he required; still the amount of
illumination must have been feeble. As many as twenty wicks have been
found in some lamps.
The greater number average from three to four inches long, and one
inch high; the walls are about one-eighth of an inch thick, and the
circular handles not more than one inch in diameter. Some of the larger
lamps, however, are about nine inches or a foot long, with handles
eight or nine inches high.
AN ECCENTRIC ENGLISHMAN.
Mr. Henry Hastings, a most singular character, and genuine sportsman
lived in the time of James and Charles I. Mr. Hastings was second son
to the Earl of Huntingdon; and inherited a good estate in Dorsetshire
from his mother. He was one of the keepers of New Forest, Hampshire;
and resided in the lodge there during a part of every summer season.
But his principal residence was at Woodlands, in Dorsetshire, where
he had a capital mansion. One of his nearest neighbours, was the
Lord Chancellor Cooper, first Earl of Shaftesbury. Two men could not
be more opposite in their disposition and pursuits. They had little
communication therefore; and their occasional meetings were rendered
more disagreeable to both from their opposite sentiments in politics.
Lord Shaftesbury, who was the younger man, was the survivor; and the
following account of Mr. Hastings is said to have been the production
of his pen. "Mr. Hastings was low of stature, but very strong, and
very active; of a ruddy complexion, with flaxen hair. His clothes were
always of green cloth. His house was of the old fashion; in the midst
of a large park, well stocked with deer, rabbits, and fish-ponds. He
had a long narrow bowling-green in it; and used to play with round
sand-bowls. Here, too, he had a banqueting-room built, like a stand
in a large tree. He kept all sorts of hounds, that ran buck, fox,
hare, otter, and badger; and had hawks of all kinds, both long and
short-winged. His great hall was commonly strewed with marrow-bones;
and full of hawk-perches, hounds, spaniels, and terriers. The upper
end of it was hung with fox-skins of this and the last year's killing.
Here and there a pole-cat was intermixed; and hunter's poles in great
abundance. The parlour was a large room, completely furnished in the
same style. On a broad hearth, paved with bricks, lay some of the
choicest terriers, hounds, and spaniels. One or two of the great chairs
had litters of cats in them, which were not to be disturbed. Of these,
three or four always attended him at dinner; and a little white wand
lay by his trencher, to defend it, if they were too troublesome. In
the windows, which were very large, lay his arrows, cross-bows, and
other accoutrements. The corners of the room were filled with his best
hunting and hawking poles. His oyster-table stood at the lower end of
the room, which was in constant use twice a day, all the year round;
for he never failed to eat oysters both at dinner and supper; with
which the neighbouring town of Poole supplied him. At the upper end of
the room stood a small table with a double desk; one side of which held
a church Bible; the other, the Book of Martyrs. On different tables of
the room lay hawks' hoods; bells, old hats with their crowns thrust in,
full of pheasants' eggs, tables, dice, cards, and a store of tobacco
pipes. At one end of this room was a door, which opened into a closet,
where stood bottles of strong beer and wine, which never came out
but in single glasses, which was the rule of the house; for he never
exceeded himself, nor permitted others to exceed. Answering to this
closet was a door into an old chapel, which had been long disused for
devotion; but, in the pulpit, as the safest place, was always to be
found a cold chine of beef, a venison pasty, a gammon of bacon, or a
great apple-pie with thick crust, well baked. His table cost him not
much, though it was good to eat at. His sports supplied all but beef
and mutton, except on Fridays, when he had the best of fish. He never
wanted a London pudding; and he always sang it in with, "_My part lies
therein-a._" He drank a glass or two of wine at meals; put syrup of
gilly-flowers into his sack; and had always a tun-glass of small-beer
standing by him, which he often stirred about with rosemary. He lived
to be an hundred; and never lost his eyesight, nor used spectacles. He
got on horseback without help; and rode to the death of the stag, till
he was past fourscore."
PERFUMED BANQUETS OF THE ANCIENTS.
A very remarkable peculiarity in the banquets of the ancients was,
their not confining the resources of the table to the gratification of
one sense alone. Having exhausted their invention in the confection
of stimulants for the palate, they broke new ground, and called in
another sense to their aid; and by the delicate application of odours
and richly-distilled perfumes, these refined voluptuaries aroused the
fainting appetite, and added a more exquisite and ethereal enjoyment
to the grosser pleasures of the board. The gratification of the sense
of smelling (a sense held by us in very undeserved neglect, probably
on account of its delicacy) was a subject of no little importance
to the Romans. However this may be, it is certain that the Romans
considered flowers as forming a very essential article in their festal
preparations; and it is the opinion of Bassius, that at their desserts
the number of flowers far exceeded that of fruits. When Nero supped
in his Golden House, a mingled shower of flowers and odorous essences
fell upon him; and one of Heliogabalus' recreations was to smother
his courtiers with flowers, of whom it may be said, they "died of a
rose in aromatic pain." Nor was it entirely as an object of luxury
that the ancients made use of flowers; they were considered to possess
sanative and medicinal qualities. According to Pliny, Athenæus, and
Plutarch, certain herbs and flowers were of sovereign power to prevent
the approaches of ebriety, or, as Bassius less clearly expresses it,
clarify the functions of the brain.
CHINESE BRIDGES.
Of Chinese bridges, some have been very much exaggerated in the
accounts by Du Halde and the missionaries, as it appears from the
later reports concerning the bridge at Foo-chow-foo, visited during
the unsuccessful commercial voyage of the ship "Amherst," in 1832, and
since the war become familiar to our countrymen. This same bridge,
which proved a very poor structure after all, had been extolled by
the Jesuits as something quite extraordinary. A bridge of ninety-one
arches, being in fact a very long causeway, was passed by Lord
Macartney between Soo-chow and Hang-chow, and near the Lake called
Tae-hoo. The highest arch, however, was supposed to be between twenty
and thirty feet in height, and the whole length of the causeway half
a mile. It was thrown across an arm of the lake, on the eastern side
of the canal. The late Sir George Staunton observed a bridge between
Peking and Tartary, built across a river which was subject to being
swelled by mountain floods. This was erected upon caissons of wattles
filled with stones. It appeared to have been built with expedition,
and at small cost, where the most solid bridge would be endangered by
inundations. The caissons were fixed by large perpendicular spars, and
over the whole were laid planks, hurdles, and gravel. It was only in
Keâng-nan that solid bridges were observed to be thrown over the canal,
being constructed of coarse grey marble, or of a reddish granite. Some
of the arches were semicircular, others the transverse section of an
ellipse, and others again approached the shape of a horseshoe, or
Greek [Greek: capital Omega], the space being widest at top. In the
ornamental bridges that adorn gardens and pleasure-grounds, the arch is
often of height sufficient to admit a boat under sail, and the bridge
is ascended by steps.
[Illustration [++] Chinese Bridge.]
All the stones of a Chinese arch are commonly wedge-shaped, their
sides forming radii which converge towards the centre of the curve.
It is observable that, according to the opinion of Captain Parish,
who surveyed and made plans of the Great Wall, no masonry could be
superior to it. The arched and vaulted work was considered by him as
exceedingly well turned. The Chinese, therefore, must have understood
the construction and properties of the arch long before the Greeks and
Romans, whose original and most ancient edifices consisted of columns,
connected by straight architraves, of bulk sufficient to support the
incumbent pressure of solid masonry.
SOCIABLE WEAVER-BIRD.
There are some birds whose social instinct impels them to live in
company, and to unite their powers in the construction of a common
edifice: in this respect resembling the Beaver among quadrupeds, and
the Bee among insects. Among these we may mention the Ani (_Crotophaga
ani_) of the West Indies; the Pensile Grosbeak (_Loxia pensilis_)
of West Africa; and the Bottle-nested Sparrow of India: but more
remarkable than any of these is the Sociable Grosbeak (_Loxia
socialis_) of South Africa, whose habits are described by Le Vaillant.
"Figure to yourself," says this enterprising traveller, "a huge,
irregular, sloping roof, with all the eaves completely covered with
nests, crowded close together, and you will have a tolerably correct
idea of these singular edifices." The birds commence this structure by
forming the immense canopy of a mass of grass, so compact and firmly
basketed together as to be impenetrable to the rain. This sometimes
surrounds a large tree, giving it, but for the upper branches, somewhat
the form of a mushroom. Beneath the eaves of this canopy the nests
are formed; the upper surface is not used for this purpose, but as it
is sloping, with a projecting rim, it serves to let the rain-water
run off, and preserves each little dwelling from the wet. Le Vaillant
procured one of these great shelters, and cut it in pieces with a
hatchet: the chief portion consisted of Boshman's grass, so compact
as to be impenetrable by rain. Each nest is three or four inches in
diameter, which is sufficient for the bird; but, as they are all close
together around the eaves, they appear to the eye to form but one
building, and, in fact, are distinguishable from each other only by a
little external aperture, which serves as an entrance to the nest. This
large nest contained 320 inhabited cells.
[Illustration: Nest of Sociable Weaver Bird.]
WOLVES IN ENGLAND.
King Edward the First commissioned Peter Corbet to destroy the wolves
in the counties of Gloucester, Worcester, Hereford, Salop, and
Stafford; and ordered John Gifford to hunt them in all the forests of
England.
The forest of Chiltern was infested by wolves and wild bulls in the
time of Edward the Confessor. William the Conqueror granted the
lordship of Riddesdale, in Northumberland, to Robert de Umfraville,
on condition of defending that part of the country against enemies and
wolves. King John gave a premium of ten shillings for catching two
wolves.
In the reign of King Henry the Third Vitalis de Engaine held the manors
of Laxton and Pitchley, in the county of Northampton, by the service
of hunting the wolf, whenever the king should command him. In the
reign of Edward the First, it was found by inquisition that John de
Engaine held the manor of Great Gidding, in the county of Huntingdon,
by the service of hunting the hare, fox, wild cat, and wolf, within the
counties of Huntingdon, Northampton, Buckingham, Oxford, and Rutland.
In the reign of Edward the Third, Thomas de Engaine held certain manors
by the service of finding, at his own proper cost, certain dogs for the
destruction of wolves, foxes, martins, and wild cats in the counties of
Northampton, Rutland, Oxford, Essex, and Buckingham.
TEMPLES OF BRAMBANAM.
In the island of Java, and not far from the ruins of Boro Buddor,
are situated the Buddhist temples of Brambanam; certainly one of the
most extraordinary groups of buildings of its class, and very unlike
anything we now find in India; though there can scarcely be a doubt but
that the whole is derived from an Indian original now lost.
The great temple is a square building above 45 ft. square, and 75 ft.
high, terminating upwards in an octagonal straight-lined pyramid. On
each face of this is a smaller temple of similar design joined to the
great one by corridors; the whole five thus constituting a cruciform
building. It is raised upon a richly ornamented square base. One of
the smaller temples serves as an entrance-porch. The building itself
is very curiously and richly ornamented with sculpture; but the most
remarkable feature of the whole group is the multitude of smaller
temples which surround the central one, 239 in number. Immediately
beyond the square terrace which supports the central temple stand 28
of these, forming a square of 8 on each side, counting the angular
ones both ways. Beyond these, at a distance of 35 ft., is the second
square, 44 in number; between this and the next row is a wide space of
above 80 ft., in which only 6 temples are situated, two in the centre
of the north and south faces, and one on each of the others. The two
outer rows of temples are situated close to one another, back to back,
and are 160 in number, each face of the square they form being about
525 ft. All these 239 temples are similar to one another, about 12 ft.
square at the base, and 22 ft. high, all richly carved and ornamented,
and in every one is a small square cell, in which was originally placed
a cross-legged figure, probably of one of the Jaina saints, though
the drawings which have been hitherto published do not enable us to
determine whom they represent--the persons who made them not being
aware of the distinction between Buddhist and Jaina images.
The date given to these monuments by the natives is about the 9th or
10th century, at which time the Jains were making great progress at
Guzerat and the western parts of India; and if the traditions are to
be relied upon, which bring the Hindu colonists of Java from that
quarter, it is almost certain that they would have brought that
religion with them. If the age, however, that is assigned to them be
correct, they are specimens of an earlier date and form than anything
we now find in India, and less removed from the old Buddhist type than
anything that now remains there.
GRAHAM ISLAND.
The most recent instance of subaqueous eruption, with which we are
acquainted is that which produced Hotham or Graham Island, in the year
1831. This island was thrown up in the Mediterranean, between the
south-west coast of Sicily and the African coast, in latitude 37° 8'
30" north, and longitude 12° 42' 15" east. The eruption seems to have
been first observed by John Corrao, the captain of a Sicilian vessel,
who passing near to the spot on the 10th of July, observed an immense
column of water ejected from the sea to the height of sixty feet, and
about eight hundred yards in circumference.
On the 16th of July, Corrao again passed the same spot, and he found
that a small island had been formed, twelve feet high, with a crater in
the centre, from which immense columns of vapour and masses of volcanic
matter were ejected.
The island was afterwards visited by several scientific gentlemen,
and is said to have been two hundred feet high, and three miles in
circumference, on the 4th of August. But from this time the island
decreased in size; for being composed of loose scoriæ and pumice, it
was rapidly acted upon by the water; and on the 3rd of September, when
carefully measured by Captain Wodehouse, was only three-fifths of a
mile in circumference, and one hundred and seven feet high. At the end
of October the island had entirely disappeared, except one small point
composed of sand and scoriæ. Captain Swinburne examined the spot in the
beginning of the year 1832, and found an extensive shoal to occupy the
place where the island had once been. In 1833 there was a dangerous
reef, of an oval form, three-fifths of a mile in circumference.
A ROYAL SPORTSMAN.
When the King of Naples (the greatest sportsman in Europe) was in
Germany, about the year 1792, it was said in the German papers, that
in the different times he had been shooting in Austria, Bohemia, and
Moravia, he had killed 5 bears, 1,820 wild boars, 1,968 stags, 13
wolves, 354 foxes, 15,350 pheasants, 1,121 rabbits, 16,354 hares, 1,625
she-goats, 1,625 roebucks, and 12,435 partridges.
LIFE IN DEATH.
The wife of the consul of Cologne, Retchmuth, apparently died of the
plague, in 1571; a ring of great value, with which she was buried,
tempted the cupidity of the grave-digger, and was the cause of many
future years of happiness. At night the purloiner marched to his
plunder, and she revived. She lived to be the mother of three children,
and, when deceased in reality, was re-buried in the same church,
where a monument was erected, reciting the particulars above stated
in German verse. A woman of Poictiers, being buried with four rings,
tempted the resurrection-man, who _awoke_ the woman in the attempt, as
he was rather rude in his mode of possessing them. She called out; he,
being frightened, fled. The lady walked home, recovered, and had many
children afterwards.
ROCK-CUT MONUMENTS OF ASIA MINOR.
The engraving below represents an example of rock-cut monuments which
are found at Doganlu, in Asia Minor. They are placed on the rocky side
of a narrow valley, and unconnected apparently with any great city or
centre of population. Generally they are called tombs, but there are
no chambers nor anything about them to indicate a funereal purpose,
and the inscriptions which accompany them are not on the monuments
themselves, nor do they refer to such a purpose. Altogether, they are
certainly among the most mysterious remains of antiquity, and, beyond
a certain similarity to the rock-cut tombs around Persepolis, it is
not easy to point out any monuments that afford even a remote analogy
to guide us in our conjectures. They are of a style of art clearly
indicating a wooden origin, and consist of a square frontispiece,
either carved into certain geometric shapes, or prepared apparently
for painting; at each side is a flat pilaster, and above a pediment
terminating in two scrolls. Some, apparently the more modern, have
pillars of a rude Doric order, and all indeed are much more curious
than beautiful. When more of the same class are discovered, they may
help us to some historic data: all that we can now say of them is,
that, judging from their inscriptions and the traditions in Herodotus,
they seem to belong to some Indo-Germanic race from Thessaly, or
thereabouts, who had crossed the Hellespont and settled in their
neighbourhood; and their date is possibly as far back as 1000, and most
probably before 700 B.C.
[Illustration [++] Rock-Cut Monument.]
ARCH OF TRAJAN AT BENEVENTUM.
Triumphal arches were among the most peculiar forms of art which the
Romans borrowed from those around them, and used with that strange
mixture of splendour and bad taste which characterises all their works.
[Illustration [++] Arch of Trajan at Beneventum.]
These were in the first instance no doubt borrowed from the Etruscans,
as was also the ceremony of the triumph with which they were ultimately
associated. At first they seem rather to have been used as festal
entrances to the great public roads, whose construction was considered
as one of the most important benefits a ruler could confer on his
country. There was one erected at Rimini in honour of an important
restoration of the Flaminian Way by Augustus; another at Susa in
Piedmont, to commemorate a similar act of the same Emperor. Trajan
built one on the pier at Ancona, when he restored that harbour, and
another at Beneventum, when he repaired the Via Appia, represented in
the woodcut here given. It is one of the best preserved as well as
most graceful of its class in Italy. The arch of the Sergii at Pola
in Istria seems also to have been erected for a like purpose. That of
Hadrian at Athens, and another built by him at Antinoë in Egypt, were
monuments merely commemorative of the benefits which he had conferred
on those cities by the architectural works he had erected within their
walls. By far the most important application of these gateways, in Rome
at least, was to commemorate a triumph which may have passed along the
road over which the arch was erected beforehand, for the triumphal
procession to pass through, of which it would remain a memorial.
JUDGES' SALARIES.
In the reign of Henry III. the King's Justices enjoyed a salary of ten
marks per annum, which, in the twenty-third year of that King, was
augmented to twenty pounds, and soon after to more. Under Henry IV. the
Chief Justices of the King's Bench and Common Pleas had forty pounds,
and one of the judges of Common Pleas had fifty-five marks. In 1466,
the salary of Thomas Littleton, judge of the King's Bench, amounted to
£136 13s. 4d. modern money; besides about £17 7s. for his fur-gown,
robes, &c.
EXTRAORDINARY OAK.
Gilpin, in his "Forest Scenery," says, "Close by the gate of the
water-walk at Magdalen College, in Oxford, grew an oak, which perhaps
stood there a sapling when Alfred the Great founded the university.
This period only includes a space of nine hundred years, which is no
great age for an oak. It is a difficult matter indeed to ascertain the
age of a tree. The age of a castle or abbey is the object of history;
even a common house is recorded by the families that built it. All
these objects arrive at maturity in their youth, if I may so speak.
But the tree, gradually completing its growth, is not worth recording
in the early part of its existence. It is then only a common tree;
and afterwards, when it becomes remarkable for its age, all memory of
its youth is lost. This tree, however, can almost produce historical
evidence for the age assigned to it. About five hundred years after the
time of Alfred, William of Wainfleet, Dr. Stukely tells us, expressly
ordered his college to be founded near the Great Oak; and an oak could
not, I think, be less than five hundred years of age to merit that
title, together with the honour of fixing the site of a college. When
the magnificence of Cardinal Wolsey erected that handsome tower which
is so ornamental to the whole building, this tree might probably be
in the meridian of its glory, or rather, perhaps, it had attained a
green old age. But it must have been manifestly in its decline at that
memorable era when the tyranny of James gave the fellows of Magdalen so
noble an opportunity of withstanding bigotry and superstition. It was
afterwards much injured in Charles the Second's time, when the present
walks were laid out. Its roots were disturbed, and from that period it
declined fast, and became reduced by degrees to little more than a mere
trunk. The oldest members of the university can scarcely recollect it
in better plight. But the faithful records of history have handed down
its ancient dimensions. Through a space of sixteen yards on every side
from its trunk, it once flung its boughs, and under its magnificent
pavilion could have sheltered with ease three thousand men, though in
its decayed state it could for many years do little more than shelter
some luckless individual whom the driving shower had overtaken in his
evening walk. In the summer of 1788, this magnificent ruin fell to the
ground, alarming the college with its rushing sound. It then appeared
how precariously it had stood for many years. Its grand tap-root was
decayed, and it had hold of the earth only by two or three roots, of
which none was more than a couple of inches in diameter. From a part of
its ruins a chair has been made for the President of the College, which
will long continue its memory."
ECCENTRIC ADVERTISEMENT.
The following strange advertisement is copied from the Harleian MSS.:
"_In Nova fert Animus_. These are to give notice, (for the benefit of
the public,) that there is newly arrived from his travels, a gentleman,
who, after above forty years' study, hath, by a wonderful blessing on
his endeavours, discovered, as well the nature as the infallible cure
of several strange diseases, which (though as yet not known to the
world) he will plainly demonstrate to any ingenious artist, to be the
greatest causes of the most common distempers incident to the body of
man. The names of which take as follow:
The strong fives
The marthambles
The moon-pall
The hockogrocle.
"Now, though the names, natures, symptoms, and several cures of these
diseases, are altogether unknown to our greatest physicians, and the
particular knowledge of them would (if concealed) be a vast advantage
to the aforesaid person; yet, he well knowing that his country's
good is to be preferred to his private interest, doth hereby promise
all sorts of people, a faithful cure of all or any of the diseases
aforesaid, at as reasonable rates as our modern doctors have for that
of any common distemper.
"He is spoken with at the ordinary hours of business, at the Three
Compasses, in Maiden-lane."
MODERN EGYPTIAN FEMALE ORNAMENTS.
[Illustration [++] Ckoo'r.]
Among the many ornaments which the women of Egypt in modern times
are so fond of wearing, none is more curious or more generally worn
than the _Ckoo'r_. It is a round convex ornament, commonly about five
inches in diameter, of which there are two kinds. The first that we
shall describe, and which is the only kind worn by ladies, or by the
wives of tradesmen of moderate property, is the _ckoor's alma's_, or
diamond ckoor's. This is composed of diamonds set generally in gold;
and is open work, representing roses, leaves, &c. The diamonds are
commonly of a very poor and shallow kind; and the gold of this and all
other diamond ornaments worn in Egypt is much alloyed with copper. The
value of a moderately handsome diamond ckoor's is about a hundred and
twenty-five, or a hundred and fifty pounds sterling. It is very seldom
made of silver; and I think that those of gold, when attached to the
deep red turboo'sh, have a richer effect, though not in accordance
with our general taste. The wives even of petty tradesmen sometimes
wear the diamond ckoor's: they are extremely fond of diamonds, and
generally endeavour to get some, however bad. The ckoor's, being of
considerable weight, is at first painful to wear; and women who are in
the habit of wearing it complain of headache when they take it off:
hence they retain it day and night; but some have an inferior one
for the bed. Some ladies have one for ordinary wearing, another for
particular occasions, a little larger and handsomer; and a third merely
to wear in bed. The other kind of ckoor's, _ckoor's dah'ab_ (or, of
gold), is a convex plate of very thin embossed gold, and almost always
a false emerald (a piece of green glass), not cut with facets, set in
the centre. Neither the emerald nor the ruby are here cut with facets:
if so cut, they would generally be considered false. The simple gold
ckoor's is lined with a thick coat of wax, which is covered with a
piece of paper. It is worn by many women who cannot afford to purchase
diamonds; and even by some servants.
ANTIQUE ROMAN MEDICINE STAMP.
[Illustration [++] Roman Medicine Stamp.]
By far the most remarkable of the recently discovered remains of
the Roman occupants of Scotland is a medicine stamp, acquired by
the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, along with a very valuable
collection of antiquities, bequeathed to them by E. W. A. Drummond
Hay, Esq., formerly one of the secretaries of the society. From his
notes it appears that it was found in the immediate vicinity of Trenent
Church, East Lothian, in a quantity of _débris_, broken tiles, and
brick-dust, which may not improbably have once formed the residence
and laboratory of Lucius Vallatinus, the Roman oculist, whose name
this curious relic supplies. It consists of a small cube of pale
green stone, two and three-fifth inches in length, and engraved on
two sides as in the annexed woodcut; the letters being reversed for
the purpose of stamping the unguents or other medicaments retailed by
its original possessor. The inscriptions admit of being extended thus
on the one side: L. VALLATINI EVODES AD CICATRICES ET ASPRITUDINES,
which may be rendered--The evodes of Lucius Vallatinus for cicatrices
and granulations. The reverse, though in part somewhat more obscure,
reads: L. VALLATINI A PAL{O} CR{O}CODES AD DIATHESES--The crocodes, or
preparation of saffron, of L. Vallatinus, of the Palatine School,
(?) for affections of the eyes. Both the Euodes and the Crocodes are
prescriptions given by Galen, and occur on other medicine stamps.
Several examples have been found in England, and many in France and
Germany, supplying the names of their owners and the terms of their
preparations. Many of the latter indicate their chief use for diseases
of the eye, and hence they have most commonly received the name of
Roman oculists' stamps. No example, however, except the one figured
here, has ever occurred in Scotland; and amid legionary inscriptions,
military votive altars, and sepulchral tablets, it is peculiarly
interesting to stumble on this intelligent memento, restoring to us the
name of the old Roman physician who ministered to the colonists of the
Lothians the skill, and perchance also the charlatanry, of the healing
art.
CANDLES IN THE CHURCH.
In the formulæ of Marculphus, edited by Jerome Bignon, he tells us,
with respect to lights, that the use of them was of great antiquity
in the church; that the primitive Christians made use of them in the
assemblies which they held before day out of necessity; and that
afterwards they were retained even in daylight, as tokens of joy, and
in honour of the Deity. Lactantius says, speaking of the absurdities
of the wax lights in Romish churches, "They light up candles to God,
as if he lived in the dark; and do they not deserve to pass for madmen
who offer lamps and candles to the author and giver of light?" It is
really astounding to our ideas that wax candles as long as serjeants'
pikes should be held as necessary in the worship of God. That it is so
held, and that by a large class of Christians, every one must allow,
for they may have occular demonstration of the singular fact. The show
is however extremely imposing. Thirty-five thousand seven hundred and
fifty pounds of wax lights were burned every year, for nine hundred
masses said in the castle of Wittemburgh! Philip Melancthon speaks of a
Jesuit who said that "he would not extinguish one taper, though it were
to convert all the Huguenots" (Protestants).
A RICH AND CRUEL CRIMINAL.
John Ward, Esq. of Hackney, Member of Parliament, being prosecuted by
the Duchess of Buckingham, and convicted of forgery, was first expelled
from the House, and then stood on the pillory on the 17th of March,
1727. He was suspected of joining in a conveyance with Sir John Blount,
to secrete £50,000 of that director's estate, forfeited to the South
Sea Company by Act of Parliament. The Company recovered the £50,000
against Ward; but he set up prior conveyances of his real estate to his
brother and son, and concealed all his personal, which was computed
to be £150,000. These conveyances being also set aside by a bill in
chancery, Ward was imprisoned, and hazarded the forfeiture of his life,
by not giving in his effects till the last day, which was that of his
examination. During his confinement, his amusement was to give poison
to dogs and cats, and see them expire by slower or quicker torments. To
sum up the _worth_ of this man, at the several eras of his life; at his
standing in the pillory, he was worth above £200,000; at his commitment
to prison, he was worth £150,000.
FOOD OF THE ANCIENTS.
The diversity of substances which we find in the catalogue of articles
of food is as great as the variety with which the art or the science
of cookery prepares them. The notions of the ancients on this most
important subject are worthy of remark. Their taste regarding meat
was various. Beef they considered the most substantial food: hence
it constituted the chief nourishment of their athletæ. Camels' and
dromedaries' flesh was much esteemed, their heels most especially.
Donkey-flesh was in high repute: Mæcenas, according to Pliny, delighted
in it; and the wild ass, brought from Africa, was compared to venison.
In more modern times we find Chancellor Dupret having asses fattened
for his table. The hog and the wild boar appear to have been held in
great estimation; and a hog was called "animal propter convivia natum;"
but the classical portion of the sow was somewhat singular--"vulvâ
nil dulcius amplâ." Their mode of killing swine was as refined in
barbarity as in epicurism. Plutarch tells us that the gravid sow was
actually trampled to death, to form a delicious mass fit for the gods.
At other times, pigs were slaughtered with red-hot spits, that the
blood might not be lost. Stuffing a pig with assafoetida and various
small animals, was a luxury called "porcus Trojanus;" alluding, no
doubt, to the warriors who were concealed in the Trojan horse. Young
bears, dogs, and foxes, (the latter more esteemed when fed upon
grapes,) were also much admired by the Romans; who were also so fond of
various birds, that some consular families assumed the names of those
they most esteemed. Catius tells us how to drown fowls in Falernian
wine, to render them more luscious and tender. Pheasants were brought
over from Colchis, and deemed at one time such a rarity, that one of
the Ptolemies bitterly lamented his never having tasted any. Peacocks
were carefully reared in the island of Samos, and sold at such a high
price, that Varro informs us they fetched yearly upwards of £2,000 of
our money.
THE EARLIEST ENGLISH BIBLE.
The first translation of any part of the Holy Scriptures into English
that was committed to the press was the New Testament, translated from
the Greek, by William Tyndale, with the assistance of John Foye and
William Roye, and printed first in 1526, in octavo.
Tyndale published afterwards, in 1530, a translation of the Five Books
of Moses, and of Jonah, in 1531, in octavo. An English translation of
the Psalter, done from the Latin of Martin Bucer, was also published
at Strasburgh in 1530, by Francis Foye, in octavo. And the same book,
together with Jeremiah and the Song of Moses, were likewise published
in 1534, in duodecimo, by George Joye, sometime Fellow of Peter-House
in Cambridge.
The first time the whole Bible appeared in English was in the year
1535, in folio. The translator and publisher was Miles Coverdale,
afterwards Bishop of Exeter, who revised Tyndale's version, compared
it with the original, and supplied what had been left untranslated
by Tyndale. It was printed at Zurich, and dedicated to King Henry
the Eighth. This was the Bible, which by Cromwell's injunction of
September, 1536, was ordered to be laid in churches.
GREAT ERUPTION OF MOUNT ETNA.
One of the most remarkable eruptions of this mountain was that which
occurred in the year 1669, which was so violent that fifteen towns
and villages were destroyed, and the stream was so deep that the lava
flowed over the walls of Catania, sixty feet in height, and destroyed
a part of the city. But the most singular circumstance connected with
this eruption was the formation of a number of extensive fissures,
which appeared as though filled with intumescent rock. At the very
commencement of the volcanic excitement, one was formed in the plain
of St. Lio, twelve miles in length and six feet broad, which ejected
a vivid flame, and shortly after five others were opened. The town of
Nicolosi, situated twenty miles from the summit of Etna, was destroyed
by earthquake; and near the place where it stood two gulfs were formed,
from which so large a quantity of sand and scoriæ was thrown, that
a cone, called Mount Rossi, four hundred and fifty feet high, was
produced in about three months.
AMULETS WORN BY MODERN EGYPTIAN FEMALES.
[Illustration [++] Amulet.]
One of the most remarkable traits in modern Egyptian superstition is
the belief in written charms. The composition of most of these amulets
is founded upon magic, and occasionally employs the pen of almost
every village schoolmaster in Egypt. A person of this description,
however, seldom pursues the study of magic further than to acquire
the formulæ of a few charms, commonly consisting, for the greater
part, of certain passages of the Koran, and names of God, together
with those of spirits, genii, prophets, or eminent saints, intermixed
with combinations of numerals, and with diagrams, all of which are
supposed to have great secret virtues. The amulet thus composed, or
_hhega'b_, as it is called, is covered with waxed cloth, to preserve
it from accidental pollution, and enclosed in a case of thin embossed
gold or silver, which is attached to a silk string, or a chain, hung
on the right side, above the girdle, the string or chain being passed
over the left shoulder. Sometimes these cases bear Arabic inscriptions,
such as "Ma´sha-lla´h" ("God's will") and "Ya´cha´dee el-hhaga´t" ("O
decreer of the things that are needful!") We here insert an engraving
of three hhega'bs of gold, attached to a string, to be worn together.
The central one is a thin, flat case, containing a folded paper: it is
about a third of an inch thick; the others are cylindrical cases, with
hemispherical ends, and contain scrolls: each has a row of burck along
the bottom. Hhega´bs such as these, or of a triangular form, are worn
by many children, as well as women; and those of the latter form are
attached to a child's head-dress.
PERSONAL ORNAMENTS OF THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS.
The passion of the Egyptians for decorative jewellery was indeed
excessive. Men as well as women delighted thus to adorn themselves;
and the desire was not confined to the higher ranks, for though the
subordinate classes could not afford the sparkling gems and precious
metals which glowed upon the persons of their superiors, their vanity
was gratified by humbler imitations, of bronze, glass, and porcelain.
"Costly and elegant ornaments," observes Professor Rosselini, "abounded
in proportion as clothing in general was simple and scarce among the
Egyptians. Girdles, necklaces, armlets, ear-rings, and amulets of
various kinds suspended from the neck, are found represented in the
painting, and in fact still exist on the mummies. Figures of noble
youths are found entirely devoid of clothing, but richly ornamented
with necklaces and other jewels."
An immense number of these "jewels of silver and jewels of gold"
have been found in the tombs, and on the persons of mummies, and are
deposited in profusion in every museum. The accompanying engravings
will give an idea of the style and form of some of them.
[Illustration [++] Personal Ornaments.]
The ear-rings generally worn by the ladies were large, round, single
hoops (as _a_) from 1-1/2 inches to 2-1/3 inches in diameter; and
frequently of a still greater size; or made of six rings soldered
together (as _b_); sometimes an asp, whose body was of gold, set with
precious stones, was worn by persons of rank as a fashionable caprice.
Figures _c_, _d_, of gold bear the heads of fanciful animals; _e_,
also of gold, is remarkable for its singularity of form, and for the
delicacy of its workmanship; and _f_ for its carrying two pearls and
being double in its construction.
[Illustration [++] Ear-Rings.]
Bracelets, armlets, and anklets were worn by men as well as by women;
they were usually of gold, frequently set with precious stones, or
inlaid with enamel. The one marked _a_ in the annexed cut is now in the
Leyden Museum: it is of gold, 3 inches in diameter, and 1-1/2 inches in
height, and is interesting, because it belonged to the Pharaoh whom we
conclude to have been the patron and friend of Joseph, Thothmes III.,
whose name it bears. The armlet _b_ is of gold, and represents a snake;
the other, _c_, is of bronze. Rings were worn in profusion, gold being
the material chiefly selected. Some resemble watch seals of the present
day--sometimes the stone having four flat sides, all engraved, turned
on a pivot, like some seals seen at present. One of this character,
which Sir J. G. Wilkinson estimates to contain 20_l._ worth of gold,
is represented at _d_ in the above engraving. It consists of a massive
ring of gold, bearing an oblong plinth of the same metal, an inch in
length, and more than half an inch in its greatest width. On one side
is engraved the hieroglyphic name of Storus, the successor of Amunoph
III.; the three others contain respectively a scorpion, a crocodile,
and a lion.
GREAT PEAR TREE.
The most remarkable pear tree in England stands on the glebe of the
parish of Holme Lacy, in Herefordshire. When the branches of this
tree, in its original state, became long and heavy, their extremities
drooped till they reached the ground. They then took root; each branch
became a new tree, and in its turn produced others in the same way.
Eventually it extended itself until it covered more than an acre of
ground, and would probably have reached much further if it had been
suffered to do so. It is stated in the church register, that "the great
natural curiosity, the great pear tree upon the glebe, adjoining to the
vicarage-house, produced this year (1776) fourteen hogsheads of perry,
each hogshead containing one hundred gallons." Though now much reduced
in size, it is still healthy and vigorous, and generally produces from
two to five hogsheads. The liquor is not of a good quality, being very
strong and heating. An idea of the superior size of this tree, when in
its prime, over others of the same kind, may be formed from the fact,
that in the same county, an acre of ground is usually planted with
thirty trees, which, in a good soil, produce annually, when full grown,
twenty gallons of perry each. So large a quantity as a hogshead from
one tree is very unusual. The sorts principally used for perry are such
as have an austere juice.
LAW OF THE MOZCAS.
A very remarkable law prevailed among the Mozcas, one of the tribes
of the Nuevo Reyno de Granada. There, as among more advanced nations,
the king could do no wrong; but the subordinate chiefs could. These
chiefs were men, the people reasoned, like themselves; they could not
be punished by their vassals, for there would be a natural unfitness
in that; the king, it seems, was not expected to interfere, except
in cases of state offences; the power of punishment, therefore, was
vested in their wives; and a power it was, says Piedrahita, which they
exercised famously whenever it fell to them to be judges of their poor
husbands. The conqueror Quesada calling one morning upon the chief of a
place called Suesca, found him under the hands of his nine wives, who
were tying him, and having done so, proceeded, in spite of Quesada's
intercession, to flog him one after the other. His offence was, that
some Spaniards the night before had lodged in his house, and he had
partaken too freely of their Spanish wine. Drunkenness was one of the
sins which fell under the cognizance of his wives: they carried him
to bed that he might sleep himself sober, and then awoke him in the
morning to receive the rigour of the law.
LARGEST METAL STATUE IN THE WORLD.
Arona is an island on the Lago Maggiore, and has a strong castle. Upon
an eminence is a statue of bronze to St. Charles Borromeo, from whom
the hill is called, Monte di S. Carlo. The statue was erected by the
Pope in 1624, in memory of the Saint, who was Archbishop of Milan.
The pedestal of the statue is thirty-six feet high. It is the largest
metal statue in existence; and the height of the statue itself is
seventy-two feet, making a total of 108 feet. Fifteen persons may get
into the saint's head, which will also accommodate four persons and a
table on which they can dine. The cost is said to have been one million
one hundred Milanaise livres.
THE OAK OF MAMRE.
In one remarkable instance the Jews, the Christians, and the pagan
Arabs united in religious feelings. This was in their reverence for
the Oak of Mamre, where the angels appeared to Abraham: for Abraham's
sake the Jews held the place holy; the Arabs for the angels'; the
Christians, because, in their ignorance of their Scriptures, they
affirmed that the Son of God had accompanied those angels to destroy
Sodom and Gomorrah. An annual fair was held there, and every man
sacrificed after the manner of his country; nor was the meeting ever
disgraced by any act of intemperance or indecency. Nothing had been
done to injure the venerable antiquity of the place. There was nothing
but the well which Abraham had dug, and the buildings which he had
inhabited, beside the oak. These remains were destroyed by order of
Constantine, in abhorrence of the _impious_ toleration exhibited
there! A church was built upon the spot, and Mamre, so interesting to
the poet, the philosopher, and the pious man, became a mere den of
superstition.
STRANGE ADVERTISEMENT.
The following appeared in the _Evening Post_, May 23rd, 1730:--
"I, Elizabeth, duchess dowager of Hamilton, acknowledge I have for
several months been ill in my health, but never speechless, as certain
penny authors have printed; and so, to confute these said authors
and their intelligence, it is thought by my most intimate friends,
_it is the very last thing that will happen to me_. I am so good an
Englishwoman, that I would not have my countrymen imposed upon by
purchasing false authors; therefore, have ordered this to be printed
that they may know what papers to buy and believe, that are not to be
bribed by those who may have private ends for false reports. The copy
of this is left in the hands of Mr. Berington, to be shown to any body
who has a curiosity to see it signed with my own hand.
"E. HAMILTON."
INTERMITTENT SPRINGS.
One of the most remarkable of these is at Bolder-Born in Westphalia.
After flowing for twenty-four hours, it entirely ceases for the
space of six hours. It then returns with a loud noise, in a stream
sufficiently powerful to turn three mills very near its source. Another
spring of the same nature occurs at Bihar in Hungary, which issues many
times a day, from the foot of a mountain, in such a quantity as in a
few minutes to fill the channel of a considerable stream.
The Lay Well near Torbay, ebbs and flows sixteen times in an hour: and
in Giggleswick Well in Yorkshire, the water sometimes rises and falls
in ten or fifteen minutes.
St. Anthony's Well, on Arthur's Seat, near Edinburgh, has a similar
movement, but on a smaller scale.
In Savoy, near the lake of Bourget, is another spring of this kind, but
it differs from those which have been already mentioned in being very
uncertain in its intervals.
CURIOUS JEWEL WHICH BELONGED TO JAMES I.
In former times it was a common practice with princes and nobles to
have elaborate articles of jewellery constructed in such forms as had
a religious and emblematical signification. An inventory of the Dukes
of Burgundy, made in 1396, speaks of a _fleur-de-lys_ which opened,
and contained inside a picture of the Crucifixion. In 1416, the Duke
of Berri had "a fair apple," which opened, and contained within on one
side the figure of Christ, and on the other that of the Virgin. Among
the jewels of the Dukes of Burgundy in 1392 there were two pears of
gold, enamelled, each containing an image of Our Lady. We find similar
entries in the other different inventories of the Dukes of Burgundy:
An apple of silver, enamelled, containing in the inside a picture of
St. Catherine, in 1400; a pine-apple of gold, which contained figures
of the birth of Christ, and of the three kings, in 1467; and, in the
same year, two apples of gold, one containing, on the opposite halves,
Our Lady and St. Paul, the other, St. Peter and St. Paul--the latter
suspended by three small chains. These kinds of devices continued in
fashion till a much later period, and a very curious example, from the
collection of Lord Londesborough, which appears to have belonged to
King James I., is here engraved.
[Illustration [++] Small Skull.]
[Illustration [++] Apple.]
The whole is of silver, and the leaves appear to have been painted
green. On opening it we find in the inside the small skull here
represented above the apple. The top of the skull opens like a lid,
and inside are two small paintings, representing the Creation and the
Resurrection, with the inscription, "_Post Mortem, vita eternitas_."
The external inscription is not gallant. To give the apple externally
a more natural appearance, there are marks of two bites on the side
opposite that here represented, showing a large and small set of teeth.
STRANGE CURIOSITIES.
In the Anatomy Hall of Leyden is a drinking cup of the skull of a Moor,
killed in the beleaguring of Haerlem. Also a cup made of a double brain
pan. We observe also that No. 51 is the skin of a woman, and No. 52 the
skin of a woman, prepared like leather; No. 53 the skin of a Malacca
woman, above 150 years old, presented by Richard Snolk, who probably
had her flayed.
THE CROSS OF CONG.
The cross, of which the following is a correct representation,
possesses eminent claims to a place among our curiosities, since it
constitutes the gem of the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy.
[Illustration [++] Cross of Kong.]
This cross was made at Roscommon, by native Irishmen, about the year
1123, in the reign of Turlogh O'Connor, father of Roderick, the last
monarch of Ireland, and contains what was supposed to be a piece of the
true cross, as inscriptions in Irish, and Latin in the Irish character,
upon two of its sides record. The engraving affords a correct idea of
the original, as the extremely minute and elaborate ornaments with
which it is completely covered, and a portion of which is worked in
pure gold, could not possibly be expressed on so reduced a scale. The
ornaments generally consist of tracery and grotesque animals fancifully
combined, and similar in character to the decorations found upon
crosses of stone of about the same period. A large crystal, through
which a portion of the wood which the cross was formed to enshrine is
visible, is set in the centre.
FOOT-RACING IN 1699.
A remarkable foot-race was run about the year 1699, which is thus
described in the manuscript journal of a lady who was one of the
spectators:--"I drove through the forest of Windsor to see a race run
by two footmen, an English and a Scotch, the former a taller bigger man
than the other. The ground measured and cut even in a round was about
four miles; they were to run it round so often as to make up twenty-two
miles, which was the distance between Charing Cross and Windsor Cross,
that is, five times quite round, and so far as to make up the odd
miles and measure. They ran a round in twenty-five minutes. I saw them
run the first three rounds and half another in an hour and seventeen
minutes, and they finished it in two hours and a half. The Englishman
gained the start the second round, and kept it at the same distance the
five rounds, and then the Scotchman came up to him and got before him
to the post. The Englishman fell down within a few yards of the post.
Many hundred pounds were won and lost about it. They ran both very
neatly, but my judgment gave it to the Scotchman, because he seemed to
save himself to the last push."
THE CHERRY TREE.
The Cherry Tree was introduced into Great Britain before A.D. 53. The
earliest mention of the fruit being exposed to sale by hawkers in
London is in Henry the Fifth's reign, 1415. New sorts were introduced
from Flanders, by Richard Haines, Henry the Eighth's fruiterer, and
being planted in Kent were called "Flanders," or "Kentish Cherries," of
which Gerard (1597) says, "They have a better juice, but watery, cold,
and moist." Philips says, "There is an account of a cherry-orchard of
thirty-two acres in Kent, which, in the year 1540, produced fruit that
sold in those early days, for 1,000_l._; which seems an enormous sum,
as at that period good land is stated to have let at one shilling per
acre." Evelyn tells us, that in his time (1662) an acre planted with
cherries, one hundred miles from London, had been let at 10_l._ During
the Commonwealth (1649), the manor and mansion of Henrietta Maria,
Queen of Charles I., at Wimbledon, in Surrey, were surveyed previously
to being sold, and it appears that there were upwards of two hundred
cherry trees in the gardens. Since that time the cherry tree has found
universal admission into shrubberies, gardens, and orchards.
INSTRUCTIONS TO A CHAPLAIN.
The following, and we believe they are unique, are Sir John Wynne of
Gwedir's instructions to his chaplain, the Rev. John Pryce. "First, you
shall have the chamber I showed you in my gate, private to yourself,
with lock and key, and all necessaries. In the morning, I expect you
should rise, and say prayers in my hall, to my household below, before
they go to work, and when they come in at night, that you call before
you all the workmen, specially the youth, and take account of them
of their belief, and of what Sir Meredith taught them. I beg you to
continue for the most part in the lower house: you are to have onlye
what is done there, that you may inform me of any disorder there. There
is a bayliff of husbandry and a porter, who will be commanded by you.
The morning after you be up, and have said prayers, as afore, I would
you to bestow in study on any commendable exercise of your body. Before
dinner you are to come up and attend grace or prayers, if there be any
publicke; and to sit up if there be not greater strangers above the
chyldren, who you are to teach in your own chamber. When the table
from half downwards is taken up, then you are to rise and to walk in
the alleys near at hand until grace time, and to come in then for that
purpose. After dinner, if I be busy, you may go to bowles, shuffel
bord, or any other honest, decent recreation, until I go abroad. If
you see me void of business, and go to ride abroad, you shall command
a gelding to be made ready by the grooms of the stable, and to go with
me. If I go to bowles or shuffel bord, I shall lyke of your company,
if the place be not made up with strangers. I would have you to go
every Sunday in the year to some church hereabouts, to preache, giving
warnynge to the parish, to bring the yowths at after noon to the church
to be catechysed; in which poynt is my greatest care that you should
be paynfull and dylygent. Avoyd the alehouse, to sytte and keepe
drunkard's company ther, being the greatest discredit your function can
have."
TWO MISERS.
In the year 1778 died, at a village near Reading, John Jackson,
aged ninety-three, and James Jackson, aged eighty-seven. These two
brothers were old bachelors, and afforded a striking instance of the
insufficiency of wealth to create happiness. Though these old men had
been blest with great riches ever since they were twenty years of age,
they absolutely denied themselves the common necessaries of life;
and lived in the village for fifty years past as poor men, and often
accepted of charity from rich persons who resided near them. They never
suffered any woman or man to come into their apartment (which was only
one shabby room), and were both taken ill, and languishing a short
time, they expired on the same day, within one hour of each other. It
is computed, by the writings left behind them, that they died worth
£150,000.
ANECDOTE OF THE HOUSE OF BRUNSWICK.
The following anecdote relating to the august House of Brunswick
is taken from the "Annual Register" of 1765:--"The late Duchess of
Blakenburgh, great grandmother to the hereditary prince, who died
some years since in a very advanced age, had the singular happiness
to reckon amongst her posterity, sixty-two princes and princesses;
(fifty-three of whom she saw at one time alive;) and amongst them three
emperors, two empresses, two kings, and two queens; a circumstance
that, probably, no sovereign house but that of Brunswick ever produced
anything like it."
AMUSEMENTS OF SOME LEARNED AUTHORS.
Tycho Brahe polished glass for spectacles, and made mathematical
instruments. D'Andilly delighted, like our Evelyn, in forest-trees;
Balzac, with the manufacturing of crayons; Pieresc, with his medals and
antiques; the Abbé de Marolles, with engravings; Rohault's greatest
recreation was in seeing different mechanics at their labour; Arnauld
read the most trashy novels for relaxation; as did our Warburton, the
late Lords Loughborough and Camden; Montaigne fondled his cat; Cardinal
Richelieu, in jumping and leaping. Grumm informs us that the Chevalier
de Boufflers would crow like a cock, and bray like an ass; in both of
which he excelled, not metaphorically but literally.
EARLY GERMAN DRINKING CUP.
[Illustration: [++] Early German Drinking Cup.]
The above, taken from the Londesborough collection, is a good example
of the German drinking cups of fanciful shape, which were so much in
fashion in that country in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The
specimen before us is of silver, and dated 1619. The mill and scroll
ornament on the cup are gilt. It was held in the hand to be filled, and
could not be set down until emptied; the drinker, blowing through the
tube into the mill, set the sails in motion, and reversed the cup on
the table.
THE KING'S STONE.
[Illustration: [++] The King's Stone.]
Kingston-on-Thames is among the oldest of English towns; and is said
to have been "the metropolis of the Anglo-Saxon kings:" certainly it
was a famous place when the Romans found and conquered the Britons in
this locality: there are indeed arguments for believing that the "ford"
which Cæsar crossed was here, and not at Walton; and indications of
barrows, fosses, and ramparts of Roman origin, are to be found in many
places in the neighbourhood. It is more than probable that a bridge was
constructed by the Romans here, and that a fortress was erected for its
protection. The Saxons followed in due course, and here they had many
contests with their enemies the Danes; but A.D. 838, Egbert convened at
Kingston an assembly of ecclesiastics and nobles in council, and here,
undoubtedly, many of the Saxon kings were crowned: "The townish men,"
says Leland, "have certen knowledge that a few kinges were crounid
afore the Conqueste." Its first charter was from King John, and many
succeeding sovereigns accorded to it various grants and immunities.
During the war between Charles I. and the Parliament, Kingston was the
scene of several "fights," being always on the side of the king. The
town is now populous and flourishing, although without manufactures of
any kind. Since the establishment of a railway, villa residences have
largely increased in the neighbourhood; and the two suburbs, Surbiton
and Norbiton, are pretty and densely-crowded villages of good houses.
The church has suffered much from mutilation and restoration; it is a
spacious structure, and was erected about the middle of the fourteenth
century, on the site of an earlier edifice. Amongst the monuments is a
fine brass, to a civilian and his wife, of the year 1437. Of existing
antiquities there are but few: county historians, however, point out
the sites of the ancient Saxon palace, "the castle," the Jews' quarter,
and the Roman town, Tamesa; and the game of "foot-ball," it is said, is
still practised by the inhabitants on Shrove Tuesday, in commemoration
of the feats of their ancestors, by whom the head of a king-assassin
was "kicked" about the town. But perhaps the most interesting object
now to be found in Kingston is "THE KING'S STONE." It had long
remained neglected, though not unknown, among disregarded heaps of
_débris_ in "the new court-yard," when it occurred to some zealous and
intelligent antiquaries that so venerable a relic of remote ages was
entitled to some show of respect. It was consequently removed from its
degraded position, planted in the centre of the town, and enclosed by
a "suitable" iron railing. It is now, therefore, duly and properly
honoured, as may be seen by the preceding engraving.
TRANCE AT WILL.
Colonel Townsend possessed the remarkable faculty of throwing himself
into a trance at pleasure. The heart ceased apparently to throb at
his bidding, respiration seemed at an end, his whole frame assumed
the icy chill and rigidity of death; while his face became colourless
and shrunk, and his eye fixed, glazed, and ghastly. His mind itself
ceased to manifest itself, for during the trance it was as utterly
devoid of consciousness as his body of animation. In this state he
would remain for hours, when these singular phenomena wore away, and
he returned to his usual condition. Medical annals furnish no parallel
to this extraordinary case. Considered whether in a physiological or
metaphysical point of view, it is equally astonishing and inexplicable.
DESTRUCTIVE FORCE OF RATS.
The amount of destructive force possessed by rats cannot be better
exemplified than in the report given to the French Government, relating
to the removal of the horse slaughter-houses, situated at Montfaucon,
to a greater distance from Paris; one great objection being the
disastrous consequences which might accrue to the inhabitants of the
neighbourhood, if these voracious creatures were suddenly deprived of
their usual sustenance. It is well known that the mischief which they
occasion is not confined to what they eat; but they undermine houses,
burrow through dams, destroy drains, and commit incalculable havoc in
every place and in everything.
The report states, that the carcases of horses killed one day, and
amounting to thirty-five, would be found the next morning with the
bones picked clean. A person of the name of Dusaussois, belonging
to the establishment, made this experiment. A part of his yard was
enclosed by solid walls, at the foot of which, several holes were made
for the entrance and exit of the rats. Into this enclosure he put the
bodies of three horses, and in the middle of the night he stopped up
all the holes as quietly as he could; he then summoned several of his
workmen, and each, armed with a torch and a stick, entered the yard,
and carefully closed the door. They then commenced a general massacre;
in doing which, it was not necessary to take aim, for wherever the blow
fell it was sure to knock over a rat, none being allowed to escape by
climbing over the walls. This experiment was repeated at intervals of
a few days, and at the end of a month, 16,050 rats had been destroyed.
In one night they killed 2,650; and yet this cannot give an entirely
adequate idea of their number, for the yard in question did not cover
more than a twentieth part of the space allotted to killing horses. The
rats in this place have made burrows for themselves, like catacombs;
and so great is their number, that they have not found room close by
the slaughter-houses. They have gone farther; and the paths to and from
their dwellings may be traced across the neighbouring fields.
ORDEAL OF THE CROSS.
When a person accused of any crime had declared his innocence upon
oath, and appealed to the cross for its judgment in his favour, he
was brought into the church before the altar. The priest previously
prepared two sticks exactly like one another, upon one of which was
carved a figure of the cross. They were both wrapped up, with great
care and many ceremonies, in a quantity of fine wool, and laid upon the
altar, or on the relics of the saints. A solemn prayer was then offered
up to God, that he would be pleased to discover, by the judgment of
his holy cross, whether the accused person were innocent or guilty.
A priest then approached the altar, and took up one of the sticks,
and the assistants unswathed it reverently. If it was marked with the
cross, the accused person was innocent; if unmarked, he was guilty.
It would be unjust to assert, that the judgments just delivered were
in all cases erroneous; and it would be absurd to believe that they
were left altogether to chance. Many true judgments were doubtless
given, and, in all probability, most conscientiously; for we cannot but
believe that the priests endeavoured beforehand to convince themselves
by strict inquiry and a strict examination of the circumstances,
whether the appellant were innocent or guilty, and that they took up
the crossed or uncrossed stick accordingly. Although, to all other
observers, the sticks, as enfolded in the wool, might appear exactly
similar, those who enwrapped them could, without any difficulty,
distinguish the one from the other.
KING JOHN AND POPE INNOCENT.
When Cardinal Langton was made Archbishop of Canterbury, by the
intrigues of the Pope, whose creature he was, in despite of King John,
to appease the latter, his Holiness presented him with four gold rings,
set with precious stones, and enhanced the value of the gift (mark
that, jewellers!) by informing him of the many mysteries implied in it.
He begged of him (John) to consider seriously the _form_ of the rings,
their _number_, their _matter_, and their _colour_. Their _form_, he
said, being round, shadowed out eternity, which had neither beginning
nor end, and he ought thence to learn the duty of aspiring from
earthly objects to heavenly, from things temporal to things eternal.
The _numbers_ four, being a square, denoted steadiness of mind, not
to be subverted either by prosperity or adversity, fixed for ever in
the basis of the four cardinal virtues. _Gold_, which is the matter,
being the most precious of metals, signified wisdom, which is the
most precious of all accomplishments, and justly preferred by Solomon
to riches, power, and all exterior attainments. The blue _colour_ of
the sapphire represented faith; the verdure of the emerald hope; the
richness of the ruby charity; and the splendour of the topaz good works.
DRUID'S SEAT.
[Illustration: [++] Druid's Judgment Seat.]
The singular pile of stones which we have sketched here is popularly
called the "Druid's Judgment Seat," and stands near the village of
Killiney, not far from Drogheda, near the Martello Tower. It was
formerly enclosed within a circle of great stones and a ditch. The
former has been destroyed, and the latter so altered that little
of its ancient character remains. The "Seat" is composed of large,
rough, granite blocks, and if really of the period to which tradition
refers it, an unusual degree of care must have been exercised for its
preservation. The following are its measurements: Breadth, at the
base, eleven feet and a half; depth of the seat, one foot nine inches;
extreme height, seven feet.
BOOTS AN OBJECT OF HONOUR.
Among the Chinese no relics are more valuable than the _boots_ which
have been worn by an upright magistrate. In Davis's interesting
description of the empire of China, we are informed, that whenever
a judge of unusual integrity resigns his situation, the people all
congregate to do him honour. If he leaves the city where he has
presided, the crowd accompany him from his residence to the gates,
where his boots are drawn off with great ceremony, to be preserved
in the hall of justice. Their place is immediately supplied by a new
pair, which, in their turn, are drawn off to make room for others
before he has worn them five minutes, it being considered sufficient to
consecrate them that he should have merely drawn them on.
SAINT LAWRENCE.
In the south aisle of the church at Tuxford, beneath a flowery arch is
a very rude relief of St. Lawrence placed on the gridiron. By him is a
fellow with a pair of bellows, blowing the fire, and the executioner
going to turn him. The zealous Fox, in his "Martyrology," has this very
thought, and makes the martyr say, in the midst of his sufferings,
"This side is now roasted; turn me, O tyrant dear."
PARIS GARDEN AT BLACKFRIARS.
[Illustration: [++] Paris Garden.]
The Blackfriar's Road now passes over the site of Paris Garden where,
in the sixteenth century, bear and bull-baiting rejoiced the citizens,
the gala days being usually Sundays. Our cut is copied from the rare
woodcut map in the time of Henry VIII., in the library at Guildhall,
and exhibits in the foreground the kennels for the dogs, and the tanks
in which they were washed. A graphic description of the place has
been left by Paul Hentzner, a German, who visited it in 1598. He says
it was "built in the form of a theatre, for the baiting of bulls and
bears: they are fastened behind, and then worried by great English
bull-dogs; but not without great risk to the dogs, from the horns of
the one and the teeth of the other; and it sometimes happens they are
killed upon the spot: fresh ones are immediately supplied in the place
of those that are wounded or tired. To this entertainment there often
follows that of whipping a blinded bear, which is performed by five or
six men, standing circularly with whips, which they exercise upon him
without any mercy, as he cannot escape from them because of his chain.
He defends himself with all his force and skill, throwing down all who
come within his reach, and are not active enough to get out of it,
and tearing the whips out of their hands, and breaking them. At these
spectacles, and everywhere else, the English are constantly smoking
tobacco. Fruits, such as apples, pears, and nuts, according to the
season, are carried about to be sold, as well as ale and wine."
CANVASS OF AN INSURANCE AGENT.
The Manchester agent of an Insurance Company, gives the following
curious results of a personal canvass at 1,349 houses, in seventy
streets in the district of Hulme and Charlton, chiefly rentals from
£12 to £24 per annum. The inquiry showed that there were 29 insured; 8
persons too old; 11 who never heard of life assurances, and who were
anxious to have it explained to them; 471 who had heard of it, but did
not understand it; 419 who were disinclined to assure; 19 favourable,
if their surplus incomes were not otherwise invested; 89 persons who
had it under consideration, with a view to assure, as soon as their
arrangements were completed, and who appointed times for the agent to
call again; 21 refused the circulars, or to allow an explanation; 175
doors not answered; 102 houses empty; 3 had sufficient property not to
require it; 1 favourable, but afraid of litigation; 1 preferred the
saving's bank; 1 used abusive language; 2 would trust their families to
provide for themselves; and 1 had been rejected by an office, although
he never was unwell, and was consequently afraid to try again, although
very anxious.
TERRA-COTTA WRITINGS.
The Assyrians, unlike any other nation of antiquity, employed pottery
for the same objects, and to the same extent as papyrus was used in
Egypt. Thus bulletins recording the king's victories, and even the
annals of his reign, were published on terra-cotta cylinders, shaped
like a rolling-pin, and usually hollow, and on hollow hexagonal
prisms. These are of a remarkably fine material, sometimes unpolished
or unglazed, and at others covered with a vitreous siliceous glaze,
or white coating. On the cylinders the inscriptions are engraved
lengthwise; on the prisms they are in compartments on each face.
Each wedge is about one-eighth of an inch long, and the complicity
with which the characters (a cuneiform writing-hand) are arranged is
wonderful, and renders them extremely difficult for a tyro to read.
Those hitherto published or known, contain the annals of the reign of
Sennacherib, and the précis of the reign of another king.
There are the Shergat cylinder, containing the History of Tiglath
Pileser; a cylinder of Sargon; Sennacherib's cylinders; Esarhaddon's
cylinder.
Sales of land and other title-deeds were also incised on pieces of this
polished terra-cotta, and, in order to prevent any enlargement of the
document, a cylinder was run round the edges, leaving its impression
in relief; or if the names of witnesses were affixed, each impressed
his oval seal on the wet terra-cotta, which was then carefully baked
in the kiln. The celebrated cylinders of carnelian, chalcedony, and
other substances, were in fact the official or private seals by which
the integrity of these documents was attested. These title-deeds are
portable documents of four or five inches square, convex on each side,
and occasionally also at the edges. Their colour varies, being a bright
polished brown, a pale yellow, and a very dark tint, almost black. The
paste of which they are made is remarkably fine and compact. The manner
in which the characters were impressed on the terra-cotta barrels and
cylinders is not known; those on the bricks used for building were
apparently stamped from a mould, but those on the deeds and books
were separately incised, perhaps with a prismatic stick, or rod, or,
as others have conjectured, with the edge of a square rod of metal.
In some instances, where this substance was used for taking accounts,
it seems just possible that the moist clay, rolled up like paste, may
have been unrolled and incised with rods. The characters are often so
beautifully and delicately made, that it must have required a finely
constructed tool to produce them.
Some small fragments of a fine reddish-grey terra-cotta which have been
found among the ruins, appear to contain calculations or inventories,
whilst others are perhaps syllabaries or vocabularies, to guide the
Assyrian readers of these difficult inscriptions. A large chamber, or
library, of these archives, comprising histories, deeds, almanacks, and
spelling-books, was found in the palace of Sennacherib at Kouyunjik.
It is supposed that altogether about 20,000 of these clay tablets
or ancient books of the Assyrians, containing the literature of
the country, have been discovered. Some of the finer specimens are
covered with a pale straw-covered engobe, over which has been thrown a
glaze. Some horoscopes have been already found on stone, and careful
examination has now detected the records of some astronomer royal of
Babylon or Nineveh inscribed on a brick. Thus, while the paper and
parchment learning of the Byzantine and Alexandrian schools has almost
disappeared after a few centuries, the granite pages of Egypt, and the
clay leaves of Assyria, have escaped the ravages of time and the fury
of barbarism.
In Egypt some receipts and letters have been discovered written on
fragments of tile, and on the fine porcelain of the Chinese are
often found extracts of biographical works, snatches of poetry, and
even whole poems; but the idea of issuing journals, title-deeds,
inventories, histories, prayers, and poems, not from the press, but
from the kiln, is startling in the nineteenth century.
WONDERFUL FORMATION OF THE EYE IN INSECTS.
The perfection which is bestowed on the organs of sense in insects,
especially when we consider their minuteness, is calculated to fill us
with adoring admiration of the skill of "the Great Workmaster." Take an
example from the _eyes_, which are of several kinds, evidently designed
for distinct modes of vision, of which we, who have but one sort of
eyes, can form no adequate notion. The bee and many other insects have
on the crown of the head a number, usually three, of simple glassy
eyes, set like "bull's-eyes" in a ship's deck; and besides these a
great compound eye on each side, consisting of a multitude of lenses
aggregated together upon the same optic nerve. The microscope reveals
to us that the compound eye of an ant contains fifty lenses; that of
a fly, four thousand; that of a dragon-fly, twelve thousand; that of
a butterfly, seventeen thousand; and that of a species of _Mordella_
(a kind of beetle), the amazing number of twenty-five thousand. Every
one of these regular, polished, and many-sided lenses; is the external
surface of a distinct eye, furnished with its own iris and pupil, and
a perfect nervous apparatus. It will thus be seen that each hexagonal
facet forms a transparent horny lens, immediately behind which is a
layer of pigment diminishing to a point in the centre, where it forms
a pupil; that behind this a long six-sided prism, answering to the
crystalline and vitreous humours in the human eye, extends, diminishing
to its lower extremity, where it rests upon the retina, or network
expansion of the optic nerve. Some of the minuter details of this
exquisite organisation are still matters of conflicting opinion; but
these we omit, as our purpose is rather to convey to our readers a
general idea of the structure of this complex organ of vision. "This
also cometh forth from the Lord of Hosts, which is wonderful in counsel
and excellent in working."
FIRST COIN WITH BRITANNIA ON IT.
[Illustration: [++] Roman Coins.]
In process of clearing away the foundations of Old London Bridge many
antiquities were discovered; it had been the great highway over the
Thames from the Roman era, and numerous relics were obtained, varying
in date from that period to our own. We here engrave such specimens
of Roman coins that were found as belong to the Britannic series. The
large central coin is one struck by Hadrian, and remarkable for the
figure of Britannia, the first time impersonated as an armed female
seated on a rock. It is the prototype of the more modern Britannia,
reintroduced by Charles II., and which still appears on our copper
money. The smaller coins are such as were struck, during the reign of
Constantine the Great, in the City of London, and are marked with the
letters P. LON., for "Pecunia Londinensis," money of London.
EXTRAORDINARY FORMATION OF THE TWIN-WORM.
An extraordinary creature was discovered by Dr. Nordman, infesting the
gills of one of our commonest river fishes--_Cyprinus Brama_--and to
which he gave the appropriate appellation of the Twin-worm (_Diplozoon
paradoxum_). It is not more than one-fourth of an inch in length, but
consists of two bodies, precisely resembling each other, united by
a central band, exactly in the manner of the Siamese youths, whose
exhibition excited so much attention in England and America a few
years ago. We might have supposed that, like the human monstrosity
in question, the Twin-worm was formed by the accidental union of two
individuals, if abundant observation had not proved that this is the
common mode of life belonging to the species.
Each portion of the animal is complete in all its organs and economy;
possessing its own sets of suckers, its own mouth, its own digestive
canal, with its tree-like ramifications, its own perfect generative
system, and its own elaborate series of vascular canals,--every organ
or set of organs in the one-half finding its exact counterpart in the
other.
It scarcely detracts from the marvellous character assumed by this
"Twin-worm," that, according to recent observations, the two halves
have already enjoyed a phase of existence as distinct individuals. The
organic union, or "fusion" of two such individuals, is necessary to
the development of the generative system, which, up to that event, is
wanting in each constituent half.
MILL AT LISSOY.
[Illustration: [++] Mill at Lissoy.]
The above picturesque sketch represents the "busy mill" at Lissoy,
better known as "Sweet Auburn--loveliest village of the plain"--the
scene of Goldsmith's beautiful poem of the "Deserted Village." Lissoy,
about six miles from Athlone, stands on the summit of a hill at the
base of which is the mill that forms the subject of our sketch. The
wheel is still turned by the water of a small rivulet, converted,
now and then, by rains, into a sufficient stream. The mill is a mere
country cottage, used for grinding the corn of the neighbouring
peasantry, and retains many tokens of age. Parts of the machinery are,
no doubt, above a century old, and are probably the very same that left
their impress on the poet's memory.
A CASTLE BUILT FOR A GROAT.
The castle of Monkstown, near Cork, is reported by popular tradition to
have been built in 1636, at the cost of only a groat. To explain the
enigma, the following story is told:--Anastatia Goold, who had become
the wife of John Archdeken, determined, while her husband was abroad,
serving in the army of Philip of Spain, to give him evidence of her
thrift on his return, by surprising him with a noble residence which he
might call his own. Her plan was to supply the workmen with provisions
and other articles they required, for which she charged the ordinary
price; but, as she had made her purchases wholesale, upon balancing her
accounts, it appeared that the retail profit had paid all the expenses
of the structure except fourpence! The Archdekens were an Anglo-Irish
family, who "degenerating" became "Hibernices quam Hiberniores"--more
Irish than the Irish themselves--and assumed the name of Mac Odo, or
Cody. They "forfeited," in 1688, having followed the fortunes of James
II.
BATTLE OF WATER-SNAKES.
The following story is narrated by Mr. St. John, in his "Letters of
an American Farmer." After describing the size and strength of some
hemp-plants, around which a wild vine had formed natural arbours,
he thus proceeds:--"As I was one day sitting, solitary and pensive,
in this primitive arbour, my attention was engaged by a strange
sort of rustling noise at some paces distance. I looked all around
without distinguishing anything, until I climbed up one of my great
hemp-stalks; when, to my astonishment, I beheld two snakes of a
considerable length, the one pursuing the other with great celerity
through a hemp-stubble field. The aggressor was of the black kind, six
feet long; the fugitive was a water snake, nearly of equal dimensions.
They soon met, and in the fury of their first encounter, appeared in an
instant firmly twisted together; and whilst their united tails beat the
ground, they mutually tried, with open jaws, to lacerate each other.
What a fell aspect did they present! Their heads were compressed to a
very small size; their eyes flashed fire; but, after this conflict had
lasted about five minutes, the second found means to disengage itself
from the first, and hurried towards the ditch. Its antagonist instantly
assumed a new posture, and, half-creeping, half-erect, with a majestic
mien, overtook and attacked the other again, which placed itself in
a similar attitude, and prepared to resist. The scene was uncommon
and beautiful; for, thus opposed, they fought with their jaws, biting
each other with the utmost rage; but, notwithstanding this appearance
of mutual courage and fury, the water snake still seemed desirous of
retreating towards the ditch, its natural element. This was no sooner
perceived by the keen-eyed black one, than, twisting its tail twice
round a stalk of hemp, and seizing its adversary by the throat, not by
means of its jaws, but by twisting its own neck twice round that of the
water snake, he pulled it back from the ditch. To prevent a defeat,
the latter took hold likewise of a stalk on the bank, and, by the
acquisition of that point of resistance, became a match for his fierce
antagonist. Strange was this to behold; two great snakes strongly
adhering to the ground, mutually fastened together by means of the
writhings which lashed them to each other, and stretched at their full
length; they pulled, but pulled in vain; and in the moments of greatest
exertion, that part of their bodies which was entwined seemed extremely
small, while the rest appeared inflated, and now and then convulsed
with strong undulations rapidly following each other. Their eyes
appeared on fire, and ready to start out of their heads. At one time
the conflict seemed decided; the water snake bent itself into great
folds, and by that operation rendered the other more than commonly
outstretched; the next minute the new struggles of the black one gained
an unexpected superiority; it acquired two great folds likewise, which
necessarily extended the body of its adversary in proportion as it
had contracted its own. These efforts were alternate; victory seemed
doubtful, inclining sometimes to one side, sometimes to the other,
until at last the stalk to which the black snake was fastened suddenly
gave way, and, in consequence of this accident, they both plunged into
the ditch. The water did not extinguish their vindictive rage, for by
their agitations I could still trace, though I could not distinguish,
their attacks. They soon reappeared on the surface, twisted together,
as in their first onset; but the black snake seemed to retain its
wonted superiority, for its head was exactly fixed above that of the
other, which it incessantly pressed down under the water, until its
opponent was stifled, and sank. The victor no sooner perceived its
enemy incapable of further resistance, than, abandoning it to the
current, it returned to the shore and disappeared."
FATES OF THE FAMILIES OF ENGLISH POETS.
It is impossible to contemplate the early death of Byron's only child
without reflecting sadly on the fates of other females of our greatest
poets. Shakspeare and Milton, each died without a son, but both left
daughters, and both names are now extinct. Shakspeare's was soon so.
Addison had an only child--a daughter, a girl of some five or six
years at her father's death. She died, unmarried, at the age of eighty
or more. Farquhar left two girls, dependant on the friendship of his
friend Wilkes, the actor, who stood nobly by them while he lived. They
had a small pension from the Government, and having long outlived
their father, and seen his reputation unalterably established, both
died unmarried. The son and daughter of Coleridge both died childless.
The two sons of Sir Walter Scott died without children--one of two
daughters died unmarried, and the Scotts of Abbotsford and Waverley
are now represented by the children of a daughter. How little could
Scott foresee the sudden failure of male issue? The poet of the "Fairie
Queen" lost a child when very young by fire, when the rebels burned his
house in Ireland. Some of the poets had sons and no daughters. Thus we
read of Chaucer's son,--of Dryden's sons,--of the sons of Burns,--of
Allan Ramsey's son,--of Dr. Young's son,--of Campbell's son,--of
Moore's son,--and of Shelley's son. Ben Johnson survived all his
children. Some, and those amongst the greatest, died unmarried--Butler,
Cowley, Congreve, Otway, Prior, Pope, Gay, Thompson, Cowper, Akenside,
Shenstone, Collins, Gray, Goldsmith, and Rogers, who lately died. Some
were unfortunate in their sons in a sadder way than death could make
them. Lady Lovelace has left three children--two sons and a daughter.
Her mother is still alive to see, perhaps, with a softened spirit, the
shade of the father beside the early grave of his only child. Ada's
looks, in her later years--years of suffering, borne with gentle and
womanly fortitude--have been happily caught by Mr. Henry Phillips,
whose father's pencil has preserved to us the best likeness of Ada's
father.
JEFFERY HUDSON, THE DWARF OF THE COURT OF CHARLES I.
The celebrated dwarf of whom we here give a sketch, was born at Oakham
in Rutlandshire in 1619, and about the age of seven or eight, being
then but eighteen inches high, was retained in the service of the
Duke of Buckingham, who resided at Burleigh-on-the-Hill. Soon after
the marriage of Charles I., the king and queen being entertained at
Burleigh, little Jeffery was served up at table in a cold pie, and
presented by the duchess to the queen, who kept him as her dwarf.
From seven years of age till thirty he shot up to three feet nine
inches, and there fixed. Jeffery became a considerable part of the
entertainment of the court. Sir William Davenant wrote a poem on a
battle between Jeffery and a turkey cock, and in 1638 was published
a very small book, called a "New Year's Gift," presented at court by
the Lady Parvula to the Lord Minimus (commonly called Little Jeffery)
her Majesty's servant, &c. &c., written by Microphilas, with a little
print of Jeffery prefixed. Before this period Jeffery was employed on
a negotiation of great importance; he was sent to France to fetch a
midwife for the queen; and on his return with this gentlewoman and her
majesty's dancing-master, and many rich presents to the queen from her
mother, Mary de Medicis, he was taken by the Dunkirkers. This was in
1630. Besides the presents he was bringing for the queen, he lost to
the value of £2,500 that he had received in France on his own account
from the queen-mother and ladies of that court.
[Illustration: [++] Jeffery Hudson.]
Jeffery thus made of consequence, grew to think himself really so.
He had borne with little temper the teasing of the courtiers and
domestics, and had many squabbles with the king's gigantic porter.
At last, being provoked by Mr. Crofts, a young gentleman of family,
a challenge ensued; and Mr. Crofts coming to the rendezvous armed
only with a squirt, the little creature was so enraged that a real
duel ensued; and the appointment being on horseback, with pistols,
to put them more on a level, Jeffery, with the first fire, shot his
antagonist dead on the spot. This happened in France, whither he had
attended his royal mistress in the troubles.
He was again taken prisoner by a Turkish rover, and sold into Barbary.
He probably did not long remain in slavery; for at the beginning of
the civil war, he was made a captain in the royal army, and in 1644
attended the queen to France, where he remained till the restoration.
At last, upon suspicion of his being privy to the Popish Plot, he was
taken up in 1682 and confined in the Gate-house, Westminster, where he
ended his life in the sixty-third year of his age.
CHURCH AT NEWTON, IRELAND.
[Illustration: [++] Doorway of the Church at Newton, Ireland.]
The ancient doorway, of which, on account of its singular beauty, we
give a sketch, belongs to the church which was built by the first of
the Montgomeries at Newtown in Ireland. Though the church is a fine
and beautiful example of architecture, no attempt whatever has been
made to preserve it from sinking into ruin. The Montgomeries, ancient
lords of this district, were the descendants of that Montgomery who
accidentally killed Henry II., of France, at a tournament. Some years
after the sad event, which was confessedly a mischance, he was taken
by Catherine of Medicis, put to the torture and beheaded; with the
additional penalty of having his children degraded to villeinnage; on
his way to execution, he pronounced this noble and memorable sentence,
in reference to the punishment inflicted on his children, "If they
have not the virtue to raise themselves again, I consent to their
degradation."
INTERESTING CALCULATION.
Some years ago, an eminent zoologist gave the following table as
his estimate of the probable number of existing species of animals,
deduced from facts and principles then known. Later discoveries tend to
increase rather than to diminish the estimate.
Quadrupeds 1,200
Birds 6,800
Reptiles 1,500
Fishes 8,000
Insects 550,000
Worms 2,500
Radiata 1,000
Polypes, &c. 1,530
Testacea 4,500
Naked Testacea 600
making an aggregate of 577,600 species.
VITALITY OF SUPERSTITION.
In the "Annual Register" for 1760, an instance of the belief in
witchcraft is related, which shows how superstition lingers. A dispute
arose in the little village of Glen, in Leicestershire, between two
old women, each of whom vehemently accused the other of witchcraft.
The quarrel at last ran so high that a challenge ensued, and they both
agreed to be tried by the ordeal of swimming. They accordingly stripped
to their shifts--procured some men, who tied their thumbs and great
toes together, cross-wise, and then, with a cart-rope about their
middle, suffered themselves to be thrown into a pool of water. One of
them sank immediately, but the other continued struggling a short time
upon the surface of the water, which the mob deeming an infallible sign
of her guilt, pulled her out, and insisted that she should immediately
impeach all her accomplices in the craft. She accordingly told them
that, in the neighbouring village of Burton, there were several old
women "as much witches as she was." Happily for her, this negative
information was deemed sufficient, and a student in astrology, or
"white-witch," coming up at the time, the mob, by his direction,
proceeded forthwith to Burton in search of all the delinquents. After
a little consultation on their arrival, they went to the old woman's
house on whom they had fixed the strongest suspicion. The poor old
creature on their approach locked the outer door, and from the window
of an upstairs room asked what they wanted. They informed her that
she was charged with being guilty of witchcraft, and that they were
come to duck her; remonstrating with her at the same time upon the
necessity of submission to the ordeal, that, if she were innocent, all
the world might know it. Upon her persisting in a positive refusal to
come down, they broke open the door and carried her out by force, to a
deep gravel-pit full of water. They tied her thumbs and toes together
and threw her into the water, where they kept her for several minutes,
drawing her out and in two or three times by the rope round her middle.
Not being able to satisfy themselves whether she were a witch or no,
they at last let her go or more properly speaking, they left her on
the bank to walk home by herself, if she ever recovered. Next day they
tried the same experiment upon another woman, and afterwards upon a
third; but fortunately, neither of the victims lost her life from this
brutality. Many of the ringleaders in the outrage were apprehended
during the week, and tried before the justices at quarter-sessions. Two
of them were sentenced to stand in the pillory and to be imprisoned for
a month; and as many as twenty more were fined in small sums for the
assault, and bound over to keep the peace for a twelvemonth.
SMALL FEET OF THE CHINESE LADIES.
The compression of ladies' feet to less than half their natural size is
not to be regarded as a mark, or as a consequence, of the inferiority
of the sex; it is merely a mark of gentility. Various accounts are
given of the origin of this custom. One is, that an emperor was jealous
of his wife, and to prevent her from gadding abroad, put her feet in
iron stocks. Another is, that a certain empress, Tan-ke (B.C. 1100),
was born with club-feet, and that she caused the emperor to issue an
edict, adopting her foot as the model of beauty, and requiring the
compressing of female infants' feet so as to conform to the imperial
standard. While a third account is, that the Emperor Le-yuh (A.D. 961)
was amusing himself one day in his palace, when the thought occurred
to him that he might improve the appearance of the feet of a favourite
concubine. He caused her feet to be so bent as to raise the instep
into an arch, to resemble the new moon. The figure was much admired
by the courtiers, who soon began to introduce it into their families.
It is said that another emperor, two hundred years later, placed a
stamp of the lotus-flower (water-lily) on the sole of the small shoe
of his favorite concubine, so that at every step she took she left on
the ground the print of the flower; hence girls with small feet are
complimented at the present day as "the golden lilies." The operation
of bandaging and compressing the feet is very painful; children cry
very much under it. Mortification of the feet has been known to result
from the cruel practice. Custom, however, imposes it as a necessary
attraction in a woman. An old gentleman at Canton, being asked the
reason why he had bandaged his daughter's feet, replied, that if she
had large feet she could not make a good marriage.
WONDERFUL CONSTRUCTION OF THE SEA-URCHIN.
Professor Forbes informs us that in a moderate-sized Urchin there are
sixty-two rows of pores in each of the ten avenues, and as there are
three pairs of pores in each row, the total number of pores is 3,720;
but as each sucker occupies a pair of pores, the number of suckers is
1,860. He says, also, that there are above three hundred plates of one
kind, and nearly as many of another, all dovetailing together with the
greatest nicety and regularity, bearing on their surfaces above 4,000
spines, each spine perfect in itself, and of a complicated structure,
and having a free movement in its socket. "Truly," he adds, "the
skill of the Great Architect of Nature is not less displayed in the
construction of a Sea-urchin than in the building up of a world!"
IVORY SCEPTRE OF LOUIS XII.
[Illustration: [++] Ivory Sceptre.]
The above engraving represents an ivory sceptre, or Main de Justice,
which was made at the early part of the sixteenth century for Louis
XII., King of France. The three parts 1, 2, 3, screw together and form
the sceptre. Fig. 4 is the hand on the top of the sceptre, given on
a larger scale, showing the ring set with a small pearl, worn on the
third finger. Fig. 5 is the inscription on the sceptre; it is engraved
in relievo upon three of the convex decorations, and commences on the
lowest one.
TOMB OF CÆCILIA METELLA.
[Illustration: [++] Tomb of Cæcilia Metella.]
Of the tombs of Consular Rome nothing remains except perhaps the
sarcophagus of Scipio; and it is only on the eve of the Empire that we
meet with the well-known one of Cæcilia Metella, the wife of Crassus,
which is not only the best specimen of a Roman tomb now remaining to
us, but the oldest building of the imperial city of which we have
an authentic date. It consists of a bold square basement about 100
ft. square, which was originally ornamented in some manner not now
intelligible. From this rose a circular tower about 94 ft. in diameter,
of very bold masonry, surmounted by a brace of ox-skulls with wreaths
joining them, and a well-profiled cornice: 2 or 3 courses of masonry
above this seem to have belonged to the original work; and above this,
almost certainly, in the original design rose a conical roof, which has
perished. The tower having been used as a fortress in the middle ages,
battlements have been added to supply the place of the roof, and it
has been otherwise disfigured, so as to detract much from its beauty
as now seen. Still we have no tomb of the same importance so perfect,
nor one which enables us to connect the Roman tombs so nearly with the
Etruscan. The only addition in this instance is that of the square
basement or podium, though even this was not unknown at a much earlier
period, as for instance in the tomb of Aruns. The exaggerated height
of the circular base is also remarkable. Here it rises to be a tower
instead of a mere circular base of stones for the earthen cone of the
original sepulchre. The stone roof which probably surmounted the tower
was a mere reproduction of the original earthen cone.
POGONIAS.
These vocal fish differ from the umbrinas in having their jaws tagged
laterally with many, in place of carrying but one barbel at the
symphysis. Schoeff reports of them that they will assemble round the
keel of a vessel at anchor, and serenade the crew; and Mr. John White,
lieutenant in the navy of the United States, in his voyage to the
seas of China, relates to the same purpose, that being at the mouth
of the river of Cambodia, the ship's company were "astonished by some
extraordinary sounds which were heard around the bottom of the vessel.
They resembled," he says, "a mixture of the bass of the organ, the
sound of bells, the guttural cries of a large frog, and the tones which
imagination might attribute to an enormous harp; one might have said
the vessel trembled with it. The noises increased, and finally formed
a universal chorus over the entire length of the vessel and the two
sides. In proportion as we went up the river the sounds diminished, and
finally ceased altogether." As the interpreter told Captain White, the
ship had been followed by a "troop of fish of an oval and flattened
form," they were most probably pogonias. Humboldt met with a similar
adventure in the South Sea, but without suspecting its cause. "On
February 20th, 1803, at seven P.M., the whole crew was astounded by a
very extraordinary noise, resembling drums beaten in the air; we at
first attributed it to the breakers; speedily it was heard all over
the vessel, especially towards the poop, and was like the noise which
escapes from fluid in a state of ebullition; we began to fear there
might be some leak in the bottom. It was heard synchronously in all
parts of the vessel, but finally, about nine P.M., ceased altogether."
How these fish manage to _purr_ in the deep, and by means of what organ
they communicate the sound to the external air, is wholly unknown. Some
suppose it to proceed from the swim-bladder; but if that be the drum,
what is the drumstick that beats upon it? And cushioned as it is in an
obese envelope and without issue, the swim-bladder cannot be a bagpipe
or wind instrument.
CURIOUS ADVERTISEMENT.
The following appeared in the public papers of January 24th,
1737:--"Whereas Frances, wife of the Right Honourable the Lord Viscount
Vane, has, for some months past, absented herself from her husband,
and the rest of her friends:--I do hereby promise to any person or
persons who shall discover where the said lady Vane is concealed, to
me, or to Francis Hawes, esq. her father, so that either of us may
come to the speech of her, the sum of £100, as a reward, to be paid by
me on demand at my lodgings in Piccadilly. I do also promise the name
of the person, who shall make such discovery, shall be concealed, if
desired. Any person concealing or lodging her after this advertisement,
will be prosecuted with the utmost rigour; or, if her ladyship will
return to me, she may depend upon being kindly received. She is about
twenty-two years of age, tall, well-shaped, has light-brown hair, is
fair-complexioned, and has her upper teeth placed in an irregular
manner. She had on, when she absented, a red damask French sacque, and
was attended by a French woman, who speaks very bad English.
"VANE."
THE EYE OF THE CHAMELEON.
A most extraordinary aspect is communicated to chameleons by the
structure and movements of their eyes. In the first place, the head is
enormous, and, being three-sided, with projecting points and angles,
makes a sufficiently uncouth visage; but the eyes which illuminate
this notable head-piece must, indeed, to borrow for the nonce the
phraseology of Barnum, "be seen to be appreciated." There is on
each side an immense eye-ball, full and prominent, but covered with
the common shagreened skin of the head, except at the very entre,
where there is a minute aperture, corresponding to the pupil. These
great punctured eye-balls roll about hither and thither, but with
no symmetry. You cannot tell whether the creature is looking at you
or not; he seems to be taking what may be called a general view of
things--looking at nothing in particular, or rather, to save time,
looking at several things at once. Perhaps both eyes are gazing
upwards at your face; a leaf quivers behind his head, and in a moment
_one eye_ turns round towards the object, while the other retains its
upward gaze: presently a fly appears; one eye rapidly and interestedly
follows all its movements, while the other leisurely glances hither and
thither, or remains steady. Accustomed as we are to see in almost all
animals the two eyes move in unison, this want of sympathy produces an
effect most singular and ludicrous.
DIVING FOR A WIFE.
In many of the Greek islands, the diving for Sponge forms a
considerable part of the occupation of the inhabitants, as it has
done from the most remote antiquity. Hasselquist says:--"Himia is a
little, and almost unknown island directly opposite Rhodes. It is worth
notice, on account of the singular method the Greeks, inhabitants of
the island, have to get their living. In the bottom of the sea the
common Sponge is found in abundance, and more than in any other place
in the Mediterranean. The inhabitants make it a trade to fish up this
Sponge, by which they get a living far from contemptible, as their
goods are always wanted by the Turks, who use an incredible number of
Sponges at their bathings and washings. A girl in this island is not
permitted by her relations to marry before she has brought up a certain
quantity of Sponges, and before she can give proof of her agility by
taking them from a certain depth." In other islands the same custom
prevails, but with reversed application, as in Nicarus, where the
father of a marriageable daughter bestows her on the best diver among
her suitors,--"He that can stay longest in the water, and gather the
most Sponges, marries the maid."
KNIGHT'S COSTUME OF THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY.
The engraving represents a knight's costume of the year 1272,
taken from the library of MSS. at Paris. It is that of a Count
Hohenschwangen, of the family of Welf, and depicts the wearer in a
long sleeveless, dark blue surcoat, with his armorial device; a white
swan on a red field with a light red border. Under his coat he wears
a _cap-a-pié_ suit of mail. The helmet is original, very like the
Greek, with the furred mantle as we see it in the seal of Richard King
of England, of the date of 1498. This helmet does not appear to be a
tilting helmet, which usually rests upon the shoulders; but this kind
of helmet would be fastened, like the vizor with the mailed hood, by
an iron throat-brace, and a leather thong. Upon the covered helmet he
wears the swan as a crest. The sword-hilt is of gold, the sheath black,
the girdle white, the furred mantle is red, lined with white.
[Illustration: [++] Knight's Costume of 1272.]
Chivalry began in Europe about A.D. 912. From the twelfth to the
fifteenth century it had considerable influence in refining the manners
of most of the nations of Europe. The knight swore to accomplish the
duties of his profession as the champion of God and the ladies. He
devoted himself to speak the truth, to maintain the right, to protect
the distressed, to practise courtesy, to fulfil obligations, and
to vindicate in every perilous adventure his honour and character.
Chivalry, which owed its origin to the feudal system, expired with it.
The origin of the title of knight, as a military honour, is said to be
derived from the siege of Troy, but this solely depends on a passage or
two in Homer, and the point is disputed by several learned commentators.
CURIOUS CIRCUMSTANCE.
Button, in his Life, tells us of one of his ancestors, a trooper, who,
seeing a young girl at the river-side, lading water into her pail,
cast a large stone with design to splash her; but not being versed
in directing a stone so well as a bullet, he missed the water, and
broke her head; he ran off. Twelve years afterwards, he settled at
Derby, courted a young woman, and married her. In the course of their
conversations he proved to be the very man who had cast the stone, and
she the girl with the broken head.
FUNEREAL JAR.
The term "funereal" has been erroneously applied to all pottery
found in tombs, even where the utensils have no relation to funereal
purposes, but were probably in common use. There have been found,
however, in Corsica vessels of earthenware, which may strictly be
called "funereal."
Though the precise period of the fabrication of the funereal vessels
found in Corsica is not ascertained, they must be considered of very
ancient date. These vessels, when found entire, at first appear
completely closed up, and no trace of joining can be discovered. But
it has been ascertained that they are composed of two equal parts, the
end of one fitting exactly into the other, and so well closed that
the body, or at least the bones which they contain, appear to have
been placed within them before they were baked upon the kiln. Diodorus
Siculus, in speaking of the usages of the Balearic Isles, states that
these people were in the habit of beating, with clubs, the bodies of
the dead which, when thus rendered flexible, were deposited in vessels
of earthenware. This practice of the Corsicans coincides singularly
with that of the Coroados Indians, who inhabit a village on the Paraïba
river, near Campos, in the Brazils. They use large earthen vessels,
called _camucis_, as funereal urns. The bodies of their chiefs, reduced
to mummies, are placed in them in a bent posture, decked with their
ornaments and arms, and are then deposited at the foot of the large
trees of the forest.
[Illustration: [++] Funereal Jar.]
The cut which we here give speaks for itself. It represents the
funereal jar containing the chief as described; the animal at his feet
appears to be a panther or tiger cat.
WRITING MATERIALS.
The materials used for writing on have varied in different ages and
nations. Among the Egyptians slices of limestone, leather, linen, and
papyrus, especially the last, were universally employed. The Greeks
used bronze and stone for public monuments, wax for memorandums and
papyrus for the ordinary transactions of life. The kings of Pergamus
adopted parchment, and the other nations of the ancient world chiefly
depended on a supply of the paper of Egypt. But the Assyrians and
Babylonians employed for their public archives, their astronomical
computations, their religious dedications, their historical annals,
and even for title-deeds and bills of exchange, tablets, cylinders,
and hexagonal prisms of terra-cotta. Two of these cylinders, still
extant, contain the history of the campaign of Sennacherib against
the kingdom of Judah; and two others, exhumed from the Birs Nimroud,
give a detailed account of the dedication of the great temple by
Nebuchadnezzar to the seven planets. To this indestructible material,
and to the happy idea of employing it in this manner, the present age
is indebted for a detailed history of the Assyrian monarchy; whilst
the decades of Livy, the plays of Menander and the lays of Anacreon,
confided to a more perishable material, have either wholly or partly
disappeared amidst the wreck of empires.
CURIOUS DISPUTE AND APPROPRIATE DECISION.
Fuller, in his 'Holy State,' p. 170, gives a very _apposite_ story; a
poor man in Paris, being very hungry, went into a cook shop, and staid
there so long, (for the master was dishing-up meat,) that his appetite
being lessened by the steam, he proposed to go without his meal; the
cook insisted upon payment all the same. At length, the altercation was
agreed to be referred to the first person that passed the door; that
person happened to be a notorious idiot. Having heard the complaint, he
decreed that the poor man's money should be placed between two empty
dishes, and that the cook should be recompensed with the jingling of
his cash, as the other was with the fumes of the meat; and this little
anecdote is literally matter of fact.
THE TEA-POT.
No specimen of the ceramic art possesses greater variety of form than
the tea-pot. On none has the ingenuity of the potter been more fully
exercised, and it is worthy of remark, that the first successful
production of Böttcher in hard porcelain was a tea-pot. The so-called
Elizabethan tea-pots must be of a later date, for tea was not known in
England until the time of Charles II; but it is interesting to trace
the gradual increase in the size of the tea-pot, from the diminutive
productions of the Elers, in the time of Queen Anne and George I., when
tea was sold in apothecaries' shops, to the capacious vessel which
supplied Dr. Johnson with "the cup that cheers but not inebriates."
Mr. Croker, in his edition of Boswell's Life, mentions a tea-pot that
belonged to Dr. Johnson which held two quarts; but this sinks into
insignificance compared with the superior magnitude of that in the
possession of Mrs. Marryat, of Wimbledon, who purchased it at the sale
of Mrs. Piozzi's effects at Streatham. This tea-pot, which was the one
generally used by Dr. Johnson, holds more than three quarts. It is
of old Oriental porcelain, painted and gilded, and from its capacity
was well suited to the taste of one "whose tea-kettle had no time to
cool, who with tea solaced the midnight hour, and with tea welcomed
the morn." George IV. had a large assemblage of tea-pots, piled in
pyramids, in the Pavilion at Brighton. Mrs. Elizabeth Carter was also
a collector of tea-pots, each of which possessed some traditionary
interest, independently of its intrinsic merit; but the most diligent
collector of tea-pots was the late Mrs. Hawes. She bequeathed no less
than three hundred specimens to her daughter, Mrs. Donkin, who has
arranged them in a room appropriated for the purpose. Among them are
several formerly belonging to Queen Charlotte. Many are of the old
Japan; one with two divisions, and two spouts for holding both black
and green tea; and another of a curious device, with a small aperture
at the bottom to admit the water, there being no opening at the top,
atmospheric pressure preventing the water from running out. This
singular Chinese toy has been copied in the Rockingham ware.
PROTRACTED SLEEP.
One of the most extraordinary instances of excessive sleep is that
of the lady at Nismes, published in 1777, in the "Memoirs of the
Royal Academy of Sciences at Berlin." Her attacks of sleep took place
periodically, at sunrise and about noon. The first continued till
within a short time of the accession of the second, and the second
continued till between seven and eight in the evening--when she awoke,
and continued so till the next sunrise. The most extraordinary fact
connected with this case is, that the first attack commenced always
at daybreak, whatever might be the season of the year, and the other
always immediately after twelve o'clock. During the brief interval of
wakefulness which ensued shortly before noon, she took a little broth,
which she had only time to do when the second attack returned upon
her, and kept her asleep till the evening. Her sleep was remarkably
profound, and had all the character of complete insensibility, with
the exception of a feeble respiration, and a weak but regular movement
of the pulse. The most singular fact connected with her remains to be
mentioned. When the disorder had lasted six months, and then ceased,
the patient had an interval of perfect health for the same length of
time. When it lasted one year, the subsequent interval was of equal
duration. The affection at last wore gradually away; and she lived,
entirely free of it, for many years after. She died in the eighty-first
year of her age, of dropsy, a complaint which had no connexion with her
preceding disorder.
ANCIENT SUIT OF MAIL.
The two figures depicted on next page represent Henry of Metz receiving
the oriflamme from the hands of St. Denis, derived from a painted
window in the church of Nôtre Dame de Chartres. The oriflamme was a
red banner attached to a staff, and cut in the manner shown in our
engraving. Henry of Metz was Marshal of France, and is here represented
in a complete suit of mail, his hood being thrown back upon his
shoulders. This suit is perfect, even to the extremities; and it is to
be remarked that the defence for the hands is divided in the manner of
a common glove. Over the mail is worn a loose surcoat, on which is
emblazoned the cross, traversed by a red baton--the type of his high
office.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Suit of Mail.]
THE POISON CUP.
[Illustration: [++] The Poison Cup.]
In the time of James I. poison was too frequently resorted to,
especially on the Continent, as a means of getting rid of individuals
who had rendered themselves obnoxious to certain parties who were
prosecuting their own private ends; and so extensively did this
infamous practice prevail that there was a class of persons who
were known to have studied the art of secret poisoning, and whose
services could be engaged for a high reward. In order to counteract the
operations of the poisoners, various devices were employed, and among
them was the art which the pretended magicians of those days professed
to have discovered, of making a kind of glass which would fly in pieces
if poison was poured into any vessel that was formed of it. The cut at
the head of our article represents a tankard of this sort, in which
the glass is mounted in silver gilt arabesque and silver filagree. It
was believed that the large crystal which is seen standing out at the
centre of the lid would become discoloured at the approach of poison.
The tankard is a work of the sixteenth century, and was presented to
Clare Hall, Cambridge--where it is still preserved--by Dr. William
Butler, an eminent physician in the time of James I.
PORCELAIN FINGER-RINGS.
The porcelain finger-rings of ancient Egypt are extremely beautiful;
the band of the ring being seldom above one-eighth of an inch in
thickness. Some have a plate on which, in bas-relief, is the god _Set_,
or _Baal_, full face, or playing on the tambourine, as the inventor of
Music; others have their plates in the shape of the right symbolical
eye, the emblem of the Sun; of a fish, of the perch species; or of
a scarabæus, which is said to have been worn by the military order.
Some few represent flowers. Those which have elliptical plates with
hieroglyphical inscriptions, bear the names of Amen-Ra, and of other
gods and monarchs, as Amenophis III., Amenophis IV., and Amenanchut,
of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth dynasties. One of these rings has
a little bugle on each side, as if it had been strung on the beaded
work of a mummy, instead of being placed on the finger. Blue is the
prevalent colour, but a few white and yellow rings, and some even
ornamented with red and purple colours are found. It is not credible
that these rings, of a substance finer and more fragile than glass,
were worn during life. Neither is it likely that they were worn by the
poorer classes, for the use of the king's name on sepulchral objects
seems to have been restricted to functionaries of state. Some larger
rings of porcelain of about an inch diameter, seven-eighths of an inch
broad, and one-sixteenth of an inch thick, made in open work, represent
the constantly repeated lotus flowers, and the god Ra, or the Sun,
seated, and floating through the heaven in his boat. Common as these
objects were in Egypt, where they were employed as substitutes for
the hard and precious stones, to the Greeks, Etruscans, and Italian
Greeks they were articles of luxury, just as the porcelain of China
was to Europeans some centuries ago. The Etruscans set these bugles,
beads, and amulets in settings of their exquisite gold filigree work,
intermixed with gold beads and precious stones. Strung as pendants they
hung round the necks of the fair ones of Etruria. In one of the tombs
already alluded to at the Polledrara, near Vulci, in Italy, was found
a heap of annular and curious Egyptian bugles, which had apparently
formed a covering to some bronze objects, but the strings having given
way, the beads had dropped to pieces. These, as well as the former,
had been obtained from some of the Egyptian markets, like that at
Naucratis: or from the Phoenician merchants, in the same manner as the
flasks. One of the most remarkable of these personal ornaments is a
bracelet, composed of small fish strung together and secured by a clasp.
PIGEON CATCHING NEAR NAPLES.
Between La Cava and Naples, about half a mile from the town, are
certain Bluebeard-looking towers, several centuries old, erected for
the purpose of snaring wood-pigeons; with which view the gentlemen of
the neighbourhood, who are generally expert and practised slingers,
assemble and man the towers in May. A long line of nets, some quarter
of a mile in circuit, held up in a slanting position by men concealed
in stone sentry-boxes placed here and there along the _enceinte_, is
spread in front. As the pigeons are seen advancing (the time of their
approach is generally looked for at early dawn, when they are making
for the woods), the nearest slingers commence projecting a succession
of white stones in the direction of the nets. These the birds no sooner
behold, then attracted, or alarmed (for the motive does not certainly
appear), they swoop down upon them, and when sufficiently near to fall
within reach of the nets, the persons holding let go, rush from their
ambush, and secure the covey. Thousands of wood-pigeons are thus, we
have been told by a proprietor, annually taken, and transmitted for
presents to distant friends; as we used to send out game, before the
sale of it was legalised. Thus birds, as well as fish, and fish as well
as man, often get entangled and caught in their headlong pursuit of a
pleasure that still eludes them.
FRAME REQUISITE TO SUPPORT THE DRESS.
James I., and his subjects who wished to clothe themselves loyally,
wore stupendous breeches. Of course the "honourable gentleman" of
the House of Commons were necessarily followers of the fashion. But
it led to inconveniences in the course of their senatorial duties.
It was an old mode revived; and at an earlier day, when these nether
garments were ample enough to have covered the lower man of Boanerges,
the comfort of the popular representative was thus cared for:--"Over
the seats in the parliament-house, there were certain holes, some two
inches square, in the walls, in which were placed posts to uphold a
scaffold round about the house within, for them to sit upon who used
the wearing of great breeches stuffed with hair like wool-sacks, which
fashion being left the eighth year of Elizabeth, the scaffolds were
taken down, and never since put up." So says Strutt; but doubtless the
comforts of the members were not less cared for when the old fashion
again prevailed.
PRICES OF SÈVRES PORCELAIN.
As one of the curiosities of luxury and taste it is worth while to note
the high prices for which some portions of the very choice collection
of Sèvres porcelain at Stowe were sold:--A small coffee cup, which
weighed scarcely three ounces, realised 46 guineas; and another,
similar, but somewhat inferior, sold for 35 guineas. A chocolate cup
and saucer, Bleu de Roi, with beautiful miniatures of two ladies of
the Court of Louis XV., and four paintings of Cupids, though slightly
injured during the view, realised 45 guineas. The prices obtained for
most of the cups and saucers were from 10 to 12 guineas. A beautiful
specimen of a Bleu de Roi cup, saucer and cover, jewelled in festoons,
cameos, and imitation of pearls, sold for £35 10s.; and another,
somewhat inferior, for 21 guineas. A salver, mounted in a table with
ormolu ornaments, sold for 81 guineas; the companion piece for £100.
HENRY THE EIGHTH'S CHAIR.
In the earlier half of the sixteenth century a large proportion of
the furniture used in this country, as well as of the earthenware and
other household implements during the greater part of that century, was
imported from Flanders and the Netherlands. Hence, in the absence of
engravings at home, we are led to look at the works of the Flemish and
German artists for illustrations of domestic manners at this period.
The seats of that day were termed joint (or joined) stools and chairs.
A rather fine example of a chair of this work, which was, as was often
the case, three-cornered, is preserved in the Ashmolean museum, at
Oxford, where it is reported to have been the chair of Henry VIII. We
here annex a sketch of it.
[Illustration: [++] Henry the Eighth's Chair.]
MULLET AND TURBOT WITH THE ROMANS.
The Romans were enthusiastic for the mullet. It was for them _the_
fish, _par excellence_. It was sometimes served up six pounds in
weight, and such a fish was worth £60 sterling. It was cooked on the
table, for the benefit and pleasure of the guests. In a glass vessel
filled with brine made from water, the blood of the mackerel, and salt,
the live mullet, stripped of all its scales, was enclosed; and as its
fine pink colour passed through its dying gradations, until paleness
and death ensued, the _convives_ looked on admiringly, and lauded the
spectacle.
The turbot was next in estimation, but as, occasionally, offending
slaves were flung into the turbot preserves for the fish to feed upon,
some gastronomists have affected to be horror-stricken at the idea
of eating a _turbot a la Romaine_; quite forgetting that so many of
our sea-fish, in their domain, feed largely on the human bodies which
accident, or what men call by that name, casts into the deep.
"TOO LATE," QUOTH BOICE.
The history of the ancient castle of Maynooth is one of much interest;
abounding in incidents akin to romance. In the reign of Henry the
Eighth, during the rebellion of "Silken Thomas," one of the bravest
and most heroic of the Geraldines, it was taken by treachery. In the
absence of its lord, the governorship was entrusted to "Christopher
Parese," his foster-brother. This "white-livered traitor resolved to
purchase his own security with his lord's ruin;" and therefore sent
a letter to the lord-deputy, signifying that he would betray the
castle, on conditions; "and here the devil betrayed the betrayer,
for in making terms for his purse's profit, he forgot to include his
person's safety." The lord-deputy readily accepted his offer, and,
accordingly, the garrison having gained some success in a sally, and
being encouraged by the governor in a deep joyous carouse, the ward
of the tower was neglected--the traitorous signal given, and the
English scaled the walls. They obtained possession of the strong-hold,
and put the garrison to the sword--"all except two singing men, who,
prostrating themselves before the deputy, warbled a sweet sonnet called
_dulcis amica_, and their melody saved their lives." Parese, expecting
some great reward, with impudent familiarity presented himself before
the deputy, who addressed him as follows:--"Master Parese, thou
hast certainly saved our lord the king much charge, and many of his
subjects' lives, but that I may better know to advise his highness
how to reward thee, I would ascertain what the Lord Thomas Fitzgerald
hath done for thee?" Parese, highly elevated at this discourse,
recounted, even to the most minute circumstance, all the favours that
the Geraldine, even from his youth up, had conferred on him, to which
the deputy replied, "And how, Parese, couldst thou find it in thy heart
to betray the castle of so kind a lord? Here, Mr. Treasurer, pay down
the money that he has covenanted for; and here, also, executioner,
without delay, as soon as the money is counted out, cut off his head!"
"Oh," quoth Parese, "had I known this, your lordship should not have
had the castle so easily." Whereupon Mr. Boice, a secret friend of
the Fitzgerald, a bystander, cried out "Auntraugh," _i. e._ "too
late," which occasioned a proverbial saying, long afterwards used in
Ireland--"Too late, quoth Boice." The castle is said by Archdall to
have been erected by John, the sixth Earl of Kildare, early in the
fifteenth century; but in that case it must have been preceded by some
other defensive structure; for it is certain that the Kildare branch of
the Geraldines resided at Maynooth at a much earlier period. The first
Earl of Kildare, John Fitz Thomas, was created by patent, dated 14th
May, 1316.
SUPPRESSED BIBLES.
1538.--An English Bible, in folio, printed at Paris, unfinished.
1542.--Dutch Bible by Jacob Van Leisvelt. The sixth and best edition
given by Leisvelt, and famous as being the cause of this printer being
beheaded.
1566.--French Bible by Rene Benoist, Paris, 1566, folio, 3 vols.
completed.
1622.--Swedish Bible, printed at Lubeck, in 4to., very defective.
1666.--A German Bible, printed at Helmstedt, in part only, 4to.
1671.--A French Bible, by Marolles, in folio, containing only the books
of Genesis, Exodus, and the first twenty-three chapters of Leviticus.
EXTRAORDINARY REPRODUCTIVE POWER OF THE HYDRA.
One of the fresh-water Polypes, from its power of perpetual
reproduction, has received the name of _Hydra_, by which it is known
among naturalists: as if it realised the ancient monster of fabulous
story, whose heads sprouted anew as fast as they were cut off by
Hercules.
Most curious monstrosities were produced by the experiments of
philosophers on these animals, especially by partial separations. If a
polype be slit from the summit to the middle, one will be formed having
two heads, each of which will capture and swallow food. If these again
be slit half-a-dozen times, as many heads will be formed surmounting
the same body. If now all these be cut off, as many new ones will
spring up in their place, while each of the severed heads becomes a
new polype, capable of being, in its turn, varied and multiplied _ad
infinitum_;--so that in every respect our little reality exceeds its
fabulous namesake.
The polypes may be grafted together. If cut-off pieces be placed in
contact, and pushed together with a gentle force, they will unite and
form a single one. The head of one may be thus planted on the trunk of
another.
Another method of uniting them, perhaps still more wonderful, is by
introducing one within the other; the operator forced the body of the
one into the mouth of the other, pushing it down so that the heads
were brought together. After forcibly keeping it for some time in this
state, the two individuals at length united, and a polype was formed,
distinguishable only by having twice the usual number of tentacles.
There is one species which can actually be turned inside out like a
glove, and yet perform all the functions of life as before, though
that which was the coat of the stomach is now the skin of the body and
_vice versâ_. If it should chance that a polype so turned had young
in the act of budding, these are, of course, now within the stomach.
If they have arrived at a certain degree of maturity, they extend
themselves towards the mouth of the parent, that they may thus escape
when separated. But those which are less advanced turn themselves
spontaneously inside out, and thus place themselves again on the
exterior of the parent.
A multitude of other variations, combinations, and monstrosities, have
been, as it were, created by the ingenuity of philosophers; but these
are sufficient to give a notion of the extraordinary nature of these
animals; and to account for the wonder with which they were regarded.
EGYPT.
Egypt was the land visited by Abraham in search of food, when there
was a famine in his own country;--the land to which Joseph was carried
as a slave, and which he governed as prime minister. From Egypt, Moses
led the Israelites through the waters of the Red Sea. Here Jeremiah
wrote his Lamentations. Here Solon, Pythagoras, Plato, and many other
Greek philosophers, came to study. Here Alexander the Great came as
conqueror; and here the Infant Saviour was brought by his parents to
avoid the persecution of Herod. Egyptian hieroglyphics, in which the
characters are taken from visible objects, are the earliest form of
writing; and the Hebrew and Greek alphabets were both borrowed from
them. Egypt taught the world the use of paper--made from its rush,
the papyrus. In Egypt was made the first public library, and first
college of learned men, namely, the Alexandrian Museum. There Euclid
wrote his Elements of Geometry, and Theocritus his Poems, and Lucian
his Dialogues. The beauty of Cleopatra, the last Egyptian Queen, held
Julius Cæsar, and then Marc Antony, captive. In Egypt were built the
first monasteries; the Christian fathers, Origen and Athanasius, lived
there. The Arien and Athanasian controversy began there.
The buildings which now remain are the oldest buildings in the world,
and the largest in the world. On the banks of its great river may be
seen the oldest arch, and the oldest column. Up this noble river sailed
Herodotus, the most entertaining of travellers, and Strabo, the most
judicious. Indeed, as the country is little more than the narrow strip
that is watered by the Nile's overflow, from the river may be seen
almost all its great cities and temples.
ABYSSINIAN LADIES.
The women of Abyssinia are dressed quite as decently as any women in
the world, without having a particle of the trouble of the ladies of
more civilised nations. There is a distinguishing costume for young
girls, and for those who, from being married or otherwise, are no
longer considered as such. The dress of the former is indeed rather
slight, though far more picturesque than that of the latter. In one
part of the country (about Shiré) the girls merely wear a piece of
cotton stuff wrapped round the waist and hanging down almost to the
knee, and another (or the end of the former, if it be long enough)
thrown over the left shoulder, so as to leave the right arm and breast
exposed. In other parts of Tigrè, a black goat-skin, ornamented with
cowries, is often substituted for this latter. An ordinary woman
wears a large loose shirt down to the feet, with sleeves made tight
towards the wrist. This, with a "quarry" similar to those of the
men, but worn rather differently, and a parasol when out of doors,
is a complete suit. A fine lady, however, as in our engraving, has a
splendid "mergeff quarry," and her shirt is made probably of calico
from Manchester, instead of the country fabric, and richly embroidered
in silk of divers colours and various patterns round the neck, down the
front, and on the cuffs. She will also, of course, own a mule; and then
may choose to wear (alas, that it should be so, even in Abyssinia!) the
inexpressibles. These are made of calico, and rather loose, but getting
gradually tighter at the ankle, where they are embroidered like the
shirt.
[Illustration: [++] Abyssinian Ladies.]
The fair sex all over the world are fond of ornaments. In Abyssinia
they wear a profusion of silver, in the shape of chains, bracelets,
&c., or, to be more explicit, a well-dressed lady will hang three or
four sets of amulets about her neck, as well as her blue cord, and a
large flat silver case (purporting to contain a talisman, but more
often some scented cotton) ornamented with a lot of silver bells
hanging to the bottom edge of it, and the whole suspended by four
chains of the same metal. Three pairs of massive silver and gilt
bracelets are on her wrists, and a similar number of "bangles" on her
ankles; while over her insteps and to her heels are a quantity of
little silver ornaments, strung like beads on a silk cord. Her fingers
(even the upper joints) are covered with plain rings, often alternately
of silver and silver-gilt, and a silver hair-pin, something similar
to those now worn by English ladies, completes her decoration. Women
of the poorer class, and ladies on ordinary occasions, wear ivory
or wooden pins neatly carved in various patterns, and stained red
with henna-leaves. The Abyssinian ladies, like those of most Eastern
nations, stain their hands and feet with henna, and darken their
eyelids with antimony.
[Illustration: 1, 2. Hair-pins made of hard wood, and stained with
henna. 3. Ditto, of silver and fil-et-grain work. (About one-half usual
size.)]
TREATMENT OF LEPERS IN ENGLAND.
According to the tenor of various old civil codes and local enactments,
when a person became affected with leprosy, he was looked upon as
legally and politically dead, and lost the privileges belonging to
his right of citizenship. By the laws of England, lepers were classed
with idiots, madmen, outlaws, &c., as incapable of being heirs. But it
was not by the eye of the law alone that the affected was looked upon
as defunct, for the church also took the same view, and performed the
solemn ceremonials of the burial of the dead over him, on the day on
which he was separated from his fellow creatures, and confined to a
lazar house. The various forms and ceremonies which were gone through
on this occasion are described by French authors; but it is highly
probable that the same observances were common in our own country.
A priest, robed with surplice and stole, went with the cross to the
house of the doomed leper. The minister of the church began the
necessary ceremonies, by exhorting him to suffer, with a patient and
penitent spirit, the incurable plague with which God had stricken him.
He then sprinkled the unfortunate leper with holy water, and afterwards
conducted him to the church, the usual burial services being sung
during their march thither. In the church, the ordinary habiliments of
the leper were removed; he was clothed in a funeral pall, and, while
placed before the altar, between _trestles_, the libera was sung,
and the mass for the dead celebrated over him. After this service he
was again sprinkled with holy water, and led from the church to the
house or hospital destined for his future abode. A pair of clappers, a
barrel, a stick, cowl, and dress, &c., were given him. Before leaving
the leper, the priest solemnly interdicted him from appearing in
public without his leper's garb,--from entering inns, churches, mills,
and bakehouses,--from touching children, or giving them ought he had
touched,--from washing his hands, or any thing pertaining to him, in
the common fountains and streams,--from touching, in the markets, the
goods he wished to buy, with any thing except his stick,--from eating
and drinking with any others than lepers,--and he specially forbade
him from walking in narrow paths, or from answering those who spoke to
him in roads and streets, unless in a whisper, that they might not be
annoyed with his pestilent breath, and with the infectious odour that
exhaled from his body,--and last of all, before taking his departure,
and leaving the leper for ever to the seclusion of the lazar house,
the official of the church terminated the ceremony of his separation
from his living fellow-creatures, by throwing upon the body of the poor
outcast a shovelful of earth, in imitation of the closure of the grave.
According to the then customary usage, Leper Hospitals were always
provided with a cemetery for the reception of the bodies of those who
had died of the malady.
LUMINOUS APPEARANCE OF THE RED SEA.
All who have frequented the Red Sea, have observed the luminous
appearance or phosphorescence of its waters. "It was beautiful," says
a picturesque writer, who sailed from Mocha to Cosseir, "to look down
into this brightly transparent sea, and mark the coral, here in large
masses of honeycomb-rock, there in light branches of a pale red hue,
and the beds of green seaweed, and the golden sand, and the shells, and
the fish sporting round the vessel, and making colours of a beauty to
the eye which is not their own. Twice or thrice we ran on after dark
for an hour or two; and though we were all familiar with the sparkling
of the sea round the boat at night, never have I seen it in other
waters so superlatively splendid. A rope dipped in it and drawn forth
came up as a string of gems; but with a life, and light, and motion,
the diamond does not know." Those sea-lights have been explained by
a diversity of causes; but the singular brilliancy of the Red Sea
seems owing to fish spawn and animalculæ, a conjecture which receives
some corroboration from the circumstance that travellers who mention
it visited the gulf during the spawning period--that is, between the
latter end of December and the end of February. The coral-banks are
less numerous in the southern parts. It deserves notice, that Dr. Shaw
and Mr. Bruce have stated--what could only be true, so far as their own
experience went--that they observed no species of weed or flag; and the
latter proposes to translate Yam Zuph "the Sea of Coral"--a name as
appropriate as that of Edom.
RECENT PRICES OF SLAVES.
Prices of course vary at Constantinople according to the vigilance
of Russian cruisers, and the incorruptibility of Russian agents at
Trebizond, Samsoon, and Sinope. The following is the average price in
Circassia:--
A man of 30 years of age, £10
" 20 " 10 to £30
" 15 " 30 " 70
" 10 " 20 " 50
" 5 " 10 " 30
A woman of 50 years of age, £10 to £30
" 40 " 30 " 40
" 30 " 40 " 70
" 20 to 25 " 50 " 100
" 14 " 18 " 50 " 150
" 8 " 12 " 30 " 80
" 5 " 20 " 40
TATTOOED ABYSSINIAN LADY.
[Illustration: [++] Tattooed Abyssinian Lady.]
The annexed cut is a sketch of an Abyssinian lady, tattooed in the
height of the fashion. The following extract from that interesting
work "Parkyns's Abyssinia" gives a good account of the custom as it
prevails in the larger cities there, and of the manner in which the
operation is performed. "The men seldom tattoo more than one ornament
on the upper part of the arm, near the shoulder, while the women cover
nearly the whole of their bodies with stars, lines, and crosses, often
rather tastefully arranged. I may well say nearly the whole of their
persons, for they mark the neck, shoulders, breasts, and arms, down to
the fingers, which are enriched with lines to imitate rings, nearly
to the nails. The feet, ankles, and calves of the legs, are similarly
adorned, and even the gums are by some pricked entirely blue, while
others have them striped alternately blue and the natural pink. To see
some of their designs, one would give them credit for some skill in
the handling of their pencil; but, in fact, their system of drawing
the pattern is purely mechanical. I had one arm adorned; a rather
blind old woman was the artist; her implements consisted of a little
pot of some sort of blacking, made, she told me, of charred herbs; a
large home-made iron pin, about one-fourth of an inch at the end of
which was ground fine; a bit or two of hollow cane, and a piece of
straw; the two last-named items were her substitutes for pencils.
Her circles were made by dipping the end of a piece of a cane of the
required size into the blacking, and making its impression on the skin;
while an end of the straw, bent to the proper length, and likewise
blackened, marked all the lines, squares, diamonds, &c., which were to
be of equal length. Her design being thus completed, she worked away
on it with her pin, which she dug in as far as the thin part would
enter, keeping the supply of blacking sufficient, and going over the
same ground repeatedly to ensure regularity and unity in the lines.
With some persons, the first effect of this tattooing is to produce
a considerable amount of fever, from the irritation caused by the
punctures; especially so with the ladies, from the extent of surface
thus rendered sore. To allay this irritation, they are generally
obliged to remain for a few days in a case of vegetable matter, which
is plastered all over them in the form of a sort of green poultice.
A scab forms over the tattooing, which should not be picked off, but
allowed to fall off of itself. When this disappears, the operation
is complete, and the marks are indelible; nay more, the Abyssinians
declare that they may be traced on the person's bones even after death
has bared them of their fleshy covering."
BULGARIAN FISHERMEN.
The following interesting account of the Bulgarian fishermen on the
shores of the Black Sea is taken from the translation of a narrative of
a boat excursion made in 1846 by M. Xavier Hommaire, along part of the
northern coast of the Black Sea:--
[Illustration: [++] Bulgarian Fishermen.]
"The fishermen are, almost without exception, Bulgarians--a population
at once maritime and agricultural, very closely resembling, in race
and costume, the Bretons of France--and they enjoy a monopoly of all
the fisheries in the Bosphorus and the adjacent parts of the Black
Sea. Their elegant barks appeared on stated days and hours, shooting
along with extraordinary rapidity through the waters of the Gulf of
Buyuk Déreh, which appears to be their head-quarters, and sustaining
the test of comparison even with the famous caiques of Constantinople.
The most important object of their fishery is a delicious kind of
small thunny, called palamede. They are Bulgarians, also, who own
the singular fisheries which form such admirable subjects for the
artist's sketch-book. They are found throughout the Bosphorus, from
Bechiktusch and Scutari to the lighthouses of Europe and Asia. They
might be called dog-kennels, but rickety and worm-eaten with antiquity,
and are suspended by means of cords, pegs, and tatters to the top
of an indescribable framework of props. There on high, petrified in
motionless and uninterrupted silence, in company with some old pots of
mignionette (where will not the love of flowers find a home!), a man,
with the appearance of a wild beast or savage, leans over the sea, at
the bottom of which he watches the passage of its smallest inhabitants,
and the capricious variations of the current. At a certain distance
is arranged, in the form of a square, a system of nets, which, at
the least signal from the watcher, fall on the entire shoal of fish.
A contrivance yet more primitive than these airy cells, if not so
picturesque, was that of simple posts, which we encountered some time
before in the channel of the Bosphorus, rising about fifteen feet above
the surface of the water. Half-way up is perched, crouching (one cannot
see how), something having the human form, and which is found to be a
Bulgarian. For a long time I watched them without being able to make
them out, either pole or its tenant; and often have I seen them in the
morning, and observed them again in the evening, not having undergone
the least change of posture.
"On returning to our encampment, the commandant of the fort, to whom
we paid a visit, gave us a very different report of the fishermen of
the morning, whom he described as an assemblage of all the vagabonds of
the neighbourhood. Convinced even that the fact of their having fallen
in with us must have inspired them with the project of coming to prowl
by night round our camp, he wished us to accept some of the men in his
garrison as a guard."
HORSES OF THE ARABS.
Arabs make intimate friends of their horses, and so docile are these
creatures that they are ridden without a bit, and never struck or
spurred. They share their owner's diet, and are as well cared for as a
child. They divide their horses, however, into two kinds: The one they
call kadischi, that is, horses of an unknown birth; the other, they
call kochlani, that is, horses whose genealogy is known for thousands
of years. They are direct descendants, so they say, of the stud of
Solomon. The pedigree of an Arabian horse is hung round his neck soon
after his birth, which is always properly witnessed and attested.
The following is the pedigree of a horse purchased by a French officer
in Arabia:--"In the name of God, the merciful and compassionate, and of
Saed Mahomed, agent of the high God, and of the companions of Mahommed,
and of Jerusalem. Praised be the Lord, the Omnipotent Creator. This
is a high-bred horse, and its colt's tooth is here in a bag about
his neck, with his pedigree, and of undoubted authority, such as no
infidel can refuse to believe. He is the son of Rabbamy, out of the dam
Labadah, and equal in power to his sire of the tribe of Zazhalah; he is
finely moulded, and made for running like an ostrich. In the honours
of relationship, he reckons Zuluah, sire of Mahat, sire of Kallac, and
the unique Alket sire of Manasseh, sire of Alsheh, father of the race
down to the famous horse, the sire of Lahalala; and to him be ever
abundance of green meat, and corn, and water of life, as a reward from
the tribe of Zazhalah; and may a thousand branches shade his carcass
from the hyæna of the tomb, from the howling wolf of the desert;
and let the tribe of Zazhalah present him with a festival within an
enclosure of walls; and let thousands assemble at the rising of the
sun in troops hastily, where the tribe holds up under a canopy of
celestial signs within the walls, the saddle with the name and family
of the possessor. Then let them strike the bands with a loud noise
incessantly, and pray to God for immunity for the tribe of Zoab, the
inspired tribe."
DILEMMA.
Protagoras, an Athenian rhetorician, had agreed to instruct Evalthus
in rhetoric, on condition that the latter should pay him a certain sum
of money if he gained his first cause. Evalthus when instructed in all
the precepts of the art, refused to pay Protagoras, who consequently
brought him before the Areopagus, and said to the Judges--"Any verdict
that you may give is in my favour: if it is on my side, it carries
the condemnation of Evalthus; if against me, he must pay me, because
he gains his first cause." "I confess," replied Evalthus, "that the
verdict will be pronounced either for or against me; in either case I
shall be equally acquitted: if the Judges pronounce in my favour, you
are condemned; if they pronounce for you, according to our agreement,
I owe you nothing, for I lose my first cause." The Judges being unable
to reconcile the pleaders, ordered them to reappear before the Court a
hundred years afterwards.
ORIENTAL EXTRAVAGANCE.
Mr. Forbes has given a curious picture of the kind of magnificence
affected by Asuf ul Dowlah, who succeeded his father on the throne
of Oude. This nabob was fond of lavishing his treasures on gardens,
palaces, horses, elephants, European guns, lustres, and mirrors. He
expended annually about £200,000 in English manufactures. He had more
than one hundred gardens, twenty palaces, one thousand two hundred
elephants, three thousand fine saddle horses, one thousand five hundred
double-barrel guns, seventeen hundred superb lustres, thirty thousand
shades of various forms and colours; seven hundred large mirrors,
girandoles and clocks. Some of the latter were very curious, richly set
with jewels, having figures in continual movement, and playing tunes
every hour; two of these clocks only, cost him thirty thousand pounds.
Without taste or judgment, he was extremely solicitous to possess all
that was elegant and rare; he had instruments and machines of every
art and science, but he knew none; and his museum was so ridiculously
arranged that a wooden cuckoo-clock was placed close to a superb
timepiece which cost the price of a diadem; and a valuable landscape of
Claude Lorraine suspended near a board painted with ducks and drakes.
He sometimes gave a dinner to ten or twelve persons, sitting at their
ease in a carriage drawn by elephants. His jewels amounted to about
eight millions sterling. Amidst this precious treasure, he might be
seen for several hours every day handling them as a child does his toys.
ANCIENT SCOTTISH CHIEFTAIN.
[Illustration: [++] Scottish Costume.]
Annexed is a Scottish costume of the eighth or ninth century, after
a drawing on parchment, extracted from an old book, which, according
to the characters on the back, appears to have been written in
Gaelic or Erse. According to the assertion of the possessor, this
Caledonian document was brought to Germany in the year 1596, during the
devastating Reformation in Scotland, when all cloisters and religious
endowments were destroyed, and a perfect victory obtained over the
episcopacy, so that many persons took refuge with their treasures,
on the Continent, where the Scottish monks possessed many religious
houses; some being at Nuremberg. Our figure represents a Highland
chief, whose dress is picturesque and extremely beautiful. The Scottish
tunic or blouse, checkered or striped in light and dark green, with
violet intermixed, and bordered with violet stripes, is covered with a
steel breastplate, accompanied by a back-piece, judging from the iron
brassarts--positively a bequest of the Romans, by whom the Scots were
once subjugated; this, indeed, is also attested by the offensive weapon
the javelin; the sword, however, must be excepted, for it is national
and like that of the present time. The strong shield may also have
descended from the Romans, as well as the helmet, which is decorated
with an eagle's wing; these, together with the hunting-horn, give to
the figure a very imposing appearance. The national plaid is wanting,
this was borne by attendants or squires. We are involuntarily reminded
of the heroes of Fingal and Ossian, and we might almost think that
this figure belonged to the time of the Scottish king, Kenneth the
Second, grandson of King Achaias, and the sister of the Pictish king,
Hang.
GREEK VASES.
Vases of various shapes have been found in the sepulchres of Greece,
such as the _oenochoe_, or jug; the _askos_, or wine-skin; the _phiale
omphalotos_, or saucer having a boss in the centre; _rhyta_, or jugs,
imitated from the _keras_, or horn, as well as some moulded in the
shape of the human bust. Vases of this class, however, occur more
frequently in Italy than in Greece. Some are of remarkable shape. One
in the Durand collection has its interior receded, and in the centre
a medallion of the Gorgon's head; at the edge is the head of a dog or
fox, and to it is attached a long handle terminating in the head of an
animal. Similar handles are often found. Another vase from Sicily, also
in the same collection, with a conical cover, is ornamented externally
with moulded subjects of wreaths, heads of Medusa, &c., painted and
gilded.
[Illustration: [++] Greek Vase.]
Many of the vases intended for ornamental purposes are covered with a
white coating, and painted with colours of the same kind as those used
on the figures before described, but with few and simple ornaments,
plain bands, mæanders, chequered bands and wreaths. A vase found at
Melos affords a curious example. We here annex a sketch of it. It
consists of a number of small vases united together and arranged in a
double circle round a central stand. This kind of vase is supposed to
be the _kernos_, used in the mystic ceremonies to hold small quantities
of viands. By some persons, however, it is thought to have been
intended for eggs or flowers. It is covered with a white coating of
clay, and the zigzag stripes are of a maroon colour. Such vases might
have been used for flower-pots, and have formed small temporary gardens
like those of Adonis, or have been employed as lamps.
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S DRESSES.
The list of the Queen's wardrobe, in 1600, shows us that she had then
only 99 robes, 126 kirtles, 269 gowns (round, loose, and French), 136
foreparts, 125 petticoats, and 27 fans, not to mention 96 cloaks, 83
save guards, 85 doublets, and 18 lap mantles.
Her gowns were of the richest materials--purple, gold tissue, crimson
satin, cloth of gold, cloth of silver, white velvet, munsy cloth,
tawney satin, horse-flesh coloured satin, Isabella coloured satin dove
coloured velvet, lady blush satin, drake coloured satin, and [...]
coloured satin.
The cloaks are of perfumed leather, black taffety; the petticoats of
blue satin; the jupes of orange coloured satin; the doublets of straw
coloured satin; the mantles of white blush, striped with red swan's
down.
The most characteristic dresses are the following:--
A frock of cloth of silver, checquered with red silk, like bird's eyes,
with demi sleeves, a cut of crimson velvet twisted on with silver,
lined with crimson velvet.
A mantle of white lawn, cut and turned in, embroidered all over with
works of silver, like pomegranates, roses, honeysuckles, and acorns.
One French kirtle of white satin, cut all over, embroidered with loops,
flowers, and clouds of Venice gold, silver, and silk.
One round kirtle of white satin, embroidered all over with the work
like flames, peascods, and pillars, with a border likewise embroidered
with roses.
The stomacher (fore part) of white satin, embroidered very fair with
borders of the sun, moon, and other signs and planets of Venice gold,
silver, and silk of sundry colours, with a border of beasts beneath,
likewise embroidered.
Other gowns we find adorned with bees, spiders, flies, worms, trunks of
trees, pansies, oak leaves, and mulberries; so that "Bess" must have
looked like an illustrated edition of _Æsop's Fables_.
In one case she shines in rainbows, clouds, flames of fire, and suns;
in another, with fountains and trees, snakes, and grasshoppers; the
buttons themselves, in one instance, assume the shape of butterflies,
in another of birds of Paradise.
The fans were of white and coloured feathers, with gold handles set
with precious stones, or of crystal and heliotrope; one of them
contained a looking-glass, another Leicester's badge of the bear and
ragged staff. Her swords had gilt handles and blood-stone studs; her
poniards were gold and ivory, ornamented with tassels of blue silk; her
slippers of cloth of silver, and of orange-coloured velvet, embroidered
with seed pearls; her parasol was of crimson velvet damask, striped
with Venetian gold and silver lace, the handle mother-of-pearl.
Her jewels were both numerous and curious: the head ornaments
resembling a white lion with a fly on his side, a golden fern-branch
with a lizard, ladybird, and a snail upon it, an Irish dart of gold set
with diamonds, a golden rose with a fly and spider upon it, a golden
frog set with jewels, a golden daisy, and emerald buttons, gown studs
of rubies and pearls, and a chain of golden scallop shells, with chains
of agate and jet. A sumptuous magnificence was the characteristic of
the costume of this reign. When Elizabeth visited the Earl of Hertford,
at Elvetham, that nobleman met her with 3,000 followers, with black and
yellow feathers in their hats, and most of them wearing gold chains.
When she visited Suffolk, 200 bachelors in white velvet, with as many
burghers in black velvet coats and gold chains, and 1800 serving-men
received on horseback. For the French ambassador's amusement, in 1559,
1400 men-at-arms, clad in velvet, with chains of gold, mustered in
arms in Greenwich Park; and on another occasion there was a tournament
on Midsummer (Sunday) Night at the palace of Westminster, between ten
knights in white, led by the Earl of Essex, and ten knights in blue,
led by the Earl of Rutland.
CARE OF THE BEARD.
The Mahometans are very superstitious touching the beard. They bury
the hairs which come off in combing it, and break them first, because
they believe that angels have charge of every hair, and that they gain
them their dismissal by breaking it. Selim I. was the first Sultan who
shaved his beard, contrary to the law of the Koran. "I do it," said
he apologetically to the scandalized and orthodox mufti, "to prevent
my vizier leading me by it." He cared less for it than some of our
ancestors, two centuries ago, did for their own. They used to wear
pasteboard covers over them in the night, lest they should turn upon
them and rumple them in their sleep!
The famous Raskolniki schismatics had a similar superstition to the
Mahometan one mentioned above. They considered the divine image in man
to reside in the beard.
DOLE IN CONSEQUENCE OF A DREAM.
At Newark-upon-Trent, a curious custom, founded upon the preservation
of Alderman Clay and his family by a dream has prevailed since the days
of Cromwell. On 11th March every year, penny-loaves are given away to
every one who chooses to appear at the Town Hall and apply for them,
in commemoration of the Alderman's deliverance, during the siege of
Newark by the Parliamentary forces. This gentleman, by will, dated 11th
December, 1694, gave to the Mayor and Aldermen, one hundred pounds, the
interest of which was to be given to the Vicar yearly, on condition
of his preaching an annual sermon. Another hundred pounds were also
appropriated for the behoof of the poor, in the way above-mentioned.
The origin of this bequest is singular. During the bombardment of
Newark by Oliver Cromwell's forces, the Alderman dreamed three nights
successively that his house had taken fire, which produced such a vivid
impression upon his mind, that he and his family left it, and in a few
days the circumstances of his vision actually took place, by the house
being burned down by the besiegers.
GLOVE MONEY.
Gloves were popular new-year's gifts, or sometimes "glove-money" in
place of them; occasionally, these gloves carried gold pieces in them.
When Sir Thomas More was Chancellor, he decided a case in favour
of Mrs. Croaker against Lord Arundel; the former, on the following
new-year's day, gratefully presented the judge with a pair of gloves
with forty angels in them. "It would be against good manners," said
the Chancellor, "to forsake a gentlewoman's new-year's gift, and I
accept the gloves. The _lining_ you will elsewhere bestow."
GLAIVES.
The glaive was derived from the Celtic custom of placing a sword with
a hollow handle at the end of a pole, called by the natives of Wales
"llavnawr"--_the blade weapon_, and takes its name from the Cleddyv,
or Gleddyv, of the Welsh. In an abstract of the grants of the 1st
of Richard III., among the Harleian MSS., No. 443, is a warrant to
Nicholas Spicer, authorising him to impress smiths for making 2,000
Welsh glaives; and 20s. 6d. are charged for 30 glaives, with their
staves, made at Abergavenny and Llanllolved. In the romaunt of Guy,
Earl of Warwick, by Walter of Exeter, written in the time of Edward
II., also in the Harleian Library of the British Museum, they are
called gleves; thus--
"Grant coupes de gleves trenchant
Les escurs ne lur vailut gans."
"Such powerful strokes from cutting gleves,
That the shields were not worth a glove."
[Illustration: [++] Glaive.]
They were also in frequent use on the Continent, and the "Chronicle of
Flanders" mentions an instance of the cavalry having armed themselves
with glaives, which they ornamented with pennoncels. The specimen which
we have here engraved is one which was made for the Doge of Venice,
during the time that the Emperor Charles V. had the command there, in
compliment to whom the centre ornament is the Austrian eagle. Upon this
the arms of the succeeding Doge, Francisco Veneri, who held the office
from 1554 to 1556, have been deeply incised, no doubt to commemorate
the expulsion of the Germans. The pole, at the top of which the weapon
was fixed, is omitted in our engraving.
CRUELTY OF FRANCIS CARRARA.
Francis Carrara, the last Lord of Padua, was famous for his cruelties.
They shew (at Venice) a little box for a toilette, in which are six
little guns, which are so ordered with springs, and adjusted in such a
manner, that upon the opening of the trunk, the guns fired and killed
the lady to whom Carrara sent it for a present. They show also with
this, some little pocket cross-bows and arrows of steel, with which he
took pleasure to kill those he met, so secretly, that they could hardly
either perceive the blow, or him that gave it.
IRISH PIPES.
The accompanying figures represent the Irish bagpipes in their
primitive and improved forms. We have here the earliest pipes,
originally the same as the Scotch, as appears from a drawing made in
the sixteenth century, and given in Mr. Bunting's work; but they now
differ, in having the mouthpiece supplied by the bellows A, which,
being filled by the motion of the piper's arm, to which it is fastened,
fills the bag B; whence, by the pressure of the other arm, the wind is
is conveyed into the chanter C, which is played on with the fingers,
much like a common pipe. By means of a tube, the wind is conveyed into
drones _a_, _a_, _a_, which, tuned at octaves to each other, produce
a kind of cronan, or bass, to the chanter. The second cut represents
the improved, or union pipes, the drones of which, tuned at thirds and
fifths by the regulator, have keys attached to them, which not only
produce the most delightful accords, but enable the player to perform
parts of tunes, and sometimes whole tunes, without using the chanter
at all. Both drones and chanter can be rendered quiescent by means of
stops.
[Illustration: Common Bagpipes.]
[Illustration: Union Pipes.]
The pipers were at one period the "great originals" of Ireland. The
race is gradually departing, or at least "sobering" down into the ranks
of ordinary mortals; but there was a time when the pipers stood out
very prominently upon any canvas that pictured Irish life. Anecdotes
of their eccentricities might be recorded that would fill volumes. For
many years past their power has been on the wane; temperance committed
sad havoc on their prospects; and at length the introduction of "brass
bands" effectually destroyed the small balance that remained to them of
hope.
NOVEL WAY OF CURING VICIOUS HORSES.
Burckhardt tells us of a strange mode of curing a vicious horse. He has
seen, he says, vicious horses in Egypt cured of the habit of biting by
presenting to them, while in the act of doing so, a leg of mutton just
taken from the fire. The pain which the horse feels in biting through
the hot meat causes it to abandon the practice.
GROUND ICE.
Every one who has watched the freezing of a lake or pond, or any other
collection of still water, must be well aware that the ice begins to
form on the surface in thin plates or layers, which on the continuance
of the frost gradually become thicker and more solid, until the water
is affected in a downward direction, and becomes, perhaps, a solid
mass of ice. This is universally the case in stagnant water, but
it has been repeatedly proved that in rapid and rugged streams the
process of freezing is often very different. In direct opposition,
as it would seem, to the laws of the propagation of heat, the ice in
running water frequently begins to form at the bottom of the stream
instead of the top; and this fact, while it is received with doubt by
some, even among the scientific, is frequently attested by those whose
business leads them to observe the phenomenon connected with rivers.
Millers, fishermen, and watermen find that the masses of ice with which
many rivers are crowded in the winter season rise from the bottom or
bed of the stream. They say that they have seen them come up to the
surface, and have also borne them up with their hooks. The under part
of these masses of ice they have found covered with mud or encrusted
with gravel, thus bearing plain marks of the ground on which the ice
had rested. The testimony of people of this class in our country agrees
with that of a similar class in Germany, where there is a peculiar term
made use of to designate floating ice, i. e. _grundeis_ (ground-ice).
A striking example of the formation of ground-ice is mentioned by the
Commander Steenk, of Pillau. On the 9th of February, 1806, during a
strong south-east wind, and a temperature a little exceeding 34° Fahr.,
a long iron chain, to which the buoys of the fair-way are fastened,
and which had been lost sight of at Schappeiswrack in a depth of from
fifteen to eighteen feet, suddenly made its appearance at the surface
of the water and swam there; it was, however, completely encrusted with
ice to the thickness of several feet. Stones, also, of from three to
six pounds' weight, rose to the surface; they were surrounded with a
thick coat of ice. A cable, also, three and a half inches thick, and
about thirty fathoms long, which had been lost the preceding summer in
a depth of thirty feet, again made its appearance by swimming to the
surface; but it was enveloped in ice to the thickness of two feet. On
the same day it was necessary to _warp_ the ship into harbour in face
of an east wind; the anchor used for that purpose, after it had rested
an hour at the bottom, became so encrusted with ice, that it required
not more than half the usual power to heave it up.
M. Hugi, president of the Society of Natural History at Soleure,
observed, in February, 1827, a multitude of large icy tables on the
river Aar. These were continually rising from the bottom, over a
surface of four hundred and fifty square feet, and the phenomenon
lasted for a couple of hours. Two years afterwards he witnessed a
similar occurrence. On the 12th of February, 1829, at sunrise, and
after a sudden fall in the temperature, the river began to exhibit
numerous pieces of floating ice, although there was no sign of freezing
on the surface, either along the banks, or in shady places where the
water was calm. Therefore it could not be said that the floating masses
were detached from the banks. Nor could they have proceeded from any
large sheet of ice farther up the river, because, higher up, the river
exhibited hardly any ice. Besides, flakes of ice commenced soon to rise
up above the bridge; towards mid-day, islands of ice were seen forming
in the centre of the river; and by the next day these were twenty-three
in number, the largest being upwards of two hundred feet in diameter.
They were surrounded with open water, resisting a current which flowed
at the rate of nearly two hundred feet in a minute, and extending over
a space of one-eighth of a league. M. Hugi visited them in a small
boat. He landed, examined them in every direction, and discovered that
there was a layer of compact ice on their surface a few inches in
thickness, resting on a mass having the shape of an inverted cone, of a
vertical height of twelve or thirteen feet, and fixed to the bed of the
river. These cones consisted of half-melted ice, gelatinous, and much
like the spawn of a frog. It was softer at the bottom than at the top,
and was easily pierced in all directions with poles. Exposed to the
open air, the substance of the cones became quickly granulated, like
the ice that is formed at the bottom of rivers.
In the same year the pebbles in a creek of shallow water, near a
very rapid current of the Rhine, were observed to be covered with a
sort of transparent mass, an inch or two in thickness, and which, on
examination, was found to consist of icy spicula, crossing each other
in every direction. Large masses of spongy ice were also seen in
the bed of the stream, at a depth of between six or seven feet. The
watermen's poles entered these with ease, and often bore them to the
surface. This kind of ice forms most quickly in rivers whose bed is
impeded with stones and other foreign bodies.
HINDOO COMPUTATION.
The Hindoos call the whole of their four ages a _divine age_; a
thousand divine ages form a _calpa_, or one of Brahma's days, who,
during that period, successively invested fourteen _menus_, or holy
spirits, with the sovereignty of the earth. The _menu_ transmits his
empire to his posterity for seventy-one divine ages, and this period
is called _manawantara_, and as fourteen _manawantara_ make but nine
hundred and ninety-four divine ages, there remain six, which are the
twilight of Brahma's day. Thirty of these days form his month; twelve
of these months one of his years; and one hundred of these years the
duration of his existence. The Hindoos assert that fifty of these years
have already elapsed, so that we are in the first day of the first
month of the fifty-first year of Brama's age, and in the twenty-eighth
divine age of the seventh _manawantara_. The first three human ages of
this age, and five thousand years of the fourth are past. The Hindoos
therefore calculate that it is 131,400,007,205,000 years since the
birth of Brahma, or the beginning of the world.
CHINESE TOMB.
Like all people of Tartar origin, one of the most remarkable
characteristics of the Chinese is their reverence for the dead, or, as
it is usually called, their ancestral worship. In consequence of this,
their tombs are not only objects of care, but have frequently more
ornament bestowed upon them than graces the dwellings of the living.
[Illustration: [++] Chinese Tomb.]
Their tombs are of different kinds; but the most common arrangement is
that of a horseshoe-shaped platform, cut out of the side of a hill,
as represented in our engraving. It consequently has a high back,
in which is the entrance to the tomb, and slopes off to nothing at
the entrance to the horseshoe, where the wall generally terminates
with two lions or dragons, or some fantastic ornament common to
Chinese architecture. When the tomb is situated, as is generally the
case, on a hillside, this arrangement is not only appropriate, but
elegant. When the same thing is imitated on a plain, it is singular,
misplaced, and unintelligible. Many of the tombs are built of granite,
finely polished, and carved with a profusion of labour that makes us
regret that the people who can do such things should have so great a
predilection for ephemeral wooden structures, when capable of employing
the most durable materials with such facility.
ABYSSINIAN ARMS.
[Illustration: [++] Abyssinian Arms.]
The above engraving represents a group of Abyssinian arms. The sword,
spear, and shield are essentially the weapons of the Abyssinians,
firearms being only of comparatively recent introduction, and not
generally used. The shields are round, and nearly a yard in diameter;
they are very neatly made of buffalo's hide, and of the form most
calculated to throw off a lance-point; namely, falling back gradually
from the boss or centre (which protrudes) to the edges. At the centre,
in the inside, is fixed a solid leather handle, by which the shield is
held in the hand when fighting, or through which the arm is passed
to the elbow, for convenience of carrying on a journey. The edge is
perforated with a number of holes, through which leather loops are
passed, and by these it is hung up in the houses. The face of the
shield is often ornamented in various ways, according to the wealth
or fancy of the owner. Some have simply a narrow strip of lion's skin
on each side of the boss, but crossing each other above and below
it, the lower ends being allowed to hang at some length; others have
a large broad strip of the mane down the centre of the shield, and
hanging several inches below it. This is, of course, usually made of
two or three pieces stitched together, as it would be difficult to get
a single piece of sufficient length and beauty of fur. Others to this
add a lion's paw or tail, fastened on the left side of the mane, and
often highly adorned with silver. The beautiful long black and white
fur of a sort of monkey, called "goréza," occasionally supplies the
place of that of the nobler yet scarcely so beautiful animal. A shield
almost completely covered with plates and bosses of silver, is usually
the mark of the chief of some district. Those similarly plated in
brass were likewise formerly used only by chiefs, though now they are
carried by every soldier who can afford to buy them. The plated shield
is called "tebbora." Those in brass are not much approved of, as they
usually cover a bad skin; for a man possessed of a good handsome shield
would never think of thus hiding its intrinsic beauties.
In former times a beautiful crooked knife was used in Tigrè, the sheath
and handle of which were profusely enriched with silver and gilt.
These, however, are never worn now, the long "shotel" in Tigrè, and the
European-shaped sword among the Amhàra and most of the soldiers, have
entirely superseded them.
The "shotel" is an awkward-looking weapon. Some, if straight, would be
nearly four feet long: they are two-edged, and curved to a semicircle,
like a reaper's sickle. They are principally used to strike the point
downwards over the guard of an adversary, and for this the long curved
shape is admirably adapted. It is, however, a very clumsy weapon to
manage. The sheath is of red morocco leather, its point being often
ornamented with a hollow silver ball, called "lomita," as large as
a small apple. Many of the swords used are made in Europe, and are
such as would be carried by the light cavalry, though lighter than
ours. Being, however, cheap, showy articles, they are apt to break,
and therefore the Abyssinians are getting tired of them, preferring
those made of soft iron in their own country. These they make also
with the faible considerably broader than the forte, to give force to
the blow. Of course, they bend on the least stress; but, in defence
of this failing, their owners say that, if a sword breaks, who is
to mend it?--while, if it bends, you have only to sit on it, and it
gets straight again. The handles of both this and the "shotel" are
made of the horn of the rhinoceros. They are cut out of the horn at
great loss of material, and hence they fetch a good price. It should
be remembered that the heart of the horn is black, outside of which
there is a coating, not quite an inch thick, of a semi-transparent
white colour. To make a sword-handle, a piece of horn of the requisite
length is first sawn off. This is then re-sawn longitudinally into
three pieces, of which the inner one only is eligible for handles. This
piece is about an inch and a half thick, four or five inches broad at
the broader extremity, and three at the narrower. As it lies sawn flat
before us we can distinctly see the black stripe in the centre, with
the white on each side. Next, a nearly semicircular piece is cut out
at each side, leaving only four points of the white as four corners,
and the grasp black. The handle is then finished, bored for the shank
of the blade, and polished. The shank is usually clinched over a
half-dollar beaten convex; a _fil-et-grain_ boss, called "timbora," is,
however, sometimes substituted. A sword-hilt thus made is obviously a
very clumsy one to handle, as the points are parallel to the edge, and
those farthest from the blade are longest.
GEORGIANS AS TOPERS.
It is as unsurpassable topers, as well as for their military qualities,
which have always been acknowledged, that the Georgians have acquired
notoriety. At their frequent drinking parties it is said they will pass
several days and nights, almost without intermission, in quaffing the
productions of the vineyards of Kakheti, a district in the mountains
east of Tiflis. This wine is by no means of bad quality; it is of a
deep red colour, so deep that one fancies it has been tinged with some
dye to produce so intense a hue. They are said to consume incredible
quantities of wine on these occasions, and in a fashion that would
put to shame the drinking triumphs of Ireland, recorded by Sir Jonah
Barrington, in days of old, when intoxication was the standard of
spirit. The drinking vessel is a cow's horn, of considerable length,
and the point of honour is to drain it at a draught. The brethren and
convivial rivals of the Georgians in the neighbouring provinces of
Imeretia and Mingrelia, instead of a horn, use a delicately-hollowed
globe of walnut tree, with a long narrow tube at the orifice. It holds
fully a pint, and like its companion, the horn, the contents are
consumed at a single gulp. How these globes are hollowed is as great
a marvel as the construction of the ingenious Chinese puzzle of ball
within ball.
STAG-HUNT IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The following vivid picture of a stag-hunt is taken from the page of
an old author, and refers to the days of the unfortunate Mary Queen
of Scots:--"In the year 1567, the Earl of Athol, a prince of the
blood royal, had, with much trouble and vast expense, a hunting-match
for the entertainment of our most illustrious and gracious queen.
Our people called this a royal hunting. I was then a young man, and
present on that occasion. Two thousand Highlanders, or wild Scotch,
as you call them, were employed to drive to the hunting-ground all
the deer from the woods and hills of Athol, Badenoch, Marr, Murray,
and the counties about. As these Highlanders use a light dress, and
are very swift of foot, they went up and down so nimbly, that in less
than two months' time, they brought together two thousand red deer,
besides roes and fallow deer. The queen, the great men, and a number
of others, were in a glen when these deer were brought before them.
Believe me, the whole body moved forward in something like battle
order. The sight delighted the queen very much; but she soon had cause
for fear. Upon the earl--(who had been accustomed from his early days
to such sights)--addressing her thus:--'Do you observe that stag who
is foremost of the herd? There is danger from that stag; for if either
fear or rage should force him from the ridge of that hill, let every
one look to himself, for none of us will be out of the way of harm;
for the rest will follow this one, and having thrown us under foot,
they will open a passage to this hill behind us.' What happened a
moment after confirmed this opinion; for the queen ordered one of the
best dogs to be let loose on one of the deer: this the dog pursues;
the leading stag was frighted; he flies by the same way he had come
there; the rest rush after him, and break out where the thickest body
of Highlanders are; they had nothing for it but to throw themselves
flat on the heath, and allow the deer to pass over them. It was told
the queen that several of the Highlanders had been wounded, and that
two or three had been killed outright; and the whole body had got off,
had not the Highlanders, by their skill in hunting, fallen upon a
stratagem to cut off the rear from the main body. It was of those that
had been separated that the queen's dogs and those of the nobility made
slaughter. There were killed that day three hundred and sixty deer,
besides some roes."
TIME WASTED IN TAKING SNUFF.
A vast quantity of valuable time is wasted by the votaries of tobacco,
especially by the smokers; and that the devotees of snuff are not
greatly behind in this respect, will be shown by the following singular
calculation of Lord Stanhope:--
"Every professed, inveterate, and incurable snuff-taker," says his
lordship, "at a moderate computation, takes one pinch in ten minutes.
Every pinch, with the agreeable ceremony of blowing and wiping the nose
and other incidental circumstances, consumes one minute and a half.
One minute and a half out of every ten, allowing sixteen hours to a
snuff-taking day, amounts to two hours and twenty-four minutes out of
every natural day, or one day out of ten. One day out of every ten,
amounts to thirty-six days and a half in a year. Hence, if we suppose
the practice to be persisted in forty years, two entire years of the
snuff-taker's life will be dedicated to tickling his nose, and two more
to blowing it. The expense of snuff, snuff-boxes, and handkerchiefs,
will be the subject of a second essay, in which it will appear that
this luxury encroaches as much on the income of the snuff-taker as it
does on his time; and that by proper application of the time and money
thus lost to the public, a fund might be constituted for the discharge
of the national debt."
VALUE OF A LONG PSALM.
Formerly a psalm was allowed to be sung at the gallows by the culprit,
in case of a reprieve. It is reported of one of the chaplains to
the famous Montrose, that being condemned in Scotland to die, for
attending his master in some of his glorious exploits, and being
upon the ladder, ordered to set out a psalm, he expecting a reprieve,
named the 119th Psalm (with which the officer attending the execution
complied, the Scotch Presbyterians being great psalm-singers): and it
was well for him he did so, for they had sung it half through before
the reprieve came: any other psalm would have hanged him.
ANCIENT INCENSE CHARIOT.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Incense Chariot.]
The implement which we have engraved was found in a tomb at Cervetri
in Etruria, and unquestionably belongs to a very remote date of the
archaic period. It was used in the ritual services of the ancients,
and seems to have been destined for burning incense. The perfume was,
no doubt, placed in the concave part, and the fact of the whole being
mounted upon four wheels proves that it was intended to be moved about,
which, in religious services, may have been a great convenience. The
borders are adorned by a row of flower-shaped ornaments, the graceful
forms of which will be appreciated in the side-view we have given of
it. It must be confessed, indeed, that this monument, which is marked
by the stamp of an antiquity so exceedingly remote, displays within the
limits of its archaic character much elegance, conveying the idea of a
highly refined taste, suitable to a person of dignified position, as
the priest or king may be supposed to have been, to whom the article
belonged.
TOO MUCH PARENTAL AUTHORITY.
All the world over, the current of natural affection flows strongly
downwards to posterity. Love for children, in most nations, seems to
be stronger than the love for parents. But in China, the current of
natural affection is thrown back towards parents with undue strength.
The love of posterity is in danger of being checked and weakened by
their excessive veneration for parents. The father has absolute power,
even the power of life and death, over his children. A few years ago,
a Chinese father said to his wife, "What shall we do with our young
son? He is undutiful and rebellious, and will bring disgrace on our
family name; let us put him to death." Accordingly, having tied a cord
round the boy's neck, the father pulled one end of it, and the mother
the other, and thus they strangled their son. The magistrates took no
notice of the occurrence. A wealthy Chinese gentleman at Ningpo shut
up one of his orphan grandchildren and starved her to death. He could
not be troubled rearing her up. Another man at the same place, having
commanded two of his sons one day to follow him, entered a boat, and
rowed out to the middle of the stream. He then deliberately tied a
stone to the neck of one of his sons, and threw him into the river. The
other lad was compelled to assist his father in the cruel proceeding.
These facts are well known to the missionaries at that place. They
heard the cries of the poor girl, and rescued her sister from a similar
fate, and they saw the youth drowned by his father. But the authorities
never thought of interfering.
POPULAR PASTIMES.
The popular pastimes of the time of James the First are enumerated in
the following lines, in a little work entitled "The Letting of Humour's
Blood in the Head-vaine; with a New Morisco daunced by seven Satyres
upon the bottome of Diogenes' tubbe:" 8vo, Lond. 1611.
"Man, I dare challenge thee to THROW THE SLEDGE,
To jump or LEAPE over ditch or hedge,
To WRASTLE, play at STOOLEBALL, or to RUNNE:
To PITCH THE BARRE, or to SHOOTE OFF A GUNNE:
To play at LOGGETS, NINE HOLES, or TEN PINNES:
To try it out at FOOT-BALL by the shinnes:
At TICKTACKE, IRISH NODDIE, MAW, and RUFFE,
At HOT-COCKLES, LEAP-FROG, or BLINDMAN-BUFFE;
To drinke halfe-pots, or deale at the whole can:
To play at BASE, or PEN-AND-YNKHORNE SIR JUAN;
To daunce the MORRIS, play at BARLEY-BREAKE,
At all exploytes a man can thinke or speake;
At SHOVE-GROATE, VENTER-POYNT, or CROSSE & PILE,
At BESHROW HIM THAT'S LAST AT YONDER STYLE;
At LEAPING O'ER A MIDSOMMER-BON-FIER,
Or at the DRAWING DUN OUT OF THE MYER:
At any of those, or all these presently,
Wagge but your finger, I am for you, I!"
VACILLATING NEWSPAPERS.
The newspapers of Paris, submitted to the censorship of the press, in
1815, announced in the following terms, Bonaparte's departure from the
Isle of Elba, his march across France, and his entry into the French
Capital:--9th March--The Cannibal has escaped from his den. 10th--The
Corsican ogre has just landed at Cape Juan. 11th--The Tiger has arrived
at Gap. 12th--The Monster has passed the night at Grenoble. 13th--The
Tyrant has crossed Lyons. 14th--The Usurper is directing his course
towards Dijon, but the brave and loyal Burgundians have risen in a
body, and they surround him on all sides. 18th--Bonaparte is sixty
leagues from the Capital; he has had skill enough to escape from the
hands of his pursuers. 19th--Bonaparte advances rapidly, but he
will never enter Paris. 20th--To-morrow, Napoleon will be under our
ramparts. 21st--The Emperor is at Fontainebleau. 22nd--His Imperial and
Royal Majesty last evening made his entrance into his Palace of the
Tuileries, amidst the joyous acclamations of an adoring and faithful
people.
PRESSING TO DEATH, AND PRAYING AND FASTING.
In a number of Oliver Cromwell's Newspaper, "The Perfect Account of
the Daily Intelligence," dated April 16th, 1651, we find this horrid
instance of torture:--
"Mond. April 14th.--This session, at the Old Bailey, were four men
pressed to death that were all in one robbery, and, out of obstinacy
and contempt of the court, stood mute and refused to plead; from whence
we may perceive the exceeding great hardness some men are grown unto,
who do not only swerve from instructions, exhortations, and goodnesse,
but become so lewd and insolent that they render themselves the proper
subjects for whom severe laws were first invented and enacted."
The very next paragraph in the paper is to the following effect:--
"Those of the congregate churches, and many other godly people in
London and parts adjacent, have appointed Friday, the 25th instant, as
a day of solemn fasting and prayer, for a blessing upon the armies at
land, the fleet at sea, and negociations abroad."
THE FIRST WATCHES IN ENGLAND.
In 1584 watches began to come from Germany, and the watchmaker soon
became a trader of importance. The watches were often of immense size,
and hung in a rich case from the neck, and by fops wound up with great
gravity and ceremony in Paul's or at the ordinary dinner. Catgut
mainsprings must have been slightly affected by changes of weather, and
sometimes a little out of time in wet Novembers; but, Sessa, let the
world live! An early specimen of the watch that we have seen engraved
was, however, not larger than a walnut, richly chased, and enclosed
in a pear-shaped case. It had no minute hand, but was of beautiful
workmanship. Country people, like Touchstone, sometimes carried pocket
dials, in the shape of brass rings, with a slide and aperture, to be
regulated to the season.
EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCE.
Jesse, in his interesting "Gleanings in Natural History," gives
the following remarkable instance of an extraneous substance being
found imbedded in the solid timber of an ash:--"A person on whose
accuracy and veracity I can place every reliance, informed me that
hearing from some of his brother workmen, that in sawing up the butt
of a large ash-tree, they had found a bird's nest in the middle of
it; he immediately went to the spot, and found an ash cut in two
longitudinally on the saw-pit, and the bird's nest nearly in the centre
of the tree. The nest was about two-thirds of a hollow globe, and
composed of moss, hair, and feathers, all seemingly in a fresh state.
There were three eggs in it, nearly white and somewhat speckled. On
examining the tree most minutely with several other workmen, no mark
or protuberance was found to indicate the least injury. The bark was
perfectly smooth and the tree quite sound." In endeavouring to account
for this curious fact, we can only suppose that some accidental hole
was made in the tree before it arrived at any great size, in which a
bird had built its nest, and forsaken it after she had laid three eggs.
As the tree grew larger, the bark would grow over the hole, and in
process of time the nest would become embedded in the tree.
PORT COON CAVE.
[Illustration: [++] Port Coon Cave.]
The above is a sketch of a cave which well deserves a place among our
collection of Wonders. It is called Port Coon Cave, and is in the
line of rocks near the Giants' Causeway. It may be visited either by
sea or by land. Boats may row into it to the distance of a hundred
yards or more, but the swell is sometimes dangerous; and although
the land entrance to the cave is slippery, and a fair proportion of
climbing is necessary to achieve the object, still the magnificence of
the excavation, its length, and the formation of the interior, would
repay greater exertion; the stones of which the roof and sides are
composed, and which are of a rounded form, and embedded, as it were,
in a basaltic paste, are formed of concentric spheres resembling the
coats of an onion; the innermost recess has been compared to the side
aisle of a Gothic cathedral; the walls are most painfully slimy to the
touch; the discharge of a loaded gun reverberates amid the rolling of
the billows, so as to thunder a most awful effect; and the notes of a
bugle, we are told, produced delicious echoes.
ANECDOTE IN PORCELAIN.
[Illustration: [++] Count Brühl's Tailor and His Wife.]
The finest specimens of Dresden porcelain were undoubtedly made
previously to the Seven Years' War, when no expense was spared, and
when any price might be obtained. Count Brühl, the profligate minister
of Augustus III., whose splendid palace and terrace is the great
ornament of Dresden, was importuned by his tailor to be allowed to
see the manufactory, admission to which was strictly prohibited. At
length he consented, and the tailor upon his entrance was presented
with the two last new pieces made, which were--one a grotesque figure,
a portrait of himself mounted upon a he-goat, with the shears, and all
his other implements of trade; and the other, his wife upon a she-goat,
with a baby in swaddling clothes. The poor tailor was so annoyed with
these caricatures, that he turned back without desiring to see more.
These pieces, known as Count Brühl's Tailor and his Wife, are now much
sought after, from their historical interest. They were made in 1760,
by Kändler.
ANGLO-SAXON FEASTS.
It is a mark of Anglo-Saxon delicacy, that table-cloths were features
at Anglo-Saxon feasts; but, as the long ends were used in place of
napkins, the delicacy would be of a somewhat dirty hue, if the cloth
were made to serve at a second feast. There was a rude sort of display
upon the board; but the order of service was of a quality that would
strike the "Jeameses" of the age of Victoria with inexpressible
disgust. The meat was never "dished," and "covers" were as yet unknown.
The attendants brought the viands into the dining-hall on the spits,
knelt to each guest, presented the spit to his consideration; and,
the guest having helped himself, the attendant went through the same
ceremony with the next guest. Hard drinking followed upon these same
ceremonies; and even the monasteries were not exempt from the sins
of gluttony and drunkenness. Notwithstanding these bad habits, the
Anglo-Saxons were a cleanly people; the warm bath was in general use.
Water, for hands and feet, was brought to every stranger on entering a
house wherein he was about to tarry and feed; and, it is said that one
of the severest penances of the church was the temporary denial of the
bath, and of cutting the hair and nails.
HOUSEHOLD RULES IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
From Sir J. Harrington's (the translator of Ariosto) rules for
servants, we obtain a very clear conception of the internal government
of a country gentleman's house in 1566.
A servant who is absent from prayers to be fined. For uttering an oath,
1d.; and the same sum for leaving a door open.
A fine of 2d., from Lady Day to Michaelmas, for all who are in bed
after six, or out after ten.
The same fine, from Michaelmas to Lady Day, for all who are in bed
after seven, or out after nine.
A fine of 1d. for any bed unmade, fire unlit, or candle-box uncleaned
after eight.
A fine of 4d. for any man detected teaching the children obscene words.
A fine of 1d. for any man waiting without a trencher, or who is absent
at a meal.
For any one breaking any of the butler's glass, 12d.
A fine of 2d. for any one who has not laid the table for dinner by
half-past ten, or the supper by six.
A fine of 4d. for any one absent a day without leave.
For any man striking another, a fine of 1d.
For any follower visiting the cook, 1d.
A fine of 1d. for any man appearing in a foul shirt, broken hose,
untied shoes, or torn doublet.
A fine of 1d, for any stranger's room left for four hours after he be
dressed.
A fine of 1d. if the hall be not cleansed by eight in winter and seven
in summer.
The porter to be fined 1d. if the court-gate be not shut during meals.
A fine of 3d. if the stairs be not cleaned every Friday after dinner.
All these fines were deducted by the steward at the quarterly payment
of the men's wages. If these laws were observed, the domestic
discipline must have been almost military in it.
THE QUEEN OF SHEBA.
Belkis, according to the Arabs, was the famous Queen of Sheba or Saba,
who visited, and afterwards married, Solomon, in the twenty-first
year of her reign. Tabari has introduced her story with such gorgeous
embellishments as to resemble a fairy tale rather than episode in
serious narrative. She is said to have been subdued by the Jewish
monarch, who discovered her retreat among the mountains, between Hejaz
and Yemen by means of a lapwing, which he had despatched in search
of water during his progress through Arabia. This princess is called
Nicolaa by some writers. The Abyssinians claim the same distinction for
one of their queens; and have preserved the names of a dynasty alleged
to have been descended from her union with Solomon.
SUPERSTITION IN FRANCE.
In France, superstition at this day is even more prevalent than it
is in England. Garinet, in his history of Magic and Sorcery in that
country, cites upwards of twenty instances which occurred between the
years 1805 and 1818. In the latter year no less than three tribunals
were occupied with trials originating in this humiliating belief: we
shall cite only one of them. Julian Desbourdes, aged fifty-three, a
mason, and inhabitant of the village of Thilouze, near Bourdeaux,
was taken suddenly ill, in the month of January 1818. As he did not
know how to account for his malady, he suspected at last that he was
bewitched. He communicated this suspicion to his son-in-law Bridier,
and they both went to consult a sort of idiot, named Boudouin, who
passed for a conjuror or _white-witch_. This man told them that
Desbourdes was certainly bewitched, and offered to accompany them to
the house of an old man named Renard, who, he said, was undoubtedly
the criminal. On the night of the 23rd of January all three proceeded
stealthily to the dwelling of Renard, and accused him of afflicting
persons with diseases by the aid of the devil. Desbourdes fell on his
knees and earnestly entreated to be restored to his former health,
promising that he would take no measures against him for the evil he
had done. The old man denied in the strongest terms that he was a
wizard; and when Desbourdes still pressed him to remove the spell from
him, he said he knew nothing about the spell, and refused to remove
it. The idiot Boudouin, the _white-witch_, now interfered, and told
his companions that no relief for the malady could ever be procured
until the old man confessed his guilt. To force him to confession they
lighted some sticks of sulphur which they had brought with them for the
purpose, and placed them under the old man's nose. In a few moments he
fell down suffocated and apparently lifeless. They were all greatly
alarmed; and thinking that they had killed the man, they carried him
out and threw him into a neighbouring pond, hoping to make it appear
that he had fallen in accidentally. The pond, however, was not very
deep, and the coolness of the water reviving the old man, he opened his
eyes and sat up. Desbourdes and Bridier, who were still waiting on the
bank, were now more alarmed than before, lest he should recover and
inform against them. They therefore waded into the pond, seized their
victim by the hair of the head, beat him severely, and then held him
under water till he was drowned.
They were all three apprehended on the charge of murder a few days
afterwards. Desbourdes and Bridier were found guilty of aggravated
manslaughter only, and sentenced to be burnt on the back, and to work
in the galleys for life. The _white-witch_ Boudouin was acquitted on
the ground of insanity.
HELMET OF SIR JOHN CROSBY.
[Illustration: [++] Helmet of Sir John Crosby.]
We here present our readers with a sketch of the helmet of Sir John
Crosby, as it originally appeared when suspended over his tomb in St.
Helen's Church, Bishopsgate. He was an eminent merchant of London; but
is represented upon his tomb in a full suit of armour. He died in 1475.
The extreme height of the crown of the helmet resembles that on the
tomb of the Earl of Warwick, in the Beauchamp Chapel at Warwick; and
was intended to support the crest of the wearer, the holes for affixing
it being still visible.
EARTHQUAKE PANIC.
A panic terror of the end of the world seized the good people of Leeds
and its neighbourhood in the year 1806. It arose from the following
circumstances. A hen, in a village close by, laid eggs, on which were
inscribed the words, "_Christ is coming_." Great numbers visited the
spot, and examined these wondrous eggs, convinced that the day of
judgment was near at hand. Like sailors in a storm, expecting every
instant to go to the bottom, the believers suddenly became religious,
prayed violently, and flattered themselves that they repented them of
their evil courses. But a plain tale soon put them down, and quenched
their religion entirely. Some gentlemen, hearing of the matter, went
one fine morning and caught the poor hen in the act of laying one of
her miraculous eggs. They soon ascertained beyond doubt that the egg
had been inscribed with some corrosive ink, and cruelly forced up
again, into the bird's body. At this explanation, those who had prayed,
now laughed, and the world wagged as merrily as of yore.
OLD ENGLISH SACK-POT.
[Illustration: [++] Sack-Pot.]
Sack was such a national beverage of the jolly old England of the
seventeenth century, that we are sure our readers will thank us for
giving them an idea of the vessel in which it was commonly used. The
bottle here engraved, and inscribed "Sack," was found in Old Tabley
Hall, Cheshire, and is a veritable specimen of the sort of vessel from
which the topers of the "good old times" poured into their cups the
drink with which they so loved to warm their heart-strings. It is of a
dull-white, with blue letters, and it is in the possession of the Hon.
Robert Curzon, jun., author of the interesting work on the Monasteries
of the Levant. Two old English bottles of similar character, one
lettered Sack, the other Claret, dated 1646, were sold at Strawberry
Hill.
AGE OF TREES.
Mr. Twining was engaged, in the year 1827, in measuring and inspecting
a large lot of hemlock timber cut from the north-eastern slope of East
Rock, New Haven (America), and destined for the foundation of a wharf.
While thus employed he took particular notice of the successive layers,
each of which constitutes a year's growth of the tree, and which in
that kind of wood are very distinct. These layers were of various
breadths, and plainly showed that in some seasons the trees made a
much greater advance than in others, some of the layers being five or
six times broader than others. Every tree had thus preserved a _record
of the seasons_ for the period of its growth, whether thirty years or
two hundred--and what was worthy of notice, _every tree told the same
story_. Thus, by beginning at the outer layer of two trees, the one
young the other old, and counting back twenty years, if the young tree
indicated, by a full layer, a _growing season_ for that kind of timber,
the other tree indicated the same.
"I had then before me," (says this intelligent observer) "two or three
hundred _meteorological tables_, all of them as unerring as nature; and
by selecting one tree from the oldest, and sawing out a thin section
from its trunk, I might have preserved one of the number to be referred
to afterwards. It might have been smoothed on the one side by the
plane, so as to exhibit its record to the eye with all the neatness and
distinctness of a drawing. On the opposite side might have been minuted
in indelible writing the locality of the tree, the kind of timber, the
year and month when cut, the soil where it grew, the side and point
which faced the north, and every other circumstance which can possibly
be supposed ever to have the most remote relation to the value of the
table in hand. The lover of science will not be backward to incur such
trouble, for he knows how often, in the progress of human knowledge,
an observation or an experiment has lost its value by the disregard of
some circumstance connected with it, which at the time was not thought
worthy of notice. Lastly, there might be attached to the same section
a written meteorological table compiled from the observations of some
scientific person, if such observations had been made in the vicinity.
This being done, why, in the eye of science, might not this _natural_,
_unerring_, _graphical_ record of seasons past deserve as careful
preservation as a curious mineral, or a new form of crystals?"
THE CAMEL AS A SCAPE-GOAT.
A very singular account of the use to which a camel is sometimes put,
is given by the traveller Bruce. He tells us that he saw one employed
to appease a quarrel between two parties, something in the same way as
the scape-goat was used in the religious services of the Jewish people.
The camel being brought out was accused by both parties of all the
injuries, real or supposed, which belonged to each. All the mischief
that had been done, they accused this camel of doing. They upbraided
it with being the cause of all the trouble that had separated friends,
called it by every opprobious epithet, and finally killed it, and
declared themselves reconciled over its body.
SUSPENDED VOLITION.
A young lady, an attendant of the Princess ----, after having been
confined to her bed for a great length of time with a violent nervous
disorder, was at last, to all appearance, deprived of life. Her lips
were quite pale, her face resembled the countenance of a dead person,
and the body grew cold.
She was removed from the room in which she lay, was put in a coffin,
and the day of her funeral fixed on. The day arrived, and, according to
the custom of the country, funeral songs and hymns were sung before the
door. Just as the people were about to nail on the lid of the coffin, a
kind of perspiration was observed to appear on the surface of her body.
It grew greater every moment, and at last a kind of convulsive motion
was observed in the hands and feet of the corpse. A few minutes after,
during which time fresh signs of returning life appeared, she at once
opened her eyes and uttered a most pitiable shriek. Physicians were
quickly procured, and in the course of a few days she was considerably
restored.
The description which she gave of her situation is extremely
remarkable, and forms a curious and authentic addition to psychology.
She said it seemed to her, as if in a dream, that she was really dead;
yet she was perfectly conscious of all that happened around her in
this dreadful state. She distinctly heard her friends speaking, and
lamenting her death, at the side of her coffin. She felt them pull on
the dead-clothes, and lay her in them. This feeling produced a mental
anxiety which is indescribable. She tried to cry, but her soul was
without power, and could not act on her body. She had the contradictory
feeling as if she were in her body, and yet not in it, at one and the
same time. It was equally impossible for her to stretch out her arm or
to open her eyes, or to cry, although she continually endeavoured to do
so. The internal anguish of her mind was, however, at its utmost height
when the lid of the coffin was about to be nailed on. The thought that
she was to be buried alive was the one that gave activity to her soul,
and caused it to operate on her corporeal frame.
FASHIONS FOR THE DEAD.
The following advertisement appeared in a Glasgow paper about the
middle of the last century. "James Hodge, who lives in the first close
above the Cross, on the west side of the street, Glasgow, continues to
sell burying Crapes ready made; and his wife's niece, who lives with
him, dresses dead Corpses at as cheap a rate as was formerly done by
her aunt, having been educated by her, and perfected at Edinburgh, from
whence she is lately arrived, and has all the newest and best fashions."
COMMON USE OF PLATE IN THE TIME OF HENRY VIII.
A writer in the early part of the sixteenth century tells us that in
his time, in the reign of Henry the Eighth, the luxury of the table
had descended even to citizens, and that there were few whose tables
were not daily provided with spoons, cups, and a salt-cellar of silver.
Those of a higher sphere affected a greater profusion of plate; but the
quantity accumulated by Cardinal Wolsey, though the precious metals
are now so copious, still continues to excite our surprise. At Hampton
Court, where he feasted the French ambassadors and their splendid
retinue in 1528, two cupboards, extending across the banquet chambers,
were piled to the top with plate and illuminated; yet, without
encroaching on these ostentatious repositories, a profuse service
remained for the table. Two hundred and eighty beds were provided for
the guests; every chamber had a bason and ewer of silver, beside other
utensils.
DIOGENES IN A PITHOS, NOT TUB.
A pithos is a description of earthen vessel or jar, distinguished from
the amphora by its large mouth, and comparatively flattened base. Its
shape was more that of a gourd, or pot; its size large enough to have
rendered it applicable to the purposes of a cistern, or water butt.
Such, indeed, appear in some instances to have been its dimensions,
that it has long been a matter of dispute amongst the learned whether,
if Diogenes dwelt in a tub at all (a point by no means settled), his
humble habitation were of wood or earthenware. Brougniart adopts the
latter opinion, and has illustrated it by a partial copy from a print
in Winckelmann. In the original, the philosopher is shown holding his
well-known chat with Alexander the Great, at the gate of the Metroum,
or Temple of the Mother of the Gods at Athens; but his tub has there
the addition of a dog lying on the outside, above his master's head,
evidently on the watch to defend him, if necessary, against any
attack from the royal warrior. Winckelmann's engraving, which we here
present, is taken from a bas-relief discovered in the Villa Albani;
in which the cynic's tub is clearly of earthenware, having a large
fracture on one side, which has been repaired with some other material
dovetailed across the crack. This, Winckelmann concludes to have been
lead (commesso col piombo), simply, however, upon the authority of the
following lines in Juvenal:--
"Si Fregeris, altera fiet
Cras domus, aut eadem plumbo commissa manebit."
_Sat._ xiv 310.
[Illustration: [++] Diogenes in a Pithos.]
Be all this, however, as it may, the controversy is not without its
value in connexion with the ceramic productions of the period. If
the "dolia" and "[Greek: pithaknê]." of the ancients had not been of
sufficient capacity, however kennel-like, to have served as a dwelling,
or shelter, for the philosopher, the tale would hardly have existed.
Nor does it seem probable that Juvenal, in allusion to the story,
would have used the term _testâ_ (testâ cum vidit in illâ magnum
habitatorem), or have dwelt upon their fragility, or have said that
they would not burn (dolia nudi non ardent Cynici), if vessels of the
sort had not been commonly of earthenware. These vessels, both ancient
and modern, have a thickness and strength which enables them to be
rolled on a ladder to and from the top of the kiln, where they are
baked, without injury.
CHINESE SCHOOL.
[Illustration: [++] Native Chinese School.]
The annexed engraving is a curiosity both in itself and in what it
represents. It is taken from a sketch by a native Chinese artist, and
depicts the internal arrangements of a native Chinese school. The
extraordinary nature of the Chinese language renders it impossible
for a schoolmaster to instruct more than a very few scholars at
a time, since the meaning of the words actually depends on their
correct intonation. Every vocable in the language is capable of being
pronounced in six different tones of voice, and of conveying six
meanings, totally different from each other, according to the tone
given to it. Pronounced in one tone, it conveys one meaning, and is
represented by one written character; pronounced in another tone, it
conveys an entirely distinct meaning, and is represented in writing
by another character altogether different. The correct and distinct
enunciation of these tones is the chief difficulty in learning to
speak the language. These tones are stereotyped and fixed, and must
be learned, as part of the word, at the same time that its form and
signification are mastered. Moreover, they are all arranged upon
system, like the notes in a gamut, and when thoroughly mastered, the
theory of the tones is really beautiful. If a wrong tone, then, is
given to a word in reading or in conversation, it grates upon a Chinese
ear like a false note in playing the fiddle. Further, if the voice be
not correctly modulated, and the words correctly intoned, not only is
a jarring note pronounced, but actually a wrong word is uttered, and a
different meaning conveyed from what was intended. A missionary to the
Chinese, therefore, should be possessed of a musical ear. Without this,
the acquisition of the spoken language will be attended by very arduous
labour; and, perhaps, after years of toil, he will find that he still
frequently fails in correctly conveying his meaning.
LONDON LOCALITIES IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
At Ludgate was a gaol, where the prisoners clamoured for alms at the
barred grate; and it was here that Sir Thomas Wyatt had been repulsed.
The city wall that joined this gate to its other fellow gates ran
from the Tower through the Minories to Aldgate, Houndsditch, and
Bishopsgate, through Cripplegate to Aldersgate, and so past Christ's
Hospital by Newgate and Ludgate to the Thames.
Pimlico was a country place where citizens used to repair to eat
"pudding pies" on a Sunday, as they did to Islington or Hogsden to take
tobacco and drink new milk; as Islington was famous for its dairy,
where Sir Walter Raleigh is said to have lived in an old house still
standing, so Holloway was famous for its cheese cakes; and it is these
peculiarities that, after all, confer immortality upon a place. Chelsea
was the mere village of Chelsea, known from Sir Thomas More's house,
where Henry VIII. had walked with his arm round that great statesman's
doomed neck; as Holborn was then a country road leading to the pleasant
village of St. Giles, and trending on to the way that led to Oxford and
to fatal Tyburn, so called from its burn or brook, then well known to
patient city anglers. The triple tree or gallows stood at the corner
of the present Edgware Road. The same Oxford Street led also, if you
turned up one side of the Hampstead Road, to the Tottenham Court,
which stood there alone far in the country, and Primrose Hill was an
untrodden hillock, surrounded by wide paths and ditches between this
court and Hampstead.
A cheerful little stream, known by the pleasant name of the Fleet, rose
near Hampstead Hill, and joined by the Old Bourne and recruited by
sparkling Clerken Well, emptied itself in the Thames. Though even then
merely a sewer, it was open, and had four bridges of its own, while the
Thames had but one; and these were known as Holborn Bridge, Fleet-lane
Bridge, Fleet Bridge, and Bridewell Bridge.
Spitalfields was a grassy open space, with artillery grounds and a
pulpit and cross, where fairs were held and sermons preached. There
were also Tothill Fields, and Finsbury Fields, and Moor Fields, just
outside the city walls, laid out in walks, and planted, as far as
Hoxton. Round these squares there were windmills and everything equally
rural. As for Piccadilly, it was everywhere known as a road to Reading,
and by many herbalists, as harbouring the small wild foxglove in its
dry ditches.
Outside Temple Bar, before the wooden gatehouse was built, lay the
Strand, the road leading from the city to the houses of Court. This
river bank was the chosen residence of the nobility, whose gardens
stretched to the edge of the then undefiled river. The sky then was
pure and bright, for our ancestors burnt wood fires, and the water was
gay with thousands of boats. Each house had its terrace, its water
stairs, and garden. The street houses were so scattered that the river
could be seen between them, and there were three water courses there
traversed by bridges, besides two churches and a maypole. Here stood
York House, where Bacon was born, and Durham Place, where Raleigh
lived, with his study in a turret overlooking the river; there also
were Arundel House and Essex House, where great men pined and plotted.
At Whitehall stood Wolsey's Palace, enlarged by Henry VIII., and
Elizabeth's favourite residence when not at Nonsuch in Surrey, Windsor,
Greenwich, or Richmond. The tilt-yard stood where the Horse Guards
now stands. St. James's Palace, also built by Henry VIII., where the
Queen's melancholy-bigot sister had died, was seldom inhabited by the
Court; but the park was even then existing. As for the old palace of
Richard III. (Baynard's Castle), that had been let to the Earl of
Pembroke, and the same king's dwelling of Crosby Hall had fallen into
the hands of an alderman.
WARWICK THE KING-MAKER.
On the right-hand side of Newgate-street are various streets and
courts leading into Paternoster-row. Of these, Warwick and Ivy lanes,
Panyer-alley, and Lovel's-court, merit the attention of the lover of
literary and historical antiquities. Warwick-lane, now the abode of
butchers and tallow-chandlers, took its name from the inn or house of
the celebrated Warwick, the king-maker.
Stow mentions his coming to London in the famous convention of 1458,
with 600 men, all in red jackets, embroidered, with ragged staves,
before and behind, and was lodged in Warwick-lane; "in whose house
there was often six oxen eaten at a breakfast, and every taverne was
full of his meate, for hee that had any acquaintance in that house,
might have there so much of sodden and roaste meate, as he could pricke
and carry upon a long dagger."
The memory of the earl was long preserved by a small stone statue,
placed in the side front of a tobacconist's, at the corner of this
lane; and there is a public-house which has the earl's head for its
sign.
THANKSGIVING DAY IN 1697.
The following is an extract from the "Post Boy" of the above date:--
"Thursday, December 2, 1697. Thursday being appointed for the day of
Thanksgiving, the same was ushered in with ringing of bells; the king
went to the Chapel Royal, where, &c., and at night we had bonfires and
illuminations. The fine fireworks in St. James's Square were lighted
after this manner:--About twelve o'clock, the Foot Guards lined the
avenues; the rockets and all things being fixed on the rails the day
before: a little after six, the king, attended by his guards, came to
the Earl of Romney's house, from whence soon after a signal was given,
by firing a rocket, for the fireworks to go off, which were immediately
lighted; the performance was extraordinary fine, and much applauded;
the same continued somewhat better than half an hour, and there were
divers sorts of fireworks; some had the king's name, others the arms
of England; in a word, they were very curious. There was a man and a
woman unfortunately killed, and divers others hurt by the falling down
of sticks. About half an hour after, His Majesty went to St. James's
there being a fine ball."
THE GREY MAN'S PATH.
[Illustration: [++] The Grey Man's Path.]
The annexed sketch depicts a scene in the coast rocks at Fairhead,
near Ballycastle in Ireland. Fhir Leith, or "The Grey Man's Path," (a
fissure in the precipice,) viewed either from land or sea, is never to
be forgotten: it seems as though some supernatural power, determined to
hew for itself a pathway through the wonderful formations that tower
along the coast--so that it might visit or summon the spirits of the
deep, without treading a road made by mortal hands--had willed the
fearful chasm that divides the rocky promontory in two. The singular
passage, in its narrow part, is barred across by the fragment of a
pillar, hurled, as it were, over the fissure, and supported on both
sides at a considerable elevation. If you descend, you perceive the
passage widens, and becomes more important; its dark sides assume
greater height, and a more wild and sombre magnificence; and at last
they extend upwards, above 220 feet, through which the tourist arrives
at the massive _débris_ which crowd the base of the mighty promontory,
where the northern ocean rolls his threatening billows. From the
cragsmen and boatmen of this wild coast you hear no tales of Faery, no
hints of the gentle legends and superstitions collected in the south,
or in the inland districts of the north; not that they are a whit less
superstitious, but their superstition is, as the superstition of the
sea kings, of a bold and peculiar character; their ghosts come from out
the deep, before or after the rising of the moon, and climb, or rather
stalk up the rocks, and, seated upon those mysterious pillars, converse
together; so that, in the fisherman's huts, they say, "it thunders."
Even mermaids are deemed too trifling in their habits and manners
for this stupendous scenery, where spirits of the gigantic world
congregate, and where the "Grey Man" of the North Sea stalks forth,
silently and alone, up his appropriate path, to witness some mighty
convulsion of nature.
ANCIENT JET NECKLACE.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Jet Necklace.]
Various interesting ornaments, belonging to the Archaic, or Bronze
period in Scotland, are preserved in the Museum of Scottish
Antiquaries, and one set in particular, found enclosed in an urn within
a rude stone cist, on the demolition of a tumulus near the Old House of
Assynt, Rossshire, in 1824, we here engrave. They include a necklace
of irregular oval jet beads, which appear to have been strung together
like a common modern string of beads, and are sufficiently rude to
correspond with the works of a very primitive era. The other ornaments
which are represented here about one-fourth the size of the original,
are curiously studded with gold spots, arranged in patterns similar
to those with which the rude pottery of the British tumuli are most
frequently decorated, and the whole are perforated with holes passing
obliquely from the back through the edge, evidently designed for
attaching them to each other by means of threads.
JUGGLERS IN JAPAN.
The perfection of jugglery in Japan entitles it to be ranked amongst
the fine arts. An eye-witness thus describes the performance of a
Japanese juggler. "Here are some of his feats:--No. 1. He took an
ordinary boy's top, spun it in the air, caught it on his hand, and then
placed it (still spinning) upon the edge of a sword, near the hilt.
Then he dropped the sword point a little, and the top moved slowly
towards it. Arrived at the very end, the hilt was lowered in turn, and
the top brought back. As usual, the sword was dangerously sharp. No. 2
was also performed with the top. He spun it in the air, and then threw
the end of the string back towards it with such accuracy that it was
caught up and wound itself all ready for a second cast. By the time it
had done this it had reached his hand, and was ready for another spin.
No. 3 was still performed with the top. There was an upright pole, upon
the top of which was perched a little house, with a very large front
door. The top was spun, made to climb the pole, knock open the said
front door, and disappear. As well as I remember, the hand end of the
string was fastened near the door, so that this was almost a repetition
of the self-winding feat. But feat No. 4 was something even more
astonishing than all this. He took two paper butterflies, armed himself
with the usual paper fan, threw them into the air, and, fanning gently,
kept them flying about him as if they had been alive. 'He can make
them alight wherever you wish! Try him!' remarked the Kami (Prince),
through the interpreter. Mr. H---- requested that one might alight
upon each ear of the juggler. No sooner expressed than complied with.
Gentle undulations of the fan waved them slowly to the required points,
and there left them comfortably seated. Now, whether this command over
pieces of paper was obtained simply by currents of air, or by the power
of a concealed magnet, Mr. H---- could not tell or ascertain. One
thing, however, was certain, the power was there."
MAY-FAIR PLAY BILL IN THE TIME OF WILLIAM III.
WILLIAM REX.
MAY-FAIR.
MILLER'S,
OR THE LOYAL ASSOCIATION BOOTH,
AT THE UPPER END OF
BROOK-FIELD MARKET,
NEAR HYDE PARK CORNER.
DURING THE TIME OF MAY-FAIR, WILL BE PRESENTED
AN EXCELLENT DROLL, CALLED
KING WILLIAM'S HAPPY DELIVERANCE
AND GLORIOUS TRIUMPH OVER HIS ENEMIES,
OR THE CONSULTATION OF THE
POPE, DEVIL, FRENCH KING, AND THE GRAND TURK,
WITH THE WHOLE FORM OF THE SIEGE OF NAMUR,
AND THE HUMOURS OF A RENEGADE FRENCH MAN
AND BRANDY JEAN,
WITH THE CONCEITS OF SCARAMOUCH AND HARLEQUIN,
TOGETHER WITH THE BEST SINGING AND DANCING THAT WAS
EVER SEEN IN A FAIR, ALSO A DIALOGUE SONG.
VIVAT REX.
BELLS.
Bells were formerly a prolific source of superstition. There is a
valley in Nottinghamshire, where a village is said to have been
swallowed up by an earthquake, and it was the custom on Christmas Day
morning for the people to assemble in this valley and listen to the
fancied ringing of the church bells underground. At Abbot's Morton
there is a tradition that the silver bells belonging to the abbot are
buried in the site of his old residence there. At Ledbury, a legend
relates that St. Katharine had a revelation that she was to travel
about, and not rest at any place, till she heard the bells ringing of
their own accord. This was done by the Ledbury bells on her approaching
that town. When the church at Inkberrow was rebuilt on a new site in
ancient days, it was believed that the fairies took umbrage at the
change, as they were supposed to be averse to bells; they accordingly
endeavoured to obstruct the building, but, as they did not succeed, the
following lamentation was occasionally heard by the startled rustics:
"Neither sleep, neither lie,
For Inkbro's ting-tangs hang so nigh."
Many years ago the twelve parish churches in Jersey each possessed a
beautiful and valuable peal of bells; but during a long civil war, the
states determined on selling these bells to defray the heavy expenses
of their army. The bells were accordingly collected, and sent to
France for that purpose; but, on the passage, the ship foundered, and
everything was lost, to show the wrath of Heaven at the sacrilege.
Since then, before a storm, these bells ring up from the deep; and,
to this day, the fishermen of St. Ouen's Bay always go to the edge of
the water before embarking, to listen if they can hear "the bells upon
the wind;" and, if those warning notes are heard, nothing will induce
them to leave the shore; if all is quiet they fearlessly set sail. As a
gentleman, who has versified the legend, says:
"'Tis an omen of death to the mariner,
Who wearily fights with the sea;
For the foaming surge is his winding sheet,
And his funeral knell are we:
His funeral knell our passing bells beat,
And his winding sheet the sea."
BRIBING THE DEMONS.
The rich inhabitants of the Celestial Empire, it is almost needless
to say, make an exorbitant display at funerals. They invite as many
relations and friends as they can, in order to muster an imposing
procession, and the mourning dresses worn by the whole party are at
the cost of the family of the deceased, who are also bound to provide
them for several days together with splendid repasts. A great number
of musicians are hired for the occasion, and also of _weepers_, for
though most people in China are pretty well skilled in the art of
shedding tears, there exist mourners by profession, who have carried it
to still greater perfection, and are absolutely inimitable at sobs and
groans. They follow the coffin in long white robes, hempen girdles, and
dishevelled hair; and their lamentations are accompanied by the beating
of gongs, by the sharp and discordant sounds of rude instruments of
music, and the discharge of fireworks. The sudden explosion and the
smell of the powder are supposed to be efficacious in frightening away
the demons, and hindering them from seizing on the soul of the defunct,
which never fails to follow the coffin; and as these malevolent spirits
have also the reputation of being extremely covetous and fond of money,
people endeavour to get on their weak side. They let fall, for this
purpose, all along the road, sapecks and bank-notes, that the wind
carries away in all directions; and as the demons in China are by no
means so cunning as the men, they are taken in by this device, and
fall into the trap with charming simplicity, though, the supposed
bank-notes are in fact only bits of white paper. Whilst they are
engaged in pursuing these deceitful appearances of riches, the soul of
the defunct proceeds quietly and comfortably after its coffin without
any danger of its being stopped by the way.
HOLY-WATER SPRINKLER.
To sprinkle the holy water was, in ancient times, the cant phrase for
fetching blood, which will account for the appellation of a certain
class of weapons, as there is no resemblance whatever between them and
the aspergillum used by Roman Catholics. The specimen we have here
sketched is a demi holy-water-sprinkler--to speak in the language of
the time--"with gonnes at the ende." This awkward weapon, prior, in
point of date, to the invention of the matchlock, and, therefore, not
later than the time of Edward IV., was made to hang at the saddle-bow
instead of a mace. The iron cap at the end is furnished with a
spear-like blade, and opens on an hinge, or is held in its place by
a hook. It contains four short barrels, each of which is fired by a
match, and its touch-hole is protected by a sliding piece of wood.
[Illustration: [++] Holy Water Sprinkler.]
In using this weapon the intention was first to fire at the enemy with
the "gonnes at the ende," and then to club him on coming to close
quarters. To effect all this, however, in a satisfactory manner, much
time must have been lost, and many accidents, no doubt, were liable to
happen to the person who used such a weapon as this, which was almost
as dangerous to the man who possessed it, as to the enemy against whom
he directed it. The lid at the top must first have been opened, and
not only so, but must have been kept open all the time the weapon was
used as a gun, and then, previously to closing with the foe, it must
have been necessary to secure it, lest, in brandishing the instrument
as a club, the open lid should strike against the head of the man who
wielded it. No wonder that this dangerous compound of club and gun soon
went out of fashion, and survived its invention only a very few years.
FIRST TEA-DRINKERS PUZZLED.
The first brewers of tea were often sorely perplexed with the
preparation of the new mystery. "Mrs. Hutchinson's great grandmother
was one of a party who sat down to the first pound of tea that ever
came into Penrith. It was sent as a present, and without directions how
to use it. They boiled the whole at once in a bottle, and sat down to
eat the leaves with butter and salt, and they wondered how any person
could like such a diet."
COLUMN AT CUSSI.
[Illustration: [++] Column at Cussi.]
The great object of the erection of pillars of victory was to serve
as vehicles for sculpture; though, as we now see them, or as they are
caricatured at Paris and elsewhere, they are little more than instances
of immense labour bestowed to very little purpose. In the original
use of these pillars, they were placed in small courts surrounded by
open porticos, whence the spectator could at two, or perhaps at three
different levels examine the sculpture at his leisure at a convenient
distance, while the absurdity of a pillar supporting nothing was not
apparent, from its not being seen from the outside. A good specimen of
this class is that at Cussi, near Beaune, in France. It is represented
in the annexed cut. It probably belongs to the time of Aurelian, and
no doubt was first erected within a court; but it is not known either
by whom it was erected, or what victory it was designed to celebrate.
Still that it is a pillar of victory is certain, and its resemblance
to pillars raised with the same object in India is quite striking.
The arrangement of the base, serving as a pedestal for eight statues,
is not only elegant, but appropriate. The ornament which covers the
shaft takes off from the idea of its being a mere pillar, and, at the
same time, is so subdued as not to break the outline or interfere with
constructive propriety. The capital of the Corinthian order is found
in the neighbourhood, used as the mouth of a well. In its original
position it no doubt had a hole through it, which being enlarged
suggested its application to its present comparatively ignoble purpose,
the hole being no doubt intended either to receive or support the
statue or emblem that originally crowned the monument, but of that no
trace now remains.
STYLE OF LIVING AMONG THE NOBILITY OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.
The ordinary meals were now increased to four a day--breakfast at
seven in the morning, dinner at ten, supper at four in the afternoon,
and "liveries," which were taken in bed, between eight and nine at
night. These latter, as well as the breakfast, were of no light or
unsubstantial character, consisting of good beef and mutton (or salt
fish in Lent), with beer and wine in the morning; and of a loaf or
two, with a few quarts of mulled wine and beer, at nights. At dinner
the huge oaken table, extending the whole length of the great hall,
was profusely covered with joints of fresh and salt meat, followed by
courses of fowl, fish, and curious made-dishes. The Lord took his seat
on the dais or raised floor at the head; his friends and retainers were
ranged above or below the salt, according to their rank. As forks were
not yet in use, the fingers were actively employed, whilst wine and
beer in wooden or pewter goblets were handed round by the attendants.
Over head the favourite hawks stood upon their perches, and below the
hounds reposed upon the pavement.
The dinner generally lasted for three hours, and all pauses were filled
up by the minstrels, jesters, or jugglers, or by the recitation of
some romance of chivalry. At the end of each course they sometimes
introduced a dish called _subtlety_, composed of curious figure in
jellies or confectionery, with a riddling label attached for the
exercise of social wit. The monasteries were especially noted for
their good dinners, and the secular clergy, not to be outdone in their
hospitality invented _glutton-masses_ in honour of the Virgin. These
were held five times a year in the open churches, whither the people
brought food and liquor, and vied with each other in this religious
gormandizing. The general diet of the common people continued, however,
to be coarse and poor, and severe famines not unfrequently occurred.
ORIGIN OF THE TITLE "SFORZA."
James Sforza, the father of Francis the first duke, was the founder of
the house of Sforza, which gave six dukes to Milan, and was allied with
almost every sovereign in Europe during the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries. He was born in 1369, at Catignuola, near Faenza; his
father, according to tradition, was a day labourer, and to others, a
shoemaker, but probably wrought as both. Perceiving some soldiers pass,
he was struck with the desire of bearing arms. "I will go," said he to
himself, "and dart my hatchet against that tree, and if it stick fast
in the wood I will immediately become a soldier." The hatchet stuck
fast, and because, says the Abbot of Choisi, he threw the axe with all
his force, he assumed the supposed fortunate name of Sforza, as his
real name was Giacomuzzo, or James Attendulo.
MAY-POLE IN THE STRAND.
During the austere reign of the Puritans, when theatres were closed,
and every sort of popular amusement was considered sinful, the
May-poles fell into disrepute, and were pulled down in various parts
of London. Among the rest, the famous May-pole in the Strand came to
the ground. With the restoration of the monarchy, the people saw the
restoration of their ancient sports; and on the very first May-day
after the return of Charles II., the May-pole in the Strand was set
up again, amid great popular rejoicing. The following account of the
ceremony is taken from a rare tract of the times, entitled "The Citie's
Loyaltie displayed. London, 4to., 1641," and quoted in the first volume
of Hone's "Every-Day Book," page 557:--
"Let me declare to you the manner in general," says the loyal author,
"of that stately cedar erected in the Strand, 134 feet high, commonly
called the May-pole, upon the cost of the parishioners there adjacent,
and the gracious consent of His Sacred Majesty, with the illustrious
Prince the Duke of York. This tree was a most choice and remarkable
piece, 'twas made below bridge, and brought in two parts up to Scotland
Yard, near the King's Palace, and from thence it was conveyed, April
14th, to the Strand, to be erected. It was brought with a streamer
flourishing before it, drums beating all the way, and other sort of
music. It was supposed to be so long that landsmen, as carpenters,
could not possibly raise it. Prince James, the Duke of York, Lord High
Admiral of England, therefore commanded twelve seamen to come and
officiate the business; whereupon they came, and brought their cables,
pulleys, and other tackling, with six great anchors. After these were
brought three crowns, borne by three men bareheaded, and a streamer
displaying all the way before them, drums beating, and other music
playing, numerous multitudes of people thronging the streets, with
great shouts and acclamations all day long.
"The May-pole then being joined together, and hooped about with bands
of iron, the crown and vane, with the King's arms, richly gilded, was
placed on the head of it: a large top, like a balcony, was about the
middle of it. This being done, the trumpets did sound, and in four
hours' space it was advanced upright; after which being established
fast in the ground, again great shouts and acclamations did the
people give, that rang throughout all the Strand. After that came a
morris-dance, finely decked with purple scarfs, in their half shirts,
with a tabor and pipe, the ancient music, and danced round about the
May-pole, and after that danced the rounds of their liberty. Upon
the top of this famous standard is likewise set up a royal purple
streamer, about the middle of it are placed four crowns more, with the
King's arms likewise. There is also a garland set upon it, of various
colours, of delicate rich favours, under which are to be placed three
great lanthorns, to remain for three honours, that is, one for Prince
James, Duke of York, Lord High Admiral of England; the other for the
Vice-Admiral; the third for the Rear-Admiral. These are to give light
on dark nights, and to continue so as long as the pole stands, which
will be a perpetual honour for seamen. It is placed as near hand as
they could guess in the very same pit where the former stood, but far
more glorious, higher, and bigger, than ever any one that stood before
it; and the seamen themselves do confess that it could not be built
higher, and there is not such an one in Europe besides, which doth
highly please His Majesty and the illustrious Prince, Duke of York.
Little children did much rejoice, and ancient people did clap their
hands, saying that golden days began to appear. I question not but it
will ring like melodious music throughout every county in England when
they read this story exactly penned. Let this story satisfy for the
glories of London, that other loyal subjects may read what we here do
see."
COSTUME OF A GERMAN NOBLE.
The annexed cut represents the dress of a young noble of the year 1443,
from the extremely interesting genealogical history of the baronial
family of Haller von Halleostein. The figure is that of Franz Haller
von Halleostein, who died unmarried in the above year. He wore an open
jerkin of a greenish colour, and very finely plaited chemisette. The
jerkin has a white silk trimming with a black border throughout, and
is held together by fine white silk ribbons, beneath which appears the
white shirt. The sword-couple and sheath, are black, hilt and mountings
are of the colour of steel. The stockings are vermilion, and on the
right leg is a white and yellow stripe. The shoes are black, turned
with white. The hair is long, and over it is worn a neat cap with
lappets and a golden agraffe and love-knot, to support the hair.
[Illustration: [++] Dress of a Young Noble in 1443.]
At the period of this costume very great attention was bestowed by
the German nobility to their dress. The sums they expended on it
were enormous, and in many instances families were reduced to ruin
by the extravagant decorations of their person. Jewellery, furs,
silks, and laces, all of which were far more expensive and difficult
to be obtained than they are now, were used in reckless profusion,
and one nobleman vied with another in the magnificence, novelty, and
expensiveness of their attire. The illustrated books of that period
abound in sketches of the most beautiful costumes, and are a fund of
interest to those who are curious in such matters.
ABSURDITIES OF THE TOILET.
The ladies of Japan are said to gild their teeth, and those of the
Indies to paint them red, while in Guzerat the test of beauty is to
render them sable. In Greenland, the women used to colour their faces
with blue and yellow. The Chinese must torture their feet into the
smallest possible dimensions--a proof positive of their contracted
understandings. The ancient Peruvians, and some other Indian tribes,
used to flatten their heads: and among other nations, the mothers, in a
similar way, maltreat the noses of their offspring.
AN EGYPTIAN DINNER.
The complicated, and, at first sight, somewhat incomprehensible sketch
which we here lay before our readers, was taken from an interior wall
of a palace in Egypt. It is, of course, by Egyptian artists, and the
subject of it is no other than an Egyptian dinner-table set out and
adorned for a banquet.
[Illustration: [++] Egyptian Dinner-Table.]
At a dinner in ancient Egypt, small and low circular tables were used,
standing on a single pillar, with a dilated base; sometimes one of
these was apportioned to every guest, the viands being brought round
by the servants successively, from a larger pillar-table which had
been brought in readily set out by two men. The accompanying engraving
shows a table thus laid out, requiring, however, a little allowance for
the lack of perspective. Round and oblong cakes of bread flattened and
pricked in patterns, a goose, a leg of a kid or antelope, baskets of
figs and other fruit, are crowned by a huge bunch of the lotus-lily.
Under the table are bottles of wine placed on stands in a series, and
crowned with a lotus-garland, upon which is thrown a long withe of what
seems from the tendrils a vine, loaded with clusters of grapes, as well
as thickly set with foliage.
ELEPHANT-GOD OF BURMAH.
A white elephant is a great rarity, and whenever one is caught, the
Burmese treat it as a god and pay worship to it. Captain Yule thus
describes the white elephant of 1855, and his palace at Amarapoora, the
capital of Burmah:--
"In the area which stretches before the Hall of Audience are several
detached buildings. A little to the north is the "Palace," or state
apartment, of the Lord White Elephant, with his highness's humbler
every-day residence in rear. To the south are sheds for the vulgar
herd of the same species, and brick godowns in which the state
carriages and golden litters (the latter massive and gorgeous in great
variety of design) are stowed away. Temporary buildings, used as
barracks and gunsheds, run along the wall. The present white elephant
has occupied his post for at least fifty years. I have no doubt he
is the same as Padre San-germano mentions as having been caught in
1806, to the great joy of the King, who had just lost the preceding
incumbent, a female, which died after a year's captivity. He is a very
large elephant, close upon ten feet high, with as noble a head and pair
of tusks as I have ever seen. But he is long-bodied and lanky, and not
otherwise well made as an elephant. He is sickly and out of condition,
and is, in fact, distempered during five months of the year, from April
to August. His eye, the iris of which is yellow with a reddish outer
annulus, and a small clear black pupil, has an uneasy glare, and his
keepers evidently mistrust his temper. We were always warned against
going near his head. The annulus round the iris of the eye is pointed
out as resembling a circle of the nine gems. His colour is almost
uniform all over; nearly the ground-tint of the mottled or freckled
part of the trunk and ears of common elephants, perhaps a little
darker. He also has pale freckles in the same parts. On the whole, he
is well entitled to his appellation of white. His royal paraphernalia,
which are set out when visitors are expected, are sufficiently
splendid. Among them was a driving-hook about three feet long, the stem
of which was a mass of small pearls, girt at frequent intervals with
bands of rubies, and the hook and handle of crystal tipped with gold.
His headstall was of fine red cloth, plentifully studded with fine
rubies, and near the extremity having some valuable diamonds. To fit
over the two bumps of the forehead were circles of the nine gems, which
are supposed to be charms against evil influences. When caparisoned he
also wore on the forehead, like other Burmese dignitaries, including
the King himself, a golden plate inscribed with his titles, and a
gold crescent set with circles of large gems between the eyes. Large
silver tassels hung in front of his ears, and he was harnessed with
bands of gold and crimson set with large bosses of pure gold. He is a
regular "estate of the realm," having a woon or minister of his own,
four gold umbrellas, the white umbrellas which are peculiar to royalty,
with a suite of attendants said to be thirty in number. The Burmese
who attended us removed their shoes before entering his 'Palace.' The
elephant has an appanage or territory assigned to him 'to eat,' like
any other dignitary of the empire. I do not know where his estate is at
present, but in Burney's time it was the rich cotton district of Taroup
Myo."
SUPERSTITION IN 1856.
In April, 1856, a poor woman, residing in a village about three miles
from Pershore, acting upon the advice of her neighbours, brought her
child, who was suffering from whooping cough, to that town, for the
purpose of finding out a married couple answering to the names of
Joseph and Mary, and soliciting their interference on behalf of her
afflicted child, as she had been informed that if two married persons
having those names could but be induced to lay their hands on her
child's head, the whooping cough would be immediately cured. After
scouring the town for a considerable time in search of "Joseph and
his fair lady," they were at length discovered in the persons of a
respectable tradesman and his wife residing in Bridge Street, to whom
the poor silly woman made known her foolish request, which at first
excited a smile from the good woman of the house, but was quickly
followed, not by "the laying on of hands," but by good advice, such as
mothers only know how to give in these matters. The poor mother then
thankfully departed a wiser woman.
PRAYING BY WHEEL AND AXLE.
The Japanese, like the inhabitants of Thibet, are not content with
devout prayers, pilgrimages, prostrations, offerings to the gods
in order to secure blessings here and hereafter; they also pray by
machine, by _wheel and axle_. There is a square post, nearly eight feet
in length, and near the centre, at a convenient height to be reached
by the hand, is fixed vertically a wheel, which moves readily on an
axle passed through the post. Two small rings are strung upon each of
three spokes of the wheel. Every person who twists this instrument in
passing is supposed to obtain credit in heaven for one or more prayers
inscribed on the post, the number being graduated according to the
vigour of the performer's devotion, and the number of revolutions
effected. The jingle of the small iron rings is believed to secure
the attention of the deity to the invocation of the devout, and the
greater the noise, the more certain of its being listened to. Some of
the inscriptions on this post are worth remembering:--"The great round
mirror of knowledge says, 'wise men and fools are embarked in the same
boat;' whether prospered or afflicted, both are rowing over the deep
lake; the gay sails lightly hang to catch the autumnal breeze; then
away they straight enter the lustrous clouds, and become partakers of
heaven's knowledge."
"He whose prescience detects knowledge says:--'As the floating grass is
blown by the gentle breeze, or the glancing ripples of autumn disappear
when the sun goes down, or as the ship returns home to her old shore,
so is life: it is a smoke, a morning tide.'"
"Others are more to the point--as to the machine--'Buddha himself
earnestly desires to hear the name of this person (who is buried), and
wishes he may go to life.'"
NOVEL WAY OF DESIGNATING A HOUSE.
In the "New View of London," published in 1708, it is mentioned as a
remarkable circumstance attaching to the history of Prescott Street,
near the Strand, that instead of signs, the houses were distinguished
by numbers, as the stair-cases in the Inns of Court, and Chancery. The
following advertisement, taken from newspapers a century and a half
old, is interesting at this distance of time, as it shows the shifts
to which advertisers were reduced, to point out their houses to their
customers:--
"Doctor James Tilborgh, a German doctor, states that he liveth at
present over against the New Exchange, in Bedford Street, at the sign
of the 'Peacock,' where you shall see at night two candles burning
within one of the chambers before the balcony; and a lanthorn with a
candle in it upon the balcony: where he may be spoke with all alone,
from 8 in the morning till 10 at night."
DYAK WAR-BOAT IN BORNEO.
The Malay war-boat, or _prahu_, is built of timber at the lower part;
the upper is of bamboo, rattan, and kedgang (the dried leaf of the Nepa
palm). Outside the bends, about a foot from the water line, runs a
strong gallery, in which the rowers sit cross-legged. At the after-part
of the boat is a cabin for the chief who commands, and the whole of
the vessel is surmounted by a strong flat roof, upon which they fight,
their principal weapons being the kris and spear, both of which, to be
used with effect, require elbow-room.
[Illustration: [++] Dyak War-Boat.]
The Dyak war-boat, as represented in the annexed sketch, is a
long-built canoe, more substantially constructed than the prahu of the
Malays, and sufficiently capacious to hold from seventy to eighty men.
This also has a roof to fight from. They are generally painted, and the
stern ornamented with feathers.
Both descriptions of war-boats are remarkably swift, notwithstanding
such apparent top-weight.
WAR-DANCE OF THE DYAKS OF BORNEO.
Almost every savage nation has its peculiar war-dance, and the
different steps, movements, and cries, in each depict different stages
in the supposed fight. An account of the various kinds of dances
would form an interesting work, and as a contribution to it we here
call attention to the following description of a war-dance which was
practised for the entertainment of the officers of the Semarang, on
the occasion of their visiting a Dyak Chief. It is taken from Captain
Marryat's "Borneo:"--
[Illustration: [++] Dyak War-Dance.]
"A space was cleared in the centre, and two of the oldest warriors
stepped into it. They were dressed in turbans, long loose jackets,
sashes round their waists descending to their feet, and small bells
were attached to their ankles. They commenced by first shaking hands
with the rajah, and then with all the Europeans present, thereby giving
us to understand, as was explained to us, that the dance was to be
considered only as a spectacle, and not to be taken in its literal
sense, as preparatory to an attack upon us, a view of the case in which
we fully coincided with them.
"This ceremony being over, they rushed into the centre, and gave a
most unearthly scream; then poising themselves on one foot, they
described a circle with the other, at the same time extending their
arms like the wings of a bird, and then meeting their hands, clapping
them and keeping time with the music. After a little while the music
became louder, and suddenly our ears were pierced with the whole of
the natives present joining in the hideous war-cry. Then the motions
and screams of the dancers became more violent, and every thing was
worked up to a state of excitement, by which even we were influenced.
Suddenly, a very unpleasant odour pervaded the room, already too
warm, from the numbers it contained. Involuntarily we held our noses,
wondering what might be the cause, when we perceived that one of the
warriors had stepped into the centre, and suspended round the shoulders
of each dancer a human head in a wide-meshed basket of rattan. These
heads had been taken in the late Sakarron business, and were therefore
but a fortnight old. They were encased in a wide network of rattan, and
were ornamented with beads. Their stench was intolerable, although,
as we discovered upon after examination, when they were suspended
against the wall, they had been partially baked and were quite black.
The teeth and hair were quite perfect, the features somewhat shrunk,
and they were altogether very fair specimens of pickled heads; but our
worthy friends required a lesson from the New Zealanders in the art of
preserving. The appearance of the heads was the signal for the music
to play louder, for the war-cry of the natives to be more energetic,
and for the screams of the dancers to be more piercing. Their motions
now became more rapid, and the excitement in proportion. Their eyes
glistened with unwonted brightness. The perspiration dropped down
their faces, and thus did yelling, dancing, gongs, and tom-toms become
more rapid and more violent every minute, till the dancing warriors
were ready to drop. A farewell yell, with emphasis, was given by
the surrounding warriors; immediately the music ceased, the dancers
disappeared, and the tumultuous excitement and noise was succeeded by
a dead silence. Such was the excitement communicated, that when it was
all over we ourselves for some time remained panting to recover our
breath. Again we lighted our cheroots, and smoked for a while the pipe
of peace."
WONDERFUL FISH.
The Greek Church of Baloukli contains an extraordinary instance of the
credulity of superstition. Some wonderful fish are there preserved,
which are thus described by Mr. Curzon in his admirable book on the
"Monasteries of the Levant:"--
"The unfortunate Emperor Constantine Paleologus rode out of the city
alone to reconnoitre the outposts of the Turkish army, which was
encamped in the immediate vicinity. In passing through a wood he found
an old man seated by the side of a spring, cooking some fish on a
gridiron for his dinner; the emperor dismounted from his white horse,
and entered into conversation with the other; the old man looked up at
the stranger in silence, when the emperor inquired whether he had heard
anything of the movement of the Turkish forces: 'Yes,' said he, 'they
have this moment entered the city of Constantinople.' 'I would believe
what you say,' replied the emperor, 'if the fish which you are broiling
would jump off the gridiron into the spring.' This, to his amazement,
the fish immediately did, and, on his turning round, the figure of the
old man had disappeared. The emperor mounted his horse and rode towards
the gate of Silivria, where he was encountered by a band of the enemy,
and slain, after a brave resistance, by the hand of an Arab or a Negro.
"The broiled fishes still swim about in the water of the spring, the
sides of which have been lined with white marble, in which are certain
recesses in which they can retire when they do not wish to receive
company. The only way of turning the attention of these holy fish to
the respectful presence of their adorers is accomplished by throwing
something glittering into the water, such as a handful of gold or
silver coin: gold is the best; copper produces no effect; he that sees
one fish is lucky, he that sees two or three goes home a happy man;
but the custom of throwing coins into the spring has become, from its
constant practice, very troublesome to the good monks, who kindly
depute one of their community to rake out the money six or seven times
a day with a scraper at the end of a long pole. The emperor of Russia
has sent presents to the shrine of Baloukli, so called from the Turkish
word Balouk, a fish. Some wicked heretics have said that these fishes
are common perch: either they or the monks must be mistaken; but of
whatever kind they are, they are looked upon with reverence by the
Greeks, and have been continually held in the highest honour from the
time of the siege of Constantinople to the present day."
CURIOUS MARRIAGE CUSTOM.
At Petzé, in the department of Finisterre, in France, the following
singular marriage custom still prevails:--"On an appointed day, the
_paysannes_, or female pretenders to the holy state of matrimony,
assemble on the bridge of the village, and, seating themselves upon the
parapet, there patiently await the arrival of the intended bridegrooms.
All the neighbouring cantons contribute their belles to ornament this
renowned bridge. There may be seen the peasant of _Saint Poliare_, her
ruddy countenance surrounded by her large muslin sleeves, which rise
up and form a kind of framework to her full face; by her may be seated
the heavy _Touloisienne_, in her cloth _caline_, or gown; the peasant
of _la Léonarde_, in a Swiss boddice, bordered with different coloured
worsted braid, and a scarlet petticoat, may next appear, presenting
a gaudy contrast to her neighbour from _Saint Thegonnec_, in her
nun-like costume. On one side extends _la coulie de Penhoat_, bordered
with willows, honeysuckles, and the wild hop; on the other, the sea,
confined here like a lake, between numerous jets of land covered with
heath and sweet broom; and below the bridge, the thatched town, poor
and joyous as the beggar of _Carnouailles_. The bay is here so calm,
that the whole of this gay scene is reflected in its still waters; and
a few scenes of rural festivity present a more animated or diverting
picture.
"The arrival of the young men, with their parents, is the signal for
silence among the candidates for a husband. The gentlemen advance, and
gravely parade up and down the bridge, looking first on this side,
and then on that, until the face of some one of the lasses strike
their fancy. The fortunate lady receives intimation of her success
by the advance of the cavalier, who, presenting his hand, assists
her in descending from her seat, making at the same time a tender
speech; compliments are exchanged, the young man offers fruit to his
intended bride, who remains motionless before him, playing with her
apron strings. In the mean while the parents of the parties approach
each other, talk over the matter of their children's marriage, and if
both parties are agreeable they shake hands, and this act of friendly
gratulation is considered a ratification of the treaty between them,
and the marriage is shortly afterwards celebrated."
FOREIGN COSTUME IN 1492.
[Illustration: [++] Count Eberhard the Elder.]
The nobleman portrayed here is Count Eberhard the elder, first Duke
of Wurtemberg, in a festival habit at Stuttgardt, in the year 1492,
on the occasion of his receiving the order of the Golden Fleece, the
first which Austria instituted for herself (King Maximilian inherited
it from Burgundy) and which he received together with King Henry VIII.
of England. His costume is taken from an old illumination which, in
the year 1847, was copied for King William of Wurtemberg, and which is
now preserved in his private library at Stuttgardt. This exemplifies
the quilled doublet, made of a kind of damasked black velvet, which
appears to have been worn over the defensive armour improved by King
Maximilian. Upon the black surcoat appear the orders of the Golden
Fleece and the Holy Sepulchre. According to contemporary statues and
monuments, Georg von Ekingen and Heinrich von Wællwerth, officers of
the court of Eberhard, wore this kind of doublet. The former, according
to a portrait, of a red colour; the latter authority is in the
Wællwerth Chapel, in the cloister of Lorch near Schw. Gmuend.
PETER THE GREAT AT ZAANDAM.
We learn from authentic records that Peter the Great, Czar of Russia,
entered himself, in the year 1697, on the list of ship's carpenters at
the Admiralty Office of Amsterdam, in Holland. This is true; but before
Peter so enrolled himself, he had made an attempt to fix his abode, for
the purpose of study, at Saardam, or Zaandam, a little town situated
on the river Zaan, about half an hour's voyage, by steam, from the
populous and wealthy city of Amsterdam.
Zaandam, though then, as now, one of the most primitive, original
little towns in Europe, had for some time held important commercial
intercourse with Russia; and Peter had long seen the advantage to be
derived from studying at its head-quarters the art which he felt sure
would elevate his country in an extraordinary way. He therefore opened
a private correspondence with some trusty friends in Holland, and set
forth, with his hand of intelligent companions, early in the summer of
1697; in the autumn of the same year he disembarked at Zaandam, and,
alone and unattended, sought an humble lodging from a man of the name
of Gerrit Kist, who had formerly been a blacksmith in Russia, and who,
as may well be imagined, was astonished at the "imperial apparition;"
indeed he could not believe that Peter really wished to hire so humble
an abode. But the Czar persevered, and obtained permission to occupy
the back part of Kist's premises, consisting of a room and a little
shed adjoining, Kist being bound to secresy as to the rank of his
lodger: Peter's rent amounted to seven florins (about eleven shillings)
a week.
[Illustration: [++] The Maisonnette of Peter the Great.]
The _maisonnette_, or hut, of Peter the Great now stands alone, and has
been encased in a strong wooden frame in order to preserve it. It is in
much the same state as when occupied by the Czar. The chief apartment
is entered by the door you see open, the projecting roof covers the
room probably occupied by Peter's servant, and on the left of the
larger room is the recess or cupboard in which Peter slept. Formerly
the rear of this abode was crowded with inferior buildings; it is now
an airy space, with trees waving over the wooden tenement, and a garden
full of sweet-scented flowers embalms the atmosphere around it. A civil
old Dutchwoman is the guardian of the property, which is kept up with
some taste, and exquisite attention to cleanliness.
The _maisonnette_ has but one door. In Zaandam the old Dutch custom of
closing one entrance to the house, except on state occasions, is still
kept up; the purpose of the other, the _porte mortuaire_, or _mortuary
portal_, is sufficiently explained by its name.
After Peter's departure, his dwelling passed from hand to hand, and
would have fallen into oblivion had not Paul the First of Russia
accompanied Joseph the Second of Austria and the King of Sweden to
Zaandam, on purpose to visit the Czar's old abode. After this it became
a sort of fashion to make pilgrimages to the once imperial residence;
and it acquired a still greater celebrity when the Emperor Alexander
visited it in 1814, and made a great stir in the waters of the Zaan
with a fleet of three hundred yachts and innumerable barges, gaily
decked with flying pennons. In 1818, William the First of Holland
purchased the property, and gave it to his daughter-in-law, the
Princess of Orange and a royal Russian by birth: it is to her care the
building owes its present state of preservation. Her royal highness
appointed a Waterloo invalid as first guardian of the place.
Bonaparte brought Josephine here in 1812. Poor Josephine had no idea of
old associations; she jumped from the sublime to the ridiculous at once
on entering the "mean habitation," and startled the then proprietor by
a burst of untimely laughter.
Many royal and illustrious names may be read on the walls of the
principal chamber, and in the book in which the traveller is
requested to write his name. Verses and pictures challenge, somewhat
impertinently, the attention of the wayfarer; but as we sat down in
the triangular arm-chairs, and turned from the dark recess in which
Peter slept, to the ingle-nook of the deep chimney, and from the ingle
to the dark recess again, we could realize nothing but Peter in his
working dress of the labours of the day. There he was in the heat of an
autumnal evening still at work, with books and slates, and instruments
connected with navigation, before him on the rude deal table, and he
plodding on, as diligently as a common mechanic, in pursuit of that
knowledge by which nations are made great.
SUPPLY OF WATER FOR LONDON IN OLDEN TIMES.
In 1682 the private houses of the metropolis were only supplied with
fresh water twice a-week. Mr. Cunningham, in his "Handbook of London,"
informs us that the old sources of supply were the Wells, or Fleet
River, Wallbrook and Langbourne Waters, Clement's, Clerk's, and Holy
Well, Tyburn, and the River Lea. Tyburn first supplied the city in the
year 1285, the Thames not being pressed into the service of the city
conduits till 1568, when it supplied the conduit at Dowgate. There were
people who stole water from the pipes then, as there are who steal gas
now. "This yere" (1479), writes an old chronicler of London, quoted
by Mr. Cunningham, "a wax charndler in Flete-stre had bi craft perced
a pipe of the condite withynne the ground, and so conveied the water
into his celar; wherefore he was judged to ride through the citee with
a condite upon his hedde." The first engine which conveyed water into
private houses, by leaden pipes, was erected at London-bridge in 1582.
The pipes were laid over the steeple of St. Magnus; and the engineer
was Maurice, a Dutchman. Bulmer, an Englishman, erected a second engine
at Broken Wharf. Previous to 1656, the Strand and Covent Garden, though
so near to the river, were only supplied by water-tankards, which were
carried by those who sold the water, or by the apprentice, if there
were one in the house, whose duty it was to fill the house-tankard at
the conduit, or in the river. In the middle of the seventeenth century,
Ford erected water-works on the Thames, in front of Somerset House; but
the Queen of Charles II.--like the Princess Borghese, who pulled down
a church next to her palace, because the incense turned her sick, and
organ made her head ache--ordered the works to be demolished, because
they obstructed a clear view on the river. The inhabitants of the
district depended upon their tankards and water-carriers, until the
reign of William III., when the York-buildings Waterworks were erected.
The frequently-occurring name of Conduit-street, or Conduit-court,
indicates the whereabout of many of the old sources whence our
forefathers drew their scanty supplies.
DRINKING BOUTS IN PERSIA.
In their drinking parties the Persians are reported, among even the
highest classes, to exceed all bounds of discretion. Half a dozen
boon companions meet at night. The floor is covered with a variety
of stimulating dishes to provoke drinking, for which no provocation
whatever is required; among these are pickles of every possible
variety, and salted prawns or cray-fish from the Persian Gulf--a
food which ought to be an abomination to a true Sheeah. Singers and
dancing-boys enliven the scene. A Persian despises a wine-glass; a
tumbler is his measure. He has an aversion to "heeltaps," and he
drains his glass to the dregs, with his left hand under his chin to
catch the drops of wine, lest he should be detected next morning
in respectable society by the marks on his dress. They begin with
pleasant conversation, scandal, and gossip; then they become personal,
quarrelsome, abusive, and indecent, after the unimaginable Persian
fashion. As the orgies advance, as the mirth waxes fast and furious,
all restraint is thrown aside. They strip themselves stark naked,
dance, and play all sorts of antics and childish tricks. One dips his
head and face into a bowl of curds, and dances a solo to the admiring
topers; while another places a large deeg, or cooking-pot, on his head,
and display his graces and attitudes on the light fantastic toe, or
rather heel.
GERMAN COSTUMES OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The costume-sketch which we give on next page, is taken from an
original drawing, having the following superscription:--
"Varium et mutabile semper foemina
Faec suo quem amat scripsit.
Georgius Wolfgang Von Kaltenthal. 1579."
[Illustration: [++] German Costumes of the Sixteenth Century.]
The group represents the above-named young knight, with his youthful
wife, taking a ride. She wears a blue silken dress, with a boddice of
gold brocade, trimmed with fur, and a rose-coloured silk scarf; the
head-dress is quite plain, the hair being fastened with a golden dagger
set in jewels. The knight's dress consists of a light green doublet,
with dark green stripes; slashed hose, edged with white; yellowish
leather surcoat without sleeves, riding boots of untanned leather,
and grey felt hat with red and white plume, dagger, and sword. The
accoutrements of the horse are simply black, with some metal ornaments.
The young lady is the beautiful Leonora Caimingen, who was at that time
a great favourite of the Court at Wurtemberg. In travelling thus (which
was at that time the only mode), females of the higher rank only were
accustomed to make use of masks, or veils, for the preservation of
their complexions, that custom being generally unusual. The ancestral
castle of the knights of Kaltenthal was situated between Stuttgardt and
Boeblingen, on the summit of a rock overhanging the valley of Hesslach.
It exists no longer.
ANCIENT TRIPOD.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Tripod.]
Tripods are, next to vases, the most ancient furniture in the world;
the imagination of the ancients invested them with fanciful forms,
and we meet with designs which, although very simple, show already
the power exercised by the re-productive faculties of the mind upon
the objects surrounding these ancient nations. Representations of
the kind were, however, exceedingly rare till the last forty years,
and it must be considered an especial piece of good fortune that the
excavations made in several parts of Etruria, have afforded more than
one example of this description. The specimen engraved was found in
the Gailassi Regulini tomb of Cervetri, in Etruria, and in it we see a
large vessel placed on the tripod, from the edge of which five lions'
heads start forth with hideous expression. These monsters lend to
the whole that fanciful aspect distinguishing objects of the archaic
period. When we imagine to ourselves this kettle boiling, and these
cruel animals wreathed and enveloped in smoke, we can understand how
the fancy of superstitious worshippers, who were wont to make use of
these implements in their religious ceremonies, may have found in
them an allusion to the spirits of the victims whose remains were
exposed to the destructive fire glowing underneath. To us, at least,
this representation may illustrate the terrific but grand passage of
Homer, where the bodies of the slaughtered sun bulls become once more
instinct with life, demanding vengeance with fearful cries: Odyssey,
Book xii, verse 395.
"The skins began to creep, and the flesh around the spits bellowed,
The roasted as well as the raw. And thus grew the voice of
the oxen."
The careful construction of the three-legged mechanism which lends
a firm support to this fire-stand, has been restored according to
the indication of some fragments found on the spot. It presents a
graceful aspect, and forms, in some respects, a remarkable contrast
to the heavy character of the vessel occupying so lofty a position,
as the proportions of the legs are exceedingly slender, and the feet
themselves, instead of being broad and shapeless, are all composed of a
great many fine articulations.
FONDNESS OF THE ROMANS FOR PEARLS.
Of all the articles of luxury and ostentation known to the Romans,
pearls seem to have been the most esteemed. They were worn on all parts
of the dress, and such was the diversity of their size, purity, and
value, that they were found to suit all classes, from those of moderate
to those of the most colossal fortune. The famous pearl ear-rings of
Cleopatra are said to have been worth about £160,000, and Julius Cæsar
is said to have presented Servilia, the mother of Brutus, with a pearl
for which he had paid above £48,000; and though no reasonable doubt
can be ascertained in regard to the extreme exaggeration of these
and similar statements, the fact that the largest and finest pearls
brought immense prices is beyond all question. It has been said that
the wish to become master of the pearls with which it was supposed to
abound, was one of the motives which induced Julius Cæsar to invade
Britain. But, though a good many were met with in various parts of the
country, they were of little or no value, being small and ill-coloured.
After pearls and diamonds, the emerald held the highest place in the
estimation of the Romans.
THE BLACK STONE AT MECCA.
Near the entrance of the Kaaba at Mecca, at the north-eastern corner,
is the famous Black Stone, called by the Moslems _Hajra el Assouad_,
or Heavenly Stone. It forms a part of the sharp angle of the building,
and is inserted four or five feet above the ground. The shape is an
irregular oval, about seven inches in diameter. Its colour is now a
deep reddish brown, approaching to black; and it is surrounded by a
border of nearly the same colour, resembling a cement of pitch and
gravel, and from two to three inches in breadth. Both the border
and the stone itself are encircled by a silver band, swelling to a
considerable breadth below, where it is studded with nails of the same
metal. The surface is undulated, and seems composed of about a dozen
smaller stones, of different sizes and shapes, but perfectly smooth,
and well joined with a small quantity of cement. It looks as if the
whole had been dashed into many pieces by a severe concussion, and then
re-united--an appearance that may perhaps be explained by the various
disasters to which it has been exposed. During the fire that occurred
in the time of Yezzid I. (A.D. 682), the violent heat split it into
three pieces; and when the fragments were replaced, it was necessary
to surround them with a rim of silver, which is said to have been
renewed by Haroun el Raschid. It was in two pieces when the Karmathians
carried it away, having been broken by a blow from a soldier during the
plunder of Mecca. Hakem, a mad sultan of Egypt, in the 11th century,
endeavoured, while on the pilgrimage, to destroy it with an iron club
which he had concealed under his clothes; but was prevented and slain
by the populace. Since that accident it remained unmolested until 1674,
when it was found one morning besmeared with dirt, so that every one
who kissed it returned with a sullied face. Though suspicion fell on
certain Persians, the authors of this sacrilegious joke were never
discovered. As for the quality of the stone, it does not seem to be
accurately determined. Burckhardt says it appeared to him like a
lava, containing several small extraneous particles of a whitish and
yellowish substance. Ali Bey calls it a fragment of volcanic basalt,
sprinkled with small-pointed coloured crystals, and varied with
red feldspar upon a dark black ground like coal, except one of its
protuberances, which is a little reddish. The millions of kisses and
touches impressed by the faithful have worn the surface uneven, and to
a considerable depth. This miraculous block all orthodox Mussulmans
believe to have been originally a transparent hyacinth, brought from
heaven to Abraham by the angel Gabriel; but its substance, as well
as its colour, have long been changed by coming in contact with the
impurities of the human race.
PARAGRAPH FROM THE "POSTMAN" IN 1697.
"Yesterday being the day of thanksgiving appointed by the
States-General for the peace, His Excellency, the Dutch ambassador,
made a very noble bonfire before his house in St. James's Square,
consisting of about 140 pitch barrels placed perpendicularly on seven
scaffolds, during which the trumpets sounded, and two hogsheads of wine
were kept continually running amongst the common people."
LORD MAYOR'S FEAST IN 1663.
Pepys gives a curious account of a Lord Mayor's dinner in 1663. It was
served in the Guildhall, at one o'clock in the day. A bill of fare
was placed with every salt-cellar, and at the end of each table was a
list of the persons proper there to be seated. Here is a mixture of
abundance and barbarism. "Many were the tables, but none in the hall,
but the Mayor's and the Lords' of the Privy Council, _that had napkins
or knives_, which was very strange. I sat at the merchant-stranger's
table, where ten good dishes to a mess, with plenty of wine of all
sorts; but it was very unpleasing that we had no napkins, nor change
of trenchers, and drank out of earthen pitchers and wooden dishes. The
dinner, it seems, is made by the Mayor and two Sheriffs for the time
being, and the whole is reckoned to come to £700 or £800 at most."
Pepys took his spoon and fork with him, as was the custom of those days
with guests invited to great entertainments. "Forks" came in with Tom
Coryat, in the reign of James I.; but they were not "familiar" till
after the Restoration. The "laying of napkins," as it was called, was
a profession of itself. Pepys mentions, the _day before_ one of his
dinner-parties, that he went home, and "there found one laying of my
napkins against to-morrow, in figures of all sorts, which is mighty
pretty, and, it seems, is his trade, and he gets much money by it."
THE CUPID OF THE HINDOOS.
Among the Hindoo deities _Camdeo_, or Manmadin differs but little from
the Cupid of the ancients. He is also called _Ununga_, or, without
body; and is the son of Vishnu and Lacshmi. Besides his bow and
arrows, he carries a banner, on which is delineated a fish: his bow
is a sugar-cane; the cord is formed of bees; the arrows are of all
sorts of flowers; one only is headed, but the point is covered with
a honeycomb--an allegory equally just and ingenious, and which so
correctly expresses the pleasures and the pangs produced at one and the
same time by the wounds of love. Manmadin is represented, as in the
annexed plate, riding on a parrot.
[Illustration: [++] Manmadin Riding on a Parrot.]
One day, when Vishnu, to deceive Sheeva, had assumed the figure of a
beautiful young female, Manmadin discharged an arrow, which pierced
the heart of the formidable deity, and inflamed it with love of the
nymph. The latter fled, and at the moment when Sheeva had overtaken
her, Vishnu resumed his proper form. Sheeva, enraged at the trick
played upon him, with one flash of his eyes burned and consumed the
imprudent Manmadin, who hence received the name of _Ununga_. He was
restored to life by a shower of nectar, which the gods in pity poured
upon him: but he remained without body and is the only Indian deity who
is accounted incorporeal. Camdeo is particularly worshipped by females
desirous of obtaining faithful lovers and good husbands.
OLD DIAL AND FOUNTAIN IN LEADENHALL-STREET.
[Illustration: [++] Old Dial and Fountain.]
The above sketch is taken from an old work on astronomy and geography
by Joseph Moxon, and printed by him, and sold "at his Shop on
_Cornhill_, at the signe of _Atlas_, 1659." We cannot do better than
give Moxon's own words with reference to the dial:--"To make a dyal
upon a solid ball or globe, that shall show the hour of the day without
a gnomon. The equinoctial of this globe, or (which is all one) the
middle line must be divided into 24 equal parts, and marked with 1,
2, 3, 4, &c., and then beginning again with 1, 2, 3, &c. to 12. Then
if you elevate one of the poles so many degrees above an horizontal
line as the pole of the world is elevated above the horizon in your
habitation, and place one of the twelves directly to behold the north,
and the other to behold the south, when the sun shines on it, the globe
will be divided into two halfs, the one enlightened with the sunshine,
and the other shadowed; and where the enlightened half is parted from
the shadowed half, there you will find in the equinoctial the hour of
the day, and that on two places on the ball, because the equinoctial
is cut in two opposite points by the light of the sun. A dyal of this
sort was made by Mr. John Leak and set up on a composite columne at
Leadenhall Corner, in London, in the majoralty of Sir John Dethick,
knight. The figure whereof I have inserted because it is a pretty peece
of ingenuity, and may, perhaps, stand some lover of the art in stead
either for imitation or help of invention."
MAGNIFICENCE OF MADYN, THE CAPITAL OF PERSIA, WHEN INVADED BY THE
SARACENS, A.D. 626.
The invaders could not express their mingled sensations of surprise
and delight, while surveying in this splendid capital the miracles
of architecture and art, the gilded palaces, the strong and stately
porticoes, the abundance of victuals in the most exquisite variety and
profusion, which feasted their senses, and courted their observation
on every side. Every street added to their astonishment, every chamber
revealed a new treasure; and the greedy spoilers were enriched beyond
the measure of their hopes or their knowledge. To a people emerging
from barbarism, the various wonders which rose before them in all
directions, like the effect of magic, must have been a striking
spectacle. We may therefore believe them when they affirm, what is
not improbable, that the different articles of merchandise--the
rich and beautiful pieces of manufacture which fell a prey on this
occasion--were in such incalculable abundance, that the thirtieth part
of their estimate was more than the imagination could embrace. The gold
and silver, the various wardrobes and precious furniture, surpassed,
says Abul-feda, the calculation of fancy or numbers; and the historian
Elmacin ventured to compute these untold and almost infinite stores at
the value of 3,000,000,000 pieces of gold.
One article in this prodigious booty, before which all others seemed
to recede in comparison, was the superb and celebrated carpet of
silk and gold cloth, sixty cubits in length, and as many in breadth,
which decorated one of the apartments of the palace. It was wrought
into a paradise or garden, with jewels of the most curious and costly
species; the ruby, the emerald, the sapphire, the beryl, topaz, and
pearl, being arranged with such consummate skill, as to represent, in
beautiful mosaic, trees, fruits, and flowers, rivulets and fountains;
roses and shrubs of every description seemed to combine their fragrance
and their foliage to charm the sense of the beholders. This piece of
exquisite luxury and illusion, to which the Persians gave the name
of _Baharistan_ or the mansion of perpetual spring, was an invention
employed by their monarchs as an artificial substitute for that
loveliest of seasons. During the gloom of winter they were accustomed
to regale the nobles of their court on this magnificent embroidery,
where art had supplied the absence of nature, and wherein the guests
might trace a brilliant imitation of her faded beauties in the
variegated colours of the jewelled and pictured floor. In the hope that
the eyes of the Caliph might he delighted with this superb display of
wealth and workmanship, Saad persuaded the soldiers to relinquish their
claims. It was therefore added to the fifth of the spoil, which was
conveyed to Medina on the backs of camels. But Omar, with that rigid
impartiality from which he never deviated, ordered the gaudy trophy to
be cut up into small pieces, and distributed among the chief members
of the Mohammedan commonwealth. Such was the intrinsic value of the
materials, that the share of Ali alone, not larger than the palm of
a man's hand, was afterwards sold for 20,000 drachms (£458 6s. 8d.),
or, according to others, for as many dinars (£9,250). Out of this vast
store the Caliph granted pensions to every member of his court in
regular gradation, from the individuals of the Prophet's family to the
lowest of his companions, varying from £275 to £4 11s. per annum.
The military part of the booty was divided into 60,000 shares, and
every horseman had 12,000 dinars (£5,550); hence, if the army consisted
of 60,000 cavalry, their united shares would amount to the incredible
sum of £333,000,000 sterling.
COURTSHIP OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR.
The following extract from the life of the wife of the Conqueror,
is exceedingly curious, as characteristic of the manners of a
semi-civilized age and nation:--"After some years' delay, William
appears to have become desperate; and, if we may trust to the evidence
of the 'Chronicle of Ingerbe,' in the year 1047 way-laid Matilda in
the streets of Bruges, as she was returning from mass, seized her,
rolled her in the dirt, spoiled her rich array, and, not content with
these outrages, struck her repeatedly, and rode off at full speed.
This Teutonic method of courtship, according to our author, brought
the affair to a crisis; for Matilda, either convinced of the strength
of William's passion, by the violence of his behaviour, or afraid of
encountering a second beating, consented to become his wife. How he
ever presumed to enter her presence again, after such a series of
enormities, the chronicler sayeth not, and we are at a loss to imagine."
BRAMA, THE HINDOO DEITY.
_Brama_, _Birmah_, or _Brouma_, is one of the three persons of the
Indian Trinity, or rather the Supreme Being under the attribute of
_Creator_. Brama, the progenitor of all rational beings, sprung from a
golden egg, sparkling like a thousand suns, which was hatched by the
motion imparted to the waters by the Supreme Being. Brama separated
the heavens from the earth, and placed amid the subtle ether the eight
points of the universe and the receptacle of the waters. He had five
heads before Vairevert, one of Sheeva's sons, cut off one of them.
He is delineated floating on a leaf of the lotus, a plant revered in
India. The Bramins relate, that the fifteen worlds which compose the
universe were each produced by a part of Brama's body. At the moment
of our birth he imprints in our heads, in characters which cannot be
effaced, all that we shall do, and all that is to happen to us in life.
It is not in our power, nor in that of Brama himself, to prevent what
is written from being fulfilled.
[Illustration: [++] Brama.]
Brama, according to the vulgar mythology, takes but little notice of
human affairs. Identified with the sun, he is adored by the Bramins
in the _gayatri_, the most sacred passage of the _vedas_ (or sacred
books), which is itself ranked among the gods, and to which offerings
are made. One of the most important attributes of Brama is that of
father of legislators; for it was his ten sons who diffused laws and
the sciences over the world. He is considered as the original author of
the _vedas_, which are said to have issued from his four mouths; though
it was not till a later period, that is, about fourteen hundred years
before Christ, that they were collected and arranged by Vyasa, the
philosopher and poet. The laws which bear the name of Menu, the son of
Brama, and the works of the other _richeys_, or holy persons, were also
re-copied, or perhaps collected from tradition, long after the period
when they are said to have been published by the sons of Brama.
Brama, the father of the legislators of India, has a considerable
resemblance to the Jupiter of the Greek poets, the father of Minos,
whose celebrated laws were published in the very same century that
Vyasa collected the _vedas_. Jupiter was worshipped as the sun, by
the name of _Anxur_ or _Axur_, and Brama is identified with that
luminary. The most common form in which Brama is represented, is that
of a man with four heads and four hands; and it is remarkable that the
Lacedæmonians gave four heads to their Jupiter. Lastly, the title of
Father of Gods and Men is equally applicable to Brama and to Jupiter.
Brama is delineated, as in the engraving, holding in one hand a ring,
the emblem of immortality; in another, fire, to represent force; and
with the other two writing on _olles_, or palm-leaves, the emblem of
legislative power.
JAMES II. AND THE CHURCH OF DONORE.
[Illustration: [++] Church of Donore.]
The annexed engraving represents a celebrated locality. It is the ruin
of the little church on the hill at Donore, in the county of Meath,
the spot where James II. was stationed when he beheld the overthrow
of his army and the ruin of his cause at the battle of the Boyne,
Tuesday, July 1st, 1690. The Boyne is a very beautiful and picturesque
river; it winds through the fertile valleys of Meath, and from its
richly-wooded banks the hills rise gradually; there are no lofty
mountains in the immediate neighbourhood. The depth, in nearly all
parts, is considerable, and the current, consequently, not rapid; its
width, near the field of battle, varies little, and is seldom less
than fifty or sixty yards. James had the choice of ground, and it was
judiciously selected. On the south side of the river, in the county of
Meath, his army was posted with considerable skill: on the right was
Drogheda; in front were the fords of the Boyne, deep and dangerous,
and difficult to pass at all times; the banks were rugged, lined by a
morass, defended by some breastworks, with "huts and hedges convenient
for infantry;" and behind them was an acclivity stretching along the
whole of "the field." James fixed his own tent upon the summit of a
hill close to the little church of Donore, now a ruin; it commanded
an extensive view of the adjacent country, and the opposite or south
side of the river--the whole range, indeed, from Drogheda to Oldbridge
village--and looked directly down upon the valley, in which the battle
was to be fought, and the fords of the Boyne, where there could be no
doubt the troops of William would attempt a passage. From this spot,
James beheld his prospering rival mingling in the thick of the _mêlée_,
giving and taking blows; watched every turn of fortune, as it veered
towards or against him; saw his enemies pushing their way in triumph,
and his brave allies falling before the swords of foreigners--a safe
and inglorious spectator of a battle upon the issue of which his throne
depended. The preceeding night he had spent at Carntown Castle, from
whence he had marched, not as the leader, but as the overseer, of the
Irish army; having previously given unequivocal indications of his
prospects, his hopes, and his designs, by despatching a commissioner to
Waterford, "to prepare a ship for conveying him to France, in case of
any misfortune."
HANGING GARDENS OF BABYLON.
When Babylon the Great was in the zenith of her glory, adjoining the
grand palace, and within the general enclosure, the Hanging Gardens
were constructed by the king to gratify his wife Amytis, who being a
native of Media (she was the daughter of Astyages, the king of Media),
desired to have some imitation of her native hills and forests.
"Within the walls was raised a lofty mound,
Where flowers and aromatic shrubs adorn'd
The pensile garden. For Nebassar's queen,
Fatigued with Babylonia's level plains,
Sigh'd for her Median home, where nature's hand
Had scooped the vale, and clothed the mountain's side
With many a verdant wood: nor long she pined
Till that uxorious monarch called on Art
To rival Nature's sweet variety.
Forthwith two hundred thousand slaves uprear'd
This hill--egregious work; rich fruits o'erhang
The sloping vales, and odorous shrubs entwine
Their undulating branches."
These gardens, as far as we learn from ancient accounts, contained
a square of above 400 feet on each side, and were carried up in the
manner of several large terraces, one above the other, till the height
equalled that of the walls of the city. The ascent from terrace to
terrace was by stairs ten feet wide. The whole pile was sustained
by vast arches, raised on other arches one above another, and was
defended and condensed by a wall, surrounding it on every side, of
twenty-two feet in thickness. On the top of the arches were first laid
large flat stones, sixteen feet long and four broad; over these was a
layer of weeds mixed and cemented with a large quantity of bitumen, on
which were two rows of bricks closely cemented together with the same
material. The whole was covered with thick sheets of lead, on which lay
the mould of the garden. And all this floorage was so contrived as to
keep the moisture of the mould from running away through the arches.
The earth laid thereon was so deep that large trees might take root
in it: and with such the terraces were covered, as well as with the
[...] plants and flowers proper to adorn an eastern pleasure-garden.
The trees planted there are represented to have been of various kinds.
Here grew the larch, that, curving, flings its arms like a falling
wave; and by it was seen the grey livery of the aspen; the mournful
solemnity of the cypress and stately grandeur of the cedar intermingled
with the elegant mimosa; besides the light and airy foliage of the
silk-tasselled acacia, with its vast clusters of beauteous lilac
flowers streaming in the wind and glittering in the sun; the umbrageous
foliage of the chesnut, and ever-varying verdure of the poplar; the
birch, with its feathered branches light as a lady's plumes--all
combined with the freshness of the running stream, over which the
willow waved its tresses.--
"And the jessamine faint, and the sweet tuberose,
The sweetest flower for scent that blows;
And all rare blossoms from every clime
Grew in that garden in perfect prime."
All these varied delights of nature were ranged in rows on the
side of the ascent as well as on the top, so that at a distance it
appeared to be an immense pyramid covered with wood. The situation of
this extraordinary effort of human skill, aided by human wealth and
perseverance, adjoining the river Euphrates, we must suppose that in
the upper terrace was an hydraulic engine, or kind of pump, by which
the water was forced up out of the river, and from thence the whole
gardens were watered, and a supply of the pure element furnished to the
fountains and reservoirs for cooling the air. In the spaces between
the several arches, on which the whole structure rested, were large
and magnificent apartments, very lightsome, and commanding the most
beautiful prospects that even the glowing conceptions of an eastern
imagination could dream to exist.
THE GREAT BELL OF BURMAH.
At a temple in the environs of Amarapoora, the capital of Burmah, there
is an enormous bell, which is thus described by Captain Yule:--"North
of the temple, on a low circular terrace, stands the biggest bell in
Burmah--the biggest in the world, probably, Russia apart. It is slung
on a triple beam of great size, cased and hooped with metal; this beam
resting on two piers of brickwork, enclosing massive frames of teak.
The bell does not swing free. The supports were so much shaken by the
earthquake, that it was found necessary to put props under the bell,
consisting of blocks of wood carved into grotesque figures. Of course
no tone can now be got out of it. But at any time it must have required
a battering-ram to elicit its music. Small ingots of silver (and some
say pieces of gold) may still be traced, unmelted, in the mass, and
from the inside one sees the curious way in which the makers tried to
strengthen the parts which suspend it by dropping into the upper part
of the mould iron chains, round which the metal was run. The Burmese
report the bell to contain 555,555 viss of metal (about 900 tons). Its
principal dimensions are as follow:--External diameter at the lip,
16 feet 3 inches; external diameter 4 feet 8 inches above the lip,
10 feet; interior height, 11 feet 6 inches; exterior ditto, 12 feet;
interior diameter at top, 8 feet 6 inches. The thickness of metal
varies from six inches to twelve, and the actual weight of the bell
is, by a rough calculation, about eighty tons, or one-eleventh of the
popular estimate. According to Mr. Howard Malcolm, whose authority was
probably Colonel Burney, the weight is stated in the Royal Chronicle
at 55,500 viss, or about ninety tons. This statement is probably,
therefore, genuine, and the popular fable merely a multiplication of it
by ten."
This monster Burmese bell is, therefore, fourteen times as heavy as
the great bell of St. Paul's, but only one-third of that given by the
Empress Anne to the Cathedral of Moscow.
BANDOLIERS.
[Illustration: [++] Bandoliers.]
We here engrave a set of bandoliers, a species of weapon much in vogue
about the close of the sixteenth century. The specimen before us
consists of nine tin cases covered with leather, with caps to them,
each containing a charge of powder, and suspended by rings from a cord
made to pass through other rings. The caps are retained in their places
by being contrived so as to slip up and down their own cords. Two
flaps of leather, on each side, are intended to protect the bandoliers
from rain, and attached to one of these may be perceived a circular
bullet-purse, made to draw with little strings. This specimen was
buckled round the waist by means of a strap; others were worn round the
body and over the shoulder. The noise they made, agitated by the wind,
but more especially the danger of all taking fire from the match-cord,
occasioned their disuse, as Sir James Turner tells us, about the year
1640.
TOMB OF DARIUS.
Among the most remarkable tombs of the ancients, may be noticed the
sepulchre carved out of the living rock, by order of Darius, the
warrior and conqueror king of Persia, for the reception of his own
remains; and which is existing to this day at Persepolis, after a
duration of twenty-three centuries.
The portico is supported by four columns twenty feet in height, and
in the centre is the form of a doorway, seemingly the entrance to the
interior, but it is solid; the entablature is of chaste design. Above
the portico there is what may be termed an ark, supported by two rows
of figures, about the size of life, bearing it on their uplifted hands,
and at each angle a griffin--an ornament which is very frequent at
Persepolis. On this stage stands the king, with a bent bow in his hand,
worshipping the sun, whose image is seen above the altar that stands
before him, while above his head hovers his ferouher, or disembodied
spirit. This is the good genius that in Persian and Ninevite sculpture
accompanies the king when performing any important act. On each side
the ark are nine niches, each containing a statue in bas-relief. No
other portion of the tomb was intended to be seen, excepting the
sculptured front; and we must, therefore, conclude that the entrance
was kept secret, and that the avenues were by subterranean passages, so
constructed that none but the privileged could find their way. We are
told by Theophrastus, that Darius was buried in a coffer of Egyptian
alabaster; and also that the early Persians buried their dead entire,
preserving their bodies with honey or wax.
THE GATE ON OLD LONDON BRIDGE.
[Illustration: [++] Gate on Old London Bridge.]
In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, a strongly embattled gate protected
the entrance from Southwark to Old London Bridge, and it was usually
garnished with traitors' heads in "rich abundance," as may be seen
in the accompanying cut, which is copied from Visscher's view, in
1579. The bridge was at that period covered with houses, a narrow
road passing through arcades beneath them, and they abutted on props
over the river on either side. The bridge was proudly spoken of by
our ancestors. Thus, in the translation of Ortelius, published by J.
Shaw, in 1603, he says of the Thames:--"It is beautified with statelye
pallaces, built on the side thereof; moreover, a sumptuous bridge
sustayned on nineteen arches, with excellent and beauteous housen built
thereon." Camden, in his great work, the "Britannica," says, "It may
worthily carry away the prize from all the bridges in Europe," being
"furnished on both sides with passing faire houses, joining one to
another in the manner of a street."
EXTRAORDINARY PONDS AND FISH.
The ponds in the department of Ain in France are 1667 in number. The
industry and ingenuity of man have converted the marshes into fertile
plains and productive ponds, by constructing dykes from one hill to
the other, for the plateaux are covered with small hills. When the
proprietor of one of these ponds wishes to cultivate it, he draws off
the water into the dyke attached to it. Wheat, barley, and oats are
then sown, and the seed thus fertilised by the slime produces a crop
double that produced by the land in the vicinity. After the harvest
is collected, the water is permitted to return to its former bed, and
carp, tench, and roach are then thrown into it. Some of these ponds
will support 100,000 of carp, and 100 pounds of little tench and roach.
In the course of two years these carp, which weighed only one ounce
and a-half, will have attained the size of two pounds and a half. The
fishing begins in April, and is continued until November. The increase
of the fish is as one to five.
THE CEREMONIAL OF MAKING THE KING'S BED.
The following account of the old ceremony of making the King's bed in
the time of Henry the Eighth, was sent to the Society of Antiquaries,
in 1776, by Mr. J. C. Brooke, of the Heralds' College, F.S.A. &c. In a
letter to the president, he says,--
"It is extracted from an original manuscript, elegantly written,
beautifully illuminated, and richly bound, which was some time in the
library of Henry, Duke of Norfolk, earl marshal of England, to whom it
came by descent from Thomas, the great Duke of Norfolk, beheaded in
the reign of Queen Elizabeth; who married Mary, daughter and coheir
of Henry Fitz-Alan, Earl of Arundel, lord chamberlain to King Henry
the Eighth. It contains the whole duty of the lord chamberlain, and
of the officers in his department; is the original copy kept for the
information of that earl; and had been compiled by order of, and
approved by, the King himself in council."
"_The oolde ordre of Makynge the Kynges Bedd not to used nor done, but
as Hys Grace woll comaund and apoynte from tyme to tyme herafter._
"_Furste_, a groome or a page to take a torche, and to goo to the
warderobe of the kynges bedd, and bryng theym of the warderobe with
the kynges stuff unto the chambr for makyng of the same bedde. Where
as aught to be a gentylman-usher, iiii yomen of the chambr for to make
the same bedde. The groome to stande at the bedds feete with his torch.
They of the warderobe openyng the kinges stuff of hys bedde upon a
fayre sheete, bytwen the sayde groome and the bedds fote, iii yeomen,
or two at the leste, in every syde of the bedde; the gentylman-usher
and parte commaundyng theym what they shall doo. A yoman with a dagger
to searche the strawe of the kynges bedde that there be none untreuth
therein. And this yoman to caste up the bedde of downe upon that,
and oon of theym to tomble over yt for the serche thereof. Then they
to bete and tufle the sayde bedde, and to laye oon then the bolster
without touchyng of the bedd where as it aught to lye. Then they of
the warderobe to delyver theym a fustyan takyng the saye therof. All
theys yomen to laye theyr hands theroon at oones, that they touch not
the bedd, tyll yt be layed as it sholde be by the comaundement of the
ussher. And so the furste sheet in lyke wyse, and then to trusse in
both sheete and fustyan rownde about the bedde of downe. The warderoper
to delyver the second sheete unto two yomen, they to crosse it over
theyr arme, and to stryke the bedde as the ussher shall more playnly
shewe unto theym. Then every yoman layeing hande upon the sheete, to
laye the same sheete upon the bedde. And so the other fustyan upon or
ii with such covervnge as shall content the kynge. Thus doon, the ii
yomen next to the bedde to laye down agene the overmore fustyan, the
yomen of the warderobe delyverynge theym a pane sheete, the sayde yoman
therewythall to cover the sayde bedde. And so then to laye down the
overmost sheete from the beddes heed. And then the sayd ii yomen to lay
all the overmost clothes of a quarter of the bedde. Then the warderoper
to delyver unto them such pyllowes as shall please the kynge. The sayd
yoman to laye theym upon the bolster and the heed sheete with whych the
sayde yoman shall cover the sayde pyllowes. And so to trusse the endes
of the sayde sheete under every ende of the bolster. And then the sayd
warderoper to delyver unto them ii lyttle small pyllowes, werwythall
the squyres for the bodye or gentylman-ussher shall give the saye to
the warderoper, and to the yoman whych have layde on hande upon the
sayd bedde. And then the sayd ii yomen to lay upon the sayde bedde
toward the bolster as yt was bifore. They makyng a crosse and kissynge
yt where there handes were. Then ii yomen next to the feete to make the
feers as the ussher shall teche theym. And so then every of them sticke
up the aungel about the bedde, and to lette down the corteyns of the
sayd bedde, or sparver.
"Item, a squyer for the bodye or gentylman-ussher aught to sett the
kynges sword at hys beddes heed.
"Item, a squyer for the bodye aught to charge a secret groome or page,
to have the kepynge of the sayde bedde with a lyght unto the time the
kynge be disposed to goo to yt.
"Item, a groome or page aught to take a torche, whyle the bedde ys yn
makyng, to feche a loof of brede, a pott wyth ale, a pott wyth wine,
for them that maketh the bedde, and every man.
"Item, the gentylman-ussher aught to forbede that no manner of man
do sett eny dysshe upon the kynge's bedde, for fere of hurtying of
the kynge's ryche counterpoynt that lyeth therupon. And that the sayd
ussher take goode heede, that noo man wipe or rubbe their handes uppon
none arras of the kynges, wherby they myght bee hurted, in the chambr
where the kynge ys specially, and in all other."
ORIGIN OF SANDWICHES.
To the memory of "Lord Sandwich" belongs the name of that edible.
Being, during his administration (as was very usual with him), at a
gambling-house, he had, in the fascination of play, for more than five
and twenty hours forgotten fatigue and hunger, when suddenly, feeling
disposed to break his fast, though still riveted to the table, he
called to bid some one bring anything that was to be had to eat, which
happened to prove a slice of beef, and two pieces of bread. Placing
them together for the sake of expedition, he devoured them with the
greatest relish. The most ecstatic encomiums published his discovery,
and giving it his name, bequeathed it as a memento to his country, as
one of the most important acts of his administration.
THE TREATY-STONE AT LIMERICK.
The city of Limerick is very famous in history. Before it, in 1651,
Ireton "sate down;" there he continued to "sit" for six months; and
underneath its walls the fierce republican died of plague. Greater
celebrity, and higher honour, were, however, obtained by Limerick in
1690. Early in August, William summoned it to surrender; the French
general, Boileau, who commanded the garrison--"rather for the King
of France than the King of England"--returned for answer, that "he
was surprised at the summons, and thought the best way to gain the
good opinion of the Prince of Orange was to defend the place for his
master King James." The siege was at once commenced. The flower of the
Irish army were within its walls, or in its immediate neighbourhood;
the counties of Clare and Galway were open to them, from which to
draw supplies; and a French fleet rode triumphantly in the Shannon.
The garrison, however, were little disposed to act in concert: the
jealousy of the commanders of the French and Irish had spread to their
troops; and they cherished feelings of contempt or hatred towards each
other, that argued ill for their success in opposing the steady and
disciplined forces of William.
[Illustration: [++] Treaty-Stone at Limerick.]
Yet the Irish succeeded; the siege was raised on the 30th of August.
But, in the autumn of 1691, it endured a second, which occupied about
six months; when the garrison, wearied of a struggle from which they
could derive nothing but glory, on the 23rd of September, a cessation
of hostilities took place; an amicable intercourse was opened between
the two armies; and articles of capitulation were, after a few brief
delays, agreed upon. The "violated treaty" was signed on the 3rd of
October, 1691; it consisted of two parts, civil and military. It is
said to have been signed by the several contracting parties on a large
stone, near to Thomond Bridge, on the county of Clare side of the
river. The stone remains in the position it occupied at the period, and
is an object of curiosity to strangers, as well as of interest to the
citizens of Limerick. We, therefore, thought it desirable to procure a
drawing of the relic, which retains its name of "the Treaty Stone."
THE TEMPLARS' BANNER CALLED BEAUSEANT.
When Constantine the Great was on the eve of a battle with Maxentius,
we are told that a luminous standard appeared to him in the sky with a
cross upon it, and this inscription:--"_In hoc signo vinces_--By this
sign you shall conquer;" and that this sign so encouraged Constantine
and his soldiers that they gained the next day a great victory.
When Waldemar II. of Denmark was engaged in a great battle with the
Livonians in the year 1219, it is said that a sacred banner fell from
heaven into the midst of his army, and so revived the courage of his
troops, that they gained a complete victory over the Livonians; and
in memory of the event, Waldemar instituted an order of knighthood,
called "St. Danebrog," or the strength of the Danes, and which is
still the principal order of knighthood in Denmark. Now, taking these
legends for as much as they are worth, and no more; what do they prove?
Not that this miraculous standard and cross came to the assistance
of Constantine; not that this miraculous banner came to the aid of
Waldemar; but they prove that such was the paramount importance
attached to the sacred banner among the forces, that wherever it was
present, it was a great means of inspiriting the men with increased
confidence and courage, and so contributed to the victory.
[Illustration: [++] Beauseant.]
The great importance attached to the banner in the middle ages is not
to be wondered at, when we consider that it was a kind of connecting
link between the military and the clergy; it was a religious symbol
applied to a military purpose, and this was the feeling which animated
the Crusaders and the Templars in their great struggle against the
enemies of Christianity. The contest then was between the crescent and
the cross--between Christ and Mahomet. The Knights Templars had a very
remarkable banner, being simply divided into black and white, the white
portion symbolising peace to their friends, the black portion evil to
their enemies, and their dreaded war cry, "BEAUSEANT."
SWORD-FISH _v._ WHALES.
So boundless is the sword-fish's rage and fury against whales in
particular, that many observers imagine his sallies against rocks and
timber to originate in an error of judgment, that all these lunges are
intended to punish leviathan, and are only misdirected in consequence
of the imperfect vision which prevents this scomber, like many of
his family, from accurately distinguishing forms. Whenever a supposed
whale is descried, our savage _sabreur_ rushes forward to intercept
his progress, and suddenly flashing before his victim, either alone
or in conjunction with some other unfriendly fish, instantly proceeds
to the attack. Relations of such sea-fights, attested by credible
eye-witnesses, are not uncommon; we content ourselves with the citation
of one of unimpeachable accuracy. Captain Crow, cited by Mr. Yarrell,
relates that in a voyage to Memel, on a calm night, just off the
Hebrides, all hands were called up to witness a strange combat between
some thrashers (carcharias vulpes) and a sword-fish leagued together
against a whale; as soon as the back of the ill-starred monster was
seen rising a little above the water, the thrashers sprang several
yards into the air, and struck him with their descending tails, the
reiterated percussions of which sounded, we are told, like a distant
volley of musketry. The sword-fish meanwhile attacked the whale from
below, getting close under his belly, and with such energy and effect
that there could be little doubt of the issue of a fray, which the
necessity of prosecuting their voyage prevented the crew from watching
to its close. The sword-fish is not less remarkable for strength than
pugnacity, the depôt of its great physical powers being, as in most
scombers, in the tail.
WEALTH OF SPAIN UNDER THE MOORS.
The Moors, whose conquest and expulsion were attended with such
atrocities, and such triumphs to the Catholic church, were by far the
most industrious and skilful part of the Spanish population, and their
loss was a blow to the greatness and prosperity of that kingdom from
which it has never recovered. The literary activity and commercial
enterprise of the Arabs, which the wise policy of their Caliphs
encouraged, contributed both to enrich and adorn their adopted country.
Cordova, the seat of the Ommiades, was scarcely inferior, in point of
wealth and magnitude, to its proud rival on the banks of the Tigris.
A space of twenty-four miles in length, and six in breadth, along the
banks of the Guadalquiver, was occupied with palaces, streets, gardens,
and public edifices; and for ten miles the citizens could travel by
the light of lamps along an uninterrupted extent of buildings. In the
reign of Almansor it could boast of 270,000 houses, 80,455 shops,
911 baths, 3,877 mosques, from the minarets of which a population of
800,000 were daily summoned to prayers. The seraglio of the Caliph, his
wives, concubines, and black eunuchs, amounted to 6,300 persons; and he
was attended to the field by a guard of 12,000 horsemen, whose belts
and scimitars were studded with gold. Granada was equally celebrated
for its luxury and its learning. The royal demesnes extended to the
distance of twenty miles, the revenues of which were set apart to
maintain the fortifications of the city. Of the duty on grain, the
king's exchequer received about £15,000 yearly, an immense sum at that
time, when wheat sold at the rate of sixpence a bushel. The consumption
of 250,000 inhabitants kept 130 water-mills constantly at work in the
suburbs. The population of this small kingdom under the Moors is
said to have amounted to 3,000,000, which is now diminished perhaps
to one-fifth of that number. Its temples and palaces have shared the
same decay. The Alhambra stands solitary, dismantled, and neglected.
The interior remains of the palace are in tolerable preservation, and
present a melancholy picture of the romantic magnificence of its former
kings. Seville, which had continued nearly 200 years the seat of a
petty kingdom, enjoyed considerable reputation as a place of wealth
and commerce. The population in 1247 was computed at 300,000 persons,
which, in the sixteenth century, had decreased one-third. It was one
of the principal marts for olives in the Moorish dominions; and so
extensive was the trade in this article alone that the _axarafe_, or
plantations round the suburbs, employed farm-houses and olive-presses
to the amount of 100,000, being more than is now to be found in the
whole province of Andalusia.
THE FIRST OPERA.
The first composer who tried his hand at setting an opera to music was
Francisco Bamirino, an Italian artist; and the piece to which he lent
the charm of a melodious accompaniment, was the "Conversion of St.
Paul," which was brought out at Rome in 1460.
RUINS OF EUROPA.
Lady Sheil, in her "Life in Persia," thus describes some wonderful
ruins which she saw about thirty miles from Tehran:--
"From near Verameen a most remarkable antiquity still survives the
lapse of twenty centuries, that is, if what we hear be true. It
consists of an immense rampart, twenty or thirty feet in height, and
of proportional thickness, including a space of about half a mile in
length and nearly the same in breadth. It is in the form of a square;
the rampart is continuous, and at short intervals is strengthened by
bastions of prodigious size. The whole is constructed of unbaked bricks
of large dimensions, and is in a state of extraordinary preservation.
The traces of a ditch of great size, though nearly filled up, are
evident in front of the rampart. No buildings are found inside, where
nothing is visible excepting a few mounds,--not a single habitation or
human being. The solitude of this striking vestige of antiquity adds
to its solemnity. It stood alone; Elboorz, distant only a few miles,
gazing down on its hoary walls, with Demawend, in its garments of
snow, to complete the scene. From no place have I had a finer view of
this grand mountain, which seemed to lie exactly to the north. I am
informed that these magnificent ruins represent Europa, a city built
by Seleucus, which, if true, would make it upwards of two thousand
years old. On seeing the perfect state of the ruins, and the materials
of which they are composed, one feels no hesitation in crediting so
venerable an antiquity. Seleucus chose the spot well. The district of
Verameen is renowned for its fertility, though not at this period for
the salubrity of its climate. The surrounding country is covered with
earthen mounds, denoting former edifices, which, if explored, might
reveal objects worthy of the erudition and intellect of even Sir Henry
Rawlinson."
CELEBRATED GUN.
[Illustration: [++] Gun of Charles IX. of France.]
The gun, of which the annexed is a sketch, is one of the many
curiosities of the Londesborough Museum. It once formed part of the
collection of Prince Potemkin, and was originally the property of
Charles IX. of France; it is traditionally reported to have been the
gun he used in firing on his Huguenot subjects, from one of the windows
of the Louvre, during the massacre of St. Bartholomew. The barrel is
richly chased in high relief, with a stag-hunt amid foliage. The stock
is inlaid with ivory, sculptured into a series of hunting scenes,
knights on horseback.
The dreadful massacre of Saint Bartholomew commenced at Paris on the
night of the festival of that saint, August 24th, 1572. Above 500
persons of rank, and 10,000 of inferior condition, perished in Paris
alone, besides those slaughtered in the provinces. The king, who had
been persuaded that the destruction of the Huguenots to the last man
was necessary to the safety of his throne, beheld the slaughter from a
window, and being carried away by the example of those whose murderous
doings he witnessed, ordered some long arquebusses to be brought,
and on their being loaded, and handed to him one after another, he
for some time continued to fire on the unfortunate fugitives as they
passed, crying at the same time with a loud voice, "Kill, kill." He
afterwards went and inspected the bodies of the slain, and expressed
his satisfaction at the effective manner in which his orders had been
executed.
TOMB OF RAFFAELLE.
The great painter Raffaelle died at Rome, April 7th 1520, at the early
age of thirty-seven. He was buried in the Pantheon, in a chapel which
was afterwards called Raffaelle's Chapel. For more than a century and
a half his tomb had only a plain epitaph, but Carlo Maratti desired to
place a more striking memorial of Raffaelle's resting-place than the
simple inscription, and accordingly, in the year 1764, a marble bust
of the painter, executed by Paolo Nardini, was placed in one of the
oval niches on each side of the chapel. The epitaph to Maria Bibiena
(Raffaelle's betrothed) was removed to make way for Maratti's new
inscription; and it was currently believed that the skull of Raffaelle
was removed; at least such was the history given of a skull shown
as the painter's, religiously preserved by the Academy of St. Luke,
and descanted on by phrenologists as indicative of all the qualities
which "the divine painter" possessed. But scepticism played its part;
doubts of the truth of this story led to doubts of Vasari's statement
respecting the exact locality of Raffaelle's tomb. Matters were brought
to a final issue by the discovery of a document proving this skull to
be that of Don Desiderio de Adjutorio, founder of the society called
the Virtuosi, in 1542. Thereupon, this society demanded the head of its
founder from the Academy of St. Luke; but they would neither abandon
that, nor the illusion that they possessed the veritable skull of the
great artist. Arguments ran high, and it was at length determined to
settle the question by an examination of the spot, which took place on
the 13th of September 1833, in the presence of the Academies of St.
Luke and of Archæology, the Commission of the Fine Arts (including
Overback and others), the members of the Virtuosi, the governor of Rome
(Monsignor Grimaldi), and the Cardinal Zurla, the representative of the
pope.
[Illustration: [++] Tomb of Raffaelle.]
The result will be best given in the words of an eye-witness, Signor
Nibby (one of the Commission of Antiquities and Fine Arts), who thus
described the whole to M. Quatremere de Quincy, the biographer of
Raffaelle:--"The operations were conducted on such a principle of exact
method as to be chargeable with over nicety. After various ineffectual
attempts in other directions, we at length began to dig under the altar
of the Virgin itself, and taking as a guide the indications furnished
by Vasari, we at length came to some masonry of the length of a man's
body. The labourers raised the stone with the utmost care, and having
dug within for about a foot and a half, came to a void space. You can
hardly conceive the enthusiasm of us all, when, by a final effort, the
workmen exhibited to our view the remains of a coffin, with an entire
skeleton in it, lying thus as originally placed, and thinly covered
with damp dust. We saw at once quite clearly that the tomb had never
been opened, and it thus became manifest that the skull possessed by
the Academy of St. Luke was not that of Raffaelle. Our first care was,
by gentle degrees, to remove from the body the dust which covered it,
and which we religiously collected, with the purpose of placing it in
a new sarcophagus. Amongst it we found, in tolerable preservation,
pieces of the coffin, which was made of deal, fragments of a painting
which had ornamented the lid, several bits of Tiber clay, formations
from the water of the river, which had penetrated into the coffin by
infiltration, an iron stelletta, a sort of spur, with which Raffaelle
had been decorated by Leo X, several _fibulæ_, and a number of metal
_anelli_, portions of his dress." These small rings had fastened the
shroud; several were retained by the sculptor Fibris, who also took
casts of the head and hand, and Camuccini took views of the tomb and
its precious contents; from one of these our cut is copied.
On the following day the body was further examined by professional
men: the skeleton was found to measure five feet seven inches, the
narrowness of the coffin indicated a slender and delicate frame. This
accords with the contemporary accounts, which say he was of a refined
and delicate constitution; his frame was all spirit; his physical
strength so limited that it was a wonder he existed so long as he did.
The investigation completed, the body was exhibited to the public from
the 20th to the 24th, and then was again placed in a new coffin of
lead, and that in a marble sarcophagus presented by the pope, and taken
from the antiquities in the Museum of the Vatican. A solemn mass was
then announced for the evening of the 18th of October. The Pantheon was
then illuminated, as for a funeral; the sarcophagus, with its contents,
was placed in exactly the same spot whence the remains had been taken.
The presidents of the various academies were present, with the Cavalier
Fabris at their head. Each bore a brick, which he inserted in the
brickwork with which the sepulchre was walled in. And so the painter
awaits "the resurrection of the just," and the fellowship of saints
and angels, of which his inspired pencil has given us the highest
realisation on earth.
ANTIMONY.
The origin of the use of _anti-moine_, or antimony, is a remarkable
circumstance. Basil Valentin, superior of a college of religionists,
having observed that this mineral fattened the pigs, imagined that it
would produce the same effect on the holy brotherhood. But the case was
seriously different; the unfortunate fathers, who greedily made use of
it, died in a short time, and this is the origin of its name, according
to the pure French word. In spite of this unfortunate beginning,
Paracelsus resolved to bring this mineral into practice; and by mixing
it with other preparations make it useful. The Faculty at Paris were
on this occasion divided into two parties, the one maintaining that
antimony was a poison; the other affirmed that it was an excellent
remedy. The dispute became more general, and the Parliament and
the College of the Sorbonne interfered in the matter; but sometime
afterwards people began to judge rightly concerning this excellent
mineral; and its wonderful and salutary effects have occasioned the
Faculty to place it among their best medicines.
PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF MAHOMET.
For the personal appearance and private life of Mahomet, we must rely
on the Arabian writers, who dwell with fond and proud satisfaction on
the graces and intellectual gifts with which nature had endowed him. He
was of a middle stature, of a clear, fair skin, and ruddy complexion.
His head and features, though large, were well proportioned; he had
a prominent forehead, large dark-brown eyes, an aquiline nose, and
a thick bushy beard. His mouth, though rather wide, was handsomely
formed, and adorned with teeth white as pearls, the upper row not
closely set, but in regular order--which appeared when he smiled, and
gave an agreeable expression to his countenance. He had a quick ear,
and a fine sonorous voice. His dark eyebrows approached each other
without meeting. His hair fell partly in ringlets about his temples,
and partly hung down between his shoulders. To prevent whiteness, the
supposed effect of Satanic influence, he stained it, as the Arabs
often do still, of a shining reddish colour. His frame was muscular
and compact--robust rather than corpulent. When he walked, he carried
a staff, in imitation of the other prophets, and had a singular
affectation of being thought to resemble Abraham. The assertion of
the Greeks and Christians, that he was subject to epilepsy, must be
ascribed to ignorance or malice.
STIRRUPS.
From every information we have been able to collect, we believe that
the appendage of stirrups were not added to saddles before the sixth
century. It is said, that previous to the introduction of stirrups,
the young and agile used to mount their horses by vaulting upon them,
which many did in an expert and graceful manner; of course, practice
was essential to this perfection. That this should be afforded, wooden
horses were placed in the Campus Martius, where this exercise was
performed of mounting or dismounting on either side; first, without,
and next with arms. Cavalry had also occasionally a strap of leather,
or a metallic projection affixed to their spears, in or upon which the
foot being placed, the ascent became more practicable. Respecting the
period of this invention, Montfaucon has presumed that the invention
must have been subsequent to the use of saddles; however, opposed to
this opinion, an ingenious argument has been offered, that it is
possible they might have been anterior to that invention; because, it
is said, they might have been appended to a girth round the body of the
horse. Both Hippocrates and Galen speak of a disease to which the feet
and ancles were subject, from long riding, occasioned by suspension
of the feet without a resting-place. Suetonius, the Roman, informs us
that Germanicus, the father of Caligula, was wont to ride after dinner,
to strengthen his ancles, by the action of riding affording the blood
freer circulation in the part.
THE GREAT SHOEMADOO PAGODA.
[Illustration: [++] Great Shoemadoo Pagoda.]
The Buddhist temple of which we here give an engraving is the great
Shoëmadoo Pagoda at Pegu. Among other things it is interesting as
being one of the earliest attempts at that class of decoration, which
consists in having at the base of the building a double range of small
pagodas, a mode of ornamentation that subsequently became typical in
Hindu architecture; their temples and spires being covered, and indeed
composed of innumerable models of themselves, clustered together so as
to make up a whole.
The building stands on two terraces, the lower one about 10 ft. high,
and 1391 ft. square: the upper one, 20 ft. in height, is 684 ft.
square; from the centre of it rises the pagoda, the diameter of whose
base is 395 ft. The small pagodas are 27 ft. high, and 108 or 110 in
number; while the great pagoda itself rises to the height of 331 ft.
above its terrace, or 361 ft. above the country, thus reaching a height
nearly equal to St. Paul's Cathedral; while the side of the upper
terrace is only 83 ft. less than that of the great Pyramid.
Tradition ascribes its commencement to two merchants, who raised it to
the height of 12 cubits at an age slightly subsequent to that of Buddha
himself. Successive kings of Pegu added to this from time to time, till
at last it assumed its present form, most probably about three or four
centuries ago.
PEST HOUSE DURING THE PLAGUE IN TOTHILL FIELDS.
[Illustration: [++] Pest House in Tothill Fields.]
Tothill Fields, a locality between Pimlico and the Thames, was
anciently the manor of Tothill, belonging to John Maunsel, chancellor,
who in 1256, entertained here Henry III. and his court at a vast feast
in tents and pavilions. Here were decided wagers of battle and appeals
by combat. Necromancy, sorcery and witchcraft were punished here; and
"royal solemnities and goodly jousts were held here." In Culpeper's
time the fields were famous for parsley. In 1642 a battery and
breastwork were erected here. Here also were built the "Five Houses,"
or "Seven Chimneys," as pest-houses for victims of the plague. One of
these pest-houses is given in the above engraving, taken from an old
print. In the plague time of 1665, the dead were buried "in the open
Tuttle Fields." In Queen Anne's reign here was William Well's head
garden on the site of Vincent-square. The Train Bands were drawn out
here in 1651. In the last century the fields were a noted duel-ground,
and here, in 1711, Sir Cholmeley Deering, M.P., was killed by the first
shot of Mr. Richard Thornhill, who was tried for murder and acquitted,
but found guilty of manslaughter and burnt in the hand.
THE THUGS.
The following account of these horribly extraordinary men is taken from
Dr. Hooker's Himalayan Journals; writing at Mirzapore, he says:--"Here
I had the pleasure of meeting Lieutenant Ward, one of the suppressors
of Thuggee (_Thuggee_, in Hindostan, signifies a deceiver; fraud,
not open force, being employed). This gentlemen kindly showed me the
approvers, or king's evidence of his establishment, belonging to those
three classes of human scourges, the Thug, Dakoit, and Poisoner. Of
these the first was the Thug, a mild-looking man, who had been born and
bred to the profession: he had committed many murders, saw no harm in
them, and felt neither shame nor remorse. His organs of observation and
destructiveness were large, and the cerebellum small. He explained to
me how the gang waylay the unwary traveller, enter into conversation
with him, and have him suddenly seized, when the superior throws his
own girdle round the victim's neck and strangles him, pressing the
knuckles against the spine. Taking off his own girdle, he passed it
round my arm, and showed me the turn as coolly as a sailor once taught
me the hangman's knot. The Thug is of any caste, and from any part of
India. The profession have particular stations, which they generally
select for murder, throwing the body of their victim into a well.
"Their origin is uncertain, but supposed to be very ancient, soon
after the Mahommedan conquest. They now claim a divine original, and
are supposed to have supernatural powers, and to be the emissaries
of the divinity, like the wolf, the tiger, and the bear. It is only
lately that they have swarmed so prodigiously--seven original gangs
having migrated from Delhi to the Gangetic provinces about 200 years
ago, from whence all the rest have sprung. Many belong to the most
amiable, intelligent, and respectable classes of the lower and even
middle ranks: they love their profession, regard murder as sport, and
are never haunted with dreams, nor troubled with pangs of conscience
during hours of solitude, or in the last moments of life. The victim
is an acceptable sacrifice to the goddess Davee, who by some classes
is supposed to eat the lifeless body, and thus save her votaries the
necessity of concealing it.
"They are extremely superstitious, always consulting omens, such as
the direction in which a hare or a jackal crosses the road; and even
far more trivial circumstances will determine the fate of a dozen of
people, and perhaps of an immense treasure. All worship the pickaxe,
which is symbolical of their profession, and an oath sworn on it binds
closer than on the Koran. The consecration of this weapon is a most
elaborate ceremony, and takes place only under certain trees. The
Thugs rise through various grades: the lowest are scouts; the second,
sextors; the third, are holders of the victim's hands; the highest,
stranglers.
"Though all agree in never practising cruelty, or robbing previous
to murder--never allowing any but infants to escape (and these are
trained to Thuggee), and never leaving a trace of such goods as may be
identified--there are several variations in their mode of conducting
operations: some tribes spare certain castes, others none; murder of
woman is against all rules; but the practice crept into certain gangs,
and this it is which led to their discountenance by the goddess Davee,
and the consequent downfall of the system. Davee, they say, allowed the
British to punish them, because a certain gang had murdered the mothers
to obtain their daughters to be sold to prostitution.
"Major Sleeman has constructed a map demonstrating the number of
'bails,' or regular stations for committing murder, in the kingdom of
Oude alone, which is 170 miles long by 100 broad, and in which are 274,
which are regarded by the Thug with as much satisfaction and interest
as a game preserve is in England; nor are these 'bails' less numerous
than in other parts of India. Of twenty assassins who were examined,
one frankly confessed to having been engaged in 931 murders, and the
least guilty of the number in 24. Sometimes 150 persons collected into
one gang, and their profits have often been immense, the murder of six
persons on one occasion yielding 82,000 rupees, upwards of £8,000."
ENGLISH EARTHENWARE AND SHAKSPEARE'S JUG.
Much uncertainty exists regarding the period when the manufacture
of fine earthenware was first introduced into England. Among the
documents in the Foedera, occur various lists of articles, ordered to
be purchased in England for several foreign potentates, and permitted
to be exported for their use without paying the Custom duties. One of
these lists, dated in 1428, enumerates many objects as then shipped
for the use of the King of Portugal and the Countess of Holland, among
which are "six silver cups, each of the weight of six marks (or four
pounds), a large quantity of woollen stuffs, and 2000 plates, dishes,
saucers, and other vessels of _electrum_."
As these articles were, no doubt, the produce of the country, it
would appear that utensils for domestic use were then made of metal,
and not of pottery; and it was not till some time afterwards that
the latter was introduced by the Dutch, whose manufactory at Delft
probably existed as early as the fifteenth century, and who sent large
quantities of their ware to England. The skill and excellence of the
English artizans consisted in the manufacture of silver and other
metals. Of this, instances are recorded in the correspondence of La
Mothe Fénelon, the French ambassador at the Court of Queen Elizabeth;
and in the travels of Hentzner, who visited England in 1598. Both
describe in glowing colours the silver plate which adorned the buffets,
as well as the magnificent furniture and decorations of the palaces of
that sumptuous queen.
Still Elizabeth, who so highly prided herself upon the state and
splendour of her establishment, and who was in constant intercourse
with the Court of France and the Low Countries, was not likely to
have remained altogether satisfied without possessing, among the
manufactures of her own kingdom, something similar to the fine Fayence
then in use in every foreign court. Though it is probable that Delft
ware procured from Holland was first used, it may reasonably be
presumed that the ware called by her name was afterwards manufactured,
under her immediate patronage, for the use of the court and the
nobility; and although there is no record of the fact, it is supposed
that Stratford-le-Bow was the site of the manufactory.
[Illustration: [++] Shakspeare's Jug.]
Shakspeare's Jug, of which we here give an engraving, which has been
carefully preserved by the descendants of the immortal bard since the
year 1616, is, perhaps, the most remarkable example of the Elizabethan
pottery now existing. The shape partakes very much of the form of the
old German or Dutch ewer, without, however, the usual top or cover;
the one now attached to the jug being a modern addition of silver,
with a medallion bust of the poet in the centre, beautifully executed
and inscribed "WM. SHAKSPEARE, AT THE AGE OF FORTY." It is about ten
inches high, and sixteen inches round at the largest part, and is
divided lengthwise into eight compartments, having each a mythological
subject in high relief. All of these, although executed in the quaint
style of the period, possess considerable merit. Some of them, indeed,
manifest much masterly grouping of both human figures and animals; and
such is the admirable state of preservation of this very interesting
old English relic, that as correct a judgment may be formed of its
workmanship, as in the days of its first possessor; at all events, as
regards the degree of perfection to which English Pottery had attained
in the Elizabethan age; an inspection of this jug will justify the
presumption, that her Court was not less tastefully provided in that
respect than those of the Continent, notwithstanding the obscurity
in which the precise locality and extent of the manufactory is
unfortunately involved.
PRICE OF MACKAREL.
The price of mackarel, in May, 1807, in the Billingsgate market, was
as follows:--Forty guineas for every hundred of the first cargo, which
made the fish come to seven shillings apiece! The next supplies were
also exorbitant, though much less so than the first, fetching thirteen
pounds per hundred, or two shillings apiece. The very next year the
former deficiencies were more than made up, for it appears that during
the season 1808, mackarel were hawked about the streets of Dover, at
sixty for a shilling, or five for a penny; whilst they so blockaded
the Brighton coast that on one night it became impossible to land the
multitudes taken, and at last both fish and nets went to the bottom
together.
POPE'S CHAIR.
[Illustration: [++] Alexander Pope's Chair.]
In one of the rooms at that stately and picturesque baronial hall,
Audley End, the seat of Lord Braybrooke, there is preserved the
interesting relic which forms the subject of the annexed engraving.
Its history is thus told on a brass plate inserted in the back--"This
chair, once the property of Alexander Pope, was given as a keep-sake
to the nurse who attended him in his illness; from her descendants
it was obtained by the Rev. Thomas Ashley, curate of the parish of
Binfield, and kindly presented by him to Lord Braybrooke, in 1844,
nearly a century after the poet's decease." It is apparently of Flemish
workmanship, and of rather singular design; in the centre medallion is
a figure of Venus holding a dart in her right hand, and a burning heart
in her left. The narrow back and wide-circling arms give a peculiarly
quaint appearance to this curious relic of one of our greatest poets.
FIRST WIND-MILLS.
Mabillon mentions a diploma of the year 1105, in which a convent in
France is allowed to erect water and windmills, _molendina ad ventum_.
Bartolomeo Verde proposed to the Venetians in 1332, to build a
wind-mill. When his plan had been examined, he had a piece of ground
assigned him, which he was to retain if his undertaking succeeded
within a specified time. In 1373, the city of Spires caused a wind-mill
to be erected, and sent to the Netherlands for a person acquainted
with the method of grinding by it. A wind-mill was also constructed at
Frankfort, in 1442; but it does not appear to have been ascertained
whether there were any there before.
About the twelfth century, in the pontificate of Gregory, when both
wind and water-mills became more general, a dispute arose whether mills
were titheable or not. The dispute existed for some time between the
persons possessed of mills and the clergy; when neither would yield. At
length, upon the matter being referred to the pope and sacred college,
the question was (as might have been expected when interested persons
were made the arbitrators) determined in favour of the claims of the
church.
THE "HAPPY DISPATCH" IN JAPAN.
The _Hari-kari_, or "Happy Dispatch," consists in ripping open their
own bowels with two cuts in the form of a cross--after the artistic
dissector's fashion. Officials resort to it under the fear of the
punishment which they may expect; for it is a leading principle that
it is more honourable to die by one's own hand than by another's.
Princes and the high classes receive permission to rip themselves up
as a special favour, when under sentence of death: their entire family
must die with the guilty. Sometimes, by favour, the nearest relative
of the condemned is permitted to perform the function of executioner
in his own house. Such a death is considered less dishonourable than
by the public executioners, aided by the servants of those who keep
disreputable houses.
But the Japanese, for the most part, always ask permission to rip
themselves; and they set about it with astonishing ease, and not
without evident ostentation. The criminal who obtains this favour
assembles all his family and his friends, puts on his richest apparel,
makes an eloquent speech on his situation, and then, with a most
contented look, he bares his belly, and in the form of a cross rips
open the viscera. The most odious crimes are effaced by such a death.
The criminal thenceforward ranks as a brave in the memory of men. His
family contracts no stain, and his property is not confiscated.
It is curious that the Romans and the Japanese should hit upon
crucifixion as a mode of punishment. These coincidences often startle
us in reviewing the manners and customs of men. Vainly we strive to
conjecture how such a mode of punishment could have suggested itself
to the mind of man. The _in terrorem_ object scarcely accounts for it.
Constantine abolished it amongst the Romans, in honour of Him who was
pleased to make that mode of dying honourable in the estimation of men.
The Hari-kari, or happy dispatch, is still more incomprehensible.
We shudder at the bare idea of it. To commit suicide by hanging, by
drowning, by poison, by firearms, by a train in rapid motion--all these
modes are reasonable in their madness; but to rip open our bowels!--and
with _two_ cuts! We are totally at a loss to imagine how such a mode
of self-murder could have been adopted; we cannot but wonder at the
strength of nerve which enables it to be accomplished: but we feel no
doubt of the everlasting force of national custom--especially amongst
the Orientals--in the continuance of this practice. Montesquieu said,
"If the punishments of the Orientals horrify humanity, the reason is,
that the despot who ordains them feels that he is above all laws. It
is not so in Republics, wherein the laws are always mild, because he
who makes them is himself a subject." This fine sentiment, thoroughly
French, is evidently contradicted by the institutions of Japan, where
the Emperor himself, the despot, is a subject: besides, Montesquieu
would have altered his antithesis had he lived to see the horrors of
the Reign of Terror in the glorious French Republic.
PURITAN ZEAL.
The following is a copy of the order issued by Government for the
destruction of Glasgow Cathedral:--"To our traist friendis,--Traist
friendis, after most hearty commendacion, we pray you fail not to pass
incontinent to the kirk, (of Glasgow, or elsewhere, as it might be) and
tak down the hail images thereof, and bring furth to the kirk-zyard,
and burn them openly. And sicklyke cast down the altaris, and purge the
kirk of all kynd of monuments of idolatrye. And this ze fail not to do,
as ze will do us singular emplesure; and so commitis you to protection
of God.
(Signed)
AR. ARGYLE.
JAMES STEWART.
RUTHVEN.
_From Edinburgh the XII. of Aug. 1560._
"Fail not, but ze tak guid heyd that neither the dasks, windows,
nor duris, be ony ways hurt or broken, uthe glassin wark, or iron
wark."
FREDERICK THE GREAT AT TABLE.
The table of the great Frederic of Prussia was regulated by himself.
There were always from nine to a dozen dishes, and these were brought
in one at a time. The King carved the solitary dish, and helped the
company. One singular circumstance connected with this table was,
that each dish was cooked by a different cook, who had a kitchen to
himself! There was much consequent expense, with little magnificence.
Frederic ate and drank, too, like a boon companion. His last work,
before retiring to bed, was to receive from the chief cook the bill
of fare for the next day; the price of each dish, and of its separate
ingredients, was marked in the margin. The monarch looked it cautiously
through, generally made out an improved edition, cursed all cooks
as common thieves, and then flung down the money for the next day's
expenses.
ARTIFICIAL SWEETS.
Professor Playfair, in an able lecture delivered in the Great
Exhibition, and since published, has raised a curtain, which
displays a rather repulsive scene. He says, the perfume of flowers
frequently consists of oils and ethers, which the chemist can compound
artificially in his laboratory. Singularly enough these are generally
derived from substances of an intensely disgusting odour. A peculiarly
fetid oil, termed the "fusel" oil, is formed in making brandy. This
fusel oil distilled with sulphuric acid and acetate of potass, gives
the oil of pears (?). The oil of apples is made from the same fusel,
by distillation with the same acid and chromate of potass. The oil
of pineapples is obtained from the product of the action of putrid
cheese on sugar! or by making a soap with butter. The artificial
oil of bitter almonds is now largely employed in perfuming soap
confectionary; extracted by nitric acid and the fetid oil of gas tar.
Many a fair forehead is damped with _eau de mille fleurs_ without the
knowledge that its essential ingredient is derived from the drainage of
cow-houses!
TEUTONIC HUT-SHAPED VASES.
[Illustration: [++] Teutonic Hut-Shaped Vases.]
Some remarkable sepulchral urns, of which we give a sketch, resembling
those of the early inhabitants of Alba Longa, in Italy, have been
found in Germany, and are distinctly Teutonic. They occur in the
sepulchres of the period when bronze weapons were used, and before the
predominance of Roman art. One found at Mount Chemnitz, in Thuringen,
had a cylindrical body and conical top, imitating a roof. In this was
a square orifice, representing the door or window, by which the ashes
of the dead were introduced, and the whole then secured by a small
door fastened with a metal pin. A second vase was found at Roenne; a
third in the island of Bornholm. A similar urn exhumed at Parchim had a
shorter body, taller roof, and door at the side. Still more remarkable
was another found at Aschersleben, which has its cover modelled in
shape of a tall conical thatched roof, and the door with its ring still
remaining. Another, with a taller body and flatter roof, with a door
at the side, was found at Klus, near Halberstadt. The larger vases
were used to hold the ashes of the dead, and are sometimes protected
by a cover, or stone, or placed in another vase of coarser fabric. The
others are the household vessels, which were offered to the dead filled
with different viands. Some of the smaller vases appear to have been
toys.
Extraordinary popular superstitions have prevailed amongst the German
peasantry as to the origin and nature of these vases, which in some
districts are considered to be the work of the elves,--in others, to
grow spontaneously from the ground like mushrooms--or to be endued
with remarkable properties for the preservation of milk and other
articles of food. Weights to sink nets, balls, discs, and little rods
of terra-cotta, are also found in the graves.
LYNCH'S CASTLE, GALWAY.
[Illustration: [++] Lynch's Castle.]
The house in the town of Galway, still known as "Lynch's Castle,"
although the most perfect example now remaining, was at one period by
no means a solitary instance of the decorated habitations of the Galway
merchants. The name of Lynch, as either provost, portreve, sovereign,
or mayor of Galway, occurs no fewer than ninety-four times between the
years 1274 and 1654; after that year it does not appear once. The house
here pictured was the residence of the family for many generations.
It had, however, several branches, whose habitations are frequently
pointed out by their armorial bearings, or their crest, a lynx, over
the gateway. One of its members is famous in history as the Irish
Junius Brutus. The mere fact is sufficiently wonderful without the aid
of invention; but it has, as may be supposed, supplied materials to a
host of romancers. The story is briefly this:--
James Lynch Fitzstephen was mayor or warden of Galway in 1493; he
traded largely with Spain, and sent his son on a voyage thither to
purchase and bring back a cargo of wine. Young Lynch, however, spent
the money entrusted to him, and obtained credit from the Spaniard,
whose nephew accompanied the youth back to Ireland to be paid the debt
and establish further intercourse. The ship proceeded on her homeward
voyage, and as she drew near the Irish shore, young Lynch conceived the
idea of concealing his crime by committing another. Having seduced,
or frightened, the crew into becoming participators, the youth was
seized and thrown overboard. The father and friends of Lynch received
the voyager with joy; and the murderer in a short time became himself
a prosperous merchant. Security had lulled every sense of danger,
and he proposed for a very beautiful girl, the daughter of a wealthy
neighbour, in marriage. The proposal was accepted; but previous to the
appointed day, one of the seamen became suddenly ill, and in a fit of
remorse summoned old Lynch to the dying-bed, and communicated to him a
full relation of the villany of his only and beloved son. Young Lynch
was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to execution--the father being
his judge. The wretched prisoner, however, had many friends among the
people, and his relatives resolved with them that he should not die a
shameful death. They determined upon his rescue. We copy the last act
of the tragedy from "Hardiman's History of Galway." "Day had scarcely
broken when the signal of preparation was heard among the guards
without. The father rose, and assisted the executioner to remove the
fetters which bound his unfortunate son. Then unlocking the door, he
placed him between the priest and himself, leaning upon an arm of each.
In this manner they ascended a flight of steps lined with soldiers,
and were passing on to gain the street, when a new trial assailed
the magistrate for which he appears not to have been unprepared. His
wretched wife, whose name was Blake, failing in her personal exertions
to save the life of her son, had gone in distraction to the heads of
her own family, and prevailed on them, for the honour of their house,
to rescue him from ignominy. They flew to arms, and a prodigious
concourse soon assembled to support them, whose outcries for mercy to
the culprit would have shaken any nerves less firm than those of the
mayor of Galway. He exhorted them to yield submission to the laws of
their country; but finding all his efforts fruitless to accomplish the
ends of justice at the accustomed place, and by the usual hands, he, by
a desperate victory over parental feeling, resolved himself to perform
the sacrifice which he had vowed to pay on its altar. Still retaining
a hold of his unfortunate son, he mounted with him by a winding stair
within the building, that led to an arched window overlooking the
street, which he saw filled with the populace. Here he secured the end
of the rope--which had been previously fixed round the neck of his
son--to an iron staple, which projected from the wall, and after taking
from him a last embrace, he launched him into eternity. The intrepid
magistrate expected instant death from the fury of the populace; but
the people seemed so much overawed or confounded by the magnanimous
act, that they retired slowly and peaceably to their several dwellings.
The innocent cause of this sad tragedy is said to have died soon after
of grief, and the unhappy father of Walter Lynch to have secluded
himself during the remainder of his life from all society except that
of his mourning family. His house still exists in Lombard Street,
Galway, which is yet known by the name of 'Dead Man's Lane;' and over
the front doorway are to be seen a skull and cross-bones executed in
black marble, with the motto, 'Remember Deathe--vaniti of vaniti, and
all is but vaniti.'"
The house in which the tragedy is said to have occurred was taken down
only so recently as 1849; but the tablet which contains the "skull
and cross-bones" bears the date 1624--upwards of a century after the
alleged date of the occurrence.
WASHINGTON.
It is something singular, that Washington drew his _last_ breath, in
the _last_ hour, of the _last_ day, of the _last_ week, of the _last_
month, of the _last_ year, of the _last_ century. He died on Saturday
night, twelve o'clock, December 31st, 1799.
ANCIENT BANNERS AND STANDARDS.
Banners have been in use from the earliest ages. Xenophon gives us the
Persian standard as a golden eagle, mounted on a pole or spear. We
find banners very early in use among the nations of Europe. In this
country the introduction of banners was clearly of a religious origin.
Venerable Bede says, that when St. Augustin and his companions came to
preach Christianity in Britain in the latter part of the sixth century,
and having converted Ethelbert, the Bretwalda of the Anglo-Saxons (his
Queen Bertha had already embraced the Christian faith) the monk and
his followers entered Canterbury in procession, chanting, "We beseech
thee O Lord, of thy mercy, let thy wrath and anger be turned away from
this city, and from thy Holy Place, for we have sinned. Hallelujah."
And they carried in their hands little banners on which were depicted
crosses. The missionaries were allowed to settle in the Isle of Thanet,
and Canterbury became the first Christian church.
The raven has been regarded from very early ages as an emblem of God's
providence, no doubt from the record in Holy Writ of its being employed
to feed Elijah the Prophet, in his seclusion by the brook Cherith;
and it was the well-known ensign of the Danes, at the time of their
dominion in this country. In the year 742, a great battle was fought
at Burford, in Oxfordshire, and the Golden Dragon, the standard of
Wessex, was victorious over Ethelbald, the King of Mercia. The banners
of several of the Saxon kings were held in great veneration, especially
those of Edmund the Martyr, and of Edward the Confessor. The latter
king displayed as an ensign a cross flory between five martlets gold,
on a blue field, and which may still be seen on a very ancient shield
in the south aisle of Westminster Abbey. When William the Norman set
out to invade England he had his own ensign, the two lions of Normandy,
depicted on the sails of his ships; but on the vessel in which he
himself sailed, besides some choice relics, he had a banner at the
mast-head with a cross upon it, consecrated by the Pope, to give
sanctity to the expedition. Indeed it has been the practice in every
age for the Pope to give consecrated banners wherever he wished success
to any enterprise, numerous instances of which might be cited in very
recent times. And in our own army down to the present day, whenever any
regiment receives new banners (or colours, as the modern term is), the
regiment is drawn out in parade, the colours are then blessed by the
prayers of several clergymen of the Church of England, and afterwards
presented to the regiment by the fair hand of a lady of rank.
[Illustration: [++] Banner.]
Cæsar has recorded a fine example of patriotism, to the credit of one
of his own officers, when he attempted to land his Roman forces on our
shores, and meeting with a warmer reception than they anticipated from
the Britons, considerable hesitation arose among his troops; but the
standard-bearer of the Tenth Legion, with the Roman eagle in his hand,
invoking the gods, plunged into the waves, and called on his comrades
to follow him, and do their duty to their general and to the republic;
and so the whole army made good their landing.
[Illustration: [++] Cæsar's Banner.]
We have in the Nineveh sculptures some highly interesting specimens
of the ancient Assyrian standards, consisting principally of two
varieties, which are here given. The principal archer appears to be
drawing his bow, while the standard-bearer elevates the standard in
front of the chariot.
ANCIENT MANNERS OF THE ITALIANS.
About the year 1238, the food of the Italians was very moderate, or,
rather scanty. The common people had meat only three days a week.
Their dinner consisted of pot-herbs, boiled with meat; their supper,
the cold meat left from dinner. The husband and wife eat out of the
same dish; and they had but one or two cups in the house. They had
no candles made of wax or tallow; but, a torch, held by one of the
children, or a servant, gave them light at supper. The men, whose chief
pride was in their arms and horses, wore caps made with iron scales,
and cloaks of leather, without any other covering. The women wore
jackets of stuff, with gowns of linen, and their head-dresses were very
simple. Those who possessed a very small sum of money, were thought
rich; and the homely dress of the women required only small marriage
portions. The nobles were proud of living in towers; and thence the
cities were filled with those fortified dwellings.
AMUSEMENTS OF THE LOWER ORDERS IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.
The most popular amusements of the lower orders were wrestling,
bowling, quoit and ninepin playing, and games at ball. In wrestling the
Cornwall and Devonshire men excelled, and a ram, or sometimes a cock,
was the prize of the victor. Bowling alleys were commonly attached
to the houses of the wealthy, and to places of public resort. Among
the games at ball we find tennis, trap-ball, bat and ball, and the
balloon-ball, in which a large ball filled with air was struck from one
side to the other by two players with their hands and wrists guarded by
bandages. Archery was now on the decline, owing to the introduction of
firearms; nor could all the legislative enactments of the day revive
its constant use. The quarter-staff was also a favourite weapon of
sportive fence, which was a staff about five or six feet long, grasped
in the middle with one hand, while the other slid up and down as it was
required to strike or to ward a blow.
The citizens of London enjoyed themselves in winter by skating on
the Thames, (the old shankbones of sheep having now been superseded
by regular skates, probably introduced from the Netherlands,) and
in summer with sailing and rowing. Dice and cards, prisoner's base,
blind man's buff, battledoor and shuttlecock, bull-baiting, and
cock-fighting, a rude species of mumming, the dancing of fools at
Christmas, and other games, completed the gratifications of the
populace.
NOVEL MODE OF TAKING VENGEANCE.
The Chinese have a book entitled _Si-yuen_, that is to say, "The
Washing of the Pit," a work on medical jurisprudence, very celebrated
all over the empire, and which should be in the hands of all Chinese
magistrates. It is impossible to read the Si-yuen without being
convinced that the number of attempts against life in this country
is very considerable, and especially that suicide is very common.
The extreme readiness with which the Chinese are induced to kill
themselves, is almost inconceivable; some mere trifle, a word almost,
is sufficient to cause them to hang themselves, or throw themselves
to the bottom of a well; the two favourite modes of suicide. In other
countries, if a man wishes to wreak his vengeance on an enemy, he tries
to kill him; in China, on the contrary, he kills himself. This anomaly
depends upon various causes, of which these are the principal:--In
the first place, Chinese law throws the responsibility of a suicide
on those who may be supposed to be the cause or occasion of it. It
follows, therefore, that if you wish to be revenged on an enemy, you
have only to kill yourself to be sure of getting him into horrible
trouble; for he falls immediately into the hands of _justice_, and will
certainly be tortured and ruined, if not deprived of life. The family
of the suicide also usually obtains, in these cases, considerable
damages; so that it is by no means a rare case for an unfortunate man
to commit suicide in the house of a rich one, from a morbid idea of
family affection. In killing his enemy, on the contrary, the murderer
exposes his own relatives and friends to injury, disgraces them,
reduces them to poverty, and deprives himself of funeral honours,
a great point for a Chinese, and concerning which he is extremely
anxious. It is to be remarked also, that public opinion, so far from
disapproving of suicide, honours and glorifies it. The conduct of a man
who destroys his own life, to avenge himself on an enemy whom he has no
other way of reaching, is regarded as heroic and magnanimous.
PERSECUTION IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN MARY.
The total number of persons who perished in the flames for their
religion during this reign has been variously reckoned at 277 and 288,
amongst whom were 5 bishops, 21 divines, 8 gentlemen, 84 artificers,
100 husbandmen, servants, and labourers, 26 wives, 20 widows, 9
unmarried women, 2 boys, and 2 infants, of which last one was whipped
to death by the savage Bonner, and the other, springing out of its
mother's womb, at the stake, was mercilessly thrown back into the
fire. The number of those that died in prison was also very great. Yet
England may be considered as comparatively free from persecution during
this period, for all over the continent the victims of bigotry were
reckoned, not by hundreds, but by thousands, and in the Netherlands
alone 50,000 persons are said to have lost their lives in the religious
wars of the Spaniards.
WAYSIDE MONUMENTS.
The sketch on next page represents a curious custom which still
prevails in the neighbourhood of Cong, near Oughterard in Ireland.
It is well described in the following account of their tour by Mr.
and Mrs. S. C. Hall:--"On the way to Joyce's Country we saw heaps of
piled-up stones on either side of the road; these heaps continuing
for above a mile, after their commencement a short distance from the
western entrance to the town. The artist may convey a better notion
of their peculiar character than any written description can do. We
left our car to examine them minutely; and learned they were monuments
to the memory of "deceased" persons, "erected" by their surviving
friends. Upon death occurring, the primitive tumulus is built,--if
that may be called building which consists in placing a few large
stones upon a spot previously unoccupied. Each relative of the dead
adds to the heap; and in time it becomes a "mountain" of tolerable
size. Each family knows its own particular monument; and a member of,
or a descendant from it, prays and leaves his offering only at that
especial one. The custom has endured for many generations: some of the
heaps bore tokens of great age; and one was pointed out to us of which
there were records, in the transferred memories of the people, for at
least 500 years. The bodies are in no instance buried here--it is not
consecrated earth; the monuments are merely memorials, and no doubt
originated at a period when a Roman Catholic was, according to the
provisions of a law equally foolish and cruel, interred, without form
or ceremony, in church ground--the ground that had been the property
of their ancestors. None of these stone cairns have any masonwork, and
they are generally of the rudest forms, or rather without any form,
the stones having been carelessly cast one upon another. Upon one of
them only could we discover any inscription--this one is introduced
into the print; it is built with far more than the usual care; it
contained an inscription; "Pray for y{e} soule of John Joyce, & Mary
Joyce, his wife, died 1712;" some of them, however, seem to have been
constructed with greater care than others, and many of them were topped
with a small wooden cross. We estimated that there were at least 500
of these primitive monuments--of all shapes and sizes--along the road.
In each of them we observed a small hollow, which the peasants call
a "window;" most of these were full of pebbles, and upon inquiry we
learned that when one of the race to whom the deceased belonged kneels
by the side of this record to his memory and offers up a prayer for
the repose of his soul, it is customary to fling a little stone into
this "cupboard;" the belief being that gradually as it fills, so,
gradually, the soul is relieved from punishment in purgatory; when
completely full the soul has entered paradise. We have prolonged our
description of this singular and interesting scene, because it seems to
have been altogether overlooked by travellers, and because we believe
that nothing like it is to be met with in any other part of Ireland;
although similar objects are to be found in several other places about
Connemara, none of them, however, are so extensive as this which
adjoins Cong."
[Illustration: [++] Primitive Monuments.]
HINDOO ADORATION OF THE SÁLAGRÁM.
[Illustration: [++] Hindoo Adoration of the Sálagrám.]
Among the many forms which Vishnu is believed by his Hindoo worshippers
to have assumed is that of the Sálagrám--an ammonite-stone, found in
the river Gandaká and other streams flowing from the Himalayas. The
reason for the worship of this is stated in one of the sacred books.
"Vishnu created the nine planets to preside over the fates of men.
Sani (Saturn) proposed commencing his reign by taking Brahma under his
influence for twelve years. The matter was referred to Vishnu, who
being equally averse to be placed under the inauspicious influence of
this planet, requested him to call the next day. The next day Saturn
could nowhere discover Vishnu, but perceived that he had united himself
to the mountain Gandaká; he entered the mountain in the form of a
worm called Vajrakita (the thunderbolt worm). He continued to afflict
the mountain-formed Vishnu for twelve years, when Vishnu assumed his
proper shape, and commanded that the stones of this mountain should be
worshipped, and become proper representatives of himself; adding that
each should have twenty marks in it, similar to those on his body, and
that its name should be Sálagrám."
The Sálagrám is usually placed under a tulasi-tree, which is planted
on the top of a pillar in the vicinity of a temple of Vishnu, or near
a house. Tulasi, a female, desired to become Vishnu's wife, but was
metamorphosed by Lakshmi into a tree, a small shrub, called therefore
_Tulasi_, or holy basil (Ocymum Sanctum). Vishnu, however, promised
to assume the form of a Sálagrám, and always continue with her. The
Vaishnaya priests, therefore, keep one leaf of the shrub under and
another over the Sálagrám, and thus pay their adorations to the stone
and the tree. In the evening a lamp is placed near it. In the month
of May it is watered from a pot suspended over it, as appears in the
engraving, which represents a person engaged in the worship at this
singular shrine.
TOMB OF THE EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN AT INSPRUCK.
This majestic tomb is placed in the centre of the middle aisle of the
church, upon a platform approached by steps of red marble. The sides
of the tomb are divided into twenty-four compartments, of the finest
Carrara marble, on which are represented, in bas-relief, the most
interesting events of the emperor's warlike and prosperous career. The
workmanship of the tablets is exquisite; and, taken in connexion with
the lofty deeds they record, they form the most princely decorations
ever seen. Each of the tablets contributing to this splendid
lithobiography is in size 2 feet 4 inches by 1 foot 8 inches; and every
object contained therein is in the most perfect proportion, while the
exquisite finish of the heads and draperies requires a magnifying glass
to do it justice. The tomb is surmounted by a colossal figure in bronze
of the emperor, kneeling in the act of prayer; and around it are four
allegorical figures, of smaller size, also in bronze.
But, marvellous as is the elaborate beauty of this work, it is far from
being the most remarkable feature of this imperial mausoleum. Ranged in
two long lines, as if to guard it, stand twenty-eight colossal statues
in bronze, of whom twenty are kings and princes, alliances of the house
of Hapsburg, and eight their stately dames. Anything more impressive
than the appearance of these tall dark guardians of the tomb, some clad
in regal robes, some cased in armour, and all seeming animated by the
mighty power of the artist, it would be difficult to imagine.
In the death-like stillness of the church, the visitor who, for the
first time, contemplates this tomb and its gloomy guard, is struck by
a feeling of awe, approaching to terror. The statues, with life-like
individuality of attitude and expression--each solemn, mournful,
dignified, and graceful; and all seeming to dilate before the eye into
enormous dimensions, and, as if framed to scare intruders, endowed by
a power more than mortal, to keep watch and ward round the mighty dead.
They appear like an eternal procession of mourners, who, while earth
endures, will cease not to gaze on, mourn over, and protect the relics
of him who was the glory of their noble, long since fallen race.
THE FAYENCE OF HENRY II. OF FRANCE.
The earliest known fabric of this earthenware is that mysterious and
unique manufacture of the "Renaissance," the fine Fayence of Henry
II. The manufacture of this ware, which was at once carried to a high
degree of perfection, seems to have been suddenly and unaccountably
lost, without leaving any record of where or by whom it was produced.
By many it is supposed to be of Florentine manufacture, and to have
been sent by some of the relations of Catherine de Medicis as a present
to Henry II.; but it differs too essentially from Italian Majolica,
both in the paste of which it is composed, and in the style in which
it is decorated, to warrant such a conjecture. Italy does not possess
in her museums a single specimen of this ware, and of the thirty-seven
pieces extant, twenty-seven have been traced as coming from Touraine
and La Vendée. Many antiquaries, therefore, infer that the manufacture
was at Thouars, in Touraine, although the Fayence may have been the
work of an Italian artist.
But if the place of its manufacture is unknown, the pieces extant
clearly attest the period of its fabrication. The Salamander, and
other insignia of Francis I., are met with on the earlier specimens of
this pottery; but upon the majority of pieces, upon those more pure
in design and more beautiful in execution than the preceding, we find
the arms of Henry II., with his device, the three crescents, or his
initial H, interlaced with the two D's of the Duchesse de Valentinois.
Indeed, so constantly do her emblems appear upon the pieces, that the
ware, though usually designated as "Faïence de Henri II.," is sometimes
styled "Faïence de Diane de Poitiers." Even her widow's colours, black
and white, are the two which are employed in some of the finest pieces.
They were the fashionable colours of the court, Henry wore no others
during his life, and was attired in them in the fatal tournament in
which he fell. Her _impresa_, the crescent of Diana, is conspicuous on
his palaces, and he even caused it to be engraved upon his coins. From
these circumstances we must, therefore, conclude that the manufacture
of this ware began at the end of the reign of Francis I., was continued
under that of Henry II., and, as we find upon it the emblems of these
two princes only, we may naturally infer that it is of French origin.
The paste of which this Fayence is composed is equally distinct from
Majolica and Palissy ware. The two latter are both soft, whereas this,
on the contrary, is hard. It is a true pipeclay, very fine, and very
white, so as not to require, like the Italian Fayence, to be concealed
by a thick enamel, and the ornaments with which it is enriched are
simply covered with a thin, transparent, yellowish varnish.
The style of decoration in this ware is unique. Patterns or arabesques,
are engraved on the paste, and the indentures filled with coloured
pastes, so as to present an uniform, smooth surface, of the finest
inlaying, or resembling, rather, a model of Cellini's silver work,
chiselled and worked in niello. Hence it is sometimes styled "Faïence
a niellure." These patterns are sometimes disposed in zones of yellow
ochre, with borders of dark brown, sometimes of a pink, green, violet,
black, or blue; but the dark yellow ochre is the predominant colour.
[Illustration: [++] Fayence Candlestick.]
The collection of the late M. Préaux was the richest in the world in
the most beautiful examples of Fayence; it was disposed of by auction
about twelve years ago, in consequence of the death of the proprietor,
and the choicest specimen in it was the candlestick, of which we give
a figure, and which was purchased by Sir Anthony de Rothschild for
about £220, duty included. The surface is exquisitely enriched with
arabesque patterns, either in black upon a white ground, or in white
upon a black. The form is monumental, and in the finest style; three
figures of genii support escutcheons, bearing the arms of France,
and the double D. These genii stand upon masks, which are united by
garlands enamelled in green. The top of the candlestick terminates
in the form of a vase, and bears inscribed the fleurs-de-lys and the
monogram of our Saviour. This piece, for delicacy of detail and beauty
of execution, is unequalled by any specimen known of this exquisite
Fayence. Sir Anthony de Rothschild also purchased at M. Préaux's sale a
small cup, decorated in the same style, with the descents interlaced,
for which he gave 1300 francs. He, therefore, now is fortunate in
having the finest collection known of this ware, as, in addition to
the specimens already mentioned, he possesses two exquisite ewers of
the Henry II. Fayence. One he purchased at the sale of the Comte de
Monville for 2300 francs; the other, with a curious handle of elaborate
workmanship, he bought for nineteen guineas at Strawberry Hill, where
he also purchased a tripod salt-cellar, supported with scroll ornaments
for £21.
REFRESHMENTS FOR THE PULPIT.
In the books of Darlington parish church, the following items appear,
showing that, in the olden time, provision was made for comforting the
inner man: "Six quarts of sack to the minister who preached when he had
no minister to assist, 9s. For a quart of sack bestowed on Jillett,
when he preached, 2s. 6d. For a pint of brandy when Mr. George Bill
preached here, 1s. 4d. For a stranger who preached, a dozen of ale.
When the Dean of Durham preached here, spent in a treat in the house,
3s. 6d." This would hardly be considered orthodox at the present day.
BEDESMEN IN THE TIME OF HENRY VII.
[Illustration: [++] Bedesmen.]
Most of the monasteries in former times had hospitals of poor men and
women attached to them; generally either within the precincts or near
adjoining. Thus, at St. Edmund's Bury, there was St. John's Hospital,
or God's House, without the South Gate, and St. Nicholas' Hospital
without the East Gate, and St. Peter's Hospital without the Risby Gate,
and St. Saviour's Hospital without the North Gate,--all founded by
abbots of St. Edmund's. At Reading there was the Hospital of St. Mary
Magdalene for twelve leprous persons and chaplains, and the Hospital
of St. Lawrence for twenty-six poor people, and for the entertainment
of strangers and pilgrims, both founded by abbots of Reading. One at
the gate of Fountains' Abbey for poor persons and travellers; one
at Glastonbury, under the care of the almoner, for poor and infirm
persons. Thirteen was a favourite number for the inmates of a hospital.
From the initial letter of a deed in the British Museum (Harl. 1498),
by which King Henry VII. founded a fraternity of thirteen poor men in
Westminster Abbey, who were to be under the governance of the monks,
we take the accompanying illustration, which represents the abbot and
monks before the king, with a group of the king's bedesmen, each of
whom has the royal badge, a rose surmounted by a crown, on the shoulder
of his habit.
CHINESE GAMBLERS PLAYING FOR FINGERS.
The following strange account is taken from Hue's "Chinese Empire:--
"The Chinese are industrious and economical, but their cupidity, their
immoderate love of lucre, and their decided taste for stockjobbing
and speculation, easily tempts them to gambling, when they are not
engaged in traffic. They seek eagerly for strong excitements, and when
once they have got into the habit of gambling they seldom or never
recover from it. They cast aside every obligation of station, duty,
and family, to live only for cards and dice; and this fatal passion
gains such an empire over them, that they proceed even to the most
revolting extremities. When they have lost all their money they will
play for their houses, their land, and their wives even, whose destiny
often depends on a cast of the dice. Nay, the Chinese gambler does not
stop here, for he will stake the very clothes he has on for one game
more, and this horrible custom gives rise to scenes that would not be
credible, did we not know that the passions always tend to make men
cruel and inhuman.
"In the northern provinces, especially in the environs of the Great
Wall, you may sometimes meet, during the most intense cold of winter,
men running about in a state of complete nudity, having been driven
pitilessly from the gaming-houses when they had lost their all. They
rush about in all directions like madmen to try and save themselves
from being frozen, or crouch down against the chimneys, which in those
countries are carried along the walls of the houses, on a level with
the ground. They turn first one side towards the warmth, then the
other, while their gambling companions, far from trying to help them,
look on with ferocious and malignant hilarity. The horrible spectacle
seldom lasts long, for the cold soon seizes the unfortunate creatures,
and they fall down and die. The gamblers then return to their table,
and begin to play again with the most perfect composure. Such facts
as these will appear fabulous to many persons, but having resided
several years in the north of China, we can testify to their perfect
authenticity.
"These excesses seem surprising enough, but the truth is, that Chinese
gamblers have invented still more extraordinary methods of satisfying
their passion, which is really carried to absolute madness. Those who
have nothing more to lose will collect round a table and actually
play for _their fingers_, which they will cut off reciprocally with
frightful stoicism. We had thought to pass over these revolting
particulars, for we do not like to put the confidence of our readers
to too great a trial. We have a strong objection to relating things
that, although we know them to be strictly true, have an improbable
appearance. But these facts concerning Chinese gamblers were known, and
commented upon, by the Arab travellers in the ninth century. Here is a
passage on the subject from the 'Chain of Chronicles,' from which we
have already quoted more than once:--
"'Amongst men of a volatile and boastful character, those who belong
to the lower classes, and who have no money, will sometimes play for
the fingers of their hands. During the game, they keep by them a vase
containing nut, or sesame oil, for olive oil is not known in this
country. A fire is kept burning under it, and between the two players
is placed a small but very sharp hatchet. The one who wins then takes
the hand of the loser, places it on a stone and cuts off one of his
fingers with the hatchet; the piece falls, and the vanquished party
immediately dips his hand into the hot oil, which cauterises the wound.
This operation does not prevent the players from beginning again. Some
will take a match, dip it in oil, place it on their arms, and set fire
to it; the match burns, and you can smell the odour of the consuming
flesh, but the man goes on with his game, and exhibits no sign of
pain.'"
ENTRY OF THE FRENCH AMBASSADOR INTO LONDON, IN 1698.
The following is an extract from the "Flying Post," of May 17, 1698:--
"Yesterday, (Monday, May 16,) in the afternoon, Count Tallard, the
French Ambassador, made his public entry. The Earl Marshal's men came
first, then followed the Earl of Macclesfield's footmen, after them
twenty of the Ambassador's footmen, in red liveries with gold lace;
then came two of the Ambassador's gentlemen and six pages on horseback;
next came two heralds before His Majesty's coach, in which His
Excellency the Ambassador, the Earl of Macclesfield, and some others
of quality: after them came three of His Royal Highness the Prince of
Denmark's coaches, and next, three of the Ambassador's coaches, the
first of them very rich, and drawn by eight horses; then followed His
Grace the Duke of Norfolk's coach, with about forty-seven more, drawn
by six horses each. There was a splendid entertainment prepared for His
Excellency at Ossulston House, in St. James's Square."
EXPENSES AT CORONATIONS.
The quantity of provisions consumed at the feasts given by some of our
early Kings, was extraordinarily great. For that of King Edward I.
February 10th, 1274, the different Sheriffs were ordered to furnish
butcher meat at Windsor, in the following proportions:--
Oxen. Swine. Sheep. Fowls.
Sheriff of Gloucester, 60 101 60 3,000
" Bucks and Bedford 40 66 40 2,100
" Oxford 40 67 40 2,100
" Kent 40 67 40 2,100
" Surrey and Sussex 40 67 40 2,100
" Warwick and Leicester 60 98 40 3,000
" Somerset and Dorset 100 176 110 5,000
" Essex 60 101 60 3,160
---- ---- ---- ------
Total, twelve counties 440 743 430 22,560
In the year 1307, King Edward II. issued an order to the seneschal
of Gascony, and constable of Bordeaux, to provide a thousand pipes
of good wine, and send them to London, to be used at the approaching
coronation. The purchase and freight were to be paid by a company
of Florentine merchants, who farmed the revenues of Gascony. The
coronation oath was first taken by Ethelred II., A.D. 979; that now
used in 1377. It was amended in 1689. The first coronation sermon was
preached in 1041. The following statement of the prices given for
seats, to obtain a view of passing objects during the coronations of
former times, may, perhaps, prove interesting:--
The price of a good place at the coronation of William the Conqueror,
was a _blank_; at that of his son, William Rufus, the same. At Henry
I's., it was a _crocard_; at Stephen's and Henry II.'s, it was a
_pollard_. At Richard's, and King John's, it was a _fuskin_. It rose
at the 3d. Henry's, to a _dodkin_. In the reign of Edward, the coin
begins to be more intelligible; and we find that, for a seat, to view
his coronation, a _Q_ was given, or the half of a ferling, or farthing,
the fourth part of a sterling, or penny. At the 2d. Edward's, it was a
farthing; and at his son's, Edward III. a halfpenny. At Richard II.'s
it was a penny, and continued the same to that of Henry IV. inclusive.
At the 5th Henry's, it was _two pennies_; and similar prices were
paid at the coronations of Henry VI., Edward IV., Edward V., Richard
III., and Henry VII. At that of Henry VIII. it was a _grossus_, or
groat; and the same was paid at that of Edward VI. and Queen Mary's.
At Queen Elizabeth's, it rose to _a testoon_, or _tester_. At those of
James I. and Charles I. _a shilling_ was given; which was advanced to
_half-a-crown_, at those of Charles II. and James II. At King William's
and Queen Anne's it was _a crown_, and the same at that of George I.
At George II.'s _half-a-guinea_, and, afterwards, at George III.'s _a
guinea_ was the common charge. But, at that of George IV, as high as
_forty guineas_ were given for a single seat.
CURIOUS ANTIQUE SWORD.
The engraving which accompanies this article is a sketch of the upper
part of an antique Danish sword, which was found, together with several
other weapons, by the labourers who were engaged in the construction of
the railway from Dublin to Cashel.
[Illustration: [++] Antique Danish Sword.]
The discovery of the weapons was made at a locality called Island
Bridge, and many of them were fortunately secured for the Museum of the
Royal Irish Academy, where they may now be seen. The swords are long
and straight, formed for cutting as well as thrusting, and terminate in
points formed by rounding off the edge towards the back of the blade.
The hilts are very remarkable in form, and in one or two instances,
like the example we have engraved, are highly ornamented. The mountings
are generally of a kind of brass, but several richly plated with silver
were found, and it is said that one of them had a hilt of solid gold.
The spears are long and slender, and similar in form to the lance-heads
used in some of the cavalry corps.
All these weapons, with one exception, are composed of a soft kind of
iron. Many of the swords were found doubled up, a circumstance for
which it is difficult to assign a reason, as they had evidently been
purposely bent. The sword we have represented in our engraving, is
remarkable for the unusual degree of ornament which appears upon its
hilt, and also for its material, steel.
DINNER IN CHINA.
It is certain that a real Chinese dinner would be a very odd thing in
the eyes of a stranger, especially if he were one of those who think,
as some people do, that there is only one way of living. To begin
dinner with the dessert, and end it with the soup; to drink the wine
smoking hot, out of little china cups, and have your food brought to
you ready cut up into small pieces, and to be presented with a couple
of sticks, instead of a knife and fork, to eat it with; to have,
instead of napkins, a provision of little bits of silk paper by the
side of your plate, which, as you use, the attendants carry off; to
leave your place between the courses, to smoke or amuse yourself;
and to raise your chop-sticks to your forehead, and then place them
horizontally upon your cup, to signify that you have finished your
dinner;--all these things would doubtless seem very odd, and create the
curiosity of Europeans. The Chinese, on the other hand, can never get
over their surprise at our way of dining. They ask how we can like to
drink cold fluids, and what can have put it into our heads to make use
of a trident to carry food to our mouths, at the risk of pricking our
lips or poking our eyes out. They think it very droll to see nuts put
on the table in their shell, and ask why our servants cannot take the
trouble to peel the fruit, and take the bones out of the meat. They are
themselves certainly not very difficult in the nature of their food,
and like such things as fried silkworms and preserved larvæ, but they
cannot understand the predilection of our epicures for _high_ game, nor
for cheese that appears to belong to the class of animated beings.
CISTERN OF MAJOLICA WARE.
[Illustration: [++] Cistern of Majolica Ware.]
We have engraved the annexed, as it affords at once both a beautiful
specimen of the potter's art, and also an example of the taste and
luxury of the present day in articles of expensive ornament. It is a
cistern made of Majolica, or the enamelled pottery of Italy, the most
beautiful specimens of which were made in the sixteenth century. The
one before us came to England from the collection of the Borghese
Palace; and at the great sale at Stowe, the seat of the Duke of
Buckingham, was disposed of by auction for sixty-four guineas, and this
although it was much broken.
THEATRES IN THE TIME OF SHAKSPEARE.
In Blackfriars was a theatre, the memory of which with the one or the
other shore of the river at Bankside, enjoys the honour of having been
used for the first representations of many of Shakspeare's plays, and
where the bard himself performed in them. The whole district becomes
classic, from the remembrance. The following interesting description
of the theatres in London at that time, and which applies to the
Blackfriars' theatre as we well as the rest, is taken from a short
memoir of Shakspeare, by the Rev. Alexader Dyce, prefixed to the Aldine
edition of Shakspeare's poems: "Nearly all these buildings, it is
probable, were constructed of wood. Those which, for some undiscovered
reason, were termed private theatres, were entirely roofed in from
the weather, while the public theatres were open to the sky, except
over the stage and galleries. On the outside of each was exhibited
a sign indicative of its name; and on the roof, during the time of
performance, was hoisted a flag. The interior arrangements resemble
those of the present day. There were tiers of galleries or _scaffolds_;
beneath these the boxes or _rooms_, intended for persons of the higher
class, and which at the private theatres were secured with locks,
the keys being given to the individuals who engaged them; and there
was the centre area, (separated, it seems, from the stage by pales),
at the private theatres, termed the _pit_, and furnished with seats;
but at the public theatres, called the _yard_, and affording no such
accommodation. Cressets, or large open lanterns, served to illuminate
the body of the house; and two ample branches, of a form similar to
those now hung in churches, gave light to the stage. The band of
musicians, which was far from numerous, sat, it is supposed, in an
upper balcony, over what is now called the stage box: the instruments
chiefly used were trumpets, cornets, hautboys, lutes, recorders, viols,
and organs. The amusements of the audience previous to the commencement
of the play, were reading, playing at cards, smoking tobacco, drinking
ale, and eating nuts and apples. Even during the performance it was
customary for wits, critics, and young gallants, who were desirous of
attracting attention, to station themselves on the stage, either lying
on the rushes or seated on hired stools, while their pages furnished
them with pipes and tobacco. At the third sounding, or flourish of
trumpets, the exhibition began. The curtain, which concealed the
stage from the audience, was then drawn, opening in the middle, and
running upon iron rods. Other curtains, called _traverses_, were used
as a substitute for scenes. At the back of the stage was a balcony,
the platform of which was raised about eight or nine feet from the
ground; it served as a window, gallery, or upper chamber. From it
a portion of the dialogue was sometimes spoken, and in front of it
curtains were suspended to conceal, if necessary, those who occupied
it, from the audience. The internal roof of the stage, either painted
blue or adorned with drapery of that colour, was termed the _heavens_.
The stage was generally strewed with rushes, but on extraordinary
occasions was matted. There is reason to believe that, when tragedies
were performed, it was hung with black. Moveable painted scenery there
was assuredly none. A board, containing the name of the place of
action in large letters, was displayed in some conspicuous situation.
Occasionally, when some change of scene was necessary, the audience
was required to suppose that the performers, who had not quitted the
boards, had retired to a different spot. A bed thrust forth showed that
the stage was a bed-chamber; and a table, with pen and ink, indicated
that it was a counting-house. Rude contrivances were employed to
imitate towers, walls of towns, hell-mouths, tombs, trees, dragons, &c.
Trap-doors had been early in use; but to make a celestial personage
ascend to the roof of the stage was more than the machinists of the
theatre could always accomplish. The price of admission appears to have
varied according to the rank and estimation of the theatres. A shilling
was charged for a place in the best boxes; the entrance-money to the
pit and galleries was the same--sixpence, twopence, and a penny. The
performance commenced at three in the afternoon."
OLD CUSTOM RELATING TO CRIMINALS.
The custom of offering doomed criminals a last earthly draught of
refreshment is undoubtedly one of considerable antiquity. The right
of offering wine to criminals, on their passage to the scaffold, was
often a privilege granted to religious communities. In Paris, the
privilege was held by the convent of Filles-Dieu, the nuns of which
kept wine prepared for those who were condemned to suffer on the gibbet
of Montfaucon. The gloomy procession halted before the gate of the
monastery, the criminal descended from the cart, and the nuns, headed
by the Lady Abbess, received him on the steps with as much, perhaps
more, heartfelt ceremony than if he had been a king. The poor wretch
was led to a crucifix near the church door, the feet whereof he humbly
kissed. He then received, from the hands of the Superior, three pieces
of bread (to remind him of the Trinity), and _one_ glass of wine
(emblem of Unity). The procession then resumed its dread way to the
scaffold.
ALE TOO STRONG.
A memorial signed by nineteen inhabitants of Bayton, in Worcestershire,
was sent to the Sessions in the year 1612, setting forth "that John
Kempster and John Byrd do not sell their ale according to the law,
but doe sell a pynte for a penny, and doe make ytt soe extraordynarye
strong that itt draweth dyvers ydle p'sons into the said alehouses,
by reason whereof sondrye assaults, affrayes, blodshedds, and other
misdeameanors, are there daylie comytted by idle and dronken companie
which doe thither resort and there contineue in their dronckenes three
days and three nights together, and also divers men's sonnes and
servants do often resort and contineue drinking in the said houses day
and night, whereupon divers disorders and abuses are offered to the
inhabitants of Bayton aforesaid, as in pulling down styles, in carrying
away of yertes, in throwing men's waynes, plowes, and such like things,
into pooles, wells, and other bye places, and in putting their yokes
for their oxen into lakes and myery places, &c." A nice picture of
young England in the seventeenth century.
A CHAPTER-HOUSE IN THE TIME OF HENRY VII.
In abbey-churches of the olden time the Chapter-house was always on the
east side of the court. In establishments of secular canons it seems
to have been always multisided, with a central pillar to support its
groining, and a lofty, conical, lead-covered roof. In these instances
it is placed in the open space eastward of the cloister, and is usually
approached by a passage from the east side of the cloister court. In
the houses of all the other orders the chapter-house is rectangular,
even where the church is a cathedral. Usually, then, the chapter-house
is a rectangular building on the east side of the cloister, and
frequently its longest apsis is east and west--at Durham it has an
eastern apsis. It was a large and handsome room, with a good deal of
architectural ornament; often the western end of it is divided off as a
vestibule or ante-room; and generally it is so large as to be divided
into two or three aisles by rows of pillars. Internally, rows of stalls
or benches were arranged round the walls for the convent; there was a
higher seat at the east end for the abbot or prior, and a desk in the
middle from which certain things were read. Every day after the service
called Tierce, the convent walked in procession from the choir to the
chapter-house, and took their proper places. When the abbot had taken
his place, the monks descended one step and bowed; he returned their
salutation, and all took their seats. A sentence of the rule of the
order was read by one of the novices from the desk, and the abbot, or
in his absence, the prior, delivered an explanatory or hortatory sermon
upon it; then, from another portion of the book was read the names
of brethren, and benefactors, and persons who had been received into
fraternity, whose decease had happened on that day of the year; and the
convent prayed a _requiescat in pace_ for their souls, and the souls
of all the faithful departed this life. Then members of the convent
who had been guilty of slight breaches of discipline confessed them,
kneeling upon a low stool in the middle, and on a bow from the abbot,
intimating his remission of the breach, they resumed their seats. If
any had a complaint to make against any brother, it was here made and
adjudged. Convent business was also transacted. The woodcut gives an
example of the kind. Henry VII. had made grants to Westminster Abbey,
on condition that the convent performed certain religious services on
his behalf; and in order that the services should not fall into disuse,
he directed that yearly, at a certain period, the chief justice, or
the king's attorney, or the recorder of London, should attend in
chapter, and the abstract of the grant and agreement between the king
and the convent should be read. The grant which was thus to be read
still exists in the British Museum; it is written in a volume superbly
bound, with the royal seals attached in silver cases; it is from the
illuminated letter at the head of one of the deeds that our woodcut is
taken. It rudely represents the chapter-house, with the chief-justice
and a group of lawyers on one side, the abbot and convent on the other,
and a monk reading the grant from the desk in the midst.
[Illustration: [++] Chapter-House in the time of Henry VII.]
ANNE BOLEYN's GLOVES.
Anne Boleyn was marvellously dainty about her gloves. She had a nail
which turned up at the side, and it was the delight of Queen Catharine
to make her play at cards, without her gloves, in order that the
deformity might disgust King Hal. The good Queen Bess was extravagant,
fastidious, and capricious in the extreme, about her gloves. She used
to display them to advantage in playing the virginal, and gloves at
that time were expensive articles.
DELLA ROBBIA WARE.
Luca della Robbia, born in 1388, was an eminent sculptor in marble and
bronze, and worked both at Florence and at Rimini. Having abandoned his
original employment for that of modelling in terra cotta, he succeeded,
after many experiments, in making a white enamel, with which he coated
his works, and thus rendered them durable. Vasari writes of him, "che
faceva l'opere di terra quasi eterne." His chief productions are
Madonnas, Scripture subjects, figures, and architectural ornaments:
they are by far the finest works ever executed in pottery. He adorned
the Italian churches with tiles, as well as with altar-pieces, in terra
cotta enamelled; and he is the founder of a school which produced works
not much inferior to his own. The "Petit Château de Madrid," in the
Bois de Boulogne, near Paris, received the appellation of "Château de
Fayence," from having been ornamented with enamelled tiles, the work
of an Italian artist, named Girolamo della Robbia, a grand nephew of
Luca, whom Francis I. brought from Italy. This château is now wholly
destroyed. The tiles seem to have been introduced into portions of the
architectural composition, rather as accessory ornaments than as a
"lining" or revêtement of the walls. Analogous ornaments, the work of
Luca de Maiano, 1521, were to be seen in the old gate, Whitehall, and
at Hampton Court.
[Illustration: [++] Della Robbia Ware.]
Luca della Robbia sometimes, though rarely, used a coloured instead
of white enamel in his compositions. The above cut represents the
altar-piece of San Miniato, near Florence, by him. The ground is blue,
the figures white, the fruits, &c., gold colour, and the garlands green.
VOLCANIC ERUPTION IN JAPAN.
The peninsula of Wountsendake, and the greater part of Kewsew,
bristle with volcanic mountains, some extinct, others still acting as
safety-valves to the incomprehensible excitements of mother Earth; but
of all the manifestations of her internal throes and torment, and their
consequent desolation inflicted on the habitations of her children,
that of 1792 was the most terrible for ages before.
"On the eighteenth day of the first month of that year," says the
_Annals of Japan_, "the summit of the mountain was seen to crumble
suddenly, and a thick smoke rose in the air. On the sixth of the
following month there was an eruption in a spur on the eastern slope
of the mountain. On the second of the third month an earthquake shook
the whole island. At Simabara, the nearest town to the mountain, all
the houses were thrown down, amidst a general terror and consternation,
the shocks following each other with frightful rapidity. Wountsendake
incessantly sent forth a hail-storm of stones, showers of ashes, and
streams of lava, which devastated the country for many leagues round.
At length, on the first day of the fourth month, there was a new
commotion, which increased in intensity from moment to moment.
"Simabara was now a vast heap of ruins. Enormous blocks of rock,
tumbling from the top of the mountain, crushed and ground to atoms all
beneath them. Thunder rolled overhead, and dreadful sounds rumbled
beneath the feet at one and the same time. All of a sudden, after an
interval of calm, when men thought the scourge had passed over, the
northern spur of Wountsendake, the Moikenyamma, burst forth with a
tremendous detonation. A vast portion of that mountain was blown into
the air. Colossal masses fell into the sea. A stream of boiling water
rushed forth foaming from the cracks of this new volcano, and sped to
the ocean, which at the same time advanced and flooded the land."
Then was seen a sight never seen before, intensifying the terror of
the innumerable witnesses of that terrible day, which might well seem
a Day of Judgment come. From the conflict of the boiling waters of
the volcano with the cold waters of the tempestuous ocean, suddenly
mingled, there arose waterspouts which ravaged the land in their
devouring gyrations.
The disasters caused by this accumulation of catastrophes, earthquakes,
volcanic eruptions, waterspouts, inundations, united together, exceed
belief. Not a single house of Simabara and its environs was spared:
only the citadel remained, whose Cyclopean walls were formed of
gigantic blocks of stone. The convulsions of nature on that day so
changed the coast-line, that the most experienced mariners could not
recognise its once familiar shape and bendings.
Fifty-three thousand persons perished on that fatal day.
ORIGIN OF THE HOUSE OF MULGRAVE.
The first diving bell was nothing but a very large kettle, suspended
by ropes, with the mouth downwards, and planks to sit on fixed in
the middle of its concavity. The Greeks at Toledo, in 1588, made an
experiment before the Emperor Charles V. with it, when they descended
with a lighted candle to a considerable depth. In 1683 William Phipps,
the son of a blacksmith, formed a project for unloading a rich Spanish
ship, sunk at Hispaniola; Charles II. gave him a ship, with every
necessary for the undertaking; but being unsuccessful, Phipps returned
in great poverty. He then endeavoured to procure another vessel,
but failing, he got a subscription, to which the Duke of Albemarle
contributed. In 1687, Phipps set sail in a ship of 200 tons, having
previously engaged to divide the profits according to the twenty
shares of which the subscription consisted. At first all his labours
proved fruitless, but at length, when he seemed almost to despair, he
was fortunate enough to bring up so much treasure that he returned to
England with £200,000 sterling. Of this sum he got about £20,000, and
the Duke of Albemarle £90,000. Phipps was knighted by the king, and
laid the foundation of the present house of Mulgrave.
SHRINE OF ST. SEBALD AT NUREMBURG.
The city of Nuremberg--the birthplace of Albert Durer--is enriched with
many works of high art. The most remarkable is the bronze shrine of St.
Sebald, the work of Peter Vischer and his five sons, which still stands
in all its beauty in the elegant church dedicated to the saint. The
sketch on next page is a correct representation of it.
[Illustration: [++] Shrine of St. Sebald.]
The shrine encloses, amid the most florid Gothic architecture, the
oaken chest encased with silver plates, containing the body of the
venerated saint: this rests on an altar decorated with basso-relievos,
depicting his miracles. The architectural portion of this exquisite
shrine partakes of the characteristics of the _Rennaissance_ forms
engrafted on the mediæval, by the influence of Italian art. Indeed,
the latter school is visible as the leading agent throughout the
entire composition. The figures of the Twelve Apostles and others
placed around it, scarcely seem to belong to German art; they are
quite worthy of the best _Transalpine_ master. The grandeur, breadth,
and repose of these wonderful statues, cannot be excelled. Vischer
seems to have completely freed his mind from the conventionalities of
his native schools: we have here none of the constrained, "crumpled
draperies," the home studies for face and form so strikingly present in
nearly all the works of art of this era, but noble figures of the men
elevated above the earthly standard by companionship with the Saviour,
exhibiting their high destiny by a noble bearing, worthy of the solemn
and glorious duties they were devoted to fulfil. We gaze on these
figures as we do on the works of Giotto and Fra Angelico, until we feel
human nature may lose nearly all of its debasements before the "mortal
coil" is "shuffled off," and that mental goodness may shine through and
glorify its earthly tabernacle, and give an assurance in time present
of the superiorities of an hereafter. Dead, indeed, must be the soul
that can gaze on such works unmoved, appealing, as they do, to our
noblest aspirations, and vindicating humanity from its fallen position,
by asserting its innate, latent glories. Here we feel the truth of the
scriptural phrase--"In his own image made he them."
The memory of Peter Vischer is deservedly honoured by his townsmen.
The street in which his house is situated, like that in which Durer's
stands, has lost its original name, and is now only known as Peter
Vischer's Strasse; but these two artists are the only ones thus
distinguished. Vischer was born in 1460, and died in 1529. He was
employed by the warden of St. Sebald's, and magistrate of Nuremberg,
Sebald Schreyer, to construct this work in honour of his patron saint;
he began it in 1506, and finished it in 1519. Thirteen years of labour
were thus devoted to its completion, for which he received seven
hundred and seventy florins. "According to this tradition, Vischer
was miserably paid for this great work of labour and art; and he
has himself recorded, in an inscription upon the monument, that 'he
completed it for the praise of God Almighty alone, and the honour of
St. Sebald, Prince of Heaven, by the aid of pious persons, paid by
their voluntary contributions.'" The elaboration of the entire work is
marvellous; it abounds with fanciful figures, seventy-two in number,
disposed among the ornaments, or acting as supporters to the general
composition. Syrens hold candelabra at the angles; and the centre has
an air of singular lightness and grace. It is supported at the base
by huge snails. At the western end there is a small bronze statue of
Vischer; he holds his chisel in his hand, and in his workman's dress,
with capacious leather apron, stands unaffectedly forth as a true,
honest labourer, appealing only to such sympathies as are justly due to
one who laboured so lovingly and so well.
A GREAT RESULT FROM TRIVIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.
That magnificent institution of active benevolence, Guy's Hospital,
is one among a numerous list of instances where trifling events have
produced most disproportionate consequences.
[Illustration: [++] Thomas Guy.]
Thomas Guy, of whom the above is a sketch, taken from an old print, was
the son of Thomas Guy an Anabaptist, lighterman and coal-dealer, in
Horsleydown, Southwark. He was put apprentice in 1660 to a bookseller
in the porch of Mercer's Chapel, and set up trade with a stock of about
two hundred pounds, in the house that forms the angle between Cornhill
and Lombard-street. The English Bibles being at that time very badly
printed, Mr. Guy engaged with others in a scheme for printing them in
Holland and importing them; but this being put a stop to, he contracted
with the University of Oxford for their privilege of printing them,
and carried on a great Bible trade for many years to considerable
advantage. He thus began to accumulate money, and his gains rested in
his hands, for being a single man, and very penurious, his expenses
were very trifling. His custom was to dine on his shop counter, with
no other table-cloth than an old newspaper; he was also as little nice
in regard to his dress. The bulk of his fortune, however, was acquired
by the less reputable purchase of seamen's tickets during Queen Anne's
wars, and by the South Sea stock in the memorable year 1720.
In proof of what we said at the outset, it is a fact that the public
are indebted to a most trifling incident for the greatest part of
his immense fortunes being applied to charitable uses. Guy had a
maid-servant whom he agreed to marry; and preparatory to his nuptials
he had ordered the pavement before his door to be mended as far as a
particular stone which he marked. The maid, while her master was out,
innocently looking on the paviours at work, saw a broken place they had
not repaired, and mentioned it to them; but they told her that Mr. Guy
had desired them not to go so far. "Well," says she, "do you mend it;
tell him I bade you, and I know he will not be angry." It happened,
however, that the poor girl presumed too much on her influence over
her wary lover, with whom the charge of a few shillings extraordinary
turned the scale against her, for Guy, enraged to find his orders
exceeded, renounced the matrimonial scheme, and built hospitals in
his old age. In 1707 he built and furnished three wards on the north
side of the outer court of St. Thomas's Hospital, and gave one hundred
pounds to it annually for eleven years preceding the erection of his
own hospital.
Sometime before his death he erected the stately gate with the large
houses on each side, at the expense of about three thousand pounds.
He was seventy-six years of age when he formed the design of building
the hospital near St. Thomas's, which bears his name. The charge of
erecting this vast pile amounted to £18,793, besides £219,499 which he
left to endow it, and he just lived to see it roofed in.
He erected and endowed an almshouse and library at Tamworth, the place
of his mother's nativity, and which he represented in Parliament. It
contains fourteen poor men and women, and the fund provides also for
the apprenticing of poor children. He also bequeathed four hundred
pounds a-year to Christ's Hospital.
Mr. Guy died December 17th, 1724 in the eighty-first year of his age,
and his will bears date September 4th, in the same year.
PHAROS AT ALEXANDRIA.
To render the harbour safe of approach at all times, Ptolemy Soter,
who, on the death of Alexander, obtained the government of Egypt,
determined on erecting a lighthouse on the eastern extremity of the
isle of Pharos, the celebrity of which has given the same name to all
other lighthouses.
This "pharos" was in height 450 feet, and could be seen at a distance
of 100 miles. It was built of several stories, decreasing in dimension
towards the top, where fires were lighted in a species of lantern. The
ground-floor and the two next above it were hexagonal; the fourth was a
square with a round tower at each angle; the fifth floor was circular,
continued to the top, to which a winding staircase conducted. In the
upper galleries some mirrors were arranged in such a manner as to show
the ships and objects at sea for some considerable distance. On the top
a fire was constantly kept, to direct sailors into the bay, which was
dangerous and difficult of access.
The whole of this masterpiece of art was exquisitely wrought in stone,
and adorned with columns, balustrades, and ornaments, worked in the
finest marble. To protect the structure from the ocean storms, it was
surrounded entirely by a sea wall. Ancient writers say the building of
this tower cost 800 talents, which is equivalent to £165,000, if Attic
talents; but if Alexandrian, double that sum.
The building was not completed during the reign of the first Ptolemy,
but was finished in the reign of his son Ptolemy Philadelphus, who put
this inscription upon it:--
"King Ptolemy, to the Gods the Saviours, for the benefit of
sailors."
Sostratus the architect, wishing to claim all the glory of the
building, engraved his own name on the solid marble, and afterwards
coated it with cement. Thus, when time had decayed the mortar Ptolemy's
name disappeared, and the following inscription became visible:--
"Sostratus the Cnidian, to the Gods the Saviours, for the benefit
of sailors."
Of this remarkable tower not a vestige remains, and history gives us
no further information than we have here: of its gradual decay or of
its violent destruction we have no record; but that such a structure
as described stood there, there can be not a shadow of doubt, from the
fact that all buildings for like purposes among the Greeks and Romans
derive their designation from this.
SEPULCHRAL VASES OF ANCIENT EGYPT.
[Illustration: [++] Sepulchral Vase.]
In ancient Egypt terra-cotta pottery was extensively made use of for
vases or jars to hold the entrails of the dead. In order to preserve
the body effectually, it was necessary to remove the softer portions,
such as the thoracic and abdominal viscera, and these were embalmed
separately. In some instances they were returned into the stomach,
with wax models of four deities, commonly called the four genii of
the Ament or Hades. It was, however, usual in the embalmment of the
wealthier classes to soak them carefully in the requisite preparations,
tie them up in neat cylindrical packets, and deposit them in vases
having the shape of the four genii. The bodies of these deities, which
were usually represented as mummied, formed the bodies of the vases,
and were cylindrical below and rounded above. The mouths of the jars
were sometimes countersunk to receive the lower part of the covers
which fitted into them like a plug. The jar of the first genius, whose
name was _Am-set_, "the devourer of filth," held the stomach and large
intestines, and was formed at the top like a human head. This genius
typified, or presided over the southern quarter of the compass. He
was the son of Osiris or of Phtha Socharis Osiris, the pygmean god
of Memphis. The second vase of the series was in the shape of the
genius Hapi, the "concealed." Its cover was shaped like the head of a
cynocephalus, and it held the smaller viscera. This genius presided
over the north, and was also the son of Osiris. The third vase was that
of the genius Trautmutf, "the adorer of his mother." We here annex an
engraving of it. It had a cover in shape of the head of a jackal, and
held the lungs and heart. This genius presided over the East, and was
brother of the preceding. The last was that of the genius Kebhsnuf,
the refresher of his brethren. It had a cover shaped like the head
of a sparrow-hawk, and held the liver and gall-bladder. This genius
presided over the west, and was also brother of the preceding. Three
vases of a set, in the British Museum, have all human-shaped heads, and
are provided with handles at the sides of the bodies. Specimens of a
very unusual kind are also to be found in the same collection, having
the whole body formed without a cover, in the shape of a dome above,
and surmounted by a rudely modelled figure of a jackal, couchant upon
a gateway, formed of a detached piece. The entrails were introduced by
the rectangular orifice in the upper part. In some other instances the
covers appear to have been secured by cords passing through them to
the body of the vase. When secured, the vases were placed in a wooden
box, which was laid on a sledge and carried to the sepulchre, where
they were often taken out and placed, two on each side of the coffin.
It was only the poorer classes that used pottery for these purposes.
The viscera of high officers of state were embalmed in jars of fine
white limestone, and the still more valuable oriental alabasters or
arragonite, obtained from the quarries of Tel El Amarna, or the ancient
Alabastron.
THE SACRO CATINO.
The celebrated "Sacro Catino," part of the spoil taken by the Genoese
at the storming of Cesarea, which was believed to be cut from a single
emerald, and had, according to tradition, been presented by the Queen
of Sheba to Solomon, was for ages the pride and glory of Genoa, and an
object of the greatest devotional reverence at the yearly exhibitions,
which were attended with great pomp and ceremony. Such was the opinion
of its intrinsic value, that on many occasions the republic borrowed
half a million of ducats upon the security of this precious relic.
When the French armies, during the first Revolution, plundered Italy
of its treasures, it was sent with other spoils to Paris. Upon
examination, it was, instead of emerald, proved to be composed of
glass, similar to that found in the Egyptian tombs, of which country it
was, no doubt, the manufacture. At the Restoration the Sacro Catino was
returned in a broken state, and now lies shorn of all its honours, a
mere broken glass vessel, in the sacristy of the Church of San Lorenzo.
DINNER PARTY IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
[Illustration: [++] Dinner Party in the Seventeenth Century.]
The cut which we here present to our readers is taken from the English
edition of the Janua Linguarum of Comenius, and represents the forms of
dining in England under the Protectorate. It will be best described by
the text which accompanies it in the book, and in which each particular
object is mentioned. "When a feast is made ready," we are told, "the
table is covered with a carpet and a table-cloth by the waiters, who,
besides, lay the trenchers, spoons, knives, with little forks, table
napkins, bread, with a salt-cellar Messes are brought in platters, a
pie in a plate. The guests being brought in by the host, wash their
hands out of a laver or ewer, over a hand-basin, or bowl, and wipe
them with a hand towel: they then sit at the table on chairs. The
carver breaketh up the good cheer, and divideth it. Sauces are set
amongst roste-meat in sawsers. The butler filleth strong wine out of a
cruse, or wine-pot, or flagon, into cups or glasses, which stand on a
cupboard, and he reacheth them to the master of the feast, who drinketh
to his guests." It will be observed here that one salt-cellar is here
placed in the middle of the table. This was the usual custom; and, as
one long table had been substituted for the several tables formerly
standing in the hall, the salt-cellar was considered to divide the
table into distinct parts, guests of more distinction being placed
above the salt, while the places below the salt were assigned to
inferiors and dependents. This usage is often alluded to in the old
dramatists. Thus, in Ben Jonson, it is said of a man who treats his
inferiors with scorn, "he never drinks _below the salt_, _i. e._ he
never exchanges civilities with those who sit at the lower end of the
table." And in a contemporary writer, it is described as a mark of
presumption in an inferior member of the household "to sit above the
salt."
SAND-COLUMNS IN AFRICA.
Of this remarkable phenomenon, we extract the following interesting
account from the Rev. N. Davis's "Evenings in my Tent";--
"The heat, during the last day or two, has been intense. The
thermometer in my tent, during day and night, has been almost
stationary at 100 degrees. My men have done, and still do, everything
in their power to keep the tent cool, by erecting a high palm-branch
fence around it, and by a constant immersion of the ground, but all
this to very little effect. The wind, during this day, has been as
hot as the flames issuing from a furnace; and the clouds of sand it
raised, and carried along in its furious march, have been immense.
In the distance could be seen numbers of sand columns; but these did
not retain their form any considerable length of time. A contrary
blast brought them in collision with each other; and these, blending
their contents, raised a complete and dense barrier between us and the
country beyond. I am no lover of danger; but, I must confess, I had
an inward desire to see this phenomenon--one of the horrors of the
desert--in greater perfection. I believe Bruce witnessed one of the
most stupendous exhibitions of sand columns or sand spouts, caused by
circular or whirl-winds, on record. In his journey through the desert
of Senaar, his attention was attracted to a number of prodigious
pillars of sand, at different distances, moving at times with great
celerity, at others, stalking on with majestic slowness: at intervals,
he thought they were coming in a very few minutes to overwhelm him and
his companions. Again they would retreat, so as to be almost out of
sight, their tops reaching to the very clouds. There the tops often
separated, from the bodies; and these, once disjoined, dispersed in
the air, and appeared no more. Sometimes they were broken near the
middle, as if struck with a large cannon-shot. About noon, they began
to advance with considerable swiftness upon them, the wind being very
strong at north. Eleven of these awful visitors ranged alongside of
them, at about the distance of three miles. The greatest diameter of
the largest appeared to him, at that distance, as if it would measure
ten feet. They retired from them, with a wind at south-east, leaving an
impression upon the mind of our intrepid traveller to which he could
give no name, though he candidly admits that one ingredient in it was
fear, with a considerable deal of wonder and astonishment. He declares
it was in vain to think of flying; the swiftest horse, or fastest
sailing ship, could be of no use to carry them out of this danger,--and
the full persuasion of this riveted him to the spot where he stood.
Next day they were gratified by a similar display of moving pillars,
in form and disposition like those already described, only they seemed
to be more in number, and less in size. They came several times in
a direction close upon them; that is, according to Mr. Bruce's
computation, within two miles. They became, immediately after sunrise,
like a thick wood, and almost darkened the sun, his rays, shining
through them for near an hour, gave them an appearance of pillars of
fire. At another time they were terrified by an army of these sand
pillars, whose march was constantly south, a number of which seemed
once to be coming directly upon them, and, though they were little
nearer than two miles, a considerable quantity of sand fell around
them. On the 21st of November, about eight in the morning, he had a
view of the desert to the westward as before, and saw the sands had
already begun to rise in immense twisted pillars, which darkened the
heavens, and moved over the desert with more magnificence than ever.
The sun shining through the pillars, which were thicker, and contained
more sand apparently than any of the preceding ones, seemed to give
those nearest them an appearance as if spotted with stars of gold. A
little before twelve, the wind at north ceased, and a considerable
quantity of fine sand rained upon them for an hour afterwards."
ANTIQUITY OF INTOXICATING DRINKS.
It is a common belief that wine was the only inebriating liquor known
to antiquity, but this is a mistake. Tacitus mentions the use of ale
or beer as common among the Germans of his time. By the Egyptians,
likewise, whose country was ill adapted to the cultivation of the
grape, it was employed as a substitute for wine. Ale was common in
the middle ages, and Mr. Park states that very good beer is made, by
the usual process of brewing and malting, in the interior of Africa.
The favourite drink of our Saxon ancestors was ale or mead. Those
worshippers of Odin were so notoriously addicted to drunkenness,
that it was regarded as honourable rather than otherwise; and the
man who could withstand the greatest quantity was looked upon with
admiration and respect: whence the drunken songs of the Scandinavian
scalds: whence the glories of Valhalla, the fancied happiness of
whose inhabitants consisted of quaffing draughts from the skulls of
their enemies slain in battle. Even ardent spirit, which is generally
supposed to be a modern discovery, probably existed from a very early
period. It is said to have been first made by the Arabians in the
middle ages, and in all likelihood may lay claim to a still remoter
origin. The spirituous liquor called arrack has been manufactured in
the island of Java, as well as in the continent of Hindostan, from
time immemorial. Brandy was made in Sicily at the commencement of the
fourteenth century. As to wine, it was so common in ancient times as
to have a tutelar god appropriated to it; Bacchus and his companion
Silenus are as household words in the mouths of all, and constituted
most important features of the heathen mythology. We have all heard
of the Falernian and Campanian wines, and of the wines of Cyprus and
Shiraz. Indeed, there is reason to believe that the ancients were in
no respect inferior to the moderns in the excellence of the vinous
liquors, whatever they may have been in the variety. Wine was so common
in the eastern nations that Mahomet, foreseeing the baleful effects
of its propagation, forbade it to his followers, who, to compensate
themselves, had recourse to opium. The Gothic or dark ages seem to have
been those in which it was the least common; in proof of this it may
be mentioned that, so late as 1298, it was vended as a cordial by the
English apothecaries. At the present day it is little drunk, except by
the upper classes, in those countries which do not naturally furnish
the grape. In those that do, it is so cheap as to come within the reach
of even the lowest.
RUINS OF CLONMACNOIS.
[Illustration: [++] Ruins of Clonmacnois.]
A few miles south of Athlone are the famous ruins of Clonmacnois, the
school where, according to Dr. O'Connor, "the nobility of Connaught had
their children educated, and which was therefore called Cluan-mac-nois,
'the secluded recess of the sons of nobles.'" It was also, in ancient
times, a renowned cemetery of the Irish kings; and for many centuries
it has continued a favourite burial-place, the popular belief enduring
to this day, that all persons interred here pass immediately from
earth to heaven. The abbey is said to have been founded by St. Kieran
about the middle of the sixth century, and soon became "amazingly
enriched," so that, writes Mr. Archdall, "its landed property was so
great, and the number of cells and monasteries subjected to it so
numerous, that almost half of Ireland was said to be within the bounds
of Clonmacnois." The ruins retain marks of exceeding splendour. In the
immediate vicinity there are two "Round Towers." The above engraving
represents one of the many richly-carved stone crosses that are
scattered in all directions among the ruins.
THE BRICKS OF BABYLON.
[Illustration: [++] Brick of Babylon.]
Besides sun-dried bricks, remains of kiln-baked or burnt bricks are
found in all the principal ruins of ancient Babylonia, and were used
for the purpose of revetting or casing the walls. Like the sun-dried
bricks they are made of clay mixed with grass and straw, which have,
of course, disappeared in the baking, leaving, however, traces of the
stalks or stems in the clay. Generally they are slack-burnt, of a pale
red colour, with a slight glaze or polish. The finest sort, according
to Mr. Rich, are white, approaching more or less to a yellowish cast,
like our Stourbridge, or fire-brick; the coarsest are red, like our
ordinary brick. Some have a blackish cast, and are very hard. The
finest are those which come from the ruins of the Akerkuf. The general
measurement of the kiln-dried bricks, at the Birs Nimrúd, is 1 ft. 1
in. square, and 3 in. thick. Some are submultiples, or half of these
dimensions. A few are of different shapes for particular purposes, such
as rounding corners. Those at the Akerkuf measured a trifle less, or
12-1/2 in. square, and 2-3/4 in. thick, and are placed at the base of
the monument. The bricks of Al Hymer, on the eastern bank, measure 14
in. long, 12-3/4 in. broad, 2-1/2 in. thick, and are of fine fabric.
There are bricks of two dimensions at this ruin of the Birs Nimrúd;
those on the northern brow, a little way down it, measure 12 in.
square, and 3-1/4 in. thick; they are of a pale red colour, and used
for revetting the monument. Lower down to the east of this, they are
4-3/4 in. broad, and 12-3/4 in. long. Similar bricks were found at the
Mujellibe, and in one place was an entire wall of them 60 feet thick.
The whole plain here is covered with masses of brick work, and on one
of the mounds the bricks are so red, that it looks one bright gleaming
mass. The bricks from the Mujellibe or Kasr are described as very hard,
and of a pale yellow colour; and this edifice presents a remarkable
appearance of freshness. We have seen only one fragment of a brick from
Niffer; it is of a white, or rather yellowish white colour, and sandy,
gritty texture. This spot, it will be remembered, is supposed to be the
site of old Babylon. All these bricks are made by the same process as
those of Assyria, namely, stamped out of a wooden or terra-cotta mould,
and are also impressed with several lines of cuneiform character. This
impression is always sunk below the superficies, rectangular, and
often placed obliquely on the brick, with that disregard to mechanical
symmetry which is so usual on works of ancient art. The stamp is
generally about 6 inches long, by 4 inches wide, and the number of
lines varies from three to seven: an arrangement quite different from
that observed on the bricks of Assyria, and rather resembling that
adopted by the brick-makers of Egypt. The engraving on previous page
is of a brick stamped with the name of Nebuchadnezzar, which is now in
the possession of the Royal Society of Literature. The inscriptions
sometimes commence with the figure of a lion, a bull, or what may be
intended for an altar. These read, according to Sir H. Rawlinson,--
[of] Nebuchadnezzar,
the king of Babylon,
founder of Beth Digla, or Saggalu,
and of Beth Tzida
son of Nebopalasar [I am].
A TURKISH BAZAAR.
A Turkish bazaar is one of the most wonderful sights in the world, and
well deserves a place in our record of curiosities. We cannot do better
than quote the description which Mr. Albert Smith gives of one of these
extraordinary places in his "Month at Constantinople:"--
"Smyrna had, in some measure, prepared me for the general appearance
of an oriental bazaar; but the vast extent of these markets at
Constantinople created a still more vivid impression. To say that the
covered rows of shops must altogether be miles in length--that vista
after vista opens upon the gaze of the astonished stranger, lined with
the costliest productions of the world, each collected in its proper
district--that one may walk for an hour, without going over the same
ground twice, amidst diamonds, gold, and ivory; Cashmere shawls, and
Chinese silks; glittering arms, costly perfumes, embroidered slippers,
and mirrors; rare brocades, ermines, Morocco leathers, Persian
nick-nacks; amber mouthpieces, and jewelled pipes--that looking along
the shortest avenue, every known tint and colour meets the eye at once,
in the wares and costumes, and that the noise, the motion, the novelty
of this strange spectacle is at first perfectly bewildering--all
this, possibly, gives the reader the notion of some kind of splendid
mart, fitted to supply the wants of the glittering personages who
figure in the Arabian Nights' Entertainments; yet it can convey but
a poor idea of the real interest which such a place calls forth,
or the most extraordinary assemblage of treasures displayed there,
amidst so much apparent shabbiness. No spot in the world--neither the
Parisian Boulevards, nor our own Regent-street--can boast of such
an accumulation of valuable wares from afar, as the great bazaar at
Constantinople. Hundreds and thousands of miles of rocky road and sandy
desert have been traversed by the moaning camels who have carried
those silks and precious stones from Persia, with the caravan. From
the wild regions of the mysterious central Africa, that ivory, so
cunningly worked, in the next row, has been brought--the coal-black
people only know how--until the Nile floated it down to Lower Egypt.
Then those soft Cashmere shawls have made a long and treacherous
journey to Trebizond, whence the fleet barks of the cold and stormy
Euxine at last brought them up the fairy Bosphorus to the very water's
edge of the city. From the remote active America; from sturdy England;
from Cadiz, Marseilles, and all along the glowing shores of the
Mediterranean, safely carried over the dark and leaping sea, by brave
iron monsters that have fought the winds with their scalding breath,
these wares have come, to tempt the purchasers, in the pleasant, calm,
subdued light of the bazaars of Stamboul."
VARNISH-TREE OF THE JAPANESE.
The _urusi_ or varnish-tree, of which they make so extensive a use, is
a noble tree when grown to its full size. On incision it yields a rich,
milky, glutinous juice, out of which the Japanese make the celebrated
varnish, known by the name of _Japan_. With this varnish they cover
and coat all their household furniture, all their dishes and plates,
and all their drinking-vessels, whether made of wood or of paper. The
use of plate, or porcelain, or glass appears to be very limited, and
is probably interdicted by some rule of nationality or religion: from
the emperor down to the meanest peasant, all make use of the light
varnished or japanned cups and dishes, the inner substance of which is
wood or paper, or what we term papier-maché.
Another tree, called _forasi_, renders a varnish of an inferior quality.
TORTURE-CHAMBER AT NUREMBERG.
Nuremberg, being a "free city," was governed by its own appointed
magistrates, having independent courts of law. The executive council
of state consisted of eight members, chosen from the thirty patrician
families, who, by the privilege granted to them from the thirteenth
century, ruled the city entirely. In process of time these privileges
assumed the form of a civic tyranny, which was felt to be intolerable
by the people, and occasionally opposed by them. The fierce religious
wars of the sixteenth century assisted in destroying the monopoly of
power still more; yet now that it is gone for ever, it has left fearful
traces of its irresponsible strength. All who sigh for "the good old
times," should not moralise over the fallen greatness of the city,
and its almost deserted but noble town-hall; but descend below the
building into the dark vaults and corridors which form its basement;
the terrible substructure upon which the glorious municipal palace of
a free imperial self-ruled city was based in the middle ages, into
whose secrets none dared pry, and where friends, hope, life itself,
were lost to those who dared revolt against the rulers. There is no
romance-writer who has imagined more horrors than we have evidences
were perpetrated under the name of justice in these frightful vaults,
unknown to the busy citizens around them, within a few feet of the
streets down which a gay wedding procession might pass, while a true
patriot was torn in every limb, and racked to death by the refined
cruelty of his fellow-men. The heart sickens in these vaults, and an
instinctive desire to quit them takes possession of the mind, while
remaining merely as a curious spectator within them. The narrow steps
leading to them are reached through a decorated doorway, and the
passage below receives light through a series of gratings. You shortly
reach the labyrinthine ways, totally excluded from external light and
air, and enter, one after another, confined dungeons, little more than
six feet square, cased with oak to deaden sounds, and to increase
the difficulty of attempted escape. To make these narrow places even
more horrible, strong wooden stocks are in some, and day and night
prisoners were secured in total darkness, in an atmosphere which seems
even now too oppressive to bear. In close proximity to these dungeons
is a strong stone room, about twelve feet wide each way, into which
you descend by three steps. It is the torture-chamber, which we here
engrave.
[Illustration: [++] Torture-Chamber at Nuremberg.]
The massive bars before you are all that remain of the perpendicular
rack, upon which unfortunates were hung with weights attached to their
ankles. Two such of stone, weighing each fifty pounds, were kept
here some years back, as well as many other implements of torture
since removed or sold for old iron. The raised stone bench around the
room was for the use of the executioner and attendants. The vaulted
roof condensed the voice of the tortured man, and an aperture on one
side gave it freedom to ascend into a room above, where the judicial
listeners waited for the faltering words which succeeded the agonising
screams of their victim.
SEPULCHRAL VASES OF GREEK POTTERY.
The number of these vases deposited in the great public museums of
Europe is very large, and from calculations derived from catalogues,
or from observations made on the spot, may be stated in round numbers
as follows:--The Museo Borbonico, at Naples, contains about 2,100;
the Gregorian Museum in the Vatican, about 1,000; Florence has about
700; and at Turin there are 500. On the side of the Alps, the Imperial
Museum of Vienna possesses about 300; Berlin has 1,690; Munich about
1,700; Dresden, 200; Carlsruhe, 200; the Louvre, at Paris, about
1,500; while 500 more may be found in the Bibliothèque Imperiale.
The British Museum has about 2,600 vases of all kinds. Besides the
public collections, several choice and valuable specimens of ancient
art belong to individuals. The most important of these private
collections are those of the Duc de Luynes, the Duc de Blacas, the
Count de Pourtales-Gorgier, the Jatta collection, that belonging to
M. St. Angela at Naples, and a fine and choice one belonging to the
Marquis Campana at Rome. In England, the collections of Mr. Hope, of
Mr. Jekyll, of the Marquis of Northampton, and of Mr. Hertz, contain
several interesting examples. In addition to these, several thousand
more vases are in the hands of the principal dealers, as S. Barone, of
Naples; and the heirs of S. Basseggio, Capranesi and Messrs. Sotheby,
in London. The total number of vases in public and private collections
probably amounts to 15,000 of all kinds.
[Illustration: [++] Sepulchral Vases.]
All these were discovered in the sepulchres of the ancients, but the
circumstances under which they were found differ according to locality.
In Greece, the graves are generally small, being designed for single
corpses, which accounts for the comparatively small size of the vases
discovered in that country. At Athens, the earlier graves are sunk
deepest in the soil, and those at Corinth, especially such as contain
the early Corinthian vases, are found by boring to a depth of several
feet beneath the surface. The early tombs of Cività Vecchia and Cære,
or Cervetri, in Italy, are tunnelled in the earth; and those at Vulci
and in the Etruscan territory, from which the finest and largest vases
have been extracted, are chambers hewn in the rocks. In Southern
Italy, especially in Campania, they are large chambers, about 5-1/4
palms under the surface.
The engraving on previous page will convey an idea of the manner in
which the vases are arranged round the bodies of the dead in the tombs
of Veii, Nola, and Cumæ.
The tomb there represented is constructed of large blocks of stone,
arranged in squared masses, called the Etruscan style of wall, in
contradistinction to the Cyclopean. The walls are painted with
subjects, the body is laid upon the stone floor, and the larger vases,
such as the _oxybapha_ and _craters_ are placed round it. The jugs are
hung upon nails round the walls.
GAMES WITH CARDS IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
Cards were used by every one. The game of Gleek was played by three
persons. The dealer dealt twelve cards and left eight on the table for
stock, seven were bought, and the ace turned up for the dealer; if it
was Tiddy (four of trumps) such player gave four to the dealer. The ace
was called Tib, the knave Tim, the fifth Towser, and the sixth Tumbler.
The players then begin bidding for the stock in hopes of bettering
their game, the buyer taking in seven cards and putting out seven. If
Tib was turned up, it counted fifteen to the dealer. The players then
picked for Ruff, the one having most of a suit winning it--unless any
one had four aces, which always carried it. The first then said, "I'll
vie the Ruff;" the next, "I'll see it:" the third, "I'll see it, and
revie it;" the first again, "I'll see your revie;" and the middle,
"I'll not meddle with it." They then showed their cards, and he that
had most of a suit won six of him that held out longest, and forty of
him who said he could see it, and then refused to meddle with it.
Ombre, Basset, Whist, Costly Colours, and Five Cards, were, we believe,
of later introduction. Of our period, are Ruff, Bone, Ace, Pult. The
great game in the West of England was Post and Pair, as All Fours was
in Kent, and Five Cards in Ireland. In Post and Pair, the ace of trumps
was the best card; at Post the best cards were one and two, but a
pair of court cards one. The daring of the game consisted in the vye,
or the adventuring upon the goodness of your hand to intimidate your
antagonist.
RESCUED RELICS.
The following is a list--translated from the original in the chartulary
of the University of Glasgow; of the relics which were carried
away from Glasgow Cathedral, by the Archbishop, before the work of
demolition began, in 1560:--
The image of Christ in gold, and those of the twelve apostles in
silver, with the whole vestments belonging to the church.
A silver cross, gilt in the upper part, and adorned with precious
stones in the lower part, with a small portion of the cross of our
Saviour!
Another silver cross, adorned with precious stones, with several other
portions of the cross of Christ!
A silver casket, gilt, containing the hair of the blessed Virgin!
A square silver coffer, containing several of the scourges of St.
Kentigern, and St. Thomas of Canterbury, and a portion of the hair
garment worn by the former saint!!
Another silver casket, gilt, containing part of the skin of
Bartholomew, the apostle!!
A silver casket containing a bone of St. Ninian!
A silver casket, containing part of the girdle of the Virgin Mary!!
A crystal case, containing a bone of some saint and of St. Magdalene!!
A small vial of crystal, containing the milk of the blessed Virgin, and
part of the manger of Christ!!!
A small phial of a saffron colour, containing the fluid which formerly
flowed from the tomb of St. Mungo!
A phial, containing several of the bones of St. Eugene, and of St.
Blaze!
A phial, containing a part of the tomb of St. Catherine the virgin!
A small hide, with a portion of the cloak of St. Martin!
A precious hide, with portions of the bodies of St. Kentigern and St.
Thomas of Canterbury!!
Some other hides, with bones of saints and other relics!
A wooden chest, containing many small relics!
Two linen bags, with the bones of St. Kentigern, St. Thanew, and other
deceased saints!!
PAPER.
With respect to the paper now in use, Dr. Blair says, the first
paper-mill (in England, we suppose) was erected at Dartford, in the
year 1588, by a German of the name of Speillman; from which period we
may, perhaps, date its manufacture in this country.
It appears, however, that it was known in the East much earlier; it
being observed that most of the ancient manuscripts in Arabic and other
Oriental languages, were written upon cotton paper, and it is thought
the Saracens first introduced it into Spain.
Anderson, in his "History of Commerce," says that, till the year 1690,
there was scarcely any paper made in England but the coarse brown
sort. Paper was previously imported from France, Genoa, and Holland.
However, the improvement of this article in England, in consequence of
the French war, produced a saving to the country of £100,000 annually,
which had been paid to France for paper alone.
LOTTERIES.
If the antiquity of a practice could justify its existence, lotteries
might claim peculiar reverence. The Romans, we are told, used to
enliven their Saturnalia with them, by distributing tickets, all of
which gained some prize. Augustus instituted lotteries, that consisted,
however, of things of little value. Nero also established lotteries,
for the people, in which 1,000 tickets were daily distributed, and
several of those who were favoured by fortune got rich by them. The
first lottery of which we find any record in our annals, was in the
year 1659, which, according to Stow, consisted of 40,000 lots, at 10s.
each. The prizes were plated; and the profits were to be applied to
the purpose of repairing the havens of the kingdom. This lottery was
drawn at the west door of St. Paul's cathedral; and began on the 11th
July, 1569, and continued incessantly, day and night, till the 6th May
following. The tickets were three years in being disposed of. In the
year 1612, King James granted a lottery to promote the plantation of
English colonies in Virginia, which was also drawn at St. Paul's.
TEMPLE AT SIMONBONG.
[Illustration: [++] Lepcha Temple at Simonbong.]
The above is a correct representation of the great Lepcha temple at
Simonbong, in Sikkim, a district of India near Thibet. We take the
following account of it from the Journal of Dr. Hooker, who visited it
in 1848:--"Simonbong is one of the smallest and poorest goompas, or
temples, in Sikkim, being built of wood only. It consists of one large
room, raised on a stone foundation, with small sliding shutter windows,
and roofed with shingles of wood; opposite the door a wooden altar was
placed, rudely chequered with black, white, and red; to the right and
left were shelves, with a few Tibetan books, wrapped in silk; a model
of Symbonath temple in Nepal, a praying-cylinder, and some implements
for common purposes, bags of juniper, English wine-bottles and glasses,
with tufts of _Abies Webbina_, rhododendron flowers, and peacock's
feathers, besides various trifles, clay ornaments and offerings, and
little Hindoo idols. On the altar were ranged seven little brass cups,
full of water; a large conch-shell, carved with the sacred lotus; a
brass jug from Lhassa, of beautiful design, and a human thigh-bone,
hollow, and perforated through both condyles.
"Facing the altar was a bench and a chair, and on one side a huge
tambourine, with two curved iron drumsticks. The bench was covered with
bells, handsomely carved with idols, and censers with juniper-ashes;
and on it lay the _dorge_, or double-headed thunderbolt. Of all these
articles, the human thigh-bone is by much the most curious; it is very
often that of a Lama, and is valuable in proportion to its length.
As, however, the Sikkim Lamas are burned, these relics are generally
procured from Tibet, where the corpses are cut in pieces and thrown to
the kites, or thrown into the water."
IMPLEMENTS USED IN BUDDHIST TEMPLES.
[Illustration: [++] Implements Used in Buddhist Temples.]
The above sketch places before us the implements generally used in the
Buddhist temples of India:--a praying cylinder in stand, another to be
carried in the hand, cymbals, bell, brass cup, three trumpets (one of
them made of a human thigh-bone), conch, and dorje, or double-headed
thunderbolt, which the Lama, or high-priest, holds in his hand during
service. The praying cylinder is made to revolve by means of an axle
and string, and a projecting piece of iron strikes a little bell at
each revolution. Within such cylinders are deposited written prayers,
and whoever pulls the string properly is considered to have said his
prayers as often as the bell rings. The worshippers, on entering the
temple, walk up to the altar, and, before or after having deposited
their gifts, they lift both hands to the forehead, fall on their
knees, and touch the ground three times with head and hands. They then
advance to the head Lama, _kotow_ similarly to him, and he blesses
them, laying both hands on their heads, and repeating a short formula.
Sometimes the dorje is used in blessing, as the cross is in Europe,
and when a number of people request a benediction, the Lama pronounces
it from the door of the temple with outstretched arms, the people all
being prostrate, with their foreheads touching the ground.
PROCLAMATION FOR THE PERSON OF GEORGE II.
On the young Pretender landing in Scotland, Government issued a
proclamation, offering a reward of £30,000 for his head, alive or dead.
In opposition to this, the following curious paper was issued by the
Prince and his council, which, Mr. Beloe says, "is so rare, that I
never heard of any other than that which accident lately deposited in
the British Museum."
"Charles, Prince of Wales, &c.
Regent of the Kingdoms of Scotland, France, and Ireland, and the
Dominions thereunto belonging,
Whereas, we have seen a certain scandalous and malicious paper,
published in the style and form of a proclamation, bearing date the 1st
instant, wherein, under pretence of bringing us to justice, like our
Royal Ancestor, King Charles I. of blessed memory, there is a reward of
£30,000 sterling promised to those who shall deliver us into the hands
of our enemies, we could not but be moved with a just indignation at
so insolent an attempt; and though, from our nature and principles,
we abhor and detest a practice so unusual among Christian Princes, we
cannot but, out of just regard to the dignity of our person, promise a
like reward of £30,000 sterling to him, or those, who shall seize and
secure till our further orders, the person of the Elector of Hanover,
whether landed, or attempting to land, in any part of his Majesty's
dominions. Should any fatal accident happen from hence, let the blame
be entirely at the door of those who first set the infamous example.
"CHARLES, P. R.
"Given at our Camp, at Kinlockeill, August 22, 1745.
"By his Highness's Command.
"JOHN MURRAY."
DOGS IN JAPAN.
Dogs or common curs they have, and in superfluous numbers. These
dogs are as much the pest of the towns of Japan as they are of
Constantinople and the other foul cities and towns of the Ottoman
Empire. This vast increase of the canine species, and the encouragement
and immunity accorded to it, arose (according to the popular account)
out of a curious superstition and an extravagant imperial decree. An
Emperor who reigned at the close of the eighteenth century chanced to
be born under the Sign of the Dog, the Dog being one of the twelve
celestial signs of the Japanese Zodiac. For this reason the Emperor had
as great an esteem for dogs as the Roman Emperor Augustus is reported
to have entertained for rams. When he ascended the throne, he willed
and ordained that dogs should be held as sacred animals; and, from
that time, more puppies saw the light, and were permitted to live in
Japan than in any other country on the face of the earth, Turkey,
perhaps, excepted. These dogs have no masters, but lie and prowl
about the streets, to the exceeding great annoyance of passengers,
especially if they happen to be foreign travellers, or Christians in
Christian dresses. If they come round you in packs, barking, snarling,
and showing their teeth; nay, even if they fall upon you and bite you,
you must on no account take the law into your own hands, and beat them
off or shoot them. To kill one of them is a capital crime, whatever
mischief the brute may have done you. In every town there are Guardians
of the Dogs, and to these officers notice must be given in case of any
canine misdemeanour, these guardians alone being empowered to punish
the dogs. Every street must keep a certain number of these animals,
or at least provide them with victuals; huts, or dog-hospitals,
stand in all parts of the town, and to these the animals, in case of
sickness, must be carefully conveyed by the inhabitants. The dogs that
die must be brought up to the tops of mountains and hills, the usual
burying-places of men and women, and there be very decently interred.
Old Kæmpfer says:--"The natives tell a pleasant tale on this head. A
Japanese, as he was carrying the carcase of a dead dog to the top of
a steep mountain, grew impatient, grumbled, and cursed the Emperor's
birthday and whimsical command. His companion bid him hold his tongue
and be quiet, and, instead of swearing, return thanks to the gods that
the Emperor was not born under the Sign of the Horse, for, in that
case, the load would be heavier."
LAGMI, AND THE USE MADE OF IT.
Mohammed, we are told, prohibited the use of wine, owing to a drunken
quarrel among the chiefs of his army, which produced great disorder
and confusion in his affairs, and almost caused the prophet's death in
one of his daring military engagements. He, therefore, addressed his
followers in these words: "The devil desires to sow dissensions among
you, through wine and games of chance, to divert you from remembering
God, and praying to him. Abandon wine and games of chance. Be obedient
to God and the prophet, his apostle, and take heed unto yourselves."
But the prophet, who could so minutely delineate the furniture of
heaven, and the instruments of torture of hell--who could describe the
mysterious occurrences before the creation was formed into its present
shape, and predict stupendous events to happen in thousands of years
to come--could not forsee that man would stupify himself by any other
beverages besides "wine." The believers in the Koran at Tozar, a city
near the Great Desert, in Africa, certainly abstain from wine, and thus
obey the prophet's precept, but then they indulge freely in _lagmi_,
or the juice of the palm-tree, which, when fermented, is as pernicious
in its effect, when taken in excess, as the wine possibly can be. This
juice is easily obtained, and more easily still prepared. An incision
is made in the tree, just beneath the branches, and a jar so fastened
that it receives every drop of liquid flowing out. During a night they
procure from a tree "in a producing condition" (in which it is not
always) from a quart to three pints of _lagmi_. When drunk immediately
it tastes like _genuine_ rich milk, and is perfectly harmless; but
when allowed to stand one night, or, at most, twenty-four hours, it
partakes (with the exception of the colour, which is whitish,) of the
quality and flavour of champagne, and that of a far superior sort than
is usually offered in the British markets. This date-tree wine, (for so
it may be called,) procured at so little trouble and expense, is to be
found in every house, and has its victims reeling through the streets
of Tozar, just as the stupifying porter has in the streets of English
cities. But the curious part in connexion with this is, that "the
faithful" persist in their justification that they do not transgress
their prophet's precept! "_Lagmi_ is not wine," they say, "and the
prophet's prohibition refers to wine."
ANGLO-SAXON UMBRELLA.
[Illustration: [++] Anglo-Saxon Umbrella.]
In Anglo-Saxon times the traveller always wore a covering for his
head, which, though in various shapes, in no instance resembled our
hat, though it was characterised by the general term _hæt_. He seems
to have been further protected against the inclemency of the weather
by a cloak or (_mentel_). One would be led to suppose that this outer
garment was more varied in form and material than any other part
of the dress from the great number of names which we find applied
to it, such as--_basing_, _hæcce_, _hæcla_, or _hacela_, _poell_,
_pylca_, _scyccels_, _wæfels_, &c. The writings which remain throw no
light upon the provisions made by travellers against rain; for the
dictionary makers who give _scur-scead_ (shower-shade) as signifying
an umbrella are certainly mistaken. Yet that umbrellas were known to
the Anglo-Saxons is proved beyond a doubt by a figure in the Harleian
MSS. which we have engraved above. A servant or attendant is holding an
umbrella over the head of a man who appears to be covered at the same
time with the cloak or mantle.
THE HEJIRA.
The Hejira, Hegira, or Hejra. The flight of Mohammed from Mecca to
Medina is the epoch of the Mohammedan nations. Omar, the second Caliph,
instituted the Hegira in imitation of the Christians, who counted their
years from their persecution by Diocletian, (A.D. 284,) and who called
it the era of the martyrs. Thus the Mohammedans wished to commence
their calculation of time from the period of the most memorable
persecution they had suffered. The learned Mohammedan astronomers have
been divided in opinion on the exact year of the Christians which
corresponds with the Hegira. But the generality of writers place
this epoch on Friday, the 16th of July, A.D. 622. The ancient Arabs
counted time by solar months; these months always returned in the same
season, and their names correspond with the employments which the
seasons rendered necessary. Since the epoch of the Hegira was fixed the
Mohammedans count time by lunar months, the Arabian year consisting of
354 days, eight hours, and forty-eight minutes. The intercalary days
are adjusted by a cycle of thirty lunar years, of which nineteen are
of 354 days, and eleven of 355 days. The years of excess are in the
following order:--2, 5, 7, 10, 13, 15, 18, 21, 24, 26, 29.
CHINESE PAILOOS.
[Illustration: [++] Chinese Pailoos.]
The Pailoos, or, as they are commonly but erroneously called, triumphal
arches, form an object of Chinese architecture which, from its constant
recurrence in views of Chinese scenery, is almost as familiar to us
as the pagoda. They are, in fact, monuments to deceased persons of
distinction, generally of widows who have not married a second time,
or of virgins who have died unmarried. The smaller and less important
ones consist merely of two upright posts of wood or granite, supporting
a flat board with an inscription, like, both in purpose and design, to
the wooden rails which are used as substitutes for tombstones in some
districts in England. The more important Pailoos have three openings,
supported by several boards, with more or less ornament and carving.
Sometimes they are wholly of wood; in others no material is used but
stone, generally granite; and these two materials are combined in
various proportions in other examples. Sometimes they are raised on
platforms as in the annexed example, from a peculiarly graceful one
near Canton.
At other times they are placed on the ground, and even across roads,
so as to form arches, if they may be called, though certainly not
triumphal ones.
REMARKABLE GROTTO, AND STORY CONNECTED WITH IT.
Near Lunel, in France, on the eastern bank of the river Hérault, is
the grotto, known in this part of the country as _la Baume de las
Donmaisellas_, or _des Fées_. This grotto consists of many large, deep
apartments, some of which are indeed inaccessible; the second (and
they are all one below the other), presents to the eye of the beholder
four beautiful pillars, about thirty feet high, terminating at the top
like palm trees; they are detached from the roof, which is only to be
accounted for by supposing that the _bottom_, or _floor_, has, in some
concussion of nature, sunk from its original level: the third chamber,
still descending, and like the former only to be reached by ropes and
ladders, presents, at the farther end, one vast curtain of crystal, to
which the lights, carried on such occasions, give the appearance of all
manner of precious stones. Some of the stalactites of this apartment
are solid and white as alabaster, some clear and transparent as glass;
they are of every fantastic form and description, as well as displaying
perfect representations of cascades, trees, festoons, lances, pillars,
fruits, flowers, and even the regular arrangement of architecture in
a cathedral. The fourth chamber is a long gallery covered with fine
sand: beyond this three great pillars present themselves, and behind,
there is a lake of thick muddy water. All these grottoes have been
long known to the peasantry, but another was lately penetrated, in
which every former variety of stalactite was seen, but, in addition
to these was found an altar, white, like fine china, having regular
steps to it, of the same material: it is composed apparently of layers
of the opaque stalactite, of a dazzling white and exquisite polish:
four twisted columns, of a yellow colour and transparent, whose height
is lost in the vast roof; an obelisk, perfectly round, of a reddish
colour, of a great height, and a colossal figure of a woman, holding
two children in her arms, and placed upon a pedestal, completed the
astonishment of the daring explorers of this subterraneous cavern. But
alas! this astonishment was changed into feelings of a more melancholy
description, when they recalled the circumstance, still current in
the neighbourhood, that, during the religious wars, a family (whether
Protestant or Catholic is not ascertained), consisting of a father and
mother and one or two children, sought refuge in these subterraneous
grottoes from the persecution of their enemies, and there preserved a
miserable existence, far from the cruelty of
Man, whom Nature formed of milder clay,
With every kind emotion in his heart,
And taught alone to weep.
For some years they supported themselves with berries, and now and
then they were seen endeavouring to secure a stray kid or goat for
food. The solitude and silence of their almost inaccessible dwelling,
imbued them and their fate with an awful character; and from being
objects of _pity_, they became at length objects of _terror_, to the
neighbouring peasantry, who told strange stories of the unfortunate
beings thus consigned to cold and hunger, and compelled to seek a
wretched home within the bowels of the earth. Their spare forms, their
pale countenances, their tattered garments waving in the breeze, all
threw a mystic feeling over their appearance, and they were transformed
into fairies and spectres. The shepherds fled when they appeared, and
the children, as they clung affrighted to their parents, with strained
eyes and parted lips, followed the rapid movements of the mountaineers,
as they in their turn, alarmed at the sight of their fellow-creatures,
fled from height to height, until they gained their rocky asylum. Such
an accumulation of suffering and misery was not, however, calculated
to prolong existence: terror and fear destroyed the mind, as hunger
and cold destroyed the body, and after the lapse of a few years, one
by one, these _spectres_ disappeared: but still they figure in all the
local stories and traditions peculiar to the neighbourhood, under the
form of witches, fairies, and sorcerers. The question is, whether the
altar and the figure are not the work of these unfortunate beings, who
might find in this employment a transitory solace for their misery.
CRUELTY OF HINDOO RITES.
We extract the following account from "The Land of the Veda," as
it affords an extraordinary instance of the lengths to which the
fanaticism of a gross superstition will induce men to proceed:--
"To satisfy ourselves of the sanguinary character of some of the Hindoo
deities, and of the influence they exert over the deluded victims of
superstition, we must witness some of the cruel practices which the
popular goddess, Kali, imposes on her worshippers. The most remarkable
festival is the one called _Charak Puja_.
"This festival derives its name from _chakra_, a wheel or discus; in
allusion to the circle performed in the act of rotating, when suspended
from the instrument of this horrible superstition. Being desirous of
witnessing the ceremony in all its parts, I went to the spot where one
of these ceremonies was about to take place. An upright pole, twenty
or thirty feet in height, was planted in the ground, across the top of
which, moving on a pivot, a long pole was placed. From one end of this
transverse beam a long rope was suspended and left to hang loosely,
whilst a shorter rope was attached to the other end, bearing a couple
of strong iron hooks. A good-looking man, perhaps thirty years of age,
came from the midst of the crowd, and doing obeisance beneath the
instrument of torture, presented himself as a candidate for the honour
he aspired to. The attendant, before whom he stood erect, struck a
smart blow on the small of the back, and fixed one of the hooks in the
flesh, and then did the same on the other side. The man then laid hold
of the rope just above the hooks and held it, whilst certain persons
in the crowd, seizing the loose rope, pulled him up, by depressing the
other end of the beam. As he rose he relinquished his hold of the rope
by which he was suspended, and resigned himself to the rotary motion,
by which he was whirled round and round in mid air, suspended by the
flesh of his own body. Whilst he was thus enduring the torture incident
to this horrid service, at once gratifying the cruel goddess Kali and
the crowd of admiring spectators, he drew from his girdle fruits and
flowers, which he scattered among the attendants. These were picked
up by the crowd, with the greatest eagerness, as precious relics that
might avail as charms in cases of personal or domestic extremity. This
wretched dupe of a foul superstition remained in the air at least a
quarter of an hour, and, of course, in his own estimation and in that
of the spectators, gained by this brief infliction a large amount of
merit, and consequent title to certain rewards to be reaped in a future
state of being. No sooner had he descended, than another was ready for
the ceremony. These cruel practices are carried on in various parts of
the native town, from day to day, as long as the festival lasts. It
not unfrequently happens that the ligaments of the back give way, when
the man, tossed to an immense distance, is dashed to pieces. In such
cases, the inference is, that the victim of such accident, by virtue
of demerit in a former state of existence, was not merely unworthy of
the privileges attached to this privileged ceremonial, but destined to
expiate his evil deeds by this dreadful accident."
CURIOUS MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.
The musical instrument which we engrave below, is used in the Burman
empire, and is thus described by Captain Yule, in his "Mission to Ava,"
writing from the town of Magwé, in Burmah. The Captain says;--
[Illustration: [++] Drum-Harmonicon.]
"This evening the members of the mission made their first acquaintance
with the Burmese drama; an entertainment which from this time would
occupy a very large place in the daily history of our proceedings if
all were registered.
"The Governor had provided both a puppet play and a regular dramatic
performance for our benefit, and on this first occasion of the kind the
Envoy thought it right that we should visit both.
"Each performance was attended by a full Burmese orchestra. The
principal instruments belonging to this are very remarkable, and, as
far as I know, peculiar to Burmah.
"The chief instrument in size and power is that called in
Burmese _pattshaing_, and which I can only name in English as a
drum-harmonicon. It consists of a circular tub-like frame about thirty
inches high and four feet six inches in diameter. This frame is formed
of separate wooden staves fancifully carved, and fitting by tenon into
a hoop which keeps them in place. Round the interior of the frame
are suspended vertically some eighteen or twenty drums, or tom-toms,
graduated in tone, and in size from about two and a-half inches
diameter up to ten. In tuning the instrument the tone of each drum is
modified as required by the application of a little moist clay with a
sweep of the thumb, in the centre of the parchment. The whole system
then forms a sort of harmonicon, on which the performer, squatted in
the middle, plays with the natural plectra of his fingers and palms,
and with great dexterity and musical effect."
BURMESE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.
[Illustration: [++] Burmese Musical Instruments.]
The two Burmese musical instruments which we here engrave are thus
described by Captain Yule in his "Mission to Ava:"--
"The bamboo harmonicon or staccato is a curious example of the
production of melody by simple and unexpected means. Its use, though
unknown in India, extends throughout the Eastern Archipelago; and
something similar is possessed, I believe, by the negro slaves in
Brazil. Eighteen to twenty-four flat slips of bamboo, about an inch and
a half broad, and of graduated length, are strung upon a double string
and suspended in a catenary over the mouth of a trough-like sounding
box. The roundish outside of the bamboo is uppermost, and whilst the
extremities of the slips are left to their original thickness, the
middle part of each is thinned and hollowed out below. The tuning is
accomplished partly by the regulation of this thinning of the middle
part. The scale so formed is played with one or two drumsticks, and
the instrument is one of very mellow and pleasing tone. Though the
materials are of no value, a good old harmonicon is prized by the
owner, like a good old Cremona, and he can rarely be induced to part
with it.
"There was one example at the capital, of a similar instrument formed
of slips of iron or steel. It was said to have been made by the august
hands of King Tharawadee himself, who, like Louis Seize, was abler as
a smith than as a king. The effect was not unpleasing, and strongly
resembled that of a large Geneva musical box, but it was far inferior
in sweetness to the bamboo instrument.
"Another instrument used in these concerts is a long cylindrical guitar
of three strings, shaped like an alligator and so named. It is placed
on the ground before the performer."
DRESS REGULATED BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT.
The foreign knights and visitors who came to Windsor in Edward
the First's reign, and brought with them a continual succession
of varying fashions, turned the heads of the young with delight,
and of the old with disgust. Douglas, the monk of Glastonbury, is
especially denunciative and satirical on this point. He says that in
the horrible variety of costume,--"now long, now large, now wide, now
straight,"--the style of dress was "destitute and devert from all
honesty of old arraye or good usage." It is all, he says, "so nagged
and knibbed on every side, and all so shattered and also buttoned, that
I with truth shall say, they seem more like to tormentors or devils in
their clothing, and also in their shoying and other array, than they
seemed to be like men." And the old monk had good foundation for his
complaint; and the Commons themselves having, what the Commons now have
not, a dread of becoming as extravagant as their betters in the article
of dress, actually sought the aid of Parliament. That august assembly
met the complaint by restricting the use of furs and furls to the royal
family and nobles worth one thousand _per annum_. Knights and ladies
worth four hundred marks yearly, were permitted to deck themselves in
cloths of gold and silver, and to wear certain jewellery. Poor knights,
squires, and damsels were prohibited from appearing in the costume of
those of higher degree. As for the Commons themselves, they could put
on nothing better than unadorned woollen cloth; and if an apprentice or
a milliner had been bold enough to wear a ring on the finger, it was in
peril of a decree that it should be taken off,--not the finger, but the
ring,--with confiscation of the forbidden finery.
The consequence was that the Commons, being under prohibition to put
on finery, became smitten with a strong desire to assume it; and much
did they rejoice when they were ruled over by so consummate a fop as
Richard of Bordeaux. All classes were content to do what many classes
joyfully do in our own days,--dress beyond their means; and we find in
old Harding's "Cronicle" that not only were
"Yemen and gromes in cloth of silk arrayed,
Sattin and damask, in doublettes and in gownnes."
but that all this, as well as habits of "cloth of greene and
scarleteen,--cut work and brodwar, was all," as the Chronicler
expresses it, "for unpayed;" that is, was _not paid for_. So that
very many among us do not so much despise the wisdom afforded us by
the example of our ancestors as didactic poets and commonplace honest
writers falsely allege them to do. And those ancestors of Richard
the Second's time were especially given to glorify themselves in
parti-coloured garments of white and red, such being the colours of the
King's livery (as blue and white were those of John of Gaunt); and they
who wore these garments, sometimes of half-a-dozen colours in each, why
they looked, says an old writer, "as though the fire of St. Anthony, or
some such mischance," had cankered and eaten into half their bodies.
The long-toed shoes, held up to the knee by a chain and hook, were
called _crackowes_, the fashion thereof coming from Cracrow in Poland.
The not less significant name of "devil's receptacles" were given to
the wide sleeves of this reign, for the reason, as the Monk of Evesham
tells us, that whatever was stolen was thrust into them.
A CAT-CLOCK.
The following curious incident is to be found in Huo's "Chinese
Empire:--
"One day when we went to pay a visit to some families of Chinese
Christian peasants, we met, near a farm, a young lad, who was taking
a buffalo to graze along our path. We asked him carelessly, as we
passed, whether it was yet noon. The child raised his head to look at
the sun, but it was hidden behind thick clouds, and he could read no
answer there. "The sky is so cloudy," said he; "but wait a moment;" and
with these words he ran towards the farm, and came back a few minutes
afterwards with a cat in his arms. "Look here," said he, "it is not
noon yet;" and he showed us the cat's eyes, by pushing up the lids with
his hands. We looked at the child with surprise, but he was evidently
in earnest; and the cat, though astonished, and not much pleased at the
experiment made on her eyes, behaved with most exemplary complaisance.
"Very well," said we; "thank you;" and he then let go the cat, who made
her escape pretty quickly, and we continued our route.
To say the truth, we had not at all understood the proceeding; but we
did not wish to question the little pagan, lest he should find out that
we were Europeans by our ignorance. As soon as ever we reached the
farm, however, we made haste to ask our Christians whether they could
tell the clock by looking into the cat's eyes. They seemed surprised
at the question; but as there was no danger in confessing to them our
ignorance of the properties of the cat's eyes, we related what had
just taken place. That was all that was necessary; our complaisant
neophytes immediately gave chase to all the cats in the neighbourhood.
They brought us three or four, and explained in what manner they might
be made use of for watches. They pointed out that the pupil of their
eyes went on constantly growing narrower until twelve o'clock, when
they became like a fine line, as thin as a hair, drawn perpendicularly
across the eye, and that after twelve the dilation recommenced.
When we had attentively examined the eyes of all the cats at our
disposal, we concluded that it was past noon, as all the eyes perfectly
agreed upon the point.
We have had some hesitation in speaking of this Chinese discovery, as
it may, doubtless, tend to injure the interest of the clock-making
trade, and interfere with the sale of watches; but all considerations
must give way to the spirit of progress. All important discoveries
tend in the first instance to injure private interests, and we hope,
nevertheless, that watches will continue to be made, because, among
the number of persons who may wish to know the hour, there will, most
likely, be some who will not give themselves the trouble to run after
the cat, or who may fear some danger to their own eyes from too close
an examination of hers."
EARLY ENGLISH HELMET.
[Illustration: [++] Twelfth Century English Helmet.]
The above is a correct representation of a helmet of the latter part
of the twelfth century, resembling those seen on the great seals of
Richard I. The _aventaille_, or moveable grating for covering the face,
has been lost, but the hinges, staples, and other means of fastening it
still remain. Its form may be seen on the great seals of Henry III. and
Edward I.
ILLUSTRIOUS FARMERS.
Adam was a farmer while yet in Paradise, and after his fall was
commanded to earn his bread by the sweat of his brow. Job, the honest,
upright, and patient, was a farmer, and his firm endurance has passed
into a proverb. Socrates was a farmer, and yet wedded to the glory of
his immortal philosophy. Cincinnatus was a farmer, and the noblest
Roman of them all. Burns was a farmer, and the Muse found him at his
plough, and filled his soul with poetry. Washington was a farmer, and
retired from the highest earthly station to enjoy the quiet of rural
life, and present to the world a spectacle of human greatness. To these
names may be added a host of others, who sought peace and repose in the
cultivation of their earth. The enthusiastic Lafayette, the steadfast
Pickering, the scholastic Jefferson, the fiery Randolph, all found an
El Dorado of consolation from life's cares and troubles, in the green
and verdant lawns that surrounded their homestead.
ANCIENT COUTEAU-DE-CHASSE.
[Illustration: [++] Couteau-de-Chasse.]
As the chase was regarded as the honourable and most instructive
occupation of an age in which warlike prowess was deemed the principal
object of emulation and applause, every respectable mansion had, in
former times, its hall decorated with hunting implements. One of these
we here present to our readers. It is a couteau-de-chasse of the time
of William III. The left-hand figure represents it in its sheath, which
is highly ornamented; the other figures represent the blade drawn, and
the three knives, fork, and bodkin, which the sheath also contains. The
form is precisely like those engraved in the "Triumph of Maximilian,"
which shows that no variation had taken place since the commencement of
the sixteenth century. Erasmus, in his "Praise of Folly," thus alludes
to this weapon, Kennet translating it "a slashing hanger." Speaking of
those engaged in the chase, he says, "When they have run down their
game, what strange pleasure they take in cutting it up! Cows and sheep
may be slaughtered by common butchers, but what is killed in hunting
must be broke up by none under a gentleman, who shall throw down his
hat, fall devoutly on his knees, and drawing a slashing hanger (for
a common knife is not good enough), after several ceremonies, shall
dissect all the parts as artistically as the best skilled anatomist;
while all that stand round shall look very intently and seem to be
mightly surprised with the novelty, though they have seen the same an
hundred times before; and he that can but dip his finger and taste of
the blood shall think his own bettered by it."
DIVISION OF TIME IN PERSIA.
Time is of no value in Persia, from which reason it must be that
so complicated a system has been maintained as that of counting by
solar time, lunar time, and the Toork cycle. The first is observed by
astronomers, and was in general use in Persia until it was superseded
by Mahommed's lunar year. It consists of twelve months of thirty days
each, with the required number of intercalary days. The second, which
is now in general use, consisting of three hundred and fifty-four days,
is therefore perpetually changing: an event commemorated in one year
will come round ten days earlier the succeeding year. The third is a
curious method of counting introduced by the Toorks into Persia, but
which we are told has been forgotten in Turkey. They divide time into
cycles of twelve years, each year having a separate name, but they
have no designation for the cycles. Thus, if they wanted to describe
an event which happened sixty-five years ago, they could only mention
the name of the fifth year. These years are solar, and are thus
designated:--
Sichkan eel Year of the Mouse.
Ood eel " Bull.
Bars eel " Leopard.
Tavishkan eel " Hare.
Looee eel " Crocodile.
Eelan eel " Snake.
Yoont eel " Horse.
Kooree eel " Ram.
Beechee eel " Monkey.
Tekhakoo eel " Cock.
Eet eel " Dog.
Tenkooz eel " Hog.
It seems strange their number should be twelve, as if there were a
zodiac of years, instead of months.
This method of marking time is preserved only in government documents,
such as firmans, grants, &c. No one seems able to account for its
origin, excepting that, according to tradition, the Toorks of old
brought it from Tartary.
DIFFERENT SORTS OF HORSES IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The different sorts of horses in use among the nobility and others,
may be collected from the following entry in the Northumberland
household-book, first printed in the year 1768. It is entitled
the regulations and establishment of Algernon Percy the Earl of
Northumberland, 1512.
"This is the ordre of the chequir roule of the nombre of all the horsys
of my lordis and my ladys, that are apoynted to be in the charge of the
hous verely, as to say gentill hors, palfreys, hobys, naggis, clothsek
hors.
"First, gentill hors, to stand in my lordis stable, six. Item, palfreys
of my ladys, to wit, oone for my lady, and two for her gentill-women,
and oone for her chamberer. Four hobys and naggis for my lordis oone
saddill, viz. oone for my lorde to ride, oone to led for my lorde,
and oone to stay at home for my lorde. Item, chariot hors to stand in
my lordis stable yerely: Seven great trottynge hors to draw in the
chariott, and a nagg for the chariott-man to ryde, eight. Again, hors
for my lorde Percy, his lordis sonne. A great doble trottynge hors to
travel on in winter. Item, double trottynge hors, called a curtal, for
his lordship to ryde on out of townes. Another trottynge gambaldyn
hors, for his lordship to ryde upon when he comes into townes. An
amblynge hors, for his lordship to journey on daily. A proper amblyng
little nag, for his lordship when he gaeth on hunting or hawkin. A gret
amblyng gelding to carry his male."
The _gentill_ horse was one of superior breed, so called in contrast to
such as were of ordinary extraction.
_Palfreys_, were an elegant and easy sort of horses, used upon common
occasions by knights, and others, who reserved their great and managed
horses for battle and the tournament.
_Hobys_, were strong, active horses, of rather a small size. They are
said to be originally natives of Ireland.
_Nags_ were of the same description.
_Clothseck_, was a cloak-bag horse; as a _male horse_ was one that
carried the portmanteau. Horses to draw the _chariots_, were waggon
horses; from the French word _charrette_, whence, the English word
_cart_.
_A great double trottynge_ horse, was a tall, broad horse, whose best
pace was the trot, being too unwieldly to be able to gallop.
_A curtail_, was a horse whose tail was cut, or shortened.
_A gambaldynge_ horse, was one of shew and parade; a managed horse.
_An amblynge_ horse, received this appellation, from the ease and
smoothness of its pace. In former times almost all saddle horses were
broke to perform it.
THE NAORA.
The Oasis of Tagius or Wodian, in the Desert of Sahara, in Africa,
comprehends these villages--D'kash, Krees, Wozorkan, Owlad, Majed,
Sedadah, Zowiat Elarab, and Sidy Bohlan.
These villages are situated at short distances from each other,
numbering together a population of between 25,000 and 30,000, whose
chief employment consists in cultivating the palm, or date tree. At
Kreez they have an excellent spring, but which does not suffice to
water all their plantations, and hence they are forced to have recourse
to the _naora_, so common on the coast. The naora is the name given
to the rude, though ingenious contrivance, by means of which, through
the agency of either a camel, a mule, or a horse, water is raised
from a deep well in earthen jars, which, as soon as they have emptied
their contents into a wooden trough, descend for fresh supplies. The
water from the trough is then conducted by the planters into channels
and trenches, as occasion requires. These are again easily diverted,
and as soon as it is considered that the trees in one particular
direction have had a sufficient supply, fresh trenches are opened in
another direction, and in this manner the whole plantation receives the
requisite moisture and nourishment. We here engrave the naora.
The pain and labour which the inhabitants of such an oasis take with
their vast date plantations are immense, but their toil is amply repaid
by the "lord of the vegetable world." Independent of its picturesque
appearance, grateful shade, luscious fruit, and agreeable beverage, it
supplies them with fuel, and wood for the construction of their houses.
From its leaves they manufacture baskets, ropes, mats, bags, couches,
brushes, brooms, fans, &c. From the branches they make fences, stools,
and cages. The kernels, after being soaked in water for two or three
days, are eagerly eaten by camels.
Every palm-tree shoots forth a number of suckers, which are removed at
the proper season and transplanted. With care, these will produce fruit
in about ten years, whereas those raised from kernels will only yield
dates when they reach to the age of twenty. The tree reaches its vigour
at thirty, and continues so till a hundred years old, when it begins
to decline, and decays about the end of its second century. During its
vigorous years, a good tree will produce between twenty and thirty
clusters, each weighing about thirty pounds.
[Illustration: [++] Naora.]
Mr. Morier relates an anecdote, which greatly illustrates how highly
the date-tree is appreciated by those who are from their infancy taught
to value it. An Arab woman who had been in England, and who returned in
the suite of the English ambassador to Persia, on her reaching home,
told her countrywomen of the riches and beauty of the country she had
visited, and described the roads, the carriages, the scenery, the
splendour of the cities, and the fertility of the well-cultivated soil.
Her audience were full of admiration, and had almost retired in envy,
when she happened to mention that there was but one thing wanting to
make the whole almost a Paradise. "And what is that?" said they. "Why,
it has not a single date-tree. All the time that I was there, I never
ceased to look for one, but I looked in vain." The charm was instantly
broken; the Arabs turned away in pity for men, who, whatever might be
their comforts, or their magnificence, were doomed to live in a country
where there are no date-trees.
PRIMITIVE PAIR OF BELLOWS.
[Illustration: [++] Bellows.]
Atmospheric denudation and weathering have produced remarkable effects
on the lower part of the Nonkreem valley, in the Khasia mountains,
in India, which is blocked up by a pine-crested hill, 200 feet high,
entirely formed of round blocks of granite, heaped up so as to resemble
an old moraine; but, like the Nunklow boulders, these are not arranged
as if by glacial action. The granite is very soft, decomposing into a
course reddish sand, that colours the Boga-panee. To procure the iron
sand, which is disseminated through it, the natives conduct water over
the beds, and as the lighter particles are washed away, the remainder
is removed to troughs, where the separation of the ore is completed.
The smelting is very rudely carried on in charcoal fires, blown by
enormous double-action bellows, worked by two persons, who stand on the
machine, raising the flaps with their hands, and expanding them with
their feet, as shown in our cut. There is neither furnace nor flux used
in the reduction. The fire is kindled on one side of an upright stone
(like the head-stone of a grave), with a small arched hole close to the
ground: near this hole the bellows are suspended: and a bamboo tube
from each of its compartments meets in a larger one, by which the draft
is directed under the hole in the stone to the fire. The ore is run
into lumps as large as two fists, with a rugged surface: these lumps
are afterwards cleft nearly in two to show their purity.
PRESERVATION OF DEAD BODIES.
About a mile distant from Palermo in Sicily, is a celebrated Monastery
of Capuchins, in which there is a vault made use of as a receptacle for
the dead. It consists of four wide passages, each forty feet in length,
into which the light is admitted by windows, placed at the ends. Along
the sides of these subterraneous galleries are niches, in which the
bodies are placed upright, and clothed in a coarse dress, with their
heads, arms, and feet bare. They are prepared for this situation by
broiling them six or seven months upon a gridiron, over a slow fire,
till all the fat and moisture are consumed. The skin which looks
like pale-coloured leather, remains entire, and the character of the
countenance is, in some degree preserved.
THE CAGOTS.
In the Department of the Hautes Pyrénées in France is sometimes to be
met with a creature about four feet high, with an enormous head, stiff,
long hair, a pale countenance, a dead-looking eye, legs that have the
appearance of being in the last stage of a dropsy, and an enormous
_goitre_ on the neck, which sometimes hangs down below the stomach.
This unhappy being begs for charity by extending his hand, smiling
vaguely, and by uttering inarticulate sounds or suppressed cries,
which his desolate and degraded situation alone interprets. These
_Cagots_, for so they are here called, live isolated from the rest of
the world; twenty years ago, if any one of these unfortunate beings
left his hut, and ventured into the towns or villages, the children
would exclaim--_Cagot! Cagot!_ and this cry would bring the smith from
his forge, the shopkeeper from his counter, the private individual
from his fireside; and, if the poor being did not hasten his flight,
and slow was his progress, he not unfrequently lost his life by the
stones that were flung after him. There was, however, one day in the
week--Sunday, the Lord's day--and one asylum--the church, the Lord's
house--that was free to them; yet man there made a distinction between
him and his fellow man. A narrow door, through which no one passed
but the _Cagots_, a chapel, which no one entered but these unhappy
_Cagots_, was reserved for their sole use, where they offered up their
imperfect prayers, without seeing or being seen by any one. Even in
these days, they are still considered an outcast race; and an alliance
of a peasant girl of the plains with a _Cagot_, would excite as much
commotion among the inhabitants of the valleys of the Pyrénées, as
the famed one between Idamore and Néala, in M. Delavigne's celebrated
tragedy of the Paria. Yet it is strange that these deformities do not
show themselves until a child has passed the age of six or seven: he
is before this period like other healthy children; his complexion is
fresh, his eye lively, and his limbs in proportion; but at twelve, his
head has increased prodigiously, his complexion has become sallow,
his teeth have lost their whiteness, his eye its fire. Three years
later his skin is shrivelled, his teeth open with difficulty, and he
pronounces all the consonants with a whistling indistinctness, that
renders his language unintelligible to strangers. His mind partakes of
the deformity and weakness of his body, for he is, at fifteen, little
better than an idiot. Such are the _Cagots_ of the _Pyrénées_.
DISCONTINUANCE OF TORTURE.
Torture had been applied, down to the close of Elizabeth, to the
investigation of all kinds of crime; but after that time it was chiefly
confined to state offences. Its favourite instrument was the dreadful
rack, or break, traditionally said to have been introduced under
Henry VI. by John, Duke of Exeter, constable of the Tower, whence it
was called the Duke of Exeter's daughter. A _milder_ punishment was
inflicted by Skevington's gyves, which compressed the victim closely
together, whilst the rack distended his whole frame in the most painful
manner. In 1588 the manacles were introduced, and soon became the
most usual mode of torture, but their precise character is not well
understood. A variety of instruments of torture are still shown in
the Tower, taken, it is said, out of the Spanish Armada, but at all
events admirably suited to the gloomy dungeon wherein they appear, and
in which half-starvation, and the horrid cells called Little Ease and
Rat's Dungeon (the latter placed below high water mark, and totally
dark, so that the rats crowded in as the tide rose,) added to the
sufferings of the poor victim when released for a brief space from
the fell grasp of the prison-ministers. Torture was not abolished
in Scotland till 1708; in France till 1789; in Russia till 1801; in
Bavaria and Wurtemberg till 1806; in Hanover till 1822; nor in the
Grand Duchy of Baden till 1831.
THE MODERN NAMES OF REGIMENTS.
The modern names of regiments were first given to them in the reign
of Charles II., the Coldstreams or Foot Guards being formed in 1660,
when two regiments were added to one raised about ten years before by
General Monk at Coldstream on the borders of Scotland; to these were
added the 1st Royal Scots, brought over from France at the Restoration.
The Life Guards were raised in 1661, with the Oxford Blues (so called
from the first commander, Aubrey, Earl of Oxford); and also the 2nd
or Queen's Foot. The 3rd or Old Buffs were raised in 1665, and the
21st Foot or Scotch Fusileers (from their carrying the fusil, which
was lighter than the musket), in 1678. In that year the Grenadiers (so
named from their original weapon, the hand grenade) were first brought
into our service, and in 1680 the 4th or King's Own were raised. James
II. added to the cavalry the 1st or King's Regiment of Dragoon's
Guards, and the 2nd or Queen's ditto in 1685; and to the infantry, in
the same year, the 5th and 7th, or Royal Fusileers; and in 1688 the
23rd or Welsh Fusileers.
WATCH PRESENTED BY LOUIS THE THIRTEENTH OF FRANCE TO CHARLES THE FIRST
OF ENGLAND.
[Illustration: [++] Watch Made for Charles I.]
The annexed engraving represents the watch which was made for Louis
XIII. to present to King Charles I. It is of silver, richly gilt, the
ornaments covered with transparent enamel in white, red, green, blue,
and yellow. The numbers are on a band of deep blue; the wheel-like
ornament in the centre on a ruby ground. The back is chased in high
relief with a figure of St. George conquering the Dragon; the horse is
covered with white enamel; the flesh tints on St. George are also of
enamel; his tunic is red, and his scarf blue. On the side of the watch
is the motto of the Order of the Garter; the _fleurs-de-lys_ above and
below it on a ruby ground. The interior of the case is enriched by a
delicately executed arabesque filled with black enamel upon a dotted
ground. The entire works take out of the case, being secured thereto by
springs, and are all more or less decorated with engraving, the whole
interior being chased and gilt. The maker's name is S. Vallin.
A WEDDING A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
On the 7th June, 1750, was married at Rothbury, Mr. William Donkin, a
considerable farmer, of Tosson, in the county of Northumberland, to
Miss Eleanor Shotten, an agreeable young gentlewoman, of the same
place. The entertainments on this occasion were very grand, there
being provided no less than one hundred and twenty quarters of lamb,
forty quarters of veal, twenty quarters of mutton, a large quantity
of beef, twelve hams, with a suitable number of chickens, which was
concluded with eight half ankers of brandy made into punch, twelve
dozen of cider, and a great many gallons of wine. The company consisted
of five hundred ladies and gentlemen, who were diverted with the music
of twenty-five fiddlers and pipers; and the evening was spent with the
utmost unanimity.
GRACE KNIVES.
There is a curious class of knives, of the sixteenth century, the
blade, of which have on one side the musical notes to the benediction
of the table, or grace before meat, and on the other the grace after
meat. We here engrave a specimen.
[Illustration: [++] Grace Knife.]
The set of these knives usually consisted of four. They were kept in
an upright case of stamped leather, and were placed before the singer
according to the adaptation of each part to the voice indicated upon
them.
GARDEN AT KENILWORTH WHEN IN ITS PRIME.
Gossiping Laneham is very eloquent about the Kenilworth Garden, at
which he took a timid and surreptitious peep. It was an acre or more in
extent, and lay to the north of the stately castle: a pleasant terrace,
ten feet high, and twelve feet broad, even under foot and fresh with
trim grass, ran beside it along the castle wall. It was set with a
goodly show of obelisks and spheres, and white bears of stone, raised
upon goodly bases. At each end was a fine arbour, redolent with sweet
trees and flowers. The garden-plot near had fair alleys of turf, and
others paved with smooth sand, pleasant to walk on as the sea-shore
when the wave has just retired. The enclosure was divided into four
even quarters: in the midst of each, upon a base of two feet square,
rose a porphyry square pilaster, with a pyramidical pinnacle fifteen
feet high, pierced and hollowed, and crowned with an orb. All around
was covered with redolent herbs and flowers, varied in form, colour,
and quantity, and mixed with fruit trees.
In the midst, opposite the terrace, stood a square aviary, joined to
the north wall, in height twenty feet, thirteen long, and fourteen
broad; it had four great windows, two in front and two at each end,
and each five feet wide. These windows were arched, and separated by
flat pilasters, which supported a cornice. The roof was of wire net,
of meshes an inch wide; and the cornice was gilded and painted with
representations of precious stones. This great aviary had also eaves
in the wall, for shelter from sun and heat, and for the purpose of
building. Fair holly trees stood at each end, on which the birds might
perch and pounce. They had a keeper to attend to their seeds and water,
and to clean out their enclosure. The birds were English, French, and
Spanish. Some were from America; and Laneham is "deceived" if some were
not from the Canary Islands.
In the centre of this miniature Paradise stood a fountain with an
octagonal basin rising four feet high; in the midst stood the figures
of two Athletes, back to back, their hands upholding a fair marble
bowl, from whence sundry pipes distilled continual streams into the
reservoir. Carp, tench, bream, perch, and eel disported in the fresh
falling water; and on the top of all the ragged staff was displayed;
on one side Neptune guided his sea-horses with his trident, on another
stood Thetis with her dolphins. Here Triton and his fishes, there
Proteus and his herds, Doris and her daughter, and half the Nereids,
disported in sea and sand, surrounded by whales, sturgeons, tunnies,
and conch shells, all engraven with exquisite device and skill. By the
sudden turn of a tap, the spectator could be drenched at the pleasure
of any wit.
EGYPTIAN ANTIQUITIES.
It appears from a paper recently read in the Academy of Archæology, at
Rome, that Father Secchi has found a new interpretation of the Egyptian
hieroglyphics, which enables him to declare, that most of them are not
mere tombstone inscriptions, as is generally assumed, but poems. He
has given several of his readings, which display great ingenuity, and
professes to be able to decipher the inscriptions on the Obelisk of
Luxor, at Paris.
THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY.
The cathedral at Bayeux is a gothic building, dedicated to the Virgin.
The portal and three belfries, which belong to it, are objects of
curiosity. It is in this cathedral that the celebrated tapestry,
denominated _of Bayeux_, is kept. Its length is one hundred and
thirty-two feet; its breadth, seven and a half. "I had," says Dr.
Ducarel, "the satisfaction of seeing that famous piece of furniture,
which, with great exactness, though in _barbarous needlework_,
represents the history of Harold, King of England; and of William,
Duke of Normandy; from the embassy of the former to Duke William, at
the command of Edward the Confessor, to his overthrow and death, at
the battle fought near Hastings. The ground of this piece of work is a
white linen cloth, or canvas. The figures of men, horses, &c. are in
their proper colours, worked in the manner of the samplers, in worsted,
and of a style not unlike what we see upon the China and Japan ware;
those of the men, particularly, being without the least symmetry or
proportion. There is a small border, which runs at the top and the
bottom of the tapestry; with several figures of men, beasts, flowers,
and even fables, which have nothing to do with the history, but are
mere ornaments. At the end of every particular scene there is a tree,
by way of distinction; and over several of the principal figures there
are inscriptions, but many of them obliterated. It is annually hung
up on St. John's day, and goes round the nave of the church, where
it continues eight days; and at all other times it is carefully kept
locked up in a strong wainscot press, in a chapel on the south side of
the cathedral, dedicated to Thomas à Becket. By tradition it is called,
_Duke William's toilet_, and is said to be the work of Matilda, his
queen, and the ladies of her court, after he had obtained the crown of
England." Mr. Strutt, in his "Complete View of the Dresses and Habits
of the People of England," affirms, that it is the work of half a
century later than the time of the Conqueror.
ROMAN STAMP.
This curiosity is preserved in the British Museum. It is the very
earliest specimen we possess of printing, by means of ink or any
similar substance. It is made of metal, a sort of Roman brass; the
ground of which is covered with a green kind of verdigris rust, with
which antique medals are usually covered. The letters rise flush up to
the elevation of the exterior rim which surrounds it. Its dimensions
are, about two inches long, by one inch broad. At the back of it is a
small ring for the finger, to promote the convenience of holding it. As
no person of the name which is inscribed upon it is mentioned in Roman
History, he is therefore supposed to have been a functionary of some
Roman officer, or private steward, and who, perhaps, used this stamp to
save himself the trouble of writing his name. A stamp somewhat similar,
in the Greek character, is in the possession of the Antiquarian
Society, of Newcastle-on-Tyne.
TYRIAN PURPLE.
The shell-fish portrayed on next page is that from which the Tyrian
purple dye is obtained. The ancients were very devoid of chemical
knowledge; their list of adjective dye-stuffs was therefore restricted,
and all the most celebrated dyes of antiquity belonged to the
substantive division, of which Tyrian purple was undoubtedly the chief.
The purple dye of Tyre, which admits with great propriety of being
included amongst the dyes of Greece and Rome, was discovered about
fifteen centuries before the Christian era, and the art of using it
did not become lost until the eleventh century after Christ. It was
obtained from two genera of one species of shell-fish, the smaller of
which was denominated _buccinum_, the larger _purpura_, and to both the
common name murex was applied. The dye-stuff was procured by puncturing
a vessel in the throat of the larger genus, and by pounding the smaller
entire. Having been thus extracted, salt was added, also a certain
amount of water. The whole was then kept hot about eight or ten days in
a vessel of lead or tin, the impurities as they rose being assiduously
skimmed off. The dye-stuff was now ready to receive the texture to
be dyed (wool, universally), and the operation of dyeing was simple
enough; nothing further being required than the immersion of the whole
for a sufficient time, when, at the expiration of a certain period, the
whole of the colouring matter was found to have been removed, and to
have combined with the textile fabric.
The tints capable of being imparted by this material were
various--representing numerous shades between purple and crimson.
Amongst these a very dark violet shade was much esteemed, but the
right imperial tint, we are informed, was that resembling coagulated
blood. The discovery of Tyrian purple dye is referred to the fifteenth
century before Christ. That it was known to the Egyptians, in the
time of Moses, is sufficiently obvious from the testimony of more
than one scriptural passage. Ultimately, in later ages, a restrictive
policy of the eastern emperors caused the art to be practised by only
a few individuals, and at last, about the commencement of the twelfth
century, when Byzantium was already suffering from attacks without,
and dissensions within, the secret of imparting the purple dye of Tyre
became lost.
[Illustration: [++] Shell-Fish From Which Tyrian Purple Is Extracted.]
The re-discovery of Tyrian purple as it occurred in England was made
by Mr. Cole of Bristol. About the latter end of the year 1683, this
gentleman heard from two ladies residing at Minehead, that a person
living somewhere on the coast of Ireland, supported himself by marking
with a delicate crimson colour the fine linen of ladies and gentlemen
sent him for that purpose, which colour was the product of some liquid
substance taken out of a shell-fish. This recital at once brought
to the recollection of Mr. Cole the tradition of Tyrian purple. He,
without delay, went in quest of the shell-fish, and after trying
various kinds without success, his efforts were at length successful.
He found considerable quantities of the buccinum on the sea-coast
of Somersetshire, and the opposite coast of South Wales. The fish
being found, the next difficulty was to extract the dye, which in its
natural state is not purple, but white, the purple tint being the
result of exposure to the air. At length our acute investigator found
the dye stuff in a white vein lying transversely in a little furrow or
cleft next to the head of the fish.
THE INCARNATIONS OF VISHNU.
There is a part of the mythology of India which seems to be blended
with the history of that country. It relates to the different _avatars_
of Vishnu, or his incarnations and appearances on earth.
[Illustration: [++] Incarnation of Vishnu.]
The first of these _avatars_ has reference to that general deluge of
which all nations have preserved some traditions. Vishnu, we are told,
metamorphosed himself into a fish.
The second incarnation is that of _Kourma_, or the tortoise. The gods
and the giants, wishing to obtain immortality by eating _amourdon_,
delicious butter, formed in one of the seven seas of the universe,
which the Indians call sea of milk, transported, by Vishnu's advice,
the mountain of Mandreguivi into that sea: they twisted round it the
serpent Adissechen, and alternately pulling, some by his hundred heads,
others by the tail, they made the mountain turn round in such a manner,
as to agitate the sea and to convert it into butter; but they pulled
with such rapidity, that Adissechen, overcome with weakness, could no
longer endure it. His body shuddered; his hundred trembling mouths made
the universe resound with hisses; a torrent of flames burst from his
eyes; his hundred black pendent tongues palpitated, and vomited forth a
deadly poison, which immediately spread all around. The gods and giants
betook themselves to flight. Vishnu, bolder than the rest, took the
poison, and with it rubbed his body, which became quite blue. It is in
memory of this event, that this colour is given to his image in almost
all the temples.
The gods and the giants, encouraged by Vishnu's example, fell to
work again. After they had laboured a thousand years, the mountain
was on the point of sinking in the sea, when Vishnu, in the form of
a tortoise, quickly placed himself beneath, and supported it. At
length they saw the cow Camadenu, the horse with seven heads, and the
elephant with three trunks, coming out of the sea of milk; also the
tree _calpaga vrutcham_; Lacshmi, goddess of riches, wife of Vishu;
Saraswadi, goddess of the sciences and of harmony, married to Brama;
Mondevi, goddess of discord and misery, whom nobody would have, and who
is represented riding on an ass, and holding in her hand a banner, on
which a raven is delineated; and, lastly, Danouvandri, the physician,
carrying a vessel full of _amourdon_, which the gods instantly
seized, and greedily devoured, without leaving a morsel. The giants,
disappointed in their expectations, dispersed over the earth, prevented
mankind from paying worship to the gods, and strove to obtain adoration
for themselves. Their insolence occasioned the subsequent incarnations
of Vishnu, who endeavoured to destroy this race, so inimical to the
gods. He is adored in this second metamorphosis, by the name of
_Kourma Avatara_. The followers of Vishnu believe that this god,
though omnipresent, resides more particularly in the _vaicondom_, his
paradise, amidst the sea of milk, reclined, in contemplative slumber,
on the serpent Adissechen, which serves him for a throne: in this state
he is called _Siranguan_. In all the temples of Vishnu is to be seen
the figure of this god; but as the serpent on which he lies cannot be
represented with his hundred heads, he is delineated with only five.
There are altogether ten incarnations of Vishnu; nine of these have
already been fulfilled, and one is yet to be manifested, it is
expected about ninety thousand years hence. The account of many of the
transformations is exceedingly extraordinary, but we have room for no
more than the one we have given.
ORIGIN OF LONG-TOED SHOES.
Long-toed shoes were invented by Fulk, Count of Anjou, to hide an
excrescence on one of his feet. These toes were so long as to be
fastened to the knees with gold chains, and carved at the extreme point
with the representation of a church window, a bird, or some fantastic
device.
THE HOUSE OF HEN'S FEATHERS.
There exists at Pekin a phalanstery which surpasses in eccentricity
all that the fertile imagination of Fourier could have conceived. It
is called Ki-mao-fan--that is, "House of the Hen's Feathers." By dint
of carrying out the laws of progress, the Chinese have found means
to furnish to the poorest of the community a warm feather-bed, for
the small consideration of one-fifth of a farthing per night. This
marvellous establishment is simply composed of one great hall, and the
floor of this great hall is covered over its whole extent by one vast
thick layer of feathers. Mendicants and vagabonds who have no other
domicile come to pass the night in this immense dormitory. Men, women,
and children, old and young, all without exception, are admitted.
Communism prevails in the full force and rigour of the expression.
Every one settles himself and makes his nest as well as he can for
the night in this ocean of feathers; when day dawns he must quit the
premises, and an officer of the company stands at the door to receive
the rent of one sapeck each for the night's lodging. In deference no
doubt to the principle of equality, half-places are not allowed, and a
child must pay the same as a grown person.
On the first establishment of this eminently philanthropic and moral
institution, the managers of it used to furnish each of the guests
with a covering, but it was found necessary to modify this regulation,
for the communist company got into the habit of carrying off their
coverlets to sell them, or to supply an additional garment during the
rigorous cold of winter. The shareholders saw that this would never do,
and they should be ruined, yet to give no covering at all would have
been too cruel, and scarcely decent. It was necessary therefore to find
some method of reconciling the interests of the establishment with the
comfort of the guests, and the way in which the problem was solved was
this. An immense felt coverlet, of such gigantic dimensions as to cover
the whole dormitory, was made, and in the day time suspended from the
ceiling like a great canopy. When everybody had gone to bed, that is to
say, had lain down upon the feathers, the counterpane was let down by
pulleys; the precaution having been previously taken to make a number
of holes in it for the sleepers to put their heads through, in order
to escape the danger of suffocation. As soon as it is daylight, the
phalansterian coverlet is hoisted up again, after a signal has been
made on the tam-tam to awaken those who are asleep, and invite them to
draw their heads back into the feathers, in order not to be caught by
the neck and hoisted into the air with the coverlet. This immense swarm
of beggars is then seen crawling about in the sea of dirty feathers,
and inserting themselves again into their miserable rags, preparatory
to gathering into groups, and dispersing about the various quarters of
the town to seek by lawful or unlawful means their scanty subsistence.
THE USEFUL AND THE BEAUTIFUL.
The tomb of Moses is unknown; but the traveller slakes his thirst at
the well of Jacob. The gorgeous palace of the wisest and wealthiest
of monarchs, with cedar, and the gold, and ivory, and even the great
Temple of Jerusalem, hallowed by the visible glory of the Deity
himself, are gone; but Solomon's reservoirs are as perfect as ever. Of
the ancient architecture of the Holy City, not one stone is left upon
another, but the Pool of Bethsaida commands the pilgrim's reverence, at
the present day. The columns of Persepolis are mouldering into dust;
but its cistern and aqueducts remain to challenge our admiration. The
golden house of Nero is a mass of ruins, but the Aqua Claudia still
pours into Rome its limpid stream. The Temple of the Sun, at Tadmore,
in the wilderness, has fallen, but its fountain sparkles in its rays,
as when thousands of worshippers thronged its lofty colonnades. It
may be that London will share the fate of Babylon, and nothing be
left, to mark it, save mounds of crumbling brickwork. The Thames will
continue to flow as it does now. And if any work of art should rise
over the deep ocean, time, we may well believe, that it will be
neither a palace nor a temple, but some vast aqueduct or reservoir;
and if any name should flash through the mist or antiquity, it would
probably be that of the man, who in his day, sought the happiness of
his fellow men, rather than glory, and linked his memory to some great
work of national utility or benevolence. This is the true glory which
outlives all others, and shines with undying lustre from generation
to generation, imparting to works some of its own immortality, and in
some degree rescuing them from the ruin which overtakes the ordinary
monument of historical tradition or mere magnificence.
CROMWELL'S BRIDGE AT GLENGARIFF.
[Illustration: [++] Cromwell's Bridge at Glengariff.]
The village of Glengariff, near Bantry Bay, consists of but a few
houses. The only "antiquity" in the immediate neighbourhood is the
old bridge, now a picturesque ruin, which, in ancient times, was on
the high road to Berehaven; it is called "Cromwell's Bridge." It is
accurately represented in the above engraving. History being silent as
to the origin of the name, we must have recourse to tradition. When
Oliver was passing through the glen, to "visit" the O'Sullivans, he had
so much trouble in getting across the narrow but rushing river, that he
told the inhabitants, if they did not build him a bridge by the time he
returned, he would hang up a man for every hour's delay he met with.
"So the bridge was ready agin he come back," quoth our informant; "for
they knew the ould villian to be a man of his word."
THE TURBAN IN ARABIA.
A fashionable Arab will wear fifteen caps one above another, some of
which are linen, but the greater part of thick cloth or cotton. That
which covers the whole is richly embroidered with gold, and inwrought
with texts or passages from the Koran. Over all there is wrapped a sash
or large piece of muslin, with the ends hanging down, and ornamented
with silk or gold fringes. This useless encumbrance is considered a
mark of respect towards superiors. It is also used, as the beard was
formerly in Europe, to indicate literary merit; and those who affect
to be thought men of learning, discover their pretensions by the size
of their turbans. No part of Oriental costume is so variable as this
covering for the head. Niebuhr has given illustrations of forty-eight
different ways of wearing it.
STONEWARE.
Stoneware was made at a very early period in China, and is much used as
a basis on which a paste of porcelain is laid, to save the expenditure
of the latter material, as well as to give strength and solidity to the
piece. Most of the larger pieces of Oriental production are found to be
thus formed. The red Japan ware is a very fine unglazed stoneware, and
has raised ornaments, which are sometimes gilt. A curious coffee-pot
of this ware, imitating a bundle of bamboo canes, and not unlike the
Chinese musical instrument called a mouth-organ, from the collection of
the late Mr. Beckford, is here represented.
[Illustration: [++] Stoneware Coffee-Pot.]
Stoneware is supposed to have been made at a very early period in
England by Dutch and German workmen; and from this circumstance it
is almost impossible to distinguish the earlier fabrics of these
respective countries. The discovery, in 1690, of an economical process
of glazing this ware by means of common salt, which made it impermeable
to liquids, soon brought it into general use, and displaced all the
manufactures of the Delft and soft paste fabrics. A mottled-brown
stoneware, known to collectors, is stated to be the manufacture of the
age of Edward VI., in consequence of some of the specimens having a
silver mounting of the make and fashion of the period of Elizabeth's
reign. There is also a large flagon in the Museum of Economic Geology,
ornamented with the royal arms of Elizabeth in relief, with the date
1594. These specimens cannot, however, be deemed conclusive of so early
a manufacture in England. The first-mentioned specimens, though the
mounting is English, may have been of German manufacture, as pieces
of similar description of ware are to be seen in various collections
of German pottery abroad. The latter specimen may either have been
made at Cologne for the use of the Queen's household, or if of English
manufacture, it must, in the opinion of a very eminent manufacturer,
have been made at a much later period than the date upon it. In a
letter received, he states "that it is a common practice even now among
potters to use moulds of all dates and styles, which have been got up
originally for very different kinds of ornamental work, and that he
is strongly inclined to think that the mould from which the devices
on this vessel have been pressed, was modelled many years before the
vessel was made, and that the vessel itself is comparatively modern."
Stoneware, ornamented with devices in white clay, was made in the
seventeenth century at Fulham, also at Lambeth, and subsequently at
Staffordshire; but there is no satisfactory evidence of any earlier
manufactory in England.
Towards the end of the seventeenth century, some specimens of red Japan
ware were imported into Europe. Both Dutch and English manufacturers
attempted to imitate them, but failed for want of the proper clay.
About this period, two brothers of the name of Elers, from Nuremberg,
discovered at Bradwell, only two miles distant from Burslem, a bed
of fine compact red clay, which they worked in a small manufactory,
established in a retired situation upon the bed itself. They took
every precaution to prevent any one seeing their process or learning
their secret. They went so far as to employ none but the most ignorant
and almost idiot workmen they could find. Astbury, the elder, had
the talent to counterfeit the idiot, and, moreover, the courage to
persevere in this character for some years during which he continued
in their employ. From memory he made notes of the processes, and
drawings of the machinery used. In consequence of the secret being
thus discovered, numerous establishments arose in competition with
that of the Elers, and, owing to the general prejudice against them
as foreigners, they were finally compelled, in 1720, to quit their
establishment. They retired to the neighbourhood of London, and, it is
supposed, contributed by their skill and industry to the establishment
of the Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory.
GREAT BELL OF ROUEN.
The grand entrance to the cathedral of Rouen is flanked by two towers,
the one was erected by St. Romain; the expense for constructing the
other, which bears the whimsical name of _Tour-de-beurre_, was raised
by the product arising from permissions granted to the more wealthy
and epicurean part of the inhabitants of the city, to eat butter in
Lent. It was in this tower that the celebrated bell, the largest in
the world, was erected; it weighed 40,000 lbs.; it was converted into
cannon in the year 1793. The founder of this bell died of joy on seeing
its completion. It went by his name, that of George D'Amboise, and
round it was the following distich in gothic characters:--
"Je suis nomme George d'Amboise,
Qui bien trente-six-mille poise,
Et celui qui bien me pesera,
Quarante mille trouvera."
VARIATIONS IN THE COINAGE.
Henry VIII. greatly debased both his gold and silver coins, which he
alloyed with copper to a great extent. The proportions of the pound,
indeed, in 1546, amounted to 8 oz. of alloy to 4 oz. of silver, which
constituted, a positively base coin, the old allowance having been
but 18 pennyweights of alloy to 11 oz. and 2 pennyweights of silver.
His depreciations were equally daring, for out of the pound of silver
he now coined 576 pennies or 48s. The gold coins of this monarch were
sovereigns, half-sovereigns or rials, half and quarter rials, angels,
half and quarter angels, George nobles, and forty-penny pieces. In
this reign the immemorial privileges of the sees of Canterbury, York,
and Durham, for coining small money, was abandoned, the last Bishop
that used it being Wolsey's successor, Edward Lee.
Edward VI. carried both depreciation and debasement still farther; but
towards the close of his reign he was obliged to restore the currency
to something like the ancient standard. He was the first that issued
crowns, half-crowns, and sixpences. Little alterations were made by
Mary, beyond striking coins with her husband's head as well as her own;
but under Elizabeth the coinage was, at length, completely recovered
from its debasement, the old proportion of 18 pennyweights of alloy
being restored, which has continued to the present day. The number of
shillings struck out of a pound of silver was not lessened, however,
for it continued to be sixty, as in the preceding reign, till 1601,
when it was increased to sixty-two, at which rate it went on to 1816,
when it was raised to sixty-six, at which it now remains. Her gold
coins are much the same as before, but are distinguished by having
the edges milled for the first time. Shortly before her death she had
intended to coin farthings and other small pieces of copper, a metal
which had not yet been made use of in this country.
CHAFFINCH CONTEST.
At the town of Armentières, in France, there is a _fête du pays_,
called _hermesse_, or _ducasse d'Armentières_, in which the chaffinch
and its fellows are the chief actors and objects of attraction. Numbers
of these birds are trained with the greatest care, and no small share
of cruelty, for they are frequently blinded by their owners, that
their song may not be interrupted by any external object. The point
upon which the amusement, the honour, and the emolument rests, is, the
number of times which a bird will repeat his song in a given time. A
day being fixed, the amateurs repair to the appointed place, each with
his bird in a cage. The prize is then displayed, and the birds are
placed in a row. A bird-fancier notes how many times each bird sings,
and another verifies his notes. In the year 1812, a chaffinch repeated
his song seven hundred times in one hour. Emulated by the songs of each
other, they strain their little "plumed throats," as if conscious that
honour was to result from their exertions.
EXPENSIVENESS OF DRESS IN THE TIME OF JAMES I.
Dress, indeed, must have swallowed up almost every thing at a time when
James and his courtiers set the fashion of appearing in a new garb
almost every day. When the Duke of Buckingham was sent to France to
bring over Henrietta Maria, he provided, amongst others, one suit of
white uncut velvet, and a cloak set all over with diamonds, valued at
£80,000; besides a feather made of great diamonds, and sword, girdle,
hat-band, and spurs, thick set with the same. Another suit of purple
satin, embroidered all over with pearls, was valued at £20,000. At the
marriage of the Princess Elizabeth with the Palatine, Lady Wotton wore
a gown profusely ornamented with embroidery that cost £50 a yard; and
Lord Montague spent £1,500 on the dresses of his two daughters for that
occasion. By this account it would seem that the ladies were, at all
events, not more expensive in their attire than gentlemen.
INGENUITY OF THE TUNISIANS.
A stranger visiting a city like Tunis, cannot but be struck with the
various peculiarities, which present themselves to his view, wherever
he turns. In their government, mercantile pursuits, professions and
trades, the Tunisians are centuries behind. But, with all their
disadvantages, the traveller, in traversing their crowded _sooks_
(market places) and serpentine streets, finds numerous illustrations of
the proverb, "Necessity is the mother of invention." In every workshop
some tool, or implement, presents itself, which is as curious in its
formation as it is strange to see the peculiar use for which it is
intended, and the manner in which it is employed. We may illustrate
this by a sketch of a turner.
[Illustration: [++] Ingenuity of a Turner.]
The extraordinary ingenuity here exhibited by the remarkable use which
the artisan makes of his feet and toes, as well as of his hands, cannot
fail to attract attention; and the display of his lathe and tools is
equally curious.
SHÁNÁR MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.
Two acts seem essential to the demon worship of the Shánárs of
Tin-nevelly (a portion of the aborigines of India)--dancing and bloody
sacrifices. They have no priest. The person who conducts the ceremony,
which is undertaken from choice, is called the rotator of the demon.
The head man of the village, or any other person, male or female, may
officiate. The dress is grotesque, consisting of a sort of coat of
various colours, a cap, and other vestments, arranged so as to strike
the spectators with their comic appearance. In this service several
musical instruments are used, but the most notable among them is one
called a _bow_. It consists of a bow strung and ornamented with bells.
This is placed on a brazen vessel of a globular form. The bow is struck
with a plectrum, and the bass is produced by the application of an
instrument to the brazen pot, another person keeping time by playing a
pair of cymbals, as seen in the annexed cut.
[Illustration: [++] Shánár Musical Instrument.]
The jarring, discordant, uproarious and cacophonous character of this
musical accompaniment exceeds description, and when the parties are
vieing with each other for pre-eminence, it is indeed the most horrid
din that can be produced. At first the movements of the dancer may
be slow, but as the music waxes louder and takes effect, he becomes
gradually more excited, urging himself to phrenzy by striking himself
violently, and applying his mouth to the neck of the decapitated
sacrificial victim, he drinks its blood, and possibly a potation
of ardent spirits. The afflatus thus acquired, its effects become
visible in the frantic glare and the convulsive gesticulations of
the possessed. This is greeted by the spectators with the loudest
acclamations. The dancer is now deified or demonized, and he is
consulted by the eager and delighted worshippers who do him homage.
Each one puts his questions as his fancy or his needs may dictate.
The possessed or demonized dancer, being more like a maniac than
aught else, and subject to various contortions of body, utters his
oracles with much indistinctness, rendering it necessary that some
one initiated into these mysteries should interpret his wild and
incoherent utterances. His ambiguous sayings and curious innuendos are
so indefinite as to need interpretation.
SINGULAR LOCAL CUSTOMS.
In the department of the Hautes Alpes of France, in the commune
of _Guillaume-Perouse_, at the village of _Andrieux_, where the
inhabitants are deprived during one hundred days of the bright beams
of the sun, there is a fête, called _Le retour du soleil_, on the
10th of February. At the dawn of day, four shepherds announce, to the
sound of fifes and trumpets, the commencement of this joyous day.
Every cottager having prepared an omelette, the eldest inhabitant of
the village, to whom the title of _Vénérable_ is given, leads the way
to the square; here they form a chain and dance the _ferandola_ round
him: after the dance is concluded, he leads the way to a stone bridge
at the entrance of the village, the shepherds playing upon their rural
instruments the while. Every one having deposited his omelette on the
stone coping, they repair to a neighbouring meadow, where the dancing
re-commences and continues until the first rays of the sun gleam
athwart the velvet turf: the dance then instantly ceases, each one
hastens for his pancake, and holding it up, presents it as an offering
to the god of day; the _Vénérable_ holds his up with both his hands.
As soon as the sun shines upon the village the procession returns to
the square, where the party separates, and every one repairs to his
own home, to eat his pancake with his family. This ceremony cannot
fail to recal the heathen mythology to the reader, who must see in it
the offerings made to Apollo; or, perhaps, it may be the remains of
some Druidical superstition, as the Druids paid particular devotion to
the sun; at any rate, it is a curious vestige of some religion long
since gone by. In some of the communes of this department the dead
are wrapped in a winding-sheet, but are not inclosed in a coffin. In
the valleys of _Queyras_ and of _Grave_, the dead are suspended in a
barn during five months in the winter, until the earth be softened by
the sun's rays, when the corpse is consigned to its native element.
All funereal ceremonies are closed by eating and drinking. In some
communes the people carry a flagon of wine to the churchyard; and on
the return of the guests to the home of the deceased, it becomes a
scene of bacchanalian revels, in which the groans and sighs of the
mourners mingle with the songs and jests of the inebriated guests.
At _Argentiere_, after the burial, the tables are set out round the
churchyard; that of the curate and the mourning family over the grave
itself. The dinner concluded, the nearest relation takes a glass; his
example is followed by the rest, repeating with him, _A la santé du
pauvre mort_.
SEVERITY OF RUSSIAN PUNISHMENTS.
The Russians are remarkable for the severity and variety of their
punishments, which are both inflicted and endured with a wonderful
insensibility. Peter the Great used to suspend the robbers upon the
Wolga, and other parts of his dominions by iron hooks fixed to their
ribs, on gibbets, where they writhed themselves to death, hundreds,
nay thousands, at a time. The single and double knoute were lately
inflicted upon ladies, as well as men of quality. Both of them are
excruciating, but in the double knoute, the hands are bound behind
the prisoner's back; and the cord being fixed to a pulley, lifts him
from the ground, with the dislocation of both his shoulders, and then
his back is in a manner sacrificed by the executioner, with a hard
thong, cut from a wild ass's akin. This punishment has been so often
fatal, that a surgeon generally attends the patient to pronounce the
moment that it should cease. Another barbarous punishment practised in
Russia is, first boring the tongue of the criminal through with an hot
iron, and then cutting it out: and even the late Empress Elizabeth,
though she prohibited capital punishments, was forced to give way to
the necessity of those tortures. From these particulars, many have
concluded that the feelings of the Russians are different from those of
mankind in general.
FIRST RHINOCEROS IN EUROPE.
The first rhinoceros ever seen in Europe was that of which Pliny speaks
as having been presented by Pompey to the Roman people. According to
Dion Cassius, Augustus caused another to be killed in the Roman circus,
when celebrating his triumph over Cleopatra. Strabo states that he saw
one at Alexandria, and he has left a description of it. All these were
of the one-horned species. At a later period the two-horned species
were introduced, as appears from medals bearing their effigies struck
in the reign of Domitian. During the time known as the dark ages,
investigations in natural history and every other department of science
and learning were utterly neglected, and the rhinoceros was as mythical
to Europe as the phoenix or the salamander. On the revival of letters,
however, and the extension of maritime discovery, a lively interest was
manifested in the productions of foreign countries. In 1513 the king
of Portugal presented the Roman Pontiff with a rhinoceros captured in
India; but, unfortunately, the ship was wrecked on its way to Italy:
the pope lost his present, and the rhinoceros his life. All that was
preserved was a rough sketch, engraved by Albert Durer; and down to a
very recent date, nearly all our representations were taken from this
rough draft.
In 1685 a rhinoceros was captured and brought to England. In 1739 and
1741 two others were exhibited in various parts of Europe. In 1800 a
young one was brought from India, intended for a menagerie at Vienna,
but died at London on the way, and was dissected by Mr. Thomas, who
published the results of his investigations, and thus gave the public a
better idea of the animal than they ever had before.
TURKISH CARRIAGE.
The curiously-shaped vehicle which we have engraved on the next page,
is a Turkish _araba_, a carriage chiefly used by ladies. An account of
one of them is pleasantly introduced by Mr. Albert Smith in his "Month
at Constantinople" when describing the visit of the Sultan to one of
the mosques:--
"Every Friday the Sultan goes to mosque publicly. It is not known until
the very morning which establishment he means to patronise; but your
dragoman has secret channels of information, and he always informs you
in time to 'assist' at the ceremony.
"The first time I went, Abdul Medjid had selected for his devotions the
mosque of Beglerbeg, a village on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus,
the temple of which stands in the same relation and bearing to St.
Sophia--to use a very familiar simile--as Rotherhithe Church does to
St. Paul's. It was a perfect English morning--foggy and cold (Oct. 7)
with muddy streets and spitting rain. I crossed into Asia--one learns
to speak of Asia, at Constantinople, as he would do of the borough--in
a two-oared caique, and on landing went up to the mosque, which is
close to the shore.
A crowd of people, consisting principally of females, had collected
before the mosque, and a square space was kept by the soldiers. Some
little courtesy was shown to visitors, as the Franks were permitted to
cross this enclosure to a corner close to the door, by which the Sultan
was to enter.
[Illustration: [++] Turkish Carriage.]
He was not very punctual to his time, but there was enough to amuse
the visitors; more especially in the arrival of the women, who came up
as near as they could to the building, in all sorts of odd vehicles.
Several were like those I had seen on the bridge at Pera, but one
was very fine indeed. It was more like a waggon than a carriage, and
painted bright blue, with red wheels and awning. In it were five ladies
of the Sultan's harem, very gaily dressed, and laughing loudly as the
vehicle shook them about over the rugged road. It was drawn by two
buffaloes, and they had a singular arrangement of worsted tufts over
their heads, of various bright colours. This was the first waggon of
the kind I had seen, but I afterwards found them very common. Other
women were on foot, and a number of these had collected upon a hillock
under a tree, where they talked and quarrelled incessantly. One very
pale and handsome girl arrived alone, in a car, preceded by two or
three attendants: and, whilst trying to pass a narrow thoroughfare
amongst the other vehicles, the wheel of her own got smashed to pieces.
She was then close to the Frank visitors, and, as she appeared likely
to be overturned, two or three gentlemen from Misseri's hotel, ran
forward to offer their assistance. In a minute they were put back by
the attendants, who could not think of allowing their mistress to be
touched, even from chance, by a Christian. The carriage was propped
up, as well as it could be; and its inmate, who had remained perfectly
tranquil during the accident, fixed her large eyes on the enclosure,
and never moved them again, to the right or left."
CURIOUS INDIAN COMB.
[Illustration: [++] Indian Comb.]
At the foot of the Himalayas, and not far from the European station
of Darjeeling, there is a tract of country which is still inhabited
by a tribe of very ancient origin, called the Mechs; they are rapidly
degenerating, and indeed may be said to be even now almost worn out as
a distinct tribe. They are but rarely visited by Europeans; but Dr.
Hooker inspected their district in 1850, and gives the following brief
description of its appearance:--
"We arrived on the third day at the Mechi river, to the west of which
the Nepal Morung begins, whose belt of Sal forest loomed on the
horizon, so raised by refraction as to be visible as a dark line, from
the distance of many miles. It is, however, very poor, all the large
trees having been removed. We rode for several miles into it, and
found the soil dry and hard, but supporting a prodigious undergrowth
of gigantic harsh grasses that reached to our heads, though we were
mounted on elephants. Tigers, wild elephants, and the rhinoceros are
said to be found here; but we saw none.
"The old and new Mechi rivers are several miles apart, but flow in the
same depression, a low swamp many miles broad, which is grazed at this
season, and cultivated during the rains. The grass is very rich, partly
owing to the moisture of the climate, and partly to the retiring
waters of the rivers; both circumstances being the effects of proximity
to the Himalayas. Hence cattle (buffaloes and the common humped cow
of India) are driven from the banks of the Ganges 300 miles to these
feeding grounds, for the use of which a trifling tax is levied on each
animal. The cattle are very carelessly herded, and many are carried off
by tigers."
We give a sketch on previous page of a pocket-comb which Dr. Hooker
obtained from one of the natives: it is, at all events, much more
tasteful in its form and ornamentation than the usual run of English
pocket-combs.
SINGULAR HINDOO VOW.
The following extraordinary vow is performed by some of the Hindoo
at their festival of _Charak Puja_:--Stretching himself on the earth
on his back, the devotee takes a handful of moist earth, and placing
this on his under lip, he plants in it some mustard-seed, and exposes
himself to the dews of the night and the heat of the day till the seed
germinates. In this posture the man must lie in a fixed motionless
condition, without food or drink, till the vegetable process liberates
him, which will generally be about the fourth day.
THE ARRANGEMENT OF ABBEY BUILDINGS.
At the dissolution of the Abbeys in England, under King Henry VIII.,
190 were dissolved, of from £200 to £35,000 a year; amounting to an
aggregate sum of £2,853,000 per annum. The principal buildings of
an Abbey, were, first, the church, differing little from one of the
cathedrals of the present day. Attached to one side of the nave,
commonly the southern, was, secondly, the great cloister, which had
two entrances to the church, at the eastern and western ends of the
aisles of the nave, for the greater solemnity of processions. Over the
western side of the cloister, was, thirdly, the dormitory of the monks;
a long room, divided into separate cells, each containing a bed, with
a mat, blanket, and rug, together with a desk and stool, and occupied
by a monk. This apartment had a door, which opened immediately into
the church, on account of midnight offices. Attached to the side of
the cloister, opposite to the church, was fourthly, the refectory,
where the monks dined; near to which, was the locutorium, or parlour,
an apartment answering to the common room of a college, where in the
intervals of prayer and study, the monks sat and conversed. Beyond,
was the kitchen and its offices; and, adjoining to it, the buttery,
&c. On the eastern side of the cloisters was, in the centre, the
chapter-house, where the business of the Abbey was transacted; and near
it, the library, and scriptorium, where the monks employed themselves
in copying books. On this side, also, was the treasury, where the
costly plate and church ornaments were kept. The abbot and principal
officers of the convent, had all separate houses, to the eastward of
the cloister; in which part of the building, were usually the hostelry
and question hall--rooms for the entertainment of strangers; and, also,
the apartment of novices. Westward of the cloister was an outward
court, round which was the monks' infirmary, and the almery. An
embattled gatehouse led to this court, which was the principal entrance
of the Abbey. The whole was surrounded with a high wall, including
in its precincts, gardens, stables, granary, &c. Some of the great
Abbeys--as Glastonbury, and Furness--covered sixty acres of ground. The
situation chosen for the site of an Abbey was as different from that of
the castle as the purpose to which it was applied. The one meant for
defence stands boldly on the hill; the other, intended for meditation,
is hid in the sequestered valley. The abbots were originally laymen and
subject to the bishop.
TAME FISH.
In sailing down the river Irawadi, in the neighbourhood of Amarapoora,
the capital of the empire of Burmah, Captain Yule met with some tame
fish, which he thus describes:--
"Having gone over the little island, I returned to my boat, where a
sight awaited me, that I confess astonished me more than anything I
have ever seen before.
"On nearing the island as we descended the river, the headman in the
boat had commenced crying out _tet-tet! tet-tet!_ as hard as he could,
and on my asking him what he was doing, he said he was calling the
fish. My knowledge of Burmese did not allow me to ask him further
particulars, and my interpreter was in the other boat, unwell. But, on
my coming down to the boat again, I found it surrounded on both sides
with large fish, some three or four feet long; a kind of blunt-nosed,
broad-mouthed dog-fish. Of these there were, I suppose, some fifty.
In one group, which I studied more than the others, there were ten.
These were at one side of the boat, half their bodies, or nearly half,
protruded vertically from the water, their mouths all gaping wide. The
men had some of the rice prepared for their own dinners, and with this
they were feeding them, taking little pellets of rice, and throwing
these down the throats of the fish. Each fish, as he got something to
eat, sunk, and having swallowed his portion, came back to the boatside
for more. The men continued occasionally their cry of _tet-tet-tet!_
and, putting their hands over the gunnel of the boat, stroked the fish
on the back, precisely as they would stroke a dog. This I kept up for
nearly half an hour, moving the boat slightly about, and invariably the
fish came at call, and were fed as before. The only effect which the
stroking down or patting on the back of the fish seemed to have, was to
cause them to gape still wider for their food. During March, I am told,
there is a great festival here, and it is a very common trick for the
people to get some of the fish into the boat, and even to gild their
backs by attaching some gold leaf, as they do in the ordinary way to
pagodas, &c. On one of these fish remains of the gilding were visible.
I never was so amused or astonished. I wished to have one of the fish
to take away as a specimen, but the people seemed to think it would be
a kind of sacrilege, so I said nothing more on the point. The Phoongyis
are in the habit of feeding them daily, I was informed. Their place of
abode is the deep pool formed at the back of the island, by the two
currents meeting round its sides. And it is, it appears, quite a sight,
which the people from great distances come to see, as well as to visit
the Pagoda, which is said to be very ancient and much venerated."
ANCIENT WEAPON.
The formidable weapon which we here engrave, is a concealed ranseur
of the time of Henry VIII., from Genoa. It forms one long instrument,
but our limits have compelled us to divide into three parts. 1, is
the butt: 2, the middle; and 3, the point. The upper part is an iron
cylinder, with a cap on the top. This is opened by touching the bolt
seen a little below it in front, and then, by giving the weapon a jerk
forwards, the blades fly out, and produce the form of the partisan.
Upon those, on each side, is written, "Al Segno Del Cor"--"To the mark
of the heart." When in the state seen in the engraving, the blades are
held so firmly that they cannot be thrust back; and the only mode of
returning them into the cylinder is by striking the butt end against
the ground, when they instantly fall in.
[Illustration: [++] Concealed Ranseur.]
This weapon, we apprehend, must have been more formidable in appearance
than useful in action. Once let a man get a fair thrust with it at his
enemy, and, it is true, the effect of that one stroke would be fatal,
but in battle it would most probably prove fatal also to the man who
wielded the weapon, for before he could have time to draw it back, a
comrade of the wounded man would have plenty of opportunity to rush in
and cut the striker of the blow down. On seeing this and other clumsy
weapons which were so much in vogue in former times, we cannot be
surprised that none of them have continued in use to the present day.
Weapons such as the one we here engrave, have long been thrown aside,
and short weapons are now only used for all hand to hand encounters.
THE BABES OF BETHLEHEM.
It is an ancient custom at Norton, near Evesham, Worcestershire, on the
28th of December (Innocents' Day) to ring a muffled peal, in token
of sorrow for the slaughter of the hapless "babes of Bethlehem," and,
immediately afterwards, an unmuffled peal, in manifestation of joy for
the deliverance and escape of the infant Saviour.
GAUNTLET OF HENRY PRINCE OF WALES.
[Illustration: [++] Gauntlet of Henry Prince of Wales.]
The highly interesting relic of which we here give a sketch is of a
russet colour, engraved and gilt, the ornamental parts being sunk
lower than the surface. The initials of the owner, surmounted by a
coronet, occur in two places, as do also the rose and thistle. Henry
was born on the 19th of February, 1594 and was nine years of age when
his father ascended the throne of England. When seven, he commenced
the acquirement of martial exercises--as the use of the bow, pike,
firearms, and the art of riding; and at ten applied to Colonel Edmondes
to send him a suit of armour from Holland. On the discovery of the
Gunpowder Plot, Lord Spencer made him a present of a sword and target;
and, in 1607, Louis, the Dauphin, son of Henry IV. of France, sent him
a suit of armour, well gilt and enamelled, together with pistols and
a sword of the same kind, and the armour for a horse. His martial and
romantic disposition displayed itself on the occasion of his being
created Prince of Wales in 1610, when he caused a challenge to be given
to all the knights in Great Britain, under the name of Mæliades, Lord
of the Isles; and on the day appointed, the Prince, assisted only by
the Duke of Lenox, the Earls of Arundel and Southampton, Lord Hay, Sir
Thomas Somerset, and Sir Richard Preston, who instructed his Highness
in arms, maintained the combat against fifty-six earls, barons,
knights, and esquires. Henry himself gave and received thirty-two
pushes of the pike, and about three hundred and sixty strokes of
the sword, not being yet sixteen years of age. From the size of the
gauntlet, the initials H. P., and a prince's coronet, if not made on
this occasion, it could not have been much anterior; and, from most
of his armour being sent from abroad, the impression would be that it
is of foreign manufacture. Yet there is in the State Paper Office an
original warrant ordering the payment of £200, the balance of £340,
for a rich suit of armour made for Henry Prince of Wales, dated July
11, 1614, he having died on the 6th of November, 1612. This document
is directed by King James I. to the Commissioners for the exercise of
the office of High Treasurer of England, and states that, "Whereas
there was made, in the office of our armory of Greenwich, by William
Pickeringe, our master workman there, one rich armour with all peeces
compleate, fayrely gilt and graven, by the commaundement of our late
deere sonne Prince Henry, which armour was worth (as we are informed)
the somme of three hundred and forty poundes, whereof the said William
Pickeringe hath receaved of our said late deere sonne the somme of one
hundred and forty poundes only, soe as there remayneth due unto him the
somme of two hundred poundes"--therefore they are ordered to discharge
the same forthwith.
THE SIMOOM.
Arabia is frequently visited by the terrible simoom, called by the
natives _shamiel_, or the wind of Syria, under whose pestilential
influence all nature seems to languish and expire. This current
prevails chiefly on the frontiers, and more rarely in the interior.
It is in the arid plains about Bussora, Bagdad, Aleppo, and in the
environs of Mecca, that it is most dreaded, and only during the intense
heats of summer. The Arabs, being accustomed to an atmosphere of great
purity, are said to perceive its approach by its sulphureous odour,
and by an unusual redness in the quarter whence it comes. The sky, at
other times serene and cloudless, appears lurid and heavy; the sun
loses his splendour, and appears of a violet colour. The air, saturated
with particles of the finest sand, becomes thick, fiery, and unfit for
respiration. The coldest substances change their natural qualities;
marble, iron, and water, are hot, and deceive the hand that touches
them. Every kind of moisture is absorbed; the skin is parched and
shrivelled; paper cracks as if it were in the mouth of an oven. When
inhaled by men or animals, the simoom produces a painful feeling as of
suffocation. The lungs are too rarefied for breathing, and the body is
consumed by an internal heat, which often terminates in convulsions
and death. The carcases of the dead exhibit symptoms of immediate
putrefaction, similar to what is observed to take place on bodies
deprived of life by thunder, or the effect of electricity.
When this pestilence visits towns or villages, the inhabitants shut
themselves up, the streets are deserted, and the silence of night
everywhere reigns. Travellers in the desert sometimes find a crevice
in the rocks; but if remote from shelter, they must abide the dreadful
consequences. The only means of escaping from these destructive blasts,
is to lie flat on the ground until they pass over, as they always move
at a certain height in the atmosphere. Instinct teaches even animals to
bow down their heads, and bury their nostrils in the sand. The danger
is most imminent when they blow in squalls, which raise up clouds of
sand in such quantities, that it becomes impossible to see to the
distance of a few yards. In these cases the traveller generally lies
down on the lee side of his camel; but as the desert is soon blown
up to the level of its body, both are obliged frequently to rise and
replace themselves in a new position, in order to avoid being entirely
covered. In many instances, however, from weariness, faintness, or
sleepiness, occasioned by the great heat, and often from a feeling
of despair, both men and animals remain on the ground, and in twenty
minutes they are buried under a load of sand. Caravans are sometimes
swallowed up; and whole armies have perished miserably in these
inhospitable deserts.
BOILING TO DEATH.
One Rouse, who had attempted to poison Fisher, Bishop of Rochester,
who was afterwards murdered in his 77th year, (by Henry VIII.)--was
actually boiled to death in Smithfield, for his offence. The law which
thus punished him, was afterwards repealed.
SIKKIM PRIESTS.
The Sikkim country is situated on the frontiers of Thibet and Nepal
and on a portion of the Himalayas. Dr. Hooker, who visited it a few
years ago, gives the following account in his Journal of some of its
scenery:--"January 1st, 1849.--The morning of the new year was bright
and beautiful, though much snow had fallen on the mountains; and we
left Sunnook for Pemiongchi, situated on the summit of a lofty spur on
the opposite side of the Ratong.
"The ascent to Pemiongchi was very steep, through woods of oaks,
chesnuts, and magnolias, but no tree-fern, palms, pothos, or planntain,
which abound at this elevation on the moister outer ranges of Sikkim.
The temple is large, eighty feet long, and in excellent order, built
upon the lofty terminal point of the great east and west spur, that
divides the Kulhait from the Ratong and Rungbee rivers; and the great
Changachelling temple and monastery stands on another eminence of the
same ridge, two miles further west.
"The view of the snowy range from this temple is one of the finest in
Sikkim; the eye surveying at once glance the vegetation of the tropics
and the poles. Deep in the valleys the river beds are but 3,000 feet
above the sea, and are choked with fig-trees, plantains, and palms;
to these succeed laurels and magnolias; and still higher up, oaks,
chesnuts, birches, &c.; there is, however, no marked line between the
limits of these two last forests, which form the prevailing arboreous
vegetation between 4,000 and 10,000 feet, and give a lurid hue to the
mountains. Fir forests succeed for 2,000 feet higher, when they give
place to a skirting of rhododendron and barberry. Among these appear
black naked rocks, between which are gulleys, down which the snow now
descended to 12,000 feet. The mountain flanks are much more steep and
rocky than those at similar heights on the outer ranges, and cataracts
are very numerous, and of considerable height, though small in volume.
"Pemiongchi temple, the most ancient in Sikkim, is said to be 400 years
old; it stands on a paved platform, and is of the same form and general
character as that of Tassisuding. Inside, it is most beautifully
decorated, especially the beams, columns, capitals, and architraves,
but the designs are coarser than those of Tassisuding. The square end
of every beam in the roof is ornamented either with a lotus flower, or
with a Tibetan character, in endless diversity of colour and form, and
the walls are completely covered with allegorical paintings of Lamas
and saints with glories round their heads, mitred, and holding the
dorje and jewel.
"The principal image is a large and hideous figure of Sakya-thoba in a
recess under a blue silk canopy, contrasting with a calm figure of the
late Rajah, wearing a cap and coronet.
"Pemiongchi was once the capital of Sikkim, and called the Sikkim
Durbar: the Rajah's residence was on a curious flat to the south of
the temple, and a few hundred feet below it, where are the remains of
(for this country) extensive walls and buildings. During the Nepal
war, the Rajah was driven east across the Teesta, whilst the Ghorkas
plundered Tassisuding, Pemiongchi, Changachelling, and all the other
temples and convents to the west of that river. It was then that the
famous history of Sikkim, compiled by the Lamas of Pemiongchi, and kept
at this temple, was destroyed, with the exception of a few sheets,
with one of which Dr. Campbell and myself were each presented. We were
told that the monks of Changachelling and those of this establishment
had copied what remained, and were busy compiling the rest from oral
information, &c.: whatever value the original may have possessed,
however, is irretrievably lost. A magnificent copy of the Buddhist
Scriptures was destroyed at the same time; it consisted of 400 volumes,
each containing several hundred sheets of Daphne paper."
[Illustration: [++] Sikkim Priests.]
Of the figures given in our article, the one on the extreme left is a
Lama, or Sikkim priest, having in his hand a _dorge_, or double-headed
thunderbolt; next to him, a monk; next to the monk, a priest, with a
praying cylinder; and at the extreme right, another monk.
A HEAD-BREAKER.
[Illustration: [++] Head-Breaker.]
With many savage nations it is a custom when prisoners have been
captured in war, to keep them in confinement for some time, till the
preparations for a grand festival have been completed, and then to put
them to death in the presence of the great men and chief priests of the
country. They were slaughtered, sometimes as offerings to the gods,
sometimes as sacrifices to the spirits of those slain in the war in
which they were captured, and at other times as incentives to the young
warriors who were to be the future defenders of the nation. In all
these cases, appropriate and peculiar ceremonies were prescribed, and
the victims were generally despatched by a particular official, whose
especial duty it was to perform the bloody deed. A particular weapon
was also used, and one of these is sketched at the head of our article.
It was used by one of the tribes which inhabit the shores of Nootka
Sound. It is intended to represent the sacred bird of their nation, and
is made of wood, inlaid with mother-of-pearl, with a blade of basalt.
The lower end is hollow for the insertion of a handle.
ANCIENT STONE COLLARS.
Perhaps the most singular relics of that Pagan period in Scotland
when the use of metals was in a great measure unknown, are two stone
collars, found near the celebrated parallel roads of Glenroy, and now
preserved at the mansion of Tonley, Aberdeenshire. We here give an
engraving of them.
[Illustration: [++] Stone Collars.]
They are each of the full size of a collar adapted to a small Highland
horse; the one formed of trap or whin-stone, and the other of a
fine-grained red granite. They are not, however, to be regarded as
the primitive substitutes for the more convenient materials of later
introduction; on the contrary, a close imitation of the details of a
horse collar of common materials is attempted, including the folds, the
leather, nails, buckles, and holes for tying particular parts together.
They are finished with much care and a high degree of polish, and
are described as obviously the workmanship of a skilful artist. Mr.
Skene, who first drew attention to these remarkable relics, suggests
the peculiar natural features of Glenroy having led to the selection
of this amphitheatre for the scene of ancient public games, and that
these stone collars might commemorate the victor in the chariot race,
as the tripods, still existing, record the victor in the Choragic games
of Athens. But no circumstances attending their discovery are known
which could aid conjecture either as to the period or purpose of their
construction.
THE OFFSPRING OF DRUNKENNESS.
From an interesting lecture on drunkenness, and on popular investments,
recently delivered by the Rev. J. B. Owen, M.A., of Bilston, we
select this impressive enumeration of the crimes mainly springing
from drunkenness. Drink was the desolating demon of Great Britain.
They had spent in intoxicating drinks during the present century as
much as would pay the national debt twice over! There were 180,000
gin drinkers in London alone, and in that city three millions a year
are spent in gin! In thirteen years 249,006 males and 183,921 females
were taken into custody for being drunk and disorderly. In Manchester
no less than a million a-year were spent in profligacy and crime. In
Edinburgh there were 1,000 whisky shops--160 in one street--and yet
the city contained only 200 bread shops. Of 27,000 cases of pauperism,
20,000 of them were traceable to drunkenness. In Glasgow the poor rates
were £100,000 a-year. "Ten thousand," says Alison, "get drunk every
Saturday night--are drunk all day Sunday and Monday, and not able to
return to work till Tuesday or Wednesday." Glasgow spends £1,200,000
annually in drink, and 20,000 females are taken into custody for being
drunk. And what were some of the normal results of such appalling
statistics? insanity, pauperism, prostitution, and crime. As to the
insanity affiliated on drink, the Bishop of London stated, that of
1,271 maniacs, whose previous histories were investigated, 649, or
more than half of them, wrecked their reason in drinking. As to its
pauperism, it is estimated that not less than two-thirds of our paupers
were the direct or indirect victims of the same fatal vice. As to
its prostitution, its debauching influence was remotely traceable in
the 150,000 harlots of London, and in their awful swarms in all our
large towns and cities. Its relation to crime was equally conclusive.
In Parkhurst prison, it was calculated, that 400 out of 500 juvenile
prisoners, were immured there, as the incidental results of parental
debauchery. The Chaplain of the Northampton County Gaol, lately
informed the lecturer, that, "of 302 prisoners in this gaol, during the
last six months, 176 attributed their ruin to drunkenness; 64 spent
from 2s. 6d. to 10s. a week in drink; 15 spent from 10s. to 17s.; and
10 spent all their savings. Is it not remarkable," he added, "that
out of 433 prisoners in this gaol, I have not had one that has had
one sixpence in a saving's bank, nor above six that ever had sixpence
in one? On the contrary, I have many members of friendly societies,
of course of unsound ones, which with two or three exceptions, all
met at public houses; and there they learned to drink, and became
familiarised with crime." Judge Erskine declared at the Salisbury
Assizes in 1844, that 96 cases out of every 100 were through strong
drink. Judge Coleridge added, at Oxford, that he never knew a case
brought before him, which was not directly or indirectly connected with
intoxicating liquors; and Judge Patteson capped the climax, at Norwich,
by stating to the grand jury, "If it were not for this drinking, you
and I should have nothing to do!" Of the 7,018 charges entered at Bow
Street Police Office, in the year 1850, half of them were for being
drunk and incapable; and if they added to these the offences indirectly
instigated by intoxication, the proportion rose at least to 75 per cent.
AN OLD PIKE.
In the year 1497 a giant "Jack-killer" was captured in the vicinity
of Mannheim, with the following announcement in Greek appended to
his muzzle:--"I am the first fish that was put into this pond by the
hands of the Emperor Frederic the Second, on this 3rd day of October,
1262." The age of the informant, therefore, if his lips spoke truth
(and the unprecedented dimensions of the body left little doubt on that
point), was more than two hundred and thirty-five years. Already he
had been the survivor of many important changes in the political and
social world around, and would have swam out perhaps as many more had
the captors been as solicitous to preserve his life as they were to
take his portrait. This, on the demise of the original, was hung up in
the castle of Lautern, and the enormous carcase (which, when entire,
weighed three hundred and fifty pounds, and measured nineteen feet)
was sent to the museum at Mannheim, where, deprived of its flesh, and
caparisoned _de novo_, it hung, and haply yet hangs, a light desiccated
skeleton, which a child might move.
BURMESE BOAT.
The curious boat which is here depicted in full sail is one of those
which is used by the Burmese on the river Irawadi. They are called
_hnau_, and Captain Yule gives the following description of them in his
"Mission to Ava:"--
"The model is nearly the same for all sizes, from the merest dinghy
upwards. The keel-piece is a single tree hollowed out, and stretched
by the aid of fire when green, a complete canoe, in fact. From this,
ribs and planking are carried up. The bow is low with beautiful hollow
lines, strongly resembling those of our finest modern steamers. The
stern rises high above the water, and below the run is drawn out fine
to an edge. A high bench or platform for the steersman, elaborately
carved, is an indispensable appendage. The rudder is a large paddle
lashed to the larboard quarter, and having a short tiller passing
athwart the steerman's bench.
"The most peculiar part of the arrangement of these vessels is in the
spars and rigging. The mast consists of two spars; it is, in fact,
a pair of shears, bolted and lashed to two posts rising out of the
keel-piece, so that it can be let down, or unshipped altogether, with
little difficulty. Above the mainyard the two pieces run into one,
forming the topmast. Wooden rounds run as ratlines from one spar of the
mast to the other, forming a ladder for going aloft.
"The yard is a bamboo, or a line of sliced bamboos, of enormous length,
and, being perfectly flexible, is suspended from the mast-head by
numerous guys or halyards, so as to curve upwards in an inverted bow.
A rope runs along this, from which the huge mainsail is suspended,
running on rings like a curtain outwards both ways from the mast. There
is a small topsail of similar arrangement.
[Illustration: [++] Burmese Boat.]
"The sail-cloth used is the common light cotton stuff for clothing.
Of any heavier material it would be impossible to carry the enormous
spread of sail which distinguishes these boats. At Menh'lá one vessel
was lying so close to the shore that I was enabled to pace the length
of the half-yard. I found it to be 65 feet, or for the length of the
whole spar, neglecting the curve, 130 feet. The area of the mainsail in
this case could not have been very much less than 4,000 square feet, or
one-eleventh of an acre.
"These boats can scarcely sail, of course, except before the wind. But
in ascending the Irawadi, as on the Ganges during the rainy season,
the wind is almost always favourable. A fleet of them speeding before
the wind with the sunlight on their bellying sails has a splendid
though fantastic appearance. With their vast spreading wings and
almost invisible hulls, they look like a flight of colossal butterflies
skimming the water."
DANCING DERVISHES.
[Illustration: [++] Dancing Dervishes.]
The Dancing Dervishes at Constantinople are a remarkable instance of
the lengths to which superstition and credulity will proceed. The
saltatory ceremony which they perform at their religious services
is thus admirably described by Mr. Albert Smith in his "Month at
Constantinople:"--
"I have said it was Friday; and so, on my return, I had an opportunity
of seeing the Dancing Dervishes at Pera. They exhibit--for it is rather
a sight than a solemnity--on this day, as well as on Tuesday, in every
week. Their convent is facing the scrap of burying-ground on the road
from Galata to Pera, and any one may witness their antics. Having put
off our shoes, we entered an octagonal building, with galleries running
round it, and standing places under them, surrounding the railed
enclosure in which the Dervishes were to dance, or rather spin. One
division of this part of the building was put aside for Christians, the
others were filled with common people and children. When I arrived, one
old Dervish, in a green dress, was sitting at one point of the room,
and twenty-four in white, were opposite to him. A flute and drum played
some very dreary music in the gallery. At a given signal they all fell
flat on their faces, with a noise and precision that would have done
honour to a party of pantomimists; and then they all rose and walked
slowly round, with their arms folded across their breasts, following
the old green Dervish, who marched at their head, and bowing twice
very gravely to the place where he had been sitting, and to the spot
opposite to it. They performed this round two or three times. Then the
old man sat down, and the others, pulling off their cloaks, appeared
in a species of long petticoat, and one after the other began to spin.
They commenced revolving precisely as though they were waltzing by
themselves; first keeping their hands crossed on their breast, and then
extending them, the palm of the right hand and the back of the left
being upwards. At last they all got into play, and as they went round
and round, they put me in mind of the grand party we have seen on the
top of an organ, where a _cavalier seul_ revolves by himself, and bows
as he faces the spectators.
"They went on for a long time without stopping--a quarter of an hour,
perhaps, or twenty minutes. There was something inexpressibly sly and
offensive in the appearance of these men, and the desire one felt to
hit them hard in the face became uncomfortably dominant. At the end of
their revolutions they made another obeisance to the old man, and all
this time the players in the orchestra howled forth a kind of hymn.
This ceremony was repeated three or four times, and then they all sat
down again and put their cloaks on, whilst another Dervish, who had
walked round and round amongst the dancers, whilst they were spinning,
sang a solo. During this time their faces were all close to the ground.
This done, they rose and marched before the old green Dervish once
more, kissing his hand as they passed, and the service concluded,
occupying altogether about three-quarters of an hour."
EXTRAORDINARY MALADY.
Digne, the principal town in the department of the Basses Alpes
in France might be passed by the traveller without exciting one
observation, its walks and its warm mineral waters being the only
objects worthy of notice. Its inhabitants do not now exceed 3,500;
but, in the year 1629, 10,000 industrious citizens followed their
numerous avocations within its precincts. At that period, however, an
extraordinary plague broke out, in the month of June, which lasted till
October, committing the most awful ravages, so that in that short space
of time the wretched inhabitants were reduced to the number of 1,500,
among whom six only had escaped this very singular malady, the effects
of which are thus described by a French writer:--"This malady strangely
affected the invalids; some fancied they could fly; others, climb
from one object to another like squirrels; some sunk into a profound
lethargy, even for so long a time as six days; and one young woman who
had been hastily interred in a vineyard, rose three days afterwards,
for the grave-diggers were content just to cover the bodies. During
these four months the town was covered with a thick fog: the heat was
suffocating, accompanied by frequent and dreadful storms; and in order
to complete the horrors of such a situation, the parliament forbade any
of the inhabitants to quit the city, or the small territory belonging
to it. Guards placed upon the _Bléonne_ fired upon those who attempted
to escape. The magistrates abandoned their functions; the clocks no
longer sounded the hours; the neighbouring springs dried up, so that
the mills could not work; and famine began to add its fearful horrors
to the miseries which already desolated the city, now become a living
sepulchre, for the dead bodies lay in the streets unburied, and the
few remaining persons who still paraded the streets appeared more
like the spectres of those departed than living beings. Many persons
not only prepared but put on the habiliments of death, and quietly
awaited the approach of the _king of terrors_. A new edict condemned
the pestilential city to the flames; but this inhuman decree was
countermanded, after the destruction of one country house, with all
its inhabitants. The disease having somewhat abated in the surrounding
villages, humanity at length dictated the necessity of making some
efforts to save the remaining few, who had escaped the contagion,
from the no less frightful evil of famine. The scene that presented
itself was appalling; several little children, whose parents were
dead, were found sucking goats; in short, the desolation was so great
that, although two centuries have passed away since this fatal scourge
devastated the country, _Digne_ has never recovered its effects."
QUACKERY IN THE OLDEN TIME.
In the reign of Henry VIII. many of the medical practitioners were
mere horse-farriers. A distinguished patient, the great Lord Burghley,
secretary of state to Queen Elizabeth, was addressed by one Audelay, on
a certain occasion, in this wise, "Be of goode comfort, and plucke up
a lustie, merrie hearte, and then shall you overcome all diseases: and
because it pleased my good Lord Admiral lately to praise my physicke,
I have written to you such medicines as I wrote unto him, which I have
in my boke of my wyffe's hand, _proved upon herselfe and mee both_:
and if I can get anything that may do you any goode, you may be well
assured it shall be a joye unto me to get it for you." "A good medicine
for weakness or consumption:--Take a pig of nine days olde, and slaye
him, and quarter him, and put him in a skillat, with a handfull of
spearment, and a handfull of red fennell, a handfull of liverwort,
half a handfull of red neap, a handfull of clarge, and nine dates,
cleaned, picked, pared, and a handful of great raisins, and picke out
the stones, and a quarter of an ounce of mace, and two stickes of
goode cinnamon, bruised in a mortar, and distill it with a soft fire,
and put it in a glass, and set it in the sun nine days, and drinke
nine spoonfulls of it at once when you list!" "A compost:--item--take
a porpin, otherwise called an English hedgehog, and quarter him in
pieces, and put the said beast in a still, with these ingredients:
item--a quart of redde wyne, a pinte of rose-water, a quarter of a
pound of sugar--cinnamon and two great raisins." "If thore be any
manner of disease that you be aggrieved withal, I pray you send me
some knowledge thereof, and I doubt not but to send you an approved
remedie. Written in haste at Greenwiche, y{e} 9 of May, 1553, by your
trewe heartie friend, JOHN of AUDELAY."
A POISON WEAPON.
[Illustration: [++] Poison Weapon.]
The instrument sketched forms one of the curiosities in the splendid
museum of the late Sir S. R. Meyrick, and is a singular instance of
that refinement of cruelty which is too prominent a characteristic of
the sixteenth century. It is a weapon for throwing poisoned needles
among a crowd. Where the lid at the top is seen lifted up, is the
chamber in which the needles are kept stuck into a cork at the bottom.
On the opposite side a needle is seen put through a hole in a strong
spring, held in its place by a catch above, which, when pressed by the
thumb disengages it and ejects the needle with considerable force. As
the fore-finger goes through the centre ring, and the thumb is at the
top, the weapon is almost entirely concealed by the hand. The spring
can be adjusted by a screw at the side. This cruel instrument was
used by men on horseback, or from a window, and as the needles were
poisoned, many painful injuries must have been inflicted without the
sufferers being able to discover by whom their wounds were caused.
ANCIENT SWORD-BREAKER.
[Illustration: [++] Sword-Breaker.]
The immense two-handed swords of former times were most fearful
weapons, and far more easily used than the appearance of them would
lead us to suppose. They were admirably poised, and the position in
which they were held may be learned from various writers of their
times. One hand was placed close to the cross-bar, while the other
held the pommel. De Grassi, in 1594, tells us that those who use them
contrive to "amase with the furie of the sword, and deliver great
edge blows down-right and reversed, fetching a full circle or compass
therein with exceeding great swiftness, staying themselves upon one
foote, sometimes on the other, utterlie neglecting to thrust, and
persuading themselves that the thrust serveth to amaze one man onlie,
but those edge blows are of force to incounter many. The hand towards
the enemie must take hold fast of the handle neere the crosse and
underneath, the other hand above and near the pomell."
Silver, in his "Paradox" gives the following as the proportions of a
two-handed sword in his day: "The perfect length of your two-handed
sword is the blade to the length and hilt of your single sword."
The instrument which we have sketched on previous page, was used in
the time of Henry VIII., for the purpose, not only of defence against
one of those "great edge-blows down-right" but of catching the blade
between the teeth, and then breaking it by a sharp turn of the wrist.
ORIGIN OF THE BALLOT.
The origin of electing members by balls may be traced to the Grecians.
When a member was to be elected, every one threw a little pellet of
bran, or crumb of bread into a basket, carried by a servant on his head
round the table, and whoever dissented flattened their pellet at one
side.
ANCIENT DAGGER.
The weapon which forms the subject of the woodcut is a dagger of the
time of Philip and Mary, ornamented with engraving. After being thrust
into a person, by pulling a little catch, it is made to open within
him, and the prolongation of the blade allows means for a second blow.
The two small hooks at the inner side of the two blades would admit of
the dagger being thrust deeper in, but would prevent its being drawn
out.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Dagger.]
At the period these daggers were most in vogue, personal combats were
very sanguinary and determined, seldom terminating without the death of
one, and in some cases of both, of the parties engaged. They first used
the long sword, and when that weapon was broken, they closed with one
another, and used their daggers by stabbing at the most mortal part of
their foe they could manage to reach.
THE TEMPLE OF POU-TOU.
Pou-tou is an island of the great archipelago of Chusan, on the coasts
of the province of Tche-kiang. More than 100 monasteries, more or less
important, and two of which were founded by Emperors, are scattered
over the sides of the mountains and valleys of this picturesque and
enchanting island, which nature and art have combined to adorn with
their utmost magnificence. All over it you find delightful gardens,
full of beautiful flowers,--grottoes cut in the living rock, amidst
groves of bamboo and other trees, with aromatic banks. The habitations
of the Bonzes are sheltered from the scorching rays of the sun by
umbrageous foliage, and scattered about in the prettiest situations
imaginable. Thousands of winding paths cross the valleys in various
directions, and the brooks and rivulets, by means of pretty bridges of
stone or painted wood, and for the communications between the scattered
dwellings. In the centre of the island rise two vast and brilliant
edifices--Buddhist temples--the yellow bricks of which announce that
their construction is due to imperial munificence. The religious
architecture of the Chinese does not at all resemble ours. They have no
idea of the majestic, solemn, and perhaps somewhat melancholy style,
that harmonizes so well with the feelings which ought to be inspired
by a place devoted to meditation and prayer. When they wish to build a
pagoda, they look out for the most gay and smiling site they can find
on the declivity of a mountain or in a valley; they plant it with great
trees of the evergreen species; they trace about it a number of paths,
on the sides of which they place flowering shrubs, creeping plants, and
bushes. It is through these cool and fragrant avenues you reach the
building, which is surrounded by galleries, and has less the air of a
temple than of a rural abode charmingly situated in the midst of a park
or garden.
The principal temple of Pou-tou is reached by a long avenue of grand
secular trees, whose thick foliage is filled with troops of crows
with white heads; and their cawings and flapping of wings keep up a
continual clamour. At the end of the avenue is a magnificent lake,
surrounded with shrubs that lean over its waters like weeping willows.
Turtle and gold-fish gleam through them; and mandarin-ducks, in their
gaily-coloured plumage, play over their surface, amidst the splendid
water-lilies whose rich corollas rise majestically upon tender green
stalks spotted with black. Several bridges of red and green wood are
thrown over this lake, and lead to flights of steps, by which you
ascend to the first of the temple buildings--a kind of porch, supported
upon eight enormous granite columns. On the right and left are
stationed, like sentinels, four statues of colossal size, and two side
gates lead to the vestibule of the principal nave, where is enthroned a
Buddhist Trinity, representing the Past, the Present, and the Future.
These three statues are entirely gilt, and, although in a crouching
posture, of gigantic dimensions--at least twelve feet high. Buddha is
in the midst, his hands interlaced, and gravely placed on his majestic
abdomen. He represents the Past, and the unalterable and eternal quiet
to which it has attained; the two others, which have the arm and the
right hand raised, in sign of their activity, the Present and Future.
Before each idol is an altar covered with little vases for offerings,
and cassolets of chiselled bronze, where perfumes are constantly
burning.
A crowd of secondary divinities are ranged round the hall, the
ornaments of which are composed of enormous lanterns of painted paper
or horn--square, round, oval--indeed, of all forms and colours; and the
walls are hung with broad strips of satin, with sentences and maxims.
The third hall is consecrated to _Kouang-yu_, whom the greater number
of accounts of China persist in regarding as a goddess of porcelain,
and sometimes also of fecundity. According to the Buddhist mythology,
Kouang-yu is a person of the Indian Trimourti, or Triune God,
representing the creative power.
Finally, the fourth hall is a pantheon, or pandemonium, containing
a complete assortment of hideous idols, with ogres' and reptiles'
faces. Here you see, huddled together pell-mell, the gods of heaven and
earth; fabulous monsters, patrons of war, of the silk manufacture, of
agriculture, and of medicine; the images of the saints of antiquity,
philosophers, statesmen, warriors, literary men--in a word, the most
heterogeneous and grotesque assembly conceivable.
ORACLES OF APOLLO IN FRANCE.
Towards the frontiers of Auvergne and Velay, upon the high rock of
Polignac, there was formerly a temple of Apollo, famous for its
oracles. The time of its foundation ascends to the first years of the
Christian era, since, in the year 47, the Emperor Claudius came hither
in great pomp, to acknowledge the power of the god; and he left proofs
of his piety and munificence. The débris and mysterious issues that
are found even now upon the rock, in the heart of its environs, reveal
the secret means employed by the priests to make their divinities
speak, and to impose upon the people. At the bottom of the rock was
an ædicula: it was on this spot that the pilgrims took up their
first station, and deposited their offerings and made their vows. A
subterranean passage communicated from this ædicula to the bottom of
a great excavation, pierced, in the form of a tunnel, from the base
to the summit of the rock. It was by this enormous opening that the
vows, the prayers and questions, pronounced in the very lowest voice
by the pilgrims, reached instantly the top of the rock, and were there
heard and collected by the college of priests; the answers were then
prepared, while the believers, by a sinuous and long path, slowly
arrived at the end of their pilgrimage. The answers being ready, the
priests commissioned to transmit them repaired to profound and deep
apartments, contiguous to a well, the orifice of which terminated in
the temple. This well, crowned by an altar, being enclosed by a little
hemispherical roof, supported in its external parts the colossal figure
of Apollo; the mouth of this statue being half open, in the middle of
a large and majestic beard, appeared always ready to pronounce the
supreme decrees. It was also through this opening, by the means of a
long speaking-trumpet, that the priests at the bottom of this den of
mystery and superstition made known those famous oracles so imposing
and so powerful in their effects upon the human soul as to impede for
centuries the substitution of the more pure and holy precepts of the
gospel.
BEST POSITION FOR SMOKING OPIUM.
Opium is not smoked in the same manner as tobacco. The pipe is a tube
of nearly the length and thickness of an ordinary flute. Towards one
end of it is fitted a bowl of baked clay or some other material, more
or less precious, which is pierced with a hole communicating with the
interior of the tube. The opium, which before smoking is in the form
of a blackish viscous paste, is prepared in the following manner:--A
portion, of the size of a pea, is put on a needle, and heated over a
lamp until it swells and acquires the requisite consistence. It is
then placed over the hole in the bowl of the pipe, in the form of a
little cone that has been previously pierced with a needle so as to
communicate with the interior of the tube. The opium is then brought
to the flame of the lamp, and after three or four inspirations the
little cone is entirely burnt, and all the smoke passes into the
mouth of the smoker, who then rejects it again through his nostrils.
Afterwards the same operation is repeated, so that this mode of smoking
is extremely tedious. The Chinese prepare and smoke their opium lying
down, sometimes on one side, sometimes on the other, saying that this
is the most favourable position; and the smokers of distinction do not
give themselves all the trouble of the operation, but have their pipes
prepared for them.
EXECUTIONER'S SWORD.
[Illustration: [++] Executioner's Sword.]
The weapon engraved below forms one of the curiosities in the superb
collection of ancient armour belonging to the late Sir Samuel R.
Meyrick, at Goodrich Court, Herefordshire. It is the sword of an
executioner, having on it the date 1674. The blade is thin, and
exceeding sharp at both edges; and engraved on it is a man impaled,
above which are the words, in German, of which the following is a
translation:--
"Let every one that has eyes
Look here, and see that
To erect power on wickedness
Cannot last long:"
a man holding a crucifix, his eyes bandaged, and on his knees; the
executioner, with his right hand on the hilt, and his left on the
pommel, is about to strike off his head; above is written--
"He who ambitiously exalts himself,
And thinks only of evil,
Has his neck already encompassed
By punishment."
On the other side, a man broken on the wheel; over which is--
"I live, I know not how long;
I die, but I know not when:"
and a man suspended by the ribs from a gibbet, with the inscription--
"I move, without knowing whither;
I wonder I am so tranquil."
ORIGIN OF EXCHEQUER BILLS.
In the year 1696 and 1697, the silver currency of the kingdom being by
clipping, washing, grinding, filing, &c., reduced to about half its
nominal value, Acts of Parliament were passed for its being called in
and recoined, and whilst the recoinage was going on, Exchequer bills
were first issued to supply the demands of trade.
ANCIENT ETRURIAN BUST.
[Illustration: [++] Ancient Etrurian Bust.]
If we look backwards to the most remote times of Greek industry, we
find that long before fire-casting became customary, almost every kind
of work was carried out by the simple means of the hammer and tongs,
wielded by skilful hands. Even products of art were created in this
manner; and as statues, vases, and the like could not be put together
by the process of soldering, nails were used for the purpose, as we
learn not only from ancient writers, but even from monuments which have
lately been discovered in Etruria, and the most important specimens
of which are now possessed by the British Museum. In one of the tombs
belonging to the vast necropolis of Vulci were discovered, about twenty
years ago, a great many bronzes of this very ancient workmanship; one
of them represents a bust placed on a basement covered with thin copper
plates, and adorned by a row of figures, which are likewise chased;
long curls fall down over the neck and shoulders, and these parts
especially are formed in the most simple manner: one would be tempted
to call it child-like, did not the whole composition show a certain
character which enables the experienced eye of the art-philosopher
to distinguish in these rude attempts at plastic metal work the very
germ of those wonderfully-styled productions of a later period. The
engraving here annexed, giving a side view of this remarkable, and as
yet unique monument, is intended to show the arrangement of the hair,
which, in spite of its simple treatment, presents as a whole some
trace of grace, and principles of fine proportions. We perceive that
the curls are formed by rolling and twining together small strips of
bronze plate, connected with the head itself by the mechanical means
we have alluded to. There is no trace of soldering; and we may be sure
that we possess in this figure a good specimen of those hammer-wrought
sculptures of old which were spoken of by the Greeks themselves as
belonging to a fabulous period.
THE HAIRY WOMAN OF BURMAH.
The following account of this remarkable freak of nature is taken from
Captain Yule's "Mission to Ava." Writing from the city of Amarapoora,
the capital of Burmah, the Captain says:--
"To-day we had a singular visitor at the residency. This was Maphoon,
the daughter of Shwé-maong, the "Homo hirsutus" described and depicted
in Crawfurd's narrative, where a portrait of her, as a young child,
also appears. Not expecting such a visitor, one started and exclaimed
involuntarily as there entered what at first-sight seemed an absolute
realization of the dog-headed Anubis.
"The whole of the Maphoon's face was more or less covered with hair.
On a part of the cheek, and between the nose and mouth, this was
confined to a short down, but over all the rest of the face was a thick
silky hair of a brown colour, paling about the nose and chin, four or
five inches long. At the alea of the nose, under the eye, and on the
cheek-bone, this was very fully developed, but it was in and on the
ear that it was most extraordinary. Except the extreme upper tip, no
part of the ear was visible: all the rest was filled and veiled by a
large mass of silky hair, growing apparently out of every part of the
external organ, and hanging in a dependent lock to a length of eight
or ten inches. The hair over her forehead was brushed so as to blend
with the hair of the head, the latter being dressed (as usual with
her countrywomen) _à la Chinoise_. It was not so thick as to conceal
altogether the forehead.
"The nose, densely covered with hair so as no animal's is that I know
of, and with long fine locks curving out and pendent like the wisps of
a fine Skye terrier's coat, had a most strange appearance. The beard
was pale in colour, and about four inches in length, seemingly very
soft and silky.
"Poor Maphoon's manners were good and modest, her voice soft and
feminine, and her expression mild and not unpleasing, after the first
instinctive repulsion was overcome. Her appearance rather suggested the
idea of a pleasant-looking woman masquerading than that of anything
brutal. This discrimination, however, was very difficult to preserve
in sketching her likeness, a task which devolved on me to-day in Mr.
Grant's absence. On an after-visit, however, Mr. Grant made a portrait
of her, which was generally acknowledged to be most successful. Her
neck, bosom, and arms appeared to be covered with fine pale down,
scarcely visible in some lights. She made a move, as if to take off
her upper clothing, but reluctantly, and we prevented it. Her husband
and two boys accompanied her. The elder boy, about four or five years
old, had nothing abnormal about him. The youngest, who was fourteen
months old and still at the breast, was evidently taking after his
mother. There was little hair on the head, but the child's ear was
full of long silky floss, and it could boast a moustache and beard of
pale silky down that would have cheered the heart of many a cornet. In
fact, the appearance of the child agrees almost exactly with what Mr.
Crawford says of Maphoon herself as an infant. This child is thus the
third in descent exhibiting this strange peculiarity; and in this third
generation, as in the two preceding, this peculiarity has appeared only
in one individual. Maphoon has the same dental peculiarity also that
her father had--the absence of the canine teeth and grinders, the back
part of the gums presenting merely a hard ridge. Still she chews pawn
like her neighbours.
Mr. Camaretta tells some story of an Italian wishing to marry her and
take her to Europe, which was not allowed. Should the great Barnum hear
of her, he would not be so easily thwarted.
According to the Woundouk, the King offered a reward to any man who
would marry her, but it was long before any one was found bold enough
or avaricious enough to venture. Her father, Shwé-maong, was murdered
by robbers many years ago."
A TRAVELLER'S PASSPORT.
The following document, included among the rolls, is dated 1680, from
Whitehall:--
"Dame Mary Yate, having asked his majesty's permission to pass beyond
the seas, for the recovery of her health, his majesty was most
graciously pleased to grant her request, under the usual clauses
and provisoes, according to which ye said Dame Mary Yate having
given security not to enter into any plott or conspiracy against his
majesty or his realms, or behave herself in any such manner as may
be prejudicial to his majesty's government, or the religion here by
law established, and that she will not repaire to the city of Roome,
or return unto this kingdome without first acquainting one of his
majesty's principal secretaries of state, and obtaining leave for the
same, in pursuance of his majesty's commands in council hereby will and
require you to permit and suffer the said Dame Mary Yate to imbarque
with her trunkes of apparel and other necessaries not prohibited at
any port of this kingdom, and from thence to pass beyond the seas,
provided that shee departe this kingdom within 14 days after the date
hereof."--April 14.
If the above refers to the celebrated Lady Mary Yate (a daughter of the
house of Pakington) who is commemorated on a monument in Chaddesley
Church, Worcestershire, as having died in 1696, at the age of 86, she
must have been 70 years old when these precautions were taken by the
Government against the poor old lady attempting to invade the country,
or to comfort the Pope with her presence and support. Dame Mary Yate
was no doubt a Roman Catholic, and the permission above referred to was
granted under the seventh section of the statute 3rd James I, chap. 5,
which was virtually repealed by the statute 33rd George III, chap. 30,
which exempted Roman Catholics from all the penalties and restrictions
mentioned and enjoined in the older acts, if in one of the Courts at
Westminster or at the Quarter Sessions they made a declaration which to
them was unobjectionable.
CURIOUS PROVINCIAL DANCE IN FRANCE.
The inhabitants of Roussillon are passionately fond of dancing; they
have some dances peculiar to themselves. The men generally commence
the country dance by a _contre-pas_, the air of which is said to be of
Greek origin; the women then mingle in the dance, when they jointly
perform several figures, passing one among the other, and occasionally
turning each other round. At a particular change in the air, the male
dancer must dexterously raise his partner and place her on his hand in
a sitting posture. Accidents sometimes happen upon these occasions,
and the lady falls to the ground amidst the jokes and laughter of her
companions. One of these dances, called _lo salt_, is performed by four
men and four women. At the given signal, the cavaliers simultaneously
raise the four ladies, forming a pyramid, the caps of the ladies
making the apex. The music which accompanies these dances consists of
a _lo flaviol_, a sort of flageolet, a drum, two hautboys, prima and
tenor, and the _cornemuse_, called in the country _lo gratla_: this
instrument, by its description, must somewhat resemble the bagpipes.
The dance called _Segadilles_ is performed with the greatest rapidity:
at the end of every couplet, for the airs are short and numerous, the
female dancers are raised, and seated on the hands of their partners.
ANCIENT INSTRUMENT OF PUNISHMENT.
[Illustration: [++] Whip of Steel.]
The instrument which we here engrave is a whip of steel that was made
and used as an engine of punishment and torture about the middle of
the sixteenth century. It is composed of several truncated cones,
grooved with sharp edges, and held in opposite directions, so as to
give sufficient oscillation without rising so far as to strike the hand
of the executioner. It seems to have been held by a strap; but its
barbarity is evident.
PUNISHING BY WHOLESALE.
Henry VIII. is recorded, in the course of his reign, to have hanged no
fewer than 72,000 robbers, thieves, and vagabonds. In the latter days
of Elizabeth scarcely a year passed without 300 or 400 criminals going
to the gallows. In 1596, in the county of Somerset alone, 40 persons
were executed, 35 burnt in the hand, and 37 severely whipped.
MONKS AND FRIARS.
There was a distinction between the Monks and Friars, which caused the
latter to become the object of hatred and envy. Both the monastic, or
regular, and parochial clergy, encouraged the attacks made upon them.
The Monks were, by most of their rules, absolutely forbidden to go out
of their monasteries, and, therefore, could receive only such donations
as were left to them. On the contrary, the Friars, who were professed
mendicants, on receiving notice of the sickness of any rich person,
constantly detached some of their members, to persuade the sick man
to bequeath alms to their convent; thus often, not only anticipating
the Monks, but, likewise the parochial clergy. Besides, as most of
them were professed preachers, their sermons were frequently compared
with those of the clergy, and in general, not to the advantage of the
latter. In these sermons, the poverty and distress of their order,
were topics that, of course, were neither omitted, nor slightly passed
over. Considering the power of the Church, before the Reformation, it
is not to be supposed that any of the Poets, as Chaucer, &c., would
have ventured to tell those rediculous stories of the Friars, with
which their works abound, had they not been privately protected by the
superior clergy.
CURIOUS TURKISH CONTRIVANCE.
[Illustration: [++] Curious Turkish Contrivance.]
Wonderful are the appliances by which ingenuity contrives to supply the
evasions of idleness. We give one of them, as described by Mr. Albert
Smith, in his "Month at Constantinople."
"Passing some cemeteries and public fountains, we came to the outskirts
of the city, which consist chiefly of gardens producing olives,
oranges, raisins and figs, irrigated by creaking water-wheels worked
by donkeys. To one of these the droll contrivances which attracted our
notice was affixed. The donkey who went round and round was blinded,
and in front of him was a pole, one end of which was fixed to the axle
and the other slightly drawn towards his head-gear and there tied: so
that, from the spring he always thought somebody was pulling him on.
The guide told us that idle fellows would contrive some rude mechanism
so that a stick should fall upon the animal's hind quarters at every
round, and so keep him at work whilst they went to sleep under the
trees."
FIGURES OF DOGS ON ANCIENT TOMBS.
In attempting to assign a reason for the frequent occurrence of dogs
at the feet of tombs, we shall most probably be right if we simply
attribute the circumstance to the affection borne by the deceased for
some animal of that faithful class. That these sculptured animals were
sometimes intended for likenesses of particular dogs is evident. Sir
Bryan Stapleton, on his brass at Ingham, Norfolk, rests one foot on
a lion, the other on a dog; the name of the latter is recorded on a
label, _Jakke_. Round the collar of a dog at the feet of an old stone
figure of a knight, in Tolleshunt Knight's Church, Essex, letters were
formerly traced which were supposed to form the word _Howgo_.
In a dictionary of old French terms, we find that the word _Gocet_
means a small wooden dog, which it was customary to place at the foot
of the bed. Now it has been thought that something of this kind was
intended in the representation of dogs on tombs, and that this support
of the feet merely indicates the old custom of having that sort of
wooden resting-place for the feet when in a recumbent position. But
our first supposition appears the more natural, and is supported by
the fact that a large proportion of these sculptured dogs, instead of
being placed beneath the feet, are seated on the robe or train, looking
upwards with the confidence of favourite animals. Judith, daughter of
the Emperor Conrad, is represented on her tomb (1191) with a little dog
in her right hand.
On the tomb of Sir Ralph de Rochford, in Walpole Church, Norfolk, his
lady is by his side, dressed in a reticulated head-dress and veil,
a standing cape to her robe, long sleeves buttoned to her wrists, a
quatrefoil fastens her girdle, and a double necklace of beads hangs
from her neck. At her feet is a dog looking up, and another couchant.
In the chancel at Shernborne, Norfolk, the figure of Sir Thomas
Shernborne's lady (1458) has at the right foot a small dog sitting,
with a collar of bells.
On a large antique marble in the chancel at Great Harrowden,
Northamptonshire, are the portraits of a man in armour, and his wife in
a winding sheet. The man stands on a greyhound, and the woman has at
her feet two little dogs looking upwards, with bells on their collars.
This monument is that of William Harwedon and Margery, daughter of Sir
Giles St. John of Plumpton. She died in the twentieth year of Henry VI.
THE FATE OF THE LAST MAY-POLE IN THE STRAND.
The May-pole, which had been set up in 1641, having long been in a
state of decay, was pulled down in 1713, and a new one, with two
gilt balls and a vane on the top of it, was erected in its stead.
This did not continue long in existence; for, being in 1718 judged
an obstruction, to the view of the church then building, orders were
given by the parochial authorities for its removal. Sir Isaac Newton
begged it of the parish, and it was conveyed to Wanstead Park, where it
long supported the largest telescope in Europe, belonging to Sir Isaac
Newton's friend, Mr. Pound, the rector of Wanstead. It was 125 feet
long; and presented to Mr. Pound by Mr. Huson, a French member of the
Royal Society.
MEANS OF ATTRACTING CUSTOM.
Before houses were numbered, it was a common practice with tradesmen
not much known, when they advertised, to mention the colour of their
next neighbour's door, balcony, or lamp, of which custom the following
copy of a handbill will present a curious instance:--
"Next to the GOLDEN DOOR, opposite Great Suffolk Street, near Pall
Mall, at the Barber's Pole, liveth a certain person, Robert Barker, who
having found out an excellent method for sweating or fluxing of wiggs;
his prices are 2s. 6d. for each _bob_, and 3s. for every _tye wigg_ and
_pigtail_, _ready money_."
MUSIC OF THE HINDOOS.
Among the fine arts of India, music holds a distinguished place; and
although its cultivation has declined, and but few are now found
who have attained to eminence either in the science or art of this
unequalled source of recreation, refinement, and pleasure, yet no
people are more susceptible of its charms than the Hindoos. Reading is
with them invariably, as with the Arabians and other Eastern nations, a
species of _recitativo_, a sort of speaking music, delivered in dulcet
though not measured tones. The recitation of lessons in a school or
academy always takes this form. The man at the oar, women beating lime,
the labourer engaged in irrigation, alike accompany their toil with
song.
The word _sangíta_, symphony, as applied to music by the Hindoos,
conveys the idea of the union of _voices_, _instruments_, and _action_.
Musical treatises accordingly treat of _gáná_, _vádya_, _uritya_, or
_song_, _percussion_, and _dancing_; the first comprising the measures
of poetry; the second, instrumental sounds; and the third, theatrical
representation. The ancient dramas of the Hindoo exhibited the union of
these in their unequalled poetry, modulated with the accompaniments of
voice, and instruments, and the attractions of appropriate scenery.
The music of the Hindoos includes eighty-four modes, each supposed
to have a peculiar expression, capable of moving some particular
sentiment or affection. The modes take their denomination from the
seasons, or from the hours of day or night. Musical composition is
supposed capable of adaptation to the different periods of the day,
and therefore its provisions are regulated by the hours. The ideas of
the Hindoos on music, as promoting the pleasures of imagination, may
be inferred from the names applied by ancient authors to their musical
treatises. One is called _Rágárnava_, the Sea of the Passions; another,
_Rágaderpana_, the Mirror of Modes; and a third, _Sóbhavinóda_, the
Delight of Assemblies; a fourth, _Sangítaderpana_, the Mirror of Song;
and another, _Rágavibódha_, the Doctrine of Musical Modes. Some of
these works explain the law of musical sounds, their divisions and
succession, variations of scales by temperament, and the enunciation
of modes; besides a minute description of the different _vínás_ (lute),
and the rules for playing them. This is a fretted instrument of the
guitar kind, usually having seven wires or strings, and a large gourd
at each end of the finger-board. Its extent is two octaves, and its
invention is attributed to Náredá, the son of Brahma. There are many
varieties, named according to the number of their strings. Of one of
them we give an engraving below.
Music, like everything else connected with India, is invested with
divine attributes. From the sacred Veda was derived the Upaveda, or
subsidiary Veda of the Gandharbas, the heavenly choristers. The art
was communicated to mortals by Sarasvati, the consort of Brahma. She,
as before stated, is the patroness of the fine arts, the goddess of
speech. Their son, an ancient lawgiver and astronomer, invented the
Víná. The first inspired man, Bherat, invented the Drama.
[Illustration: [++] Hindoo Guitar.]
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TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE:
Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant
preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Mid-paragraph illustrations have been moved between paragraphs and
some illustrations have been moved closer to the text that
references them. The Index to Engravings paginations were not
corrected.
Superscripts are enclosed in brackets.
[++] indicates a caption added by the transcriber.
VARIANTS UNCHANGED:
-- Pages xiii and 201: Colebrook and Colebroke.
-- Page 51: Tchang-tchin and Tchang-tching.
-- Pages 108, 390 and others: Southwark and Southwarke.
-- Pages 498 and 571: Mahomed, Mahommed and Mahomet.
-- Pages 298, 306 and others: Hindostan and Hindoostan.
-- Pages 322 and 452: Rossellina, Rosselini and Rossellini.
-- Pages 370 and 371: ivil and ivel.
-- Pages 432, 537 and others: Brama and Brahma.
-- Pages 416 and 422: Bolinbroke and Bollinbroke.
-- Pages 634 and 635: Clothseck and clothsek; Gambaldyn and gambaldynge.
-- Page 635: Krees and Kreez.
-- Multiple pages: Shakespere/Shakspeare/Shakspere.
OTHER NOTES:
-- Pages v and xi: Removed entry "Architecture for Earthquakes"
as no such engraving or description could be found.
-- Page 85: bénéficiare changed to bénéficiaire.
-- Page 128: Hatherly changed to Hatherley.
-- Page 246: Sackvile changed to Sackville.
-- Page 250: Clarencieux changed to Clarenceux.
-- Page 330: Shaftsbury to Shaftesbury.
-- Page 339: Hasselquiet changed to Hasselquist.
-- Page 346: + IONA + IHOAT + IONA + HELOI + YSSARAY + 11 +
MEPHENOLPHETON + AGLA + ACHEDION + YANA +
BACHIONODONAVALI M ILIOR + 11 BACHIONODONAVLI M ACH +
changed to
+ IONA + IHOAT + LONA + HELOI + YSSARAY + || +
MEPHENOLPHETON + AGLA + ACHEDION + YANA +
BACHIONODONAVALI [M*] ILIOR + || BACHIONODONAVALI [M**] ACH +
[M*] denotes counter-clockwise rotated M and [M**] clockwise
rotated M. Also rendered in other texts as the letter Z or the
number 3. Sources: Thomas R. Forbes, "Verbal Charms in British
Folk Medicine." Proceedings of the American Philosophical
Society, Vo. 115, August 20, 1971, p. 308. And Frederick W.
Fairholt, Ancient, Medieval, and Renaissance Remains in the
Possession of Lord Londesborough. Drawn, Engraved and Described
by Frederick W. Fairholt. London: Chapman and Hall, 1857, p. 83.
-- Page 451: Strasburgh changed to Strasburg.
-- Page 502: "drake coloured satin, and [illegible word] coloured
satin." Changed to "drake coloured satin, and [...] coloured
satin."
-- Page 546: "into his elar;" changed to "into his celar.
-- Pages 549-550: "the slaughtered sun hulls become...." "hulls"
changed to "bulls."
-- Page 550: "according the the indication" changed to "according
to the indication."
-- Page 558: "as with the [illegible word]" changed to "as with
the [...]."
-- Page 630: "It said to have been made...." changed to "It was said
to have been made...."
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Ten Thousand Wonderful Things" ***
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