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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 hundre