Title: The Rural Magazine, and Literary Evening Fire-Side, Vol. 1 No. 11 (1820)
Author: Various
Language: English
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  THE

  RURAL MAGAZINE,

  AND

  LITERARY EVENING FIRE-SIDE.

  VOL. I. PHILADELPHIA, _Eleventh Month, 1820_. _No. 11._



FOR THE RURAL MAGAZINE.

THE DESULTORY REMARKER.

No. X.


When casting around for topics, to which the attention of my readers
may be solicited, they sometimes start up in almost every quarter;
and the principal difficulty arises in the task of selection. It is,
however, altogether probable, that like the young lady, who after
disregarding the pretensions of men of sense and merit, at length
gives her hand to some empty-pated coxcomb, my final determination
may not always furnish the most conclusive evidence of wisdom or
correct taste. Notwithstanding this may be the case, it is possible
that here and there, at distant intervals, something may be found
from which improvement may be derived by those who are in pursuit of
it.

On the present occasion, the attention of my little circle is
respectfully invited to a few of the occurrences of the passing
year. We are now approaching the confines of winter, that season
which has been called with great propriety its old age. Previously
to its commencement, and during the continuance of what in this
country is called Indian Summer, the face of nature is expressive
of pleasing melancholy; the sun divested of his ordinary radiance,
courts our gaze--the prevailing stillness is only invaded by the
falling leaf--and every phasis in which we behold her, is serene
and tranquil. At such a period we are led into a train of sober
and rational reflection; and for a moment, feel wisely disposed
to appropriate to our advantage, the truths which it reveals. In
contemplating the progress of decay, and witnessing the beauties
with which we are surrounded, successfully fading before our eyes,
we are forcibly reminded of the solemn fact, that human life, with
all its sublunary enjoyments, is also rapidly hastening to the tomb.
We in some degree become familiar with the image of dissolution; and
the departure of those of our friends and acquaintances, who have
during the past months joined "the immense majority of the dead," is
by the power of association brought to our remembrance. Most of them
entered on the present year full of life and hope, and had every
prospect of outliving many who are now their survivors; but alas!
how vague and uncertain are all human calculations. The past summer
and autumn, have in many parts of our otherwise highly favoured
country, been accompanied with FEVER in its various appalling forms;
and numerous have been the victims to this minister of death. Our
own metropolis was for some time the seat of painful apprehension,
and no one could doubt the presence of a most malignant visiter,
whose footsteps were, however, mercifully arrested by an overruling
hand. NEW-ORLEANS and SAVANNAH have experienced more weighty and
tremendous affliction from this source; and the sufferings of their
inhabitants claim our deep and sincere sympathy. Many of the laws
of nature are still concealed from our observation; but it is our
duty to collect authentic facts, to reason from what we know, so
that in some instances we may ascend from effects to their causes.
_It is certainly the part of wisdom, in relation to_ YELLOW FEVER,
_to guard with vigilance every supposed avenue of approach, whether
domestic or foreign_. The season has been remarkable in many
respects. The earth has been unusually fruitful of her productions:
the crops of bread-stuffs, and vegetables of every description,
have been almost unprecedented.--Apples were never known to be so
abundant and cheap. It may not moreover be altogether unworthy of
remark, that myriads of musquitoes have for many weeks past been our
unwelcome guests. Whether there be any necessary connexion between
these circumstances or not, and in what manner it exists, is the
proper business of philosophy to inquire, and if possible determine.

Among the events which have recently passed in review before us of
Pennsylvania, although we disclaim the character of politicians, the
recent general election could not have been entirely a matter of
indifference. But whether the election of a GOVERNOR, conducted as
it is here with an inordinate excitement of all the angry passions,
be promotive of the great moral interests of society, is at least
questionable. Peaceable citizens very naturally keep aloof from
such a conflict; and from this circumstance alone, the commonwealth
sustains great loss. Whether the immense patronage and influence
of that important office could not be so lessened, by a partial
distribution among other public functionaries, without impairing
its essential dignity and usefulness; and in this way the constant
recurrence of such disreputable spectacles be obviated as that we
have recently witnessed, is certainly a question of great moment to
the tranquillity and character of the state.

Belonging as we do to the great family of man, we cannot glance
across the Atlantic at the important transactions of that region,
without feeling an interest of no ordinary kind. Reference is here
particularly made to the bloodless revolutions of Spain, Naples,
and Portugal. We are hostile to the spirit of revolution, as such,
but the character of these is well fitted to excite our "special
wonder." And it is anxiously to be desired, that the welfare of the
people of those countries may have been substantially promoted by
them; for it ought to be remembered, that governments are instituted
for the good of the whole, and not exclusively for the benefit of
priests and kings. As Christians and patriots, we may on this
subject be permitted to entertain such wishes as these.

With regard to Great Britain, few of us can advert to what is there
transpiring at present, in relation to royalty, without blushing for
the land of our fathers;--the land of NEWTON and LOCKE, of MILTON,
of YOUNG, and of COWPER. The drama referred to, disgraceful as it
is, is nevertheless fruitful of salutary lessons. Of these it may be
observed, this is not the least striking and important, that however
elevated station may be, it is still accessible to the consequences
of guilt; and its occupant may be made to tremble at their approach.
We may also derive from its incidents, an argument in favour of
our own form of government, comparatively simple and unimposing
as it is in its structure; but not less efficient with respect
to the legitimate objects of government, without which, properly
administered, the fabric of society would crumble into ruins, and
lawless violence usurp the seat of order and justice. ☞



FOR THE RURAL MAGAZINE.

THE VILLAGE TEACHER.


One morning during the present autumn, I made an early excursion
through the fields. The sky was unclouded, and the eastern horizon
was in a glow with those saffron hues that usher in the day. The
stream before me, unruffled by a breath of air, gave back the shape
and colour of the landscape as distinctly as in a mirror. A few
chirping insects, and now and then a warble, sometimes half heard
from a distant grove, and sometimes bursting full upon the ear,
were all that broke the silence.

Captivated and riveted by the scene, I sat down under a favourite
beech-tree, to enjoy it at my leisure. In such situations, the mind
naturally falls into that train of musing which is most habitual;
and I was soon lost in meditations upon the inexhaustible beauty
and magnificence of Nature, and those lessons of deep philosophy
which are to be learned in its school. From one thought I passed to
another, till insensibly I fell into the following revery.

Methought that beside me was a hill, whose rocky sides seemed
almost inaccessible. The ascent was somewhat easier near the top,
which glowed as if it were on fire. Before the hill was a fertile
and beautiful plain, which was terminated by a barren heath, and
that, by the waters of a vast lake. A path, the beginning of which
I could not discover, seemed to wind round the foot of the hill,
till it came to where there was somewhat of an opening in rocks, and
divided. One part took the direction of the plain, and was soon lost
in innumerable avenues. The other ascended the hill, in nearly a
straight direction to the summit.

Where the path divided, there were stationed two beings of a
celestial appearance. One of them, who guarded the ascent to the
hill, was a youth of severe but manly beauty.

A female stood at the entrance to the plain. She was elegantly
though loosely dressed; her head was crowned with a chaplet of
flowers, and her whole contour was that of perfect beauty--yet there
was a certain boldness and forwardness in her mien, that however
it might captivate some, rather checked the advances of those whose
self-command was not disarmed by her beauty.

I perceived a crowd of persons advancing along the great road,
towards these beings; and when they came to where it forked, they
seemed urged forward by an irresistible impulse, yet doubtful which
path to pursue. Many attempted to ascend the hill, allured no doubt
by the splendour of its summit. Yet I observed that the greater part
of these, after toiling a little way up the ascent, turned back,
after many a wistful look at the valley which lay behind them. The
greater part of the travellers, however, chose the direction of the
valley. Some were allured by the sight of verdant banks and shady
groves, and by the strains of exquisite melody ever and anon wafted
to their ears.

Many were enticed by the Portress of the Plain, who assured them
that there was a much easier and pleasanter way to the summit of the
hill through her dominions. When they had once entered, it seemed
like a region of enchantment. The main path, as I have mentioned,
speedily lost itself in innumerable branches.--Many of these seemed
to wind along the foot of the hill, so that the travellers easily
persuaded themselves that they would soon find the road which the
Genius had promised, and pitied the ascetic toil of those who were
scaling the mountain.

The inducements to repose, and the pleasures by the wayside, were,
however, innumerable. Here a flower of uncommon beauty solicited
their admiration, while umbrageous retreats and cooling fountains,
presented themselves at every turn. Beings of celestial beauty were
loitering in the shade--willing to be caressed, and ever ready
to beguile the way with music and song. At one time they would
invite the pilgrims to taste the golden fruits, which hung from the
branches; or to listen to the melody of some songster of the grove.
At another they would join in the wanton dance, "to the warbling of
the lascivious lute," and lull their senses into oblivion with music
like that of Circe. Every sense was gratified; the sky was serene
and brilliant, the landscape in its summer beauty, and the breeze
was loaded with fragrance and melody.

By degrees the paths lost their former direction, and all tended
towards the end of the plain. I could see that the sirens, who so
fatally beguiled the way, kept aloof from this part of the valley,
and lingered among the cool and shady retreats at the entrance.
Yet the travellers seemed, as before, urged on by an irresistible
impulse; although, as they advanced, the way became less pleasant,
the groves and the flowers less frequent and luxuriant, and the
melody of the birds less enchanting. The sun now shone with
intolerable ardour, and the plain ended in a burning sandy desert,
trackless and unwatered. The few sirens who still accompanied them,
and who were before so irresistibly charming, lost by degrees their
youth and beauty. A few withered hags were all that now remained.
The lute and the myrtle wreath were exchanged for a whip of snakes
and a dagger. With these they chased the band of miserable bloated
wretches, urging them farther and farther from the last vestige of
delight. I could see a number of winged boys, flying about, and
armed with a bow and a quiver of arrows. They discharged their
weapons at random, among the deluded travellers on the plain.--Their
shafts most frequently fell blunted to the ground. But whomsoever
they pierced, seemed roused as from a dream. The flowers, for them,
lost their fragrancy, the song of the grove its music, and the banks
their verdure. The sun burnt with tenfold rage, and they gazed on
themselves and their companions with horror. Many of them turned
and fled, and though they were pursued by the taunts and hisses of
those around them, seldom stopped until they had gained the foot
of the mountain. But the greater number tore the darts wildly from
their bosoms, and pressed on more desperately than before. The
wound, for a time, would appear to be healed. But whenever they
were struck with the lashes of their pursuers, it opened again--a
rankling and incurable sore. At every step their torment increased.
Frantic and blaspheming, they hurried on towards the end of the
desert, where a grove of blasted cedars seemed to promise shade,
and the sound of waters, refreshment. But scarcely had they gained
the bank, when the billows rolled over them, and closed for ever.
The howling of the winds, the dashing of the waves, and the shrieks
of the dying, sent horror to my soul.--I turned with pain from the
prospect to observe those who were ascending the mountain. They
seemed at first to advance with difficulty, for the ascent of the
hill was steep and rocky. There was but one path to its summit, and
this kept nearly a direct course, and seldom bent itself to the
inequalities of the way. The travellers often stumbled over the
stones that obstructed the passage, or tore themselves with the
briars that trailed along the way. Sometimes they would unexpectedly
find themselves at the foot of a rock that hid the prospect before
them, and seemed to bar up the passage.--But an attentive observer
might discover along its side a steep and hazardous, yet accessible
path. Here all their vigour and caution was requisite; and when they
had gained the top, it was often only to discover new difficulties.
Such were the obstacles, that many became disheartened, and sighed
after and sought the voluptuous delights of the plain. The air on
the mountain was cool and damp, and often overcast with clouds. Yet
the thunder seldom rolled but at a distance, and the lightnings
played innoxiously away. The ground was stony and barren, and seemed
like a rude and desolate rock. Yet clusters of wild thyme, and
chamomile, and rosemary, grew among the crevices of the stones; and
shed around their sweet, though wholesome and refreshing perfumes.
I observed several beings of a mild and majestic appearance, who
went about removing and lessening the obstructions of the way. They
raised and strengthened those who had fallen, and encouraged the
laggard and the slothful. They cheered their labours with the tale
of mighty men of old, or bade them mark the beauties before them,
and the dazzling brilliancy of the summit. Whether it was from the
invigorating effects of the climate, or the zeal and confidence with
which such discourse inspired them, the travellers seemed to gather
fresh strength as they proceeded. Their countenances beamed with
cheerfulness and hope, and they bounded over the obstacles in the
path with alacrity and vigour. A transient gloom would sometimes
cloud their features, and they would sometimes complain of the
asperities of the way. But a glance at the radiance above, or a
smile from the good Genii who accompanied them, would always restore
their wonted cheerfulness.

As they approached the summit, the road became more smooth and
pleasant; the rude unsightly rock was exchanged for groves and
fields of verdure. The air was purer, and more transparent. The
landscape around was Nature in her sweetest robe: arrayed not in
the unripened beauties of spring, or the gorgeous magnificence of
summer, it breathed the tempered lustre, the full maturity, the
mild undazzling serenity of autumn. The thrush, the robin, and the
turtle-dove, were heard from the recesses of the grove; and the
sky-lark sent down his melody from on high. Violets, jessamines,
and honey-suckles, were scattered along the green, and wasted their
sweets abroad. The radiance from the summit diffused a genial warmth
around, and the travellers seemed already to enjoy the fruition
of their labours,--But as if conscious that greater felicity
was in view, they still pressed forward till I could scarcely
distinguish them through the splendour that enveloped the top of the
mountain.--As I was attentively gazing on their progress, methought
I could discover a magnificent temple amidst the blaze of glory. The
dome, the walls, and the pillars, shone like diamond through the
mountain crystal. In the midst of the hall I could faintly trace an
altar smoking with incense. The porticos and the area of the temple
were crowded with beings of celestial beauty. Their robes were purer
than the driven snow, and their locks were interwoven with gold and
amaranth. Some were watching the rolling incense from the altar, and
some were hymning the praises of their heavenly guide, or chanting
the deeds of heroes. Others welcomed the travellers as they arrived,
and led them rejoicing to the midst of the temple.

My sight, dazzled and overpowered, could behold them no longer.--The
shout of welcome, the song of triumph, and the holy anthem, mellowed
and softened by the distance, died sweetly away on my ear. "Happy
regions!" exclaimed I, "this is indeed the abode of felicity. A
thousand deaths, ten thousand years of anxiety and pain, would
cheaply buy an admission to your delights." The violence of my
emotion broke my slumbers; and I awoke, like Mirza, to behold, not
indeed the camels of the long valley of Bagdat, but the awakening
life and activity of the country,--the sober herd marching forth to
their frugal pasture, the rattling swain, and the busy sounds of
labour from the opposite hamlet.



HUSBANDMEN,

AND THE HONOUR PAID TO AGRICULTURE IN CHINA.

From Navarette, Le Comte, Du Halde, &c.


The Husbandmen in China, as to rank, are preferred to Merchants
and Mechanics. They are endowed with large privileges, their
profession being considered as the most necessary one in a state.
Navarette observes, that the Chinese say, that the Emperor ought
to take them under his particular care, and to allow them as
large privileges as may be; because all the empire subsists by
their labour and industry. Nay, it could not subsist without the
strongest inclination and application of the country-people that
way! China being so vastly populous, that if every inch of arable
land was sowed, as in fact it generally is, yet the produce would
be scarce sufficient to support the multitudes of inhabitants; and
the empire is too extensive to have its wants that way supplied from
foreign parts, even if it kept up a correspondence with them. For
these reasons it has always been one of the chiefest cares of the
government to promote Agriculture, by honouring husbandmen and their
profession. With this view a festival is instituted in honour of
agriculture; and the Emperor himself, once a year, turns ploughman,
in imitation, as it is said, of the early monarchs, whose history
seems to be calculated for the same end.

The common opinion, according to the Missioners, is, that husbandry
was first taught by _Shin-nong_, who is at this day reverenced
as the inventor of so useful an art; which has still gained
farther credit from what is related in the books of their ancient
philosophers. The Emperor _Yau_, who began to reign four hundred and
eighty years after the monarch, it seems, set aside his own children
in favour of a young husbandman, whom he chose for his successor.
This choice of an emperor out of the country, has inspired the
Chinese with a great esteem for agriculture. _Yu_, who succeeded
_Shun_, came to the throne after the same manner. It is said, he
found out the way, by means of canals, to drain off the water into
the sea, which at the beginning of the empire overflowed several
low countries, and afterwards made use of them to render the soil
fruitful. It is added that he wrote several books concerning the
manner of cultivating land, and watering it, which induced _Shun_
to appoint him his successor, and has contributed much to raise the
credit of agriculture, as they see it has been thought worthy the
care and application of a great Prince.

Several other emperors have expressed their zeal for this art. _Kang
Vang_, third monarch of the _Chew_ family, caused land-marks to be
fixed, to prevent disputes among the husbandmen. _King-Ving_, the
twenty-fourth of the same race, in whose reign _Confusius_ was born,
five hundred and thirty-one years before Christ, renewed the laws
that had been made for promoting agriculture. In a word, the Emperor
_Ven-ti_, who reigned three hundred and fifty-two years after,
raised its esteem to a great pitch: for this Prince perceiving,
that his country was ruined by the wars, to engage his subjects to
cultivate the land, set them an example himself, by ploughing the
fields belonging to his palace: which obliged all the ministers and
gentlemen of his court to do the same.

It is thought, that this was the original of a great festival that
is solemnized every year in all the great cities of China, when
the sun enters the fifteenth degree of aquarius; which the Chinese
look upon as the beginning of the spring. On this day the Governor
comes out of his palace, carried in his chair, preceded by banners,
lighted torches, and divers instruments; he is attended with several
litters, painted, and adorned with a variety of silk tapestry;
exhibiting various figures, and the portraits of illustrious
persons who had practised husbandry, with histories relating to
the same subject! He is crowned with flowers; and marches in this
equipage towards the eastern gate of the city, as it were to meet
the spring.

Among the figures, there is a cow of earthenware, so monstrously
large that forty men can hardly carry it.--Behind the cow, whose
horns are gilt, is a young child with one foot naked and the other
shod: him they call the _genius of labour and diligence_; who
strikes the earthen cow incessantly with a rod, as though it were to
make it advance. All the husbandmen follow with their instruments;
after whom proceed companies of Masquers and Comedians, acting
plays. In this manner they march to the Governor's palace, where
they strip the cow of her ornaments; and drawing out of her belly a
prodigious number of small cows made of clay, and distribute them
among the multitude, as well as the fragments of the cow, which they
break into pieces.--Afterwards the Governor makes a short discourse,
recommending the care of husbandry as one of the things most
conducive to the good of a state.

The attention of the Emperors and Mandarins to the cultivation
of the land is so great, that when deputies arrive at court from
the Vice-Roys, the Chinese monarch never forgets to demand in
what condition the fields appeared to them; and the falling of
a seasonable shower furnishes a proper occasion for visiting a
Mandarin, to compliment him thereupon.--Every year, in spring,
which falls in February, the Emperor (according to the ancient
custom) goes himself, in a solemn manner, to plough a few ridges
of land, in order to animate the husbandmen by his own example;
and the Mandarins of every city perform the ceremony, which is as
follows--The tribunal of Mathematics having, pursuant to orders,
fixed on the twenty-fourth of the second moon, as the proper day
for the ceremony of tillage, that of the Rites gave notice to the
present Emperor _Yong-Ching_, by a memorial which set forth the
following particulars to be observed by him, preparatory to this
festival.--1st. That he should appoint 12 illustrious persons to
attend and plough after him, viz. three princes, and nine presidents
of the sovereign courts; or the assistants of the latter, in case
they were too old, or infirm.--2nd. That as this ceremony does not
solely consist in the Emperor's ploughing the earth, in order to
stir up emulation by his own example; but also includes a sacrifice,
which he, as Chief Pontiff, offers to _Shang-ti_, to procure plenty
from him in favour of the people; therefore by way of preparation,
he ought to fast and observe continence the three preceding days;
the Princes and Mandarins, who accompany his Majesty, ought to
prepare themselves in the same manner.--3rd. That on the eve of the
ceremony, his Majesty is to send several Lords of the first quality
to the Hall of his ancestors, to prostrate themselves before their
Tablet, and give them notice, as though they were yet living, that
the next day he will offer the great sacrifice.

Besides these directions to the Emperor, the tribunal likewise
prescribes the preparations to be made by the different tribunals;
one is obliged to prepare the sacrifice; another to compose the
formula; another to carry and set up the tents, under which his
Majesty is to dine, in case he so orders it; a fourth is to assemble
forty or fifty husbandmen, venerable for their age, who are to be
present when the Emperor ploughs the ground, with forty of the
younger sort to make ready the ploughs, yoke the oxen, and prepare
the grain that is to be sown; consisting of five sorts, supposed to
comprehend all the rest, as wheat, rice, beans, and two kinds of
millet.

On the twenty-fourth day of the moon, the Emperor went with his
whole court, in his habit of ceremony, to the place appointed, to
offer to _Shang-ti_ the spring sacrifice; by which he is implored to
increase and preserve the fruits of the earth. The place is a little
hillock made of earth, a few furlongs south from the city; on the
side of this elevation, which ought to be fifty feet four inches
high, is the spot which is to be ploughed by the Imperial hands.

After the Emperor had offered sacrifices, he descended with the
three Princes and nine Presidents, who were to plough with him.
Several great Lords carried the valuable chests, which contained
the grains that were to be sown. All the court attended with
profound silence; then the Emperor took the plough and tilled the
ground several times backwards and forwards; when he quitted it a
prince of the blood held it and ploughed; as did all the rest in
their turns. After having ploughed in several places, the Emperor
sowed the different grain; and the day following, the Husbandmen by
profession, (forty-four of them old and forty-two of them young)
finished the remainder of the field that was left untilled. The
ceremony concluded with the appointed reward, which the Emperor
bestowed upon each of them; consisting of four pieces of dyed cotton
to make cloths.

The Governor of _Pe-King_ goes often to visit this field, which is
cultivated with great care; and examines all the ridges thoroughly,
to see if he can meet with any uncommon ears, such as they reckon
good omens; on which occasion he gives notice, that he found a
stalk, for instance, that bore thirteen ears. In the autumn the same
governor gets in the grain in yellow sacks; which are stowed in a
granary built for that purpose, called the _Imperial Magazine_. This
grain is kept for the most solemn ceremonies; for when the Emperor
sacrifices to _Tyen_, or _Shang-ti_, he offers it as the fruit of
his own hands; and on certain days in the year, he presents it to
his ancestors, as if they were still living.

Among several good regulations made by the same Emperor, he has
shown an uncommon regard for the Husbandmen. To encourage them in
their labour, he has ordered the governors of all the cities to send
him notice every year, of the person of this profession, in their
respective districts, who is most remarkable for his application to
agriculture; for unblemished reputation; for preserving union in
his own family, and peace with his neighbours; for his frugality
and aversion to extravagance. Upon the report of the governor,
the Emperor will advance this wise and diligent Husbandman to the
degree of a Mandarin of the eighth order, and send him patents of an
ordinary Mandarin; which distinction will entitle him to wear the
habit of a Mandarin, to visit the governor of the city, to sit in
his presence, and drink tea with him. He will be respected all the
rest of his days.--After his death he will have funeral obsequies
suitable to his degree; and his title of honour shall be written in
the hall of his ancestors. What emulation must such a reward excite
among the Husbandmen!

Accordingly we find that they are continually busied about their
lands if they have any time to spare, they go immediately to the
mountains to cut wood; to the garden to look to their herbs, or
to cut canes, &c. so that they are never idle. The land in China
never lies fallow. Generally the same ground produces three crops
in a year; first rice; and before it is reaped they sow fitches;
and when they are in, wheat, beans, or some other grain: thus it
goes continually round. They very seldom employ their land for
unprofitable uses, such as flower gardens, or fine walks; believing
useful things more for the public good, and their own.

The attention of husbandmen is chiefly employed in the cultivation
of rice. They manure their land extremely well; gathering for that
purpose, with extraordinary care, all sorts of ordure, both of men
and animals, or truck for it wood, herbs, or linseed oil. This kind
of manure, which elsewhere would burn up the plants, is very proper
for the lands of China; where they have an art of tempering it with
water before they use it. They gather the dung in pails, which they
commonly carry covered on their shoulders; and this contributes very
much to the cleanness of their cities, whose filth is thus taken
away every day.

In the province of _Che-Kyang_, and other places, where they sow
rice, they use balls of hog's, or even human hair; which, according
to them, gives strength to the land, and makes that grain grow
better. For this reason, Barbers save the hair which they cut off
the heads, and sell for about a halfpenny a pound to such people,
who carry it away in bags; and you may often see barks loaded with
it. When the plant begins to ear, if the land be watered with spring
water, they mix quicklime with it; saying that it kills worms and
insects, destroys weeds, and gives a warmth to the ground, which
contributes much to fertility. By this means the rice fields are so
clean, that Navarette, sometimes, walked through them, looking for
some small herb; and could never find any; so that he concludes, the
rice which is surprisingly tall and fine, draws all the nourishment
from the ground.

The husbandmen sow their grain at first without any order; but when
it has shot about a foot, or a foot and a half high, they pluck it
up by the roots; and making it into a sort of small sheaves, plant
it by a line, and checkerwise; to the end, that ears, resting upon
each other, may stand more firmly, and resist the winds.--But,
before the rice is transplanted, they level the land, and make it
very smooth, after the following manner. Having ploughed the ground
three or four times successively, always to the ancles in water,
they break the clods with the head of their mattocks; then, by the
help of a wooden machine (on which a man stands upright, and guides
the buffalo that draws it) they smooth the earth, that the water may
be every where of an equal height; insomuch that the plains seem
more like vast gardens than open fields.

The mountains in China are all cultivated; but one sees neither
hedges nor ditches, nor scarce any tree; so fearful they are of
loosing an inch of ground. It is very agreeable to behold, in some
places, plains three or four leagues in length, surrounded with
hills and mountains, cut from bottom to top, into terraces three
or four feet high, and rising one above another, sometimes to the
number of twenty or thirty. These mountains are not generally rocky,
as those in Europe, the soil being light and porous, and so easy to
be cut in several provinces, that one may dig three or four hundred
feet without meeting with the rock. When the mountains are rocky,
the Chinese loosen the stones, and make little walls of them to
support the terraces; they then level the good soil and sow it with
grain.

They are still more industrious.--Though in some provinces, there be
barren and uncultivated mountains, yet the valleys and fields which
separate them in a vast number of places, are very fruitful and well
cultivated. The husbandman first levels all the unequal places that
are capable of culture. He then divides that part of the land, which
is on the same level, into plots; and that along the edges of the
valleys, which is unequal, into stories, in form of an amphitheatre:
and as the rice will not thrive without water, they make reservoirs,
at proper distances, and different heights, to catch the rain and
the water which descends from the mountains, in order to distribute
it equally among their rice plots; either by letting it run down
from the reservoir to the plots below, or causing it to ascend from
the lower reservoir to the highest stories.

For this purpose they make use of certain hydraulic engines, which
are very simple, both as to their make and the manner of playing
them. It is composed of a chain made of wood, resembling a chaplet
or pair of beads, strung as it were with a great number of flat
boards, six or seven inches square, and placed parallel at equal
distances. This chain passes through a square tube or gutter: at
the lower end whereof is a smooth cylinder or barrel, whose axis is
fixed in the two sides: and to the upper end is fastened a sort of
drum, set round with little boards to answer those of the chain,
which passes round both it and the cylinder; so that when the drum
is turned, the chain turns also; and, consequently, the lower end of
the gutter or tube being put into the water, and the drum-end set
to the height where the water is to be conveyed, the boards filling
exactly the cavity of the tube, must carry up a continual stream
so long as the machine is in motion; which is performed in three
ways:--1st. With the hand, by means of one or two handles applied
to the ends of the axis of the drum.--2nd. With the feet, by means
of certain large wooden pegs, about half a foot long, set round the
axle-tree of the drum for that purpose.--These pegs have long heads,
rounded on the outside, for applying the soles of the naked feet; so
that one or more men, may with the greatest ease put the engine in
motion, either standing or sitting; their hands being employed all
the while, the one holding an umbrella, and the other a fan.--3rd.
By the assistance of a buffalo, or some other animal made fast to
a great wheel, about four yards in diameter, placed horizontally.
Round its circumference are fixed a great number of pegs or teeth;
which tallying exactly with those in the axle-tree of the drum, turn
the machine with a great deal of ease.

When a canal is to be cleansed, which often happens,--it is divided,
at convenient distances, by dikes; and every neighbouring village,
being allotted its share, the peasants immediately appear with
their chain-engines; whereby the water is conveyed from one to the
other. This labour, though painful, is soon ended, by means of the
multitudes of hands. In some parts, as the province of _Fo-Kyen_,
the mountains, though not very high, are contiguous, and with
scarce any valleys between; yet they are all cultivated by the art
which the husbandmen have to convey the water from one to the other
through pipes made of bamboo.

To this surprizing industry of the husbandmen, is owing that
great plenty of grain and herbs, that reigns in China above all
other regions. Notwithstanding which, the land hardly suffices to
support its inhabitants; and one may venture to say, that to live
comfortably they have need of a country as large again.



REMARKS ON SALT AS A MANURE.


The progress of agriculture has been, and no doubt will continue to
be, proportionate to the advancement of the science of chymistry;
and the absolute necessity of calling in the aid of this science
to that of agriculture, will be perfectly evident, when we
reflect, that whenever any substance is applied to the soil, it
becomes very frequently changed into new matter by combination or
decomposition.--When a handful of salt is thrown upon some soils,
its nature is in a very short time changed, and it becomes a new
substance, which may be useful or injurious to vegetation, according
to the change which it has undergone. Hence originates the great
diversity of opinion, relative to the use of salt as a manure, a
subject which the science of chymistry would set at rest, after a
few simple experiments, but which the practice of agriculture would
never determine without the knowledge of the effect of the soil,
on the salt. There are also other considerations which materially
affect the value in which this article is held as a manure. The
farmers in Cornwall, in England, use the salt in which fish has
been cured, by which the salt has already been partially changed,
by combining it with the ammonia of the fish, which is one of the
most powerful fertilizers known to chymical science. The practice
also of using sea sand, in the same shire, is attended with effects
which are as much owing to the use of the sand as the salt.--The
astonishing effect produced by the urine of cattle, in Flanders,
is no evidence in favour of salt, [as the urine contains twelve or
thirteen fertilizing saline substances, besides salt] but it is a
very powerful one in favour of compound saline manures. Salt is used
in one of the preparations for the Patent Plaster, or Fertilizing
Compost, but it is in that case combined with quicklime, and its
eventual product is the muriate of lime and soda, both of which,
when combined with other substances, are powerful fertilizers.

It appears to be a provision of nature, that the muriate of soda,
or common salt, should be a neutral substance with respect to
fertilizing the soil. For if it possessed any degree of fertilizing
powers, its effect would be seen on our sea-coasts; and its utility,
by this time, would have been decisively proved by experiment as
well as accident. That salt is partially beneficial to some soils,
is beyond a doubt; but whether the benefit is equivalent to the
expense of using it, is a question which can only be determined by
the nature of the soil.--Wherever lime is used as a manure, salt
may be beneficially applied, or when combined with any fertilizing
substance which has a tendency to decompose it, but in this case
the fertilizing power is owing to the new product, and not to the
muriate of soda.

[_Morn. Chron._



THE LOCUST TREE.


A writer in the Long Island Star, highly recommends the cultivation
of the Locust Tree, as a profitable business. He says the price of
this timber is about seventy-five cents per cubic foot--that 200
trees will grow on an acre of land--or 20,000 trees to a hundred
acres, which may average 20 feet per tree, which would give the
enormous sum of $300,000. But suppose they amount to only $100,000,
as the nett profits from 100 acres, in what way can the landholder
expect so great a profit in 30 years, with the same probability of
success, as from this? He mentions, that the timber, the seeds of
which were planted by one man in England, was sold for 60,000_l._
sterling.

The locust becomes valuable in 15 years after planting, and in 25
or 30 years of full growth. It is easily raised by planting 15 or
20 trees to the acre; and as soon as the roots have spread, running
a plough through the ground, and when it cuts the roots, new shoots
will spring up.

This tree also invites the grass to grow under it, and the shade
does not materially injure it; and while grass in the field is burnt
up by the scorching rays of the sun, the locust grove will yield a
rich and luxuriant pasture.



From Baldwin's London Magazine.

MEMOIRS OF RICHARD L. EDGEWORTH, Esq.[1]

  [1] Memoirs of the late R. L. Edgeworth, Esq. begun by himself, and
  finished by his Daughter, Maria Edgeworth. 2 vols. London, 1820.


The first volume contains such part of the memoirs of Mr Edgeworth
as was written by himself, and is of a very different complexion
from the second from the pen of his daughter. We see in every page
of the former, evidence of that abundance of animal spirits, and
healthy activity of body and mind, which often changed their channel
of direction in the course of his life, without ever relaxing their
innate spring, or losing any of their pristine force of impulse.
It is indeed Mr. Edgeworth's boast, corroborated by his daughter's
testimony, that he was unchanged by age, or events.--He seems to
have had a ready and quick feeling for every thing that happened,
just as the bulrush has a rapid sympathy with the breeze that passes
over it, and raises its head exactly into its old position the
instant it is gone by. Mr. Edgeworth began to marry at twenty, and
continued the practice till late in life. In fact, matrimony and
mechanics seem to have monopolized his fidelity: with dancing he
was desperately enamoured at first, but his taste soon tired of it,
though he is careful to assure us his legs never did. Gambling and
dissipated companions possessed him for a time, but neither sullied
his mind, nor permanently influenced his habits. Telegraphs and
one-wheeled chaises, however, kept stronger hold of him: he was the
first to send poetry across the channel by a chain of signals; and
he contrived for himself a carriage in which his "_legs were warned
to lift themselves up_," to escape being broken by posts, and in
which he sat "_pretty safe_ from wet," his feet being "secured by
leathers which folded up like the sides of bellows."

One of his exploits in this commodious vehicle, he records in a tone
of exultation with which we entirely sympathize:--

"On my road to Birmingham, I passed through Long-Compton, in
Warwickshire, on a Sunday. The people were returning from church,
and numbers stopped to gaze at me. There is or was a shallow ford
near the town, over which there was a very narrow bridge for
horse and foot passengers, but not sufficiently wide for wagons or
chaises. Towards this bridge I drove. The people, not perceiving
the structure of my one-wheeled vehicle, called to me with great
eagerness to warn me, that the bridge was too narrow for carriages.
I had an excellent horse, which went so fast as to give but little
time for examination. The louder they called, the faster I drove,
and when I had passed the bridge, they shouted after me with
surprise. I got on to Shipton upon Stour; but, before I had dined
there, I found that my fame had overtaken me. My carriage was put
into a coach-house, so that those who came from Long-Compton, not
seeing it, did not recognize me; I therefore had an opportunity of
hearing all the exaggerations and strange conjectures, which were
made by those who related my passage over the narrow bridge. There
were posts on the bridge, to prevent, as I suppose, more than one
horseman from passing at once. Some of the spectators asserted, that
my carriage had gone over these posts; others said that it had not
_wheels_, which was indeed literally true; but they meant to say
that it was without any wheel. Some were sure that no carriage ever
went so fast; and all agreed, that at the end of the bridge, where
the floods had laid the road for some way under water, my carriage
swam on the surface of the water."

Mr. Edgeworth was also, about the commencement of his career in
mechanics, lucky enough to contrive a wheel which "should carry on a
man _as fast as he could possibly walk_," that is to say, provided
he "_plied his legs with energy_." On the first experiment being
made, it answered its purpose so well as to give the lad within
scarcely time "_to jump from his rolling prison before it reached
the chalk-pit_; but the wheel went on with such velocity as to
outstrip its pursuers, and rolling over the edge of the precipice
it was dashed to pieces."

To recompense himself for this misfortune, he invented "_a sailing
carriage_."

"The carriage was light, steady, and ran with amazing velocity.
One day when I was preparing for a sail in it, with my friend and
schoolfellow, Mr. William Foster, my wheel-boat escaped from its
moorings, just as we were going to step on board. With the utmost
difficulty I overtook it, and as I saw three or four stage coaches
on the road, and feared that this sailing chariot might frighten
their horses, I, at the hazard of my life, got into my carriage
while it was under full sail, and then, at a favourable part of
the road, I used the means I had of guiding it easily out of the
way. But the sense of the mischief which must have ensued, if I had
not succeeded in getting into the machine at the proper place, and
stopping it at the right moment was so strong, as to deter me from
trying any more experiments on this carriage in such a dangerous
place. Such should never be attempted except on a large common,
_at a distance from a high road_. It may not however be amiss to
suggest, that upon a large extent of iron rail-way, in an open
country, carriages properly constructed, might make profitable
voyages from time to time with sails instead of horses; for though
a constant or regular intercourse could not be thus carried on, yet
goods of a certain sort, that are saleable at any time, might be
stored till wind and weather were favourable."

One more of Mr. Edgeworth's ingenious inventions is all we can allow
to this subject:--he offered for a wager to produce a _wooden horse
that should carry him safely over the highest wall in the country_!

"It struck me, that, if a machine were made with eight legs, four
only of which should stand upon the ground at one time; if the
remaining four were raised up into the body of the machine, and if
this body were divided into two parts, sliding, or rather rolling on
cylinders, one of the parts, and the legs belonging to it, might in
two efforts be projected over the wall by a person in the machine;
and the legs belonging to this part might be let down to the
ground, and then the other half of the machine might have its legs
drawn up, and be projected over the wall, and so on alternately.
This idea by degrees developed itself in my mind, so as to make me
perceive, that as one half of the machine was always a road for the
other half, and that such a machine never rolled upon the ground,
a carriage might be made, which should carry a road for itself. It
is already certain, that a carriage moving on an iron rail-way may
be drawn with a fourth part of the force requisite to draw it on a
common road. After having made a number of models of my machine,
that should carry and lay down its own road. _I took out a patent
to secure to myself the principle_; but the term of my patent has
been long since expired, without my having been able to unite to my
satisfaction in this machine strength with sufficient lightness,
and with regular motion, so as to obtain the advantages I proposed.
As an _encouragement to perseverance_, I assure my readers, that I
never lost sight of this scheme during _forty years_; that I have
made considerably above _one hundred_ working models upon this
principle, in a great variety of forms; and that, _although I have
not yet been able to accomplish my project, I am still satisfied
that it is feasible_."

Justice, however, will not permit us to go to other matters
contained in these most entertaining biographical notices, without
cautioning the reader not to take the standard of the utility and
intelligence of Mr. Edgeworth's mechanical pursuits, from these
specimens of his achievements in this line. He effected much of a
more useful nature, and appears to have had very considerable talent
in his way--but so in fact had _King Corny_.

Mr. Edgeworth's first marriage was the only unsuitable one of
the several it was his fortune to make; and not finding his wife
cheerful at home, he says, led him to seek cheerful company abroad.
In fact, before the death of his father, we find him quite involved
in the vortex of dissipation and fashion. His picture of the
_beau monde_ of those times is not without its charm. "Among the
ladies who visited the Mrs. Blakes, was a Miss Dalton, the famous
"Fanny, blooming fair," whom Lord Chesterfield has celebrated.
He was ingenious enough to detect the legerdemain tricks of the
"celebrated Comus." Miss D. told him that her relation, the famous
Sir Francis Blake Delaval, had also discovered these secrets, and
believed himself to be the only man in England who possessed them.
This brought about an acquaintance, or rather intimacy, between Mr.
Edgeworth and Sir Francis, from the description of the incidents of
which we derive much amusement. They arranged together the house in
Downing street, where Sir Francis lived, for the representation of
conjuring tricks.

"The ingenuity of some of the contrivances, that were employed in
our deceptions, attracted the notice not only of those who sought
mere amusement, but of men of letters and science, who came to our
exhibitions. This circumstance was highly grateful to Sir Francis,
and advantageous to me. I, by these means, became acquainted with
many men of eminence, to whom I could not at any period of my life
have otherwise obtained familiar access. Among the number were
Dr. Knight, of the British Museum: Dr. Watson; Mr. Wilson; Mr.
Espinasse, the electrician; Foote, the author and actor, a man, who,
beside his well known humour, possessed a considerable fund of
real feeling; Macklin, and all the famous actors of the day. They
resorted to a constant table, which was open to men of genius and
merit in every department of literature and science.--I cannot say
that his guests were always "unelbowed by a player;" but I can truly
assert, that none but those who were an honour to the stage, and who
were admitted into the best company at other houses, were received
at Sir Francis Delaval's.

They got up the tragedy of the Fair Penitent here, to allow the
late Duke of York, who afterwards died suddenly at Rome, to play
Lothario; and "he was as warm, as hasty, and as much in love, as the
fair Calista could possibly wish." A pleasant supper-party, he says,
they had at the King's Arms, Covent Garden, after the performance.

"Macklin called for a nightcap, and threw off his wig. This, it was
whispered to me, was a signal of his intention to be entertaining.
Plays, play-wrights, enunciation, action, every thing belonging to
eloquence of every species, was discussed. Angelo, the graceful
fencing-master, and Bensley, the actor, were of the party.--Angelo
was consulted by Bensley, on what he ought to do with his hands
while he was speaking. Angelo told him, that it was impossible to
prescribe what he should always do with them; but that it was easy
to tell him what should _not_ be done--"he should not put them into
his breeches' pockets"--a custom to which poor Bensley was much
addicted. Pronunciation was discussed; the faults in our language
in this particular were copiously enumerated. "For instance," said
Macklin, "_Pare_ me a _pair_ of _pears_." You may take three words
out of this sentence, of the same sound, but of different meanings,
and I defy any man to pronounce them in such a manner as to
discriminate the sounds, or to mark to any ear by his pronunciation
the difference between the verb _to pare_, the noun of number, _a
pair_, and the fruit, _pear_. The pompous Bensley undertook that
Powel, who was remarkable for a good ear, should do this. Bensley,
who mouthed prodigiously whilst he spoke, was put behind a curtain,
that the motion of his lips might not assist Powel in judging what
meaning he intended to express by each of the words as he pronounced
them. One of the company was placed behind the curtain, and to
him Bensley was previously to communicate, whether he proposed to
pronounce the word denoting the action, the noun of number, or the
fruit. Bensley failed so often, and so ridiculously, that he became
quite angry, and charged Powel with wilful misapprehension. To
defend himself, Powel proposed that Holland should try his skill;
but Holland had no better success. During these trials, I concerted
by signs with Sir Francis, a method of pointing out my meaning, and
I offered to try my skill. The audience with difficulty restrained
their contempt: but I took my place behind the curtain, and they
were soon compelled to acknowledge, that I had a more distinct
pronunciation, or that Sir Francis had more acute hearing, than
the rest of the company. Out of twenty experiments, I never failed
more than two or three times, and in these I failed on purpose,
to prevent suspicion. I had made my confederate understand, that
when I turned my right foot outward, as it appeared from beneath
the curtain, I meant to say _pare_, to cut; when I turned inward,
_pair_, a couple; and when it was straight forward, _pear_, the
fruit. We kept our own counsel, and won unmerited applause. Amidst
such trifling as this, much sound criticism was mixed, which
improved my literary taste, and a number of entertaining anecdotes
were related, which informed my inexperienced mind with knowledge of
the world."

One of the many excellent anecdotes which Mr. Edgeworth
introduces relative to the extraordinary man of the town with
whom he was now passing his time, we shall give as a sample.
Sir Francis had contrived to represent the borough of Andover,
in several Parliaments, by practising a series of tricks on his
constituents:--but at length, he sustained a reverse of fortune, and
his electioneering success terminated.

His attorney's bill was yet to be discharged. It had been running
on for many years; and though large sums had been paid on account,
a prodigious balance still remained to be adjusted. The affair came
before the King's Bench. Among a variety of exorbitant and monstrous
charges, there appeared the following article.

"To being thrown out of the window at the George Inn, Andover--to my
leg being thereby broken--to surgeon's bill, and loss of time and
business--all in the service of Sir F. B. Delaval.--Five hundred
pounds.

"When this curious _item_ came to be explained, it appeared, that
the attorney had, by way of promoting Sir Francis' interest in the
borough, sent cards of invitation to the officers of a regiment in
the town, in the name of the mayor and corporation, inviting them
to dine and drink his Majesty's health on his birthday. He, at the
same time, wrote a similar invitation to the mayor and corporation,
in the name of the officers of the regiment. The two companies met,
complimented each other, eat a good dinner, drank a hearty bottle
of wine to his Majesty's health, and prepared to break up.--The
commanding officer of the regiment, being the politest man in
company, made a handsome speech to Mr. Mayor, thanking him for his
hospitable invitation and entertainment. "No, Colonel," replied the
mayor, "it is to you that thanks are due by me and by my brother
aldermen for your generous treat to us." The colonel replied with
as much warmth as good breeding would allow: the mayor retorted
with downright anger, swearing that he would not be choused by the
bravest colonel in his Majesty's service.--"Mr. Mayor," said the
colonel, "there is no necessity for displaying any vulgar passion on
this occasion. Permit me to show you, that I have here your obliging
card of invitation."--"Nay, Mr. Colonel, here is no opportunity for
bantering, there is your card."

Upon examining the cards, it was observed, that notwithstanding an
attempt to disguise it, both cards were written in the same hand by
some person, who had designed to make fools of them all. Every eye
of the corporation turned spontaneously upon the attorney, who, of
course, attended all public meetings. His impudence suddenly gave
way, he faltered and betrayed himself so fully by his confusion,
that the colonel, in a fit of summary justice, threw him out of
the window. For this Sir Francis Delaval was charged five hundred
pounds.--Whether he paid the money of not, I forget."



THE PROMPTER.


_It will do for the present._

This common saying does as much mischief in society, as _rum_ or a
_pestilence_. If I hear a man, whether a farmer, a mechanic, or any
other person, often repeat that saying, and appear to act from the
opinion, that _it will do for the present_, I rely on it he is a
sloven, a drone, or something worse. I never knew such a man thrive.

A young man setting out in life, is in haste to be married. He
wants a house to live in, but is not fully able to build one. Yet
his pride requires a large showy house. At last, between poverty
and pride, he determines to build a large house, but not to finish
it till he is _more able_. He sets up a large two story house,
with four rooms in a story--he covers it and paints it: this is
a showy house--his pride exults to see passengers stare at his
elegant house: but though _pride_ governs the _outside_, _poverty_
reigns _within_--he can finish but two rooms, half finish one or
two more--and lay a loose floor above, to spread his corn upon:
this elegant mansion house then is a granary--a corn house: the
man and a litter of children below--and rats and mice above: but
the man says, _it will do for the present_. True, but the man has
but twenty or thirty acres of land, or an indifferent trade--his
family grows faster than his income--he is not able to finish his
house--the covering soon decays and admits water--the house falls to
pieces--the man is forced _poor_ into the wilderness, or he and his
children loiter about, dependant on the neighbours for subsistence
by day labour.

I know one of these _do-for-the-present-farmers_, who never
effectually repairs his fences; but when a breach is made, he fills
it with a bush that a sheep may remove: if a rail is broke, and
another is not at hand, he takes the next billet of wood, inserts
one end into the post, and ties up the other with elm or hickory
bark--he says, _this will do for the present_. His cattle learn to
be unruly--to remedy the evil, fetters, shackles, clogs, yokes, and
what he calls _pokes_, are invented--and his cattle and horses are
doomed to hobble about their pasture with a hundred weight of wood
or iron machines upon their feet and necks. The man himself, in
two years, spends time enough in patching up his fences and making
fetters, to make a good effectual fence round his whole farm, which
would want very little repair in twenty years.

In family affairs, these _do-for-the-present folks_ double their
necessary labour. They labour hard to put things _out of order_,
and then it requires nearly the same work to put them into order
again. A man uses an axe, a hoe, a spade, and throws it down where
he uses it; instead of putting it in its proper place, under cover.
Exposed to the weather, tools do not last more than half so long,
as when kept housed; but this is not all: a sloven leaves the tool
where he last used it--or throws it down any where at random: in a
few days he wants it again--he has forgot where he left it--he goes
to look for it--he spends perhaps half an hour in search of it, or
walks a distance to get it: this time is lost, for it breaks in upon
some other business--the loss of this small portion of time appears
trifling; but slovens and sluts incur such losses every day; and
the loss of these little scraps of time determine a man's fortune.
Let the Prompter make a little calculation: a farmer, whose family
expends one hundred pounds a year, if he can clear ten pounds a year
is a thriving man. In order to get his one hundred and ten pounds,
suppose he labours ten hours a day: in this case, if he loses an
_hour_ every day, in repairing the carelessness of the day before
(and every sloven and slut loses more time than this, every day,
for want of care and order) he loses a _tenth_ part of his time--a
_tenth_ part of his income--this is _eleven pounds_. Such a man
cannot thrive--he must grow poorer, for want of _care_, of _order_,
of _method_.

So it is with a woman. A neat woman who does business thoroughly,
keeps things _in order_, with about _half the labour_ that a slut
employs who keeps things for ever _out of order_. If a pail or
kettle be used, it is directly made clean, fit for other uses, and
put in its place. When it is wanted, it is ready. But a slut uses
an article and leaves it _any where_, dirty, unfit for use another
time: by and by it is wanted, and cannot be found--"Moll, where
did you leave the kettle?" "I han't had the kettle, Nab had it
last"--"Nab, did you have the kettle?" "Yes, but it is dirty." So
the kettle is found, but it is a half hour's work to fit it for the
purpose required; in the mean time, the necessary business must lie
by. Yet this woman says, when she does any thing, _it will do for
the present_.

I have only to add, that I went to church, on a late cold Sunday,
when a neighbouring clergyman officiated. He had spoken to his
_fifteenthly_, when the clock struck _one_. Every man was shivering
with the cold, and shuffling his feet--the parson took the hint, and
broke off with "_this will do for the present_."



STAPLES OF MISSOURI.


1. _Lead._--MISSOURI is famed throughout Europe and America, for the
extent and value of her lead mines. She would be able to furnish
all the U. States, the West Indies, Mexico, and South America, with
that article. In the meantime, the U. States are purchasing lead
from England! About $500,000 per annum is usually paid by Americans
to Englishmen for lead; last year, however, it was about $300,000.
The difference of the policy pursued by the two nations, is the
cause of this state of things. In England, foreign lead pays a duty
of 26_l._ 13_s._ 4_d._ sterling on every quantity of 100_l._ worth
imported; and the lead mines are private property. In America,
foreign lead pays but little duty, and the mines are monopolized by
the government.

2. _Iron._--Missouri has a great interest in the production of
domestic iron. She possesses immense beds of ore, exceedingly
rich, and well situated to be worked, and conveniently transported
to all parts of the valley of the Mississippi. The waters of the
Merrimac, and of the Gasconade are the chief seats of this ore,
although it is found in many other parts of the territory, and in
such amazing quantities, that it may be considered to be for ever
inexhaustible. Missouri could furnish not only herself and immediate
neighbours, but the whole valley of the Mississippi with iron and
its manufactures, yet she is purchasing these articles from England,
Sweden and Russia!

3. _Salt._---The state of Missouri abounds with salt springs. In
many places they are almost as common as fresh water springs. They
are found in every section of the country, but especially in the
Boon's-lick district, and on the waters of Salt River, a branch
of the Mississippi. Missouri would be able to furnish an empire
with salt, but heretofore she has purchased that article from
the Illinois and Kenawha, from Liverpool, St. Ubes, and Turk's
Island!--The government monopoly was one cause of this. Since the
purchase of Louisiana the government had reserved the salt springs;
but in the bill for admitting Missouri into the Union, 12 springs,
to be chosen by the Legislature, with four sections of land around
each, are to be given to the state; and the remainder will probably
be sold out, and become private property. These springs will be a
source of wealth to the people, and of revenue to the state. With
a judicious system of management, the whole expenses of the state
government may possibly be defrayed from the rents and profits
accruing from 12 selected springs.

4. _Hemp._--The soil and the climate of Missouri, announce it to be
the true country for the production of hemp. Experience establishes
the fact. Many farmers have raised it, as well under the Spanish
as under the American government. The quantity obtained from an
acre is prodigious, and by experiments made at New Orleans, under
the auspices of the Governor General, the Baron de Carondelet, it
was proved to be equal (the account says superior) in strength and
fineness of fibre, to the boasted hemp of Russia. Persons who have
looked to the resources of Missouri have always considered hemp as
one of its staples, and the encouragement of its growth one of the
first objects of our farmers and statesmen.



SPEECH NATURAL TO MAN.


In your paper some time past I saw an account of "a wild woman found
in the interior of Java." History furnishes many instances of these
"unfortunate commoners of nature," who have been exposed by design
or accident. Comparatively few, we fear, have been brought to the
domestic hearth; fewer still have been completely civilized. A book
of travels, now almost obsolete, states instances of this kind. A
race of marauding Tartars, subjects of Russia, frequently attacked
Polish villages, and carried off whole families: in conveying their
captives home they had to pass the wild and intricate forest of
Minsk, in Russian Lithuania, and there these unfortunate mothers
lost, and were separated from, their children. In after days, when
this stupendous region was traversed for other purposes than the
nefarious one above mentioned, several human males were found, in
almost as barbarous a state as the native burghers of the forest,
to whose ferocious instinct many of these innocents had doubtless
fallen a prey.

Peter, the Wild Boy, excited much interest in his day. George the
2d, of England, found him whilst hunting in the woods near Hamelin,
in the electorate of Hanover. Peter, when found, ran on all fours,
like the quadrupeds amongst whom he had been raised. We might ask,
why did the brutes of prey in this as well as other instances,
deviate from the voracious instinct planted in their nature? To
accident we cannot refer it; and, after wearying our minds with
conjecture, we can only end the difficulty by attributing it to that
providential care which preserved Daniel in the lion's den. Peter
never could be taught to articulate more than two words--his own
name and George; but he learned, with facility and correctness, the
notes of several tunes.

Lord Monboddo, of eccentric memory, mentions in his narrative
respecting Peter, that two children had been found in the same wild
state--one in the island of Diego Garcia, and one in the Pyrenees.
He also states that two wild children were found in the Dismal Swamp
of Virginia.[2] This immense morass is yet, in its inmost recesses,
the refuge of wild animals of prey, particularly bears, panthers,
and wild cats. During a fire in these swamps, 10 or 12 years ago,
numbers were hunted down, who had fled before the rapid flames.
A resident in that neighbourhood informed me that he had seen 17
of these animals, some half-burned, hung upon a single tree. In
respect to the children noticed by Lord Monboddo, I cannot, in any
history of either Virginia or North Carolina, find the least hint
of such a circumstance having occurred; nor does the writer specify
the period when they were found. Is it not probable that these
outcasts from society (admitting the noble author to be rightly
informed) were the offspring of aboriginal females, compelled to
seek shelter in these swamps from the invading colonist, or from
some hostile tribe?--Amongst the innumerable tribes of Indians in
Virginia and North Carolina, the _Tuskaroras_ were perhaps most
powerful, and most immediately in the vicinity of this large tract.
These aborigines were not all dispersed or destroyed until 1803,
some of them living peaceably on the reserved lands. The main body
of this tribe of Indians had migrated to New York state, and joined
the Senecas, (one of the Six Nations,) many years preceding. Is it
not probable, I again ask, that the young savages of lord Monboddo
did, in fact, inherit the name from their birth? I would ask, as a
matter of curiosity, of yourselves, Messrs. Editors, or any of your
correspondents, answers to the following questions: When were these
children found? Of what age when discovered? By whom found? What
became of them? Could they be taught the use of speech?

  [2] This great swamp, containing nearly 150,000 acres, lies more in
  North Carolina than Virginia. It is a marshy region, covered with
  a thick growth of cypress or juniper, many of which trees are of a
  prodigious growth. These trees are occasionally intermingled with
  oak, poplar, and maple. The annual fall of leaves, and the decay
  of trees, raise the surface above the original soil some feet,
  this part being completely saturated with water. The improvements
  in agriculture have done much to drain this vast surface, and many
  parts are sufficiently dry for the shingle-cutters and stave-makers
  to pursue their avocations in spots of this dreary region.

Lord Monboddo maintains that speech is not natural to man, and
that the want of it is no proof that the Ourang-Outang is not of
the same species, as that animal only wants the _artificial_ use
of it. King John, of England,[3] held the same hypothesis upwards
of five centuries before. Tradition (for such records are beneath
the dignity of history) asserts, that this monarch imprisoned two
children (a male and female) in separate cells.[4] When, at a
certain age, they were brought before him, each of these little
victims repeated a sarcasm on his folly in thus confining them. He
considered his hypothesis as confirmed, but punished the keepers.
The legend is here torn, and we do not learn (supposing it true)
what became of the children, or what further progress they made in
language. That man has the power, as well as the organs of speech,
it appears an absurdity to deny; for, what country has ever been
discovered where the natives had not the means of communicating
verbally with each other? In the earliest records of the world
we find no sanction for such an opinion; for the Antediluvians
were certainly not defective in the power or use of speech to
convey their ideas. If we deny this we virtually acknowledge our
belief that the Mosaic account of the creation is "a cunningly
devised fable." After the Flood we cannot doubt that Noah and his
descendants still spoke the language of Adam. "All the nations
spoke one language." Lord Kames contends that, after the building
of Babel, "men again degenerated into a savage state," which he
attributes to the confusion of tongues, and the dispersion of the
tribes. We are no where told that they lost or forgot the use of
speech, which lord Monboddo considers incidental to the savage state.

  [3] The Prince John of Ivanhoe, whom Hume characterises as replete
  "with cowardice, inactivity, folly, levity, licentiousness,
  ingratitude, treachery, tyranny, and cruelty." What a tissue of
  crimes! And this was a King!

  [4] In Newark Castle, where John died in 1216.

Lord Kames appears to take it for granted that _all_ the men then
in existence were engaged in this stupendous and impious attempt
to scale Heaven, and "make themselves a name."--This idea is not
conveyed by the sacred historian; it therefore appears probable
that the tribes which continued together still spoke the _original
language_, and remained in one place, and as one people. I fear
I have trespassed on your limits, but the subject arose from the
preceding remarks. I conclude with reiterating my request respecting
the children found in the Dismal Swamp.

[_Nat. Int._



ARTIFICIAL STONE FLOORS _and coverings for houses as made in some
parts of Russia_.


The floors and coverings of houses in some parts of South Russia
are made in the following manner:--For a floor let the ground be
made even, and some stones of any shape be put on, and with a heavy
wooden rammer force or break the stones into the ground, continuing
to beat the floor until it becomes quite even, and incapable of
receiving any further impression. Then run lime, immediately after
it has been slacked, through a fine sieve as expeditiously as
possible, because exposure to the air weakens the lime. Mix two
parts of coarse sand or washed gravel, for there must be no earth in
it, with one part of lime powder, and wet them with bullock's blood;
so little moist however, as merely to prevent the lime blowing away
in powder--in short, the less moist the better: spread it on the
floor, and without a moment's loss of time, let several men be ready
with large beetles to beat the mixture, which will become more and
more moist by the excessive beating requisite. Then put on it some
of the dry sand and lime mixed, and beat it till like a stone. If
required to be very fine, take for the next layer finely sifted
lime, with about a tenth part of rye flour, and a little ox blood;
beat it with a trowel. The next day again smooth it with a trowel,
and so continue to do daily till it be entirely dry. When it is
quite dry and hard, rub it over with fresh ox blood, taking off all
which it will not imbibe. No wet will penetrate this composition,
which, however, after some time is often painted with oil colours.
The whole floor appears as a single stone, and nothing will affect
it.--The drier it is used the better, provided that with much
beating it becomes like a very stiff mortar, and evidently forms a
compact body.

On flat tops of houses, the beetles or rammers' ends must be
smaller, to prevent the rebounding of the boards and timber, which
would crack the cement; but, when the thickness of a foot is laid
on, it will beat more firmly. A thick coating of ox blood, flour
and lime, being beat in large, strong wooden troughs, or mortar,
till it can be spread with a trowel, may be used without beating
it again on the floor or house-top: but it must be very stiff, and
used most expeditiously. Even frost will not affect it. With this
composition, artificial stone may be made, rammed very hard into
strong wooden frames of the required shape, particularly to turn
arches for buildings of rammed earth. It is well known that earth
which is not too argillaceous, with only the moisture it has when
fresh dug, on being rammed between frames of wood till the rammer
will no longer impress it, makes eternal walls; but a mass as hard
as stone may be made with a little lime added to sand, horse-dung,
or ox blood. The more the lime is beaten, the moister it becomes,
and it must contain so much moisture as to become by beating a solid
mass, adhering in all its parts, and not remain crumbling, that will
properly set as a mortar. If there be too little moisture at first,
it will remain a powder; if there be too much it will become a soft
mortar. Lime is of no use mixed with clay or vegetable earths,
which, if well beaten, are stronger without it.



FROM A LATE ENGLISH PAPER.

ATTACK BY BEES.


Some days ago the following singular narrative appeared in the
Berlin Gazette: it was furnished to that paper by M. Eulert, a
merchant of that city, who was himself the party principally
concerned:--

"I was travelling," says M. Eulert, "on the 20th of July, at 7
o'clock in the morning, in my carriage, accompanied by my wife, on
my way from Wirtemberg to Berlin, between Kroppstadt and the town
of Schmogelsdorf, which is contiguous to the high road; I observed
one of my horses rub himself with uneasiness against the other.
I remarked to my wife that the animal no doubt was stung by a
horse-fly. Whilst we were talking upon the subject, we were suddenly
surrounded by a swarm of bees, so thick, that our carriage horses,
coachman, my wife, and myself, were completely covered. The furious
insects attached themselves immediately to the nose, mouth, eyes and
ears of each horse; the two animals seemed to be deprived of every
sense, and as if overcome with stupor, they lay down, and stretched
themselves out an unresisting prey to the bees.

"As soon as we perceived this cloud of insects to lessen around us,
my wife threw over her hat the hood of her night cloak, got out of
the carriage, went back a little way on the road, and instinctively
fled into the ditch, where she lay down with her face to the earth.
I exerted myself in the meantime in endeavouring to get over this
disaster; I went also out of the carriage, and covering my face and
neck with my handkerchief, I re-ascended the carriage, and with all
my strength cried out for help.--Three peasants, a short distance
off, had all the while calmly observed my situation; but neither
by the offer of reward, nor by the most urgent entreaty, could I
prevail upon them to render us any assistance; they turned their
backs upon us, and pursued their way to the village. In this unhappy
plight I walked on for half an hour, when I met the road-keeper,
named Daniel Arndt, and a carrier, named David Henry, accompanied
by some labourers, and driving a cart with three horses.--Still
tormented by the bees, and pursued by them with inconceivable
bitterness, I breathed at last, and was relieved by this rencontre,
as these good people had lighted tobacco pipes, and the smoke
dispersed my disagreeable guests.

"The carrier being informed of the danger, in order not to expose
himself to it, would not stir one pace further; and as the bees
began to surround us on all sides, he unharnessed his team, left
his cart laden with goods on the road, and took a by-way in order
to place his horses under shelter in the village. Soon after the
other people accompanied me to where my horses were, and they
brought with them an abundance of hay and straw. There we found my
unfortunate coachman stretched in the ditch, his head and hands
all covered with bees, so that the road-keeper was obliged to use
a brush to get them off his face; his hair was matted with blood,
and as the insects could not be extricated, they were crushed to
death.--Whilst this operation was going on, we set fire to the
straw, and succeeded in driving away the bees.

"As soon as the carrier had placed his horses in safety, he came
back to us having fortified himself in every way against the bees,
and showed himself anxious to give all the assistance in his power
to my horses.--But one of them was so severely injured, that he died
the same day. The other was conducted to Schmogelsdorf; but though
the veterinary surgeon exhausted all his skill, the animal perished
in twenty-four hours after.

"My coachman had brought his misfortune on himself, because, in
endeavouring to succour the horses, he had lost his hat. The bees
fastened on his naked head, and deprived him of his senses, and
for forty-eight hours he remained in a state of suffering that
threatened to terminate in his death. We were supplied with horses,
and had him conveyed to Treuenbrietzen, where he recovered. He had
at first cried out so vehemently for assistance, that the bees got
into his mouth and throat. I myself passed twenty-four hours in
extreme pain at the same place, and was compelled to apply several
poultices, to my head, neck, and ears, to appease the inflammation.

"My wife, who, as if by inspiration, threw herself down into the
ditch, came out again perfectly safe--and in a few days after, the
coachman and I were at length entirely recovered.

"I attribute this accident to two causes. In the first place, I now
believe it was not a horse fly that stung the horse, as I at first
supposed, but rather the queen bee, which must have been killed when
the animal rubbed against his companion. I conjecture this to have
been the case, from the natural history of these insects; it is very
common to see a swarm of bees, when deprived of their leading queen,
unite with other swarms, and fall with a species of madness, upon
the first objects they encounter.

"In the next place, I attribute the circumstance to the fact, that,
contrary to express prohibition of the magistrates, the Commune of
Schmogelsdorf, besides its proper number of 900 hives, takes in
an equal number from the neighbouring communes to tend during the
time of swarming, because the flowers, fields and gardens which it
contains, present a singularly rich pasture for such insects. Hence
it happens, that in a small space nearly two thousand hives are
crowded together, so that in the season of swarming it is dangerous
to pass that way.



ZOOLOGY Of THE SPITZBERGEN WHALE.

Extracted from Scoresby's valuable work, "Arctic Voyages," &c. just
published.


Erroneous opinions have been entertained respecting the Whale (the
Balæna Mysticetus) having been of a much larger size in former
times than now: from a comparison of the preceding accounts of all
credible witnesses, the author says--

"Hence I conceive we may satisfactorily conclude, that whales
of as large size are found now, as at any former period since
the Spitzbergen fishery was discovered; and I may also remark,
that where any respectable authority affords actual measurements
exceeding 70 feet, it will always be found that the specimen
referred to, was not one of the Mysticetus kind, but of the B.
Physalis, or the B. Musculus, animals which considerably exceed
in length any of the common whales that I have either heard of,
or met with. When fully grown, therefore, the length of the whale
may be stated as varying from 50 to 65, and rarely, if ever,
reaching 70 feet; and its greatest circumference from 30 to 40
feet. It is thickest a little behind the fins, or in the middle,
between the anterior and posterior extremes of the animal; from
whence it gradually tapers in a conical form, towards the tail, and
slightly towards the head. Its form is cylindrical from the neck,
to within ten feet of the tail, beyond which it becomes somewhat
quadrangular, the greatest ridge being upward, or on the back, and
running backward nearly across the middle of the tail. The head has
somewhat of a triangular shape. The under-part, the arched outline
of which is given by the jaw-bones, is flat, and measures 16 to 20
feet in length, and 10 to 12 in breadth. The lips, extending 15 to
20 feet in length, and 5 or 6 in height, and forming the cavity
of the mouth, are attached to the under-jaw, and rise from the
jaw-bones, at an angle of about 80 degrees, having the appearance,
when viewed in front, of the letter U. The upper jaw, including the
'crown-bone,' or skull, is bent down at the extremity, so as to
shut the front and upper parts of the cavity of the mouth, and is
overlapped by the lips in a squamous manner at the sides. When the
mouth is open, it presents a cavity as large as a room, and capable
of containing a merchant-ship's jolly-boat, full of men, being 6 or
8 feet wide, 10 or 12 feet high (in front), and 15 or 16 feet long.
The fins, two in number, are placed between one-third and two-fifths
of the length of the animal, from the snout, and about two feet
behind the angle of the mouth. They are 7 to 9 feet in length, and
4 or 5 in breadth. The part by which they are attached to the body,
is somewhat elliptical, and about 2 feet in diameter; the side which
strikes the water is nearly flat. The articulation being perfectly
spherical, the fins are capable of motion in any direction; but,
from the tension of the flesh and skin below, they cannot be raised
above the horizontal position. Hence the account given by some
naturalists, that the whale supports its young by its fins, on its
back, must be erroneous. The fins, after death, are always hard and
stiff; but, in the living animal, it is presumed, from the nature
of the internal structure, that they are capable of considerable
flexion. The whale has no dorsal fin. The tail, comprising, in a
single surface, 80 or 100 square feet, is a formidable instrument of
motion and defence. Its length is only 5 or 6 feet; but its width is
18 to 24 or 26 feet. Its position is horizontal. In its form it is
flat and semi-lunar; indented in the middle; the two lobes somewhat
pointed, and turned a little backward. Its motions are rapid and
universal; its strength immense. The eyes are situated in the sides
of the head, about a foot obliquely above and behind the angle of
the mouth. They are remarkably small in proportion to the bulk of
the animal's body, being little larger than those of an ox. The
whale has no external ear; not can any orifice for the admission of
sound be discovered until the skin is removed.

On the most elevated part of the head, about 16 feet from the
anterior extremity of the jaw, are situated the blow-holes, or
spiracles; consisting of two longitudinal apertures 6 or eight
inches in length. These are the proper nostrils of the whale. A
moist vapour, mixed with mucus, is discharged from them, when the
animal breathes; but no water accompanies it, unless an expiration
of the breath be made under the surface.

The mouth, in place of teeth, contains two extensive rows of "fins,"
or whalebone, which are suspended from the sides of the crown-bone.
These series of fins are generally curved longitudinally, although
they are sometimes straight, and give an arched form to the roof of
the mouth.--They are covered immediately by the lips attached to the
lower jaw, and enclose the tongue between their lower extremities.
Each series or "side of bone," as the whalefishers term it, consists
of upwards of 300 laminæ; the longest are near the middle, from
whence they gradually diminish away to nothing at each extremity.
Fifteen feet is the greatest length of the whalebone; but 10 or
11 feet is the average size, and 13 feet is a magnitude seldom
met with. The greatest breadth, which is at the gum, is 10 or 12
inches. The laminæ, composing the two series of bone, are ranged
side by side, two thirds of an inch apart, (thickness of the blade
included,) and resemble a frame of saws, in a saw-mill. The interior
edges are covered with a fringe of hair, and the exterior edge of
every blade, excepting a few at each extremity of the series, is
curved and flattened down, so as to present a smooth surface to
the lips. In some whales, a curious hollow on one side, and ridge
on the other, occurs in many of the central blades of whalebone,
at regular intervals of 6 or 7 inches.--May not this irregularity,
like the rings in the horns of the ox, which they resemble, afford
an intimation of the age of the whale? If so, twice the number of
running feet in the longest laminæ of whalebone in the head of a
whale not full grown, would represent its age in years. In the
youngest whales, called _suckers_, the whalebone is only a few
inches long; when the length reaches 6 feet or upwards, the whale is
said to be _size_. The colour of the whalebone is brownish-black,
or bluish-black. In some animals, it is striped longitudinally
with white. When newly cleaned, the surface exhibits a fine play
of colour. A large whale sometimes affords a ton and a half of
whalebone. If the "sample blade," that is, the largest lamina in
the series, weigh 7 pounds, the whole produce may be estimated
at a ton; and so on in proportion. The whalebone is inserted into
the crown-bone, in a sort of rabbet. All the blades in the same
series are connected together by the gum, in which the thick ends
are inserted. This substance, (the gum,) is white, fibrous, tender,
and tasteless. It cuts like cheese. It has the appearance of the
interior or kernel of the cocoa-nut.

The tongue occupies a large proportion of the cavity of the mouth,
and the arch formed by the whalebone. It is incapable of protrusion,
being fixed from root to tip, to the fat extending between the
jaw-bones.--A slight beard, consisting of a short scattered white
hair, surmounts the anterior extremity of both jaws. The throat is
remarkably strait.

Two paps in the female, afford the means of rearing its young. The
milk of the whale resembles that of quadrupeds in its appearance. It
is said to be rich and well-flavoured.

Immediately beneath the skin lies the _blubber_ or fat, encompassing
the whole body of the animal, together with the fins and tail. Its
colour is yellowish-white, yellow, or red. In the very young animal
it is always yellowish-white. In some old animals, it resembles
in colour the substance of the salmon. It swims in water. Its
thickness all round the body, is 8 or 10 to 20 inches, varying in
different parts as well as in different individuals. The lips are
composed almost entirely of blubber, and yield from one to two
tons of pure oil each. The tongue is chiefly composed of a soft
kind of fat, that affords less oil than any other blubber; in the
centre of the tongue, and towards the root, this fat is intermixed
with fibres of a muscular substance. The under jaw, excepting the
two jaw-bones, consists almost wholly of fat; and the crown-bone
possesses a considerable coating of it. The fins are principally
blubber, tendons, and bones; and the tail possesses a thin stratum
of blubber. The oil appears to be retained in the blubber in minute
cells, connected together by a strong reticulated combination of
tendinous fibres. The blubber, in its fresh state, is without any
unpleasant smell; and it is not until after the termination of the
voyage, when the cargo is unstowed, that a Greenland ship becomes
disagreeable.

Four tons of blubber by measure, generally afford three tons of oil;
but the blubber of a sucker contains a very small proportion. Whales
have been caught that afforded nearly thirty tons of pure oil;
and whales yielding twenty tons of oil, are by no means uncommon.
The quantity of oil yielded by a whale, generally bears a certain
proportion to the length of its longest blade of whalebone.

A stout whale of sixty feet in length, is of the enormous weight of
seventy tons; the blubber weighs about thirty tons, the bones of
the head, whalebone, fins and tail, eight or ten; carcase thirty or
thirty-two.

The flesh of the young whale is of a red colour; and when cleared of
fat, broiled, and seasoned with pepper and salt, does not eat unlike
coarse beef; that of the old whale approaches to black, and is
exceedingly coarse.--An immense bed of muscles surrounding the body,
is appropriated chiefly to the movements of the tail.

The number of ribs, according to Sir Charles Giesecké, is thirteen
on each side. The bones of the fins are analogous, both in
proportion and number, to those of the fingers of the human hand.
From this peculiarity of structure, the fins have been denominated
by Dr. Flemming, "swimming paws." The posterior extremity of the
whale, however, is a real tail; the termination of the spine or
coccygis, running through the middle of it almost to the edge.

The whale seems dull of hearing. A noise in the air, such as that
produced by a person shouting, is not noticed by it, though at the
distance only of a ship's length; but a very slight splashing in
the water, in calm weather, excites its attention, and alarms it.
Its sense of seeing is acute. Whales are observed to discover one
another, in clear water, when under the surface, at an amazing
distance. When at the surface, however, they do not see far. They
have no voice; but in breathing or _blowing_, they make a very loud
noise. The vapour they discharge, is ejected to the height of some
yards, and appears at a distance, like a puff of smoke. When the
animals are wounded, it is often stained with blood; and, on the
approach of death, jets of blood are sometimes discharged alone.
They blow strongest, densest, and loudest, when, "running," when in
a state of alarm, or when they first appear at the surface, after
being a long time down. They respire or blow about four or five
times a-minute.

The usual rate at which whales swim, even when they are on their
passage from one situation to another, seldom exceeds four miles an
hour; and though when urged by the sight of any enemy, or alarmed
by the stroke of a harpoon, their extreme velocity may be at the
rate of eight or nine miles an hour: yet we find this speed never
continues longer than for a few minutes, before it relaxes almost to
one-half. Hence, for the space of a few minutes, they are capable
of darting through the water, with the velocity almost of the
fastest ship under sail, and of ascending with such rapidity as to
leap entirely out of the water. This feat they sometimes perform
as an amusement apparently, to the high admiration of the distant
spectator; but to the no small terror of the unexperienced fishers
who, even under such circumstances, are often ordered, by the
foolhardy harpooner, to "pull away" to the attack. Sometimes the
whales throw themselves into a perpendicular posture, with their
heads downward, and, rearing their tails on high in the air, beat
the water with awful violence.--In both these cases, the sea is
thrown into foam, and the air filled with vapours; the noise, in
calm weather, is heard to a great distance; and the concentric waves
produced by the concussions on the water, are communicated abroad
to a considerable extent. Sometimes the whale shakes its tremendous
tail in the air, which, cracking like a whip, resounds to the
distance of two or three miles.

When it retires from the surface, it first lifts its head, then
plunging it under water, elevates its back like the segment of a
sphere, deliberately rounds it away towards the extremity, throws
its tail out of the water, and then disappears.

In their usual conduct, whales remain at the surface to breathe,
about two minutes, seldom longer; during which time, they "blow"
eight or nine times, and then descend for an interval usually of
five or ten minutes; but sometimes, when feeding, fifteen or twenty.
The depth to which they commonly descend, is not known, though from
the "eddy" occasionally observed on the water, it is evidently, at
times, only trifling. But, when struck, the quantity of line they
sometimes take out of the boats, in a perpendicular descent, affords
a good measure of the depth. By this rule, they have been known to
descend to the depth of an English mile; and with such velocity,
that instances have occurred, in which whales have been drawn up by
the line attached, from a depth of 700 or 800 fathoms, and have been
found to have broken their jaw-bones, and sometimes crown-bone, by
the blow struck against the bottom. Some persons are of opinion,
that whales can remain under a field of ice, or at the bottom of
the sea, in shallow water, when undisturbed, for many hours at a
time.--Whales are seldom found sleeping: yet, in calm weather, among
ice, instances occasionally occur.

The food of the whale consists of various species of actiniæ,
cliones, sepiæ, medusæ, cancri, and helices; or at least some of
these genera are always to be seen whenever any tribe of whales
is found stationary and feeding. In the dead animals, however, in
the very few instances in which I have been enabled to open their
stomachs, squillæ or shrimps were the only substances discovered.
In the mouth of a whale just killed, I once found a quantity of the
same kind of insect.

When the whale feeds, it swims with considerable velocity below the
surface of the sea, with its jaws widely extended. A stream of water
consequently enters its capacious mouth, and along with it, large
quantities of water insects; the water escapes again at the sides;
but the food is entangled and sifted as it were, by the whalebone,
which, from its compact arrangement, and the thick internal covering
of hair, does not allow a particle the size of the smallest grain to
escape.



SIR JOSEPH BANKS.


On Monday morning, June 19, 1820, at 8 o'clock, died, at his house,
Spring Grove, near Hounslow, the venerable President of the Royal
Society, the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks, G. C. B. &c. &c. &c. The
loss to science by the demise of this excellent man and liberal
patron will be long and severely felt. It will be recollected, that
when it was determined to send Captain Cook on his first voyage
round the globe, Sir Joseph Banks, then a young man, whose ardent
mind glowed with a love of science and of ingenious enterprise,
determined to accompany him. His liberal spirit and generous
curiosity were regarded with admiration, and every convenience from
the government was readily supplied to render the circumstances of
the voyage as comfortable as possible. Far, however, from soliciting
any accommodation that might occasion expense to government, Mr.
Banks was ready to contribute largely out of his own private fortune
towards the general purposes of the expedition. He engaged as his
director in natural history during the voyage, and as the companion
of his researches, Dr. Solander, of the British museum, a Swede
by birth, and one of the most eminent pupils of Linnæus, whose
scientific merits had been his chief recommendation to patronage in
England. He also took with him two draughtsmen, one to delineate
views and figures, the other to paint subjects of natural history.
A secretary and four servants formed the rest of his suite. He took
care to provide likewise the necessary instruments for his intended
observations, with convenience for preserving such specimens as he
might collect of natural or artificial objects, and with stores
to be distributed in the remote isles he was going to visit, for
the improvement of the condition of savage life. In the course of
the voyage dangers were encountered of no ordinary magnitude. On
the coast of Terra del Fuego in an excursion to view the natural
productions of the country, Sir Joseph Banks and Dr. Solander had
nearly perished in a storm of snow. After passing a night on land,
amid the storm, they at last, and with much difficulty, made their
way back to the beach, and were received on board the ship; but
three of the persons who accompanied them were lost. Shortly after
his return from this voyage, Sir Joseph, in company with his friend
Dr. Solander, visited Iceland. A rich harvest of new knowledge
and of specimens compensated for the toils and expense of this
scientific adventure. They afterwards visited the Western Islands of
Scotland: and among other things worthy of notice, they discovered
the columna stratification of the rocks surrounding the caves of
Staffa; a phenomenon till then unobserved by naturalists, but was
no sooner made known in a description by Sir J. Banks, than it
became famous among men of science throughout Europe. In 1777, when
Sir John Pringle retired from the presidency of the Royal Society,
Sir Joseph Banks was elected to fill the vacant chair; and never
perhaps has it been filled with more honour to the individual, or
more advantage to the interests of science. His time, his wealth,
(which was a princely fortune,) his influence, his talents, an
incomparable library of science and art; knowledge and judgment
to advise; affability to conciliate and encourage; generosity to
assist; all in short of which he possessed, and it was all something
either of goodness or greatness, he made the patrimony of the
studious and learned, not of his own country alone, but of the whole
world.



CURIOUS FACTS IN NATURAL HISTORY.


The examination of flowers by the microscope opens a new field
of wonder to the inquiring naturalist; by which we are enabled
to perceive that the minutest works of Nature are adorned with
the most consummate elegance and beauty. As one proof, from
innumerable others that might be selected, I beg to subjoin Sir
John Hill's interesting account of what appeared on examining
a carnation;--first published in the Inspector, No. 109. "The
principal flower in this _bouquet_, was a _carnation_; the fragrance
of this led me to enjoy it frequently and nearly: the sense of
smelling was not the only one affected on these occasions; while
that was satiated with the powerful sweet, the ear was constantly
attacked by an extremely soft but agreeable murmuring sound. It
was easy to know that some animal, within the covert, must be the
musician, and that the little noise must come from some little body
suited to produce it. I instantly distended the lower part of the
flower, and, placing it in a full light, could discover troops of
little insects frisking and capering with wild jollity among the
narrow pedestals that supported its leaves, and the little threads
that occupied its centre! I was not cruel enough to pull out any one
of them for examination: but adapting a microscope to take in at one
view, the whole base of the flower, I gave myself an opportunity of
contemplating what they were about, and this for many days together
without giving them the least disturbance.--Thus could I discover
their economy, their passions and their enjoyments. The microscope,
on this occasion, had given what nature seemed to have denied to
the objects of contemplation. The base of the flower extended
itself under its influence to a vast plain; the slender stems of
the leaves became trunks of so many stately cedars; the threads in
the middle seemed columns of massy structure, supporting at the
top their several ornaments; and the narrow spaces between were
enlarged into walls, paterres, and terraces. On the polished bottom
of these, brighter than Parian marble, walked in pairs, alone, or in
larger companies, the winged inhabitants: these from little dusky
flies (for such only the naked eye would have shown them,) were
raised to glorious glittering animals, stained with living purple,
and with a glossy gold that would have made all the labours of the
loom contemptible in the comparison. I could, at leisure as they
walked together, admire their elegant limbs, their velvet shoulders,
and their silken wings; their backs vieing with the empyrean
in its blue; and their eyes, each formed of a thousand others,
out-glittering the little planes on a brilliant; above description,
and too great almost for admiration. Here were the perfumed groves,
the more than myrtle shades, of the poet's fancy, realized; here
the little animals spent their days in joyful dalliance; or in the
triumph of their little hearts, skipped after one another from stem
to stem among the painted trees; or winged their short flight to
the close shadow of some broader leaf, to revel undisturbed in the
heights of all felicity."



ABSENCE OF MIND.


Among a number of instances of the celebrated Dr. Moncey's absence
of mind, is one which he frequently mentioned, and laughed at
heartily, when in good humour, at the same time observing that
his brother was as bad as himself. The doctor being once on a
visit to his brother, in Norfolk, in the beginning of winter, and
intending to set off for London the next day, his brother proposed
to go and shoot wild ducks early in the morning, that he might
carry two or three couple fresh killed to London with him. The
servant was ordered to clean the long fowling piece, get plenty
of powder and shot, and to goose-grease their boots. Every thing
being in readiness according to their desire, about an hour before
day-light the doctor and his brother set off for the place where
the ducks resort, in order to be there by the break of day, when
they generally take wing to go to feed. They had walked nearly three
miles, and it having rained in the night, the clay mud wall was very
dirty and greasy, when they heard the cry of the ducks. They were
now obliged to get over the wall and the gate, across a sluice into
the marsh where the ducks were. The rain had raised the water about
a foot. It was then proposed that one should go over, and the other
remain behind. Says the doctor, "George, do you go over, for I have
forgotten my boots." "So have I doctor," says his brother; "but we
wont lose our sport, as we have come so far." So both waded through,
and got over the gate into the marsh, and advancing along the fleet,
they at length perceived the ducks. "You are near enough, George,"
said the doctor.--"Aye," replied George, "I think we are not above
a hundred yards off." "Why then fire," says the doctor.--"Do you
fire," returned George. "Why I hav'nt got the gun; do you fire."
"I fire! why I have not got the gun," said his brother, "I thought
you had it. What a fine opportunity is lost. Here are not less than
thirty ducks within shot, and neither of us have got the gun."



LIFE-PRESERVER.


The following simple method of rescuing drowning persons from a
watery grave, is contained in a long article on that subject, in a
late Liverpool paper, and is deserving of attention. The writer says:

If any one estimate inventions in the inverse ratio of their
simplicity, they will smile to hear that the life-preserver which
I have so highly extolled, is no more than a _hat_ and _pocket
handerchief_;[5] so that every man has, at all times, about his
person an apparatus which may be the means of saving the life of his
fellow creature.

  [5] A large silk handkerchief is the best for the occasion.

With these simple means any man who can swim may safely venture into
the water, with the certainty of rescuing a drowning person. All the
preparation, which need not occupy ten seconds, is this: Spread the
handkerchief out on the ground, and place the hat upon it in the
centre, with the crown upwards, in the ordinary position of wearing;
then gather up the four corners of the handerchief over the crown
of the hat, giving it a few twists for the greater convenience of
grasping with the hand. The hat must then be inverted, (the crown
downwards.) In this position, it is confidently asserted, any person
may safely enter the water, as the cavity of the hat contains, a
much greater quantity of air than is requisite to sustain any man. I
found that the hat with which I tried the experiment, would almost
support me and another person clinging to me, neither of us making
the least effort to float by any motion of the hands and feet. The
mode I should adopt, however, in using the life-preserver, would be
to give up the handkerchief to the person whose life was in danger,
and immediately to disengage myself from him. He would soon discover
that he was buoyed up, and would recover his presence of mind; but,
whether he did or not, it would be of little consequence, as long
as he retained his grasp of the handkerchief. Whilst he was thus
supported, nothing could be more easy than to push him to the shore
with one hand, swimming with the other.



JOHN O'GROAT'S HOUSE.


The place so denominated is still a land-mark, although the house
has long fallen to decay; so totally so that not a vestige remains;
but the scite is an object of curiosity to travellers, for the
singularity of the building, which tradition has preserved the form
of, and the motive for its erection. In the reign of James the VIth
of Scotland, (James the Ist of England,) two brothers, named Malcomb
Gavin, and John O'Groat, arrived in Caithness from Holland, and it
is said brought letters from the King. They purchased or possessed
themselves of the lands of Warse and Duningsbay, lying near the
Portland Hills. They increased in course of time to eight families:
here they lived peaceably and comfortably for many years, and held
an annual feast to commemorate the landing of their ancestors. Could
it be supposed that any petty distinctions should have a tendency
to interrupt the family harmony? but so it was. Each head of the
families contended for the seniority and chieftainship of the
clan. The ingenuity of one (a John O'Groat) settled the dispute
for precedency, which arose upon the importance of sitting at the
head of the table, and the right of entering first in at the door!
John occupied a ferry, and his daily intercourse with strangers had
enlarged his ideas: he expostulated with his clan on the folly of
their pretensions, and represented, that quarrels amongst themselves
would render them obnoxious to the people where they had settled.
John's reasoning prevailed, and they agreed to be guided by him: in
due time he fulfilled his plan to reconcile their discordant ideas.
He built a very large room in an octagon form, with eight doors
and eight windows in it; in this room he placed a massy oak table
with eight sides. At the next anniversary meeting, he requested
each head of the families to enter at the door most convenient to
their dwelling at the same moment; he then took the unoccupied seat.
The scite, as has been observed, is still celebrated, and will be
so, whilst good intentions, and a plain useful understanding, are
considered estimable qualities. Fully to appreciate this, we should
recollect the deadly feuds which frequently arose in Scotland in
former days, even on less grounds than precedency.



HARTFORD FAIR.

From the Connecticut Mirror.


     To the Executive Committee of the Hartford County Agricultural
     Society. The Committee appointed to examine Domestic
     Manufactures, and award premiums to those who in their opinion
     are entitled to them, respectfully report:

That notwithstanding the unpleasant weather, the articles they
were called to inspect were greater in number, and in general much
superior in quality to those exhibited last year.

There were some woollen cloths of a finer texture and finish, than
that which obtained the premium, but a part of them were not of
the requisite width, and others were dyed in the piece, while your
committee felt it their duty to give the preference to cloth dyed in
the wool. A piece inferior to the premium cloth sold for $2.50 per
yard.

It was with much satisfaction that our committee remarked the
improvement in the manufacture of Carpeting; last year but one piece
offered for their inspection was filled with wool, while this year
most of those exhibited were of that description. They were also
gratified to learn that the premium carpets were all spun and dyed
in the family.

The committee are of opinion that scarcely any thing submitted to
their examination denotes so rapid an improvement in taste and
domestic industry, as the hearth rugs--those which were this year
exhibited displayed an elegance both in their design and execution,
which in articles of that kind is rarely met with.

Many of the flannels were of a quality much superior to those
exhibited last year. A large part of them sold at from eighty cents
to one dollar; and the premium flannel brought $1.25 by the piece.

The premium blankets excited universal attention, and were equally
admired for their beauty and for their more substantial qualities.
We have never seen any superior to them imported from England; they
measured nearly twelve quarters, and sold for $14.25.

The quantity of hosiery was much greater than at our former
exhibition--many pairs of stockings sold at from 80 cents to $1.50.

Premiums were awarded to two very fine elegant finished grass
bonnets, made by the Miss Woodhouses of Weathersfield, and which
are rarely surpassed in beauty by the most costly Leghorns. One
very little inferior was also exhibited, made by Miss Hanmer of
the same place. They were made of the Poa Pratensis or spear grass,
and those which received the premiums sold one for 27 dollars, the
other 30 dollars. Another of a quality almost equal to those just
mentioned was made by a young lady of Windsor, of the sweet-scented
vernal grass, and one of split straw by Miss Capen of Hartford, was
remarkable for its extraordinary delicacy of texture.

The linen diapers were equal to any of English fabric, and the linen
shirting which obtained the premium sold for 4_s._ 6_d._ per yard.
The committee would suggest to such as may hereafter be candidates
for the premium on linen goods, the necessity of bleaching them,
since after that process, their comparative merits can be more
fairly ascertained.

The butter and cheese were excellent--the former sold for 16 cents,
and a large quantity of the latter for 10 cents per pound.

Many articles were also exhibited for which no premiums were
offered, yet which attracted the particular attention of the
committee and the numerous spectators. Among these were some highly
finished treble-gilt buttons, from the manufactory of Mr. Moses
Cook. The carpeting ingeniously manufactured from bul-rushes and
woollen yarn; white silk hose, white linen hose, white and coloured
counterpanes; a vandyke remarkable for its softness and beauty, made
from the silk that covers the seed of the milk-weed; an excellent
imitation of the Scotch plaid; and some elegant paper-hangings from
the manufactory of Mr. George Putnam. While the committee could
not but regret that the state of our funds precluded the offering
premiums for such meritorious articles, yet they were highly
gratified to perceive that it is not the hope of gain alone which
produces such a splendid collection of domestic manufactures, but
that there exists among all classes of the community a patriotic
wish to give interest to our exhibition.

Your committee cannot close their report, without congratulating
you, gentlemen, and the public at large, on the brilliant prospects
of our infant society.

The general superiority of the articles we this year inspected, to
those offered at our former exhibition, together with that lively
interest they excited in the candidates for premiums, and the
thousands of spectators who assembled to witness the productions
of their industry, clearly evince that domestic manufactures are
rapidly gaining that importance in public estimation which they so
richly deserve.

All which is respectfully submitted.

  GEO. COWLES, _Chairman_.



ANECDOTE.


Catherine Shaw, daughter of John Shaw, of Bargarron, having acquired
a remarkable degree of dexterity in spinning fine flax, conceived
the idea of manufacturing it into thread. Her first attempts were
necessarily on a small scale; she executed every part herself,
and bleached her materials on a large slate, placed in a window.
Succeeding, in her first essays, she engaged her family in the
process, and Lady Blentyre carried a parcel of the thread to Bath,
where she advantageously disposed of it to the lace manufacturers
there. This was the first thread that crossed the Tweed.
Subsequently a connection of the family went to Holland, and brought
from thence the secret of the twisting and twining machines in use
there, then carefully kept from public observation; also the art of
numbering the threads, and packing them for distant sale. The young
women of the neighbourhood engaged in it also, and it became an
object of profit and interest to the place. What, it will be asked,
became of the ingenious young woman who turned her talents to so
great private advantage, and eventually to such public utility.[6]
Surely she lived honoured, and died beloved. No! she was one of the
last victims to the imputed crime of witchcraft in the south of
Scotland! Amongst many others, she was accused of having evil agency
with spirits, and is described, in the records of those unhappy
times, as "young, handsome, and well-informed." Can it be possible
that the superior activity of her mind, and the industrious efforts
of her hands, could have involved her in the disgraceful and frantic
measures, which terminated in herself and five others being _burned
for witches_ in 1626? This unfortunate female was urged by her
friends to put in a plea to delay her execution--she replied, with
the dignity of a Roman matron. "No; my honour is already destroyed,
and my life is not worth defending!"

  [6] A Mr. Pollock, of Paisley, (where this unfortunate suffered
  death,) availed himself of the information of assistants in the
  business, and established a thread manufactory at that place, which
  is yet carried on to great extent.



MISCELLANY.


_Scissors._--A very valuable improvement has been made on Scissors.
It is especially so to those employed for delicate operations in
surgery. The objection to the common scissors is, that, in the
act of cutting, they, to a very considerable extent, compress
and bruise the parts. This is owing to the edges being set very
strong, and to the particular angle at which they are set, and is
sufficient to account for wounds made by scissors refusing to unite
by what surgeons call the first intention. To remedy this defect,
it was lately suggested to Mr. Stodart, by Dr. Wollastan, to give
to scissors the same kind of cutting edge that a knife has. This
has been done, and the success has fully justified the experiment.
The operation of hair lip has been repeatedly performed with the
knife-edged scissors, both on the infant and on the adult, with
complete success. The operation is in this way performed with
facility to the operator, and in less time than with the knife, and
consequently a less degree of pain to the patient. This improvement
need not be confined to the science of surgery. A variety of
delicate fancy work is performed by scissors, all of which will
be much better done by giving them knife-edges. There is a little
art in setting the edges, readily acquired by practice; this must
be done with a view to the kind of work for which the scissors are
intended. This improvement may easily be applied to common scissors,
by grinding down the outer sides of the blades.

[_Lon. pap._

_Public Spirit._--It has been my practice for several weeks past,
to walk upon one of our turnpike roads, and, for about two weeks,
I noticed a very large stone, lying in what is called the "summer
road," which I wished to remove, but my strength was not sufficient
to do it. It remained there as permanent, to the great annoyance
of all who passed that way in carriages. But one day as I was
passing it, I saw a stout negro fellow, whose cart was _beyond_
it as to the course which he was going, tugging at it, and he
finally succeeded in putting it out of the way, saying to himself
loud enough to be heard by me, as he laid it down, "now you can't
upset any body!" Pleased with the incident, I asked the man if he
often travelled that road. "No, sir," said he. "Why, then, did you
take so much trouble to remove that large stone?" "Because, sir,"
returned he, "it might have upset some one in the night!" I then
left him, reflecting that if all our politicians had a full portion
of the same public spirit, and all our self-righteous persons as
much of a desire to do good to their fellow men as this poor negro
exhibited--we should have a very different time of it!

[_Niles's Reg._

_Winter Butter._--An idea prevails very extensively, that _good
butter_ cannot be made in the winter. This is a great mistake. Where
the process is well understood, as fine butter is made in the depths
of winter, as at any season of the year. By pursuing the following
course, the matter will be accomplished:--

Let the cows be kept under cover in a warm stable, well fed with
the best hay and provender, and milked regularly morning and
evening.--Place the milk in pans, in as cold a place as may be found
about the dairy house--the sooner it freezes the better. As soon as
it is frozen thoroughly, take the cream from the top--the frost will
force the cream to the surface--and churn it with no other warmth
than the air of the kitchen at the distance of eight or ten feet
from the fire-place. It requires more time to fetch the butter than
in summer; but when brought it will be of the finest flavour and
quality.

_The Diamond._--Dr. Brewster has discovered a curious phenomenon,
which appears to elucidate the nature of this substance. Sir Isaac
Newton observed, from a comparison of the refractive powers of
various bodies, that amber and the diamond had a refractive power
three times greater, in respect of their densities, than several
other substances, and he conjectured that the diamond was "probably
an unctuous substance coagulated." Subsequent discoveries of the
properties of sulphur and phosphorous have corroborated this
opinion. Dr. Brewster has observed, both in flat diamonds and those
of a perfect crystalline form (as well as in amber,) the existence
of globules, or small portions of air, the expansive force of which
has communicated a polarizing structure to the parts in immediate
contact with it. This structure is displayed by four sectors of
polarizing light encircling the globule of air, and can be produced
artificially in glass and gelatinous masses. It must have been
produced by the expansive force of the included air, when the
substance was so soft as to be susceptible of comparison from so
small a force. Hence we are led to the conclusion that the diamond
originates, like amber, from the consolidation of perhaps vegetable
matter, gradually acquiring a crystalline form, by the influence of
time, and the slow action of corpsular forces.

_White Hills._--The White Hills in New Hampshire, are the highest in
the United States, being between 7 and 8000 feet above the level of
the ocean. The ascent is both difficult and dangerous, as the sides
of the mountains consist of naked, rugged, and precipitous rocks
over which the traveller is obliged to climb his slow and toilsome
way. The last of July and the first of August is the only time at
which they can be ascended at all, as they are the rest of the year
covered with snow.

_Sizing._--A French chemist has recently discovered, that from
the starch of potatoes quite fresh, and washed but once, a fine
_size_, by mixing with chalk, might be made. The stucco plasterers
of this country have been benefited by the discovery, and they find
that this kind of size is particularly useful for ceilings and for
white-washing, being more durable in tenacity and whiteness, and not
putrifying like animal size or exhaling any unwholesome odour.

_Arabian Horses._--Three fine Arabian horses have arrived at Boston
from Tripoli. They are owned by R. B. Jones, Esq. late American
Consul at that place, and a Mr. Morgan.

_Transplanting Wheat._--In the month of August, 1795, a gentleman of
Herefordshire, in England, set a single grain of wheat. As soon as
it had properly taken root, he dug it up, divided it into several
parts, and transplanted them. In August 1796, it was reaped, when it
produced 137 ears; the average of which was 80 grains in the ear;
the total produce 10,960 grains of wheat, besides the straw, most of
which was seven feet high.

_Fall of a Glacier._--On the 27th of December, at six o'clock in the
morning, an enormous portion of the glacier of Weisshorn, in the
valley of St. Nicholas, or Vispach, fell from its exalted situation
into the valley, causing dreadful devastation amongst the cultivated
grounds and habitations. At the moment when the ice and snow struck
the masses lying beneath, the minister of the place, and many other
persons, observed a strong light, which immediately disappeared,
and gave place to utter darkness. This phenomenon, from the
brightness of the light, and the number of persons who saw it, can
scarcely be considered as illusory. It was probably an electrical
or phosphorescent effect. The mass of ice and snow covered a space
of 2400 feet in length, 1000 feet wide, and at a mean 150 feet in
height, and the displacement of the air by it was such as to cause
a hurricane, which destroyed houses, mills, and buildings, even to
the distance of a quarter of a league from the place of the fall.
Extreme fears are entertained for the remains of the village of
Ronds, which stands opposite the glacier, for the upper part of the
glacier, left unsupported by the part which has given way, threatens
to fall and complete the distress which has been brought upon the
inhabitants of the valley.

_Evolution of Heat by freezing._--M. de la Becha has devised
an ingenious way of shewing the heat evolved by water during
congelation. He places a glass vessel, containing in its lower part
water, and upon that olive oil, in a temperature below the freezing
point of water. In this temperature olive oil alone would freeze
and thicken, but, being placed over water, it is retained in the
fluid state, in consequence of the heat evolved by the water during
its conversion into ice; and it is not until the whole of the water
is perfectly frozen that the oil itself will freeze.--_Bibliotheque
Universelle_, xiii. 76.

_Printing in Otaheite._--M. Turgenieff, Counsellor of State, has
made a report to the Bible Society of Petersburg, in which it is
stated that the English missionaries, have established a press at
Otaheite, at which 3000 bibles have been printed. They were all sold
in the space of three days, for three gallons of cocoa-nut oil each.
The books of Moses, translated into the Otaheitean language, have
been printed at the same press; also a catechism for the use of the
inhabitants. These have been distributed gratuitously.

_Animal Magnetism._--The Royal Academy of Sciences at Berlin have
proposed animal magnetism as a prize subject, essays on which are
to be rewarded in August 1820. It is desired that the phenomena,
known by the name of animal magnetism, be described so as to admit
of a positive judgment respecting their nature: and it is observed
that, though there are many difficulties attached to the subject,
still it appears that the number of facts ascertained is such as to
admit the hope that, in the present state of the physical sciences,
some light may be thrown on animal magnetism, when the probability
of these facts has been estimated, and when their analogy with the
better understood phenomena of natural sleep, dreams, somnambulism
not magnetic, and many nervous affections, has been established.

_Milk._--Professor Schubler has published in the Dictionary of
Medical Sciences, a paper entitled, "Researches on Milk and its
constituent Principles." The results of his analysis differ greatly
from those lately published by Berzelius; and hence, in the
author's opinion, prove the great influence of food and climate on
the lacteal secretion. 1000 parts of new milk contain 110 of fresh
cheese, 50 of fresh _serai_, 24 of butter, 77 of coarse sugar of
milk, and 739 water; or, in a dry state, 42.6 cheese, 7.87 _serai_,
24.0 butter, 77.0 sugar of milk, and 848.53 water. 1000 parts of
skimmed milk contain 43.64 dry cheese, 8.06 dry _serai_, 78.94
sugar of milk, and 869.34 water. 1000 parts of cream contain 240
butter, 33 cheese, 6 _serai_, and 721 whey. Lastly, 721 parts of
whey contain 60 coarse sugar of milk.--These observations were made
at Howfyl, which is some distance from the mountains, and where the
cows are kept constantly in the stable, so that the milk must be
nearly the same as in other flat countries.

_Respiration and Circulation of the Blood._--Dr. Carson has lately
made some important experiments on the elasticity of the lungs in
different animals, and he has found by the application of a simple
apparatus that in oxen, and animals of their size, it is more than
equal in power to the weight of a column of water a foot and a
half high. In calves, sheep, and large dogs, it is balanced by a
column of water varying in height from one foot to a foot and a
half; and in rabbits and cats by a column of water varying from six
to ten inches. To this elasticity of the lungs alternating with
the irritability of the diaphragm, Dr. C. ascribes respiration, or
the faculty of breathing; the capacity of the chest being by their
means successively enlarged and diminished, and thus air alternately
expelled and inhaled. He thinks also with great probability that
the movements of the heart and the circulation of the blood are
powerfully influenced by the same resilisency.

_Beccaria._--This philosopher of humanity having, in one of
the editions of his admirable work on crimes and punishments,
in that part which relates to fraudulent bankruptcy, qualified
some sentiments which he had originally expressed, but which, on
reflection, appeared to himself too severe, he adds in a note, "I
am ashamed of what I formerly wrote on this subject. I have been
accused of irreligion, without deserving it; I have been accused of
disaffection to the government, and deserved it as little; I was
guilty of a real attack upon the rights of humanity, and _I have
been reproached by nobody_."

_Generosity._--It is an error to imagine that men in the lowest rank
of life are unsusceptible of heroic and generous sentiments. All
who are susceptible of enthusiasm are capable of being actuated by
them. It is the minions of fortune, those who have been pampered
from their infancy, by the hands of luxury, and early accustomed
to every kind of profusion, whose minds sink into torpor for
want of exertion; it is such as those that are more likely to be
unsusceptible of generous sentiments.

_Academy of Natural Sciences._--The Academy of Natural Sciences in
this city has received from the president, Mr. William Maclure, now
in France, a donation of books, amounting in value to about $4000,
and have received advice of another valuable shipment from the same
munificent hand.

_Method of preserving Vessels._--An American ship now at Cowes,
built with spruce and white oak, sixteen years ago, has all
her original timbers and planks in the most perfect state of
preservation and soundness, owing to her having been, while on the
stocks, filled up between the timbers with salt; and whenever she
has been opened for examination filled up again.

_General Post-Office._--The number of post-offices in the United
States is four thousand eight hundred and thirty, and the length
of post-roads is 71,522 miles. The amount of postage for the
year 1819, was $1,204,680; the cost of transportation of the mail
$717,843; and the compensation to postmasters $375,964.

_Bibliomania._--At no time during the highest age of Bibliomanianism
did books of rarity bear higher prices than at the concluding sale
of Mr. Bindley's library. The competition for old poetical tracts
and ballads was unexampled.

                                         _L._ _s._ _d._
  No. 1125 Collection of Poetical Ballads
  from 1540 to 1670.                        192  0  0
       1126 Do. from 1670 to 1680,          133 15  0
       1127 Do. from 1679 to 1685,          174  6  0
       1128 Do. 5 vols.                     231  0  0
       1130 Do.                              43  1  0

The three first collections of ballads, and of halfpenny and penny
songs, were bought by the Marquis of Buckingham. The five volumes of
the same kind by Mr. Heber.

[_Lon. pap._

_Precious Stones._--A diamond said to be worth 20,000_l._ and one
of the largest in the world, was among the spoils of the Peishwa,
and is now in the East India Company's treasury, to be sold for the
benefit of the captors. It was brought to England by the ship York.
A block of amethyst, or rather a mass of amethysts, has been sent
from Brazil to Calcutta. This extraordinary specimen is four feet
in circumference, and weighs 98 pounds. It is in its rough state,
and consists of more than 50 irregular columns, smooth, transparent,
purple and white, shooting up like crystals from a common matrix.

_Nautical Improvement._--We congratulate the public on the
application of a simple mechanical apparatus to impel boats, instead
of oars. It consists of the machinery of steam-vessels, but the
moving power is the hand applied to a windlass. Boats were first
used on this principle with success on Whit-Monday, between London
and Greenwich. The labour is much less than that of oars, and the
impulse of the boat through the water much increased in swiftness.

_Philosophic Girl._--The Italian journals mention that a young lady,
only 13 years of age, named Maria Catherina Gherardi, a native of
Scrola, has maintained in public a series of philosophic theses, in
Latin.

_Ingenious Automaton._--A German journal asserts, that an artist
at Cemberg, in Prussia, has constructed a watch which imitates the
human voice, and answers questions in German and Polish; besides
executing musical airs.

_To destroy Caterpillars._--A gardener at Glasgow practices a mode
of destroying caterpillars, which he discovered by accident. A piece
of woollen rag had been blown by the wind into a currant bush, and
when taken out was found covered with these leaf-devouring insects.
He immediately placed pieces of woollen cloth in every bush in his
garden, and found next day that the caterpillars had universally
taken to them for shelter. In this way he destroys many thousands
every morning.

_Vegetation in cold Climates._--The following is a calendar of a
Siberian Lapland year:

  Snow melts              June 22d.
  Snow gone               July 1st.
  Fields quite green       do. 6th.
  Plants at full growth    do. 17th.
  Plants in flower         do. 25th.
  Fruits ripe             Aug. 2d.
  Plants shed their seed   do. 10th.
  Snow                     do. 18th.
  From August 18th to June 22d.
  snow and ice.

Thus it appears, that from their first emerging from the ground
to the ripening of their seeds, the plants take but a month; and
spring, summer, and autumn are crowded into the short space of 56
days.



THE FARMER'S CREED.

_By Sir John Sinclair, President of the Board of Agriculture._


    Let this be held the Farmer's creed.
    For stock, seek out the choicest breed,
    In peace and plenty let them feed.
    Your land sow with the best of seed,
    Let it nor dung, nor dressing need,
    Enclose and drain it with all speed,
    And you will soon be rich indeed.



FOR THE RURAL MAGAZINE.


There are other paths to the temple of fame, than those which lead
through blood and slaughter. This truth cannot too frequently be
inculcated on the minds of the rising generation. Our own country
keeps pace with the nations of the old world, in applauding deeds
of arms; apparently forgetful of the fact, that there are other
incentives to ambition, of a much more useful and honourable
character. He who augments the stock of public happiness, by
improving the condition of his fellow creatures, or enriches the
nation by developing her resources, is entitled to her thanks,
and will probably receive them: At all events he will reap with
certainty the high reward of self-approbation. The following stanzas
to the memory of the late Duke of Bridgewater, were written by one
who enjoys the rare distinction of being at once a painter and a
poet, of no ordinary pretensions. What ample scope is furnished
to Pennsylvania, and what cogent inducements may be found in the
example of some of her neighbours, for adopting zealously, without
further delay, a great and efficient plan of INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT.
Should she evince the public spirit of Bridgewater, a Brindley will
no doubt be found, to aid her in the important object of uniting
the waters of the Ohio and the Delaware. This would add one more to
the catalogue of those pacific but glorious triumphs, which have
rendered her name celebrated throughout the civilized world. I.



ON THE DUKE OF BRIDGEWATER.

From Shee's "Rhymes on Art."


    Shall EGERTON[7] depart without a tear?
    And press in silent state a plumeless bier?
    No, though his tomb no martial glories grace,
    No trophies won in wild Ambition's race;
    Though no vain pen on History's pompous page
    Paint the deep statesman to th' astonish'd age;
    Lay open all the labyrinth of his breast--
    What plans he form'd--what factions he suppress'd;
    What flames of war broke forth as he desir'd--
    Cool'd as he calm'd, or kindled as he fir'd;
    Yet life's mild Arts their spotless ensigns wave,
    And grateful swains strow garlands on his grave.
    Though crown'd with all in rank, or wealth that charms,
    And lulls th' enfeebled soul in Pleasure's arms,
    Behold him, yet in man's meridian hour,
    Fly the false glare of pomp, and pride, and pow'r;
    Decline the Court's intrigues, the Senate's, strife,
    To serve his country in secluded life;
    To ope new arteries of public health,
    Promote her pride and circulate her wealth;
    Call forth a BRINDLEY'S genius, and command,
    To pierce opposing mountains with his wand,
    Through wondering vales, in liquid course to lead
    Commercial keels, and navigate the mead;
    Bid in bright tracks obedient currents glide,
    And, like a river-god, direct the tide.

  [7] The late Duke of Bridgewater.



THE KITTEN.

By Joanna Baillie.


    Wanton drole, whose harmless play
    Beguiles the rustic's closing day,
    When drawn the evening fire about,
    Sit aged Crone and thoughtless Lout,
    And child upon his three-foot stool,
    Waiting till his supper cool;
    And Maid whose cheek outblooms the rose,
    As bright the blazing faggot glows,
    Who, bending to the friendly light,
    Plies her task with busy sleight;
    Come, show thy tricks and sportive graces,
    Thus circled round with merry faces.
      Backward coil'd and couching low,
    With glaring eyeballs watch thy foe,
    The housewife's spindle whirling round,
    Or thread, or straw, that on the ground
    Its shadow throws, by urchin sly
    Held out to lure thy roving eye;
    Then, onward stealing fiercely spring
    Upon the futile, faithless thing.
    Now, wheeling round with bootless skill,
    Thy bo-peep tail provokes thee still,
    As oft beyond thy curving side
    Its getty tip is seen to glide;
    Till from thy centre starting far
    Thou sidelong rear'st with rump in air,
    Erected stiff, and gait awry,
    Like Madam in her tantrums high:
    Though ne'er a Madam of them all,
    Whose silken kirtle sweeps the hall,
    More varied trick and whim displays,
    To catch the admiring stranger's gaze.
      Doth power in measured verses dwell,
    All thy vagaries wild to tell?
    Ah no! the start, the jet, the bound,
    The giddy scamper round and round,
    With leap, and jerk, and high curvet,
    And many a whirling somerset,
    (Permitted by the modern Muse
    Expression technical to use,)
    These mock the deftest rhymester's skill,
    But poor in art, though rich in will.
      The featest tumbler, stage-bedight,
    To thee is but a clumsy wight,
    Who every limb and sinew strains
    To do what costs thee little pains,
    For which, I trow, the gaping crowd
    Requites him oft with plaudits loud;
    But, stopped the while thy wanton play,
    Applauses, too, thy feats repay;
    For then beneath some urchin's hand,
    With modest pride thou tak'st thy stand,
    While many a stroke of fondness glides
    Along thy back and tabby sides.
    Dilated swells thy glossy fur,
    And loudly sings thy busy pur;
    As timing well the equal sound,
    Thy clutching feet bepat the ground,
    And all their harmless claws disclose,
    Like prickles of an early rose;
    While softly from thy whiskered cheek
    Thy half-closed eyes peer mild and meek.
      But, not alone by cottage fire
    Do rustics rude thy feats admire;
    The learned sage, whose thoughts explore
    The widest range of human lore,
    Or, with unfettered fancy, fly
    Through airy heights of poesy,
    Pausing, smiles with altered air
    To see thee climb his elbow chair,
    Or, struggling on the mat below,
    Hold warfare with his slipper'd toe.
    The widow'd dame, or lonely maid,
    Who in the still but cheerless shade
    Of home unsocial, spends her age,
    And rarely turns a lettered page;
    Upon her hearth for thee lets fall
    The rounded cork, or paper ball,
    Nor chides thee on thy wicked watch
    The ends of ravelled skein to catch,
    Buts lets thee have thy wayward will,
    Perplexing oft her sober skill.
    Even he, whose mind of gloomy bent,
    In lonely tower or prison pent,
    Reviews the wit of former days,
    And loaths the world and all its ways;
    What time the lamps unsteady gleam
    Doth rouse him from his moody dream,
    Feels as thou gambol'st round his seat,
    His heart with pride less fiercely beat,
    And smiles, a link in thee to find
    That joins him to his living kind.
      Whence hast thou then, thou witless puss,
    The magic power to charm us thus?
    Is it, that in thy glaring eye,
    And rapid movements, we descry,
    While we at ease, secure from ill,
    The chimney corner snugly fill,
    A lion, darting on his prey,
    A tiger, at his ruthless play?
    Or, is it that in thee we trace,
    With all thy varied wanton grace,
    An emblem view'd with kindred eye,
    Of tricksey, restless infancy?
    Ah! many a lightly-sportive child,
    Who hath, like thee our wits beguil'd,
    To dull and sober manhood grown,
    With strange recoil our hearts disown.
    Even so, poor Kit! must thou endure,
    When thou becom'st a cat demure,
    Full many a cuff, and angry word,
    Chid roughly from the tempting board,
    And yet for that, thou hast, I ween,
    So oft our favoured playmate been,
    Soft be the change which thou shalt prove,
    When time hath spoil'd thee of our love;
    Still be thou deemed by housewife fat,
    A comely, careful, mousing cat;
    Whose dish is for the public good,
    Replenish'd oft with sav'ry food.
      Nor when thy span of life is past,
    Be thou to pond or dunghill cast,
    But gently borne on good man's spade,
    Beneath the decent sod be laid,
    And children show with glist'ning eyes,
    The place where poor old Pussy lies.



AN AUTUMNAL TALE.


    "O Father, dear Father! lament now with me,
      This morning I've been at our wood,
    And the fine flowing leaves of your favourite tree,
      Around on the grass are all strew'd;
    And sure 'tis a pity! for lovely and green,
      All summer they yielded a shade,
    Dear Father, to you, who against it would lean,
      While sister and I round it play'd.

    Of late they began to change colour indeed,
      Like the corn when 'tis ripe in the field;
    And the dark glossy green became yellow and red,
      As if they ripe berries would yield.
    I thought this was pretty, and ne'er heard you say
      That the leaves would soon fall from the tree;
    And I never was happier than t'other fine day,
      When you looked there at sister and me."

    "Why, my boy, I am grieved at the tale you have told,
      But the leaves every year drop around--
    They are green in their youth, and turn red when they're old,
      Then the wind blows them down to the ground.
    But take comfort, my boy--when the winter is fled,
      The leaves will appear on the tree,
    And again form a bower thy father to shade,
      And the gambols of sister and thee."

    "Why, that's good--but, my father, I've sad news to tell;
      Old William, who liv'd at Hillside,
    And lately came hither so wan and so pale,
      Old William this morning hath died."
    "Old William hath died! Ah! indeed, I am sad;
      But age, when it ripens, must fall,
    Though green was his summer, his autumn must fade;
      Such, my boy, is the end of us all."

    "Then he fell like the leaves of your favourite tree,
      But when the long winter is o'er,
    Old William again on the hills shall we see
      A feeding his flock as before?"
    "Ah, no! my sweet boy!--the dead wander no more
      In the bounds of this wind-wasted scene;
    But to regions immortal all good spirits soar,
      More lovely, more lasting, and green."



BANK NOTE EXCHANGE,

AT PHILADELPHIA--_Oct. 28, 1820_.

                         Per cent Disc't.

  VERMONT--generally,                          3
  MAINE,--generally,                           4
  NEW HAMPSHIRE--generally,                    2
  CONNECTICUT--generally,                    2-3
  NEW YORK,--City Bank,                     par.
      Country generally,                     1-5
      J. Barker's Ex. Bank--no sales
  BANK OF UPPER CANADA,                       10
  NEW JERSEY notes,                         par.
  PENNSYLVANIA--Farmer's Bank, of         }
  Lancaster; Easton; Montgomery           }
  County; Chester                         } par.
  County, at Westchester,
      New Hope; Northampton,                1-1½
      Lancaster Bank,                         1½
      Susquehanna Bridge Company,              2
      York; Gettysburg; Chambersburg,          2
      Northumb.; Union; Centre,               15
      Farm, and Mech. Bank of Pittsburgh,     25
  DELAWARE--generally,                      par.
  MARYLAND--Baltimore Banks,                   ½
      City Bank,                               3
      Annapolis; Hagerstown,                   2
  VIRGINIA--generally,                         2
      N. W. Bank, at Wheeling,                 8
  COLUMBIA DISTRICT--generally,                1
  NORTH CAROLINA--State Bank at             3-3½
  Raleigh, and Branches,
      Cape Fear; Newbern,                     3½
  SOUTH CAROLINA--generally,                1-1½
  GEORGIA--State Banks, generally,             2
      Augusta Bridge Company,                 75
  TENNESSEE--Few sales at any price.
  KENTUCKY--Kentucky Bank, and Branches,      30
  OHIO--Marietta; Steubenville               12½
      Bank of Chillicothe,                     5
      Country generally,                   20-50



PRICES CURRENT,

  _October 28, 1820._
                              Per        D. C.     D. C.
  Beef, Philad. Mess,        _bbl._      12.00 to 13.00
  Butter, Fresh              _lb._        0.25  "  0.30
  Cotton, (Louisiana)          "          0.18  "  0.21
  Cotton Yarn, No. 10,         "          0.36
  Flax, Clean,                 "          0.16  "  0.18
  Firewood, Hickory,         _cord_,      6.00  "  7.25
            Oak,               "          4.25  "  5.00
  Flour--Wheat, P. S. F.     _bbl._       4.25
         Rye,                  "          2.50
         Corn Meal,            "          2.75
  Grain--Wheat,              _bush._      0.75  "  0.80
         Rye,                  "          0.37  "  0.43
         Corn, Pa.             "          0.40  "  0.45
         Oats,                 "          0.25  "  0.30
  Hams--Jersey,              _lb._        0.13  "  0.15
  Leather--Sole,               "          0.24  "  0.30
         Upper, undrs'd.     _side_,      2.75  "  3.00
  Plaster of Paris,          _ton_,       4.75  "  5.00
  Shingles, cedar, 3 feet    1000        20.00  " 23.00
            Cypress,           "          4.00
  Molasses, S. H.           _gall._       0.50  "  0.52
  Nails, Cut, all sizes,     _lb._        0.07  "  0.12
  Pork, Jersey & Penn. Mess, _bbl_.      15.00
  Wool--Merino, Clean,       _lb_.        0.75
        Do. in Grease,         "          0.40
        Common,                "          0.50
  Yarn, Hempen,                "          0.10   "  0.11



STATE OF THE THERMOMETER.


          9 o'cl.  12 o'cl.  3 o'cl.
  Oct.  4,  --        --       68
        5,  68        67       64
        6,  68        69       64
        7,  55        62       60
        9,  62        63       66
       10,  57        59       61
       11,  56        58       56
       12,  50        59       57
       13,  52        64       63
       14,  58        65       67
       16,  53        59       56
       17,  47        59       56
       18,  48        54       52
       19,  53        57       51
       20,  51        61       59
       21,  50        55       54
       23,  47        54       54
       24,  49        59       58
       25,  48        54       52
       26,  40        49       47
       27,  40        52       49
       28,  43        54       50



RAIN GAUGE AT PHILADELPHIA.


                          In hun.

  Oct. 5 to 6,    Rain,      1.65
            "      do.       0.20
            9,     do.       1.30
     10 to 11,     do.       0.50
  Novem.    2,   Shower,     0.14
            5,     do.       0.07



ERRATUM.--In last November, page 399, first column, for resembled,
read _remembered_.



PHILADELPHIA,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

RICHARDS & CALEB JOHNSON,

_No. 31, Market Street_,

At $3.00 per annum.

GRIGGS & DICKINSON, _Printers--Whitehall_.





*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "The Rural Magazine, and Literary Evening Fire-Side, Vol. 1 No. 11 (1820)" ***

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