to show 32 on its face, the difference between 59 and 91. The process of multiplication was effected by a kind of reiteration of additions, and that of division by a succession of subtractions.

In the machine constructed by Pascal, the arrangement of the parts was to facilitate performance of certain numerical calculations connected with the duties of an office held in Upper Normandy by Pascal's father. These calculations had reference to pecuniary matters, which were reckoned in the currency of France, as existing at that time: the denier wheel had twelve teeth, representing the number of deniers in a sol. The sol wheel had twenty teeth, equal to the number of sols in a livre, above which each wheel had ten teeth, indicating 10, 100, 1000, &c. livres. Each wheel in the series carried a cylindrical barrel, on which were engraved the ten arithmetical characters. The wheel which expressed each order of figures or units was so connected with the wheel which expressed a superior order, that when the former passed from 9 to 0, the latter was advanced one figure.

Although this mechanism seems to have been adapted to one particular purpose, there is no evidence that it was ever brought into practical use. It was intended for the performance only of particular arithmetical operations, and it is doubtful whether even those could be performed by it so readily as by the pen of a ready computer. It is however important to remark that the principle of construction observable in those instruments was the forerunner of a modern instrument, which not only eclipsed all the calculating instruments or machines before constructed, but is deemed to be one of the most splendid pieces of mechanism that any age or country has produced: we allude to Mr. Babbage's calculating machine. We shall give a brief account of this machine in our next paper, but wish, in the mean time, to draw attention to the fact, that it is by the action of one toothed wheel upon another, making it revolve slower or faster, that the process of computation is conducted.

THE SPRING FAIR AT PEST,
HUNGARY.

As I happened to be at Pest, during the great Spring Fair, I was not only provided with ample materials for amusement, but an opportunity of seeing the motley population of natives and strangers, which are usually attracted on this occasion; for though the Magyars, who have given their name to Hungary, are the greatest landed proprietors, and hold the reins of government, yet they are inferior in numerical force to the Sclavonians, (or Totoks,) the original inhabitants. These are divided into at least half a dozen separate tribes, each speaking a different patois; and if to them we add the colonies of Germans, Wallachians, Greeks, Armenians, French, Italians, Jews, and Gipsies, speaking their own languages, and retaining their national manners, customs, and religions, we may term Hungary a miniature picture of Europe.

My first lounge was through the fair, which afforded as many groups for the painter as for the observer of life and manners; the Babel-like confusion of tongues was endless, and the costume and appearance of the motley tribes could not have been equalled in variety by any other fair in Europe, or even by the most entertaining maskers that ever trod the Piazza San Marco, or the Corso at Rome; because here each performed his natural character. The most prominent figures in the group were ever the proud Magyars, particularly those just arrived from the provinces. The dress of some of these noblemen was indeed singular, consisting of a tight sheep-skin coat, or mantle, the woolly side inwards; while the other was gaudily embroidered all over with the gayest flowers of the parterre, in coloured silk, among which the tulip was ever the most prominent. Those whose wealth permitted it, were to be seen habited in their half-military, half-civil costume; and you might in truth fancy from their haughty demeanour, that you were beholding a feudal lord of our own country of the middle ages, as, mounted on their fiery steeds and armed with sword and pistols, they galloped through the parting multitude, upon

whom, when the slightest interruption occurred, they glanced with scorn and contempt.

Among crowds of Jews, Turks, Greeks, Armenians, Tyrolians, Germans, Sclavonians, Italians, and Hungarian shading their wild sun-burnt countenances, exhibiting their peasants, were groups of Gipsies, their black matted locks dancing-dogs, bears, and monkeys, or playing a lively tune for the amusement of the surrounding multitude, these itinerants being the popular musicians of Hungary. In another part of the fair, mountebanks on elevated platforms were relating the exploits of the famous robber, Schrubar, in the great forest of Bakony; or the ravages committed by the dreadful monster, half serpent, half flying dragon, that lately rose out of the Balaton lake, together with the most veritable history of the reappearance of the renowned Merman, who had inhabited, for the last two years, his own extensive domain, the Hansag marshes. All these astonishing marvels, besides hundreds of others, were listened to by the peasants, not only with attentive ears, but open mouths, and were illustrated by paintings as large as life, depicting the extraordinary wonders, executed in a style which set all imitation at defiance.

Bread, cakes, cheeses, vegetables, &c., were heaped on high in the streets, with the owners of each separate pile squatted in the midst. The savoury odour of frying sausages attracted some gourmands; whilst others feasted on the lighter refreshments of pastry, which the accomplished cuisiniers were preparing for their gratification.

But the popular viand was evidently the cray-fish, which all ranks, however otherwise engaged, were incessantly consuming; nor did they in this manifest any deficiency in goût, as the flavour of the little dainties was really excellent, and I have rarely seen them exceeded in size. Indeed, to thread the mazes of this great Hungarian fair, so as to obtain a view of its rarities, was an undertaking of no little difficulty, on account of the immense pyramids of wool, hides, tobacco, and other raw materials, which ever stood in the way; and as these articles were most tempting baits to the cupidity of the Jewish traders, they might constantly be seen making use of all their cajoling eloquence, while prevailing upon the artless peasant to dispose of his wares, at a price little more than nominal. When, however, the case was reversed, and the gaudy merchandise of the Jew and Armenian traders induced the peasant to become a purchaser, the balance of trade was considerably against him.

But, perhaps, of all the groups over which my eye wandered, none more strongly arrested my attention than the Saxon colonists: these were attired in the same costume in which their ancestors, some centuries gone by, had emigrated from their father-land, their blue eyes and heavy quiet countenances forming a striking contrast to the vivid glances of the half-Asiatic people around them. Nor were their moral traits less distinctly defined; for the prudent German, well knowing he was in the society of some of the most accomplished pickpockets on the Continent, wisely determined that they should not prey upon him, for he did not once remove his hand from his pocket, while his good woman never failed to keep watch behind, attended by her little ones, who, on the approach of the half-wild Gipsy, timidly covered their flaxen heads in the many folds of mama's cumbrous petticoat.

I would above all things recommend every traveller who may visit Pest during the Spring Fair not to leave it without taking a morning's ramble through the town. He will then see thousands of men, women, and children lying about the streets, beneath the piazzas, or in the numerous barks on the river, with no other covering save the canopy of heaven and their own sheep-skin mantles: he will also, still more to his surprise, behold them anointing their persons with lard, in order to protect themselves during the day from the effect of heat, and the bites of vermin and insects.-SPENCER'S Travels in Circassia, &c.

BENEVOLENCE, animated by Christian motives and directed to Christian ends, shall in no wise go unrewarded; here, by the testimony of an approving conscience; hereafter, by the benediction of our blessed Redeemer, and a brighter inheritance in His Father's house.-BISHOP MANT.

As it is in all cases necessary, on the one hand, to guard against the intrusion of empirics; so, on the other, it is expedient that we attach not ourselves, by undue prejudice, to any system of things, merely on account of a long acquaintance with it.-MAUND

grass is laid in, and afterwards a smooth plastering of mud and clay. After the nest is so far completed, and made firm and commodious, the canopy which is to defend it above, is added. The sharpest thorns are chosen for this purpose and woven together in such a manner as to deny all entrance except at the door. So carefully and patiently do these birds provide all that is in their power for the safety and well-being of their young! The Reverend John Hall gives a remarkable instance of a low situation chosen by magpies for the construction of their nest.

On the road between Huntly and Portsoy, he says, I observed two magpies hopping round a gooseberry bush, in a small garden, near a poor-looking house, in a peculiar manner, and flying out and into the bush. I stepped aside to see what they were doing, and found, from the poor man and his wife, that these magpies, several succeeding years, had built their nest and brought up their young in this bush, and that foxes, cats, hawks, &c., might not interrupt them, they had barricaded, not only their nest, but had encircled the bush with briars and thorns, in a formidable manner, nay, so completely, that it would have cost a fox, cunning as he is, some days' labour to get into the nest. The materials in the inside of the nest were soft and warm, but all on the outside so rough, so strong, and firmly entwined with the bush, that without a hedge-knife, hatchbill, or something of the kind, even a man could not, without much pain and trouble, get at their young, for from the outside to the inside of the nest extended as long as my arm. The magpies had been faithful to one another for several summers, and drove off their young as well as every one else that attempted to take possession of the nest. This they carefully repaired and fortified in the spring, with strong rough prickly sticks, that they sometimes brought to it by uniting their force, one at each end, pulling it along when they were not able to lift it from the ground.

The industrious and sagacious habits of the magpie are well illustrated by the above anecdote, and we may here observe, that if the birds be disturbed during the building of a nest, or if the nest be destroyed immediately on its completion, they do not enter upon the construction of another, (which, indeed, would be a wearisome undertaking, if we are to believe the account which says, that they are occupied two months in forming their nest,) but easily content themselves with an old nest of their own species, or the vacated nest of a crow, which they. repair, and render available for their purpose.

Magpies have in general only one brood in the year, but, if their young be destroyed, they sometimes have a second, or even a third brood. The number of eggs is usually six or seven, of a yellowish-white colour, spotted with brown and grey. The male and female sit alternately for about fourteen days, when the young ones are hatched, and become the objects of their parents' unceasing care and attention for a considerable time. When first hatched they are blind, and continue so for several days. In supplying the wants of their young, magpies are very much addicted to plundering the nests of other birds of their eggs.

Advantage is sometimes taken of this circumstance to worry the poor magpie, especially when her nest is near a dwelling, and has attracted the attention of schoolboys. An egg is emptied of its contents by blowing, and bird-lime is introduced to fill the vacancy; the egg is then laid in some place where it is sure to attract the notice of the bird; and poor "Madge" soon approaches, cautiously hopping in various directions to see that all is safe. She then advances to the egg, and dashes her bill into it, in her usual manner, to convey it away to her brood; but as the shell is already broken, the bill penetrates very deep, and the shell is forced up towards the eyes, where adhering, by reason of the bird-lime, it forms a complete blind, and prevents the bird from seeing her way. She takes flight however, and knocks herself against the twigs and branches of trees, in a ridiculous manner, before she can disengage herself from the egg-shell. This foolish sport must be the occasion

of much pain and inconvenience to the poor bird, as well as to her young, who are deprived of her care while she is labouring with her annoyance.

The councils which magpies appear to hold together, at particular seasons, commonly called "folkmotes," are associated in the minds of many with superstitious and ominous notions. The innocent objects of terror, while meeting together most probably for the purpose of choosing mates, are supposed to be conspiring and clubbing their wits, for the weal or woe of the inhabitants of the neighbouring village. If they are of an even number and carry on their cheerful, noisy chatter, it is supposed to betoken good to old and young-but if there is an odd magpie perched apart from the rest, silent, and disconsolate, the reverse of this is apprehended, and mischievous consequences are inevitably expected. The sudden silence which sometimes pervades a folkmote, or assemblage of magpies, is owing to their perception of the approach of a hawk or falcon. All their lively hoppings and chatterings are immediately at an end, and they remain motionless on the ground, as if all their faculties were absorbed in apprehension of their danger. When bushes are immediately at hand they creep into them for shelter from their enemy; and where large hawks are frequently seen, it has been observed that the magpies uniformly select some spot for their place or rendezvous, which is closely surrounded by broom, or furze, or low shrubs of some description, to which they may betake themselves.

CREDULITY is a far greater source of error than superstition, for the latter must be always more limited in its influence, and can exist only, to any considerable extent, in the most ignorant portions of society, whereas the former diffuses itself through the minds of all classes, by which rank and dignity are degraded, its valuable labours confounded with the vain pretensions of empiricism, and ignorance is oracles, amidst all the triumphs of truth and the progress enabled to claim for itself the prescriptive right of delivering of philosophy. Credulity has been justly defined, belief without reason, while scepticism, its opposite, is reason with out belief, and the natural and invariable consequence of credulity; for it may be observed that men who believe without reason are succeeded by others whom no reasoning can convince.-PARIS.

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THE SULIOT HILLS, ALBANIA.

IN a former article we gave a brief illustration of the wretched system which prevails in the government of Turkey, in regard to the appointment and subsequent conduct of the Pachas; and followed up our remarks by an account of the Pachalic of Joannina, in its topographical and commercial features. As it is our intention, to present, from time to time, such sketches as will illustrate Turkey and the Turks in their most interesting point of view, we will avail ourselves of the present opportunity to give an account of the Suliots, a brave but persecuted band of men, who, living under the Pacha of Joannina, may be deemed subjects of the Turkish Empire. A description of the small district known as the Suliot Hills will be necessary to a due appreciation of the history of the tribe.

At a distance of a few miles south-west from the city of Joannina are the Suliot Hills, among which four villages, named Suli, Avarico, Kiaffa, and Samoniva, are he chief seats of this tribe; but as circumstances, which we shall detail in the next paper, have made sad changes in the condition of the Suliots; we will describe their home and their customs as they existed a few years ago. The four villages were situated on a plain elevated 2000 VOL. XVIII.

feet above the neighbouring river, Acheron; with a perpendicular cliff descending to the river on one side, and a chain of lofty mountains on the other. From the banks of the river, a winding and intricate path led up to the villages; and this path was at intervals commanded by strong forts, so that the Suliot plain formed one of the most inaccessible spots in Europe. Here the Suliots dwelt, and cherished that love of liberty which so often distinguishes mountaineers. Among these men were seen some of the finest of human forms; and their continual exposure to sun and wind had given to their complexion a swarthy tint, not unsuited to our ideas of a brave and vigorous people. When they left their villages on warlike expeditions, they took no tents with them; they slept on their own capotes, or cloaks, and had the sky for a canopy. The greater part of them were almost born soldiers, for they wore arms from a very early age; and their bravery was so well known and appreciated, that a real Suliot was regarded by his neighbours in somewhat the same light as the ancient Spartans were by the rest of the Greeks.

The Suliots were Christians belonging to the Greek church, the same faith to which the Russians belong; and this circumstance has led to much correspondence and treaty between the Greeks and the Russians, during the struggle of the former to shake off the Turkish

550

yoke. The Suliots, when their little republic was still entire, had no written laws; but many customs, handed down from time immemorial, served to regulate their conduct. The date of their establishment among these hills is placed by tradition in the 17th century, when some goat and swine herds, having led their animals to feed upon the heights of Kiaffa, were struck with the eligibility of the situation, and occupied it with their families. It is, however, the opinion of Mr. Hughes, that the mountains afforded refuge to some of those Albanians who fled from Turkish despotism after the death of Scanderbeg.

By whatever mode the district became peopled, the villages themselves were exceedingly simple: the houses were low, and rudely built, and no attempts were anywhere made at display. The life which the men led, when not actually engaged at war, was simple and hardy; and to aid in forming the character of the men to bravery and fearlessness, the women had precedence at the wells and fountains according to the character which their husbands bore for bravery; and if a woman happened to be married to a man of a weak and cowardly mind, she was obliged to stand at the well's side till the rest of the women had filled their pitchers. The effect of this custom was, that the men could more easily brave the enemy than the reproaches which were poured on them by their wives, if the latter had been subject to this ignominious treatment. The females were held in the highest esteem; and a curious law is mentioned by travellers, that no man was allowed, under the severest penalties, to interfere in the women's quarrels, lest by accident a woman might be killed; and that whoever committed murder on a woman was put to death with the execrations of his fellow men, not only as a murderer, but as a patricide.

Although the chief seat of this tribe was in the four villages which we have mentioned, yet there were numerous others gradually incorporated with one another. A century or two back, the tribe had attained sufficient importance to draw the attention of the neighbouring chiefs, and to carry on war with the Beys of Paramithia and Margariti, and with the Pachas of Joannina and Arta. The almost inaccessible and impregnable nature of their position effectually shielded them from attack from without, while the boldness and bravery of the mountaineers enabled them to take numerous possessions from the hands of their opponents, and gradually to extend their little republic. At one time it consisted of sixty-six villages, containing several thousand inhabitants. These inhabitants were divided into sections called faras, each fara containing a certain number of families, commanded by a chief or captain:-thus, just previous to Ali Pacha's war with the Suliots, the village of Suli, (from which they derived their appellation,) contained nineteen faras, and four hundred and twentyfive families: Kiaffa, four faras, and sixty families; Avarico, three faras, and fifty-five families; and Samoniva, three faras, and thirty families. The sixty-six villages of which we have spoken were considered as tributary or conquered possessions, and the inhabitants were not admitted to the rights of citizenship. Of the subordination in which they were held by the Suliots of the four federal villages, an example was given in the following incident::-on one occasion, the inhabitants of the four towns having increased beyond the means of subsistence, a certain number of them was quartered or colonized in seven of the tributary villages, where they were exempted from paying either forced contributions, or the regular tribute which the other inhabitants of those villages paid, and which amounted to one tenth of all produce.

In the few and simple judicial matters which had to engage their attention, the judge was either the captain of the fara in which the matter in dispute occurred; or in more important affairs, a council of chiefs assembled

from all the four towns at Suli, and decided the matter. But warlike deeds were the chief employment of the tribe, as they are of most infant states. The Suliots had a band of one thousand chosen troops, called palikars, all citizens of the four towns; as well as fifteen hundred troops levied from the dependent villages. Their mode of warfare was such as is customary among a people but little advanced in the arts of civilized life; that is, it consisted more in skirmishes than in pitched battles—in daring expeditions, sudden attacks, and quick retreats. It is said, that they had a rather extraordinary custom in their wars, of sending out a small body of troops against a superior force; and, on the contrary, a large body against a small one: in the first instance, they intimidated their foes, who knew they were prepared to conquer or to perish on the field of battle; in the latter, they were able to secure more prisoners, and gain a larger ransom for the purchase of arms and ammunition. Martial exercises formed the chief education of this rude but vigorous people. Their amusements, the dance and the song, were calculated, the one to contribute to the increase of their bodily strength, and the latter to warm their national enthusiasm, which was one of the chief traits in their character. The Suliot women contributed very powerfully to the maintenance of a martial spirit among the men, not only by the custom at the wells and fountains, to which we before alluded, but also by their readiness to share all the hardships and perils of war with their husbands : troops of women attended upon the soldiers, to carry provisions and ammunition, to assist the wounded, and even in some cases to engage in the battles :-these characteristics strongly remind us of the state of manners and customs among the ancient Spartans.

This description of the Suliot villages,-the institutions which bound the inhabitants into a fraternity, and the manners and customs of the two sexes, must be considered as applying to a period forty or fifty years ago. Since then sad reverses have occurred: families have been rooted out after a desperate resistance; villages have been burned to the ground; and the Suliots have been for forty years a scattered people. The circumstances which led to these results will be briefly detailed in the next article on this subject.

THE BOAT LAUNCH.

THE bark that is launched on the bosom of Ocean,
Holds gloriously onward her queenly career;
She dreads not the billow nor tempest's commotion,
The storm, though it lash her, brings with it no fear.
But soon-soon she finds that her vaunted defiance,
Her pride and her might alike are but vain,
That her strength in the trial affords no reliance,

Her efforts are nought when opposed to the main,
And thus 'tis in life, when youth and its gladness
Spread visions of happiness full in our view;
We fear not, we think not, that sorrow and sadness
Must tinge all these pleasures a different hue.
That the storm of affliction and the dark hour of anguish
Shall come and these phantoms must vanish away;
That the brightest and best must speedily languish,
The fairest of all can but boast of to-day!
How fondly the heart then should look for the morrow,
And wait for that time, when its troubles shall cease;
When tho' shattered and tossed it shall end all its sorrow,
And find in the Heavens its haven of peace.
Youghal, Ireland.

S. H.

If you are often unquiet, and too nearly touched by the cross accidents of life, your devotion is not of the right standard; mixed taketh away the sting of everything that would trouthere is too much alloy in it. That which is right and unble you. It is like a healing balm, that extinguisheth the sharpness of the blood. So this softeneth and dissolveth the anguish of the mind.The Lady's New Year's Gift.