little hazel-bower, but must run after English "excitements," like a fool. Commerce has been the grand discoverer and conqueror of the world: it has produced a community of knowledge and of interests, which is invaluable, and which will stengthen the bonds between man and man: but its apparent, boundless extent, all the calculations of latitude and longitude, all the hopes built upon the points of the compass, vanish before one glance into the starry firmament, before one pulse of generous love, nay, before one sigh from the breast, which, like Memnon's pillar, responds to the touch of some ray from heaven. Richmond. Sunday, April 26th, 1835. Yesterday, after I had very industriously written letters, I bought a map of the envi-rons of London, studied it, and then drove to Richmond with Mr. and Mrs. T. We went first down Oxford-street, then to the left through Hyde Park, through Kensington and Hammersmith, and past Barnes and Mortlake to our place of destination. The country is, as you may imagine, highly cultivated, and exhibits a universal neatness and elegance. The numerous villas and gardens are very inviting, and often have an Italian air, from the luxuriant ivy and creepers, the balconies, verandas, and the like. Though in Italy, many things are more striking and poetical from the favouring climate, the forms of the hills and mountains, the character of the ground, and the luxuriant vegetation, yet the melancholy observation obtrudes itself, that the proprietor is poor, and that the poetical charm but too often resides in ruins, ancient or modern. It is thus in the neighbourhood of Rome, along the Brenta, and around Venice. Here, on the contrary, every door and window, the most trifling arrangements, show that the greatest care is bestowed on them, and can be bestowed, because wealth is universally diffused. The Hammersmith Suspension Bridge is a fine and useful work. In whatever depends on mechanical fitness and precision, the English are masters; where taste is required, they seem frequently to confound the merely extraordinary with the poetical, and to prefer the fantastic to the artistic. A very severe judgment may be passed on many of the London buildings; they only produce effect by mass, and by being surrounded with other masses: for example, what an extraordinary coiffure is that stuck upon the Mansion House! And where is one to seek the school of architecture in which the man studied who is now constructing those strangest of buildings at Charing Cross? Vicenza, within her narrow walls, contains a greater number of beautiful and stately palaces than are to be found in all gigantic London. From the terrace at Richmond, the eye wanders, or reposes, with delight over the expanse of country as far as Windsor; and the winding course of the Thames, and the changing lights and shadows of England, increase its variety and beauty. Unfortunately, the weather was extremely cold, which contrasted strangely with the splendour of the bursting spring. The plants seemed as if they would wait no longer, but would defy the unusually long and obstinate winter. Everybody says that such weather at this time of year is quite extraordinary. English Society. If I compare English society with that of other countries, many remarks present themselves. If the number of guests exceed three, there is seldom any general conversation; that is to say, I do not see or hear that any individual, whether from talent or from conceit, takes upon himself to lead the conversation, makes himself the prominent person, keeps possession of a particular subject, or battles it out with some other intellectual fencer; people very seidom address themselves farther than to their next neighbour, and the conversation is carried on in so low a voice, that those who sit at a distance can hardly hear it. Subjects of great general interest are, as it seems to me, very seldom subjects of social talk. What an eventful time! A change of ministry! the approaching opening of a new parliament! &c. &c. Not a trace of all this in society: the saying, out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, seems not to apply to the English. In days like these, even if their mouths were corked tight and sealed down, the French would have gone off like Champaign bottles; their thoughts and feelings would have forced a way. In parliamentary discussions, the French are very inferior to the English; in social, superior: and I should have learned more, if the English were, in this respect, more like their neighbours. What passes in parliament we get from the papers; but a foreigner is glad to pick up in company the commentaries and additions of individuals. To have to extract every thing by questioning, téte-à-tête, is always somewhat disagreeable and "boring." What is more, eating and drinking seem to produce no effect upon the English. I do not applaud inordinate and boisterous talking after dinner; but that people should be just as cold, quiet, and composed, at the end as at the beginning; that the wine should produce no apparent effect whatever, is too dry and formal for my liking. Perhaps, the oldfashioned tippling was so disgusting, that people now shun the slightest approach to joviality; or, perhaps, sherry and port oppress rather than elevate, and have little power in transforming gloomy fogs into sky blue fantasies. In short, I am for the German plan-frank, lively conversation, even though it be a little too long and too loud; light wine and a light heart; and at parting, joyous spirits, and only just mathematics enough to perceive that five is an even number. The King's Birth-day. Friday, May 29th. Although I had gone to bed so late, I was at my writing-table again at seven in the morning, and worked till eleven, when I drove to Kensington to see the Duke of S. I found him alone, in his dressing gown; and as he began the conversation in German, I naturally continued it in the same language. Thus it lasted for two hours, without a minute's interruption, without those capricious transitions from one subject to another which so often occur, and without descending to insignificant topics. It turned chiefly upon England and her political affairs, or on matters of universal interest. The Duke spoke, of course, like a Whig, and lamented the want not only of just views on the events and circumstances of the times, but even of a knowledge of constitutional law. From Kensington I walked through the shady gardens to Hyde-park corner, and then turned from the Green Park to St. James's Park and St. James's Palace. I arrived at half-past two, just in time to see the carriages drive up in honour of William IV.'s birth-day. If 1,800 persons, exclusive of those attached to the court, walked past the king in gala-dresses that day, certainly, there were 900 carriages in motion; for, on an average, there were not more than two persons in each. The horses and carriages were brilliant; the servants in all colours, laced and covered with ribands and fringe. They wore breeches and white silk stockings; the footmen had large cocked hats, like those of our military officers; and the coachmen, little, three-cornered hats, under which peeped forth a bobwig. Inside the carriages, too, were wigs of all dimensions; but these attracted my attention less than the women, who appeared in the full splendour of nature and of art. As the procession moved on very slowly, and was obliged to make a halt at every tenth step, I took the liberty of moving on in a parallel line, and of keeping by the side of certain carriages which contained the greatest beauties. There is no opportunity, no company in the world, in which one may stare ladies in the face with so much ease-I might almost say impudence and for so long a time. This revue spéciale, unique in its kind, is a far nobler and more beautiful sight than a revue spéciale of soldiers. I tried to figure to my sel all their circumstances, and to read the thoughts of each in her eyes. The persons in the first carriage, who were afraid of being the first, had anxieties of quite a different nature from those of the tall blonde who closed the procession. Which equipage was the most beautiful ?-which the least so?-which dress was the richest or the most elegant?-which was the queen of the fair and sumptuous train ? An unfortunate hackney coach, with a dirty coachman, and a still more beggarly footboy, had got among these brilliant equipages. Those who were within, whether they were presentables or not, had drawn up the wooden blinds so high that one could not see them. They must have been very uncomfortable; and I was glad that I was on my own legs, in freedom, and not in their place. When this was all over I went and read at the Athenæum. Just as I was preparing to go away, Mr. M--, the secretary of the club, who makes it his business to oblige every one in every possible manner, called me back, and told me that if I would wait till six o'clock, I should see something which London alone cold show. I was least of all in a humour to doubt that to-day; for as I had seen in the Duke of S―― a royal prince, and in the train of equipages, an aristocracy, such as exist in no other country in the world, it was now the turn for the democracy. From the balcony of the Athenæum, at the corner of Pall Mall and Waterloo-place, perhaps the handsomest part of London, I saw crowds of people, horsemen and carriages of all sorts; troops of children, with flowers and flags, incessantly shouting, "God save the King!" and so forth. M But it was not only this that Mr. had invited me to see: it was more particularly the procession of all the London mail-coaches; for they also had been to give their huzza to the king, and passed by here on their return. At last, the long-expected train arrived;-the coachman sitting on the box, the guard behind outside, both dressed in new suits of scarlet, and ornamented with flowers and ribands. Inside the brightly. varnished coaches sat their wives, daughters, or friends - a parody on the fashionable ladies. I was too far off to institute a comparison between the aristocracy and the democracy; but the superb horses and the excellent harness made a great impression on me. Such a splendid display of carriagesand-four as these mail coaches and their horses afforded, could not be found, or got together, in all Berlin. It was a real pleasure to see them in all the pride and strength which, half an hour later, was to send them in every direction, with incredible rapidity, to every corner of England. The improvements in our administration of the post are certainly very great, and, in many respects, our coaches are more convenient than these; but, com pared with the countless host of these magnificent horses, the German ones are miserable Rosinantes. Dined at eight; hastened home; dressed for a second time, and then went out to look at the illuminations in a few of the streets. The usual device was, "W. R." and a crown, and only a few about St. James's Street and Waterloo Place were rendered splendid and beautiful by coloured lamps and moving gaslights; the greater number of houses and streets remained unilluminated; nevertheless, the crowd was enormous, and, in places, indeed dangerous; so that I thanked God when I got away from the bright spots into darkness. some When I went to the Marquis of L--'s, at half-past eleven, there were but few people in the spacious and beautiful rooms, so that I was able to enjoy undisturbed the delight of looking at the remarkably fine statues. They were admirably lighted from above, and had a beautiful effect against the red velvet background of the niches. The gallery and drawing-rooms filled gradually, and I was enabled to continue my observations of the morning. The gentlemen were, to-day, chiefly in scarlet uniforms; some were in embroidered court-dresses, with bag-wigs fastened to the collar of the coat. The ladies were more attractive than the gentlemen; they were generally dressed in white silk, or in other materials of the finest kind, and of that colour. Only two or three older ones had hats or other head-dresses; a very few had caps, if so one may call such light, transparent head-dresses. White satin shoes, stockings, so thin or so coloured that the feet appeared naked. None coiffées à la Chinoise, but with the forehead uncovered, and long ringlets hanging down to the neck; some with shorter curls, or with the hair braided. At the back of the head were edifices of hair of various kinds, and in these the feathers were fastened. Five or six of the youngest of the ladies had nothing on the head; the others, old and young, wore a number of white ostrich feathers, fastened in the manner I have described. Here and there, as an exception, was seen a blue, red, or yellow feather in front was a diadem, a flower, or an ornament of the most sparkling brilliants. Notes of a Reader. BALLADS. FROM THE FOURTH EDITION OF ROOKWOOD.* The Legend of the Lime-tree Branch. AMID the grove, o'er arched above with lime-trees old and tall (The avenue that leads unto the Rookwood's ancient hall), High o'er the rest its towering crest one tree rears to the sky, * Quoted in a Panegyric, in Fraser's Magazine. ruthless hound, While mangled, torn (a sight forlorn!) the hag lay on the ground; For that weird wench he dug a trench, and limb and reeking bone Within the earth, with ribald mirth, un-Christian like were thrown. And while as yet the soil was wet with that weird witch's gore, A lime-tree stake did Ranulph take, and pierced her bosom's core; And, strange to tell! what next befell-the staff at once took root, And, richly fed within its bed strong suckers forth did shoot! From year to year fresh boughs appear-it waxes huge in size, And with wild glee this prodigy the grim Sir Ranulph spies: One day when laid beneath that shade reclined he in his pride, A branch was found upon the ground-and the third day he died! So from that hour a fatal power has ruled that wizard tree, To all his line a warning sign of doom and destiny! For when beneath (token of death) a broken brauch is cast, Ere the sun rise thrice in the skies a Rookwood breathes his last! A Chapter of Highwaymen. Or every rascal of every kind, The most notorious to my mind Was the royalist captain, gay JEMMY HIND! Which nobody can deny. But the pleasantest coxcomb among them all For lute, coranto, and madrigal, Was the galliard Frenchman, CLAUDE DU VAL! Which nobody can deny. Yet Tobygloak never a coach could rob, Could lighten a pocket or empty a fob, With a neater hand than OLD MOB, OLD MOB! Which nobody can deny. Nor did housebreaker ever deal harder knocks On the stubborn lid of a good strong box Than that prince of good fellows, Toм Cox, Toм Cox! Which nobody can deny. And blither fellow on broad highway Did never with oath bid traveller stay Than devil may-care WILL HALLOWAY! Which nobody can deny. Then in roguery naught could exceed the tricks Of GETTINGS and GREY, and the five or six Who trod in the steps of bold NEDDY WICKS! Which nobody can deny. Nor could any so handily break a lock AS SHEPPARD, who stood on the Newgate dock, And nicknamed the gaolers around him, flock!" '"his Which nobody can deny. Nor did highwayman ever before possess For ease, for security, danger, distress, Such a mare as DICK TURPIN'S Black Bess, Black Bess! Which nobody can deny. The Corpse-Candle. Through the midnight gloom did a pale blue light To the churchyard mirk wing its lonesome flight; Thrice it floated those old walls around, Thrice it paused-till the grave it found. Over the grass-green sod it glanced, Over the fresh-turned earth it danced, Like a torch in the night-breeze quivering,- Never was seen so merry a sight As the midnight dance of that pale, blue light! Over the earth that takes its way, And the spot where the dead shall be soon laid low? Most fowls rise at dawn, but the owl wakes at e'en, And when night draws her curtain scuds after his prey! Derry-down. As the highwayman's life is the fullest of zest, CHANGE IN COMMERCE. By the late Thomas Walker, Esq. I HAVE by tradition the following particulars of the mode of carrying on the home trade by one of the principal merchants of Manchester, who was born at the commencement of the last century, and who realized a sufficient fortune to keep a carriage when not half a dozen were kept in the town by persons connected with business. He sent the manufactures of the place into Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and the intervening counties, and principally took in exchange feathers from Lincolnshire, and malt from Cambridgeshire and Nottinghamshire. All his commodities were conveyed on pack-horses, and he was from home the greater part of every year, performing his journeys entirely on horseback. His balances were received in guineas, and were carried with him in his saddle-bags. He was exposed to the vicissitudes of the weather, to great labour and fatigue, and to constant danger. In Lincolnshire he travelled chiefly along bridle-ways through fields, where frequent gibbets warned him of his perils, and where flocks of wild fowl continually darkened the air. Business carried on in this manner required a combination of personal attention, courage, and physical strength, not to be hoped for in a deputy; and a merchant then led a much more severe and irksome life than a bagman afterwards, and still more than a traveller of the present day. Competition could but be small; but the returns from the capital were not so high in reality as in appearance, because the wages of labour ought to be deducted, and probably the same exertion now would produce from the same beginnings ten times the fortune. The improvements in the mode of carrying on commerce, and its increase, may be attributed in a great degree to the increased facility of communication, and the difference between the times I have alluded to, and the present, is nearly as great as that between a packhorse and a steam-carriage. What will be the progress fifty years hence defies calculation. I lately heard a striking instance of the advantages of steam in towing vessels. An Indiaman used sometimes to lie at Blackwall six weeks before she could get to Gravesend, because she had to wait for the combi nation of spring tides and a favourable wind. Now the same sized vessel could get down with certainty in three hours. Before I conclude this article, I will relate, that in the earlier days of the merchant abovementioned, the wine merchant, who supplied Manchester, resided at Preston, then always called Proud Preston, because exclusively in habited by gentry. The wine was carried on horses, and a gallon was considered a large order. Men in business confined themselves generally to punch and ale, using wine only as a medicine, or on very extraordinary occasions; so that a considerable tradesman somewhat injured his credit amongst his neighbours, by being so extravagant as to send to a tavern for wine even to entertain a London customer. Before Preston itself existed, in the time of the Romans the only port in Lancashire was a few miles higher up the river Ribble, and was called Rerigonium, of which there is now scarcely any, or no trace. If I rightly recollect my reading, the chief exports to Rome consisted of willow baskets, bull-dogs, and slaves. Rerigonium was the Liverpool of the present day. The Original. The Gatherer. English Cookery is by no means agreeable, as everybody is obliged to bite and chew twice as much as in France, Italy, and Germany, which is trying enough to young teeth, but utter destruction to older masticators.Von Raumer. Sunday Child.-The Germans give the name of Sunday child to one born on a Sunday, and particularly on one of those which they call "golden Sundays," i. e. the quatember days. Such a child is superstitiously believed to be able to discern spirits, and is destined to be peculiarly happy. The Tower of London-that great scaffold of bygone ages, how mild and humane does it appear! Its former laws, engraven with the sword, now very politely inform the stranger, that there is no design of taking his life, but merely his shillings.-Von Raumer. Matter and Mind.- We extol and admire the latest productions of our days-railroads and warehouses, power-looms and steamengines. But what is the distinctive mark of their tendency?—that they provide for the body, and that their object is gain. The men of the dark ages, on the contrary, founded astonishing institutions, disinterestedly, without a view to external advantages, and only for the mind. Undoubtedly, it may be said of cotton and iron, that they influence the mind, and that the body is never entirely separated from the mind; but mens agitat molem-it ought to be the director and ruler, not the servant and follower.—Ibid. A Gentleman.-Gentility is neither in birth, manner, nor fashion-but in the MIND. A high sense of honour-a determination never to take a mean advantage of another— an adherence to truth, delicacy, and politeness towards those with whom you may have dealings-are the essential and distinguishing characteristics of a gentleman.-From Hints on Etiquette (just published); a sensible and clever brochure, which, from its title, must not be confounded with the trumpery twelvepenny-worths placarded in the streets. The Queen of Louis XV. was immoderately delighted than when M. de Maurepas, on the fond of cards, and was never, perhaps, more occasion of the death of a monarch in alliance with France, declared to her Majesty that ing."-Morning Herald. Piquet was not obliged to go into mourn Canine Fidelity.-In the Lower Town of Brussels, there is a remarkable instance of attachment existing at present in the case of a French poodle, who attracts a great deal of attention by repairing every day to the Hotel de Ville, and lying down before the entrance, appearing to wait anxiously for the approach of some person. It is said that, during some tumults, the owner of the dog the poor animal ever since has taken this was accidentally killed near the spot, and mode of testifying his grief. Force of Imagination. — A gentleman afflicted with tooth-ache, one day imagined, that while tying up a Tomata plant in his he repaired to the plant, crushed some of the garden, he found relief. On his next attack, leaves, and inhaled the smell; when, strange to say, he declared himself immediately cured. In some parts of the country, people afflicted with scrofula_or erysipelas consider an application of the bruised leaves of houseleek as a specific remedy. A.C.R. POPULAR SCIENCE. Just published, with many Cuts, price 5s. ARCANA OF SCIENCE AND ART: or an Annual Register of Useful Inventious and Improvements for the present Year. "In mechanics, chemistry, natural history, and social economy, this work presents such a variety of new facts as must recommend it to a wide circle of readers, either as a source of much instruction, or much amusement. It deserves credit for its condensation, and consequent cheapuess."— Morning Herald, March 15. Printed for John Limbird, 143, Strand. LONDON: Printed and published by J. LIMBIRD, 143, Strand, (near Somerset House); and sold by all Booksellers and Newsmen.-Agent in PARIS, rican Library, 55, Rue Neuve St. Augustin.— In G.W.M. REYNOLDS, French, English, and AmeFRANCFORT, CHARLES JUGEL.. |