Although it is true that all human works must decay, yet it is a point of great importance to ourselves and our successors whether that decay be slow or speedy. The causes enumerated in the above eloquent passage, though sure, are exceedingly slow in their action, and provided the building materials have been selected with reference as well to their durability as to their beauty, the resulting structure may defy the corroding tooth of time for many ages, and we may thus transmit to a long posterity, lasting memorials of our wisdom and science, as well as of our piety. Modern science has to a very great extent enabled the architect and builder to determine beforehand what is the durability of any given stone, and it is with great pleasure that we now notice the extensive inquiry made at the suggestion of Mr. Barry, the architect of the new Houses of Parliament, under the Commission issued by Her Majesty's Government, to investigate the qualities of stone in various parts of the kingdom, in order to select that which should best ensure perpetuity to this grand national monument. This commission, consisting of Mr. Barry, Sir H. T. De la Beche, Dr. W. Smith, and Mr. C. H. Smith, visited one hundred and five quarries, and examined one hundred and seventy-five edifices; and their collected specimens were then submitted to tests, both mechanical and chemical, by Professors Daniell and Wheatstone, of King's College, London. In order to leave a permanent record of their labours, the Commissioners published a Report, and deposited in the Museum of Economic Geology, a variety of specimens of the stones which they had collected. From this Report, we select such details as are calculated to serve the purposes of popular instruction. The Commissioners did not consider it necessary to extend their inquiries to granites, porphyries, and other stones of similar character, on account of the enormous expense of converting them to building purposes in decorated edifices, and from a conviction that an equally durable, and in other respects more eligible material, could be obtained for the object in view from among limestones or sandstones of the kingdom. the The Commissioners soon had striking proofs of the necessity and importance of this inquiry in the lamentable effects of decomposition observable in the greater part of the limestone employed at Oxford; in the magnesian limestones of the Minster, the other churches, and public buildings at York; and in the sandstones of which the churches and other public edifices at Derby and Newcastle are constructed; and numerous other examples. The unequal state of preservation of many buildings often produced by the varied quality of the stone employed in them, although it may have been taken from the same quarry, showed the propriety of a minute examination of the quarries themselves, in order to gain a proper knowledge of the particular beds from whence the different varieties have been obtained. An inspection of quarries was also desirable for the purpose of ascertaining their power of supply, and other important matters; for it frequently happens, that the best stone in quarries is neglected, or only partially worked, in consequence of the cost of laying bare, and removing those beds with which it may be associated; whence it happens, that the inferior material is in such cases supplied. Stone decays more rapidly in towns than in the open country, where dense smoke, fogs, and vapours, which act injuriously on buildings, do not exist. There is also another curious cause which contributes to the durability of stone buildings situated in the country. In the course of time, the stone becomes covered with minute lichens, which, though in themselves decomposing agents, act with extreme slowness, and when once firmly established over the entire surface of the stone, seem to exercise a protective influence, by defending the surface from the more violent destructive agents: whereas, in populous smoky towns, these lichens are prevented from forming, and thus the stone is exposed to severer trials than stone of the same kind situated in the country. As a remarkable illustration of the difference in the degree of durability in the same material, subjected to the effects of the air in town and country, the appearance is noticed of several frusta of columns, and other blocks of stone, that were quarried at the time of the erection of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, and which are now lying in the Isle of Portland, near the quarries from whence they were obtained. These blocks are invariably found to be covered with lichens, and, although they have been exposed to all the vicissitudes of a marine atmosphere for more than one hundred and fifty years, they still exhibit beneath the lichens their original form, even to the marks of the chisel employed upon them; whilst the stone which was taken from the same quarries, (selected no doubt with equal, if not greater care, than the blocks alluded to,) and placed in the Cathedral itself, is, in those parts which are exposed to the south, and south-west winds, found, in some instances, to be fast mouldering away. Colour is more important in the selection of a building stone to be situated in a populous and smoky town, than for one to be placed in the open country, where all edifices become covered with lichens; for, although in such towns, those fronts which are not exposed to the prevailing winds and rains, will soon become blackened, the remainder of the building will constantly exhibit a tint depending upon the natural colour of the stone. The chemical action of the atmosphere produces a change in the entire matter of the limestones, and in the cementing substance of sandstones, according to the amount of surface exposed to it. The particles of the stone first loosened by the action of frost are removed by powerful winds and driving rains. The buildings in this climate were generally found to suffer the greatest amount of decomposition on their south, south-west, and west fronts, arising doubtless from the prevalence of winds and rains from those quarters. Those buildings which are highly decorated, such as the churches of the Norman, and pointed styles of architecture, generally afford a more severe test of the durability of a building stone, than the more simple and less decorated castles of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; because, in the former class of buildings, the stone is worked into more disadvantageous forms than in the latter, as regards exposure to the effects of the weather. Buildings in a state of ruin, from being deprived of their ordinary protection of roofing, glazing of windows, &c., afford an equally severe test of the durability of the stone employed in them. The durability of various building stones in particular localities was estimated by examining the condition of the neighbouring buildings constructed of them. Among sandstone buildings were noticed the remains of Ecclestone Abbey, of the thirteenth century, near Barnard Castle, constructed of a stone closely resembling that of the Stenton quarry, in the vicinity, in which the mouldings and other decorations were in excellent condition. The circular keep of Barnard Castle, apparently also built of the same material, is in fine preservation. Tintern Abbey is noticed as a sandstone edifice, that has to a considerable extent resisted decomposition. Some portions of Whitby Abbey are fast yielding to the effects of the atmosphere. The older portions of Ripon Cathedral; Rivaulx Abbey; and the Norman keep of Richmond Castle, in Yorkshire, are all examples of sandstone buildings, in tolerably fair preservation. Of sandstone edifices in an advanced state of decom position, are enumerated Durham Cathedral, the churches at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Carlisle Cathedral, Kirkstall Abbey, and Fountain's Abbey. The sandstone churches of Derby are also extremely decomposed; and the church of St. Peter's, at Shaftsbury, is in such a state of decay, that some portions of the building are only prevented from falling by means of iron ties. Report gives the preference to the limestones, on account of their more general uniformity of tint, their The choir of Southwell Church, of the twelfth century, comparatively homogeneous structure, and the facility affords an instance of the durability of a magnesio- and economy of their conversion to building purposes; calciferous sandstone after long exposure to the influences and, of this class, preference is given to those which are of the atmosphere. The Norman portions of this most crystalline. Professor Daniell is of opinion that church are also constructed of magnesian limestone, the nearer the magnesian limestones approach to equisimilar to that of Bolsover Moor, and which are through-valent proportions of carbonate of lime and carbonate of out in a perfect state, the mouldings and carved enrich- magnesia, the more crystalline and better they are in ments being as sharp as when first executed. The every respect. following buildings, also of magnesian limestone, are either in perfect preservation, or exhibit only slight traces of decay; the keep of Koningsburgh Castle; the church at Hemingborough, of the fifteenth century; Tickhill Church, of the same date; Huddlestone Hall, of the sixteenth century; Roche Abbey, of the thirteenth century. The magnesian limestone buildings which were found in a more advanced state of decay, were the churches at York, and a large portion of the Minster, Howden Church, Doncaster old church, and buildings in other parts of the county, many of which are so much decomposed, that the mouldings, carvings, &c., are often entirely effaced. The Report speaks in high terms of the preservation of building's constructed of oolitic and other limestones; such are Byland Abbey, of the twelfth century; Sandysfoot castle, near Weymouth, constructed of Portland oolitic in the time of Henry the Eighth; Bow-andArrow Castle, and the neighbouring ruins of a church of the fourteenth century, in the island of Portland. The oolite in the vicinity of Bath does not seem to wear well. The excellent condition of the parts which remain of Glastonbury Abbey shows the value of a shelly limestone similar to that of Doulting; whilst the stone employed in Wells Cathedral, apparently of the same kind, and not selected with equal care, is in parts decomposed. In Salisbury Cathedral, built of stone from Chilmark, we have evidence of the general durability of a siliciferous limestone; for, although the west front has somewhat yielded to the effects of the atmosphere, the excellent condition of the building generally is most striking. The materials employed in the public buildings of Oxford afford a marked instance both of decomposition and durability; for whilst a shelly oolite, similar to that of Taynton, which is employed in the exposed parts of the more ancient parts of the Cathedral, in Merton College Chapel, &c., is generally in a good state of preservation, a calcareous stone from Heddington. employed in nearly all the colleges, churches, and other public buildings, is in such a deplorable state of decay as, in some instances, to have caused all traces of architectural decoration to disappear, and the ashler* itself to be, in many places, deeply disintegrated. In Spofforth Castle two materials, a magnesian limestone and a sandstone, have been employed; the former in the decorated parts, and the latter for the ashler, and although both have been equally exposed, the magnesian limestone has remained as perfect in form as when first employed, while the sandstone has suffered considerably from the effects of decomposition. In Chepstow Castle a magnesian limestone is in fine preservation, and a red sandstone rapidly decaying. A similar result was observed in Bristol Cathedral, which afforded a curious instance of the effects of using different materials; for a yellow limestone and a red sandstone have been indiscriminately employed both for the plain and the decorated parts of the building; not only is the appearance unsightly, but the architectural effect of the edifice is also much impaired by the unequal decomposition of the two materials. After enumerating these and other examples, the It was considered that this crystalline character, together with durability, as instanced in Southwell Church, &c.; uniformity in structure; facility and economy in conversion; and advantage in colour, were all comprised in the magnesian limestone, or dolomite of Bolsover Moor and its neighbourhood; and this was accordingly recommended as the most proper material to be employed in the new Houses of Parliament This opinion was not arrived at, nor this recommendation made, until after a very extensive series of experiments had been completed by Professors Daniell and Wheatstone upon specimens of the stones of the various quarries visited by the Commissioners. The specimens, as delivered to these gentlemen, were in the form of two-inch cubes. These experiments were of a most comprehensive kind. The composition of the stones. was determined by chemical analysis:-their specific gravities; their weights after having been perfectly dried by exposure in heated air for several days; then their weights after having been immersed in water for several days so as to become saturated; the object being to ascertain the absorbent powers of the stones, which was further tested by placing them in water under the exhausted receiver of an air-pump. The stones were also subjected to the process of disintegration, invented by M. Brard, the object of which is to determine, by easy experiments, whether a building stone will or will not resist the action of frost. This process is so curious and valuable that we will state it at length in a separate article. Lastly the cohesive strength of each specimen, or its resistance to pressure, was tested by the weight required to crush it. This weight was furnished by a hydrostatic press, the pump of which was one inch in diameter: one pound at the end of the pump lever produced a pressure on the surface of the cube equal to 2·53 cwt., or to 71 06 lbs. on the square inch. These trials were made with caution, the weight on the lever was successively increased by a single pound, and, in order to ensure a gradual action, a minute was allowed to elapse previous to the application of each additional weight. It was noted for each specimen the pressure at which the stone began to crack, and also the pressure at which it was crushed. The results of all these experiments (which are stated for each stone), gave a decided preference to the Bol sover magnesian limestone, which was noticed as being remarkable for its peculiarly beautiful crystalline strueture, while it was the heaviest and strongest of all the specimens, and absorbed least water. Its composition was 50 per cent of carbonate of lime, and 40 of carbonate of magnesia; the remaining ten parts consisting chiefly of silica and alumina. * Bolsover is a small market town in Derbyshire, on the borders of the county of Nottingham, and about 145 miles from London. + The various quarries visited by the Commissioners are noticed in the fullest and fairest manner. They have stated for each quarry its name and situation; the names and addresses of the freeholder, of his agent, and of the quarryman; the name of the stone; its composition; colour; weight per cubic foot; entire depth of workable stone; description of the beds; size of blocks that can be procured; prices, per cubic luot, of block stone at the quarry; description and cost of carriage to London; cost, per cubic foot, of the stone delivered in London; cost, per foot of surface, of known or reported to have been employed in building. plain rubbed work, as compared with Portland stone; and, finally, where JOHN W. PARKER Publisher, WEST STRAND, LONDON. We have hitherto considered the life of Grotius principally as it regards his high attainments in various branches of literature, and we approach with some reluctance the consideration of his character as a religious disputant. We have seen that, from his early years, he was disposed to controversial subjects; and we may gather from the advice of De Thou, and other circumstances, that his zeal in these respects outstripped his discretion. The sincere advocacy of well-grounded and settled opinions would not have been otherwise than honourable and praiseworthy; but when we find him engaged in the early part of his life most warmly in the Protestant cause, and yet subsequently, through his acquaintance with the Jesuits, so far forsaking his former principles as to favour the Pope's supremacy, the doctrine of transubstantiation, of the seven sacraments, &c., we are naturally disposed to view with the less interest his wavering opinions in religious matters; or to seek for some extenuation of his proceedings, in the fact that he was most sincerely anxious for unity, and not sufficiently scrupulous in the mode by which he sought to attain it. The controversy in which he took so important a part at the period of his history at which we have now arrived, was not, however, between Papists and Protestants, but between the followers of Calvin and Arminius, whose VOL. XXIV. disputes at that times ran to a lamentable height in the United Provinces, and were at first referred to the synod of Rotterdam, and finally quelled by force of arms. Grotius, in his endeavours to promote peace and good understanding between the parties, too evidently favoured the side of the Arminians for his efforts to be successful. The decree drawn up by him, and approved by the States, though very carefully worded, was so obnoxious to the opposite party, that the state of affairs grew worse than ever; and the States found it necessary to raise troops for the suppression of riots, and the security of their towns. This step exasperated Prince Maurice of Nassau against the States, and led to the ruin of Grotius. The prince, who, as governor-general, considered that his dignity had been infringed, now made a tour through the Provinces, removing from the senate all who were known or suspected to favour Arminianism. Grotius was arrested; his trial was shamefully conducted; and his judges were so ignorant, that, though they decreed penalties which were only enacted against persons convicted of high treason, they omitted mentioning in the sentence that Grotius was guilty of that crime. Grotius was condemned to perpetual imprisonment; and he was accordingly conveyed from the Hague to the castle of Louvestein, near Gorcum, South Holland. The father of Grotius was not permitted to see his son; but his wife was permitted to accompany him to Louvestein, with the understanding that, if she left that fortress, she would not be permitted to return to it again. Subse 742 Bazelaer's house to the river-side, and stepped into a boat, which carried him to Vervic, in Brabant. There he made himself known to some Arminian friends, and then, hiring a carriage, he proceeded to Antwerp, taking the necessary precautions not to be known by the way. In the mean time his wife continued to encourage the idea of his being ill and confined to his bed at Louvestein; but no sooner had she gained tidings of his safe arrival in Brabant (where he was safe from his enemies), than she told the guards of his flight, and afterwards, when pressed and even threatened by the commandant, quently the severity of the decree was relaxed, and she was permitted to leave the castle twice a week. In captivity, Grotius regained that tranquillity which controversy had deprived him of, so that he was able to resume his studies, and to produce several new works. Besides those relating to the prevalent disputes, he composed a treatise in Dutch verse, On the Truth of the Christian Religion; also his Institutions of the Laws of Holland, in Dutch; a Catechism for the use of his daughter Cornelia, in Flemish verse; and a Dialogue between a father and son on the necessity of silence, explaining the use and abuse of speech, and the advantages of taci-she related the story of his escape in the book-chest. turnity. While Grotius was calmly pursuing his studies, his wife was intently studying the means of effecting his escape. He had been permitted to borrow books of his friends, and they were sent to and returned by him in a chest which conveyed his linen backwards and forwards to the town of Gorcum, where it was washed. This had been the custom during the whole time of his imprisonment, which had now nearly extended to two years. The guards were very exact for the first twelve months in examining the contents of this box every time it passed through their hands; but at length finding that it never contained anything but books and linen, they grew careless, and did not give themselves the trouble to open it. This negligence was observed with delight by the wife of Grotius, and she was not slow in turning it to account. She first ascertained that it was possible for her husband to bear the confinement of being shut up in the chest for a period long enough to allow of his escape, and then proceeded to take some precautionary measures. She diligently cultivated the acquaintance of the lady of the commandant of the Louvestein; and on one occasion, when she was aware that the commandant was gone to Heusden to raise recruits, she paid a visit to this lady, and took occasion to lament her husband's immoderate love of study: she informed her that it had made him seriously ill; and that she felt so much uneasiness on his account, that she had now resolved to take from him all his books, and send them away in the chest to their respective owners. Having thus prepared the mind of the commandant's wife, she spread in other directions the same tale; and at the same time caused the chest to be prepared for its destined inmate, by boring holes to admit the air. With some difficulty she prevailed on Grotius to adopt her scheme, and to leave her in prison. A servant, who was in the secret, superintended the removal of the box; but when the soldiers took it up, they found it so much heavier than usual that they said there must be an Arminian in it. This was a common proverb of the times; but Grotius's wife, who was present, coolly remarked that there were indeed plenty of Arminian books in it, on which they proceeded with their important burden. One of the soldiers, however, talked of having the chest examined, but by the address of the maid-servant his scruples were removed, and it was safely deposited in the boat which was to convey it from Louvestein to Gorcum. The passage took a considerable time, and when the boat reached the shore, the maid, being now beyond the reach of the guards at Louvestein, pretended that there was some valuable glass in the chest which must be removed with care. Two chairmen were therefore employed to carry it to the house of David Bazelaer, a friend of Grotius. Bazelaer dismissed his servants from the apartment into which the chest had been conveyed, and hastened to open it and to embrace his friend. Grotius had felt no inconvenience from his constrained position, though the length of the chest was only three feet and a half; but had suffered much anxiety of mind during the course of the deception. He now dressed himself as a mason, with rule and trowel, and went by the back door of He put her into close confinement, but in a few days an order arrived from the States-General, restoring her liberty, and permitting her to take with her from Louvestein everything which belonged to her. It was on the 22nd of March, 1621, that Grotius obtained his liberty. On the 30th of that month, he wrote from Antwerp to the States-General, that in procuring his liberty he had employed neither violence nor corruption with his keepers; that he had nothing to reproach himself with in what he had done; and that the persecution he had suffered would never diminish his love to his country, for whose prosperity he heartily prayed. The escape of Grotius, and the magnanimity of his wife, exercised the pens of the most famous poets of the time. Grotius himself made some verses on the subject, which were translated into Flemish by Von Vondel. He also apostrophised the chest to which he owed his liberty, and in the latter part of his life was at great pains to recover it, after it had passed out of his hands. up Without dwelling on the controversial writings which still employed the time and thoughts of Grotius, we may refer to the choice he made of a residence. Invited by learned men and by the ministry of France, to take his abode in that country, he travelled thither in disguise, and reached Paris the 13th of April, 1621. He was immediately noticed by numerous distinguished individuals; but it was not until the following year that he was presented to the king. His majesty received him favourably, and granted him a pension of 3000 livres. In 1622 Grotius published his Apology, dedicated to the people of Holland and West Friezland. It contained a vindication of his conduct, and a full account of the proceedings which led to his arrest, of the informality in the nomination of judges, the irregularity of the sentence, the wrongs done to the several prisoners after the passing of the sentence, &c. All this tended greatly to incense the States-General against him. Unable to give a satisfactory reply to his work, they proscribed it, condemned it as slanderous, and as tending to asperse by falsehoods the sovereign authority of the government of the Provinces; and therefore forbad all persons to have it in their custody on pain of death. The severity of this proceeding made Grotius fearful of his own apprehension; he therefore applied for protection to the King of France, who issued letters, February 26th, 1623, formally taking him into his royal protection. In 1625 Grotius published at Paris his admirable book Of the Rights of War and Peace. Of this work Burigny says, "Those who would study the law of nations cannot read this book too often: they will find in it the most agreeable learning, joined to the strongest reasoning. The whole is not equally correct; but what large work is not liable to the same censure?" Besides, we must consider that it has the glory of being original in its kind; and the first treatise that reduced into a system the most excellent of all sciences. This great work, originally written in Latin, was translated into Dutch, Swedish, German, and English. But Grotius began to feel his situation in Paris a very uncomfortable one. His pension was so irregularly paid that he was put to the greatest inconvenience, and having refused that absolute devotion of his services to the plans of Richelieu, which that proud cardinal required of him, he was treated with little consideration or respect. In this state of things he became very desirous of returning to his own country, and having first sent his wife thither to ascertain how the people stood affected towards him, he at length ventured to follow in the year 1631. But he did not meet with the countenance he had expected. On the contrary, an edict of banishment was issued against him; so that he formally bade a final adieu to Holland, and determined to seek his fortune elsewhere. He then fixed his residence at Hamburgh, where he received proposals from several of the greatest princes, who sought to draw to them a man of such profound learning and knowledge of public law. He was invited to Poland, Denmark, and Sweden, and eventually entered into the service of the last-named country. Grotius had a singular veneration for the Great Gustavus, and before he had any idea of devoting himself to his service, he had thus expressed his opinion of the monarch :— "Happy are they who are under the protection of so great a king. He proves the possibility of what appeared incredible in the great men of antiquity; he is a witness who gives evidence in their favour: he will serve for a master to posterity: and the best lessons in the art of war will be learned from his history. He is no less eminent as a warrior than as a statesman; and in him is found all that makes a great king. He is the wisest monarch now reigning, and knows how to improve every opportunity to the best advantage, not only when the injustice of his enemies obliges him to have recourse to arms, but also when he is allowed to enjoy the blessings of peace." LUMINOUS PHENOMENON AT SEA. ON HOSPITALS. II. ALTHOUGH from the commencement of the Christian to have attracted more attention than the plague CAPT. BONNYCASTLE, coming up the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Captain Bonnycastle caused a bucket of this fiery water to be drawn up; it was one mass of light when stirred by the hand, and not in sparks as usual, but in actual coruscations. A portion of the water preserved its luminosity for seven nights. On the third night, the scintillations of the sea reappeared; this evening the sun went down very singularly, exhibiting in its descent a double sun, and when only a few degrees high, its spherical figure changed into that of a long cylinder, which reached the horizon. In the night the sea became nearly as luminous as before, but on the fifth night the appearance entirely ceased. Captain Bonnycastle does not think it proceeded from animalcula (which frequently render the sea phosphorescent), but imagines it might be some compound of phosphorus, suddenly evolved and disposed over the surface of the sea; perhaps from the exuvia or secretions of fish connected with the oceanic salts, muriate of soda, and sulphate of magnesia +.-Connexion of the Physical Sciences. Sprit-san-yard. The yard belonging to the bolt-sprit, or bow-sprit. mast, in the head of a ship. 14 Sce two articles upon the Luminous appearance of the Sea, at pages 159 and 171, Vol. XIV., of the Saturday Magazine. As this disease was believed to be contagious, the most means were employed to keep those afflicted with it, separate from the rest of the community, and they were crowded into the leper-houses, and where these did not exist, or afforded insufficient accommodaIn fact, the retion, into huts temporarily erected. strictions to which they were subjected, were of a very cruel nature. They were considered as dead in a civil point of view; could neither inherit or transfer property, although they had the enjoyment of it during their lives. They were only permitted to enter towns upon the occasion of certain festivals, and then were obliged to warn passers-by of their presence, by striking a piece of wood as they passed along; they were forbidden to marry, except with the leprous; and the existence of the disease was considered as good grounds for a divorce. As the disease was very frequently never cured, the lepers oftentimes inhabited these houses for life, and during their residence in them they were obliged to assume a particular dress. In the various towns of the Continent, magistrates and physicians were elected for the purpose of visiting and examining all suspected lepers, a practice which continued in the fourteenth century. Muratori relates that a king of the Lombards, in 630, issued a decree, * Taylor, in his Index Monasticus, enumerates twenty leper-houses in Norfolk alone. |