and the determination of the plebeians to prevent them from so doing. At length, to get rid of these discords, it was resolved to appoint a magistrate called a Doge. This governor was elected for life, but the succession was not hereditary, the election taking place at the death of the last Doge.

This latter mode of government continued for nearly two hundred years; but stormy scenes marked nearly the whole of this period. Each party in the city had their favourite to propose as Doge, and many Doges were put to death by violence: often, indeed, several Doges were elected at one time. At length, in 1528, Andrew Doria succeeded in obtaining a change in the government by limiting the period of each Doge's government to two years, with a council to assist and control him. The government was aristocratical, that is, the names of all the noble families were enrolled in a book, and from them and them only could the Doge and other officers of the government be chosen.

This lasted for more than two centuries and a half; when Genoa became one of the many states destined to be disturbed by Napoleon Buonaparte. The French first assisted the plebeians to gain the ascendancy over the aristocracy, and then took the government to themselves. After many changes of success, Genoa was formally incorporated with France in 1805, and so continued until the end of the war, when, among the many regulations for the settlement of Europe, one was that Genoa should be united to and form part of the kingdom of Sardinia; and this arrangement still continues. We thus see that Genoa has undergone as many changes of government as larger territories. When we speak of Genoa as a territory, we must bear in mind that it has for centuries in cluded within its rule a portion of the surrounding country, extending along the shore of the gulf of

Genoa.

During the political changes above enumerated, the republic of Genoa had many wars with other nations ; but these form no part of our subject: it is more to the purpose to say, that her commercial transactions grew into great magnitude about the fifteenth century, and that it declined to a low ebb down to the end of the last century, since when it is understood to have revived again. Genoa must either have been a commercial city, or nothing of note, for the soil is extremely barren near it, and cannot even afford food enough for the inhabitants; nor does there appear to be many mineral riches near it. All these circumstances the Genoese have well known, and have wisely directed the chief part of their attention to commerce.

Genoa is a garrisoned town, the residence of a governor-general, and of a senate or high court of justice. The codes of laws, both civil and commercial, introduced by the French, have been retained. The Genoese manufacture silks, woollens, cottons, and paper; and export, besides these, rice, hemp, and oil; the whole of their exports amounting to about two millions annually. The imports amount to three millions, and are brought from all the eastern parts of the Mediterranean.

The Genoese form the best sailors in the Mediterranean; and the middle classes are well calculated for commerce. Their general character is said to be shrewd, active, parsimonious, and industrious. The population of the whole Duchy is about 208,000, of whom 94,000 reside within the walls of the city, and 22,000 in the suburbs of San Martino and San Pere d'Arena. The city appears to be governed in a very conciliatory spirit by its present sovereign, the King of Sardinia.

BYCKNACRE PRIORY, ESSEX. THE above wood-cut represents the remains of one of those buildings with which England was in former times so largely supplied; we mean priories, monasteries, and other establishments connected with a form of worship which has since ceased to be, and which we hope never again will be, the established faith of this country. Different feelings are excited when we think of the change of religion which took place three hundred years ago in England. Viewed in its more important light, we regard it as a blessing to the country; but viewing it in the less prominent feature of its connexion with, and influence on, the beauty of architecture, we cannot but feel some regret at the decay and demolition of the beautiful Gothic face of the country. structures which were so profusely scattered over the

:

The building with which we are now concerned did not share the fate of many of a similar class it was not destroyed or dismantled at the Reformation; for it had previously suffered so much from the wearing effects of age, that it was scarcely worthy of the attention of the commissioners to whom was committed the investigation of monastic establishments. Bycknacre Priory is situated in the parish of WoodhamFerrers, a little at the right of the road leading from Danbury to Woodham Ferrers. The ruins of it still existing are, as may be seen, exceedingly small, but it was once probably an extensive place. It was a priory of regular canons of the Augustine order, and dedicated to the Virgin Mary and to John the Baptist. The priory was built and endowed by Maurice Fitz-Geoffry, Sheriff of Essex, in the reign, and chiefly at the expense, of King Henry the Second. In the thirteenth year of the reign of Edward the First, several grants were made to the priory. The king gave leave to the prior to impark or inclose his waste land in Woodham-Ferrers, amounting to sixty acres : Andrew de Woodegrie gave forty acres in East Haningfield; John Toleberle and John Turpyne gave thirty acres in Danbury: all of which were given to the priory; and within a few years afterwards, several gifts of a similar kind were made, by which the revenues of the priory were much increased.

Morant, in his History of Essex, says,

About the beginning of the year 1506, this priory, through the carelessness of its governors, and other accidents, was grown so poor, that at the death of Edward Golding, the prior, there was but one monk left in the house, and it became in a manner wholly neglected. Whereupon, the prior and convent of Elsingspittle, without from King Henry the Seventh, to have this priory of Bishopsgate, London, procured, 21 April, 1509, license Bycknacre, with all its lands, &c., united and appropriated to their hospital; which was done the ninth of November following. But one of this priory's manors in WoodhamFerrers was then, or about that time, anuexed to the hos pital of St. Mary of Bethlehem, London.

When an inquisition or investigation was afterwards made into the value of the possessions which had belonged to the priory, it was found that they consisted of the manor of Bycknacre, thirty messuages, three hundred acres of arable land, forty of meadow, sixty of wood, five hundred of pasture, and sixty-two of marsh land, together with certain privileges in the neighbouring towns.

Upon the dissolution of monasteries, the manor to which the priory had belonged was granted by Henry the Eighth to a private family; and since that time it has frequently passed from one family to another.

We have said that this priory is situated near the road leading from Danbury to Woodham-Ferrers. The village of Danbury is delightfully situated on the sides and summit of the highest hill in Essex; and

it received its name of Danbury from its having been a fortified place belonging to the Danes, many records of its former destination being still visible. An alarm beacon stood near the ground on which the parsonage house has been erected; and at the south-east from the church, near the glacis, a watch or guard house stood. The lines of the ancient encampment are still visible, within and beside which the present town is situated. The glacis (which is a slope exterior to the ditch and wall of a fortified place) on the north side is nearly thirty feet deep; and it may also be traced on the other sides. There is every reason to believe that this was a castle or town of the Danes, and was one of their strongholds during the early part of their sojourn in England.

The church at Danbury is situated on the summit of the hill, and within the area of the ancient encampment. There is a nave, north and south aisles, a chancel, and a stone tower at the west end, containing five bells, and surmounted by a lofty wooden spire, which, from its elevated situation, serves as a sea-mark: indeed, the situation is so exposed, that the church has more than once suffered from lightning and from high winds.

Under one of the aisles of the church are the effigies of two cross-legged knights, curiously carved against the faces of the lords of his court. The beard in wood; and a third is placed at some little distance from them. A lion is sculptured beneath the feet of each of the knights, placed in different postures; so also the knights themselves are represented in different attitudes; one is in a devotional attitude, with his sword sheathed; a second is in the act of drawing his sword; while a third is returning his sword into the scabbard. The most remarkable relic of other days, however, found in this church, was a body buried in pickle. About sixty years ago, as some workmen were digging a grave beneath one of the

arches in the north wall, a leaden coffin was discovered, about thirty inches below the pavement. This was carefully examined, and a detailed account of the contents was inserted in the Gentleman's Magazine. It was the opinion of Mr. Strutt, that the body was that of one of the Knights Templars; and as it may be interesting to see how far a body may be preserved for ages, when immersed in a liquid, we will briefly describe the appearances that presented themselves.

On raising the leaden coffin, there was discovered an elm coffin enclosed, about a quarter of an inch thick, and very firm and entire. On removing the lid of this second coffin, it was found to enclose a shell, about three quarters of an inch thick, which was covered with a thick cement, of a dark olive colour and of a resinous nature. The lid of this shell being carefully taken off, a human body was discovered, lying in a liquor, or pickle somewhat resem. bling mushroom catsup, but paler and of a thicker consistence the taste was aromatic though not very pungent, partaking of the flavour of catsup, and of the pickle of Spanish olives. The body was tolerably perfect, no part appearing decayed but the throat and part of one arm; the flesh everywhere, except on the face and throat, appeared exceedingly white and firm; but those excepted portions were of a dark colour, approaching to black. The body was covered with a kind of shirt of linen, not unlike Irish cloth, of considerable fineness: a narrow, rude, antique lace was affixed to the bosom of the shirt; the stitches were very evident, and held firmly. The linen adhered rather closely to the body, but not so much so as to prevent its removal. The coffin or shell not being half full of the pickle, the face and chest were not covered by it. The inside of the body seemed to be filled with some substance, by which it was rendered hard. There was no hair on the head, nor in the

SKETCHES IN AMERICA.

liquor, as far as could be detected, though. feathers, flowers, and herbs in abundance were floating, the leaves and stalks of which appeared quite perfect, but wholly discoloured. The coffin was not placed in a position exactly horizontal, the feet being at least three inches lower than the head. The pillow which supported the head had decayed, and the head had fallen back. When the jaws were opened, they exhibited a set of teeth perfectly white, which was likewise the colour of the palate and all the inside of the mouth. The general appearance of the whole body conveyed the idea of hearty youth, not in the least emaciated by sickness. After the examination,

the several coffins were closed again, and all left nearly as it had been found.

We cannot but think that some useful results might have been obtained by an investigation of the component parts of the liquor found in the coffins. The last few years have thrown great light on the means which the ancient Egyptians adopted for the embalming and preserving their dead; and it is by no means a subject devoid of interest, to compare such means with those adopted by other nations. In the ages when Christianity either did not exist, or existed only in a rude and corrupt form, the imperfect and often vicious opinions entertained respecting a future state, led men to attach more importance to the preservation of the bodies of their deceased friends, than our more perfect religious knowledge will allow us to entertain at the present day. The body is merely the house in which the spirit temporarily abides : when the spirit has fled, why should we yearn for the preservation of the body? Of what avail can we imagine our most refined art and science, when we consider that awful sentence which was pronounced on man at the fall, "Dust thou art, and unto dust

shalt thou return?"

ON AN EXQUISITELY WRITTEN WORK

ENTITLED

WOMAN'S MISSION.

"TIs writ! the labour of a noble mind
And pious heart shine forth before the world,
As beams of sun-light, lively and intense,
Fraught with the spirit of celestial love-
An emanation from Divinity.

Nor less, inspired and sanctified the "thought,”
Which stations woman in her proper sphere,
And spends itself t' elucidate her way—
A sweet and certain, though peculiar, way-
To work God's will, and aid God's purposes,
In the eternal kingdom of His grace.
Go, virtuous offspring of a high-toned mind!
Substance of holy reasoning and love!

Go gently forward! On thy tender "mission,"
Range the fair world; till every heart that lives
By draughts of wisdom, from its purest source,
Shall relish thy "sweet counsel," and return,
In universal practice of thy doctrine.
Meet praise, to her who gave thy being birth,
And Him whose glorious cause thou shalt advance !-

T. C.

LOVE OF SIGHT-SEEING.

No. I.

THERE is always something interesting in the study of national character; and particularly so where the community we propose making our study is differently composed from almost all other communities, ancient or modern. The people of the United States of America are in this peculiar position,-and a more highly interesting study for the philanthropist or the statesman is probably nowhere presented upon the face of the globe. My purpose, however, in this short sketch, is not to attempt anything like even an outline of the leading features (or what I take to be such) in the American character; but to relate two or three occurrences which I witnessed during my sojourn in the United States, that, with many others of a similar nature, which I heard of, served to establish me in a pretty generally prevailing opinion,namely, that the American people possess a rather large share of curiosity, and a love of sight-seeing. I will relate a circumstance that greatly excited the curiosity of the inhabitants of the neighbourhood. The Falls of Niagara*, distant from Buffalo about eighteen miles, are at all times viewed with astonishment, even by those to whom the scene is most familiar; for among all the wonders of the New World this is decidedly the most remarkable. During the period since the banks of the Niagara river were first visited by European adventurers, until the event which I am about to relate occurred, no craft'or vessel of any magnitude was known to have been hurled over this immense barrier of rock, and engulphed in the abyss of waters below. Indians occasionally had been known to perish, their frail canoes having ventured so close to the head of the Rapids, that in spite of every exertion they could not prevent being sucked down the current; and some three or four instances are on record of white people having lost their lives in a similar manner.

I was myself a witness to an accident that occurred there in the year 1825, to two Americans who hadbeen across the river to the Canada side for a boatload of apples. They had loaded their light flatbottomed batteau at a small public-house about a mile above the village of Chippewa, and the same dis- · tance, or something more, from the head of the first broken water, commonly known as the Rapids; nearly opposite to Navy Island, since become memorable as having for a short time, been the rendezvous of the rebel Mackenzie and his partisans. The two individuals to whom the apple-cargo belonged previously to their departure from "Yale's Tavern," as the small public-house was called, had partaken too freely of whisky and cider, but were not intoxicated. Where they proposed crossing, the river is very wide-nearly three miles. Having at length gone on board, they commenced plying their oars, but had scarcely made the third of a mile from shore, when one of the oars broke, and the more useful part of it floated down the current. They had no spare oar or paddle, neither had they any rudder to their little craft, so that when the accident took place, their want of precaution flashed upon them, and they appeared so alarmed and excited, that they were incapable of making any endeavour to escape the impending danger. They both seized hold of the remaining oar, pulled the boat's head around and around, apparently frantic with despair,-for their incessant cries were heart

Their efforts did not prevent the boat from being carried downwards by the strong current, and perceiving this, one of them, who was an expert *See Saturday Magazine, Vol. VI. p. 10.

swimmer, leaped into the water and struck out towards the Canada shore. But his efforts were in vain, for before his comrade in the boat had been borne down to the first ledge of rocks in the Rapids, he who had attempted to reach the shore by swimming had sunk to rise no more! Several of us stood upon the bank and were helpless witnesses of their melancholy fate.

The circumstance connected with the Falls of Niagara, which, as I have said, so powerfully excited the inhabitants on both sides of this frontier river, was the experiment of sending a large old schooner (the Michigan,) down the Rapids, and over this stupendous cataract. This vessel was too old to be any longer lake-worthy, for she had long buffeted the billows and the breeze on the uncertain waters of Erie. She was, therefore, of no value beyond the materials of which she was constructed; and a few enterprising individuals, foremost among whom were those connected with the ferries across the river, the owners of public vehicles, and the hotel and tavern-keepers near the Falls, purchased her from her owners. The coming event was advertised in the newspapers, and advantage being taken of the season of the year when the inhabitants of the Southern States, as well as many others from the Middle and Eastern States, are in the habit of making tours into the interior of the country where there happens to be anything attractive, and the Falls of Niagara being one of the chief attractions to tourists in general, vast numbers of strangers were added to the thousands upon thousands of the inhabitants of the adjacent country, who flocked to witness the old vessel make, as the Americans expressed it, the "grand plunge."

In order to render the show as interesting as possible, several wild animals, as well as some tame geese and ducks, were embarked, and everything being in readiness, the schooner was towed down the river to near the mouth of the Chippewa creek, or as close to the commencement of the Rapids as it was safe to venture. Here the old ship, cast adrift, and left to the mercy of the waters, soon got broadside to the current; and in passing over one of the ledges of rocks, she struck so violently against a portion of the ledge, that her masts were carried away, and she soon afterwards nearly filled with water. Although in her swift descent down the roaring and boiling waters towards the great Horse-shoe Fall, the ship never came near either shore, two bears had the sagacity to leap into the troubled waters, and both contrived to reach land. The water-fowl, too, seemed to suspect there was more danger in remaining on board than in committing themselves to the impetuous stream; some of them reached the shore, but others were forced down the cataract. A fox or two, and a racoon, attempted to swim ashore, but it was believed that none of them succeeded, although the surface of the river was so broken and agitated that it was nearly impossible for the most attentive observer to discover what became of them. The "Old Michigan" on reaching the main fall, plunged nobly with the rushing waters, and the next instant disappeared in the huge volume of spray that for ever ascends from the frightful gulf a hundred and sixty feet below.

A few hours afterwards some pieces of shattered planks and timbers were picked up half a mile below the fall; and for some days afterwards similar pieces were seen down the river about Queenston and Fort George; all of which, however, were very small, and so worn and chafed, that it was nearly impossible to ascertain to what part of the vessel they had belonged, or, indeed, whether they had ever belonged to her at all.

On the whole, this seems to have been the most interesting event that had yet happened among the Americans of this section of the State of New York. The schooner was an American, and the show itself was, indeed, got up by the Americans, yet the Canada hotel-keepers at and near the Falls were fully as much interested as their brethren on the opposite side of the Niagara; for the ground being more elevated on the Canada side, afforded the best view of the whole descent of the Rapids, and consequently attracted a larger number of spectators.

Another vessel has more recently made the fatal plunge over this amazing cataract,-the Caroline, a steam-boat belonging to Americans, but employed by the rebels attached to Mackenzie's party on Navy Island. This, however, happened during the dead of the night. The vessel was seized by a party of British-Canadians for a violation of the law of nations; she was towed out into the middle of the stream, set on fire, and sent adrift down the raging Rapids.

On another occasion, but one of a very different nature, curiosity attracted many thousands of persons to the vicinity of Buffalo. The object of the people's assembling at this time was to witness the execution of three young men-brothers—of the respective ages of eighteen, twenty-two, and twentyfour. Executions are of rare occurrence in the United States; murder, and that of the first degree, being nearly the only crime to which the extreme penalty of the law is awarded. These three unhappy young men had been tried and pronounced guilty by a jury of their fellow-citizens, of a cruel and cold-blooded murder, in which their aged parents were also implicated, but as accessaries; hence, as the three sons forfeited their lives at the gallows, the parents were permitted, after several months' imprisonment, to return to their wretched and childless home. The murderers' victim was an Englishman of the name of Love, who had boarded and lodged in the house of one of the three brothers, who was married. The parties were aware that Love was in the possession of property to the amount of fifty or sixty pounds, and that he had neither friends nor acquaintances in that section of the country.

The house in which the murder was perpetrated was an isolated building, in the native forests, at the distance of three-fourths of a mile from the nearest settler's dwelling; and the hour chosen for the barbarous deed was something past ten o'clock at night. While one of the brothers engaged Love in conversation, seated by the fire upon his own hearth, another brother, through a small window in the corner of the fire-place, shot him through the head with a rifle. This happened in the depth of winter, when the ground was hard frozen, and deeply covered with snow. No grave, therefore, was dug,-the murderers satisfying themselves with dragging the body two or three hundred yards from the house, and there pushing it under a fallen tree, and then stopping up the cavity with snow.

For several weeks, no discovery was made. But some promissory notes, drawn in Love's favour, being at length offered in payment by one of the brothers, without being indorsed by Love, some inquiries were made to which so unsatisfactory an explanation was attempted, that suspicion became excited. Other circumstances occurred to strengthen this suspicion,— until at length it was agreed that the neighbours should assemble and search the woods. The body was soon discovered; the whole family were taken before a magistrate, and the evidence, although purely circumstantial, was of such a nature that they were committed for trial,