Camp Mills

The invention of this machine for

ed furprised at this circumftance, "his hoft affured him that the red"nefs was occafioned by the fwine "feeding on the water mixed with "bran in which the cotton cloth was "boiled, and which was coloured "by the madder used in printing it. "Belchier, to whom this effect was "new, convinced himself, by ex"periments, that the red colour of "the bones had arifen from the "madder employed in printing the "cotton, and from no other caufe; "and he communicated his difco

afcribed to Cornelius Meyer, in 1683, and by the Dutch to Meeuves Meindertfzoon Bakker, a citizen of Amfterdam, in 1688.

Artificial Ice-Cooling Liquors. The art of preferving fnow for cooling liquors during the fummer, in warm countries, was known in the earliest ages. Several modes of doing this, as practifed in various countries, are described under these

heads.

Watchmen are mentioned in the Song of Solomon. Calling the hour feems to have been first practied after the erection of city gates, and to have taken its rife in Ger many. The ancient watchmen carried bells, and were frequently sta tioned on towers and steeples: in the latter cafe they were not fuffered to

HISTORICAL ANECDOTES FROM THE ARTICLE OF SECKET POISON.

"NO one was ever more infamous by this art than Tophana, or Toffania, a woman who refided firft at Palermo, and afterwards at Naples. She fold thofe drops, which from her acquired the name of aqua Tophania, aqua della Toffana, and which were called alfo acquetta di Napoli, or only aquetia; but the distributed her preparation by way of charity to fuch wives as wifhed to have other husbands. From four to fix drops were fufficient to destroy a man; and it was afferted that the dofe could be fo proportioned as to operate in a certain time. As the was watched by the government, the fed to an ecclefiaftical afylum; and when Keyfler was at Naples in 1730, fhe was then ftill living, because no one could, or was willing to, take away her life, while under that protection. At that time he was vifited by many ftrangers out of curiofity.

"In Labat's travels through Italy we alfo find fome information which may may ferve ftill farther to illuftrate the hiftory of Tophania. She diftributed her poifon in fmall glafs phials, with this infcription, Manna of St. Nicholas, of Bari, and ornamented with the image of the faint. A miraculous oil, employed by folly in the cure of many difeafes, drops from the tomb of that faint which is fhewn at Bari, in the kingdom of Naples; and on this account it is difperfed in great abundance under the like name. It was therefore the best appellation which Tophania could give to her poifon, becaufe the reputed fanétity of it prevented the cuffom-houfe officers from examining it too clofely. When the viceroy was informed of this, which I think was in 1709, To

phania fled from one convent to another, but was at length feized, and thrown into prifon. The clergy raised a loud outcry, on account of this violation of ecclefiaftical freedom, and endeavoured to excite the people to infurrection. But they were foon appeafed, on a report being fpread that Tophania had confeffed the had. poifoned all the fprings in the city. Being put to the rack, the acknowledged her wickedness; named those who had protected her, who were immediately dragged from churches and monafteries; and declared, that the day before he had abfconded, the had fent two boxes of her manna to, Rome, where it was found in the cuf tom-house, but she did not accufe any. one of having ordered it. She was afterwards ftrangled, and, to mitigate the archbishop, her body was thrown into the area of the convent from which the had been taken. Tophania, however, was not the only perfon at Naples who understood the making of this poifon; for Keyfler says, that, at the time he was there, it was still fecretly prepared, and much employed.

In the year 1659, under the government of Pope Alexander VII, it was observed at Rome, that many. young married women became widows, and that many husbands died when they became difagreeable to their wives. Several of the clergy declared alfo, that for fome time paft various perfons had acknowledged at confef fion, that they had been guilty of poifoning. As the government em ployed the utmoft vigilance to difcover thefe poifoners, a fociety of young wives, whofe prefident appeared to be an old woman, who pretended to fortell future events, and who had often predicted very exactly the death of many perfons, became fufpected. To convict her of the crime, acrafty woman, given out to be a perfon of confiderable diffinetion, was fent to her, who pretended that the wifhed to obtain her confi dence, and to procure fome of her drops for a cruel and tyrannical hufband. The whole fociety were

by this ftratagem arrested; and all of them, except the fortune-teller, whofe name was Hieronyma Spara, confelfed before they were put to the torture. Where now,' cried the, are the Roman princes, knights, and barons, who on fo many occafions promifed

• me their protection!. Where are the ladies who affured me of their friendship! Where are my children whom I have placed in fo diftinguithed fituations !' In order to deter others from committing the like crime, one Gratiofa, Spara's affiftant, and three other women, and the obftinate Spara herfelf, who fill en tertained hopes of affiftance till the laft moment, were hanged in the prefence of innumerable fpectators. Some months after, feveral more women were executed in the fame manner; fome were whipt, and others were banished from the country. Notwithstanding thefe punishments, the effects of this inveterate wickednefs have been from time to time remarked. Le Bret, to whom we are in debted for the above account, fays, that Spara was a Sicilian, and acquired her knowledge from Tophania at Palermo. If that be true, the latter muft have been early initiated in villainy, and must have become when very young a teacher of her infamous art. Keyller calls her a little old woman.

The art of poifoning never excited more attention in France than about the year 1670. Mary Mar. garet d'Aubray, daughter of the lieutenant-civil Dreux d'Aubray, was, in the year 1651, married to the Marquis de Brinvillier, fon of Gobelin, prefident of the chamber of accounts, who had a yearly income of thirty thoufand livres, and to whom he brought a portion of two hundred thoufand. He was meftre-de-camp of the regiment of Normandy, and during the course of his campaigus became acquainted with one Godlin de Sainte Croix, a young man of a diftinguished family, who ferved as a captain of cavalry in the regiment of Traffy This young officer, who was then a needy adventurer, became a conftant vilitor of the Marquis, and in a fhort time paid his addreffes to the Mar. chionefs, who loft her husband after the had helped to diffipate his large fortune, and was thus enabled to enjoy her amours in greater freedom. Her indecent conduct, however, gave fo much uneafinefs to her father, that

he procured a lettre de cachet, had. Sainte Croix arrefted, while in a carriage by her fide, and thrown into the Baltille. Sainte Croix there got acquainted with an Italian named Exili, who underfood the art of preparing poifon, and from whom he learned it. As they were both fet at liberty after a year's imprisonment, Sainte Croix kept Exili with him until he became perfectly matter of the art, in which he afterward's inftructed the Marchionefs, in order that she night employ it in bettering the circumftances of both. When he had acquired the principles of the art, the allumed the appearance of a nun, diftributed food to the poor, nurfed the fick in the Hôtel Dieu, and gave them medicines, but only for the purpose of trying the ftrength of her poifon undetected on thefe helpless wretches. It was faid in Paris, by way of fatire, that no young phyfician, in introducing himself to practice, had ever fo fpeedily filled a church-yard as Brinvillier. By the force of money, The prevailed on Sainte Croix's fervant, called La Chauffée, to administer poifon to her father, into whofe fervice he got him introduced, and alfo to her brother, who was a counfellor of the parliament, and refided at his father's house. To the former the poifon was given ten times before he died; the fon died fooner; but the daughter, Mademoiselle d'Aubray, the Marchionefs could not poifon, becaufe, perhaps, fhe was too much on her guard; for a fufpicion foon arofe that the father and fon had been poifoned, and the bodies were opened. She would, however, have efcaped, had not Providence brought to light the villainy.

"Sainte Croix, when preparing poifon, was accuftomed to wear a glafs mafk; but as this once happened to drop off by accident, he was fuffocated, and found dead in his laboratory. Government caufed the effects of this man, who had no family, to be examined, and a lift of them to be made out.

On fearching them, there was found a fmall box, to which Sainte Croix had affixed a written request,

that