breath as she spoke: "I have neither will nor power in myselfin pity let me pass! It has been said by Him who will help me, who is with me now, 'He that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.' For His sake let me pass

Nothing was ever clearly known of the fate of Don Leon de Valera, Marquis of Jurailla, or of the gentle Italian lady, Donna Francesca, whom he married. Their rich possessions were seized upon by the state. A year or two after their condemnation a rumour was in circulation that Don Leon had been seen in Germany, and about the same time a portrait of Donna Francesca was set up in the most public part of Seville; copies of this picture were also sent to several of the frontier towns; and a high reward was offered for her apprehension. Some said that Donna Juana of Portugal, the king's sister, had secretly favoured the escape of Francesca. Others declared that the picture exhibited was not the portrait of Donna Francesca, and that the dark hood and furred mantle were not according to the style of her costume.

SONGS OF IDLE HOURS.

XIII.

"The Breeze."

Fill up the glass, fill up!-the breeze
To day shall be our toast;

The breeze that wafts us o'er the seas,
To the fair Tasmanian coast;

For fairy hope festoons with flowers,
From pleasure's gay parterre,

Each object of the bright winged hours,

That smile upon us there.

The breeze, the joyous breeze, how well

It fills the canvas now;

And urged, as if by magic spell,

Glides on our vessel's prow.

Oh! when we've reach'd the wish'd-for shore,

Safe from the billowy seas,

We'll think on days that then are o'er,

And toast as now-the breeze!

XIV.

"Where is Pleasure's Rose bud."

Where's the rose bud pleasure planted,

On thy softly blooming cheek?

When thy bosom, love-enchanted,

Heaved with joy thou couldst not speak;

Darkness hovers o'er thy brow,

Where is pleasure's rose bud now?

Hath the hope of truth been blighted,
By some sentence harshly spoke,
That the things which once delighted,

Have but saddened feelings woke;
Flinging shadows o'er thy brow,-
Where is pleasure's rose bud now?
Such a heart as thine should ever,
Be the resting place of joy;
And a dream of grief should never,
With its shadowy forms, annoy:
But around thy placid brow,
Should be pleasure's rose bud now.

66

XV.

Hope for the Best."

Hope for the best, when sorrow flings,
The shadow of her raven wings
Upon our hearts, and friends we love,
Inconstant and unfaithful prove;
When, like a bark upon the sea,
While tempests roar tremendously,
And with each billow's foamy crest,
Despair and fear assail the breast,
When hope appears for ever gone,
Despite its fading, still hope on!

Hope for the best! the flowers decay,
The light winds scatter them away,
But spring tide, with her balmy breath,
Shall snatch their bloom again from death;
And is there not, when joy hath fled,
Some power which still a joy can shed,
And its reviving balm impart,
Unto the lone and drooping heart,

That, while we fear our hopes are flown,
May whisper to us, still hope on!

*K*

NOTES OF A READER.
No. II.

One of the most amusing books, I have for some time met with, is JOUHAUD'S "Paris dans le dixneuvièive Siede;" or Paris in the nineteenth century; it affords a minute and accurate description of the French metropolis some five-and-twenty years ago, and contains a vast fund of information and entertainment. As the work is scarce, I shall extract some of the most amusing passages :Pawn Warehouse.-The old pawnbrokers, which existed before the Revolution, have been superseded by an association chartered

under the government; and a joint-stock-company has been formed, who holds shares in a vast pawn-warehouse, and who receive a dividend of about ten per cent. on their advances. Four distant doors admit the distressed visitors into the vast enclosure; at each of which are a porter and an appraiser, who for a small fee give a written valuation of any article that is offered for inspection. The bringer can obtain at each door, a distinct valuation; and the clerks in the centre of the building are obliged to advance on the article so brought, a sum equal to the first, or to the average appraisement. Regular receipts and tickets are issued, and the things pledged are carefully laid up. On small amounts, an interest of twenty per cent., and on large amounts twelve per cent., is levied, if pledged by the month, or more if by the week. The expences of the establishment being discharged, a handsome profit is left to the subscribers. Forfeited pledges are annually sold by public auction. Two thousand shawls are stated to be in general deposited

in this establishment.

Parisian Ingenuity-In the Palais-royal is a most splendid blacking shop, rented at three thousand livres; where, while the young artist, ("whose sombre pencil paints your boots,") is at work, newspapers are provided to read. It is calculated that sixty thousand pairs of shoes must be cleaned in this shop, in order to pay the mere rental, which forms but a small part of the expense of this establishment.

Religion. Of the state of religion in France, which is a curious topic, I translate the author's account:

6

Every day I hear censors expressing their chagrin, that the living generation is lost to Christianity, and that the Revolution has given a mortal blow to religion. For my own part, I know that every Sunday, when I go at noon to my parish-church of St. Roch, I always find it filled. A number of young and pleasing well-drest women are collected there; and young men, not less fervent, come and mingle among them, and unite their homage with that which beauty addresses to the Eternal. A rigorist might censure little whisperings and salutations, which are going on: but a Christian will abstain from uncandid suspicions; and if he sees the church quitted during the elevation of the host, he will presume that it is to converse about the holiest of our mysteries that the auditors depart.

'Since the world has been a world, every age has complained of the increasing perverseness of manners, and every country has been deploring the decay of piety and the neglect of religion. I suspect that we are nearly as good as our forefathers; and that, if we reason less about religion, we are not the less attentive to our duties. "Christian! reason not;" this is the first principle of the gospel; faith, nothing but faith, and always faith, this is the only shield with which objections are to be repelled, and ratiocinations destroyed. There are things which ought ever to remain covered

with a respectful veil; and of this class are the fundamental doctrines of our holy religion.'

Women.-A corrupt tone runs through this chapter: the permanent happiness of the wife, the good education of the children, and the disposition of the husband to industry and economy, without which no regular advancement in life can be made, all depend chiefly on the conduct of the married women. The author designates by the term 'honest women,' (femmes honnêtes) a class of licentious but decorous matrons, who would not be visited in Lon don by ladies of character: but who, it appears, are received every where in Paris.

An author of some merit has written a book, entitled, Compen sations des Destinées humaines, which is here said to be in high vogue. It teaches the philosophy of indifference, and endeavours to prove that one situation is as productive of happiness as another, nature having provided compensations for every disadvantage: that pain is no evil, because it encreases our capacity for future enjoyment: and that opulence is no good, because, by habituating us to a complex multitude of gratifications, it renders amusement impracticable, and the slightest privations is a misery.

The following description of Toulon, (the Portsmouth of France) is extracted from MILLIN'S " Voyage dans les Départements:" it affords a good specimen of French hyperbole, and is as interesting, as descriptive of the principal naval arsenal in the south of France.

The valley, in which Toulon is situated, is protected towards the north by high mountains; on the east and the west it is sheltered by hills of less elevation; and it spreads out towards the south, forming a plain of three leagues, of which this city occupies the centre. The name Toulon was not known till the 2d century of our era. In the Itinerary of Antonius, the city is called Telo Martius. The Romans had a dyeing manufactory here in the 5th century. It followed the fortune of the rest of Provence, but was more particularly ravaged by the Saracens at different times, who made many ravages here; and several ages elapsed before the advantages of its situation were recognized. Louis XII. was the first who adverted to the benefits which might be derived from the safest port and the best road in the Mediterranean. He ordered a large tower to be built at the entrance of the port; but it was not finished till the reign of Francis I.—Henry IV. enclosed and fortified it but it is indebted to Louis XIV. for those grand constructions which excite the astonishment of travellers: every thing bears the stamp of the genius of that great king.

'It is a delightful spectacle to behold the activity that reigns in Toulon. Here are seen waving in the air the flags of a multitude of vessels, destined to carry to the two worlds, all that contributes to the comforts and pleasures of life; at a distance, beyond the towers and the chain which close the port, floating citadels defend

the road, which are always ready, at the first signal, to pursue* the presumptuous enemy who should dare to approach them. The noise of the axe, the chissel, and the hammer, manifests the adroitness of the shipwrights in constructing those astonishing machines, with which man pursues his enemy to the extremity of the vast ocean. The streets are covered by impetuous people, always in activity, who do not turn out of their way, except it be to give passage to the galley-slaves, who are incessantly employed in carrying the timber, cordage, bolts, and whatever is necessary for ship-building. Goaded curiosity becomes impatient; we know not where to begin, in a place presenting so much to see and admire.

'We had letters to Admiral Ganteaume, but the Emperor had nominated him to the command of the fleet at Brest; and M. Christy-Palliere, a distinguished officer, who had given proofs of his bravery in the memorable combat of Algesiras, was appointed ad interim to fill his place as Marine Prefect. He received us with politeness, and would himself conduct us to the arsenal. During the breakfast which preceded this visit, we were amused by the recital of the brave exploits in which he had been engaged; we saw with interest the model of the Muron, that fortunate frigate, to which we owe the return of our Emperor; we remarked also a chart of the coast, on which are indicated the batteries which defend and render it impregnable.

"The table of signals was hung up in his closet. One row of flags is disposed horizontally, and another is placed vertically; and in parallel squares are expressed the different objects that are susceptible of being denoted by signals. They make known the circumstances, of which they wish to transmit the signal, by the combination of two flags, to which each square corresponds. In order more effectually to secure the secret of the signals, they have made the vertical band moveable; so that, if any one is desirous of finding their signification, he must know which is the first flag in this band; moreover, the keeper of the signals is instructed never to leave the table in a right position, but to shift the moveable band to a number of arbitrary squares, that no curious person may be able to find the key to the signals which are in use.

66

Nothing can more elevate man-nothing is more calculated to inspire him with a just pride, than a view of such an establishment as the arsenal: there all is grand in conception, plan, and execution.

"The entrance-port, built in 1738, after the designs of M. Lange, is embellished by detached Doric columns, with bas-reliefs, naval trophies, and two figures, one of Mars, and the other of Minerva ; in the centre is an escutcheon, with trophies and cornua copiæ, from which issue shells. The architecture of this building is de

M. MILLIN should have added, to a certain distance, that is, within the range of their batteries, for beyond this line, the presumptuous enemy, who will be peeping, is not followed.