APRIL, This month was under the auspices of Venus, among the Romans; hence it was frequently named Mensis Veneris; but its popular name was Aprilis. By the Anglo Saxons it was entitled Oster Monath, or Easter month, probably from the frequency of the eastern winds. The word is derived from aperio, to open; because the earth this month, begins to open her bosom for the production of vegetation. Remarkable Days. 1.—ALL, or AULD FOOL'S DAY. While April morn her folly's throne exalts; Verses on several occasions. London, 1782. A custom, says The Spectator, prevails everywhere among us on the first of April, when every body strives to make as many fools as he can. The wit chiefly consists in sending persons on what are called sleeveless errands, for the History of Eve's mother, for pigeon's milk, and similar ridiculous errands. He takes no notice of the rise of this singular kind of anniversary. The French too have their All Fool's Day, and call the person imposed upon, an April fish, poison d'Avril. Bellinger, in his French proverbs, endeavours to establish the following explanation of this custom: the word poison, he contends, is corrupted through the ignorance of the people from passion; and length of time has almost totally defaced the original intention, which was to commemorate the passion of our Saviour. That took place about this time of the year, and as the Jews sent the Son of man backwards and forwards, to mock and torment him, i. e. from Annas to Caiaphus, from him to Pilate, from Pilate to Herod, and thence again to Pilate, this ridiculous, or rather impious, custom took its rise, by which we send about from one place to another, such persons as we think proper objects of our ridicule. There is an old book, called An Essay to retrieve the ancient Celtic, in which the author says, "there is nothing that will bear a clearer demonstration, than that the primitive Christians, by the way of conciliating the pagans to a better worship, humoured their prejudices by yielding to a conformity of names, and even of customs, where they did not essentially interfere with the fundamentals of the gospel doctrine. This was done in order to quiet their possession, and to secure their tenure: an admirable expedient, and extremely fit in those barbarous times, to prevent the people from returning to their old religion. Among these, in imitation of the Roman Saturnalia, was the Festum Vatuorum; when part of the jollity of the season was a burlesque election of a mock pope, mock cardinals, mock bishops, attended with a thousand ridiculous and indecent ceremonies, gambols, and antics, such as singing and dancing in the churches, in lewd attitudes, to ridiculous anthems, all allusively to the exploded pretensions of Druids, whom these sports were calculated to expose to scorn and derision. "This feast of fools," he continues, "had its designed effect; and contributed, perhaps, more to the extermination of those heathens than all the collateral aid of fire and sword, neither of which were spared in the persecution of them. The continu ance of customs, especially droll ones, which suit the gross taste of the multitude, after the original cause of them has ceased, is a great, but no uncommon, absurdity." The epithet old fools (in the northern and old English auld) does not ill accord with the pictures of Druids, which have been transmitted to us. The united appearance of wisdom, age, and sanctity, which these ancient priests assumed, doubtless contributed in no small degree to the deception of the people. The Christian teachers, in their labours to undeceive the fettered multitudes, would probably spare no pains to pull off the masks from these venerable hypocrites, and point out to their converts, that age was not always synonymous with wisdom; that youth was not the peculiar period of folly; and that together with young, there were old fools. Should the above be considered as a forced interpretation, it can be offered in apology that, in joining the scattered fragments that survive the mutilation of ancient customs, we must be forgiven if all the parts are not found closely to agree. Little of the means of conjecture has been transmitted to us ; and that little can only be eked out by conjecture. 2.-1829.-landgrave oF HESSE HOMBERG DIED, ÆTAT. 60. His Serene Highness Frederic Joseph Louis, was the eldest son of the Landgrave Frederic Louis, whom he succeeded, January 20, 1820. On April 7, 1818, he was married at Buckingham House, to the Princess Elizabeth, sister to His present Majesty George IV. shortly after which they left England for the Landgrave's palace at Homberg, on the Rhine, where they resided till his death. 2.-1829.-MANASSEH DAWES DIED. Mr. Dawes was a barrister of the Inner Temple, but retired from his profession many years since. He was possessed of a strong mind, great knowledge of the law, and much general information; sufficient proof of which he has left behind him in various works; among the principle of which are: An Inquiry into the Merits of Drs. Priestley and Price; On Intellectual Liberty and Toleration ; Essays on Crimes and Punishments; The Nature and Extent of Supreme Power; Two works On Libels; Commentaries on the Law of Arrests; several Poems, &c. For the last 36 years Mr. Dawes lived a very retired life in Clifford's Inn, where he died. 3.-ST. RICHARD. Surnamed De Wiche, from the place of his birth in Worcestershire. He was made Bishop of Chichester in 1245; died on this day in 1253; he was canonized in 1262 by Pope Urban, in return for his strict homage to the papal power. 4.-PALM SUNDAY. This is the sixth Sunday in Lent, and sixth after Shrove Tuesday. It is so called in memory of our Saviour's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, when the multitude that attended him strewed branches of palm-trees in his way. 4.-ST. AMBROSE. He was born at Arles, in France, about 333, and in 374 was chosen Bishop of Milan: he was violently opposed to the Arians; and died this day, in 397. The celebrated hymn, Te Deum, which is still performed on all great occasions in Catholic countries, was composed by St. Ambrose when he baptized St. Augustine. 8.-MAUNDY THURSDAY. Also called Chare, or Shere Thursday, is the day before Good Friday. Spelman derives the word maundy from mande, a hand basket, in which the king was accustomed to give alms to the poor: others derive it from dies mandati, the day on which our Saviour gave His great mandate, "That we should love one another." Maundy Thursday is in Passion Week, and was thus named from the command of the Lord's Supper, which He this day instituted; or from the new commandment which He gave them to love one another, after He had washed their feet, as a token of His love to them, Formerly, on this day the kings and queens of England washed the feet of as many poor persons as they were years old, besides bestowing his maundy on each: the last monarch who performed this ceremony in person was James II. It is still a day of great ceremony in the Catholic Church. Mr. Best, speaking of this day at Rome, says: "The table from which the Lord made his last supper I did not see: I was told that it is of thick wood, and offers nothing extraordinary. I was present at the Mass in the Sistine Chapel, and saw the procession to the repository erected in the Paoline Chapel. The feet of the twelve priests were then washed by a cardinal. During this last ceremony, in particular, I witnessed the roughness and insolence of the Swiss guards, who alone occasion those contests you have so often heard of— contests which would disgrace any place whatsoever, much more so a chapel. These functions There should be attended by no person who had not previously made up his mind to be treated by the Pope's blackguards as if he were himself one to whom that epithet might be justly applied. is even a certain degree of danger from the unsteady pikes, and the clashing tin armour, of these 'soldats de papier-paper soldiers,' as a French officer, who stood with me, addressed one of them. Ladies, although treated by them, not with more respect, but with less disrespect, are torn from one another and from those who accompany them,—if |