out iv the byre, or the bed from anundher iz, what in the wide arth is there for 'im ?"

The current of this lecture was never interrupted by a single observation from Ned, who usually employed himself in silently playing with "Bunty," a little black cur, without a tail, and a great favourite with Nancy; or, if he noticed any thing out of its place in the house, he would arrange it with great apparent care. In the mean time Nancy's wrath generally evaporated with the smoke of the pipe-a circumstance which Ned well knew ;-for, after she had sucked it until it emitted a shrill-bubbling sound, like that from a reed, her brows, which wore at other times a habitual frown, would gradually relax into a more benevolent expression-the parenthetical curves on each side of her mouth, formed by the irascible pursing of her lips, would become less marked-the dog or cat, or whatever else came in her way, instead of being kicked aside, or pursued in an underfit of digressional peevishness, would be put out of her path with a gentler force-so that it was, in such circumstances, a matter of little difficulty to perceive that conciliation would soon be the order of the day. Ned's conduct on these critical occasions was very prudent and commendable; he still gave Nanc her own way, never "jawed back to her," but took shelter, as were, under his own patience, until the storm had passed, and th sun of her good-humour began to shine again. Nancy herself, now softened by the fumes of her own pigtail, usually made the first overtures to a compromise, but without departing from the practice and principles of higher negociators-always in an indirect manner; as, "Judy, avourneen, may be that crathur ate nothing to-day; ye had betther, agra, get 'm the could bacon that's in the cubboard, and warm for 'im, upon the greeshaugh, them yallowlegs that's in the colindher, though God he knows it's ill my common-bud no matther, a hagur, there's enough sed, I'm thinkin'-give 'em to 'im."

On Ned seating himself to his bacon and potatoes, Nancy would light another pipe, and plant herself on the opposite hob, putting some interrogatory to him, in the way of business-always concerning a third person, and still in a tone of dry ironical indifference; as, Did ye see Jimmy Connolly on yer thravels?" "No."

66

"Humph! Can ye tell iz if Andy Morrow sowld his cowlt ?" 66 He did."

"Maybe, ye have gumption enough to know what he got for 'im?” "Fifteen ginneys."

A kind of potato.

"In troth, an' id's more nor a poor body would get; bud, any way, Andy Morrow desarves to get a good price: he's a man that takes care of his own bizness, an' minds nothin' else. I wish that filley of ours was dockt; ye ought to spake to Jim M'Quade about id: id's time to make her up-ye know we'll want to sell her for the rint."

This was an assertion by the way, which Ned knew to have every thing but truth in it.

"Never heed the filley," Ned would reply, "I'll get Charley Lawdher to dock her-bud id's not her I'm thinkin' iv: did ye hear the news about the tobacky?"

"No, but I hope we won't be long so."

"Well, any how, we war in look to buy in them three last rowls." "Eh? in look! death-alive, how, Ned?"

"Sure there was three ships iv id lost last week, on their way from the kingdom of Swuzzerland, in the Aste Indians, where id grows: we can rise id thruppence a-pound now."

"No, Ned! you're not in arnest ?"

"Faith, bud ye may say I am; an' as soon as Tom Loan comes home from Dublin, he'll tell iz all about id; an' for that matther, maybe, id may rise sixpence a-pound: faith, we'll gain a lob by id, I'm thinkin'."

"May I never stir! bud that's look: well, Ned, ye may thank me for that, any way, or not a rowl we'd have in the four corners iv the house-an' ye wanted to persuade me agin buyin' thim; bud I knew betther-for the tobacky's always sure to get a bit iv a hitch at this time a year."

"Bedad, you can do id, Nancy; I'll say that for ye-that's an' give ye yer own way."

"Eh! can't I, Ned?-an' what was betther, I bate down Pether M'Entee three-ha'pence a-pound afther I bought them."

"Ha! ha! ha! by my sannies, Nancy, as to market-makin', they may all throw their caps at ye; ye thief o' the world, ye can do them nately."

"Ha! ha! ha! Stop, Ned, don't dhrink that wather-id's not from the rock well; but I'll jist mix a sup iv this last stuff we got from the mountains, till ye taste id: I think id's not worse nor the last-for Hugh Traynor's an ould hand at makin' id."

This was all Ned wanted; his point was now carried: but with respect to the rising of the tobacco, the less that is said about that the better for his veracity.

ROBIN HOOD AND HIS MERRY MEN AT SHERWOOD FOREST.

THE merry pranks he play'd would ask an age to tell,
And the adventures strange that Robin Hood befell,
When Mansfield many a time for Robin hath been laid,
How he hath cozen'd them, that him would have betrayed;
How often he hath come to Nottingham disguised,
And cunningly escaped, being set to be surprised.
In this our spacious isle I think there is not one
But he hath heard some talk of him and Little John;
And to the end of time the tales shall ne'er be done,
Of Scarlock, George-a-green, and Much the miller's son,
Of Tuck the merry friar, which many a sermon made
In praise of Robin Hood, his outlaws, and their trade.
An hundred valiant men had this brave Robin Hood
Still ready at his call, that bowmen were right good,
All clad in Lincoln green, with caps of red and blue.
His fellow's winded horn, not one of them but knew,
When setting to their lips their little bugles shrill,
The warbling echoes waked from every dale and hill :
The bauldricks set with studs athwart their shoulders cast,
To which, under their arms, their sheafs were buckled fast;
A short sword at their belt, a buckler scarce a span;
Who struck below the knee not counted then a man ;
All made of Spanish yew, the bows were wondrous strong;
They not an arrow drew but was a cloth-yard long.
Of archery they had the very perfect craft,
With broad arrow or but, or prick or roving shaft,
At marks full forty score they used to prick and rove,
Yet higher than the breast for comfort never strove ;
Yet at the farthest mark a foot could hardly win :

At long-buts, short, and hoyles, each one could cleave the pin:
Their arrows finely paired, for timber and for feather,
With birch and brazil pieced, to fly in any weather;

And shot they with the round, the square, or forked pile,
The loose gave such a twang as might be heard a mile.
And of these archers brave there was not any one
But he could kill a deer his swiftest speed upon,
Which they did boil and roast, in many a mighty wood,
Sharp hunger the fine sauce to their more kingly food,
Then taking them to rest, his merry men and he
Slept many a summer's night under the greenwood tree.
From wealthy Abbots' chests, and churls' abundant store
What oftentimes he took he shared among the poor :

No lordly Bishop came in lusty Robin's way,
To him before he went, but for his pass must pay.

The widow in distress he generously relieved,
And remedied the wrongs of many a virgin grieved:
He from the husband's bed no married woman wan,
But to the mistress dear, his loved Maria,

Was ever constant known, which, wheresoe'er she came,
Was sovereign of the woods, chief lady of the game;
Her clothes tuck'd to the knee, and dainty braided hair,
With bow and quiver arm'd, she wandered here and there
Amongst the forest wild; Diana never knew

Such pleasures, nor such harts as Mariana slew.

DRAYTON.

SKETCH OF A NIGHT AND DAY ON THE HOLY ISLAND.

It was late on an evening in August, when we left the island of Luing, on a fishing expedition to the Holy Island, one of the Hebrides, intending to wait there till day-break would enable us to commence operations. After some hours of hard rowing we came in sight of the island, which was already occupied by several parties, as we saw by the fires kindled along the shore. The alternate disclosure and concealment of the rocks and breakers, in the different states of light, gave a romantic dreariness to the scene, which was increased by the, to me, unintelligible voices which sounded through the whole. At length we landed, and made common cause with the first groupe we reached; some of those who composed it being luckily known to our boatmen. Here we met with some very strange characters, such as one does not expect to encounter beyond the precincts of a novel. There was "The Black King of the Islands." "The Pirate Surgeon." "The Stag-Hound," &c. &c. Unfortunately, the singularity of most of them ended, as far as I was concerned, where it had begun, in the name. There was vox

et præterea nihil. They either could not or would not speak English. From this objection, however, the surgeon was completely free, and his words, both in number and interest, were quite sufficient to atone for the silence of every one else. He seemed, from the attention which his sayings excited, to be a person of no small consideration in his line, and like one expected to talk, he seldom held his tongue. Before presenting the reader with one of the stories wherewith the doctor sought to beguile our night-watch, it may be proper to bring him, in some degree, acquainted with the corporeal appearance of that excellent person. When recording the prouder passages of his life, he had a frequent habit of springing from his too humble posture of recumbency at the fire-side, up to his full stature, which I had thus an opportunity of observing to be about five feet or thereby his hair was black, and hung about his eyes, which seemed to reflect it, by the similarity of their hue: his nose resembled a small pyramid attached to the face, came far

down, and made the upper lip jut out, as we see it do in children, by pressure against a window-pane: the chin was all but omitted, being scarcely visible; this arose from the shortness of the under-jaw, a defect, according to a learned friend of ours, decisive of intellectual deficiency; and truly he is right in saying, that very many of our great men have the under-jaw long: his brow was small and knotty; and these details combined to produce an expression of callous assurance; his shoulders were broad and robust, being "built," as he said, "for a long voyage:" his body slender in proportion, and weather-dried: his legs inexpressively formed, neither decidedly good, nor very bad: his feet large and savagelooking he wore a shallow broad-brimmed hat, and sea-blue clothes, whose appearance denoted exemption from menial labour; but to those who did not know the doctor's real profession, would, by their very cleanness, viewed in connection with his peculiar look, make him appear only the more a ruffian: he was between forty and fifty years old, by his own calculation. Now for his story; only I must premise, that being a landsman, I cannot pretend to employ sea-terms. Indeed the narrator affected to be too genteel to use many of them himself; I know not what may be thought of his substitutions.

"I was with old Zeb We was in the open

"During the time," said the pirate doctor, Brainer, there came a better thing than that. Ocean off Madeira, to the south west, running before a neat breeze, when a sail was exclaimed from the mast-head; directly I heard the call, I runs for the bows, and squaring my arms over a barrelhead, I leans on the look-out, and smokes-so.”—(The doctor leant over the fire and smoked.) "Well, she did show at last, and a short run and small trouble and she was our own; goods aboard-ship scuttled-crew sent a-drift with Teneriffe or the bottom before them. We kept the only two passengers, a young Spanish Don and his sweetheart, and Zeb did lead them a dog's life-that he did --but as it didn't shorten my purse, my duty kept me clear. One good joke I recollect:-The young lady was at her walks as usual on deck one evening; so she comes up to Zeb, and says in a sweet way, "How delightful the soft cool wind was." Now Zeb had a pipe in his cheek, and he draws a mouthful of smoke, and puffs it right into her with a eye, 66 Yes, Miss," at the same time, and a bow for answer. Then she screamed, and ran off a bit, and looked up to the skies, while the tears came down her cheeks; and wasn't that a good'n? my word! wasn't it? ha! ha! ha!". "-(Here the doctor appealed to all around-only one man laughed-I hope he had no English.) "The like of that at last touched her a bit, though, for he got bad in her health and sickened away, and died out of our