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VARIETIES.

SELECTED FROM RECENT AND ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS
OF CONTINENTAL CORRESPONDENTS.

THE COUNT Demidoff.

This nobleman died lately at Florence, having left to his two sons an income of 240,000l. a year, besides one million sterling in movable property. A troop of comedians, which he had engaged from Paris, is amply provided for by the Count's testament; the legacies comprised ten, which are extremely numerous; and, so great was his magnificence, that the great grandson of a friend of his childhood, whom he has not seen or corresponded with for fifty years, has been bequeathed three hundred thousand francs, merely to evince that the testator had not forgotten his earlier attachments. BOHEMIA.

and offender. O tempora! O mores! On discovering
the manuscript of a latin author, Petrarch was trans-
ported with enthusiasm; while it will be well for me if
I be not transported too. The Minstrel of Vaucluse
received the felicitations of the Sovereigns of his day;
I have not a crown to bless me; and the only compli-
ments I am likely to receive are those of the Gaoler,
who will be directed to receive me. Bonis operibus
meis lapidatus sum. Notwithstanding the dismal anti-
cipations of the humble but erudite Corsican, the
Judges had the manliness to reject the appeal of the
Procureur du Roi: and the teacher wenned him on
his way, pretty certain that, as a comment on his bold-
ness in asserting himself to be free from guilt, he will
be deprived of his already most scanty means of sub-

sistence.

FEMALE DOCTOR.

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A short time since a diminutive, aged, and decrepit
woman, whose life had been passed in the service of
the camp, appeared before the Tribunals of Paris,
charged with illegally practising medicine, and as sus-
pected of causing the death of a M. Danguy, and an-
On
other person, by her unscientific prescriptions.
being called upon for her defence, she observed,
'Gentlemen, the medicine I gave Danguy was suscep-
tible of saving him; it has been sent to the annalists of
the Garden of Plants; but the fact is, Danguy got drunk,-
that was his affair: had he kept sober, I would have
cured him, that was mine; but he choose to die,-
that was his.' 'But,' observed the President, there
is another case against you.' Prisoner,- Bah! bah!
Pillet's, you mean? he died by mistake; it is not
worth talking about.' President,- But you have no
diploma.' Prisoner, Diploma is it! I despise them;
I could not read them if I had them but I have
studied humanities. Minerals I know as little as I
care about; but as to vegetables, I guess. Give
me a paralytic here, and I'll cure him at once.' At
this declaration, many voices from the crowd that
had assembled were raised, in attestation of the truth
of her statement; and, True! True!' 'She has cured
me.'
She has cured me.' She has saved my
mother,' &c. was heard on every side. Prisoner,
There, what do you say to that? Gout! Cancer! A
broken limb,-it is all one to me. I wish, Gentlemen,
you had them all, if it was only for the pleasure of
setting you to rights.' New ejaculations were heard
in her favour from the audience, and expressions con-

Monatschrift der Gesellschaft der Vaterlaendischen Museum in Boehmen, or A Journal of the Society of the National Museum of Bohemia,' was published at Prague, at the close of 1827, in one volume, being the first Number of an Annual Miscellany, intended to be regularly published by an association of Bohemian Literati. It contains an inquiry into the history of the country, observations on its natural history, with specimens of national poetry, and is equally curious and instructive. One of the articles of the present Number consists of 'An abridgment of the Chronicles of a Native present at the Siege of Prague by the Swedes, in 1648,' which will be read with pleasure, although it is exceeded in interest by a 'A Journal of the Envoys of George King of Bohemia to the Court of Louis XI. of France.' It appears that George had formed the idea, worthy of a later age and more enlightened minds, of establishing a tribunal of European Sovereigns, in which all acts of aggression by one on the dominions of another might be judged, and who were all to combine to resist any undue pretension on the part of the people of their respective states, with a secret clause for impeding the too liberal advance of Papal power. The story is told with great truth and simplicity, and the character of the Eleventh Louis admirably demonstrated; but whether it was that the piety of the French Monarch was somewhat startled at a proposition likely to offend the Court of Rome, or that, even in that age, tyrant though he was, he dared not venture on a holy alliance, the Envoys of the very legitimate King of Bohemia, after having been banded about half France, in follow-firmatory of her statements. "There!' said the veteing the movements of the active Louis, and having experienced no very polite treatment, were sent home with as few indications of courtesy towards themselves as of respect to their master.

BELGIUM.

A DOG, which had lived fourteen years with a family that was much attached to it, having died, the children placed the body of their defunct favourite in a box, and buried him in a garden. The two Curés of the place complained to the Police, and the proceeding was remitted to the President of the Circle, who issued his orders that a governess in the family, who had placed the canine body in a box, should suffer three days' imprisonment and reclusion correctionnelle;' and that the servant who had interred the animal should undergo eight' days confinement, and be supplied only with bread and water.

OMNIBUS

Is the name of a Parisian city stage, where you may go what distance you please at a very moderate sum. A coachman of a more legitimate Fiacre, angry at the success of the new carriages, resolved to follow the same system, too proud of ancient names to adopt the Catholic appellation of omnibus, has adorned his coach with the inscription of Un fiacribus à quatre sous.'

On the nefarious charge of having taught the Latin language,' he was denounced before the Tribunal of Ajaccio, by the Procureur du Roi; but the complaint was, even at their proper peril, dismissed by the Judges, and the accused liberated without punishment

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ran lady, gesticulating with energy, There's for you!
I have been twelve years in the army, and I will fight
all the doctors of Paris with the sword or with drugs,
whichever they choose.' Notwithstanding all this, the
unfortunate pseudo medecin was condemned to six
months' imprisonment. She heard her sentence with
courage and calmness, and, as it ended, lifting her
hand, like an old grenadier, to her bonnet, observed,
'Messieurs, j'ai l'honneur d'étre votre très humble ser-
viteur,' and then left the Court between two gens d'armes,
marching in regular time, and apparently not at all dis-
comfited at her defeat.

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'Le Menteur.'

He had severely criticized the 'Richard Coeur de Lion' of Sedaine, of the French Academy. A friend of the author met him him at the Cafe de la Foe, and remonstrated with him on his injustice. 'Let us send to two different confectioners,' said Hoffman, for baskets of bon-bons, and, if the majority of verses on such of their devices as we shall take by chance be not better than those of Sedaine, I shall pay the price of them, and beg his pardon; if they are superior in merit to the verse of Richard,' you shall pay, and beg mine.' It was done. The company in the coffeeroom became umpires, and decided unanimously in favour of the poetry of the devices.

wreck

a marriage, a Giraffe, or Lord Cochrane. John Bull
has hardier nerves, and is less sensible to milder im-
pressions; he requires a stronger dose-the fall of
the Brunswick Theatre; Williamson, Thistlewood,
Bellingham, and Thurtell, can alone make him feel pro-
perly; while the Germans are ever striving after the
sublime, and nothing will content them but the
of matter and the crash of worlds.' A blundering
teutonic astronomer discovered, recently, that the
Comet which will be seen in 1832, would come in con-
tact with the earth; but, like a true German comforter,
he would persuade us that the injury it would cause
our globe would not be general. Part of Russia, Po-
land, Prusssia, Germany, and Constantinople might go
perhaps ; or we might lose our East India possessions,
and have to give up the use of the tea from China; the
labours of Bolivar and General Jackson might be ren-
dered unnecessary ;-however, at all events, the world
would gain a very considerable addition of territory.
This idea might be congenial to the gloomy fancy of a
German, but its expression spread terror and dismay in
neighbouring countries; and, within my own observa-
tion, its effects were neither trivial or pleasing on the
minds of many. The Comet of 1832 will certainly
approach within 14,000 leagues of the earth's orbit:
and as Salande had calculated that a comet, at that
distance from the globe, might produce sensible dis-
order on earth's concerns, the German threw down his
pen, satisfied with being enabled to horrify the nations;
and fearful, by entering on further detail, he might but
spoil a good story. Were the globe to be at the point
of its orbit at which the comet will be at the period of
its greatest approximation, it would be dangerous; but
when its vicinity to the earth will be closest, instead of
14,000 leagues, its least distance will be sixteen millions
of leagues, a slight difference, calculated to calm the
fears of the timid and nervous, and to disappoint the
expectations of the sublime German.

LOVE AND MADNESS.

'Quand l'amour n'est pas le plus grand des biens, il est le plus grand des Maux,' says a French philosopher; while the Ettrick Shepherd' more quaintly describes it

' as a dizziness,

That winna let a simple body gang about his business.' Poor Monsieur Picard, (not the dramatic writer, but) a bachelor living in the wine-boasting city of Mâcon, in the delightful province of Burgundy, had passed sixty years of his life in peace and tranquillity, without having been diverted from the even tenor of his way, by the allurements of the opthalmic mannekin. His repose had been as perfect as that of a commissioner of customs on active service-of a chief justice in Eyre-or one of the Admiralty council; until he met with a lady, who had left a demi-century of years behind her; and to whom, with as much rapidity as the passing of an Inclosure Bill, and as much warmth as Lord Eldon displayed in defence of the Test and Corporation Acts, he offered his hand in test of love, and the endowment of his corporation. His advances were met with scarcely more shyness than would be evinced by the Peel or Beresford family to a place or living; but modesty demanded that, like the Ambassadors at the Porte, time should be accorded ere the ultimatum was pronounced; and she required a month to determine whether she should cross the Pruth of matrimony. From that instant the quiescent habits of Monsieur Picard were as effectually altered, as the political opinions of Lord E————- himself. His mornings were dark and gloomy as a city fog; his nights restless and uneasy, as Mr. Sugden when he ended his maiden speech. He loved as Catalani loves gold; Lord M-E- her notes; the Emperor Nicholas, Constantinople; or Madame de Genlis, cant; and, as the epoch approached which was to determine his fate, he anticipated the refusal he feared, (but unjustly); and, not waiting for the noose of matrimony, actually hanged himself with a loveknot, to the equal vexation of the lady, the curé, and the bell-ringers of Mâcon. The procés verbal of the cause of the decease of the despairing swain, returned it as arising from Love and Madness.

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FRENCH POST OFFICE.

The directors of a Newspaper, for which he some-
times wrote, having sent a most virulent article against
himself, in the number of those upon the insertion
whereof he sometimes condescended to decide, Hoff-greater) extent than ever.
man returned it, with the following marginal note:
'J'ai lu le présent article, et je n'y ai rien trouvé qui m'a
paru devoir en empêcher l'impression.'—Hoffman.

THE COMET OF 1832.

THERE is nothing like what is now termed Sensation. The French delight in any occurrence which may gently affect the feelings of joy or sorrow-a public funeral,

I am sorry to say that the iniquitous system of openof Paris, is represented as existing to as great (if not a ing and destroying letters, in the Bureau de la Poste A meeting of merchants residing in the French metropolis took place recently at the office of M. German, an advocate, to ascertain what means were left them to procure compensation for valuables they have lost, to a large amount, through the Post-office. The violation of private correspondence is mean, vile, and immoral enough; but the subtraction of property is an act of infamy, that merits to be holden forth to the scorn and indignation of the world.

DEATH OF MR. DUGALD STEWART.

The mortal career of this distinguished philosopher terminated at Edinburgh on the morning of Wednesday last, the 11th of June, instant. The private worth of the deceased, the qualities of heart and head which made him so beloved in the family circle, so interesting to his friends, so much respected by his acquaintances, are known to, or have been heard of by all. His public value will be judged of ultimately by his writings, although it was by no means confined to these: the impression made by his academical prelections having been as extraordinary in depth as it was important in character. By the extensive range of his information, by his love of knowledge, by his high aspirations after good, by an eloquence, unrivalled in philosophic dignity, he gave a bias to the feelings, and a direction to the studies, of many young men of rank and talent, which redounded not less to their own honour, than they proved, in result, beneficial to the country.Scotsman.

The Dog-rib Indians, who are derived from the same

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

VERULAM,' who have taken 'THE ATHENEUM' in its stead, We beg to inform E. B., that the former Subscribers to 'THE may be supplied with copies of the back Numbers of either Paper, at the usual rate; but that the reprint of any particular articles in a separate Number would be impracticable under our existing arrangements, even supposing the demand for such Number to be sufficient to cover the expense.

LITERARY INTELLIGENCE.

Dr. Armstrong, the compiler of the London Gælic Dictionary,' is preparing for the press a Gælic Translation of the Apocryphal Scriptures; to be published in numbers, at a rate so low, that the poorest Highlander can purchase it.

A work may shortly be expected under the title of Journal of a Voyage to Peru, Journey across the Pampas, and a Passage across the Cordillera of the Andes.' By Lieut. Brand, R.N., who performed the journey on foot, in the snow, during the severe winter of 1827.

Carpenter's Introduction to the Study of the Scriptures, with maps and plates. Part I., to be continued monthly.

stock with the Chipewyans, say that, according to the THE GALLERY of the SOCIETY of PAINT

traditions of their fathers, the first man was named Chapewee. He found the world well stocked with food, and he created children, to whom he gave two kinds of fruit, the black and the white, but forbade them to eat the black. Having thus issued his commands for the guidance of his family, he took leave of them for a time, and made a long excursion for the purpose of conducting the sun to the world. During this, his first absence, his children were obedient, and ate only the white fruit, but they consumed it at all; the consequence was, that when he a second time absented

ERS in WATER-COLOURS, in Pall-Mall East, WILL CLOSE, for the present Season, on SATURDAY NEXT, the 21st instant.

Admittance, One Shilling; Catalogue, Sixpence.
CHARLES WILD, Secretary.

This day is published, price 2s. 6d. boards,
HE INSECTS IN COUNCIL: addressed
Printed for J. Hatchard and Son, 187, Piccadilly; and A.
Cockshaw, Leicester.

himself to bring the moon, and they longed for fruit, CAR

they forgot the orders of their father, and ate of the black, which was the only kind remaining. He was much displeased on his return, and told them that in future the earth would produce bad fruits, and that they would be tormented by sikcness and death-penalties which have attached to his descendants to the present day. Chapewee himself lived so long that his throat

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CARY'S IMPROVED MAP OF ENGLAND. This day is published, price 17. 18., Part IX. of ARY'S IMPROVED MAP of ENGLAND, containing the whole of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, with considerable portions of the adjacent counties. Printed for G. and J. Cary, 86, St. James's-street, opposite Pall-Mall.

In 2 vols. 4to., price 41. 48. in boards, illustrated with Twentyone Copper-plates, and Seventy-three Wood-cuts; or with proof impressions of the Copper-plates on India Paper, at 51. 58.

HE ARGUS.-The number of orders already

THE

received from every part of the Country for the regular daily supply of Mr. Buckingham's New Evening Paper, 'THE ARGUS,' having far exceeded all expectation, the First Number of that Journal will appear on Monday, the 30th of June.

It is again deemed necessary to repeat, however, that as no greater number of Copies will be printed than those ordered by the regular Subscribers before the day of publication, persons desirous of securing themselves from disappointment should communicate their wishes without delay.

Orders and Advertisements continue to be received at the Central Office of Publication, 147, Strand; at the three Branch Offices, 33, Old Bond Street; 74, Cannon Street, City; 8, Chain Gate, Borough; and by all Newsmen, Postmasters, and Clerks of the Road, in Great Britain.

TH

very

HE SPHYNX.—A I considerable number of the regular Subscribers to The Sphynx' having transmitted their orders for The Argus,' and expressed a strong desire that, to enable them to take both, 'The Sphynx' should revert to its original character of a Sunday Morning Paper, so as to fill up the interval between the Saturday and Monday Evening's Daily News, their request will be complied with, and the New Series of 'The Sphynx' will accordingly commence on the first Sunday in July.

Instead of reverting to the original price, however, which was One Shilling per Number, it will be fixed at Tenpence; so as to form a medium between 'The Examiner' and 'The Atlas;' the last of which it will most nearly resemble, in its general arrangement: it being intended, in the Sunday Morning's Sphynx, besides Original Papers on the Political Events of the Times, and occasional Literary Reviews, to give the Leading Articles of the principal Sunday Papers of the same day; thes forming one of the most varied and comprehensive Weekly Journals in the kingdom.

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ETTERS of an ARCHITECT from FRANCE, taker, London.

was worn out, and he could no longer enjoy life; but LE

he was unable to die, until, at his own request, one of his people drove a beaver-tooth into his head.-Captain Franklin's Journey.

LIST OF BOOKS PUBLISHED DURING THE WEEK.

ITALY, and GREECE.

By JOSEPH Woons, F.L.S., F.G.S., &c. Printed for John and Arthur Arch, Cornhill. CULTIVATION and NATURAL HISTORY of the BEE.

In a thick and closely printed volume, 12mo., illustrated with numerous Cuts, price 98. boards,

The Living and the Dead, by a Country Curate, second edition'THE HONEY BEE; its Natural History, Phy

1 vol., post svo., 10s. 6d.

Deafness, its Causes, Prevention, and Cure, by John Stevenson, Esq., 1 vol., post 8vo., 7s. 6d.

Dr. Harwood on the Curative Influence of the Southern Coast of England, 1 vol., post 8vo., 9s. 6d.

Woodbridge's Rudiments of Geography, 18mo., 3s. 6d.
Woodbridge's Modern Atlas, royal 4to., 8s.

Burton's Antiquities of Rome, second edition, 2 vols., crown 8vo., with additions, 15s.

Ulrica of Saxony, a Romantic Tale, 3 vols., 12mo., 16s. 6d. Light's Views of Pompeii, folio, 31. 10s.

Knight's Modern and Antique Gems, eighty-six plates, 11.11s.6d. The Italian, a Romance, by Mrs. Anne Radcliffe, 4 vols., 12mo., 20s.

Taylor on the Money System, 8vo., 6s.

Faber's Sacred Calendar of Prophecy, 3 vols., 8vo., 11. 163. Myer's Vindication of the Athanasian Creed, royal 18mo., 3s. 6d.

Hall's Inquiry into the Canons, &c., of the Church of England, 8vo., 7s.

Part 1. (to be completed in twenty parts) of a Series of Illustrations of the Poems of Burns, from Designs by W. Kidd, Esq., 58.

Mornings in the Library, by Knight, with Introduction, &c., by Bernard Barton, 18mo., 2s. 6d.

Florian's Questions on the History of England, by J. Gorton, 18mo., 1s. 6d.

The Smuggler's Son, by the author of 'Don Ullon,' 18mo., 2s. 6d.

Lessons of Wisdom, by the Rev. Wm. Edwards, Cambridge, 18mo., 2s. 6d.

Easy Rhymes, by the author of 'Cato,' 18mo., 2s. 6d. Tarver's Complete System of French Pronunciation, 12mo.. 3s. 6d.

Hodson's Sacred History, 12mo., 3s. 6d.

Second Statement of the London University, 8vo., 1s. 6d. Ryland on Diseases of the Chest, and on the Use of the Sterhoscope, third edition, 18mo., 3s.

Gregory's Practice of Physic, third edition, 8vo., 16s.
Lempriere's Scripture Lessons, 12mo., 4s. 6d.

Tales of the Academy, 2 vols., 18mo., 5s.

Whim Whams, by Four of Us, 18mo., 3s. 6d.

Coeventry's Concise Forms, third edition, with large additions, 12mo., 6s. 6d.

King Charles the First, the author of ' Icon Basilike,' further proved, by Wordsworth, 8vo., 8s.

Sotheby's Italy and other Poems, 12mo., 2s. 6d.

The sixth vol. of Mrs. Sherwood's 'Lady of the Manor,' 78.

siology, and Management. By EDWARD BEVAN, M. D. London: Baldwin and Cradock.

'This is a well digested, freshly conceived, and elegantly composed compendium of the present state of apiasian science; it comprises all that is really known of the bee. The interest we take in this subject, and the fertility of Dr. Bevan's work in interesting facts, have induced us to extend this article to a great length. Our parting recommendation is, that every body who loves to read an instructive and entertaining book should buy the "Honey Bee."'-London Magazine, May, 1827.

Now ready for delivery,

UNCAN GRAY.-Beautifully Engraved in DAVID WILKIE, Esq., R.A. Size, 14 inches by 19 high. Prints, 218.; French Proofs, 52s. 6d. ; India Proofs, 63s.

London: published by Moon, Boys, and Graves, Printsellers to the King, 6, Pall Mall; and sold by F. G. Moon, Threadneedle-street.

By whom will shortly be published, ALFRED in the NEATHERD'S COTTAGE. Engraved in the first style by JAMES MITCHELL, after a Picture by DAVID WILKIE. Size, 24 inches by 18 high.

*** M., B., and G. have also on sale, all the subjects which have been engraved after Wilkie and Burnet.

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liaud's Travels to Méroé, and the White River, &c.-III. Spanish Novelists.-IV. Niebuhr's Roman History.-V. Neapolitan Superstitions.-VI. Paixhan's New Maritime Force and Artillery.-VII. Lebrun's Voyage to Greece.-VIII. Modern Spanish Comedy.-IX. Italian Literature of the Eighteenth Century.-X. Illyrian Poetry.-XI. Kleist's Dramatic Works. -XII. Retzsch's Illustrations of Hamlet.-XIII. to XXVI. Critical Sketches of Latin, Italian, French, German, and Spanish Works.-Miscellaneous Literary Notices, No. IV.-List of the Principal Works published on the Continent, from January to April, 1828.

No. V. will appear in August. Published by Treuttel and Würtz, Treuttel jun., and Richter, 30, Soho-square, London.

NATALOGUE OF BOOKS.-JOHN R. CATALOGUE of BOOKS, consisting of the best Editions of the Greek and Latin Classics; Translations; the principal Lexicographical, Philological, and Critical Works; Theology, History, and Works in every department of Literature.

*** Gentlemen residing in the Country, and Country Booksellers, are requested to apply through their London Bookseller; or by letter, post paid.

13, Great Russell-street, Covent-Garden, London.

Of whom may be had, lately published, and uniformly printed with the above,

SPECIMENS of SACRED and SERIOUS POETRY, from Chaucer to the present Day; including Grahame's Sabbath and other Poems, and Blair's Grave: with Biographical Notices and Critical Remarks, by JOHN JOHNSTONE. Frontispiece and Vignette. 5s. 6d. boards.

NEW AND POPULAR ELEMENTARY WORKS, BY INGRAM COBBIN, M.A.

ELE

LEMENTS of GEOGRAPHY, on a new plan, rendered plain and amusing, more especially adapted to the Capacities of Young Children, and designed for Preparatory Schools. Illustrated with Eleven Maps, engraved by Mr. SYDNEY HALL, and numerous Cuts, neatly half-bound, 2s. 6d.

2. ELEMENTS of ARITHMETIC, for Children, on an entire new plan. Illustrated by Cuts. Second Edition. 18. 6d. half-bound.

3. ELEMENTS of GRAMMAR; being a New Edition of Grammar for Children. Seventh Edition. 18. sewed. 4. KEY to ENGLISH GRAMMAR. 4d. ARITHMETIC. 6d.

5.

London printed for Frederick Westley and A. H. Davis, 10, Stationers'-hall-court, Ave-Maria-lane.

OPENING OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON, FOR THE SESSION 1828-9.

NOTIC

JOTICE is hereby given, That the Medical Classes will open on the First of October, and the Classes for the other branches of education on the Third of November next.

The Council have published a Second Statement,' giving an account of the Days and Hours when the several Professors are to lecture, of the Fees to be paid by the Students, together with a brief outline, drawn up by each Professor, of the manner in which he proposes to treat the subject which he has been appointed to teach. This Statement is to be had, price One Shilling and Sixpence, of Mr. Taylor, the Bookseller and Publisher to the University, No. 30, Upper Gower-street; of Messrs. Longman and Co., Paternoster Row; of Mr. Murray, Albemarle-street; and at the University Chambers, No. 29, Percy-street, Bedford-square.

A Register is now open to receive the Names of Students, and attendance for that purpose will be given at the Chambers, as above, every day except Sunday, from Nine in the morning to Five in the afternoon. Persons desirous of having a previous communication with the Warden will please to call at the Chambers on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays, between Two and Five o'clock.

A Copy of the above Second Statement' will be immediately sent to each Proprietor in London. By Order of the Council, THOMAS COATES, Clerk.

University Chambers, 13th June, 1828. London: Printed and Published every Wednesday morning, by WILLIAM LEWER, at the Office, 147, Strand, near Somerset House. Sold also at the Branch Offices established at 33, Old Bond-street, for the West End, and at 74, Cannon-street, City; and 8, Chain Gate, High-street, Borough, near London Bridge, for the East End of the Metropolis

No. 35.

London Literary and Critical Journal.

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 1828.

REVIEWS OF BOOKS. CRAWFURD'S EMBASSY TO SIAM AND COCHIN CHINA,

1828.

The party, after a series of interesting circum-
stances arrived at Bangkok on the 29th of March.
The ceremonies attending their presentation are
well described, and the account affords a strong
and lively picture of courtly pomp in the East.
There is, however, so great a similarity neces-
sarily existing between all narratives of this kind,
that however, amusingly written, they seem but
copies of each other. Instead, therefore, of ex-
tracting our author's account of his arrival, intro-
duction, and of the thousand grave follies to which
he submitted, with excellent grace, we follow him
to the royal menagerie :

and it was still raining. His Majesty took this oppor-
'During the audience, a heavy shower had fallen,
tunity of presenting us each with a small umbrella,
and sent a message to desire that we would view the
curiosities of the palace at our leisure. When we ar-
rived at the threshold of the hall of audience, we per-
ceived the court-yard and the roads extremely wet and
dirty from the fall of rain. We naturally demanded
our shoes, which we had left at the last gate. This
was a favour which could not be yielded, and we were
informed that the first princes of the blood could not
wear shoes within the sacred enclosure in which we
now were. It would have been impolitic to have
evinced ill-humour, or attempted remonstrance; and,
therefore, we feigned a cheerful compliance with this
inconvenient usage, and proceeded to gratify our cu-
riosity.

Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of
India to the Courts of Siam and Cochin China · ex
hibiting a view of the actual state of those Kingdoms.
By John Crawfurd, Esq., F.R.S., F.L.S., F.G.S., &c.,
late Envoy. Henry Colburn. Pp. 598. London,
THE very valuable and interesting narrative
which is here presented to the public, has claims
to general attention possessed by few other works
on foreign countries. It is written by a talented
and experienced traveller, and refers to a region
about which every information which can be
given is peculiarly acceptable in Europe. Mr.
Crawfurd, who is generally known to be a man in
every respect qualified for the office to which he
was appointed, was fixed upon by the Marquis
of Hastings to undertake the mission of which
the volume before us gives the history. In the
earlier contests which the English had with the
Native Princes, their commerce with Siam and
Cochin China was, it appears, destroyed; subse-
quent events had not the effect of restoring it;
and so important was this diminution of com-
mercial advantages, very rightly, considered by the
English merchants, that the Indian Goverment
determined upon opening a negociation with the
ruling Monarchs of these countries, and on en-
deavouring to restore the traffic on terms equally
profitable to both parties. The subject had
already been brought under consideration by the
Government of Penang, but without being fol-
lowed by the consequences which might reason-
ably be looked for from the measures now about
to be pursued. The fertility and natural riches of
the regions which form the kingdoms of Siam
and Cochin China, were sufficient reasons for the
resolutions thus taken, and the fruitful sources of
wealth they opened to mercantile speculation, an
object important enough to warrant any attention
which might be paid to it by those whose interest
is dependant on the prosperity of commerce. But
the benevolent philosopher and moralist will re-
gard this and other similar undertakings with a
more deeply interested miud. The greatest dif-
ficulty, it is acknowledged by Mr. Crawfurd, and
by the members of the Indian Government in the
official instructions they gave him, which he had to The rareness of the white elephant is, no doubt, the
meet with, would be from the strong, universal, origin of the consideration in which it is held. The
and almost unconquerable distrust of Europeans, countries in which it is found, and in which, indeed,
so prevalent among the Native Princes. As mer- the elephant in general exists in greatest perfection, and
chants will not soon, we fear, act or think like
is most regarded, are those in which the worship of
philosophers, it is a thing to be rejoiced at when Buddha and the doctrine of the metempsychosis prevail.
It was natural, therefore, to imagine that the body of
they are compelled, for interest's sake to pursue
so rare an object as a white elephant must be the tem-
the very same course which the disinterested phi-
lanthrophist would do to obtain a higher object.porary habitation of the soul of some mighty personage
in its progress to perfection. This is the current
Let the wealthy traders of a country find the belief, and accordingly every white elephant has the
truest way to wealth in promoting mutual trust rank and title of a king, with an appropriate name ex-
and confidence between nations, whether more or pressing this dignity-such as the
pure king,' the
less civilized, and a wider and surer path will be wonderful king,' and so forth. One of the Jesuits,
with some naiveté,
opened for the universal diffusion of truth. writing upon this subject, informs us,
When Mr. Crawfurd, therefore, was instructed to that his Majesty of Siam does not ride the white ele-
use his utmost efforts to promote a confidence on phant, because he, the white elephant, is as great a king
which all was considered to depend, a great truth
was expressed, which ought to be like a beam of
light both on the heart and mind of even the
lowest member of a legislative body.

The mission set out on Nov. 21, 1821. Mr. Crauford was accompanied by Captain Dangerfield and Mr. Finlayson, of whose important services in the journey he speaks in terms of very high praise.

'The greatest of the curiosities to which our attention was directed were the white elephants, well known in Europe to be objects of veneration, if not of worship, in all the countries where the religion of Buddha prevails. The present King has no less than six of these, a larger number than ever was possessed by any Siamese monarch; and this circumstance is considered peculiarly auspicious to his reign. Four of them were shown to us. They approached much nearer to a true white colour than I had expected; they had, indeed, all of them more or less of a flesh-coloured tinge; but this arose from the exposure of the skin, owing to the small quantity of hair with which the elephant is naturally covered. They showed no signs of disease, debility, or imperfection; and as to size, they were of the ordinary stature, the smallest being not less than six feet six inches high. Upon inquiring into their history, we found that they were all either from the kingdom of Lao or Kamboja, and none from Siam itself, nor from the Malay countries tributary to it; which last, indeed, had never been known to afford a white elephant.

as himself.

'Each of those which we saw had a separate stable, and no less than ten keepers to wait upon it. The tusks of the males, for there were some of both sexes, were ornamented with gold rings. On the head they had all a gold chain net, and on the back a small embroidered velvet cushion.

Notwithstanding the veneration with which the white elephants are considered in some respects, it does not seem to be carried so far in Siam as to emancipate

Price 8d.

them from occasional correction. Two of them were described as so vicious, that it was considered unsafe to exhibit them. A keeper pricked the foot of one, in our presence, with a sharp iron, until blood came, although his majesty's only offence was stealing a bunch of bananas; or rather snatching it before he had received permission!

In the stables of the white elephants, we were shown two monkies, whose presence, the keepers insisted, preserved their royal charges from sickness. These size, and of the tribe of monkies with long tails They were of a perfectly pure white colour, of considerable were in perfect health, and had been long caught; but we were advised not to play with them, as they were of a sullen and mischievous disposition. These were both taken in the forest of Pisiluk, about ten days' journey up the Menam.

From the white elephants we were taken to the crowd of their brethren, which had the ill luck to be born black, and were, therefore, doomed to toil, or harsh usage. They did not appear to us to be remarkable either for size or beauty; but some of our Indian servants, who were better judges than ourselves, considered them as possessing, in an eminent degree, all those points which are admired by amateurs, and which distinguish the noblest race of this animal.

"We were struck with the great number, which were partly white, principally about the head and trunk. One of these, which was kept in a separate stable, had the whole head and trunk white; it was eight feet high, and, in point of symmetry, quite perfect. This, like some of the white elephants, was caught in the forests of Lao. The elephant usually rode by his Majesty was exhibited among the rest; it was tall and very docile, but not remarkable for beauty.

'A glance at his Siamese Majesty's stud of horses was quite sufficient to satisfy our curiosity. It consisted of a few ponies imported from the Eastern Islands, and of a small breed of horses, said to be brought from the Chinese province of Yu-nan. There were a few horses from Western India, old and miserable. One of these, we were informed, had been presented by Mr. Light, the first Governor of Prince of Wales's Island.

'As we passed along, we were requested to examine the large cannon which we had seen on entering. They consisted of seven or eight pieces lying on beds, and were mere objects of curiosity. Some of them were eighteen feet long, the walls of enormous thickness, but the calibre not exceding nine inches. They appeared to have been perfectly well cast. Each had an inscription upon it, inlaid in silver, which, as we were told, described its charge of powder, but, from what we could understand, in very exaggerated terms. These guns bore no comparison in points of size to some of those cast by the Mohammedan Princes of Hindostan, and neither in size nor workmanship to several which we afterwards saw in Cochin China.'-Pp. 96-99.

China, Sept. 25. The following is interesting, as They arrived at Hué, the capital of Cochin showing the state of the useful and domestic arts, as well as of those relating to war among this people, who it seems are far better skilled in these things than is usually supposed.

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Sept. 30.-Notice was sent to us yesterday forenoon, that an accommodation-barge would be sent, to take us to whatever part of the city we wished to visit, and that the French Mandarins would accompany us. At three o'clock MM. Chaigneau and Vanier accordingly waited upon us, and said that they had orders from the King to conduct us into the new city, and to show us the works. We ascended the river, and landed on the west side of the new fortification, or walled city, where we found a Cochin Chinese Mandarin waiting to receive us.

'The new city, which is of a quadrangular form, is completely insulated, having the river on two sides of it, and a spacious canal of from thirty to forty yards broad on the other two. The circumference of the

walls, or of the city, which is the same thing, is upwards of five miles. The form of the fortification is nearly an equilateral quadrangle, each face measuring 1180 toises. The late King himself was the engineer who formed the plan, under the instructions and advice, however, of the French officers in his service, but whose personal assistance he had lost, before he commenced the undertaking, in the year 1805. This singular man proves to have been no mean proficient in this branch of European military science; for the works, as far as we could judge, are planned and constructed on technical rules, and the materials and workmanship are not inferior to the design. The fortress has a regular and beautiful glacis, extending from the river or canal to the ditch; a covert way all round; and a ditch, which is thirty yards broad, with from four to five feet water in it, all throngh. The rampart is built of hard earth, cased on the outside with bricks. Each angle is flanked by four bastions, intended to mount thirty-six guns a-piece, some in embrasures, and some in barbette. To each face there are also four arched gateways of solid masonry, to which the approach across the ditch is by handsome arched stone bridges. The area inside is laid out into regular and spacious streets, at right angles to each other. A handsome and broad canal forms a communication between the river and the fortress, and within is distributed by various branches, so as to communicate with the palace, the arsenal, the granaries, and other public edifices. By this channel the taxes and tributes are brought from the provinces, and conducted at once to the very doors of the palace or magazines. The palace is situated within a strong citadel, consisting of two distinct walls, or ramparts. Within this we were not invited; but the roof of the palace itself was distinguishable by its yellow colour; and one handsome temple, consecrated to the royal ancestors of the King, was also noticed. This last, which has no priests attached to it, was the only place of worship within the new city.

In the whole of this extensive fortification, there is scarcely any thing slovenly, barbarous, or incomplete in design. Perhaps the only exceptions are the Chinese umbrella-shaped towers over the gates, and the embrasures of one or two of the bastions finished by his present Majesty, and in which he has taken it into his head to invert the rule of science and common sense, by making the embrasures to slope inwards, instead of outwards. The banks of the river and canal forming the base of the glacis, are not only regularly sloped down every where, but wherever the work is completed -for it is still unfinished in a few situations-they are cased from the foundation with a face of solid masonry. The canal within the walls is executed in the same perfect and workmanlike manner; and the bridges which are thrown over it, have not only neat stone balustrades, but are paved all over with marble brought from Tonquin.

'The first object in the interior to which our curiosity was particularly pointed, was the public granaries. These form ranges of enormous length in regular order. and are full of corn, being said to contain many years' consumption for the city. It has been the practice of the late and present King, to add two or three ranges of granaries every year to the number. The pernicious custom of hoarding grain against years of scarcity, and the unavoidable effect of which is to aggravate, or even to create, the evil it is intended to obviate, seems to be a received and popular maxim of Cochin Chinese government. It has its use in maintaining the tyranny of a despotic government.

These

"The barracks were the next object pointed out to us-and here we found the troops drawn out. buildings are excellent, and, in point of arrangement and cleanliness, would do no discredit to the best organised army in Europe. They are extensive, and surround the whole of the outer part of the citadel. We were informed, that from twelve to thirteen thousand troops were constantly stationed at the capital.

The most extraordinary spectacle was still to be exhibited-the arsenal. A violent fall of rain, and night coming on, prevented us from inspecting the whole of this; but what we did see, was more than sufficient to excite our surprise and gratify our curiosity. The iron cannon were first pointed out to us, consisting of an extraordinary assemblage of old shipguns of various European nations-French, English, Dutch, and Portuguese. These were objects of little curiosity compared with the brass ordnance, the balls, and shells, all manufactured in Cochin China, by native workmen, from materials supplied by Tonquin, and after French models. The ordnance consisted of cannon, howitzers, and mortars. The carriages were all constructed, finished, and painted, as substantially and

neatly as if they had been manufactured at Woolwich, or Fort William, and the field-carriages especially were singularly neat and handsome. The cannon are of various calibres, from four to sixty-eight pounders, with a large proportion of eighteen pounders. Among them were nine remarkable guns cast by the late King; these carry each a ball weighing seventy Chinese catties, or, in other words, are ninety-three pounders; they are as handsomely modelled and as well founded as any of the rest, and placed upon highly-ornamented carriages. On these remarkable pieces of ordnance is inscribed the name of the late King, Ja-lung, and the day and year in which they were cast. The King used to say that these would prove the most durable monu ments of his reign-no great cmpliment to his admi-. nistration.'-Pp. 250–253.

The general aspect of the country, together with the objects which usually meet a traveller in these regions, will be understood from the part of the narrative we next copy:

'Oct. 18.-We left Kao-hai at six o'clock this morning, and reached the foot of the first range of hills in about an hour. After crossing this, which is narrow, and not above three hundred feet high, we entered an extensive valley. Travelling through this, until halfpast eight o'clock, we halted at Nuk-mang, "the place of sweet water," a remarkably pretty and neat village. We breakfasted here, and resumed our journey at halfpast eleven. Still traversing low ground for three quarters of an hour, we reached a second range of hills, of nearly the same elevation as the first: this terminated the valley, which appears to be about nine miles broad. It is, generally speaking, sandy, sterile, and in a state of nature; but towards the hills, on both sides, the soil improves and is well cultivated. Here we saw reapers in the fields; among them were many women. They used a sickle, as in Europe; and their work was performed with something like the energy and vigour of European labour. As soon as we had reached the top of the second range of hills, a beautiful and unexpected view was presented to us. On one side was the valley, which we had just quitted; on another the open sea; on a third high ranges of wooded mountains; and before us, what we took at the time for a great internal lake, surrounded every where by steep and wooded hills. This extensive piece of water We proved, however, to be another arm of the sea. skirted it along its eastern shore, passing a great deal of forest, but our journey being over a most excellent and well-finished road. In this part of our route in particular, and generally indeed throughout the whole of it, we observed along the road many monuments of Cochin Chinese superstition, in the form of little temples, at which votive offerings were presented as well as occasionally on the pinnacles of rocks. These offerings consisted usually of little bits of gilded paper, and similar trifles, and were most usual in wild and solitary spots, considered by the Cochin Chinese to be the natural dwellings of evil spirits. At one spot which we passed, on the summit of a hill, and in the depth of the forest, there was erected a post, having on it a board, on which was represented a hideous human face, with an inscription underneath. Our native companions informed us, that the writing was a saered text, and that it and the ugly face were intended

to frighten away an evil spirit of peculiar malignity which haunted this particular spot. They said, that when people travelled in numbers, or in fine weather, the evil genius in question was not to be apprehended, but that he took advantage of solitary travellers, especially of women, and that he was most mischievous in storms and gloomy weather!

'At two o'clock we arrived at Hai-mung, the end of our stage. This was a considerable village on the sea-side, just at the entrance of the bay already mentioned, and which, in the native language, is called Vungdam, or the harbour of Dam. It appeared to be about five miles across, in its broadest part, and seven or eight long. The deep of water in the middle is ten Cochin Chinese cubits, or almost fourteen feet English. The entrance is extremely narrow-I should think not above one hundred and twenty yards, and here there is only a depth of from seven to eight and a half feet. For a mile inland, The bay consists of a narrow gut or channel, which expands all at once to the breadth which I have just stated. A tremendous surge rolls in upon the beach or rocks towards the entrance of the bay on both sides, the narrow channel alone being free from danger.

In the forests through which we passed in the course of this day's journey, we were informed that the tigers and elephants were numerous. Of wild

poultry (Phasianus Gallus) we saw several flocks. One of these, not far from a village, appeared so little shy, that we at first imagined it consisted of domestic fowls and hesitate to fire. In the winter, or cold season, innumerable flocks of ducks and other water-fowl are described as visiting Cochin China. These had not yet arrived, but we observed preparations making for insnaring them. These consisted of a number of artificial birds, intended for decoys.

This day's journey was performed in palanquins, of the fashion of the country. These vehicles consist of a net, hung from a single pole, and having a pent roof of very light materials. Or each side, as well as behind and in front, there are curtains of wax cloth. The weight of a good one is about thirty catties, or forty pounds, and of a small one, not more than half that amount. Two men, and no more, carry these vehicles, and four is the greatest number of bearers employed for persons of any weight, including the relief. In this employment, the Cochin Chinese exhibit a degree of strength, dexterity, and activity, of which I had not believed them capable. They travel at a quick pace, and change the palanquin from shoulder to shoulder, or relieve each other without even halting. Each of our sets of bearers carried us at least nine or ten miles. In every respect, I conceive them superior to Indian palanquin-bearers. They perform the same work, at least equally well, with less than one half the numbers employed in Hindoostan. This superiority is, in a good measure, owing to the greater lightness of the vehicle employed; but, I have no doubt, in some degree, also, to the superior strength of the Cochin Chinese over the natives of Western India. We found the Cochin Chinese palanquin the most comfortable and least fatiguing vehicle in which we had ever travelled.

ran.

'Oct. 19.-We commenced our journey this morning at half-past five, by crossing the narrow channel which forms the entrance of the bay. Immediately before us was the high range of mountains, which divides the bay of Vung-dam from that of Han or TouWe immediately began to ascend, and when we had got to the elevation of four or five hundred feet, had a beautiful and extensive prospect of the bay which we had just left-of the open sea, and even of a portion of the bay of Nuk-got, which we had crossed in the first day's journey. Here was a temple to the Spirit of the Mountain, and on the altar some incense still burning, left by travellers who had gone on before

us.

Our course was now along the sea, but at a considerable elevation over it, while it was generally concealed from view by the thickness of the forest. The scenery now, and for the rest of the day, was bold and romantic. The forest was as tall and luxuriant as clos to the Equator itself, and the sound of brooks and waterfalls was perpetually murmuring in our ears. Two or three waterfalls were visible at a distance, one of which appeared to have a fall of about two hundred feet. Its white foam made a fine contrast with the uniform verdure of the surrounding forest. The road was frequently very steep. All that labour could do to make it good, had indeed been tried, but this was not much among the vast masses of granite of which the mountain consisted, and where there was scarcely an inch of soil, with which to form an even surface

A:

Every step we took was from one block of granite to another, both in ascending and descending. The dearth of human inhabitants was ill made up by numerous herds of monkeys. We saw no less than five herds of these animals while we were passing the mountain. These were all of the same species which we had seen at the bay of Touran, the Douc, (or Simia nemoris, in colour one of the handsomest of the ape tribe. the elevation, as we conjectured, of six or seven hundred feet, we observed, for the first time, the tea-plant cultivated. The trees seemed to be little attended to were at least twelve feet high, and the leaves appeared large and coarse. At half-past eight o'clock, we reached the highest part of the mountain. The thermometer, which on the plain was the day before, a the same hour, 83°, here sunk to 76°, and the barometer showed that our elevation above the level of the sea was about 1600 feet. The high road, however, lay over a comparatively low part of the range, some peaks of which appeared to be at least 4000 feet high. Near the highest spot to which we ascended, was a neat village, with the advantage of a good market, and of, what an Europeau at least would consider, a fine climate. In the shops, refreshments, consisting of tea, rice, and other articles, were ready laid out for travellers, of which we saw a good number in the course of this day's and yesterday's journey. These persons, among whom were women and children, tra

velled unarmed, and without guards, and apparently without apprehension. This, at least, was a favourable sign of the vigilance and energy of the Govern

ment.

"As soon as we had reached the summit of the hill, we enjoyed a grand and extensive prospect, which exhibited at one view the bay and peninsula of Touran, the bay of Faifo, and the marble rocks which lie be tween them. The rest of our route was a rapid and not very easy descent to the western shore of the bay of Touran. This occupied an hour and a half. At ten o'clock we reached the little cove which I had visited on the 23d of September. Here we breakfasted, and, embarking at twelve o'clock, after a beating passage against a strong sea-breeze, reached the ship at four o'clock in the afternoon, and had the happiness to join our friends, and to find them all well.

'The geological formation of the country which we The extrepassed in this journey is entirely primitive. mity of a small ridge of hills, which terminates at the side of the river opposite the palace, we found to be quartz rock. Throughout the rest of our journey granite, with occasional beds of horn-blende rock, were the only formations which occurred. In the vicinity of the capital there seems to be more variety, for we found, besides quartz and granite, specimens of mountain lime-stone, which we were told had been brought from a distance of no more than ten or twelve miles.' -Pp. 280-285.

SUBTERRANEOUS TRAVELS.

Subterraneous Travels of Niels Klim. From the Latin of Lewis Holberg. 8vo. pp. 420. Thomas North, Paternoster-row. London, 1828.

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THIS very amusing work of Lewis Holberg belongs to the once favourite class of compositions which, under the veil of fiction, were intended to convey the most important truths or the most biting satire. Gulliver's Travels,' however, is the only book of the kind which has retained is general popularity. This remarkable book its now more known and admired by the lovers of the marvellous than by those who are qualified to relish its serious and witty attacks on certain principles and parties. Captain Popanilla,' reviewed in another Number of the paper, is of the same class; but the taste for this kind of reading, we conjecture, is gone by; politics have now a medium which leaves them too open to the broad light of day to let men relish them in allegories, or in any thing but plain-speaking newspapers. We should not, therefore, have considered Niels Klim's Subterraneous Travels' as likely to prove interesting to many of our readers, had it not qualities of another kind, beside those which would induce us to put it on the same shelf with the works we have just mentioned; but it is, in fact, a most curious and entertaining story, and would hardly fail to attract nearly as much interest as Swift's work, had the author been content to play with puppets in a human form. But it was a favourable amusement with philosophers and wits, an age or two back, to imagine in what forms the non-descript inhabitants of the moon or of other sublunar worlds might exist; and Lewis Holberg has left many behind in this play-work of the fancy.

Magister Edward, corrector of the Latin School, an
opportunity of encouraging their countrymen,—as they
were too old and too feeble for the enterprise,-to a
close investigation of the peculiar nature of this hole.
It appeared to them the more deserving of the attentive
philosopher's research, as it really had, from time im-
memorial, much resembled a snoring man, who with
vehemence inhales the air which his lungs have just
expelled.

whole of this new celestial constructure must either be produced by a dizziness in my head, and a confused imagination, arising from the perplexity of my disordered brain; or that I must be dead, and conveyed to the mansions of the blessed. This last ridiculous idea, however, I quickly detected, on perceiving myself armed with a boat-hook, and dragging a long rope after me, well conceiving that neither rope nor hook was a necessary appendage to possess on my arrival in Paradise; and that the celestial inhabitants could never possibly approve of such like ornaments, with which I might be inclined, after the example of the giants, to storm heaven, and drive away the gods. Some considerable time after, when I had seriously reflected on the matter, I conceived that I must have descended to the subterraneous heavens; and that the opinions of those persons who maintain that the earth is hollow, and that within its shell there is another and a smaller world, with a smaller sun, smaller planets, and smaller stars, all in due proportion, connexion, and systematic arrangement, must be well founded. Events proved that I had conjectured right.

Stimulated not less by the encouragement of these great men than by my own natural inclination, I meditated on a descent into the hole, and unbosomed my design to some of my most intimate friends, who were struck with surprise and astonishment, exclaiming, that a person who would execute such a project, could not be far short of being both frantic and desperate. Their remonstrances, however, on me were entirely lost; and, instead of abating my once-kindled desire, they only served to fan the flame. My inclination led, and my indigent circumstances urged me to the study of nature, in spite of every danger that might attend it. Always destitute of money, and living on another's 'My course downwards having now continued pretty charity, became daily more and more insupportable to me; and I had the dismal prospect before my eyes of long, I began to experience that the rapidity with which I was at first precipitated, gradually abated as I apunalterable poverty; seeing every road to honour and preferment in my own country closed against me; proached the planet, or celestial globe, which I perunless, through some desperate and hazardous achieve-ceived soon after my accelerated descent. As I drew ment, worthy of public regard, I should succeed in again opening them.

My resolution, after mature consideration, being firmly fixed, I prepared every thing necessary for the enterprise, and sallied forth from the town one Thursday morning at day-break, the weather being beautiful and serene. The reason of my setting out so early was, that I might be at home again in the afternoon, when my work was finished. How little did I then think, that I, like a second Phaeton,

"Plunging headlong through the air in whizzing turns,
Precipitated on another globe,

Should not, till after ten years' woful tossing,
Behold my country and my friends again!'

This expedition was undertaken in the year 1665;

when Hans Munthe and Lars Soerensen were the bur-
gomasters, and Christian Bertelsen and Lars Sand were
senators of Bergen. Four labourers attended me with
rope and boat-hooks, which I might need in the de-
scent. We proceeded direct to Sandwig, where the
mountain is the easiest of ascent; and having reached
the summit, we sat down a few moments and break-
fasted, not far from the fatal hole. It was here that

my heart first began to misgive me, and feel as if it
anticipated some approaching disaster. I turned me
round to my companions: "Which of you," said I,
"will now first break the ice?" but received no answer.
At this, my half-extinguished courage flamed anew: I
suffered the rope to be fastened round my body, and
made every preparation for the descent; first, however,
recommending my soul fervently to the Almighty.
My devotions being ended, I was then lowered gently
into the orifice, after having first given my attendants
the necessary directions what they were to do; namely,
I ordered them to continue to veer away the rope until
they should hear me bawl, at which signal they were
to stop, and, if I continued to bawl, they were, in that
case, to hoist me up again with all speed. I held a
boat-hook in my right hand, for the purpose therewith
of pushing away any obstruction to my descent, and
at the same time to guide myself in the centre of the
hole; and in this manner I was let to glide softly down.
But scarce had I descended more than eleven or twelve
yards, when the rope snapped. I conjectured imme-
diately what misfortune had befallen me, from the
sudden howling and lamentations of the four men
above; which, however, quickly vanished, as I, with
wonderful velocity, shot down into the dark abyss,
and, like another Pluto,

"Sank into the bowels of the yawning earth;'

with the exception, that, instead of a sceptre, I had
but a boat-hook in my hand.

6

The hero of his story is one Niels Klim, a Swede, who, having completed his studies in the University of Copenhagen, returns almost pennyless to his native town, to make learning better than house and lands as he might. He takes to exploring the wild and savage mountains in the neighbourhood of his home; and, while pursuing I had now been plunging through thick darkness his adventures, is induced to descend a chasm, and incessant night for the space of a quarter of an which had excited the curiosity of many philoso-hour, as near as I was able to guess whilst in such a phers, but none of whom ventured to enter it. perturbation; when, at length, I perceived a faint Klim's attempt is thus described: glimmering, much resembling a kind of twilight; and quickly afterwards, I could distinctly see a serene and bright firmament. I at first, in my simplicity, imagined that, either by the repercussion of the subterraneous air, or some such other adverse wind, I was again blown up; and that the hole, in sending forth its breath, had thrown me back upon the earth. But, as the sun, the firmament, and the stars, which I saw, were much smaller than those we are accustomed to behold, I was completely at a loss to assign a cause for this singular phenomenon, I then thought that the

Among divers extraordinary things, that which struck me as the most remarkable, was a hole or cavern on the top of a mountain, called by the country-folks Mount Flöien (the Weather-cock Mountain.) Round the orifice, there circulated a soft and not unpleasant breeze, occasioned by the circumambient air being drawn into the hole, and again expelled, with a continual groaning; which afforded the literati of Bergen, and particularly the renowned Abelin, and the profoundly-skilled astronomer and natural philosopher,

nearer, it appeared visibly to increase in bulk; so that
at length I could discern, although through a cloudy
atmosphere that surrounded it, both seas, hills, and
valleys, upon its surface:

""Like birds which hover round the muscle-clad rocks,
Or soar 'twixt mountains' pinnacles, or billows' tops,
Or on light wing flirt o'er the briny deep;

So, 'twixt earth and heaven, hung my body suspense.'
'I became now fully sensible that I was not only
suspended and dangling in the celestial air, but that
the perpendicular line, in which I had hitherto de-
scended, was now changed into a circle. At this dis-
covery I must acknowledge that my hair stood on end,
fearing, as I did, that I must be metamorphosed either
into a planet or a satellite, to be twirled round in per-
petual motion until the world's end. When I consi-
dered, however, a little within myself, that my reputa-
tion and honour were in no wise likely to be tarnished
through such a circumstance, and that a celestial globe,
or at least the satellite of a celestial globe, always pro-
ceeding in planetary order, was, at any time, able to
out-lustre and eclipse a poor hungry Studiosus Philo-
sophiæ, my spirits again revived; and the more so,
when I experienced that the celestial air in which I
hung, had so strongly fortified me against the cravings
of nature, that I felt neither hunger nor thirst. I just
then remembered that I had a biscuit in my pocket: I
took it out, merely to try, out of curiosity, whether in
that condition I could relish it; but on taking the first
mouthful, I quickly perceived that all earthly food was
become entirely nauseous; I therefore cast it from me,
as a useless incumbrance. How great was my amaze-
ment on this occasion, when I discovered that the bis-
cuit not only hung dangling in the air, but,-0 won-
derful to relate!-began to describe around me a pla-
netary orbit. This gave me a clear conception of the
true laws of motion, according to which, all bodies
placed in equipoise must move in circles.

'How much soever I was dejected but a short time previous, at seeing myself a ball before mocking fate, I was now, on the other hand, equally elated on beholding myself exalted, not only to a self-subsistent planet, but to such a one even as would always be at

tended by a moon, and therefore ought to be ranked among stars of the first magnitude, or planets of the first order. In acknowledging the whole of my vain imbecility, I must needs say, that I was so immoderately inflated by this good fortune, that had I then met with all the burgomasters and all the senators of Bergen, I would merely have vouchsafed them a single glance, in order to have looked down upon them as insignificant atoms; nor would I have deigned to incline my hook, much less to bow my head, before them.

In this state I remained three whole days. As I was continually carried round by and with the planet, which was now at no very immense distance from me, I could easily distinguish the day from the night, through observing the rising and setting of the subterraneous sun; though, after he was gone down, I never remarked any such nights as we experience on earth; for when this bright luminary was even far belo v the horizon, the heavens every where still continued light and shining, very similar to the full moon with us. This brightness, I concluded, must be reflected from the internal vault or hemisphere of this

world, which borrowed its light from the sun placed in

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