CORRESPONDENCE. TO THE EDITOR, SIR,-As your correspondent" SCRUTATOR," in a late number, complains of the unsatisfactory termination of the controversy respecting the "Philoso SATURDAY, JUNE 22, 1822. there changed into sensible heat, to prevent its SECT. 2.-Place a crown-piece upon the tongue, and a piece of zinc, of the same size, phical Query," and wishes the attention of your betwixt the upper lip and the gums, then readers to be again directed to the subject, I send bring the two metals into contact, and you you the following elucidation. He charges me with will, particularly if in a dark room, fancy relying too much on the ipse dixit of others, but he you see a flash of white light. This is eviwill perhaps think not very justly, when I tell him, dently owing, either to the galvanic fluid I have advanced nothing but what has been sanc-acting as a stimulus similar to light, or to its tioned by experiments of my own; and that I have having simply agitated the fibres of the retina in its passage. preserved by me, for these ten years, apparatus necessary in making such experiments. The whole, or nearly so, of section 6th, is my own, at least, I know of no other having advanced the same; it must, therefore, be received with diffidence. Pendleton, June 12, 1822. A FRIEND. SECT. 1.-The Retina is composed of muscular When a smart blow is received on the eyes, or when we leap from a great height, we are said to see a flash of light. The other evening I found this experiment might be made without pain or danger. In a dark room, place the longest finger of the right hand just above the eye-brow, after closing the eyes, strike the finger suddenly across the ball of the eye, and the sensation of a vivid light will be the consequence. These experiments demonstrate that a sudden shake or vibration of the fibres produce the same sensation as light itself. | Advertisements.-The last column of the Iris is open to such advertisements only as are of a Literary or Scientific nature, comprising Education, Institutions, Sales of Libraries, &c. PRICE 34d. faint, then close the eyes, and a blue image of the silk will appear. This is called an inverse spectrum, because it is opposite to the colour used in making the experiment. It is nothing more than a spasm of the antagonist fibres of the retina. The colour of a spectrum is altered by extraneous light. While the blue image is still vivid, turn your eyes to a sheet of red paper, previously hung upon the wall, and the colour of the spectrum will become a mixture of the two colours. These experiments demonstrate that the sensations of colours are occasioned by certain motions in the fibres of the retina, produced by the stimulus of light. SECT. 6. We have ocular proof that the retina is fibrous, and it requires little stretch of imagination to suppose the fibres divided into sets, each sensible to its peculiar stimulus. What can be more simple, more plausible? The following facts strongly countenance this supposition. When sudden motion is communicated to the retina, as in the experiments in section 2, the flash is always white, which will evidently be the case if there is a set of fibres for the perception of each colour, as each set must be agitated at the same time. Again, if the different sensations consist merely in the degree of motion, the flash in SECT. 3.-The motions an organ is accus- these experiments ought sometimes to assume tomed to perform are liable to recur sponta- one colour, sometimes another. Look on neously. Thus the heart will frequently pul- a circle of red silk, placed in a strong light, sate after it has been emptied of its blood, for a considerable time, and the red colour and the lips of a sleeping infant move at inter-will gradually disappear. This has been said vals as if sucking; and thus also the motions of the retina continue and recur. agency of light. SECT. 4.-If we look steadily on a bright SECT. 1. Having procured the head of a object, as the setting sun, for a short time, large animal, I carefully examined the eyes and then turn away our eyes, an image of the and optic nerves. Placing a small piece of a sun appears before us. This is called a direct .torn retina in a few drops of water on a thin spectrum, because it is owing to a continuplate of glass, its fibrous structure was evi-ation of the action occasioned by the direct dent, particularly when viewed through a powerful microscope. A slice of medulla showed no trace of muscular fibres. The retina is not, therefore, as some persons have imagined, simply an expansion of the optic nerve. A case very lately occurred, where the retina was perfect, though no optic nerve had ever existed. The fibres of the retina must be intended to perform some motion, otherwise they would be completely useless, as the medulla would answer every other purpose. The retina is well known to be transparent, but if light acted by a chemical combination with the organ, or by its mechanical impulse, it would certainly be opake. Light passing through the retina, stimulates it into action, and is then received by the choroid coat behind. Heat, which frequently accompanies it, is It first occurred to me, that all objects left direct spectra in the eye, on seeing children make fiery circles by whirling round burning bits of wood, and from perceiving that in most fire-works there appeared many times more ignited matter than really existed.-Fix one one side the periphery of a wheel, a piece of white paper, then turn the wheel rapidly round, and the paper will assume the appearance of a white circle, which is thus explained :-an image of the paper falling on a certain point of the retina stimulates it into action, and passing on, arrives at the same point again before that action has ceased, hence the paper appears a circle. SECT. 5-Look upon a circle of orangecoloured silk, placed upon a black ground, in the light of the sun, till the orange becomes by Darwin, and others, to be owing to the retina becoming insensible to the red rays; but he did not notice that the circle does not disappear, but assumes a white appearance. This circumstance, however, may be easily explained, if we admit the retina to have sets of fibres. When one set endures great pain, the others are brought by degrees into strong spasmodic action, for as the circle assumes the white appearance, the pain evidently abates. Again, if after looking on the red circle till the colour disappears, we close our eyes, a green spectrum appears, not a perfect green, but such as may be produced by a mixture of all the colours except that used in making the experiment. "O" says he cannot conceive how the retina can perform seven different kinds of motion, forgetting that there is but three true or simple colours, all others being a mixture of red, yellow, and blue. It is evident that three sets of fibres are sufficient to perform all the motions necessary for the perception of every colour, simple and compound. Observe, I do not wish to be understood as insisting on the division of the fibres into sets, it is enough to show that the retina is partly composed of muscular fibres, and capable of being stimulated into action by the rays of light, and that it is liable to spasms like the other parts of the body, and that these spasms give the sensations of colours SECT. 7.-In some respects, no reliance can be placed on the experiments of "O." The sun is not equally bright every evening, and is seldom of the same colour, assuming every tint from blood-red to yellow. Hence the résult must vary. It is true, if you dwell sufficiently long on the setting sun, whatever be its colour, the retina will be thrown into various spasmodic motions, producing spectra of various colours. "O," I think, merely wishes to know, why the spectra assume, successively, the prismatic colours? Now, a certain degree of stimulus produces a direct spectrum, a greater degree, an inverse spectrum, a still greater, various successive spectra. ་ I shall now conclude, hoping that I have satisfactorily explained the phenomenon, but if your correspondent cannot rely on such explanation, I will thank him for a better. WANSTEAD HOUSE. the ceiling are representations of Morning, We are at a loss for words to express our Only a little month' past, and the master of Wanstead house was perhaps the richest commoner in England. He had married the richest heiress; his equipages were numerous and costly, and his retinue of proportionate extent and splendour. He is now, with this once richest heiress,' a quiet inmate of Desaing's hotel at Calais, occupying the apartments usually occupied by the common run of travellers from his own country, while his tokay is transmuted into vin-ordinaire, and his golden fringed Genoa-velvet curtains, are exchanged for the more gossamer texture of muslin and lino. These be sad thoughts: mournful reminiscences: but they speak volumes of instruction. In no country in the world are fortunes made and unmade-won and lost-in so sudden and surprising a manner, as in our own. ་ This day, a reservoir to save and spare, The next, a fountain spouting thro' the heir. So sung Pope-but a more ancient, and a more inspired Bard, sung before him, that there be some that put their trust in their goods, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches-and think that their houses In the first, nothing more is required than the gradual cessation of the original action; in the second, one spasm is sufficient; in the third many are requisite, to restore the organ to ease and vigour. "O" says, the "yellow spectrum was supplanted by a green, which gradually gave way to a blue, which ultimately subsided into a deep violet." Suppose a green spectrum has been present for such a time as Under the great hall is a noble arcade, from to exhaust the sensibility of the retina to which is an entrance to a dining-parlour, forty green light, or its power of producing a green feet by thirty-five feet, communicating with a spectrum, and yet has not sufficiently relieved breakfast-room, thirty-two feet by twenty-five. the retina from the painful impression of the There are, besides these, other apartments sun, a spectrum of another colour will doubt-upon a scale equally magnificent, and finished less follow. Even thinking of a colour greatly in the most appropriate manner. In the exhausts the sensibility of the retina to that avenue, leading from the grand front of the colour. house to Laytonstone, is a circular piece of water, which seems equal to the length of the front. There are no wings to the house, although they were included in the original design. On each side, as you approach the house, is a marble statue: that on the left, Hercules; that on the other, Omphale; and hence to compensate, as it were, for the defect of wings, obelisks and vases extend alternately to the house. The garden front has no portico, but a pediment, enriched with a bas-shall continue for ever, and that their dwelling relief, and supported by six three-quarter columns. From this front is an easy ascent, through a fine vista, to the river Roding, which is formed into canals, and beyond it the walks and wildernesses rise up the hill, as they sloped downward before. Highlandhouse, an elegant seat built of stone, forms a beautiful termination to the vista. Among other decorations of the garden is a curious grotto. The house was for several years, during the minority of Miss Long, occupied by the emigrants of the royal house of Bourbon. It was castomary for the public to be admitted to view this seat on Saturdays only, and it has been inspected with feelings of delight by travellers from all parts of the world who have made a visit to it. Mr. Young, in his Six weeks' Tour,' has the following passage:- Wanstead is one of the noblest houses in England. The magnificence of having four state bed-chambers, with complete apartments to them, and the ball-room, are superior to any thing of the kind in Haughton, Holkham, Blenheim, and Wilton. But each of these houses is superior to this in other particulars; but, to perform a complete palace, something must be taken from all. In respect to elegance of architecture, Wanstead is second to Holkham: what a building would it be were the wings added, according to the first design?' The ancient manor of Wanstead was granted by Edward VII. to Robert Long Rich, who sold it to the Earl of Leicester. Here Elizabeth's favourite entertained his royal mistress for several days; and here he also solemnized his marriage with his ill-fated wife. Reverting to the crown, King James gave it to Sir Henry Mildmay, who, having been one of the judges of Charles I., it became forfeited. Charles II. gave it to his brother, afterwards James II. who sold it to Sir Robert Brooke, and it soon afterwards was purchased by Sir Joshua Child, who planted a great number of trees in the avenues, leading to the scite of the old mansion. His son Richard, first Earl of Tilney, laid out some extensive grounds in gardens; and, after these were finished, he employed the celebrated Colin Campbell (about 1715) to build the present structure, which is cased with Portland stone, and is upwards of two hundred and sixty feet in length, and seventy feet in depth. It is one of the noblest houses in Europe; and its grand front is thought to be as fine a piece of architecture as any that may be seen in Italy. It consists of two stories, the basement and the state story, and is adorned by a noble portico of six Corinthian pillars. In the tympanum of this portico, (which we ascend by a noble double flight of steps,) are the arms of the Tilney family; and over the door, which leads into the great hall, is a medallion of the architect. The great hall is fifty-three feet by forty-five. On places shall endure from one generation to another, and call the lands after their own names;' but other casualties than that of death deprive them of their property, and strip them of their pomp. Thus it hath been with the modern Sardanapalus. It will scarcely be believed, that within the compass of a few years, an annual income of little short of 80,000%. should have plunged its proprietor into such a state of necessity and distress, as to cause him to dispose of every thing by PUBLIC AUCTION. House, lands, furniture-pictures, where an ancestry was delineated in yet unfading colours and cabinet treasures, which had been the gifts of Sovereigns, and of the illustrious in arts, arms, dignity, and hereditary rank and virtue: these, including even the last lingering bottle of what is costly or common in the cellars, are ALL to be swept away, under the hammer of the auctioneer. TABLE TALK. I received an invitation to dine with a friend a few days ago; and, as an inducement, I was told, that the party was to consist of Mr. Posy, the poet, Mr. Bombast, the author of certain dramatic pieces, a celebrated Wit, and several other persons of distinction in the literary world. In short, I was prepared to meet a galaxy of talent, and felt infinitely flattered at being invited to so recherchée a party. During the interval between the invitation and the dinner, I anticipated the amusement I should receive, with no small degree of pleasure, and refreshed my memory with looking over the productions of each of the expected guests, that if the conversation turned to their works, I might be able to take a part in it. This, by laying their various talents before me, impressed me still more with sanguine expectations of the pleasure to be derived from their society, and I went to my friend's house punctually at the appointed hour, prepared to enjoy the 'feast of reason, and the flow of wit, if not of soul. During the awkward half hour before dinner that half hour so embarrassing in English society-I eagerly listened to every syllable that escaped the lips of the party; but, alas! I found that your wits and poets are as dull and common-place during this period, as other men, and after the severe storms" and east winds' had been discussed, in all the modifications of which language would admit, they formed themselves into knots of two and three, and commenced desultory conversation, on the new opera, and the last play; unenlivened by a single stroke of wit, or by any poetical image. At length dinner was announced, and now I expected to be repaid for my previous disappointment. I prepared to treasure up in my memory all the jeux d'esprits and flashes of wit that might escape them, to regale my less recherchés friends on future occasions, and in anticipation enjoyed the applause I should excite. By the time that the third course was placed on the table, and that the wine had circulated pretty briskly, the conversation took a lively turn; and now, thought I, my expectations are about to be realized, but, unfortunately, the two guests most inclined to talk were punsters, and they not only kept up a running fire across the table, but tortured every sentence that was uttered by the rest of the party, into a play on words. Many of the hits were neat and apt, but they gave rise to several execrable puns as that is a species of wit to which every man thinks he may aspire. I felt relieved when the party was over, and returned to my home with the sage maxim full in my memory, Let no man say hereafter, this shall be a day of happiness.' Having mentioned to several of my acquaintances the party I was to meet, I felt a little ashamed at the defeat of my anticipation, and endeavoured to recall to my mind all the observations that I had heard made, in the hope that I might quote some of them. But after recurring to all that had taken place, I could only remember, that Mr. Posy, the poet, who has so well described rural scenery, declared that he detested the country, which he would never willingly visit, for he agreed with Morris, that If in the country, in summer you'd dwell, Take a house on the sweet shady side of Pall Mall. Mr. Facetious, who has written so eloquently in praise of society, and who I expected would have been the very life of the one we were in, expressed his ardent passion for solitude; and Mr. the author of so many admirable comedies, stated his dislike to theatrical representations. In short, there was not a single thing said that might not have been as well expressed by any common-place party, and I felt annoyed, that the anticipations of so many days, had so completely failed of being realized. MATHEMATICS. From the "Traité Elémentaire de Méchanique, par L. B. Francœur, Professeur aux Lycées de Paris, Examinateur de l'Ecole Impériale Polytechnique, &c. &c. &c." It is easy now to see how Archimedes resolved the problem of Hiero, King of Syracuse. He was required to determine, without damaging his Majesty's crown, whether it was composed of pure gold; and, if the Jeweller had alloyed it with silver, to assign the ratio of the constituent parts, consisting of the two metals. This problem was then to find the degree of impurity of an ingot composed of gold and silver. Let II and II' be the known ratios of the specifie the weights of the mixture in air and in water; then, x and fx the respective weights of the portions of gold and silver contained in the mixture. Since II is the quotient of the weight x of gold divided by the weight of water which it displaces, this last f-x weight is=:in like manner, is that which II II' the silver displaces. The sum of these quantities is weights of these metals to that of water, ƒ and ƒ' I mentioned my disappointment next day to a friend, who made the following observations. -In large towns, conversation is but little known, except in small circles of enlightened persons; for in the generality of parties, people meet determined to shine, or, to use a simile, each person is determined to fire off a certain number of shots, with which he has provided himself for the occasion; and whether there be game or not, the shots must be fired, and consequently they must often prove random ones. In a party of ten persons, if eight, or say six, out of the number are determined to talk, the reult must be, that each wishing to produce his own Bon-mot-which is often a-propos to nothing interrupts his neighbor, who perhaps might be saying something more worthy of being listened to; and half a dozen voices all talking at once, each endeavouring by his loudness to drown the story of his friend, is certainly far from being agreeable. I have often thought, that it would be a good plan, if the guests, before dinner, candidly announced what each, to use a theatrical phrase, had got himself up in; and that they draw lots who should speak, and how many anecdotes or Bon-mots, each should give. Puns should be banished, because they are not only disagreeable, but cause an endless display; for once set one guest punning, and, like yawning, it becomes infectious, and you are overwhelmed should have had 11 = ƒ with a thousand bad attempts at torturing, I will not say playing, on words. If on comparing notes, the company found they had laid in a larger stock of wit than could be disposed of that day, it would be well to agree to an adjournment till a future day, when they might dispose of the remainder. This plan would prevent the annoyance so frequently felt in society, when it appears that the talkers think it likely they may not see each other again for a long time, and therefore are determined to bring into play every story, anecdote, or pun, they know, without ever thinking of the unfortunate hearers, who sit in misery, longing to bring forth their stock. I always feel an inclination on these occasions to say, Gentlemen, pray be patient and I will give you another field day to fire off your remaining cartridges. Next to the misery which I have been describing, is that of being compelled to listen to a song which you have heard twenty times sung by the same person, and with the faults of whose voice, ear, and taste you are so well acquainted, that you know every bar where he will fail, as well as every line where there is a point; and you sit in sober sadness, anticipating the misery of both, afraid that the close of one song will be only the prelude to beginning another. And then, to crown the misery, being expected to say, how good, how witty, how excellent, &c. &c.' when you are fatigued to death by ennui, and afraid to open your mouth, lest you should yawn. A HARD CASE. the weight of the volume of water displaced by the mixture; thus, ƒ' x f-x + whence x = If there had been only gold, we f whence xf; it is then easy to ascertain whether the mixture contained an alloy, or whether it is formed of pure gold. This theory makes no allowance for the apparent penetration which the compound body experiences on account of chemical attraction. Solution of No. 25, by J. H. ax 2 C Put x= side of the heptagon in yards; c=4840 the yards in one acre; and a=3.633912 the tab area. Then the acres enclosed, and 252x = the shillings round the heptagon, which per question, is the price of the land enclosed. Now 252x → ax2 1lar 2 ptice of one acre, and per question, the price of one acre. Hence, с = 252c2 Ila2 88.748747 C 252x 11ax 2 ax 2 this reduced gives x = C acres, and 976.236217 shillings, or £48-16.23, the price of one acre. Question No. 27, by Mr. J. Wilson, Given (x-2) y √xy (y2 — 1) = 2y2 √xy 12 xy 18' - -X, to find the value of x and y. Question No. 28, by Amicus. If the sum a be put out at 5 per cent per annum, compound interest, in what time will the last year's interest be equal to the principal? Question No 29, by T. B: Junr. A person, planting a certain number of trees in a square form, finds that he has 382 trees more than a perfect square, but increasing the side of the square by 6 trees, he then wants 38 trees to complete the square. What was the number of trees? Some days back a private of the 88th, quartered in Cavan, requested his Commanding Officer to obtain him permission to change into the 44th regiment, now embarking for India.-On being asked his motive for this singular wish, he replied, it was from no dislike to the regiment or his comrades, or his officers, and least of all to his Honour, nor from any partiality to the 44th or to India, "but the No correct Solution to No. 19 is yet received, truth is, I am married, and I hear my wife is the Author's excepted. Question No. 24 is yet unancoming to join, I would fain be off first." swered. While honouring the grape's ruby nectar, "O my children, take care," said the beldame, "Attend to these counsels of mine: Get not tipsy! for danger is seldom "With thee in his company, no man Can err," said our wag with a wink; She frowned-but her scruples soon twisting, But to say, "Fill the goblet again." And she drank, and she totter'd, but still she Was carried by Folly to bed. • The original has Love. DAVIDOF. DURING A THUNDER STORM. It thunders! sons of dust, in reverence bow! Almighty! trembling like a timid child, I hear Thy awful voice-alarmed-afraid I see the flashes of Thy lightning wild, And in the very grave would hide my head. Lord! what is man? Up to the sun he flies Or feebly wanders through earth's vale of dust: There is he lost midst heaven's high mysteries, And here in error and in darkness lost : Beneath the storm-clouds, on life's raging sea, Like a poor sailor-by the tempest tost In a poor bark-the sport of destiny, He sleeps and dashes on the rocky coast. Thou breathest ;-and th' obedient storm is still: Thou speakest ;-silent the submissive wave; Man's shatter'd ship the rushing waters fill, And the husht billows roll across his grave. Sourceless and endless God! compare with Thee, Life is a shadowy momentary dream : And time, when view'd with Thy eternity, Less than the mote of morning's golden beam. DMITRIEV. ELEGAIC VERSES. sadness steals O'er the defrauded heart.-Wordsworth. On weep not for the dead, Oh weep not, though her face Oh weep not that her breast, Oh weep not that the light Of loveliness and grace, But, ah! I feel the tear With bitter thoughts opprest; From her we lov'd so dear; EPIGRAM. You talk of your taste and your talents to me, VARIETIES. Eggs preserved 300 years.--In the wall of a chapel near the Lago Maggiore, built more than 300 years ago, three eggs, imbedded in the mortar of the wall, were found to be quite fresh. It has long been known that bird's eggs brought from America or India, covered with a film of wax, have been hatched in Europe after the wax bad been dissolved by alcohol. Music.-The German Journals announce a brilliant musical discovery. A citizen of Courland, of the name of Hausen, has invented an instrument which he calls Olympicon, and which to a rare beauty joins the advantage of compassing all the tones of the violin, bass, violoncello, and the high contre (Hautecontre) All who play the piano can perform on the Olympicon, and with it a single person may execute a concert. A Curate complaing to Fenelon, that after the evening service of Sunday, his parishioners, in spite of his remonstrances, would dance. My dear friend, replied Fenelon, neither you nor I should dance; but let us leave these poor people to dance as they please; their hours of happiness are not too numerous. In the early part of the last century, a Jacobite Publican on the Chester road, was highly provoked at the accession of George the First to the English throne. Hearing that a white horse (the sign suspended over his door) was part of the armorial bearings of the House of Hanover, in the ardor of toryism he immediately changed the white horse to the red lion, and had the following lines painted under his sign; but the new fixture and every window in the house were speedily demolished, by his more loyal and indignant whig neighbours. The horse has insulted the lion; in fine I could not be easy till I alter'd my sign, And to shew that the English I wholly rely on, I bave pull'd down the horse and have put up the lion. On the 14th of May, between six and seven in the evening, during a thunder shower, there fell at Leipzig such prodigious multitudes of insects, that they covered whole streets. The wind was very strong from the East, from which quarter vast swarms of insects were seen to approach, which fell with the rain in countless heaps. They are dragon flies, and it is inexplicable whence they can have come in such swarms, as there are no marshes near Leipzig on the east side. It was reported among the common people that it had rained locusts. Strawberries, a Cure for the Gout.-The celebrated Linnæus, when he was forty-three years of age, was subject to such violent attacks of the gout, that they deprived him of sleep and appetite. During the fit, he happened once to eat some strawberries, after which he had a refreshing sleep. The next day he eat, at intervals, a large quantity, and on the second day after was quite recovered, and able to quit his bed. In the summer of the following year he again dispelled attacks of the disease by taking ripe strawberries. The third year the attacks were renewed, but in a slighter degree than in the preceding years. After this, Linnæus never neglected to eat strawberries every summer: his blood seemed to be purified by this means; his countenance was more cheerful, his colour fresher, and he was ever after free from the gout, though he lived to the age of seventy years. Extraordinary Productiveness of the Orange-trees of St. Michael's.-The oranges of St. Michael are celebrated for their fine flavour, and abundant sweet juice; when left to ripen on the trees, they are inferior to none in the world. The lemons have less juice than those of some other countries, and the demand for them is inconsiderable. The orange and lemon trees blossom in the months of February and March. At this time, the glossy green of the old leaves, the light, fresh tints of those just shooting forth, the brilliant yellow of the ripe fruit, and the delicate white and purple of the flower, are finely contrasted with each other, presenting one of the most beautiful sights imaginable. The trees generally attain the height of fifteen or twenty feet. The usual produce of a good tree, in common years, is from 6000 to 8000 oranges or lemons. Some instances of uncommon productiveness have occurred; a few years since, 26,000 oranges were obtained from one tree, and 29,000 have been gathered from another. These quantities have never been exceeded. -Dr. Webster. Method of rendering Cloth incombustible.-M. Gay | communication with the sensorium is cut off, it is the Lussac has found, that the most effectual solutions for rendering cloth incombustible, are solutions of muriate, sulphate, phosphate and borate of ammonia, with borax, and also some mixtures of these saits. M. Merat Guillot, of Auxerres, has shewn, that the acidulous phosphate of lime possesses the same property. When inen, muslin, wood, or paper, are dipped in a solution of that salt, of the specific gravity of from 1.26 to 1.30, they become completely incombustible. They may be charred by an intense heat, but they will not burn. parts below the injury which are deprived of sensa-¦ tion, while those above retain their sensibility. And so in the case of decapitation, the nerves of the face and eyes may for a short time continue to convey impressions to the brain, in spite of the separation from the trunk." Cyrano de Bergerac had a remarkably long nose and was very near sighted. As is common with persons who possess the latter infirmity, he had a habit of poking his nose very near any object he wished to look at. He was one day at the Tuileries standing behind Bussy de Rabutin, who was playing at cards, and having annoyed him much with this practice, Bussy at length took out his pocket handkerchief, and the next time de Bergerac's nose came over his shoulder he laid hold of it and gave it a tremendous squeeze. Cyrano was highly indignant, but Bussy appeased him. by saying, "I assure you I thought it was my own nose which I was blowing." Mr. J.-k-ll, upon whom more witticisms have been fathered than he ever uttered, is said to have given a summary of the Barons of the Ex-ch-r "Rds" said he, is a lawyer in a few words. and a gentleman. Wd is a lawyer but no gen tleman. G- -m is a gentleman but no lawyer, and G- -w, though a very clever man, is neither a lawyer nor a gentleman." When the Barons sate in Gray's Inn they had curtains put up at the doors, in consequence of the severity of the weather and the admission of the cold air. J-k-ll upon seeing them, said it was an unnecessary luxury; he thought the old gentlemen might sleep without curtains. We recommend the following passage to the notice of our Exquisites of the present day: Many of Lord Chesterfield's maxims would make a young man a mere man of pleasure; but an English gentleman should not be a mere man of pleasure. He has no right to such selfish indulgence. His ease, his leisure, his opulence, are debts due to his country, which he must ever stand ready to discharge. He should be a man at all points; simple, frank, courteous, intelligent, accomplished, and informed; upright, intrepid, and disinterested; one that can mingle among freemen; that can cope with statesmen; that can champion his country and its rights either at home or abroad. In a country like England, where there is such free and unbounded scope for the exertion of intellect, and where opinion and example have such weight with the people, every gentleman of fortune and leisure should feel himself bound to employ himself in some way towards promoting the prosperity or glory of the nation. country where intellect and action are trammelled and restrained, men of rank and fortune may become idlers and triflers with impunity; but an English coxcomb is inexcusable; and this, perhaps, is the reason why he is the most offensive and insupportable coxcomb in the world. In a A gentleman makes, in an account of his travels on the Continent, the following remarks on an execution he witnessed, in which the culprit was beheaded by the guillotine:-"It appears," says he, "to be the best of all possible modes of inflicting the punishment of death, combining the greatest impression on the spectator, with the least possible suffering to the victim. It is so rapid, that I should doubt whether there was any suffering; but from the expression of the countenance, when the executioner held up the head, I am inclined to think that sense and consciousness may remain for a few seconds after the head is off! The eyes seemed to retain speculation for a moment or two, and there was a look in the ghastly stare with which they glared upon the crowd, which implied that the head was aware of its ignominious situation. And, indeed, however extraordinary this may appear, there is nothing improbable in the snpposition, for in all injuries of the spine, whereby a Singular agreement between the names of celebrated Painters, and the subjects executed by them. .... by Sir W. Beech-y Capon. Ten-iers. .... A view on the sea coast .... Gathering Hemp View near Windsor The Unmerited Correction Portrait of Myself View on the Coast .. Heath. SCRAPIANA. No. V. From the common-place book of a Clergyman who flourished in Lancashire at the beginning of the 18th century. Errors. like fish must be eaten fresh, and now or they'H stink. England conquered (1) by Romans, (2) Picts, (8) Saxons, (4) Danes, (5) Normans. Oft enough. Equivocation, Jesuits sheers. Ex oculo, loculo, poculo cognoscitur Horno. Episcopi et Presbyteri una est ordinatio. Hilary. Epicuras seemed to contemn God and Death, and yet no man feared more either ye one or ye other. Tully. Expiation-day under ye law a day of mourning, and yet ye Jubilee proclaimed on it. Elephant.-There are some facts recorded of the Elephant, that one scarcely knows how to reconcile to mere instinct, if the facts be authentic. I have heard the late Sir George Staunton say, that when General Meadows reviewed four war Elephants that had been sent from Ceylon to Madras, to assist in getting the British artillery through the gauts, a very extraordinary circumstance took place. The war Elephant, it is well known, is trained to perform the grand Salam, which is done by falling on the first joint of the fore leg, at a certain signal. The largest of the four Elephants was particularly noticed by the General, as being terribly out of condition; the keeper was ordered up to explain the cause, and was in the act of doing this to the General, when the Elephant advanced a few steps out of the line, and with one stroke of his proboscis laid his keeper dead at his feet. He then retired back again into his position, and performed the grand salam. This circumstance excited considerable alarm, when the wife of the keeper ran up to his dead body, and in a broken sort of exclamation, cried out that she was always afraid something of this sort would happen, as he was constantly in the habit of robbing that Elephant of his rations of rice, by taking them away from his crib after they had been served out to him, under the inspection of his superior.-Laçon. The Meeting of two Friends, by the Chev. de B.-Two friends, who had not seen each other for a long time, met at the Exchange. "How are you," said one of them. "Not very well," said the other. So much the worse; what have you been doing since I saw you last?" "I have been married." "So much the better." "Not so much the better; for I married a bad wife." "So much the worse." "Not so much the worse, for her dowry was 2000 Louis." "So much the better." "Not so much the better for I laid out a part of that sum in sheep, which have all died of the rot.' "So much the worse." Not so much the worse; because the sale of their skins has brought me more than the price of the sheep." "So much the better." "Not Every error makes not a false teacher. Envy seeks the injury of another, anger a man's own vindication. Errors are either (1) Præter fundamentum, (2) Circa fundamentum, vel (3) Contra fundamen tum. Enough is as good as a feast,-better than a surfeit. sum non habet: est voluntaria insania, Seneca. Ex oleæ semine, non fit nisi oleaster. Aug. Error is a spiritual bastard, ye Devil is ye father, Every man's passing bell hangs in his own steeple. Every part of speech in this one verse; Traditional Tales of the English and Scottish Peasantry. By Allan Cunningham. A New School Work on Roman Antiquities. By Dr. Irving. A second volume of Table Talk. By Mr. Hazlitt. Memoirs of George Heriot, Jeweller to King James the Sixth, with some account of the Hospital founded by him at Edinburgh. Mr. James Parkinson, author of " Organic Remains of a former World," has in the press, An Introduction to the Study of Fossils, in a compilation of such information as may assist the student in obtaining the necessary knowledge respecting these substances, and their connection with the formation of the earth. |