That Charles himself might chace
To Carisbrook's narrow case;
That thence the royal actor borne,
The tragic scaffold might adorne,
While round the armed bands,
Did clap their bloody hands:
He nothing common did, or mean,
Upon that memorable scene ;
But with his keener eye,

The axe's edge did trye.

Nor call'd the Gods with vulgar spight,
To vindicate his helplesse right:

But bow'd his comely head
Downe, as upon a bed.

This was that memorable houre,
Which first assured the forced power;
So when they did designe
The capitol's first line,

A bleeding head where they begun
Did fright the architects to run.

Sir Henry Blount.

BORN A. D. 1602.-died a. D. 1682.

SIR HENRY BLOUNT figured in a critical period of his country's history, both as a politician and a man of letters. It was his good fortune also to enjoy the confidence of the ruling parties successively. He was the third son of Sir Thomas Pope Blount of Tittenhanger, in the county of Hertford, a cadet of the very ancient house of the Blounts of Sodington in Worcestershire. He was born in December 1602. He received the rudiments of education at the school of St Alban's, whence he removed to Trinity college, Oxford, in 1616. On leaving Oxford, he went to Gray's-inn, where for some time he applied himself to the study of the law. In 1634 he went abroad, for the purpose of enlarging his acquaintance with mankind, and visiting the most celebrated cities of France, Spain, and Italy. His travels soon begot in him an ardent desire to see more of the world, and, having made acquaintance with a Turk at Venice, he resolved to visit the Turkish dominions in company with him. With this view he embarked, on the 7th of May 1634, on board a Venetian galley, in which he sailed to Spalatro, and thence continued his journey by land to Constantinople. From Constantinople he went to Egypt and visited Grand Cairo. turning to England in 1636, he published an account of his travels, and became known to society by the appellation of the great traveller.' His book is entitled, "A Voyage into the Levant, being a brief relation of a journey lately performed from England, by the way of Venice, into Dalmatia, Sclavonia, Bosnia, Hungary, Macedonia, Thessaly, Thrace, Rhodes, and Egypt, unto Grand Cairo; with parti cular observations concerning the modern condition of the Turks, and other people under that empire." It was first published in 4to in 1636. In 1638, a third edition appeared in the same size. Wood says it was so well esteemed abroad that it had been translated into French and Dutch. But the author of the introductory discourse to Churchill's 'Collection of voyages,' says of Blount's works: "It is very concise,

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