Part 32

Games of hazard are the favourites of these islanders. Some of them they have learned of the Chinese, the most debauched of gamesters, and others of the Portuguese. The only game of hazard, of native origin, among the Javanese consists in guessing the number of a certain kind of beans which the players hold in their hands.

But of all the species of gaming that to which the Indian islanders are most fondly addicted is betting on the issue of the combats of pugnacious animals, and particularly the cock. The breed in highest estimation is the produce of Celebes. The people of Java fight their cocks without spurs; but the Malays and natives of Celebes with an artificial spur, in the shape of a small scythe, which, notwithstanding its barbarous appearance, is in reality less destructive than the contrivance employed among ourselves.

Quail fighting also is extremely common in Java. The most famous breed of this bird is found in the island of Lombok; and it is a singular fact, that the female is used in these bitter but bloodless combats, the male being comparatively small and timid. Neither do the Javanese hesitate to bet considerable sums on a battle between two crickets, which are excited to the conflict by the titillation of a blade of grass judiciously applied to their noses. They will likewise risk their money on the strength and hardness of a nut, called _kamiri_; and much skill, patience and dexterity, are exercised in the selection and the strife. At other times two paper kites decide the fortune of the parties; the object of each in this contest being to cut the string of his adversary. On a favourable day fifty or sixty kites, raised for this purpose, may sometimes be seen hovering over a Javanese city.

A FRIEND TO PHYSIC.

Mr. Samuel Jessup, who died at Heckington, Lincolnshire, in 1817, was an opulent grazier and of pill-taking memory. He lived in a very eccentric way, as a bachelor, without known relatives, and at his decease was possessed of a good fortune, notwithstanding a most inordinate craving for physic, by which he was distinguished for the last thirty years of his life, as appeared on a trial for the amount of an apothecary's bill, at the assizes at Lincoln, a short time before Mr. Jessup's death, wherein he was defendant. The evidence on the trial affords the following materials for the epitaph of the deceased, which will not be transcended by the memorabilia of the life of any man. In twenty-one years (from 1791 to 1816) the deceased took 226,934 pills (supplied by a most highly respectable apothecary and worthy person of the name of Wright, who resided at Bottesford), which is at the rate of 10,806 pills a year, or 29 pills each day; but as the patient begun with a more moderate appetite, and increased it as he proceeded, in the last five years preceding 1816, he took the pills at the rate of 78 a-day, and in the year 1814, he swallowed not less than 51,590. Notwithstanding this, and the addition of 40,000 bottles of mixture, and juleps and electuaries, extending altogether to fifty-five closely written columns of an apothecary's bill, the deceased lived to attain the advanced age of sixty-five years.

AN INCULPATORY EPITAPH.

The following epitaph at West Allington, Devon, is deserving a place in our record of curiosities, inasmuch as it appears to be a successful attempt in making a monumental stone, both a memorial of the deceased, and also a means of reproving the parson of the parish:--

"Here lyeth the Body of Daniel Jeffery the Son of Michael Jeffery and Joan his Wife he was buried y{e} 22 day of September 1746 and in y{e} 18{th} year of his age. This Youth When In his sickness lay did for the minister Send + that he would Come and With him Pray + But he would not ate{nd} But When this young man Buried was The minister did him admit + he should be Caried into Church + that he might money geet By this you See what man will dwo + to geet money if he can + who did refuse to come pray + by the Foresaid young man."

HUNTING A SHEEP KILLER.

It has been remarked, that when once a dog acquires wild habits, and takes to killing sheep, he does far more mischief than a wild beast, since to the cunning of the tamed animal he adds the ferocity of the untamed. A remarkable case of this sort is mentioned in the following paragraph, which we have copied from the _Newcastle Courant_ of the year 1823. It is also curious to note the account of the chase, and of the joy which the whole country-side seems to have manifested at the slaughter of the animal.--September 21--A few days ago a dog of a most destructive nature infested the fells of Caldbeck, Carrock, and High Pike, about sixteen miles south of Carlisle. Little doubt remains of its being the same dog which has been so injurious to the farmers in the northern parts of Northumberland, as no less than sixty sheep or upwards have fallen victims to its ferocity. It was thought proper to lose no time in attempting to destroy it, and Tuesday last was fixed upon. Sir H. Fletcher, Bart., of Clea Hall, offered his pack of hounds, and several other dogs with about fifty horsemen set out from Hesket New-market. Several persons with firearms were stationed at different parts. The dog was descried upon an eminence of Carrock-fell, and on sight of the pursuers set off by way of Hesket New-market, Stocklewath, and Barwick-field, then returned by Cowclose, Castle Sowerby, and attempted to gain the fells again, when Mr. Sewell, farmer at Wedlock, lying in ambush at Mossdale, fired, and succeeded in shooting him. He appears to be of the Newfoundland breed, of a common size, wire-haired, and extremely lean. During the chase he frequently turned upon the dogs which were headmost, and so wounded several as obliged them to give up the pursuit. The joy manifested on this occasion was uncommon, insomuch that on the day following about thirty persons sat down to a dinner provided at Mr. Tomlinson's, Hesket New-market. Upon the most moderate computation, excluding the various windings, the chase could not be less than thirty miles, and occupied no less than six hours.

LONGEVITY.

Henry Jenkins, of Ellerton-upon-Swale, Yorkshire, died 1670, aged 169. He remembered the battle of Flodden Field, fought between the English and the Scotch, September 9, 1513, when he was about twelve years old. He was then sent to Northallerton with a cartload of arrows, but an older boy was employed to convey them to the army. At Ellerton there was also living, at the same time, four or five other old men, reputed to be of the age of one hundred years and thereabouts, and they all testified that Jenkins was an elderly man when first they knew him. Jenkins was once butler to Lord Conyers; he perfectly remembered the Abbot of Fountain's Dale before the dissolution of the monasteries. In the last century of his life he was a fisherman, and often swam in the river after he was a hundred years old. In the King's Remembrancer Office in the Exchequer, there is a record of a deposition in a cause, taken April, 1665, at Kettlewell, Yorkshire, where Henry Jenkins, of Ellerton-upon-Swale, labourer, aged 157 years, was produced, and made deposition as a witness. He was buried at Bolton, Yorkshire. In 1743, a monument, with a suitable inscription, was erected to perpetuate his memory.

THE PULPIT OF JOHN KNOX AT ST. ANDREW'S.

John Knox, the great precursor of the Protestant Reformation, having been driven from Edinburgh by the threats of his opponents, reluctantly withdrew to St. Andrew's, in the county of Fife, where he continued with undiminished boldness to denounce the enemies of the reformed faith. It was in that place that he had first discoursed against the degeneracy of the Church of Rome, and there he occupied the Pulpit represented in the accompanying engraving; and the following curious and characteristic anecdote connected with his preaching in it, is related in the Manuscript Diary of James Melville, then a student at the college of St. Andrew's, and subsequently Minister of Anstruther. "Of all the benefits I haid that year (1571) was the coming of that maist notable profet and apostle of our nation, Mr. Jhone Knox, to St. Andrew's: who, be the faction of the Queen occupying the castell and town of Edinburgh, was compellit to remove therefra, with a number of the best, and chusit to come to St. Andrew's. I heard him teache there the Prophecies of Daniel that simmer, and the winter following; I haid my pen and my little buike, and tuk away sic things as I could comprehend. In the opening up of his text he was moderat the space of an half houre; but when he onterit to application, he made me so to _grew_ (thrill) and tremble, that I could not hold a pen to wryt. He was very weak. I saw him every day of his life go _hulie and fear_ (hoolie and fairly--slowly and warily) with a furring of marticks, (martins) about his neck, a staffe in the ane hand, and gud godlie Richard Ballanden, his servand, haldin up the uther _oxier_ (arm-pit), from the Abbey to the Parish-Kirk; and be the said Richart and another servant lifted up to the Pulpit, whar he _behovit_ (was obliged) to lean at his first entry: bot er he had done with his sermone he was sa active and vigourous, that he was lyk to _ding the pulpit in blads_ (beat it into shivers) and flie out of it."

The interesting relique commemorated in this curious extract, is of that stately style of carving which was introduced towards the close of the sixteenth century in Protestant preaching-places; and continued, though of a more heavy character, throughout the whole of the succeeding century. A scroll-bracket remaining on the preacher's left hand, and some broken pieces at the top of the back, appear to indicate that it was once more extended, and had probably a canopy or sounding-board.

THE BIBLE USED BY KING CHARLES THE FIRST ON THE SCAFFOLD.

There is so much external evidence of the genuineness of this very beautiful and interesting relique, that no doubt can exist as to its perfect authenticity, though the circumstance of the King having a Bible with him on the scaffold, and of presenting it to Dr. Juxon, is not mentioned in any contemporaneous account of his death. The only notice of such a volume, as a dying gift, appears to be that recorded by Sir Thomas Herbert, in his narrative, which forms a part of the _Memoirs of the last Two Years of the Reign of that unparalleled Prince of ever-blessed memory, King Charles I._ London, 1702, 8vo, p. 129, in the following passage:--"The King thereupon gave him his hand to kiss: having the day before been graciously pleased under his royal hand, to give him a certificate that the said Mr. Herbert was not imposed upon him, but by his Majesty made choice of to attend him in his bed-chamber, and had served him with faithfulness and loyal affection. His Majesty also delivered him his Bible, in the margin whereof he had with his own hand, written many annotations and quotations, and charged him to give it to the Prince so soon as he returned." That this might be the book represented in our engraving, is rendered extremely probable, by admitting that the King would be naturally anxious, that his son should possess that very copy of the Scriptures which had been provided for himself when he was Prince of Wales. It will be observed that the cover of the volume is decorated with the badge of the Principality within the Garter, surmounted by a royal coronet in silver gilt, inclosed by an embroidered border; the initials C. P. apparently improperly altered to an R., and the badges of the Rose and Thistle, upon a ground of blue velvet: and the book was therefore bound between the death of Prince Henry in 1612, and the accession of King Charles to the throne in 1625, when such a coronet would be no longer used by him. If the Bible here represented were that referred to by Herbert, the circumstance of Bishop Juxon becoming the possessor of it might be accounted for, by supposing that it was placed in his hands to be transmitted to Charles II. with the George of the Order of the Garter belonging to the late King, well known to have been given to that Prelate upon the scaffold, January 30th, 1648-9.

LAMBETH WELLS, THE APOLLO GARDENS, AND FINCH'S GROTTO.

Among the numerous public places of amusement which arose upon the success of Vauxhall Gardens, which were first opened about 1661, was one in Lambeth Walk, known as Lambeth Wells. This place was first opened on account of its mineral waters, which were sold at a penny per quart. The music commenced at seven o'clock in the morning, and the price of admission was three pence. A monthly concert under the direction of Mr. Starling Goodwin, organist of St. Saviour's Church Southwark, was afterwards held here, and Erasmus King, who had been coachman to the celebrated Dr. Desaguliers, read lectures and exhibited experiments in natural philosophy, the price of admission being raised to sixpence.

This place was open before 1698, and existed as late as 1752, when "A Penny Wedding after the Scotch fashion, for the benefit of a young couple," was advertised to be kept there.

Lambeth Wells at length becoming a public nuisance, the premises were shut up, and ultimately let as a Methodist Meeting-house. The music gallery was used as a pulpit; but the preacher being greatly disturbed in his enthusiastic harangues, he was obliged to quit, when the premises were converted to various purposes, except the dwelling, which is now known by the sign of the Fountain public-house.

On the site of Messrs. Maudslay's factory, in the Westminster Road, formerly stood the Apollo Gardens. This place of amusement was opened in 1788, by an ingenious musician named Clagget, who published, in 1793, a small quarto pamphlet, entitled "Musical Phenomena: An Organ made without Pipes, Strings, Bells, or Glasses; the only Instrument in the world that will never require to be re-tuned. A Cromatic Trumpet, capable of producing just Intervals, and regular Melodies in all Keys, without undergoing any change whatever. A French Horn answering the above description of the Trumpet."

The Apollo Gardens had one spacious room elegantly fitted up, and decorated in taste suitably to its intention. The gardens consisted of a number of elegant pavilions or alcoves, well adapted for the accommodation of different companies; they were ornamented chiefly with a succession of paintings, relating to romantic histories, particularly the different adventures of Don Quixote. It had a fine orchestra erected in the centre of the gardens. The place being ultimately converted into a receptacle for loose and dissolute characters, the magistracy very properly suppressed it about the year 1799.

In Gravel Lane, Southwark, was Finch's Grotto, a public garden and place of amusement, so named from William Finch, the proprietor. The Grotto was opened to the public in 1770 upon the plan of Vauxhall gardens. An orchestra and a band of musicians, added to the rural character of the place, and drew a numerous body of visitors.

Very little is known about the Grotto, but it is supposed to have been closed early in the present century.

THE DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS, OR, ORNITHORYNCHUS PARADOXUS.

Of the genus _Ornithorynchus_ only one species--the _Paradoxus_--has yet been discovered in the whole world, and it is, therefore, one of the great curiosities of animal life. It appears to be a union of a quadruped and a bird, and is only to be found in New Holland, where it inhabits the reeds by the side of rivers. Our engraving represents it very accurately. It is about twenty inches long, having a flattened body, somewhat like the otter, and is clothed with a dark soft fur. The elongated nose very much resembles the beak of a duck, like which these animals feed upon water insects, shell-fish, and aquatic plants. The feet are five-toed and webbed, and in the fore-feet this membrane extends beyond the nails: the male is armed with a spur on each hind leg. This curious animal, in which a duck's beak is united to the body of a quadruped, rolls itself up like a hedgehog, when it sleeps in its burrows on the banks of the streams whence its food is derived.

ORIGIN OF BOLTON ABBEY.

About midway up the Vale of Bolton, amidst the gloomy recesses of the woods, the Wharfe, which is otherwise a wide and shallow river, is suddenly contracted by two huge rocks, which approach each other so nearly, that the country folk, or rather the villagers, call it the _Strid_, because adventurous people stride or leap from one rock to the other. In ancient days, the whole of this valley belonged to Baron Romillie, whose eldest son having died, left a younger brother, of the name of EGREMONT, sole heir of the domains and inheritance of this family. One day, however, when this young man, familiarly called the "Boy of Egremont," was returning from hunting with the hounds in the _leash_, he, as he had done many times before, was going to leap the _Strid_, when, just as he had attempted it, the hounds held back, and precipitated him headlong into the deep and awful chasm, which the impetuous fall of water (thus produced by the sudden contraction of the river) had worn in the base of the two rude rocks, and he was never seen afterwards. The Baron, being now left childless, built the Abbey, and endowed it with the domains of Bolton.

LENGTH OF LIFE WITHOUT BODILY EXERCISE.

The Rev. William Davies, Rector of Staunton-upon-Wye, and Vicar of All Saints, Hereford, died 1790, aged 105. The life of this gentleman displays one of the most extraordinary instances of departure from all those rules of temperance and exercise, which so much influence the lives of the mass of mankind, that is, probably to be found in the whole records of longevity. During the last thirty-five years of his life, he never used any other exercise than that of just slipping his feet, one before the other, from room to room; and they never after that time were raised, but to go down or up stairs, a task, however, to which he seldom subjected himself. His breakfast was hearty; consisting of hot _rolls well buttered_, with a plentiful supply of tea or coffee. His dinner was substantial, and frequently consisted of a variety of dishes. At supper he generally eat hot roast meat, and always drank wine, though never to excess. Though nearly blind for a number of years, he was always cheerful in his manners, and entertaining in his conversation, and was much beloved by all who knew him. He had neither gout, stone, paralysis, rheumatism, nor any of those disagreeable infirmities which mostly attend old age; but died peaceably in the full possession of all his faculties, mental and corporeal, save his eyesight. Like most long livers he was very short of stature.

EXTRAORDINARY FASHION IN CIGARS.

A taste for tobacco in some form or other seems to extend over the whole inhabitable globe. In this respect it matters not whether nations are civilized or uncivilized; and however completely they may differ from each other in everything else, they all agree in a fondness for "the weed." In the mode, however, of indulging in the luxury, there is the greatest diversity, and no where is this more strikingly manifested than in the Philippine Islands.

"It is not till evening that the inhabitants of the higher class begin to stir; till that time they are occupied in eating, sleeping, and smoking tobacco, which is no where more general than on the island of Luzon; for children, before they can walk, begin to smoke segars. The women carry their fondness for it to a greater height than the men; for, not content with the usual small segars, they have others made for them, which are a foot long and proportionably thick. These are here called the women's segars, and it is a most ludicrous sight to see elegant ladies taking their evening walk, with these burning brands in their mouths."

How widely does the fashion in Luzon differ from the fashion at Paris!

NOVEL WAY OF PURCHASING A HUSBAND.

The following paragraph, which we have copied from a magazine of 1790, not only gives us a curious instance of female determination in the pursuit of a husband, but tells us of the price which human hair was worth at the period when ladies wore such monstrous head-dresses of false curls.

"An Oxfordshire lass was lately courted by a young man of that country, who was not willing to marry her unless her friends could advance 50_l._ for her portion; which they being incapable of doing, the lass came to London to try her fortune, where she met with a good chapman in the Strand, who made a purchase of her hair (which was delicately long and light), and gave her _sixty pounds_ for it, being 20 ounces at 3_l. an ounce_; with which money she joyfully returned into the country, and bought her a husband."

GLOVES.--ORIGIN OF "PIN MONEY."

Gloves were very common as New Year's gifts. For many hundreds of years after their introduction into England in the 10th century, they were worn only by the most opulent classes of society, and hence constituted a valuable present. They are often named in old records. Exchange of gloves was at one period a mode of investiture into possession of property, as amongst the ancient Jews was that of a shoe or sandal; and "glove-money" is to this day presented by High Sheriffs to the officers of their courts, upon occasion of a maiden assize, or one in which no cause is tried. Pins, which at the commencement of the sixteenth century displaced the wooden skewers previously in use, became a present of similar consequence; and at their first introduction were considered of so much importance in female dress, that "pin-money" grew into the denomination of dower, which, by the caution of parents, or justice of a consort, was settled upon a lady at her marriage.

HABITS AND HABITATIONS OF THE DYAKS OF BORNEO.

It is impossible to appreciate properly the courage, determination, and skill which have been displayed by the gallant Sir James Brooke, unless we make ourselves acquainted with the character and habits of the extraordinary race of men over whom he triumphed. The Dyaks are a savage people who inhabit Borneo. They lived there before the Malays came, and they have been obliged to submit to them. They are savages indeed. They are darker than the Malays; yet they are not black; their skin is only the colour of copper. Their hair is cut short in front, but streams down their backs; their large mouths show a quantity of black teeth, made black by chewing the betel-nut. They wear but very little clothing, but they adorn their ears and arms, and legs, with numbers of brass rings. Their looks are wild and fierce, but not cunning like the looks of the Malays. They are not Mahomedans; they have hardly any religion at all. They believe there are some gods, but they know hardly anything about them, and they do not want to know. They neither make images to the gods, nor say prayers to them. They live like the beasts, thinking only of this life; yet they are more unhappy than beasts, for they imagine there are evil spirits among the woods and hills, watching to do them harm. It is often hard to persuade them to go to the top of a mountain, where they say evil spirits dwell. Such a people would be more ready to listen to a missionary than those who have idols, and temples, and priests, and sacred books.