The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 14, No. 379, July 4, 1829

Part 3

Chapter 33,405 wordsPublic domain

The sports of England, which, perhaps, a curious stranger would be glad to see, are horse-racing, hawking, and hunting; bowling,--at Marebone and Putney he may see several persons of quality bowling, two or three times a week all the summer; wrestling, in Lincoln's Inne Field every evening all the summer; bear and bull-baiting, and sometimes prizes, at the Bear-Garden; shooting in the long-bow and stob-ball, in Tothil Fields; cudgel-playing, in several places in the country; and hurling, in Cornwall. _London_.--See the East India House, and their magazines; the Custom House; the Thames, by water, from London Bridge to Deptford; and the King's Yard at Deptford; the sawing-windmill; Tradescant's garden and closet; Sir James Morland's closet and water-works; the iron mills at Wandsworth, four miles above London, upon the Thames; or rather those in Sussex; Paradise by Hatton Garden; the glass-house at the Savoy, and at Vauxhall. Eat fish in Fish Street, especially lobsters, Colchester oysters, and a fresh cod's head. The veal and beef are excellent good in London; the mutton better in several counties in England. A venison pasty and a chine of beef are good every where; and so are crammed capons and fat chickens. Railes and heathpolts, ruffs, and reeves, are excellent meat wherever they can be met with. Puddings of several sorts, and creams of several fashions, both excellent; but they are seldom to be found, at least in their perfection, at common eating-houses. Mango and saio are two sorts of sauces brought from the East Indies. Bermuda oranges and potatoes, both exceeding good in their kind. Chedder and Cheshire cheese. Men excellent in their arts. Mr. Cox, in Long Acre, for all sorts of dioptical glasses. Mr. Opheel, near the Savoy, for all sorts of machines. Mr. ----, for a new invention he has, and teaches to copy all sorts of pictures, plans, or to take prospects of places. The King's gunsmith, at the Yard by Whitehall. Mr. Not, in the Pall Mall, for binding of books. The Fire-eater. At an iron-monger's, near the May-pole, in the Strand, is to be found a great variety of iron instruments, and utensils of all kinds. At Bristol see the Hot-well; St. George's Cave, where the Bristol diamonds are found; Ratcliff Church; and at Kingwood, the coal-pits. Taste there Milford oysters, marrow-puddings, cock-ale, metheglin, white and red-muggets, elvers, sherry, sack (which, with sugar, is called Bristol milk,) and some other wines, which, perhaps you will not drink so good at London. At Gloucester observe the whispering place in the cathedral. At Oxford see all the colleges, and their libraries; the schools and public library, and the physic-garden. Buy there knives and gloves, especially white kid-skin; and the cuts of all the colleges graved by Loggins. If you go into the North, see the Peak in Derbyshire, described by Hobbes, in a Latin poem, called "Mirabilia Pecci." Home-made drinks of England are beer and ale, strong and small; those of most note, that are to be sold, are Lambeth ale, Margaret ale, and Derby ale; Herefordshire cider, perry, mede. There are also several sorts of compounded ales, as cock-ale, wormwood-ale, lemon-ale, scurvygrass-ale, college-ale, &c. These are to be had at Hercules Pillars, near the Temple; at the Trumpet, and other houses in Sheer Lane, Bell Alley, and, as I remember, at the English Tavern, near Charing Cross. Foreign drinks to be found in England are all sorts of Spanish, Greek, Italian, Rhenish, and other wines, which are to be got up and down at several taverns. Coffé, thé, and chocolate, at coffeehouses. Mum at the mum houses and other places; and molly, a drink of Barbadoes, by chance at some Barbadoes merchants'. Punch, a compounded drink, on board some West India ships; and Turkish sherbet amongst the merchants. Manufactures of cloth that will keep out rain; flanel, knives, locks and keys; scabbards for swords; several things wrought in steel, as little boxes, heads for canes, boots, riding-whips, Rippon spurs, saddles, &c. At Nottingham dwells a man who makes fans, hatbands, necklaces, and other things of glass, drawn out into very small threads."

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SPIRIT OF THE Public Journals.

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NEW MAGAZINE.

Mr. Sharpe, the proprietor of the "Anniversary," has just published the first number of "The Three Chapters," which is one of the most splendid Magazines ever produced in this or any other country. It has a charming print by H. Rolls, from Wilkie's Hymn of the Calabrian Shepherds to the Virgin, which alone is worth the price charged for the number. Southey, A. Cunningham, L.E.L. and Hook, shine in the poetry and romance, one of the "Three Chapters," from which we have just room to give the following:--

EPITAPH IN BUTLEIGH CHURCH.

BY ROBERT SOUTHEY.

Divided far by death were they, whose names, In honour here united, as in birth, This monumental verse records. They drew In Dorset's healthy vales their natal breath, And from these shores beheld the ocean first, Whereon, in early youth, with one accord They chose their way of fortune; to that course By Hood and Bridport's bright example drawn, Their kinsmen, children of this place, and sons Of one, who in his faithful ministry Inculcated, within these hallowed walls, The truths, in mercy to mankind revealed. Worthy were these three brethren each to add New honours to the already honour'd name; But Arthur, in the morning of his day, Perished amid the Caribbean sea, When the Pomona, by a hurricane Whirl'd, riven and overwhelmed, with all her crew Into the deep went down. A longer date To Alexander was assign'd, for hope For fair ambition, and for fond regret, Alas, how short! for duty, for desert, Sufficing; and, while Time preserves the roll Of Britain's naval feats, for good report. A boy, with Cook he rounded the great globe; A youth, in many a celebrated fight With Rodney had his part; and having reach'd Life's middle stage, engaging ship to ship, When the French Hercules, a gallant foe, Struck to the British Mars his three-striped flag, He fell, in the moment of his victory. Here his remains in sure and certain hope Are laid, until the hour when earth and sea Shall render up their dead. One brother yet Survived, with Keppel and with Rodney train'd In battles, with the Lord of Nile approved, Ere in command he worthily upheld Old England's high prerogative. In the east, The west, the Baltic, and the midland seas, Yea, wheresoever hostile fleets have plough'd The ensanguined deep, his thunders have been heard, His flag in brave defiance hath been seen, And bravest enemies at Sir Samuel's name Felt fatal presage in their inmost heart, Of unavertable defeat foredoom'd. Thus in the path of glory he rode on, Victorious alway, adding praise to praise; Till full of honours, not of years, beneath The venom of the infected clime he sunk, On Coromandel's coast, completing there His service, only when his life was spent.

To the three brethren, Alexander's son (Sole scion he in whom their line survived,) With English feeling, and the deeper sense Of filial duty, consecrates this tomb.

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LOVE.

A BALLAD, BY THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD.

O, Love's a bitter thing to bide, The lad that drees it's to be pitied; It blinds to a' the warld beside, And makes a body dilde and ditied; It lies sae sair at my breast bane, My heart is melting saft an' safter; To dee outright I wad be fain, Wer't no for fear what may be after.

I dinna ken what course to steer, I'm sae to dool an' daftness driven, For are so lovely, sweet, and dear, Sure never breath'd the breeze o' heaven; O there's a soul beams in her ee, Ae blink o't maks are's spirit gladder, And ay the mair she geeks at me, It pits me aye in love the madder.

Love winna heal, it winna thole, You canna shun't even when you fear it; An' O, this sickness o' the soul, 'Tis past the power of man to bear it! And yet to mak o' her a wife, I couldna square it wi' my duty, I'd like to see her a' her life Remain a virgin in her beauty;

As pure as bonny as she's now, The walks of human life adorning; As blithe as bird upon the bough, As sweet as breeze of summer morning. Love paints the earth, it paints the sky, An' tints each lovely hue of Nature, And makes to the enchanted eye An angel of a mortal creature.

_Blackwood's Magazine._

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Spirit of Discovery.

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_Regent's Park_.

It is much to be regretted that those who first designed the plantations of the Regent's Park seem to have had little or no taste for, or knowledge of, hardy trees and shrubs; otherwise, this park might have been the first arboretum in the world. Instead of the (about) 50 sorts of trees and shrubs which it now exhibits, there might have been all the 3,000 sorts, now so admirably displaying their buds and leaves, and some of them their flowers, in the arboretum of Messrs. Loddiges at Hackney. A walk round that arboretum, at this season, is one of the greatest treats which a botanist can enjoy, and a drive round the Regent's Park might have been just as interesting. It is not yet too late to supply this defect, and the expense to government would be a mere bagatelle. The Zoological Society in the mean time, might receive contributions of herbaceous plants, and be at the expense of planting and naming them.--_London's Mag_.

_Zoological Society_.

A catalogue of the members has been published, which includes 1,291 names, besides corresponding members. The museum in Bruton Street has received, and is daily receiving, valuable additions, as is the garden in the Regent's Park. The extent of this garden has been, in consequence of the various donations and purchases, considerably increased, and several neat and appropriate structures are now erecting for the abode of different specimens. It is a gratifying circumstance that these specimens are, for the most part, clearly and distinctly named, with the native country of the animal added. We could wish to see a greater variety of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants introduced, and equally clear names and geographical indications placed at them also. Why should it not, as far as practicable, be a botanic garden as well as a zoological garden?--_Ibid_.

_Galvanism_.

Mr. Becquerel has discovered that the temperature of a conducting wire communicating with the two poles of a pile, increases from each of its extremities, and constantly reaches its maximum in the middle of the wire.--_Brewster's Journal._

_Alloyed Iron Plate_.

A manufacture of prepared iron has been practised, and the substance produced used to a considerable degree in Paris. This has been to prepare iron in large plates, and other forms, so that it will not rust. This has been effected by coating it with an alloy of tin and much lead, so as to form an imitation of tin plate. Trials have been made, and proved favourable; it resists the action of certain fluids that would rapidly corrode iron alone; it can be prepared of any size, and at a low price. Its use in the manufacture of sugarpans and boilers, in the construction of roofs and gutters, is expected to be very considerable. --_Bull. d'Encouragement._

_Saline Lake of Loonar in Berar._

This curious lake is contained in a sort of cauldron of rocks amidst a pleasing landscape, and is of course the object of superstition. The taste of the water is uncommonly brackish. Mr. Alexander, who describes it, found by a rough analysis that 100 parts contain

Muriate of Soda 20 parts, Muriate of Lime 10 parts, Muriate of Magnesia 6 parts,

The principal purpose to which the sediment of the water is applied is cleansing the shawls of Cachmere. It is also used as an ingredient in the alkaline cake of the Musselmans.--_Trans. Lit. Soc. Madras._

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The Selector; AND LITERARY NOTICES OF _NEW WORKS_.

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AN ILLUSTRIOUS SWINDLER.

[Here is a whole-length of a fine, slashing French thief, from the third volume of Vidocq, the policeman's Memoirs, of which more anon:--]

Winter was only twenty-six, a handsome brown fellow, with arched eyebrows, long lashes, prominent nose, and rakish air. Winter had, moreover, that good carriage, and peculiar look, which belongs to an officer of light cavalry, and he, therefore, assumed a military costume, which best displayed the graces of his person. One day he was an hussar, the next a lancer, and then again in some fancy uniform. At will he was chief of a squadron, commandant, aide-de-camp, colonel, &c.; and to command more consideration, he did not fail to give himself a respectable parentage; he was by turns the son of the valiant Lasalle, of the gallant Winter, colonel of the grenadiers of the imperial horse-guard; nephew of the general Comte de Lagrange, and cousin-german to Rapp; in fact, there was no name which he did not borrow, no illustrious family to which he did not belong. Born of parents in a decent situation of life, Winter had received an education sufficiently brilliant to enable him to aspire to all these metamorphoses; the elegance of his manner, and a most gentlemanly appearance, completed the illusion.

Few men had made a better début than Winter. Thrown early into the career of arms, he obtained very rapid promotion; but when an officer he soon lost the esteem of his superiors; who, to punish his misconduct, sent him to the Isle of Ré, to one of the colonial battalions. There he so conducted himself as to inspire a belief that he had entirely reformed. But no sooner was he raised a step, than committing some fresh peccadillo, he was compelled to desert in order to avoid punishment. He came thence to Paris, where his exploits as swindler and pickpocket procured him the unenviable distinction of being pointed out to the police as one of the most skilful in his twofold profession.

Winter, who was what is termed a _downy one_, plucked a multitude of _gulpins_ even in the most elevated classes of society. He visited princes, dukes, the sons of ancient senators, and it was on them or the ladies of their circle that he made the experiments of his misapplied talents. The females, particularly, however squeamish they were, were never sufficiently so to prevent themselves from being plundered by him. For several months the police were on the look out for this seducing young man, who, changing his dress and abode incessantly, escaped from their clutch at the moment when they thought they had him securely, when I received orders to commence the chase after him, to attempt his capture.

Winter was one of those Lovelaces who never deceive a woman without robbing her. I thought that amongst his victims I could find at least one, who, from a spirit of revenge, would be disposed to put me on the scent of this monster. By dint of searching, I thought I had met with a willing auxiliary, but as these Ariadnes, however ill used or forsaken they may be, yet shrink from the immolation of their betrayer, I determined to accost the damsel I met with cautiously. It was necessary, before I ventured my bark, to take soundings, and I took care not to manifest any hostility towards Winter, and not to alarm that residue of tenderness, which, despite of ill usage, always remains in a sensitive heart. I made my appearance in the character of almoner of the regiment of which he was thought to command, and as such introduced to the ci-devant mistress of the pretended colonel. The costume, the language, the manner I assumed were in perfect unison with the character I was about to play, and I obtained to my wish the confidence of the fair forsaken one, who gave me unwittingly all the information I required. She pointed out to me her favoured rival, who, already ill-treated by Winter, had still the weakness to see him, and could not forbear making fresh sacrifices for him.

I became acquainted with this charming lady, and to obtain favour in her eyes, announced myself as a friend of her lover's family. The relatives of the young giddy pate had empowered me to pay his debts; and if she could contrive an interview with him for me, she might rely on being satisfied with the result of the first. Madame ------ was not sorry to have an opportunity of repairing the dilapidations made on her property, and one morning sent me a note, stating that she was going to dine with her lover the next day at the Boulevard du Temple, at La Galiote. At four o'clock I went, disguised as a messenger, and stationed myself at the door of the restaurant's; and after two hours' watch, I saw a colonel of hussars approach. It was Winter, attended by two servants. I went up to him, and offered to take care of the horses, which proffer was accepted. Winter alighted, he could not escape me, but his eyes met mine, and with one jump he flung himself on his horse, spurred him, and disappeared.

I thought I had him, and my disappointment was great; but I did not despair of catching my gentleman. Some time afterwards I learnt that he was to be at the Café Hardi, in the Boulevard des Italiens. I went thither with some of my agents, and when he arrived all was so well arranged, that he had only to get into a hackney coach, of which I paid the fare. Led before a commissary of police, he asserted that he was not Winter; but, despite the insignia of the rank he had conferred on himself, and the long string of orders hanging on his breast, he was properly and officially identified as the individual mentioned in the warrant which I had for his apprehension.

Winter was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment, and would now be at liberty but for a forgery which he committed while at Bicêtre, which, bringing on him a fresh sentence of eight years at the galleys, he was conducted to the Bagne at the expiration of his original sentence, and is there at present.

This adventurer does not want wit: he is, I am told, the author of a vast many songs, much in fashion with the galley slaves, who consider him us their Anacreon.

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ANCIENT TYRE.

The Tyrians, although not so early celebrated either in sacred or profane history, had yet attained greater renown than their Sidonian kinsmen. It is useless to conjecture at what period or under what circumstances these eastern colonists had quitted the shores of the Persian gulf, and fixed their seat on the narrow belt between the mountains of Lebanon and the sea. Probably at first they were only factories, established for connecting the trade between the eastern and western world. If so, their origin must be sought among the natives to the east of the Assyrians, as that race of industrious cultivators possessed no shipping, and was hostile to commerce. The colonists took root on this shore, became prosperous and wealthy, covered the Mediterranean with their fleets, and its shores with their factories. Tyre in the course of time became the dominant city, and under her supremacy were founded the Phoenician colonies in Greece, Sicily, Africa, and Spain. The wealth of her merchant princes had often tempted the cupidity of the despots of Asia. Salmanassar, the Assyrian conqueror of Israel, directed his attacks against Tyre, and continued them for five years, but was finally compelled to raise the siege. Nabuchadonosor was more persevering, and succeeded in capturing the city, after a siege that lasted thirteen years. The old town, situated on the continent was never rebuilt; but a new Tyre rose from its ruins. This occupied the area of a small island, described by Pliny as two miles and a half in circumference. On this confined space a large population existed, and remedied the want of extent by raising story upon story, on the plan followed by the ancient inhabitants of Edinburgh. It was separated from the main land by an armlet of the sea, about half a mile in breadth and about eighteen feet deep. The city was encircled by walls and fortifications of great strength and height, and scarcely pregnable even if accessible.

_Family Library, No. 3._

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SIR WILLIAM DEVEREUX,

_A Portrait--by the Author of Pelham._