and he only, hath arrayed in all this magnificence, and prodigality of endowment, what will he say, if his own bounties are to be piled up as a tower whereby men may build themselves a name, and exalt their pride unto the heavens? If there be any one thing in the course of this world, which proclaims more loudly than another the power, and the majesty, and the goodness of the Almighty, it is the victorious progress of the mind of man. For what are the triumphs of the human mind but manifestations of that One Supreme and Eternal Mind which contains all truth and wisdom; and from which alone the mind of man derives every particle of its energy, every particle and source of its prodigious mastery? And can any one gravely imagine that these powers were given to man that he might erect himself into a deity, and forget the work of the Lord, and the operations of his hand? The mightiest intellects this world has ever seen have never imagined this. It has been their glory and delight to lay their treasures at the feet of Him who "sitteth enthroned on the riches of the universe." Even those grand and ruling spirits who shone like burning lights in the dark places of the ancient ignorance, even they were often impatient to "feel after" the "Divinity which stirred within them," and to pay Him the honour and the love which are his righteous due, "if haply they might find him." And of those who have lived in brighter and more glorious times, the greatest and the best have always honoured their Creator with all the powers of the understanding which he gave them. And if this was the crown of rejoicing to those master-spirits, what does their great example say to us? Does it not tel. us that our intellect was given us for high and holy purposes; that it is a light kindled within us by Him who dwells in light; and that it is both our glory and reasonable service, so to let this light shine before men that they may glorify our Father which is in heaven?-Le Bas. THE DERVISE. It was on the confines of the desert, amid sterile and almost inaccessible rocks, that Ben Achmet, the Dervise, led a life of austerity and devotion. A cave in the rocks was his dwelling. Roots and fruits, the scanty product of the inhospitable region he inhabited, satisfied his hunger, and the fountain that bubbled up from the lower part of a neighbouring cliff slaked his thirst. He had formerly been a priest in a magnificent mosque, and scrupulously conducted the ceremonies of the Mohammedan faith but, disgusted with the hypocrisy and injustice of those around him, he abandoned the mosque, and his authority as a priest, betaking himself to the desert to spend his days as an anchorite, in sanctity, self-denial, and devotion. Years rolled over the head of Ben Achmet, and the fame of his sanctity spread abroad. In seasons of drought he supplied the traveller of the desert with water, from his little well. In times of pestilence he left his solitary abode to attend the sick and comfort the dying, in the villages that were scattered around, and often did he stanch the blood of the wounded Arab, and heal him of his wounds. His fame was spread abroad. His name inspired veneration, and the plundering Bedouin gave up his booty at the command of Ben Achmet, the Dervise. Akaba was an Arabian robber; he had a band of lawless men under his command ready to do his bidding; large numbers of slaves, and a treasure-house well stored with his ill-gotten wealth. The sanctity of Ben Achmet arrested his attention; his conscience smote him on account of his guilt, and he longed to be as famed for his devotion as he had been for his crimes. He sought the abode of the Dervise, and told him his desires. "Ben Achmet," said he, "I have five hundred cimeters ready to obey me; numbers of slaves at my command; and a goodly treasurehouse, filled with riches; tell me how to add to these the hope of a happy immortality ?" Ben Achmet led him to a neighbouring cliff that was steep, rugged, and high; and pointing to three large stones that lay near together, he told him to lift them from the ground, and to follow him up the cliff. Akaba, laden with the stones, could scarcely move; to ascend the cliff with them was impossible. "I cannot follow thee, Ben Achmet," said he, "with these burdens." "Then cast down one of them," replied the Dervise," and hasten after me.' Akaba dropped a stone, but still found himself too heavily encumbered to proceed. "I tell thee it is impossible," cried the robber chieftain, "thou thyself couldst not proceed a step with such a load." "Let go another stone, then," said Ben Achmet. Akaba readily dropped another stone, and, with great difficulty, clambered the cliff for a while, till, exhausted with the effort, he again cried out that he could come no farther. Ben Achmet directed him to drop the last stone; and, no sooner had he done this, than he mounted with ease, and soon stood with his conductor on the summit of the cliff. "Son," said Ben Achmet, "thou hast three burdens which hinder thee in thy way to a better world. Disband thy troop of lawless plunderers; set thy captive slaves at liberty, and restore thy ill-gotten wealth to its owners; it is easier for Akaba to ascend this cliff with the stones that lie at its foot, than for him to journey onward to a better world, with power, pleasure, and riches, in his possession." If the words of a Dervise, a blind believer in an erring faith, can command our admiration, how much more ought we to estimate and obey the words of Christ, "Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." Heb. xii. 1, 2. Whether our possessions consist of power, pleasure, or riches, they must be sacrificed rather than be allowed to hinder us in our heavenly course, remembering that "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven." CHEMISTRY.-No. I. Introduction. THE different branches of physical science are so intimately connected together, that it is difficult to detail the facts which relate to one without an allusion to those that belong to others. Several papers have appeared in the Weekly Visitor on subjects which have an intimate connexion with the science of chemistry, such as those on light, heat, and atmospheric air; and as it is intended to insert others upon the same subjects, it will only be necessary, in this series of papers, to make such allusions to them as will enable the reader to understand their connexion with chemical science. The object of chemistry is to determine the constitution of bodies, and the laws by which elementary substances are combined. It is, therefore, a science of vast extent, and comprehends an immense number of facts; but it is only within the last seventy or eighty years that it has been cultivated with the assiduity it deserves; but in this period, it has made an almost incredible advance, and now holds a prominent place among the physical sciences. The important facts that have been discovered by the labours of the many distinguished men who have devoted themselves to the pursuit, have now been so arranged as to develope the relations they bear to each other, and in their combination, form a system as clear and comprehensive as it is beautiful. The arts and manufactures in all civilized countries, and in England especially, are more indebted to chemistry than to any other branch of physical inquiry; for a great part of the operations, in manufactures of all kinds, are dependent on chemical laws. Those natural productions, which are the raw materials from which the manufacturer prepares the articles of commerce, must undergo great chemical changes before they are suited to supply the wants, and minister to the comforts of man; and before any improvements, calculated to increase their cheapness and perfection can be made, an accurate acquaintance with chemical laws and facts is absolutely necessary. The iron-founder, the tanner, the bleacher, the glass-maker, the woollenmanufacturer, the brewer, the vinegarmaker, and many others, perform their operations under the guidance of chemistry. The articles employed in domestic economy are subject to chemical laws, and many domestic operations are, strictly speaking, chemical experiments. All substances on the earth we inhabit, in the air which surrounds us, and in the waters of the ocean, are subject to chemical changes, and to new combinations. There are three states in which bodies are found: sometimes they are solid, or have their particles so intimately united together, that they resist pressure; sometimes they are liquids, the particles of which have an easy motion among each other; and at other times they occur as gases or vapours. There are four agents, light, caloric, electricity, and magnetism, that have, by a strange contradiction of terms, been called imponderable bodies. Philosophers have hitherto been quite unable to determine the nature of these occult agents, and have amused themselves in speculating upon their characters. But although we are ignorant of their nature, yet we know many of the effects they produce, and the influence they have upon the chemical constitution of bodies. The operations of chemistry are performed by producing changes in the substances under examination, either by means DR. S. JOHNSON'S INTERVIEW WITH SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS IN HIS LAST ILLNESS. of mixture, or, more generally, by the ap- | destroyed; and sulphate of iume, a subplication of heat. Bodies composed of stance entirely different from either of the different substances, distinct in their nature, | substances employed, will be produced." are in this manner decomposed, or separated into the original substances of which they are formed. This method of discovering the nature of bodies, is called analysis. After decomposition has taken place, if the parts thus disunited have lost their identity, and cannot be brought together again, the analysis is called complicated; but where the parts thus separated are capable of being again united, so as to constitute the same body, it is termed a simple analysis, and the process of reuniting the parts is denominated synthesis. The nature of chemical composition and decom-cond, that he would forgive him thirty position may be illustrated by the following experiments. Drop a piece of camphor into a phial about half-full of diluted alcohol, or common spirits of wine, and a union will take place between these two bodies, from the affinity between them, and the camphor will be perfectly dissolved. Then pour into the phial a small quantity of water, which has a greater affinity for the camphor than the alcohol possesses; a union will instantly take place beween the water and the camphor, and they will fall to the bottom of the phial in white flakes. If the whole be now placed in an open vessel, and a sufficient heat applied, to cause evaporation of the spirit and water, the camphor will be left at the bottom as pure as when first used. This last process is called distillation. "It may,” observes Parkes, "with few exceptions, be considered as an axiom in the science of which we are treating, that whenever chemical action takes place, a real change is produced in the substance operated upon, and that its identity is destroyed. An example will place this in a clear point of view. If a little carbonate of lime (powdered chalk) be put into a glass of water, the chalk will sink to the bottom of the vessel. Though it should be mixed with the water, if left at rest, it will soon subside. No chemical action has taken place, therefore the water and "He sent the other day for Sir Joshua, and, after much serious conversation, told him he had three favours to beg of him, and he hoped he would not refuse a dying friend, be they what they would. Sir Joshua promised. The first was, that he would never paint on a Sunday; the se pounds that he had lent him, as he wanted to leave them to a distressed family; the third was, that he would read the Bible whenever he had an opportunity, and that he would never omit it on a Sunday. There was no difficulty, but upon the first point; but at length Sir Joshua promised to gratify him in all.”—Miss H. More. -There are VANITY OF EARTHLY GOOD.— no contentments of this life, let them be ever so many, that can possibly accompany us farther than our death-bed. It may be, that for a few days of our lives they have detained us in a fool's paradise, yet full of vipers and scorpions. What then shall comfort the immortal soul, when, being dislodged from this tabernacle of clay, it shall begin to enter the confines of eternity? For if it look back, it may ask, Why have I disquieted myself in vain? What hath pride profited, or what profit hath the pomp of | riches brought ? - Old MS. Sermon. CARELESSNESS.-The Duke of Richmond, the late postmaster-general, states, that about one thousand letters are annually put into the post-office without any address whatever. In a single year, one hundred of these, which were opened with the design of returning them to their writers, were found to contain money and bills, to the amount of from twenty to thirty thousand pounds. JOHN DAVIS, 56, Paternoster Row, London. Price d. each, or in Monthly Parts, containing Five Numbers in a Cover, 3d. W. TYLER, Printer, 4, Ivy Lane, St. Paul's. THE LAZO. In the above sketch an ox having been suddenly cast down by the noose, which one horseman had dexterously laid for his foot, another horseman is seen coming up to secure the fallen animal before it has time to recover from the effects of its sudden and violent overthrow. The term lazo, sometimes erroneously written lasso, in the Spanish language, is of the same import as lazada, and signifies a noose or gin, and is applied by way of pre-eminence to a line ending in a running noose, very much in use among the Chilians. It is made of untanned ox-hide, and, from being in constant use, acquires great smoothness, so that the loop, or knot, traverses or runs without impediment. Its length is about thirty or forty feet, varying according to the skill and dexterity of the person who wields it. The Chilian gathers his lazo into a coil, and fastens one end to his saddle, and, with the additional equipment of a long knife, which is carried in his gaskens, or leathern gaiters, accounts himself a match for whatever he may meet with by theway, whether man or beast. When he has a mind to entrap any thing with this strange missile, he lays hold of the noose, VOL. II. and delivers it with such adroitness, that it very rarely fails to encircle the object aimed at, whether that object be the horn of an ox, or the neck of a human being. They have often been seen, while riding at full speed in chase of an ox, to cast the noose on the ground just where the animal was about to place one of its feet, and thus secure it by its leg. The horses are so trained that the moment the lazo is thrown, they turn and gallop off in an opposite direction; and, as the other end is firmly attached to the saddle, the object entangled has to encounter the force of the horse, when exerted at its maximum, or greatest power, namely, in the act of drawing. It is this circumstance that renders the lazo a fearful weapon, when used against an enemy; for, if from want of foresight or agility, he is taken in this toil, death is his portion, and that of a most revolting kind. Achilles dragged the dead body of Hector, tied to his chariot, over the walls of Troy; but the Chilian takes that method to dispatch a living foe. Though the lazo is most frequently seen among the Chilians, who are excellent horsemen, and famous for the use of it, it is by no means confined to them, but is с met in all parts of Spanish America. Spaniards, who settled in that continent, brought it with them; and the reader, who is acquainted with the Spanish language, may see a short description of it in the Dictionary of the Academy, (Dict. de la lengua Castillana,) printed in 1823. The writer was once under great obligations to a lazo, while collecting botanical spećimens, near Tepic, in the Republic of Mexico: for it happened, as he was inspecting the vegetable habitants of a deep valley, that his horse, which had been tied to a tree by the road-side, took fright at the sudden passing of some muleteers, broke his bridle, and began to return towards the city from whence he had started. We instantly pursued him; but the cunning creature, now and then turning his head to observe our progress, kept us for several miles at a convenient distance, till we entered a road that was about twice the breadth of our ordinary turnpikes, when a Mexican horseman came in sight, who alighted, placed his horse on one side of the road, and, extending his lazo, stationed himself on the other. We were as much surprised as delighted to see the wayward steed stop short of the barrier thus suddenly opposed to him, till we had overtaken and secured him. Our obligations did not end here; for the stranger, upon perceiving that the bridle had been broken, immediately, with the dignified gravity peculiar to the Spanish character, set about repairing it, by borrowing a few hairs from the mane of its wearer, and thus in a few minutes restored the dishevelled headstall and reins to their former state of usefulness, and enabled the writer to prosecute his journey with a resolution to be a little more wary in the bestowment of his confidence another time. CHEMISTRY, No. II. L. (Attraction of gravitation, cohesion, and affinity.) THE wisdom of God is remarkably displayed in the simplicity of the laws by which the motions and properties of matter are governed. One great object in natural science is to discover, amidst the multitude of facts and phenomena in the material world, some general principles to which the motions and changes of different bodies may be referred. It was a grand discovery by Sir Isaac Newton, that the planets of our system are directed in their course, and preserved in order and harmony, by the same force that directs falling bodies to the centre of the earth. The unknown cause which produces all these effects, is called the attraction of gravitation. That force which causes all the atoms composing different substances to adhere together, is called the attraction of cohesion; or, the attraction of aggregation. It varies in intensity in different bodies, producing the peculiar qualities that distinguish solids, liquids, and gases. There are many substances that can be presented in all three states, by increasing or diminishing the force of cohesion between the particles. Water, for instance, sometimes exists in the form of ice; but if heat be applied, the attraction of cohesion is weakened,and a liquid is formed. A further application of heat will cause an evaporation of all the liquid, and an air or vapour will be produced. From the circumstance that nearly all bodies are subject to contraction from intense cold, and other remarkable facts that cannot here be detailed, it is very reasonably supposed, that however closely the atoms of bodies may be brought to each other, there is no actual contact between them. But the particles of substances have not only an attraction among themselves by which they maintain their combination; but also an elective or chemical force, which causes the atoms of different bodies to unite together and form compounds. We are totally ignorant of the real nature of this principle, as well as of the other kinds of attraction that have been alluded to. We have been made acquainted with the laws which govern these several forces, but we are unable to determine whether they are inherent properties of matter, or depend upon some external agent. The power of which we are now speaking is called chemical attraction, or affinity. It is the principle by which the operations of chemistry are governed; and it is therefore necessary to devote to it a more enlarged consideration. There is a distinction to be observed between two or more bodies being simply mixed together, and their being chemically combined. If some oil and water be shaken together in a phial, they will appear to be united; but if the phial be left for a short time, a separation will take place between the two substances, the water descending to the bottom, and the oil occupying the upper part of the phial. But if a small lump of sugar be dropped into a glass of water, the particles of the sugar will gradually enter into combination with the component particles of the water, and |