ment; but some prying duenna acquainted the countess with it, who, cutting off, as she thought, all possibility of retreat, hastened to surprise them. The young lady's ears were quick, she heard the footsteps of the old countess, ran to the top of the leads, and took the desperate leap of nine feet four inches over a chasm of sixty feet; and, luckily lighting on the battlements of the other tower, crept into her own bed, where her astonished mother found her, and of course apologized for the unjust suspicion. The fair daughter did not choose to repeat the leap; but the next night eloped, and was marrried.

TO LIE IS HONOURABLE.

Every where (said the celebrated M. Jouy, in the Mirror) to lie is honourable. Politeness is the falsehood of friendship. Prating is that of talent. Affectation that of grace. Gallantry is the falsehood of love. To declare that you are timid, is to say to every fool, "Laugh at me"-to every ruffian," Strike me"-to every swindler, "Cheat me." Racine said every thing he ought-Corneille all that he thought-Voltaire whatever he pleased.

A BIT OF THE MARVELLOUS. ''Pon my soul 'tis true-who says its a lie ?" In the year 1817, a woman in the parish of became pregnant, and sometime before her infant was born, gave as the father a married man of the name of John Wood. The man strongly protested his innocence, and repeatedly said that he would not confess unless his name was stamped on the child's forehead. In a short time the woman was delivered of a boy, and in about ten days thereafter, the letters "John Wood," on the right, and "born 1817," on the left eye, became plain and legible. These words and figures are on the part of the eye which surrounds the pupil-betwixt the ball and the white of the eye, so that they cannot for a moment be supposed to have been traced by any human hand. The form of the letters is truly beautiful. The mother afterwards married an Irishman, who, with his step-son, has

been living in Newton-Stewart for some time past. Most of the gentlemen in the town and neighbourhood have inspected the boy's eyes, who all seem to think there is no imposition in the matter. The child is afflicted with water in the head, and although betwixt five and six years old, it can neither stand nor walk.-Dumfries Courier.

SOMNAMBULISM.

The following extraordinary case of Somnambulism has been communicated to us in an authentic manner. It is principally important in a medical point of view, on account of the successful use of bleeding as a remedy :

A remarkable instance of this affec

tion of the nerves occurred on Sunday evening last, October 5, to a lad named George Davis, 164 years of age, in the service of Mr. Hewson, butcher, of Bridge-road, Lambeth. At about 20 minutes after 9 o'clock, the lad bent forward in his chair, and rested his forehead on his hands; and in ten minutes started up, went for his whip, put on his one spur, and went thence to the stable; not finding his own saddle in the proper place, he returned to the house and asked for it. Being asked what he wanted with it, he replied to go his rounds. He returned to the stable, got on the horse without the saddle, and was proceeding to leave the stable; it was with much difficulty and force that Mr. Hewson, junior, assisted by the other lad, could remove him from the horse; his strength was great, and it was with difficulty he was brought in doors. Mr. Hewson, senior, coming home at this time, sent for Mr. Benjamin Ridge, an eminent practitioner, in the Bridgeroad, who stood by him for a quarter of an hour, during which time the lad considered himself stopped at the turnpike-gate, and took sixpence out of his pocket to be changed; and holding out his hand for the change, the sixpence was returned to him. He immediately observed, "None of your nonsense— that is the sixpence again; give me my change." When 34d. was given to him, he counted it over, and said, "None of your gammon; that is not right; I want a penny more;" making the 44d. which was his proper change.

He then said, "give me my castor," (meaning his hat), which slang terms he had been in the habit of using, and then began to whip and spur to get his horse on; his pulse was at this time 136, full and hard; no change of countenance could be observed, nor any spasmodic affection of the muscles, the eyes remaining close the whole of the time. His coat was taken off his arm, shirt sleeve stripped up, and Mr. Ridge bled him to 32 ounces; no alteration had taken place in him during the first part of the time the blood was flowing; at about 24 ounces, the pulse began to decrease; and when the full quantity named above had been taken, it was at 80-a slight perspiration on the forehead. During the time of bleeding, Mr. Hewson related the circumstance of a Mr. Harris, optician, in Holborn, whose son, some years walked out on the parapet of the house in his sleep. The boy joined the conversation, and observed, he lived at the corner of Brownlow-street. After the arm was tied up, he unlaced one boot, and said he should go to bed; in three minutes from this time he awoke, got up, and asked what was the matter, (having been one hour in the trance), not having the slightest recollection of any thing that had passed, and wondered at his arm being tied up, and at the blood, &c. A strong aperient medicine was then administered, he went to bed, slept well, and the next day appeared perfectly well, excepting debility from the bleeding and operation of the medicine, and has no recollection whatever of what had taken place. None of his family or himself were ever affected in this way before.

EXTRAORDINARY FORTUNES.

By a vessel from New South Wales, we have received a file of Sydney Gazettes, from one of which we extract the following instance of extraordinary fortunes:

SYDNEY, April 3.-Captain Edwardson, of the Snapper, brings from New Zealand two chiefs, one of whom is accompanied by his wife. One of them is a youth about 16, and the other is 30 years old. The name of the latter is James Caddel, an Englishman by birth, and whose history is briefly as follows:-In 1807, or thereabouts, the ship, Sydney Cove, a sealer, out of this

port, was cruising off the bay of Islands, and had either stationed or despatched a boat's crew, consisting of five hands and a boy (James Caddel, the present chief), to one of the islands in quest of seals. The boat was taken by the savages in the vicinity of the Southern Cape, and the hapless men, with the exception of Caddel, were killed and eaten. Fortunately, in his flight, the boy flew to an old chief for mercy, and happened to touch his ka-hah-how (the outward mat of the chief), and thus his life became preserved, as his person was then held sacred. Being in too distant a part of New Zealand to indulge the hope of hastily escaping from a wretched captivity, Caddel became resigned to his apparent destiny, and insensibly adopted the manners and customs of the natives. About nine years since, he was allied to a chief's daughter, who is also sister to a chief; and, by this two-fold tie, he became a prince of no small influence among such subjects as those barbarous despots are destined, in the present constitution of things, to have the control of. Caddel lost his own language, as well as European customs, and soon became transformed from the English sailorboy into the dauntless and terrifying New Zealand Chief. It required some argumentation to induce him to visit New South Wales; and he would not have come without his partner, to whom he appears to be tenderly attached.

BIOGRAPHY.

A SHORT BIOGRAPHICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE MEMOIR OF THE ADMIRABLE CRICHTON; PRINTED AT VENICE IN 1580. The Scotchman, whose name is James Crichton, is a young man of twenty years of age, upon the 15th of August last. He is distinguishable by a birthmark, or mole, beneath his eye; he is master of ten languages: these are Latin and Italian, in which he is excellently skilled; Greek, in which he has composed epigrams; Hebrew, Chaldaic, Spanish, French, Flemish, English, and Scotch; and he is also acquainted with the German. He is deeply skilled in philosophy, in theo

PARLIAMENT IN THE REIGN OF GOOD QUEEN BESS. QUEEN ELIZABETH'S SPEECH AT THE DISSOLUTION OF HER PARLIAMENT, 2d JANUARY, 1566.

"I have in this assembly found so much dissimulation, where I always professed plainness, that I marvel thereat; yea, two faces under one hood, and the body rotten, being covered with two vizors, succession and liberty. But alas! they began to pierce the vessel before the wine was fined, and began a thing not foreseeing the end. Now, by this means I have seen my wellwishers from my enemies, and can, as meseemeth, very well divide the house into four. First, fault; second, the speakers, who by eloquent tales persuade others; third, the agreers; and lastly, those who sat still mute, and meddled not therewith, but rather wondered, disallowing the matter, who in my opinion are most to be excused."

PRIVILEGES OF THE ALDERMEN OF LONDON.

In Strype's Edition of Stow's History of London, we have a picture of the high privileges assumed by the Aldermake an attack upon an Alderman," says men of London in ancient days :-" To the author," subjected the offender to the penalty of losing his right hand.-Rebellion to an Alderman called down the penalty of imprisonment for a year and a day, besides loss of freedom to the offender-opprobrious words spoken to an Alderman were also punished by imprisonment.-But whilst our ancestors were thus studious to protect the Alothers, they were not negligent of dermanic dignityfrom being invaded by adopting rules and by-laws, whereby to impose on the holders of that honourable office the necessity of supporting the respect of the body to which they belonged. Neither the Mayor or Aldermen, or any of their servants, could hold a brewhouse, a tavern, or a bakehouse, least it should be suspected that he made use of the influence which his office gave him over those establishments so necessary and indispensable to the comforts and even existence of the public, to promote his own interests and protect fraudulent dealers." They were also anxious to enforce a due regard to the established costume

of office, as will appear by the following entry in the time of Henry the Sixth "Alderman Robert Byfielde having neglected to line his cloak which he uses in procession, it is therefore adjudged by the Court, by way of punishment for such neglect, that the Mayor and Aldermen do breakfast with him on Thursday next." This was, as we may suppose, intended as a mode of punishment for his parsimony, as displayed by him in wearing a cloak without a lining.

ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS.

No. II.

In the churchyard of Edinburgh there lies buried a favourite dog, whose sagacity and attachment to his master procured him this mark of esteem. The story is, that his master having travelled the continent, and being at Rome, left his dog there with a friend; but the dog, it seems, not liking his new situation, set out in quest of his former master; passing through Italy, the Alps, and France, came at last to Calais, where he made several attempts to get on ship-board, but was prevented by the sailors, till a gentleman on board took him under his protection, expecting to retain the animal for his trouble, who, by this time was reduced to skin and bone, having no regular subsistence in his journey. The gentleman showed the dog particular attention during the passage, and thought he had gained his affection; but when within a few yards of Dover, the dog jumped overboard and swam ashore, running off with speed. The collar round his neck showed to whom he belonged, and, in less than six weeks from the time he had left Rome, this faithful and sagacious animal arrived at his master's house at Edinburgh, having travelled, supposing he could have come in a straight line, upwards of 1,100 miles, and allowing for the traverses which he must necessarily make, we may estimate the space passed, more than 2,000 miles; a circumstance which is far beyond the sagacity of the human mind unaided by the assistance of speech, or artificial means.

The Welsh legend of "Berth Gelert, or the Grave of the Greyhound," which is celebrated in an affecting little poem, deserves to be mentioned among the

sagacious traits of canine fidelity. The story is, that a favourite greyhound absented himself from the chase to guard his master's heir in the cradle, which was attacked by a wolf. The greyhound hid the child and killed the wolf; but his master on returning, perceived the blood, and missing the child, in his anger plunged a sword into his faithful dog, whose dying moans awoke the child, and discovered to his repentant master the dog's service and his own rashness. A monument of the Herbert family, near Abergavenny, represents a knight with a greyhound at his feet, of which this story is related.

Homer's account of Ulysses's dog Argus, is equally interesting, and highly pathetic. When Ulysses embarked at Ithaca (a small island in the Ionian Sea, and the residence of that chief) to attend the Grecians at the siege of Troy, he left this dog with his wife Penelope, and after an absence of twenty years returned, when he was quite unknown to all except his faithful Argus.

"Him when he saw, he rose and crawl'd to meet

("Twas all he could) and fawn'd and kiss'd his feet;

Seiz'd with dumb joy, then falling by his side,

Own'd his returning lord, looked up and died. РОРЕ.

A chicken, belonging to James Dib dan, of No Man's Land, was a few days since hatched, having four perfect legs, three on one side of the body and one on the other, all of which are used by the little bird when walking.

As Mr. Fisher, of Barrow, in Furness, was passing through the harvest field, he observed a large viper or hagworm, which he killed, and, on opening it, found seventeen young ones, measuring each from eight to ten inches four inches. in length; the old one measured twenty..

In the belly of a herring bought in Ulverston Market last week, by Mr. James Robinson, of the Gill, a copper farthing, something less than a shilling, was found. Upon one one side of it, in the centre, were the initials W. P. around which was the word "Farthing.' On the other side," Pro bono Publico." Date 1757.