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totally superseded the silks. Women of all ranks, from the highest to the lowest, are clothed in British manufactures of cottons, from the muslin cap on the crown of the head to the cotton stocking under the sole of the foot. The ingenuity of the calico-printers has kept pace with the ingenuity of the weavers and others concerned in the preceding stages of the manufacture, and produced patterns of printed goods, which for elegance of drawing exceed any thing that was imported, and for durability of colour generally stand the washing so well, as to appear fresh and new every time they are washed, and give an air of neatness and cleanliness to the wearer beyond the elegance of silk in the first freshness of its transitory lustre. But even the most elegant prints are excelled by the superior beauty and virgin purity of the muslins, the growth and the manufacture of the British dominions.' To give a simple idea of the prodigious increase which took place in the demand thus excited, it is, perhaps, sufficient merely to mention, that a short time before Sir Richard Arkwright invented his machinery, the number of spindles employed in cotton spinning was about 50,000, and the annual produce of the trade under £200,000; but that a very few years after, 200,000 spindles were in action, and the revenue increased to above £7,000,000."

Appertaining to the history of the city of Bruges, are the facts here given.

"John Van Eyck, otherwise known by the name of John of Bruges, the inventor of painting in oils, was born here, and is buried in the cathedral. This artist studied chemistry at the same time that he practised painting. One day, trying to make a varnish of a particular quality, he found that linseed oil or nut oil, mixed with colours, composed a solid and glossy substance that required no varnish. The first picture painted in this manner was presented to Alphonso I. king of Naples. The discoverer long kept the invention a secret for his own benefit. This town also claims the invention of decimal arithmetic, which is said to have been made by Simon Stephen."

The origin of a curious tale that has fastened some ridicule upon the Mechlin lace-makers, is thus told":

"The cathedral, dedicated to St. Rombauld, is much admired for its general architectural beauty, but mostly for that of its tower, which, though still unfinished, is 350 feet high. A ludicrous story, reflecting a little on the simplicity of character of the towns-people, is connected with this part of the building. It is said

that the moon happening to shine one night with peculiar brilliancy on the tower, gave it the appearance of being on fire, and that the inhabitants ran from all quarters with buckets in their hands to extinguish the flames. Hence arose a common jest through the country, that the wise men of Mechlin wished to extinguish the moon. That there must have been some foundation for attaching this ironical imputation of wisdom to the good people of Mechlin appears from some lines of a modern Latin poet, in which he describes six of the chief towns in the Netherlands by the following distinguishing characteristics:- Brussels is famed for noblemen; Antwerp for money; Ghent for ropes; Brussels for pretty girls; Louvain for sages; Mechlin for fools.' It is said that travellers sometimes involve themselves in quarrels by recalling to the recollection of the citizens this anecdote of their forefathers; which, if true, would be another proof that the irony of the old story and the caustic taunt of the poet were not wholly unmerited."

The Note Book.

I will make a prief of it in my Note-book. M. W. of Windsor.

PERUVIAN LUXURY.

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Mr. Temple, the author of a very pleasing work upon Peru, informs us that in the almost inaccessible regions of the Cordilleras, every imported luxury is very dear; "but the necessaries of life, including lama mutton, are reasonable enough,-with the exception of fuel. But the carne con cuero is the great luxury of a South American_gourmand, which is thus described: The moment a bullock is killed, the flesh on each side the spine, beginning at the rump, is cut out, with enough of the hide to meet or lap over, so as to prevent the juices from escaping; it is then covered with embers, and roasted like a potato.' Sausages, hams, and bacon, though imported, are much in use. Sweetmeats and rum are served together at all dinner-parties.— Tobacco is in universal use; all smoke cigars, but a person is not expected to accept one from the mouth of another, as is the case in Spain (even from the mouth of a domestic,) where the declining of such a compliment is a grievous offence against friendship and good breeding; but you must accept with grateful acknowledgment the remains of a glass of rum; the more lips it has touched the more cordiality in the dram ;-off with it! and beware of wiping your mouth

either before or after it. Should you be induced to wipe the brim of the glass before drinking, or turn it between yourself and the light to seek a little space free from humidity, your reputation is gone for ever! Que barbaro!-Que hombro tan grossero!-Jesus! Jose! Jesus!' When a lady selects a gentleman from the company, by beckoning, or calling him to take her glass and sip after her, the compliment is then highly enviable; and whether her lips be pale and shrivelled by the wintry effect of years, or cherry-ripe and pouting in the fragrance of summer, he is bound by the well-understood laws of respect, etiquette, honour, gallantry, love, and all their little jealousies, to imprint his own lips upon the precise spot where those were placed which preceded him, and then to take off the very last drop in the glass.'

PERUVIAN SUPERSTITION.

of years, 700, being a proportion of 44.19 in every hundred, were discharged cured. In the lunatic asylum of Pennsylvania, of 3487, 1254 were cured, being 35.96 in every 100; and the average number of cures in all the lunatic asylums throughout the United States was 41.30 to every 100; whilst in France it is 44.81, and in England only 37-40. In the state of New York, the population of which was in 1825, 1,616,458, the number of lunatics was 819, and that of idiots 1421; being one lunatic or idiot to every 720 inhabitants. In Paris the proportion is one to 350; in London one to 600, and in Scotland one to 400.

A LORD CHANCELLOR'S RUDENESS.

Like Johnson, Lord Thurlow was remarkable for the rudeness which he occasionally exhibited in society, and which was frequently accompanied with vulgarity. Many stories of Thurlow's rudeness," says Mr Cradock, “have been in general circulation; but it should be fairly stated, that he was ever more cautious of speaking offensively amongst inferiors than amongst the great, where he sometimes, indeed, seemed to take a peculiar pleasure in giving proofs of his excessive vulgarity." A single instance of this singular humour will be sufficient. "On his return from Scarborough," says the writer just mentioned," he made visits to some of those splendid mansions with which the county of York so greatly abounds; and a friend of mine had the honour to meet him at one of them, then full of very high company. Whilst walking in the garden, and they were all admiring the elegancies that surrounded them, the noble proprietor, being near the hothouse, turned to the lord chancellor, and politely asked him whether he would not walk in, and partake of some grapes? 'Grapes!' said Thurlow, did I not tell you just now I had got the gripes?' The strangers in the company were all petrified with astonishment; but his lordship might have truly informed them, that his replies were at least as polite and refined as those of a predecessor, the venerable Earl North

The Peruvians, like every uneducated people, are very superstitious; but all their superstitions are not their own, many of them have been inculcated by their instructors in the Christian religion. At a little distance from Potosi is a narrow pass or chasm in the mountain called the puerto, the cheeks of which are from two to three hundred feet high, touching nearly in places at the top. The Peruvians are taught to believe that "this extraordinary fissure was occasioned by the Devil in a contest with Saint Anthony, who, of course, vanquished the former; but the pleasantry of the tale is, in accusing the fallen angel' of a breach of decorum, startling to the Indians themselves even in their unpolished state of society. The arch-fiend, say the monks, was vexed at finding himself outwitted by the saint, and, when retiring discomfited from his presence, slapped his hand indecorously behind, and gave vent to his rage with so much violence, as to rend the surrounding mountains, and form the existing chasm! To record this event, the image of the offended Anthony is placed in a niche in the rock on one side of the road, where none pass it without a becoming reverence, and doubtless a due feeling of indignation at the uncour-ington.' teous insult, for which the downcast look of humility in the countenance of the saint plainly evinces his shame even to this day.'

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INSANITY IN THE UNITED STATES.

It appears, from a pamphlet lately published in New York, that in the lunatic asylum in that city, of 1584 patients who were confined there in a certain number

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His lordship had unfortunately acquired a habit of swearing, and with difficulty restrained himself on occasions when such a practice would have been most indecorous. In allusion to this habit, as his lordship, at the commencement of the long vacation, was quitting the court without taking the usual leave of the bar, a young barrister exclaimed to his companion, "He might at least have said d— you!" The chancellor heard the remark, and, returning, politely made his bow.

Useful Hints.

Lamp Glasses-A very simple but effective precaution is employed in Paris, to prevent the breaking of lamp-glasses by the sudden application of heat. Before they are used, a glazier cuts or scratches the base of the glass with a diamond, and afterwards sudden heat may be applied without danger.

Econonical Water Colour for Rooms. -Take a quantity of potatoes and boil them-then bruise them, and pour on boiling water until a pretty thick mixture is obtained, which is to be passed through a sieve. With boiling water then make a thick mixture of whitening, and put it to the potato mixture. To give colour, if white is not wanted, add the different coloured ochres, lamp-black, &c. according to circumstances. This paint dries quickly, is very durable, and has a good appearance to the eye.

Customs of Various Countries.

CUSTOM OF PLANTING PALM TREES AND MIDSUMMER LOVE OMENS. (For the Olio.)

THE palm or date trees, are male or female, as are likewise the fig trees. The female date trees only bear the fruits, for that which the male produces is not eatable. Thus, it is usual to plant male trees among the females, which makes them more productive. The female trees always grow somewhat crooked, if any male ones are near them, still bending and inclining towards them. But upon those where no males are planted, the owners hang some of the fruit they produce a similar practice they adopt with fig-trees. There is a Midsummer flower' in England which has like attachments; and it is taken by villagers to try the strength of the affections of young people who are selected by gossips and maidens, by the flowers being put in pairs in a private place with the names appended. In proportion as the flowers draw towards each other, so are the decisions made propitiously, or unfavourably. When any flower dies it is indicative of the person's demise.

Anecdotiana.

J. R. P.

FISH STORY, BUT A TRUE one. Some twenty-five years ago, a Mr. S. of this town, who was then at Siasconset, sent some codfish to his father in town. On dressing one which had a poke unuusually large, a younger brother of him

who sent the fish had a mind to open the poke, when to his and his father's astonishment, he found in it an open jack knife, handle and blade eight inches in length, which the fish had swallowed point foremost. On examining it, E. G. were discovered marked on the handle, when the lad exclaimed, " 'tis uncle Eben Gardner's." The boy hastened to the supposed owner, to inquire if he had lost any thing. Being answered in the negative, he then questioned his uncle if he had lost a knife. His reply was, that when fishing eight or ten days before he lost a jack-knife overboard, east of Bass-rip. When asked to describe the knife, it soon appeared fully evident that the knife found in the fish's poke was the one he lost. The boy who found the knife is now one of our most respectable citizens, from whom we had, within a few days, these curious facts.

Nantucket Inq.

SUBLIME AND BEAUTIFUL.

A little girl attending a sewing school in Johnstone was lately, by a relative, presented with a pin-cushion, made in the form of a book, with the words "The march of intellect" inscribed on its back. The girl showed it to her mistress, who, after reading the inscription on the back, said, "Ay, that is some place abroad."

PRECEPT AND EXAMPLE.

A certain lecturer on intemperance in Scotland, who has attained to celebrity' in his vocation, lately waited on the minister of a populous parish, and requested the use of his church to deliver a lecture to the people. The minister stated his determination and his reasons for declining to grant this for any other than purposes purely devotional; but to show the applicant that he had no personal grudge towards him, he proposed to give him the "fashion o' the hoose." A case of bottles was produced, containing various liquors, and the lecturer was desired to choose and help himself, his host setting the example. The former could not be prevailed on to taste the spirits, but he drank off no less than three full tumblers of spring-water. Upon which the reverend sexagenarian shrewdly observed," My certie, lad! gin ye hadna been at something stronger than water last night, it's my opinion ye wadna hae been fashed wi' sic a lowin' drouth this mornin'.

TASTE.

The Tartarian greatest beauties have the least noses, and the wife of the celebrated Jenghiz Khan was deemed irresistible, because she had only two holes for a nose.

Diary and Chronology.

Wednesday, June 9.

St. Columba, Irish Abbot, died A.D. 597.-High Water 33m after 3 mor.-52m after 3 After. June 9, 1705.-Born at Richmond in Yorkshire, Francis Blackburne, Archdeacon of Cleveland, distinguished for his zeal, industry, and acuteness, in pleading the cause of ecclesiastical reform. Few works, it is generally said, display more ability and Ingenuity than that to which he principally owes his celebrity, "The Confesslonal," a'performance, which it is asserted, has never yet received a satisfactory answer. This venerable divine died in the summer of 1787, in the eighty-third year of his age.

Thursday, June 10

Sts. Getulius, martyrs, 2nd Century.-(Corpus Christi Day)

Sun rises 46m after 3-sets 14m after 8.

Corpus Christi-Brady, in his Clavis Calendaria, informs us that "the object of this festival, is to celebrate the inestimable blessings conferred upon mankind by the holy sacriment of the Eucharist, with its mystic doctrine of Transubstantiation; and hence the pageantry of the day has far surpassed that of most others in shadowy observance." "In several parts of the continent," remarks the same author, "this day is still observed with unabated frivolity; the figures of gigantic men, and large serpents, are exhibited in token of the conquest of Christ over the powers of hell. Carpets are hung out, and bells rung in every steeple; the streets abound with strolling musicians, and persons dancing, some rendered frautic by superstitious zeal, others by inebriation; while grotesque drolls display their wit and antics like our buffoons at Bartholemew Fair." In England in the olden time garlands and pageants representing the history of our Saviour, used to be hung about on this day, and we find among the ancient annual church disbursements, * for four men bearing torches about the parish on this day, payments of 1d. each.' Among the same accounts for the 19th and 21st years of Edward IV., we have, For flaggs and garlondis and packthreadde for the torches upon Corpus Christi day, and for six men to bare the said torches, liijs vijd.' And in 1485, For the hire of the garments for pageants, is. viiijd.'

Friday, June 11.

t. Barnabas, Apostle, 1st Century -High Water 50m after 4 Morn.-\'m after 5 After Our saint, though not of the number of the twelve chosen by Christ, is nevertheless styled an apostle by the primitive fathers, and by St. Luke himself. After a life spent in preaching the Gospel, St. Barnabas suffered many torments, and was stoned to death. The remains of St. Barnabas were found near the city of Salamis, with a copy of the gospel of St. Matthew in Hebrew laid on him. Jaine 11, 1828.-Died Dugald Stewart, T. 75, the eminent author of the "Philosophy of the Human Mind," &c. The leading characteristics of the mind of this distinguished philosopher were, elevated moral feelings, and the highest conceptions of what our nature is destined to accomplish. To be brief, Mr. S, was a lover of liberty and letters, a scholar, a gentleman, and, beyond all, in the truest sense of the word a philanthropist.

Saturday, June 12.

St. Eskil, bishop and martyr -Sun rises 45m after 3-sets 15m after 8.

June 12, 1775.-On this day the ill-fated King of France, Louls XVI., was solemnly crowned in the cathedral church at Rheims.

Sunday, June 13.

FIRST SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

Lessons for the Day, 10 chap Joshua Morning-23 chap. Joshua Evening. St. Damkanade, Virgin, in Ireland.-Moon's last Quar, 49m after 10 Morning. June 13, 1488.-On this day was arrested and beheaded by order of Richard, Duke of Gloucester, Lord Hastings. This nobleman suffered on the absurd pretence of his having united with Jane Shore, (the mistress of Edward IV.) in bewitching the protecHe was taken from the Council Room of the Tower, and immediately conducted into the court yard, and there decapitated, without trial, on a log of wood which chanced to lay in the way in front of the chapel. Lord Hastings died almost at the same instant with the Queen's unfortunate relations Rivers and Grey, whose illegal execution he had counselled, blind to the similar fate which hovered over his own existence.

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Monday, June 14.

St. Nennus of Ireland, Abb. d. A.D. 654.-High Water 14m aft 7 Mor.-17m aft7 After. June 14, 1785.-This day records the ascent of M. Pilatre de Rosier, the first aerial navigator, and his companion M. Romain, in a balloon, at Boulogne, with an intention of Crossing the English Channel; when they were at the height of three-fourths of a mile from the ground, the balloon took fire, and the unfortunate aeronauts were precipitated to the earth, and dashed to pieces.

Tuesday, June 15.

St. Laudelin, Abbot.-Sun rises 44m after 3-sets 16m after 8.

June 15, 1769-The shock of an earthquake was felt at Dolgelly, in North Wales, which threatened to bury the inhabitants under the high projecting cliffs of Cader-Idris ; torrents of water burst from the sides, which deluged the valley beneath; and a lava was discharged from the mountain, which covered the places where it fell three feet deep.

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Ellustrated Article.

THE WRECKERS.

A TALE OF THE COAST.

Maniacs, fiercely ripe for all, or aught,
That ever flash'd upon a desperate thought,
Like men transform'd to fiends. W. READ.

A slender solitary streak of silvery gray light edged the extreme verge of the eastern horizon, and the pinnacles of the rocks which lay opposite to it began to be faintly illumined by the first gentle indications of dawning day. The profoundest gloom still enwrapped their bases and the Ocean, which were not sufficiently elevated to receive the earliest favours of blessed light. Morning was at length succeeding a night of horrors, which had proved in the highest degree fatal; the wind still raged with the fury of a legion of foul fiends, and cast widely forth, in its wrath, spray, sand, and shingle; the mighty Ocean was yet convulsed, and huge surges beat against and leaped over the summits of the terrific crags that bounded the coast 24-VOL. V. 2 A

of wild St. Mary's-ay, wild, uncult vated, and ill-populated, St. Mary'salthough certainly it was less sternly featured in these respects than some of the contiguous Scilly Isles.

The deafening roar of a thousand angry and conflicting billows, with the sullen mutterings of distant deafening thunder, and the fierce howlings of the careering winds, still continued that awful and harrowing tumult, which, during the whole dreadful night, had utterly drowned the agonizing cries of distress, and the roar of the minute-gun, whose peal, poured ineffectually over the bosom of the deep, had been, by the angry tempest, divided, carried off in all directions, overpowered, and lost. Torrents of rain descended from the gloomy sky, upon which still hung dense masses of clouds, little broken by the gale, or, if heavily scudding before it, but succeeded by others of the like funereal appearance It was an hour in which none but the merciful would have ventured abroad with the intention of saving their miserable fellows from the engulphing deep; or, none but the merciless would

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