and therefore, perhaps, a more detailed account of it may not displease my readers, as I had full time to enjoy and observe its many interesting attractions, during a stay which (as will be seen) was protracted beyond my first intention. Although it has been called one of Elizabeth's reign, it was in reality founded in that of her father; but the imperfect style of architecture, then common in England, could produce no structure that is worthy of being called the foundation of this beautiful edifice. Little of its original design was, therefore, permitted to remain by those improvers of English taste, Webb and Inigo Jones, by whose direction it underwent a great, nay, almost complete alteration. The elegant taste of a late proprietor, whose scientific memory retained all the most beautiful models of Italy, observed during his travels in that school of the arts, and on his return assisted him to embellish this ancient seat of his family, has produced some modern improvements seldom equalled in classical taste. Much fine tapestry, and many valuable paintings, adorn the rooms; and the perfection to which Mrs Weston has herself attained in that delightful art of painting, has enriched the apartments with copies from the most celebrated masters of antiquity, scarcely to be distinguished from the originals. Among the objects that recal past ages to the mind, in this interesting place, is a large saloon, which was built in honour of that tyrannical court of Charles I., the name of which it still retains-The Star Chamber. The wainscot of the room is divided into small pannels, (originally of azure blue, but now of white,) in each of which is a small gold star, and, when well lighted, it has a brilliant effect. There is also a small but exquisitely-beautiful chapel. The stalls are of rich old oak of the highest polish, and finely carved. The pavement in the higher part beneath the altar is of coloured marbles and mosaic, and the stained glass of the windows (which is of extraordinary beauty) sheds a mellow, obscure light on the whole, irresistibly inclining the soul to devotion and awe. Within this chapel is enclosed a smaller recess, which contains, perhaps, the finest monument existing. It is very large, and entirely of the purest Parian marble. On it is the figure of an ancestor of the Weston family, in his robes as Speaker of the House of Commons; and it is scarcely in the power of language to convey an adequate idea of the matchless workmanship with which the figure, as well as pillow and mat are executed. The sculptor was Banks, and the design from a picture painted by Vandyck, still in the mansion. The pattern of the lace which adorns the frill and ruffles is traced by the chisel with the exactness of the loom. The pillow swells in all that downy softness that would almost persuade you to try if it will yield to the pressure of the touch, and the hand, with its blue veins, and almost moving fingers, is stretched out as if inviting your grasp. In I, who am naturally romantic, could have lingered the whole day in a place so full of interest, and, notwithstanding all my venerating love of our own pure religion, I could not avoid fancying the pomp and splendour with which the worship of the Catholic Church would have adorned this sweet sanctuary. imagination, I saw the train of priests, the incense, the scattered flowers,-heard the choral voices of the nuns responding to the swells of the organ,—and at last ran out of the chapel, laughing at my own folly, and joined my sister and Mary in the drawing-room, of which the splendid hangings, of rich crimson, white and gold damask, brought back any wandering thoughts to modern times. The grounds are not very extensive, but they are so profusely ornamented with those beauties of Nature-the oak that has stood for centuries, the beech nearly a rival, and every description of trees in their fullest perfection and luxuriance that nothing seems wanting. A pretty piece of water emerges from a beautiful wood on one side, and crossing the lawn immediately in front of the house, is formed into a reservoir at the other. The gardens are good, though not spacious, and watered by a branch of the same stream; and near them stands a building, called, indeed, a Pigeon-house, but forming a principal beauty in the prospect, from the elegance of its design, and its singularity. In short, whether in the interior splendour or the exterior simplicity, The Elms' is one of those ornaments to England which are rarely met with, and therefore deserving of a description which might otherwise appear tedious and uninteresting. Before the marriage, all parties were so occupied, that I could find no time to speak on the subject I most wished, nor was it even alluded to, excepting once that I had (as I usually did every morning,) strolled into the picture-gallery, and was dwelling with admiration on the portrait of a nun, or rather of a beautiful young creature, the daughter of a noble ancestor, who, for a frolic, was painted in that habit, as of the order of St. Catherine. The painter and the painted had both in vain attempted to assimilate the archness of the eye, and the dimpling smiles of the mouth, to the solemnity of the vestments; yet the endeavour to be grave had thrown a pensive softness over the whole, and made it inexpressibly beautiful. The longer I looked at it, the more I thought I perceived a faint, but-highly flattering resemblance to Miss Templeton, and appealed to Mrs Weston, who was near me, whether the idea were original. "You flatter Mary very much by the supposition," she replied; "yet it is highly probable, as that picture is an exact resemblance of her mother, who was very lovely." She sighed, and we were joined at this moment by Mary and Caroline, so the conversation dropped. On the morning of that-day-week, when we had first arrived at "The Elms," Miss Templeton gave her hand to Mr Townsend, at the village church. When I took my seat in the carriage between her and Mrs Weston, I found her pale as death, and sobbing convulsively: "A poor compliment you will think this to her intended husband," said Mrs W. in a trembling voice; "but poor Mary has some causes of anxiety seldom known to those so young;" and as Miss Templeton leaned her head from the window, as if to support her from fainting, she added, in a low murmur, "She will kneel to-day at the altar not ten paces from a mother's grave, and the clergyman who performs the ceremony attended that mother in her last sacrament." I was silent, and Mary understood my silence, and putting her hand into mine, whispered, "God bless you!" On entering the small neat church, her eye fell on that part of the aisle immediately below the reading-desk, and she trembled'; but observing Mr Townsend's before-happy countenance mournfully watching her, she smiled sweetly on him, and, with renewed composure, took her seat at the altar. The pious and amiable village-curate gazed on her with fond interest, and, after the ceremony, was the first to imprint a kiss on her varying cheek. From the churchdoor the young couple set off for a tour on the Continent, which was to occupy three months, after which we were to be near neighbours, much to the satisfaction of all parties. It had been my intention to have returned with them to London, but they pleaded with so earnest and affectionate a warmth for Caroline's society during their trip, and the gipsey was herself so anxious to see something of a foreign country, that her eagerness, combined with the knowledge of the improvement she would derive in the society of an intelligent and accomplished woman, prevailed over my reluctance to part with her, and, with a full heart, I bade her farewell. Her tears also flowed abundantly as she entered the carriage; but I laughed at them for their folly, and had the pleasure of seeing the rainbow of a smile disperse the clouds on their faces ere the carriage drove off. Mrs Weston now kindly urged my remaining at least a few days with them, and I cheerfully consented. "You will find The Elms' dull after the departure of our young friends," she observed, as we re-entered the gate; "but the society of some fair ladies is always at my command, and we will endeavour to make our old house as lively as possible." "Believe me, madam," I answered," in accepting your kind invitation, my principal wish is to enjoy your society; nor will you wonder at my prizing it highly, when I tell you that a fortunate incident led to my introduction to Dr B., from whom I have heard the account of the death of your Mary's mother. He promised me her former history, but I was unexpectedly disappointed." "It is a melancholy tale, my dear Sir," said she, sighing; "but you have shown so kind, an interest for our dear child, that I can have no hesitation in confiding it to you. I could not, however, trust my own feelings with repeating it, but I will give you a small MS. which I penned on Mary's account, and which you are, if you please, at liberty to copy. This shall be your's when you leave us, but, in the mean time, excuse ine if I request that Mrs Templeton be not a subject of conversation between us. You will think little of my strength of mind, but I can scarcely bear an allusion to her." I acceded, of course, to what she required, with gratitude and respect; and the few days I passed in the society of this inestimable woman imprinted on my mind so vivid a sense of her excellencies, that to secure her friendship for my sister was the first wish of my heart. I am aware, that, were I to describe all that Mrs Weston truly is, a sceptical world, accustomed to the gloss of fashionable exaggeration, would turn with the sneer of incredulity from the portrait; but to those who, like myself, have the happiness of being acquainted with her, the impossibility of doing justice to her many perfections will be fully evident. With repeated charges not to permit Mrs Townsend to visit The Elms' unaccompanied by my sister, and positive injunctions from Mr Weston to return in the winter, and join his huntingparties, (an amusement of which he is passionately fond,) I at last reluctantly quitted their hospitable roof, and went to enliven a little of the solitude of my good aunt Frances. I found her losing all regret for the departure of her favourite, partly in the rearing a fine brood of partridges which the gardener had brought her, and partly in the pleasure of a letter she had received from Caroline, which spoke in terms of rapturous delight of the novelty and fascinations of her trip. We therefore resolved to be happy in her happiness, and followed on the map the route of our darling traveller. In the evening, instead of reading to the good old lady as usual, I amused her with the Doctor's story, and this, of course, made her very anxious for the sequel; and therefore, on the following evenning, as she seated herself at her work-table, and commenced her knitting, I took Mrs Weston's MS. from my pocket, and read as follows: Mrs Templeton's History. The mother of Mrs Templeton was early distinguished among her companions by her extreme beauty, for when surrounded, even by those who were otherwise called handsome, Constance Stapleton still was as preeminently lovely as the rose among the flowers of the garden. Her parents, who were in a respectable and opulent trade, fondly hoped that one fitted to place this rose in an exalted sta tion would sue for her hand; nor were they disappointed. Disparity of fortune seemed forgotten. Rank, wealth, and dignity, courted the acceptance of Constance; but all were disregarded, all refused; for a young man, then only preparing to enter the comparatively-humble station of a merchant, had gained her affection; but her dread of her father prevented her disclosing the secret of her heart. Mr Stapleton was angry at his daughter's apparent insensibility to the advantages offered to her, and determined to find out the cause; and, by the jealousy of an elder sister, (who had at first imagined herself the object of Henry Murray's attentions,) he was made acquainted with their passion. Nothing could equal his rage at the disclosure. He threatened his daughter with all the consequences of his eternal displeasure, if she persisted in her attachment,-insulted Henry in the grossest manner, and prevailed on his master to send him to London, that he might have no chance of meeting with Constance. But he knew not the strength of her affection, and how fatal had been his former indulgence to her. High-spirited and passionate, she had never been used to control. From infancy she had been the declared darling of her father, and her love, on which her whole heart dwelt with all the fervour and all the purity of a maiden tenderness, was the first subject on which she had encountered opposition. But of this she thought not. She had become ad to vague and doubtful conclusions, deduced from variable and uncertain data; the rules by which he is to be guided in repairing the accidental injuries to which different parts of the body are liable, and extirpating portions which have become the seats of incurable disease, rest on the most secure basis-that of demonstration: and hence, with the Vis medicatrix Nature as his great auxiliary, and with a thorough knowledge of the anatomy of that wonderful machine, which it is his object to restore to health and vigour, the knife of the Surgeon becomes the instrument by which we are relieved from some of the most dreadful diseases "which flesh is heir to." WHATEVER difference of opinion may prevail as to the certainty and importance of the science of Medicine, there can be none, we should suppose, in regard to that of Surgery, which is founded on observation and experiment. By his prescriptions, the Physician has it almost always in his power to mitigate acute pain, and he may sometimes succeed in arresting the progress of disease, even when seated in organs which the hand of an operator cannot reach; but as he has often no other guide than a sort of conjectural reasoning on manifestations or symptoms, susceptible of every variety of modification from the operation of latent causes, his practice must be liable to great uncertainty, and must often de- But we have assumed, that successpend for its success rather on the na- ful practice depends upon accurate tural sagacity of the practitioner, than science, which, again, is only attainon any fixed rules of general applica- able by means of frequent dissections tion. Fortunately for society, the and demonstrations. But how can Surgeon is not thus condemned to dissections be prosecuted, or demongrope in the dark. His practice is,strations given, without subjects? And or at least ought to be, grounded on the most accurate and minute knowledge of the structure of the human body, and the functions of its different organs, both in the healthy and diseased state; he is seldom or never reduced to the necessity of trusting how can subjects, in sufficient number for the purposes of anatomical instruction, be procured, when the Judges, the Magistrates, and the people of this country, seem confederated in one grand conspiracy against the study of anatomy? It is perfectly undeniable that this is the fact; nay, more, that the rude but natural prejudices of the mob have been adopted and acted upon by those who should have endeavoured to restrain them; that the public journals, ever ready to re-echo the predominant feeling, be it good or evil, have pandered to the vulgar appetite for the horrible, by dragging forth the secrets of the dissecting-room; and that the teachers of anatomy have been held up to execration for countenancing a practice, branded as a crime by some ancient and barbarous laws, and rendered necessary solely by the shameful neglect of the civil authorities to provide the means for prosecuting a branch of study in which the whole community is deeply interested. This inattention, conjoined with the disproportionate severity exercised towards those who are from time to time detected in supplying the dissecting-room with subjects in the only way in which it can at present be supplied, has already been productive of consequences which, we should imagine, must speedily call for some interposition on the part of those who have the power, if they had the inclination, to remedy the evil. To say nothing of the danger to the community at large, which must ultimately arise from ignorant or illqualified persons being suffered to practise as Surgeons, it is notorious to all the world, that the Medical School of Edinburgh, not long since the first in the world, has fallen from its high and palmy state; that many young men, after enrolling themselves as students, and discovering, that, notwithstanding the well-earned celebrity of the teachers, they were precluded from acquiring any real practical knowledge of anatomy, have abandoned this once famous school, and repaired to Dublin or Paris; that several teachers have been compelled to discontinue their lectures for want of subjects; while others have been so inadequately supplied, that though they contrived to get through their course, it was with no satisfaction to themselves, and little benefit to their pupils. We wonder that a feeling of national pride does not stir up the sluggish spirits of those who are either too prejudiced, too ignorant, or too narrow-minded, to be moved by any considerations of public utility, or love for science. We wonder that the vital interests of a great and hitherto-renowned institution do not attract a small portion of attention from its otherwise liberal patrons. We wonder that mere pecuniary benefit does not come in aid or instead of motives of a higher and more enlightened character. Hitherto, we may almost venture to assert, that the English, Irish, and French Schools of Anatomy, have produced nothing in the aggregate to rival the works of Monro, Innes, John Bell, Charles Bell, Burns, Barclay, Thomson, Wardrope, &c. &c. ; and is the fame of these men to be sacrificed to the Gothic prejudices of the rabble, fostered, as they have unhappily been, by those who should have known better, and shown themselves superior to such degrading influence? Are our lives and limbs to be placed at the mercy of mere carvers of living human flesh, because certain big-wigs, learned in the laws of a comparatively barbarous age, but centuries behind the science and information of their own, occasionally discourse, in good set terms, of the crimen violati sepulchri-a crime (since that must be the word) which the law itself has created, and rendered necessary? We mean no insult to the unsophisticated feelings of human nature; we respect these feelings as much as we despise the bigotry and prejudice so frequently engrafted upon them; and it is precisely because we entertain such sentiments, that we think some interference on the part of the Legislature absolutely indispensable, to save the country from the evils with which it is at present threatened, and to prevent the Anatomical Schools of this country from being utterly deserted. In the actual state of the science, the splendid work of Mr Lizars has most opportunely appeared, and, unquestionably, as far as Art can supply the place of Nature, the profession, particularly the younger branches of it, are greatly indebted to the author, and we think they have done themselves infinite honour by the flattering reception they have given to the work. It is published in Numbers; each containing from |