Current:

Northern Star (1837-1852), 4th January 1845, Edition 3 of 4, Page 3, CONINGSBY; or, THE NEW GENERATION. BtB.D...

Page 3
Page 3
3 of 8

On this page

  • Departments (3)
    • m**n
    • Mewm
    • mt mt#
  • Text (18)
  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      January 4, 1845. The Northern Star. 3

      January 4 , 1845 . THE NORTHERN STAR . 3

      M**N

      m _** n

      The Commission Of Genius Up, Thoug Ht! T...

      THE COMMISSION OF GENIUS Up , thoug ht ! thou hast a mighty work—A glorious task to do , Better than squabbling with the Turk , Qr _hstbbling with the Jew ; A wider field than Waterloo Hast thou wherein to war ; 'Gainst fiercer foes than Czsar knew , Or Russia ' s daring Czar . Thou hast no need of spear or sword , 2 for shield nor helmet bright , Nor quiver , with sharp arrows stored , To fit thee for the fight : Thine only weapon is thy right , Which , if thou taskest weU , Shall arm thee with a _giantfs might , And strength invincible .

      Thou hast to pull oppression down To humble haughty pride To snatch from vice her jeweU'd crown _. And dash her slaves aside ;—To open freedom ' s portals wide , Wherever shut and barr'd ; And be , whatever may betide , A most unflinching lord . On stubborn error thou must throw Truth's full and startling- _light , And hid thc blinded beldame grow Clear-eyed in years' despite ; And through the thick and lampless night Of Ignorance advance , And waken him to visions bright , From _dulness' misty trance .

      Before the thrones of mighty kings Thou must unfearing stand , And tell them place and power are things Loose-based on shifting sand ; That empires may awhile expand , Tet , if unjust their sway , Though snake-eyed craft their being _plann'd , They surf ly shall decay . Thou art to go where senates sit , And thunder in their ear-That hearts corrupt are aU unfit In government to share . What if they threaten !—thou must dare Their vengeance to its worst , Or , through uncounted ages , bear The epithet accurst

      Thou hast to burst the barriers strong Which _pri-judice hath built , And brand each doer dark of wrong With his just title—guilt ! Remember , ' tis not if thou wilt , But 'tis thou shalt require From him who hath life ' s current spilt , A retribution dire . Thou shalt contemn wealth ' s proffered gold , And , to thy mandate just , In all his glittering stores behold But sordid dross and dust . Nor shalt thou , like cursed Achan , lust For garments rich and rare : Think , as the flames consumed bis trust , Thou may ' st his torments share .

      Thou shalt not leave one ill uncheck'd , Nor dally -with the time That looks on peace and comfort _wreck'd As anything but crime . Thou know ' st how earth was in her prime , And unto thee 'tis given To make _lier in her age sublime—A secondary heaven . Nay , speak not of thine humble birth ; 'Tis false—thou _' rt ofthe sky ; God sent thee specially to earth _. On his commission high . Thou wilt not surely dare deny Thy task , with lying breath ; If so like Judas , thou shalt die An everlasting death J

      Up!—rouse thee from thy shameful sleep , What dost thou on the ground ? And wiih thy wings of lightning sweep Thc universe around . Why- . like a captive gyved and hound , Groaa _' st thou thine hours away , When , as a monarch robed and crown'd , Tl . ua might ' st aU Uving sway ! Arise I go forth ! for lo , a curse Rests both on thee and thine , Darker , and deadlier , and worse Than erst was Lantech ' s sign . Go forth ! thine errand is . divine ; Refuse , and thus 'tis giren ; Thou art a traitor most malign—A renegade to heaven 1 Bristol . J .

      Mewm

      _Mewm

      Coningsby; Or, The New Generation. Btb.D...

      CONINGSBY ; or , THE NEW GENERATION . BtB . _D'Ishaeu , Esq ., M . P . London : Coiburn , Great _Marlboroagli-stt-eet . ( Continued from the Northern Star of December 14 th . J lir . D'Israeli lias expended no small quantity of fine writing on the glories of Eton , and the joys , excitements , Lopes , and competitive struggles of its youthful _^ inmates . Few themes will probably be more interesting to tbose of the readers of Cotungsby , who bave bad tiie privilege of receiving instruction at that famed school ; but to tiie mass of our readers this applies not , and to pester tbem with descriptions of Eton life would be bnt adding insult to injury . At Eton the children cf tbe landed aristocrat , tbe speculating

      profitmonger , the tricky lawyer—in short , all who Lave money , may commingle and compete in common for the glorious prizes which knowledge awards to her successful votaries ; but tills is denied to the children of the poor man , the olfspring of the class whose labonr is the support of the classes we have enumer ated . There is a subject in connection witli Eton , as with every other great public school , which ve should have been glad to have seen handled something more severely than it has been by Mr . D'Israeliwe allude to the abominable fagging system . Mr . _D'Ibbaeu glances at this system , and tliat Is all : lis scarcely gives it a word of condemnation . The / _aaging system wc look upon as one of the prime pi oi . s of existing tyrannies . It is almost _iuvariablv seen

      { hat ihe boy who is the most bullied anu trampled on daring bis school minority , becomes , on : _* . ti . iin ; ng haa majority , as brutally tyrannical as he Lad been previously base and servile , -repaying upon others tbe injuries be has himself borne , and avenging himself for bis past degradation , by degrading and trampling on those weaker than himself . Tbe result of ibis training is , that the pupils , with rare exceptions , carry from the school into active life { he mingled servility and love of despotism which has _eharacteriEodthemintheirpup ilage . Heneecourtiers , and sycophants , tyrants , and slaves are made . Tbe system has been allowed to exist and perpetuate itself because lis fruits Lave been the perpetuity of inequality , and the prolongation of the reign of caste .

      Any scheme of educational reform which shall not extinguish every vestige of tbe fagqing system must fail in _producing any results widelyamering from the existing state ot things . Onr readers can hardly fail to have been struck , in perusing extracts already given from Coningiby , with the -very elegant slang which , acecrding to Mr . _D'Israefi , prevails in the conversation of Etonians . We were aware that Eton had long been famous for the eloquence of its pupils , but we certainly were not previously aware tnat so . much , of costermongering * _Uom formed so large an ingredient in the eloquence of Eton ' s boasted orators ! "When Coningsby first alludes to Millbank , he speaks of him as " an infernaZ manufactiufr . " Tbis word "infernal" seems to

      be exceedingly popular with the Etonians . Buckhurat speaks of the rebels in the civil war having been "infernally licked . " Again , when it is rumoured ihat Coningsby is drowned , Buckliurst breaks in with "It ' s an infernal lie ! " "Lark" and " row , " and many similar phrases , sppc-y to be as natural in the mouths of these young patricians as in those of thc humblest plebeians of St . Giles ' s . We mention this merely because it is the fashion of aristocrats , young * and old , to turn up their noses , and curl their lips with contempt , at those they are pleased to term the " common people , " the "lower class , " & w We thank Mr . _L'Isijaeli for disabusinsr the minds of those of ths " common

      people" who may have been foolishly disposed to give credence to the vaunted superiority of manners on the part of their wealthy masters . The boy Millbank , iJcforc-mentioned , one of Coningsbys school-fellows , was the son of one of the wealth : estin . 'oiufaeturersofL _* iii « 'JiLii _* e . "Hisfatber , whose opinions were of a very Democratic bent , sent his son to Eton , though he disapproved of the system of education pursued there , to show that he had as much right to do so as any Duke in thc land . " Of course he had the right , for he had the money . But very different -would be the position of those hundreds , or thousands , whose labour was the source of the elder Millbank ' s wealth . Bight they had none , to « end their children to be educated with tbe children

      of Dukes , because money tbey had none 3 Onr _Lancashire readers will , _vrcfancy , be rather snrprisetl to bear of Ikn . otratir , millowners ; perhaps Ave shall be enlightened bv and bve , as to tbe democratic opinions of the elder ' Millbank . We have seen that lhc younger Millbank was no favourite * of Coningkby ' s in he fifst ir « i . ince . ; but an accident happening to the femer while _baiiuinj , Coniiusby has the gcod for-*? ne to save Ms schoolfellow ' s llie at the imminent fj . . ° _f " " _* « . This creates a _fricndsliip between _* nvo , which _qieeduy ripens into an attachment of c" most romantic character . FoUowin ' . - th is we have _aiofTr- " ' e Eton Monton - at which Lord Mon-! _o-.. v iV u 5 , ! = _fo '* 5 grandfather ) attended to take _*¦ _£ * "f his _y-j-Jiciut \

      ' « . * o < i ] .,. -, ,, ., __ _,.. ¦ r .,. . M _,.,, " _» _hi-n i - * ' l ! v dtar _Harry , * " said Lord Monmouth , _tfa-fcau -- " _*' 11 ' _^ _graudson farewell . "I am < roing _"gi-iii : I cannot remain in this _Kadical-riiMen

      Coningsby; Or, The New Generation. Btb.D...

      country . Remember , though I am away , Monmouth Ilouse is your home—at least as long as it belongs to me . I understand my tailor has turned Liberal , and is going to stand for one of the metropolitan districts ; a friend of Lord Durham ; perhaps I shall find him in it when I return . I fear there are evil days for the sew geseba-TIOS ' , " ( To be _emitinued . )

      The New Edinburgh Review. Quautenly. Par...

      THE NEW EDINBURGH REVIEW . _QuAUTEnLY . Part I . Wc noticed some time ago thc first monthly instalment of this new periodical , whieh . we learn is intended-to appear in a quarterly as well as monthly shape . In the second and third numbers improvcment _. in a literary view is , we are glad to say , sufficiently evident . But wc must add to this our regret tliat the good sense of some articles should be neutralised by the unmistakeable trash of others . As an example of the latter , wc cite thc Review of CJtmnlers ' Tracts , No . 1 , which purports to be a biography of Louis Philippe . It would be hard to decide whether the Tract or the Review is the greatest mass of nonsense . Again , the writer of the article entitled " Social Maladies from Partial Civilization'' argues

      in favour of Savings Banks as one means of remedy for the distress of the working class ! Adding , that workmen sliould save out of their high wages when trade is brisk to lay by a store for a period of slackness ! " Thc object sought , " says this writer , "is to make thc pood cover the bad years , and this is perhaps possible , were the high wages paid in prosperous times not so imprudently dissipated ! " Never was a viler calumny uttered against thc working classes than this same Maltlmsianlie—the " improvidence of the working classes . " It would be waste of time and patience to argue this point . Here is the fact , that all thc people spend—no matter how they spend itthey have made for themselves . But over and above that , three-fourtlis of what they have made is taken from tbem by other classes . The mansions , the mills , the servants , the horses , the hounds , aud the harlots of tho wealthy , are all paid for by the poor . Every necessary , every luxury , enjoyed . by the wealthy , has been produced bv the working man , or obtained

      inexchange for the fruits of bis labour . How atrocious , then , is the brazen impudence ofthe men who charge on the working classes dissipated and improvident habits ; when , owing to the robberies of thc rich , the poor have not the means to either _improvidently expend , or criminally dissipate . And then the precious remedy this writer suggests for the distress he acknowledges to exist 1 We would rcccommcnd bim , before he again attempts to play the part of statetinker , to put himself under the tuition ofthe Bradford Democrat , whose letter appeared in last week ' s Star . A six months' sweating at the combs , with the reward of comber ' s wages , to meet thc wants of a comber ' s family , would put him up to a thing or tyo , and among other matters teach him his capabilities of "laying by a store" for the future . If the conductors of the New Edinburgh really wish it to succeed , they will see the propriety of putting a stop to such emasculated puerilities as the schemes put forth by tbe writer ofthe article " Social Maladies , " Ac . Ac .

      We gladlyturn to articles of a different stamp , of which we are glad to say there are several . Wc particularly single out an article entitled __ "Religious Changes . " The first portion of which gives __ thc liistory of Draidism ; the second portion , the history of the Apostolic Age ; nnd thc third , the history of Papacy , to the Reformation . The writer clearly proves , first , the derivation of Druidism from the East , that fertile birth-place of all superstitions—second , its wide diffusion through nearly all the countries of tbe earth—and , third , its continuance , in various shapes , down to the present time , as instanced in the names of tbe davs of the week -, tbe British poetical

      mythology , —the fairies , Pucks , < fcc ., the ceremonies of All-Hallowmas , May-day , and Midsnmmer-eve ; reverence for thc niisletoe * , & c , & e . Of Christianity , the writer clearly shows , that long after the introduction of that religion into this country , the new creed was as mnch Druidical and Pagan as Christian . "The Pagan temples here , as they had previously been at Rome , being consecrated for Christian worship , and tbe festivals heretofore kept in honour of heathen deities , and dear tothe populace , were dedicated to the saints ofthe new promulgation . " Christianity itself made no progress till incorporated with Paganism . We quote the following : —

      The establishment of a new religion indeed is a phcenix , of wliich the world can hardly yet boast of having inherited or recorded a perfect specimen . Most forms of worship hitherto promulgated and established hare been derivative , and held in combination with pre-existing beliefs , rites , and ceremonies . The aboriginal , the Catholic faith of Europe , and probably of mankind , has been shown to have heen Druidism ; the sanguinary offerings and the priesthood of this primitive worshi p were exterminated , bnt its forms and spirit survived and stiU survive in the popular feelings and usages of nations . Upon the ruins

      of this superstition the more splendid and _viable forms of the heathen mythology were established . Christianity itself hardly ever existed uncomhined with pre-existingrites , unless during thc brief term of the Author ' s earthly pilgrimage , and , as delivered from the lips of Jesus Christ himself , it partook more of the nature ofa preceptive doctrine for separate individual edification than of a new promulgation intended to constitute national worship . As first offered itwas withont forms or expression ; it had no temple , no sacrifice , no priesthood ; itwas a faith , a belief , a spirit of communion , wbich the divine oracf e pro . posed to open between each believer and the Almighty .

      In this simple state , however , it did not survive the age ofthe Evangelists . It became incorporated with Judaism . The first converts were Jews , who were all zealous for tlie law of tlieir fathers , nor did they consider themselves exempt from its obligations . They kept the Jewish sabbath , were circumcised , attended the worship c _* f the temple and the synagogue , and in all things observed the Mosaic ritual . St . Paul was a Jew-Christian , observing the law , and who himself circumcised Timothy . The first fifteen bishops of Jerusalem were Nazarenes , as con-Verted Jews were termed .

      Jesus Christ gave a new moral and a new faith to mankind , but these were soon lost sight of , if not buried under the superstructure erected out of materials derived from other sources . The Gospel was preached to the Gentile nations , but never obtained a pervading influence over them until it began to be promulgated from their temples , asd commingled with tlieir superstitions . Upon this platform the Itoman worship was established . The faith m ight be Christ ' s , but the visible and dominant elements wliich obtained for the Catholic Church its supremacy were wholly of pagan origin .

      That this is the true history of Catholicism has been established by Dr . _Jfiddleton , a learned divine of the Church of England . In his celebrated Letter from Rome he exhibits , in a perspicuous manner , the conformity between Paganism and Popery , and proves that the rcUgion of the Romans , in its services and rites , is entirely borrowed from their heathen ancestors . But it was by such conformity Catholicism triumphed , and without it Christianity itself would probably have made very slow progress in the conversion of men . Incorporated with n more ancient and popular worship , its propagative force was vastly augmented ; it obtained by this union that which it most needed—spectacle and rites , which , appealing to the senses in visible forms , its authority was rapidly extended —first over the latin empire of the West , and next over the German nations who subdued it . With another extract we conclude : —

      What conld be more stainless , meek , and lowly than Christianity in its first advances to mankind ! It was infancy—guileless , unblemished , and unpretending . But as it advanced In years and _strength , as it mingled with temporal interests , with the _purruits of ambition , power , and riches , its character wr . _s pvrrerted . From a holy aspiration , pure and _undenled , it degenerated into an apparatus of wordlincss . From being the handmaid of civilisation , it became the great obstacle to social advancement . From the laudable vocation of controlling tlie passions of fierce and wicked men , of asserting human equality and God's impartial justiee to all , its ministers degenerated into oppressors , and erected a vast superstructure of plunder and monopoly .

      The "Autobiography ofa Living Writer ; " the " Origin oftbe Laws and the Three Estates ; " " Sandhurst College and its Mathematics ; " "Blackguardism , its Pose and Fall ; " "Optical Delusions ;" " Reviews of the _Coi-respondence of thc Right Hon . Edmund Burke ; " and other works : are articles all worthy of attentive perusal : but ibr further extract or comment we cannot afford room .

      The New Parley Library. Part Ix. This Ex...

      THE NEW PARLEY LIBRARY . Part IX . This excellent miscellany increases in interest as it increases in age . If its contents were limited only to the excellent translation of the Wandering Jew , it would be worth far more than the price charged for it . At the present moment , when priestcraft , both abroad and at home , is making such mighty efforts to regain its old ascendancy , it behoves the friends of free thought to be everywhere on the alert to provide thc antidote to the poison so widely diffused . The day is not far distant wben thc struggle commenced by the French Reformers will have to be consummated . Thc second great conflict is approaching . Let the friends of reason and the rights of man lock to itthat priestly-riBany does not over-reach

      , them . We say to tbe " men ofthe progress , " help to _cii-cuiatc by every means in your power this work of Eugene Sue ' s . It is enough for you to know tbat on tbe Continent fhe priests everywhere preach and rail against it , and in some countries bave succeeded in getting the civil power to interdict the printing of it ; it is _enough for vou io know tbat the _arc-li _l-. vpoerite , the " _j-rcat jjn ] csior , the Mokanna of cur _liicc _, Lir . _1- / . _MJI . G"Co _:--xri . i .. c _' _cr . cunccs and raves , against tliis work—it is surely enough for the r . dvoeates of human liberty to know these iiiing _*? , to induce them fo do their best tc- circulate a \\ c . A : so hated and feared by rriests . To our readers , wc « iy , buy tbe New Parky Libra ™ , and read thc Wandering Jew .

      The Orphan ; Or, Memoirs Of Matilda. Bt ...

      THE ORPHAN ; OR , MEMOIRS OF MATILDA . Bt El-gene So * . London : Newby , Mortimerstreet . This is a translation of one of Eugene Sue ' s works , translated bv flic Hon . D . G . Osborne . Ibe first number _on'v ' has reached us . ami this necessarily af-

      The Orphan ; Or, Memoirs Of Matilda. Bt ...

      fords us but poor materials on which to ground a judgment of the work ; but we suppose the reputation of thc author of " The Mysteries of Paris" will be sufficient guarantee with most readers , that aught wbich emanates from his pen must be sterling ore . The Orphan opens with no lack of that mystery ' so dear to all romance readers . Thus , we nave most of the scenes described in Part I laid in the interior of an unpretending coffee-house in one of the most out-of-the-way and unfrequented parts of Paris . Opposite to "Le Cafe Lebocuf is a sombre and long-uninhabited building ,- called the " hotel D'Orbcsson . " Tins hotel , after being many rears untenanted , is taken possession of by a Colonel Ulric , whom nobody knows , and whose pursuits nobody can divine , and who is attended by an equally mysterious janissary . The greater part of the number before us is taken np with an account of the contrivances had recourse to bv the gossips , who were in

      the habit of assembling at Madame Lcbceufs to satisfy their curiosity as to who and what the [ strange Colonel is . This is followed by the mysterious introduction of two females , one young and very handsome . Then we have the equally mysterious introduction of two exquisites , who appear to belong to that class of unquestionable blackguards , " men about town , " or . " men of the world . " These have a rencontre with the mysterious colonel , who , refusing certain explanations required of liim , a duel is threatened , and is supposed to " come off , " though of this too we are left in doubt . From this slight sketch the lovers of romance will see that there is mystery enough in all conscience to begin with . Perhaps future numbers will afford us materials for an extract or two , which is not the case with that before us . The work will be illustrated by Robert Cruikshank , whose name is sufficient to guarantee the first of talent in his department .

      The Whole Art Or Chess Ann Draughts. Lon...

      The WHOLE ART or CHESS Ann DRAUGHTS . London : Cleave , Shoe-lane , Fleet-street . We must confess our ignorance ofthe art of which this little book treats , and , therefore , our incompetence to decide on its merits . Chess has been described as the " Amusement of princes , sages , and conquerors ; " and it wiB not be the fault of the publisher of this little work if it be not also the amusement of the miBion . We subjoin the introduction ; for the very full instructions on every point connected with this popular pastime we must refer our readers to the book itself , which may be had at a cost within the reach oftbe humblest .

      THE HISTORY OF CHESS . It has been justly observed , that among aU the in-door amusements invented by man for the employment of the idle or the relief of thc studious , chess stands pre-eminent . It is the most refined and ingenious of aU games , aud possesses a charm which has rendered it a favourite of the greatest characters , whether kings , warriors , or philosophers . As an amusement , it possesses an advantage as great as it is singular ; being highly interesting in itself , aud played with leisure , it requires no inducement of gain , and in consequence is rarely played for money . The glory of conquest is aUowed to form a sufficient attraction .

      Chess is of unknown origin and antiquity . Some writers have ascribed its invention to the Greeks , some to the Ilindoos , others to the Chinese , and a fourth class to the Persians . There cau be little doubt that it originated in the east , and at a very remote period of history ; and it is certain that it has been known in Hindostan , and adjacent regions , for at least two thousand years . From thc Persians it was introduced by the Arabians iuto Spain ; thence it found its way to France ; and was made known in England during tho reign of William the Conqueror . The name of the game , and also the names of the

      pieces with wliich it is played , have undergone many mutations in _traveling from country to country ; nevertheless , in the present terms which we employ , the semblance of the original eastern appellations may be seen . In Hindostan it possesses the Sanscrit name of chatitranga , which imports the four members of an army—elephants , horses , chariots , and foot soldiers ; the game being a scene of mimic warfare , in which these elements _respectively act a peculiar part . The Persians corrupted the Sanscrit word into _cltatrang , which the Arabians softened into chatranj ; from that appellation it passed into scacchi _, echecs _, and finally chess . By the French it is called echecs , and a chess hoard they term _echiguier .

      According to the modern European arrangement , the idea of elephants , horses , chariots , and foot soldiers has been abandoned , and there have been substituted a king , queen , bishops , knights , castles or rooks , and pawns , forming six distinct classes of pieces . The term bishop is only English , being a substitution for elephant . The knights represent the horse-soldiers . The term rook is from the eastern word rohh , a hero , and represents an armed chariot or fortification ; the English give the piece the form ofa castle . The pawns are the foot soldiers , the name being from peon , an attendant . Thc chess pieces made in India , or China , for sale to wealthy Europeans , are sometimes made of solid ivory , five or six inches high , and are exceedingly beautiful , no degree of labour being spared in the carving . The _kiug and queen arc seated on elephants , under a canopy , the bishops are camels , with archers as their riders ; the knights are on horseback ; the castles are elephants , with castles on their backs filled with warriors ; and the pawns are soldiers , one a sergeant , another a drummer , another a fifer , and the rest ordinary fighting men .

      The Clothworkers Of The Olden Time. To T...

      THE CLOTHWORKERS OF THE OLDEN TIME . TO THE EDITOB OF THE NORTHERN STAB . Sm , —Tiic able , though mind-paining prose picture ofthe present condition oftbe male and female cloth-workers of Bradford , as given , front a correspondent , in your Jast number of the just-departed year , has suggested to me the propriety of transcribing , for thc first number of thc new year , a companion-piece , by way of contrast , in a picture in poetry , as written about two centuries and a half ago , and

      referring to a period much more remote , fhe author is Thomas Delony , who wrote various ofthe popular ballads of the time—the Spanish Lady , Fair Rosamond , Wat TyUr , and many others ; . but thc extract given is to be found hi a small volume , purporting to be a life of John of IVinchcombe , a rich , and otherwise celebrated cJotkier , in the reign of Henry VIIL , and who had his name from thc town of his birth , Delony also wrote the History of tlie Six Worthy Clothiers of the West , in honour of the same profession ; and the History of the Gentle Craft , in compliment to shoemakers .

      From a notice in Stow , I find he was outlawed in 1596 , by the authorities of thc City of London , for writing some verses on the dcamess of corn , * and had been blamed before this for printing a book in favour ofthe silk-weavers , when tbey were engaged in some struggle connected with their craft ; and hencethe productions were necessarily most objectionable to thc " powers that be . " Both these compositions , it appears , arc now lost , though " pity it is " it is so . The annals of the producing classes have yet to be written , and not alone from yesterday , but through hundreds of years back . Should you , sir , therefore , consider the accompany ing transcript worthy of insertion , as a small" item " in this way , it is at your service , and will , no doubt , occasion some interest in its perusal . Much ofthe description is at once simple and engaging ; as , for instance , of the women carders , " Who synging sat , with voices clear * ; and of the " raaydens " with

      " Their smocke sleeves hke to winter snow , " while " Each sleeve , with a silken band , Wae _featly tied to the hand . " " Pretty maids , " indeed ! as the writer calls them ; spinning their soft threads out of the beautiful fleece , and mingling together then * " voices meet , like nightingales ! " And then , too , how exquisitely the employment of the " seven score and ten children" is hit off—the children of humble , inoffensive fathers , _orj ) f " poore silly men , " as the phrase is here set forth in the manner of expression ofthe period . And again , what a glorious John Bull finish the poet makes . Such a fulness of all good eating ; and such a clatter of "dishes , pots , and pans ! " And of all this , even the " seven score and ten " children , had their rich bell y fuls , and a clear penny " every one ;" beside , " at night , " a penny , wiiich would purchase more of other eatables than six limes the sum does now . But let the poet tell thc tale himself , and here itis : —

      JOHN OP WINCHCOMBE _' S WOBKE PEOPLE . Within one roomc , being large and long , There stood two hundred loomes full strong , Two hundred men the truth is so , Wrought In these loomes all in a row . By every one a pretty boy Sate making quils with mickle joy . And in another place , hard by , An hundred women merrily , Wure carding hard with joyful eheero , Who singing sat with voices cleare . And in a chamber , close beside , Two hundred maydens did abide , In peticoats of stammel red , And milk-white kerchers on their head : Their smocke sleeves like to winter snow

      That on the western mountaines now , And each sleeve , with a silken baud , Was featly tied to tlie hand . These pretty maids did never lin , But in that place did all day spin ; And spinning so , with voices sweet , Like ni ghtingales tliey sung full sweet Then to 'mother rod . no came they , AVhere children were in _jioore _an-ay ; And every one sat picking woll , The finest from the _ccavsu to cull :

      The number wns seven store and ten , The children of poore silly men . And there , their labours to requite , Iiad every one a penny at niglit , Beside their meate and drink all day , Whir ! : was to tliem a wondrous stay . AViihin :: _iiot }» : r j . _V : ? elikewise , 1 ' ii'l : ;' i _' t » - _jivojier m . n h ? -f i-o ; And _ihes-i : won : _Shvftvem- _'v . ei _- cry one , AVhoPe skill and _cuvii-iy th ; wsis showuc And hard by them there did remainc Full foure score Bowers taking paine . _f

      The Clothworkers Of The Olden Time. To T...

      A Dye-house likewise had ha then , Wherein ho kept full fortie men . And likewise in his Fulling Mill , Full twentie persons kept he still . Each week ten good fat oxen he Spent in his house for e ' ertaintic ; Besides good butter , cheese , and fish _. And many another wholesome dish . He kept a Butcher aU the yeere : A Brewer eke for Ale and Becre : A Baker for to bake his bread , "Which stood his householde in good stead Five Cookes within his kitchen great _. Were aU the yeare to dresse his moate ; Sixe scullion boyes unto their hands To make clean dishes ; pots , and pans : Beside poore children that did stay To turn the brooches every day . This was a gallant clothier sure , Whose fame for ever shall induvo !

      Wishing all the readers of the Star , and everybody else , to soon see these starry times again , I remain , Sir , yours , very truly , The Editor or tbe " Cordwainers' Companion . " P . S _.- —Would not the new version of the " Employer and the Employed" go off in a neat cheap pamphlet ? The "Garland , " too , is beautiful , it is a thorougldy blooming Winter Wreath , though so much of it is tear-fed .

      * Thc Account Is In The Stereotype Editi...

      * Thc account is in the stereotype edition of Stow , and the words are : — " The maker ofthe scurrilous ballad was one Belonie , an idle fellow , and one noted with the like spirit , in printing a book for the silk-weavers , wherein was found some such foolish and disorderly ; doctrines . " "He could not , " says the samo authority , " be found , and sent in his place a copy ofthe _haUad , asa sort of joke upon his mayor-ship . " t This term " paine _, " I suppose , is intended to convey the carefulness with which the " rowers " executed their tasks ; though what is meant by " rowers" I am not aware .

      Charles Dickens-Boz. Sir Walter Scott Di...

      CHARLES DICKENS-BOZ . Sir Walter Scott died in 1832 , and Sickens appeared in 1833 . Those who love to trace the . descents of genius , will be pleased with tho curious coincidence in point of time , which we offer to Mr . Dickens' admirers in lieu of the old joke—that Scott wrote viell , but Dickens he wrote lVeUer . Some of liis first efforts , his Sketches hy Bqz , were written for the old "Monthly Magazine . " AVe recollect falling in with a stray sheet of this magazine , three or four days after its publication , for it became waste paper , so sickly was its then existence , thc day after it was out . AVe were all ears and eyes , merriment aud pleasure , though the writer's name was more unknown to us than the real origin of Junius . From the pages of the "Monthly Magazine" his labours were transferred to the columns of the "Morning Chronicle . " Here they had a wide circulation , and the name of "Boz" was known " Far as loud Bow ' s stupendous bells resound . "

      They were immediately coUected by Macrone , and illustrated by Cruikshank . The demand was unprecedented ; and tho supply at iirBt was not equal to thc demand . We recollect a dowager countess calling at Macrone ' s _, in St , James ' s-square , for a copy of the work . He had sold the last , and the new edition would not he ready before tomorrow _. The countess , all impatient , begged for thc loan of the two volumes . He had sold his own . She would look in the shop , she said , for herself , and actually left her carriage to rummage for a copy . The search was ineffectual , and the noble lady drove off really offended with the young and handsome publisher .

      He had not as yet taken the people ; but the " Pickwick Papers , " his next pubUcation , completed that triumph . Not mnch was expected from the first number , and Mr . Macrone , it is said , had more than foretold its failure , AVith the third and fourth numbers it rose into reputation , and Macrone willingly admitted the incorrectness of this conclusion . Our mornmg and evening papers abounded with paragraphs from Pickwick , and Sam Weller became more the idol of the people than tlie great Lord Essex , Jack Wilks , Sir Francis Burdett , or Lord George Gordon . It was in this the heyday of his rising reputation that we had the pleasure of meeting Mr . Diekcns for the first time . —His appearance is prepossessing ; his figure small —but well made ; his look intelligent , and his eyes peculiarly expressive , ne seemed scanning you , not

      obtrusivel y , but unobservedly , _fi-om head to foot . * As he entered " thero was a cry liko that o Pope , Pope . ' - —the cry described by Sir J . Reynolds aB hailing the appearance of tliat illustrious poet . There was a sort of whisper of " Dickens is here ; here is Dickens , " in a concealed kind of under breath—confidentiaUy telling what each wishes to know . In a mixed party stupid people abound , and eome were there that night who expected he would talk the next number of Pickwick , or create a new Sam AVellcr for tho amusement of the party . There was quite a bus about Boz , and modest as we then wero , we were content that night with _seeing Dickens—retiring to another room in expectation cf some other and early occasion of forming his acquaintance . This we have since done , aud we believe we have both his good will and his good wishes .

      To our thinking " Boz" has never outdone or equalled his Sam WeUer _^ -that happy creature of fino and fertile observation , so unmistakcably true to human nature . Sam needs no letter of introduction to our sympathies ; he is just as welcome for the period of his existence as Falstaff , Uncle Toby , or Tom Jones . The critics who call Hogarth a comic painter , call Mr . Dickens a comic writer . The description is incorrect in both cases . Hogarth and Dickens are painful moralists —men that prove human nature to the quick—healing satirists that unveil vice and effect a moral good . Mr . Dickens has been a benefactor to his species—he has smoothed the brow of pain , the face of sorrow , and lent balm to the bed of death . 'This is praise sufficient for a life . Yet he has doue more . He has enlarged our public sympathies , calling attention to the neglected bastard and to tbepennilesspoor—to those thin-dieted asylums , called cheap schools—and to those real prisons , our union workhouses . —Pictorial Times .

      A Bowl Of "Punch," Fresh Brewed. The Bis...

      A BOWL OF " PUNCH , " FRESH BREWED . THE BISHOPS . Certainly there is something the matter with thc Bishops . It is not for Punch to criticiscthe lawn with the eye and finger of a lady who would buy pocket-handkerchiefs ; but there is something the matter with the Bishops . There was a time when wc never heard of them save in their Christian proprieties ; when they gave away oxen and cart-loads of bread at their doors to the poor . Now do tbey evciy day occupy—to the exclusion of much instructive and amusing matter—three or four columns of the Times . Surely , this is not as it ought to be .

      People get up of mornings and wonder what Exeter will say—just as certain folks , the first thing they do , consult the weather-cock . Then , again , they look to see if London is in tbe paper . This must be wrong . We had come to this conclusion , when we wcre made to stare by the Bishop of Chester . That good man was , doubtless , uneasy atthe notoriety which rewarded certain of bis brethren . He therefore determined to call public attention to himself ; and so signed a petition to the Queen , for mercy to Mary Gallop , by her own confession , the murderess ot her father . And the Bishop

      observes—That she was not influenced to this great crime by any malignant hatred to her father , but as a means that occurred to her mind of enatUnj- her . to marry ih * person to whom she had engaged herself . Now , should some Dean or Canon put arsenic in the Bishop of Chester ' s turtle-soup , in the hope of obtaining his bishopric , would not the prisoner havo this excuse _^—that he had no " malignant hatred" to the Bishop;—certainly not ; only too much love for iussee ? Some time since , there was a prejudice against certain candles , it . being alleged that they wcre impregnated with arsenic that they might burn the brighter . The morality of Mary Gallop ( according to the Bishop ) partakes , and , for the same reason , of the brilliancy of these tapers ,- tor he

      says—That should the Queen's mercy be extended to this miserable woman , she might prove . 0 / great use in being cmp loyed in teaching young persons in one of the schools in tiny place to which she may be transported . This wretched ' . woman administered _ftw > _'dosc 3 of poison to her father . With no touch of conscienceno remorse , she gave the second dose , the first having failed . And this is the instrument , to teach young _pei-sons ! Imagine with what solemn emphasis would now , from the lips of the parricide , those words _: — " Honour thy father and thy mother , that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God gireth thee . "

      By the way , when Mary Furley was suffering under the agonies of the death-warrant so atrociously inflicted upon her—yes , Sir James Graham , atrociously—where were the Bishops to plead tho cause of an outraged , broken-hearted woman ? But then Mai *} ' Furley had not poisoned her father ; she was , probably , not eligible as a Christian monitrcss . In a word , Mary Funey . was not Mary Gallop . Let it not be thought that we advocate , under any circumstances , capital punishment . Certainly not . It is our belief that the gallows is the worst reformer . Our strictures arc only intended for the sophists who play thc mountebank to humanity .

      , A Faooot Case.—At The Watlington Petty...

      _, A Faooot Case . —At the Watlington Petty Sessions , one John Page , chair-maker , of Whcelcnd , Stokon-church ( blessed be his door-posts !) charged "Jane Allen , a wretchedly distressed-looking woman , with an infant at , her breast , with having stolen ,, on the 25 th of November , a small faggot of wood , ofthe value of ' . one penny , ' from off a pile iii Thirdswdod . " NowyJohn Page , having this faggot very much next his heart—indeed , it ' must hare been pretty well of the same _stuffy-insisted upon . a conviction , ' and the woman—John ' Tage _' _s recording aiigel lias written

      down the fact—" with the infant in her arms , was -committed to Oxford gaol , to take her trial at tho Quarter Sessions , charged with stealing the said faggot , of the value of three-farthings . " What a very pleasant Christinas this John Page must have passed i What a remarkably nice man to spend a Christmas with ! With what sweet scrcnity he must have gone to church—for , of course , sueh a stickler for thrce-tiirthing honesty , has his pew and all things proper , and pays liis devotions regularly as his taxes . And then when he returned to his jocund

      home , and having said grace , enjoyed like a good man his Christmas dinner , with what extreme sellcontentment he _niust have looked upon his children ( if he be blessed with such cherubs ) , thinking of the felonious Jane Allen ' s babe in Oxford gaol . And then , when he tunicd . 'himself round to liis fire , thinking ofthe faggot , what _pleasant things he must have seen in the embers of his Christmas log ! What a Jacob's ladder must bis fancy have pictured , with John Page , chairimiker , upon ' all but the topmost round ! . And is this a man to want a faggot ? Certainly not ; runch would give him one with all his heart and all his strength . The _CiuusTiiAi Waits . —The following were _^ the most popular last week : —John . Bull . waiting for ' a llepeal of the Income-Tax . The Parishioners of St . Stephen ' s , Walbrook , waiting for a settlement <> f their accounts . Lord Brougham waiting for the Woolsack . The fountains in Trafalgar-spare waiting for the Artesian Well .

      A Fakthlvc * for Repeal ; on , Thk _Ikisii Co . v Junon . —Our English readers may recollect an ingenious ' wayfarer , who w . is wont to levy small contributions on tbe pockets * of his spectators by means of a sheet of white paper ; yes , of one sheet of Bath post . This paper the adroit beggar would fold up into differentshapes , alldistinctly representing twenty different things . "Now , " he would say , "it is a chest of drawers , " and a chest of drawers it was ; " now it is a lady ' s bonnet ; " nobody eould dispute it —it was a lady ' s bonnet ; " and now it is a coalscuttle . " The crowd would by their applause declare it to be a coal-scuttle , and nothing else . Now , this man was an honest showman , though he dealt in sleight of hand ; though he earned his mutton and potatoes by dexterity of finger—he was , nevertheless ,

      no cheat ; what he promised to do , he faithfully accomplished . Why will uot Daniel O'Connell copy the high principle of the English showman ? As , like him , he deals in legerdemain—why , like him , does he not put an honest face upon the matter ? How long is it since he has promised to show all the features of the doll Repeal ?—and up to the present time she is muffled like an Indian beauty . "Give a farthing—only a farthing—and you shall sec what you shall see . Hereditary bondsmen , know ye notonly a farthing !—who would be free—but one farthing !—themselves must—down with your farthings !—strike the blow ! Only a farthing ' . " _Han'Dsome Turn-Out . —The Duke of Buckingham

      and Chandos , thc Labourer's Friend , and Farm-servant ' s Father , has lately been exercising a little wholesome fatherly severity upon his Irish tenants in Westmeath , where eighteen families have beon turned adrift by the Duke's steward . Pleasant weather this for thc wet bog , or the ditch-side ! It appears that no rent was due from them . Doubtless , on the occasion of the next agricultural jubilee at Stowe , these eighteen families will form part of the pageant . The conduct of thc Duke of Buckingham proves the truth of what has been ofteii said of hiin , that" no landlord can turnout afiner set of tenants . " A Good Beginning . — A . pension of £ 600 has fallen into the Civil List . AVe wish the Civil List " a happy new year , and many of'em . "—Punch :

      Conscience Money . —Mr . Punch begs to acknowledge several sums of money from the different concoctors of tho London pantomimes and burlesques , for the very liberal . use they have made of his jokes and subjects of the past year . The list will be published _^ and the amount forwarded to a magistrate for the relief ofthe Fountains in Trafalgar-square , in a day or two . The Detentions at tiie Post Office . —A gentleman , living in Camden Town , would feel particularly obliged to Colonel Maberly to return to bim , as soon as hc has done with thein , thc goose and Epping sausages , which were sent to him through the post last week by a friend in the country .

      Infernal Treatment Of The Poor In Suther...

      INFERNAL TREATMENT OF THE POOR IN SUTHERLAND . ( From thc Glasgow National . ) We have just received , from a highly-respectable correspondent in the North of Scotland , who pledges himself to its accuracy , the following most extraordinary statement with regard to the condition of th ' e poor in the parish of Criech _, in the district of Rosehall , and county of Sutherland : — "In the district of liosehaU , within _theparish of Criech , and county of Sutherland , there are upwards of fifty poor persons who have received no parochial relief since tlie disruption of the Church of Scotland , in May , 1843 . " A deputation of tlieir number presented a petition for relief in spring last to the Kirk session and minister of the parish , by whom itwas contemptuously returned , with the intimation , that they would receive nothing , as they had gone out from the Established Church , und from _thfi stato .

      " Despairing of relief hy other means , legal proceedings wcre commenced by one of their number , whose case was taken up by Mr . Charles Speuce _, S . S . C . Ou receiving a petition from him on behalf of that individual , the miuistcr of thc parish , who has in his hands about £ 200 of the poor ' s money , sent'his session clerk with ttoo pounds , to bt divided among the poor on the list . " The clerk , after travelling twenty miles with it , had not the heart to attempt distributing the miserable dole , and carried it back-to the minister again . "A meeting of tbe heritors and kirk-session was then convened , which was held at Invershmou the 20 th December , aiid which was attended by heritors , or their lactors , _representing property to the amount of between £ 40 , 000 and £ 50 , 000 per annum .

      " After reducing tbo list to fifty , by striking off the names of some poor persons , and distributing tliese fifty persons into three classes , they assessed themselves in the sum of twelve pounds ; whieh together with _thettoo pounds from the kirk-session , mahhip in all fourteen pounds , then ordered to hc divided among these fifty people—each to receive five , six , and four shillings , according to the class inwliich tliey wercplaced—as maintenance for tlie last _twenty months , and probably for twelve months to come . " Of the fifty persons to whom this aliment has been awarded , two are blind—three are idiots—many are above eighty years of age—some are entirely , or almost entirely , confined to bad—several are in such extreme destitution , that their neighbours wcre repeatedly afraid that they would be found dead , in their wretched huts , of actual want—' and almost all have no means or _' subsistence , except the cho . rity ol ' uciglibourB , who are nearly as poor as themselves . "

      Fourttcnpormdt sterling , as thirty-two months maintenance for ' fifty poor vtrsous—two of whom are "blind "—three of whoniare "idiots "—many of whom are " above eighty years of ace "—several of wbom ' are " almost entirely confined lo bod" —and several are "in sueh extreme destitution that their neighbours are afraid they will be found dead iii tlieir huts of' actual want ! " Of a verity , 'tis a princely sum—honourable to the hearts ; and no less honourable to the Christian feelings of those by whom it is doled out . AVe hear much in these times ofthe oppression of the poor by the millocracy—of their hard work ,

      and then * long hours , and their'small wages . And no doubt—and the more ' s the pity—there is sometimes but too much truth in the accusation , But , gracious Heaven ! such evils are well-being—are comfort—are happiness itself , when compared with those sustained by theso poor people . "Pourtccri pound * sterling , " as " thirty-two months' maintenance" for fifty poor aged , infirm , starving , destitute persons ! AYe have heard much—much , too , that has astonished us , of the condition of the labouring- poor in this end of the island ; but of a truth this eclipses all .

      Great Pedestrian Match.—The Great Pedest...

      Great Pedestrian Match . —The great pedestrian match between the English and American runners , for 1 , 200 dollars , came off on the 19 th ult . on the Boacoii Course , at Hobokcn , opposite New . _"York , and attracted aii immense assemblage of _spoctatow . The competitors were—John Barlow and Thomas Grecnhalgh , two Englishmen , natives of Lancashire ; Thomas _M'Cabo , an Irishman ; John : Steeprock , im Indian ; John Underbill and Thomas Jackson , Americans ; John Gilderslccve and Joseph Smith , of New York ; and J . P . Taylor , of Connecticut . The distance to be performed was ten miles , , over ground extremely heavy , from the rain of the previous evening . Thc betting was decidedly in favour of Barlow and Greenhalgh , who had obtained considerable reputation in this country as pedestrians , and

      also from their having carried off prizes at a former trial of speed over thc same course . After the arrangement of the usual pi-cliniinarics , thc start took place , the two Englishmen leading at . 1 tremendous pace , closely followed hy llie Indian and Gildersleevc . Barlow accomplished the first mile in the short space of 5 minutes 10 seconds , thc Indian being second , and Gildersleevc and Greenhalgh third and fourth ; behind them M'Cabe and Taylor , and the rest " nowhere . " Barlow maintained his position in tlie second mllc _^ whicli he ran in 5 minutes 15 seconds , the Indian well up , and Gildersleevc and Greenhalgh as before . Barlow did the third mile in 5 minutes 22 seconds , and was now 50 yards ahead of tlm Indian , Gildersleevc and Greenhalgh being still third and fourth . Barlow from tl . is mile kept increasing thc distance between him and

      thc other competitors . He closed thc fourihraile in 5 minutes 25 seconds ;* fifth mile , 5 minutes 2 S seconds ; sixth mile , 5 minutes 31 seconds ; seventh mile , 5 minutes 34 seconds ; eighth mile , 5 minutes 36 seconds ; ninth mile , 5 minutes 35 seconds ; and last mile , 5 minutes 25 seconds ; thus accomplishing the ten miles in tho unprecedented short time of 54 niinuf . es 21 seconds _^ Stceproek , thc 'Indian , was second ; time , 51 minutes 33 seconds . Greenhalgh third ; time , 55 minutes 10 seconds . Gildersleevc fourth ; time , 55 minutes 51 seconds . Taylor sixth ; time , 50 minutesS . ? ' scconds . In thelast mile _Gi-eenh . 'ilgh made _*' . mosi' _di-fipcratd effort , passi " . ! _GHcii * _- * ' - slceve , and gained 40 seconds on Barlow , ' -though thc

      latter ran this mile 1 . 0 . , seconds quicker . than ho did the ninth . Greenhalgh ,, it ' is . supposed , must . have run this mile in about 4 ' iiiinv . tc ' s 4 S * scconds . ' Barlow beat Oio Indian _exa ' _dlv _173 ' vards _. r while Grcenhalsh was . less . than 90 behind linn . -It is supposed that had-Greenhalgh made his running in thc ninth mile , instead " of waiting for Gildersleevc , bo would have beat _' - _' tlic * Indian , and thus become entitled to the second prize * . The purse was thus divided : —Barlow . 7 (» i * dollars ; Steeprock , 250 dollars ; Grconluiljrh , 150 dollars ; and M'Cabe , 25 dollars , liarluw has since returned to England , leaving Greenhalgh behind to complete some matches he had undertaken . — New York Paper .

      Mt Mt#

      mt _mt #

      Good Lawforihe Girls.—By An Ancient Act ...

      Good Lawforihe Girls . —By an ancient Act of tha good old Scottish Parliament , passed in thc reign of Margaret , about 1288 , it was " ordonit that during ve reign of her maist blessit Majestic , ilka maiden ladee of baitb high and low cstait , shall bac liberty to speak ye man she likes ; gif be refuses to take licr to be bis wif , hc shall be mulct in the sum of an hundrity pundis or less , as his cstait may be , except and alwavs git'be can make it appear that hc is bethrothit to aiiitlier woman , then be shall be free . " Tub Laxd . —How would you like a rural cottago with a flower garden on one band—a vegetable garden on the other—a green lawn in front bebedged with

      fruit trees ? Would it not be rather better than stifled up apartments in a crowded street ? Would not the grcen-sward , the flowers , and the trees be more _llkclv to awaken virtue in your children than thc filthy sights and sounds that greet them in the city ? Would they not grow up better , both in body and soul , for having ; dl the wholesome and gentl influences . of natui _* e springing up around tbem ? AA _^ . _vted a Steam Parson . —Au iron church ba been built at Glasgow , to be sent to Jamaica . The Land of ' Ede . v—The following is thc address of the principal of a boarding-school , in the vicinity of Sydney , New South Wales : —Mrs . Love , Ilarmony-bouse , Concord , near Kissing Point .

      New OccvrmoN tor a _Dehtist . —An itinerant dentist lately called at a house in one of the far wesfc towns , aud applied for business . "Don't you want your teeth drawn ? " says he to the owner . "No . " "Don't your wife ? " "No . " "None of the children ? " " No . " " Can't you give me some sort of ajob ? " asked the dentist . " AYhy , " replied the man , " I have an old cross-cut saiv , tlie teeth of which aro out of order ; " you can havo ajob if you'll fix ' em !" An Eve to the Future . — -At a meeting , convened by the friends of Clay , held in Woodstock , Vermont , one of the orators grow amazingly eloquent , exclaiming , "Who ever heard of a woman ' s naming her son after James K . Polk ? " and then made a significant pause , as if inviting an answer . " I never did , " exclaimed a fair democrat in thc crowd , who had been married about six months previous , " but Ihunv one tliat intends to . "

      " A sweet heturk , " exclaimed the husband , when his wife throw the sugar basin at bim . Ax _Ame-ricax says that he has a nigger servant so black that a piece of charcoal makes a white mark on hun . Wormi _Rememuerino . —Write injuries in dust , but kindness in marble . Lay not your faculties in thc sepulchre of idleness . Envy is a turnkey by birth , and an executioner by profession . March of Gentilitv . —Some years ago a wit introduced a match vender to an innkeeper as a traveller iii the sulphur and timber lino from the firm of Beelzebub and Co . It will not be disputed that the present age is a progressive age , since ladies and

      gentlemen have superseded the way-faring adventurers . A mendicant called a few days ago at Money-bill , near ltiekmersworth ; he rung the bell , which being duly answered by the cook , she bargained for a box of _conjjreves , for which she paid a penny , besides looking liim up sundry crumbs that fell fi-om the rich man ' s table . Whilst " the traveller" was stowing away the prog , thc cook inquired if he had any dipt matches ? " No marm , I never carries the like * . a gentleman what ' s close at hand deals in them * . I say , Long Tom ( vociferated Abe cadger ) , this ere lady wants some o' your sort . " Tho gentleman forthwith supplied marm , who gladdened his heart with a plentiful supply of prog iu addition to the penny .

      The State of Salvation . —On the high road to _Cheshani , a few miles before entering that ancient town , stands the picturesque village of ChenieB . At the entrance of tne village some gothic almshouses , erected by a Countess of Bedford , remind the traveller of the good old times , when to steal a goose was expiated by bestowing the giblets in alms . Tbe goose tbat vumishtu the giblets alluvlcd to , was nested in the reign of " bluff Harry , " and taken possession of by the ancestors of the present " Lord Finality" for conscience sake . In the village is a school for tho perpetuity of ignorance under the immediate patronage of tbe Reverend Lord incumbent and my Lady patroness . A young damsel , who had received a Large share of " mylady ' s instruction , " chanced to captivate a young paper-maker from a

      neighbouring mill . Tho happy day of wedlock arrived , when a goodly muster ot villagers assembled to witness the ceremony , which , as a special mark of condescension , was performed by " my Lord" in propria persona . Every thing passed off with the utmost deoorum until the clergyman addressed the bride , " Wilt thou hare this man to thy wedded husband V & c , to which tho damsel replied with infinite alacrity , " Yes , verily ; and by God's help so I will . And l " heartily thank our Heavenly Father , that he _hi _^ h called me to this state of salvation !" " My Lord" looked very queer , " My Lady" essayed to appear serious amidst the roar of laughter , in which she was at length compelled to join : rendering it evident that mirth is a thorough democrat , an out-and-out leveller .

      Matrimonial Baskets . — -A lady of fashion stepped into a shop not long since , and asked the keeper if ho had any matrimonial baskets , she beingtoo polite to say cradles . Sir Fletcher Nortox , when pleading before Lord Mansfield on some question of manorial rights , chanced unfortunately to say , " My Lord , I can illustrate the point by an instance in my own person ; I myself have two little manors . " The judge immediatel y interposed in one of bis blandest smile * , ¦ " wc all Know it , Sir Fletcher , "

      A reasox for kot Gaming . —Some gentlcme : _* . being at a tavern together , for want of better diversion , ono proposed play . " But , " said another of the company , "I have fourteen good reasons againstgaming . " " What aro they V said another . '' "In thc first place , " answered he , " I bave no money . " " O ! " said thc other , " if yon had four hundred reasons , you need not name another . " _Owixo Sheridax . — " How is it , " said a sentlcinan to Sheridan , " that your name has not an 0 attached to it , your family is Irish , and no doubt illustrious ?" "No family has a better right to an O than our family , " replied Sheridan , " for wc 0 ( owe ) everybody . "

      William Put . —The fashionable hours of the present times were neatly censured by this war-making Minister . " Mr . Pitt , " said the Duchess of Gordon , " I shall expect you to dine with me at ton tbi » evening . " " 1 must decline that honour , " said tho premier , "for I am engaged to sup with the Bishop of London at nine . " Leoal Wit . — -A barrister observed to a learned brother in court , the other day , " that the wearing of whiskers was unprofessional . " '' Right , " replied his friend , " a lawyer cannot be too barefaced . "

      The Queen ' s Visit to the _Smithfield Cattlb Club Show . —The first to greet her Majesty on that occasion was "the black-polled ox of the Scotch breed , bred by Prince Albert ; " wliich had been " removed from the dark corner it had previously orcupied , into the lig ht near tbe entrance . " AVhon the Prince approached , his grateful foster-child attempted to lick his hands : and hci * Majesty was so * pJ _* ched , that , on learning it had already been sold to a Pitcher , she declared her resolution to redeem its life from the shambles . —Spectator , Dec . 21 .

      0 Bullock , thou wast wide awake , And thus _escapi _-d ' st sticking-. _1 wish , for the poor Otter ' s sake , TIc'd given the Prince a licking ! American Criticism . — The New York japers speak in high raptures of a Madame Pico , who / ias appeared at the Italian Opera-house in that _flty . She appeared first in Ricci _' s Criara di _Rosmbtrg , then in Donizetti ' s Lucrezia Borgia . Upon th ? latter event an American critic says : — " _Madamo'Pioo represents the leader ofthe conspirators , and dies the noise and the jollification . She was _exquisitely dressed , sang

      with as little of the split straw in / ier _sopranoas we ever beard ber sing with , and atted to her singing with what the Greeks called onoinitopeia—movement linked with sound indivisibly . Ihe fourth act represented the vouths at the fatal _^ Ppe _** . Tup the principal customer . After a littlf hob-nobbing on the other side of the table , she glides round , upon ber plumptitudinous locomotives , > nd dashes into a song , rich and rolicking . Down wett the bucket for the prst time into her well of contralto : and up came the liquid and golden music , of a rovsd , im fulness , tiwt ««««« the ears thirst a luxury . " (!)

      Ax Accomplished You . Lady : Modern Finish . -Her edication is _slickrf off complete ; a mantymakcr gets her up well , tnd she is sent back to home with the tower stamp onher , " edicated at a boardm school . " She _astonish the natives round about where tbo old folks nv » , and makes ' cm stare agin , she is so improved . She plays beautifully on the uiano , twopicces , thcr were crack pieces lamed emier the eve and car of tha master ; but there is a secret noboily knows but , her-she can't play not in else She sings two or three songs , the last _Sons larnt at _^ chool , and the last she ever will larn . Sim has two or three beautiful ' hero toothe

      drawin ' s ; ' butthere is a secret — aster finished ' cm , and she can't do another . She SI ! 'French bcautift . l ; but it ' s fortunate she a . u't inFrnnccnow _. so that secret , _¦» wile Sho , sav _«* y a < _n _* c « ibl ( ' gal , and talks very p ) e ; i ;? ni . _- _ _- _- bitl _& _fnmV knows Loudon life . Tbis v _) rivi ~'

      whole year . The two _iww H * - "•'"" songs get old , and thc ur . ' and the London inillinc ? _- Queen has another r *' singer at tlnr - " she v _.- ? . ir . _J-: > "

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Jan. 4, 1845, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns3_04011845/page/3/