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Sortrp ***** '** 1845 ' THE NORTHERN STAR. * 4^ ^ ^^^^ j& ^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ •^•-•^-^ ^^ -^^^^^^^^^¦M^^¦^¦¦-^-i• •• ¦¦ ^^^ ^^^^^^^^^M^ ^^¦^^^^^^¦^ 1fc^ _ „_JMW ^^^ MM«Mwww>a"w'"w»^wr* ww#
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^ —""be auties of biron. so. X3nn. "CHIL...
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NOTICE.
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rosiical Contributions for our *' Chmstj...
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TJIE i'UMGATORY OF SUICIDES. A Prisos Il...
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WISE SAWS AXD MODERN INSTANCES. Bv Thoma...
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"Stick to your resolution, my boy!" crie...
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GEORGE CRUIKSIIANK'S TABLE-BOOKDkckmbkr....
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fW We are compelled to postpone reviews ...
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rvmv Works.—Mr. Dickexs s Christmas Book...
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MEi-AscnoLT Case of Suicide.—On Tuesday ...
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CAnnisAL.—Tlie hig hest Iioman Catholic ...
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ITaviug lived by the contributions of ot...
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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.
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Sortrp ***** '** 1845 ' The Northern Star. * 4^ ^ ^^^^ J& ^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ •^•-•^-^ ^^ -^^^^^^^^^¦M^^¦^¦¦-^-I• •• ¦¦ ^^^ ^^^^^^^^^M^ ^^¦^^^^^^¦^ 1fc^ _ „_Jmw ^^^ Mm«Mwww≫A"W'"W»^Wr* Ww#
Sortrp ***** ' ** 1845 ' THE NORTHERN STAR . * _4 _^ _^ _^^^^ j _& _^^^^^^^^^^^^ _^^^^^^ _•^• _- _•^ _- _^ _^^ _- _^^^^^^^^^¦ _M _^^¦^¦¦ _- _^ _-i _•• _¦¦ _^^^ _^^^^^^^^^ _M _^ _^^¦^^^^^^¦^ _1 _fc _^ _ „_ _^^^ « _Mwww _> a"w '" w _»^ wr * _ww #
^ —""Be Auties Of Biron. So. X3nn. "Chil...
_^ —"" be auties of biron . so . X 3 _nn . " CHILDE HA 20 LB . " _-nr _. _continne onr extracts from the fourth . Canto ptive of Home : ere is a picture of _tS _^ l THE _tx-STBEOS . , , ercc _, severe , austere , sublime—* 5 f j _5 , eof all saints and temple of all gods r ? om JoTe' ° Jesus—sparcu au < 1 West by time , _tookiiV irauauill tyi while falls or nods in * _rf « l »" > eidl _^ _"S rouuu tDBC _» ana man Plods _JrJ _5 V 3-. through thorns to ashes—glorious dome ! 5 fc _0 s _iiJuJ not last ! Time ' s scythe and tyrants' rods _< _lita upon _thec—sanctuary and home f an 3 p _iety—Vantlieon 1—Pride of Home !
ST . _PZTES ' S . _5 atlo tlie dome—the vast aud vond ' rous dome . To which Diana ' s marvel was a _celldiris t's mighty shrine above bis martyr ' s tomb ! _ijjaVe beheld tlie _Ephesiau ' s miracle _^—j _^ _f _^ luuiiis strew the wilderness aud dwell _« _| _, j _« na and the jaekall in their shade ; } bare beheld Sophia ' s _brightxoofs swell tlieir g littering mass i' tlie sun , aud have snrvey'd j . sanctuary the while the usurping Moslem pray'd ; jia , thou of temples old , or altars new , sandest alone—with nothing like to
thee—THE VATICAN . Or . fir 11 ' ? t 0 t ! le _v < _ttJeau , _g-j see _ludL _-oon ' s torture _uigniTying pain—\ father's love and morial ' s a _^ ony _-S-jth an _iiiaiortaVs p nienee bending : _Viiin . t . _' _icstruggle ; vain , against the coiling strain And gripe , and _deepening of tlie dragon ' s grasp , The - jld man's clinch ; the long envenomed chain _liivcts the living links , —tlie enormous asp SaiVceS pang on nan ~ and stifles gasp on gasp . Or lies- the lord ofthe unerring bow , TJ « God of life , aud poesy , and _light—The Sun in human _, limbs arrayed , aud brow Ail radiant from his triumph in the _Jurht The shaft hath just beun shot—die arrow bright With an immortal ' s vengeance ; in his eye And nostril beamtiful disjoin , and might Aud majesty , flash their full lightnings by , Dereloi _» iug in tbat one glance the Deity .
But in his delicate form—a dream of love , Shaped by some solitary nymph , whose breast Longed for a deathless lover from above , And _maddeu'd in that vision—are exprest All that ideal beany- ever bless'd The mind with in its most unearthly mood , AT hen each conception was a heavenly guest—A ray of iuraiortaluy—and stood , Siailike , around until they gather'd to a god ! And if it be Prometheus stole from Heaven The fire which we endure , it was repaid By him to whom the energy was given Which this poetic marble hath _array'd Wiii : an eternal glory—which , if made 11 / huaian hands , is not of human thought ; And Time itself hath hallow'd it , nor laid One ringlet in the dust—nor hath it caught A tinge of year ? , hut breathes the flame with which ' twas tvrougut .
the coi . isr . nii . I see before me the Gladiator lie : He leans upon Ids hand—his manly brow Consents to death , l > ut conquers agony , And his druoji'd head sinks gradually low—And through his side the last drops , cbbir . g slow From the red gash , fall heavy , ene by one , Like the first of a thunder-shower ; and now The arrnr . swims around him—he is gone , Ere ceased the iuhumau shout which _hail'd tbe wretch who won .
Tie heard it , hut he heeded not— "kis eyes Were with his heart , and that was far away . 31 c reck'd not of the life he lost nor prize , But where hU ruie bat by the _Danube lay . There were _hisyauag barbarians all at play , _Tscrc was their Dacian mother—he , their sire , _Butcucr'd to make a Koaiam holiday 1—All this rushM with his blood . —Shall he expire Aul unavenged f—Arise' ye Goths , and glut your ire ' ¦
" While stands the Coliseum , Rome shall stand _WlK-n talis the _Coliseum , Home shall fall ; And when Home falls—the Wori « L" Prom our own land Thus spake tlie pilgrims o ' er this mighty wall lu "Saxon times , which we are wont to call Aude :. ; : and these three mortal things are _slill 0-i their foundations and uualter'd all ; _ityiue _slid her _Ituin past _llcdciapiiea _'^ _sliiU , The World , the same wide den—of tiiuves , or what ye will .
Notice.
_NOTICE .
Rosiical Contributions For Our *' Chmstj...
_rosiical Contributions for our * ' Chmstjias Gaiilaxd " must be at the Office of this _Pajcr by , or before , Deccsiuvr the 15 th .
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Tjie I'Umgatory Of Suicides. A Prisos Il...
TJIE _i'UMGATORY OF SUICIDES . A _Prisos _IliiraE _rx Tex Books . By Tikkias _Coofeu , tlie CiMrtist .. London : J . llow _^ 1-32 , Fleet-street , = It is now more than three months since we commenced our review of Mr . Cco « : r s remarkable poem . If wc havo lingered long on our way , our readers must impute it to the diSiculty we have felt in tearing ourselves from a pleasing theme . Moreover , we desired to make known , as far as consistently we could * do , the beauties of Mr . CWeb _' s epie io our readers , that so ihe many thousands who cannot afford to give seven shillings and sixpence for the poem-, _niig _biTknow , at least , something of its scope and merits . Weniust , however , add , that we should not have ventured to have extracted so largely from the poem as we have done , had wc not had Mr . Cooper ' s permission to do so .
The "Purgatory of Suicides" has caused an extraordinarv sensation . The author was known to belong to the working classes ; and _i-a tac title-page _t-f _hisiMieninc avowed himself to be a "Chartist . " Curiositv was , thercfere , naturally excited as io the sort of poem a Chartist shoemaker could write . 2 Ioreev « _-, tiic public pretty generally knew what kind of Chartist Thomas Goorcn had been . He had been no _mcaiy-nio-athed , " moral , " canting adventurer , but a _sterling , straightforward democrat , who had dared to ti ii tbe whole _tratli and Miner for it . II « Lad been tii = oracle and leader of starving but _intelligcntfliid resolute multitudes , who , under liis teaching and guidance , had mads i ' aai . ius , as a stronghold « f Chartism , one of England ' s most ancient and celebrated town .
The _chivsirie character gained _byJTjiosus Coorai : in _Leicester , was maintained by hhu « i the two occasions , when arraigned as a * " * criminal" on charges _arisi"' out of the troubles of IBii ; jiartieularly on his second trial . At that trial the struggle between himself . _siiiL'le-haiidi-d , and the formidable array ol "legal _t-. deist" opposed to him . la .-t-.-H tea days ; and the _niizae _w " _Tiiusas _-Coopkr , the Chartist , * rang throash the tend ; made subject for public wonucv bv his " insolent daring , " in combatting tbe craft - . aid . tyranny of the legal bbodhounds ciupoycd to imnt him down . Mr . Coor : ifspolitical _actsliadmadehnnno torious , bai his priton acts have already made him famous . Heretofore his ponukritT was confined to a party , bin hi _* " Fiirsatwv of Suicides" has aciiieveu loi _- him viopidarity witn llic public , including _«« c _« asses and names .
Our estimate of this poem must be pre . ty well kuowtt to the renders of the S : ar by this time , and it is not jsee _^ ssarr that wc should add niasy words to what we havo , from time to lime , expressed when _fTivlnir _esxi-icis from the several " books , or camys . \\ i _« at in addition we have to say we shall best- express bv a few words of _<* _rnnH-ut ou the very a »! e _review of the _\ mhx wliich appeared iu the _Bntamta , and wji eh was coined into this paper of tiic lots oii ¦ _scptj-raber . The following are the " points' ol tne Bri :. jy , niif ' s review : — _VeitpMtit _Pinphatimllv that Thomas Cooper is on :-of _tiwseswat poets , _stiuip-l by _natar- _'s otni band-not _faihioiie _. _Ihv-ch . _jois . i . _ott .-. _nshthy _lal . _oiirtoStniigrln-nHrather , hltt _ponri-ij , ' fo . th from the fulness ot ms own rind ai > , l heart a torrcut of _buruing and itnpituoas
The -in , ~ w is -, _^ tten In the Si _> _enserian stasia , t-ram-ev _aaOniuiv mrrou ; than -Giiihle Har « l =:, _" which , inns ¦ _reactive va _?? a .: cs , it somewhat _resembles—evmalClBjJ much < Icci * r rc :: _diu-, much profoundcr thought , much _pvaterpwer of tiic forcible and the _terrible in txpreS _, _« -: , _tiioasa with less Lcauty of _poixic imagery—t _..-is 1 _'Hson Ur . y-. ac comes nearer than any other poem ia _osalaa _^ _us _^ c t _» the _irand wori ; s of Mi' . ton . _* Oar _jadsaiBafnisT he _aisyuleO— the world may _disresard ihis _mishtv _5 iuJ _ilarins effort ef an irregular but it
_^ _s _« i r _^ , tlu _. u _^ h _^ e do not tiduk _^—^ _^ _^ _s _h-: _hoiuto .. ur < . _piniai ., ihnt this - _PHson U ! . y ... t - i > tiie -mosx _wonuerfal eSbrt _^ _if _iutcjlsciuol power _vro-& itu -. n ;; , j _« i the last century . * * * - ' » fi « to _K- _li-i : _riv _rvwi _^ it is not io he _^ _eed at _VMSt _" _ir-n-Ii . V . _^ _luiJiz eve :: ' ha _< _lt-r o ; ea to wish it ha _^ never l = _& a llTirten . list here it i _« , full of power , j un of e . o-« _= ea .-c , full ,,: grand _uetaclieu _^ _issi-jcs— _-eyoad « -i < _l- _« _Cou _tlvs _rattitknyal _/ x yocm in ilu- I _' _ligUsh _Uuiguage . _* * * * " _iti ; usfr . t : iKl . v , wi ; _-i : init 5 . _aui - . _? , _aUawleJ ? _, ? _tVU "riis-., n _^ hynie" to he o : ie of tne most _WatOiria _Wodawioae of _wirich the world ha 5 _pTeSSrVCd
_ree-r , ! . iVith _mzicli of ihe above we _-icartily _concu ss a _dct-d w-2 concur with much ef _rAc entire _^ r ; : _V . ' _* ] Vj ' „ _l-at , wc _C-nnot £ 0 Willi the _Stril : _-. _™ : _;* . _*•*« e :. ai- - ; . - Izwxs _CoPi- £ RaboTC ail oar _}>?* sii P oet _5 £ r " _a-ccni to _ihLxra-evcii lhuox . " _Comp-nsonh are odious , " auu we v . ill m . tcoin tiare the ments o _thePuiwt & y of _Suicide _iriih those - of _CLndiLaroUl ; we shall content ourselves with cspre _=- ' _* S our uisseili from i- ! ie _jiidcmcnt of the _B . _-ii-jtmia . _$ " ' } . « ° " -vs _C-joj' :-t . : i : ay Lu a s ? r « it poet , and t'tjil iiacri _:.- _!* t : i 3 _iTi . o _>" . I . « - us add , wc know what _J'rnw , as : i hoct . i ? , but wc know net what Tai" _* _s Coopss
Tjie I'Umgatory Of Suicides. A Prisos Il...
may yet be . We believe that had Btro . v lived oniy Sniff l ° _ngfr _! han li edid marvellous as are the works he has left as , he would have exceeded even tnose wondrous productions . Thomas Cooper ' s first poem is certainly greatl y superior to more than the tiret poetical work of Bviurs ; what his future poems —one at least , we are sure of—niav prove to be , it would be idle now to speculate . But we must hold , otherwise we shall fall into the error of " compari sons we promised to avoid . The poetical merits of the Purgatory of Suicides are great , but , in our humble opinion , not nearly so great as estimated b y the Britannia critic . Iu faults , we think , are mostly comprised in the
objections advanced by the Athenceum , and some of those advanced by the . _ivatfoii—viz ., an excess of " _swelling _piirascokvjy , " and a very cloud of words , which , i ? they bp English , ninety-nine out of every hundred _Englishmen will nevertheless be unable to understand ; sueli as "inchoate , " " esperance , " " froie _, " " pulchritude , " "infract , " " yare , " aidant , " " pule , " " _perdm-abl y , " " obtest , " " bedascd , " " preen , " conglobated , " " operose , " " demiurgic , " ard manv others " too numerous to mention . " We confess to having had to read more than one stanza twice or thrice over before we could comprehend the author ' s meaning . These , however , are delects which Mr . Cooper may ea 3 iiy avoid in future .
The opening or reflective passages in each book are generally the most purely poetical , and ccnerally too , the plainest and simplest in tlieir _phraseolo _^ v . Indeed , it is usually where the poem is weakest _^ in poetical merit that the greatest number of outlandish words are found . We could have liked that there had been more of such poetry as the apostrophe to the robin , opening the " fourth book . " We must add that some of the descriptive passages are very line , though , usually , too elaborate . Seme of the declamatory stanzas are also poetically grand ; wc must particularly noticc the outburst of _Coxdokcei , in the fifth book . The six stanzas commencing : —
" The Spirit of Prometheus doth but sleep . " are truly magnificent . We think the construction of the poem would have been _superior to what it is , had Mr . _Coopeu brought his characters together without thoseghostly omisiii » s which occupy by far tlie greatest portion of the poem _Tn each book we find the characters therein summoned to a great gathering of all disembodied suicides , to discuss the great Question of mankind ' s destiuy . Iu each book we are led to expect tli . it the next will contain the discussion ( " adjourned" at the close of the " first book" ) but we expect only to be
disappointed . At length we come to the last book , when instead of a renewal of tlie discussion so excitingly commenced in the " first book , " we find the * ' question" has , by some mysterious means , not exnlained , been already settled , during the tune that Hades was being ransacked to get the disputants together . We must confess too that the " tenth book " disappointed us . We do not say that it exhibits a "lame and impotent conclusion , " on the contrary , the conclusion is just what we could desire , but the _language of nearly the entire " book" is tame and poiutiess compared with the preceding portions of the poem .
But , with all its defects , the " Purgatory of Suicides" is a great work , reflecting well-earned fame upon its author , aud no little honour upon the class from which Mr . _Coopeh sprung , and the party whose name he boldly avows and wears . The ' Purgatory of Suicides , " at least in one respect , commands our unqualified admiration . As a bold and triumphant defence of free thought , and man s natural and imprescriptible rights , it is , beyond comparison , the best poem in the English language , save and except one cr two of Shelley ' s immortal productions . Of course , disbelief in the time-honoured frauds and impostures , religious , political , and social , wjuchyct vex this earth of ours , is in the present day widely existent ; but those who dare to avow
their disbelief sre _comparatively - few . We do not dispute that those who fire from a "maskedbattery" against tiie monstrosities of priestly fraud , political privilege , and social wrong , do good service to the cause of human _progress ; wc will even admit that very often they may eneet greater good than if they showed themselves in their true colours , and _openly assaulted the systems they abhor and despise . Still we must confess that our sympathies arc wiih Ti e biid and avowed assailants of wrong , and therefore it is that wc admire Mr . Coon : r ' s poem , independent of its poetic-al merits . Willi an unfaltering hand lie rends tho veil of liinnbiur , and exhibits the true character of the frauds which have for so manv _a « es made fools and slaves of mankind , lie
prt-chums , _"trunipat-tongued , the rights ot the _huni-. ui race , am ! points out the only suvu means by which those rights may be won and established—the enlightenment ofthe minds of tlie hitherto darkened and deluded masses . With all the poet ' s detestation of priestly fraud , with all his hatred of kingly ami class tyranny , we heartily sympathise ; for ns , as well as for himself , he speaks what we cannot express for ourselves , and from our heart's core wc thank and honour the poet who lias proved himself , in the words of great Thomas Paisk , " Bold enough to be honest , and honest enouqk to be bold . "
V , * c had' prepared a summary of the opinions o ! sueh of our contemporaries as have reviewed this yoem , with some _couunenis of oar own thereon ; but the many demands upon our spate compel us to exclude it . We conclude this notice with the finishing stanzas of the poem . As already described in _previous extracts , the _denizens of Hades are met to celebrate the triumph of brotherhood , freedom , and happiness ; the following " chaunt" concludes the poem : — ' All hail the glorious power of Gentleness , Of Pity and . Mercy , Goodness , Love , and Truth ! Knowledge all hail , and Reason f-ttevless , — Philanthropy , thatyeamed with god-like ruth O ' er suffering—Pamotism , whose eloquent mouth , Bold heart , and sinewed hand dissolved the thrall Of _Tyrants!—Geuius , Song , aud Wisdom sooth , All hail!—Great sources of old Evil ' s fall—Men , spirits , hymn your power , in jocund festival !
" Earth ' s children raise their universal song Of love and joy : mountain , and strand , and sea Are vocal with your praise ! Spirits prolong The strain : through eu
;"—The dream o _' _erwrought rac to a throe Of Wis ? , —and I awoke to find my home A dungeon , —thence to ponder when would come The day that Goodness shall the earth renew And Truth ' s _yonnir Haht disperse oM Error's jrloom When Love shall Hate , and Meekness Pride _suWae ,-A . nd when the Many cease their slavery to the Pew !
Wise Saws Axd Modern Instances. Bv Thoma...
WISE SAWS AXD MODERN INSTANCES . Bv Thomas _Goofee , die Chartist . London : J . Uow , 2 _W , Piccadilly . These are a series of homely tales told in homely _language ; but . though plain in outward garb , they enshrine _Jpreeious gems of wit and wisdom , philanthr .. pv . and pathos . The scene of most of the stories is laid in " Oid Lincolnshire , " tiic remainder , ehidly in Leicestershire . " Nearly all the characters sketched are real , —some of them in their very names ; and the Yew adventures al ' otted to them arc devoid of romance nnd intricacy , because they seldom exceed fait . " The mora ! ofcacli tale has generally a political _si-r _.-ineatiun , directed against some giant wrong , or Popular error , and the work may he _rc-rarded as another and valuable contribution , by Mr . Cooteu , to tiie cause of mental freedom , ' political right , nnd social justice . The work is dc-dieated _' io
_DOCCLiS JESSOL 9 . My friend , hoart-hoiiiaje , in this simple strain I yield the , ! f"r thy toil to aid the Hijrht ! So long hath genius , with a guilty slight , r . _issed hv the _tiiMUsaiids who life ' s load sustain 0 / worn and hidatenee , —to court the vain And fcji : _iUh crowd , —orl .-. ud , in phrases _dight Willi fulsome _ilattery , some pampered wight Who counts himself for poii = ' -. ed _porcelain , — The pr . or fur _vulg-. r clay ; A nobler path , — _Uls-Jaimnghireling censure , hireling praise , — Thou , for thyself hast chosen . Still , in faith That thv true- toil shaU hasten _tliC boon days
Of bi « : 5 : trh « od renewed , broTlier , toil on . — Ail upright hearts give the . ! Wythe _hc-nison ! The opening tale is entitled " Kucky Sarson , the Barber ; or , _tfie Disciple of Equality ; " and illustrates the draercnefc between _tidkiiigabout equality , ar . _'inct HVintbc spirit thereof . "Tim Swallow _iVIi-stic . _^ ne _t-Vficrnf Llorijcr . -st : e , who _, bring suspected _cl sedition _, ' _li _' s into novertv and _troab-e . but ultimately _ng- _' _Js himself , and _^ , _^ . «« -I . ft _"'f- w t _i-d- _^ e " Evervdo *; has ms day . " Davy Lidgut , uic _(¦ - . „ * . _* f . : j . " is * tbe ptorv of ft man who brmicht Ins nincpe ° ce to _noaaht , by being in too sreat a hu . ry io _tecefnerich . "The Fishennan _aiid _tliel . _ddicr ' is _UVAV 1 UC »¦ - > ' . . i .- _(•!' _L---V-1
, . . ,.. a cheerful _ssorr oi two orig : » ais locating at m _^„ . The fisherman is always gr iijn » mio some _s _?« tpc thromrl . nut inimlin ? the " wisesaw ot tne _Wud fddW " Dot ' s ? _av so til ! you . vc sure . ' _AbrtOt o , hefd _' _Uer bi one favourite _string he piays _upim to the tune of - Divide the land equally , _wta _^ _a learned fioma wondrous wise man , lu _»? c ,. mow ; - , _uvawlfeitlicr , wuo used to _ar-nc tlmt _^ _Aljaiahtv- - _-- 've _il'e world to everyuouy , anu t . _hu r .. t rich iiad " sio !* a the poor ' s _sha- _-c of tho lanu . * i : _»« _aessared Geutk-man" Is ably written ; __ the _linmiiiiiiate man ' s , address to his '' Crooked Stick is very _nathetic . " The History of Goekic Tom , " _showmit the _ruriure of a young _Enniish sailor , is a c . _- _'j'i ; - _"
_? _i-5 _i-v : we iir-J inclined to tbiuit ilia boit m _Uio tfon _* -. it _w'li _' _be read with _delisiht , es >; co : al ! v by tiie yomiy . "The Last Days of an Old * Sailor" would » c a pleasing tale bu : for itspainfnl iinish ; the more pa infill because the author assures us tliat llie hero of hi ? storv is no imadnary _clianicier , Imt a man wiio live * _s : nd " dicd in tlie town of Gainsborough , as describe- - ! iii this _stui-v—anoth ? _-r vieiim of that infernal system wL - ' - ! i _& e " _s-reicbed inmates of _poorliouses havo _{¦) _n'bmlt io . ,: _'i'ie -Minister of Mercy " is a pea and
Wise Saws Axd Modern Instances. Bv Thoma...
ink portrait ofthe celebrated dissenting minister , _ltOBERT Haix , showing him engaged in the benevolent work ot providingfor the poor and-unfortunate of Leicester . In the course of his philanthropic labours he encounters a friend , who is an unbeliever in religion , but endowed with a large portion of the " milk of human kindness . " He contributes largely to a relief fund , which the "Minister of Mercy" is collecting * , indeed the sum he contributes is much larger than any sum the -Minister can obtain from any ol the religious and wealthy manufacturers ; In the course of a conversation between the sceptic and the Minister , on tlie hardness of heart towards the
poor shown by the wealth y , the sceptic remarks , that if callousness to the sufferings of their workmen continues to increase among tlie manufacturers , as rapidly as it has increased for the last ten years , Christianity will be openly scoffed at by the poor ol the next generation , iu the very streets " where we arc now walking . " This conversation the author supposes to have taken place _twenty-eight years ago . The next story . — " Mcrrie England—No More ! " exhibits the prediction of the sceptic realised . As a specimen of Mr . Cooper ' s prose writings , and for the stern truths contained therein , we give tbe whole of tbis tale : —
_MEBRIE _BN' _GlANn "—SO MORE ! On an April morning in forty-two—scarcely four years bygone , —a group of five or _eix destitute-looking men were standing on a well-known space in Leicester , where the fruHtrum ot a Roman mile-stone ( surmounted , in true Gothic style , w . ith a _fantastic cross ) was preserved within an iron palisade , and where the long narrow avenue oi Barkb y-lanc . eiitcrsHicwiOctra . HngstrcetCiiliedlJclgravcgate . The paleness and _nYjeetion of tlie men ' s faces , as well as the ragged condition of their _clothing , would have to ' . d how fearfully they were struggling with poverty and want , if their words had not been overheard . "Sever mind the lad , John , " said the tallest and somewhat the hardest-featured man of the party ; " he can't be worse off than he would have been at home , let him he where he will . What ' s the use of grieving about him ? He was tired of pining at home , no doubt , and has gone to try if he can't mend his luck . You'll hear of him again , soon , from some quarter or other . "
"But I can't satisfy myself about him , in that way , George , " replied the man to whom this rough exhortation was addressed ; " if the foolish lad be drawn into company that tempts him to steal , I may have to hear him sentenced to transportation , and that would be no joke , George . " '' I see nothing so very serious , even in that , " observed another of the group ; " I would as lief be transported tomorrow as slay here to starve , as I ' ve done for the last six months . " * ' It would seem serious to me , though , " rejoined John , " to see my own child transported . " " Why , John , to men that scorn to steal , in spite of starvation , " rcrunied George , "ii ' s painful to sec any child , or man either , transported : but where _' s the real disgrace of it ? The man that pronounces the sentence is , in nine cases out of ten , a bigger villain than him that ' s called' the criminal . ' Disgrace is only a name—a mere name , you know , John . "
" I ' m aware there's a good deal o truth in that , " replied John ; " the names of * things . would be altered a good deal , if the world was set viglit : hut , as wrong ae things are now , yet I hopo my lad will never steal , and have to he sentenced to transportation . I've often had io hear him cry for bread , since he waB horn , and had none to give him ; but I would sooner see him perish with hunger than live to hear him _transported , for I think it would break my heart ; —and God Almighty forbid I ever should have to hear it !" " Goddle Mitey , " said George , pronouncing thesyllablen in a mocking manner , and setting up a bitter laugh , which na 3 joined by every member of the group , except the mournful man who had just spoken ; " who told thve there was one ? Thy grandmother and' the parsons Don't talk such nonsense anymore , John ! it ' s time we all g ave it over : they ' ve managed to grind men to the dust with their priestcraft , and we shall never be righttd till we throw it off !"
" ao _, no , " chimed in another , immediately ; "they may cant and prate shout it : but , if tlieir God existed , he would never permit us to suffer as we do !" " Well , I ' m come seriously to the same conclusion , " said one who had not spoken before , and was the palest and thinnest of the group ; " I think all their talk about a Providence that disposes the lot of men differently here , for His Own great mysterious purposes , ' as they phrase it , is mere mysterious humbug , ' to keep us quiet . What purpose could a being _huve , who , they say , is as infinitely good as he is infinitely powerful , in placing me where I must undergo insult and starvation , while He places that man , —the oppressor and grinder , who is riding past now , in his gig , —in _vilentv an'l abundance ' . "
' ltignt , Benjamin , ' ' said George ; "they can tget quit of their difficulty , quibble as they may : if they bedaub ns with such nicknames as ' Atheistical Socialists , ' we can defy them to make the riddle plainer by tlieir own Jonathan Edwards , that they say good Hubert Hall read over thirteen timi ' _-s _, and pronounced ' irrefragable . '" "Just so , " resumed Benjamin , " whether man be called a ' Creature of Circumstance , ' or a ' Creature of Necessity , ' it amounts to the same thing . And , then , none of the Ariiiiuian sects can make out a ease : they only prove the same thing as the Calvinist and the Socialist , when their blundering argument is sifted to the bottom . "
"So that , if there be a Providence , continued George , " it has appointed , or permitted—which they like , for it comes to the same , —that old should fliug . tlie three _dop . on _liOEein your face last November , and that you should be out of work , and pine evsr since ; it appointed that I should get a few potatoes or a herring , by begging , or go without food altogether , some days since Christmas ; and th _.-it each of ua here , though we are willing to work , should have to starve ; while it appointed that the _m-- _» ior should live in afine house , and _swullliis riches , by charging _tcliolc frame-rents , month after month , _totECores of poor starving _stoclcingers that had from him but hall week ' s work . " "Aud , with all their talk about piety , " rejoined Benjamin , " 1 think thcrtiis no piety at all in believing in the existence of sueh a Providence ! and since , it appears , it can't be proved that Providence is of any other character , if there be One at all ; I think it less impious to believe in Xone . "
John stood by while this conversation was going on ; but he heard little of it , —for his heart was too heavy with concern for his child , —aud , in a little time , he took his way , silently and slowly , towards other groups of unemployed and _equally destitute men , who were standing on the wider space of ground , at the junction of several streets , —a locality known by the name of "the Coal-hill _j" and "the _Haymai-ket . " from the nature of the _niei'chandfce sold there , nt _different periods , in the open air . " Have you found the lad _yst V said one of John ' s acquaintances , when he reached the outermost group . " No , William , " replied the downcast father ; " and I begin to have some very troublesome fears about him , I'll assure you . " " But why should you , John V expostulated the other ; ,: he ' s only gone to try if he can't mend himself Look you , John ! " he said , pointing excitedly at what he suddenly saw ; "there he goes , with the recruiting _su--jeant !"
The father ran towards the soldier and his child ; anil every group oil the Co _.-il-hlll was speedily in motion when they saw and hoard the father endeavouring to drag ofr tbe lad from the soldier , who seiztd the arm of his prize , aud endeavoured to detain him . An increasing crowd soon hemmed in the party , —a great tumult arose , —and three policemen were speedily on the spot .
"Stick To Your Resolution, My Boy!" Crie...
"Stick to your resolution , my boy ! " cried the soldier , grasping the lad ' s arm wiih all his might ; " you'll never want bread nor clothes in the army . " " But he'll be a sold slave , and must be shot st , like a dog' - ' - ' cried the father , striving to rescue his child , —a pale , tall stripling , who seemed to be but sixteen or seventeen years of age , " Man-butcher!—Blood-hound ! " shouted several voices in the crowd : whereat the policemen raised their staves , and called aloud to the crowd to " stand back !" ' I demand , in the Queen's name , that you make this fellow loose his hold oi * my recruit ! " said the soldier , in a loud , an _^ ry tone , to the policemen ; two of whom seemed to be about obeying him , when , a dark , stern _, browed man among tiie crowd , of ninch move strong and sinewy appearance tlian the majority of the working multitude who composed it stepped forward , and said , —
"Let any policeman touch him that dare ! If they do they shall repent it ! There ' s no lav ,- to prevent a father from taking hold of liis own child ' s arm to hinder him from playing the fool !" The men inbhiesluukback . it these words ; and the soldwv himself deemed intimidated at perceiving _tliif father ' s cause taken up by au individual of such detctmilia tion . " Tom . " said the determined man to ths lad , " have you taken the soldier's money \" _"Kot yet , " answered the lad , after a few moments ' hesitation .
" Then he shall have my life before he has thee ! " said the father , whose heart it-aped at the answer , and infused so inu .: h strength into his arm , that with _arioilicr pull he brought off Ids ; _- . _ul , entirely , from the soldier ' s hold . The crowd now buist into a shout of triumph ; and when the soldier would have followed , to recapture his victim , _thestcrn-browc-d man confronted him with a look of silent defiance ; and the _red-coat , after uttering a volley of _oaihs , walked off amidst the derision of tiie multitude . "Don ' t you think you were _afuol _, Tom , to be _juiglcd with that cut-throat ? ' said the stern-browed man lo the lad , while tiie crowd gathered around him and liis father . * ' I wasn ' t so soon ju » k 1 m 1 , " replied the ! ad : "he ' s been at inc this three months ; but 1 never yielded till this morning , when I felt almost pined to death , and he- made lne h & VG SO !! - . * _bl-eakfiist with him , —but he'ii not get hold of wc airr . hi •' - '
" That's right , my lad ! " said one of the crowd ; " the Woody rascals have noi had two Leicester recruits these tWO years : ail J I hope they'll never have another . " " Xo , no , our eyes are getting opened , " said another working-man ; " they may be able to kill us off by starvation , at home ; but I hope young and old will have too much _sc-iirc , ia future , to give or sell their bodies lo be shot at , for tyrants . " " Ay , ay , we should soon set the IordIin ;; s far-1 , if aU working-men refused to go for soldiers , - " said another . " _yo _wt should . Smith , " said _,-, _scdiitvlooliing elderly man ; " that ' s more _sensible than talking of lighting when
"Stick To Your Resolution, My Boy!" Crie...
we ve no _weapoan , nor money to buy ' em , nor strength to use-em . " ; " T 1 . we sh » Hwait a long while for the Charter , if we wait tm we get it by leaving ' em no soldiers to keep US UOWll , said a young , bold-lookiii man , with a fiery look ; for thej'll always find plenty of Johnny Raws ready to list m the farming districts . " ' _^" W ' r Sha 11 wait ; l lo " wllile stiH if wc try t 0 eet it by fighting ' , under our present circumstance . ' ? , " answered the elderl y man , in a firm tone ; " that could onlv make things worse , as all such fool ' s tricks have ended ' , before . "
"You ' re right , Randal , you ' re right ! " cried several voices in the crowd ; and the advocate ofthe bugbear " physical force'' said not another word on the subject . " So , no lads ! " continued the " moral force" man , " let us go on , telling ' em our minds , without whispering , —and let us throw off their cursed priestcraft , —and the system will come to an end , —and beforelong . But fighting tricks will be sure to fail ; _because they ' re the strongest , —and they know it . " "Yes , it must end , —and very soon , " observed another working man ; " the shopkeepers won ' t be long before they join us ; for they begin to squeak , most woefully . " "The shopkeepers , hul ! "said the dark-looking man , who had confronted the soldier ; " never let us look for their help : there is not a spark of independence in any of ' em : they have had it in tlieir power , by their votes , to have ended misrule , before now , if they had had the will . "
-Poor devils ! they ' re all fast at tlieir bankers ' , and dare no more vote against their tyrants than they dare attempt to fly , " said another . " There is HO dependence on any of the middle class , " said the dark-l ooking man , they _i ' are as bad as the aristocrats . You see this last winter has passed over , entirely , without any subscription for the poor , again , —as severe a winter as it has been . " " Ay , and work scarcer and scarcer every day , " said another . " lhey say there are eight hundred out o ' wovk now , in Leicester , " said the elderly , sedate man , who had spoken before ; "and I heard a manufacturer say there would he twice as many before tbe summer went over : but he added , that the people deserved to bG pinched , since they would not join the Corn Law Repealers . " A burst of indi gnation , and some curses and imprecations , followed . " Dois he go to chapel ! " asked one .
* ' \ cs ; and he ' s a member of the Charles-street meeting , " said the elderly man . " There ' s your religion , again !"— " There's your saintship !"— - 'There ' s your Christianity !"— "There's their Providence and their Goddle Mitey !"—were the varied indiguant exclamations among the starved crowd , as soon as the answer was heard , "I should think they invented the _Bastile Mill , while thoy were at chapel ! " said one . " Is it smashed again ? " asked another . " No , but it won will be , " answered the man who confronted the soldier . These , and similar observations , were uttered aloud , in the open street , at broad day , by hundreds of starved , oppressed , andinsulted framework-knitters , who thus gave vent to their de'pair . Such conversation were cuEtomary _souudsin John's ears , and , having recovered his son , he took him by tbe arm , after tbis brief delay , and , walking slowly back towards the Roman milestone , tho two bent their steps down the narrow street called Barkby-lane .
After threading an alley , they reached a small wretchedly furnished habitation ; and the lad burst into tears , as his mother sprung from her laborious employ at the wash-tub , and threw her arms round his neck , and kissed hiin . Two or throe neighbours came in , in another minute , and congratulating the father and mother , on tlieir having found tlieir son , a conversation followed on the hatefulncss of becoming " a paid cut-throat for tyrants , " the substance of which would have been as unpleasing to "the powers that be" as the conversation in the street , had they heard the two . The entry , hit > the squalid-looking house , of another nei g hbour , pale and dejected beyond description , gave a new turn to the homely discourse . " Your son has come back , I see , John , " said the newcomer , iu a very faint voice : " 1 wish my husband would come home . " " Thy husband , JIary ! " said John ; " why , Where ' s ho gone ? Bless me , woman , how how ill you look!—What's the matter V
The woman ' s infant had begun to cry while she spoke and she had bared her breast , and given it to the child but—Nature was exhausted ! there was no milk;—and , while the infant struggled and screamed , the woman fainted . She recovered , under tho kindly and sympathetic attention of the neighbours ; aud the scanty resources of the group were laid under contribution for restoring some degree of strength , b y means Of food , to tbe woman and her child . One furnished a cup of milk , another a few spoonfuls of oatmeal , another , brought a little bread ; and whea the child was iiuUted , and the mother was able , she
commenced ber sad narrative . She had not , she said , tasted food of any kind for a day and two nights : she had pawned or sold every article of clothing , except what she bad on , and she was without a bonnet entirely : nor had her husband any other clothes than the rags in . which he had gone out , two hours before , wi : h the intent to try the relieving officer , once more , for . a loaf , or a _ti-ifl _* of money : to complete tlieir misery , they owed six weeks ' rent for tho room in which lay the bag of shavings that formed tluir bed ; and , if Vuey could not pay the next week ' s rent , they must turn out into the street , or go into the Bastile .
_Ilc-r recital was scarcely concluded , when the sorrowful husband returned . He had been driven away by the relieving officer , and threatened with tlie gaol , if he came again , unless it was to bring his wife aud child with him to enter the Unioji Bastile!—and the man sat down , and wept . And then the children of misery mingled their consolations—if reflections drawn from uufiuaii' could be so called—and endeavoured to fortify the heart of the yielding man , by reminding him that they would not have to starve long , for life , with all its miseries , would soon be over . " I wonder why it ever begun ! " exclaimed the man who lind been yielding to _toai' _-i , but now suddenly burst out into bitter language : " I think it's a pity but that God had found something better to do than to make such poor miserable wretches ae we are !" " Lord ! what queer thoughts thou hast Jim ! " said the _iviiniiin who had previously fainted , and she burst into a half-convulsive laugh .
" Indeed , it's altogether a mystery to me , " said the man who had so recently found his son ; " we seein to be born for nothing but trouble . And then the queerest thing is that we are to go to hell , at last , if we don't do every thing exactly square . My poor father always taught nib * to reverence religion j and I don't like to say _anything against it , but I'm hard put to it , at times , Jim , I'll assure ye . It sounds strange , that we are to be burnt for ever , after pining and starving here ; foi how can a man keep _lsis _teitpev , and be Uiank . ul , as they say we ought to be , when he would work and can ' t get it , and , wllile he starves , sees oppressors ride in their gigs , and build their great warehouses V
"Its mere humbug , John , to keep us down : that ' s what it is ! " said Jim : " one of these piety-mongers left us a tract last week ; aud what should it contain hut that old bile of Bishop Burnt tt , about the widow that somebody who peeped through the ehink _. of the window-. -hutt _^ rs saw kneeling by a table with a crust of bread before her , and crying out in rapture , ' AU this and Christ ! ' I'll tell thee what , John , if old Burnet had been brought down from his gold and fat living , and had tried it himself , I could bettor have _heliared him . It ' s a tale told like many others to make fools and slaves of us ; that ' s what I think . Ay , and I told the long-faced fellow so t ' nat fetched the tract . He looked very sourly at m « _, and said the pnor did not use to trouble themselves about politics in his father ' s time , iind . cverybody was more comfortable then than they are now . ' The more fouls were they , ' said I : * if the poor had begun to think of their rights soontr , instead of listening to religious cant , we should not have been so badly off now ; ' and away he went , and never said another word .
" But I don't like to give way to bad thoughts about religion , after ail , Jim , " said John ; "it ' s very mysterious —the present state of things : but wc may find it all explained in the next life . " "Prythee , John , " exclaimed the other , interrupting him , impatiently , " don ' t talk so weakly . That ' s the way they all wrap it up ; and if a guess in the dark and a ' maybe ' will do for an argument , why any thing will do . Until somebody can prove to me that there is another life after this , I shall think it my duty to think about this only . Sow just look at this , Jo . ' m 1 If there be another life after this , why the present is worth nothing : every moment _hevt ought to be spent in caring for eternity ; and every man who really beiievts ill _BUfll il life Would uoc care how be passed-this , so that he could but be making a preparation for the next : is n ' c that true , John V " To be sure it is , Jim ; and what o' that ?"
Why , Hien _, tell me wliich of 'em b . tieves in such a life . Do you see any of the canting tribe less eager than other . ; to get better houses , finer chairs and t _. _ibles , larger shops , and more trade ? Is old Sour-Godiiness in the north , there , more easily _bron-rlit to give up 11 puimy ill the dozen to save a starving stockingcr than the grinders that don ' t profess religion ? I tell thee , John , it ' s all fudge : __ they don ' t believe it themselves , or else , they would imitate Christ before they tell us to be iil « him !" ' Header ! tiie conversation shall not be prolonged , iest the object of this sketch should be mistaken . These conversations arc real : _thc-v are no coinage * , Go to _Liricc-Stv | _-j oc auy otUw of tin suvfcv _t . wg towns « f _uttpYcssen nv . mYdY . v _turc , where men competa with eacli other in machinery tiii human hands are of _llttla use , ana rival each other iu wicked zeal to reduce man lo tiic merest miiiuiiiiiri oi
of subsistence . It the . missionary people—and tbis b no : said with a visw to _ques-tion the true greatness and utility of their _eiior s—if _tlk-y would be consistent , let them send ; 1 ( . j ; . j , craids into the mnuuf _* _ictuviug district ? , and first conver * the "iiiHiMs" iIiitc , ere they send tlieir _oxpensiv _.. inssseiigers to India . But let it be _' understood that the heralds must be furnished with brains , as well a ? _tonjrnc-s ; for whoever enters Leicester , or any otuer o ! the populous starving hives of England , must expect to had tha deepest subjects of theologv , and government , and political economy , taken up with a subtlety that would otten puzzle a graduate of Oxford or Cambridge \\ hoover _supposes the starving " manufacturing masses' * know no more , and cm use no belter language , than ihe _psasaniry in the _a-rricuU'iriil comitie . e , will find li iiu-elf _cjicjiously _mistaicen . 'lis ten to one but Le will learn more of a profound subject in one hour ' s con-
"Stick To Your Resolution, My Boy!" Crie...
versation of starving gtockingers than he would do iu ten lectures , of a university professor . Lot the missionary people try these . quarters , tken ; but -let their heralds "know their business" ere they go , or they will make as slow progress as Egede and the Moravians among the Gi-ecnlanders , One hint may be given . Let them begin with the manufacturers ; and , if they succeed in making real converts to Christianity in that quarter , their suecess _iiill he tolerably certain among the working-men , and tolerably easy in its achievement . There is no " tale" to finish about John or his lad , or Jem and his wife . Thoy went on starving , —begging , — receiving threats of imprisonment , —tried the "Ba 6 tile " for a few weeks , —came out and had a little work , — starved again ; and they ate still going the same _miierable round , like thousands in " mcrrie England . " What are your thoughts reader 1
Ay ! " What arc your thoughts , reader ? " Thoughts crowd upon us that we have no room in these columns to give expression to . We , too , have heard sucii conversations as the above , many a time . Mr . Cooper has neither coloured nor added to the sontiraents , wliich any man with his ears open may hear expressed by the tongues of thousands in the _nianuiacturini ; districts . Painful as are Mr . _Coorsn _' s descriptions of the misery ol the working people , the truth of which descriptions we ean vouch for , his "' Merrie England '—No More ! " affords at least one cheering picture , —tuediscnthvalmeutof tho minds ol the oppressed classes from that mental slavery _ivliieli priests have imposed upon the millions . The
working classes are fast discovering that it is the strong who rule the world , and they see , that if they would be the rulers , they must become the strong , ami depend upon themselves _onli for that justice which no other power , natural or supernatural , will give to or gain for them . Mental darkness is dissipating ; political and social wrong will follow . We do not like the second volume so well as the first . We must , however , accord our praise to the "London Venture" and " Signs of the Times . " We havo not space to dwell on the merits of these . The two concluding stories , or fragments , were intended , it appears , to form parts of a novel , in somo degree autobiographical , the completion of whicli the author has relinquished .
There are several other tales in the two volumes , besides those above named ; we have merely singled out those with which we have been best pleased . _ These volumes have our hearty commendation . Though of a different and inferior order of _composition to the " Purgatory of Suicides , " they caunot fail to greatly increase Mr . Cooper ' s popularity .
George Cruiksiiank's Table-Bookdkckmbkr....
GEORGE CRUIKSIIANK ' S TABLE-BOOKDkckmbkr . London : Punch _Olhce , 02 , Fleet
street . The subject of the principal illustrations this month is "The Railroad Dragon . " A "terrible creature in every sense of the word—a frightful creature , an encounter with which would be a new edition of a monster meeting—a dragon more terrible tlian the dragon of Wantley , more fierce than the dragon of St . George ; ay , _iUu-cer than any of his Christmas brethren , the tribe of ' snap-dragonsthis monster , hatched in Capel-court , ' as they hatch chickens in Egypt , by artificial means ; in fine , the dragon of the panic has gone triumphantly
forthabroad himself , when installed in the liomesoi erery body else—staring with his evil eye , promising schemes out of all countenance , and blowing , by his pestiferous breath , the hew lines of projectors into anything but pleasant places . ' - ' Thus , saith the clever writer of tlie accompanying article ( Mr . Angus . B . Reach ) , and truly the illustration amply justifies this alarming description . This " Dragon" must be seen to be comprehended , but . once seen his portrait will not soon be forgotten . How terrific is the "Dragon ' s" announcement for his unfortunate victims : —
" I eome to dine , I come to sup—I ccme , I come , to eat you up . " And this , ton , at Christmas time ! Weil may there bo a Panic ! "Steam has done it all , " says the writer in the " Tablo-Book , "— " may do us all . Tho Panic is the executioner which hangs us * on our own linos ; ' which overthrows the pillars-ol" their fame—the columns of tlieir advertisements—and which , although it may come with a knock , may not leave us worth a rap . Bo warned , then , of the Panic Monster . _Distrust the screeching music of its steam-whistle , which may suddenly change its tune from the merry ditty of ' gold in both pockets , ' to the doleful dirge of "' That's the way tho money goes . '" The next article , " Railway Deposits , " introduces us to a parody on the " Beggar ' s Petition , " " Pity the sorrows of a poor old Stag !"
" A . Le « cnd of the Rhine" is brought to a happy conclusion ; it is the best quiz on literature ot the "romantic school" we have ever read . "My Opinions on Umbrellas , " " Hints for a Domestic Police , " " The Pessimist , " and " _Autograph Hunters , " are all good . " Joliipump on Happiness " makes one happy to road it . " The Stage Negro " is auo : hcr of the editor ' s capital sketches of stage characters . Altogether , this number of the " Table-Book" is more than ordinarily excellent , and we part from it with regret . This number closes the volume , and concludes the "Table-Book ; " but Mr . G . _Cuuikshaxk announces that , ou the 1 st of January next , lie will commence a new work ' , to be called , " Our Own Times . " We trust that tho " inimitable Geokge ' s" new venture will " command success , " for sure we are that it will well "deserve it . "
Fw We Are Compelled To Postpone Reviews ...
fW We are compelled to postpone reviews of " Jerrold ' s Magazine , " tho " Connoisseur , " and some other publications till next week .
Rvmv Works.—Mr. Dickexs S Christmas Book...
rvmv Works . —Mr . Dickexs s Christmas Book , " The Cricket on the Hearth , " will , we hear _^ be ready on the 20 th inst . About the same time Mr . _Cooi'Kit ' s" Christmas Rhyme , " " The Baron ' s Yule least , " will also be ready : report speaks highly of the merits of this new production of the Chartist poet ' s pen . Messrs . Bradbuiiy and Evans announce a re-issue of " Boz ' s" ealobrated story , " Oliver Twist ; " it will be published in monthly parts , uiu-I ' orm . ' with . "Pickwick , " "Nicholas NkJdcby , " & c , commencing on the 1 st of January . We hear also that Mr . Gii . _ught A . _a'Bkckbtt , the talented author of the " Comic Blackstone , " and Editor of " Grm'kshank _' s Table Book , " will begin the new year with a monthly publication of a very superior character . . So that , cheerily the old year will go out , and cheerily fc ' m new one will come in .
Mei-Ascnolt Case Of Suicide.—On Tuesday ...
_MEi-AscnoLT Case of Suicide . —On Tuesday afternoon Mr . Wakley , M . P ., held an inquest in the House of Correction , Coldbath-lields , Clerkenwell , on J 11 , aged nineteen , the son of rcpectable parents , and a baker , who had been committed for fourteen days , for having left his work without due notice , and who committed suicide . John Sims , a warden of tho prison , stated that deceased _^ was received on last Saturday evening , about half-past seven . He appeared weak , and was unable to walk . Shortly afterwards he became so ill , that Doctors Wakefield and _Smales were sent for ; who , having ascertained that be had taken prussic acid , applied the stomach-pump and other remedies without avail , as he expired at nine o ' clock the same night . S . Latham , the warden who searched deceased on his
_aumissioii , said thathe stood up five minutes whue he searched him , and that he handed him some _copptr . ? from his pockets , in one of which he found a phial wliich had been emptied , and which was labelled "Essential Oil of Almonds , " which , together with his aimust insensible appearance , aroused a suspicion that he had poisoned himself . He was instantly removed to a bed , where he lay speechless and insensible . The two house physicians were in _immediute attendance , lie died at nine o ' clock . W . Mitchell , gaoler of Marylebone police court , deposed that last Saturday deceased surrendered himself in consequence of a wan-ant that was against , him for having left his master ' s employment without notice . Mr . Rawlinson , tlie magistrate , did all in his power to induce his master to accept an apology from
deceased , but he could not . Mr . Rawlinson was , therefore , compelled to send deceased to prison for fourteen days , lie could not have obtained the poison while he was in the station-house , as no one was allowed to approach him there , except the officers . None but felons or persons charuod with ffiipilai oli ' _oiK-os ivere searched in the station-house . _IX-ceu-jcd was very melancholy -while llivre . W ~ M— . a prisoner committed for tho same offence with deceased , said that he was in the same cell with deceased in the station-iuwse . lie then complained of having been severely dealt with for so trilling an offence , and said that he was about being married , but that his sentence would do away with his marriage . Mr . Richard Browne , baker , Chappie-street , Newroad , said that the deceased had been in his employ
about ten days , raid left it the second week without notice . He summoned him for so _dotnej , and as he did not appear he took out a waraut against him . By tlie Coroner : Deceased had twelve shillings a week wages , with board and lodging . Ho commenced serving bread at eight o ' clock a m , each day , ivltich occupied him until twelve o ' clock , two o ' clock , mm sometimes until nighb _, in consequence ot his loitering away his lime . " At four o ' clock hehad to prepare tlie sponge . After which he was at liberty uutil cloven o ' clock , when ho resumed work , ami was at it ail night . AYitdoss , when he first-commenced business purchased a large quantity of " essential oil of almonds , " and lite " '' essence oi' lemon , " which lie novo , ' . ' _usi-d ,- but which he kepi- safe under lock and kov with his currants and other fruits . Mr .
Whitby , surgeon , 58 , Lppcr _Ebury-strec-t _, Pimheo , _k-i ) o ; : fd that deceased about ten dav _' sagu purchased nvb ( _h-acl ) iusof the " essential oil of almonds'for die purpose of his business , as he told him . lie know deceased well , and cautioned him about the dangerous properties of the prussic acid , whicli he _omirioniy _sokl to _bakeis , confectioners , and pastryconks . The jury returned a verdict of " Temporary insanity , " accompanied by the expression ofa strong Impo that _matristrates would be _wiii-iicd by the deceased's melancholy fate , and order all persons in custody to be searched previous to their incarceration _.
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Cannisal.—Tlie Hig Hest Iioman Catholic ...
CAnnisAL . —Tlie hig hest Iioman Catholic dignity next to the Pope . Tno « ord is tlerrrcJ irom eanlo , a . binge , because the Cardinals will turn either way , and open the door for anything . When the rope makes a Cardinal , lie _. _eives him a red hat ; and it is supposed that Cardinal Wolsey patronised the Old Mother Red Cap , at Camden Town , when ho and Henry the Eighth went out on some of their _roysterine expeditions to lii"h » ate . —Bunch .
_Fathek Lukk and the Rint . — "Women of Ireland : " says he ; " women descended from those thre _© hundthred virgins whom the bloody Saxon Cromwell slew at Wexford ; womon who inhabit a land _whosfe vallies are the greenest , whose rivers are the clearest , whose mountains aro the highest in tho world . What mici ificcs arc you prepared to make to that bleeding , that beautiful counthrce ? The wicked Saxon lias blighted the potatoc-crop , and rejoices in the prospeot of the national famine . The agonies of our children feast his heart with hellish joy : do they awaken no sympathies in yours ? Are you not prepared to do everything to rescue your starving countrymen _/ Our Sublime Liberator permits it : enjoins it . Thai ; Great Philanthropist cannot subscribe himself , for he is poor—but he calls upon you , his children , to make every sacrifice . Father of our counthry , shall notyour _daii'dithei-s obey you ?" . —Ibid .
Pebl s Games . —We understand that the Premier is shortly about to publish a new edition of _Hoyle , embracing all the new games and tricks which , by a _skii ' til knowledge of how to play his cards , Sir Robert Peel has become master , lie intends devoting an entire chapter to _^ burning , which is an art of itself , and one wliich the Premier has carried to tile utmost perfection . There will be a few pages devoted to bints on cutting , with remarks on the proper time to cut , and a few general observations on the
treatment of the pack , so as to make a good hand of it . Tricks will occupy a very large space in the Premier ' s work ; but the games will be the chief feature . Cribbage , as played at the expense of the Whigs , will be elaborately explained ; and a chapter on revokes will explain how it is that there is nothing irrevocable in the games of the Premier . The work will be emblazoned with a splendid portrait of Sir Robert Peel as tho Knave ol ' Spades , in which character he appeared the other day , at the commencement of the works on tbe Trent Valley Railway . —Ibid .
King . " Jeames . "—We learn from Palermo that the King of the two Sicilies had a tremendous " struggle of politeness" with the Emperor of Russia , to yield " the place of honour" in the Royal carriage . At length , " the contest ended by the King taking the footman ' s place behind the vehicle . " There have been kings who could not be better placed . —i _» _«« cA . Too Much of a Good Thing . —Parliament is to meet early in January . It had better be prorogued till the Christmas panloiumes are oyer . —Punch . A " Pat" Proposal . —A Glasgow merchant , an Irishman , was lately accosted in his counting-houseby a countryman , who needed charity . Money having been given to him , he said , " Ton haven ' t got such a thing as a pair of ould britches , have you ? " " No my man , " said the merchant , "I don ' t keep my ward--robe in my counting-house . " " Where do you live V if joined Pat , " and I'll call in the morning for the ould pair you ' ve got on !"
_Keewx & hie Woud op Promise to the Ear . — An elderly Portuguese lad y , having pledged * herseli ' to make a pilgrimage to a distant shrine , barefoot , her friends persuaded her that the fatigue would prove fatal . She persisted , however , in going to the shrine and in going barefoot ; but she went in a sedan chair . . ' - A EECE _11 T FOR A WIFE , '' As much ' _ef _boatiy-as _iij _. esorvcs _aflect- ' on—As much of _chcerfulness ' as spurns dijuction—Of modest diffidence , as _cl-.- . ims protection ; A docile mind , subservient to correction , Yet stored with sense , i _> _itli reason , and reflection : And every passion held in due subjection ; Just faults " enough to keep lior from perfection ' . — Find this , ray friend , and then , make your selection . "
A Classic . —The other day a student from tbe country , who had joined the Glasgow College , was about to leave by one ofthe train * from that city , and as he walked up and down the station , dressed out in bis toga , he perceived tbe door of a _iirst-class carriage open , and he thought lie would scat himself there . One of the railway guards happening to pass , asked him to what class he belonged ( meaning whether the first , second , or third , ) when he in all simplicity _raplieti , " lbelang to the Mauthemantics . "
ADVICE GRATIS . AN ECLOGUE . ( From funch _. ) Paddy _: What ' s to be done at all , Mlstlic-r Commissioner ? Here's a lot of praytecs wouldn't plazc the pigs sir , Earlics and lumpers , cups and common tatters , Gone to the divil , Commissioner : Dig up your tubers , store them in a . dry place , Plenty of straw pat underneath each layer , Grind _tliem . to pulp , or , if you IiUe it better , Toast on a griddle . raddy : Murdthor alive , " but wherc ' s the straw to-Come from ? Mill for to grind , or griddle for to toast ' cm ! Divil the place I ' ve got to keep myself dry ,
Much less my praties . Dr , _Buokland : Ignorant . ' peasant , don't mind Kane or Pluyfair—Starch is only gluten , therefore iniiutritious ; Steam jour potatoes , and you'll find the fungus _E'jual to mushrooms , Mr . TiUey : Chloride of lime is better , if you ' ve got it—Twopence a pound is all that it will cost you . *" One pound of chloride , properly employed , saves Two of potatoes . . -Ill together : But whate _' er you do , Pat , lieep your mind quite easy , Science is at work examining the fungus ; Though , for the present , we confess that wc know Nothing about it . [ Exeunt Commissioners , Bnckland , and Tiliey ruddy , with his hands in his pockels _, looks afk them bewildered .
A Gentle Hint . —A spruce young * beau , gallanting his intended , a few evenings since , was conversing upon the late turn-out , when he remarked , that "he wished he was able to maintain all the factory girls in Lowell one six months . He would do it to prevent their returning to the mills . " His fair one , who had till now been a silent listener to his patriotic discourse , replied , with a sigh , " Ah , 1 wish you was able to maintain one of them . "—Lowell Bulle ' tm . Railway Appointments .- —In tho prospectus of every Railway , an announcement is always made of the Engineer , Solicitor , Banker , and Surveyor , who is appointed to the Line ; but not a word is ever said ofthe appointment of a Surgeon _. _^ From the latter being always excluded , one would imagine there was nothing on a lluilway for a Surgeon to ' _do . —Puncii .
Proper Spirit . —It is said the Bude Lights in Trafalgar Square have been tried several times , but that they cannot be made to burn . The reason of this obstinacy is that they will not lend themselves tr > illuminate a place which , they maintain , the less that is seen of it the bettor . —Aid . _Oke axd the Sajie Tuixo . —According to rumour * , Fleet Prison is to be a Railway I ' _tminus . We are sure there was no necessity to have removed a brick , of the old place for that purpose . —Ibid .
TUE O CONNELL STATUE Punch offers the following as an inscription for the proposed statue of O'Connell : —
TO OXE Whose virtues cannet be told ; Who has had a hand for all that ever came to it , and a pocket always open at the call ofhis friends ; Who has sympathised with the beggar : Who has never known on any one occasion to forget himself ; Wiio has in the heat of passion , abused men of all parties , _liut on calmer reflection , msdc tlio * uMC ) id e 7 iouou » _- - _nW-3 . " by repudiating all ; Who has shown his love ami regard for the E nglish monarchy by trying to relieve it of part of its work ; Who has declared his attachment to the throne , and proved it , by his endeavours to erect a throne for himself ; Who lives "in" the hearts ofthe Irish people / and " out Ol" tilth pockets .
TO IItil Who is indeed an Emancipator and a Liberator , making at all times " uncommonl y" free , in a wovd , TO ]> AK ! Eb O'OOXXELL , Who has identified the interests of his countrymen with . his owd , by endeavouring to make his own whatever * _beiuiigs to tliem .
Itaviug Lived By The Contributions Of Ot...
ITaviug lived by the contributions of others , he _generously contributed THE BRASS of which this statue is constructed . _Domestic A ' Eiui . x . _-Wliy is an extravagant housekeeper hkc a caterpillar ? Because she makes tue outter-iiv .
Jutenil-e _Giiamuer . —A little girl bavins disobevee ! her mamma , wns termed a n _" . o article . * i \ o , please mamma , rophen the liUlc jji _'' l , "if J ' OllloOkinto the grammar you will perceived that 1 am not an _arUek . out a _ficiiu of _tiicjrc- nmme oeiif _?« . v . _rJSr _^ L _* V ' , ) t A complicated account ofa simplctransac ion , which enables Counsel to mystify himll _, '' i .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Dec. 13, 1845, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns4_13121845/page/3/
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