much more congenial to my nature than the splendid confinement to which I was now condemned; and as I was constantly in exercise, and in the open air, I enjoyed tolerable health, notwithstanding the meagre fare which fell to my lot. My fond mistress, in fact, "killed me with kindness;" for, although it is true that the tit bits which she served out to me, from her own plate, were, at first, vastly to my taste, they were quite unsuitable to the consti tution of an animal, which, in a state of nature, subsists upon fruits and roots. I began to be afflicted with indigestion, nervous affections, and a variety of complaints to which the feeble and intemperate sons of Adam are subject. I had occasional fits of rheumatism, during which I was kept wrapped up in double flannels, and was not permitted to stir out, except when my mistress took me with her in the carriage, upon which occasions I was furnished with a muff and fur tippet, besides my ordinary wrappings of flannel. From being cheerful, and full of play, I became sullen and dejected; and my spleen was not a little aggravated by the impertinent observations of the visitors who frequented my mistress's house, and who, in order to gratify her whim, would often caress me, and exclaim, "Dear creature! how like a little man it is,"-a comparison which was indescribably offensive to my feelings. These vain and silly "Lords of the creation," it seems, flatter themselves that their species bears a great analogy to that of the monkey tribe, and some of their speculative philosophers have even gone to the length of asserting that the principal difference between us is the want of a tail. I think you will agree with me, that nothing but the inordinate vanity of man could have suggested so preposterous and improbable a supposition. "I have little more to add, as my earthly career was drawing to a close. I became every day more feeble and emaciated; and, notwithstanding-perhaps, indeed, in con sequence of the unwearied attention of a celebrated medical adviser, I fell a victim to the injudicious but wellmeant kindness of my heart-broken mistress, who, probably, did not long survive my loss, as I have often heard her declare she loved me as dearly as ever mother doated upon her offspring." No sooner had the Monkey concluded his narrative, than the assemblage was addressed by a little Dog, of most whimsical figure, the extreme shortness of whose legs formed a grotesque contrast with the extraordinary length of his body. He spoke to the following effect: "From the first dawn of recollection, until the close of my wretched life, I was a victim to the selfishness of the unfeeling and sensual tyrant, man. Our friend, the Bear, has told us how he was tutored to dance, by hot plates placed under his feet, and I was taught to turn the kitchen spit by a process pretty similar. A wheel, or cage, was attached to the roasting apparatus by a spindle, passed through the centre, and I was imprisoned in this cage, in which I had barely room to stand upright. In order to make me move, which was necessary to communicate the rotatory motion to the spit, the cook used to put live coals into the wheel, which obliged me to raise my feet alternately, after the fashion described by our friend, to whom I have just adverted.* Once or twice, when the cook was “Geese, turkeys, cocks, &c. are taught to dance by the following cruel method:-The wings of the birds are bound close to their sides, and then they are placed upon the arena of a flagstone, or plate of iron, beneath which is a fire, and the sides of which are barricadoed sufficiently high to prevent escape. While one man plays a lively tune on the organ, or some other instrument, another blows the fire; and, as the heat increases, the poor creatures lift their feet quicker and quicker, until the vaults of their contortions and the rapidity of their motions may be supposed to represent a dance. This system is persevered in until the birds, when placed upon the common earth, will dance in a similar manner at the sound of the music. absent for a few minutes from her post, I took the opportunity to rest my wearied limbs, the consequence of which was, that the meat got burnt, and I got soundly beaten. I soon discovered, therefore, that if I would avoid being scorched by the hot coals, or flagellated with the broom-stick, or kitchen poker, I must begin my work the moment I was consigned to my cage, and that I must continue in motion, without a moment's relaxation, until the meat was thoroughly roasted. I never shall forget how I used to be tantalized with the smell of the meat I was compelled to prepare for my master's table, whilst I was denied food or drink until the operation was concluded, in order to stimulate me to persevere without flagging. Nor was my day's task concluded when the dinner was served up. I was generally summoned in the evening to assist in preparing a hot supper, when I was so fatigued with the previous labour that I was hardly able to move a limb. I followed this hateful and monotonous kind of life for some years, until the cook, one day, did me the unintentional favour of scalding me to death with a pot of turtle soup. During my severe purgatory I have seen the same cook, who accidentally put me out of my misery, commit such acts of barbarity as would make you, my friends, shudder with horror to contemplate. I have known her throw live lobsters on the burning coals, and have heard them scream with agony; and I have seen her strip off the skin of living eels, with as much indifference as if it was the glove she was removing from her own hand. Bears, dogs, monkeys, &c. are taught to dance in a similar manner. The more savage bears, in the first place, are muzzled, and an iron ring being passed through the nose, are subjected to very severe discipline, in order to produce that docility which we see them exemplify in the streets; they are then placed, by the contrivance already mentioned, over a slow fire, and when, at length, at the sound of the organ, he will assume an erect posture and walk upon his hind legs, he is deemed fit for exhibition."-Voice of Humanity. "But I will not dwell upon these atrocities, which are unfit for the ear of any beings possessed of a spark of feeling. I shall, therefore, merely add, that my experience on earth warrants the conclusion that man is a selfish and capricious despot, who, in pursuit of his own sensual gratifications, is wholly indifferent to the feelings and sufferings of all other creatures." (To be continued.) LINES On seeing the Elephant at Mr. Ducrow's Amphitheatre remove the Crown from the Head of the Usurper Korassan and place it on that of Alman201, the rightful Heir. The Elephant, beyond dispute, Is, as we're told, a reasoning brute, And to the bigot's vassals show LINES ADDRESSED TO A FRAUDULENT TRADESMAN WHO PROFESSED TO SELL OFF AT PRIME cost and under, as he WAS ABOUT TO RETIRE. You tell us you'll sell off at prime cost and under, GYMNASIA. (Continued from page 401.) No. XV. TO THE EDITOR. SIR. The feat here described is very simple. You must place the inside of the thumb against the edge of a table and then move your feet backwards as far as you can from the table, so, however, as to be able to recover your upright position, after having removed from the table, with your mouth, a small piece of wood or other matter placed on its edge, as shown in the figure, by the spring of the thumb, without moving your feet. No. XVI. As a minor recreation, I am about to call your attention to a very simple, but to me very novel experiment, communicated by the ingenious Mr. Charles, the celebrated ven |