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[The Swedish Shepherd's Horn of Birchwood.]

"THE shepherds in Sweden, as well as in Iceland, have horns made of birch-wood. Two excavated pieces of birch-wood are clapped close together, and bound tightly round with the bark of the same tree; so that one circular pipe is formed. The sound made with the horn is shrill and woodland, but not unpleasant. The sheep and cattle will come together at certain places and times, obedient to this call."-Ibid.

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[Romaic-Origin of the modern Term.] ROMEI, (Romans.) "How much," says POUQUEVILLE, (p. 125,) was I struck with this word when I first heard the Greeks called by it! Fallen from their ancient splendour, they have lost their liberty with their days of glory, even the name by which their forefathers were known. Children of Sparta, inhabitants of Tegea, of Athens, and of Argos, all are confounded under one general name; and that name taken from the Romans, their first conquerors, seems to have been preserved by the Mussulmans as a badge of humiliation; for in the estimation of these barbarians, the name of Romans, of the people-king, is equivalent to that of vassal or slave."

[The River Selemnus; or, the Lover's

Cure.]

"AT the bottom of the gulf of Lepanto, the river Selemnus is seen running into it. It was the peculiar property of these waters to procure the unhappy lover who bathed in them complete forgetfulness of the cruelties he had experienced from an unkind

could only have taken place in winter, for in summer far the greater part of the river is entirely dry, and its bed is a complete grove of oleanders. The small quantity of water that remains here and there in a few excavations is full of leeches: these, by their suction, might doubtless be well calculated to cool the ardour of any lover who was disposed to furnish them with a dinner."-POUQUEVILLE, p. 53.

m

[Elephantiasis and Slavery correlative.] "Ir is chiefly,' says RAIMONT, ‘in his History of the latter complaint, in those parts of the globe which are under a tyrannical government, that the elephantiasis plays a principal part among the prevailing diseases, in concert with its allies, leprous affections and pestilential fevers: good health does not go hand in hand with extreme slavery.

"Under an inhuman despotism, the greater part of the lands are left uncultivated; they are often covered with stagnant waters. People who have no property, think of nothing but making a scanty provision for their mere physical necessities; their food is consequently not abundant, and seldom very wholesome; their habitations are damp, and often placed in the most unhealthy situations. Such is now the lamentable situation of the Greek states.' In Greece, free and flourishing, the leprosy and the elephantiasis were alike unknown; they have only been introduced into Greece enslaved, oppressed, and wretched."-Ibid. p. 188.

ww

[Capitation Tax on Christians in Turkey — how taken.]

"THE caratch, or capitation tax, to which Christians are subject under the Turkishgovernment, includes all above twelve years of age; and as there are no public registers by which the age may be legally ascertain

[The Rising Moon dispels Clouds.]

"I HAVE always remarked," says ST. PIERRE, "that the rising of the moon dispels the clouds very perceptibly.

"The rising moon dispels the vapours with which the air is impregnated. I have so often made this remark, that I am of the sailors' opinion, who say that the moon swallows up the clouds."- Voyage to the Isle of France.

NO.

So the Spanish expression in PERO NI

[Anecdote of Dr. Doddridge.] "DR., or MR. FOSTER, (if I rightly remember the name,) called on Dr. Doddridge, and, though an Arian, was asked by him to preach in his pulpit, which he declined. He mentioned this afterwards as an honourable proof of the liberality of this truly good man: this liberality, as might be expected, greatly displeased some of the red hot Calvinists of the Doctor's flock, and one of them, an elder in Israel, came abruptly into his study, and said to him, with a tone which evinced to what a persecution the fact would expose him, that he had heard he had asked this heretic to preach. Doddridge was intimidated, and in a moment of weakness, replied that he had not.

"This denial was now triumphantly repeated by the bigots, and soon reached Foster's ears, who could not imagine how it had arisen: he heard it, however, so confidently affirmed, that it could not but stagger him. One day, when he was talking with a friend in a shop upon this subject, Doddridge passed by. 'There goes the Doctor,' said he, 'I will call him in, and have the matter explained.' He took him aside, and said, Dr. D., I have one question to ask you, which I am sure you will answer truly, did you, or did you not, ask me to preach for you?' The good man burst into tears, and answered, 'Certainly I did, and not one moment's peace have I had since I denied

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[Wonderful Cave at the Foot of a steep Mountain between Baruthum and Tripoli.]

"THE Venetian consul at Tripoli, who perfectly understood the modern and ancient state of that country, observing us to be inquisitive to know all we could learn of it, he told us, that there was one thing very amazing and remarkable which we had not yet heard of; and therefore, said he, this old gentleman (pointing to a reverend old man that stood by) and I will tell you the matter, which we were both eye-witnesses of. Between Baruthum and Tripoli is a mountain so steep, and hanging over the sea, that there is no coming at what I am going to give a description of, but in ships. At the foot of this mountain is a large, wide cave, that continually vomits out cold water; to which, when you approach near, you shall see a hand reaching a dish from the mouth of the cave. And if your curiosity is not herewith satisfied, and you attempt to come nigher; all of a sudden the whole vision disappears, and if again you withdraw back, you shall see the same hand and vessel again very clearly. The consul added moreover, that this cave was perfectly inaccessible, the place was so steep and dangerous to come at."-Baumgarten.

[Polygamy of the Galla.]

"POLYGAMY is allowed among the Galla, but the men are commonly content with

one wife. in this respect, that it is the women that solicit the men to increase the number of their wives. The love of their children seems to get a speedy ascendancy over passion and pleasure, and is a noble part of the character of these savages that ought not to be forgot. A young woman, having a child or two by her husband, intreats and solicits him that he would take another wife, when she names to him all the beautiful girls of her acquaintance, especially those that she thinks likeliest to have large families. After the husband has made his choice, she goes to the tent of the young woman, and sits behind it in a supplicant posture, till she has excited the attention of the family within. She then with an audible voice declares who she is; that she is the daughter of such a one; that her husband has all the qualifications for making a woman happy; that she has only two children by him, and as her family is so small, she comes to solicit their daughter for her husband's wife, that their families may be joined together and be strong; and that her children, from their being few in number, may not fall a prey to their enemies in the day of battle; for the Galla always fight in families, whether against one another, or against other enemies."-BRUCE.

Such indeed is their moderation

[Simeon Stylites and the Bucket Rope.]

"SIMEON STYLITES, when he served in the monastery of S. Timotheus, went to draw water from a well; the bucket rope was made de palmâ asperrimâ, quæ ruscus dicitur. He wound this about his naked body, from the loins to the shoulder blades, and returning to the convent, said that he could draw no water, for the bucket rope was gone. It soon fretted the aspirant to the bone."-Acta Sanctorum, Jan. 5, tom. 1, p.

269.

[Local Difference of Day and Night.] "THE mountains here extend from north to south, just as they do near the town; and this direction of them is the cause that the farms that are situated in valleys between two mountains have their day and night at different times. Those who live under the mountains on the western side, have daylight first; as the sun having reached the tops of the mountains, which are frequently covered with hail and thence appear white, in an instant illuminates the whole western side; while on the other hand, those who lie on the eastern side of the valley see the sun longer in the evenings, the other side at the same time appearing to them enveloped in darkness and a light blue mist, while they themselves continue to enjoy the most delightful sunshine."-THUNBERG.

[Table Mountain.]

"In the month of March, when I passed a whole day on the top of the Table Mountain, I was gratified in the evening with a singular and most beautiful prospect from this considerable eminence. Table Mountain, like all other mountains in this country, lies in a direction from north-west to south-east, thus leaving one of its long sides open to the north-east and the other to the south-west. The sun rising in the east does not here proceed towards the south, as in Europe, but towards the north, and at last sinks into the ocean to the westward of the mountain. This makes an earlier morning, and exhibits the sun sooner on the northeast side; and a longer afternoon and later sun on the south-west side. So that on the top of this mountain, about five o'clock in the afternoon, two different worlds, as it were, presented themselves to my view, of which the western still enjoyed the finest sunshine and a clear horizon, while the eastern was already covered with darkness and a thick impending mist. This mist, which had exhaled from the heated plain,

and was now condensed in the suddenly cooled air, was so thick that no part of the whole country was to be seen, but the whole region resembled a smooth, unbroken cloud, and did not a little contribute to render the view on each side of the mountain remarkably different, though a moment before they were much the same."-Ibid.

[Huge Portugueze Carrack.]

"In the year 1592, a Portugueze carrack was captured by Sir John Barrough, which is thus described. This carrack was in burthen no less than one thousand six hundred tons, whereof nine hundred were merchandize: she carried thirty-two pieces of brass ordnance, and between six and seven hundred passengers: was built with seven decks, seven story, one main aslope, three close decks, one forecastle, and a spare deck, of two floors apiece. According to the observations of Mr. Robert Adams, an excellent geometrician, she was in length from the beak head to the stern, one hundred and sixty-five feet; in breadth near forty-seven feet; the length of her keel one hundred feet; of the main-mast one hundred and twenty-one feet; its circuit at the partners near eleven feet; and her main-yard one hundred and six feet."

[The Warriors of Gwent-land.] "It seems worthy of remark, that the people of Gwent-land are more accustomed to war, more famous for valour, and more expert in archery, than those of any other part of Wales: the following examples prove the truth of this assertion. In the last assault of the aforesaid castle, which happened in our days, two soldiers passing over a bridge to a tower built on a mound of earth, in order to take the Welsh in the rear, penetrated with their arrows the oaken portal, which was four fingers thick in memory of which circumstance the arrows

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were preserved in the gate. William de Breusa also testifies that one of his soldiers in a conflict with the Welsh, was wounded by an arrow, which pierced his armour, doubly coated with iron, and passing through his hip entered the saddle, and mortally wounded the horse. Another soldier, equally well guarded with armour, had his hip penetrated by an arrow quite to the saddle, and on turning his horse round, received a similar wound on the opposite hip, which fixed him on both sides to his seat. What more could be expected from a balista. Yet the bows used by this people are not made of horn, ivory, or yew, but of wild elm; unpolished, rude, and uncouth, but stout; not calculated to shoot an arrow to a great distance, but to inflict very severe wounds in close fight."-HOARE's Giraldus, vol. 1, p.

92.

[Entrance effected into the Harbour of

Damietta.]

"ABOUT the same time, the Emperor Frederic, Philip, King of France, Richard, King of England, with many Dukes, Earls, and Christian Princes, went to besiege Damietta in Soria, that they might have a port at sea, and a safe harbour for the Christian ships; but at the entrie of the haven there were two great towers, the which having great chains of iron drawn across, stopt the entrie, so as no ship might enter. William, son to Count Floris of Holland, concluded with his Hollanders of the town of Harlem to arm the forepart of this ship with a long and strong saw of steel, made of purpose, expecting the first strong gale of wind that should blow into the haven: the which they effected upon occasion, so as through the violence of the wind, the force of the ship, and the cutting of this saw, they brake the chain in pieces, and gave entrie to all the whole fleet of the Christians into the haven of the city of Damietta, by which only means it was taken."— Hist. of the Netherlands, p. 38.