outlay. It is headed, "8107 marriages suit us nicely;" and others wanted to take last year," and proceeds thus:"instant possession" of our royal person. Vain was it for us,-then a blooming youth, to remonstrate. It would not do. Every one of these besetting, besieging housekeepers,tried to vanquish us by saying she was "just the thing"; and we barely escaped with the skin of our teeth. At last, out of revenge we selected, as a safeguard, one of the ugliest and silliest; and then made a sortie, we remember, by a side door, whilst the fair would-be invaders of our domestic felicity trooped off most reluctantly one by one. The day following they again dropped in, by couplets and triplets, to see as they said "which way the wind lay." But we were firm, a martyr to our principles. "Matrimony made easy, or how to win a lover.-Madame M- London, continues to send free to any address, on receipt of thirteen postage stamps (uncut), plain directions to enable Ladies or Gentlemen to win the devoted affections of as many of the opposite sex as their hearts may desire. The process is simple-so captivating and enthralling, that all may be married, irrespective of age, appearance, or position; while the most fickle, or cold-hearted, may readily bow to its attractions. Young and old, peer and peeress, as well as the peasant, are alike subject to its influence; and last, though not least, it can be arranged with such ease and delicacy that exposure is impossible,-Beware of ignorant pretenders." is The winning of a lover, it will be seen, herein described as simple, captivating, and enthralling. All may be married, irrespective of age, or appearance, whilst the fickle and cold-hearted may be rendered constant and ardent as fire. Then, "ease" and " delicacy" are called in; and "exposure" rendered "impossible." This is rich,-and only exceeded by the last concluding sentence, cautioning the public against herself.-Beware of" ignorant pretenders!" It is worthy of note, that the greater the impudence put forward in advertisements, the greater the success in procuring dupes. Is not the subjoined, cut out of the paper only a day or two since, rich and rare? Oh! thou most gullible John Bull ! a แ "Bashfulness.-Those persons who are troubled with bashfulness, timidity, disinclination to enter room full of company," inability to speak freely when in company, &c., should at once write to Mr. J. Parkinson, who will forward them his advice on the means to be employed for obtaining confidence, the power of conversing and mingling freely in society without being annoyed by any disagreeable feeling of restraint; in short, the comfortable assurance of easy gentility. Direct (enclosing two dozen postage-stamps and a directed envelope) to Mr. J. Parkinson, care of the Post Office, &c., &c." We had taken a servant who was an advertisement-hunter. Of course therefore we were robbed. We had been told it would be so; but we thought we knew woman-kind better, Our and so we paid for our experience. four months; our brown brandy became wardrobe diminished one half at least, in pale," by coming into too close contact with water; the Geneva turned out "water bewitched;" and the rum was, as our bachelor-friends expressed it,-" Rum indeed!" A double set of keys too, placed all our secrets at the mercy of Madame; and we found ourselves fairly obliged to give her notice to quit. This over-polite woman was always an eye-sore to us. We had taken her in a pet,-we kept her as a matter of philosophical necessity. When she was gone, we shouted for joy; and vowed soon to commit Matrimony as a panacea for all such evils. We kept our vow. We again repeat,-shun all wants and wishes made known through tricky advertisements. They are webs-woven by the few for the destruction of the many. WINTER, FROST. It is winter-veritable winter-with bona fide frost, and cramping cold, and a sun as The "two dozen postage stamps" is clear and powerless as moonlight. The winnothing, in comparison with "the comfort-dows glitter with the most fantastic frost-work. able assurance of easy gentility." Whether Cities, with their spires and turrets, ranks of the latter be forthcoming or not, is beside spears, files of horsemen-every gorgeous and the question. The "two dozen stamps," brilliant array told of in romance or song, value 2s., will never be refunded! start out of that mass of silvery tracery, like the processions of a magic mirror. What a miraculous beauty there is in frost! What fine work in its radiant crystals! What mystery in its exact proportions and its maniform varieties! The feathery snow-flake, the delicate rime, the transparent and sheeted ice, the magnificent iceberg moving down the sea like a mountain of light-how beautiful are they all, and how wonderful is it, that, break and scatter them as you will, you will find under every form the same faultless angles, There are two sides to every question. WE remember once advertising for "a housekeeper." Being young and inexperienced, we perhaps worded our want" rather loosely; at all events, no sooner had the advertisement appeared, than we were besieged on every hand by the hunters-up of advertisements. We were looked upon as fair game by old and young, ugly and pretty. Some smirked at us, some winked at us; some said, "they knew they should the same crystalline and sparkling radiation. It sometimes grows suddenly cold at noon. There has been a heavy mist all the morning, and, as the north wind comes sharply in, the air clears and leaves it frozen upon everything, with the thinness of palpable air. The trees are clothed with a fine white vapor, as if a cloud had been arrested and fixed motionless in the branches. They look, in the twilight like gigantic spirits, standing in broad ranks and clothed in drapery of supernatural whiteness and texture. On close examination, the crystals are as fine as needles, and standing in perfect parallelism, pointing in the direction of the wind. They are like fringes of the most minute threads, edging every twig and filament of the tree, so that the branches are thickened by them, and have a shadowy and mysterious look, as if a spirit-foliage had started out from the naked limbs. It is not so brilliant as the common rime seen upon the trees after a frozen rain, but it is infinitely more delicate and spiritual, and to us seems a phenomenon of exquisite beauty. FOR EVER THINE. DEAREST, I'M THINE, whate'er this heart betide, Q. THE MONTH IN PROSPECT. FEBRUARY. Hold! hold! what would these endless clouds be at! We've rain enough, I say!-We'll try again year. pleasant varieties of it. may, and frequently is, much more agreewhole, it is at once cold, damp, and foggy. able than the commencement; but, as a Besides the earth being saturated with a whole winter's moisture, there is, generally, abundance of rain during this month; so much so, that it has acquired the cognomen of February-fill-dike.' The frosts and snows which have been locking up, and burying the earth for weeks and months, are giving way; and what is so cheerless and chilling as a great thaw? There is a lack of comfort felt every where. In real winter-weather, when the clear frosty air sharply saluted the face by day, and revealed to the eye at night, a scene of sublime splendor in the lofty and intensely blue sky, glittering with congregated stars, or irradiated by the moon,-there was a sense of vigor, of elasticity, and of freshness, which made it welcome; but now, most commonly, by day and night, the sky is hidden in impenetrable vaporthe earth is sodden and splashy with wet; - and even the very fireside does not escape the comfortless sense of humidity. Everything presents to the eye, accustomed so long to the brightness of clear frosts and the pure whiteness of snow, a dingy and soiled aspect. All things are dripping with wet. It hangs upon the walls like a heavy dew; it penetrates into the drawers and wardrobes of our warmest chambers; and we are surprised at the unusual dampness of our clothes, linen, books, paper, and, in short, almost everything which we have occasion to examine. Brick and stone floors are now dangerous things for delicate and thinly-shod people to stand upon. To this source, and, in fact, to the damps of this month, operating in various ways, may be attributed not a few of the colds, coughs, and consumptions so prevalent in England. Pavements are frequently so much elevated by the expansion of the moisture beneath, as to obstruct the opening and shutting of doors and gates, and our gravel-walks resemble Sleet, shine, cold, fog, in portions fill the time; saturated sponges. Abroad, the streets are flooded with muddy water, and slippery with patches of ice and half-melted snow, which strikes through our shoes in a moment. The houses, and all objects whatever, have a dirty and disconsolate aspect; and clouds of dun and smoky haze hover over the whole disspiriting scene. In the country, the pros pect is not much better. The roads are full of mire. Instead of the enchantments of hoar-frost, so beautifully described by the poet, Artist unseen! that dipt in frozen dew Hast on the glittering glass thy pencil laid, Ere from yon sun the transient visions fade, Swift let me trace the forms thy fancy drew! Thy towers and palaces of diamond hue, Rivers and lakes of lucid crystal made, And hung in air hoar trees of branching shade, That liquid pearl distil:-thy scenes renew, Whate'er old bards or later fictions feign, Of secret grottoes underneath the wave, Where Nereids roof with spar the amber cave; Or bowers of bliss, where sport the fairy train, Who, frequent by the moonlight wanderer seen, Circle with radiant gems the dewy green. Instead of these we say, we have naked hedges, with sallow and decaying weeds beneath them; pastures brown and wet; and sheets of ice which recently afforded such fine exercise to skaters and sliders, are half submersed in water,--full of great cracks, and scattered with straws, and dirty patches, and stones half liberated by the thaw. Let us felicitate ourselves, however, that such a joyless time is seldom of long continuance. The winds of March will speedily come piping their jovial strains; clearing the face of the blessed Heavens from their sullen veil of clouds, and sweeping away the superabundant moisture from earth and air. The banks are partly green; hedges and trees roars, Like dismal music wand'ring over seas, The fields are dotted with manure-the sheep Their undivided peace and friendship keep, that flowers In summer graced, are open to the sun; Frost claims the night; Morning, like a bride, her vest; The sunbeams ride the clouds till eventide; And the wind rolls them to ethereal rest. Like hope, the prospect cheers; like breath it Life grows in seasons to returning prime; March! It is like a cool, but spirit-stirring Many a beautiful, many a wild, many an animated spectacle is to be witnessed on the shores of our happy isle in such moments! What a solemn and sublime war, also, is there in the woods-a sound as of vast and tempestuous seas! What poetical spirit can hear it without being influenced by incommunicable sensations; and ideas of power, majesty, and the stupendous energies of the elements ! Oh! storm and darkness; ye are wondrous strong. What picturesque ruin is there scattered around us! Trees overwhelmed-immense branches torn off-small boughs broken-and dry leaves whirled along, or quivering in the air like birds. Not unfamiliar to mine ear, Mine ear has dwelt in silent awe,- Once more I listen; sadly communing I, deeming that the voice of spirits dwells Hark! how the spirit knocks,-how loud I would not, at this moment, be The ear doth shudder at such sounds; Towards the end of the month, we are On her own shade, which lies on waves, and Beside the natal trunk, nor looks above :- Leans o'er the sea, and steadfast as a rock, Continuous surge, the sounds and echoes mock: Thus Mental Thought enduring, wears in solitude. Also; to see in those of wealthier dwellings, hyacinths, narcissus, &c., in glasses displaying their bulbs, and long, white, fibrous roots, in the clear water below, and the verdure and flowery freshness of summer above. If we are to believe travellers, in no country is the domestic culture of flowers so much attended to as in our own. We trust this will always be a prevailing taste with us. There is something pure and refreshing in the appearance of plants in a room; and watched and waited on, as they generally are, by the gentle sex, they are links in many pleasant associations. They are the cherished favorites of our mothers, wives, sisters, and friends not less dear; and connect themselves, in our minds, with their feminine delicacy, loveliness, and affectionate habits and senti ments. Sweet lady fair : With tender vine-leaves wreathe thy brow; "Tis but a whim-but, oh! entwine Weave of the clover-leaves a wreath; Fresh sparkling with a summer-shower, 'Tis but a whim-but, oh! do thou Oh, let sweet-leaved geranium be "Tis but a whim-but, oh! do thou "Tis but a whim-but, oh! entwine REMEMBRANCE. Though the spring of our youth has departed, Faint record of long-faded joy, While fondly remembrance we cherish When the heart with kind feelings o'erflowing, And youth's merry sunshine is past, MOTLEY. INGULAR INDEED IS A MAN'S DESTINY! Here to-day, he is, literally speaking, gone to-morrow; leaving behind him, perhaps, from positive necessity, much, if not all, that his heart holds dear. This country bids fair to be decimated within another year. Let us hope that a rapid transit of letters, to and from, will cause many "twin hearts" to be saved from destruction. Absence from "a lov'd one" is-" death." rate. "The seasons in Australia are the reverse of ours, July is mid-winter, January mid-summer. The spring and autumn are very brief, and the transition from one season to the other is so imperceptible, that it is difficult to say when the one begins or lion curtain-clouds of morn, illumines the mountains with molten gold, dispensing life and light around, as he majestically mounts into the northern heavens. At the decline of day the scene is magnificent! Onward the mighty orb rolls, like a ball of molten iron, to the legion of gorgeous clouds that have risen in the far-west to herald it away; the hills blaze up with crimson and gold, fringed with sparkling silver, the tints of heaven's own iris are scattered over the sky, and the extended plains to the very horizon are tinged with pink. Even the cities and dwelling-places are colored with the rich, changing hues; and from their windows are seen streams of liquid fire. Day and night are of nearly equal length throughout the year. The sun never remains above the horizon more than fourteen and a half hours, nor less than ten and a half; and, as twilight does not linger in these latitudes, the changes from day to night, and from night to morn, are to an Englishman unpleasantly abrupt. greater number of the nights are most enchanting. The southern constellations shine forth from the hard, dark heavens, in unrivalled brightness, and the haloed moon pours her chastened radiance on the plains and hills with such refulgence, that every thing for miles around is distinctly visible. The So very many of our acquaintances are daily departing to Australia, that we begin now to feel some peculiar interest for the country. Let us, The light of both the sun and the moon is more therefore, hear what Mr. Lancelott says of the climate. As he is mineralogical surveyor for the intense than in Britain. I should say the differcolonies, the authority may be considered first-ence is as five to three. The climate throughout the Australian province is decidedly hot. The thermometer in Sydney and Melbourne during summer, frequently reaches 90° or 100° Fahr. in the shade; and occasionally 115° or even more. In winter it rarely ranges below 46° Fahr.; hoar frost sometimes occurs; ice, seldom or never. The variations in temperature are great and sudden; noonday is frequently 20° hotter than morning or evening, while the heat of one day often differs from that of the next day by 15°. Then, as the southerly winds are altogether more moist than those of the northward, a change of wind without any alteration in the thermometer often chills severely; indeed, the climate is much affected by the direction of the winds. from the northward, is extremely dry and often violent. the other ends. mer commences. Spring sets in early in September, when the atmosphere acquires a delightful warmth; as the season advances, the fall of rain decreases, the heat increases, and about the middle of November, sumThe heat now becomes great; and by the end of December, nearly all the rivers are dried up, vegetation has ceased, and the country assumes the appearance of an arid desert. At the close of February, a diminution of temperature commences; autumn beginning about the middle of March, and early in April genial showers carpet the country with bright verdure, and the atmosphere becomes pleasantly cool and buoyant. Early in June, the season that can only be called winter from its situation in the calendar, commences; and by the middle of July, torrents of rain have inundated the country, and rendered the water-courses mighty, rushing streams; this cold rainy season generally terminates by the middle or end of August. Between the rains at this season of the year, there are days, and, in some years, whole weeks together, of delightful weather; cool and bracing as the spring in England, but more beautiful and exhilirating. With the exception of about twenty-five extremely hot days, and sixty disagreeable wet or cold days, the weather throughout the year is indescribably pleasant, the air is balmy and bright, scarcely a cloud is visible, and the sun looks down from the deep blue sky in unveiled splendor. The rising sun is a sight most truly beautiful. The god of day from his eastern portals bursts the ebon pall of night, and flinging wide the purple and vermil VOL. III.-2. That which blows In winter it is moderately warm, in summer it is intensely hot, and rushes on with the velocity of a hurricane; raising the thermometer in the shade to 110° or even 120° Fahr., drying up the grass like hay, depriving the grape of its watery elements, rendering iron exposed to its influence so hot as to burn the hand on touching it, doing injury to the promising harvest, and filling the air with such quantities of dust and sand, that the sun's rays are shut, and only darkness is visible. The current of heated air appears confined to no particular altitude, but rushes upwards or downwards, according to circumstances; sometimes it assumes a rotary movement, as if revolving on a series of horizontal axes, thus: ; or undulates thus: Occasionally the hot wind travels so slowly, that its movement is scarcely perceptible; there is then little dust, the heat of the sun's rays is great, and the earth is so torrid, that a thermometer which I sunk horizontally into the ground to the depth of 24 inches, in a situation exposed to the sun and wind, stood at 150° Fahr. On another C |