THE SEA KINGS:

AN HISTORICAL ROMANCE OF THE TIME OF vain, to comfort him. Another week elapsed;

ALFRED.

CHAPTER X.

THE mention of the impending ceremony awoke in Theodrie feelings and recollections he had strenuously endeavoured to banish from his mind; and effectually decided any wavering thoughts he had entertained of passing one night at least beneath the roof of the monastery.

The monk remarked the sudden but slight start with which he heard of the approaching burial-the wild, though momentary, flash of his eyes the instant paleness of his cheek, and the thrill of horror expressed by the breath hastily drawn in through his closed teeth-but he could not be aware of the cause for so sudden and powerful an emotion. He saw, however, that the feeling was most painful; and forbore to excite it afresh by any allusion to it. After a moment's pause, Theodric, with a tremulous voice, replied. "That which I have done, reverend father," said he, "for this poor boy, deserves no greater thanks than the proffer of your hospitalitywhich time permits me not to accept-will suffice to repay. In the house of mourning, even the welcomed guest is but an intruder. My bed awaits me in the cottage beyond the morass; and of food I have still with me enough and to spare. The sun is yet high; and the footprints I left in my coming will remain to direct my return. One thing only would I crave to ask of you. Where

was no longer palatable to him, and his cheeks
became wan and hollow. Cynewulf marked the
gloom upon his beloved child, and strove, but in
and a slow fever was evidently consuming the
strength of the little sufferer. The monastery
he had once so loved became as a frightful tomb
to him. His days were passed in tears, and his
nights in horrible dreams. Day by day he
sickened and waxed feeble, and the only words
that brought a brief radiance over his face were
when Cynewulf at length intimated to him his
intention to remove with him from the mon-
astery.

I

My dear boy," said the kind monk to him, "this is, I see, no longer a home for you. have taken counsel with the reverend abbot, and wo will depart from this place, and seek in a more quiet country the peace and the health we can no longer hope for you here. In the beautiful and quiet vales of Somerset, you will, perhaps, forget the miseries, which, in this unhappy spot, continue to haunt you. Thither then will we go; and, in the little convent of Cothelstonewhere the days of my noviciato were passed, and where my brother still holds, I trust, the scat which fo: ten years he has worthily filled-shall we find a home and a cordial welcome. Dry your tear, therefore, and take food that you may have strength to begin your journey on the morrow. I have provided horses, and shall today complete my preparations for the way." "But the good Theodric," said Edmund, while his eyes brightened with pleasure; "will he not with us? May I not, at least, bid him farewell " "His dwelling," replied the monk, is, I beShould the spoiler again believe, not far from our way; we will see him coming upon you, let the boy find shelter under and hear his determination. Go now to your the roof that has once covered him. I have lost companions; and let your last day with them all that was dear to me in life, and my heart be one of love and gentle cheerfulness. I must yearns towards him. Let him then be conducted now hasten to my task." to my cottage beyond the swamp, and he will there, haply, enjoy the security here denied him." "Courteous sir," replied the monk, "I receive your offer with gratitude, and if-which Heaven forbid !-occasion should demand it, cheerfully will entrust to your hands the treasure you have once found and restored to us. Evil indeed are the days upon which we are fallen; and, for the weight of his own sorrow, no man knoweth how to speak to his fellow the words of comfort!"

the wolf has once feasted, there will he return to find new prey.

He pressed the hands of Theodric as he concluded, and bade him God-speed. After a short and affectionate embrace, Theodric parted from the boy, and with a quick step commenced his

return.

It was not without tears that Edmund saw Theodric depart, and when Cynewulf reminded him that he ought to enter and take food, he requested permission to remain where he was, that he might watch the steps of his kind protector till he had passed the marsh.

Stay, then, my son," said the pleased monk; "lift up thy prayers for his safety; I will send food to thee here, and such of thy young companions as are returned to us. With joy will they welcome thee, whom we thought lost; and thou mayst tell to them the dangers thou hast escaped, and hear from them the tale of their own distresses."

So saying, he kissed the cheek of the boy, and returned to the monastery.

In a short time six young children-all that had yet returned of those who fled at the approach of the Northmen-came running from the door, and, in turn, embraced and welcomed their companion.

While they sat round him listening with amazement and horror to the story of his adventures, his own eye was continually directed to the lessening form of the solitary traveller over the dangerous swamp. The two noble dogs still preceded him; and with a glad heart, the grateful boy at length saw that they had passed in safety, and were ascending a gentle eminence crowned by the thick wood, which now glowed with a golden light in the beams of the setting

sun.

In a short time they gained the summit, and appeared to make a pause; but the sun was sinking, and, when his last tinge had departed, they were no longer visible.

At this moment a solemn dirge came upon their ears. It proceeded from the burial-ground, where the monks were performing the last melancholy duty over the bodies of their murdered brethren; and, in awe-struck silence, broken only by deep sobs, the children slowly entered the monastery, and, ascending to their dormitory, soon wept themselves to sleep.

A mournful week dragged heavily along over the inmates of the monastery; and the spirits of Edmund appeared daily more and more depressed. He was continually seeking solitude, that he might give vent to his distress unseen; his food

With these words, he blessed the boy, and returned to the monastery.

Early in the morning the horses were ready, with a guide on foot to direct their path over the morass; and the two travellers set forth upon their long journey. They passed the swamps in perfect safety, and, reaching the cottage to which they had been directed by Theodric, found a guide who conducted them to his retired and humble abode.

It was not, however, without surprise and some fear, that they beheld eight or ten armed horsemen upon the green plot before it; and they were about to turn hastily round, when Theodric himself, fully armed and accoutred, rode towards them.

As he spoke thus, ho dismounted; and, taking Edmund from his horse, tenderly embraced him: he then extended his hand to Cynewulf, and, with a cordial grasp, enforced his invitation to enter his house.

"You will be alone, father," said he, "but you will be in safety. You see in me now a new man. That which was, and is not, shall be to me no more. The past is buried: I have sealed the tomb; I will gaze no more on them that sleep beneath it. Tears are dried up in me; but the fire of vengeance hath burst out. I have girt the sword upon my thigh; I have devoted myself to the work. For my country, for my religion, have I vowed to offer up life: I live, I breathe, I move, but for them. The arm of the oppressed will not long lie inactive, and, where the first trumpet shall sound, there will my battle-shout be heard."

While, to the astonishment of Cynewulf and Edmund, he proceeded in this passionate strain, they walked on together, and had entered the house before he ceased. His look was high and resolved, his step strong, and his voice and manner vehement.

But sit you down," said he, in a calmer tone, as they stood within the apartment-" sit you down; and let me hear of the things which have chanced to you. Even now was I about to set forth; yet for one hour will I remain with you. Be brief then, reverend father, for there is a voice in my ear which cries continually, Away-away!' and I may not tarry longer with you.'

In few words Cynewulf informed his impatient listener of the cause and purpose of his journey, and Theodric instantly summoned his attendants to place food before them and their horses.

"Your way is mine," said he; "for half your journey we may travel together, and ye will be

safer with us. I go to Ethelwulph, the brave Earl of Berks, for he, I know, will not sleep when the wild boar is ravaging so near to his vineyard. Will you accept our company and our safeguard so far upon your way-or will you rather journey alone? Do as you list-but at once determine. If you will share with us, then, because your selves and your horses are perchance wearied, will we wait till the morrow; if you take rather your own path, then here at once we part.”

Gladly will we accept your company and protection," replied the monk, "for the boy, as you see, is feeble, and I also have less than my wonted vigour. Till to-morrow, then, let us defer our setting forth."

Theodric heard with pleasure the decision of the monk, and gave immediate orders to suspend the journey till sunrise the next day. They passed the remaining hours in discourse, during which Theodrie informed Cynewulf, in the absence of Edmund, who had gone to renew his acquaintance with Balder and Huald, of the horrid atrocities of the Northmen upon the miserable nuns at Ely, and of the desolation they had everywhere left behind them. But he did not inform him that he had, at his own charge, raised the small hand with which he was hastening to join the first standard to be lifted against the invaders; and that he had made provision for his faithful servant and the aged female domestic, whom he never expected

to see more.

In the evening, after all had joined in solemn devotion, they retired early to rest; and, before

the sun had risen the next day, the tramp of

their horses was heard in the forest.

It is not our intention to follow them upon their journey. Suffice it that, after parting with Theodric and his little band at Oxford, Cynewulf and Edmund pursued their way alone, and arrived at length in safety, and with improved health and strength, at the Priory of Cchalstone, about five miles from Taunton.

Here Cynewulf met with a cordial reception from his brother Edelhun, the prior, andarom a few of the brethren who remembered in since the time when he had passed there his oviriate. Edmund was speedily domesticated with them; and the influence of the milder climate, and the total change of scene, began soon to restore cheerfulness to his mind.

The reader may perhaps have felt some interest in the details of the dreadful event that darkened the early life of our hero, but he would derive small amusement from the story of the quiet years that followed. And, for the unfortunate, a merciful ordination it is which compels man to sympathise with the sorrows and the difficulties of his fellows, rather than with their felicity. Passing, therefore, over some peaceful and eventless years in the life of our little hero, we accompany him into new scenes, new times, and new characters.

CHAPTER XI.

THE Vale of Taunton Dean, or Den (probably from the Saxon Den, a woody valley), is a spacious and fertile plain in the pleasant county of Somerset-called by Camden one of the eyes of the county-and enjoys a delicious climate; and, in its present highly-cultivated state, appears, when viewed on a fine day from any of its surrounding heights, like one imense and richlyproductive garden.

At the time of which we are at present writing, the whole valley was so crowded with majestic elm-trees-to which the soil is still peculiarly favourable-that it might have been taken by the eye of a stranger for a continuous forest.

Some remains of a monastery are still visible upon the site where stood the small priory to which, in the last chapter, we conducted our little hero and the monk Cynewulf. It was delightfully situated at the foot of the Quantock Hills, and near to the village, or rather hamlet, of Cothelstone.

The only family of any note resident in its immediate vicinity was that of a wealthy Thegn, or Thane, named Leofric, from whose grandfather, in the reign of Ina, the monks had received a gift of land for the erection of their monastery, and a grant of certain manors which they were allowed to hold in fee-farm at the low annual rent of five pounds.

The mansion of Leofric was situated about a mile north-west of the priory. It was a large, low, and irregular building. The walls of the more ancient and humble portions were formed with a framework of huge beams of oak, lathed and plastered, and ornamented at the corners with small bricks of a dark and light colour, placed alternately. The roofs were steep and covered with slate; the windows of an oblong square, and formed of a fine lattice-work, which admitted light and wind with equal facility;

eye, could such have seen them, as all re-
lations, though, perhaps, humble ones, of the
same family.

Kentwina, the wife of Leofric, was of that
order of persons commonly called "very good
sort of people." She had no high virtues and no
vices. She was affectionate to her children,
kind to her husband, and not often out of
temper with her servants. But she was totally
uneducated, excepting in such knowledge as
concerned the management of her household, or
such ornamental arts of needlework as were
practised by the ladies of the time.

In her person she was somewhat thin, and rather undersized; had dark brown hair, keen hazel eyes, and a face that in its prime had been handsome.

the high and somewhat narrow doors stood at
the ends of the houses, and though of much
stronger construction, were not unlike those
which we still see in our cottages. These por-
tions of the building had long been appropriated
to the numerous domestics, while the opulent
owner kept his state in the larger and more
splendid pile which had been erected by Wal-
thiof at the period when he founded and on-
dowed the priory. This edifice was built
entirely with large squared stones, and was
adorned at the corners with red bricks-at that
period a more rare and costly material than the
former. The walls at the foundation were
twelve feet thick, and of the-then unusual-
height of forty feet. They supported a roof
somewhat less precipitous than those of the
older buildings, and, like them, covered with a Her only fault, if such it might be termed,
fine gray slate. The windows were long and was an over affection for her son Oswulf, an
narrow, and glazed with small diamond-shaped ignorant, cunning, brutish, and grovelling fellow,
panes of an uneven and dimmish glass, which, whose sole pleasures were in the destruction of
though at the present day to be seen in the every species of animal and the indulgence of
meanest houses, was at that time a rare and every kind of sensuality. Ignorant as a slave,
expensive luxury. For the admission of as he was haughty and fierce as a pirate king. He
much light as could possibly enter through so knew nothing of conscience but that which was
narrow and dim a medium, the walls were made suggested by his fears, and nothing of religion
to slope rapidly inward, and were covered with but its ceremonies; which, since the time that
fine white cement, which reflected the light his attendance at mass had ceased to be com-
through the large and sombre-looking apart-pulsory, he had not yet had time enough wholly
ments. These were, however, still so dark that to forget. Upon one point alone did he appear
in the winter season it was necessary, through- to feel veneration or awe of anything. He was
out almost the whole of the day, to burn hugo the slave of a brutish and gloomy superstition.
candles of wax, that stood in silver candlesticks Every Wiglaer, Wicca,+ Galdor-croeftig, or
upon small tables near the extremities of the Morthwyrtha, § whose fame reached him, found
rooms. The chimneys, of which there were two in Oswulf a worshipper and a dupe. The art of
on the south side, and two opposite them on the the physician was laughed at by him unless the
north, were formed within the thickness of the proposed remedy were a magical incantation.
walls; and the huge fireplaces were well He knew of charms for the recovery of lost pro-
arched and neatly turned with thin bricks. To perty, for preventing accidents, for unwitch-
strengthen the walls at these places, there were ing cattle, for insuring successful crops:
strong buttresses running up the whole height every day in the month was set down in his
of the chimneys. There was but one door in belief as propitious or unpropitious: this day
front, rounded above, large, and of massive oak, was good for all things, and that was friendly
that opened into a stone-paved hall, which gave for none: one was favourable for planting corn,
entrances to the four spacious apartments which but very unfavourable for taming animals; on
occupied the ground floor. A smaller door one day it was good to undertake any business;
behind communicated with the other parts of on another day good to buy only, and on another
the building through an arched passage of rough good only to sell: a child born on such a day
stone. Two steep staircases, formed with would live; while one born on another would
beams of oak, and awkwardly placed in con- die. For the day, he had spells and signs by
trary directions at the opposite sides of the which to read futurity; and for the night he
entrance hall, led to the sleeping-rooms above, had dreams of as sure prognostication.
which, with the exception of two in the front,
reserved for guests of distinction, were mostly
small and ill-lighted. The whole length of this
structure might be a hundred feet, and its width
or depth eighty. Numerous low buildings,
used as stables, or workshops for the domestic
artificers, gave to the whole an appearance
rather of a hamlet attached to the residence of
some wealthy Thane than of the single estab-
lishment of one individual.

The description which we have given of the abode of Leofric may perhaps be sufficient to convey a tolerable notion of it; and we shall therefore say no more, excepting just to add that, in consequence of the insecurity of the times, the whole was surrounded by a ditch forty feet broad and eight feet in depth, having on the outer side a thick bank, or vallum, of earth, eight feet in height, and on the inner side a similar vallum of the height of ten feet.

These banks were faced with large squared stones, and on the outer vallum were small turrets, in the Roman fashion, provided with loop-holes, from which assailants might be annoyed with arrows. The entrances to this little fortress were two-on the north, and on the south, where strong gates of oak, flanked by small towers, gave admission over walled causeways to two other gates of equal strength, which secured the passage through the inner valium, These defensive works had been added by Leofric within a year or two after the arrival of Edmund, in consequence of the increasing alarm with which the West Saxons began to contemplate the incursions of the Northern plunderers.

Having thus finished a hasty picture of what was sometimes denominated the Castle of Leofric, it is necessary that we should now say a few words of the worthy proprietor himself.

Leofric was, at the time when our story introduces him, about the age of fifty. In stature he was somewhat below the usual height, but broad-shouldered and compactly built.

The family of Leofric consisted of his wife Kentwina, one daughter, whose name was Ethelburga, and a son called Oswulf; but the manners of the time permitted so free an intercourse betwixt master and servant that of the forty domestics who dwelt under the roofs of Leofric, thirty of them-for the other ten were slaves, and, as such, treated with somewhat less respect-might have appeared to a modern

Yet, hateful as were his dispositions, he had been in his infancy tenderly beloved by his parents; and even when all his vices were ripened at the age of nineteen he continued to hold an undeserved, though certainly abated, portion of their love. But he was now rarely in the home of his father. The company of the dissolute, wherever to be met with, or of the crafty pretenders to magical skill, or of the vulgar who courted and flattered him for the sake of the gold which his father injudiciously supplied him with, or that of any person whomsoever from whose eye he did not, as at home or with the members of the priory, meet with a silent reproof, such was the society with whom he delighted to associate. He hated all who were not of his own stamp; but of all the objects of his distaste and hatred the chief was Edmund, whom he abhorred, and sometimes almost resolved even to put to death. He despised him for his gentleness and love of study and aver sion to sports that involved pain to man or to brute. He loathed him because by everyone else he was beloved; because he stood evermore like a bright and pure metal that made his own base dross show doubly worthless; because his personal comeliness, and noble mien, and modest yet dignified address attracted the admiration and love of all, while they forced a comparison which rendered trebly odious his own ugliness and brutal vulgarity; and he meditated injury, if not death, to him because he feared that the object so much beloved by his father might ultimately enjoy a considerable portion of that wealth to which he considered himself exclusively entitled.

In what way the villanous designs of the odious Oswulf affected the fortunes of his intended victim will be seen in the progress of our story, since we must not by a few words anticipate that final result which it is the office of our pages gradually to evolve.

speech and in action, honourable in word and in deed. This one sentence has of course been sufficient to invest her, in the minds of nine youthful readers out of ten, with all the dignity that may attach itself to the heroine of the story. That she is to be very beautiful must immediately follow; Edmund must necessarily fall in love with her-mus. be opposed by Oswulf-must at last kill him (unless the boor should rather take himself out of the way by breaking his own neck, or getting hanged), and, finally, must crown his happiness by marrying her, and succeeding, at the death of the good Leofric, to all his estates.

Perhaps, however, things may turn out otherwise. At all events, we readily admit that she was very handsome, and that Edmund might have done much worse than by falling in love with her. Whether he did so or not, will be seen as we advance in our story.

Ethelburga was pale, of a slender and delicate form, and about the common stature of females. Her hair was of the prevailing colour of the Saxon race, which might be called a golden red or a reddish gold. Her eyes were blue, and mild; the characteristic expression of her face was sweetness and gentleness; but at times it could brighten with animation and devoted enthusiasm. Her step was light, her motions were graceful. She had a laugh ready for mirth, and a tear ready for sorrow. She was fond of music, but played upon no instrument; delighted in books, but till shortly before her appearance in our story, had never been taught to read. Her instructor was, of course, Edmund; but never mind that: it is by no means inevitably necessary that masters should fall in love with their scholars; it is, at least, quite sure that very few scholars are disposed to fall in love with their masters.

Within a very short time of the arrival of Edmund at the priory, he attracted the attention, and soon after the love, of Leofric and his whole family, with the exception of Oswulf. An unlimited permission on the part of Cynewulf and the prior to attend the family of the Thane whenever invited by them, soon made Edmund a daily visitor at their mansion; and these visits were, in no great length of time, exchanged for a permanent residence there. His personal beauty, his cheerful temper, his affectionate gratitude for every kindness, which were doubly delightful as contrasted with their opposites in Oswulf, so won the heart of the good Thane that he at last made a proposal to the prior and Cynewulf that the boy should take up his abode with him, and be thenceforth considered as one of his family. A hint that ulterior advantages might accrue to Edmund from this adoption ao, companied the proposal, and the prior and Cynewulf, after an hour's consideration, consented to it. The difference was, that whereas Edmund had formerly been at home in the priory and a visitor during his unemployed hours at the mansion, he was now at home in the mansion, and at the priory, whither he daily went for the purposes of instruction, a visitor. This may perhaps appear a slight distinction, but it was, in truth, an important difference. In the eyes of the whole family Edmund now appeared in another and more interesting character. In those who loved him, this change of situation excited a warmer love, while in the one who hated him it stirred up a deeper and more malignant hatred.

As a visitor at the house of Leofric, Edmund was liked by the good Thane better than anything but his own family; as an inmate thereas a being whose happiness thenceforth would depend upon his care-he was beloved by him as his own child. A far closer connection than heretofore betwixt Edmund and every member of the family was, of course, the immediate consequence of his being domiciled with them; and, as we love with the greatest warmth, or hate with the deadliest rancour, the friends or the enemies with whom we are by circumstances the most closely brought into contact, so, while the affection of all the rest of the family began immediately to glow with warmer fervour, the hatred of Oswulf became as instantly a more utter abhorrence. For a considerable time, however, this hatred was kept under control by his parents; and the sulky and malignant lad, however he might strive incessantly to vex the object of his aversion, had neither means nor courage to do him serious injury.

Of Ethelburga, when the time permitted, Edmund was the constant companion. He loved her as a sister, and like a brother was beloved by her. It is true that as years advanced it was expected by many that this love would assume another character; and long before either of them had any conception of the existence of this other kind of love, it had been set down in the minds of every predictor of matches, that the

66

young cniht of Leofric would infallibly, at the peared affectionate and devoted to her-eager to
proper period, become his son. But "matches," afford her amusement, and assiduous to guard
the proverb says, are made in Heaven;" and her from pain or annoyance. "But yet-yet,"
an earthly guesser may therefore be excused if said the puzzled and dissatisfied prognosticators,
events should prove that he had not been tho-"somehow or other it isn't quite the thing
roughly informed of what was going on there. now. He likes her well enough, that's sure, and
At all events, years passed away the child
Ethelburga became the interesting girl whom we
have described, and Edmund the young man whom
we are about to describe; but still there was no
appearance in which the match-makers aforesaid
could positively read the approaching fulfilment
of their predictions.

True enough it was that the handsome and noble-looking youth was well known to have recently become her instructor in reading, and even in writing-an excess of learning that seemed ridiculous for a female. Plain enough was it to the eyes of all that he accompanied her often to the religious duties of the priory, and sometimes, though rarely, when she joined her father in the chase; that he was seen alone with her in the garden, and in the fields, and on the hill-tops when they went together to see the sun rise or set, or to look forth upon the mag. nificent prospect of hill and valley, and distant sea, with its two enchanted islands, and its dim background of Welsh mountains; that he ap

looks kindly enough on her; but what the
plague, when he sits cheek by jowl for hours
with her, poking over the black letters, can he
never find time to take her a soft smack on the
lily-white cheek-or even to squeeze her hand,
that's softer and whiter than fresh curd, when
he puts the long goose-quill between her slim
fingers? And when he helps her over a ditch or
a stile, what! the good virgin! might he not
now and then clasp her small waist, and no great
harm done, instead of handing her over as he
does, so trimly and delicately, with his face as
bright as the morning and as cold as the dew?
We know well enough, neighbours, that our good
men courted us in another guess fashion; but
somehow times seem changed, and God above
only knows what is coming upon us. Men are
not the men they used to be since these cursed
Danes began to trouble the land as they do, and
what will come of it at last passes man's wisdom,
or woman's either, to make out."

Of this kind were the remarks frequently

made by the gossips who held it next to impossible that "the handsomest young fellow upon whom eyes were ever clapped" could do other than love and be loved by a maiden that was "pretty as a fairy and rich as the daughter of an earl"

But conjecture, until converted to certainty, must vary its direction. Like the wind, it bloweth whence it listeth, and, like that, never listeth to keep very long in the same quarter. Two visits-the first accidental, the second voluntary

from a young nobleman of high expectation and importance, turned the predictions of the prophets into a new course, and threatened, as they thought, to cast a thick darkness upon the hitherto bright prospects of our hero.

*

It was a fine evening of September, in the year eight hundred and seventy-seven, and the family of Leofric, including Ŏswulf, had just finished their substantial supper, and were about to arrange themselves around the huge fireplace, that such who chose it might quietly take off their horn of strong ale, or wine, and that all might enjoy at once the warmth of the hissing ashen faggot, and the music of Edmund's harp, which he was then in the act of tuning, when the winding of a horn was heard.

[To be continued.]

THE FEMALE WARRIORS OF

DAHOMAY.

"WHAT man dare do, women may at least attempt," is perhaps an idea familiar to those strong-minded ladies who cry aloud for more complete recognition in the world, and a larger share in the pleasures, employments, cares, and responsibilities of the other sex. But do these ladies who want to become physicians, and lawyers, traders, lecturers, and Members of Parliament ever contemplate the coming of a time when they may be called upon to brave the storm as sailors, or fight the battles of their country as hired soldiers?

To such daring spirits may be recommended a little thought of the condition of the Amazon Warriors of Dahomay.

revenue by the capture and sale of slaves. Till
lately Dahomay's chief customers were the
Southern cotton-planters of the United States.
The policy of the Dahomans admits of no in-
termediate degree of subordination between half-
savage King and debased dependent slave at
least in the royal presence. When the dusky" Bridal of Triermain :"-
Minister of the King seeks audience of his
master he crawls into the presence-chamber on
all-fours, and bows his knees and forehead to
the dust, not daring to rise till he receives the
royal command.

the King being a remarkable belief in his in-
vincibility, and a thorough faith in a superstition
handed down from generation to generation,
that only by the aid of women can the throne
and country be sustained. Sir Walter Scott
alludes to this belief in the third canto of his

This subservient obedience to authority extends through all grades of the people; though in their own rude houses there is no absolute lack of human kindness; for, strange as it may sound, the Dahomans have the reputation of being at once the most ferocious and the most polite people of Western Africa.

Who are they, and what is Dahomay? Like all absolute sovereigns, the King of Dahomay is a somewhat notorious and, Dahomay maintains a considerable army; and, formerly, powerful, kingdom of West Africa, on extraordinary occasions, all the males capable situated inland from that part of the coast of of bearing arms are called into the field. The Guinea called the Slave Coast, and separated payment of these troops depends on the success on the west from the kingdom of Ashantee by the attendant on their predatory expeditions; so River Volta. It is a congregation of semi- that every soldier has a direct interest in fighting civilized blacks, with a despot for King. The his best, and gaining a victory over his enemies. Government of Dahomay is considered the most But besides his male troops, the King of perfect despotism upon earth: its religion, a Dahomay possesses a large force of female jumble of debasing superstitions and meaning-warriors-the Amazon Army of which so much less ceremonials; its principal trade, a traffic in has been written, and so little really known. human beings; wars with the neighbouring tribes being continually fomented by its Sovereign for the purpose of adding to his

Within the different royal palaces of Dahomay upwards of five thousand women are said to be immured; the principal tie between them and

Rash adventurer, bear thee back!
Dread the spell of Dahomay!
Fear the race of Zaharak-
Daughters of the burning day!

Ours the scorpion, ours the snake,
Ours the hydra of the fen;
Ours the tiger of the brake,

All that plagues the sons of men.
Ours the tempest's midnight wrack,
Pestilence that wastes by day-
Dread the race of Zaharak !

Fear the spell of Dahomay! These women are regularly trained to the use of arms, exercised in all the arts of war, taught to perform the duties of soldiers, and inured to all the hardships incident to the military profession. At regular periods the King takes the field at the head of his Amazons, and, to the discordant music of drums, trumpets, and fifes, with flying banners and all the paraphernalia of warlike pomp, the female soldiers go through their evolutions.

What are these Amazons in actual war? Fierce and implacable; terribly cruel, spiteful, and vindictive; half mad, and wholly enthusi astic-led on as much by blind superstitious sentiment as by obedience to their commanders,