minds. He says, (p. 28,) "But a contest is of a very different nature, and produces a very different effect, when the parties are on the same footing, and when one is striving to preserve a superiority, and the other to obtain an equality." This may be very true; but we have always been disposed to imagine that, in all contests, the more equally the parties were matched, by so much was the fierceness and length of their contention likely to be increased. The inference in the above passage is evidently to the contrary. The Bishop, indeed, appears to be a great lover of equality," of not seeking our own, and of preferring one another in honour." We marvel much that he is a Bishop!

The Letter" then expresses a "hope that the present measure will set before the Irish population the religion of the Reformation in a new point of view, not as the religion of the predominant party, but as the religion of the Bible!" This is as it ought to be, and, moreover, as we trust it has been, long since. On such matters, however, we have no right to imagine the worthy Diocesan can be ignorant.

Of the efficacy and influence of preaching, the following are his opinions, p. 32:-"The clergy, it must be remembered, and not the legislature, are the real guardians of truth in this country. The legislators, in the main, will take their view of religion from what we teach it, prove it, and exhibit it to be. On the clergy, not now only, but at all times, must depend the maintenance, the diffusion, the purity of religion, in the land. Whilst the doctrine which they inculcate is the doctrine of Christian truth; whilst the practice which they pursue is the practice of that religion, which, while it prepares mankind for a more perfect state hereafter, establishes and preserves here 'whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report,' so long our Protestant faith, and with it our Protestant establishment, is invulnerable."

One is, on reading this passage, for cibly reminded of a pious wish, which was said to have been breathed by an eccentric member of the Establishment, when speaking of certain Bi

shops. "For my own part," quoth he," I wish the poor gentlemen no worse than that they may preach themselves to death, since that is the most glorious end they can possibly make in the service of our Lord and Master." Is it possible to refrain from joining in this truly pious, Protestant, and patriotic wish? It would be cheering to witness such genuine devotion. It would remind one of the days gone by, when men "sought not their own," but " did boldly jeopard body and life for their religion," and the establishment and preservation of Protestant ascendency. With all Christian charity, we hope that the end of the "Bird" in hand, and certain of the same feather, may be no worse. It is " a consummation devoutly to be

wished."

One more ground for consolation from the " Letter," and we lay down the pen.

"May it not be intended," asks the preacher, (p. 29,) “ that this political change, coming simultaneously with many active measures for the diffusion of truth, with a more general acquaintance with the Scriptures, with a vast extension of education, and with a remarkable spirit of religious enquiry, may form a part of a providential design, and co-operate in removing the veil from the face of Christianity in Ireland, and purifying it from its corruption and superstition?" Upon the supposition that the part taken in "this political change" by the said John Bird, Bishop of Chester, has been that of a mere puppet, moved by others, in consequence of some of those "circumstances" which "occur in social and political life, which cannot and need not be pointed out, but which often lead men to act in a very different way from what, on abstract principles, might be expected"-supposing it possible for a Bishop to be so utterly debased, then such language as the above might be barely admissible. But, for a "conscientious" and responsible agent to insinuate that his own act and deed "may form part of a providential design," is really a most insulting and ingenious method of crowing over those who are yet smarting from the recent strife, and who believe a deathblow hath been dealt against their country.

In the days of Cromwell, when the

victorious Puritan sat, after a battle, in maudlin triumph, mawkishly preaching to the wounded Cavalier, something of the kind may have been said. It is certainly the most complete specimen of "cant" that hath met our eye for many a day; and were it not written by a "right reverend," we should say, partook strongly of the nature of blasphemy.

Indeed, we should have little hope of the Bishop, were it not for his evident attachment to preaching. From that exercise, something may yet be expected. He is wonderfully sanguine in his notions of its efficacy; witness page 33 of the "Letter." "Romanism can never be supported by Parliament till the Parliament is Roman Catholic. The Parliament which, in

a five or six-fold proportion, is now returned by Protestants, can never become Catholic till its constituents become so. Its constituents can never become so whilst the clergy are what they are at present; not only enemies of Popery, but lovers, followers, and teachers of truth."

We are far from agreeing with the first part of this sentence; recent events and speeches are yet too vivid in our recollection; but the latter clause is pleasant, as it leads us to anticipate that the Bishop will devote himself assiduously to preaching; a task for which he is certainly much better qualified than for legislation. And here we speak not "without book," for we have read his sermons, his speeches, and his " Letter."

THE following circumstance, which occurred some years ago at Ceylon, may not prove uninteresting, though we confess that we view it with an interest, which others may not feel, as one of the parties (not the Bear) was, and is, a very dear friend of our own. Notwithstanding" the march of intellect," with her long and rapid strides, we are afraid that the island of Ceylon, to many of our readers, may be little known beyond its name; and we have our suspicions, that the worthy General Officer, who once within our hearing described it as being situated at the mouth of the Red Sea, does not stand alone in his ignorance. Be that as it may, however, there is such an island, and it is at least as old as the rest of the world, seeing that by most good judges it is supposed to have been the old original garden of Eden of our first parents; while that on the banks of the Euphrates is a new opposition one, of no long standing. This river being named in the Scriptures, is no obstacle to the supposition; for every Chaldee scholar is aware, that in that tongue, Euphrates might apply to any large river, in the same manner as in the Sanscrit, Gunga, or Ganga (i. e. Ganges), has a like signification. There are many strong proofs in favour of Ceylon being the original Paradise; but we conceive that

WAVERLEY.

nothing more conclusive can be wanting, when we assert that we ourselves have seen the garden, or grove, where the good though uxorious Adam spent his days of innocence; and moreover, on the top of the peak which bears his name, have we measured his last footstep on the island, when he was driven from it by the angel. A goodsized foot too it must have been, for the mark of it is nearly six feet long ; as well it might be, when he stepped at once from the top of the mountain to the island of Ramesseram, one of the arches, as it may be termed, of Adam's bridge, stretching from Ceylon to the opposite continent. Here he is thought to have spent a goodly portion of the nine hundred and thirty years of his life, unable to tear himself from the view of the beloved spot his imprudence had lost him, until the death of Cain and Abel again drove him forth. These two brothers (Aubul Caubul) "le here interred," side by side, in graves, one fifty, and the other sixty feet long; the earth over which is kept neatly heaped by a Faquir, who vouches for their being genuine. The whole tradition is obviously Mussulmaunic, as it need not be mentioned, that the Ishmaelites, from their consanguinity to the Jews, acknowledge the early part of the Old Testament, while to the other inha

bitants of the East it is perfectly unknown.

We cannot follow Adam farther from Ceylon, however, which, for the benefit of the very ignorant, for whom this exordium is manifestly intended, was denominated Trapobane by Ptolemy in his Geographical Grammar, while the Arabs (vide Sinbad the Sailor) know it as Serendib; and the Indians, by the Sanscrit name of Lanka. It is, moreover, peopled by at least two races of black inhabitants, and continues to produce a few pearls as heretofore, and the only cinnamon which grows in the world. We conquered it from the Dutch in the year 1796; and though it has since been rather an expensive jewel in the British crown, it is unspeakable the service it has been of as a king's government in the East, to overawe those monopolizing rogues, the Company, not to mention providing for a number of fine young men of younger brothers, in the capacity of civil servants, and for more grown gentlemen, as Governors, Lieut. Governors, Judges, and other officers needful for the pomp and circumstance of a government. A few regiments of the line, and one most efficient native corps, with some artillery, compose the force deemed necessary for the protection of the island. This little army, since the time we are about to speak of, now some ten years ago, can scarcely at the present day be composed of the same individuals; as, besides the usual changes incident to a military career, the lives of a great portion of those brave fellows were expended in the rebellion of 1817-18, when the Kandyan natives of the interior made a determined and obstinate attempt to expel us from their country, of which we had three years before taken possession. It is seldom that the courage and perseverance of British soldiers have been more severely put to the trial; and many mortal remains, which were then left to rot in the jungle of Ceylon, belonged to as brave youths as ever at the great last day will claim those bleached upon the plain of Salamanca, or on the mighty Waterloo itself. Unfortunately for the survivors of the Kandyan war, the effects of the last named battle were too fresh and dazzling in the memory of the "powers that be;" and strange to say, no honours, well merited and dearly pur

chased as they would have been, were bestowed upon the officers of this gallant little army.

We have started rather wide from our purpose, we confess; but as the officer to whom the adventure happened, which we are about to relate, was high in the staff of that army, what we have said, we hope, will not be deemed quite apropos to nothing. Far removed from us, indeed, by some thousand miles, little does our friend think of the liberty we are now taking with him; for though the most forward among soldiers, he is the most modest among men, and we are aware would scarcely consent to be put in print; but as we shall carefully avoid mentioning names, we trust to be pardoned by him. The whole affair has lately been detailed to us by a mutual friend; and as we are at a loss how to improve it, we shall save ourselves all trouble by simply transcribing his letter.

"You have often asked me for the particulars of the adventure of our friend H., in the Jungle of Ceylon, with the two Bears; and having lately had the circumstances related to me by our friend himself, I shall endeavour to conquer my habitual dislike to writing, while I impart them to you. In doing so I shall adhere, as nearly as possible, to the very words he used in his narration; and, as the whole is interesting, I have no scruple in making him commence with you, as he did with me, from the day before his hairbreadth escape. To those who never were in the country where the scene is laid, it is necessary to explain that the southern coast of Ceylon, from Tangalle stretching eastward to the province of Batticaloa, is a desert, with the single exception of Hambantotte, where a civil servant is stationed, for the superintendence and collection of the salt spontaneously produced along the coast. The character of the country varies, being sometimes deep sand, at others jungle and forest, and frequently large grassy plains. The inhabitants of this tract of country, of nearly two hundred miles, are so few, that it may be said to be abandoned entirely to elephants, buffaloes, wild hogs, and last, not least, abundance of leopards, as well as bears of a most ferocious race. Occasionally, a few runners are stationed in huts, from fifteen to twenty

miles apart, for the purpose of transmitting such letters as Government may send by that route; and there is, moreover, an empty rest-house or two, merely sufficient to shelter the weary traveller from the rays of the sun.

"I was proceeding,' said our friend, in the way of my duty, from Point de Galle to the Post of Hambantotte, on the south-east coast of the island, and had sent forward my servants and baggage by land, while I myself embarked in a native boat, called a dhoney, at the small bay of Belligham, half way between Point de Galle and Matura. I went on board between eleven and twelve o'clock of the day; and, as it was the month of July, with the Monsoon blowing in my favour with all its vigour, I had no doubt of reaching the place of my destination, though sixty miles off, before daylight of the following morning. With this idea, I had provided no sea-stock beyond a bottle of brandy, accidentally put into my hands, and a change of linen, with dressing utensils. You may judge of my disappointment, when day dawned, between five and six o'clock, as it does in that country, to find that we had overshot our port. It was impossible to land amidst the tremendous surf on that coast in the south-west Monsoon; and the Tandil, or master of the boat, who, by the way, was bound to Trincomalee, said, that all he could do was to land me in a small bite or bay called Pootanie, which was still some hours' sail a-head, and between fifty and sixty miles beyond the breakfast awaiting me at Hambantotte. This was rather serious to a man with a good appetite, who had tasted nothing from the day before at breakfast, in a part of the country quite uninhabited, excepting by a couple of men posted here and there, for the purpose of carrying the Tappaul. But I felt strong and vigorous; and the Kandyan campaign had taught me to fast. I thought, too, if I once got ashore, I should be able to find one or other of the Tappaul huts I have mentioned, and come in for a share of the currie and rice of its inmates. At a station, moreover, by name Pallitopanie, about half-way between where I was to be put ashore and Hambantotte, there was an English corporal, with a few native soldiers, in charge of a depot of salt. But to proceed. I was landed in a small canoe from the larger vessel.

I took with me a black man, who was proceeding to Trincomalee with some trifling articles of merchandise, who said he could shew me the hut in the neighbourhood, where I could get one of the runners before-mentioned to be my guide, as well as to carry a small leathern case with a change of linen and dressing utensils. We had no sooner stepped on the beach, than the men in the canoe treacherously pushed off for their vessel, and my black friend threw himself at my feet, imploring me to let him go also, and that I should proceed far enough not to be seen, otherwise the men in the canoe would not be prevailed on to return for him; and, separated from his property on board the Dhoney, he should be ruined. I granted his request; and, from a small distance, had the satisfaction of seeing him taken off by the people in the canoe, and of feeling myself alone in a desert, hungry, and without the means of procuring food, and even ignorant of the road, and, of course, with little chance of finding any of the letter-carriers or their huts. It was now drawing towards three o'clock, and with my little valize in one hand, and my brandy bottle, about half full, in the other, I went in search of the hut. After fruitlessly spending an hour in endeavouring to find it, Ï deemed it better, as the sun was fast descending, to turn my face towards the west, and to endeavour to reach the next station, Yallé by name, about sixteen miles distant, and where there was a rest-house. The country was a number of open plains of different sizes, divided from each other by extensive low jungles, interspersed with the large forest trees of the country. It was not without some difficulty that I could find the path; and my stri king upon the right one I considered as particularly fortunate. I jogged on at a brisk pace, and all went well till about sunset, when I was aware of a herd of elephants in the jungle on each side of the path I had to pass. I could just see their backs occasionally above the bushes, and hear the small trees cracking and giving way on each side, as they walked through them, as a man would through a field of corn. These animals gave me but little uneasiness, as I had frequently been a-shooting them; and though I had heard of instances of their attacking men, I had never on any occasion seen

them, that they did not run away on raising a shout or firing a shot. When I came near, one of them perceived me, and gave that angry cry, which all who have been accustomed to elephants know so well. I shouted and ran forward, but instead of taking to flight, as I expected, the one who saw me made out of the jungle after me. I had got past the herd, and I fled on my way with all the swiftness of which I was capable. He was overtaking me fast, however, and was not many yards from me, when I turned round, and threw my portmanteau at him. By special good fortune this arrested his progress, and he stopped as if to examine my kit. When I had got forty or fifty yards from him, I stopped also. Perhaps you will scarce ly credit me when I say, that even then I was not afraid; but so it was, and I looked upon the affair more in a ludicrous than in any other light. I was determined not to give up my packet so easily, and I again shouted and ran back a few paces towards my friend. Upon doing so, he renewed his attack, and charged me a second time. This time I should have had a poor chance for it, but fortunately a small inequality of ground intervened, when he was close upon me, and I started to one side, stooping down as much as possible, while he passed on wards. I saw him bewildered at having lost me, while I skulked away as quickly as I could, and regained my road by a circuitous route. I had not proceeded much farther when the sun set, and in the very short twilight which follows in that climate, I perceived two animals come out of the jungle into the path, about 100 yards before me. In the uncertain light, I at first took them for the half-grown calves of wild buffaloes, an animal abounding in that part of the island, and they proceeded with their heads down towards a large tree by the side of the road I had to pass, where they began snuffing about the roots. I was now near enough to see that they were bears of a very large size. To turn aside was impossible, as the jungle was of a kind impenetrable to a man, being full of the very long thorn, called the Buffaloe thorn, from its toughness. To go back never entered my mind-indeed I had little time for thought, as I was now within thirty paces of them. They lifted up their

heads and marked their anger by a short roar, which I returned by charging them till I found myself within three yards of them, without their offering to move away. They made a step towards me, the largest one, evidently the male, about its length before the other ;-I kept my face towards them, and edged round so as to get on that side of them by which I was to pursue my route. At this moment they made a short bound at me, which I escaped by springing backwards, but still fronting them, and they missed me a second time in the same way. These were more like the consecutive bounds of a clumsy gallop, than any thing else, but the third I saw was to be my last. All that I remember is, uttering a sound of horror between a scream and a roar, and as the foremost animal rose at me, I struck him with all the force of my body in the nose and teeth with my brandy bottle, the only thing in my hands. I need not say that the bottle broke into shivers; and whether it was the blow on the nose-a part, I have since heard, of great tenderness in bears-or that part of the brandy went into his eyes and mouth and astonished him, or both these things together, I know not; but he turned round and moved off, followed by his companion down the path away from me, and so into the jungle. The female at no time had taken a decided part, keeping rather in the rear, and only backing her mate by encouraging grunts. The whole business, I may say, scarcely occupied a minute's time, during which I did not in the least lose my presence of mind, probably from the shortness of the time. I felt so conscious indeed of my own strength, that had there been but one bear, though I might have suffered much, I was confident I could have dislocated his jaw. But the two together quite discomfited me. I said that I never lost my presence of mind during the rencontre; but I own that I stood as if fixed to the spot while they moved off, and till they were out of sight. My first impulse was then to run, which I continued to do for about three miles, when I reached the large plain, which I guessed to be that of Yallé. I then fell down quite exhausted, and lay on the ground for above half an hour, when I rose and moved slowly across the large open