prevailed many years ago in America, of giving children names, made up
of Scripture sentences. We record the anecdote as being descriptive
of a curious local custom. About the beginning of the present
century a New England sea captain having some business at a public
office, which required him to sign his name, was rather tedious in
performing the operation, which did not escape the observation of
the officer, who was a little impatient at the delay, and curious
withal to see what sort of a name it could be that required so long
a time to spread it upon paper. Perhaps the captain had a long
string of titles to grace it, such as honorable, esquire, colonel of
militia, selectman of the town of ----, &c., which he chose to make
an ostentatious parade of; or perhaps it was his whim to subscribe
the place of his nativity and that of his residence, together with
his age, height, and complexion. He was mistaken; for the captain
had subscribed nothing but simply his name, which, when he had
done, the officer, after some trouble in decyphering, found to read
thus:--Through-Much-Tribulation-We-Enter-Into-the-Kingdom-of-Heaven
Clapp. "Will you please to tell me, Captain Clapp," said he, with as
demure a face as his violent inclination to indulge in a hearty laugh
would allow him to put on, "what might your mother have called you
in your infancy, to save herself the trouble of repeating a sermon
whenever she had occasion to name her darling?" "Why, sir," replied
Captain Clapp, with laughable simplicity, "when I was little they used
to call me Tribby, for shortness."
DRESS IN LONDON DURING THE LAST CENTURY.
The seven illustrations which accompany this article represent
the progress of dress in London from 1690 to 1779. They speak for
themselves, and tell their own tale far better than any description
in words could tell it for them. The scale in society to which the
persons depicted in the engravings belong, is what may be called the
upper middle class, and we thus obtain a more correct idea of the
general style of dress, than we should have done had we confined our
observations solely to the higher ranks.
[Illustration: Dress 1690-1715.]
[Illustration: Dress 1721.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1735--common Life.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1738.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1752.]
[Illustration: Dress Circa 1773, 1778.]
[Illustration: Dress, 1779.]
It is, however, very curious to notice the value placed upon dress
during the period indicated; and how frequently its loss is recorded.
Thus we find it mentioned that Lady Anderson, whose house was robbed
at a fire in Red Lion Square in 1700, lost a gown of orange damask,
lined with, striped silk. The family of George Heneage, Esq., at the
same time, and by the same casualty, lost "_a head_, with very fine
looped lace of very great value, a Flanders' laced hood, a pair of
double ruffles and tuckers, two laced aprons, one edged with point
lace, and a large black scarf embroidered with gold." At the same
period the ladies wore Holland petticoats, embroidered in figures with
different coloured silks and gold, with broad orrice at the bottom.
In 1702 diamond stomachers adorned the ladies; they were composed of
that valuable stone set in silver, and sewed in a variety of figures
upon black silk. The men imported the Champaign wig from France. They
were made very full, curled, and eighteen inches in length to the
point, with drop locks. In the _Post Boy_, of November 15, 1709, there
were advertised as stolen, "A black silk petticoat, with red and white
calico border, cherry-coloured stays, trimmed with blue and silver, a
red and dove-coloured damask gown, flowered with large trees; a yellow
satin apron, trimmed with white Persian, and muslin head-clothes, with
crow-foot edging; a black silk furbelowed scarf, and a spotted hood."
Black and beaver hats for ladies were advertised in 1719, faced with
coloured silks, and trimmed with gold and silver lace. A man of fashion
in 1720 wore the full flowing curled wig, which fell in ringlets
half-way down his arms and back, a laced coat, straight, formal, with
buttons to the very bottom, and several on the pockets and sleeves; his
shoes were square at the toes, had diminutive buckles, a monstrous flap
on the instep, and high heels, a belt secured the coat and supported
the sword. Perukes were a highly important article of dress in 1734.
Fans were much used, ladies seldom appeared without this useful
ornament in their hands. The hoop underwent many important changes;
sometimes it projected at the sides only, or, like its ancestor, the
fardingale, it spread itself all round in imposing majesty. High-heeled
shoes maintained their place. In 1740 tight sleeves with full ruffles,
small pointed waists, enclosed in whalebone, loose gowns, called
sacques, and cloaks with hoods, named cardinals, were _la grande
monde_. Among the gentlemen's costumes, the most striking was the
_Ramilies_ tail, which was a plaited tail to the wig, with an immense
bow at the top and one at the bottom. Claret coloured clothes were
considered as handsome; and light blue with silver button-holes, and
silver garters to the knees, was very fashionable between 1740 and
1751. The change to wearing the natural hair instead of wigs took place
about 1765. From that date the female dress altered by degrees: the cap
was enlarged to an enormous size, and the bonnet swelled in proportion.
Hoops were entirely discontinued. Hats and bonnets of straw, chip, and
beaver, became well proportioned, and velvet pelisses, shawls and silk
spencers were contrived to improve rather than injure the form. The
male dress also insensibly changed from formality to ease, and thus, by
degrees, the fashion became what our illustrations represent it to have
been in 1779.
ATTAR OF ROSES.
Lieutenant Colonel Polier gives a full history of extracting this
essential oil, in vol i. p. 332, of the _Asiatic Researches_. The roses
grow, cultivated near Lucknow, in fields of eleven acres each. The
oil is procured by distillation; the petals of the flowers only are
used; and in that country no more than a quantity of about two drachms
can be procured from an hundred-weight of rose leaves, and even that
in a favourable season, and by the process being performed with the
utmost care. The oil is by accident of different colours; of a bright
yellow, of a reddish hue, and a fine emerald. It is to the mother of
Mebrul Nessa Begum, afterwards called Nourjehan Begum, or, _Light
of the World_, that the fair sex is indebted for this discovery. On
this occasion the emperor of Hindostan rewarded the inventress with a
string of valuable pearls. Nourjehan Begum was the favourite wife of
Jehangir, and her game the fiercest of India. In a hunting party she
killed four tigers with a matchlock, from her elephant, and her spouse
was so delighted at her skill, that he made her a present of a pair of
emerald bracelets, valued at a lack of rupees, and bestowed in charity
a thousand mohurs.
FLEET MARRIAGES ABOUT 1740.
Many of the early Fleet weddings were _really_ performed at the
chapel of the Fleet; but as the practice extended, it was found more
convenient to have other places within the Rules of the Fleet, (added
to which the Warden was compelled by act of parliament not to suffer
them,) and thereupon many of the Fleet parsons and tavern-keepers in
the neighbourhood fitted up a room in their respective lodgings or
houses as a chapel. The parsons took the fees, allowing a portion to
the plyers, &c., and the tavern-keepers, besides sharing in the fees,
derived a profit from the sale of liquors which the wedding party
drank. In some instances the tavern-keepers kept a parson on their
establishment at a weekly salary of twenty shillings; while others,
upon a wedding-party arriving, sent for any clergyman they might please
to employ, and divided the fee with him. Most of the taverns near the
Fleet kept their own registers, in which (as well as in their own
books,) the parsons entered the weddings.
EFFECTS OF THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE AT LISBON.
The earthquake happened on November the 1st, 1755, and its sphere of
action embraced many cities and states. St. Ubes was totally destroyed.
At Cadiz the sea broke down the outer wall, flooded the town, and
drowned some hundreds of persons. The Cathedral of Seville was
seriously damaged, several houses overthrown, and many persons injured.
The shock was felt, indeed, throughout the whole of Spain, except in
Catalonia, and also in Germany. In many parts of Great Britain the
water in lakes and ponds was violently upheaved, and ebbed and flowed
over the banks. A solemn Fast was consequently commanded to be observed
on the 6th of February next ensuing, in the hope to avert, by prayer
and penitence, a similar calamity from this country. A ship at sea,
100 leagues to the westward of Lisbon, had her cabin windows shattered
to fragments, and many vessels in deep water quivered as if they had
struck against a rock. In Morocco the effects of the shock were most
disastrous. In Mequinez two-thirds of the houses were destroyed, and
above 300 in Fez. A caravan of 200 persons going along the coast
from Sallee to Morocco were overwhelmed by the sea, and a still more
numerous caravan was swept away by the sudden rise of the inland
rivers. In France and Holland earthquakes were repeatedly felt during
the entire month of November, and occasionally even in December.
SNAKE-CHARMERS.
In the East Indies, the Pambatees, or snake-charmers, come from the
mountains called the Ghauts. They make a trade of catching serpents,
training them and exhibiting them for money. These reptiles are
commonly the _cobra-di-capello_, the hooded or spectacle serpent, and
of other similar species. A Pambatee will sometimes carry eight or
more of them in a low round basket, in which the serpents lie coiled
round one another.
As soon as the lid is removed from the basket, the serpent creeps
out of it. The master plays on an instrument somewhat resembling the
bagpipe, and the snakes are taught to mark the cadence by the motion
of their heads, till at length they fall asleep. In order to rouse
them, the Pambatee suspends his music and shakes a ring round his arm
to which a piece of red cloth is fastened. The irritated serpent darts
at the ring; but as the master has taken care to extract the pouch
containing the poison, and to file his teeth, he can do no harm.
[Illustration [++] Snake-Charmer.]
The musical instrument just mentioned is called _magootee_. It is
composed of a hollow calebash, to one end of which is fitted a
mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. To the other extremity is
adapted a tube perforated with several holes, which are successively
stopped by the fingers, like those of the flute, while the player blows
into the mouthpiece. In the middle of the instrument is a small mirror,
on which the serpents fix their eyes while dancing. The above engraving
will convey a correct idea of the Pambatee and his instrument.
WONDERFUL ESCAPE.
In 1785, at Winster, in Derbyshire, a show being exhibited at a
public-house, some gunpowder being scattered on the floor of an upper
chamber, took fire, and communicated to the remainder of a barrel,
by which the whole upper part of the house was blown up; about sixty
persons were below, and not one hurt.
FAC-SIMILE OF THE FIRST STEAM BOAT.
[Illustration [++] First Steam Boat.]
The triumph of steam navigation is one of the wonders of science; and,
traversed in all directions as the navigable waters of the earth now
are, by vessels propelled by steam, it is not a little curious to look
at the first rude effort, and to examine the attempt which has been
followed by such extraordinary success.
The world stands indebted, not for the discovery, but for the
successful application of steam power to navigation, to Robert Fulton,
who was born in Pennsylvania in 1765, being the son of a poor Irish
labourer who had emigrated to America. He came to London in 1786,
and subsequently, in the character of an inventor and projector,
proceeded to Paris, where, however, he did not meet with much success
or encouragement. It is evident, from the following letter to a friend,
that while residing in the French capital, that his attention was even
then turned to the subject of propelling vessels by mechanical power:--
Paris, the 20th of September, 1802.
TO MR. FULNER SKIPWITH.
Sir,--The expence of a patent in France is 300 livers for three years,
800 ditto for ten years, and 1500 ditto for fifteen years; there can
be no difficulty in obtaining a patent for the mode of propelling a
boat which you have shewn me; but if the author of the model wishes
to be assured of the mirits of his invention before he goes to the
expence of a patent, I advise him to make the model of a boat, in which
he can place a clock spring which will give about eight revolutions;
he can then combine the movements so as to try oars, paddles, and the
leaves which he proposes; if he finds that the leaves drive the boat a
greater distance in the same time than either oars or paddles, they
consequently are a better application of power. About eight years ago
the Earl of Stanhope tried an experiment on similar leaves in Greenland
Dock, London, but without success. I have also tried experiments on
similar leaves, wheels, oars, paddles, and flyars similar to those of
a smoak jack, and found oars to be the best. The velocity with which a
boat moves, is in proportion as the sum of the surfaces of the oars,
paddles, leaves, or other machine is to the bow of the boat presented
to the water, and in proportion to the power with which such machinery
is put in motion; hence, if the sum of the surfaces of the oars is
equal to the sum of the surfaces of the leaves, and they pass through
similar curves in the same time, the effect must be the same; but oars
have this advantage, they return through air to make a second stroke,
and hence create very little resistance; whereas the leaves return
through water, and add considerably to the resistance, which resistance
is increased as the velocity of the boat is augmented: no kind of
machinery can create power; all that can be done is to apply the manuel
or other power to the best advantage. If the author of the model is
fond of mechanics, he will be much amused, and not lose his time, by
trying the experiments in the manner I propose, and this perhaps is the
most prudent measure, before a patent is taken.
I am, Sir, with much respect, yours,
ROBT. FULTON.
In the following year, 1803, he appears to have made an experiment in
France of propelling a vessel by mechanism, and though it failed in
consequence of the timbers of the boat being too weak, it served to
convince him so completely of ultimate success, that he immediately
gave instructions to Watt and Boulton to prepare a suitable steam
engine for him, and send it to New York. Having returned to that city
in 1806, he set about building a boat, and having received the engines
he had ordered, he successfully started the first steam-boat in the
world on her trial trip to Albany from New York in August, 1807.
Her name was the "_Clermont_," and the above engraving is a correct
representation of her. She was in length 133 feet, in depth 7, and in
breadth 18.
SEVERE ENACTMENT AGAINST BEGGARS.
At the commencement of the reign of Edward VI., a most severe and
extraordinary statute was made for the punishment of vagabonds and
relief of poor persons. It does not appear who were the contrivers
of this instrument, the preamble and general spirit of which were
more in accordance with the tyrannical and arbitrary measures of the
preceding reign, than with the mild and merciful character of the
infant sovereign, who is well known to have taken a very active part
in the affairs of government. It repeals all the former statutes on
this subject, and enacts, that if any beggar or other person, not being
lame or impotent, and after loitering or idly wandering for the space
of three days or more, shall not offer himself to labour, or being
engaged in any person's service, shall run away or leave his work, it
shall be lawful for the master to carry him before a justice of peace,
who, on proof of the offence, shall cause the party to be marked with
a hot iron with the letter V on the breast, and adjudge him to be his
master's slave for the space of two years, who shall feed him "on bread
and water, or at his discretion, on refuse of meat, and cause the said
slave to work by beating, chaining, or otherwise in such work or labour
(how vile soever it be) as he shall put him unto." If the slave should
run away or absent himself for a fortnight without leave, the master
may pursue and punish him by chaining or beating, and have his action
of damage against any one who shall harbour or detain him. On proof
before the justice of the slave's escape, he is to be sentenced to be
marked on the forehead or ball of the cheek with a hot iron with the
letter S, and adjudged to be his master's slave for ever; and for the
second offence of running away, he is to be regarded as a felon and
suffer death. The children of beggars to be taken from them, and, with
other vagrant children, to be apprenticed by the magistrate to whoever
will take them; and if such children so apprenticed run away, they are
to be retaken, and become slaves till the age of twenty in females,
and twenty-four in males, with punishment by chains, &c., and power
to the master to let, sell, or bequeath them, as goods and chattels,
for the term aforesaid. If any slave should maim or wound the master,
in resisting correction, or conspire to wound or murder him, or burn
his house or other property, he is to suffer death as a felon, unless
the master will consent to retain him as a slave for ever; and if any
parent, nurse, or bearer about of children, so become slaves, shall
steal, or entice them away from the master, such person shall be liable
to become a slave to the said master for ever, and the party so stolen
or enticed away restored. If any vagrant be brought to a place, where
he shall state himself to have been born, and it shall be manifest that
he was not so born there, for such lie he shall be marked in the face
with an S, and become a slave to the inhabitants or corporation of the
city for ever. Any master of a slave may put a ring of iron about his
neck, arm, or leg, for safe custody, and any person taking or helping
to take off such ring, without consent of the master, shall forfeit the
sum of ten pounds.
This diabolical statute, after remaining for two years, was repealed,
on the ground that, from its extreme severity, it had not been enforced.
JUDGES IN THEIR ROBES ATTENDING PUBLIC BALLS.
That the ideas of good taste and propriety which now prevail are
greatly in advance of those which our ancestors entertained, is
strikingly manifested by the fact, that the dreadful scenes which
followed the last business of a county assize did not prevent a festive
beginning of the same. On the commission day at each county town was
held an assize ball. The judges attended in black silk gowns with band
and two-curl bob-wig. They did not dance, but usually played at whist.
What would be thought now-a-days of judges who went to a public ball
room on commission day, and played at whist in their robes?
ST. WINIFRED'S WELL.
The most copious spring in Great Britain is St. Winifred's Well, near
the town of Holywell, in Flintshire. The well is an oblong square,
about twelve feet by seven. The water passes into a small square court
through an arch; it has never been known to freeze, and scarcely ever
varies in quantity either in drought or after the greatest rains. The
water thrown up is not less than eighty-four hogsheads every minute.
[Illustration: St. Winifred's Well.]
This sacred well is the object of many pilgrimages, even in the present
day, and several modern miracles are related of the influence of its
waters. Pope Martin V. especially enjoined such pilgrimages, and the
monks of Basingwerk were furnished with pardons and indulgences to sell
to the devotees. James the 2nd visited the well in 1686, and Leopold,
King of the Belgians, in 1819. Apart from all superstitious notions,
its waters doubtless possess many curative properties.
Over the well, Queen Margaret, the mother of Henry VII., erected a
beautiful chapel, whose elegantly fretted roof, and graceful columns
and arches, are generally admired as examples of good architecture. Our
engraving is a correct representation of the interior.
INSTANCE OF ASSIDUITY AND PERSEVERANCE.
The Rev. Wm. Davy, a Devonshire curate, in the year 1795, begun a
most desperate undertaking, viz., that of printing himself twenty-six
volumes of sermons, which he actually did, working off page by page,
for fourteen copies; and continuing this almost hopeless task for
twelve years, in the midst of poverty! Such wonderful perseverance
almost amounts to a ruling passion.
PHENOMENON AT THE POWERSCOURT FALL.
[Illustration [++] Powerscourt Fall.]
The Powerscourt Fall, of which the annexed is an engraving, is formed
by the river Dargle, and is situated in the county of Wicklow. When
the river is full, it presents a very grand appearance. The stream
precipitates itself over a nearly perpendicular cliff, 300 feet in
height, and falls into a natural basin or reservoir, encircled by
rocky masses of considerable magnitude, whilst the whole scene is
backed by mountains. This fall exhibits rather a singular phenomenon,
in the different degrees of velocity with which the water descends
in different parts of the cascade. Thus, on one side, the water may
be observed to pour down with considerable velocity; while, on the
other side, the fall, in the upper part, presents the appearance of
a continued stream of frothy foam, gliding slowly down the face of
the cliff, though the lower part moves with greater velocity. This
circumstance is, however, readily accounted for; being, in fact, mainly
attributable to the comparatively small body of water which forms the
cascade. The water, on the one side, that which descends with the
greater velocity (and this forms by far the larger portion of the
cascade) meets with no interruption in its descent, but falls, almost
from the top, to the bottom in an unbroken sheet. On the other side,
however, the cliff in the upper part deviates from the perpendicular,
and the consequence is, that, owing to the slope or inclination of
the rock over which it flows, the progress of the water is checked
in that particular part, though lower down, where the cliff is again
perpendicular, it regains its velocity. If the body of water in this
cascade were greater, this phenomenon would not occur.
HOW CHESS ORIGINATED IN INDIA.