earliest mention of the fruit being exposed to sale by hawkers in
London is in Henry the Fifth's reign, 1415. New sorts were introduced
from Flanders, by Richard Haines, Henry the Eighth's fruiterer, and
being planted in Kent were called "Flanders," or "Kentish Cherries," of
which Gerard (1597) says, "They have a better juice, but watery, cold,
and moist." Philips says, "There is an account of a cherry-orchard of
thirty-two acres in Kent, which, in the year 1540, produced fruit that
sold in those early days, for 1,000_l._; which seems an enormous sum,
as at that period good land is stated to have let at one shilling per
acre." Evelyn tells us, that in his time (1662) an acre planted with
cherries, one hundred miles from London, had been let at 10_l._ During
the Commonwealth (1649), the manor and mansion of Henrietta Maria,
Queen of Charles I., at Wimbledon, in Surrey, were surveyed previously
to being sold, and it appears that there were upwards of two hundred
cherry trees in the gardens. Since that time the cherry tree has found
universal admission into shrubberies, gardens, and orchards.
INSTRUCTIONS TO A CHAPLAIN.
The following, and we believe they are unique, are Sir John Wynne of
Gwedir's instructions to his chaplain, the Rev. John Pryce. "First, you
shall have the chamber I showed you in my gate, private to yourself,
with lock and key, and all necessaries. In the morning, I expect you
should rise, and say prayers in my hall, to my household below, before
they go to work, and when they come in at night, that you call before
you all the workmen, specially the youth, and take account of them
of their belief, and of what Sir Meredith taught them. I beg you to
continue for the most part in the lower house: you are to have onlye
what is done there, that you may inform me of any disorder there. There
is a bayliff of husbandry and a porter, who will be commanded by you.
The morning after you be up, and have said prayers, as afore, I would
you to bestow in study on any commendable exercise of your body. Before
dinner you are to come up and attend grace or prayers, if there be any
publicke; and to sit up if there be not greater strangers above the
chyldren, who you are to teach in your own chamber. When the table
from half downwards is taken up, then you are to rise and to walk in
the alleys near at hand until grace time, and to come in then for that
purpose. After dinner, if I be busy, you may go to bowles, shuffel
bord, or any other honest, decent recreation, until I go abroad. If
you see me void of business, and go to ride abroad, you shall command
a gelding to be made ready by the grooms of the stable, and to go with
me. If I go to bowles or shuffel bord, I shall lyke of your company,
if the place be not made up with strangers. I would have you to go
every Sunday in the year to some church hereabouts, to preache, giving
warnynge to the parish, to bring the yowths at after noon to the church
to be catechysed; in which poynt is my greatest care that you should
be paynfull and dylygent. Avoyd the alehouse, to sytte and keepe
drunkard's company ther, being the greatest discredit your function can
have."
TWO MISERS.
In the year 1778 died, at a village near Reading, John Jackson,
aged ninety-three, and James Jackson, aged eighty-seven. These two
brothers were old bachelors, and afforded a striking instance of the
insufficiency of wealth to create happiness. Though these old men had
been blest with great riches ever since they were twenty years of age,
they absolutely denied themselves the common necessaries of life;
and lived in the village for fifty years past as poor men, and often
accepted of charity from rich persons who resided near them. They never
suffered any woman or man to come into their apartment (which was only
one shabby room), and were both taken ill, and languishing a short
time, they expired on the same day, within one hour of each other. It
is computed, by the writings left behind them, that they died worth
L150,000.
ANECDOTE OF THE HOUSE OF BRUNSWICK.
The following anecdote relating to the august House of Brunswick
is taken from the "Annual Register" of 1765:--"The late Duchess of
Blakenburgh, great grandmother to the hereditary prince, who died
some years since in a very advanced age, had the singular happiness
to reckon amongst her posterity, sixty-two princes and princesses;
(fifty-three of whom she saw at one time alive;) and amongst them three
emperors, two empresses, two kings, and two queens; a circumstance
that, probably, no sovereign house but that of Brunswick ever produced
anything like it."
AMUSEMENTS OF SOME LEARNED AUTHORS.
Tycho Brahe polished glass for spectacles, and made mathematical
instruments. D'Andilly delighted, like our Evelyn, in forest-trees;
Balzac, with the manufacturing of crayons; Pieresc, with his medals and
antiques; the Abbe de Marolles, with engravings; Rohault's greatest
recreation was in seeing different mechanics at their labour; Arnauld
read the most trashy novels for relaxation; as did our Warburton, the
late Lords Loughborough and Camden; Montaigne fondled his cat; Cardinal
Richelieu, in jumping and leaping. Grumm informs us that the Chevalier
de Boufflers would crow like a cock, and bray like an ass; in both of
which he excelled, not metaphorically but literally.
EARLY GERMAN DRINKING CUP.
[Illustration: [++] Early German Drinking Cup.]
The above, taken from the Londesborough collection, is a good example
of the German drinking cups of fanciful shape, which were so much in
fashion in that country in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The
specimen before us is of silver, and dated 1619. The mill and scroll
ornament on the cup are gilt. It was held in the hand to be filled, and
could not be set down until emptied; the drinker, blowing through the
tube into the mill, set the sails in motion, and reversed the cup on
the table.
THE KING'S STONE.
[Illustration: [++] The King's Stone.]
Kingston-on-Thames is among the oldest of English towns; and is said
to have been "the metropolis of the Anglo-Saxon kings:" certainly it
was a famous place when the Romans found and conquered the Britons in
this locality: there are indeed arguments for believing that the "ford"
which Caesar crossed was here, and not at Walton; and indications of
barrows, fosses, and ramparts of Roman origin, are to be found in many
places in the neighbourhood. It is more than probable that a bridge was
constructed by the Romans here, and that a fortress was erected for its
protection. The Saxons followed in due course, and here they had many
contests with their enemies the Danes; but A.D. 838, Egbert convened at
Kingston an assembly of ecclesiastics and nobles in council, and here,
undoubtedly, many of the Saxon kings were crowned: "The townish men,"
says Leland, "have certen knowledge that a few kinges were crounid
afore the Conqueste." Its first charter was from King John, and many
succeeding sovereigns accorded to it various grants and immunities.
During the war between Charles I. and the Parliament, Kingston was the
scene of several "fights," being always on the side of the king. The
town is now populous and flourishing, although without manufactures of
any kind. Since the establishment of a railway, villa residences have
largely increased in the neighbourhood; and the two suburbs, Surbiton
and Norbiton, are pretty and densely-crowded villages of good houses.
The church has suffered much from mutilation and restoration; it is a
spacious structure, and was erected about the middle of the fourteenth
century, on the site of an earlier edifice. Amongst the monuments is a
fine brass, to a civilian and his wife, of the year 1437. Of existing
antiquities there are but few: county historians, however, point out
the sites of the ancient Saxon palace, "the castle," the Jews' quarter,
and the Roman town, Tamesa; and the game of "foot-ball," it is said, is
still practised by the inhabitants on Shrove Tuesday, in commemoration
of the feats of their ancestors, by whom the head of a king-assassin
was "kicked" about the town. But perhaps the most interesting object
now to be found in Kingston is "THE KING'S STONE." It had long
remained neglected, though not unknown, among disregarded heaps of
_debris_ in "the new court-yard," when it occurred to some zealous and
intelligent antiquaries that so venerable a relic of remote ages was
entitled to some show of respect. It was consequently removed from its
degraded position, planted in the centre of the town, and enclosed by
a "suitable" iron railing. It is now, therefore, duly and properly
honoured, as may be seen by the preceding engraving.
TRANCE AT WILL.
Colonel Townsend possessed the remarkable faculty of throwing himself
into a trance at pleasure. The heart ceased apparently to throb at
his bidding, respiration seemed at an end, his whole frame assumed
the icy chill and rigidity of death; while his face became colourless
and shrunk, and his eye fixed, glazed, and ghastly. His mind itself
ceased to manifest itself, for during the trance it was as utterly
devoid of consciousness as his body of animation. In this state he
would remain for hours, when these singular phenomena wore away, and
he returned to his usual condition. Medical annals furnish no parallel
to this extraordinary case. Considered whether in a physiological or
metaphysical point of view, it is equally astonishing and inexplicable.
DESTRUCTIVE FORCE OF RATS.
The amount of destructive force possessed by rats cannot be better
exemplified than in the report given to the French Government, relating
to the removal of the horse slaughter-houses, situated at Montfaucon,
to a greater distance from Paris; one great objection being the
disastrous consequences which might accrue to the inhabitants of the
neighbourhood, if these voracious creatures were suddenly deprived of
their usual sustenance. It is well known that the mischief which they
occasion is not confined to what they eat; but they undermine houses,
burrow through dams, destroy drains, and commit incalculable havoc in
every place and in everything.
The report states, that the carcases of horses killed one day, and
amounting to thirty-five, would be found the next morning with the
bones picked clean. A person of the name of Dusaussois, belonging
to the establishment, made this experiment. A part of his yard was
enclosed by solid walls, at the foot of which, several holes were made
for the entrance and exit of the rats. Into this enclosure he put the
bodies of three horses, and in the middle of the night he stopped up
all the holes as quietly as he could; he then summoned several of his
workmen, and each, armed with a torch and a stick, entered the yard,
and carefully closed the door. They then commenced a general massacre;
in doing which, it was not necessary to take aim, for wherever the blow
fell it was sure to knock over a rat, none being allowed to escape by
climbing over the walls. This experiment was repeated at intervals of
a few days, and at the end of a month, 16,050 rats had been destroyed.
In one night they killed 2,650; and yet this cannot give an entirely
adequate idea of their number, for the yard in question did not cover
more than a twentieth part of the space allotted to killing horses. The
rats in this place have made burrows for themselves, like catacombs;
and so great is their number, that they have not found room close by
the slaughter-houses. They have gone farther; and the paths to and from
their dwellings may be traced across the neighbouring fields.
ORDEAL OF THE CROSS.
When a person accused of any crime had declared his innocence upon
oath, and appealed to the cross for its judgment in his favour, he
was brought into the church before the altar. The priest previously
prepared two sticks exactly like one another, upon one of which was
carved a figure of the cross. They were both wrapped up, with great
care and many ceremonies, in a quantity of fine wool, and laid upon the
altar, or on the relics of the saints. A solemn prayer was then offered
up to God, that he would be pleased to discover, by the judgment of
his holy cross, whether the accused person were innocent or guilty.
A priest then approached the altar, and took up one of the sticks,
and the assistants unswathed it reverently. If it was marked with the
cross, the accused person was innocent; if unmarked, he was guilty.
It would be unjust to assert, that the judgments just delivered were
in all cases erroneous; and it would be absurd to believe that they
were left altogether to chance. Many true judgments were doubtless
given, and, in all probability, most conscientiously; for we cannot but
believe that the priests endeavoured beforehand to convince themselves
by strict inquiry and a strict examination of the circumstances,
whether the appellant were innocent or guilty, and that they took up
the crossed or uncrossed stick accordingly. Although, to all other
observers, the sticks, as enfolded in the wool, might appear exactly
similar, those who enwrapped them could, without any difficulty,
distinguish the one from the other.
KING JOHN AND POPE INNOCENT.
When Cardinal Langton was made Archbishop of Canterbury, by the
intrigues of the Pope, whose creature he was, in despite of King John,
to appease the latter, his Holiness presented him with four gold rings,
set with precious stones, and enhanced the value of the gift (mark
that, jewellers!) by informing him of the many mysteries implied in it.
He begged of him (John) to consider seriously the _form_ of the rings,
their _number_, their _matter_, and their _colour_. Their _form_, he
said, being round, shadowed out eternity, which had neither beginning
nor end, and he ought thence to learn the duty of aspiring from
earthly objects to heavenly, from things temporal to things eternal.
The _numbers_ four, being a square, denoted steadiness of mind, not
to be subverted either by prosperity or adversity, fixed for ever in
the basis of the four cardinal virtues. _Gold_, which is the matter,
being the most precious of metals, signified wisdom, which is the
most precious of all accomplishments, and justly preferred by Solomon
to riches, power, and all exterior attainments. The blue _colour_ of
the sapphire represented faith; the verdure of the emerald hope; the
richness of the ruby charity; and the splendour of the topaz good works.
DRUID'S SEAT.
[Illustration: [++] Druid's Judgment Seat.]
The singular pile of stones which we have sketched here is popularly
called the "Druid's Judgment Seat," and stands near the village of
Killiney, not far from Drogheda, near the Martello Tower. It was
formerly enclosed within a circle of great stones and a ditch. The
former has been destroyed, and the latter so altered that little
of its ancient character remains. The "Seat" is composed of large,
rough, granite blocks, and if really of the period to which tradition
refers it, an unusual degree of care must have been exercised for its
preservation. The following are its measurements: Breadth, at the
base, eleven feet and a half; depth of the seat, one foot nine inches;
extreme height, seven feet.
BOOTS AN OBJECT OF HONOUR.
Among the Chinese no relics are more valuable than the _boots_ which
have been worn by an upright magistrate. In Davis's interesting
description of the empire of China, we are informed, that whenever
a judge of unusual integrity resigns his situation, the people all
congregate to do him honour. If he leaves the city where he has
presided, the crowd accompany him from his residence to the gates,
where his boots are drawn off with great ceremony, to be preserved
in the hall of justice. Their place is immediately supplied by a new
pair, which, in their turn, are drawn off to make room for others
before he has worn them five minutes, it being considered sufficient to
consecrate them that he should have merely drawn them on.
SAINT LAWRENCE.
In the south aisle of the church at Tuxford, beneath a flowery arch is
a very rude relief of St. Lawrence placed on the gridiron. By him is a
fellow with a pair of bellows, blowing the fire, and the executioner
going to turn him. The zealous Fox, in his "Martyrology," has this very
thought, and makes the martyr say, in the midst of his sufferings,
"This side is now roasted; turn me, O tyrant dear."
PARIS GARDEN AT BLACKFRIARS.
[Illustration: [++] Paris Garden.]
The Blackfriar's Road now passes over the site of Paris Garden where,
in the sixteenth century, bear and bull-baiting rejoiced the citizens,
the gala days being usually Sundays. Our cut is copied from the rare
woodcut map in the time of Henry VIII., in the library at Guildhall,
and exhibits in the foreground the kennels for the dogs, and the tanks
in which they were washed. A graphic description of the place has
been left by Paul Hentzner, a German, who visited it in 1598. He says
it was "built in the form of a theatre, for the baiting of bulls and
bears: they are fastened behind, and then worried by great English
bull-dogs; but not without great risk to the dogs, from the horns of
the one and the teeth of the other; and it sometimes happens they are
killed upon the spot: fresh ones are immediately supplied in the place
of those that are wounded or tired. To this entertainment there often
follows that of whipping a blinded bear, which is performed by five or
six men, standing circularly with whips, which they exercise upon him
without any mercy, as he cannot escape from them because of his chain.
He defends himself with all his force and skill, throwing down all who
come within his reach, and are not active enough to get out of it,
and tearing the whips out of their hands, and breaking them. At these
spectacles, and everywhere else, the English are constantly smoking
tobacco. Fruits, such as apples, pears, and nuts, according to the
season, are carried about to be sold, as well as ale and wine."
CANVASS OF AN INSURANCE AGENT.
The Manchester agent of an Insurance Company, gives the following
curious results of a personal canvass at 1,349 houses, in seventy
streets in the district of Hulme and Charlton, chiefly rentals from
L12 to L24 per annum. The inquiry showed that there were 29 insured; 8
persons too old; 11 who never heard of life assurances, and who were
anxious to have it explained to them; 471 who had heard of it, but did
not understand it; 419 who were disinclined to assure; 19 favourable,
if their surplus incomes were not otherwise invested; 89 persons who
had it under consideration, with a view to assure, as soon as their
arrangements were completed, and who appointed times for the agent to
call again; 21 refused the circulars, or to allow an explanation; 175
doors not answered; 102 houses empty; 3 had sufficient property not to
require it; 1 favourable, but afraid of litigation; 1 preferred the
saving's bank; 1 used abusive language; 2 would trust their families to
provide for themselves; and 1 had been rejected by an office, although
he never was unwell, and was consequently afraid to try again, although
very anxious.
TERRA-COTTA WRITINGS.
The Assyrians, unlike any other nation of antiquity, employed pottery
for the same objects, and to the same extent as papyrus was used in
Egypt. Thus bulletins recording the king's victories, and even the
annals of his reign, were published on terra-cotta cylinders, shaped
like a rolling-pin, and usually hollow, and on hollow hexagonal
prisms. These are of a remarkably fine material, sometimes unpolished
or unglazed, and at others covered with a vitreous siliceous glaze,
or white coating. On the cylinders the inscriptions are engraved
lengthwise; on the prisms they are in compartments on each face.
Each wedge is about one-eighth of an inch long, and the complicity
with which the characters (a cuneiform writing-hand) are arranged is
wonderful, and renders them extremely difficult for a tyro to read.
Those hitherto published or known, contain the annals of the reign of
Sennacherib, and the precis of the reign of another king.
There are the Shergat cylinder, containing the History of Tiglath
Pileser; a cylinder of Sargon; Sennacherib's cylinders; Esarhaddon's
cylinder.
Sales of land and other title-deeds were also incised on pieces of this
polished terra-cotta, and, in order to prevent any enlargement of the
document, a cylinder was run round the edges, leaving its impression
in relief; or if the names of witnesses were affixed, each impressed
his oval seal on the wet terra-cotta, which was then carefully baked
in the kiln. The celebrated cylinders of carnelian, chalcedony, and
other substances, were in fact the official or private seals by which
the integrity of these documents was attested. These title-deeds are
portable documents of four or five inches square, convex on each side,
and occasionally also at the edges. Their colour varies, being a bright
polished brown, a pale yellow, and a very dark tint, almost black. The
paste of which they are made is remarkably fine and compact. The manner
in which the characters were impressed on the terra-cotta barrels and
cylinders is not known; those on the bricks used for building were
apparently stamped from a mould, but those on the deeds and books
were separately incised, perhaps with a prismatic stick, or rod, or,
as others have conjectured, with the edge of a square rod of metal.
In some instances, where this substance was used for taking accounts,
it seems just possible that the moist clay, rolled up like paste, may
have been unrolled and incised with rods. The characters are often so
beautifully and delicately made, that it must have required a finely
constructed tool to produce them.
Some small fragments of a fine reddish-grey terra-cotta which have been
found among the ruins, appear to contain calculations or inventories,
whilst others are perhaps syllabaries or vocabularies, to guide the
Assyrian readers of these difficult inscriptions. A large chamber, or
library, of these archives, comprising histories, deeds, almanacks, and
spelling-books, was found in the palace of Sennacherib at Kouyunjik.
It is supposed that altogether about 20,000 of these clay tablets
or ancient books of the Assyrians, containing the literature of
the country, have been discovered. Some of the finer specimens are
covered with a pale straw-covered engobe, over which has been thrown a
glaze. Some horoscopes have been already found on stone, and careful
examination has now detected the records of some astronomer royal of
Babylon or Nineveh inscribed on a brick. Thus, while the paper and
parchment learning of the Byzantine and Alexandrian schools has almost
disappeared after a few centuries, the granite pages of Egypt, and the
clay leaves of Assyria, have escaped the ravages of time and the fury
of barbarism.
In Egypt some receipts and letters have been discovered written on
fragments of tile, and on the fine porcelain of the Chinese are
often found extracts of biographical works, snatches of poetry, and
even whole poems; but the idea of issuing journals, title-deeds,
inventories, histories, prayers, and poems, not from the press, but
from the kiln, is startling in the nineteenth century.
WONDERFUL FORMATION OF THE EYE IN INSECTS.