66

tripped along, and he found Phillis répining for her doves. “How happy should I be," she exclaimed, “could I have my doves!" "If you will suffer me," said Damon, "to sip the May-déw from your sweet lips, I will endeavour to find them. See! I have brought some of the most charming flowers that spring hás blown." Phillis did not regard the tender offering, but the ro guish doves fluttered in their bed. Delighted Phillis then denied not Damon the tender kiss, and while he pressed her to his pal pitating breast, she rapturously exclaimed, "How happy am I now!" LEOPOLD

THE HE prince then mounted the fragment, turned himself on every side to the bye-standers, swung a naked sword in the air, and promised the people good and righteous judgment. After this, he repaired to St. Peter's Church, which was situated on a neighbouring mountain. The service being ended, he clad himself anew in his princely apparel, and afterwards entertained the nobility at a banquet. When the repast was over, he rude to the place, ycloped "Zoll-feld or Toll-field," where the "Seat of Fealty" stood, placed himself towards the west, and his head uncovered, and fingers raised towards heaven, he proffered the cus tomary oath to the inhabitants, thereby pledging himself " to protect and maintain thèm in the enjoyment of their ancient and lawful privileges." In return, homage was paid him, and he granted the feoffments. Behind him, and back to back, sat the Count de Görtz, whose occupation was the dispensation of such feoffiments as were by law prescribed. The hereditary marshal of the province held the prince's horse, the cup bearer the golden pommell, and the sewer, the silver dish.

It is a fact worthy of remark, that so long as the prince was engaged in the performance of this ceremony, the family of the "Gradneckers,” were authorized to seize as much hay in strangers' meadows, as they could now during that period, unless the

owner took care to ransom it. But a still more extraordinary circumstance than this is recorded; namely, that the "Portendorfs" held the right of setting fire to, and burning, during the same lapse of time, whatever they chose to set their hands upon, unless it was previously ransomed. When the family of the "de Portendorfs" became extinct, the Barons" de Mordax" inherited this pernicious right, whose origin is lost in the impervious gloom of ancient times.

As soon as the ceremony of receiving homage was ended, the prince, with the whole of his retinue, repaired to the church of "Our Holy Mother," at Saalfeld, where the celebration of divine service closed this remarkable scene.

The last prince, who submitted to be thus inaugurated, was Ernest, Duke of Austria, and father of Frederic IV. Emperor of Germany. He became Prince of Carinthia in the year 1414. His son, however, refused to acquiesce in it, as being an act derogatory to the dignity of a King of Bohemia. Still he was obliged to grant the inhabitants of Carinthia a deed of indemnity, which stipulated" that such omission should not endanger them or their posterity." Maximilian the First, wished to re-establish the ancient usage, but his attention was diverted by warfare. The Emperor Ferdinand entertained a contrary opinion, and rather chose to grant a deed of indemnity. But in 1564, his son Charles, Duke of Austria, really proffered the oath on the "Fealty Seat," in the "Zollfeld," omitting however the other ceremonials.

Such is the account of this most singular form of inauguration, as we find it detailed in Megiserus, Annal. Carinth. Cap. II. Sebastian Münster's works, and various other historians.

IN

CURIOUS INSCRIPTION.

a country church in the west of England, the following inscription was placed over the communion table, and puzzled the inhabitants and visitors for near a century.

Prs vr y prfet mn,

To prsrv ths prcpts

t n.

If you have any dipus, Mr. Editor, amongst your correspondents, I shall be glad to hear his solution.

M-VOL. IV.*

T. N.

82

GOT.

There, sir, an attack upon my language! what do you think of that? an aspersion upon my parts of speech! was ever such a brute! sure if I reprehend any thing in the world, it is the use of my oracular tongue, and a nice derangement of epitaphs!"

MR. EDITOR,

RIVALS.

WE laugh heartily at the absurdities of Mrs. Malaprop and Daniel Dowlas, alias Lord Duberly; but the vulgar, and the wealthy illiterate, are not the only persons whose "cacology might be mended." Amongst those whom education should have taught a more elegant mode of expression, how frequently have we heard-" I have cor a bad head-ache. I have Gor the first edition of such a book.-I have Gor an excellent treatise on grammar. I GOT the best places to see the new play."-Indeed the instances are innumerable where the word GOT is misapplied, or unnecessarily introduced. In conversation, this impropriety is not so palpable-the following letter exposes the fault in glaring .colours.

"I GOT on horseback within ten minutes after I received your letter.-When I Gor to Canterbury, I Gor a chaise for town; but I GOT wet through before I GOT to Canterbury, and I have GOT such a cold, as I shall not be able to GET rid of in a hurry. I GOT to the Treasury about noon, but first of all I GOT shaved and dressed. I soon GoT into the secret of GETTING a memorial before the board; but I could not GET an answer then; - however I Gor intelligence from the messenger, that I should most likely GET one the next morning. As soon as I GOT back to my inn, I Got my supper, and Gor to bed; it was not long before I Gor to sleep.-When I GOT up in the morning, I GOT my breakfast, and then Gor myself dressed, that I might GET out in time to GET an answer to my memorial.-As soon as I Gor it, I GOT into the chaise, and Gor back to Canterbury by three and about tea time I GOT home. I have cor nothing particular to add, and so adieu."

For the information of your juvenile readers, is subjoined a letter, in which the same information is conveyed, without once using that little obtrusive word GOT. "I mounted my horse

within ten minutes after receiving your letter; as soon as I urrived at Canterbury, I engaged a post-chaise for town.-I was wet through before I reached Canterbury, and I have taken such a cold as I shall not easily remove.—I arrived at the Treasury about noon, being previously shaved and dressed. I soon discovered the secret of introducing a memorial to the board; I could not, however, obtain an immediate answer; but the messenger told me, I should probably receive one next morning.-I returned to my inn, supt, went to bed, and slept well. I rose early, and dressed immediately after breakfast, that I might be in time for my memorial. As soon as I received it, I took post-chaise, and reached Canterbury by three, and my home about tea time; I have nothing particular to add—and so adieu.”*

W.

THE ART OF CHOPPING WOOD ILLUSTRATED BY THE ART OF CHOPPING LOGIC.

AN ANECDOTE.

A carpenter, who understood his trade, and was in tolerable circumstances, had given his son (who was not exactly a chip of the old block) a good education, that is, had made him pass through a course of liberal studies and philosophy-we know no other method. The father dying just as he had gone through his public disputations, and leaving some undertakings unfinished, the young man took a liking to work, and followed his father's profession. But he bethought himself of recalling his art to certain principles, and subjecting it to methodical order. He treated the whole in his head as he had seen his masters treat the art of reasoning. At length he got together a number of journeymen of the trade, and promised to lead them by a new way to the quintessence of carpentry.

* This purification would, however, be rather destructive to Churchill's rhyme. "What is the world? a term which men have got

To signify, not one in ten knows what."

I shall add his definition of the term world:

"In common use, no more it means we find,
Than many fools in same opinions join'd!"

Our new doctor, after a long preamble on mechanics, which he promised to treat on by genus and species, came to the first question, and very seriously examined whether there was a principle of force in man. He long discussed the reasons pro and cop, and at last enabled his disciples knowingly, and without apprehension of mistake, to affirm, that man was capable of a certain degree of strength, and able to communicate motion, for instance, to an axe, or to a stone, if not too great. He was contented with this modest assertion, being persuaded, that, with this small strength multiplied, he might, towards the end of his treatise, come to transporting the largest pieces of rough marble, and to heaving of mountains.-He next proceeded to examine the place where this force resided, and after many disputations on the brains, the glandula pinealis, the spirits, and the muscles, he out of economy, and for brevity's sake, determined, that the armr was the chief agent, and the instrument of human strength.

In a third paragraph, (for it is wonderful how well he divided and put his matter in order) the strength residing in the arm, gave him an occasion to examine all the constituent pieces of the arm, and to make an exact anatomy of it. He accurately described the uses of the os brachii, and the pectoralis mujor, and latissimus dorsi, and proved that the greater sigmoid cavity was situated be tween the anconoid process and the olecranon. He made long dissertations on the nerves, muscles, fibres, and descended to the minutest filaments. He multiplied the length of the muscles by their breadths, and the product of these by the sum of the fibres.

From one calculation to another, he came to determine the strength of each degree of tension, and by means of these determinations, made himself able to fix the strength of percussion. Thus he weighed a cuff, and joining the strength of the fist to the sum of the blow of the hammer, he shewed you the exact weight, with which this percussion was in equal proportion. Finally, to sum up his matters, and for the conveniency of the young carpenters, he reduced the whole into algebraic expressions, and the business of the shop then went on (as might be expected) in a very philosophical manner. So

"all the rhetorician's rules

Teach nothing but to name his tools." HUDIERAS.

T.