ten in it. They were going to the justice's, | the roads, to fill ditches, to remove trees, and being poor people sent thither and recovered by him" (the doctor) "of the plague. He seemed to take no small content in his stately march before them." otherwise to take measures to deprive the thieves of cover. Hanging, and other measures taken against the rogues of London, having failed to produce any good result, in the year one thousand five hundred and vised of appointing beadles for the apprehension of vagabonds and sturdy beggars. The beadles, armed with their own inherent terrors, went briskly to work, carried the rogues to Bridewell, and conveyed to hospital the blind, the lame and impotent, and sick and sore. Children aged sixteen were received into Christ's Hospital; and citizens were earnestly entreated to give employment to such men and women as were able and disposed to work. Dr. Patrick tells how he took treacle as an antidote, and grew fat, although many clergy-sixty-three, the most awful scheme was demen were dying round about him. The depression of his mind, probably, caused the slovenly manner of his letters, full of dejected I believes and I supposes. The main exciting cause of the old plagues as of the modern cholera was, beyond doubt, confinement in foul air, living among the filth of towns or villages in ill-constructed houses. When the foul air in a house was bad enough to kill birds in their cages, plague was pretty sure to follow. "The death of birds," says Dr. Symon, "in houses where they are caged, ordinarily precedes the death of the inhabitants." A good many auspices were at that time drawn from birds, and signs were watched for not from birds alone. "There are people who rely on pitiable things as certain tokens of the plague's going very shortly. I have been told more than once," says the good Rector, "of the falling out of the clapper of the great bell at Westminster, which they say it did before the last great plague ended; and this they take for a very comfortable sign. Others speak of the daws more frequenting the palace and abbey, which, if true, is a better sign, supposing the air to have been infected; for the books I read tell me that the going away of birds is the forerunner of a plague, and that we shall see few in a plague year. When the plague was declining, the Rector wrote to his friend,-" In a month's time, I believe, the town will fill, and then, if the sickness do not increase, you may venture not long after that to come to your habitation. Yet, if you consult your brother he will tell you the physician's rule is composed in three words when they advise what to do in the plague, which in English are, Quickly-faroff-slowly; that is, fly soon and far enough, and return late. To his counsel and opinion I refer you. Set a watch at your door, and let it be known that you admit of no visitsnot even mine." Another plague of London, that has made it necessary enough for people to set watch at their doors, remains with us; but in a less virulent form than that which it took in the olden time-the plague of street rogues and sharpers. Very long ago it was necessary to dismantle the forest of Middlesex, to widen In the year fifteen hundred and eighty-one, Recorder Fleetwood established a body of detective police or privy searchers, who hunted up loose vagabonds and sharpers, then in great number pestering the city. Not very long afterwards, in spite of detectives, and of arrests of rogues by the hundred in a batch, a company of vagabonds encompassed Queen Elizabeth's coach while she was riding abroad in the evening to take the air." They hovered before her face in a swarm, like summer gnats, and "on that night and the next day seventy-four were taken." I am afraid the justice done on these occasions was but rough, and that many of these vagabonds had sorrows greater than arrest to vex their hearts. Towards the close of the sixteenth century, a year of plague, and consequent distress, through loss of occupation, was followed by a year in which the city, as also other parts of the country," was grievously pestered with beggars, and there were many of them disbanded soldiers, become poor and maimed, by the war with the Low Countries and Spain." Against these and worse rascals, by whom their distress was counterfeited, glorious Queen Bess issued a proclamation. Soon afterwards, the thieves of London almost succeeded in a plan of robbery upon her Majesty's person in St. Paul's Churchyard, and quite succeeded in robbing an alderman on his way home from a city feast. As Sidney Smith hoped for a little safety in a railway carriage after a bishop had been burnt, so there was hope for safety in the streets of London after an alderman had been waylaid and robbed. The proper measures were then taken, which consist always not so much in multiplying penalties against crime, as in removing the facilities for its commission. An alderman having been rob. 1 bed at night, in a dark street, it was ordered that, in the close London streets and alleys, more lamps should be hung. There was an immediate decrease in the number of offences, But the most troublesome and filthy of the London plagues of this description is not one to be removed by putting light into a lantern; it needs, rather, the putting of light into men's heads. The best way to abolish knaves is to abolish fools. It is only because tens of thousands traverse London streets, who are grossly ignorant and stupid, that the same streets abound in sharpers ever ready to delude. Education most effectually lessens crime; not by direct conversion of vice into virtue, but checks it, as gas-light does, by baulking it of one of the conditions under which it works. As you may kill a plant by depriving it of air or water, although you leave the plant itself untouched, so you may kill crime by removing all the ignorance on which it feeds. It is only because men are less stupid than they used to be that they are less willing to go down the small streets in the Strand with gentlemen who whisper promises of fine smuggled cigars and handkerchiefs, or less disposed to go down on their knees to pick up the choke-pears, scattered by a costermonger, at the cost of their hats and other personals, which become liable to seizure by the costermonger's friends. Highway robbery is a plague nearly extinct. Mr. Porter mentions (in his work on the Progress of the Nation), on the authority of persons who formerly lived in the environs of London, that it was their uniform practice to rendezvous every evening, after the day's work was over, and proceed to their homes in a body--especially those whose road lay south of the Thames, at Dulwich and Norwood-for mutual protection. A physician, who resided at Blackheath, and had to cross the country at all hours of the night, had, at different times, been obliged to shoot several robbers, by whom his car riage was attacked. Highwaymen's horses stood at livery, at the different stables in town, as openly as the horses of honest men. Nor was it always easy to distinguish the one from the other; for the old amusement of Prince Henry, practiced on Gad's Hill and elsewhere, was not quite extinct late in the last century. Respectable tradesmen-reputed respectable until they were found outtook to the road after business hours, booted and masked, and made the lieges stand and deliver in the manner of professional highwaymen. The Newgate Calendar is not without instances of flourishing retailers being taken in the fact of highway robbery, tried, and hanged. Pathetic stories were also current in the magazines of that time respecting decayed gentlemen robbing from distress; and, on being epostulated with by their victims, bursting into tears, telling a piteous tale of distress, courting corroboration of it by ushering them into some garret to behold a dying wife and starving children, and finally being, not only forgiven, but put into a good way of life on the spot. This sort of plague has been thoroughly eradicated. Happily there are few respectable shopkeepers who do not now possess money in the funds, a suburban villà, and a onehorse carriage. The modern refuge for decayed gentlemen is employment in one or other of our great National Red Taperies. Amateur felony is not of so old a date as professional thieving Three hundred years ago, there was a London thieves' slang, not unlike the present; and there were men who maintained schools of vice. There was "one Woolton, a gentleman born, and sometime a merchant of good credit, but falling by time into decay." This man kept an alehouse at Smart's Key, near Billingsgate, which, being suppressed, he "reared up a new trade in life. And in the same house he procured all the cut-purses of the city to repair to him. There was a school-house for young boys to cut purses. Two devices were hung up: the one was a pocket, the other was a purse. The pocket had in it certain counters, and was hung about with hawks' bells, and over the top did hang a little sacristy bell. The purse had silver in it; and he that could take out a counter, without any noise, was allowed to be a public foister; and he that could take a piece of silver out of the purse was adjudged a judicial nipper, according to their terms of art," A foister being a cutter of pockets; a nipper, a picker of the same. A lifter was a robber of shops or chambers; a shaver, a filcher of cloaks, swords, or spoons, that might happen to lie unwatched; and a night burglar was a mylken ken. Mr. Woolton, who was a professor of thieving, in the year fifteen hundred and eighty-five, hung mottoes on his school-room wall, rogues' texts, such as the following: Si spie, si mon spie, foyste, nippe, The writer of a Trip through Town, six score years ago, tells how, in the parish of Saint Giles-in-the-fields, among other sights that he saw, was a place called the Infant Office, where young children stand at livery, and are let out by the day to the town mendicants. After some description of the hiring of boys, girls, and infants at this office, the writer says that "An ancient matron, who had the superintendence of the place, held forth in her arms a pretty poppet of about a year old, telling her customers there was a sweet, innocent picture, a moving countenance that would not fail making a serjeantat-law feel for his half-pence.' A beggarwoman who was vastly in arrear for the hire of children, was refused credit until she had paid off the old score, and so forth. In a form, I trust somewhat abated, this plague remains, and a thousand small street rogueries, known to most of our readers, are as old as those to which we have referred. Knaves in this country follow the old path of tradition cuite as blindly as right honorable ministers of State; so that if it were not that the knaves, through cunning, acquire now and then s new idea, and that anything of that nature dawns less frequently upon the modern statesmen, we should be disposed to say that, evilintentioned as is the one class, and good-intentioned as is the other, there is one way to hem both. There used to be thieves of genus who conceived bold projects of their ovn, and achieved great triumphs over difficulty that appeared insuperable. The world has also known great statesmen who could do and dare, and justify their daring. Now, again, as the noble so are the ignoble. Few, indeed, escape infection by the newest of the plagues of London, known as the Routine. Who does not know how, when a man catches anywhere the routine disease, he becomes feeble and wastes to a shadow of himself, how rapidly he becomes blotted over, and goes the way of all flesh into rottenness? Who does not know how dreadfully infectious this new sickness is? How it is communicated by papers and documents, lurks in the horsehair of stools, and how it clings to tape (especially to tape of a red color) with so much energy that no known disinfectantand the strongest have been freely tried-is able to remove it? For very many years this pestilence has waged its war against humanity, being most dangerous in the more central parts of the city of London, and in the districts of Whitehall and Westminster. It is also our decided opinion, whatever the Rector of Saint Paul's, Covent Garden, may have thought of it in his day, than one popular opinion of the year sixteen hundred and sixty-five, to which that excellent man adverts, still holds its place fast in the public mind. We are, for our own parts, not ashamed to confess our belief that if the clapper were to fall out of the bell at Westminster, there would be good hope of some speedy abatement of this plague. LITERARY MISCELLANIES. PRE. AGASSIZ has announced a great work, entitled, 'Contributions to the Natural History of America," o be embraced in ten quarto volumes of abou 300 pages, illustrated by twenty plates. This vork will be the result of extended researches during many years past, and will undoubtedly be the most complete proof of the rare scientific knowledgeand abilities of its author which has yet been give to the public. It will contain the results of his ebryological investigations, embracing about sixtymonographs from all classes of animals, especially nose characteristic of this continent; also descripions of a great number of new species and genes, accompanied with accurate figures, and anatomial detaile. Mr. Bancroft proposes issuing a selection from the rich collection of manuscript letters in his possession, illustrative of the early American History. This will soon appear in two volumes. TICKNOR & FIELDS announce Alfred Tennyson's new volume of Poems as in press. It is entitled "Maud, and other Poems." Saxe is at work on a new Poem, entitled "The Press," which is to be treated historically, eulogistically, practically, and satirically. The Diary and Correspondence of the late Amos Lawrence has been printed for private circulation among his family and friends. The fire in John F. Trow's printing establishment in Ann street, consumed 12,500 copies of the duodecimo edition of Irving's Life of Washington; | but the stereotype plates were mostly safe in the vaults of the building. Marshall, R. A., Sculptor, was recently erected in Poet's Corner, Westminster Abbey, at a cost of £2,000, and has been much admired. The Paris Correspondent of the "Illustrated The Right Hon. T. B. Macaulay has just been News" states that M. de Maubreuil is about to elected a member of the Royal Academy of Amstercome to the United States for the purpose of bring-dam, in the class of Literature, Languages, History, ing out a work containing some very interesting statements of all the events of the period of the "Fall of Napoleon." Of course, such a work as this could not be issued in Paris. The author of the "Footsteps of St. Paul," "Morning and Night Watches," "Wood-cutter of Lebanon," &c., is the Rev. Andrew Bonar of Edinburgh. Schneider, Near.der's amanuensis, is at work on the life of the Great Historian, but does not intend to print it for a long time to come. L'Athenæum Francais gives an account of the report presented to the seventeenth jury of the Universal Exhibition of 1851, by M. Ambroise Firmin Didot, on Printing, the Book and Paper Trade. After having reviewed Printing in the countries which have contributed to the Exhibition of 1851, M. Didot examines the different methods of publishing, &c. The commencement of the second part of the report treats of the most important question of all-that of literary property. He says that the reciprocal recognition of literary property in different countries will give more intellectual life and creative imagination to certain countries where the reproduction of foreign works often suppresses native literature and science. Prof. Chauncey Goodrich (Burlington, Vt.) proposes to republish "Opinions of Eminent Lawyers on Various points of English Jurisprudence, chiefly concerning the Colonies, Fisheries, and Commerce of Great Britain, collected and digested from the originals in the Board of Trade and other depositories. By George Chalmers, Esq., F. R. S. A.." with American notes and references. Hon. C. J. Ingersoll, of Philadelphia, is preparing a work which will prove an important contribution to the Historical Literature of our country. It is a History of the Territories that have been annexed from time to time to the United States, as Louisiana, Florida, Texas, California, and New Mexico. Alice Carey has a new book in hand, called "Married, but not Mated." It is announced that Professor Guyot intends to write "a History of the Universe and of the Earth, according to the present state of Science-the only way to give a full and satisfactory commentary on the first chapter of Genesis." A valuable work, by the Rev. Dr. Akers, is now going through the press of the METHODIST BOOK CONCERN at Cincinnati. It is entitled, "Introduction to Biblical Chronology, from Adam to the Resurrection of Christ, comprising 5,573 years of the World, synchronized with Julian time; with such Calendars, Cycles, Tables, and Explanations as render the whole subject easy of Comprehension to every Bible student." It is rumored that Mr. Nathaniel Hawthorne contemplates resigning his office as Consul at Liverpool, at the end of his present year of service. He intends to travel for a year in Europe, and then return to the United States. The Statue of the Poet, Campbell, by William C. and Belles Lettres. Jacob Grimm, the grammarian; Ranke, the historian; Lepsius, the archæologist; and other learned men of European reputa tion, were also elected. "Owen Meredith," whose poems have attracted so much favorable notice, is the nom de plume of Mr. Edward Lytton, son of the celebrited novelist. The article in Blackwood's on "North America and Canada," was written by Lawrence Oliphant, Esq., Lord Elgin's private secretary. The Cupola of the new Library and Reading Room of the British Museum in London, is larger than that of St. Peter's at Rome; and with the exception of the Pantheon, is the largest in the world. Sir Roderick I. Murchison, F. R. S., las consented to be nominated as the successor of he late Sir Henry de la Beche, to the various gedogical appointments held by the deceased. Miss Mitford has left the bulk of he property (under £3,000) to a faithful domestic. The Royal Society has lately receiveda very important and valuable addition to its colection of Manuscripts, by a present from Mr. Edwn Canton, of a series of autograph letters from Dr.Franklin, Priestly, Sir Joseph Banks, Howard, and ther wellknown persons. Napoleon the Third has founded a ner section in the French Academy, under the title "Politics, Administration, and Finance," and ly act of authority has thus introduced ten new members into the Institution, by which it is said a najority of voices will be secured to the Imperial overn ment. The number of Americans in Paris grow larger every year, and the various national provisons for their enjoyment become annually more remrkable. American photographers, dentists, physician, bankers, express agents, patent agents, and editos, have all found employment among their compatiots in the gay French capital. At the present the not less than four reading-rooms, supplied with American journals, are open with more or less feedom to the public. The Paris journals announce that M. Leverrier, the director of the National Observatory of Fance, is at present in Brussels, to cooperate with te director of the Belgian Observatory, in determining by the electric telegraph the longitude of Pari and Brussels. The "Journal des Debats" states that M. Lamartine, on the conclusion of his four volumes of the "Historie de Turquie," intends to take a year's rest, and occupy himself with the superinterling the cultivation of his landed property. Fo the last four years, this indefatigable" man has devted fourteen hours a day in pursuit of his literar la bors. The Belgian government, some time ago, insituted a quinquennial prize of the value of $1,00, as an encouragement to Flemish literature. This prize has just been awarded to Conscience, the popular Flemish author. "TRUTH is stranger than fiction." A trite remark. We all say it, again and again: but how few of us believe it! How few of us, when we read the history of heroical times and heroical men, take the story simply as it stands. On the contrary, we try to explain it away; to prove it all not to have been so very wonderful; to impute accident, circumstance, mean and commonplace motives; to lower every story down to the level of our own littleness, or what we (unjustly to ourselves, and to the God who is near us all) choose to consider our level; to rationalize away all the wonders, till we make them at last impossible, and give up caring to believe them; and prove to our own melancholy satisfaction that Alexander conquered the world with a pin, in his sleep, by accident. And yet in this mood, as in most, there is a sort of left-handed truth involved. These heroes are not so far removed from us, after all. They were men of like passions with ourselves, with the same flesh about them, the same spirit within them, the same world outside, the same devil beneath, the same God above. They and their deeds were not so very wonderful. Every child who is born into the world is just as wonderful; and, for aught we know, might, mutatis mutandis, do just as wonderful deeds. If accident and circumstance helped them, the same may help us: have helped us, if we will look back down our years, far more than we have made use of. They were men, certainly, very much of our own level: but may we not put that level somewhat too low? They were certainly not what we are; for if they had been, is not a man's real level not what he is, but they would have done no more than we: but what he can be, and therefore ought to be? No doubt they were compact of good and evil, just as we: but so was David, no man more; though a more heroical personage (save One) appears not in all human records; but may not the secret of their success have 28 |