ence-the members of a pure democratic institution. The times had passed away when the wonted phrase of subserviency at the beginning of each song, "Fair lordyages and ladies all, &c." was to be heard. But the ballad-singers did not enjoy alone empty popularity, as may be understood from the perseverance of the old singers, and the number of candidates that yearly sought refuge in the profession, from the risks of a more uncertain state of life. One of the most popular singers of this early time was a boy, who, from the character of his voice and manner, is distinguished by the name of Outroaring Dick; an epithet as honestly bestowed as any descriptive compound on any hero in Greek or Latin story. He was bred to a mechanical employment; but he had a voice, the possession of which would teach a less enterprising spirit to aspire above all the gross toils of handicraft. His success was as permanent in the end, as it was steady in its growth. He first renounced the mechanical life; in time his prosperity enabled him to confine his journeys of business to the adjacent counties-the home circuit-and the decline of his life was spent in the dignified repose of an amateur. His earnings, according to Mr. Warton, amounted to about ten shillings a day: he was well known throughout Essex, and was not missed for many years from the great fair of Braintree. But Cheeke, for such was his real name, was haunted in the midst of his glory by a rival. Will Wimbars had a voice quite of as much compass and flexibility, but not of as much pathos, as Dick. Dick was the more popular man of the two; he consulted times and tastes, and had a greater variety of songs: Wimbars had a select list, from which he never departed.. Cheeke was free and easy, and had a turn for the humorous; his rival was all for doleful tragedies. The former was sought as a companion; the latter pleased best in the public exercise of his talents. But the most universally esteemed ballad-singer of his age was Mat Nash, a man from the "North Countrie," the officina of ballad-singers, as it had been formerly of the minstrels. Nash had a masculine vehement style; all the border ballads he had nearly made his own, by the force and enthusiasm of his manner of singing them. His "Hunts-up," a song which obtained for the author so much favour in a former reign, was one of his most celebrated efforts. But undoubtedly his forte was the famous old ballad of Chevy Chase, then called the Hunting of Cheviot. This was the song which Sir Philip Sidney declared, moved his heart more than a trumpet. If instead of the "Blind Crowder, with no rougher voice than rude style," to whom he alludes, he had heard Nash accompany the words with the liveliest dramatic action-had he seen him fall suddenly on his knees, and move about cutting and thrusting on all sides, as if to realize the description of Witherington fighting on his stumps-it is easy to suppose what would have been the result in favour of Nash. However, it so happened that the date of Nash's fortune was fixed at a later period; for the great secretary Cecil was once so captivated with his singing, that he soon enabled him to retire from the profession. The accident that led to this fortunate reconnoitre is not impertinent to our subject :-in the time of a dearth, which was severely felt in the city, the famous ballad-maker Delone composed a song reflect ing on her majesty. The ballad-singer and the publisher were both committed to the Compter; but the poet defied the government from his retreat. In a letter to the lord mayor, he avowed the ballad, justified his satire, and concluded with these lines from the Mirror of Magistrates, descriptive of the duties of a true poet. They were composed by one Collingbourne, put to death in the reign of Richard III. for making a foolish rhyme. "Things that import, hemust be quick to pen, Reproving vices sharply now and then; He must be swift, when touched tyrants chafe, Nash, in the mean time, in an interview with the secretary, fully established his innocence, and laid the foundation of his future prosperity. The gipsies furnished a number of female ballad-singers about this time. The laws, and the prejudices of society in that age, concurred in denouncing this race. But how just is nature! the most esteemed and the best received ballad-singers of their time belong to the outlawed tribe. Alice Boyce, for instance, with the bronzed face, dark eyes and hair, of her nation, came to London from Cumberland. She sang her way to the metropolis, and, when there, very quickly gained the ears of the great. She was even appointed to sing, "O the broom," and "Lady Greenleaves," before the queen. The reigns of King James I. and his successor were remarkable for nothing connected with our purpose, except that the taste of the population, for nature and simplicity, kept up the profession of balladsinging. The poets of the day, in the mean time, became so learned, that they were scarcely to be understood, even by the great. Henceforward ballad-singing maintained a prosperous and respectable course. The singers had no state enemies to contend with. Their employment was too lucrative, and custom had too firmly sanctioned it, to permit the persecutions of parish fiends. But, better than all, the law as yet furnished no pretext for stopping the free circulation of the lower ranks throughout the country. The government, and still more frequently the corporation of London, had been alarmed. at the influx of humble strangers into the metropolis. There were issued bulls of penal annunciation, street proclamations, circumstantial and minute, embracing the professors of all manner of arts and employments, whether for use or amusement; yet not a word of ballad singers. Fiddlers put the whole council into consternation; minstrels (such as they were) had a price set upon their bodies; but there was no vice assumed of the members of the vocal throng. Cromwell was disturbed by the presence of low visitors to the metropolis; he again excommunicated minstrels and fiddlers, but left ballad-singers to pursue their business unmolested. And yet the Protector found not in that order a friendly or even a neutral power. They sang of bold cavaliers and ladies bright, themes that did not fail to keep the memory of past times "green in the souls of men." But as soon as the Restoration removed all restraint from the ballad-singers, the streets re-echoed to the strains either of thanksgiving for the return of the monarch, or in ridicule of the fallen power. The song begin ning with the words, "Rebellion hath broken up house" was very celebrated at the time. However, the taste of the public, in the course of a short time, was divided between political and amatory poetry : the circumstances of the times recommended the first species; and the spirit that produced the Sedleys, Etheridges, and Rochesters, brought in the latter. Many of the celebrated poets of the day wrote for the streets and villages: but there never was an era when the ballad-singers answered more faithfully to the public feeling. They were a fearful check on the acts of a despotic monarch: when the charter was withdrawn from the city of London, a storm of ballads assailed the court, and was heard with dismay in the council. The agitated period that immediately went before the Revolution permitted scarcely any but political ballads to be sung. Lord Wharton, the author of a song, boasted that he had rhymed king James out of his dominions; and the testimony of the gravest writers of the time, shew that there was no exaggeration in the boast. The tide of popular favour and ballad-singing flowed on the side of the newly established dynasty. The queen absolutely patronized the balladsingers; she did not hesitate to avow, even on state occasions, a preference for the simple ballads that charmed her early years, to the elaborate compositions of the most esteemed masters of the time. We are to look upon the ballad-singers from this time forth in the light of a corporation. Custom had established yearly festivals for them in the classic regions of St. Giles's, which were much frequented by some of the wits of the day-Swift, Gay, Bolingbroke, Steele, &c. From these high followers of the muses, yearly contingents of ballads were expected. Swift contracted to furnished the humorous songs: Gay, who, as Goldsmith observes of him, had a happy strain of ballad-thinking, was set down for the pathetic ones; those of a miscellaneous character were divided amongst a number of amateur bards. No importunities, even of his friends, could induce Pope to attend any of these assemblies. He was, however, prevailed on to write an epitaph for a young creature whom he had several times seen and heard, and who was known to her companions under the title of Clarinda. She was much favoured by some of the great, and, but for her attachment to the life of a ballad-singer, might with her beauty and accomplishments have risen to fortune. wars." Gay and Swift had naturally a relish for low society, and were hailed by the fraternity and sisterhood as the most precious sources of profit. Amongst other songs which Swift sent into the world through the medium of ballad-singers, was a severe satire on the Duke of Marlborough, beginning, "Our Johnny is come from the The song drew much attention in the streets, and excited the strongest resentment against the author, in the breast of the accomplished duchess. She remained implacable, until the publication of Gulliver, when she offered her friendship to Swift, through his friend Gay. The Beggar's Opera was originally written (we have it on Gay's own authority) to celebrate the marriage of James Chanter and Moll Lay. There was a young creature among the ballad-singers, now known to the world by no other title than Clara, who drew much attention at this time by the sweetness and pathos of her tones. She was the original singer of Black-eyed Susan, and one or two songs which were afterwards introduced into the Beggar's Opera. But her recommendation to particular notice was the circumstance of her for many years being the object of Lord Bolingbroke's enthusiastic affection. The poor girl strayed for some time, during which his lordship had not seen her and it was after that interval, that, having met her, he addressed to her the tender lines, beginning, "Dear thoughtless Clara, to my verse attend, And concluding thus, "To virtue thus, and to thyself restored, And live for him who more than died for you. His A series of calamities totally ruined her vocal powers, and she afterwards subsisted by the sale of oranges at the Court of Requests. The profession did not continue to maintain its rank. The disappointed author in Roderic Random, who set about writing for the ballad-singers, was introduced into one of their assemblies. testimony establishes the deepest degeneracy in the members of the order. Indeed, the history of ballad-singing, during the remainder of the last century, affords but an unsatisfactory subject of reflection to the lovers of song. ANTIPODES. THE Antipodes are those people who, living on the other side of the globe, have their feet directly opposite to ours. Plato is esteemed the first who thought it possible that Antipodes existed, and is looked upon as the inventor of the word. As this philosopher apprehended the earth to be spherical, he had only one step to make, to conclude the existence of Antipodes. The ancients, in general, treated this opinion with the highest contempt. Lactantius and Augustine laughed at the notion of Antipodes; the latter of these fathers was perplexed to think how men should hang pendulous in the air, with their feet uppermost, as he thought they must do in the other hemisphere; and Boniface, archbishop of Mentz, and legate of pope Zachary in the eighth century, declared a bishop of that time, called Vigilius, a heretic, for maintaining that there were such beings as Antipodes. But the Christian fathers were not the only persons who disputed the truth of the Antipodes. Lucretius had done it before them, at the end of his first book, v. 1063, &c. See also Plutarch, lib. De facie in orbe Lucina; and Pliny, who refutes the opinion, lib. ii, cap. 5. They never reflected that these terms upwards and downwards are merely relative; and signify only nearer to, or farther from, the centre of the earth, the common centre to which all heavy bodies gravitate; and that, therefore, our Antipodes have not their feet upwards and heads downwards, any more than ourselves; for they, as well as we, have their feet nearest the centre of the earth, and their heads farthest POPULATION OF THE WORLD.-COIN OF THE REALM. 479 from it. To have the head downwards, and feet upwards, is to place the body in a direction of gravity tending from the feet to the head: but this cannot be supposed with regard to the Antipodes; for they, as well as we, tend toward the centre of the earth, in a direction from head to foot. POPULATION OF THE WORLD. ACCORDING to a Statistical Chart published in a Neapolitan Journal, the universal population of the Globe is 632 millions, thus subdivided:--172 millions in Europe; 330 millions in Asia; 70 millions in Africa; 40 millions in America; and 20 millions in the other parts. Estimate by approximation.-In Europe: Births, per annum, 6,271,370; per diem, 17,453; hour, 727; minute, 62; second 1. Deaths per annum, 5,058,822; per diem, 13,860; hour, 577; minute, 66; second, 1. In the entire universe-Births, per annum, 23,407,407; per diem, 64,130; hour, 2,672; minute, 148; second, 8. Deaths per annum, 18,588,235; per diem, 50,927; hour, 2,122; minute, 125; second, 7. Persons arrived at the age of one hundred.-In 1800, according to Larrey, there were at Cairo 35 individuals who had attained to the age of 100 and upwards. In Spain, in the last age, were to be seen at St. Jean de Page, a town in Galicia, 13 old persons, the youngest of whom was 110, and the oldest 127; their ages together made 1499 years. England is generally accounted to contain 3 100 individuals of 100 years old. At the commencement of the present century, there were in Ireland 41 individuals from the age of 95 to 104, in a population of only 47,000 souls. In Russia, amongst 892,642 dead, in 1814, there were 3531 individuals of from 100 to 132 years of age. In Hungary, the family of Jean Rovin has furnished the example of the most extraordinary longevity. The father lived 172 years, his wife 164 years; they were married for 142 years, and the youngest of their children was 115. Daniel Bernauli calculated that the inoculation of the small-pox has been the means of prolonging human life by three years, and the new observations of Duvillard gave the same result from vaccination. COIN OF THE REALM THE Pound, called sterling, was first ordered by William the Conqueror, in 1073, to be considered as the measure of value, and all sums to be multiples, or parts of the pound.-The money was then silver. Gold was first coined by Edw. III. in 1345, and consisted of Florins, which were 13s. 4d. or two-thirds of the pound. In 1395, gold Nobles, worth 6s. 8d., or one-third of the pound, were coined. In 1423, gold Reals, worth 10s. or half the pound, were struck. |
