600 slaves. Afterwards, however, this restriction was annulled, and the company was permitted to employ as many slaves as it should think proper, on paying 600 crusadas (about 751. sterling) for every miner. By the two contracts, the court reserves for its own use every diamond which shall be found to exceed a certain weight. A law, which forbad, under pain of death, any infringement on this privilege, did not appear sufficient to ensure compliance with it, but rather tended to depopulate the places adjacent to the spot, and to turn the surrounding country into a vast desart. Within the space of 100 leagues, there is only one village to be seen, and this is inhabited by the agents and slaves of the company!

The agent of this privileged body in Europe, was no other than the government itself. Prior to the emigration of the court of Portugal to the Brasils, whatever the produce of the mines might be, government delivered to one contractor, diamonds to the amount of 5,000,000 crusadas or 1,125,000l. sterling, and no more, annually, in virtue of an express agreement to that effect, which has ever been held sacred. The price of the diamond was rated advantageously to the contractor. These precious stones are bought in a raw state by us, or by the Dutch, and after being cut, are disseminated throughout Europe, but especially France, where this gem was most eagerly bought up. They are less hard, pellucid, and brilliant, than those of the East Indies; but they are far whiter. Their value is about 107. per cent. under that of the former. The law, which ensures to the king of Portugal, the exclusive possession of the largest diamonds found in Brasil, ordains that the slaves who find them shall be granted their freedom, and that the king shall pay their master 400,000 reis. If a freeman be the finder, he is to have a similar

sum. These promises are likewise held forth to such slave or freeman as shall discover those who conceal diamonds. If a slave discover his master, the king grants him 200,000 reis, besides his liberty. Those who act contrary to this law, not only lose the diamonds which they purloin, and their slaves, but often are put to death. The punishments inflicted on the slaves are, commonly, whipping, condemnation to the gallies for life, or immediate death.

The diamond seekers are obliged to render an exact account to the king's commissary of all such diamonds as they or their slaves discover. The commissary deposits the diamonds in a case covered with iron, and secured by three locks. He has possession of one of the keys, the viceroy has another, and the Provado de Hazienda Real, has the third. This case is put into a second, on which are placed the seals of the three personages already mentioned; the three keys being closed within it. The viceroy is not permitted to view the contents of the cases, but merely consigns the whole to the third strong box, upon the lock of which he places his seal. The opening of the treasure takes place in the presence of the king, who makes choice of such diamonds as he approves of, paying to the finders a price which is regulated by the law already mentioned.

"There never has been found a diamond," says the abbé Raynal, "which could be put in competition with that sent from Brasil to the king of Portugal; its weight being 1680 carats or 12 oz. Although there is no mode of ascertaining its value, yet an English writer has been bold enough to compute it at the enormous sum of 224,000,000/. sterling!!-If, however, as some lapidaries assert, this reputed diamond be a topaz, the above computation must be egregiously erroneous."

alarming the ecclesiasticks of the adjacent church of St. Salvator, and of acquainting them, as well as the police, with what had happened, the flames had already reached the cu pola.

As soon as the alarm was given the whole of the Roman Catholick youth of the city rushed immediately to their assistance, and exert ed themselves with the greatest zeal and intrepidity; but it was impossible to stop the fury of the devouring element; and, between five and six o'clock in the morning, the burning cupola, with all the melting and boiling lead wherewith it was covered, fell in, and thereby gave this extensive building the awful appearance of a burning smelting house. The excessive heat which proceeded from this immense mass of liquid fire, caused not only the marble columns which support the gallery, to burst, but likewise the marble floor of the church, together with the pilasters

and images in bas relief that decorated the chapel containing the Holy Sepul chre, situated in the centre of the church. Shortly after, the massive columns that supported the gallery fell down, together with the whole of the walls. Fortunately no lives were lost; only a few persons were hurt, or scorched by the fire. It is remarkable that the interiour of the above mentioned chapel containing the Holy Sepulchre, and wherein service is performed, has not been in the least injured, although the same was situated immediately under the cupola, and consequently in the middle of the flames. Even after the fire had been extinguished, it was found that the silk hangings, wherewith it is decorated, and the splendid painting, representing the Resurrection, placed upon the altar at the entrance of the sepulchre, had not sustained the least injury.

and her early education amid the wild and Alpine scenery of the Peak, enhanced the enthusiasm of feeling to which she was naturally disposed. In her seventh year, her father being made a canon-residentiary of Litchfield, she removed with the family to that city, which thenceforth be came her residence during the whole of her life The fruit of her father's instructions appeared in some early efforts at poetical composition, which, however, met with discouragement from her mother; and Mr. Seward was afterwards induced to withdraw the countenance he had given to her literary pursuits; so that several years of her youth elapsed with only stolen and interrupted attempts to cultivate an art of which she had so strongly imbibed the rudiments. As she grew to womanhood, she, of course, followed more freely the bent of her genius; she was, however, long known only as the private ornament of Litchfield, and the object of much attachment and admiration in her circle of friends. An acquaintance with lady Miller, of Bathcaston, induced her to become a contributor to her poetical Vase. She repeatedly obtained the myrtle wreath which was its prize, and the publication of the crowned pieces first ushered Miss Seward's muse to the world. In the following year, 1780, she published her" Elegy on Captain Cook," a performance of great merit, as well from its harmony of versification, as the beautiful and appropriate imagery with which it abounds, and the force and delicacy of its sentiments. The contrast between the different mourners on this event, queen Oberea, and the wife of the great navigator, is peculiarly striking. The next year produced her " Monody on Major André." With this lamented young officer she was intimately acquainted, in the course of his long attachment to her amiable friend, Miss Honora Sneyd. It is not, there fore, to be wondered at, that she writes with peculiar pathos on this

VOL. II.

occasion, nor that her partiality, and probably, also, her political sentiments at that period, led her to express warm indignation against those who inflicted a disgraceful punishment upon her hero. We are informed that she afterwards became sensible of the injustice she had done General Washington by her personal invectives on this melancholy occasion. These two elegiack pieces pro duced the appropriate compliment from Dr. Darwin, of telling her that she was "the inventress of epic elegy." The death of lady Miller was lamented by Miss Seward in a poem to her memory, published in 1782, in the style of rich and florid imagery which marks her composi tions. Her poetical novel of " Louisa," which appeared in 1784, displayed her talent of uniting narrative with description and sentiment, and proved a popular production. As a mere novel its merit is not of the first rate, and they who read for incident solely, will probably find the vehicle redundant in ornament. It, however, contains much to admire. In 1787, she addressed an Ode of Congratulation to the victorious Elliott, on his return from Gibraltar. It is in the epic strain, and the writer has exerted every effort to render it worthy of the patriotick sentiment which inspired it.

In 1790, Miss Seward lost her aged father, whose gradual decline she had solaced with the tenderest filial assiduity. Her muse had been long silent, when in 1796 she published "Llangollen Vale, with other Poems." Of these, in general, the character is similar to that of her preceding compositions, but it may be possibly thought that the authoress was now deviating more into that exuberance of words and excess of ornament which is the principal defect of her poetry. In this miscellany were some sonnets; and three years afterwards she published a collection of a hundred compositions of this species, all of the legitimate form, and many of

S

them beautifully descriptive and sentimental. To these were subjoined "Odes paraphrased from Horace." In the latter she professedly indulged her talent at amplification, in which she sometimes appears elegant and splendid, but in general, one to whom the originals are familar will think their spirit much impaired by dilution. Soon after the death of Dr. Darwin, Miss Seward, who at one time of her life had been intimately acquainted with this distinguished philosopher and poet, published, in 1804, "Memoirs of his Life." This is a desultory performance, written in a style very deficient in correct ness and good taste, but full of entertaining matter, and enriched with some judicious criticism on Dr. Dar win's poetical character, and on other incidental topicks. From her account of the origin of the celebrated " Botanick Garden," it appears, that some admired lines in the exordium of the first part of that poem were of her composition, though unacknowledged. Indeed, the harmony of her versification, and her powers of brilliant and picturesque description, enable her lines to blend their tints with those of Darwin, without any perceptible change in the tone of colouring. This lady died at Litchfield on the 25th of March, and we understand that she has made Walter Scott, Esq. and Mr. Constable, of Edinburgh, her literary heirs.

HAMPSHIRE.

Died At his house in Winchester, James Pyle, Esq. at a very advanced age. He has left very considerable

property. The landed part of it, we hear, he has bequeathed to his nephew, the Rev. James Pyle Ashe; and a large part of his personal property to distant relations and others. The character of Mr. Pyle has been singular. The property which he inherited from his father was considerable, and during a long life it had been greatly increased by his parsimonious manner of living. In the early part of Mr. Pyle's life, he lost a large sum of money by the failure of a person to whom he had confided it. From that time he became suspicious, and seemed unwilling to intrust his money with any one. Under this feeling, whenever he received his rents, he secreted the money. About a twelve month ago Mr. Pyle was attacked by a paralytick affection, and it being known that he was in the habit of hiding his money, it was judged prudent by his friends to search the house; and in one or two rooms, that were visited only by himself for many years, cash and notes were found to the amount of between 6 or 70002. secreted in every kind of way—some tied up in pieces of paper--some put into the seats of chairs-and indeed every expedient was used at concealment. The money thus found was immediately taken to a banker's, on Mr. Pyle's account; but he never forgave this compelled discovery of his treasure. Mr. Pyle, though parsimonious to the extreme, was indulgent to his tenants, to whom he granted long leases without advancing the rent. His character was that of being penurious in trifles, while he suffered his thousands to lie unheeded and unemployed.