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POETRY.

BRYANT.

Stranger, if thou hast learnt a truth which needs
Experience more than reason, that the world
Is full of guilt and misery, and hast known
Enough of all its sorrows, crimes, and cares
To tire thee of it,-enter this wild wood,

aim could not be missed. When sharing with you the intoxicating cup of love, if an angel descended from Heaven were to appear at the gate of my palace, INSCRIPTION FOR THE ENTRANCE INTO A WOOD. I would not open it. In vain the most fatal examples warn us not to enter the bazaar of love; I heed them not, and constantly expose myself to new dangers. I have thrown open the magazine of my soul; alas! I tremble lest the purchaser should enter at my cost. My heart, sick with love for you, drinks with rapture the poisoned cup of death; but such are the transports I experience, that thousands must envy my lot. The dust of the threshold of your door is a precious ointment to my eye-why am I not permitted to enjoy it? A thousand afflictions weigh on the heart of the Ambassador; when separated from you, perhaps these lines may recal him to your memory."

INDIAN SERENADE.

Awake! flower of the forest; beautiful bird of the Prairie.

Awake! awake! thou with the eyes of the fawn. When you look at me I am happy, like the flowers when they feel the dew.

The breath of thy mouth is as sweet as the fragrance of flowers in the morning-sweet as their fragrance at evening in the moon of the fading leaf.

Does not the blood of my veins spring towards thee like the bubbling springs to the sun in the moon of the bright nights?-(April.)

My heart sings to thee when thou art near, like the dancing branches to the wind in the moon of strawberries. (June.)

When thou art not pleased, my beloved, my heart is darkened like the shining river, when shadows fall from the clouds above.

Thy smiles cause my troubled heart to be brightened, as the sun makes to look like gold the ripples which the cold wind has created.

Myself! behold me! blood of my bleeding heart. The earth smiles--the waters smile-the heavens smile; but I-I lose the way of smiling when thou art not near-awake! awake! my beloved.

ITEMS OF INTELLIGENCE.

Father Peters, the Jesuit, calculated that in 208 years, four men might have 258,719,000,000 of descendants. Enough to people many such worlds as ours. Sir W. Blackstone shows, that in twenty generations, every man actually has 1,048,576

And view the haunts of Nature. The calm shade
Shall bring a kindred calm, and the sweet breeze,
That makes the green leaves dance, shall waft a balm
To thy sick heart. Thou wilt find nothing here
Of all that pained the haunts of men,

And made thee loathe thy life. The primal curse
Fell, it is true, upon the unsinning earth,
But not in vengeance. Misery is wed

To guilt. And hence these shades are still the abodes
Of undissembled gladness: the thick roof

Of green and stirring branches is alive
And musical with birds, that sing and sport
In wantonness of spirit; while, below,

The squirrel, with raised paws and form erect,
Chirps merrily. Throngs of insects in the glade
Try their thin wings, and dance in the warm beam
That waked them into life. Even the green trees
Partake the deep contentment: as they bend
To the soft winds, the sun from the blue sky
Looks in, and sheds a blessing on the scene.
Scarce less the cleft-born wild-flower seems t' enjoy
Existence, than the winged plunderer

That sucks its sweets. The massy rocks themselves,
The old and ponderous trunks of prostrate trees,
That lead from knoll to knoll, a causey rude,
Or bridge the sunken brook, and their dark roots,
With all their earth upon them, twisting high,
Breathe fixed tranquillity. The rivulet
Sends forth glad sounds, and, tripping o'er its bed
Of pebbly sands, or leaping down the rocks,
Seems with continuous laughter to rejoice
In its own being. Softly tread the marge,
Lest from her midway perch thou scare the wren
That dips her bill in water. The cool wind,
That stirs the stream in play, shall come to thee,
Like one that loves thee, nor will let thee pass
Ungreeted, and shall give its light embrace.

GEM.

A precious stone; or a sort of siliceous earth, consisting of silica and alumina, with a small portion of lime and oxide of iron. The gem is remarkable for its hardness and internal lustre. Under this name is comprehended the diamond, ruby, sapphire, hyacinth, beryl, garnet, chrysolite, &c. To these have been added rock crystals, the finer flints of pebbles, the cat's One of the greatest curses of a despotic government is a eye, the occulus mundi, the chalcedony, the moon Etanding army. An army of mercenaries strikes terror to the hearts of the people. We may gather a good idea of European stones, the onyx, the cornelian, the sardonyx, freedom from the number of their military power. agate, &c. Russia has an army of

ancestors.

Austria

Prussia

German Confederation

500,000

The imitation of antique gems, by taking the im460.000 pressions and figures upon them, in glass of the colour 350,000 of the original gem, or on sealing wax or brimstone, 210,000 has been practised at different times by persons who, 1,520,000 in respect to the first method of taking them on glass, The city of Pasta, in South America, containing a population have kept the art to themselves, and suffered it to die of 12 or 15,000 inhabitants, was destroyed by an earthquake on with them. But the process adopted by Mr. Homthe 22d of January, by which 50 lives were lost. berg, which has also been communicated by him to which he has brought the art. From the engraved the world, is highly esteemed for the perfection to gems of the king's cabinet, he took such exact resemblances of the originals as sometimes to deceive the nicest judges, who mistook them for the true antique stones. His method consists in taking the impression of the gem in a very fine earth, and then conveying the impression from the earth to a piece of half-melted glass.

The city of Popayan, containing 30,000 inhabitants, has also been destroyed. The entire country, for leagues around Pasta, has been converted into a scene of complete desolation and mourning.

A worm was lately taken away from a young man in Roxbury, by Dr. Stewart, which was over 30 feet in length! Its appearance was perfectly white, with joints beginning almost imperceptibly at the head, increasing in size and length to its extremity-the longest being something more than an inch. The head run to a point as fine as that of a lancet.-Its body was flat, and about half an inch at the widest part. The young man, who is about 26 years of age, says he feels confident this creature has been with him from infancy, and so great was the torture occasioned by it, that he thought death could only relieve him. Dr. S. invites the curious to call and see it, at his house. He has it preserved in spirits. It is really a curious ease.-Boston Centinel.

One third of the inhabitants of Connecticut, over 16 years of age, have pledged themselves to total abstinence from ardent spirits.

GLUCINE.

An earth of a sweetish taste, which has been lately discovered by Vauquelin in analyzing the beryl. It is infusible in fire, and insoluble in water, but combines with acids, making with them soluble salts.

SECTION IX.

HISTORY.

DISTINGUISHED HISTORICAL CHARACTERS DU-
RING THE FOURTH PERIOD.

cess, he undertook fresh enterprises, and overran many small states, till at length he reached Bactria, where he met with the most determined opposition; but through the skill of Semiramis, the wife of one of his officers, he succeeded in the capture of its chief city. After this he made Semiramis his queen, by whom he had a son named Ninyas. Ninus reigned 52 years, and is computed to have died A. M. 2017.

her elevation, as we have already seen, was the skill which she evinced in her plan for the capture of the Bactrian capital. After the death of her husband, she became the reigning queen of his dominions, and removed the seat of government from Nineveh to BabyJon. The latter place she embellished beyond all former precedent, and rendered it the wonder of the world. Having accomplished this, she raised a mighty army, and commenced a new military career. After subduing a portion of Ethiopia, she undertook an expedition to India, to complete the conquest commenced by her husband in that quarter. "She advanced towards the river Indus, and having prepared boats, attempted to pass it with her army. The passage was for a long time disputed, but after a bloody battle, she put her enemies to flight. Upon this she advanced directly into the country. As soon as the Indian king thought her sufficiently advanced, he gave her battle, and routed her in his turn. Semiramis, twice wounded, was obliged to return to her country, with scarcely one third of her army. Sometime after, discovering that her son was plotting against her, she abdicated her throne, put the government into his hands, and withdrew from public life. She lived. 62 years, of which she reigned 42." She died an example of unhallowed ambition and perverted talent-a warning to the ambitious of all succeeding ages.

YU-TA was the founder of the Chinese Monarchy. His surname Ta signifies the Great. He was distinguished for literature and science, as well as for political management, being an adept in agriculture, astronomy, and other subjects of a kindred character. SEMIRAMIS, the queen and successor of Ninus, was Agriculture in particular was greatly indebted to him one of the most distinguished characters that have for an excellent treatise which he wrote upon that sub-ever figured in any age; and to this day her name is ject at this early period: though, when we speak of but another for female energy, skill, and intrepidity. writing among the ancient Chinese, we should bear in To say of a queen, She is the Semiramis of the age, mind that the characters by them used were pictures would be regarded as the highest possible compliment of various things, and not letters, nor even the present to her genius and statesmanship. This celebrated feChinese characters. This illustrious monarch reigned male sovereign rose by the strength of her own native 17 years, and died much lamented by his people. intellect from the humble station of wife of a captain BELUS was the successor of Nimrod, the first mo- in Ninus's army, to that of queen of the greatest monarch of Babylon. He, like his predecessor, was se-narchy of the age in which she lived. The cause of lected by the people, on account of his eminent talents, to be their sovereign. He was a scholar as well as a statesman, and sought the intellectual improvement of the people whom he was chosen to govern. He is said by Pliny to have been the inventor of the Chaldean astronomy. He reigned 60 years, and died A. M. 1966. After his death, a statue was erected to his honour. To this statue the same respect was paid by the people as they had been accustomed to pay to Belus when alive. It was likewise a refuge for the criminal, who might flee thither from the pur suit of the avenger. At length the veneration of this statue rose to such a degree, that it became absolute adoration; and Belus was thenceforward regarded as more than man, and was deified under the name of Jupiter according to some, and Saturn of Babylon according to others. This is the Bel, Baal, &c. of scripture. A most magnificent temple was erected to his honour in Babylon, the remains of which are still supposed to be visible. The Chaldeans and Babylonians held, that Belus destroyed the first inhabitants of the earth, who were monsters produced by chaos; that he completed the sun, moon, and planets, which before were in an unfinished state; and that he created man from the dust of the earth, infusing into him divine reason. Berosus says, that Belus cut in sunder a woman, and formed the earth out of the one half of her, and the heavens out of the other. He also divided the darkness, and separated the heavens from the earth, and reduced the universe to order. But the animals not being able to bear the prevalence of light, died. Belus upon this, seeing a vast space unoccupied, though by nature fruitful, commanded one of the gods to take off his head, and to mix the blood with the earth, and from thence to form other men and animals, which should be capable of bearing the air. Belus formed also the stars, and the sun, and the moon, and the five planets. NINUS was the successor of Asshur, the founder of the Assyrian empire. Some make him the son of Belus; but this we conceive to be a mistake. Belus was king of Babylon, and Ninus was its conqueror: how then could the one have been the son of the other? Ninus was an ambitious character, and waged the first wars of which we have any account. His first attempt was against Babylonia, his father land; which at tempt proved successful. Encouraged by this sucVOL. II.-9

NINYAS, her son and successor, was a peaceful prince, seeking rather the welfare than the false glory of his people. On account of this his pacific disposition, he has been stigmatized by some historians as effeminate and imbecile. But it is time that things were called by their right names in history, as well as in every other case. It is time that conquerors were viewed in their true light-viewed as wholesale robbers and murderers-while those rulers who cultivate the arts of peace, and forego their own aggrandizement for the welfare of their people, should be revered as the truly great ones of the earth. We trust the time is not far distant, when those mighty chieftains who have deluged the world with tears and blood will be remembered only with abhorrence; and, on the other hand, when the memory of those who have pursued a different course will be embalmed in the affections of the human race.

PATHRUSIM, a son of Mizraim, was one of the most

famous characters of this period. He was king of Thebais in Egypt. The Egyptians called him Thyoth or Thoth; the Greeks, Hermes; and the Latins, Mercurius. He was beyond doubt the inventor of letters. He was likewise distinguished in many other respects, being a celebrated lawgiver, astronomer, and divine.

TERAH, the father of Abraham, was one of the conspicuous characters of the period we are now considering. He lived at first at Ur of the Chaldees, but finally emigrated with his family to Haran. He was noted as one of the patriarchal line, and the father of that remarkable man, Abraham. He died at the age of 205 years.

In our first No. of the present Vol. we introduced a cut under our historical head representing the tower of Babel, together with an accompanying, though very brief description of that tower. The following article is a more full description.

REMAINS OF THE TOWER OF BABEL.

The most remarkable ruin, both in magnitude and name, is that called by the Arabs birs Nimrod, or Nimrod's tower. This, there is every reason to believe, was the ancient tower of Babel, the earliest and mightiest specimen of human skill and human audacity. The travels of Mr. Rich and Sir R. K. Porter, have rendered us more familiar with those huge ruins than could previously have been hoped for. The compressed view of their accounts given by Heeren is very striking and animated.

there, and satyrs shall dance there. Jackals shall howl in their palaces, and wild hounds in their pleas ant places !"-Presbyterian.

LITERATURE.

LANGUAGE.

All evidences, as we have seen, tend to show, that Pathrusim, the son of Mizraim, the son of Ham, was the inventor of letters. This invention greatly diminished the labour of writing, and facilitated the circulation of knowledge. Hence the superiority of those nations in this respect, to those who still adhere to hieroglyphics, like the Chinese.

We are not to consider letters in the light of an isolated invention, springing up spontaneously in the mind of their author as by a kind of inspiration. But we are to regard them as the result of the natural progress in improvement which is the characteristic of mankind. The most natural mode of conveying ideas through the medium of the sense of sight, is, by pictures, representing what we wish to describe. This is the mode now practised by the tawny sons of our own American forests, and by all savage tribes who have made no advances towards civilization. It was the mode practised in-the first ages of the world. This is denomi nated pictorial writing. An improvement on this mode would gradually be made, by abridging certain parts of those pictures, still leaving enough, however, to show what they were intended to represent. This abridgment would still go on, till at length the characters under consideration would lose their resemblance of the things once signified by them, and would then be understood as signifying those things, not from any resemblance, but from being used in their stead. This mode is denominated the symbolical or hieroglyphical kind of writing, and is the present Chinese mode. But its inconvenience, in consequence of the vast number of symbols which must be made use of in order to convey all necessary ideas, together with the difficulty of expressing in this manner some ideas at all, would tend to induce men to resort to some expedient whereby they could convey ideas with greater facility and convenience.

But what new mode could be devised to accomplish this object?

"This huge mass of building lies about six miles southwest of Hillah. It has the appearance of an oblong hill, the base of which, according to Porter is two thousand and eighty-two feet in circumference. Rich reckons it two thousand two hundred and eighty six. It may easily be conceived, that it is scarcely possible to fix in a positive manner the circumference of such a ruin. Its present height, reckoning to the bottom of the tower which crowns its summit, is two hundred feet; the tower itself is thirty-five. Looking at it from the west, the entire mass rises at once from the plain, in one stupendous, though irregular pyramidal hill. It is composed of fine bricks, kiln-baked. From the western side, two of its stories may be distinctly seen; the first is about sixty feet high, cloven in the middle by deep ravines. The tower-like looking ruin on the summit is a solid mass, twenty-eight feet wide, of the most beautiful masonry; to all appearances it formed an angle of some square buildings, the ruins of which are yet to be seen on the eastern side. The cement which connects the bricks is so hard that it was impossible to chip the smallest piece; and for this reason none of the inscriptions can be copied, as they are always on the lower surface of the bricks. It is rent from the top nearly half way to the bottom; and at its foot lay several unshapen masses of fine brick work, still bearing traces of a violent fire; which has given them a vitrified appearance, whence it has been conjectured that it has been struck by lightning. The appearance of the hill on the eastern side evidently shows that this enormous mass has been reduced more than half. Only three stories out of the eight which it formerly contained can now be discerned. The earth about the bottom of the hill is now clear; but is again surrounded with walls, which form an oblong square, enclosing numerous heaps of rubbish, probably once the dwellings of the inferior deities; or of the priests and officers of the temple. The appearance of To show the tendency of written language, whether the tower of Nimrod is sublime even in its ruins. pictorial or hieroglyphic, to advance towards the alClouds play around its summit; its recesses are inhab-phabetic, it should be remarked that the Mantcheu or ited by lions, three being quietly basking on its heights when Porter approached it; scarcely intimidated by the cries of the Arabs, gradually and slowly descended into the plain. Thus the words of the prophet have been fulfilled. "Wild beasts of the desert shall be there; owls shall fill their houses, ostriches shall dwell

To every character there was of course attached a sound or name according to the thing represented; and thus symbol and sound became associated. Now, as there are but few simple sounds, insomuch that it would require but few characters to represent them, and as different sounds by coalescing form other sounds, the idea that would most naturally suggest itself to an individual in attempting to improve written language, when it could no longer be improved in the hieroglyphic character, would be, to make an experiment in sound, which is the basis of vocal language, and to cause certain characters to stand for certain sounds, instead of certain things. It must be obvious at first thought that this would be an immense improvement. But few characters would be necessary; and, to express any particular word, it would only be requisite to combine such of those characters as would represent the sound of the word when uttered. Thus, the same few characters variously combined would represent all words, and convey any idea whatever, instead of taxing the memory with numerous characters. In this way undoubtedly came alphabetical letters.

Tartars in China have a system of verbal writing. And even the Chinese characters themselves have in certain cases been already used as the representatives of sounds.

Illustrations of both the pictorial and heroglyphic modes of writing are given in Vol. I. of this work, pp. 225, 236, and 329.

NATURAL HISTORY.

THE LLAMA.

"It is very singular that, although the Llama and the Paco are domesticated in Peru, Mexico, and Chili, as the horse is in Europe, or the Camel in Arabia, we scarcely know any thing of them. Peru, according to Gregory de Bolivar, is the true and native country of the Llamas; they are conducted into other provinces, as New Spain, &c.; but this is rather for curiosity than utility: 'but in Peru, from Potosi to Caraccas, these animals are in great numbers, and make the chief riches of the Indians and Spaniards, who rear them. Their flesh is excellent food; their hair, or rather wool, may be spun into beautiful clothing; and they are capable of carrying heavy loads in the most rugged and dangerous ways; the strongest of them will travel with two hundred or two hundred and fifty pounds weight on their backs; their pace is but slow, and their journey is seldom above fifteen miles a day; but then they are sure, and descend precipices, and and footing among the most craggy rocks, where even men can scarcely accompany them; they commonly travel for five days together, when they are obliged to rest, which they do of their own accord, for two or three days. They are chiefly employed in carrying the riches of the mines of Potosi. Bolivar affirms that in his time above three hundred thousand of these animals were in actual employ.

"The growth of the Llama is very quick, and its life is but of short duration. This animal couples as early as at three years of age, and remains strong and vigorous till twelve; after which it begins to decline, and becomes entirely useless at fifteen. Their nature appears modelled on that of the Americans. They are gentle and phlegmatic, and do every thing with the greatest leisure and caution. When they stop on their journeys, they bend their knees very cautiously, in order to lower their bodies without disordering their load. As soon as they hear their driver whistle, they rise up again with the same precaution, and proceed on their journey; they feed as they go along on the grass they meet with in their way, but never eat in the night, making use of that time to ruminate. The Llama sleeps, like the camel, with its feet folded under its belly, and ruminates in that posture. When overloaded or fatigued, it falls on its belly, and will not rise, though its driver strike it with his utmost force. "The Llama is about four feet high; its body, comprehending the neck and head, is five or six feet long; its neck alone is near three feet. The head is small and well proportioned, the eyes large, the nose somewhat long, the lips thick, the upper divided, and the

flower a little depending: it wants the incisive and canine teeth in the upper jaw. The ears are four inches long, and move with great agility. The tail is seldom above eight inches long, small, straight, and a little turned up at the end. It is cloven-footed, like the ox; but the hoof has a kind of spear-like appendage behind, which assists the animal to move and support itself over precipices and rugged ways. The back is clothed with a short wool, as are the crupper and tail; but it is very long on the belly and sides. These animals differ in colour; some are white, others black, but most of them brown.

"These useful and even necessary animals are attended with no expense to their masters; for, as they are cloven-footed, they do not require to be shod, nor do they require to be housed, as their wool supplies them with a warm covering. Satisfied with a small portion of vegetables and grass, they want neither corn nor hay to subsist them; they are still more moderate in what they drink, as their mouths are continually moistened with saliva, which they have in a much greater quantity than any other animal. The natives hunt the Guanacos, or wild Llama, for the sake of its fleece. The dogs have much trouble to follow them; and if they do not come up with them before they gain the rocks, both the hunters and dogs are obliged to desist in their pursuit,

The Pacos are a subordinate kind to the Llamas, much in the same proportion as the ass is to the horse; they are smaller, and not so serviceable; but their fleece is more useful; their wool is fine and long, and is a sort of merchandise, as valuable as silk. The natural colour of the Pacos is that of a dried rose-leaf, which is so fixed that it undergoes no alteration under the hands of the manufacturers. They not only make good gloves and stockings of this wool, but also form it into quilts and carpets, which bring a higher price, and exceeed those of the Levant.

"The Pacos also resemble the Llamas in their form, excepting that their legs are shorter, and their muzzle thicker and closer. They inhabit and climb over the highest parts of the mountains. The snow and ice seem rather agreeable than inconvenient to them. When wild, they keep together in flocks, and run very swift; and, as soon as they percieve a stranger, they take flight, driving their young before them. The ancient monarchs of Peru rigorously prohibited the hunting of them, as they multiply but slowly; but, since the arrival of the Spaniards in these parts, their number is greatly decreased, so that at present there are very few remaining, The flesh of these animals is not so good as that of the Guanacos; and they are only sought after for their fleece, and the bezoar they produce. The method of taking them proves their extreme timidity, or rather their weakness. The hunters having driven the flock into a narrow passage, across which they have stretched a rope about four feet from the ground, with a number of pieces of linen or cloth hanging on it, the animals are so intimidated at the rags agitated by the wind, that they stop, and, crowding together in a heap, the hunters kill great numbers of them with the greatest ease; but if there are any Guanacos among the flock, which are less timid than the Pacos, they leap over the rope with great agility. The example is immediately followed by the whole flock, and they escape the stratagem of their pursuers.

"With respect to the domestic Pacos, they are used to carry burdens like the Llamas; but, being smaller and weaker, they carry much less weight. They are likewise of a more stubborn nature; and, when once they rest with their load, they will suffer themselves to be cut to pieces sooner than rise. The Indians have never made use of the milk of these animals, as they have scarcely enough to supply their own young. The The great profit derived from their wool has induced the Spaniards to endeavour to naturalize them in Europe they have transported them into Spain, in opes

[graphic]

to raise the breed in that country; but the climate not agreeing with their nature, not one of them lived. We are nevertheless persuaded that these animals, which are more valuable than the Llamas, might thrive upon our mountains, especially upon the Pyrenean. Those who brought them into Spain did not consider that they can exist, even in Peru, only in the cold regions; that is, on the tops of the highest mountains; that they are never to be found in the valleys, and die if brought into hot countries; that consequently, in order to preserve them, they should be landed, not in Spain, but in Scotland, and even in Norway, and with greater certainty at the foot of the Pyrenean, Alpine, or other mountains, where they might climb, and attain to the region that most agrees with their nature.

The Llama is in general a timid and docile animal. If teased or ill-treated, however, they become spiteful. Their mode of manifesting their anger is singular; it consists in darting their saliva in considerable quantity upon the person who offends them. They will cover with it a surface of three or four yards in extent. Totne

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