IRELAND.

"It was strange to observe, as it were in a bird's-eye view, the varied population which deformed that surface there was every form and grade of human wretchedness, from the slave, who shivered in the breeze without a rag to cover him, up to the petty despot, who heartlessly despoiled him of all he had left to give the pittance of his labour. Each were pitiable, and it was hard to say which was most so, the plunderer or the plunderedthe one suffering from the penalty inflicted, the other from the anticipated reprisal. Though this outcast people are among the most patient that crawl under the canopy of Heaven, still that reprisal, at times, has taken placeterrible to both, and difficult of election the one swinging in chains upon his gibbet, the other lying murdered in his shroud of silk. The fault of this is laid, and most unjustly, upon the savage disposition of the lower orders of the people. The Irish peasant is a maligned and misrepresented character. Described to strangers as naturally vicious, he is, in fact, only the victim of a system which is so. By nature, he is a generous, and even a noble creature his errors are conventional, forced on him by a policy as unwise as it is unfeeling-and then by an argument as untrue as it is illogical he is arraigned as the cause of evils, of which, in reality, he is but the effect. Driven by despair to deeds of horror, he is accused of cruelty-disheartened from industry by the denial of its rewards, he is accused of indolence-living in a country which he hears is free, he finds himself the bondsman of some hereditary absentee belonging to a community which boasts itself Christian, he knows there is a penalty attached to his creed-he is condemned to hopeless misery in this world, and then impeded in securing a reversionary reparation in the next. Heaven is secured to him, and earth is made a purgatory. If the Irish peasant ventures upon a little farm, it is instantly visited by worse than the plagues of Egypt the non-resident landlord overloads it with rent-his petti-fogging agent requires a perquisite for forbearance-the Protestant parson takes its heterodox tithe the Catholic priest gleans next in the name of God—and, last of all, comes some locust of taxation to lay it bare of every living thing except the litter of children who howl the mountain echoes into hoarseness. What can be expected from such extremity of suffering? Nothing, except what actually does take place--periodical visitations of rape, massacre, and famine, succeeded by the stillness, not of peace, but of desolation!

"A population, uneducated, impoverished, and oppressed-a government vacillating and divided-an establishment gorgeously provided for the few, by the reluctant privations of the many-a system of rackrent, tithing, and taxation almost without equivalent, and apparently without end-a clergy preaching lowliness and professing poverty, yet wallowing in wealth and shouting ascendancy-an absentee aristocracy, without either sympathy or pity, through the veins of whose tenantry the blood of the land is sucked-power struggling for the retention of its monopoly-superstition burning for its aggrandisement a selfish spirit of dissension in all, with scarce a redeeming quality of patriotism in any."

MINES IN MEXICO.

THE Mines of Mexico, equally productive as those of Peru, are not situated in a region so elevated as to injure the health of the workmen. Towns and villages have sprung up rapidly, in numerous instances, whereever mines have been opened in any district. The enormous masses of property acquired by mining, have, like the larger prizes in a lottery, been confined to a few individuals. M. Obregon, created Count Valenciana, with his partner, Otero, received, for many years, from the mine of that name, an annual income of £250,000 sterling. Don Pedro Terroros, Count Regla, one of the richest men in Mexico, drew from the mines of Biscaina, between the years 1762 and 1774, a net profit of more than a million sterling. Besides the two ships of war, one of one hundred and twenty guns, which he presented to the king of Spain, he lent to the government of Madrid five millions of francs, which he has never been repaid. The works erected on his mine, cost him more than four hundred thousand pounds sterling, and he purchased estates of vast extent besides, and left money to his family, in amount only equalled by the bequests of Count Valenciana. The Marquis del Assartado, at one period, within six months, extracted from his mine of Sombrerete, the enormous sum of £800,000 sterling; and though nothing approaching to that amount was afterwards drawn from it, it held its rank as a mine of the first class, till the troubles commenced. In these mining operations the greatest vicissitudes of fortune have been experienced. One of these is remarkable. A Frenchman, Joseph Laborde, came to Mexico very poor in 1743, and acquired a large fortune in a short time, by the mine of La Canada. After building a church at Tesco, which cost him £84,000, he was reduced to the lowest poverty, by the rapid decline of those very mines, from which he had annually drawn from £130 to 190,000 weight of silver. With a sum of £20,000, raised by selling a sun of solid gold, which, in his prosperity, he had presented to the church, and which he was allowed by the Archbishop to withdraw, he undertook to clear out an old mine, in which he lost the greater part of the produce of his golden sun, and abandoned the work with the small sum remaining: he once more ventured on another undertaking, which was for a short time highly productive, and he left behind him at his death, a fortune of more than one hundred and twenty thousand pounds.

BRESCIA.

BRESCIA is famous for the manufacture of Fire-arms, thence the Italian Proverb, "Tutta Brescia non armerebbe un Coglione ;" all Brescia cannot give courage to a coward.

FEMALE WARRIORS.

In the arsenal of the palace at Genoa, are some light cuirasses, made purposely for some Genoese ladies, who intended to join a crusade against the infidels. These Female Warriors were at length persuaded to give up their design, by Pope Boniface the Eighth, who himself wrote a letter for that purpose.

THE MISANTHROPE. A TALE.

DURING the autumn of 1817, being on a visit with a friend on the coast of Hampshire, I enjoyed the advantage of viewing the greater part of that truly picturesque county. There is, I think, scarcely another division of the kingdom where so many beautiful objects attract the attention, or where the scenery is so charmingly diversified. The mansion of my friend was situated a short distance from the sea, and a footpath led from his garden to the beach. It was to this spot I usually repaired when the evenings would permit, and delighted to roam free and unobserved along the trackless sands. On one occasion, I had reached my chosen spot; the day had been unusually fine, and the sun was just descending beneath the horizon, leaving the blue expanse over which he had journeyed unspotted with a cloud. I was tempted to extend my ramble; the almost horizontal sun-beams quivered upon the rippling waters, and seemed to scatter brilliants at my feet. 1 gazed for awhile on the vast domain; the eye searched in vain for an object on which to rest, and fell back, baffled and powerless, to find relief in the surrounding scenery. I felt a soothing melancholy whilst surveying the "billowy boundlessness" before me, and experienced that humiliating sensation which all must feel, who take a solitary evening walk by the seashore. I was startled from my reverie by an agitation of the water, which appeared suddenly to heave and swell, as if convulsed by some secret and powerful energy. The wind, which had hitherto scarcely dimpled the surfaoe of the ocean, now stiffened to a breeze, and, ere I had retraced many steps, the sky was veiled in dark clouds, and the low muttering of distant thunder portended a violent storm. I was compelled to deviate from the beach to avoid the fury of the waves, and soon found myself in an extensive coppice, consisting principally of low trees and brushwood, which almost impeded me at every step. I despaired of discovering any path which might conduct me to an outlet of the wood, and had resolved to await the morning beneath a thickly-foliaged tree. Here I had not, however, rested many minutes ere I was startled by a sudden and loud crash; ard I perceived at a short distance that the lightning, which now streamed with fitful motion around me, had struck a tall fir, and rent it to fragments, scattering some of the scorched pieces even to the spot where I stood.Warned by this occurrence, I sought the more open ground, and wandered for some time completely saturated with rain, uncertain where each step might conduct me, or in what direction to find my friend's house. At length I accidentally reached the boundary of the wood, and instantly scrambled over the enclosure. I now found myself in a narrow pathway, which appeared considerably trodden; and, judging it might lead to some habitation, I pursued the track, and soon perceived through the gloom a slight glimmering; and hastening my steps, I discovered it to proceed from the casement of a cottage. I knocked at the door, and listened for a moment with anxiety, but no sound of friendly footsteps reached my ear. I repeated the summons, yet all was silent within. Surely there must be an inhabitant, I said, or this building would not have displayed a light to invite me here. It was not an hour for delay: I placed my foot to the door, whose feeble fastenings yielded to a slight force, and left me at liberty to enter. The apartment in which I found myself was obscurely lighted by a small lamp, placed upon the hearth, and near which a few expiring embers were still' perceptible; my eyes eagerly glanced round the room, in expectation of seeing some living creature; but I could only discover a few decayed articles of furniture, which, with the tattered and weather-worn casement, indicated the poverty of my shelter. The more distant corners VOL. I. 29. Fourth Edition.

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of the room, however, being thrown into deep shade, I lifted the lamp, in order to explore them, when I perceived a human figure stretched upon a pallet; his face appeared haggard, and preyed upon by sickness, and I thought he was at the moment eyeing me with close attention. I drew back, a little startled at first sight of this wan and spectre-like object; but, remembering I was now a trespasser in the house of a stranger, I thought it would be indecorous to remain silent. "The elements, sir," I said, "must plead my pardon for intruding on you. I have unfortunately missed my way, and this is a night when any ceremony used in gaining a refuge would be worse than weakness." "This is a night," he replied, raising his head, and his features, at the same time, assuming a scowl, "when God pours out his vengeance on the black vices of the world; and shall 1, poor solitary wretch! presume to intercept His wrath, or avert its proper destiny?" This was uttered with an emphasis that led me to think I was now in the house of an unhappy maniac; yet I could perceive the expression of fixed contempt in his countenance, which bespoke him some unfortunate individual, who had become disgusted with this world, and sought to hide himself in seclusion. "I presume, sir," I said, "you are not here alone; you appear unwell, and must need the attention and support of friends." "Friends!" he exclaimed, fixing his moistureless eyes upon me; "mention not the word-it is mockery to my ears. I once listened to the flatterings of pretended friendship, but I have ever found it the mask of villainy!" He then fell back, apparently exhausted from the exertion of speaking. I stood with my eyes involuntarily fixed upon him, and thought I could discover in his countenance the traces of intelligence, such as education and refinement always impart. I was awhile wrapped in conjecture, when a door at the extremity of the apartment, which I had not observed, opened, and a female form walked slowly to the bedside; her countenance was fixed on the ground, and expressed a settled gloom as if unconscious of my presence, she did not once uplift her eyes. "Father," was all she said, and this was uttered in a plaintive and enquiring tone, whilst she gently composed his pillow, and then, kissing his wrinkled forehead, she retired. I was now more at a loss to account for the scene before me, and waited some time, anxiously hoping the sick man would again address me. "You are happy, sir," I at length observed, "in preserving a daughter, whose assiduities will repay all the vexations this world may have occasioned you." "A daughter!" he said, raising himself on his shrivelled arms, and gazing at me : "I once, indeed, possessed a daughter, but" Here his voice faltered, and he added in a stifled tone, "Alas! I shall never possess her again!" I ventured to enquire if it was not his daughter who had just left the room. "She was once," he replied, "the pride of my soul and the joy of my heart; but such a blessing was not long mine: the world, which had stripped me of all but this, envied my happiness, and snatched that sole remaining comfort from me.” could not help feeling pity for the man who had been thus a sport to the caprices of life, and felt a strong anxiety to know more of his history.He appeared to anticipate my wishes, and added, "You have shown some sympathy, young man, for the fate of one who has long ceased to value it ; but as you would be further acquainted with my misfortunes, the narrative shall be brief. At an early age I became entitled to a considerable fortune by the death of a father; and being an only child, and left to the care of an over-indulgent mother, I very soon overleaped all controul, and put myself solely under the direction of my own judgment. Being of a free and vivacious disposition, I formed numerous acquaintances, and very soon was proud of a large connection. In early life I married an attached and lovely female, and

I

there I might have paused, with an ample competency; but no, I was young and ambitious; I sought to augment my portion, and became the dupe of a wretch, who deluded me by a specious eloquence, wbich some men possess to prey upon the unwary. I still retained sufficient to have lived in affluence, but I could not endure a defeat, and was tempted to hazard my whole in an enterprise which proved unsuccessful, and I found myself reduced to indigence. Still, however, my wife retained a small annuity, secured to herself, and upon this we determined to subsist contentedly, and immdeiately retired to a secluded part of a neighbouring county. We had not long resided there before we were overwhelmed with the news, that the trustees of our little wealth had teft the country, and had appropriated our only support to their owu use. This blow was too great for my lamented partner; she sunk under our accumulated misfortunes, and I was left destitute in the world, with an only child to share my woe. We were now invited to dwell on the estate of one of my earliest acpuaintances, and I had no alternative but to accept his bounty: it is now three years since I visited this county; my daughter was just then approaching to lovely womanhood, her whole study was directed to cheer my drooping spirits, and to compensate as much as possible for the loss of her amiable mother. My pretended friend was assiduous in his attentions towards her, but never did she conceive the idea of separating her fortnne from mine. But lust has other wiles than those of tenderness, by which to secure its victims he made her the medium of his affected kindnesses to me, and having by that means gained her gratitude and confidence, little remained to be accomplished. Alas! unconscious of evil, and pure as she then was, she fell an easy prey to his insidious arts, and quitted my side with the happy enjoyment of innocence, to participate his guilty passion. But, oh! the pangs, the worse than earthly torments, I suffered when I found myself reft of this last and dearest comfort. Cursing, in the bitterness of my sorrow, the author of my misery, and renouncing her for ever from my heart, who had inflicted such a dishonour on my name, I retired to this hovel, the last resource of utter wretchedness, and here, with bitter enmity to all the world, I brooded over my desperate lot." But, your daughter!" I inquired, anxious to be further informed of her fate. She who was once my daughter," he replied, then, after an inward struggle, he added, "and, yes, still is my child, oh! it was for love of me alone, unworthy as I am, she sacrificed her virtue and her peace: my daughter was not long doomed to her degraded station; lust seeks but a transitory triumph, and soon loathes the object it has sought to debase. In a short period the rifler of her honour rejected her to the world, an helpless and destitute being, and bearing in her arms the early tribute of degraded love. She appeared at my feet with downcast eyes, and feelings of conscious degradation, yet uttered not a word to supplicate my forgiveness. I strove to be stern, and endeavoured to chide, but Nature triumphed over all my vows; I clasped her again in my arms, but oh! the change since I had last pressed that form to my bosom: she left me in all the charms of youthful loveliness, a blooming flower! and returned, alas! a blighted and a blossomless stem! From that time no other sound has passed her lips, but " Father,' " and this she utters with an accent that pierces to my heart." And where is now her treacherous seducer? I inquired. is gone," he replied, to appear where the curses of an injured father, the prayers of a ruined maid, will appeal against him.' "Is he then dead?" I exclaimed. "He perished but a short time ago, beneath a high rock that projects to the sea, a mile from this, whilst daring the wrathful' elements in a small boat." He now fell back again on his couch, quite

"He

and