Read Ebook: The Mirror of Literature Amusement and Instruction. Volume 17 No. 473 January 29 1831 by Various

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THE MIRROR OF LITERATURE, AMUSEMENT, AND INSTRUCTION.

THE STRAND, ANCIENT AND MODERN.

THE STRAND,

THE STRAND,

And its Neighbourhood, anno 1700. Looking from Arundel House, northwards, With the Maypole and Garland.

We have often, in our antiquarian notices of the Metropolis, touched upon the olden topography of COVENT GARDEN and THE STRAND, and illustrated our pages with some portion of its history. Thus, in vol. xii. p. 40, the "regular subscriber" will find, an Engraving, and descriptive notes of Old Covent Garden: in vol. xiii. p. 122, he will find a second notice of the same spot; and in the same volume, p. 241, is a whole-page Engraving of the original Somerset House, with ample details of its foundation, the neighbouring district, &c. The reader should turn to these pages, and re-read them in connexion with the few particulars we have now to add.

Stow's "Survey," p. 829, edit. 1618.

Ibid. p. 130.

Ibid.

Stow's "Survey," p. 130, edit. 1618.

The old May-pole often mentioned as in a state of decay in various publications, which stood almost on the site of the present church, was removed in 1713, and a new one erected July 4, opposite Somerset House, which had two gilt balls and a vane on the summit, decorated on rejoicing days with flags and garlands.--When the second May-pole was taken down, in May, 1718, Sir Isaac Newton procured it from the inhabitants, and afterwards sent it to the Rev. Mr. Pound, rector of Wanstead, Essex, who obtained permission from Lord Castlemain to erect it in Wanstead Park, for the support of the then largest telescope in Europe, made by Monsieur Hugon, and presented by him to the Royal Society, of which he was a member. This enormous instrument, 125 feet in length, had not long remained in the park, when the following limping verses were affixed to the May-pole:

"Once I adorn'd the Strand, But now have found My way to pound, In Baron Newton's land; Where my aspiring head aloft is rear'd, T' observe the motions of the ethereal herd.

"Here sometimes rais'd a machine by my side, Through which is seen the sparkling milky tide: Here oft I'm scented with a balmy dew, A pleasing blessing which the Strand ne'er knew.

"There stood I only to receive abuse, But here converted to a nobler use; So that with me all passengers will say, I'm better far than when the Pole of May."

THE LAST WISH.

Ay! o'er them shall the soft wind blow, And kiss their lips of bloom-- The fair, the bright in sunset's glow; --Plant roses on my tomb.

The cypress is a mournful tree, And bodes an early doom; But lovely eyes shall weep o'er me; --Plant roses o'er my tomb.

When feverish dreams assail with dread The bosom's haunted gloom, Oh, why should we lament the dead? --Plant roses on my tomb.

The birds shall sing, amid their leaves, To skies of richest bloom; But cypress-shade the spirit grieves;-- --Plant roses on my tomb.

I loved them when a careless child, And bless'd their deep perfume, When lute and song my dreams beguiled; --Plant roses on my tomb.

The fragrance touch'd with golden light, And beautified with bloom;-- Oh, plant them in the sunset bright, To consecrate my tomb.

R.A.

HALCYON DAYS.

In illustration of your correspondent P.T.W.'s article, entitled "Halcyon Days," in No. 471, I beg to furnish you with the following, from a friend's album:--

H.H.C.

ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH TITLE "DUKE OF CLARENCE."

W.G.C.

YES, WE SHALL MEET AGAIN.

"The grave is the ordeal of true affection."

Yes, we shall meet again, When this world's strife is over; And where comes not care or pain, A brighter land discover.

I will not think, in lasting night, Earth's love and friendship dies;-- It lives again, serenely bright, In worlds beyond the skies.

I will not think the grave hath power To dim this heart's undying love;-- Oh! may I still, in death's dark hour, Its lasting fondness prove.

Immortal sure some feelings are;-- Oh! not of earth the pure devotion, Which lives in one fond earthly care, And that--pure Friendship's soft emotion.

For brightest this wild world appears When far each selfish care is driven; Soft Pity! dry not yet thy tears-- They make dark earth resemble heaven.

For other's weal, for other's woe, Let me have smiles and tears to give; And all my busy care bestow, In some fond trusting heart to live.

And let a voice be murmuring near, When other sounds are faint and low. And whisper softly in my ear. When Death's chill dews are on my ear--

"Yes, we shall meet again, When this world's strife is over; And, where comes not care or pain, A better land discover."

ANNE R.

WHO WAS KATERFELTO?

Perhaps some of your curious readers would oblige me with a little information concerning the personage mentioned in these lines of Cowper:--

"And Katerfelto, with his hair on end, At his own wonders wondering for his bread,"

W.C.

THE CHEROOT.

In page 429, vol. xvi. of your amusing Miscellany, the Cheroot is called a China Cigar. The writer, if he had given himself the trouble to inquire of any person who had ever been in that country, would have ascertained that there is no such thing as a Cheroot manufactured in China; and what are called Cigars there are nothing more than a small quantity of very fine cut yellowish tobacco, wrapped up in white paper, and about two inches or rather more in length. These, the Chinese sometimes smoke, but generally prefer a shallow cupped pipe of composition metal, of which copper is the principal part; to which a long whanghee or small black bamboo is attached, as a stem or stalk, sometimes more than a yard in length, and tipped with an ivory tube or mouthpiece. They generally carry a piece of joss-stick or slow-match with them, and a flint, steel, and punk; and when they are inclined to smoke, they strike fire on apiece of punk, and light the joss-stick, which will continue burning a long while. As their tobacco is very fine and dry, the pipeful seldom takes more than one or two whiffs to consume it, and they emit the smoke through their nostrils in large volumes. In this manner they will smoke more than a dozen pipesfull in a short time. Cigars are generally imported into China by the Americans, or sent from Manilla; and Cheroots by the English and other trading vessels from Bengal or from Madras.

In India, the lower orders use a hookah or hubble bubble, which is made of a cocoa-nut shell well cleaned out, having a hole through the soft eye of the shell, and another on the opposite side, a little lower down, the first of which is used for the chauffoir, and the other to suck or draw the smoke from. The shell is nearly filled with water, and a composition of tobacco, sugar, and sometimes a little opium, is put into the chauffoir, in shape of a ball, about the size of a marble, which they call joggery. A live coal is then put on the ball in the chauffoir, and the hubble-bubble is handed from one to another, with the best relish imaginable. Sometimes a dozen natives, get squatting on their hams, in a group, and pass this delicate article of luxury from one to another, each taking two or three good pulls at it as it goes round, and chattering three or four at a time, like so many apes. They likewise emit the smoke through their nostrils like the Chinese. The women are in the habit of enjoying the hubble-bubble, in groups, in a similar manner.

The best Cheroots are manufactured at Chiusmab, near Calcutta, where likewise a great quantity are made up; they vary in length from four to eight or nine inches. A great quantity are likewise manufactured at Masulapatam, but they are considered as much inferior to those of Bengal. At Masulapatam there is a very extensive manufactory of a black clammy snuff, which is sent all over Hindostan.

R.L.

STORY OF A BOY.

Some years back a small party of children were amusing themselves upon the beach, near the town of Conway, in North Wales. One of them a fine boy of three years old being much fatigued, left his juvenile companions, and unperceived by them, got into a boat not far from the spot, and fell asleep. The tide soon afterwards coming in, floated the boat, and carried it up the river; and upon the return of tide it fell back, and subsequently the boat and infant were carried out into the channel, between Puffin Isle, near the Anglesea Coast and the Lancashire Shore, or I should say, in the Irish Channel. A trading vessel, in the grey of the morning, perceiving a small boat so far from any land, bore down, and the crew to their great surprise, found only the poor child in it, nearly heart broken at its unfortunate situation, and totally unable to give any regular account of itself. The master of the vessel felt every wish and anxiety to restore the poor child to its parents, but not being able to glean from it who they were, and having no children of his own, he made up his mind to adopt the boy, congratulating himself that Providence had in this singular manner thought proper to send him an heir to his property, and a delight as he fondly hoped in his declining years. Accordingly after his return back from Liverpool, where he was then bound, to his residence in the North of Ireland, he introduced his little charge to his wife, who had never borne him any family; related the very singular manner he had found him, and they mutually agreed to take him under their protection until they could find out his parents, and if they were unsuccessful, to bring him up as their own child.

Sometime afterwards the mother of the boy came to be made acquainted with what had happened to him, and she caused a letter to be sent to his foster father, wishing her child to be given up to her; her application was attended to, expressing much pleasure at being able to restore the boy to her, but stated that he was doing well, and in good hands, they were reluctant to part with him; and to induce his mother to suffer him to remain where he was, she was informed that his protector had made his will, and upon his demise, had left the whole of his property to the child. All this had no weight, she demanded her son, and the little fellow was afterwards given up, with many tears and regrets by his foster parents, to his mother, at Liverpool. It would be well could the narrative break off here in the manner it could be wished. But soon afterwards, upon the return of the boy with his mother to their home, playing with some children in the neighbourhood of Oakland Carding Manufactory, near Llanurst, he unfortunately fell into a small sheet of water and was drowned before any assistance could be rendered him.

J.N.J.

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