Part 2
The same results were produced by the same experiments upon two of a species less completely carnivorous--the _Paradoxure gennet_. It may be inferred from the circumstance, that quadrupeds of prey thrive best with long intervals between their meals, and that the difficulty which such animals experience in obtaining food is counterbalanced by their requiring it not so frequently as animals who feed on vegetables.
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STATUE OF WILLIAM PITT.
[Illustration: A statue of a man standing in flowing robes, holding a tablet.]
A Colossal statue of bronze, of which the above is a representation, was erected in Hanover-square, at the end of last year, to the memory of William Pitt. The orator is represented in the act of speaking. This statue, which in many respects is the finest in London, is the work of Mr. Chantrey.
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GLEANINGS IN NATURAL HISTORY.
We have occasionally selected a paragraph from a very pretty volume, by Mr. Jesse, published under the above title. The author lives in the neighbourhood of Kew; and, like Mr. White of Selborne, who made a small village in Hampshire one of the most interesting spots to the lover of nature, by his ample descriptions of the natural objects which he saw around him, Mr. Jesse has rendered his walks a vehicle for much instruction and amusement to himself and to others. He principally confines his attention to zoology--the most generally attractive of the departments of natural history; and he looks upon the animal world with so much practical wisdom, being disposed to be happy himself and to see every creature around him happy, that there are few persons who will not read his slight sketches with improvement to their hearts and understandings.
We copy a passage descriptive of the manner of taking deer for hunting in the king’s parks:--
“In addition to the herd of fallow-deer, amounting to about one thousand six hundred, which are kept in Richmond Park, there is generally a stock of from forty to fifty red deer. Some stags from the latter are selected every year, and sent to Swinley, in order to be hunted by the king’s stag hounds. When a stag, which has been hunted for three or four seasons, is returned to the park, to end his days there, he is generally more fierce and dangerous than any of the others at a particular season of the year. At that time it is sometimes not safe to approach him; and the keepers informed me, that they have been obliged to fire at them with buck shot, when they have been attacked by them. They account for this ferocity, by the circumstance of the deer having been much handled, and consequently rendered more familiar with, and less afraid of, those whom they would naturally shun.
“Does are longer lived than bucks. One doe in Richmond Park lived to be twenty years old; and there are other instances of their having attained the same age.
“A curious circumstance lately occurred, respecting the red deer in the park in question. In the year 1825, not a single calf was dropped by any of the hinds, though they had bred freely the preceding, and did the same in the subsequent year. I find an event recorded in the ‘Journal of a Naturalist,’ as having happened in the same year in regard to cows. It is there stated that, for many miles round the residence of the author, scarcely any female calves were born. This diminution of the usual breed of deer, and the increase of sex in another animal, is not a little remarkable.
[Illustration: Red Deer.]
“There is a fine breed of buck-hounds in Richmond Park, and their sagacity is very extraordinary. In taking the deer, according to annual custom, either for the royal hunt or for the fattening paddocks, a stag or a buck, which has been previously fixed upon, is ridden out of the herd by two or three of the keepers in succession, each of whom is closely followed by a hound, the young dogs only being kept in slips. As soon as the deer has been separated from his companions, the dogs have the requisite signal given to them, and they immediately follow in pursuit. The scene is then highly interesting. A strong deer will afford a very long chase, but when he comes to bay, the dogs generally seize him by the throat or ears; the keepers come up, take him by the horns, and after having strapped his hind and fore legs together, put him into a cart which follows for the purpose, and he is then disposed of as he may be wanted. I have seen an active young keeper throw himself from his horse upon a deer at bay, which he had come up to at full gallop, and hold his horns till assistance arrived. Some danger, however, attends this sport; as, when a deer has been hard pressed, I have seen him, in more than one instance, suddenly turn upon the horsemen and injure the horses, and in one case wound the leg of the horseman. The dogs are so well trained, and are so soon made aware which buck is intended to be caught, that they seldom make a mistake, even if the deer regains the herd after having been driven from it, but press him through it, till they have again separated him from it. It is well known that when a hard-pressed deer tries to rejoin his companions, they endeavour to avoid and get away from him as much as possible, or try to drive him away with their horns. So severe is the chase in Richmond Park in taking deer, especially when the ground is wet, that three or four good horses may be tired by a single horseman in one day’s deer-taking, if each deer is ridden out of the herd, and followed till he is taken. When dogs are in slips, the man who holds them merely rides as near as he can to the person who is endeavouring to single out the deer, and awaits his signal for slipping the dog. These dogs, who are a large, rough sort of greyhound and very powerful and sagacious, are soon taught not to injure the deer when they come to them. The cry of ‘hold them,’ made use of by the keepers in urging them forward, seems to be perfectly understood by the dogs.”
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THE UNITED STATES.
[Remarks on the Statistics and Political Institutions of the United States. By William Gore Ouseley, Esq., Attaché to his Majesty’s Legation at Washington. 8vo. London, Rodwell, 1832.]
The book before us is rather a rambling one; and we cannot say that it appears to us to contain much that is new, or that it has been prepared with all the care, even in regard to its merely literary qualities, which ought to have been bestowed on it. But the work is written in a moderate, fair, and manly spirit, and is calculated to beget a very favourable opinion of the general liberality and philanthropy of the author’s views. Although it contains some sensible remarks upon Mrs. Trollope’s volumes, which we lately noticed, and also upon a variety of other minor points, the greater portion of it is devoted to an examination of the financial results of the American system of government, and a comparison of the burthens which it imposes upon the people with those which are borne by the inhabitants of England and of France. The settlement of this question appears to be the principal aim of the writer; and he has brought together the tables and estimates of various authorities by whom it has been investigated.
In looking at these statements, however, it must be borne in mind, that the two countries are differently situated in many other respects, as well as in regard to their political institutions; and the difference between the amount of taxes paid in the one and that paid in the other, may arise, wholly or in part, from circumstances with which the form of the government has really nothing whatever to do.
It is our duty to mention this circumstance to point out that any belief that the two countries can be brought to the same point of taxation is somewhat irrational. On the other hand we can have no hesitation in expressing an opinion, that the nearer they are assimilated, the greater will be the amount of public happiness in the more highly-taxed country. A wise government will always strive to reduce taxes to the lowest point that is compatible with security against foreign violence, the maintenance of the laws, and the preservation of national credit.
A great part of Mr. Gore Ouseley’s book is made up of extracts from the American Almanac, and other recent publications. The following passage, relating to the gold mines which have been lately opened in some of the Southern States of the Union, contains some curious and interesting information, which is also copied from other works, but which is not generally known:--
“These mines have not been worked to any considerable extent for more than about five or six years, or probably much less. And yet many of them are worked upon an extensive scale, and mills for grinding the ore, propelled by water or by steam, are erected in vast numbers. The company of Messrs. Bissels, which is one of the most considerable, employs about 600 hands. The whole number of men now employed at the mines in these southern states is at least 20,000. The weekly value of these mines is estimated at 100,000 dollars, or more than one million sterling annually. But a small part of the gold is sent to the United States Mint. By far the larger part is sent to Europe, particularly to Paris.
“Of the working miners the greater number are foreigners--Germans, Swiss, Swedes, Spaniards, English, Welsh, Scotch, &c. There are no less than _thirteen_ different languages spoken at the mines in this State[2]! And men are flocking to the mines from all parts, and find ready employment. Hundreds of landowners and renters work the mines on their grounds on a small scale, not being able to encounter the expense of much machinery. The state of morals among the miners or labourers is represented to be deplorably bad. This may be attributed to the absence of any general organization as yet for the police and regulation of the mines, combined with the usual effects of gold upon the uneducated and needy classes of men (often not the most favourable specimens of their various nations) who generally seek employment in the gold districts. The village of Charlotte, in Mecklenburg County, is in the immediate vicinity of several of the largest mines. It is increasing rapidly.
“One interesting fact deserves mention:--When speaking of the gold mines, there are indubitable evidences that these mines were known and _worked_ by the aboriginal inhabitants, or some other people, at a remote period. Many pieces of machinery which were used for this purpose have been found. Among them are several _crucibles_ of earthenware, and far better than those now in use. Messrs. Bissels had tried three of them, and found that they lasted twice or three times as long as even the Hessian crucibles, which are the best now made. It is to be regretted that some antiquary has not had an opportunity of at least examining these curious relics; and it is hoped that they will be preserved in future, notwithstanding the temptation offered by their superior qualities.
“These gold mines prove that the whole region in which they abound was once under the powerful action of fire. And it is a fact, not generally known, that the miners who have come from the mines in South America and in Europe pronounce this region to be more abundant in gold than any other that has been found on the globe. There is no telling the extent of these mines; but sufficient is known to prove they are of vast extent.”--pp. 151-153.
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Footnote 2:
North Carolina. The gold mines commence in Virginia, and extend south-west through North Carolina, part of South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, and end in Tennessee. The chief mines at present are those of North Carolina and Georgia.
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THE CALABRIAS.
[Calabria; during a Military Residence of Three Years, &c. In a Series of Letters, by a General Officer of the French Army, from the original MS. London, Effingham Wilson, 1832.]
The Calabrias, which are divided into two provinces, citra and ultra, occupy the extremity of the South of Italy, forming a peninsula one hundred and seventy miles in length, and varying in breadth from seventy to thirty-five miles. The beautiful Mediterranean sea flows round this peninsula, and a chain of the Apennines intersects it. The summit of these mountains is a vast platform called La Syla, which is admirable for pasture, and well provided with farm-houses and villages. The plains washed by the sea would be everywhere most fertile, but they have been neglected, and permitted to become swamped and pestilentially unhealthy in many places.
A little work has just been published, which contains some instructive and amusing information with regard to this part of Italy. This work is the translation of a French volume, entitled ‘Lettres sur les Calabres, par un Officier Français,’ which was published at Paris some twelve or thirteen years since. What the Author may have become we know not, but when he wrote his Letters he was nothing more than a subaltern;--a clever man, as his little book proves, yet still only a lieutenant of the line. But the translator, or publisher, appears to consider that the high-sounding additions of, “A General Officer of the French Army” and “from the original MS.” are necessary to the success of the book in its English dress. It is to be regretted that a volume which contains much to inform and amuse should be introduced to the English reader with the aid of such useless quackery; for the work is really valuable in itself, and requires no such arts to recommend it.
During his three years’ residence, the Author of these Letters, which were written on the spot, when the scenery and the romantic adventures he was engaged in were fresh and full in his mind, traversed the Calabrias several times in their whole extent, and in pursuit of partisans and brigands climbed mountains and penetrated into wild glens which for ages had probably never been visited except by the native robber or huntsman. He saw and described all the great towns, and the sites of the ancient cities of Magna Græcia; and his account of the productions and curiosities, manners and customs of these provinces, is full and most amusing. We subjoin two or three passages, describing the physical character of the country and the manners of its people:--
“The climate of Calabria varies according to the character and elevation of the soil, and is consequently favourable to all sorts of produce. In the plains, sheltered against the north wind, there are found sugar-canes, aloes, and date-trees; while the pine and birch cover the tops of the mountains. The great variety and richness of the productions of Calabria furnish an abundance of all the necessaries of life. It has grain of every description; wines which might be rendered as good as those of Spain and Languedoc, if the inhabitants had more intelligence and industry; and olive oil in such profusion, that it is kept in vast cisterns dug in the earth, or in the rock. Great quantities of silkworms (and silkworms of the very best quality) are bred here, which, together with the growth of cotton, form a considerable article of commerce. The liquorice root grows without cultivation; and in the forests is found a sort of manna, which is in great request. Immense droves of horned cattle pass alternately from the rich grazing grounds of the Syla to the aromatic pasture of the plains, where they remain during the winter. Their flocks are as vast as their herds. Their breed of horses is hardy, active, extremely swift, full of fire, and very numerous. And besides these the Calabrians have the excellent mule, so necessary for a mountainous country, and vast droves of the formidable buffalo, which they tame and employ in labour like an ox. In all parts of Calabria there is a great quantity of game of every description. The seacoasts abound with fish: the sword-fish alone supplies food to a part of the inhabitants during several months of the year, and the tunny forms a lucrative branch of commerce.... All this ought to produce comfort and opulence, but hardly any thing is met with but abject misery! Nature has done every thing for the country, but for many ages the vices of the government have marred its prosperity. The condition of the peasantry is most wretched: there is a total want of emulation. The climate and the soil do all the work. Productions of every kind are the spontaneous gifts of nature without any aid from art and industry. With the exception of a few cities, and some towns that are regularly built, all the other inhabited places present the most miserable and disgusting appearance: the whole interior of their houses is a mass of revolting filth: the pigs live familiarly with the inmates.... These people have no true principle of religion or morals. Like all ignorant masses, they are superstitious to excess. The most atrocious brigand carries in his bosom relics and images of saints, which he invokes at the very moment he is committing the greatest enormities.... The Calabrians are capable of being made excellent soldiers from their robust constitutions, their sobriety, activity, and quickness. If these people, isolated as they are from the rest of Europe, and entrenched behind impassable mountains, were actuated by a pure spirit of patriotism, political and religious, they would become invincible; and the country they inhabit might be rendered a sure and safe asylum against tyranny.”
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POEMS. BY WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT. London. Andrews, 1832.
Our reasons for noticing and recommending this volume to our readers are manifold. It is beautiful in itself; it is written by an American; it is one of the best specimens we have seen of the poetical genius of our transatlantic brethren; it is edited by Washington Irving, the most accomplished prose writer of America; and is by him dedicated or rather addressed to Samuel Rogers, the author of the ‘Pleasures of Memory,’ and who, at an advanced period of life, preserves all the generous glow of youth for letters and for arts, and for every thing connected with the intellectual improvement of mankind.
The exhibition of actual specimens of American taste and literature will tend to counteract the mischievous effects of those caricatures of American life and manners with which some authors have of late amused the spleen and prejudice of the British public. It is important to remove the illusion produced by writers of talent, who, professing to delineate national peculiarities truly, exaggerate and misrepresent them; regardless, and perhaps unconscious, that by using ridicule and sarcasm on such subjects they are renewing antipathies which never had a rational existence, and which years of friendly intercourse had almost annihilated; and are detaching from us the sympathies of those who by descent, community of free institutions (though differently modified), and identity of language, must naturally be well disposed towards us.
“During an intimacy of some years’ standing,” says Washington Irving to Samuel Rogers, “I have uniformly remarked a liberal interest on your part in the rising character and fortunes of my country, and a kind disposition to promote the success of American talent, whether engaged in literature or the arts. I am induced, therefore, as a tribute of gratitude, as well as a general testimonial of respect and friendship, to lay before you the present volume, in which, for the first time, are collected together the fugitive productions of one of our living poets, whose writings are deservedly popular throughout the United States.”
This is all as it should be, in relation both to Mr. Rogers and his friend. And we confess we augur most favourably of the taste of a country, _throughout_ which, poetry so refined in sentiment, and so pure in execution and ornament, as that contained in the volume before us, enjoys popularity.
We began by recommending Mr. Bryant’s Poems. A perusal of the following specimen, as well as of one or two that we have lately printed separately, will justify our so doing, and there are many pieces in the volume of equal originality and beauty. A warm admiration of the works of nature, strong religious feeling towards the great Author of these works, a singular happiness of description, and a power of clothing his descriptions “with moral associations that make them speak to the heart,” “an independent spirit, and the buoyant aspirations incident to a youthful, a free, and a rising country[3],” are among the charming characteristics of this American poet. We will only add, that the whole, while written in a style elegant enough to please the most fastidious, is simple and intelligible enough for the commonest reader.
TO A WATERFOWL.
Whither, midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue Thy solitary way?
Vainly the fowler’s eye Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong, As, darkly painted on the crimson sky, Thy figure floats along.
Seek’st thou thy plashy brink Of weedy lake, or marge of river wide, Or where the rocking billows rise and sink On the chafed ocean-side?
There is a Power whose care Teaches thy way along that pathless coast-- The desert and illimitable air-- Lone wandering, but not lost.
All day thy wings have fanned, At that far height, the cold, thin atmosphere, Yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land, Though the dark night is near.
And soon that toil shall end, Soon shalt thou find a summer home, and rest And scream among thy fellows; reeds shall bend Soon o’er thy sheltered nest.
Thou’rt gone--the abyss of heaven Hath swallowed up thy form; yet on my heart Deeply hath sunk the lesson thou hast given, And shall not soon depart.
He, who, from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight, In the long way that I must tread alone, Will lead my steps aright.
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Footnote 3:
Washington Irving’s dedicatory Letter to Rogers.
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INDIA.
[Pen and Pencil Sketches. Being the Journal of a Tour in India. By Captain Mundy, late Aide-de-Camp to Lord Combermere. 2 vols. 8vo.]