FAC-SIMILE OF THE OLDEST PRINT OF CHESS PLAY. This representation of "Six ladies and gentlemen in a garden, playing at chess," is an attempt to reduce a rare and very valuable copper-plate print, after an engraving of it in "A collection of 129 facsimiles of scarce and curious prints," edited by Mr. Ottley. That gentleman inclines to believe that the original of this print was executed by a celebrated artist, who is called the Master of 1466," because that date is affixed to some of his plates, and his name is unknown. He was the earliest engraver of the German school. The print is remarkable as a specimen of the arts of design and engraving when in their infancy. It shows the costume, and dandy-like deportment towards the ladies, of the gentlemen of that age. It is further remarkable as being the earliest engraved representation, in existence, of persons engaged in playing the game of chess. An artist of the first eminence, recently deceased, designed a beautiful set of pieces for the chess-board, which were executed in his lifetime, and played with. If a few choice anecdotes, or notices concerning chess, or chess-players, or moves in the game, are immediately afforded, they will be very acceptable as accompaniments to specimens of the elegant forms of some of these chess-men, which are now in the hands of the engraver, with the hope, and in anticipation, that this desire may be gratified. A MORALITY ON CHESS, BY POPE INNOCENT. This world is nearly like a Chess Board, of which the points are alternately white and black, figuring the double state of life and death, grace and sin. The families of the Chess-board are like mankind: they all come out of one bag, and are placed in different stations. They have different appellations; one is called king, another queen, the third rook, the fourth knight, the fifth alphin, the sixth pawn. The condition of the game is, that one piece takes another; and, when the game is finished, they are all deposited together, like man, in the same place. There is not any difference between the king and The king goes into all the circumjacent places, and takes every thing in a direct line which is a sign that the king must never omit doing justice to all. Hence, in whatever manner a king acts, it is reputed just; and what pleases the sovereign has the force of law. The queen goes and takes in an oblique line; because women, being of an avaricious nature, take whatever they can, and often, being without merit or grace, are guilty of rapine and injustice. The rook is a judge, who perambulates the whole land in a straight line, and should not take any thing in an oblique manner, by bribery and corruption, nor spare any one. But the knight, in taking, goes one point directly, and then makes an oblique circuit; signifying that knights and lords of the land may justly take the rents justly due to them, and the fines justly forfeited to them; their third point being oblique, refers to knights and lords when they unjustly extort. The poor pawn goes directly forward, in his simplicity; but he takes obliquely. Thus man, while he is poor and contented, keeps within compass, and lives honestly; but in search of temporal honors he fawns, cringes, bribes, forswears himself, and thus goes obliquely, till he gains a superior degree on the chess-board of the world. When the pawn attains the utmost in his power, he changes to fen; and, in like manner, humble poverty becomes rich and insolent. The alphins represent various prelates; a pope, archbishop, and subordinate bishops. Alphins move and take obliquely three points; perhaps the minds of certain prelates are perverted by fawning, falsehood, and bribery, to refrain from reprehending the guilty, and denouncing the vices of the great, whose wickedness they absolve. In this chess-game the Evil one says, "Check!" whenever he insults and strikes one with his dart of sin; and, if he that is struck cannot immediately deliver himself, the arch enemy, resuming the move, says to him, "Mate!" carrying his soul along with him to that place from which there is no redemption. Daphne mezereon often in full flower. March 3. Under the date of March 3, 1793, there, is a communication in the Gentleman's Magazine, from which, and from a previous account, it appears that in the preceding September several newspapers contained a paragraph, stating that a hawk had been found at the Cape of Good Hope, and brought from thence by one of the India ships, having on its neck a gold collar, on which were engraven the following words:-"This goodlie hawk doth belong to his most excellent majestie, James, king of England. A. D. 1610." In a curious manuscript, containing remarks and observations on the migration of birds, and their flying to distant regions, is the following passage, relating, it is presumable, to this bird :-" And here I call to mind a story of our Anthony Weldon, in his Court and Character of king James; "The king,' saith he, 'being at Newmarket, delighted much to fly his goshawk at herons; and the manner of the conflict was this: the heron would mount, and the goshawk would get much above it; then, when the hawk stooped at the game, the heron would turn up his belly to receive him with his claws and sharp bill; which the hawk perceiving, would dodge and pass by, rather than endanger itself. This pastime being over, both the hawk and heron would mount again, to the utmost of their power, till the hawk would be at another attempt; and, after divers such assaults, usually, by some lucky hit or other, the hawk would bring her down; but, one day, a most excellent hawk being at the game, in the king's presence, mounted so high with his game, that both hawk and heron got out of sight, and were never seen more inquiry was made, not only all over England, but in all the foreign princes' courts in Europe; the hawk having the king's jesses, and marks sufficient whereby it might be known; but all their inquiries proved ineffectual.' In the printed edition of Sir Anthony Weldon's Court of king James, the passage in question stands thus :-"The French king sending over his falconer to show that sport, his master falconer lay long here, but could not kill one kite, ours being more magnanimous than the French kite. Sir Thomas Monson desired to have that flight in all exquisiteness, and to that end was at £100 charge in gosfalcons for that flight; in all that charge he never had but one cast would perform it, and those, that had killed nine kites, never missed one. The earl of Pembroke, with all the lords, desired the king but to walk out of Royston town's end, to see that flight, which was one of the most stateliest flights of the world, for the high mountee; the king went unwillingly forth, the flight was showed, but the kite went to such a mountee, as all "Sir Charles. So; well cast off: aloft, aloft; well flown. Now she hath seized the fowl, and 'gins to plume her, Rebeck her not; rather stand still and check her. So: seize her gets, her jesses, and her bells; Away. Sir Francis. My hawk kill'd too! Sir Charles. Aye, but 'twas at the querre, Not at the mount, like mine. Sir Fran. Judgment, my masters. Cranwell. Yours miss'd her at the ferre. Wendoll. Aye, but our Merlin first had plum'd the fowl, And twice renew'd her from the river too; Her bells, Sir Francis, had not both one weight, Nor was one semi-tune above the other: Methinks these Milan bells do sound too full, And spoil the mounting of your hawk.— The technical terms in the above citation may admit of some explanation, from the following passage in Markham's edition of the Book of St. Alban's, 1595, where, speaking of the fowl being found in a river or pit, he adds, "if she (the hawk) nyme, or take the further side of the river, or pit from you, then she slayeth the fowl at fere juttie: but if she kill it on that side that you are on your- March 3. Day breaks self, as many times it chanceth, then you shall say she killed the fowl at the jutty ferry. If your hawk nyme the fowl aloft, you shall say she took it at the mount. If you see store of mallards separate from the river and feeding in the field, if your kawk flee covertly under hedges, or close by the ground, by which means she nymeth one of them before they can rise, you shall say, that fowl was killed at the querre." Sun rises sets Twilight ends h. m. 4.39 6 31 5 29 7 21 Purple spring crocus flowers. March 4. March 4, 1765, Died, Dr. William Stukeley, an eminent antiquary, of varied attainments. He was born at Holbeach, in Lincolnshire, where, and at Benet College, Cambridge, he received every advantage of education. He practised with reputation as a physician, at Boston, London, and Grantham; but was prevailed upon to take holy orders, and became, successively, rector of Somerby, All-Saints, Stamford, and St. George's Hanover-square, London. He was one of the founders of the society of antiquaries, the Spalding society, and the Egyptian society. He was a fellow of the Royal society, secretary to the antiquarian society, and senior fellow and censor of the college of physicians. He became a free-mason, under an impression that the order retained some of the Eleusinian mysteries, and was afterwards master of a lodge. He wrote ably as a divine, physician, historian, and antiquary. His knowledge of British antiquities was profound. He was a good botanist; and erudite in ancient coins, of which he had a good collection. He drew well, and understood mechanics. He invented a again. His remains were interred at Me dulcis saturet quies; O may this rural solitude receive, "Chyndonax Druida" is an allusion to an urn of glass so inscribed, in France, which Dr. Stukeley believed to contain the ashes of an arch-druid of that name, whose portrait forms the frontispiece to Stonehenge, though the French antiquaries, in general, considered it as a forgery. Mr. Pegge, who seemed to inherit the antiquarian lore and research of Dr. Stukeley, says of him, in his work on the coins of Cunobelin:-" The doctor, I am sensible, has his admirers, but I confess I am not one of that number, as not being fond of wildness and enthusiasm upon any subject." Respecting his hand writing Mr. Gray, mentioning other persons writing with him in the reading-room at the museum, says,-" The third person writes for the emperor of Germany, or Dr. Pocock, for he speaks the worst English I ever heard; and, fourthly, Dr. Stukeley, who writes for himself, the very worst person he could write for."* Sun rises. sets h. m. 4 37 6 29 5 31 7 23 Twilight ends successful method of repairing the sinking Grape hyacinth in flower if the season is not backward. Sweet violets are usually in flower. March 5. On the 5th of March, 1597, the son of the constable duke de Montmorency was baptized at the hotel de Montmorency. Henry IV. was a sponsor, and the pope's banquet, that all the cooks in Paris were legate officiated. So sumptuous was the employed eight days in making prepara * Noble. Sweet spring, thou com'st with all thy goodly train, The sad memorials only of my pain Do with thee come, which turn my sweets to sours. But she whose breath embalm'd thy wholesome air When fruits, and herbs, and flowers are decayed and perished, they are continually succeeded by new productions; and this governing power of the Deity is only his creating power constantly repeated. So it is with respect to the races of animated beings. What an amazing structure of parts, fitted to strain the various particles that are imbibed; which can admit and percolate molecules of such various figures and sizes! Out of the same common earth what variety of beings!—a variety of which no human capacity can venture the History of Paris, iii. 270. Drummond of Hawthornden. calculation; and each differing from the rest in taste, color, smell, and every other property! How powerful must that art be which makes the flesh of the various species of animals differ in all sensible qualities, and yet be formed by the separation of parts of the same common food! In all this is the Creator every where present, and every where active: it is he who clothes the fields with green, and raises the trees of the forest; who brings up the lowing herds and bleating flocks; who guides the fish of the sea, wings the inhabitants of the air, and directs the meanest insect and reptile of the earth. He forms their |