"The gar of mixtur is to be mixt with nalf pint of gen (i. e. gin), and then a table spoon to be taken mornings, at eleven o'clock, four, and eight, and four of the pills to be taken every morning, fasting, and the paper of powder to be divided in ten parts, and one part to be taken every night going to bed, in a little honey." "The paper of arbs (herbs) is to be burnt, a small bit at a time, on a few coals, with a little hay and rosemary, and while it is burning read the two first verses of the 68th Salm, and say the Lord's Prayer after." As the preparations had been taken by the ignorant creatures, it could not be ascertained what they were; but it was affirmed that, after the rites had been all performed, such was the effect upon the imagination of the poor girl who fancied herself possessed, that she had not had a fit afterwards. The drawing of blood from the supposed witch remained to be performed, in order to destroy her supposed influence.* CUNNING MEN [For the Year Book.] tion from two "learned clerks" to king The following is a copy of an applicaHenry VIII., for lawful permission to show how stolen goods may be recovered; to see and converse with spirits, and obtain their services; and to build churches. It was given to me a few years ago, by a gentleman in the Record office, where the original is deposited. I believe it has never yet appeared in print. The document is signed "Joannes Consell, Cantab; et Joan. Clarke, Oxonian, A.D. 1531." It appears that the license desired was fully granted by the first "Defender of the Faith;" who indeed well deserved that title, if he believed in the pretensions of his supplicants. A. A. R. To King Henry VIII. My sufferynt lorde, and prynce moste gracyus,' and of all crystiants the hedde, whych yn this realme of Yngland moste excellent doe dwelle, whoys highness ys most woorthy of all due subjection: where Newspaper of the time, fore we, as subjects true, cume unto your majestye moste woorthy, wyllinge to shewe sych cunynge and knowledge, as God of his hyness hath sent and geyven unto us: the wyche shall (whythe hys infinite grace) pleyse your dygnyte so hey, and be for the comfort and solace off all your realme so ryall. The wyche knowlege, no longe agonne happenyd to us (I trust in God) by good chance and fortune; and to use yt to your noble pleysure_yt is very necessary and expedient. Truly we have yt not by dayly study and laboure of extronomy, but we have yt by the dylygent laboure and drawyt of others, exelent and perfyt men (as ever was any) of that facultye. Notwithstandyng, we have studeyed the speculation of yt by there wrytynge, whyche was dyffyculte and peynfull for Wherefore we mykely desire your grace to pardon us to practys the same, not only for the altyed of our mynde, but specyally for your gracyus pleasure; for wythout your pardon yt is unlaueful; neverthelesse, wyth your lycense, yt is marvylus precyus, and of all treasure moste valyant, as the thyng itself dothe shewe, yn the whyche theys sayeng here folowing be conteyned thereyn. us. 1. Pryncypally, yt showys how a man may recover goodys wrongfully taken seyings that we will bryng. away; and yt is true, as the auctor dothe say, the whyche affermys all the woother 2. Secondarily ys to procure dygnyte of the sprytes of the ayre. 3. Thirdly ys to obtayne the treasure that be in the sea and the erthe. 4. Fourthly ys off a certeyn noyntment to see the sprytys, and to speke to theym dayly. of the ayre to answer truley to suche 5. Fyftly ys to constreyħe the sprytys questions as shall be asked of theym, and in no degree to be dyssetefulle. 6. Syxtly to have the famylyaryte of the sprytys, that they may serve you bodely, as men, and do your commandment in all thyngs, wythowt any dyssete. 7. Sevenly ys to buylde chyrches, bryges, and walls, and to have cognycyon of all scyencys, wythe many woother woorthe things; the whych ye shall knowe after thys, yf yt pleyse your grace. And now, consequently, ye shall here whych he wrytt lyeing in his dethe bedde, the pystell of freere Roger Bacon, the certifeying the faculte that we have spokeyn upon; and that ys this: The Epistle of Roger Bacon.* receive this treasure which even I, brother Roger Bacon, now deliver to thee; namely, the work on necromancy, w.`tten in this little book. It bears the test of truth, for whatsoever was to be found in it I have often proved; and it is known to every one that I have formerly spoken many wonderful things. And thou art not doubtful, but well assured, that had I not possessed this volume I should never have been able to accomplish any thing important in this particular art. Moreover, even now must I declare the same unto thee, for every thing set down in this book doth most plainly avouch itself. Of these my words may the most high God bear witness, and so judge me in the tremendous day when he shall pass sentence. And now, oh my sincerest friend Robert, my brother Sennahoi, I entreat thee, that thou wilt most diligently pray to God for me, and particularly, also, for the soul of brother Lumberd Bungey, of my kindred, who, at my desire, most faithfully translated into the Latin tongue, from the work of holy Cyprian, this same book, which he also sent to me; and hence it is, that with all my heart I beseech that you will pray, not for me only, but also for him; for indeed I believe that my last hour is close at hand, and that death will forthwith overtake me; therefore in this manner have I written. Not only thee, my dear orother, but even you, all dwellers upon earth, do I implore that you do especially pray that I, and he, and indeed all souls already departed, may be received into calm and quiet repose. This my unfeigned wish have I, thy brother Roger Bacon, written in my ultimate struggle with death, now present with me in my bed. Oh, my most amiable Sennahoi, prosper thou in our Lord Jesus Christ. Again and again I implore thee, that thou suffer not thyself in any manner to forget I have ventured to translate this "Epistle," which, in the original document, is in Latin. A. A. R. +I do not recollect meeting with this name elsewhere. A. A. R. “Consanguinitatis meæ." The friendship of Friar Bacon and Friar Bungey has been familiar to me fron my early childhood; but I never heard of their relationship until I saw this letter. A. A. R. me, and that thou wilt wholly remember cations: also, I pray that I may be kept in me in all, even thy least prayers and suppli mind by all good men; but for this purpose, to all of you to whom this work shall come, this same little book (certified to me by Lumberd Bungey) shall fully suffice. And scarcely shall you be able nature, for nothing can be more excellent to bring forward one of a more excellent than it is; because, whatsoever was formerly mine, by means of this book did I obtain it. Farewell. CHARADES, RIDDLES, &c. [For the Year Book.] A certain denomination, or heading, in the Year Book, has brought to my mind a charade which appeared in some publications last year, and which with its three companions form the best set of those kinds of riddles which I have ever read It is as follows: My first was dark o'er earth and air, As dark as she could be! Away, king Cole," mine hostess said, He stood upright upon his legs Long life to good king Cole! He drained the draught to the very dregs, There can be no doubt of the solution of this, after your recipes for "night caps." Christmas time and winter nights are the proper seasons for riddles, which serve to drive "ennui, thou weary maid," away. One of the earliest riddles which we have perhaps on record* is that propounded by the Sphinx, which, if we may believe report, was productive of any thing but mirth to the Thebans. This celebrated enigma, having the Greek before me,t I thus translate : The very ancientest I find by the EveryDay Book, vol. 2, 26, is in Judges xiv. 14-18. + Brunck's Sophocles, just before Edipas Tyrannus. There is a thing on earth that hath two feet, Aud four, and three (one name howe'er), Its nature it alone of earthly things, Of those that swim the deep and fly the air, Doth change; and when it rests upon most feet, Then (strange to tell!) then are its steps less fleet. For which puzzling enigma Edipus returns an answer, which runs thus,Listen, unwilling, ill-starred bird awhile, List to my voice which ends thy dreadful guile. Thou meanest man, who just after his birth, Like animals, four-footed, crawls the earth; But, being old, takes, as third foot, a staff, Stretching his neck, by old age bent in half. Since the time of the Theban Edipus, how many enigmas, and various kinds of riddles, have been invented! The letters of the alphabet have proved a fruitful source; witness lord Byron's celebrated enigma on the letter H. Then the one on O, and a pithy one on E, which for its shortness I give : The beginning of eternity, the end of time and space, The beginning of every end, and the end of every place. PILGARLIC. Starch hyacinth flowers. April 6. On the 6th of April, 1199, died Richard I., commonly called Cœur de Lion He was the first king of England who applied the plural term to the regal dignity. Bertrand de Born, a troubadour so early as the last half of the twelfth century, refers to Richard Cœur de Lion in the verses below, by this appellation "THE LORD OF OC AND No." The beautiful spring delights me well, When flowers and leaves are growing; Of the birds' sweet chorus flowing And I love to see, all scattered around, To see, on the level plains beyond, When the castles strong, besieged, shake, Lances and swords, and stained helms, And the vassals are there, Is to cleave the foeman's limbs and head, The conqueror less of the living than dead, I tell you that nothing my soul can cheer, Or banqueting, or reposing, Like the onset cry of "Charge them" rung From each side, as in battle closing, Where the horses neigh, And yonder is piled the mangled heap Barons! your castles in safety place, 3 21 5 26 Before 6 34 8 39 Dogs-tooth violet is in full blow in the gardens. The black-cap arrives. ye haste to the battle scene; And, Papiol quickly go, And tell the Lord of "Oc and No " That peace already too long hath been! Tales of the Minnesingers I have heard that Master Isaac Wal ton's "Angler" proved a good physician in a recent case, when medicine had done its worst. A lady, hypochondriacally affected, was enabled, through its perusal, to regain or obtain that serenity which distinguished its worthy author, and which she had lost. And who can dwell on those pastoral scenes wherein he expatiates, without acknowledging their renovating influence, and living them over again! I defy any one, who has heart and eyes, to con over the passage subjoined, without a feeling of the fresh breeze rushing around him, or seeing the fleet clouds chase one another along the sky, as he drinks in the varied sounds of joy and gratulation with wnich the air is rife. "Turn out of the way a little, good scholar," says the contemplatist, "towards yon high honey-suckle hedge there we'll sit and sing, whilst this shower falls so gently on the teeming earth, and gives yet a sweeter smell to the lovely flowers that adorn these verdant meadows. Look! under that broad beech-tree I sat down when I was this way a fishing; and the birds in the adjoining grove seemed to have a friendly contention with an echo, whose dead voice seemed to live in a hollow tree near the brow of that primrosehill. There I sat viewing the silver streams glide silently towards their centre-the tempestuous sea, yet sometimes opposed by rugged roots and pebble stones which broke their waves and turned them into foam." The magic of these lines lies in their artlessness; they are poetry or prose, as the reader pleases, but, whether he wills it or not, they are "after nature." And surely there are many others who, like honest Isaac, can find " tongues in trees" as they lie dreaming in their summer shade, and see "the brave branches fan the soft breeze as it passes, or hear the leaves whisper and twitter to each other like birds at love-making." Nor are those few who have sat entranced beneath the friendly shelter of some twilight bower, listening to the "rocking wind," till suddenly it has died away, and is succeeded by the still shower, rustling on their leafy covert; and, as the serene and tender sungleams steal again through the twinkling thicket, have risen from their sojourn, mightier and better men, to go forth "musing praise, and looking lively grati tude." Such has been oftentimes my experience; and very probably considerations of this kid possessed me as, wearied by a long walk, I sat down in a fresh flowing meadow to make the sketch copied in the engraving which precedes this article. It represents the twin-trunks of an alder, growing near the pretty" rivulet that loseth itself under ground, and rises again at Loose, serving thirteen mills," mentioned in the annotations to Camden's Britannia. Both trunks spring from the same root, and may have been at one time united; but a fissure having been made, possibly for some such superstitious purpose as that mentioned in the Table Book (vol. ii. col. 465), but more probably by accident or decay, the living bark has closed round the separate stems, and given them the singular appearance of entire and independent trees, growing very lovingly side by side. D. A. In 1827 many of the trees in Camberwell Grove, Surrey, which had died from unknown causes, were doomed to fall. One of these, a leafless, leprous thing, remained standing for some time after its brethren had been felled, presenting_an appearance strikingly picturesque. The fact is mentioned in a note to the following poem, from an unpretending little work, with the title of "Bible Lyrics and other Poems." THE LAST OF THE LEAFLESS. Last of the leafless withered tree! Thou shalt not fall unsung, Though hushed is now the minstrelsy That once around thee rung. The storm no more thy scourge shål? de, When, shiv'ring in the breeze, Rearing thy powerless arm on high, Despising Mammon's leaven, His only solace-heaven! Thou standest desolate and drear, Blasted and tempos r ven; And seared, yet "looking upward" still. Or baleful moon by night; Like him whose "record is on high," Yet thou must perish, wither'd tree! I desire to increase the calm pleasures of my readers, by earnestly recommending "Bible Lyrics, and other Poems," whence the preceding verses are taken. If one competent judge, who purchases this little five shilling volume, should differ with me in opinion concerning its claims to a place in the book-case, I am content to abstain from all claim to regard, and not to urge my notions on subjects of criticism. On the 6th of April, 1695, died, at the age of eighty-nine, Dr. Richard Busby, the celebrated master of Westminster *Kent, in describing the course of the Medway. school. He educated most of the emi |