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at least, and is a Commissioner of the Customs; the hand-bell to call the courtiers to vote at six o'clock at night, an Exchequer teller.

Sir Edmund Wyndham.-Knight Martial, in boons 5,000l. His wife was the King's nurse.

Baptist May, Esq.-Privy purse 1,000l. per annum allowance: got besides, in boons for secret service, 4,000l. This is he that said 5001. per annum to drink ale, eat beef, and to stink with, &c. Sir Stephen Fox.-First a poor foot-boy, and then a singing-boy, has got in places, by the court, 150,000l.; Clerk of the Peace. [In this instance there is a retrenchment of a piquant circumstance of scandal; but in most of the prior instances the particulars are increased, and given with greater minuteness; in such a manner as to confirm the idea that the MS. was an original draught, afterwards revised and enlarged.]

Some of the names given by Harris from the printed pamphlet are characterized in an essentially different manner, which may be accounted for by the author, in the interval between the date of one and the other, having procured more authentic information. Such are the following:

Sir Robert Holmes.-First an Irish livery-boy, then a highwayman, now hashaw of the Isle of Wight: got in boons, and by rapine, 100,000.; the cursed beginner of the Dutch war.

Edward Seymour.-Had, for four years, 2,000l. pension, to betray. the country party for which he then appeared. But since he hath shown himself barefaced, and is Treasurer to the Navy, and Speaker, one of the Commissioners of the Admiralty, and of the Popish cabal.

In several instances names occur in Harris which are not in the Flagellum. Our old friend Samuel Pepys, now so well known in all the minutest details of his private life, is mentioned, and but roughly handled in the 'List,' but not alluded to in the Flagellum.

Samuel Pepys, Esq.-Once a taylor, then serving-man to the old Lord Sandwich, now Secretary to the Admiralty: got by passes, and other illegal ways, 40,0001.

The following are not named in the Flagellum:

Sir Robert Sawyer.-A lawyer of as ill reputation as his father; has had for his attendance this session, 1,000l., and is promised (as he insinuates) to be Attorney-general and Speaker of the House of Commons.

Leviston Gower, Esq.-Son-in-law to the Earl of Bath: had a great estate fell to him by chance: but honesty and wit never came by accident. [This last stroke is of that fine satirical vein in which Marvel exulted.]

Sir Lionel Jenkins.-Son of a taylor, Judge of the Admiralty; was in hopes to be Archbishop of Canterbury: employed in four embassies; and whose indefatigable industry in procuring a peace for France has been our - He affirmed in the House of Commons that, upon necessity, the King might raise moneys without act of Parliament, &c.

The author, in a preface to the pamphlet, "begs pardon," quite in the style of Marvel," of the gentlemen here named, if he has, for want of better information, undervalued the price and merit of their voices, which he shall be ready, upon their advertisement, to amend: but more particularly he must beg the excuse of many more gentlemen, no less deserving, whom he hath omitted, not out of any malice, or for want of good-will, but of timely notice; but in general the House was, if they please to remember, this last session, by three of their own members, told that there were several papists, fifty outlaws, and pensioners without number; so that, upon examination, they may arrive at a better knowledge amongst themselves, and do one another more right than we (however well affected) can do without doors."

Many of the traits recorded in this tract were doubtless drawn with a malicious pen, probably exaggerated, and in some measure distorted. But there is every reason to believe them substantially true. In the subsequent Parliament, several of the bribe-masters were had up before the house, and being roughly handled, made disclosures, which especially confirm many of the allegations of the Flagellum. Several of the pensioners would have been punished, had not the king dissolved the Parliament. Mr. Brook, afterwards Lord Delamere, said in the next Parliament," that there was never any pensioners in Parliament till this pack of blades were got together." "What will you do? Shall these men escape-shall they go free with their booty? Shall not the nation have vengeance on them, who had almost given up the government? In the first place, I do propose that every man of them shall, on their knees, confess their fault to all the Commons; and that to be done one by one. Next, that as far as they are able, refund all the money they have received for secret service. Our law will not allow a thief to keep what he has got by stealth, but, of course, orders restitution: and shall these proud robbers of the nation not restore their ill-gotten goods? And, lastly, I do propose that they be voted incapable of serving in Parliament for the future, or of enjoying any office, civil or military: and order a bill to be brought in for that purpose: for it is not fit that they who were so false and unjust in that trust, should ever be trusted again.. This, sir, is my opinion but if the house shall incline to any other way, I will readily comply, provided a sufficient mark of infamy be set on them, that the people may know who bought and sold them."*

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Bolingbroke has defended this Parliament, with some appearance of justice. He shows, that though a large part of it were corrupt enough to be bribed, the remainder had virtue enough successfully to resist the measures attempted to be put upon them. All that corruption could do, he asserts, was to maintain a court party. This Parliament voted down the standing army, a merit of a high order, and projected the exclusion of the Duke of York: they contrived a test, in 1675, to purge their members, on oath, from all suspicion of corrupt influence-a measure, which, though perhaps foolish, looked honestand they moreover drove one of their paymasters out of the court, and impeached the other in the fullness of his power. There is undoubtedly truth in this; and it is not right to confound the innocent

* Delameres Works, p. 119.

with the guilty-the patriot and the pensioner. On the whole, however, we believe there is more justice in Algernon Sidney's forcible description of this set of men, with which we shall conclude this notice :-

"We are beholden," says he, "to Hyde, Clifford, and Danby, for all that has been done of that kind (corruption by bribery). They found a Parliament full of lewd young men, chosen by a furious people, in spite to the puritans, whose severity had disturbed them. The weakest of all ministers had wit enough to understand, that such as them might be easily deluded, corrupted, or bribed. Some were fond of their seats, and delighted to domineer over their neighbours, by continuing in them. Others preferred the cajoleries of the court, before the honour of performing their duty to the country that employed these. Some thought to relieve their ruined fortunes, and were most forward to give a vast revenue, that from them they might receive pensions. Others were glad of a temporary protection against their creditors. Many knew not what they did when they annulled the triennial act: voted the militia to be in the king: gave him the excise, customs, and chimney-money: made the act for corporations, by which the greatest part of the nation was brought under the power of the worst men in it: drunk or sober, passed the five-mile-act, and that for the uniformity of the Church."*

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITAIN.

Feb. 23d. Dr. Harwood read a paper from the lecture table, on the structure of seals, and its peculiar and beautiful adaptation to their modes of life and general economy. This communication was illustrated by many prepared specimens of these animals, from the museum of the Royal Institution, and from the valuable collection of Joseph Brooks, Esq.: there were also exhibited many curious. specimens of the skins of these animals, having undergone many processes of art for their application to domestic purposes.

The contents of a Tumulus found near the falls of the Niagara, Upper Canada, and of another on the back settlements of Ohio, with several Egyptian antiquities, presented by General Tolly, and new literature, were placed upon the library table.

March 2d. A paper written by a member of the Institution, on the principles of the structure of language, was read from the lecture table, by Mr. Singer, the librarian.

Several specimens of natural history, with presents of books, were laid upon the library tables.

March 9th. Mr. Holdsworth made some introductory observations on the structure of shipping. In the library was exhibited a specimen of gas made from resin, by Mr. Daniell's new process; several new works of art, presents, and some ancient and scarce books.

*Discourses on Government, p. 456. Edit. 1763. 4to.-See Harriss's Laws, vol. v. p. 294.

March 16th. A brief but general account of the principles concerned in the construction of suspension bridges, and their application, was given by Mr. Ainger, and illustrated by models, apparatus, and drawings.

Specimens of natural history, and of expensive and rare literary works, were laid upon the library tables.

March 23d. A discourse on the property of beauty contained in the oval, was delivered by Mr. R. R. Reinagle, R.A., and illustrated by numerous drawings and engravings. Specimens of porphyry quarried and worked in Sweden; of metallic plates pierced with small holes of regular dimensions, and placed at accurately equal distances; of a peculiar deposit of crystals, found in oil of turpentine; and of new. books, were laid upon the library tables.

March 30th. This evening Professor Pattison gave a general view of the circulation of the blood in the human being. A large meteoric stone, which had fallen in the night of August 7th, near the village of Kadonah, in the district of Agra, was laid upon the library table. The stone weighed above 14 lbs. A very simple and accurate balance, and easy of construction, was also upon the table; it was the contrivance of Mr. Ritchie. Some specimens of the Pumniean prepared by order of government, for Captain Parry's voyage, were also placed for the inspection of the members.

April 6th. Mr. Webster gave some experimental observations on the impulse of wind on sails. Several presents to the Museum of Natural History were placed upon the table, with specimens of paper made from various substances; books presented to the library, and various new publications.

The meetings were then adjourned, over two Fridays, to April the 27th.

MAGAZINIANA.

IDIOT BEE-FATER.-The boy was a resident in Selborne, about the year 1750. He took great notice of bees from his childhood, and at length used to eat them. In summer his few faculties were devoted to the pursuit of them, through fields and gardens. During winter, his father's chimney corner was his favourite haunt, where he dozed away his time, in an almost torpid state. Practice made him so expert, that he could seize honey-bees, humble-bees, or wasps, with his naked hands, disarm them of their stings, and suck their honey bags, with perfect impunity. Sometimes he would store the bees in bottles, and even in his shirt bosom. He was the terror of the surrounding bee-keepers, whose gardens he would enter by stealth, and rapping on the outsides of their hives, catch the bees as they came out to see what was the matter. If in this way he could not obtain a sufficient number to supply his wants, so passionately fond was he of honey, that he would sometimes overturn the hives to get at it. He was accustomed to hover about the tubs of the mead makers, to beg a draught of bee-wine, as he called it. As he ran about the fields he made a humming noise with his lips, resembling that of bees. The lad was lean in his person, and of a cadaverous unhealthy aspect: he died before he reached the age of maturity.White's Natural History of Selborne.

AFRICAN BUSHMAN'S POWER OF SUPPORTING HUNGER. Of their astonishing powers of sustaining hunger, Captain Stockenstrom mentioned a remarkable instance to me. He had once found a Bushman in the wilderness, who had subsisted fourteen days without any other sustenance than water and salt. The poor creature seemed almost exhausted, and wasted to skin and bone; and it was feared, that if allowed to eat freely, he might injure himself. However, it was at length agreed to let him have his own way, and before many hours had elapsed, he had nearly eat up half the carcase of a sheep. Next day the fellow appeared in excellent plight, and as rotund as an alderman. These people appear, indeed, to have acquired, from habit, powers of stomach similar to the beasts of prey, both in voracity and in supporting hunger.Thompson's Travels and Adventures in Southern Africa.

SCARABEAN REASONING.-I shall adduce another instance in support of my position that insects are endowed with reason, and that they mutually communicate and receive information. "A German artist of strict veracity, states, that in his journey through Italy, he was an eye witness to the following occurrence. He observed a species of scarabæus busily engaged, in making for the reception of its egg, a pellet of dung, which when finished, the insect rolled to the summit of a hillock, and repeatedly suffered it to tumble down the slope, apparently for the purpose of consolidating the pellet by the adhesion of earth to it in its rotating motion. During this process, the pellet unluckily fell into a hole, out of which the beetle was unable to extricate it. After several ineffectual attempts, the insect went to an adjoining heap of dung, and soon returned with three companions. All four applied their united strength to the pellet, and at length succeeded in pushing it out, when the three assistant beetles left the spot, and returned to their own quarters."-Bevan's Honey-bee.

PILOTAGE OF ENTHUSIASM.-[There is some wisdom in the following paragraph, which it would be well if those who are so fond of giving advice would attend to.]— I listened to these schemes, and took care not to speak my ideas thereon, which would have only lost me a friend, without going farther to cure his delirium, than a little momentary mortification. When consulted in these points by enthusiastic and sanguine youth, as a pilot taken on board by a ship in full sail, I never presume to call in question the prudence of making for a single port, I merely confine my influence to rendering the voyage as little hazardous as may be, to pointing out the rocks and currents likely to beset the giddy navigator. To endeavour to turn the ship about in such a case, merely incurs the risk of being sent over-board, and having a more obsequious and interested pilot taken in one's place.-Historiettes, or Tales of Continental Life.

SCENERY IN SOUTH AFRICA. The whole country appeared so beautiful, as to render it almost impossible to give an adequate idea of its varied charms; the road smoother than any gravelled walk, being of a strong sandy texture; veins of stone are occasionally found across the road. Clumps of shrubs, with various shades of green, some blooming, others seeding, geraniums with various creepers ascending the stems, then falling gracefully down the branches, the beautiful plumage of the birds dazzling in the sun's rays, a bush buck darting now and then from one shrubbery to another, altogether form the most enchanting scenery imagination can depict.

Our tents were pitched in a superb amphitheatre, encompassed with lofty hills, covered with trees full of the most luxuriant foliage, spreading a gloom over surrounding objects, and heightening the whole effect. The Hottentots had prepared our repast, and when it was ended, all the party retired to rest, for the evening was far advanced when we arrived.

The balmy fragrance of the air, the mild beams of the moon, and the romantic solitude of the spot, induced me to wander for a time, and contemplate the wildness of the scene. The stillness of the night was occasionally broken by the cries of wild animals. The hyena and jackall were familiar sounds, but the hippopotamus and bush buck strange and unusual. The noble teams of oxen were fastened to the waggons; the numerous Hottentots lay asleep around the blazing fires; one stood alternately on the watch, from time to time replenishing the flame and as the moon shone upon the tents, I could have pictured to myself such scenes as Homer drew, for it was in such a state that Rhesus and his host were found and destroyed before the gates of Troy. Absorbed in these reflections, I fell unconsciously asleep, and did not awake till the sun had appeared in all his glory.-Scenes and Occurrences in Caffer Land.

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