the sinews were shrunk, the limb had withered; the nails had grown to an enormous length, quite through the hand, which was clenched and looked like monstrous claws. The whole appearance of the man was squalid and repulsive in the most odious degree. His hair was long, matted, and filled with filth; his shaggy beard, tangled and thick with the revolting accumulation of years, covered his meagre chest, which was smeared with cow-dung and ashes. His eyes glared with an expression of hardened and reckless impiety, induced, doubtless, by the supposition of his claims to a blessed immortality. He scowled upon all around him who did not seem disposed to administer to his wants, and his silent arrogance was truly disgusting. Another case of a similar description was witnessed by the travellers of Cawnpoor. They met a group of persons proceeding at a slow pace towards a river; they bore what appeared to be a heavy burthen, and this ultimately proved to be a human body, apparently in the last stage of existence. As our boat was close to the shore, continues Mr. Caunter, I could see the miserable victim occasionally move his limbs, and could even hear him speak. He was extended upon a rude frame of matting, stretched over four bamboos, little exceeding the length and breadth of the body which lay upon it, and was placed close to the water's edge, in order that his last sigh might expire upon the banks of the sacred river. He was accompanied, as we soon learnt, by his nearest of kin, who looked on with the greatest indifference whilst the last rites of a most revolting sacrifice were about to be performed, and, when all was prepared, eagerly participated in the ceremony that immediately followed. The frame upon which the dying man lay was placed so near the stream, that the body was washed by every ripple of the water, so that the least push would launch it upon its placid bosom. The mouth and nostrils of the passive sufferer were now crammed with the consecrated mud of the Ganges, and this last act of kindred humanity was the consummation of a holy rite, which was to secure to the happy soul of the now departing saint a passport to the realms of everlasting bliss, by obtaining for it the enviable privilege of dismissal from its carnal prison-house on the banks of those waters, which are reverenced, according to the belief of all pious Hindoos, even by the gods. The dying man, under the delusions of his besotted creed, submitted, without the slightest resistance or impatience, to the dreadful ceremony of mud suffocation, though it is possible he might have been passive rather from physical incapacity than from actual indifference; nevertheless, it was evident, from the occasional motion of his body, that he was still alive. When the whole funeral ceremony had been performed, the poor wretch was left to the mercy of the stream and of the jackals, which latter frequently attack these unhappy sufferers before life is extinct. In the present instance we had an opportunity of witnessing one of those horrible contingencies to which the expiring Hindoo is occasionally exposed, when left to pour out his last sigh upon the hallowed banks of the Ganges. Shortly after the still-living body had been abandoned by the humane relatives, we saw several Pariah dogs approach it; one of them seized a foot, another a hand, and began to tug, and did not cease until we scared them from their prey, to which they no doubt soon returned when they no longer found any interruption to their horrible carnival. Upon these occasions, as soon as the friends are satisfied that the object of their spiritual concern is actually dead-nay, but too often even before examination has taken place, they push the frail frame upon which he is extended from the bank, committing it with pious resignation to the sacred waters; and thus it frequently happens, that numbers of dead bodies are seen floating down the Ganges in the course of a day, with birds of prey perched upon them, glutting their foul appetites, with all the ravenous eagerness of their natures, on those unsightly relics of mortality. We must be contented with these specimens of the Oriental Annual, which we dismiss with regret, but duty obliges us to give attention to other claimants of no light pretensions. In the Landscape Annual for 1834, we have certainly the same evidences of consummate art, and of liberal and ingenious provision for the gratification of the reader, as characterized the four first numbers of this beautiful periodical. The whole of these, our readers will remember, have been devoted to the illustration of Italy-a country whose external charms were well worthy of the importance thus assigned to them. To France the editor has now directed his attention, and in the present number we have before us twenty-six fine engravings of some of the most picturesque scenes in that romantic country. We do not doubt but that another number, at least, will be necessary to complete the graphic illustrations of France. The drawings are by Mr. Harding, and the engravings executed under the directions of Mr. Jennings. In style and execution, these representations are in general highly respectable, but in them we certainly miss the grace, exquisite care, and powerful perspective of the Oriental Annual. The first views exhibit Mont Ferrand, a place which the editor tells us is situated in one of the most delightful spots of the Limagne. It occupies part of a plane of great extent, exceedingly rich and fertile, celebrated at once for its beauty and the excellence of its agricultural productions; while in the rarer ornament of foliage, it is, for the districts in which it is situated, comparatively abundant. Mont Ferrand is the antient capital of Auvergne, and to this day holds the rank of head of the department in the district of Puy-du-Dome. Its site was formerly commanded by the feudal castle belonging to the old counts of Auvergne, constituting one of their strong holds of war, insomuch that it has become proverbial in the neighbourhood to say, Mont Ferrand, le fort. In the feudal days this immense district was shared by two great rival possessors, the Count and the Dauphin, and Mont Ferrand subsequently fell to the power of the latter. Both these petty sovereigns scarcely deigned to own allegiance to the king, although they had obtained their dominions by marriage alliances with the antient house of Beaujeu; and it was from Louis of Beaujeu that Philip le Bel, in 1292, acquired the town and seignory of Mont Ferrand, which then bore the title of county, and it subsequently continued united to the crown along with the Duchy of Auvergne. Mont Ferrand is situated about three leagues from Clermont, which is likewise surrounded by fine scenery, and possesses, in addition, a high degree of historic interest; near it, and within the precincts of the old abbey of Saint Allire, is a spring, the waters of which have the property of petrifying any substance with which they come in contact, or rather are incrusted with a calcareous sediment which gives to it the appearance of stone. An instance of this occurred in placing a plank of wood for a bridge across the widest part of the fountain; when the waters reaching the wood quickly invested it with the same hard substance, and at length deposited on it portions of lava and other foreign materials, thus, in time, forming an immense wall rather than a bridge, extending to 200 feet in length, 12 in width, and 16 feet in height, on the more elevated side of the declivity, while on the other it appeared to issue from the ground. But this is only one of several similar fountains in this neighbourhood. Persons are in the habit of bringing to this place birds, snakes, grapes, &c., which become covered with the calcareous matter. This matter ultimately becomes hardened, and is used for paving stones. This district is distinguished for having given birth to the eloquent Massillon, Pascal, Delille, Bonnefrons, Gerard, Thomas, Champfort, Dulaure, &c. The editor proceeds to add some very interesting particulars relative to the antient history of Clermont. In the next two engravings we have representations of the approach to Royat, and Royat itself, a romantic village, at the distance of less than a league from Clermont. The Pont du Chateau, and the town of Chateau itself, are next presented to us, and the author, in connection with the historical narrative which relates to the whole of this district, gives some curious anecdotes of the state of the old French law. It appears, that, in the year 1602, the Duke of Luxembourg, having a cause before the parliament, employed some lawyers to plead for him: they agreed to do so, but charged him fifteen hundred crowns for their pretended services. The duke complained of this extortion, and, by order of the king (Henry the Fourth), the parliament issued a decree, whereby lawyers' fees were fixed permanently, and an obligation was imposed upon them of giving receipts, not only for such money as they received, but for such papers as they had in their possession belonging to their clients. This decree pleased the nation generally, but it raised up the anger of the lawyers, who were able, by procuring some friends at Court, to annoy the king, and make him almost repent of his harsh measures. An opportunity, however, soon occurred to him of amply indulging his resentment against them. The king was hunting on the side of Grosbois, and, dropping his com pany, he proceeded quietly to Cretail, and being at the time exceed ingly hungry, he inquired at an inn if they had any thing for him to eat. The landlady, who was unacquainted with the stranger, said, "No, you are too late." "For whom is this piece of roast beef, which I see before the fire?" "For some gentlemen above, whom I take to be solicitors." Henry sent up a polite message, to know if they would let him have a piece of the beef, or allow him a corner of the table. They peremptorily refused to do either. The king sent directly for his guards, who, by his orders, arrested the solicitors, carried them over to Grosbois, where they were well whipped, for the purpose, as the king declared, of teaching them a little more politeness to gentlemen the next time. These specimens will be sufficient to shew the style and character of the literary contents of this volume, which, as the reader will see, refer almost exclusively to the antient history of France, and parti cularly to that era which is so pleasingly described in the Memoirs of Sully. Of the remaining illustrations it is needless to say more than that they equal, in every respect, those of the former series. They consist, for the most part, of views of towns, cities, or some peculiar scene recommended by its historical interest to the reader, and, in general, we find that the places selected are situated in the mid-region of France, where the editor seems to have determined to confine himself, at least for the present year. The Landscape Album comes forth, this season, with the very respectable claims on public patronage to which the offering of no less than fifty-nine engravings amply entitle it. Fastidious persons, however, might, perhaps, take an objection to the adoption of the title of this volume, on the ground, that, instead of being a landscape collection, it is literally the reverse, for it consists almost exclusively of manufacturing towns, and of institutions, temples, or edifices, in those districts where factories constitute the scenery instead of nature. But the misadventure of an injudicious choice of a title cannot be allowed, by any reasonable man, to prejudice his disposition to appreciate real merit, and such he will undoubtedly find in these beautifully chaste and faithfully executed representations of the chief cities, towns, and buildings of England. The work, indeed, comes pretty nearly under the category of "national," and deserves to be so considered, for the degrees of ability and excellence which it possesses. We regret to say, that the literary contents offer nothing which might be extracted for the reader's amusement, as there appears, all through, a determination to limit the text to a mere explanation of the subjects of the engravings. The list of embellishments in Friendship's Offering is by no means so ample as that of either of the above Annuals; nevertheless, it is respectable in number, and particularly so in merit. The "Devotee," by Finden, in the frontispiece, and Richter's "First Love," engraved by H. Cook, are beautiful specimens of art. "In nocence," a painting by Mr. Parris, engraved by S. Sangster, is in the principal figure and the surrounding scenery-a highly ingenious and effective picture. We really do not see what business either Venus or Æneas has in a modern Annual, which could easily be provided with much more interesting characters from periods somewhat nearer our own time. However, we soon lose all unpleasant recollections in contemplating the form of " Lady Isobel," as, with her fixed gaze, and her hands crossed on her neck, she leans on the parapet of the castle. The "Albanian," his goats, and the scenery around, form but a very indifferent specimen of art; the "Chieftain's Daughter," and the "Ball Room," cannot be admitted to be much better. Jackson's sweet portrait of "Francesca," fully compensates for these various imperfections. The "Gondola," drawn by Richter and engraved by Ryall, does not appear to us completely intelligible. The foreground is occupied by the bust of a very lively girl, whose veil is just flapped aside by the wind, exposing a beautiful and smiling countenance, and considerably in the distance is seen the stern of a gondola. The "Absent" is another portrait somewhat inconsistent in the costume. The lady is presented to us as overwhelmed with grief, as is announced by the "big tear" coursing down her cheek; but then she is most elaborately decorated for the display, and appears to us as if she thought more of her dress than she did of her privation. Amongst the contributors to this Annual, we observe the wellknown names of Coleridge, Miss Mitford, Barry Cornwall, Mrs. Norton, Banim, &c., and from such a combination of dramatis personæ, we should at once conclude that we are justified in entertaining the highest expectations of the performance. But we know, from experience, how to estimate such promises, for we have long since come to the conviction that several of these Annuals constitute a sort of excretory duct, by which the greater labourers in literature dispose of the lumber which has been collected during the year. How else, for example, can we account for such verses as these, published in this volume under the name of S. T. Coleridge? But the reader must be acquainted with their pretensions. We copy the following from a string of extravagant stanzas stated to have been written by Mr. Coleridge" in early manhood." The first of the pieces is a " Hymn to the Earth;" and, from amongst the numerous apostrophes with which he salutes this divinity, we select the following: "Earth, thou mother of numberless children, the nurse and the mother! Sister thou of the stars, and beloved by the sun, the rejoicer! Guardian and friend of the moon! O earth! whom the comets forget not! Yea, in the measureless distance wheel round and again they behold thee! Bride and consort of heaven that looks down upon the enamoured! |