A single grain of the sulphate of copper, or blue vitriol, will communicate a fine azure teint to five gallons of water. In this case, the copper must be attenuated at least ten millions times; yet each drop ta of the liquid may contain as many coloured particles, distinguishable by our unassisted vision. A still minuter portion of cochineal, dissolved in deliquiate potash, will strike a bright purple colour through an equal mass of water. Odours are capable of a much wider diffusion. A single grain of musk has been known to perfume a large room for the space of twenty years. Consider how often, during that time, the air of the apartment must have been renewed, and have become charged with fresh odour! At the lowest computation, the musk had been subdivided into three hundred and twenty quadrillions of particles, each of them capable of affecting the olfactory organs. The vast diffusion of odorous effluvia may be conceived from the fact, that a lump of asafoetida, exposed to the open air, lost only a grain in seven weeks. Yet, since dogs hunt by the scent alone, the effluvia emitted from several species of animals, and from different individuals of the same race, must be essentially distinct. The vapour of pestilence conveys its poison in a still more subtile and attenuated form. The seeds of contagion are known to lurk, for years, in various absorbent substances, which scatter death on exposure to the air. But the diffusion of the particles of light defies all powers of calculation. A small taper will illuminate the atmosphere to the distance of four miles; yet the luminous particles, which fill that wide concavity, cannot amount to the 5000th part of a grain, which may be the effort, as there is now upon one of them, named Gowhole consumption of the wax in light, smoke, and nong Api, a volcano, constantly emitting smoke, and ashes. Animated matter likewise exhibits, in many often flames. The first island, Banda Neira, is the instances, a wonderful subdivision. The milt of a chief settlement, and contains two forts: its harbour codfish, when it begins to putrefy, has been compu- is spacious, but difficult of access. The second islted to contain a billion of perfect insects; so that and is Banda Lantoir; the third and fourth in imthousands of these living creatures could be lifted on portance are Puloway and Pulorum. These four the point of a needle. But the infusory animalcules islands were the only places where the cultivation display, in their structure and functions, the most of the nutmeg was allowed by the Dutch, but there transcendant attenuation of matter. The vibrio undula are several others under that same government. found in duck-weed, is computed to be ten thousand What these islands produce in superfluities they want million times smaller than hemp-seed. The vibrio in necessaries. The soil was a rich black mould, lineola occurs in vegetable infusions, every drop con- but it produces no corn, the natives subsisting chieftaining myriads of those oblong points. Of the mo- ly upon sago. The nutmeg-tree grows like a pearnas gelatinosa, discovered in ditch water, millions tree in form and size; its leaf resembles that of the appear in the field of a microscope, playing, like the laurel, being of a bright green colour on the upper sunbeams, in a single drop of liquid. Insects have surface, and grayish underneath; when bruised it been discovered so small as not to exceed the 10, diffuses an aromatick perfume. The flowers are 000th part of an inch, so that 1,000,000,000,000 of small, white, and have no smell. The fruit is simithem might be contained within the space of one lar to a walnut in form, but more fleshy and full of cubick inch; yet each animalcule must consist of juice. This external pulp dries up to a crust of a parts connected with each other, with vessels, with deep yellow colour, which, opening at one side, disfluids, and with organs necessary for its motions, for closes a membraneous coat of a beautiful red teint, its increase, for its propagation, &c. How inconceiv-known to us by the name of mace, which lies imably small must those organs be! and yet they are, unquestionably, composed of other parts still smaller, and still farther removed from the perception of our senses. THE NUTMEG. THIS tree, Myristica moschata, grows principally in a group of islands forming a part of the Moluccas, and called the Isles of Band; a cluster which seems to have been thrown up by the sea in some volcanick mediately over the thin and brittle shell of the nutmeg. This is the time to gather the fruit; if left longer upon the tree the mace would get loose, and the nutmeg would lose that oil which preserves it, and which is one of the great excellences of the fruit. The nutmegs which are gathered before they are perfectly ripe are preserved in vinegar or sugar, but are esteemed in Asia only. The nutmeg-tree yields three crops annually, the first in April, which is the best, the second in August, and the third in December, yet the fruit requires nine months to ripen it; thus the tree bears fruit and blossoms at the same time. After the fruit is gathered the outer covering is stripped off, and the mace having been carefully separated from the kernel, is laid in the sun to dry. The nuts require more preparation; they are spread upon hurdles, and dried for six weeks before a slow fire, in sheds erected for that purpose. After this, they are separated from the shell and thrown into a strong mixture of lime and water, which is a necessary precaution to preserve them from worms: with the same intention the mace is sprinkled with salt water. After this process the fruit is cleaned, and packed up for exportation. It appears from experience that only one third of the nutmeg-trees bear fruit, but this cannot be discovered until the twelfth or fourteenth year of their growth, therefore they must not be cut down at any earlier age. The fruit-bearing quality is of short duration, as the tree will yield only from the twelfth to the twentieth year, and generally perishes at the age of twenty-four years. sea. It is thus, no doubt, that plants are conveyed from one island to another without the assistance of man. Where there are no rills to carry fruits to the sea, the want of moisture prompts these trees to bend over the ocean, and obtain from its evaporation the nourishment they require. TOMB OF COLUMBUS. THE cathedral church at Seville, which is so magnificent in its exteriour, and so richly furnished within, is highly deserving a place among the noblest edifices of the kind in Europe. It is four hundred and twenty feet in length, two hundred and sixty-three in breadth, within the walls, and one hundred and twenty-six in height. At one angle of the building rises a tower of Moorish workmanship, three hundred and fifty feet high, on the top of which is the Giralda, a brazen image, weighing nearly a tun and a half, yet so admirably poised as to turn with the gentlest breeze. The ascent to the top of this lofty tower is rendered easy by a spiral path in the inside, of so gentle an inclination that a horse might trot up it, and so wide, that two horsemen may go abreast. While the traveller is lost in admiration of the external grandeur of this pile, he is equally astonished, on entering, to view its internal splendour and wealth. Eighty windows of beautifully painted glass shed their mellow light over fine paintings, noble statues, and altars of solid silver. The nutmeg-tree delights in a damp soil overgrown with weeds, and even shaded by large trees, provided it be not stifled by them. Under the shelter of the Canarium commune it thrives very well, and bears the cold which sometimes prevails on the tops of the mountains. The nutmeg differs in quality according to the age of the tree, the soil, and the method of culture. The round nutmeg is preferred to that which is oblong, though they are specifically the same fruit. It ought to be fresh, moist, heavy, of a good smell, and an agreeable though bitter flavour, and it should yield an oily juice when pricked. The islands are divided into a number of plantations under the management of a mixed race of Europeans and Indians. The Dutch made use of many illiberal means to secure to themselves the exclusive pos- The organ exceeds the famous one at Haarlem in Bession of these valuable productions: many trees the number of its stops; the former having one hunthey destroyed, reserving sufficient only to produce dred and ten, and the latter only sixty. Yet so ef a certain quantity of nutmegs; but finding the cli- fective are the bellows of this mighty instrument mate of Banda very unhealthy, and that a great num-that, when completely inflated, they will supply the ber of their servants yearly fell victims to it, they attempted to transfer the culture of this spice to Amboyna; these experiments have, however, proved unsuccessful. Of this metal there is a profusion in this cathedral the statues of St Isidore and St Leander, as large as life, and a tabernacle for the host, twelve feet in height, adorned with columns, being of silver. full organ for fifteen minutes. None but they who have heard it can conceive the effect of this astonishing combination of sounds when managed by a master-hand. In 1774, the English navigator, Forrest, found in But the most interesting object to the intelligent a small island near New Guinea, called Manaswary, American is the tomb of the great Columbus, the a nutmeg-tree, the fruit of which was of an oblong discoverer of the New World. It is in itself unworform, but well flavoured. This enterprising man thy of the great man who sleeps beneath it, consistplucked up about a hundred stems of the tree, and ing of only one stone with this inscription—“ A planted them in 1776, on the island of Bunwoot, which Castella y Arragon otre mundo des Colom. ;" that is, had just been ceded to him for the East India Com-" To Castile and Arragon Columbus gave another pany by the Sultan of Mindanno. Bunwoot is situ- world." But no monument, however splendid, no ated to the northeast of Borneo, and is a fertile healthy spot, covered with beautiful trees. Labilliardiere also found the nutmeg-tree upon the little island of Cocos, near the northern extremity of New Ireland. The fruit, which was unripe when he saw it, was oblong. This island is covered with evergreen trees, among which the Barringtonia speciosa is conspicuous. It extends its branches laden with flowers horizontally a great way over the sea. There are few cocoanut-trees, but many figs of different kinds. The crew observed floating along the shore, the fruits of several species of Pandanus (the screw pine,) of the Barringtonia, and of the Heritiera, which trees stretched their branches, and even their trunks, in a very remarkable manner over the inscription, however pompous, could have added to the fame of that illustrious man, or atoned for the base ingratitude with which he was treated; indeed, had a sumptuous cenotaph been erected over his remains, it would have ill agreed with the fetters which once loaded his limbs, and which are buried in the same coffin with him. Besides this noble cathedral, Seville contains twenty-five parish-churches, five chapels, thirty-five monasteries, twenty-nine nunneries, with hospitals, and houses for other religious communities. Many of these convents are remarkable for the beauty of their architecture, and, as well as the churches, contain a profusion of fine paintings, among which are some by the celebrated Murillo. The city of Seville is of high antiquity, its foundation being ascribed to the Phenicians. The Romans gave it the name of Julia, which has been since corrupted to Sebilla, or Seville; by this people it was embellished with many magnificent edifices, of which scarcely any vestiges remain. While Spain was divided into petty monarchies, this city was under the dominion of different masters, and for a short time was the capital of an independent kingdom: it is now little inferiour in importance to Madrid. Seville stands in the midst of a rich and fertile plain on the banks of the river Gaudalquiver, and is surrounded by a wall five miles and a half in circumference, defended by one hundred and seventy-six towers. The streets are crooked and dirty, but some of the squares are spacious and magnificent; and in the suburbs are many noble edifices, and a handsome promenade, called Allameda, having three walks, planted with trees, and ornamented with seats and fountains. The population of Seville is estimated at ninety thousand-less than might be expected from the extent of the city; but two or three families are not crowded into one house, as in Madrid, nor are the houses elevated more than two stories; each house likewise is constructed round the four sides of an open area, in which it is common for the family, in summer, to take up their abode under tents. These areas, or courts, are usually adorned with a profusion of flower-pots, and many of them have fountains, which keep the air pleasingly cool, and, by sprinkling the tiles with which they are paved, prevent them from being heated by the rays of the sun. Many of the streets of Seville are too narrow to admit a carriage, and the reason given for thus constructing them is, that they afford a shade from the burning rays of the sun, which would be otherwise insupportable. BATTLE OF BLOODY BROOK. country was every where a dark wilderness-when our pilgrim fathers were at all times surrounded by the beasts and the savages of the forest-and when all was rude and cheerless. In the progress of scenes, from that time forward, many and dangerous were the vicissitudes by which they were marked. The eternal solitude which gave place to the busy hand of the settler, and the umbrageous darkness that disappeared from around his humble domicil, were yet the stilly haunts of the Indian. As the plain, in time, was made to yield support for the new-comer, and the cabins of the white men began to thicken along the valley, the red men retired to the mountain. His pleasant places on the uplands, beside the rivers stocked with the scaly tribes yielding to him sustenance, had become occupied. The level patches where he raised his corn, with the beautiful hills where his tribe loved to congregate were in the possession of the stranger. His nearer hunting-grounds were disturbed, and his game began to disappear. Thus dispossessed of his inheritance, and disquieted in his neighbouring solitudes, the primitive and rightful lord of the soil deeply fostered a secret hate against the cause of his grievances. As he gathered around his council fire, and reflected on the stranger's encroachments, or listened to the complaints of his brethren, and the exciting eloquence of his chiefs, his soul began to kindle within him, and his bosom to swell with rage. Already had the numbers of the pale faces become alarming, and their bold hardihood inspired a spirit of dread. The fearful missiles which the stranger so dexterously used, above all, excited his fears, and deterred him from manifesting his resentment. Continued irritation, however, overcomes apparent impossibilities, and gradually wears away the most obstinate objections. The cunning of the savage was deemed a match for his enemy; his fleetness, his distant retreats, and his poisoned arrows, were presented by the orators to force up his courage to the determined point. Nor was it long before the Indian's festering hate broke forth. The war-song now resounded along the mountain side. The fearful yell is heard in the distance, and each settier prepares himself for the worst. And now it was that the direful note of death rang along the Connecticut valley, and deeds of blood began to desolate the land. EVERY incident connected with the early history of our country, in which the valour of our forefathers was signally displayed, comes down to us with all the interest of self-love, and all the freshness of romance. We love to dwell for reasons better felt than explained, on the deeds of our sires, and the times that tried their souls. There is something For many years was this pleasant valley the hallowed in the associations which gather around scene of heroick struggles-of sufferings, and death. us, while reflecting on those instances of devoted-Long did the hardy white man sustain himself ness and chivalrous patriotism which distinguished against the superiour numbers and wily arts of the savtheir acts a feeling of almost devotion. Too many age; but sadly did he pay the cost of his attachment of those deeds have gone down to oblivion "unhon-to the land of his choice, and the endearing associaoured and unsung;" and if perchance a fragment of tions of home. Frequent and deadly were the conthe past is snatched from the grasp of time, it excites flicts in which he engaged with his implacable ene in us sentiments the more sacred from the lapse of years. But there was a period in our country's story beyond that in which our forefathers struggled to make us a free and happy people-a time whose history is but faintly chronicled-when the sufferings of our pioneer ancestors were unwept and unrequited. That epoch would seem to have been swallowed up in the interest of the events which followed; yet those early periods afford us examples of unparalleled sufferance and unmatched heroism. It was a gloomy era, when the fair face of our VOL II.-28 my. Deep and lasting was the mutual hate of the combatants, and as deep and as artful were their schemes of destruction. Victory often crowned the untiring efforts of the foe, when painful captivity or indiscriminate slaughter ensued. To tell of the many murderous deeds and the deep agonies which marked the triumphs of the embittered savage, would long employ the pen, and harrow up the feelings of the soul. To the cruel preseverance of the Indian, in this war of extermination, were added the promptings of base cupidity. The Canadian Frenchmen now urged on the brutal force of the not less barbar ous foe, by their liberal rewards and legalized boun- Here, deeply immersed in the luxuriant wild-grass ties, for captives and for scalps. Still more power-shrink one thousand warriours, fiend-like exulting ful motives actuated the red men, while large num- in the anticipated victory and slaughter. Now came bers of the reckless whites joined them in the exe- the train of teams, cautiously guarded as they had cution of their most desperate deeds; and it was been thus far, by the chosen corps, and descended said that the cruelty and brutality of the Frenchmen the small hill which conducted them into the green far exceeded those of the savage wild man. vale traversed by the road, and near which lay the It was thus with our forefathers, when an attack concealed foe, ready to dart on their prey. Tradiwas anticipated from combined forces of the Indians tion says, that here the noble youths, dreaming little on the little nucleus of farm-houses at the present of danger from the enemy, rested for the moment, beautiful village of Deerfield, Massachusetts. A lit- and gathered grapes from the clustering vines that tle army had collected at Hadley, composed of the hung thick with their rich fruit by the road. When, hardy peasantry of the valley, determined on deci-"sudden as the spark from the smitten steel," the sive and desperate efforts against the common ene- thousand savage forms sprang from their ambush, my. The produce which had been gathered and and with hideous yells rushed to the onslaught. housed, at Deerfield, was necessary for the support The vigorous youths, unterrified by the sudden asof this band of determined yeomanry, and for the sault, the yells, or the fearful numbers of their eneaffirighted families who had there congregated; nor my, instantly rallied, and as quickly brought their was it desirable that so much valuable sustenance rifles to their shoulders. They had received the should fall into the hands of the Indians, the more cloud of arrows, as the savages approached within effectually to enable them to continue their bloody bowshot of their victims, but now, in turn, the fatal warfare. It was therefore resolved, that one hun- lead from a still more deadly weapon made many a dred young men justly denominated "the flower of warriour bite the ground. The certain aim of the the country," should be selected to go with teams, in young band had told death to as many of the savage the face of danger, and transport the rich products clan. Still onward they pressed, over their dead, of the soil from Deerfield to Hadley. The expedi- and thickly hurled their missiles. Again with deadtion was cheerfully undertaken by the requisitely aim the fire of the little determined group of number of brave youths. Already were their teams whites brought down the foremost of the desperate loaded and on their way to the place of destination. foe, and threw confusion into their ranks. A gleam The watchful enemy had, however, obtained intelli- of hope broke through the fearful prospect, and for gence of the expedition, and, with the greatest se- a moment relieved the doubts which the overwhelmcrecy and celerity, collected in fearful numbers on a ing numbers and fierce desperation of the savages neighbouring hill, shut out from view by the dense had inspired. But quickly in front was heard the forest with which it was crowned. animating voice of their valiant chieftain, and as quickly did they rally and return the destructive fire. The noble youths, though with half their numbers slain, resolved to sell their lives at fatal cost. Nor was a nerve thrilled with fear, or a heart disposed to falter, as their ultimate fate now became too plainly apparent. Still onward, with brutal force wrought to madness by the example and the thundering voice of the gigantick Philip, pressed the exulting foe. Here their eloquent chiefs encouraged them by every effort of language and of gesture, to deeds of bravery and desperation. There plans were matured, and every means devised, which power and stratagem could suggest, to destroy the devoted band, and to capture the treasures in their charge. And now their royal leader, with all the force and enthusiasm which had characterized the most potent warriour and consummate general that the history of savage life had ever revealed, broke forth, and thus revealed his great and impassioned mind : "Warriours! see you the treasures of the pale faces the richest stores of the long knives? See you the young men, few and feeble, that yonder carelessly stroll in the valley? See you our numbers, and the brave warriours that stand around you, and feel not your hearts strong? Is not your arm powerful and your soul valiant? And who is he that goes before you? Who will direct you in the ambush and the fight? Is it not he who never knew fear-whose heart is like the mountain, and his arm like the forest-oak-the great chief of the Naragansetts, whose people are like the leaves, and whose warriours are the terrour of the pale faces? Follow him, and all is yours. Each hatchet give a fatal aim-sink deep these knives!-these arrows drink their blood! Away!-to death-our fathers and our homes!" The wild spirit of the proud and lofty Philip, ran like electricity through the savage horde. Each burned for the affray, and quickly sprang into the trail of his great captain. Silently he glided from the mountain and cowered along the meadow-land that lay in a vale by the roadside. To the utmost deeds, brave Lathrop now inspired the daring band, as each had caught from him the thrilling cry: "Our God!-our homes!-our country, and our sires!" But in an instant, pierced with many arrows, he falls among the slain. The heroick captain, "the bravest of the brave," now fallen, the enemy express their fiendish joy in loud and terrifick yells. The fight thickens and man conflicts with man. The dying groans of the Christian nerves each youthful arm, which still deeper returns successive blows. Impelled with fury at the destruction which was yet making in their ranks by the almost superhuman efforts of the brave whites, they strove, with all the brutality of fiends, to complete their deadly work. At length, the numbers of the valiant youths was reduced to a solitary few; when the foremost of these on turning to animate his comrades, saw himself supported by seven only of his associates. These, finding all efforts of victory hopeless, and that longer warfare would but add to the scalps of the victors, dashed their weapons in the face of the foe, and attempted to escape. The two who stood last in this unequal contest, the most athletick of the chivalrous corps-bounding over the slain, took a direction to |