The Indian magi, who are to invoke Yo He Wah, and mediate with the supreme holy fire that he may give seasonable rains, have a transparent stone of supposed great power in assisting to bring down the rain, when it is put in a basin of water, by a reputed divine virtue, impressed on one of the like sort, in time of old, which communicates it circularly. This stone would suffer a great decay, they assert, were it even seen by their own laity; but if by foreigners, it would be utterly despoiled of its divine communicative power.
THE BOMBARDIER BEETLE.
The bombardier beetle (Carabus crepitans) when touched produces a noise resembling the discharge of a musket in miniature, during which a blue smoke may be seen to proceed from its extremity. Rolander says that it can give twenty discharges successively. A bladder placed near its posterior extremity, is the arsenal that contains its store. This is its chief defence against its enemies; and the vapour or liquid that proceeds from it is of so pungent a nature, that if it happens to be discharged into the eyes, it makes them smart as though brandy had been thrown into them. The principal enemy of the bombardier is another insect of the same tribe, but three or four times its size. When pursued and fatigued it has recourse to this stratagem; it lies down in the path of its enemy, who advances with open mouth to seize it; but on the discharge of the artillery, this suddenly draws back, and remains for a while confused, during which the bombardier conceals itself in some neighbouring crevice, but if not lucky enough to find one, the other returns to the attack, takes the insect by the head, and bears it off.
THE PILLORY FOR EATING FLESH IN LENT.
Even in this kingdom, so late as the Reformation, eating flesh in Lent was rewarded with the pillory. An instance of this occurs in the "Patriot King," the particulars of which, quoted in "Clavis Calendaria," are somewhat amusing. Thomas Freburn's wife, of Paternoster-row, London, having expressed a particular inclination for pig, one was procured, ready for the spit; but the butter-woman who provided it, squeamish as to the propriety of what she had done, carried a foot of it to the Dean of Canterbury. The Dean was at dinner, and one of his guests was Freburn's landlord, and Garter King at Arms, who sent to know if any of his family were ill, that he ate flesh in Lent. 'All well,' quoth Freburn, (perhaps too much of a Dissenter for the times,) 'only my wife longs for pig.' His landlord sends for the Bishop of London's apparitor, and orders him to take Freburn and his pig before Stocksly, the Bishop, who sent them both to Judge Cholmley; but he not being at home, they were again brought back to the Bishop, who committed them to the Compter. Next day, being Saturday, Freburn was carried before the Lord Mayor, who sentenced him to stand in the pillory on the Monday following, with one half of the pig on one shoulder, and the other half on the other. Through Cromwell's intercession, the poor man at last gained his liberty by a bond of twenty pounds for his appearance. The mischief-making pig was, by the order of the Bishop, buried in Finsbury-field, by the hand of his Lordship's apparitor; but Freburn was turned out of his house, and could not get another in four years. Hence we may infer his ruin.
HUGE CANNON AT THE SIEGE OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
In 1432, several kinds of artillery are mentioned, cannons, bombards, vulgaires, coulverins. The vulgaires were ordinary artillery. In the year 1460, James II. of Scotland was killed by the accidental bursting of a cannon. The artillery of the Turks, in the year 1453, surpassed whatever had yet appeared in the world. A stupendous piece of ordnance was made by them; its bore was twelve palms, and the stone bullet weighed about 600 lbs.; it was brought with great difficulty before Constantinople, and was flanked by two almost of equal magnitude: fourteen batteries were brought to bear against the place, mounting 130 guns; the great cannon could not be loaded and fired more than seven times in one day. Mines were adopted by the Turks, and counter-mines by the Christians. At this siege, which was in 1453, ancient and modern artillery were both used. Cannons, intermingled with machines for casting stones and darts, and the battering-ram was directed against the walls. The fate of Constantinople could no longer be averted: the diminutive garrison was exhausted by a double attack; the fortifications were dismantled on all sides by the Ottoman cannon; a spirit of discord impaired the Christian strength. After a siege of fifty-three days, Constantinople, which had defied the power of Chosroes, the Chagan, and the Caliphs, was subdued by the arms of Mahomet II.
A MAN IN A VAULT ELEVEN DAYS.
St. Benedict Fink.—"1673, April 23, was buried Mr Thomas Sharrow, Cloth-worker, late Churchwarden of this parish, killed by an accidental fall into a vault, in London Wall, Amen Corner, by Paternoster Row, and was supposed had lain there eleven days and nights before any one could tell where he was, Let all that read this take heed of drink."—Truly, a quaint warning!