HENRY H. BREEN.
St. Lucia, June, 1851.
FORCE OF CONSCIENCE.
The following relation has often been reprinted in religious magazines and the like. It is given by Dr. Fordyce, Professor of Philosophy at Aberdeen, in his Dialogues concerning Education (London, 1748, vol. ii. p. 401.), as "a true story, which happened in a neighbouring state not many years ago." Can any of your readers furnish me with Dr. F.'s authority for the assertion?—the Doctor himself gives none. One would think that, if true, its truth might be easily verified. If its truth cannot be satisfactorily established, to reprint such tales cannot but be most mischievous:—
"A jeweller of considerable wealth having occasion to travel to some distance from the place of his abode, took with him a servant in order to take care of his portmanteau. Having occasion to dismount on the road, the servant, watching his opportunity, took a pistol from his master's saddle and shot him dead on the spot; then rifled him of his money and jewels, and threw the body into the nearest river. With this booty he made off to a distant part of the country.... He was at length admitted to a share of the government of the town, and rose from one post to another, till at length he was chosen to be chief magistrate.... One day as he sat on the bench with some of his brethren in the magistracy, a criminal was brought before him who was accused of murdering his master. The evidence was full; the jury brought in their verdict that the prisoner was guilty; and the whole assembly awaited the sentence of the President of the court, which he happened to be on that day.... At length coming down from the bench he placed himself by the guilty man at the bar and made a full confession of his own guilt, and of all its aggravations.... We may easily suppose the great amazement of all the assembly, and especially of his fellow-judges. They proceeded, however, upon this confession, to pass sentence upon him, and he died with all the symptoms of penitent mind."
J. K.
ENGLISH LITERATURE IN THE NORTH.
English letters are exciting a daily increasing interest in the north of Europe—that hardy and romantic country whence we ourselves are descended. But their means for purchase are very scanty, and I have been requested by the chief librarians of the Royal Library, Stockholm, and the University Library, Copenhagen, to endeavour to procure them English books by gift from private individuals and public societies and libraries.
Can you assist me in this work by making this their prayer known in your widely-spread columns?
Any English works, large or small, old or new, in any department of literature, but especially in archæology, folk-lore, history, theology, belles-lettres, &c., particularly books privately printed, or otherwise scarce or dear, will be most acceptable. Every donor will have the goodness to state for which library his gift is intended. So many have duplicates, or copies of books, which they no longer use or need, that many will doubtless be able to assist in this pleasant book-gathering for our Scandinavian cousins.