He does.
How dare you give a stranger vinegar ?"

The father asks, "What have

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you there?

"Sir, 'twas champagne I gave him."—"Sir, indeed! Take him and scourge him till the rascal bleed; Don't spare him for his tears or age: I'll try

If cat-o'-nine-tails can excuse a lie."

Thinks the clown, "That 'twas wine, I do believe; But such young rogues are aptest to deceive: He's none of mine, but his own flesh and blood, And how know I but 't may be for his good.” When the dessert came on, and jellies brought, Then was the dismal scene of finding fault: They were such hideous, filthy, poisonous stuff, Could not be railed at, nor revenged enough. Humpus was asked who made them. Trembling he Said, "Sir, it was my lady gave them me." "No more such poison shall she ever give, I'll burn the witch; 't a'n't fitting she should live: Set faggots in the court. I'll make her fry; And pray, good sir, may't please you to be by ?" Then smiling, says the clown, "Upon my life, A pretty fancy this, to burn one's wife! But since I find 'tis really your design, Pray let me just step home, and fetch you mine!"

MANNER OF EATING AMONG THE ANCIENTS.

In ancient times, it was the custom, among the patriarchs and others, frequently to take their meals out of doors. We meet with many instances of this in the gospels, and it is usual among eastern nations at the present day. The regular meals were, dinner a little before noon, and supper in the evening. The latter was the principal meal. The feast of the passover was in the evening.

The Hebrews did not eat with the neighboring nations: we are not told in the Bible when they began to separate themselves in this manner; but it was their custom in Joseph's time, although in that instance it appears to have arisen from objections on the part of the Egyptians. The Jews, in our Savior's time, did not eat with the Samaritans, and they objected to our Lord's eating with publicans and

sinners. This custom was so strictly observed, that when the Lord was about to extend his church to the Gentiles, he sent an especial vision to St. Peter, to show that it might be discontinued. Peter was blamed by the other apostles for eating with Cornelius, and from several passages in the epistles, we find that the early Christians abstained from meat offered unto idols. As these saorifices were offered at all solemn feasts, and on many occasions of less importance, they were thereby separated from eating with the heathens in general.

It was usual in ancient times, and is still the custom in China, Persia, and many other countries, for one or more of the guests, to have a little table or tray placed on the floor, upon which dishes are set separately for them. In India, many persons never eat out of the same dish as others, believing that it would be sinful to do so, and thinking that their dishes, &c. are polluted and spoiled if touched by persons of another religion. If so touched, they break them, as the Jews were to break their earthen vessels when touched by an unclean animal. This assists in explaining the apostle's words: "Touch not, taste not, handle not. Dr. Clark found similar customs among the Turks. He was, one night, entertained very kindly by a Turk and his family; after leaving the place, the next morning, Dr. C. returned for a book he had left behind, when he found his kind host and all the family employed in breaking and throwing away the earthen-ware plates and dishes, from which his guests had eaten, and purifying the other utensils and articles of furniture by passing them through fire and water.

It is the custom in the Heathen countries of the east, when there is more than one wife, for each to be separate, as much as the master of the family can afford. When entertaining strangers, as well as in eating and drinking in general, there appears to have ever been great plenty, but not much care or delicacy in preparing the provision. It was deemed a mark of favor to send the guests a great deal of any dish; thus the mess or portion which Joseph sent to Benjamin was five times greater than was sent to any other of his brethren. It was an honor to receive any portion from the table of the master of the feast, if he is a great man. A modern traveller, who dined in the presence of an eastern king, describes his majesty as tearing a handful of

meat from a quarter of lamb, which stood before him, and sending it to his guest as a mark of honor. This custom also prevails in China. Van Braam, the Dutch ambassador, relates that some bones of mutton, with half the meat gnawed off, were sent to him from the table of the emperor, and he was told it was a great honor! Knives and forks have never been used in the east as among us.

A SCENE AMONG THE INDIANS.

THE following description is from a work entitled, "Adventures on the Columbia River, &c. by Ross Cox.' It furnishes a forcible example of the effects of intoxication. The author states that the fur Company employs in its service the Iroquois, the Nipisings, and others of the native tribes of Canada. These Indians have been all nearly reclaimed from their original state of barbarism, and now profess the Christian religion. They engage for limited periods in the Company's service as canoe-men and hunters, but on lower terms than are usually allowed to the French Canadians. They are strong, able-bodied men, good hunters, and well acquainted with the management of canoes. They are immoderately attached to the use of ardent spirits; are rather quarrelsome, revengeful, and sometimes insubordinate; and during their periods of intoxication, the utmost prudence and firmness are necessary to check their ferocious propensities, and confine them within proper bounds. They are generally employed on the east side of the mountains, but we had a few of them on the Columbia. One, named George Teewhattahownie, was a powerful man about six feet high. On one occasion, during our voyage to the sea, we had a stiff breeze, and George, who was foreman of my canoe, kept up a heavy press of sail. I repeatedly requested him to take in a reef, and pointed out the danger to which we were exposed in the event of an accident. He appeared to pay no attention to my request, and I was at length obliged to use peremptory and threatening language, which produced a forced and sulky obedience. A few days after our arrival at Fort George, he came into my room in a state of intoxication, and ungovernable rage, with a vessel

containing rum in his left hand, and in his right his hunting-knife; in short, his whole appearance was wild and savage, and I at once guessed his visit was not of a friendly nature. His opening speech realized my suspicions.

"Cox, you toad, prepare for death! you abused me, and I must have my revenge.'

"You're not sober, George; go sleep awhile, and we'll talk on this subject to-morrow. to-morrego

"No; you insulted me before the men, and I must have satisfaction; but as you're a young man, I will now only take one of your ears.

6

I became a little easy on finding he had lowered his demands; but as I had an equal affection for both lugs, and as the prejudice ran in favor of two,' I had no wish, like Jack Absolute, to affect singularity in that respect. After some further parley, and finding he was determined to try his knife on my auricular cartilages, I told him to retire, or I should be obliged to order him into confinement. "Ha! crapaud!" said he, "do you threaten Teewhattahownie ?" and at the same instant he rushed on me like a grisly bear. I was now forced to draw my dagger in self-defence, and in parrying off his thrust gave him a severe wound across the fingers of the right hand. He dropped the knife, but instantly seized it with the left hand, and at the same time attempted to catch me, which I avoided by running under his arm, and as he turned was compelled to give him a severe cut, which nearly laid open one side of his head. He now became quite furious, roared like a buffalo, and with the blood streaming down his face, appeared more like a demon than a human being. I thought to fly, but in the attempt, he seized the skirt of my coat, and I was obliged once more to give him another wound across the left hand, which obliged him to drop the knife; a desperate struggle then followed for the dagger, which, from his great strength, he must have wrested from me, had not the noise occasioned by his bellowing, and my cries for assistance, brought Mr. Montour and some of the men into the room. With much difficulty they succeeded in binding him hand and foot, and lodging him in the guard-room. He tore off the dressings that were applied to his wounds, refused every assistance, and the greater part of the night was spent in wild yells and ferocious threats against me. Nature at last became exhaust

ed, and he fell asleep, in which state his wounds were dressed. None of them were dangerous. Between the loss of blood and a long fast, he became quite cool on the following day, and when told of what had occurred he could scarcely believe it, cursed the rum as the cause, and made a solemn promise never again to drink to intoxication. At the end of a couple of days, I interceded and had him liberated. He appeared most grateful, acknowledged that he deserved what he got, expressed his surprise that I did not kill him, and declared if he ever heard a man say a bad word of me, for wounding him, he would knock him down. I believe his regret was sincere, and from that period until the following year, when I quitted the Columbia, I never saw him in a state of inebriety."

GREAT WALL OF CHINA.

THIS stupendous wall, which extends across the northern boundary of the Chinese empire, is one of the greatest master-pieces of industry, genius and perseverance. It is conducted over the summits of high mountains, several of which have an elevation of not less than 5,225 feet (nearly a mile), across deep valleys, and over wide rivers, by means of arches. In many parts it is doubled or trebled, to command important passes; and, at the distance of nearly every hundred yards, is a tower of massive bastion. Its extent is computed at fifteen thousand miles; but in some parts, where less danger is apprehended, it is not equally strong or complete, and, towards the northwest, consists merely of a strong rampart of earth. Near Koopekoo, it is twenty-five feet in height, and at the top, about fifteen feet thick: some of the towers, which are square, are forty-eight feet high, and about forty feet wide. The stone employed in the foundations, angles, &c., is a strong grey granite; but the materials, for the greater part, consist of bluish bricks, and the mortar is remarkably pure and white. It was built, according to Du Halde, by the emperor Chien-Chu-Toang, about two hundred and twenty-one years before Christ. Although it has been built upwards of two thousand years, it yet remains quite firm and compact.