And tho' the midnight of despair may roll NAOMI. Vain are thy thoughts, my child. Oh! never more For me shall smile one ray of hope, to warm END OF THE FIRST ACT. (To be concluded in our next. ) ON THE DEATH OF A LITTLE BOY. A LOVELY morn was beaming, Twin morning stars, with lustre, In their spheres of brightness shone; And his breathing lips were a cluster Of roses newly blown. His lispings, sweet and simple, Were the matins; and the smiles That nestled in each soft dimple, Were the morn's peculiar wiles; Like the sunbeams, gently wheeling ON THE PAYMENT OF ENTRANCE-MONEY MR. EDITOR. SIR,-Can any of your correspondents account for the origin of the custom of requiring entrance-money upon the admission of a pupil into most of our schools? At present, there appears no reason for this demand, at least none whose appropriate name I feel disposed to mention; while I cannot but regard the custom as highly objectionable. For instance, it may be really desirable that a pupil should be removed from the school at which he is now placed, to another; while, at the same time, a guinea, the usual sum demanded as an admission fee, is a matter of some consequence to the parent. Hence arises this unpleasant alternative: either the pupil must remain where he now is, to his own manifest disadvantage, or the parent must make a sacrifice which his circumstances evidently forbid. Again,-it may so happen that a family has frequently to remove its place of residence; and under these circumstances the parent may have repeatedly to pay entrance-money for the same child, without his once entering upon any new department of learning. This has been the case with the writer of this paper. Besides, this admission fee may facilitate the advance of quarterage or school-wages on the part of the master. No sooner, perhaps, has he made sure O'er the smooth brook's heavenward face, of the admission fee, than he advances When the misty dews are stealing Back to their native place. But ah! that morn of promise, Its rainbow life and bloom, Till the great day of doom. From a dark and dreary pit, J. M. G. in his other demands; and the parent, rather than have the inconvenience of removing the child, and having another admission fee to pay, submits to the additional charge. This is not mere supposition; and what has been done, may, and probably will be, done again. Once more, the pupil may fall ill a short time after his admission, say a quarter of a year or six months after, and before he recovers, his place may have been filled up, so that, at present at least, he cannot be readmitted. Under such circumstances as these, I am sorry to say from experience, it is not every schoolmaster who possesses honour enough to return what, (with all the information which I have yet attained on the subject,) I am inclined to think he should never have demanded. Nothing is more reasonable "ABOUT nine or ten miles south of the three great pyramids, are the famous catacombs or mummy-pits of Saccava, to which village we were safely conducted by our janizaries, and there procured ourselves a very indifferent lodging. The next morning, before sun-rise, we went to the neighbouring plain, in company with the person who has the superintendence of the catacombs, and several of his servants, who take care to be well paid for the trouble they are at in gratifying the curiosity of strangers. The usual method of letting people down into the pit where the mummies or embalmed bodies are deposited, is by ropes, which is painful enough; though there are holes in the sides to descend by, as in the well of the pyramid, but most of them are so worn away, that it is dangerous to go down in that manner, if not impracticable. "The first pit they let us down into was about five-and-twenty feet deep, cut through a slaty rock, except the upper part, which was sand, but cased with unburnt brick, which seemed to be very ancient. At the bottom of the pit we found a passage, five feet wide and forty in length, which brought us into a square arched room, where we saw several remains of embalmed bodies, and many of the swathes scattered up and down, some of them almost entire. A few of the bodies, I ... observed, had been done up in the boughs of palm-trees, which were tied together at each end, and being rotten, appeared like rushes. "Being not satisfied with what we found in this catacomb, we gave a small piece of money to be let down into another, where we had the satisfaction to find several coffins standing upright and entire, this pit having been but lately opened. These coffins, or mummy-chests, are very thick, and made of a kind of sycamore, by the Egyptians called Pharaoh's figtree, which, though spongy and porous to appearance, will continue sound above three thousand years, for so long it has lain in these subterraneous apartments. The top of the coffin is usually cut into the shape of a head, with a face painted on it, resembling a woman's; the rest is one continued trunk, and at the end of it is a broad pedestal to set it upright upon in the reconditory. Round the pedestals of the coffins are sometimes ranged a number of little images of various colours, as if they were designed for so many guardian genii and attendants. Most of the coffins are adorned with hieroglyphics, and some of them richly gilt and painted, either with the figures of some tutelar Deity, or that of the deceased. "The bodies usually appear in this manner: they are wrapped up in a shroud of linen, upon which are fastened divers scrolls of linen also, painted with sacred characters. These scrolls generally run down the belly and sides, or else are placed on the knees and legs. The face is covered with a kind of head-piece of linen cloth fitted with plaister, on which the countenance of the person is represented in gold; and the feet have also à cover of the same, fashioned like a high slipper, and painted with hieroglyphics. The whole body is swathed with fillets, or narrow bands of linen, beginning with the head, and ending with the feet, which are wound round in such a curious and inimitable manner, with so many casts and turnings, and so often one upon another, that it is supposed there are seldom less than a thousand ells of filletry about one body. Those especially which cover the head and face are so neatly done, that they do not hinder us from perceiving the shape of the eyes, nose, and mouth, though they are hid from our sight. On the breast is a sort of breastplate, made with folds of linen cut scollopwise, richly painted and gilt, on which is sometimes the face of a woman with her arms expanded. "Upon opening one of the coffins, we found the head of the mummy full of a composition of the consistence, colour, and smell of pitch, but something more fragrant; which must, as Herodotus intimates, have been injected through the nostrils; to which end, as well as for the easier extraction of the brain, we found, upon examination, that the septum medium of the nose had been taken away. Having unfolded the bandage, that part of it which more immediately surrounded the body was quite rotten, and would not bear handling without falling to pieces; whereas, a great number of yards of the exterior part appeared as strong as we can suppose it to have been the first day it was applied. Scarcely any of the muscular parts were preserved, except upon the thighs; and even these, upon touching them, crumbled to powder. "The last of the catacombs we visited was that called the well or pit of the birds, which is about thirty feet deep; from whence we made our way through a passage almost choked with sand, into apartments much more magnificent than those we had seen before, being the sepulchres of birds and other animals worshipped by the ancient Egyptians; for these they embalmed and wrapped up with the same care as they did human bodies, depositing them in carthen vases covered over and stopped close with mortar. These vases, or urns, are of a concave figure, of which we saw a great number, most of them containing an ibis, (one of their sacred birds) whereof the bill, bones, and the very feathers, are admirably well preserved. In one of the rooms we saw several larger vases, which probably were for dogs and other animals; some of which have been found, but they are rarely to be met with at present. "I should have observed before, that the mummy-chests, or coffins, are not always of wood, some few of them being found of stone; and of the wooden ones, some are made of planks, and others hollowed out of one piece of timber. There are also coffins made only of pieces of linen cloth gummed or glued together, which, nevertheless, are as durable as the others. Those who had coffins, we may suppose, were people of good condition, whose families could bear the expense; whereas, the poorer sorts had no coffins, but were wrapped up in reeds, or branches of palm, as I have already observed. It is likewise probable that these inferior persons were piled up, one upon another; whereas, the others stood upright upon the pedestals of the coffins. "In these catacombs we likewise find several square boxes, usually painted with hieroglyphics, or symbolical figures, having upon their lids the representations of a hawk cut in wood, and sometimes of a dog or other animal. Within these boxes, one of which was originally placed at the feet of each mummy, are enclosed various small instruments and utensils, denoting the trade or occupation of the embalmed person when he was alive. As to the piece of money said to be lodged in the mouth of each mummy, and the idols enclosed in their breasts or bellies, we could make no such discovery; and yet abundance of little images, some of marble or alabaster, others of copper, and others of baked earth, are sold in Egypt as having been found in these repositories. I am apt to think that many of them have really been taken from thence; however, it is the interest of the people of Saccava, who are the chief venders of such antiquities, that this opinion should prevail; and, doubtless, they encourage it as much as possible. The Europeans indeed purchase them at easy rates, for the Turks have very little curiosity, and esteem things of this nature no farther than the value of the materials. "It seems natural, before I leave this subject, to say something of the Egyptian manner of embalming human bodies, by which curious art many have been preserved entire through such a long succession of ages. For our account of this matter we are chiefly indebted to Herodotus and Diodorus; and the reason why they took these pains to keep the dead bodies from corruption has been already assigned in speaking of the pyramids, namely, that the souls of the deceased might continue near them, and not enter into other animals. And having found out means of mak- | throwing stones after him, and loading the body durable, their next care ing him with execrations; for they was to provide repositories for it thought it a heinous crime to wound which might be equally lasting, and or offer any violence to the bodies of in which it might remain safe from all their fellow-creatures; but the emviolence and injury. They were there- balmers were much honoured and fore, as Diodorus tells us, not very esteemed, conversed with the priests, solicitous about the structure of their and were admitted, as persons of houses, which they called inns; but sanctity, into the more sacred parts spared no cost nor labour in building of the temples. When these came to and adorning their sepulchres, which dress the dissected body, one of them they termed eternal mansions. thrust his hand into it, and drew out all the intestines, except the heart and kidneys; and another washed the bowels with palm wine and aromatic odours. They then filled the belly with pounded myrrh, cassia, and other odoriferous drugs, (frankincense excepted) and the incision being sewed up, the body was carefully anointed with the oil of cedar and other things for above twenty days, or else laid in nitre for seventy days, which was the longest time allowed. At the expiration of the term, they washed the whole body again, and bound it up in swathes of fine linen, covering it with gums, which the Egyptians used instead of glue. And all this was done without disfiguring the body; so that the very hair on the brows and eyelids, and the countenance, were so well preserved, that the person might easily be known. The embalmers having done their part, the corpse was delivered to the relations, who put it into a wooden coffin shaped like a man, which was placed upright against the wall of the catacomb, or of whatever edifice was designed for that purpose: for it must be remembered, that the Egyptians did not always deposit their dead in sepulchres immediately after they were embalmed, but kept them at home in magnificent apartments, having by these means the pleasure of viewing the lineaments of their ancestors who died some ages before they were born; and, if we may believe Lucian, they often brought the dried corpse of a friend, as a guest, to their entertainments. "But to return from this short digression. When a man of any consideration died amongst the ancient Egyptians, all the women of the family besmeared their hands and faces with dirt, left the body in the house, and went about the streets lamenting, and beating themselves, with their garments girt about them, and their breasts uncovered; the men at the same time forming another company, and mourning in the same manner. After this, the body was carried to those who possessed the art of embalming, which, like other trades, they learned from their ancestors. These shewed the kindred of the deceased several models or patterns made of wood, painted like an embalmed body; giving them also an account of the expense that would attend each manner of preparation, and asking them which they would chuse; for it is to be observed, there were three different ways of preparing a corpse for burial. One of them was very exquisite and expensive, the charge being a talent of silver, or about two hundred and fifty-eight pounds sterling; the second was inferior, and of a more moderate price, being twenty minæ, or a fourth part of the former sum; the third was very mean, and cost but a trifle. "This preliminary being settled, the embalmers took the body, and first drew out the brains through the nostrils with a crooked instrument of iron, filling up the vacancy with certain medicaments, whose consistence, colour, and smell, (as taken out of the sculls at this day,) have been already described. Then the scribe or secretary, as they call him, marked on the left side of the belly, how far the incision was to be made; which a certain officer accordingly cut open with a sharp Ethiopian stone, and immediately ran away as fast as he could, all that were present pursuing him, "The way of embalming above described was the most costly manner of preserving the dead: but those who were unable or unwilling to be at so great an expense, had recourse to a more ordinary preparation, which was as follows:-They injected a quantity of oil of cedar into the body by a pipe, without cutting it open, and laid it in nitre for seventy days, at the end of COULD a person wholly unacquainted with human life become a spectator of it, and take, as in a panoramic view, a glance at the distant perspective; could he see the abodes of opulence and grandeur, and behold the heavens serenely smiling upon a spot crowned with luxuriance and plenty; could the bustling crowds of commerce, and the gay candidates of pleasure, pass before his eye, he would think this a terrestrial paradise,-a chosen residence for happiness itself. But let the same observer take a nearer view of things, let him hear the sighs of misery and want, let him witness the anguish of the desolate and oppressed, and find what vexations and disappointments even the wealthy and the gay experience, he will be astonished that what at first sight appeared so lovely and delightful, contains such a mixture of darkness and woe; and also, that however great the disparity, in appearance, of mankind, no situation nor rank of life is completely exempt from misfortune, nor possesses an exclusive security of happiness and peace. Great as is the aggregate of human ills, it is surprising to reflect how vast a proportion men bring upon themselves by folly and wickedness, or create by vain desires and visionary expectations. Being too prone to judge of ourselves and our conditions by comparison, we look around upon those who apparently are more easily circumstanced with an envious and wishful eye, forgetting that many of our fellow-creatures are indulging the same feelings towards us, and that, could our desires be accomplished and our ambition gratified, it would be but finding an insatiable appetite, and adding fuel to a flame that would burn with a resistless vigour. The youthful imagination, warm, active, and generous, is too apt to be misled by its poetic illusions. In the dawn of life, when the intellect begins to expand, and the passions to assume their strength, every thing around is pleasing. The morning sun sheds a radiance upon every object, and shews them in colours which most materially alter when the noon-day beams with its powerful and convincing light. So, when the sober age of experience succeeds the vivacity of youth, the mind discovers that it formerly saw visions, not realities, and that it has yet to distinguish between the glitter and the gold; a discovery which must produce imaginary, and perhaps exquisite pain and distress, until it attain its wonted strength, and the voice of reason urges content. If many pine under fancied evil, many experience its painful reality, and bend under the pressure of misfortune's load; but awful indeed must be their case, whose sufferings are aggravated by the pangs of an evil conscience, and whose every pain reminds them of some past misconduct, some dereliction of duty, or some flagrant crime! These have not the common satisfactions which are open to all; for what can console the wicked in the hour of sorrow? what can comfort him who has not the satisfaction to know that he is enduring the will of an unerring Providence concerning him, but who feels that he is suffering the direful effects of his own folly, and calling down upon himself afflictions, which, but for his misdeeds, the Almighty had spared him? But as even the wise and the good are liable to misfortunes which neither wisdom can foresee nor prudence avert, it becomes us, as dependent creatures, to bow to the will of the great disposer of all things, and, rather than exhaust our strength and patience in pitiful repinings and useless complaints, to endeavour to bear with composure and resignation his gracious though intricate dealings with us. And as rational and intelligent beings, we should do well to exercise those powers which distinguish us from the rest of the creation, to trace calamity to its origin, to inquire into |