IN the parishes of Braintree and Bock

N the parishes of Braintree and Bock

cieties formed, time immemorial, among the members of the established church, for reading the Scriptures, and the works of eminent commentators. These meetings are held at Braintree, in a room in the church, set apart for the purpose, on every Thursday evening throughout the year; and at six o'clock on Sunday mornings from Easter till Michaelmas. Each person contributes one penny per week to defray the expenses of fire and candle during the winter months, and to present a gratuity to the minister for preaching a funeral sermon at the death of a member. I have never heard of any other parish where this custom is observed: it secins to have been originally borrowed from the early practice of the reformed church of Scotland; where, as there was not a sufficient number of ministers to supply the different parts of the country, certain pious persons, who had received a common education, were appointed to read the Scriptures and the Common Prayers, that the people might not be left altogether destitute of public worship and instruction.* They had also in Scotland, at the same time, a weekly exercise on the Scriptures, intended for the improvement of ministers, the trial of the gifts of those who might be employed in the service of the church, and the general instruction of the people. Those who conducted this exercise, alternately expounded a passage of Scripture; and others who were present were encouraged to deliver their sentiments. Similar associations were formed in England, and were patronised by the bishops of London, Winton, Bath and Wells, Litchfield, Gloucester, Lincoln, Chichester, Exeter, and St. David's; by Sandys Archbishop of York, and Grin.

dall Archbishop of Canterbury. But they were suppressed by an imperious mandate of Elizabeth.†

Braintree, April 18, 1814, D.COPSEY. Mc Crie's "Life of Knox," vol. ii,

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR,

N this neighbourhood is a person who

IN

for years has laboured under the excruciating pains usually attendant on a cancer, which having baffled medical skill, induced the patient to come to a determination to submit to amputation. Being, however, advised previously to try the following experiment, it had the desired effect, viz. Make a poultice of white bread and milk, on which spread a quantity of yeast, after having laid it on a hair sieve, in order to obtain it as thick as possible, and apply the same to the part affected. This was accordingly done at first three times a-day, but twice a-day was soon found sufficient, and at length it was reduced to once in that time.

By following this process, a perfect cure was speedily effected. Hitchin, April 1814. PALEAMON.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

I

SIR,

WILL relate an experiment I made, though I do not claim any credit for its invention, as it is acknowledged that it is a difficult matter to get the world generally to adopt any thing, let it be ever so useful. I took a ball sewed in canvas, to which I attached a line and fired it from on-board-a-ship, which carried the line several score yards, and was acknowledged, by all present, to be a good expedient. What I would wish to inculcate is, that innumerable lives might be saved in case of wrecks, if each ship had in readiness such means of communication with the shore. It is a principle perhaps not generally known, that a small line will draw the largest rope when a float in the water. It may not be needless to hint, that twentyyards of rope, with a weight at one end, placed where it might easily be got at, as it might be thrown into any window, might prevent the dreadful necessity people are often under in case of fire in London, to throw themselves out.

C. W. To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine,

SIR,

YOUR correspondent Mr. Smart, in

Y your Magazine for April, No. 353, very justly censures the filling up of a book on the subject of shall and will; yet I cannot compliment Mr. Smart on the conciseness and perspicuity of his own explanations. The etymology of shall and will has long been known; and had it been well considered, little diffi

culty

1814.]

Shall, when not denoting simple futurity, expresses command, or intention with implied authority; now intention and volition must not be confounded, for, though nearly allied, they are often very distinct; as "I will go there, though much against my inclination.” The phrase, you shall go whether you like at or not," marks command; but the phrase, "if you are a good girl you shall go to the play," marks intention only, though in the second person; still with an implied authority in the speaker to permit or deny the same may be predicated, when shall is used interroga tively, "shall I go? shall he go?" in the second person: instead of shall, “will you go?" is used, because the appeal is made to the intention only of the person addressed, without any reference to authority.

Will, when not denoting simple futurity, implies volition, as, "I will do it in spite of you;" or simple intention, as "I will call on you to-morrow:" it must be remembered, that will, in the first person, always implies volition, or in tention, and therefore cannot be used where simple futurity alone is meant. Thus a little attention to the tenor of the sentence, and to the original derivation of the above words, will point out the proper use of them better than all the profuse and obscure rules and explanations that ever were produced. I once intended to answer your correspondent Dr. Shaw, on his theory of the English verb; but as it forms a part of a work on the English language, which I purpose giving to the public, I shall only observe, that it appears to me extremely er

roneous.

E. S. E.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR,

HERE having been much specula

King Charles, I am induced to send you the following particulars, extracted from an old book in my possession, entitled "England's Black Tribunal set forth in the Trial of King Charles I." printed in the year 1658, ten years after the death of the King, and which will, no doubt, clearly elucidate every circumstance:"After a little pause, the King stretching forth his hands as a signal, the executioner at one blow severed bis head from his body the head being off, the executioner held it up and shewed it to the people; which done, it was with the body

403

put in a coffin covered with black velvet, for that purpose, and conveyed to his house in St. James's, where his body was embalmed and put in a coffin of lead; laid there a fortnight to be seen by the people; and on the Wednesday sevennight after, his corps embalmed and confined in lead was delivered chiefly to the care of four of his servants, viz. Mr. Herbert, Captain Anthony Mildmay, his servers; Captain Preston and John Joyner, formerly cook to his Majesty. They attended, with others, cloathed in mourning suits and cloaks, accompanied the hearse that night to Windsor, and placed it in that which was formerly the King's bed-chamber; next day it was removed into the Deane's hall, which room was hanged with black and made dark, with lights burning round the hearse; in which it remained till three in the afternoon, about which time came the Duke of Lennox, the Marquis Hert ford, Marquis of Dorchester, and the Earl of Lyndsey, having obtained an or der from parliament for the decent interment of the king, their royal master, provided the expence thereof exceeded not five hundred pounds. At their coming into the castle they shewed their order of parliament to Colonel W. Lichcott, governor of the castle, desiring the interment might be in St. George's chapel, and by the form in the common prayer of the church of England. This request was by the governor denied, saying it. was improbable that the parliament would permit the use of what they had so solemnly abolished, and therein destroy their own act. To which the lords replied, there is a difference between destroying their own act and dispensing with it, and that no power so binds its own hands, as to disable itself in some cases: all could not prevail, the governor persisting in the negative. The lords betook themselves to the search of a convenient place for the burial of the

some pains taken

therein, they discover a vault in the middle of the quire; wherein, as is probably conjectured, lieth the body of King Henry VIII. and his beloved wife, the Lady Jane Seymour, both in ceffius of lead; in this vault, there being room for one more, they resolve to inter the body of the King. The which was accordingly brought to the place born by the officers of the garrison, the four corners of the velvet pall born by the aforesaid four lords: the pious bishop of London, (Dr. Juxon,) following next, and other per sons of quality. The body was com

mitted to the earth with sighs and tears, especially of the Rev. Bishop, to be denied to do the last duty and service to his dear and royal master; the velvet pall being cast into the vault, was laid over the body: upon the coffin were these words set-KING CHARLES, 1648."

The above is a literal copy. I see no account of the ring sun-dial mentioned by your correspondent in your last number. The King gave his George to Dr. Juxon on the scaffold, to give to the Prince. There are a number of interesting anecdotes and remarks contained in the book, particularly the King's speech upon the scaffold; with the speeches and behaviour of seventeen noblemen and others, who suffered for and after him.

Harwich, April 10, 1814.

J. D.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR,

THE

HE reaping and harvesting of the wheat is attended with so heavy an expense, and with practices of so disor derly a nature, as to call for the strongest mark of disapprobation, and their immediate discontinuance, or at least a modification of the pastime after the labours of the day. The wheat being ready to cut down, and amounting from 10 to 20 acres; notice is given in the neighbourhood that a reaping is to be performed on a particular day, when, as the farmer may be more or less liked in the village, on the morning of the day appointed a gang, consisting of an indefinite number of men and women, assemble at the field, and the reaping commences after breakfast, which is seldom over till between eight and nine o'clock. This company' is open for additional hands to drop in at any time before the twelfth hour to par take of the frolic of the day. By 11 or 12 o'clock the ale or cyder has so much warmed and elevated their spirits that their noisy jokes and ribaldry are heard to a considerable distance, and often serve to draw auxiliary force within the accustomed time. The dinner, consisting of the best meat and vegetables, is carried into the field between twelve and one o'clock; this is distributed with copious draughts of ale and cyder, and by two o'clock the pastime of cutting and binding the wheat is resumed, and continued, without other interruption than the squabbles of the party, until about five o'clock; when what is called the drinkings are taken into the field, and under the shade of a hedge-row, or large tree, the panniers are examined, and

buns, cakes, and all such articles are found as the confectionary skill of the farmer's wife could produce for gratifying the appetites of her customary guests at this season. After the drinkings are over, which generally consume from half to three quarters of an hour, and even longer, if such can be spared from the completion of the field, the amusement of the wheat harvest is continued, with such exertions as draw the reaping and binding of the field together with the close of the evening. This done, a small sheaf is bound up, and set upon the top of one of the ridges, when the reapers retiring to a certain distance, each throws his reap-hook at the sheaf, until one more fortunate, or less inebriated, than the rest strikes it down; this achievement is accompanied with the utmost stretch and power of the voices of the company, ut tering words very indistinctly, but some what to this purpose-we ha in! we ha in! we ha in!-which noise and tumult continue about half an hour, when the company retire to the farm house to sup; which being over, large portions of ale and cyder enable them to carouse and vocis ferate until one or two o'clock in the morning.

It

At the same house, or that of a neighbouring farmer, a similar scene is renew ed, beginning between eight and nine o'clock in the morning following, and so continued through the precious season of the wheat-barvest in this county. must be observed that the labourers thus employed in reaping receive no wages; but in lieu thereof they have an invita tion to the farmer's house to partake of a harvest frolic, and at Christmas, during the whole of which time, and which sel dom continues less than three or four days, the house is kept open night and day to the guests, whose behaviour during the time may be assimilated to the fro lics of a bear-garden.-Vide Van. Suro. Devon. Pp. 145. Z. X. Awliscombe, April 15, 1814.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR,

IN your interesting article relative to

the public buildings now erecting in the metropolis and its environs, for February last, you have made an assertion the truth of which I am particularly interested in ascertaining.

Having collected materials for a long de layed publication, relative to the objects on the banks of the Thames, from Westminster to Windsor, called the Aquatie Tourist, (which will be produced in-the

Course