THE above woodcut is copied, by Mr. MARTIN'S kind permission, from his well-known picture of Belshazzar's Feast. All the works of this artist are distinguished by a very peculiar quality and disposition of the lights, which, though very pleasing and impressive in oil painting and in steel engraving, cannot be represented with adequate softness on wood. In Mr. MARTIN'S magnificent mezzotint print, there is a beaming lustre, which diminishes in its intensity till it is at last shadowed off into the deepest obscurity, which, in wood engraving is unavoidably, though very. imperfectly, represented by white. We have said these few words in justice to Mr. MARTIN; the uncommon beauty of the rest of this cut needs not to be pointed out in detail. Yet we cannot help calling the particular attention of our readers to the figures of the wise men or soothsayers in the immediate foreground, and to the enormous towers of the temple of Belus in the distance, rising sublimely into a troubled sky, and rendered visible only by lightning and a waning moon.

The subject of this picture is to be found in the fifth chapter of the book of Daniel. There has been much dispute, and there is unquestionably no small difficulty, in endeavouring to reconcile the names and dates of the account given in this book with the Greek histories. This is not a fit place for entering into any such discussion. It is enough to say that Belshazzar, the last prince of the Babylonish or Chaldean empire, VOL. I.

seems to be the same who is called Labynetus by Herodotus, and that Darius the Mede, mentioned in v. 31, is very probably Cyaxares, the son of Astyages, the Median, and consequently the uncle of Cyrus. He was, it may be conjectured, left in the government of Babylon by Cyrus, and his age, sixty-two, favours the supposition of his relationship as uncle to the undoubted destroyer of the Chaldean monarchy. The best date of the capture of this mighty city is about 538 years before Christ.

now

The measure of the appointed time was nearly full, when it pleased God to put an end to the government of the Chaldean princes, to substitute for it the Medes and Persians, and thereby to effect the restoration of a certain part of the captive Israelites, to the land of their fathers, and to a free use of all their religious rites.

Belshazzar had been defeated in the field, and shut up in the city, the strength and resources of which were so great, that they treated the seemingly fruitless efforts of the besiegers under Cyrus with contempt. The siege or blockade, probably a very imperfect one, continued in this way for a long time, and the insolence and regardlessness of Belshazzar increased in proportion. But his hour was come, and it came upon him at the moment of his last act of profaneness and defiance of God. The presence of a hostile army before his walls, made no good impression on his mind; he still went on in his usual course of wanton luxury,

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and thought more of inflicting an insult on the people whom his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar had brought into bondage in Babylonia, than of humbling himself before the Lord, or of performing the ordinary duties of a king and leader under such serious circum

stances.

“Belshazzar, the king," as it is written in the book of Daniel, "made a great feast, to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand." The reader must observe that this was a sacrificial feast, and in fact a great solemnity, in honour of the Babylonish god, Bel or Belus, whose symbol was a huge serpent. "Belshazzar, whilst he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father, (grandfather) Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink in them. Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was in Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone."

God is no more a respecter of things than of persons. Incense in an earthen vessel, offered with a devout spirit, would have been as acceptable as from the golden censers of Solomon's Temple. The quality of the gift is as the heart of the giver. It was not for the sacred vessels' sake, but to note that the wanton profaning of any known instrument or ordinance of divine worship, is really impious, that God now thought fit to mark the near approach of his vengeance by a stupendous miracle. For "in the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote."

of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know; and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified. Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. And this is the writing that was written,-MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE-God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL-thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. PERES-thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.

These ominous words are (as indeed is the whole text from the fourth verse of the second chapter, to the end of the seventh chapter) Chaldee, and it does not very clearly appear whether the circumstances of their appearance were such, that the Chaldeans could not even read them; or whether, which is sufficient, and seems more probable, it is only meant that they could give no connected interpretation of them. Mene signifies to reckon, or take an account; and the word is repeated, according to an Eastern idiom, for the purpose of marking the certainty and solemnity of the fact. Tekel; means to weigh; and Upharsin, literally, they divide it. It is observable that in the twentyeighth verse Daniel interprets Upharsin as Peres; the fact is, they are the same word, and Peres is perhaps used to embrace another subject of the prophetic threatening,-Peres being the Chaldee name for the Persians, who are more particularly noted on account of Cyrus, the leader of the besieging forces, and the founder of the great Medish-Persian empire.

The answer of the prophet of Israel is uncommonly grand and impressive :-"Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king, and make known to him the interpretation.

"O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom and majesty and glory and honour and for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before him; whom he would he slew; and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up; and whom he would he put down. But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him: And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will.

And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of Heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods

ply says: In that night was Belshazzar, the king of the Chaldeans, slain. And Darius, the Median, [probably Cyaxares, as before mentioned] took the kingdom, being about three-score and two years old.

EVENING HYMN.

WATCH of Israel, we shall rest
Calmly, if thy voice hath blest;
If thou sayest" All is well,"
Ever wakeful sentinel.

If in sleep our spirits dream,
Still, oh! still be thou the theme;
Heavenly let our spirits be-
Even in dreaming, dream of thee.
But if sleep be far away,
And we watch till dawning day,
Let thy spirit still impart
Calmness to each aching heart.

THE FOSSIL ELEPHANT OR MAMMOTH. An incorrect figure of the fossil elephant or mammoth was by a singular inadvertence admitted into a former paper on this subject. In order to explain the cause of this error, and induced by the interesting nature of the subject, we add some particulars not given in that article.

The annexed figure, is that which should properly have been given at page 76; it is copied from M. Cuvier's great work on fossil remains, and represents the mammoth found frozen in Siberia, as already related. Parts of the flesh and skin still remain on it, as on the skull; and the feet still retain part of the

hoof, which conceals the numerous bones, of which, in the elephant, as in all quadrupeds, the extremities are composed.

The fossil bones of the elephant have been found in every part of the earth which has been searched for the purposes of such discoveries. Not only in the old world, but in America, where no living elephants are now found; and in proportion as more attention was paid to these remains, the difference between the fossil or extinct, and the existing species, became more and more apparent; but still it was obvious that the two belonged to what naturalists call the same genus, and consequently that no essential part of their respective forms could so far vary as to indicate any great difference in their habits and food.

In 1801, Mr. W. Peale, an American, was successful in obtaining parts of the skeleton of an animal which had been found in the neighbourhood of Newburg on the Hudson; and by copying in wood the deficient bones from other specimens of the same animal, and by supplying on the one side those bones which were only found belonging to the other, he completed two skeletons, one of which was deposited in the Museum of Philadelphia, and the other was brought over to England by his son, Mr. R. Peale, for public exhibition.

Mr. Peale published an account of this skeleton, and in it stated his reasons for believing that the tusks, instead of turning upwards, as in the elephant, were reversed; for this point was doubtful, from the circumstance of the cranium or upper part of the skull not having been found complete. Accordingly, he had given the tusks this inverted position in his skeleton which he exhibited; and from a print published at that time the figure in our former article was, by a misconception, copied by our artist.*

Baron Cuvier, who examined the bones of this newly discovered animal, has, however, shewn that, by all analogy, it was to be concluded that the tusks had a similar position to those of the mammoth, and that the animal had a trunk or proboscis, and principally differed from the elephant in the formation of the teeth; its height being nearly that of a well-grown elephant, but its body was longer and slenderer in proportion, while the limbs were thicker: it subsisted on vegetables, which was almost proved by the discovery, in 1805, of a collection of bones in Virginia, belonging to the same extinct species, in the midst of which was a mass of small branches, seeds and leaves, in a half chewed state, among which was recognised a species of reed still common in that country, and the whole was enveloped in a sort of sack, which was considered to have been the stomach of the individual. It has been called the great Mastodon or animal of the Ohio.

There is no reason for believing that Mr. Peale had any interested or improper motive for this alteration of position of the tusks, as a correspondent suggests to us, in a letter signed Rusticus: his error arose from an insufficient knowledge of comparative anatomy, but which might have been committed at that period by any man who was not a Cuvier.

FAMILIAR REMARKS ON ARCHITECTURE.

NO. II.

In a former number we have given some familiar remarks upon architecture, in order to assist travellers, and casual observers of Cathedrals and Churches, in determining their age and the style in which they are built. We will now lead them from the general description to the detail of these buildings, and describe the several parts and divisions of which each structure consists.

A church or a cathedral admits generally of four great divisions; namely, a tower, or steeple; a nave, which is the body of the church; a chancel, or choir; and one or more aisles. Many large churches, and all cathedrals, are built in the form of a cross, of which the parts running north and south, are called the North and South Transepts: but small churches, erected in former times, and almost all in the present day, have only a body and chancel. In fact, in many of the latter, the chancel has almost disappeared, and there is only a recess for the altar instead of it.

The nave or body of the church is the part westward of the chancel or choir, and is situated within the piers supporting the roof or galleries.

The aisles of a church are those divisions, north or From them there is an entrance to the pews, which south, which are between the piers and the outer walls. have been introduced since the Reformation. The following figure represents the general form in which

a cathedral is built.

The eastern space near the altar is, in collegiate and cathedral churches, called the choir, because in it were formerly chanted or sung the services of the church, by a choir of singers appointed for the purpose. This custom is still preserved in many cathedrals, and in the chapels of colleges. In most churches, however, this part is called the chancel; a name given to it from the skreen or lattice-work (cancelli) by which it was separated from the outer part of the church. This also the stalls or seats with desks before them, which skreen is frequently very beautifully carved, as are still remain in the choirs of many ancient churches.

The steeple of a church is that part which is higher than the roof, and in which the bells are hung. Sometimes it is headed by a spire, and sometimes consists of a simple tower or turret. In either case it forms a very picturesque object in our scenery, while the association of ideas which it awakens, opens a pleasing source of reflection to every serious mind.

The towers of churches were formerly used as fortresses, to which the inhabitants of the parish fled in times of danger and alarm. The church at Rugby, Warwickshire, was evidently erected with a regard to this circumstance. It is lofty, and of a square form: the lower windows are at a great distance from the ground, and very narrow. The only entrance to the tower is through the church; and it is fitted up with a fire-place for the accommodation of a party of besieged persons, during the continuano of danger.

The spires of churches have frequently been useful as guides to travellers over barren moors, and as landmarks to ships at sea. From this fact, the spire of Astley Church, Warwickshire, was called the lantern of Arden; and that of Boston, Lincolnshire, has fre

MAN loves to contemplate and to ponder on the wrecks of past ages which have escaped the destructive power of time. The smallest remains of human art, the least fragments of those fossil stones which are records of the ancient revolutions of the earth, rivet our attention, and excite our lively curiosity. An interest still more natural and more affecting, seems to belong to the living memorials of distant ages. But although it may not appear impossible, if we may trust to the calculations of Adanson, that the enormous Baobabs of Africa, may be as old as the pyramids of Egypt,* still life in general is so short, that living monuments will always seem as if only of yesterday, when contrasted with those that are lifeless.

Among ancient trees, there are few, I believe, at least in France, so worthy of attention as an oak which may be seen in the 'Pays de Caux,' about a league from Yvetot, close to the church, and in the burial ground of Allonville. I had often heard it mentioned, but in a slight manner; and I am astonished, after having examined it, that so remarkable a tree should so long have remained so little known.

This oak has sessile leaves and acorns, on footstalks, and is therefore of the true naval species. Above the roots, it measures upwards of thirty-five English feet round, and at the height of a man, twenty-six feet. A little higher up it extends to a greater size, and at eight feet from the ground, enormous branches spring from the sides, and spread outwards, so that they cover with their shade a vast extent. The height of the tree does not answer to its girth; the trunk, from the roots to the summit, forms a complete cone; and the inside of this cone is hollow throughout the whole of its height. Several openings, the largest of which is below, afford access to this cavity.

Such is the Oak of Allonville, considered in its state of nature. The hand of man, however, has endeavoured to impress upon it a character still more interesting, by adding a religious feeling to the respect which its age naturally inspires.

The lower part of its hollow trunk has been transformed into a chapel, of six or seven feet in diameter, carefully wainscoted and paved, and an open iron gate guards the humble sanctuary. Above, and close to the chapel, is a small chamber, containing a bed; and leading to it there is a staircase, which twists round the body of the tree. At certain seasons of the year divine service is performed in this chapel.

The summit has been broken off many years, but there is a surface, at the top of the trunk, of the diameter of a very large tree, and from it rises a pointed roof, covered with slates, in the form of a steeple, which is surmounted with an iron cross, that raises itself, in a truly picturesque manner, from the middle of the leaves, like an antique hermitage, above the surrounding wood.

The cracks which occur in various parts of the tree, are, like the fracture whence the steeple springs, closely covered with slates, which, by replacing the bark, doubtless contribute to its preservation. Over the entrance to the chapel an inscription appears, which informs us that it was erected by the Abbé du Détroit, curate of Allonville, in the year 1696; and over the door of the upper room is another, dedicating it "To our Lady of Peace."

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