The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1822-10-24 00:00:00

BETROTHING CUSTOMS.

There was • remarkable hied of marriage contract among
the ancient Dames, called hiteifferting. It la mentioned in
Ray's Glossaries' Nerthienhysierieuss, in his collection of
local words. Strong traces of this mama are said to remain
me Portland island, where the inhabitants seldom or sever
intermarry with soy as the main land. It was anciently
very customary moos( the commie sort a people to break a
piece of gold or sliver io token of a verbal contract of mar.
riage and promises of love; one.balf whereof was kept by
the woman, while the other part mistimed with the man.
Mr.Strott, is his Hamer. Ward CUStelfit, bas illustrated this
by an extract from the old play of The Widow. From this
it also appears that no dry burrs& would bold on such occa.
shies; fur on the Widow's complaining that Mem& had
artfully drawn her into &verbal contract, sloe is asked by one
of her suitors, "Stay, stay—you broke no gold between
you ?" To which she answers, "We broke nothing, Sir."
And on his adding, " Nor drank to each other ?" she replw.,
" Nut • drop, Sir." Whence he d,aws this conclusion,
" that the contract comsat stated good in law." The
latter past of the ceremony seems alluded to i• the follow.
jog pas-age in Middletoo's play of "No Wit like •
Wootan's :"

" E. when toy lip torch'd the contractile' cup."
We and. in Hie Meat, that the piece broken between the
contracted Wren MUM have been a crooked one :

" Like commendalion nine-pence crook'',
With to and from my love it look's,"
This cirenntstance is also coolimsed in The Connoisseur.
No. 56, with an additional elision, of giving locks of hair
woven in a true lover's knot:—" It', in the course of astir
amour, the misireos gives the dear man her hair wove is, a
true luver's hoot, or breaks a crooked nimpeoce with him,
she 'hulks herself assured of his inviolate fidelity."
This " bent token" has out been overlooked by Gay
" A nioepeoce bent
A token kind to Busakinet is sent."

It appears to ►are been formerly a custom also for those
who were betrothed to wear some Bawer as so thteinal sod
conspicuous mark of t►eir mutual comment ; the corwrit
of choosing suc► sbort•lived emblems of their plighted loves
casnot be thought a very happy one.
That such a custom, however, did certainly prevail, we
have the testimony of Spencer its his Shepherd's Calendar Car
April, as follows:

" Bring coronations and sops in wine,
Wore of Paramour►."
Sops in wins were a species of flowers among the smaller
kind of single gilli.flowers or pinks. A joint riug appears to
hove been anciently a common token among betrothed loves..
These, as we gather from the following beautiful pass►'.e is
Drydeu's play of Don Sebastian, were by no means counikal
to the lower order of society:—

" A curious artier wrought 'em,
With joynts so close as not to be perceived;
Yet are they both each other's couriter.pari.
(Her part bad Jams inscribed, and his bad Zayds.
Yuu know those names were theirs;) and, in the "unlit,
A heart divided sa two halves was Wired.
Now if the rivets of those rings, iuclui d,
Fit not each other, I have foied this lye:
But if they join, you must for ever part."
To the Isetroilsiag contract uuder consideration mist be re.
tarred, if we mistake not, and nut to the marriage cerelliftly
itself (Is which latter, we own, however, the person oho dos a
not nicety discriminate betwixt them sill be strongly icoapte4
to iodise), the well.known passage on this subj.et in the lAA
scene of Shakespeare's play of lsciffili.Xight. Toe pro s,,
who bad been privy to all that had passed, is charged Ly
Olivia to reveal the circumstances, which be dots so the fol-
lowing hoes :
" A contract of eternal bond of tore,
Confirmed by mutual joinder of your baud.,
Attested by the holy close of lips,
Sirenathee'd by isterehamprasest of your rings;
And all the ceremony of this compact
Sealed is ally facettuo, by illy tessisnooy.',

FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE.

PARIS PAPERS.

P4RIR, OCTOBER 20.

French Feuds— 93 f. 60 r.—Bank Arliun• 1655 f.

CORFU, SEPTEMBER 23.

GERMAN PAPERS.

VIENNA. OCTOBER 8.

Oe.ober 7,...31.1a11ique5, 83 15-16 ; Bank Shares, 880 3 5.
0.-teber 83 15.16 Bauk Shares, 878 23.

Count Golowkin, the 'Minister Plenipotentiary
fr m the Ernveror of Russia to our Court, certainly
retires, sod is succeeded by M. de Tauschett with
the tole of Autbsssadur. Mr. Lamb, the English
Aligniter to the Gerussu Coufedrrstior, set out on
ti e 51h for Verona.

Yesterday tl'e King gave audience to six.
persona, and transacted business with two of his
Miorsier., in the evening it courier was dispatched
from the Forestry Office to Verona.
Letters from V,tnina anorionce that persons who
had not seen the Duke of Wellington f..r some
years, have perceived • great alteration in his fea-
tures, and it great change in his prison. The jour-
ney dr es not appear to have mended the health of
hi• Grace, and he is still so indisposed as to be
rt,liged to travel by v-ry shart stages 011 Ins way tu
Verona.— ( tortrire Fr (weals.)
We leant ham V!eii,e, that the Emperor of
Russia, on having a conference with same of the
Diploma,i-ts see to represent the other Powers
at the Colwell* of Verona, gave orders to his Aide-
de-Camp, Grac,al Levaschr•tf, to set out immesh-.
iiitrly with dispatches for Constatitioople.--(Consti-
tritionacl
M. Ce•satio„ the responsible editor of the Pilule.
said Descloseaux, have been tried before tlit Tram-
old of Correctional Police on two charges—one of
libel against the established religion, the other of a
provocation to violate the law. The Court d,s-
thhised the hest charge, out on the second sentenced
I.::ens to ati of 100 francs each. A cativiction oil
the fi at charge would have subjected then, to three
otoulat' imprisonment,
We It teri from Coignsr of the 14th of Oil...her,
that the Grand Councils of the C•titons of Basle
and Z Belch h-ve refitted, as it appears, their whir-
t-,ti to the naPaiiiirta propweil the Mumble-
ti.itzelland of the productions of our soil
st• d of French industry.

The fyllinving (Jowls ore given in a letter doted
B finite, October 15:—

" A traveller, just arrived from [rum. ftimoulic...9
a, certain that a deci►ive affair took place on the
install lit Castellollit, between General Mina
and Baron d'Erollm The insu►grots, it is said,
hive lost 2,000 men as prisoner.; titr amount oYlhe
killed and wounded is not mentioned, but it ap-
pears to be very considerable. This news was
brought by express to l'ampeltioa, and published
by the authorities there. There were illurinnalious
on the occasion.

" We expect every moment fresh detail► on the
11%4 which took place at lrr►uaiii. According
to the recount of the Spanish muleteers aho come
be that road, the insurgents lelt 400 drat on the
ti •Id of battle, and 200 prisoners were conveyed to
Pimpeluoa. The greatest disorder was in their
raliks, and they took refuge iu Iran. It is worried
that • serious attack will soon be merle on this for-
tie's. It is added, that Zsldivar was completely
li.aten and his band entirely disper►ed
Villa Martin and Aloilislimo, in the province of
Xeres, by two companies of the regiment of Si.
J ugu and the local National Guard. Ile had 20
wen killed and 27 wounded ; and except hnn.•ll
soil • 1102.11 followers, all the rest of his troop Mil.
tendered at discretion.".
'the rumours ci.curated yesterday on Change
reei.ecting the defeat of the Army of the Faith ap-
pear to be COldifteed this day. 'flit' Regency of
Urge' has been forced to take refuge, a■ it is said,
to Fiance ; and the troops which escorted it hare
bresi pursued sword in hand up to our frontiers. In
a few days we shall probably have exact details of
these occurrences.—(Jouraaf de Paris )
A new Order of Jl. Fra}seitiou•, Grand Master
of the University. !ot suspenilcd for the veer IB_3,
tie Coarse of Lectures on Modem history, by
M. Guizat, to the Faculiy of Literature in the
dit rottenly or P.sr:A.,

The Greek General TI e Imre. K•phslos, sent
1•r the A reopagi.•, has traversed several psrts of
iGermai y to come to •n understanding with the
Sot it ties, on the 11111V8110 of gtv.;eg the
hest direction peosible to the aid which these Socie-
ties have collected for the unfortunate Christians of
t' e Eist. it appears thst he has bad re, son to an-
p!,ind the success of his mission. General T.
passed Lyons on the I on has way to
1114n:titles, to retorn to his country. He met at
Lyons a distiognisheil reception on the part of a
wr it number of citizens who are warmly interested
t.• the fate of the Greeks, and support the cause by
ti en gulls and sacrifices.

Letters from Hydra state " the wretched fugi-
tives (rota Cyprus, who hare jnst arrived herr, give
the moot deplorable picture of the horrors which
.are committed there.' They thick that Cyprus will
expernme the fate of the island of Sciu."

lllis fosprial Majesty, most graciously taking
lio;o his consideration the great services dune to the
Austrian Empire by the brothers Von Rothschild,
liss been pleased to confer on all the brothels Roth,.
child and their legit4Milte descendants of both
sears the dignity of Barons of the Austrian Empire.
Letters from Silistria, of September 21, state the
ar,i.sl at that place of Baron Von Ottenfels, the
Imperial Interouncio In the Porte,
who was Secretary to the Austrian Embassy at
Clostantinople Moe years ago. There letters state
tbrt the solemn installation of the flo.pottars for
it e two Principalities (Siourdza for Nlo &via. and
Chi ka for Walluel:ia), actually took place at Sins-
Iris on the '211.1. The latter was expected at Bu.
cl:urest on the 26,1 t, us letters from that place
a F9rm. The greater part of the Turkish troops had
sl•eady returned across the Danube. The few
corps that still remained on the left bank of that
veer would also retire as soon as the Princes ar.
red.

BERLIN, OCTOBER 10.
O. the first of this month the professors of the
faculty of evattgelical thstoity, lord u certain twin-
Ler of clergymen of butt the Lu'heran and re.

LON DOS,
THURSDAY', OCTOBER 24, 1822.

Yesterday a Coors of Dirretors was held al the
Esst India Wow, when the Right Hon. Lo►d
AMHERST was appointed Governor-General of
Bengal.

In a correspondence inserted in another part of
our Paper, it appears that Admiral ROWLt Y. who
commands on the Jamaica station, sunipects that the
accounts of the depredations committed upon our
West India commerce are exaggerated, with a view
to increase or keep up the rate of insurance. The
complaints upon the subject certainly hive been loud
and of Ion.; standing, Dud it is very desirable, fur
the credit of the naval service; liet it should be ascer-
tained that they are not sustained by facts. But
proof of a few cases of fabrication or exaggeration will
not suffice for that purpose; the merits of the gut scion
must be decided upon the proportion of the naval
force and its activity, to the force and activity of
the pirates in thi,se seat. If there be a competent
force so employed, the Admiralty has done its
duty ; if not, its credit will nut be maintained by
the exposure of a few cases fabricated for a sinister
purpose.

Our law report this dry contains an interesting
case tried yesterday in the Court of King's Bench.
It is that of a criminal information filed by the

ATtoRNET CElrEnit, against Mr. SAIlbEr. WAD-
PINGTON, of the Stnind, for publishing "Palnter's
Principles of Nntnre," s work laid in the informa-
tion s blasphemoos libel on the Christian religion.
We have uniformly reprobated the position 'monied
bt• the Bridge-street Association, in the prosecution
of offences of this description, its an audacions as-
sumption of the duty of the officers of the Crown,
ands l hrl upon them, being, in fart, sil indirect
charge of their inability or disinclination to perform
the functions of their office. Although no udinirers
of this sort of criminal process, we are glad to find, in
this instance, the interference of the patriots and
loyalists of Bridge-street celebrity has been set
aside, and that the ATTORNEY-GENERAL has not
condescended to avail himself of the assistemce of
these pretenders. Mr. WADDINGTON conducted
Isis own defence, in the course of which, if due
allowsoce be made for the novelty of his situation,
lie did not us gait himself badly. Notwitlistantliog
a great deal of ingenious insougement was used in
the economy of his shop to free him from ull con-
nection with the work as vender of it, lie was found
guilty.

The Paris Papers of Sunday state, on the al-
leged authatity of a letter dated Bayonne, the 15 h,
that MtNA had obtained a decisive victory over the
Baron D'Eaut.r.es on the 6th, ut CasteVollit.
From the relative positions of the respective forces,
ao described in previous accounts, su action might
be expected to take place about that time. So
far, therefore, the account is not improbable;
but it most be observed that the Paris Papers
contain' another account, in which the Baron
D'Enut.LEs is mated to have obtained a complete
victory over MINA at Y worn,. There is no intelli-
gence from Verona. It is stated, under the head
of Vienna, that the health of the Duke of WEL-
LiNGTON has Dot been improved by his journey.

Gram Papers to the 16th inst. have arrived.
They announce that the solemn installation of the
two llorpodars of Moldavia and Wallachia took
pace at Sihstria on the 2 lit last, and that the
greater part of the Turkish troops had already re-
turned across the Danube. It thus appears that
there long-distracted provinces will be speedily re-
stored to a state of tranquillity.

The Emperor of AUSTRIA, in consideration of
the financial services of the great Mr. RovHscitt
has conferred the title of Barons on himself, his
brothers, ■ud all the little ROTHSCHILDS, their
legitimate issue.

Sir ROBERT 'WILSON has been compelled to
quit Paris by an order of the police. Ile set out
with Lady Wit.soa from that cloy on Thursday
last, In his previous correspondence with the
police he solemnly di/tarns/4,d any views unfavour-
able or unfriendly to the French Cover iiiii rut, and
offered to take a police agent to attend him during
his stay. His remonstrance and entreaties were
vain ; they ended in a peremptory notice for him-
self and his finnly In quit in twenty-four hours.
The proceeding, indeed, evinces that his conduct
was fie*: from ethnic,'. Did a foundation exist for
any charge against him, or even the suspicion of an
otEuice, he might have expected to share the fate of
Mr. BOWRING. Admitting, however, the parity of
hie intentions and the blamelessness of his conduct,
we do not think, in fairness, that the French
Government deserves the severe censure with which
some of our contemporaries have visited it in this
his conduct in the cise of M. LAVA
LETTIC fresh iii its recollection, the French Go-
vrrivinent must view his presence with jealousy, if not
with suspicion, particularly at a moment when the
public mind is alarmed by plots and conspiracies in
every part or the country. We hase seen the man-
ner in which our own Cover iiiii ent has enforced the
Alien Art, and it should teach us a little rot hear-
'nee towards other Governments in the exercise of
their power against aliens who du not enjoy their
confidence.

Extract of a letter from Nassau, New Providence,
dated 4th September, 182 e, received this morning
by a mercantile bowie in Glasgow (Saturday, 19th
inst.) :—" His Majesty', ship Tyne, Captain GOD-
FREY, arrived here a few days ago from Jamaica.
Capt. G. made a proposal to the merchants to scour
the coast of Cuba, provided thiy would furnish him
with two small vessels of easy draught of water to
go inside the (pays, and which he would man and
supply fioni the 7 yae. A subscription has been
entrred into for the purpose, and two small vessels
have been taken imp, to cruise fur our month, or
longer if found u•cessary. They are now ready for
sea, and we expect will get out in the course of the
day. As they are furnished with experienced pi-
lots, we have great hopes of their succeeding iu cap-
luring or destroying a number of the small craft
which have doue so much injury to our trade."
It i■ stated in letters from Madrid, that General
PRETRE, the new Minister Plenipotentiary of Por-
tugal, who replaces M. CASTRO. PEREIRA, had
arrived there. It is supposed he is furnished anti
powers to conclude the much-talked-of ofkiisive
and defensive Treaty between the two kingdoms of
the Peninsula.

A Brazil mail a hich arrived yesterday brings no
recent intelligence from Rio Janeiro or Pernam-
buco. The dates of the letters from Bahia are to
the 30th August.
Letters from Vienna of the gth inst. have been
received, which state that intelligence had arrived
horn Constantinople under dale of the 18th of Sep-
tember, of a naval battle having been fought be-
tween the Turks and the Greeks, in which the latter
were victorious, and captured six of the Tau kilt
vessels. The remainder escaped. It was believed
at Constantinople that the Turkish expedition
against the Mores had wholly failed.

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