The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-24 00:00:00

THE KIRK.

The reader will find, in our advertising columns, a
document in reference to the presentation to the Low
Church in Kilmarnock, which is well worthy of atten-
tive perusal, as giving another example of the in-
consistency and tyrannical proceedings of the Non-
Intrusionists. The document we allude to is an
Address from a numerous body of members of the
Low Church congregation to the Rev. W. S. Smith,
the presentee to Kilmarnock, whose settlement was
factiously opposed by the Non-Intrusionists, osten-
sibly on the ground of want of qualification, but
in reality because he does not belong to their
party. From this Address, which is signed by 409
individuals of the congregation, of whom 394 are
heads of families, it appears the greatest sorrow and
regret are felt at the obstructions thrown in the
way of Mr. Smith's settlement ; and yet those who
thus thwart and obstruct the wishes of the congre-
gation, are the very men who pretend that all their
present struggle is for the privileges of the Chris-
tian people ! In Mr. Smith's reply it is stated that
out of a roll of 419 communicants, time were only
164 dissentients, which gives nearly three to one
in favour of the presentees. Yet in the face of
this overwhelming majority the Non-Intrusionists
refused to settle Mr. Smith. Was there ever a more
glaring violation of their own Veto Act than this ?
Yet of such palpable injustice and inconsistency
these men will be guilty, rather than allow a Moderate
man to be settled quietly, who, in this case, is not to be
thrust upon a reclaiming congregation, but is held back
from the supplications of a petitioning and imploring
congregation. This case is a fine illustration of what
the working of the liberuni arbitriuni would be.—Edin-
burgh Advertiser.

CHRISTMAS PRESENTS.—On Tuesday after..
noon, 13 geese, which had been landed from the City of
Aberdeen steamer on the Aberdeen-wharf, at St. Katha-
rine's, and were intended as presents to various indivi-
duals in London, were inspected by an excise watermen,
named Young, who found them to be unusually heavy
and on 'opening one of them he found it to contain a
bottle of over-proof whiskey, which had never before
passed under the eyes of the customs or excise. This
discovery induced him to cut open the others, and they
were all in the same condition—there was a bottle of
real Ferintosh in each. Young seized the geese and
their contents on behalf of our Sovereign Lady the
Queen, and removed his prize to the Excise-office. A
number of fine young sucking pigs have been lately
seized with their insides filled with scotch whiskey, and
on Saturday no less than thirty Dutch turkeys were
captured in front of the Custom-house, which were stuffed
with Hollands gin.

POLICE COURTS.—The Right Hon. the
Lord Mayor and Aldermen have given notice that they
will sit at the Mansion-house and Guildhall on Christ-
mas morning, from nine o'clock till eleven o'clock, for
the purpose of hearing the night charges, so as to pre-
vent the partieS from being locked-up in the Compter
until Monda.T morning. At Union-hall, Lambeth-street,
Thames Police, Clorkenwell, Bow. street, St. Maryle-
bone, Marlborough• street, and Queen- square, police-
offices,' the Magistrates will also sit in the morning from
nine till eleven o'clock, for the same purpose of disposing
of the night :eharges, so as not to deprive those of a
Christmas dinner who can afford it.
G EPP's FOLLY.—With the money raised for
John Thologotxl by the liberality of the public, and as a
recompense fur his long and unjust imprisonment, he
has built-either four or five (I forget which) very pretty
houses, and the best joke of all is,
that he has named the
place after Mr. Gepp, the celebrated Churchwarden in
his case ; and at one end is John's shop, with " Thoro-
good," in large letters ; at the other a board, with the
designation of the place, thus—" Gepp's Folly." This
is removing the worthy Churchwarden out of the curse
named in Job ; to wit, that "no street shall be called
after his name." , . , .

CAVANAGH: IN ANEW CHARACTER.—The
following communication is from a Correspondent, who
has daily opportunitiesof visiting the prison at Reading :
—" Your old friend Cavanagh is progressing on the
tread-wheel, and eats and drinks the whole of his
allowance—meat, breAd, •potatoes, and oatmeal por-
ridge, with avidity, every day. He is no Ca-
tholic, for he keeps no fast-days ; Fridays, and all Saint
days, are not remembered by him. He is in good
health, and his appetite so keen,
that he would devour
twice the quantity of food that he is allowed. I think his
London friends, especially the Faculty, should send him
either a goose or an alderman in chains, as a small ac-
knowledgment (at this season of the year) for the dexte-
rous manner with which he wrought upon their credulity."
LONGEVITY.—Some weeks ago, under the
head of the census of the county of Kincardine, we
alluded to a person residing in the new town of
Stonehaven, who had arrived at the advanced age of
101. The person referred to was Mr. George
Smart, gardener, who was born in the parish of Methlick,
Aberdeenshire, in November, 1739. In the troubles of
1745 he removed with his father to the parish of Fyvie ;
from thence to the parish of Echt ; then to this county,
when he married at the Whiteriggs in 1777, and came
to Stonehaven in 1781 ; when, after ha) ing numbered
his 102 d year, he, on the 26th of November, 1841, at last
" crossed that bourne from whence no traveller returns."
Until within 24 hours of his dissolution he retained all
his faculties. He had 11 children, 53 grandchildren, and
eight great-grandchildren—making a family of 72.
Montrose Review.

SUDDEN DEATH IN A SURGERY.—Wednesday
Mr. Higgs held an inquest at the Sun, Chapel-street,
Grosvenor-place, on the body of Thomas Evans, aged 18,
late footman toViscount Hereford, of No. 21, Chapel-street.
Mr. Frederick Archer, surgeon, residing in the above
street, said deceased came to his surgery between nine
and ten on Monday morning for medicine for Viscount
Hereford's family. He was then perfectly well. At
half-past eleven he returned, complaining of severe
sickness and pain in the head. Witness took him into
the back parlour, and bade him wait there until he
prepared some medicine fur him. Whilst doing so
he heard an unusual noise in the parlour, and enter-
ing it, he saw deceased lying on the carpet, con-
vulsively grasping at the floor, crying out for air,
saying he was being suffocated, and requesting that
his clothes might be loosened. Witness afforded
him the necessary assistance, tried to 'administer a res-
torative draught, but deceased could not swallow. An
attempt at blood-letting proved of no avail. In a few
minutes after the attack deceased ceased to exist, and his
death was in all probability caused by aneurism of the
heart, that is, the rupture of one of the vessels of that
vital organ. Verdict—Natural death
WONDERFUL INSTANCE OF SAGACITY IN
A Doc.—About eight months ago a gentleman belong-
ing to this city embarked at Port-Philip for Scotland.
In the bustle and confusion of preparing for so long a
a voyage, a favourite dog disappeared about a couple
of days before the vessel in which he returned left Port-
Philip ; and, as all the inquiry he was able to make
turned out to be fruitless, he was under the necessity of
leaving his four-foOted friend behind him. He arrived
in Edinburgh abouttwo months ago, and, wonderful to
tell, within, the last three weeks was surprised by a
visit from the animal he had left in Port-Philip about
eight months before. Upon inquiry it turns out that the
dog had gone aboard of a ship on the eve of sailing for
London ; that, once aboard, he resolutely refused to be
put ashore ; and, by dint of sheer resolution, obtained
a passage. On his arrival in London, it is ascer-
tained that he visited the lodgings formerly occupied by
his
4ipnilsreett,i: n
e rai lighe object of his
ad the object
not again
heard of till his arrival in Edinburgh. Familiar as we
search, immediately teand
tandgi s
are with instances of the affection and sagacity of the dot;
this is, perhaps, the most -extraordinary exam/le on re-
cord. His Blom
aboard of an English ship many thou-
sand miles from home—his refusal to quit it—his visit to
the former lodgings of his master on his arrival in Lon-
don—and the journey: from London to Edinburgh—rank
the subject of this brief notice as one of the most wonder-
ful animals of his species. The gentleman to whom he
belongs is well known in Edinburgh, and is the son of a
gentleman who, within the last twenty years, has filled
various offices of civic dignity.—Scotsman.
Died in Ayr, on the 14th instgtft, James
Tannock, formerly MRsiOttn`there, aged t?D'i;:ni and
• •
eizht months.

BER, 24, 'lB4l.

LITERATURE.

THE, _MIND, AND OTHER POEMS.
and Boque, London, 1841.
In thil splendid octavo volume, which is worthy
to=nic Wtill 'the illustrated 'editions of Campbell
and :Roger's, lately published by Moxon, and
which contains several exquisite embellishments,
we have a complete collection of Mr. Swain's
poems,_ who has been for many years a popular
poetical contributor to the Literary Gazette, and
several of the most successful Annuals. The vo-
limels dedicated to_ Dr. Southey, and by way of
frontispiece contains a beautiful fancy sketch, re-
presenting a castellated building rising above a
deep grove, and situated on a - lofty rock that
drops perpendicularly down to an expansive sheet
of water, bounded in the distance by a range of
-blue hills. The sketch is a truly graceful one,
and does credit to the finish and delicacy of touch
of the engraver, GreatbaCh. The first and longest
poem in the collection is entitled " Mind"—a
theme of comprehensive import, and the most
ambitious that Mr. Swain has yet attempted. It
is in the good old Spenserian measure, which is
managed with considerable dexterity, and reads
off with ease and spirit, notwithstanding its con-
stantly recurring rhymes—a difficulty which few
or no modern writers have been able successfully
to master, with the exception perhaps of Byron
and Campbell. In Mr. Swain's hands, however,
the measure is singularly tractable, and is un-
doubtedly the best he could have chosen for so
grave and lofty a subject as that of " Mind."
His poem, as may be surmised, is partly didactic
and partly descriptive ; but as the majority of
readers of the present day, are somewhat impa-
tient of instruction, and prefer rather to be enter-
tained, we have no doubt that the descriptive
portions of the poem will be more relished than
those which are purely didactic. And it must be
confessed that Mr. Swain exhibits to signal ad-
vantage in description. He draws evidently from
his own vivid immediate impressions, and, from
not attempting too much in the way of ornament,
never misses his mark. No modern poet has a
keener, a quicker, or a more heart-felt percep-
tion of the myriad beauties of nature than he has,
and the chaste melody of his varied versification
is not less-remarkable. We prpfer, however, the-
shorter poems in the collection to the one on
"'Mind ; ' fYr they are more vigorous, and fre-
quently a much deeper chord of feeling.
As a favOurablespecimen of' Mr. Swain's manner,
we quote the following stanzas
There's beauty in the still, blue hour of night,
When streams sing softly through the moonlit vale ;
When, one by one, shoot forth the stars to light,
Dreamy and cold, and spiritually pale :
There's beauty on the ocean, when the gale
Dashes the merry billows to the strand ;
When like a phantom flits some wand'ring
White as the moonbeam on the glittering sand,
And distant flute-notes rise, touched by some skilful hand,
There's beauty on the quiet lake afar,
When wild-birds sleep upon its voiceless breast ;
The lonely mirror of a single star,
Pale shining in the solitary west ;
There's harmony and beauty in that rest—
So placid—stirless—lonely—and so deep—
We scarcely move, or dare to whisper—lest
A word should break the magic of that sleep,
And start the spirit nymphs who watch around it keep I
There's beauty on the mountains—when the snow
Of thousand ages on their forehead lies ;
Purple and glittering in the sun-set glow,
The gala light of the Italian skies :
When gorgeously the clear prismatic dyes
Illumine ice-built arches—crystal walls
That, like the Mirrors of the Spheres, arise ;
Or proud magician's visionary halls,
Arrayed for merry masques—for pomps and carnivals.
There's beauty in the old monastic pile,
When purple twilight, like a nun, appears
Bending o'er ruin'd arch—and wasted ais!e—
Majestic glories of departed years,—
Whilst dark above the victor-ivy rears
Its sacrilegious banner o'er the shrine,
Once holy with a dying martyr's tears ;
Yet amidst dust—and darkness—and decline,
A beauty mantles still the edifice divine !
But, ah ! bereft of Mind—which is the light
That melts the shadows of futurity !
Nor early morn—non noon—nor summer night—
Nor the wild billows of the lonely sea—
No—nor the sweet and plaintive melody
Of distant flute-notes on the moonlight shore,
May touch one heart with beauty !—lf the free,
And god-like spring of thought could act no more ;
Dark were the past to Man, and dark his path before!—
All beauty is the Mind's I—The dews of earth,
Her loveliest breathings—her serenest skies
Ne'er warm'd such noble feelings into birth,
As from our own imaginations rise ;
The bright, illuminated memories
Which are the rays of the soul's world !—the gay,
And fond creations of our youthful eyes :
Beauties which set not with the setting day ;
But hold a life within—a charm against decay !

THE WORKS OF WILLIAM JAY. VoL I.
C. A. Bartlett, Bath; Longman; London.
This book, reprinted from the Baltimore edi-
tion, consists of holy homilies for the mornings
and evenings of the year, and is intended for
those who love to retire into the still sanctuaries
of devotion, or the sacred cells of prayer. After
a ministry of more than half a 'century, the vene-
rable author has embodied in these spiritual ex-
ercises the result of his long doctrinal and patri-
archal experiences. Full of wholesome thought
and " necessary food," his volume opens a rich
and large pasturage, with daily and abundant ali-
ment to satisfy the religious soul. His style is
embued with the placid and comfortable serenity
that distinguishes Burder's and Baxter's writings,
which is so well adapted to attone the heart to
pious composure and prayer. The present vo-
lume appears at the right moment. Containing
the morning and evening exercises to be used
from January to March, it opens and enters upon
the New Year. The various " Exercises" not
only distil pleasant waters in themselves, but
often carry in their current particles of gold,
which, in the shape of aphoristic expressions,
gratify the reader. A few of these scattered
grains we gather:—
BELSHAZZAR, KING OF THE CHALDEES.—Merodach
Baladin was his father. His mother was Nitocris, a wo-
man of masculine understanding. He appears in the
sacred story like a man by the way side, hung in irons :
the memory of the unjust shall rot, or, if preserved, be
perpetuated in disgrace. Amyot, Bishop of Auxyene,
and Great Almoner of France, not long before his death,
was urged to write the history of his country : " I love
my sovereigns too well," said he, " to write their lives."
A KING IN SICKNESS.—After rearing his fine palace
of cedar, he could net for a length of time take possession
of it for he was sick unto death, and the graves were
ready for him. What,wasanornamented room in the rage
of a fever ?

THE MYSTERIES OF RELIGION.—Ask me not for their
solution. I only know the fact, I see the two ends of
the chain, but the middle is under water ; yet the con-
nection is real as it is invisible. By and by it will be
drawn up.
THE UNCARED-FOR.—There are some who draw forth
no blessing while they live, or tears when they die. A
dry funeral is a hateful sight.
HUMAN DECAY.—We talk of a dying hour, but we
die daily. When the bottle is discharged of its contents,
there is a last drop, but every preceding drop emptied it
as well as the last. Before the tabernacle is completely
taken down, some pin is taken out, some cord is loosened,
some rents or w•earings away in the canvass are visible.
ICxxn TREATMENT.—Nothing tries like tenderness. Be-
nefits attract and attach the heart ; and good men are
the most susceptible of grateful impressions.
FALSE FRIENDS.—Many are very friendly when you
want not their aid, or can impart favours. You are in
their garden : they walk in it in summer, but abandon
it in winter—then it has no flowers or fruits.

AN AFTER-STATE.—My finite capacity will hereafter
admit of blessedness infinite, so that I shall be perpetu-
ally growing in beatitudes, and be always singing a new
song.
kiNDNEss.—When love actuates, the sufferer is not
insulted while he is relieved. Alms are not flung in his
face, instead of being given. The wound of distress is
not torn open, but gently touched with an angel hand.
Prone to the plain ways of his fathers, and
shunning the baleful influences of all new or
noxious schisms, Mr. Jay never strays, by any
chance, out of the strict precincts of pure and
apostolical evangelism. The light that guides
his steps, and those of his followers, is calm and
steady; and, in alluding to his writings, he in-
vites attention to this merit, in a course of words
which the acolytes of Puseyism should read for
a testimony against them :—" Though the series
(of his volume) extends through no small period,
he blesses God that the'whole is free from novelties,
and will not be found affected with the vagaries
and whimsies, and lo ! heres and lo ! theres, which
are all deemed divine at the time of their preva-
lence." This some may ascribe to him as preju-
dice, or obstinacy of belief, or the absence of
metaphysical acumen, or the want of patience
and ability to open the seals and blow the trum•
pets; but whatever may be the supposed cause,
he is not ashamed to acknowledge that " having
tasted the new wine," he says, " the old is better !"

FIVE YEARS IN INDIA. 2 Vols.
Colburn, London, 1841.

" The following pages," says the author of
this work in his prefacer" have been taken from
aJournal kept during five years travel little East,
written entirely for private amusement, and pro-
fessing nothing but to give a plain and unvar-
nished account of these travels !" In these few
simple words the author has well described the
character of his work. It is indeed a plain and
unvarnished sketch of his Oriental 'wanderings,
unembellished by any thing like glowing de-
scription, and depending for effect almost exclu-
sively on the apparentlstrict, homely truth ofits
details. The author, it seems, was ordered on
foreign service in the autunin, of the year 1833,
and left Plymouth in an Indianian bound for

Ceylon. Nothing of interest occurred during
his voyage, except that in crossing the Line he
was—according to immemorial custom—"ducked,
shaved, and made uncomfortable for a whole
week," byNeptune and his waggish associates,who,
because he evinced a dislike of their rough prac-
tical jokes, treated his thee to an additional quan-
tity of pitch and paint. On reaching Ceylon,
where he staid but a few days, and of which he
gives us, in consequence, little or no account, he
again took shipping for Calcutta, with whose
splendid appearance he was, of course, as much
struck, as all are who visit for the first time that
Oriental City of Palaces. Our readers may, per-
haps, like to see his account of the habits of daily
life prevalent in Calcutta, and we subjoin it ac-
cord'ngly
The life one leads in the City of Palaces is much that
of all India—namely, rising two hours before sunrise ; a
gallop round the course follows, when, consigning both
your horse and yourself to the hands of their respective
servants, by half-past nine they manage to wind one up
for breakfast. By an Indian breakfast by no means must
be understood that simple bread, tea, and butter, which
compose an English one : on the contrary, it involves
among its component parts meat, fish, eggs, omelets ; not
to mention the eternal curry and rice, which neither
breakfast nor dinner in this country is complete without.
Visiting, scandal (which last abounds in India), and the
usual routine of a large English society, kill time till
luncheon, or tiffin, as it is called, which is again a most
substantial meal. After this meal, parties generally dis-
perse to their rooms, and amuse themselves as best they
may till driving hour (five, or half-past five), which can-
not take place till after the sun is down. At that
time a most extraordinary 'collection of vehicles make
their appearance on what .is • called the course, from the
superb " turns out". of the grandee to the little gig of the
Calcutta shopkeeper.
The author made but a brief stay at Calcutta,
and then steamed up the Ganges for several
hundred miles, accompanied by his uncle, Ge-
neral Sir -Henry Fane, and a party, and, after
passing many fine towns and magnificent ruins of
palaces on their voyage, arrived at the far-famed
sacred city of Benares, which presents a most
picturesque appearance from the river, and whose
houses are, many of them, six stories high, built
of stone, , each storey containing one. family, and
many covered with execrable paintings of
Hindoo Gods and worthies of different kinds. In
sonic of the streets these houses on either side
conic so close as to be united by galleries, and in
almost all a good jumper would clear the street
with ease. " " The close packing of this place,"
observes the author, " must be extraordinary, as
from the top of the Mosque, built by Aurung-
zebe, the city does not appear to extend above a
mile any way, and yet it is said to contain a po-
pulation of 650,000 inhabitants." Benares, we
are told, is by far the richest city in India, and
carries on a very extensive trade with all parts
of the Continent, particularly in silks and bro-
cades, which are superb, but very expensive. It
is considered so holy, that if even a Christian
were to die there, he would most likely go to the
Hindoo heaven. On reaching Delhi, after a long
and fatiguing march, our author was greatly
struck with the ruinous condition of this- once
famous capital of the powerful Mogul empire.
Who has not heard of Sultans Jehanguire, Baber,
and Akbar, their enormous wealth, and flourishing
metropolis, which monopolized almost all the
wealth of the East? Yet, " how are the mighty
fallen?" Delhi is now mere a third-rate city,
though the Great Mogul still lives in the palace
of his ancestors, if a ruinous mass of mud and
dirt can be called such. We subjoin an'amusing
account of our author's interview with the pre-
sent King of Delhi :
The present King is a mean, vulgar-looking individual
of sixty. He was handsomely dressed, and had on some
really very fine jewels, particularly pearls. The throne,
which is still called the peacock throne, was in the time
of Akbar said to have had jewels on it to the value of
20,000,0001, and Nadir Shah took from it upwards of
14,000,0001. A single diamond which formerly stood at
the top, which is now replaced by a piece of glass (the
Koh-e-nor), was valued at upwards of 3,000,000/. ; and
the peacocks which stand at each corner had each a string
of pearls in their beaks, valued at 100,000/. These, like
the diamonds, are now replaced by false ones, and the
jewels on the body of the throne have descended into
coloured glass. The room, or open:colonnade, in which
this object stands, is very beautifully formed of white
marble, inlaid with gold, and is still in tolerable repair,
though the purdahs-and carpets which composed its fur-
niture were in a sad state of dilapidation.
After each had been presented and paid his money,
which his Majesty took especial care not to lose, we were
severally led; away to receive the kelat, or robe of ho-
nour—a farce which the Government still keep up, in
spite of its marvellous absurdity. The General was robed
in the King's presence, but we of the small fry marched
into another room, to be made such figures as never were
seen, even at Greenwich fair. Each of us had first a
piece of rag tied round our cocked hats, by way of tur-
ban ; after which a robe of spangled white muslin was
thrust over epaulettes, sword, and all ; over which again
they treated each of us to a jacket of cloth of silver; and
in this tomfool's dress we were again trotted across the
court, obliged (which was the most difficult performance
of the whole) to keep from laughing, and again to be
presented to the King and be bedizened with a parcel of
glass jewels and trumpery, to the value of two gold mo-
Ours ; for which civility the company treated the King
to another gold mohur from each.
While this was going on, three or four heralds were
making, as much noise as possible, by roaring at the top
of their voices the titles and honours which had been
conferred on the Commander-in-Chief, and how much
honoured he ought to be by the distinction conferred
upon him by the "Asylum of the Universe." He was
treated to a coloured stick, which is, I believe, synony-
mous to the baton of a field-marshal ; to the drums of
state, which confer the power of life and death ; and to
the ollowing titles The Lion of the State," " The
Sword of the Empire," " The Grandee of the Age," " Sir
H. Pane Bahadour, the strength of war."
This ceremony being concluded, we were again made
to salaam, and, in the dress we had received, were trotted
out to the gate to our elephants, and again went through
the town ; I, for one, feeling more ashamed of myself
than I had done for many a long year. We were not
allowed to take off our dress till our arrival in camp, as
that would have seemed disrespectful to his Majesty ;
and so strict is Government on this point, that Mr. Fraser,
the resident, some years ago, having thrown off his dress
and given it to the beggars in the street, received a strong
reprimand from his superiors, and was even threatened
with the loss of his place.
The second volume is, for the most part, taken
up with particulars of a visit paid by the author
and his fellow-travellers to the Court of Runjeet
Sing, and notices of the late expedition to Cabal
and Affghanistan; but as these subjects have
already been well nigh exhausted by preceding
travellers, we here forbear from enlarging on
them. Suffice it to say that Mr. Fane, the author,
has produced a very readable worknotwith-
standing that the majority of his details are want-
ing in novelty; and his volumes are illustrated
with some twelve or fourteen cleverish engravings.