Star.
London, England, 1821-01-06 00:00:00

SHAKSPEARB CLUB.

Thurs Jay, the 28th ultimo, the Members of the
Shakspeare Club dined together at the Tontine Inn,
Sheffield. Upwards of sixty sat down to a sump-
tuous entertainment, which had been provided for
the occasion. Under the superintendence of Doctor
YousG, the Chairman, the company passed a day of
the highest enjoyment and amusement. After the
cloth had been drawn, the Chairman gave—

1 _
" May good digestion wait on appetite, and health on both."
“ Our liege Sovereign—may he eo govern these united King-
doms--
" ' That nor Peer nor Peasant may have cause to say,
" ' Hr.avre shorten George's happy years one day !"

" The Queen and Royal Family—may their conduct prove to
all the world that virtue alone is true nobility."
The CHAIRMAN addressed the company in an ele-
gant speech, of which the following is an abstract
I rise, Gentlemen, to address you on the subject
of our present meeting, and this I shall do in a few
words ; for surely it cannot be necessary, nor would
it be proper in me, to take up your time • in telling
you that which you yourselves do know.' I need not
expatiate on the excellence of dramatic writings and
representations, as your admiration of them has been
the foundation of this Club; I would only observe, that
the Drama, directed according to its noble design, to
shew the beauty of virtue and to expose the deformity of
vice, has been appoved of in all ages, by men of the
wisest heads and the best hearts. Good things may, no
doubt, be sometimes corruptld to bad purposes; but
with the abuse this Society has nothing to do—the
proper use only we mean to countenance. Even
Shakspeare himself, that prodigy of nature and ge-
nius, in honour of whom we are here assembled, oc-
casionally hurried away by the luxury of fancy, or
yielding to the taste of the times in which he lived,:
has sometimes fallen a little beneath himself; but in
his wondrous works there is such a rare assemblage
of excellencies, that no writer of his time can, on fair
grounds, be placed in competition with him. But,
Gentlemen, I would go one step further : take all the
dramatic writers since Shakspeare's time—weigh
them together, and Shakspeare will not lose by the
comparison. It is needless to recount to you his
beauties. Those who can reject them on account of
blemishes that occur in. his numerous writings, would
find fault with the glorious luminary of Heaven, be-
cause there are spots upon his disk, or because a few
passing clouds sometimes obscure his brightness; but
well I know, that
" His good remembrance, Sirs
Lies richer in your thoughts than on his tomb."
Therefore, _ _

" The rather will I spare my praise towards him;
Knowing him is enough."
Rise then, Gentlemen, and drink to

" The glorious Memory of William Shakspeare ;"
and let this toast be distinguished by three times three.
Some of the other toasts were—
" Our glorious Constitution—formed by British wisdom, sup-
ported by British laws, and defended by British valour."

" Our townsman, the Lurd of Hallamshire, and Duke of
Norfnlk."—(Cheers)..

" Our venerable and illustrious neighbour, Earl Fatswilliam,
and the House of Wentworth."—(Thme sksrs).

4 May each Member of the Shakspeare Club so perform hi;
part on the :rage of life that he may be respected on the stage,
and regretted when he makes his exit."

" May those Members of the Club who are in The Way to get
Married, find A Cure for the Heart Ache."
" The Load Lieutenant of the West Riding, and the House
of Harewood." .

" The County Members."
" May the Representatives of the People always do their
duty, unwarped by interest, and unawed by clamour."

The CHAIRMAN said, one thing which must en-
dear Shakspeare to every Englishman is, the enthu-
siastic fondness he loses no opportunity of expressing
for his native land—

" This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-Paradise!
This precious stone, set in the silver sea!
This blessed spot, this earth, this realm, this England!"
With a prophetic spirit he exclaims--
" This England never did, nor ever shall,
Lie at the proud foot of a Conqueror;
Come the three corners of the world in arms,
And we shall shock them. Nought shall make us rue,
If England to herself do prove but true."
After 200 years this prophecy remains in fall force.
In order to continue it to the latest posterity, let every
man do his best—let him endeavour to fulfil the
wish expressed in the toast. I shall now give_

" May Britons be ever united and free."
" Money, Health, and Content; he that wants these is with-
out three good friends."

" May blessings attend our steps, and afflictions know us not."
" It is held," says Shakspeare,
a That valour is the chiefest Weise, and
Most dignifies the haver : If It be,
The man I next shall speak of, cannot in the world
Be singly counterpoised. By my hopes,
I do not think a braver Gentleman.
More daring or more bold, is now alive,
To grace the latter age with noble deeds."
" The Duke of Wellington"—three cheers.
" The Heroes of Waterloo."
" He that outliv'd that day, and came safe home,
Shall, yearly on the vigil, feast his neighbours,
And say, To-morrow was the fight of Waterloo.
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars.
Old men forget, yet shall not all forget
The feats they did that day."
" The Rose, the Thistle, and the Shamrock—the most gle-
'Hew wreath an earthly King can wear."

" May the turnpike-road to happiness be free from tpli-bars,
and well furnished with guide-posts."
" The highly-respected Magistrates of the West Riding."
On the health of the Chairman being giren, he
replied, in Shakspeare's words—
., My very worthy and approv'd good Townsmen,
I have a kind soul that would give you thanks,
But scarce knows how to do it. Health to all!
May you be here as merry
As good company, good wines, and good welcome,
Can make good people. And when you go hence,
Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you."
" Mt. Peter Brownell, the proposed President for the year
ensuing."

" The Town of Sheffield : may its trade be increased, its
wants reduced, and its comforts multidlied."

" The Sheffield General Infirmary; may the heart that sym•
pathises in the dhtresses of others, never sorrow over Its own
misfortunes."

" The Army and Navy : may their dtaraeteristies always be
fortitude in the hour of disaster, courage in the hour of danger,
and mercy in the hour of victory."

Many other toasts were given, and the names of
MILTON, ADDISON, GARRICK, KENIBLZ, Mrs. SID-
DONS, &c. honourably distinguished. The company
did not begin to depart before nine o'clock.

MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR.

TO THE EDITOR.

In the latter end of August last, I, in company
of a friend, was shooting grouse, on the mountain.
in the county of Down, where I have been at a gen-
tleman's house for some time, on a visit; and having
ahneadrdsaevfagaepaasnpecamtionisgdtheielmom,
the Devil's Mountain, and being then in its vicinity,
faroiemzi: tis)oduelseo,laoter
iwnahtiedch,
through curio-
sity,and early in the day, which was uncommonly fine,
we penetrated a considerable length,
human creature, when, after a scramble (forit could
to view a place seldom or ever visited by any
hardly be called a walk) for nearly three hours, we
found ourselves in a small glen, or vale, encompassed
on all sides by lofty rocks, which confining the sun's
rays, rendered the heat excessive. The bottom was
the only place in our tour which exhibited any verdure,
and this was created almost entirely by esculent plants,
but particularly cabbage and beans, which stood be-
tween the intrusion of rocks, where any earth existed.
We both involuntarily stopped, and gazed at each
ether, looking round fur some habitation, when we
discovered a smoke rising from an obscure corner,
to which advancing, we arrived at the mouth of a
grotto, or small cave, overhung by huge rocks, and
looking in, perceived a figure employed in some way
over a little fire. Our approach alarming the man,i
he turned suddenly about, and uttering an exclama-
tion of surprise and terror, sunk down deprived of
sense. We brought him to, by the best assistance
we could afford, and, with the help of a little cherry
brandy, he was soon able to speak; and, after fixing
his eyes on us with excessive anxiety, he at length
said, with much agitation, he knew me, having seen
me at a fair—that I was a clergyman, and presumed
(was his phrase), from the appearance of my compa-
nion, he was of the same profession, which was the
fact; when, taking both our hands, and grasping
them in an agony, lie said he would put confidence
in us, and throw himself on the faith of our sacerdo-
tal word, that we would not mention any circum-
stance relating to him, until we were unequivocally
assured that his existence was at an end. In fine,
not to intrude-too long on your leisure, by relating
more than is necessary at this time, after he became
composed enough, the result from our questions and
his voluntary declaration amounted to this: he had
lived in a part of Ireland very remote from that
where we now stood; that a certain circumstance,
which must affect his life if he was discovered, com-
pelled him to abandon his house; that he was often
tempted to give himself up to the laws of his coun-
try, but having leisure for refiexion, he conceived,
that by prolonging his existence, if it were possible,
he might expiate his crime (the nature of which be
did not give the slightest hint of), by a life of seclu-
sion and penitence; and for this purpose he had wan-
dered through the most sequestered mountains in
Ireland, for many months, without meeting what
could at all suit his plan, and when nearly driven to
desperation, and almost determined to surrender, he
happened on his preser.t abode; that he had not
shaved his beard from the time he left his own part
of the country, and in the character of a begL.,,ar bad
fortunately passed undetected; that this place pos-
sessed the main requisites he sought for so long in
vain, as being so remote from all human interference,
having a little portion of land capable of culture,
water at hand, and fuel, which was stunted heath,
and the thin straw from whence it sprung, together
with the habitation, such as it was: that having made
such observations as were sufficient to guide him into
the inhabited part of the country and back again, he
always after took the advantage of moon-light, go
ing and returning at night, and in the day collect-
ing, by degrees, such things as were stbsolutely ne-
cessary for his existence—the first of which was a
spade, which he purchased under the feint of going
to look for work, without the aid of which it was im-
possible to obtain fuel, and his provision of meal he
had in a number of small bags. He said he was 'at
that time employed in excursions to prepare for the
approach of winter, of which he very justly spoke
in dread ; indeed, it would appear that his brain must
have been disordered, otherwise he never could have
devised so extravagant a scheme to preserve his life,
and to fancy himself perfectly secluded there. He
certainly had ranked as a Gentleman, from his man-
ner and language, and was unquestionably an Irish-
man, though we could not detect by his accent from
what province. He had a property, but where, of
what nature or extent, he did not declare; and had
got together as much small silver as he possibly could
conceal about his person, preparatory to his pilgrim-
age, and which he had at that time hid among the
rocks in his grotto. After his requesting us to renew
our promise of secrecy, and intreating we would not
run the hazard of his discovery by another visit, we
took leave.—l could not, however, conquer the im-
pulse of humanity, to try what situation the unfor-
tunate man might be in at this season; or whether he
had abandoned a spot which appeared impossible to
remain in, and accordingly I took my horse, under
the pretext of speeding a few days with a relation of
the Gentleman where I was, and am yet on a visit,
who lived in the vicinity of these mountains, where
having arrived, I set off very early the next day, and
leaving my horse at a cottage in the mountains, pro-
ceeded on foot to the fatal spot. But, good HEAVEM!
what an hideous spectacle!—His remains lay en the
floor—his shoes on—the tattered fragments of his
garment lying about, which, with the flesh, had been
torn almost entirely from the bones, evidently by
birds of prey. I was alone, my friend being in Eng-
land, where,he resides. I precipitately retreated--
glad to escape from a scene so awful, and rendered
indescribably terrific from the ghastly silence and
horror of the surrounding scenery. I have been ex-
tremely indisposed ever since, now about eight days,
but when recovered, I purpose bringing the Coroner,
and assistance to inter the remains, and make diligent
search to find out some clue by which this mysterious
affair may be developed. (Signed) JAMES EWEN.
Coolbeg, Gorey, December 1820.

Four Coroners' Inquests have been held during the
last week, at Birmingham, on an elderly woman and
three children, whose deaths were occasioned by their
clothes taking fire. Verdicts—Accidental Death.
An Inquest was held yes;erday at the Triumphant
Chariot, Pembroke Mews, on thg body of Ann Gil-
let, aged five years, who was so dreadfully burnt du-
ring the absence of her nurse as to die the sante even-
in',to. Verdict—Accidental Death.