one to emanate from a strictly Protestant plauded by all Christendom." The state of Government which only last Session ex- the dome of the Holy Sepulchre, threatening plained that it had not interfered because to tumble about the heads of the pilgrims, the matter concerned rather the Catholic awakened contemporaneously "the solicithan the Protestant world. Of course, the tude" of the French and Russian Emperors' Pope, if he chooses, may reside anywhere Governments. The two Cabinets agreed to within the British dominions; but we should imagine that at Malta, a military station crowded with bigoted Maltese, and still more bigoted Irish soldiery, he would be a decided and very dangerous nuisance. Gibraltar would be a much better residence, as, in the event of too much trouble, we might hand him, and the rock, and the "lizards," all over together to Spain.-Spectator, 17 Jan. THE Revolutionary Committee in Rome has issued a very able new year's proclamation to the Romans on the promised Papal reforms. It expresses Roman gratitude both to the power which gives and to the power which has solicited these reforms, with considerable force: "Romans, -an overwhelming foreign force has added yet another year to the history of your servitude, to the lamentable series of your misfortunes. But, as a solace to your sorrows, pretended administrative reforms are promised you that is to say, the partial and ephemeral carrying into effect of a new law promulgated at Gaeta as far back as 1850, a modification of the postal regulations, and a slight change in the administration of the lottery. This is what the generous Government of France has obtained from the Pontiff and the Holy College after thirteen years of military occupation; this is what the Pontiff and the Holy College have been able to concede to the generous Government of France in requital of its maintenance of the temporal power in Rome against the will of the Romans. Romans, you should be equally grateful to him who obtains and to him who gives to you such a benefit." — Spectator, 17 Jan. HOLY SEPULCHRE. "FRANCE, Russia, and the Porte have agreed to an arrangement which will be ap ask the consent of the Porte to construct a new dome. The Porte entered into the holy plan with an ardor worthy almost of the Papacy, or of St. Peter himself when he outran St. John on the way to the sepulchre. It claimed the right of the territorial sovereign to participate in the expense. And so the three powers are to keep triangular watch over each other as they build the roof of the empty sepulchre; and the Christian powers try with the aid of the Turk, to find a new verification of the prophecy that the Cross came to produce, not peace on earth, but a sword. DAVIS vs. NEGROES. A SIGN of the times is a proclamation issued by Mr. Davis on 23d Dec., in which he decreed that "all negro slaves captured in arms shall be at once delivered over to the States to which they belong," and that the like orders be executed in all cases with respect to all officers found serving in company with slaves. By the State laws all slaves in insurrection are liable to death, as are all white men aiding them, and the Index, the organ of the South in London, thus interprets the decree: "It is not to be imagined that a regiment of negroes would, when captured, be put to the sword. The officers would probably be hanged with as little ceremony as our Indian heroes showed towards the captured accomplices of Nana Sahib; a few of the men would likewise be hanged as an example to the rest; the majority would simply return to the condition from which they were taken, and in which, till evil advisers came among them, they were happy." In the same decree Mr. Davis sentences General Butler to be hanged for executing Mr. Mumford who had, three days before his entry, pulled down a Federal flag-and all officers serving under his command, for no reason at all.-Spectator, 17 Jan. THE COACHMAN OF THE "SKYLARK." [In the good old times, before railways were known, the "Skylark," on the and road, was the fastest coach, and its driver, Joseph the best and smartest coachman in England. The " "Skylark long ago gone the way of all coaches; and Joe is now landlord of the " Horns," at where long may he flourish!] Air-" Four High-mettled Steeds." Awake, and hear my strains! Had spoiled all sorts of fun,- Can any greasy stoker With dashing Joe compare? And company most rare. With Joe, whose light but steady hand Where your long, dismal tunnel That might Old Harry kill), Has marred the pleasant scene, Beside the village green: has 'Twas there the" Skylark" stopped to dine, Oh! where's the flinty heart that could THE ENGINE-DRIVER TO HIS ENGINE. PUT forth your force, my iron horse, with limbs that never tire! The best of oil shall feed your joints, and the best of coal your fire; So off we tear from Euston Square, to beat the swift south wind, As we rattle along the North-West rail, with the special train behind : Dash along, crash along, sixty miles an hour! For I am bound to see my love, Far away in the North Countrie. Like a train of ghosts the telegraph posts go wildly trooping by, While one by one the milestones run, and off behind us fly: Like foaming wine it fires my blood to see your lightning speed, Arabia's race ne'er matched your pace, my gallant steam-borne steed! Wheel along, squeal along, sixty miles an hour! Right through old England flee; For I am bound to see my love, Far away in the North Countrie. My blessing on old George Stephenson! let his fame forever last! For he was the man that found the plan to make you run so fast: His arm was strong, his head was long, he knew not guile nor fear; When I think of him, it makes me proud that Tear along, flare along, sixty miles an hour! For I am bound to see my love, Far away in the North Countrie. Now Thames and Trent are far behind, and evening's shades are come; Before my eyes the brown hills rise that guard my true-love's home. See his bold brown eye! Ting-a-ling! let him fly! Sir Knight, lo! while I am speaking, He is over them all, He is king of them all: He flutters and scatters them shrieking. Sir Knight, every man Will do what he can : Sorrows that are sorrows still Lose the bitter taste of woe; Nothing's altogether ill In the griefs of Long-ago. Tombs where lonely love repines, Though the doom of swift decay THE WINTER'S MORN. ARTIST unseen! that, dipped in frozen dew, Of two brave ones, my glove to the stronger! Thy towers and palaces of diamond hue, Wert thou foremost to-day, Only fail in one fray, I am his, and not thine any longer! THE KNIGHT. As we dash to the prize, Beholding, may yield us a thrill; But, ladies, 'tis true, Not from you, nor for you, Is man's courage to die or to kill. Ye are seated around The tourneying-ground, And we bow as our lances we level; But, when horse meets horse, Oh, the teeth-setting force Is some frenzy from God or the devil! Hurrah for the wars! 'Tis the red god Mars That stirs to the mood superhuman; In the soul of a man That will do all he can Must be more than the love of a woman! THE LONG-AGO. On that deep-retiring shore Frequent pearls of beauty lie, Where the passion-waves of yore, Fiercely beat and mounted high: Rivers and lakes of lucid crystal made, And hung in air hoar trees of branching shade, That liquid pearl distil; thy scenes renew, Whate'er old bards or later fictions feign, Of secret grottos underneath the wave, Where nereids roof with spar the amber cave; Or bowers of bliss, where sport the fairy train, Who, frequent by the moonlight wanderer A STORM IN THE COUNTRY. So we Cosily nestled in the library, Enjoyed each other and the warmth of home. Each window was a picture of the rain: Blown by the wind, tormented, wet and gray, Losing itself in cloud the landscape lay; Or wavered, blurred, behind the streaming pane; Or, with a sudden struggle, shook away Its load, and like a foundering ship arose Distinct and dark above the driving spray, Until a fiercer onset came, to close The hopeless day. The roses writhed about Their stakes, the tall laburnums to and fro Rocked in the gusts, the flowers were beaten low, And from his pigmy house the wren looked out With dripping bill each living creature fled To seek some sheltering cover for its head: Yet colder, drearier, wilder as it blew, We drew the closer, and the happier grew. BAYARD TAYLOR. No. 978.-28 February, 1863. 2. Arthur Hugh Clough, 3. The Story of Richard Savage, Dramatist and Poet, Bentley's Miscellany, 4. Blind Black Tom, . By the Dean of Canterbury, 387 391 408 413 418 423 425 427 428 430 5. Jane Austen and her Writings, 6. Bishops of the Confederate Church on Slavery, 7. The Two Proclamations, 8. Increased Probability of a Long War, 9. The Emperor's Speech, 10. Nathan Hale, All the Year Round, 66 Economist, Daily Advertiser, POETRY. A New Song to an Old-Fashioned Tune, 386. Treasures, 386. Lethe, 386. Golden Words, 432. Human Sympathy, 432. Abou Ben Butler, 432. SHORT ARTICLES.-Grecian Scenery, 412. Theatrical Successes in Paris, 412. A Wonderful Instance of Rescue from Drowning, 417. Female Medical Students, 422. NEW BOOKS. DIARY FROM 4 MARCH, 1861, To 12 Nov., 1862. By Adam Gurowski. Boston: Lee & Shepard. [We have just arisen from this book. Having begun to read, we could not lay it down till the last word. See a review of it in No. 971.] THE REBELLION RECORD: a Diary of American Events. Edited by Frank Moore, Author of "Diary of the American Revolution." Part 26. G. P. Putnam, Publisher; Charles T. Evans, General Agent, New York. This part contains portraits of Commodore Theodorus Bailey and Major-General Joseph Hooker, the fine face of the latter looking like Bishop Eastburn inspired. Part 25 begins the fifth volume. The four completed volumes contain: 1. A full and concise Diary of Events, from the Meeting of the South Carolina Convention in Dec., 1860, to the Capture of New Orleans, inclusive. 2. Over One Thousand Official Reports and Narratives of all the Battles and Skirmishes that have occurred during the War. 3. Over Five Hundred Songs and Ballads, both loyal and rebel. 4. Forty-seven Portraits, engraved on steel, of the most celebrated men of the time, and Twenty-six Maps and Plans of Battles. 5. Over Three Thousand Incidents and Anecdotes of Personal Daring and Bravery. "As a work for constant reference, it is eminently to be relied on." PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY BY LITTELL, SON, & CO., BOSTON. For Six Dollars a year, in advance, remitted directly to the Publishers, the LIVING AGE will be punctually forwarded free of postage. Complete sets of the First Series, in thirty-six volumes, and of the Second Series, in twenty volumes, handsomely bound, packed in neat boxes, and delivered in all the principal cities, free of expense of freight, are for sale at two dollars a volume. ANY VOLUME may be had separately, at two dollars, bound, or a dollar and a half in numbers. ANY NUMBER may be had for 13 cents; and it is well worth while for subscribers or purchasers to complete any broken volumes they may have, and thus greatly enhance their value. |