with having wilfully attempted to kill and murder Richard Platt, by firing, &c.; and whereas a bill of indictment had been found by the grand jury of the City of London against the said James Watson, but that he had not yet been apprehended, and therefore we, (the Prince Regent), in behalf of his Majesty, are pleased to renew the reward of 500l., so made on the 2nd day of December, and renewed on the 22nd of January, for the apprehension of James Watson the younger, that he may be dealt with according to law; and we hereby charge all persons, upon their allegiance, not to receive or harbour him: all persons offending herein will be held guilty of high treason. And we do also promise a like reward of 500l. to any person who shall discover, or cause to be discovered, any person so receiving or harbouring the said James Watson.-Given at our Court of Carlton House, the 18th day of February, 1817.

"The above James Watson is a surgeon by profession, and has been employed in that capacity on board a Greenland ship. He is apparently 23 or 24, but in reality only 20 years of age; dark hair, rather pale complexion, five feet four inches high-has a mark or mole with a few hairs on it, on his left cheekbone near the eye-the left eyelid rather drooping over the eye-very faint remains of small-pox in his face-has rather a wide mouth, and shows his teeth (which are very black) when he laughs. He sometimes wore a brown great-coat, black under-one, black waistcoat, drab breeches, and long gaiters. And at other times, he wore blue pantaloons, and Hessian boots."

This is the official portrait of Young Watson, which, as before stated, was incorrect. He had light brown hair, ruddy complexion, was five feet three inches in height, and had very good teeth. The drooping of the left eyelid was indeed a peculiarity, and many were the experiments tried to remedy the defect-we believe successfully.

Young Watson and his protector were surrounded on all sides by danger, and their anxiety, as may be easily supposed, increased with every fresh movement out of doors. Fortunately for all parties, the plan adopted for their security had the desired effect; no apparent caution was observed, the children were seen going to school or playing about as usual, and the absence of anything ke mystery, or departure from the accustomed habits of the family, doubtless blinded the eyes of those who were on the watch. Every house in the street had become an object of inquiry and

suspicion, while a second house, immediately opposite, No. 6, was searched.

No question now remained as to the accuracy of the information or the nearness of the pursuit. But how had the clue been obtained? It was conjectured that Mr. Evans, jun., had been watched to Camden Town when he called to see Young Watson, a few days previous to his own arrest-his only visit to Mr. Holl's house since the night of the 17th of December, or that imprudent observations had guided the pursuit to the immediate neighbourhood of his concealment.

The question now was, the removal of Young Watson to an asylum less fraught with danger; but who would shelter him? The proclamation presented itself at every turn, and the knowledge of the reward for his betrayal, together with the certain punishment of his concealer, rendered the task too perilous. Young Watson was the pivot upon which all turned. Once in the power of the ministry, they had sufficient means to bring the charge of "guilty" home to all whom they wished to connect with him in the riots of the 2nd of December; and a long string of victims would have graced the hangman's beam, adding another "lot" to that disgraceful and death-dealing period. This young man at large, they felt, as it afterwards proved, that their charge would fall to the ground.

Who would shelter him? Who would brave the wrath of government by concealing him? Application was made to several, but all declined-Moggridge among the number. He said, "the risk was too great that ministers, in revenge for being so long baulked; in their search, would visit upon his concealer their cherished vengeance, and involve him, if only as an example, in the general doom of death."

A rather singular manner of escape was at length devised for him. It proved, however, unsuccessful.

It appeared that Moggridge was acquainted with a Mr. Casey, the keeper of a private mad-house at Plaistow, and having business in that neighbourhood, had called upon him. Here he met a Mr. Dennison. After dinner, their conversation turned upon the subject of Young Watson, and of his past and present difficulties, which Moggridge dwelt upon at some length; when Mr. Dennison observed: "What a capital hiding-place Mr. Casey's mad-house would be!" A confidence was at length reposed as to Young Watson's need of concealment, when it appeared that Dennison had himself

come to consult Mr. Casey, as to whether he would afford a shelter to Thistlewood, who was in like jeopardy; a pecuniary offer was made to Mr. Casey, which was accepted, and it was agreed between them, that Watson and Thistlewood would be brought in the course of the week.

Some short time previously, Moggridge, on a visit to Young Watson, had brought with him a mutual friend of theirs, a Mr. Pendrell, a bootmaker in Newgate Street, whose services, in the after escape of this young man, were of so much and essential value. It is rather a curious circumstance that this Pendrell was a descendant from the same family, whose name, in connexion with the concealment of Charles II. in the oak tree, takes so important a place in the romantic history of his dangers and escapes. The family for many years enjoyed a pension of 1007. from the crown, but from some reason not known to the narrator, its present representative was not in receipt of the royal bounty.

He

A meeting had taken place at Pendrell's, when it was agreed between himself, Moggridge, and Dennison, that Young Watson should be removed to Mr. Casey's house the Monday following; but by some mistake, Thistlewood was taken in his stead! was conducted to Plaistow by Moggridge and Pendrell, and was strangely disappointed at not finding Young Watson there. After the departure of his two friends, he became violent and uneasy; said he was trepanned into a mad-house, and insisted upon leaving it. No objection being made, he left the asylum prepared for him, in the full belief that his wife had conspired with others to confine him in a mad-house.

The sum offered by government for the discovery of Young Watson was in itself large, while the knowledge that any sum might have been obtained from the secretary of state's office, provided information could be given of his retreat, together with the arrest of his concealer, was enough to make the boldest tremble. The secret, too, of his concealment was already known to several : poor and needy men, whose imprudence, or the temptations of a large sum of money, might at any time betray. And all this risk! for what? to save the life of a rash, unthinking man, whose folly, rashness, and imprudence, had placed the gallows black before him; while wife and children, life itself, were staked ag inst the saving of a man, unseen until protected, unknown until befriended.

Friendship does much. Humanity did more.

The slightest noise seemed fraught with terrors, while an unexpected knock at the door, or casual survey of the house, caused fresh anxiety. His evening walks were now cut off, but prompted by his curious fear, Young Watson kept a studious watch by day on all who passed. At night, with pistols within his reach, he got what fevered sleep he could.

One day, while prying through the window at who might pass, he almost started from his post, as he saw Vickery, the Bow-street officer, watching from the windows of an empty house immediately opposite, and next to the one already searched! The game was up. The police had at last hunted him down! He crept from the window, and remained, as well as he could, sheltered and concealed. It was a dark and dismal night for all. The hopelessness of escape-the certainty that pursuit had traced him to the very door-gave the death-blow to the hope either of Young Watson's safety in his present shelter, or flight from it. It was an anxious, fearful night; and seated round the fire, while the rest of the household were in bed, Young Watson, his protector, with his wife and son, sat gloomy and mistrustful. Speculation was busy in their minds, and with half-breathed words, they kept a noiseless conversation. It was near midnight, and their thoughts were full of dread-their words of fear.

A knock a single, loud, and unexpected knock, struck at the door! All started to their feet! Resolute, and determined to sell his life dearly, Young Watson rushed up to his room and seized his pistols, while the son, taught by the example of his some three-months' companion, and desirous to assist in his escape, armed himself with a dirk, and thus equipped, sallied out at the back of the house into a small garden with Young Watson, who, strong in his determination to kill or be killed, stood waiting the moment to act.

All seemed lost. The house was no doubt surrounded-resistance useless. After quieting, as he best could, the fears of his wife, Mr. Holl took a light, and, expecting to be seized the moment he removed the fastenings, he assumed as much indifference as he could, and opened the door.

H. HOLL.

NO. XXXIII.-VOL. VI.

R

THE PHILOSOPHY OF FACTS.

THERE is no one who possesses a deeper faith than I do in the present powers and ultimate progression of the human species. The distances of worlds, which, notwithstanding their magnitude, appear to us mere specks, have been accurately calculated by the mathematician: the depths of our planet have been compelled by the geologist to render up the pages of its past history: the perfection of mechanics, by which the labour of thousands has been reduced to a few manual operations, and the triumphs of steam, which has annihilated space and time, and broken down all boundaries between the brotherhood of man :-these are just proofs of the power that has been boasted. But, without throwing a damper upon exertion, by inquiring whether there have not been similar phases of progression in the anterior history of the human kind, or hinting that the law of the physical world is also the law of the mental, Thus far shalt thou come, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed," it may be as well to give a man a nudge, at least, in these his dreams of this day's utilitarianism,-to show him that there is something else to live for, besides buying and selling.

But, however mysterious the amount of man's knowledge, there is a thing equally mysterious, the amount of his ignorance. Though he has amassed facts, ransacked nature, and pushed his knowledge to the uttermost, the Baconian principle of modern philosophy, of building theories upon facts, has not one whit more succeeded in informing him of the nature of things than the exploded, but perhaps not altogether untrue, system of ancient philosophyfirst constructing the theory and then assorting the facts. We know the forms of matter, but what know we of matter itself? We know the operations of the steam-engine; it has become to our mind's eye almost the child of our creation, a second monster of Frankenstein; but what know we of the soul? We know the political relations of nations, the metaphysical actions of mindbut what know we of ourselves? This is a wisdom which has been-which is invaluable,—but which seems to be passing away: