Графични страници
PDF файл
ePub

signal guns fired, and in less than ten minutes the Governor and his whole garrison were under arms. The supposed grenadier, being very much incommoded by his cap, and almost blinded by the peas, was soon overtaken and seized, and by his capture, the tranquillity of the garrison was restored, without that slaughter and bloodshed, which every man had prognosticated in the beginning of the direful alarm.

DEXTEROUS THIEVES.

The whole country of Tanjore, from the gates of the capital, to within a few miles of Tritchinopoly, is an almost uninterrupted desert waste, with only one village, during this great extent of road-that of Seringapettah, celebrated for the dexterity of its thieves.

Some years ago, a detachment of the King's artillery, intending to halt there for the night, was advised of this propensity of the natives, and recom mended to be on their guard against it. The two officers in charge of the detachment, as well as the men, ridiculed and scorned the idea of these poor wretches (such they seemed to be) being able to rob the King's artillery, but took the precaution of placing sentries over all the tents, a double one at that of the quarter guard, with orders, rendered unnecessary by the awakened pride of the sentries themselves, to be more than usually watchful. The inhabitants, through the means of the native servants, heard that their skill in thieving was set at nought, and their vanity was proportionably piqued. Next morning, the officers rising early, missed nothing, and began to exult in their security, when one of the serjeants arrived, with shame and dismay pictured on his countenance, and informed them that the whole of the arms belonging to the main guard were missing, and that all the natives had abandoned the village. Every search, though undertaken instantly, was in vain, and the detachment was compelled to march away unarmed, and fully aware of the reception they would be likely to meet with from their corps when their disaster became known. The manner in which this dexterous theft was achieved, long remained unknown; but many years afterwards, when the circumstance was almost forgotten, the villagers themselves voluntarily surrendered the arms to the authorities of the country, and declared they had taken them merely because their skill in thieving had been called in question; and observed, in confirmation of this, that they had not taken a single thing, with the exception of the arms, which they now restored. Being asked how they had contrived to steal them from the centre of a tent, the guard sleeping round them, and two sentries outside, they gave the following account:Some of them stripped themselves naked, and oiled their bodies over, that, if caught, they might not easily be held; they approached that part of the tent where the sentry in the rear was posted, who, as usual, was walking about twenty paces backwards and forwards. The night was dark, and the most bold and dexterous among them advanced obliquely towards the tent, creeping on his belly, lying still while the sentry was passing towards him, and only moving on, slowly and cautiously, when his back was turned. In this way he arrived at the tent, having carefully removed one peg, and soon found that all the guard was asleep, relying on their double sentries. By this time the other villagers had followed their leader, and were all lying in the same posture, with the head of each touching the feet of the one who had preceded him. In this way, the arms being slowly removed, without the

least noise, by the most advanced thief, were, with equal caution, passed along from one to another, until the whole were secured, and the thieves retired as they came, unseen and unsuspected.

TERRIFIC SPECTRAL APPEARANCE.

THE following relation has been given in the foreign and some of our own journals, with strong marks of authenticity, and may be considered, perhaps, the most extraordinary of its class any where to be found :

Professor Kampfer, of the University of Strasburgh, in the former part of his life, resided at Frankfort on the Maine, where he exercised the profession of a physician. One day being invited to dine with a party of gentlemen, after dinner, as is the custom in Germany, coffee was brought in; an animated conversation commenced, various subjects were introduced, and at length the discourse turned upon apparitions, &c. Kaempfer was amongst those who strenuously combatted the idea of supernatural visitations, as preposterous and absurd in the highest degree. A gentleman, who was a captain in the army, with equal zeal supported the opposite side of the question.

The question was long and warmly contended, both being men of superior talents, till in the end the attention of the whole company was engrossed by the dispute. At length the captain proposed to Kaempfer to accompany him that evening to his country house, where, if he did not convince him of supernatural agency, he would then allow himself in the estimation of the present company, to whom he appealed as judges of the controversy, to be defeated. The professor, with a laugh, instantly consented to the proposal, if the captain, on his honor, would promise, that no trick should be played off upon him the captain readily gave his word and honor that no imposition or trick should be resorted to, and here for the present the matter rested, Wine and tobacco circulated briskly, and the afternoon passed in the utmost harmony and conviviality. The captain took his glass cheerfully, while Kaempfer prudently reserved himself, to be completely on his guard against any manœuvre that might be practised in order to deceive him, or, as he properly observed, "to be in full and sober possession of all his faculties, that whatever should be presented to his sight, might be examined through the medium of his reason." The company broke up at rather an early hour, and the Captain and Kompfer set out together on their spiritual adventure. When they drew near the Captain's house, he suddenly stopped near the entrance to a solemn grove of trees. They descended from their vehicle, and walked towards the grove. The Captain traced a large circle on the ground, into which he requested Kampfer to enter. He then solemnly asked him if he possessed sufficient resolution to remain there alone to complete the adventure; to which Kaempfer replied in the affirmative. He added further, "whatsoever you may witness stir not, I charge you, from this spot, till you see me again; if you step beyond this circle, it will be your immediate destruction." He then left the professor to his own meditations, who could not refrain from smiling at what he thought the assumed solemnity of his acquaintance, and the whimsical situation in which he was placed. The night was clear and frosty, and the stars shone with a peculiar brilliancy: he looked around on all sides to observe from whence he might expect his ghostly visitant. He directed his regards towards the grove of trees; he perceived a small spark of fire at a considerable distance within its gloomy shade. It advanced nearer; he then concluded

it was a torch borne by some person who was in the Captain's secret, and who was to personate a ghost. It advanced nearer and nearer the light increasedit approached the edge of the circle wherein he was placed. It was then," to use his own expressions, "I seemed surrounded with a fiery atmosphere: the heavens and every object before visible was excluded from my sight." But now a figure of the most undefinable description absorded his whole attention; his imagination had never yet conceived any thing so truly fearful. What appeared to him the more remarkable, was an awful benignity portrayed in its countenance, and with which it appeared to regard him. He contemplated for a while this dreadful object, but at length fear began insensibly to arrest his faculties. He sunk down on his knees to implore the protection of heaven; he remarked, for his eyes were still rivetted on the mysterious appearance, which remained stationary, and earnestly regarded him, that at every repetition of the name of the Almighty, it assumed a more benignant expression of countenance, whilst a terrific brilliancy gleamed from its eyes. He fell prostrate on the ground, fervently imploring heaven to remove from him the object of his terrors. After a while he raised his head, and beheld the mysterious light fading by degrees in the gloomy shades of the grove from which it issued. It soon entirely disappeared, and the Captain joined him almost at the same moment. During their walk to the Captain's house, which was close at hand, the Captain asked his companion, "Are you convinced that what you have now witnessed was supernatural?" Kampfer replied, "he could not give a determinate answer to that question; he could not on natural principles account for what he had seen, it certainly was not like any thing earthly, he therefore begged to be excused from saying any more on a subject he could not comprehend." The Captain replied," he was sorry he was not convinced;" and added with a sigh," he was still more sorry that he had ever attempted to convince him." Thus far it may be considered as no more than a common phantasmagorical trick, played off on the credulity of the Professor, but in the end the performer paid dearly for his exhibition: he had, like a person ignorant of a complicated piece of machinery, given impetus to a power which he had not the knowledge to control, and which in the end proves fatal to him who puts it into motion. Kaempfer now assumed a gaiety which was very foreign to his feelings; his thoughts, in spite of his endeavours, were perpetually recurring to the events of the evening; but in proportion as he forced conversation, the Captain evidently declined it, becoming more and more thoughtful and abstracted every moment.

After supper Kampfer challenged his friend to take a glass of wine, hoping it would rouse him from those reflections which seemed to press so heavily on his mind. But the wine and the Professor's discourse were alike disregarded; nothing could dispel the settled melancholy which seemed to deprive him of the power of speech. Immediately after supper the Captain ordered all his servants to bed. It drew towards midnight, and he remained still absorbed in thought, but apparently not wishing to retire to bed. Kaempfer was silently sitting smoking his pipe, when, on a sudden, a heavy step was heard in the passage; it approached the room in which they were sitting a knock was heard: the Captain raised his head and looked mournfully at Kaempfer. The knock was repeated-both were silent: a third knock was heard, and Kampfer broke the silence by asking his friend why he did not order the person in. Ere the Captain could reply, the room door was flung wildly open, when behold! the same dreadful appearance which Kaempfer had already witnessed stood in the door-way. Its awful benignity of countenance

was now changed into the most appalling and terrific frown. A large dog which was in the room crept whining and trembling behind the Captain's chair. For a few moments the figure remained stationary, and then motioned the Captain to follow it: he rushed towards the door-the figure receded before him, and Kaempfer determined to accompany his friend, followed with the dog. They proceeded unobstructed into the court-yard; the doors and gates seemed to open spontaneously before them. From the court-yard they passed into the open fields; Kompfer, with the dog, were about twenty or thirty paces behind the Captain. At length they reached the spot near to the entrance of the grove, where the circle was traced; the figure stood still, when on a sudden a bright column of flame shot up, a loud shriek was heard, a heavy body seemed to fall from a considerable height, and in a moment all was silence and darkness. Kaempfer called loudly on the captain, but received no answer. Alarmed for the safety of his friend, he fled back to the house, and quickly assembled the family. They proceeded to the spot, and found the apparently lifeless body of the Captain stretched on the ground. The Professor ascertained, on examination, that the heart still beat faintly; he was instantly conveyed home, and all proper means were resorted to to restore animation; he revived a little, and seemed sensible of their attentions, but remained speechless till his death, which took place in three days after. Down one side, from head to foot, the flesh was livid and black, as if from a fall or severe bruise. The affair was hushed up in the immediate neighbourhood, and his sudden death was attributed to apoplexy.

FORTUNATE ESCAPE.

At the dreadful epoch of the unfortunate affair of Nancy, twenty-two soldiers of the Chateau Vieux were condemned to condign punishment. As the fatal procession was passing through a narrow street, one of the soldiers condemned, contrived, amidst the press, to slip unobserved into a passage, the door of which was open, it was the house of his mistress; conceive her transport to find her lover in her arms, at the moment she was bewailing his death. One victim at the place of execution was found wanting to the number, search was every where made for the fugitive, but in vain; it was renewed with all the keenness and all the sagacity of the blood hounds, but the destined object of vengeance eluded the utmost penetration and diligence of his pursuers; he was all the while concealed in a corn loft, where he had been secreted by his mistress, and where she found means to nourish him for three months unknown to her parents. A rich farmer of Basle who had heard nothing of his son since the carnage of Nancy, and the horrible execution of the Swiss, could no longer resist his uneasiness, and the desire he felt to ascertain his fate, for this purpose he undertook a journey to Nancy, but though his concern excited pity, and his enquiries interested all to whom they were addressed, there were none who could afford him the desired information. At last he learned with transport that his son had escaped the fate of his companions, and was directed by a soldier to the house of his mistress, as a place where it was probable he might obtain further intelligence, he repaired immediately to the house, but the mistress of his son pretended an entire ignorance, and notwithstanding the particulars of his family which he mentioned in their conversation, preserved the most cautious silence, she promised, however, to make inquiry, and desired him to call in an hour, the

soldier immediately recognized his father from the description given of him by his mistress. The father returned to a minute-the father and son flew into the arms of each other, with all the ardour which such a meeting might be supposed to produce; as soon as the first transports were over, the father joined the hands of his son and his mistress, and pronounced over them a paternal benediction:-" You have preserved his life, and the only recompense I can offer to you is himself."

THE HURRICANE.

November 26, 1703, began what is usually called the great storm, being the most terrible tempest that ever happened in England. The loss sustained in London alone was estimated at above a million sterling. The number of those drowned in the floods of the Severn and the Thames, and of those who were lost on the coast of Holland, and in the ships blown from their anchors, and never heard of afterwards, is thought within compass to have been 8000. Trees were torn up by the roots, and it is affirmed there were 17,000 in the county of Kent alone. Eddystone light-house was destroyed, and in it the ingenious contriver of it, Winstanly, and the people who were with him. Bishop Ridder and his Lady were killed at Wells in Somersetshire. Multitudes of cattle were also lost; in one level 15,000 sheep were drowned. In short this was one of the most violent tempests recorded in history since the general deluge. To preserve in the minds of serious people, and to awaken in the breasts of the inconsiderate, a proper sense of the hand of God, as it was displayed in this most tremendous storm, a Mr. Tayler instituted a religious service at the Meeting House, in little Wild Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, where a Sermon is still preached on the 27th of November, to commemorate this dreadful catastrophe.

MURDER OF MR. BROWNE, THE TRAVELLER.

This enterprising traveller, who had perfected himself in the Turkish language, assumed the Turkish dress, and thus equipped, set forward with an intent to penetrate through Khorasan. So little was danger from attacks of any kind apprehended, by the persons best acquainted with the state of the country, that no difficulties whatever were suggested as likely to meet him, and accordingly he proceeded in full confidence. Having reached the pass of Irak, he stopped at the Caravansary to take a little refreshment. That over, he remounted his horse, and, leaving the servant to pack up the things he had been using, and then follow him, he rode gently forward along the mountains. Mr. Browne had scarcely proceeded half a mile, when suddenly two men on foot came up behind him; one of whom, with a blow from a club, before he was aware, struck him senseless from his horse. Several other villains, at the same instant, sprang from hollows in the hills, and bound him hand and foot. At this moment they offered him no further personal violence; but as soon as he had recovered from the stupor, occasioned by the first mode of attack, he looked round, and saw the robbers plundering both his baggage and his servant, the man having come forward on the road, in obedience to the commands of his master. When the depredators found their victim restored to observation, they told him it was their intention to put an end to his life, but that was not the place where the final stroke should be made. Mr. Browne, incapable of resistance, calmly listened to his own sentence, but

« ПредишнаНапред »