should be organized, by which dogs might be conveyed on advantageous terms to the Far West, and there turned out to run wild and fraternize with their kindred tribes on the boundles prairie plains. ON SNEEZING. When a man's time came he was to sneeze, and, in sneez ing, yield up the ghost. And this was the happy and easy mode of exit from this world for many generations. The patriarch Jacob, however, reflecting that so summary a call afforded no time either for spiritual preparation, or the settlement of worldly affairs, besought the Lord that he might be exempted from this law. After long supplication and "wrestling" with the Almighty, his prayers were heard. He sneezed and did not die. It may be questioned whether Jacob acted wisely in thus bringing about so important a change, for if life ended with a sneeze, what an amount of pain and suffering might be spared us, and what a simple remedy would be ready to hand to all who think "life not worth living." A pinch of snuff would do the business. Jacob's contemporaries did not take this view of things. They regarded the change as a decided benefit, and "all the princes of the universe, when they heard of it, ordered that for the future sneezing should be accompanied with thanksgiving for the preservation of life and earnest wishes for its prolongation." SNEEZING has been defined as "a convulsive motion of the expiratory muscles, by which the air is driven rapidly, and rushes sonorously, through the nasal fossæ, carrying with it the mucus which adheres to the pituitary membrane." It has also been called more plainly, "an emission of wind through the nose." It can scarcely, however, be said to need description. We have all of us, probably, had that happy experience of the thing itself, which is better than a hundred definitions. There is, perhaps, no individual who does not now enjoy the luxury of a sneeze daily. We say "now" advisedly, for from the beginning, if we may believe those who ought to know, it was not always so. According to the learned Rabbi, Eliezer, it was originally intended that men should sneeze once, and only once. When man's first disobedi- Such is the Rabbinical theory of the origin of sneezing, ence brought death into the world, it was ordained that and of the singular custom that has prevailed among all sneezing should be the means and agent of dissolution. I nations of uttering some form of salutation on the occur rence of the act. There is, it need scarcely be said, no, pointed a form of prayer for persons sneezing, to avert foundation for the story in the canonical Scriptures. On from them its fatal effects. the contrary, the only Biblical reference to sneezing treats it, not as the signal of death, but as a sign of feturning life. The son of the Shunamite, at the prayer of Elisha, sneezed seven times, and then revived. The Greeks connect the origin of sneezing with the Promethean fable. Prometheus, having created a man out of earth and water, in order to give life to his creation, stole fire from heaven, bringing it to earth in a reed. Applying this to the nostrils of the yet inanimate figure, the statue sneezed, and soon appeared instinct with life 3. living thing. Prometheus, delighted at his success, uttered fervent prayers and wishes for the creature of his hands; and so, ever after, when any one sneezed, it became the custom to pray for blessings on the In the great plague at Athens, recorded by Thucydides, the occurrence of sneezing was accounted, as in the instance of the Shunamite, a sign of returning convalescence. The above medieval account, therefore, not only offends against the best traditions of the custom in this respect, but is an attempt to modernize and make pious capital out of an honest social custom as old as mankind, that is quite un warrantable. A hundred generations before the sneezing Litany of Gregory, the custom had been universal. As early at least as the time of Homer A PINCH OF SNUFF. the Greek had we still are told. his follower. arose, and. raising their arms in the air, exclaimed, shudder when "the goose walks over our grave." It is, "May the sun guard you!" and the like; and travelers but natural that the friends of the sneezers should wish them well through the inspection. The custom of invoking a blessing upon the sneezer being thus, according to Hebrew, Greek and Eastern tradition, as old as sneezing itself, it is evident that they are not to be heard who would assign to it a later origin. Yet there are some who would connect it with so recent a date as A.D. 595. In that year, according to these, there was a great plague throughout Italy, and the air was filled with such a pestiferous vapor that most who breathed it sneezed, and those who sneezed for the most part died; whereupon the Pope, Gregory the Great, ap tell of a similar observance amongst the natives of the Polynesian Isles. Few attempts have been made to account philosophically for this singular custom. Aristotle, indeed, and Pliny discuss it amongst their Problems, but the ancient philosophers generally fight shy of it. Nor has the treatment it has received amongst the moderns been very satisfactory. Mr. Herbert Spencer has a somewhat labored argument to show that sneezing, like the more violent actions of the body in epilepsy and hysteria, was regarded by primitive races as the result of demoniacal possession, and that the exclamation it almost invariably called forth may have been originally a kind of exorcism. But, surely, we need not go so far as this for an explanation. It may seem very presumptuous for a novice to rush in where so many doctors have feared to tread, or, at least, gone in doubt and trembling, yet we cannot forbear risking the possible consequences on this occasion. It is very evident that a custom so universal must be founded upon some emotion or sentiment common to the human race. We find its origin in the strongest of all sentiments the parent's love for its offspring. We believe we are right in saying (at least we have the words of many doctors and nurses for it) that one of the first things every human being born into this world does is to sneeze. It is, according to some authorities at least, the first and surest sign of complete vitality. On this account the anxious mother listens for it, and, hearing it, blesses the little sneezer. Sneezing and blessing coming thus into the world together, it is easy to conceive that they should never be separated. On the subject of sneezing regarded as an omen, there is much to be said. Speaking generally, it may be regarded as of favorable augury. "Two or three sneezes be wholesome," says an old author, and "He that hath sneezed thrice, turn him out of the hospital," says the proverb. Of sneezing, however, as of other good things, it is possible to have too much. Famianus Strada, the author of a grave historical work, has a learned digression on the subject of sneezing, and mentions one Pistor Suburranus, who died of a fit of it, expiring at the twenty-fourth sneeze. In Aristotle's time, men generally sneezed twice, but since then the art of sneezing, like other arts, appears to have advanced, and a triple sneeze is now, we believe, considered the correct thing. The virtue of sneezing, however, depends much upon circumstances of time and place. Sneezing from noon to midnight is good, according to Aristotle, and from night to noon the reverse, and we learn from another source that "if any one sneeze for three nights in succession, it may be taken as a sign that some one will die in the house," or that some other calamity will occur. According to Lancashire Folk Lore, a good deal depends upon the day of the week in the matter of sneezing: "Sneeze on a Monday, you sneeze for danger ; The Devil will have you the rest of the week!" Sneezing, as observed by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, is considered by Homer a good sign. In the Odyssey Telemachus is represented as sneezing when his mother is denouncing the suitors, and this was taken as a happy confirmation of her words. "Thus she spoke, and Telemachus sneezed loudly, and the house resounded and Penelope laughed [and said]-Do you not see that my son has sneezed at my words? Therefore shall death come upon the suitors," etc. Xenophon tells of a sneeze which may be said to have decided his own fate and that of the whole Greek army. Whilst delivering the address in which he exhorted his companions to firmness and resolution, and while their minds wavered between resistance and surrender to the enemy, a soldier sneezed. The whole army accepted the omen, burnt their carriages and tents, and determined to face the dangers of the celebrated Return If the sneeze of a simple soldier could have such momentous consequences, it is but natural that the sternutations of kings and emperors should be regarded as of prodigious significance. Accordingly, when the King of Monotapha sneezed, we are informed, that acclamations passed through the city, and when his majesty of Ethiopia did the like the whole empire was en fete. St. Augustine asserts that if on getting up in the morning any of the ancients happened to sneeze, while putting on their shoes, they immediately went to bed again in order that they might get up again more auspiciously, and avoid the misfortunes that might occur on that daya wholesome example that might be followed advantageously by many persons who in these days are apt to "get up the wrong side the bed," or "get into their clothes the wrong way." The Hindoo performing his morning ablutions in the Ganges, uses the same precaution, for should he sneeze before finishing his devotions, he immediately begins his prayers over again, and repeats them de novo as often as they are interrupted by a cachinnation. It is too much to expect that so inviting a subject as sneezing should escape the notice of ancient wits and jokers. It is introduced as an incident in several broad stories told at the expense of that legitimate butt of ancient comedy-the injured husband, who is made under circumstances which we must leave the reader to imagine, to "bless" his betrayer. In the Greek Anthology there is a comical epigram on one Proclus, whose nose was so long that he could not hear himself sneeze, and who, therefore, never said to himself "God bless you," and there is a pretty story, quoted in Brand from the French, which may thus be told in English : "A luckless gambler, issuing forth from play, There is, too, a comical story of a schoolmaster, we remember somewhere to have read, which is apropos of sneezing. We think it hails from the East. This dominie, keeping a school where "manners" formed an important part of the curriculum, was particular to teach his pupils the ceremonies appropriate to all occasions, and, amongst others, to that of sneezing. Hence, whenever he himself sneezed, he insisted upon their holding up their hands and exclaiming, "God save our worthy master!" Now it chanced that on a certain day, the good pedagogue and his pupils being out walking, grew thirsty, and coming to a well, they found the bucket at the bottom. The schoolmaster volunteered to bring it up. Descending, he reached the bucket, and the boys pulled him up with the rope. No sooner, however, had his head appeared above the well than the poor man sneezed. Up unconsciously went the hands of the boys, with the exclamation, "God save our worthy master !" and down went the unfortunate dominie to the bottom of the well. Sneezing is said to be produced by heat-by looking at the sun, or the fire, or by staying in a warm room. This would seem to bear out the Promethean theory of its origin. We have heard it affirmed that it may be brought about still more readily be a gentle titillation of the point of the nose with the finger-nail. The reader may easily test these statements for himself. It is somewhat remarkable that the English-speaking nations should be those who have paid least regard to sneezing traditions, and have been the first to abandon its customs. Abroad the German peasant has his " gesundheit," and the Frenchman his "Bonne santée," ready for us on every occasion, and even Paddy salutes us with a hearty "Save your honor".; but in this country one may sneeze oneself breathless unnoticed. Whether this proceeds from the stolidity, or the mauvaise honte, which our enemies credit us with, or from the practical character on which we pride ourselves, or whether the custom was, as some say, abolished in Puritan times, we cannot now stop to inquire. We can but notice the fact and express regret at the apparent tendency of our race to see nothing more in a sneeze than an indication of cold in the head or incipient catarrh. In this we may be showing our superiority to prejudice, but we are at the same time placing ourselves in opposition to the general feeling of mankind, and the general feeling of mankind on any subject is a matter not to be sneezed at." PRONUNCIATION OF SOME ENGLISH NAMES. CHOLMONDELEY is pronounced Chumley; Majoribanks, Marshbanks; Cockburn, Coburn; Cowper, Cooper; Mainwaring, Mannering. In Elgin and Gillott the "g" is hard; in Gifford and Nigel it is soft; in Johnston the "t" should not be sounded. In Molyneux the "x" is sounded, and the name is pronounced Molinoox, with a very slight accent on the last syllable. In Vaux the "x is sounded, but is mute in Des Vaux, and likewise in Devereux. In Ker, Berkeley and Derby the "e" has the sound of "a" in "far." In Waldegrave the second syllable, "de," should be dropped, and so should the "th" in Blyth. Dillwyn is pronounced Dillun. In Conyngham, Monson, Monkton and Ponsonby the "o" takes the sound of "u"; and Blount should be pronounced as Blunt, the "o" being mute. Buchan should be pronounced Buckan; and Beauclerk, or Beauclerc, is Boclare, the accent being on the first syllable. Wemyss should be pronounced Weems. In Hertford the "t" is elided, and the "e" has the sound of "a in "far." Strachan should be pronounced Strawn; Colquehoun is Koohoon, the accent being on the last syllable; Beauchamp is Beacham, and Coutts is Koots. Another formidable name to the uninitiated is Duchesnes, which should be pronounced Dukarn. Bethune should be Beeton; and in Abergavenny the "av" is not sounded. Menzies is pronounced Mynges, Knollys as Knowles, Syndys as Sands, Gower as Gorr, Milnes as Mills. Finally, Dalziel should be pronounced Dael, Chartres as Charters, Glamis as Glarms, Geoghegan as Gaygan, and Ruthven as Riven. BATTLE BETWEEN A PIKE AND A FROG.-The Bishop of Bohemia and Bishop Thurzo are said to have witnessed a really desperate encounter between a frog (of a kind known in that locality as the water devil) and a pike in a large pond. The latter was sleeping at rest near the surface of the water, close beside the shore, when the frog leaped at and embraced the head of the fish, attacking his eyes with terrible ferocity and anger. The pike plunged and thrust itself into the rushes and weeds in vain attempts to dislodge its enemy, and was at last killed. LOUD THOUGHTS. His knowledge of good LORD ALBEMARLE, in his amusing work, "Fifty Years of My Life," mentions the late Lord Dudley's eccentric habit of giving vent to his thoughts aloud. He was a frequent guest at the Pavilion. living led him easily to detect a great falling off in the royal cuisine since the decease of George IV. Sitting next King William, he exclaimed, in his deep bass : What a change, to be sure-cold patés and hot champagne !" The King and Queen, when Duke and Duchess of Clarence, once dined with Lord Dudley, who handed her Royal Highness into dinner. Scarcely seated, he began to soliloquize aloud: "What bores these royalties are! Ought I to drink wine with her as I would with any other woman?" And in the same tone, continued, "May I have the honor of a glass of wine with your Royal Highness ?" Towards the end of dinner, he asked her again. "With great pleasure, my lord," she replied smiling; "but I have had one glass with you already." "The brute! and so she has!" was the rejoinder. SONTAG VS. MOZART. An admirable cantatrice, Sontag, at the end of the trio of the masks in "Don Duan," invented a musical phrase which she substituted for the original. The example was too tempting not to be followed. Every singer in Europe who sang Donna Anna adopted Madame Sontag's alteration of the text. One day, at a general rehearsal in London, the chef d'orchestre, a friend of Berlioz, on hearing this audacious substitution at the end of the trio, at once stopped the orchestra and asked the prima donna, "Pray what is all this? Have you forgotten your part, madame ?" "No, monsieur, but I give Sontag's version." 46 Ah, very well; but might I take the liberty of inquiring why you prefer Sontag's version to Mozart's version, which, after all, is the only one we have to de with here ?" "Because it produces a better effect!" PLANT CULTURE IN MOSS. CAPTAIN HALFORD THOMPSON claims to have discovered a new method of thus growing plants. Some time ago a Frenchman of the name of Dumesnil patented a kind of fertilizing moss for the purpose of growing plants without soil. With this production of M. Dumesnil Captain Thompson states that he made several experiments, which resulted in his considering it open to serious objections, and was by no means certain of its results. These defects Captain Thompson has endeavored to remedy in a new preparation with which he has experimented, and by means of which he states he produced the luxuriant plants which he exhibited recently. Having found that by Dumesnil's moss it was quite possible to grow plants without soil, he set to work to prepare a fertilizing substance which would enable plants to be grown in it without the precautions necessary in using Dumesnil's moss, and he thinks that he has been perfectly successful in his endeavors. He states that "plants in full bloom can be taken out of the ground or out of pots, and, after all the earth has been carefully washed off, planted in moss which has been previously prepared with fertilizing fibre." DR. DIBDIN, THE BIBLIOMANIAC. IN Hornton Street, Kensington, England, for some years lived Thomas F. Dibdin, the lively bibliomaniac; for in the big books which he wrote he mixed up with antiquarianism many passages amusing for the reader's animal spirits and enjoyment. The doctor traveled much on the European Continent in his pursuit of visiting libraries, when he dined with the monks and others who possessed them, and made a feast-day of it with the gayety of his company. When he assembled his friends over a new publication, or for the purpose of inspecting Captain Thomas Dibdin was the brother of Charles Dib- "No more he'll hear the tempest howling old books, the meeting was what he delighted to call a Dr. Dibdin was thus the nephew of a man of genius, and "symposium " that is to say, they ate as well 89 drank, and were very merry over old books, old words, and what they persuaded themselves was old wine. There would have been a great deal of reason in it all if the books had been worth as much 'inside as out; but in a question between the finest of writers, in plain calf, and one of the fourth or fifth rate, old and rare, and bound by Charles Lewis, the old gentleman would have carried it hollow; he would even have been read with the greater devotion. However, the mania was harmless, and helped to maintain a proper curiosity into past ages. Tom (for, though a reverend and a ON SNEEZING. THE CONSEQUENCE.-SEE PAGE 155. the son of one of the best specimens of an Englishman. His memory may be content. The doctor relates an anecdote of the house opposite him which he considers equal to any 66 romance of real life." This comes of the antiquarian habit of speaking in superlatives and expressing amazement at every little thing. As the circumstance, however, is complete of its kind, aud the kind, though not so rare, we suspect, as may be imagined, is not one of everyday occurrence, it may be worth repeating: A handsome widow, it seems, in the prime of life, but in reduced circumstances, and with a family of several children, had been left in possession of the merchant of sixty, who was looking out for a house in Kensington, came to see it. He fell in love with the widow, paid his addresses to her on the spot, in a respectful version of the old question put to the fair showers of such houses, "Are you, my dear, to be let with the lodgings?" and, after a courtship of six months, was wedded to the extemporaneous object of his affections at Kensington Church, the doctor himself joyfully officiating as clergyman; for the parties were amiable, the bridegroom was a collector of books, and the books were accompanied by a cellar-full of burgundy and champagne. doctor, we can scarcely think of him seriously) was a good- | house, and desired to let it. On a certain occasion a retired natured fellow, and had the rare merit of being candid. A moderate sum of money was bequeathed to him by Douce, and he said he thought he deserved it, from the "respectful attention" he had always paid to that not very agreeable gentleman. Tom was by no means ill-looking, yet he tells us that being in company, when he was young, with an elderly gentleman who knew his father, and the gentleman being asked by somebody whether the son resembled him-"Not at all," was the answer; "Captain Dibdin was a fine-looking fellow." This same father was the real glory of Tom; for Captain Dibdin was no less a person than the "Tom Bowling" of the famous sea-song"Here a sheer hulk lies poor Tom Bowling, The darling of our crew." THE reward of one duty is the power to fulfill another. |
