ON THE DEATH OF THE QUEEN OF FRANCE.

For the Bee.

'Tis done at length we see the curtain close,
On the sad scene of all Maria's woes.

Ah little did the think in beauty's pride,
When led to grace an youthful monarch's side,
A storm fhould e'er her brilliant sky o'erspread,
Or burst so dreadful on her fated head.
For then, fhe rode before the friendly gale,
With gilded prow, and wide expanded sail,
Nor saw the cloud before her spread it's gloom,
Threat'ning the terrors of an hasty tomb':
Admiring thousands of th' enraptur'd throng,
Chanted her graces in extatic song,

And look'd with adoration to the thrine
Of charms, of wit, and dignity divine:

The vaulted roofs with flow'ry garlands bound,
The splendid throne with sparkling rubies crown'd,
Receiv d their mistrefs and withdrew their ray,
Before the bright effulgence of her day :
Pleasure around her spreads its silken wing,
And youth and joy their gayest treasures bring.
But ah! how fleeting sublunary joy,

How soon debas'd by misery's alloy;

Or who could think, that the who erst was seen,
Ador'd by millions as their matchiefs queen,
Should from her tow'ring splendid height be hurl'd,
And move the pity of a wond'ring world;
Should, lost to pleasure, and to freedom's bliss,
To hufband s converse, and to children's kiss,
Be fated in a dungeon's humid gloom,
To mourn unpitied, and unheard her doom.
Unpitied by the causers of her woe,
Unheard by any, but the cruel foe ;
For if at distance pity could afsuage
Her pangs of sorrow, or the traitor's rage;
If other's lives, could rescue her's from woe,
Thousands had bid their purest blood to flow.
But ah to exile doom'd in vain they mourn,
In vain their breasts with generous ardor burn,
Whilst France, to fill the measure of her crimes,
And stigmatize her name to future times,
Has caus'd her queen, once magnet of the eye,
Deep-worn with persecuting cares, to die.

But mourn not ye, who lov'd the fair distrest,
Who long knew only anguifh in her breast,
That the s escap'd the vale of human woe,
And rais'd to bifs by one befriending blow.
For her the sun no more with joy could rise,
Nor cloudlefs azure spread the vaulted skies;
For her in vain the warbling birds would sing;
For her no flowers a single sweet could bring.
Her pangs alas! held too extensive range,
For nature's gayest ornaments to change;
She mourn'd not lofs of health or beauty's bloom,
But friend's precipitated to the tomb;

She mourn'd a husband torn from her em race,
And ills impending o'er her infant race:

She mourn d for freedom lost; her sacred name
Insulted by the blast of noisy fame:

Without a friend whose generous approach,
Could still its voice, or guard her from reproach.
All, all were fled, or vilely doom'd to bleed;
Fruitless their ardor in the godlike deed.
She stood alone amid the spoils of death,
And drew a gloomy agonizing breath :
So 'mong the herds that in gay Tempe feed,
Desiga'd by hands of cruelty to bleed,
The tender dam beholds the sportive train,
Her long companion in the verdant plain;
Her dearest mate, who, with delighted love,
Had sought her pasture in the thady grove,
Slain in her sight-her lamb with sprouting horn,
By fellest tygers from her presence torn;
Herself reserv'd against some future feast,
To glut the hunger of an hydra guest.
But firm fhe stood, as some majestic oak,
Escap'd a-while the sturdy feller's stroke,
Midst an uprooted grove with dauntless form,
Waits yet a-while the fury of the storm,

VOL. Xviii.

F F

D. HOPKINS.

REVIEW.

A LETTER addrefsed to Sir John Sinclair Bart. President of the board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement, respecting the important discovery lately made in Sweden, of a method of extinguishing fire, with an account of the pracefs adopted for that purpose; and hints of means for preserving timber used either in houses, or in fhip building from that destructive element. By Mr William Knox merchant in Gothenburg. Creech, Hill, one filling.

ONE of the benefits that result from patriotic exertions in any one man is, that it serves, as it were, as a centre of attraction towards which information from all quarters is directed, by which meaus many useful discoveries are made known to the public, which would otherwise have been overlooked and lost. The present publication is a striking proof of this fact. Most persons will recollect, that some time ago, the newspapers mentioned that a gentleman in Sweden had discovered a successful method of extinguibing fires; but what that was they were not informed and it would probably have soon been buried in oblivion, had it not been for Mr Knox, who, sensible that no useful discovery would be lost to this country if transmitted to Sir John Sinclair, has been at the trouble to procure the necefsary information, and to translate it into the English language for the benefit of his countrymen. Mr Koox himself had the misfortune to suffer deeply by the fire which last year. laid a great part of Gothenburg in afhes. We all recollect that during the present year many of the inhabitants of Archangel have been reduced to misery by the wasting fury of the flames; and no year elapses without some accident of the same sort happening in some corner of Europe. It was this

consideration which prompted the individuals in Sweden to make the spirited experiments here recorded, for preventing these misfortunes from being so general as they have been; and we are happy in being able to say that the facts here stated, which are well authenticated, give great reason to hope, that when the knowledge of them thall become general, there will be no longer room to fear that mankind in civilized nations will be in danger of suffering from fire in the cruel manner they often have done.

This pamphlet contains the result of three experiments for extinguishing fires, all of which proved entirely suc cefsful. The first was made at Stockholm by a Mr Von Aken on the 27th of October, 1792, in presence of the king of Sweden, the Duke of Sudermania, Regent, and many other states men and principal inhabitants of Stockholm. The experiment was as follows :

A boat 24 feet long, 7 feet broad, and 2 feet deep, was raised upon supporters as in a building yard when on the stocks; co tar barrels were placed around this boat in three rows, one above another; over the boat was a cover composed of 6 dozen of deals; and the area of the building was about 1800 square feet. This building was also payed, or covered over with four barrels of tar, 10lb. of turpentine, and three quarts of the oil of turpentine. The bottom of the tar barrels were taken out, and these were filled with birch bark and straw. A pot too, placed in the boat was filled with twenty-four quarts of pitch.

Things being thus prepared, all these combustible materials were set on fire, and were allowed to burn for the space of five minutes, and were then extinguifhed in the space of four minutes by three persons only. The fire engine was so small, that a child could almost draw it. The quantity of the fire extinguithing solution expended was 22 Swedish kans, [N. B. 90' kans are equal to a por

ter hogshead, so that it wasted only about three-fourths of a hogfhead]

A very elegant print giving a view of this conflagration is given with the pamphlet. In execution it is better than the Swedish print from whence it was copied ; and which sells by selt in Sweden for 3 s. 6 d. Mr Von Aken not having thought proper to communicate to the public the secret of the composition of his solution; Mr Nils Nystrom, apothecary in a place called Norrkoping, was induced, in consequence of observing the destruction occasioned by some fires in Sweden, to make some experiments with a view to discover the nature of this solution, and to communicate it to the public. Having satisfied himself by several private trials, of the efficacy of various compositions for extinguishing fire, he resolved to subject these compositions to the test of public experiment. For this purpose,

"A house was built a little without the gate of NorrKoping; and on the 30th of Sept. 1793, being properly surveyed and examined, was found to be of the following description. This house was built of old and well dried timber, the size ten feet square; and was covered in with a roof of dry deals: two doors and windows on each side of this building were so placed that the air had free accefs. It was well tarred both within and without. It was filled up to the roof with dry faggots, tar barrels, and rosin; and was even inclosed with bunches of faggots set up on all sides. The fire was kindled at all the four openings at once; and in a few minutes the whole building was completely on fire, and it evidently appeared the flames had reached their greatest height.

"The procefs for extinguifhing this fire was begun with a small fire engine, similar to that used by Mr Von Aken; and the extinction of this fire was fully effected in the