our first thought would naturally be of the benefit conferred upon mankind by the rapid and cheap production of so many articles in common use. Every machine by which labour and expense are saved enables the poor man to purchase such articles at a less cost, and so increases the comforts of the people at large; but our second thought will very probably be, "Does not this saving of labour tend to rob the poor man of his employThe labourer and the artisan will of course be the first persons to take this view of the subject; and we find that the first introduction of machinery in any department of labour has been attended with great opposition from the labouring classes, who have fancied themselves about to be deprived of their employment. ment ?" One of the first inventors of a printing-machine was a compositor in the Times office, named Thomas Martyn. The proprietor, Mr. Walter, finding great difficulty in supplying the public with copies of the newspaper, gladly supplied Martyn with money to complete the work. Soon, however, the news got abroad amongst the printers that Martyn had invented a machine which would work itself; and the pressmen, fearing that it would take away their employment, vowed vengeance against him; in truth, he went in danger of his life, for he was obliged to wear all sorts of strange disguises that he might escape their notice and fury. As for the machinery, he was forced to introduce it bit by bit into the printing-office, at night or by day, pretending it was something else, for the pressmen wanted only the opportunity to destroy his contrivance. This is but one instance of many similar attempts made by shortsighted workmen to obstruct the progress of an invention which has been of the utmost benefit to all connected with the printing trade. The benefits which have arisen from machine-printing are incalculable. The machine has relieved men of hard toil, which was often hurtful to health; sheets of a greatly increased size can now be printed, the cost of printing has been much reduced, and (observe this) the employment of printers greatly increased. The result has been an extraordinary diffusion of all kinds of knowledge and a great advance in the civilization of the world. When we remember the number of people who found employment at the spinning-wheel, we cannot be surprised at the alarm which many felt at the news that machinery was to take away all this occupation. When Hargreaves first invented a spinning-machine, he kept the secret to himself for some time, employing it to prepare his own yarn; but when, by an accident, the invention was noised abroad, it excited so much illwill. among the spinners that they broke into the poor man's cottage, destroyed the machine and most of his furniture by fire, and even threatened violence to Hargreaves himself, who was obliged to leave his native place and to settle elsewhere in consequence. This took place not quite ninety years ago. Who can sum up the advantages which have accrued to our country from this and similar inventions by which it has been followed up? The peasant-who can purchase his clothing for a tenth of the sum which it cost his forefathers, and can clothe his children comfortably from head to foot, instead of leaving them barefoot and half-clad is reaping every day the benefit of these wonderful inventions; and without enlarging upon the extension of our commerce, and the increase of our national wealth, it will be enough to remark that it is calculated that the cotton manufacture supplies employment to three millions and a half of people, which is an eighth part of the entire population of Great Britain. Some of us can remember the agitation caused in the agricultural districts a few years back by the introduction of the Threshing Machine. Ignorant men were excited by this to acts both lawless and wicked. Experience has shown that the common use of the threshing-machine has relieved the labourer of very toilsome work, and not diminished the number of persons employed in the cultivation of the land. Other machines are now coming into use, and we need not be afraid that they will injure the industrious poor. THE GRASSHOPPER. HAPPY insect! what can be Thou dost drink, and dance, and sing; Thee country hinds with gladness hear, Thee Phoebus loves, and does inspire; To thee of all things upon earth, Happy insect, happy thou, Dost neither age nor winter know. But when thou'st drunk, and danc'd, and sung 30 Thy fill the flow'ry leaves among, (Voluptuous, and wise withal, Epicurean animal!) Sated with thy summer feast, Thou retir'st to endless rest. COWLEY. THE SWALLOW. FOOLISH prater! what dost thou Well 't had been had Tereus made 10 20 Nothing half so sweet or fair, Nothing half so good canst bring, Though men say thou bring'st the spring. COWLEY. OF MYSELF. THIS only grant me, that my means may lie Acquaintance I would have, but when 't depends Than palace, and should fitting be My garden painted o'er With Nature's hand, not Art's; and pleasures yield, Thus would I double my life's fading space; These unbought sports, this happy state, To-morrow let my sun his beams display, COWLEY. THE COTTAGE GARDEN. TO EVERY Cot the lord's indulgent mind, 10 |