not limited to this extent, their extreme depth and length from east to west being yet unknown. There are at present ten shafts, but not a single spring has been discovered throughout the extent of the mine. In descending to the bottom, the visitor is surprised to find a kind of subterraneous commonwealth, consisting of many families, who have their peculiar laws and polity. Here are likewise public roads and carriages, horses being employed to draw the salt to the mouth of the mine, where it is taken up by engines. These horses, when once arrived at their destination, never more see the light of the sun; and many of the people seem buried alive in this strange abyss, having been born there, and never stirring out; while others are not denied frequent opportunities of breathing the fresh air in the fields, and enjoying the surrounding prospects. The subterraneous passages, or galleries, are very spacious, and in many of them chapels are hewn out of the solid salt rock. In these passages crucifixes are set up, together with the images of saints, before which a light is kept constantly burning. The places where the salt is hewn out, and the empty cavities whence it has been removed, are called chambers, in several of which, where the water has stagnated, the bottoms and sides are covered with very thick incrustations of thousands of salt crystals, lying on one another, and many of them weighing half a pound and upwards. When candles are placed before them, the numerous rays of light reflected by these crystals emit a surprising lustre. In several parts of the mine huge columns of salt are left standing, to support the rock; and these are very fancifully ornamented. But the most curious object in the inhabited part, or sub terraneous town, is a statue, which is considered by the immured inhabitants as the actual transmutation of Lot's wife into a pillar of salt; and in proportion as this statue appears either dry or moist, the state of the weather above-ground is inferred. The windings in this mine are so numerous and intricate, that the workmen have frequently lost their way; and several, whose lights have been extinguished, have thus perished. The number of miners to whom it gives employment is computed at between four and five hundred, but the whole amount of the men employed in it is about seven hundred. The salt lies near the surface, in large shapeless masses, out of which blocks of sixty, eighty, or a hundred feet square, may be hewn ; but at a considerable depth it is found in smaller lumps. About six hundred thousand quintals of salt are annually dug out of the mines of Cracow. The worst and cheapest is called green salt, from its greenish colour, occasioned by a heterogeneous mixture of a greyish mineral, or clay, and entirely consists of salt crystals of different dimensions. A finer sort is dug out in large blocks; and the third kind is the sal-gem, or crystal salt, which is found in small pieces interspersed in the rock, and when detached from it break into cubes of rectangular prisms. This is usually sold unprepared. The colour of the salt-stone is a dark grey mixed with yellow. Wonders of the Universe. Salt Mines of Cracow. Caverned round in Cracow's mighty mines, With crystal walls a gorgeous city shines; Scoop'd in the briny rock long streets extend Their hoary course, and glittering domes ascend. Down the bright steeps emerging into day, vanes; Long lines of lustres pour their trembling rays, And the bright vaults return the mingled blaze. Darwin. Exercises on Words having the Same Pronunciation but Different Meanings. Some animals, as the dog and what they take to quench thirst. the string and fell upon her lap. the clothes carefully before you dressed. cat, are said to lap The beads came off You should lap all send them to be There is a fine lawn in front of that elegant mansion. Her gown was made of lawn and the flounces were of muslin. You should always lay things in order and in their proper places. He lay upon the bare ground, and a stone was his pillow. The lay was simple, and was sung with much feeling. A lay-man is one who has not taken clerical orders. The league was binding on both parties for a certain number of years. He promised to convey me a league on the road. If you are fatigued you may lean on my arm. He prefers the lean of animal food. I shall give you leave to play when you have learned your lesson, but when you leave the court you must go home. That boy The leaves are now beginning to fall. often leaves his books in an improper place. That girl seems to use her left hand in preference to her right. He visited our house, but as we were all from home he left his card. The mark which you may sometimes observe over a letter, in certain words, denotes its sound. Your letter will be delivered in the course of a few hours after it is put into the post-office. The letter of the house was not at home when we called. That light is so brilliant that I cannot look steadily upon it. Cork is a very light substance, but there are many things much lighter. That is a very light colour, and is not so suitable as a darker one would be. Light the candle. If you do not scare the bird it will light upon the road. The one is so like the other that I cannot perceive any difference. I do not like boys who trifle and neglect their tasks. The line is too tight. She intends to line her pelisse with yellow silk. If you tell him the first line of the poem he will repeat the whole of it. That large vessel is a ship of the line. If you drive the door with such force every time you shut it, you will injure the lock. She took a lock of hair from the child's head, and intends to preserve it with care. The boat must stop a few minutes at It is long since I was at the library, and I long to see it again. Warriors were formerly clad in mail. The mail leaves the post-office at a stated hour every evening. A match is commonly made of chips of wood tipped with liquid brimstone. He is by no means a match for his brother at running. This remnant will match with the cloth that I purchased for a gown. The match is made, and you are to set off with the marriage party. Every kind of substance that exists is called matter. His matter was excellent, but his manner of delivery was uncouth and disagreeable. What is the matter with the child that he cries so much? It is very mean to tell a lie in order to avoid admonition or punishment. He proposed that a mean be tween the two should be adopted, as he did not mean to be severe. When we speak of the signification of words we say they mean so and so. The mole is not blind although its eyes are scarcely visible. He has a mole on one of his cheeks. The mole extends a considerable way into the sea, and is built of massy stones, as a protection to the shipping in the harbour. A mortar is a piece of ordnance used for the purpose of throwing bomb-shells. The joinings of the building are cemented with a kind of mortar which becomes as hard as stone. He has lost the pestle, so that the mortar is of little use to him. The soil consists of a fine rich mould. The inside of the cave is covered with a white mould, and both the floor and the walls are damp. The mould is exactly formed, and the first casting is expected to succeed. The master will oblige all the pupils to learn their tasks well. You will oblige me by telling me how to proceed. The page had scarcely read a page of the book when he was summoned to attend his master. Desire the porter to open the gate before the carriage comes up. That cask is full of porter. The porter said that he would carry all the parcels at once. In spring, plants and trees begin to bud. He has broken the spring of his watch. The spring that is the source of this stream is remarkable for the purity of its water. Some seeds begin to spring a few hours after they are put into the ground. Exercises on Antonymes or Words having Opposite Meanings. 13. Believer, infidel; acquiesce, dissent, repine; defective, .. complete ; Acuteness, obtuseness; affluence, poverty; |