in which his liberty, if not his life, was in immi- || times condescends to supply original information nent peril, and displays by what artful stratagems the French police is supported. by the records of magazines and the collectionsof newspapers; and the simplicity of good sense A description of the principal cities on the yields to the unmeaning melody of poetic nonright and left banks of the Rhine, and of their sense,-yet will the lines of Sir John Carr not political and social state, since the horrors of war only amuse the hours of leisure, but improve have been removed from them, is given. The || those of thought. author proceeded as far as Darmstadt, when hostilities, which were just commenced against Russia and the state of the Continent, obliged him to return. The volume is embellished with twenty exquisite engravings by a distinguished artist, from drawings made on the spot by Sir John Carr, and is in no respect inferior to his other productions. Though in some instances the lively imagination of Sir John Carr leads him into the error of verbose composition, and words are sometimes more redundant than ideas; though the sober narrative of the traveller some. When the "bird's eye view" which our author takes of a country is considered, the greatest credit is due to his industry and observation, and our wonder is excited, not at his opportunity to see so little, but at his ability to write so much, He appears indefatigable in his study of countries and manners, and his remarks and observations are in general well expressed, penetrating and just. Upon the whole, we recommend this work to the notice of all those who cultivate a spirit of inquiry, and are interested in the state and history of other nations. AN HISTORICAL ESSAY ON THE SECRET TRIBUNALS IN GERMANY. THE curiosity of the public was strongly || appeal from the country and provincial tribunals, excited some years since by the allusions that occur in Hermann of Unna, and several other novels, to a powerful society, once existing in Germany under the name of the Secret Tribunals. As no satisfactory account has hitherto been given of the nature and origin of this singular society, we have been led to suppose, that a brief narrative of its institution and original tendency would, by no means, be displeasing. On this presumption we present it to our readers from the third volume of Veit Weber's (Sagen der Vorzeit) || Traditions of Antient Times. | and to give judgment, and enforce execution in cases relating to property, personal liberty, breach of the public peace, apostacy, and transgressions committed against the church, they sat in judg ment three times a year, in an open field, when all the hereditary proprietors of the district were unexceptionally bound to appear. On these occasions, the ancient national laws of the Saxons, as well as the privileges and restrictions granted by the Emperor, were discussed, the lawful sales of estates confirmed, and all illegal actions committed since the last session, reported. On these heads, the community consulted the decrees of the law, and pronounced decisive sentence, provided every thing were perfectly clear, and no capital crime could be proved. When after a war of thirty-three years, the Emperor Charles I. had subjected the Saxons to the sway of his sceptre, and compelled them to worship the cross, the conquered districts were divided by him into counties and bishoprics. On Illegal actions, at that time, were divided into the conclusion of a peace, in the year 803, the || such as admitted reparation, and such as did not Saxons, amongst other privileges, attained per-ablösliche, and unablösliche). The former, for mission to retain their national laws, under the instance, calumny, manslaughter, &c. might be inspection of imperial judges (counts, and to be compensated by fines, whilst the latter, treason, entirely exempted from the control of the bishops, assassination, adultery, &c. were punished with except in spiritual matters. Several counties and death. In the latter class of offences were combishoprics composed a delegate county (send. prized, apostacy, sorcery, sacrilege, contempt of grafschaft), which was superintended by an im- the christian festivals, profanation of christian perial delegate (send-graf), whose office was to tombs, and conspiracies against the worshippers watch over the preservation of civil and ecclesiof the cross. In all cases of this kind, the trial astic order, to unite the private and often clash was begun in the public session, but concluded ing interests of the counts and bishops for the before a private or secret tribunal. The whole Emperor's service. community, by right, should have pronounced sentence in open court upon the guilty, but the Invested with the power to decide in matters of superficial knowledge which the incidental owners of hereditary estates might have of the christian religion, rendered them incompetent to decide on the heinousness of the crime; hence, transactions of this nature were not finally decided in public session, and seven judges (schoffen) were selected from the community, to inquire, in a secret meeting, into the criminality of such transactions, and to pronounce sentence of death, or decree the payment of a fine, as circumstances might require. In the secret meetings also the judges gave informations of crimes privately committed, and which were reported to them by their spies. When the criminal, after having been summoned, appeared, and was incapable of making a satisfactory defence, he was condemned either to pay a mulct, or else was sentenced to suffer death. The latter punishment, however, was remitted, if he had previously confessed his crime to a priest, and atoned for it as required by the ecclesiastical law; whilst, in such cases, neither the priest nor judges were permitted to divulge | it. The interest of Christianity, which it was the Emperor's wish to recommended, rendered this indulgence necessary to the Saxons. If, however, the accused did n appear, he was out-lawed, and this sentence was communicated to the neighbouring counts, who were called to assist in giving it effect. Annually a public diet was holden by the Emperor's delegate, in Saxony, to inquire into the state of the Christian religion, and in what manner the magistrates had discharged their duty; as well as to compel the counts and judges to administer justice with impartiality, and to give information of such illegal acts of their countrymen, as had occurred to their know. ledge. Besides this diet, he also held special (gebotene) sessions, in which judgment was given in matters of appeal, and against such persons as could not properly be prosecuted before the regular judges. The decrees pronounced in these sessions affected the life of the accused. Those who refused to appear, were declared to be outlawed (vervehmt), whence, afterwards, arose the denomination of vehmgericht, i. e. the tribunal by which the criminal was separated from those who enjoyed the ordinary protection of the laws. If a conclusion may be drawn from a similarity of procedure and tendency in two criminal institutions, it may be concluded, that these two had both a common origin, and that the secret tribunals of Westphalia were continuations of these secret criminal sessions, gradually changed and new-moulded in conformity to circumstances and the wants of the times; although the free knights, actuated by family pride, unanimously maintained, that Charles I. had instituted the secret tribunals in the same form, both external and internal, which it had in the 13th and 14th centuries, and conferred upon them that astonishing extent of jurisdiction, which was gradually wrested from the enfeebled executive authorities. The Westphalian secret tribunals are first mentioned as generally known in the year 1211, and recorded as having still been in force in the year 1659. They never were formally abrogated; but only lost their influence by degrees, when the sword of justice was again wielded by vigorous hands. These Westphalian secret tribunals, at first, were only designed for Westphalia, and had no jurisdiction over any other province. The extent of their jurisdiction was limited in the west by the Rhine, in the east by the Weser, in the north by Friesland and the territory of Utrecht, and in the south by the Westerwald (western forest) and Hessia. Tribunals of these secret Westphalian judges (Freystühle) were to be found only in the duchies of Guelders, Cleves, and Westphalia, in the principalities of Corvey and Minden, and the Landgraviate of Hessen; in the counties of Benthiem, Limburg, Lippe, Mark, Ravensberg, Rechlinhausen, Rietsberg, Sayn, Waldeck, and Steinfurt; in the signories of Gehmen, Neustadt, and Rheda, and in the territory of Dortmund, a free imperial town. The Emperor, being supreme judge of all secular courts of judicature in Germany, was also the sole creator and chief of all free tribunals. Free counties were certain districts, comprehending several parishes, where the judges and counsellors of the secret ban administered justice, conformably to the territorial statutes. A free county generally contained several tribunals subject to the controul of one master of the chair (stuhlherr). There masters of the chair, who commonly were secular or ecclesiastical princes, held their appointment by the will of the Emperor, and forfeited it on deciding in matters not coming under their jurisdiction, or deviating in their decrees from the laws of the free tribunals. They appointed the free counts (freygrafen), who were presidents of individual tribunals of the secret ban. They were presented to the Emperor for confirmation by the masters of their chair, who were made responsible for them, upon which they were invested with the royal ban, and obliged to swear fealty and obedience to the head of the empire. The latter also could punish the free counts, or deprive them of their office, occupy the seat of a free count in the tribunals, decide in matters of appeal brought before him, inspect and reform the tribunals, and appoint the free knights (frey schofen), though in the territory of Westphalia alone. He could, indeed. exercise these prerogatives only when himself was initiated; this, however, was generally done by the master of the chair of the Imperial Chamber of Dortmund, on the coronation of the Emperor at Aix-laChapelle. If, however, the Emperor was not initiated in the mysteries of the secret tribunals, he could demand of the judges of the secret ban no other answer to his inquiries but yes and no. The Duke of Saxony was supreme governor and administrator of the Westphalian secret tribands, and after the partition of the Duchy of Saxony, was superseded in this function by the archbishop of Cologne. To him also the members of the secret tribunals were obliged to swear obedience. The free-counts, whom he nominated for the duchies of Engern and Westphaly, were subjected to his examination and instruction, and after being invested by the Emperor with the royal ban, were not only installed by him, but made liable to be deprived of their function, at his pleasure, without being permitted to appeal. He re Every master of the chair was authorized to prohibit the free-counts of his tribunals, to decide in certain cases, and to grant letters of protection against the proceedings of the latter. ceived of every free-judge, admitted as a member of the tribunals subject to his jurisdiction, one mark of gold, if the candidate was of noble descent, if not, a mark of silver. Beside this; he also enjoyed other perquisites, amounting to a considerable sum. The free-counts (vehmgrafen) were required to be begotten in legal wedlock, born in Westphaly, and distinguished as free, unblemished, and respectable men in their community. They promised on oath, at their nomination, to be obedient to the Emperor, the governor and the master of the chair, to discharge the duties incumbent on them as free-counts, to take cognizance of no cause not coming under the jurisdiction of the secret ban; to give to the accused every opportunity of defending himself; to initiate no one whose free and legal birth and unblemished life were not warranted as the statutes required; to promote the good of the sacred Roman empire; not to injure the countries and subjects of their superiors, unless they had lawful authority to do it, and never to oppose the reformation of the secret tribunals. They were intitled to receive thirty guilders of every freejudge admitted as a member of their tribunal, and one-third of all perquisites. Their persons were sacred and inviolable. The free-knights (Freyschöffen, Vehmschöffen, Wissende) were required to be begotten in legal wedlock, freeborn, of an unimpeached character, No. XX. Vol. III. : resident in the free county, and natives of Westphaly. The number of these free-knights belonging to each tribunal, never was less than seven, nor did it amount to more than eleven. Seven free-knights, at least, were required to compose a plenary-court (Voltgericht), in which the final sentence was pronounced. Knights of other tribunals were indeed permitted to be present on these occasions as visitors, but were not reckoned, nor allowed to vote. On their reception they promised on oath to be faithful in discharging their functions as free-knights; to give information to the secret tribunal of every thing coming under its jurisdiction, perceived by themselves or reported to them by creditable persons, and not to suffer any thing created betwixt heaven and earth, to divert them from the execution of their duty. They also bound themselves_ to promote the interest of the sacred Roman empire, and to invade the possessions of the masters of the chair and of the free-courts only on legal grounds. After having taken this oath, they were not permitted to reveal even to their confessors the secrets of the tribunal, and on transgressing this law, though only in the most trifling point, were hanged without mercy. They pronounced judgment according to the statutes of the Westphalian secret tribunal, and executed it conformably to the decrees of the free-courts. They knew each other by certain secret signals. The free-bailiffs (Freyfrohnen) performed the office of messengers, and also were required to be freemen, begotten in legal wedlock, and of an unimpeached character. The original constitution of the secret tribunals did, however, not long continue in force, bastards and wretches of the most abandoned character being admitted. The number of free-knights allowed to every tribunal, was originally limited to eleven, but in a short time in many amounted to fifty and more, who possessed not an inch of landed estate in Westphaly, and were induced by self-interest, ambition, thirst after vengeance, or other disgraceful motives, to join the association. The meeting places of the members of the secret tribunals degenerated into haunts of sanguinary banditti, who indiscriminately assassinated the innocent with the guilty. The masters of the chair being actuated by the most sordid avarice, divided the free-countries into numerous smaller seats of justice, whereby the number of spies and secret informers naturally was encreased to a most alarming degree, and numberless opportunities for fraud, imposition, and extortion were presented. Although they were originally authorized to pronounce sentence only in criminal cases, they interfered in private and domestic affairs, in order to encrease their fees, and contrived to lay even Counts and Princes me, lest the free-knights should hang me. It was difficult to elude the proceedings of the free knights, as they at all times contrived to steal at night, unknown and unseen, to the gates of castles, palaces and towns, and to affix the summons of the secret tribunal. When this had been done three times, and the accused did not appear; he was condemned by the secret ban, and summoned once more to submit to the execution of the sentence, and in case of non-appearance, solemnly out-lawed, when the invisible bands of free-knights watched all his steps till they found an opportunity of taking away his life. When a free-knight thought himself too weak to seize and hang the culprit, he was bound to pursue him til he met with some of his colleagues, who assisted him in hanging him to a tree, near the high road, and not to a gibbet, to signify thereby that they exercised a free imperial judicature throughout the whole empire, independent of all territorial tribunals. If the devoted victim made resistance, so as to compel them to poignard him; they tied the dead body to a tree, fixing the dagger over his head, to show that he had not been murdered, but executed by a free-knight. under contribution to their avarice. They vowed, || Duke William of Brunswick is reported to have on their admission, in the most solemn and awful said: I must order the Duke Adolphus, of manner, to judge with incorruptible impartiality,|| Shleswic, to be hanged, if he should come to see to regard no person, and even to be deaf to the feelings of the heart, in framing their decrees; but, on the contrary, they were swayed by selfishness, accessible to corruption, partial to their friends, and prosecuted their enemies with the most rancorous malice, and prostituted their function by rendering their authority subservient to the gratification of the most brutal lust. They were deaf to the lamentations of calumniated innocence, assassinated their relations to inherit their estates, and were more dreadful to the virtuous than the midnight ruffian. A freecount frequently acted at once as witness and as judge; the spy, informer, witness, and judge, were, in many instances, united in the same person; in short, the abuses which disgraced the secret tribunals, rendered them a real curse to mankind. Towards the close of the 14th, and in the beginning of the 15th century, their power in Germany rose to a most alarming degree; and we may safely maintain that the German empire at that time contained more than an hundred thousand free-knights, who without either previous notice or trial executed every one who was condemned by the secret ban. Bavarians, Austrians, Franconians and Suabians, having a demand on any one whom they could not bring to justice before the regular courts of his country, applied to the Westphalian secret tribunal, where they obtained a summons, and in case of nonappearance, a sentence, which was immediately communicated to the whole fraternity of freeknights, a step by which were put in motion those hundred thousand executioners bound by the most dreadful oath to spare neither father nor mother, nor to regard the sacred ties of friend-reply in the affirmative or negative; but when he ship and matrimonial love. If a free-knight met a friend condemned by the secret ban, and gave him only the slightest hint to save his life by flight, all the other free-knights were bound to hang him seven feet higher than any other criminal. The sentence being pronounced in the secret ban, they were obliged to put it into imme-free-knights who acted as witnesses. In this diate execution, and not permitted to make the least remonstrance, though they were perfectly convinced that the devoted victim was the best of men, and innocent of the crime alledged against him. This induced almost every man of rank and power to become a member of that dreadful association, in order to be more able to be on his guard. Every Prince had some freeknights amongst his counsellors, and the majority of the German nobility belonged to that secret order. Even Princes; for instance, the Duke of Bavaria, and the Margrave of Brandenbourgh were members of the Secret Tribunal. The Their transactions were shrouded in the most profound concealment; and the signal by which the initiated, or knowing ones, as they called themselves, recognized each other, never could be discovered. Their secret proceedings were not permitted to be disclosed to the Emperor himself, although he was supreme master of the chair. Only when he asked, has N. N. been condemned? the free-knights were allowed to enquired who had been condemned by the secret ban? they were not permitted to mention any name. The Emperor, or his delegate, could create free-knights no where but on the red soil, i. e. in Westphaly, with the assistance of three or four they likewise resembled the free-masons; and if we consider every tribunal as a lodge, and the supreme master of the chair, as the grand-master of all Westphalian lodges, this comparison is rendered still more striking. The real signification of the term red soil, and the reason why it was applied to Westphaly, has not yet been traced out. The King Wenzeslaus, had created free-knights out of Westphaly, and when the Emperor, Ruprecht, asked how they were treated by the regular free-knights, he received the answer, they are hanged without mercy. The Emperor alone, and no other German || Prince, could grant a safe conduct to a person who was outlawed by the secret ban, which was a privilege which Charles the Great had reserved to himself in the Saxon capitulars. The free knights, however, maintained, it was more becoming the Emperor not to grant such letters of protection at all, as he was more interested in strengthening than in weakening the power of the secret tribunals: and in this they were right, || as the free counts defended the imperial authority against the encroachments of territorial jurisdiction. The Emperor Sigismund took a certain Conrad of Langen, who was out-lawed by the secret tribunal, in his service, in order to save his life. But the free counts continued to prosecute him, till he at last appealed to the ecclesiastical council at Basle. Reformations of the numerous abuses which gradually had crept into the secret tribunals, were repeatedly attempted, especially in the years 1404, 1419, 1429, 1485, and 1437; but the corruption had already spread too far, and was roo'ed too deeply to be removed. They were never formally abolished, and only expired by degrees. AN ESSAY ON THE EFFECTS OF A WELL-REGULATED THEATRE. BY F. SCHILLER. SULZER observes, in his Theory of the Fine Arts and Sciences, that an universal and irresistible inclination to novel and extraordinary scenes, a desire of feeling ourselves in a state of mental commotion, has given rise to dramatic exhibitions. Being exhausted by a too strenuous exertion of the mental faculties, enfeebled by the sameness and pressure of his professional occupations, and satiated by sensuality, man could not but feel a vacancy in his soul totally repugnant to the unremitting impulse to activity inherent in human nature. Our nature, equally incapable of enduring for any length of time a state of mere animal existence, as of continuing the exertions of the higher faculties without intermission, panted after an intermediate state, waiting these two opposite extremes, relaxing the mind from a too intense bent of its powers, and facilitating the alternate transition from one state to the other. This advantage is invariably produced by a susceptibility of the impressions of beauty. But as a wise legislator should exert himself, above all things, to select from two effects that which is most efficacious, he will not be satisfied with having only disarmed the inclinations of his people, but, if possible, render them instrumental to the accomplishment of noble designs, and endeavour to convert them into sources of happiness. Actuated by these motives, legislators gave the preference to the stage, which opens a spacious field to a mind eager for exertion, affords nourishment to all the faculties of the soul, without overstraining any one of them, and unites the refinement of the understanding and the heart with the most innocent kind of amusement." The person who first observed that religion is the strongest pillar of the state, and that it alone renders the laws effectual, has by this assertion, perhaps without intending or being sensible of it, defended the stage in the strongest manner. That very insufficiency and instability of positive laws, which render religion indispensably necessary for the state, determines also the whole influence the stage can produce. The laws confine themselves merely to negative duties, whereas religion extends its precepts to real actions. The laws counteract only those effects that dissolve the social bonds by which mankind is united, whilst religion prescribes such actions as render these bonds stronger. The laws decide only upon the visible effects of the will; deeds alone are subject to their exertion, whilst religion extends its jurisdiction to the inmost recesses of the heart, pursuing the thoughts of man to their primary sources. The laws are pliant, and as changeable as the humours and passions of man, whereas the bonds of religion are strong and eternal. Suppose that religion actually did exercise this powerful sway over every human heart, will and can it complete the entire refinement of man? Religion (which I distinguish here between its political and divine part) religion, in the aggregate, operates chiefly upon the sensual part of the people; but its efficacy would be lost, were we to purify it entirely from whatever strikes the senses. And what else is it that renders the stage efficacious? Religion ceases to operate upon the majority of the human race, if we divest it of its awful pictures and problems, of heaven and hell, which operate alone by the influence they exercise over the imagination. What addition of |