deposited. As they decay, they are closed up in vaults with monuments, and cleanliness and neatness of arrangement are every where observed. In another part there is a collection of deformed skulls and fractured limbs; and at the extremity of these vaults of death, there is a well of pure water, which contains fish of the trout species, that sport undisturbed by the remains of myriads of former lords of the creation. The moral lesson which this interesting spectacle reads to every mind, is sufficiently obvious and forcible. A recent observer of the Catacombs impressively remarks "Who can view with indifference the assemblage of so many ages, as powerless and inanimate, as he himself will one day be. It is there that the true difference between life and death may be seen; it is there that man may be convinced how unimportant an object he is in the creation; and it is there that he may learn that his years are but as units, in the record of time."

FOREIGN CORRESPONDENCE.

PARIS.-A mummy has recently arrived at Bruges, taken from one of the pyramids of Egypt. It appears to be that of a princess of the race of Pharaoh, who probably died about 3700 years ago. It is still in the case which contained it in the pyramid. The cover represents a female of extraordinary stature, in the Egyptian costume: The colours are vivid, and in good preservation. The same case also contained an embalmed cat-whose attendance indicates the high rank of the personage embalmed.

There has lately appeared a Poem by a Mr. Favry, called "Caledonie," ou "La guerre Nationale." The Editor of the Constitutionel, in reviewing it, expresses his surprise that the author did not fix upon some event in the history of his own country to commemorate, rather than a foreign one. One of our young poets, M. Victor Hugo, has published a volume of Odes, some of which are well written, but he seems to have an excessive fondness for strange words and phrases.

Sgricci, the Italian improvisatore, is to improvise publicly in a few evenings, a tragedy in five acts; and M. Eugene de Pradel, a young poet, will, it is said, improvise a tragedy in five acts first, and directly afterward an opera in three acts.

Young Lyst has given his first public concert at the Italian Theatre, which was crowded with spectators: the talent of this young lad is astonishing, and all the professors are delighted with him. He is only twelve years old, but his execution and composition are thought to surpass that of the greatest masters of the age.

M. Siennet, author of the tragedy of Cloris, and of some few other poems, has recently published a work called "Trois Dialogues des morts,” et" trois Epitres.'

"

Count Platoff, a rich Russian senator, and a great patron of the arts, has just published an account of a journey in some parts of France.

ROME. The Chevalier Tambroni died last month; he was born at Bologna, and had been for some years intended for a place at the imperial picture gallery, at Vienna; but never received the decree of his appointment. The last summer, he discovered the ancient city of Bovilla. The Giornale Accadico loses, by his death, one of its chief contributors. $. Salmanli has been invited to Dresden, for the purpose of cleaning the finest paintings in the gallery, which stand much in need of it. It is said, that he is to leave Rome early in the spring.

WHO has not heard of the renowned Sir Owen Glyndwr, the son of Gryffydd Fychan, by the lady Elena, of royal blood? She was eldest daughter of Thomas ap Llewelyn ap Owen, by his wife Elinor Goch, or Elinor the red, daughter and heiress to Catherine, one of the daughters of Llewelyn last prince of Wales, and wife to Philip ap Ivor of Iscoed. And who has not heard how, on the night of his nativity, his father's horses were found standing in the stables up to their bellies in blood; and how the deathless bard Jolo Goch was wont to sing of a glorious star which appeared in the firmament, to mark the great deeds of Glyndwr?

The aforenamed bard, with others of his order, was invited by Sir Owen to make a sanctuary of Sycharth, the seat of that hospitable knight: and well was it for him that he courted the favour of Jolo and his companions in minstrelsy. For they celebrated the glories of Sycharth, the castle and seat of the chieftain; and full well did they sing of the grandeur of its apartments, and the thickness of its walls, and its towers, and its battlements. But for Jolo, who could know at this day that it had a gate-house without, and that it was surrounded by a moat; that within it there were nine halls, each furnished with a wardrobe filled with the suits of his retainers: that on a verdant bank near to the castle there stood a house all made of wood, supported on posts, and covered with tiles, containing four VOL. I. 10.-Fourth Edition.

L

apartments, and each apartment divided into two, for the lodgment and entertaining of the guests of the said Sir Owen: that there was a church in the form of a cross with divers chapels therein, and that in every chapel the relics of saints were kept? And cheerily Jolo Goch did chant of the park, the warren, the pigeon-house, and of the heronry which supplied the knight and his noble guests with game for the sport of falconry of the mill, the orchard, and the vineyard, and of the fishpond filled with pike and gwyniads. Nor did the bard forget the wine, the ale, the braget, and the white bread; nor his good friends the cook and his helpers, the turnspits and serving-men; nor that the house did need neither porter, nor locks, nor bolts, for the doors were always open, and no one could ever hunger or thirst in Sycharth neither was he unmindful of the fair lady of the house, and her offspring; for after that he had tuned his harp in praise of Sir Owen, and that which I have just above rehearsed, thus would he break forth:

A Gwraig orau o'r gwragedd,
Gwynn y myd, o'i Gwin a'i medd.
Merch eglur, Llin marchawglyw,
Urddol, hael, o reiol ryw.
A'i blant, a ddeuant bob ddau
Nythod têg o bennaethau !*

Now ever since the reign of England's first Edward, Wales had been united unto that kingdom. But the Welsh accounted this a perfect slavery: for they were forced to receive laws and customs from a conquering nation, which they had long contended with for their freedom; and whatever came from their conquerors they did look upon with suspicion, and they could not love the same. The reign of King Henry the Fourth did begin with a conspiracy, which shewed that the English were not contented with the revolution which had just before come to pass in their country: and in this reign did Sir Owen stir up his brave countrymen to shake off the yoke of their oppressors. He first declared his design in the year 1400, while Henry waged war against Scotland. The Welsh having such a commander, took arms on a sudden, and so firm a hold did Glyndwr obtain on the hearts and confidence of his countrymen, that they called him their sovereign, and he took upon himself the title of Prince of Wales. The king being at that time in Scotland, the Earl of March, who sojourned at his seat at Wigmore, assembled the nobles about him, to oppose Sir Owen: then did that valiant chieftain not only guard against the attacks of the English, but he advanced to the borders of their own country, and defied them to come out, and give him battle; and then the Earl of March seeking to repel him, was routed and taken prisoner. But Glyndwr maintained his daring, and often did he insult the English, and they durst not oppose him; and his followers became the terror of all who refused to make common cause with them. Then in the year after, Henry entered Wales at the head of a great army, but the Welsh retired to their mountains, and he destroyed the abbey of Ystrad Fflur in Cardiganshire, and ravaged the country; yet was

* His wife, the best of wives!

Happy am I in her wine and metheglin.
Eminent woman of a knightly family,
Honourable, beneficent, noble.
His children come in pairs;

A beautiful nest of chieftains.

he obliged to make a disgraceful retreat, after his forces had been reduced by famine and fatigues.

In the year 1402, there was seen in the heavens a blazing star, which the bards interpreted as an omen favourable to the cause of Glyndwr.* Much did the conceit thereof renew the spirit of the Welsh people, and the next success of their chieftain did strengthen their confidence, and give new vigour to their acts. The Lord Grey was a noble peer and a good friend to King Henry. He raised a large army, and encountered Glyndwr on the banks of the Fyrnwy, in the county of Montgomery ; but he was defeated and taken prisoner, and carried by Sir Owen, fast bound, into the wild fastnesses of the Snowdon Hills; but the name of the castle wherein he was kept I know not. Long did he remain in captivity, nor would he have gained his liberty till he had fully paid the sum of ten thousand marks; if Henry, whose favourite he was, had not pitied his hard fate, and issued out a special commission, whereby he did empower Sir William de Roos, and others, to treat with Glyndwr and his council, about the ransom. It was agreed to pay six thousand marks, on the day of St. Martin then ensuing, and to give as hostages for the payment of the residue, his eldest son, and some other persons. Whereupon he was set at liberty, and he and his tenants enjoyed their rights and possessions without molestation. And no sooner was he set free, than, for the security of him and his people, he sought to ally himself to Glyndwr, and therein he so well succeeded, that he obtained in marriage Jane, the third daughter of that mighty chieftain.

Now Sir Owen had a cousin, named Howel Sele, Lord of Nanneu, in Meirioneddshire; and, it is said, that they were bred up together, and that they lived under the same roof, in the time of their boyhood. Yet their dispositions were opposed the one to the other, and no good-will did ever subsist between them. In after life their dislike grew more grievous, as their pursuits became more manly. When Glyndwr strove to support the waning interests of Richard, Sele hastened with his vassals to rally round the standard of the usurper Bolingbroke, and ever afterward was he a firm friend to the house of Lancaster-that house which Sir Owen detested, and set at nought. Whilst the Lord Grey was the foe and prisoner of Glyndwr, it seemed as though Howel Sele would befriend him, but as soon as his fortunes did change for the better, and he was at peace with Sir Owen, and married to his daughter, then did Howel Sele turn again, and become his most inveterate enemy. 'Tis said, that the Abbot of Cymmer, thinking to reconcile these hostile kinsmen, brought them together, and, to outward appearance, did compass this good design.

The

Nanneu, the seat of Howel Sele, was situated not far from Dolgelley. way to it was by a steep ascent, of two miles at the least, and all the sides of the dingles thereabout, were clad with woods and forests. Among the trees of that place, there stands, even at this day,† an oak, venerable

"And in the iiii yere of Kynge Henrie's reigne, ther was a sterre seyn in the firmament, yt shewed him self thurgh all the world for di'use tokenynges yt should befall sone after; the which sterre was named and called by Clargie, Stella Comata."-Caxton's Cronclis.

† On the night of the 27th July, 1813, this aged tree fell to the ground; and it is remarkable, that the original sketch was taken from nature by Sir Richard Colt Hoare, Bart. on the previous day. It stood within the kitchen-garden walls of Sir Robert William Vaughan, Bart. the present proprietor of Nanneu, by whose ancient and estimable family the domain in which the scene of the above tale is laid, has long been possessed.

for its antiquity, and remarkable for its bigness, and the vast extent of land which its branches spread over; and the trunk thereof is well nigh thirty feet in girth, and, from the marvellous traditions concerning it, it is called Derwen Ceubren yr Ellyll—the Hollow Oak, the haunt of De

mons.

Above Nunneu is a high rock, whose top is encircled with a dyke of loose stones. This had been a British post, and, it may be, the hold of some tyrant, for it was named Moel Orthrwn, or the Hill of Oppression. Now it was in the direction of this hill, that Sir Owen and Howel Sele one evening walked out. The pale beams of the moon did shine on the brows of the mountains, brightening every crag, and every spot of rising ground; also casting over the valleys a soft light, and leaving the forests in the deep gloom of shadiness. Many stars did glitter in the clear sky, and might be seen reflected, with the rays of the moon, in many a lake and rivulet, which appeared like molten silver, sprinkled upon the distant plains and valleys. All was still, and the chieftains were too much stricken with the scene before them, to break the silence which so well accorded therewith. On the sudden a doe bounded forth they knew not whence, and Sir Owen addressing himself to Howel, who was the best archer of his days, said, that there was now a fine mark before him. Then Howel drew an arrow, and fixed it, and bent his bow, and pretending to aim at the deer, he hastily turned, and discharged his arrow full at the breast of Glyndwr. But Sir Owen was clad in armour, beneath his garments, and so he received no hurt. At this act of treachery he was greatly enraged, and he drew his sword: whereupon Sele threw aside the bow, and drew his. They struggled long, and each fought right bravely, and soon was the clashing of their swords heard by the followers of Sir Owen, who hastened to the spot, and would have carried away Howel Sele. But just then his kinsman Gryffydd ap Gwyn rushed forward with his retinue, and attempted a rescue. Fierce was the engagement, and obstinately was it contested: and the moon became suddenly overclouded, and the combatants knew not upon whom their deadly blows might descend. Dire was the confusion: for the vassals turned about, and wavered, scarce daring to deal out their vengeance. But the chiefs, goaded on with a furious hate, fought with desperation, and each was determined to rid himself of the other. length, Howel fell. Gryffydd was defeated with much loss of his men: and his houses of Berthlwyd and Cefn Coch were soon after reduced to ashes.

At

Howel Sele was never seen more amid the haunts of men, nor was his body discovered by any. 'Tis said that he lay for a long time weltering in his blood, at the foot of the hollow oak; and that Sir Owen compelled the Abbot of Cymmer to help him to raise the mangled corse, and place it within the hollow trunk of that same haunted tree. Certain it is, that after forty years from the time of that deadly struggle, the skeleton of a man whose stature was like unto that of Howel Sele was discovered immured therein; but farther I know not.