retain no secret undivulged, but even without the remotest encouragement from the world, labour under a painful constraint, until they have made it as perfectly acquainted, as their own household, with the aspect of their personal affairs. Recognising no merit in privacy or concealment, whatever event of novelty occurred to him was invariably uppermost. "The soul stood forth, nor kept a thought within." As a necessary result of his desperate zeal for communication, nothing could happen more opportunely, than this revelation. It afforded an exquisitely tempting, and hitherto unbroached theme to attract a wondering auditory, and to captivate "the ears of the groundlings." Speedily, "like fire to heather set," the fame of James's unrivalled vision, became blazed abroad, and the bruit thereof, as will appear from the sequel, reached the ears of more individuals, than even James, with all his zest for popular applause, would have been willing to entrust it, who made no scruple of appropriating to their own private account, the information so obligingly furnished. The instances, in which the nocturnal hints were repeated, became at length so frequent, that James, who added procrastination to his other mental infirmities, resolved to make a complete story of his materials, by exploring the "spolia opima,"-the "golden harvest," which assuredly fortune had been devising for him, as the result of such incessant importunities. Arriving at the spot, he found indeed the stone, as the dream had represented; but it had been violently wrenched from its position, and upon examining its former resting place, he beheld in the midst a triangular pit, that bore moulded upon its sides, the impression of some more solid nucleus having once existed there, of sufficiently ample size to satisfy the utmost wishes of the most eager aspirant after a competency of the world's riches:but the "pose" was gone, the coffer had vanished, and to the garrulous dreamer, there remained no other compensation of the mysterious warnings with which he had been haunted, than a withering rebuke on the unreserved indulgence of a tattling, and unguardedly communicative disposition. In the fields between Lilburn and Middleton, rests a stone, which in the suggestions of the "Religio loci" is not to be removed while the present system of things maintains its stability. Two hinds, with more than the wonted intrepidity of their class, resolved, maugre all penalties, to explore the mystery it shrouded, and if fortune fav numerical series, that involved three most important principles and none other, by him considered to constitute perfection-the beginning-the middle-and the end. Alas! of how many a fair scheme, have we witnessed the realization, whose beginning was vacancy-whose middle term was chaos-and whose end was nothing. oured the bold attempt, to enrich themselves by one energetic stroke. Accordingly, when the shades of night had fallen, and nature had sunk to repose, having provided themselves with mattocks, spades, and other essential requisites, they, without informing any one, or with out waiting for the customary warnings on such occasions, repaired to the scene of their hazardous enterprize. By what devise, other than the promptings of avarice, they fortified their courage, tradition sayeth not, but arriving at the spot, they commenced their daring operations. They had already dug to a considerable depth, without any manifestations of danger, each fresh spadeful of earth giving invigorated energy to their arm, and additional consistency to their hopes, and they had begun to flatter themselves, that the oft-repeated tale, of demoniac watchers over the hoards of treasure that slumbered beneath, was but a vain chimera, which ignorance had conjured up, when all at once, one of them heard a low fluttering as of something struggling to get free, come from beneath the stone. He communicated his impressions to his coadjutor, but as the sound had not reached him, he received but a rude banter by way of solatium. Reassured by his companion's raillery, though not without ominous forebodings, he resumed the work, when suddenly a repeated movement from below, shot a pang of terror to the heart of both. But the love of gold can conquer mortal fear, amidst all the horrors of midnight, and there was one of those adventurers, it had rendered impassive and callous even to preternatural admonitions. With desperate resolution, repressing his apprehensions, he again persisted in disturbing the precincts of the fated stone, but scarcely had he renewed the unhallowed toil, when the stone commenced moving up and down with violent commotion, and out there issued from under it-and the earth quaked to let it forth,-a creature all in white-in figure like a swan-that "flaffered and flew," and made such strange and hideous outery, that the horror-struck delinquents, casting down their implements, hurried off, each in the direction his terrors prompted him, would farthest carry him, from the grasp of the evil thing, which his unhallowed doings had evoked from the invisible recesses of the earth, and whose rage no human power might avail to appease. The sanctuary of the stone was ever afterwards inviolate. Fixed in its pristine position, it still draws the dread and reverence of all the swains in its vicinity, who have not yet learned to undervalue the opinions and beliefs of their simple progenitors. It is the general opinion, worthy of notice as respects the acknowledged supremacy of industry in contributing to success in the pursuits of life, that few of those who have endeavoured to enrich themselves, by waiting upon such accidents of fortune, in preference to engaging in a lawful calling, have received special benefit, from the riches thence derived. Illusory as fairy treasures, they have gone away from their possessors, without their enjoying any perceptible advantage from them. As a maxim applicable to the bulk of mankind, it is undeniable that opulence, easily and unexpectedly procured, leaves its thoughtless obtainer, in even a worse state of wretchedness than his original poverty. Industry has her rights which are not to be wantonly violated, or with impunity. There are however individuals, exceptions from the crowd, who have secured such a strict and noble mastery over the inferior principles of their nature, that the giddy gleam of prosperity, instead of exciting them to a prodigal profusion, or conduct incompatible with their previous steady attention to the duties of their station, only generates in them increased exertions, in order to be found worthy of the eminence to which they have suddenly attained. By this moderate procedure, any unforseen efflux of wealth, becomes so moulded and incorporated with the products of their prudently acquired gains, that it participates in the blessing which will sooner or later reward the efforts of patient and well-bestowed diligence. As an illustration of these remarks a popular story may be cited, of which the occurrences happened about forty years ago, and have, according to the relators account, the credible testimony of living and faithful witnesses. A farm steading situated near the borders of Northumberland, a few miles from Haltwhistle, was occupied at the period to which we refer, by a family of the name of W-k—n. In front of the dwelling house, and at about sixty yards distance, lay a stone of vast size, as ancient, for so tradition amplifies the date, as the flood. On this stone, at the dead hour of the night, might be palpably discerned, a female figure, wrapped in a grey cloak, with one of those low crowned black bonnets, so familiar to our grandmothers, upon her head, incessantly knock! knock! knocking, in a fruitless endeavour to split the impenetrable rock. Duly as night came round, she occupied her lonely station, in the same low crouching attitude, and pursued the dreary obligations of her destiny, till the grey streaks of the dawn gave admonition to depart. From this the only perceptible action in which she engaged, she obtained the appellation of Nelly the Knocker. So perfectly had the inmates of the farm house, in the lapse of time which will reconcile sights and events the most disagreeable and alarming, become accustomed to Nelly's undeviating, nightly din, that the business of life went forward unimpeded and undisturbed by any apprehension accruing from her shadowy presence. Did the servant man make his punctual resort to the neighbouring cottages? He took the liberty of scrutinizing Nelly's antiquated garb, that varied not with the vicissitudes of seasons, or pried sympathetically into the progress of her monotonous occupation; and though her pale, ghastly, contracted features, gave a momentary pang of terrorthat unhinged the courage of the boldest-it was rapidly effaced, in the vortex of good fellowship, into which he was speedily drawn. Did the lover venture an appointment with his mistress at the rustic style of the stack-garth? Nelly's unwearied hammer, instead of proving a barrier, only served by imparting a grateful sense of mutual danger, to render more intense the raptures of the hour of meeting. So apathetic were the feelings cherished towards her, and so little jealousy existed of her power to injure, that the relater of these circumstances states, that on several occasions, she has passed Nelly at her laborious toil, without evincing the slightest perturbation, beyond a hurried step, as she stole a glance, at the inexplicable and mysterious form.—An event in the course of years, disclosed the secrets that marvellous stone shrouded; and drove poor Nelly for ever from the scene so inscrutably linked with her fate. Two of the sons of the farmer, were rapidly approaching maturity, when one of them more reflecting and shrewd than his compeers, suggested the idea of relieving Nelly from her toilsome avocation, and of taking possession of the alluring legacy to which she was evidently and urgently summoning. He proposed, conjointly with his father and brother, to blast the stone, as the most expeditious mode of gaining access to her arcana; and this in the open daylight, in order that any tutelary protection she might be disposed to extend to her favourite haunt, might as she was a thing of darkness and the night, be effectually countervailed. Nor were their hopes frustrated, for upon clearing away the earth and fragments that resulted from the explosion, there was revealed, to their elated and admiring gaze-a precious booty of closely packed urns copiously enriched with gold. Anxious that no intimations of their good fortune should transpire, they had taken the precaution in the meanwhile, to despatch the female servant a needless errand, and ere her return, the whole was efficiently, and without suspicion, secured. And so completely did they succeed in keeping their own counsel, and so successfully did their reputation keep pace with the cautious production of their undivulged treasures, that for many years afterwards, they were never suspected of gaining any advantage from poor Nelly's "knocking;" their improved appearance, and the somewhat imposing figure they made in their little district, being solely attributed to their superior judgment, and to the good management of their lucky farm. THE GATHERING ODE OF The Fenwyke of Northumberland. The slaughtered chiefs, the mortal jar, CONTRIBUTED BY JOHN FENWICK, ESQ. HE FENWYKE of Northumberland are of Saxon origin, and take their cognomen from their ancient fastness in the fenny lands in the vicinity of Stamfordham. By a match with one of the co-heiresses of the ancient house of STROTHER (Temp. Hen. IV.), they obtained the domain of Wallington, which from thenceforth, to the reign of William the Third, continued to be a residence of the family, and Fenwyke Castle was suffered to decay. The remains of this once impregnable stronghold are now used as a farm house. By purchase, and by marriage with some of the principal families in the county, the Fenwyke obtained large possessions, which, from the unsettled state of the times, required the protection of military power. Fierce and resolute in their own character and disposition, they not only sustained the shock of many a Scottish inroad, but were ever ready to avenge real or supposed wrongs, by a furious raid into the territories of the enemy. The slogan or gathering cry of the clan-a Fenwyke! a Fenwyke!! a Fenwyke!!! was never heard in vain, and many a Border battle field bears witness to their deadly strife with their Scottish neighbours. The illustrious House of PERCY always ranked the Fenwyke among the most constant of its retainers, and the banner blazing with the silver Crescent never appeared in border warfare without that of the Fenwyke and its gorged Phoenix in the burning flame following in the rear. The late Mr. William Richardson, of North Shields, the translator of the luscious Bard of Teos, published the following gathering ode in one of our local prints several years ago. He " supposes an inroad of the Scots to have taken place in the absence of the PERCY |