former letter, that I have seen differently quoted some of the inscriptions placed on bells. We have in Weever, Funeral Monum. 492, the following, which is more complete than the copy of it you have given it :Funera plango, Fulgura frango, Sabbato pango, Excito lentos, Dissipo ventus, Paco cruentos. Accept the following off-hand translation :— At funerals I sadly toll, and slow; In tempests I avert the dreaded blow; To Sabbath days I solemn service owe; To church I bid the slack their speed increase; The wind I bid its ravages to cease; Malignant sprites I terrify to peace. Another distich sums up their powers with some variation, but not unequal melody :— Laudo Deum verum, Plebem voco, conjugo Clerum, Defuncto ploro, Pestem fugo, Festa decoro. I praise the God of truth; the people call; And priests, to speak of things divine to all: The dead I mourn; the plague I cause to flee; And add to festive joys sonorous glee. The dislike of evil spirits to the sound of bells is extremely well expressed by Wynkin de Worde, in the Golden Legend: "It is said, the evill spirytes that ben in the regyon of th' ayre, doubte moche when they hicre the belles rongen: and this is the cause why the belles ringen whan it thondreth, and whan grete tempeste and outrages of wether happen, to the ende that the feinds and wycked spirytes should be abashed and flee, and cease of the movynge of tempeste." Of the names given to bells, I take leave to add a few instances.-The bells of Winnington, in Bedfordshire, were thus described in hexameter verse, inscribed about the verge of each.-Weever, Fun. Mon. 122. * Nomina campanis hæc indita sunt quoque nostris. 1. Hoc signum Petri pulsatur nomine Christi. 2. Nomen Magdalena campana sonat melode. 3. Sit nomen Domini benedictum semper in eum. 4. Musa Raphaelis sonat auribus Immanuelis. 5. Sum Rosa pulsata mundique Maria vocata. The bells of Little Dunmow priory, in Essex, new cast A. D. 1501, were baptized by the following names :— Prima in honore Sancti Michaelis Archangeli. Tertia in honore S. Johannis Baptisti. The present writer has not favoured us with a version of these and the following lines we recommend them to the attention of our poetical correspondents. These peals of five bells may do, but a peal is not perfect under eight: the variety of changes being greatly increased by the addition of the perfecting three. : I close by remarking, that others beside the Romans have carried bells away from their enemies as trophies of triumph it is a common tradition, that the bells (lately) of King's College, Cambridge, were taken by Henry V. from some church in France, after the battle of Agincourt; and it is certain that the bell which rings night and morning in Lincoln's Inn was taken from the Spaniards, at Cadiz, by the Earl of Essex, in Queen Elizabeth's time, and was by him presented to that learned Society. I am, Sir, &c. Q.. AN ACCOUNT OF SOME ANTIQUITIES IN The following account of antiquities in the island of Rügen, with which we have been favoured by a gentleman since the publication of our last Number, is not only interesting in itself, but becomes more so to us, when we recollect the similarity which these objects bear to some in our own country; the remarkable circumstance of their being found in an island, and so many of them within a small district. How far they contribute to establish an identity of people, in ancient times, the prevalence of the same religious rites, or the migration of a people or colony from one country to the other, are questions which we content ourselves with recalling to the recollection of our readers.. In the plain near the mountains of Quoltitz lies a mass of granite, between four and five ells long, and nearly two in height, in the direction from S. E. to N. W. It is supposed to have been an altar. A groove has been cut diagonally across the stone, nearly five inches deep, and broad enough to lay one's hand in. Immediately behind the groove the surface on both sides has been hewn out so as to form a kind of architrave, with two holes on the right side, and three on the left, in which the bowls used in sacrificing are supposed to have been placed. About two miles from Bergen is a Cromlech composed of large blocks of stone of an ash-grey colour. They form a long hollow covered with another stone three ells long, in the direction from E. to W. Near the village of Krahn is a sepulchre thirty-six paces in length, surrounded with large stones. The stone at the west end is above four ells long. The diameter of the area, from the latter to the stones on the op posite side, is twelve paces. It is raised in the centre. Another lies near the village of Strussendorf. It is a mound enclosed with stones two or three feet asunder. The length is above sixty paces, and the breadth between four and five. Its position is from W. to E. where it obliquely terminates in a point. The form is similar to that of an inverted kneading-trough. In the neighbourhood of Patzig are eighteen conical barrows. The largest measures 112 paces in circumference at its base; a smaller one 106; and the perpendicular elevation of the highest is about nine ells. Another barrow, called Dubberworth, measures 170 paces in circumference, and about sixteen ells in height. The stone coffins which have been discovered bear all the marks of art; for the stone is cut smooth, and the form is regular. But the conveyance and arrangement of such enormous blocks, particularly the raising of the covering, presuppose a certain knowledge of the principles of mechanics, which may very well be attributed to the Vandals who built ships, and followed navigation. We should therefore be induced to consider them as relics of the Slavico-Vandalian age. How little posterity is acquainted with the dead whose ashes they contain, is proved by the following considerations; the most ancient records know nothing of them, not even the names of those who are entombed; nor is there any satisfactory tradition concerning their origin; of all the centuries which are passed, each has carried off something of their history; and they now stand as monuments of ages quæ caliginosâ nocte premit Deus. STATEMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL SUBJECTS 'OF TRADE IN THE NETHERLANDS. The following articles are taken from a work composed by order of Government, but not published: they describe the state of Flanders and Holland, a very few years ago.. In reference to the natural productions of the country, they may be considered as equivalent to the latest information. The political state and sentiments of the inhabitants, we hope to be able to describe from the information of a gentleman who quitted Bruges not inany days ago. This statement refers principally to those countries formerly under Austrian dominion. The principal natural productions of this country are as follow: corn, of which this The facts upon which the reasonings on this article proceed were furnished from a commercial survey of the Netherlands, by a gentleman not less distinguished for his commercial than his financial information. country, upon an average, produced annually more than was equal to the consumption of its inhabitants for two years; the surplus formed its most valuable export; a large quantity was taken off by the French on their northern frontier, and paid for in French coin (which had a general circulation in the Netherlands), and with manufactured silks and wines. Besides the corn sent to France by the frontier, considerable quantities were shipped from Ostend to the southern parts of that kingdom, and to other southern parts of Europe; proportions also of it were exported occasionally from Ostend to Hamburgh, and to the Baltic; but the greatest quantity was sent to Holland by the Scheldt and the Maese, both to supply the Dutch and for exporta tion. Flar-was the next article; and in quality is superior to any raised in Europe. This ar ticle may be cultivated in Flanders with success to almost any extent.* Rape-seed was cultivated in considerable quantities; the oil expressed from it was chiefly sent to Holland, and formed a very material article of merchandize with that country. Tobacco was cultivated in the country be tween Brussels, Louvain, and Tirlemont.In quality it is inferior to the Maryland tobacco, and was consumed chiefly by the inha bitants in smoking. Hops-The country between Brussels and Louvain produced the finest hops in Europe: and in such abundance, that it supplied all the breweries in the Netherlands Coals The best mines are in the neighbourhood of Namur. The principal manufactured productions are: Linens Though this article was chiefly made in the country about Ghent, branches of the manufacture were to be found over all the provinces. It was in part exported to Portugal, but chiefly to Spain; and from the latter was shipped, both in a white and print ed state, for South America. Laces-known under the names of Brussels and Mechlin, were not made by any col lected body of people, but wove in private houses, by women, children, and old men. The quantity smuggled into Britain was more considerable some years ago than at this time. The best judges are of opinion, that the manufacture of fine laces in Britain can never be carried on with success. Leather was manufactured in considerable quantities both in Flanders and in Brabant; though inferior in quality to English leather, it was cheaper, and in general use with the The flax used in the manufacture of laces and fine thread, for exportation, is pulled when green, and prepared by a parti cular process for that purpose. inhabitants. It was exported in considerable quantities to various parts of Germany. Hats of the finest kind were equally good with the English. The English coarse, or felt hats, were superior to the Flemish, but the high duty upon them prevented their finding a market.* Superfine woollen cloths-were manufactured in the Duchies of Limbourg and Juliers, and in different parts of Brabant, at from five to twelve per cent. lower than English cloths of the same quality. The coarse cloths, however, for men, such as bear skin, duffles, and even coarse stockings, were chiefly brought from England. Beer-was manufactured in large quantities at Louvain, and was of two kinds, bierre blanche and bierre brune; the former of a very inferior quality, the latter, even the best sort of it, called bierre Pieterman, was not so good as our ordinary ale. It was chiefly consumed in the country, and was but a very inconsiderable article of export. Black silks-of which the principal manufactory was at Antwerp, were superior in quality and colour to any in Europe. Cutting of diamonds.-A great body of people was employed at Antwerp in this single branch. In 1792, a considerable proportion of the diamonds in Europe were sent to this place to be cut. Salt A considerable manufacture of this article, was carried on at Antwerp, but the Dutch extorted a duty on the vessels bringing the sea-water. Printed cottons.-A very small quantity of the white cloth for printing was made in Flanders; the chief supply was from the sales of the English East India Company, and from the coarse white cloths of Manchester, Glasgow, and Dundee. The importation from Holland has been very trifling, since the decline of the Dutch East India Company.† Pottery-was of a very inferior kind, and in little estimation; but to protect this article a duty of four pence per pound weight was laid upon pottery imported. Hence the use The cheapness of hats in Flanders was owing to the following circumstances :-to the great quantities of cheap materials for the manufacture of hats found in the north of Germany; to the texture of the hat, being less hard than the English,and therefore taking in the dye or colour better; and to the greater quantity of madder used in all black dye stuffs in Flanders and Holland, than in Great Britain. The inferiority of the printing, both in taste and workmanship, to the English, is so great, that if the restrictions had been taken off, even with a very considerable duty to the Emperor, the trade might have been established. of china and plate was greater in Flanders than in any country in Europe.* Iron manufactures of Liege.-The principal articles were cannon, guns, pistols, cutlasses, and nails. The greatest part of the fire-arms was exported to the coast of Africa, and, to give them value, they had the English mark upon them. From the use, however, of machinery in facilitating labour in England, and from the expertness of the workmen at Birmingham and Sheffield, we have undersold the Liegeois in every one of these articles, except nails, of which very considerable quantities were sent to Holland, to Brabant, and to Flanders, by the way of Louvain. On comparing the prime cost of the penknives, buckles, scissors, &c. made at Liege, with that of the same articles made in England, there was from thirty to forty per cent. in our favour.-What enabled the Liegeois to carry on this manufacture was their coal mines, the veins of which were found near the surface, and therefore worked at a less expence than in England; but in quality, the coals of Liege were from fifteen to twenty per cent. less valuable than the medium quality of Newcastle coals. The land carriage from Liege to the heads of the navigable canals is from thirty to forty miles, so that the price of a ton of coals at Antwerp was about thirty shillings. The British exports to Ostend progressively increased from 1740 to 1765, and at that period consisted chiefly of the British colony tobacco, rice, and raw sugar. The value of the British manufactures sent to Ostend, and in smaller vessels to Nieuport, in 1792 amounted to somewhat more than £400,000, and the value of the foreign merchandize to upwards of £650,000; of which about £400,000 was in East India muslins, calicoes, pepper, China and Bengal silks; and about £200,000 in the products of America and the West Indies. On an average of three years preceding the war, 302 British vessels, carrying 33,422 tons (including their repeated voyages in the same year), cleared out from the ports of this kingdom for the Austrian Netherlands, and 288 British vessels, carrying 27,646 tons, arrived from thence in Britain. The value of the freights cannot be easily ascertained. It must, however, be an object of considerable mercantile profit, as well as of political importance, by giving employment to so great a body of British seainen. The imported goods of Ostend were sent by the canal to Bruges, and thence to Ghent, fat as little expence as they could be, If a moderate duty had been taken on English pottery, the Emperor would have drawn a considerable revenue. Ghent may be considered as the centre of the markets in Flanders. Europe; to the recent state of the trade between Britain and Holland. From the union of Utrecht 1579, to the treaty of Munster 1648, which acknowledg ed the independency of the States, the Dutch chiefly directed their attention to the estab lishment of their foreign trade and settlements in the East and West Indies. In 1595, Houtman established their connection with Bantam, in the Island of Java; and in 1598 their East India Company was formed, which in a short time established settlements at Banda, and in the Moluccas. Soon afterwards they fixed establishments at Sumatra, Ceylon, &c. and by 1640 got possession of the principal Portuguese settlements in the East Indies; at the same period their West India Company attempted establishments upon the coast of Brazil, in which, though they failed, the Company, when revived, got possession of the Islands of Tobago and Curaçoa. They afterwards established themselves at New Netherlands or New York, at Surinam, Berbice, Essequibo, and Demerara, and in Europe they extended their navigation to Germany, the Baltic, the Austrian Netherlands, Eng land, France, Spain, and the Levant.* by way of Antwerp; a circumstance which | proves that the opening of the Scheldt would not be of such commercial importance to Flanders as has been generally supposed, whatever might be its political consequences. The general regulations under which the commerce in the Netherlands was conducted were as follow:-Ostend was the principal, if not the only port; the goods were landed and deposited in the warehouses of the merchants without being inspected by the revenue officers, and in this view of the subject, Ostend was a free port. Before, however, the goods were allowed to pass the barrier gate to be sent to markets in the country, the merchant or his agent was obliged to give a manifest to the Imperial officers, declaratory of the contents of each package, and of the place to which the goods were to be sent. The packages were then plombed, so that the contents could not be touched, till the goods reached their place of destination, where they were examined by the revenue officer who collected the duties. In some cases the duty was rated, in others there was a rated duty, and a duty ad valorem, in the same way as on our East India calicoes; on some articles the duty ad valorem only was paid. If the declared value appeared to the officer to be too low rated, he might take the goods on his own account, on making prompt payment to the merchant of 15 per cent above the declared value, and the King's duty. Besides these public duties, local imposts were levied, applicable to the revenues of towns or districts. Goods intended for Germany or other countries, and plomb-kept open from the epoch of the union of ed upon the entrance, paid at the last frontier about one per cent for the transit. It was difficult to ascertain the average amount per cent because such duties were in some instances collected at a certain rate on the ell, hundred weight, &c. and in others on the value. At a medium the imports from Britain were not subject by law to a higher duty than ten per cent. It appears from these facts that the trade to the Austrian Netherlands took off annually upwards of £1,000,000 of our merchandize, employed upwards of 25,000 tons of our shipping, and must be regarded as an object of great national advantage. Statement of the principal Articles of Trade in those Countries of the Netherlands under the Dutch Government. In taking a review of the constituents of the trade of the Dutch Netherlands with Britain, we must recur to the historical events which gave rise to the Dutch navigation, and affected its progress; to the circumstances, in the situation of the United Provinces, which have created, and which must, in some degree, continue with them a depôt trade in Such articles of European manufactured produce as they either consumed themselves or exported, they brought, during the early periods of the republic, from the European countries with which they had already formed connections, or treaties of commerce. The commercial as well as political con nection between Holland and England was Utrecht, 1579, to the peace of Munster, 1648; and as the Dutch had little inter course with Flanders, the English woollens, &c. supplied equally their consumption and their export trade: at last, however, they established the woollen manufacture at Leyden, which supplied them with broad and narrow cloths, camblets, serges, druggets, &c. and a linen manufactory at Harlaem, of which also there were branches at Groningen, Friesland, and Overyssel. At Delft they established a manufactory of earthen ware, in imitation of China; and this article not only supplied the home market but that of most of the countries in Europe, till the rise of the English pottery, which completely took the market from Delft. At Amsterdam there was a manufacture of tapestry, now in disuse, and manufactures of sugar, salt, yellow wax, &c. which are still carried on. At Schiedam and its neighbourhood the distil lery of corn spirits has been long established, and its gin served equally as an article of consumption in the country, and of export to all * La Richesse de la Hollande, ton passim. 1. the different countries to which the Dutch trade extended, The Dutch fisheries, particularly their herring fishery, were principally carried on in North Holland. The situation of Holland, relatively to Germany, formed it for the depôt trade, both by a branch of the Rhine communicating with the Zuyder Zee, and by the exports of that country coming down the Rhine and the Maese at a moderate expence. Dordrecht was long the principal depôt of Rhenish wine, and (as well as Amsterdam, Rotterdam, &c.) rafts of timber floated down these rivers for ship building. From France the Dutch brought velvets, silks of all kinds, and gold and silver stuffs. In 1664, they obtained a tariff, which set aside the duty of 50 sous per ton, imposed upon goods brought from Holland into France; but the war which broke out in 1672 put a stop to this commerce till 1678. Though the trade was restored in some degree (the war in 1690 having again interrupted it), the Dutch began to establish manufactures for themselves in velvets, satins, and other silks, gold and silver brocades; and in Brabant of face, paper, &c. in which they were assisted by a number of French refugees; but from this period to 1713 the tariff with France was not renewed. From these facts it appears, that the Dutch owed the resources which raised and supported them, as an independent people, to their navigation to the East and West Indies, and to the settlements for trade which they established in both; because those settlements, at the same time that they formed their marine, furnished them with foreign merchandize, to be exchanged for European produce: That the sterility of natural productions in the United Provinces prevented the Dutch from manufacturing articles properly their own: That their efforts to create manufactures from materials brought from other countries, could not keep pace with the manufactures of those nations who were possessed of crude materials such were the woollens, the hardware, and the pottery of England :* That when the political situation of neighbouring countries, particularly of England, in the long peace, from the the treaty of Utrecht to the war of 1739, enabled it, from the raw materials which the country afforded, to institute manufactures, such as hardware, pottery, and linen, which last was also brought from Ireland, Scotland, and the Austrian Netherlands, the Dutch manufactures of the same descriptions gradually declined. A proportion of the clay used in the manufacture of Delft was imported from England. INSTRUCTIVE JEU D'ESPRIT OF M. CAMPER, ON THE PROPERTIES, SHAPE, AND REQUI→ SITES OF SHOES. IN our last number, p. 1035, we hinted at our intention of submitting to our readers the incidental dissertation of M. Camper, on the forms and properties of shoes. The history of that instructive jeu d'esprit, is this: during a free conversation with some of his elder pupils, he was urging them to writethey insisted in return that all subjects worthy of being written on were exhausted: "No," said the professor, "subjects apparently the least important, may become interesting, when treated by one who understands them thoroughly, and possesses, at the same time, the spirit of observation.-Even shoes, or slippers, may afford a theme." This was denied; the professor was challenged on the subject; and the result of his labours was the essay of which we are now to give an acSince it was published, a reformation has taken place among the ladies, in the construction of their shoes, so that a considerable part of M. C.'s remarks are no longer applicable. We believe that his censure contributed greatly to the banishment of high heels certainly, he might say with justice, Ridendo calceos corrigit: and equally certainly he would have rejoiced to have seen the establishment of a fashion like that which now prevails, at once rational, and safe for the count. wearer. It is astonishing, says M. C., that ingenious men, in all ages, have minutely attended to the feet of horses, mules, oxen, and other animals, while they have abandoned those of their own species to the ignorance of workmen, who, taken collectively, know not how to make a shoe, otherwise than by rote, according to the depraved and ridiculous fashion of the day Accordingly, what should be defences to our feet, serve only to deform our toes from our infancy, to generate corns, and to lame us for life. We compassionate with reason the fate of the Chinese women, whose feet are dislocated by adherence to barbarous custom, yet we adopt chearfully, from age to age, a confinement not less cruel. The antiquity of this confinement appears from those descriptions of the diseases of the feet which have been left us by C. Celsus, who lived before the Christian æra, by Paul Eginetus and Aetius among the Greeks, and which could have arisen only from ill made shoes and sandals. Xenophon, that illustrious general, did not disdain to transmit to posterity judicious instructions by what means to preserve the feet of horses! A Duke of Newcastle, and vahave rious other celebrated personages, prided themselves on investigating and de |