Gypsies; but it was speedily prohibited by a royal ordinance, which appeared in the Gazette of Madrid, in August, 1838.

Before closing, under this head, we will remark that, although the Gypsies in general are a kind of wandering outcasts, incapable of appreciating the blessings of a settled and civilized life, yet among the Gypsies of Moscow there are not a few who inhabit stately houses, go abroad in elegant equipages, and are not a whit behind the higher order of Russians in appearance, nor in mental acquirements. To the female part of the Gypsy colony of Moscow is to be attributed the merit of this partial rise from abjectness and degrada tion, having from time immemorial so successfully cultivated the vocal art, that, though in the midst of a nation by whom song is more cherished and cultivated, and its principles better understood, than by any other of the civilized globe, the Gypsy choirs of Moscow are, by the general voice of the Russian public, admitted to be unrivalled in that most amiable of all accomplishments. It is a fact, notorious in Russia, that the celebrated Catalini was so enchanted with the voice of one of these Gypsy songsters, who, after the former had displayed her noble Italian talent before a splendid audience at Moscow, stepped forward, and with an astonishing burst of almost angelic melody, so enraptured every ear, that even applause forgot its duty, and the noble Catalini immediately tore from her own shoulders a shawl of Cashmere, which had been presented to her by the Father of Rome, and embracing the Gypsy, insisted on her acceptance of the splendid gift, saying, that it had been intended for the matchless songster which she now perceived she her self was not.

CHAPTER X.

OMENS, CHARMS, AND DIVINATION.

MANY books have been published, having a tendency to deceive the credulous, who suffer themselves to be guided by any thing but reason and experience. Hence the encouragement bestowed on works of enchantment, dreams, omens, and fate. Mankind have always discovered a propensity to peep behind the veil of futurity, and have been lavish of money in consulting persons and books that make a pretension of unravelling the decrees of Fate, which lie hidden in the labyrinths of darkness. From these sources have arisen the following superstitions, as a sample of the many that have disturbed the peace of individuals, families, and sometimes of whole communities.

"A coal in the shape of a coffin, flying out of the fire to any particular person, denotes his death is not far off. A collection of tallow rising up against the wick of a candle is called a winding-sheet, and deemed an omen of mortality. If, in eating, you miss your mouth, and the food falls, it is very unlucky, and denotes sickness. To dream you are dressed in black is an unlucky omen. Some quarrel is about to happen between you and a friend or relative. Sickness is about to attend your family. Death will deprive you of some friend or relation. Lawsuits will perplex

and harass you. If you undertake a journey, it will be unsuccessful. If you are in love, it denotes that your sweetheart is very unhappy, and that sickness

will attend her. If you are a farmer, your crops will fail, the murrain will attack your cattle, and some dreadful accident will happen by the overturning of one of your wagons. If you are in business, some one will arrest you, and you will have great difficulty in settling the matter. To dream of hen and chickens is the forerunner of ill luck. Your sweetheart will betray you and marry another. If you go to law, the case will be decided against you. If you go to sea, you will lose your goods, and narrowly escape shipwreck. To dream of coals denotes much affliction and trouble. If you are in love, your sweetheart will prove false, and do every thing to injure you. To dream you see the coals extinguished, and reduced to cinders, denotes the death of yourself, or some near friend or relation. It also indicates great losses, and forewarns you of beggary and a prison. To dream you are married is ominous of death. It also denotes poverty, a prison, and misfortunes. To dream of lying with your newly-married husband or wife denotes danger and sudden misfortunes."

Popular charms are equally absurd and nonsensical. For example, a ring made of the hinge of a coffin is good for the cramp. A halter with which a man has been hanged, if tied about the head, will cure the headache. A drop of blood of a black cat cures convulsions in children. If a tree of any kind be split, and weak, rickety, or ruptured children are drawn through it, and afterwards the tree is bound together, so as to make it unite as the tree heals and grows together, so will the child acquire strength. If in a family the youngest daughter be married before her older sisters, they must all dance at her wedding

without shoes, to counteract their ill luck, and procure themselves husbands. And to procure luck when a person goes out to transact business, you must throw an old shoe after him. To spit on the first money received for the price of goods sold on any day will procure luck. And that boxers must spit in their hands before they set to, for luck's sake.

Seamen have a superstition that if they whistle in a storm, the storm will be increased. And in time of a calm, they practise whistling to call the wind, as they term it. Among farmers, in setting a hen, it is deemed lucky to use an odd number of eggs. Among soldiers, salutes with cannon must be of an odd number. A royal salute is thrice seven, or twenty-one guns. Healths are drank odd. Yet the number thirteen is sometimes deemed ominous; it being supposed that when thirteen persons meet in a room, one of them will die within the year. To know whether a woman shall have the man she desires, it is directed to get two lemon peels, and wear them all day, one in each pocket, and at night rub the four posts of the bed. stead with them. If she is to succeed, the person will appear to her in her sleep, and present her with a couple of lemons. If not, there is no room for hope. And again the fair ones are directed to take a piece of wedding cake, draw it thrice through the wedding ring, lay it under their pillow, and they will certainly dream of their future husbands. A thousand other equally successful methods have been proposed to solve the mysteries of future fortune; and yet the magical stone, that will turn all our schemes into wished-for realities, remains to be discovered. As time advances, and knowledge pervades the abodes

of darkness and ignorance, all this trumpery of ghosts, witches, fairies, tricks, and omens will go down to the "tomb of the Capulets." People will be able to pass through the churchyard, sleep in an old house, though the wind whistle ever so shrill, without encountering any supernatural visitations. They will become wise enough to trace private and public calamities to other causes than the crossing of knives, the click of an insect, or even the portentous advent of a comet. Thanks to the illustrious names recorded in the annals of science and letters, who have contributed towards so happy a consummation.

CHAPTER XI.

MODERN MIRACLES.

THERE are some who profess to believe in modern miracles. But such belief necessarily partakes of superstition. The Savior gave no intimation that miracles should continue after the establishment of Christianity. He promised to be with his apostles even unto the end of that age. He declared that all who believed their instructions should also have power to cast out devils, heal diseases, speak with new tongues, and withstand any deadly thing. But his promise did not extend beyond the immediate converts of the apostles. And we have no satisfactory evidence that miracles were wrought by any but these; while we have abundant testimony that our Savior's promise