glittering board; loud and long was the laugh, and merry the jest that echoed round, and the laugh and the jest of the Lord of Adenheim were louder and merrier than all.

And by his right side sate a beautiful lady; and ever and anon he turned from others to whisper soft vows in her ear.

"And oh," said the bright dame of Falkenberg, "thy words what lady can be. lieve; didst thou not utter the same oaths, and promise the same love to Ida, the fair daughter of Loden; and now but three little months have closed upon her grave?"

66

"By my ha'idom," quoth the young Lord of Adenheim, Thou dost thy beauty marvellous injustice. Ida! Nay, thou mockest me; I love the daughter of Loden! why, how then should I be worthy thee? A few gay words, a few passing smilesbehold all the love Adenheim ever bore to Ida. Was it my fault if the poor fool misconstrued such common courtesy? Nay, dearest lady, this heart is virgin to thee."

"And what!" said the lady of Falkenberg, as she suffered the arm of Adenheim to encircle her slender waist, "didst thou not grieve for her loss?"

46

Why, verily, yes, for the first week; but in thy bright eyes I found ready con

solation."

At this moment, the Lord of Adenheim thought he heard a deep sigh behind him ; he turned, but saw nothing, save a slight mist that gradually faded away, and vanished in the distance. Where was the necessity for Ida to reveal herself?

“And thou didst not, then, do thine errand to thy lover?" said Seralim, as the spirit of the wronged Ida returned to purgatory.

Bid the demons recommence their torture," was poor Ida's answer.

"And was it for this that thou hast added a thousand years to thy doom?"

Alas," answered Ida, "after the single hour I have endured on earth, there

seems to be but little terrible in a thousand fresh years of purgatory!"

"What! is the story ended?" asked Gertrude.

"Yes."

"Nay, surely the thousand years were not added to poor Ida's doom; and Seralim bore her back with him to heaven?"

"The legend saith no more.

of woman's love ;-"

The writer was contented to show us the perpetuity

"And its reward," added Vane.

"It was not I who drew that last conclusion, Albert," whispered Gertrude. (From Bulwar's Pilgrims of the Rhine.)

Epitaph on Captain WILLIAM HARRIMAN, aged thirty-two years, in Kirk

Ouchan Church Yard, near Douglas, Isle of Man.

The boisterous blasts on Neptune's waves,

Have tossed me to and fro;

In spite of both, by God's decrees,

I harbour here below.

Although I here at anchor lie,

With many of our fleet,

I must one day set sail again,
Our Savour Christ to meet.

TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE ODD FELLOWS' MAGAZINE.

You have requested me to give my opinion on the subject of a Widow's and Orphans' Fund in the Society; and I must admit that I approach the consideration of it with much hesitation and difficulty; not because I under-rate its importance, or am backward in promoting its advancement: but because in the present state of the Order, it appears to involve so many interests, and is connected with so many other questions, that I am convinced, if it be to be done effectually, it must be done neither hurriedly nor thoughtlessly.

Your readers, perhaps, know enough of me to believe that I shall not be the last man either to appreciate the excellence, or promote the interests of so benevolent an undertaking. Indeed in my professional life I have seen too often the anguish occasioned by the painful thought, that the dying man left his helpless children, and their sorrowing mother, without any provision for their future wants; and, from my very first acquaintance with the Order, I have considered it as one of its greatest defects that a connection with it did not enable a person to promote in his life-time some resource against the misery, and perhaps poverty, which those dearest to him would have to encounter at his death. I can, therefore, assure you, that nothing will give me more pleasure than to see the establishment of such a Fund, and to promote its extension and success.

I have carefully read over the different propositions in the Magazine, as to the manner of forming and conducting the plan; and especially those in the last number by Mr. George Cooke, of Lewes which, indeed, are the only ones which assume any definite form. I think them judicious, and worthy of your best consideration. There is, however, one objection, which I must state in limine, and that is the compulsory nature of the payments; I mean so far as the existing members are concerned. I grant that the Order has a right to fix upon any sums necessary for its various purposes, and of the candidate who is, at that time, desirous of entering it, to exact the payment as the condition of his admission; because, in that case, the candidate has a choice, and if he does not like the terms, he may reject them; but I deny that when once he is admitted, you have any right to lay an additional tax upon him without his consent, and make his compliance with it a condition of his receiving the benefits of the Order. I say I object to this, both as a bad principle and as a dangerous precedent; for if you can make a law to compel a man to pay a penny a month, you have the same power to force him to pay twopence; and if twopence, why not sixpence, a shilling, a pound And if for one object, why not for another? So that a man might never know where the demands were to terminate; and he has no alternative but either to leave the Order, sacrificing all its benefits, and the money he has paid, perhaps for years; or to submit to an increase of his contributions, which was never thought of at the time he entered.

It is then perfectly fair,-and this, perhaps, might be done, to add a penny or more per month to the contributions of those who may subsequently become members, and I have no doubt that the old members will voluntarily and readily contribute as much, at least, towards the same object,-I will for one.

I would, for this end, advise the appointment of a Secretary in each Lodge, whose duty it should be to collect, regularly, the voluntary contributions, to bring the object often before the Lodge, to conduct the necessary correspondence, and report from time to time, the progress of the Fund. I am happy in being able to add, that N. G. Gregory has undertaken to perform this duty in the Earl of Ripon Lodge, and I am convinced, he will discharge it in a zealous and efficient manner. With every good wish for the success of this desirable object, I am,

Your's, very truly,

ALFRED SMITH.

North-street, Ripon, October 26th, 1835.

ON THE RISING TALENT, AND INCREASING INTELLIGENCE OF

THE ORDER.

TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE ODD FELLOWS' MAGAZINE. GENTLEMEN,

I HOPE you will oblige me by giving insertion to the following observations, if you think they are in any way conducive to the good and welfare of the Order.

"It has often with me been a matter of great surprise that an institution like ours, composed as it is of every shade and variety of opinion, yet prospering and showering such a number of blessings and benefits on mankind generally, but more especially on its particular members, should be enabled to hold on its course, and go on, from time to time, continuing to gain as it most assuredly does, such an accession of talent, worth and respectability, who now flock to its standard, appreciating and admiring (as they cannot fail to do, if they are reflecting men,) its numberless benefits and beauties, yet this I am sorry to say, is with some matter of regret: to account for it, I am at a loss. Surely in the nineteenth century, we have not individuals amongst us who are so insane, or rather I should say, so immersed in ignorance, as to assert that the moment the intellectual and intelligent mind once throws its bright and cheering beams upon us, that moment the downfall of the Order is sealed. I boldly assert such opinions are entertained, but I trust by only a few of my brethren, and the chief purport of my paper is to endeavour to convince those individuals that the opinions they entertain are erroneous; and if they will only dismiss from their minds all prejudice or partiality for any received opinion, I am in hopes I shall be enabled to attain my point.

Education, at the present day, has made such bold and rapid strides, that our seniors of even a few years, confess that affairs of any kind cannot be carried on, or persons' minds ruled as they were formerly. Man, I am happy to say, has begun to think for himself, and he now requires that reason and argument, or both, should, or ought to be shown for every act. The little experience that I have made in the Order, and as my signature testifies, I have the honour to hold an official situation in the Manchester District, convinces me every day the more, that it is our duty to foster, and by all the means in our power endeavour to bring into life and action the rising talent that daily and hourly begins to shew itself amongst us; unless we do so, I feel convinced our beloved Institution will fall into disunion and decay. Let these individuals consider for a moment, and then, if they are reflecting and reasonable men, they will see the propriety and justness of these remarks, and instead of entertaining feelings of suspicion or prejudice against the man of superior intellect or intelligence, who I fearlessly assert, confers an honour on the Institution in becoming one of its members, will feel grateful, being convinced that he will too dearly prize the noble fabric now raised, and support it by all the intellect in his power, sooner than endeavour, by any means, to impair its efficiency, or weaken its efficacy, The only intention I can see that these men have in joining our Society, is that they observe the delightful and truly benevolent work we are engaged in, and feel emulous and wishful of assisting us, by any superior knowledge they may possess, in bringing to perfection and forwarding the hallowed intentions of our beloved Institution.

I am afraid it may here be said, that I am perhaps only endeavouring to wean you from one set of men's opinions, in order to fasten you upon others; but I deny that such is my intention;-my only, my earnest wish is, that every Odd Fellow would pin his faith to no man's opinion, but make use of his reasoning faculties, and if he does so, I feel convinced that he will, as I before observed, see the truth of these observations, and be better enabled duly to appreciate the many good effects that must, in time, result to the Order from our properly fostering its rising talent.-Dismiss, my brethren, all fears that these individuals only enter the Order from some improper or sinister motive-such never can or will be the case with true merit.

VOL. 4-No. 1-D.

Proud am I to see and hear of the increased number of readers that are daily becoming subscribers to the Odd Fellows' Magazine, which most powerfully convinces me that Odd Fellows are determined to begin to think and reason for themselves, and not as before remarked, pin their faith to any man's opinion. As I consider the Magazine a powerful engine in the hands of the Order, if well directed, and one well qualified to work a reform in men's opinions, if erroneous, I hope and trust, as I have taken its medium of giving utterance to my honestly entertained opinions, that my brethren will receive them in the spirit in which they are meant, and not for one moment think that I wish to lead them in their opinions,-far from it,-I only desire that they will duly weigh, and properly consider before they even allow themselves to feel a prejudice against any man. In conclusion, I am truly sorry that this subject has not caused a more talented individual to step forward, for I consider it is the common duty of every man, whatever his rank, station, or ability may be, if he honestly entertains an opinion that his brethren are labouring under a mistake, to endeavour to set them right so far as his humble abilities will allow him-such my brethren is the case with me, and therefore I trust I shall not be either misunderstood or misrepresented.

My bosom is rent with fell anguish and fear :

"I sigh for my own peaceful Home!"

Ah! ill-fated Exile! I pity thy lot,

An alien obliged to roam;

-

Those endearments, that bliss, which the peasant has got,

Are now wrench'd from thy grasp; and yet unforgot,

Still cause thee to long for thy Home.

Just so with the stranger and pilgrim below,

Wherever his lot is to roam;

He longs for the joys that this earth can't bestow;

He labours, still more of his Saviour to know,

And pants after Heaven, his Home.

And can it then be, that the pleasures of sense,
O'er the joys of the world that's to come,
In man's best affections, ascendancy gains ;-

That this World is his choice, with its pleasures and pains,
Ne'er thinking of Heav'n as his Home?-

Can such wordlings partake of the Christian's lot?
Anticipate pleasures to come?

Can those blessings be theirs, which they here have forgot?
Ah! no-for the Bible assures us not.

Nor can Heav'n at length be their Home!

But the world with its pleasures, its follies, its toys,
Are the Fields where his fancy would roam :-
With its snares and its vices his time he employs,
'Till by Satan deceived, his soul he destroys,
Then the bottomless pit is his Home!

But not so the Christian who lives to the Lord;
He looks for a Heaven to come;-

His pleasures abound in perusing God's word,
In it all his sources of comfort are stored.
Its promise assures him of Home.

With blessings like these, all his life he pursues
His way to the Kingdom to come;

And when summon'd away, his glad soul hails the news,
As with rapt'rous delight, and fond pleasure he views
His Saviour, his last happy Home !

May we then partake of such comfort as this,

Wherever our lot is to roam :

Conform'd to the Saviour-our wills made like his:
Then then we're prepared!-0 glorious bliss!—
For Jesus,-for Heaven,-for Home.

A CONSTANT READER.

Nelson Lodge, Kendal, October, 1835.

ASTRONOMY.

THIS science, is of all others, both the most sublime, the most beautiful, and the most interesting; for there are no persons, of whatever age, to whom the heavenly bodies are not objects of curiosity. The certain principles upon which it rests, are proved by the calculation of eclipses; as the astronomer can determine, not only that the luminaries of day and night will be darkened, but he can pronounce with certainty, at what particular point of time, and to what particular extent such obscurations will happen, and exactly how long they will continue.

The Solar System, which the moderns have adopted, was taught by Pythagoras, received by Copernicus, confirmed by Galileo, Kepler, and Descartes, and fully established by Sir Isaac Newton. The sun is placed in the centre of this system, from which it never moves; but from observations made upon its spots, it is found to turn round its own axis, from west to east, in about twenty-five days. The planets, called primary, revolve round the sun at unequal distances: their names are Mercury, Venus, the Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, the Georgium Sidus, and the two planets, Ceres and Pallas, lately discovered.

To this system belong other spherical bodies, which move round their respective primay planets, in the same manner as the primary planets move round the sun from