called THE TURK'S WELL, from the figure of a turbaned Saracen in its centre." These words had scarcely escaped the steward's lips, when the great portal bell was rung loudly, and the trampling as of a large company was heard amidst the pattering rain and the hollow night gusts. Every one looked aghast; but when a loud voice was heard, "What ho? Sir Porter !" old Martin fell down in a swoon, and his companions, though they retained their senses, looked more dead than alive, while the voice thus continued "What ho! Porter! Giles! Bradfoot;-where be the drunken churls! Open forthwith to our master the Heveningham, and his fair bride; they have been detained on their homeward road, and would fain be no longer suitors at their own hall porch!" Quickly did the scared revellers recall their scattered senses at this appeal. Some hastened to heap fresh logs on the great hall hearth; some jostled hither and thither in their eagerness to light up every torch and cresset they could lay their hands upon; while others, more forward, hurried to the outward gateway, whose heavy valves rolling open ushered in the bridal train. Drenched with rain himself, impatient at the strange delay, and solicitous for his lady, who, vainly muffled against the storm, rode on a beautiful white palfrey at his side, her redundant tresses, and rich robes dripping with moisture. Heveningham could yet hardly help smiling at the confused groupes of menials who, pouring forth from the different passages leading into the quadrangles of this extensive mansion, seemed more like startled burghers tumultuously summoned to repulse the foe, than well ordered vassals, drawn up to receive their lord and his bride. One broke forth his duteous welcome with an oath, as the rain extinguished his spattering torch; another brandished his flambeau, flaring in the wind, full in front of Mistress Dorothy's Arabian, which, unused to such a salutation, raved and plunged, nearly dismounting his fair rider, who, though an admirable horsewoman, was entangled in the numerous wrappings, with which Christopher's anxiety had invested her. This last exploit effectually roused the anger of the young bridegroom, who, having first assisted his lady to alight, turned fiercely on the offender, and was beginning an indignant, "How now, careless rascal!" when the grotesque figure of old Martin, hastening from the passage that communicated with the inner or chapel court, his hair streaming silvery in the wind, his eyes staring, his face like ashes, and his hands bearing a huge vessel of holy water, gave a new turn to Heveningham's astonishment. And well it might for, tottering up to his master, and exclaiming, "Less wonot serve, since ye're grown so bold!" he dashed the contents of the vessel in his face. Blinded with the water and annoyed by the shrieks of his wife, the young lord of Pype-Hall had not time to manifest his wrath, ere the other servants, throwing themselves on the steward, convinced him with some difficulty that it was no wandering ghost, but his own liege lord, on whom he had perpetrated this heinous outrage. By this time Christopher was recognised by the family chaplain, an old Benedictine, who, awakened by the clamour, had, from a high lattice in the court, been making ostentatious signs of the cross, and pressing into his service the most approved phrases for such cases made and provided, "Exorcizote! Vade retro Sathanas!" &c. &c.-when, with a sudden exclamation, as the light flared on the object of his anathemas, he shouted-" St. Mary! St. Chad! St. Giles!-sinner that I am!-it is the Heveningham himself, and no demon after all!"—and disappearing with his lamp from the window, the monk hurried into the court, where he found Heveningham, his lady, and all their suite, bursting with laughter; peal after peal ringing through the vast quadrangles, in spite of the storm, which poured so pitilessly around them; old Martin in the hands of two men, overwhelmed with shame, and the rest of the domestics sheepishly listening to the taunts and invectives of the new-comers. At length one and all seemed to become aware that it might be quite as wise to finish this domestic melodrame in the mansion itself, where a good oak roof might shelter them from farther wetting, while warm clothes, a blazing fire, and good cheer consoled them for that which they had already endured. The lofty and noble hall was sheeted with ruddy light as they entered it; the pondrous beams of the carved roof, the storied colours of the broad hangings, and the burnished armour that adorned its sides, together with the high-palmed antlers of many a hart of grease, were all flushed with cheerful lustre from the fire-place, that gaped (like an altar for hecatombs) on the side opposite the tall lancet windows, whose panes sparkled with the blaze. Here every thing had long been prepared for the expected guests. Large glossy rushes strewed the floor. Golden flagons, massy candlesticks and richly wrought dishes bore testimony to the wealth of the bridegroom; and though the sumptuous viands that should have smoked there, (had the train arrived at the expected hour,) were ushered upon the table in a less tempting form, "And coldly furnish'd forth the marriage feast;" yet such was the keen appetite of the guests, thus strangely welcomed, that few, save the bride and her friends, tarried to change their wet garments, ere they had made serious inroads on haunch, sirloin, game and pasty, drained the luscious vintage of Bourdeaux, or quaffed with a satisfied sigh the amber floods of barleycorn. This achieved in earnest and in speed, each betook himself to his chamber, where, throwing off the drenched witnesses of this stormy night, they slept profoundly,-ushered, undoubtedly to their dreamy slumbers by sundry expectations of hearing on the morrow the tradition that produced them so strange a reception. About three hours after midnight all was as profoundly hushed in Pype-Hall as if the inmates had slept since nightfall, and the night gale alone was heard lulling them to rest. The ensuing day proved unfit for any amusement of hawk or hound. The rain continued to pour on the tinkling lattices, and the wind howling among the huge trees of the Rookery, drifted their sable citizens in every direction, their huge glossy wings in vain strove to stem its violence. The windows of the great hall had their diamond glass partly painted and partly plain, but they were so high from the ground that the gazing ennuyè of the party was obliged to clamber on settle and stool, ere he could gaze through the uncoloured part of the lattice, where he only saw a thick drizzle veiling the distant spires of Lichfield, or ragged mists muffling in opaque gloom the purple distances of Cannock Wood. The broad surface of the adjacent BOWLING-GREEN, with its arbours, stone alcoves and thick yew hedges, looked dank and forlorn; the weathercocks, dimmed and dingy, creaked in the wind, and the heavy, dismal clouds that toiled along the sky, frowned their absolute prohibition of all out-door amusements. A fitter day, in short, for a fireside legend could hardly be imagined. It is probable, however, that even these contingencies of weather would scarcely have been necessary to detain the whole party in the hall, so anxious were they to have some solution of the last night's ludicrous event. It was then at the united request of all, though Christopher betrayed no slight degree of reluctance, that the old chaplain was directed to produce a parchment manuscript. The monk then repeated the substance of old Martin's tale, and proceeded to read aloud the following tradition, from whose principal event the spectral appearances were said to take their rise. Chaucer says— Who so shalle telle a tale after a man, He moste reherse as neighe as ever he can Everich worde, if it be in his charge, All speke he never so rudely and so large; Or elles he moste tellen his tale untrewe, Or feinen thinges or finden wordes newe. Now, on the present occasion, we will and finding" wordes newe," but in other run the risque of chusing our own style respects we will as faithfully as possible, obey the poet's injunction. (To be continued.) And incense let loose by the buzz of the bee May rise up to Heaven from each flow'ret or tree; And the moonbeam with tenderest kissing may close The lips of the violet, and guard its repose. Though the blossom hangs proudly thro' winter's dark hour, Like the hawk on the tempest-breath daring Its power, And a thousand bright flow'rets rejoice in the beam Of the sun like young halcyons beside the still stream, Expanding in love their soft forms to the sky, In colours that seem all too lovely to die, And utter strange visions of worlds far too bright To gleam on the web of a mortal's weak sight; As the morning mists rise, and the night shadows fall, Yet still, peerless flower, thou art dearer than all! For, whenever we gaze on thy blossoms, we find Some sweet morale springing, like flowers, in the mind; Early love in thy Spring bud some semblance may trace, And thy blush finds an echo in young beauty's face, things, And its newly fledged hopes and imaginings, With the sorrows of woe, or the guilt of sin. These these, proud beauty, are offered to thee, In the face of a glorious Deity! Fair emblem, then, of that power whose laws Her fate, like thine, cometh on when the skies Seem to brighten whatever they look upon. 'Tis her's to fade ere the summer files, And a few short years-and thou art gone! The worm in thy brightest and earliest days Ay, even in thy tenderest blossom preys, And love, ilke that worm, or some tyrant care, Gnaws into the heart, and would surfeit there. Oh! art thou not cropp'd in thy season of Spring? As it dwelleth with many a lingering glance, Though the unsullied snow of thy bosom may speak Of Heaven chastened feelings boly and meek, But turn to this rose in its fuiness of bloom, THE RIALTO. From one of Mr. Roscoe's exceedingly interesting narratives, which elucidate the splendid plates in the Landparticulars of this famed bridge :— scape Annual, we extract the following "The present bridge of the Rialto was commenced in the year 1588, and whose arms appear in the centre of the completed in 1591; Pasquale Cicogna, arch, being then Doge of Venice. The design has been attributed by Vasari to Michel Angelo; and his assertion is supported by other authorities, although Michel Angelo died upwards of twenty bridge. years before the completion of the According to Vasari, the design was made at the request of Andrea Gritti, at that time Doge of Venice. Many, indeed almost all the great achidesigns for this celebrated bridge. The tects of Italy appear to have furnished genius of Palladio and Scamozzi was exerted upon it, and Sansovino is said to have presented a design to the Venetians, which was prevented from being carried into execution by a war between the republic and the Turks. of the building or exchange adjoining Sansovino, however, was the architect the bridge of the Rialto, known by the name of the Fabbriche Nuove. "Besides the historical recollections Placed to the breast-but yet placed to die, attaching to the old Rialto, it is known to have been the scene of many a strange and tragic event. Many an act Then thrown away, like a worthless thing, Without a pitying tear or sigh? of appalling vengeance for private injury or hate. Hence it has offered so fertile a field of incidents for the genius of the dramatist, the novelist, and the poet; and not only to its own but to almost every European people. The most remarkable of these, like the plots of Othello, the Merchant of Venice, Venice Preserved, and many of those in our old dramatists, are already familiar to us; but the following incident, of a wholly domestic character, has, we believe, never yet been appropriated to scenic representation, though presenting abundant sources of interest. "The beautiful and accomplished wife of Antonio de Ricci had long resisted the dishonourable proposals of a rich and powerful noble, allied to the family of the reigning doge. Accidentally discovering the seducer's designs, and his ceaseless importunities, the lady's husband, being known to many of their common friends, publicly charged the tempter of her honour with his base and unmanly perseverance in such a pursuit. Relying on his rank and influence, the patrician, in place of offering the least apology, declared before the assembled merchants on the Rialto, that whether agreeable or not, he was determined to carry his point; it was an affair between the lady and himself. This reply stung Antonio to the quick, and drawing his sword swift as lightning, he flew on his enemy and laid him dead at his feet. He then effected his escape, but a reward was offered for his head; and such were the misfortunes that befel his wife and family, as to reduce them to the last stage of destitution. Learning their extreme misery, and determined to afford them relief, the father and the husband secretly returned to Venice, and accompanied by his wife, two daughters, and his young son, delivered himself up bound to the officers of justice, claiming at the same time from the Council of Ten the sum due to those who brought him there alive or dead. "That,' he exclaimed, is due to this woman and her daughiers.' Their tears and cries, however, too truly evinced the kind of interest they took in the prisoner, and so struck were the members of the coun cil with the boldness and magnanimity of the action, that turning to Antonio, after hearing his tale of wrongs and sufferings endured from his powerful rival, they recalled the edict against his life, and restored him to his family and his friends. "In the year 1578, a stranger suddenly appeared in Venice, and addressing a noble on the Rialto, inquired if he wished to view an admirable collection of paintings. He went; and after admiring them for some time, happened to cast his eyes over the chamber-door, where hung a portrait of the stranger: he gazed on it. This is your portrait, sir," said the noble. The other signified his assent. Yet,' exclaimed the noble with surprise, you look only about fifty! this picture is known to be Titian's hand, who died a hundred and fifty years ago! Good God! how strange who are you?-is it possible?' 'It is not easy to know what is possible, or who I am,' replied the mysterious being gravely: It is no crime to resemble Titian's picture.'The noble retired; he was haunted with the idea of the stranger. He went next day, and was told he had taken his departure." "THERE WAS AN HOUR." There was an hour! There was an hour! How few those pleasures were; Could vanish into air! There was an hour, when Love had wreath'd And then I scarcely saw the thorns For I thought that blights could scarcely throw Their with'ring poison there! Through which my progress lay: Might there in quiet 'scape the storms And, on fair Fiction's golden wings Imagination flew ! And I thought the active scenes she gave Might well divided be; The dark ones to Oblivion's cave,— The brighter ones to me! ་་ There was an hour! There was an hour! Her darker tales to hear: There was an hour-oh! sad to tell! THE OLIO. When I saw, that cank'ring blights may cause And that budding blossoms, frequently, There was an hour, when trouble came, And every prospect fair: When I learnt that life has more of cloud And that he most feels the gloom who most There was an hour, when Fancy's self By the inward glow unblest! There is an hour! There is an hour! That sometimes, yet, I know; When the flowers of love seem blooming still, And it seems (so sweet do they scent the air), There is an hour, that still I know, When Reason points to nobler themes, To where th' horizon lies, It leads thoughts where earth appears Oh, they bear where Virtue, Love, and Peace, R. JARMAN. THE CHARMS OF A FIRST SUIT. Behold! I have money in both pockets. TELL me not of the proud arrivals to manhood when the heir comes into his estates and titles; tell me not of the glories which the miser feels, like those of the Jew in Ivanhoe that drops delightedly the genuine shechins into his weighty bag, ringing melody to his ear and sanguine soul. Nothing in natural existence exceeds the heartfelt joy which the boy exults in, when he throws off the nursery coil and flings the infant robes disdainfully aside for ever; when he puts on the new Birth Day' suit, the talking subject of the last year, and fruitive promise of his parents pockets! How large and deep! Each 6 Worthy reader!-thou art a misgiving creature if thou wilt not be reminded of this, when thou wert wont to strut in 'no borrowed plumes,' and thy sum of gift-tokens was not grievously to be borne,' but almost too great for thy headpiece and arithmetic to count.Didst thou not fetch the silver sixpences new from the mint, and the coppers out of their hiding-places, and jingle them together, even at church to the annoyance of thy devotional nurse? and, when after persuasions as strong as arguments, thou wast advised to put thy birth-day suit collection into a slit mouthed box to save thee from ruin and a spendthrift choice; but, in defiance, as a right, an inalienable privilege, thou didst venture to the toyshop, and tumbling the said shop topsy-turvy, swagger home with a drum, a sword, and a bugle, in the superb dignity of a liege soldier. Thy grandfather's walkWhatever those around ing stick was abandoned and the rattle discarded. thee thought of the discord, thy noise was beaten in greater harmony to thy ear; and the supplies of thy pockets yet wrought more tricks and whimsies than a brief sentence can depict. Such, however, are some of the pleasures of a new suit to a boy. And a sigh will be drawn forth when the money is |