Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 - 1842), Thursday 4 April 1833, page 4


Select Poetry.

TO ENTHUSIASM.

AND so the cold world call thee madness ! VwJ i 'By the unwasting'lanap of truth,

, 51 Ifould not change thy wildest sadness

" ' For oil the highest joys oi youth I *. ilf tbou art marin«», let me be ' Ne'er free from jucä insanity I

¿No fticiri interval I crave

A hopeless mttniao to my grave !

'tíladly through life's dull path I'd stray, And scare my follows from my way jYes, let mo ever (eel thy power, Nor know a reasonable hour I

"When Nature's scenes before mo lie,

.Best in my breast) gleam in mine eye, And be in every glance up-givon,

Towards the great bestower, Heaven'!

"When music's voice swells on mine esr. Oh 1 brightly tremble in my tear : 'tet every glittering tribute show

Mow deep, how fervent is thy glow. As in the thundoi's copious shower,

The electric flame's enkindled powor. If pity plead, if sorrow tell

Her tale of griefs and injuries,

Xet my full heart like torrent swelt,

Rush tho proud tear-drops from my eyes. And while in every burning word

The spirit's faithful voico is heard, The labouring expression show it cannot bah? reveal its glow. Yes,-I most ardently invoke

Thus, thus thy Boul-exulting yoke ; » ,. My beating heart, my burning brain

Throb to be subject to thy reign ;

From the cold reasoning world estranged, They'd be for over deem'd deranged

. ,In word, in thought, and feeling changed.

Oh ! thou'rt to me another name

Tor quenchless genius'sacred flame-; For pure devotion's highest sigh, Fit for the ear of Deity ;

For heavenly compassion's glow,All else is but deceit and show.

What is the minstrel strain without tliee t

A stagnant stream that none will quaff; . Let the poor mediocre-flout thee,

And setup his unmeaning laugh; N And call thy flight extiavagance,

Preáumptuous thy henv'n-senrching glance; Be thou my leader through the spheres ;

Of song, ob ! bear me on thy wings,Thy eagle wings, to where appears

The palace, whence the day-god springs "Up from the bosom of eternity ;

Thy own high hour, for this gave birth to thoo What is the preacher's <-let them say, Who-hear on every Sabbath-day

The hopes of heaven, the threats of hell, Pealt out like drowsy parish-bell, In sounds that lull them all asleep

Upon life's almost nodding steep ;Were but thy rousing influence there lu faithful voice, in pleading tear,

The words, the looks, the tones that apeak The undaunted spirit that doth seek All reckless of their smile and frown,

Their everlasting happiness,

Could human hearts such chillnoas Own,

Those hearts that in pursuit of bliss Hack nightly, daily, nerve, and pain, With ceaseless labours to ob tain.No, Bweet Enthusiasm ! here

Thou dost with thy t> ue name appear : Zt&lfor the cause of Heaven, and Love . 2'(> the whole race of human hind, That foin would carry all above,

Nor leavo one erring breast behind. Oh ! darkness, worst, insanity.

To take the name deveid of thee ;

Such guilt is blended with tbat madness, As shadows angel brows with sadness, Waiting ia vain repentance' voice,

To bid their hallow'd breasts rejoice, And burning for the avenging blow To lay tbo robber shepherd low.

Governesses.-An excellent story appeared not long since in a book on education re-lative to a governess. A lady wrote to her son, re-questing him to look out for such a lady as she de-scribed, and such as is ordinarily expected in a governess; that is to say, all accomplished, with the disposition of an angel. The gentleman wrote back, saying, that he had long been looking out for such a person, and that when he found her, be should not recommend her for a governess for his mother, but take her for a wife for himself. The following advertisement is actually cut of the Times of one of the days of last month, (November.) :

" Wanted in a gentleman's family, a young lady, as Nursery Governess, to instruct two young ladies in French, musio, and singing, with the usual branches of education, and to take the entire «barge of their wardrobe. She must be of a social dispo-sition, and fond of children, and have the manners of a gentlewoman, as she will be treated as one of the family. Salary, twelve guineas per annum."

What shall we say to this modest offer ? How much does this " gentleman" payjto'.bis housemaids ? let us enumerate what the reasonable maa would have for twelve guineas per nanum :

French language

Musio

(Singing

Useful branohes of education-that is to say, writing, arithmetic, geography, history, &o.

The charge of the wardrobe of two young ladies, whioh implies the art of dress making, and the practice of a sempstress, and the habit of order.

A social disposition, which means amiable ad-dress, ead the being will have to take a hand at whist when the children are gone to bed, whether she is

tired to death or not.

The manners of a gentlewoman.

In return for the application of these qualities to the improvement and amusement of the whole bouse, it seems there are persons who will " treat ber as one of the family," and, to boot, give her twelve guineas per annum ! And are creatures at all answering to this description to be found. If it lie so, we think the fact should be made known, for we are much mistaken if there are not thousands of gentlemen in this country who would freely give that gum, and throw a hand into the bargain.

JWu> Monthly Mag.

W Somnambulism.-A paper was read ?t the London Phrenological Society, Feb. 6, on dreaming, (somnambulism) and other partial states of the activity of the cerebral faculties. Tho au-thor, after pointing out the difference of functions in vegetable and animal life, went on to observe, that those of animal life were in fact the functions of the brain ; that during sleep the brain alone was in a ?tate of rest, nil the other orgons remaining in acti-vity. It was wrong, therefore, to say that the body rested in sleep, for then the cerebral functions would be mistaken, as is too frequently the case, for those of the whole organised system. When the organs of any one or more feelings are in a state of activity during sleep, the dream takes its form from those awakened feeliugs, and the perceptive faculties fur-nish images in correspondence with them ; in such cases objects and events are represented which ex-cite wonder, rage, dread, love, pity, &c. The more organs thero are in activity at the same time, the more complicated would bo the oction of the dream, and ita rationality or irrationality would depend on the correspondence or not between the mental per-ceptions and the normal stato of the intellectual and affective faculties. Several philosophers have as-serted that dreams only consibt of the repetition of ideas which have already passed through the mind, though they may exist under new combinations ; this is an error, and has been refuted by Gall. Wau eau exercise the faculties of invention as well duiing Bleep as awake ; for the internal sources of his thoughts and feelings are the same whether he Blept or was awake. It has been related of Dr. Franklin, that he had on several occasions, in his dreams, been informed of the issue of affairs in which he was engaged, and bis vigorous mind, otherwise free from prejudice, could not quite protect him from a super-stitious notion in respect to these premonitions ; it bad not entered ioto big consideration that the pro

fautiA prudence' and tate iagaoíty whioh diracted him whon awake, still íofluenoed the action of his brain during sleep.

Condillac, whilst writing his " Cours d'Etudes," was frequently obliged to leave a chapter incomplete in order to sloop, which ho found on awakening finished in his head-Voltaire and Augustus -Lafon-taine on sevoral occasions made verses in their sleep which they remembered when awake-Alexander formed tho pinn of a battle whon asleep-Tartini composed his famous Devil's Sonata from the inspi-ration of a dream ; and a fingment called Kubla Khan, given in tho works of Mr. Coleridge, was the ema-

nation of a dream. These amongst many other facts 1 sufficiently proved tho truth of a position boforo \ advanced, that men can exercise the faculties of in-vention as well dunns sleep as awako.

After this the author took an extonsive view of

the difforont notions that had prevailed respecting dreams, somnambulisms, and somniloquisrus, etc. and concluded by remarking that dreaming, Sec. was only n partial awakeniug and involuntary activity of the cerebral organs whilst others reposed, and that the diffaient phenomena if exhibited gavo an addi-tional proof to thenumerousonospbrenologistsalready possessed of the plurality of tho intellectual and moral faculties, und that oertnin organs, or even cer-tain senses, might bo separately inactivity, whilst others were completely inactive or asleep.

The following extract from a paper by

Mr. Cunningham, entitled ' the Progress of Disco-very in Australia,' which was recently read by Mr. Hambleton, the Vice President, before the Royal Geographical Sooiety of London, contains several interesting facts that must be new to most of our

readers :-

It appears that the droughts to which that coun-try has been subject, have tended considerably to-wards the extension of geographical discovery. In 1826, one of these severe evils was experienced, which lasted for three years ; and with the view of inquiring into the state of the interior, an expedi-tion was despatched under the direction of Captain Sturt, to the Macquarie river, which had been pre-viously visited by Lieut. Oxley. The party as-cended Mount Harris, and found all the surrounding country, which had been by Mr. Oxley in 1818, in an inundated condition, entirely parched, and suffer-ing from drought. The Macquarie was traced till it became imperceptible. According to Captain Sturt, the flat lands commence about 25 miles from Mount Harris, and there the Macquarie ceases to be a river, having no banks or channel. The surface of this flat is a succession of levels in which natural reser-voirs are formed. Now and then a slight declivity gives them fresh impulse, by which a channel is formed into another reservoir ; from which another is formed, as before; and thus a succession of these ponds and marshes extends to an immense distance over the country.

From Mount Harris, Capt. Sturt directed his course to the N. W. for further discoveries, in which direction Oxley's Table Land is situated. In this journey, the want of water became a considerable annoyance; and, from being obliged to follow a watercourse, this led lo the discovery of the Darling, a salt water stream. The want of drinkable water obliged the party to give up a further examination of its course. This part of the country is well peo-pled, and the intercourse of the explorers and the natives was on a friendly footing. The account which Captain Sturt gives of the country is of the most melancholy description, for, in consequence of the severe drought, it was scarcely habitable. The natives were wandering about, and, from the bad- ness of the water which they were obliged to drink, were suffering from cutaneous diseases, which were gradually lessening their number. Even the birds were distressed by the drought. The wild dog, or Dingo, was seen prowling about, unable from de-bility to avoid the party ; and while the minor ve-getation was altogether burnt up, the trees were drooping from the want of moisture below the sur-face. Several of the party were effected by opthal-mia, produced by the heat from the plains, where the thermometer stood in the shade, at 3 p. m. at

122, and from 98 to 102, at sunset.

Mr. Cunningham considers, that the Darling may be taken as the largest river in Australia, since it is formed by a junction of all the streams which were discovered by Mr. Oxley in 1818, as well as those which were seen by Mr. Cunningham in 1827. This gentleman than proceeds to give an account of the discovery of the Morumbidgee river, and concludes his account of the progress of discovery in Australia, with a few remarks on the proper points for future investigation.-Hobart Town Chronicle.

PREVENTION OF SHIPWRECK.

The following is Capt. M&nby 's plan for prevent-ing Shipwreck.

At a distance from the shore, far beyond where the waves break into heavy turf, an anchor, con-nected to a chain, is laid out, and the chain sus-pended by a buoy ; below the buoy, a large blook, or collar, (confined by a shackle to prevent its twist-ing,) is fixed to a link in the upper part of the chain and a warp reeved through the block, both ends of which being kept onshore, are made fast to some elevated station, as a jetty-bead, lofty posts, or a dolphin. Both ends of the warp are to be spliced together, making what seamen term a round rope, or a mesenger, one part being made fast to the bow of the boat, (the weather one, should the wind not be right ahead,) and passed on to the boat's quarter, where it is also to be made fast, and great attention given, that both may, when required, be instantly

cost off.

Mendicity.-Sometime ago, the in-habitants of Abbotshall, near Kirkaldy, anxious for a remedy to the many evils daily experienced by indiscriminate begging, held a publio meeting on the subj eot, and agreed to a plan, which, from the experience had of it, gives strong hopes of its being ultimately successful, and such as ought to induce other places to follow the example. Such poor persons only who belong to the parish are allowed to beg under regulations pointed out by the com-mittee, and are served with tickets authorising them to do so. A small fund bas been raised, and a per-son appointed, for the purpose of supplying those beggars who come from other paiishes, with a few pence to carry them through the parish, when they appear to he in circumstances which require such aid, it being understood that a second application from strangers would not be attended to. Of course there is a committee appointed to carry this plan into effect. The advantages to be gained by this or a similar plan becoming general, are important both to the publio and the real poor. The public would be relieved in a great measure from the importunities of a class who aro a great pest to society-who are themselves inured to idleness and vice of every description, and are moreover rearing up an off-spring in the same indolent and dissolute habits. The advantages of the plan are not fewer with regard to the worthy objeots of charity, who, in place of being compelled to endure all the hardships attendant on leaving home and wandering through town and country, would be comfortably supplied by their ic3pective parishes, and by being thus kept at borne, they would also be endblod to add to their comforts by doing such work as they might be able to per-form during the greater part of the time not occupied in soliciting aid.-Scotsman.