people, who are supposed to have a decided weakness for gay hues. Should you escort a lady to this church, and seat yourself beside her, you will infallibly be touched on the shoulder, and politely requested to move to the "gentlemen's side." Gentlemen and ladies are not allowed to sit together in this church. They are parted remorselessly. It is hard-we may say it is terrible-to be torn asunder in this way, but you have to submit, and of course you had better do so gracefully and pleasantly.

Meeting opens with an old-fashioned hymn, which is very well sung indeed by the congregation. Then the minister reads a hymn, which is sung by the choir on the front seats near the pulpit. Then the minister prays. He hopes no one has been attracted there by idle curiosity-to see or be seenand you naturally conclude that he is gently hitting you. Another hymn follows the prayer, and then we have the discourse, which certainly has the merit of peculiarity and boldness. The minister's name is Jones. He don't mince matters at all. He talks about the "flames of hell" with a confident fierceness that must be quite refreshing to sinners.

"There's no half-way about this," says he, "no by-paths. "There are in Cleveland lots of men who go to church regularly, who behave well in meeting, and who pay their bills. "They ain't Christians though.

"They 're gentlemen sinners.

"And whar d'ye spose they'll fetch up?

"I'll tell ye-they'll fetch him up in h-11, and they'll come up standing too-there's where they 'll fetch up!

'Who's my backer?

"Have I got a backer?

"Whar's my backer?

"This is my backer (striking the Bible before him)—the Bible will back me to any amount!"

To still further convince his hearers that he was in earnest, he exclaimed, "That's me-that's Jones!"

It was

"I

He alluded to Eve in terms of bitter censure. natural that Adam should have been mad at her. shouldn't want a woman that wouldn't mind me, myself," said the speaker.

He directed his attention to dancing, declaring it to be a great sin. "Whar there's dancing there's fiddling-whar there's fiddling there's unrighteousness, and unrighteousness is wickedness, and wickedness is sin! That's me—that's Jones."

66

Bosom the speaker invariably called "buzzim," and devil debil," with a fearfully strong accent on the "il.”

XII.

*

SPIRITS.

MR DAVENPORT, who has been for some time closely idenfied with the modern spiritual movement, is in the city with his daughter, who is quite celebrated as a medium. They are accompanied by Mr Eighme and his daughter, and are holding circles in Hoffman's Block every afternoon and evening. We were present at the circle last evening. Miss Davenport seated herself at a table on which was a tin trumpet, a tamborine, and a guitar. The audience were seated around the room. The lights were blown out, and the spirit of an eccentric individual, well known to the Davenports, and whom they call George, addressed the audience through the trumpet. He called several of those present by name in a boisterous voice, and dealt several stunning knocks on the table. George has been in the spirit world some two hundred years. He is a rather rough spirit, and probably run with the machine and "killed for Kyser" + when in the flesh. He ordered the seats * Mr Davenport.-One of the afterwards notorious Davenport Brothers. Kyser is an extensive New York butcher, and "to kill" (or slaughter)

in the room to be wheeled round so the audience would face the table. He said the people on the front seat must be tied with a rope. The order was misunderstood, the rope being merely drawn before those on the front seat. He reprimanded Mr Davenport for not understanding the instructions. What he meant was that the rope should be passed once around each person on the front seat and then tightly drawn, a man at each end of the seat to hold on to it. This was done, and George expressed himself satisfied. There was no one near the table save the medium. All the rest were behind the rope, and those on the front seat were particularly charged not to let any one pass by them. George said he felt firstrate, and commenced kissing the ladies present. The smack could be distinctly heard, and some of the ladies said the sensation was very natural. For the first time in our eventful life we sighed to be a spirit. We envied George. We did not understand whether the kissing was done through a trumpet. After kissing considerably, and indulging in some playful remarks with a man whose Christian name was Napoleon Bonaparte, and whom George called "Boney," he tied the hands and feet of the medium. He played the guitar and jingled the tambourine, and then dashed them violently on the floor. The candles were lit, and Miss Davenport was securely tied. She could not move her hands. Her feet were bound, and the rope (which was a long one) was fastened to the chair. No person in the room had been near her or had anything to do with tying her. Every person who was in the room will take his or her oath of that. She could hardly have tied herself. We never saw such intricate and thorough tying in our life. The believers present were convinced that George did it. The unbelievers didn't exactly know what to think about it. The candles were extinguished again, and pretty soon Miss Davenport told George to "don't." She spoke in for him has passed into a saying with the roughs, or "bhoys," of New York. To "run with a [fire] machine."

an affrighted tone. The candles were lit, and she was dis covered sitting on the table-hands and feet tied as before, and herself tied to the chair withal. The lights were again blown out, there were sounds as if some one was lifting her from the table; the candles were relit, and she was seen sitting in the chair on the floor again. No one had been near her from the audience. Again the lights were extinguished, and presently the medium said her feet were wet. It appeared that the mischievous spirit of one Biddie, an Irish Miss who died when twelve years old, had kicked over the water-pail. Miss Eighme took a seat at the table, and the same mischievous Biddie scissored off a liberal lock of her hair. There was the hair, and it had indisputably just been taken from Miss Eighme's head, and her hands and feet, like those of Miss D., were securely tied. Other things of a staggering character to the sceptic were done during the evening.

XIII.

MR BLOWHARD.

THE reader has probably met Mr Blowhard. He is usually round. You find him in all public places. He is particularly "numerous" at shows. Knows all the actors intimately. Went to school with some of 'em. Knows how much they get a month to a cent, and how much liquor they can hold to a teaspoonful. He knows Ned Forrest like a book. Has taken sundry drinks with Ned. Ned likes him much. Is well acquainted with a certain actress. Could have married her just as easy as not if he had wanted to. Didn't like her "style,” and so concluded not to marry her. Knows all of his men and horses. intimacy with Dan's rhinoceros, and is tolerably well acquainted with the performing elephant. We encountered Mr Blowhard

Knows Dan Rice well. Is on terms of affectionate

at the circus yesterday. He was entertaining those near him with a full account of the whole institution, men, boys, horses, "muils" and all. He said the rhinoceros was perfectly harmless, as his teeth had all been taken out in infancy. Besides, the rhinoceros was under the influence of opium while he was in the ring, which entirely prevented his injuring anybody. No danger whatever. In due course of time the amiable beast was led into the ring. When the cord was taken from his nose, he turned suddenly and manifested a slight desire to run violently in among some boys who were seated near the musicians. The keeper, with the assistance of one of the Bedouin Arabs, soon induced him to change his mind, and got him in the middle of the ring. The pleasant quadruped had no sooner arrived here than he hastily started, with a melodious bellow, towards the seats on one of which sat Mr Blowhard. Each particular hair on Mr Blowhard's head stood up "like squills upon the speckled porkupine" (Shakspeare or Artemus Ward, we forget which), and he fell, with a small shriek, down through the seats to the ground. He remained there until the agitated rhinoceros became calm, when he crawled slowly back to his seat.

"Keep mum," he said, with a very wise shake of the head. "I only wanted to have some fun with them folks above us. I swar, I'll bet the whisky they thought I was scared!" Great character that Blowhard.

XIV.

MARKET MORNING.

"Hurrah! this is market day,

Up, lads, and gaily away!"-OLD COMEDY.

ON market mornings there is a roar and a crash all about the corner of Kinsman and Pittsburgh Streets. The market build