But let us examine what are Phi's Are they unhappy? No; but, in genemodes of using care and watchfulness.ral, more domestic comfort is distilled First, he would furnish them with ornamental dress; his motive here would be to increase their modesty and humi- | lity: secondly, introduce them into the ball-room; this would be to impress on their minds the vanity of the world, and the necessity of seeking mental enjoyment: next he would associate them with mixed company, for the purpose of informing them that they should be select in their acquaintance: then, he would allow them to dance for several hours; this would be to instruct them in the value of time: and, lastly, while they were in a high state of perspiration, he would lead them into the open air, to shew them the necessity of taking care of their health. Let us, however, examine the subject, and ascertain whether this exercise does conduce to health. Dancing, if used in moderation, in proper places, and at proper times, may, I allow, be useful for the invigoration of the body; but in general it is carried on at improper hours, in crowded places, and to an unjustifiable excess. The consequence is, that many who have practised it are fatigued, and will acknowledge that they feel themselves considerably injured by their pleasure. Let it not be imagined that this is an invention of my own, as I assure you, Mr. Editor, I have had repeated confessions of this kind, not only with regard to assemblies, but also private parties, on which Phi seems to found so much of his argument; for it is notorious, that on such occasions, the company seldom part before the dreary noon of night is passed, and frequently not until the horizon begins to be gilded with the reflected rays of the approaching sun. Phi then inquires, "Does it (dancing) not more frequently enter the family circle, and constitute a prominent feature in the happiness of social life?" No; and the minds whose happiness lies only in a trifling amusement, are not to be envied. I have been accustomed, like the ancients, to consider the hearth sacred to the lares and penati: my lares are social comforts; my penati, domestic enjoyments; but within this sacred circle, I never yet included dancing. A strong argument against Phi's idea may be gathered from those families where dancing is never practised. from the society of such persons, than from those who practise dancing. Again, if dancing produce domestic happiness, consequently those nations who are most in the habit of dancing, must have most happiness of a domestic kind. The French and Italians must be happier than Englishmen, for assuredly they have more dancing; but Britons will not yield the palm of domestic happiness to the fantastical Italian, or the frivolous Frenchman. Phi pretends to be a very warm hearted being: Is he a patriot? Does he say that the happiness of an Englishman's fire-side consists in dancing? If he does, I fear I must give him up as incorrigible. "Is the village green," says Phi, "entirely deserted by rustic swains and country maids?" I believe that it is, in the county in which I have the happiness to be resident, and yet no bad effects result from this desertion. Mixed company is an argument, of which I say nothing. As to boardingschools, objections of such weight may be, and have been urged, that many judicious persons have refused to send their children thither. 66 The next paragraph has almost exhausted my patience; Phi compares dancing to printing, to wine, and to the laws of our country. How just! dancing at best but an amusement, printing, as Phi himself says, one of the greatest blessings God ever bestowed upon mankind." However, if good and evil both result from one thing, balance them, and ascertain which preponderates. Printing has sometimes sent into the world books that have a tendency to unhinge the mind, such as novels, &c. &c. But is it not abundantly oftener, that it excites ambition to follow the paths of heroes, statesmen, or divines; and has it not immortalized the names of men, who have graced the page of history, or the paths of learning? It may have occasionally deluded some with false ideas of science; but has it not opened the eyes of hundreds of others, to behold the true nature of the works of God, and led them to exclaim with the Psalmist, "O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all," Ps. civ. 24. It has sometimes disseminated sentiments of sedition; but has it not abundantly overbalanced this evil, by dispersing that book over all the earth, which teaches us, that we should "fear God, and honour the king." 1 Pet. ii. 17. It has sometimes been used as a vehicle of infidelity; but has it not a thousand times oftener been the means of inculcating, that "there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men," 1 Tim. ii. 5. I must beg to refer Phi to the same criterion, with regard to wine, and the laws of our country. Phi then proceeds, as if he thought every one would see the justness of his comparison. "Why then abrogate the whole system of dancing, (notwithstanding the numerous benefits which are derived from it,) because a few objectionable branches have been grafted on the upper parts of the stem?" as much as to say, If you destroy this system, you must destroy printing, because it has occasionally sent into the world improper books; wine, because some have been made drunk by it; and the laws of our country, because some have been hanged, who ought not to have been so punished. How sagacious! If, however, Phi's simile about the tree be correct, it goes very much against his own argument, for if there be objectionable branches on a tree, it plainly proves that they grew there, for, as it is well known, those branches which are grafted are of some value, and are so treated that they may be preserved; and who would graft objectionable branches? If, therefore, these branches are the natural offspring of the tree, it plainly proves that the root is not good. (To be continued.) And whiten'd is his brow :-bis chilly breath Are cover'd with the fairest, purest snow, Wandering in rapture o'er the Summer scene: winds And snows shall cease, and Spring again re turn. TO THE MEMORY OF CHATTERTON. Now strike ye slow the trembling lyre, And dead the youth on yonder plain. Yet wet with many a briny tear, And line the rolling globe with gold, For thee the balmy dew they bring; AMIDST the watches of the night, The curfew long hath ceas'd to ring, Prepare, for thou must also die.' She breathes-it is her parting breath- Oh! 'tis a solemn thing to tread LINES, Most respectfully inscribed to the Royal Patron and Patroness, and noble Supporters of the National Benevolent Institution, founded by Peter Herve, Esq.---Written in the year 1816. LET noble bards in high exalted strains Rehearse the fame of heroes, and of kings! Let them record the arduous deeds atchiev'd On the Iberian and Germanic plains! Let them invoke the sacred Nine, and raise Thy deathless fame, immortal Wellington! Be it thy task, my gentle muse, to sing The godlike virtue of Benevolence! Offspring of mercy, source of gratitude,— Of gratitude not easily defin'd; It glows with speechless rapture in the heart, And rears an altar in the aching breast, Where burns incessantly the lambent flame, A flame that with superior lustre shines When virtuous Herve's name salutes the ear. Hanway, the friend of infancy distress'd, Howard, the prisoner's advocate and friend, Are call'd to their reward.-But Herve lives The philanthropic friend of helpless age! How blest are they, who, having pow'r and will, Wipe from the eye of wretchedness the tear, To rescue hoary age from keen distress,— If then Benevolence extends her hand, tomb. INSCRIPTION, "To the Memory of the Rev. Thomas Fawcett, Minister of Oldham Church 43 years, who departed this life January 19th, 1818, aged 74 years." "OH! could this verse his bright example And teach the living, while it prais'd the dead: The above lines were found among his papers after his death, and are engraved on a brass plate, which was affixed over his grave, but is now removed into the church. MORNING. J. S. By a young Lady, late of Penzance, Cornwall. It communicates charms to the plain. When she visits these blooming retreats! The landscape intent to adorn, She replenishes nature with sweets. The lily, the pink, and the rose, To salute ber are gracefully spread; And bright are the tints they disclose, And sweet is the fragrance they shed. But quickly the morning recedes, And is presently follow'd by noon; So to spring the gay summer succeeds, And with equal celerity's flown. Thus we wake in the morning of life, All gladsome, delighted, and gay; Our joys unimbitter'd by strife, Our pleasures untouch'd by decay. But much too delightful to last, So swiftly the moments flow on, That ev'ning approaches us fast Ere the morning appears to be gone. ACUPUNCTURATION. THE following article has been handed us by a correspondent, whose initials it bears. It refers to a treatise, which prescribes for acute pains, of a certain description, a mode of cure but little known in Europe, and which, perhaps, from its novelty and peculiarity of operation, many will hesitate to adopt. Of its efficacy and effects we do not presume to have any knowledge. Practice is founded on experiment, and experiment always implies adventure. It is only by trial that knowledge can be obtained. There was a time when the most permanent principles, derived from practice, were in their infancy: this is now the condition of the operation recommended. Professional gentlemen acquainted with the anatomy of the human body, must judge of the danger connected with the attempt, and by this, no doubt, their conduct will be regulated. MR. EDITOR. EDITOR. SIR,-There has lately issued from the press a little work which appears to have excited the curiosity not only of the medical world, (to whom it is addressed,) but also a great interest in the breasts of the public at large. It is a treatise on the method, adopted from time immemorial by the Chinese and Japanese physicians, in all diseases of the abdominal cavity and viscera, such as colic, tympany, and in all complaints attended with acute and settled pain. They, the Chinese, term it Zin-King, which is rendered by us, Acupuncturation. The operation simply consists in forcing a needle, of an inch or inch-and-half in length, into the part affected, once, or oftener, as the acuteness of the disease requires, thereby causing an instantaneous revulsion in the region of disease, which is alleviated, or it entirely ceases,on the introduction of the needle.* So far as the actual practice has extended in this country, it appears to have succeeded beyond the most sanguine expectation; and during the short space of time elapsed since its introduction, there seems not the shadow of a doubt remaining in the mind of the praiseworthy individual,† who has thus introduced it into his prac tice, that it will ultimately triumph over narrow-minded prejudice, which too frequently accompanies the first appearance of a novelty, however useful, beneficial, or important, the discovery may prove to the community at large. Having thus introduced the subject to your notice, I will now state some observations, which the treatise announces, to have come under the notice, and in the immediate practice, of both Mr. J. M. Churchill (the author) and two of his professional associ ates. The cases, as before stated, where the operation seems to have produced an immediate relief, are those of acute rheumatism; and, as the author observes, "in those injuries of the fibrous structures of the body, which are often observed to arise (particularly in labouring persons) from violent exertion."* The first case is that of a labourer, who applied to Mr. C. for advice, and who is stated to have "come to his house, supporting himself by a stick in one hand, and resting the other against the wall as he proceeded; the body was bent at nearly right angles with the thighs, and his countenance indicated acute suffering. He had been attacked, he said, three days before, with darting excruciating pains in his loins and hips: every motion of the body produced an acute spasmodic pain, resembling an electric shock; and the attempt to raise the body to an upright position was attended with such insupportable agony, as obliged him to continue in this state of flexion, rather than encounter it by altering his position. There was no more constitutional disturbance than was to be expected from three days and nights of constant pain. The pulse was a little quickened, and the tongue white; but I attributed this derangement to the irritation set up by the pain, and to loss of rest. I directed him to place himself across a chair, for support, during the operation; and I immediately introduced a needle of one inch and half in length into the lumber mass on the right side of the spine in two minutes' time I observed that he seemed to rest the : *When the disease has assumed an inflammatory nature, Acupuncturation would be highly improper. weight of his body more on his limbs, and in the next instant, without any inquiries being made, he observed, that he felt his limbs stronger, from the "pain having left his hips." He next plainly indicated that the disease was lessened, by raising his body, from which he only desisted, by being desired to remain at rest, through fear of the needle being broken. The instrument having remained in the place about six minutes, the patient declared he felt no pain, and could, if he were permitted, raise himself upright: it was then withdrawn; the man arose, adjusted his dress, expressed his astonishment and delight at the sudden removal of his disease, and having made the most grateful acknowledgments, left the house with a facility as though he had never been afflicted. The relief was, no doubt, permanent, as he did not return, which he would most probably have done, had he suffered a relapse." The other case is that of a female, 25 years of age, who became the subject of Rheumatalgia, which shall be briefly related: "The shoulders, arms, back, and hips, were the parts selected by the disease (observes Mr. C.) for its wandering peregrinations.' Every thing that professional skill could suggest, appears to have been used, without the desired effect. "At the end of three months I was hastily called to her," observes Mr. C.; "she had fainted, and when recovered from the syncope, complained of violent pain about the region of the heart, which, she informed me, had troubled her more or less for several hours. Copious bleeding, blistering, and cupping, were had recourse to this time, which had the desired, though temporary, effect. An exposure to wet brought on another attack of Rheumatalgia; which, after variously shifting its seat for several days, fixed itself on the left side. The former remedies were now useless, and the pain had acquired such a degree of violence, that the slightest motion of the body gave the most exquisite agony. And so intense (observes the author) was this state of suffering, that the patient could not be urged to speak in a tone loud enough to be conveniently heard, through the fear of exciting an exacerbation of pain, which even such slight motions occasioned. I now had recourse to Acu |