Garth's ovid, e. viii. At the dawn of experimental philosophy, this art caught the attention of philosophers, and various attempts were made by friar Bacon, lord BaCon, bishop Wilkins and others to accomplish this desirable object; it was, however, reserved for the eighteenth century, to attain, by philosophic principles, the long-wished for power: When an analysis of the atmospheric Auids engaged the ingenious chemists of modern times, Mr. H. Cavendish, ascertaining in 1766, the weight of inflammable air, Dr. Black conceived that a bag filled with it might rise in common air, but all his attempts were unsuccessful. At this enlightened period when the art of printing conveys ideas to the utmost extremity of the ci

vilized world, the discoveries of the English philosophers could not long remain unknown to their antagonists in the peaceful field of science. In France, two brothers, Stephen and John Mongolfier, about the middle of November, 1782, proceeding on the same principles, raised a bag of silk paper, by filling it with smoke from burning paper, fixed to the lower aperture. In 1783, Pilatre acended in à balloon raised by the same means; but after various trials of the inconvenience of this method, and the unfortunate expedition of Pilatre de Roziere, and M. Romain, it was given up, and inflammable air (hydrogen gas) has been since used. Mr. Charles and Roberts ascended in December 1783, to the height of 10,500 feet, Blanchard to 10,000. Although this new art has been very generally treated with contempt, the French persevere in regarding it as of importance, and during the Revolutionary war, established an Aerostatic Institute, from whence issued skilful Aeronauts with balloons for the use of the armies. "For that of the North, the Balloon was

called Entreprenant; for that of the Sambre and Meuse, the Céleste; for that of the Rhine and Moselle, the Hercule and Intrepide. Coutel, captain of the Aeronautic corps, was the nant, on the 26th of June, 1794, and man who ascended with the Entreprewho conducted the wonderful and important service of reconnoitering the hostile armies, at the battle of Fleurus, accompanied by an adjutant and a general. He ascended twice on that day,

to observe from an elevation of 440

yards, the position and manœuvres of the enemy. On each occasion he remained four hours in the air, and, by means of signals, with flags, carried Jourdan, the commander of the French on a correspondence with General

army.

"His intended ascent had been made known to the enemy, who, at the moment when the balloon began to take its flight, opened the fire of a battery against the aeronauts. The first volley was directed too low: one ball, nevertheless, passed between the balloon that Coutel imagined it had struck and the car, and so near the former, it. When the subsequent discharges were made, the balloon had already reached such a degree of altitude, as to be beyond the reach of cannon shot, and the aronauts saw the balls flying beneath the car. Arrived at their intended height, the observers, remote from danger, and undisturbed, viewed all the evolutions of the enemies, and, from the peaceful regions of the air, commanded a distinct and comprehensive prospect of two formidable armies engaged in the work of death."

London Mon. Mag. vi. 393.

It is not as a warlike instrument alone that the balloon seems to merit attention; without its assistance we could not have so accurate a knowledge of the atmosphere; experiments made on mountains must be ever liable to error, the purity could not be ascertained on account of the constantly ascending vapour, the apparent density must always differ from the real at the same height, on account of the heated atmosphere in the neighbourhood of the mountain, and there are few mountains whose magnetic attraction does not affect the compass or dipping needle. These facts, with

A

form which of all others seems least adapted to move in an oblique direction, to the course of the wind, to an elongated elipse floating horizontally, would enable the aeronaut by opposing a larger surface, by means of oars or wings, than that of the Balloon in some degree to direct its course. But the greatest impediment to their general utility is the want of the power of suspension to a given period, and until some means be found of easily generating a fresh supply of hydrogen gas, during the course of the journey, this defect must remain. As, "To inflate a Balloon of thirty feet diameter, it will require, agreeably to Mr. Cavendish's experiments, about two ounces and one half of iron for each cubic foot of inflammable air or 2200 pounds of iron to be dissolved, in order to completely fill the machine, and to produce this solution; there will altogether be reqired an equal weight of concentrated oil of vitriol (sulphuric acid) and six times this weight of water."

Phil. Mag. vol. xv. 20.

M. Lussac mentions that in a former voyage which he had the honour of submitting to the National Institute, that at the height of 2040 toises (about 12,300 feet English) the magnetic force experienced no sensible diminution, and that he was induced to undertake a new ascension, to establish at greater heights this important fact..

Mr. Robertson, during his ascent at Hamburgh, in July 1803, found, at the height of 2600 toises (about 15,700 feet) that the dipping needle seemed to have lost its magnetic virtue, and

*At the height of 2600 toises, about 15,750 feet, the dipping needle seemed to have lost its magnetic virtue. At 2000 toises, 12,136 feet, electricity only ob

which would appear to have been constructed with great care; the remainder is taken up with an account of some curious experiments.

"By the observations of the state of the thermometer, it seemed to indicate," says he, "that towards the surface of the earth the heat follows a law, less decreasing than at the height of the atmosphere, and that at greater heights it follows a decreasing arithmetical progression. The motion of the hy grometer was alike subject to a variation which would lead us to think that they were both influenced by the different stratas of air, through which the Balloon passed. From the results of the observation on the magnetic oscil

served when passing through clouds, which appear never to rise above 2000 toises, or about 12,156 feet.

See Robertson's ascent at Ham. July, 1800.

Tillock's Phil. Mag. vol, 16, p. 283. When the thermometer indicated one degree above freezing, and the ba rometer stood at fifteen inches, Mr Robertson set at liberty two pigeons which descended with the rapidity of lightning, without moving their wings, and in a plane slightly inclined. When the barometer stood at fourteen, he let off a third pigeon, which having fluttered about for a moment, with difficulty perched on the net-work, and would not quit it. Two butterflies let go at the same time tried to use their wings, but in vain, as the air was too rare; they never quitted the car, and fluttered, but in a very feeble manner. Tinder, exposed to a convex glass, of six inches focus, did not catch fire till the end of some minutes. The rays refracted from the prism no longer exhibited lively and distinct, but weak and confused colours. Weights attached to a spring balance, had lost one half of their gravity.

Mr. Robertson's ascent, Aug. 14, 1800.
Tillock's Phil. Mag. 16. p, 371.

lation it appears, "that the magnetic force, like universal gravitation does not experience any sensible variations at the greatest heights to which we can arrive." Now as M. Lussac told us at page vi. that his compass was spoiled, and makes an apology in page ix. for drawing this conclusion, we confess ourselves a little at a loss how to understand him.

At page x. he says, "that at the height of 2314 toises, about 14,000 feet, and 3133, about 18,900 feet, I presented to a small needle, and in the direction of the magnetic force, the inferior extremity of a key; the needle was attracted and then repulsed by the other extremity of the key, a new and very evident proof of the action of terrestrial magnetism." This we can by no means think a correct conclusion, we have little doubt but that if a magnet was carried even beyond the power of the earth's attraction, it would attract iron with an equal power as it placed in immediate contact with the earth, for the magnetic power once communicated to a piece of steel remains for a considerable time, change the position as much as you please; or after fixing the northern end to point south, for many months, it seems equally sensible as if it bad remained in the due direction, for the same space of time, though no doubt it is gradually chang ing its poles.

M. Lussac's last experiment is that which caught our attention most, "At the height of 2353 toises, about 14,250 feet, I opened one of my glass balloons, and at the height of 3405 toises, about 20,560 feet, I opened the second, the air entered each with a hissing noise." "On my arrival at Paris, my first care was employed in the analysis of the air which I brought. All the experiments were made at the. the Polytechnic School," They prove then that the atmospheric air, and air taken at an elevation of 3405 toises, about 20,560 feet, are identically the same." These experiments tend greatly to confirm those made by Sir John Ingenhouse, and others in England, the air taken by them was but at a small elevation, compared with M. Lussac's, yet as the analysis of each came to the same conclusion, it is very satisfactory, It shows the complete and speedy

diffusion and intermixture of the component parts of our atmosphere, and the wise ordinance of nature to destroy the most noxious vapours, by an almost instantaneous junction of salubrious.

Although we could scarcely have expected to meet with M. Gay Lussac's memoir in its present situation, we must acknowledge, that upon the whole, we have been considerably gratified with its perusal.

Marmion; a Tale of Flodden Field, by Walter Ssott, esq. 8vo. p.p. 377; second edition; Edinburgh, Constable; London, Miller, &c. 1808, price 12s. boards.

(Continued from page 60. No. I.)

THE second canto presents a new

Tand note interesting scene. Clara

de Clare accompanies the abbess of St. Whitby, (with whom she resided) to Lindisfarne, where a chapter was to be held for the trial of Constance and her accomplice. We regret that our limits prevent us from giving, in the words of the poet, his description of the journey of these ladies, and the circumstances which preceded the assembly of this terrible court of judicature. But we should think ourselves inexcusable, did we pass over the trial and condemnation, which are recorded in strains of the most pathetic solemnity. The gloomy vault in which the court is held, the appearance of the judges, the sentence, the execution, all are pourtrayed with the pencil of a master. The determined, lofty despair of Constance, is finely contrasted with the despicable timidity of her fellow sufferer; and raises in the mind a sympathy for her sufferings, which her former conduct was ill adapted to excite. Through the whole of this scene she appears, like Milton's fallen archangel, majestic, though in ruins.

The discovery of her sex is thus described:

Her sex, a page's dress belied,
The cloak and donblet, loosely tied,
Obscur'd her charms, but could not hide.
Her cap down o'er her face she drew;
And on her doublet breast,
She tried to hide the badge of blue,
Lord Marmion's falcon crest.
But at the prioress' command,
A monk undid the silken band,

That tied her tresses fair, And rais'd the bonnet from her head, And down her slender form they spread,

In ringlets rich and rare. When thus her face was given to view, (Although so pallid was her hue,

It did a ghastly contrast bear, To those bright ringlets glistering fair;) Her look composed, and steady eye, Bespoke a matchless constancy, &c. Her comrade was a sordid soul,

Such as does murder for a meed; Who, but of fear, knows no controul, Because his conscience, sear'd and foul,

Feels not the import of his deed: This wretch was clad in frock and cowl, And sham'd not loud to moan and howl, His body on the floor to dash, And crouch, like hound, beneath the lash; While his mute partner, standing near, Waited her doom, without a tear.

a

The punishment which attended crime of this nature, was truly dreadful. The miserable victim of monastic severity, was to be immured alive in a niche of one of the abbey vaults. With the execution of this barbarous sentence the canto terminates:

An bundred winding steps convey,
That conclave to the upper day;
But ere they breath'd the fresher air,
They heard the shriekings of despair,

And many a stifled groan:

With speed their upward way they take,
(Such speed as age and fear can make)
And cross'd themselves, for terror's sake,
As hurrying, tottering on.
Even in the vesper's heavenly tone,
They seem'd to hear a dying groan,
And bade the passing knell to toll,
For welfare of a parting soul.

In the following canto, we return to Marmion, whom we find in an inn on the road. Here as they are collected round the fire, the strange appearance of the palmer strikes them all with awe: Resting upon his pilgrim staff,

Right opposite the palmer stood ; His thin dark visage seen but half; Half hidden by his hood.

Still fix'd on Marmion was his look, Which he, who ill such gaze could brook,

Strove by a frown to quell,

But not for that, tho' more than once Full met their stern encountering glance, The palmer's visage fell.

To divert the attention of his train from this extraordinary personage, Marmion calls on his squire for a song, who obeys, by singing a favourite air

of Constance.

The recollections excited by this, revive in the mind of his master, the ungrateful requital he had bestowed on her love. His remorse is feelingly expressed:

His conscience slept, he deem'd her well,
And safe secur'd in convent cell;
But waken'd by her favourite lay,
And that fam'd palmer's boding say,
That fell so ominous and drear
Full on the object of his fear;
To aid remorse's venom'd throes,
Dark tales of convent vengeance rose;
And Constance, late betray'd and scorn'd
All lovely on his soul return'd:
Lovely as when, at treacherous call,
She left her convent's peaceful wall,
Crimson'd with shame, with terror mute,
Dreading alike escape, pursuit,
Till love, victorious o'er alarms,
Hid fears and blushes in his arms.

In return for the squire's song, the inn-keeper tells a tale, of a supernatural being, which haunts the neighbourhood. Marmion, affected by the story, and disturbed by his own thoughts, goes forth in quest of the apparition. On arriving at the place described, he is encountered and overthrown by an unknown being. This imagined phantom, as, afterwards appears, is no other than Wilton, who suspecting his antagonist's intention takes this opportunity of revenge; but in consequence of a vow spares his life. His defeated rival retires dispirited to the inn, and prepares to pursue his journey, still accompanied by Wilton, who resumes his palmer's dress, and remains still unknown.

Here we cannot avoid regretting, that, on this and other occasions when recourse is had to supernatural agency the maxim of Horace is totally neglected.

Both in this and in other places, no use is made of them for the furtherance or developement of the plot, but they seem to be introduced, like the figures of a magic lantern, for no other reason, than to excite the fears of the reader.

Marmion pursues his journey in the fourth canto, is met by a Scotch herald, appointed to conduct him, and after some delay, arrives at the camp; the appearance of which is displayed with great spirit.

mion mark'd the Celtic race, ent language, form, and face, us race of man;

the chiefs their tribes array'd and garish semblance made, uer'd trews and belted plaid, ing notes the war-pipes bray'd y varying clan;

their red or sable hair,

at their eyes, with savage stare, rmion as he pass'd;

s above the knee were bare; ne was sinewy, short, and spare

rden'd to the blast:

race, the chiefs they own, the eagles plumage known, zed red-deer's undress'd hide ry buskins well supplied; eful bonnet deck'd their head; n their shoulders hung the plaid; sword of unwieldy length,

proyed for edge and strength, ded targe they wore;

ers, bows, and shafts,but O! is the shaft, and weak the bow, t which England bore.

Shap'd in proportion fair,
And hazel was his eagle eye,
And auburn of the darkest dye :

His short curl'd beard and hair.
Light was his footstep in the dauce,
And firm his stirrup in the lists,
And, oh! he had that merry glance,
That seldom lady's heart resists.
Lightly from fair to fair he flew,
And lov'd to plead, lament, and sue;
Suit lightly won, and short liv'd pain!
For monarchs seldom sigh in vain.

The description of lady Heron is still more highly coloured. The einbassy however fails; and the ambassador is committed to the care of the Earl of Angus, until the return of a herald, who had been dispatched to the English court with a letter of defiance. It happens that about the same time Clara and the abbess were captured on their return, by a Scotch vessel, and brought into Edinburgh. The abbess, who had heard from Constance, previous to her death, the story of Marmion's perfidy and Wilton's innocence, is uneasy at the protector who has been chosen. Under these circumstances she consults with the disguised palmer, who thus obtains convincing proofs of his own innocence. 'The

conference between these persons is broken off by an unmeaning pageantry of visionary beings, who appear in the air, and solemnly summon the Scotch king, and those noblemen who were to fall in the ensuing battle. The vision proceeds to name Marmion and Wilton, but that citation of the latter is retracted. The old earl is made acquainted with the treachery and guilt of his English guest. The consequence is, that he restores Wilton to the honours of knighthood, and treats his rival with such marked coldness, that he determines to quit the castle, and proceed immediately with Clara to England.