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enemy, or to desert his friend; and that is a beautiful touch of the christian poet in his delineation of the character of Cato, wherein he describes his slumbers as so soft and placid, even when hemmed in by the legions of Cæsar; that the heathen soldiers who watched around his couch, argued from this single circumstance, the presence of some invisible deity supporting him: especially when dreaming in that sweet sleep, he smiled, and said,

"Cæsar, thou canst not hurt me!".

For my own part, I may say with the author alluded to, that in my dreams, so far from making any attempt to injure my enemy, I have found myself, like David in the camp of Saul, disposed to take away the cruse of water from his couch, and the sword from under his pillow, only to convince him when he awoke, that I would not hurt him if I could; and instead of deserting my friends on such occasions, I find no power of utterance strong enough to assure them of the devotedness and constancy of my regard. But though I have made use of the example of David, as a happy illustration of my feelings, you are not to suppose that I am accustomed to wield a sword, any more than if I had said, I would not have warned him that the mountains of Gilboa were "casting their shadows before," would have intimated that I possessed the gift of prophecy.

It happened about this time last year, that having some young relations staying with me from the country, they requested me to take them out a little in the morning of Twelfth day, to amuse them by shewing them what was worthy of their notice about town. So I carried them first to the toy bazaar in Oxford-street, where the contents of all the seminaries, and dame schools, of London, seemed to have agreed with one consent to congregate that day; so many little masters and misses I believe rarely assembled in one place before, and amid so great a multiplicity of attractive objects, that it seemed impossible for such of them as had a little money to spend, to fix upon any one single purchaseable article. We did not, however, long remain here, for I found my poor head sadly annoyed.. And what with the noise of harmonicas, and musical glasses, the blowing of sixpenny trumpets, and the beating of eighteen-penny drums; what with the sight of flags flying, of wind-mills

turning round, of horsemanship performed gratis, and of the mingled exclamations of, "La! Pa! La! Ma! I want this! I want that! I want t'other!" I was afraid of my nervous headach coming on; and seeing how impossible it was for the perplexed and agitated little creatures to be satisfied with any thing bestowed on them, or to be contented without any thing that was withheld from them in this vanity fair, I hurried away, to deliver myself at once from their presence and their noise.

I then took my young friends through the streets, to show them the variety of ingenious devices which the shop windows of the metropolis exhibited on that day; and returning by Bond-street, we stepped into Monsieur du Pâté's, to see the preparations which he had made for the evening festivities.

The abilities of this sweet artist had been put to the utmost stretch of invention on this occasion, and my young relatives were exceedingly delighted with the view of a scene in the Alps, and felt, I am persuaded, in the contemplation of its sugar-covered mountains, its glaciers of sugar-candy, its forests of citron, cottages and hamlets of spunge-cake, its hailstones of comfits, and its cataracts of barley-sugar,-more pleasure, and a higher relish than they would have experienced amid the actual natural wonders of those gigantic barriers of France and Italy. But the talents of Monsieur du Pâté did not stop here; he was not satisfied in merely delineating a paysage on the confines of his own beautiful country. He had tact enough to know that some of the citizens of his present domicile were not over fond of foreign sights and foreign meals; so to humour good John Bull, and his friends from the city, he had designed and executed a masterly procession of the lord Mayor to the Mansion-house on the day of his inauguration into office; in which all the trappings of his gaily caparisoned steeds, his state carriage, state liveries, and varied cortége, heralds and attendants, were depicted in the sweetest style imaginable circumambulating a magnificent Twelfth cake; and as full of glitter and lace, as pounded sugar-candy and gold leaf could make them, or the taste of the most juvenile amateurs could desire.

But Monsieur would have thought that he had studied men and manners to little purpose, if he had limited his efforts to please, to any one class of society; or if he had not made this day which had hitherto in its annual revolutions so often added to the celebrity of his name, proclaim it in the west-end of the town also. He appreciated the taste of the court, as well as of the city; and crowns, and coronets, and stars, were to be had here by those who sought them, in great profusion; and if not so enviable, yet surely less full of care than others more eagerly, and perhaps as childishly desired; for though the head might ache a little after possessing du Pâté's, it would be but for a short time; while those of heavier metal and more precious materials, even though lined with velvet and ermine, sometimes make the wearer uncomfortable for life, for as the poet says,

"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown."

This celebrated artist had also a bait for the beaux esprits of the day, and some of the most celebrated sons of Thespis and the muses, were seen standing on fairer boards, before a more candied audience, or tiptoe on the summit of a more honied Parnassus, than they ever dreamt of, into the centre of which some of them seemed, if we might guess by their names, by no means disinclined to Pry, if not thought guilty of intrusion. But being myself ignorant of such subjects, and unacquainted with the distinguished individuals whom they represented, I had only a simple monosyllable to utter, while like Macbeth's vision, the ideal personages passed before us.

It was impossible after all the civilities we had received from the polite Frenchman, to go out of the shop without drawing my purse; so I ordered a basin of soup for myself and some biscuits for the children, and purchasing a cake for the juvenile party I expected in the evening, we called a coach as it had begun to snow, and drove home.

Our Twelfth cake was produced at tea, and was soon discussed by the committee of taste, who had assembled for that purpose, and who did not forget to send portions of it to such of their companions whom the wind, and snow, had prevented from joining their party.

When the bustle and noise of our simple entertainment was over, and the dolls, puzzles, &c. had been put away, and its multifarious family had been restored to Noah's ark, the beetle and the lady-bird, the elephant and the camel; And "this is a dove aunt Sophie?" and "this is a raven?" had been answered with as much patience as it was possible to command at the hundredth repetition of similar questions, the juniors withdrew to their rest, and I to mine; for I threw myself on the sofa with a book in my hand, expecting a little mental refreshment. Fatigued, however, with the exertions I had made, both in the morning and evening to amuse and instruct my young guests, the book soon escaped from my hand, and in a few minutes I found myself disentangled from the cares of thought and vision, so far as regarded present objects, and a sweet calm succeeding to the unaccustomed noise of so numerous a party, I was lulled into a short slumber.

Methought in my sleep that I was again strolling down Bond-street, my young companions beside me, but instead of frost and snow, the air felt warm and balmy. Presently, by one of those inconsistencies common to dreams, I thought F was gone back to the years of childhood, and was playing with a beautiful doll in my dear mother's well-remembered nursery. I then found myself mingling with crowds of people, and following some gay procession, from which I was suddenly separated, and then I thought I was travelling in the country in an open carriage with many dear friends.

Methought we were driving over a beautiful plain, the grass of which seemed smooth as velvet, and of a green so fresh and vivid that the eye delighted to rest upon it. Magnificent trees appeared in the distance, and we passed by long withdrawing glades and vales, in which were seen herds of deer reposing, or unintimidated by our approach, standing at gaze as we swiftly and smoothly passed near them. Presently methought, the trees which had appeared so great at a distance disappointed me as we drew near. Afterwards they became fewer in number, less umbrageous in size and form, and by degrees seemed stunted in their growth. The herbage also lost its freshness, the air its fragrance, the sky became clouded, the grass disappeared, and sand and shingle formed the only path. By and bye the whole country as far as the eye could reach had a cold and barren look, till at last it became quite sterile, waste, and desert..

Methought as I turned round from viewing the altered features of the landscape, and was about to make some remarks upon it to my companions, that they too had strangely disappeared, and that only one of the party with whom I had set out in the morning now remained. After travelling a little farther, I missed her also from my side, and I looked with amazement at her empty place, and wondered whither she was gone. I was now left altogether alone, a storm seemed to be brooding in the sky, and I felt exceedingly dispirited and melancholy; and I thought in my dream that I took out my Bible to comfort me, but that instead of looking into its pages, I read on the blank leaf at the end of it, the following passages which I had written at different times before, when I was in affliction. "The earth mourneth and languisheth: Lebanon is ashamed, and withered away: Sharon is like a wilderness, and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits." "A man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." "I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not, I will lead them in paths they have not known, I will make darkness light and crooked things straight: these things will I do unto them and not forsake them." "When I am weak, then am I strong." "Be not afraid, it is I." "Fear not, I am with thee; be not dismayed, I am thy God," "What thou knowest not now, thou shalt know hereafter." While I continued to ponder on these scriptures I felt revived, refreshed, and strengthened; and the storm came, rolled over my head, and passed away, but no change took place in the country through which I travelled. I thought it strange, when I reflected on my situation, that I had passed through the sweetness of the hours of morning, over the beautiful plain and smiling landscape, in society which I loved, and now, when there seemed nothing but deserts around me I had to traverse them alone. But what was my chagrin, when I perceived I had a dark mountain to ascend, while the horses were so fagged and weary, it was impossible for them to proceed, yet it never once occurred to me to turn back; "Faint yet pursuing," said I to myself, like Gideon, I will go on.

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