the younger also; which of necessity imposes a habit of diligence. The name of this exemplary personage is the widow Rumph; she is seventy years of age; she has been the mother of fifteen children, and has been foster-mother to thirty-two others.

GENEROUS ARMENIAN.

Mr. Carrapeit Arackell, an Armenian merchant of Prince of Wales Island, who, during a residence of sixteen years, had acquired a handsome competency in trade, applied by letter to the superintendent of police, for permission to liberate all the prisoners from the debtor's gaol at his own charge. The application was granted, and the prisoners, who were sixteen in number, not only had their debts discharged by the generous Armenian, but were entertained at his own house, and such further assistance was afforded them as their several cases required.

EDWARD III.

When Calais was besieged by Edward III. in 1347, John de Vienne, the governor, turned out of the town every individual who did not possess a sufficient supply of provisions for several months. Men, women, and children, to the amount of seventeen hundred persons, advanced in mournful procession to the English camp. Edward ordered them to be received, gave them a plentiful repast, and at their departure, distributed to each two pieces of silver. We are sorry to add, that five hundred more, that were turned out, did not experience similar humanity, but perished between the walls and the camp.

EXAMPLE FOR PHYSICIANS.

Dr. Brocklesby was so assiduous in being useful to his fellow creatures, that he was equally acceptable to the poor and the rich. When some of the former through delicacy did not apply to him, he would exclaim, "Why am I treated thus? Why was not I sent for?"

HENRY IV.

During the siege of Paris by Henry IV. of France, the Duke de Nemours, who commanded, ordered that all useless persons should be turned out of the city. The king's council of war violently opposed giving these unhappy outcasts a safe passage; but Henry gave orders that they should pass unmolested. "I am not astonished," said he, "that the chiefs of the league have shown so little compassion to these poor wretches, for they are only tyrants; but I, who am their lawful king, cannot bear the recital of their calamities without being deeply touched with pity and compassion, and feeling a desire to afford them relief and comfort."

LADY BURLEIGH.

In the Lansdown Collection at the British Museum, there is a MS. in the hand-writing of the Great Lord Burleigh, the Lord Treasurer of England in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He calls it a meditation on

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the death of his lady, of whom he gives the following amiable character, which, though traced with the partiality of an affectionate husband, exhibits a fine example of active beneficence.

"I ought to comfort myself," he says, in his discourse, the orthography of which is here alone corrected," with the remembrance of her many virtuous and goodly actions, wherein she continued all her life, and especially in that she did of late years sundry charitable deeds, whereof she determined to have no outward knowledge while she lived; inasmuch, as when I had little understanding thereof, and asked her wherein she had disposed any charitable gift, according to her often wishing that she was able to do some special act for the maintenance of learning, and relief of the poor, she would always only shew herself rather desirous so to do, than ever confess any such act; as since her death is manifestly known to me, and confessed by sundry good men, whose names and ministry she secretly used; that she did charge them most strictly, that while she lived, they should never declare the same to me nor to any other. And so now I have seen her earnest writings to that purpose in her own hand.

"The particulars of many of these hereafter do follow, which I do with my own hand-writing recite for my comfort in the memory thereof, with assurance that God hath accepted the same in such favourable sort as findeth now the fruits thereof in heaven.

"About years since, she caused exhibitions to be secretly given by the hands of the Master of St. John's in Cambridge, for the maintenance of two scholars, for a perpetuity whereof to continue.

"She did cause some lands to be purchased in the name of the Dean of Westminster; who also in his own name, did assure the same to that college, for a perpetual maintenance of the said scholars in that college. All which was done without signification of her act or charge, to any manner of person, but only of the dean, and one William Walter of Wimbledon, whose advice was used for the writing of the purchase and assurance.

"She also did with the privity of the Deans of Paul's and Westminster, and Mr. Adderly, being free of the Haberdashers in London, give to the company of the said Haberdashers a good sum of money, whereby is provided, that every two years there is lent to six poor men of certain special occupations, as smiths, carpenters, weavers, and such like, in Romford in Essex, twenty pounds a-piece, in the whole one hundred and twenty pounds; and in Cheshunt and Wootham, to other six like persons, twenty marks a piece, in the whole four score pounds; which relief, by way of loan, is to continue. By the same means is provided for twenty poor people in Cheshunt, the first Sunday in every month, a mess of meat in flesh and bread, and money for drink. And likewise is

provided four marks yearly, for four sermons to be preached quarterly by one of the preachers of St. John's College. And these distributions have been made a long time, while she lived, by some of my servants, without giving me knowledge thereof; though indeed I had cause to think that she did sometimes bestow such kind of alms; not that I knew of any order taken for continuance thereof, for she would rather commonly use speeches with me, how she was

disposed to give all that she could to some such uses, if she could devise to have the same faithfully performed after her life, whereof she always pretended many doubts. And for that, she used the advice of the Deans of Paul's and Westminster; and would have her actions kept secret; she forced upon them small pieces of plate to be used in their chambers, as remembrances of her good will for their pains.

"She did also, four times in the year, secretly send to all the persons in London, money to buy bread, cheese, and drink, commonly for four hundred persons; and many times more, without knowledge from whom the same came.

"She did likewise sundry times in the year, send shirts, &c. to the poor people both in London and at Cheshunt.

"She also gave a sum of money to the Master of St. John's College, to procure fires in the hall of that college upon all Sundays and holidays, betwixt the feast of All Saints and Candlemas, when there was no ordinary fires at the charge of that college.

"She also gave a sum of money towards a building for a new way at Cambridge to the common schools. "She also provided a great number of books, whereof she gave some to the University of Cambridge, namely, the great Bible in Hebrew and four other tongues; and to the College of St. John's, a very many books in Greek, of divinity and physic, and of other sciences. The like she did to Christ Church and St. John's College in Oxford. The like she did to the College of Westminster.

She did also yearly provide wool and flax, and did distribute it to women in Cheshunt parish, willing