Chess. "Of armies on the chequer'd field array'd THE Problems here given are not offered to Chess- | players as new stratagems, but were originally made by eminent members of the principal Chess Clubs of Paris, and are capable of affording much amusement and instruction in the practice of a game which is susceptible of the greatest ingenuity, and of endless variety; and as nothing strengthens the mind so much as Chess, it is to be hoped, that those persons who have hitherto neglected it, may now be induced to learn its mysteries. Dr. Franklin observes, "that Chess is not merely an idle amusement," but that 66 several very valuable qualities of the mind, useful in the course of human life, are to be acquired and strengthened by it, so as to become habits ready on all occasions; for Life is a kind of Chess in which we have often points to gain, and competitors or adversaries to contend with, and in which there is a vast variety of good and ill events, that are, in some degree' the effect of prudence or the want of it." Since Chess was first invented, which it is traditionally said to have been for the amusement of Khosru, Nurshirwan, surnamed the Just, King of Persia, A.D. 534, many alterations have taken place, not only in the number and squares of the board, but also in the quantity of pieces and pawns used, and the variations in their moves; these alterations have been thought by some to increase the satisfaction of playing, by adding intricacy to difficulty; but the game, as it at present stands, seems to approach so nearly to perfection, that any further alteration cannot be considered for the better. "Chess is the only game, perhaps, which is played at for nothing, and yet warms the blood and brain as much as if the players were contending for the deepest stakes. No person easily forgives himself who loses, though to a superior player; nor is any person ever known to flatter at this game, by underplaying himself. It is certain, that this play is an exercise of the understanding: it is a contention who has the most solid brain; and who can lay the deepest and wisest designs. It is, therefore, rarely known that a person of great vivacity and quickness, or one of very slow parts, is a master of the game." Historians have commemorated the following sovereigns as Chess-players: Charles I. William III. AFFLICTION -Affliction is perhaps necessary to rectitude in our worldly state. CONSCIENCE. The voice of conscience is so delicate that it is easy to stifle it; but it is so clear that it is impossible to mistake it. PRUDENCE.-Prudence is of more frequent use than any other intellectual quality; it is exerted on slight occasions, and called into act by the cursory business of common life. CHRISTIANITY.-Christianity is the most excellent and compendious art of happy living; its very tasks are rewards, and precepts nothing but a divine sort of alchemy to sublime at once our natures and our pleasures. C OH thou! by Heaven ordained to be From thy sweet lip one tender sigh, Can raise or lead him at thy will To virtue's noblest flights, or worst extremes of ill. Be angel-minded, and despise Thy sex's little vanities; And let not passion's lawless tide That lends to man's annoy thy heaven-entrusted power. Woman! 'tis thine to cleanse his heart To win him to be wise and good; To give him back the heaven he forfeited for thee! LOVE HER STILL. BY T. WESTWOOD. She hath fallen very low- Love her! let no harsh cold word, Love her, let her feel your love; Gather round her, weep and pray, From her pale sad face; what time, A DESCRIPTIVE SKETCH OF BABYLON.* BABEL, or Babylon, is the first city of which we have any mention after the flood; according to the Bible, it was placed in the land of Shinar, and was the beginning of the kingdom of Nimrod, or Nimrúd, "the mighty hunter before the Lord." From the same sacred authority, we find that ancient Babylon existed before Nineveh, for in the tenth chapter of Genesis, eleventh verse, it is said, "Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh." It is probable that Assyria took its name from this Asshur, who was probably sent out by Nimrúd to conquer the surrounding country, it being the constant habit of classical history to give to nearly every town or place the name of the conqueror or hero from whom it was supposed to have derived its first greatness. From the three children of Ham-Cush, Mizraim, and Canaan-came those princes who so long ruled over Babylon, Egypt, and Syria. Although there is no mention in early times of Babylon or Nineveh as a great con * In writing this sketch, much valuable information has been derived from an Historical Sketch of Ancient Assyria and Persia, by W. S. Vaux, M.A. they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar.” (Gen. xi. 3.) quering nation, yet it is likely that this empire of the plains, watered by the Euphrates and Tigris, was divided between the Assyrians of From the building of the Tower of Babel, Nineveh and the inhabitants of Babylon; and consequent dispersion of the people, and that each city was, in its turn, dominant there is a gap in the Babylonian hisor subject, according to the valour or weakness of its princes. It was probably the earliest town in which there was a large and settled people, and from it the first rudiments of civilisation spread over the surrounding na tions. In a position nearly central, the chief city of a land watered by two of the finest rivers in the world, Babylon must have been very early in history the foremost state of Western Asia, and the natural centre for receiving and transmitting onward the international commerce of Asia. Between the Indus on the east, and the Mediterranean on the west, it was the mart for such eastern luxuries as found a ready market in the west. At no great distance from the Persian Gulf (from which Nineveh was distant 400 miles), it would be the natural place at which the seafaring nations of India were admitted to the heart of Asia, and afforded the readiest means of communication with those who dwelt on the Euxine and Caspian shores. Thus favourably chosen, it was long the central point where the merchants of nearly all the nations of the civilised world assembled. tory, but it is supposed that the influence and splendour of the two cities, Babylon and Nineveh, alternated; for as Babylon decayed, Nineveh, its rival city, rose for a time into greater opulence and power, until, finally, Nineveh was overthrown by the united forces of Babylonia and Media (B.c. 606). So that we have 1st, Babylon; 2nd, Nineveh; 3rd, again Babylon. On the fall of Nineveh, Babylon necessarily became the chief city and the seat of imperial power, and from that time we hear nothing more of Nineveh, or the distinct rule of Assyria. According to Herodotus, Babylon was much indebted for its fortifications to Nitocris, Queen of Babylon, who, finding the power of the Medes growing formidable, and that, among other cities, Nineveh was captured by them, took every possible precaution for her own defence. "First of all, with respect to the river Euphrates, which flowed before in a straight line through the middle of the city-this, by having channels dug above, she made so winding that in its course it touched three times at one and the same village in Assyria, so that those who went by sea to Babylon, if But not alone to her position, unrivalled they travelled by the Euphrates, came three as it seems to have been for carying on a times to this village on three successive days. commerce with the whole world, was Baby- She also raised, on either bank of the river, a lon indebted for her greatness. Her people mound astonishing for its magnitude and seem to have known well how they could height, and had a lake dug, carrying it out best assist the beneficient intentions of nature. some distance from the river, and digging The very soil they dwelt on, and the river down to water. The circumference of this which fertilized their lands, had their respec- lake was four hundred and twenty stades. tive disadvantages; for the geological forma- Both these works were done-the river made tion of their country, which was a vast alluvial winding, and the whole excavation a lakebasin of dried mud, like the generality of in order that the current, being broken by steppe regions, afforded them no stone where- frequent turnings, might be more slow, and with they could exercise their architectural the navigation to Babylon tedious, and that genius. The vast waters of the Euphrates after the voyage a long march round the lake rolled on to the sea in a slow and sluggish might follow. These defences were formed tide, between banks so low that the least in- in that part of the country where the approach crease from the melting snows of Armenia to Babylon was nearest for the Medes, that would, but for the artificial embankments, they might not, by holding intercourse with have been ever causing an overflow. Emu- her people, become acquainted with her affairs. lating their kindred tribes in Egypt, the In addition to this, as the city consisted of two Babylonians had to wrest their lands from divisions, which were separated by the river the invasion of the flood, and the dominion of during the reign of former kings, when any the waters. Thus an impulse was directly one had occasion to cross from one division to given to the progress of civilisation, and those the other, he was obliged to cross in a boat; arts which made them no less celebrated than and this being troublesome, as a remedy, she their Egyptian brethren. Hence a variety had large blocks of stone cut, and when they of canals and lakes, some of extraordinary were ready, and the place completely dug out, size, which were used to draw off the super- the whole stream of the river was turned into fluous waters of the great river; and hence the place which had been dug. When this also those remarkable structures of baked was filled, and the ancient channel become dry, and unbaked bricks, which, from the earliest in the first place, she ordered the banks of the historian to the latest traveller, have been the wonder and admiration of the world. "And they said one to another, Go to, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly. And river throughout the city, and the descents that led from the gates to the river, to be lined with burnt bricks, in the same manner as the walls. In the next place, about the middle of the city she caused to be built a bridge with the stones which had been prepared, and bound them together with plates of lead and iron. Upon these stones were laid, during the day, planks of timber, on which the Babylonians might pass over; but at night the planks were removed, to prevent people from crossing and robbing one another. When the hollow that was dug had become a lake filled by the river, and the bridge was finished, she brought back the river to its former channel, and the excavation having been turned into a marsh, appeared to answer the purpose for which it was made, and thus a bridge was built for the use of the inhabitants." This same queen is also said to have contrived the following deception :-"Over the most frequented gate of the city she prepared a sepulchre for herself, high up above the gate itself; and on the sepulchre she had engraved, SHOULD ANY ONE OF MY SUCCESSORS, KINGS OF BABYLON, FIND HIMSELF IN WANT OF MONEY, LET HIM OPEN THIS SEPULCHRE, AND TAKE AS MUCH AS HE CHOOSES; BUT IF HE BE NOT IN WANT, LET HIM NOT OPEN IT; FOR THAT WERE NOT WELL." "This monument remained undisturbed until the kingdom fell to Darius; but to him it seemed hard that this gate should be useless, with money lying there, and this money inviting him to take it, why he should not do so; for the people would not pass through as a dead body was over the head of any one that went beneath. Darius, therefore, opened the sepulchre, and instead of money, found only her body, and these words written, HADST THOU NOT BEEN INSATIABLY COVETOUS, AND GREEDY OF THE MOST SORDID GAIN, THOU WOULDEST NOT HAVE OPENED THE CHAMBERS OF THE DEAD." Herodotus, speaking of the fertility of Assyria, says, "It is but little watered by rain, which very little nourishes the roots of the corn; however, the stalk grows up, and the grain comes to maturity through irrigation by the hand and by engines. For the Babylonian territory is intersected by canals, and is so fruitful in the produce of corn, that it yields continually two hundred-fold, and when it produces its best, it yields even three hundred-fold. The blades of wheat and barley grow to full four fingers in breadth; palm-trees grow all over the plain, from the fruit of which is made bread, wine, and honey." "The vessels that came down to Babylon freighted with merchandise, but chiefly with casks of palm wine, were of singular form and construction; they were made of leather, and circular. The ribs were cut out of willows that grew in Armenia, above Babylon, and were then covered on the outsides with hides, by way of bottom-neither making any distinction in the stern, nor contracting the prow, but making them circular like a buckler; and lined throughout with reeds. This vessel was steered by two men stand ing upright with two spars, one of whom drew his spar in, while the other thrust his out; some of these vessels were made very large, and others of a smaller size. Every vessel had a live ass on board, and the larger ones more; for, after they had arrived at Babylon and had disposed of their freight, they sold the ribs of the boat and all the reeds by public auction; then, having piled the skins on the asses, they returned by land to Armenia, for it was not possible by any means to sail up the river from the rapidity of the current." sum In early times the following singular marriage customs prevailed in the villages in the Babylonian territory. Once every year, in every village, whatever maidens were marriageable, were collected together, and brought in a body to one place; around them stood a crowd of men. Then a crier, causing them to stand up one by one, offered them for sale, beginning with the most beautiful; and when she had been sold for a large sum, he put up another who was next in beauty all being sold on condition that they should be married. Such men among the Babylonians as were rich, and desirous of marrying, used to bid against one another, and purchase the handsomest. But the lower classes who were desirous of marrying, did not aspire to a beautiful form, but were willing to take the plainer damsels with a of money. When the crier had finished selling the handsomest of the maidens, he made the ugliest stand up, or one that was a cripple, and put her up to auction, for any person who would marry her with a small Sum, until she was adjudged to the man who would take the least money. This money was obtained from the sale of the handsome maidens; and thus the beautiful ones portioned out the ugly and the crippled. A father was not allowed to give his daughter in marriage to whom he pleased, neither might a purchaser carry off a maiden without first giving security that he would certainly marry her, and then he might take her away. Herodotus calls this their best institution, but says it did not continue to exist. He also calls their treatment of the sick "second only to the former in wisdom." He says, "They bring out their sick to the market-place, for they have no physicians; then those who pass by the sick person confer with him about the disease, to discover whether they have themselves been afflicted with the same disease as the sick person, or have seen others so afflicted; thus the passers-by talk with him, and advise him to have recourse to the same treatment as that by which they were cured of a similar disease, or as they have known to cure others. And they were not allowed to pass by a sick person in silence without inquiring into the nature of his distemper."* With Nebuchadnezzar, who succeeded his Herodotus, Cary's translation. father shortly after the overthrow of Nineveh, commences the grand era of Babylonian greatness, and most of the works for which Babylon was so renowned of old, are due to him or to his queen. It was at this time, and in this reign, that the great city of Babylon became the mistress of the East, and "the Lady of Kingdoms." Upon the return of Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon after the destruction of Tyre, he appears to have been much occupied, during the remainder of his reign, in the improving and beautifying of his city; the eastern quarter of which was the portion most indebted to him for its magnificence, that part being more especially the city of the Chaldeans. To him also is ascribed the adorning of the temple of Bel with the spoils he had taken in war. "Nebuchadnezzar also carried off the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon, and put them in his temple at Babylon." (2 Chron. xxxvi. 7.) This was when Nebuchadnezzar made war against Jehoiakim, bound him in fetters, and carried him away captive to Babylon. Also after the rebellion of Zedekiah, because "they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy. Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young men or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand. And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon." "And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; whence they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia.” (2 Chron. xxxvi. 16-18, 20.) It has been justly remarked, that almost all the real glory of Babylon seems to have been due to her Chaldean ruler, and that Nebuchadnezzar had good grounds for his proud remark, "Is not this great Babylon that I have built?" The size of Babylon was enormous: Quintus Curtius says, "that the buildings of the city do not reach the walls, but are at the distance of an acre from them, nor do the houses stand in rows by themselves, but the intervals that separate them are sown and cultivated, that they may furnish subsistence in case of a siege." Herodotus says, "The city stands in a spacious plain, and is quadrangular, and shows a front on every side of one hundred and, twenty stades (a stade being 1,000 feet); these stades make up the sum of four hundred and eighty in the whole circumference. It was adorned in a manner surpassing any city we are acquainted with. In the first place, a moat, deep, wide, and full of water, ran entirely round it, and with the earth taken out of the moat they made bricks and baked them in kilns; then, making use of hot asphalt for cement, and laying wattled reeds between the thirty bottom courses of bricks, they first built up the sides of the moat, and afterwards the wall itself in the same manner; which wall ran entirely round it, and on the top of the wall, at the edges, were built dwellings of one story, fronting each other, and a space left between these dwellings sufficient for turning a chariot with four horses. In the circumference of the wall there were a hundred gates, all of brass, as also were the posts and lintels. "Eight days' journey from Babylon stands another city called Is, on a small river of the same name, which discharges its stream into the Euphrates. Now this river brings down with its water many lumps of bitumen, from whence the bitumen used in the wall of Babylon was obtained. "The city consisted of two divisions; for the In the psalms of David is the beautiful Euphrates separates it in the middle. This lamentation of the Jews who were carried river, which is broad, deep, and rapid, flows away in this captivity. "By the rivers of from Armenia, and falls into the Red Sea; Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, the wall, therefore, on either bank, has an when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof." "O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us." (Psalm cxxxvii. 1, 2, 8.) Nebuchadnezzar, who is supposed to have reigned forty-four years, also embellished the ancient city, and repaired the triple wall of burnt brick which surrounded it; he built also a palace of extraordinary size and splendour, with stone terraces, which had the appearance of mountains planted with various kinds of trees, and also those hanging gardens -the celebrated suspended paradise-which he caused to be made to gratify his Median consort, who was desirous of having scenery at Babylon resembling that of her native country. elbow carried down to the river, and from thence, along the curvatures of each bank of the river, runs a wall of baked bricks. The city itself is full of houses three and four stories high, and is cut up into straight streets; at the end of each street a little gate is formed of brass in the wall along the river side, in number equal to the streets, and leading down to the edge of the river. This outer wall, then, is the chief defence, but another wall runs round within, not much inferior to it in strength, though narrower. "In the middle of each division of the city fortified buildings were erected-in one, the royal palace, with a spacious and strong enclosure, brazen-gated; and in the other, the precinct of Jupiter Belus, a square building of two stades on every side. In the midst of |