of ambition, and love of praise, are singularly prominent. A kind of dogged pertinacity of character may be inferred from the knotty structure of the region behind their ears; and the choleric temperament betrayed in their gestures, when among themselves, may probably be accounted for by the extraordinary development of the organ of self-love, just above the nape of the neck-which circumstance again is, no doubt, somewhat connected with the continual friction of burthens upon that delicate region.

It is very ungrateful of me, however, to be saying any thing disrespectful about a class of men, from whom I have derived so much advantage since my arrival in this place. Whenever a stranger does arrive, it is the custom that he enters into a kind of tacit compact with some of the body, who is to perform all little offices he may require during the continuance of his visit. I, myself, was particularly fortunate in falling into the hands of one whom I should take to be the cleverest cadie that at present treads the streets of Auld Reekie..

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His name is D-d MN- and, if one may take his word for it, he has gentle blood in his veins, being no less than "a bairn o' our chief himsell." Nor, indeed, do I see any reason to call this account of his pedigree in question, for Donald is broad of back, and stout of limb, and has, I think, not a little of the barbarian kind of pride about the top of his forehead; and I hear, the Phylarchus with whom he claims kindred, led, in more respects than one, a very patriarchal sort of life.

LETTER XXI.

TO THE REV. DAVID WILLIAMS.

*

I SPENT an afternoon very pleasantly the other day at Dr. Brewster's, the same who is so celebrated for his discoveries concerning light-his many inventions of optical instruments-and his masterly conduct of that best of all works of the kind, the Edinburgh Encyclopedia. Dr. Brewster is still a young man, although one would scarcely suppose this to be the case, who, never having seen him, should form his guess from considering what he has done. He cannot, I should think, be above forty, if so much. Like most of the scientific men in Edinburgh, the doctor is quite a man of the world in his manners; his countenance is a very mild and agreeable one, and in his eyes, in particular, there is a wonderful union of penetration and tenderness of expression. From his conversation, one would scarcely suspect that he had gone so deep into the hidden parts of science, for he displays a vast deal of information concerning the lighter kinds of literature, although, indeed, he does all this with a hesitative sort of manner, which probably belongs to him as a man of abstruse science. It is, no doubt, mainly owing to this happy combination of accomplishments, that he has been able to render his great work so much more truly of an Encyclopædic character, than any other which has been published under the same name in our island. In a work of that kind, which cannot be finished without the co-operation of a vast variety of contributors continued throughout many successive years, it is quite obvious how much must depend on the superintending and arranging skill and judgment of the editor. Now, it is a very rare thing indeed, to meet with a person of fine talents, who is alike a man of science, and a man of literature; and unless under the care of such a person, I do not see how an Encyclopædia can be conducted in such a way as to give equal satisfaction to both the great classes into which readers of Encyclopædias must necessarily be divided. All the other Encyclopædias published in this coun

try, have been edited either by persons possessed of skill in one department only, and negligent of the rest, or, what is still worse, by persons alike destitute of skill in all departments whatever-in other words, members of the great corporation of charlatans.

There were several very pleasant men of the party, and the conversation, both during dinner, and afterwards, was extremely lively and agreeable, as well as instructive; but from the time we sat down, there was one face which attracted my attention in a way that I was quite at a loss to account for. I experienced, in looking at it, a strange and somewhat uncomfortable sort of feeling-of which you must often have been sensible-as if I had seen the countenance before, where, when, or how, it was impossible for me to recollect. At last, the gentleman who thus occupied my attention, happened, in talking to Dr. Brewster, to utter the word Freyberg, and the whole affair flashed across me as swift as lightning. That single sound had opened a key to the whole mystery, and a moment after, I could not help wondering how I should have been at a loss. Some years ago, (I shall not say how many,) when I was stronger, and more active than I now am, and capable of making longer excursions in ruder vehicles than I now venture upon in my shandrydan, I remember to have travelled in the common post-wagon from Dresden to Leipsig. I had gone on horseback quite through the Hartz, and passed from thence in the same manner all up the delightful banks of the Elbe, from Magdeburg to the Saxon Switzerland. I then sold my horse, (much the worse for the wear I had given him,) and was making the best of my way toward the west, in that most coarse, and most jumbling of all machines,

"The neat post-wagon trotting in."

We had got as far as within a single stage of Leipsig, when a little adventure befel us, which, till this face recalled it, 1 had, for years, as utterly forgotten as if it never had occurred. We were just about to enter a village, (I cannot recollect its name,) when our vehicle was surrounded by a party of mounted gens-d'armes, and a fierce looking fellow, thrusting his mustachio and his pipe into the window, commanded the whole party to come out and show ourselves. A terrible murder, he said, had been committed somewhere by a Jew

a watchman, I think, of Koningsberg, and he had every occasion to believe, that the murderer had left Dresden that morning in one of the post-wagons. After we had all complied with his order, and dislodged ourselves from the pillar of tobacco smoke in which we sat enveloped, there were two of the company on whom our keeper seemed to look with eyes of peculiar suspicion. I myself was one, and the other was a thin, dark-complexioned, and melancholy looking young man, whom, till this moment, I had not remarked; for of the six benches swung across the wagon, I had sate upon the one nearest the front, and he on that nearest the rear. I bad allowed my beard to grow upon my upper lip, and I believe looked as swarthy as any Jew ever did; but my scanty allowance of nose would have alone satisfied a more skilful physiognomist, that I could not be the guilty man. The other bad somewhat the same cast in that feature, and he wore no mustachio, but his hair seemed to be of the genuine Israelitish jet-and the gens-d'armes were positive that one or other of us must be the murderer. I spoke German with fluency, and with a pretty just accent, and made a statement for myself, which seemed to remove something of the suspicion from me. The other delivered himself with more hesitation, and with an accent, which, whatever it might be, was evidently not Saxon, and therefore the Hussar seemed to take it for granted that it was Jewish, imperfectly concealed. At last, after a good deal of discussion, we were both taken to the Amt-house, where the magistrate of the village sat in readiness to decide on the merits of our case. The circumstances which had determined the chief suspicion of the officers, appeared to weigh in the same manner on the mind of the magistrate, and, at the end of the examination which ensued of our persons and our papers, it was announced, that I might proceed on my journey, but that the other must be contented to remain where he was, till his passport should be sent back to Dresden for the examination of the police. Upon this, my fellow-traveller lost temper, and began to complain most bitterly of the inconvenience to which such a delay would expose him. He was on his way, he said, to Freyberg, where he bad already studied one year under the celebrated Werner, as his passport testified, and he had particular reasons for being anxious to reach his university before a certain day in the following week. The magistrate, who was a very mild looking person, seemed to consider with himself for a moment, and

then said, "A thought strikes me-the son of our clergyman has studied at Freyberg, and if you have really been there, sir, it is probable he may recognize you." My companion had no objections to an experiment, which at least could not place him in a worse situation than that in which he was-and in a few minutes the son of the clergyman made his appearance. I remember as distinctly as if the thing bad occurred only yesterday, the expression of delight which illuminated the countenance of the accused, when this person declared that he recollected him perfectly at Freyberg, and that he had heard Professor Werner speak of him as a young Scotchman who gave infinite promise of being distinguished in the study of mineralogy. This removed every difficulty, and the magistrate, with many apologies, gave us permission to take our seats in the post-wagon. The distance of our positions in the vehicle rendered it impossible for me to exchange more than a very few words with my fellow-sufferer, after we began to move, although, having discovered him to be my countryman, I was sufficiently inclined to enter into conversation. It was late at night before we arrived at Leipsig; and, as I remained there for a day or two, while he passed on, without stopping, to Freyberg, we had no further opportunity of communication. In short, I had never seen the face from that time till now; but I felt assured, that, in spite of the years which had intervened, I could not be mistaken, and here was the very gentleman at the table of Dr. Brewster.

In the course of a few minutes, I heard him addressed by the name of Jameson, and immediately conjectured that he might probably be the well-known Professor of Natural History, whose System of Mineralogy you have often seen on my table. This turned out to be the case; and, after a second bottle had somewhat diminished our ceremony, I had a pleasure in recalling to him the story of the murderous Jew, and so of commencing (for it could scarcely be called renewing) an acquaintance with one from whose works I had received so much information and advantage." After the Doctor's company dispersed themselves, I walked along Prince's-Street with Professor Jameson, and he invited me to call on him next day, and see his museum-an invitation which you, who know my propensities, will not suspect me of declining. He also offered to show me the collection of mineralogy belonging to the University, of which I had heard a great deal. I went yesterday, and it is, undoubtedly.