, 3 s I KODNII AM. THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESENTED BY PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID POPULAR VOYAGES AND TRAVELS, THROUGHOUT THE CONTINENT & ISLANDS OF EUROPE IN WHICH THE GEOGRAPHY, CHARACTER, CUSTOMS, AND MANNERS OF NATIONS ARE DESCRIBED; AND THE PHENOMENA OF NATURE, MOST WORTHY OF OBSERVATION, ARE ILLUSTRATED ON SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES. BY MRS. JAMIESON, (LATE MISS THURTLE,) AUTHOR OF ASHFORD RECTORY; A HISTORY OP FRANCE; A HISTORY OF 8PAIN, &.C. &C. EMBELLISHED WITH ENGRAVINGS. LONDON: PRINTED FOR G. & W. B. WHITTAKER; 13, AVE-MARIA-LANE, LUDGATE-STREET ; AND N. HAILES, MUSEUM, PICCADILLY. 1820. Printed by R. Gilbert, St, John's Square. CONTENTS. CHAPTER T. SECT. PACK L INTRODUCTION II. Geological Survey of the Earth. , 4 CHAPTER II. ENGLAND. I. Oxford and Blenheim 11 II. Coal Mines 13 III. The Scilly Isles and Cornish Mines 17 IV. The Eddystone Light-House 22 V. ^Erial Phenomena Rainbows the Fairy Morgana .... 2o VI. Worcester the Manufacture of Porcelain 30 VII. The Manufacture of Glass its various Properties re- markable Phenomena explained by Glass Tubes 36 VIII. Derbyshire the Peak Buxton Devil's Hole 42 IX. Salt-mines Northwitch 49 X. Chester Antiquities St. Winifred's Well' Conway Castle 51 XI. Wales Lunar Rainbow Snawdon Llewellyn's Grey- hound Beth Gelert ., 55 XII. Beaumaris Druidical Worship 58 XIII. Druidical Remains 59 CHAPTER III. IRELAND. I. Dublin The Gold Mines of Wieklow The Cavern of Dunmore 62 II. Waterford Cork 65 III. The Lake of Killarney The enchanting Echo Cavern, &c 66 IV. Killaloe Limerick Salmon 72 V. Westmeath and Longford Irish Bogs the Mouse Deer 73 VI. Irish Wake 76 VII. The Giants Causeway Basaltic and Granite Rocks .... 78 VIII. Loch Neagh its petrifying Qualities petrifying Springs 82 IX. Sketch of the Surface, Climate and Productions of Ire- land 85 CHAPTER IV. SCOTLAND. I. The Hebrides Loch Lomond The Grampian Hills- Ben Lomond and Ben Nevis .,..,,. , . . , 87 383 iv CONTENTS. SECT. PAGE II. Highland Wedding. . .. . . c ... 92 III. Mull St. Columbo FingaPs Cave * 94 IV. Twilight The Physical Properties of Light 9& V. The Isle of Sky The Orkneys Preparations for Iceland 100 CHAPTER V. ICELAND. I. Introduction Aurora Borealis Seasons Climates. . . . 102 II. now The Polar Ice Heat Cold Evaporation...... 104 III. The Whale Fishery ..... 117 IV. Natural Phenomena of Iceland Hot Springs TheGey- zers . . . . ... ..... ..:... 120 V. Mount Hekla Sulphur Mountain. *...... ,. . . . 129 VL Voyage back to Scotland Tides Saltness of the Sea. . 134 CHAPTER VI. SCOTLAND. I. North of Scotland , 139 II. Edinburgh and its Environs .... ..... . ,, 141 III. General Survey of Scotland, ....... 145 IV. Glasgow and the Falls of the Clyde Melrose Abbey 147 V. Chief Towns of Scotland 149. CHAPTER VII. NORWAY. I. Voyage Storm at Sea ,. % *.., K . .. *..,....... ...... f .... 162' II. Chief Towns of Denmark 157 III. Electric and Aeriform Phenomena Lightning The At- mosphereWind and the Colour of the Sky. . . 157 IV. The Mariner's Compass ^its History and Properties. . 165 V. The Maelstroom Survey of Norway ......... 168 VI. Dolstein Cavern The Silver Mines at Kongsberg Blasting Rocks . . . . 172. CHAPTER IX. DENMARK AND SWEDEN. I. Copenhagen Mode of Travelling in Holstein Museum 179 II. General View of Denmark 180 III. Voyage to Sweden 181 IV. Swedish Manners 184 V. Journey to Upsal Mode of Travelling in Sweden Swedish Houses and Manner of Living 186 VI. The Mines of Sweden The Manufacture of Iron 188 VII. The Mines of Dalecarlia 196 VIII. Customs and Manners of the Swedes North of Sweden General View of this Country 201 IX. The Falls of Dalh ... .; . .. . . . 205 CONTENTS. v CHAPTER X. SECT. RUSSIA. PAGE I, Journey into Russia Its Governments-^Face of Coun- try Exports and ImportsRivers and Inland Naviga- tion . * . * . , . 207 II. Journey continued Places of Worship Petersburgh Palace of Ice Russian Peasantry Travelling on Sledges, &c.. 216 III. Russian Nobility- Affecting Tale of a Young Princess Baseness of Count Orloff 221 IV. Journey continued Dimness of Sight Spectacle- Glasses, their Use 22& V. Twer Fable of the Phoenix Moscow Invasion of Buo- naparte . . ....... ..^ ... * 229 VI. The Principal. Towns in the Russian Empire Their Traffic The Forest of Volonski 233 VII. Wilna Peculiarities in the Russian Manners Odin (the Noah of the North) Proofs of an Universal Deluge Polish NobJemen ,.... 23G CHAPTER XI. PRUSSIA. 1^ Koningsberg Thorn Great Poland Dress Customs 239 H. Frankfort Dresden Berlin t . . 244 CHAPTER XII. GERMANY. I. Its Productions--Table d'Hote Account of the Crimea from a fellow Traveller Cape of the Winds Garnets 246 II. Prague Vienna 253. III. Austrian Customs and Manners Nobility 25& IV. Hungary Peasantry -*~ Mines of Kremnitz Gipseys Buda-^Hun gar ian.' Army Militia, singular Mode of Levying Exercise and Public Employment Modes of Punishment Prison of Keszthley Free Villages 2o8 V. Caves Collections of Fossil Bones in the Mountains of the Hartz Mode of extinguishing Fire ...........,, 268 VI. Productions of the Austrian Dominions Towns Rivers Lakes Minerals Mountains. ...*..... ^ . . 271 VII. Quicksilver Mines tdria Aflecting Tale of Count Al- berti */. ,. , .. , 273 VIII. Chief Towns and Products of Germany Proper Hun- gary and Bohemia Gunpowder Fulminating Silver Munich Its Cathedral Lindau 27B CHAPTER XIII. SWITZERLAND. I. Journey Canton of Gallon Lake of Constance Gran- deur'of the Scenery Abbots of St,G#ll Benedictines vi CONTENTS. SECT. PAGE BathofPreflers Zurich Arsenal Superstitions Costume Fire of St. Elam Zug Seweitz 231 II. Fall of Rosenberg Valley of Mutt a Paradise of Swit- zerlandAvalanchesThe Chapel of William Tell Altorf Mount St. Gothard 288 III. The Rhone Glaciers Lake of Geneva Mount Ger- mini National Airs 292 IV. Swiss Festivities Vines Making of Wines from Grapes, Currants, &c 295 V. Alpine Travelling Forests Larch Trees Poisonous Flowers 299 VI. Swiss Local Distinctions -Funerals Weddings Tomhs The Fribengers The Convent of Haute v ire the Cypress 301 VII. Aquatic Phenomena Clouds Rain Vapours Veloy Castle of Blenai Medicinal Spring Lausanne En- virons of Geneva 306 VIII. Mount Blanc Wetterhorn Valley of Ice Neufchatel Isle of Rousseau Roman Ruins General View of Switzerland 310 CHAPTER XIV. BANKS OF THE RHINE HOLLAND. J. Journey Singular Bridge of Schaufhausen, by Ulric GUrubenham Cassel Frankfort Disparities of Rank -. Amusements^ Coblentz 'The wonderful Spectre of the Broken 31 II. Holland General View of this Country Chief Towns Productions Climate Customs Manners Cleanliness of the Dutch Moravians 320 III. Smoking Cultivation of Tobacco Inundation of the Sea in 1421 Destruction of 100,000 Souls Rhenish Wines The Making of Hollands, or Gin 324 IV. Inundations of Holland 327 V Antwerp, Brussels, &c 330 CHAPTER XV. FRANCE. I. Rheims Face of the Country Productions Canals Population Wines 331 II. Sagacity of Swine Ice Cavern Paris Jar dins des. Plantes Studies of the French Youth 335 III. St. Denis 341 IV. Bois de Boulogne St. Cloud 345 V, The Thuilleries English Economists Royal Library.. Charlatans Theatres 347 VI. The Catacombs St. Germain Auxerrois Massacre of St. Bartholomew * 354 VII. General Survey of Chief Towns Rouen Jts Ma,ufac- CONTENTS. vii SECT. PAGE lures Versailles Orleans Joan d'Arc Blois Tours Poitiers Angouleme La Diligence Bour- deaux Toulouse Clemen ti Isaure Troubadours Knighthood 366 VIII. Journey Southward The Banks of the Garonne Le- gendary Tale attached to the Castle of Orthes 376 IX. Journey of the Pyrennees Sagacity of the Mules 379 CHAPTER XVI. SPAIN. I. Biscay St. Sebastian Early History of Spain History of Gorgorious 380 II. Surface Possessions Climate ~- Mountains Mount Serrat Merino Sheep Cadiz Carthagena Co- runna 384 III. The General Character of the SpaniardsBull Fights Games Police Tolosa Victoria 388 IV. Valladolid Cultivation of Madder Spanish Manners- Gravity Gardens Inns Salamanca 393 V. General Sketch of Portugal Almeida Abrantes Lis- bonEarthquake of 1755 397 VI. Portuguese Character Gaming Oporto Voyage to Cadiz 402 VII. Gibraltar St. Michael's Cave The Fortifications of Gibraltar 405 VIII. Granada The Palace of Alhambra Cordova Toledo Manufacture of Sword Blades Madrid Palace Gallery of Paintings 410 IX. Story ofOlivade The Theatre of Retiro The Prado The Escurial St. Ildefonso Saragossa ^Barcelona Voyage to Marseilles .................. 414 CHAPTER XVII. VOYAGE FROM FRANCE TO ITALY. I. Marseilles Frejus Val Ruins of Cumia Festivals Mountainous Alpine Journey Nice Clocks going 24 Hours 422 II. General Survey of Italy Marble of Carrara Phospho- ric Stones Mountain Flax Manufacture of Asbestos Cloth 428 III. Geography of Italy continued Excursion to Montea Milan Cathedral Lodi Buonaparte Mantua-^- Virgil Church of St. Justina Padua Verona 431 IV. Venice Manners of the Venetians Theatres Panto- mime Remarkable Arlequino and Signor Grimaldi Venetian Ladies Interesting Fate of Foscari Church of St. Mark , . 437 V. Ferrara Padua Italian Town and Farm Bologna The Appenines Inflammable Exhalations, ...,,... 440 viii CONTENTS. SECT. PAGE VI. Splendour of Italian Scenery FlorenceChurch of the Holy Cross The Gallery of Florence Sienna- Beg- gars St. Catherine of Sienna 443 VII. Journey to Rome The Coliseum Prison Scene 447 VIII. Pantheon St. Peter's Vatic an The Catacombs at Rome: Banditti Loss of their Servant-^-Terracina Voyage to Naples Scenery of its Bay Manners Lazeroni Baif the different colleges, by whom, and when, any geographical book will give you that. Months might be profitably occupied in inspecting the dif- ferent libraries, cfturches, and colleges; and, as I hope, when we return from our tour, we shall spend many pleasant days together within the walls of Christ-church, I do not chuse you should take a superficial glance of what is deserving a very large portion of your time and attention. I myself was brought up at Cambridge, and I confess I feel anxious you should also visit that University; though you must pro- secute your studies at Oxford, because I am well acquainted % with the partiality your father had for Oxford. We used, in days of yore, to have many amicable disputes, together as to the superiority of the two colleges. I am vvell aware that Cambridge must yield to Oxford, as far as outward splendour goes, but, being a Cantab, I am bound to support the repu- tation of that University, to which I am so much indebted, against all who shall dare to dispute it, B 6 12 ENGLAND. " Thus you see Edward, how we are beset with preju- dices." Early on the following morning our travellers quitted Oxford for Woodstock, which is celebrated for having been the resi- dence of many of our English monarchs, and for being the spot where Henry II. concealed Rosamond, daughter of Lord Clif- ford, his favourite mistress. There is still pointed out a qua- drangular receptacle of pure water, flowing from a little spring under the hill, which is called her yoell. There are now no remains of the labyrinth, though so late as the middle of the last century part of that, as well as of the old palace, were then in existence. In the year 1705, the manor was settled on John, Duke of Marlborough, by act of Par- liament, and the present superb house, called Blenheim, was erected for his use. This estate is held by the deposit of a small square pale-blue flag in Windsor castle, which must be sent every year, on a particular day, before twelve o'clock. On this slender offering depends the estate. An omission of this flag would forfeit the whole magnificent tenure. Wood- stock has a very fine manufacture of gloves, and formerly it had one of steel watch chains* which are now totally <5ut of date. Upon arriving at Bicestre, ourtravellers were not a little dis- appointed at hearing there were no horses at the inn ; but the landlord assured them he expected a pair in every mo- ment. When the poor animals arrived, they looked knocked up, and neither the doctor nor his pupil could bear the idea that they should go out again. They accordingly ordered beds, and proposed strolling about the environs of the town in the evening. It, however, proved wet, and they were obliged to content themselves at home, when the following conversation took place. DR. WALKER. " Come, Edward, ring for the landlord, perhaps he can lend us some old Magazines, which would while away an hour pleasantly, for it is not worth our pains to unpack our poetic library to night.'' The landlord said, he would do his best, and soon made his appearance, bringing in a large parcel of old magazines, pamphlets, newspapers, and so forth. Dr. Walker. " We shall not lack amusement I perceive, and we are much in- debted to you, landlord." LANDLORD. " Not at all, Sir. I am very glad I have been able to accommodate you. I am sorry you could not take your walk, for I should have been proud of pointing out to COAL MINES. 13 you the scite of the ancient town of Alcestre, which formerly stood close to this place. I have got some coins that were dug up there in a field of mine, which are quite fresh ; per- haps you would like to see them/' DR. WALKER. " Very much indeed.'* Upon inspecting them they were found to be Roman coins, bearing the effigies of Titus Vespasian. DR. WALKER. "What have you there, Edward, that seerns to have so fixed your attention. EDWARD. " An account of the coal mines of England, Sir/' DR. WALKER. " Read it to me, I shall like very much to hear a description of them, as they lay completely out of our beat, and therefore, except from books, we are not likely to know much about them." SECTION II. OF COAL MINES. EDWARD (reading.} " Coals are scattered, with a more or less sparing hand, over every continent, and almost over every kingdom of the globe. But in no country are coal mines so rich and frequent as in our native soil. M. Fau- gas de St. Fond, has ascribed the whole opulence of Eng- land to her coals, as being the very soul of her manufac- tures and consequent commerce. The coals of Whitehaven and Wigan are the most pure ; and the cannel, or peacock, coal of Lancashire, are so beautiful, that they are suspected by some to have constituted the gagates, or jet, which the an- cients ascribed to Britain. It is occasionally met with in Devonshire, as at Bovey-heath, resembling wood impregna- ted with bituminous matter of turf or peat. " It is a common opinion among geologists, that pit coal is of a vegetable origin, and that it has been brought to its present state by means of some chemical process, with which we are still unacquainted. There is one circumstance which gives this opinion, though it may at first appear ex- travagant, considerable plausibility, we mean the existence 14 ENGLAND. of vast depositions of matter, halfway, as it were, between perfect wood and perfect pit coal ; betraying obviously its vegetable nature, and yet so nearly approximating to pit coal in several respects, that it has been generally distin- guished by the name of coal. One of the most remarkable of these depositions exists in Devonshire, about 13 miles south west of Exeter, and is well known by the name of Bovey coal. It has been very well described by Dr. Mills, in the Philosophical. Transactions ; and its vegetable nature has been ascertained by Mr. Hatchett, by a process of chemical experiments, by means of which he found both extractive and resin ; substances peculiar to the vegetable kingdom/' EDWARD, (putting dawn the book.) " What was it defined before it was classed among the vegetable substances, Sir ? r DR. WALKER. " Mineral. But, my dear Edward, you must glance over the subject, and chuse some one particular colliery, and that will give us some idea of all." Edward having slightly skimmed over the subject, selected the coal mines at Whitehaven, for their evening's amuse- ment, and he began as follows :- ** The coal mines at this place are perhaps the most ex- traordinary of any in the known world. Sir John Lowther was the first that wrought them for foreign consumption ; and it has been computed, that this gentleman and his son, Sir James, in the compass of a century, expended in one of them only, upwards of half a million sterling. " The principal entrance into these mines, for men and horses, is by an opening at the bottom of a hill, through a long passage hewn in the rock; which by a steep descent leads down to the lowest vein of coal. The greatest part of this descent is through spacious galleries, which are continu- ally intersected by other galleries ; all the coal being cut away except large pillars, which, in deep parts of the mine, are three yards high, and about twelve yards square at the base ; such great strength being there required to support the ponderous roof. " The mines are sunk to the depth of one hundred and thirty fathoms, and are extended under the sea to places where there is above them, sufficient depth of water for ships of large burthen." " Astonishing !" exclaimed Edward. " These are the deepest coal mines that have been hitherto wrought; and, perhaps, no other miners have penetrated COAL MINES. 15 to so great depth below the sea, as those of Whitehaven. The very deep mines in Hungary, Peru, and elsewhere, being situated in mountainous regions, where the surface of the earth is elevated to a great height above the level of the ocean. " There are here three strata of coal, which lie at a considerable distance above the other, and there is a com- munication by pits between one of these parallel strata and another. But the vein of coal is not always regularly con- tinued in the same inclined plane, but instead thereof, the miners meet with hard rock, which interrupts their further progress. At such places there seem to have been breaks in the earth, from the surface downwards ; and in some of them it may have sunk ten or twenty fathoms, or even more* These breaks the miners call Dykes ; and when they meet with one of them, their first care is to discover whether the strata in the part adjoining be higher or lower than in the part where they have been working ; or, to use their own terms, whether the coal be cast down or up. If it be cast down, they sink a pit to it ; but if it be cast up to any con- siderable height, they are oftentimes obliged, with great labour and expence, to carry a level and long gallery through the rock, until they again arrive at the strata of coal. " Those who have the direction of these deep and exten- sive works, are obliged, with great art and care, to keep them continually ventilated with perpetual currents of fresh air. In the deserted works which are not ventilated with perpetual currents of fresh air, large quantities of damps and noxious exhalations are frequently collected; and in such works they often remain for a long time, without doing any mischief. But when by some accident they are ignited, that is to say set on fire, they then produce dreadful explo- sions, and bursting out of the pits with great impetuosity, like the fiery eruption from burning mountains, they force along with them ponderous bodies to a great height in the air. " The coal in these mines has several times been ignited by these fulminating damps, anci has continued burning for many months, until large streams of water were conducted into the mines, and suffered to fill those parts where the coal was burning. By such fires several collieries have been totally destroyed, of which there are instances near New- castle, and in other parts of England, as well as at Fife in W ENGLAND. Scotland ; in some of which places the fire has continued burning for ages. " In order to prevent as much as possible, the collieries from being filled with those pernicious damps, it has been found necessary, carefully to search for those crevices in the coal, from whence they issue out, and at those places to confine them within a narrow space : and from those narrow spaces in which they are confined, to conduct them through long pipes into the open air, where being set on fire, they consume in perpetual flames, as they continually arise out of the earth. " The late Mr. Spedding, who was the great engineer of these works, having observed that the fulminating damp could only be kindled byjlame, and that it was not liable to be set on fire by red hot iron, nor by the sparks produced by the collision of flint and steel, invented a machine, in which a steel wheel is turned round with a very rapid mo- tion, and flints being applied thereto great plenty of fiery sparks are emitted, that afford the miners such a light as enables them to carry on their work in close places, where the flame of a candle or a lamp would occasion a dreadful explosion." DR. WALKER. " Sir Humphrey Davey has invented a safety lamp upon such an ingenious principle that no dan- ger is now apprehended from accidents of this kind." EDWARD, ( resuming his reading.}" But not so many mines have been ruined by fire, as by inundations ; and here that noble invention the steam engine displays its beneficial effects. It appears from pretty exact calculations, that it would require about 550 men, or a power equal to that of 1 10 horses to work the pumps of one of the largest steam engines now in use, and thrice that number of men to keep an en- gine of this size constantly at work, and that as much water may be raised by an engine of this size, kept constantly at work, as might be drawn up by 2520 men by rollers and buckets, after the manner now daily practised in mines ; or as much as can be borne up on the shoulders of twice that number of men, as is said to be done in the mines of Peru. So great is the power of the elastic steam of the boiling water in those engines, and of the outward atmosphere, which by their alternate actions give force and motion to the beam of this engine, and by it to the pump rods, which SCILLY ISLANDS. 17 elevate the water through tubes, and discharge it out of the mine." DR. WALKER. " You have heard what the Negro said upon seeing one of those steam engines at work. c White man make every thing work, fire, water, earth, and air,, and he boil water to make it work harder.' " SECTION III. THE SCILLY ISLANDS, AND TIN MINES OF CORNWALL. " So much for the coal mines ;" said Dr. Walker, In the year 1709, Mr. John Rudyerd, a silk mercer, undertook the dangerous task ; and although the light-house was erected only of wood, it yet resisted the fury of the winds and waves during forty -six years, and was at last de- stroyed by fire. " Mr. Smeaton, the celebrated engineer, was then chosqn as a person well calculated to repair so important and na- tional a loss. On the 2nd of April, 1757, he laid the foun- dation of the present structure. The rock which slopes to- wards the south-west, is cut into horizontal steps, into which are dove-tailed and united by a strong cement Portland stone and granite. The whole to the height of thirty feet, from the foundation is a solid mass of stones, engrafted into each other, and united by every means of additional strength. The building has four rooms, one over the other, and at the top a gallery and lantern. The stone floors are flat above, but concave beneath, and are kept from pressing against the sides of the building by a chain let into the walls. It is nearly eighty feet high, and since its completion has been repeatedly assailed by the fury of the elements without suffering the least injury.'' EDWARD. " What a life the poor men must have who at. tend to the light. In what manner are these light-houses illumined?" DR. WALKER. " By means of lamps and reflectors. For- merly they were lighted by immense coal fires ; but the pre- sent plan has many and great advantages. The light, in the first place, is much more brilliant, is less expensive, and is not so liable to be affected by the weather, while the man who has the charge of it is neither exposed to wet or cold. And now, Edward, ring the bell : it grows late, and we must rise early in the morning," AERIAL PHENOMENA. SECTION V. OF AERIAL PHENOMENA. 'Qu ii travellers began their journey with the sun on the following day ; and, after a pleasant ride, they arrived to- wards evening at Upton, and from thence proceeded to Great Malvern. The picturesque beauty of the surrounding sce- nery, glowing with an evening sunset, was considerably heightened by the gradual appearance of the resplendent arch of heaven; while the sweet south, upon a bank of vio- lets, refreshed and perfumed by a vernal shower, came waft- ing to them, and regaled their senses with all the sweets of spring. " How resplendent are those colours !" said Ed- ward, as the rainbow became every instant more distinct and brilliant. " Yes," replied the Doctor, " and of all the instances of refrangibility of light, or, in other words, the separation of its primary colours, none is more remarkable, than that of the Iris, or rainbow. It is formed, in general, by the re- flection of the rays of the sun's light from the drops of fall- ing rain, though frequently it appears among the waves of the sea, whose heads, or tops, are blown by the wind into spray and small drops, and it is sometimes seen on the ground, when the sun shines on a very thick dew. " The immediate cause of this refractibility is this. When rays of light pass through one medium and enter another of different density, they are diverted from their former course, and are then said to be refracted. Hence a ray of light en- tering a globule of rain, instead of passing through the cen- tre of the globule, and out at the opposite point by which it entered, it will be driven towards another marginal position, and form an angular line coequal to the obliquity, with which it deviates from a right line on its entering the glo- bule, just as a stake or oar, plunged obliquely into a river, appears to be broken at the ;point at which it enters the wa. ter. Now this ray of light does not, of course, illumine the whole globule, and the unillumined part of the rain drop forming a dark back ground to the ray of light, the globule C 26 ENGLAND. has the property of a mirror. The ray which is thus form- ed is again reflected by the mirror thus produced, and it as- sumes a triangular figure. This angle of light has the pro- perty of a prism, and exhibits what are called prismatic co- lours. The spread of this angle must depend upon the dia- meter of the globule which produces it, and its point being obtuded or softened to the eye by the distance through which it is beheld, the angle must be converted into an arch, thus, and hence a beautiful and variegated bow is produced. The drops of rain falling continually, a new rainbow is produced every moment : and as each spec- tator has his particular situation from which he observes this phenomenon, it so happens that no two persons, properly speaking, can see the same rainbow. " The beautiful colours of the rainbow, to Pliny and Plu- tarch, appeared an object we might admire, but could never explain ; arid the priests of antiquity always preferred the wood, on which the rainbow had appeared to rest, for their sacrifices, religiously supposing this wood had a perfume pe- culiarly agreeable to the gods. " Cascades and fountains, whose waters are in their fall divided into drops, exhibit rainbows to a spectator, if pro- perly situated during the time of the sun's shining ; and \va. ,ter blown violently from the mouth of an observer, whose back is turned to the sun, never fails to produce the same phenomenon. " This appearance is also seen by moon-light, though sel- dom vivid enough to render the colours distinguishable ; and the artificial rainbow may be produced even by candle-light, on the water which is ejected by a small fountain, or jet- d'eau. All these are of the same nature, and dependent on the same causes, viz. the various refrangibility of the rays of light. u The colours observable on soap bubbles, and the halos which sometimes surround the moon, are also referable to the -same origin. " We shall prove this if we darken a room, and permit the sun to shine into it through a small hole in the window- shutter, so that the rays of light be made to fall upon a glass prism : then will these rays, in passing through this prism, suffer different degrees of refraction, and by that means be parted into different rays, which being received upon a sheet AERIAL PHENOMENA. 7 of white paper, will exhibit the following colours, viz. red, orange, yelloiv, green, blue, indigo, and violet ; and if the whole spectrum, or image, be divided into 360 equal parts, the red will occupy 45 of these parts, the orange 27, the yel- low 48, -the green 60, the blue 60, the indigo 40, and the violet 80. " As a ray of the sun may be separated into these seven primitive colours, so, by their mixture in due proportions, may white be produced. White, therefore, is the mixture of all the colours, as black is the want, or deprivation, of colour : and this may be proved, by fixing pieces of cloth of all the seven different colours, on the rim of a wheel, and whirling it round with great velocity ; when it will appear to be white. Though seven different colours are distinguish- able in the prismatic spectrum, yet, upon examining the matter with more accuracy, we shall see that there are, in. fact, only three original colours, red, blue, and yellow ; for the orange being situated between the red and yellow, is only the mixture of these two : the green in like manner, arises from blending the blue, and yellow, and the violet re- sults from the blue and red." Before our travellers reached the principal inn at Malvern, it was nearly dark, and by the titae dinner was over, evening was too far set in to allow them to walk ; they therefore drew their chairs to the fire-side, and Dr. Walker renewed the conversation upon some of the various phenomena of the air. . " You have heard, I dare say, of the Fata Morgana, Ed- ward," enquired the Doctor. " But you never, perhaps, thought of enquiring into its causes. In Scotland these gro- tesque and sometimes beautiful illusions, are .called Glamer ; the English sailors call them Fog-banks, and the French Mi- rage. In order to illustrate this delusion as clearly as may be, it is necessary first of all to call your attention to the variable state of the atmosphere ; which is commonly of an homogeneous, or equable tenuity, and consequently suffers the sun's rays to penetrate it without any obstruction or change ; but it is occasionally irregular, and composed of parts or bodies of a denser medium than its general texture and constitution, in which case the fluent ray, if it do not enter the denser medium in a direct or perpendicular line, will be either reflected, or refracted, or both ; and the object surveyed through it assumes a new, and not unfrequently c2 28 ENGLAND. grotesque appearance. We have seen that in the descent of rain, the globules, when opposed to the sun or moon, at their rising or setting, in a clear sky, produce this effect as in the rainbow. But a globule of rain is not the only sub. stance in the atmosphere capable, at times, of producing the same effect. Nor since we are told that the mirage usually occurs when the sky is peculiarly serene and tranquil, could it be the cause of this singular phenomenon. It is mostly to be seen in the morning, and principally upon the coasts, or banks of large rivers. It has been observed, not unfre- quently, at the back of the Isle of Wight, and on the Scot- tish coasts, where it never fails to excite superstitious sensa- tions ; its appearance being always looked upon by the Highlanders as a most portentous omen.: while at Messina it no sooner begins to unfold its magical beauties, than shouts of joy from the delighted populace announce its ap- pearance, exclaiming with exultation Fata Morgana ! Fata Morgana ! " When the weather is perfectly calm, and consequently the sea almost without motion, the atmosphere, more espe- cially in a dry and hot season, imbibes a considerable por- tion of the water upon which its lower stratum presses, and hence in the night-time becbmes condensed and hazy. As the morning rises, however, and the sun-beams resume their vigour, the atmosphere once more rarefies and re-acquires its transparency. If it rarefy equally and homogeneously, every object beheld through it, must necessarily be exhi- bited in its real proportion and figure ; but it happens occa- sionally, that in some parts of its texture it seems to be more closely interwoven than in others; and hence in its general expansion, veins, or stria?, like those often discovered in glass, make their appearance of different densities and dia- meters. In this case every striae, like every globule of rain, in consequence of the variation of its density, from the com- mon density of the atmosphere, becomes a refracting, or a reflecting body ; in other words, a prism, or mirror, or per- haps both. If then a single globule of rain, properly dispo- sed, be able to produce so marvellous a phenomenon as the rainbow, what phenomena may we not expect, what varia- tion, contortion, and grotesque and monstrous representa- tion of images, beheld through a column of the atmosphere, intersected by so many aerial prisms of different densities, and mirrors of different surfaces, in whiqh the catheti may be innumerable, and for ever varying. AERIAL PHENOMENA. 29 P. Minasi describes three different spectacles of this kind, as appearing at the Toro of Messina, to which he gives the following names : Marine Morgana, which is seen on the surface of the sea; Aerial Morgana, which appears in the air; and the third he denominates, the Morgana fringed luitk prismatic colours. " When the rising sun shines from that point whence its incident ray forms an angle of about forty-five degrees- on the sea of Reggio, and the bright surface c&the water in the bay is not disturbed either by the wind or current, when the tide is at its height,, and the waters pressed up by currents to a great elevation in the middle of the channel ; the spec- tator being placed on an eminence with his back to the sun, and his face to the sea, the mountains of Messina rising like a wall behind it, and forming the back ground of the pic- ture ; on a sudden there appears in the water, as in a catop- tric theatre, various multiplied objects ; that is to say, num- berless series of pilastres, arches, castles well delineated, regular columns, lofty towers, superb palaces, with balconies and windows, extended allies of trees, delightful plains, with herds and flocks, armies of men on foot, on horseback, and many other strange images, in their natural colours, and proper actions, passing rapidly in succession along the sur- face of the sea, during the whole of the short period of time while the above-mentioned causes remain. All these ob- jects, which are exhibited in the Fata Morgana, are proved by the accurate observations of the coast and town of Ileggio, by P. Minasi, to be derived from objects on shore/ 1 EDWARD. " It must be a beautiful as well as extraordi- nary scene. From what is the name derived?" DR. WALKER. " The name is probably derived from art opinion, that the whole spectacle is produced by a fairy or a magician. "If, in addition to the circumstances I before described, the atmosphere be highly impregnated with vapour, and dense exhalations, not previously dispersed by the action of the wind and waves, or rarefied by the sun, it then happens, that in this vapour, as in a curtain extended along the chan- nel to the height of above forty palms, and nearly down to the sea, the observer will behold the scene of the same ob- jects not only reflected from the surface of the sea, but like- wise in the air, though not so distinctly or well defined as the former objects from the sea. c 3 30 ENGLAND. " Lastly, if the air be slightly hazy and opaque, and at the same time dewy and adapted to form the Iris, then the above- mentioned objects will appear only at the surface of the sea, as in the first case, kit ail vividly coloured or fringed with red, green, blue, and other prismatic colours *. " As the day advances, the fairy scene gradually disappears. But the most singular instance of atmospherical refraction I ever heard of, was that described in the Philosophical Trans- actions, as having taken place at Hastings. The coast of Picardy, which is between forty and fifty miles distant from that of Sussex, appeared suddenly close to the English shore. The sailors and fishermen crowded down to the beach, scarcely believing their own eyes ; but at length they began to recognize several of the French cliffs, and pointed out places they had been accustomed to visit. From the sum- mit of the eastern cliff or hill, a most beautiful scene pre- sented itself, for at one glance the spectators could see Dun- geness, Dover cliffs, and the French coast, all along from Calais to St. Valleroy ; and, as some affirmed, as far to the westward, even as Dieppe. By the telescope^ the French fishing boats were plainly seen at anchor ; and the different colours of the land on the heights, with the buildings, were perfectly discernible." EDWARD. " How was this very extraordinary phenome- non accounted for, Sir ?' y DR. WALKER. " Why the refractive power of the atmos- phere was probably produced by a diminution of the density of its lower stratum, in consequence of the increase of heat communicated to it by the rays of the sun, powerfully re- flected from the surface of the earth. The delusion in the desert, between Alexandria and Cairo, mentioned by M. Monge, which represented villages surrounded by water; when they were, in fact, in the midst of burning sands, is attributed to this same cause." SECTION VI. THE MANUFACTURE OF PORCELAIN. WHEN Edward rose the next morning, Malvern hills being covered with a white frost, and illumined by the rising sun,, * P. Milasi. MANUFACTURE OF PORCELAIN. 31 presented a magnificent appearance ; he quickly dressed himself, in order to inhale the pure breezes of the mountain; and when he met the Doctor at breakfast, his countenance glowed with the effects of his morning walk. " These hills/' said the Doctor, " should be denominated mountains ; for the strata is placed in a perpendicular di- rection, which is the distinguishing characteristic of moun- tains. The Worcestershire Beacon is the highest point of the hills; it is 1300 feet perpendicular from the plains. The component parts of these hills are stone of various kinds, but so rugged and brittle as to be unfit in general for any orna- mental work; yet chimney pieces are sometimes made from it, and, when highly polished, they are by no means con- temptible. " Malvern, some twenty or five and twenty years ago, was a thinly inhabited village, perfectly isolated. But since that time, fashion, as well as the salubrity of its air and waters, has rendered it, during one time of the year (the autumn), a place of great resort ; and those who visited it formerly as a comfortable and retired place, must now seek elsewhere an asylum from the gay world. We are not likely to be mo- lested, Edward, for the gay season, which commences after that of Cheltenham is concluded, will not begin for these two or three months. Come, let us see the church. "This church was bought, I understand, by the inhabitants, of John Knotsforde for the sum of two hundred pounds. He was the second possessor, for Henry VIII. gave the priory to William Pinnocke, who alienated it to John Knotsford. Before the conquest, this place was a wilderness, and some of the monks from Worcester Priory retired within its woody recesses, in order to lead an hermetical life. They agreed to follow the order of St. Benet ; and from this small be- ginning, the Priory arose, and became, in the course of time, wealthy ; for at the Reformation, its revenues were worth about 3751. a year: a considerable sum in those days. Malvern Priory, from the benefits conferred upon it by Gi- selbert, abbot of Westminster, was very much subservient to that abbey, and was in fact looked upon as a cell belonging to it. We must not quit this neighbourhood without visit- ing Little Malvern ; and as it is but three miles and a half off, we will walk there. J> Upon arriving at Little Malvern, our travellers were charmed with the romantic scenery which presented itself. The irregular form of this part of the hill, c 4? 32 ENGLAND. adds greatly to its picturesque effect. "Here too there was a monastery," said the Doctor, u a cell to Great Mal- vern. What a strange association of ideas does this small wood excite. In this spot wandered the holy monks, per- fectly secluded from the world, in the midst of rocks, and woods, and mountains. On the top of that hill above us, where there are now the remains of a camp, the Britons are supposed to have made their last stand against the Romans. Strange contrasting figures these: the cowl-clad monks, the naked Britons, and the Romans cased in steel. These were a very different group to that gay assembly now entering the little wicket : let us proceed, there is a warren be} 7 ond this ; and J. think WQ can reach the summit of the hill by this path." They were, however, obliged to retrace their steps ; and after ascending a road to Ledbury, which is cut in the side of the rock, they at length gained the summit, where they were gratified with the most lovely view of the sur- rounding country. The apple trees were in full blossom, and the whole country,, on each side of the hill, had the ap- pearance of a richly cultivated flower garden. Having visited- the Holy Well, which is about halfway between the two Mal- verns, they retired to rest, not a little, fatigued with their day's excursion, which had been performed on foot. About eleven o'clock on the following day, they arrived at Wor- cester ; and having viewed the cathedral, in which are seve- ral fine monuments, they proceeded to inspect the Porcelain Manufactory. Before^ however, they prosecuted this inten- tion, Dr. Walker gave the following paper to his pupil to read. " Porcelain may be regarded the finest kind of pottery ; the art of which consists in working and moulding plastic earths into various kinds, and forms, and uses. " The essential material of pottery is clay, which alone possesses the two requisites for this manufacture, viz. in its natural state it is of so plastic a nature, as to become uniformly soft and pliable, and therefore it can be moulded into any form ; and when thoroughly dried, and after having undergone red heat for some time, of losing this plasticity, becoming firm. and hard, and capable of retaining liquids within its hollow. Clay, however, is in. all instances a very compound material ; it owes its plasticity to alumine, one of the nine primitive earths. It may hence be supposed, that many of the natural clays are sufficiently mixed with MANUFACTURE OF PORCELAIN. 33 other earths, for the potters use without any addition ; but the white and finer clays mostly require dilution with silex; (Hint-sand) in some form or other, which may be done to a considerable extent, without doing away the plasticity re- quisite for working. " The most important circumstances in clay for the pur- pose of making pottery, are these : plasticity, contractility, solidity, and compactness, for drying colours and fusibility. The colour of the earth is also of essential importance in the finer pottery ; but this part of the manufactory is always, and properly, a secret. The whitest looking clays do not always burn white : there is in Staffordshire, at the foot of a range of hills, overlooking the potteries, a stratum of clay, equal apparently in whiteness and texture to the Devonshire clays, but it cannot be used in the finest departments of the manu- factory, because it acquires a cream colour in burning, which no art can correct. " We have defined porcelain to be a species of pottery ware, composed of an earthy mixture, which resists complete fusion in a very considerable heat, but has been brought by a less heat than its melting point r to a state of incipient fu- sion, and is thereby rendered extremely hard, sonorous, and semi-transparent, and possessing a semi-conchoidal splene- tery fracture, approaching to the vitreous, which is com- pletely conchoidal. This last is quite a distinctive character between porcelain and pottery, for the fracture of pottery is extremely granular ; and hence porcelain may be considered as a substance of a middle nature between pottery and glass. " From this circumstance, it appears probable, that no chemical action takes place in pottery, till it arrives at the state of porcelain. The most perfect and beautiful porce- lains of Japan in China, are composed of two distinct earths; one in which silex predominates, and which melts in a strong heat; and another which is infusible PER SE, or by itself: and by the union of these two earths, a porcelain is produced which scarcely vitrifies at the utmost furnace heat, which art can excite. Of the beautiful European porcelains, which have been made in imitation of the original, it does not ap- pear, that any of them unite all its excellencies. The infu- sibility of the Nankin and Japan china, which is not affected by the intense heat of a wind furnace, is not to be met wittr, in the finer porcelains of Europe," c5 34 ENGLAND. EDWARD. I think that is of very little consequence ; and while we can produce the beautiful Worcester, Colebrook-' dale, and Swansea porcelain, the Chinese may keep then' dragon and uncouthly ornamented China.'* DR.WALKER. " You would then rather have a beautifuf set of painted Worcester porcelain, than a real set of Nankin." EDWARD " Iwould indeed, Sir. I have yet one question to ask you. You said alumine was one of the original earths. What are the others ?" Dn. WALKER. " Notwithstanding the varied appearance- of the earth under our feet, and of the mountainous parts whose diversified strata present to our view sub- stances of every texture and every shade, the whole is com- posed of only nine primitive earths ; and as three of these occur but seldom, the variety which is produced by the other six become more remarkable. To give a still greater 1 variety to the works of nature, these earths are endowed with an affinity for acids and metallic oxydes, whence arise the spars, gems, and precious stones of every colour and every species. These nine earths are silica, alumina, lime, barytes, magnesia, strontian, yttria, glucino, and zirconia. Five of these are particularly useful. Lime is the basis of all mortars and cements ; silica, or silex, is a necessary in- gredient in earthenware arid glass ; barytes is employed in chemical laboratories as a re-agent, and for the formation of salts ; magnesia being the basis of several salts, is of great' use in medicine ; and alumina, by a due mixture with silex, is capable of forming vessels for chemists, that will resist the action of the most concentrated acids, and it is the material of which bricks are formed." Our travellers experienced much amusement from the in- spection cf the porcelain work ; but the various processes in" the formation of this beautiful article, would be but little un- derstood by description, and we shall therefore not attempt* So difficult and discouraging a task. Having strolled over the field on which the celebrated battle of Worcester was fought, so fatal to the interests of Charles II., they returned to their inn where they were to pass the night. After dinner having seated themselves comfortably by the fire-side, " Now tell me, Edward/' Said the Doctor, " what is the cause of the steam round that: battle of wine which is just placed on the table/' MANUFACTURE OF PORCELAIN. 35 EDWARD. " I cannot tell you the cause, Sir, although I have often observed, that when a decanter containing any thing cold is brought into a warm room, it is always covered with dew/' DR. WALKER. " Well then, I will explain it to you : but this explanation will lead me first of all to define the word Caloric, which would be scientifically applied in the descrip- tion of this phenomenon. The word caloric is synonymous with fire, or that substance which produces the sensation we call heat, but reverts the sensation itself, or the effect pro- duced by fire. Animal heat is preserved chiefly by the in- spiration of atmospheric air. If the hand be put upon a hot body, part of the caloric leaves the hot body and enters the hand ; this produces the sensation of heat. On the con. trary, if the hand be put upon a cold body, part of the ca- loric contained in the hand, leaves the hand to unite with the cold body ; this produces the sensation of cold. Caloric comes to us from the sun, at the rate of 200,000 miles in a second of a minute. It may also be procured by combustion, percussion, friction, the mixture of different substances, and by means of electricity and galvanism. The absorption of the atmosphere by caloric, cannot be better seen than in the example before us. The bottle being colder than the sur- rounding air, absorbs caloric from it, and the moisture which that air held in solution, becomes visible, and forms the dew which is deposited on the bottle." From Worcester our travellers proceeded to Kiddermins- ter, where they stopped one day in order to view the carpet manufactory in that place. " The first carpet made in England/' said Doctor Walker, " was manufactured under the direction of Anthony Du- foysy, who was brought from France by Lord Pembroke, the present earl's grandfather. The manufacturers of Wil- ton, about twenty years ago, obtained a patent, which among other particulars, specified, that the carpets should be made 'with bobbin and anchor. Some persons, however, at Kidder- minster, having obtained an insight into the process of the manufactory, procured some looms on the same principle, with this trifling difference, that they were worked with bobbins and balls, instead of anchors, and thus they eluded the infringement of the patent* The carpets at Axminster are woven in one entire piece; and although the genuine Turkey and Persian carpets are most valued, yet the imita- c 6 36 ENGLAND. tions of them by English manufacturers^ are brought to great perfection, they are so far improved as to be little inferior to the far-famed Parisian manufacture ; English carpets are indeed, superior to those of foreign countries in beauty of colours, and neatness and taste in the patterns." From Kiddermister they proceeded to Stourbridge, cele- brated in particular for its glass manufactory. On their way thither, the conversation turned upon the formation and origin of this beautiful article. SECTION VII... THE MAKING OF GLASS, "GLASS," said Dr. Walker, " is, strictly speaking, a chemical substance : you know the discovery of glass is atr tributed to chance/' EDWARD. " Yes : some Phcenecean merchants, as Pliny relates, having been driven by a storm at sea to the mouth of the river Belus, kindled a fire on the shore, in order to dress their food. They were greatly surprised after their meal was finished, at observing a transparent substance round the spot where their fire had been lighted." DR. WALKER.-" True : but you have not said what com- posed the shining transparent substance. It was a mixture of the herb pali,. and the siiicious particles, or sand on the shore, the glittering nature of which was peculiarly adapted for composing this useful and beautiful material. Certainly the first glass-houses mentioned in history were those at Tyre. The word glass is formed of the Latin glastum, a plant ; called by the Greeks istatis ; by the Romans vitrum ; by the Ancient Britons, guadorn ; and by the English, iword. The ancient writers make frequent mention of this plant, as one from which the Britons dyed their bodies blue, and hence the fictitious matter of which we are speaking, obtained the name of glass, as having always somewhat of this blueishness in it. There was a plate of glass found amidst the ruins of Herculaneum, and this place you know was destroyed so long ago as the year 80. As to the use to which this plate was applied, that is not ascertained, aU MAKING OF GLASS. 37 though the most probable speculation refers to its applica- tion as a mirror. Before the Romans invaded Britain, glass- houses had been erected in this country, as well as in Gaul, Spain, and Italy. In many parts of the country glass amu- lets have been found, called by the Britons glieneu reigreedh^ or glass adders; these were probably used by the Druids as amulets^ or charms. In the time of Tiberius, we hear of glass being made among the Romans ; and by the time of Nero, the art had arrived at a considerable degree of per- fection ; for the glass bowls rivalled those of porcelain in value, and equalled the cups of crystal in their transparency. The venerable Bede mentions, that glass-makers came into England in the year 674*, under the protection of the Abbot Benedict, who were employed in glazing the church and mo> nastery of Weremouth. Other authors say, they were brought over by Wilfrid, bishop of Worcester, much about the same time. In the year 1180, glass windows became Vry general, but previous to this period glass was considered as an extraordinary mark of magnificence. Venice for many years excelled all Europe in the fineness of its glasses ; and in the thirteenth century the Venetians were the only people that had the secret of making crystal looking-glasses. "The glass manufacture was first set up in England in the year 1557, at Crutch ed Friars, and at the Savoy the fine Hint glass was first manufactured. Glass plates for looking- glasses were not made in this country until the year 1673, at Lambeth, by the encouragement of the then Duke of Buckingham, who brought over some Venetian artists for that purpose. The French soon learnt the art, and cast plates of an immense size. "Thus much, Edward, for its origin, and the time in which it was discovered. Now for its properties. " Glass is one of the most elastic bodies in nature. If the force with which glass bells strike each other be reckoned sixteen, that wherewith they recede by virtue of their elas- ticity, will be nearly jifieen. "When glass is suddenly, cooled, it becomes exceeding brittle ; and this brittleness is sometimes attended with very surprising phenomena. Hollow bells made of annealed (suddenly cooled) glass, with a small hole in them, will fly to pieces by the heat of tire hand only, if the hole by which the internal and external air communicate, be stopped with a finger. Lately however, some vessels made of such an- 38 ENGLAND. nealed glass have been' discovered, which have the remark- able property of resisting very hard strokes given from with, put, . though they shiver to pieces by the shocks received from the fall of verj' light and minute bodies dropped into their cavities. These glasses may be made of any shape ; all that is necessary in their formation is, that the bottom should be thicker than the sides. The thicker the bottom is, the easier do the glasses break. A glass having the bottom three inches in thickness, flies with as much ease as the thinner glass would do. Some of these vessels have been struck by a mallet with force sufficient to drive a null into wood tolerably hard, and have not been broken : they have also resisted the shock of heavy bodies let fall into their ca- vities, from the height of two or three feet, such as musket- balls, pieces of iron, and other metals, jasper wood, bone, and so forth. But this is not surprising, because other glasses will do the same, but the wonder is, that taking a shiver of flint of the size of a small pea, and letting it fall into the glass, only from the height of three inches, in about two minutes the glass flies, and sometimes at the moment of the shock ; a bit of flint no larger than a grain of sand drop- ped into several glasses successively, though it did not im- mediately break them, yet when set by, they all flew in less than three quarters of an hour. " Sapphire, diamonds, porcelain, hard-tempered steel, pearls, and marbles, such as boys play with, produce the same extraordinary effect. It is also remarkable, that the glasses broke upon having the bottoms rubbed with the finger, though some of them did not break till half an hour afterwards. If the glasses are every where thin alike, they do not break under these circumstances." EDWARD " How very extraordinary. Can you account for this curious phenomenon, Sir ?*' DR.WALKER. " Not very satisfactorily. Some have pre- tended to account for these circumstances, by attributing them to the concussion produced, by dropping the articles- into the cavities of the glasses, which being stronger than the cohesive powers of the glass, a rupture must necessa- rily ensue ; but this reason is by no means conclusive, unless they could tell us what principle it is which makes the small piece of flint, weighing about two grains, more powerfully concussive than iron, copper, gold, and so forth, which are a thousand times heavier than -the MAKING OP GLASS. 30 fflnt. Perhaps the most plausible cause may be that of electricity ; for if the effect were produced by the mere force of percussion, the fracture would take place instantly, but that is not always the case. It is evident, therefore, that this effect is occasioned by the putting in motion some subtile fluid with which the substance of the glass is filled, and that the motions of this fluid, when once excited in a particular part of the glass, soon propagate themselves through the whole, or greatest part of it, by which means the cohesive powers- become too weak to resist them. There can be little doubt but that this fluid is electricity. Glass is known to contain a large quantity of this powerful fluid, which possesses the power of breaking glasses, even when an- nealed with the greatest care ; if put into too violent motion. Probably the cooling of glass hastily, may make it more electric than is consistent with its cohesive power, so that it is broken by the least increase of motion in the electric fluid, by friction or otherwise. This is evidently the case, when it is broken by the touch of the finger ; but why it should also break by the mere contact of the flint, and the other bodies I have mentioned, has not yet been satisfacto- rily accounted for. " I can tell you of another phenomenon equally remark- able, and which has never yet been explained, neither does it appear probable that it should. When glass tubes are laid before a fire, in an horizontal position, having their ex- tremities properly supported, they acquire a rotatory motion round their axis, and also a progressive motion towards the ftre, even when their supports are declining from the fire, so that the tubes will move a little way up hill towards the fire; When the tubes are placed in nearly an upright posture, leaning to the right hand, the motion will be from east to west, but if they lean to the left hand, their motion will be from west to east; and the nearer they are placed to the upright posture, the less will the motion be either way. If the tube be placed horizontally on a glass plane, the frag- ment for instance of a coach*window glass ; instead of moving towards the fire, it will move from it, and about its axis in a contrary direction to what it had done before, nay it will' even recede from the fire, and move a little up hill when the plane inclines towards the fire. Now, these are most extra- ordinary and most unaccountable experiments which* are all recorded in the Philosophical Transactions. The philosophers who made these experiments, succeeded 40 ENGLAND, best with tubes, about twenty or two and twenty inches- long, which had in each end a pretty strong pin, fixed in a cork for an axis.'' EDWARD. u How exceedingly curious !'* DR.WALKER. "Having thus discussed its wonders, we will proceed to a more minute description of its formation. The materials employed in the manufactory of glass, are by che- mists reduced to three classes, viz. alkalies, earths, and me- tallic oxydes. Alkalies possess the following properties : they have the power of converting a vegetable blue to a green co- lour ; manifest a hot and caustic taste; and are soluble in water. They are divided into classes fixed and volatile, and are again subdivided into vegetable and mineral ; the former being the production of vegetables burnt in the open air, and the latter has sometimes been found in a natural state in the earth. Marine plants however, furnish the largest quantity, of this valuable article. There are but three alka- lies known at present Potash, Soda, and Ammonia. Pot- ash and soda are termed fixed alkalies, but ammonia is a vo- latile alkali ; when dissolved in caloric in the form of gas, it has a pungent and suffocating smell. Ammonia is procured by burning animal substances. Formerly it was imported in large quantities from Egypt, as contained in sal ammoniac. This was prepared from camel's dung, but it is now obtained from a distillation of bones, and is called hartshorn. These digressions will arise from the description of all chemical-* processes. As you wish thoroughly to comprehend the sub- ject under discussion, I shall therefore have no scruples in; making them they are by far too curious to weary your attention.'' EDWARD. " Indeed they are, Sir.'M DR.WALKER. " The fixed alkalies may be employed in- differently, but soda is preferred in this country. The soda of commerce is usually mixed with common salt and car- bonic acid, from both of which it must be purified, before it can be used in making glass. The earths are sdicia, the basis of flints, lime, and a little alumina, the basis of clay. Rock crystal is sometimes used when the glass is to be par- ticularly fine. " The metallic oxydes employed, are the red oxydeof lead called minium, or litharge, and the white oxydeof arsenic. The oxyde of lead, when added in sufficient quantities, enters into fusion with lead, and forma a glass without the addition o MAKING OF GLASS. 41 any other ingredient. This oxyde renders glass less brittle and more fusible, but if added in too large quantities, it in- jures its transparency. The oxyde of arsenic is not much used on account of its poisonous qualities/' EDWARD. " How do they produce the beautiful colour- ed glasses." DR. WALKER. " Blue glass is formed by means of oxyde of cobalt; cobalt is a fossil, of the morcasite species, con- taining a large quantity of arsenic. " Green glass, by the oxyde of iron, or copper. " Violet glass^ by oxyde of manganese. Manganese is a bril- liant metal, of a dark grey colour, of considerable hardness, and difficult fusibility. It is very brittle, and when in powder it has the peculiar property of being attracted by the magnet. The oxydes of manganese are also used in blacking, and in purifying glass, as well as colouring it; it is likewise employ- ed in glazing black earthenware. The black oxyde is also much used by chemists, for producing oxygen gas, which by the application of a red heat, it yields in great abundance. " lied glass, by a mixture of the oxydes of copper and iron. " Purple glass, by the purple oxyde of gold. " White glass, by the oxyde of arsenic and zinc : and " Yellow glass, by the oxyde of silver, and by com* bustible bodies. " These, my dear Edward, are the principal properties and articles used in the composition of glass ; as to the manner of its formation into plates,. &c. that you will see at Stour- bridge. " You will do well to make a memorandum of what I have told you." Our travellers having taken some refreshment, were im- patient to view the glass-houses, where they were greatly amused with the dexterity with which the men blew the glass into such various shapes and forms. Those des- tined for watch glasses are blown into a globular form ; one globe making many glasses, which are cut by an iron ring. All glass, except plate glass, is formed by dipping the end of a very long iron pipe, when red hot, into the boiling glass, and blowing through it, till the bladder of glass is of the size necessary for the purpose to which it is destined, it is then cut up the middle with a pair of shears, if for window glass, or separated by means of cold water, if destined to be of a circular, or any such form,. 43 ENGLAND. Plate-glass is cast ; that is to say, the liquid is conveyed from the mouth of the furnace to a large taWe, on which it is poured, and the excrescencies, or bubbles, are immedi- ately removed by a roller, that is swiftly passed over it ; it is then cooled, or annealed in the usual way, by being re- moved by degrees to the coolest part of the annealing chamber. SECTION VIII. DERBYSHIRE. OUR travellers pursued their journey rapidly till they came to Derby, where they made a short stay, previous to their visit to the Peak. Derby is situated on the west bank of the Derwent, over which it has a fine stone bridge, well built, upon which there was formerly a chapel^, now converted into a dwelling- house. The celebrated silk mill, erected by Sir Thomas Lambe about the middle of the last century, afforded much entertainment to our travellers. Sir Thomas brought the model from Italy, where he ran great risks in procuring it; but having accomplished his end, he embarked for his na- tive country, bringing with him so great a treasure. There are nearly 100,000 movements turned by a single wheel, any one of which may be stopped independent of the rest. Every time this wheel goes round, which is three times in every minute, it works 73,728 yards of silk. Tile money given by strangers who inspect this mill, is put into a box, which is opened the day after Michaelmas day, and a feast is made for the men, women, and children, who are employed in the works. This is a holiday fondly anticipated by this part of the community. Drest in their best attire, they gaily assemble to partake of a whole roasted ox, and other good fare, which is provided for them. Singing and dancing conclude the evening's amusement, and the town is illuminated. Derby contains also a china manufactory, and the Derbyshire spars are worked into every kind of WIRKS WORTH. 43 gtiape art can devise, for ornamental purposes. There are many fine seats in this neighbourhood, but our travellers had no time for their inspection. They stopped indeed at Ham to view its romantic gardens, in which two rivers rise^ from the bottom of the mountain called Thorpe Cloud. The one called the Manifold, which runs under ground seven miles. Chaff thrown in at Wetton rises here; it boils up like a vast spring, and soon afterwards falls into the Dove. From Ham they proceeded to Dove Dale, a narrow winding glen, among a variety of rocks, through which the river Dove cakes its irriguous course for about two miles. It is bounded in a very romantic manner by hills, rocks, and hanging woods, forming altogether a most lovely picture. This river, which in summer represents a crystal mirror, re- flecting the wild beauties of its romantic banks* assumes, in winter, that of a rapid stream, whose course, interrupted by fragments of the fallen rocks, is beautifully diversified by cascades, which though not stupendous enough to lay any claims to the sublime, are yet extremely beautiful. Passing through Ashborne, Ulcester, and Kiddleton, they left the Derwenton the right, which from the accession of the waters from the Peak Hills, assumed a most formid- able appearance, and its roar was heard at a considerable distance. They at length arrived at Quarn, or Quarendon, where is a famous chalybeate spring, and from thence ad- vancing due north, they began to view the dismal mountains of the Peak, although still at some distance. At Wirksworth they slept, and the next day arrived at Matlock, seated upon the edge of the Derwent. The en- virons of this beautiful spot form a winding vale of about three miles through which the river runs. The Derwent is extremely varied, both as to breadth and force; in some places it is broad, clear, and smooth, in others it breaks upon the rocks, and forms innumerable cascades, whose light foam falls like showers of mist upon the admiring spec- tator. Our travellers crossed the river at the turnpike, and took the winding path up the rock, which led to a luxuri- ent range of fields at the top, when turning to the left they reached the point called Hag Roek. From this spot they had a perpendicular view down a vast precipice to the river, which here forms a fine sheet of water fringed with wood on the opposite side; it falls twice ove,r the rocks, and the beauty of the scenery receives additional effect from the 44; ENGLAND. roar of the falling, waters. To describe minutely the lovely and wildly beautiful country which surrounds Matlock, would encroach too much upon the limits of this work, it is sufficient to say, that few places excel it, but we cannot omit the mention of three caverns which lie to the west and north-west of this romantic place, that most particularly interesting is called Cumberland Cavern, the entrance to which is partly artificial, to afford a greater facility to the curious; traveller, who has to descend fifty. four steps, when the cavern opens in solitary grandeur. Huge masses of stone are piled on each other, with tremendous carelessness, evi- dently produced by some violent concussion, though at an unknown period. " With what regularity is the cieling formed," said the Doctor, as they passed through a long and wide passage, the roof of which is bespangled by spars of various description. From above, from beneath, and from the sides, the rays of the light are reflected in every direction. The next apartment is composed of rocks heaped on rocks, in terrible array, while the adjoining chamber presents the appearance of a rocky country, in which the snow has been drifted. Near the extremities of the cavern are to be seen fishes petrified, and fixed in the seve- ral strata which form the surrounding recess. Several of these have their backs jutting out of the side of the earth, as if they had been petrified in the act of swimming. Upon arriving at Buxton, " These baths," said Dr. Walker,