and neatness superior to what has been hitherto observed: they reside in large villages, particularly remark able for the colossal figures which decorate the houses of the principal inhabitants, and the gaping mouths of which serve as doors. Above the largest of these villages there is a fort, the parapet of which is covered with a fine turf, and surrounded by a palisade, in good condition.

Itomtchou, the principal chief of Masset, came on-board with his three wives, and was so satisfied with the reception given him, that he wished to change names with M. Roquefeuil; who, to oblige him, because he could not pronounce the whole name, made the diminutive Roki. They conversed by means of a native of Skitigats, one of the principal of Queen Charlotte's Island, named Intchortge, who made himself well understood in English, and piqued himself on having the manners of Boston; for the inhabitants of this coast, who have hardly any intercourse except with the ships of that city, consider Boston as the capital of the civilized world.

The inhabitants of Friends' Cove (Anse des Amis,) are always at war with their neighbours: they probably have been, and perhaps still are, Antropophagi. It is only to the Europeans that they show any good-will. Their chiefs, who are at the same time their high-priests, call themselves relations of the sun. The members of their families, to the third degree, form the class of patricians under the name of Tahis Calati; the others, who are a kind of slaves, are called Mitschimis. The miserable half-naked chiefs of these hungry tribes, dirty inhabitants of smoky and filthy huts, are as proud of their illustrious origin as the first potentates of the civilized world; and it is a frequent subject of their conversation. Their wives and daughters participate in this pride.

A wife is not to be had but by making presents to her relations. The poor Mitschimis are for the most part obliged to live in celibacy; while there, as on the whole north-west coast, the plurality of wives is the privilege of the chiefs and nobles. Very different from the South-Sea islanders, the women of this country behave with great modesty.

The dialect of Noutka is full of consonants and aspirations; which, however, are not so harsh as in the lan

guages of the northern part of the coast,-"in which (says the author,) there are sounds resembling the kind of hissing that cats make when angry: we frequently met with terminations in tz, tl, or tzl, as in the Mexican. This little tribe is indolent, poor, and weak; but they are generally pretty sensible, inclined to good, and grateful for kindnesses.

It unfortunately appears that it is now much more dangerous to deal with the Indians of the north-west coast, since they have become acquainted with the Europeans, and have obtained fire-arms. M. Roquefeuil relates various instances of their having attacked European ships. He himself made an agreement, at the Russian settlement of New Archangel, with Mr. Heigmeister, the governor; according to which the Russian Company was to furnish him with thirty baidares, for the purpose of taking sea-otters. Each baidare was to be manned with two Kodiak hunters; the whole under the superintendance of two agents: the produce was to be equally divided, and an indemnity of 200 piastres paid for every Kodiak who should lose his life in an attack from the Indians. With every prospect of success, M. Roquefeuil proceeded to the north-west part of the Prince-of-Wales's Island. Having reconnoitered the country for several leagues round, and found no signs of population, the Kodiaks were landed, and even allowed to bivouac on shore. Some Indians, but in small numbers, showed themselves from time to time, to sell their furs. On the 18th of June, 1818, the Indians suddenly disappeared; which exciting Mr. R.'s suspicions, he resolved not to let the Kodiaks pass that night on-shore: but, not thinking there could be any fear of the Indians during the day, he deferred recalling the Kodiaks till the evening. However about noon, walking alone at some distance from the camp, he was surprised at hearing a musket-shot, immediately succeeded by a brisk and continued discharge. Judging, therefore, that the Indians must have attacked the camp, he was proceeding in that direction; but, seeing the Kodiaks fly without resistance, in complete disorder, he thought it necessary to provide for his personal safety, and called to the boat which had brought him on-shore, and bad not yet reached the ship; but he was

not

not heard: ho therefore undressed, and threw himself into the sca, with his watch in his mouth.

Meantime the ship fired upon the Indians, and sent out the long-boat, which steered first towards the camp, but, perceiving M. Roquefeuil, turned aside, and reached him not far from shore. It was soon received by a very brisk fire from the Indians, which it returned. "I made an unsuccessful attempt to get into the boat, in which I perceived several persons that were wounded; unwilling to detain the boat under the fire of the Indians, who were very numerous, and seeing no Kodiak to assist on that side, I ordered it to stand off, without losing time to take me up. I kept close to it as it retired, firing towards the camp, and got in when it could stop without danger. Of the seven men on-board, four were wounded, two of them only slightly. The result of this unfortunate affair was, that of the forty-seven Kodiaks who were in the camp at the moment of the attack, twenty were killed, twenty-five escaped by swimming, or were saved by our boats, and two were missing, supposed to be drowned. Of the twenty-five who escaped the massacre, twelve were wounded, most of them very severely. The Indians, it seems, had approached under the cover of a wood, and suddenly fell upon the Kodiaks, who were lulled in the most perfect security they were all killed by musketshot, and most of them had several wounds."

It is indispensable to employ the greatest prudence in the communications with the natives of the northwest coast. Vancouver, and all the navigators who first visited them, experienced their hostile and perfidious dispositions, which have been only encreased by the means of destruction which the possession of fire-arms has put into their power. Though their confidence is augmented in the same proportion, they never attack but by surprise. Ten or twelve American vessels have been attacked by them in this manner at different times; most of them suffered considerable loss, and two were seized and carried off about twelve years ago.

Capt. Told, of the American ship Tonquin, after having re-victualled the establishment on the Columbia, where he had lost a boat and several men by his obstinacy and rashness,

1

was killed by the Indians, subjects of Maconina, at an anchoring-place under Woody Point. The second catastrophe, at Clayoquot, was also caused by imprudence, Wicananich bad gained the confidence of the captain: the latter being very eager to take advantage of a breeze to leave the port, where he had been detained by contrary winds, the chief offered to send some of his people on-board to assist him; the captain having been so incautious as to receive these perfidious auxiliaries, they suddenly fell upon the crew, and killed or wounded the captain and most who were on deck. Fortunately, the chief mate and some of the crew had time to take refuge in their quarters, where their sick comrades were, and escaped the first fury of the attack, as well as those who were employed in loosening the sails; these latter made such good use of the balls that were kept in the round top, that they enabled their comrades to sally from their retreat, and act offensively. These brave mén, after extraordinary efforts, repulsed their perfidious enemies; and, having procured arms, entirely drove them from the vessel. The ship having run aground during the unequal contest, the remainder of the brave crew abandoned it in the night, and arrived safely in the long-boat at Columbia.

Some visits, which M. Roquefeuil made to the islands of the Great Ocean, have procured some new information, of which the following remark on the Marquesas Islands is an instance. The isle of Oevahoa, the most fertile of this Archipelago, where M. Roquefeuil procured 4000 lbs. of sandal-wood, possesses a kind of bards, who go to the neighbouring islands to sing their poems to very monotonous airs, which have much resemblance to church-music. They accompany their voice either by clapping their hands, and striking on dif ferent parts of their body, or with large drums, which appear to be their only instruments. These concerts procure them numerous presents. For these fêtes there is in every valley a rectangular space, from a hundred to a hundred and thirty yards long, and from twenty-five to thirty broad, surrounded by a parapet, breast high, ten feet thick; often bordered with a row of trees, and surrounded by avenues, which afford pleasant walks.

The necessity of taking in wood water

water, and provisions, induced our author to visit Hanarura, in the island of Woahoo, one of the Sandwich Islands, and an excellent port, which nature has formed in the coral reef on the southern side of that island. The inhabitants of the Sandwich Islands, notwithstanding their frequent intercourse with civilized nations, have changed little in their abodes and mode of living; but they have adopted the tools of our carpenters, and use them dexterously. They are familiar with our fire-arms; and like some of our manufactures, particularly light blue cloth.

Their cattle have increased: they have considerable herds of oxen, sheep, and goats; and also horses, which came originally from California. The natives cultivate hardly any thing but cucurbitaceous plants; but M. Roquefeuil found at Woahoo an old Prussian soldier, who practised gardening with success, and furnished ships with excellent vegetables. Another European obtained pretty good wine from vines which he brought from California.

The Americans have obtained several cargoes of sandal-wood from Woahoo; and Tameamea himself sent some to China, on-board one of his ships, the flag of which had seven horizontal white and red stripes. This wood is still common in the four principal islands; but it has ceased to be much in request in Canton, and the Russians, who had formed an establishment on this latter island to procure it, have given it up, because the expenses exceeded the profit. So much the better: we could have wish

ed that all these pretty islands in the

Great Ocean had been reserved for the unfortunate, who seeks a peaceful asylum; for the missionary, who feels himself called to preach the Divine Word; for some founder of a virtuous society, who, in subduing the savage tribes before they were acquainted with fire-arms, would have civilized them by the power of his benefits, the example of his companions, and the regular education of their children. Providence has ordained otherwise: sailors, merchants, exiles, have spread new vices, and new means of destruction. However there are still many positions where, with some slender means of cultivation and defence, a colony, well composed, subject to wise laws, and skilfully governed,

would become in a few years a flou rishing republic.

M. Roquefenil gives us some idea respecting the immense trade which the Americans carry on with Canton. Thirty of their ships, the burthen of which amonnted all together to 2200 tons, arrived there from the 1st of July, 1815, to the 30th of June, 1816. In the following year there were thirty-eight ships, the total tonnage of which was 13,096 tons; the next year thirty-nine, carrying 14,325 tons; and lastly, forty-seven vessels in the first ten months of the season of 1818 and 1819. This commerce occasions a great exportation of money, to the prejudice of the United States. The total amount of the importation into China by American ships was, in the three first years above mentioned, 15,213,000 piastres, of which 12,068,000 was in ready money.

The English, on the contrary, have found means to make the Chineso accept in payment the woollen goods and metals of England, also cottons, opium, and other articles of British India. In the season 1817-18 there arrived in China sixteen of the Company's ships sent from England, and thirty-nine private vessels fitted out in India. The English goods imported amounted to the value of 3,670,000 piastres, and those of India to 12,456,000 piastres.

The numerous nautical and hydrographical observations in the narrative of this voyage do the greatest honour to the talents of M. Roquefeuil.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR, HE

passagers mentioned by Mr.

Lacey occurs in the second part of Shakspeare's “Henry the Fourth,” but no particular set of chimes appears to be alluded to. Falstaff, when reminded by Shallow of their juvenile frolics, simply says, "We have heard the chimes at midnight." Shallow, it is true, in a previous scene remarks, that he "was once of Clement's Inn;" yet the chimes heard by him and fat Jack might be those of any other parish, since their rambles appear to have been very excursive: he says to Falstaff, presently after, “Do you remember since we lay all night in the Windmill in St. George's-fields?" So much for this momentous point.

I wish your correspondent had been somewhat more minute in his account

of

of the parish; for he has left unnoticed several interesting spots: amongst others, the forum of Orator Henley, in Portsmouth-street, and the Black Jack, close by,-once the resort of all the wits and good fellows about town connected with the press. The adjoining inn, too, he has treated with utter neglect, though there are several curious anecdotes connected with it. Like Shallow, I was of Clement's once myself, and therefore feel a peculiar attachment to the neighbourhood. THE DRUID IN LONDON.*

September 3.

very efficacious :-The head should be frequently shaved, and kept covered with an oiled-silk cap, or instead of which a thin bladder has sometimes been used. An ointment should be formed, by mixing together spermaceti cerate and finely pulverized supertartrate of potass, in such proportions as to make it of a very firm consistence; of which a piece the size of a nutmeg, or larger, according to the extent of the surface affected, should be well rubbed on the part with the palm of the hand, every night, for three or four minutes; the bead should be well washed with soap and

SIR,

OF

F those diseases which do not endanger life, nor destroy any part of the animal organization, few are of more importance than that which is well known by the popular appellation of ring-worm of the scalp, the Porrigo scutulata of medical writers. This disease, which is peculiar to children, has long been a source of terror in schools; having materially injured many respectable seminaries. In families it has been a tedious and very expensive visitor; remaining, in many instances, for years, resisting protracted and painful modes of treatment, and excluding the little sufferers from desirable places of instruction.

Dr. Bateman declares it to be avery unmanageable disease, and many members of the medical profession coincide with the doctor in that opinion, Viewed in this light, it is most certainly an affection of importance, and an efficacious remedy is worthy the attention of the public. Fifteen years of successful practice in this disease, the writer considers to be a sufficient authority for the assertions he may make respecting its cure.

A malady so well known does not require a tedious definition in this place; it may, however, be proper to state, that in its progress two states or stages are distinguishable: the first may be called the irritable, the second the indolent, stage; to this latter the plan about to be proposed is particularly applicable. In those cases which have resisted the ordinary means, which are of long standing and obstinate, the following treatment has been

We shall be glad to hear farther from this correspondent.--EDIT,

the application of the ointment.

Internal medicines are seldom requisite in this advanced stage, except where the character of the affection is irregular, or there is a peculiarity in the constitution of the patient; in which cases some modification of treatment will necessarily be required: these variations will readily be made by any respectable practitioner.

The above plan, if diligently pursued for from three to six weeks, will rarely disappoint the expectations of those who try it, even in the most inveterate cases. JOSEPA HOULTON, Grove place, Alpha road; Aug. 15, 1823.

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine.

SIR,

HAVE just read the letter from

J. M. of Market Harborough, and beg leave to inform him, through you, that I have seen Mr. Nichol repeatedly perform the freezing experiment,

which, indeed, he has done with my own apparatus,-and it was seldom more than fifteen minutes in completion: he never failed in my presence, but he was always a most neat and successful experimenter. My glass dish, to contain the sulphuric acid, is nine inches diameter, and an inch and a half deep. The vessel to contain the water was given to me by Mr. Nichol, and is a flat saucer, three inches in diameter and one deep, of porous earthenware, having no glaze about it, which be considered very important. The stand for the saucer is three inches high, of course supported by glass legs, and placed about the centre of the acid: simple water and the acid alone were used; the stronger the acid, of course the better.

I can have no doubt of your correspondent's