MESMERIS How often, to employ the language of Sir Bulwer Lytton, have we "appealed to the calm majesty of JASTROLOG CABALISTIC LO memory? Has he not experienced sensations of astonishment at some strain of music hitherto unknown to his mortal ears, recalling a melody-the same-in the dim bygone? Have not occurrences of familiar life reminded him of something precisely similar that has happened before, though he knows not where, or why, or when, or how such circumstances could previously have come to pass, and yet he feels no less assured they have? The fulfilment of all these and many other like coincidences, in his own particular instance, the writer of this article can personally avouch. Moreover, like those of his fellow-creatures, his dreams have partaken of the filmy and impalpable characters of a vision, save in one instance, when A DREAM was composed of incidents as tangible and actually material as those which a man witnesses with his waking senses; indeed, he cannot strictly designate it as a dream, and he might, with a great self-assurance of accuracy, call it a reality. It was simply as follows: We were standing in a pavilion-on a globe essentially different in every respect to the one which we inhabit; the atmosphere was of a hue like the colour of the deepest amethyst, gilded towards the horizon with brilliant coruscations that resembled heatlightning; the stars, considerably larger than those visible from our planet, beamed upon the night landscape with a subdued and benign radiance. Our heart swelled high with admiration. But, while gazing on the heavens, from opposite quarters of the blue dome, two comets suddenly appeared, looming towards each other with hideous velocity. . . A vast multitude had collected to witness the celestial phenomenon with a mute horror that made the flesh creep and shudder; while the two meteors, suspended in the zenith above, discharged volcanic flames and missiles against each other with a roar and tumult utterly indescribable. After this had continued for some time, the great earth upon which we stood swayed, and rocked, and cracked from its gigantic hinges, and finally reeled down into the eternal gulph of space beneath, amidst the yells of a despairing world. Possibly a similar remembrance caused Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd, to realise the appalling fact in a strain of wonderful sublimity, as these words of his will testify: Into the void, the outcast world descended, On starting from our slumber, we felt it had been no idle nightmare; the echo of that grand cry of anguish still reverberated in our ears; the occurrences had been as plainly and clearly visible as those which greeted us in the garish and unvisionary daylight. Had our spirit, our ears, our immaterial existence, just witnessed that wild catastrophe in some distant region of the illimitable universe?—or was it the recollection of a world whose ruin we had partaken of in some previous nature? Who shall answer us? Again the problem resolves itself into that one ominous and inexplicable question-Have we lived before? BELIEF.-Were we to believe nothing but what we could perfectly comprehend, not only our stock of knowledge in all the branches of learning would be shrunk up to nothing, but even the affairs of common life could not be carried on.-Tucker. THE GHOST-HAUNTED. NE Two!" as usual, that glorious fellow H, with his jokes, and his anecdotes, and his subtility of argument, has kept me out of bed till morning. Well! no matter; "early to bed," say all physicians, and as it is very early yet, I'll take another glass just to quench the excitement of my friend's conviviality, and dispel the wakefulness his vivacity has occasioned. Excellent spirits, certainly, but almost too inspiring; another Havannah will just soothe my brain, and then to essay the somnolent qualifications of "Tired nature's soft restorer." I have had no cause yet to believe that my spiritual friend has returned. Indeed I almost begin to doubt whether the whole affair was not "the very coinage of the brain, the bodiless creation ecstacy is cunning in." Besides, what in the name of all that is reasonable, can these things want with me? If there is any stolen property to be recovered, why do they not seek an interview with Mr. Jardine, at Bow-street? or if there is some secret treason to be unfolded, an investigation would answer much better at the Home-office than elsewhere. Pshaw! I must have been dreaming-and eh! confound it-an empty glass! Now, which of my friends can it be who has finished this brandy and water? "One, two, THREE"-so spoke the iron tongue of St. Bride's, in that solemn tone which in the dead silence of a London midnight speaks so thrillingly to the heart, of the departed dead. The sepulchral vaults beneath seem to echo back the sound, and mingle with the hilarious tones of some straggling bacchanal, like harsh strains that grate upon the ear. Midnight and the feverish pulse of the great city is nearly stilled, the wealthy have resigned themselves to peaceful slumber on their couch of down, and the poor creatures whose poverty shuts out even the very semblance of a home, cower under some sheltering gateway, and sleep till aroused ever and anon by the stealthy tread of some intrusive policeman. of St. Paul's Cathedral boomed the first quarter, and the air grew somewhat chilly. "I'll just take a warm, and go to bed," muttered I, so I drew my chair nearer to the fire, and placed my feet on the fender, at the same time that I did so, casting an involuntary parting glance at the picturesque display of social enjoyment which the table before me presented. In the centre stood a plate oranges, a pack of cards, and a cribbage-board, and behind these stood my Sinumbra, shedding its soft rays upon two coloured glass decanters, the contents of which, being spirituous, had long since become considerably diminished by a gradual process of evaporation consequent upon a preliminary course of dilution. A jug of water, a sugar-basin, a small jar of C'naster, two or three tumblers, a box of cigars, and some clean pipes, completed this very bachelor-like display, whilst the gloves of H- in proof of his habitual forgetfulness, caressed one another at the edge of the table, near the chair he had occupied. "Careless dog!" exclaimed I, "this is the sixth time he has left his gloves here during the last month-a new pair too!-the very best four-and-sixpenny kid;" and whilst uttering to myself these disjointed observations I was in the act of taking up the gloves to examine their make and quality, when, lo! I beheld the right-hand glove elude my grasp, rise slowly from the table, and take a position immediately opposite to me. Suddenly it appeared digits, being widely extended, were violently agitated as if the to be poised in air; the thumb became slowly bent back, and the glove had become spontaneously seized with an inclination to play on an ideal flute. On first beholding this extraordinary fistic display of my friend's glove I was overcome by astonishment and alarm, but presently, surmising the real cause of this manual phenomenon, I burst into a hearty laugh. Ghosts, however, do not like to be laughed at-a fact, which in this instance, was proved by the fingers of the glove being suddenly knitted up into the form of a fist, which was shaken at me as if in anger. I now became grave, considering wisely, as I thought, that a pugilistic contest with an invisible opponent would be by no means in accordance with the fair-play principle of the prize-ring, as there would be no knowing where to put in the hits. I therefore assumed an air of the most profound respect, and bowed, upon which the clenched fist relaxed into the more friendly indication of an open hand, and the glove fell down by the side of its fellow, on the table. At that moment a creaking noise proceeded from H -'s apparently vacant chair opposite, and soon after I saw. it, by a seemingly innate motive power, draw nearer the fire, tilting itself up at the back, as if somebody was cosily warming his hands. Now, I cogitated within myself, there can be no doubt that the chair is occupied by some invisible visitor, and a very jovial frolicsome fellow he seems to be too; surely there can be no harm in seeking to prolong the interview, or, considering that I was the only person visible, the monovisuality would be the better word. Perhaps, thought I, he would not object to a glass of brandy and water, and a cigar, and as the probable acceptance of such a thing rose in ideal form before me, I could not help giving way to a risible emotion, which was, however, immediately checked by seeing the invisible's chair drawn back, and almost at the same time I fancied that I could trace the ghostly outline of a melancholy countenance turned towards me in astonishment. "Well!" I continued in mental colloquy with myself, "my unseen friend appears to be rather tetchy, so I must make an effort to get him into something like good humour." The reader may probably recollect the libertine Don Juan's terror at finding the stony Ghost of Don Guzman accepting the invitation to sup with him, and his subsequent familiar hobnobbing | when that spectral guest challenged the pantomimic hero to take wine-but even that could scarcely exceed the surprise I evinced when the event occurred which I am now about to relate. Selecting a choice cigar from the box, I presented it towards the invisible, accompanied by a piece of lighted paper, but the latter was instantaneously blown out, and the former was snatched out of my hand and thrown behind the fire, "Then you are no smoker?" I remarked, with feelings akin to disappointment. The answer to this was a vehement clattering amongst the halfdozen clean pipes that were lying on the table, and one of them withdrew itself from the rest, and took up its place on the edge of the table near the invisible's chair. I saw how it was; my visitor eschewed cigars, and patronised pipes, so I handed him the jar of C'naster and placed it on the table before him. Yes! he did prefer a pipe to a cigar, and lost no time in letting me know it either, for presently I beheld the pipe being filled, the bowl resting on the edge of the tobacco-jar, and the weed appearing to creep into the pipe as if influenced by some mysterious power of attraction. I handed my visitor another light, which was gently abstracted from my hand, and I then beheld the pipe rise from the tabl, assume a smokeable position, and emit a thick cloud from the waxed-end, whilst the tobacco in the bowl sent out a flickering glow, a clear red light, as it does when the air is drawn through it strongly. "Well!" said I "you have not forgotten how to smoke it seems." The pipe vibrated with a tremulous kind of movement, as if the hand that held it was that of some one who was chuckling with laughter. Yes! it was now evident, the invisible was actually laughing at me, yet, strange to say, the discovery of this, so far from exciting any uneasiness, afforded me great encouragement. I ventured a laugh, lit a pipe myself, and commenced smoking; then, thinking it as well to continue my hospitable attentions, I asked the invisible if he would like a glass of brandy and water. This was answered by three knocks, which first of all startled me, and then set me seriously thinking what they meant. "Three,' thought I-" three what?" and then I fancied it might be three letters, perhaps-Y-E-S,-so I instantly mixed a glass of rather strong warm-with-placed it before my guest, beheld it lifted up, then put down again, and perceived that the invisible had, for an invisible, taken two or three good sips. This was a feat of such an extraordinary nature, that I could scarcely refrain from laughing outright. "Is it strong enough?" I enquired. The three knocks on the table were repeated in reply. After this I saw the invisible's chair advance nearer to the fire, and the poker, rising up from the fender, insert itself between the bars of the grate, stir up the coals until they sent forth a glorious blaze, and finally take its station in the corner of the fire-place by the side of the tongs. This made me laugh still more, but I was checked by a startling blow on the table, which was evidently intended to call me to order, and to intimate that I was behaving To make some with impropriety in laughing at my guest. "It was very unkind of you to frighten me as you did by pulling off the bed clothes," said I; and scarcely had I made the remark, before I beheld the invisible's pipe describe several circles in the air, as though he were waving it in exultation at the remembrance of his frolic. "It was very facetious certainly," continued I "but I much prefer your company when I am not in bed asleep. With that restriction, I shall beg leave to fill a bumper and drink to our better acquaintance; come, your glass is empty." I filled the invisible's glass, and again suggested that I should like to know with which of my deceased friends I was drinking. Upon this, I beheld the invisible's tobacco-pipe glide slowly towards the grate, when the bowl gave itself sundry knocks against the bars, until the pipe had became empty; then gliding back, it seemed to be poised lengthways in the air, now making a sort of see-saw movement, appearing as if about to fall at one end, and then suddenly regaining its equilibrium. I fell back in my chair convulsed with laughter-the invisible was evidently amusing himself by balancing the pipe on the ghost of his nose. Who can he be? thought I, and while endeavouring to recollect whether any of my former acquaintances had a penchant for performing this feat (strange accomplishments being sometimes picked up at college), I beheld the tobacco-pipe assume a recumbent position on the table, and then three oranges suddenly glided from among others which were in a plate on the table, and began taking most extraordinary mrial leaps, one after the other, without either falling to the ground, or pausing in their wild career even for a single instant. There they were, flying up and down together as if in chase of each other, like a juggler's golden balls. I laughed still more heartily at this feat, but was stopped by one of the oranges suddenly flying playfully at me, and hitting me a blow on the head; the other two at the same moment, gliding back into the fruit-plate. "Confound it!" cried I, "I do not recollect ever having had a friend who was a mountebank or a juggler, though, now I think of it, Ned B- was rather a genius at sleight-ofhand, but you surely don't mean to tell me that you are that individual ?” Three blows on the table-the y-e-s of our visionary vocabulary intimated the affirmative answer to this question. "If you really do mean to say that you are my old friend B-," exclaimed I, rather warmly, “prove your identity, and I shall be delighted to recognise you." The pack of cards on my table jumped up at the moment I spoke, and smacking themselves compactly together, as when under the influence of a conjurer's experienced fingers, proceeded to open themselves fan-like before my eyes, as if for the purpose of one card being selected. Determined to humour the freaks of my spiritualised companion, I withdrew one from the rest, looked at it, and returned it to the pack. The cards, now shuffled themselves violently together, were placed before me to cut, and after a knock had been given upon the table, to secure my attention, the identical ten of spades I had chosen appeared at the top. "Now," I cried, "I am convinced, but proceed with your reminiscences." My violin case, which was lying on a side table to the left of the invisible's chair, I now perceived fly open, and out walked the violin and bow. It was highly amusing to behold how the instrument assumed the usual professional position, as though an experienced player were resting it on his shoulder; and still more amusing was it to notice the manner in which the bow commenced a sort of caressing dalliance with the violin, now gently rubbing itself against one of the strings, and then bending over to another and another, as if endeavouring to coax them all into tune. I was here called to order by the tapping of the bow against the table, in the same manner as the leader in an orchestra strikes his music stand, to let the band know he is ready to begin.-Crash! "Ah!" cried I, almost in ecstacy, "Now I know you!-my old friend B. I have not forgotten the new version of that song which we wrote together, or that other lyrical composition of our muse, beginning, ." I was about to repeat the words when the invisible interrupted me by playing the air to which those words had been written-Moore's beautiful melody, "The girls we left behind us." I "Huzza!" cried I, "I now am perfectly certain of your identity, and as you really are here, my dear fellow, pray oblige me with the dance you composed for the convivial scene in that burletta I wrote for Webster. On the instant, the violin began playing the jovial tune I had asked for. I was so delighted that I sprung from my chair, glass in hand, and, while humming the air, involuntarily began dancing. The invisible did the same. saw the violin lay itself on the table, while the invisible's glass suddenly sprung up high into the air, and appeared, like my own, to be most incontinently excited, performing such undulations as a glass necessarily would do when held by the hand of a lively dancer. My excitement increased as our dance went on, and I sang the tune more quickly. Round and round the room we glided-faster and faster still, when-crash!-all was darkness; the giddy whirl had ended, and I lay senseless on the floor. THE ASTROLORER'S STUDY Being Predictions of the Chief Events from Week to Week. Now does the turbulent Mars enter the ruling sign of Capricorn, which afflicts Greece and all countries beneath its influence. The THE ASTROLOGER'S CALENDAR. A Diary of Auspicious and Inauspicious Days, with Weekly Indications of the Weather, deduced from Planetary Influences. SUNDAY, March 9th.-Mild and fair, with blue sky. Beware of quarrels. The fair will frown. MONDAY, March 10th.-Cloudy, with light westerly breeze. Transact business with elderly persons. TUESDAY, March 11th.-Fair, but change at night. Good for marriage, love, and pleasure. WEDNESDAY, March 12th.-Showery and cloudy. Write for, but do not personally ask, favours. THURSDAY, March 13th.-Fair and windy. Evil preponderates, but commercial enterprises succeed. Avoid business FRIDAY, March 14th.-Fair, frosty nights. with ladies and lawyers. Travel not. SATURDAY, March 15th.-Cold and hazy weather. Sign no documents, but begin new works. THE MYSTERIES OF NIGHT. "Then stirs the feeling infinite, so felt In solitude, where we are least alone, A truth which through our being then doth melt, The soul and source of music, which makes known Binding all things with beauty;-'twould disarm CHAPTER I. BYRON. HAT is night? Darkness-the absence of the sun-the changed position of a certain portion of the earth. And is that all, thinkest thou? Verily, then, thou art no philosopher, and hast yet to learn that the night is not only all that thou seest and knowest, but possesseth more of wonder and mystery than thou hast the least idea of. The influence by which the earth, and all things earthly, are affected in the day time, become totally changed, and assume at night, a mysterious character which, it is most probable, will never be fully understood; simply in consequence of its vast and complicated natnre. If, as is believed, every star be a world, then, at night, we are under the influence of myriads of other worlds, with all their peculiar combinations of character. To this we may add the influence of the moon, of which, at present, we know comparatively little. We are now speaking of the probable effects, not upon inert matter, but upon mind, and upon all living things; and judging from what little we have already learned, namely, that the influence of the moon is capable of affecting our mental faculties and perception, it is only fair to suppose that other effects may be, and are, produced of a nature so subtle and impalpable, that we are subservient to them without being in the least conscious either of their existence or action. If any one doubts the correctness of this theory, let him consider for a moment the two grand principles which reigns throughout creation, namely, influence and reaction of influence, according to the special peculiarities of the spiritualities acting or acted upon. Influence and re-influence are the main springs of our own world, and without them it could not the universe? We do not think any reasonable person can quesexist. Is it not, therefore, most probable that the same system of action and reaction, under various modifications, exists throughout tion the correctness of such a proposition, especially when we find that we are subject to mysterious influences which cannot be traced meaning more clearly by example, we will refer to the effect of the to any clear and intelligible cause. If you want us to explain our moon on many persons in sound health, and on all whose brain is in the least diseased, or has been rendered peculiarly susceptible of excitement by injury from violence, over exertion, or any kind of violent stimulant. It is well known that, even in the very lowest scale of organised existences, such as plants, mere degrees of light will produce the most singular changes and effects, and when the whole light of our world is almost entirely excluded, or supplied by another (or others) of a nature totally different from the one that not only lights but cherishes our waking existence, and it is reasonable to conclude that the effect, though not of such a kind as may be particularly discoverable, is, nevertheless, equally great and universal. We are inclined to believe that dreams are, in caused by the change we allude to; for although we may often some mysterious way, not uncommonly, either modified or actually trace them to direct and simple cause, yet there are many which cannot be at all so accounted for. Some are wild and inexplicable, and others are not only unmistakeably plain in their meaning, but have a direct and often an important purport; so much so that there can be no doubt as to the spiritual prompting (or communion we might call it) which has given rise to them. We have undeniable instances of this in Holy Writ, and even at the present day we frequently find the most remarkable cases of dreams verified, in a manner that clearly shows how utterly unconnected they may AMONG THE JEWS. be with all earthly causes. We say, then, that dreams are a THE ART OF MAGIC, AS PRACTISED portion of the mysteries of night, and, in further proof of our assertion, we may here remark that people sleeping in the daytime seldom dream at all-a circumstance that can be accounted for only by our theory of the existence of some strong and peculiar mental influence upon the minds of persons sleeping during the night-time. We regard the world as having, indeed, two separate existences -day and night-sleeping and waking. It is most probable that there are waking existences at night, which are dormant, or in a state of trance during the day. That there are different existences for day and night is proved beyond all doubt by the peculiarities exhibited among the animal creation. No one can deny that bats and owls are birds of darkness-they belong exclusively to the night; so do cats, and all beasts of prey. In the day they are sluggish, and sleep heavily, but at night the air resounds with their strange cries and roarings. It is evident to us that these creatures are under an extraordinary nocturnal influence, and that, among some of the species, it is of a very peculiar and mysterious character. If you had ever heard the cry of the hyena at night, you would fully understand what we mean. We may here also remark that it is somewhat strange the configuration of the heavens, at night, should delineate the forms of many of these animals. Thus much for such of the mysteries of night as are of a more palpable and earthly nature;-we now come to the impalpable and unearthly. Some people will tell us that these things are all delusions: We cannot positively disprove the assertion, but we see nothing at all unreasonable in our theory, supported, as it is, not only by the experience of individuals at the present day, but of past centuries; in fact, we might almost say ever since the world was created. We could give instances beyond number, founded on the experience both of ourselves and others; but at present we shall be content to adduce only one or two. We had the pleasure of being personally acquainted with the celebrated author of the "Every Day Book," William Hone, the writer and publisher of the "Political House that Jack built," and a host of other facetious squibs of a like nature. There was a snug little room in his house on Ludgate-hill, which he used as his study, and this room had a small window in the partition that separated it from the staircase. Frequently he would sit writing until a very late hour at night. At the period we refer to he carried this habit to a very great extent, being then engaged in the composition of a certain work, which he expected would create a great sensation, inasmuch as, if not actually irreligious, it was extremely sceptical in its tendency. Night after night, while writing this book, he was haunted by the vision of a countenance, almost unearthly in its expression, intently watching him through the little window while he was at work, until at last he not only vacated his study at night altogether, but was impelled to give up the work he was writing. Not long afterwards he destroyed the manuscript, surmising (rightly enough, we think) that its objectionable character might have something to do with the mysterious visitation. But perhaps you will say that this instance refers more to the character of the book than to the influence of night. Very well; then here is a case of a diametrically opposite nature. Two young bachelors, law students, lived together in what is termed a double set of chambers, and they never parted for bed without first smoking their cigars and playing a game of cribbage together, the youngest being invariably, upon these occasions, a visitor in the apartment of his elder companion. Now, after they had lived together about a year in this manner, the youngest died-but his visits to his surviving companion were still regularly continued every night, as before. We certainly do not mean to say that the two friends still smoked cigars and drank brandy and water together, but that, at the hour when they had been in the habit of meeting, there was the well known sound of footsteps-and who cannot recognise the tread of an old friend's footsteps-entering the room. Then came the creaking of the old chair in the corner by the fire, as if of some one sitting down, and then-yes, and then-but we will tell you all about that in our next chapter. (To be continued.) "The most interesting and instructive work that could be written would be a history of magic."-DR. JOHNSON, LLOWING that the Egyptian amulets are certainly not so ancient as the Babylonian talisman, in their uses they were exactly similar. Some little figures, supposed to have been intended as charms, have been found on several mummies, which have at various times been brought into Europe. Plutarch informs us, that the soldiers wore rings, on which the representation of an insect, resembling our beetle, was inscribed; and we learn from Elian, that the judges had always suspended round their necks a small image of truth formed of emeralds. The belief in the virtues of amulets is far from extinct in the present age; the Cophts, the Arabians, and Syrians, and, indeed, almost all the inhabitants of Asia, west of the Ganges, whether Christians or Mahometans, still use them against possible evils. The descendants of the Pharaohs, like the Chaldean kings, were always great encouragers of astronomy; and though the subjects of the latter were not so eminent as those of the former in the sister science, we have good reason to conclude that they made no inconsiderable progress in it. Herodotus, and other ancient historians, assert that astrology was, from the remotest times, cultivated by that people. They usually, indeed, prognosticated the general course of life, the disposition, and even the manner of death, of any one, by reference to the deity presiding over the day on which he was born; and not unfrequently amongst their eastern neighbours, by determining the position of the stars at the moment of delivery. As Moses passed the greatest part of his life in Egypt, and as he could know little by personal experience of other nations, it may perhaps be inferred that generally, when he warns the Israelites against prevailing superstitions, he has a particular eye to those observed in the country in which the posterity of Adam had so long resided. He makes frequent allusion, indeed, to the magical rites and idolatrous practices of the Canaanites; but in this case he appears to speak rather from the information he had acquired from others than from his own experience. Should' this inference be admitted, we shall have reason for believing that both witchcraft and necromancy were known to the Egyptians; and that some days were considered lucky and others unfavourable for the prosecution of any important affair. A careful perusal of the Pentateuch, and a reference to the Greek historians who have written on the affairs of Egypt, and whose works are necessary to elucidate many obscure allusions in the sacred text, will furnish the more curious reader with information on some minor points, which our limits, as a miscellaneous work, necessarily oblige us to omit. We have hitherto had too much reason to complain of the paucity of information afforded by ancient writers on the magic of the Eastern nations; but when we come to consider that of the Jews, we no longer labour under so heavy a disadvantage. The Holy Scriptures, the works of native writers, and, above all, the laborious researches of learned Christian commentators, furnish us with abundant materials, from which we shall select such as appear best adapted to give an intelligible, but necessarily brief, view of the subject. Many Jewish doctors assign to their magic a remark |