SPORT IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS. 249 which Fitz had indicated as the scene of his exploit ; but a patch of snow was the only thing visible. Suddenly I saw Sigurdr, who was remarkably sharp-sighted, run rapidly in the direction of the snow, and bringing his gun up to his shoulder, point it, as well as I could distinguish, at his own toes. When the smoke of the shot had cleared away, I fully expected to see the Icelander prostrate; but he was already reloading with the greatest expedition. Determined to prevent the repetition of so dreadful an attempt at self-destruction, I rushed to the spot. Guess, then, my relief when the bloody body of a ptarmigan, driven by so point blank a discharge a couple of feet into the snow, was triumphantly dragged forth by instalments from the sepulchre which it had received contemporaneously with its death wound, and thus happily accounted for Sigurdr's extraordinary proceeding. At the same moment I perceived two or three dozen other birds, brothers and sisters of the defuncts, calmly strutting about under our very noses. By this time Sigurdr had reloaded; Fitz had also come up, and a regular massacre began. Retiring to a distance-for it was the case of Mahomet and the mountain reversed-the two sportsmen opened fire upon the innocent community, and in a few seconds sixteen corpses strewed the ground. Scarcely had they finished off the last survivor of this Niobean family, when we were startled by the distant report of a volley of musketry, fired in the direction of the schooner. I could not conceive what had happened. Had a mutiny taken place? Was Mr. Wyse re-enacting, with a less docile ship's company, the pistol scene on board the Glasgow steamer? Again resounded the rattle of the firing. At all events there was no time to be lost in getting back; so, tying up the birds in three bundles, we flung ourselves down into the gulley by which we had ascended, and leaping on, from stone to stone, to the infinite danger of our limbs and necks, rolled rather than ran down the hill. On rounding the lower wall of the curve which hitherto had hid what was passing from our eyes, the first thing I observed was Wilson breasting up the hill, evidently in a state of the greatest agitation. As soon as he thought himself within earshot, he stopped dead short, and making a speaking trumpet with his hands, shrieked rather than shouted, "If you please, my lord (as I have already said, Wilson never forgot les convenances) "if you please, my lord, there's a b-e-a-a-a-a-r!" prolonging the last word into a polysyllable of fearful import. Concluding, by the enthusiasm he was exhibiting, that the animal in question was at his heels, hidden from us probably by the irregularity of the ground, I cocked my rifle, and prepared to roll him over the moment he should appear in sight. But what was my disappointment, when, on looking towards the schooner, my eye caught sight of our three boats fastened in a row, and towing behind them a white floating object, which my glass only too surely resolved the next minute into the dead bear! LORD DUFFERIN, "Letters from High Latitudes." A GRANDMOTHER'S RECEIPT FOR DOMESTIC Take a large quantity of the clear stream of good sense, and an equal portion of good nature; mix them well with a sprig of temperance, and put in a good large bundle of thrift, prudence, candour, and humility, with as much gold-dust as you can procure; to THE DEFEAT OF VARUS. 251 give the dish a true zest, add a few accomplishments, taking great care to avoid conceit and affectation, which is sometimes difficult to separate from the flowers of the graces. A scruple of pride will not be amiss, but take very great care it is not of that rank sort so frequently met with amongst mushrooms. Strain these ingredients from dross, let them stand till settled. Then endeavour to procure a good heart, and, if possible, choose it without guile, and put them all into your clean, well-polished vase, and keep up a steady fire of affection, which must be constantly supplied by attention and true delicacy, and the longer it is kept hot the better, only take care it does not burn; when it is all ready for use, dish it up-be sure to lay at the bottom, and cover it all over with, the leaves of pure religion. If from time and frequent use you should unfortunately be deprived of of these ingredients, especially the heart, you must add as much resignation, fortitude, and patience as you can procure, and it will, in some measure, hide the bitter flavour, and be more palatable to yourselves and friends. any * * * * Nov. 26, 1814. THE DEFEAT OF VARUS. Arminius was far too sage a commander to lead on his followers with their unwieldy broadswords, and inefficient defensive armour, against the Roman legionaries, fully armed with helmet, cuirass, greaves, and shield.... For some distance, Varus was allowed to move on, only harassed by slight skirmishes, but struggling with difficulty through the broken ground, the toil and distress of his men being aggravated by heavy ... torrents of rain, which burst upon the devoted legions, as if the angry gods of Germany were pouring out the vials of their wrath upon the invaders. . . . Arminius had caused barricades of hewn trees to be formed, so as to add to the natural difficulties of the passage. Fatigue and discouragement now began to betray themselves in the Roman ranks. The line became less steady; baggage waggons were abandoned, from the impossibility of forcing them along; and as this happened, many soldiers left their ranks and crowded round the waggons to secure the most valuable portions of their property each was busy about his own affairs, and purposely slow in hearing the word of command from his officers. Arminius now gave the signal for a general attack. The fierce shouts of the Germans pealed through the gloom of the forests, and in thronging multitudes they assailed the flanks of the invaders, pouring in clouds of darts upon the encumbered legionaries, as they struggled up the glens or floundered in the morasses. With a chosen band of personal retainers round him, Arminius cheered on his countrymen by voice and example. He and his men aimed their weapons particularly at the horses of the Roman cavalry. The wounded animals, slipping about in the mire and their own blood, threw their riders and plunged among the ranks of the legions, disordering all round them. Varus now ordered the troops to be countermarched in the hope of reaching the nearest Roman garrison on the Lippe. But retreat was now as impracticable as advance; and the falling back of the Romans only augmented the courage of their assailants, and caused fiercer and more frequent charges on the flanks of the disheartened army. Varus, after being severely wounded in a charge of the Germans against his RALEIGH'S FIRST VIEW OF HIS QUEEN. 253 part of the column, committed suicide to avoid falling into the hands of those whom he had exasperated by his oppressions. . . . At last, in a series of desperate attacks, the column was pierced through and through, two of the eagles captured, and the Roman host-which, on yester morning, had marched forth in such pride and might, now broken up into confused fragments-either fell fighting beneath the overpowering numbers of the enemy, or perished in the swamps and wood in unavailing efforts at flight. Few, very few, ever saw again the left bank of the Rhine. CREASY, "The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World.” SIR WALTER RALEIGH'S FIRST VIEW OF HIS QUEEN. The young cavalier we have so often mentioned had probably never yet approached so near the person of his sovereign; and he pressed forward as far as the line of warders permitted, in order to avail himself of the present opportunity. His companion, on the contrary, cursing his impudence, kept pulling him backwards, till Walter shook him off impatiently, letting his rich cloak drop carelessly from one shoulder; a natural action, which served, however, to display to the best advantage his wellproportioned person. Unbonneting at the same time, he fixed his eager gaze on the Queen's approach, with a mixture of respectful curiosity and modest yet ardent admiration, which suited so well his fine features, that the warders, struck with his rich attire and noble countenance, suffered him to approach the ground over which the Queen was to pass somewhat closer than was per |