This person, we are told, is daughter of one Wallin, a bone-setter of Hindon, Wilts, and sister of that Polly Peachem whom a gentleman of fortune married. Upon some family quarrel she left her father, and wandered up and down the country in a very miserable manner, calling herself Crazy Sally; and often, as it is presumed for grief, giving way to a practice that made her appear to have too good a title to the name. Arriving at last at Epsom, she has performed such wonderful cures, that we are told the people thereabout intend a subscription for 3007. a year to keep her among them.”

Many of those cures are then described, which seem well attested, and are really surprising. In fine, the concourse of people to Epsom on this occasion is incredible; and it is supposed she gets near 20 guineas a day, as she executes what she does in a very quick manner. She has strength enough to put in any man's shoulder without assistance; and this her strength makes the following story, which may be depended upon, the more credible. "An impostor came to her, sent, as it is supposed, by some surgeons, on purpose to try her skill, with his head bound up; and pretended that his wrist was put out; which, upon exami nation, she found to be false; but to be even with him, she gave it a wrench, and really put it out, and bade him go to the fools who sent him, and get it sett again; or if he would come to her that. day month, she would do it herself."

"This strange woman utterly ruined herself by giving way to that eccentricity, which too frequently in one way or other marks all our characters. The object of it was a Mr. Hill Mapp, on whom she fixed her affections, and to whom she was determined at all events to be married, though every effort was made by her friends to prevent the match. On the day appointed for the ceremony, Sir James Edwards, of Walton-upon-Thames, waited on her with the daughter of Mr. Glass, an attorney, a poor afflicted child whose neck was dislocated and supported by steel instruments. Miss Wallin saw the girl, and said she could restore the parts, but would do nothing till she became Mrs. Mapp. A gentleman present, finding her resolute, lent her his chariot to convey her to Ewell, where she expected to obtain a conveyance to London with her intended husband, though in that expectation she was disappointed. As she was going to Ewell, Mr. Walker, brazier, of Cheapside, met her, and returned with her to the inn. He was carrying down his daughter to her, a girl about 12 years of age, whose case was as follows: the vertebræ, instead of de scending regularly from the neck, deviated to the right scapula, whence it returned towards the left side, till it came within a little of the hip-bone, thence returning to the locus, it descended regularly upon the whole, forming a serpentine figure. Miss Wallin set her strait, made the back perfect, and raised the girl two inches. While this was doing, Sir James Edwards's chariot with two gentlemen in it, came to beg her to come back to Epsom, suspecting she might not return again; but all their persuasions availed nothing, and the best terms they could make with her, was, that she should not go to London to be married, but have the chariot No. 127. Vol. 32. Jan. 1809.

C

and go to Headly, about three miles from Epsom. As the coachman was driving her by Epsom, she was told, that the minister of Headly was suspended for marrying Mr. C. whereupon the coachman said he would carry her no further, unless it was to Epsom. She then alighted, and went into a cottage on the side of the town; presently after which, information being given that she was there, Mrs. Shaw, and several other ladies of that place, went to her on foot to importune her to return; but, to avoid any further solicitation, she protested she would never come nigh the town, if they opposed her marriage any longer; and then walked on towards Banstead. Sir James Edwards, being informed how much she was affronted by his coachman, immediately ordered a pair of his horses to be put to a four-wheeled chaise, and sent them with another driver to offer their service to convey her where she pleased. Mr. Bridgwater in his chaise, and several other people on horseback, followed her also, and overtook her when she had walked about a mile over the Downs towards Banstead, where she had determined to be married. When she came there, the minister 'having no licences, she returned to her first resolution of going to London; but, the horses having travelled that morning from Walton, and being harrassed about without any refreshment, the coachman was afraid to venture so far as London with them, and desired to be excused; upon which Mr. Bridgwater, in regard to the child Sir James Edwards had brought, and other unhappy creatures who were in Epsom waiting for their cure, brought her in his chariot to London, saw her married, and conveyed her back again immediately after, being fully resolved to see her perform her promise.' Mrs. Mapp was buried at the expence of the parish of St. Giles in 1737!!" P. 244.

The chapter on Amusements' contains many curious particulars of the state and management of our theatres, and will be found very useful to consult by those who may engage in the compilation of a History of the Stage. The following sketch of the life of Handel will be read with interest.

"Handel's decease occurred on the 6th of April, 1759. As this eminent composer may justly be said to have formed a new æra of musick in England, and to have established the Opera, and the fame of his Oratorios perhaps for centuries to come; a sketch of his life from his arrival in this island cannot be altogether unacceptable, particularly as it must contain a general history of those amusements with which he became connected. Handel was born at Hall in Upper Saxony, February 24, 1684, `but did not visit England till he had attained his 26th year, and when perfect master of his profession. The stranger, though only upon leave of absence from the Court of Hanover, where he received a pension of 1500 crowns per annum, and held the place of Master of the Elector's Chapel, was presented to Queen Anne, and favourably received; thus honoured, Handel soon enjoyed the patronage of her courtiers, and immediately commenced his

career by correcting the errors of the Italian Opera, if that could be so called which had been translated into the English language. As this celebrated composer found it, the most pathetic parts of the Italian musick frequently fell upon words expressive of anger, and vice versa; he therefore composed Rossi's Rinaldo, written after an outline by Aaron Hill, who favoured the publick with an English version of it.

"When Handel had remained here one year, the full term of his leave of absence, he returned to Hanover, but promised to re-visit the Queen at the first convenient opportunity: that occured in 1712, and he composed his Te Deum and Jubilate after the signing of the peace of Utrecht. Queen Anne, highly gratified with his exertions, granted him a pension of 2001. for life, and added her commands to the solicitations of the nobility, that he should assume the management of the Opera-house. This he complied with, and violated in consequence an engagement he was under to return to the Elector's Court. When that prince ascended the British throne, Handel, conscious of his offence, dared not venture into his presence; and his friends even thought stratagem preferable to intercession in restoring him to favour. To accomplish this, Baron Kilmanseck and several of the English nobility engaged the King in a party of pleasure upon the Thames: at that hour of relaxation the King was surprised with those grand movements yet known as Handel's Water-piece, which were composed expressly for the occasion, and performed under his direction in a boat attendant on the monarch. The scheme was successful beyond expectation; and from that hour the fortunate musician received both honours and rewards from George I. The Earl of Burlington and the Duke of Chandos were his warmest patrons and admirers: the latter indeed retained him at Canons as master of his splendid choral establishment for the offices of religion; and as Buononcini and Attilio were then composers for the Opera, he did not frequently interfere with their province. "At length the period arrived destined to rouse the powers of Handel as a composer and a tyrant. Several persons of distinction had determined to found an Academy of Musick in the Haymarket, in order to insure a constant supply of Operas from the pen of the unrivalled Saxon, which they intended should be performed under his direction. The subscription for this purpose amounted to 50,000l.; and they procured the King's name for 1000, to grace the head of the list. Thus authorised and enabled Handel went to Dresden for performers of celebrity, and engaged Senesino and Duristanti, with whom he returned to England, when they acted his Opera of Radamisto to a most crowded audience, which honoured him with the loudest plaudits. From that day the powerful partizans of Buononcini, and those of Handel became irreconcileable enemies; though their enmity was so far controuled as to permit an agreement between them, that the rival masters should alternately compose the acts of Mutius Scavola, and thus afford a criterion by which their superiority was to be determined. Handel conquered; and, his reputation firmly established, he' reigned sole monarch of the Academy for nine years. At the

close of that period Senesino accused Handel of oppression, and Handel treated Senesino as a rebel against his authority: the publick immediately divided on this important question; and to complete their vexation, Faustina and Cuzzoni quarrelled. Harmony ceased in every point of view, and the Academy was dissolved; but Handel maintained his post at the Haymarket, where he soon discovered that with Senesino he had dismissed the majority of his audiences. In this dilemma he entered into an agreement with the celebrated Heidegger to perform Operas on their own account: they accordingly engaged several new performers; but the nobility, exasperated at the Saxon's tyrannical conduct, entered into a subscription, with which they opened the Theatre in Lincoln's-inn-fields, countermatching his Italians with the incomparable Farinelli. The contest was continued three years in conjunction with Heidegger; and Handel persisted one year after his partner retired: he then left the Haymarket to his rivals.

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Chagrined and disappointed he endeavoured to establish himself at Lincoln's-inn-fields, and afterwards became a partner of Mr. Rich at Covent-garden Theatre, where he found, to his great mortification, that his musick, however sublime, was not a match for Farinelli's voice; yet he persisted till he had almost ruined his fortune, and actually deranged his faculties, besides causing a paralytic stroke, which deprived him of the use of his right arm; he was however recovered from the latter calamities by using the baths of Aix-la-chapelle about the year 1736.

"Fortunately for Handel the publick were pleased with the performance of his Alexander's Feast at Covent-garden Theatre soon after his return; and, to add to his good fortune, he was solicited to compose two Italian Operas for Lord Middlesex, who had been compelled to take the direction of this difficult concern upon himself, to preserve it from total ruin. His success on this occasion operated powerfully with the multitude, and a benefit produced him 1500l. in the year 1738. An opportunity thus offered to effect a complete reconciliation with his former employers; but that asperity of temper and impatience of controul which always marked his character induced him to reject every proposal connected with subscriptions. After several unsuccessful attempts to establish the Opera at Covent-garden Theatre, he turned his attention to the composition of Oratorios, which he intended should have been acted and sung; but the popular opinion, that such representations from Scripture would be a profanation of religion, deterred him from the design; and he caused them to be sung only as they are at present.

"Similar to most human inventions, the Oratorio was of little service to the author: posterity according to custom has had the honour of rewarding Handel's memory; and if an angel composed new ones, they would certainly not succeed, till he had fled from the earth half a century, and till Handel has had his day.

"The Irish nation received our great musician and his Ora, torios with complacency; and as he gave the produce of the first

performance of his Messiah in Dublin to the City prison, he soon secured their patronage. After considerably improving his circumstances, he returned to England, where his Oratorios recovered from their previous depression, and received that approbation which a dread of having lost them probably excited. Handel gave the profit of an annual performance of the Messiah to the Foundling Hospital; and attended their Oratorios regularly long after he had lost his sight by a gutta serena, and till within eight days of his death." P. 371.

The anecdotes of dress, and of the caprices of fashion, are partially illustrated by thirteen coloured engravings; but the figures are so ill drawn and so very slightly executed, that we derive no pleasure from viewing such caricatures of the human form. "Neither do we regard them as altogether accurate, nor yet sufficiently numerous, for the purpose of pourtraying the fashions of a century. Refinement produces variety, and caprice and the love of novelty still further increase the divisions; so that to trace the mutations of dress through any extended period, must inevitably become tedious. The present state of female attire is certainly the most graceful that has been adopted for the last hundred years; yet we fear it will not last: we are apprehensive of a lurking propensity again to introduce the use of stiff stays; which, of all the inventions to deform beauty, holds rank with the first; we mean, to deform beauty radically by injuring the health.

In the chapter on Domestic Architecture, traced from its origin to its present improved state in London,' &c, Mr. Malcolm has hazarded several general assertions, which in our opinion are not fully warranted by facts. He says, that "The Saxons have left us strong and almost eternal proofs of their skill in masonry; but I believe there is little or nothing to be found, the work of their hands, besides ecclesiastical buildings and castles." We should be much indebted to any writer who would prove, from historical documents, that we have any buildings, whether ecclesiastical or military, that are indubitably of Saxon architecture; we mean, that were actually erected by Saxon builders and in the Saxon times. Oral testimony is not sufficient for the purpose: it is not enough to say, that such or such an edifice "was founded by King Ethelbert, or King Offa, or King Alfred, and therefore the more ancient parts must be Saxon; for do not you see how very different the ornaments are?" No, this argument is not decisive; for independent of the several characters and style of the