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at it. It is what every man who does any good in the world must expect, and is much more than balanced by the approbation of persons of similar sentiments and views; and of such cordial friends I have never been destitute. We shall rejoice together in a world in which the wicked will cease from troubling. To that state I now look forward more than to anything here, as I cannot be very distant from it, though, I thank God, my health is very good, and I may yet do something more before I leave this scene.

His growing unpopularity in America, of which indications appear in several of the preceding letters, at length assumed a form which compelled him to defend himself; and on the 1st December, 1800, he writes :—

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Having been strangely calumniated in this country, and represented as a factious and dangerous person, become desperate by poverty, in consequence of speculating in lands, and being moreover told in confidence that Mr. Pickering, then Secretary of State, watched and threatened me, I thought it best to give a full account of all that I had done, and even thought, with respect to the administration. This I did in a series of Letters to the inhabitants of Northumberland and its neighbourhood, and the publication, though censured by many, has had a good effect. * * * It was with much reluctance that I wrote them, and I hope I shall have no further occasion to do anything in the same way. My theological and philosophical studies find me sufficient employment, and of a more useful and pleasing kind."

He does not appear to have overrated the success of his appeal, for on the 30th April, 1801, he writes:—

"That you may form some idea of the state of politics in this country, and see how favourable a turn things have taken with respect to myself, I send you a copy of a letter I have lately received from Mr Jefferson, and my Letter to the inhabitants of Northumberland will shew you what my situation was in the administration of Mr. Adams, or rather of those who for some time governed him.” The President's letter is too long for quotation; a single paragraph may suffice :

"It is with heartfelt satisfaction that in the first moments of my public action I can hail you with welcome to our land, tender to you the homage of its respect and esteem, cover you under the protection of those laws which were made for the wise and good like you, and disclaim the legitimacy of that libel on legislation which under the form of a law was for some time placed among them. As the storm is now subsiding and the horizon becoming serene, it is pleasant to consider the phenomenon with attention. We can no longer say there is nothing new under the sun,' for this whole chapter in the history of man is new-the great extent of our republic is new-its

sparse habitation is new-the mighty wave of public opinion which has rolled over it is new-but the most pleasing novelty is its so quickly subsiding over such an extent of surface to its true level again.'

There is another interesting letter from Jefferson, in answer to the offer of a dedication, which he accepts with the modest observation that the handing to the world the testimony of his desire to do what was right, under the authority of the name of Priestley, was securing his credit with posterity. The following extract from the letter will be of more general interest. He says::

"One passage in the paper you enclosed me must be corrected. It is the following:- And all say that it was yourself more than any other individual that planned and established it' i.e. the constitution. I was in Europe when the constitution was planned and established. On receiving it I wrote strongly to Mr. Madison, urging the want of provision for the freedom of religion, freedom of the press, trial by jury, habeas corpus, the substitution of militia for a standing army, and an express reservation to the States of all rights not specifically granted to the Union. He accordingly moved in the first session of congress for these amendments, which were agreed to and ratified by the States as they now stand. This is all the hand I had in what related to the constitution. Our predecessors made it doubtful how far even these were of any value, for the very law which endangered your personal safety, as well as that which restrained the freedom of the press, were gross violations of them. However, it is still certain that the written constitutions may be violated in moments of passion or delusion, yet they furnish a text to which those who are watchful may again rally and recall the people. They fix too for the people principles for their political creed."

The letter to which a copy of the above was annexed, dated the 31st July, 1802, is the last in the correspondence, though the death of Dr. Priestley did not take place until February, 1804.

regard almost exclusively to history, in which respect I may furnish useful materials

In selecting my extracts I have had the passages bearing upon his personal cannot help thinking that these letters to some future biographer of Priestley. If I had been guided by other motives, I could perhaps have selected passages of more general interest, in which he discusses public events and the political and social condition of the people among whom he was residing. I have with more reluctance omitted passages indicative of the character of the writer, and especially several which exhibit a peculiar independence in the

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language in which he asks or acknowledges a favor. On his theological and philosophical works I cannot say the correspondence throws much additional light. He constantly mentions the works from time to time published or in progress, but it seems as if he did so rather from feeling bound to give an account of his labors than as having much community of ideas with his correspondent. I have probably however said enough to describe the nature of the contents of the letters, and hope that in indicating some new materials for biography, not wholly unimportant, I have not occupied too much of your time and attention, for the bestowal of which I beg to offer you my thanks.

DESCRIPTION OF A UNIQUE VASE IN MR. MAYER'S MUSEUM.
By F. R. Paul Bööcke, Esq.

(READ 1ST FEBRUARY, 1855.)

In reference to the vase found at Canosa, I beg to offer the following remarks.

This vase was formerly in the possession of the Prince of Syracuse, from whose collection it was purchased and brought to England. It is of a globular form, with the head of Medusa on the front and at the back, that on the front being surmounted by a bas-relief with two cupids, which is placed against the neck of the vase. In front, a little below the neck, are two half figures of Centaurs, one on each side of the opening, and attached to the body of the vase, the top is surmounted by three figures, intended to represent a scene from a tragedy by Sophocles, who was born near Athens B. C. 495. The following is a brief description of

them.

The figure to the left with the Phrygian cap on, (as on the coins of Ithaca), is Ulysses, king of Ithaca and Dulichium; that to the right wearing a helmet, is Diomedes, son of Tydeus, and king of Etolia, who Justinian says was the founder of Brundisium and Arpi. The centre figure is that of Dolon, son of Eumedes, a Trojan. The historical portion of the scene is during the Trojan war, and is as follows:-Dolon was sent by

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