1830.] 



Domestic and Foreign. 



229 



and even Greeks regard Armenians as a 

 degraded caste. But passion masters pre- 

 judice, and he pursues the lady through all 

 impediments, with a resolution that difficul- 

 ties only inflame. She was beautiful as an 

 houri, and of a complexion singularly thin 

 and transparent contrasted in this respect 

 from her countrywomen, who, though often 

 handsome, are remarkable for thick and 

 coarse skins, clumsy ancles, and large ears. 

 The ear, indeed, marks the Armenian as 

 specifically as the eye does the Jew. By 

 some happy chance she had, with the 

 coarse physical qualities of her country, 

 escaped also their still coarser feelings, and 

 following nature, was comparatively, in 

 sentiment, an European liberal, though 

 blessed with few of the advantages of 

 education. She had been indulged as an 

 only daughter ; but the Armenians univer- 

 sally shut up their women, and only intro- 

 duce them as agreeable vehicles for handing 

 pipes and coffee. Living in the immediate 

 neighbourhood of the old princess, she had 

 made her acquaintance, and had liberally 

 assisted her in her hours of adversity a 

 mutual kindness followed, and frequent 

 intercourse. With this fact Constantine 

 quickly became acquainted, and he as quick- 

 ly repeated his visits, in the hope of again 

 encountering the beautiful stranger. His 

 visits were, however, all in vain, and he 

 dared not express the state of his feelings to 

 his prejudiced though grateful relative. 

 Luckily, a Catholic festival soon brought 

 the Armenian family, with the women, out 

 of then- shell, and Constantine took care to 

 be a spectator of the scene. The hilarity 

 of the day was interrupted by the sudden 

 presence of a Turk, who finding himself in 

 a humour to kill a Greek, rushed into the 

 crowd, and mistaking Veronica's father for 

 one, was only prevented from accomplishing 

 his purpose by the activity and address of 

 young Constantine. Veronica expressed 

 her gratitude fondly and devotedly on the 

 spot ; and the old man, while professing 

 all he had was at his command, actually 

 ventured to invite him to call and take a 

 cup of coffee. The eager youth, of course, 

 seizes the opportunity, and Veronica, in 

 person, presents the pipe and coffee, and 

 the young folks contrive to appoint a meeting 

 for the next day. However furtively this 

 was managed, it did not escape the eye of 

 the Catholic priest, an Italian abbate, of 

 whom, unluckily, Constantine, in the wan- 

 tonness of wit, had that evening made an 

 enemy. From the interference, and pro- 

 fessional influence of this man, flow all the 

 succeeding embarrassments and miseries. 

 The series of incidents consists of plans and 

 schemes for effecting interviews, and baffling 

 the angry and bigotted parent and priest, 

 in which great adroitness is shewn by both 

 parties, till at last she is driven, in order 

 to escape an odious marriage arranged by 

 her family, to throw herself into the prince's 

 arms, and a priest is with difficulty found 



to make them man and wife. Short, how. 

 ever, was their felicity, for the very next 

 morning comes the Bostandi Basha, and 

 the lady, followed by her lover, is taken 

 forthwith before the vizier, whose interest 

 had been carefully secured by the court 

 banker. They were torn asunder by brute 

 force, she was delivered up to her parent 

 and he, upon perseverance in complaining, 

 was finally banished to Wallachia, where 

 he soon after died of the plague, and the 

 unhappy lady, shut up in a convent, appa- 

 rently died too, of grief and harsh treat- 

 ment. 



The History and Antiquities of the 

 Tower of London, by John Bayley, Esq. 

 Mr. Bayley's very complete history of the 

 Tower is not at all known beyond the 

 narrow circle of antiquaries, and collectors 

 of ornamental publications. He has brought 

 out a second edition, in a less expensive, 

 but still ambitious shape, to bring it within 

 the reach of a larger class of readers. The 

 volume presents first a general history of 

 the Tower ; then follows a local description, 

 and, finally, memoirs of its distinguished 

 prisoners from the days of Henry I. The 

 first prisoner recorded was Flambard, Bishop 

 of Durham, the confidential minister of 

 William Rufus, who was flung into its 

 dungeons by Henry to gratify the prejudices 

 and conciliate the good will of the people. 

 The list closes very ignobly with the Cato- 

 street conspirators of 1820, who, however, 

 were quickly removed to Newgate. In the 

 local description, the Record Tower intro- 

 duces some account of the Rolls. The 

 most ancient of these records are the Cartae 

 Antiquae, a miscellaneous collection of 

 charters and grants, chiefly to ecclesiastics, 

 beginning with Edward the Confessor. 

 The first attempt to arrange the masses of 

 papers was made in the reign of Edward II., 

 and a second similar effort in that of Eliza- 

 beth. In the reign of that queen a Mr. 

 William Bowyer spent some years in re- 

 ducing them to something like order. Sel- 

 den was appointed by the parliament, and 

 Prynne after the Restoration, to the office 

 of keeper ; but neither of them, though both 

 antiquarians, seem to have done anything 

 in the way of arrangement, and the papers 

 fell again into the disorder they were found 

 in by Bowyer. Lord Halifax, in the begin- 

 ning of the last century, called the attention 

 of parliament to the subject, and through 

 his exertions something was accomplished ; 

 but not till the year 1800 were any effectual 

 steps taken. Under the direction of a com- 

 mittee, the Fcedera are now gradually print- 

 ing. Enough, however, has not yet been 

 done for complete preservation ; large masses 

 of papers, especially the Inquisitiones post 

 mortem are fast fading. In this state are 

 many of the most important documents, 

 some of which are already illegible, and 

 others are fast approaching to the same 

 hopeless condition. Mr. B. suggests an 



