1831.] Affairs in General. 83 



ledge ! How childish must a man like Watt think himself become, when, 

 turning from his own stupendous invention of the steam-engine, he 

 could feel flattered by looking at his figure in the glass, decorated with 

 half a yard of taffeta, with a crown's- worth of silver at the end of it, and 

 the permission of Rouge King at Arms to call himself Sir James ? Pro- 

 motion of Science, indeed ! Promotion of fiddlers and tailors, if they 

 will. But Science has a knighthood of its own, to which neither favour 

 nor fiction can elevate pretenders. If it choose to solicit the petty distinc- 

 tions that can be given by the ribbon- weaver, it only degrades itself, 

 throws away the original honours which are reserved for its exclusive 

 possession, and shews that it is consciously unworthy of the name ! 



If we had more respect for the An ti- Slavery politicians than we can 

 bring ourselves to feel, it would be prodigiously diminished by their 

 incessant attempts to make (C the ladies" ridiculous. We speak of the 

 " politicians ;" for we fully believe that there are many well-intentioned 

 people involved in these restless applications. Our aversion is for the 

 demure gentlemen who turn these honest people into instruments for 

 purposes as worldly as ever passed through the brain of a Treasury 

 whipper-in. But their efforts to make the women of England parties in 

 their pious roguery, are intolerable; and while we declare that a "fe- 

 male president, treasurer, and secretary" are a combination of monstro- 

 sities in our eyes, hardly less startling than the three heads of Cerberus, 

 yet this offensive foolery is urged, on in every village where half a dozen 

 spinsters can be conglomerated over their tea ; they fancy themselves 

 into public characters, and in due time forth comes an address, painted 

 by the last pupil of the drawing-school, aud pinned up in silver paper 

 by the dowager-saint of the sisterhood. Thus we learn that " the peti- 

 tion to the Queen from the ladies of Derby, praying her Majesty to 

 extend her influence to procure the abolition of slavery in our colonies, 

 has received about 1,200 signature. The petition is beautifully written, 

 and enclosed between two richly-embossed card-boards. One of them 

 is ornamented by the figure of a liberated female slave, in Indian ink, 

 exquisitely executed by a young lady of that town." They ought to be 

 put on short allowance of rouge and flirtation for the next six months. 



Signs of the Times. The noble persons who voted so vigorously for 

 the popish question are now beginning to awake. O'Connell's Anti- 

 Union system is making them tremble already for their acres ; and we 

 shall soon see Mr. George Robins, or some equally eloquent man of the 

 trade, distributing the Irish lands of these noble politicians : ex. gr. " The 

 Duke of Devonshire intends to dispose of the Sir Walter Raleigh estates, 

 which he holds in this country. We are much pleased with his Grace's 

 determination, and we hope his example will be speedily followed by all 

 the other Irish absentees/' So be it. 



Let our men of peace say what they will, Russia is clearly determined 

 to let nothing go on in Europe without her interference. The story of 

 the Polish insurrection, whether true or false, will serve its purpose, 

 when it has collected two or three hundred thousand gallant savages on 

 the western frontiers, ready to march in the direction of Berlin, Belgium, 

 or, if the Emperor Francis should be frigid on the occasion, in the road 

 to Vienna, any one of which they might reach in a month. 



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