- the interview. .. 
2nd §. No 25., June 21, 56.) 
tin in alarm endeavoured to escape in flight. But it was 
of nouse. The vision followed him, and found him out. 
It accompanied him into church, took the holy water 
along with him, and came out with him; and as he hur- 
ried home, and intended to shut the door upon it, sud- 
denly preceded him; and, face to face, commanded him 
_ to do as he was bidden. . . . At last, Martin resolved to 
leave the neighbourhood altogether; but the youth met 
him in the barn, and said, ‘You have resolved to make 
your escape; but you would not have gone far, you must 
fulfil your commission.’ These things being reported to 
the bishop, were by him communicated to M. Decazes, 
minister of police, who sent them to the prefect of the 
department, M. de Breteuil, who ordered Martin and the 
curate to Chartres. The prefect determined to send him 
to Paris. The minister of police attempted to intimidate 
him, and to treat him as insane; but Martin was firm 
and collected, and was always informed beforehand by 
his mysterious visitor of what would befall him. ... . 
After a long investigation, and much correspondence, a 
full report of which was drawn up by MM. Pinel and 
Royer Collard, physicians, who examined Martin, he 
was sent to the hospital at Charenton, to be treated as a 
lunatic. At this time, M. de la Rochefoucauld received a 
letter respecting Martin from the Duchess of Luynes, his 
grandmother, who resided near Gallardon. It stated the 
case in such a manner as to excite the curiosity of the 
viscount, and he determined to enquire into it, unknown 
to the minister. For this purpose he paid a visit to the 
hospital, without expressing a desire to see any par- 
ticular patient, but the whole institution. He visited 
numerous cells, and talked with many of the inmates. 
But he took little interest in them; he was looking for 
Martin, but never named him. At last he found a calm, 
serene, and intelligent looking peasant, who, he at once 
concluded, was the man he was in search of. After en- 
quiring his name, &c.: ‘ What is the matter with you?’ 
*Me! nothing,’ replied Martin; ‘but the minister has 
shut me up here to prevent me from seeing the king.’ 
Then the whole story was told. After much correspon- 
dence, examination, &c., and another interview with the 
apparition, the king was informed, who resolved to grant 
. The king received Palmer very gra- 
ciously, and asked him to sit down on the other side of 
the table. The interview lasted about an hour. The 
conversation began with a narration of the facts of the 
case. After this the king said that he understood that 
Martin had some secret to communicate to him. Up to 
this time, Martin kuew nothing of the secret; but no 
sooner had the king spoken the word, than Martin’s 
organs of speech were suddenly seized by an irresistible 
force; and he spoke volubly, without even the power of 
choosing his expressions. The secret was, that in hunt- 
ing in the forest of St. Hubert, the king had formed the 
design of assassinating his brother Louis XVI. He hada 
double-barrelled gun, and with one barrel he meant to 
shoot the king, and then fire the other in the air, pre- 
tending to have been attacked; but was prevented from 
executing the design by being entangled among the 
branches of a tree, through which the king passed freely. 
On hearing this, Louis wept bitterly, and confessed the 
truth; but extorted a promise from Martin that he would 
reserve his secret, which Martin did as long as the king 
ived. The king was then making Bagh ae for his 
coronation; but Martin told him, that, if he dared to 
receive the oil of consecration, he would be struck dead 
during the ceremony. Accordingly, the king counter- 
manded the preparations, and he never was crowned. He 
was ordered to look out for the proper heir, the orphan of 
the Temple, who Martin said was alive. He also pro- 
mised to tell his brother, afterwards Charles X., of this; 
a 
NOTES AND QUERIES. 
491 
and he is said to have done so. But no search took place; 
and Charles X., who accepted the consecration and coro- 
nation, was dethroned, and died in exile, as Martin fore- 
told. At the death of Louis the XVIII., Charles X. sent 
the Duke de Montmorency to Martin, to endeavour to 
make him change his testimony. But Martin was firm. 
The interview took place in the house and presence of the 
Curé de Bleury, near Gallardon. . . .”— Abridged from 
the Spiritual Herald for June, 1856. 
MERCATOR, AUTHOR OF THE POUND AND MIL 
SCHEME. 
I shall be much obliged to any of your readers, 
who can inform me who was “ Mercator,” the 
author of the plan for changing our coinage, 
which is now commonly known as “the pound 
and mil scheme.” His tract, dated ‘ London, 
Ist July, 1814,” was published by Valpy, in The 
Pamphleteer (vol. iv. p. 171.). The writer ex- 
presses his admiration of the system of monies, 
weights, and coins, used in France ; and suggests 
that the subject should be taken up on the return 
of peace with that country. He advises that we 
should adopt the rate of 10 per cent. as the pro- 
portion of alloy for both gold and silver coin; and 
that we should divide the pound sterling into 
1000 mils, and the pound weight into 10 ounces, 
each ounce containing 1000 grains. His pam- 
phlet has been lately republished by Mr. Robert 
Slater, in his valuable Inquiry into the Principles 
involved in the Decimalisation of the Weights, 
Measures, and Monies of the United Kingdom, 
Appendix, p. 71. 
As Mercator’s monetary plan has been brought 
forward since he wrote by a considerable number 
of individual writers, as well as by the members 
of the two scientific commissions appointed for 
another purpose in 1838 and 1843; as it has more- 
over been embraced by the Decimal Association, 
and recommended for adoption by several of the 
witnesses before the Committee of the House of 
Commons on decimal coinage ; and as it is pro- 
bably regarded with no small share of favour by 
the three royal commissioners, who are now in- 
quiring into the same subject, it is a matter of 
considerable interest to know who was the first 
proposer of the plan. Also, as his proposal, 
though showing a laudable attention to a very 
important subject, and conceived in a spirit of 
liberality by no means common in his day, was 
only a first idea, or a suggestion arising out of 
temporary circumstances, it would be very grati- 
fying to know whether the writer adheres to his 
original scheme, or is inclined to harmonise with 
those who would bring our method of reckoning 
and our system of coinage into exact accordance 
with those of our continental neighbours. 
. James YATES. 
Lauderdale House, Highgate, 
