224 



TAELE-TALK AND VARIETIES. 



nersliip as surgeons and apothe- 

 caries in the country. The chief 

 object of their contract being to 

 furnish each of the parties with the 

 means of prosecuting their medical 

 Btudies, which they could not sepa- 

 rately so well enjoy, it was stipu- 

 lated that one of them, alternately, 

 should be allowed to study in what 

 college he pleased during the whi- 

 ter, while the other should carry 

 on the business in the country for 

 their common advantage. In con- 

 sequence of this agreement, Cullen 

 was first allowed to study at the 

 University of Edinburgh for one 

 winter ; but when it came to Hun- 

 ter's turn next winter, he prefer- 

 ring London to Edinburgh, went 

 thither. There his singular neat- 

 ness in dissecting, and uncommon 

 dexterity in making anatomical pre- 

 parations, his assiduity in study, 

 and amiable manners, soon recom- 

 mended him to the notice of Dr. 

 Douglas, who then read lectures 

 upon anatomy in London. Hunter 

 was engaged as an assistant, and 

 afterwards filled the chair itself 

 with honour. 



The scientific partnership was by 

 this means prematurely dissolved ; 

 but Cullen was not a man of that 

 disposition to let any engagement 

 with him prove a bar to his partner's 

 advancement in life. The articles 

 of the treaty were freely given up, 

 and Cullen and Hunter ever after 

 kept up a very cordial and friendly 

 correspondence; though it is be- 

 lieved, they never, from that time, 

 had a personal interview. 



BOSWELL'S BEAR-LEADING. 

 It was on a visit to the parlia- 

 ment house that Mr. Henry Ers- 

 kine (brother of Lord Buchan and 

 Lord Erskine), after being presented 

 to Dr. Johnson by Mr. Boswell, and 

 having made his bow, slipped a 

 shilling into Boswell's hand, whis- 

 pering that it was for the sight of 

 his bear, (Sir Walter Scott.) 



THE COMMON LOT OF THE ALCHY- 

 5IISTS. 



Fuller relates, that "one Thomas 

 Charnoc, in pursuit of the philoso- 

 pher's stone, which so many do 

 touch, few catch, and none keep, 

 met a very sad disaster. Once, 

 when he was on the point of com- 

 pleting the grand operation, his 

 work unhappily fell into the fire." 

 "This," says Mr. D'Israeli, "is a 

 misfortune which I observe has 

 happened to all alchymists." 



LORD BYRON'S " CORSAIR." 

 The Earl of Dudley, in his Let- 

 ters (1818), says : " To me Byron's 

 Corsair appears the best of all his 

 works. Bapidity of execution is no 

 sort of apology for doing a thing 

 ill, but when it is done well, the 

 wonder is so much the greater. I 

 am told he wrote this poem at ten. 

 sittings certainly it did not take 

 him more than three weeks." 



LORD ELI BANK AND DR. JOHNSON. 



Lord Elibank made a happy re- 

 tort on Dr. Johnson's definition of 

 oats, as the food of horses in Eng- 

 land, and men in Scotland. " Yes," 

 said he, " and where else will you 

 see such horses, and such men?" 

 (Sir Walter Scott.) 



A SNAIL DINNER. 



The chemical philosophers, Dr. 

 Black and Dr. Hutton, were parti- 

 cular friends, though there was 

 something extremely opposite in 

 their external appearance and man- 

 ner. Dr. Black spoke with the 

 English pronunciation, and with 

 punctilious accuracy of expression, 

 both in point of matter and man- 

 ner. The geologist, Dr. Hutton, 

 was the very reverse of this : his con- 

 versation was conducted in broad 

 phrases, expressed with a broad 

 Scotch accent, which often height- 

 ened the humour of what he said. 



It chanced that the two Doctors 



