324 



TABLE-TALK AND VARIETIES. 



ding Lane, erected over the spot [ other held out towards me what 



where the fire began, was placed 

 by authority the following inscrip- 

 tion, which was also removed 

 in consequence of the inhabitants 

 being incommoded by the multi- 

 tudes who were thus induced to 

 visit the place : " Here by the per- 

 mission of Heaven, Hell broke 

 loose upon this Protestant city, 

 from the malicious hands of barba- 

 rous Papists, by the hand of their 

 agent Hubert ; who confessed, and, 

 on the ruins of this place, declared 

 this fact for which he was hanged, 

 viz., that here began the dreadful 

 fire, which is described and perpe- 

 tuated, on and by the neighbouring 

 pillar, erected anno," &c. 



ELECTIONEERING EPIGRAM. 



Thomas Moore has recorded in 

 his diary, that Lord John Russell 

 repeated to him the following epi- 



the two candidates for Bedford- 

 shire saying in his address, that 

 "the memory of his struggle would 

 exist to the end of time" : 



" When this earth to the work of de- 

 struction shall bend, 



And the seasons be ceasing to roll, 

 How surprised will old Time be to sec, 



at his end, 



The state of the Bedfordshire poll !" 



GALVANIZING AN INDIAN 



On the afternoon of a very sultry 

 day in June I had got a table out 

 in the verandah of my bungalow, 

 and was amusing myself with a 

 galvanic apparatus, giving such of 

 my servants as had the courage a 

 taste of what they called wulatee 

 boinjee (English lightning), when a 

 long, gaunt figure, with his hair 

 hanging down in disordered masses 

 over his face, was observed to cross 

 the lawn. On arriving within a 

 few paces of where I stood he drew 

 himself up in an imposing attitude, 

 one of his arms akimbo, while the 



appeared to be a pair of tongs, with 

 a brass dish at the extremity of it. 



Who are you?' I called out. 

 "Fuqueer," was the guttural re- 

 sponse. " "What do you want ?" 



Bheek" (alms). "Bheek!" I ex- 

 claimed, "surely you are joking ; a 

 great stout fellow like you can't be 

 wanting bheek T The fuqueer paid 

 not the slightest attention, but con- 

 tinued holding out his tongs with 

 the dish at the end of it. " You 

 had better be off," I said ; " I never 

 give bheek to people who are able 

 to work." " \Ve do Khooda's work," 

 replied the fuqueer with a swagger. 

 " Oh ! you do ; then," I answered, 

 "you had better ask Khooda for 

 bheek." So saying, I turned to 

 the table, and began arranging the 

 apparatus for making some ex- 

 periments. Happening to look up 

 about five minutes after I observed 

 that the fuqueer was standing upon 

 one leg, and struggling to assume 

 as much majesty as was consistent 

 with his equilibrium. The tongs 

 and dish were still extended, while 

 his left hand sustained his right 

 foot across his abdomen. I turned 

 to the table and tried to go on with 

 my work ; but I blundered awfully, 

 broke a glass jar, cut my fingers, 

 and made a mess on the table. I 

 had a consciousness of the fuqueer's 

 staring at me with his extended 

 dish, and could not get the fellow 

 out of my head. I looked up at 

 him again. There he was as grand 

 as ever, on his one leg, and with 



his eyes rivetted on mine, 

 continued this performance 



He 

 for 



nearly an hour, yet there did not 

 seem to be the faintest indication 

 of his unfolding himself ; rather a 

 picturesque ornament to the lawn 

 if he should take it into his head, 

 as these fellows sometimes do, to 

 remain in the same position for a 

 twelvemonth. " If," I said, " you 

 stand there much longer. Til give 

 you such a taste of boinjee (light- 



