on coming down stairs on the first morning 

 after the arrival. 



Of the lovely walks by moonlight, " Meet 

 me alones," &c, &c, rides and drives 

 to Tivoli, donkey excursions, raffles, &c. 

 &c. — all so peculiar to watering-places, we 

 say nothing. "They must be seen to be 

 credited ; be enjoyed to be believed." Neither 

 need we dwell upon the charming strolls 

 upon " the sands," with the dear children, 

 and their often-times lovely supporters. 

 These too are joys not to be emptily talked 

 about, seeing how deeply they are " inlaid " 

 in our memory. Nor need we speak, except 

 incidentally, of " that pretty room up stairs," 

 at Belle Vue Tavern, Pegwell Bay, in which 



room we metis rfimporte. Such shrimps, 



such bottled ale, such cyder, such bread and 

 butter, such tea, and such cream ! We 

 never ! ! ! 



Another glance, and we have done with 

 the watering-places. Only think of going up 

 every day to the end of the pier, to see the 

 boats depart and arrive ! This last — what a 

 business of the day! The meetings, the 

 arrivals, the chaste salutes, the sighs, the 

 tears of the departing ! It is a tableau. 



" Now " does Saturday draw near ; and 

 now draws near with it the arrival of " the 

 last boat from London " — the " duck boat," 

 containing all the wife holds dear. Now do 

 certain crones, gossips,and antique curiosities 

 sally forth " by the light of the moon," to 

 be in time to criticise the meeting of papas, 

 mammas, and the family branches. Now 

 does papa affectionately jump on shore, and 

 joyously salute his angel of life — a salute 

 that, holy in the sight of God and his angels ! 

 And now is the " overt act of impropriety " 

 canvassed, and commented upon for a long 

 week by the " tabbies." 



Of all sights, commend us to this " sacred 

 meeting" on Saturdays. If anything would 

 render a watering-place agreeable, it would 

 be this. We have been " performers " in 

 it many a time, and have boldly braved, 

 with a manly heart, all the envious " Did 

 you evers ! " that have greeted us as we 

 tripped past the motley group that lined 

 the shore. We reckon we have shocked 

 the sensitive nerves of very many board- 

 ing-house spinsters in this way : and we 

 think it likely that they are destined again 

 to behold us amongst them. So let them 

 " look out ! " 



" Now" have we completed this Paper of 

 " seasonable realities " — we wish we could 

 say rationalities : but that would not meet 

 with an approval inforo conscientice. It is 

 our duty to describe what is going on in 

 town and country — hence is our task of to- 

 day rather irksome than pleasurable. When 

 duty and pleasure go hand in hand — 

 when, for instance, we are among fields 



and gardens, by rivers and purling streams 

 — then does our pen rejoice exceedingly in 

 recording the " rationalities " of life. 



Anon, the autumnal equinox will set in. 

 Then will there be an end to steam-trips, 

 and we shall once again return to the joys of 

 the Country — and " Home." 



" Do pray, Mr. Editor, instruct me 

 and my sisters in the art of taming birds and 

 animals. You are so constantly dwelling 

 upon their delightful performances, and 

 recording their fearless approach to their 

 masters and mistresses, that I feel sure there 

 must be some little mystery in the matter, 

 known only to a certain few." 



We have received from a fair Corre- 

 spondent, a very long letter on the subject of 

 Birds, and in it is a request made as above. 

 We have replied to the letter generally, by 

 post ; but at the earnest desire of the writer, 

 in whom we feel deeply interested, we treat 

 this particular inquiry separately. 



We have repeatedly remarked, that the 

 talisman whereby all animals are tamed and 

 rendered familiar (fear apart), is affection. 

 We wish all our readers to bear in mind, that 

 there is a more close affinity between ani- 

 mals and ourselves than we have the least 

 idea of. Their instincts, fears, hopes, anti- 

 cipations, affections, and good qualities, 

 differ only in degree from our own. A harsh 

 word hardens us; a harsh word frightens 

 them. An encouraging word from you, will 

 always excite attention in them. Treat them 

 well, they will know you and honor you. 

 Bestow your affection, — your whole heart 

 upon them, — they will " love " you. They 

 well know, as do we, the difference between 

 common kindness and devoted affection. 

 The one is comparative, — the other superla- 

 tive. Give us the latter, and the animals 

 too, if you want " love " in return. 



Kindness is a natural gift, — so is cruelty. 

 We have known little children — we know 

 some now — who will lavish on a kitten all 

 their fondest affections. The kitten is a part 

 of themselves. They are always together, 

 — unhappy when separated. The kitten hides 

 in a box, after being dressed up like a baby, 

 and goes through a multitude of gymnastics, 

 pullings-about, and huggings, that we should 

 imagine to be intolerably provoking. Not a 

 bit of it ! We repeat, that the sympathies 

 and enjoyments of the groups we speak of, 

 are identical. The same with puppies, and 

 indeed any animals. A pleasing theory this. 



On the other hand, some children, boys 

 and girls, evince at a very early age the 

 most horrible inclination to cruelty. They 

 teaze not only each other, but every animal 

 they see ; take an infinite delight in tearing 

 off the wings of flies ; and rejoice to witness 

 their acute agonies, whilst writhing in 



