NORTHERN MECHANICS' INSTITUTION, ESTABLISHED 19TH JULY, 1839, The Corporation kindly granted the use of their School, Bevington Bush, for the Education of the Mechanics of Liverpool. THIS valuable Institution is open for the instruction, in an evening, of the working mechanic, in drawing, reading, writing, mathematics, and all useful branches of learning-on the most liberal and moderate terms possible-in addition to which he has the advantage of the Library, containing the most modern books, suited to the study of all classes of mechanics;- it already exceeds 1000 volumes. The first two annual reports and catalogues, with every information, to be had at the institution from seven to nine o'clock each evening. SAMUEL RANSON, SECRETARY, 18, Clarence-street. N.B.-Concerts, short literary lectures, and scientific experiments every Saturday evening, from eight to ten o'clock, calculated to allure the mechanic from the haunts of dissipation. LAND INVESTMENT COMPANY. AT a Meeting of the Tu0th fate of Banagher and its vicinity, held on Friday, the 30th December, 1841, Captain WILLIAM SCOTT Chairman, Moved by the Rev. Cornelius O'Brien, P.P.; seconded by Keran Molloy, Esq. Resolved-That having read the prospectus of the Land Investment Company of Ireland, and heard the explanation of Mr. Reynolds, the Managing Director, we highly approve of the project, and considering it perfectly safe as an investment, and likely to be largely remunerative to the Share-holders, we hereby agree to subscribe for the number of Shares annexed to our names respectively. Signed, WILLIAM SCOTT, Chairman. Captain Scott having vacated the Chair, and Thomas Fleetwood, Esq., being called there to, the marked thanks of the Meeting were passed to William Scott, Esq., for his very proper conduct in the Chair. Banagher, 30th December, 1841. ENERAL PRINTING-OFFICES.-Books, Pamphlets, Cards, Circulars, Headings, Bill-heads, Posting Bills, Bills of Lading, Show Boards, and every variety of Printing executed with neatness and despatch at HUGH GAWTHROP'S PRINTING-OFFICES, 34, NORTH JOHN-STREET. Address Cards neatly engraved.-Circulars lithographed on the shortest notice. Gawthrop's Arithmetic and Table Book may be had from the Booksellers. GAWTHROP'S JOURNAL OF LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART. AND OF INSTITUTION REPORTS, Is published once a fortnight, at two-pence per number, or one shilling per quarter. The paper is enlarged, and now consists of twelve pages. The proprietor hopes its cheapness and utility will secure for it the extensive patronage which is required for its permanent establishment. OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. This Journal admits light and agreeable literature, as well as severe argument; opens its columns freely to the fair statement of opinions, and endeavours to win a welcome from all orders of thinking readers. The object of the work is to put forward and support provincial talent, whether in literature or in art; to promote mental, moral, and social improvement, and to interest in investigation. The number of pages is increased from eight to twelve, and the study of the Editor is to occupy the columns with information of the most valuable and pleasing description.Chronicle. GAWTHROP'S JOURNAL.-Another and a spirited attempt is being made in Liverpool to establish a local literary magazine. The effort is praiseworthy and deserves to be successful. Thirteen numbers have now been published. They contain many interesting original essays, valuable reports of lectures delivered at the Mechanics' and Literary Institutions, and pretty, original poems. The publication already has been instrumental in doing good; has in some instances, created, and in others encouraged, a taste for a more elevated kind of reading; and, in consequence, has met with the patronage of many of our most distinguished merchants and of several well-known clergymen. The number of pages is increased from eight to twelve. The study of the editor is to occupy the columns with valuable and pleasing information.—Albion. GAWTHROP'S JOURNAL.-A periodical low in price and well conducted, devoted to the institutions of the town, and to the spread of useful knowledge among the humble classes of society, was much wanted in Liverpool. The attempt to establish such an one is being spiritedly made by the conductor of the above journal, and we hope his exertions will be crowned with success. His publication contains many original and valuable essays, pleasing poetry, and interesting, well-written tales.-Courier. GAWTHROP'S JOURNAL.-This useful little periodical is fast working its way to public notice and favour. It contains many very valuable original essays, poems, and interesting tales, as well as reports of lectures, delivered at the Mechanics' and other Institutions. The want of a paper such as this has often been felt and expressed in Liverpool. The spirited exertions which are now being made by the proprietor deserve to be crowned with success. Standard. This is a very useful and well-conducted little Journal of Art, Science, and Institution Reports. The attempt to establish a local literary periodical is dangerous but highly praise-worthy. The experiment deserves to be successful. The original essays are valuable and well-written, the poetry is good and the tales are interesting.-Liverpool Mail. We have had the honour of seeing one of our leading articles copied entire into the Dublin Evening Post-of having our little periodical favourably noticed by the national paper of our sister metropolis, and of hearing it most highly spoken of by influential friends. LONDON DYE-HOUSE. JOHN EDWARDS, successor to Mr. William Blewitt, respect fully informs his Friends, and the Public of Liverpool and its vicinity generally, that he has commenced business at the Premises lately occupied by Mr. Blewitt, Dyer, at No. 64, (late 109,) Richmond-row, No. 6, Nelson-street, Great George-street, near Dr. Raffles' Chapel, and at No. 50, Oldhall-street, Liverpool, where he purposes carrying on the business of DYEING, in all its various departments, in the London style. J. Edwards is desirous of affording his friends and the public the assurance that all work entrusted to his care will receive the utmost attention, and having engaged first-rate workmen from the Metropolis, he is enabled to execute all orders with which he may be favoured, in the first style of elegance and finish, equal to the best London Dyeing Establishments, with the utmost punctuality, and on the most moderate terms. J. E. has to announce that he has made arrangements which will enable him to send for and return Articles to be Dyed, to any distance within ten miles of Liverpool. AGENTS.-A. M. Scolfield, Bridge-street, Runcorn; J. Burder, Denbigh; Thomas Lindon, Tontine-street, St. Helen's ; Thomas Naylor, Walgate, Wigan. 1. Leslie's Short and easy method with the Deists.. 2. Jeremy Taylor's Holy Living.. 2 3. Witherspoon on Regeneration, 1 4. Chandler's plain Reasons 5. Watson's Apology 2 4 Not to be had separately 1 0 9 4s. 1s. 6d. 1 6 5s. 6. Boston's Crook in the Lot. 7. West on the Resurrection 8. Jeremy Taylor's Holy Dying.. 1 9. Guild's Moses Unveiled, and Harmony of all the Prophets, 1 10. Sherlock's Trial of the Witnesses, and Sequel.. 11. Jeremy Taylor's Sermons pt. I. 3 12. Campbell's Dissertation on Miracles 1 1 13. Jenyns' Internal Evidence; and Lyttleton's Observations on the Conversion of St. Paul 0 9 Leslie's Truth of Christianity Demonstrated 0 6 14. 15. Jeremy Taylor's Sermons part 2. 2 16. Ditto. Taylor's Sermons part 3. 2 17. Paley's Hora Paulinæ. 18. Paley's evidence of Christianity 2 19. Leslie's Short and Easy Method with the Jews 2s. each work. 3s. 9 Not to be had separately. 6 1 6 Do. 3s. 6d. 1 0 2s. 6d. 20. Moses Stuart on the Divinity of Christ OF LITERATURE, SCIENCE AND ART. No. 18. SATURDAY, MARCH 19, AN ESSAY ON THE IMAGINATION: A COMPARISON BETWEEN ITS ACTIVITY IN A RUDE AND A CIVILIZED STATE OF SOCIETY. THE Imagination may be described as being that within us which gives us the power of receiving pleasure from whatever is beautiful or grand in nature, and which enables us to create or magnify scenes calculated to please or to excite terror. This definition may appear unsatisfactory, but after some consideration, I thought it the shortest and most accurate I could give. I am aware that it has been differently described by different writers, and, that to define what it is, many laboured articles have from time to time been written; but, I am of opinion that the many learned pages which have been written by metaphysicians and others, instead of informing our understandings, have a tendency only to confuse the mind of the inquirer. With respect to the workings of the imagination and the pleasures which result from it, all men are more or less acquainted according to its weakness or activity in themselves. He that is blessed with a fertile imagination lives in a different world to the person who by nature is formed incapable of tasting its sweets-he sees with different eyes-hears with different ears, and he daily and hourly experiences a thousand sensations which are altogether foreign to the latter, or to give the splendid description of him which has been written by Akenside Blind emotions heave His bosom, and with loveliest frenzy caught, Flit swift before him. From the womb of earth- Indeed, a fertile imagination throws a charm over everything, without it the world is a barren waste, and I can conceive nothing so insipid, nothing so worthless, as a life drawled out in one continued 1842. round of mechanical pursuits, unrelieved by any of the gay visions of fancy, and uninitiated into the nature of those pleasures which it bestows, and which its possessors alone enjoy. It is the imagination which quickens our perception of beauty or sublimity. The imagination conjures up before us whatever we read of, or whatever we may desire to see-the scenes of Grecian and Roman story—the mighty cities which once existed—the pompous pageantry of the days of chivalry, in short, all the scenes of former timesall the glories and mighty occurrences which have ever taken place, are called by the imagination afresh into existence, and are beheld with all the vividness of reality. By the aid of letters we can converse face to face with the sages of antiquity-witness the daring deeds of departed heroes-listen to the poet singing his lays to his admiring audiences-hear the orator addressing assembled multitudes, and fancy ourselves, equally with the crowds, animated and spurred on to action by his resistless torrents of eloquence." Nay, more than this, whoever is possessed of imagination is, in a manner, possessed of everything which he sees around him-of everything which the world can produce, for, to use the words of the poet before quoted "His the cities' pomp, The rural honors his, whate'er adorns Such is the effect of imagination. Of what importance then is it to man, and how great an ingredient it must be in the formation of his happiness may be readily conceived. I have before hinted, that though some possess it in a great degree, there are others who have so little of it, that it would appear as if nature had intended them to be debarred from the gratifications it affords. It may be asked, then, since so much benefit is to be derived from the possession of a rich imagination, is it possible for it to be cultivated, and by such means to have its activity increased? Now the answer to this is very important in the consideration of the question whether is the imagination more active in a barbarous or civilized state of society? which is so often discussed. For my own part I should say undoubtedly it can, like every other faculty of the mind, and that he who is born with inferior powers of imagination, must, by a course of training, gradually increase those powers, and by degrees his mind must awake into a new existence, when all life and nature would assume a new and more interesting aspect, earth be transformed into a heaven compared with what it was, and to him would then be applicable the beautiful lines "The meanest floweret of the vale, The simplest note that swells the gale, Having made these introductory remarks concerning the imagination, I shall now proceed to draw a comparison between its activity in a rude and in a civilized state of society. In a rude state of society, what circumstances are calculated to bring it into active play? Before the truths of science burst in upon us, and spread their beneficial influence over the world, mankind were in a state of mental darkness; and superstition, the offspring of heated imagination, unaided by reason, prevailed among all classes of society. Every man had his belief in giants, fairies, and hobgoblins; and as the real cause of various phenomena would be unknown, everything which happened out of the common way was immediately ascribed to supernatural causes, or to some fantastic beings, who were ever supposed to be working for the weal or woe of the human race. Terror is the natural consequence of superstition, and under the influence of this feeling the imagination is undoubtedly in a very active state. In the rude ages, should he chance to be out after dark, the lonely wanderer is sure to be dogged in his steps by a troop of frightful monsters of every description-his eyes are made the fools of his fancy-every trunk of a tree is a ghastly spectre-and every passing gale is the howl of some wicked fury. The ruins of old castles are nightly visited by merry-making friendsold halls are haunted by the untimely slain-the groans of the murdered and their cries for revenge proceed from the woods-every village has its scores of frightful legends, and every individual can narrate his long list of hair-breadth 'scapes. Not an accident occurs but it is immediately looked upon as the visitation of an angry deity-an eclipse of the sun, or the appearance of a comet, fills the world with consternation, and gives rise to numberless evil forebodings of future horrid catastrophes-the stars are the spirits of departed beings-the sea is peopled with nymphs and mermaids, and an indescribable variety of imaginable shapes are borne on the midnight blasts. Such I conceive to be the nature of the operations of imagination in a rude state of society, and in such a state I think it must be allowed it is exceedingly active. I come now to the consideration of the question whether it is likely to be equally energetic when the errors and superstitions of former times have been chased away by the advance of knowledge, and hid themselves for shame at the approach of truth. After the dawn of civilisation, and when its spread is becoming rapid, there are always a great many persons who devote themselves to the investigation of science. Now, it is a perfectly true observation that a strict course of abstract reasoning is productive of habits which are different from those that the fancy requires; it therefore follows that those particular individuals will have their imaginations weakened in the course of time through its want of exercise ; but it must be remembered that while science is making rapid progress in the hands of some, the imagination is still as active as ever in others, though it may be growing more refined, and exercised in a different manner to what it was formerly. There are two kinds of imagination, one pursues— "The vast alone, the wonderful, the wild; The former revels in tempests, hurricanes, and in whatever is gigantic, majestic, or sublime;-the other loves the cool shade, the songs of nature's choristers, the winding stream, the gentle zephyrs, the green valley, and the village church, with its heaven-ward pointing spire. However much it may be disputed whether the former kind of imagination is the more active in a barbarous or a civilized state of society, in which state the latter is more active surely cannot admit of a moment's doubt. It is beyond dispute that taste and the fine arts, which very much depend on the imagination, have been very greatly improved since the introduction of civilisation. But whether the activity of that kind of imagination, which is creative of the wonderful, the terrific, and the sub lime, is equally great in modern times as it was in ruder ages, is a subject which has been much disputed among the most talented and learned men. Let me just enquire for a moment into the reasons which have been assigned why it should have decayed as civilisation became extended. It is a common remark that as truth unveils herself, and science adds discovery after discovery, the sphere of the imagination becomes more and more contracted; and that as society is improved and the mind cultivated, superstitions take their flight, and fears are banished. We are told that under these circumstances men pursue one steady onward course-the minds of men are either absorbed in business, or occupied in philosophical investigations, and that prose, as being the more useful, is the more attended to than poetry. In proof of the truth of this we are referred to the poetical productions of men who lived while society was yet in a rude state, and whose works are looked upon with wonder and admiration, as far surpassing any thing of the kind which has been produced in modern times. Is this true ? Has poetry thus declined since the rude ages or not? and if it has, is it owing to the imaginations of men having grown more feeble? In our own country there was certainly a great falling off for a century after the Elizabethan age; but may not that be justly attributed to the perpetual wars and commotions which disturbed that period?-to the minds of men being so completely absorbed in the stirring events which were of daily occurrence? Is not this sufficient to account for literature and works of the imagination being for a season neglected? For my own part, I am of opinion that if the imagination has ceased to alarm us with its frightful creations, still that, upon the whole, it has been greatly extended and refined. If, as in rude times, terror and superstition are not so much alive, being dispelled by science, yet that same science has been favourable to the imagination in many ways—it has awakened new trains of thoughts, and opened the way to far more sublime conceptions. If the stars are no longer looked upon as the spirits of departed beings, they are looked upon as immense suns, each lighting its family of worlds, and affording heat to myriads of creatures, separated from us by immeasurable distances. Fancy here has ample scope, and may range as far as it pleases. If poets are not of a higer order, and more imaginative than they were in former days, they are at any rate more numerous, and their works are far more read and admired. If we are told that modern poetry assumes a more prosaic aspect than the earlier poetry-that none of our modern poets have displayed the same boldness and brilliancy of conception which distinguishes the early poet-I deny the charge, and could substantiate the truth of what I say by reference to numerous productions by modern authors. I will mention one, "Alexander's Feast," by Dryden, a more bold and splendid burst of imaginative genius than which I do not think exists in any of the poets of antiquity, not excluding even Homer himself. In a former part of this essay I have described what I considered to be the state of the imagination in a rude condition of society, I shall now conclude it by saying what I think is its state in this country at present. By its aid all the splendid cities, palaces, temples, and towers, which time has thrown down, are again raised up-attic song and attic eloquence are again listened to-it carries us on its own bright pinions above the regions of earth-it strews the lonely path with flowers-it enables us to feel "A pleasure in a pathless wood, A rapture on a lonely shore, And hear music in the Ocean's roar." It throws a light beautiful garment over all nature— it discloses to us the Elysium of the Ancients; and what is still more, it is like the key of St. Peter, it unlocks the gate, and reveals to us all the beauty -sweetness-grandeur-joy-majesty and sublimity of heaven. LINES TO A LADY WHO HAD LEFT HER HOME AND COUNTRY. Already has Fate oft obliged us to sever, And taught us the anguish of parting to know; The hope that our parting would not be for ever Has gladdened my heart, and bade tears cease to flow. Whene'er near those haunts where we once used to wander, In fancy thy form I see stand by my side, There oft have I strayed and delighted to ponder On times when thy praise was the height of my pride. O many the hour, my dear Ann, we've enjoyed Each others society ere care was yet known; O many the hours, my dear Ann, thou'st employed Enchanting my mind, and have virtue's seeds sown. To stories, which oft with delight I have heard, I owe sweetest pleasures that still in mind live ; In memory long I will cherish each word, To thee oft in silence my blessing I'll give. LINES FOR THE FIRST LEAF OF A PRAYER BOOK. The penitent first heaves a sigh, |