ment of one hour's rest together. "Nature, indeed, could not have supported itself thus long under much labour; but as I had nothing to do but only keep the middle stream, I began to be as used to guide myself in it with my eyes almost closed, and my senses retired, as a higgler is to drive his cart to market in his sleep." The next morning he awoke sweetly refreshed, and after breakfasting on such provisions as his boat contained, he laid him down to drink at the lake, which looked as clear as chrystal, intending, no doubt, a delicious draught; but he had forgot it brought him from the sea, and the first gulp almost poisoned him. However, he is far from despair: so rivetted on his mind was a sense of Divine care and mercy, that though the vast lake of salt water was surrounded by an impenetrable barrier of rock, he rested satisfied that he should rather find even that yield him a fresh and living stream, than that he should be suffered to perish for want of water. After walking about seven miles along the banks, nearly round five-sixths of the lake's circumference, his confiding trust was rewarded by the sight of a small hollow, or cut in the grass, from the wood to the lake, at a little distance before him: " thither I hasted with all speed, and blessed God for the supply of a fine fresh rill, which, distilling from several small clefts in the rock, had collected itself into one stream, and cut its way through the green sod to the lake."

One of the principal charms of the work will, in the estimation of the reader of good taste, be found to consist in the serene and tranquil air, which is diffused around it by pure thoughts and innocent conversation, joined to this beautiful and sublime dependence on the merciful care of the Great Father of the universe, which, in all the chances and disasters of his eventful life, the simple-minded and good-hearted hero never fails to evince. Stuck, like a sea-gull in its nest, in the cleft of a sea-beat rock-or absorbed in the thick darkness of a subterranean cavern- -or left to himself amidst solitudes, where never foot of man had trod since the creation; and cut. off for ever even from the possibility of mingling again with beings formed like himself, of ever hearing more the accents of a human voice,-the poor wanderer, though one of those more especially formed to enjoy society, is far from being overcome by the tremendous stillness of his abode, but strangely hugging himself with an air of comfort, carries a serene mind about with him for the present, and looks forward with hope to the future. A solitary individual, abstracted from the great mass of human society, with no kind eye to reflect his joys in the hour of gladness, and nothing but the moaning winds to answer his sighs, when sorrowful, still he is not alone; but, like the patriarch of old, walking with God, among his

eternal solitudes, he finds in that hallowed intercourse ample compensation for the pleasures of society, the comforts of home, and the affectionate endearments of kindred. The aw

ful barrier of the rock for ever interposes between him and the prospect of the world; but it excludes not from his sight the blue heavens, which smile upon him, as it were, with the eye of a father and an everlasting friend. If the wood bear him fruit, he is grateful to him who has thus prepared a table in the wilderness; if he find the clear waters of a brook to quench his thirst withal, he drinks of it with even more delight, because it is the boon of Him, who in the dry and sandy desert did fetch water from the living rock, to refresh a murmuring and thankless generation. This is wisdom!-this is true philosophy !— thus, indeed, may the devout contemplator of Nature's works "find tongues in brooks, sermons in stones, and good in every thing." What a noble view of man! God-like in reason himself-conversing with God! amply, indeed, does he vindicate the divinity of his origin. The anchorites, who forsook the busy scenes of life to muse amidst the solitudes of the desert, or in the gloom of primæval forests, and by the banks of lone sequestered streams, held high communion with heaven; on whom the stars, as they glittered in the vast expanse of air, shot down rays of the divine intelligence; and who, in the mysterious sighings of the gale, as it waved the lofty branches under which they sat, heard the voice of the ever-living God, were a superstitious race no doubt, who forgot in their mystical devotion the first duties of life; but they had noble aspirations, and a sublime sense of religious worship. But when by the irresistible tide of human events, over which man has no controul, he is cast, like a stranded vessel on a lone and desolate sea-beach, far out of the sphere of domestic or social life, environed by the ocean, imprisoned in rocks, an exile forgotten of all men--a wanderer by sea and land for conscience sake; yet still reposing with such implicit faith and singleness of heart, on the kind protecting care of a benevolent and almighty Being, as to be superior to every hardship; cheerful in desolation; familiarly acquainted with and indifferent to every danger, and regarding death no more than as a friend welcome at any hour; neither the hero triumphant amidst the tide of battle, nor the poet in imagining new worlds, nor the philosopher developing the mysteries of the universe, affords so grand a display of the energies of the human soul, or the glorious capabilities of our nature.

But to return. Having thus found a stream of water, and, in the wood, a never-failing repast, to supply the wants of nature, he began to think of commencing housekeeper; and being about to build, as he imagined for life, he determined upon

adding to his grotto an apartment outside the rock. This, although being without either spade or mattock he found the earth difficult to deal with, "for, to be sure, it had never been stirred since the creation," he raised with marvellous expedition and facility. His next business was to provide himself with some necessary implements of housekeeping, in the construction of which he is equally clever. He cuts a dock for his boat, makes a cart for the conveyance of water, and out of a number of large gourds, which he found growing upon the taller trees, he manufactures pots and pans, and other household utensils. By various experiments upon the different vegetable productions of the island, having furnished his table, in even a sumptuous manner; he began to enjoy himself in his solitary arkoe, like the absolute and sole lord of the country, as he was. There was nothing, indeed, to dispute possession with him-neither man nor beast, nor any animal, but some squirrels, or something like them, in trees, and a few water rats about the lake. Birds there were of various kinds, both in the lake and woods, but such as he had never before seen.

There being no fear for the present, it became his business to lay up stores against the season of sickness and dark weather, which last he knew, by the experience of the former year, would be soon upon him. The sun, indeed, he had never seen, since he first entered the gulph, "and though there was very little rain, and but few clouds, yet the brightest day-light never exceeded that of half an hour after sun-set in the summer-time in England, and little more than just reddened the sky."

By ekeing out the materials, with which he had stowed his boat, by the soft rushes which he had cut and dried on the banks of the lake, he made himself a very comfortable bed, in which he slept as soundly as he used to do in his hammock; and made very long nights of it, now the dark season was set in. As thus snugly ensconced he lay awake one night or day, he knew not which, he "very plainly heard the sound of several human voices," but though he could distinguish the articulations, the words were unintelligible. Neither did the voices seem at all like such as he "had any where heard before, but much softer, and more musical." He was startled; and rising immediately, took his gun in hand, and stepped on tip-toe into his anti-chamber, where he heard "the voices much plainer, till, after some little time, they, by degrees, died quite away.' He was inclined to open the door of his anti-chamber, but owns he was afraid; besides, he could have discovered nothing, by reason of the thick and gloomy wood that surrounded him. He has a thousand surmises

"Where should this music be? I'the air, or the earth?

It sounds no more."

How should there be any human beings in his kingdom, and he never yet see them, or any trace of their habitation? But as he had not explored the whole extent of the rock, might there not be innumerable grottos like his own, and this beautiful spot, lonely as it looked, be, after all, very well peopled? Yet, surely, they "don't skulk in their dens, like wild beasts by daylight, and only patrole, for prey, at night? If so, I shall probably, ere long, become a delicious morsel for them an' they meet with me!" This vague fear keeps him much within doors till hearing no more voices, nor seeing any one, he composed his mind so far, as to think it all a delusion,-to doubt whether he were fully awake when he heard them,―to persuade himself that he had risen in his sleep, in a dream of voices,-calling to mind the stories he had heard of people walking in their sleep,and the strange effects of it;-so the whole notion was now blown over.

Alas! for his tranquillity-hardly a week had elapsed, and he is roused afresh by the same sound of voices, and is obliged, at length, to own himself awake. From the languor of the sound, he judges they are at a considerable distance; and again regrets the thickness of the wood, that prevents him from getting a view of the utterers.

But the light beginning to return, and not having received any fresh alarm, he partly regained his equanimity; and now put in execution the design he had formed of exploring this island round. The result of his tour was a conviction, that he himself was really and truly the only inhabitant, and that the rock afforded no ingress from the ocean, but by the subterranean gulf, through which he himself had come. To the winds then ride his fears!-there is not one rival or enemy to fear in his whole dominions. He now goes quietly about his own business, and among other employments betakes himself to fishing in the lake, having constructed, very cleverly, a large drag net, of some matweed, which he had accidentally discovered, of the thickness and strength of whipcord. The lake he finds well stocked with fish of various descriptions, which enable him to keep a better table than before. On one occasion, upon casting his net, he met with a resistance that quite amazed him. However, exerting all his might, he finally became conqueror; when he brought up "so shocking a monster," that he was just rising to run for his life, at the very sight. But as he reflected the creature was hampered in the net, and out of its element, he mustered courage to disentangle

the thing, and then drawing the net away, a most surprising sight presented itself:

"The creature reared upright, about three feet high, covered all over with long black shaggy hair, like a bear, which hung down from his head and neck quite along his back and sides. He had two fins, very broad and large, which, as he stood erect, looked like arms, and those he waved and whirled about with incredible velocity; and though I wondered at first at it, I found afterwards it was the motion of these fins that kept him upright; for I perceived when they ceased their motion he fell flat on his belly. He had two very large feet, which he stood upon, but could not run, and but barely walk on them, which made me in the less haste to despatch him; and after he had stood upon his feet about four minutes, clapping his fins to his sides, he fell upon his belly.

"When I found he could not attack me, I was moving closer to him; but, upon sight of my stirring, up he rose again, and whirled his fins about as before, so long as he stood. And now I viewed him round, and found he had no tail at all, and that his hinder fins, or feet, very much resembled a large frog's, but were at least ten inches broad, and eighteen long, from heel to toe; and his legs were so short, that when he stood upright his breech bore upon the ground. His belly, which he kept towards me, was of an ash-colour, and very broad, as was also his breast. His eyes were small and blue, with a large black sight in the middle, and rather of an oval than round make. He had a long snout like a boar, and vast teeth. Thus having surveyed him near half an hour living, I made him rise up once more and shot him in the breast. He fell, and giving a loud howl, or 'groan, expired."

The skin of this beast-fish, as he named it, supplied him with coverlids and cushions,-on broiling some of the flesh, he found that it ran down to excellent oil,-a grand acquisition,and of this he extracted considerable quantities.-He also extracts from it, something almost as valuable as oil,-namely, relief on the subject of his fears,-for having heard the creature make a deep howl at the time of his death, he endeavoured to persuade himself, and did, at last, verily believe, that the voices. he had so often heard, in the dark weather, proceeded from numbers of these creatures diverting themselves on the surface of the lake.

This security of mind, together with the additional comforts he had acquired, rendered his life very easy, "yea, even com'fortable." But after the darkness of the third year of his abode on the island had set in, the voices were frequently heard again, sometimes few at a time, and then again in vast numbers. More deliberate attention convinces him, that they could be uttered by none, but beings capable of articulate speech; so that he is obliged to give up his notion, that the