North Carolina Newspapers

LIBERTY.-.. .THE CONSTITUTION.. ..UNION. VOL. XVII. 3VEWBERN, FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 1833. NO. 846, PUBLISHED BY THOMAS WATSON. TERMS, Three dollars per annum payable in advance. from the New York American. John Randolph, of Roanoke, was too re markable a rnan while living, not tq be an ob cct n0v that he has bo recently disappeared 'from the scene of great and general curiosity enA interest. We consider ourselves fortunate, therefore, in being enabled by the kindness of n frc nd. wno was aiso an intimate menu oi Mr Randolph, to minister in some degree to thp gratification of this interest by a series of numbers, in which some oi me peculiarities, the piquant sayings, the characteristic letters, and the poetry, of Mr, Randolph, are embodied. The first number is published to-day, and successive numbers, which will extend to eight or nine, shall appear every day. Of the authenticity and accuracy of these re- minescences and extracts, our readers may be fully persuaded, for the gentleman who com municates them for publication is known to us ns of the strictest honor and truth though, as the friends he often delights could, attest a no ted story teller. RANDOLPHIANA, No. I It is to be hoped, that some one of the late John Randolph s intimate friends, who posses scs.thc necessary qualifications, will undertake to give his biography to the world. lie nas been too remarkable a character, and has filled too largo a space in public estimation, to be passed over merely with a few newspaper sketches, which will soon be lost or forgotten. Sudi an ardent and devoted admirer of his na tiyeState, wfio always exercised his brightest talents in her defence, cannot surely long re main without a biographer in Virginia, which still abounds with distinguished men. In the mean time those who can relate any character istic anecdotes of Mr. Randolph, may be ex cused for indulging in such reminiscences. It was my good fortune to cross the Atlantic trithhiin the first time he went to England, and to pa?s some time with him in London ; and I ran unhesitatingly declare, that I never travel led with so entertaining a companion, nor have I ever met with his equal for diversity of know cuVr. If rny memory were as good as his was I could write a very amusing book of his savins aud anecdotes, historical, biographical, political, classical, theological, &c, but as it is not, I can only venture to relate a few of the more striking circumstances which occurred ' whilst we were together. The first time I ever saw Mr. Randolph was the morning on which we embarked in the packet ship Amity, for Liverpool, March 16, i.62-. . I wan introduced to him by a mutual friend, who casually mentioned, at the moment, that I was an Irishman. Shortly afterwards Mr. R. came up and addressed me as follows: "I am very happy, Sir, to meet with an Irishman, for I love vour country, and admire her sons and daughters too, Sir. Miss Edgeworth is my great favorite. I know her works almost bv heart. Bv the way, perhaps you can solve a difficulty which has often puzzled me in in the geography of Ireland. Whv is it, sir, that in every map of Ireland, I have ever seen, the town of Ballinasloe is placed on the wrong side of the river Suck? I could not forbear laughing at the singula rity of the question, whilst I replied 44 As we on' fellow-passengers, Mr. Randolph, I may as well confess my ignorance at once, by declaring thatlfnot onlycannot answer your query, but I really was not aware that there was a river by that name in Ireland, before having visited Ballinasloe and I then asked "How cam? you to know the localities of Ireland so minutely ?" Bv books, conversation, and the blessing of a memory which never forgets any thing, ' he rephed. In fact,' we were not two days togeth er, before I discovered that he was intimately acquainted with every part of England, Ire land, and Scotland not only as to cities and towns, but gentlemen's country seats ; and he knew the history of every celebrated horse race and of every race horse in England. He was very fond of displaying his knowledge of the most minute facts on these points,and it was very agreeable to myself and the other passen gers to listen to him. Just before we sailed;, the Washington pa pers were received announcing the defeat of the Bankrupt Bill by a small majority. At the moment i iorgoi tnat Kandolph had been one of its most determined opponents, and I spoke with the feelings of a Merchant when I said to him 44Have you heard the very bad news from Washington this morning? "No, sir," replied he with eagerness, "what is it?" Why sir, I am sorrv to tell yoti that theHouse of Repre sentatives have thrown out the Bankrupt Bill by a small majority ?" 44 Sorry, sir !" exclaim ed he, and then taking ofT his hat and looking upwards, he added most emphatically, 4 thank Go 1 for all His mercies !"i After a short nause e conunuea -now delighted l am to think mat i helped to give that hateful bill a kick yes, sir, this very day week I spoke for three nours against it, and my friends, who forced 1 , m . . . , ' . e ooa enouSa 10 say mat l never naa maae a more successlul fin i j r r - . . j , : member left his seat to look for letters, a rirr . i . i , j 4 " i T V d r?n TCG " v, had not occurred before its objections to a Bankrupt bill subsequently, 0 . . wwi.juu. oi course without any success; he felt as a o ffleVand wa8TvneaIo?1S 0f lhe influence -'ercnants as Legislators. Plater lTr COmPa?y aQ ??1Ie?t1ChM a 2"' ?nd irequently challenged Randolph to Kui. nnt Inr nn. m ..r..l it I Ko th piayea at che 'OIH . not wi t . - . a, air, sam ne, lor sevuu- t j t it r en Vrnrc -.l . . a , , i.ur.gtrer.ur 10 tno msi gQino. SDPPrt i f mnei nova nail cwm r- , . .i.u ouHtc merit, mt, mr weui me dook, and he introduced I assure you that whilst I was speaking, altho" dote to the point, or told some 'u wuf( ivmii uuo urtiwuLceu. nni. a. sin- nrsi. visir. m icm r i. . j I played but with unpleasant feelings, for it lost me a friend for ever. You have heard, I dare say, of my intimacy with Mr. Jefferson, but perhaps you don't know that he took more pride in his skill at chess than in any thing else ve ry few indeed, could beat him, and he could not endure defeat. I was aware,' of this, and had always declined playing with him, because I was his match, until one unfortunate evening, when he touched my Virginia pride in so point ed a way I could no longer refuse, and we sat down lo the game, I soon cried 44 check-mate," and he never forgave me afterwards! !" Mr. Randolph had a large box full of books with him which he was taking to England to get bound. I asked him why he had not sent to Philadelphia or New York for that purpose. 44 What, sir," said he, 44 patronize our Yankee task-masters who have imposed such a duty upon foreign books! never, sir, never! I will neither wear what theymake, noreat what they raise, so long as my purse can get supplies from old England, and until I can have my books pro erly bound south of 14 Mason and Dixon's line, I shall employ John Bull!" One day at dinner the Captain said, 4 Mr. Randolph, will you allow me to help you to some codfish?' No sir, it comes from New England," was his laconic reply. Whenever he praised any northern man, it was always with this limitation 44 He is the cleverest man I know, north of the Potomac." On Sundays he used to read for us a chapter in the Bible or part of the Church service, and once he made an extemporaneous prayer; and he never would permit any reflections to be cast upon religion without a very pointed re buke. He told me that for many years he had been corrupted by the infidelity which prevail ed amongst many of the leading politicians at Washington; but that in the year 1810, during a severe fit of illness, he had a remarkable vi sion, which completely dispelled the delusion under which he had surrendered his faith, and .i 1111 r ii rfii since men ne naa oeen a nrm Dcnever in nris- tianity. He shewed me a letter which he wrote immediately after this illness addressed to a bosom friend in Virginia, in which he gave a circumstantial detail of his conversion,' as he always termed it, and he even gave the words which were uttered in his ears by his invisible monitor during the vision. 44 This letter," said he to me, 44 contains nothing but the truth, strange as it may appear to you, and it would make me miserable to doubt it!" Whilst con versing on the subject, he told me that the late Mr.Pinkney of Baltimore had assured him, pre vious to his death, of his unshaken belief in the truths of Christianity. Of Mr. Jefferson, how- i i rr . . 1 ever, ne gave a very fiiiiereni account, wnicn I can now readily believe after having read his letters, although at the time (182) I thought Randolph was too strongly prejudiced against him. No. II. Virginia was one of his favorite topics, and the enthusiasm with which he spoke of her was delightful. 44 But alas !" he used sometimes to say, 44 the days of her glory are past. Old 44 Virginia is no more. The title of Virginia 44 gentleman, which used, in my young days, 44 to be our boast, has almost become, absolete 44 for which we have to thank the repeal of the 44 good old English laws of primogeniture. It 44 was a great mistake, sir, made by our politi cians, to break down our native aristocracy. "Itgav us an ascendency in the councils 44 of the nation, which we are now fast loosing. 44 4 the glory of Israel has departed.' " His three greatest living favorites were Nathaniel Maconj (whom he always called 4 Uncle Nat') Judge Marshall, and Mr. Taze well ; even when playingat whist, ifany contest arose on the rules of the game, he used play fully to exclaim 44 I'll leave it to Uncle Nat, and Tazewell ; their decisions are law with me." In speaking of authors, I found that he was: a great admirer of Milton , but he did not like Young, Thompson, Johnson, or Soirihey. His classification of modern poems was very curious. 44 Sir, I place first on the list, 4 Tom 44 Crib's memorial to Congress,' next 4 The 14 Two-penny Post Bag,' and third, 4Childe 44Harolde's pilgrimage ;' bull can't go (a fa vorite expression) Moore's songs they are 44 too sentimental." In looking over his books one day I discovered 4 Fanny,' Mr. Halleck's very amusing satirical poem, ;I am glad," said 1, 44 that you do not proscribe Yankee; po- trr. n wpII ns Yankpp. rndfish." " Nn 44 sir," replied he, 44 1 always admire talent, 44 no matter wnere it comes irom;ana I con sider this little work as the best specimen of 44 American poetry that has yet been given to 44 the world. I shall take it to England with 44 me, and present it to the lady whose talents 44 and conversation I shall most admire." When I afterwards met him in London, 1 re collected his conversation, and asked 44 WpII, Mr. Randolph, who got Fanny ?" 44 Your " countrywoman, Miss Edgeworth ; she has 44 no competitor in my estimation." 1 . i 1 " out, to return to our voyage. He proposed that we should read 4Fannv' tosether, to which 1 1 willingly consented ; and here I mus regret that I cannot do justice to his readings but ! my memory is at fault. Whenever he came ( 10 ay allusion in the poem, either personal or nominal, nn , . a a, f "vniiia BWtuiiH ica auu uuwii some anec slory of his . r wrii ana in mis mosi en- tpriainimr wav ,n , u ii .t" A. , v -r, J ,UUI1 Larce mornings io gei through 4 Fanny,l wish I could embody the viva i intn iih (rare n h t t--t n went along, all I can say is. that it was worthv of the poe and I am sure tbt Mr 11,1101 would have been nattered to have had such an ahlp mmmpntatm- He shW!? m5 his note ook, which was a strange medly about horses, slaves enitanhs e pieces cutout of newspapers, receipts, con - gressional anecdotes, quotations, &c. Stc. He : .,.. r i i cressionai anecdotes, onntaiinnc xT xr . - ' ? " "c nisoacpi a regular djary, anc? could tell at wiiuac iiuuse ne uined everyday ia Washing ion wno tne company were and the leading topics of conversation. Pointing to a particu lar date, he said, 44Sir, I shall never forget a 44 circumstance that occurred at Mr. 's ta- 44 ble. There was a large company, and a 44mongst them a hoary headed . debauchee, 44 who?e vices had brought him to the vero-e of 44 the grave. He had the audacity, sir, toall 44 in question the existence of a Deity presu 44 ming, I suppose,;that there were some kin- u ojuna jicseui. x nappeiitru iu su op- 44 posite to him, and was so disgusted by his 44 impiety-, that I could not avoid exclaiming 44 -4 1 think, sir, you might better have been 44 silent on that subject; for, judging from ap 44 pearanccs, in a Very short time you will have 44 ocular proof of the power of that God, whose 44 existence you how question.' He turned 44 pale with anger, ;and trembled, but made no 44 reply, and the j company soon afterwards 44 broke up; but I never again noticed him. 44 Perhaps I was wrong, sir, in correcting him ; 44 but you know I am 4 hair trigger, I go off at 44 4 half-cock !" When speaking of his younger days, he used to say whatever mental advantages he possessed, were owing to the assiduous care of his mother and he used to speak of her in the most glowing terms of filial affection, never using her name without the exclamation of 44 My 44 mother God bless her !" He made us well acquainted with his favor ite slave 44 Juba," whom he daily cited lor some good quality or another. 44 He has not half the talents of my man Juba, sir," was a frequent expression, when discussing the merits of a politician whom he disliked. His knowledge 6f the most important light houses, points of land, latitude and longitude of places, was very great, and astonished even our captain, with whom he made several amu sing bets on the subject, which, by the way, he always won. Two or three days before we made the land, we) were sitting on deck, whilst the captain was taking an observation at noon. 44 Pray," said Randolph, 44 what is our lati tude and longitude now?" The captain told him. 44 How do we head by the compass ?" 1 4 1" i e 4a u: ' 4 ; " mis aiau was iuiu iiiui. i.ww, v ajuan,, continued he, 44 can yob tell rnc, 4 off the book,' 44 what land we shall first make if we continue on our present bourse ?" 44 Why," replied the captain, 44 if you show me the chart, I'll tell 44 you in a minute." 44 Oh no!" exclaimed 44 Randolph, you must go by head-work say we shall hit 4Sligo head,' and I'll back mv o- pinion by a pipe df wine or Schuydam gin," a favorite bet with him. 44 1 wont bet any "mere," replied the captain, 44 but I shall prove 44 you to be wron by the chart ; for I say we 44 shall make the Mull of Cantire." The "chart was produced the compass used the line drawn, and 44 By George, you're always 44 right," shouted the captain, as the line touch ed Sligo Head "I'll never contradict any as sertion of yours again,; Mr. Randolph, upon any point." On the 5th of April we made the land about twelve o'clock ; but as the wind varied after Randolph's prediction about 44 Sligo Head," we first saw the mountains of Donegal, which are farther north.l Alter we naa gone some hundred and fifty miles along the coast, which is very barren to the eye, Mr. Randolph said tome, 44 Well, sir, I now believe the story 4.old by Arthur Young of a farmer who took his son out walking a few miles distant from his home in the county Meath ; they passed a tree ; the boy stopped and asked. Father, what is that ? never having seen one before! Here we have been sailing by Ireland for a whole day, and I have not laid eyes yet on a single tree." I assisted Mr. Randolph in assorting his pa pers, hooks, &c. a day or two before we reach ed Liverpool, and he insisted upon presenting me with several of them ; but at length he be came so very generous, I positively refused to receive a'ny more.; I happened to mention that I had forgotten inthe hurry of departure to pro cure Waite's State Papers, which had recently been published by order of Congress, for my father, who was fond of allsuch American pub lications. 44Sir,"i said Mr. Randolph, instant ly, 44 he shall have my copy." "By no means," replied I ; 44 you have already been too libera, and I positively refuse to accept another book from you.'4 44 Pray, sir," rejoin ed he, in a half-cornic, half serious way 44 do vouhold a'Dower of attorney from your father in takp nr rpiprt all nrpsp.nts made tO him ? If you do, produce it : let us see the seal ; if not, the question admits of no argument. I do not giveyow the books as you don't derserve them; they are your father's, sir ; and if you refuse to take them, I shall find another carrier !" I had previously told him that my grandfather had been very kind to those Americans who visited Cork during the Revolutionary war, for which he had received the thanks of Congress, through General Washington, who had also sent him his miniature likeness in a gold ring, which the family! felt very proud of. After the conversation about the books, he sat down and wrote the following letter on his knee, addressed to my father : 44 Amity, at Sea, April 4, 1822, Lat. 54 30. Long. 13 E. "Sir: Having had the pleasure of an intro duction to your son by Mr. of New York, on the morning of our embarkation for Liver pool, I have taken the liberty to order my bookseller at Washington to send to your ad dress a copy of Waite's State Papers, printed by order of Congress. 44 1 am notjtoo young to remember the capture of Burgoyne : and most of the subsequent e vents of our struggle for independence arealao indelibly impressed upon my memory. As the countryman of Washington, (for I too am a Virginian!) II offer these records of the Government of which he was the founder, to the son of that mad who received through him the thanBs df Congtes?, for his humanity and -1 t. i.i . i kindness to our poor Americans, during those J 44 The enclosed Coat-of-Arms, if pasted in the first volume, will be evidence unquestiona- ble of your title. 44 1 am, sir, vour father's obliged fellow crea ture, and your humble servant, John Randolph, of Roanoke, Charlotte county, Virginia." No. Ill "My knowledge of Ireland' said he to me one; illuming, M T" tie your nonour,' replied he, astonished at the question. 4 rom the county of Clare I presume?' Yes sir. said he, still more astonished. 4 What town did you come from V The town of Ennis, sir.' 4 Oh, said I laugh ing, 'Jknow Ennis very well pray does Sir Ed ward O'Bnan still live at Drdmoland?' 4 He does indeed, sir.' 4 And Mr. Stack pool at Edenvale?' 4 And the Knight of Glin on the banks of the Shan- non i' i cs sir,' and then after a pause and a low bow he said, 4 Might. I make bould to ax, sir, how long you lived in Clare ' I never was in Enmnp said I, 4 but I hope to be there soon.' 4 Oh. sir. Won't be afther making, a fool of me faith, you're a' bit of 1 I it an lnsnman, ior you nave the brogue, and you know as much of the country as I do myself, and more too, I'm thinking.' It was in vain that I assured him I had never seen Ireland he went away still insisting that I had lived there!" No wonder poor Paddy should have been deceived, when we on board the ship, both English and Irish, were often made to blush by the superior local infor mation hat Mr. Randolph possessed, even of the very counties in which we were born! He used to amuse himself with two Yorkshire pas sengers by speaking in the peculiar dialect of the "West Riding," and if they sometimes corrected any express-ions he would enter into a regular argument, aud quote nuthorities such as ballads, story books, old songs, &c. to prove that he was correct, and in most instances they had to confess that he was right. AH this was done in the most perfect good humor, and it ifforded us a vast deal of amusement, for he would enter into those discussions with as much apparent zeal as if he weie speaking on the Tariffbill in Con gress! One day I askr 1 him who was his favorite candi date for the Presidency after Mr. Monroe's time would expire ? " Why, Sir," replied he, 44 if it had not been tor his wrong vote on the Missouri question, I should at once say Rufus King: he is the best man north of -the Potomac, and a gentleman, too, of the old school ; ami best, of all, sir, an honest man rather a scarce article now among politicians. A sad mistake sir, he made, on that question ; but he thought he was right, and I esteem him still, but he will not now do for President. The. New England men, sir, would rob us of our patrimonial slaves and our patrimonial acres also; but it will not answer, sir." OU Virginia has some strength left yet, and we must therefore get a southern mai for President !" He was very free in expressing his opinions of all the great political characters, both living and dead, and his satire was cutting. Sometimes he amused us by repeating parts of his speeches in Congress, on important subjects, especially on the late war and the Bankrupt Bill, both of which he opposed most violent ly. Once or twice during the voyage he lost his temper, but generally sneaking he was in good hu mor, and full of spirits, and contributed greatly toour amusement. 1 regretted very much that we had to part in Liverpool, but we agreed to meet during the summer in London. In the month of June business took me to London, and my father accompanied me. 1 immediately cal led at Randolph's lodgings, and was glad to find him m town. The next day 1 introduced him to my la ther, who was greatly pleased with him. In the course of our converstation he suddenly rose from his chair, and said in his most imposing manner, 44 Sir, I have lately seen the greatest curiosity in London aye, and in England too compared to which, West minister Abbey, the lower Somerset House, W ater loo Bridge, and Parliament itself, sink into utter in- significance! Yes, sir, I have seen Elizabeth Fry in Newgate, and have witnessed the miraculous effects of true Christianity upon the most depraved of hu man beings bad women who are worse, ii possible, than the Devil himself; and yet Mrs. Fry has abso lutely tamed them into subjection, and they weep re pentant tears whenever she addresses them. No thing but religion could effect this; and what can be a greater miracle than the conversion of a degra ded woman, taken from the dregs of society ; and you must also see this wonder. Come, sir, this ip her morning for visiting the prisoners, and we shall be just in time. 1 will introduce you, as she has permit ted me to bring my friends with me. We immediately ordered a carriage and drove to Mrs. Fry's house, but found to our disappointment that the death of" a relative had suddenly called her to the country. Subsequently I had an opportunity of accompany ing her to Newgate, and the scene which I there saw fully lustihed Randolph's description of it Some time afterwards I dined with Mrs. Fry at her country seat near London, and r. Randolph's J i . . XT' name was mentioned at tne table, "xie is a singu lar character," said one of her daughters to me; 44 we had quite an amusing note lrom him the other day My mother requested me to write a note of invitation to dinner to him, and in it I apologized for making so unfashionably an early hour as four o'clock. His reply was as follows : 44 Mr. Randolph regrets that a prior engagement will deprive him of the pleasure ot dining with Mrs. Fry on Thursday next No apology, however, was necessary for the hour named in her note, as it is tod hours later than Air. K. is accustomed to dine m Vir ginia, and he has not yet been long enough in Lon oon to learn how to turn day into night, and vice versa I should mention that the fashionable dinner hour was 8 o'clock, which Randolph disliked very much, and frequeutly protested against. Very soon after he arrived in London he became acquainted with Lord L- , who introduced him self to him one night under the gallery of the House of Commons. His Lordship told'me afterwards that he had never met with so well informed a gentleman on all subjects of History, Belles Lettres, Biography, &c. "and sir" said he " what most astonished me was his intimate local knowledge of England and Ireland i .i u. t .. .i .oii hut I was obliged to x muugiii i Knew uieiii i- i,f j ; yie!d .helm o Mr. Randolph. I . with i soncuea Pen-- the HoUse of Lords at the T ? ingtain ed T I desired the doorkeeper to admit him whenever . fcimstflf. the Fame as if he were a Mem- be? of tfctf -H3 w. I an? a high Tory, sir, but I wor- , seems to astonish vou as much as it did e aia not take any letters of intrrvW; -tu r. Canning's servant at Washington, the other day. ( from- this country. I asked him, one dav. whvh hA nrouflm me ia nnto rmm k; , w u un ! rplnsF.d them.' " Rpcinsp ;, - i- . J ,1 . way is a superior man, sir and as soon as he spoke, 1 at once recognised the brogue, and said to him, ou re from Munster, are you not?' I am. Dlaise wm.L, MM Will III n llldMr'l lll I I Illy I lir - wsuwa Uil Trlln MA even in a Republican : and. I nmraV, it cave me trreat pleasure to shew this mart of ?; J tinction to your American friend." I know. I very much envied him this privilege on -the nism of the debate on Mr. Canning's "Roman Catholic Peers' Bill." The House of Lords was ex cessively crowded, and I had to wait for nearly two hours before 1 could nhtnin nrfmieRinn intn tfi ttrixrv' ! below the bar; and just as I squeezed myclf through V , l i . V .nearly suttocatad, I epied John Ran dolph leisurely walking in, at the other doorrairround ea by annin.Lord T.nnnmr ; t j and many other distinguished members of the Hotwa f Commons. England to see and not to be seen-toheaTand Sat to He became, however, one of the lions of the day uuu ins uinuau v 'Hiis ujuui FOUCnt Utter At th splendid ball given for the benefit of the Irish poor un der the patronage of the King, and royal family. Lord Londonderry singled out Randolph, and etoGd by him for a considerable time, pointing out to his no tice all the distinguished characters, both male and female as they passed in review before them. 44 Your countryman, sir," said he to me a few days afterwards, " is a most accomplished gentleman. Who could ever suppose that so fascinating an exte rior covered so much deceit ? I admire hia polite manners but detest his politics." A very distinguished mernberof Parliament brought Mr. Randolph and Miss Edgeworth together at his breakfast table, and he told me that he had never ep joyed so rich an intellectual treat before. To use his own words, " spark produced ' spark, and for three hours they kept up the fire until it ended in a perfect blaze of wit, humour and repartee. Mr. Randolph absolutely knew Miss Edge worth's works better than she did herself, for immediate quotations, and we were " all exceedingly astounded by his intimate acquain tance with Ireland and Irish manners. Lady T. and myself did nothing but listen; and I was really vexed when some public business called me away." I was with Randolph one morning soon afterwards, when he received a most friendly note from Mis Edgeworth, written in the familiar style. I begged of him to give it to me as a keepsake. "Give that note to you !'4 said he with emphasis- why, I would not part with it for half my estate !" One day we dined together at the Marquis of L's. where we met several distinguished characters, and amongst them were Professor Smythe, of Cambridge, and Sir John Newport. The hour mentioned on the card of invitation Avas quarter past seven. I said to Randolph that we need not reach the house ranch before 8. " Sir,44 replied he. 44 1 alwavs comDlv lite rally with the terms of an invitation we must be there at the time specified." We went accordingly ; anu, as l naa predicted, there was nobody in the parr lor, nor had the Marquis yet reached home from the House of Lords. However, by and bye, the Marchio ness, a very lovely woman, made her appearance, and Randolph apologized for our republican punctuality. In a short time the rest of the company joined us, ami at 8 o'clock we sat down to an excellent dinner. The conversation became v?ry animated, and took a poli tical turni Randolph was questioned closely on Ame-. rican affairs, and amused them very much by his re plies. He exposed what he termed the sad degenera cy of old Virginia, and became quite pathetic, in mourning over the abolition of the laws ot primogeni ture. Some of the company thought this a strange complaint from a republican ; and, before we depart: f they nearly had mistaken Randolph for an Aristo crat! Professor Smythe was so much interested in the conversation, he walked home with us after tile party broke up, and remained at our lodgings until 2 o'clock in the morning, endeavoring to procure as much particular information as he could about Ame rican institutions. When he had gone, I could not avoid telling Randolph that I was the best republican of the two, and I laughed at him for playing the aris tocrat so well. The professor gave us a warm invi tation to visit him at Pambridge, which1 Mr. RaTr dolph subsequently availed himself of, but I was pre vented by business from accompanying him. He afterwards told me that he was delighted with his vi sit to that classical city, where he became acquainted with several learned men. I visited most of the curiosities of London with him'.- and derived great advantage from his inttaate know ledge of every thing. We always dispensed with the show-men and guides, as he much preferred to act in that capacity himself, and I willingly paid them the lees for his services. He had a curious lash- ion of leaving his card, 'Randolph of Roanoke." wherever we entered, whether it was Westminister Abbey among tne monuments, or at the top of St. Paul's ; and I never could exactly understand his mo tive some strange piece of vanity ! The Princess Victoria, daughter of the Duke of Kent, aged 14. is now the presumptive heir to the British throne. The Duke of Cumber land comes next, and then his son, Prince George,' who is also 14 years of age. The Duke does not bear a good character. Tftf? celebrated affair in which he made a figure, oc casioned by the singular death of his valet, ha? effected the public mind unfavorably towards him. We have heard it stated that the mother of the Princes Victoria avoids bim as she would a pestilence, and she never suffers her daughter to come within the sphere of his ob servation or influence. Sculpture and Pai.-Sculpture neverwe to me like the representation of human hfe; its forms -pale pure and cold-have the shape, not the like ned of our nature. I always persondy a spirit as a statue. Painting, however idealized as to beaut , still give the bright eye, the rosy cheek, the gloss hair, we see daily. Portraits but I the mirrors of lovely countenances. Sculpture is the incarnation of be inrrs whose state seems higher, because calmer thau our own. The divinities of Greece owed half their divinity to the noble repose with which their Eculptors invested them. The characteristic of the picture is passion, that of the statue, power.- Miss Landon Honance and Reality. A number of laborers, believers in Kidd-s money, at won, in a neia, accidentally disco vere:. upon the top of a large stone, an inscrip tion in ancient characters, which on disci phej- mg, rcaa as louows : 44 Take mc up and 111 tell you more."' ging and toiling several hours, tbey Srl ceeded. and with some difficulty, read on inc bottom :- T o,, rro Anwn as I was ship talent i