Connected with this town are three bridges over the rivers Eye and Scalford. These are repaired, aud the streets are preserved in good condition, with lamps, &c. from the rents arising out of the town estates.

In this town are several charitable benefactions, and among these are some public schools, which as early as the reign of Henry the Third, were taken under the immediate patronage of that monarch.-In the year 1795 a large building was erected as a free-school for girls.

It appears by the parish register, that in the year 1653, and some following years, the publication of banns was announced at the market-cross here, and that two justices of the peace performed the marriage ceremony. In this town is a manor oven, 14 feet in diameter, the possessor of which, about the middle of the last century, endeavoured to compel all the inhabitants to bake their bread in it; but the towns-people refused to comply, and established another oven of larger dimensions.

Melton Mowbray is situated 105 miles from London, and contains 346 houses, and 1,766 inhabitants, of whom 358 were returned as being employed in various trades and manufactures. Its market, which is on Tuesday, is one of the largest in England for cattle. Its fairs are on the first Tuesday after January 17; Holy Thursday; Whit-Tuesday, and August 21.

On the 25th of February, 1644-5, a severe battle took place near this town, between Sir Marmaduke Langdale, who commanded the royalists, and a party of the parliamentary troops, under the command of Colonel Rossiter.

At the distance of about four miles from Melton Mowbray, we pass through the village of FRISBY, containing 78 houses, and 386 inhabitants. Here is an ancient stone cross with ornamental mouldings,

on the shaft, standing on three steps; and, at a small distance from the village, at a place called Frisby Hags, is another shaft, on four circular steps, and known by the name of Stump Cross.

Two miles from Frisby, is BROOK BY, formerly a village, though now reduced to a gentleman's house and farm. This demense belonged to the Villiers family for many generations. Of this family was George Villiers, first duke of Buckingham, who was born here on the 28th of August1592, and whose name is memorable in English history for having been the favourite of two kings, &c. He was the youngest son of Sir George Villiers, by a second wife, Mary daughter of Anthony Beaumont, Esq. of Cole Orton, in this county In his youth he received a liberal education, and was particularly instructed in dancing, fencing, and other polite accomplishments.Having travelled into France for further improvement in these genteel exe cises, he returned at the age of 21 to his native country, when, by the beauty of his person, and the politeness of his address, he soon attracted the notice of his majesty King James I. who was apt to be struck with superficial endow

ments.

His first place at court was that of cup-bearer to the king; from whence he rose, by a quick and rapid progress, to be gentleman of the bed-chamber, master of the horse, knight of the garter, baron of Whadoon, Viscount Villiers, Earl and Marquis of Buckingham, lord high admiral of England, chief justice in Eyre, master of the king's bench, steward of Westminster, constable of Windsor-Castle, earl of Coventry, and last of ali Duke of Buckingham.

He accompanied prince Charles to Spain in 1623, in order to make up the long-depending match between him and the Infanta of that kingdom. On the death of King James, and the accession of King Charles, he continued to enjoy the same degree of favour with the son which he had so long possessed

under

under the father. His spirit and his ambition were equal to his high fortune; for being sent to Paris, in order to conduct to England the Princess Henrietta Maria, the king's intended consort, he had the presumption to make his addresses to the Queen Dowager of France; and, being thwarted in his views, engaged his sovereign, by way of revenge, in a war with that kingdom. But he lived not to see the issue of it; for having now become universally odious so the people, he was suddenly cut off by the hands of an assassin; the particulars of which are as follow:

Rochelle in France having been for some time besieged by the French, the earl of Denbigh was dispatched with a fleet to the relief of that place; but neglecting to attack the French fleet, had returned with dishonour. In order to wipe out this stain, the duke of Buckingham resolved to take the command upon himself, and accordingly repaired to Portsmouth, where the fleet and forces were rendezvoused; but before he could set out on his expedition, he was murdered. The assassin who committed the horrid deed was one John Felton, a gentleman by birth, who had been a lieutenant of infantry, and disappointed in his expectation of a captain's commission, which Buckingham had promised him, but had bestowed upon another. This man was a fanatic in religion, and his revenge seemed to co-operate with his enthusiasm. The duke was walking with Sir Thomas Fryar through an entry in the house where he lodged that led from one apart ment to another, when Felton, who by some means or other had got admittance into the house, coming behind him, stabbed him with a knife, which he left sticking in the wound. The duke immediately exclaimed,. "The villain hath killed me !" and, pulling out the knife, dropped down, and expired on the floor. The assassin, instead of endeavouring to make his escape, seemed to rejoice in his crime,

and

and immediately surrendered himself to justice.Thus fell, in the flower of life, being only 36 years of age, George Villiers, duke of Buckingham, whose rise was sudden, his promotions rapid, and his end untimely. The chief misfortunes which attended this great man proceeded from jealousy in others, who thought the extensive power he enjoyed dangerous to the rights of a free people. He was of a noble and generous disposition, and seldom studied to conceal his resentments. His courage was great, but it sometimes carried him to impolitic lengths; for if he had a little yielded to the times, and withdrawn from those storms he could neither prevent nor allay, he might, perhaps, have found a milder fate than that which befell him on the 23rd of August in the year 1628.

Clarendon, after giving an account of this great favourite, remarks, that there were several prophecies and predictions scattered about concerning the duke's death; among which he mentions one, which, from its singularity,and the respectability of the narrator, may not prove uninteresting to our readers; we shall therefore relate it in his own words:

"There was (says he) an officer in the king's wardrobe in Windsor-Castle, of a good reputation for honesty and discretion, and then about the age of 50 years or more. This man had been bred in his youth in a school in the parish where Sir George Villiers, the father of the duke, had lived, and had been much cherished and obliged in that season of his age by the said George, whom afterwards he never saw. About six months before the miserable end of the duke of Buckingham, about midnight, this man, being in his bed at Windsor, where his office was, and in very good health, there appeared to him, on the side of his bed, a man of very venerable aspect, who, fixing his eyes upon him, asked him if he knew him: the poor man, half dead with fear and apprehension, being asked the second time whether

whether he remembered him, and having in that time called to his memory Sir George Villiers, and the clothes he used to wear, answered, that he thought him to be that person. He replied, that he was in the right, that he was the same, and that he expected a service from him; which was, that he should go from him to his son, the duke of Buckingham, and tell him, that if he did not do something to ingratiate himself with the people, or at least to abate the extreme malice they had against him, he would be suffered to live but a short time. After this discourse he disappeared, and the poor man slept very well till the morning, when he believed all this to be a dream, and considered it no otherwise.

"Next night, or shortly after, the same person appeared to him again in the same place, and about the same time of the night, with an aspect a little more severe than before; and asking him whether he had done as he required him, and perceiving he had not, he gave him very severe reprehensions, and told him he expected more compliance from him; and that, if he did not perform his commands, he should enjoy no peace of mind, but should be always pursued by him. But the next morning waking extremely perplexed with the lively representations of all that had passed, he considered that he was a person at such a distance from the duke, that he knew not how to find admittance into his presence, much less any hope to be believed in what he should say; and therefore, with great trouble and disquietude, he spent some days in thinking what he should do.

"The commands of the nocturnal visitor not being complied with, he attended a third time, with a much more severe countenance than he had shewn before, and reprehended him in much harsher terms. When the poor man had a little recovered from his fright, he told him, "That in truth he had deferred

the