them to England in the year 1728. It is said by a learned foreigner (Dr. Baster) that having great quantities of them in his ponds, he used sometimes to regale his friends with them, and had them dressed with various sauces; but that egg-sauce in particular gave them an excellent relish, even superior to carp. It is of course to be understood that frying is the best mode of cookery. The gourmand whom we quote, states that he had them sometimes boiled, but that they were decidedly better by the former mode. These fish are said to grow no larger in China than an anchovy, but they are to be seen in England of the length of ten or twelve inches; so that our climate seems to agree with them better than that of their native country. It is in the second year of their age that they acquire that splendid appearance for which they are so prized; that they undergo but little or no change in the third year; but that there are many of them that continue always black. Linnæus describes them as of the carp species, and distinguishes them by the name of the "Gold Carp." ANECDOTE OF A great ACTOR. Returning the other evening through the Strand from an unsuccessful tour to the West-end in quest of "incidents" to supply materiel for the Daily Press Knowing who it was, and that he was only taking a “refresher," I resolved to bear with the inconvenience, and proceeded in my vocation; when having completed my task, and placing it in my pocket, exclaiming, "there is quantum sufficit," up started my opposite neighbour-who has the knack upon rousing up, of catching the two or three last words which he happens to hear spoken-in a great gage, and applying my unfortunate lapsus linguæ to himself, indignantly demanded of me, "What right I had to apply such observations to him? Upon my life," said he, "I was never so insulted before. I beg to tell you, Sir, that your assertion is not bottomed in truth, for I have not yet taken anything. Here, Tim, bring me a pint of Burton and a Welch rabbit ?"` I apologized for my unintentional offence, and departed. We are sadly in arrear with our Correspondents, but when we state, that other arraugements have been entered into for the future management of the work, we trust fending to its very great improvement, we shall stand excused for what, without this explanation, might appear an unpardonable neglect of their kind and valuable favours. To R. J. we beg to reply, that he shall not in future have cause to complain. Ellustrated Article. THE AVENGER. A TALE OF ITALY. FOR THE OLIO. THE busy city of Naples had sunk to almost silence in the still hour of night, and scarce was there a falling footstep to say that it was the dwelling of life, whilst at intervals the deep loud bells tolled forth the divisions of hours as they swiftly passed onward. It was that time of night when all have left the lovely city's proud streets, save the fond lover, who hastens to pour forth the feelings of his heart in words of song, or the prowling assassin, tracking his unwary victim. At the corner of one of the streets stood a man gazing upwards to the trellised window of a lofty house, whilst supported by a broad ribband thrown across the left shoulder was a guitar, over the cords of which his fingers from time to time swept, as his voice breathed forth a VOL. IX. soft and gentle melody. A passer by might have observed, as the light from before an image of the Virgin shone on the countenance of the serenader, that he was one who had seen some seven or eight and twenty summers, with a form moulded in the truest proportion of manly beauty, and a face handsome, but overshadowed with a cast of pensive sadness. As the air drew towards conclusion, the trellis work was slowly opened, and a young fair creature leaning forward, entered into earnest conversation, though in a subdued tone, with the man below: the only words uttered above a whisper were "You will meet, then, near the church of St. Filippo Neri, to-morrow at nightfall.' "I'll not forget," replied the fairer being, and pressing her hand to her lips, softly closed the trellis work. Farewell, sweet confiding creature, who could wrong thee? Not I, by heaven; and yet, I fear this unsuspecting love of thine will lead to years 236 of sadness; would that I could tear myself away-forget thee!-that's impossible; there is an irresistible impulse drags me forward and I must obey," saying which, he turned away and was soon lost to sight in the surrounding darkness. The house opposite, to which he had been serenading, was that of a private gentleman named Varese, who resided there with his only daughter, to whom he was fondly attached. The fair Maria di Varese was then verging towards her eighteenth year, and though the Neapolitan women do not bear away the palm of beauty, yet here and there one shines forth so fair and beautiful, that it seems as if Nature in a fitful moment had chosen to combine all its beauties in one object and make some amends for many neglects. Such was the case with the daughter of Varese, who was one of the reigning beauties of Naples, and many were the offers made to her, which in every sense of the word, would be considered as eligible, but her father, who was a quiet, easy man, allowed her always to please herself, and she invariably did so by refusing them; her reasons for so doing she never gave, for, indeed, that would not have been an easy task. She was in love, passionately in love; but with whom she knew not; that he was young, handsome, and of a proud bearing, she did know, and that he sincerely loved her, she felt convinced; these were conclusive reasons in her own mind for her refusals, but as they would be known to the world, she prudently kept them to herself, and abstained from saying more than was sufficient without harshness, to convey her intentions. At the appointed hour of meeting, Maria threw her thick black veil over her head, so as completely to hide her features, and without an attendant, hastened to the church of St. Filippo, where, leaning against one of the beautiful ancient granite pillars, for which that church is so celebrated, was a man scarcely discernible in the gloom from his being completely enveloped in a dark cloak, whilst his hat, slouched over his face, served to conceal his countenance. As Maria approached he went towards her. "This is kind, Maria, very kind." "I am afraid some one may have watched me, let us turn down this street; it is dimly lighted, and we shall not be followed;" in saying which they turned down a street leading towards the bay. "Maria, I have sought this interview with you to say much that nearly interests us both; you know I love you truly and sincerely, and have I not seen, that for my sake, you have refused some of the proudest matches in this fair city-I could almost have wished you had not done so, you could, perhaps, have been far happier." "Nay, Paolo, there you wrong me. I do not desire ever to be a wife unless indeed it were the" "Wife of Paolo you would say; heaven knows how fondly I have pictured to myself the time when such might happen, but it cannot be, we must strive to forget each other. "Forget each other!" "Oh, Maria, it will break my heart to think I have seen thee for the last time, but could I wish that you should join your fate with one who dare not appear in the open day, but like a bird of night, comes forth only in the dark, who fears the gaze of men when fixed upon him, and at whose very name when mentioned, the people mutter forth a prayer for protection to their patron saint." "With the opinions of men I have nought to do; I have loved you, Paolo, for yourself alone, and what the world may say or think, I care not." "Spoken like yourself, dearest Maria, but pause a moment and consider; Í have no home to lead you to-I wander forth as an outcast, seeking shelter amidst the mountains, safe only because their access is dangerous; you surely would not love to dwell there?" "Yes, Paolo, with you, rather than in the splendid palaces of the city." "Maria, I will disguise nothing from you; listen and judge for yourself. I was born in this proud city, the only son of one of its highest nobles, and all that wealth could procure or art invent, was mine, soon as I expressed the wish. I was educated in a country far away, where freedom is the birthright of each, whether rich or poor; there no despotic ruler tramples down those who but offend in imagination, and man looks forward to enjoying that he gains by honest industry, nor fears the powers of those above him. The death of my father recalled me to my native country, and when I arrived to assume my rank, I saw then the vast difference betwixt the country I had left and that which gave me birth; ruled with an iron hand by strangers, by the vile Spaniards, who felt no interest in our welfare, but whose only object was to draw from it all our wealth, and render us the lowest of slaves. Think you, then, that the ideas of liberty I had inculcated were compatible with the scenes I daily witnessed. No; I strove to create resistance to the despotic will of our rulers, and upon a new tax being imposed on the immediate necessaries of the already overburthened people, as a noble, and one of the highest native rank, I stood forward and denounced the tax as oppressive and unjust; what was the consequence? None supported me, and I was accused of trying to subvert the order and welfare of the State, condemned to the confiscation of my estates and perpetual banishment from my native land. Burning with rage and the thirst for revenge, I sought the mountains, allied myself with men at war with every one, and under an assumed name, became their leader; none know who or what I am; the name I have taken has become known far and wide for feats of daring. I have not sought for plunder, but to wreak my vengeance on those tyrants who have forced me to become an outcast where I was born of the highest rank. You see, therefore, what I am and what has made me such; if you are content to live with me in the mountains, we will to gether to a small village a few leagues hence, where there is a priest, that in former days I befriended; he fell with me, but still retains his attachment; before him we will offer up our vows of faith; what say you, my dearest Maria?" The Italian women are fierce in their love and their revenge; the obstacles that present themselves in the minds of womankind in our colder climes are overlooked, if even for an instant they enter their imaginations; they act from the impulse of the moment, and there is such a deep toned feeling of romance within them, that if once aroused, they see not the realities of human life, but are guided by the vision they have conjured up. Maria saw only that she loved and was beloved; the object of her affections was unfortunate, and for that she loved him more; she at once gave that hand which many a rich and stately noble had in vain sued for, to one without a home; a name decreed to be blotted from his country's list, and whose life was in hourly peril of fall ing a sacritice to the often violated laws If ever the fire of love burnt with unquenchable ardour, it did so in the breast of Maria; the continual dangers her husband encountered, raised her feelings to the highest pitch of excitement; at times, his lengthened absence would almost drive her to madness. She knew his daring courage, and dreaded lest he should, by some rash act, have fallen into an ambuscade of the Viceroy's soldiers; then his safe return would dispel these evil forebodings, and-but who can paint her feelings: in social life the course of love runs so smooth, that though we know it does exist, yet it rarely bursts forth. Here was a woman imbued with all those strong and violent feelings of a southern clime, who had given up all to follow one she loved to devotion, and who had remained for hours the prey of every dreadful thought the imagination could depict, finding they were but the fantasy of the brain. The daring of Paolo's band at length became such, that the Government determined, by some strong means, to endeavour to suppress it, though their principal reason for so doing was, because they found that the individual members of the Government were generally selected to wreak their vengeance upon, and to them mercy was but rarely shewn; with the nation, nobility, and others, plunder was the only object of the band; there was no cause of dread for their lives; but far different was the case when any of the Government officers fell in their way, for but few returned to tell the treatment they met with. It was no use tampering with the peasantry to endeavour to gain their assistance in leading some troops to the retreat of the band; some pretended ignorance, and if one was found who came forward, it was soon discovered that it had been merely to lead the troops into some ambuscade, whence they generally returned considerably diminished in numbers, many of them having served as a target for the unerring aim of some expert marksmen. It was clear, too, that the band was led by some man of considerable talent, but who or what he was none were able to discover; his assumed name of the "Avenger" leading to no clue by which to trace him, the Government, therefore, determined upon bringing all the troops under their command into play upon the occasion, and, by drawing an immense circle round the place near which they were known to retreat, to gradually close in upon them; and, in order that their intentions might not be known to any one, the officers did not receive their instructions until the troops were assembled and ready to march forward. The measures were so well taken, that when the circle was formed, the band was within it, and were not aware of their danger, until informed by the peasantry; but, as it would take some days before they could effectually close in, it gave them time to see if some plan could not be devised to escape the impending danger, and, if none presented itself, to die, as they had lived, at war with all. It soon became apparent that death was all that remained, for volley after volley could be poured in upon them, and their numbers were so insignificant, compared to the troops, that the most determined bravery would be unavailing. Paolo's heart sickened when he thought none could be spared; his wife, who had forsaken all for him, to fall thus prematurely, her beauteous form to be mangled, exposed to the insults of an infuriated soldiery, it almost drove him to madness: many times was he on the point of hastening to deliver himself into the hands of the Government, praying their forbearance, but he knew the determined nature of his band, and that they would meet death rather than surrender, since many of them were sought by the Government for political offences, who, when taken, could expect no mercy, and, therefore, preferred to die like men rather than endure the lingering tortures of their oppressors. Maria had thought but little of herself; she had entered heart and soul into her husband's views of freedom: she had looked forward as ardently as he had done to the time when they should see their country emancipated from the Spanish yoke; and well did she know that the loss of life he would regret much less than not seeing his darling hopes accomplished-from the moment that their danger had become imminent she had thrown aside her womanish fears, and striven to shew that she feared death as little as the bravest; but still there were moments, when alone, that the feelings of the woman would burst forth in silent tears: little as she felt for herself, she could not control them, when she thought of him she loved, and how brief would then be his career. It was a sad night to the band that was passed in looking forward to the morrow as the last that would break upon them; some few tried to recall an almost forgotten prayer, whilst others muttered forth deep and loud curses against their oppressors, who had hunted them from house and home to slay them like beasts of the field; others there were, too, whose thoughts wandered far away, and brought them once again with those they had loved in early youth, and who had followed life's troubled path with them under the cherished name of wife, and whose sweet children that, in better days and times, had played around them, and been the source of many happy hours, ere misfortune had made them broken men, and raised their hands against their country's laws. The morning burst forth in all its southern splendour, and found the band already armed and determined to sell their lives as dearly as possible. The surrounding mountains which, on the preceding night, had been covered with troops, were now, to their astonishment, untenanted, save the birds of prey, which occasionally flitted across them: whereever the eye could trace not a soldier was in sight; they seemed, as heretofore, the sole possessors of the mountains, and free again to roam there, and as they could. How was this to be explained; a thousand conjectures were hazarded, and all, save the right one, surmised; they were, however, not long without the desired information, for the news flew swiftly towards them. Our Tomaso Anello, more commonly known by the name of Masaniello, had at length succeeded in exciting his countrymen to resist the despotic rule of the Spaniards; a fresh tax on fish, fruit, &c. imposed by the Government, had exasperated the populace in the highest degree, and led to the overthrow of the Spaniards. It was to assist in quelling the disturbance that the troops had been suddenly recalled from the mountains; they arrived too late, the Fisherman of yesterday was reigning over Naples with the most despotic sway. During the few days reign of this extraordinary man much good was effected for his country, one, amongst others, was the revocation of that decree by which Paolo had been exiled, and his estates confiscated; there were but few who ever knew that the distinguished Count di Artini had been the so much dreaded "Avenger," and oft, in after life, would he recount to his infant children, whilst his wife would stand by an admiring listener, the daring feats which had made that Chief so renowned, and little did they think, as they lent a listening ear, that it was to |