Illustrated article. ALICE DACRE; OR, THE GAMBLER'S DAUGHTER. "THEN you have no faith in witches, wraiths, second-sight, and all the wonders wrought by supernatural agency,' said my gay young college chum, Frank Evelyn, as we sat together one winter night, in the oriel chamber at the Priory, his paternal estate; (bearing no doubt, that sacred title, from being erected on the site of some monastic establishment, levelled to the dust in the reforming days of the Eighth Harry.) "And yet," continued he, "if you look at my fair ancestress in the corner, and listen to the legend I could tell of her, your scepticism would be put to flight;" and rising, he stirred the already blazing fire into fresh brilliancy, and holding the wax candles to a picture, rallied me on my infidelity, which I confess I persisted in the more steadily, in VOL. IX. hopes of luring him on to the promised story; for Frank was one of those careless creatures, who are apt to whet your curiosity to the utmost, and then fly off to some other subject, leaving you in all the tortures of uncertainty, as to whether you may ever hear the termination of the previous anecdote. His "fair ancestress" was painted in the attire of an Arcadian shepherdess, but with all the free and graceful outlines and classical arrangements of drapery, which distinguish the productions of the Italian school. Her large round pastoral straw hat, with its floating green ribbons and cluster of wild roses, which caught up on one side some of the rich profusion of her fair silken curls, suited the expression of a sweet girlish face, whose features had no pretension to regularity, but to which their smiling youthfulness, and a certain piquant air of archness, gave an indescribable charm; blue eyes, whose "violet light" had more of fire than languor; lips like twin strawberries, 240 fresh with the honey dew of morning, and dimple cheeks tinted with the delicate bloom 'The apple blossom shows,' were the principal beauties of the pastoral nymph; her form was slight and graceful, her attitude airy and Dryadlike, and you might gaze upon her picture, till amid the floating and vary ing light, it almost appeared that with that bounding joyousness of motion, she was about to step forth from her sylvan paradise, to woo you to her dwelling in Arcadia. "Don't you expect," said Frank, smiling, " this prettiest lass that ever ran o'the greensward, this Perdita, to offer you her store of -violets dim, But sweeter than the lids of Jano's eyes, "But come, you must not fall in love, for the original was my great grandmother, so we will remove from the fascination of eyes, whose light has long been in the tomb, to the emerald gleam of my father's veritable Hockheim glasses, whose antique tracing, and good old German inscriptions, never shew to such advantage, as when the rich wine sparkles through the green lustre of its crystal prison; and now we are comfortable again, I will try to confute your sceptical arguments, by the simple facts which have been handed down to the descendants of the fair Alice Dacre. "Sir Reginald Dacre inherited from his ancestors not only their unsullied name, but extended possessions whose revenue was almost princely; his establishment at Dacre Hall, his principal seat, was magnificent in the extreme; and he wedded early in life, the orphan daughter of a noble house, whose rich dowry increased his almost boundless wealth. The beautiful Blanche had been his betrothed from childhood, and blest alike by love and fortune, the heir of the house of Dacre was the brightest star of "exclusive society." Years filed away, and a change was in the hall of his fathers, dissipation had bowed the proud form of Sir Reginald, and the young and broken-hearted Blanche, had faded away into the grave. Gambling, "the worm that dieth not," was the fiend which had blighted his paradise; and the vast possessions of his ancestors, the princely dowry of his bride, were madly cast upon the altar of the demon. Old in heart, and scathed by the conflicting passions attending his infatu ated career, Sir Reginald found himself at thirty-five, an irritable hypochondriac, whose morbid feelings could only be excited by the fatal passion which had destroyed him, and whose of the rents attached to the estate of revenues were bounded by the produce Dacre Hall, where he lived in comparative obscurity, a prey to wild and unavailing memories of the past. Alice, his only child, grew up there, disregarded by her father, a lady of nature's own 'A maid whom there was few to see, And very few to love." but those who did see, loved her. Dora Evelyn, her school friend, rather older than herself, was Alice's chosen one; and how joyous were the gay holidays they spent, chasing the deer Dacre, with the sylvan feasts of cream through the green sunny glades of and wood strawberries, in some pastoral nook where they sat and sang together, sweet as wild thrushes in the depths of the green woods, 'In the leafy month of June.' And oh, how sad was their partings, when Dora Evelyn returned to school, and Alice, by the stern decree of her inflexible father remained alone at the hall, with no companion save her own favourite fawn, and a pair of white doves, the parting gift of her friend. Occasionally, she was summoned from her little aviary and her fairy garden, to appear before her father and amuse him with the playful sallies of her wit and youthful gaiety of imagination, (which even solitude, and a certain dread which in spite of herself, mingled with her love for her father, had not the power to repress ;) even the cold heart of the misanthrope seemed yielding to the charm, and the few ancient domestics he retained, dared to hope for smiles once more on the countenance of Sir Reginald. The silvery laugh, and joyous carol of Alice, met with no reproof, and she was allowed to bring her dewy violets and fresh strawberries to his morning meal, at which she presided with looks of sunshine and of love. Sir Reginald appeared about to enter on a new era of his life, a second Eden, the bliss of a peaceful home-the happiness of a father, when a nobleman, one the inseparable associate of his short and splendid career, purchased a huntingbox near Dacre Hall, and with a select party, stormed the "Castle of Indolence," as they called it, and carried off "Giant Despair" in triumph. A few convivial parties, from which he returned early, gave Sir Reginald a fresh zest for that society he had so long abandoned, and which he now wondered how he could have forsaken; the re-action of his spirits gave a flush to his cheek, and a firmness to his tread, which had long been banished. Alice was exiled to her garden and her birds, and invitations given and received, filled the halls of Dacre, and led Sir Reginald day by day, to the gay revels of his noble friends. Time thus passed away, till after one of those petit soirees," Sir Reginald returned home long after midnight much excited, and his noble steed exhausted by the speed to which he appeared to have been urged. Sir Reginald was heard pacing his room for a long interval of time, and in the morning his countenance bore the traces of some strange revulsion of feeling. Alice was summoned, but she had wandered away far into the forest glades, and some time elapsed ere she could obey the call; with a bounding step she rushed into the apartment, but suddenly stopped on perceiving two gentlemen, with whom her father appeared in violent dispute. "Robbers! demons!" furiously exclaimed Sir Reginald, "do you come to brave me in my own halls? the spirit of my ancestors rises within the degenerate bosom of their son; begone, can I not produce the evidence of your guilt, and brand ye to the world as ye deserve? begone, or dread the chastisement which your indignant victim" rising suddenly as he spoke, Sir Reginald raised his hunting-whip, his daughter rushed forward to arrest the blow, and the next minute he lay at her feet a lifeless corpse!-a blood vessel had burst, and without a groan, the spirit of Sir Reginald Dacre passed to the world we know not of. * * * "Dora, the only friend of the orphan Alice, wrote to her father, the Rev. Arthur Evelyn, who, alive to the call of sorrow, arrived instantly at Dacre. Sir Reginald had few relations, and those so distant, and so long banished, that no one came forward. Mr. Evelyn arranged the funeral ceremonies and followed as mourner. When Sir Reginald was laid amid his ancestors, the nobleman with whom the fatal quarrel originated, produced such proofs of debts (cf honour) with the signature of the deceased, that the impoverished estate of Dacre could hardly satisfy them. Mr. Evelyn had no legal right to contest his claims, and after making some slight arrangements in favour of Alice, the noble gambler took possession of the hall; the old servants were discharged-the antique furniture (for there had always been preserved the Gothic grandeur of the olden day), sold or scattered about the world, and Alice Dacre left the hall of her fathers, an almost portionless orphan! "Business called Mr. Evelyn to London, and Alice and Dora accompanied him; his son was about to make his debut at the bar, and the anxious heart of the father was too interested in the success of his boy to remain at a distance. The enchantments of the metropolis, the gay society of Clarence Evelyn, the young advocate, and the true kindness of her friends, ameliorated the (at first) excessive sorrow of the orphan girl, but she still loved the solitude of her own chamber and the mournful reveries which she could not help indulging. Seated one evening alone, just as the twilight began to deepen around her, Alice fancied she saw an unusual appearance at the extremity of the apartment,-a slight mist appeared to gather, and as it became more defined, it was broken and confused, like the fleeces of summer clonds driven by the wind; forms and hues floated over its surface, and growing stronger, it at last resolved itself into what almost seemed a picture reflected on the surface of a polished mirror→ it represented part of an oriel chamber; through the windows of richly stained glass, a faint light dimly gleamed like the departing sunset, only so shadowy, that though the gorgeous colouring of crimson and azure in the heraldic devices was distinguishable, the forms were indistinct; a Grecian tripod stood on each side of the window, supporting white marble vases filled with flowers, and the centre space was occupied by an Indian cabinet, which Alice instantly remembered as having been in her father's study, and whose nest of fairy drawers inlaid with ebony and mother-of-pearl, always appeared to her as treasure cells of Indian wonders;—the scene was so distinct, and became every moment so palpable, that Alice almost imagined it must be reality, and stepped forward to assure herself of its truth, when the hues became broken and dim, the objects confused and shapeless, the mist gathered up in dark and cloudy masses, and as she approached it, suddenly vanished, leaving the apartment with its usual appearance. "Alice, amazed and terrified, sank upon a sofa, almost disbelieving the evidence of her own senses; for a long time she remained debating with herself, whether to mention the circumstance or not, but her dread of the laugh of Clarence, who had rallied her on the superstitious romance of her disposition, at length prevailed, and the mysterious day-dream remained a secret which even Dora was not allowed to share. "The time of the family's departure arrived, and Alice still accompanied her friends; it was sunset when the carriage drove up the avenue of the Priory, and as the crimson light gleamed through the boughs of the magnificent chestnuts, Alice thought of far distant Dacre, and wept in silence. "Welcome to my home, to your home, my Alice, my sister!' whispered Dora, as they entered the portal; Alice blushed-she knew not why, but the paternal welcome of Mr. Evelyn, banished all feelings save reverence and gratitude, and the happy group entered the oriel chamber of the Priory. Alice gazed around her with a sudden exclamation of surprise; the setting sun gleamed through the richly tinted panes, casting a thousand hues of amethyst and amber on the white marble vases with their store of silvery lilies and Provence roses, and the gold and ebony of the Indian cabinet ;-it was the very apartment of the vision, and she could no longer be silent on a subject which appeared to her so wonderful; a new thought seemed on the recital to strike the mind of Clarence the Indian cabinet had been purchased at the sale of Dacre for Dora to arrange her shells and specimens of mineralogy-in a moment the carpet was covered with corals, spars and glistening shells, but the search was vain-no private drawer was discoverable, and even the enthusiastic Dora was about to yield, when her hand accidentally pressing the head of an enamelled bird, which fluttered on one of the compartments, the whole slid back, and a roll of papers fell from the secret receptacle it disclosed; they were eagerly examined, and amongst them carefully folded was a written paper, which contained the secrets of the petit L'Enfer established at the noble Marquis's hunting seat; it appeared from this document, that after luring Sir Reginald by slow degrees again to the gaming table, they had by one desperate effort left him a beggar; after obtaining his signature, which he gave in a paroxysm of frenzied agony, he rushed out of the apartment into the garden to cool, if possible, his burning brow; throwing himself on the wet grass beneath the window, he lay long meditating suicide, when the loud laugh of the revellers within struck upon his ear, and some indistinct words thrilled through his frame like lightning; in the heat of the evening banquet, some one of the party had thrown open the French window, and the crimson curtains were all that intervened between the speakers and Sir Reginald-they made a mockery of his easy folly, his blindness to the artifices by which they had long made him their prey, and echoed with triumphant laughter their fiendish joy at having levelled with the dust the once proud Lord of Dacre;-in a moment their victim stood before them, the pistols, with which he had meditated his own destruction, levelled at their heads. Paralysed with the mean fear of their coward hearts, the discovered traitors signed a paper which he produced, acknowledging their guilt, as well as giving up all claims on his possessions; and with this docoment in his possession, Sir Reginald left the den of infamy with the speed of a whirlwind. Through the long night he debated within himself whether to disclose them at once to the world, and save others from the ruin they had lured him to-but then to blight so many illustrious names with infamy! his noble nature disdained the thought, and placing the record of their guilt in the secret pannel of the Indian cabinet, he determined never to reveal the circumstance. Urged and aided by the fiendish daring of one of his desperate colleagues, the Marquis arrived at Dacre in the morning, and discovering the transactions of the evening, slightly mentioned his claims of honour; the sudden paroxysms of Sir Reginald's rage at the audacity of the attempt, was too much for his enfeebled and excited frame, and the triumph of the gamblers was complete. "The discovery of this paper was sufficient for Clarence Evelyn; proceedings were instantly instituted against the noble Marquis and his colleagues; the brilliant and pathetic oratory of the young advocate as he alluded to the orphan Alice, touched every heart; the production of the written document banished all doubts, and Clarence left the court in triumph, bearing with him the decree, which reinstated the daughter of Sir Reginald in her lawful rights. The noble Marquess evaded the hands of justice, for long before the decision of the trial, he had fled a seducer and a murderer to the continent, and was supposed to have fallen in some midnight broil in one of the low gambling houses of Paris. The day of Alice's triumphant return was indeed a festival to every heart, whether in the college or the hall; but the bells rang a blyther peal, and the flowers were scattered with more profusion in her path, when, as the white streamers floated in the summer wind, Clarence Evelyn led forth from the village church his wedded wife, the lady of Dacre hall." E. S. CRAVEN. CONTRARIETIES. How pleasant to sit by the fire But horrid when smothered with smoke: How pleasant to hear the soft lyreBut shocking to hear a bad joke. How pleasant to take a nice walkBut horrid to follow the plough; How delightful to hear people talkBut shocking to kick up a row. How pleasant to go in a boat, With father and mother and daughter; How charming to row with the tideBut shocking to fall in the water! How pleasant to skate or to slideBut horrid to have a bad fall; How charming to see a child smileBut shocking to hear the brat squall. How pleasant to go to the play. To see Wood, or Vestris, or Kelly; How delightful to be in a crowd But horrid when jammed to a jelly. How pleasant to ride out in summerBut horrid when covered with dust; How charming to read the new novelHew shocking!-but finish I must. After Jesus Christ, St. Peter, St. Paul, and other of the apostles, exercised the office of inquisitors, which office they have transmitted to the popes and bishops. St. Dominic, arriving in France with the Bishop of Osma, to whom he was archdeacon, acted with so much zeal against the Albigenses, as greatly to ingratiate himself in the esteem of Simon Count de Montfort; and the said St. Dominic, being appointed by the pope inquisitor in Languedoc he there founded the order of Dominicians in 1216, confirmed and approved of by Honorius the Third. The Count de Montfort, under the auspices of St. Magdalen, took the town of Beyiers by assault, and massacred all the inhabitants; and at Laval there were burnt at one single time, four hundred Albigenses; upon this subject Paramo remarks, that in all the histories of the inquisition he has ever read, he never met with an act of faith so celebrated, or a sight so solemn, as this. At the village of Cazeras were burnt sixty persons; and at another place one hundred and eighty. In 1229, the inquisition was adopted by the Count de Toulouse; in 1233 it was confided to the Dominicans by Pope Gregory IX.; and in 1251 was established by Pope Innocent the IV., with the exception of Naples, throughout all Italy. At the commencement of the inquisition, the heretics in the Milanese were not under pain of death owing to the popes not being sufficiently respected by the Emperor Frede THE INQUISITION IN PORTUGAL. rick who possessed that state. A short For the Olio. THE inquisition is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction, introduced into Italy, Spain, Portugal, and even the Indies, by the See of Rome, for the purpose of extirpating infidels, jews, and heretics. In order, however, to avoid the suspicion of our endeavouring to render this tribunal odious by a false statement, the following account of the rise and progress of the office of the Holy Inquisition is taken from the summary of a Latin work, written by Louis de Paramo, inquisitor in the kingdom of Sicily, and printed in the year 1598, at the royal press of Madrid. Without going back to the origin of the inquisition, which Paramo pretends to have discovered was instituted by the deity against Adam and Eve, we time afterwards, however, heretics were burnt at Milan, the same as at all other places in Italy; and our author affirms, that in the year 1315, many thousand heretics having spread over the Cremasque, a little country completely enclosed within the Milanese, the Dominican brothers caused the greater part of them to be burnt, and thus stopped by fire the ravages of such a plague. In the first canon of the Council of Toulouse, it was ordered that the bishops should appoint in every parish a priest and two or three laymen of good repute ; who must make oath to search scrupulously and frequently for heretics, in such houses, caves, or other places where it was possible they might conceal themselves, and the moment any were discovered, to give |