human agents be corrupt, quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Under the pretext of adding to the safety of the innocent, they have contrived to aggravate the difficulties to be encountered, and to make them nearly insuperable. Before a trial can come on, if more than one has been implicated, they require the presence of all the accused, however numerous they may be, of their defenders and their witnesses. It then only requires the real or imagined indisposition of one of the parties to lengthen out a trial to doomsday. The result of all this is, that the unhappy accused generally sink under the Weight of these pretended securities. It is curious to find that the law of the Two Sicilies and Scotland agrees in this, that they admit on a trial a verdict of "non constat,' ""not proven," and that this verdict, as with us, is admitted whenever there is a presumption but not legal proof against the individual. In this country, however, the accused falls out of Scylla into Charybdis; it would have been better for him to have been condemned. He escapes, no doubt, from the hands of justice, but it is only to fall into far worse-into the hands of the executive. Like to that statue of antiquity which had the appearance of wishing to caress those whom they presented to it, and which stifled while caressing, the police lay their hands on such an individual, plunges him into its dungeons, and forgets his existence. Of such an one well say, in the words of their own poet Dante, we may Lasciate ogni speranza, voi che 'ntrate. O ye who enter, leave all hope behind. The executive does not find the supreme court of justice always so obedient to its behests as it could wish; high-minded men refuse, as our Charleses and Jameses found, to carry out their unjust commands. This court tries, though, alas! not always successfully, to preserve intact the independence of the magistracy, and to defend the innocent against the oppressive acts of government. And what I was still more delighted to find, the advocates boldly defended the accused, speaking and acting in a way that showed they were prepared to brave the vengeance of an unforgiving government in the defence of what they considered right. I find by the last census that there are eight thousand advocates and attorneys, and of these Naples contains upwards of three thousand. Every church is still considered a sanctuary, and the influence of the Jesuits is so powerful, that their college and monastery are regarded in the same light. As a proof of this, I heard the following statement from one of the English merchants at Naples. In some pecuniary transactions he had been grossly defrauded by a Neapolitan, and he resolved to punish him by imprisonment, which the law allows. To escape this punishment, the culprit took refuge in the college of St. Ignazio, belonging to the Jesuits; and though the law does not recognise its sacred character, no officer could be found who would brave the vengeance of that powerful body by putting the order of arrest in execution. It is only between sunrise and sunset that a person can be arrested; and, accordingly, that gentleman returned to his family in the evening, where he remained at his ease. It was only after repeated application by the English authorities that the law was at last enforced. As soon as the judge had transacted his business, he proposed that we should proceed to examine an ancient castle, and the ruins of the church E of St. Constantine. The castle has no appearance of being of an earlier date than the thirteenth century, and if a Roman station, called by geographers Ad Turres, ever existed at this spot, all vestiges of it have long since disappeared. None of the inhabitants had ever heard of any antiquities being discovered in this vicinity. The church-now called Constantine-to which they attached much interest, had been nearly destroyed by the famous earthquake of 1783, and it still remained as the earthquake had left it. It is said that the Emperor Constantine, on his way to found his eastern empire, stopped at this village and consecrated a pagan temple, which he formed on this spot to the worship of the true God. the After dinner I proposed, while my host was enjoying his siesta, to visit the small village of Vena, a few miles from Maida, which I had learnt was an Albanian colony; and though my host thought the heat was so great as ought to deter me, I started, with one of the armed police as my guide. I wished him to leave his arms, as an unnecessary encumbrance, which, however, he refused to do. The heat was certainly excessive, and had I not been ashamed to return without accomplishing my object, I should have abandoned my intention of proceeding to Vena. We again descended to the channel of the river Lamato, which I forded on my guide's back, and on ascending the hill on the opposite side I found myself on a piece of table-land of several miles in extent, at the extremity of which the village of Vena was placed. We did not meet a single individual till we approached the village. The inhabitants were attending evening mass, so that I had a good opportunity of examining the costumes of the peasantry, and their external appearance. The chapel was small, and crowded principally by women, so devoutly engaged in prayer that even presence of a stranger did not attract their attention. Their features were more distinctly oval than those of Italian women, and they had high cheek-bones, so as to remind me forcibly of my own country women. I observed none striking for their personal charms, but there was a modesty and simplicity particularly pleasing. Their gowns were richly embroidered, the colours being generally bright blue or purple. Their hair was fantastically arranged, so as to tower above their head like an ancient helmet. Lord Broughton, in his "Travels in Albania in 1809 and 1810" (chap. xii.), says, "The dress of their women is very fantastical, and different în different villages. Those of Cesarades were chiefly clothed in red cotton (I never observed the colour elsewhere), and their heads were covered with a shawl, so disposed as to look like a helmet, with a crest and clasp under the ears." This helmet-like appearance of their hair was particularly striking. They had a perfect acquaintance with the Italian language, though they employed the Albanian in conversation with each other. Í have much difficulty in discovering any of their peculiar customs, as it has seldom occurred to them that they differ from the rest of the world; but on inquiring whether their marriage ceremonies varied in any respect from that observed by the other Italians, one of them mentioned the following custom: "It is a dance called Valle, which must precede the ceremony. The women unite in a ring, clasping the hands of each other, and, with a flag carried in front, proceed dancing and singing the warsongs of their country, when they were fighting with the Turks. This takes place as they are conveying the young bride to her husband's house." They still use the Greek rite at marriage. There are two crowns prepared for the bride and bridegroom, which, after being blessed, are placed on their heads, and then on the pillows of the bed. The armed Pyrrhic dance, they say, is still known to them under the name of Albanese, or Zamico. These Albanians settled in the kingdom of Naples in the fifteenth century, at the time that their own country was overrun by the Turks, preferring to be exiles rather than give up the religion of their fathers. They at that time belonged to the Greek Church; but it is long since they submitted to the authority of the Pope, and I do not hear that any force was used to bring about the change. I regretted that the day was now fast drawing to a close, as it prevented any further intercourse with the inhabitants of Vena. I hurried away, and reached Maida after sunset, only too happy if I had been allowed to retire to rest; but I had yet to undergo the fatiguing honour of dining in company with the principal people of Maida. After they dispersed I had still to arrange for my next day's journey, and I found these brigands again start up as a bugbear. Every where they seem to abound, rendering life here little enjoyable. The distances, too, between the villages I find to be too great to allow of my continuing on foot, and I must therefore hire a mule and muleteer. On this I have determined; but would you believe it, that the judge knew no one on whose fidelity he could depend, or who might not give information to parties, who would waylay me? To obviate this as far as possible, it was arranged that I should have a muleteer for next day, without telling him the direction in which I should proceed; and this is what has been determined on. AUSTRIA. [The following Sonnet is from the pen of a noble author whose contributions to poetical literature, and whose graceful translations, have more than once appeared in the columns of the N. M. M.] AUSTRIA! thy plumes, which once the world o'erspread, Are tarnished now and torn; the Northern Bird, Prussia's Black Eagle, hath his flight transferred R. THE TEMPTED AND THE TEMPTERS. CHAPTER I. LADY BELLA. “BUT, my own sweet Bella, I will work and labour for you. I will strive as few men have before striven. I will buckle to at work in right earnest. I am supposed to have talent. I have energy, and strength, and youth, and ought to have plenty of interest, if my friends will but exert themselves for me. If I have not sufficient income now, I soon shall have, to support you in the comfort you properly expect to enjoy." These words were spoken by a remarkably fine, good-looking young man, every lineament of whose features bore the stamp of aristocratic birth. His countenance, too, was pleasing, from its amiable expression, its frankness, and intelligence; altogether, he was a very attractive and fascinating youth. So thought many young ladies besides Lady Isabella de Bertrand, at whose feet he was now seated, while she reclined on a luxurious sofa at an open window which looked out over Hyde Park, now green and glowing in the bright sunlight of a fine spring morning. Lady Bella was one of the many daughters of an Irish peer, the Earl of Talermaine, who, by his electioneering contests, his profuse domestic expenditure, his careless, ignorant, or roguish agents, and an occasional visit to the gaming-table, in the vain hope of making a sum to supply his immediate wants, had so injured his property that he was a now a needy man, his estates rack-rented, and his tenants poor and discontented. Still, he and Lady Talermaine agreed that it was absolutely necessary to get their numerous daughters well married as soon as possible, and that could not be done in Ireland, for the men of property and position who knew the state of the earl's affairs stood rather aloof from him; there were, indeed, not many young marrying men among them fit to mate with his daughters. The screw was therefore once more applied to the tenants and the title-deeds, a fresh mortgage was effected, and a sum raised sufficient to enable the family to come over to London, and to cut a dash for another season. A handsome house was engaged, servants, and carriages, and horses hired; and, which was of more consequence, a list of all the wealthy bachelors and widowers, old and young, who could be heard of, made out; the Peerage and Baronetage were carefully looked over, nor was the list of the county families neglected, while a selection was also made from those of the bankers, brewers, merchants, and manufacturers known to have acquired wealth and influence. Every possible means were to be taken to become acquainted with those fortunate gentlemen, and to attract them to the house, and, when once there, to engage their affections and their hands. Lady Talermaine was the originator of the scheme, and well able by her talents and experience to conduct a campaign of the character she had marked out. She was herself the daughter of a needy Irish noble, and had been brought up in a school well calculated to fit her for the life she was now compelled to lead. She had, indeed, been somewhat taken in by the earl, whom she supposed to be possessed of unbounded wealth. It was only when tradesmen paid no attention to her orders, or requested cash payment, or observed that the earl was already deeply in their debt, that she became aware of the state of affairs. Had she known them beforehand, she certainly would not have given him her hand; but she was a wise woman, and, as she could not get out of the scrape, she determined to make the best of matters. In truth, when she was in spirits, she rather liked the excitement of getting out of the difficulties in which they were constantly placed; she delighted in scheming and plotting, and it must be confessed that she even felt a satisfaction in obtaining goods from tradesmen, not on false pretences, but for which she knew perfectly that it was very improbable they would ever get paid. She was, notwithstanding these little peculiarities, a very agreeable, pleasant person in society, and, if not particularly well read, she generally knew what was going on in the world. She was a general favourite; men liked her because she was seemingly unaffected and natural, and women because she was goodnatured and courteous, and assumed nothing on account of her rank. There was no doubt that she was a very clever woman, managed everything as she thought best, and made her husband, who was weak, and vain, and frivolous, do whatever she wished. The earl was not considered a vicious or bad man; he was tolerably good natured, and would not willingly have been guilty of what he would have looked upon as a political crime or an ungentlemanly action; at the same time, as he had a very small amount of moral principle to guide him, it was impossible to say what he would not have done had sufficient temptation come in his way. His sons were in the army or navy, not remarkable for much besides their good looks and an inveterate habit of getting into scrapes. His five daughters were at home, unmarried. They were all handsome girls-the eldest rather showy than refined; but the three youngest were graceful, elegant creatures, of whom decidedly Isabella, the youngest but one, was the most beautiful. Her countenance had a sweet, gentle expression, which her elder sisters wanted; but then, on looking from her to her father, there was a strong resemblance, and those who knew him best would have argued that she, too, was wanting in that firmness and decision of character, the non-possession of which had so much contributed to his ruin. Still, many a woman goes through life, and does not suffer materially from the want of those qualities which are so essential to the well-doing and well-being of a man. She also had enjoyed an advantage not possessed by her sisters-she had lived for many years with a brother of her mother, or rather with his wife, who had indeed really brought her up a most excellent, sensible woman, and from her she had received sound principles and right ideas, which she too, probably, would never have gained at home. On the death of her aunt, which had occurred a year before, she had returned to her father's house. Her elder sisters sneered at her notions, but she had hitherto kept on her course, and had laboured indefatigably in an endeavour to instil them into the mind of her youngest sister, Mary, and not without some success. Still, a year's residence at that critical time of her life had been far from beneficial to Bella herself. She must |