of Caubul are to be fixed. In former times, the countries under the sovereignty of the king of Caubul covered an immense circumference. But this once vast empire has of late undergone a considerable diminution, and been much shorne of its fair dimensions, owing to the distracted and anarchical state of the government. There is only one certain method by which to form anything of a correct notion as to what countries are without doubt under the sovereignty of the king, and that is, wheresoever the king is prayed for in the Mahommedan service, and where his name is also inscribed on the current coin. According to the latest and most accurate geographical estimates, the kingdom of Caubul comprehends the immense territories of Affghanistaun and Segistan, with part of Khorasan and Makran: Balk, with Tokarestaun Kilan: Kuttore, Caubul, Candahar, Sindy, and Cashmere; together with a portion of Lahore, and the greater part of Moultan. The whole population of this vast district cannot be under fourteen millions, of which population (putting aside the miscellaneous Indian tribes) the Affghauns contribute more than four millions. This people, which constitute the most powerful and effective part of the king of Caubul's subjects, we shall notice separately, and more at large, in succeeding articles. At present our subject lies with Caubul-the head-quarters of the kingdom. 'We had remarked in our outset, that no part of the old Asiatic continent was without some relic of antiquity. With these, Caubul, and the countries which encompass it, are everywhere overstrown. The mystery which envelopes them is as great as that which rests upon the Pyramids, or the Round Towers of Ireland. One of the most remarkable of these altogether inexplicable buildings is that which meets the traveller at Manikyala. It is called by the singular name of "a Tope," and is an immense mound of massive masonry, as much like Grecian architecture as any building which an European in remote parts of the country could now construct by the hands of unpractised native builders. It was some years back opened by M. Ventura, an agent in Runjeet Singh's army. By him there were several relics found of value, and of curious workmanship. They were most of them found to consist of three cylindrical boxes; one of gold, another of pewter, (or some mixed metal,) and a third of iron. These were cased in one another, and placed in a chamber, cut in a large block of stone, at the foundation of the pile. In addition to these, many coins and reliques were also found; and the people affirmed that some human bones had been disinterred. It is of a doom-like shape, and standing as it does almost central, on a broad, spacious plain, it is to be seen at a distance of sixteen miles. There is doubtless much room here for antiquarian research. There is another of very remarkable antiquity, which lies on the road to Caubul: it is in a very decayed state; and numbers, of similar structure and dimetisions, are to be seen scattered over the Punjaub. They are all like the one at Manikyala, and all go by the name of Topes or Mounds. They generally run one hundred feet high, some much more. The natives can give no further tradition save that they are Topes." Two are to be seen which are in a perfect state of preservation; one is in the Khyber pass, about 18 miles distant, and another also at Belur, both of which are loftier and larger than that at Manikyala. The most probable conjecture is, that these buildings are the cemeteries of kings; since they are all built with a chamber in the centre of the pile. Caubul may be approached by as many as five different roads; but that which leads by the river is perhaps the best and pleasantest. Travelling across the beautiful plain of Peshawur, you at length arrive at the river of Caubu, which is crossed by a most curious kind of apparatus, and which indeed affords a most frail and unsafe mode of transport. This is a raft, supported by inflated skins; and the river, though it is not wide, is yet very rapid, and merchandise is never sent by this route. Travellers, as they proceed over the plains, are in continual dread of the pestilential Simoon, which is not unfrequently fatal in its effects. The remedy adopted in such cases is remarkable. With great violence, copious streams of water are poured into the mouth, a plan which sometimes is found successful, and a fire kindled near the patient has a good effect. As he is recovering, sugar and the dried plums of Bokhara are beneficially administered. Caubul is a most bustling city. Imagine to yourself the busiest part of London, and you will have an exact notion of the noise created there. One of its chief attractions is its great Bazaar, which is distinguished for its painted roof, and its glittering display of silk cloths and embroidery. The number of shops for the sale of dried fruits is noticeable; and grapes, pears, and apples, and even the melons of the by-gone season, may be bought there ten months old. Shops and bazaars of all kinds, and of every trade, are to be met with at Caubul. The grape is converted into singular uses by the people of Caubul. They use its juice in roasting meat, and during meals have grape-powder as a pickle. This is effected by pounding the grapes while in their crude unripe state, after drying them. It has, however, a very agreeable acid flavour. They dry them also as raisins, and use inuch grape syrup. A pound of grapes sells for a half, penny. In Caubul neither the sight nor sound of a wheeled carriage is either to be seen or heard. A great number of horses are annually sold in the north of India, under the name of Caubul horses, but almost the whole in truth come from Turchestan. No horses in fact are bred at Caubul, except by men of property. Those of Heraut are carried to other countries. But great numbers are bred at Ballk, in the Caubul dominions. The country being destitute of navigable rivers, and not adapted to wheeled carriages, commerce is carried on by beasts of burden: of these, camels are found to be the best, from their strength and endurance of thirst. The country parts are much infested by predatory tribes, and great precautions are obliged to be taken to cover a line of march, and defend a.. caravan. The streets of Caubul are not very narrow, and are kept in good condition during the dry weather: they are intersected by small covered aqueducts of water, which, to the population in general, afford very great convenience. Caubul is, on the whole, a compactly-built city, but its houses cannot be certainly dignified by the epithet "elegant;" the greater part of them are constructed of sun-dried bricks and wood, and few of them are to be seen whose altitude exceeds two stories high. It is, however, densely peopled in every part, and contains a population of upwards of sixty thousand souls. The river of Caubul passes through the city; and Burnes learnt a tradition, which stated that the city had been thrice inundated by its waters. fruits. Elphinstone says, that the principal foreign trade of the kingdom of Caubul is with India, Persia, and Toorkestan. The exports to India are chiefly horses, furs, shawls, madder, tobacco, almonds, walnuts, nuts, and One of their principal exports is shawls, which are worn by every man in India who can afford to buy them. The principal imports from India are coarse cotton cloths, (worn by the common people of the whole kingdom), muslins, silken cloth, and brocade and indigo in great quantities. Truly enchanting indeed are the gardens about Caubul. The variety and number of its fruits and trees is great. Peaches, plums, and apricots, in all their bloom and ripeness; pears, apples, mulberries, and vines, are all to be seen congregated in the compass of a single garden. But that which is pre-eminent above the rest, and is reckoned the finest in Caubul, is that called the King's Garden, laid out by Timour Shah. The tomb of the Emperor Baber is interesting as a relic. His cemetery, with its running clear stream and fragrant flowers, is the great holiday resort of the Caubul people. His Commentaries are a description of Caubul. These are his own words regarding Caubul: "The climate is extremely delightful, and there is no such other place in the known world." And elsewhere he cries out in a strain of delight and exultation," Drink wine in the citadel of Caubul, and send round the cup without stopping, for it is at once a mountain, a sea, a town and a desert!"- W. ARCHER. The Gatherer. The magnificent State Coach of Russia was built in Long Acre, in 1762, by order of the imbecile Emperor, Peter the Third, but his deposition and death precluded his use of it; it was finished for the Empress Catherine II., and excited at the time general admira. tion. The harness with gilded buckles cost £1,300, and the whole was finished with the greatest elegance. It was first used at her coronation at Moscow, November 3d, in · that year. their churches to Saint John or Saint James; The English were contented to dedicate not so the Welsh, the church at Llangollen being dedicated to Saint Collen ap GwynFreichfras ap Lleyr Merim ap Einion Yrth nawg ap Clydawg ap Cowdra ap Caradog ap Cunedda Wledig! Remorse. Let not the guilty man who may now be enjoying the pleasant sunshine of prosperity, flatter himself that he shall escape a self-inflicted punishment for guilt. When adversity comes, remorse, with its poisonous fangs, begins to gnaw at the heart of its victim. F. J. Haydn, was born in 1732, at Rhorau, a small town forty miles distant from Vienna, lies buried at the foot of the steps leading up chapel and cell of St. Maximus, at Salzburg; from St. Rupert's little Cathedral to the his head, enclosed in a black marble urn, is placed in a monument erected to him in the neighbouring church of the Benedictines. Traffic of the Metropolis. A statement has just been published by the Marylebone vestry, in connexion, with the experimental paving of Oxford street, which will give the reader some idea of the immense traffic in the streets of London. The following is a copy of the statement alluded to:-On Wednesday, the 16th of January, from six in the morning until 12 at night.-By the Pantheon, 347 gentlemen's two-wheel carriages, 935 four-wheel, 890 omnibuses, 621 two-wheel and 752 four-wheel hackney carriages, 91 stage coaches, 372 waggons and drays, 1,507 light carts and sundries. Total, 5,515.--By Stafford-place, on Friday, the 18th of January, the total is, 4,753, out of which, 1,213 were omnibuses; on Tuesday, the 22nd of the same month, by Newman-street, the total was 6,992! and on Saturday, by Staf ford-place, the total is stated to be 5 943. LONDON: Printed and published by J.LIMBIRD, 143, Strand, (near Somerset House); and sold by all Booksellers and Newsmen -In PARIS, by all the Booksellers.-In FRANCFORT, CHARLES JUGEL. THE MAGNIFICENTLY-MODELLED PANORAMA OF MOUNT HECLA, THE CELEBRATED BURNING MOUNTAIN OF ICELAND. CERTAINLY, it is impossible a more gratifying or truly intellectual treat can be of fered to the notice of the public, and particularly of the juvenile part, than what is daily to be witnessed at the Surrey Zoological Gardens.-The splendid collection of animals-the beauty, stillness, and salubrity of the gardens; with the brilliant effect of the newly-erected picture of Mount Hecla, all combine to charm the eye, and enliven the understanding of the astonished beholder. It is a gratifying reflection, that such unexampled exertions meet with commensurate success. For some time after the opening of these Gardens, they were confined to the exhibition of animals, and a display of rare and beauteous shrubs and flowers. But two years since, an entirely original attempt was made to employ, to the utmost advantage, the unequalled capabilities which they possess, by producing an exhibition, that should unite in itself the attractions of a panorama, upon a most extensive scale, and executed in a peculiar manner, combined with a display of pyrotechnic art of the most splendid description, These objects were successfully accomplished in the representation of Mount Vesuvius, which was then constructed, and embodied in one scene the varying features presented by that volcano during the periods of its fertile serenity, and when convulsed by the devastating fury of an eruption. The universal admiration which this called forth, and the continued success that attended it for two seasons, induced the proprietor of the Gardens to make arrangements for the production of a second exhibition of a similar character, but differing altogether in its subject and in the mode of handling. The region fixed upon was Iceland; and the immediate site that of Mount Hecla, its most famous Volcano, with several miles of the savage and desolate country at its foot; a locality which has excited the astonishment and curiosity of travellers for ages, and one which offers as fine a vehicle for the display of the artists' powers, as any which could have been selected throughout the whole range of scenes of this description. The representation is not a panorama, in the sense in which that word is commonly used, but more properly a modelled picture, as each part is first constructed of the proper shape, and afterwards combined so as to form an harmonious whole. It is of stupendous size, completely occupying one side of the lake, and covering a space of several thousand square feet. The scale is that of a quarter of an inch to a foot, and this immense tableau comprehends a view of many miles in extent. The sketches and models have all been made from the drawings of various travellers taken on the spot, and it is consequently an accurate transcript of the scene it is intended to pourtray. The artist is Mr. Danson, a gen. tleman advantageously known to the public, by his works in several of our metropolitan theatres, but whose highest meed of fame has been gained by the execution of these gigantic representations. When the enormous amount of surface is taken into consideration, together with the difficulty of paint. ing to suit the constantly-changing lights and shadows of daylight in the open air, and of converting the incongruous objects in the vicinity into useful adjuncts to the illusion, some idea may be formed of the obstacles with which he has had to contend, and the greatness of the artistical triumph that has been surmounted, will be then fully appreciated. The view first arrests the attention of the visiter, on looking towards the opposite verge of the ornamental lake, while standing on the side of the glazed conservatory, in which the beautiful collection of lions, tigers, &c., are confined. The first emotion on turning towards the spot, must be that of astonishment, that such a scene of wild and rugged barrenness should be existing in the midst of suminer, and within a mile of the city of London, as it can scarcely be believed that the landscape there beheld is not a stern reality, or that so complete an illusion could have been produced by the pencil of an artist, unaided by the artificial light which so materially assists similar works in every other situation. When, after wandering over the whole of the chilling landscape, and the eye has time attentively to examine its minuter details, the admirable manner in which each has been made to contribute to the general effect of the whole, will be found deserving equal praise with the execution of the large masses. In the centre of the picture, the most prominent object is, of course, Mount Hecla, which rises in rugged majesty from amidst a scene of corresponding barrenness. Its summit is crowned with perpetual snow, and is broken into jugged peaks, which are the precipitous sides of an immense and fearful chasm, forming the crater. Its sides are covered with vast tracts of snow and icy glaciers, here and there obtruded upon by a projecting mass of rock or solid lava, fearful evidence, that although all now appears so cold and pure, there lurks beneath fierce elements of combustion, which may at any time burst forth, and by their fury render even this appalling region more terrible. Mount Hecla is 18 miles from the sea-coast, in the south-western part of Iceland; at the foot of the mountain is the river Wesk, or Rangan, the bed of which consists of large masses of lava. Hecla has three summits, of which the central is the highest. The whole consists of volcanic masses, loose grit and ashes. The crater is not much over 100 feet deep. Since 1004, 24 eruptions are said to have taken place, of which the latest were those in 1766, in 1818, and in 1823. A hot vapour issues from various small openings near the top; and the thermometer, which in the air stands below the freezing point, will rise, when set on the ground, to 120, or even 150 degrees. Sir Joseph Banks visited the mountain in 1772, and Sir George Mackenzie in 1810. From the summit there is an extensive view, two-fifths of the island being visible, as the country is level, except where a jocul or glacier intervenes. The mountains on either side, clothed with perpetual snow, are called yokuls, and of these the great one, called Snæfell, is represented in the extreme distance of the above Painting. It is 4560 feet high; and although now extinct, was formerly a volcano of most destructive force, situated on the hem of a tongue of land, dividing the two great bays or inlets of Bræde-fiord and Faxe-fiord, and from its graceful form, its height, and commanding situation, is a most remarkable feature of the geography of Iceland. Its base is purely basaltic, and the contract of its streams of lava with the columns of the basalt, and the ferocity with which subterraneous fires have broken and tossed about all the country in its immediate neighbourhood, have produced a scene of the most wild and picturesque confusion. This yokul appears to have been entirely formed by repeated eruptions of lava, &c., from one crater; but the whole surface of the ground, near it, must have been burst in many places at once, as it is thrown up into innumerable little pyramidical heaps of scoriæ and ashes, each of which has probably been the centre of a distinct volcanic action, executing its force at different periods of time. The fore ground represents icebergs, with broken masses of ice, projecting their hoary peaks out of the water, in all sorts of fantastic forms; between which, a stranded ship is seen wedged, which fills up the foreground of this magnificently-grand produc tion, presenting one of the most illusive efforts of art ever beheld. The Geysers, or Boiling Fountains, are objects which at all times must attract the attention of the observer. The Great Geyser rises from a tunnel-shaped basin, lined and edged with silicious depositions. The emissions generally take place at intervals of six hours, preceded by a rumbling noise or loud report, like that of artillery, with an agitation of the ground. The hot springs, near the habitable parts, are used for economical purposes; food is dressed over them, and, in some places, huts are built over small fountains to form steam-baths. In other parts are seen caldrons of boiling mud, emitting sulphureous exhalations. To form a correct opinion of the above display of scenic art, it must be seen-the delusion being so masterly handled-when the spectator will imperceptibly imagine himself in the midst of the grand but inhospitable shores of Iceland. We are indebted for some of the above remarks, to a descriptive pamphlet, which may be had at the doors of the Gardens. SAY NOT THAT LOVE GROWS COLD. Author of "The Queen of Merry England," &c. &c. (For the Mirror.) SAY not that love grows cold; Let echo answer-" Lie!" It glows in truth for ever! List echo answers-" Never!" And echo answers-" Love!" A love-a lust for gold! "That love grows cold!" OLD FOLKS. TOUJOURS LE MEME CHOSE. (For the Mirror.) THE world one scene is e'er the same, The schemes and thoughts of by-gone days: STANZAS. (For the Mirror.) WHEN gathering clouds in diverse forms arise, |