fortunes; and that he had been equally successful himself, but that he should now discontinue his exertions-believing that speculation had reached its height. The professional men were delighted with the news, and earnestly desired their mercantile friend to cease his operations;—they did not wish for more. Elated with success, they pushed round the bottle, until they were all a little flushed with wine and the thoughts of their prosperity. At this crisis, one of them proposed that they should adopt a plan of life that would insure them the title of "THE IMMORTAL THREE." "Name it !-name it!" were heard from the other two. "Then,"

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said he, "let us make up our minds to live bachelors until we go to our graves." Agreed!-agreed!" was the response-and, before the clock struck twelve that night, they had signed a paper, (of which each took a copy,) that he should forfeit the pledge of honor which held them together, whoever might enter the bonds of matrimony, or suffer any woman to call him husband. They then talked over the course of life they intended to pursue. "I," said the lawyer, "will forthwith close my professional business, or, at least, as soon as possible-buy me a farm, and become an agriculturist, a horticulturist—and my chief delight shall be in a garden. In viewing nature and her delightful products I will spend my days; and repose, when I choose, on a bed of flowers."—"I," said the doctor, "will never again administer a tincture, or a pill, or grasp the amputating knife. I will retire from corporal and mental miseries, and confine myself to philosophical research. The microscope, the developements of chemistry, and the pure mathematics, shall delight me by day, and the still greater wonders of the telescope by night."-The merchant pondered for awhile, but at last shaped his course. "My fame shall be that of a traveller," said he; "I will emulate Mandeville,

surpass Bruce, and rival Ledyard. I will hunt the chamois on the Alps-shoot the condor on the Andes-and drink at the sources of the Mississippi and the Nile. I will engrave my name on the top of the highest Pyramid—and bring up a gem from the deepest cavern in the mines of Golconda."

The

The genius of revelry was the ascendant of this midnight hour; and when the morning sun arose, each was ready to shed tears at his rash pledge-but neither would be foremost in acknowledging his folly and recanting his error. lawyer was the first to set about performing his part. He bought a large, fine farm, well wooded and watered, of an excellent soil-and commenced his labors. He laid out his grounds on the inost approved methods-and, by dams, sluices, &c. prepared to irrigate a greater portion of his fields. He collected a rare stock of cattle, and kept them under the full force of feed. His farm soon became a pattern one-and all in the neighborhood were his imitators, as far as they could be. His poultry-yard swarmed with every species of domestic fowl that ever made a supper for Lucullus, or was ever eaten with curry at the feast of an Asiatic satrap. Every day in the year he could command from his own premises all the luxuries of life-in which he took more pleasure in seeing than in devouring. He supplied the sick with an hundred little dainties from his field or larder, and his wine was a cordial ready to flow when the village physician prescribed it for any of his poor patients. His fields were the object of admiration-but it was on his garden that he spent the most of his time, and where he exercised his highest faculties. The copious stream which ran through his grounds was made to pass in three channels-being separated before they entered walls of the garden. Trees were planted on the banks of each cur. rent, excepting in the proper places for bridges and ‹penings.

The grounds were wavy by nature, which offered great capacities for picturesque landscapes. The fruit-trees were numerous of every kind that the climate would bear. His green-house and conservatory were large, and filled with plants and flowers from every clime. In a beautiful clump of trees he erected a temple for a study, and there read the classics and all the modern works of taste and talent. It was indeed a treat to be invited to spend a few days at his hospitable mansion. His library was extensive, and contained many curious works on all subjects, and which far exceeded any other private library in the country, in works on agriculture, gardening, and on all these kindred subjects. He had classed them and arranged them himself, and made an index to these works with his own hand-which gave great facilities in readily finding whatever was wanted by the cultivator. In his winter's leisure he amused himself in collecting facts to show the progress of agriculture in every part of the globe, in every age of the history of man, and which went far to prove that the food for the population of the world grew more abundant as the human race increased. The easterly side of his farm was bounded on a lake of large dimensions, filled with a great variety of excellent fish. His friends always found the finest table at his house that the country could afford. Here was happiness one would think sufficient for any mortal.

Gilbert purchased himself a farm on a small scale—just large enough to raise a subsistence for himself and household. He erected an observatory, furnished himself with costly astronomical intruments, and in the lower part of his tower he provided rooms for philosophical experiments, and spent more hours in his laboratory than in his observatory. He turned from experiments to abstract sciences; and, at the same time, he kept a meteorological table, and

measured the fall of rain and snow with accuracy; and once a quarter gave a paper to the Philosophical Society, on some scientific subject-being the result of ingenious experiments and sound reflections.

He made a curious almanack each year, and presented it to a shoemaker in the neighborhood who had to support fifteen children. This son of Crispin rode into fame by his learned neighbor's science, and had numerous letters addressed to him from distant places-all of which Gilbert regularly answered, until Melchisedek Buswell became renowned in every quarter of the globe, as one of the first mathematicians and astronomers of the day-when, perhaps, the utmost extent of Buswell's knowledge was no more than to work out that tremendous question, "How many barleycorns does it take to reach round the world?"

He often visited his friend Thompson, and heard him talk of grain, cattle, trees, shrubs, and flowers, and probably partook, in some slight degree, of his friend's delight—but, after all, could not help thinking how undignified was Thompson's pursuits compared with his own. What pleasure could a wheat-field give, compared with some new discovery in the heavens.?

The two friends often heard from Montjoy, who was care.. ful to send them every rare book on mathematics, astronomy, agriculture, or botany; and also, every rare plant and every new mathematical instrument. They were in the habit of corresponding most frequently with each other, which made no small item in their duties and their happiness.

Gilbert offered to instruct young men who were going to sea, in the lunar and sideral calculations, without fee or reward-only stipulating, that when they became mastermariners, they should pay to the Female Orphan Asylum the usual fee for a common course of instruction in navigation..

This was readily complied with. If he was not happy to the extent of the measure of the lot of some mortals, he was free from anxiety and ambition. Now-and-then a writer would attack some of his favorite theories; and this would give him some pain, notwithstanding all that he wrote was under feigned names. At times he grew weary of his pursuits, and would turn to works of taste for relief. These would engage him for a few days only; and even during that time he would forget the beauty of a figure of rhetoric, to pursue some problem which had started up in his mind as he was dwelling on Shakspeare or Milton. He contrived to keep up with the news of the day, but took no part in politics--for he found that political excitement was the bane of science and an enemy to letters. He had his political views, and gave his vote, but never attempted to influence the minds of others, or to seek for public honors for himself. He associated with but few, and was familiar with no one but his friend Thompson-yet he was kind to all. The professional men of the village usually dined with him once a week. He paid his physician as the Chinese do, by the year-deducting all the term of his sickness, if he should chance to be unwell. With but few singularities, he moved onward with the current of time-devoting six hours each day to his mathematical and astronomical studies. The good people considered him as rather belonging to the stars than to earth; but as he paid his taxes cheerfully, and injured no one, they thought him no bad citizen.

Montjoy Tileston Russell, after visiting most of the great cities in Europe, turned his attention to Asia and Africa. He sailed for the Cape of Good Hope, and spent some months in examining that country with more attention than any American traveller had done before his time. From thence, he made a voyage to Bengal, and visited a large