CAPITAL. We have seen that a rich man who spends on himself his income, of 10007. or 10,000l. a year, does not diminish the wealth of the whole Country by so much; but only by what he actually eats and wears, or otherwise consumes, himself. The rest he hands over to those who work for him or wait on him; paying them either in food and clothes, or, what comes to the same thing, in money to buy what they want. And if he were to give to the same persons what he now pays, leaving them to continue idle, there would not be the more food or clothes in the Country; only, these people would sit still, or lounge about and do nothing, instead of earning their bread. But they are the happier and the better for being employed instead of being idle, even though their labour should be only in planting flowers, or building a palace, o please their employer's fancy. the sum borrowed, and would pay you 47. or 51. every year for the use of it; which is called Interest. This he would be glad to do, if he knew that he could employ this 1007. in buying materials, and paying workmen, to weave cloth, for instance, or make tables and chairs; which would bring in, by the end of the year, 1107. For out of this increase of 107., after paying you 57. for the use of your money, he would have gained 57. for himself. In this way, great part of the capital that is engaged in trades and manufactures, is employed by persons who are not themselves the owners of it. The more Capital there is in a Country, the better for the labourers; for the poorer the master is, the fewer labourers he can afford to employ, and the less sure he can be of being able to pay them. Suppose you were a poor man, in a newly-settled Country, and asked your neighbour to help you to Most of the money that is spent, however, is laid dig a piece of fertile ground, promising him a share out in employing labourers on some work that is of the produce for his pains; he might say,—I have profitable; that is, in doing something which brings nothing to live on in the mean time; if you want me back more than is spent on it, and thus goes to in- to dig for you, you must pay me daily wages. But crease the whole wealth of the Country. Thus, if, if you have nothing beforehand, except bare necesinstead of employing labourers to cultivate a flower-saries for yourself,—that is, if you have no Capital,— garden or build me a summer-house for my pleasure, I employ them in raising corn, or building a mill to grind it, the price of that corn, or the price paid for grinding by those who bring corn to the mill, will be more (if I have conducted the business prudently) than what I had spent on those works. So that instead of having parted with my money for ever, as when it is spent on a pleasure-garden or summerhouse, it comes back to me with addition. This addition is called Profit; and the money so laid out is called Capital. A man who lays out his money in this manner, may do the same over again, as soon as it comes back to him; so that he may go on supporting labourers year after year. And if he saves each year a part of his Profit, and adds it to his Capital, as a thriving farmer or manufacturer generally does, he will be continually employing more and more labourers, and increasing the wealth of the Country. He himself, indeed, is perhaps not thinking of his Country, but is only seeking to enrich himself: but this is the best and surest way he could take for enriching the country. For, every man in the nation, who adds to his own wealth, without lessening the wealth of others, must, it is plain, be adding just so much to the wealth of the nation. Sometimes, indeed, one man gains by another's loss; and then, of course, nothing is added to the whole wealth of the country. If a man gets rich by gambling, or begging, or robbery, others lose at least as much as he gains. But if he gets rich by his skill in farming, or manufactures, or mining, all that he gains is so much added to the wealth of the whole Country, since it is not lost by any one else. Many persons dispose of their property in this way, though they are not themselves engaged in business, but lend their money to others, who are. Suppose you were a labouring man, and had 1007. left you as a legacy; or had saved up that sum from your earnings: you might not know how to trade with the money to advantage; and if you kept it in a strong box, for the use of your children, you would not be the better for it all your life; and at the end of twenty or thirty years, your children would find just the same sum that you first put in. Or if you took out 51. every year to spend, at the end of twenty years it would be all gone. But you might lend it to some person engaged in business, who would give you security for the repayment of the Principal, as it is called, that is, you cannot pay him till harvest. Your land, therefore, will remain half-tilled; and he will be forced to go into the woods to seek for wild berries, or to hunt and fish, to provide himself food. Indeed, all would be forced to begin in this manner, if you suppose a number of men left to themselves, even on the most fertile land, without any property to set out with,— that is, without Capital. They would have great difficulties to struggle against for a long time; but when they had advanced some way in acquiring wealth, they would find it easier to obtain more. For, as it is, you may observe that wealth is always obtained by means of wealth, that is, it is gained by the help of Capital; without which, labour can hardly be carried on. Corn is raised by labour; but a previous stock of corn is needed, both to sow the ground, and to maintain the labourer till the harvest is ripe. The tools with which he works are made with tools. The handle of the axe with which he cuts wood is made of wood; the iron of it was dug from the mine with iron instruments: and it is the same with almost every kind of labour. You may judge, therefore, how difficult and slow men's first advances must have been, when they had to work with their bare hands, or with stakes and sharp stones for their tools. Accordingly, in countries that are ill provided with Capital, though the inhabitants are few in number, and all of them are forced to labour for the necessaries of life, they are worse fed, clothed, and lodged, than even the poorest are in a richer country, though that be much more thickly peopled, and though many of the inhabitants of it are not obliged to labour with their hands at all. The money, food, and other things which a farmer spends on the labourers and on the horses which cultivate his land, or a clothier on his weavers, is called circulating Capital; because he parts with it, from time to time, and it returns to him as in a circle, in the shape of corn or cloth. The farmer's barns, ploughs, carts, and horses, and the clothier's looms and warehouses, are called fixed Capital; because they bring in a profit, not by being parted with, but by being kept as long as they are fit for use. Any new kind of tool or machine, by enabling a few men to do the work of many, is likely, when first introduced, to throw several men out of employment. But in the end, it almost always finds employment for many more. Thus, for instance, when the art of printing was first introduced, many who used to gain their living by copying, were thrown out of employment; because a very few printers could produce as many copies of a book as several hundred writers. But, in a short time, books being thus rendered so much cheaper, many more were enabled to buy them; and many hundred times as many printers were employed as there were copyists before. And the same thing takes place in almost every kind of machinery. There is one way of employing Capital, which people are apt to murmur at, as if it did them an injury, though there is none that does more important service to the public. A man who deals in corn or other provisions, is, of course, watchful to buy them up when they are cheap, and to keep them till they are dearer; that he may sell them at a profit. Now an unthinking person is apt to complain of corndealers, when bread is dear, as if they were the cause of scarcity; but, in truth, it is they that preserve us from being absolutely starved, whenever there happens to be a scanty harvest. Not that a corndealer is thinking of benefiting the Public; he is only thinking of gaining for himself a profit on his capital, like any other tradesman; but the way he takes to secure this profit, which is by buying up corn when it is cheap, and selling it when dear, is exactly the way in which the plentiful crop of one year may supply the defect of another; so that there may not be first waste and then famine, and in which a short supply may be made to hold out. When the captain of a ship finds his provisions run short, so that there is not, suppose, above three weeks' provision on board, and his voyage is likely to last four, he puts the crew on short allowance; and thus, by each man's submitting to eat only threefourths of his usual quantity, the provisions hold out. But if the crew should mutiny when they felt hungry, and insist on having their full allowance, then, by the end of the three weeks, all would be consumed, and they would perish with hunger. Now it is plain that the same would be the case with a whole nation, if, when the harvest fell short, all were to go on at the ordinary rate of consumption. Suppose such a failure in the crops, that all the corn in the country was only enough for three quarters of a year, according to the common rate of consumption; it is plain that if all men went on eating the usual quantity, there would be nothing left for the last three months, and the most dreadful famine would prevail. How is this to be prevented; as there is no captain to put people on short allowance; and it is not to be expected that all should agree, each to stint himself for the public good? If corn remained at the usual price, all would continue to eat the usual quantity, till there was none left. But the prospect of a scarcity causes farmers, and millers, and others, who have capital, to keep what corn they have by them, in expectation of a higher price, and to buy up what they can, at home and from abroad; and, as they refuse to sell it except at an advanced price, in proportion to the scarcity, the dearness of food forces people to be more saving. In this way the store of provisions is husbanded in the whole Country, just as on board a ship, and is made to last till next harvest; and thus, by suffering a certain degree of hardship, the people are saved from perishing by famine. It is curious to observe, how, through the wise and beneficent arrangement of Providence, men thus do the greatest service to the public, when they are thinking of nothing but their own gain. And this happens not only in the case of corn-dealers, but generally. When men are left quite free to employ their capital as each thinks best for his own advantage, he will almost always benefit the Public, though he may have no such design or thought. MIGRATORY BIRDS. No. III. THE NIGHTINGALE.-(Silvia luscinia.) THE Nightingale is one of our earliest spring visiters, and makes its appearance about the middle of April. It frequents, at first, the hedges which border cultivated lands and gardens, where it finds abundtime, for as soon as the forests begin to be covered ance of food; but it remains there for only a short with verdure, it retires into the woods and thickets, in the thick foliage of which it delights. Its nest, which is rudely formed of dead leaves, is placed near to the ground, hidden among brushwood, or at the bottom of some hedge. The Nightingale, during its stay in England, for it leaves us again in the autumn, rears two broods of young; sometimes, but very rarely, it has been As soon as the first brood is known to hatch three. partially fledged, the female sets about building a second nest, and the nurture and education of the first brood devolves upon the male. It is only previous to, and during the time that the first family is being reared, that the song of the male is heard; when the bird is in a wild state; but, when in captivity, if properly managed, it has been known to sing nearly throughout the year. management of the Nightingale, when placed in a cage, is a matter of great difficulty, and requires very considerable attention; three sides of the cage in which it is placed are covered, so as to prevent the entrance of light; in this manner imitating the dim light of evening, at which time the Nightingale delights to pour forth its melodious notes when in a state of liberty. The successful It The following remarks on this bird are extracted from Griffiths's edition of CUVIER's Animal Kingdom. "The Nightingale has, of all other birds, a voice of the greatest harmony, variety, and compass. unites the talents of all the singing-birds, and succeeds in every style; sixteen different burdens may be reckoned in its song, well determined by the first and last notes; it can sustain this song uninterrupted for the space of twenty seconds, and the sphere which its voice can fill is at least a mile in diameter. Song is so peculiarly the attribute of this species, that even the female possesses it, less strong and varied, it is true, than that of the male, but otherwise entirely resembling it; even in its dreaming sleep the Nightingale warbles. What peculiarly constitutes the charm of this bird is, that it never burden or passage; and, even if ever it resumes the repeats its song like other birds, but varies at each same, it is always with new accents and additional embellishments. In calm weather, in the fine nights of spring, when its voice is heard alone, undisturbed by any other sound, nothing can be more ravishing and delightful; it then pours forth, in their utmost plenitude, all the resources of its incomparable organ of voice." THE CUCKOO.--(Cuculus canorus.) THIS most extraordinary bird, extraordinary as regards its plumage and form, which in a great degree resembles that of the hawk, so much so indeed that even the small birds, such as swallows and others, mistaking it for an enemy, will mob it out of their neighbourhood; but more curious on account of its habits, which are unlike those of any other bird, appears in England towards the middle or latter end of April; like the parrots and the other climbing | son, &c. to proclaim the glad tidings of great joy, on which rest the birds, it has two toes placed forwards and two behind. The most curious part of the history of the Cuckoo, consists in the manner in which the female disposes of her eggs in this she differs so extremely from every other bird, that were it not that the fact has been attested by the most credible and intelligent eye-witnesses, it would hardly be deserving of belief. The female cuckoo, in general, builds no nest of her own, but deposits her eggs, almost always singly, in the nest of some of the smaller birds, most frequently in that of the hedge-sparrow. The small bird carefully sits on the egg thus placed, and, when the young is hatched, it is attended with as much care as if the offspring was her own; experiment has proved, that if the egg of any other bird is introduced into the nest, it is either thrown out and broken, or the nest is entirely deserted. Another curious fact is, that the young of the Cuckoo, as soon as it is hatched, applies itself to the task of ejecting the rightful owners of the nest; to effect this, the young Cuckoo thrusts itself underneath the egg, or young bird it wishes to remove, and then carries it on its back, which is peculiarly broad and flat, to the edge of the nest, and throws it over; this, however, is sometimes a work of considerable difficulty, and only effected after repeated trials. ANNIVERSARIES IN MARCH. MONDAY, 25th. LADY-DAY.-This day is honoured, and celebrated throughout the Christian world, under the title of The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the day on which Almighty God sent his angel Gabriel to announce to her the fulfilment, in her person, of the prophecy of Isaiah, Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a very basis of the Christian's faith, and his consequent hope of redemption. This festival is of great antiquity; the latest date assigned to its establishment is the seventh century, while some authorities, of no light consideration, refer it to the year 350. In civil calculations Lady-Day is the first of the four quarter-days, as they are called, of the year; that is, days on which rents, annuities, interest on money, and any other sums of money payable quarterly, become due; and on which tenancy of lands, houses, &c., commence and terminate. 1306 Robert Bruce, the first King of Scotland of his race, and grandson to the Bruce who was competitor for the crown with Baliol, was crowned at Scone. 1688 Charity Schools for children were first instituted in and about London. The first opened were one in Norton Falgate and another in St. Margaret's, Westminster. 1748 A destructive fire broke out in Exchange-alley, Cornhill, by which upwards of eighty houses were consumed. It was the largest which had happened since the great fire of London, 1666; but has been subsequently much exceeded by the fire of 1794, in Ratcliffe Highway. 1827 Captain Parry sailed in the Hecla, on the fourth voyage of discovery in the North Polar regions. TUESDAY, 26th. 1622 The Jesuits expelled from Holland by an edict of this date. 1756 Died Gilbert Vest, a learned and pious defender of our holy religion. His writings and his conversations convinced Lord Lyttelton of the truth of the Christian revelation, and are said to have mainly incited that noble author to write his celebrated Dissertation on St. Paul. WEDNESDAY, 27th. 1625 Died at Theobalds, near Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire, Ang James I., in the fifty-ninth year of his age, the twenty-third year of his reign over England, and fifty-ninth over Scotland. 1802 Treaty of Peace between the United Kingdom, on the one part, and the French Republic, the Dutch Republic, and the King of Spain, on the other, signed at Amiens. THURSDAY, 28th, 1380 Gunpowder said to have been first used in Europe by the Venetians against the Genoese. 1483 Raffaelle Sanzio D'Urbino died on his birth-day, at the early age of 37. His painting of the Transfiguration of our Saviour is considered the most noble production of the pictorial art. 1677 Wenceslaus Hollar, an eminent and much-admired engraver, died in great poverty in Westminster, aged seventy. 1757 Robert D'Amiens, who had attempted the life of Louis XV., King of France, was executed with unheard of tortures. 1766 A great Eruption of Mount Vesuvius. 1802 A new Planet, whose orbit is between those of Mars and Jupiter, discovered by Dr. Olbers, of Bremen, to which he gave the name of PALLAS. FRIDAY, 29th. CAMBRIDGE HILARY TERM ENDS. 1461 The Battle of Towton, between the Houses of York and Lancaster, fought on Palm Sunday, when 36,000 English perished. 1807 Dr. Olbers discovered another small planet, between Mars and Jupiter, to which he gave the name of VESTA, SATURDAY, 30th. OXFORD HILARY TERM ENDS. 1799 1282 The Sicilian Vespers, a name which history has given to the total massacre, on this day, of all the French forces in Sicily, either because it took place at the hour of vespers, (or evening service,) or because the tolling of the bell for vespers was the signal agreed on by the conspirators. Some writers contend that there was no conspiracy, but that if arose out of a sudden burst of vengeance for the tyranny and cruelties which the French conquerors had for a long time exercised towards the Sicilians: 8000 French are said to have perished. Buonaparte repulsed by Sir Sydney Smith in an attack on the city of St. Jean D'Acre, in Syria, being the first serious check he received in his military career. 1828 A destructive Earthquake visited Lima, the capital of Peru. SUNDAY, 31st. The Sunday before Easter, commonly called PALM SUNDAY, has, from the earliest period, been held in high respect, as the anniversary of our Saviour's last entry into Jerusalem, when the people "took branches of palm, and went forth to meet him, and cried Hosanna: blessed is the King of Israel, who cometh in the name of the Lord." Although Roman Catholic ceremonies were genefavour of the custom of bearing palm on this day, which was acrally abrogated by King Henry VIII., yet he made an exception in cordingly continued until the second year of King Edward VI.; and though no longer a religious ceremony, it is still customary in the neighbourhood of London, and in other parts of England, for men and boys to go. palming," as it is called, early in the morning of this day; that is, to collect branches of the willow or sallow tree houses. This day is also called by our Church Passion Sunday, as just now in full bud, with which they decorate their persons and the first day of Passion Week. Des The 31st of March is the anniversary of the birth of cartes, (1596) and of Joseph Haydn, (1732). 1547 Died Francis I., King of France, the cotemporary and rival of Charles V., Emperor of Germany, and of our Henry VIII. 1814 The Allied Sovereigns entered Paris, which was followed by the abdication of Napoleon, and the restoration of Louis XVIII. to the throne of France. LONDON: PUBLISHED IN WEEKLY NUMBERS, PRICE ONE PENNY, AND IN MONTHLY PARTS, JOHN WILLIAM PARKER, WEST STRAND. UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE COMMITTEE OF GENERAL LITERATURE AND EDUCATION, APPOINTED BY THE SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE. LEANING TOWERS. THESE curious specimens of architecture afford, perhaps, the most striking and remarkable examples in existence of that important principle of the laws of gravitation, "that a body will be supported, or will stand, provided that its line of direction falls within its base;" that is to say, in common phrase, provided it keeps its balance. It is almost superfluous to observe, that the converse of this principle is equally true, "that a body will fall if its line of direction falls without its base;" in other words, if it lose its balance. In order to understand the meaning and the reason of this, it will be necessary to remember, that the attraction of gravitation, or tendency to fall towards the centre of the earth, acts equally on all parts of the same body, and that, consequently, there is a point in every body, around which, in every direction, it acts equally. On this point the body may be said to be balanced; this is the centre of gravity, a, fig. 1; and a line drawn from it towards the centre of the earth, passing through the base, or lowest side of the body, is the line of direction a. F. fig. 1; if, therefore, this line fall within the base, the centre of gravity is supported by the base, and the body is balanced, for the attraction of the dark part, BDE, which is supported by the base, has more tendency to keep the body standing than that of the light part BCE, which is unsupported by the base, has to incline, or pull it down; but if, as in fig. 2, the line of direction falls without the base, where a is the centre of gravity, and a F the line of direction, it is clear that there being more parts of the body unsupported by the base than those which are supported, or BCE being larger than BDE, the attraction of the greater part will overcome that of the lesser, and that the body will not be balanced, but have a greater tendency to fall than to stand. Perhaps the following explanation may make this important rule more intelligible. The power of all the forces of the attraction of gravitation acting on different parts of a body, is exactly equal to that of one force acting on the centre of gravity only. If, therefore, this point be supported, the whole body will be supported, and this can only be the case when the line of direction falls within the base. It has been louna oy experiment, tnat most ofty buildings of any antiquity are slightly inclined from the perpendicular; the Monument; near London Bridge, is one of many instances; but the Towers at Bologna and Pisa, in Italy, and at Caerphilly, Bridgenorth, and Corfe Castle, in our own country, are the most remarkable. We are indebted to that elegant periodical work, the Landscape Annual, for a beautiful view of those at Bologna. They were probably erected by private families, for the purposes of defence in the desperate feuds and civil wars which so long desolated Italy, and rendered buildings such as these of the utmost importance to their possessors. The small republics of Lombardy were continually at war with each other, or with the Emperors of Germany; every city was divided into the two furious factions of Guelfs and Ghibellines, (or the parties of the Pope and the Emperor); and every street, ana frequently every family, was "divided against itself" by the quarrels of the nobles,-the Montagues and Capulets of their day;-and every man's house was indeed his castle, but in a very different sense from that, which, thanks to our reformed religion, free institutions, and advanced state of civilization, these words now convey to English ears. The taller of the two, that of the Asinelli, was built A. D. 1109; its height has been variously stated at 350, 377, and 307 feet, and its inclination at a few inches, and at 3 feet and a half. It has no external beauty, but rewards the traveller for a tedious ascent of 500 steps, by an extensive view, which includes the neighbouring cities of Imola, Ferrara, and Modena. The tower of the Garisendi or Garissuidi, is immortalized by Dante's simile, who compares it to the stooping Giant Antæus; its height is 140 or 150 feet, and it deviates 7 or 8 feet from the perpendicular. The woodwork and masonry incline from the horizon, which fact strongly corroborates the opinion of Montfaucon, the Antiquary, of the correctness of which there can hardly be a doubt; he says its inclination was "caused by the slipping of the earth ; some went to ruin when it slipped, as the ground on the inclined side was not so firm, which may be said of the other towers that lean; that for the bells of St. Mary Zibenica, at Venice, leans, and at Ravenna, and between Ferrara and Venice, and in other places, numerous instances may be found." Of the leaning towers of Italy, this tower is second only to that of Pisa (of which we shall speak in a future number), in the greatness of its deviation from the perpendicular, but is inferior in this point, to that of Caerphilly Castle, which will also be described in a future number, whilst in height the tower of the Asinelli soars far above all its competitors in Italy and England. THE DUTCH OF OLD.-When the plenipotentiaries of Albert and Isabella of Spain, were despatched to the Hague in 1607, at a short distance from that town they fell in with busied with easing their pockets of bread, butter, and cheese, groups of uncouthly dressed persons, some of whom were whilst others were slaking their thirst from earthen pitchers. Little did the Spanish envoys dream, that these homely revellers were the identical members of the States General of the United Provinces, with whom they were destined to treat of matters affecting the future destiny of all Europe. PREACHER'S DEFECTS.-The defects of a preacher are soon spied. Let a preacher be endued with ten virtues, and have but one fault, that one fault will eclipse and darken all his virtues and gifts, so evil is the world in these times. Dr. Justus Jonas hath all the good qualities that a man may have; yet by reason that he only often hummeth and spitteth, therefore the people cannot bear with that good and honest man.- -LUTHER'S Table Talk. A MAN's nature runs either to herbs or weeds; therefore, let him seasonably water the one, and destroy the other. -BACON. REMARKABLE EPITAPH. In the History of London, mention is made of a monument in St. Saviour's Church, Southwark, to the memory of Richard Humble, Alderman of London, and his wife and children, who are all represented in a kneeling posture. The date is April 13, 1616. The following lines are inscribed : LIKE to the damask rose you see, |