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Cast Wood.-Messrs. Bray and Malo have succeeded in imitating the most precuios species of wood and the rarest marbles, by means of cast wood, (bois coulé,) of their composition. All the thousand accidents, the infinite blendings of veins and shades, the transparent clouds of marble, which the pencil of the painter can imitate only on the surface, are obtained by Messrs. Bray and Malo to whatever thickness they desire. The wood of their composition, whatever object of imitation or fancy it represents, may be planed like the coarsest ash, without any alteration. This valuable invention opens a new and vast field to all the arts connected with cabinet-making and ornamental architecture.

Siberian Gods.The Civil Governor of Tobolsk has sent to the Cabinet of Natural History of the University of Moscow, two statues cast in copper; one of which, found by a peasant in the district of Ichimsk, represents, according to tradition, one of the gods formerly adored by the Siberians; the other was found on the banks of the Irtych.

Stone Rail-roads.-A gentleman some years ago travelling in Italy, speaks with high commendation of the granite rail-roads in the streets of Milan. In every narrow street one road is laid in the middle, and in broad streets a rail-road on each side. The stones are perfectly flat, not grooved, and two feet wide for each wheel. Some of the ill-paved towns in this island (wherever suitable stone could be readily procured) might adopt the same plan with advantage.

Africa. Captain Laing, who was at Sierra Leone under the unfortunate Sir C. M'Carthy, is appointed by government to be at the head of another expedition, formed for the purpose of exploring the course of the Niger.

Inquisition. It is said, that the re-establishment of this terrible tribunal in Spain has been prevented by the steady resistance of the French chargé d'affaires; and that the priests of the besotted Ferdinand have completely failed in their efforts to revive this engine of despotism.

Irish Education.-There are, in Ireland, 1872❘ schools, under the London Hibernian Society, containing 88,699 scholars. The contributions last year, in Ireland, amounted to £2889.9s.10d. In Clare, there are twenty-four schools, with 2223 scholars.

Religious Toleration. The king of Bavaria, by a rescript of Sept. 5, has given to the inhabitants of Ingoldstadt, of the Evangelical faith, permission to build a church, and his majesty has since given a salary to a Protestant pastor. Nov. 28, 1824, was the day of installation of M. Hoffman, the new pastor of the Evangelical Church. It is remarkable, that some years ago a Protestant minister would not dare to shew himself in the streets clothed in his canonicals, so that he could be recognized; but on this occasion the people assisted in the ceremony of the installation with great satisfaction, and with no disorder whatever. All the magistrates and the Catholic clergy, who were expressly invited, and a multitude of citzens of all classes, and of both religions, were at the chapel, and took part in the ceremony. Such progress has the spirit of toleration made in Bavaria, since the king and a few enlightened men have set the

example! Religious hatred, formerly so pernicious in Germany, is now hardly known. The king has further decreed, that if, in mixed marriages, the priest refuses to the Catholic party the publication of the banns, or the nuptial benediction, unless that the two parties have promised to bring up their children in the Catholic religion, the Protestant pastor is authorized to celebrate the marriage, even without the Catholic curate's letters dismissory.

Cautions respecting the use of Calomel."Whenever you prescribe calomel for children, you should be very careful not to conti nue it too long, particularly when the skin is cool. Some time ago I saw a very fine boy lost by his having been directed to continue two or three grains of calomel every night, after his skin became cold; inflammation of the mucous membrane of the throat and larynx took place, accompanied by ulceration in both these places. Calomel has, of late years, become the nostrum of the nursery; mothers and nurses are continually giving it; and I am certain that crowds of children are made masses of scrofula by the misapplication of that medicine, so that they fall easy victims to acute affections which may supervene.-Women are very much like children in their habits, and therefore be very careful how you prescribe calomel for them also, when the skin is cool. The effects of calomel are modified by the state of the body at the time of its administration; and you must recollect that if, for any inflammation, you shall have employed bloodletting, and the skin has become cold, then you must be on your guard about the quantity, as in ordinary cases. In fact, it is only when the skin continues hot and dry that you can give calomel with safety to delicate subjects; watch the different circumstances under which you prescribe the same medicine, and you will eventually acquire great precision in its application, so as not only to do good, but to avoid mischief."-Dr. Armstrong's Lectures.

Christmas Fare.-Some idea of the lovingkindness of John Bull's country cousins may be formed from the fact that near two thousand parcels, containing fat turkeys, geese, game, &c. were delivered from one inn, the White Horse, Fetter-lane, London, on Friday, (Christmas eve.) Supposing each parcel to weigh twelve pounds, which is less than the average weight, the total amount would be twenty-one tons, four cwt. and thirty-two pounds. The greater portion of this immense quantity was supplied from the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk; and such was the loading of the coaches, that one of them, the Fa kenham, which should arrive early in the morning, did not arrive until after eight o'clock in the evening; and the Norwich did not reach home till mid-day.

Inscriptions on old Silver Coin.-If you have a silver coin, the inscription of which is be come wholly illegible, put the poker in the fire, and when red-hot, place the coin upon it, and the letters will plainly appear, of a greenish hue, but will disappear as the coin cools. When the silver was last called in, this was the method practised at the mint, to ascertain the genuine coin.

Highlands.-Forty new churches are about to be erected in the Highlands of Scotland, where

the parishes are so extensive, that comparatively few of the population can enjoy the benefit of religious instruction. A minister is to be provided for each, with a salary of £120 a year.

Conversion of the Jews.-The monarch of the triple crown has lately issued an Edict, of which the following is an extract:-" In order the better to spread the light of the gospel amongst the Israelites, the measures taken during the time of Pope Clement VIII. to compel Jews to attend Catholic sermons, and which only was prevented by the recent political events to which Italy has been a prey, are re-established from the date of 1st March last."

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The Protestant Reformation vindicated. By Joseph Fletcher, A.M.

The Evangelical Rambler, Vol. II. 3s. 6d. boards.

Scripture Natural History of Birds, Insects, &c. By Henry Althans.

Popery in 1824. A Circular Letter of Pope Leo the Twelfth, &c. and the Bull of Jubilee

for 1825.

Old Bailey Executions.-The number of persons executed during the last year is less than perhaps was ever known. On reference to the annual statement, which, for several years past, have been made by the governors of Newgate, An Introduction to Practical Arithmetic and the amount of executions at the Old Bailey is as follows:-In 1818, 23; 1819, 25; 1820, 43;muel Reynolds. 2s. bound. Mensuration, on a plan entirely new. By Sa1821, 33; 1822, 23; 1823, 18; 1824, 11;forming a total, in seven years, of 176.

Literary Notices.

Just Published.

In one vol. 8vo. price 10s. 6d. boards, a new work, entitled "Theatre of the Greeks." By Porson Elmsby, and others.

Bunyan explained to a Child; being Pictures and Poems founded upon the Pilgrim's Progress. Part II. or Christiana's Journey, consisting of above 50 Engravings, with a Poem to each, and an allegorical Frontispiece. By the Rev. Isaac Taylor, Ongar. Price 4s. half-bound. Also Second Edition of Part I. containing Christian's Journey. Price 4s. half-bound.

The Sabbath Remembrancer; a series of Weekly Papers, each containing Expository, Devotional, and Practical Observations on Two Passages of Scripture, together with a selection of Texts for each day in the Week, striking Anecdotes, &c. &c. with 52 Wood Cuts, By the Rev. A. Fletcher. Vol. I. 12mo. 5s. bound.

Elements of English Grammar; being an improved edition of Grammar for Children, designed for Young Persons in general, but more particularly adapted to facilitate their Instruction in Preparatory Schools. Illustrated with Cuts by Branston. Fourth Edition. Price 1s.

The East India Register, and Directory for 1825, containing the New Organization of the Company's Military Establishment, and complete Lists of each Department of the Company's Service at Home and Abroad; with a variety of other useful information. Corrected up to the 1st of January from the Official Returns at the East India House. Price 8s. 6d. sewed.

A Short Extract from the Life of General Mina. Published by himself.

The Plenary Inspiration of the Scriptures asserted. By the Rev. S. Noble. 13s. bds.

Memoir of Mr. William Howden. By Eliza T, Tooth. 3s. 6d. boards.

A Paraphrase on the Book of Ecclesiastes, a Poem; to which are added, the Text of the Authorized Version, with Notes. By Nathaniel Higgins. 8vo. 3s. 6d. boards.

In the Press, &c.

The Controversy with the Unitarians of Manchester respecting their possession of Chapels and Trusts, with an Introduction. See Evangelical Magazine, January, 1825.

The Author of "Wine and Walnuts" has in the press an historical novel, in two vols. The Twenty-ninth of May, or Rare Doings at the Restoration.

In an elegant foolscap volume, The Art of Beauty, with numerous Illustrations, by Cor bould and others.

In one volume, 12mo. with plates, Practical Chemical Mineralogy. By Frederic Joyce, Operative Chemist.

Anecdotes and Opinions of Lord Byron, from authentic sources, with remarks illustrative of his connexion with the principal Literary Characters of the present day. In a pocket volume.

In February will be published, The Pocket Annual Register of History, Politics, Arts, Sciences, and Literature, for the year 1825. Price 7s. 6d.

As the Rev. J. Morison, Author of "Lectures on the Reciprocal Obligations of Life," is preparing for publication, A History of the Cameronians, he will feel particularly obliged for any assistance which may be rendered to him, by the friends and admirers of Scottish literature, in this most difficult undertaking.

Edward the Orphan, a novel. In one vol. 12mo.

LONDON: PRINTED AT THE CAXTON PRESS, BY H. FISHER.

THE

Emperial Magazine;

OR, COMPENDIUM OF

RELIGIOUS, MORAL, & PHILOSOPHICAL KNOWLedge.

MARCH. "READING IS THE CIRCULATING MEDIUM OF INTELLECTUAL COMMERCE.'

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Ir has been our lot of late to record the death of several renowned artists and men of science. In our number for September we gave a memoir of Mr. William Sharpe, the celebrated engraver, and in our last number we bad to introduce a tribute of respect to the memory of the no less distinguished Wilson Lowry, of the same profession; and just as its last sheet was going to press, the mournful intelligence reached us that DR. TILLOCH was no more. This event we had just time to announce, accompanied with an intimation, that on some future occasion it was our intention to furnish a memoir of this distinguished man. In the third volume of the Imperial Magazine we gave his portrait, and those who were acquainted with his countenance readily acknowledge that the resemblance was peculiarly striking.*

Alexander Tilloch, the subject of this memoir, was a native of Glasgow, in which city he was born on the 28th of February, 1759. His father, whose name was John, filled the office of magistrate for many years. He also followed the trade of a tobacconist, and was highly respected by all ranks of people, both as a merchant, and in his official capacity. His son Alexander, being designed for the business which his father followed, received in the place of his nativity an education suitable to the station he was intended to fill. We are not aware that he manifested any particular indications of genius at an early age, but his habits were sedate and thoughtful, apparently arising from a conviction that he knew but little, and had much to learn. On leaving school

Subscribers who wish to have this

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trait, may be accommodated with impressions at three-pence each.

75.-VOL. VII.

1825.

he was taken to his intended occupation; but as his intellectual powers began to expand themselves, his views became more elevated than any thing which a tobacco warehouse could supply, and his mental energies soon rose above the mere manufacturing of an Indian weed.

Ardent in the pursuit of knowledge, and sanguine in his expectations, the occult sciences, in early life, at one time attracted much of his attention; and when animal magnetism was introduced into this country, its novelty and charms were not without their influence on his youthful mind. The magic, however, of this delusive science soon ceased to operate, yet ju dicial astrology he was never disposed to treat with sovereign contempt. But it was not long that he wandered in these visionary regions; he soon saw the folly of pursuing phantoms, and, without loss of time, applied his talents to the cultivation of that which promised to be useful to mankind.

Among the various branches of science and the mechanic arts, literature was that which chiefly struck his attention; and though totally uninstructed, he soon conceived that the mode of printing, then in constant practice, was susceptible of considerable improvement. He accordingly hit upon the expedient, when the page was set up in type, of taking off an impression in some soft substance, in its comparatively fluid state, that would harden when exposed to the action of fire, and thus become a mould to receive the metal when in a state of fusion, and form a plate every way correspondent to the page whence the first impression was received. This with him laid the foundation of the stereotype mode of printing, now brought into general use. He began his experiments in 1781, and in 1782 having brought his plates to a state of comparative perfection, flattered himself with many advantages which would result from his successful efforts.

Animated with the prospects which

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nor is it material, as the period was but short before we again find him actively engaged. In the year 1789, in connexion with others, he purchasof which he immediately became the editor, and continued so until within four years of his death, when bodily infirmities, and various engagements, compelled him to relinquish its management altogether. In this respectable paper his political opinions were mild and temperate, equally remote from the virulence of party, the clamours of faction, and the unmanly servility of temporizing baseness. The character which this paper sustained under the superintendence of Dr. Tilloch is still ably supported by his successor. Its principles are constitutional; and it is one of those prints in which a sacrifice of truth and integrity never yet designedly sullied its columns.

this discovery presented to his view, and encouraged by those friends to whom he communicated the secret, he repaired almost immediately to London, in order to secure the benefited the " Star," a daily evening paper, of his invention by patent. This was accordingly done; but when it became generally known that he claimed to himself the honour of having made the discovery, it was found that a gentleman in Scotland had preceded him in the art, and had actually reduced it to practice some time before, though Dr. Tilloch was totally unapprized of the fact. The art, however, being in its infancy, underwent rapid improvements; so that although his patent remained unimpeached, it never seems to have been to him of any pecuniary benefit. It appears, nevertheless, from some circumstances which transpired at the Society of Arts at the Adelphi, some years afterwards, that Earl Stanhope was indebted to Dr. Tilloch for much of his knowledge in the process of making stereotype plates.

On returning to Glasgow, he entered into the tobacco business in conjunction with his brother and brotherin-law; but not finding it to answer their expectation, it was finally abandoned. From this he turned his attention to printing, and, either singly or in partnership, carried on this trade for some time in his native city.

His

Being forcibly struck, soon after his arrival in London, with the vast number of executions that took place for forgery, Dr. Tilloch, after some time, began to devise means for the prevention of the crime; and in 1790 he made a proposal to the British ministry to that effect. scheme, however, meeting with an unfavourable reception at home, he offered his invention to the Commission d'Assignats at Paris, where its merits were very differently appreciated; but the political contentions of the time caused considerable delay in the negociation. However, in 1792, L'Amour, from the French authorities, waited on him, and they consulted together on the subject. On his return to Paris, some French artists were employed to make copies of Dr. Tilloch's plan; but in this they were finally unsuccessful, though their endeavours caused an additional delay. The commencement of the war in the beginning of 1793 caused a still greater

Somewhat prior to this period of his life, he married; but the joys of connubial felicity were not long his portion. In the year 1783 his amiable partner was taken from him by death, from which time his days were spent in widowhood. The fruit of this union was one daughter, who still survives, and is the wife of Mr. Galt, a gentleman who has attained distinction among the writers of the day, as the author of several acknowledged works, and to whose pen are attributed some Scottish novels, "The Spae Wife," Ringan Gilhaise," ," and other ingeni-interruption; but so anxious were the ous compositions of the same class.

Whether the printing business in Glasgow defeated his expectation, or the prospects in London held out a more tempting invitation, we have not the means of knowing with accuracy; but in the year 1787 he came to the British metropolis, where he spent the remainder of his days. We are not informed in what manner he was employed on his first arrival in London,

French commissioners d'Assignats to avail themselves of Dr. Tilloch's invention, that L'Amour was directed to release some English smugglers, and to give them their vessel, on condition that, on returning to England, they would communicate to Dr. Tilloch a proposal for him to come to the continent, and impart his secret, offering him a handsome remuneration. By this time, however, the

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That, notwithstanding these certificates, the Bank rejected the plan offered by your Petitioner, followed their old plan for upwards of twenty years longer, trusting to the inflicthat of the Public, of the effects of which your tion of punishments for their protection and Petitioner will say nothing-and never paid your Petitioner any remuneration for his expenses and trouble, both of which had been considerable.

The practice of forgery still continuing with unabating atrocity, in the year 1797 Dr. Tilloch presented to the Bank of England, a specimen of a note, which, if adopted, he conceived would place the impressions on bank paper beyond the reach of imitation. Of this plan, and the fate which await-mission in the year 1818, to examine and re"That on the appointment of a Royal Comed it, we may gather some information port on the best means for the prevention of from the following petition, presented forgery, your Petitioner laid before the said to the House of Commons on the oc- Commissioners the forementioned Specimen, casion, in the year 1820:accompanied with another executed for the purpose, and exhibiting some improvement; and stated to them, that, not being a professional Artist, these Specimens (notwithstand

"TO THE HONOURABLE THE COMMONS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN

AND IRELAND, IN PARLIAMENT ASSEM-ing their certified merit) could give but an

BLED.

"The humble Petition of Alexander Tilloch, of Islington,

"Sheweth,-That in the year 1797 your Petitioner presented to the Bank of England a Specimen of a Plan of Engraving, calculated to prevent the Forgery of Bank Notes, accompanied with a Certificate signed by Messrs. Francis Bartolozzi, Wilson Lowry, Thomas Holloway, James Heath, William Sharp, James Fittler, William Byrne, J. Landseer, James Basire, and other eminent Engravers, stating, each for himself, that they could not make a copy of it,' and that they did not believe that it could be copied by any of the known arts of engraving and recommending it to the notice of the Bank of England, as an art of great merit and ingenuity, calculated not merely to detect, but to prevent the Forgery of Bank Notes.

"That the said Specimen was executed in consequence of a written permission from Mr. Giles, then Governor of the Bank, and on a verbal promise from him, that your Petitioner should be well remunerated by the Bank if his Specimen could not be copied, and at all events be paid for his trouble and expenses.

"That the Bank Engraver (then a Mr. Terry) said he could copy it, and in about three months thereafter did produce what he called a copy, but which was, in fact, very unlike the original.

"That on the 4th of July, 1797, the said pretended copy was examined before a Committee of the Bank Directors, by Messrs. Heath, Byrne, Sharp, Fittler, Landseer, and Lowry, all Engravers of the first eminence, who all declared that the pretended copy was not any thing like a correct resemblance of the original, nor even executed in the same manner, your Petitioner's Specimen being exe-. cuted on, and printed from, a block in the man.. ner of letter-press, but the copy executed on

imperfect idea of the perfection of which your Petitioner's art was susceptible.

"That the said Commissioners, from many specimens offered by different individuals, recommended the adoption of one offered by a Mr. Applegath.

"That the said plan of the said Mr. Applegath is, as your Petitioner has been informed, and believes, in fact, the same with and differs not in the principle of execution from the plan offered by your Petitioner twenty-three years ago; and therefore the preference thereto given appears to your Petitioner to be an act of great injustice towards him, the ori. ginal inventor.

"That your Petitioner has seen a Bill now before your honourable House, entitled 'A Bill for the further Prevention of Forging and Counterfeiting of Bank Notes,' in which there are various clauses calculated, and, as your Petitioner humbly submits, intended to prevent him from exercising in any way that art of which he was the original inventor; and which, he humbly submits, is an act of great injustice.

"That to prohibit the exercise of any modes of Engraving, on the pretext of preventing forgery, stands as much opposed to the progress and improvement of the Arts, and is consequently as impolitic as it would be to prohibit die-sinking for medals, buttons, and many branches of metallic ornament, on pretext of hindering the current coin from being imitated and counterfeited.

"Your Petitioner therefore humbly submits, that the said Bill, containing such clauses, should not be passed into a law; or, if deemed indispensable on grounds respecting which he may not be qualified to judge, that your Petitioner ought previously to receive such a remuneration as to the wisdom of your honourable House may appear reasonable; not only for the great trouble and expense he has already incurred, but for the damage and

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