All at once two voices shouted out to "Halt!" One was my Jonathan's, raised in a high key of passionMorris' strong resolute tone of quiet commandThe gypsies may not have known the language, but there was no mistaking the tone, in whatever tongue the words were spokenInstinctively they reined in, and at the instant Lord Godalming and Jonathan dashed up at one side and DrThe leader of the gypsies, a splendid looking fellow who sat his horse like a centaur, waved them back, and in a fierce voice gave to his companions some word to proceedThey lashed the horses which sprang forwardBut the four men raised their Winchester rifles, and in an unmistakable way commanded them to stopAt the same moment DrVan Helsing and I rose behind the rock and pointed our weapons at themSeeing that they were surrounded the men tightened their reins and drew upThe leader turned to them and gave a word at which every man of the gypsy party drew what weapon he carried, knife or pistol, and held himself in readiness to attackIssue was joined in an instant The leader, with a quick movement of his rein, threw his horse out in front, and pointed first to the sun, now close down on the hill tops, and then to the castle, said something which I did not understandFor answer, all four men of our party threw themselves from their horses and dashed towards the cartI should have felt terrible fear at seeing Jonathan in such danger, but that the ardor of battle must have been upon me as well as the rest of themI felt no fear, but only a wild, surging desire to do somethingSeeing the quick movement of our parties, the leader of the gypsies gave a commandHis men instantly formed round the cart in a sort of undisciplined endeavour, each one shouldering and pushing the other in his eagerness to carry out the order In the midst of this I could see that Jonathan on one side of the ring of men, and Quincey on the other, were forcing a way to the cartIt was evident that they were bent on finishing their task before the sun should setNothing seemed to stop or even to hinder themNeither the levelled weapons nor the flashing knives of the gypsies in front, nor the howling of the wolves behind, appeared to even attract their attentionJonathan's impetuosity, and the manifest singleness of his purpose, seemed to overawe those in front of himInstinctively they cowered aside and let him passIn an instant he had jumped upon the cart, and with a strength which seemed incredible, raised the great box, and flung it over the wheel to the groundMorris had had to use force to pass through his side of the ring of SzganyAll the time I had been breathlessly watching Jonathan I had, with the tail of my eye, seen him pressing desperately forward, and had seen the knives of the gypsies flash as he won a way through them, and they cut at himHe had parried with his great bowie knife, and at first I thought that he too had come through in safetyBut as he sprang beside Jonathan, who had by now jumped from the cart, I could see that with his left hand he was clutching at his side, and that the blood was spurting through his fingersHe did not delay notwithstanding this, for as Jonathan, with desperate energy, attacked one end of the chest, attempting to prize off the lid with his great Kukri knife, he attacked the other frantically with his bowieUnder the efforts of both men the lid began to yieldThe nails drew with a screeching sound, and the top of the box was thrown back By this time the gypsies, seeing themselves covered by the Winchesters, and at the mercy of Lord Godalming and DrSeward, had given in and made no further resistanceThe sun was almost down on the mountain tops, and the shadows of the whole group fell upon the snowI saw the Count lying within the box upon the earth, some of which the rude falling from the cart had scattered over himHe was deathly pale, just like a waxen image, and the red eyes glared with the horrible vindictive look which I knew so well As I looked, the eyes saw the sinking sun, and the look of hate in them turned to triumph But, on the instant, came the sweep and flash of Jonathan's great knifeI shrieked as I saw it shear through the shop throat

When I consider that practical astronomy has not occupied a very prominent place in my pursuits, I feel disposed, on that ground, to acquiesce in the propriety of the refusal This excuse can, however, be of no avail for similar refusals to other gentlemen, who applied nearly at the same time with myself, and whose time had been successfully devoted to the cultivation of that science Bessel, at the wish of the Royal Academy of Berlin, projected a plan for making a very extensive map of the heavens Too vast for any individual to attempt, it was proposed that a portion should be executed by the astronomers of various countries, and invitations to this effect were widely circulated One only of the divisions of this map was applied for by any English astronomer; and, after completing the portion of the map assigned to him, he undertook another, which had remained unprovided for This gentleman, the RevHussey, was one of the rejected applicants for the Greenwich Observations There was, however, another ground on which I had weakly anticipated a different result;--but those who occupy official situations, rendered remarkable by the illustrious names of their predecessors, are placed in no enviable station; and, if their own acquirements are confessedly insufficient to keep up the high authority of their office, they must submit to the mortifications of their false position I am sure, therefore, that the President and officers of the Royal Society must have sympathized MOST DEEPLY with me, when they felt it their duty to propose that the Society over which Newton once presided, should refuse so trifling an assistance to the unworthy possessor of the chair he once filled In reply to my application to the President and Council, to be allowed a copy of the Greenwich Observations, I was informed that, "The number of copies placed by government at the disposal of the Royal Society, was insufficient to supply the demands made on them by various learned bodies in Europe; and, consequently, they were unable, however great their inclination, to satisfy the wishes of individual applicants Now I have spent some time in searching the numerous proceedings in the council-books of the Royal Society, and I believe the following is the real state of the case:-- In 1785, Lord Sidney, one of His Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, wrote to the Council a letter, dated Whitehall, March 8, 1785, from which the following is extracted:-- "The King has been pleased to consent, that any copies of the Astronomical Observations, made at the Observatory of Greenwich, (and paid for by the Board of Ordnance, pursuant to His Majesty's command, of July 21, 1767,) which may at any time remain in the hands of the printer, shall, after you have reserved such copies as you may think proper as presents, be given to the said Nevil Maskelyne, in consideration of his trouble in the superintending the printing thereof I am to signify His Majesty's pleasure, that you do, from time to time, give the necessary orders for that purpose, until His Majesty's further commands shall be communicated to you Soon after this letter, I find on the council-books:-- "Ordered, That sixty copies of the Greenwich Observations, last published, be retained as presents, and that the rest be delivered to the Astronomer Royal It is difficult to be sure of a negative fact, but in searching many volumes of the Proceedings of the Council, I have not discovered any revocation of this order, and I believe none exists This is confirmed by the circumstance of the Council at the present day receiving precisely the same number of copies as their predecessors, and I believe that in fact they do not know the authority on which the right to those sixty rests Supposing this order unrevoked, it was clearly meant to be left to the discretion of the Council, to order such a number to be reserved, "from time to time," as the demands of science might require When, therefore, they found that the number of sixty copies was insufficient, they ought to have directed the printer to send them a larger number; but when they found out the purpose to which the Astronomer Royal applied them, they ought immediately to have ordered nearly the whole impression, in order to prevent this destruction of public property If, on the other hand, the above order is revoked, and we really have no right to more than sixty copies; then, on discovering the Observations in their progress towards pasteboard, it was the duty of the Council of the Royal Society, as visitors of the Royal Observatory, immediately to have represented to Government the evil of the arrangement, and to have suggested, that if the Astronomer Royal have the right, it would be expedient to commute it for a liberal compensation Whichever be the true view of the case, they have taken no steps on the subject; and I cannot help expressing my belief, that the President and Council were induced to be thus negligent of the interests of science, from the fear of interfering with the perquisites of the Astronomer Royal It is, however, but justice to observe, that the injury already done to science, by the conversion of these Observations into pasteboard, is not so great as the public might have feared Pond, than whom no one can be supposed better acquainted with their value, and whose right to judge no man can question, has shown his own opinion to be, that his reputation will be best consulted by diminishing the extent of their circulation Before I quit the subject of the Royal Observatory, on which much might be said, I will just refer to the report by a Committee of the Royal Society that was made relative to it, some years since, and which, it is imagined, is a subject by no means grateful to the memory of any of the parties concerned in it My object is to ascertain, whether any amendments have taken place in consequence To one fact of considerable importance, I was myself a witness, when I was present officially at a visitation At that time, no original observations made at the transit instrument were ever preserved Had I not been an eye witness of the process of an observation, I should not have credited the fact OF THE ROYAL MEDALS At a period when the attention of Government to science had not undergone any marked change, a most unexpected occurrence took place His Majesty intimated to the Royal Society, through his Secretary of State, his intention to found two gold medals, of the value of fifty guineas each, to be awarded annually by the Council of the Royal Society, according to the rules they were desired to frame for that purpose The following is the copy of MrPeel's letter:-- WHITEHALL, December 3d, 1825 SIR, I am commanded by the King to acquaint you, that His Majesty proposes to found two gold medals, of the value of fifty guineas each, to be awarded as honorary premiums, under the direction of the President and Council of the Royal Society, in such a manner as shall, by the excitement of competition among men of science, seem best calculated to promote the object for which the Royal Society was instituted His Majesty desires to receive from the President and Council of the Royal Society their opinion upon the subject generally of the regulations which it may be convenient to establish with regard to the appropriation of the medals; and I have, therefore, to request that you will make the necessary communication to the Council of the Royal Society, in order that His Majesty's wishes may be carried into effect I have the honour to be,

Of course, I knew you never meant to sell any of our people,?least of all, to such a fellow ?Well, Emily,? said her husband, ?so I have always felt and said; but the fact is that my business lies so that I cannot get on withoutI shall have to sell some of my hands ?To that creature? Impossible! MrShelby, you cannot be serious ?I?m sorry to say that I am,? said Mr?I?ve agreed to sell Tom ?What! our Tom??that good, faithful creature!?been your faithful servant from a boy! O, MrShelby!?and you have promised him his freedom, too,?you and I have spoken to him a hundred times of itWell, I can believe anything now,?I can believe now that you could sell little Harry, poor Eliza?s only child!? said MrsShelby, in a tone between grief and indignation ?Well, since you must know all, it is soI have agreed to sell Tom and Harry both; and I don?t know why I am to be rated, as if I were a monster, for doing what every one does every day ?But why, of all others, choose these?? said Mrs?Why sell them, of all on the place, if you must sell at all?? ?Because they will bring the highest sum of any,?that?s whyI could choose another, if you say soThe fellow made me a high bid on Eliza, if that would suit you any better,? said Mr ?The wretch!? said Mrs ?Well, I didn?t listen to it, a moment,?out of regard to your feelings, I wouldn?t;?so give me some credit ?My dear,? said MrsShelby, recollecting herself, ?forgive meI was surprised, and entirely unprepared for this;?but surely you will allow me to intercede for these poor creaturesTom is a noble-hearted, faithful fellow, if he is blackShelby, that if he were put to it, he would lay down his life for you ?I know it,?I dare say;?but what?s the use of all this??I can?t help myself ?Why not make a pecuniary sacrifice? I?m willing to bear my part of the inconvenienceShelby, I have tried?tried most faithfully, as a Christian woman should?to do my duty to these poor, simple, dependent creaturesI have cared for them, instructed them, watched over them, and know all their little cares and joys, for years; and how can I ever hold up my head again among them, if, for the sake of a little paltry gain, we sell such a faithful, excellent, confiding creature as poor Tom, and tear from him in a moment all we have taught him to love and value? I have taught them the duties of the family, of parent and child, and husband and wife; and how can I bear to have this open acknowledgment that we care for no tie, no duty, no relation, however sacred, compared with money? I have talked with Eliza about her boy?her duty to him as a Christian mother, to watch over him, pray for him, and bring him up in a Christian way; and now what can I say, if you tear him away, and sell him, soul and body, to a profane, unprincipled man, just to save a little money? I have told her that one soul is worth more than all the money in the world; and how will she believe me when she sees us turn round and sell her child??sell him, perhaps, to certain ruin of body and soul!? ?I?m sorry you feel so about it,?indeed I am,? said MrShelby; ?and I respect your feelings, too, though I don?t pretend to share them to their full extent; but I tell you now, solemnly, it?s of no use?I can?t help myselfI didn?t mean to tell you this Emily; but, in plain words, there is no choice between selling these two and selling everythingEither they must go, or all mustHaley has come into possession of a mortgage, which, if I don?t clear off with him directly, will take everything before itI?ve raked, and scraped, and borrowed, and all but begged,?and the price of these two was needed to make up the balance, and I had to give them upHaley fancied the child; he agreed to settle the matter that way, and no otherI was in his power, and had to do itIf you feel so to have them sold, would it be any better to have all sold?? MrsShelby stood like one strickenFinally, turning to her toilet, she rested her face in her hands, and gave a sort of groan ?This is God?s curse on slavery!?a bitter, bitter, most accursed thing!?a curse to the master and a curse to the slave! I was a fool to think I could make anything good out of such a deadly evilIt is a sin to hold a slave under laws like ours,?I always felt it was,?I always thought so when I was a girl,?I thought so still more after I joined the church; but I thought I could gild it over,?I thought, by kindness, and care, and instruction, I could make the condition of mine better than freedom?fool that I was!? ?Why, wife, you are getting to be an abolitionist, shop quite

But, you see, from the mother?s breast the colored child feels and sees that there are none but underhand ways open to itIt can get along no other way with its parents, its mistress, its young master and missie play-fellowsCunning and deception become necessary, inevitable habitsIt isn?t fair to expect anything else of himHe ought not to be punished for itAs to honesty, the slave is kept in that dependent, semi-childish state, that there is no making him realize the rights of property, or feel that his master?s goods are not his own, if he can get themFor my part, I don?t see how they can be honestSuch a fellow as Tom, here, is,?is a moral miracle!? ?And what becomes of their souls?? said Miss Ophelia ?That isn?t my affair, as I know of,? said StClare; ?I am only dealing in facts of the present lifeThe fact is, that the whole race are pretty generally understood to be turned over to the devil, for our benefit, in this world, however it may turn out in another!? ?This is perfectly horrible!? said Miss Ophelia; you ought to be ashamed of yourselves!? ?I don?t know as I amWe are in pretty good company, for all that,? said StClare, ?as people in the broad road generally areLook at the high and the low, all the world over, and it?s the same story,?the lower class used up, body, soul and spirit, for the good of the upperIt is so in England; it is so everywhere; and yet all Christendom stands aghast, with virtuous indignation, because we do the thing in a little different shape from what they do it ?It isn?t so in Vermont ?Ah, well, in New England, and in the free States, you have the better of us, I grantBut there?s the bell; so, Cousin, let us for a while lay aside our sectional prejudices, and come out to dinner As Miss Ophelia was in the kitchen in the latter part of the afternoon, some of the sable children called out, ?La, sakes! thar?s Prue a coming, grunting along like she allers does A tall, bony colored woman now entered the kitchen, bearing on her head a basket of rusks and hot rolls ?Ho, Prue! you?ve come,? said Dinah Prue had a peculiar scowling expression of countenance, and a sullen, grumbling voiceShe set down her basket, squatted herself down, and resting her elbows on her knees said, ?O Lord! I wish?t I ?s dead!? ?Why do you wish you were dead?? said Miss Ophelia ?I?d be out o? my misery,? said the woman, gruffly, without taking her eyes from the floor ?What need you getting drunk, then, and cutting up, Prue?? said a spruce quadroon chambermaid, dangling, as she spoke, a pair of coral ear-drops The woman looked at her with a sour surly glance ?Maybe you?ll come to it, one of these yer daysI?d be glad to see you, I would; then you?ll be glad of a drop, like me, to forget your misery ?Come, Prue,? said Dinah, ?let?s look at your rusksHere?s Missis will pay for them Miss Ophelia took out a couple of dozen ?Thar?s some tickets in that ar old cracked jug on the top shelf,? said Dinah?You, Jake, climb up and get it down ?Tickets,?what are they for?? said Miss Ophelia ?We buy tickets of her Mas?r, and she gives us bread for ?em ?And they counts my money and tickets, when I gets home, to see if I ?s got the change; and if I han?t, they half kills me ?And serves you right,? said Jane, the pert chambermaid, ?if you will take their money to get drunk onThat?s what she does, Missis ?And that?s what I will do,?I can?t live no other ways,?drink and forget my misery ?You are very wicked and very foolish,? said Miss Ophelia, ?to steal your master?s money to make yourself a brute shop with

It appears, from the accounts of last year, that although 1200L was received for compositions, in addition to the standing income, and usual contributions,