other times would inconsiderately applaud her clever tricks. These thoughtless acts of kindness at length suggested the idea to Elizabeth's mind, that she might turn her romancing to a profitable account and save herself that labour and sweat of the brow, to which all the sons and daughters of Adam have been doomed. Her love of singularity and romancing occasioned her to be rejected from the service of several respectable families, whose quiet and love of order was being constantly disturbed by her continually "romancing and doing comical things in a foolish sort of way."

SHE WAS last of all dismissed from his worship the mayor's family. Having been left at home to cook the dinner one fine Sunday whilst his worship and the rest of the family were at church, she adopted the comical idea of dressing herself in his worship's municipal robes and wig; and being too much excited with the fantastic ideas which her romancing appearance had raised in her own mind, and before she could doff the robes in which she was strutting and fretting, she was caught, in the fact by her mistress on her return from church. In consequence of this frolic the dinner was spoiled; his worship was wroth; and Elizabeth was dismissed.

HER character was now notorious; to seek another place was useless; what therefore was to be done? She was not however like the discarded steward in the gospel ; for she was neither unable to dig, nor ashamed to beg; but she thought the latter alternative was the easiest manner of gaining daily bread; and opportunities of doing comical things might turn up.

ACCORDING to the ancient saw, pride feels neither hunger nor cold; so in this modern instance, vanity felt neither sor. row nor pain. In order to excite compassion and to be talked about, she scratched the skin of one of her arms with an old yellow pin, and rubbed a little spirit of salt into the scratch, which soon irritated it and produced an ulcerated sore. After exhibiting some time in public, and receiving the alms of the benevolent, she presented herself at the

County Infirmary. At the sight of her sore the house surgeon looked wise as medical men always do when they are puzzled ; he shook his head, somewhat in the manner of the poet's clown who whistled as he went for want of thought; sent her into the Lazarus ward, and ordered a cataplasm. In the course of the night Elizabeth had contrived to anoint the sore anew with the salts; and when it was examined next day it presented a most alarming appearance. In the course of a few days other sores broke out in other parts of her body from the same causes; some of which she allowed to heal up; and then she re-produced them by the application of the salts. The whole medical staff of the hospital held repeated consultations, for there seemed no possibility of healing those aggravated sores; and to turn her out as incurable was not to be thought of, lest some London surgeon, who might be considered a quack, should effect a cure, and put the Faculty," to shame.

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THESE were nuts to crack for our heroine; for her vanity was mightily gratified by the numerous consultations of the "big wigs," as she called the medical officers; her love of ease was also indulged by living on the best hospital fare without doing "a turn of work;" and therefore she resolved in her own mind to give them abundant opportunities of illustrating their Case-Books. The "faculty" were at their wits end; all they did to alleviate her sufferings only seemed to aggravate them; and she laboured under the most acute self-inflicted pain; for as fast as some of these horrible wounds were closed up, others broke out; and those which she had suffered to be nearly healed, she caused to break out again to the astonishment and no small perplexity of the wondering faculty.

AT LAST Suspicion was excited that she must have used means if not to cause, at least to aggravate these horrible and apparently incurable sores. A nurse in the ward was therefore set to watch her motions, who discovered her rubbing in some liquid into an old wound which had been nearly healed

up; and which before dressing time the following day, was in a very inflamed and painful state. Her fraud having been detected she was dismissed from the hospital in disgrace, and consigned to the workhouse. In this parochial prison she was so persecuted and insulted by her own sex, that life became a burthen to her; and she made her escape from it and closed her career by suicide, having been found drowned a few days afterwards. The practice of her imposture had occasioned the most severe bodily sufferings; and when her body was found it was all covered with scars of the wounds which she had inflicted on herself; and the fingers of one of her hands were contracted.

DIARY OF A JOURNEY THROUGH KENT, WITH MY FRIEND, A COMMERCIAL TRAVELLER. ROCHESTER has been visited by numbers of Royal and illustrious persons who have continually visited and passed through the city; we may name Queen Elizabeth, James I., together with the King of Denmark. Charles II., on his restoration was presented with a silver basin and ewer by the Mayor and corporation. James II. was received here on his abdication.

THE venerable ruins of the castle with its lofty keep, bearing a distant resemblance to the White Tower of London, present an object that must attract the notice of every traveller. Its situation was favourable for defence, standing on an eminence, rising abruptly from the Medway, the river preserving it from any attack on the west. The skill and ingenuity exercised in its construction are particularly worthy of notice, in the ingenious contrivances that secure the entrance. There were no windows on the ground floor, and very few loop-holes, and those extremely small; their structure was such, that a firebrand thrown in could do very little mischief, because when dropped it must have fallen directly under the arch, through which each loop-hole was approached from within; nor could an arrow strike an individual, except

he was accidentally at the loop-hole. At a little distance there are steps of descent to Boley hill; and from the many urns found there, it is supposed to have been the burial place of the Romans, when stationed at Rochester; and, also, the mound on the south side was cast up by the Danes when they besieged the city in 885.

LARGE parcels of land are held of the castle of Rochester, the tenure of which is perfect castle-guard on St. Andrew's Day (old style). A banner used to be hung out at the residence of the receiver of the rents; and every tenant who did not then discharge his proper rent, was liable to have that amount doubled on the return of every tide of the river so long as it should remain unliquidated.

THE foundation of the see of Rochester is ascribed to Ethelbert, king of Kent, who was persuaded to perform this pious action by Augustine, styled the Apostle of Britain, and first Archbishop of Canterbury. The same monarch erected a cathedral church here, and conferred the episcopal dignity on Justus, a prelate of eminent talent and moral worth, in 604. The edifice erected by this munificent monarch was not of long duration, as a new church was erected by Gundulph, promoted to this diocese in 1077, who continued therein till his death. In the north side, facing the gate of entrance, from the city into the precincts, is a very ancient episcopal figure standing upon a shrine, designed, it is supposed, for Gundulph.

THE cathedral is entered by a descent of several steps, and its dimensions are as follows: From the west door, to the steps leading to the choir, 150 feet, and thence to the east wall of the chancel, 156 feet, total, 306 feet. The east transept is in length, from north to south, 90 feet. The altarpiece is decorated with a picture of the angels appearing to the shepherds, by Mr. West. In the front of the stalls are three shields of arms; on the first, those of the see of Rochester; the centre, the arms of Christ Church, Canterbury; while it is supposed that the third shield is emblazoned with

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the arms of the prior and convent of St. Andrew, who was the tutelar saint of Rochester Cathedral.

THE middle window at the shrine of S. William, was given by Hubert de Burgh, justiciary of England in the reign of Henry III. The window thus described, is said not to be either of the windows now extant, but a window that was under them, the stone frame may be seen in the wall without the church. At the east end, to the north, 'is a beautiful tomb of white and black marble, in memory of Bishop Warner, having been the last prelate of the see interred in this Cathedral. His munificent endowment of Bromley College for the support of twenty widows of clergymen, is the most honourable memorial entailed on the name of this prelate.

AFTER the disolution, the, site of the priory became a scene of devastion and confusion, in consequence of the fury of the rebel soldiers under Colonel Sandys, who, having plundered the edifice, broke every thing in pieces, made use of the structure as a drinking house; having also converted the body of the church to the purposes of a carpenter's shop.

AFTER the restoration, Dean Hardy took infinite pains to have the whole restored, which was effected by means of the benefactions of the gentry of the country, together with £7000 added by the dean and chapter. Notwithstanding this, time and neglect had so corroded the building, that the possibility of its preservation was much feared; every endeavour was nevertheless used to secure it from ruin. The exterior was repaired, and the inside beautified; and being now kept extremely clean, the fabric presents a very beautiful appearance.

ROCHESTER is a long straggling city, and unites itself with the more attractive town of Chatham, where we put up for the night at the Lion Inn. Shortly after, two commercial gentlemen joined our number; at nine o'clock brandy and water, cigars, &c., assisted our small party to become very social; one of them I have designated Mr. Patch, from his having a large diaculum plaster upon his forehead, amused us with several stories.