individuals, of whatever character and condition, by requiring that all chimnies now standing, and of dangerous height, should be lowered; and by confining the height of all those yet to be erected, within the line and level of security? I greatly hope that every person, whose attention and humanity are awakened to the consideration of this topic, and who must now associate, in fearful speculation, the fall of a man with the fall of a chimney, will be zealous for the prevention of so wanton, and so profligate a waste of human life. WART CHARMING, A MYSTERY. I HAVE brought up the auxiliary term, mystery, as a device whereby to invite and to secure the reader's attention to the few remarks which follow on the topic; and from which, without such additional appeal to his imagination, and, better, yet, his curiosity, a thousand to one he had instantly turned away, in contempt of the gossip, and the nonsense, which he might fairly have anticipated. Now, be this as it may, the story is; that, in most towns-at all events, in most districts -we shall haply find a wart charmer, who is resorted to, as are other doctors. What is the result? Now, let us not blink the question: not cry, pshaw! --and abandon it as something worse than a nonentity and a blank. I repeat it, let us not proudly blink the question; a sub terfuge frequently resorted to in many little, whimsical instances of difficulty; and indicative less of our contempt than our defeat.-The result is, that, in a very short time, the warts invariably disappear. -It may, or rather, will, assuredly, be replied; "so they would have done had the fools not applied to the wart charmer." But, this is not a solution of the mystery: it does not make an advance towards it. We know that warts remain for years, and often for life, in defiance of repeated chirurgical practice to remove them: but, on the first application for cure, to the professor, the magic is performed, and the warts are quickly gone. I have certainly known some very extraordinary and whimsical cases of success in this business; and never known or heard of a disappointment, where a patient had resorted to an accredited wart charmer, under full expectation of a cure. Success, under this proviso, will also prove certain if the number of warts be reported to the practitioner: to see the patient is not made absolutely necessary; and many professors of the craft do no more, than count them, when the patient first presents himself. Now, of those who apply, of their own |