the bulk of his boa-constrictors with barley-meal and milk, instead of the flesh of kids and sable piccanninies? A caravan of fat wild beasts is at any rate a rarity. By-the-bye, we should be glad to know what affinity there is between Mr. Toser's reptiles and "Marsh's newlyinvented dibbling machine," the sight of which is included in the shilling charged for seeing the mammals, &c.!

While on the subject of fattening animals, and before we bring this article to a close, we must advert to a singular idea which appears to have lodged itself in the brain of one of our lively police magistrates; the functionary who distributes justice at per head at Hammersmith. is the case which has attracted our notice :

EATING A CAT.-At the Hammersmith police-office, yesterday, ten men applied for the advice and assistance of the magistrate. On Thursday evening they were in the Black Boy public-house, in the Potteries, Notting-hill, when a man named Harns came in with what appeared to be a trussed rabbit, which he offered for sale for 9d. They mustered their money together and bought it, and sent it in a dish with potatoes to the baker's, and made a hearty supper of it. They had, however, not long eaten it before they all felt very sick, and they were obliged to apply to a surgeon for emetics. They had since ascertained that what they had eaten was a cat, which Hams had skinned and dressed up as a rabbit for fun. They wished to know how he could be punished. Mr. Paynter said he knew of no law under which the offending party could be punished. If it could be proved that he had cruelly killed the cat, he might be punished under the act for preventing cruelty to animals. Cats were not considered to be unwholesome food, and they were frequently eaten in France and other countries. The applicants left the court apparently much disappointed.

cat.

We pity the unfortunate men, but what we want to know is, where did Mr. Paynter acquire the knowledge which he imparted with such consoling assurance to the miserable ten, still suffering from the effects of the "Cats," he said, "were not considered to be unwholesome food." Where is the authority to be found for this dictum ? Who amongst the ancients or moderns recommends feline cookery? We have searched in vain through Carême, Ude, Beauvilliers, Francatelli, and Soyer. Mrs. Glasse is as silent on the subject as Meg Dods; and even at the Reform Club, where strange dishes are ordered by Irish members, we never heard of cats being a favourite article of food. We have tried back through many bills of fare, but an openly declared "civet de chat" never yet made its appearance. Mr. Paynter, however, takes refuge in his continental experience. Cats, he gravely declares, are "frequently eaten in France and-other countries." Unhappy France! For centuries she laboured under the imputation of breakfasting on frogs, and now nothing will satisfy Mr. Paynter unless she dine on cats. It is true there is a story told of a certain Frenchman who told an acquaintance he had discovered an extremely cheap mode of living in England, which turned out to be by dining on cats'-meat, but this evinced nothing of a national predilection, nor had it, in point of fact, any thing to do with the domestic animal in question. We apprehend Mr. Paynter must have been fresh from the pages of Le Sage or Quevedo when he delivered this judgment. There was some ingenuity, however, in his saving clause, " France-and other countries." Other countries! Yes! there are countries where Mr. Paynter himself might be eaten, unsauced; but we imagine he would not offer this possible case as an inducement to the labourers of Notting-hill to become Anthropophagi!

LEGENDS OF SALZBURG.

BY JOHN OXENFORD, ESQ.

In the legends of Salzburg we must not so much look to the city itself, as to the Untersberg, or, as it is sometimes called, the Wunderberg, which stands at about a league's distance. This mountain is 6798 feet high; its surface abounds in wood, game, and all sorts of medicinal herbs, while marble and precious ores may be found beneath. The legends respecting this mountain, are abundant indeed, and marvellous to an uncommon degree.

In the first place, there is a whole cluster of stories relative to a subterranean emperor, and resembling in principle that of "Peter the Goatherd" (the hero of one of Grimm's well known tales), who found the Emperor Frederic Barbarossa holding court among the mountains, and amusing himself with nine-pins. The adventures of Peter were afterwards transferred, by Mr. Washington Irving, to "Rip van Winkle,” and Hudson, the navigator, was made the substitute for the old Swabian emperor. The notion of a sovereign, or hero, who goes on living long after the cessation of his visible existence, is to be found in various countries, and much information on this subject may be gathered from Croker's "Legends of Ireland." In Wales, there is a castle, "Owen Lawgoch." the ancient lord of which was recently found by a peasant slumbering amid his followers. In the Isle of Man, under Castle Rushin, a similar discovery was made. The hero of old French romance, “Ogier le Danios," yet slumbers beneath Cronenburgh Castle, and can be awakened on occasion, and the three founders of the Helvetic Confederacy, called by the herdsmen the "Three Tells," are in a cavern near the Lake of Lucerne, taking a nap, from which they will wake in some case of great emergency. Need we mention Dom Sebastian of Portugal, and the Bri

tish Arthur!

One of the most remarkable stories about the Emperor in the Untersberg, is contained in a little book, which is current in the district, and which relates to one Lazarus Aizner.

In the year 1529, this man, with the priest, his master, and two others, going up the Untersberg, came to a chasm in the rocks, called the " High Throne." Beneath the rock stood a chapel, on which they read an inscription in silver letters. When they had returned home, they talked over this inscription, and the priest requested Aizner to return to the spot and copy it. Aizner accordingly set out for the mountain, one fine Wednesday in September, and found the following inscription hewn in the rock:

S. O. R. C. E. T. S. A. T. O. M.

If the reader expects we are going to tell him what these letters mean, he will be much disappointed. It will be sufficient to say, that friend Lazarus, who does not seem to have been a very fast hand at copying, was so long in taking down the inscription, that he could not think of returning the same evening. He, therefore, very wisely laid himself down to sleep on some soft moss.

The next morning, when he was going home again, a bare-foot monk, who was saying his prayers out of a book, and had a huge bunch of keys on his shoulder, appeared before him. After a few introductory questions, this strange monk asked Aizner to accompany him, when they went up to the " High Throne," and came once more to a chasm, which was closed by an iron door. This the monk opened, and in they went, the monk first telling Lazarus not to utter a word to any one inside, however he might be accosted. Lazarus might say what he liked to the monk himself, who seems to have been one of those monopolisers of conversation, whom we often find at dinner-tables, and who are jealous when a speech is directed otherwise than to themselves alone.

And what did Lazarus see inside the mountain? Why he saw a tall tower, and a clock, inlaid with gold, according to which it was the hour of seven. Then, again raising his eyes, he saw a majestic building, with a double steeple, very like a convent, standing in a beautiful meadow. A spring of cool water was by the convent, and around it stood a verdant wood. Then they came to a church, which was so large that Lazarus could hardly see from one end to the other, and which, according to the monk's information, contained two hundred altars, and more than thirty organs. This information was of course believed by the good-hearted Lazarus, who, had he been in London, would doubtless have received with faith the legend of "Four-and-twenty Lord Mayors' Shows all of a row." But wonders did not stop here. Sitting in a chair, in obedience to his guide's direction, he saw more than three hundred monks, old and young, come down a flight of steps, all singing the hours, with great devotion. We regret to say that they all had the bad manners to stare poor Lazarus out of countenance, as they passed by him. Mass was read at all the altars, and all the organs played at once, and other instruments chimed in, and, altogether, the like was never heard.

Now, had any of our readers stepped through a hole in a rock, and seen all this, and heard all this, he would doubtless have thought himself amply rewarded for his trouble. But our monk was an exhibitor on a grand scale, and thought he could never show enough, like one of those conscientious showmen of modern times, who will allow you to see a wax-work, a learned pig, an Indian chief, and a rattle-snake, all for a penny. He took Lazarus down a flight of eighty steps, into a large dining-hall, and gave him a repast of the usual convent diet, and a cup of wine. At the time of nones they returned to the church, which was again full, and then they strayed into the library, in which there were curious old books, written in obsolete characters, and out of the windows of which Lazarus saw several people walking about. He asked who these were, and was told by the monk that they were old emperors, kings, princes, bishops, and other people of all ranks, but all good Christians, who, in the last days, were destined to fight for the true faith.

At vespers they went again into the church; then they refreshed themselves in the convent; and then they went to the compline (second vespers). After this, a long train of monks, armed with books and lanterns, marched two and two to the high tower, by which Lazarus had entered the Untersberg. Here six doors appeared on each side, and the

monk named twelve churches in the vicinity, to which these led, viz., the church at Salzburg, that at Reichenhall, and others.

"Now," said the monk, we are going to St. Bartholomew's, by Berchtesgaben."

Upon this, one of the doors flew open, and the whole party, Lazarus, the monk, and all, went through a fine broad passage.

"Look ye, Lazarus," said the monk, "now we are going deep under the lake."

He meant the Königssee (king's lake) by which the church of St. Bartholomew stands. There matins were sung, and the party returned. The following day was passed just in the same manner, except that the visit was paid to the cathedral at Salzburg, instead of St. Bartholomew's church.

While again in the library, they saw an emperor among the people, decked with crown and sceptre, and with a beard that reached to his waist. Lazarus was informed that this was the Emperor Frederic Barbarossa. He also saw other deceased princes, and even some of his living acquaintance. One never knows the etiquette of these mysterious questions. Lazarus thought there was no great harm in asking what those living folks were about in the mountain, but the monk informed him that his question was in bad taste, and added the practical reproof of a box on the ear.

A week had been passed in this way, when the monk said, "Now, Lazarus, it is time for you to depart; but if you like to stop with us, you are at liberty so to do."

Lazarus, not being of an intrusive disposition, answered that he would rather go. Coming to the tower, he again saw the hand on the clock pointing to seven, and heard many wondrous discourses from the monk, who told him to describe all he had seen and heard, but not till thirty-five years were passed; and finally gave him his blessing.

When Lazarus returned to his home in Reichenhall, he was quite silent as to his adventure.

It is by no means certain that the emperor in the Untersberg is Frederic Barbarossa. Some give the subterranean honour to Charles V. To his beard great importance is attached, and this, according to some legends, twines almost three times round a marble table at which he sits. When it reaches the last corner for the third time, the day of judgment will come. A pear-tree, which stands on the Walserfeld, near Salzburg, and which has long been dry and withered, is made to bear reference to the legend of the emperor. This tree, according to an old prediction, will one day bear fruit again. When this happens, the enchanted emperor will leave the mountain with a troop of warriors, and a great battle will be fought for the Christian faith. Warning of this event will be given by the tree shooting forth leaves, but the fruit will be the signal for the battle, on the occasion of which, the ruler of Bavaria for the time being will hang his shield upon the tree. The fight will be most terrible, the combatants will be ankle-deep in blood, all wicked people will be killed, and the good will be saved by the giants of the Untersberg.

These giants of the Untersberg are not mere personages in a vague prophecy, to be seen some time or other. Peasants in the vicinity of Salzburg have been heard to say that they have seen such giants in their youth, and that they were beings of a very respectable sort, advising those

who met them to cultivate a virtuous life, if they would escape misfortune. There are also wild women in the Untersberg, distinguished for their beauty, who sometimes take a fancy to children, and occasionally to gentlemen of mature age. Go where you will, about the Untersberg, you knock against a wonder.

The imagination that can enlarge can also diminish, and we find in our marvellous mountain not only giants, but dwarfs-mountain manikins. In the year 1694, a certain waggoner was nearly as lucky as friend Lazarus Aizner in the discovery of curiosities. He came with a waggonload of wine to Niederalm, a village by the Untersberg, when a manikin appeared from the mountain, and offered to give him more money for his load than he would get at Hallein, the place of his destination. The waggoner made the very reasonable excuse that the wine was ordered, but the manikin understood but little of such commercial objections, and catching hold of the horses' manes, told the waggoner that he would take him to-he would not know where.

The waggoner, frightened out of his wits, submitted to his fate, and left the guidance of the horses to the manikin, who led them nearer and nearer to the Untersberg. Then seating himself in the waggon, he fell asleep.

When he awoke, he saw before him a castle built of red and white marble, surrounded by a deep moat, and approachable by seven drawbridges. Presently he perceived also, a number of manikins, inhabitants of the castle, and among them their butler, who bore many keys, and a beard of remarkable length. Was this manikin butler the emperor in disguise? Gentle reader, we do not know. We know, however, that he was a good, hospitable fellow, for he bade the waggoner a hearty welcome. Some of the manikins led the horses to a stall, while others took the waggoner himself into a well-lighted apartment, where he was served with sumptuous fare on magnificent plate. Then he was conducted down a Aight of huge steps into a most superb apartment, of which the floor was polished marble, the walls and ceiling covered with gold, and the windows crystal. In the middle of the apartment stood four colossal giants in metal, with chains upon their arms like captives, while high above them, was the figure of a mountain manikin, who held the four chains in his hand.

"Do you know the prophetic meaning of all this?" said the manikinguide to the waggoner.

"No!" said the waggoner to the manikin-guide.

And what was the worst of it, the manikin did not enlighten him. Decidedly Lazarus Aizner's monk was worth a dozen of the waggoner's manikins.

After going through another room or two, and seeing a few more curiosities, the waggoner was conducted to a vault, where 180 dozen ducats were very handsomely paid him for his wine, with the comfortable prediction that he would always thrive in business. His horses were again put to the waggon, and as one of them happened to be blind, the manikins took a stone, which glimmered with blue and red, and restored the animal to sight; after which, they made a present of the stone to the waggoner that he might effect the like cure on the horses of his poor neighbours. He was conducted out of the castle by three persons whom he had not seen before, who wore black cloth, green velvet caps, and red