rd Humble, Alderman of London, erected in
1616; and several others. Gower's monument was once very splendid, but
its present state is not very indicative of the gratitude of the parish
in which he perpetuated his munificence by erecting one of the finest
churches in the metropolis.

* * * * *

In 1737, so slight and infrequent was the intercourse betwixt London and
Edinburgh, that men still alive (1818) remember that upon one occasion
the mail from the former city arrived at the General Post-Office in
Scotland, with only one letter in it--_Scott's Novels_.

* * * * *

A SECOND CHAPTER ON KISSING.

BY A NOVICE IN THE ART.

(_For the Mirror_.)

--------------Our first father
Smiled with superior love, as Jupiter
On Juno smiles, when he impregns the clouds,
That shed May flowers, and pressed her matron lip
With _kisses_ pure.
_Par. Lost_, b. 4, 1. 499--502.

--------Kissing the world begun,
And I hope it will never be done
_Old Song_.

Kissing has been practised in various modes, and for various purposes,
from a period of very remote antiquity. Among the ancient oriental
nations, presents from a superior were saluted by kissing, to express
gratitude and submission to the person conferring the favour. Reference
is made to this custom, Genesis, ch. xl. v. 41, "According to thy words
shall my people be ruled;" or, as the margin, supported by most eminent
critics, renders it, "At thy mouth shall my people _kiss_." The
consecration of the Jewish kings to the regal authority was sealed by a
kiss from the officiator in the ceremony: 1 Sam. ch. x. v. 1. Kissing was
also employed in the heathen worship as a religious rite. Cicero mentions
a statue of Hercules, the chin and lips of which were considerably worn
by the repeated kissing of the worshippers. When too far removed to be
approached in this manner, it was usual to place the right hand upon the
statue, and return it to the lips. That traces of these customs remain to
the present day, kissing the Testament on oath in our courts of
judicature, and kissing the hand as a respectful salute, afford
sufficient evidence. But it is with kissing as a mode of expressing
affection or endearment that we are principally concerned, and its use,
as such, is of equal (perhaps greater) antiquity with any of the
preceding usages. To the passage cited, MIRROR,