but I know that every man, who has examined his own heart, must be too conscious of the existence of evil propensities, to place implicit confidence in strangers. I thought your remark implied that Caractacus had done this; and I should be more inclined to condemn the measure as rash, than to praise it as an instance of nobleness of mind. But did you not bring the book to show me something about an ordeal?"

66 Yes, рара. As you do not know the poem, I must first explain a little. The chief Druid was like you-he thought Caractacus imprudent; and having received a hint that one, at least, of the young Brigantian princes was a traitor, he resolved to subject them to the ordeal of this famous stone. It must be the same stone, papa. Only hear the description of it. You will understand that the chief Druid is speaking, and that the treacherous Brigantian had just objected to the proposed

trial

:

'Peace

Our will admits no parley. Thither, youths,

Turn your astonish'd eyes;

behold yon huge

And unhewn sphere of living adamant,

Which, poised by magic, rests its central weight

THE LOGAN STONE.

On yonder pointed rock; firm as it seems,
Such is its strange and virtuous property,
It moves obsequious to the gentlest touch
Of him whose breast is pure; but to a traitor,
Tho' even a giant's prowess nerv'd his arm,
It stands as fixed as Snowdon.-No reply-
The gods command that one of you must now
Approach and try it. In your snowy vests,

Ye priests, involve the lots-and to the younger,
As is our wont, tender the choice of fate.'1

335

Papa! mamma! can any description be more exact? It must be the very stone!"

"You know," said Mrs. Beaufoy, "the scene of Caractacus is laid in Anglesea, or Mona, as it was called by the Romans and the poet; who, availing himself of a tradition so well suited to his purpose, has supposed the existence of such a stone in the abode of the arch Druid, although the real Logan Rock is, as your father told us, near the Land's End."

While she was speaking, Mrs. Beaufoy took out of her portfolio a sketch of the Logan rock, saying: "Your father gave that to me when he returned from Cornwall."

1 Mason's Caractacus.

66

Oh, papa!" is it your drawing? Is this yourself trying to move the stone? There it is, indeed, on the 'pointed rock;' but is it really balanced on such a very small surface?"

"Yes," replied Mr. Beaufoy, "I think it is a correct representation; and, wonderful as it seems, the stone is not poised by magic-its position is the result of the natural process of disintegration, by which granite rocks are often separated into rhomboidal or square masses. As the decay proceeds, these masses gradually lose their angular shape, and the mouldering fragments assume a spheroidal or roundish form. De Luc observed examples of this in the mountains of Silesia, where

EFFECTS OF DISINTEGRATION.

337

he saw spheroids such as I have described, so piled upon each other, that he compared them to heaps of Dutch cheeses.

"I think," said Harry, laughing, "that was a mean comparison for a philosopher; but the fact is very curious. And look!" continued he, pointing to the drawing; "it seems as if such a change was taking place in this pile of rocks. You see that many of the angles are already rounded; yet I do not understand how the wonderful position of the uppermost stone can be explained."

“I think,” said Mr. Beaufoy, "it is very probable that the upper stone was once supported by masses which have fallen away, leaving the central block entirely exposed to the action of the weather."

Mr. Beaufoy then drew two dotted lines, connecting the extremities of the Logan Stone with the mass of granite beneath, and said: "It is not unlikely that the original form of the block was something like this; its sides following nearly the same parallel as the fissures beneath. The disintegrating process gradually advancing, has reduced the surface in contact almost to a point; hence the balance is easily disturbed, and the mass becomes what is called a rocking-stone."

way

"And did you really move it yourself, in the this figure is represented as making the attempt ?"

"Yes, I did; and found that the strength of one man, when applied to the under edge, or side of the stone, is quite sufficient to change the centre of gravity. The motion was, at first, scarcely perceptible, but on giving a fresh impulse, at each return of the stone, a very sensible vibration was at length produced.' I could not look on so prodigious a mass, nearly equal in weight to five hundred sacks of flour, set in motion by my own unassisted strength, without astonishment. I have heard that the stone has since been lifted entirely out of its place."

66

66 That seems incredible," said Harry: to lift it up, bodily, and remove it, is a very different thing from disturbing the balance when nicely poised. What Sampson performed this feat, papa ?"

"No single man; that would be impossible. I have been told by persons on whom I can depend, that one of the officers of a vessel stationed on the Cornish coast, took it into his head to distinguish himself by an exploit which many deemed impracticable. He came on shore with his men, and contrived to lift the stone from its place. The Logan Rock has lost the mysterious influence it is said to have possessed in the days of Druidical superstition, but it is still endeared to the inhabitants of that district by many long-cherished associations,

1 See, A Guide to the Land's End, by a Physician