them you have only to whirl round your
terrestrial globe, marking where their
descendants are located as masters, in America,
India, China, and Australia. Whaling gave
the superiority of the seas; and this sovereignty
once obtained over the three-fourths
of water, the sovereignty over the one-fourth
of rock rising up in it seems an inevitable
consequence; a consequence already so far
secured that it would probably not be prevented
were a geological catastrophe to send
a tidal wave over the British islands and
submerge them for ever. The supposition is
indeed not refreshing, even in the dog-days;
but it expresses what I think is the dominant
fact of the condition of mankind in the middle
of the nineteenth century. Moreover, geological
catastrophes apart, while the British
islands retain their unrivalled geographical
position, and while their coast folk shall
continue to possess the ancient qualities of
their forefathers, the British nations will
probably hold their present place among
men; and the jealousy of rivals, whether on
the Western or Eastern continents, is not
likely to diminish the shadow of Britannia.

WISHES.

ON Bramshill's terrace walks Lady Clare;
O were I the purple peacock there
That's petted and smoothed by her hand so fair!

Lady Clare strolls through Bramshill's grounds!
O were I one of those white greyhounds
That, patted by her, break off in bounds!

O happy falcon! O might I stand
Hooded and jessed on Lady Clare's hand,
To stoop at the heron at her command!

In Bramshill's chamber a cage is hung;
O that to its gilded perch I clung,
To be coax'd by her as I scream'd and swung.

O were I the silver cross, so blest!
In Bramshill's chapel devoutly press'd,
By Lady Clare, to her heaving breast!

By Bramshill's carven confessional chair
Kneels Lady Clare, her heart to bare;
O were I the grey monk listening there!

But ah! that I were the locket of pearl
In her bosom hid; or, more blest, the curl
It treasures! O prized love-gage of the Earl!

Ride on, O Earl, by her palfrey's side!
O that I by Lady Clare might ride!
That she were to be, O Earl, my bride!

AMERICAN PARTY NAMES.

THE difficulty of understanding American
politics arises, in the first place, from the
fact that the difference between the great
parties of the nation has, for some time past,
been not one of principle, the contest between
them having had reference to the best
persons to occupy the federal offices, and
perhaps to the best application to existing
requirements of principles of government
equally approved by all. Each party has
been for a long time claiming to be the
best defender and administrator of the
democratic republican political theory of
America, to which there are no avowed
opponents.

At the present time there are four organised
national parties; practically, however,
as is always the case on the approach of a
presidential election, there are but two—the
administration and the opposition; or, as they
now call themselves, the Democratic and the
Republican. The latter party are also called
the Free-soilers, their purpose being to check
the extension of slavery, and are opprobriously
termed Negro-worshippers. The administration
party is sometimes designated, in return,
Negro-drivers.

The innumerable sub-classifications, arising
on points of merely local or temporary
interest, greatly puzzle a foreigner. If there
be, for instance, a discussion in any state
with regard to a change of the local laws
licensing dram-shops; immediately there is
formed a Liquor-law and an Anti-liquor-law
party in that state; and, as questions of this
kind arise in different states, the local parties
moving for a similar object, take to themselves
different names. Thus, on the licence
question they are Moral suasionists, Free
liquorites, Anti-coercionists, and receive
other opprobrious designations from their
opponents, such as Rumies, the Drunkard's
party, &c. Then came the compound
designations as Liquor Democrats, Temperance
Americans, Rum-Republicans.

Besides these, there are titles expressive of
minor differences and of cliques and cabals
within the regular national parties. The
names used for this purpose are generally
derived from some accidental circumstance.
In a meeting of the democratic party in
the city of New York, the friends of a
certain candidate for that party's support,
finding themselves likely to be outvoted,
attempted to break up the meeting by putting
out the lights: the friends of the opposing
candidate, however, remained; and one of
them, having in his pocket some matches of
the sort then called loco-foco, re-lighted the
lamps, and the meeting was re-organised.
Hence the term Loco-foco was first applied
to one of these temporary local divisions:
afterwards it came to have a wider application.

Of similar character are the names Hard
Shells, Soft Shells, Half Shells, by which the
two extremes, and a neutral division of the
democratic party in New York, are designated.
Hard, in this case, has the significance of
stubbornness; a Hard shell, meaning an
impenetrable skull. As soon as this term began
to be applied, the Hard Shells retorted by
applying the term Soft to the rival faction.