The

whether a great number of ghosts allow themselves to be seen and heard there at night time, kicking up a great disturbance, so that the people, who pass in that direction, are in a terrible fright, breaking out into a cold perspiration, and their hair standing on end. ghosts are more troublesome on Saturday nights, and, if people carry a light with them, it is blown out as if they were passing through a current of air. It often occurs too, that, when treasure lies concealed in a house, abundance of ghosts are to be seen and heard making a most tremendous uproar. Now, when these things occur, you may rest assured that there is a heap of concealed treasure there, without requiring any other token. Treasures are, however, of two sorts, one which belongs to a human mint, and which may be found and possessed, and the other not. Consequently every treasure-digger must pay attention to the signs above mentioned, as the divining rod is deceptive, being equally influenced by a penny, which may have been lost, and the other means which necromantic treasure-seekers make use of, such as mirrors and goblets, are equally so; therefore let no man depend upon them.

Now the proper way to go to work in digging for treasure so as to have a successful issue is

as follows: In the first place, begin to dig under the influence of the Moon or of Saturn, and when the Moon is entering into Taurus, Capricorn, and Virgo. There is no occasion to make use of any ceremonies, or to draw a circle, or give yourself any trouble of the kind; but dig away right cheerily; and don't be in a stew about ghosts, for although several will appear, they are only airy shapes and phantasies, of which you need not be afraid; therefore dig away, my hearties; troll out a merry carol or two, and keep up a lively conversation amongst yourselves; for you are not forbidden to speak, as some fools, who know nothing of the matter, would fain persuadė you.'

"Thus far Paracelsus," quoth Dr. Bräuner; "but this doctrine of his is all fiddlesticks, by which people are befooled and led by the nose. Now, in order to deter and alarm these treasurediggers, I will here give an instance adduced by the renowned J. Ct. D. Benedict Carpzov, in his Practice in Criminal Cases. A certain man, who had been marked by the Scabini* with the initial letters H. K., confessed that he had promised some individuals that he would recover articles which they had lost and that about

We plead ignorance as to who these gentry were.

K

three years before, he had summoned a spirit named Sybille on three consecutive Fridays, who always appeared in the guise of a child clothed in greyish-white long garments, and had a most extraordinary countenance, with a long crooked nose, and a chaplet composed of long thorns in the shape of a crown upon its head. The two first times H. K, could not elicit any satisfactory information, owing to which, he summoned it the third time, and then conjured it by the allegiance which it owed to the prince of devils, Beelzebub; whereon it appeared, and on his straitly charging it and conjuring it by the above mystical letters, that it should shew him in what part of the house the treasure lay concealed, the apparition Sybille informed him in a low week voice that he should mix melted wax with myrrh and incense, make a candle of it, light it, and put it into the hand of a pure virgin, who should perambulate the house with it, and wherever the light went out that there would be the place where the hidden treasure should be found." He followed the directions, and only reaped a dollar for his pains; and Dr. Bräuner rather sensibly asks whether a single dollar was worth taking all that trouble for.

CHAPTER XVIII.

"When an old woman begins to dote and grow chargeable to a parish, she is generally turned into a witch, and fills the whole country with extravagant fancies, imaginary distempers, and terrifying dreams."

ADDISON.

ON WERE-WOLVES.

"Geneidigten leser !" which is, being interpreted, beloved reader, in one of the first chapters of this most veracious history, we informed you that were-wolves had been discarded from Satan's livery stables; but we did not let you into the reason why; inasmuch as

we intended to give you a full account of this dangerous animal, which intention ve now proceed to fulfil. And first, we must ask you whether you have any clear conception of what a were or wehr-wolf is. Our forefathers, good simple souls, believed that there was a sort of transmigration of souls; by virtue of which, if a man became mortally offended with another, he would throw his soul headlong into the carcase of a wolf, leaving his own body, for the time being, inanimate on the ground, and in his new temporary shape would sorely torment his adversary. Now this opinion was combated both by the learned Dr. Bräuner, and by Augustus de Cavit, Dei, book XVIII., chap. 8; but principally upon the grounds that after the body has once become exanimate, no power of. man or devil can make the soul return to it, that being exclusively the prerogative of Deity. Yet they will not venture altogether to deny the existence of were-wolves; but ascribe them to false apparitions conjured up by the Devil, who has the power of manufacturing a resemblance of a wolf either out of the air, or of some other element. Now, were-wolves are not altogether extinct at the present day: specimens are occasionally to be met with; although not produced as in the "good old times" by metemp