of John third Earl of Waldegrave, but had no issue. His lordship died 24th February 1811, when the Barony of Brudenell became extinct, and the Earldom devolved on his nephew, ROBERT BRUDENELL, present Peer. His lordship, who was born posthumous 26th April 1769, espoused, 8th March 1794, Penelope Anne, second daughter of the late George John Cooke, Esq., by whom, who died 2nd February 1826, he has issue JAMES THOMAS, Lord Brudenell, Lieut. Colonel of the 15th Hussars, born 16th October 1797, married 19th June 1826, Elizabeth jane, eldest daughter of Rear-Admiral Tollemache. HARRIET GEORGIANA, of whom presently. CHARLOTTE PENELOPE, married to Charles Sturt, EMMA, married to David Pennant, Jun., Esq. AUGUSTA, married to Major Henry Bingham Baring, ANNE, married to George Lord Bingham, eldest son of the Earl of Lucan. His lordship's eldest daughter, the Lady HARRIET GEORGIANA, was married on the 20th March, 1820, to Richard William Penn Curzon Howe, Earl Howe, and has issue GEORGE VISCOUNT CURZON, born 16th Jan. 1821. FREDERICK, born 16th July 1823. HENRY DUGDALE, born 20th September 1824. WILLIAM, born 1st June 1827. ERNEST GEORGE, born 12th August 1828. LEICESTER, born 25th October 1829. GEORGIANA CHARLOTTE. TALEB AND WERDEH, OR THE LOVERS AFTER DEATH*. BY W. C. TAYLOR, LL.D. THERE were few merchants in the holy city of Mecca that could rival Abd-al-Waheb in wealth, magnificence, and generosity. The caravans of pilgrims, as they annually visited the Kaaba, brought the rich stuffs of Persia and India, the unrivalled steel of Damascus, and even the manufactures of Christian Europe, to exchange for the noble horses that were bred in his pastures, and the gums and spices he procured from Southern Arabia. All were eager to trade with him; his prices were fairer than those of his rivals, and no small portion of his profits was expended in entertainments to those who bought and sold in his stores. But his hospitality was not limited to his commercial connexions: men of learning ever found a ready welcome at his board, and pious dervishes, notwithstanding their poverty and mean attire, were admitted to share his festivities with the noble and wealthy. His generosity to the poor was unbounded, and throughout Mecca not a tongue could be found to invoke aught but a blessing on the head of Abd-al-Waheb. His only son, Taleb, was heir to his wealth and his virtues. This young man, accustomed from his earliest infancy to an *This story is partly founded on an Oriental tale, whether Persian or Arabian I cannot tell, having lost the reference. extensive intercourse with society, had acquired much information that could not be procured from books, and a refinement of manner and feeling rarely to be obtained in a provincial capital. He was, besides, a diligent student; he had read not only the writers of his own country, but the more imaginative Persian authors; and it was even whispered that he composed verses worthy of being recited in the court of the Khaliph Haroun-alRashid. Abd-al-Waheb had a brother named Hassan, whose viclence of temper had involved him in a very serious dispute with his fellow-citizens, and led to the loss of the greater part of his fortune. Hassan was with difficulty induced to become his brother's agent at Mocha. His wild speculations in that capacity soon showed that he could not be controlled; Abd-al-Waheb therefore gave him a large sum of money for himself, but limited his agency to such transactions as were absolutely necessary. After having been several times on the brink of ruin, Hassan, by a bold speculation in coffee, acquired vast wealth, but, at the same time, the hatred of every merchant in Mocha. The death of his wife gave him an excuse for quitting that town, and he came to Mecca, accompanied by his daughter Werdeh (the rose), whose charms were said to surpass those of the flower whose name she bore. Abd-al-Waheb bestowed a wing of his palace on Hassan, who readily accepted it, though, mindful of the dispute concerning the agency, he did not encourage familiar intercourse between his family and that of his brother. Taleb soon heard of the beauty of his fair cousin; but for some unexplained reason he was not a favourite with his uncle, and could not obtain even a glance at Werdeh. There was a garden divided by a close hedge at the back of Abd-al-Waheb's residence, bounded at the further end by a large pond, which the rich merchant kept constantly supplied by pipes from a spring in Mount Hira. This was an unusual luxury in such a climate and soil as those of Mecca; and to enjoy it to the utmost, Abd-al-Waheb had pleasure-houses constructed in each garden, jutting into the water; but privacy was still preserved by a wall resting on an arch that projected from the termination of the hedge half way across the pond. Taleb frequently retired to the coolness and solitude of the summer-house for reading or meditation. One day he could not avoid venting aloud his anxiety to behold his cousin Werdeh, when, looking beneath the arch, he saw reflected on the surface of the pond an image of surpassing loveliness, wearing the expression of beauty gratified by an unexpected tribute to its charms. He gazed in fixed admiration, and by the altering features of the image. saw that his observation was noticed. He poured forth his feelings in verses, which, though strange to western ears, are still favourites in the plains of Araby *. A coral cup thy lips uncloses, With gems of pearl emboss'd around, Thy cheeks unfold the vernal roses, With tendril curls † thy brows are crown'd. From that dear lip! Like some tall palm in beauty growing, Thy form before my view expands Thee in my grasp! *This is really a translation of a song popular among the unfortunate Mamelukes, for a literal version of which I am indebted to a friend. + Literally," the hair of the vine." Dark as night clouds thy wavy tresses My first bright dream. The breeze to thee, its homage bringing, For thee alone each flower is springing, A heaven is here. Aye, heav'n in thy sweet smile 's before me; And bliss is mine. Werdeh's expressive countenance kindled with delight as her cousin poured forth "his unpremeditated lay; but, just as he concluded, her father's voice was heard at a distance, and, making a hasty sign of affection, she quitted the pavilion. The cousins frequently visited the pleasure-houses in the gardens, and maintained a telegraphic communication by means of their respective shadows. The countless songs in which the oriental poets have celebrated the loves of the nightingale and the rose supplied Taleb with unsuspected means of communicating his affection; for those who overheard his passionate lays supposed that he was merely indulging his natural taste for music. Werdeh sometimes repeated the strains, but she more frequently listened in silence to one whose musical skill is still remembered in Mecca. Taleb hesitated to tell his love to his father, because Hassan had often declared |