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FOUNDLING HOSPITALS.

drinking-glasses, spoons, and forks are rarities . 7 It isalso said, that even in taverns, in many countries, particu-larly in France , knives are not placed on the table, becauseit is expected that each person should have one of his own.This custom the modern French appear to have derivedfrom their ancestors the ancient Gauls . But as no personwould eat any longer without forks, the landlords wereobliged to furnish these, together with plates and spoons.

Among the highland Scotch, Dr. Johnson asserts, thatknives have been introduced at table since the revolutiononly. Before that period the men usually cut their meatwith a knife they carry as a companion to their dirk. Themen cut the meat into small morsels for the women, whoused their fingers to put it into their mouths.

The use of forks, at table, was at first considered as asuperfluous luxury, and, as such, forbidden in convents, asappears from records of the congregation of St. Maur.

FOUNDLING HOSPITALS.

The dreadful crime of infanticide first suggested to thepowerful, the wealthy, and humane, the idea of preventing,as far as it was possible, the commission of a guilt sounnatural, even to the feelings of the unfortunate author ofthe existence of the helpless little victim. In no nation orsociety on earth, ancient or modern, do we remember tohave heard or read that the murder of unoffending infantshas been permitted, or even sanctioned, except in a societywhich we have somewhere seen called polity!— amongthe Chinese , we mean, where the practice of child-murderis quite common. Upon the establishment of the French jesuit missionaries in that empire, those good religious men,viewing with natural horror this infernal practice, es-tablished a fund for providing for the reception of suchinfants as they could save. De Pouu-, in his Egypt and China ,who details this fact from the papers of that society, affordsa lively picture of the state of the Chinese manners uponsuch occasions. We regret not having his valuable volumesbefore us, but think our recollection will serve us to supplya few principal facts. It should first be observed thatpolygamy is permitted in China. A Chinese first marries

i Fischer’s Reise nach Had.id, p. 238.