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Shaving or Throat-cutting.—­Damel, the King of the Yaloffs, (a people of Africa,) being at war with Abdulkader, King of Foota Torra, the latter inflamed with zeal for propagating his religion, sent an ambassador to Damel, accompanied by two of the principal Bashreens, who carried each a knife fixed on the top of a long pole.  When they obtained admission into the presence of Damel, they announced the object of their embassy in the following manner:—­“With this knife,” said the ambassador, “Abdulkader will condescend to shave the head of Damel, if Damel will embrace the Mahomedan faith; and with this other knife, Abdulkader will cut the throat of Damel, if Damel refuses to embrace it—­take your choice.”  Damel coolly replied, “That he had no choice to make; he neither chose to have his head shaved nor his throat cut;” and with this answer the ambassador was civilly dismissed.

P.T.W.

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Guides.—­The guides that precede travellers in India are kept in such admirable wind by their offices, that they keep up with your horse at a trot, for seven or eight miles.

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To Cara.

  Thy swain discarded calls thee shrew;
  Would’st thou, girl, prove the charge untrue,
  Marry the fool who long hath wooed,
  And all will swear thou art not shrewd.

H.H.

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The Pledge redeemed.

  Said Tom to Sam, “Dear friend, I’m bound
    To see your fortune through;”
  Sam lost his wealth to Tom, and found
    The rogue had spoken true.

H.H.

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Men of no business and Paper-cutting.—­Men of great parts (says Swift) are unfortunate in business, because they go out of the common road.  I once desired Lord Bolingbroke to observe that the clerks used an ivory knife, with a blunt edge, to divide paper, which cut it even, only requiring a strong hand; whereas a sharp penknife would go out of the crease, and disfigure the paper.

P.T.W.

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Tremendous Explosion.—­January 4, 1649, a parish feast was held at the Rose tavern, in Tower-street, where 70 barrels of gunpowder took fire and destroyed 60 houses; all the persons assembled were killed and mangled in a shocking manner, except the mistress of the tavern, who was found sitting upright in the bar, and a drawer standing without it, with a pot in his hand; both being suffocated with smoke and dust.

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