“I may add a few observations of my own, not altogether irrelevant to the subject. “The silver vessel, or pax, generally enclosed some relic, and was kissed by the congregation or other individuals in token of devotion; and the Count Seratti mentions that the one of which this sulphur is in part a facsimile, is very much worn by this repeated act of devoutness. The word pax appears to be a corruption of pyxis, a box; and we have in Shakspeare _a pyx of little value_. The engraving was usually filled up with a metallic mixture of a dark composition, which, being fused by the action of fire, became incorporated with the vessel itself. This process was called Niello, or Anniello, Niellare, or Anniellare; hence our _anneal_, the term probably derived from _nigellum_, or perhaps even from Mêl, the Indian term for _black_, and applied to indigo, by which name that dye was originally known in Europe, and it was probably used in the composition before alluded to. The term _anniello_, and the purpose to which these pyxes were applied, is further illustrative of a passage in Shakspeare, which I believe has hitherto puzzled commentators. It is this:--Hamlet accuses his uncle of having dispatched his father ‘unhousel’d, unanointed, _unanneal’d_;’ it alludes to the custom in Catholic countries of offering relics preserved in their pyxes to be kissed after extreme unction. “I shall be happy to communicate any further particulars respecting this interesting vestige of art which may be required of me, in as far as I am able. “J. STEWART. “_2nd May, 1829._” 1830. The glowing evening of the 16th of July added lustre to the enchanting grounds of William Atkinson, Esq. of Grove End, Paddington;[492] and perhaps, if I were to assert that few spots, if any, excel in the variety of its tasteful walks and unexpected recesses, I should not outstep the verge of truth. The villa was designed by Mr. Atkinson, with his usual attention to domestic comfort; the grounds were peculiarly manured under his direction, and the rarest trees and choicest plants he could procure from all the known parts of the globe were planted by his own hand, and that too in the course of the last twelve years. On the knolls the antiquary will find sculpture from Carthage; and in the silent trickling dells the mineralogist specimens of the varieties of English stone, imbedded in the most picturesque strata. The delightful surprise of the spectator is beyond belief, particularly on turning back to view his trodden path, when that sun which fired the mind of Claude sparkles among the gently waving branches from climes he may never visit. Upon my observing to Mrs. Atkinson that in this meandering retreat my mind would be instantly soothed, that lady then recalled to my recollection Allan Ramsay’s _Gentle Shepherd_, by repeating the following lines: