means of vaticination or prediction--whether cards, the tea-
grounds in the cup, &c.,--all POSSIBLE events have a degree of

probability of coming to pass, which may vary from 20 to 1 down
to a perfect equality of chance; and the clever fortune-teller,

who may be mindful of her reputation, will take care to regulate
her promises or predictions according to that proposition.

Many educated ladies give their attention to the cards, and some
have acquired great proficiency in the art. On board a steamer

sailing for New York, on one occasion a French lady among the
saloon-passengers undertook to amuse the party by telling their

fortunes. A Scotch young gentleman, who was going out to try and
get a commission in the Federal army, had his fortune told.

Among the announcements, as interpreted by the lady, was the
rather unpleasantprospect that two constables would be 'after'

him! We all laughed heartily at the odd things that came out for
everybody, and then the thing was forgotten; the steamer reached

her destination; and all the companions of the pleasant voyage
separated and went their different ways.

Some months after, I met the young gentleman above alluded to,
and among the various adventures which he had had, he mentioned

the following. He said that shortly after his arrival in New
York he presented a ten-dollar note which he had received, at a

drinking-house, that it was declared a forged note, and that he
was given into custody; but that the magistrate, on being

conclusively convinced of his respectability, dismissed the
charge without even taking the trouble to establish the alleged

fact that the note was a forgery. So far so good; but on the
following morning, whilst at breakfast at his hotel, another

police-officer pounced upon him, and led him once more on the
same charge to another magistrate, who, however, dismissed the

case like the other.[84]
[84] It appears that this is allowable in New York. The

explanation of the perverse prosecution was, that the young
gentleman did not 'fee' the worthy policemen, according to custom

in such cases.
Thereupon I said--'Why, the French lady's card-prediction on

board came to pass! Don't you remember what she said about two
constables being "after you"?'

'Now I remember it,' he said; 'but I had positively forgotten all
about it. Well, she was right there--but I am sorry to say that

nothing else she PROMISED has come to pass.'
Doubtless all other consulters of the cards and of astrologers

can say the same, although all would not wisely conclude that a
system must be erroneous which misleads human hope in the great

majority of cases. In fact, like the predictions in our weather-
almanacks, the fortune-teller's announcements are only right BY

CHANCE, and wrong ON PRINCIPLE.
FORTUNE-TELLING FORTY YEARS AGO, OR, THE STORY OF MARTHA CARNABY.

A certain Martha Carnaby, a tidy but rather 'unsettled' servant
girl, some forty years ago went to an old fortune-teller, to have

her fortune told, and the doings on both sides came out as
follows, before the magistrate at the Bow Street police-court.

The fortune-teller was 'had up,' as usual, 'for obtaining money
and other valuables' from the former.

Miss Martha Carnaby said that this celebrated old fortune-teller
had first gained her acquaintance by attending at her master's

house, before the family had risen, and urging her to have her
fortune told. At length, after much persuasion, she consented;

but the fortune-teller told her that before the secrets of her
future destiny were revealed, she must deposit in her hands some

little token, TO BIND THE CHARM, which the old lady said she
would invoke the same evening--'if I would call at her lodgings,

and also cast my nativity by her cards, and tell me every
particular of the future progress of my life. I accordingly gave

her what money I had; but that, she told me, was not enough to
buy the ingredients with which she was to compose the charm. I

at length gave her four silver teaspoons and two tablespoons,
which she put carefully in her pocket; and then asked me to let

her look at my hand, which I showed her. She told me there were
many lines in it which clearly indicated great wealth and

happiness; and, after telling her my name was Martha Carnaby, she
took her departure, and I agreed to meet her at her lodgings the

same evening. Agreeably to her directions, I dressed myself in
as fashionable a manner as I could, because I WAS TO SEE MY

SWEETHEART THROUGH A MIRROR, AND HE WAS TO SEE ME.'
The poor deluded creature then stated that she attended

punctually at the hour appointed, at the old lady's sanctum, and
seating herself upon an old chair, beheld with astonishment quite

as much as she bargained for. 'I felt myself,' said poor Martha,
'on entering the room, all of a twitter. The old woman was

seated in her chair of state, and, reaching down from the
mantel-piece a pack of cards, began, after muttering a few words

in a language I could not understand, to lay them very carefully
in her lap; she then foretold that I should get married, but not

to the person in our house, as I expected, but to another young
man, whom, if I could afford a trifle, she would show me through

her MATRIMONIAL MIRROR. To this I consented, and she desired me
to shut my eyes and keep my face covered while she made the

necessary preparations; and there she kept me, with my face hid
in her lap, until I was nearly smothered; when suddenly she told

me to turn round, and look through the mirror, which was seen
through a hole in a curtain, and I saw a young man pass quickly

before me, staring me in the face, at which I was much surprised,
she assuring me that he would be my husband. It was then agreed

that she was to call on me the next morning, and return the
silver spoons; but, your Worship,' said the poor girl, 'she never

came; and as I was afraid my mistress would soon want them, I
asked the advice of a woman in our neighbourhood, as to what I

had better do, and to whom I related all the circumstances I have
told your Worship; when the woman asked me how I could have been

such a fool as to be duped by that old cheat at the bar,--that
she was a notorious old woman, that she had in her employ some

young man, who was always hid in the room, to overhear the
conversation, and to run from out of the hiding-place before the

mirror; and that I ought to be thankful I came away as well as I
did, as many young girls had been ruined through going to this

old creature; that, from her acquaintance with so many servant
girls, she always contrived to get from them such intelligence as

enabled her to answer those questions that might be put to her,
as to the business, name, place of abode, country, and other

circumstances of the party applying, the answering of which
always convinced the credulous creatures who went to her, of her

great skill in the art of astrology; and when she was right in
her guessing, she always took care to have it well published.'

Of course, and again, as usual, the magistrate 'hoped it would be
a lesson to Martha, and to all other foolish girls, never to

hearken to those infernal, wicked old wretches, the
fortune-tellers--many a girl having lost her character and virtue

by listening to their nonsense;' but there have been hundreds and
thousands of such Marthas since then, and no doubt there will be

very many more in future--in spite of the ridiculousexposure of
such dupes ever and anon, in courts of justice and in the columns

of the daily papers.
'The art of cartomancy, or divination by playing-cards, dates

from an early period of their obscure history. In the museum of
Nantes there is a painting, said to be by Van Eyck, representing

Philippe le Bon, Archduke of Austria, and subsequently King of
Spain, consulting a fortune-teller by cards. This picture cannot

be of a later date than the fifteenth century. Then the art was
introduced into England is unknown; probably, however, the