ed through a terrible tornado, in
which reason had been broken down; but that it had made the great
passage in safety, and stood looking back to us, in humble,
grateful triumph, from the other side.

On looking round the room in which the body had been discovered, a
folio sheet of paper was seen lying on the table. On the centre of
the page the following lines were written,--the last which that pen
was ever to trace:--

"DEAREST LYDIA,--My brain burns. I _must_ have _walked_; and a
fearful dream rises upon me. I cannot bear the horrible thought.
God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ have mercy upon me. Dearest
Lydia, dear children, farewell. My brain burns as the recollection
grows. My dear, dear wife, farewell."

HUGH MILLER.

What a legacy of love to a broken-hearted family! and to us, and
all who loved him, how pleasing to observe, that in that
bewildering hour, when the horror of that great darkness came down
upon that noble spirit, and some hideous, shapeless phantom
overpowered it, and took from it even the capacity to discern the
right from the wrong, humility, and faith, and affection, still
kept their hold;--amid the ruins of the intellect, that tender
heart remaining still unbroken! These last lines remain as the
surest evidence of the mysterious power that laid his spirit
prostrate, and of the noble elements of which that spirit was
composed,--humble, and reverent, and loving to the last.

Yesterday, at the request of friends, and under the authority of
the Procurator-Fiscal, a _post mortem_ examination of the body took
place. We subjoin the result:--

"EDINBURGH, December 26, 1856.

"We hereby certify, on soul and conscience, that we have this day
examined the body of Mr. Hugh Miller, at Shrub Mount, Portobello.

"The cause of death we found to be a pistol-shot through the left
side of the chest; and this, we are satisfied, was inflicted by his
own hand.

"From the diseased appearances found in the brain, taken in
connection with the history of the case, we have no doubt that the
act was suicidal under the impulse of insanity."

JAMES MILLER, W.T. GAIRDNER,
A.H. BALFOUR, A.M. EDWARDS.

We must ask to be excused from attempting any analysis of Mr.
Miller's character and genius, or any estimate of the distinguis