or faces of the bestial herd. Like the island
magician without his magical garment, the wicked enchanter
without his wand loses his sorceric power; and--

'Without his rod reversed,
And backward mutters of dissevering power,'

it is not possible to disenchant his spell-bound prisoners.

In the sixteenth century many wonderful stories obtained of the
tremendous feats of the magic art. Those that related the lives
of Bacon, and of Faust (of German origin), were best known in
England; and, in the dramatic form, were represented on the
stage. The comedy of 'Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay,' and the
tragedy of 'The Life and Death of Dr. Faustus,' are perhaps the
most esteemed of the dramatic writings of the age which preceded
the appearance of Shakspeare. In the latter Faustus makes a
compact with the devil, by which a familiar spirit and a
preternatural art are granted him for twenty-four years. At
the end of this period his soul is to be the reward of the
demons.[109] From the 'Faustus' of Christopher Marlow, Goethe has
derived the name and idea of the most celebrated tragedy of our
day.

[109] Conscious of his approaching fate, the trembling
magician replies to the anxious inquiries of his surrounding
pupils--'"For the vain pleasure of four-and-twenty years
hath Faustus lost eternal joy and felicity. I writ them a
bill with my own blood; the date is expired; this is the
time, and he will fetch me." First Scholar--"Why did not
Faustus tell us of this before, that divines might have
prayed for thee?" Faust--"Oft have I thought to have done
so; but the devil threatened to tear me in pieces if I named
God; to fetch me body and soul if I once gave ear to
divinity. And now it is too late."' As the fearful moment
fast approaches, Dr. Faustus, orthodox on the subject of the
duration of future punishment, exclaims in agony--

'Oh! if my soul must suffer for my sin,
Impose some end to my incessant pain.
Let Faustus live in hell a thousand years--
A hundred thousand, and at the last be saved:
No end is limited to damned souls.
Why wert thou not a creature wanting soul?
Oh, why is this immortal that thou hast?' &c.

Mephistopheles, it need hardly be added, was on this occasion
true to his reputation for punctuality. _Friar Bacon and
Friar Bungay_ is remarked for being one of the last dramatic
pieces in which the devil appears o