Literary Latices.

Harry Muir. A Story of Scottish Life. By the Author of PASSAGES IN THE LIFE OF MRS. MARGARET MAITLAND. HURST and BLACKETT.

THERE are but few, if any, of our readers who have not dwelt with delight upon those charming pictures of Scottish character in its best aspect-those sketches of woman playing her noblest part, as the soother of sickness and sorrow, the faithful friend of the despised and unfortunate, the gentle, loving, self-sacrificing guardian of those endeared to her by the ties of blood-few, we repeat, can have forgotten those delineations of real life in its joys and its sorrows, which abounded so plentifully in the recollections of ever loveable Mrs. Margaret Maitland. Few have forgotten Sunnnyside, or ceased to wish for a renewal of their acquaintance with those whose virtues and foibles were described with such truth and charity by excellent Mistress Margaret.

It is some years since we read that admirable story; and there is, perhaps, not a single figure created therein by the magic potency of true genius, which is not at this moment stamped upon our memory. The tale before us is cast in a far different scene; though the characters, especially the female ones, bear numerous points of resemblance to those in the author's first admirable work. We are here transferred from the fresh country-side to the smoke and filth of Glasgow, and the unfortunate "hero is a clerk in a mercantile house, remarkable for the liveliness of his temper and the convivial attractions of his manners, and surrounded, unhappily for himself, by a troop of admiring "friends," amongst whom the pliancy of his disposition paves the way for his own ruin.

If it were the intention of the fair authoress to enter a solemn protest against the "drinking habits," which have been so miserably prevalent in Scotland, but which, to the blessing of mankind, are gradually verging towards extinction, and if she intended to accompany this protest with an illustration the most forcible and impressive, not a question that in the present work she has abundantly succeeded. If, moreover, her wish were to depict the dangers of a too-yielding temper-of a disposition which cannot say "no" to the solicitations of the tempter, the work may be read with benefit by those who need such a lesson; and if, in fine, she aspired, by arguments of the most lucid nature which metaphysical induction can assume, to exhibit the great fact, that there is no more dangerous and fatal possession-no direr curse-than talent misapplied, her success has been equally signal. Indeed, the main point of the tale, so far as regards the hero himself, appears to be that of exhibiting, in the first place, the pernicious effects of the habits which, in the good old times happily gone and past for ever, were misnamed social, or jovial; that of showing, in the next place, how liable persons of easy temper are to be seduced to destruction by compliance with the requests of boon companions; and finally, holding up salutary warning to all who may be in danger of falling into these snares and pitfalls. Excellent is this purpose, and it is all the better inasmuch as the peculiar talent of the author enables her to impart to the dry morality a charm of style more attractive than is usually found in even that superficial class of writing which has nothing but verbal grace to recommend it.

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It is unnecessary for us to enter into a detailed description of the plot of a narra.. tive whose beauty and impressiveness consist chiefly in its separate scenes, "compartments." The hero is interesting solely as illustrating in his person the misery of weak principles, combined with what is falsely called good nature, and the worthlessness (not merely the worthlessness, but the mischievousness) of the "resolutions" of amendment formed by such persons, and which resolutions are most generally the result of a maudlin remorse, formed during the first nervous moments of awakening to the consequences of an escapade. The female figures of a story are those which, in all the works of this gifted writer, are in every respect most interesting, and in which she displays her marvellous insight into the idiosyncracies and varieties of human nature. No one who studies the character of Martha Muir can rise from the book without being confirmed in the impression that sternness and tenderness in the same nature are compatible, and that affection towards the individual may well co-exist with severe indignation for his vices. And the wife of the wretched debauchee-who in his comparatively lucid moments hatches schemes of vast ambition and promise, the success of which is entirely dependent on a regularity of conduct which he is continually infringing-is a touching picture of the gentler order of women. Then the other extreme is Mrs. Jean Calder, an un

amiable specimen of much that is bitter, repulsive, and forbidding in the "softer sex. But even Mrs. Jean is very far from being without her redeeming qualities. It will readily be conceived that broken health, blasted hopes and sad and early death, form the catastrophe of Harry Muir's career. The authoress has shown some of the genuine good taste which distinguishes her, in not working out reformation, ultimate happiness, and so forth, for him. Rather let human life be painted as it is; let vice and folly, even when set off by maudlin good-nature. reach their appropriate goal; let the curtain drop darkly upon them, instead of assigning to them the reward of soberness, prudence and virtue. We know nothing more injurious to the effect of a well-written story than the introduction of those sudden miraculous changes, from inveterate folly to wisdom and prudence, which not one person in ten thousand has ever witnessed in the world as it is. It is this mistake which, in the generation before the last, led to that crusade against fiction in general which utterly proscribed many of the most clever novels of the old school.

Some who affect minute criticism may object against the character of Martha Muir, that it has too many features of resemblance to that of Jeannie Deans. But here the charge of plagiarism would be as untenable as it would be to impute it to Oliver Goldsmith, on the ground that Fielding had, before him, depictured a well-meaning and simple-minded parson. And it may also be objected, that, in many of the most effective passages of the story, one is reminded with painful vividness of that demure style of Scottish phraseology which was so much in vogue thirty years ago, and many specimens of which appeared in works like "Lights and Shadows of Scottish Life," as well as in several of Hogg's and Galt's domestic pieces. True, there is a defect here; and if we may venture on a further hint to a writer of such consummate power, we would suggest to her that there are certain mannerisms which, though possessing the charm of freshness and originality in a first work, may become the contrary of attractive when repeated in a second, third and fourth. But where faults are so few and merits so numerous and manifold, it is sufficient to conclude by declaring our conviction that this work is likely to endure much longer than the ephemeral fictions of "the season; "that amongst several other novels already published this year, it is inferior to none in depth, force, and sustained interest; and that it is in all respects calculated to increase a literary reputation which is now approaching to the first rank.

The Private Journal of F. S. Larpent, Esq., Judge Advocate General of the British Forces in the Peninsula. Edited by Sir G. LARPENT.-BENTLEY. FRUITFUL in books of all kinds has been the grand story of the Peninsular War, from the massive publications of Napier and Gurwood down to the tiniest brochures which typographical ingenuity could invest with the appearance of a volume.

Amongst these productions the present work is not the least interesting. In his capacity of Judge Advocate of the Forces, Mr. Larpent had an opportunity of closely observing many of the leading events and personages of the varied and tumultuous scene, and in his "Journal" (or rather series of letters addressed to his stepmother) he gives the result of these observations in a pleasant, conversational tone, embracing no very high or comprehensive views, but bringing us nearly en rapport with characters and circumstances the memory of which is always associated with much interest. Those who have not been entirely nauseated by the fulsome torrent of so-called "anecdotes" which inundated the newspaper press after the death of the Duke of Wellington, will be pleased with the series of personal traits here described, sketched, as they were, when the Duke was in his prime, and playing the great part which has given his name immortality. Indeed the host of sham anecdotes, concocted by the ingenuity of competing penny-a-liners, which has for several months past offended good taste, renders it perfectly refreshing to find anything really trustworthy and authentic-emanating from a source above the suspicion of mendacity-to remind us of what the Duke of Wellington really was.

Autobiography of an English Soldier in the United States Army.
HURST and BLACKETT.

THE interest in these volumes consists mainly in the plain and unaffected narratives given by the author of sundry passages in the war carried on a few years ago by the United States against Mexico. The work has no claims to rank amongst those marked by high thought, or even political intelligence. The author's personal

adventures are almost the only points worth noticing in the book, and these are told apparently with candour and truthfulness. Of the condition of Mexico, the character of its inhabitants, the peculiarities of the country generally, or any of those more important topies, the competent handling of which might give the book some permanent weight, there is next to nothing.

The Romance of Student Life Abroad. By RICHARD B. KIMBALL.

A collection of continental sketches and stories, some of them very startling, and all of them more or less effective, which the author founds on the imaginary basis of the proceedings of a number of medical students in that emporium of wonder and horror, and fun and frivolity-the French capital. Some of these sketches will abundantly repay perusal, and contain vigorous delineations of the “ "by-ways" of continental life.

Apsley House. By CHARLES A. COLE.

THIS very thin volume consists of a poetical-rather let us say, rythmical-inventory of many of the objects of artistic and historical interest which the good fortune and the eminent merit (so amply appreciated!) of the great Duke enabled him to congregate within Apsley House, and which the good taste of the present Duke has rermitted the public to inspect. England will ever remember the services of her renowned soldier, and applaud herself for having so richly rewarded him; though the fulsome cant in which, for two or three months after his death, it was the fashion to exaggerate, or rather misrepresent, every one of his personal attributes and qualities, is beginning already to be regarded as not less false and mawkish than the mock compliments which, many years since, used to be paid to the virtue and morality of another great commander, to whom the Duke was undeniably superior in the qualities which go to constitute a truly great and good man. Mr. Cole alludes to the antecedents of the several objects which he enumerates with laudable patriotic enthusiasm, not always very judiciously expressed.

The Pocket Peerage of Great Britain and Ireland. By HENRY R. FORSTER. ONE of the few books which perfectly fulfil the objects set forth by their authors or compilers. As a medium of easy reference, and of compendious and satisfactory information on the subject to which Mr. Forster addresses himself, this work, considering its size and cheapness, is literally without an equal. In the compass of a modest but elegantly got-up volume, we find everything which the general public can care to know respecting the personages who constitute the ennobled aristocracy of the United Kingdom. It is a model of judicious classification and arrangement; and the brief characteristic paragraphs appended to the routine notices of pedigree, births, marriages, &c., &c., are in numerous instances so felicitously expressed as, in a single graphic sentence, to illustrate the history of a great house. Mr. Forster's tastes and avocations quality him more thoroughly, perhaps, than any other man now living, for the editorial superintendence of a work of this kind; and in truth he has made admirable use of his opportunities. One of the peculiar advantages of the book is the freshness of the information which it furnishes,-having been corrected to a date so late as to include all the ministerial appointments consequent on Lord Aberdeen's accession to power.

The Ghost of Junius. An Inquiry, &c. By FRANCIS AYERST. BOSWORTH. ANOTHER of the interminable series of "Inquiries," in which gentlemen of an inquisitive turn have been airing their ingenuity for three quarters of a centuryanother attempt to solve a problem, the interest of which resides mainly in the mystery which attaches to it. It is now generally felt that the ability, or the importance, of the celebrated letters of Junius, was the subject of exaggeration, not less absurd and unfounded than was the character of many of the public men of those days-the first Lord Chatham being a not very venerable instance. Mr. Ayerst fixes on Lieut-General Rich-a man of whom the world has not heard much -as the veritable Junius. His "proofs" are as satisfactory as many of those by which half-a-hundred other gentlemen have been similarly identified as the great gun of the Public Advertiser, and the matter remains what it is likely to remaina riddle. Whilst on the subject, we may take notice of a clever article which appeared in the Dublin University Magazine, and in which, by complicated hypotheses, the authorship is ascribed to Lord Chatham, leaving the matter as much in nubibus

as ever. The above controversy, now of some eighty years' standing, is an entertaining exemplication of the fastidious importance with which mystery-or mystification-has power to clothe a subject of little substantial interest.

The Glass and the New Crystal Palace. Illustrated, &c.
By GEORGE CRUIKSHANK.

WE do not intend to enter on the argument as to the wisdom and prudence of what is called the "teetotal" pledge. Excellent reasons have from time to time appeared in favour of the principle of total abstinence; whilst, on the other hand, the system of "moderate drinking" is not without its clever advocates. Of the former principle, Mr. George Cruikshank has been for a considerable period the zealous and eloquent advocate, and the present work (illustrated with all his characteristic point and vigour) is intended to furnish (and really does furnish) great support to "the cause." The foul and deadly temptations of the gin-shop, as contradistinguished from the healthful and improving entertainment to be provided for the people in the sumptuous edifice at Sydenham, are rendered visible and palpable to the perceptions; and we hope and believe that these delineations will not be without some of the effect contemplated by the gifted and philanthropic artist. To the much-agitated question of the opening of the Crystal Palace on Sunday, Mr. Cruikshank addresses himself, although indirectly, and exhibits the contrast between the position of the sober artizan and tradesman, "enjoying himself" with his family at the Palace, and that of the same individual wallowing in filthy and destructive drunkenness.

Discoveries in the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon. By A. H. LAYARD, M.P. THIS work completes the high reputation of which the author laid the foundation in his "Nineveh and its Remains." As he advances in his researches, experience and previous inquiry make his information, equally with his conjectures, more precise and satisfactory. The illustrations are of admirable finish and distinctness, and altogether the work is about the ablest which has appeared in connection with the subjects of high antiquity to which it relates. We may respectfully observe that it would have been still more useful to the general reader, had greater care been exercised in drawing up the index and the indicative portions generally. The want of a distinct and intelligible guide, or scheme of reference to the multitudinous contents, is a serious drawback from its utility for popular purposes.

A Hero. Philip's book. A Tale for Young People. By the Author of "Olive." A PLEASANT story, notwithstanding the infelicitous and cumbersome framework in which it is set. Moral heroism, in the person of Norman, the hero, is contrasted with physical strength in that of his brother Hector; and all right-minded readers are doubtless expected to award the place of honour to the former. The heroes of children's books are rarely heroes to children, and we doubt if Norman will prove an exception to the rule; but, whether juvenile readers catch or miss the moral, they will be sure to find many unquestionable points of interest in "A Hero." No young boy or girl could fail in being delighted with the spirited account of the struggle for prizes that takes place in the Glasgow High School. And the story related by the Mamma will have a charm for old readers as well as young ones. Mr. Godwin's illustrations are worthy of mention, even in this age of pictorial excellence, they are very spirited and graceful.

American Poets.-Poems of J. R. LOWELL.-Poems of THOMAS BUCHANAN READ. THE great world of the West is fast redeeming itself from the imputation that it had no native literature. Within the last twenty years a host of American names have attained various degrees of celebrity in nearly every one of the higher departments of literature, and we are assured by the editors of the works before us that the number of young American literary aspirants is as legion. The authors of these two volumes are both very young men, whose verses have been favourably received at home, and deservedly so. Some of the short poems possess a high degree of merit, and we find scarcely anything which does not rise above the average of the mediocre metres which appear in some of our "fashionable" quasi-poetical books in England.

THE PALM TREE ISLE.

From the French.*

BY FREDERICK LAWRENCE.

TOWARDS the end of the last century, I found myself, after many voyagings and journeys in the East, a temporary resident in that vast and opulent empire, which, having excited in former ages the cupidity of the proudest conquerors, has now fallen under the sway of a company of English merchants, whose humble origin forms a strange contrast to their present proud pretensions.

At Madras I became acquainted with Edward Seyton, a young Scotsman of ancient family and of elegant manners. Seyton, brought up in London, in the centre of gaiety and fashion, looked for happiness only in the pleasures procured by lavish expenditure. After the death of his father, he sold what he called his modest patrimony, realised by the sale several thousand pounds, and came to India, as he said, "to make his fortune." I found him a perfect gentleman in every sense of the word, with a cultivated taste and a lively and engaging disposition. We often discoursed together, and though there was scarcely a subject on which we entirely agreed, a close intimacy was soon established between us.

During the two years which he had already passed in India, my friend's capital had not increased with the rapidity on which he had calculated in his early dreams of opulence, and when we were together he often indulged in language of bitterness and complaint.

"Must it be my fate," he said to me one day, in a tone which I have never forgotten, "to grow old in exile, far from my friends and country, and never to become the possessor of wealth till I have lost the capacity for enjoying it?"

"And what prevents you," I inquired, "from enjoying your fortune immediately?"

"Can it satisfy my wants?" he rejoined. "What a miserable being is man! Heaven has endowed him with reason only to make him sensible of the weakness of his nature. He is born full of desires which he can never gratify; his young and ardent imagination pictures to him a world of pleasure, but reality dissipates the charm; his eye embraces a boundless prospect, which his hand is unable to grasp; the corner of the earth in which he happens to be born does not produce enough to satisfy his wants; the food which he requires to nourish him, and the fluids which quench his thirst or reanimate his strength, the clothing which defends him from the inclemency of the seasons-all are placed at a distance from him, scattered here and there, out of his reach; and it is only by painful trial, through dangers and difficulties innumerable and inconvenient, that he can become possessed of them."

Whilst he was running on in this strain, we were joined by an officer of the company, who had just received letters from London. "You have heard of Harry Middleton ?" said the new comer, after having detailed to Seyton many other pieces of news respecting their mutual friends in the metropolis.

"Undoubtedly. The happiest of men!" cried Seyton, turning towards me with an air of triumph. "A fashionable reputation, an ample fortune, a magnificent mansion in London, a noble country-seat and hunting-stud celebrated all over the north of England-superb equipages, a box at the Opera-friends everywherenot only rich, but, better far, able to enjoy his riches, and to reap the manifold advantages of a well-ordered expenditure."

"There is an end of it, however, now," said the officer smiling at my friend's enthusiasm," for Middleton is dead."

"Dead!"

"He has killed himself."

"What, then, did he meet with reverses? some losses for which he was unprepared?"

"Certainly not. Up to the last he had more than enough to satisfy all his desires, and his swiftest horse could not in twenty-four hours have made the tour of his domains."

The sketch here presented to the reader in an English dress is taken from a work by M. X. B. Saintine, entitled Le Livre des Conteurs. M. Saintine is perhaps best known to the English public by his charming and graceful tale of Picciola. With regard to the narrative which we have taken the liberty of selecting from his pages, we are anxious to state that it is not so much a translation as an adaptation. Instead of adhering to rigidly literal interpretation, we have endeavoured to preserve in our version the spirit of the original; whilst, in order to bring it within convenient compass, we have made several important alterations and omissions.