The Press. — London, England, 1858-05-29 00:00:00

5 1 2 THE PRESS, of the chief sovereigns are on the whole impar tially drawn, and Mr. Fowler is an adept in cram ming together a vast amount of anecdote. The licentious parts of Catherine ll.'s character are difficult to describe, and yet cannot be passed over entirely. Mr. Fowler has managed that portion of his narrative with adroitness, not omitting what is necessary for truth, and yet not offending against delicacy. But, on the whole, he exag gerates the greatness of the Empress when he says:-- Catherine is dead, bnt her fame survives, and she must be placed in the first rank of those who, by their genius, their talent, and especially their success, have attracted the admiration of mankind. Her sex gave • bold relief to the great qualities which she displayed on the throne, and places her, above all comparison, as the greatest fetnale sovereign in the pages of history. She was not so great as our Elizabeth. The manner in which the British Queen played her part between the contending factions that sur rounded her while young exhibited matchless discretion, and she never abased herself in the manner of Catherine. The influence of Queen Elizabeth, also, in deciding the fate of the Re formation (humanly speaking), was of enormous importance, and has left world-wide effects. The career of a Luther almost required that, sooner or later, there should be a great ruler of Eliza bethan character; and it is far easier to imagine Elizabeth doing all that was great in Catherine's career than the Russian Empress ruling so ad vanced a country as England with Elizabeth's marvellous prudence and unfaltering energy. The dark side of the picture of Catherine is de scribed in strong colours by Mr. Fowler:— We shall now pass from the splendours of the sovereign to the vices of the woman, which forms the most dis agreeable province of the historian, but they must not be omitted, since the private life of Catherine was so notorious to all the world ; nor can we forget the terrible usurpation by which she attained the pinnacle of her grei tness ; and, seemingly, never was (rime No triumphant. But she fell from her high estate into a Milesian abyss of crime, when she seemed to glory in her shame, and the interior of her Court presented a scene of dissipation revolting to manners as well as t morality. The increase of her years destroyed many of her great qualities, and she becsme suspicious, timid, and narrow•minded. She was obstinately attached to her own opinion, and tenacious to a degree of her power; her prejudices were very strong, and, when once fixed, were immoveable; she became jealous and capricious at lest, which made her service difficult. contrasting strongly with what it had formerly been, when she was the most easy and pleasing mistress to serve. Catherine wee the first female sovereign in Europe who dared public opinion, by installing her lover in distinct posts, with peculiar privileges and emoluments; she was deeply imbued with the libertinism of the French school, nor scorned to conceal it. The office of favourite or Inver bad now became a regular "appanage" of the Court—his title was " aide-de-camp general," that so he might accompany the Empress every where, wilhoot offence to propriety. He hail apartments in the palace, with a aplet.did allowance for his table and his toilette of 100,000 roubles per month. At his installation, he received a magnificent present of 100,000 roubles, to buy over his attachment to the Empress, whom he was obliged to accompany everywhere, nor could he go out of the palace without asking her consent, or dare to talk to any woman beside herself. She looked to hi for the support of her throne, and to assist her in carrying out her despotic power, both despising, and, at the same time, scorning public decency. The appointment of favourite was no more offensive at the Russian Court than was that of a general in the army where nrofligacy was so patronized and eocmiraged as to put to the blush even 010 of the ancient French regime. The moral turpitude of Russia during this reign am perhaps unguent-11 by any country, although its pro sperity, both home and foreign, was never more con spicuous. It is a great stain on Catherine that to such "moral turpitude " she should have so largely contributed. The subject is a repulsive one to comment upon, but we cannot ever be sufficiently thankful for the example of the Court of George 111. during the licentious eighteenth century, when France had a Louis Quinze and Russia had a Catherine. It is here stated Such was the proflikacy of the Enssian Court during the reign of Catherine, from the example set by the sovereign, that it became a machinery of intrigue, where the females would often make the first advances. Fn , m the coarse licentiousness of Catherine's life, the corruption eaten led tilt-ion:bout the empire, since nothing escaped the n-tice and imitation of the people. When the sovereign is c, , , , sidered to be the fountain of hoin.ur and the arbi;ei li c e, the immoralities of the Governmt nt must It,. It the g.verned, and may be claimed almost as their el, ime. That her Court was grand, brilliant, dazzling, cannot be denied. The following is a striking picture, and contrasts with the repulsiveness of other portions of the subject The Court of Catherine may be derma to hue excelled segaillosec• asT other in Fawns, Ana it combined Asiatic pomp with European luxury. On grand occasions and more particulatly on festivals, the processions were most splendid. She was surrounded by numerous per. sons, whose rich and sparkling clothes, covered with a profusion of precious stones, gave an effect of brilliancy which must have been seen to be rightly imagined. Her Court was attended by all the female beauty, by young per. sons of talent, by greyheailed commanders and able poll. ticians, and with a crowd of high nobility, who, hy their affability and polished manners, rendered their society extremely agreeable. On the great ceremonial days, the Empress would (line in public, where she made a brilliant appearance, with ber diamond crown of immense value, and decorated with the ribbons of St. Andrew and St. George over one shoulder. She likewise wore the collars of St. Alexander Nevsky, St. Catherine, and St. Viodemir, with stars, one above the other, on her breast, as grand mistress of these 'orders; and her Majesty would give grand festivities during the winter by having masquerades at the palace, to which persons of all ranks might come. More than eight thousand tickets were sometimes issuei, and such was the vast space to receive them, that no incom venience from pressure was lelt in the twenty magnificent halls, splendidly illuminated, which were open to receive the guests ; Vie middle one was appropri a t e d to t h e where tea and refieshments were served ; there were likewise csril-tables, to which all persons might sit down without ceremony. Lives of Me Sovereigns of Russia. By George Fowler, Esq., Author of " llistory of Turkey," &c. Vols. I. and 11. London : Sampson Low and Co. TuEmcxlcrn taste for reading what is supposed to be " history" taken in a biographical form still continues, and is likely to do so. The fashion suits a crowd of careless readers, who do not like the continuity of attention required by the high style of history ; and a large number who dislike mere fiction, and the more frivolous sort of ephe meral books, approve of the compiled biographies which now issue in countless tomes. A class of 'authors, neither deep nor laborious, are able to find occupation for catering to this particular taste, One would suppose that this style of history at second hand, with mutilated facts, without philosophical method or high literary execution, would have soon come to a stand. Such is not the case. The reading public has appetite for it, and there is no danger of there being a want of purveyors of this particular kind of literary provender. We think, if this class of literature is to be kept up, that the public would be warranted in demanding more accurate research in the writers, and a style of narrative that should rise above compilation. Such a branch of literature must necessarily be reason ably lucrative, and it is one which ought to pro duce more laurelled names. Mr. Fowler's " Lives of the Sovereigns of Russia" would have read better at the time of the Russian war. The subject is in fact over done, but there may still be room for a work of this kind, of which two volumes are given to us here, and a third is yet to come. The author says in his preface that the " first volume of the " present work was partially (sic) issued in 1852." He then goes on to say that " circumstances in " terfered with its publication, and it was subse " quently withdrawn until the second volume " could be completed." The change in the public mind about Russia between 1852 and 1858 is one of the greatest that could be recorded ; and if Mr. Fowler's work had been completed about the time of the war, it would have had more success han can be expected now. It is with books as with ships: those that keel in the launching can not be made to float easily. Readers now are more critical about Russian knowledge than they were five years ago, and they are better informed. Mr. Fowler states : The materials for wri ing the narrative of these events he has endeavoured to procure from the best authorities He has likewise gathered information from inedited manuscripts, and from his own personal observation of the country and people of Russia. He does not, however, cite his authorities. We do not know from what memoirs he has taken his facts, nor can we estimate the value of his " inedited manuscripts." The work, as far as it has yet gone, is little better than a compilation, and of course it would not be difficult to go flagrantly wrong on such a subject. Mr. Fowler can collect, abbreviate, and compren, but he does not select tastefully, nor does he narrate with spirit. His manner is dry, prosy, and baldly literal ; but he deserves the credit of bringing together a great mass of details; though it is to be regretted that he has not given any authenticating notes to the text. The English public does not approve of the example of the celebrated French historians of our times, who have not condescended to mention the sources of their facts; and all our experience warrants us in asking for notes to works of history or compiled biography. Mr. Fowler narrates fluently enough when treating the level parts of his subject, but he fails in opposite directions. Ile does not succeed in either the utilitarian or the romantic parts of his work. There should have been a preliminary chapter on the physical geography of Russia, with some dissertation on the gradual canses that led to the development of its empire. The races on its soil, the nature of the country, its varia tions of climate, its aspects and scenery, should have been glanced at in a luminous introduction. Such views of a country are always interesting, and are extremely useful. These are omiksions, however, which m i g ht be remedied in the third volume and a map should also be added to the publication. Of the two volumes here before us the second much the best. It is more various and read able, and, as its matter relates to modern times, its contents are more interesting. The charade:l MAY 29, 185 R Her end is thus narrated by Mr. Fowler : ltut, ami Ist all her pomp arid glory, conscience could not he silenced, giving proof that something "lodged within her bosom to prick Anil sting her." She provided tor her personal safety, by instituting 'Palace Chamber Guards,' quite a new institution in Husain, consisting of sixty men, carefully chosen from smallest old officers, under the command of a chamberlain that could be well relied upon. They were always near the imperial apart ments. In the night the Empress would often leave her bed, and sometimes her room—a striking proof that " uneasy lies the head that wears a crown." Towards her latter days, she showed the most pusillanimous fears at the merest trifling events ; and superstition seems to have seized her once great mind, which bed shown so much courage in her varied career. On the faith of a pre. diction that some great personage was to die in 1796, she took it to herself, and %RP much affected by it. The phe. nomenon hich appeared in the heavens, one day that she wa assisting at a fete of one of her nobles, insuired her with suet) terror that she could not conceal it, and for several days after she dwelt on tl:e subject. The second volume closes with the murder of the Emperor Paul, which is narrated at great length, as it deserves to be (for it was an extraordinary conspiracy), but we have read better narratives of that terrible episode. Thiers, for example, in his history of "The Consulate and Empire," gives an account of that conspiracy in a style not unworthy of a modern Sallust, and he makes valuable reflections. " Let us, after all," says the clever Frenchman, "be just to the value of institutions. In the " East of Europe a mighty territory and a great " people suffered from the despotism of a sove reign with alienated reason; while in the West, "England was conquering the Indies, enlarging "her colonies, and extending her commerce, "under George 111., though in aberration. The "prosperity of England went on, but the action "of the public will was secured by its institutions. "Crimes, therefore, like the murder of Paul, "may partly be attributed to the temptations "suggested by defective institutions." We give the substance and gist of the passage front memory ; and though Thiers often warps facts in his narratives, his reflections are often pro foundly significant. In the particulars, also, of the plot against Paul, we notice some discrepancies be tween the account by Mr. Fowler and the narra tive by Thiers. In the first volume the anecdotes about Peter the Great are interesting and authentic, but rather trite, and we shall not therefore quote from them. Many readers will think that the details about the various lovers of Catherine 11. are the most curious parts of this publication, but tastes will differ on these points. On the whole, the literary pretensions of this work are not high, but it contains a miss of matter, and we shall reserve a final opuuou until the third volume. Country Life in Piedmmit. By Antonio Gal lenga. London : Chapman and Hall. This volume records the impressions derived b y its author from a short pedestrian tour in the latter part of autumn through some of the alleys of Piedmont, and from a residence (Airing the winter months at Castellarnonte, a small country town twenty-two miles north of Turin. Exclusive of politics, it is tolerably complete in its selection of topics; and the readers of The Subalpine Kingdom" will Lind that Signor Cal lengs las taken up almost all the subjects which Mr.Bayle St. John has omitted to discuss. The