The Press. — London, England, 1854-03-25 00:00:00

Z highly-peppered conversations. Her know ledge of the town and acquaintance with the habits of London lite were, doubtless derived from her being the wife of one who belonged to the omniscient class of private secretaries to Cabinet Ministers. Hence her knowledge of the customs .of *labs alTil the House of Commons may "be to be d6rived from first hand sources,• Tjule ,t ere ; ia the foundation of reality in the following rerinuks on some phases iu parliamentary life : Nor woolt he have regretted, perhaps, that Marcus should 'or oil the spot to witness the verification of his ofteurepeated prophecy that Hugh, so overmastered in the Commons, was pitched to the exact diapason of the Upper House.—Arnong his peers, his mild, unpretending reason was accepted with respect, though ungarnished with the flash eloquence or pretentious solemnity of poptilar motintebanks.—Already Lord I)avenport was acquiring a name; a name endbrsed by the press and accredited by the pablic.—Such honours had been hitherto alone want in, to stimulate him to exertion _l from boy hood by his father, outpassed by his younger brother, he had. given up the race ton early in the day. But already, in a more genial atmosphere, his feelings and faculties were beginning to expand and fructify. I envy you, Davenport," 'William Eustace often said to him, as they quitted together the house in which they officiated at the minute-hand and hour-hand of the same dial.—" Were i in the Lords, I Nel that I could do some thing, both fur myself and the world.—But in our house the time is past for individual ambition. The atticism of Parliament has disappeared, like the colours of some fine old fresco. --While it lasted, to be a good listener was nearly as great a distinction as to be a good speaker.—But now, one is ashamed to listen l--unless some party cry, eulome Dumfater, or Abyssiniau war-boast, has given the . signal that he who bath ears to hear may as well be atten , lave. Even this comes so seldom that I wish I were out , of it all." ?wow " And yet, when I was one of y on, which is not eo_iong ago," replied Lord Davenport, with a smile, "1-tattays found that, independent of one's duties, the Route' of Commons was the pleasantest lounge in Lotidoni;--the best club, the best party, and the place where More in formation might be picked up in a given time than in any other public assembly.—From a moderately good speaker one learns and retains more than from a remarkably good boOk." tlrs Gore does not spare the literary pro fession iu her present work. She thus snaps her fingers at two of our most eminent contem porary " organs " Ah, me !—lf one of the seven wise men of the Athentenin, or one of the Sibyls of the Cimmerian Grot in Printing-house-agnare,--state engines,—vindictive and territie old women in their way, who rule with adainantine pens the destinies of mankind,—would but set their wits to work on a system of modern philosophy, and create a Platonic republic calculated for the atmosphere of Belgravia,' or a Utopia which the tyros of Tyhurnia might survey with submission! If even some Fenelon among oar' contemporaneous bishops would indite a new Tile• msque for the instruction of the rising youth of Britain! — But, alas ! the lawn sleeves we wot of would more likely produce " mac aatre pairc de inaptches." Our contemporaries will perhaps be polite enongh to say that they cannot return Mrs. Gore's compliments to them; but some of her brother-novelists will not be pleased with the criticism that she puts into the mouth of the professional reviewer. the amateur author calls on the journalist, and the conversation runs He had called hoping to find his friend Hargood,—and, not finding him, was on the point of returning- But since his friend Hargood had so opportunely returned," he added, taking a much begilded volume from his pocket, " he would not neglect the object of his visit : which was to recommend to his critical indulgence a new comic serial work by his friend • Dick Dodsley, author of ' Fast and Slow, or the Dodgers; illustrated by Cruikshank.— That is a Craikshank—itot the Cruikshenk." " A very indefinite article, indeed!" ejaculated Hargood,, who was in one of his most vo lcanic humours:.—having just returned from a visit to his sister, whom he found full of pleasant anticipations from the expected arrival in town of the Davenports. " But you must really excuse me, Mr. Drewe, from dippinn my pen in the same puddle with those literary associates of r oars who seem to confound the Pierian spring with a bowl of gin-sling or whisky-toddy ! Ido not profess to understand slang.—l leave it to dust men and cabdrivers.—l have some difficulty, I confess, in following even 'i'hsekersy and Dickens; though one is a ratan of edaeation, the other a man of gentus.—But when It comes to the detestable school they have founded,—to lithe closings of the punch-bowl,—the ashes of the cheroot,— ' &he peel of the forbidden fruit,—my gorge rises at , it !—So long , sir, as we have classical authors on our shelves,—a legitimate drama bequeathed us by our ancestors, and immortal specimens of high art to elevate our tastes and understandings, I do not see why we should descend to such trash as 'Fast and Slow, l —the monstrosities of Adelphi farces, or the vulgarisms of Phiz and Cruik- Shank." Hantikon Drewe felt very much as if an elephant's foot were upon his neck:--or as Bony may have felt under the influence of one of Samuel Johnson's knock-me-down , diatribes. How far we concur with the remarks of Hargood, dim Mrs. Gore, we will not now say, ran 1i R 3EI4 . Mrs pi, t ir4ns l o t4 ,•MT. l ..ghtirekeray are not y before judiciall our, eritipal court, and other oPportunities Willeecnk for rioting the faulty ten- Alencies of their imitators. In the Meanwhile Ave could wish that Mrs. Gore could eut out of her manuscript the passages in which •she Affects to philosophise, as it is in her rake aions that her mannerism is most conspicuous --.-the point on which her detractors are wont to fasten. • Take, for example, the following passage : There are more things in the age of clubs, and turf. and ateeple•chases,than are dreamed of in academic philosophy. The gorgeous Parliament-houses of Barry demand other hangs and other linguists than the homely old Chapel of St. Stephen's ; and periods most be polished to correspond with the,gildeil cornices and plausibility pumped up with the excite vouchsafed to the conscript fathers, — Like cats in air-putups, vainly doomed to strive On sense too thin to keep the soul alive. The apothegms of Bacon are ill-suited to the digestion of a man who.dines on peat+ poles a la Bichansel ; and it is like opening the batteries of Gibraltar . or Khrenbreitstein on a battalion of Azteks, to encounter the trivialities of Our cackling-and-crowing age of poultry shows and table turning, with that tremendous catapult called the wisdom of our ancestors. Read that passage aloud to a dozen novel readers, and ask them " Who wrote it ?" and all would be sure to answer that "It must be Mrs. Charles Clore." Not being amongst her detractors, we can only say that we could wish her to vary the pattern of her wit, and take less frequently the tone of mockery ; and surely she need not be behind her times in still keeping to the exploded fashion of interlarding her deacriptions with. French phrases. Where has she been residing for the last five years not to know that slip-slop -from foreign language& has been banished from good. Apiety? . fit} her present work her French phrases are only half as numerous as formerly, but scill they are too many. No writer • half le., need of tesselatAig her style than Mrs. Gore. If never ha4l Om pospd. any other novel than " Progress. and Prejudice" it would attract ,attention to her name ; and we have perused it with the addi tional pleasure of feeling that her powers are still unexhausted. • Evenings in, ki A nt ; or, Wanderings in Balad Ejja reed, Al ithe Rev. N. Davis, F.R.SS.A. London: Hall, Virtue, and Co. Ma. Ittiyis; has had ,great opportunities as a traveller, ipr xuuis, though not unexplored ground, is little visited;' and his position, while journeying with the heir apparent to the regency (Sidy illehammed Bey), if it some times limited his freedom of locomotion, en sured him safe conduct in many districts where no " infidel " could penetrate without some such security. We cannot say that he has made the most of these advantages. Neither map nor itinerary form part of the work, both of which are useful and almost ne cessary in describing such a journey. In the absence of these we cannot fellow his route, nor do his two volumes leave on the reader's mind a very clear impression of what he has seen. There is also a great deal too much of the author's conversations on the subject of religion, and of perpetually-repeated contrasts between Mahometanism and Christianity--a subject neither new in itself nor so handled as to lead to profitableretlection. An ardent po lemic, though a very praiseworthy personage, is not the most agreeable of travelling com panions. These faults are obvious, but, after due deduction made on account of them, enough remains in Mr. Davis's book to place it above the mass of ephemeral " tours' and "journals.". He has really seen things worth relating, and he relates them to the best of his ability. It would be ungracious to censure a writer for not having done more. The general style of this book is discursive, but some passages throw new light on African usages and ideas. Take, for instance, the fol lowing account of the half-maniacs, half-im yostote, who swarm in all Mahometau lands, enjoying the reputation of sanctity : The excesses to which these vile beings often carry their wicked practices are beyond all conoeption. I have known one. of the name of lien Yehye, who habitually transgressed the laws of decency and order—whose language was most blasphemous—who cursed his Creator, ridiculed the Koran, and mocked the religion of Mohammed; and, for all this, he was regarded as a Bash Dervish, an arch saint This man would go up to a rich Mohammedan and r.,./ ~sAwintPvir, demand from him, in the most imperative manner, a sum of money, which, if granted, the " saint" would dismiss the donor in words like these :—" May you suou be cut off— may misfortunes follow you in all your undertakings — Cursed be your religion, you son of a dog !" People often attempted bartering with Ben Yellye, offering him a less sum, but he invariably insisted either upon receiving the whole or nothing. 1 often spoke with Mohammedans, of the highest respectability, about the impropriety of en couraging a man like this ; but the invariable reply was— " You do not know him, he is a holy man, and a different meaning is attached to all he says. He has performed very marvellous acts." " But are you ignorant of his immoral life ?" " This, too, is a myateryto us, but for all this lie is a holy man." This superstition prevails also in Asia ; we have ourselves heard one of the class hero mentioned on receiving a pittance either less in amount than lie expected, or given without the , accustomed marks of respect, break out in the most frantic imprecations against gift and giver, whidh no bystander dared either 'to ridicule or restrain. Here is a sample of Oriental justice—nothing less than a trial fur high treason. The culprit, engaging in an attempt to seize the Crown, had been defeated, and betrayed by one of his own party : The reigning Basha ordered the Sahaleettaba (minister of the seal) to repair to Baja to examine into this titian. When Ali was placed before this official, he was promised his pardon on condition of revealing the whole plot, and naming every individual implicated in the same. But though, according to his oath and declaration, he had re vealed everything, orders reached R aja to send him to the capital under a strong escort. The morning after his arrival there, he was summoned to appear before the Basile, who was in the Mahksmah (judgment-hall), ad ministering, according to custom, justioe or iujustiee• in which he is chiefly actuated by his own discretion, or indis cretion, at the impulse of the moment. The culprit was placed before him ' • and the limbs, with fierce lo o k , en d stern voice which,reverberated in the large Moorishhall, addressed hint — Art thou that dog Ali? Culprit. My name is Ali. Backs. And so, thou dog, thou didst aspire to be a ]ley clidst thou not ? C. Such is the will of God. B. (in it greater passion.) Nothing less would suit thee, thou vile and presumptuous wretch ! C. It is the will of God. The examination (if this sample may be called such) was continued a few minutes longer, the questions and answers varying but slightly from this specimen, when the Basha, in the greatest rage and fury imaginable, exclaimed, " Bashlamba !" This officer (the high sheriff) at once presented himself. The Basha simply pointed with his forefinger to the culprit, and then added another horizontal sign with the same finger. The doom of the ambitious Ali was sealed ! By these pantomimes judgment was pro nounced upon him ! He was led into an apartment in the vicinity of the judgment-hall, where he was pinioned, and in less than an hour from the time his trial commenced he was a lifeless corpse ! Theft is often punished with death, though the Koran decrees only mutilation: this later punishment is inflicted in a cruel manner', the stump dipped into hot pitch, and the sufferer paraded round the town with the amputated limb hanging round hie neck by a cord. Many criminals die under the bustinado, of which 2,000 blows have sometimes been inflicted on one person. The civil administration is not much better ,managed, 4 0 ,4t puts the revenue at tibout eighteen millions of piastres (eightpence each), or 000,0001., 'which is ex tracted with difficulty from three millions of inhabitants. He reckons that ftilly as much more is collected Which never reaches the ex. chequer. The estimate, however, is vague, and Mr. Davis is no financier. Not the least interesting part of this work is the description, though short and incomplete, of the present state of Carthage. Mr. Davis thinks that with care, like that which Lay ard has bestowed on Nineveh, valuable remains of the ancient city might be dug out. The difficulties in the way of explorers arise chiefly from the iconoclastic fanaticism of the natives, and the sand-drifts, which may at any moment fill up excavations made in the soil. The for iner seems of the two by far the more serious obstacle. Observations on the Government Bill for Abolishing the Removal of the Poor, &c. By Robert Pashley, Esq., Q.C. London Longman. To those who are acquainted with Mr. Pashley's pe.. collar powers the very title of this pamphlet is pa thetic. To the uninitiated it may be necessary to explain that the law of settlement stands to Mr. Pashley in the same relation as Diana of the Ephe sians did to Demetrius the silversmith. But there ..~