The Press. — London, England, 1854-04-01 00:00:00

APRIL 1, 1854. Ifittraturt. The Journal of Classical and Sacred Philology. No I. Cambridge : Deighton and Macmillan. Oxford : Parker. WE are very glad to see a classical periodical printed at the Cambridge University press. At a moment when the study of ancient classical literature seems threatened with destruction by the ignorant presumption and petty envy of modern liberalism, it is refresh ing and cheering to see a practical protest against such savage Vandalism issued by that University at which science has been vulgarly, though erroneously, believed to receive too exclusive a regard. The Museum Criticum, published at Cam bridge under the editorship of the present Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, and with the important aid of the Bishop of London, was so successful, that it is greatly to be regretted that the series of that excellent work was ever interrupted. It was succeeded, at a considerable interval, by the Philological Museum, of which the presiding genii were the present Bishop of St. David's and Arch deacon Hare. The Classical Museum was the next periodical of an exclusively classical character. This was mainly the offspring of the scholars gathered around, rather than educated at, the London University. This periodical continued till it amounted to six volumes, whereas each of its more modest predecessors had reached only two. Of these three publications the Museum Criticum is the moat useful and popular. The scholarship of those who princi pally contributed to it was admirable, and, of course, formed a material element in its success. But mere scholarship alone is not, and could not be, sufficient to secure the success of such a work. In the first place, it is requisite for the success of such a publication that its principal writers should be distinguished by a cool, dis passionate judgment, equally free from narrow bigotry and conceited presumption ; a genuine spirit of charity, which will hinder them from ever giving unnecessary pain to authors, even where they cannot speak in praise of them ; a tolerant, liberal spirit, which rejoices to en courage, and takes no pleasure in disparage ment. Not less important is it that the writers should be masters of an easy and elegant English style, capable of commu nicating an interest and a vivacity even to uninviting and dry subjects, by gaiety of heart and good humour. They should especially eschew hurting the feelings of authors by saying smart things ; which, as they are the most tempting to the shallow and intellec tually vain, so are they the most hateful though the most easy of all exhibitions for small critics to make. Now, in all the qualities which we have enumerated as requisite in a body of classical critics, the conductors of the Museum Criti• cum were eminently gifted. They were learned men ; but they also wrote popularly, agreeably, and feelingly. We cannot call to mind a single instance of a scholar who was run down in the Museum Criticum. They ge nerally wrote what was useful and pleasant. There is also in the work a thoroughly English spirit and taste ; and we are free to acknow ledge that we think this a merit : it is un doubtedly a material and most important requisite for the success of an English classical work. The Philological Museum was conducted by men of great abilities, but they wrote on uninviting subjects; they were scholars of great learning, but their learning was oppressed by a heavy, dry, uninteresting style. Their papers, however admirable in themselves — and many of them were admirable—as, for instance, J. Wordsworth's review of Schole field's " .2Eschylus "—were yet seldom read with pleasure. The writers, in fact, did not in general come down to the level of ordinary scholars either in their subjects or their man ner of treating them. How different is the fresh, of the Philological Museum from the , pure, vigorous, homebred English of THE PRESS. Porson ! The truth is, German literature was beginning to develop its influence on English scholarship ; and, under Hare and Thirlwall, our classical language threatened to become a dry and bald imitation of the heavy prose of German scholars. It was impossible for the Philological Museum to become popular, and so it failed of its purpose ; for, unless a book be read, what is the use of it ? The influence of German literature and thought, which was obvious in the Philological Museum, became rampant in its next heir, the Classical Museum. This publication contained many capital articles. Those furnished by Newman, Long, and Buubury, not to mention others, are admirable ; but the predominant tone and spirit of the work was cynical and captious. Its general object seemed to be to disparage English scholarship, and sneeringly to express contempt for all the exertions of English students, as compared with those of more laborious Germans. There was a sycophancy and a meanness in their adulation of anything and everything German. They were seldom just to au English scholar unless he happened to be one of their own contributors. Nothing could be more unfair or unjustifiable than the criticisms on C. Wordsworth's edition of " Theocritus " and Shilleto's edition of " Demosthenes de False Legatione," two books of admirable scho larship ; and nothing could be imagined more absurd than the fulsome panegyric passed on Mr. Cornewall Lewis's edition of " Babrius"— a very elegant work, but not entitled to such praises as Mr. Lewis received at the hands of his coadjutors in the Classical Museum. The list of the committee, who are guaran tees for the carrying on of the now Cambridge periodical, the Journal of Philology, contains the names of many of the best scholars in the University. There can be no doubt of the ability embarked in the work. What we feel anxiety about is lest the ability of the younger and more energetic writers should not be con trolled by the discretion and riper judgment of older and more experienced scholars. One of the worst results of our increased intercourse with German literature is that our scholars have learnt to imitate the vulgar ruffian ism so much in fashion with Teutonic critics. Every English gentleman of education must observe this with regret, and we feel that we are doing the conductors of the Journal of Phi lology a service in reminding them that, if they mean their work to be successful, they must conduct it in a Christian spirit of kindness and generosity—not iu a mean, depreciatory, snarl ing spirit. The first article in the work is the production of a young scholar named Clark, on the " Birds " of Aristophanes. The author's object is to overthrow Siivern's theory of the meaning of the play. That Siivern has run his theory to rags, and has carried it out with most unrea sonable particularity, is, we think, quite plain ; but still, that the main foundation of his theory is correct, and that Aristophanes did mean in his play of the " Birds " to ridicule the absurd and ruinous ambition of Athens in undertaking the Athenian expedition, we can have no manner of doubt ; though we do not believe that Peisthetserus meant Alcibiades any more than Mr. Clark does. But why can not Mr. Clark express his disbelief of Siivern's theory with modesty and simplicity ? Why need he call Siivern " a dunce "? not to mention other titles of honour freely bestowed upon his victim. Why need he speak so superciliously and contemptuously, and with such ill-temper, of a very ingenious and scbolarlike book? This arrogant dogma tism is very offensive, and we trust we shall see no more of it in the Journal of Philology. The second article is on Lucretius, by Mr. Monro, and bespeaks a writer of high critical powers. We think he has formed an exag gerated opinion of Lac hmann's services in the cause of Lucretius ; for we cannot help feeling that Lachmann has very often disturbed the orthography, text, and arrangement of the verses of his author in an unnecessary and arbitrary manner. By-the-bye, we should like to suggest to Mr. Monro that in v. 419, b. 4, in the expression which he quotes and trans lates, the word " mirando " should be trans lated "to be seen, "rather than "marvellous." That the word " mirari" properly meant 303 "to see," is rendered certain by the Spanish " mirar," and the French " miroir, and English " mirror." We hail the appearance of Mr. Monro's criticism ; fur it is precisely the sort of minute verbal criticism in which English scholars are too commonly deficient. We are equally pleased with Mr. Conington's observations on Hartung's edition of the "Agamemnon ;" it shows sound scholarship and judgment, as well as independence of thought. There is an elaborate paper on the " Dating of Ancient History," the author of which wishes to establish a system of Chiliads, in dating events that occurred before the Chris tian era. Nothing can be more puzzling and confused than the present system of dating by three different methods—viz., Olympiads, years of Rome, and years before the birth of Christ. All Olympiads, and years of Rome, should be discarded, and the date A.C. alone preserved. It would really seem as if learned men had taken a malignant pleasure in complicating matters, and rendering the attainment of ac curate chronological knowledge as difficult as possible to the perplexed and bewildered student. But we must bring our remarks to a close, though we have left many articles in this new periodical unnoticed on which we should have been glad to say a few words. We sincerely wish success to the Journal of Philology, and we trust we have proved the genuineness of our regard by using the language of honest friends rather than the flattery of sycophants. The Life of Girolanio Cardano, of Milan, Physician. By Henry Morley. London : Chapman and Hall. IT is a curious fact that biography should be the department of letters in which the genius of our English authors should have shone with least success. We can point to few classi cal masterpieces of biographical composition like those left us by the writers of antiquity, or like some of the charming memoirs pro duced by French vivacity. Our " personal narratives" are the most interesting, but we refer to them for historical reference rather than peruse them with pleasure ; and some of the least known amongst them were dictated to secretaries, like " Travels by a Nobleman," in the last century. It is true that there is an austere pathos in " Clarendon's Life" which will always strike a responsive chord in the melancholy of the human heart, but his narrative fatigues, and his facts are overlaid by a cumbrous mode of statement. Burnet's gossip, even in its ridiculous triviality, is amusing ; but we have often thought, if the bishop had been a Tory, what a sarcastic por traiture of him would have been left by Mr. Macaulay, very different from the rose-coloured picture in which "P. P., Clerk of the Parish," finds his historical features limnod with the graces of a Lawrence instead of being ridiculed with the satirical pencil of a Gilray. It is pos sible that " Bozzy " might have composed his work influenced unconsciously by the example of Burnet; and, though it is the fashion to speak in extravagant terms of the merits of " Boswell's Johnson," we should be sorry to commend it as a model for biographers. John son was a great man and an original talker, very different from the fluent "Conversation Sharps," with their pyrotechnic sparkles illumining nought but themselves. He was surrounded by a famous circle—Burke, Rey nolds, Goldsmith, Bishop Percy, the Wartons, and others ; and " Bozzy " has not only left us the life of his idol, hut has given us Dutch pictures of his company. But, when in ferior subjects are brought before the artist, it is ridiculous to misapply such minuteness of narration, and to detail the table-talk of me diocrity and the contortions of spurious art with stenographic fidelity. We have read elaborate lives of the illustrious obscure, with good-sounding rhetoric, interspersed with sen sible passages, and exhibiting some rare re search ; yet, after arriving at the last page, we felt just as if we had been shown a drawing room steam-engine for poking a fire, or a miniature portcullis for extracting a claret cork. Without reality of new matter, mere literary skill will not give interest to a work. When Sheridan and his first wife were living in needy circumstances, in days described by W~'oa-r -.----- - - -+M. ■