The Press. — London, England, 1855-03-17 00:00:00

War Notes from the Crimea. By Mary Hardy, Authoress of " Saville House," 4kc. London : Routledge. THE writer of this little book is already favorably known to the public as the authoress of a successful romance, and the promise visible in her first work is fulfilled in this second and slighter production. In a short and modest preface, we are given to under stand that the poems are printed for the benefit of the fund for the sick and wounded, and a powerful appeal is made to the benevolent on its behalf : we have no doubt that it will he cordially responded to. In the" War Notes " there will be found no prettiness nor sentimentality, no attempt to soften the appalling realities of the field, neitherare we deluged with blood and horrors too frightful for art, but the great deeds of our soldiers are sung to spirit stirring melodies, true echoes of the "Thunder Harp of War." The inci dents chosen are " Alma," " Balaklava," " Inker mann ;" the first is written in the old heroic metre, the stately march of which is in perfect keeping with the subject. The metre of " Balaklava" is a new ex periment, the poem being divided into quatrains, all the four lines of which rhyme together. To our ear, there is a certain monotony in the frequent repeti tion of the same sound, and we think that a measure more appropriate to the fire and dash of the world famous light cavalry charge might have been selec ted. Nevertheless, the experiment is on the whole successful. The last is written in the old ballad style, and is full of vigour and freshness of imagery. There is one excellence in these little poems hitherto neglec ted by the versifiers of our Crimean campaign, that of strict adherence to historic truth. 1. English Past and Present. By the Rev. Cheveix Trench. London Bell. 2. On the Study of Language. By Chas. Richard son, D.D. London : Bell. 1. " English Past and Present " is another of those delightful little works upon language, from the pen of this elegant writer, in which the linguistic ele ments of English, its gains and losses in words, and inflexions, are detailed with considerable knowledge. The facts, rather than the theory of the causes which have produced them, are brought under the notice of the reader, and many curious and interesting deriva tions are given. 2. Is an exposition of the doctrines of Horne Tooke's " Diversions of Purley," in which the extreme views of that most eccentric of etymologists are ex plained and illustrated, with a few notes and addi tions. Illustrations of Law of Kindness. By the Rev. G. W. Montgomery. Fourth Edition. London: Washbourne and Co. A FOURTH EDITION of so unpretending a little book as this speaks well for its excellence. The twelve chapters it contains breathe the purest spirit of Christian charity " one toward another," illustrated with numerous examples of self denial and personal charity. This edition has the advantage of an affec tionate memorial of Mrs. Fry, written by the late Joseph Gurney, and a supplementary chapter upon almsgiving, which, though not approved of here, may be defended by great authorities. Paley thought the hardness of heart engendered by constant refusal more hurtful than compliance, and Charles Lamb would not " rake into an unwelcome truth to save a halfpenny," but would rather Look upon the poor With gentle eyes, for in such habits often Angels desire an altos. The Golden Colony ; or, Victoria in 1854. By George Henry Wathen. London : Longmans. AN intelligent narrative of a tour through the colony of Victoria during 1854. The personal adventures are full of the usual bush imidents, but are curtly and modestly described, while such information is given upon the present state and condition of the colony as a tourist might be expected to gather. The land and election question are both fairly discussed. The concluding chapter, upon the " Geology of the Gold Fields," illustrated with numerous sections of strata, &c., is the best in the book. The subject, stripped of its technicalities, is treated in plain language, and adapted to popular comprehension. The Monastery and the Mountain Church. A Story book for Children. London : Murray. A PRETTY story of the sufferings of the nuns of Port, Royal, related in a truly Christian spirit, and totally free from all sectarian feeling. The touching inci dents of the narrative, with its pure sentiments and elevating tendency, peculiarly fit it for youthful readers. r Amorto the reprints, cheap publications, pam phlets, tic., we have to acknowledge, The Step Mother, by James (Hodgson), as the current number THE PRESS. of the " Parlour Library."—An early reprint of Dr. Koch's Crimea (Routledge), though without the excellent map which accompanies the original edition.—Wolferst's Roost, and Other Sketches (Rout. ledge), a choice collection of different tales and sketches, by Washington Irving, compiled from his •arious works.—Our Heroes of the Crimea, by George Ryan (Routledge), a series of biographical sketches of forty-eight of our most distinguished officers who have served and are serving in the Crimea. It is a praiseworthy attempt to rescue from oblivion the names of many of our " departed brave," as well as to secure the fame of the living. A second series is promised to contain some forty other biographies.—A new edition of Walker's Pro nouncing Dictionary, by P. A. Natal' (Routledge), in which the accentuat►on and pronunciation appear to have been carefully and accurately revised, and a brief treatise upon the origin and construction of the English language prefixed.—The sixth volume, handsomely bound, of the Stratford Shakspeare (Hodgson), containing the plays of Henry V, and the three parts of Henry Vl.—The eighth and ninth parts of The Butterflies of Great Britain, by Mr. Westwood (Orr and Co.), in which the various transformations of those insects are carefully de scribed and beautifully illustrated.—Joseph Hume, a memorial, by his son (Parker and Son).—A pamphlet upon the Purchase System, by an officer (Ridgway), in which it is proposed to abolish the existing system; but the author does not suggest a better one, beyond supposing that "merit" would be found a more advantageous basis than " money."— And a pamphlet upon the relat►ve merits of Aus tralia and New Zealand, by a retired officer (Stanford). Our Canadian provinces are certainly overlooked by the emigrant class ; and New Bruns• wick, from the description here given, appears to possess great advantages in soil and the price of labour over Australia. A Sox OF MR. Huai has issued what he terms a " Memorial " of his father. Filial piety is so amiable that we are sorry to see it made ridiculous. Mr. Hume had doubtless strong claims to the affection of his children—indeed we knew him to be a most indulgent parent—and the license of epitaph might give him credit for patriotism, but when his person is styled beautiful and his nature poetic, that kind of monstrosity—far beyond caricature—is perpe trated which the poet has wittily exposed to laughter : Humana capiti cervicem pictor equinam Junge re si velit, That we do not exaggerate will be evident by a few lines from the " Memorial": — His body was a master-piece ; for force, endurance, speed, And every kind of action perfect : beautiful indeed. In him, too, mute the poet dwelt; in all that stirs the heart; All nature's charms, all good men's deeds and duties, he felt part. To him, by intuition, came high thoughts and bold and new; And, all unawed by custom, be embraced the right and true. Those persons who have ever heard Mr. Hume in what his friends must consider " his best days" in the house, must marvel to hear it said, that • In a wordy age, he stood a Moses, " slow of speeeh," That lacked his Aaron, lacked discourse. With the idea, probably, of exciting a large demand for this " Memoiial," Mr. Joseph Burnley Hume offers it at the price of " one penny"—scarcely enough to pay for paper. He has, we fear, little regard for that one of his father's virtues most con spicuous in his career—economy. A NEW MAP OF EUROPE has just been issued by Messrs. Black, peculiarly adapted for reference at the present time. It shows with great distinctness the extent of territory possessed by each European power, and has the advantage of embracing both shores of the Mediterranean, the whole of the Black Sea, and great part of the Caspian, with the territory of Turkey in Asia Minor. lu the north-eastern part of the map the vast extent of Russia, forming full one half of Europe, appears in marked contrast to the various kingdoms of the west and south. Accom panying the map is a description in letterpress of the different states of Europe, with their extent, popula tion, revenue, debt, armies, and many other parti culars. The map is in size, 3 ft. by 4 ft. 4 in., and is conveniently mounted on canvas, with case. A key-map shows the telegraphic lines and fortresses of Europe. The publication is eomplete, and we have pleasure in recommending it as in every point of view satisfactory and useful. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED. BOOKS. The Erik. Bosworth. Walker's Dictionary. Dr. Nuttall. Romledge. Bank of England Barometer. Letts and Co. Manual of Private Devotion. Longmans. American Liberty and Government Qnestioned. T. Ryle. 1)o. Autobiography of J. S. Buckingham. Do. Virgil in Rhyme. Vol. J. Rev. R. C. Singlgton. Bell and Daldy. The Angler and his Friends. 7. Davy, F.R.S. Longmane. Yangties and his Works. 3 . W. Parker and Bon. pusit. PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY.—The first concert of this society took place on Monday evening, under the direction of Herr Wagner, who appeared for the first time in the place of M. Costa. The following was the programme : PART I.—Sinfonia. No. 7 (Grand), Haydn—Terzetto. *Soave sia it vento," Mme. Clara Novello, Muse. Weiss, and Mr. Weiss, Mozart—Dramatic concerto, violin, Herr Ernst, Spohr—Scena, " Ocean, thou mighty monster" (Oberon), Mme. Clara Novelle, Weber—Overture, "The Isles of Fingal," Mentielssohn. PART I I.—Sinfonia Eroica, Beethoven—Duetto, " 0 my Father" (Der Vampyr), Mme. Weiss and Mr. Weiss, Marschner —Overture (Zaubertlike), Mozart. Haydn's symphony and Beethoven's " Eroica" were very finely executed, butit was evident that the one re hearsal with the new conductor had been scarcely sufficient to insure that complete sympathy which should exist between the chef and his orchestra; and, moreover, it is asserted that Herr Wagner conducts without the score before him, trusting entirely to his memory. Mozart's terzetto and the scenafrom Oberon were both sung with decided effect, and Ernst achieved a great success in his execution of Spohr's concerto. The room was fully attended, but the applause partial ; the subscribers were evidently putting Herr Wagner upon his trial, and would not hastily decide in his favour: upon the whole, they appeared scarcely satisfied with the performance. THE FIRST CONCERT OF MR. STENDALE BENNETT'S ANNUAL SERIES took place on Tuesday evening, and the crowd which filled the Hanover-square Rooms proved that these soirées have lost none of their ori ginal attraction. The programme was principally selected from the works of the great masters—why not entirely ao we cannot understand. The introduc tion of five of Mr. Bennett's own works at concerts professedly established for the performance of clas • sical music cannot surely be justified, and their omission, to judge from the "moving" efiect pro duced on the audience (many persons precipitately retreating after the first capriccio), would not have diminished very materially the enjoyment of his hearers. The classical instrumental music consisted of Hummel's quintet for pianoforte, violin, tenor, violoncello, and bass (Op. 87) •, Beethoven's sonata in G minor, for pianoforte and violoncello (Op. 5) ; Mozart's sonata in B flat, for pianoforte and violin ; a lesson by Scarlatti, an air with variations by Handel, and a fugue of Sebastian Bach for the pianoforte. The first of these works was ably ren dered by Mr. Bennett, M. Sainton, Mr. Lando, Signor Piatti, and Mr. Reynolds; but, though full of elegance and gracefulness, its great length rendered it the least successful presentation of the evening. The two great features of the concert were, without doubt, the duos of Beethoven and Mozart, played respectively by Mr. Bennett and Signor Piatti, and by Mr. Bennett and M. Sainton. Signor Piatti, in Beethoven's duo, appeared inspired by the music allotted to him ; his bow was as true as ever, while his intonation was, if possible, more delicate. In the second movement, where two subjects strive for mastery, he was more than the finished executant, he became the poetic and impassioned artist. Mozart's delicious sonata was played with consum mate taste and expression. The bright and ever fresh allegro was almost faultlessly executed; but it was in the andante, that masterpiece of the great German, that the surpassing excellence of both per formers shone forth with the greatest brilliancy. Mo zart in this movement describes a love scene : the violin pleads in pathetic accents, the pianoforte answers with equal passion, tender remonstrance increasing in intensity, and at last melting into harmonious union, completely entrances whilst it delights the hearer. The allegretto then springs forth playful and joyous, yet still ever preserving the elegance and refinement of the first two movements. The vocal part of the programme comprised Beethoven's " Lieder-Kreis' " and two songs by Mr. Benn e tt him self, " Indian Love" and " Winter's gone." The selection of the " Lieder-Kreis" was an instance of the fascination exercised by a ;peat name over those who have the arrangement and direction of concerts (supposed to take place for the amuse ment of the public), which often leads them to revive, under the sanction of that name, works which, but for their injudicious efforts, would have been con signed to a well-merited oblivion. Every great master has had his moments of weakness, and in one of these we imagine Beethoven to have com posed this medley, which was most injudiciously selected for Mme. Clara Novelle. Her great talent would have been far better employed on one of Mozart's melodious arias, or of Weber's elaborate and masteriy scenes. The "Lieder.Kreis "is cold, dull, un interesting, and tediously long, and the faint applause accorded to the singer—not to the music—showed how little the selection was approved by hearers of cultivated judgment. Yet it was for these that Mr. Bennett made this choice. With regard to Mr. Bennett's original compositions, both vocal and instrumental, we can only characterise them us thoroughly second rate. The very qualities which help to make this gentleman one of the first of living 1 SATURDAY,