The Press. — London, England, 1857-01-31 00:00:00

JANUARY 31, 1857. Falkland Islands, on the contrary, seem to possess every requisite for a penal settlement ; convicts might there be set at liberty ith the certainty that they would be able to gain an honest subsistence by their labour. The islands are well adapted for classification of prisoners ; they are far remote from any civi lised territory ; they are of very considerable extent ; they are healthy, but without affording great inducements to free settlers ; and the labour of convicts might be most profitably employed to form docks, so as to render these islands suitable as a station on the voyage to the Pacific. Between Bet muda and convicts restored to England, and the Falkland Islands and convicts liberated to gain a living there, the choice should not be doubtful. The volume has a good map and some excellent plates. lt is full of information, and agreeably written. Calendar of State Papers, Domestic, 1547-1590. Edited by Robert Lemon, Esq , F.S.A. London : Longmans. THE elder Disraeli, in his " Curiosities of Literature,' graphically and truthfully ob served that " unsuniaed treasures lie in the " State Paper-office." We are Wad to perceive that the light of day has at last begun to dawn upon them. Mr. Lemon's " Calendar" is the first instalme►►t of a series which is to be con tinued, and the object of which is to give an abstract or precis of the several papers of dis tinct periods, in order to afford to the literary or historical inquirer some clue by which be may pursue his object of research with more certainty and with less trouble and loss of time than has been the case of those who have had occasion to wade through that hithe►to rudis et indigesta moles of docu ments deposited in the State Paper-office. We have looked with no little curiosity through Mr. Lemon's volume ; but we are compelled to add that the result is not so satisfactory as could be wished. Indeed, it appears to us that but very little discrimina• tion has been used in the selection of docu ments of• 1% hich a " Calendar" has been prepared. The title of the present volume pretends to be a " Calendar of State Papers " ; but certainly a great number of the documents comprised in the book before us can hardly come within the purview of " State Papers' properly so called. What is the definition of a" State Paper "? We take a " State Paper " to mean a document which has some bearing upon the policy of a State, whether foreign, colonial, domestic, or financial. It is not enough for a paper merely because it emanates frou► a department of a Secretary of State to lay claim to the dignity of a " State " paper unless it fulfil one of these conditions. We may refer, for example, to the abstract of the several letters a Idressed by Sir William Cecil, then Secretary of State, and who became afterwards the celebrated Lord Burleigh, to Thomas Windehank. who was tutor to his son, Mr. Thomas Cecil—who, by the way, seems to have been a sad dog, and to have caused his father much worry and uneasiness— and ask whether letters addressed by a Secre tary of State to his son's tutor merely dis cussing or determining his son's education and prospects, &' , ought to be registered as " State " papers ? No doubt such letters possess a peculiar, and, in some way, an historical itrerest front the fact of their being the production of so eminent a statesman ; but they can never be considered as " State " papers. Such documents should find a resting place in the family muniment chest, rather than amongst the national archives. Mr. Lemon's volume embraces the period between 151? and I)sn, and absorbs the entire reigns of Edward VI. and Mary, up to the 23rd of Elizabeth, a period not the least important in the annals of English history. Th.! dawn and prog”ess of the Reformation ; the vigorous but unscrupulous rule of the Protector Somerset, and his ignominious end; the intrigues of his brother, Lord Seymour, against him, which recoiled so fatally upon himself; the fatal ambition of Northumber land in obtaining the succession to the Crown far Lady Jane Grey, espoused to his son, Lord Gnilt'oid ilndley, with all its lamentable results; the malignant persecution of the THE PRESS. Protestants, and the martyrdom of their bishops, Cranmer, Ridley, Latimer, &e., under " bloody " Mary, Sze.; documents connected more or less with those several events may be found scattered throughout the volume. The very interesting documents relating to the intrigues, imprisonment, and execution of Mary Queen of Scotts, though occurring within the period above named, will appear in subse quent volumes, which are in preparation by in dividuals of literary celebrity, to whom the task of editing them has been intrusted. Without wishing to appear invidious, it seems to us that there can be no occasion for the Master of the Rolls—under whose directions the volumes are to be published—to seek any such extraneous assistance. Surely there must be many able and well-qualified gentle men in the Public Record Department per fectly competent in every way to edit and pass such works through the press! Indeed, in the Deputy Keeper's early reports, annually pre sented to Parliament, it was the practice to append to them " Calendars " of several classes of records, which were compiled by the officers of the establishment, and which, in our opinion, would bear no unfavourable com parison with any of the " Calendars" now in course of publication. These appendices to the Deputy Keeper's reports were prohibited by the Treasury some few years since in con sequence of the cost of printing, &c. It is too often the misfortune of members of the Civil Service to find their services ignored or for gotten in order either to promote private patronage or to provide for personal friends. We would recommend Sir John Romilly to reflect whether it is altogether just towards the gentlemen in the department of which he is the custos to keep them in the " cold shade " of official retirement, when he has so favourable an opportunity of promoting their interests and of rewarding their diligence. Grant them, at least, whatever merits justly belong to them. If they sow the seed, let them, at all events, participate in the harvest. These "Calendars " will facilitate historical and literary researches, and prove valuable books , d reference to the compiler of history. Greater discrimination in the selection of documents should, however, be exercised and it is a question, the solution of which rests with the authorities, whether some of those documents, to which for various reasons peculiar historical or political character is attached, should not be printed in extenso? The People's Call for a Revision of the Liturgy, in a Letter to Lord Palmerston. By the Rev. James Hildyard, B.A. London: Groombrige and Sons. MR. HILDYARD assumes, at the commencement of his pamphlet, that a revision of the Church Service, with a view to shortening them, and the avoiding of needless repetitions, is earnestly desired by a large majority of the people ; and he then proceeds to show why on such a question nothing like popular agitation is likely to take place. It. is not a party question to enlist active sympathies ; those who have thought on it most deeply are serious, meditative men, averse to public strife; the strong attachment felt to the Book of Comm,n Prayer tends to keep men silent on what they cannot but regard as its defects, while the less earnest poi tion of the com munity take the remedy into their own hands, and habitually neglect the Church Services. As for the Church itself, the time of the bishops is fully occupied, though several of them have expressed opinions favourable to liturgical revision, and the clergy dispersed over the kingdom, have no opportunity of meeting collectively to make their ivslies known. To show, however, the strength of feeling pre vailing on this subject, the author mentions one striking fact—he has himself received with in the last twelve months upwards of MO com munications on the subject of revision of the Liturgy. A hundred opinions, generally favourable to revision with a view to abridgment, are given in an appendix to the pamphlet. The author evidently writes from a singlehearted desire to advance religion and extend the influence of the Church. He is practical as well as zealous. His proposal of a Royal Com mission seems to meet the requirements of the case; and we a.tree in a suggestion thrown out by one of Mr. Hildyard's correspondents, that in such a com mission the lay element of the Church ought not to be me.looked. It would appear that any revision which, without impairing the vital spirituality and comp' ehensive aspiration of the Church Services, should render them more acceptable to the bulk of the community and less fatiguing to the clergy, would 113 be good gained. We touch on the subject with reserve, but can have no hesitation in expressing our satisfaction that the subject Iv, fallen into the bands of a man so well calculated to do it justice as Mr. Ilildyard. He is s )ber and moderate in his views, sincerely pious, enlightened, and unworldly. The whole spirit of his writings on this subject is well expressed in a motto he has selected from Professor Selwyn's "Notes on Revision "—" Preservaticn of " that which is good; progress towards that which " is better." .A Practical Dictionary of the French; and English Languages. By Leon Contanseau. London: Longmans. A TOLERABLY close examination of this volume leads us to prefer it for all practical purposes to any similar work we have ever met with. The author has embodied in it his experience as French prifessor for the last seven years at AddiscombP, and thus knowing what his pupils required, he has 13.!en able to supply a dictionary which would fulfil all the wants of tuition. la three respects, his work claims special praise. 1. He gives all the meanings, both literal and figurative, of every word in each language. As an example, we may refer to the English word " box,', which, in the story of our 3 oung days, so puzzled a French visitor to England. About thirty French words and phrases exemplify the different uses Of the word. To the word "stock," about forty meanings are given in French. What is done in these particular instances is done universally, so that the student may always find that meaning, or shade of meaning, of a word which he wishes to convey. 2. All words ordinarily used in both languages are inserted, the best modern dictionaries in both having been con. stilted to form the basis of the work. The advantage of this is evident, when the rapid growth of both languages in modern day, owing to the importation of technical and scientific terms, is considered. 3. Certain compound words at e rendered by their equivalents, instead of being rendered literally, and idiomatic phrases are, as tar as practicable, exhibited. To these advantages it must be added, that the whole work is well arranged on the same principle as Dr. Smith's Latin Dictionary, and that it is beautifully printed. The vocabulary of proper names will be found useful. We can conscientiously 1 ecoinmetid the volume as the best for practical tuition, and for purposes of general reference, that has ever fallen under our notice. We do not doubt that the are and intelligence bestowed by M. Contanseau on its preparation will be nmply repaid by the standard reputation it must attain. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED.--Jix. !29. rooKs. 7'lte True Theory of Representation in a State. George Harris. Longman. The l'‘)ung Pilgrim. Nelson and Sole A History of Rome. Henry G. Liddell, D.D. NI urn! y Ceylon: Past and Present. Sir George Barrow, Bart. Ditto Parliamentary Precedents. Hon. It. Bourke. Sweet Elizabeth de Valois and the Court of Philip IL Two Vols. Hurst and Black. tt The r,ife and Opinions of General Sir Charles J. Napier, Lieut.• General Sir IV. Napier, K.C.B. Four Vols. Vols. I. and 11. Murray The French Revolution. Thomas Carlyle. Chapman R.: Hall Essays, Critical and Imaginative. Profes . sor Wilson, Vol. HI. Blackwood PANICHLETS. The Trawler of Land. Hodges and Co.—Life in Algeria. Smith and Elder—Hardwicke's Pretage. Hardwiclie —The Army and the Militia. Murray—sir Robert Peel's Art of 1544 !"indicated. Longmans--Where must ire Look for the Farther Prevention of Crime Smith and Elder. EIZe pram a. SADLER'S WELLS. Is his conception of Malrolio, as in most of his comic inpers.mations from Shakespeare, Mr. Phelps owes little to tradition. Setting aside both the critical vagaries which would elevate the pompous steward into a high-bred and accomplished gentle man, driven to reserve as the natural defence against uncongenial associates, and the stage convention mhieh, by universal consent, has degraded him to a mere idiot, like Sir Andrew Agueeheek, Mr. Phelps presents us with an embodiment approximating more nearly than either to the truth ; and his Malvolio is as evidently a being superior to the rest of that noisy household, as he evidently overrates his superiority. Though we feel it is no inconsistency that so superb a personage should " think nobly of the soul," and "in no wise approve the opinion of Pythagcras," yet we agree with Sir Toby and Maria in regarding his matrimonial views as a little too ambitious, and share their triumph when the respectable steward, the professed enemy of everything low, is fairly caught in the trap which they lay for him. This is as it should be. .?%Ir. Phelps's makeup is very picturesque, and the stateliness of his carriage, the measured slowness of his gait, the deliberate and monotonous utterance, are in admirable keeping with