The Press.
London, England, 1853-12-03 00:00:00

THE PUESS.

Air. Westgarth's remarks on colonial society
art valuable. and in great part new. lie
thinks that the general opinion entertained
here of the roughness and want of refinement
ehanteterising a colony it exaggerate d. if not
wholly ill-founded Educated men emignite
in large numbers. Of the wholly anti grossly
ignorant there are fewer than at home. And,
though the requirements of a new society tend
to exalt halltlWOrk at. the expense of headwork,
this is far less the ease in Australia than from
the analogy of Canada and the States might
Ile inferred for these latter cottiftriem are
mainly agricultural, whereas the antipodean'
soil is eminently suited for the less laborious
anal more contemplative *iceman ion of pasture.
Australian shepherd on a large Beale, or
squatter, is well described
this respect, the paattand vocation In partienlar, as
tins requiring lust 014 *nine ft !!!!! tint of capital. but also
oversight, experiettee, and jitilt.litent, rather than physical
lalstur. was proverhinlly suitable tier fi gtilitii•mtm in all
scosew of the word, tug eonthitting the intend mud,rmmnsnnrl
in society. This location wits tlwri•forvs sphere of miweial
tittrart• to those wits's'. ao•Alis 810 net ptiretto ntsena bled
theta to till it onmlitaltly. The squatter, it his Intulnens
rennin...a, easily attained the 1.11,4 intik in colonial sioriely.
rite are and cosy existenee of those coloniats when
secluded in the bosh stood out indeed in striking or
attinsing contraid to their poisifion and manners doting a
visit to town. Attired for their downward join nay after a
fashion of their own, beapettere.l will,. 111110 brina, invisible
alto% e within 11l firret4t. Pr whi.ksry and 111110111.110.94, aeni
cantering at their own intlettentleitt pleteatre tilikt• through
crow ilea' street or si!clit s Its of squatters
Clitcl,4 the tenets Ilk(' on uvalunrhe. t Istishratigers, brushing
past the menacing soten ;titles. and et eryw here eltargitet nod
thapersing the vulgar and initn.iling throng. Hut who is to
recognise these it~
all 1110111* afterwards they present thenotelvt% at linVt•1111•
11111V11111411040, or the private festivities of dal colonists, or
lightly dance the newest 1001k1IN nt tlwqoarterly ategt.saltliett,
where the gentle maiden "Jost oat '• and her triatitn.r
sister, retoltring asp eetively a brief or a long ettgagetacat,
Pig,' alike for the hand of a squatter? _ _

Rut the I►astoral ale ildS gone by ; nil4l that
of gold, in the literal sense, suceeeded.
Strange tales are told of the extravaganee of
returning diggers, suddenly masters of wealth
such as they had never• dreamed of. Secure
and profitable investments for the fortunes
thus heaped together were wanting, nor is it•
certain that they would have been popular
had they existed. Wives, servants, and
gorgeous clothing were the nrtielem most in
demand ; the first especially being difficult of
attainment.

Mr. Westgarth continents on the inde-
pendent bearing of the Australian labourer as
indicative of as social democracy—a state of
things where the employed HMI not thi'
is master of the market. Englishmen
of the wealthier class flint it hard to recoiled..
themselves to this change ; yet reason must
acknowledge that it is one which, taking little
from the enjoyment of the rich, adds much to
that of the poor.
There is an interesting dissertation on the
eolonial press, its nature and influence. A
single journal, the tildbmorne A rpm, founded
only in I$4M, has already attained a eirmilat;
exceeding 10,11110, with power and profits con-
tinually increasing. ft would appear that
Australian journals represent fairly enough
the tone of Australian political life—vigorous,
lint coarse ; personal in attack ; and linrited
to a narrow range of subjects.
Mr. Westgarth expatiates at some length on
colonial polities, and also oil the probable
effect of gold diseoreries,—snbjects into which
we do not follow him. lie evidently antici-
pates the continuance of that vast influx of
precious metal which Is even now disturbing
the relations of commerce. He assumes, on
good authority, the quantity of gold existing
in the world at the time of Californian dis-
covery at 6410,000,0010., of which one-lom-th, or
ral,am,ooo/., was gold coin. The q lily of
silver in existence at the same time he reckons
at 1.1.90.41Mr.0041/., of which one-fifth wits roan.
From these fignres. and the statements which
follow, it may easily be seen how large a pro-
' porti nn Californian and Anstralian imports
hear to the whole :--

Now, it would appear that for a considerable number of
year.' prior to the discovery of the !!! i l 'cot, by
estimates, aranewhat various hadeoti, but muffitient for We
illustrntiun, the prfsiuce of the clifferveit Oil min.*
the world soVvrage.,l Aorlis %%114.rP between one null two
milli ur. „f tfittwo as Ily. Stich was the state of the
learkgst 111, 4, the e•str tutu. during which year ill.•
11. •in (.111TiAlrili3 %,•,O' 1411.91111. /nib (IliSucw
atutltivua at .Bttut a muss et tie; luvtivusi tut:bd hithurtu

78t

1111preet.tfrIltet1 begftll 111..1% 1., be 0111.'111 111,011 the wunit.
Them. .thwevs•rits were 114144441, in the teat 111:.1.1., those
New Smith Wide. 81111 M lane oven thAt, in
the letter colony Moor, there anrl raised ritillt the .".11,
within the heet.ilti gulp of the Illstie lIIIUt
double the Tomtit) illirtlig * siUulßr "I'4r of
tilllo,ll OW ',fettle Melia the p": 11,4 14111..11%1y. t ti,4l
million. of niinecit nrinnntly tri•.t. tat 1418, the incel
•1111 l Ina may ibr estittoitett to lime meraiti.4l Iwo tutu II 11.1 f
times thin iitimititl tor ends of the live years that lime
sines elar4All ; Rim thi% as, wit 11 .1,11 I rii.lsl
and 1'o„:111N1' ittNquEssiolli—the 11'1 1"610
having been iNtinititett e mitt n punter ntilit.•n+ or
°nitres, that Air 1101 lit Nye nthl n bolt ulilhonll, while the
quantity fn. I g:01 had 111111111.114.1.11 ill mole than now mllliuus
sit eels.

•I•he 661111%1111w talde, earn•sinq tilt. talue in met Wig
money OP each reach stippl) utilifolllll,ll
co% ettett, will emit ey n Inure neettritte hien of the carpe : -

ANNUM 10,I.I1141Ncl• 114 IS, 1:t1

VOIM

ISIIII . a .
MOO . . .
ISM . . .

imbi . • .
estimate. I

eillfornin.

Vitlttuport.
t*,ooo,lwitl

'The Npitee trhiu h w
of this mitlieieu
of itm tabu..

VALI' V.

A witrails.

t1.0•41,0nn
1104ml/ill
,1.111111,411111

1.1111:1.1Sil

Eliworhrti,
so,tinnom
.000,0111) 111,11110,1M11
8.011001911 1; ,101111,4114)
6.111111,111111 V 11,111111.4010
101001.000 nt,tilit
P,Or10,11111) 1N,N11011,1

t* illitbt t to rvvlew
illy indieutes our opinion

Itt )01‘s I I.: ‘1VIN4;•1:0011
I. Ke, psole. for I q 7, I. Edited by 141 iss
1 14m or. I tondos' :

The Cana .11hoin. A Mcrica of ll'ortraik
of the Female Aristocracy. London : Bogue.
3, Feathered P'artinrittes. Twelve I dlll.loiire4l
Pictures of British Birds. From Ivrawingl
by Joseph Wolf. London : Bosworth.
.1. l'he Art-Ilmirnal for Heeettiber.
Virtue and (11`.

Lsr nut the learned and the rnthnsiu«t 14141 k
down MOM. the 11111111111 W 4 Wks, hair liiernrt,
half artistic, which pre i►ul►llshed at this
season of the year, in anti►•ipation of Ilse
coining Christina,. festivities. Alth►uugh fluty
have sin greet pretensions, they arc interesting
and instructive, and have given t►► nun►, a
mind the first impulse to seek for better
things.

I. hit" Keepsake
.for MI, edited by Miss
Power, eitiiiint, it In true, he rompnrell with
those of former days, Which were illustrated
by Turner and nuniburcd Sir Walter Scott
amongst their contributors ; but its contents
are quite equal in point of merit to those 41f
its few lost predeeessors, and will doubtless,
after doing duty In England, appear In foreign
costume in most of the continental capitals
and provincial towns. The illtn4trations are
by Messrs. Ilesth, Mote, and Engles, from
pictures mil designs by imipidor artists of tliil
day. The best of these, to our thinking,
is that of Lady Beaumont, engraved by
Mote, from an excellent likeness by Buck-
ner. Mr. lineknees paintings of Miss
De Horsey and of an amateur artist (Mt
Blackwood, we believe) ore also welt engraved
and sufficiently pleasing. Mrs. W. Ashby,
also by Buckner, is less satisfactory fth a 116-
nems, though the engraving, by Eagles, is
cleverly done. We lutist also call the Men-
tion of our renders to the original designs of
Corbould, which are executed by Mr. r.
H. Among thetit..ntry enistributm..
wo perceive the well-known name" of nark-
eraY, .1. B. Plant:he, Madame de siirstrilin,
Alphonse de Lamartine, Shirley Brooks, and
envy Charley.

2. The Cintrt yilltam eontaing vortrnitm of
eleven ladies alto areal more 4,r lest well impart
in igrmion sneiety. From what 41. e in this
book, it is a matter of ()Hilo:lts. to.joilite of the
merits of the origi I nit. pitintitti4s, Litt ill the
matter of etigrit%ings We think tlie oilot tuna
he awarded to Mr. Mote. Perhaps, on the
whole, the likenesmes are rather woe r than
usual. The best are those of Mrs. Spetteer
Lyttelton, Lally Isabella Fitzgibla mid
Mho; llankes. 17pm the rem,. 1/1/.l•liile to
pass any indinnent further than to obaerve
that the portraits of Mips illyrrftmi hunter anal
Mrs. Mt. Leger, by Messt,4. flavter anti Weigftll.
Meetri Nrofttl eftrieatnrev of fbe fair "1 iolotim.
We ntuct not omit to ladies. the literary lam-
tlou of thid tfvrk, which ly rtally deserving of

I"

attentive perusal, inasmuch as it displays an
amount of labour and research, not to mention
ingenuity, on the part of the author which we
could scarcely expect to find in a work of so
ephemeral a character.

3. Fratheral Farourites is as elegant a vo-
lume for the drawing-room table as we have
seen for many months. The pictures of birds
are in caretully-coloured medallions, each
surrounded by a gilt border of adjuncts, illus-
trative of their habits. We may especially
select for praise those which represent the
woodpecker and the tomtit. All these pictures
are accompanied by appropriate selections of
leading passages from the poets applicable to
the particular species, which arc printed upon
paper of the substance of vellum. The volume
is well and tastefully bound.

4. We have included the Art-Journid in our
list of books for the drawing-room table On
account of its peculiar meritoriousness in its
sphere. Without high pretensions the con-
tents of its monthly numbers do credit to the
attempt to sustain a continuous interest in
art. The engraving from the Raphael at the
commencement of the present number issofter
and better than usual. The views of ruins
end" restorations" in Rome are interesting : and
the letterpress and engravings combined are
One of the marvels of this cheap era.

The Causes of the Turkish Invasion of Europe. (The
Le Bas Prize Essay for 1N53.) By Spencer I'.
Butler, B.A. London : George Bell.
Mn. once observed that prize Miceli were
only lit for candles, and prize essays to light them
but the present pamphlet deserves to be included
among the many exceptions to this rule. As a preli-
minary to the consideration of the climate and habits
of the Mongols, the following is a description of the
region from whence they have sent forth so many
waves of successful invasion :

" Stretching over eighty degreesof longitude, and thirty.
Ave. of lattitude, from the Volga to the wall of China, from
the Himalaya to Siberia, lies the great Asiatic basin.
noise and Africa present to our view no such peculiarity.
In America there is no natural basin litany very great magni-
tude. lint in Asia, over an area as large as entire I':urgs•,
the rivers are denied u► rail to the sea. the functions of the
ocean being supplied by the Caspian, and the smaller lakes,
salt and fresh, that stud the surface of this enormous die.
trice.

" Nor in this its only distinctive. feature. Nearly one-third
of it is occupied by what is termed the desert of Shame), con-
taining the highest table-land in the world, and ranging for
the most part between :IMO and 4,1 N xi feet above the level of
the sea. Respecting the nature of this desert our accounts
arc at variance. MM. Hite and tiabet &writse the eastern
portion, which they have traversed, as bleak, arid, and in-
hospitable, and supplying nu vegetation tsar the support of
man er beast. It may be that the central and western re-
gime; are kale desolate, for we are elsewhere told : "fhe
soil is in general of great natural fertility. There are.
eomparatively, but few genuine deserts. The wide-extended
plains without a shrub, which have sometimes received
that appellation, and which the Pencians call steppes, are
covered( with a luxuriant grass, admirably fitted fur the pas-
ture of their numerous Hocks and heels. The principal
defect of this extensive country is a want of water, but it is
asid that the its which are supplied with this neees.cary
article wool(' be sufficient for the support of four times the
number of its present inhabitants, if it were properly cul-
tivated.'

The remainder of the basin,from all the accounts which
we possess, varies from the most luxuriant pasture land
noind the Aral, and in the valley of the Ili, to poor and
sterile plain.
" Such is the present aspect of Central Asia, and such
too in all probability it appeared in the days when its
occupant* bore the terrible and mysterious title of Sey-
thians."

The Laws of Artistic Copyright and their Defects.
By D. Roberton Blaine, Esq. London : Murray.
BY this treatise the protection to which sculptors,
painters, and engravers are entitled under the exist-
ing law is defined, and the remedies by which those
lights can be enforced are discussed. The impor-
tance of the subject may bo judged of from the fact
that the number of objects of art, chiefly drawings,
sculptures, and paintings, exhibited this year in Lou-
don alone were .I,lBs—the work of 1,117e2 artists—and
of course those exhibited are but a small proportion
of the number executed, and equally entitled to pro-
tection. If a copyright, even of the most !riding
value, is invaded, the remedy of the proprietor is in
the Court of Chancery ; he may also sue at law for
damages or penalties; but front some strong facts
stated in the treatise the necessity of a cheap, neves-
%Ode, and efficient tribunal for the protection of the
proprietors of copyright is very justly inferred. The
first chapter treats of the five acts that protect the
painter and engraver. The first of the series was
passed by the efforts of llogarth. The subject of the