The Press.
London, England, 1854-12-09 00:00:00

" The Lord Mayor's Show," " The Fate of Sir John
Franklin," "Sudden Death," "The Water Cure,"
"Songs from the Dramatists," "Charles Kemble,"
" Adventures in Switzerland," are subjects all
touched upon in this number, added to which
is a rambling anecdotic paper, "The Paris Viveur,"
containing some amusing recollections of the literary
men in Paris. Of Balzac we are told :
Balzac, for example, was Bohemian by nature. No one
paid his debts better than he, when he was in funds, but
at the same time few persons incurred such strange
debts.
A friend met him at Ville d'Avray, and invited him to
breakfast at the Restaurant de la Grille.
" I am at loggerheads with the establishment," answered
Balzac.
"Why so ? "
" Because I am in debt to it for eight hundred francs of
coteleltes."
A story is then told of Dumas, which is very well
known of Sheridan. We allude to his " wine bill,"
which, amounting to 2501., and his wine merchant
dunning him, Sheridan agreed to give him a guinea
every time he met him. The wine merchant, who
was a clever fellow, soon found out Sheridan's
]taunts, and managed to meet him some days three
or four times in the twenty-four hours. This went
on to such a length that Sheridan declared he had
paid the bill twice over, and cried off his bargain.
This is evidently the origin of the story of Dumas
and the bootmaker :
One fine morning a bootmaker arrived at Monte Christo
to ask payment of a bill which had been run up to three
hundrea francs.
" I have no money to-day," said M. Dumas.
"No money ! " replied the bourgeoi4," that is soon said ;
but I lose my time running to and fro."
" True," said M. Dumas, " here are ten francs to
indemnify you for your expenses ; and let it be understood
that these ten francs do not count in the hundred crowns
that I owe you."
The creditor withdrew, satisfied for the time being ; but
made his appearance again in three days. M. Dumas gave
him ten francs more to quiet him.
By the time three months had elapsed M. Alexander
Dumas had paid in sums of ten francs his three hundred
francs to the bootmaker, but he still owed him the hundred
crowns.
The New Monthly Magazine has two long articles
devoted to the war, but the letters in the newspapers
have forestalled their interest. As is usual in this
periodical, Italian subjects receive attention in two
articles. The tirat, called " Doing our Vesuvius," is
light, sketchy, and readable, and the same can be
affirmed of "A Diary of a First Winter in Rome."
M. Hue's Chinese travels are reviewed and com-
mented on at full length, but the subject is rather
too late, as the work has for some time been trans-
lated into English, a fact apparently not known to
the reviewer. We agree with his estimate of
M. Hue's remarkable book. "The Sister of the
Hotel Dieu" is one of those agreeable papers for
which Mr. Dudley Costello's pen has long been
noted. " Sir Nathaniel" treats us to another of his
" Literary Leaflets," under the title of " Light Read-
ings in Alison." He starts by praising some of the
acknowledged merits of Sir Archibald, but he then
collects together a number of Scotticisms and literary
blemishes indicative of hasty composition. " Sir
Nathaniel," however, should have admitted more
candidly that Sir A. Alison's work is of great length,
and it would be possible even from Hume to make a
formidable catalogue of incorrect expressions. The
first four volumes of Sir Archibald are his best,
because his most careful, compositions. It could be
wished that he had given more closeness to his
narrative, but he has great merits from which even
censorious critics like " Sir Nathaniel " cannot
detract. The other articles in the New Monthly
require no particular notice. Altogether the present
is a fair number, though we have seen better.
Double articles on Italy and on the seat of war ought
to be avoided in a magazine.
The Dublin University gives us a leading paper
upon the late events in the Climes. It is to be re-
gretted that the magazines have not paid more re-
gard to the political rather than the military incidents
of the war. In the " Biographical Sketches and
Anecdotes " we have, in the present chapters,
Anne of Austria, and Voltaire. In the sketch
of Anne of Austria we have a little anecdote of Court
gossip, in which, perhaps, the real truth of Riche-
lieu's hatred of the Queen may be disceined :
Oardinal Richelieu hated the Queen, did all in his power
to ruin her, and for a series of years subjected her to a
harrassing and unmanly persecution. If we could believe
secret anecdotes, and the Court gossip of the day, he had
been treated with contempt, and exposed to ridicule in a
manner which a haughty and vindictive spirit, such as he
possessed, was not likely to forgive The
king-minister—who, as he said himself, covered all scruples
of conscience with his cardinal's robe—fell in love with the
Queen, and committed himself so far as unequivocally to
declare his passion. Anne appeared to encourage his
hopes, merely to turn him into ridicule. Such was her as-
cendancy over that strong mind, and the influence of the
passion which be suffered to obscure his reason, that he
was persuaded to appear in the presence of her Majesty,
add dame a unbend in the costume of ficaraniouch. At

THE PRESS.

the appointed time, he caused himself to be conveyed
secretly to the palace in a sedan-chair, masked, and en-
veloped in a large cloak. The exhibition was to be per-
fectly private, and the Queen the only spectator; but
when the infatuated politician was executing one of his
happiest pirouettes, and the Queen imperfectly endeavoured
to suppress her laughter, his quick ears caught an accom-
panying titter, which proceeded from the ladies in waiting
and maids of honour, concealed purposely behind the arras.
He saw at once that he had been made adupe and a victim.
With unutterable vexation at his heart, and a deep scowl
of malignity on his countenance, he rushed from the apart-
ment to concoct plans of vengeance, from which he never
afterwards relented for a moment. Thenceforward the
unhappy Queen was constantly exposed to visits of scrutiny
from the chancellor, and examinations before the presidents
of the Parliament, on the pretence of being concerned in
Spanish plots against the existing Administration. These
inflictions were enforced with personal rudeness, under the
alleged sanction of the King's authority. Her strong-box
was broken open ; her presses forced and searched ; the
daring insolence was even carried so far as to ransack her
pockets and to look under her neckhandkerobief. The
most faithful domestics were torn away from her, some im-
mured in dungeons, and others treated with savage barbarity.
On one of these trying occasions, when Richelieu himself
superintended the proceedings, she lost her habitual self-
command and, bursting into an ecstasy of tears, exclaimed,
" Monseigneur le Cardinal, Dieu ne paye pas touter lea
semaines, mail enfin it paye."—" My Lord Cardinal, God
does not settle his accounts with mankind every week, but
at last he winds them up effectually."
" Recent Tourists in America " is a very lively review
of the works of two clever but differently-constitu-
tioned men—the one methodical and instructive, the
other lively and amusing—we refer to Mr. Chambers
in his " Things as they are in America," and " Whit-
lings from the West," by Abel Log. ""Mosses upon
Gravestones " is concluded in the present number,
and a good memoir commenced of the celebrated
Count Brown, the famous Austrian Field Marshal of
Maria Teresa's days, which will be read with interest.
Fraser's Magazine opens with a careful article on
the late Charles Kemble, to whose histrionic talents
full justice is rendered. It is stated that in his latter
years he applied himself zealously to learning Greek,
and it became a sort of passion with him. It ap-
pears that he has left behind him no personal recol-
lections, which is much to be regretted, as his con-
versation abounded in interesting anecdotes. " Gilt
and Gingerbread" is a parallel between the Lord
Mayor's Day in London, and one of Captain Cart-
ridge's working days in the Crimea. The object of
the writer is to contrast the excess of civic luxury
with the neglect of our brave troops. " English
Letters of the Eighteenth Century" is the subject of
the next article, and we are treated to a disquisition
on Pope, Lord Chesterfield, Lady Wortley Montagu,
Gray, and Cowper. The subject is too old for fresh-
ness of thought. Mr. Frederick Tennyson presents
its most original contribution to this month's number
of Fraser, in the form of a " Legend of Despair."
The poem is essentially Tennysonian, and exhibits
many of the points of the school; but it is too un-
real, and wants artistic object. Yet it is suffused
with the poetical spirit throughout. " General
Bounce " is concluded in rather hurried style, and
we cannot help thinking that this clever writer's vein
of fiction has been overworked by Mr. Lever and
others. He has, however, considerable resources for
a sporting novelist. " The Poultry Pentalogue " is
a review of the recent work of Mr. Furneaux on the
art of breeding fancy fowls. Altogether, the present
is a most readable number of Fraser, and we think
the largeness of the type recently employed in this
magazine a great improvement.
" The Perils of Industry," in Tait, is a well-
written account of the dangers and difficulties to
which the industrious classes are exposed, particu-
larly the " colliers " as a class, though in the present
day everything is done by employers to secure the
safety, health, and comfort of all those thousands by
whose labour they so largely profit. " How I have
Lived and Loved" contains some amusing retrospec-
tions. The " Campaign of D 354 "is a slight sketch
of the general operations of the war, for the good
results of which we are told to
" Wait a little longer,"

though the writer admits that whatever be the result
" we may depend that the Czar will abate nothing of
" his pretensions," and that the time has now come
for the settlement of the question between the sub-
jugation of Europe by the Tatar tribes or the
predominance of civilisation.
The Church of Scotland Magazine and Review of
this month will be found to contain much interesting
and well-written matter. The principal articles are
upon "Sidereal Theorisings," in which Sir David
Brewster is very severely handled and condemned
for his " More Worlds than One," and " Tractarian
Theology," in which Archdeacon Wilberforce's
" Doctrine of the Holy Eucharist" is ably re-
viewed.
The Churchman's Magazine appears to contain
little but a complimentary notice of the habits and
customs of " The Chisholm, M.P," and some recol-
lections of "My Dancing Master," rather an incon-
gruous selection for a clerical miscellany.

SATURDAY,

A new periodical has la9aly appeared from the pe4
of Mr. Lever, The Martins of Cro' Martin. It is im.
possible to say much upon the first opening chapters
of a new story ; suffice it that the tale is of au Irish
family in the Connemara district, that there is g
charmingly pretty girl with hazel eyes and long
ringlets already upon the stage, with divers other
characters, and that the period is about twenty-four
years ago.
No. 2 of Harry Coverdale's Courtship becomes
interesting, but the hero himself is too well accom-
plished. He is a perfect Crichton already, and we
have not yet discovered half his good qualities.

Tamerton Church Tower, and other Poema. By
Coventry Patmore. London : Parker and Son.
" Ma. OBBALDISTON should not whistle his favourite
tunes when he wishes to remain unknown," said Di
'Vernon, as she overtook that gentleman making his
way to supper and bed at Abertoil. And Mr. Coventry
Patmore, when he wishes to try the effect of his
poetry published under a feigned name, should
avoid repeating favourite rhymes in One of his
acknowledged productions. In this little volume,
lately issued, we have not only several of the ideas
which appeared in the " Angel in the House," noticed
at some length in our columns two or three weeks
back, but many of the self-same lines, as :
" That hymn for which the whole world longs,
A worthy hymn in woman's praise."
It appears an unmeaning piece of absurdity to place
the name of " C. K. Deighton " as the author of a
volume which, in another book of poems published
at nearly the same time, is plainly avowed to be by
Mr. Coventry l'atmore. " The Angel in the House "
is a great improvement upon any of Mr. Patmore's
previous efforts : it has apparently been composed
later than the pieces published in this " Tamerton
Church Tower," and is certainly much superior to
them. From this decided progress, and from the
evident fertility of the author's muse, as well as from
the capacity he shows of expanding, elevating, and
thoroughly working out his poetic conceptions, we
are inclined to augur most favourably of his future
career. The principal poem in the present collection
is of a dreamy character. The action passes in a
haze, so as to leave little impression of distinctnessor
reality on the mind, nor can we mark any passages
that rise higher than pretty plaintiveness. The
poem which pleases us best in the collection is "The
River;' but this, with some other of the pieces, we
rather think we have seen before. The theme of
"The Woodman's Daughter" is too shocking for
poetic treatment, and generally the verse of the
volume is marked by a dismal tone, which contrasts
unfavourably with the light cheerfulness, domestic
beauty, and inspiring thought of " The Angel in the
House."