The Press.
London, England, 1854-08-19 00:00:00

AUGUST 19, 1854.

-7-7--
accidents of the picture are sufficiently absurd
from the locating of the attorneys on Saffron-
hill to the hopeless pursuit into which Mr.
Aubrey is advised to enter in his poverty—
that of special pleading. Much allowance
must always he made for exaggeration in a
work' of fiction relating to our own time,
and this allowance " Ten Thousand a
Year" demands very frequently, every cha-
racter being unquestionably possessed of
the most extreme characteristics of the
class he or she is made to represent. Tittlebat
Titmouse constitutes a bit of drawing which
we cannot equal in modern literature. Such
a daguerreotype of meanness, weakness, and
fraud has very seldom been elaborated.
The description is, indeed, so minute, and at
the same time possessed of so much vraisem-
blance, that at times it becomes positively
painful. The idea of taking a hero from the
humblest walk of society, and carrying him
through a series of adventures in the midst of
wealth and power, was not new, but the
material of which Mr. Warren's hero was
formed was certainly the property of the
author. Tittlebat Titmouse has no parallel,
and perhaps much of the interest of the work
has been secured by that fact.
Mr. Warren, with the invariable fate of
authors, would seem to have taken as his
favourites certain characters in the choice of
whom the reader will not agree. The Aubreys
are not interesting, notwithstanding the au-
thor's evident partiality for them. To make
a personage interest the reader it is necessary
that his character should be brought out by
bis acts and sayings, and not that the author
should tell you that he is amiable, or excellent,
or the contrary. If Scott had contented him-
self with often telling us that Gilbert
Glossin was a despicable knave, we should
not preserve the notion of his villany that
remains upon the mind. In the same way we
remember Mr. Warren's Gammon and Tit-
mouse because their acts relate their character.
That Mr. Aubrey and Kate Aubrey were excel-
lent people we have little more than Mr. War-
ren's assurance. Let us say here that Mr.
Warren's apostrophes are a blot upon his other-
wise good Saxon style. They impress nothing
and explain nothing; and Mr. Warren could
well afford, we think, to omit every passage
beginning "Oh! beautiful Kate !" or " Beware,
Titmouse ! "
On the whole, it is with great sincerity that
we hail the reissue of Mr. Warren's works

at a price within the reach of the multi-
tude. Rarely have there been given to the public
works of fiction combining so much really
dramatic interest with such purity of religious
feeling. The author may well pride himself
on having gained the public ear without pan-
dering to any vicious tastes or popular delu-
sions.

Songs from the Dramatists. Edited by Robert
Bell. Annotated Edition of the British
Poets. London :J. W. Parker and Son.

IT has sometimes been doubted whether pure
English literature, so rich in other departments,
could boast much of its lyrical productions.
Burns belongs to Scotland ; and, while the
" Irish Melodies " have the musical wail of
Celtic melancholy, the songs of Moore are
only French in sentiment. The collection,
indeed, of English songs is very large, but
we have not any professed lyrical poet as true
to Anglo-Saxon inspiration as Beranger is to
the lively spirit of the French. Nor can we
forget, on this point, that we are not a musical
people, and that we are confessedly inferior to
Germans and Italians in perceptions of the
harmonies of sound. There are few things in
the ethnological features of England more
singular than the comparative rarity of musical
talents in our society, when a people like the
Germans, with whom we are nearly allied by
blood, are so distinguished for their har-
monical endowments. It is not a little re-
markable, also, that several of the most
eminent vocalists in our English opera
have not been of pure English blood. Braham
(Abraham) is descended from a family of
German Jews ; and the captivating Mrs.
Billington (Miss Weichsel), though born in
London, was of German parentage. Sinclair
and Wilson belonged to Scotland, which also

Songs from the Dramatists. Edit,
Bell. Annotated Edition of
Poets. London :J. W. Parker
IT has sometimes been doubted
English literature, so rich in other
could boast much of its lyrical
Burns belongs to Scotland ; a
" Irish Melodies " have the m
Celtic melancholy, the songs
only French in sentiment.
indeed, of English songs is v 4
we have not any professed lyrics
to Anglo-Saxon inspiration as
the lively spirit of the French,
forget, on this point, that we are
people, and that we are confesst
Germans and Italians in perce
harmonies of sound. There an
the ethnological features of
singular than the comparative ra
talents in our society, when a
Germans, with whom we are ni
blood, are so distinguished f
monical endowments. It is I]
markable, also, that several
eminent vocalists in our I
have not been of pure English 1
(Abraham) is descended fron
German Jews; and the ea
Billington (Miss Weichsel),
London, was of German paren
and Wilson belonged to Scotle