The Express.
London, England, 1847-12-30 00:00:00

LITERATURE OF THE LOWER ORDERS.

Southey—in those good old times when epic poems
were printed in imperial quartos, and prosy lucubration' were
sent into the world surroundedorith magnificent margins—
startled at the idea (then beginning to dawn upon the public
and publishing mind) of revolution in the prescribed modes
of issue, prophesied that cheap literature would soon drive all
sound literature out of the market. Time, however, has
proved the poet-historian to have been a Woe prophet. Eco-
nomy has become an element in bibliopolical lama to an
extent that the " gentlemen of the old school" could not
even have conceived. The library of the Messrs. Constable,
which so alarmed the sticklers for the traditional restriction
of knowledge to the wealthier china, instead of
being the culmination of cheapness, proved to be
only its humble commencement. Compared with some
of the present issues of Mr. Charles Knight and others,
enumerated lower down, their admirable series of works was
high-priced and popularly inaccessible. But at that time
readers were far more limited in number than they are at
present. The great masses had not then acquired reading
habits, nor perhaps possessed much desire for the pleasures
and instructions which those habits are calculated to confer
upon their possessors. The account of the gradual develop-
ment of this desire, and of the means which were successively
adopted to meet it, constitutes a curious and not unimportant
chapter in our social history. But we cannot enter into it
here: our more immediate object is with existing facts • their
history belongs to another inquiry. Readers are now inde-
finitely multiplied and multiplying ; and the first publishers
in the trade recognise, and act upon, the policy of looking to
an immense circulation at a cheap rate, rather than to a
limited one at a high rate. The consequence is, that in ad-
dition to periodicals of a miscellaneous character—a body of
serials on specific subjects, complete and perfect in them-
selves, have been brought within the reach of moderately
contracted means ; forming the nucleus of a new and purer
literature for the lower orders.
To the works already. enumerated se adapted in their
general character and topics to this purpose we will add the
following: namely, Bohn's Standard Library, Bohn's Anti-
quarian Library, Bohni Classical Library, Bogue's Euro-
pean Library, Knight's Monthly Volume, The Parlour
Library, The Horne and Colonial Library, and Chambers':
Library for Young People.
The design both of the Standard Library and the Euro-
pean Library is to present to the English reader, at the
lowest possible price, good, and even in some respects
critical, editions of the beat home and foreign writers, got
up in a new and elegant form, the text elucidated and illus-
trated by maps and portraits, printed with good legible type,
on serviceable paper, and well bound : in a word, equally
well adapted for the cottage fire-side or to be placed at one
upon the shelves of the student. Even in an age re-
markable for economy they are a marvellous in-
stance of what may be profitably done by Intel.
Haynie and enterprise on a large scale. The volumes
"beady published, or in the pram, comprise the works of the
following amongst ether distinguished writers--namely,
Engliah Roscoe, Oakley, Cone, Sheridan, Junius, Robert
Hall, &c. French : Outset, Lantartine, Miehelet,2rnet,
&c. German: Luther, Goths Schuler, Rank. s
&c. Italian: Macchiavelli, Benvenuto Cellini, Lansit.
The works contained in thaw series are chiefly historiall--a
sign not without its significance as indicating the mound
tendencies of the popular tastes: Each volume contains
about 500 pages of letter-press ; is furnished with a carefully-
arranged index • and is ostensibl sold for 3s. 6d. ;..at a doses
places is the Strand, am all Lo know, they may, how-
ever, be purchased for halt a-crowo.
The Antiquarian and Classical Libraries—both boned by
Mr. Bohn—are equally surprising in their way: they are
boned in the same form and sue as the preceding; but being
a little more costly in the production, and perhaps not being
expected to command so large a sale as their more mis-
oellaneous com_peers, have a few additional pence added
to the price. Bat, considering the permanent value of the
eerie", the care with which they are edited and got up, and
their previous inaccessibility to general readere--theee extra
pence are • mere trifle. For the production of the Antigua-
ruus Library, especially, thousands of poor students, in all
parts of the empire, will he grateful to the spirited publisher.
We do not, however, think his general dengnation a happy
sue, because not entirely suggestive of the peculiar and price-
less treuures which it contain,. This objection will be best
understood by the enumeration of some of the principal
works which have already enriched it: Bede's Ecclesiastical
History, and The Saxon Chronicle, Williams of Maims-
's Chronicle of the Kings of England; Awes Life of
Ad red, and the various chronicles of Ethaketrd,
Aennius, Geoffrey of Monmouth, and Richard Ciren-
cester. These are, in fact, an English histarkel library,
and one of utmosti value. Readers are now wisely re-
verting to the old chroniclers for their history, indeed of re-
lying upon the interpretations of emelt partial= as Russ
and Lingered. We know of no better 'Say 411
that tendency—now generally lasealut to z=
of the people—of returning to the, to army peapelle, men
equitable social and political answers* al saint then,
than the perusal of that invaluable Idelcaleal relle -The
Saxon Chronicle. Amongst the worts is the rale tie the
same series are the chronicles of Roger of Weadleser„ Ositte-
ricus Vitalia, Richard of Devises, Rseharti sb neinef,
and De Joineak—and of the Jewellers in the Rely LOA—
Mandeville, La Broolniere, Ywandred, sad sass. 1* tats
list we regret not to Mad the mare of the amble ea yams
Jefrey de Villehardevier--the &rookies d die Om& mad
most [amour crusade, fad as d the MIA say aai=
cum of warrior-historians. We begie Mr. Saha ea
his work in his set ; indeed, ft mull set be eteridered as
complete without it. All these wriloon have litherte beta
locked up fa the libraries of the lend sod die wealthy—

in costly editions, and in the Saxon, Latin, and Norman-
French languages—comparatively inaccessible to hundreds
of students and utterly beyond the reach of the muss of
readers. Now they are made free to all. Every
literary and mechanics' institute, every book•club
and public library in the empire, ought to place
these useful and valuable works upon its shelves. The
Classical Library wu not so imperative a desideratum es
the foregoing ; but in extent and completeness of design it
promises to be no inconsiderable boon to the reader. The
poets, philosophers, and historians of Greece and Rome con.
'Chute the bulk of those already announced as in course of
preparation—but the last-named are made, and wisely made,
the largest number.
Knight's Monthly and Weekly Shilling Volumes are too
well known to require any particular specitieation here. Not
the least liberal of the literary undertakings of Mr. Charles
Knight was the projection of that admirable series—not
noticed in our last article, because no longer in hie possession.
Marvellously cheap as it was, that sense contained several
new works of very considerable value ; of which Lewis's
learned "History of Philosophy," Professor Long's " Plu-
tarch," Dr. Southwood Smith's " Philosophy of Health,"
may be especially commended. The first of these is, in some
respects at least, excellently adapted as a text-book and index
of the opinions of the great thinkers of all time ; and its edu-
cational value is consequently very great.
The Parlous. Library couists of a series of original and
reprinted novels—each complete and perfect for a shil-
ling. A good novel is an admirable vehicle for imparting
instruction, and for creating the habits of reading and reflec-
tion ; but it is a perilous instrument in unskilful or unscru-
pulous hands, and we would counsel Messrs. Simms and
M'lntyre to beware of indiscriminate translations from the
French. We do not know that we have any fault to suggest
in thou which have already appeared: we recognise the
care which has been bestowed upon their selection, and shall
be glad to see the same judgment continue to preside over
the whole series ; in the end the enterprising publishers will
and their advantage in it, we are assured.
The Home and Colonial Library of Mr. Murray has ac-
quired a reputation, both in this country and abroad, which
makes notice superfluous, and praise almost so. Borrow's
Bible in Spain, the Earl of Ellesmere's Sieges of Vienna,
fisher's Journals in India, Lord Mahon's Lye. of the Crept
Condi, and many other works, not unworthy to rank beside
these, have appeared in this Library. There is no better,
and very little cheaper, reading than this.
Of The Library for Young People, announced by the
Messrs. Chambers, only one volume is as yet out—lint that is
full of promise. It is written—an original and copyright
work—by the literary vetersu Miss Edgeworth, whose in-
terruption of the long silence which has shut the public
out front her chaste and pleasant fancies we hail with
intense pleasure. Others from the pens of Madame
Ouisot, Mrs. S. C. Hall, Other,
Foe, &c., are promi.scl.
It will be a library for the nursery—verynicely got up, in the
, style of the pretty volumes formerly published by the ' good
Mr. Newbery at the corner of St. Paul's Churchyard."
All these Libraries are well adapted to the purposes of
public instruction and may be safely recommended to the
attention of working men. There may be, and doubtless
are, some others well-deserving to be included in the same
catalogue, which at the moment escape our memories. But
they will readily be found by those who seek for them with a
serious purpoes. And, moreover, their number is con-
stantly on the incruue.