The Express.
London, England, 1861-12-24 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

nt X*ll, :4,141 31111141911,1,. A Story. By
Gems' Aruverve Stu. Three vols. London :
Tisaley Brothers.
- - - -

TLis uuv.l exhibits all the ease which heloivi
to a practise.' writer, and is rich in the pecu-
liarities which we noticed recently as characte-
ristic ..1 the author's "Dutch Pictures." We
shut, however, stint our praise to its literary
merits the conception of the story, and of the cha-
racters by who'd its action is carried on, are exag-
gerated and repulsive, wholly distasteful to all but
a certain circle of English readers, and in some
cases woe:drone and unnatural. Mammon is a
backer, nut a myth, and his seven sons, whom we
should expect to look upon as impersonations of
Pride, Avarice, Meanness, and the other vices which
aft.• from the love of money, are seven good-natured
bid emiewhat fatuous young fellows, who suffer
awfully fur the misdoing. of their father. Of
cone they are all ruined and smashed up humbly,
whit their father suffers not from the Nemesis
of his wealth, but because he forged bills when
he was poor ; and even this cause of terror is re-
elects' as soon as our author has succeeded in
bringing the forger down to the lowest point of
Jewry. The lesson to be learned from beholding
misused riches bring down suitable punishment
spun their peesessur may be salutary ; but in the
work before us the suffering comes from a wholly
different cause. A woman does it all, and such a
woman as never yet occurred even to the dis-
tempered dreams of an Englishman. Mrs. Ar-
saytage belongs to that type of womanhood which
haa such charms for the imagination of French
novelists and their readers. We remember her in
the • 'Trois Mousquetairee." We have been,ratroduoed
to her by M. Paul Weal under the title of Sarah
Goldberg. She appears frequently in the " Myste-
ries of Paris," and was, indeed, a peculiar favourite
of &wine Sue. Under all her disguises and aliases
she is well known to multitudes on the Continent,
and to not a few on this side of the Channel. She
is a person of a certain condition, young, iticcon-
parably beautiful, and diabolically wicked. Her
power over the other sex is magical, and she is
wonderful for her courage and self-possessiou. She
perpetrates the most atrocious deeds with a smile,
and sleeps afterwards with the calmness of in-
fancy. All her worshippers have been struck with
these qualities : but its in describing her physical
sonforniation they show the greatest power. They
dwell with delight upon the perfect symmetry of
her shape, the smallness of her bands and feet, and
the masculine strength of her grasp when excited.
Mr. Sala has not done his work worse than others,
and be has had the prudence to present this idol of
prurient imaginations before the English public in
• somewhat less offensive manner.

The Victoria Regis : a Voile= of Ongisied Contritni-
how in Poetry and Prom. Edited by ADIL/11131
A. Pnomos. London : Emily Faithfull and Co.

This beautiful volume conies before the public
with peculiar claims for a respectful reception. It
is not only published but is printed by Emily
Faithful! and Co., and this firm simply represents
the society for the employment of women. If the
volume before us be a specimen of women's work it
is an unquestionable proof of their ability to com-
pete with men in the work of the press, for a more
correct or elegant specimen of typography it would
be difficult to tied. The contents are altogether
worthy of the care bestowed on the mechanical and
artistic portions of the book. They range "from
grave to gay, from lively to severe," and are all
written expressly for this work by the chief leaders
and favourites of the literary public.

Trawls in the holy Land. By FiIDILIKA Banana.
Translated by Maur Howrre Two vole. Lon-
don: Hurst and Blackett.
This is a very fair and unprejudiced account of
the present condition of the Holy Land. MIMI
Bremer describes things as she found them, and
her descriptions, well translated by Mrslrit
are lively and picturesque. The work is pervaded
by a devout thoughtfulness, which discover§ sacred
meanings in the varied aspects of nature, and the
phenomena of the different seasons This was to
be expected from the motive which urged Miss
Bremer to visit the oast—an undefinable impulse,
for which she could not account, but which she
was unable to resist, to look upuu the cradle of
true civilisation, to become absorbed in the divine
memories that cling sound the ragged bills
and barren plains of Palestine, and on
the very scene where the greatest and most
fruitful of events occurred to give berma up "to
a steadfast longing and love." Under the Memos
of this passion Mimi Bremer becomes occasimedly
transcendental, and indulges more in exalted senti-
ment than the naked facts of her diary would seem
to warrant. Is some owe sbe advances opinions
which will give offense to soliormisded orthodoxy,
as where, about the close of the first volume, :he re-
fuses her faith to any miracle which does nut ap-
prove itself to what she calls her " rational con-
sciousness," however well attested the facia may be.
This statement she makes absolutely, as indeed
she does all her other statements of belief and opi-
MOO. fibs asks no one to join her, blames no one
for differing from her, but takes all the responsibi-
lity of the matter upon herself. This is so far
booest, but when we consider the Maumee which
Miss Bremer's example is likely to have
upon others, we are entitled to ask her
what she means by this " rational conscioasoms"
which ale este up as Os arbstica of faith I what
tivatatm it requires before it is quail-
tr: of ad
sit in judgment upon all facts beyond the
&winos of sense 1 and what amount of rational
evilness it is able to meet before it becomes itself
irrational in its resistanou Passing from neatens
of opinion, mid the speculative ecstasies into which
our author frequently falls, we can speak with un-
reserved conunaudation of her pictures of life and
manners in the several countries through which she
paimed ; they are all excellently dune, and prove
that the keen glance sod light touch which chars°.
tensed her tint works are still unimpaired.

The following new editions of well-known works
have been sent to us —Brie ; or, Little by Little
(AJam and Charles Black). We ars glad to par-
ents that this excellent boy's book has reached a
fifth edition. Household Edtwatiow, by Harriet
Martineau (Smith, Eder, and Co.) A new edition
printed on large paper, with • bold slew type.
Witch Stories, collected by E. Lynn Linton (Chap-
man and Hall). An exhaustive chronicle of witches,
witchcraft, sad witch-finders iu England and Scot-
ism!, selected with great care cud amply verified.
Lord the Widower, by W. M. Thackeray (Smith,
Elder, and Co.) An illustrated cheap edition.
The lour Georges, by W. M. Thackeray (Smith,
Miler, and Co.), with illustrations. Lweinio, by
the author of " Loma) Denote (Smith, Sider
and Cu.) A cheap edition. A new and bandeau:
edition ul Tom Crimples Log, salt and breezy
(Blackwood.) Uuderoiti London, by John
Idolliugsbend (Cruonidge and Sous). A con-
siderable portion of this work appeared in AU
Vis r Bowel, but the whole has been care-
fully rewritkti, cud tested by reference to the
highest authorities. In its present form this book
coutious the must complete and accurate account
ever published of that ustouishing subterranean
organization to which we are indebted for health,
and some of the chief comfort, of life in the great
metroplis. Rough Diarieowds, by John Hollings-
head (Saiiipeou lAm Son, and Co.) A bcautilull,
bound and illustrated edition of Mr. Hollingehaid s
clever and amusing tales of humble life. They ap-
pear now for the first time iu a collected form, and
well stutain the author's reputation.

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