The Sun.
London, England, 1855-06-21 00:00:00

Living for Appearances. A Tale.. By the Brothers

Mayhevt. James Blackwood.
The merest trifle as a story—one scarcely re-
deemed from the rank of the utterly frivolous and
wholly nonsensical by the laudable purpose in
which it seems to have originated. That of illus-
trating in the persons of Mr. and Mrs. Wellesley
Nicholls, the folly of that horridly genteel, or, in
other words, that simply and atrociously vulgar sys-
tem of living for appearances. The book is altoge-
ther just one of those gaudy little cheap railway vo-
lumes that can be turned over carelessly in the corner
of a first or second class carriage and read from
title-page to finis between starting upon a brief
journey and arriving at its termination. For the
story itself the reader is indebted to Hvary and
Horace Mayhew—gemini, having a faint resem-
blance by their fraternal co-operation in literature
to the James and Horace Smith of the last genera-
tion. The illustrator of the volume is the indus-
trious W. M'Connell, who, if we recollect rightly,
made his original appearance as a comic
draughtsman in the pages of the defunct
Diogenes. Hardly half a dozen characters are
introduced in the course of the narrative—
scarcely more, in fact, than make their appearance
before the footlights in a farce or a vaudeville. The
exceedingly mean and contemptible Mr. Wellesley
Nicholls must be accepted, we suppose, as the hero
of the piece, the role of heroine being that accorded
to his empty-headed wife Sarah. The only tolerable
persons appearing before us in this tale of make-shift
and swindling being low but honestßuebenMarsh,
of Farnham, Surrey—and that bluff farmer's wife,
Molly. Between these contrasting pairs the balls
of squabble and deception are kept up, while the
London couple are running into allmiaunnereorfac.lebts,
for diamonds, and a brougham, and an
r op box
and a west-end house, and tawdry
n itu
furniture-,
eaanrd,
mtheerelilkyelievxintrgaviangafnaccte:
extravagances,
urs to fivet
hundredlast ,
for appear-
ances. Until the inevitable smash comes at length
after the gauntlet has been duly run between an
avenue of duns, and bill discounters, and pawn-
brokers—until the spunging_i,
through, and the Insolvent Debtors' af....eha scteirtnpast
e
ser
d-

wards in like manner, the— victim receiving in tl4s
latter a splash of whitewash and a severe reprimand
from the Commissioner. Common-place and trivial
though the story is in itself, its purpose is, never-
theless, humane enough to admit of a passing word
by way of commendation.

A Memoir of the Rev. Sydney Smith. By his
Daughter, Lady Holland. Longman,
Brown,
Green, and Longmans.'
Nothing can be more refreshing in these days of
Pharisaism and cant than the perusal of a work like
this. It is like leaving the enervating air of the
city to breathe the pure mountain breeze, and
luxuriate among the sturdy beauties of nature.
The book is quite a godsend. Under any circum-
stances the memoirs of a wit and humourist must
be sadly mismanaged if they du not insure some
pages of pleasant reading ; but when the wit and
humour (of the first water) have been allied to
vigour and determination, and employed with ex-
traordinary success in trying times in the cause of
liberty and truth, the reading may be expected to
be instructive and health-inspiring also, and such
is-the. case in the work before us. Sydney Smith
was no ordinary wit and humourist, and rarely has
there been a more practical and fearless philan-
thropist ; and his memoirs, therefore, judiciously
andprepared
instruct
ua
cs they
are by filial piety, not only amuse
of the duties of life. The cheery manliness, vigorous
t, but also brace you for the discharge
logic, and merry wisdom of the man outlive the
noble deeds they so materially aided in achieving.
The advocate of the removal of religious and civil
disabilities has left behind him an arsenal of effec-
tive weapons against bigotry and intolerance.
Re has done more—he has demonstrated that a
hatred of cant and Pharisaism is compatible with a
real piety and an active benevolence. Though the
sacred office was none of his seeking, and not the
stostwtnhatht
actohueldsehtaavbeobueteannsdelpeecrtesedvfebrredhiimn
the,w d
we are
Charge of its duties with conscientious fidelity. To
his whimsical railing
opposed his services in the
ration and his love of peacecio
against
wit seems to verge Highest uawsnaeDdr tdo. swfss ehrnteehtnl eei
grhsi
iosmusma y
unbecom-
ing, tolerrbye
it should not be forgotten how native
to the man was this effervescence, and how
it sparkled with wisdom. To those whose
qualities as a
can receivers little
admiration of his high and sterling
public man, whose heart was ever " outbu
with a love of justice and truth,"
if any accession ; but who were unacquainted with
his private character, the picture presented of him
in his social and domestic relations will be deeply
gratifying. The life of the domestic circle—.ever
mindful of " the rights and feelings" of those
around him—and the model adviser, doctor (!), and
friend of his poorer parishioners—we find him in
every capacity doing his utmost to spread happi-
ness around him. In short, we have a picture of
a parson Fielding would have delighted to por-
tray—so much kindness and simplicity was mingled
with his shrewd sense, and, in the best sense, prac-
tical wit. The first volume is devoted to his me-
moirs, and the second, edited by Mrs. Austin, to
his correspondence (with many of the most distin-
guished public characters of the day, as well as his
relatives and friends). Like Lady Holland, Mrs.
Austin appears to have made a skilful as well as a
conscientious use of the materials in hand, and
pays a cheerful and respectful tribute to his
memory.

A School Atlas of Astronomy. By Alex. Keith
Johnston, F.R.S.E., &c. William Blackwood.
and Sons.

An atlas of the heavenly bodies, combining
" elementary facts with scientific precision," has
long been a desideratum, and this is supplied in an
admirable manner in the present work. It com-
prises, in eighteen beautifullyengraved and coloured
plates, a complete series of illustrations of the
heavenly bodies, drawn, we are assured, with the
greatest care from original and authentic docu-
ments, under the superintendence of Mr. Hind,
the eminent astronomer, who edits the entire
work. In the concluding six maps the position of
every star has been calculated, and its place pro-
jected from the catalogue of 1850, prepared under
the direction of the British Association for the
Advancement of Science. Besides this there are
other, and hardly less convincing, proofs of the
care and labour with which the Atlas has been got
up. It is uniform in size and style with Mr.
Jslinston's well-known series of elementary At-
lases, the value of which it will greatly increase.
Not only is it adapted for beginners, but it will
also prove useful to adepts in the science.