The Sun.
London, England, 1852-06-29 00:00:00

T E

. LITERATURE.
Ai °DERN POETS AND POETRY OF
SPAIN. By James Kennedy, Esq. Long mans. -
Those interested in tine psi-us:A of foreign llri-ature,
if unacquainted v.,ith the language, Nvill find thi,.
work a greet acquisition, while those who regard it
as an English col3position will find cause to thank
Mr. Kennedy for some very pleasing and superior
verses. He has select,d (,)f the principal
Spanish poets from 1744 to 1817, and has given
short sketches of their lives, and translations of some
of their writings. In the introduction he observes
that.

" Those writers are very much mistaken who suppose
that consequent upon the long domination of the Moors
in Sp in there are to be found in Spanish literature any
of the exuberances of style which are considered th©
i principal characteristics of eastern poetry. In all the
Moorish ballads that are hand, d down •to us those cha-
racteristics, hoth in thought and expression, abound as
much as in the poems of wore eastern nations. But in
even the earliest Spanish ballas, contemporary with
the Moorish, a very derided riff renew is to be observed,
as they show, on the contrary, a simplicity of expres-
sion and-propriety of thought which prevent an extraor-
dinary contrast not only
the early poctry otherto the Moorish, but Ulse to
European eountries.- This
favourable distinction has continued to the preSent day.
The poetry of the northern nations of Etirope has been
marked by extravagances thl'oug-hour as contrary to
common sense as to good taste and nature. That of the
French school has been -distinguished by en affectation,
a sentimentality, and straining after effect, all equally
removed from the true feeling of poetry. Even the
Italians in their poetical works have indulged in strange
absurdities, the more remerk%ble froin the geed taste
that has pervaded their other woilts of gensuS. It is;.
only in English literature that we can find writers: im-
bued with the same vigour of thought. and..-depth of
poetic feeling as the Spanish, and it is .therefore only
with thorn that the latter can be classed in considering
the relative merits of the poetry of chif,3rent nations."
The reader of this volume will doubtless agree with.,
these remarks, as many of the poems are remarkable-
for a stateliness and dignity of style which .are well
suited to their subjects. Some of the shorter pieces of
Martinez tie la Rosa must, however, be excepted, and
the only specimens given of the writings of the Duke
de Rivas. These are chiefly remarkable for an
easy and graceful measure. The author notices a
peculiarity in Spanish literature which is somewhat
singular:—

"While in other countries the poets were generally
to Ire found among the classes dependent on the rich and
powerful, in Spain they were persons generally of the
highest climes. Some were of royal rank, others were
eminent as statesmen, and others, if not of the same
high station, were yet equally engaged in military ser-
vice or the active business of life. Three of the most

favourite poets, Garcilasso de la Vega, Maurique, and
Cadahalso, died the death of soldiers from wounds re-
ceived in warfare. Ercilla, author of the chief poem in
the Spanish language, which may be considered an epic,
was a participant in the wars be so graphically describes.
Cervantes' received three wounds at the bathe of Le-
panto, by one of which he lost an arm. Calderon de la
Bares pasged many years of his life in the campaigns in
the Low Countries, where he gained great military re-
putation, and Lope de Vega was one of the few adven-
turers in the ' Invincible Armada' who were fortunate
enough to return to their native c ,untry. Such men
were not likely to indulge in dreamy idealities or idle
reveries. On the contrary, they were only calculated to
adopt that peculiar manliness of style and sentiment
which their successors from example, from national
character, and from being placed in similar circum-
stances of life, have continued."

In the introduction, from which these remarks are
quoted, the author gives a slight account of five other
writers and a preliminary non on Spanish pronun-
ciation will be found of great assistance to the stu-
dent. Those who are not students will find this in-
teresting work a great advantage as treating of a
literature but little known in this country in a very
attractive manner. The following is from the epistle
of Tomas de Iriarte to his brother on his travelling
to various countries :

" You, who' forgetful of this coast, now seek
Those of the east and north to contemplate,
Forgive me, if iarenvy I may spedi,
Thlt to indulge it has &lowed you fate
The tasteful curiosity! to view
With joy the land so famed and fortunate,
Which erst a Tully and a Mare knew
To which Rmilius, Marius service paid,
Which Regulus and the Scipios obeyed.
Long would it be and idle to recall
The triumphe, with their blazonries unfurl'd
Matchless of her, that once of Europe all
Was greater part, metropolis of the work',
I only ask of you, as you may read,
How in Avernus, destined to succeed,
Anchises shoiv'd Zneas in long line •
The illustrious shades of those, who were to shine
One day the glory of the Italian shore,
Now you, more favour'd than the Trojan chief,
Not in vain prophecy but tried belief,
From what you see, by aid of history's lore
To admire the lofty state which Rome possess'd
The which her ruins and rernriins attest."

A JOURXEY 10 NEPAUL.-11.1urray's Rail.

way Reading.
This is a journey to Katmandu (the capital of Ne,
paul) with the camp of Jung Bahadoor,, the am-
bassador who visited this country last year, with a
sketch of his career and his policy. It also contains
a description of the country, the inhabitants, their
distinguishing features, the temples, the scenery, and
the various adventures of the journey. So much
entertainment in so small a compass may well autho-
rise the hope of the writer, who trusts from the in-
terest "which was manifested in the Nepaulese
embassy during the short residence of Jung 'Baba-
door in England, that a description of the romantic
country and independent court, which he came to
represent, may be acceptable to the English public."

MODERN GEOGRAPHY SIMPLIFIED.

Simms and 111.1ntyre.
This is a second and revised edition of a new and
simple arrangement of modern geography, chiefly for
the use of beginners. Notices of European discovery
and sketches of the ruins of ancient cities are added.
There is also an account of the commercial products
of various countries, and a pronouncing vocabulary.

RESEARCHES IN THE SOLAR REALM.
By W. M. Higgins Hall. Virtue and Co.
This little work treats of the situation of the earth,
the laws of the solar realm, the orbits, motions, and
physical conditions of the superior and inferior
planets, and the constitution and orbits of the cometary
bodies. It is well suited to the scientific and philo.
phical, and not less so to the student of astronomy. It
contains an illustration of Halley's comet, as seen by
Struve Oct. 12, 1835.

•
HISTORY OF FRANCE. John Cassell.
This work contains three volumes in one, and is a
history of France from the earliest period to the pre-
bprit time. It is illustrated with portraits of the
Kings and rulers of France, from Plaaramond, in the
fifth century, to Louis Napoleon, the ruler of the pre-
sent day. It is, therefore, complete in its outlines,
and, though small and concise, it is not less so in its
details.

THE GIPSY'S DAUGHTER. 2 Vols. Newby.
This is a very romantic tale, inched, to many it
will doubtless seem an improbable one, but the people
it concerns are, above all others, mysterious in their
life and manners. Sibyl, the heroine, has many
strange vicissitudes in her career, and finally ends her
existence as she commenced it, in a gipsy tent. In the
interval she passes many years in Spain the wife of a
proud grandee of its haughty nobility. He dies sud-
denly, and she abandons her elegant house, her hirge
fortune, and influential friends to return to the dells
and dingles, the woods and wilds of her gipsy race,
and her early home.