The Sun.
London, England, 1864-10-03 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

Charles Dickens's New Serial Story.
Our Mutual Friend. By Charles Dickens. No. Vl'
Several new characters are introduced to Our
notice in this latest instalment of " Our Mutual
Friend"—one or two among them decided originals'
And foremost among these ought at once to be
particularised a little creature destined, or we are
very much mistaken, to lod embalmed with tears
of love atno g our tenderest recollections. A child
—a dwarf—a girl—a something—a tiny, weakly
being, at once graceful and grotesque, pathetic and
ridiculous—Fanny Cleaver baptismally—MiseJenni
Wren according to her own whimsical choice Of
a soubriquet—The Person of the House in a
social point of view— a Doll's Dressmaker'
when defined commercially or professionally'.
The interview between her and her old drunken
father is, in several particulars—as where "the
swollen lead-coloured under-lip trembled with 3
shameful whine'.—something very strange and
wonderful of its kind. We know not whether to
think of this unnatural reversal of the relative
positions of the two, The Person of the House and
The B ad Child, with love or with loathing, with tender
pity or with actual disgust. Another new character
admirably well defined, even in throw first fevi
touches, is—the schoolmaster, Bradley Headstone.
The description of the Toy Neighbourhood, by the
way, where his school stands, is justinimitable
one of those rapidly-pencilled B z vignettes that
are m .rvels of realistic wordnpainting-. A Toy Neigh'
bourhood, it looked like, we are told, as if it had bees
taken in blocks out of a box by a child of a partien‘
larly incoherent mind and set up anyhow. The last
chapter in the number is, after all, however, the
chapter in it. A Piece of Work it is called—the
:aid piece of work being an exquisitely humorous
and covertly satirical account of the manner
in which Veneering obtains a seat in Parliament'
rho comicality of the whole of this description 1°
something delightful. The legal gentleman 111
Britannia's confidence—the way in which both
Veneering and Mrs. Veneering acknowledge to
each other " we must work," each thereupon setting
to work aceordingly—Twemlow's energetic do-nog
thing co-operation at the clu'i Lady Tippins s
resolute determination to assist in bringing hi°.
(Veneering) in for Pocket Breaches —Podsnap
eminently practical suggestion of their all dining
together at Venecriug's (all those friends of hie,
that is to say, that are rallying, rearing, roaring,
reeling rarullarulling round him) their all
dining thus together at Veneering's for the pa*
pose of reporting progress and comparing notes-4"
above all the extraordinary assiduity and devotional
z.!ai in Veneering'a behalf, evidenced by
Boots and Brewer in taking cabs and
going about—every minute touch, here, as we
read on, is a fresh provocative to laughter.
Pre-eminent among these exquisite touches of
humour being three so rare and irresistible in their
way as to require their being thus separately peel.,
ealarised. Firstly—Brewer's master-stroke at the
close of Veneering's luxurious dinner, namely,
his notion of hurrying down to the
House to see how things are looking.
Secondly the Analytical's diabolical impulse
to suggest that Baby's dream of the Fairies Wee
attributable to " Wind"—throwing up his situa-
ticn upon the spot while suggesting it. Thirdly'
and lastly, Twemlow's ejaculatory moan, in a sort
of despairing collapse, in reference to Veneering.'
" I shall either go distracted, or die, of this wan'
He comes upon me too late in life. lam n°4
strong enough to bear him ! "—with which the
number closes delightfully.

The Warriors of our Wooden Walls and their
Victories. By L. Bradshaw Walker. One Vol',

pp. 296. Second E lition. Aylett and Sun.

A glorious boy's book—full of chivalric anecdotes,
hairbreadth 'scopes, and perillous adventures. Tae
gift-book of gift-books for any young reefer why
has j'tst had tacked on to his uniform jacket that
gold-lace promise of the sea-ciptain's epaulette
yclept, in maritime slang, the midshipman's curse.
Here, in these brief, but sufficient records of the
deeds of " derring do" (and " done," shall we say ?)
the intending emulator of the old dead and gone
Sea Lions of England may read about such match.,
less feats of arms (achieved upon the great deep) e°
lend all the fascination of romance to the personal
histories of heroes like Horatio Nelson and Cuthbert
Collingwocd, Sir Francis Drake and Sir Philip
Broke, Lord Exmouth and Lord Dandonald. It is
impossible to turn the pages of this enthralling little
volume without feeling one's heroic sympathies and
patriotic ardour exalt_d and intensified.

Can You Forgive her ? By Anthony Trollope•

No. X.

Half of Mr Anthony Trollope's lively task is done,
in the way of propounding this still rather pro-
blematic question to his multitude of readers. Before
the close (in this tenth number of his current serial
tale) of the first of the two volumes, into which it iS
divided, our author tells us that, so far as he him'
self is concerned, he has already forgiven her ! Not
so, however—we are perfectly well satisfied of thia
—not so, in the least, has it yet come to be with an/
one of Mr Trollope's readers in the present instance•
Not only have we not yet forgiven her, but we can't,
for the life of us, imagine the probability, hardly'
we might even say, the possibility, of our forgiving
her (Alice Vavasour, that is) in the hereafter. TO
plot, so far, is simply odious—and the characters one
and all are very nearly detestable. The only cha-
racter in any way really worthy or meritorious,
meaning John Gray of Nethercoats, is at the best,
after all, a very slow and a somewhat spoon/
character indeed. The rest of the people
in the tale, alike male and female, are—(w°
must needs reiterate the words with a sort of
emphasis of indignation), nearly detestable. Lad/
Glencora is not as yet quite lost—her husband's
Mr Palliser's forehead is not as yet fully adorned'
Goorge Vavasour has not as yet revealed himself
to be completely and undeniably a mean and sordid
scoundrel—and so forth with all the rest of them•
Bat these extremest degradations and debasement°
are (before half the book is done) all but accomplished*
le the present number, particularly towards the
close of it, there i 3 a good deal of coarse fua in the
rival wooing of Mr. Cnceiacro and Captain Bellfieldt
the Widow Greenow playing fast and loose with
them most amusingly.

POMPEY'S HEAD —The remains of the head of
Pompey, the aboriginal who was lately shot by Mr
Stuckey, in the far north, have been placed in the South
Australian Institute for the inspection of students in etlallo:
logy and others interested in the history of this aboriginal
celebrity, the only regular South Australian bushranger.-4

South .Australian Register.
CRYSTAL PALACE.—The illumination of the great
centre basin during the playing of the fountains will be r -
,)eated this evening at 7 u'elock,accompanied by batteries of
shells and Roman candles, and concluding
of rockets, with a flight of