The Sun.
London, England, 1839-01-04 00:00:00

THE DUBLIN UNIVERSITY MAGAZINE.

This is an excellent Number of one of the most spirited
of our monthly periodicals. The " Anthologia Germanica"
would of itself relieve from a charge of dulness, the dullest
of our quarterlies. The translation of Gellert's piquant
tales and amusing fables convey to the reader all the fresh-
ness—all the point of the originals. Take the following as
an example :

A father had two sons,—the one called Will
The other Christy,—this a bright young lad,
And that a humdrum. The good man fell
And, finding himself getting very bad,
Stretched on the bed of death, be glanced with misty
Regards about the room in quest of Christy.
" My son," he said, " sad thoughts begin to darken
My mind. You are a genius. What a task it
Will be for you to face the world But, hearken!
Inside my desk there lies a little casket
Of jewels. Take them all, my son,
And lock them up, and give your brother none."
The youth was wonderstruck. He thought this droll,
And, looking in his father's face, he said,
" But, bless me, father I—if I take the whole
What. is poor Will to do ? I greatly dread--"
" Dread nothing, Christy," interrupted t'other ;
" There's not the slightest ground for this timidity ;
I'll warrant you your booby of a brother
Will make his way through life by sheer stupidity l"
There is a sound philosopher for you! Dullness any day
against the most fearful odds in the shape of goods, chattels,
dividends, and hard cash ! Your dullard is the fellow to
make his way through the world with every prospect of re-
tiring at sixty after amassing wealth sufficient to purchase
an estate. We never despair of the success of any man in
any business if he be dull enough. All failures are the re-
sult of some unlucky non-obtuseness of intellect. " Francesca
da Rimini' is a translation of some of the most beautiful
passages in one of Silvio Pellico's Tragedies, by one who
felt their force, and well understood the art of communi-.
eating his impressions to others. The " Victim of Illicit
Distillation" is a heart-stirring tale of every-day life in the
remote districts in the North of Ireland. With the poli-
tical diatribes indulged in by the contributors to this pe-
riodical, we shall not trouble our readers, except to say that
they are cleverly written. Orangeism has not a more able
organ.

ALEXANDER'S EAST INDIA MAGAZINE.
This is but an indifferent Number. Some of the articles
are merely reprints from other Journals, and those that
claim originality are only so in name. This is the more
extraordinary, as this periodical is generally conducted with
care and talent.

HEADS OF THE PEOPLE.
The present Part, which is the third, of this lively
miscellany, contains four sketches—one of " The Spoiled
Child ;" another, of the " Old Lord ;" a third, of the
" Parish Beadle ;" and the fourth, of the " Linen-draper's
Assistant?' Etch of these is smartly and aptly hit off,
especially the first, through which runs a vein of most
amusing comic humour. In the sketch entitled the " Old
Lord," wherein certain aristocratic foibles are glanced at
in a good-humoured spirit, the writer who signs himself
" Echion," relates a curious anecdote—which he vouches
for as true—of the conduct of a noble patron of the Fine
Arts towards Sir Joshua Reynolds :
" The Duke was one day in the painting-room of Sir Joshua
Reynolds, talking in warm terms of a picture which he called
a Titian. The President of the Royal Academy quietly said,
he had seen the picture, and did not think that it was by
Titian. flow, Sir !' cried his Grace, do you mean to say
that picture is not genuine ?" You may depend upon it., my
Lord,' replied Sir Joshua, never saw it.' The 'Duke's
countenance reddened beneath his powdered wig, as he pas-
sionately vociferated, at the same time shaking his clouded
cane over the President's head, ' Do you dare, Sir, to dispute
with me on the merits of a picture ?' We would have given
tomething to have seen Sir Joshua's expression at that moment
What the sensitive mind of a man of genius would feel, we
can conceive ; but whatever the tumult of his thoughts, all
that happened was, that he shifted his trumpet and only took
snuff.' Reynolds, however, felt the insult keenly, and ap.
pealed to Burke and Johnson, asking their advice under the
circumstances. Pooh. pooh,' said Johnson, you must take
no notice of it I you live by these people.'"
The " Par:sh-Beadle" is a pleasant portrait by Corne-
lius Webbe, of which we should have thought still more
highly, if we had not a vivid recollection of Boz't masterly
sketch of Mr. Bumble. The embellishments to this Part
will add greatly to its popularity.

LOND ON AND EDIiVBUttGK FILM 0 S OPIIL,
GAL MAGAZINE.
Taylor, Red Lion-court.
This Magazine sustains, i❑ the present number, the high
character which it has obtained as a journal of science.
The reader will find, besides the articles purely scientific
and original, a fund of miscellaneous information extracted
from the transactions of the Royal and other Societies, both
British and Foreign.

THE CONGREGATIONAL MAGAZINE.
Jackson and Tirafford.
From the " Analytical and Historical Notices of Church
Accommodation in the Metropolis," it appears that there
are, within the limits of the cities of London and West-
minster, and the boroughs of Marylebone, Finsbury, Tower
Hamlets, Southwark, and Lambeth, 115 parish churches,
with 76 chapels of case, and 64 private chapels, all in com-
munion with the Church of England ; 116 independent
churches ; 83 belonging to the Baptists ; 12 Presby-
terian churches ; 10 Unitarian ; 60 Wesleyan Me-
thodist chapels ; 9 Calvinistic Methodist ychapels ;
places of meeting belonging to the Society of Friends ;
10 foreign chapels ; 13 Roman Catholic chapels ; 8 Jew-
ish synagogues ; and 43 places of miscellaneous worship_
Within the city of London there is church accommodation
for 18,083 additional inhabitants ; but taking the whole of
the metropolis the deficiency of sittings is calculate, at
243,475. Many of these notices are exceedingly curi-
ous ; and the whole article will interest the religious por-
tion of the community. The Memoir of the Rev. Dr.
Humphrys abounds in religious gossip ; but as we
never indulge in the expression of opinions 'decisive of the
merits of points of disputed theology, we shall rest satisfied
with observing that it will afford much satisfaction to that
large class of Dissenters, of whose religious convictions this
periodical is the able advocate and representative.

THE FREEMASONS' QUARTERLY REVIEW.

Sherwood and Co.

We congratulate the Masonic brethren, whose literary
labours enrich the pages of this most mystical of Quarterlies,
on the degree of general interest with which they con-
tinue to invest subjects upon which it is not allowed them to
gratify public curiosity. By exhibiting as they have
done the mutual advantages to men in every rank
of life of the Masonic Institution--by showing th 4,
whatever be its secrets, its objects are benevolent ;
they have directed an attention to it which will
operate beneficially upon the whole Masonic body.
The articles are numerous, and what is better still, are
designed rather to instruct, edify, and amuse, tly.in to per-
plex or mystify. The scholar and the philosopher will
both find much to interest them in an ae.iele entitled,
"On Freemasonry" in the present Number. " On Mys-
tic and Cabalistic Numbers," is another, paper not. less
curious. The verse and anecdote contributions are nu-
merous, and as love is, for the most part, the subject of
them, they ilia be sure to meet. with abundance of fair
admirers.

LIBRARY of EN7'ERTAINING KNOWLEDGE•

Vol. 111.

C. Knight, London, 1838.

- -
The present volume of this miscellany is the first of a
Natural History of Monkeys, Opossums, and Lemurs,.
which, it seems, will be completed in another volume. It
is written in a very popular spirit, is enlivened with several
amusing characteristic anecdotes, chiefly regarding the
baboon tribe, and is embellished with wood-cuts.

THE ANTEDILUVIANS.
, Cradock London, 1838.
_ _

The author of this poem, Dr. M'Henry, should have
applied his poetical talents, which are far fro..n inconsider-
able, to some more attractive and popular theme than the
Sayings and Doings of the Antediluvian V'orld, in which no
genius short of Milton's could ever e'.lable us to take in-
terest. This is the besetting defrect of the poem, which
otherwise, is a very meritorious r:;roduction, penned in flow-
ing and harmonious blank ver.se, and replete with manly
and dignified sentiments.. The most spirited portion
of it is the description Di' the great Deluge, as viewed by
Noah and his family from their protecting ark.

---
LIRE'S DICTIONARY OF ARTS.
Wo are glad to learn that this work is successful, for it
deserves an extended popularity, compressing an immense
amount of solid practical knowledge, on all useful and
worldly matters, in the smallest possible compass that is
compatible with clearness and distinctness. Dr. Ure is the
Editor, and is every way fitted to do good service to the
work entrusted to his superintendence.

SPORTING MAGAZINE.—SPORTSMAN.
Magazines exclusively devoted to a recapitulation of the
field sports of the month, and well adapted to secure the
suffrages of the numerous class of readers to whom they
appeal. Each is embellished with appropriate plates.

PIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

The arrest of Mr. Stephens continues to be the promi-
nent topic of the day. Meetings have taken place in Lan-
cashire and Yorkshire, as our columns will show, where
the strongest feeling has been exhibited by large masses in
favour of the Rev. Gentleman, and in condemnation of the
Government, by which those extreme proceedings have
been instituted. The Whigs are furious for the vindica-
tion of the law, and not the less furious because they see in

the breach it—supposing a breach to have been committed
—the consequence of tl.e example which they had set them-
selves, the practical commentary on their own approved
and adopted system while it served their purposes. One
of the difficulties in which they are plunged at the

present moment arises from this circumstance—that the na-
tural sense of justice is outraged in every breast at seeing the
same set of men adopting a certain course at one period,
and denouncing and prosecuting it at another. How far
this feeling may operate upon the decisions of juries it is
impossible to say, but no Government acts a wise part
which aggravates its own difficulties by exhibiting such
gross inconsistency as that to which we have alluded.
It is quite obvious, from what has taken place since the
arrest of Mr. Stephens, that the popular feeling in the two
counties we have mentioned is strongly in his favour. The
source of this feeling is not obscure. It proceeds partly from
the disgust at the position in which the present Ministers
have placed themselves, by undertaking, or at least attempt-
ing, to punish what they once encouraged. They cannot
go into court with clean hands. But, perhaps, the chief
cause of the present excitement will be found to exist
in the general odium in which the new Poor-law is held.
With such topics as the enactments of that obnoxious
law furnish to those who are capable of feeling for the mi-
series of their fellow-creatures, no language can be too
strong for popular sympathy and support. We do not
justify the use of violent appeals, which, pushed to their
issue, lead to bloodshed, but we deprecate the policy which,
in adopting inhuman measures, deprives itself of the respect
to which Government as a means of happiness is entitled,
arms the best instincts of human nature with a spirit of re-
sistance, and operates to a certain extent in reconciling
men's minds to a tone of language which, under other cir-
cumstances, would be. universally condemned. Of course
we do not presume to prejudge the case of Mr. Stephens
by imputing to his speeches the character here described ;
but so long as laws exist which violate the social feelings of
the community, so long will violent agitators be found, and
people to listen to them with applause.—Morning Herald.
The accounts received last night from Manchester re-
present the manufacturing districts of Lancashire as being
in a state of the greatest excitement, in consequence of the
arrest of Mr. Stephens. We expressed, by implication, our
doubts of the policy of arresting that gentleman, on the
day on which intelligence of his arrest reached London.
Subsequent events have shown that our doubts were but
too well-grounded ; and Ministers themselves must ere
this be convinced—at any rate every one else is—that
they could not have advised or given their sanction to a
more impolitic step. We have no sympathy with the phy-
sical-force men. No journal has more unsparingly or more
requently denounced that party than the Morning Ad-
vertiser. But Government ; ought to have recollected
that the advocates of physical force form but a mere
fraction of the Radicals ; and that consequently so far
frGm apprehending the commission of any serious out-
rage, either on person or property, there was a proba-
bility, Amounting to a moral certainty, that the violent
language which a few reckless demagogues were in the
habit of addressing to Radical assemblages would have
proved to have been so much sound and fury, signifying
oothing ; or, at all events, that it would have produced no
inizirious results. Nay, there was every reason to expect
that ,rest good would have ensued from allowing the
violent personages to whom we allude to go on in their
extravagant courses a little longer. There cannot be
a question that they were in a fair way to cure the very
evil which they had themselves created—to extinguish
the very disposition to resort to physieal force which
the, had themselves implanted in ',the bosoms of some
few hundreds of simple, unsuspecting men. They
were oe,erdoing the thing. They were, by their very ex-
cesses, caus:mg those who were formerly disposed to go to a
certain leegth with them, to desert them altogether. Did
not the Birminghaeo Radicals, at one of the largest meet-
ings ever held in that place, lately disclaim all community
of sentiment with the physical-force demagogues
_Have not all the Scotch Radicals done the same ? And
wer e not the great body of Radicals in every other part of
Ise country taking measures, when the unfortunate arrest
of Mr. Stephens took place, to proclaim to the world that
they would have nothing to do with the hot-headed
preachers of physical force ? Why, it is but a fortnight
since Mr. Lovett, the Secretary of the Working Men's
Association of London, denounced Mr. Feargus O'Connor
to his fade for incu;,,tating the doctrine of physical force ;
and Mr. Lovett, it is td be remembered, may be regarded
as the representative of the great majority of the Radicals,
not only in the metropolis, but throughout the country.
Had the physical-force orators been only suffered to go on
in their own way for a few weeks longer, they would have
;had no one to listen to their inflammatory harangues.
To have arrested Mr. Stephens, therefore, at the
present time, would, under any circumstances, have been
the most injudicious step which Government could have
adopted ; tinder existing circumstances such a step is doubly
impolitic. 'The price of bread is so high, and provisions of
all kinds are so dear, that the minds of the poorer classes
are necessarily in a more inflamed state than they would
ander other circumstances be. To have recourse, there-
fore, to any measure which, like the arrest of Mr. Stephens,
is so calculated to add to their disaffection, argues a want
of judgmenti on the part of the Government for which
we were not at all prepared. The rebellion of the
tally, as Lord Bacon says, is the worst of all rebellions,
With a factory population half-famish:d, owing to the
ceases already mentioned, any breach of the public peace is
espenially to be deprecated ; for were an outbreak once
begun, no can tell when or where the end would be, it is
currently reported that writs are issued for the arrest of
five others of the physical-force leaders. We adjure the
Government to recal these writs. They will, we suspect,
discover ere long—if they have not made the discovery al-
ready—that though only one of their writs has been carried
ink' effect, that one is one too many. If Government per-
sist in their intention of making more arrests, they will not
only be ..euilty of an act of the greatest imprudence, but they
will incur an amount of responsibility to their country
which it mig..ht well appal the strongest nerves to contem-
plate.—Morne:% Advertiser.
One of the melt opportune pamphlets ever offered to
public attention—." Corn-law Fallacies, with their Ans-
wers"—is now before us. As our readers, no doubt, are
already aware, it is from the able and independent author
of " Catechism on Corn-laws"—Colonel Thompson—and
amply meets the anticipations which that powerful and con-
vincing work was calculated to excite. The present
pamphlet, in fact, completely exhausts the subject, and leaves
not one of the numerous fallacies which a perverted and
mischievous ingenuity could devise, unexposed or unrefu-
ted. So thoroughly is every fallacy demolished, that we
consider it impossible for even the viciously fertile imagina-
tion of the rankest partisan of the landed aristocracy
to suppose a contingency, wherein the powerful and
pithy arguments of the pamphlet be not conclusive as '
to the evils which the country suffers from the present
monopoly of corn. In support of the assertion that the
pamphlet is most opportune in its publication, we need
merely c:;te the average price of corn for the last six weeks,
which was seventy-six shillings and one penny, and state, as
we have been informed by some of the oldest merchants in
London, the markets at the advanced prices have been
" more firm" than they were at any similar season for the
last twenty years. There is, too, every prospect of prices
still continuing to advance, so that unless prompt and deci-
sive measures be adopted on the assembling of Parliament,
we may expect the present political excitement to be aggra-
vated to an incalculable extent, by the stimulus—the most
irresistible of any—of hungry stomachs. As to the rumour
of the Bank contracting the currency, and thereby produc-
ing an apparent but deceptive reduction of prices, we at-
tach no credit to it ; for we cannot suppose any parties so
ignorant or depraved as to have recourse to such a measure
in the present crisis, when any check to employment—
aud a curtailed currency would necessarily limit the de-
mand for labour—must produce a terrific accession to the
:itnyending evil. Perfectly concurring as we do in most of
the arguments of Colonel Thompson, we must object to his
proposition of demanding retribution from the landed in-
terest, as being in the first place impracticable of attain-
ment ; and even if practicable, by gradually imposing a
duty on home-g:own corn, would utterly fail of its object
—as a compensation to the manufacturing classes. A
perpetual tax on rent is a more feasible proposition, and
one deserving of closes' consideration. The gallant and
highly-gifted author makel3 these propositions seemingly
with the view only of eliciting from 'endow ners their own
condemnation, by provoking then; to resist the adoption of
at system against themselves which they have so long prac-
tised against all the other classes of the community.
Wrongs, powever, should not be corrected
by the infliction
of wrongs ; and therefore we deprecate the
imposition of
a tax on home-grown corn as much as, and more even,
than we do that at present levied on foreign. Colonel
Thompson has probed the subject too profoundly in all its
depths not to be perfectly aware that any tax on agricul-
tural industry would place the country even in a more
false and ruinous position than it is at present placed by the
tax levied on the manufacturing classes for the benefit of
landowners. No exclusive tax on one for the supposed
advantage of the other can ever effect so much good for
that one or for the country at large as would flow to all
from the unrestricted action of each and reciprocity of
freedom. We shall take an early opportunity of giving
some extracts from the more striking and concentrated ay-