The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-24 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

Chesterford and Some of its People. By the Author
of " A Bad &ginning." Three Vols. Smith
and Elder.
Mr. John Parkholm, a barrister by profession,
but possessed of a small independence, who has
reached the shady side of thirty, with a strong pre-
judice in favour of bachelorhood, accepts au invita-
tion to visit Mr. Rivers, the rector of Chesterford.
To that delightful little town we also repair, not in
Mr. Parkhoire's company, but in the society of ilea
Harriet Thompson, the apparently cold and
scheming daughter of a would be first rate fashion-
able mamma. Ash Cottage is our destination, the
happy home of the very charming, but somewhat
espiegle and capricious, Katharine Lyndon and bee
very delightful mother. Miss Harriet Thompson,
anxious to meet with some soper-excellent parti,
and looking down upon her country cousin, Kathe-
rine, with supreme contempt, discovers, after
a very short residence at Chesterford, that she, the
cold and calculating Harriet, has lost her heart to
one far below her ambitious expectations, and that
the fortunate possessor of this treasure does not
covet the honour thrust upon him, but is desperately
in love with her despised cousin, the insignificant
Katherine. Toe sequel to such cross purposes we
shall not reveal. Some portions of the denouement
are very tenderly and beautifully described, espe-
cially the scene where Katherine goes to the par-
sonage and meets her lover, towards the close
of the story. But we cannot refrain from
uttering a passing protest against the pas'
sionate vehemence displayed by Harriet Thompson.
The emotions of any one of ordinarily calm and col-
lected exterior are, generally speaking, when
allowed to break forth more violent and irrepres-
sible ihan all others—the very force of the previous
restraint gives added violence to the outpouring,
but we do not think, even with these allowances,
that the conduct of Harriet is true tolnature. It is,
altogether, too unwomanly. Apart from this blemish
the different characters of the two cousins are well
contrasted and well developed as the mighty passion
affects the hearts and influences the actions of each.
Katherine is far from perfect. Her archness and
playfulness almost amount, in appearance at least,
to coquetry and captive, at all events they pass for
such in the severe eyes of the immaculate Mrs.
Thompson and her equally censorious daughter, the
jealous Harriet. Interwoven with Katherine's
story is the very interesting and melancholy episode
of the loves of Ned Alston, a fine, high-spirited,
qeneroue-hearted, young farmer of the neighbour-
hood, and Polly Peacock, the pretty daughter of
the Pompous Grocer of Chesterford, High-street.
This Titus Peacock is quite a character, and is in-
deed overwhelming We must confect; that,
unless, like Miss Debbie, we expressly went "forth
to battle," we should ourselves prefer passing on
the other side of the High-street. Even bene-
volent Severn Sparke, the chemist, the next-door
neighbour of the dreadful Peacock would not at-
tract us to the vicinity of that shop. Very high
are Mr. Peacock's ideas of the privileges of trade.
Let a customer presume to purchase a single article
elsewhere, and never more may they darken Mr•
Peacock's door. Never more will their money be
taken across his counter; never more may their
palates be feastea with the best bacon and butter of
411 Chesterford. Poor Mrs. Draper, who has unwit-
tingly erred, is nearly annihilated by the magnifi-
cent wrath of the offended grocer. Polly Pea-
cock, the golden-haired daughter of this
imperious potentate, is the beauty of the
town, but is, alas! also vain, aspiring, and coquet-
tish. Possessing the questionable advantages of a
genteel breeding, school education—a little French,
and a little pianoforte playing—the grocer's daugh-
ter aspires to be a lady, and listens to the compli-
ments of the flippant Mrs. Charles Chatterley, even
while her heart responds to honest Ned Alston's
true affection. The end of Polly's story is more
praiseworthy than at the commencement, and that
end is very naturally and forcibly told. Many a
home lesson is eloquently enforced by this
essentially dramatic novel. The married history of
Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlayne is a study worthy of
attentive observation by many misl;aken wives and
forgetful mothers. We quote from another chapter
the following beautiful and truthful remarks on
THE USE OF SUNSHINE.
" There are some people (why is it ? I do not know that
they are better than others—not so really good and self.-
denying perhaps as some whose grave faces and stiff man-
ners make them unwelcome visitants in a sick chamber)
who literally bear sunshine about with them ; they are
human sunbeams; in their pre,ence the whole being ex-
pands, the heart opens itself like a flower unfolding its petals
in the warm noon glow. We have no fear of a check of a
cloud-like frown, of a gloomy shower or nipping frost. We
seem to dispel ourselves in free, perfect happiness, with
these bright beings in the atmosphere that surrounds them.
If it is a part of our duty here to make each other's exist-
ence happier—and surely it is—we might find this a far
easier task, if, when we are not naturally gifted with their
sunshine, for it is mores natural gift than an acquired one,
we thought more about our atmosphere and its social influ-

ence."

Advice, this, which many of those " good and disa-
,greeable" people with whom the world ever abounds
would do well to take to heart ! From our own
experience of Chesterford Society, we can cordially
dvise our readers to follow our example and make
speedy acquaintance with Chestertord and itS
People.

Songs of Evening. By Cecilia Elizabeth Meet-
kerke. 12m0., pp. 132. L. Booth.

Altering but a very little the famous depreciatory
compliment addressed to Pope shortly after the
publication of his Homer, we may say to our
uthoress,and quite as truthfully—Very pretty verse,
indeed, but not poetry. Fortunately there is not
over much of it, even such as it is, as the mere
❑umber of the pages (given above) will testify.
Where are barely fitly pieces, in all, making up the
little volume, and those most of them of the
shortest. The titles of some among these,
moreover, will sufficiently indicate their
generic character. " Resignation " is one,
"Absence" another, a third is " Betrayed,"
a fourth "Penitence." From the which headings it
wilt not be difficult to see that that generic character
before alluded to is unmistakeably, and strictly, end
most drearily of the school of Namby Pamby. We
read on, trying to be pleased, but, for all that,
tail, to the very last, to be so.