The Sun.
London, England, 1849-10-29 00:00:00

TIIE QUARTERLIES.

THE WESTIIIINSTa REVIEW. No. CH.

.
Combined, as usual, with the Foreign Quarterly,
the Westminster for October makes a goodly appear-
ance, whether in the number, the variety, or the
average excellence of the contributions. Perhaps the
most important and valuable paper in the current
number of all the different quarterly periodicals is the
one contained in the present instalment of the -West-
minster, written by W. E. Hickson, on the great
question of "Population." We shall take an oppor-
tunity of referring elsewhere to this able disquisition
on the theories of Malthus, of Mill, and of Doubleday
—a disquisition which is ingeniously divided into the
consideration successively of Redundant Popula-
tions, of the Decay of Ancient Populations, of the
Laws of Population, and of the Ratios of
Population and Capital. The writer betrays
an intimate knowledge of the details of his subject,
a subject at once profound aril intricate; and he
shows very clearly that he has not put pen to paper
until his ideas had been ripened into consistency. The
opening article in the Westminster is a companion
paper to the one just mentioned, being a discursive,
but acute and agreeable, essay on Human Progress.
Those who are not faaliliar with the background of
French literature, will derive considerable entertain-

ment, and no little instruction, from the amusing
analysis of " Jasmin." It is somewhat horrifying
to learn, from the paper entitled " A Word or
two on Port Wine," that a large quantity of that
beverage in this country is nothing less than a
compound of elder. berries, treacle, and bad brandy.
We commend the matter to the serious consideration
of all the victims of dyspepsia. The " German Philo-
sophers on the Soul" have furnished another contri-
butor with a theme of enthralling interest, to which
he has laudably endeavoured to do justice. Two
other estimable contributions relate, one to the " State
of the Nation," the other to the " Extinction of
Slavery," one of a prospective and the other of a
retrospective character. " Loans and Standing Ar-
maments" is an argument, as may be conjectured,
originated by the bold proposal of Mr. Richard
Cobden, to prevent the recurrence of war henceforth
by stopping all loans, and thus leading ultimately to
the disbandment of the present standing armaments.
From a brief, but noble-spirited paper on Louis
Kossuth, we transcribe the following brilliant sketch
of the great Hungarian Liberator, from the pen of
the celebrated Kohl, the German traveller
I looked,' he says, with much interest at the man
on whom the eyes of all Hungary may be said to be
fixed. He is of a middle size, and very agreeable ex-
terior; his features are regular and decidedly handsome,
but strongly marked and manly. He is in the prime of
life, with rather redundant hair and whiskers, but a mild
and modest expression of countenance. He was rather
pale when I saw him, and his features wore an air of
earnestness, slightly tinged by melancholy, though lighted
up by his fine flashing eyes, He spoke for full half an
hour without a moment's hesitation, and his mode of de-

livery appeared to me extremely agreeable. His voice
is fine, as might be expected from so handsome a person,
and the sounds of the Hungarian language, always
powerful and energetic, seemed from his lips, I might
almost say warlike, although they come hard and harsh
from the mouth of an uncultivated speaker. The Elyenl
Elyen ! (bravo, bravo) frequently interrupted him, and
the Hayunk ! (hear) was scarcely. uttered once, for every
one was silent and attentive of his own accord."
The rest of the literary criticisms are exceedingly
sententious and miscellaneous.

THE HOLY WELL.
(From Eliza Cook's Journal.)
It is not generally known that the tavern in Holywell-
street, Strand, London, known by the sign of " The Old
Dog," is raised on the site of the "celebrated Holy
Well," from which the street derives its name. Fitz-
stepben mentions this well in 1660, as being "famous
and frequented by the scholars and youths of the City,
when they walked forth to take the air;" and Stowe
alludes to it as "being much decayed and spoiled with
rubbish, purposely laid there for the heightening of the
ground for garden plots." The softie-room, at the
tavern above-mentioned, is supposed to be built imme-
diately over the spring. The following lines were
prompted by the interesting remembrance which forms
one of the many thousand poetic legions connected with
our modern Babylon:—
They say, three hundred years ago,
The cold, pure water used to flow
From a gurgling fount, with trees around,
Where " The Old Dog" Tavern may now be found.
They say it was a wondrous spot,
And the "Chronicles" keep it unforgot;
For the pages of History often dwell
On the storied fame of the " Holy Well."
I can see the place as it was of yore,
When its crystal riches would ripple and pour
From a fountain channel, fresh and dank,
Mid flowering rush and grassy bank ;
When the pale cheek left the City wall,
And the courtier fled the palace ball,
To seek the peaceful shadows that fell
On the waters of the "Holy Well."
The scholar sat on some old grey stone,
Where the ivy was thick and the moss had grown,
And he conned his book, while the gentle tide
Came softly bubbling up at his side.
Plighted lovers went wandering there,
Blending their sighs with the twilight air ;
And many a warm lip stooped to tell
Its first romance by the " Holy Well."
Sweet birds came to plume their wing,
And lave their beak in the healing spring;
And gorgeous butterflies stopped to play
About the place on a sultry day.
Folks came from the east, and came from the west,
To take at that fountain health and rest;
From the north and the south they came to dwell
By the far-famed stream of the " Holy Well."
Oh, a goodly site was the old place then,
When the waters were sought by the Red Cross men;
When the brave Knight Templars there were seen,
With their " hostelrie" gay on the field of green;
When the famished pilgrim lingered there,
Blessing the draught with a grateful prayer,
As his cockle hat and scallop shell
Were thrown aside at the " Holy Well."
And now we see in the busy street ,
A " hostelrie" where men do meet;
Though they wear no symbol red-cross bands,
And draw no steel with their strong right hands.
For many a year there has been no trace
Of the legend lore that marks the place;
No stranger dreams of the verdant dell
That was famed afar for its " Holy Well."
Close and narrow that place is now,
Where the beautiful water used to Sow;
But those who will may go and see
Where the waters sprung up—pure and free.
On the mouth of the tide they may lightly tread,
As they would on the graves of the honoured dead.
At the sigu of " The Old Dog" gossips still tell
Rare things of the ancient " Holy Well."
Ah, many among us, like this old place,
Exist in the world without a trace
Of the exquisite truth and goodly power,
That filled our spirits in Life's young hour.
Time has choked up the magical spring
With the burthens that Trouble and Toil e'er bring,
Yet we turn with joy to let Memory tell
Of the days when our heart was a " Holy Well."
ELIZA Coot.

General Klapka, late Commander of Comorn, has
arrived at the Sobloniire Hotel.

A LADY'S POCKET PICKED OF 4001.—Early yes-
terday forenoon, the wife of Mr. Hill, the architect, put
into her purse Bank of England notes to the amount of
4001., for the purpose of taking them to her husband's
office in order that they might be ultimately placed to
his credit at the bank. On her way to New-street, how-
ever, accompanied by her little boy, she had occasion to
go through the market-hall, and shortly after quitting
the vicinity of the Bull-ring, she found that her purse
with its 4001. had 'vanished. Nothing had occurred to
make Mrs. Mil suspect she had been robbed. but there
can be no doubt that one of those little rogues who
swarm in our streets found himself the unexpected pos-
sessor of a fortune, who, a moment before, had not a
farthing in the world. Information was at once given to
Superintendent Stephens, and the detective force were
soon on the alert, but up to going to press last night
nothing had been heard of the money. A reward of
201. hat been offered for the recovery of the notes, the
numbers of almost all of which are known and of course
payment has been stopped as far as is practicable.—Bir
iningl,ant Journal.

COLLIERY DISTURBANCES--The pitmen of several
collieries in the counties of Durham and Northumber-
land are at present on strike, and some disturbances of
the public peace have occurred. On Thursday night
two policemen apprehended Francis Smith, a delegate
from Leadgate Colliery, as he was returning home by
coach from attending a delegate meeting. They placed
him in a gig and were proceeding to Shotly Bridge, when
they were met by a large body of the pitmen. belonging
to the neighbourhood, who had heard that their dele-
gate had been captured. They demanded his instant
liberation, and proceed to wreak summary vengeance
on one of the policemen who was employed by the
owners of the colliery. His name is John Connell or
Connolly. He received some very severe injuries, and is
now lying in a very precarious state. The other, Ser-
geant Baxter, aas a county policeman. He met with
no personal violence, bnt was compelled to give up his
prisoner, who has since, however, been recaptured.
Warrants were issued for the apprehension of various
parties implicated, and upwards of twenty persons have
been taken into custody.—Sunderland Herald.
TuE MEDICAL OFFICERS OF WHITECIIAPEL.—
The medical uffic,rs, extra medical officers, and medical
visitors of the Whitcchapel Union, appointed by the
Board of Health, supped on the 25th at the Red Lion,
Whitechapel, in celebration of the close of their most
arduous duties; Dr. E. D. Allison in the chair. Mr.
Nash, medical officer, ably officiated as croupier. After
the usual loyal toasts were given, the chairman ex-
press( d his satisfaction in proposing the Board of Guar-
dians and their excellent Chairmen, Mr. Brushfield, and
passed a high and deserved eulogium upon them for the
manner in which they had co-operated with the Board
of Health during the prevalence of the cholera. The
healths of all the medical officers were drank in the
course of the evening. The evening was spent in the
most harmonious manner, and the meeting parted with
regret, but not without giving a heaty cheer to the chair-
man for the able manner in which he had presided over
them.