The Sun.
London, England, 1836-10-26 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

A STORIA. 3 Vcls.
Bentley, London, 1836.
Whoever expect. to meet in these volumes with
tales and descriptive essays, such as abound in those
admirable works of fiction, the " Sketch Book," and

" Braccbridgc Hall," will be disappointed-; for " As-
is no work of fancy, no " gay coinage of the
brain," but a record of real life, a history of the
perils and adventures, encountered by the early foun-
ders—under the patronage and active superintendence
of Mr. Astor, from whom the book derives its name—
of the American Fur Companies, in their attempts to

ona

loet's

establish depots and settlements in those wild, inhos-
pitable, and savage regions which lie beyond the
Rocky Mountains, and stretch away to the Pacific.
The materials for the work were supplied by the
journals and letters of many who were engaged in these

lazardous enterprizes ; and Mr. Washington Irving's

:ask has been to softe❑ down the crudenesses of these
journals, condense and arrange the various information

contained in them ; and so polish and improve the

style as to render it generally readable. In this task,
an ungracious one at the best, the editor has been
very successful. He has presented us with an in-
telligent, and perspicuous narrative of the expeditions
of the adventurous Fur Traders to Santa Fe, and the

Columbia, abounding in lively and minute touches o
savage life, and sketches of nearly equally savage
back-woods character, all pourtrayed in that graphic
and picturesque manner for which Mr. Washington
Irving has ever been so remarkable. As far as regards
what is called interesting reading, we know not that
this gentleman has ever yet penned a work which is
likely to be more generally popular. Here we have
accounts of extraordinary natural phenomena, met with
among that, till lately, untravelled district—the Rocky
Mountains ; of voyages in canoes down thundering
cataracts ; of surprises by savage chiefs ; of the domes-
tic manners of the Red Indians ; of nights passed in
vast deserts, under the sole canopy of heaven :
and, in short, of all those strange novelties and start-
ling reverses, which those must make up their mind
to encounter, who pursue a course of travel among
countries where the footsteps of civilization have never
yet trod. The adventures, in particular, of Mr. Hunt
and his party, on their way to the banks of the Co-
lumbia, which occupy the largest portion of the
second volume, are full of the most romantic vicissi-
tudes ; in short, as interesting in their;way as Robinson
Crusoe, and for the same reason. We subjoin an ex-
tract, taken at random, from this animated record of
difficulties and dangers
At the time we are treating of, the grizzly bear was
still frequent on the Missouri, and in the lower country,
but, like some of the broken tribes of the priaries, he has
gradually fallen back before his enemies and is now chiefly
to be found in the upland regions, in rugged fastnesses
like those of the Black hills and the Rocky mountains.
Here he lurks in caverns, or holes which he has digged
in the sides of hills, or under the roots and trunks of
fallen trees. Like the common bear he is fond of fruits,
and mast, and roots, the latter of which he will dig up
with his fore claws. He is carnivorous also, and will even
attack and conquer the lordly buffalo, dragging his huge
carcass to the neighbourhood of his den, that he may prey
upon it at his leisure.
" The hunters, both white and red men, consider this
the most heroic game. They prefer to hunt him on horse-
back, and will venture so near as sometimes to singe his
hair with the flash of the rifle. The hunter of the grizzly
bear, however, must be an experienced hand, and know
where to aim at a vital part ; for of all quadrupeds he is
the most difficult to be killed. He will receive repeated
wounds without flinching, and rarely is a shot mortal unless
through the head or heart.
" That the dangers apprehended from the grizzly bear, at
this night encampment, were not imaginary, was proved
on the following morning. Among the hired men of the
party was one William Cannon, who had been a soldier
at one of the frontier posts, and entered into the employ
of Mr. Hunt at Mackinaw. He was an inexperienced
hunter and a poor shot, for which he was much bantered
by his more adroit comrades. Piqued at their raillery, be
had been practising ever since he had joined the expedi-
tion, but without success. In the course of the present
afternoon he went forth by himself to take a lesson in
venerie, and, to his great delight, had the good fortune
to kill a buffalo. As he was a considerable distance from
the camp, he cut out the tongue and some of the choice
bits, made them into a parcel, and, slinging them on his
shoulders by a strap passed round his forehead, as the voy-
ageurs carry packages of goods, set out all glorious for the
camp, anticipating a triumph over his brother hunters. In
passing, through a narrow ravine, he heard a noise behind
him, and looking round beheld, to his dismay, a grizzly bear
in full pursuit, apparently attracted by the scent of the meat.
Cannon had heard so much of the invulnerability of this
tremendous animal that he never attempted to fire, but,
slipping the strap from his forehead, let go the buffalo
meat and ran for his life. The bear did not stop to regale
himself with the game, but kept on after the hunter. Ha
had nearly overtaken him when Cannon reached a tree,
and, throwing down his rifle, scrambled up it. ~The next
instant Bruin was at the foot of the tree ; but, as this
species of bear does not climb, he contented himself with
turning the chase into a blockade. Night came on. In
the darkness Cannon could not perceive whether or not the
enemy maintained his station ; but his fears pictured him
rigorously mounting guard. He passed the night, there-
fore, in the tree, a prey to dismal fancies. In the morning
the bear was gone. Cannon wearily descended the tree,
gathered up his gun, and made the best of his way hack to
the camp, without venturing to look after his buffalo meat.
" While on this theme we will add another anecdote of
an adventure with a grizzly bear, told of John Day, the
Kentucky hunter., but which happened at a different pe-
riod of the expedition. Day was hunting in company with
one of the clerks of the Company, a lively youngster, who
was a great favourite with the veteran, but whose vivacity
he had continually to keep in check. They weft in search
of deer, when suddenly a huge grizzly boar emerged faun
a thicket about thirty yards distant, rearing himself upon
his bind legs with a terrific growl, and displaying a hideous
array of teeth and claws. The rifle of the young man was
levelled in an instant, but John Day's iron hand was quickly
upon his arm. Be quiet, boy !be quiet !' exclaimed the
hunter, between his clenched teeth, and without turning
his eyes from the bear. They remained motionless. The
monster regarded them for a time, then, lowering himself
his fore paws, slowly withdrew. Ho had not gone many
paces before he again turned, reared himself on his hind
legs, and repeated his menace. Day's hand was still on
the arm of his young companion, he again pressed it hard,
and kept repeating between his teeth, Quiet, boy l—keep
quiet !—keep quiet !'—though the latter had not made a
move since his first prohibition. The boar again lowered
himself on all fours, retreated some twenty yards further,
and again turned, reared, showed his teeth, and growled.
This third menace was too much for the game 'spirit of
John Day. By Jove!' exclaimed he, I can stand this no
longer; and in an instant a ball from his rifle whizzed into
the foe. The wound was not mortal ; but, luckily, it dis-
mayed instead of enraging the animal, and he retreated
into the thicket.
" Day's young companion reproached him for not prac-
tising the caution which he enjoined upon ethers. Why,
boy,' replied the veteran, caution is caution, but one must
not put up with too much even from a bear. Would you
have me suffer myself to be bullied all day by a varmint ?' "

FINE ARTS.

GEMS OF BEAUTY.
Longman, London, 1836.

The pictorial illustrations of this elegant quarto
volume are engraved in the very first style of art.
They are twelve in number, and unt one of them but
would " create a sensation," as the phrase goes, in an
Annual. The poetry, illustrative of the prints, is
from the pen of the Countess of Blessington, and forms
a very orthodox collection of lady-like vers,e, The
first engraving is entitled " The piwond," and re-
presents a young brunette in khe act of raising a veil,
which displays ono of the most chartni% faces in
the wctlid. The features; Chia duisky Venus are
exquisitely p,eneilled, MA the lights and shades of the
naked neck, whiter than " monumental Rlfl►aster,"
pourtrayed with consummate The cc Ruby'
is illnAtp.4- - z
uthful,wiatiiild
her
course, lovely mother, who
by the figure of
is
a yo
reclining
infant child in her arms, at the base of a rock,
close beside a spent cannon, which we strongly
suspect has been accessary to the death of her
husband on the field of battle. In the distance is a
burning village, and‘the fore-ground is strewed with

.------:'- - -."

of

,f

a

swords and guns, and other striking
bloody conflict just terminated. The countenanc
lancholy
the mourner is full of deep, but subdued me
faded cheek,
and the tear stealing its wa • down her fa
o 0f the
fornis an affecting contrast to the arch smiles
her breast.
young boy whom she is pressing close to
memorl4-
0.
The Emerald" shows us a buxom, lively lass,
t.
companying the words of some sprightly song byoug tie
music of her harp, while a graver and more
ful maiden stands beside her, apparently restratinl
with her on the excessive exuberance of idhly
her h°
spirits. Of these two females, though both are
hiWehlY
dis:
personable, " L'Allegro" is most to our taste.
like to see thought clouding the brow of the young mon th.ht:
and the innocent. It disturbs our sense, of what pig,:
losopher Square would call, " the fitness of things..
The " Sapphire," as an engraving, is well executed?
but the two female figures of which it consists are attired
like dowagers, in the most preposterous, old-fashioned'
dress. The " Opal" is represented by two women
of an Oriental cast of countenance, and apparelledill
an Oriental costume. The youngest of the two is
no unworthy representative of Lord Byron's IVI e dots.
In the " Amethyst" we have a girl looking as dise°°-
solate as Niobe—of course, for the loss of a lover, ior
being young, she can have no other cause for tribtibv
tion. She is looking down at a wreath of preciel
stones, evidently his last gift, and seems to derive bu
small satisfaction from the reflection that they are her
own property. The engraving is by Mote, and is
ecuted from an ingenious design furnished by
r
Parris, tu
, Ge
s of
Beauty" print, the
are "
the d
os atwhom the amateurs of the Fine Arts are indebted for
that picturesque
fi-r ished
things of the sort that the present year has produced
Briemsmidh.'i'giAilylt.ocre
the ,s

THE MARKETS-(THIS DA

. Filer
The supplies of G CORN
rain this week areEXCHANGE moderate, and of .•?e
short. So little fine Wheat is at Market, that higher pride
are again demanded for such quality ; but our millers have o
dined to comply with any further advance, as the -price s.
Flour cannot be altered. Barley, Beans, and Peas rolnairims
on Monday. The Oat trade continues firm at the tormsriceo
quoted. There is a moderate sale for Flour at former 13-

AAR IVA LS.
&iota. ,
Wheat. Barley. Oat... 6:610 oso"
English 2,190 qrs 3,420 qrs. f 1,410 qrs.
.......
Irish — 1.570
.......
Foreign ........ - 100

-_,-_--
:„, Ar
MIDDLESEX REGISTRATION.—The Revis'",j3„d $
risters decided yesterday that Mr. Harris, a Trustee,'"
right to vote. We shall give particulars to-morrow. hihil.
INFANTICIDE.—_On the 11th inst. a case °f C ble
murder occurred at Abergavenny,which excited consideraor
sensation in the town ; the unfortunate woman wh° cost
mitted the crime, named Anne Critchly, had lived asl,er the
in the family of Mr. Jones, a respectable inaltstcr °joe.
town, for the last seven years, and had upheld en go
proachable character until the present occasion' her,
Ashwin, a medical gentleman, was called in to see bad
On his arrival, he observed all the circumstances Whic.telill
given rise to the fears of Mr. Jones; and asked Cri hot
where was the child? She at first denied that she part
one, but, after some hesitation, directed Mr. A. t°c ,cati
of the room 'where he found the dead body of a ri;„•-atta
born female child, rolled up in a gown, with eld. on
tightly fastened round its neck. An inquest was held ifist
the body, and a verdict of Wilful Murder returned agfloo 1
the wretched woman, who will take her trial for the
at the next Monmouth Assizes.—Cambrian. lsbiPS
SOUTH LANCASHIRE.—Within those - isio
from which returns have been obtained, 1,077 new cci 596
have been made, of which 568 are by Reformers, anf.lo.
by Tories, being so far a majority for the Refortnerl',.°Lol
The objections made are altogether 2,238, of whic,po.sll4
are made by Tories to the votes of Reformers, on 'l,OO
Reformers. to the votes of Tories. This at Present StIAS
a majority. of 336 objections in favour of the Tori'-'5,1-, tarn
is, supposing all to prove valid ; but we believe ;AW"„reo
out that the Tory objections have been made, to a ''tlo
extent on more speculative and inconclusive ground!, i
those made by the Reformers.—Manchest& Gliarth'fflt.efl°
DREADFUL SHIPWRECK.—DtIr:Incr the ~tIT err
dous gale on the night of the 12th i'astanT, the -o"'scalcif
of Bideford, Mathews, master,
to Bideford, was wrecked an the 'Hooper Sands, in Ca
g Pe'
with limestone from
rot,
then Bay, and all the crew, consistint, of four pers°,.°,"' 9.4
risked. By this melancholy catastrophe no less til`'"
small children are fathe•rless.—Silurian. 61
On Tuesday night an extraordinary meteor Passtto
over Valenciennes. Its course was from the nortirn 0°
the south-west, and its purple light was so vivid t7roo
inhabitants imagined a fire had broken out in the el°
After a few minutes the phenomenon disappared• oil'
It is understood that his Majesty'a Ministeovef;
hree-ra,stsoemcbonlesiidnertoawnnd bmyatthuerefitrhste orseco-a measuresd
tow ebeekpirnop used v't
on
them on the opening of Parliament. there
°%'
Mustard, Sir," exclaimed a manufacturer "Aicle,!
whilst vindicating the virtues of that pungent,a-, ton
°
" Mustard, Sir, acts as a diuretic, a dio hlogistic,.'; tAs
and a eataplasm ;—it is good, Sir,' P
as an emetic, P-4
blister, and unspeakably grand as a glyster."
~, es
sels ill
There are at present no fewer than 67 v A
the course of building at Sunderland. ast on"
rs
On Wednesday afternoon, about Tralf'Y 0 leh,
o'clock, as a lad named John Williams, about fifteil, r. 'of
of age, was oiling the engine, at the foundry nth; otti:o
wards, at Newport, his smock-frock was caughtZeJ '‘,.l.
the cog wheels, which drew him in, and so mut' the'
that he died in consequence at about five o'clock on
the
lowing morning.—Silurian.
officer
°{, tile
TiE DEVONPORT QUAYS.—The ao.--, ..itp ~,
Customs at Plymouth have recently interfered "tbe ro'ir
privilege hitherto enjoyed by this town, oflandil ga,tigal
duce of the Islands of Guernsey and Jersey at no foe
Covo, under the pretence that Devonport °lnter 0
quay, and that no officer could be spared to superiliv ge9ste
landing. The matter has been warmly taken nrLdpresc,fers,
Restarick, Billing, Clouter, and Ramsey, and "icien 0
Cons have been made and sent to our wortilYe,„stools ea
whose exertions have produced an order to the Li"- b 01;
i ;4. '5
Plymouth to report on all the circumstances,_an"'" Ih. 1,,
that redress will be obtained.—Devonport Telegralo 11'
The Ottoman Moniteur contains a renOrkftt. i
,
tide on the flourishing state of literature in the Easthe jtjot
During the last few weeks the ladies 0f
aikingllcir
perial Harem at Constantinople have bn seen?' SO 111° 00
with other Turkish women, but this inneeovation i 5 000
ing to the Mussulmans, that they all run away as
they cateh a glimpse of those females. lsi
a ji5P 0
FF.-011 the evening of Tuesday last'rAssiogrea.
, of the Aurora Borealis was N-s-ritnessed here slirealbed st
grandeur and beauty every thing ever before ',lst, o°,,ed
The coruscations commenced in the North' but `dal
ooure ;th;lbsit; cf oisili
first had nothing of an extraordinary chartete
soon they extended from North-east to
had all the appearance of a lunar rainbow t nit:coed, itb,
tinned for some time the bow-like appearaneein the iello'arl
in an instant a nucleus or spot was formed the
lithe ce tioli,
which, though fixed in point of place, was 0 al_r, direc4olo
of the iris—from this point, rays diverged in
le
sct 'the
tv, tll
which were of all imaginable hues, and at .43eent t.ii.(le $O,
heavens prevented the aspect of a rnagnit;_d.......eseArlbve;der
115
gorgeous drapery of which it is impossible
this glorious vision continued for some Vow
nit
co 110
Observer. l ir °w° e, t ,
It should be publicly known, to t le
espons fog
well as to that of the liberal party which theoYf whieh.v st'
two of the most distinguished scientific mein,ave recerjer
land and Scotland respectively can ch part Jet
island ; we mean Sir David Brewster, theat
~.c7_ersetso) t
tended public meetings of the Reforbmoe7st'i 1.e150. :re, $
to the Earl of Minto, and Mr. Crosse, 0f rticooty.st 0:
that given by the Liberal Members for that
to the
,rfr, 10,1 v,(
The Hertford Reformer, alluding —3, ' 1,103 't i
the Registration Courts for that county,egistriets
._, tllo,.
received several returns from somets;ooc
revised, and we have great satisfaction in at'llibers
jet
in every instonce there is an accession of lln
I raj". arY
Liberal interest. -a rain a
Plantes, caustzl the giraffe to deviate t °l'
another ngoat
thee rwohxi e
il havingii re°l4'lo th;01)1511' '
She has a foreign ox for herc
__lo,pre,,..jecoi.o
An event, which lately occurred a_ the._ be,
ioo,
i, ,
&mallow%
ina stOrthig tPi,
menced between the horned strangers.
aboutl-) faint 10c0
giraffe became excited, and followed earn
attenud, Pea
o
dent signs of displeasure. But rife nog!' his Doe
the
adbmeeandeimbpiserwatliyn
switch la
ing made his appearance, with -,i
tea tita bi
was speedily restored.—Prench Paper', cittla ...se
eal, '
The extensive It-...- f nosomz 0,00"
..,nor o been r io
:outhern di?,
on of Devonshire, has_ .01„titn. „per 4
u rase • iirCP
Joht,i lie",r Soak, Esq., 11.1. P. for I) 'lc the 00tinffice
A- Y has been eft lOrblllll
t": tine
revised,
biiShed °I the c il-0 •if
return
which the sum of 4,1501., voted.ion 1
the privy of titaanrf:,
expenses and messengers' bills
Council-office arc 1011. 18s. sd, forinkstands; aon °for et-
&c. ; 1201. for coals ; 41. Bs. for opead,e old ni. 4so
f°
rn
et"h'sei::l3-efros; rce;;cretellc;i"
cholera, .5/. 10s. Among the
~ r__
e_,
to
was expended. Among the itensliusnis
vatic,
9.b
to
of' the Committee of Privy Councilfotru'neorspsaP; Tfla
tendance on office clerks, 71. 135.. s 01.16 '
Bd. ; patent locks to despatch-boxes,
~,,,. 4s.
Aft
, A
person for attending the office lamp s 1 u"