The Sun.
London, England, 1836-04-30 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

BRITISH AND FOREIGN REVIET.
Ridgway. London, 1836.
The political principles of this Review are such as it is
impossible not to approve. - While it advocates strict, un-
flinching Reform in every branch of the Legislature, it
swears neither by Whig nor- Radical, but holds a strait-
flrward, independent course. Its materials, too, are re-
markably well-digested, and the different subjects discussed,
for the most part, of an interesting and seasonable nature.
The first article, entitled " Court Manners and Morals in
France, from Lewis XIII. to Lewis XVI.," is light and
gossipping, and furnishes us with some curious domestic
anecdotes respecting Cardinal Mazarin, the celebrated and
successful Premier of France, during the earlier portion of
the reign of the " Grand Monarque." It states also a fact
which, to us at least, is new—namely, that in the famous
conspiracy, got up by Cinq Mars and the Nobles of France
against Cardinal Richelieu, the King, Louis the Thir-
teenth, took a principal share. This statement is made
on the authority of some scandalous Memoirs of the time ;
but as no historians take any notice of it, we confess we
are somewhat sceptical on the subject, more especially
when, on carrying back our recollections to that period,
we bear in mind that Richelieu was the only Minister the
King had to protect him against the rage of the influential
parties of Mary de Medicis, his mother, Gaston of Orleans,
and the friends of the murdered Montmorenci. Had it
•not been for Richelieu, who took care to mix up his
Master with all his own despotic measures, and make him
appear the principal agent in crushing the feudal sys-
tem, Louis would never have died a natural death,
but would have been poisoned, or perished on the scaffold.
Is it probable then that he would have headed a conspiracy
against such a man ? Unquestionably not. Delightful
reading as are the French Memoirs, they are not—with the
exception perhaps of Sully's gossiping details of his own Ad-
ministration under Henry IV.—to be implicitly relied on as
historical authority. It was rarely the aim of the writers to
elicit the truth. They preferred, instead, to tell an amusing
scandalous story, round a point, or slander the memory of
the celebrated heroes and statesmen in whose times they
lived. Tilly is notorious for this sort of work ; and so is
the author of the Memoirs of Madame du Barri—an
amusing book, but an evident fabrication throughout. We
subjoin a curious account of the last days of Cardinal
Mazarin, which may possibly be true, because it is in keep-
ing with what we know of the private habits and peculiari-
ties of this wily, successful, but timid and vacillating

Na. 4,

statesman
" A day or two before his death, he made vain and melan-
choly battle against mortality and disease. He had himself
shaved and dressed, his moustaches curled, his checks and lips
coloured with vermilion ; and white paint laid on with equal
abundance. Thus made up, and placed in his sedan chair,
left open in front, he made the tour of the garden. Brienne
met him, and could hardly trust his eyes; so prompt and corn-
plete was the metamorphosis, from the bed of death, where he
had but just left him, to a second youth, like that of iEson.
This attempt to cheat nature hastened his end, not only from
exertion and fatigue, but from the malice of the courtiers.
'rho open air improves you ; I wonder your Eminence does
not come out more frequently,' said the Count de Nogent, a
Court joker, who met him 'in this precious equipage.' Let
us go in—l am ill,' said Mazarin. ' I can readily believe it,'
said the courtier—' your Eminence looks very red in the face.'
" This arch priest of knavery, after a life of successful
ambition and sordid avarice, defeating his enemies and trick-
ing his friends, cheating at play, which he openly called
prendre mes avantages—practising even gratuitous rogueries,
as if it were his natural instinct to deceive—delighting to fool
mankind, even where he gained nothing by it,—could not help
playing off one of his characteristic buffooneries even on the
brink of the grave. Tubceuf, a courtier, came to pay him a
small remnant of a gaming debt. Mazarin grasped the money,
crawled to his jewel casket, in which be placed it, took out the
jewels one by one, and repeated several times, I give Madame
Tubceuf —4 What ?' said the eager husband, holding. out his
hand—' I give Madame Tubceuf,' said the dying knave, still
gratified to play upon the weakness or meanness of mankind,
I give Madame Tubceuf a very good morning.' It would
scarcely be believed, were it not related by Briennc, an eye
witness, that there was a card table, in full activity at his bed-
side,—one of the party holding his cards for the dying Car-
dinal,--up to the last moment, when he received the Pope's
plenary indulgence,' with the viaticum, as a Prince of the
Church, from the Pope's Nuncio !I
" Persia" is an elaborate disquisition on the physical,
moral, and commercial resources of this country. The
Reviewer speaks highly of the military skill and courage of
the native Persians, but fixes the population at no higher a
number than six or seven millions of men—an estimate
which we can scarcely help thinking must be erroneous,
when we trace on the map the vast extent of country over
which the Shah's dominions spread. "The Universities"
is alcahn, well-;easoned, dispassionate Essay on a subject
which the " Edinburgh " and " Quarterly Reviews"
have already almost exhausted. " Egypt " is an-
other trite theme, on which all that is to be said, has
been already said, and said well, too. The Reviewer,
however, is evidently thoroughly acquainted with all the
bearings of his subject, and contrives to render his antiqua-
rian researches readable. The " Drama" is discussed at a
very seasonable period, when all who take an interest in it
—and who does not ?—are busy endeavouring to discover
why it is in its present state of all but positive annihila-
tion. This part of the subject, however, the Reviewer
scarcely touches upon ; but confines his remarks chiefly to
the proceedings of the late Dramatic Committee, which he
seems very much disposed to look on as a rank humbug.
Whether it be so or not, we cannot say ; but this we may
. mention, that it has led to not the slightest beneficial re-
sult. The Drama, we fear, is destined, at no distant date
to be wholly extinguished, and for these reasons, that in the
two great Houses, one can neither see nor hear ; and that,
just now at least, we have neither first-rate actors, nor first-
rate dramatists. Our superfine in both is but second-best.
The satirical observations on George Colman in this article,
though severe, are just. "State and Tendency oft Parties'
is penned in an honest; common-sense spirit. The Re-'
viewer gives a faithful and succinct sketch of the present
singular position of the Whig party in the House of Com-
mons, who, he says, are kept in office, chiefly by reason of
the violent animosity that the Radicals and Conservatives
bear to each other. He regrets, and very naturally, the
iisposition that the Whigs still evince occasionally to con-
ciliate those who are not to be conciliated, ol4serving, "it

is not agreeable to those who are warmly supporting liberal
principles, to see the leader of the Whig party running
down the House to pull by the sleeve the leader of the Con-
servatives, and with delighted countenance, chatting with
him on one of the forsaken benches. It isi mpossible to have
the feelings of human nature, and not suspect that there is
more in it than meets the eye. The compliment is never
repaid." The Number is on the whole a good one,
with this drawback, that some of its articles are defaced
by the strangest grammatical inaccuracies. We give one
sample of this slovenly mode of writing, which is by no
means the grossest in the number : " The Whig party has
preserved its existence, with one short exc"ption, since the
passing of the Reform Bill ; their continuance in ipower
must of course depend on their means of preserving their
present, or occupying a stronger position." There is no
excuse for this negligence. It might he pardonable,-per-
haps, in a daily, but certainly not in a Q:iarterly Journal.