The Sun.
London, England, 1824-08-28 00:00:00

LITERARY NOTICE.

+t. WORLD Di MINIATURE; edited by FREDERIC
tuoatur.. The Asiatic Islands and New Holland, being
ei Dest:riptiou of the Mannerh Customs, Character, aml
. ~ eat society of the various Tribes by which they are in.
14d. In Iwo Volumes.
-he present volumes constitute thirty-three of
p;
Atie'beintiful and instructive series which have al-
ready been submitted to the Public, and which are
welt entitled to its protection. It is but justice to
Mr. Sli 0 DER L to state that he has diligently ex.
pior4td every source calculated to afford informa-
skint with the zeal of the philosopher and
.the,
caution of the. Historian. We have attentively
maned the. whole of the series from its com-
Menternint, and feel ourselves indebted to this
valuable Work for much amusement and instruc-
Aiwa.. in fact, this Miniature of the World
centsins the " pith and marrow" of all that ap-
pears iu more bulky volumes, and by which we
are gratified with a description of the character,
manners, and peculiar qualities of the inhabitants
•of the various parts of the Globe. We are also
enlighted by such reflections as are calculated to
impress us with a duo sense of the wonders of
‘Creation, and with the deepest veneration for
its Divine Author. The convenient size end
elegant form In which the whole of this Work is
presented to the Public, render its exterior
beauty correspondent with the solidity of its
• intrinsic substance, and must secure it a place, in
the library 'of every person of taste. The em-
'belliehments in the two -volumes before us are
-not only illustrative of the costume of the various
people who are described, but coloured with
-exact accordance to their respective compleXions
and habiliments,as well as representative of many
•of their countries and domestic 'habitations.-r
The Natives, also, are exhibited in RIO-
Andes and situations conformable to their elle-
racters and employments. In a brief and modest
Prefece the Editor says—" The countries at
whose inhabitants a delineation is attempted in
•these volumes, form, as it were, the connecting
''link between the Continent of -Asia and the in-
4nunerable Islands distvibuted over the vast Pa-
cific Ocean. A very slight comparison of the
inanners, customs, and character of the one with
those ,of the other will scarcely fail to produce a
•conviction that the original population' of the'
latter was 'derived from the Indian Archipelago;
-indeed, we mny safely affirm, that there is not a
peculiarity among the savages of the South See
of which the type may not be found among the
numerous tribes drat people the Asiatic Islands.
Many points of resemblance are indicated in the
course of the Work, and many more will occur to
the. Reader who peruses these volumes and those
devoted to the South Sen Islands with any degree
of attention--a circumstance that mast'censider-
enly enhance the intrinsic interest which the sub-
jects here treated may possess, especially for
those who are fond of tracing such analogies be-
tween distant branches of the great Family of
Man." This observation is corroborated by the
remains of Ancient Mexico, brought forward by
the ingenious Mr. BUL LOCK; compared with those
of Ancient Egypt, which ,apparently Indicate a
common origin. We cannot. dismiss the present
article' without a tisCie''tikbUte-',Of praise t 6
A "“""A"ii Whose, thivetilitL and .lwa it Wu! pub.
licetions have certaitsly- improve4': Or stmttrol
taste by the Ornstatintalf eleganCe:With, which
they are accorryanied, and which is not less eon-
spicuous in the tweaty-six'coloured Engravings
that embellish the preient interesting volumes.