The Sun.
London, England, 1841-06-02 00:00:00

MORN ENO EDITION":

MAGAZINES----CONTINCEP.
BLACK WOOD'S MAGAZINE. • ';
In the article on the
Magazine adopts a bolder and more uncy.alll
mising political tone than has of late W000.'11,30
with it. It now proclaims " war to the 10,111:t
" Whig Ministry," tl!'
against the Ministers, and is full of -confide
expectation that the whole counq will ;VI
atcly respond to its battle-cry. The artia:e
very fierce one, and in more than one iOt'i"of
the writer's tempErseems to have got the
his common sense, for he actually uttributes` Lel%
length of time for which the Whig
hug -been Added to eXicity'' to the fact tb,gyaa
" Conservative feeling is more deeply routo toe
ever in the country!" Was there ever an abs 13 belt
power,
than this? The Whigs maiutaia tar
power, because their sworn foes, the T0rie,,,5',0-stronger
stronger than ever they were ! Were the vrr„,
sitiOn tit IN last gasp ti parity rea'l'"
, y 0 flog
0 vern111.11";
ing, the Ministers, we suppose, woniti tie od
ejected from office! " The force of folly of
further go," than in this paradoxical remarilist
Maga. 'The writer is compelled to admit, vie
Lord John Russell's late speech " showed a a.e.
measure ofcleverness and dexterity;"
ditttely afterwards he stultifies himself
rise
declaration that " full-grown men can ut. or
little satisfaction from sounding seutenc°,ery
delusive generalltieo." Why, it was thelei% big
full-grown men who were so delighted wild" pot
Lordship's speech, which certainlY
have "showed a large measure of c:Cve"-„,,,0"
if it had consisted on;y of " sounding sentea'
Betweend. sense and sound there exists as rgl:reero,
ifference as between a Sibthorp and it t',l'„itv
The writer is horror-struck at the flagrant iincl-a of
of the Penny Postage scheme. The bare r.„;;e.o
but inl.tilbe
cheap postage Shocks his delicate sensl'"„-ogr,
and no wonder, for in Tory eyesete the
is
synonymous with revolution. "
Wise" is an arch, sprightly poem, whoscll god
cation, however, is here and there as ittii,l":o
roughA as the bellman's rhymes. In "14;jetti
uthors " occur some capital hits at 111,, are
biographers, whose tastes for the eulogis,vti'hets
exposed in a searching strain of ridicule. hilef
I was in the Legion" is a memoir of militarY ept
abounding in broad humour. The Pre 000
portion of " Ten Thousand a Year" Ilteeo
powerful scene,--that, we mean, UQ de
Gammon and Lord Dreddlingten, wbe'7ctiog
former states to the latter his eo°",-otli
that Titmouse is illegitimate, and con9equ'llti4
has no just claim on the Yatton estates' ,ieft
scene is wrought up in Mr. Warren's
manner. The incident, - however, which in'peo
duces it—namely, that of Gammon leavia
on his table chambers a legal document it itbe
proves his own roguery, is improbable 11:orli
highest degree ; for an attorney, 5° 4 tdthoughtful, and sagacious as he is represefgeto,
be, in all cases where his own interests
cerned, could never, by the remotest pos64,cli,ere
have been guilty of such negligence. , porl
is here a sad want of keepin and cons'6'.;oo'
in the character. 4, Russia as git was in t11;,;otlf
mer and winter of 1812," is an article exo''"ilta;
suited to the tastes of magazine readers.,4oo
year was, it may be remembered, the cele" ate)
one of the French invasion, and the write 50e,
that he himself was present in Russia at the tioa
His sketch of Stnolensko at that stirrilo4l:refer
is replete with life and vigour; but TvtArdrio°
quoting his personal sketch of Napoleon "-
the sanguinary battle of Borodino:— late, thfle
On the 20th of October, just five weeks too -.4-efe
trumpet sounded in Moscow for a retreat; ailciti;cg .
know what followed. I, for my part, saw soul
what what followed, and this it is which I shall 10w„'1%,-.1,1'
But let me pause to say, that it was not xueroll'
solely the obstinacy of pride, and the blindnes.sAooe,
ance upon one man's infirm nature, which had t Or(
leon thus far astray. It was well-known at !":1- ate '
that the coats of his stomach were in a dreadful oet,
nervous irritation, partly from general mistnatlirt,ool
of the digestive organs, but more from the reeellt„eocu
of using strong stimulants, especially green tea ar 1 100
with brandy, in the proportion of half-and-1100, 4.'31. h 1
purpose of keeping himself awake—a habit wh'ectioll'
times incapacitated him either for thought or fQer..t'streli%
Bourrienne has denied emphatically his use 01- evrj
coffee, or of snuff to any excess ; but Bourrientle's
dente applies only to a period eight years earlier'
at present so altered were Napoleon's habt
on the day of Borodino his internal wr`,ce re'
ness absolutely obliged him at times to lay aside"`")ol3‘
ports from the different points of attack, as th
coming into his tent. He walked feebly about, _,541)re1)0.
his green tea, in a state of mixed helplessness aft' ir:o
lessness ; and it was owing to the dire depressiennt
this state of feverish weakness, that he could 13,-rio
moved by any entreaties to unmuzzle the IP3rolie
Guard, forty thousand strong, upon the Russians, o,
latter part of the battle. He pleaded, indeed,
disaster to the Guard would co.npromise the sat'''tiot
the entire army ; but his poicy had never been
spirit of rigorous caution • for almost every adrov-ibe
throughout his military life, he had been indebted
very opposite principle, of staking the whole sump
one decisive throw. It is the very necessity of stic,`:,;ool,
sical alterations in a man, that he is not aware' cb
condition. He himself could see nothing unusty"":o'
preternatural timidity of his plans ; but all th°""ijsortr,
had access to his person viewed him, on the day
dino, as a mere wreck of what he had been eve!'
years before.

TAIT' S MA AZ role'
The " National Crisis" is a very spirited 8 vt.iter
put forth just at the right season. The 'earl'
justly enough praises Ministers for their r he's,
bold and liberal conduct, observing g( theY oof
moved in the right direction, under dill; the
fairly unfurled banner of Free Trade, and ij the
strength of a good cause. They have ofiertiollet
country a fair opportunity of getting rid `its tbs"
of the most galling and pernicious impos.rectlY
ever indirectly crippled the energies, and di orte
robbed a people." And of this fair 01/1)0116
nity, the People--unless we misinterPreciecei
signs of the times which are daily lice;
loping themselves with more . signifir!tou:
will be piompt to take advantage, notwitoBforce,,
ing all the opposition which the combined tite,if,
of prejudice and intolerance may. make t° ,t ov,
exertions. The writer shrewdly adds, redie`
weeks since it would have been safe to I), ii Di
that the Tories would gain very consider°'!.oll,
a dissolution. Now, the event- is d°4`l,,r til'i
parties are breaking up ; • there is '." Ps
moment a kind of political . chaos. f . the
amid all this confusion the fate °,oof,
Bread-tax is sealed, and it is immaterial at es
! V,
hands it receives its death-stroke." "1e5,.- Pi:,
an entertaining notice of Mr. Kennedy 'orfoi!t
work on this subject. The Reviewer nditet
praises the work, but protests against its wi,, ti°'
defence of slave-holding, which is certai:,lol‘
to be justified under any circumstances., ioctir,„
spearian Rambles " is a spirited series of ,u ad 11,
tive sketches of some of the localities all° rotig
in the great dramatist's plays. " Quackleh° itti':
Election ; a Mystery," is the cleverest Of i 4
tation we have yet seen of gr:;cie i'p
lyle's Anglo-German style. The arts eoie
one of those good-natured quizzes, to whicoiri*
the most fastidious cannot object. Mr*Aivert`f
himself, we suspect, will be not a little 11, ctt/f
by it. " Violet Hamilton" continues t° 01°I, e
ried on with vigour arid ability. Froth ti; 1 t'l
intelligent article, entitled " Slavery 'j -10 c;
United States," we select a description of i'', gilo
auction in the capital of Virginia, which lvlor tiit,
our readers some insight into the horrors d 10,1
atrocious system, which inflicts a deep 81 Veo
tar
ing disgrace, as O'Connell: has justly 0--. ~ e
on the national character of the AmericniPs4,
Monday next, at 9 Lit., at Public sale, the sh'veofoe'ty
names follow, all negroes of the first quality
age, o',g,
Betsy, a negro-woman, twenty-three years of ,f,,,e'ti coir
her child Caesar, three years old ; an exech`"-a ill,l,
washer, and ironer ;, warranted healthy. ,Jolt fi'lle
latto girl, aged thirteen, robust and active, A g; ill
labourer ; with the exception of a slight deiee' ``„b,"
left eye, she
,is without fault. . . . . .__,,ti o,'"a?
us proceed, gentleman," cried the seller of /.1'i59;1
in a stentorian voice ; "let us proceed—a wotaso Fole,'"/
" An excellent woman ; not a fault ! and sleld1"0.0
in the bargain. How much for the mother Arp_ooee" (
250 dollars ;'very well, Sir, 250 to begin: S°Ltr:. 1 l',/Pr
bid 250. Truly, gentlemen, they sell cattle itliloqi,l
price ; 250 ? Look at these eyes, examine these jots.ie,
shall I say 260 ? Thanks, gentlemen, some Otle aelPfor
260. It seems to me that I heard 275 ;1° °_.Pl igi,er
men ; I have never sold such a bargain. of e-500 of
the best cook; the best washer, and the best of, '„rieel if,
in Virginia ? Must I sell her for the iniserahAe- re 0 $
-or., 0
280 ? 300 ; two gentlemen have said 300. of 00
gentlemen ; I am happy to see you begi°,..t.,3°351:01
little. Some one bid-310-310, going-33°
.t is i4foe
—340, going. Upon my honour, gentlemen, i
_gain
det
a sacrifice to lose so good a cook ; a great halo,(0111
340 dollars. Reflect upon it a little, and d° eiv'
there is a little boy in the bargain." ; 101;4
Here our auctioneer was interrupted in h• 5 roce,„ of
by one of his customers, a man whose atPe''fech°,s 0'
inspired me, from the first moment, wit ii ,;; fro' ,/
horror, and who, with the indifference and s_all,4tiOt. 0
an assassin, made to him the following ohtfig ; fiber'
As for the negro child, it is good for witlth" eletjjer
not worth a day's nourishment ; and if I haverst til
I will give away the child very quick ; the ,, a°
will be able to have it at a cheap bargain." ,ios .„-i;JI'
I glanced at the unfortunate mother, all' have " 0'
i
o'bi 1
what effect this barbarous proposal would .. 01.5 el'
her. She did not speak, but a profound sachic ant , ;
pressed on her countenance. The little innoceben poj
she held in her arms,_ fixed his large eyes onii he torivitil
saying, " Mamma, why do you weep ?" Thesne, doos
towards the witnesses of this heart-rending., bad, efer
an impresAen-that seemed to ask, What the. ',oil'
-to his-mother m make her-weep so.bitterlY:oo.3,,ol:ll
will this'-moment ever-escape my-memo-I'Y !,stj aid of
firmed: itie. for all-silly- life in the horror vutiotiLootr,
felt at this infamous traffic. -.The anotigiltb A liagoli ilift
finally the crier.;.striking a14.04111,--hloYGs.bn. 360 ' 01%
fr,pronounced • the._awarAso Mys:__-_-_, : 1.,°.,,-;ii.i.llit, 01.4
u_The_victim_descended Irvin ihe . tai , a12t1::,-6.--01 4 Ow
hy-lhe purchaser.,. -4-11e'.,04t4: elascs `;. -Od *
i
-- `. nizaTiiiannok:#al3ls47-Bia.,. 404 34** .


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" MORNING EDITION

dollars, anal Augustus at 105. They bOth fell to the
same individual who had purchased the former lot.
such is an imperfect view of the American internal
e-trade ; a system fraught with outrages, pollutions,
and woes unutterable.

ALEXANDER'S EAST INDIA MAGAZINE
Small indeed must be the abuses in tb^ -
flan of the Affairs of the -East Dire;
Which escape the lynx- ev,-1 dia Company
ductors of this peri- vigilance- of the con-
in which the • weal Not a month passes
-
against t'
(10 not raise the u hue and cry"
-" sink" in Leadenhall-street, where
••
opaly sits enthroned bolstered up with piles
olid parchments from which the seals are
!ast aropping. " Formerly," observes"one writer
an a Very clever article, entitled " The Pal-
aled Company," " the dividend was the great
bait for the plunder of India; but Parliament
was speedily compeikd to put a stop to the Com-
pany's power over its own dividend when it came
to he dri-twn out of the public Treasury of India.
IA Ow, the patronage of India is that which
chiefly vitiates and corrupts the Company in
both its Courts, for it is the bait which entices
rs; Wicked and corrupt men to become Directors,
Without either knowing or caring about India,
and it is the golden chain which binds the thirty
tyrants together in supporting each other in
their seats for life, however inimical they may
be to each other upon every other matter." A
dread of the operation of the libel law prevents
us from continuing the quotation. Albeit, what
_9llows is rather spicy. " Travels on the Coast of
Persia!) shows how very little we yet really know
of the interior of Central Asia. The India intel-
ligence is Copious, and very carefully arranged.

FARMER'S. MAGAZINE.
A rwriodical exclusively devoted to agricultu-
ral themes, which it usually discusses in a mat-
!et...of-fact style, well calculated to recommend
litit° the favour of practical men. The present
umber contains two plates, but neither are re-
, zilarkahle for the quality of the engraving.

BRITISH MAGAZINE.
We have here a carefull3 constructed map of
the diocese of Durham, one of the richest and,
We believe, most 'extensive in the kingdom, to-
gether with some curious and interesting cor-
spondence kespeCV.ng Taliessin, the-celebrated
welsh poet and prophet, of whom the wild tra-
"lolls of the principality relate so many marvels.

THE SPORTSMAN
Contains this month an excellent plate, repre-
tenting the famous rowing match on the Thames
"'rem Oxford and Cambridge, Which took
;
place last April, and in which the Cantabs were
victorious
and a sketch of Carthagena Weir,
Whose waters are in great request with all lovers
of the angle. This last plate is but passably en-
graved. Among the literary contents, we find
an entertaining Irish story, under the head of
"A, Tale of the Rapparees."

LITERATURE.
THE SANATIVE INFLUENCE of CLIMATE:
with an Account of the best Places of Resort for Inva-
lids in England, the South of Europe, 6,c. By Sir
JAMES CLARK, Bart., M.D. F.R.S., Physician in Or-
dinary to the Queen and to the Prince Albert. Third
Edition, post Bvo. pp. 377. London, J. Murray,
eceluin non animum mutant, qui trans mare currunt :"
So sang Horace eighteen hundred years ago,
and we opine he was right. If it be demurred
that an opinion of the kind, coming from a man
ITho thought a journey from Home to Brundu-
tun an event in existence, has no fair claim to
be received as authority, we must, on the
other hand, remind one and all objectors, that
the experience of our own countrymen—of us,
the most locomotive nation on earth, in these
• `4l3's of steam and railway—bears. witness to the
eternal truth of the satirist's notion, and pro-
claims that for once the argumentum a partico-
- known
ad universale has not tailed. Who has not
icnown dear, but morose, friends make the
"grand tour" without having gained one particle
. of the mental serenity they set out in quest of?
tender wives who, having seen their domestic
tormentors start for the Continent with the
fond hope that habitual acerbity might in
future, or occasionally, at least, be softened into
41nellity, find the quarrels de menage only more
rife and bitter than ever after the traveller's re-
' - turn? But enough—the reader's experience will
doubtless supply him with multitudes of similar
illustrations.
Providentially the physique and the morale do
liot here go hand in hand : if it appears fated
that we shall not improve our tempers, or ac-
quire a little more of the m irpErov, by a journey
after the TO X2AOY, of foreign lands, it is a con-
ration to know that the physical suffer-
tr: to which our frames are heirs, may be
We altogether removed or effectually alleviated.
us 1. 'auk the able author of the volume before
10 or having so completely divested his phraseo-
-g! of all technicality, that even we can
_ap-
preciate, the facts and follow the reasoning upon
:pich the e•reat truth of the sanative influence
climate is established. It is, indeed, delight-
ful to find—and to find upon such authority—
thatwhen the poor invalid has well nigh ex-
'lusted pliarmaeopatias and his own stamina,
removal to a certain climate, adapted to the na-
, i!lre of his ailments, may afford speedy restora-
tion to the health he had long ceased to know
but as a memory of the past.
lc The present edition of Sir James Clark's well-
;Rohn- n volume bear
i evidence of the diligence
Which additionalinformation has been sought
since the appearance of the last. The characters
or the majority of climates described are illus-
trated by fresh materials, and, in some instances,
'statistical documents given to satisfy the doubts
of the most unbelieving. We read with satisfac-
ton, that the general result of these new inquiries
as been perfectly confirmatory of the doctrines
inculcated in former editions.
Almost every page of the work testifies that
Its author writes upon conviction, , and that this
conviction is the offspring of actual experience
and prolonged investigation. And our confidence
14 Sir James Clark's assurances of the beneficial
Influence of change of climate upon the progress
of certain maladies—those of the digestive organs
and lungs are the most fully reerred to—is
strengthened by his candid admission of the in-
. 41,"quacy of such change to stay the onward
"arch of many other diseases. He very judi-
e'°uslY insists upon the precautions which must
be observed in the employment of this as of
every other remedial agent. On this subject his
observations seem so important that we must
I,nul room for some of them:—
" In the body of the work I shall have many opportu-
'fities of pointing out how the various circumstances con-
nected with change of climate operate in the renovation
of constitutions broken down by the long continuance of
chronic diseases. Here, as in every other department of
the healing art, we must be guided by experience, and
roust rest satisfied with 'the amount of power which the
remedy concedes to us. The charlatan may boast of
14' specific for many or for all diseases ; the
Than of science knows that there exists scarcely
4 single remedy for any disease which can warrant such
.11- boast, and that it is only by acting on, and through, the
-!Auraerous and.complicated functions of the living body,
• 24,various ways and by various means, and by carefully
pting our agents to the circumstances of each indivi-
nal case, that we can check or remove the disorders of
the animal system, more especially those which have long
existed. Let it not then be imagined that a change of
Climate, •Jabwever powerful as a remedy, can be con=
sidered as at all peculiar in its mode of action, or as.
Justifying, on the part either of the physiCian or patient,
The neglect of. those precautions which are requisite
to ensure the proper action of other remedies. Had I not
it;,„ considered climate a remedial agent of great value, and
deserving the utmost attention of medical men, the pre-
sent work. 'would not have been undertaken ; but I
should ft/el that I was at once compromising the dignity
and horiour of my profession, and acting in direct opposi-
tion to the dictates of experience, if I admitted for a
moment that it is one, possessing specific powers, or
.44 whiel may be indescriminately employed, without re-
'72-• • gavil to the general and fundamental principles of medical
science."—Introduction, p.
AmOng the conditions of which Sir James.
'Clark particularly treats, as capable of being
'benefited by judicious change of climate, is deli-
cc.icY in childhood and youth. This is perhaps the
most important of all subjects, becaus.e it refers
to the period at which the frame is most easily..
affected by external agency ofevery kind, whether,
lor good or for evil, and hence that at which re-
medial influence may -be employed with thel.
strongest hopes of success. In this section We re-
cognize the same spirit of close observation, and
the same evidences of practical skill in the physical
management of infancy, which have rendered
the author's work on consumption so truly valu-
able a guide. Every mother should be in pos-
session of the facts established in the present vo-
lume, relative to the effects of judicious change
of climate at this period of life.
Sir James's work is divided into two parts. In
the first of these are described
disorders
'N
of the digestive organs, pulmonary consump-
.4,„,:tion., diseases of the larynx, trachea, and bronchi,
asth ma; out,g chronic 'rheumatism, delicacyin
thildhood and youth, climacteric seases,
'tl44 •ilitd disordered health from various causdies—all
4..91 these,- especially in their therapeutical
n
nection with the main subject of the
voluemaodee"..
Ili. the second part, the writer, having
made
me.Namanle rernarksupon ventilation, andgiven
general directions for invalids making a change
• -44-Ydirnate, proceeds to his analysis
1119 a, --philosophic one it • is —of and-
the all
important climates which are cal-
calated----to- improve the condition of suf-
terers under v*ious diseases. England, Ire-
-1944 and-Scotland are rased in review, then

follow the southern parts tit Vtatice, Italy,
Madeira, the Canaries, the Azores, and the
West
southern hemisphere
Indies, eV en the climates of the
and a
closhlg 5e,...' .
are not- forgotten,
ar.l " .......ion on mineral waters, both natural
-,,,, factitious, seems to leave nothing to desire,
It is superfluous to express au opinion as to
the merit of a work of which a third edition has
been called for, and which is; we , are assured,
considered by the medical profession the stand-
ard treatise upon the subject to which it is de-
voted. This much we may, nevertheless, be per-
mitted to say, that we are acquainted with no
volume, the circulation of which is so likely to
benefit that, unfortunately, too numerous class,
despairing sufferers from chronic disease.

MOORE' S POETICAL WORKS. Vol. VIII.
Longman, London, 1841.
One of the most ambitious, but least success-
ful, of Moore's poems—the " Loves of the
Angels"—is contained in this volume, which
contains also several miscellaneous pieces, to-
gether with the greater portion of those ad-
mirable political jeu d'esprits which the author
contributed some years ago to the columns of
the Times. Of their kind nothing can surpass
the grace, ease, and point of these rhymed baga-
telles. Though slowly and carefully written—
for Moore has more than once told us that he is
a slow and painstaking writer—they wear all the
appearance of having. been dashed off in a heat,
under the impulse, of the most buoyant animal
spirits. From time to time we meet with many
political squibs in the Daily Journals and other
periodical publications, but we have, as yet, met
with none that will bear an instant's comparison
with Moore's, who in this light, rapier play of
mingled wit and fancy, has long been, and is long
likely to be, without a rival. The volume is em-
bellished with two engravings, one of which re-
presents solitary 'young lady singing., without
shoes or stockings, on the sea-shore, while in the
distairrte appears a cherub, floating in mid-air,
with two huge wings growing out of his shoulder-
blades. The cherub is evidently listening with
fixed attention to the lady's song, with which lie
seems as much delighted as are the gallery-gods
of the Victoria Theatre, when Miss Vincent is en-
tertaining them with the classical ditty, "
my dolly pals, fake away." In his pretitce to the
volume; -Mr. Moore indulges us with some plea-
sant gossip respecting his residence in Paris. in
the year 1820, whither he was compelled fbr a
season to betake himself, in consequence—to
qUote his own words—" of difficulties of a pecu-
niary nature, and to a - large amount, in
which I had been iniolVed by the conduct
of • a person :who acted. as my deputy in
the small office I held at Bermuda." Many
friends came forward with offers of assist-
ance on this occasion, but Moire boldly and
manfully resolved to extricate himself from his
difficulties by his own industry, and declined
every offer made him. He thus speaks of him-
self and his prospects at this period orhis career :
To write for the means of daily subsistence, and even
in most instances "to forestall the slow harvest of the
brain," was for me, unluckily, no novel task. But I had
now, in addition to these home calls upon the Muse, a
new, painful, and, in its first aspect, overwhelming exi-
gence to provide for ; and, certainly, Paris, swarming
throughout as it was, at that period, with rich, gay, and
dissipated English, was, to a person of my social habits
and multifarious acquaintance, the very worst possible
place that could have been resorted to for even the sem-
blance of a quiet or studious home. The only tranquil, and,
therefore, to me, most precious portions of that period
were the two summers passed by my family and myself
with our kind Spanish friends, the V l's, at
their beautiful place, La Butte Coaslin, on the road up
to Bellevue. There, in a cottage belonging to M.
1, and but a few steps from his house, we
contrived to conjure up an apparition of Sloperton ;* and
I was able for some time to work with a feeling of com-
fort and home. I used . frequently to pass the morning
in rambling alone through the noble park of St. Cloud,
with no apparatus for the work of authorship but my
memorandum-book and pencils, forming sentences to run
smooth, and moulding verses into shape. In the even-
ings I generally joined With Madame V lin
Italian duets, or, with more pleasure, sate as listener,
while she sung to the Spanish guitar those sweet songs
of her own country to which few voices could do such
justice.

One of the pleasant circumstances connected with our
summer visits to La Butte was the near neighbourhood
of our friend, Mr. Kenny, the lively dramatic writer,
who was lodged picturesquely in the remains of the Pa-
lace of the King's aunts, at Bellevue. I remember, on
my first telling
,Kenny the particulars of my Bermuda
mishap, his saying, after a pause of real feeling, " Well,
it's lucky you're a poet ; a philosopher could never have
borne it." Washington Irving was also, for a short
time, our visiter ; and still recollects, I trust, his reading
to me some parts of his then forthcoming work, " Brace-
bridge Hall," as we sate together on the grass walk that
leads to the Rocher, at La Butte.
Among the writingi, then but in embryo, to which I
looked forward for the means of my enfranchisement,
one of the most important, as well as the most likely to
be productive, was my intended " Life of Sheridan."
But I soon found that, at such a distance from all those
living authorities from whom alone I could gain any in-
teresting information respecting the private life of one
who left behind him so little epistolary correspondence,
it would be wholly impossible to proceed satisfactorily
with this task. Accordingly I wrote to Mr. Murray and
Mr. Wilke, who were at that time the intended pub-
lishers of the work, to apprise them of this temporary
obstacle to its progress.
Being thus baffled in the very first of the few re-
sources I had looked to, I next thought of a romance in
verse, in the form of letters, or epistles ; and with this
view sketched out a story, on an Egyptian subject, dif-
fering not much from that which, some years after,
formed the groundwork:of the " Epicurean." After la-
bouring, however, for some months, at this experiment,
amidstinterruption, dissipation, and distraction, which
might put all the nine muses to flight, I gave up the at-
tempt in despair—fully convinced of the truth and
warning conveyed in some early verses of my own, ad-
dressed to the invisible girl
" Oh hint to the bard, 'tis retirement alone
Can hallow his harp or ennoble its tone :
Like you, with a veil of seclusion between,
His song to the world let him utter unseen," &c.
It was, indeed, to the secluded life I led during the
Dears 1813-1816, in a lone cottage among the fields, in
erbyshire, that I owed the inspiration, whatever may
have been its value, of some of the best and most po-
pular portions of " Lalla Rookh." It was amidst the
snows of two or three Derbyshire winters that I found
myself enabled, by that concentration of thought which
retirement alone gives, to call up around me some of the
sunniest of those eastern scenes which have since been
welcomed in India itself, as almost native to its clime.
Abortive, however, as had now been all my efforts to
woo the shy spirit of Poesy, amidst such unquiet scenes,
the course of reading I found time to pursue, on the sub-
ject of Egypt, was of no small service in storing my
mind with the various knowledge respecting that country,
which some years later I turned to account, in writing
the story of the " Fpicurean." The kind facilities, in-
deed, towards this object, which some of the most dis-
tinguished French scholars and artists afforded me, are
still remembered by me with thankfulness. Besides my
old acquaintanc, Denon, whose drawings of Egypt, then
of some value, frequently consulted, I found M. Fourier
and M. Langles no less prompt in placing books at my
disposal. With Humboldt, also, who was at that time
in Paris, I had more than once some conversation on the
subject of Egypt, and remembered his expressing him-
self in no very laudatory terms respecting the labours of
the French savans in that country.
I had now been foiled and frustrated in two of those
literary projects on which 1 had counted most sanguinely
in the calculation of my resources ; and, though I had
found sufficient time to furnish my musical publisher
with the eighth number of the " Irish Melodies," and
also a number of the " National Airs," these works
alone, I knew, would yield but an insufficient supply,
compared with the demands so closely and threateningly
hanging over me. In this difficulty I called to mind a
subject—the Eastern allegory of the Loves of the Angels
—on which I had some years before, begun a prose
story, but in which, as a theme for poetry, I had now
been anticipated by Lord Byron, in one of the most sub-
lime of his poetical miracles, " Heaven and Earth."
Knowing how soon I should be lost in the shadow into
which so gigantic a precursor would cast me, I had en-
deavoured, by a speed of composition which must have
astonished my habitually slow pen, to get the start of my
Noble Friend in the time of publication, and thus give
ilyself the sole chance I could perhaps expect, under
uch unequal rivalry, of attracting to any work the at-
tention of the public. In this humble speculation, how-
ever, I failed ; for both works, if 1 recollect right, made
their appearance at the same time.
" A little cot, with trees arow,
And, like its master, very Iow."—POPE.
In the year 1822 Mr. Moore was freed from
his 'difficulties, when he instantly returned to
England, and, on receiving his publisher's .
ac-
count,
had the gratification of finding a thou-
sadd pomids placed to his credit from the sale of
the " Loves of the Angels," and five hundred
pounds from the "Fables of the Holy Alliance."