The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-08 00:00:00

following number. There is a very silly article by
a very clever man, headed " Notes on 'Walter Savage
Landon" One little sentence in it, however, is de-
lightfully facetious—it is worthy of Charles Lamb.
The writer is speakingof an author who has penned "a
vast array of works," but who has never been read
by any living being. There is the pile of volumes—
never opened. " That was awful," he says : " such
a sleep of pages by thousands in one eternal darkness,
never to be visited by light ; such a rare immunity
from the vlianies of misconstruction; such a Sabbath
from the impertinencies of critics 1' Otherwise the
paper by Thomas De Quincey is sad trash, sad bi-
gotry, sad distortion of truth. A copious analytical
review of the second series of "Lord Campbell's
Lives of the English Lord Chancellors," and a va-
riety of miscellaneous contributions, complete an
excellent number of this excellent publication.

CHRISTOPHER TADPOLE. Part V. By Albert
Smith. illustrated by Leech
The present number opens with an account of the
Journey: of Mr. Gudge to Liverpool, where he meets
Hockey and Christopher, and where he takes the
latter into his service as a page, having previously
agreed with Sir Frederick to bring him up in igno-
rance of his origin, in consideration of the receipt of
25/. a-year. The story then returns to Dr. Aston :
" He had only one thing to vex him—the Parthenon
did not flourish so well as he wished. The excitement
caused by its inauguration had been but a tide that floated
it temporarily, and now it was in danger of gradually
settling down into the mud of inutility; which as the
member of an ill-regulated mind, Mr. Saunders, declared
was a shame, inasmuch as he had not received half
enough amusement for his subscription. He didn't want
knowledge, he said, he went in for fun.
" But the knowledge diffused there was of a very
dreamy character—mere Brummagen ' learning ; by
which, however, none could be deceived, except the pos-
sessors. Whatever the subjects of the lectures were
(and variety was an object in the selection) there were
the same vacant faces, looking with the same fishy stare
into the lecturer's countenance. And the owners of the
dull faces heard one night a lecture on astronomy, and
next week one on mathematics, which drove all they had
heard about astronomy out of their heads, just as one
pellet in a pop-gun drives out another. Then came some
foggy subject, which, as it had no meaning at all—at
least that the lecturer knew ,of--could not impart any
very great deal of useful knowledge. Next others on
dyeing and ealendering—unknown islands in the South
Seas, and their political relations,--smoke—Japanese
forest trees—and the like ; as well as pages cut from
funny works and pasted in a copy- book, which were col-
lectively called lectures on the comic writers of the day.
But the whole syllabus promised to be as useful to the
members, as the cheap books in the boxes outside brokers'
shops, labelled All at 3d.!' consisting chiefly of old
Court Guides and odd volumes of unsuccessful novels,
are to the world in general.
" Yet there were many good young men who made a
point of never missing a single lecture—always sitting in
the same place and never smiling, except when the lec-
turer to enliven his subject made some small witticism—or
jokelet, as Mr. Saunders called it—to enliven his subject
with; which to them, for want of contrast or compari-
son, appeared a masterpiece of wit ; really witty lec-
turers not being understood, or condemned, by Mr.
Bullies as trivial," childish,' or 'superficial.' Others
assisted their memories by taking down incoherent pas-
sages in little note-books, in a handwriting which would
of itself have been sufficiently unintelligible if they had
ever again referred to it, n hich they didn't and never
meant to do—having with it all some confused idea that
the process they were undergoing improved their
minds,' though not exactly knowing how it could—
sitting out wearying lectures with a perseverance worthy
of a better cause—applauding old truisms heard for the
thousandth time, or lis:ening with eager interest to
facts which had not the slightest relation to them, and
never would have, whilst they forgot them immediately,
of course. And at last, when they came out each even-
ing with their brains filled up like dust-holes with all the
odds and ends, rubbish and broken pieces and chips of
cheap knowledge, retreading the same path day after
.lay—month after month—in the dull obstinate infatua-
tion that they were speeding on the road to knowledge,
when they were, in Let, only blundering about amongst
the dust and sweepings on its edge.
" As for the library, it contained but few scientific
works: and those were generally full of superseded
systems or useless theories—being mostly presenta-
tions.' For one of the uses of the library appeared to be
h—that ha
,s
by,ving
presewnotirnthe
gltisisembooks tothl)ng about
eiparthenonth, their
to
save the trouble while they noblysacrificed the profit, of
selling them for waste paper.
" The few really useful books the Parthenon possessed
were seldom, if ever, taken down from the shelves; while
the staple stock—the novels and romances—were so
torn, worn, and dirtied with constant use, that each
volume became a sort of Bottle Imp; useful only so long
as the member holding it for the time could pass it on
to another, and so on, until it came to the unfortunate
last borrower, in whose hanels it dropped to pieces and
subjected him to the penalty of destroying the property
of the Parthenon—whose huge broad seal was stamped
in printing ink on the centre of all the engravings, and
on all the blank spaces at the ends of chapters.
" There were classes, too; but those for which no
extra fee was required were on the system of mutual
instruction; which may be defined as that of teaching
nothing without a master. The course pursued appeared
to be—that a number of persons ignorant of a particular
branch of literature or science assembled once a week
for the purpose of instructing one another.
"And yet, with all this, to hear the speeches delivered
as the meetings by persons who, pretending to entertain
the most profound regard for the institution and its ob-
jects—(Mr. Saunders said its greatest objects' were the
members, with Mr. Buflies at the head of them)—never
came near it, except for the purpose of displaying their
own rhetoric, one would have thought the institution a
Cradle of Learning, a Nursery of Science, and a perfect
Shrubbery of trees of Knowledge. But the trees were of
that kind that would not bear transplanting."
The Parthenon is a failure, and Dr. Aston takes
back all " the curiosities " which he had presented to
the temple of learning, and returns them to his own
surgery, much to the annoyance of his aged house-
keeper, Mrs. Grittles. The Doctor is sent for to
attend the wife of Luddy, who is about to add a unit
to the census, and who, with her husband and
Hickory, occupies a small cottage near the Salt town.
" The chief occupation of a country doctor resembles
that of a railway guard, whose business lies in ushering
people
eo,nautod thaesspislatitufogrmthaetmtheaseasily as commencement
he
from it at nayg
its terminus, with the exception that he has
oa f u a
away
from
no control over return tickets. But during this journey
on the line of life he can attend to them at its different
stations; try to obviate any complaints; and, above
see that the luggage they carry with them is carefully
looked after, and in a safe condition."
himself by assist-
ing Hickory s at
in th
getting up the amusing
battle of Navarino,
Whilst he ie e,
until his services shall be required by Mrs. Ludd y,
Gudge arrives with Christopher, and having ascer-
tained from Dr. Aston that he perfectly recollects all
the circumstances attending Christopher's birth, he
sets off with the chill for London. Taking advan-
tage of Gudge's absence, Sprouts has invited Bessy
Payne and Miss Twitts and the Jolly Man to tea at
Gudge's chambers. The Jolly
a bottle of gin and some tobacco, and the mirtt
getting "fast and furious " when Gudge by.orms s
in
upon the astonished company, ejects theTsf
rservic:
chambers, and dismisses Sprout from
l into a
having done which he and Christopher get
villa. This
man brings with
hhim.
13rompton omnibus to return to Gudge's
d e is veryadmi-
nistration
is very good),
graphic (Leech's illustration, too,
drollest affairs
number is full of fun. The description of the
and Sprouts's party is one of the
tnaginable.

----------
I.
THE KNIGHT OF G WYNN& No • XII
By Charles Lever.
Perhaps this number is the most excellent that has
hitherto appeared. The description of the burning of
Newgate, and the escape of Freney
of the_
Harryh Lorre-
quer. Then again the
highwayman,
is written in the most brilliant style
commotion caused at Miss
Fumbally's, which is capitali illustrated
y by " Phix
gives us a scene that is quite extravagant in
sister of the
drol-
lery. Miss Daly proves a worthy
inimi-
table Baganel. The best chapter,
tbe
levhowever,eeoftb in ntbenthe
present number is one relating to
Commander-in-Chief his Royal Highness the Duke
of York. The interview between the Knight and
the Duke is so cleverly detailed, that we herewith
transfer it to our columns :--
~ A considerable time elapsed_ before Lord Castle.
reagh with the Knight following, had Entered the room.
... It is against the positive orders of his Royal High-
ness, my Lord,' said an aide-de-camp, barring the
passage; ' none but field officers,,and in full uniform, are
received by bis Royal Highness.
"Lord Castlereagh
whispered something, and en-
deavoured to move on, but again the other interposed,
saying, 'lndeed, my
Lord, I'm deeply grieved at it, but
I cannot—l dare not transgress my
orders.'
~ The Duke, who had
group, been
soddenly
engaged u
tuprnetdo, this
moment conversing with a
perceiving that the presentations were not followed up,
gn
said, ' Well, gentlemen, I atia waiting; Then recoi-
sing Lord Castlereagh, he .added, gaily,
'Another time,
my Lord, another time; this morning belongs to the
service, and the colour of your coat excludes you.'
I ask your Royal Highness's pardon,' said Lord
Castlereagh, in a tone of great deference, while he made
the apology an excuse for advancing a step. into the
room, ' I have but just left the Council, and was anxious
Highness's suggestions
to inform you, that our Royal
have been fully adopted.'
" ' Indeed! is that the case,' said the Duke,• han
elated look,' while he drew his Lordship into with
of a window. The intelligence to judge rom tltaeel;euckees'ss
expression, must have been both importantand
satisfac-
tory for he looked intensely eager and pleased by t
. And so,' said he aloud, ' they reall have urns.
mined on Egypt? Well, my Lord, yh e
the best tidings I've heard for many Save brought
"' And like all bearers of good dispatcheas-':said Lord
Castlereagh, catching up the tone of the Duke, 'I refer
a claim to your Royal Highness's patronage.' P
" ' If you look for Chelsea, my Lord, you are just five
minutes too late. Old Sir Harry B I • '
e naour has just got it.
"' I could have named as old d
an perhaps a not less
distinguished soldier to your Royal Highness with this
additional claim, a claim I must say, your ' Royal jrg h
i •
ness never disregards—'
" 4 That he has been unfortunate with the unlucky,'
said the Duke, laughing, end good-naturedly alluding to