The Sun.
London, England, 1848-10-05 00:00:00

AINSWORTIPS.

In the continuation of the corrected edition of the
editor's romance of " Crichton" there are the lyrical
poems of the sorcerer and the hag, which will be re-
membered by the readers of Harrison Ainsworth as
being characterized by so much spirit and enthu-
siasm. " The Sorcerer's Sabbath" is, perhaps, the
most remarkable instance of our novelist's powers as
a lyrist, reminding one of the poetic fragments which
adorn his celebrated romance of "Rookwood. A
brief, but entertaining, paper, entitled " Incidents in
the Early Life of Haydn," contains the following,
which will be read with interest :
" An opportunity at last presented itself of improving
his circumstances, for by chance the Prince Esterhazy, a
passionate amateur of music, was present at a concert
which very opportunely commenced with one of Haydn's
pieces. The delight of the Prince was unbounded, and
he immediately appointed the composer sub-director of
his own orchestra, and demanded who he was. Haydn,
in fear and trembling, advanced, when the Prince ex-
claimed—

" What! is that the music of this little Moor?' (al-
luding to his complexion.) Then addressing him, added,
Go and dress yourself as my chapel-master. You
must never appear again in my presence in the plight
you are now. You are too little, and have a pitiful-
looking face. Get a new coat and high-heeled shoes,
that your stature may correspond with your mind.'
" Haydn was too happy at his appointment to feel
much chagrin at this equivocal style of compliment."
It is singular enough that in a brilliant article on
Music, in the current number of the Quarterly, pub-
lished simultaneously with Ainsworth, the same
anecdote of the great composer's piety in composition
is recorded, almost in the very same words, where
Haydn remarks--" When I was working at the
Creation I felt myself so penetrated with devotion,
that before I sat down to my piano I prayed confi-
dently to God for the talent to praise him worthily."
Like a true Catholic, as he was, Haydn used, ac-
cording to the Quarterly reviewer, to rise from his
instrument whenever his powers of invention seemed
to fail him, and tell over the beads of his rosary." " It
was a method," continues the reviewer, " which he
never found to fail." E. P. Rowsell writes a fan-
ciful chapter on " Waterloo-bridge ;" and Thomas
Roscoe contributes an amusing story about "The
Merchant of Ferrara and his Clerk." " Hour with the Old Masters" is a critical paper, from
the ingenious hand of Mrs. Acton Tindal.
Three other serials are continued, one by
Kingston, called "The Black Slaver;" another by Mr., Hughes called " The Homesteads of Lower Brittany;"
and another by Mr. H. Hays, called "The Countess
Rudolstadt. ' Besides these there are poetical
contributions by Emily Varndell, J. E. Carpenter,
and Caroline De Crespigny—the most pretentions of
which is that by the last-mentioned, entitled " The
Masque of Death," a ballad in flowing metre.

THE METROPOLITAN.
" Swissiana" is penned pleasantly and discursively;
as are also " Marmaduke Hutton," "Clarendon," and
Mrs. Tinsly's tale of "The Storm and the Conflict."
The oddest and certainly the most entertaining of
all the contributions, however, is the story of " The
Man who Eloped with his own Wife." The conceit
is quaint enough to wile away a tedious evening, and
keep the reader's attention on the qui vive throughout.
Among the specimens of American poetry, many
will have to thank the editor for a scrap from the
noble poems of Longfellow —" The Occultation of
Orion. But that Shelley had already depicted the
beautiful moon pacing through the skies "like a
dying lady," the following verses would be surpris-
ingly graceful:—
" The moon was pallid, but not faint,
Yet beautiful as some fair saint,
Serenely moving on her way
In hours of trial and dismay.
As if she heard the voice of God,
Unharmed with naked feet she trod
Upon the hot and burning stars,
As on the glowing. coals and bars
That were to prove her strength, and try
her holiness and her purity."
Other papers make up a goodly collection for
October, one of the most sensible being the " History
and Prospects of the Tea Trade."

THE BELLE ASSEMBLEE.
Miss Camilla Toulmin, or, as we must now designate her, by her matrimonial title, Airs. Newtor, Crosland, flourishes in the editorial department of thh miscellany. Nor are her labours merely editorial ;
she is also industrious as a contributor; witness het
Pisan Chronicle of " Azzoli the Goatherd."
jjrt
thank Mr. Allmann heartily for his delightful "Leaves
from the Note Book of a Musician"—the best of all