The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-07 00:00:00

MAGAZINES CONTINUED.

HEATH'S GALLEhY OF

BRITISH EN.

GI?AIIINGS. Part. X. and XI.
Portrait, landscape!, and dom -stir; or incidental en-
gravii)gs, are here colLeted to:,ether. with fly-leaves of
appr priate letterpress. Mr. Charles Beath, in su-
perintending this publication, is by no means
ijuring his reputation ; on the contrary, each
cn;zraving is worthy of this aze of advancement in
the tine arts. Lady Charles lli.-auclerlt and the Mar
chioness of Douro—one the beauty of hilarity, the eviler
or pensiveni ss—have tae, s delightful to contemplate;
and their p9rtraits are here given with an air of
extreme naturalness

PICIY.TIAL GALLEIi) OF AR7 S. PaitXT7ll.

From its prolusi,n of woodcuts. and its Ireful
pilation of antiquarian matter, this periodical is wholly
apArt from rivalry. It is extraordinary how so mutt,
excellence can be produced for three groats.

THE TIAY LIBRARY, Ant IV.
This is a dainty little series, eminently suited for the,
arnuseme•nt and instruction of children. Some of the
engravings are tastefully and delicately designed ; and
the literary contributions are singularly varied.

POLITICAL DICTIONARY. Part XIII.
This elaborate and admirable production proceeds
with its accustomed ability, and has now nearly com-
pleted the letter S. When finished it will form a
staudard work.

THE COMIC HISTORY OF ENGLAND. No. l.
By Gilbert Abbott a Beckett.
What possibly shall we say of this ?
That it. is the
very extravagance of comicality—that it is brim full,
and running over with fun—that it is drollery in the
very excess of drollery, and its facetiousness the very
acme of facetiousness? Or shall we borrow a phrase
from the United States, and call it a "screamer ?" We
might do all this, and pt not convey a sufficient notion
of the performaice of either Mr. A Beckett or Mr.
Leech. How, for example, shall we convey a notion of
the "Landing of Julius exsar," as drawn by John
Leech—with the British barbarians seated on bathing
machines, and Cxsar coming gallantly on shore on the
paddle-box of a steam-boat, himself attired in breast-
plate, tunic, hessiane, and a green frock-coat, et la Napo-
leon? or of the Druid having a quiet game of cricket
with time, a bit of Stonehenge forming their wicket?
As a specimen of.-the historian's style of narration, we
give the following :
"The swords of the early Britons were made of copper,
and generally bent with the first blow, which must have
greatly straitened their aggressive resources, for the
swords thus followed their own bent, instead of carrrying
out the intentions cf the persons using them. This pro-
voking pliancy of the material must often have made the
soldier as ill-tempered as his own weapon. The Britons
carried also a dirk and a spear, the latter of which they threw
at the foe, as an effectual means of pitching into him, &c."
In mentieLing the victory achieved by Carausius, Mr.
ckett say s that "the Roman eagles were put to flight,
and both wings of the imperial army exhibited the white
feather." Again in describing the advance of Agricola
across the Frith of Forth, our historian observes that he
Agricola) " came oppoAte to Fife, which was play ed
upon by the whole of his band with considerable energy."
With such comical conceits we conceive this "History
of England" will achieve a solid good; it will impress
the facts of history upon the memory of the reader much
more vividly and pleasantly than any other abridgement,
7.0 t even excepting Oliver Goldsmith's.