The Sun.
London, England, 1846-05-07 00:00:00

THE PROVIDENT CLERKS' MUTUAL
BENEFIT ASSOCIATION AND BENEVOLENT FUND,
42, Moorgate-street.

TRUSTIES.
Thomas Baring, Esq., M.P. W. G. Prescott, Esq.
I
Thomas Hankey, Jun., Esq. Baron L. de Rothschild.
THEASHREE OF THE BENEVOLENT FUND.
John Abel Smith, Esq., M.P.
Forms of proposal for MUTUAL LIFE ASSURANCE, to meet
every contingency, Annuities, Endowments, Loans, &c., and the
FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT, with every information, may be had
at the Offices, where donations and subscriptions to the Benevolent
Fund are received.
April 29, 1846.

THOS. MIILLIXDETt, Secretat7.

- In Press,
),TAVY,
A the
HISTORY OF THE ROYAL
4 FROM THE CONQUEST TO THE WARS OF THE
FRENCH REVOLUTION.
By Sir NICHOLAS HARRIS NICOLAS, G.C.M.G.
The King's navy exceeds all others in the world for ha,.
so
many
tree
viz., beauty, strenth, and safety. For beauty, they
royal palaces; for strength, so many moving castles and barbicans ;things,
and for safety, they are the most defensive walls of the realm.
Amongst the ships of other nations, they are like lions amongst silly
beasts, or falcons amongst fearful fowls."—Lord Coke's Fourth In-
stitute.
England has lent been the firsEntamlanaridtihmase
ncootrequoaftethhiesthworry of
but, incredible as it must seem,
the-foundation,
Navy, to which progress,chiefly-cwoersevheear foamf the, eheestablishment
aonfd thather
pre-eminence among nations. Saotirstiolnwitthimcer
andtem powirtaifyhetppurmespenhsi
with the great naval heroes of
greatness, she has almost forgotten that her mighty Navy is by no
means of modern creation ; that there were battles of scarcely less
importance than those which grace our more recant annals; and that
Nelson, St. Vincent, Howe, and Duncan, had their prototypes in
*Howard, Blake, Benbow, Rooke, Vernon, Hawke, and Rodney.
Were the subject merely of antiquarian interest, such indifference
would not be surprising; but the neglect which has been shown to
the Naval History of Great Britain ill becomes a literary, and is
absolutely a reflection upon a patriOtic, people. The " most de-
fensive walls of the realm" ought, assuredly, long since to have
had so complete and so perfect a history, as should have left
nothing for subsequent writers except comment and continua-
tion ; but this is not the case, and there is consequently all but
overwhelming *difficulty in attempting to. supply the deficiency.
Though the materials for the purpose are immense, all the original
sources of information are scattered in so many different reposi-
tories—the Tower, and other Record Offices, Admiralty, State Paper
Offlee, British Museum, &c.—and require so much labour to examine
and condense them, that the attempt to write a History of the
British Navy during the first seven centuries of Its existence, may,
Perhaps, be compared to that of one of our early navigators, who,
when undertaking at private risk, and by his unassisted efforts, a
long and distant voyage, had, as it were, to create his own dock-
yard, and to construct his own charts, but who nevertheless felt that
though the fame of his country might not be enhanced by the suc-
cess of the enterprise, yet that far higher considerations were in-
volved than mere loss or gain to the Adventurers, or peril to the re-
putation of her Commander. Labour and Perseverance, may how-
ever accomplish much ; and it is hoped that the proposed work will,
in some degree at least~ supply a great deficiency in our National
Literature

Itis not intended to bring the work to a later period than the com-
mencement of the Revolutionary war in 1793, because there are
several histories of the navy since that time, and particularly the
carefully compiled Naval History by Mr. James.
The work will be comprised in six volumes octavo ; and the first
volume will be published in October next.
Richard Bentley, New Burlington-street (publisher in Ordinary to
her Majesty).

NEW WORK BY DR. CROLY.
Now ready at all the Libraries, in 3 vols.,
A R S T' 0 N

M

or,
THE SOLDIER AND STATESMAN.
By the Rev. G. CROLY, LL.D.
Author of " Salathiel," &c.
Henry Colbrirn, Publisher, 13, Great Marlborough-stree