The Sun.
London, England, 1851-05-29 00:00:00

THE TRAVELLER'S LIBRARY

WARREN HASTIA GS. By 1 homae Babing -
ton Macaulay.
2. LORD CLIYE. By the Same.
3. LONDON. By J. R. Al' Culloch.
Longman, Brown, Green, and Longman.
Rapid as have been the strides made recently by
the publishers in the way of placing cheap and va-
Mable works within the reach of the multitude, it has
nevertheless been so far graduated as to be traceable
throughout the whole course of its development. One
after another the principal houses of the metropolis
have surpassed each other, now in the getting up of
these works, now in the price of them, now in the
anner of their selection. Out of this wholesome rivalry
nave come benefits widely participated in by the mass
of purchasers. Vieing with each other in enterprise,
the leading members of the book trade have, in this
manner, demanded from us in a certain succession
our most cordial and unstinted commendations.
liThereas, formerly the public could only look in
flnodon to Charles Knight for cheap and excel-
silt literature, it has of late years found almost all
the bookselling firms in the capital competing with
eat other in the same indirect effort to pro-
inote the cause of education. While Lacy
teprinted diamond editions of the poets,
and Clarke issued miniature revivals of some
among our more scarce curiosities of literature, and
lltirns reproduced an amusing miscellany of forgotten
but still meritorious volumes, the other publishers
agPear to have been preparing a display of energy
and enterprise such as could alone be adventured
upon by men of wealth, judgment and intelligence.
.141_ this manner, we have seen the valuable library
itiven to the public at a cost absolutely insignificant
srßogue, and the yet more various and readable
series of works placed within reach of the community
by Bohn—works ranging through almost every de-
?ailment of letters, embracing, for instance, our
raiditeval chronicles, the Greek and Latin classics,
and those more modern products of genius,
'which may be said to have risen almost
to the celebrity usually reserved for the effusions of
antiquity. Colburn, in like manner, has assisted the
people in this effort at voluntary education, by print-
ing at a small charge a succession of interesting and
fictitious narratives. His endeavour in this particular
has in some respect been emulated throughout by his
rival and contemporary Bentley. After most of the
foregoing undertakings had been tolerably well de-
veloped, an admirable reprint was given to the world
by Murray, in a library both Home and Colonial.
Sinee then the principal novelists of our generation
have set an example equally entitled to commendation,
the masterpieces of Charles Dickens having been im-
taodiately followed by those of Sir Bulwer Lytton, at a
Cost such as placed them on the bookshelves of
Meet persons of even moderate competence. Rout-
ledge, meanwhile, has issued shilling reprints of the
delightful writings of Washington Irving, and those
of gr. P. R. James have been re-produced in
similar manner by Simms and.M‘lntyre, in the course
of their " Parlour Library," the firm of Chapman
and Hall having published at a like cost the whole of
the collected romances of Harrison Ainsworth. From
the press of Bradbury and Evans are at this
time appearing from month to month the various
fictions and other prose compositions of Douglas
Jerrold. Such being the remarkable indus-
try displayed in all parts of the book trade
throughout the metropolis, it must be confessed that
some difficulty is in the way of any other publisher,
who. may be anxious to forward the cause of general
enlightenment by yet more extraordinary testimonies
of zeal and enterprise in its behalf than have even
now been afforded. Difficult and almost impossible
as this may appear, the achievement has nevertheless
been realized by one of the most distinguished pub-
Hating houses in the world, that of the Messrs. Long-
inus Brown, Green and Longmans. In the series just
commenced by them, under the title of The Travel-
ler's. Library, we recognize the last and most brilliant
of all these noble efforts in the indirect furtherance
of the interests of national education. As to cost, the
Periodical instalments here published monthly are of
the very cheapest character, what, under the hap-
piest auspices has been produced at a charge of half-
a-crown hitherto, being now offered for a single
shilling. In typography the work is every way
Worthy of the establishment of Spottiswoodes and
Shaw, whether as to paper, type, composition,
printing, or general arrangement. Added to
all which, the evidence afforded in this- in-
stance
ofjudgment in the selection of the
Papers yet comprised in the publication, is of the
Most satisfactory kind imaginable. As a surety of
Which, we need only point cursorily to the titles of
the different portions yet produced, referring inci-
dentally, moreover, to some of those promised to
follow immediately afterwards. Every student of
nontemPorary literature is so far familiar with the
merits of Mr. Macaulay's celebrated essays on Lord
Clive and Warren Hastings—perhaps the most
splendid of all his noble contributions to
the Edinburgh —as to render it needless
for us to specify in any particular the
precise mede of praise to which they are entitled. So
long as the glory of our Asiastic successors can be
remembered, so long as a vestige of our Indian empire
remains, fonger than the famous records of Mill can
continue popular, longer than the pompous annals of
Orme, can be cherished in public recollection, will
those magnificent pages survive to the admiration of
all men capable of appreciating the truths of history
and the' beauties of rhetoric.' Others of Mr.
Macaulay's essays besides those on the first conqueror
and the first law-giver of the British dominions
in Hindostan, we rejoice to see promised, such as
those relating to the Earl of Chatham, to "Ranker's
Ifistory of the Popes," and to the " Life and Writings
of Addison." Per the benefit of the community at
large, we are strongly in hopes that these may be fol-
lowed. at 'intervals by the rest, so that the complete
series may in the end be perfected. It will be gra-
tifying to all subscribers to The Traveller's Library
to observe that, in addition to those noble effusions,
they are promised selections from the writings of
the Rev. Sydney Smith, of Sir James Mackintosh, of
Lord Jeffrey, and we trust, also, of other distinguished
contributors to the Edinburgh. Amidst the miscel-
laneous papers scattered among these are several of a
nature peculiarly calculated to lend variety to the
series, such as Laing's " Travels in Norway," and
the charming papers, from the " Spectator," referring
to Sir Roger De Coverley. A specimen of this de-
scription has already been afforded, by the masterly
and comprehensive paper on " London," by Mr.
M'Culloch, in which that great political economist
has given us the most valuable of all the condensed
histories of the metropolis. From what we have al-
ready seen of The Traveller's Library, we need
scarcely observe, therefore, that we are disposed to
anticipate for it a prolonged popularity, and a very
Wide circulation.

THE POST-OFFICE GUIDE. Under the
Sanction of her Majesty's Postmaster-General.
By.J. W. Lettis, of the General Post office.
Tbe thanks of all visitors to the metropolis, whe-
ther foreigners or natives, and indeed of all person!)
who send or receive letters or newspapers, are espe-
cially due to:Mr. Lettis for the opportune publication
of this useful little work. It contains all the information
that can be desired on all matters connected with the
Post-office, and gives translations of the regulations
of the General Post-office in regard to foreign letters
in English, French, German, and Italian.