The Sun.
London, England, 1856-04-08 00:00:00

LIT ER A T URE.

Things not Generally Known. By John Timbs,
- . Bogue, Fleet-street.
This is,a,very7 entertaiping: and useful volume,
taking its place among the cleverly-conipiled books
which stimulate the mind of the comparatively un-
informed, and refresh the memory of those who
have learnt so much that they have forgotten great
partof their acquirements. It givis laconic and
clear information on five hundred various subjects
of remote curiosity and universal interest. It en- '
deavours to explain to Mrs. John Bull the com-
plicated items of that frightfully heavy housekeep-
ing bill of hers, the, national debt ; and it relates
to Master John Bull. the full and particular ac-
count of his " horn book." It enlightens regarding
-the sun, moon, and stars of the "solar system,"
and tells „:us the origin cf those three 'ominous
planets of the paWnbroker's system. We glean
front it something about the delicate cc. maids of
hon Our" which we; devour at Richmond, and the
acrobatic " pancakes" which we permit to leap
intnour mouths ert Shrove Tuesday. It gives the
origin of "cant,": which, in our obstinate igno-
ramie, we conceive to be of much older date than
is here stated. It ihas something to say about the
" woolsack" in /the House ,of Lords, and• might
havO said mufhTitOre had it 'diverged into any in
telligence respecting the ivoolgatherers hovering
about it. It discourses of the " circulation of the
blood" and of "bank notes"—a synonymous pro-
cess with many .of: us. It mentions the " variety
of hiswks" a 9.0 elealsr, with the " origin of solici-
tors." •

Altogether, the work is well worth its cost, and
we would have it lying on every table where intel-
lectual and scientific gossip is preferred to frivolous
vapidity or taciturn dulness.

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The Martins. _XV.' XVIi. By Charles Lever.
Godfrey Marlin, of Cro' Martin, dies at Baden
—according to the latest instalment of this vera:
cious hider:it-A:baying everything in most dire.
confusion. The estate of the absentee, indeed,
appears to be on the eve of vanishing, -.like fairy,
gold, in the grasp of,its inheritor.' Captain Mar--
tin having gambled possessiOniaway long ago,
helter-skelter, pell-mell,, higgledy-piggledy, into
the clutch of the vulgar little Jew usurer, Herman
Merl. Excellent Master Scanlan tries hard to get
some good to hinaself out of the ill-Wind blowing
down the fortunes of, his some time patrons, those
said Martins"t•Of Oro' Martin. Id vain—honest
Maprice whistles down that wind—for " MarY" as
his wife, and for the agency of the "_property" as
his fee simple. ':;Meanwhile Kate Henderson seems
to evade quite as effectually the advances of her
true lover Jack Maseingbred. The last we hear of
'Kate is that having escaped from the, durance of
'Lady Dorothea's companionship, she arrives " at
home," only to be insulted by her abominable old
hunx of a paterfamilias. Disgusted with her re-
ception she goes-in quest of Mary Martin, and the
next number we conjecture will show us the two
heroines of the story comfortably domiciled toge-
Aher at the cottage, in readiness for the inevitable
eclaircissement consequent on the discovery in Mr.
Barry the benevolent stranger, of Mary's long-lost
father, the eldor brother of poor dead Godfrey,
and, as such, the rightful owner of Cro' Martin—to
the amazement 'of the Captain; to the dismay of
Lady Dorothea, eat to the Agnal discomtlture.of
Messrs. Merl and Seanlan

The New Quarterly Review and Digest of, Current
Literature. Bosworth and Harrison.
The NetOQuakterlyhas now reached its eighteenth
number, and seems rapidly making its way,
not only as a cheap,: but, also, a high class, organ
of opinion oz critical matters. As usual a useful
"Retrospeet of the Literature of the Quarter"
leads the way. This is followed by a. dip ' into
History and Biography. " The Confidential Cor-
.respondence of Napoleon Buonaparte with his bro-
,ther Joseph," and;,," A Narrative' of the Siege of
Kirs," forming the.sulects of able articles under
the former head, and " Recollections of the Table
':Talk of Samuel R‘ogers," of a pretty stringent and
'rarausing one, under the latter. Books of travel
..and of science, in fair proportion, pass also under
review, including .” A Personal Narrative of -a Pil-
grimage to El Madinah arid Meeca," a work whiCh
'furnishes matter for amusing and instructive corn-
'neut. Poetry 'and works of fiction. have their
him, as also statistics in relation to "The Military
Forces and Finanees of Russia, Austria, Prussia,
France, and England," a subject of stern. reality,
ally handled in an original article .by that distin-
guished statist and financier, John Macgregor,
Esq., M.P. The signing of a treaty—the estall-
i lishment is another matter—or peace does not de
prive this article of a powerful intereat, and its
perusal may therefore be safely:. recommended.
Articles on subjects of a " Miscellaneous" nature
include " PopularMusic'of the OldenTim_io " and
Pcvv.sea nolootod. from the Writings of Thomas
Carlyle," both entertaining and instructive
.A review of the French and German literature e
the quarter makes up the contents of the Apr-
raimber of this very.promising.Quarterly.

The Eclectic Review:``
--The more prominent fea-
thres isine of this high-class ,periodical,
are a comprehensive review of " The Life and Times
of Salvator RoSa," -an able article nu " Bible Truth
and its OppenentS;" and a very interesting 'notice
of "Memoirs Or the Life and Writings of Dr.
Wardlaw," by Dr. AleXander, Whe appears_: to have
executed his task., with much ali;tility. and^success.
The reviewer not unhappily describes Dr. Wardlaw
"of middle height, and vigorous and active
frame—the forehead high, though not' very l road,
the features regular, eyebrows bushy, lips sweet
but firm, anal the general expression dignity and
seriousness, combined with cheerfulness and bene-
volence.kis intellect excelled ratherin analysis
than in finding matter to be analysed, was capable
Of prompt, vigorous, _and long action, ar.d was ever
controlled and kept diligently at work by a will
Swayed tonseience., . . . Ho possessed a
naturally elegant and . Caltivated taste. Dugald
Stewart was his philosopher, Cowper his poet.
Ile occasiol,ally wrote poetry . . . sometimes
satirical, never with Malice, and always on the
right side. He was ready at repartee." A review
of " Ferguson's Handbook of Architecture" may
also be mbriticined. Altogether the present is a
good, if note beyond an average, number of this
well-known organ of the Congregational. body.