The Sun.
London, England, 1866-01-12 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

TIIE AUTOGRAPHIC INIIRROR.—Another volume of
this magnificent Table Book at once justifies and
crowns its reputation. It is the first volume of the
new and improved series, the third volume that has
now made its appearance since the date, a year and
a half ago, of the work's commencement. Hand-
somely bound—as handsomely and elegantly as any
gift-book of the season—this new issue of The
Autographic Mirror, even in its external aspect,
cannot but prove an adornment of exceptional
beauty and interest to any library or drawing-room
table, even to those already furnished the most pro-
fusely with costly portfolios and other kindred de-
corations. For a well-appointed drawing-room
table, in point of fact, the new volume of The
Autographic Mirror has by this time come to be as
much a necessity in its way as the carte-de-visite
album or the binocular apparatus of the stereoscope.
To all those who recognise more or less vividly the
indication of character, temperament, or idiosyncrasy
! in a person's handwriting, the work possesses an at-
traction and an interest of a very remarkable kind.
For within the compass of any one single volume of
it—and the one here immediately before us may be
taken haphazard as affording us exactly a case in
point—a complete and very varied collection of
celebrities are in this peculiar manner brought
with wonderful distinctness under our considera-
tion, men and women of all ranks and classes,
individuals of every diversity of reputation, social
or intellectual, heroic, august or eccentric, are here
revealed to us, so far as they can be revealed to us,
through minutely accurate fac-similes of their hand-
writing. From that awful hieroglyphic (shadowing
forth at once blindness and insanity), one of the
latest autographic signatures of King George 111.
—up to the Teutonic caligraphy of the Baron
Alexander von Humboldt, when yet in the full
splendour of his philosophic career : from the sign
manual of Queen Victoria or the signature affixed
by the Emperor Napoleon the Great to his Ma-
jesty's last will and testament—to the " fist" as
one may say of Old Joe Grimaldi, the prince of
Clowns, or to that of Blondin, the paragon of
Acrobats and Rope-Dancers. The Autographic
Mirror presents to view in this way a very world
in little, a veritable microcosm. Celebrities of all
kinds--poets, statesmen, heroes, novelists, painters,
actors, divines, philosophers—here they all are one
and all in motley confusion brought clearly and
vividly before us, speaking to us, if not with the
sound of their own voices, with the counterfeit pre-
sentment or literal fac-similes of their respective
handwritings. Whatever may be thought about
the notion of hand writing affording us any indica-
tion at all of character, it is quite impossible not
to regard it with especial interest and curiosity.
The work, consequently, is one precisely of a kind
worthy of and entitled to preservation. Appended
to this collection of autographs, moreover, there
will be found here in the later half of the present
volume a series of illustrative biographical notices
of a very interesting and entertaining charac-
ter. Scattered here and there through the
pages, too, are sundry comical embellishments,
pen-and-ink sketches, crayon drawings, or
what not, jotted down quite casually as the
whim of the moment seized them, by such humorous
draughtsmen as Hablot Browne, or as William
M'Connell, or as Alfred Crowquill. The work is
altogether an autographic treasury of interest and
information—a full and overflowing repertory of
intellectual amusement.

DUBLIN.—" Not Wisely, but too Well," is con-
tinued in some interesting chapters, and Kate's
adventures in her new vocation are most entertain-
ing. The descriptions given of the cousins are
well done, and furnish portraitures of a large class
of people who go through life without any definite
aim or object. " Number Five, Brooke Street,"
has also some agreeable chapters, and the account
of the arrival of the travellers furnishes an oppor-
tunity for an animated sketch of life and character.
" Laws of the Ancient Irish" contains some curious
records, which show the customs of an earlier time,
and will attract the attention of the antiquarian
reader. " The Rise and Influence of English
Monachism" is continued at some length ; these
chapters afford a very good impression of the event-
f‘i) trinlQ +C% .vg, It; oh +ll oy 2,a02, TbL F024;0+. .:13
devoted to the " Rise of the Benedictines." It is
said in an eloquent passage that the Benedictines
were the depositaries of learning and the arts, that
they started Gothic architecture, that matchless union
of art with nature ; in fine, they were the writers,
thinkers, and workers of a dark age, who wrote
for no applause, thought with no encouragement,
and worked for no reward. The mighty system
went the way of all human things, and engender-
ing " its own corruption, out of that corruption
came death." It is nearly fourteen hundred years
since the death of the great man who founded this
noble order ; and he who afterwards compiled the
" Saxon Chronicles" has recorded it in a simple
sentence, which, amongst the many doubtful records
of that document, we may at least believe, and
with which we will conclude the chapter—" This
year St. Benedict, the Abbot Father of all Monks,
went to heaven." " Tinted Sketches in Madeira"
are continued, and are pleasing to peruse. The
second part of " Garrick" brings before the reader
further particulars of the career of that distinguished
man. " Beatrice" is a peculiar sketch in verse,
which is written in a spirited style. " Fenianism"
is the last article met with, but it is written in too
bitter a spirit to influence the reader. The writer
appears to dread the proposed changes, and to feel
no confidence whatever in the intentions and wis-
dom of Government.

COLBURN'S UNITED SERVICE MAGAZINE.--The
United Service is full of variety, beginning with a
few notes concerning the history of " the red coat"
as the emblem of the British soldier, reminding one
very forcibly of the " thin red line" under Sir Colin
Campbell on the heights of Balaclava, waiting for
the threatened charge of Russian cavalry, which
dared to do wonders, but faltered in the attempt,
deeming discretion to be the better course. It ap-
pears that " red" was the colour of the British
uniform for a long time back, and here we have a
short history of its eventful career through many a
well foughten field. Scarlet, faced with blue, was
the uniform of the City Guard of Edinburgh, a
corps which existed from the days of Flodden until
those of Waterloo. Scarlet is mentioned among
the colours used by the Britons for dyeing their
skins in the time of Julius Csar. The Royal
crowns of England and Scotland were always lined
with scarlet, though James IV. for a time adopted
imperial purple. The red uniform of the British
army was the Royal colour of England and Scot-
land centuries before the union of the two countries,
red and blue being the Royal livery of England,
and red and yellow that of Scotland. Singularly
enough scarlet was only adopted by the grim Scot-
tish Covenanters at the battle of Kilsythe, where
Montrose routed their troops with great slaughter
and" the red coat musketeers" were cut to pieces by
Viscounts Aboyne and Gordon. The chequer on
the bonnets of the Highland Regiments was adopted
by the clans under Montrose as significant of the
jess-cheque of the House of Stuart. The great
Marquis of Montrose wore scarlet at his barbarous
execution in Edinburgh in 1650. There are many
incidents related of the effects produced by the
stern appearance of the red uniform on the enemy
—especially at the battle of Vittoria. It became
an object with the officer commanding the light
companies which were scattered in pursuit to collect
as many as he could, and get them arranged for the
attack of a column which formed at some distance
on one of the heights, and became a rallying point
to the thousands who were flying from the pursuit.
Before a sufficient number of Red Coats were col-
lected to attack the formidable column it broke and
bolted, its soldiers disappearing among the racing
mobs, who threw away their arms and fled towards
the Pyrenees. The skirmishers were wondering
what had produced so sudden a panic among men
who a moment before seemed ready to die with their
officers, when, on their looking back to the ridge,
they saw a sight never to be forgotten. The whole
British line crowned the mountains from wing to

wing, looking like a wall of fire, their bayonets

glittering in the sun as they moved steadily,

silently, and presenting a glorious pic-
ture of power and order. This sight

it was which struck the enemy to the heart, and
made him fly from his new position in sudden panic.
No army, though double the number, if clad in
sombre uniform, could ever make such an appear-
ance, or produce such an effect as this. And yet,
at the commencement of the Volunteer Movement,
the writer of this was actively engaged in forming
a corps, now wearing grey ! So much for the glory
of " the old red rag !" " There are many veterans
now• living, who followed Picton, Grahame, and the
Iron Duke, who treasure affectionately the dear old
remnant of other days, and cling to the recollection
of the hair-breadth 'scapes in which they gloried
when the field was won." At Dettingen George
" appeared in the same red coat which he had worn
while serving under Marlborough." Thackeray
says, " On public occasions he always displayed the
hat and coat he wore on the famous day of Oude-
narde, and the people laughed, but kindly, at the
odd old garment, for bravery never, never goes out
of fashion." At Minden, in 1759, we find the luck-
less Lord George Sackville leading the cavalry in
the same red coat which he had worn as a youth at
Fontenoy, and the same sentiment has prevailed in
the humbler ranks of the service. An aged soldier
named Robert Ferguson, who died at Paisley, in
1811, in his 97th year, preserved to the last as a
precious relic the old red coat of the 22d Foot (Handy-
sides, wherein Sterne's father was a captain), in which
he had been wounded at the battles of Dettingen
and Fontenoy, just as future years may see some
veteran preserving the faded and perhaps blood-
stained tunic which he wore with Raglan at Sebas-
topol or with Havelock at Lucknow. "Of Pur-
suits, with Remarkable Examples," is another paper
of exciting interest, detailing some wonderful events
in which Napoleon figured with his usual general-
ship. " Jean Raymond" promises to become a sin-
gular story, exhibiting the career of a French sol-
dier. " Memoranda of Cavalry Regiments" is full
of reminiscences of the changes in those who bore
different numbers. " Comments on the Naval
Articles of War," and " Supplementary Despatches
of the Duke of Wellington," with " Shipwrecks and
their Causes," will be read with interest ; so will
" Turret Ships," " Recollections of Sandhurst," and
other papers.
TIIE ECLECTIC.—We meet this month with some
interesting papers, among them being articles on

Zambesi and the recent discoveries on the Shep-
herd Kings of Egypt, as well as a criticism on Miss
Tytler's " Citoyenne Jacqueline." " What is a
Hymn ?" is the title of a sensible and honest protest
against the modern fashion of touching up, uttering,
and " improving" the cherished old favourites,
which brings them to the correct level of modern
language, but entirely robs them of their vigour,
point, and earnestness.

he Presidency of the Royal Academy,

-

Apropos of the present vacancy, the Builder has
some notes upon the last five Presidents of the
Academy. In less than 99 years (1769-1866) the
" Royal Academy of Arts" has had five presidents :
1. Sir Joshua Reynolds ; 2. Benjamin West, who
declined knighthood ; 3. Sir Thomas Lawrence ; 4.
Sir Martin Archer Shee ; 5. Sir Charles Lock
Eastlake. Of the five, it is not too much to fore-
tell, that if not now, hereafter most certainly, the
first will be held in critical estimation and Christie
and Manson quotations as worth his four successors
" rolled in one." Sir Joshua died (1792) in the
69th year of his age, and the 23d year of his presi-
dentship ; Mr. West died (1820) in the 82d year of
his age, and the 28th year of his presidentship ; Sir
Thomas Lawrence died (1830) in his 65th year and
the tenth of his presidentship ; Sir Martin Archer
Shoe died (1850) in his 81st year and the 20th of
his presidentship ; and Sir Charles Lock Eastlake
died in his 72d year and the 16th year of his: pre-
sidentship. The election of Reynolds to the chair
of the Academy was unopposed, and received at
once the approval of the King (George III.), to
whose " protection," rather than encouragement,
the Academy in a great degree was indebted for
its charter, its existence, and its rooms for its
-schools, its discourses, its source of, and its great but
still craving, wealth, protected exhibitions. West's
election (1792) to the chair, vacant by the death
of Reynolds, was designed as a compliment to the
royal founder of the Academy. and was accepted as
such ; though Fuseli did vote for Mrs. Mary Moser,
on the plea that " one old woman was as good as
another." That the election (1820) of Lawrence to
the chair, vacant by the death of West, would be
gratifying to King George IV. was well known ;
the election of the future Sir Thomas was, therefore,
without opposition. When Lawrence died (Jan. 7,
1830), " Shee" (as Chantrey wrote in pencil to Allan
Cunningham the same night) " was elected by a
large majority." The names of the candidates wil-
ling or unwilling to be put in nomination, with the
numbers of votes they received, merit reproduction
at this juncture :—Martin Arthur Shea, Esq., 18 ;
Sir William Beechey, Knight, 6 ; David Wilkie,
Esq., 2 ; Thomas Phillips, Esq., 1 ; A. W. Callcott,
Esq., 1. Collins was one of the two who voted for
Wilkie. At Shee's death (August 19, 1850) Mr.
Eastlake was put in nomination, elected, and
knighted. Devonshire has thus given two presidents
to the Royal Academy ; its earliest and its latest.
Clubs and circles, where artists most do congregate,
talk with reverential decency, and various certainty
about " who is to be the new president." That the
academy will cling to its custom of choosing a painter
:there cannot be a doubt ; we may, therefore, it is
remarked, at once reduce the number of candidates
by the sculptors, architects, and engravers: IVe
shall in this way exclude 11; six sculptors—Mr.
Foley, Mr. Gibson, Mr. Marshall, Mr. M'Dowell,
Mr. Weekes, and Mr. Westmacott ; three architects
—Mr. Philip Hardwick, Mr. Sydney Smirke, and
Mr. Geo. Gilbert Scott ; and two academician en-
gravers—Mr. Cousins and Mr. Doo. By this ex-
clusion we reduce our candidates or " running"
Royal Academicians who " are in the betting" to 30.
First, we are compelled to exclude the father of the
40, Abraham Cooper, Esq. Mr. Cooper is now in the
46th year of his R.A. ship. Then we must exclude
the once Capt. Jones—a Wellington soldier, and one
of Chantrey's executors, elected an '.A. in 1802 ;
thirdly, we must set aside Henry Wm. Pickersgill,
Esq., who astonished the Iron Duke by his skill in
his art and his Waterloo surprise question ;
and finally, we must, with Mediterranean and
Drury-lane Theatre tears, " put" Clarkson Stan-
field, of Hampstead-on-the-Heath, Esq., aside, as
a 30 years' and odd plumaged bird, his R.A.-ship
dating from December, 1835. Our next proceeding
is to take up " Dorling's Correct List" for the forth-
coming January meeting in the east wing of the Na-
tional Gallery in Trafalgar-square. Here, men—
" presented" by order of the House of Commons and
" other authorities" not so peremptorily—is a chro-
nologically arranged list of all the living painters
elected since Stanfield in 1835 :—F. R. Lee, Daniel
Maclise, Solomon A. Hart, John P. Knight, Chas.
Landseer, Thomas Webster, J. R. Herbert, C. W
Cope, Thos. Creswick, Richard Redgrave, Frank
Grant, Wr. P. Frith, E. M. Ward, A. Elmore, F.
R. Pickersgill, J. Philip, J. C. Hook, P. F. Poole,
Wm. Boxall, J. E. Millais, E. W. Cooke, J. C.
Horsley, T. Faed, J. F. Lewis. Oddly enough
there is no mention at all here of perhaps the like-
liest man of them all for the Presidency—Sir Edwin
Landseer !

ROYAL COIkIMISSION ON RAILWAYS.—Her Majesty
has lately issued a new Commission for this body,
with the object of appointing two additional members—
viz., Lord Belmore and Mr. Monsell, M.P. The Commis-
sioners, therefore, are at present as follows : —His Grace
the Duke of Devonshire, K.G., F.R.S., chairman ; the
Right Hon. the Earl of Belmore, the Right Hon. the Earl
of Dououghmore, the Right Hon. Lord Stanley, M.P.,
F.R.S., the Hon. E. F. Leveson Gower, M.P., the Right
Hon. Robert Lowe, M.P., the Right Hon. William Monsell,
M.P., Sir Rowland Hill, K.C.8., F.R.S., Mr. J. A. Roe-
buck, M.P., Mr. T. B. Horsfall, M.P., Mr. Robt. Dalglish,
M.P., Mr. George Carr Glyn, M.P., Mr. A. S. Ayrton,
M.P., Captain Douglas Galton, R.E., C. 8., F.R.S., Mr. F.
T. Hamilton, M.P., Mr. J. R. M'Clean, Pres. Inst. C.E.
The Commission names as before Mr. William Pole,
F.R.S., as secretary. The commission will resume their
meetings immediately after the meeting of Parliament.
PRUSSIAN TROOPS IN THE DUCHIES.—It has been
mentioned that two Prussian regiments are about
to leave Schleswig and return to Prussia. By their de-
parture the Prussian troops will be reduced to 7,000 men,
of whom 5,000 are in the Duchy and the rest at Kiel and
in the fortress of RendsLurg. The Berlin journals state
that the Prussian troops in Lauenburg are also to be
reduced.