The Sun.
London, England, 1866-02-08 00:00:00

DUBLIN UNIVERSITY.—" The Outdoor Spectacles
of Old Paris" present us with some entertaining
sketches, that reveal many glimpses of the doings
of an earlier time. It is truly said here that the
" exhibition and entertainments forming the subject
of this paper are interesting to the social antiquary ;
much of the spirit and character of a people, and of their
standard of morality, ma.y be learned from their customs and
pastimes." " Not Wisely, but too Well" is rather dull in this
instalment. It tells us of James Stanley's stern self-discip-
line, and Kate's self-indulgent apathy, but there are few
events recorded. The scene between George and his cousin
Is well described, with the willingness to tell on one side,
and unwillingness to understand on the other. " Number
Five Brooke-street" is continued in its animated style, and
we again meet with the sharp-witted Mrs. Lepell, who
contrives to humbug Sir John Digby completely. An
amusing account is given of the style in which Lord John
extricated himself from the dangers in which he was
placed by the horses running away, when he lett a lady
the sole occupant of the sleigh. " Three Cynical Spec-
tators" again appear to attract the curious reader. There
is great truth in some of the remarks here made upon
" Satire." It is declared to be "a natural propensity of
man ; it is a weapon which may be right nobly used ; it is
a powerful remedy against evil, meanness, and vulgarity.
Wielded by true and virtuous power, satire enlarges the
heart and mind, and shows how men can be rebuked, not
with fanaticism and hatred, but by the superior thought
of men who had in them a brighter spark of the Divine
nature than that ordinarily vouchsafed to mortals." "Gulli-
ver," " Candide," and " Teufelsdrockh" are the instances
here cited of the power of this gift. The lovers of the
mysterious and romantic will be glad to find a new story
is commenced by the author of " Guy Deverell," &c. It is
called " All in the Dark," and presents us with some of
those domestic sketches for which the writer is so famous.
" Imposture and Credulity" is the title of a sketch which
furnishes us with some most remarkable occurrences in
that line. The interesting accounts of " Glastonbury
Abbey" are continued in the same spirited style, and in the
same impressive language. " The Opening Session" takes
a very unpromising view of the prospects of the Govern-
ment. It is said with truth that after the general election
the supporters of Ministers laid great stress upon their
majority of thirty, but that now they are very reserved on
the subject. It seems to be inferred from this article that
there will be a regular split between those in the Liberal
ranks, and a sort of a medium party formed. Whether
this be true or not, no doubt many and great are the
trials that await the new Government, and certainly if
they fail it will not be for want of kind friends to tell
them of their shortcomings and to point out their defi-
ciencies.

FRASER'S MAGAZINE.—There are several subjects
of great importance discussed in this number, be-
ginning with Miss Cobbe's essay on " The Indigent
Class—their Schools and Dwellings." Although
this topic has never yet assumed its proper dimen-
sions, it has lately attracted more and more of the
attention of thoughtful men, and all who feel any interest
in the well-being of our population will be glad to hear
what Miss Cobbe has to say on the subject. After speak-
ing of the degraded tendencies of the very lowest classes,
Miss Cobbe says very justly, that to leave this class any
choice at all between healthy and unhealthy habitations
is to prolong the mischief of the slums for ever. The
great end to be attained, as she very forcibly points out,
is the total demolition of our fever nests, and the effectual
clearance of the pestilential districts of the great towns.
This work, quite beyond the scope of private benevolence,
belongs, as Miss Cobbe argues, to the national Exchequer.
In support of this she observes that the fulfilment of this
obvious duty would be really a wise economy. "England
Spends many millions annually on workhouses, gaols, and
hospitals. Would it bo bad economy to cut off one of
the main sources of poverty, crime, and disease ? We do
not grudge the price of an ironclad ship to be ready to
defend us in case of a war, which in all probability will
never arise till she has rusted away. Should we
grudge a similar sum to build a whole street of
healthful dwellings, and so defeat an enemy
who is sure to invade us ere long—a more cruel enemy
than all the battalions of France—even cholera ?" The
next article will be certain to attract attention, for it is on
Jamaica and the recent insurrection, written by a late re-
sident in the island. It is not a little significant, as
showing the 'views of educated and intelligent men,
who really know the facts, that the writer, expressing
the opinion of the whites, does not seem to be aware
of any suspicion attaching to the manner in which the
rebellion was put down. "A. K. H. B." reappears in
this number, though not in the old form; still his con-
tribution will be welcome to many. "Elements of the
Military Balance of Power in •Europe" is a useful sta-
tistical paper. The "Report of the. Capital Punishment
Commission" is reviewed at some length, and we have
also a paper on " Sundays, Ancient and Modern," which
is thoughtful and sensible, and enters into the real merits
of the question.

THE UNITED SERVICE.—The United Service is
full of variety for this month, and devotes a consi-
derable space to the interests of either service.
" Medals and Distinctions of the English Army"
enters into the history of giving these marks of
distinction from the earliest period. They were prevalent
in the Eastern armies long before the glories of Rome were
being commemorated by symbols of honour. The coro-
net or torques are said to have been common in the days
of Cyrus, and from that source were derived the crowns
of honour (corona) in use among the Greeks and Romans
in later times. The practice even reached to Celtic na-
tions. The arms of the Errol family are an ancient and
good example in point. When the Danes invaded Scot-
land in 980 there was a battle at Longearty, near Perth, in
which the Scotch King Kenneth the Third was routed.
John de Luz and his sons (the ancestors of the Earls of
Errol) were ploughing in a field hard by. Seeing the
Scots flee, John and his sons put themselves in a narrow
pass and stopped them with ox-gear, bidding them turn
back for loons and cowards. They did so; and the
Danes, thinking it was a reinforcement, turned and fled.
Kenneth gave John de Luz as much land as a falcon flying
from his wrist in Gowrie should measure before it perched.
Hence the Errol most is a falcon, and the supporters two
husbandmen carrying ox-yokes. Similar memorials
vi ere bestowed on other families for deeds of valour by
different kings in other and more recent times. That of
the Devonshire family is recorded in the capture of
Boulogne, in the days of Henry the Fifth, when Lord
Howard's fifth son, being asked how he took the town,
. _

said "I tripped up the walls ;" "and Tripp shall be thy
name !" said the King, "Howard no longer," and he
honoured him with a scaling ladder for his bend or arms.

Other marks of honour are described for particular ser-

vices, but now they are more general, such as our Victoria
Cross, for chivalrous deeds, and they will serve to stimu-

late the brave to glorious achievements. "Non-commis-

sioned Officers" is a sensible paper on the value of these
men, as forming the connecting link between the higher

officers of an arm y and the ranks in general. They form

undoubtedly the moving spirit of the men, and deserve

well of their country, indeed far better than they get. But
we believe great improvements have taken place of late

in thcir condition,

"Jeans Raymond" continues Li

COLBURN'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.—The
first thing that we meet in this number is a paper
on " Modern Greece," which it:describes as " the
smallest of European kingdoms ; it barely com-
prises one million, two hundred thousand inhabi-
tants, and its revenue does not exceed twenty mil-
lions of francs." The writer says a little further on that
Greece pays heavily in the present day for the exaggerated
enthusiasm excited in her cause in 1821. Those who be-
lieved that on the establishment of Grecian independence
all the old herioc virtues and classic genius would spring
forth were so grievously disappointed by the event that
they rushed into the opposite extreme, and declared there
was nothing to be found but deceit and cowardice. This
view our author declares to be just as mistaken as the
other, and asserts 'that—" Just as we see in America the
quiet influence of the socially respectable party crushed
by the noisy clamour of less reputable partisanship, so the
positive virtues—domestic, social, and political—of the
educated Greeks are entirely lost sight of in the turbu-
ence of a few discontented yet ambitious persons."
Francis Jacox contributes an essay on " Jago and Motive-
less Malignity." Cyrus Redding gives a very long, and, to
tell the truth, somewhat tedious article on " Capital
Punishment," which is not yet concluded. Lieut.-Col.
Miles recounts his adventures and experiences during
a voyage from sea to sea through the Isthmus of Suez.
For fiction we have the conclusion of Mrs. Bushby's very
objectionable story of " Woodbury," and the continuance
of two other tales. " Lilian's Inheritance " is a
well-written tale of Mexican life, with a thread of
domestic interest running through it. " Idalia," a more
ambitious romance, from the pen of the brilliant though
not always reliable author of " Granville de Vigne," pro-
ceeds with vigour. The present instalment describes an
exciting scene, the surprise of the festive assembly at the
gay and courtly masquerade by the Royalist soldiers,
when " the music and the laughter and the festivity were
broken in upon by the tread of armed men, when gorgeous
robes and laces were dabbled in blood, and the beautiful
gardens and chambers of the Italian noble's palace became
the scene of hopeless struggle and reckless spoliation, be-
cause he loved his country's liberty better than his safety."
The worshipped Idalia is captured by the soldier; and in-
deed it is against her that the whole attack is principally
directed. The result of the crisis we shall probably learn
in the next number.
BENTLEY'S MISCELLANY.—The eventful and che-
quered career of the Constable de Bourbon lends
Mr. Ainsworth every opportunity for displaying his
capacities for historical romance. " The Gipsies" is
a paper on that singular race, which is now said to
be dying out fast. " The Monuments in Westmins.ter
Abbey" is the title of an article discussing chiefly the diffi-
culties of want of space. The writer suggests that some
of the cumbrous monuments and tablets erected
to the memory of very worthy but unknowi indi-
viduals which now block up the windows in the nave and
other conspicuous parts should be removed to the cloisters.
This is a very sensible and practical suggestion, which has
the more force, because many of these intrusive memorials
refer to persons really buried in the cloisters or other
places. " Mrs. Ranby Typically Considered" refers co a
character which is not uncommon in fiction, though the
Coelebs of Hannah More, in which Mrs. Ranby originally
appears, is now no longer read. There are other tales and
stories of various kinds, so that there is no lack of light
reading.
THE ST. JAMES'S.__" The Lady's Will" is con-
tinued at some length, and it is very important in
this instalment. Poor Cecil is not very happy in
her new position as O'Boyneville's wife ; she is
gloomy and deserted—far happier in all proba-
bility than her friend Florence is likely to be, how-
ever, for she makes a wretched marriage with Mr. Lobyer,
and we have many hints thrown out that she will reap the
whirlwind. Poor Philip Foley is much to be pitied, but
yet he is well free from Florence, for she is unworthy to be
the companion of an honest man. A fine passage is that
in which the old painter seeks to raise the dormant energies
of his young friend and send him out to work as the best
cure for melancholy. Philip was rather lapsing into
nothingness on the plea of the failures he has met with,
and Mr. Crauford exclaimed, "You will 'never be a great
painter, Foley, while you think of your air disappoint-
ments, your air failures ; you must learn to merge your
identity into the mighty abstraction. If they refuse your
picture at the Academy to-day, go home and begin a better
to-morrow, and before the month is out you will
rejoice that your rejected picture is unhung. The
story of Lot's wife has a moral for painters,
never look back. What are the failures of the past and
the present ? A little wasted canvas, a few tubes of colour
more or less, and it is across the failures of the present that
brave men march to the triumphs of the future. What

hot-headed fellows the young men of the present day are."
The second part of the "State Trials during the Reigns of
Elizabeth and the Stuarts" brings us to the days of the
notorious Judge Jeffries. "Supposed to be Haunted" is
a chapter for lovers of the marvellous, and is, in truth, a
ghost story with a moral. "On Lake Leman" is a plea-
sant paper, descriptive of a sojourn by the beautiful Geneva
lake, which, unfortunately, like many other beautiful
things, feels the invading effect of civilisation and its at-

tendant railroads. " The Village Doctor," by the ;;;Or
of "Shirley Hall," proceeds with interest. "Strong-
minded Women" is a plea for amuch-abused bandof ladies,
though it refers rather to the really strong-minded and
sensible, not to those who are generally dignified by that
title. Among the remaining papers are "Diana and the
Poets," "Mr. Gray's Ruin," and last, not least, the con-
clusion of M. Fevers singular and complicated romance of
" Working in the Dark."

CORNHILL.—" The Claverings" is commenced
1,
this month, and promise to be a very effective
story as it proceeds. Th author of the " Small
Home at Addington " is n t likely to present any
tale to the public that is not worthy of notice, but

in this he has allowed himself more scope. Marriages for
money and position are so common in the present day
that wo do not wonder the most successful no-
velists are prone to choose these alliances for
the theme of their discourse and the plot of their narra-

tives. "Armadale" has now become very exciting in its
description, and "Miss Gwilt" is nearly outwitted, despite
her cleverness, and her destined marriage is not likely to
take place. It is difficult to decide which is the most im-

prudent of the two friends, Allan and Midwinter, in rush-

ing into extremes and forming acquaintances with they
know not whom. They also seem to possess the gift of

quarrelling in a great degee. "To Esther" is a very inte-
resting story, which is told in a simple style, that renders
it more effective. It is curious to contrast the absurd

fancies of Mrs. Penton and the affectation of " Olga" with
the unstudied demeanour and artless grace of the young
widow. " The Ceremonies of the Jewish Religion" is an
article that will no doubt prove of interest to many, who
will thus have an opportunity afforded to them of inform-
ing themselves respecting the peculiar rites of that strange
people. It is said that to the " many ceremonies attached
to the observance of the Jewish religion may be ascribed
_ .

n a great measure that steadfast adherence to the faith

which so pre-eminently characterisesTheHebrewnation.;
There are some impressive lines met with entitled
" The Jews' Wailing Place, Jerusalem." " Catherine de
Bourbon" is one of those sketches that is sure to attract,

since they put before the reader a very fair reBumd of the
career of those who were notable in their generation, if
they did not gain much renown after their less fitful fever
was over. "My Experience in a Greek Quarantine " re-
•orda some pi the annoyances that Nyco felt by the crew