The Sun.
London, England, 1859-03-21 00:00:00

. Providence rewarded their courage by finally elevatingtheir
destiny. But these ungsstmling heroes heroes fought and
suffered long without pretensions, solely for their faith and
their obscure homes. The- Poles, on the contrary, when-
ever they rise up in insurrection, must excite, and cannot
do otherwise than call into action a great national and
European struggle. The Polish question throws into the
balance the peace and organisation of collected Europe.'?
The historic documents appended•to the conclusion
of the work are many of them valuable papers.
Two of them will well repay the reader for perusal.-
One of them is a sketch of the career of Madame
de Rumford, by. M. Guizot, who gives in it an in-
teresting picture of the saloons of the 18th century
where that :light, witty, scoffing philosophy
flourished, sparkling with the wit of Voltaire and
the brilliant sophistries of a crowd of pleasant
sceptics, soon .to be shadowed by the Reign of
Terror and crushed by the guillotine. Madame de
Rumford was previously the wife of the celebrated
Lavoisier, and devoted herself to the study of
science with an ardour that rivalled her husband. She
assisted him in his labours—she translated, trail--
scribed, and aided him in every possible way, even
learning to engrave that lie might be sure of faith-
ful illustrations. He was 3ne of the many illus-
trious victims of the guillotine. The other article
referred to is by Madame Guizot, whose charming
writings are widely known in this country. It is
full of thought, sense and feeling. It is on " Charity,
its place in woman's life," and was originally written
in 1828, but the numbers published were limited and
M. Guizot avails himself of this opportunity of
giving it the publicity it deserves. A thorough
knowledge of the wants of the poor, as well as a
sense of what' her sisters, might accomplish if each
would do what she could, is plainly manifested ;
and it is interesting to know that Madame Guizot's
practice fully coincided with her precepts. In the
time of the cholera M. Guizot describes her
advice and aid as being constantly sought, and
tells how she freely mingled with the. sick and
suffering without thought of self. When completed,
these . memoirs will give a statesman's view of
France during twenty years, many of them troubled
and revolutionary—all of them.. more or less im-
portant. However we may differ from the policy
pursued by M. Guizot in office, and the opinions
maintained by him in opposition, and, without
entering on the complicated questions of those
remote days our readers are aware that we
have often done so, we are able to welcome his
memoirs as a 'valuable illustration of the history of
the time, and an important contribution to the
political records of European .States. The trans-
lator has fulfilled his share of the task with ability
and success. The book reads fluently, and without
any idiomatic phrases, and we shall await the suc
ceeding volumes with interest and expectation.

The Bertrams : a Novel. By Anthony Trollope,
author of ",Barchester Towers " "Doctor Thorne,"
&c. 3 vols. Chapman and ilall.
Those who desire to peruse a sensible novel should
obtain this work. Here they will find no effusions
of sentiment, and no exaggerations of feeling and
passion, but a. sober estimate of men and things,
and a vigorous exposition of events that are of daily
occurrence,. It is satisfactory to notice the great
improvement in the style of this talented author:
It so often occurs that powerful writers detaiorate
from their first productions, that it is particularly
gratifying, to find a new work n'o't only possessing
increased force ,and brilliancy, but alsw enhanced by
greater refinement. of,t9ue.and- grace of-exprdssion.
There are many persons met with in this story,
who are all, accurately described in their peciiliar
positions. The most admirable character is that of
George Bertram, and he is perfectly natural in his
manner and bearing, which is not always the case
with the shining ornaments of a narrative. How-
ever, it is to be questioned if Harcourt is not the
Most striking sketch in the work. He is a masterly
representation of a man of the world—dashing,
daring, and distinguished alike by his superior
me f. eeowments and his energetic self-advance-
i
it suited his ii.peripaulous in his conduct when
an actual triumph seemsnobler incentive than
thoughts. The plaudits of to-da4r,gyell in 'his
ambition ; he cared little and thought less oYtruW:
enduring and still higher triumph, which' on many
an after-morrow might sound his praises, and
register his name among Fame's immortal votaries.
The bright but transient success which he obtained
only tended to unfit him for again struggling with
the tide of adversity, and his conduct when he was
in the ascendant had not impressed men's minds in
a favourable manner. " Since the day when he
had hesitated to resign his high office, his popu-
larity had gone down- like a leaden plum.
met in the salt water. He had become cross-
grained, ill-tempered, and morose. No legal lumi-
nary in the memory of man had risen so quickly
and fallen so suddenly. It had not been given him
to preserve an even mind when . adversity came
upon him." The last sad-scene in'the career of this
gifted man is a solemn one. Distracted by his
pnblie failures and his private misfortisneA, harassed
by the pressure of enormous debts which he had
incurred in his wild venture to make a show before
the world, he proved that his mind was unequal
to the test that distinguishes the genuine from the
counterfeit; it could not withstand the evil day, it
had been trained to bask in the sunshine, not
trained to weather the storms with a bold spirit-
and an iron will. "He was a coward, misfortune
had come upon him, and he was conquered at once."
The morning after his last disappointment, his
exclusion from the will of his wife's grandfather,
the news was spread abroad that Sir Henry Har-
court had destroyed himself. George Bertram was
of a very different class; he was also eminently
qualified to distinguish himself in the world, but
he hesitated from one reason and another. He
wanted decision of mind ; he was too apt to depend
on the fancies of the hour, and the suggestions of
others instead of forming his own plans in study
and solitude, and then adhering to them -with
energy. Unfortunately for him he early became
attached to Caroline Waddington, a lady of Con-
siderable endowments, but not calculated to prove
an efficient adviser to one so easily influenced as
was George Bertram. Her conduct was reprehen-
sible in the highest degree ; she dissuaded Bertram
from any of those higher aims to which in the
enthusiasm of his nature he was prone to aspire.
She endeavoured to bring downlhis thoughts to the
level of her cold and worldly sentiments, and thus
in a great measure destroyed the promise of his noble
youth. She also unintentionally marred his success
in the very sphere in which she desired him to
shine, for it was in consequence of her conduct that
their engagement was annulled, and hence dire
offence Was given to their rich old relation, Mr.
Bertram, who had set his heart on the marriage
and who, in consequence of its non-occurrence, left
his enormous wealth for other objects. This was no
disappointment to George, who did not care for
money, but it was a disastrous circumstance for his
advancement ; and, though money is not all that is
needed, it is a desirable adjunct in the struggle
with the world. The chief evil that Caroline
wrought on the mind of Bertram was in lowering
his estimate of human nature. In clouding the
brightness of his hopes, she dimmed the whole of
his after life. He could have borne disappointment
in another form ; had death or accident intervened
to pronounce the doom of his love, he might have
been resigned, but it was bitter to find cold
calculation returned for his ardent affection ;
while he was constant to the shrine of love,
she was intent only on the worship of
Mammon. However, Caroline Waddington
worked out a far more lamentable doom for herself
in becoming the wife of Harcourt. That man had
been early associated with Bertram, but proved
himself false to friendship, and was the immediate
cause of the quarrel between the lovers. From the
moment when he discovered that Caroline was the
supposed heiress of old Bertram, he set to work,
and, having achieved the separation, ho offered
himself to Caroline. She felt that nothing could
ever efface her early love, for in her peculiar way
she was attached to Bertram; but pride and pas-
sion finally triumphed over every other considera-
tion, and she became Lady Harcourt. After some
painful passages in their domestic life, she left her
husband, and resided with her grandfather. The
life of old Mr. Bertram is ably described.' He was
not destitute of friendly feelings nor devoid of
generous impulses ; but he lived only for his money.
" The iron of his wealth had entered into his very
soul. He had made half a million of money, and
that had been his god, his only god—and alder",
men have but one god. The true worship of the,
one loved shrine prevents all other worshatd
There is a third hero, Arthurtheir
another heroine, Adela Gantlet, although
there is a
course of true love did not run
smooth,
lhat is very
softness and serenity about their lives •
different to the whirl and After the
the others.
racterisecl the existence of. excitement w cha-
very imprudently
Arthur death of his father,
Aeretment that crippled his
entered into some
ngarnd although this was done
means for many
_yetlrs,
f his mother, she behaved in the
for the benefit o
In consequence of this confusion
-most selfish
walfil his desire of proposing to Adela
he could notaiTfu
Gauntlet, she was left for some years in a state
while he passed a wretched life,
harassed by of ulicertambi;r mother, for whom he had sacrificed
everytili"g, and dispirited at his forlorn position.
However, brighter days were in store ; his health
`vas the cause of his taking a tour with his cousin,
George. Bertram, who exhorted him to rouse
himself, and not give way to despair. He
followed this wise counsel, and after his re-
turn he convinced his mother that he was his
own master, and he and Adela were united. They
were very poor, but that did not distress them, and
their pure tastes and simple pleasures formed a
strong contrast to the misery of the croity Har-
*