The Sun.
London, England, 1835-02-06 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

RICHES OF CHAUCER. Two VoLs.
E. 'Wilson. London, 1835.
Mr. Clarke, to whom we are indebted for these tasty

little volumes, has done good service to literature, by
his attempts to restore the popular taste for Chaucer►
by expunging his impurities, modernizing his spelling,
and accentuating his rhythm. Such a book was much
wanted.

WALTER SCOTT'S PROSE WORKS—VOL. X.
Cadell. Edinburgh, 1835.
A continuation of Scott's " Life of Napoleon," com-
mencing with the appointment of the Emperor to the
command of the Army of Italy, and terminating with
the period of his departure from Egypt. The volume
is embellished with a map of the French campaign in
Egypt and Syria, and two engravings—one of Venice,
and the other (which is the best) of a field of battle
near Placenza.

HISTORY OF ENGLAND, Vot. XIII.
Valpy, London, 1835.

This volume brings the History of England down to
the close of the reign of George the Second, in the
year 1760. It is about here that Smollett's task
finishes, and the fourteenth volume, to be published on
the Ist of March, will commence a continuation from
the practised pen of the Reverend T. S. Hughes,
which will carry down English history as far as the
present. year. Thus completed, the work can scarcely
fail to meet with the popularity it deserves. The ern'
bellishments are better than usual,—especially the
scene of the death of General Wolfe, which is a very
spirited one.

A NEW GUIDE TO SPANISH AND ENGLISH

CONVERSA TIONS.
Smith and Co., London. 1835.

An unassuming, but very serviceable elementary little
work on the Spanish language. It is, in fact, a sort
of conversational vocabulary, and will be purchased
eagerly by all who are desirous to acquaint themselves
with the more familiar Spanish idioms, and the general
rudiments of the language. It is from the pen of Mr.
Rowbotham, who has had long experience in tuition,
and has published some useful grammars.

HOOD'S COMIC ANNUAL.
Bailey and Co., London, 1835.
There is less straining after effect in this volume °f
the " Comic Annual" than in any we have vet seen!
The humour trundles on more easily, and though the
puns are pretty nearly as numerous as ever; yet they
are not so far-fetched as is apt to be the case wits
Mr. Hood's puns. The preface is lively and pointed,
hitting at the premature appearance of the winter
annuals in the midst of autumn, in a satirical spirit
that will be felt, but cannot possibly offend. The
wood-cuts are good, and those by the author himself
the best. " Playing at Hazard" shows a fireman
working away with his engine, at the very m°'
rnent when two huge bricks are about to
fall on his unconscious sconce. Fortunately, the
poor man has a thick head, and looks as,
if he knew it. " Two heads are better than one,
is a capital caricature. Two quick pedestrians on $
rainy day, have just come, skull foremost, against each
other, and, as a necessary consequence of such a sad'
den and violent collision, their faces are shut up in their
hats, all but their mouths, which convey an expres-
sion of grievous embarrassment. " A pin-a-fore "is $
whimsical etching of a bull, who is in the act of being
pinned by the nose by a vicious mastiff. The tin"
happy bull looks the very picture of p erplexitY.
" Fancy Portraits," are the caricatures of Rowland,
and his son, the joint owners of that " incomparable
Macassar oil, which, if it be applied to a bald pate'
will in ten minutes, cover the head with hair as WO'
riant as a judge's wig. " This is the time
when church-yards yawn," is one of the most inge'
nious conceits in the volume. A great gawky, tomb'
stone is opening its mouth as wide as a school-boYt
when he is bolting mince-pies at Christmas, or giving
certain drowsy indications that bed-time is arrived'
" Inn-clemency" we cannot understand. We suppose'
therefore, it must be something surpassingly brilliant',
" A Minor Canon" is a cleverish pun, and is illustrate!'
by a mischievous young urchin, who has shot off 105
cannon, to the evident discomfiture of his sister's left
leg. " Fancy Portrait" is a satirical figure of M
Trimmer, in the act of applying the rod to that partv
cular portion of a school-boy's rear-ward Adam, where
honour is supposed to reside. The lady's countenance,
expresses a becoming consciousness of the dignity of
her vocation. She will certainly not spoil the child, by
sparing the rod. And she is right. The only effec'
trial way—let tender mothers say what they
get knowledge into the head, is to hammer it in at the
tail. This may be set down as an axiom which (Or
like the patent safety-coaches), is not to be overturned'
We have mentioned the best of the Illustrations, 5°
must say a word about the literary portion of tbe,
" Comic Annual." The various accounts of the COfe
flagration of the two Houses of Parliament, by the
newspapers, their correspondents, and the counal
members, is incomparably the most humourous ano
original part of the volume. The letter from 5;
amateur of fires, who, though a laudator tenzporis acr:
yet is liberal enough to allow that the Parliamentary
blaze beats any that he had ever seen, is an admirable
quiz on, what Sterne would call, the hobby-horsical
propensities of mankind. The imitation of Cobbe
in to
_
is worthy (almost) to vie with the celebrated one n thee
t
" Rejected Addresses." Who does not recognize the
" bone-grubber" in this passage ?
" And now, Bushell, I'll tell you what you shall do. 1:°1.:
shall go three nights a week to the Red Lion (when your I've.),
is done) and you may score up a pint of beer each time, at .1;,
cost. And when the parson or the exciseman, or the taxlst
therer, or any such gentry begin to talk of the deplorable Kt pis
burning., and the national calamity, and such like trash, Yo
shall pull out my letter and read to them—l say, Bushell, Y 4,
shall read this letter to them, twice over, loudly and distieelif,
and tell them from me, that the burning of twenty ?aro°
mentary Houses would'nt be such a national calamity as 6
at No. 1, Bolt Court."