The Sun.
London, England, 1859-06-09 00:00:00

LITBRA 2' U R E.

Tillage Belles ; a Tale of English Country Life,
By the author of " Mary Powell." New Edition
revised. Bentley.

~
The lines on the title-page of this book serve
most aptly to illustrate its purport. They are as
follows :

" Familiar matter of to-day ;
Some natural sorrow, joy, or pain,
That has been, and may be again."
Few readers can be otherwise than charmed with
the perusal of this little volume. There is something
real about its character, and one feels interested
in the fortunes of the inhabitants of the White
Cottage. Mrs. Wellford is a delightful portraiture
of a true lady, one whom adversity, and the total
reverse of fortune, could Rot entirely depress, but
who accommodated herself to circumstances with
cheerful resignation. Her daughters are of very
different dispositions, but both are attractive.
Hannah, the eldest, is a gentle and refined
maiden, but Rosina is of the spirited and
brilliant style. The -story eontaims- many- pleasing
passages, and the description of Huntly is a very
admirable one. He is represented in a verymatural
manner as a gifted man, totally destitute of prin-
ciple, but possessed of a power of fascination that
was dangerously influential. The episode of his
engagement with Hannah -Wellford forms an
important feature in the ne:trative, displaying that
there was something irtnatily good in Huntly's
mind, or he would never have been attracted by
such a pure being, whiie her rejection of him, when
she discovered his deficiencies, revealed most un-
mistakeably her filed adherence to the lofty stan-
dard of right. Rosina is a lively sparkling heroine,
with nothing ca):m or composed about her. She is.
genuine in her character, however, and displays, on
many occasions, much kindness of heart. Altogether
" Village Belles " is a very desirable and delightful
little work.

The New Monthly Magazine.
An account of the "Flight to Varennes" is the
first thing to meet us in this number. This mourn-
event, one of the most painful in the annals of
thP.t troubied time, is narrated at length. It is one
tilat is almost irritating to the reader from the mis-
management and want of precaution which charac-
terised it. All readers, whether Republican or
Royalist, must sympathise with the unfortunate
family trying to escape for their lives ; the poor,
simple-minded, patient king, the undaunted but
suffering queen and mother, whose hair went grey
from the terrible anxiety of that ill-managed
flight. The account here given is clear and
interesting, and fuller than is general in histories.
After this tragic romance of real life we come to a
vivid but painful fiction entitled " The Brothers."
It continues the story of Pommeroy Abbey under
another name, and tells us how Rupert Pommeroy
murders the lord, his brother. It is well written,
but the subject altogether is painful and unpleasing.
Cardinal Maury is the next on the list of Sir
Nathaniel's note-worthies,. and an entertaining
account of his career is given. "My Friend
Pickles " continues his amusing catalogue of
grievances. The fifth of " Stereoscopic Glimpses,"
by W. C. Kent, shows us the mighty master of his-
toric fiction in his study at Abbotsford, with the
shadowy forms to whom he has given immortality
clustering round him. We subjoin the following
passage :

" Though slight this wand, its flickerings still
Above each scroll their witcheries fill—
Ai fast the mystic symbols shower—
Recal to light dead shapes of power.
Back o'er Burgundian plains are rolled
The buried pomps of Charles the Bold 1
Flames out once more 'neath northern sun
The shattered glaive of Marrnion
Loud clangs again in dust and blood
The stately tournay's iron flood—
The warlike storm of plume and spear,
That rings with many a blow and cheer !
Around the old magician throng
With these, the heroines of his song—
Whose charms his inmost soul entrance,
The glories of his heart's romance I
Sweet Ellen of the sylvan lake,
Whose bark a floating heaven would make :
Fair Catherine, fairest maids abovo,
As maiden of the morn of love :
Diana, whose quick-reined reproof
Wring's music from her palfrey's hoof:
And ahe, the hero-robber's joy,
Queen-mistress of the bold Rob Roy :
Rebecca, poised in virtue's proof
O'er battlements of Front de Bceuf : .
And loveliest still, though crazed in blood,
Yon widowed bride of Ravenswood 1
Strange types of various clime and age—
The goblin elf, the pauper sage,
The smuggler grim with ruthless scowl,
The shaven monk in russet cowl,
The turnkey of the squalid jail,
The red-cross knight in tinkling mail :
No theme so quaint, no dream so fair,
But finds its aptest semblance there—
There circling as with magic ring
Yon grey-haired bard—their Lord and King."
A paper on "Arrivals from Paris" treats of some
of the new works that are exciting the attention
of the Parisian world. " Aunt Francisca," a plea-
sant tale from the Danish, is brought to a conclu-
sion. Cyrus Redding, the veteran contributor to
the New Monthly, gives us a paper on " Lady
Morgan." There/are other articles on subjects of
varying interest.

THE LATE CASE OF HOMICIDE AT
BIRMINGHAM

Very exaggerated reports of this case have ap-
pearedin the papers. At the inquest, which con-
cluded on Tuesday night, it was shown that Bugg,
who fired the gun, went into the public-house with
the deceased on the night of the occurrence, and
called for a glass of gin and n glass of ale. They
stood by the bar door and were talking together ix
a friendly manner. Shortly afterwards the bar-
maid brought the gun down stairs, and placed it
against the smoke-room door, while she went to
call a man to discharge it. Immediately after-
wards the report of the gun was heard, and
Bugg was seen to let the gun fall upon the
floor, while Payne fell bleeding. Bugg, in com-
pany with another man, went for a surgeon,
and returned in about five minutes, but Payne
was then dead. On his return Bugg appeared greatly
excited, and fainted several times.

Police-constable 307 having given evidence as to
the nature of the admissions made by Bugg, to the
effect that he picked up the gun, and on making
the remark " How heavy it is," the gun exploded,
witnesses were called to show that there appeared
the greatest friendship and cordiality between the
deceased and Bugg on the night of the fatal occur-
ren co.

The Coroner, in summing up,
avteur
rye
ly great
prematurely
said hehad observed
regret that observations had been
made before_ any authorised inquiry
could take place,
_which tended to prejudice, he
feared, many minds in regard to the circumstances
of the inquiry.
One of the points made and plainly
suggested was, that some feeling of jealousy,
founded or unfounded, had been excited in
some way, and imputations were made which
were calculated to invest the case with a doubtful
character. They had, however, at considerable
length gone into that point, and had found that
there was no foundation whatever for a supposition
of this kind, so far as was known to those 'proxi-
mate and nearest to the parties concerned. The
act of going out on the evening of the fatal occur-
rence was not at the solicitation of Bugg, but that
of the deceased himself, and all the circumstances of
the case would seem to indicate that any preconceived
intention on the part of Bugg would have been a
matter of absolute insanity. The demeanour of the
parties showed that they were perfectly friendly, and
the direction of the wound, as bad been explained
by the medical gentlemen who had given their evi-
dence would tend to show that the act was the re-
sult of an accident. There was another important
circumstance with regard to the hour at which the
gun was brought down to be discharged. On the
evening of the occurrence the gun was brought
down at a much later period than usual, and it was
impossible for the prisoner to have known that it
had not been brought down and discharged before
he entered the house.
After a deliberation of an hour, the jury returned
a verdict of " Homicide by misadventure to George
Bugg." The nature of the verdict appeared to give
great satisfaction.
The prisoner was brought before the borough
magistrates yesterday (Wednesday) morning, hav-
ing been remanded from Saturday ; and after the
evidence of several' witnesses had been heard, he
was discharged.