The Sun.
London, England, 1866-04-05 00:00:00

club, which met at the Turk's Head, in New Palace
yard. After some particulars regarding the Apollo
Club, the Calve's Head Club (" iu ridicule of the
memory of Charles I.")—the Cocoa-tree Club, and
others, we come to Almack's, the original
Brookes' ; then follow Brookes', White's, and other
of the most famous of the past century. Every
page is enlivened by an anecdote, many of which
are little known, and those that are familiar to us
are well selected. One chapter is devoted to
" Fighting Fitzgerald," a member of one of the
first families in Leinster, who in 1780 was hanged
for murder. This fire-eating gentleman was re-
solved to become a member of Brookes'. He applied
to Admiral Stewart to propose him, and the Ad-
miral, knowing that he must either fight or comply,
chose to do the latter; but at the ballot every mem-
ber, even the proposer, gave a black ball. Mr.
Fitzgerald was waiting for the decision in the
coffee-room. Mr. Brookes took in coffee, and
announced that there was one black ball in the box,
and that the candidate must wait a month for a
new election ; but this was not sufficient for Fight-
ing Fitzgerald.
He grasped Brookes's hand, saying, " My dear Brookes,
I'm chose ; but there must be a small matter of mistake in
my election ;" he then persuaded Brookes to go upstairs,
and make his compliments to the gentlemen, and say, as it
was only a mistake of one black ball, they would be so
good as to waive all ceremony on his account, and proceed
to re-elect their humble servant without any more delay
at all." Many of the members were panic-struck, forsee-
ing a disagreeable finale to the farce which they had been
playing. Mr. Brookes stood silent waiting for the answer.
At length, the Earl of March (afterwards Duke of Queens-
berry) said aloud, " Try the effect of two balls ; d—n his
Irish impudence, if two balls don't take effect upon him,
I don't know what will." This proposition was agreed to,
and Brookes was ordered to communicate the same.

On re-entering the waiting-room, Mr. Fitzgerald eagerly
inquired, " Have they elected me right, now, Mr.
Brookes ?" The reply was, " Sorry to inform you that the
result of the second balloting is—that two black balls were
dropped, sir." " Then,', exclaimed Fitzgerald, " there's
now two mistakes instead of one." He then persuaded
Brookes again to proceed upstairs, and tell the honourable
members to " try again, and make no more mistakes."
General Fitzpatrick proposed that Brookes should reply,
" His cause was all hopeless, for that he was black-balled
all over, from head to foot, and it was hoped by all the
members that Mr. Fitzgerald would not persist in thrust-
ing himself into society where his company was declined."
This message was of no avail. No sooner had Fitzgerald
heard it than ho exlaimed—" Oh, I perceive it is a mis-
take altogether, Mr. Brookes, and I must see to the rec-
tifying of it myself, there's nothing like daling with prin-
cipals ; so, I'll step up at onc.), and put this thing to rights,
without any more unnecessary delay."
In spite of Mr. Brookes's remonstrance, that his on-
trance into the club-roomwas against all rule and etiquette,
Fitzgerald flow upstairs, and entered the room without
any further ceremony than a bow, saying to the members,
who indignantly rose at the intrusion, " Your servant,
gentlemen—l beg ye will be sated."

Walking up to the fireplace, he thus addressed Admiral
Stewart —" So, my dear Admiral, Mr. Brookes informs me
that I have been elected three times.
" You have been balloted for, Mr. Fitzgerald, but I am
sorry to say you have not been chosen," said Stewart.
" Well, then," replied tho duellist, " did you black-ball
me ?" "My good sir," answered the Admiral, " how
could you suppose such a thing ?" " Oh, I supposed no
such thing, my dear fellow; I only want to know who it
was that dropped the black balls in by accident, as it

wero !"

Fitzgerald now went up to each individual member, and

put the same question seriatim, " Did you black-ball me,
sir ?" until he made the round of the whole club ; and in
each case he received a reply similar to that of the Ad-
miral. When he had finished his inquisition, ho thus ad-
dressed the whols body—" You see, gentlemen, that as
none of ye have black-balled me, I must be chose ; and it
is Mr. Brookes that has made the mistake. But I was
convinced of it from the beginning, and 1 am only sorry
that so much time has been lost as to prevent honourable
gentlemen from enjoying each other's company sooner."
He then desired the waiter to bring him a bottle of cham-
pagne, that he might drink long life to the club, and
wish them joy of their unanimous election of a rael gen-
tleman by father and mother, and who never missed his

man."

The members now saw there was nothing to be done
but to send the intruder to Coventry, which they appeared
to do by tacit agreement ; for when Admiral Stewart de-
parted, Mr. Fitzgerald found himself cut by all his " dear
friends." The members now formed parties at the whist-
table—and no one replied to Fitzgerald's observations nor
returned even a nod to the toasts and healths which he
drank in three bottles of champagne, which the terrified
waiter placed before him, in succession. At length, he
arose, made a low bow, and took leave, promising to
" come earlier next night, and have a little more of it."
It was thou agreed that half a dozen stout constables
should be in waiting the next evening to bear him off to
the watch-house, if ho attempted again to intrude. Of
this measure Fitzgerald seemed to be aware; for he
iever again showed himself at Rrookes's ; though he
boasted everywhere that he had been unanimously chosen
a member of the club.

We need not pursue Mr. Timbs' agreeable remini-
scences any further ; we have said enough to illus-
trate the amusing character of this very compendious
history of the Clubs and Club-life of London.

The Humbugs of the World. By R. F. Barnum.
One vol., pp. 315. John Camden Hotten.

'We almost expected to find upon the title-
page of this work the authorship indicated in
a manner identical with that of Thackeray's
" Book of Snobs." " The History of Snobs, by
One of Themselves." Such an idea, however, is at
once dissipated by an introductory note from the
publisher, who assures us that so far from Mr. Bar-
num being a humbug himself—" there never was a
public man who was less of one." Never was there
a better illustration of the art and mystery of hum-
bug than that described in Hans Christian An-
dersen's capital story of " The Emperor's New
Clothes." The charlatans who were suffered to
provide these clothes for the Emperor declared that
they would be invisible to all who were unfit for
their position. What potentate, premier, or peer
would admit his own unfitness by declaring that he
beheld nothing, and so one and all extolled the
beauty of garments that existed only in the cun-
ning imagination of the contrivers of the scheme.
If, according to Hudibras,
"The pleasure is as great in being cheated as to cheat,"
assuredly the odium of all humbug devolves upon
the dupes as much as on the dupers. Parties of
both classes, however—and together they constitute
the majority of mankind—may take an interest in
turning over these records of the Humbugs of the
World by one well able to appreciate and expose
them.

The Private Historg of a Polish Insurrection. From
Official and Unofficial sources. By R. Suther-
land Edwards, late Special Correspondent of the
Times. Two vols. Saunders, Otley, and Co.

These volumes contain a resume of the events of
the Polish Insurrection of 1863, written by an eye-
witness well able to analyse and describe them.
Many of the chapters appeared as letters in the
Times ; but they are now published together in a
consecutive form. Speaking of the Russian ambi-
tion to destroy Poland, the writer very justly
observes, that " a country like Poland, with
an independent and, for the most part, glorious,
existence of eight centuries to look back to, is not
destroyed so easily. If to ensure its final ruin it
were only necessary to execute its inhabitants by
hundreds, massacre them by thousands, and exile
them by tens of thousands ; to confiscate the estates
of its principal nobles, plunder its libraries, abolish
its ancient plan of education, and seek to impose
upon its population the use of a foreign tongue—
then Poland would have ceased to exist long ago."
As it is, the late insurrection, says this eye-witness,
has had the effect of keeping up and intensifying
the national hatred of the Poles for everything
Russian.

The Soldier of Three Queens. A Narrative of Per-
sonal Adventure. By R. Henderson, late of the
12th Royal Lancers, and formerly Captain in the
British Auxiliary Brigade in the service of the
Queen of Spain. Two Vols. Saunders, Otley,
and Co.

Fact and fiction are pleasantly mingled together
in these very interesting and romantic records. By
a singular combination of circumstances, the author
tells us that he has taken part in the
war of succession in Portugal which placed
Donna Maria on the throne, afterwards
as a captain in the Spanish Legion he did good
service for Queen Isabella ; and, lastly, in the war
in the Crimea, he bore arms in the immediate ser-
vice of his own sovereign lady Queen Victoria. The
title of the book is happily selected ; the style is
earnest and animated, and the adventures and mis-