The Sun.
London, England, 1859-01-04 00:00:00

TILE• MAGAZINES,

Blackwood.—ln this number " What Will He
Do With It" cothes to a conclusion. It is most
skilfully arranged, and exhibits that masterly
power of delineation which can only be found in
the productions of genius. After the many doubts
that have arisen in the mind of the reader as to
who Sophy will be, it is not likely that any one
will have arrived at the actual solution of the
problem. The most satisfactory intelligence con-
veyed to us, however, is the fact of Darrell's again
appearing in the world, after his long seclusion.

When we have learned that Soply is no longer
"the outlaw-child of Ignominy and Fraud, but the
starry daughter of Poetry and Art," and that
Darrell has consented to devote his talents to his
own and his country's glory, nothing more can be
desired by the most sanguine, or demanded by the
most exacting. There is a paper entitled, "How
to boil Peas," which is well deserving of attention.
It relates the old legend of two pilgrims who, to
perform a penance, had to walk a certain distance
with peas in their shoes, and one easily performed
his task in consequence of having taken the pre-
caution to boil the peas before he started. The
illustration is ingeniously applied to the evils of
human existence :
"Troubles we shall all have, plenty of them, Heaven help
us ! But it has been admirably said, that the worst are
those which never come;' certainly they are those which
we run to meet half-way, and look at through magnifying-
glasses when they do arrive. If life must be a pilgrimage,
let us put a stout heart to it, and not make it a more painful
one than it need be. Let us set the palmer's hat on jauntily,
and take a little wine with us in that mediaeval-looking
bottle. The peas must be in the shoes; that makes part of
our sentence ; little things in themselves, but with a won-
derful capacity for making themselves unpleasant; but
there can be no religious or moral obligation against boiling
them, and the difference it makes is wonderful. The secrete
per esser felite is not a difficult one, yet few things seem so
little understood by the pilgrims of this highly civilised
nineteenth century. Some men, instead of boiling their
peas, seem to take a pride and pleasure in choosing for them-
selves the largest and the hardest—Brobdignag marrowfats
—and disposing them conscientiously under the tenderest
places. It would be nothing to them to walk through life
without a grievance. Grievances are part of their inherited
privileges as Englishmen. They must have come in with
Magna Cherie and Habeas Corpus."
There is an able article on the subject of "Popular
Literature—the Periodical Press," which contains
many valuable suggestions, and makes some striking
comments on the wonderful extension of serial

literature which has recently taken place. Oie of
the remarks that most attracts attention is that
on the oratory of the present day. It is truly
stated that we need not be " much afraid of com-
paring our living eloquence with the eloquence
that h 6 passed away," and that if Parliamen-

tart' speeches do not now excite such attention, it
is because much that is uttered in debate is fore-
stalled by the discussions of the press. It is also
observed that, because the style of speaking is
altered, it does not follow that it is worse. In
illustration of these remarks, a short extract is

taken from Sheridan's famous Begum speech, which
Burke asserted to be unparalelled in oratory. This
it one of the sentences :—" Justice is not this halt
and miserable object, it is not the ineffective
bauble of an Indian pagoda, it is not the portentous
phantom of despair, it is not like any fabled mon-
ster formed in the eclipse of reason and found in
some unhallowed grove of superstitious darkness,
and political dismay." It is said that this astonish-
ing description may present the reader with an
idea of the much-vaunted eloquence of the past, and
it is certain that if Lord Derby or Mr. Disraeli
made any similar observations, the manner in which
they would be received would be the reverse of
flattering. " The Field of Towton Moor" is the
title of some verses that are interesting. They are
suggested by the circumstance of roses flourishing
perpetually on the soil that was once the battle-
field during the wars of York and Lancaster.
" The Royal Proclamation of India" is the last
subject mentioned ; there is nothing particularly
striking, however, to be met with in it. It is truly
said, in conclusion, that " there can be no happy
future for India if Victoria's noble message of peace
to India does not find an echo in every English
heart." The second part of "A Cruise in Japanese
Waters" is very interesting. It gives at first a
detailed account of Japanese modes and. manners
of life, which are very singular. Afterwards we
are presented with a condensed narrative of Japan's
intercourse with other nations. At the present
time it is very desirable to gain information on
this subject, and what is here written will be
found to repay perusal.

Dublin.—The first article is on " Dr. Arnold ;"
as may be supposed, it is an interesting one. It
is truly said that we can now :arrive at an impar-
tial conclusion concerning his merits, for " sixteen
years have elapsed since the grave closed over him
at Rugby, amidst the heartfelt grief of several
generations of pupils who had had the inestimable
benefit of his teaching." It is satisfactory to trace
the career of such a man who was so signally use-
ful in his generation, and it will be found that a
very fair summary of his life is here given. "Gerald
Fitzgerald" is continued. Not much progress is made
in this portion, however; the unfortunate youth is
not yet recovered from the effects of the great suf-
ferings he underwent in Paris during the Reign of
Terror. In the last chapter he is presented to a
cardinal of great eminence, who announces to him
an important mystery relating to his birth. " The
Great Duke at the Sculptor's" is an interesting
paper, which records some visits paid by the late
Duke of Wellington to a sculptor's. The remarks
are characteristic of the duke, as is the independ-
ence of his actions, refusing to be assisted in any
way. It is mentioned, as a strange coincidence,
that the Jeri t. visit paid to the studio was on the

18th of November-----pnly twelve months prior to
that day when that venerable frame, cold in death,
passed by to its last resting place in St. Paul's
Cathedral. " Wilhelm Tell" is the subject of an
article which is evidently the result of research.
After entering into the question in detail, and in-
vestigating the opinion of many writers, the un-
satisfactory conclusion is arrived at that though
such a man as Tell undoubtedly existed, he was not
of any historical importance, and did not deliver
his country. It is not probable, however, that a
nation should so long have cherished the memory
of the man had he not held the high position
assigned to him as the champion of freedom, and
the influence that his name hes obtained is here
powerfully expressed :
"And, let us add that, whatever may be the uncertainty
on the subject of the deeds and character of Wilhelm Tell,
the ideal and the sentiments that invested him with so much
heroism, are the vital, lofty, immortal spirit that animates
a whole people, and has brought them glorious and trium-
phant through all the vicissitudes of time. Such a spirit
has never ceased to breathe in the mountains and valleys of
Switzerland; it has inspired other Swiss heroes, as in the
Appenzel, for instance, in the fifteenth century ; it kindled
the genius of Schiller, whose masterpiece, Wilhelm Tell,
was the song of the Germanic Swan, expressing the purest
aspirations and the sentiments which ennobled his soul. It
inspired Rossini with the Alpine sublimities, expressed
marvellously in his magnificent opera. And it is impos-
sible to contemplate, without emotion, the nobler vibrations
of the human soul, created by that Divine Spirit, whenever
Schiller's ' Wilhelm Tell' is performed in that blessed
land, or whenever an assembly of Swiss patriots or legisla-
tors is inaugurated by Rossini's over;mre to his Tell, and
its members proclaiming enthusiastically that their sent:-
meats and history are embodied in that splendid harmony ;
thus the human soul lives in the axis. But as the love of

liberty is nothing more than a transient effervescence, when
devoid of the religious sentiments, the confederation of the
Swiss hearts is immortal, because the people of Switzer-
land, from their industrious cities—from their wooded and
snowy mountains—from their grassy valleysfrom the
shades of the plain, ever contemplate, on the old soil of
Helvetia, the deep vault of Heaven, above the social
sphere, and Him, the universal Benefactor, Creator of all."
" Periwigs and Petticoats" is the title of some amus-
ing stanzas, which relate to the projected marriage
of Sir Topaz and some lady of fashion of the old
school. " The Lilliput of the Corniche " is a curi-
ous paper telling the historical associations con-
nected with Monaco, a seaport in the Mediterranean,
which has been the scene of many singular and ro-
mantic events. " Our Foreign Courier " presents
the usual information regarding French current
literature. This is a very useful undertaking, and
enables the reader to obtain what is here styled
" a succinct resume of all the important publica-
tions which come under the head of foreign; and
more especially of French, literature." " A Day
at Bahia," which is in the Empire of the Brazils,
may amuse some from the lively sketch presented
of the place and its people. There are some remarks
on the subject of " M. de Montalembert on the
Indian Debate," which will repay perusal.. It is
said that the applause which the speech of Berryer
was received has been caught up and re-echoed in
every civilised country, in spite of Jesuit spies and
policemen of absolutism," and that with few excep-
tions the leaders of the English press have spoken out
with a masculine vigor and a fearltss eloquence which
will hereafter be•recorded to their immortal honour.
There is an independent tone in this article which
attracts the attention, and some of the views taken
on the policy of France appear very accurate. In
speaking of the Emperor it is said, " In our opi-
nion Louis Napoleon's mind is wanting in breadth
and grandeur ; but this very deficiency gives him
a certain practical advantage. A narrow mind
sees clearly, as far as it goes ; it does not wait to
look round and round, to comprehend, to modify, to
adjust, but it is therefore ready to act and to act
confidently." There is an elaborate treatise on
Carlyle's work on Frederick the Great, which will
interest many ; it is an able criticism, but it must
appear to impartial observers that there is too much
admiration expressed for the author, whose pecu-
liarities of style mar the effects of his great talents.
To those who have not been able to peruse the work
in question, this paper will present a useful epitome,