The Sun.
London, England, 1857-02-23 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

Freida the Jongleur. By Barbara Hemphill,
author of " Lionel Deerhurst," " The Priest's
Niece," &M. 3 vols. Chapman an Halt.
The plot and incidents of this story are as singu-
lar as its tile-. The date of the narrative is sup-
posed to be the commencement of the fourteenth
century, and the scene is chiefly laid in France.
Philip the Fair and his brother Charles de Valois
occupy a conspicuous place, the latter appearing as
the evil genius of the story. The p'ot chiefly turns
on the false accusations of sorcery, witch-
craft, and similar c-itnes, which in those days
were common means of revenge among the power-
ful and craf y. The heroine, Freida, is one of a band
of Jongleurs, or wandering tribes of minstrels and
singer?, who bore some resemblance to gipsies, ex-
cept that they were regarded with a liind of super-
stiticees horror by the Christians of those days, as
heathens versed in unrighteous mysteries. At the
opening of the st ay she is introduced to the reader
as a fair and graceful maiden, learned in many
tongues, and otherwise accomplished. She attracts
the attention of a Templar Knight, who makes her
his bride, after the Jongieur fashion, quite regard-
less of the fact that he has already obtained a dis-
pensation to marry a lady of noble birth. After
many varying incidents, and a lapse of twenty
Nears, Freida is again met with, aged and careworn.
She recounts her history, and this retro ,pect occu
pies the second volume. The plot is so entangled,
the characters so numerous, and the motives so
conflicting, that to unravel the thread of the story
is not very easy. The chief features, however, are
the suppression of the Temple's by Philip the
Fourth, an 1 the accusations against De Marigni
preferred by his brother Ch tries de Valois. It is
a most ecceutric and elaborate story ; reverthele
i; is, in some respects, an improvement on the
author's other works. Traces of exaggeration are
discoverable in many portions, though the author
does not fail to substantiate ie historical portion
by notes. Its eccentricity, and the novelty of its
scenes acrd persons, may very likely prove attrac-
tive to some, as the style is no wanting in vigour
nor the characters iu variety. A gre tier simplicity
of plot and fewer persons would, however, have
rendered it more accept :Me t') the general reader,
who will be very I,lce!y to lose himself in the mazes
of plots and plotters.

The Egyptians in the Time of the Pharaohs. By
Sir J. Gardner Wilkinson. An Introduction to
the Study of the Egyptian Hieroglyphs. By
Samuel Birch. Bradbury and Evans.

Scott's poems. It contains "The Lay of the Last
Minstrel " and "The Lady of the Lake," and will,
of course, be followed by the complete set of his
poems. The tyre is excell-nt and the general ap-
pearance of the volumes all that can be desired in,
a library edition. The introductory life, by Mr.
Gilfillan, may not be acceptable to all readers, as
his opinions and criticisms aro not always remark-
able for their moleration. The present-Tolima
has another attraction,. the• original notes of the
author unabridged.

STANFLELD'S " VICTORY."
ENGRAVED DV JOHN COITEEIV, RA.

A magnificent work of art has at length beets
completed, in the form of th's very noble i•ni!,811
conceive,
en-
graving from the hand of Mr. Cousen, the
Academician. It may be accepted, We
as his contribution to the World of Art in his
capa-
city as a Royal Academician. To which honorary
dignity it should be remembered that our artist has-
been happily elected—at once to his own honour
and to that scarce'y less of his brother Academicians
--since this superb plate was of iginally commenced.
It is, without any doubt whatever, his masterpiece.
And' as such, those who know what Mr. Cousen's
hard has already accomplished. by the cunning
guidance of the graver over burnished surfaces of
steel and copper will not marvel to find it added,
with all po-sible deliberation and emphasis, that
the remarkable work of art before us is perhaps the
very finest line engraving produced in England
since the time of William Woollett--not a Royal
Academician ! " The Victory," after Clarkson
Stanfield—+aking rank atonce wil h "The Fishery,"
with " Niobe," with " Phaeton," with " Ceyx
and Alcyone" —in short, with any one of the
many glorious productions given to the world
by that illustrious engraver. Those who are
labouring tinder the very erroneous impression—
and there are su2h—that this wondrous art of line
engraving is somehow d. 3 ing out amongst us, will
find a very startling and signal refutation of the
fallacy in this truly national composition. National
we say advisedly. For in subject, in treatment, in
style, in heroically historic association—is it not
so ? Is it not natiocal, strikingly and peculiarly
national, in every one of these particulars ? None
who have ever seen either the original painting by
Clarkson Stanfield, or this very masterly engraving
from it by John Cousen' can hesitate in at once
aocarding to it on the instant the tribute of honour
(peculiarly its due) expressed by the simple recog-
nition of this one conspicuous characteristic. A, Na-
tional Picture, if ever there was one, is beyond all
manner of doubt this affecting repreentation. The
" Victory" painted by Stanfield, engraved by
Cousen, published by the Agnews of Manchester.
It represents—how nobly and touchingly it repre-
sents !—H.M.S. The Victory, being towed into
Gibraltar, by H.M.S. The Neptune, on the even-
ing of the 28th of October,lBos—exactly one week
after the glorious death of Horatio the Lord Vis-
count Nelson, in his grand and crowning seafight
off Cape Trafalgar I The Victory herself—the mag-
nificent old war-ship—dismantled, thunder-blabk-
ened, lightning-riven' with her masts broken short
off, her rigging gone, her hull battered, splintered,
and bloodstained ! Bearing thetatered Bann'r of
Old England half way up even the shattered stump
of her fore-mast—in token of mourning for the
" darling Hero," whose remains were still on
board on their way home for sepulture in' St.
Paul's Cathedral. On their way home
for sepulture but already in a manner,
in that preliminary step of their progress home-
wards, iu some way even then virtually and
most fittingly sepultured I As a Sailor-Artist's
genius afterwards recognised, and (in this impres-
sive picture of Clarkson Stanfield's) most eloquently
and touchingly commemorated. Embalmed in the
grateful memory of all future Englishmen—The
Victo;y, the cenotaph—the green deep, the mins er-
floor—

A very interesting addition to the valuable series
of books publish9d for the Crystal Palace Company,
and designed to illustrate the various compartments
of their wonderful Exhibition—a series which, it
may be said, already constitutes a library of art,
&c., of no moan pretensions. The works before us
are comprised in one volume, the former being de-
scribed as " A Companion to the Crystal Palace
Egyptian Collections," and the latter appearing as
a sort of sequel to it. Sir J. Gardner Wilkin-
son is the author of " The Private Life, Man-
ners, and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians," and
is consequently well qualified for his task.
The books describing the courts of the Crystal
Palace, he justly remarks, not only serve as guides
to those who actually visit them, but give a very
useful and instructive insight into the general
history and character of art and architecture at
different periods. For a' knowledge, however, of
the customs and occupations of the Egyptians much
more is to be obtained from the tombs than from
the sculptures of the public buildings. What he
has attempted in the present work is to furnish a
brief account of the paintings on their tombs and the
scenes they describe. Of course much of the matter
contained in his former work does not appear in
this, but he has introduced into •it both new
matter and illustrations, and made of it a very in-
structive and interesting b,ok. The Tombs and
Temples are treated separately, as far at least as
possible, the tombs engaging the reader's attention
first. The account of the habits and pursuits of
this remarkable people derived from this source
possesses an unusual interest, and explains
how much we are indebted to them for an acquaint-
ance with the domestic life of the Egyptians, and
how important are the subjects on their walls for
supplying what is unnoticed on the public monu-
ments. The work is profusely illustrated, and
furnishes vivid glimpses of some of the crafts mad
customs of this singular people. Any one taking
up the book without a knowledge of its contents
would be led to imagine some of the woodcuts were
illustrative of existing art, so similar are
many of the specimens of Egyptian handicraft to
specimens of productions for domestic purposes
everywhere to be met with at the present day.
Of course, a history of the Egyptians, or an elabo-
, rate account of their institutions, religions, and
otherwise, could not be looked
.for in a work liiKe
this. Enough, however,
,is given to stimulate in-
quiry, which will be considerably facilitated by
Mr. Birch's "Introduction to the Study of Egyp-
tian Hieroglyphs."

" • • • red evening's smile
His epitaph : and thou rude Isle,*
Austerely browed and thunder rent
Great Nelson's noblest monument !"
Looking upon this solemn and affecting reprezen-
tation of the Victory being towed into Gibraltar—
whether in Stanfield's exquisite painting or iu
Cousen's marvellous engraving—we cannot but re-
member (and apply to -this glorious picture- while
remembering it) what Mr. Ruskin has remarked
to grandly in reference to Turtles picture of " The
Old Temeraire." Saying first of all of the Victory
somewhat as Mr. Ruskin has said of the
Temeraite—that " no ruin was ever so affecting
as the gliding of the vessel," on towards her hero's
" grave l'' " Surely" as the Great Critic adds,-l•
" Surely, if ever anything without a soul deserved
honour or affection, we owed them here. Those sails
that strained so full bent into the battle [gone 11—
that broad bow that struck the surf aside, enlarging
silently in stedfast haste', full ftont to the shot—
resistless and without reply—those triple ports whose
choirs of flame rang forth in their courses, into the
fierce revenging monotone, which, when it died
away, loft no answering voice to rise any more Upon
the sea against the strength of England—those sides
that were wet with the long runlets of English life-
blood, like press-planks at vintage, gleaming goodly
crimson down to the cast and clash of the washing
foam—those pale masts that stayed themselves up
against the war-min, shaking out their ensigns
through the thunder, till sail and ensign drooped--
steep in the death-stillel pause of Andalusian
air, burning with its witness cloud of human
souls at rest, —surely, for these some sacred
care might have been left in our thoughts V"
Replying to himself immediately afterwards
in a kindred strain of eloquence, " Nay,
not FO. We have stern keepers to trust her
glory to—the file and the worm. Never more
shall sunset lay golden robe on her, nor starlight
tremble on the waves that part at her gliding.
Perhaps, where the low gate opens to soma cottage-
garden, the tired traveller may ask, idly, why the
moss grows so green oh its rugged wool ; and even
the sailor's child may not answer, nor know, that
the night-dew lies deep is the war-rents of the wood
of the"—grand Old Victory 1 Precisely these—or
something wonderfully like it—are the emotions
awakened in the heart of the true Englishman
when he looks upon Stanfield's picture of " The
Victory," either in the exquisite colours of the
original painting, or in the hardly less exquisite
black-and-white of Cousen's line-Engraving. A
magnificent production, appropriately contributed
to the world of art at the present moment by the
enterprising firm of the Messrs. Agnew and Sons,
of Manchester—now that we are upon the eve as
it were of the Great Fine Arts EThibition in their
immediate neighbourhood.

Parliamentary Precedents. By the Hon. Robert
Bourke. rlenry Sweet, Chincery-lane.
These who are accustorael to read the daily re-
ports of the proceedings in the House of Com-
mons w;11 frequently have observed the difficul-
tiei an independent member has to contend with
in the forms of the house. If his motion be at all
inconvenient to Ministers or others, with or with-
out a Parliamentary following, he finds himself in
danger of being placed hors de combat, or reduced
to silence, owing to his ignorance of rules some-
times overlooked, with which he bas not had the
opportunity to bac-me acquainted. To such the
present volume will be particularly valuable ;
while it is one which no member of the house
should fail to purchase in order to a mastery of its
contents. It is a collection of all the decisions of
the present Speaker on interesting or important
points of order, rules of debates, and the general
practice of the house. The value of the work will
appear, when it is remembered how h;gh a
character the Right Honourable Mules Shaw
Lefevre, to whom it is dedicated, has achieved,
in the discharge of his arduous and -responsible
duties—so hiv,h, indeed, as to elicit from the
late Sir Robert Harry Inglis the flattering tes-
timony that he had "compressed into the period
of his services mote labour, more attention, and
more successful energy than any one of his prede-
cessors." All the cases quoted have been taken
from "Hansard,"are duly claesified, and, -With a few
exceptions warranted by the circumstances, appear
in chronological order. In an Appendix will be
found the Rules and Orders of the House, a refer-
ence to any of which bearing on the subject is given
in the text. Mr. Bourke is deserving of the thanks
of tie representatives of the people for this his
well-timed and valuable contribution towards the
efficient discharge of their duties.

* If we may so apply (by poetical licence) to the rocky
promontory of Gibraltar what B. Simmons applied with
literal accuracy to the " island" of St. Helena.
" Notes on the Turner Gallery-1856." By John
Ruskin, M.A. Bvo., pp. 88. Smith, Elder, and Company,
London. 1857. A very masterly criticism—all too brief,
unfortunately. Yet, in spite of its brevity, one of the
most genial and eloquent of all the effusions which have
yet emanated from the genius of incomparably the greatest
Art-Critic England has ever produced.

Suggestions for the formation of a Penal and
Reformatory Settlement for Convicts in the
Peninsula of the Mullet. M. S. Rickerby.
A pamphlet apropos to the present phase of the
great social question of the day—what are we to do
with our convicts ? The writer, as the title shows,
suggests the formation of a penal and reformatory
settlement for convicts on' the north west coast of
Ireland, to wit in the Mullet, wbicb, as he shows,
possesses many natural advantages for the purpose.
Just short of being an island, Mullen is sixteen
miles long, and varies in breadth from !seven miles
to as many hundred yards, and, for the most part,
is capable of successful cultivation. So that there
would be no cost of shipping fur conveyance of
convicts, stores, &c., a complete separation might
be effected from the main land, and the convicts
kept apart in classes and usefully employed in
agriculture if required. The climate is said to be
salubrious, and in the neighbourhood a naval sta-
tion where ships of war would command the whole
of the WESt coast of Ireland, now totally unpro-
tected, could be established. The writer is of
opinion 400,000/. would cover all expenses, and
give the Government possession of the entire
peninsula and everything on it--excluding, we
suppose, its poor inhabitants, respecting whose
future destiny we have no information.
_ _

CONTINUED SERIOUS ILLNESS OF THE

REV. C. H. SPUIiGEON.

arly.

The French _Revolution. By Thomas
Vol. 11. Chapman and Hall.
The second volume of the new series
comar. Car.
lyle's works has DOW' appeared. It ns the
conclusion of the history of the French Revolution.
The forthcoming volume will be - tho first part of
Oliver Cromwell's letters and speeches, Which will
occupy three volumes. The admirers of Mr. Car-
lyle should avail themselves of the present oppor-
tunity of securing a complete and handsome edition
of his works at a moderate price.

ckarles O'Malley. By Charles Lever. Vol. I.
Chapman Hall.
The works of this brilliant and amusing writ
are now in course of publication in a new form.
" Harry Lorrequer" has already appeared, and is
followed by the first volume of " Charles O'Mal-
ley." Mr. Lever's works are too well known and
too successful to require criticism, and the present
series will be likely to extend their popularity, by
offering them to the general reader in a commod"is
and inexpensive form.

At the early hour of ten o'clock yesterdaymmeosfren-ihnegli
the gateways leading to the Surrey Gardena
f
' ' to obtain admission, while the various _ d .
waiting forth then. bundle s in
leading thereto were pouring
object.ana
theA t
were crowded with well-dressed. persons o both sexes,
half-past ten all the barriers
The vast masses of
rush was severe, if not tremendous.
rapid succession, all intent. npownetrhee
removed, same
for the area, others for the
different directions,—sole
for the three galleries. In a
platform, and others again human beings soon separated, and bent their course in
quarter of an hour not a seat was to be had, and even
• room was scarcely to be obtained. Between
standing
10,000 persons were computed to be present.
A t a quarter before eleven the preacher made his ap-
pearance in the pulpit with a feeble gait, wrapped in a
great coat, and evidently mill enfeebled from ill health.
He at once commenced the ervice with a brief but im-
pressive prayer. This being concluded, the Rev. Mr.
Spurgeon announced that his medical attendant had
urged him not to leave home in consequence of his indis-
posit i▪
on ; but ending him determined to preach, even
only for a short time, advised him, if he valued his own
life, to close his sermon, if over so abruptly, as Boon as
he found his physical powers fail him, for if he did not,
the probability was that he wouldnever be able to
preach again. He, therefore, delivered a short,
21),,n
very able discourse from the latter clause
.of thet
verse of the 19th chapter of Hebrews, " With:ora of
shed-
ding of blood there is no remission ;"
which he depicted with great eloquenceasinaatobilie
atonement
sufferings of our Saviour on the Crossuring
his remarks,
for sin. It was painfully observabhlea,rsd
h and rugged,.
and
that his voice frequently becrime
P exhaustion.
power the
that he was suffering much fr:ing through the task he.
He succeeded, however, S
rostration. The other por-
steps in a state .
of utter kindly undertaken by a rev.
tions of the serviefortunately present upon the occasion.
was led down the pulpit
had assigned himself,
friend, who wag r
—Morniv Adverti
And ntilfl

es The GOOD OLD TIKES !"—There is now living in
Epperstone, Notts, an octogenarian who has been blind
several years from the effects of an accident. lie says
ftohra when he was a child white bread was considered a
great luxury, so much so that when his father (who was
The Poetical Works of Sir Walter Scott. i framework-knitter) used to take his work to Notting-
ham he would frequently promise to bring the children a
. James Nichol, Edinburgh• 'Vol L white penny-loaf each on his return, and such was the
anxiety. of the little ones to possess the luxury that they
time has miles to meet their father, in order that they might have
liThieilocihri.
haabslebeeltpiounbioisfbtihnegßforritissohmpeoe,t! which have many times gone to the distance of three or four
rope and it alittle sooner, and this in
lately included Some of our best auth°f• in depth of winter, in frost and
Burns have appeared during the Toontbs, snow. What would the present generation Bay to this
alter i LekotershireMercurY.
and we have now the first volumehsotf fe;irr W
.