The Sun.
London, England, 1857-06-23 00:00:00

THE PENINSULAR MAILS

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)

SOUTHAMPTON, TUESDAY MORNING.

The Peninsular and Oriental Company's steamer
Alhambra, Captain Woodgates, has arrived with
Peninsular mails, and dates from Gibraltar, June
16 ; Cadiz, 17 ; Lisbon, 19 ; Vigo, 20.
She brings 61. passengers, specie value 2,465/.,
and cargo of oranges, eggs, lemons, potatoes, SL.c.
Gibraltar Exchanges, on the 13th, were quoted
London, 50a ; Paris, 5 37 ; Marseilles, 5 38 ;
Madrid, 1 dis.

Off Cape Roca, on the lt9h, she passed the
steamer Vasco de Gama, for Lisbon.

The Peninsular and Oriental steamer Sultan lef
Vigo, fur Lisbon, on the 20th.

Off the Start, on the 22J, the Alhambra passed
the brig Vesta, the Patrician, and the ship William
Pierre, of North Shields, with loss of figure head
and part of cutwater, wishing to be reported.
The American barque Nevada, with the first of
the 100 guns from the American people for the
fortress of Alessaudria, in Sardinia, arrived at
Gibraltar on the 12th, and left on the 16th for
Genoa.

The screw steamer Hydaspes left Lisbon for
Brazil at daybreak on the 11th.

The Royal Mail steamer Avon arrived. at Lisbon,
and left for Brazil, on the 14th.
Exchanges at Lisbon, for three months on Lon.
don, 53/, ; Paris, 5 34; Genoa, 5 32 ; Hamburg,
47 ; Amsterdam, 411.
Stock continued at the same prices as by the
previous mail, but with a slight tendency to im-
prove.

The Lisbon House of Deputies had agreed to
place 22,0001. at the disposal of the King for his
marriage expenses, and to settle 60 (ontos (about
13,5004) upon the Queen per year.
The debate on the Budget was expected to be
closed on the 20th. The Cortes were to be pro-
rogued till the 30th June.

COLLISION IN THE CHANNEL.—SOUTHAMPTON, Mon-
day.—The European and American Company's steamer
Queen of the South bas arrived from Bremen, on her
way to New York. She ran down the brig Atalanta, of
Southampton, in the Channel last night. The Atalanta
sunk. All hands on board of her were saved, with the
exception of one boy, who was drowned. The Queen of
the South sustained no damage.
VISIT OF THE ARCHDUKE FERDINAND MAXIMILIAN TO
PORTSMOUTH.—Yesterday morning, at ten o'clock, his
Imperial Highness the Archduke Maximilian arrived at
the Royal Clarence-yard, and was received by the usual
authorities, naval, military, and civil. His Imperial
Highness witnessed shell, shot, and congrevo rocket
practice from the Excellent, against targets placed at
various ranges. The divisional and broadside practice
gave the highest satisfaction. The rockets were not well
laid nor their range accurately adjusted. His Imperial
Highness, having inspected the dockyards, returned to '
town by special train.
CRICKET.—THE UNITED ALL ENGLAND V. SIXTEEN
OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE.—This match Was
commenced at Lord's yesterday, and the following will
show the result of the first day's play :—Cambridge, first
innings, 128 ; United, first innings (four wickets stand.
ing), 70.

SUlClDE.—Yesterday morning, shortly after 9 o'clock,
William Bushell, aged 50, a mariner, who resided at
Leman-street, Goodman's-fields, Whitechapel, swallowed
arsenic with intent to commit suicide, and expired a
short time after his admission to the London hospital.
INFANTICIDE AT CAMDEN TOWN.—Yesterday the in-
quest on the body of the child who was found dead
the towing-path of the Regent's Canal was ',—
close. The jury returned a verd;^`
against Mary Maddon 4'
absconded.

~.ought to a

of wilful murder
cud mother of tho child, who has

LITERATURE.

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The Two Aristocracies. A Novel. By Mrs. Gore
de
s
wers.
her usual
s
ling sketches of .high life, with which her former
onlyinstancet I.
to ot ot
ne
asopf veryk her-
writings abound, but also to many other scenes of
the working-day world. The chief object of in-
terest is the manufacturer, Mark Barneson, whose
career is traced, from his first entry as a junior
clerk, to his subsequent reception as a partner in
the firm of Lambert, then one of the most im-
portant in the country. The principal point in this
work is the description of the war that arose be-
tween the rival classes—the pride of wealth against
the pride of birth. This peculiar feeling is very
ably traced in its many ramifications. Mark
Barneson himself was an honest, upright man, one
not inclined to bear malice or hatred, and not dis-
posed to let his interests clash or interfere with
those of others separated from him in the social
scale. However, circumstances, to which all must
succumb, forced this man of the people into the
circles of haut tone Although alien to his nature was
the contact, he maintained his native dignity of
deportment, and, by disclaiming, rather than seek-
ing, advances, he left no room for the most censo-
rious to call him upstart or officious. He did rot
escape unharmed from the conflict notwithstand-
ing, for what he shunned for himself had become
necessary for his daughter. In the intercourse with
their wealthy neighbours they had met the Mar-
quis of Ullesmere. One of his younger sons, Lord
Bernard Vere, and Barbara, the only daughter of
Mark Barneson, had formed an attachment to each
other. Atfirst, by the mutual consent of the elders
of the- circle the idea of a union between such
opposite interests was negatived, but as time
passed on, and Mr. Barneson discovered that in
spite of change of scene his beloved Barbara
drooped and pined, a change took place. In a
spirit of princely magnificence he formed his
plans, resolved that his daughter should
enter tho family of the Veres, gifted with a
dowry that would eclipse in splendour the marriage
portions of the noblest houses of the land. For a
time all went well. The Marquis of Ullesmere was
delighted, and although depressed by the line of
demarcation that would henceforth be drawn be-
tween himself and his child, AI ark rejoiced to see
light again sparkle in her eyes, and hope reanimate
her drooping spirits. The plan was not fated to be
happily realised; various untoward events occurred
which, at first trifling, gradually assumed a form of
greater consequence, and presented an aspect of the
darkest dye. It was thus rendered impossible to
the worthy manufacturer to pay down to the trus-
tees the sum agreed upon at the time of Barbara's
marriage. The junior partner of the firm of Lam-
bert was a man of a most evil nature. Partly from
being of an unsuspicious character himself, and partly
from being sometimes bewildered by family affairs,
Mark Barneson had permitted too much latitude
to this man. Ferrier, as he was called, was the
last being in whom such a trust should have been
reposed. He speculated with the money he ab-
stracted during the absence of the master, which
was discovered only when heavy losses of another
sort obliged an immediate and unexpected super-
vision. Fortunately, by the assistance of friends
he had made during his long and upright career,
the establishment of Barneson was saved from ruin;
but great were the difficulties he had to undergo.
Although relating to the details of trade, the strug-
gles he underwent, and the various attendant inci
dents, are possessed of great interest, and may not
be deemed unworthy of attention in the pages of a
novel, which are usually dedicated to the history
of a romantic existence overshadowed with senti-
mental sufferings. The character of Rhoda, Lady
Arden, is very well pourtrayed. She was the
eldest daughter of Matthew Lambert, the original
proprietor of the firm. It was by her ambitious
marriage that the intercourse with the higher
classes was begun which subsequently led the unfor-
tunate Mark into so many difficulties. Her life
was a most unhappy one, chiefly through her own
faults, and her constant struggles with pride and
passion, her fear of her husband's discovery of the
dark secret connected with her fatuity, and her rage
at learning that she had a rival in his attentions,
are all traced with a skill and energy that arrest
attention. A striking contrast was her sister,
" poor.pretty little Lettice," who was the wife of
Mark Barneson, and whose early death rendered
him doubly devoted to their daughter. "The Two
Aristocracies" may be expected to rival in favour
the former productions of this popular autheres=,
there being many materials to work from, and
great skill employed in the labour.

The Professor. By Curror Bell, author of "Jane
Eyre," &c. 2 vols. Smith and Elder.
A new work by a writer of remarkable powers
and singular susses,, must always excite in the
minds of its readers an unusual amount of interest
and expectation. In the present instance the inte-
rest is increased by the mournful circumstances
attending its publication. Though the first work
that was really intended for the public, it is the
last that they will ever receive from the hand of its
gifted authoress. This combination places it in a
manner beyond the pale of censorious criticism. It
would be unfair to expect from her earliest produc-
tion of any importance, the same finished style
or developed powers that meet us in " Shirley" or
" Villette ;" and while thus claiming the indul-
gence due to a first work it would be impossible to
criticise with severity, or censure with harshness
the latest publication of a genius so original and
vigorous, of an author tried by so many disappoint-
ments and shackled by so.many cares. It will be
remembered by those who have read the interest-
ing memoir of its lamented author, recently
given to the public by Mrs. Gaskell,
that the three sisters having each prepared a tale
for publication, tried to obtain a publisher. After
many delays the two youngest were successful, and
"Wuthering Heights" and "Agnes Grey" were
accepted by a publishing-firm ; but " The Professor"
was not so fortunate. It went a weary round of
unsuccessful applications, and the author was at
length forced to lay it aside unpublished, In her
preface she attributes these failures to the unro-
mantic structure of the narrative.
‘• I said to myself that my hero should work his way
through life as I had seen I\l%l living men work theirs
—that he should never get a shilling he had not earned
—that no sudden turns should lift hico in a moment t)
wealth and high station ; that whatever small compe-
tency he might gain, should be won by the sweat of his
brow ; that before he could find so much as an arb
to sit down in, he should master at least half the ascent
of " the Hill of Difficulty ;" that he should not even
marry a beautiful girl or a lady of rank. As Adam's
son he should share Adam's doom, and drain through-
out life a mixed and moderate cup of enjoyment.
"In the sequel, however, I found that publishers in
general scarcely approved othis system, but would have
liked something more imaginative and poetical—some-
thing more consonant with high wrought fancy, with a
taste for pathos, with sentiments more tender, elevated,
unworldly. Indeed until an author has tried to dispose
of a manuscript of this kind, he can never know what
stores of romance and sensibility lie bidden in breasts he
would not have suspected of caskoting such treasures.
Men in business are usually thought to prefer the real.;
on trial the idea will often •be found fallacious ; a pas-
sionate preference for the wild, wonderful, and thrilling
—the strange, startling, and harrowing—agitates divers
souls that show a calm and sober surface."
We are informed in a note by Mr. Nicholls that
this preface was written by Currer Bell, with a
view to the publication -of the work shortly after
the appearance of Shirley but that, being dis-
suaded from her intention,. she made some use of
the materials in Villette. As the two stories are, in
most respects, unlike, it has been represented to him
that " The Professor" should not be withheld from
the public. As its name( implies, and as the reader
may divine, it narrates the fortunes of an English
teacher in a Belgian school. The story, which is
told in the form of an autobiography, opens by in-
troducing us to its hero in the capacity of clerk,
in the counting-house of his elder brother. His
mother, a member of an aristocratic family, had mar-
ried a man engaged in trade, to the disgust and anger
of all her relatives. Both died young, leaving two
sons. Edward, the eldest, followes his father's
profession and amasses a fortune. William Creems-
worth, the hero, is educated by his uncles, who
offer him a profession _ which he rejects, and
angry words ensue. Irritated by their contemptu-
ous allusions to his father, he declares he too would
be a tradesman, and joining his brother accepts a
place in his counting-house. There he meets with
tyranny, insult and neglect, although performing
his duties with industry and credit. By the inter-
vention of e, Mr. Hunsden, a wealthy merchant,
he leaveft his. brother and 'goes to Brussels to ob-
tain employment. He secures the post of English
professor in a Belgian boys' school, and subse-
quently•in a young ladies' establishment. After
variouS minor incidents ho falls in love with a sub:
teacher, half-Swiss half-English, named Frances
Henri. After some delays-they are married, esta-
blish a school, realise a competence, and come to
England to spend their days in peace. Such is the
plot of "The Professor," in which it will he seen the
authoress has rigidly adhered to her determination
of' avoidin2 the romantic and extravagant. But
her great
_Power has always been shown in strik-
ing the spark of romance from the cold steel of
daily life, in investing the plain and unattractive
with all the interest of heroes and heroines, in
ronsi,
the commonplace from its mediocrity, and
painting life not
as it is to the many, but to sen-
sitive,! earliest, and reserved spirits like her own.
The Professor evidently partakes of her character ;
he may not have been intended to do so, but in-
cidental touches, and occasional descriptions prove

the similarity. Edward, the elder brother, is one
of those unmitigated characters that the Bronte
sisters loved to paint ;—without the slightest trace
of natural feeling, unrestrained by any social proprie-
ties, and alike devoid of heart and destitute of prin-
ciple. Mr. Hunsden, the manufacturer, is the most
original character in the bJok, though scarcely the
most successful. He is a compound of contradic-
tions ;• he does William Creemeworth many services
but adds to them such vulgar taunts, and officiou3
comments on his personal affairs, that they can
scarcely be regarded As benefits, He bears some
resemblance to the Yorke family in Shirley, and
perhaps was drawn from the same prototype, as
those singular„ beings. His name, Yorke guns-
den, would seem to indicate an intentional simi-
larity. As for the foreigners pourtrayed, Miss
Bronte had the right to be a good authority,
and a correct portrait painter, having lived for se-
veral years, both as teacher and pupil in a Belgian
school, but it can only charitably be hoped either
that she was particularly unfortunate in her asso-
ciates, or that she has unconsciously drawn them a
little darker than life, deepening their levity into
vice, their lethargy into stupidity. There is a
whole gallery of foreign portraits, and but two are
not unfavourable. These exceptions are M.
Yanderhuten, a good-natured quiet Garman, and
Mlle. Henri, before alluded to. The boys' school
are stolid and stubborn, their master is dissipated
and treacherous. The girls' school is even worse,
and their mistress, though shrewd and clever, is
not troubled with much principle. Mlle. Henri is
a pleasing, yet spirited character. She is one of
Caner Bell's most attractive heroines. The tale
is told with clearness and vigour, its actors are de-
picted in a few strong touches, sometimes hard,
sometimes bitter, rarely gentle or soft. The style,
as the style of the author always has been, is
earnest, powerful, and sincere. A strong truth-
telling spirit that spurns the subterfuges and deceit
of conventionalisms and hypocrisy is evident in
every page. But she has not learned to sheathe
the iron hand in the velvet glove. Words and
phrases occur, which a more cultivated
taste would have rejected, and give a
shade of coarseness to a page that has no need of
such artificial strength. ,Recalling the incideutA
of its author's troubled existence, the reader will
not marvel at the dark and gloomy thoughts and
views of life so often traced in its pages. Doubtless
the worst characters we meet with were drawn from
thelife—not from the writer's visions. They showed
her all that is good and noble and attractive, which
otherwise she could scarcely have ponrtrayed.
Trouble and suffering have ended for her now ;
the noise of the world's approbation no longer
meets her ear ; it only remains for those she has
so often thrilled and gratified to receive with con-
sideration and kindness the last offering of a genius
so rare and powerful, fettered by every obstacle
that natural temperament and individual circum-
stances could oppose to its progress.