The Sun.
London, England, 1850-05-13 00:00:00

Is ,

The EDINBURGH REVIEW. No. CLXXXIV.
A better number of the old blue-and-buff quarterly
has not for a considerable time appeared. More or
less, each of the contributions, upon the most various
subjects conceivable, has a superior excellence ; and
the tendency of each is of that elevating character
which is alone suitable to an age like the present, one
of continual progression and perpetual advancement.
In testimony of this we should be tempted to enter
into an elaborate consideration of the opening paper
dedicated to the delineation of our " National Ob-
servatories," but that the charm of the
theme, and its engrossing nature, if al-
lowed to master us at the outset of our
notice, would leave us but little space or opportunity
for reference to the other meritorious contributions.
Nevertheless, white refraining from a closer and more
detailed allusion to this masterly essay on a noble
branch of science, we must especially and earnestly
beseech in its favour that attention from the public to
which it is peculiarly entitled, revealing as it does in
such vivid and agreeable colours the economy of one
of our least noticed, but at the same time one of our
most important, institutions. We allude to
the observatory at Greenwich, a building
whose external peculiarities are we doubt not fa-
miliar to the mass of the holiday-makers of the metro-
polis, but the marvels of whose interior arrangements
are known but to a select few out of our vast and in-
telligent population. An hour's perusal of the article
here spoken of as standing at the head of the current
number of the Edinburgh will acquaint the reader,
and that too in a most delightful manner, with a mul-
titude of facts hitherto scattered through such ab-
struse works as those of the Russian Struve
and Captain William Henry Smyth, R.N., and
the Astronomical Lectures, or the Planetary,
Magnetical, or Meteorological Observations of the dis-
tinguished Astronomer Royal, George Bidden
Airy. Here recounted, in a most lucid and popular
form, these facts are grouped together in a way such
as must materially tend to facilitate their remem-
brance, while acquainting the uninitiated public with
the nature and use of that extraordinary apparatus
which is accumulated in the Greenwich Observatory.
Having completed the examination of the paper the
reader will feel as though he had personally traversed the
circle-room, the transit-room, the computing-room, the
chronometer-room, and the library ; and will have
become familiarised with the shape and meaning of
such scientific eccentricities as the time ball,
and the brazen
and the astronomical
quadrant, aasntdrontohme
altitudel clocks,and azimuth in-
struments. Many passages connected with the pro-
gress of modern discovery demand quotation, but we
are compelled to pass on regretfully to the notice of
the subsequent contributions. A genial and
judicious criticism on Sidney Smith's recently
printed " Moral Philosophy," enables the re-
viewer to illustrate anew, by extracts from
lectures hitherto but little known, the subtle taste
Water toand discriminating discriminating judgment of the celebrated wit
and ecclesiastic. All those whoof are interested
the land
who is not ?) in the Supply
tropolis," should not only re da, but study, seriously
study, page by page, the paper contained in the Edin-
burgh Review upon this subject, a paper in which
due regard is had to an evil so seriously affecting the
sanitary condition of the metropolis. Tracing the his-
tory of what we must call, for want of a more
accurate word, the improvements in the supply of
water to London, the writer demonstrates most
forcibly the necessity for rapid
and gigantic
and gigantic innova-
tions. Most agreeable to us, , among all the
contributions to the great Liberal Quarterly is the
critical essay on " Landor 's Poetry, in which the
most judicious and exquisitely balanced opinions are
pronounced upon
"That deep-mouth'd Breetian Savage Landor,
Who taketh for a swan rogue Southey'a gander,"
as Byron termed him in his Poetical Encyclopaedia
" Don Juan." As an imaginative prose writer
the veteran author of the " Imaginary Conversations"
has acquired a large degree of celebrity, but a very
restricted amount of popularity. As a poet, he is
still less known and still less appreciated. And hence
we are gratified to see his claims to poetical honours
manfully acknowledged, and energetically and
aesthetically proven in the luminous pages of the
Edinburgh. If for nothing else, the general readers
of the Review would have reason to thank the
contributor for making him acquainted with
Raicos, the lover of the Carian hamadryad,
with Aeon and Rhodope, with Enallos and Cymo-
dameia, with Corythos the son of Paris and (Boone,
with the madness of Orestes and the death of Ante-
midora. Yet, beyond the gratification derivable from
these unhackneyed passages of poetic beauty, are the
intermediate comments upon the metrical productions
of Mr. Landor, accompanied by discursive
critcisms on this kind of classical poetry
in the abstract, preparatory to which the
Reviewer descants upon the differences exist-
ing between ancient and modern poetry, and
upon the connexion traceable between pantheism and
poly theism. Upon the " Imperfect Appreciation of
Classic Mythology" by modern writers the remarks
of the Reviewer appear to us to be so eminently new
and judicious, that we must gratify ourselves and our
more reflective readers with the subjoined quotation :
" It is in delineating the least pronounced part of the
Greek mythology that a clear discernment of its mean-
ing is most required. In the poem from which we have
quoted, the shadowy nature of a being not so much ele-
vated above our mortal nature as standing at one side of
it, seems to us most happily indicated. Such discrimi-
nation has long been rare, both in French and in English
poetry. In the gods, as described by each, the god-
like element is left out; while the heroes of antiquity
are, and yet more frequently were during the last
century, restored to life as courtiers and fine gentlemen,
touchy about their honour, and admirable in the decorum
with which they carry their wig above peplon or toga.
Prior was not unfamiliar with ancient mythology; but
in his case familiarity may be said to have bred contempt;
and though many classical touches are to be found in
his verses, yet, in his jocular vein, he too frequently de-
grades his Venuses and Cupids not less than his Chloes
and Silvias. Akenside, in his ' Hymn to the Naiads,'
presents us with forms truly antique, but the spirit of
life is not in them. He imitates the ancients rather than
catches their inspiration, and the repast which he lays
berore us, however grand, is served up cold. Dryden
and Pope, men whose masculine understandings and
manifold accomplishments must, despite the caprices
that affect public taste, long preserve for them the high
place they have occupied, largely as they translated from
the ancient poets, never entered into the genius of the
ancient mythology. The spirit of Theocritus is not to
be found in Dryden's version of his Idyls. In his noble
Ode on St. Cecilia's Day' it has been well remarked
thic idea of the mysterious divinity
that when he makes Bacchus show his honest face,' he
Pope, in his ode on the same wwhhoolmly
hmeivssuelsg
at hriesems.y.
oc-
casion, is still more unfortunate; and although, in his
Tartarus,' Proserpine is stern and Orpheus devoted,
while Ixior, Sisyphus, and the Furies, do what they
ought to do' with laudable industry, we lack, notwith-
standing, both the awfulness and the serenity of the
Elysian region.
•' Nor has ancient mythology fared much better in the
hands of most of our recent poets. They have loved it
more; but their love has often been as undiscriminating
as that of a wood-god for a fugitive nymph. They have
Childe Harold,' describing the Venus de
not alwaYs appreciated the character of divinities, even
when exlibited in sculpture before their eyes. Lord
the goddess whether she appeared in this
guise' to Paris, or to more deeply blessed Anchises,'
or to Mars more fortunate still; and then follows a
rhapsody about lava-kisses, melting while they burn,'
showered on the cheek of the recumbent war-god.
Byron,medi o
i in,
asks h i
Such a group would hardly have suggested itself to the
imagination of a Greek sculptor about to embody a
Phedra; and is in strange contrast with the Venus of
the Florentine Tribune, that beautiful and passionless
impersonation of the morning star. Elaborate blunders
in a case of this kind are the less pardonable, because it
is especially through the interpretation of Greek art
that the several characters of Greek divinities are to
blameless,
nbeeitdhiesrtiqaugitiviesrbeed shoi.luVler norrequireed no allusive attribute,
crescented brow, to recog-
nise a than in those feet, firm and alert, though for the
moment arrested, that slender but
such a nd
above all, the far-projected Apollonian glance, clear as
jons anyd fo rm,
the beams of the sister luminp arey emy bodied. With the
form,
strikingly contrasted as with a Pallas, a goddess chaste
as the Huntress that outsped the shafts of Love, but
ofa
ll equally girlish gairl Grace, ish
sim l a
divinity was almost as o
u sinewy
but
chaste from the collected sternness of self-sufficing
strength, and from the high wisdom, confederate with
virtue, which subdued the pres!imin_
g with its Gorgon
and presided over every industrious art. The character
of a Venus was expressed not less piai,F,
y in early ages
of art, by the union of perfect beauty with a reserve and
sacredness which belongs to the maternal relation, and
in later by the languishing and humid eye, the lips en-
wreathed with smiles and dubious look, the narrow
shoulders, the marvellously- moulded form, slightly de-
n
veloped and yet luxuriant, i which numberless and in-
calculable curves were lost in one another, and finally by
the slender feet, and the tread, at once confiding and in-
secure, apparently accustomed to a more unstable ele-
ment than earth. The genius of a nation's poetry will
ever be exhibited in its other arts,—at least, in those it
cultivates,—as Oar latent spirit of its philosophy is dis-
closed in its laws."
The rest of the criticism is of similar excellence.
Speaking of the superiority of modern over classic
poetry, the writer inquires, very happily, " Should we
prefer to the choral vesper chaunt of creation the
early and slender trill of a bird but half-awakened ?"
Again, such sentences as these sparkle throughout
the contribution—" Poetry is the vital religion of
nature "—" Nature itself was the first revelation
made to man," Scc. Its eloquence sometimes
rises to a strain as sonorous as the following :
"We would not indeed divide the crown' between
Cecelia and old Timotheus; yet we may reflect that the
instrument which in later times shook the Christian
temples with awe, or thrilled with the secret of a hushed
and subdued pathos the sanctuary itself, bore yet in its
glorious aspect and manifold organization, no small ana-
logy to the simple reed-pipe of the Arcadian divinity as
well as of the shepherd watching his flock by night.'
The paper closes with a strange and startling legend
of rarmenio, who was Priest of Lychui Apollo

CEYLON and the CINGALESE. .By H. C.
Sirr, late Deputy Queen's Advocate for the Southern
Circuit in the island of Ceylon. 2 Vols.
Mr. Sirr, whose professional residence in the island
has well qualified him for the task, has just published
(through the instrumentality of Mr. Shoberl) two
most interesting and most delightful volumes, pur-
porting to give a faithful picture of Ceylon and the
Cingalese, " their history, government, and,religion ;
the antiquities, institutions, produce, revenue, and capa-
bilities of the island, with anecdotes illustrating the
manners and customs of the people." Seldom has the
promise on a title-page been so accurately and so
pleasantly redeemed as in this case. The pecu-
liarities of Ceylon, natural, national, and historical,
are most vividly set before us. In regard
to the first mentioned—the natural beauties
of the island—thoroughly does the reader of the
opening chapters of the first volume coincide with
the quotation from Byron on the first page—
" It is a goodly sight to see
What Heaven hath done for this delicious land!
What fruits of fragrance blush on every tree,
What goodly prospects o'er the hills expand."
Ceylon, with its clear atmosphere, fertile vallies, cin-
namon groves and rice plantations, and the abundant
variety of rich foliage presented by its magnificent
trees, is apparently a very Paradise of picturesque
beauty. In one place we read of a glorious tamarind
tree, very appropriately surnamed " the giant's tree,"
of which the height is ninety-eight feet, and the solid
stem (seven feet from the root) is thirty-nine feet in
diameter. But yet more attractive than this is the
talapat tree.
" This magnificent tree," writes Mr. Sirr, " towers
above all the other gigantic monarchs of the vegetable
world, and it is utterly impossible to find words ade-
quate to describe its splendid beauty. It (the talapat,
or great fan palm) varies in height from seventy to one
hundred feet. The leaves frequently measure, from the
extremity of the stalk to the point, more than twenty-
four feet, and the width varies from twelve to seventeen,
and these are used by the natives for fans and um-
brellas. Under the native Kings none, save those be-
longing to the highest caste, were allowed to use these
leaves, and the number was fixed that each chief, ac-
cording to his rank, was to have borne before him.
The flowers spring from the diadem of graceful
verdure that crowns the palm, the blossoms being of a
most exquisite pale yellow, and continuing in bloom for
the space of three months, when they gradually disap-
pear as the fruit forms. Near this gigantic tree are to
be seen the banian-tree, the myrtle, the bay-tree, and
the tick-seed sunflower, which bears an immense num-
ber of golden-coloured blossoms, whilst on the opposite
side fragments of yellow rock are clothed with luxuriant
balsams, whose delicate white and brilliant red blos-
soms stand out in bold relief from the shining foliage."
While perusing these and other passages so richly
descriptive of the beauties of the island, we can
hardly wonder at the ready offer of the heroine of
" The Belle's Stratagem," to listen "to the soft
breathings of the flute in the cinnamon groves of
Ceylon." The chapters containing these pictures of
the country are happy specimens of pen and ink
painting, but matter of deeper interest is not wanting
as we advance further in the work. The historical
anecdotes and legends read in some instances like
chapters from the " Arabian Nights," and are occa-
sionally of a very tragic and romantic character. As
a specimen of this, which will doubtless prove
to some readers the most attractive por-
tion of the work, we, were about to relate a mo-
dern tragedy founded on the deathful antipathy of
castes, which has been sadly prevalent in Ceylon ; but
the following old legend is even more romantic, and
will perhaps, in consequent, prove more acceptable :

STRANGER THAN FICTION.
" The following enigma in verse was composed by one
of the native kings, Kumara Dhas, a prince of great
learning, who reigned A.D. 517, and both riddle and
answer are looked upon as masterpieces, as the number
and position of the letters in the original, in both enigma
and reply, strictly agree, the latter being written by
Kalidhas, the celebrated poet and friend of the Monarch.
Naturally in translation the ,peculiar beauty is lost
but we give it as a curious and interesting poetical
specimen.
" The riddle of Kumara Dhas—
" By beauty's grasp in turmoil, uncomposed
He is kept a prisoner, but with eyes unclosed.'
" The elucidation by the poet Kalidhas--
"' Although closed at night, the lotus keeps the bee
The dawn will see him gay, unhurt, and tree.'
" The circumstance which occasioned these lines is
thus recorded in the native annals; the King was in the
habit of visiting a courtesan, celebrated alike for her wit,
beauty, and captivating manners, and one evening, whilst
in her company, remarked a bee alight on a pink lotus,
closed upon, and imprisoned the insect. The Monarch
immediately wrote the two lines on the wall, intending
to compare his own situation with that of the captive
bee, as he was enthralled by the woman's wiles; stat-
ing that whoever would complete the stanza should
have any request granted which they might choose to
prefer.
" Shortly after the Monarch quitted the courtezan's
abode, and Kalidhas, who was also in the habit of visiting
the woman, entered the house, and, seeing the writing
on the wall, immediately concluded the verse in the same
style. The wretched woman, to obtain the promised re-
ward, murdered the poet, and buried him under the
floor; but when the Monarch saw the reply, he imme-
diately recognised the style and writing of his favourite
Kalidhas.
" The murder was discovered, the corpse disinterred,
and, by order of the King, a. most magnificent pile was
prepared, whereon the body was to be burned with all
the rites and ceremonies which belonged solely to roy-
alty. When the funeral pyre was ignited, the grief and
mental agony of Kumara Dhas, at the loss of his friend,
overcame all other feelings, and he rushed into the flames,
and was consumed with the body of the post, Kalidhas.
History also recorded that the five queens of Kumara
Dhas voluntarily immolated themselves on the same spot
shortly afterwards, and we believe this to be the only
record of royal widows in Ceylon sacrificing themselves
at the tombs of their spouses."
The manners and customs of the modern Cingalese
are, many of them, of a most extraordinary character,
and these are related by Mr. Sirr in a copious
and anecdotal style which renders them fully as
interesting as (being another chapter of the "proper
study of mankind") they are valuable. These curi-
ous customs of the Cingalese are too numerous to
permit of more than a cursory mention of them here ;
so we must refer our readers to Mr. Sirr for an ac-
count of the various baptismal, marriage, and other
ceremonies of the modern inhabitants of the island,
as, for example, how, in addition to his or-
dinary appellation, every child receives a rice-
name, breathed in his ear while his mother is
feeding him with rice, and never known to
any persons but the child's father and an astrologer.
"It is remarkable," says Mr. Sirr, " but all Cinga-
lese believe that ill-luck and misfortune would attend
a child if the rice-name were known to any one save
the astrologer and father, and we have never yet met
with a native who could affirm what his rice-name was."
In addition to their numerous strange marriage cus-
toms there are it appears in this country two distinct
classes of marriages, the one is called " Beene " and
the other "Deega." In the first of these the husband
resides at the wife's home and she shares
the family inheritance with her brothers. In the
Deega marriage, as in the ordinary unions of other
nations, the wife leaves her paternal home to dwell
with her husband. From his historical researches,
Mr. Sirr infers that the forefathers of the Cingalese
people, " whom for a lengthened period we looked
upon as savages, were a civilized and a comparatively
refined nation at a period anterior to the discovery of
Great Britain and her then semi-barbarous denizens."
The Kandian Cingalese, had, it seems, a tradi-
tion that " the island of Lanka-diva never could
be conquered and retained by a foreign power, except
two impossible things were performed, namely, a road
bored through the bowels of the rocky mountains,:
and the Maha-welle-ganga spanned by a single arch
—impossibilities which have been accomplished by'
a
tunnel recently pierced through the mountain, and
bridge whose single arch measures two hundred and
five feet, thrown across the waters of the Maha-welle
gangs. The tunnel, says Mr. Sirr, " was c?nstruc-
capital of Ceylon) came into our pos!ession, on
beofrutlehde
tteo d
speak,by order
the ofß r
iSt
ii
sr
hEpdowwaerrd
after Barnes,
K a
nto d coy (ntshoel. da
lentant, o
account of the legend above-mentioned, and,
adds Mr. Sirr, " a chief told us that
iw e throughraesetheir r
rocks
c kt
destiny
e anb dow
undermineeo s
when his countrymen beheld this task commenced,
their hearts failed them, but when they saw it com-
mountains." We must, however, take leave of Mr.
pbearlyettsehdn,
stahinieodynmtwheehnno
Sirr, for his volumes so abound with interesting inci-
dents that an attempt
.to mention even the greater
walkingk
couldnew tp
part would be impracticable. We took up the work
expecting to find it valuable from its historical and
geographicalinformation ; in this we were not disap-
pointed, but we found it moreover as richly coloured
as a picture gallery and as attractive as a romance.

ROYAL SAPPERS AND MINERS - WOOLWICH,
MAY 11.—The 18th company, recently returned to head-
quarters at Woolwich from Portsmouth, under the command
of Captain Barry, Royal Engineers, have been placed under
orders of readiness to embark in the Resistance, troop-ship,
for a passage to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to relieve the sth
Company under the command of Captain Bermester, Royal
Engineers, at that station since May, 1843. The Resistance
is to call at Cork on her way to North America, to receive
on board detachments of the line to fill up the head-quarters
of the regihrut4 bet-Tips in Ganlido•