The Sun.
London, England, 1845-05-12 00:00:00

ROYA I, AC rIDEMY

The Royal Academy Exhibition of this year con-
sists of no less than 1470 works of art, so that what-
ever may be said of the quality of the productions of
English artists, no one can have just cause to corn-
[lain of their quantity. Among these, however, there
are a great number of portraits, of which, 33, Lady
Sale, by J. Sant; 81, O'Connell, by N. J. Crowley ;
293, Sir William Nott, with Candahar in the back-
ground, by 'P. Brig..tock ; 496, another portrait of
Sir. W. Nott, by B. R. Faulkner, and 452, Sir Ro-
bert Sale, by G. Clint, are the only portraits worthy
of observation, inasmuch as they possess an his-
toried interest—of the remainder of the portraits
we observe, in the words of the law reporters
to the newspapers, that " they are of no interest ex-
cept to the parties more immediately concerned."
Having thus disposed of the portraits, we will confine
our attention in the present notice to the pictures in
the east-room. On entering it, the spectator will
observe a crowd collected at the far end of the room,
immediately opposite the entrance. They are ad-
miring Edwin Landseer's only contribution to the
Exhibition this year.—No. 141, The Shepherd's
Prayer. This sukect is a shepherd kneeling before
a rule crucifix, • his flock gathered around him,
guard€d by his dogs, in the distance an open country.
The execution of the sheep is marvellous—as regards
the dogs, it is sufficient to say they are painted by
Edwin f,andseer ; the crucifix too is admirable, bur
the shepherd has evidently assumed an attitude before
it for the purpose of having his picture taken. He is
clothed in purple, and his eyes elevated to Heaven, and
his hands stretched exactly in the attitude of a saint
expecting the crown of martyrdom. There is nothing
about the expression of the figure of
"Let me with lowly voice a blessing crave,
On these my anxious charge."
The expression is rather that of one in the actual en-
joyment of the beatific vision, than that of a bumble
shepherd craving a blessing on his flock.
The attitude is the attitude of triumphant resignation,
if we be allowed the expression, rather than that of
humble supplication. In supplication the hands jc inel

are uplifted towards Heaven—the face averted, is cast
down towards the Earth. The extreme of supplica-
tion is prostration. There is nothing of this expres.
sion in the figure of the shepherd. The picture, not.
withstanding, is one of the gems of the exhibition,
but the shepherd is a mistake. Eastlake, like'
Edwin Landseer, contributes but one picture, No. 222,
illustrative of the concluding lines of Comus.
This is an exquisite picture—the expression of the
features of every figure—the group is that of the
most serene calm—and albeit the expression of se-
renity borders occasionally upon weakness, yet upon
the whole the picture is exquisitely poetical—so har-
monious that it might almost be termed musical, for
as there is a harmony of sounds so is there a har-
mony of colour, and who shall venture to affirm that
these harmenies are not cognate. Etty has several
pictures in this room, all miracles of colouring, all
worthy the pencil of him who has been not unaptly
called the English Titian—No. 12; Aurora and
Zephyr, by Etty, is a magnificent specimen of colour-
ing, and of graceful beauty of design. The figure of
Zeph‘ r, however, is not that of a youth, it is that of
• a girl. In one who studies the nude figure as does
Etty, this mistake is surprising. His flower girl, 185,
is not unworthy of the pencil of Murillo, while 186,
the Votive Offering, is perhaps one of the most beauti-
ful specimens of colouring and drawing that Etty
has et produced. In expression and form, how-
ever,-his best picture is "the Indian alarmed,"
No. 97, an American Indian roused by a ditant
noise. Every sense is awake. Sight, hearing, smel-
ling are acutely on the watch—the expression of the
features is that of anxious acuteness, and the muscles
seem all strung, so that he is ready to spring on a
being in a moment. The colouring is very fine.
No. 109, " Cupid interceding with his mother for
Psyche," by the same artist, is also a very beautiful
picture. In this room Turner has four pictures, 50 and
77 "Whalers"--the last by far the best picture of the
two ; 117, Venice, Evening—going to the Ball; and 162,
Venice, Morning—returning from the Ball. These
two last pictures are miracles of colouring, and
aerial perspective. Look at them closely they are
the veriest daubs in existence—mere palettes on
which colours have been coarsely spread—but give
them distance; as you retire, the colours begin to
separate into masses. Now, they harmonise—order
arises out of chaos ; and now the picture bursts upon
you as the most gorgeous specimen of colouring,
the most miraculous specimen of aerial perspective
that the pencil of artist has ever produced. To appre-
ciate Turner, however, the connoisseur should go
early in the morning, before the exhibition is crowded.
It is impossible to attain the proper " point of
view" for his pictures after the rooms are filled.
In contrast to Turner, is Clarkson Stanfield,
the successor of Calcott, the painter, whose works are
so beautifully fini-died, that they will bear the closest
inspection. In this room we have three gems from
the pencil of Stanfield, 65; the Mole at Ancona, a
beautifully finished painting; 205, Dutch Boats run-
ning into Saardarn—Amsterdam in the distance—a
picture full of life and animation, as all Stanfield's
sea pieces are—and 254. The action and capture of
the Spanish xebeq.ne frigate "El Game, of 32 guns
and 319 men, commanded by Don Francisco de
Torris; and H. M. sloop Speedy, of 14 four-pounders
and 54 men, . commanded by Lord Cochrane (now
Earl Dundonald), off Barcelona, On the 6th
of May, 1801. As a work of art this last pic-
ture is certainly one of the most exquisite pro-
ductions of Stanfield's pencil. As a historical pic-
ture—a pictorial record of the most gallant achieve-
ment of one of the most gallant officers of the most
gallant navy in the world—it is invaluable. This
picture ought to be purchased by the nation, and pre-
sented to Greenwich Hospital. 34. Ruins of Kar-
nak is a magnificent picture by David Roberts. The
subject is treated in a most masterly style, and the
manner in which the rays of the setting sun are re-
flected from the columns of the ruined temple is one
of the most splendid efforts ever produced. Taken
as a whole, this is perhaps the landscape of the exhibi-
tion. 87, Peter the Great, Teaching. his Subjects the
Art of Shipbuilding, is by Sir W. Allan. This pie.
ture has scarcely sufficient dignity to be called an
historical picture, although most likely it is a very
accurate portraiture of the transaction it represents,
as it actually took place. It would not, however, have
been the worse as a work of art, if it had a little less
of the real, and a little more of the ideal. 131. The
Heiress, by C. R. Leslie, is one of those delightful
illustrations of existing manners which Leslie alone
can produce. He is the Watteau of his age, and, as
illustrations of the costumes and manners of
the nineteenth century, his paintings will, ages
hence, be eagerly -sought after. 200. Fetch.
ing the Doctor, by Collins, is an admirable
painting of the Wilkie school. It is a night scene,
and a chubby boy has just knocked up the village
doctor, who appears, half-dressed, to answer the
call. The bewildered expression of the doctor's coun-
tenance, neither asleep nor awake, is admirable. 105.
The Greeting, Worthington, is the return from market
of a Welsh farmer's wife, who is met by her husband
:and family at the entrance to the farm-yard. The
grouping is very beautiful, and the picture altogether
is excel,ent. 277. The Water Cart, by Lee, is a land-
scape, in the true Gainsborough style. 125. View of Caen,
by Fowler, is a small cabinet picture of great merit;
and 126. Ventner Undercliffe, Isle of Wight, W. Col-
lins, is a beautilful picture of some of the most beautiful
scenery in the world. We were turning to leave the
room, when our attention was attracted by a picture
close to the door--No. 11, The Governess, R. Red-
grave—a- little piece of domestic tragedy that goes
at once to the heart. The scene is a school-room in
a gentleman's mansion, opening upon a lawn. The
governess sits at her daily drudgery, her attitude,
her features, betokening That despairing resignation
which springs from he utter annihilation of hope.
She is friendless and broken-hearted. Admirably
contrasting w ith this expression of passive grief in
the governess, is the expression of active grief in the
features of the little girl seated on the bench, who
is conning her lesson, and endeavouring to concen-
trate her attention to her book—her endeavours are
however in vain—her attention wanders to her

,wo sisters, who are leaving the school-room for

the lawn, and who in all the joyousness of
youth that knows no care, have already
begun their sports even before they have quitted the
school-room. This one picture tells the story of a
whole domestic drama—and a very sad story it is.
We fear it is an over true one. We must defer our
notice of the other pictures of the exhibition to ano-
ther opportunity.

DRURY-LANE THEATRE.—There was a general
rehearsal of the new opera of The Enchantress, written
for Madame Thillon's debzit, on Saturday last. But
finding some of the effects to be produced not sufficiently
advanced, Mr. Bunn has prudently postponed its per-
formance until Wtdne&day. We are given to under-
stand that the preparations are on a scale equally novel
as costly.

MADAME ANNA THILLON.—We are requested to
contradict a statement which has appeared in some of
the Sunday papers to the effect that this lady is the
daughter 'of Mr. Ilunt, the vocalist—Madame Anna
Thillon is not in any way related to that gentleman.
The authorship of the beautiful lines on the death
of it John Moore was claimed by half-a-dozen persons,
and we believe the authorship of " Cecil" has been ap-
propriated by as many. Whoever may be the writer,
however, no one denies his great talent. " The charm of
' Self' (says a new critic) is that it contains a lively por-
traiture of aristocratic English life. It introduces almost
every character now taking a part in public life, and dis-
cusses with wit and humour almost every folly, frivolity,
and soul.der and better qualities of the leading characters
of the age. Perhaps it deals a little too much in satire,
and points too strongly to' individuals, many of them
11 living, and some of them only recently dead. 'But
in too many cases the -satire is only the just and well-
merited, and in others it is not sufficiently particular to
give just cause of offence."

LITERATURE.

SYBIL ; or the TWO NATIONS. In 3 Vols.
By B. D'ISRAELI, M.P.

A year has not elapsed since the author of
" Coningsby" announced the advent of "a new
generation"—the dawn of brighter hopes, and better
feelings. His work was received with enthusiasm,
his glowing thoughts found a ready echo in the
hearts of men, glad to turn from the gloomy present
to contemplate a bright futurity. " Coningsby"
became the idol of the hour. Its praises were hardly
exhausted, when the announcement of a " new work,
by Mr. D'lsraeli," aroused the eager expectation
of his numerous admirers. It is not often that
our hopes are destined to be fulfilled, but
in this instance the most sanguine anticipations must
have been realised. High as is Mr. D'lsraelis lite-
rary reputation, " Sybil" will add a brighter laurel
to his wreath. Here he comes forward in the noble
character of the champion of the poor. He has conse-
crated his brilliant talents to the sacred cause of
truth—he has &voted his energies to the regenera.
tion of the people : in such a cause genius shines
with redoubled lustre—such a cause is sufficient
to inspire great thoughts. " Coningsby" sougl t
to expose the state of parties— "S 3 bil " de-
scribes the condition of the people. "Coningsby"
was the novel of the season, a mirror of the
political characters of the day—" Sybil " is the
history of the age, a picture of the sufferings of the
country. Perhaps " Coningsby " will afford more
amusement to the superficial reader, but "Sybil" is
not written to amuse—its object is_ not to dazzle the
fancy, but to touch the heart. He must be cold and
stern indeed who can peruse this work unmoved. It
is no idle tale of fiction ; it is the voice of a suffering
people calling upon their fellow-men—it is a history
of the sorrows of the poor, drawn with all the
nervous eloquence of truth, adorned with all the
graces of a poet's fancy. Though differing from
some of the political allusions, we must admire the

generous spirit which animates the whole work.
Scorning the narrow views of this "age of infidelity,"
Mr. D'lsraeli looks upon the youth of the nation as
the champions of the people's rights and the re-
generators of their country. The cold breath of sel-
fishness has not had time to

" Freore the genial current of their soul."
Their hearts are warm with kindly feelings, their
youthful ardour is not damped by adversity. Surely,
then, they will hear the voice of lamentation ; they
will exert all their intelligence, all their genius, in
the cause of the oppressed. If such be the feelings
of " Young England," then, indeed, is that name a
proud title for the party, a source of hope
for their country. Sybil is the history of
two nations—the rich and the poor—and these his-
tories are written in a style as widely different
as the nations themselves. In describing the faults
and follies of the rich, the political intrigues, the
empty pageantry, the petty jealousies, and the narrow
views that mark the character of the proud and
great, IYlsraeli indulges in that quiet sarcasm which,
he knows so well, barbs the dart of truth. But when
he tells of the sufferings of the poor,

" A change comes o'er the spirit of the dream."
He is all feeling, all pathos; he speaks of
their sorrows till he melts, the heart ; he tells of
their wrongs till he fires the indignation ; he calls
forth the tenderest sympathies of our nature, and
bids us " gently scan our brother man," and devote
all our energies to redeem the people. The following
conversation between a proud " Lord of the lund"
and a delegate of the people, places the relative posi-
tions of rich and poor in mutual dependence :

" ' I am not so clear about that,' said Lord Valentine ;
• that is the very point at issue. Ido not think the great
majority are the best judges of their own interests. At
all events, gentlemen, the respective advantages of, aris-
tocracy aid democracy are a moot point. You are de-
mocrats ; lam an aristocrat. My family has been en-
nobled for nearly three centuries ; they bore a knightly
name before their elevation. -They have mainly and
materially assisted in making England what it is. They
have shed their blood in many battles ; I have had two
ancestors killed in the command of our fleets. You will
not underrate such services, even, if you . do not appre-
ciate their conduct as statesmen, though that has often
been laborious, and sometimes • distinguished. The
finest trees in ngland were'planted by my family ; they
raised several of your most beautiful churches ; they
have built bridges, made roads, dug mines, and con-
structed canals, and drained a marsh of a million of acres
which bears our name to this day, and is now one of the
most flourishing portions of the country. You talk of
our taxation and our wars ; and of your inventions and'
your industry. Our wars converted an island into an
empire, and at any rate developed that industry and sti-
mulated those inventions of which you boast. You tell
me that you are the delegates of the unrepresented
working classes of Mowbray. Why, what would Mow-
bray have been if it had not been for your aristooracy
and their wars ?' •

" My Lord,' said the delegate, 'it is well known
that you come from a great and honoured race.
But the great question,iiihich your Lordship has intro-
duced, not usos not to be decided by a happy instance.
Your ancestors may have done great things. What
wonder I They were members of a very limited class
which had the monopoly of action. And the people, have
not they shed their blood in battle, though they may have
commanded fleets less often than your Lordship's rela-
tives ? And these mines and canals that you have ex-
cavated and constructed, these woods you have planted,
these waters you have drained—had the people no hand
in these creations ? What share in these great works
had that faculty of labour whose sacred claims we now
urge, but which for centuries have been passed over in
contemptuous silence ? No, my Lord, we call upon you
to decide this question by the result. The Aristocracy
of England have had for three centuries the exercise of
power ; for the last century and a half that exercise has
been unc.mtrolled ; they form at this moment the most
prosperous class that the history of the world can furnish ;
as rich as the Roman senators, with sources of conve-
nience and enjoyment which modern science could alone
supply. All this is not denied. Your order stands
before Europe the most gorgeous of existing spectacles ;
though you have of late years dexterously thrown some
of the odium of your polity upon that middle class which
you despise. and who are despicable only because they
imitate you, your tenure of power is not in reality im-
paired. You govern us still with absolute authority,—
and you govern the most miserable people on the face of
the globe.' "

As might be expected, the conduct of Sir R. Peel is
not the subject of encomium; he is spoken of as a
" Minister, who has changed all the policy which you
were elected to support, but who expects your vote
and confidence all the same." The following account
of the reception of a deputation may be a v arning to
those who may be honoured with an audience with
the " gentleman in Downing-street " :
" And now for these deputations,' said the gentle-
man in Downing street, of all things in the world I
dislike a deputation. Ido not care how much I labour
in the Cabinet or the House; that's real work; the ma-
chine is advanced. But receiving a deputation is like
sham marching; an immense dust and no progress. To
listen to their views! As it I did not know what their
views were before they stated them! And to put on a
countenance of respectful candour while they are de-
veloping their exploded or their impracticable systems.
Were it not that at a practised crisis I permit them to
Fee conviction slowly stealing over my conscience, I
believe the fellows would never stop. I cannot really
receive these deputations. I must leave them to
Hoaxem,' and the gentleman in Downing-street rang
his bell.

" Well, Mr. Hoaxem,' resumed the gentleman in
Dovvning-street as that faithful functionary entered,
there are some deputations, I understand, to-day. You
must receive them, as I am going to Windsor.'
" have no doubt you will get through the business
very well, particularly if you be frank and explicit;'
that is the right line to take when you wish to conceal
your own mind and to confuse the minds of others.'"
Sybil Gerard, the heroine, is the daughter of one of
the " leaders of the people" at the time of the riots.
Her character is the most beautiful example of lofty
enthusiasm and pure simplicity. The bright ideas
she had formed of the virtues of the people are dissi-
pated by the stern lessons of experience, while the
prejudices she entertained against the aristocracy
give way to the calmer dictates of reason. She learns
that no State is perfect in itself; rich and poor have
alike their faults and virtues, and it is the duty of
those who are most favoured by fortune to lead the
way to peace and happiness. At a time like the pre-
sent, when the faint indications of a better feeling
are manifest, a work such as this will tend to " fan
and feed the flame," and call forth a spirit irresistible
and universal. We subjoin the remarks with which
Mr. D'lsraeli concludes this interesting work :
" In an age of political infidelity, of mean passions
and petty thoughts, I would have impressed upon the
rising race not to despair, but to seek in a right under-
standing of the history of their country and in the ener-
gies of heroic youth, the elements of national welfare.
" It is the past alone that can explain the present, and
it is youth that alone can mould the remedial future.
The written history of our country for the last ten
reigns has been a mere phantasma, giving to the origin
and consequence of public transactions a character and
colour in every respect dissimilar with their natural
form and hue. In this mighty mystery all thoughts
and things have assumed an aspect and title contrary to
their real quality and style. Oligarchy has been called
Liberty; an exclusive Priesthood has been christened a
National Church ; Sovereignty has been the title of
something that has had no dominion, while absolute
power has been wielded by those who profess themselves
the servants of the People. In the selfish strife of fac-
tions two great existences have been blotted out of the
history of England—the Monarch and the Multitude;
as the power of the Crown has diminished, the privi-
leges of the People have disappeared; till at length the
sceptre has become a pageant, and its subject has dege-
nerated again into a serf.
" That we may live to see England once more possess
a free monarchy and a privileged and prosperous people,
is. my prayer; that these great consequences can os;ly be
b cought about by the energy and devotion of our youth
i my persuasion- We live in an age when to be young
and to be indifferent can be no longer synonymous..
We must prepare for the coming hour. The claims of
the future are represented by suffering millions; and the
youth cf.!z nation are the trustees of posterity."

TER SUN, LONDON, MONDAY MORNING, MAY 12, 1845.

TILE CONQUEST OF SIADE, WITH SOME
INTRODUCTORY PASSAGES IN TB ii
LIFE OF SIR CHARLES JAMES NAPIER.
By Major-General W. F. P. Napier. Pa t IL
In the present volume we have a brief historical
account of the state of Sinde, about the period when
Sir Charles Nat ier assumed the command of the
army of occupation—details of the intrigues and plots
of the Ameers, in conjunction with their allies, the
Affghans and Beloochees —and the final results, in-
cluding the latzles of Meanee and Dubba, and the
conquest of Sinde. The work will be found of deep
interest, because its object is to show (and in that the
author has been successful) that whatever might have
given rise to the first British connexion with Sinde,
whether our interference was right or wrong, neither
Sir Charles Napier nor Lord Ellenborough had any ,
thing to do with that part of the question. They
found the country in the possession of British troops, or
at least such parts of it as could command the whole;
'hey found also certain treaties entered into with the
Ameers, and all they had to do was to see that these
treaties were observed, and that the Anglo -Indian
army suffered no wrong. Wicked attempts have
been made, both by writers in India and this country,
to throw the blame of the whole transaction, if blame
it can be called, on the government of Lord Ellenbo-
rough, for the purpose of screening Lord Auckland
and extolling the merits of Major Oatram. The at-
tempt has been defeated in the most triumphant man-
ner, and these men have " fallen into the pit that
they had made." Never did General display more
patience, more forbearance, more reluctance to decide
the contest by battle, than Sir Charles Napier, and
never did any negotiator, whether styled ambassador
or minister,, or commissioner or political agent, not
excepting even Mr. Frere, so notorious for mislead-
ing Sir John Moore, bring an army so near the verge
of ruin as did Major Outram, while at Hyderabad.
Sir Charles Napier, the life and soul of the Sinde di-
vision, for it could not be called an army, was saved
from an ignominious death by a miracle. Some
would say no—he was saved by his own far-seeing mind
—by comparing circumstances—by making himself
acquainted with the-character of his enemies, and be-
lieving neither their solemn oaths nor the equally
solemn asseverations of the English Commissioners,
when he found them controverted by indubitable
facts. While the negotiations were going on, he dis-
covered beyond the possibility of a doubt, that the
proceedings of the Ameers were deceitful. They
only thought of gaining time for the assembling of
their whole army, amounting to at least 70,000 men;
and to delay the war till they could be brought toge-
ther, no falsehood, no intrigue nor fraud was spared.
His correspondence with Major Outram was through
their instigations, stolen ; the Ameer Roostum
and his sons wrote letters and made statements as to
their troops, and their intentions, designed to mislead
Outram, and they did effectually mislead him ; but
the statements which Sir Charles received through
paid native agents, in other words spies, were clear,
distinct, and positive—all in contradiction of the Ameers
and the British Commissioner, and all in accord with
each other. About the beginning of February 1843,
the troops of many tribes were marching towards
Hyderabad, the Ameers were in close alliance with
the Affghans and Beloochees, and all that was required
to accomplish the annihilation of the British forces
was to keep them at a distance from the capital of
Lower Sinde till the preparations were completed.
Major Outrun did every thing in his power to stop
our troops on their march ; he wrote repeatedly from
Hyderabad conveying advice to that effect, nay he
aetually invited Sir Charles Napier to leave his army
and come down the country alone to settle affairs
by negotiation, when the train was actually laid for
destroying himself and his small division of 100 men,
apd they merely delayed the explosion till the Com-
mander-in-Chief could be brought within the range
of destruction. No intentional mischief, of course, is
ascribed to Major Outram, it was merely a defect of
judgment—a want of prudence—a complete miscon-
ception of the character of the Ameers, and a fatuous
blindness to palpable events which were passing
around him. Had sir Charles yielded to this
advise, the Cabul tragedy would have been
repeated at Hyderabad, and Napier and Out-
ram would have suffered the fate of Burnes
and M'Naughten, and probably not one man of the
army would have been left to tell the tale. This was
about the first week of February, and the dreadful
battle of Meanee took place on the 17th of that month.
Sir Charles Napier, however, had too much skill and
foresi,zht to fall into the snare; and when the Ameers
found that he could not be caught, they unravelled
the plot, attacked the residence of the British
Commissioner at Hyderabad, and the fearless
courage of Major Outram and the determined
bravery of his small band of British troops alone
saved thein from utter destruction. The Commander-
in-chief then saw on what a precipice he stood, and,
with a moral courage never surpassed, resolved at all
hazards to save, if not his life, at least his honour,
and that of his brave army. He prepared for the
contest without a moment's hesitation; and to most
men such a contest would have appeared utterly
hopeless. After detaching a few troops in different
directions, to preserve his communications, he had
2,000 of all arms, officers included; the rank and file
were 0n1y.1,780, but they were of sterling stuff, and
among, them were 500 of the Queen's Regiment,
under the command of the Gallant Colonel Penne-
father—all Irishmen, " strong of body, high-blooded,
fierce, impetuous soldiers, who saw nothing before
them but victory, and counted not their enemies."
But their numbers nevertheless were apalling to ordi-
nary minds. The Beloochees of Lower Sinde, 30,000
strong, were assembled on the plain of Meanee ; the
princes of Upper Sinde had 7,000 at Khoonpera ; the
Chandians, 10,000 strong, had crossed the Indus in
rear of the British camp ; Shere Mohamed had 10,000
at Merepoor ; and thousands of the hill tribes were
hastening down to the Indus. Not a moment was to
be lost, and Napier, true to his family motto," Ready,
aye, ready," rushed at once
against this combined
host of 30,000 brave troops. -But we will allow his
brother to describe the onset :
" When the line was formed the General gave the sig-
nal to advance, and rode forward himself with his stab;
and his interpreter, Ali Acbar, an
high race and true Arab courage, who has never left his
-an
chief's side in any danger. Arab gentleman of
ger. Constant and heavy was the
fire from the Belooch guns ; and though few men could
be discovered, the rapid play of the matchlocks indicated
the presence of numbers, and marked the position.
"The Ameer's right was found to be strengthened and
covered by the village of Kattree, which was filled with
men ; the flank offered no weak- point. But in the
Shikargah on their left the General instantly detected a
flaw. It has been before said this argah was covered by
a wall, having only one opening, not very wide, through
which it was evident the Beloochs meaned to pour out
on the flank and rear of the advancing British line.
The General rode near this wall and found it was nine
or ten feet high ; be rode nearer and marked it had no
loop-holes for the enemy to shoot through ; he rode into
the opening under a play of matchlocks, and looking be-
hind the wall saw there was no scaffolding to enable the
Beloochs to fire over the top. Then the inspiration cf ge-
nius came to;the aid of heroism. Taking the grenadiers of
the 22d, he thrust them at once into the opening, telling
their brave Captain (rew), that ho
was to block up
that entrance ; to die there if it must be, never to give
way ! And well did the gallant fellow obey his orders ;
he died there, but the opening was defended. The great
disparity of numbers was thus abated, and the action of
scale as to num-
of only eighty. It was, on a smaller
which won hers, a stroke of generalship like that
six thousand men paralysed by the more skilful action
Blen-
heim for the Duke of Marlborough.
"Now the advancing troops, formed in columps of regi-
ments, approached the enemy's front. The British right
passed securely under the wall of the Shikargah, cheered
and elated as they moved by the rattling sound of Tew's
musketry ; the left was somewhat refused,. to avoid the
fire from the village of Kattree, which it was designed
Clibborne should storm with his Sepoy grenadiers.
Meanwhile the dead level of the plain was swept by the
Belooch cannon and matchlocks, which were answered
from time to time by Lloyd's battery, yet not frequently,
for rapidly and eagerly did the troops press forward to
close with their unseen foes. When the 22d had got
within a hundred yards of the high sloping bank of the
Fullaillee, the columns opened line to their left ; and as
the companies formed in succession, they threw their fire
at the top. of the bank, where the heads of the Beloochs
could be just seen, bending with fiery glances ever the
levelled matchlocks. The formation was still incomplete,
when the voice of the General, shrill and clear, was heard
along the line commanding the charge.
" Then rose the British shout, the English guns were
run forward into position, the infantry closed upon the
Fullaillee with a run, and rushed up the sloping bank.
The Beloochs having their matchlocks laid ready in
rest along the summit, waited until' the assailants were
within fifteen yards ere their volley was delivered ; the
rapid pace of the British, and the steepness of the slope
on the inside deceived their aim, and the execution was
not great ; the next moment the 22d were on the top of
the bank, thinking to bear down all before them, but
they staggered back in amazement at the forest of
swords waving in their front ! Thick as standing corn,
and gorgeous as a field of flowers, stood the Beloochs in
their many-coloured garments and turbans ; they filled
at sun, their shouts
dark shields,
shields, they shook
the broad deep bed of the Fullaillee., they clustered on
both banks, and covered the plain beyond. Guarding
ma large d
in r
rolled like a peal of thunder, as with frantic gestures
they rushed forwards, and full against the front of the
22d dashed with demoniac str. ngth and ferocity. But
with shouts at loud, and shrieks as wild and tierce as
tthheeiirr shleiaadrps with
swords,t heibrea l
theirs, and hearts as big and arms as strong, the Irish
soldiers met them with that queen of weapons the mus-
ket, and sent their foremost masses rolling back in
blood.
" Now the Beloochs closed their dense masses, and
again the shouts and the rolling fire of musketry and the
dreadful rush of the swordsmen, were heard and seen
along the whole line, and such a fight ensued as has
seldom been known or told of in the records of war.
For ever those wild warriors came close up, sword and
shield in advance, striving in all the fierceness of their
valour to break into the opposing ranks ; no fire of
small arms, no push of bayonets, no sweeping- discharges
of grape from the guns, which wero planted in one mass
on the right, could drive the gallant fellows back ; they
gave their breasts to the shot, they leaped upon the guns
and were blown away in twenties at a time ; their dead

went down t! a steep slope by hundreds ; but the gaps
in their masses were continually filled up from the
rear, the survivors of the front rank still pressed for-
wards with unabated fury, and the bayonet and the
sword clashed in full and frequent conflict.
" Thus they fought in this fearful struggle, never more
than three yards apart, and often intermixed, and several
times the different regiments, aye, even the Europeans !
were violently forced backwards and pushed from the
line, overb,-)rne and staggering under the might and
passion of the barbarian swordsmen. But always
their General was th re to cheer and rally them. At
his voice and intrepid denaeanour their strength re-
turned, and they recovered their ground, though nearly
deprived of regimental leaders ; for fast those leaders
had gone down, dying as British officers should, and
always will do, Where they cannot win.
"The noble soldier Pennefather (I use his General's
words), the noble soldier Pennefather fell on the top of
the bank, deeply, it was thought at first mortally,
wounded, and his place was taken by Major Poole.
" Major Teasdale, animating his Sepoys of the 25th
regiment, rode violently over the ridge into the midst of
the Beloochs, and was instantly killed, by shot and
sabre, dying with a glorious devotion.
" Major Jackson, of the 12th, coming up with his
regiment, the next in succession, followed the heroic
example, as if the succession of death had been also in
his orders. Two brave Ilavildars kept close to him, all
three in advance of their regiment, and all fell dead to-
gether, covered with wounds ; but not p•issively ; several
of the fiercest Beloochs were seen to sink beneath the
strong arm and whirling blade of Jackson, as crowding
around him they tore his body with their ;riding
weapons. _ _

" Nearly all the European officers were now slain or
wounded, and several times the Sepoys, wanting leaders,
slowly receded ; but the General, a skilful horseman,
and conspicuous from his peculiar headgear, half helmet
half turban, was always at the point of greatest pressure,
and then manfully the swarthy soldiers recovered the
lost ground. Once he was assailed by a chief, but on
the instant Lieutenant Marston of the 25th Native Regi-
ment was at his side, and slew the Sirdar, whose tomb
has been raised by his tribe since on the spot where he
fell. At another period of the tight he was alone for
several minutes, in the midst of the enemy; they stalked
around him Kith raised shields and scowling eyes ; but
whether from some appearance affecting their minds, for
the Beloochs are very superstitious, or from some other
cause, none lifted sword against him, and he returned to
his own people unhurt. The 22d soldiers seeing him
thus emerge from a crowd of foes, called to him by name,
and gave him a cheer heard distinctly above the general
din of the battle ! And there are men who think the
murmur of their factious calumnies can stifle that heroic
sound !"

It is needless to extract more. The battle now
had lasted for three hours, but was far from being
won. A skilful manoeuvre, however, of the General
and the unabated energy of his troops finally pre-
vailed, and in one hour more the victory was com-
plete. The remainder of the work we will notice at
a future period. In the meantime, it may he instruc-
tive to state that, although all the troops fought well,
Senoys and Sindians, as well as tho,e of the line, the
mainstay was the little brave Irish division of 500
men ; they were led on by an Irishman, Pennefather ;
Captain Tew, who contributed so much to the vic-
tory, and fell in defending his post, was an Irishman ;
and the General himself belongs to that nation. To
Irishmen we owe the conquest of Sinde—the rank
and file were Irish, and chiefly Irish Catholics. We
allow these Catholics to gain victories for England,
and, by one of the most glorious battles on record, to
raise her name to the highest pitch of glory, yet we
grudge their priests a grant of 17,0001.

COMMERCIAL STATISTICS; a Digest of the
. Productive Resources, Comme? vial Legislation, Customs,
Tariffs, Navigation, Port and Quarantine Laws and
Charges, Shipping, Imports and Expo? ts, and the
Monies, Weights and Measures of all Nations, ?cc. eye,
By JOHN MACGREGOR, Author of "British
- America," and one of the Joint Secretaries of the Board
of Trade. 3 vols, large Bvo.

No publicist of our times has rendered more signal
services by his contributions to the statistics of British
and universal commerce than Mr. Macgregor. The
wonderful production before us is an epitomized
treasury of all the information necessary for the duly
understanding not only the present condition of our
mercantile and fiscal relations with other states, but
of the natural and political causes which have led to
their establishmt nt. In this respect it is more con-
venient, and more instructive, because far more inte-
resting than the very valuable compilation annually
produced by Mr. G. Porter, under the title of the
" State and Progress of the Nation." The plan of
Mr. Macgregor's work—far from being limited by a
strict tabular arrangement, after assuming an admira-
ble
methodical development, illustrates and combines
the voluminous data which it incorporates by copious
references to the domestic history of each state,
wherever events have happened therein, that controul
or bear upon the international regulations subsisting
between it and our own country, touching the trade
maintained between them. From the careful fidelity
with which Mr. Macgregor (in his " Commercial
Statistics" of Turkey, Austria, Russia, &c. &c., from
time to time presented), preserved those portions of
original treaties and agreements that re x)rd the pri-
mary and rare ancient stipulations agreed upon be-
tween our own Ministers and th ise of foreign govern-
ments, on the origin of all existing branches of our
commerce, we were prepared to expect the very im-
portant feature we find embodied in the present work.
lie gives us all the modern and effective treaties
applicable to these regulations. These commercial
papers form part of the general collection we are new
presented with, and they are modestly alluded to by
Mr. Macgregor in connexion with a just tribute to
the memory of the late Lord Sydenham, and a hand-
some acknowledgment of the liberal co-operation and
encouragement of his Lordship's successors in office.
In the same very interesting preface in which these
acknowledgments occur, mention is made of a gentle-
man, now no more, in terms which will find a ready
echo in the breast of every man, who has enjoyed (as
it was the fortune of-the writer of this notice to do)
the advantage of frequent personal intercourse with
him, and the ready communications to which that was
sure to lead, of the abundant stores of his gifted mind,
imparted with a simplicity and epigrammatic force
peculiarly his own. We allude to the late Mr. Deacon
Hume. It is a melancholy pleasure to fall upon such
a reminiscence, where one might least have expected
it, and a sincere gratification to learn that he had
earned additional claims to the respect in which he
was universally held, by having been, it should seem,
the principal cause of Mr. Macgregor's really admirable
labours in the same wide field of public usefulness.
" The whole customs laws of the United Kingdom
have been consolidated in one octavo volume by my pre-
decessor and intimate friend, and the friend of the whole
human race, as well as the indefatigable benefactor of
his own country, the late James Deacon Hume, many
years comptroller of the customs of the Port of London,
and afterwards for thirteen years one of the joint secre-
taries of the Board of Trade. That volume was pro-
claimed by Mr. Huskisson in Parliament to be the per-
fection of codification. When it is considered that
about 2,200 Acts had been passed by Parliament to
regulate the customs and navigation of the United King-
dom and British possessions ; and that in 1815 more
than eleven hundred of those ambiguous and conflicting
statutes were in force, it was not surprising that, not
only the merchants, shipowners, and manufacturers who
had to regulate their commercial and shipping transac-
tions by such a heterogeneous mass of laws, but that
those, also, who had to execute them, acted generally in
almost utter ignorance of the legislation formed to
govern the trade and navigation of the empire. Mr.
Hume, therefore, in consolidating, under the 'Treasury
and Board of Trade, the whole customs and navigation
laws of England within the compass of one octavo
volume, rendered the greatest service to his country.
Mr. Huskisson, who relied implicitly on the knowledge,
acuteness, judgment, and above all, on the uncompro-
mising honesty of Mr. Hume, said, on bringing forward
that volume in Parliament, in February, 1826, the
task' (consolidating the customs laws) was of great
magnitude, but we did not shrink from it. But I am
free to admit, that we never could have succeeded in our
undertaking without the assistance of an official gentle-
man, in the service of the Customs—a gentleman of the
most unwearied diligence, and who is entitled, for his
persevering exertions, and the benefit he has conferred
on the commercial world, to the lasting gratitude of the
country. Of the difficulties of the undertaking the
House will be enabled to judge, when I state that there
were no fewer than five hundred statutes, relative to the
Customs alone, to wade through, independently of the
numerous enactments concerning smuggling, warehous-
ing, the plantations, &c. In the pertormance of this
duty we had innumerable difficulties to encounter, and
battles without end to fight. And now, Sir, in one
little volume, which I hold in my hand, are comprised
all the laws at present in existence, on the subject of the
management and the revenue of the customs, of naviga-
tion, of smuggling, of warehousing, and of our colonial
trade, compressed in so clear and yet so comprehensive a
manner, that no man can possibly mistake the meaning
or the application of them. Mr. Hume continued in
the intimate confidence of Mr. Huskisson until the
lamentable death of the latter, and among a collection
of private papers and correspondence, which Mr. Hume.
a few months before his death, committed to my care, to
make such use of as I might judge fit, Mr. Huski.sson's
private letters to Mr. Hume show the great . confidence
he placed in his judgment. To Mr. Hume confidence
and fri..ndship I certainly owe the confirmation of those
principles, and that ambition to labour, through all the
difficulties, at my sole expense, of collecting in Europe
and America the materials of the work which I now
venture to present to the public."
No better notion can be afforded of the enormous ap-
plication and energy which our compiler's task de-
manded and received at his hands, than what he states

in the following passage :
" I consulted Mr. Hume on the subject: but the com-
plete accomplishment of such work was considered too
arduous, from the circumstance of our scarcely pos-
sessing any one foreign tariff, nor any of the foreign
revenue or customs laws (except those of the United
States), printed in the English language. I, however,
had previously arranged nearly all those then in force in
America, and had also prepared the way to obtain all
subsequent information relative to the commercial re-
sources and legislation of each of - the North -and South
American States. In 1832, being then disengaged from
any official employment, I visited France with the view
of collecting the materials for my contemplated work.
In the following summer I travelled over Belgium,

Holland, and the principal States of Germany, for the
same purpose, and in 1834, 1835, and 1836, travelled
over several other Europ -an states, returning during the
winter of each year to Paris to arrange the materials I
had collected. The years 1837, 1838, 1839, I spent
chiefly in the Austrian States and in Italy, and last
autumn I revisited Germany and Holland, in order to
complete:l my researches. With the exception of the
commercial laws and tariffs of Russia, which I employed
a very able f;)reigm gentleman (who, from having for a
long time held office in the finance department of that
country, uader.,:ood the subject well) to translate ; and
with the exception also of the tariffs of Sweden and
Denmark, I translated or super intended the translation
of all the other tariffs and commercial regulations, in
this work, into English from the French, German,
Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese languages : the labour
of which was not, however, so much that of verbal trans-
lation, but of arranging the tariff's alphabetically, after-
wards, in the tabular form which I considered necessary,
and in the weights, measures, and monies of England, as
well as in those of their respective countries."
And again—
" In the progress of my researches, the natural re-
sources, and the agriculture and manufacturing pro-
ducts of foreign countries, the prices of corn, and the
wages of labour ; the trade and the navigation ; the
taxation, and the revenue of foreign countries, consti
tuted a principal object of collection and arrangement ;
and I for some time considered that these should form a
distinct work from the mere commercial treaties, tariffs,
and customs laws of Europe and America. My view
of carrying into execution this separate plan was over-
ruled by the mature opinion of Mr. Deacon Hume, and
by a letter to me while I was in Germany, from the late
Lord Sydenham, of whose friendship, for several years
before his death. I must speak with gratitude, and under
whose auspices it was then intended that the work,
when completed, should have been presented by her
Majesty's command to both Houses of Parliament. I
am bound to state this in honesty, and in justice to the
memory of the late Governor-General of Canada."

And here, in justice to Mr. Macgregor, we subjoin
the acknowledgments of which we have spoken
above :

"If I have felt myself bound to acknowledge my ob-
ligations to the memory of Lord Sydenham, I am justly
comrelled to declare—that the several commercial
tariffs, regulations, and statistics of Europe and America
that I prepared, in the form in which they have been
presented by her Majesty's commands to Parliament
(and which are embodied in, and constitute a great por-
tion of these volumes), were brought out under the
prompt and kind auspices of the Earl of Ripon, the late
President, and of Mr. Gladstone, now President of the
Department of which I have the honour of being one of
the joint secretaries. In stating this publicly, I must
say further, that on no occasion have I known any but
the most liberal willingness on the part of not only the
Earl of Ripon and of Mr. Gladstone, but also on the part
of Mr. Labouchere, when President of the Board of
Trade, to have statistical, and all really useful returns
Kepared for the information of Parliament and the
public."
The Introduction is divided into three sections, which
treat, respectively, of " Commercial and Financial
Legislation," " Interchange of Commodities," "Taxes
and Consumption." The first and second volumes in-
clude the Commercial Statistics of the Austrian Em-
pire ; Belgium ; Denmark ; France ; the Germanic
Union of Customs, Holland; the Italian States, Gib-
raltar; Malta, and the lonian Islands; Ottoman
Empire in Europe; Greece; African States; the
Russian Empire ; Sweden and Norway ; Spain; Por-
tugal. Each of these divisions treats of the geographi-
cal position, boundaries ; area and population ; com-
mercial legislation, tariffs, revenues, &c. ; agriculture,
trade, navigation ; seaports, shipping ; products and
their prices, conventions and agreements with this
country ; exports, imports ; manufactures, wages,
fairs, &.. In short, there is no information which
can be gleaned from any authentic source on all these
topics, that Mr. Macgregor has not fused into his
compilation. How agreeable and interesting some
portions of this excellent work are to the common
reader, who may be absolutely innocent of all com-
mercial and fiscal curiosity, some extracts that we
have marked for future notice may suffice to show.
Altogether, Mr. Macgregor's work is one of the most
remarkable, and, what is more, one of the most useful
works which has been published since the commence-
ment of the present century.

THE LOCK ANCHOR. A CHRONICLE OF