The Sun.
London, England, 1844-05-02 00:00:00

FRASER'S MAGAZINE.

An intelligent article " On Railways" leads off
this Number, in which the cheapness and convenience
o . this mode of travelling—notwithstanding the
attacks made on it by interested parties—are dwelt
on with much earnestness, and the railway pro-
prietors defended from the charge of being a set of
avaricious, dishonest monopolists, who care nothing
for the public interests, and look only to themselves.
" Little Travels, and Road-side Sketches" is a diary
from the practised pen of Michael Angelo Titmarsh
—one of the most successful magazine-contributers
we have had since the days of poor Maginn. The
writer gives an amusing account of his departure by
a stage-coach from Richmond, on his way to the
Continent, in company with one or two noblemen's
footmen, of whom he speaks in this archly ironical
manner :—" The footmen were like the rest of the
fashionable world. I, for my part, felt that I re-
spected them. They were in daily communication
with a Duke ! They were not the rose, but they
had lived bside it. There is an odour in the English
aristocracy which intoxicates plebeians. I am sure
that any commoner in England, though he would
rather die than confess it, would have a respect for
these great, big, hulking, Duke's footmen.,We
have then a description of a night- voyage by the
'steam-boat to Antwerp, and of the various prepara-
tions made by the passengers for their sleep on the
deck of the cabin. There is a world of shy humour
in this description. "An Episode of the limes of
Phillip the Fifth of Spain" contains one or two
stirring incidents, adroitly strung together, so as to
keep the reader's interest alive through the narrative.
"The Luck of Barry Lyndon" flags rather this
month, chiefly from want of point and vivacity in
the dialogue. "Marshal SoulP is a memoir, penned
in an impartial, and even favourable spirit, towards
this meritorious soldier of fortune—the only sur-
viving relic, we believe, of the military days of the
empire. Ths earlier portion of Soult's career was
one of almost uninterrupted success. He was one of
the chief props of the Republic—the terror of the
Austrians, and the scourge of the Russians when they
entered Switxerland under Suwarrow ; he was con-
sulted by Bonaparte, who placed great confidence in
his judgment, though he disliked him personally, on
every momentous occasion ; and at Austerlitz he was
one of the principal means of achieving that decisive
victory. But from the fatal moment when he entered
Spain, and measured swords with Wellington, the
star of the Marshal's good fortune waned, and finally
disappeared. Henceforth, he never ordered an attack,
but to be defeated; his best-laid plans were all frus-
trated by the superior tact of his enemy, and at
Toulouse he sustained the most crushing reverses
The biographer concludes by saying that Soult always
b
talks of his visit to England as t,eing "one of the
brightest events of his who le life. The "Factory
Bill" is written in a languid, heavy, indecisive spirit,
and we are somewhat at a loss to know which side
the writer espouses of this question. We quote the
following amusing anecdote from the article on
Railways :
" We once heard an anecdote of a Quaker of the an-
cient city of N—. His wealth is incredible, and the
liberality which dispenses it not less so. He received
one day a letter from America, from a gentleman of
whom he had never heard, requesting a loan of 1,0001
The writer stated that he also was a member of the
Society of Friends, that he intended with this money to
enter into a commercial speculation in which he was
confident of success, and that, knowing Mr. —'s great
wealth, he had determined on applying to :him. Struck
with the singularity of this extraordinary request, and
no doubt influenced by the ties of sect which prevail so
strongly in that Society, Mr. allowed his liberality
so far to prevail over his habits of business as to grant
half the request. ' The rest the winds dispersed in
empty air.' He authorised the applicant to draw upon
him for 500/. The draft was paid, and nothing more
passed for three years. At the end of that time Mr.
thought he would ask after his Money. He wrote
to America, reminding the other or" the debt, hoped his

speculation had been successful, and trusted that he
would find it convenient to repay the 5001. The answer
was worthy of the first request. The American ac-
knowledged the loan, and said that his speculation had
been perfectly successful, and that by this 5001. i.e had
realised 1,5001. He then begged to remind Mr. -
that the loan he had applied for was 1,000/., that he had
only received 5001., and, consequently, had entered into
the speculation to only half the extent which he had pro-
posed ; that Mr. -'s conduct had, therefore, injured
him to the amount of 1,500/., that being the profit which
Mr. had prevented him from making ; he must,
therefore, consider Mr. - his debtor for that sum, and
requested him to remit the balance due as soon as con-
venient. We heard this anecdote from good authority
long before the events occurred which have induced us
to record it ; and we may add, for the comfort of those
who think that such demands ought to be resisted, that
Mr. - recovered his 5001. after all."