The Sun.
London, England, 1842-03-01 00:00:00

FRASER'S MAGAZINE.

There are one or two more than usually enterta:l-
- literary sketches, or criticisms, in this Number;
and the best is " Hints for a New Bonk of Liter "-y
Parallels," in which occur some clever, cursory re-
marks on Dante, Vire, Chaucer, Milton, and Pe-
trarch. The writar, however, entei Mins, we think,
too high an opinion of Virgil's poetical powers, who,
master, as he undoubtedly is, of versification, laboUrs
under a striking deficiency as respects -vigour of ex-
pression, and originality of thought and invention.
With the sole exception of Dhlo—his most consistent
and animated portrait—he has no characters in
his /Eneid—none, at least, that are in the slightest
degree marked by individuality. What is his "pius
.Eneas," but a maudlin, sentimental hypocrit a
Methodist in his sayings, .a scoundrel in his doings ?
Luean has delineated character with infinitely more
truth and vigour, yet for one man that reads the
" Pharsalia," a thousand dote upon the "iEneid,"
The writer's observations on :11ilton's lam.siage are just
and fbreible. It is described as " moving with a mighty;
a stately, and a resounding step, at onee mujestie, and yet
sweet; at once ancient, and yet intelligible to every
pausing- listener; the war-note of the giant, the ,
has mony of wisdom, an,l 'w sigh of beauty." But
this praise applies only to Milton's poetry ; his prose
—though it contains .numerous splendid passages—
is stiff and pedantic, frequently 'confased and clumsy
in its construction ; and at all times it jars harshly
and "painfully on the ear, like the grating of a file
upon steel. The " I;'orsthaus in the Soiling" is a
wild German story, exaggerated to an almost ridiculors
degree in description—as, for instance, where the re-
later details the impressions produced on his imagi-
nation by witnessing the opera of "Don Juan." In the
" Chapter on Dogs" we have an anecdote highly cre-
ditable to the courage and humanity of Mr. Duruset,
the singer, who, it seems, once saved the life of a poor
dog in the street, which was pronounced by the
crowd gathered about it to be mad, and was just
about to he murdered as such, when its. protector
interfered, at . the hazard of being bitten by
the animal for his. pains, or " pitched into" by the
disappointed mob. In the " Vagrant's Lodging-
, House" there is one emplia:c passage, .descriptive of
the horrors of poverty. "DiAens in France.' no-
tices with contempt and indignation the vituperative
criticism of Jules Janin—a well-known Parisian li-
terateur—on the novels of-this popular author. In
the remarks on the " New Edition of Campbell's
Poets," the Reviewer, cursorily plluding to Ilazlitt,
says of hiM that "that he is an unsafe guide." This
is time, for his criticisms, were almost all fashioned
according to the mood of his mind, while he happened
to be penning them; and he was seldom in the same
mood for half an hour together. In a fit of dyspepsia
he would discover nothing . but absurdity in 'Cole-
ridge's " Christabel ;" when his digestion was sound,
he would find out that it teemed with beauties. In
two points only Hazlitt was consistent—in his love of
the old painters, and his democratic predilections.
Prom " Nimrod's Life and Times" we quote Mr. Ap-
perky's recollections of Wynnstay, its fashionable
company, and its private theatrical:-; :
Young as I was, I was honoured by beia; admitted into the
dinner-room, si ting by myself at a side-table ; and on being
called by my godmother to approach her for some purpose,--
a glass of wine, it may be presumed,—the fo'lowing teifortunate
discovery was made :—" Illes, me !" exclaimed her Ladyship,
" this boy cannot perform to-night ; he smells of onions enough
to frighten away a Welshman !" The fact waQ, aniong,t ether
things on this side-table, placed there until wanted, was a pla!e
of voting onions; considered rarities at Christmas ; and rari-
ties must I have considered them, for I a!e them all, and thus
was my dilemma occasioned. - Orders, hoWever, were given to
me to keep orange-peel in-my mouth as the means of making
myself bearable ; and, with the exception of my failure, the I
thing went off well ; the acting of " Young Sheridan," as he

; toT:4T-701,- DLIMPT

was called, was very highly extolled. In fact, he was what is
now called ttlivaessttahre.
still
imongst the visitors at Wynnstay, and
(o,
fr e renowned,the critic ,
alsl4oh;aocnafhsdh-arelaaring his lady—
rfridegaunehnitml3s.'elf, the author of Ite
e nothingrrifn :e•cl et y r
eSchoel:
wanting to establish any
lection of his person anddmisapnlanserfisa,lnaes. more. is
musical and vocal talents,
.esrheUrittlil lately, my acquai l-
ance Lindsley that was—
to the great delight of her hearers'
etohhigadf,i,etarleegntullavritlyh
with the name and family of in
the
confined to a
period when I was too young to appreciate.
which they are endowed, but which appear%
Ihene,%;aer fell
descended through at least four generations, with little
diminution from that of the parent tree. In thencompany of
the late Tom Sheridan, when arrived at manheod,,
but twice. On one of these occasions, the first
himself. A cloud appeared to rest upon and obscure his usual
brilliancy, brilliancy, and I was disappointed in my anticipation of the
pleasure he might afford me ; but on the second he made ample
amends. Ile was, to use a phrase much in vogue in those (tars,
" in high form ;" and although there were two other Clever
men of the party, neither of them equalled him in the ta'ent to
amuse, which he appeared to possess to its full extent.