Star.
London, England, 1826-03-27 00:00:00

LITERATUItg,

Mesa Arabia', Nigits' Entertainments, oeketod front tie
Original Oriental MS. By Jotters Von HAJIMSA ;
and now first trans] atell into English by the Rev.
GIIOROS LAMB. Three Vols. 12mo. London, 1826.
- Few works were ever honoured with a popularity so
extensive and so permanent as the Arabian Nights En-
tertainments, they are the delight of youth and the re-
Creation of age, and are to be found in every country
where letters are . known or cultivated ; editions are
perpetually multiplying, and yet are as constantly de-
manded, and were these tales lost to the world our
Melo-dramarists would be deprived of the most fertile
source they possess as materials for new pieces.
It is known that the Arabian Tales were translated
by M. Galland ; he did not, however, possess a complete
copy ; and other manuscripts have since been die
c.ivered which contain many tales which do not appear
in the edition of M. Galland. M. Von Hammer was so
fortunate as to meet with a complete copy in Egypt,
containing numerous tales from which he made a selec-
tion, arid these are now translated by Mr. Lamb with
great spirit; they posses the same interest as the old
tales, exhibit the same faithful picture of Arabian man-
ners, and will, we doubt not, be read with equal avidity.
The style of Mr. Lamb is elegant and unaffected, and
the fidelity of the translation unquestionable.
Traditions and Recollections, Domestic, Clerical, and
Literary ; in which are included Letters of Charles 11.
Cromwell, bairJax, Wokot, t_ipie, Cowper, Sir Walter
Scott,lfc. By the Rev. R. Pot.wuaLs. 2 vols. Bvo.
London, 1826.
There are few works more attractive than the recol-
lections of a man who has mired much in the world,
and who possesses sufficient tact to record what is
really matter of interest; tuch a person is the Rev: Mr.
Polwhele, who himself, a veteran in literature, has as-
sociated and corresponded with the principal men of
talent of the. age. His work consists of biographical
and critical notices, familiar letters, poetical pieces, &c.
in the latter there are some original pieces by that cele-
brated satirest, Peter Pindar. The volumes were not
written with the intention of publication, but they
throw too much valuable light on the literature of the
period to which they relate, to be tvppressed or con-
fined to a few family copies, and we are glad the Rev.
Author has given them to the world. We have only
room for a couple of extracts, which we select from the
more amusing parts of the work. The first is an ac-
count of an ingenious but eccentric Cornish man:
“ Daniel Gum was born in the parish of Linkinhorile, in Corn-
wall, about the commencement of the last century, and was bred a
stone-cutter. In the early part of his life he was remarkable for his
love of reading and a degree of reserve, even exceeding what is ob-
servable in persons of studious habits. By dose application, Daniel
acquired, even in his youth, a considerable stock of mathematical
knowledge; and, in consequence, became celebrated throughout
the parishes. Called by his occupation to hew blocks of granite on
the neighbouring commons and especially in the vicinity of that
great natural curiosity, called the Cheme-wring ; he discovered near
this spot an immense block, whose upper surface was an inclined
plane. This, it struck him, might be made the roof of a habitation
such as he desired ; sufficiently secluded from the busy haunts
•f men to enable him to- pursue kis studies without interruption,'
whilst it was contignotte to the scene of his daily tabour. Imme-
diately Daniel went to work, and cautiously excavating the earth
underneath, to nearly the ext, at of the stone above; be obtained a
habitation which he thought sufficiently commodious. The sides
be. lined. with stone, cemented with Nate, whilst a chimney was
'made, by perforating the earth at one side of the roof. From
the elevated spot on which stood this extraordinary dwelling, could
be seen Dartmoor and &Moor on the.saw ; Hartland ou the north;
• she seat and pUrt of Plymouth on the south; and St. Austell and
Reach bilk en-the west; with all the interinediate beautitut sce-
nery. The top of the rock which roofed his house, served Daniel
for an oliservatory, where' at every favourable opportunity, be
watched the motions of the heavenly bodies; and on the surface of
which, with his chisel, he carved a variety of diagrams, illustrative
of the most difficult problems in Staid, &e. These he left behind
him, as evidences of the patience and ingenuity with which he sur-
mounted the obstacles that his station in life had placed iu the way
of kb mental improvement.
" Bat the choice et his house, and tee mode In which he pursued
his studies, were nut his only eccentricities. His house became his
chapel also; and he was never known is descend from the craggy
mountain on whi.h it stood, to attend his pariah church or any other
place of worship.
" Death, which alike seizes oo thophOrkepher and tee fool, at
length found out the retreat of Danki Guist, and lodged him in a
house more narrow than that which lurked dug for himself."
The following anecdote is a curious instance of the
state of Cornwall as to educations about the middle of
the last century :
"About eighty years ago,tbere was sepias of worship at a large
village to the west of Truro, distant at least live miles front its parish
church ; nor was there a Bible to be seen : but there were one
Testament and one Common Prayer Book, which were bound
together. Thil valuable rarity was the property of an old woman
who kept the village inn, and, with the celebrated history of Ro-
binson Cruse* was deposited on a shelf in the kitchen. On a sum-
mer's day, alarmed by a violent thunder storm, the villagers sought
shelter under the loot which contained this sacred depo.it, as the
oily pleats' safety. To make assurance doubly sure, anxious in-
"dry was made foe Jack, the landlady's apprentice, who had the
rare good famine to have learnt his letters. This lad was con-
sidered ss prodigy, and, being found, was desired to commence
roadie, prayers ii the terrified auditory, who were on their knees
is the common drinking-romn. Jack went to fetch the prayer-
book from the shelf, where it had long rested beside its coo-
Unfortunately, u things were in a state of confusion. he
took down the latter, and falling en his knees, began reading as fast
as he could. And, from sniscalllng some words and misspelling
others, the boy had caudated eatetedna before the error was dis-
covered.. At length. having stumbled upon the man Ilident., his
mistress cried out—" Why, Jock, thee bast got the wrong book ;
sure dined reading prayers out of Robinson Crusoe." Jack felt
this tersest as an insult offered to his superior understandinust
pertinseeessly continued to read, declaring that " Itobituicis
would as soon stop the thwader as the prayesubook."
AN ELEPHANT HUNT.
DIME DINNAM AND CLAPIPSZTON°B TRAVILI.
My frievid Tirab, the Shout's Generalissimo, had long
promised to kill me an elephant, as he expressed him-
self ; and this day, about noon, a messenger came to our
hots, saying, that, after bunting an enormous male ele-
phant for five hours, they had at length brought him to
a stand, near Bree, about ten miles Northaxist of Itorika.
Mr. Toole and myself instantly .mounted our horses,
and, accompanied by a Shouaa guide, we arrived at the
spot where he had fallen, just as he breathed his last.
Although not more than.twenty-five years old. his tusk
men:wilts barely four feet six inches, he was an im-
mense fellow. His dimensions were as under :
D. Za.

Leech from the proboscis to the toil • tg 6
Proboscis . . . 7 6
Small teeth . . • . 110
flmt lossitudhully . • . 1 7
- .. . . .
Eye . • . • . 06by 11
__.

Finds the hot to the bhp-bone . . II 6 . -
Frost tbeldrimme to die bask . 6 0
Ear . . . . 2 aby I 6
1 lull seen much larger elephants than this alive,
when on my last expedition to the Tchad ; some I should
have guessed sixteen feet in height, and with a tusk
probably exceeding six !het in length. The one before
me, which was the first I had seen dead, was, however,
cutuideted as of more than common bulk and stature;
sing' it was not until the Kanemboo of the town of Bree
came out, and by atiractini bis attention with thtir
'efts, and teasiug him by 6urling spears at his more

her
relit
she
4c