The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-02-08 00:00:00

LITEE ATURE

REVIEW, &C.—Books, New Prints, Music, &

ntended for

Sion-court, Fieet-stre
of the LIN,

nay be left at Mr. C. Mitchell's, Red

London, address

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'OOl. STANDARD," when they w

and receive attention

Sketches q,

F Brazil

European FE

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)e forwardt,

£ding New Views on Tro,
rer._ By Robert Dundas

London : Churchill

More than half a century has now elapsed since
the attention of the medical world was first fixed on
Liverpool by the " Medical Reports" of our distin-
guished townsman, the late Dr. Currie; and, some
forty years ago, the physiological writings of the late
Dr. Carson not only maintained, but extended, the
reputation conferred on the medical profession of
Liverpool by the classic labours of Dr. Currie.
After the lapse of so many years, another Liverpool
physician, Dr. Dundas, puts forward his claim to
be enrolled with the honourable names of Currie
and Carson ; and, if we are to judge from the deci-
sions of professional authorities of Great Britain,
Ireland, and America, the "mantle" of our celebra-
ted townsmen has descended on no unworthy suc-
cessor. After the opinions so emphatically recorded
by the medical press of this country and America,

any criticism on our part would be supererogatory,
Having, however, perused the work with attention
and interest, we feel bound, in the discharge of a
public duty, to offer some short notice, at least, of
its more novel and important contents. In the first
place, Dr. Dundas takes a new view, altogether, of
those numerous ailments to which Europeans are
subject on their return to this country, after long
residence in warm climates—a question of vast
importance to a numerous class of our imme-

diate community, and one which the extensive
and varied experience of the author, from long
residence in foreign countries, peculiarly qualifies
him to decide. But a still more important question
is brought forward by Dr. Dundas, as affecting, not
special classes of men, but the whole European
family—that is, the question of typhus fever, its
nature and its treatment. Here Dr. Dundas is
totally at variance with all professional writers, from
the earliest age up to the present day, on the sub-
ject of fever. The universal opinion of the medical
world has been, hitherto, that typhus, or continued
fever, is, like smallpox, a specific disease, and must
run a determinate course, whatever be the treat-
ment. Dr. Dundas is opposed to the almost united
voice of the medical profession; he altogether de-
nies the specific nature of fever, and insists that, by
adopting his views and plan of treatment, typhus
fever can be ordinarily arrested within the space
even of a few hours ; and certainly the body of
evidence he offers to this effect appears to be irre-
sistible. His views are supported by the recorded
experience of several general hospitals—St. Tho-
mas's Hospital, London ; the Northern Hospital,
Liverpool ; also by numerous special hospitals, such
as the Liverpool Fever Hospital, the Cork and
Drogheda Fever Hospitals, in Ireland, and by nu-
merous eminent practitioners, who testify to the
originality, the truth, and the vast practical impor-
tance of his doctrines. Should these doctrines be
finally established, Dr. Dundas must undoubtedly
take his place among the distinguished men who
have advanced the " healing art," and be recognised
as a benefactor to the human race. On the seve-
ral interesting notices of Brazil—its climate, men
and manners, and the literary talent displayed
throughout the work, we make no observations :
on these points the reader must judge for himself.
We heartily recommend the work as being one cal-
culated to interest the professional as well as the
non-professional reader. It is divested of all tech-
nicalities, and quite intelligible to the ordinary mind.

Blackwood's 3layazine. Edinburgh : Blackwood
and Sons.

This magazine still occupies the proud pre-
eminence among the periodicals of Britain which it
achieved in days when serial literature was less de-
veloped and far less brilliant than it is in 1853. That
character it maintains, too, although nearly all its
contributors during its infancy have passed away.
Where now is Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd, he who
sang the sweetest ballads of ballad-haunted Scotia,
and revealed to our gaze, with privileged pen, the
secrets of fairyland ? Where is poor Galt, the no-
velist, the author of "Lawrie Todd," and many a
quaint west-country tale ? Where is the gentle
doctor of Al usselburgh—David Macbeth Moir, a
man who nobly sacrificed inclination at the shrine
of duty, and, by subduing ambition, lived the true
life of the poet ? And, above them all, where is
Scott, the Shakspeare of that glorious throng ? All
these have gone to their rest, and with them many
a fine spirit who, in days gone by, illuminated this
land with the knowledge, and imparted to the
reading world of England the high tone of morality,
which have always formed the distinguishing fea-
tures of the Edinburgh monthly. But let us recol-
lect that the large-souled Christopher North, though
in the vale of years, has still a buoyant spirit and a
responsive pen with which to gladden and instruct.
Then, there is his son-in-law, William Edmonstoune
Aytoun, the clever political writer, the powerful,
honest, and popular poet, and the author of " The
Glenmutchkin Railway." And Sir Archibald Alison,
too, must be remembered, as also must Sir Bulwer
Lytton, the author of one of the finest imaginative
works with which the present novel-reading age has
been furnished. When we glance at these names,
we can scarcely dare to assert that Blackwood, in
1853, is not pervaded by a talent fully equal to that
Which it displayed at the beginning of its long and
prosperous career. The present number opens
with a rambling, eloquent disquisition on " The
Garden," which one might suppose to be from
the pen of Professor Wilson. The author '
would seem to have a little garden at his
house, near Edinburgh, whither he has now re-
tired to spend the winter of his life. He tells a
good story of a gentleman from the city, who some
time ago visited him, and sought admission to the
garden. The request was gladly granted, and forth-
with the visitor rushed through it as if he had been
bent on "proving by his heels the prowess of his
bead," leaving the astonished Professor at the door,
until his return, when he coolly cropped before the
owner's eyes, with fingers most profane and rash,l
flower of a singularly symmetrical antirr-hinum,
severed from its confreres for the purpose of seed-
ing. " Smothering our indignation," says the
Professor, "we led the gentleman back to our par-
lour, and—put into his hand an Edinburgh news-
paper." Listen to that compliment, ye journalists
of Auld Reekie. Several additional chapters of
" Lady Lee's Widowhood" carry the reader into the
heart of the new novel; and these are followed by
something quite as readable, though not fictitious.
" Supplementary Chapters to the History of John
Bull" have reference to the doings of young Squire
Nap, who is planning, with his supporters, to make
an onslaught on old Squire Bull at the earliest oppor-
tunity. And here are many smart hits at the men of
the day, in which, of course, Dick the Unadorned,
and his un-English confreres, receive a severe rebuke.
Lord John Russell figures in this history under the
name of the Juggler, and the story of his difference
and separation from Protocol is admirably told. So
also is Protocol's revenge, and the Juggler's preci-
pitation from power, with the accession of Manley
to the office of steward ; the Juggler's combination
with Devilsdust, Bendigo, and Hum ; the selection
of new servants, and the re-appointment of the Irish
brigade ; the factious ejection of Manley and Ahoy,
the calling in of Sir Andrew Aguecheek by S
Bull to take the place of Manley, how Sir Andrew
e
disposes of the Juggler, and how Glossin and he
lay their heads together. We have also a graphic
sketch of how the Coalition Ministry was formed.
" A Glimpse into the Eleusinian Mysteries,'
is an
entertaining paper on the occult associations which
in every age and country have exercised a peculiar
fascination over the multitude, wielding a mystical
power over nations, from the throned prince to the
meanest vassal.—" The Romance of Mairwara" is a
tale of Indian progress, the scene of which is laid
partly in the Rajpoot country, near the mountain
ridge known by the name of the Arabala or Ara-
vuli hills. The tale is founded on two recently
published works, and will be found wonderfully
solid and instructive fora "romance."--" The