The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-08-08 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

but pleasingly, described, so that this part of the work
would form a useful guide to strangers visiting that splen -
did metropolis, which has few or no equals in Europe, if

we combine its architectural adornments, with the beau-
ties of its noble bay and its romantic environs. As a spe-
cimen of our authors powers, we extract the following
passage, almost at random :
" Carlisle Bridge, the most frequented passage between
the northern and southern sides of the city, forms the
limit of the navigation of the river,—vessels of consider-
able burthen being able to come close up to it at high-
water. The panorama of the river, and the city which
encircles the spectator on this bridge, is unequalled in
grandeur and beauty, by the noblest prospects which
could be obtained from any single point in any other
European city. I remember, several years ago, having
been so struck with the splendid but solitary picture
which presented itself to me while standing on Carlisle
Bridge, soon after sunrise on a glorious summer morn-
ing, that I committed to paper at the time my impres-
sions of the scene. I have the pages containing them
now before me, from which I shall extract so much as
may be relevant to my present purpose. " Philosophers
and writers have, according to their temperament or ca-
price, selected for themselves different places for medita-
tion. Some have chosen to bury themselves in the deep
recesses of an ancient wood, where day's garish eye
could scarcely penetrate the thick canopy of leaves which
overshadowed them : some have delighted to fling their
listless length' beside a babbling stream, lulled by the
murmur of its gentle song : some have wandered, rapt in
fancy's dream, in the delicious wilderness of a flower-
garden ; some have mused by the wave-beaten shore, and
others in the deep seclusion of a cobwebbed library. But,
for my part, I know of no situation more calculated to
awaken feelings of deep awe, or to call up images of uni-
versal desolation, than the silent solitary streets of a great
city viewed through the purplish haze of an early sum-
mer's morning. Almost every person living in Dublin
has, at one time or another, experienced the solemn effect
produced on the mind while standing on Carlisle Bridge
at daybreak on a calm morning in June. How full of
strange beauty is the scene !—all is hushed and still as
death—not a sound disturbs nature's profound repose,
save at intervals the shrill bark of a watch-dog from the
decks of some of those numerous vessels lying below the
bridge, whose taper masts shoot like a forest of leafless
pines into the cloudless sky, which has already began to
assume the lady Aurora's livery. Far as the eye can
stretch on the other hand, the silent quays and bridges
reflect their shadowy outlines in the still waters that
sleep within their bosom ; or if a dimpling circle should
break the mirror-like surface of the tide, it is but caused
by the rapid wing of some hungry swallow pursuing his
insect prey. Behind us lies Westmorland-street, termi-
nated by the ancient walls of Trinity College, and the
noble Corinthian portico of the Bank of Ireland ; on the
opposite side of the river, Sackville-street extends its full
perspective of architectural beauty—uninterrupted, save
by the memorial of the brave Nelson, whose pillar seems
to have been dropped there in defiance of all the laws of
good taste. Let us walk up this beautiful street—we are
now opposite the Post-office, and who can say that the
republic of letters is declining, when they look upon that
magnificent pile ? But allons ! for while we remain here
we are preventing the poor pigeons, who are fluttering
about the cornices and pillars of the portico, from seeking
for their early meal in the silent streets. Before us lies
the Rotunda, where revelry so often holds its court, while
meek-eyed charity' extends its hand to succour the chil-
dren of misery. Let us now turn round, and survey from
this eminence the splendid scene which lies before us :
the deserted streets, like the exhumated cities of Pompeii
and Herculaneum, seem but as the monuments of de-
parted splendour. Where is now the dark line of moving
forms that a few hours since thronged these footpaths ?
where the waving plumes and the glittering equipages?
where the merchant's busy face, and the proud beauty's
conquering glance ? All fled ! there is no form of life—
no vitality in the scene—and thus will the resistless scythe
of time sweep these streets of palaces, and the antiquary
of future ages will seek in vain for some relics of those
noble works of art that we presumptuously hope may out-
live the great destroyer himself."

The New Statistical Account of Scotland. Blackwood
and Sons, Edinburgh.
We have received No. XLIV. of this excellent work,
which contains the county of Linlithgow complete, and
a further part of the county of Perth. Although the
principal object is to supply an accurate account of the
topography, natural and civil history, industry, parochial
economy, antiquities, &c. of the respective parishes, there
is (as we have before stated) a mass of interesting histori-
cal and descriptive matter occasionally introduced, which
relieves the book from that dryness which pertains to
mere statistics, however valuable, and renders it agreeable
to the general reader. The articles are all written by
men of talent and research, well acquainted with all the
peculiarities which they describe, and who, moreover,
have entered upon and accomplished their respective tasks
con amore. It is impossible to do justice to a work so
voluminous within the space that can be spared in a news-
paper, but as specimens of the style we submit the fol-
lowing extracts—the first relating to the ancient city of
Linlithgow, the birth-place of the beautiful but unfortu-
nate Mary, Queen of Scots, and of several distinguished
individuals, and also the scene of various meetings of the.
Scottish Parliament, up to 1646
LINIATHGOW.—" Linlithgow is memorable as the
place where the remarkable apparition warned James IV.
against his expedition into England, which terminated in
the fa'al field of Flodden. An aisle in the church, where
the King was, as Pitscottie says, verrie sad and dollo-
rous, rnakand his prayers to God to send him guid suc-
cess in his voyage,' is shown as the place where the scene
occurred. The probability is, that it was a device of the
Queen, then in the neighbouring palace, abetted by some
of the nobles, in order to dissuade James from an under-
taking to which she and many of the nobility were averse.
The unfortunate issue of the war corresponding with the
warning given, would, in that superstitious age, lead men
to regard the agent in this device as a messenger from
leaven. In the year 1526, the battle of Linlithgow
Bridge was fought between the faction of the Earl of
Angus, who had the possession of the person of James
V., then a minor, and the party which sought to deliver
the Prince from the influence of the Douglases. The
conflict began on the haugh of Manuel, but the main
conflict was close by the village of Linlithgow Bridge,
which has given its name to the engagement. The Earl
of Lennox, the chief of the party opposed to Angus, was,
after being promised quarter, slain by Sir Jas. Hamilton.
The place of his interment was long known as Lennox's
Cairn. The Regent Murray was shot in the street of
Linlithgow by Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh. The house
from which the assassin took aim is still shown, though,
from the removal of the old front, which projected con-
siderably further out on the street than the present, it
must now present a very different appearance. Situated
. in the most narrow part of the town, where the street is
riot many feet wide, it presented a most favourable posi-
tion for the execution of the murder, as the Regent, on
horseback, was compelled to advance slowly, owing to
the multitude by which he was surrounded. Ham lion,
it is said, had the walls of the room hung with black
= cloth, to prevent his shadow being. seen ; and the tradi-
tion of the town is, that the neighbouring lane leading to
1 the back of the town, where his horse was stationed, was
choked with bushes and other substances, to retard pin.-
, suit."

The part of the number descriptive of Perthshire is very
interesting, particularly as relates to Scone, where many
of the Scottish monarchs were crowned, and where they
had a magnificent palace, now decayed. The account of
the coronation, at that place, of Charles 11., is curious.
The following will be read with interest, particularly as it
refers, at the conclusion, to the recent visit to Scone of
our gracious Queen :
SCONE PALACE.—" The present' Palace of Scone,' as
it is now generally called, was built about the beginning
of the present century, having been begun in 1803 and
finished 1808. The design was by the late William At-
kinson, of Grove-end, London, and the erection might
cost about £60,000 or £lO,OOO. The ground on which
the former house stood is occupied by this splendid man_
sion ; but in its imposing Gothic style of architecture,
and magnificent halls and spacious apartments, the mo-
dern palace is incomparably superior. The late Earl of
Mansfield, the grand-nephew of the Chief Justice, spared
no expense on this edifice. In most instances, the walls
of the former house were entirely taken down and re-
built. A new front, facing the river, Z4O feet in length,
was an entire addition. The apartments were greatly
enlarged, with the exception of the gallery, which is now
150 feet long, part of it having been taken off for an en.
trance by a porch. It is a very elegant room. The floor
is of tesselated oak, the dark having been found in the
ieds of the Tay and the Earn. On the windows, partly
)f stained glass, are represented the various coats of arms
of the family. The roof still retains somewhat of an an-
tique form. It is splendidly furnished, having at the
upper end a large and richly-toned organ, and in different
parts of the room several very valuable cabinets, lately
purchased, of the age of Louis XIV. Among the orna-
ments are marble busts and vases of great beauty, both
as to material and workmanship. Almost the only por-
tions of the old walls not taken down, but merely incased,
are in that part of the house immediately under the di.
ning-room and the drawing-room. The dining-room,
music-room, and library, are elegant and spacious apart.
ments, containing, in the midst of many modern orna•
ments, some antique cabinets that had been in the former
house. In these rooms there are several valuable paint-
ings, by Vandyke, Titian, Guido, Paul Veronese, Teniers,
&c. There is a ' Dutch Burgomaster' by Rembrandt,
and a portrait of Bassano by himself; a Denial of St.
Peter, and a' Judith and Holofernes,' by two old mas-
ters. There are some excellent portraits by Sir Peter
Lely, exhibiting all the softness, beauty, and delicacy of
his style. Among the family portraits are those of the
first Earl of Mansfield, the second Earl, the late Earl,
the Countess Dowager, &c. As a modern room, the
drawing-room is the finest. It commands one of the
most magnificent views that can be found, from any point,
of the richest parts of Perthshire, and its interior is fitted
up with great elegance.
" There seems to have been an intention to combine,
with the splendour and comfort of the present age, some
remembrance of the simplicity of the past. The entrance,
for example, has an air of antiquity, having an ancient
knocker with the initials D. V. S. The door. way is sur-
mounted with the arms of Lord Mansfield in stone, and
the motto, ' Uni cequus virtutif The house is partially
urrounded by terrace walls, and bastions, one of which
.ornmands a very extensive view. There are several large
I.( es at a short distance, one of them an ash, said to have
rated by James VI., and many ash and sycamore
not 300 years of age. One is corm, only known

been pla

adually to

to Scone Palace, the royal cortege entered by the terrace
gate, and were received at the grand entrance by the Earl
of Mansfield, the Countess Dowager, and the Ladies
Murray. Apartments were fitted up with great elegance
for her Majesty and Prince Albert. The Queen reached
Scone Palace about seven o'clock, p.m., on Tuesday,
September 6, 1842, and left early next day for Dunkeld
and Taymouth. Among the various costly preparations
made for her Majesty's reception may be mentioned two
magnificent chairs, quite unique, procured from London,
on which the Queen and Prince Albert sat at dinner.
The carving and other rich ornaments of the royal bed,
with the furniture and decorations of the private rooms
prepared for her Majesty and the Prince, are of a beauti-
ful and magnificent description. Before the Queen's
departure, the magistrates of Perth sent a deputation to
the palace to solicit the honour of her Majesty's signature
in the guildry books of Perth, where James VI. and
Charles 11. had written their names ; the former thus :
" 1601, Parcere subjectis, et debellare superbos.—James
R." And the latter as follows : " Nemo me impune
lacesset, July 24, 1650.—Charles R." Sir Robert Peel
carried the book to the Queen, when her Majesty and
Prince Albert recorded their names."

SECOND EDITION.

Standard-office, Three o'clock.

....
COTTON MARKET—Tins DAY.

The continued fine weather, and still upward tendenc
of the barometer, has given a tone of health and vigour
to our Cotton Market. About 4,000 bales have been
sold, chiefly to the trade, at very full prices ; and the
market closes with great firmness.