The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1849-04-07

49, srxrau-The Eainburg Review ana ne pu
Csnsribussrss &C. lisa
We again copy some Of the lively gossip oil M
he Executor in yerroid's lLondoa) Nfics;
"A REMARKABLE proof OF the uoPrinc'- "e
oled character Of criticism well remember
occurred in the case Of Byron, and bis
(. Hours of Idleness," published when their u
author was but eighteen years old, and high. "
~ creIitable to those talents which were y
afterwards TO cast confusion upon the spirit p
in which the Edinburg ReUiesc handled X
,hem. The reviewers no doubt lmagIneo =
Young Byron sucking Tory, ard pro-
nounced judgment and sentence according =
Ih. Never was even party criticism more =
ungenerous or false. With hundred I
others in the same work, il was clearly
party affair. This review goes down TO
posterity-- attached TO the poems
IN one OF Munay's editions OF Byron,
where it will be read when the Rsussic
Itself is no more. quote its close thus.
from that work:-"We are we'll oil 10
have got 50 much from man Of this Lords
station, who does not live in garnet, but
| has the sway of Newstead Abbey. Again.
we say, let us be thankful, and. with honest
Sancho, bid God bless the giver, nor look
, the eft horse in the mouth :" This pro-
; duced Byron's "English Bards and Scotch
: Reviewers. That poem went through
: four editions. The review that caused II
: appeared in 1907.
well recollect the noise made By the
: notice Of this attack in the Edinbnrg,
4 when the satire appeared; proof that the
|" public felt that party spirit governed the
rs criticism. Some OF the leading writers
have iincs published their contributions TO
&c the Revieir, and several OF them, who
:. would have done better for their credit to
u have kept their vanity under, were forced
" to apologize for unjust criticisms, and to
~ alter passages which, as anonymous wri-
=, ers, they had put forth. There are times
;, when anonymous publication may be exPe-
" den. or matter Of choice. but every one
~ who writes anonymously, if an honorable
'se person, can never be ashamed OF what he
~ writes. How many OF their own contribu.
~ tions they omitted altogether, in their recent
- publications, the public can never know.
"' The system was fully appreciated, and the
Quarterly ReUieU naturally arose in op
~ position to it, pursuing similar system or
h.. the Tory side.
:, The Edinburg Reuiep was begun il
70. 1902, and had it supported those Libera
es, principles alone, under which it was estab
! |. lished, and had il but made high feeling il
II. guide, il would have deserved unalloye
praise. That il had high merit in relation
to those times there is no doubt. Thos
. who cannot remember the intense bigotry
on the slav.sn feeling. the state Of the judicis
the bench, tool in the hands OF the Crcwr
DO the Test and Corporation Acts in force. III
ted press enslaved, illiberality, and ignoranc
iesi in hundred forms triumphant, can onl
ina imagine the utility Of such a work at tn,
MOI precise moment. The most original, hol
and est, and clever Of the contributors was vi
the doubleday the Rev. Sidney Smith, the FIR
lion editor, but only believe for about ye'
OF when he came to London to reside. NJ
xile now Lord. Jeffrey became editor, and |
lom had for contributor the present, now a
per. sent from his then self, Lord Broughan
in who had been at 6st Tory and then
any Wing reviewer; and, climbing to pop
ting larity that way, and. using the last for h
PEN again to his early predictions. Lo
und Murray was another Of the early contrib
torn. The sleets in the Edinburg at Il
slave Abolitonists are said to have bee
l. the work OF Brougham, who afterward
,scs with that happy facility Of adapting
nee principles to the personal interests OF Il
'ose moment, took the opposite side of the que
On ton. OF editors, Mr.. Jeffrey was co
my fesssdly the first of his day. He was n
90 only, when he pleased, an acute, impartia
oeo and learned critic, but he possessed III
lne general knowledge which qualified him r
ncn examining and testing the soundness Of Il
''hs writings OF others on variety Of TOPICS
This long-standing work, with all its
Sa'' fects, did grea. good to Freedom, and mac
par service to Liberal principles down to Il
au time when Jeffrey resigned the renown,
tue editorship. Then, indeed, Liberal primo
cur Piles had become steady enough to NAL
loei their own way. There was this differen,
al too. between the Edin6arg and its rival,
DC which we shall presently speak, that Il
iOie Edin6urg appeared with a large part
Toryism, all the fashion Of the day, and a
ven writers in place, Of known fame, Churc
the State, and power against it. But the Ia
ecu ents Of the men have named was lpowerf
as and far beyond any the Tories could mu
VA ter. II was doubly so with reason fgt
ing against corruption. bad policy, and i
). Justice. Strength and sound sense wei
its characteristics in the main, and to Ii
ions was added the humour of Sidney Smit
at purely his own, original. playful, an
in. when necessary, suPerlstively contempt
do Gus. The Quarterly never exhibited an
,rld thing approaching the humor OF Pet
But Plymley, as Smith was often styled. Ev
yi,b the friend OF the friendless, his serious we
are equal to bis humorous papers. Smith le
,;cb no cornpeer, His first review was Il
ON. dawning Of the after man. must give
IN. all. A DR.. LoDgford had preached a vel
/ Of dull sermon ON behalf Of the Humane S
ALI. ciety. Sidney wrote -
bly, "Bn accident which happened to d
'ble gentleman reviewing this sermon, prove,
, as in the most striking manner, the importanc
for. Of this charity by restoring to life person
4 in whom the vital power is suspended. Fl
, in was discovered with DR.. Longford's di
and course lying open before him in state
ain most profound sleep, from which he coul
} at not, by any means, be awakened for a gre,