The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1849-04-29
MISCELLANEOUS.



vron New York Evening Post
NsKvxH RExAKss vith an sceos.s of ust TO tn
CAalass~ eArisfisxs II Kwlt.as.. s~d tie Hsidss o.
;2 Z; ssol' New York George ' F. Ps'na's
Over the lands watered by the Euphrates and the Tgr
sise ridges Of hills and tracts Of table lands grown with
com. or crowned with villages and Arab cemeteries the
elevated grounds and for thousands OF years have
BEEN the hauns OF the hyDna and the ackal The un-
learned traveller looks upon these eminences the
raj inequalities OF the country; and their symmetrical
forms, which would prove less masses have
been OF mans construction, scarcely sufficient sug
gest their real origin to the modern mind habtuaied TO
ihe pigmy productions OF wren or OF Michael Ange-
TO- An energy OF investigation, unparalleled in the his
tory Of human intellect, after having exhausted the
q Egypt 60 o s s
ed to the mysterious regions Of the capital cities OF
that great Assyrian monarchy which once extended Its
Two private individuals M Botta and Mr.. Layard,
have disinterred history which has been buried for
three thousand years Five years ego the traditions OF
empire rivaflng in magnitude that of later Rome,
consisted of of semi-fabulous stories, arranging
themselves around pesonages OF whose very existence
Semiramis and Sardinapaus, having claims upon our
credit much like those which made upon by the
fables of Hercules Arthur Besides these traditions
we had the incidental witness of few verses of The Old
Testament and of notices scattered rarely here and
there, among ancient and dubious Greek authorities
The importance Of the Assyan empire, strange say
corning it, Tor Herodotus who was satisfied with alIot
ting single niche in bis great work to Egypt and
other considerable nations intended the history of the
Assyrian empire for separate treatise, which, if was
ever written, has not descended to u.s. In Mr. Layard's
words:
vAtlcugh the names of Nncveh and Assyra have been
familiar from childhood. aud connected with
our earliest Impressions derived from the inspired wrting-
omy when hem we ask ourselves what we really
relates TO their history and even their geographical posi-
ton II is indeed Of the remarkable facts his
renowned ita ~
and civilization should have be entirely and that
should for ages have been of doubt"
Thanks. however, to the labors Of Mr.. Layad and M
Botta. seconded by those Of Major Rawlinson and the
fair way to The lost records of Assyra and of
becoming AS familiar with the domestic habits, the modes
OF warfare. the arts and the religion Of that empire,
we are with the customs and worship OF Greece and
Rome.
Nix Layard. in the autumn Of ls45, induced by the
startling discoveries made at Khorsabad by NJ Boa,
commenced his investigations on the banks Of the Tgrs
with zeal and resolution worthy OF his object M Bot
ia, from the mound Of Kouyuk had dug The first Assy
able distinction acquired by HIMSELF and by the govern
mentalways liberal in expenditure for the advancement
OF art-whch seconded his efforts Mr.. Rich had already
made some interesting observations on the site of Baby
lon, but they not of importance enough abolish
M Bottas claims 10 be regarded the first great dscov
erer Of Assyrian antiquities This gentleman. abandon
ing kouyunJk after slight and superficial examinations
directed HIS abors to the minor ruins at khorsabad Here
he made the discoveries which, during the last few years
HdVc Uecu uF0 edulOg SUBJECTS Oh comment the
psychologists of Europe In the trenches opened by M
Bota found series Of has rcl~fs The products of
style Of art wholly unlike, in many essential points, any
style already known. Exhibiting analoSies with the arts
of Persia, Egypt, and Asia Minor wh, render these re.
efs OF the highest import add,o. 10, and probable
clues to problems in the history Of the origin and progress
OF the arts IN these countries they constitute themselves
an independent chapter OF mark the history of
universal With attention details not inferior TO
ea y y1 n s sS Es s Ase
be found in the remains that the valley of the Nile
We cannot go along with the French critic, who afrms
that the Assyrian relics will bear comparison with the
Productions of Phydias but we are as little prepared to
deny the superiority of of the best fragments deIin
Gated by Mr. Layard 10 all but the very first efforts OF
forms and total disregard TO literal versimtude in the
works OF the Assyran which shock unprepared
and uncultivaied taste and distract it from the apprecia
ton OF the real excellence which abounds in them; but
real excellence there is and that, if mistake not of
high order In details, the art in all true schools be-
suggestive rather than literally initiative when
literal imitation becomes inconvenient from limited space
other In lion hunt, for example, the lion
rolls dying under the chariot Wheels while the warrior
is sending his arrow before him into space In SIEGE
the height OF the soldiers scaling the walls is out of all
proportion TO that of the walls themselves but the lion
and horses have true action the aspect of the warrior
bold and noble; the incidents of the siege are depicted
with invention and power.
So much for The art which has been restored to the
world by Messrs. Botla and Iayard and by the way
let ne understood that place The French discoverer
before the English one, not of the magnitude
Of the discoveries of the first but only Of his
OrueI OF Time, MI Layad'S discoveries being
much more numerous and interesting than those of M
Botta To give readers notion of the value of these
remains IN restoring picture of Assyran life and data
Tor Assynan history need only that the slabs of
alabaster upon which the principal works executed,
are many hundreds in NUMBER and that they contain de-
lineatons OF incidents of every order associated with the
history OF this ancient nation But besides these elies
and more important still, for historical purposes an i'm
mense body of inscriptions have been found, and care
fully copied and are now being decphered by phologiss
oil all countries.
OF course treat for the most part only in the
most general terms concerning the contents of Mr. Lay
ards volumes, but there are two three details, which
are OF such commonly appreciable interest," that must
not neglect to mention them which is to con-
tain all that many readers will know of these wonderful
Assyrian revelations 1t appears from the Investigations
OF Mr. Layard at Nimroud, that the Assyrans ac
quainted with the principle of vaulting by arches and of
supporting roofs by pillars yet very remarkable that
neither OF these valuable expedcnts was EMPLOYED to
any extent in the enormous Assyrian buildings Conse
quenty, all the closed apartments are long galleries
narrow enough to allow Of roofing by horizontal beams
Mr. Iayard discovered only one Instance OF vaulting by
the called "Roman, semi circular arch, and that
was in position where it not demanded by the ne
cesses of construction. A bas-reef Of fishing or
pleasure house. showed the only trace of columns and
these, Is most interesting and surprising fact,
distinctly " Ienc." showing that that order the
adoption and not the invention OF the Greek colonss
of Asia Minor From the circumstances of the neglect
Of the discovery of the arch and the column Mr..
Layard nfers that it not made until after con-
vcntona forms OF architecture had been adopted, and