The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-10-02
Gbt 8.bit6.


thOn w Jacobus Professor of Biblical Literature &C.
John. New York Robert Carter & Brothers Isss
For sale by Gray Il Ballantyne, Washington d C.
Within few years, there has been great
advance in the preparation and publication or
popular Commentaries on the Gospels and other
books of the New Testament. Single youma.
on one or more of the books have taken place
of the larger works of Henry, Doddridge, Guy,e
Scott, Adam Clarke, Gill, &c-better fitted f,r
the general reader, as they are more convent.
ent for use, and give, in q few words. the evrr
cation of the most important passages, lin,
trations drawn from the manners and cus,or..
of Eastern nations, and extracts from fbo >,
searches of able travellers into the situation .nl
condition of ancient cities and places man
toned in the history of the Bible. The reapI,.
of a more thorough criticism may thus be ConrJ
embodied in a few pages, which have baer
gathered from many volumes that have cos,
years of hard labor and study. To the Sabbo,b
School teacher and the private Christian ara
thus furnished means which were hardly accss.
sible, formerly, to the learned themselves. and
then only but by examination of massy folio,
Barnes's Notes was one of the earliest of tbasa
modern Commentaries, and may be said, per.
haps, to have given the model which has been
followed by others. The present volume. Nv
Professor Jacobus, is one of the latest. and ia
a work which deserves regard for its intrinsic
excellence and its convenient form. The An.
thor is known by his previous works; and hi,
high reputation as Divine in one branch Of
the Presbyterian Church will insure this pro.
duction of his hearty welcome. 1t is cbarac.
terized by research thorough acquaintance
with all parts of the Scripture; clear and sim.
pie style, fitted to the comprehension of every
class of readers the work of scholar-of one.
we believe, too, who has himself visited the
East, and who avsils himself of whatever re.
sources his knowledge, secured by careful study
and extensive perusal of authors of various
kinds, may supply, to throw light on the sub.
Jects of which he treats. The text is printed
IN large type, across the page, while the notes
and marginal references are placed beneath, in
smaller type-the former in double columns.
These notes, too, include a harmony, and thus
enable the reader to compare the accounts of
transaction as given by different Evangelsts
They are practical, and evincive of the spirit
OF one whose aim is to instruct rather than TO
impress us with his superior ability. Ready to
acknowledge the merits of others, the author
Is independent, likewise, in the formation and
expression Of his own views. We trust that the
test of use will be applied to Professor Jaco
bus's Commentary, believing that, to many, it
will prove valuable he'll in the exposition of
so important portion of the Sacred Scriptures
SONGS BALLADS OF rHR AMERICAN REVOLUTION With
Notes and Illustrations by Frank Moore. New York
d. Appleton Co. Is56. For sale by X Farnham
Washington, ID. G.
An interest of no common kind attaches
itself to such collection. We have here be-
fore us many of those songs which rung through
the camp of the Army of the Revolution, aud
which were on the lips of the men and boys at
home. 1t would be curious question to de
eide here, for perhaps some one or more may
have been the instrument of rallying the spirits
OF numbers ready to despond, and inspired
them with stronger determination to resist to
the death, when 80 struggling for their rights
No doubt that the influence Of the words and
music combined was great and we hardly
estimate now the power exercised over our
fathers of '76 by a few rhymes hardly deserv.
ing the name of poetry, when the burden was
for Independence and Liberty. Mr.. Moore de-
serves the thanks of their descendants, and of
all who feel anything of their spirit, for collect
ing so many of these songs and ballads, thus
made immortal. We recognise not few which
have been familiar to US, as handed down to our
boyhood, while there are others we have read
here for the first time. Some likewise we have
met with, but where we do not now know, that
We find not among the number. We believe
the Pindaric Ode, which was set to music, on
the battle of Bunker Hill, by Nathaniel Niles,
might have been included, though, it may be, it
was written after the close Of the war. Dwight's
" Columbia, Columbia, to glory arsel" proba-
bly, WAS omitted, as likewise of later date We
should like to quote from some of these pro.
auctions of Revolutionary spirit stsnzas, to show
how those patriots felt; and there are many
lines that are quite applicable to the present
day, and the schemes of oppression by which
those who love Freedom are made to suffer
They seem almost as if made for this period of
our Republics history, and would only need
the substitution of Kansas, and some other
names, to make the resemblance exact. In the
address of George III to his troops, in the piece
" On American Taxation such are the pas.
sages like these:
go, ravsge STEAL and plumber,
And you shall have the prey;
They quickly will knock under
In North America"
Or, in the call out to him:
The laws you have enacted
Are ofthe blacklist kind
And an echo might no doubt be found TO the
indignant burst of one who calls his AN I'm
practiced Muse" in the reference of his anath.
ema on the author of the Bill of Abomina.
tons, which would wrest the domain of Liberty
from the North, to chain it down to Slavery
for the South.
"Cursed be the man whoe'er shall raise
His sacrilogious hand
To drive fair LibeIty--our praise
From his own native land
40 may his memory never die
BY future ages cursed.
But live to lasting infamy,
Branded Of traitors WORSHIP
There are few, indeed, of these songs and bal
lads that can lay claim to poetic merit. They
are, in this respect, far below the songs of va
rious description already published for Fremont
and Freedom But thew stirred evan with their
rude satire and loud appeal the hearts of thou