Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1858-11-20

CarIyIe's History OF Frederick the Great.
History OF Frederick tne Second, called Freder-
lex the ureal b. 1aomas Carlyle. Ia
Four Volumes Vols. |. and III
This history is the master work OF ooe OF
the most remarkable writer's Ci the nice
teenth century, writer whose great learn
Jog. and keen aud orr ginsl thought, We must
perfJrce, admire. though his harsh phlio51-
phy is repugnant. 1t may truly 10 said that
mature bias impressed upon his mind the
sisuet mark of gsnlus" Ills origluaiiy Is
equally apparent 10 the substance OF the
thoughts he utters, and in the iUrm OF their
expression When be tells US tina! Ger
mao. 10 this day, is u isighttuI dialect tor the
stupid, toe petant, and dullard sort only
10 the hands Of the gifted does 1t tecOme
supremely good" US sec a proof OF 1t IL
the fact that every other authors attempt 10
write such German. En- llish as Mr. Car! y!e's,
has resulted 10 miserable iailuse. IL does
indeed require the gifted to make It supreme.
ly good, or even inteliIgible. The mastery
of language, and wise research required 10
produce such history as this are truly won
derlui. Frederick the Great has been !ortu-
nate 10 fodng such "hero worshipper. =
Hitherto vaguely spoken OF as the "creatur
of the Pfussian monarchy" be has now
found bio.rapher wbO shows clearly "hoT
this uan, officially king withai, conported
himself in the eighteenth century, and man
aged not to DO n liar and cbaratan rs hi-
century was"--Hho holds up King frederick
as "an original ruler OF meu," "the last Ut
the old gods" 1.-THE last Of the kings, ani
exslts nlm even ov0r the great Corsican. III
must be owned" says this biogrspher, that,
The figure Of Napoleon Was tltauic, eS'
peciliIy to the generatous that looked Oh
him, and that waited shudderiog to he dc
voured py him. la general, IN that French
revolution, all was Oh huge scale; II not
greater than anything 10 human experience,
ut least more granoiose. All was recorded
IN bulletins, too, ad dressed 10 tie snliioR
gallery; and there were fellows on the stage
with such breadth of sabre, exieut OF
whiskarase, strength Of windpipe, aud com
mand Of nen aud gunpOwder, az had never
been seen before. How they beloved, stalk
ed, and furnished about, cUunterieltinS
JJves thunder to al amazing degree Ter.
riffs Drawcansir figures Of ENORMOUS Whsk
craze, unlimited command Of gunpow der;
not without sufficient isrocity, aud even q
ceItaln ueroIsn, stage hero!sm, III them;
compared With whom, to the shilling gale
~, and frightened, excited theatre at large,
II seemed as il there uad been no gee e;iis
or soyereigas before; as IT Frederick, Gust.
vus, Cromwell, William Conqueror aud Al
exauder the Great, were not worth speaking
vi henceiorth
IAN thIs, however. in half a century is
considerably alter. d. The DtaTcausir equip
nents gettiog gradually torn of, the natural
d Zs Is seen better; translated from the bulie-
thu style Into tbat vi tact aud history, MIRA
Giles, even to the shilling gallery, are DOT 80
miraculous. l. Bogus u be apparent that
there lived great men before the era OF bu!e-
tins aud a samemnon. Austerllz aud Wa
xram shot away more gu0powder -gnnpow
der probably in the proportion Ut ten 10 one,
or q hundred b one; but neither OF them
was tenth.pars such u beating to your enemy
as that vi Rosbach, brought about by strate-
getlc art, human ingenuity and lntrep'dity.
aud the loss OF AS men. Leuthen, to-, the
Battle OF Leulhea Though 80 few Eaglish
readers ever heard Ut Isl may very well
bod up It's head beside any victory giineI
~ Napoleon or another. For the odds were
net tar from three 10 onc; the soldiers were
Of not lar from equal quality; and only the
, General was consummateiy superior, and the
defeat destruction. NAPOLEON did lndsed, y
, immeuse expenditure Of men and sunpOwder,
oserfuu Europe for time: out Napoleon
Deyer, by outstanding and wisely expanding
his mea aud gunpuwder, defended little
Prussia against all Europe, year after year,
fur seven yesrs long, tai Europe had enough,
and gave ~ lns enterprise as one 1t could
not manage. So suJn as the Drawcars,r
! III Cd IA 1I,l
hog gallery got to silence, 1t sIll be found
that there we're grsat king- OetVre Napoleon,
aud likewise al Art OF War, grounded Oh
veracity aud human courage, and insight
net upon prawcaDslr rnodom0ntade, gran.
, dose Dcx Gurplui5n,, revolutionary mad
ness, and unlimited expenditure OF uen aud
guDeoTdef."
Inc personal appearance and manners Of
! Frederick are thus descrited:-
About ionrscore years ago there used to
be seen saunteTiDg on the terraces OF Sans
Souci for a short time in the afternoon, or
you might havo net him elsewhere at an
earlier hour, riding or driving in a rapid
business manner on the open roads or
through the scraggy woods aud avenues o.
that intricate ampbIbipu- PJtsd4m region, a
highly Interesting lean littie Old man of alert
though slightly stoopirg figure, whose Game
among strangers Was King Friedrich tie Sc
cond or Frederick the Great, U. Prussia, pnd
at home among the Common people, who
much loved aud esteemed hin, was Tuter
Eriis, .tbcr Fred, name Of familiarity
wuich bad not bred contempt IN that III.
stance He Is king every inch OF hun,
though without the trappiugs OF king.
Presents himself 10 Spartan simplicity Of
vesturc: no crown but an old military cock.
ed hat-generally old, or trampled aud
kuesded into absolute Sotlnsss, If reS; n"
-cep,rc but cue like Agamem0on's. u wax
Irg-srics, cut from the woods, Which SERVES
also for q rlding--tlck with 1bicn be hits
the horse "uetween the care say authOrs;j
aud tor royal robes II mere soldiers tlue coat
with red iacings, c"at likely to be old, und
sure to have a good deal OF Spanish snuff on
the treast If 1t; rect OF the apparel din, ub-
ubtru-ive in color OF cut, ending in high
over-knee military boots, which may be
brushed. land. | bupc, kept soft with an 40.
der-haGd suspicion ot OIL Dut arr not per
mitt.d to be tiackened or varnishs1-Dag
& Martin with their SCOT pos forbidden t.
approach.
The man is not Of a godlike physiognomy
any more than oil imposing stature or co,tuu,
close shut mouth with tain lips. promiueut