New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-05-07
LITERATURE IN PARIS.

lthis, bpri ,, ISS-
| Augustus Placed Cesar amoOg ths god. and
| dedicated q temple - him; tue temple ha. de-
I .. srpearsd. tie Commentaries remain" W:t
.uch magnificent, but rot Altogether map. phrase,
the copmitxe appointed ZONE Two or three years
800 10 cokc. AMI publish the political, mil tary
snd administrative correspondence Of Napoleon l.
CON pence report upon their sbors thus far,
Which, with another report from the Minister Of
State, is prefxed, by way Of Introduction, 10 a
newly pu oli,hed lume Of over SEQ pages in grand
s,o Of the Correspondence de Napoleon l. This
first volume, to be followed by many o.her, opens
at the siege Of Toulon in The year H. of the Re-
public Sept, 1888 and closes with the close OF
the year w.
1t becomes only grave, historical stu lents to
critcise this great work. A few words Of de. rip
tcn. showing its importance TO them, may ven
ture upon Hardly any place is given iu this col
lection to such letters Of Bonaparte as refer Only
70 family relations and private affairs. Besides tbs.
they have been quite abundanty published in other
works, the plan of the present s almost exclusively
limited to reproduction of the thoughts and opn-
iors, the acts and purposes Of the statesman, cap
purpose not only his correspondence, properly so
called that is, his autograph aud dictated letters but
all written matter, whether signed by and Ostensby
proceeding from his aides-de-camp and ministers,
or published in the form Of anonymous editorials in
the MOnteur and other journals OF the time or such
90 contain the opinions expressed by HIM IN the
Council of State when the CODES " were under
discussion, and on occasion OF deliberations on other
questions over which he presided, to be- included
in this compilation. 1t Immediately becomes evl-
dent that the greatest labor in this tormldaby eX
tended field of editorial operation is the settling OF
the constantly recurring question OF AUTHENTICITY
In this respect, the composition and manner oil
proceeding of the Editorial Committee are calcu-
lated 10 inspire the reader ,th reasonable con-
fdence The Committee, thirteen IN number,
counts among its members soldiers, statesmen,
administrators and men of letters OF honorable
rank and reputation in society, and IN their
respective departments OF professional activity.
Their appeal sanctioned by their official position
and specia Junction. 10 all institutions aud ndlvd-
uals possessing documents coming within the scope
of their researches, has been cOpOusy responded
10. The public archives and libraries o. France we're
opened to them as a matter OF course Ola families
of note under the first Empire, foreign Governments
and sovereigns, individuals Tor their hers) VINO
were in one way or another III communication with
NAPOLEON have sent in freely whatever was IN their
po.session-either the autographs or authenticated
COPIES Forty.seven volumes relative to the Italian
and Egyptian campaigns, made up by order OF Bo-
naparte himself and now III possession OF Prince
.Josrpb, grandson of ex-king Joseph Bonaparte;
his correspondence with Prince Eugene; the =" Ar
"chiyes Of the Empire containing more than lo,ooo
"pieces of the correspondence OF Napoleon l., the
"dfp6t de la guerro possessing more than 2O,OOO,
." about 81 GOO at the Ministry OF Foreign Affairs,
81 100 at the Ministry of Marine 800 in the 9TH
ser Ministries and pubic Libraries these are
part of the material in the hands OF the Editing
Committee Add that, lin order to make their
Investigations complete as possible, they nave
considerably more than 10000 works published
ION Napoleon or on the events oi ms reign 10 he
catalOgued and examined"
(Let that conscientious divine and profound his
torica romancer, the Rev. Abbott, consider this
cafalogue raisonnf and still imagine, II he can, that
none but himself WAS sac gifted" with knowledge
and uprgbtness of purpose az to be able 10 write
the truth about the first Napoleon!
Strict impartiality is, perhaps, hardly to be ex-
pected from editors Of NaPoeohs correspondence
appointed to their editorial Office by the authors
nephew and dyDastic successor. 1t ls but justice
70 them and his present Majesty to say that their
editorial notes are mostly made up of brief and de-
sirsble historical explanations aud they say ex-
nlcity that. in accordance with his present Ma
iesty's expressed intention, they had scrupulousy
abstaDed from any alteration, retrenchment or
modification of the text Of the first EmPerors letters
"a few comparatively unlmportant and TIMING or
biographical corrections excepted.
Prototype in glory and humiliation OF the Great
Napoleon, was that other "cOnculcator OF nstions'
:. son of the gods and favOrite of Phre," whose
self.concet, raised to pitch of blind madness by
long exercise of arbitrary power, could see no
warning. though the rivers ran blood and plaques
were on the land, and its frst-born were wasted by
death. who still denied Justice and would not let the
people 90. and So when the swelling tide of yenge.
ance could no longer be stayed, Was overwhelmed
with his charots, aid the hOrsemel, and all his most
Pity that good historians and divlnes, let alone
emperor. would not regard the story OF that Pha-
raOh as political lesson. IheOPhle iaulhier mas
essayed TO bring before lis Pharaoh and the form aud
pressure of his time i'll the Roman de Ia Nome. 1t
is an attempt in the same kind as Wares Lenoola
and Lockhsrt's Vaerus to revive the past, and IKE
them is only partially successful The spirit OF
real vitality Is wanting-the mummy 0verlles Inc
romance very dry and dead The author has seen
modern Egypt. with an artists eye peculiarly SEN
stye to form and color, and carefully read up what
best has been written on ancient Egypt; rheh ne COM
posed this book Whenever be writes from ooser-
walton, his description is like painting ana ne
produces. by the magic of his style working
on the imagination. something approaching to
the very sensuOus effects of shapes and coiorS'
and Oriental light and warmth. Charming
sketches Of this sort are scattered through
a CATALOGUE raisonnf, between the learned ar1i-
Giles of a dictionary of Egyptian antiquities de-
ranged from their Alphabetical order, along whose
margin runs, by way of ornamental border, not
very interesting love-stOry. Excepting the iasnioI
of her dress aud the national style OF her Pnyses
beauty the lovely and lOve-slck heroine OF inc 'a'e
10 not Theban, but Partisan. Those pages Oh .ne
book occupied by Pharaoh, Moses, Aaron, ana Tue
n. 81 n1u oh