The Sun. — 1840-07-01 (London, England)

BENTLEY'S MISCELLANY. By a notice affixed to the title-page of this Number, W 3 perceive that Mr. Hood is engaged to contribute a series of articles to the Misccllaay, which, by way of adding to their attractiveness, are to be illustrated by himself. We arc glad of this, for Hood is one of the most popular writers of the day, and peculiarly adapted, by the force, pungency, and general conciseness of his style, to excel in periodical literature. As regards his powers of design, though he has little knowledge of art, and makes strange work at times with the human figure, and not unfrequently also with perspective, yet he has abundant humour, and enough of grotesque fancy, to make up for all his d,ficiencies. He will, therefore, be a decided acquisition to the Miscellany—more particularly if he will furnish a set of such truthful prose articles, as his " Sketches on the Road," which were the. gems of the " Comic Annual." Meantime, to drop Hood, and proceed to " business," as they say in the City. The Number before us commences, as usual, with " Guy Fawkes," in which there is a vigorous sketch of the well-known quack Dr. Dee, whose resuscitation of Guy, by means of an elixir as (g incomparable " as Rowland's Macassar, is described with considerable skill. One of that redeeming merits of Mr. Ainsworth's fictions, is the sufficing acquaintance he always shows with the character and domestic usuages of the times of which ho treats. In this respect, even Scott has not equalled him, though Scott makes a less ostentatious parade of his reading. We consider " Guy Fawkes " the most readable story its author has yet attempted, and the present chapters among the most effective, at least as respects incident. The " Contrabandista "is a passable tale, reasoned, of course, with a murder-" his neat plebecula gaudet"—from the pen of Captain Medwin. An " Aspiration for Place "is a lively epigram, of the old-fashioned Chesterfield school of com. pliment. We subjoin it accordingly If kisses be the coin of Love, The die sweet woman's rosy mouth, Found still on earth, where'er we rove, Or east, or west, or north, or south, Let Statesmen on to glory plod, And climb Ambition's paths of flint; I only wish the little God Would make me master of his mint. The " Jolly Miller" is sad stuff, crammed full of puns as excruciating as the tooth-ache. ' " A Visit to the Organ Mountains in Brazil" gives some cleverish descriptions of Brazilian manners, in the more sequestered parts of the country. " Harkaway Sketches" is an account of a day's shooting in the preserves of an English sportsman of tl.e old school. It is pleasantly and unaffectedly written by a gentleman named Mills. An essay on Beaus and Dandies, past and present, is quite as good as its subjects, which is not saying much for it. " Father Mathew" details some particulars respecting the progress that tea-totalism is making in Ireland. Fifteen hundred thousand individuals have, it seems, already taken the pledge! The " Sleeping Beauty in our Time" is a sprightly article by Mr. Jerden, whose good-natured, racy sketches we always read with pleasure. " Stanley Thorn" is light and rambling as usual, but without any pretensions to originality.  •