had to guard a dead Empress and the body of an Emperor who had been strangled thirty years ago. flowing from it? Is it not a wiser course, since reconciliation has come in so many instances, still to hope for it, still to go on with our new truths, trusting that they also will in time be found harmonious with all others! Whatever may be thought of the writer's particular views, it will be allowed that his exposition of them is clear and logical. We had marked for extract some of his gradually advancing steps in the progress of creation, but must be contented with very little, though that little may give an idea of the work. ERA OF THE PRIMARY ROCKS. Paul I., on the day of his accession to the throne, unable to avenge the death of his father Peter III., resolved at least to make amends for the injuries done to his memory. It was known that this Emperor, after a tragical end, was privately buried in the church of St. Alexander-Newski. Paul went thither immediately, accompanied by Bezborodko and only one of his aidesde-camp. There was but one monk who knew the place where the body had been deposited. Paul descended with him into the vault, caused the coffin to be opened, and saw nothing but ashes and some remains of uniform, buttons and boots. Moved to tears he gave The interior of the globe has now been inspected in orders for a state-bed like that of his mother, to be im- many places, and a tolerably distinct notion of its genemediately erected in the same church, and appointed ral arrangements has consequently been arrived at. It officers of his court to do duty there as in the palace; appears that the basis rock of the earth, as it may be then, he went twice a-day, in the morning and evening, called, is of hard texture, and crystalline in its constituto worship the dead, as they call it, bowing respectfully tion. Of this rock, granite may be said to be the type, three times before them, and kissing his mother's hand. though it runs into many varieties. Over this, except in The Empress, princes and princesses, courtiers, and after the comparatively few places where it projects above the them all persons decently dressed, were admitted to this general level in mountains, other rocks are disposed in honour. The same ceremony was performed at Cathe-sheets or strata, with the appearance of having been derine's coffin as at that of Peter III., with this difference, that as there was nothing to be kissed at the Emperor's, a genuflection was made instead. The air of weakness and emotion with which Zubow prostrated himself before the body of his late mistress was really a curious sight. It was, doubtless, the first time that he had kissed that hand gratuitously; formerly, it was always the more open to him the more he pressed it. Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. Post oc tavo. Pp. 390. London: Churchhill. The anonymous author of this ingenious treatise might have designated himself a philosophical phrenologist. He seems to labour under a consciousness of having, in some of his hypotheses, broached doctrines questionable by the orthodox, and he not only deprecates their censure, on very fair grounds, but contends that his system of creation is in truer harmony with the Mosaic record than that generally received. He ought in prudence to have been contented with his final plea, which is thus urged. My sincere desire in the composition of the book, was to give the true view of the history of nature, with as little disturbance as possible to existing beliefs, whether philosophical or religious. I have made little reference to any doctrines of the latter kind which may be thought inconsistent with mine, because to do so would have been to enter upon questions for the settlement of which our knowledge is not yet ripe. Let the reconciliation of whatever is true in my views, with whatever is true in other systems, come about in the fulness of calm and careful inquiry. I cannot but here remind the reader of what Dr. Wiseman has shown so strikingly in his lectures, how different new philosophic doctrines are apt to appear after we have become somewhat familiar with them. Geology, at first, seems inconsistent with the authority of the Mosaic record. A storm of unreasoning indignation rises against its teachers. In time, its truths, being found quite irresistible, are admitted, and mankind continue to regard the Scriptures with the same respect as before. So also with several other sciences. Now, the only objection that can be made on such ground to this book, is, that it brings forward some new hypotheses, at first sight, like geology, not in perfect harmony with that record, and arranges all the rest into a system which partakes of the same character. But may not the sacred text, on a liberal interpretation, or with the benefit of new light reflected from nature, or derived from learning, be shown to be as much in harmony with the novelties of this volume, as it has been with geology and natural philosophy? What is there in the laws of organic creation more startling to the candid theologian, than in the Copernican system, or the natural formation of strata? And if the whole series of facts is true, why should we shrink from inferences legitimately posited originally from water; but these last rocks have nowhere been allowed to rest in their original arrangement. Uneasy movements from below have broken them up in great inclined masses, while in many cases there has been projected through the rents rocky matter, more or less resembling the great inferior crystalline mass. This rocky matter must have been in a state of fusion from heat at the time of its projection, for it is often found to have run into and filled up lateral chinks in these rents. There are even instances where it has been rent again, and a newer melted matter of the same character sent through the opening. Finally, in the crust as thus arranged, there are, in many places, chinks containing veins of metal. Thus, there is first a great inferior mass, composed of crystalline rock, and probably of the interior: next, layers or strata of aqueous origin; resting immediately on the fused and expanded matter next, irregular masses of melted inferior rock, that have been sent up volcanically and confusedly at various times amongst the aqueous rocks, breaking up these into masses, and tossing them out of their original levels. This is an outline of the arrangements of the crust of the earth, as far as we can observe it. It is, at first sight, a most confused scene; but after some careful observation, we readily detect in it a regularity and order from which much instruction in the history of our globe is to be derived. HYPOTHESIS OF THE ORIGIN OF ANIMATED TRIBES. A candid consideration of all these circumstances, can scarcely fail to introduce into our minds a somewhat dif ferent idea of organic creation from what has hitherto been generally entertained. That God created animated beings, as well as the terraqueous theatre of their being, is a fact so powerfully evidenced, and so universally received, that I at once take it for granted. But in the particulars of this so highly supported idea, we surely here see cause for some reconsideration. It may now be inquired-In what way was the creation of animated beings effected? The ordinary notion may, I think, be not unjustly described as this, that the Almighty aathor produced the progenitors of all existing species by some sort of personal or immediate exertion. But how does this notion comport with what we have seen of the gradual advance of species, from the humblest to the highest? How can we suppose an immediate exertion of this creative power at one time to produce zoophytes, another time to add a few marine mollusks, another to bring in one or two conchifers, again to produce crusta ceous fishes, again perfect fishes, and so on to the end! This would surely be to take a very mean view of the Creative Power-to, in short, anthropomorphize it, or reduce it to some such character as that borne by the or dinary proceedings of mankind. And yet this would be unavoidable; for that the organic creation was thus progressive through a long space of time, rests on evidence which nothing can overturn or gainsay. Some other idea must then be come to with regard to the mode in which the Divine Author proceeded in the organic creation. Let us seek in the history of the earth's formation for a new suggestion on this point. We have seen powerful evidence, that the construction of this globe and its associates, and inferentially that of all the other globes of space, was the result, not of any immediate or personal exertion on the part of the Deity, but of natural laws which are expressions of his will. What is to hinder our supposing that the organic creation is also a result of natural laws, which are in like manner an expression of his will? More than this, the fact of the cosmical arrangements being an effect of natural law, is a powerful argument for the organic arrangements being so likewise; for how can we suppose that the august Being who brought all these countless worlds into form by the simple establishment of a natural principle flowing from his mind, was to interfere personally and specially on every occasion when a new shell-fish or reptile was to be ushered into existence on one of these worlds? Surely this idea is too ridiculous to be for a moment entertained. It will be objected that the ordinary conceptions of Christian nations on this subject are directly derived from Scripture, or, at least, are in conformity with it. If they were clearly and unequivocally supported by Scripture, it may readily be allowed that there would be a strong objection to the reception of any opposite hypothesis. But the fact is, however startling the present announcement of it may be, that the first chapter of the Mosaic record is not only not in harmony with the ordinary ideas of mankind respecting cosmical and organic creation, but is opposed to them. We must leave this to the curious reader, merely stating that the writer's reasonings are far from being conclusive. He had better have rested on his philosophical deprecation of rash judgments on matters upon which nature has not yet fully revealed her laws.-Our next extract embodies what is, at least, an ingenious conjecture about the systems of other globes. Unprepared as most men may be for such an announcement, there can be no doubt that we are able, in this limited sphere, to form some satisfactory conclusions as to the plants and animals of those other spheres which move at such immense distances from us. Suppose that the first persons of an early nation who made a ship and ventured to sea in it, observed, as they sailed along, a set of objects which they had never before seen-namely, a fleet of other ships would they not have been justified in supposing that those ships were occupied, like their own, by human beings possessing hands to row and steer, eyes to watch the signs of the weather, intelligence to guide them from one place to another-in short, beings in all respects like themselves, or only showing such differences as they knew to be producible by difference of climate and habits of life. Precisely in this manner we can speculate on the inhabitants of remote spheres. We see that matter has originally been diffused in one mass, of which the spheres are portions. Consequently, inorganic matter must be presumed to be every where the same, although probably with differences in the proportions of ingredients in different globes, and also some difference of conditions. Out of a certain number of the elements of inorganic matter are composed organic bodies, both vegetable and animal; such must be the rule in Jupiter and in Sirius, as it is here. We, therefore, are all but certain that herbaceous and ligneous fibre, that flesh and blood, are the constituents of the organic beings of all those spheres which are as yet seats of life. Gravitation we see to be an all-pervading principle; therefore, there must be a relation between the spheres and their respective organic occupants, by virtue of which they are fixed, as far as necessary, on the surface. Such a relation, of course, involves details as to the density and elasticity of structure, as well as size, of the organic tenants, in proportion to the gravity of the respective planets-peculiarities, however, which may quite well consist with the idea of a universality of Electri general types, to which we are about to come. city we also see to be universal; if, therefore, it be a principle concerned in life and in mental action, as science strongly suggests, life and mental action must every where be of one general character. We come to comparatively a matter of detail, when we advert to heat and light; yet it is important to consider that these are universal agents, and that, as they bear marked relations to organic life and structure on earth, they may be presumed to do so in other spheres also. The considerations as to light are particularly interesting, for, on our globe, the structure of one important organ, almost universally distributed in the animal kingdom, is in direct and precise relation to it. Where there is light there will be eyes, and these, in other spheres, will be the same in all respects as the eyes of tellurian animals, with only such differences as may be necessary to accord with minor peculiarities of condition and of situation. It is but a small stretch of the argument to suppose that, one conspicuous organ of a large portion of our animal kingdom being thus universal, a parity in all the other organs-species for species, class for class, kingdom for kingdom-is highly likely, and that thus the inhabitants of all the other globes of space bear not only a general, but a particular resemblance to those of our own. The Reformers before the Reformation. The Fifteenth Century. John Huss and the Council of Constance. By Émile De Bonnechose, Author of Histoire Française, Histoire Sacrée, &c. &c. Translated from the French by Campbell Mackenzie, B. A. Trin. Coll. Dublin. 2 vols. post octavo, pp. 703. Edinburgh: William Whyte & Co. Though the title is somewhat large, or not sufficiently specific, this is an excellent book, and one which we are glad to see in an English dress. The preface, or preliminary essay, is itself an admirable work. The Frenchman writes in the spirit of Milton and of Channing. His discourse is an able and eloquent argument for the fundamental principles of the Reformation,-namely, freedom of conscience, freedom of inquiry, and freedom from the sacerdotal yoke. It is, in one word, written in the spirit of the most Catholic Christianity. We have said that the title is not sufficiently specific. We were led to expect at least a full account of Wycliffe, the great reformer of his own age, and we have a brief reference to him; but the work is in substance a memoir of John Huss, and a historical retrospect of the ecclesiastical affairs of his era; with an account of the sects which sprang from his doctrine, which is continued down to so late a time as the origin of the United Brethren or Moravians. We regret that we have not the power of speaking of this work with the fulness due to its merits, and can only cull a few pithy sentences from the Preface, and take a brief extract from the body of the work. OBJECTS OF THE WORK. This work, in an historical point of view, is intended to make the great religious movement which took place in Europe a century before the Reformation, better known and more justly appreciated. It embraces a period of seventy years,-from the beginning of the Great Schism of the West in 1378, to the end of the war of the Hussites, towards the middle of the following century. The principal doctrines which divided Europe during that memorable period are exposed to view, and the illustrious men who originated or defended them are carefully depicted. We shall describe the famous quarrels of the Schism; the struggle of the Popes with each other; that of the Emperor, the Kings, and the Councils against the Pontiffs; the proceedings of the Gallican Church and of the University of Paris; the persevering and, for a time, victorious efforts of the men who represented both one and the other against the partisans of the Papal omni potence; and the scenes for ever to be deplored, in which the great doctors of Bohemia perished. Theological differences were then accompanied by the flames of funeral piles, and the shock of arms. A place is reserved in the work for these gloomy pictures; the reader will there find the combats of words to be succeeded by those of the sword; and men of learning and piety, the Husses, D'Aillys, and Gersons, to be followed by men of blood and war, the Ziskas and Procopiuses. Historian of John Huss, I am well aware, that whilst I gain for his name the admiration of many, I also expose it to outrage. But to any person who should meditate insulting his memory, I would say "John Huss was condemned because he refused to believe that a man, for any motive whatever, ought to stifle the voice of his conscience, and to act contrary to his internal persuasion. What he did not believe, do you believe? Examine his life, peruse his letters-his touching letters-where the most candid soul is laid open, and the most holy fervour manifested! See what a love of good, what a horror of evil, what devotedness to truth, are there displayed! Consider how he lived, and how he died. Having done this, place your hand on your heart, and say, 'I am a better Christian than this man !'Then insult him!" FURTHER OBJECT OF THE WORK. The object of this work is not to convert believers to engage in proselytism at the expense of any churchto draw away the living members of one communion to the bosom of another. No creed will be presented here as the only true one-no particular formula will be advanced as the sole real expression of the truth, out of which there is nothing but error and falsehood; for we believe that it is, before all things, important to serve the Universal Church; and there is one religion in our eyes higher than all particular forms of worship,-above Roman Catholicism as above Protestantism,-and that religion is CHRISTIANITY. The history of spiritual courts has no blacker record than the trial of Huss, nor the annals of martyrdom a more pathetic page than that which traces the closing scenes of his life. His persecutors showed demoniac ingenuity in heaping ignominies upon him,-all of which he bore with the patient meekness of the divine Master in whose cause he suffered. His final examination before the council and all the dignitaries of the empire is full of the highest interest, but too long to extract. It would make an admirable subject for a historical painter. We give the last scene of all. The place of punishment was a meadow adjoining the gardens of the city, outside the gate of Gotleben. On arriving there, Huss kneeled down and recited some of the penitential Psalms. Several of the people, hearing him pray with fervour, said aloud-" We are ignorant of this man's crime; but he offers up to God most excellent prayers." When he wished to address the crowd in German, the Elector Palatine opposed it, and ordered him to be forthwith burned. "Lord Jesus!" cried John Huss, "I shall endeavour to endure, with humility, this frightful death which I am awarded for thy Holy Gospel! Pardon all my enemies!" His body was then bound with thongs, with which he was firmly tied to a stake, driven deep into the ground. When he was so affixed, some persons objected to his face being turned to the east, saying that this ought not to be, since he was a heretic. He was then untied and bound again to the stake with his face to the west. His head was held close to the wood by a chain smeared with soot, and the view of which inspired him with pious reflections on the ignominy of our Saviour's sufferings. Fagots were then arranged about and under his feet, and around him was piled up a quantity of wood and straw. When all these preparations were completed, the Elector Palatine, accompanied by Count d'Oppenheim, marshal of the empire, came up to him, and for the last time recommended him to retract. But he, looking up to heaven, said with a loud voice: "I call God to witness, that I have never either taught or written what those false witnesses have laid to my chargemy sermons, my books, my writings, have all been done with the sole view of rescuing souls from the tyranny of sin; and, therefore, most joyfully will I confirm with my blood that truth which I have taught, written, and preached; and which is confirmed by the Divine Law and the holy fathers." The elector and the marshal then withdrew, and fire was set to the pile! "Jesus, Son of the living God," cried John Huss, "have pity on me!" He prayed and sung a hymn in the midst of his torments, but soon after, the wind having risen, his voice was drowned by the roaring of the flames. He was perceived for some time longer moving his head and lips, and as if still praying and then he gave up the spirit. His habits were burned with him, and the executioners tore in pieces the remains of his body and threw them back into the funeral pile, until the fire had absolutely consumed every thing; the ashes were then collected together and thrown into the Rhine. Thus perished, at the age of five-and-forty, one of the men whose character throws most honour on the Christian church; and it is not easy to discern, at the first glance, the real causes of his death. The following words are found in an old manuscript copy of his works: "As long as John Huss merely declaimed against the vices of the seculars, every one said that he was inspired against ecclesiastics, he became an object of odium, for he with the Spirit of God; but as soon as he proceeded then really laid his finger on the sore." Although we have never seen the original of this work, we can judge, from internal evidence, that the translation is executed with accuracy and spirit. Memoir of Thomas Harrison Burder, M.D. By John Burder, M.A. London: Ward & Co. Pp. 168. This little biography is written by an affectionate brother, who, not without reason, concludes that it will chiefly interest the relatives and personal friends of its subject. Dr. Burder was a pious and amiable man, a son of the author of " Village Sermons." He was born in 1789, received a good education, and studied medicine at Edinburgh,-where he graduated, before commencing practice in London, though he afterwards settled at Tunbridge Wells. The memoir, which is written with great modesty, consists mainly of extracts from Dr. Burder's letters, from childhood to the close of his life. They all display a serious, mild, and affectionate character, which is farther confirmed by the testimonials of his instructors and personal friends, many of them persons of eminence and science. Originally of a delicate constitution, Dr. Burder, throughout life, suffered much from deranged health, though he lived until the summer of 1843. He married a cousin of his own, after settling in life, who survived him for only five months. The extract of a family letter, written by Dr. Burder while a student at Edinburgh, and a letter of consolation, written by Dr. Abercrombie of that city, to his widow, is all that our space permits us to select from a volume which presents a really interesting record of a good man's life, and picture of an attached Christian family: My father's kind letter gave me heartfelt pleasure, and your own, my dear sister, was peculiarly acceptable. The domestic incidents you allude to, transported me at once to the Grove; and to be with you in imagination merely, is no small pleasure. This kind of journey I often perform, and in various ways. Sometimes I hum a tune which Phoebe has often played to me, the air of which is inexpressibly delightful. At other times, and especially on a Sunday, I repeat to myself that sweet hymn of our infancy When, O dear Jesus, when shall I Behold thee all serene? The latter expedient never fails to succeed. In an instant I am seated at the fire-side, and make one of the domestic circle. My mother's countenance beams with sympathy and kindness; my father's with benignity; and my sister's with attentive affection. The scene is sometimes too touching; and yet I love to indulge the tender illusion. When shall it be exchanged for reality? From John Abercrombie, Esq., M.D. Edinburgh, August 22, 1843. MY DEAR MADAM,-I do not attempt to express the feelings with which I have received the letter of Mr. Burder, intimating the heavy bereavement with which it has pleased your heavenly Father to visit you. It is a bereavement which will be felt most deeply by the numerous and attached friends of Dr. Burder, and by none more than myself, to whom he was endeared in a peculiar manner, both by an old and warm friendship, and by the various excellent and amiable qualities which met in his character. It seemed to those who knew his talents and his worth, a mysterious dispensation, that one so calculated for usefulness should be so long laid aside in the prime of his days;-but " He, whose ways are not as our ways, nor his thoughts as ours," had his own great purposes to answer; and among these, we cannot doubt one was to prepare our beloved friend in a peculiar manner for the enjoyment of himself, and for occupying a high place in that blessed assembly, who have "come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." He now understands the whole, and perceives in the clearest manner, that no one step could have been wanting. The all-wise and all-merciful One, who has visited you with the dispensation, alone is able to give the support and consolation under it, which may enable you to say: is well." This, I doubt not, will be bestowed in abuadant measure, in answer to your prayers, and to the prayers of the numerous affectionate friends, who partake in your sorrow. And while their sympathies are not useless, there is a Friend who is afflicted in all the afflictions of his people-one to whom all power is given in heaven and on earth, and there is the mighty gift of the Holy Spirit the Comforter, imparting a peace which the world cannot give. My daughters desire to unite with me in our expressions of deep sympathy and affectionate wishes and regards. And I am, my dear Madam, very sincerely yours, It Upton's Physioglyphics. London: Fisher, Son, & Co. This work relates to certain discoveries in language and science which only dawned upon the author a few months since, after many years of study; and which, as we do not pretend to understand them, it will be time enough to speak about when they are fairly placed before the public. The author solicits the means of doing this; and, among other remarkable things, asserts that he has discovered the method of Trisecting an Angle, or Arc of a Circle, and can give a strict mathematical solution of the Quadrature of the Circle. His challenge to men of science is as singular as it is bold; -and farther we cannot say. The Various Writings of Cornelius Mathers; complete in one volume, octavo, double columns. Pp. 370. New York: Harper & Brothers. Cornelius Mathews is a kind of American Boz, or Jerrold, or Titmarsh, with more earnestness than the latter, and a manner of his own, the result of his Transatlantic surroundings. The "writings" are extremely "various." We have, in Puffer Hopkins, a clever novel, descriptive of middle-class and workie Americans, many lively short tales and sketches of every-day characters and "tem In every age there has existed some favourite theory for the regeneration of the race; some grand discovery (about to be made), which was to be universal, ubiquitous in its influence and success. At one time the philosopher's stone; in the next age a short passage to the East Indies; and now, in a third and less romantic period, all the great objects of amelioration and amendment are to be accomplished by the substitution of unbolted flour in the place of pure wheat and solid animal food. The authors of these miraculous discoveries believe that the human race is to be regenerated solely through the medium of the palate; that the channels of access to the human head and human heart are not, as of old, through the understanding and the affections, but through the alimentary ducts. Instead of winding along the shore of the Mediterranean and over the shoals of the Indian ocean, they strike boldly across the Atlantic, and find the country for which they are in search. They take for granted that man has no imagination, no heart, no nerves, no soul, nor arteries; but that he is a creature all stomach; that one mighty abdomen is the badge and property of human kind; and that in it centres the machinery, from it spring the movements, which build up and overturn states and empires the strong fancy which moulds itself in epics and histories-the gentle pathos which melts us from the pulpit or in the elegy-the fierce wrath and "energy divine" which shake the stage; all hold their court in this vast subterranean cavern, and from it rush forth upon the world. The first great canon of this code of living, is, that the flesh of beasts be banished from the table. Unholy pig, nor stupid veal, nor silly mutton, corpulent roast-beef nor presumptuous sirloin, must not appear before these chaste, dietetic vestals. Calf, sheep, ox, fowl, partridge -they know them not in animated nature. They have revised the edible universe, and from it stricken these blots and monsters. Tender-souled philanthropists! They would know why these should not run rampant, and fly on the earth and in the air harmless? They are joint denizens here; fellow-citizens of ours, are these good friends! These natural feeders have "a touch that makes Let them grow and multiply. Let them kin" with us. them fatten in our meadows, and spread their pinions in our woods. Like us, they are for an equitable division of property; they, too, are humble agrarians; their desires are moderate. Till your fields until the sweat pearls upon your forehead; you need not chaffer with customers-they will take the crop of grain off your hands. Gay creatures, they will frisk and eat for you. They have made us their stewards; if we plough and plant, they will, most willingly, gather the increase. "The hog that ploughs not, nor obeys thy call, Lives on the labours of this lord of all; While man exclaims, 'See all things for my use!" 'See man for mine,' replies a pampered goose.' Yes, these prodigal Pythagoreans, these vegetable philosophers, would give the earth up to the undisputed possession of Messrs. Ox, Hog, and Company. They would hand the title-deeds over to that firm. It has, perhaps, never entered the heads of these anti-carnivorous gentlemen, these minor omnipotents, who would change mankind into so many Nebuchadnezzars, and send the world to eat grass, what disposition they would make of their fourfooted rivals in the event of a general adoption of their principles. We would have to turn back into heathenism, and offer up a hecatomb to each one of the forty thousand gods of antiquity, to reduce the cattle market within reasonable limits. But the worst of it is, that these attenuated apostles of bran bread and water-cresses, whose worn-out organs can assimilate no strong meat, cannot be content with feeding their own way (which, if it be best for them, they have our free leave to feed as they list), nor be contented with simply proselyting by example and doctrine men of their own kind, but they insist upon imposing all the pains of moral excommunication upon us, who have healthy digestions and cheerful spirits, unless we will follow their examples, swear by their names, and feed by their rules. The Poems of Sir Robert Aytoun. Edited by Charles Roger, from a MS. in his possession, and other authentic sources, pp. 154. Edinburgh: Adam & Charles Black. These "ancients" had all the luck not only have they forestalled the best thoughts and brightest fancies of their posterity, but even in their graves they continue to monopolize the general ear, to the detriment of as good men, and much better poets. Who, for example, would have cared one fig for, or bought one copy of, the poems of Sir Robert Aytoun, save, in his own day, a few of his friends about the court, had he not died some two hundred years ago, and that comparatively very few people knew any thing about compositions now enamelled by the blue mould of centuries? Many of his verses, indeed, according to the belief of his editor, have never before appeared in print. This, however, is not satisfactorily shown; and the best have certainly been preserved in different miscellaneous collections. The residue have fallen into well-merited oblivion: not that the poems of Aytoun are without merit, for he is the author of at least one song that will live for another couple of centuries, and many of his compositions possess elegance of diction. The present publication owes its existence to a fortunate accident. At the sale of the books of Miss Hadow, a venerable spinster of St. Andrews, and the daughter and granddaughter of professors in the University of that city, an old manuscript volume fell into the hands of Mr. Charles Roger, a young student. It was found to contain the poems of Sir Robert Aytoun. This MS. volume, it is conjectured, must have been copied by a boy, (whom the editor rather fancifully conjectures to have been John, the youngest son of Archbishop Sharp,) from another MS. volume in the possession of some of the family of Sir James Balfour of Denmyln, the friend and fellow-courtier of the poet. It is nearly all guess-work; and the editor's anxious inquiries on this and other points connected with Sir Robert Aytoun, seem to have been attended with little or no success. Indeed, it would appear that only a part of Aytoun's previous poems were copied into the MS. of Miss Hadow. But the editor has done his best to give the world a faithful, full, and correct edition, so far as he has had the means. There may still be abundant room left for the literary critic and the antiquary to cavil; but as we neither belong to the latter fraternity, or, to own the truth, are as much impressed as might be desirable with the value of such labours as those in which Mr. Rogers has engaged, we raise no objections to one who certainly brings the fit enthusiasm to his task-who magnifies his office. Mr. Roger seems to have awakened the entire university from its slumbers, and fired it with the ambition of co-operating in his labour of love and reverence, in doing all honour to the first Scottish poet who wrote pure English for this distinction is claimed for Sir Robert Aytoun. A memoir of Aytoun is prefixed. He was the son of a Fife Laird, and, while still a young man, followed in the train of James the VI., on the accession of that monarch to the throne of England. He was, moreover, an accomplished scholar and courtier, who wrote very elegant occasional verses in the taste of his age. A Latin panegyric, written upon King James, after Aytoun returned from his travels in France, first drew upon him the gracious regards of the classic monarch; and he spent his whole subsequent life at the English court, where he was at tleman of the Bed-Chamber, a Privy Councillor, Master different periods, Private Secretary to the Queen, Genof Requests, and Master of Ceremonies. He appears to have been a general favourite, and in good odour, not only at court, but with Ben Jonson and the wits of the time; though very little is known about his personal history. He died in the palace of Whitehall in 1638, at an advanced age, and his nephew erected a handsome monument to him, which is still to be seen in excellent preservation in Westminster Abbey. We are glad to see that the learning and respectability of Fife have come forward to patronize this attempt to resuscitate the classic poet whom they claim as a fellow county-man. The song to which we have alluded, is that so well-known from its appearance in nearly every miscellaneous collection of English lyrics, "I do confess thou'rt smooth and fair." We shall give a few stanzas of another song, which it is said appears now with many more for the first time; and though that may be a mistake, they are to the present generation quite as good as MS. Wrong not, sweet Empress of my soul, Since if my plaints come not to prove I'd rather choose to want relief, Thus those desires which aim too high When Reason cannot make them die, Discretion doth them cover. Silence in love bewrays more woe Than words, though ne'er so pith y A beggar that is dumb, you know, Doth merit double pity. |