grief and anger, breaking up families and killing men and women. Observe:-Mordaunt Eveleyn, a young man of "noble blood," but not very wealthy-being allowed only four thousand dollars a year-marries a young woman of surpassing beauty, and lovely character, great artistic talent and intellectual culture, superior indeed, in every way, to himself. And thereupon, the fool of a mother, whose life is devoted to sell her daughters to lords and her son to a lady, in the name of wife and husband; and the foolish father whose weak will has been bent into the same channel; and the flippant, stylish sisters, who are sold or to be sold, are hurried away into passions, whirlwinds, paralyses of quenchless grief and mortification. In order to cover their shame, they plot; they lie; they take joyful refuge under the pretence that the young lady is a nobleman's bastard! "unacknowledged daughter" is the delicate fashionable equivalent. She herself is brutally sequestered from intercourse with her father, mother and brother; tortured and compressed into the proper repose That marks the caste of Vere de Vere," and introduced to the titled relatives of her husband, as a sneering-stock to spit their fashionable venomous envy on; they had made other arrangements for the young man. Are there such people-animals-in England, and so many of them, that this is to be considered a portraiture of actual manners there? We had hardly supposed it. We repeat that it seems to us, that the story must seem as unnatural and uninteresting to us this side of the Atlantic, as if all the agony and anger and sickness and death, had been deduced from Mordaunt Eveleyn's marriage with a lady outside of the pale of fashionable society, on account of having red hair, and always preferring gunpowder tea to young hyson. -The central idea of Heartsease (by the author of The Heir of Redclyffe) is the same with that of The Pride of Life; namely the experience of a wife, married for her loveliness, into a sphere "above" her own. Perhaps novels of this species are a sign and outgrowth of the gradual equalization which seems to be slowly supervening upon the stratified texture of English society. But the book is of a much higher order, morally and artistically, than Lady Scott's. The characters are exceedingly well drawn and distinguished. Violet is a true and lovely woman, operating upon her unstable husband, and her outrageously proud sister-in-law, Theodora, by forces beautiful and womanly, unconscious and still, but powerful and sure. Her own trials and changes, and those of her relatives, are very skillfully developed. The book, although not of the intense kind, bears evidence of very keen observation, and very true and careful thought; and as a work of art, must rank very high. There is one noticeable defect, in the management of the moral. This, which was apparently intended to permeate the whole texture of the narrative, is stuck in in unassimilated, uncomfortable lumps. We come upon them as upon an unexpected jolt; with a start and an "oh !" -PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, & Co. publish a neat volume containing the poems of COLLINS, GRAY, and GOLDSMITH, under the editorship of EPES SARGENT, Esq. The handsome paper and open type render this a very pleasant library volume. --LITTLE, BROWN & Co.'s Aldine series of the English Poets, edited by Professor Child, is continued with WORDSWORTH'S Poetical Works, in seven volumes. This set of books is of a very convenient size for reading, and the typographical execution is admirable. NEW EDITION.-We have received second edition of Rev. C. KINGSLEY'S powerful and suggestive novel, Hypatia. TRANSLATIONS.-Can the Saxon mind properly value the Gaulish? We doubt it. We are willing to grant that French authors possess excellences which we cannot see that it is our blindness which has something to do with the failure-and that it is only because ours is the Anglo-Saxon mind, that we prefer the productions of Anglo-Saxon writers. Whatever may be the reason, such at any rate is the fact. We remember, clearly enough the unsatisfactory result of our studies in Berquin's writings for children. And Madame GUIZor's Popular Tales impress us similarly now. Not that they are not well and gracefully told; not that they lack adventure, or probability. But they are not agreeable, in our judgment. For this we see two causes, other than the inborn prejudices above mentioned. One is, that a book translated for children. should be perfectly transmuted; should be rendered into the very purest, simplest, and most idiomatic English; into children's English; far away from the slightest savor of French construction or expression. Herein, though Mrs. BURKE, the translator, has done well, she has not perfectly succeeded. A second reason, which will perhaps better account for a man's dislike than for a child's, is this: that the morality of French children's books is nothing at all but sentimentality. The little folks are exhorted to preserve their honor; to respect their parents; to respect themselves; to be just to all; and charitable to the poor. But that is all. The strongest motives, for instance, which are used in Mrs. Sherwood's "Henry Milner ;" the religious motives; are almost totally ignored. For such reasons, we imagine that translations from the French will hardly be a very valuable or desirable addition to English juvenile literature. GUSTAV NIERITZ is reputed the best of the German writers of children's books. And Mrs. CONANT has translated his PlumWoman into English. It is a respectable book of its kind, as to plot and execution, bat with no impress of very great talent. Its adventures spring, moreover, from the crimes of adults, and those of a character to which introduction, even in fictions, had better be postponed to as mature an age as possible. The Rat-catcher, written and translated by the same parties, is a somewhat elaborated and completed version of the wellknown German legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelia. The legend has not gained very much in the extension. Some of the imaginations are a little crude and harsh. But such things should not be looked at with men's eyes; and the story will undoubtedly be an attractive one to the small people, in the pleasant English dress which Mrs. Conant has put upon it. FOREIGN LITERATURE.— English. — We sce notices of the publication of the following, among many books:-Sabbath Morning Readings (on Leviticus), and Sabbath Evening Readings (on Luke), by DR. CING: with prefaces of an angry character. The Collected Works of DUGALD STEWART, edited (with additions and notes) by SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON; which must needs be very much more valuable than Professor Stewart's works alone. DOUGLAS JERROLD'S Works, in 8 vols. Polynesian Mythology, and Ancient Traditionary History of the New Zealand Race, by SIR GEORGE Grey. A volume of the poet GRAY'S correspondence, edited by Rev. J. MITFORD. Scandinavian Adventures, a book of sportsman's experiences, by that capable narrator thereof, L. LLOYD. Life and Correspondence of Lord Metcalfe, by WILLIAM KAYE. Dozens of books of discussion of travel and description, connected with the seat of war in the south of Russia. Two curious volumes called, A Roll of the Household Expenses of Richard de Swinfield, Bishop of Hereford, during 1289 and 1290; and Documents relating to the Priory of Penwortham, &c.; containing many details of prices and domestic matters at their dates. A translation by Mr. Cottrel, of Chevalier BUNSEN'S book on Egypt's Place in Universal History.' A book called Sonnets on Anglo-Saxon History, being about a hundred sonnets upon that period, of an unexceptionable character as to ethics, but rather solid than entertaining. The authoress is Miss ANN HAWKSHAW. A careful and studied work by J. T. WHEELER, On The Geography of Herodotus. Good advice to the quarreling sections of the United States, from Dr. MARSHALL HALL, in his Twofold Slavery in the United States. Rev. F. D. MAURICE'S Doctrine of Sacrifice, Deduced from the Scriptures. A complete edition of Lord BROUGHAM'S Works, under his own superintendence. Professor WILSON's complete works, edited by his son-in-law, Professor Ferrier. A Third Gallery of Portraits, by GILFILLAN. A translation, by RAWDON BROWN, of GIUSTINIANI'S Four Years at the Court of Henry VIII.; Mr. RUSKIN'S treatise On the Nature of a Gothic Architecture. FRENCH.-M. DU COURET under the name of HADJI-ABD-EL-HAMED-BEY, has written a voyage au Pays des Niam-Niams, who (the Niam-Niams) are a people in Central Africa, with tails. M. DU COURET did not reach their country, but found one of them at Mecca, and examined his tail, and likewise presents a great mass of testimony, which seems to establish the reasonableness, or at least the possibility of Lord Monooddo's long-ridiculed theory. M. CHARLES WEISS edits Sermons choisis de Jacques Saurin. The powerful sermons of that staunch Protestant will yet repay a perusal. We also notice announcements of the publication of Heures en Prison, by Madame LAFARGE, the poisoner. The first volume of GEORGE SANDS' Histoire de ma Vie. A poem composed by COULDRETTE, in the fourteenth century, called Mellusine, relating to that celebrated fairy of Poitou; and now edited by F. Michel, from MSS. in the Bibliothèque Imperiale. The sixteenth and last volume of M. DE SAULCY's expensive work, Voyage autour de la Mer Morte et dans les terres Bibliques. THE FINE ARTS. LANDSEER'S Twins. Hitherto almost our only public galleries of Art have been the windows of the print-sellers' shops, and they have never wanted visitors. Those of us who have passed the establishments of Colman, Williams & Stevens, and Goupil-daily, for the last ten years, have had the opportunity of seeing in their windows the best works of the best artistsold and new-reproduced in copies and engravings, and to our citizens, these collections have been of no mean service. He who has neglected them, would have neglected the Louvre and the Vatican, had nature made him a Frenchman or an Italian; and he who has learned nothing from them, or only looked to sneer, has no true love for the beautiful in Art, but only follows with his censure or approval the dictates of fashion and convention. Of late, our advantages for the study of Art have been increased by the addition of a new feature to these establishments-the private exhibitions of the works of native and foreign artists-which have attracted so much attention among us during the last few months. Williams & Stevens opened the season with one of Herring's pictures—a characteristic work of this well-known English painter of animals—which excited a great deal of attention. But a far finer pictureand one worth infinitely more as a teacher to Americans-is the "Twins," by Landseer, which has just been removed to Boston. It is a fine specimen of the mastera free, playful, unaffected picture, gladdening the heart with its truth, its simplicity and its sentiment. The dogs seem to have carried off the larger share of popular praise-to judge by the tone of conversation in society and the notices of the pressbut we were most interested in the two lambs. It is easy to make noble dogs interesting, but to make lambs poetical and provocative of tender imaginations and delicate sentiment, is a task that hitherto has been the "philosopher's stone" to poetsthe synonym of impossibility. The execution of this picture is a fine lesson to our animal painters, who have hitherto worshipped too constantly with their faces towards Düsseldorf-Düsseldorf, at once the friend and the enemy of our national Art and artists-the foreign Delilah, whose scissors clip off all the hair of our young artistic Samsons whenever she can woo them to her side. -ARY SCHEFFER'S Temptation of Christ. Messrs. Goupil & Co. have also their little private Picture Gallery, where they are at present exhibiting a fine work by Ary Scheffer, one of the few truly great artists whom France can boast. We say few, but those few are truly splendid names-as great men in Art as ever lived-as individual, as earnest, as original. This picture of Scheffer's embodies the passage of the Scripture narrative which represents Satan as saying" All these will I give unto thee if only thou wilt fall down and worship me." The two stand upon a point of rock which may well be, by the silence and depth of blue which invest it, the topmost peak of an exceeding high mountain. The composition is reduced to its simplest elements. The detail of the picture is the merest suggestion. The rock upon which Christ and Saten stand is no rock-the drapery which clothes Christ is no material-all the objects are typical, and only introduced because the story could not be told without them. The aim of the artist was evidently to express his idea of the constant position of Christianity with reference to the materialism of the world. Christ points to Heaven as the abode of Him whose love is his only desire. Satan points to the kingdoms of this world and the glory of them, as the highest reward he has to offer for faithful service; Christ is attired in ample vesture to express the severity of that worship which makes the spiritual beauty of the soul pre-eminent, to the neglect of the beauty of the body. Satan is naked-his form exhibiting the strength and energy of the Greek Fauna resemblance more closely followed out in the attitude and character of the head, which is evidently modelled in the antique. Whatever may be our opinion of the truth of this idea of Scheffer, we cannot deny that he has shown himself thoroughly earnest in its expression, and that he has interpreted his thought with admirable directness and simplicity. It is not by any means a popular picture. It is not to be lightly looked at, and passed by without a further thought. As a painting, it is almost worthless and deserves the scantiest praisebut as a deep moral utterance-the sincere expression of a great soul—we have had no such picture offered to us in this city for examination within our recollection. -LOCKWOOD'S Last Judgment is still being exhibited at the Racket Club Building. It is not a great painting by any means, and we are not a little surprised at the universal expression-in the newspapers of approbation of Mr. Lockwood's boldness in choosing such a subject for his first large picture. It seems to us, on the contrary, that such a subject ought to be attempted only by an artist of great learning and matured powers. It is not creditable to any man to undertake a work disproportioned to his powers. We are not accustomed to see beginners in any profession attempting the highest works in that profession. The child must consent to creep before he can hope to walk. Bowlegged infants only testify to the impossility of reconciling ambition with performance at that early stage of life. Mr. Lockwood's picture is all that could have been looked for. It is not original either in conception or arrangement. It is weak in color, and the artist's claims to profound anatomical knowledge sound curiously in the presence of the picture. The notices of the work by the press, with but few exceptions, have deprecated harsh judgment in consideration of the difficulties of the subject and the great size of the picture. But the greater its size and the vaster the subject the greater the necessity of truthfal criticism. Mr. Lockwood, in attacking such a theme, has thrown down the gauntlet, and he must not complain if it is taken пр We honestly wish we could praise the picture, but it neither does justice to its subject nor credit to American Art. It is being exquisitely engraved by Mr. Enzing Müller-who is correcting all its faults of drawing and all the blunders in anatomy. No true idea of the execution of the picture can ever be obtained from the engraving-and, indeed, it is not pleasant to think that so fine an engraver as Mr. Müller should be devoting his time to the perpetuating so poor a work. But we believe that the enterprise is a distinguished pecuniary success. And here we may say that the fee universally demanded among us for the privilege of seeing works of Art-twenty-five cents-is entirely too great. The charge should not exceed five, or at the most ten cents, and until our people can see pictures and statues at that rate, we shall find that such exhibitions are only attended by a few persons. Art can never come to be loved by our people until they are made familiar with its productions, and familiar they can never be, until these productions are rendered more accessible by a smaller admission fee. Every boy aud girl in our city ought to see often every picture and statue that comes among us. But to bring about this happy result, demands the reduction in the tax to the extent we have indicated. Since the removal of Landseer's picture, Messrs. Williams & Stevens have been exhibiting a picture of great merit by an American artist, resident in our city--Mr. George H. Hall. The picture is called The April Shower. The shower has overtaken three young ladies who are endeavoring to escape the threatened wetting by taking refuge under one umbrella. In the expression of character in each of the girls, Hall has been remarkably successful, and the execution of the picture is careful and admirable. It is not a deep work, has very little moral, and its story is simple; it is a picture to be looked at, enjoyed and taken pleasure in--a beautiful effect of color, and a clear, decided piece of character drawing. Messrs. Williams & Stevens have made a judicious choice in the selection of this picture for exhibition. It is not by one of our best known men, but it is evidently not by one of our least able and conscientious. Mr. Hall must eventually become widely known as an earnest, faithful student-a sincere lover of his work-and one of our few men who paint with conscience, and hold the master's brush. -MR. ROGER's, a young American who has been six or seven years in Rome, has just returned, bringing with him several works of merit a statue of Ruth, one or two busts of private persons, a statue called The Skater, and another, Love in a Pet. Mr. Rogers's marbles are on exhibition at his studio in the late rooms of the Academy of Design. -MISS HOSMER has recently sent home two busts in marble-Medusa and Daphne, which have attracted much attention in Boston. They are the property of Mrs. Samuel Appleton. -MR. H. K. BROWN is at work upon his Equestrian Statue of Washington, to be executed in bronze, and erected in some one of our public squares. We regret that we have no room at present to say all of Mr. Brown's work that we wish to say, but shall hope to do so next month. -MR. LEUTZE'S picture, Washington at Monmouth, is still exhibited in our city, but is to be removed before long. Every one ought to see it, for although far from being a great work, or even one of Leutze's best, it is vigorous and natural, and in its detail and minor groups an admirable picture. -The Crayon, is the title of a new weekly journal in the quarto form, "devoted to the Graphic Arts and the Literature related to them." Edited by W. J. STILLMAN and J. DURAND. The first number appears just as we go to press, and we can only chronicle its advent and cordially wish it the success which so laudable an enterprise deserves. It is in good hands, and will have the best and most judicious co-operation. -The Albion weekly journal presents its subscribers annually with a large engraving. The new one is a very excellent view of Niagara, from the north side of Goat Island, painted by WANDESFORD, and admirably engraved in line by R. HINSHELWOOD. It is one of the best representations of the Horse Shoe Falls: and as a line engraving deserves especial notice. BOOKS RECEIVED. RUTH HALL. By Fanny Fern. New York: Mason Brothers. 12mo., pp. 400. HARRY'S VACATION; or, Philosophy at Home. By William C. Richards. New York: Evans & Dickerson. 12mo., pp. 398. PARLEY'S HOUSEHOLD LIBRARY. New York: E. & H. Fletcher. Svo., pp. 416. POSITIVE MEDICAL AGENTS; a treatise on alkaloid, resinoid, and concentrated preparations of medical plants. By authority of the American Chemical Institute. New York: B. Keith & Co. 8vo. pp. 299. ELEMENTS OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN MIND. By Dugald Stewart. Revised and abridged, for the use of colleges and schools. By Francis Bowen. Boston and Cambridge: James Munroe & Co. 12mo., pp. 490. THE UNIVERSE NO DESERT-THE EARTH NO MONOPOLY; preceded by a scientific exposition of the unity of plan in creation. Two volumes in one. Boston and Cambridge: James Munroe & Co. 12mo., pp. 239. AN OFFERING OF SYMPATHY TO THE AFFLICTED; espe- A COMPLETE GUIDE TO ORNAMENTAL LEATHER-WORK. MARY AND ELLEN; or the best Thanksgiving. Boston and Cambridge: James Munroe & Co. 12mo., pp. 152. THE LIFE OF HORACE GREELEY. By J. Parton. New York: Mason Brothers. 12mo., pp. 442. HYPATIA; or New Foes with an Old Face. By Chas. Kingsley, jun. Second edition. Boston: Crosby, Nichols & Co. 12mo., pp. 487. [First edition was noticed in the Monthly.] BRUSHWOOD, PICKED UP ON THE CONTINENT; or, Last Summer's Trip to the Old World. By Orville Horwitz. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co. 12mo., pp. 308. PEBBLES FROM THE LAKE SHORE; or Miscellaneous Poems. By Charles Leland Porter, A. M. Phila12mo., pp. delphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co. 289. THE BOAT CLUB; or the Bunkers of Rippleton. A Tale for Boys. By Oliver Optic. Boston: Brown, Bazin & Co. 12mo., pp. 252. HUMANITY IN THE CITY. By the Rev. E. H. Chapin. New York: De Witt & Davenport. 12mo., pp. 252. THE WONDERFUL MIRROR. By the author of "A Visit to the Country," etc. With illustrations. Boston: Crosby, Nichols & Co. THE LIGHT OF THE TEMPLE. By W. R. Strickland, D. D. Cincinnati: J. Ernst. 12mo., pp. 288. THOUGHTS TO HELP AND TO CHEER. Second Series. Boston Crosby, Nichols & Co. 12mo., pp. 229. THE COMPLETE POETICAL WORKS OF WILLIAM COLLINS, THOMAS GRAY, AND OLIVER GOLDSMITH. With biographical sketches and notes. Edited by Epes Sargent. Boston: Phillips, Sampson & Co. 12 mo., pp. 166. In THE POETICAL WORKS OF WILLIAM WORDSWORTH. seven volumes. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 16mo., pp. about 400 each vol. Il MERRIE ENGLAND. Travels, descriptions, tales, and historical sketches. By Grace Greenwood. lustrated. Boston: Ticknor & Fields. 16mo., pp. 261. POEMS, BY ALICE CARY. Boston: Ticknor & Fields. 12mo., pp. 899. |