One Easter, in coming out of the Palace, he addressed the sentry with his usual familiarity, in the form of salutation prescribed for that day- Christ is risen.' Instead of the usual reply-' He is, indeed,'-the fellow answered gravely, 'He is not indeed.' • Hey! how? what is that?' said the Emperor; 'I said, Christ is risen!' and I replied, He is not.' • Why, who, and what in God's name are you ?' 'I am a Jew.""

Jennings's Landscape Annual, 1836.(Andalusia.) The united talents and researches of Mr. Roberts and Mr. Roscoe, have presented us with a work of great beauty and interest. Though we do not think a continued history (vide p. vi.) the most suitable narrative for an annual, which should rather afford a variety of entertainment, yet Mr. Roscoe has selected his materials with skill and judgment; and given us some of the most striking events which the history of Andalusia could furnish. Mr. D. Roberts's pencil has formed such splendid groups of architectural magnificence, as fully equal bis former work of last year; and prove that he is indeed strongly imbued with the poetry of his divine art.

The

Roman Gateway, the Moorish Palace, the Gothic Cathedral, the Mosque, the Monastery, and the Theatre, all are pourtrayed with a master's hand, piled up in masses of prodigious richness and splendour; while the brightest illuminations are flung on their sublime and graceful forms, recalling them, as it were, from their present state of darkness and decay, to the original freshness of their youth. Where all are beautiful, it is difficult to make a choice; but the views of Seville and the elaborate and richly decorated Church of San Miguel at Xeres, are our peculiar favourites. The View of Malaga is very cleverly drawn; and the wood engravings have great merit. In this volume, the highest luxury of art is blended with useful information and sound historical research.

Friendship's Offering and Winter's Wreath. 1836. Smith and Elder.-Though this work does not rise to the pretensions of the one we have just mentioned, it is not deficient in its claims to attention. The engravings are pleasing, the verses in general such as do credit to the taste of the authors, and the prose tales written with spirit. The preface pays an affecting tribute to the memory of Mr. Thomas Pringle and of H. D. Inglis, the former of whom was the editor, and the second a contributor to the previous volume of this work. We cordially join in the affectionate lament of the new editor.

The Biblical Keepsake. By the Rev. T. H. Horne. Second Series. Murray. 1836. -This volume deserves the same praise which we bestowed upon the former. The views are most judiciously classic, elegantly engraved, and correctly described. It is a point of some difficulty to collect a variety of landscapes from a country so seldom visited, and many of whose districts are not to be approached without difficulty and danger. Consequently, the publishers have called in the aid of different travellers; though they are chiefly indebted to Mr. Charles Barry. The descriptions by Mr. Horne are executed with that knowledge of his subject and good taste which we find in his other works. The engravings, by Messrs. Finden, do full justice to the romantic and beautiful compositions entrusted to them. The View of the Bay of Puteoli is as lively as a coloured picture; and the Cedars of Lebanon is the most graphic and faithful sketch we have ever seen of the few surviving patriarchs of the vegetable world.

The New Year's Token. By William Darton. 1836.-We have no doubt that Mr. Darton's honourable ambition to present not only a pleasing but useful volume to the public, will be gratified by its reception. The contributors are persons of taste and talent; and the tales in verse and prose are respectable for their execution, and entertaining for their variety.

The Angler's Souvenir. P. Fisher, Esq. With Illustrations by Beckwith and Topham. Tilt.-Tún réxvnv sögnasu, ob ríxvn rx. This weighty aphorism wants not its truth in the Angler's art, as in others; and from some chance beginning of a truant schoolboy, or idle apprentice, did the beautiful art of the angler probably grow. The use of the net seems known as far back as history extends; and Homer mentions the rod and line, in nearly the form and tackling in which they are now used. The Romans, as every one knows, were epicures, even to the highest refinement, in fish. Cicero speaks of one"Murænarum copiâ gloriantem." But in modern times angling has assumed a character above that of merely ministering to the palate or the stomach. It is indeed a science, and requires many and important qualifications in those who hope to succeed in it. The same great orator whom we have just quoted says-' Nemo orator, nisi vir bonus' so we may say,— to be a good angler you must be an honest man. We firmly believe that fish can distinguish a sneaking pitiful scoundrel, from an open, manly, and generous enemy. Great fishermen have always been great in other things. Look at Sir Hum

phry Davy-great in philosophy; Professor Wilson, great in poetry; Mr. Dyce, equally great in criticism. In fact, the fisherman's craft demands great mental and moral powers; to bear up against vicissitudes and disappointments on the one hand with fortitude, and not to lose a just and modest equanimity in the full and unexpected flow of prosperity on the other. Κούφως φέρειν δεῖ τὰς παρεστώτας τυχάς. Το these fluctuations of fortune the angler is exposed; nor will skill, knowledge, patience, with all appliances to boot, avail him at all against the angry dæmon of the waters when he frowns upon him. However, the author and publisher of the present beautifully decorated volume have done all they can to propitiate the Dii Piscosi; and if, as in the days of Pope,

Old Father Thames uprear his reverend head,'

he will no doubt be heard to exclaim to Mr. Tilt in the following words :

I've seen your Angler's Souvenir,

By Fisher, Beckwith, and by Topham; And when they come to Hampton-weir, I'll send my water-nymphs to stop 'em ; And such a dish we'll have, I guess,

Of my best trout, and pike, and grayling;

(I'll ask to meet them Mr. Jesse,

You know his house with the green
paling.)

And then we'll talk of Jugulares,'
Thoracici,- Abdominales;'

Till in your ventral fin no air is,
And all your stomach 's full, as Paley's:
For Paley swept his platter clean,

And left nor skin, nor roe, nor milt; Oh! had he liv'd to be a Dean,

And seen this volume, bound and gilt, He'd say No gudgeon is, I ween, The publisher, good Mr. Tilt.'

The Forget Me Not. By Frederick Shoberl. We are glad to observe this parent of the Anuuals making its appearance, with all the freshness and beauty of renovated youth. The engravings (eleven in number) are of first-rate character:- The

Young Enchanter,' engraved by Rolls, from a painting by Wood; King Alfred's Return from the Danish Camp,' by Bacon, from Hart; the Confessor,' by Rolls, from Stone; and the Dance of the Peasants,' from Davenport, by Bone,may justly rank among the most splendid productions of modern art; and are not unworthy of the high character which the publishers have long maintained. Among the contributors to the volume we miss some of the usual names; but their absence appears to be compensated by the

acquisition of new ones, who have produced some interesting compositions in prose and verse; among the former of which may be noticed the Young Enchanter,' to accompany the engraving above mentioned; Life in the Woods,'

་

by W. S. Stone, Esq.; the Mint Master of Winchester,' by Miss Lawrance; and the Actress at the Duke's.' From · the poetical pieces we select the following stanzas, written by our old friend and correspondent, the Rev. Mr. Polwbele, entitled,

THE DEPARTED FRIEND.

Ye visions of romantic youth,

Ah! once so flattering, once so fair,
Usurp not still the place of truth;
I hail'd you, but I grasp'd at air.
Flickering across the shadowy vale,

Alas! how false your meteor light!
Your form at every step grew pale;

And I was plunged in cheerless night. My friend, in unavailing woe

I mourn'd; till, in the dawning skies, I welcomed an effulgent glow,

And saw the balmy day-star rise. And-hark!—I hear a seraph-strain Whispering sweet comfort to my heart; "Unfading, shall ye meet again, In glory, never more to part!"

Yes! 'tis from Heaven alone descends

The "Light of Life"-the gracious voice

That bids us greet our Christian friends In endless union to rejoice!

The Christian Keepsake, and Missionary Annual.-This Annual is edited by the Rev. William Ellis, the Foreign Secretary of the London Missionary Society, and inscribed, with special permission, to Her Royal Highness the Princess Victoria; of whom a beautifully-executed portrait is prefixed to the volume. In graphical and typographical splendour this annual is not eclipsed by any of its compeers. It is adorned with portraits and biographical notices of the late Dr. Morrison, Mr. Wilberforce, Mrs. Fry, Mr. Buxton, Mirza Mohammed Ali Bey the Persian convert, and the African Prince who was brought to this country some years since, and became the catechumen of an amiable young lady in the family of the late Sir Stamford Raffles. Among the embellishments will also be found an affecting picture of the Hindoo Mother deserting her offspring; with views of Nazareth; of Antioch and of the Cedars of Lebanon ; and some of the more remarkable scenes of Modern Missions: all exquisitely engraved.-The letter-press comprehends, besides the Biographical Sketches already

noticed, some inedited letters of Dr. Morrison; the Autobiography of a Hindoo Convert; a paper on Infanticide in India, by Miss Emma Roberts; with sketches of the Missions to Tahiti, Africa, and Canton; and a few other articles in prose. This annual also contains a considerable number of poetic effusions; these derive their chief interest from their connection with Missions to the Heathen, which is the great subject of the volume. The most interesting are the Address to the Princess Victoria, by Mrs. Opie; the Song of the Hussites, by the Honourable and Rev. Baptist W. Noel; and the Prayer for All Souls, by Josiah Conder. The Christian Keepsake for 1836 will, we have no doubt, be found a very acceptable present, and more particularly in the circle for which it is designed.

The Cabinet of Modern Art, and Literary Souvenir. Edited by Alaric Watts. Second Series. 1836.-The well-known taste of the editor, his long familiarity with works of art, and his extensive acquaintance with the first poets and painters of the day, are a pledge sufficient to assure us of the excellence of his work. Mr. Watts, with all the luxury of the fine arts around him, living, as he appears to do, like Apollo, with his young and fascinating muses Miss Montagu, and Mary Howitt, and Miss Landon, and half a dozen others as tuneful and as beautiful, all with their harps in their hands, ready to strike out, when he gives the signal-we say, Mr. Watts could do no less than present us a volume as superior to all others, as he exceeds all other publishers in his knowledge of art and in his enviable possession of its great treasures. His volume has unfortunately reached us the last of all, when our space and our time are both failing; had it come earlier, we should willingly have made some desirable extracts from its literary treasures. The paintings are chosen with taste, and engraved with correctness and spirit. We have only two exceptions, the plate of the Fairies is so dark, that we took them for the Brownies; and as for Westall's Cupid and Psyche, it ought to be called Stupid and Cicely;' for such a Cupid, whether Eros or Anteros, we never saw. But we remember the old and sound advice sed ubi plura nitent and fairly own that to our critical eyes these are the only exceptions to the great and general merit of the work. The poetry is light, elegant, and in some places rising into excellence :-as in Mr. Hervey's Vision of the Stars; and Mr. Cornwall's Painter Conquered. And we are also much pleased with Miss Bowles's Treaty

FISHER'S Drawing-room Serap-Book, 1836. With Poetical Illustrations by L.E. L. This is a quarto Annual, and the fifth volume of its kind. The engravings have equal recommendation, in point of excellence, with the more regular publications of this splendid class: only most persons will have seen at least some of them before. But to those who can enjoy a plentiful repast of rich, though not untasted, luxuries, and who are also pleased with a variety of dainties, we recommend the Drawing-room Scrap-book in preference to any other of these delightful volumes. It contains no less than thirty-six plates, some of which are landscapes, in India, North America, and in the North of England; including views of several fine old mansions and churches. Some are historical designs, several of which, illustrative of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, reflect great credit on the talents of Mr. H. Melville; some are ancient portraits, as Smith Bp. of Lincoln, and Oldham Bp. of Exeter, and some modern, as the Princess Esterhazy, the Earl of Mulgrave, Sir T. Hardy, and the clever Mrs. Trollope. The poetical illustrations which occupy the whole of the letterpress of this quarto volume, prove the exceedingly ready pen and easy skill in versification possessed by L.E.L.; the fair authoress has this year introduced some fugitive pieces, besides those which belong to the plates.

Flowers of Loveliness is a handsome volume of still larger dimensions, arrayed in scarlet and gold, and containing twelve groups of female figures, designed by Mr. E. T. Parris, and intended to be "emblematic of flowers." They are accompanied by poetical illustrations, composed by the Countess of Blessington. The plates will elicit, we doubt not, very general admiration; the grouping is certainly an improvement upon the single figures (how. ever beautiful) which have been so much Our the fashion for the last few years. favourites are Roses,'' Honeysuckle,' Lily,' and Snowdrop.' In the poem illustrating one of the sweetest of these, Lady Blessington exclaims, in the spirit of the season,

"Blessed shrine, dear blessful Home! Source whence happiness doth come! Round thy cheerful hearth we meet All things beauteous-all things sweet." In such gay and cheerful circles, we may therefore confidently expect to find the "Flowers of Loveliness.'

TILT'S Comic Almanac for 1836 stands not in need of our applause, nor of any verbal recommendation; for its laughable devices, appealing to the risible muscles of all that are not deep-sunk in perpetual melancholy, will most effectually win its own way at first sight. In the characteristic illustrations of the months, etched by George Cruikshank, that clever artist shines not only as a humourist, but as a most accurate observer both of ancient and modern manners and costume. Nor are the efforts of the writer, or writers, in pun, quibble, jest, and, we may justly add, pungent satire, at all inferior to those of any competitors in the school of Hood. There is one joke which we think will not wear another year, and that is the reiterated assertion of the death of "Francis Moore, physician;" for we know the truth to be, that the sale of the Almanac of Francis Moore, well watered by the fostering hand of the Company of Stationers, and partaking of all the improvements of modern knowledge, is now exceeding, many times over, any sale which it ever enjoyed in the days of the ancient monopoly. It is only just to add, that the Comic Almanac contains a calendar, and most of the useful information of its more serious brethren.

Scotland, by William Beattie, M. D. illustrated in a series of Views taken on the spot, expressly for this toork, by Thomas Allom, Esq. 4to. Lond. 1885. Virtue. (The first Quarterly part.)—A truly elegant work. This first part is embellished with twenty-one admirably executed engravings, illustrative of some of the choicest scenes of that interesting country. The accompanying letter-press is well drawn up, and, when completed, will form an excellent topographical and statistical account of Scotland. Among the illustrations we may point out, as our especial favourites, Ben Lomond, as view ed from Invernglas; the Vale of Glencroe; the Head of Loch Lomond, looking south; Lochs Fine and Long, the latter as seen from Glencroe; the grand view of Glencroe, between Loch Long and Cairn Dhu. Amongst the views of

ancient buildings, we may particularize, as more particularly excellent, the view of the Inner Court of the palace of Linlithgow; those of Melrose Abbey and of the Castle of Sterling; and that of the West Bow, Edinburgh, with its animated scene of the Condemned Covenanters. The descriptive letter-press in this part embraces an introductory chapter, and a detailed account of the Shire of Berwick, and of part of the district of Lothian. It is a book admirably calculated for a Christmas present, and will form an elegant companion to the drawing-room table.

Truth's Triumph, a poem on the Reformation, by C. R. Bond. 1834.—If Mr. Bond is a young man, we should hold out to him hopes of attaining, by study and select reading of our old poets, such a particular style and manner of thought, as may be satisfactory to himself and gratifying to his readers. His ear is good, and he seems to have studied the best models; but he much wants experience and advice. Let him consult a sincere friend, who is a good critic, before he publishes again.

A Vision of fair Spirits, and other Poems, by John Graham, of Wadham College. 1834.-There is a poetical spirit in this volume, and a good command of poetic phraseology; a language which is well chosen, and a versification that is harmonious.

We think, however, that Mr. Graham has formed his style on a model too heightened and adorned; that he is seldom content to be plain and natural; and that he exhibits marks of being too familiar with the manner of Byron and Heber. We distinctly catch echoes of them both in his different productions. In the Oxford Prize Poems, speaking generally, there is more of elegant expression and musical versification, than of poetic thought; and the gleams of youthful genius seem obscured by the pomp of language with which they are covered. There is also perceivable in this poem an exaggeration of sentiment, for which Lord Byron must bear the blame; and indeed, his example has been very disadvantageously felt through the lower regions of Parnassus. We can only say to our poets-choose no models among your contemporaries, however splendid their reputation; look to Nature and to Truth, and to those who interpreted Nature in the golden age of our Elizabethan poetry; let your thoughts be just and true, and appropriate expression will follow.

ROYAL ACADEMY.

Dec. 10. The biennial meeting of this institution was held at Somerset House, for bestowing on the students in the schools of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, the three gold and thirteen silver medals awarded by the Academy (see p. 631).

Sir M. A. Shee, previous to bestowing the premiums, stated that the Academy had this year granted the three gold medals; but that they have the power of withholding any of those rewards when the works of the candidates are judged to be deficient in merit; and they had expected that more energy and exertion would have been displayed on this important occasion. The possession of the gold medal confers the privilege of its possessor being sent at the expense of the Academy to travel for three years and study at Rome, and other cities of Italy, where the finest works of art are to be studied; these great advantages ought to inspire a higher spirit of emulation, and should have produced some better specimens of true devotion to the more elevated classics of art. In historic composition, the highest class of art, there were only two candidates. In the next class Historical Sculpture, but one; yet this work is an honourable exception to the

indolence observable in the other high classes. In the Architectural Class of Original Design there are but two candidates, both creditable to that school; but extraneous ornaments in this species of drawing should, and must in future, be avoided. On the general account of the Silver Medal Classes, they have been treated with more than the usual liberality, and it must be supposed their works have given more than the usual degree of satisfaction."

The three gold medals were awarded to Mr. W. D. Kennedy, for the best historical painting; for Mr. H. Timbrell, for the best historical groupe in sculpture; and to Mr. J. Johnson, for the best architectural design.

The whole number of competitors this year, in all the various classes, amounts, in the drawing and painting schools, to 43; sculpture, seven; and architecture, seven; making, with the medal die, about 60 candidates for three gold and 12 silver medals; that is, at the rate of four blanks to one prize.

New Works announced for Publication. LORD BROUGHAM is preparing for the press, his Decisions in the Court of Chan

cery.

Roman British Coins, or Coins of the Romans struck in and relating to the province of Britain, illustrated and explained by J. Y. AKERMAN, F.S. A. With fac-simile plates of all the varieties.

The Numismatic Journal, devoted exclusively to Numismatic subjects; to appear quarterly, the first number in Feb. ruary. Edited by Mr. AKERMAN, assisted by eminent Numismatists at home and abroad.

A Metrical Translation of the entire Eleven Comedies of Aristophanes, by M. WALSH, Fellow of Trin. Coll. Camb.

Outlines of a Journey through Arabia Petræa to Mount Sinai, and the Excavated City of Petra (the Edom of the Prophecies). By M. LEON DE LABORDE. The British Colonial Library. In Monthly volumes.

GENT. MAG, VOL. V.

A new edition of Gifford's Poetical Translation of Juvenal's Satires, with Notes, Index, &c. by Dr. NUTTALL; printed uniformly, and so as to correspond page for page, with his forthcoming edition of Juvenal.

A Hebrew and English Dictionary to the Book of Psalms, with references to the authorised version, accompanied by an index of every Hebrew word as it occurs in the text. Also, the Hebrew Psalter, with points; and a new edition of Robertson's Key to the Pentateuch.

The Garden of Languages, embellished with numerous illustrative engravings.

The complete works of Bentley, edited by the Rev. A. DYCE.

Elements of International Law. By H. WHEATON, LL.D. Resident Minister from the United States to the Court of Berlin.

The "Self-condemned a Romance. By the author of "The Lollards," George Godfrey," &c.

L