endeavoured to bring under the view of the House, they judge thirty-five thousand pounds to be a reasonable aud sufficient price for this Collection. Your Committee observing, that by the Act 45 Geo. III., c. 127, for vesting the TOWNLEYAN collection in the Trustees of the British Museum, § 4, the proprietor of that Collection, Mr. TOWNLEY STANDISH, was added to the Trustees of the British Museum, consider the EARL of ELGIN (and his heirs being EARLS of ELGIN,) as equally entitled to the same distinction, and recommend that a clause should be inserted to that effect, if it should be necessary that an Act should pass for transferring his Collection to the Public. Annexed is a body of Evidence, derived from our most eminent Virtuosi, Artists, and Professors with statements of costs, valuations, &c. Atheniensia, or Remarks on the Topography and Buildings of Athens. By W. Wilkins, A. M. F. R. S. 8vo. pp. 296. Murray, London. 1816. Messrs. Stuart and Revett certainly had the honour of bringing the British public acquainted with antient Athens; for, the descriptions of that city which were extaut before their work appeared, principally those of Mr. Vernon and Sir George Wheler, were composed by travellers very slightly acquainted with the rudiments necessary to guide their judgment. Nevertheless, Stuart and Revett being the first of their class, though able men, were imperfectly informed on many things; they had few opportunities of obtaining corrected notions from that canvassing of propositions and opinions, which among men of liberal minds is one of the surest paths to truth. Their pursuits, at Athens, were interrupted; and though they did much, yet they left much for their successors to do. years There was in their time no succession of English travellers at Athens; and certainly, there was no English tavern opened, nor the prospect within credible distance of such an establishment, which later years have witnessed. Later have also witnessed a rivalship between nations, and among artists of the same nation, as well as between gentlemen who have enjoyed in their visits opportunities which would have highly gratified Stuart and Revett. year We cannot, therefore, but accept with pleasure the accounts of later travellers, as Fr. Clarke, aud Mr. Hobhouse; to which we add Mr. Wilkins, who resided in Athens, in the 1802. As a professional man, we expect from him professional information; and though we may not always adopt his opinion, yet on many points, we confess a hesitation whether we ought not to adopt it. We pass with slight notice, the first of these Essays, "On the Origin of Grecian Architecture," which the writer, following the beaten track, derives wholly from Egypt; (without enquiring whence the Egyptians derived their principles and practice) to examine the second, "on the plan of Athens." And this, it must be acknowledged, contains arguments entitled to consi deration, whether some of these cele brated Ruins have not hitherto been misnamed. It is every way most likely that the least antient structures should be now in the best condition; and consequently, we incline with Mr. W. to accept Stuart's Theatre of Bacchus, for that of flerodes-Atticus, built in the time of Pausanias, (the second century of A. D.)—the real Theatre of Bacchus, a structure of the same form, being several ages older. To whatever was the fate of the city-and it has experienced frequent vicissitudes, the more antient edifices were certainly most exposed. It was twice burnt by the Persians,destroyed by Philip of Macedon, nearly levelled with the ground by Sylla, ravaged by the Goths, in the time of Claudius, stript by Alaric, of whatever was valuable; and repeatedly besieged by the Turks, and the Venetians, in later ages, and since the invention of gunpowder; from which it has greatly suffered. It is true, nevertheless, that the most antient structures continue to be the most interesting: they were most strongly and carefully executed, in the first instance; and they retain their character of superiority. When Thesens had cleared the adjacent seas from pirates, he made Athens the metropolis of the country: he placed there the courts of justice, for the whole dominion, the most splendid religious ceremonies, the public treasury, &c. This naturally encreased the population; | and Pandrosas-while the Temple of Minerva, and the Propylea, or Entrance Gates, stand east and west, this temple, one of the most sacred, as containing the salt water fountain, produced by Neptune, together with the divine olive tree, produced by Minerva,—this temple ranges with no cardinal point, and consequently, it conforms to no general ar and, equally naturally, attracted by the commerce of the district, the new Settlers occupied that side of the city nearest to the ports. The fable of the contest between Minerva and Neptune for the patronage of the city, shews, that there was a time, when export trade and maritime power were no less popular among the Athenians than the labours of Agri-rangement. The inference, naturally, culture, and home production. They held divided sway, till the wisdom of the most profound statesmen decided against a too extensive foreign commerce: in other words, the olive of Minerva prevailed over the Sea-horse (Ship) of Neptune. is, that a want of regularity pervaded the whole Acropolis, or Citadel: and that the oblique aspects of some of these buildings, in reference to others, was concealed by intervening habitations: to the great disadvantage of the whole, as a whole. These habitations, if conjecture may be relied on, were mean enough; and the inference is, that how magnificent soever the public buildings might be, the private dwellings were but feeble structures. Athens was about five miles from the sea, of which it commanded a view; it was therefore secure from surprize by roving bands of sea-robbers. It was seated on a rock accessible on one side only; it was therefore safe, with tolerable vigilance, from sudden ravages by It might be thought that the public enemies from the interior. This rock is Treasury, Opisthodomos (which Mr. W. about one hundred and fifty feet, in is the first, we believe, to distinguish height; about nine hundred, or a thou-accurately, from the back front of the sand, in length. As the city spread it-Temple of Minerva), with its double self below, and around this centre, the rock became more peculiarly sacred, or at least, it was gradually enabled to exhibit its sacredness more effectually. And yet, it may be doubted, whether the whole surface of this rock were occupied with public buildings, only. Were there no inferior dwellings for officers, guards, priests, attendants, &c. &c.? And how were these arranged? It is necessary to understand these questions, and in some measure to answer them, before we can determine on the propriety of some things extremely interesting to the curious. For instance, the Panathenaic procession sculptured on the cell of the Temple of Minerva, was divided; and the figures on part of it are represented as going down one side of the Temple to the entrance, while the other part goes down the other side-was this the fact? we apprehend it was; whether, to afford a spectacle to visitors on both sides of the Temple or from the necessity of the case, the narrowness of the street, or streets. Something equally uncontroulable placed awry the Temple of Erectheus wails, would have left some traces of its existence. This, having never been looked for, as a separate building, is one article respecting which we must wait for further discoveries, if Mr. W. be correct. And further: the absence of all ruins of public buildings from the hill now generally marked as the the Areopagus, justifies some suspicion of the accuracy of that appellation: and we know, that Wheler fixed on the ruins now called the Pnyx, the place of public assembly of the people, as those of the Areopagus. Might not the same place serve, as the Guildhalls of our cities do, for Courts of Justice, and places of general meeting for the citizens, also ?-yet the Pnyx seems to have been lately examined and ascer tained with great diligence, by Lord Aberdeen. What Athens was we must despair of learning satisfactorily, though we apprehend much additional light might be thrown on the question;-what Athens still is, will ere long be equally beyond the knowledge of enquiring generations. Not all the temples delineated and engraved by Stuart are now standing; and as the Turks, on principle, replace no- | thing, but suffer every thing to be destroyed, there is every probability that in a few years more, other monuments, still standing, will disappear also, till little remains of this venerable city, but the name. Before that time arrives, we hope that our researches will be brought to a satisfactory issue; and that doubts now existing will be completely removed. In his "Plan of Athens," Mr. W. endeavours to trace the ronte pursued by Pausanias. If we mistake not, that traveller has minuted down his daily ex'cursions from his lodging in the city, as a fixed point; as a modern traveller would do; and, consequently, to obtain the true key to his remarks, the terms right-hand and left-hand, &c. must be taken with such a reference. gilding, by which these figures were relieved, by which many spaces now vacant, were filled up, and many actions now scarcely intelligible, were coinpleted. Ornaments of this nature were com→ mon in almost all the temples of Greece; and the aid of painting, staining, and gilding, of the marbles, was called in to promote the general effect; an excess of decoration, surely, which must be deemed repulsive to good taste. While, therefore, we rejoice that our country possesses these most precious monuments of human skill, which have ennobled their age and their master, we readily sanction the cautions proper to prevent that excess, against which ge nuine art has frequently struggled in vain. It is by reference to such painting, It is remarkable enough that Pausa- that Mr. W. accounts for an error of nias wholly omits the Payx in his ac- Vitruvius, who describes the marbles of count: yet, that structure is certainly Hadrian's magnificent Pantheon as Phrymore antient than the time of that tra- gian, rather than Pentelican; i. e. the veller could he omit the Guildhall of marks and veinings of the Phrygian the city? It seems to be scarcely pos- marble, were painted. He observes, that sible: but he might describe it under a instances of painted frets, or meanders, different name. It is true, however, and other ornaments are not uncommon that he omits to mention the Temple of and Dr. Clarke has confirmed this obTheseus, although he notices the enclo-servation, by producing instances from ure around it. No man of an enquiring mind could forbear from inserting some mention of a temple so sacred in his note-book; unless there were at that time, as there are in all Catholic countries now, descriptions of the principal curiosities ready made, and procurable at a small price. These Pausanias might collect, but fail of his intention to insert them in his narrative, Mr. W. closely examines the buildings in the Acropolis; and his observations on the influence of the height, in regulating the proportions of structures, are judicious. His opinion assigns a much lower degree of merit to the sculptures, which form the subject of a former article, than the most accomplished of our artists have expressed. Certainly, all are not of equal merit; and the Great Master who conceived them trusted to the general result of the whole mass, in the place he had assigned to it; and in this whole he included those numerous enrichments and finishings, mostly of bronze, but some, as Mr. W. thinks, of temples, in other parts of Greece, of various ornaments, placed in the most conspicuous members of the building, being painted; whereas, those mentioned by Mr. W. were concealed.. Mr. W. is aware of other errors in Vitruvius, but these he ascribes to mistakes in transcription: some of them are very gross, and contrary to truth, Nor are these the only obligations under which the author has laid the study of antiquities. A very learned translation and explanation, of an inscription that records the finishings wanted by one of the tem ples in the Acropolis, concludes this volume: we recommend it to the editors of the new edition of Stephens's Greek Thesaurus, as none but an architect could have furnished the means of understanding the technical terms enployed; and not every architect has skill sufficient in the language to contribute explanations of an inscription that dates more than four hundred years. prior to the Christian æra. Mador of the Moor; a Poem. By "Thou Queen of Caledonia's mountain floods, Theme of a thousand gifted Bards of yore, Majestic wanderer of the wilds and woods, That lovest to circle cliff and mountain [roar, hoar, And with the winds to mix thy kindred Startling the shepherd of the Grampian glen ! Rich are the vales that bound thy eastern shore, And fair thy upland dales to human ken; of men. O that some spirit at the midnight noon Aloft would bear me, middle space, to see THE expectations which Mr. Hogg's progressive excellence has awakened in the public, will not be disappointed by the present performance, Mador of the Moor is beyond a doubt the most regular and finished of all his productions; the versification, though chiefly in that difficult stanza, the Spenserian, is easy and polished, and the story is told with a rapidity which carries the reader along with it, and effectually prevents his attention from flagging while the images brought before his eyes in the descriptive parts of it, are touched with an accuracy and spirit that proclaim them to be drawn after nature. There is a song in the mountain dialect of Scotland which must have been taught our poet by the fairies themselves; except by the Bard of Avon, never before were their charac-poem which like this tempts us to teristic offices and feelings so exquisitely expressed. Unfortunately, its beauties can only be guessed at by the "Southrons"; who will vainly endeavour to find out the meaning of such poetry as "There wals ane auld caryl wonit in yon howe, Or by the sacred fount, or haunted tree, Where bow'd the saint as hoary legends tell, And Superstition's last, wild, thrilling vision dwell! The scenery and characteristics of the Tay are beautifully described, but we must be sparing of long extracts in a select from every page. The first Canto Quhan the crawis haif flowin to the greinwode Of lady's form, and blooming mountain maid; schaw, And the kydde hes blet owr the Lammer Law; Quhan uetche is herde but the merlinis mene- We wish not however to frighten our readers; there is only the harper's song' written in this Caledonian doric mood; and through that they may manage to get, with the aid of Jamison and Pinkerton. The poem opens with a beautiful address to the Tay: And many a fair was toasted to the brim: The sport is interrupted by a mist which lasts three days, during which time the monarch steals away, his courtiers know not whither, and very wisely are contented to remain in ignorance. The dispersing of the mist restores the pleasures of the chase; and, upon sally But in some fairy isle amid the sea, The second canto opens w so true to life, that we must "That time there lived upon t Atnan of right ungainly courtesy Yet oft would fret, and wrangle irefully, Dreadless of ills she ne'er before had seen; As we have already spoken in terms She was unweeting, plump, and fair to see ; of warm approbation respecting the Harper's lay, we need only say, now, that the nature of the theme awakening solemn thoughts in some of the party, the conversation begins to turn "On gospel faith, and superstitious spell," which the others ridicule, and prophane, Full of blithe jollimeut and boisterous glee : clean; For, like the most of all her sex, I ween, Much she devised, but little did conclude; Much toil was lost as if it ne'er had been. And words were said unfitting bards to tell." Her tongue was fraught with matter won They are interrupted by the entrance of a stranger of reverend aspect and mysterious air, whose appearance exactly answers "to the old carl of whom the minstrel sung" each one waits in breathless expectation the result; "At length to Scotland's monarch rose his look, On whom he beckon'd with commanding mien ; With manner that denial would not brook; Then gliding forth he paused upon the green. What the mysterious messenger could mean No one would risk conjecture; all were still. In converse close, the two were lingering seen derous crude, And, in her own defence, most voluble and. (loud. A scolding wife is the chronic rheumatism to which a highlauder's life is peculiarly subject; perhaps the frequent instances of suffering from it, tain Bard's immediate observation, juswhich may have fallen under our Mountify him to himself, for the sly inuendos which he throws out against the fair sex; in the very spirit of Dan Chaucer." But he redeems himself in the daughter blooming as the flowers around her, of this wrangling pair, who is described pure as the dews in which they are bathed, and playful as the lamb that Her charms have subjugated her liege-lord, and, betrothed to him, she overlooks the disparity of his years, and the faults of his disposition, resigned to her parents' will, and not. of a temperament which loves to dwell on the possibility of evil; coquetish, beautiful, and gay, she reigns among her wooers, but not long is she to retain her indifference; about the time of the mist which had interrupted the proceedings of the hunting party, the heart of la Moore is destined to begin its trials. Across the lea, and down beside the rill, hill." Nine days the King remains away, and then returning to his court, he learned that his Nobles on the night he left them had been mysteriously slain, on the very spot where they had laughed to scorn the power of heaven. With this solemn occurrence the first canto closes, in a strain of correspondent sadness, and in our poet's skilful hands the rude traditions of former ages assume all the interest and dignity of historical facts, |