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^Q.38q,Jiri>Y41857.] _ __TjQ_JjgAPJ!Jg: ...
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LIFE OF Dli. KITTO. \Jh of Dr. Kl/to, D....
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NEW NOVELS. The Athelings; or, the Three...
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RECENT TOURISTS. Summer Months Among the...
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( /t" |ji> ftj rf ix ^ J 1)1 AlKiAM * +
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- '-w ¦'" THE FRENCH EXHIBITION. A colle...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Germaine. Gennaine. By Edmond About. Par...
atea . It is understood , however , on all Lands that she is to . die very hStfy ' « nd ake-is as aware us any one of her nnpend . ng fate-quite reined to i ? , indeed . The couple set out on their travels to Italy . AH foruUties medical and others , that might be supposed to save or prolong l , fe re « one through . The writer , in fact , we may say in a parenthesis insists Sevvhat wearisomely on the remedies resorted to , as if he meant to display ^ special knowledge , or recommend a system . In spite of everything , enmitne pines away / until at last , in the deepest recesses of her being , lmt mav be called a new germ of life is developed . She perceives that she ves he / husband , and hoges that , in spite of everything , he niay love her . 11 this is ver" beautifully conceded ami charmingly worked out . The ime passionate interest is excited that forms the chief beauty of Toilet . In Liis alsothe love-scenes are laid in the south-under enhu blue skies " " ^——¦———^ ^—^^^^^^^^^^^— ^^^—
case , , ear tranquil shores , in an atmosphere that goes warm to the orange and ivrtle groves and comes perfumed from them . When once we are landed t Corfu we do not allow ourselves willingly to be taken away again ; and le inroad of the vulgar vices and romantic vulgarity of Funs shocks and nnoys us . Amidst all this the story , which has some of the mystic fascinaion of a legend , leads us on to the end—where , instead of a grave , which -e sometimes fear to see , appears a lover ' s bower and a nuptial couch . The 'riter disdains the easy triumph of killing Germaine , and leaving the reader liserahle . Perhaps he became too fond of her as he went on ; for he seems o have set out with the most sanguinary intentions . If this be so , we like im the better for it . There is nothing more pleasant than to see a man
ompassionate to his own intellectual creations . But why was not M . About a little more scrupulous about the company lto which he introduces his Germaine ? It is quite true that he does his est to dig a moat round her purity and keep it clear from contact . But enre success was impossible . That odious Madame Chermidyisan ineffaceable lot . on this performance . We do not undertake to re-write M . About's tale ; ut certainly we could imagine fifty ways of bringing the hero and heroine lto the dilemma necessary " for the development of the passion and interest ithout having recourse to the aristocracy of the Rue Breda . Whenever and her ticketofleave
lis nasty woman , with her fat devoted servant -- man om Corbeil , conies upon the scene , we feel a sensation of indescribable athing . There never was a more unsympathetic figure ; and the worst of le matter is that , instead of serving as a contrast , it is so . high in tone that influences the colouring of the whole picture . For a long time impure nts seem lingering reflected on Germaine ' s cheek amidst the hectic flushes F disease . \\ Tien these die away , and purity and health come back together , e feel an unconquerable desire to destroy Madame Chermidy ; and the exultaon with which Ave behold Mantour ' s dagger driven into her is quite
iniical . As for M . le Due de la Tour d'Embleuse , the author of Tolla should have een especially particular to avoid introducing such a type as his master , lalzac , whom he so far surpasses in sharpu-ss and purity of style , had Lready painted with a luxury of detail that can never be- equalled—a similar » ure in the old , doting , debauched General Ilulot , the real hero of La Cousitie ? ette . The Due of M . About is a mere sketch , but a most disagreeable one : id we believe that in this case , as in that of Madame Chermidy , the story light have gone on better -without him . Of course we would not have had ermaine converted into a mere pastor . il . It was necessary to surround the of
icord of the heroine ' s sweetly painful adventures with sketches manners id character ; but it was not necessary to introduce so many diabolical gures to set off this one angelic one . M . de Villanera might have been " ado more prominent and interesting ; and—but , as we have said , we must at re-write M . About ' s book . What we have advanced in the form of ig ^ estion is intended to convey the idea tlint Germ a ine is full of faults and iemishos , arising partly , perhaps , from the necessity of catering to a somehat diseased public taste , but chiefly from a determination to be original u \ unconventional — a determination that often leads to conventional iginality . Yet , at the same time , the ninin idea of the novel is so striking , id the manner in which it is worked out is so excellent , there is so much
it and so much pathos in every chapter , and the principal character is so iarming , that , despite all its short-comings , wo are disposed to place it in ic very ftrst rank of French conteufporaiy romance-writing .
^Q.38q,Jiri>Y41857.] _ __Tjq_Jjgapj!Jg: ...
^ Q . 38 q , Jiri > Y 41857 . ] _ __ TjQ _ JjgAPJ ! Jg : 64 $
Life Of Dli. Kitto. \Jh Of Dr. Kl/To, D....
LIFE OF Dli . KITTO . \ Jh of Dr . Kl / to , D . D ., F . H . A . By John Endie , P . P ., LL . D . Edinburgh : William Oliphant and Sons . < our notice of the Memoirs of Dr . Kith , edited by Mr . Rylunds , wo rearked upon the necessity of a more compendious and connected biography " that eminent theologian . Wo particularly alluded to the unwieldy form r tlio work itself , and hinted that whatever might have been the intrinsic erits of the Memoirs per se , tho awkward bulk of the book would lturally balk its circulation . There nve some works , however , which in ute of commentators and bookbinders will command a sale from the inhesnt interest they possess ; and such an interest did the Memoirs of Dr . Kitto assess for tho public , so that wo were not surprised to finUu second edition
illed for within a short period . Tho want which we particularly pointod » however still existed . There had appeared no regular , connected , and r xmuGtk'icnl narrative of the life , actions , and travels of Dr . Kitto ; for iough his Memoirs afforded us ample insight into parts of his eventful ireor , and nmde us acquainted with his feelings , thoughts , and principles , 10 event or one action was allowed to take too prominent a position , and and in bold relief , separated from its antecedents and its sequel . It is well nown that Dr . Kitto , shut out as he was from tho world around him , pro-Dsed again and again to write his own experiences . On one occasion ho Avtioulurly observes : — " Perhaps no one ever was in my ciromnstnnees , or , aing eo , ever retained or gathered spirit to surmount his difficulties . 1 link laore and ihore that a statement of those difliouliies , ins I could nmk . c iat statement , would be felt to bo a thing of no common interest . ' " His itention was to divido the sketch of lib life into three parts : first , from irth to tho -workhouse ; secondly , from tUo workhouse to Exeter ; thirdly ,
from Exeter to leaving England . His plan , however , was never executed ; and if it had been , the hand of the biographer would still have been necessary to fill in the picture from his return to England till his death , the busiest and most tranquil portion of his existence ; Though we have no awifobiography of Kitto , we have enough about him in bis own handwriting " , in his letters , in his journals , and in his different works , so that by means of a few comments , interspersed for the sake of correction and illustration , a regular and complete life could easily be composed . Dr . Eadie has , therefore , wisely allowed IJr . Kitto to be his own narrator as far as it was practicable . The result has been a very interesting work , full of romance and incident , the least attractive portions being , in fact , the comments of the arranger , the narrowness and obliquity of his theological prejudices inducing him to express opinions altogether unwarranted about Kitto ' s feelings and actions . * 1 . - ¥ -1 1 -I TT « ' I ' * -
New Novels. The Athelings; Or, The Three...
NEW NOVELS . The Athelings ; or , the Three Gifts . By Margaret Oliphant . 3 vols . ( Blackwood and Son . )— -This novel—originally published in Blackwood ' s Magazine —is not of a common cast . It is written with simplicity and tenderness . The story is , in some respects , original ; and although the main incident has an ancient tinge , Mrs . Oliphant never loses for a moment her power of making the situations and characters peculiarly her own . Without outlining the drama , we may mention that it turns upon three moral gifts , bestowed by nature upon three of the personages , and that this conception is cleverly kept in view from first to last , without being strained into disagreeable prominence . As a portrait from life , Agnes Atheling merits unusual praise ; her sister Marian , and her brother Charles , are both excellent . The Rector is an exaggeration ; Mr . Endicott , a photograph . But Mrs . Oliphant has succeeded nowhere so well as in the peaceful Caxton interior at Bellevue . This is charming , and strikingly true . We should say that The Athelings will be popular . _ _ . . . ..
^ _ , „ , The Hobbies : a Novel . By Morgan Kavanagh . 3 vols . ( Newby . )—We have here the novel about which a painful family dispute has been raised . All we will say of it is , that Miss Kavanagh might have left her name upon the title-page without disparagement to her reputation .
Recent Tourists. Summer Months Among The...
RECENT TOURISTS . Summer Months Among the Alps ; with ( he Ascent of Monte Rosa . By T . W . Hinchliff . ( Longman and Co . )—3 Ir . HinchlifTs is a bright , agreeable book , written with spirit and grace , and description of many a beautiful bvpath among the Alps . The Finsteraarhorn , the Unteraar Glacier , Monte Rosa , Chamouni , and the Simmenthal , mark his route ^ He has the advantage of being no stranger in the country of mountains , and writes in a picturesque , colour-shedding style , which gives to his narrative a singular fascination / Mr . Hinchliff breathes into his pages an Alpine breath , and ¦ we doubt not that Swiss tourists will gladly make him their companion when treading the way to Monte JLiosa , and through the depths about the Finsteraarhorn . _ ' ¦ _
2 'he Norse-Folh ; or , a Visit to the Homes of Norway and Sweden . By Charles Loring Brace . ( Bentley . )—Home-life is a favourite topic with Mr . Brace . He published formerly a very pleasant account of domestic manners in Germany . This volume is a cheerful , anecdotical account of Norwegian , Swedish , and Danish interiors , rich and poor , private and public . It contains a large amount of information slcetchily put together . Mr . Brace , an American , familiarised himself with the manners and feeiiags of all classes , and , wherever he went , derived materials for a pleasant page . His relation is more abundant in anecdote than is customary with books of mere travel . Here is an incident of village justice in Sweden : — " A Dalecax-lian maiden , returned in the autumn from the usual summer ' s labour in the capital , and
was observed to have a gold ring on her finger . A circumstance so remarkable attracted the attention of tho peasants , she was questioned , and replied that it had been given her by a gentleman with whom she was workin ^ . The people doubted , and finally she was brought before the village council" which , after an examination , decided that she should be kept confined by her father , and whipped every day until she should confess . The father carried out tho sentence , and at length she confessed that she had stolen it from this « ontleinnn . The ring was at once sent back to the owner , with the messa ge , that the girl would be prosecuted if ho desired , but , for tho good fame of Balecarlia , they hoped he would drop it , which of course he
Vacations hi Ireland . By Charles Richard Weld . ( Longman and Co . )—This is a « onuine book on Ireland , brimful of gossip , and characteristic of an unaffected , well-informed , and sensible writer . Mr . Weld has visited the country many times , and takes his sketches from Beveral different points of view . His volume contains the beat description extant of Lord Rosae s scientific apparatus . n ..... , , _ .. . Eqiint and tho Great Suez Canal . By M . BartheUetny St . Hiluiro . ( Bentley . ) \ Vo have so frequently discussed tho Suez Canal project , that it is unnecessary to say more of M . de St . Iiilaire ' s work tlmn that it is an elaborate statement of tho questions raised , but adds nothing to the force of M . de Lesson ' s reasoning . M . do St . HUnire ' s narrative of travels is infinitely more satisfactory reading than his grandiloquent treatise on tho gigantic canalisation bubble .
( /T" |Ji≫ Ftj Rf Ix ^ J 1)1 Alkiam * +
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- '-W ¦'" The French Exhibition. A Colle...
- ' -w ¦' " THE FRENCH EXHIBITION . A collection which has accidentally escaped our notice until u Into day deserved to have boon mentioned earlier ! it Is tho collection ot fcreneh pictures m l ' uU-MttU . Small in number , it continues to ba very attractive , and doaorvedly so . Tho works are by no means on it , more level , —some of tho highest , and same to which wo cannot accord very groat pmiaoi but upon tho wholo the nveroge merit is groat . Tho stylos aro as various as thoy can bo , whore A » v
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), July 4, 1857, page 643, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/ldr_04071857/page/19/
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