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Leader (1850-1860), 11th December 1858, Edition 1 of 2, Page 1346, LITERATURE, SCIENCE, ART, &c.

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    • LITERATURE, SCIENCE, ART, &c.
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      Untitled Article

      ^ ^ This week there have been , plenty of story books for good little boys and girls , and good store of novels and novelettes for the ladies- —pluvia nugarum—but no great book for strong men to read , mark , and learn . These last have had enough -upon their hands in . attending to the oxen and the pigs at Baker-street , and speculating upon how far fatty degeneration can be made compatible with wholesome Christinas beef . The literature-producing section of mankind has been busying itself in a more demonstrative manner than usual . Mr . Charles 3 > ickens , not sent , but going of his own accord to Coventry , tliere to receive a gold watch as a testimonial , is a pleasant spectacle . To the Institutional Association , of Lancashire and Cheshire , assembled at CheaMfe Mr . Dickens had also eloquent and placentiTTOrds to addresss , —sensible words too , opening a real understanding of the true function of Mechanics' Institutions , a contempt for the shams and platforms for mediocrities , which most of them have become , and a kindly appreciation of the intellectual requirements of the working man . How much of deep probing into that most sensitive of organs , a poor man ' s pride , before arriving at the truth hinted at in that pregnant phrase , " the impertinence of patronage !"

      The Crystal Palace direction , animated , we presume , by the threatened opposition at Muswelllnll , proposes great things . Its new Art Union scheme , if thoroughly carried out according to promise , will be an uudouMed success ; but we are inclined to augur less favourably of the Burns Anniversary and its prize poem . That they will get some thousands of copies of rhymo—more or less badwe have no doubt . ; but they will no more resemble poetry than the compositions of the bard of Moses or of the great Cornelius himself . The names of the three competent and unbiased judges , whose hard task it will be to sift all the chaff for a very problematical grain of wheat , are not yet divulged . It tas crept out , however , that the office was tendered to the Philosopher of Chelsea , Mr . Thomas Carlyle ; but that great man . refused , possibly deeming that the completiou of the Life of Frederick was of more moment to the world than the sifting over all this nonsense at Sydenhara . The very fact that Mr . Carlyle has been so invited is of itself a sufficient proof of the want of judgment that characterises the whole proceeding ; for a worse man for the purpose , one less fitted to judge poetry as poetry , it would be difficult to find .

      Albeit not ya . the secret of all literary cliquesfor we do not , like Mr . ex-Iuspector ITield , dine with " Mr . Phillips , who writes Diogenes , " or " Mr . Edwards , who writes in , Punch "—yet we hear ocoasional rumours of things about to bo . Tims , it comes to us as pleasant news that Cyrus Redding , the veteran journalist , the historian of the grape , the genial gossiping autobiographer , has a life of his old friend Tom Campbell nearly ready for the press . Mr . Redding , it will be remembered , coedited with Campbell Colburn ' s New Monthly , and they wore firm friends . Few , therefore , onjoyed such opportunities for collecting materials for this biography . Thoro is expectation among authors and publishers respecting the oauso , of Napier v . Grant , which is to be tried next week . The question , ft will bo remembered , hangs on whether Mr . James Grant , in his Life of Montroso , bos infringed the copyright of the plaintiff in several works on tho same topic . It is likely to bo a cause oMobro ,

      A prince in Israel lias conic to grief—a magnate of the press . lias falleu upon evil days . Herbert Ingram , Esq ., M . P . for Boston , being charged with conniving with the late John Sadleir , who drank poison on Hampstead-hcath , to represent himself as the purchaser and owner of an estate which he never really possessed , for the purpose of preventing Mr . Vincent Scully from purchasing the same , and obtaining paymeut of a large sum due to him from Sadleir , has been mulcted in 300 / . Lurjele Veneres Cupidinesque ! Let us hope , however , that Mr . Ingrain will know how to clear his name from this stain ; for , knowing the high and honourable position which he has so long , occupied in connexion with the London press , we are inclined to be as sceptical as Mr . Deputy Hubbard with regard to his guilt .

      Untitled Article

      ATHENE CANTABltlCUHNStfS . Athenm Cantnbrif / tenm . tty Charloa "' '"jy .. ^ ff F . 8 . A ., and Thompson Cooper . Vol . I- — \ " u" \ Co OttiubriUtfoi Wolffliton , Hull , nnU ^ Njsarw two hundred years have ohipaoil ^ J ° Anthony A . Wood , tho historian ol O&loiA , co "

      Untitled Article

      MADAGASCAR . Three Vi * Us to Madagascar , including a Journal to the Capital , tfe . By the Rev . 'William Ellis , F . U . S . John Murray . The great island of Madagascar , off the east coast of Africa , has been long known to Europeans , and still longer to Arabiau merchants , but is ,-notwithstanding , less well known than many more recently discovered countries . It is nearly a sixth part larger than France , and more than four times as large as England . At once mountainous and flat , situated within the southern tropic , it has a great variety of climates and of productions . Only three days' steaming distant from our flourishing colony of the Mauritius , and abounding in cattle , while rice is cultivated to a great extent , it is exactly adapted to supply the most urgent wants of the colony . At the same time , from it the intelligent Malagasy , ready to adopt improvements , delighted with photographs , railways , and telegraphs , might conveniently import a practical knowledge of the , arts of Europe , and gradually become a numerous , civilized , and powerful people . Vast as the island is , according to Mr . Ellis , it contains less than 4 , 000 , 000 people ; according to Mr . M'Culloch , 4 , 700 , 000 , and it might con-IMilu

      ¦ icUIl , WibUUUb UUlllg 1 MU 1 U JIUjJ UIUIU J . IMIIW ) 50 , 000 , 000 , and might , by skilful industry , supply food for twice this number . Forty years ago we had considerable ) communication with one part of the island , and with one of the most conspicuous chiefs . We instructed his troops , provided them with arms , and took some Malagasy youths into our service to teach them all our arts . Wo contributed to make liadama supremo over the island . Christianity was promoted by him in , return for our assistance ; tho slave-trade was repressed , and trade encouraged . An alphabet was introduced ; many of the natives learned to roadand to write ; many learnt to be carpenters , builders , tunucrs , &c ., after our fashion , though the Malagasy had cultivated many useful arts after a fashion oi their own , and Madagascar for nearly twenty years sveut onwards , and scorned iu a fair way to become a not unimportant member of tho civilised world . Iu JIS 28 , however , Iladaum , an intelligent sovereign , diud . Under tho next ruler , tho policy of the Govornmoufc was changed . Tho Christian religion mis prohibited , Christian convorts wore ncrscouted , and after struggling till 1880 , tho missionaries and artisans left tho island . Quarrels ensued between tho Governments ; tho traders established at Tamalavo in tho island complained of being oppressod , and a united squadron of English nna Froiioh in- 1815 , having failed to obtain redress , attacked tho town , but wore driven away with loss . Tho Madagascar Government prohibited trade , and cattle uud rice , so necessary to llio Mauritius and tho Isle of Bourbon , could no longer bo obtainod from tho island . For eight years the trade , was iutoixujptod . Towards 1 SD 2 , I

      the Government rckntcd , favourable changes be « an and iu IS 53 , Mr . Ellis was invited to proceed on « visit to Madagascar . 1 hit her lie went , but not being allowed to proceed to the capital because cholera prevailed in the Mauritius , lie returned to England . A sort of t renty , however , was ne « -o tiatcd , arid on the payment of 15 , 000 dollars by the nverchauts of Mauritius , which they eagerly subscribed , the trade between the two islands was reopened . Both parties equally desired it . In 1855 he received permission to repair to the capital and in ! S 5 G , \ vit h true devotion to his cause , he a ^ alu left England for Madagascar . On bis return * lie was struck , he says

      —With the change which the opening of the trade after our visit iu 1 S 5 J had produced . Tho n . itivo population appeared to have greatly increased , a number of houses for foreign traders had Wen built , and others were in course of erection ; among them , and not far from the landing- ; . » l . , . is an hotel and boarding house , the fint ever erected in Madagascar . Considerable quantities of rice appear to be collected for exportation , and upwards of 4000 head of cattle have , since the opening of the trade , been annually exported to Mauritius alone .

      To the Mauritius the trade seems so essential , and to Madagascar , with its attendant civilisation , so benelicial , that it will probably be continued and extended . Tho island abounds in iron ore ; probably other minerals will be found in abundance ; poultry is plentiful ; gum , becs' -wax ., and caoutchouc are common-productions ; palms of various ' kinds , if we may ¦ incl ude in the category the celebrated triivellers' -tree , supply both food and drink . The people , consisting of dili ' erent races , some negroes , others of those Malay tribes which have spread over Polynesia , arc treneraUy docile ami kindly , and supply a link to connect Kfuope both with the tribes on t lie eastern coasts of Africa and those in the islands- of the Indian Ocean . They are exceedingly fond of bartering , b living , and selling , and continually oiler articles of tpoil or furniture for sale They arc inquisitive , and delighted with pictures and portraits take au interest in such works as Tim illustrated lutidwi ifactt , learn foreign languages speedily , and have very quickly acquired the art of writing their own language . ' They and their country promise to the quiet , peaceful trader who supplies them with articles suited to their wants , such as European imp lements and instruments as they learn to use them , light and cheap clothing , k <\ , and to the patient missionary who supplies them with instruction , ti rich harvest . " \ Vc are not sure that iu the capacities of this island , iu the docility of it * people , and in the connexion between them and the other races , there , may not be fouud tho U-uc solution of the sln \ u question .

      Tl » e island is available- alike to tlie growiiHi cu »» and tho cultivation of sugar , and both , as I he population increases , may be obtained from ll to W extent . The island may materially In lp to supply t w growing demand of Europe for both , nnd sjireuU tuo useful cultivation of both with an improving ; civilisation over Africa . That the enterprising trade s of Europe have us yet made so hub use ol us capabilities is to be attributed ( o the lutlo mowlodge thqy have of them . Mr . JillU ' s book MiU pique their curiosity and gratify it . O « mi " « points we have briully referred to—on the iwtu » M history of the country , especially its inagniliocnt Flora ; on the manners uiul ilisposil ion ol tin- pcopio , on tho progress which Christianity liu * hiikIc , of tho obstuclcs to its futhcr progress ; on tnc » u gungfo uud origin of the i ) eople-Mr . ^« s Bjvts us very precise and extensive . inl ' ormuLion . JUs uo might , with advantage < o himself and I ho reww , have been more condenscJ j but though homo o »» duUils arc trivial , thoy are till recounted m sucu » amiable spirit Unit we . readily pardon wlnil aowtimes sccima suporlluous .

      Untitled Article

      — r UTERARY CHROKLCLE OF THE WEEK .

      Untitled Article

      1346 . __ . THE LEADE R . [ N ~ o . 455 , Pecembeb ^ I 1 , 185 R .

      Literature, Science, Art, &C.

      LITERATURE , SCIENCE , ART , &c .

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 11, 1858, page 1346, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2272/page/10/