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LITEKATUKE,. SCIENCE, ART, &c.
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¦ ¦ — ¦ ¦ — ¦ ? " . ¦ . ¦ . Perhaps , since the-days of the " Great Unknown , " no literary secret has been so well and jealously kept as the authorship- of the celebrated " Vestiges of the Creation . " At least twenty names have been mentioned , and the supporters of each have exhibited as much tenacity about the matter as the disputants respecting the identity of " Juiiius , " the " Man with the Iron-Mask , " the " Last of the Stuarts , " the father-of Caspar Mauser , or the murderer of Eliza Grimwood . Lord Brougham , a Cornish baronet ( whose name we , at the moment , foro-et ) , Lady King ( Byron ' s daughter Ada ) , —why ? The favouritehow
enumerate the list-.. general , - ever , with the reading public has been Mr . Robert Chambers ; and tliis theory received great support from the confession of Mr . Page , the geologist , at a lecture delivered in Glasgow some years since . This gentleman was for many years in the employ of Messrs ..-Chambers , and he declared that he had been desired by Mr . Robert Chambers to revise the proof-sheets of the " Vestiges . " This was certainly " ' warm . " upon the secret ; but recent disclosures have served to prove that it is possible to seem , very near the solution of a secret and yet be as faroifas ever . The death of the late Dr . George Combe has ait length unveiled the mystery , and- it is now no : lon < rer concealed that he . was the real
author of this book . Why the mystery existed at all we are at a loss to conceive . We are quite aware that some of the conclusions to which its arguments pointed wore distasteful to those , who believe that the Books of Moses ¦ were ' written to teach geognosy to mankind , instead of the wisdom of the Egyptians ; but it cannot be » denied that the scientific facts ( as far as they were , facts ) were fairly stated , and we cannotbelievcthatthe avowal of authorship would have at all harmed a man whose position '' -w ? is so firmly placed , and whose merit so well established' as that of Dr . George Combe . One thing to be said is , that the Vestiges" was not a great work in itself : it was hletin which reflective
i-ather a suggestive iiainp , a mind threw out certain suggestions without being willing to give them the authority of a good name , but yet held to be worthy of consideration . Some such reason as this may have induced Dr . George Combo to Avithhold his name until his " right ear " was beyond all hearing of " the false or just . " The quidnuncs of the clubs are too busily engaged m discussing the prospects of the Government Rofor ' mBill , and the coming struggles of great politicians , to care much for a petty literary squabble . All lovers of decency will , however , not regret to hear that the much talked of storm in the Garrick Club is at length allayed ; that Achilles Thackeray no longer broods in Jus tent ; that there is to be a mutual Withdrawal of offensive
expressions ; every one pays his own costs , and Mr . Edmund Yates is to be restored to the full enjoyment of his privileges as a member of the club . § o , at least , it ia reported , and wo hope truly so . Bontle y ' a new Quarterly , a few novels , and a book of travel or so , form nearly all the literary issues of the weelc . The first is well thought olj and has as likely a look as it is well possible for any " Quarterly " nowadays to wear . As we have befbro observed , however , those trimestral great guna of Utomturchave , generally spooking , toreHorvo their sljot until the object hna been removed , far out of ei ght— -that is to say , until the fate of the- book has long since been pronounced upon by tho public ,
tuo dai lies , aucl tlio wookliou , and tho book , if sucoossuil , is a long way on towards tlio second edition . Another important work has been added to the valuable Bevies pubUahed under tho sanction of tho Master of tho liolls , It is tho first of throe volumes illustrative of tho history of tho City of London , and is known to antiquarians under tho title of the " Lihcr Albus "—one of tho greatest ; treasures in the library of Guildhall , hq rich in stores of civic architectural lore , This will be followod by tho " Libor Customanun" and tho Liber Horn " in one volume , and tlio third voiuino ia certain translated passages , a glossary , and waox . Whilst reoovding our admiration of tho
scheme so well carried out under the sanction of the Master of the Rolls , we cannot help observing that we do not think he has acted wisely in following the custom which the publishing trade have hitherto found to be : commercially wise—namely , that he refuses to submit these . productions to the review of the journals . The simple consequence of this is , that they are reviewed only in a few of the greater literary journals ,- and that the public is deprived of the best means of getting informationabout an undertaking which they would be very ready to support- The cost saved- by this refusal is very slight , and must be altogether disproportioned to the injury done to the undertaking .
Of general htez-ary news we have to note that Prescott ' s great work , the ¦ " . History of Philip the Second , " will be concluded by his Secretary , John Foster Kirk , whose name ( so far as we are aware ) is unknown in American letters , and yet believed to be fully competent to the task . It is a curious fact , that but a very few days af ter Mr . Px-escott's death , a work appeared . froni the pen of a Mr . R . A- Wilson , intended to disprove the historical accuracy of Mr- - Prescott ' s " History of the Con- , quest of Mexico . " We have not yet seen this book , but it is said to display great knowledge of the facts , and to contain a searching examination into Mr . Prescott ' s : statements . Kemenibering , as
we do , that this is not the first time that the veraracity of the Spanish accounts of that conquest have been seriously doubted , we shall not be surprised to find that there is much matter in Mr . AVilson ' s argument ; and if they prove ( as they are said to -go-. far- towards doing ) that no such person as Diaz ever lived , and that the despatches of Cortez were all forged by the priests , then-historical value will CGrtainlybe considerable * From France ,, we hear of a new journal founded by M . Jourdan , one of the redacteurs of the Sierfe > It is to be called Xe Causeu ?; and is to gossip about ' everything but " the one tabooed subject in France—politics . The Critic supplies one or two interesting on dits conceiving the literary , world of Paris .: '— that which follows
" Take as a mere piece of gossip . M . Mirds has purchased for the Constitutionnel a romance by I ) e Lamartine . The work has not been completely paid for . The financier has advanced to the poet 60 , 000 francs ; if next New Year ' s Day , tliis sum is riot reimbursed to the financier by the poet , the romance will be definitely acquired to the journal , and will be published immediately . —Dumas has returned to Paris , with money , jokes , and the experience of travel ; and the wits have an interest in his ' capital . Ho gave a dinner of course , and in his courtyard , for 700 covers—a very BurmcCidal dinner . There was Potagc a 1 'Antony , Pate Mousquetaire , lto . tl fl la Don Juan do Marana , Poulet a la Monte-Cristo , Punch t \ la Romulus * These arc mere samples of tlio bill of faro , " Undoubtedly a great writer as a romancer , when will M . Dumas cease to pose himself en paUlasso ?
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MODERN HISTORY OF NAPLES . Modern History of Naples . By Pieti-o Colletta ; translated by S . Homer . Constable . Tim annals of Southern Italy under tho sway of tho House of Bourbon arc full-of peculiar interest at the present , time . Though full of pretensions to tho right divine of absolutisin , that sway is but of comparatively recent origin , nncl like its kindred rSffime in Franco it lias during the last sixty years been subjected to ovary vicis . situcla of obloquy , repudiation * and overthrow . Founded originally in oonquos ^ by coup da main , in 17 ^ -i , when thu King of Spain sunt ' hin second s , du a youth of
nineteen , aa uoininul head of a powerful expedition to , surprise nncl Heizo the territories then governed by a viceroy of Austria , it ronuiinacl during tho latter half of tho last century unchanged mid unmoloslod , tlio condition of tho people gradually degenerating more and moro into one of mure animal existonco 5 and thu internal economy of the state becoming every day moro thoroughly dearopid and despicable . 1 lie shock of the French Revolution could hardly bo said to have been felt by tho wholly uneducated and disfranchised bulk of the oomuiuvuty . ISy the listless and luxurious
court it was viewed as from afur with curious horror ratlier than sympathetic alarm . The imbecile King was ' incapable of comprehending liow the blood-red meteor that appeared over Paris could 1 in the course of its destined orbit , approach Naples ; and his courageous but wicked queen -was > slow in appreciating the danger to remote royalty which the establishment of democratic liberty , and fraternity in France really portended . _ When , however , the news of the death of Louis XVI . arrived , the court was convulsed with , emotions of indignation , fear , and revenge . Laberal opinions had theoretically for some time prevailed among ofwh
the upper classes of society , many -om were distmu-uished by their cultivation of science and literature - ; but the insignificance of whose , numbers , and whose- total want of political power , had rendered them hitherto objects of little , if . _ any jealousy to their royal rulers . In the crisis of affairs which arose in 1793 , these two elements were unavoidably brought into deadly collision . Inspired by the ' masculine , energy of Queen Caroline the Neapolitan Government proposed to Sardinia and Venice the formation of an Italian League , which all the states south of the Alps should be invited to join , and whose united armies , governed by a national council of . war ,.-should defend the Peninsula against French invasion , and
thus co-operate effectively with the Princes of ¦ Germany , England , and Russia , in their crusade against Republican France . The Venetians- hesitated ; the King of Sardinia agreed ; but ere many weeks had elapsed Admiral La Touche , at the head of a French fleet , entered ; the-- -Bay of Naples , and without / firing a shot , extorted from the pusillanimity of the King and his adviser ? , a renunciation of the national confederacy . While the French squadron lay in the harbour , many distinguished persons . showed its officers . hospitality , tinguished persons . showed its officers . hospitality ,
and interchanged with them- private hopes , if not vows , for the spread of the new opinions ' .-When La Touche was gone the rage and resentment of the Coiu « t fell upon all who had so offended . TUc gaols were filled with the best and noblest members of society ; and an inquisitorial Junta with ' unlimited power was nominated to try , and punish them . This may be termed the first political proscription on account of opinions under the Bourbon regime at Naples ; how frequently and how fatally the precedent then established has been followed we too well know .
. At tlie period in question Pictro Colletta , a young man of good parts and attainment ? , ^ was pursuing his studies at the military college with a view to qualify himself for tlio artillery , which service he entered in 179 G , being then in his-twentysecond year . War with ' . France was then carrying oa in such fashion , as the ill-paid , and . worse disciplined , Neapolitan forces were capable of . Under the guidance of the Austrian general , Slack , they crossed the frontiers and occupied Rome , whence a small French corps thought it prudent to retreat . As soon as they had been reinforced , however , the latter assumed the offensive , and Mack fell back precipitately towax'ds tlio Abruzzi ,. and wn ,-i
ultimately driven from post to post by tlio advancing columns of Chainpionnct , until the latter at length arrived within sight of the city of Vosuviii " . The King and his ministers , instead of organising tho delynce of tho capital , or availing thcin ^ lvesof tho popular fooling readily aroused againsl uu invading army , thought only of tlieir pciwnu ) m / i ' iy . The British minister , § ir AVillinia HnmiJh'n , and his * too-eelebratod wife , strove to .
" The King , having determined on his departure , liastonod tho ' iircparatiojis , which wero nuulobt'crotly , as for JlJuhtj but concoalment was useless , lbr it was soon known that tlio royal fUmily and tho ministers wore inoUltutinK their escape , and that tlio base satollHcM oi' despotism wore preparing other moans for their own ilight or eoricoalmcnt . wlillu tho last hopoH of roalstlnt ? tho onomy or reorganising tho away und govorniuont -wore vanishing' before
Litekatuke,. Science, Art, &C.
LITEKATUKE ,. SCIENCE , ART , &c .
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** ?**> : ¦ , -. •¦ .. ¦ -. ¦ ¦ .. ¦ , . 1 ' . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ " v ¦ . ¦ ¦ ' ¦ ¦ . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ' . ¦ ¦ ¦ -. ¦¦ . Xo . 467 , March 5 , 1859 ] THE ^ ^ JlJ ^^_^ ^^ J 2 L ,
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LITERARY CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK .
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Leader (1850-1860), March 5, 1859, page 299, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2284/page/11/
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