of the fair sex.] But in sober sadness we look upon all such sentences as "his eye is on me," to be complete nonsense. The king's affected humility too in this very scene, In short, the Tragedy is a respectable effort One general objection may be laid to this piece, namely, that though the scene is in Persia, the manners are any thing but Persian. There is no keeping, and but for the dresses of the characters, they might, for their sentiments and actions, be placed in London more correctly than in Ctesiphon. No despotic monarch ever proceeded as Varanes proceeds-he is not only out-braved by his son, but even his courtiers cow his better part of man. Abdas, one of his lords, when he menaces Hafiz, who has himself spoken with unwarrantable licence, thus beards an absolute king, ABDAS, (interrupting him.) Do ye dare a father thus ? Threaten his child's life?-tell him To which Persia's sovereign very humbly replies, You do not understand me; I am not A vile assassin-&c. But the most inexcusable example of this defect is in the last scene. After Chosroo has condemned his brother to death for the alleged murder of their father, the very circumstances of the parties, not to mention the speed with which execution follows sentence in an Eastern court, would prevent the long and inculpatory harangues of Hamed. What despot upon his throne, far less such a despot as Chosroo, unsettled in power, and carrying his purposes by violence, would permit the condemned to hold a dangerous and continued parley, uttering such speeches as | To Chosroo, enter l'aranes. thens, when he sits down to another tragedy, and we quit the subject to cite a few examples of the poetical talent which claimed our praise last week; though "girl," which occurs in the first line, and often elsewhere, is rather a low appellative. Description of Zimra: Many are lovely-but this mountain-girl In sandals, and the spotted leopard's rest VAR. Mighty one! thou king, and ruler of Yet bending sweetly as the playful breeze this fruitful land! I've come to worship thee! Chos. A king! a ruler! dost thou mean to mock me? VAR. Mock thee? dread sovereign! far be such a thought From thy obedient subject; when I speak, Slaves fly to serve me; but when thou command'st A king obeys, and, in obeying trembles. Cos. A king obeys, and trembles! when was this? VAR. Did'st thou not order me to-day, aye, now, On fear of thy displeasure 'twas, (thine eye Didst threaten else) did'st thou not, stern, command That I should let thee seize the chieftain here? Aye, and his daughter? Cuos. Nay, that I did not ;-'twas——— VAR. And was I not obedient-quite obedient? Wilt thou not praise me for't? Aye, praising, say, 'Tis a good slave! a useful creature that! Aye, very good! poor thing! it does its duty! CHOS. No more of this vile mockery! Confessing the appellation just, we obey Chosroo. Having mentioned one blemish which may be called verbal criticism, we shall adduce another. "Now" is a much more offensive expletive in Mr. Dillon's verSlaves! dare not touch me! I can walk tosification than " Aye." Its frequency is pro-di-gious. death, Tranquil and unappalled; but I will speak first, And tell the truth to that worst slave, your master. In short, the whole dialogue of the concluding scene is alike unwarranted by the nature of the case, and the customs of Persia. The previous defeat of Chosroo's conspiracy, by the mere declaiming energy of Varanes, which not only overwhelms his rebellious offspring, but his armed slaves also, outrages probability too far to gain assent. The cause is not sufficient to produce the effect. But this is nothing more than one specimen of the Germanic qualities, which are the chief deformity of the tragedy. Men's eyes do not now work miracles, and confound plots, and turn aside daggers, and overawe treasons, save in German plays, and in the worst kinds of modern metaphysical poetry. In real life a strong arm and a stout heart, are worth ten millions of millions of glances from the sharpest eyes, whether against robbery or rebellion: [we put in a caveat against being understood to undervalue the glances Deliver me from fear, whose serpent glance It was for thee, my father, and thy life,- Our plans are all detected now—'tis thought. Chosroo has concealed them Each in a separate dungeon; Hamed now Ave! come on! what dost thou shrink for? now! There is my father? have I found thee then? Here at thy much-lov'd feet! there's danger now! These two last quotations are certainly very ridiculous, but we could quote a great many more nous : But I will reason with thee-hear me now! Unhand him! now!--is then the hour arrived— A fiery darkness! oh it stifles now! But we are sure we have said enough to call the writer's attention to his nows and Fanning a bank of roses;-in her eye A father's advice to a father: Thou hast a son! respect thyself before him! CHOSROO: I love this maiden-love her-let me speak! Mine is no quiet current of the soul, The disdain of female virtue : A crown but humbly a throne! what would a woman more? ZIMRA: It may be, prince, she would have wished a man, Whose life might grace them. The despair of a fratricide: VARANES : the dagger's point Cut through my brother's heart, till it pierced A little point-but, drop by drop, the blood mine! Has fallen since, and all my veins are dried. There is no spring of life within me left. In another place, the same desolate wretch compares himself to A drop of poison curdling in the cup But we trust what we have copied warrants the approbation we deemed it to be our duty to bestow on Retribution. With all the faults it has, we hold it as a principle of public benefit, not to discourage a pen which in its earliest attempt produced these beauties. We will not stop to shew that the hatred of Hafiz to Hamed, and "all his ruthless race," of whom only one murder is suspected, is an exaggerated and unnatural passion; nor that Hafiz's share in the denouement disappoints the expectations which have been raised; nor that Sathes' madness is unsustained, and a poor copy of Lear and Ophelia; nor dwell on the ill effect of the king's apparently dying twice before he actually dies-which we can hardly believe without seeing a scymetar through his body. Neither shall we last of all give the censure that is due to a defect which pervades the composition; the use of broken sentences and never-ending exclamations. We wish to stimulate, and not to depress the author's spirit, and wil FOREIGN DRAMA. GHENT THEATRE. in the daily papers since our last publication. From this it appears that the total revenue of 1816, was 57,360,6941. Ducis's Hamlet and Othello are at pre- and of 1817, 47,277,450l.; or sent performing with great success at the Ghent Theatre. Two celebrated Flemish 10,033,2441. less than the preceding tragedians, M. Joanny and Mlle. Gros year. This deficit is caused by the cessustain the characters of Hamlet and Ger- | sation of war taxes to the amount of trude. A Belgic Journal contains the fol- | about one million in the customs, one lowing remarks on the tragedies and the million and a quarter in the excise, and performers. ten millions of property tax; so that upon the whole, the sources of revenue still in operation, have in fact produced about two millions above the product from the same sources last year. It is also gratifying to observe, that where the whole year of any particular branch falls short of the preceding, the least part of that deficiency has occurred during the latest quarter. The national expenditure is calculated at many millions more than the revenue. “The most distinguislied literary writers have reproached Ducis for his predilection for Shakespeare. La Harpe observes, that What could possess the man, I mean the poet-Ducis might have ranked with the greatest (Poets are mad, and all but poets know it) row," tragic writers, had he remained faithful to The tragedy of Othello, though divested M. Joanny is an excellent counterpart of Talma, he imitates even the defects which belong to the school of that great And bid your tailor call again to-morrow, [To Second Tier of Boxes.] Wadded and stuf'd out-contraband all over, Well, how the Custom-house improves the shape! Flexibility of physiognomical expression, Mlle. Gros, by her pleasing accentua- The tragedy of Hamlet is the masterpiece You don't approve our Gas-you deal in Oil: I know my cue-beware!"hey, presto pass!" If I but turn one peg, then-exit gas! TWELFTH NIGHT.-On Wednesday Miss Brunton appeared as Viola; and acquitted herself pleasingly, if not with first-rate ability. Emery, Blanchard, Fawcett and Liston, were a rich treat in Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, the Clown, and Malvolio. Duruset is an excellent Sebastian, and Mrs. Gibbs an incomparable Maria. ARTAXERXES.-On Thursday the musical treats of this House were varied by the curtailed Opera of Artaxerxes, in which Braham and Miss Stephens sustained the principal parts with great effect. Mozart's exquisite Ah Perdonna was introduced and sung by these fine musicians; while "Mild as the mountain" was enriched by the sweet natural notes of Duruset, and the bass of Isaacs. We rejoice to hear from America, that the treaty of Ghent, in so far as relates to the settlement respecting the Islands in Pasamaquoddy Bay, has been amicably adjusted. The Message of the President of the United States of America, on opening Congress, has reached England. It is a pacific and highly satisfactory docuand a strict neutrality between Spain ment. Amicable relations with Europe, and her Colonies, are the topics chiefly enforced. We also rejoice to hear that the King of Spain has adopted measures for the entire abolition of the slave trade within two years and a half. A proposition has issued from the members of the Holy Alliance, that every government should take means to prevent smuggling, and the passage of During the performance a little circum-contraband goods. This is doubtless stance occurred with which M. Joanny an useful object; but it is easy to foresee, from the circumstance here recorded, how much of the future destinies of Europe are involved in this association of monarchs and states which has just been framed. must have been somewhat flattered. When Soit le jour que je vois, sois l'air que je respire *This actress became deranged in consequence DIGEST OF POLITICS AND The complete quarter's account of The Duke of Cambridge, according to the foreign papers, has gone to Cassel on a visit to his bride. Report says, that a Welsh order of knighthood, St. Dav'd, will be instituted on the 1st of March. A meeting has been held, and subscription entered into, to remove the disgrace and scandal of street-begging from the metropolis. It is astonishing, after the Police Report, that one mendicant by trade should exist. Hooper, the associate of Dr. Watson (the apothecary, and not the Bishop of Landaff), who was tried with him for | old Mary. After many silly jokes on his "They were lovely in life, and in death they shall not be divided." VARIETIES. DISCOVERY OF ROMAN MEASURES.-A Model has been discovered at Pompeii which served to fix the measures both for solids and fluids. It consists of larger and smaller cylinders with inscriptions. On the outside of the stone is an inscription signifying that it was made by order of the Decemvirs. M. Romanelli has recognised in this instrument the measures which are mentioned by Roman authors under the names of Modius, Semimodius, Trimodius, Amphora, Congius, Hemina, Libra, and Quartarius. This valuable relic is depo sited in the Museum at Portici. Wind S. by W. 2.-Generally overcast, and raining till about half past eight, when the wind abated to about, and it became clear. Rain fallen, 05 of an inch. Tuesday, 6-Thermometer from 30 to 40. Barometer from 30, 03 to 30, 34. Wind N. W. 4.-A very fine and clear day, with a white frost in the morning. Rain fallen, Wednesday, 7-Thermometer from 30 to 48. 55 of an inch. Barometer from 30, 32 to 30, 08. Wind S. W. 2.-The morning rather inclined to be clear. The rest of the day general heavy cloud. Wind rising to heavy gusts by the evening, blowing full four. By 11 o'clock it became West, after a little heavy rain. long white beard, he offered a wager of ANECDOTES.-A German manufacturer Eclipse of Jupiter's 1st Satellite. Edmonton, Middlesex. JOHN ADAMS. TO CORRESPONDENTS. Our friends who find any notices to the Editor, either for alterations in their addresses, or other matters relating to the jeune général; by a general fast.) This is transmission of their papers, unattended to, a pretty fair counterpart to the blunder of will have the goodness to observe, that when a certain "Doer into English" of a French the Literary Gazette has not been ordered work on Chemistry, who translated "La originally at our office, we are utterly precipitation per se," The Persian precipi-ignorant of the channel through which it The celebrated comic actor Brunet, at METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL. of translations, says, in his translation of the article Charles I. (from the French Dictionnaire Biographique) "The anniANECDOTE OF A RUSSIAN PRINCESS.versary of the death of Charles the First is Many of our readers are doubtless ac- still observed in England by a young gequainted with the name of the Swiss doc-neral!" (In the French it stands, Par un tor Michael Schuppach, of Lengnau, in the Emmenthal, who was highly celebrated, and much in vogue in the last century. He is mentioned by Archdeacon Coxe, in his Travels in Switzerland, who himself consulted him. There was a time when peo-tate!! ple of distinction and fortune came to him, particularly from France and Germany, and even from more distant countries; and innumerable are the cures which he performed upon patients given up by the regular physicians. There were once assembled in Michael Schuppach's laboratory, a great many distinguished persons froin all parts of the world; partly to consult him, and partly out of curiosity; and among them many French ladies and gen- January 1—Thursday. tlemen, and a Russian prince, with his daughter, whose singular beauty attracted general attention. A young French marquis attempted, for the amusement of the ladies, to display his wit on the miraculous Doctor; but the latter, though not much acquainted with the French language, answered so pertinently, that the marquis had not the laugh on his side. During this conversation, there entered an old peasant, meanly dressed, with a snow white beard, a neighbour of Schuppach's. Schuppach directly turned away from his great company, to his old neighbour, and hearing that his wife was ill, set about preparing the necessary medicine for her, without paying much attention to his more exalted guests, whose business he did not think so pressing. The marquis was now deprived of one subject of his wit, and therefore chose for his butt the old man, who was waiting while his neighbour Michael was preparing something for his | Thermometer from 21 to 30. Barometer from 30, 19 to 30, 11. passes, and have it not in our power to fulfil these instructions. We do all we can to discover the newsman who is employed, and convey the directions to him; but gentlemen would have a direct and certain remedy were they, in the first instance, to refer to those who supply them, instead of putting us to the often fruitless task of endeavouring to ascertain where the changes can be made. second letter from Teignmouth, Devon, places us in this dilemma. A Clerus shall be duly noticed in our next Number. W.C.H. and Mr. Latrobe, are adverstisements. ERRATA. Owing to the hurry incidental to the changes made on publishing our last Number, some errata occurred which require correction: FOREIGN LITERATURE, Art. II. for Culvier read Cluvier; for innumberless, r. numberless; Barometer from 29, 82 to 29, 71. for Peirese r. Peiresc; for sane r. rare.-EPIWind E. and S. E. 4.-Snow on the ground TAPHS: for prominent r. provincial churchyards; full 3d of an inch deep. The day generally over-for stranger r. stanza; In Bouffler's Epitaph, for cast, with snow in the morning, which melted fast in the evening. Sunday, 4-Therinometer from 31 to 45. Barometer from 29, 67 to 29, 81. Wind S. and S. by E. -The snow quite gone this morning; the morning generally overcast; pleasant sun-shine in the afternoon; the evening clear, with returning frost. Rain fallen is 025 of an inch. Monday, 5-Thermometer from 31 to 45. Barometer from 29, 73 to 29, 61. More r. Merely; Epitaph of Mont-Louis, after affection insert o'er them.-DANISH LITERATURE; the communication should begin Sir * * Chatterton; for Zinn r. Finn.-BALLAD: 8th stanza, for singing r. ringing; 9th, for low r. lone.-BIOGRAPHY: for Gillert r. Gellert; for Rabiner r. Rabener; dele h in Whilhelmina; for This M. Fez r. In his M. Fez; for exotic r. erotic shoots.-THE DRAMA: after Madame Manson r. Miss M'Avoy and Madame Krudener. Bensley and Sons, Bolt Court, Fleet Street. |