Man. Not with my hand, but heart-which broke her heart-It gazed on mine, and withered. I have shed

Blood, but not hers-and yet her blood was shed

I saw and could not stanch it.'

From these, and several other passages, it seems that Manfred had conceived a mad and insane passion for his sister, named Astartè, and that she had, in consequence of their mutual guilt, committed suicide. This is the terrible catastrophe which for ever haunts his soul-drives him into the mountain-wilderness--and, finally, by the poignancy of unendurable anguish, forces him to seek intercourse with the prince of the air, witches, demons, destinies, spirits, and all the tribes of immaterial existences. From them he tries to discover those secrets into which his reason cannot penetrate. He commands them to tell him the mystery of the grave. The only being he ever loved has by his means been destroyed. beauty gone for ever-annihilated--and with it has her spirit faded into nonentity? or is she lost, miserably lost, and suffering the punishment brought on her by his own sin? We believe, that by carrying in the mind a knowledge of this one horrid event—and along with that, those ideas of Manfred's character, which, by the extracts we have given, better than any words of our own, the reader may be enabled to acquire,-the conduct of the drama, though certainly imperfectly and obscurely managed, may be understood, as well as its chief end and object.

Is all her

*We omit the remaining observations of the Edinburgh editors, partly because of their being extended to a length altogether disproportionate to the importance of the subject; and partly because they swell the panegyric strain to a height, in our judgment, not at all justified by the real merits of the poem.

We do not mean to dispute nor discuss lord Byron's title to the crown with which the Scottish critics would encircle his brows. For the powers of his genius we entertain an equally profound respect, and of his former performances in general we are at least as ardent admirers; but the work now under consideration, the dramatic poem, as he calls it, we cannot estimate so highly. If it were the only production of its author, we should be disposed to press gently on its faults, and value it as an earnest of future excellence; but knowing as well as we do, that he can write so much better when he pleases to exert himself, we cannot easily forgive him for trifling with the patience and favour of a partial public, in sending forth such very crude and unfinished performances as Manfred.

The endeavour to render the crime of incest venial in the eyes of his readers, by associating it with the magnanimity of his hero, while it shocks all the best feelings of the heart, is not compensated by any extraordinary delight afforded to the imagination by his imagery or sentiment. Whatever there is in Manfred of that gloomy yet sublime pathos, which distinguishes and dignifies lord Byron's writings, is chiefly copied from his former productions; and in all

the instances of deviation from his usual strain, it appears to us the change is for the worse. Thus in the citations given above, as well as in all Manfred's soliloquies, we recognise Lara, Conrad, and Childe Harold; but throughout the poem we meet with numerous examples of a roughness in the versification, and a tameness in the incidents, for which we recollect no precedent in any of the author's earlier compositions.

Another little poem has lately appeared, under his name, entitled, "The Lament of Tasso." It would be better placed among the 'fugitive pieces' at the end of a volume, for it has not more than two hundred and fifty lines, than forming in itself a volume; but little as it is, we have read it with more unmixed approbation and pleasure than Manfred; because, with as much pathos, it has more simplicity, more purity, and more nature, and its subject, the very reverse of Manfred, is extremely interesting. Tasso, it will be recollected, was confined as a lunatic in the hospital of St. Anna: lord Byron visited the cell which had been the scene of his sufferings, and the Lament is the result of the inspiration which his muse then imbibed. He supposes the bard not insane, but falsely accused of being so, to pour out a melancholy wailing in his confinement, and the effusion is characteristic and affecting.

Almost at random we select the following specimen:

'It is no marvel-from my very birth

My soul was drunk with love, which did pervade
And mingle with whate'er I saw on earth;

Of objects all inanimate I made

Idols, and out of wild and lonely flowers

And rocks whereby they grew, a paradise,
Where I did lay me down within the shade
Of waving trees, and dreamed uncounted hours.
Though I was chid for wandering, and the wise
Shook their white aged heads o'er me and said
Of such materials wretched men were made,
And such a truant boy would end in wo,
And that the only lesson was a blow;

And then they smote me, and I did not weep,
But cursed them in my heart, and to my haunt
Returned and wept alone, and dreamed again

The visions which arise without a sleep.
And with my years my soul began to pant
With feelings of strange tumult and soft pain;
And the whole heart exhaled into one want,
But undefined and wandering, till the day
I found the thing I sought-and that was thee;
And then I lost my being all to be

Asorbed in thine-the world was past away-
Thou didst annihilate the earth to me!

ART. V.-Vegetable Materia Medica of the United States; or Medical Botany. By W. P. C. Barton, M. D. Professor of Botany in the University of Pennsylvania, &c. Published by M. Carey & Son.

I'

No. I. Containing Chimaphila Umbellata. (Pippsissewa.)

Sanguinaria Canadensis. (Puccoon.)
Cornus Florida. (Dogwood.)

Triosteum perfoliatum. (Fever wort.)
Gillenia trifoliata (Indian physic.)

Gillenia stipulacea. (Small flowered Indian physic. T is with great pleasure we see this publication; because it is a very praise-worthy instance of appropriate industry from the chair of Botany lately erected in the University of Pennsylvania; and considering that the professor is yet a very young man, it augurs well for the reputation of himself and his country in his riper age, when years of industry and research, such as the public have a right to expect, shall have accumulated knowledge, and matured his judgment. We are particularly glad to see this publication issue from the chair of Pennsylvania, because it shows we are not behind hand with our sister states: and because another gentleman of considerable reputation as a Botanist (Professor Bigelow) is at present a fellow-labourer in the same field of research.

We shall defer the observations we have to make on the subject of Medical Botany, until the appearance of Professor Bigelow's work, as they will equally apply to the one publication and the other; just observing by the way, that great judgment is required, not to load the publication with useless and inert articles; or to recommend, on bare rumour and popular report of the medical utility of a plant. When long experience, or recent, well-conducted experiments by professional inquirers, have ascertained the medical virtues of a vegetable, it becomes a proper subject to be delineated, described, and distinguished in a treatise on Medical Botany; but two-thirds of the vegetables set down in a modern catalogue of Materia Medica, would be far better omitted than retained: nor will any botanist serve the cause of medical science by adding to the useless or dubious articles of an already encumbered list.

These remarks are intended, not to apply as criticisms to the present, but as cautions to the future pages of such a work-not to Professor Barton or Professor Bigelow, but to any publication that may appear of a similar nature with the present. The plan pursued by Dr. Barton will best appear from the following advertisement:

In describing the plants enumerated and figured in this work, the following plan has been adopted:

The first line in large capitals, contains the systematic or botanical name of the plant, the second line in smaller capitals, contains the common or most general English or vulgar name or names

The English or vulgar names enumerated after, are those by which the plant is occasionally known, and recognised in different sections of our country; and as these are sometimes quite local, they are merely noticed for general information.

The paragraph following these names, contains a reference to the works of different authors who have noticed the plant. Many have been omitted, because the author had not access to them, and some because their works were not scientific.

The generic character follows, together with a reference of the plant to the natural system of Jussieu; the natural order of Linnæus's natural method; and the class and order of the artificial system of this author.

Immediately in succession, the best specific character known is given, with a reference to the author. The synonyms next follow, succeeded by a brief notice of the pharmaceutical preparation of the plant, its virtues, its effects, medical uses and dose.

The descriptio uberior, or full description, in Latin, is always supplied for this work by the author, or quoted from his manuscript copy of the Flora Philadelphica;* though in cases where a good one has already been given, it will be quoted, with a reference to the author, as in the case of that of Chimaphila umbellata.

The text in large type, begins with a general or familiar description of the plant, calculated for the generality of readers, who, with this and the plate, will be, it is hoped, at no loss to identify the plants described.

The chemical analysis, when any has been made, follows; then a history of the medical properties; after which the economical use or uses are noticed; and the history completed by an explanation of the plates, and the dissections of the flowers and fructification contained in them.

P. vii. viii.

The preliminary observations, contain a brief account of the authors who have treated on the medicinal plants of the United States, with considerations on the necessity and utility of such a work as the present. From some of these remarks we might dissent, but they are all proper to be urged, and in place.

Then follow the coloured drawings, synonyms, classification, descriptions, properties and uses of the plants themselves. They seem faithfully delineated from nature, and very accurately coloured; the colouring, Professor Barton has been at the trouble of executing himself, and the specimens of the present number are very satisfactory proofs of industry, accuracy, and skill. Indeed the whole of the publication shows that labour and research has not been spared to make it worthy of public support, and it ought to receive it.

This is a work of promise; from which Dr. Barton may reasonably expect to acquire reputation; and the American public also, are interested that it should do honour in its progress to American science. It is worth while, therefore, to notice such objections as may really, or may appear to detract from its merit, in reviewing the first number particularly; so that being noticed thus early, they may be considered by the author, and avoided in the ensuing numbers, if they should, on reflection, appear to him well founded.

And first, There has been too much neglect in revising the proof sheets of the Latin part of this work. We know, perhaps as well as Dr. Barton, how difficult it is to find a compositor who will set * This work will be published in about twelve months from this period. 41

VOL X.

a page in any language but English with tolerable accuracy; and how apt these gentlemen are, to neglect the corrections which an author thinks necessary, and which they do not. But Dr. Barton has undertaken the labour, and his readers will expect that he will go through with it, for his own sake, and for theirs; and not permit the descriptio uberior to be most fruitful of faults.

For instance, in page 18, for viresentia read virescentia.

In the descriptio uberior of sanguinaria, p. 32.

Succo fulvo exudans Chelidonii. Exudans, requires the accusative not the ablative case,

Sub floratione. Is floratio a botanical word? It is not to be found in the Terminology of Linnæus or of Wildenow. Frondescentia is the leafing of a plant; florescentia is, for like reason, the flowering of a plant. Sub, is an inelegant substitute for ante.

Scapo constanter uniflora. This is a mistake in gender; and constanter would be well exchanged for semper.

Florum petala alba vel roseo-striata, perquam varians numero et magnitudine: this is a mistake in number.

Gillenia trifoliata, p. 66. Caulium plurium, versus summitatem ramosarum, et plerumque rubicundarum. What governs this collection of genitive cases? Obtusata: this is an awkward, though to be sure, not a new word; so is montosis. So we think is acumen in the sense intended. Plurimum, is just tolerable.

For soliis, read solis.

There are some others of minor consequence, but they should be corrected.

Secondly, The case is frequently and unnecessarily changed. If the nominative be used at the commencement of the description, it should be continued throughout, and not needlessly or fantastically changed for the ablative. Sometimes without any assignable reason, the nominative changes to the genitive, as in the case of Gillenia trifoliata. Radix perennis. Caulium plurium, versus summitatem ramosarum, &c. Summitas is used, but like obtusata and montosis, it sounds very harsh to a classical ear.

Thirdly, The parts of the plant should be printed in Italics, to distinguish it from the characters: the characters are not separated by the pointing or stopping; a period should not intervene till the characters belonging to the part of the plant under description, are finished. Thus:

Petala lineari-lanceolata, obtusiuscula, et ubi cum calice juncta, sub-unguiculata. Colore sunt alba, rariter albido-rosea. It should have been printed thus:

Petala, lineari-lanceolata, obtusiuscula, et ubi cum calice juncta, sub-unguicalata; colore, alba; raro albido-rosea. For if a full stop be placed after sub-unguicalata, petala ought to be repeated after colore.

These remarks do not touch essentials, but they would greatly promote perspicuity if attended to. Probably the inattention be