Gay as it was, with beauty beaming, Through which she moved;—a gemless queen, A creature of a different seeming From others of a mortal birthAn angel sent to walk the earth! Oh, stranger, if thou e'er hast seen And singled such a one, And if thou hast enraptured been And felt thyself undone ; If thou hast sigh'd for such a one, Looking from out thy shroud of thought Thine eye through all the misty throng As traveller's steps are led along By wild-fire through the night: Then, stranger, haply dost thou know The joy, the rapture, and the woe, Which, in alternate tides of feeling, Now thickening quick-now gently stealing Throughout this lone and hermit breast, That festal night, my soul possess'd. O! she was fairest of the fair, And brightest of the bright; And there was many a fair one there, A hundred eyes on her were bent, O God! to meet her eye! But 'midst the many who look'd on, Who gazed with gaze like mine! All idly up to Heaven, And who can see no wonder there, At length the dancing scene was changed Like dew on summer flewers; Bright eyes were cast upon the ground, A voice as soft and slow As might proceed from angel's tongue, The song was one of those old lays Of mingled gloom and gladness, Which first the tides of joy can raise, Then still them down to sadness; As he down waveless stream doth float. There was but one long final swell, Of full melodious tone, And all into a cadence fell, And was in breathing gone. And she too went: and thus have gone At first too fondly doted on, But soon-too soon removed. The summer glow-the pride of green, When that which gave it all its charm SONG. The Lass o' Carron Side. By C. J. Finlayson. OH! whar will I gae find a place I witless tint yestreen? My heart, that wont to dance as licht She, mermaid-like, 'mang wild flowers sat, The stream row'd at her feet, An' aye she sung her artless sang Wi' a voice unearthly sweet; Sae sweet, the birds that wont to wake Sair may I rue my reckless haste, Sair may I ban the hour, That lured me from my peacefu' cot, Oh! had she sprung frae humble race, I might hae dre'ed a better wierd Banks of the Carron, Feb. 1829. LITERARY CHIT-CHAT AND VARIETIES. We have just received, from London, the first volume of the FAMILY LIBRARY, the monthly publication of which is about still farther to increase the reputation of Mr Murray of Albemarle Street. We are much pleased with the appearance and style of the work. No. I. contains the first part of a Life of Napoleon, which is to be completed in No. II. Of its literary merits, which we hear are highly respectable, we shall speak at greater length next Saturday. The typography is beautiful, and the volume is embellished with six spirited and interesting engravings, one of which, we believe, cost seventy guineas, and none less than twenty-five. This liberality, on the part of the publisher, will be its own reward. A new edition of Mr Sadler's work on Ireland will be ready in about a fortnight. It is a curious anecdote in the publishing world, that the whole of the remaining copies of the former edition were sold the day after he delivered his speech against Ca tholic Emancipation in the House of Commons. Mr Southey's Dialogues on the Progress and Prospects of Society will be ready in a few weeks. The Biography of Captain Beaver, a work of a similar nature to the Memoirs of Lord Collingwood, is announced for early pub. lication. Mr Edward Lytton Bulwer, author of "Pelham" and the "Disowned," has nearly finished another volume, the style of which he very judiciously proposes shall be a mixture of the best parts of his two former tales. of getting it up exceeded £1500. It closes with an "unrivalled representation" of the eruption of Vesuvius, and is expected to draw crowds for the rest of the season." The Provok'd Hus band" has been revived at Drury Lane; Liston, Moody; Young, Lord Townly; Farren, Sir F. Wronghead; and Miss Phillips, Lady Townly. It seems to be the general opinion, however, that the powers of this young lady are not suited for comedy.-Miss Paton and Madame Vestris continue the chief attractions at Covent Garden.-A conjuror, called Mr Henry, is performing at the Adelphi; he is thus spoken of in the Literary Gazette:-" If you wish to find thirty sovereigns in your hand, when only twenty were paid into it, go to Mr Henry, and he will show your that such things can be. If you have a difficult conundrum, ask Mr Henry to guess it, and he will cut a lemon into halves, then into quarters, and out of the quarter which you select shall fly the solution, tied to the leg of a little living canary bird. Besides these things, and a thousand others equally amazing, you shall see a lovely landscape, which, while you are gazing upon it, changes into a different picture, and so strangely that you cannot tell at what point it has changed; all you know is, you were looking at one, and are looking at another. Mr Henry plays the musical glasses too; raises ghosts of the dead, and fetches of the living; and does all these various feats equally well."-Charles Kemble has been playing here for the last week. It is amazing how well he wears; he has all the spirit and vivacity of youth still about | him, yet we suspect he is on the wrong side of sixty. In genteel comedy he is still without a rival-" so gallant, gay, and debonair." Though a pleasing, he is not a great tragedian, and tra Mr P. L. Jacob, one of the most eminent of the Parisian book-gedy is one of those things which hardly admits of mediocrity.sellers, is about to publish a work, which is entitled Soirees de Walter Scott, the contents of which are understood to have been suggested to the bibliopole by Sir Walter, during his visit to Paris in 1826. Elements of Natural History, or an Introduction to systematic Zoology, chiefly according to the elassification of Linnæus, with Illustrations of every order, by John Howard Hinton, A.M. will shortly appear. Mr Sharpe, the proprietor of the "Anniversary," announces a new Annual at Midsummer next, combining engravings from the finest works of British art, with contributions from the pens of the most distinguished writers of the day. We have long been of opinion that Midsummer would be an excellent time for the appearance of a work of this kind, and we made the suggestion in the first number of the Literary Journal, which we are glad to perceive is now about to be put into execution under very favourable auspices. Thomas Hood, author of Whims and Oddities, is about to write a series of comic ballads of the "Sally Brown" and "Nelly Gray", school, which are to be set to music by J. Blewitt, and published in Monthly numbers. The first number, like the song of "Blue Bonnets over the Border," is to commence with " March." The following singular announcement is made by some unknown but aspiring poet:-" Nearly ready for publication, Gabrielle, a Tale of Switzerland, in which an attempt is made to vary a little from the prevailing style in poetry."-(A truly laudable attempt.) "The story is an endeavour to delineate mental aberration, of the mildest kind, in union with singular and romantic scenery, without the interest of stirring events." The Rev. H. J. Todd is preparing for the press a Life of Archbishop Cranmer, in one volume 8vo. A new novel is in considerable forwardness, entitled Jesuitism and Methodism. The Rev. W. Liddiard has in the press, The Legend of Einsidlin, a Tale of Switzerland, and other Poems, dedicated to Thomas Moore, Esq. We have now lost Miss Noel; she sung her first and last song, WEEKLY LIST OF PERFORMANCES, SAT. The Wonder, & The Beehive. STOULTZE IN REQUEST; Or a late MEASURE towards the adjustment of An Impromptu, by W. Ainslie, M.D. HAS brave Winchiisea lived till this day without knowing, Nor fail, unappeased, to be soon after blowing A ball through the thorax, to wipe off the stain? TO OUR CORRESPONDENTS. We have received a communication from a respectable member of the Royal Medical Society, who is also a phrenologist, com MR MULLER'S CONCERT.-This Concert, which took place in the Hopetoun Rooms on Monday evening, was well attended, and spiritedly conducted. Mr Muller stands unquestionably at the head of Scottish Pianists; and the style in which he executed Hummel's Concerto in A minor, and the "Recollections of Ire-plaining that we have bestowed too much praise on Mr Stone's land" by Moscheles, proved him well worthy of the reputation he enjoys. One of the finest parts of the entertainment was Murray's solo on the violin. Comparatively speaking, there are few men living, except Mr Murray, who understand what may be done with that instrument. Theatrical Gossip.-Just when all the London critics were getting into very bad humour at the manner in which the King's Theatre was going on under the management of Laporte, he has produced a Ballet called "Massianello," the splendid magnificence of which has won them all over to his side again. The scenery, dresses, and dancing, are reported to be beyond all praise ;-it employs about three hundred performers, and the cost anti-phrenological paper. This is of course matter of opinion, us. EDINBURGH LITERARY JOURNAL; OR, WEEKLY REGISTER OF CRITICISM AND BELLES LETTRES. No. 22. SATURDAY, APRIL 11, 1829. LITERARY CRITICISM. Histoire de Russie et de Pierre-le-Grand. Par Le PRICE 6d. prevail throughout the whole nation, down to the very commencement of the seventeenth century, when Peter the Great ascended the throne, and gave to Russia, by the force of his splendid talents, a dignity and importance which had never before belonged to her. In consequence, however, of the long night in which she was involved, and the very trifling influence she possessed till a comparatively late period in the affairs of Europe, the history of few nations is more unclassical or repul sive; and we are much disposed to agree with Count Segur, in thinking that none but a Russian himself would feel disposed to do more than to pass from summi to summit, and take a rapid glance of all the principal events and persons that preceded the appearance of the creator of modern Russia; we only regret that the Count should have allotted fully one-half of his volume to the previous department. COUNT SEGUR's candid and liberal narrative of Napoleon's expedition to Russia in 1812 has made his name favourably known in the world of letters. The work now before us, which is on a subject of far greater extent and difficulty, will not diminish his reputation. It consists, however, more of an essay on the earlier history of Russia, and of a bold and vivid sketch or pic ture of the reign of Peter I., than of a minute and re- The causes which contributed to keep Russia so far gular account of the growth and progress of that vast behind the neighbouring countries of Europe it is not empire. All that he attempts is, to present the infor- difficult to explain. It may be laid down as a general mation he has collected on the subject in masses, and to principle, that wherever the means of intercourse do not convey a general idea of the frame of the Russian co-exist, civilization will not make very rapid progress. lossus, in its most important stages and most striking Countries which are carved out and intersected by seas movements. "I have sought," the author remarks, and great rivers, enjoy facilities of inter-communication, "to discover the reason or the spirit of its long history; which give an impulse to mind that enables it to adI have endeavoured to compress, to abridge, to circum-vance rapidly from discovery to discovery. Contrast, scribe it within the limits of an almost synoptical table." "By so laborious a research, I may perhaps have succeeded in throwing a new ray of light upon these historical ruins; but even should I merely have planted a few pickets to indicate the path, my work will not be useless." Count Segur has, in fact, done little more than establish a groundwork for a history of Russia; his book abounds in useful hints and sound philosophical observations; but, in so far as a narrative of facts is concerned, it is far too meagre to be either satisfactory or interesting. In short, as we have already said, it is more an historical disquisition than a history itself, and will be read with much greater advantage by those who have previously investigated the subject, than by those who enter upon it for the first time. Little or nothing is known concerning the internal state of the Russian empire before the ninth century. Previous to that era, migratory hordes of barbarians seem to have been continually passing and repassing between Asia and Scandinavia, and were often engaged in bloody and exterminating warfare. In the year 862, Ruric, who headed the Varangians, a tribe inhabiting the shores of the Baltic Sea, having spread the terror of his arms over a considerable district, at length established himself at Novgorod, and is generally considered as the founder of the Russian empire, the crown being transmitted to his successors in regular descent, for nearly eight centuries: The kings, however, ware always despots; and though some were more distinguished for military prowess than others, which was, in those times, synonymous with virtue, and though the election of a new dynasty in 1613 somewhat re-invigorated the empire, barbarism of the grossest description still continued to for example, southern Europe with the great continent lingered contentedly, because they neither knew, nor were capable of appreciating, a better order of things. It may, however, be stated, in reference to the subject we are at present considering, that Christianity was not introduced into Russia till near the conclusion of the tenth century; and even then, and for several centuries afterwards, it was not actively encouraged, but rather tacitly tolerated. It was under Vladimir, the Goth, that the light of the Gospel first penetrated into Russia. This conversion and its effects are vigorously described by Segur; and as the passage is altogether an interesting one, we shall extract it: THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY INTO RUSSIA. "Vladimir's rude greatness, and the rumours of his great warlike exploits, awakened the attention of the neighbouring religions; four of them hastened to contend for his conversion; but Vladimir rejected Mahometanism, because it interdicted wine, which, he said, was indispensable to Russians, and was their delight; Catholicism, offered to him by the Germans, he disliked, because of its Pope, an earthly deity, which appeared an unexampled thing; and Judaism, because it had no country, and because he thought it neither rational to take advice from wanderers punished by Heaven, nor tempting to participate in their punishment. But, at the same time, his attention was fixed by the Greek religion, which his ancestress, Olga, had followed, and which had recently been preached to him by a philosopher of Byzantium. He summoned his Council, took the opinion of his boyards, of the elders of the people, and deputed ten of them to examine those religions in distant lands, even in their native temples. "Hitherto, notwithstanding their Beli-Bog and their Tcheveric-Bog, (white god and black god,) and whatever they might have gathered from the followers of Zoroaster and of Odin, it is affirmed that the Slavonians had not even dreamt of the existence and perpetual struggle of a good and an evil principle; with different denominations, these Pagans had a mythology similar to all others that is to say, they had not only deified their passions, but also their tastes, and the chief objects of their hopes and fears. "The envoys of the Grand Prince, meanwhile, plain, downright men, went forth, and returned; Mahometanism and Catholicism they had seen only in poor and barbarous provinces, while they witnessed the Greek religion in its magnificent metropolis, and adorned with all its pomp: they did not hesitate. Instantly convinced, Vladimir marched to conquer priests and relics at Cherson having done this, he, by his threats, extorted from the Greek empire a princess, whom he married, and became a Christian. Playing the tyrant to Heaven, as he did to earth, his Pagan divinities, those divinities which he had formed entirely of gold, and fattened with Christian blood, he now stripped for the sake of Christ, like disgraced favourites; he went still farther he ordered them to be dragged to execution at the tails of horses; they were loaded with blows by his guards, and were thrown into the Dnieper. : "The Prince, who thus treated the gods of Russia, was not more forbearing towards the men; he commanded them to become Christians on a certain day and hour: he commanded, and whole tribes were pushed on like flocks, and collected on the banks of rivers, to The Greek schism began in 857, when the patriarch Photius excommunicated Pope Nicholas I., because the Roman Church ordered fasting on Saturday, allowed milk food in Lent, cut off the first week from that season of mortification, forbade priests to marry, and permitted them to shave their beards; and, lastly, maintained that the Holy Ghost proceeded not only from the Father, but also from the Son. The other differences consisted in administering the Sacrament in both kinds; in baptism by immersion; and in the Greek liturgy and the whole of its service being in the vulgar tongue. receive the Greek baptism. One crowd succeeded to another, and to each of these, in mass, was given the name of a saint. He next carried to excess the virtues of Christianity, as he had formerly carried the vices of Paganism; he wasted the revenues of the state in alms, in pious foundations, and in public repasts, to imitate the love-feasts of the primitive Christians; he no longer dared to shed the blood of criminals, or even the enemies of the country.”—P. 30–2. His But Heaven had not destined that an empire, which comprehends one-half of Europe, and a third of Asia, and forms a ninth part of the habitable globe-an empire capable of supporting one hundred and fifty millions of human beings-should remain forever lost in darkness and wretchedness. A regenerator at length arose, a man who stands alone in history, who, trusting only to his own gigantic mind, did more for Russia in fifty-two years, than all his predecessors had been able to do since the creation of the world. We do not talk of his victories and successes over foreign powers; they are nothing in the scale, when compared with the revolutions he effected at home. He was a despot, no doubt; but, to use the powerful language of our author, he was so "by birth, by station, by necessity, by the ascendency of genius, by nature, and because slaves must have a master; yet, what seems utterly incomprehensible, he was a despot more patriotic, more constantly and wholly devoted to the welfare of his nation, than ever was any citizen of a modern, or even of an ancient republic!" Such men as Peter the Great appear only once during the existence of a world; and it requires no common grasp of intellect, for posterity even to speak concerning them as they deserve. life was like the transit of a comet, which bewilders, while it excites admiration, and which is only the more sublime, because it sets at defiance all the ordinary laws of astronomical science. He stepped at once out of the night of centuries, into the full sunshine of civilization and knowledge;—he extricated himself, by a single movement, from the ignorance and prejudices of the sixty millions of men by whom he was surrounded, and, standing pre-eminent on the lofty elevation he had reared with his own hands, he collected around him the chosen spirits of his people, and with these he formed "the nucleus of a nation, which thenceforth never ceased to aspire to the light, to proceed in its new and noble career, and to draw after it all the rest of his empire." It may be, that in tearing himself from the barbarism of ages, some fragments of it still adhered to him; but the dark spots they left upon his character, so far from eclipsing, served rather to give an intenser lustre to the glory he acquired. In his immense career, every thing bore reference to his one and great idea-the regeneration of his empire. If they are the greatest men who are continually influenced by the grandeur and the energy of reason and passion, and whose lives exhibit the fewest unmeaning and fortuitous actions, then Peter was one of the greatest of all; for his persevering and enthusiastic desire to do good to his subjects inspired and directed the most trivial occurrences of his existence. And what did he not achieve for Russia? She is indebted to him for every thing. He found her a dead, barren, and frozen continent; he gave her three seas, an extensive commerce, commodious harbours, a regular and well-disciplined army, a powerful navy, an admiralty, a police establishment, a code of laws, a multitude of schools and colleges, an imperial library, princely collections in anatomy and natural history, observatories, printing-offices, galleries of pictures and statues,-all that gives life a value, and refines and ennobles the species. With such a hero, it is not to be wondered that Count Segur's work rises immensely in interest as soon as Peter the Great enters the scene; we only regret, as we have already said, that he does not devote a greater portion of it to him exclusively. It is impossible to do jus. tice to a theme of so much magnitude in two hundred pages; and though our author has unquestionably produced a bold and masterly sketch, it is one which stands very much in need of filling up. Perhaps Count Segur's chief fault, at least as an historian, is, that he is rarely willing to confine himself to a mere narrative of facts. He is fond of indulging in reflections of his own, which are often both philosophical and profound, but which ought to be sparingly introduced in works whose principal object is to supply historical information. The Count is very apt to generalize; and his style, oddly enough, appears to be a kind of compound of Gibbon's and Hazlitt's; in philosophy, he resembles the former; and in sparkling antithesis, and a wish to say fine things, he is not unlike the latter. In the short specimens, however, we shall give of his work, we prefer selecting from the less ambitious department of plain narrative, or at least narrative as plain as he ever allows himself to write. At the very outset of his career, Peter the Great very nearly became the victim of a military conspiracy; and, indeed, his danger was such, that nothing but his own presence of mind could have saved him. The following scene strikes us as admirably adapted for the purposes of the drama. THE CONSPIRACY OF THE STRELITZ. "Like all malcontents, the Strelitz believed that dis. content was universal. It was this belief, which, in Moscow itself, and a few days before the departure of their sovereign, emboldened Tsikler and Sukanim, two of their leaders, to plot a nocturnal conflagration. They knew that Peter would be the first to hasten to it; and, in the midst of the tumult and confusion common to such accidents, they meant to murder him without mercy, and then to massacre all the foreigners who had been set over them as masters. "Such was the infamous scheme. The hour which they had fixed for its accomplishment was at hand. They had accomplices, but no impeachers; and, when assembled at a banquet, they all sought in intoxicating liquors the courage which was required for so dreadful an execution. But, like all intoxications, this produced various effects, according to the difference of constitution in those by whom it was felt. Two of these villains lost in it their boldness; they infected each other, not with just remorse, but with a dastardly fear; and, escaping from one crime by another, they left the company under a specious pretext, promising to their accomplices to return in time, and hurried to the Tzar to disclose the plot. "At midnight, the blow was to have been struck; and Peter gave orders that exactly at eleven, the abode of the conspirators should be closely surrounded. Shortly after, thinking that the hour was come, he went singly to the haunt of these ruffians; he entered boldly, certain that he should find nothing but trembling criminals, already fettered by his guards. But his impatience had anticipated the time; and he found himself, single and unarmed, in the midst of their unshackled, daring, well-armed band, at the instant when they were vociferating the last words of an oath that they would achieve his destruction. At his unexpected appearance, however, they all arose in confusion. Peter, on his side, comprehending the full extent of his danger, exasperated at the supposed disobedience of his guards, and furious at having thrown himself into peril, suppressed, nevertheless, the violence of his emotions. Having gone too far to recede, he did not lose his presence of mind; he unhesitatingly advanced among this throng of traitors, greeted them familiarly, and, in a calm and natural tone, said, that as he was passing by their house, he saw a light in it; that supposing that they were amusing them selves, he had entered in order to share their pleasures.' He then seated himself, and drank to his assassins, who, standing up around him, could not avoid putting the glass about, and drinking his health. But soon they began to consult each other by their looks, to make numerous signs, and to grow more daring; one of them even leaned over to Sukanim, and said in a low voice, Brother, it is time!' The latter, for what reason, is unknown, hesitated, and had scarcely replied, "Not yet,' when Peter, who heard him, and who also heard at last the footsteps of his guards, started from his seat, knocked him down by a blow on the face, and exclaimed, 'If it is not yet time for you, scoundrel, it is time for me!' This blow, and the sight of the guards, threw the assassins into consternation; they fell on their knees, and implored forgiveness. Chain them!' replied the terrible Tzar. Then, turning to the officer of the guards, he struck him, and reproached him with his want of punctuality; but the latter showed him his order; and the Tzar, perceiving his mistake, clasped him in his arms, kissed him on the forehead, proclaimed his fidelity, and entrusted him with the custody of the traitors. "His vengeance was terrible; the punishment was more ferocious than the crime. First the rack; then the successive mutilation of each member; then death, when not enough of blood and life was left to admit of the sense of suffering."-P. 261-63. Without attempting to follow this great monarch through the magnificent adventures of his after-life, we content ourselves with subjoining one or two anecdotes, illustrative of the best part of his character his deference to reason and good sense, even where his own wishes were most directly counteracted. ANECDOTES OF PETER THE GREAT. "The instance which they most delight to adduce is, the boldness of the senator Dolgousky, in the year of fa mine, when, by an ukase, which was already signed, Peter was about to sacrifice Novgorod to Petersburg: this magistrate had not co-operated in the injustice; he found it committed. But seizing in full senate the obnoxious ukase, he, at the risk of his life, suspended the execu tion of it, carried it away with him, and went to the next church, to receive the sacrament, which the priest was then administering. The intelligence of this offence, which was envenomed by envy and servility, was instantly speeded to the Tzar; he hurried to the senate, and sent orders to Dolgousky to appear there immediately. But the latter, without turning his head, or diverting his attention from heaven to earth, replied, "I hear you,' and went on with his prayers. A second and more imperious message had as little effect upon him,—' I give unto Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's, and unto God the things that are God's,' replied he, unmoved; and it was not till the Holy Sacrament was over that he took his way to the Tzar. As soon as the monarch saw him, he rushed furiously at him, seized him, drew his sword, and with a threatening voice, exclaimed, You shall perish!' But Dolgousky remained unmoved, and, pointing to his heart, Strike!' said he, firmly; I do not fear to die in a just cause! On hearing these words, the Prince dropped his hand, his voice softened, he stepped back, and said, in a tone of surprise, But, tell me, what could have made you so daring?' 'Yourself,' replied the minister; did not you order that the truth should be told you, with respect to the interest of your people?' He then explained; and Peter, who was convinced by what he heard, thanked him for his courageous sincerity, and begged pardon for his violence." "On the occasion of the new and extraordinary labour which was imposed for the excavation of the canal of Ladoga, Dolgousky, indignant at such an abuse of power, dared to destroy, in the midst of the senate, the order which his master had himself dictated. On wit |
