And has thy double perfidy beguiled

The trusting father to betray the child?

Darest thou, in scorn of heaven's attested host,

Bear fated perjury to thy native coast?

Could nothing check the deed thy soul design'd;
Did rising pity never touch thy mind;
Nor e'er thy bosom to itself portray

Those burning pangs that now make mine their prey?
Not these thy promises so fondly vow'd,
When all affections to thine accent bow'd;
Thou never bad'st me hope a fate like this,

But festive spousals and connubial bliss.

The oaths thy passion urged thee then to swear
Are now all scatter'd to the senseless air.
Then let no wornan hence in man believe,
Or think a lover speaks but to deceive.
He, while ungratified desire is high,
Shrinks from no oath, no promise will deny ;
Soon as his lust is satiate with its prize,

He spurns his vows, and perjury's curse defies.
I snatch'd thee, lost, from death's engulfing wave;
I rather doomed my brother to the grave,
Than fail in peril's desperate hour to aid
Thee, hard and false; and I am thus repaid;
Am giv'n to beasts a prey; nor shall remorse
Heap e'en the rudest grave upon my corse."

(Vol. II. p. 28-30.)

To sum up our opinion upon the merits of Mr. Lamb's work, we have little hesitation in declaring that it is executed throughout with much fluency and elegance of versification.

FROM THE MONTHLY REVIEW.

THE WAVERLEY NOVELS.

The singular rapidity with which "Nigel" has followed the steps of his predecessor" The Pirate," and the report that we may shortly expect the appearance of his successor, convince us that our task begins to grow serious. Kindly solicitous to prevent our time from hanging heavily on our hands, this fertile writer seems resolved, at every vacant season of the year, to offer his best assistance in diverting our ennui; and accordingly, having in the Christmas holidays contributed his stock of amusement in the shape of "The Pirate," no sooner did Whitsuntide arrive than he proffered "The Fortunes of Nigel," to while away a few of the sultry hours which have lately oppressed us. We therefore look forwards with confidence to his aid in killing a tedious day or two in the decline of the summer, or, at all events, before the fall of the leaf; and we shall be fully prepared, as Christmas again returns, once more to greet the appearance of our great periodical novelist. We are now fully persuaded, by the perusal of the introductory Epistle to the present work, that it is in vain to expect him to stay his course; and, indeed, he frankly confesses that he shall continue to write as long as the public will persist in reading his productions. He should, however, recollect that the world will not be satisfied unless he surpasses himself, and that an author's reputation, unless it increases, must diminish:-but this is his business rather than ours.

By the rare combination of a rich fancy with very extensive and

accurate antiquarian knowledge, which all the Scottish novels have shown the writer of them to possess, he has been enabled to become the founder of a new school. Until he appeared, we had no compositions in our language which could fairly lay claim to the title of historical novels. It is true that we possessed romances, of which the heroes frequently bore some well-known name: but, in the delineation of their characters, the author's imagination was generally as discursive as in any other portion of his work. Not so the author of “Waverley." His portraits of the various historical personages whom he has introduced are all evidently drawn by one who has been long familiar with their features, and who can, without difficulty, represent them in the shape which they have always borne in his eyes. No one, except Shakspeare in his historical plays, has given more vivid and striking pictures of the illustrious dead; and no one has been more curiously happy in throwing over the canvass that air of life and truth, that vraisemblance, which renders the illusion so complete. While, however, the chief merit in Shakspeare's representations seems to be the intuitive faculty which the poet displays of presenting, with the most perfect nature, the fitting sentiments and feelings of his various characters, without any tried regard to the niceties of historical correctness and antiquarian research, the great endeavour of the Scottish novelist is to furnish a picture, complete in all

its parts, of the manners and spirit of the age which he is describing. The scenery and decorations of his tales, if we may be allowed the expression, are finished with a scrupulous regard to truth and correctness; and not the minutest incident which his fertile mind suggests is passed over, when its insertion would add any thing to the completeness of his work.

While we thus readily admit the diligence with which the author avails himself of the varied stores of historical and antiquarian information which lie within his reach, it is evident that, like graver historians, he is not without his prejudices, and that he has not always formed an unbiassed opinion of the great characters which he represents. We are induced to enter rather more at large into this subject, by a belief that the false ideas of character, which are spread abroad in this shape, are calculated to produce more injurious effects than if they were contained in some dull and ponderous history; not only by their more extended circulation, but by the impression which such lively works of fiction usually leave on the mind.' We shall not recur to any of this writer's former works in support of the opinion which we are now advancing, though ample proofs might be there collected: it will be sufficient for us to make a few observations on the historical portraits contained in “ The Fortunes of Nigel.”

“ The Fortunes of Nigel” comprise the history of a young Scottish nobleman, who, being reduced almost to poverty, arrives in London for the purpose of soliciting from James I. the payment of a large debt due from that sovereign to his father. The adventures of this youthful Lord (Nigel Olifaunt, Lord Glenvarloch,) furnish the matter of the three volumes before us. The historical personages with whom we are made acquainted are James I., Prince Charles, and the celebrated Duke of Buckingham. Undoubtedly, our English Solomon is admirably drawn, and evidently with great relish and gusto. Indeed, the character of this divine vicegerent is so obnoxious to ridicule, and the cotemporary historians have so diligently collected and transmitted VOL. I. No. 1,-Museum.

F

their stores of amusing anecdote, that a much duller pen might have given an entertaining representation of “ the wisest fool in all Christendom." So admirably has the author succeeded in his sketch, that we question whether an equally accurate and lively portrait of James is to be found in the pages of any of our historians: but in this part the novelist has trusted little or nothing to his imagination, for his characteristic incidents, and his minute relations of the King's peculiar habits and manners, are almost entirely borrowed from the memoir-writers and annalists of the times; though interwoven into the present narrative and adapted to the present purpose with singular skill and felicity. The conversations in which James takes a part are the only portions of the volumes relating to him in which the writer's imagination has been put to the test, and here he has certainly acquitted himself most successfully. In bringing before the reader all the King's personal peculiarities, which were not few, he has been particularly happy; owing to the diligence with which he has examined the pages of Weldon, Osborn, Clarendon, and others of our older authors. The aversion which James always showed to the sight of drawn swords, or fire-arms, has furnished matter for two or three very entertaining scenes, and it is curious to observe the historical correctness of the representation of this failing. We may quote, as an example, the mode in which the King knighted Richie Moniplies.He took the drawn sword, and

“ with averted eyes, for it was a sight he loved not to look upon,

endeavoured to lay it on Richie's shoulder, but nearly struck it into his eye. Richie, starting back, attempted to rise, but was held down by Lowestoffe, while Sir Mungo guiding the royal weapon, the honour-bestowing blow was given and received ; Surge carnifex-Rise up Sir Richard Moniplies of Castle-Collop!”—Let us now consult the original of this scene: “He (the King) had such an aversion," says Sir Kenelm Digby, “ to a naked sword all his lifetime, that he could not see one without great emotion of spirits; and though otherwise courageous enough, he could not over-master his passions in this particular. I remember when he dubb'd me knight, in the ceremony of putting a naked sword upon my shoulder, he could not endure to look upon it, but turned his face another way; insomuch that, in lieu of touching my shoulder, he had almost thrust the point into my eyes, had not the Duke of Buckingham guided his hand aright.” (Digby on the Power of Sympathy, p. 88.) We do not cite these passages for the purpose of convicting the author of plagiarism, for we think it is his highest praise that he has contrived in his character of James to render his fictitious narrative so consistent with historical truth. In the same manner, the description of the monarch's mode of riding is taken from Coke's Detection, and that of his dress from Osborn. To Clarendon, also, the writer is very considerably indebted for some curious traits of James's manpers.

We wish that we could concede the same praise of correctness to the novelist for the manner in which he has drawn Prince Charles and Buckingham: but here, if we mistake not, we perceive evident symptoms of Tory partialities. We do not indeed see much either of the Prince or the Duke, but all that we do see is clearly intended to pro

May we venture a conjecture whether Miss Aikin's Memoirs of James's court were not published early enough to afford this author some valuable hints?

duce a favourable impression. The better qualities of Charles are all displayed-his gravity, propriety, and princely dignity; nay, he is even represented as being much chagrined at the expedient to which his father resorted, in privately listening to the conversations of Nigel when a prisoner in the Tower: yet this

detestation of treachery does not seem very natural in one who could approve of the employment of spies, a fact with which we are made acquainted by Clarendon.* Then with regard to Buckingham, from what appears of him in “The Fortunes of Nigel,” we should say that he was a frank bold-hearted character; not indeed free from the vices of his age, but at all events a high-spirited and gallant courtier. We have nothing of his ambition, his insolent carriage to the King and Prince, the latter of whom historians tell us he was once on the point of striking, or of that vindictive spirit which rendered his power so truly terrible and fatal to those who once ventured to provoke him. On the contrary, we find him openly avowing himself

the enemy of Lord Glenvarloch, and afterward recanting his words, and pleading that nobleman's cause before the King; a proceeding which is surely out of all historical keeping. The incident of the quarrel is evidently taken from the account hand. ed down to us of that which occurred between the Duke and Lord Cottington; where the Duke, “with a countenance serene enough," assured his Lordship that he would always do whatsoever was in his power to ruin and destroy bim; “ without mentioning any particular ground for his so heightened displeasure.”—The present author's notions of Buckingham's character are seemingly those of Lord Clarendon; who can scarcely, we think, be trusted as a proper guide, when he tells us that Buckingham was “of an excellent disposition, and in his nature just and candid, liberal, generous, and bountiful:" but that Hampden, like Cinna, "had a head to contrive and a tongue to persuade and a hand to execute any mischief,” and that his death seemed to be “a great deliverance to the nation."

FRON THE LONDON LITERARY GAZETTE. Extracts of Notes taken in the course of a Tour on the Continent of

Europe, in the years 1814 and 1815; principally relating to a Visit to the Isle of Elba, and a Conversation held with Napoleon Bonaparte, during his residence there.—London & Truro.-pp. 58.

This little pamphlet is understood to be from the pen of Mr. Vivian, brother of the distinguished general officer of that name. What he does relate may therefore be considered as entitled to credit-a qualification which it would not be easy to extend to many of the accounts of Bonaparte, his conversations and writings; which are, sooth to say, most of them mere forgeries and impositions. The author felt the interest of his subject so much, that he made ample notes at the moment; and, in his use of them for his present purpose, has judiciously preserved where he could the very expressions of Napoleon. He has thus produced a sample of that extraordinary person's mode of conveying his ideas, as characteristic as any which we have ever seen; and contributed a very entertaining picture of him, in a cheap and popular form, to gratify the curiosity of the British public.

The remarks on the Isle of Elba we shall pass without ceremonythey are not so full as those of Count Thiebaud's-and proceed at once to the more attractive portion of the Brochure, the details of an interview with Bonaparte, to which Mr. V. and a friend were introduced by Bertrand, on the 26th of January, 1815.

"The evening of the 26th being appointed for our audience with the Emperor, we attired ourselves in regimentals, and having taken coffee with Count Bertrand, at a little after eight o'clock, we proceeded from his apartments to the imperial residence, amidst a flood of rain. From the entrance, which was situated in the left wing, we passed into an anti-chamber containing two windows, and the walls of which were hung with a number of good prints. Here we remained whilst the Count went to announce our arrival, and we were shortly after ushered into the presence of Napoleon, without any form or ceremony whatever. We found this extraordinary man standing by the fire, at the further end of a room adjoining the anti-chamber, and into which he had come, on being informed of our arrival. This room was about the size of that we had left, and was fitted up with old yellow furniture, brought, as we understood, from the palace of his sister, at Piombino. On our entrance he advanced towards us, and we took our station with our backs against a table that stood between the windows: Whilst he was advancing he began the conversation:-"

[The French is also given; but we prefer the translation.]
"What uniform do you wear? That of the (local) militia.'
"Of what county ? Cornwall.'

"That is a very mountainous country?.- Yes.'

"Of what height are the mountains; are they as high as those of this island? They are higher, but they are of a different character; less insulated.'

"Are they as high as those of the principality of Wales ?'-' Not quite.'

666 'How many toises are they-six or eight hundred ?—No, not so many, perhaps from three to four hundred.'

"What is the capital of Cornwall? Truro is a principal town.' "What! Truro, near to Falmouth!"

"How long have you been assembled every year?”—' A month in each year.'

"Who paid you-the government? Yes, the government paid us, but the Prince Regent clothed us.'

What rank have you; that of colonel ? No, major.' "Ah!-major.'-We are the (local) Militia of the Miners of

Cornwall.'

Ah!-there are mines of tin there ?'- Yes, and of copper also.' "Does the Prince Regent receive any dues from the mines ?'Yes, from the tin, but not from the copper.'

How much a-year does he receive from these dues ?'-' Between nine and ten thousand pounds sterling."

"Then turning to my friend M. W. he said: And you P' I also belong to the militia.'

"Of what county?'-' Kent.'

"Ah, we were neighbours.'