MONTHLY REVIEW OF LITERATURE. 45? 



FAMILY LIBRARY. No. 34. LIVES OF SCOTTISH WORTHIES. VOL. II. 

 LONDON. 1832. 



THE second volume of Mr. Tytler's interesting little work contains the con- 

 cluding portion of the life of Robert Bruce, and the lives of Barbour, 

 the early historian and poet of Andrew Wynton, the ancient Chronicler 

 of Scotland of John de Fordun, an historian contemporary with Wynton, and 

 of the royal poet and warrior, James the First of Scotland. 



These lives are written in an easy and attractive style, and are well calculated 

 to be popular with those and where are they not ? to whom the early history 

 of Scotland has been endeared by the works of that great man now lost to us 

 for ever. But this is not the appropriate place to pay that affectionate respect. 



THE MOSAICAL AND MINERAL GEOLOGIES. BY W. M. HIGGINS. LONDON. 



1832. 



WE perfectly agree with Mr. Higgins that they who deny the propriety of 

 examining the Mosaical History, for the purpose of comparing it with science, 

 insinuate its falsehood. It were indeed useless to argue the point with such 

 persons. If they suppose that the world is to take things for granted upon bare 

 assertion they are altogether under a mistake, and if the Mosaical History was 

 true, as they profess to believe, surely no stronger confirmation of it can be 

 afforded than its accordance with geological facts. 



To compare the principles of Geology with the Mosaical History of the 

 Creation, with a view to substantiate the latter, has been the object of the au- 

 thor in his very ingenious book, and we congratulate him upon the success with 

 which he has been enabled to carry on his researches. 



THE NEW GIL BLAS ; or, PEDRO OF PENAFLOR. BY HENRY D'!NGLIS. 

 3 Vols. LONDON, 1832. 



MR. INGLIS has been taken somewhat severely to task, for his presumption, 

 in calling his book " THE NEW GIL BLAS," and for his scepticism in doubting, 

 or, rather, for his audacity in denying the fame of the authorship of the cele- 

 brated " Gil Bias" to Le Sage. 



In our opinion, he has been, in both cases, unjustly attacked. We grant that, 

 on the first blush, it might be thought somewhat presumptuous in Mr. Inglis to 

 appropriate to himself the title of a novel, which has been, perhaps, as exten- 

 sively read, if not so universally admired, as the Don Quixotte, or the great 

 work of our admirable Fielding thereby seeming to insinuate, or to direct the 

 public attention to the fact, that his own novel was equal to the original per- 

 formance. We have ourselves been disgusted, of late, to perceive a vulgar and 

 brawling coxcomb, with much modest coolness, sign himself" Junius Redivivus," 

 as though his claim to that title were indisputable; because he possessed no one 

 requisite that could justify his assumption of it. But we are inclined to believe, 

 that it was from no motive of vanity, that the author of " The New Gil Bias" 

 was induced to christen it by that name. It is impossible to read three chap- 

 ters of his book, without perceiving that he has had that novel perpetually in 

 his eye ; and, forasmuch as he must shrewdly have suspected that, under any 

 other name, it would smell as strong of its origin, he was led to adopt the title 

 at once ; thereby to glance off the stigma of servile imitation, which w ould 

 otherwise attach to it. 



With respect to the other matter the authorship of Gil Bias we opine that 

 there cannot be much longer a question upon the point. We. think that itlhas 

 been decided, to the satisfaction of all those who choose to trouble themseves 

 with a perusal of the several arguments for and against ; and of all who will 

 consent, however reluctantly, to unshrine a favoured idol of many years' wor- 

 ship that Le Sage was not the author of " Gil Bias." It is not, however, to be 

 supposed, that so practised a writer as Le Sage would have worked up his 

 Spanish manuscript materials so awkwardly or, rather, that he would have 



