2»" S. VII. Jan. 15. '59.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



59 



That this judgment is questionable at least there 

 is, 1 think, proof in the fact that in the notice 

 of Dickens in Dr, Hoefer's Nouvelle Biographic 

 Generale, published by Didot, I find the famous 

 novelist made answerable for papers of the Pick- 

 jvick's Club, Olivie?' Twist, Chuzzlewit, Christmas 

 Carrol, Cricket on the Earth, and Domhey and his 

 Son ; while he is himself described as a " Member 

 of the Litterary Guild Association^ Now this 

 work of Dr. Hoefer's is one of great pretension, 

 published by a first-rate house, and will extend 

 probably to fifty or* sixty volumes. I may add 

 that the above is not a remarkable specimen of 

 the inaccuracy of the notices of English works. 



Lethrediensis. 



General Vallanceys " Green Book," or Irish 

 Historical Library (2""* S. vii. 9.) — M. C. is in- 

 formed that Vallancey's Green Book was sold by 

 auction at Jones's Sale Rooms in Dublin about 

 one year since. The Catalogue stated it to have 

 been the property of the Rev. Edward Groves, 

 late Commissioner of Public Records in Ireland. 



It became my property on that occasion, and is 

 now in my possession. It has never been printed. 



It contains, as your correspondent states, an 

 account of every book or tract that has been dis- 

 covered relative to Ireland, printed or other- 

 wise. James Moekin. 



Carleton Terrace, Rathmines, Dublin. 



NOTES ON BOOKS, ETC. 



The Thousand and One Nights, commonly called in Eng- 

 land The Arabian Nights' Entertainments. A New Trans- 

 lation from the Arabic, with Copious Notes. By Edward 

 William Lane, Author of " The Modern Egyptians." Il- 

 lustrated with many Hundred Engravings on Wood from 

 Original Designs by William Harvey. ' A New Edition 

 from a Copy annotated by the Translator : edited by his 

 iVe;jAew, Edward Stanley Poole. 3 Vols. 8vo. (Murraj'.) 



it is long since a work of the popular character of our 

 old favourite, The Arabian Nights, has been brought be- 

 fore the public in so handsome a form as that in which 

 Mr. Murray has now issued these matchless stories. 

 While we have in Mr. Lane's intimate acquaintance with 

 all the phases of Arabian life — an acquaintance only to be 

 gained by a long residence in the countr}', and a most 

 free and unrestricted intercourse with its inhabitants — 

 while we have this securitj' for the fidelity of his trans- 

 lation, and for the accuracj' of the valuable notes by 

 which his translation is accompanied — we have in the 

 beauty of its typography, the richness of the paper, and, 

 above all, in the hundreds of exquisite woodcuts scattered 

 over almost every page, a rare combination of excellen- 

 cies which must make the present issue of The Thousand 

 and One Nights a standard book for every library. We 

 are glad, too, that Mr. Lane has in the present "edition, 

 when writing Arabic and other Oriental words, employed 

 a system congenial with our language, and of the most 

 simple kind ; and that he adheres to this system in every 

 case, for the sake of uniformity as well as'truth ; for it is 

 time that the old and erroneous forms should be banished 



from our literature. But these three handsome volumes 

 have one still higher claim than any we have yet stated 

 to public favour. Hundreds of parents who have ad- 

 mired the romance, the pathos, the fascination, and the 

 humour of this matchless collection of stories, have hesi- 

 tated to place them in the hands of their children on ac- 

 count of the indecencies which were to be found in the 

 old translation from Galland's version. This objection no 

 longer exists, and we have to thank Mr. Lane and Mr. 

 Murray for giving us three volumes of most imaginative 

 and delightful stories, so told as to delight all — and 

 offend none. 



Journal of my Life during the French Revolution. By 

 Grace Dalryraple Elliott. 8vo. (Bentley.) 



Many as have been the painfully interesting narratives 

 which we have received from time to time from the pens 

 of those who were eye-witnesses of the first French Re- 

 volution, or who were suflerers in person and property 

 during that reign of terror, few have exceeded in the 

 power of placing vividly before us the horrors of that 

 eventful period Mrs. Elliott, the authoress of the pre- 

 sent sketch. It is obvious from the intimate relations 

 which then subsisted between her and the Duke of Or- 

 leans, and other indications scattered throughout her 

 pages, that Mrs. Elliott was regarded by the Court of 

 Versailles, by the Duke of Orleans, and probably by the 

 leaders of both political parties in this country, as one able 

 to supply trustworthy information as to all that was then 

 passing in Paris. When she returned to this country, 

 and the gossip of what she had seen, heard, and suffered, 

 reached George III., it cannot be matter of surprise that 

 he should wish to have her own statement in writing. 

 He must have read it with no little interest, in spite of the 

 prejudices which he probably entertained against the 

 writer from her connexion Avfth the Prince of Wales. 

 That interest will be shared by everyone who takes up 

 the volume ; and everyone should do so who would like 

 to hear the impression which the scenes of horror pro- 

 duced upon Mrs. Elliott. Into the history of the lady 

 herself, her beauty, and her misfortunes, it is needless 

 now to enter. 



Original Unpublished Papers illustrative of the Life of 

 Sir Peter Paul Rubens, as an Artist and Diplomatist, pre- 

 served in H. M. State Paper Office ; with an Appendix of 

 Documents respecting the Arundelian Collection, the Earl 

 of SomerseVs Collection, the Great Mantuan Collection, the 

 Duke of Buckingham, Gentileschi, Gerbier, Honthorst, Le 

 Sueur, Myttens, Torrentius, Vanderdoort, §•£., §■<?. Collected 

 and edited by W. Noel Sainsbury (ofH. 31. State Paper 

 Office). 8vo. (Bradbury and ]<jvans.) 



There is something extremely pleasant in taking up a 

 book which bears upon it the obvious stamp of care, re- 

 search, and good editorship. One glances at the goodly 

 array of illustrative notes — at the properly quoted au- 

 thorities — at the well-disposed and nicely classified ma- 

 terials — and finally, the eye runs with curious satisfac- 

 tion over the copious and well-digested Index. Such a 

 book is Mr. Sainsbury's new volume. Artists and con- 

 noisseurs have written largely respecting the Raphael 

 of Flanders. The present work introduces testimony to 

 his character and actions from a new source. Historical 

 documents are here adduced in aid of the literature of art, 

 and the great artist is brought before us to bg judged, not 

 by the gorgeous productions of his pencilT but by his 

 dealings with his patrons, and in his character of peace- 

 maker between England and Spain. The result is in 

 every respect honourable to his memorj'. There was a 

 nobility about everj'thing he did. The ambition of his 

 designs, respecting which he says that he never wanted 

 courage to undertake any design, however vast in size or 

 diversified in subject — his refusal to listen to any abate- 



