108 
had happily maintained so noble and 
dignified a tone in the writings of 
Boccacio. 
“The Roman Nights’ completed 
what “the Decameron” began, and 
irrevocably fixed the second memora- 
ble epoch for Italian prose, now des- 
tined to become, from the pen of a 
master, the worthy interpreter of his- 
tory and philosophy. To this double 
purpose has Count Verri consecrated 
it, in numerous manuscripts of which 
his family are possessed, and amongst 
which ‘‘a Picture of the French Re- 
volution to the Consulate of Bona- 
parte,” and “a General History of 
Staly from the Foundation of Rome to 
the year 1766,” are particularly spoken 
of. The latter of these two works, 
which, during more than twenty cen- 
turies, embraces a long chain of the 
most important revolutions of which 
Italy has been the theatre, and amongst 
which Rome, its republic, and its em- 
pire, form in some degree only a sim- 
ple episode, appears a true historical 
creation. We do not, in truth, pos- 
Sess a picture of such vast dimensions, 
and of such homogeneous composition, 
traced by a single hand, and upon 
which the unity of the plan, the com- 
prehensive perspicuity and steadiness 
of the views, and the regular consis- 
tency of the details, impress the cha- 
racter of those durable monuments of 
human genius to which mankind look 
for instruction and delight. If to a 
certain degree to form a judgment of 
the success of such a work, it were 
suflicient to admit in its author an ex- 
tensive acquaintance with man and his 
history, an enlightened philosophy, 
an independence of opinions united 
with correctness of principles, talents 
matured by experience and crowned 
with success, a moral and religious 
character, unimpeached during a life 
of seventy-five years, marked with no- 
ble traits and useful virtues,—few mo- 
derm productions would offer more 
titles to our confidence and motives 
for our just curiosity. 
Together with these, and many other 
various writings, may be mentioned 
“the Life of Krostratus,” the last work 
which appeared in the life-time of 
Count Verri. In this we recognize 
with pleasure the author of “ Sappho,” 
and ‘the Tomb of the Scipios;” and 
it may with justice be remarked, that 
Verri has not fallen off in any of his 
compositions, but appears through 
them all as a writer of the highest 
L’ Ape Italiana, No. XXX. 
[Sept. 1, 
order, who may remove from the Ita- 
lian nation the general reproach of 
cultivating only the poetic style, and 
neglecting the energy of sentiment. 
We may gladly observe, as a pecu- 
liarity honourable to his memory, and 
always too rarely met with amongst 
authors, the laborious slowness with 
which he corrected his works, as well 
as the prudent reserve he constantly 
maintained in publishing them as ano- 
nymous, and replying to the cavils of 
pseudo-criticism only by the silence of 
modesty. 
The study of history, one in which 
Varri engaged with such honour to 
himself and such advantage to the 
world, forms one of the most noble oc- 
cupations of social man. Whereso- 
ever laws, morals, a government, and 
arts, have existed, mankind have en- 
deayoured to become acquainted with 
the times and the circumstances which 
occasioned their production ; the re- 
volutions which hastened or retarded 
their development; and. finally, the 
causes which had an influence on their 
perfection and decline. This feeling, 
so generally prevalent, arises from 
more weighty motives than a senti- 
ment of simple curiosity; it depends 
on that secret instinct of our nature 
which carries us beyond ourselves, 
and leads the mind in some degree to 
obtain in thought that immortality of 
existence which time must ever reluse. 
In proportion as the vast picture of 
ages is revealed to the eye of man, he 
believes himself admitted to the coun- 
cils of the Divinity; he beholds the 
infancy of empires, he follows them 
in their progress ; he meditates upon 
their fall, and draws from this impo- 
sing spectacle the instructive lessons 
of misfortune, and the consolatory 
principles of virtue. Such is history 
in her great and true relations with 
the necessities and dignity of man. If 
in the form which she may occasion- 
ally assume from the influence of pre- 
judice, the bad choice of a subject, or 
the defects of an inferior execution, she 
lose that character of majesty which is 
peculiarly her own, that is easily found 
again beneath the pens of celebrated 
writers, whom it may be said that she 
has raised to the level of her exalted 
views, and impressed with a sense of 
the dignity of their mission. Histo- 
rians are the true preceptors of the 
world, and the gratitude of the first 
ages confounded them with the men 
whom the gods themselves had in- 
spired, 
