110 
taches to her name,—appear, in turn, 
Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, 
whose great virtues and the suspicion 
of one crime have followed to the 
tomb ; and the unfortunate daughter of 
Virginius, whose blood, shed by the 
hand of a father, achieved for Rome 
the second conquest of her liberty. 
But suddenly an execrable object 
puts the dead to flight, and finishes 
the dialogues of the first three nights. 
The delineation of this monster, and 
.the description of his punishment, sur- 
pass perhaps the bounds of tragedy. 
It is horror itself, with all that it pos- 
sesses most poignant and appalling: 
this passage agitates the soul and dis- 
tracts the senses,—for its subject is 
“the Parricide.” 
Amongst the varied scenes of the 
second part of his work, where the 
author continues to display with wise 
profusion the richness of his talent, 
there is one which seems destined to 
console us for every painful emotion, 
in calling pity to the support of grief, 
and allowing us to shed tears, which 
nature at least does not condemn, 
over the fate of a timid virgin, whose 
love is her only crime. Nothing can 
be more affecting than the recital of 
the Joves and the punishment of the 
vestal Honoria and the youthful 
Lucius. 
In this melancholy and moving pas- 
sage the ingenuity of art is concealed 
beneath a natural display of senti- 
ments whieh are dearest to the human 
heart. Passion is there displayed 
with all its fury, boldness, and de- 
spair, with the mixture of fecbleness 
and pride by which its transports are 
ennobled. In treating of such a sub- 
ject, it was difficult not to fall into the 
track of modern romance,—the snare 
was open, and a middling genius 
would not have avoided it. To form 
any idea of the felicity with which 
Verri, by diffusing over this part of his 
composition the ancient charm of truth 
and nature depicted by genius, has 
escaped it, it is necessary to read the 
work itself. 
In this second part, the occasional 
less important interest of the matter 
is fortunately compensated by the 
more lively change of the subject. 
We may anticipate the attention 
which must be excited by a parallel 
and contrast between the city of Ro- 
mulus and that of Leo X:; between 
the laws of the twelve tables and the 
papal bulls ; between the forum of the 
L’Ape Italiana, No. XXX. 
[Sépt. 1, 
mistress of the workl and the “Cow- 
market” of the capital of asmall state ; 
between the famous rock upon which, 
during many centurics, the dominion 
of the world was supported, and that 
ignoble Monte Capino, worn away by 
time, which the eye discovers with 
difficulty, and on which goats are 
browsing near the very place where 
Curtius precipitated himself for the 
salvation of his country. 
In the different places which the 
shades visit with Verri for their guide, 
we sec and hear in turn, Romulus con- 
versing with Numa, Pompey disputing 
with the Gracchi; Brutus accusing 
Sallust ; Jugurtha reducing Cicero to 
silence by describing the corruption 
of the Senate; Vitruvius criticising 
with asperity the architecture of St. 
Peter's; Nero secking around the 
Vatican for the remains of his Colos- 
sus; Caesar judging like a statesman 
and a warrior of modern tactics ; and, 
to conclude, Pagan Rome expressing 
her admiration of this second Rome, 
whose moral power has exceeded the 
limits of her ancient conquest, and 
which, varying with skill the form of 
her policy, without changing its ob- 
ject, has made the milder and not less 
glorious empire of religion and the 
fine arts succeed to her warlike do- 
minion. 
— 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
T is with grief that I have witness- 
ed the denunciations against the 
German philosophy of Kant published 
in the Quarterly and Edinburgh Re- 
views,—denunciations not warranted, 
if we consider the profound and sub- 
lime metaphysical researches eluci- 
dated, as well as the important and 
universal benefit contingent upon a 
knowledge and practical illustration 
of the principles. 
It is easy for any one, aided by fer- 
tility of imagination, as with a pyrrho- 
nic criticism, to decry the fruit of 
another’s genius; and, where there 
are alone a few who know the system, 
to prevail against those few. There 
is however this consolation to the few, 
that their opponents have acknow- 
ledged universally their ignorance. 
Thus wit, like faith, by each man is apply’d 
To one small sect, and all are damn'd 
beside. 
Yet we cannot but lament the public 
indiflerepce to this great and new 
philosophy, 
