1822.] 
spirit of enquiry; and his constant refer- 
ence to facts and solid principles gives 
great weight to his opivions. The general 
result of his researches is such, as to inspire 
confidence in the resources of the country. 
To the agricultural interest, he opens, 
upon various considerations, which are dis- 
tinctly and ably stated, a prospect of gra- 
dual relief. ‘The advantages of a free trade 
in cornhe strongly advocates, regarding it, 
however, as a remote result, which is less 
likely to be effected by any arguments 
that can possibly be urged, than by a conti- 
nuation of low prices. ‘The consequent re- 
duction of the cost of production, and the 
re-establishment of our tenantry in nearly 
the same situation as in 1792, may, he con- 
ceives, cause our corn-laws to expire by a 
naturaldeath, On the question of popula- 
tion, Mr. Lowe takes a middle course be- 
tween the extreme positions of Mr, Mal- 
thus and Mr. Gray ; but inclines, with cer- 
tain modifications and restrictions, to the 
principles asserted by the latter, and fully 
assents to his main doctrine, that the in- 
crease of population enriches, instead of 
impoverishing, a nation, and that it is the 
tendency of income to increase along with 
population. Europe he considers not to 
be peopled to the extent of a fifth, or per- 
haps a tenth, of the numbers it is capable 
of supporting. On the subject of our 
finances, his ideas appear to be rational 
and just. He insists upon the reduction of 
taxation, however inconsiderable the pro- 
posed abatement may appear; and is 
anxious to prosecute the system of retrench- 
ment, which must eventually lead to a 
fayourable issue. Whenever the unnatural 
sffect of war, taxation, and corn-laws, shall 
be removed, the industrious will no longer 
be in want of employment; the interrup- 
lion to which, he chiefly traces to these 
eauses. Having indicated the most promi- 
nent opinions of Mr, Lowe, we must re- 
commend our readers to a closer acquain- 
tance with his very interesting volume, 
from the perusal of which we can con- 
fidently promise them no small degree of 
pleasure and improvement. 
Althongh the Poetical Works of EAGLEs- 
FIELD SMITH, esq. have received the 
honor of a second edition, we shall report 
our opinion of them to our readers, under 
the conviction, that the first edition has 
never met their eyes. We could not but 
conceive some prejudice against the skill 
of Mr, Smith, in, at least, the mechanical 
department of his art, when, upon opening 
the work at vol. i, p, 209, we found a poem 
of twenty-four lines, called A Sonnet ; an 
exror ;nworthy of the most inexperienced 
school-boy rhymer, who knows well that 
this species of poem consists of neither 
more nor less than fourteen, Nor were 
our prejudices removed upon perusing this 
anomalous piece of verse, or any other of 
the very upmerous and tedious contents of 
Literary and Critical Proémium. 
451 
these volumes. It is high time, when a 
fictitious personage like this author has 
gone so far as to impose upon the public 
two volimes of such materials as these we 
here find, that we should do all in our 
power to check the ridiculons rhyming 
passion of the age. We sincerely advise 
the real author of this book to forsake his 
treacherous muse ; as we must, otherwise, 
consider it our duty to speak our minds 
plainly, and to inform our readers that bis 
productions are, in real truth, quite beneath 
their notice, : 
The high reputation which the author of 
the Favourite of Nature acquired, by the 
publication of those deeply interesting 
volumes, will not, we are sure, suffer any 
diminution by the publication of Osmond, a 
Tale, in three volumes. ‘Che pleasure we 
derived from the perusal of the former 
work, made us look forward with some 
anxiety to the appearance of Osmond ; 
and, we are happy to say, our expectations 
have not been disappointed, The tale is 
by no means an artificial one, and possesses 
but little incident to engage the attention 
of the reader; but the deep pathos with 
which it is fraught, is infinitely more capti- 
vating. The character of Osmond may 
perhaps be thought a little overcharged, a 
fault which has sometimes been attributed 
to that of Eliza Rivers ; and yet we should 
hesitate, before we asserted that such a 
character is entirely out of nature. The 
history of Caroline Lascelles is altogether 
beautifully told. Her misfortunes and fate 
are highly affecting, and the way in which 
they are related would not have disgraced 
the author of Clarissa, Whatis still better 
than all this, is, that a strain of the most 
pure and amiable feeling pervades the 
whole work. 
We can do little more than give the 
title of a small poetical production, which 
has just come under our eye: Ontwa, the 
Son of the Forest, is 3 poem that, with 
singular inequalities, discovers passages of 
striking beauty and power. Founded on 
traditionary story, its air of native strength 
and wildness is well preserved, bearig 
much of the character which Chateau- 
-briand applies to Attala, that it was writ- 
ten in the desert, and under the huts of 
savages. It has singular merit in the fide- 
lity of its descriptions, and the picturesque 
_and lively force of delineating some abori- 
ginal scenes and manners. But, as a suse 
tained and regular whole, it must certainly 
be pronounced deficient. ; 
The Geological Society has just published 
a half volume of valuable ‘Transactions, 
being the commencement of a new series, 
It contains the following papers. On the 
Geology of the southern coast of England, 
from Bridport to Babbacombe bay, Devon- 
shire; by H. T. Dela Beche, esq. On the 
Bagshot Sand; by Henry Warburton, esq. 
On a Freshwater Formation in Hordweil 
Cliff ; 
