Literary and Critical Proemium. 



438 



and will be read with interest by all lovers 



of the (It'aiiia. 



There is great merit, and miicli happy 

 point, in a Vision, in verse, called Scotch 

 Nutiimality. Nothing better has appeared 

 since the days of Churchill and Macklin, 

 and the antidote is well-timed. Tlie 

 Scotcli have the merit of industry, fruga- 

 lity, and perseverance, nsefnl household 

 virtues, which (lourish on both sides the 

 Tweed. Tliey are, at the same time, far, 

 however, from possessing that monopoly 

 of literary genius which they arrogantly 

 assume; and their productions have, 

 hitherto, displayed little beyond mere 

 plodding industry in imitating the origi- 

 nality of their Southern neighbours. Po- 

 verty has been their stimulus; and, to 

 relieve themselves, they have the merit of 

 suppleness and exertion. In literature, 

 they can be regarded merely as a race of 

 manufacturers, often skilful, but mediocre 

 and common-place ; and, if they are suc- 

 cessful, it is for the same reason that plain 

 English cookery is generally preferred 

 among us to the soups and fricasees of 

 Franco. There may be genius in the lat- 

 ter, but plain solidity belter suits the con- 

 stitutions of the nuillitnde. Scotch litera- 

 ture i-t, besides, loo yonnc, to justify the 

 upstart arrogance of Scottish writers; and 

 its reputation out of Scotland, and Scottish 

 circles, would rise more rapidly, if its 

 career were characterized by the modesty 

 which ought to accompany every entrance 

 into the world. 



We have seen, with much satisfaction, 

 the announcement of a collection of the 

 most curious old plays, under the title of 

 The Old English Drama. At a t^mc when 

 the preceding collections have become 

 rare and costly, notwithstanding their 

 manifold imperfections, such a work can- 

 not fail to be acceptable to the lovers of 

 our ancient Thespis. The first part, con- 

 taining The Second Maiden's Truf;edtj,i»ow 

 first printed from the manuscript in the 

 Lansdown collection, has just appeared. 

 It affords one of the most bL-autiful speci- 

 mens of typography which the present 

 improved state of the art has afforded ; 

 and it is highly creditable, at ciice to the 

 taste of the printer and to the liberality 

 of the publisher. The merits of the 

 "Second Maiden's Tragedy," considered 

 as a drama, are by no means great : the 

 plot, and underplot, want connexion ; and 

 raost of the incidents (which are suffi- 

 ciently numerous) assist neither to for- 

 ward, nor to retard, the catastrophe. It 

 contains, however, many poetical pas- 

 sages, and some beautiful sentiments ; 

 but we are by no means inclined, with 

 some critics, to attribute it to the pen of 

 the immortal Shakspeare. 



The outcry raised by certain persons 

 against Mr. James's Naval /Jtstorj/, has in- 

 duced us, amongst others, to purchase and 



[June 1, 



peruse it. We shall probably, at sonve 

 future period, enter into an examination 

 of the charges preferred against him by 

 the friends of Lord William Russell, the 

 lamented Sir George Collier, and Sir John 

 Pliillimore. We content ourselves, how- 

 ever, at present, with expressing our ap- 

 probation of the spirit of fairness and im- 

 partiality which characterizes the work, 

 and with recommending it to the attention 

 and patronage of the public ; only adding, 

 that 



Uhi plura nitent . . . non eger paucis 

 OtTeiidae viacitlh\ quas aut incuiiafudit, 

 Aut liumana parum cavit natura . . . 



remembering, with the same poet, tlrat 



Opere in longo fas e»t obrepere gomnum ; 

 and that, in a work of such nragnitudc, 

 and containing so many details, to avoid 

 faults would be more than human; and, 

 not to give oti'ence to those of his cotem- 

 poraries whose conduct he may animad- 

 vert upon, no faithful historian can ever 

 hope. 



The second fasciculus of Crui KSfi ank's 

 Points of Humour has just been delivered. 

 We consider it as in all respects equal, in 

 most superior, to its predecessor. The 

 J'lily Beggars, indeed, still continues to be 

 tlie^ew of the colieciion. It is iuimituhle. 

 There are, however, many redcemwg 

 ■points in the present: and, amongst the 

 best, are the Relish bifure Dinner, and the 

 scenes from Smollett. The figure of 

 Pistol, eating the villanous leek (fron» 

 Shakspeare,) is very good ; but, with this 

 exception, the restoration of the costume 

 is, in our opinion, the chief merit of this 

 plate. 



The use, or even the object, of an 

 Historical Fragment, relaliie to her late 

 Majesty Queen Carnlinc, is not very ap- 

 parent. Its most attentive readers will 

 only collect from it what, we appre- 

 hend, much the greater portion of the 

 people of England soon began to perceive- 

 that the hostdity evinced against the 

 queen in a certain quarter was rather 

 personal than moral ; that the evidence 

 produced in the House of Lords, like 

 that v\Iiich had many years before been 

 listened to in a more private place, was 

 by no means pure and nnexaggerated : 

 but that her conduct, to say the least of 

 it, had been too imprudent and unguarded 

 not to give, in the eyes of superficial ob- 

 servers, a degree of colour to the accusa- 

 tions by which she v;as assailed. 



We ate glad to see an edition in pro- 

 gress of FoltaireS Pkilosophicul Dictionary, 

 If Voltaire's writings are not soUd gold, 

 they are at least so well gilt as to be 

 highly attractive; and, if he made general 

 war on all prejudices, so as to create a too 

 general re-action, he assailed many of 

 those monsters which ought to be de- 

 stroyed. Plain, Protestant readers, .shoidd 

 bear in mind, that Voltaire's jokes about 

 religion 



