1822, ] 
The Spirit of the Lakes, or Mucruss Ab- 
dey, by Miss LuBY, is a poem in three can- 
tos, descriptive of the beauties of the Lake 
of Killarney, on which is engrafted the 
tragical catastrophe of a maiden crossed in 
love. These are very pretty materials for 
a lady's pen, and they are worked up with 
some degree of talent. The verse is easy 
and melodious, and with the exception of 
a little tinge of affectation, we find nothing 
that we are disposed to find fault with. 
There are some interesting notes annexed ; 
and the volume is, on the whole, creditable 
to Miss Luby’s abilities and likely to please 
her readers. i 
We have long been acquainted with 
some of the ballads and lighter pieces of 
Mr. ALLAN CUNNINGHAM, and admired 
their simple and natural beauties, in which 
they so closely resemble the old Scotch 
lyrics, as to have deceived very good 
judges. To a collection of these songs 
Mr. Cunningham has now added a dramatic 
poem, called Sir Marmaduke Maxwell, 
the story of which is founded on tradition, 
and is expanded by the fine imagination of 
Mr. C. into a very beautiful and interesting 
drama. It was not written, nor is it cal- 
culated, in its present form, for represen- 
tation, but from the poetry with which it 
teems, it cannot fail to please in the closet. 
Amongst the smaller pieces the Mermaid 
of Galloway is a fine specimen of the ro- 
mantic ballad. There is a genuine spirit 
of poetry in this volume, which throws all 
defects into the shade, and which must 
add considerably to the reputation which 
the author already enjoys. : 
Retrospection, by ARTHUR BROOKE, 
(the poetical name of a gentleman residing 
in Canterbury,) is a poem in blank verse, 
in which the author, from a review of past 
ages, infers the encreasing knowledge and 
happiness, and the ultimate perfection of 
mankind. The sentiments are distiuguish- 
ed by a bold and free spirit of inquiry, and 
evidently proceed from an original and 
powerful mind. We do not find many of 
the flowers of poetry in his composition, 
which owes its principal attraction to the 
force of thought and feeling which pervades 
it. There is more fancy displayed in the 
Minor poems, some cf which, formed on 
the model of Lord Byron’s lyrical pieces, 
and expressive of the author’s personal 
feelings, are written with much energy 
and passion. In truth, the volume proves 
that the author possesses all the qualities 
necessary to the true poetical character. 
Spare Minutes ; or, Resolved Medita- 
tions and Premeditated Resolutions, by 
ARTHUR WARWICK, 1637, reprinted 1822. 
This excellent little manual is one of the 
most elegant reprints we have ever seen. 
The size and form is perfectly novel, and 
the typographical execution peculiarly ele- 
Critical Notices of Books of the Month. 
255 
gant. It consists of maxims, religious, 
practical and moral: the style is lively, 
but quaint, and abounding in antithesis : 
the similitudes are striking, and the bre- 
vity, which was the author’s continued 
study, gives a peculiar appearance of 
strength to his thoughts, while it detracts 
from their real grace. His athletic form 
appears bursting through its scanty ap- 
parel. He cannot argue without a reason, 
and cannot reason without a maxim. His 
work is a string of proverbial meditations 
and meditated proverbs, and his life ap- 
pears to have been as full of worth as his 
thoughts, and as brief as his book. There 
are two curious emblematical frontispieces, 
with explanations in verse by George 
Withers and Francis Quarles, &c. For a 
fuller account of the work we refer our 
readers to the second volume of the Retro- 
spective Review. 
The rage for Anecdotes, aud the univer- 
sal gratification which this species of read- 
ing affords, have led to the production of 
an Anecdote Library, printed in an econo- 
mical form. It contains above two thou- 
sand articles, many of them original, and 
others selected from the most authentic 
sources. Asa book combining entertain- 
ment and instruction, it will be found to 
have no superior in the language; and 
from its nature and just pretensions will 
in due time be found in situations where 
there is no other book. At the same time 
as the language is good, and the morals 
pure, it is as well adapted to the library of 
a young lady as to the tables of a coffee 
house, or the cabinet of a man of fashion. 
To those who are about to pay a visit to 
the watering places in the neighbourhood 
of the metropolis, we recommend as a very 
pleasant travelling companion, a small vo. 
lume which has been lately published 
under the title of An Excursion to Brigh- 
ton, with an account of the Royal Pavi- 
lion; a Visit to Tunbridge Wells, and a 
Trip to Southend; in a series of lettera 
to a pupil in Wales, with an alphabetical 
list of all the watering places in the king- 
dom, by Joun Evans, LL.D. There is 
certainly in this volume a more than usual 
quantity of entertaining anecdote and in- 
formation, collected together by the inge- 
nious author. 
Dinan, a Romance, is a clever little 
work. The author professes to have be- 
guiled in its composition, an hour of indis- 
position or idleness, and its perusal may, 
with the same view, be safely recommended 
to his readers. The scene of the story is 
laid on the banks of the Severn in the time 
of the Plantagenets, and the plot turns upon 
the feuds between the families of the Ba- 
rons Dinan and Mortimer. There is not 
much diversity of incident, but what there 
is, is well imagined and narrated MARR Opis 
an 
