322 Monthli) Revieiv of Litei-ature. QSept. 



of as many as are necessary for him to reach the summit of his wishes. Some are 

 received because they are necessary ; others, because they serve to amuse neces- 

 sary people. The amusement is — card-playing ; and so, he who can play high 

 is received into society, in order to form a party for people of consequence. Pe- 

 tersburgh passes for a musical city, or to speak more correctly, for a city where 

 there is much singing and playing upon musical instruments. This is true, but 

 hence does not follow the conclusion, that there are here many real connoisseurs 

 and amateurs of music. They play cards in order to avoid speaking, and hear 

 music for the same reason ; after dinner, the subject of conversation is — the wea- 

 ther. Nobody likes to tell his mind here, because every one is seeking or expect- 

 ing something, and in such a predicament dialogues are dangerous. The frank 

 discoursiveness of Moscow, the freedom from restraint in behaviour, and the old- 

 fashioned Russian hospitality, are reckoned here unsufferable rudeness and Gothic 

 barbarity. Here they bid no one, as in IMoscow, at first sight, to come every day 

 to dinner, and spend every evening, but invite you out of favour ; and, as every 

 body is here busy about something or nothing, you must not visit your acquaint- 

 ances except upon set days and hours, and at fixed times. In IMoscow, the lan- 

 guage of high life is a strange medley of French and llussian ; but in Petersburgh, 

 you do not hear a word of Russian : you must speak French with the pure Parisian 

 accent, and the smallest blunder against the rules of grammatical precision is noted 

 as ignorance. In Moscow they sometimes speak of llussian hterature, the Russian 

 journals and authors; but, in Petersburgh, that is a mark otmauvms ton. The 

 learning of the great world does not extend farther than criticising French litera- 

 ture according to the system of La Harpe, conning over the articles of the Jour' 

 nal des Dtbats, and reading English romances in the original. Not one llussian 

 writer or artist of eminence is received into the higher circles, unless he enjoys 

 the special patronage of some man of note. There is one exception to this rule, 

 to wit, a regard for Moscow notability : the master or mistress of the house, on 

 presenting a new man not known in the Petersburgh world, apologizes by saying 

 that he is known in Moscow. The youth of Petersburgh, even before they come 

 to maturity, gather an air of coldness in their behaviour, which makes young 

 people particularly insufferable and disagreeable. They make their friendships 

 not from any coincidence of taste and habits of thought, but from the importance 

 of the connections and relations of their comrades. Every man who cannot do 

 any thing for them, who can neither help them forward himself, nor put them in 

 the way by means of his friends, is reckoned a useless member of society ; they 

 behave towards him haughtily, and even shun his acquaintance. The females also 

 are subject to the general spirit of place-hunting ; they are as cold in their demea- 

 nour as the gentlemen, and, to say the least, are too dead, at any rate, so far as 

 outward appearance goes. Tenderness and sympathy follow the fashion like bon- 

 nets. The ladies of Moscow scold and romp, but with all their faults, they have 

 hearts which feel, as well as hands which help. Here they sigh, talk most senti- 

 mentally upon morality, and set lotteries agoing for the poor. A Petersburgh ball 

 •would appear to be under the management of a co-operative society, consisting of 

 a French ballet-master, a Chinese master of the ceremonies, a German knight of 

 a rueful countenance, and an Italian scene-maker. Every thing in its place, 

 enough of every thing, but more than all, enmii. In Moscow, on the contrary, 

 they sometimes dance out of tact, sometimes the musicians go out of tune, some- 

 times there are tallow-candles among the wax-lights, sometimes the floor creaks in 

 the dancing-Toom ; after a hearty sujjper there is sometimes too much chamjjaign 

 drunk ; sometimes there is more noise at a ball than at a market : however, the 

 njerriment arises not from custom, but from the overflowing of the heart ; people 

 come to town expressly for the purpose of dancing and merry-making." 



A Manual of Materia Medica and Pharmacy,' &c., from the French 

 OF H. M. Edwards, M.D., and P. Vavasseur, M.D., by John Davies, 

 Surgeon. 



This is a translation of a French work, by Messrs. Edwards and Vavasseur, 

 corrected and adapted to British practice by Mr. Davies, a surgeon of Hertford, 

 and some time ago editor of the London Medical and Surgical Journal. The 

 work is presented to the public, on the authority of the translator, a man at 

 least well acquainted with the existing English publications on the subject, as 

 superior to any of them. It is intended specifically for the service of students. 



