This doctrine is the doctrine of Evil Spirits, 

 and shall never be advocated in any Paper 

 whose destiny is ruled over by our pen. No, 

 no; we shall take special care to guard 

 against any such loose dogmas, and show 

 how these naturally- evil propensities can be 

 subdued, conquered, and triumphed over. 

 Therein consists the " beauty " of the Science 

 on which we propose to treat. 



" The proper study of mankind is Man," 



says the poet ; and it is this study which 

 we shall endeavor to render familiar to the 

 masses. , The moral good which we are 

 likely to do society in the course of this inquiry, 

 will stimulate us to the utmost exertion ; and 

 OUR pages shall have the honor of wafting 

 to distant lands every argument* that can 

 exalt the Creator, and assign his creatures, 

 (amongst which Man stands first in order) 

 their proper place. 



Of late years, our observation of mankind 

 has been very keen and very searching. We 

 have been placed by Fortune (some would 

 say misfortune) in sundry very critical situ- 

 ations,— situations which have forced " re- 

 flection " upon us. Iago says in the play : — 



"Men* should be what they seem." 



Unfortunately, on certain occasions, we 

 have too credulously leaned towards the 

 belief that they were so ! A fatal error this, 

 for which we have smarted in mind and in 

 pocket. But let that pass. 



Our last, and somewhat recent error, in 

 believing Men to be what they seemed — has 

 cured us effectually of " credulity." " The 

 head ! the head ! " say we, now. Had we 

 said so then, and made Phrenology and 

 Physiognomy our " unerring guides," how 

 much mental agony should we not have 

 escaped ! " But then," our readers will add, 

 " Kidd's Journal would never have ap- 

 peared ! " True ; we forgot that. 



*' Sunt denique fines J " 



or, in the vulgatc, " there is an end to every- 

 thing." Let us hope our sorrows are among 

 them. We have walked in via tritd (the 

 old beaten track) too long, we will now 

 emerge. 



Next week, we purpose commencing the 

 Biography of the Illustrious Gall. This we 

 shall follow up by a selection from his Works, 

 which will make us all " think," and cast a 

 light upon society that they never dreamt of. 



Gall has said some astounding things. 

 These caused him banishment. Galileo once 

 said, " The world was round, and that it moved 

 on its axis." For this, the Inquisition im- 

 prisoned him. Still, the world moved for all 

 that ! and has done so ever since ! ! 



So shall the everlasting fountains of 

 Truth and Nature continue to flow. Never 

 can they be turned aside to gratify the vanity 

 or self-sufficiency of any one ! 



BEVIEW OF BOOKS. 



A Familiar History of Birds ; their Nature, 

 Habits, and Instincts. By the late 

 Edward Stanley, D.D., F.R.S. 8vo. 



This work, the production of the late 

 worthy Bishop of Norwich, has just reached 

 its fifth Edition ; and when we regard the 

 subject-matter of it, and the clearness of its 

 arrangement, its popularity can hardly be 

 matter for surprise. 



In a plain, manly preface— indeed, almost 

 in the same expressions as those used by 

 ourselves in the first Number of our OWN 

 Journal — the author says : — 



There are few individuals who have it not in 

 their power, occasionally, to remark the instincts 

 and habits of Birds; and the many anecdotes 

 collected from the Author's own observation, 

 the information of friends, or various respectable 

 sources, will, it is hoped, excite others to register 

 any " pacts" within their reach, which may illus- 

 trate the mysterious economy whereby this beautiful 

 portion of God's ovation is enabled, in so many 

 instances, to surpass the highest efforts of man's 

 ingenuity , foresight, or philosophy. 



As we shall have occasion, in the coming 

 seasons, of Spring and Summer, to notice this 

 book again, we will leave the lesser birds 

 pro tern., and copy some interesting passages 

 about the various tribes of Pigeons, and 

 that cruelly-hunted bird, the Partridge. 

 We take all our English birds under the 

 special protection of the People's Journal. 

 In us they shall ever find a staunch advo- 

 cate and a warm-hearted friend. 



Our first extracts have reference to 

 Pigeons : — 



In this country, where Pigeons are, generally 

 speaking, a domestic bird, few persons have an 

 idea of their countless increase and abundance, 

 when left to themselves, roaming over wide 

 tracts, and following, almost without interrup- 

 tion, their natural habits. Even in our dove- 

 cotes, however, their increase is often prodigious; 

 it having been found that, in the course of four 

 years, nearly 15,000 have been produced from a 

 single pair. Bearing this in mind, the reader 

 will be better prepared to credit the startling 

 accounts of the myriads of these birds, so often 

 witnessed in North America, consisting of a par- 

 ticular species called the Passenger, or Migratory 

 Pigeon, from their regular visits to certain dis- 

 tricts, either for the purpose of feeding, or 

 rearing their young. And though tens of thou- 

 sands are destroyed, chiefly at their roosting- 

 places, the numbers seem rather to increase than 

 diminish. Such multitudes had never before 

 been witnessed as in 1829. Flocks extending 

 miles in length, were, for days together, seen 

 passing over the hills during the Spring, from 

 the southward ; the mighty mass collecting in an 

 encampment in a forest, upwards of nine miles 

 in length, and four in breadth, in which there was 

 scarcely a tree, large or small, which was not 



