406 
ANONYMOUS CONTRIBUTIONS. 
are not aware at this moment that there has been, in a long 
course of years, any appreciation of it by reviewers. 
It may be said, that men cannot tell what others’ motives 
than those of vanity may be ; and the critics are justified in 
what they do. This would be allowed, if they at any time as¬ 
cribed good motives; but that they never do: they adopt the 
rule of statesmen, and consider every one as incited by bad or 
sordid springs of action. The true way would be, not to assign 
any motives at all; to consider merely what the book contains, 
and to regard the name of the author on the title-page as only a 
certificate of his being responsible personally for what he has 
said. In a word, though the art of criticism has, of late years, 
received many improvements, it has yet to learn that it may 
forego many things. Undoubtedly, the periodical press has 
been greatly improved ; a more generous tone of knowledge and 
taste has been infused into it; but what we complain of is, that, 
with all its improvements, it retains the worst alloy with which 
it was ever disgraced. We have read articles in which others 
were spoken of that filled us with inextinguishable disgust; 
and we have never been able to understand why it is that 
honourable men conceal themselves in holes and corners, and 
deal thence irremediable blows. The same rule that regulates 
the behaviour of individuals in private society should be allowed 
a predominance in transactions before the public ; we ask no more 
than this, and we have a right to ask it: but it is a blot on the 
age that we skulk from this, and that while the manners of our 
personal intercourse are improved, our literary intercourse is. 
Foul with many a stain.” 
A rather ludicrous instance of the scrapes of a lighter kind 
into which editors may be led by the admission of anonymous 
communications on scientific subjects, occurred a little while 
ago. We received an account of ‘"a patient which, after per¬ 
forming his daily labour for several years without disorder of any 
kind, had suddenly fallen lame. After trying several applica¬ 
tions which were of no avail, the veterinary surgeon determined 
to use the firing-iron, it being thought that this valuable counter- 
