356 
Literary and Critical Proemium. [Nov. 1 
quire towards their professional objects, 
and while this condition is to be deplored, 
it cannot well be avoided. The portraits 
and characters are forty-eight in number; 
andit appears that this bookseller’s club con¬ 
sisted of no less than ten dukes, one mar¬ 
quis, fifteen earls, five other peers, and six¬ 
teen knights and gentlemen, all of the first 
order in power, influence and talent Such 
an assemblage must be regarded as a phe¬ 
nomenon, for we are not aware that a cotem¬ 
porary nobility of treble the number, would 
furnish half a dozen members willing to 
associate for purposes merely literary. 
The epoch in which such a club flourished 
was, however, the Augustan age of Eng¬ 
lish literature, as weli as of aristocratic 
patriotism ; for the members of this club 
w r ere whig patriots, and if the volume has 
any drawback, it is in a certain leaven of 
toryism which too frequently appears in 
the author’s sentiments and selection of 
anecdotes. 
Mr. Thomas Noble, the author of va¬ 
rious poetical pieces, chiefly of a national 
and political character, and occasionally 
inserted in the public prints, has recently 
added to them a volume of original poems, 
not inferior in merit to those that preceded 
them. We recommend a few passages from 
our author's epistle “ On Political Servi¬ 
lity,” which if not equal in poetic genius 
and satiric wit to the more nervous lines 
of his contemporaries, at least display sense 
and principle. 
“ But while a nation sinks in want and woe, 
Shall their oppressors no distresses know? 
Yes, these shall feel;—for thro’ the social chain 
Flies, like the electric shock, contagious pain, 
When misery palsies labour’s strenuous hand, 
And the hind sickens on the uncultured land, 
And pale mechanics stand in groups around, 
Listening in vain the loom’s or mallet’s sound, 
While babes and mothers ask the scanty meal, 
And gaze despairing on the idle wheel.”— 
Epistle on Po ilicalServility , p. ’Cl. 
Without pretending to claim for Mr. 
Noble any very high station among the 
best poets of the day, we may safely allow 
him the qualities of good sense, taste and 
feeling, which he generally succeeds in 
embodying and colouring in language, if 
not highly imaginative and forcible, at 
least always sensible and clear. 
Mr. Ackermaniv proceeds with his ele¬ 
gant series called the World, in Miniature. 
He has just published in six small volumes 
the part on Turkey, and in regard to this 
empire, we have not a more complete or 
correct account in the language. It con¬ 
tains the history of the empire brought 
dowrn to the present time, with local de¬ 
scriptions of its extensive provinces, and 
particulars of the manners of their inhabi¬ 
tants. The plates are copied from a Pari¬ 
sian work with spirit, and very neatly co¬ 
loured. 
An Enquiry concerning the Primitive 
Inhabitants of Ireland has been published 
by Du. Wood. It was a prize Essay of 
the Irish Academy, and had appeared in the 
Transactions of that distinguished body. 
Such a volume tends to set at rest some 
doubts of the learned, relative to the anti¬ 
quity of the Irish nation, and of its origin 
in Galician emigration; but Hr. W. has not 
had access to the most ancient sources, and 
the world must wait for the genuine chro¬ 
nicles about to be published by Mr. Roger 
O’Connor, whose materials are much supe¬ 
rior to the monkish legends so successfully 
exposed by Dr. Wood . The volume is il¬ 
lustrated by Ptolemy’s curious and origi¬ 
nal map of Erin, itself a singular relic of 
ancient geography, and w orthy of a place 
in such a work. If Dr. W. has not coun¬ 
tenanced many vulgar prejudices relative 
to the Irish, he has not done justice to the 
subject by rejecting the authority of the 
early native historians and bards, for w r e 
are satisfied that the true history of ancient 
Ireland is only to be found in the Phoenician 
language. 
We have been heartily entertained by 
A Dialogue between St. George and St. 
Denis ; stated to have been overheard and 
published by Mr. Hugh Melros, which 
sounds to us something like a “ notn de 
guerre .” It has so much comic, heroic and 
satiric excellence throughout, that w r e can¬ 
not prevail upon ourselves to believe that 
it belongs to a name so entirely new, as far 
as we know, to the “ world of rhyme.” 
This amusing conversation of the patron 
saints of France and England, is humour¬ 
ously observed by the author, to have oc¬ 
curred on ship-board, in his passage from 
Dieppe; and as it took quite a national and 
political turn, naturally awnkened Ihe at¬ 
tention of our passenger. The saints re¬ 
turning from a tour to each other’s country, 
meet iu crossing over the channel, and in¬ 
stead of giving battle, like our own more 
earihlg saints belonging to Calvin, Luther 
or Wesley, they agree to perch quietly to¬ 
gether on the shrouds, and talk over what 
they have seen and heard. 
The vessel is suddenly becalmed—the 
author hears “their whispering plumes,” 
and apprehensive of some saint or being of 
the sky: 
Yes, to our thoughta voice replying. 
Allayed uui doubts and closed our search, 
Two genii wearied out with flying 
Would gladly on your rigging perch, 
St. George myself—I’m rather faint 
With such a passage thro’ the clouds, 
And Denys is the other saint— 
Be seated Denys, on the shrouds.” 
Here a very animated description of the 
tour of the respective saints begins—each 
zealous, of course, for the honour of his coun¬ 
try, and sadly disappointed with his visit 
to the other’s. The prejudices and follies 
of both, contrasted, are well hit oflf—there 
is some good joking aud good national an¬ 
tipathies brought in ; the political changes 
and innovations are particularly well told, 
and the humorous gravity with which 
each 
