Poetical Essays. By A. J. Mason, 12mo. pp. 111. 8s. London, 1822. Mr. Mason informs us, that these poems were the amusement of his leisure hours, and were not intended for the press, but were published in obedience to the wishes of his friends.All this, we have no doubt, is true, but it is very trite, and the world has long ago passed its unalterable verdict upon apologies of this sort.-The public has nothing to do with the compliments, which pass between an author and his friends. If the work be of merit, the advice to publish appears to the public impertinent; if it be the reverse, no advice can gain the book the approbation of the world, or shield the author from the charge of indiscretion. An author should do well to remember, that Dr. Johnson, in his prologue to Irene, boldly avowed, that He scorn'd the mean address,-the suppliant strain; With merit needless, and without it, vain. Mr. Mason, we have no doubt, has talents, but if not more sensible, we are, at least, more sincere than his friends, when we advise him to direct the powers of his mind to other subjects than poetry. Moral Gallantry, with other Essays, by Sir G. Mackenzie, Advocate to King Charles II. and King James VII. Duodecimo, pp. 158. 5s. London. Du We believe that the republic of Letters very much resembles all other republics in two grand particulars, that of being very capricious, and that of being always upon extremes. ring the whole of last century, none of our early authors, except Shakspeare and Ben Johnson, could receive scarce. ly a plaudit from our countrymen. None were deserving of praise or even of attention but the writers of the reign of Queen Ann, that golden and Augustan age, as it was called, of English Literature. Now the tide sets another way, the reign of Elizabeth was the classic era of English letters, and we are to be told that Pope was not even a poet-that Swift was but a paltry satirist-Prior a mere versifier and Addison nothing but the prince of the host of gentlemen, who write with ease. Every puny whipster now throws a spear at Dr. Johnson, the Leviathan of his age. Reflecting upon all these vicissitudes of taste and extravagant fluctuations of opinion, we are by no means disposed to form our judgment upon any classification of our authors, or to consider them at all in groups, but on the contrary, to view them as links of one continuous chain, commencing with rare Ben Jonson and his fraternity, connected with the writers of Queen Ann by the intermediate links of Waller, Otway, Cowley, Milton, and Dryden. Friar Bacon, and Chaucer are separated from the great current of our literature, by a strong chain of darkness and ignorance, but from the reign of Elizabeth to the present day, there has been one continuous tide of genius and eminent ability. Without diminishing that ve. neration for the literati of Queen Ann's period, in which we were reared, we are alive to the richer and more natural beauties of our earlier writers, and we are glad when we see reprints of any of their works, convinced that the greatest acquisition will be made to the intellectual enjoyments of our countrymen, whenever they are made familiarly acquainted with our earlier writers, whom they are now taught to praise, but of whom, from the scarcity of their works, they are really igno rant. Sir George Mackenzie wrote in the reign of Charles II, and his succes sor James, when our literature had imbibed something of a tinge from the manners and morals of the continent: but living in Scotland, so far removed from the contagion, the writings of Mackenzie preserve the homely style and sterling merit of the age which had passed away.-The work now before us contains excellent reflections, and moral truths often illustrated by metaphors so natural and free from the strained invention and artful polish of mere modern literature, as to form a strong effect upon the reader from their novelty, as well as from their intrinsic beauty. The style is homely without being coarse; it is a homeliness characteristic of the age, aud is in itself a considerable beauty. We are glad to see the Moral Gallantry thus repeated, and we wish that the success of the publication, or at all events, some motive may induce literary per sons to give the present age the means of really being acquainted with the earlier writers of our country-The contemporaries of Sir George Macken. zie, or rather his predecessors. FINE ARTS. ACHILLES. A Statue erected in Hyde Park to the Duke of Wellington, &c. THE temporary palisado which surrounded the noble statue, recently erected in Hyde Park, having been, in the course of the last month, removed, and the whole thrown open to public view; we think it may gra tify our readers, and especially such of them as have not the opportunity of seeing this stupendous and admirable work of art, if we present them with a brief description of it, and add a few remarks connected with the subject. The statue is placed on a gently rising mound in the Park, about a hundred and fifty yards from the Piccadilly-gate, at the fork produced by the separation of the road, branching off towards the Serpentine river from that leading to Grosvenor and Cumberland-gates. The body fronts Knightsbridge; but the head is diKnightsbridge; but the head is directed, over the left shoulder, towards Apsley-house, the residence of the Duke of Wellington. The actual height of the statue exceeds eighteen feet; but as there is some inclination in the trunk, and still more in the lower extremities, it is probable, that if the figure were quite erect, it would not fall far short of twenty feet. It is placed upon a basement and plinth of Dartmoor grey granite, surmounted by a simple pedestal of beautiful red granite from Peterhead, near Aberdeen; and the whole, including the mound, which is to be guarded by a strong chevaux de frise, is about thirty-six feet above the level of the line of road. On the pedestal is the following inscription, in bronze letters: "To Arthur, Duke of Wellington, and his Brave Companions in Arms, this Statue of Achilles, cast from Cannon taken in the Battles of Salamanca, Vittoria, Toulouse, and Wa. terloo, is inscribed by their CountryWomen." Upon the base is the following inscription: "Placed on this Spot on the 18th day of June, 1822, by command of His Majesty George ÏV." The material, of which this magnificent statue is composed, is not, however, exclusively the metal of cannon, which is too brittle to be used alone for that purpose. To twelve four-and-twenty pounders it was found necessary to add about a third of metal, of a more pliant and fusible kind; and the weight of thirty-three or thirty-four tons. It the whole is supposed to be about was cast under the active superintendance of Mr.WESTMACOTT, who has manifested the most consummate skill, in the way in which he has accomplished the undertaking; the arduous nature of which may be easily conceived, from the fact, that it is above sixteen hundred years, namely, in the time of SEVERUS, since a cast of similar colossal size has been produced. As the attempt to cast it in a mass would have been Westmacott cast the trunk and the attended with considerable risk, Mr. extremities separately; in doing which, he was enabled to restore those parts of the surface of the oritime. By an ingenious and novel ginal, which had been corroded by mode of subsequently uniting the various parts of the cast by fusion, the danger of future disjunction has been avoided; and the whole possesses an appearance of high finish which is surprising, and entirely unprecedented in a work of such magnitude. Of the original, in marble, of which this bronze statue is a copy, the history is very obscure. It is, evidently, a production of remote antiquity, and is generally, though ** The victors in the Olympic Games on their return to their native towns, were admitted through a passage made in the walls, and not through the gates:It is a singular coincidence, that to admit this Statue, erected to the honor of the Duke of Wellington, into Hyde Park, it became necessary to make a breach in the wall, the usual entrances being found too narrow. Eur. Mag. Vol. 82. Ed. • U fancifully, attributed to PHIDIAS. Together with another statue of similar dimensions, ascribed to PRAXITELLES, it was found in one of the ruined saloons on the Quirinal Hill at Rome, having, as it is supposed, been formerly conveyed thither from Alexandria, by CONSTANTINE the GREAT, for the purpose of embellishing his baths. During the pontificate of Pius the Fifth, these statues were erected in front of the Papal Palace, and the hill on which they were so erected has since been known by the name of Monte Cavallo, as two antique horses, which were discovered near the statues, were placed so as to groupe with them, although the propriety of the union has always been disputed, and is now very generally denied. By some, the particular figure in question has been imagined to represent CASTOR, a conjecture which appears to have little foundation. Others, with more probability, believe it to have been meant for a personification of ACHILBut, whoever may have been the sculptor, or the individual whom it was his intention to commemorate, the statue itself has been invariably considered, by the ablest judges, to be one of the most admirable and magnificent works of art that the genius of man ever produced. LES. We recommend those, who wish to see this striking and splendid ornament of the Metropolis to the greatest advantage, to go to the Park about ten or eleven o'clock, on a morning of alternate gloom and sunshine. The best position for the spectator, or that from which the figure "composes" best (as the artists call it) is on the pathway, which is known by the name of "the Wellington Walk,' a few yards to the north of the railing, which terminates the shrubbery of Apsley-House. In that situation, and at the time of day, and under the circumstances we have described, the effect is inconceivably grand. The figure it not fore-shortened by too near an approach, nor is its apparent magnitude diminished by its being seen at too great a distance; and the strong south-east light, pouring occasionally and partially into its deep anatomical markings, exhibits them in powerful relief, (a property in which bronze, in consequence of the tone of its surface, is in general rather deficient) while the cloudy back-ground prevents the contour from appearing too harsh and cutting against the sky. The attitude of the figure is that of defence. The feet are firmly planted at the distance from each other which is calculated to impart the greatest stability to the body; and the vigorous muscles of the legs and thighs seem capable of resisting every effort to displace them. The head is turning fiercely round, with an inimitable expression of haughty defiance, arising from the consciousness of unequalled power. The upraised left arm, protected by a shield, (which shield was introduced by Mr, Westmacott, in our opinion materially to the benefit of the composition,) is evidently ready to sustain unflinchingly the assault of the most formidable opponent; while the right hand (in which, we presume, it is intended to place the short Greek sword,) appears prepared, instantly and irresistibly, to avenge injury or insult. In the proportions of the trunk, there is a happy mixture of strength and energy; of the Farnese Hercules, and the Gladiator," a thousand hearts" seem "swelling in that breast." But the pre-eminent quality which the statue possesses, and which, like Aaron's rod, swallows up all the rest; a quality which immediately arrests the imagination, and long withholds the judgment from entering into any minute investigation; a quality which is only to be felt, and can, by no effort of language, be adequately described; a quality which, impressed as it is on all the productions of the great Creator, is rarely, indeed, to be found in the humble works of man, is-SUBLIMITY. Unhappily, there are many persons wholly incapable of appreciating this quality, whether in nature or in art; and who seek, by the miserable gratification which they experience in the abuse of excellence, to compensate themselves for their conscious want of taste and feeling. Achilles, when living, had his Thersites, whom, however, he ultimately demolished; and this, his stern representative, is beset by a herd of cold and captious critics, for whom, we trust, a fate is reserved as ignominious as that which even tually befel their worthy predecessor and model. It is painful to see a large portion of the public press, whose duty it is, and whose pleasure it ought to be, to foster the liberal arts, join in this vulgar and unpatriotic attack. Some of the censures, thus extensively, and, therefore, injuriously circulated, evidently proceed from sheer ignorance; others, probably, emanate from party motives; but, we fear, that too much of the Gothic disposition, which has been manifested on this occasion, is solely attributable to that love of sneering depreciation which is the pervading evil and curse of society, which seems as infectious and malignant as the small pox, and against which, no moral Jenner has yet been able to devise the means of security by any process of mental vaccination. And what is the gravamen of the accusation against this noble, and in England unrivalled, statue? That it is indecent. Indecent! If there is a single feeling less excited than any other in the mind of every one who contemplates it, unless indeed that mind be morbidly prone to seek in the most innocent spectacle or occurrence the gratification of a filthy disposition, it is indecency. The severe character of the figure (not to mention other considerations on which it would be really "indecent" to dwell,) abundantly repels the charge. To those indeed, as we have already observed, who are grossly inclined, purity itself may be tortured into the stimulus of a depraved appetite. The licentious Sterne contrived to raise a lewd image simply by the description of Uncle Toby, or Old Shandy (we forget which), fixing his eyes on a chink in the wainscot of the room in which he was sitting. But are the large majority of the public, and especially of the fairer portion of the public, who are utterly and proudly free from the taint by which those who are capable of promulgating the criticisms to which we have alluded, must unquestionably be polluted, to be cheated out of the high delight arising to a cultivated understanding from the contemplation of a sublime work of art like the ACHILLES, by the apprehension that at the very moment when their thoughts are elevated and refined, and carried beyond the limits of the corporeal world, they may be suspected by dull and ribald spirits of being solely intent on pampering the most gross and disgusting sensuality? We hope not; we believe not; we are sure not. We trust that they will retort upon the sneerers in the emphatic words of the motto of one of our most illustrious orders :- "HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE." seen. Every man who has any love for the fine arts; every man who is qualified to form a just conception of their importance to society, must rejoice at the erection of this magnificent work in so commanding a situation in the Metropolis, as a great national benefit. How extensive that benefit will be remains to be It is absolutely the first attempt, that has been made in this country, to imbue the general mind with a knowledge of the principles of high art. We trust that it will soon be followed by other efforts of a similar nature. If once the public feel what is excellent, and if to that feeling they should add a conviction of the true glory that would ensue from a successful rivalry with ancient art, we anticipate with confidence that the genius of the country would soon be found fully competent to answer every demand that could be made upon it, and that the perpetuation of the fame of some future" WELLINGTON," and " HIS BRAVE COMPANIONS IN ARMS, "might with safety and pride be committed to the chissel of A BRITISH PHIDIAS, THEATRICAL JOURNAL. 66 VELUTI IN SPECULUM." KING'S THEATRE. THIS theatre closed for the season on Saturday the 10th inst. with the scientific and beautiful opera of Moze in Egitto. It is said that the season just terminated has not been so productive as that of the preceding year; the first of Mr. Ebers's management -if this be the fact, we not only regret it, but it really occasions us much surprize; for the Opera has seldom been able to boast of so many excellent singers, or of a more judicious and liberal conduct on the part of its manager. The opera of Moze in Egitto can hardly be said to have taken with the public on its being first brought out in London ;-but the whole strength of the company was latterly poured into this charming work; and the characters were so admirably sustained, particularly on the last night of its representation, that all its beauties are now appreciated by the English lovers of harmony. Those who saw the curtain fall for the last time of the sea son, must, we are convinced, have left the house with reluctance, and cast a longing, lingering look behind, regretting that they should be made to forego so captivating an amusement, even for the sake of the દ pomp of woods and garniture of fields." When the Opera season commences, members of the fashionable world generally expect some little change in the company-some new importation of talent, on which they may exhibit their skill, and display their ingenuity, by criticisms and colloquial dissertations:-we hope that the manager will make little change at the expense of his present company-we trust, at least, we shall not lose Madame Ronzi de Begnis, nor Zucchelli; if to these we could have the addition of Ambrogetti and Catalani, we should perhaps possess the finest Opera in Europe; certainly finer than any thing we have seen in this country since the days of Mrs, Billington, HAY-MARKET THEATRE. Our last report of this theatre was replete with novelties; but neither Thalia nor Melpomene has been parturient, at least at this house, since our last number went to press: there has been nothing new; and we are glad of this, as it has enabled the managers to treat the public with repeated representations of Cibber's dramatic satire, The Hypocrite; Goldsmith's legitimate comedy of She Stoops to Conquer; and Mr. Colman's, we will not say comedy, but excellent five act farce of The Heir at Law. To these rich regal ings have been added the enjoyment of a debutante of "surpassing merit" -a Miss Paton, known to the frequenters of concerts, has made her appearance on the boards, in the character of Susanna, in Beaumarchais' opera of Figaro. She was received with decided applause-exhibiting much more of talents as an actress, than usually falls to the lot of singers; and her sweet flexible voice won the audience to applaud, "to the very echo which shall applaud again." "It has been said that the moral tone of an English audience would not admit of a faithful translation of Beaumarchais' Figaro 66 if this be true, we must be allowed to reply, that no translation into English ought to have been attempted. Certainly our version of Figare is weary, stale, flat and unprofitable," when compared to the original. Mrs. Garrick divested the character of the Countess of all its intrigue and vacillation of propensities; whilst Liston's want of voice made him so completely the murderer of Mozart's fine melodies, that even his excellent acting could not win us to approbation; and the tout en semble of the opera was heavy and unattractive. But it is really a pleasure to call to mind, and to expatiate upon the performance of the Heir at Law. If it |