Make mankind hate you: hatred brings fear; and fear Confounding villany whilst valour grows, And shoots its head in glory to the sun. and his concluding words of frenzy We are but stars that shoot along the sky; The flag-staff stands, although the flag is torn. Hoist up the standard! LADY DE MORTIMER takes his hand.) What It's not a mortal hand! (Throws it away.) 'Tis time to wield The remnant of command. (Starts up.) Ho! Man the breach, And let those follow me--Another wound! All's over. Howard! Howard !-They have deserted me! But let destruction yawn, and from its throat I'll pull the-(Starts) Ha-ha-Howard!-I'll not yield Death! CURTAIN FALLS. all these are powerfully depicted. [Dies. The author appears to have expended all his strength on De Mortimer, for the other characters, with the exception of Galbraith, are mere sketches --some clear and life-like, others weak and unnatural. The chief fault of this play is a confusedness-an indistinctness-of plot, language, and character. It is difficult for the reader to tell in what age or country the scene of the drama is laid. In some of the opening scenes the dramatis persona talk the words and exhibit the peculiarities of our own time; in other parts, we have the Border Warfare introduced. Then comes a Prince whom it is impossible to identify. The characters, too-many of them, at least-talk too much alike; and the plot is by no means clearly worked out to the satisfaction of the reader. It appears to us that the author did not sufficiently nurse his conception: he seems to have written his play before he made up his mind as to what he wanted to depict. To this one source we are inclined to trace all his errors. To sum up, however-for our space begins to fail us;-the author is evidently a man of great genius, and his play is a striking and highly affecting one. He has great invention; a bold, honest, and truthful pencil; a power of producing a high degree of tragic interest; great honesty of purpose and expression; and a truthfulness of emotion in which he is surpassed by no dramatic writer of the day. We feel certain that he will one day achieve great things, and that the name which he now modestly conceals, will be a bright and long-remembered one in the future page of our literature. Martin Chuzzlewit: by Boz; Illustrated by PHIZ. London, Chapman and Hall. THE question has been much agitated, Is Mr. Dickens equally successful in serious as in humorous writing? The appearance of the work above referred to, gives us the opportunity of saying a few words upon the subject. Now we hold it to be quite unquestionable that as a humorous writer, Mr. Dickens is unsurpassed by any author, ancient or modern. Let us not be misunderstood. We say as a humorous writer: and we mean what we say strictly. We do not affirm him to be a wit: there are many authors to whom in respect of the quality of wit-he is very inferior; it is sufficient to name (to refer to our own times only) Jerrold, Lover, Bourcicault, Thomas Ingoldsby, and Hood. But let us briefly define the two qualities. Wit we hold to consist in the perception and representation of ludicrous relationships : humour we define to be the power of perceiving or inventing comic PECULIARITY. Wit consists in presenting objects that are ludicrously like other objects-humour in exhibiting ludicrous objects which are unlike other objects. Wit results from the comparing faculty of the mind-humour from the perceptive and imaginative. When we say, then, that Dickens as a humorous writer has never been excelled, we shall be understood to mean, that he has never been outdone in the power of depicting ludicrous peculiarity; and this assertion, we think, is capable of easy proof. Every page of his writings will bear us outwhether we examine the characters, the scenes, the incidents, he describes, or even the very putting together of his words. Take his characters, for quaintness, oddity, singularity, what can we name with them? Not to mention the somewhat outre delineations of Newman Noggs-Jingle-the Fat boy, and others of the like order-a host start up before our memories to bear witness to the truth of the assertion. Mr. Pickwick, Mr. Tupman, Mr. Winkle, Mr. Snodgrass, the Wellers one and all, Squeers, Sampson Brass, Tim Linkinwater, Mrs. Nickleby, Sim Tappertit, Miss Miggs, the very names corroborate our words. His plots and scenes-how oddly, quaintly, conceived! Who like Boz can discover and point out the ludicrous in a picture who so readily as he perceive the striking and the strange? Then as for his incidents, was there ever anything so peculiar, so out of all ordinary course as they are? Who but Boz would have thought of introducing two people to one another as he has introduced Mr. Pecksniff and Mr. Tigg, by knocking their heads together in the dark? And this quaintness is not occasional with him-it is an ever present quality, influencing all he writes, whether grave or gay, and oftentimes it produces the most startling effect. And where is the author of whom the same may be said? Even Shakspere himself has given us but a few instances of humour in comparison. Ben Jonson was a great humourist: but he wants diversity of humour-his characters are too much like each other-a fault never to be found with Dickens. Fielding was a great humourist: but his humour is not so complete-so thorough as Dickens's-there are perhaps more touches in his characters and scenes, but they are not by any means so true to the life. Cervantes was a great humourist, but he runs into extravagance, and very often carries the ludicrous into the ridiculous-this is very rare with Boz. So we think that Dickens's merit as a humorous writer is beyond question. Now, with regard to his serious writing, we readily admit that it is open to many objections; it is often laboured, involved and heavy---but for all this we are of opinion that it is equally excellent with his comic writing, and equally unapproached by any modern writer. We do not pretend to say that there is much of the scholar-much of the philosophermuch, even, of the reasoner, in his grave productions; but they display a heart full of noble and generous sympathies, and capable of the purest and sublimest emotions. We see this in his devotion to the cause of the suffering, the oppressed; in his thorough and highly poetical appreciation of the beautiful, in nature and in soul; in the hopefulness, trustfulness, gratitude, and pure piety of his sentiments. And there is another means by which we may judge him-by his pathos-his simple, earnest, unaffected, feeling. We hold that, as a pathetic writer, he has achieved his highest triumphs. Are we asked for proof? We will take two examples-first, the death of the Chancery prisoner; (Pickwick Papers) and secondly, the death of Nelly and her grandfather. (Old Curiosity Shop.) Let us examine them. The first describes the death of a bereaved and lonely prisoner in his place of captivity; one after another the cords that bind him to life are broken, and at length, the loss of his little grandchild snaps the last frail cord, and he droops and dies. Reader, take up the book-the scene will do you good ;— examine the scene closely-see how, like some great painter, the artist concentrates all his light upon the chief figure in the picture, the dying victim of the cruel law. How he contrasts the unconcern, the busy life, the restless gaiety of the multitude without, with the expiring agony of the broken-hearted old man, with the deep and lonely solemnity of his prisonchamber. It is in scenes like this that a weak mind shows its weakness, and a strong one its strength. To write as Dickens has written, in this scene, is beyond all art; a man could never learn to write like this; such words proceed only from the untaught heart. Even more may be said of the other scene to which we referred-the death of Nelly and her grandfather; we know of nothing more touchingmore thrillingly beautiful. After having followed the wanderers through their dangers, toils, insults, and sufferings, after having seen them lose friend after friend, comfort after comfort, home after home, we are brought with them to a place of rest in an old and ruined church; and then there comes upon the mind a strange and thrilling presentiment that they are not to dwell in the old church for long, but are soon to experience a longer and a happier resting place in the old churchyard. The elements of desolation gradually gather round them. Winter comes with frost and snow-the verdure of the earth vanishes-the leaves fall from the trees-the living harmonies that belong to summer and to sunshine become silent, and everything speaks to us of decay and Death. The resting-place of the wanderers is surrounded by graves-it is itself a grave-the solemn and melancholy sepulchre of departed years. Then the child begins to droop-and the old man to tremble for her, and we feel that Death is coming. The scene shifts: we see their friends, who have discovered their retreat, hurrying towards them to tell them of happiness and peace; but the fatal truth will force itself upon us-we feel that the Destroyer is on his way before them. We see them passing on buoyantly, eagerly, hopefully. We see them arrive-but they are too late, Death has been there-the child's spirit is in Heaven! Then the old man's senses wander; he will not believe that his little companion is dead-no, she is only sleeping, he says. We follow him in his tears and in his wanderings-we hear him cry, "She will come to-morrow!" we see him at last stricken by the kind arm of Death-laid silently and peacefully by the side of his little lost one. And that reader must have a cold and barren heart who does not drop a tear upon the grave. We think we have said enough to prove our point, viz.; that Mr. Dickens is fully as great in serious as in comic writing, and with a few words upon the work now in course of publication we will leave the subject. We think then that "MARTIN CHUZZLEWIT" gives promise of being the Author's best work. We do not say it will cause more-or even so much— laughter-but it is none the worse for that. It is better conceived-it bears evidence of more complete design-we find in it greater breadth, fullness, and finish, than in any of his former productions. In the delineation of character we predict it will be far more successful than anything Boz has hitherto written. The Pecksniffs, Tom Pinch, and the hero, will be, we are sure, splendidly drawn out. And with this full and fervent expression of our belief we take our leave of it for the present. Harmonic System-Of Teaching Singing. MR. C. G. ROWE, Professor of Music and Singing, author of “ Oh where have ye flown," "Across the Sea," &c., delivered a Lecture at the Albion Rooms, Hackney Road, on Monday Evening the 6th March, explanatory of his new system, and with a view of showing his objections to that adopted by Mr. Hullah. Mr. R. commenced by briefly enumerating the advantages of vocal music; classifying them into physical, intellectual, social, moral, and re ligious; after which he made the following objections to the system above alluded to. 1st-that since congregational singing, properly so called, and as determined by Dr. Crotch and others, differs essentially from secular music, a different course in its acquirement should be adopted, which is not the case in Mr. Hullah's system. 2nd-that since a large class may be able to sing very well together, yet very badly separately, and since the most serious consequences must result from voices singing beyond their natural compass, the Harmonic System deems it to be necessary to have periodical and individual examinations of the pupils. 3rd-that since children cannot learn like adults, cabmen like noblemen, and Hottentots like philosophers, that system must be imperfect which teaches all classes alike. After these and other objections had been stated, Mr. Rowe proceeded to explain his Harmonic System, the peculiarities of which, appear to be three-fold. 1stthe use of a diagram, representing the chromatic scale in black and red lines, with their respective names; on the one side the sharps, and the other the flats. From this diagram several of Mr. R.'s pupils read various scales, demonstrating the ease with which a perfect knowledge of all the major and minor keys may be required. By the help of this diagram too, pupils are practised in singing any interval, to which the teacher may point, and thus as every note ordinarily used, is represented on the diagram, the exercises that can be formed from it are innumerable. The 2nd peculiarity is—that in the Harmonic System, time is taught as a distinct exercise from the taking of intervals; and about 300 exercises on four pages of music combine perhaps all the varieties of form in which the different characters of notes will be found. But as Mr. R. seemed sensible that a course of exercises is fatiguing to the ordinary student, he has written several duetts, which although they are not essential to his system, yet as the poetry and music are of a pleasing character, serve as an agreeable variety to what would otherwise appear monotonous. The 3rd peculiarity is-that instead of practising thirds, fourths, fifths, &c. consecutively, Mr. R. is of opinion that singing at sight is more facilitated by the pupils being accustomed to sing the different intervals and harmonies found in the common chords of the tonic and subdominant, and the dominant seventh; hence the system derives its name. The examination of the pupils and their singing various exercises and easy pieces gave universal satisfaction, and we cannot but think that the Harmonic System is highly adapted to respectable schools, and when modified agreeably to the design of the author, most efficient in raising congregational singing to a high state of simplicity and purity. Images, by W. W. CHAMPNEYS, M. A. Rector of Whitechapel, London: 3rd Edition, L. & G. Seeley, 1843.—Images, (Second Series) by W. W. CHAMPNEYS, M. A., L. & G. Seeley, 1843. The days are now gone by, in which books for children were written by the stupidest of men, and the silliest of women. It is now becoming generally acknowledged, that it is a task by no means unworthy of a high intellect, or brilliant attainments, to write little books for the use of little children; and the reason is, because the present age is not satisfied that only the imagination of the child should be brought into play, but requires that the whole mind should be exercised-not violently, but gently and quietly-with something which may prove a lasting benefit. "Puss in Boots," and "Jack in the Bean-stalk," and " Old Mother Hubbard," delicious as they are in their kind, are being in some measure superseded by the equally delicious and infinitely more instructive " Agathos," "The Rocky Island," and "The Tent in the Plain." Of this latter class are the little works before us. Until very lately there has been a felt want among rightly disposed parents for religious reading adapted to the capacities of children. When they had taken them through the easier historical and allegorical parts of Scripture, they were at a loss for something further of a similar character and tendency, which might at once excite their young imagination, practise their ingenuity, and foster their devotion. It is really pleasing to see with what happy skill Mr. Champneys has attained these three objects in the little shilling books before us; and we are sure that, trifling as they are in bulk and pretension, they may justly add honor to a reputation for piety and ability which is deservedly high already. They each consist of a number of short tales, expressed in most simple, yet elegant, language, very full of interest and incident, but at the same time bearing throughout an allegorical interpretation-easy enough to be understood by them, yet difficult enough to employ their ingenuity and this interpretation is in every case intended to enforce some moral or religious truth. It is stated in the title-pages, that the profits of the sale will be applied to the maintenance of an Infants' School in the populous parish of Whitechapel. We most cordially recommend the "Images" to all parents and teachers of the young. Institutional Intelligence. SELECT DISCUSSION SOCIETY, CITY OF LONDON INSTITUTION, ALDERSGATE STREET. The Half-yearly Meeting of this excellent Society took place on Friday evening, January 13th, Mr. J. SNELGAR, the Treasurer, being in the chair. The following eloquent Report was then read by Mr. R. SMITH, the Secretary: SELECT DISCUSSION SOCIETY. Half-year's Report, dated January, 1843. BROTHER MEMBERS, The transition from yearly to half-yearly meetings, necessarily diminishes the amount of materials for a Report, your Committee, therefore, trust to be at liberty, after the indispensable record of the society's proceedings during the half-year that has elapsed, to occupy the disposable space by a few reflections and suggestions which they hope may be found not altogether devoid of interest and importance. The debates have proceeded much as heretofore; although there is cause to deplore the indisposition of many members to furnish subjects for discussion, and assume the arduous position of the opener. In the course of the remarks purposed to be made hereafter, your Committee hope to shew, that this reluctance cannot be conducive either to the stability and prosperity of the Society, or to the progress and success of the gentlemen to whom, with the utmost respect, your Committee advert. The debates have been characterized by the usual spirit and intelligence, and have been varied in their character. The approach of parliamentary activity affords to the members generally a prospect of renewed excitement, in the discus sion of subjects which are likely to occupy the attention of the senate. With this feeling your Committee sympathize to a great extent their serious opinion, however, is, that great truths, whether brought before their notice during the convention of Parliament, or during its recess, ought to be sufficient of themselves to create a deep and powerful sympathy. The mind, it is submitted, should not wait for its perception and adoption of principles, until parliamentary or other commotions cast them upon the surface, where but an unsteady and unsatisfactory glance only can be obtained your Committee think it should be considered necessary, at times, to plunge into the vast ocean of truth, and examine the diamond in its sequestered and unfrequented bed, that its true position and office in the economy of nature may be ascertained and appreciated. They trust to be pardoned this reference to an evil in which they freely confess they have participated as extensively as any one. Your Committee have to notice an increasing conformity to the laws of the Society, in respect to the time for opening discussions, and the period allotted to each speaker; for, although many members decline to open debates, there is no deficiency to be complained of in regard to speakers; a general disposition to economize the small and valuable period of time at their disposal once a week, prompts |