ing implements; and the English admiral, commanding in the Baltic, permitted the present of peace to pass unmolested. Kotzebue took part in the manifestoes and diplomatic notes of the Russian Cabinet, published in 1811 and 1812. The Emperor Alexander recompensed his services by naming him at first, in 1813, consul general of Konigsberg; and afterwards, in 1816, by connecting him with the department of foreign affairs, as counsellor of state.

In 1817, he received a commission to go to Germany, in order to send reports directly to the Emperor Alexander on the state of literature and public opinion in Germany. He settled for this purpose at Weimar, where he published, at the same time, a Literary Journal, in which he constituted himself judge of all writing in every branch of literature which he thought worthy of notice, and, at the same time, delivered his opinions on politics, and on the spirit of the times, in the manner which his opponents considered partial and illiberal in the extreme. His Cossack-like tactics, with which he made war upon all liberal ideas, especially the wishes of the people, for representative constitutions, freedom for the press, &c., in the name of sound

reason, of which he considered himself the representative, gained him great applause with a certain class of readers, but it drew upon him the indignation of no inconsiderable part of the nation, particularly from the ardent minds of the German youth; and in this tendency of his literary labours, we must, doubtless, look for the chief cause of his violent and tragical death; (he was assassinated March 13, 1819.)

Although the public supposed him to be much older, from the numerous writings which he had published the last forty years, he was but fiftyeight years old. He was twice married, and left fourteen children; the eldest of whom is a Captain in the Austrian service; another son, M. Otto de Kotzebue, is a Lieutenant in the Russian navy, and has already rendered himself celebrated by his voyage round the world. A third son, Maurice, also an officer in the Russian army, published, some time ago, an interesting account of the Russian embassy in Persia, to which he was attached. Thus, the talents of the children seem likely to add a still greater lustre' to the name which the father has rendered so celebrated.

IRELAND'S SHAKSPEARE.

THE late Mr. Samuel Ireland, originally a silkmerchant in Spital-fields, was led, by his taste for literary antiquities, to abandon trade for those pursuits, and published several elegant Tours, which may be regarded as works of standard taste. One of them consisted of "A Tour on the River Avon;" during which he was led to explore, with ardent curiosity, every thing that related to our immortal Bard. During the excursion, he was accompanied by his son, a sprightly youth of sixteen, who imbibed a portion of his father's mania on the subject of Shakspeare. The youth, perceiving the great importance which his father attached to every relic of the poet, and the eagerness with which he sought for any of his MS. remains, conceived that it would not be difficult to gratify his father by some production of his own, in the language and manner of the time.

This idea possessed his mind for a certain period; and, in 1793, being then in his eighteenth year, he produced some MSS. professed to be in the hand-writing of Shakspeare, which he said had been given to him by a gentleman possessed of many other old papers. This young man be

ing articled to a Solicitor in Chancery, easily fabricated, in the first instance, a deed of mortgage from Shakspeare to Michael Fraser. The extacy which his father expressed, urged him to forge other documents, described as coming from the same quarter. Emboldened by success, he ventured upon higher compositions in prose and verse, and, at length, commenced the discovery of an original drama, under the title of "Vortigern," which he exhibited, act by act, written in the period of two months. Having provided himself with the paper of the period, being the fly-leaves of old books, and with ink prepared by a bookbinder, no suspicion was entertained of deception.

The father, who was a maniac upon such subjects, gave such credit to the supposed discovery, that the attention of the literary world, and all England, was drawn to it, insomuch that

the

son, who had announced other papers, found it impossible to retreat, and was thus goaded into the production of the series he had announced.

The house of Mr. Ireland, in Norfolk Street, was crowded to excess by persons of the highest

rank, and of the greatest celebrity in the repub lic of letters.

The MSS. being generally decreed genuine, were considered of inestimable worth; and, at one time, it was expected that parliament would have given any required sum for them, Some amateurs in literature at length sounded an alarm, which was supported by some of the newspapers and public journals; but, at length, Mr. Sheridan gave 6007. for permission to play "Vortigern," at Drury Lane Theatre. Such a house was never seen, and ten-times more persons left the doors, than those who could gain admittance. The predetermined mal-contents began an opposition from the outset ; some ill-cast character converted grave scenes into ridicule, and a contest ensued between the believers and sceptics, which endangered the property. The piece, however, was got through. The juvenile author was now so beset, for full information, that he found it necessary to abscond from his father's house; and then, to put an end to the wonderfulferment, which his ingenuity had created, published a pamphlet, in which he confesse d the entire fabrication. Besides "Vortigern,"