to the errors and vices of the church. It was easy to point out the faults of the existing religion; but the whole was not to be rejected together; for the popery of the fourteenth century was the result of a gradual corruption of that divine religion which was taught by the Saviour of men, and attested by the miraculous interposition of the Deity. The most sacred truths still remained hidden among the accumulated rubbish of human invention; but to search for them, with any probability of success, required an union of courage, firmness, judgement, knowledge, and piety, which at that time was to be found only in John Wicliff.

*

It appears to have been early in the year 1379, that Wickliff set about a great work, which he had long intended to perform. This was the translation of the Scriptures into English. He had always considered it as one of the great errors of popery, that the Bible should be locked up from the people: he therefore resolved to free it from this bondage. But, before his translation appeared, he published a treatise to shew the necessity of engaging in it. He declared that the Bible contained the whole will of the Deity; that the law of Christ was sufficient to direct his church; and that in the Scriptures every Christian might learn what would render him acceptable to God. As to the necessity of commentators to explain the meaning of the text, he said that a good life was the best guide to this knowledge; or, as he expressed it," He that keepeth righteousness hath "the true understanding of Holy Writ." It was perfectly consistent with this sentiment to maintain, as he did, that "No good man could "be a heretic." Heresy, according to Wicliff, consisted in a bad life, as well as in false opinions.'

For the following excellent remarks, Mrs. Hack has been indebted to Mr. Turner.

At the time of his accession, it was universally believed that Henry the Fourth was, in his heart, inclined to the opinions of the Reformers. But, with him, the maxims of policy had greater influence than the dictates of conscience. He examined the state of parties in England, and found that the ecclesiastical interest was the best able to support his pretensions: he, therefore, without hesitation, attached himself to the church. This was an unworthy sacrifice of moral principle to ambition. Henry gained his purpose, but his enjoyment of the power thus acquired, was very short. The reign of his son was still shorter; and misfortune, deposition, and a violent death, were the portion of his grandson, who was also the last of his race. The retribution is striking. By establishing his throne on the basis of ecclesiastical tyranny, he made this alternative necessary: that the improvement of mankind should be arrested in its course, or that the sovereignty of his house should cease. Happily for the world, the evil passions of men are so overruled as to become the means of promoting the designs of a benevolent Providence, but are never permitted to counteract them. The house of Lancaster disappeared;

and the Reformation, when the minds of men were better prepared to receive it, revived with irrepressible power.'

The next Series is intended to comprise the dynasty of the Tudors; and should health and leisure permit the Writer to ⚫ complete her design, she will, in a fourth volume, attempt to ⚫ delineate the most prominent features of the eventful history of the Stuarts.' As the complete work will be much more likely to obtain general acceptance, than detached portions of English history, we earnestly hope that Mrs. Hack will be encouraged and enabled to bring out the remaining volumes. Lingard, as she proceeds, though to be followed with caution, will be of no small assistance to her. The chief difficulty in delineating the reign of the Stuarts, will arise from the immense mass of materials in the shape of contemporary memoirs and other original documents, and the utter faithlessness of the historians. Rapin contains the best digest of the materials which were accessible in his time. But the Memoirs of Colonel Hutchinson, a great part of the State Papers and other documents made use of in the Memoirs of Cromwell, the Diary of Evelyn, and the papers referred to by Mr. Fox and Lord John Russell, throw quite a new light on many circumstances and characters of that period. Burnet and Neal are invaluable; but the former, though his veracity is unimpeachable, has, perhaps justly, been charged with a little credulity, and the latter is sometimes warped by his Presbyterian prejudices. Archdeacon Coxe's voluminous memoirs of the Dukes of Shrewsbury and Marlborough, supply most valuable illustrations of the reigns of the last two monarchs of the Stuart line. Dr. Mc. Crie's Lives of Knox and Melville may also be consulted with the greatest advantage for the earlier periods. But, really, we seem to be imposing on our Author a most unreasonable labour, in even hinting that she should consult half of these authorities. Mrs. Hack is, however, fully aware of the importance of not misleading children, and of the danger of instilling into their minds indelible prejudices in the shape of historical misinformation. The pains she has taken in compiling these volumes, afford a pledge that, so far as she has means of access to the requisite sources, no trouble will be spared to render her work correct; by which means she will lay both the rising race and their parents under no small obligation.

We understand that Mrs. Hack is sister of Mr. Bernard Barton.

By

Art. X. The River Derwent, Part the First; and other Poems. William Branwhite Clarke, B.A. of Jesu College, Cambridge. 8vo. pp. xvi. 112. London. 1822.

WE foresaw the mischief that was likely to ensue from Mr. Wordsworth's sonnetizing the River Duddon. If the other rivers heard of it, we had no doubt they would be ready to burst their banks with jealousy; and every sedgy nymph would be turning syren. Thus we might expect to find

-books in the running brooks'

with a vengeance, and in time, a whole library of rivers. Mr. Clarke has been seduced by the charms of the Derwent, to enter the lists as her nymphship's champion. After expatiating in prose on the claims of his subject, he contrives to keep up his breath through one hundred and twenty-three stanzas of the kind yclept Spenserian; and this, he tells us, is only Part the First! Not only so, but he informs us of a mighty stir having already arisen among the other floods and streams. Thus:

Brook calls to brook as down the hills they stray.' p. 66. Again :

And Barrow calls forth from its cultured steeps

To the loud thunder of the hoarse Lodore;

And many a rill its tinkling current keeps
In unison with his majestic roar,-

Niagara of England. p. 30.

And again, the Poet bids us list to

sounds, that the deep valleys thrill,

From brooks and floods that murmuring run,
Calling each other as they flow,

And mark the blissful union

Which nature's varied gifts avow.' p. 97.

We leave our readers to decide whether this does not look very much like a conspiracy on the part of the said brooks and rivers, or threatening signs, at least, of a mutinous rising. Now, it is to put a stop, as far as in us lies, to this menacing inundation, that we have thus promptly given information against the inditer of this volume. Far be it from us to wish to stop the Author in his course: we would only seek to turn the stream of his composition into another channel ;-not a poetical one, indeed, for we fear that he must be characterized as but a water-poet-by the way, the Water-Poet was a very worthy fellow-but into the more legitimate direction of dry prose.

VOL. XVIII. N.S.

2 F

If we are called upon to give our reasons for this judgement, we must reluctantly proceed to the invidious specification of the Author's sundry offences against taste, sense, and euphony. We must, for instance, indite him on the following count,for uttering as poetry certain stanzas, purporting to be about the above-mentioned brooks and floods.

• There is a voice which speaks from them
To man's entranced and musing heart,
Which worldly wisdom may condemn,
Though in its words it hath no part;
The tones they speak are tones of praise-
-Expressive praise, though feebly told,—
Praise that but mocks the senseless ways
By which man doth his thoughts unfold.
The untaught worship of the bird,
Or wild bee, in his humble flight,
By God from his high throne is heard,
When man shall vanish from his sight;
And this because the songs they sing
The thanks sincere of nature tell,
And shall to him an offering spring
Accepted and acceptable.'

Putting aside the doths and haths and false concord of these lines, what do they mean? That God is better pleased with the sounds of the mountain stream, the singing of birds, and the hum of bees, than the praise of his intelligent creatures. This is but sorry divinity.

To the evening star,' Mr. Clarke singeth:

Pale harbinger of silent night!

I gaze upon thy early beam
All tremulous with silver light,
And in my musing fancy dream,
That thou art looking down on me

With an unused tranquillity.'

6

Here is certainly a liberty taken with words that we are unused to;-a beam tremulous with light, and a poet gazing on it, and dreaming, with his eyes open, but in his fancy, that the star is looking at him with unused tranquillity;' and yet we are told, it is tremulous,' as it were at the very sight of him, knowing, perhaps, what he was going to sing about. We have been not a little amused with the Author's original use of the diæresis, suspended over a single vowel, thus:

They laid thee in thy lowly bed,

And o'er the chafing sea,

Thou, coffinless, wast lowered

With rude solemnity,

And saintless lips, unused to prayer,

Shed the last words of blessing there!'

Several similar instances might be given; but in the following couplet it is perversely omitted.

'When the angel's trump shall arouse the dead,

And seas shall unbosom their bu-ri-ed!'

We do not call in question Mr. Clarke's qualifications as bachelor of arts, the art of poetry being excepted.

Art, XI. The English Mother's Catechism for her Children: containing those Things most necessary to be known at an early Age. Illustrated by 100 Engravings. By the Rev, T. Clark. 24mo. pp. 72. 9d. sewed; large paper, 1s. 6d. bound. London. 1822.

NE hundred engravings for nine pence! This ingenious contriver of multum in parvo deserves to obtain our recommendation of his praiseworthy labours; and, in truth, the Catechism does comprise a prodigious variety of useful lore. It is quite a Lilliputian cyclopedia; and the wood-cuts, which to children are a hieroglyphic language more readily understood than the type, are most respectable specimens of the kind. They exhibit visible representations of rural processes, trades, fruits, animals, insects, heavenly bodies, national costumes, and skeleton maps. Surely never were the tools of Education brought to so great a perfection, whatever may be the skill employed in handling them.

Art. XII. Principes de la Grammaire Françoise, ou Livre de Conversation a l'Usage de la Jeunesse Angloise. Par Mr. d'Emden. 12mo. pp. 136. London. 1822.

THIS

HIS new attempt to elucidate the elements of French Grammar, does not appear to require elaborate criticism. It seems on the whole to be judiciously compiled; and it possesses the important requisite of brevity. The form of dialogue has been adopted, and the whole series of instruction is conveyed in the French language; a plan which imposes some additional trouble on the master, but must be exceedingly advantageous to the pupil.