O stay, lovely vision! I cried ; O stay and depart not away, Just as I made ready to bound, With a dear grasp I could not untwine. I turn'd, and the maid of my heart, In terror press'd me to her breast; My love and my vision confess'd. I said that her form I had seen, As she stood on the summit above; And whenever these sweet eyes I view, I think of the Liffey's bright hue, TO EGERIA. By Henry G. Bell. NAY, blame me not, love, should I sometimes seem cold, Though dearer to me be the love of thy heart Than all my ambition's wild fancies have sought, There are moments when even, all dear as thou art, Thou art lost in the blaze of some loftier thought. O! deeply I ponder, and brightly I dream, On all that the soul of man longs most to know; I hang o'er the words, and I burn o'er the theme, Where the minds of the dead still undyingly glow. 'Tis my spirit's vocation-my nature's delight— From the cares of the world to turn with a smile; And, as others press on for the wrong or the right, To sit by the footstool of Knowledge the while. To sit by her footstool, and list to the words Which flow from those lips where philosophy dwells; And sweeter to me than the songs of the birds Is the music she breathes, and the truths which she tells. Then blame me not, love, that I cannot recall, In moments like these, my far-wandering mind; I am lost in my dreams-I have broken the thrall That bound me in chains to the rest of my kind. But like dove to the ark, or like bee to the flower, LITERARY CHIT-CHAT AND VARIETIES. Flowers of the Desert, by W. D. Walke, are announced; also, shortly, the Child of Thought, and other Poems, by the same au thor. Tales of my T me, by the Authoress of "Blue Stocking Hall," will appear in a few days. The Memoirs of the Court of Louis XVIII., by a Lady, said to have been in the confidence of his Majesty, will be published in a few days. Lieutenant Hardy's Travels in the Interior of Mexico are on the eve of publication. He has, it appears, explored many parts of that country never yet visited by any traveller. Paral el Miracles; or, the Jews and the Gipsies, is announced by İ Samuel Roberts, who undertakes to prove, that the latter tribe are the descendants of the ancient Egyptians denounced by the Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. Stories of a Bride, by the Authoress of "The Mummy," are announced for speedy publication. The following works are in the press :-Tales in Vcrse, illustrative of the several petitions of the Lord's Prayer, by the Rev. W. F. Lyte -Tales of Four Nations, -The Correspondence and Diary of Raph || Thoresby, by the author of the "History of Leeds." PORTRAIT OF OLIVER CROMWELL.-We have seen a very spirited engraving, by Wilson of Edinburgh, of a highly characteristic por trait of Oliver Cromwell, painted by Walker, the fellow-student and contemporary of Jameson, the Scottish Vandyke. It is decidedly superior to Lely's portrait of the Protector, and cannot fail to give additional interest to the forthcoming volume of Dr Russell's Life of Cromwell, for which work it has been engraved by the proprietors of Constable's Miscellany. ors. THE SCOTTISH ACADEMY.—It was generally understood some time ago, that a misunderstanding had taken place between the greater body of the artists belonging to the Royal Institution and its DirectThe consequence was, that twenty-four artists, associates cf the Royal Institution, instructed their agent, Henry Cockburn, Esq. advocate, to address a letter to George Watson, Esq., President of the Scottish Academy, intimating their desire to be united with the Academy, and their willingness to subject themselves to all its rules. The Academy, having taken this proposal is to consideration, appointed John Hope, Esq. Solicitor-General, as their referee, to confer with Mr Cockburn upon the subject, and it was mutually agreed, that whatever was recommended by these gentlemen should be acceded to by both parties. A copy of their “ Award," which has just been printed, and which has been unanimously approved of at a general meeting of the members of the Scottish Academy, has been put into our hands. By this document, we find that Messrs Hope and Cockburn are of opinion that the twenty-four artists who have seceded from the Royal Institution, should be joined to and become members of the Scottish Academy, as at present constituted; and that as the Academy now unites so many men of the highest genius, of established reputation, and of undoubted energy and perseverance in the cultivation and pursuit of the profession which they have chosen, the building or adaptation of Rooms should be commenced immediately, "on a scale suited to the plan of the Academy, so as thereby to be a pledge to themselves and to the public of the spirit with which the objects of the Academy will be promoted, and of the great and splendid prospects for the cultivation and progress of the Fine Arts, which the union so formed holds out to the public of Scotland.” We shall take an early opportunity to state at some length our own views and feelings upon this interesting subject. Meanwhile, we must bestow the highest praise both upon Messrs Hope and Cockburn for the liberal and gentlemanly spirit in which they have entered into the affairs of the Scottish Academy, and upon the Academy itself for its clear perception of, and ready acquiescence in, what was most conducive to the best interests of Scottish Art. EDINBURGH SURGICAL HOSPITAL-Till the commencement of the present year, there existed only one Surgical Hospital in Edinburgh. At that period Mr Syme, whose talents are well known to the Medical profession, determined upon instituting a new Surgical Establishment upon a respectable scale. With this view, he took a lease for ten years of Minto House, a large and commodious building, situated in a quiet and healthy part of the city, and in the immediate vicinity of the University. The first quarterly Report of the new Hospital is now published, and we are glad to perceive by it that its concerns are already in a prosperous condition. A highly respectable body of directors has been appointed, the public has contributed liberally towards the support of the Hospital, the vacancies for house surgeons have been well filled up, more clinical students have applied than could be received, and there is good reason to hope that the Col A TREATISE On the Law of Prescription in Scotland, by Mark lege of Surgeons will speedily recognise attendance upon Mr Syme's Napier, Esq. advocate, is preparing for publication. Mrs S. C. Hall, the Editor of the "Juvenile Forget-Me-Not," announces for early publication a volume for the Young, under the title of "Chronicles of a School Room; or, Characters in Youth and Age." Hospital as a qualification for obtaining their diploma. During the first three months, seventy patients were admitted, thirty operations were performed, and only two deaths took place. This Establishment has our best wishes, and under its present able superintendence its success seems certain. LITERARY CRITICISM. True Stories from the History of Ireland. By John James M'Gregor, author of a "History of the French Revolution," &c. &c. Second Series, containing the Memorabilia of Ireland under the Tudors. One volame, 12mo. Pp. 412. Dublin. William Curry, jun. & Co. 1829. Unpublished. THE great object in the education of children is, to store the mind with such facts as afford exercise for their awakening powers of reasoning and reflection,-materials whereon their young feelings and imaginations may work. It is of the utmost importance that the mind be allowed for a while to shoot forth freely. All attempts to incul cate principles, however right in themselves, at a period when the intellect is not sufficiently developed to apprehend them, are dangerous; all attempts to cultivate the sentiments equally so. The former produce the shambling, rickety motions of a go-cart, the latter a nerveless overgrowth; the former freeze up and deaden the mind, the latter make of it the rich juicy shoot of an over-forward season, doomed to be nipped by late frosts, or to wither in the adust heats of summer. Give children something whereon to exercise and evolve their faculties. Let there be something to educate, before you begin educating. The veriest fool of a gardener will tell you, that the seedling must have a stem and branches before you can train it. PRICE 6d. ving superior genius altogether out of the question, Sir Walter's traditionary lore has been accumulating in his mind since his childhood; it has been revolved by him till it has assumed a finished and compact form; it has been cherished in his bosom till it has inhaled vitality. No wonder, then, that his stories have a stirring life about them which those of men, who, fired by his example, had first to set about collecting their materials, want. The inferiority is scarcely greater than may be traced in some novels of Sir Walter, the materials of which he sought hurriedly in books not very familiar to him, (as his Anne of Geierstein,) when compared with his Waverley, Old Mortality, and the Heart of Mid-Lothian, which had lain treasured up in his mind for wellnigh half a century. Mr M'Gregor has nevertheless executed his task with great ability. We could perhaps have wished the book to have a little less of the air of a common history, with its connected series of unimaginative generalities; we could have wished that the thread of narrative had been less prominent, and that the stories it is meant to connect had more frequently a strong and individual interest. There are, however, enough to convey to a child such an impression as it is capable of receiving of the state of society, and the characters of the leading men in Ireland, during the period to which this series refers. As to the spirit in which the work is composed, it is impartial and uncompromising, but tempered with gentleness. We subjoin one or two of the anecdotes which have struck us most forcibly: AN IRISH CHIEF THE EARL OF KILDARE." But King Henry (VII.) in the interval, perceived that the Earl was a man of an open temper, and of unrefined and simple manners, rather than a cunning intriguer or dark conspirator; and that the crimes charged against him were only such as were likely to take place in a country so torn by turbulence to confront his captive with his adversaries, and thus give and faction as Ireland had lately been; he therefore resolved him a fair opportunity of defending himself. When the day of trial came, Creagh, Archbishop of Cassel, and Pain, the Bishop of Meath, stood forth, as his principal accusers. The Earl at first appeared unable to answer a charge brought against him by the Bishop of Meath, that after Plunkett and his followers had been slain by him in an action near Trim, he followed the Bishop into a church with a drawn sword, and dragged him from his sanctuary, The King, perceiving his noble prisoner perplexed, gave him his choice of any counsel in England, and time to prepare his defence. It is because we entertain this opinion that we think Sir Walter Scott-and we mean any thing but disrespect to him when we say so the most proper person alive to write books for children. He has no first principles, and he has no power of reasoning upon or from them; or, if he possess both, he has a most marvellous knack of hiding them. Facts arrest his attention, and remain in his mind by the hold they take upon his feelings and imagination; not, as is the case with some men, according as they are subservient to a theory, or serve to fill up a chain of argument. They arrange themselves in his memory under the categories of relation in time and space, and of similarity alone. His pictures of the workings of the human mind-nay, his larger compositions, in which he represents the state of society at a particular period, are true to nature; for he has a wide range of vision, a keen glance, and just feeling. But he blunders egregiously, Grant me that,' said the Earl, and I will answer to-mor or is delivered of the most arrant commonplace, when he row; but I doubt I shall not be allowed that good fellow I attempts to reason about either one or other. In his own would choose.' The King gave him his hand in assurance sphere, he is a giant, and "we little men walk under his that he should, and his Majesty asking him when he would huge legs," like the Lilliputians looking up in wonderment left to his choice. Thou liest, Bralagh bald Bishop,' rechoose his counsellor, Never,' cried the Bishop, 'if it be at Captain Gulliver; when he ventures out of it, he is torted Kildare angrily; as soon as thou wouldst choose to only a common man-perhaps more justly a blind Poly-break thy vow of chastity, and that would be within an phemus, sublime even in his weakness. There is something amiable in the greatness of this character which fits it admirably for sitting down beside a child, adapting its words and thoughts to his capacity, and, by the gentle warmth of its kindness, expanding the buds of thought within him. It is no discredit to say of Mr M'Gregor, that his stories are not equal to those of his great prototype. Lea hour.' The King and his lords were convulsed with laugh- story we have no particulars, but during its narration the King and his courtiers were ready to burst with laughter, while the Earl never changed countenance, but related it with as much unconcern as if he were in the midst of his companions in his own country. When he had concluded, the King, anxious to divert the discourse from the unfortunate Bishop, thus made an object of ridicule, cautioned the Earl to be well advised whom he would choose for his counsellor, for that whoever he should be, he would have enough to do to defend him. Marry!' said Kildare, 'I can see no better man in England than your Majesty, and will choose no other. By St Brigid,' said the King, it was well chosen; for I thought your tale would not excuse your doings. Do you think I am a fool?' answered the Earl; no; I am indeed a man, both in the field and the town.' Henry laughed and said, 'A wiser man might have chosen worse. A new accusation was now brought forward, that in one of his lawless excursions he had burned the cathedral of Cashel to the ground. 'Spare your evidence,' said Kildare I did set fire to the church, for I thought the Archbishop had been in it.' This singular simplicity in pleading a circumstance of aggravation as an apology for his offence, threw an air of ridicule on his prosecutors, which proved highly favourable to the cause of the accused; and when they concluded their charges by exclaiming passionately, All Ireland cannot govern this Earl!'-Well,' replied the King, this Earl shall govern all Ireland." AN AFFECTIONATE WIFE.-"On the 19th of May, 1596, Otterburn, a rebel chieftain, demanded a passage over Stradbally-bridge, which being considered as a challenge by Cosby, he resolved to oppose the passage. He accordingly, accompanied by his eldest son Francis, who had lately married a lady of the Hartpole family, took post with his kerns at the bridge, while Dorcas Sidney (Cosby's wife) and her daughter-in-law seated themselves at a window of the abbey to see the fight. The O'Mores soon advanced with great intrepidity, and were resisted with equal bravery, till Sir Alexander Cosby was slain, when his kerns instantly gave way; and Francis, attempting to escape, by leaping over the battlements of the bridge, was in the next moment shot dead. You might expect that the ladies at the window now became frantic with grief at the death of their husbands. But no such thing; the widow of Francis turned to her mother-in-law, and said, with the greatest self-possession, Remember, mother, that my father was shot before my husband, and, therefore, the latter became the legal possessor of the estate, and consequently I am entitled to my thirds or dowry.' THE EAGLE TURNED RESTAURATEUR." A tradition prevails, that when O'Sullivan was quitting his retreat in Glengarriff, he consigned the care of his wife and children to a faithful gossip named Gorrane M'Swiney, who had a but at the foot of the Eagle's precipice, which was so constructed as to elude the vigilance of the English scouts who day and night prowled about these mountains. A single salted salmon was all the provision which M'Swiney had for his honoured charge when they entered his hut, but his ingenuity is said to have devised extraordinary means for their future sustenance. Having perceived an eagle flying to her nest with a hare in her talons, he conceived a plan for supporting the family of his chief with the food intended for the young eaglets. He accordingly, on the following morning, accompanied by his son, a boy about fourteen years old, ascended the mountains, on the summit of which they took post, till they saw the old eagles fly off in pursuit of prey. The elder M'Swiney then tied a rope, made of the fibres of bog fir, round the waist and between the legs of his son, and lowered him down to the nest, where the youth tightened the necks of the young eaglets with straps which he had provided for the purpose, that they might swallow their food with difficulty. This being accomplished, he was safely drawn up, and the father and son kept their station on the top of the precipice, till they witnessed the return of the eagles-one with a rabbit, and the other with a grouse, in its talons. After they had again flown off, young M'Swiney descended a second time, and brought up the game, after having first gutted it, and left the entrails for the young eaglets. In this manner, we are informed, was the family of O'Sullivan supported, by their faithful guardian, during the period of their seclusion in this desolate part of the country." We had occasion formerly to recommend the first series of these "True Stories," and we can now as conscientiously recommend the second. Forget-me-Not; a Christmas, New Year's, and BirthDay Present, for 1830. Edited by Frederic Shoberl. London. R. Ackermann and Co. 12mo. Pp. 418. ACKERMANN is the Father of the Annuals,-the leader of all that "gallant companie," the nucleus round which this Christmas constellation has gathered. We love the morning star, though it be lost in the blaze of noon,—we love the white crocus, though it disappear amid the glories of the riper year, we love the venerable master, though his pupil rise to more glaring renown,—and in like manner ought we to love and admire that most tasteful and elegant of publishers, Mr R. Ackermann, who has originated a new series of works hitherto unknown in Great Britain-"made to engage all hearts, and charm all eyes." Neither has our first and earliest annual faded away into comparative insignificance, before the surpassing splendour of those which have succeeded. On the contrary, it still fights a good fight, and maintains its place among the best with a becoming consciousness of its own dignity. The volume for 1830 is now before us. It contains fourteen embellishments, which, though highly respectable, are on the whole surpassed by those of the Keepsake, the Souvenir, the Friendship's Offering, and the Amulet. They are arranged in the following order :-I. “ The Spanish Princess," painted by Wilkie at Madrid in 1828, a fine picture, in so far as the artist is concerned; but the subject wants interest, seeing that the Princess is by no means beautiful; and, moreover, we are not quite satisfied with the manner in which the work is engraved by R. Graves.-II. A "Vignette Title," very tasteful and appropriate.-III. " Place de Jeanne D'Arc, Rouen," one of those fine Continental street scenes, which Prout paints so well, and Le Keux engraves so beautifully.—IV. “The Flower Girl of Savoy," a sweet picture, by a French artist, though we think the flower girl looks a little too much as if she were a married woman; that is to say, scarcely young and happy enough.-V. "The Land Storm," spirited, but rather clap-trappish, being too full of thunder and lightning, wind and rain.-VI. "The Exile," a scene by Stephanhoff, but not one of his best, the countenances being rather insipid, and the grouping and attitudes not such as to tell the story distinctly.-VII. "The Orphan Family," engraved by Davenport from a painting by Chisholme, and executed in a manner which reflects much credit upon both artists, the lights being very delicately managed, and the figures happily arranged and well conceived.-VIII. "The Tempting Moment," a humorous scene by Collins, representing boys stealing apples from the stall of an old lady who has fallen asleep, clever, but far inferior to Wilkie, and rather raggedly engraved by H. C. Shenton.-IX. "Undine," engraved from a spirited painting by Retzsch, illustrative of part of a romance by De La Motte Fouqué, and worthy of the artist, whose outline illustrations, both of the poets of his own country and of our Shakspeare, are now so well known and admired.-X. “Greenwich Hospital," a good view, from the Thames, of this noble national institution.-XI. "The Improvisatrice," from a painting by Bone, the worst embellishment in the book, and the nearest thing to a caricature, not to be meant for a caricature, ever seen, the female figure, intended for the Improvisatrice, looking much more like an old maid with a pain in her stomach, which she is in hopes a dose of salts she has recently taken may remove, than a being in the fervour of poetical composition. It surely must have cost "Delta" some sacrifice of his conscience to puff up the unhappy creature as he has done.-XII. "Death of the Dove," an interesting painting by Stewardson, excellently engraved by W. Finden.-XIII." The Shipwreck," and XIV." The Ghaut," both respectable. The literary contents of the Forget-me-Not are neither greatly above nor below par. There are some very good prosé tales, and some that are poor enough. We do not much like the first in the volume, entitled, "A Quarter of an Hour too Soon." It is founded on an absurdity, being an attempt to show that the whole of the hero's distresses in life arose from his being on all occasions a quarter of an hour too soon. Mr Macnish, the author of the "Anatomy of Drunkenness," has communicated, under the signature of "A Modern Pythagorean," rather a clever story called "The Red Man." It is, however, too much in imitation of Sterne's style, and is too extravagant to be natural. "The Omen," by Mr Galt, is a meagre and unsatisfactory story, scarcely worth telling. “Seeking the Houdy," by the Ettrick Shepherd, is humorous and talented, but almost a little too homely, we should have thought, for an Annual. Of the poetry, by far the ablest and most interesting production is the "Trial of Charles I.," a dramatic scene by Miss Mitford. We regret that we cannot quote the whole, and it would not do to abridge it. Another poetical contribution, more curious than valuable, is a poem by Byron :"It is the first attempt," says the editor, "of the late Lord Byron's that is known to be extant; and we consider this piece as being the more curious, inasmuch as it displays no dawning of that genius which soon afterwards burst forth with such overpowering splendour. It was inspired by the tender passion, and appears in the shape of verses to the object of his earliest, and perhaps his only real attachment, the Mary' whom he has celebrated in many of his poems. It is certified by the lady to whom it was addressed, (Mary Anne Musters,) and is now in the possession of Miss Mary Ann Cursham of Sutton, Nottinghamshire." The verses are as follows : LORD BYRON'S FIRST VERses. TO MY DEAR MARY ANNE. "Adieu to sweet Mary for ever! "The flame that within my breast burns Is far purer than Cupid bestows! "I wish not your peace to disturb, The friendship my bosom contains; While the warm blood flows through my veins. "Once more, my sweet Mary, adieu! While this heart in my bosom shall beat." Another literary curiosity which the "Forget-me-Not" contains, is a short poem by Francis Jeffrey, Esq. We have long been aware that Mr Jeffrey, in his leisure moments (which are few and far between), wooed the Muses, and we have heard the story of his having once printed a volume of poems which he afterwards suppressed, and also of his having contemplated publishing several satires in the style of Pope; but we do not recollect having seen any of his verses in print before with his name appended to them. They will be read with interest; and, though rather on a commonplace subject, they place the critic and the lawyer in a pleasing point of view: VERSES INSCRIBED IN AN ALBUM. By Francis Jeffrey, Esq. "Why write my name 'midst songs and flowers, I have no voice for lady's bowers- "Yet though my heart no more must bound "Take, then, fair girls, my blessing take! "And while the youthful lover's name That to their list would add a friend's!" We do not find much else in the volume that calls for especial notice. There are some good lines by Barry Cornwall, a pretty song by Bayley, two rather dull things by Thomas Hood, and some respectable poetry by Charles Swain, Miss Jewsbury, and Delta. There is also one little piece by Miss Emma Roberts, which we like for its simplicity and natural feeling, and which we shall subjoin: SONG. By Miss Emma Roberts. But, in a small secluded nook, There rippling glides a narrow brook, "The lory perches on my hand, And spreads its plumes at my command, And stoops its purple head; But where the robin, humble guest, Comes flying from the tree, Which bears its unpretending nest, "The fire-fly flashes through the sky, "Throughout the summer year, the flowers, "The lotus opes its chalices, Upon the Tank's broad lake, "Benares, 1828." We shall end this article in a manner much in vogue anong the gentler kind of reviewers, by "sincerely re.. commending the book in question to the notice of our readers." Ackermann's Juvenile Forget-me-Not: A Christmas, New Year's, and Birth-Day Present, for Youth of both Sexes, for 1830. Edited by Frederic Shoberl. London. Ackermann and Co. 12mo. Pp. 274. We have already reviewed the Juvenile Forget-me-Not, edited by Mrs S. C. Hall. That before us is quite a distinet book, though varying in title only by having Ackermann's name prefixed to it. This is awkward, and should have been avoided, if possible. Mrs Hall, in the preface to her volume, thus mentions the subject:-" It gives me pain to allude to the fact, that the success of The Juvenile Forget-me-Not' has given rise to a similar publication under a title so nearly the same, that it is more than probable the one will be often mistaken for the other. Fair and honourable competition is at all times beneficial; and if the work to which I allude had received any other name, I should have been the last to complain; but I cannot consider it either fair or honourable to take advantage of that popularity for which the publishers of The Juvenile Forget-me-Not' had anxiously and successfully laboured during a period of two years." In the preface to Ackermann's Juvenile Forget-me-Not no allusion is made to this matter; and as some explanation was certainly called for, we must suppose that silence implies culpability. Had it been even alleged that the title of Mrs Hall's Juvenile Forget-me-Not was an infringement on the title of the original Forget-me-Not, the argument would have been worth something; but as this is not stated, we must conclude that Mrs Hall's publishers had Ackermann's consent to christen their bantling by the name they gave it, in which case his present interference with that name is harassing and injurious. "Non nobis," however," tantas componere lites." Ackermann's Juvenil Forget-me-Not is an exceedingly elegant little volume; indeed, we suspect the most elegant of all the Juvenile Annuals in external appearance, although we certainly prefer Mrs Hall's embellishments. The stories and poetry too, in Ackermann, are good, and well adapted for children, which is the great thing. The "True Story of Web Spinner," by Mary Howitt, is quite delightful. Who is Mary Howitt? She has proved herself, by the Annuals for 1830, to be one of the very cleverest of our female writers, yet we know next to nothing about her. Is she a Quakeress? We see there are a William and a Richard Howitt also, (elever, too, though not so clever as Mary)-are they her brothers, or is one of them her husband? Will any benevolent Christian inform us on these particulars? for we are sorry to say that Mary Howitt's personal history is totally unknown to the literati of Edinburgh; yet she is one who deserves to be known, and who is fast making herself so. This little volume contains also by far the best thing which James Montgomery has contributed to any of the Annuals we have yet seen. Indeed, we were beginning to fear that Montgomery had lost his poetical talents altogether, so entirely did they appear to be frittered away upon the most insignificant subjects, until we met with the gem now before us. It called "The Snake in the Grass;" but, as we can only give a part of it, we shall entitle it THE BIRD'S NEST. By James Montgomery. "She had a secret of her own, The little girl of whom we speak, O'er which she oft would muse alone, Till the blush came across her cheek, A rosy cloud that glow'd awhile, Then melted in a sunny smile. "There was so much to charm the eye, So much to move delightful thought, Awake at night she loved to lie, Darkness to her that image brought; She murmur'd of it in her dreams, Like the low sounds of gurgling streams. "What secret thus the soul possess'd Of one so young and innocent? O'er which in ecstasy she bent: "When first it flash'd upon her sight, Bolt flew the dam above her head: She stoop'd and almost shriek'd for fright; But spying there that little bed, With feathers, moss, and horse-hair twined, Wonder and gladness fill'd her mind. "Breathless and beautiful she stood; Her ringlets o'er her bosom fell; With hand uplift-in attitude, As though a pulse would break the spell; While through the shade her pale fine face Shone like a star amidst the place. "She stood so silent, staid so long, The parent birds forgot their fear: Cock-robin soon renew'd his song, In notes like dew-drops, trembling clear; From spray to spray the shyer hen Dropt softly on her nest again. "Then Lucy mark'd her slender bill On this side, and on that her tail Peer'd on the edge,-while, fix'd and still, Two bright black eyes her own assail, Which in eye-language seem'd to say, • Peep, protty maiden ; then, away!' "Away, away, at length she crept, So pleased, she knew not how she trode, Yet light on tottering tip-toe stepp'd. As though birds' eggs strew'd all the road; Close cradling in her heart's recess, The secret of her happiness." They who are determined not to buy Mrs Hall's Jurenile Forget-me-Not, have nothing to do but to ask for Ackermann's Juvenile Forget-me-Not. 4to. Edin Lothian's Historical Atlas of Scotland. burgh. 1829.—Lothian's County Atlas of Scotland. 4to. Edinburgh. 1826-28. A COUNTY Atlas of Scotland, of a convenient size, and at a moderate price, has long been a desideratum. The maps in Mr Lothian's publication, besides that they sup ply this want, are as accurate as the scale upon which they are projected admits, and are executed with the greatest neatness. His Historical Atlas contains several curious relics of antiquity, and is a valuable present to the student of our national history. It serves to throw light on many passages in our older historians, where the author's incorrect notions of Scottish geography render him unintelligible to the reader, who has in his mind's eye a true picture of the relative localities of the country. Entertaining so favourable an opinion of the merits of these two works, we are happy to learn that the enterprise of their publisher is likely to reap its due reward. The Historical Atlas has suggested to us a few remarks connected with the history of map-making, which we shall submit to our readers. It is with no small unwillingness that we feel obliged to commence, by acknowledging that the art or science of map-making is in this country at a much lower grade of perfection than it is on the Continent. The necessities of our trade and navigation have produced many accurate marine charts-perhaps more than are to be found in any other nation—although France and Holland, if not exactly equal to us in this department, are treading close upon our heels;-but in land maps we are miserably deficient and this is the more unpardonable, because, in respect to all the mechanical aids which go to their construction--good engravers, accurate mathematical instruments, and the likewe are better off than any country in Europe. |