a 66 and for perpetuating commercial catas- than the scarcity is pressing upon the trophes in Great Britain.' industrious classes, interfering with When we compare the events pre- labour, checking trade, and depredicted in this remarkable passage with ciating the value of every kind of those which have actually taken place property. Manchester has been nearly - when we reflect that a bad harvest at a stand-still, not from want of orders has occurred, that our gold has been but from absolute want of accommodrained, our paper circulation con- dation; and yet the present ministry tracted, and the screw put on-we have neither the courage nor the cathink there are few commercial men pacity to step forward and afford that in the country who will not_agree relief which is in their power, and with us in wishing that Sir Robert which the nation is demanding at Peel had really accepted Mr Alison their hands. If, during the recess, as the philosopher who is to instruct and before a new parliament shall us on the currency." For, most as- meet, the present lamentable state of suredly, there is no kind of philosophy matters is to continue, we say deliwhich we can discover in the scheme berately that no British ministry ever that is now being tested at the ex- exposed themselves to such a frightful pense of the merchants and manufac- load of responsibility. Let them turers of the three kingdoms ; unless share it with their new ally and it should be held philosophic that the master. It may be that he intends, whole commercial machinery of the at some future time, to make a second country shall be exposed to annual push for popularity by throwing them dislocation, and that credit shall here- overboard, and repealing his own after be liable to the present alarming most mischievous statute. But we point of contraction. Parliament, as trust that the electors throughout the we understand, is about to separate, country will take care that the new without doing any thing whatever to representative body shall not be conremedy this monster grievance. Let structed of the same malleable matethe Whigs look to it. They are now rials as its predecessor, and that no to all intents and purposes the aiders more experiments, involving the naand abettors of Sir Robert Peel. tional prosperity and fortunes, shall They hang upon his words, adopt his, be permitted, for the mere sake of principles, and applaud his maxims to gratifying the caprice and augmenting the skies. They hear from every quar- the vanity of an individual who has ter of the country the cry of unparal- already brought the whole of us so leled distress. An evil much greater close upon the verge of ruin. Printed by William Blackwood & Sons, Edinburgh. LETTERS ON THE TRUTHS CONTAINED IN POPULAR SUPER- 166 HISTORY OF THE CAPTIVITY OF NAPOLEON AT ST HELENA, WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS, 45, GEORGE STREET; AND 37, PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON. To whom all Communications (post paid) must be addressed. SOLD BY ALL THE BOOKSELLERS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. PRINTED BY WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS, EDINBURGH. bi all Tue appearance of a new history scholars who are construing, not interof Greece, of the pretensions, and the preting, their author. Little discrimijust pretensions, of this of Mr Grote, nation was made between the learned is an event in literature which must writings before them. If it was not, not pass by without some note or com- as it has been wittily observed, ment. Never were historical studies Greek, and therefore all true," at least pursued with so much success, or in so every thing that was Greek had a philosophical a spirit, as in the present mysterious air of learning which proday, and that by the whole corps of tected it from profane examination ; European scholarship, whether Ger- and incongruities and futilities, absurman, or French, or English; and it is dities of reasoning, and improbabilities saying much, when we say of the work of narrative, were veiled or half conbefore us, that it is equal to the de- cealed under the charm of Grecian mands of the critical age in which it typography. Mitford set aside this appears, and that in just estimate of too great reverence for the ancient historical testimony, and in true ap- literati. As he saw men, and not preciation of the spirit of past times, moving statues, in the heroes of it is as superior to its predecessors as, in Grecian history, so he was persuaded these very points, the nineteenth cen- that the writers of that history were tury is in advance of all preceding also men, fallible and prejudiced, like centuries. those who were living and writing The progress made in this depart about him. But Mitford overcame ment of study is very perceptible in one set of prejudices by the force the several histories we possess of which prejudices of another kind had Greece. Mitford, notwithstanding endowed him with. He saw how his acknowledged imperfections and party spirit had raged in modern as demerits, has had the tribute of ap- well as ancient times, but he detected plause paid to him, and deservedly, of it with that proverbial readiness with having been the first to break through which the thief detects the thief; he that icy timidity with which the mo- wrote himself with the energy and derns were wont to write the annals penetration, the want of candour and of ancient Greece. They seemed to generosity, which at all times will disbe afraid of applying the knowledge tinguish the advocate. Moreover, the which time and science had brought scholarship of Europe has since his them, to the events and writings of a time assumed so lofty a port, and taken classical age and country, lest this such rapid strides, that on many subshould imply the presumption that jects he has been left lagging in the they were wiser than the ancients. They sat down to their task like young The history of Greece by Dr rear. * A History of Greece. By GEORGE GROTE, Esq. VOL. LXII.-NO. CCCLXXXII, Thirlwall is a great improvement on and he manifests a truer perception of its predecessor. It is written with the nature of past modes of thinking profounder learning, and a more ---of the intellectual life of unlettered equitable spirit; and is indeed pre- and Pagan ages. He has passed eminently distinguished by the calm- through that transition state in which ness, candour, and judge-like serenity Dr Thirlwall unfortunately found himthat pervades it. In a style always self, and has drawn with a firm hand lucid in disquisition, and always ele- the boundaries between history and gant in narrative, he appears to be fable. Not only has he drawn the solely anxious to communicate the fair line, and determined the principle on result, whatever it may be, to which which the limits of the historical world his extensive reading has conducted should be marked out, but he has had him. But, unfortunately, Dr Thirl- the fortitude to adhere to his own wall wrote his history in one of those principles, and has not allowed himtransition states of mind which render self, in pursuit of some fragment of impossible the accomplishment of an historic truth, (many of which doubtenduring work. He saw the futility less lie in a balf-discovered state beof much that had been relied on as yond the circle he has drawn,) to basis of historical belief; he was not transgress the boundary he has wisely disposed to credulity, nor at all likely prescribed to himself. The history is to accept fable, in its own simple and not far enough advanced to enable us gross form, for truth. But he had not to judge whether Mr Grote will pretaught himself to forego the vain at- serve himself from a political bias, the tempt to extract history out of fable; opposite of that which has been so he could not relinquish that habit of much censured in Mitford. A suffi“ learned conjecture, so dear to the cient portion however, is published, to scholar, so fatal to the historian. In authorise us in saying that it is not in the earlier portion of his work, he con- point of narrative that the present structs his narrative under the singular author will obtain any advantage over disadvantage of one who sees per- his predecessors. It is in disquisition petually the weakness of his own that he rejoices, and succeeds; it is superstructure, yet continues to build the argumentative matter which excites on; and thus, with much show of and sustains him. His style seems to scaffolding, and after much putting up languish when the effort of ratiocinaand pulling down, he leaves at last tion gives place to the task of the but little standing on the soil. IIe had narrator. We fancy we see him renot laid down for himself a previous sume the pen with listlessness, when rule for determining what should be nothing remains for the historian but admitted as historical evidence, or the to tell his story. rules he had prescribed for himself Neither can we congratulate Mr were of an uncertain, fluctuating cha- Grote on possessing the art of arrangeracter. Neither do we discover in Dr ment or compression, on the knowing Thirlwall the faculty, existing at least when to abbreviate, or how to omit. in any eminent degree, of realising to His subject has in itself this unavoidhimself, or vividly representing to able disadvantage, that the history of others, the intellectual condition of a Greece lies scattered and broken up nascent people, far removed from our- antongst many independent cities and selves in habits of thought, and train- communities : this disadvantage our ed under quite different institutions, anthor's voluminous and discursive religious and political. In short, we manner does nothing to remedy, does note a deficiency-(to adopt the phra- much to aggravate. One would almost seology of Bacon)-in what we may be suspect that Mr Grote had entertained allowed to describe as the more phi- the idea that it belonged to the history losophical qualifications of the histo- of Greece to give us an account of all rian. that the Greeks knew of history. It Precisely in these lies the peculiar seems sufficient that a subject has strength of Mr Grote. With scholarship been mentioned by Herodotus to cnas extensive as that of his predecessors, title it to a place in his pages. This he has united a stricter discipline of fulness of matter, it may be said, will mind, and habits of closer reasoning ; enrich the work. Very true. But |