_HISTORY OF THE JEWS._
We scarcely know how to do justice to the high character of the series
of volumes now publishing under this denomination. In printing and
embellishment they take the lead of the Periodical Works of our day,
(and some of these are extremely beautiful,) while their literary
worth is even of superior order. Although they are matter-of-fact
works--as in history and biography--they are not mere compilations of
dry details and uninteresting lives; but they are so interspersed with
new views, and the facts are so often re-written, that the whole have
the appearance of original works. Excellent principles, and economy of
cost are, likewise, two important points of their recommendations; for
many works which have already appeared on the same subjects, have
been deformed by party spirit, and written to serve a sect, or are
so expensive as to be purchaseable only by the wealthy ranks, and
scarcely accessible by the middle classes of society; whereas the
Family Library is published at a rate within the reach of two-thirds
of the reading public, who may therefore possess what they read,
and appreciate the value of these volumes as works of reference and
authority.
The division of the series which has called forth this notice, is No.
5, or the first volume of the _History of the Jews_, to be completed
in three volumes, by the Rev. H.H. Milman, Professor of Poetry at
Oxford, and the author of the splendid poem--The Fall of Jerusalem;
and judging by the portion before us, this work will form one of the
most attractive in the whole series. In proof of this it would be easy
to select many passages which are beautifully picturesque; a few,
however, will suffice:
"The Jews, without reference to their religious belief, are among
the most remarkable people in the annals of mankind. Sprung from one
stock, they pass the infancy of their nation in a state of servitude
in a foreign country, where, nevertheless, they increase so rapidly,
as to appear on a sudden the fierce and irresistible conquerors of
their native valleys in Palestine. There they settle down under a form
of government and code of laws totally unlike those of any other rude
or civilized community. They sustain a long and doubtful conflict,
sometimes enslaved, sometimes victorious, with the neighbouring
tribes. At length, united under one monarchy, they gradually rise to
the rank of a powerful, opulent, and commercial people. Subsequently
weakened by internal discord, they are overwhelmed by the vast
monarchies which arose on the banks of the Euphrates, and transplanted
into a foreign region. They are partially restored, by the generosity
or policy of the Eastern sovereigns, to their native land. They are
engaged in wars of the most romantic gallantry, in assertion of their
independence, against the Syro-Grecian successors of Alexander. Under
Herod, they rise to a second era of splendour, as a dependent kingdom
of Rome: finally, they make the last desperate resistance to the
universal dominion of the Caesars. Scattered from that period over
the face of the earth--hated, scorned, and oppressed, they subsist,
a numerous and often a thriving people; and in all the changes of
manners and opinions retain their ancient institutions, their national
character, and their indelible hope of restoration to grandeur and
happiness in their native land. Thus the history of this, perhaps
the only unmingled race, which can boast of high antiquity, leads us
through every gradation of society and brings us into contact with
almost every nation which commands our interest in the ancient world;
the migratory pastoral population of Asia; Egypt, the mysterious
parent of arts, science, and legislation; the Arabian Desert; the
Hebrew theocracy under the form of a federative agricultural republic,
their kingdom powerful in war and splendid in peace; Babylon, in its
magnificence and downfall; Grecian arts and luxury endeavouring to
force an unnatural refinement within the pale of the rigid Mosaic
institutions; Roman arms waging an exterminating war with the
independence even of the smallest states; it descends, at length, to
all the changes in the social state of the modern European and Asiatic
nations."
At page 32, there is an interesting picture of the state of society in
Patriarchal times--the whole of the life of Moses is extremely well
written--the description of the Plague is indeed terrific--and the
death and character of the Prophet drawn with a masterly and vigorous
hand. The reigns of David and Solomon, as might be expected, are
magnificently told. Among the picturesque sketches none exceed the--