none in the United States in the varied talent and efficiency of
its acting company, in scenic effect, general good order, the
attraction and excellence of its entertainments, and the number and
respectability of its audiences. It has uncommon materials for either
tragedy, comedy, or opera. 'Macbeth' and 'Othello,' for example,
the 'School for Scandal,' 'Cure for the Heart-ache,' etc., could
not probably be produced more effectively in any particular, even
at Drury Lane. Othello, especially, with J. W. WALLACK, VANDENHOFF,
BROWNE, ABBOTT, Miss WHEATLEY, and Mrs. SEFTON, in the principal
characters, is really a rare treat. It is so much like SHAKSPEARE's
Othello, that we think even the great bard himself would recognise
it; which is more than can be said of most portraitures of his
splendid creations. In 'Macbeth,' too, we opine that Mr. Vandenhoff
is scarcely excelled, even by Macready--still less by any other
living tragedian; and at neither of the two great London theatres,
where we saw Macready in this character about a year since, was the
play otherwise better done than at the National. In his personations
of Hamlet, Iago, and Cato, Mr. Vandenhoff is also preeminently great,
if not unequalled. He has strongly confirmed his reputation as an
artist of the first order in his profession, and he is, moreover,
as we are assured by those who know him, a gentleman of sterling
acquirements, and unassuming worth. In person, he is of medium
height, with an intellectual and expressive face, and a voice at once
pleasing and powerful. An emphasis sometimes rather too _drawling_,
is the only exception we can make to his usually chaste and judicious
elocution.
A review of the performances at the 'WOODWORTH BENEFIT,' some
wholesome advice to Mr. GANN, for over-action, a notice at large of
'The English Gentleman,' (a most sterling play,) together with a
report upon the laughable and admirably-acted piece, 'Gulliver in
Liliput,' although in type, are reluctantly, yet unavoidably, omitted.
* * * * *
THE AMERICAN THEATRE, Bowery, has presented to large audiences,
since our last notice, a melodramatic piece called the 'Bronze
Horse,' the scenery, machinery, dresses, and decorations of which
are said to have been unequalled by any thing hitherto seen at this
establishment. Its great and continued popularity must be taken as
substantial evidence of its merit as a spectacle.
* * * * *
THE OLYMPIC continues, in an unpretending way, to increase its
reputation as a quiet and well-conducted theatre, where one may
find the lighter attractions of the drama admirably presented, by
actors who understand their business, supervised by managers who know
theirs, and attend to it. It is a capital place wherein to pass a
leisure hour agreeably.
* * * * *
MR. SIMMONS' LECTURES ON ELOCUTION.--We have had the gratification,
since our last number, of attending a course of lectures upon
elocution, given at the 'Stuyvesant Institute,' by WILLIAM H.
SIMMONS, Esq., of Boston; and we are confident we speak the
unanimous opinion of his auditory, among whom were many of our most
distinguished citizens, when we say, that for sound reasoning,
felicitous manner, and richness of voice, Mr. SIMMONS' equal has
not been heard in this meridian for many a long year. He expounded
clearly and analytically the natural laws of vocal expression,
according to the method pursued by Dr. RUSH, in his 'Philosophy of
the Human Voice;' exemplifying, at the same time, the practical
effect and application of all the important tones, inflexions,
and modes of emphasis, by a variety of readings and recitations,
which were invariably received with the liveliest demonstrations of
admiration, on the part of his hearers. We sincerely hope that the
capable and accomplished lecturer, and we must add orator, also, may
find sufficient inducement to deliver a second course; and as there
is abundant room for improvement, both in our public and colloquial
elocution, we trust, moreover, that the private lessons in his useful
and delightful art will be liberally attended. We are glad to learn
that he is giving a course of lectures and lessons at the Episcopal
Theological Seminary; and that he is about to gratify a large body of
young men, engaged in professional studies and mercantile pursuits,
by the repetition of his course, at Clinton Hall. Mr. SIMMONS'
address is the Astor-House.
LITERARY RECORD.
TOKENS OF THE HOLIDAYS.--We feel paternal yearnings, when we sit
down, as now, by our round-table, to draw around us our great family
of readers, that they may admire with us the various gems of art
with which it is literally overloaded. Before us, gleaming in gold,
crimson, and purple, rich blue and velvet green, and affluent in the
finest engravings, are the ENGLISH ANNUALS, for 1838, which, with
their American brotherhood, will very soon, we venture to predict,
collect some of the superfluities of this 'money-voiding town.'
Love-tokens are they, for the tasteful swain, and remembrancers
from the generous-hearted, to those who stand on the top-scale of
their friendship's ladder. Annuals, both foreign and domestic, are
every year improving. From 'combinations of show and emptiness,'
they have come to be the medium of the highest efforts of art; while
green-sick sonnetteers and small tale-writers are succeeded by minds
more capable of entertaining the public. We can do little more than
_catalogue_ the rich stores before us.
FINDEN'S TABLEAUX, in imperial quarto, may be placed first in the
list, since it is superb, beyond all former precedent. It is intended
to represent the peculiar female beauty of different countries,
or provinces, with a characteristic back-ground of scenery, and
adjuncts in keeping. 'England,' 'Andalusia,' 'Florence,' 'Egypt,'
'Ceylon,' 'America,' 'Georgia,' 'Scotland,' and 'Castile,' have each
their representatives; and what a galaxy of beauty would that court
present, which should combine in one assembly these ambassadors of
loveliness! The letter-press illustrations, in prose and verse,
mainly by Miss MITFORD, we need not say, are worthy the pictorial
department, and the reputation of the author of 'Our Village.' The
'FLOWERS OF LOVELINESS', edited by Miss LANDON, also in the imperial
quarto form, is a very pretty volume, but less beautiful, as it
strikes us, than its predecessor. It is dedicated to the Queen, in a
clever acrostic upon her name, in four-line stanzas, each verse of
which is introduced by an ornamental letter, representing a flower;
a pretty and feminine device. Female beauty is made to represent the
Clematis, Hyacinth, Water-Lily, Night-blooming Convolvulus, Poppy,
Canterbury Cathedral, Pansy, 'Marvel of Peru,' the Laurel, Iris,
etc. HEATH'S BOOK OF BEAUTY contains thirteen engravings, portraits
of several women of nobility, and fancy pictures. Its externals are
gorgeous. The binding is of cerulean satin, richly embroidered with
thread of changeful golden tissue. It has a few stories, and some
good poetry. LADY BLESSINGTON does the editorial honors. 'CHILDREN OF
THE NOBILITY' is a work in the large quarto. The engravings are by
HEATH, from drawings by CHALON. One or two of them are exquisite--the
portrait of LADY MARY HOWARD, for example. There are some pretty
children, too, and 'extraordinary ordinary'-looking othersome,
with legs like upright nine-pins, and shod hoofs. Edited by Mrs.
FAIRLIE. 'BEAUTIES OF COSTUME'--HEATH again. This is a series of
female figures, in the dresses of ancient times--Egyptian, Scottish,
Court of Louis XII., Bernese, Milanese, Russian, English Peasant,
Swiss, Court of Charles VII., Persian, Scottish Highland, etc.
Descriptions by LEITCH RITCHIE. We can say little for the ENGLISH
ANNUAL. Old plates, which have been served up to the British public
in the 'Court Journal,' if we do not mistake, are scarcely worthy
of being ushered forth as original embellishments. The 'ORIENTAL'
has twenty-two spirited engravings of 'Scenes in India,' many of
which are very superior. The name of Rev. HOBART CAUNTER is a
guarantee for the character of the letter-press portion of the work.
The London '_Christian Keepsake_' is worthy of all praise, both as
to matter and embellishments. A portrait of Mrs. STEWART, (wife
of Rev. C. S. STEWART, of the American Navy,) late missionary to
the Sandwich Islands, from a painting by INGRAHAM, of this city,
is one of the gems of the volume. HEATH's 'PICTURESQUE ANNUAL' is
devoted to 'Scenes in Ireland.' They are well selected, and the
engravings are exceedingly soft and clear. The descriptive matter
is from the pen of LEITCH RITCHIE. Beside these, there are 'Italy,
France, and Switzerland,' in two large quarto volumes, the plates by
PROUT and HARDING, and the illustrations by THOMAS ROSCOE; FISHER's
'DRAWING-ROOM SCRAP-BOOK,' with its usual quality and quantity of
engravings, edited by Miss LANDON; 'Midland Counties Tourist,'
illustrating hoary ruins, romantic castles, and picturesque towns and
landscapes, in the counties of Chester, Derby, Nottingham, Leicester,
Rutland, and Lincoln, with descriptions historical and topographical,
'Illustrations of Scotland and the Waverly Novels, etc. WILEY AND
PUTNAM, Broadway.
* * * * *
GOOD OUT OF EVIL.--'Selections from the Court Reports, originally
published in the BOSTON MORNING POST, from 1834 to 1837. Arranged
and Revised by the Reporter of the Post.'--The writer of this work
is surely chief of the _adepti_ in his art, for art it is. He is
a prëeminent 'dab' at his business; uniting grace of composition
with a keen sense of the humorous, and the reflections of a heart
open to the influence of generous emotions, and full of sympathy
for the unfortunates, whose abandonment to temptation he records.
As contrasting examples of pathos and fun, we would instance the
picture of maternal affection, in the story of the three juvenile
book-thieves, and the cool knavery of the _omnium-gatherum_ varlet,
whose systematic pilferings were directed by a written programme,
as: 'Visit Bailey's Female High School--_scrutinize_;' 'Get books
from library--_valuable_;' 'Go to the theatre--_once_;' 'Go to
the Museum, night and day; _criticise, and get every thing I
can_;' 'Visit Horticultural Rooms--_and get things_;' 'Get some
pocket-handkerchiefs--_gratis_,' etc. These 'Selections' will amuse a
dull hour passing well. The reader will find the book fruitful of fun
or instruction, open it wheresoever he may. Boston: OTIS, BROADERS
AND COMPANY.
'THE ARETHUSA.'--Such is the title of a naval story, in two volumes,
by Captain CHAMIER, R. N., author of 'Ben Brace,' 'Life of a
Sailor,' etc. In our judgment, it is his best work. If not as a
whole, certainly in particular scenes it has not been surpassed by
any previous effort of the author. The wreck of the Tribune, the
naval warfare, the pestilence at Jamaica, and many other detached
scenes, which might be mentioned, are most vividly portrayed. We
would counsel Captain Chamier, however, not to meddle with character
of which he knows nothing more than may be conveyed in the terms,
'I reckon,' 'I guess,' and 'I calculate,' in endless iteration. His
'Corncob' is an imaginary anomaly, and has no counterpart in America.
Philadelphia; E. L. CAREY AND A. HART. New-York: WILEY AND PUTNAM.
'REVIEWERS REVIEWED:'--BY THE AUTHOR OF 'PELAYO.'--This is a
little volume of seventy-two pages--dedication, introduction,
argument, text, notes, and appendix, all counted--and is facetiously
denominated by the young lady-author a 'Satire.' The editors of the
'Courier,' 'Gazette,' 'Commercial,' and 'Mirror' journals, together
with the KNICKERBOCKER, are the victims--because they could not
admire 'Pelayo.' For our own poor part, the force of the attack
has stunned us. We know not what to say. Also, we wist not what to
do. 'Where,' (to adopt the kindred language of our fair satirist's
illustrious archetype, 'Rosa Matilda,')
'Where is Cupid's crimson motion?
Billowy ecstacy of wo!
Bear us safe, meandering ocean,
Where the stagnant torrents flow!'
MISSIONARY ENTERPRISES.--Messrs. D. APPLETON AND COMPANY have
published a handsome volume, of some five hundred pages, entitled
'A Narrative of Missionary Enterprises in the South Sea Islands;
with Remarks upon the Natural History of the Islands, Origin,
Languages, Traditions, and Usages of the Inhabitants. By JOHN
WILLIAMS, of the London Missionary Society.' We regret that we are
compelled to advert so briefly to this excellent work, in gathering
the materials for which, the author travelled one hundred thousand
miles, and expended upward of eighteen years. The book is full upon
all the heads mentioned in its title, and is illustrated by numerous
engravings on wood. The style is simple and flowing, and the details
invariably interesting, not less to the general than the Christian
reader. We were struck with a fact recorded toward the close of the
volume, illustrative of that divine purpose in nature of which a
correspondent elsewhere speaks, in the present number. In many of
the coral islands of the South Sea, there are neither streams nor
springs; and were it not for the cocoa-nut, the inhabitants would
perish. On a sultry day, when the very ground burns with heat, the
natives climb this fruit-tree, and in each unripe nut find a pint or
more of a grateful lemonade-like water, as refreshing as if taken
from a spring.
'SCIENCE MADE EASY:'--'Being a Familiar Introduction to
the Principles of Chemistry, Mechanics, Hydrostatics, and
Pneumatics.'--We took up this corpulent dictionary-quarto, under
the impression that it was one of those scanty and superficial
'_made-easy_' books, good-naturedly intended to instil dull truths
into unwary understandings, by alternate layers of _utile_ and
_dulce_, but capable in reality of very little good. Its perusal has
agreeably disappointed us. The author has not alone skirmished on the
frontier of a few of the sciences, but he has drawn a small array
of them into close order, in such wise that they may be surveyed
with ease and expedition, and made to fructify without a world of
unnecessary trouble. The volume is illustrated by numerous wood-cuts.
MISS LESLIE'S 'PENCIL SKETCHES.'--This volume contains all of Miss
LESLIE's fugitive pieces which have appeared since the publication
of her second series of 'Pencil Sketches.' Every article has been
carefully revised by the author, and improved, as she believes, by
numerous alterations and additions. The following are the contents:
'The Red Box, or Scenes at the General Wayne;' 'Constance Allerton,
or the Mourning Suits;' 'The Officers, a Story of the Last War;'
'The Serenades, and Dream of Songs:' 'The Old Farm-House;' 'That
Gentleman, or Pencillings on Ship-board;' 'Charles Loring, a Tale of
the Revolution;' and 'Alphonsine.' Aside from the natural ease and
conversational ability, peculiar to all Miss LESLIE's productions,
the reader may always rely upon a main object of intellectual or
moral good.
'THE HAWK CHIEF.'--This 'Tale of the Indian Country,' by JOHN T.
IRVING, JR., author of 'Indian Sketches,' is too clever a production
to be despatched in a few lines; but we are compelled to postpone a
more enlarged notice of the work, until some future occasion. In the
matter of literary provender, it seems latterly to be either 'a feast
or a famine.' Our hands are now full, which but recently were quite
empty, of intellectual wares. We shall discuss them in order, when
space and leisure serve.
ELEVENTH VOLUME OF THE KNICKERBOCKER.--We cannot permit the closing
number of the present volume of this Magazine to go forth to our
readers, without holding a brief and familiar tête-à-tête with them,
in relation to its prospects, literary and otherwise. For the past,
let it speak for itself. We have accomplished all we could, and our
friends are kind enough to admit that it has been beyond what was
promised, and more than satisfactory. For the future, we have rich
stores of valuable and entertaining matter, not only from our present
unequalled corps of contributors, but from several writers, akin to
the best of them, whose acquaintance our readers have not hitherto
made. We can promise, that the more solid articles which the next
volume will contain, will neither be too voluminous to be read,
nor too dull to be useful; that they will be varied and novel in
subject, and attractive in manner. Eschewing politics and polemics,
our readers will escape the long-winded discussions to which they so
frequently give rise; and they may rely, moreover, upon a faithful
discharge of our critical responsibilities, uninfluenced by partizan
or sectarian feeling. With articles of a lighter description, we
shall, as heretofore, be well supplied. By 'light articles,' we
do not mean silly love-stories, and inflated, finical rhapsodies,
nor the aimless efforts of writers mounted on airy stilts of
abstraction, but matter capable of improving while it amuses; that
shall 'fortify like a cordial,' and be productive of sweet blood and
generous spirits; reviving and animating the dead calm of idle life,
entertaining the leisure of the active, and relieving the toil of
the laborious; now beguiling, perchance, pain of body, or diverting
anxiety of mind; and happily again, it may be, filling the place of
bad thoughts, or suggesting better. We do not anticipate that every
paper will please every reader. Our articles are so many dishes, our
readers guests; that which one admires, perhaps another rejects;
but we shall take especial care, that none may be without something
to enlighten his understanding, and gratify his fancy or taste. The
pericraniums are not disfurnished, good reader, from which so many
good things have heretofore been evoked for your edification and
profit; nor will they be, by some score or two, the only sources of
your future intellectual gratification. You will believe us, when we
hold out to you these tokens of good, since we have never deceived
you. Judge ye, if we have not 'fought our way to your good graces
valiantly, and showed our passport at every barrier.'
Our success is abundantly satisfactory, so far as reputation and an
increasing subscription-list are concerned. 'The pressure,' however,
which has borne so heavily upon all business, and all professions,
has not been without its influence upon the pecuniary interests of
this Magazine. Many of our _unthinking_ readers--we will harbor
no worse opinion of them--unwilling to curtail their expenses, by
stopping their subscriptions, have been quite ready to lessen them
by not _paying_ for a work which they could not bring themselves
to forego. To such we have only to say, they cannot be fully aware
of the injustice of which they are guilty, nor of the unmitigated
exertions which they so illy requite. The 'never-ending, still
beginning' labor which is going on for their benefit and amusement,
long after their heads are upon their pillows, or while they are
indulging in the relaxations from toil which are denied to the less
fortunate laborer in the literary vineyard, should be promptly
rewarded; and we cannot but hope that each delinquent under whose
eye this paragraph may fall, will yield tardy justice to those who
have wrought long and faithfully for him. Having said thus much,
explanatory, denunciatory, and expostulatory, we enter upon a new
volume with an enhanced patronage, enlarged hopes, and a settled
determination to lose no opportunity, and to spare no labor nor
expense, which may increase the reputation of this Magazine, and
widen the already far-reaching boundary of its circulation and
influence.
* * * * *
ERRATA.--In the poem 'Floral Astrology,' page 498, the word _us_
should follow the final '_under_,' in the third line of the third
stanza. In the Lay of the Madman,' p. 518, the seventh line from the
close should read, 'They _tremble_ and dart through my every vein.'
* * * * *
Transcriber's Note:
Obvious typographical errors were repaired. Valid archaic spellings
(e.g. redoutable, matresses) were retained.
Errata changes stated at the end of the document were made directly
in the text.