in the construction of an incidental tribute paid to his mental superiority, as I have often heard from those of his associates whose recollection carried them so far back. Marmontel, in one of his tales, represents a philosophe of his day as similarly betrayed by his self-conceit, like Molière's Tartuffe (Acte iv. sc. 7); for there was quite as large an infusion of hypocrisy in these infidels' affectation of virtue, as in the type presented to us on the stage of outraged religion.* "You make ness of wit. "Cer Of Molière's celebrated composition, Napoleon's judgment has been cursorily referred to in the Gent. Mag. for March 1841, page 250; but it is entitled to a fuller exposition of his opinion. tainement l'ensemble du Tartuffe est de main de mâitre........ Toutefois cette pièce porte un tel caractère, que si j'ai le droit de m'étonner de quelque chose, c'est qu'on l'ait laissé jouer: elle présente, à mon avis, la dévotion sous des couleurs si odieuses, que si la pièce eut été faite de mon temps, je n'en aurais pas permis la représentation." (Las Cases, 19th August, 1816). The admirable Bourdeloue, in obvious reference to this production, also says, "Les esprits profanes....exposent sur le théatre, et à la risée publique, un hypocrite imaginaire, le représentant conscientieux jusqu'à la délicatesse et au scrupule sur des points moins importants, pendant qu'il se portait d'ailleurs aux crimes les plus atroces." (Sermon du septième Dimanche après Pâques.) An Italian moralist is not less forcible in his reprobation. "Il satireggiare sù l'imper trade your religion," coarsely observed, we are told, Dr. Warburton to Dean Tucker, a copious writer on politicocommercial interests: "And you," retorted the Bristol dignitary to the prelate, "make religion your trade." (See Parriana, vol. ii. p. 232.) Paliset, in his drama, "Les Philosophes," published and exhibited in 1760, amongst other notorious objects of his satire, assigns a prominence of ridicule to J. J. Rousseau, who, indeed, avows the humiliating repulses which he had encountered in his impassioned advances, although, as he describes himself, "bien pris dans sa petite personne," and by no means, like Gibbon or Hume, of ludicrous figure or uncouth frame. But grace and manner he wanted-"Et la grâce plus belle encore que la beauté," as La Fontaine tastefully asserts in his Psyché. Awkward and timid, he failed in that spirit of address and easy confidence which distinguish the man of the fettioni de' relligiosi, pecca in moralità, e scandalizza i huomini pii." Yet Voltaire succeeded in wresting the approbation of his Mahomet from the Holy See, (Gent. Mag. for March, 1840, p. 255,) and BeauXVI. the permissive representation of marchais's importunity forced from Louis Figaro. Ridicule, it is asserted, is no argument-certainly not; but it is much more impressive, if not on our reason, assuredly on our feelings, as a blunder provokes it more than a crime, and thence often becomes more fatal, as Fouché or Talleyrand said, in politics. Never did the order of St. Ignatius recover a wound of its infliction from the pen of Pascal. A sneer, observes Dr. Channing, (Second Discourse on War,) is more formidable than a bullet; for it impels the fainthearted to face death in war or duel, rather than encounter its keen edge. Yet many an arising excrescence of evil has, on the other hand, sunk under its blighting influence, such as the Theophilanthroit had always been so beneficially exerpists, the St. Simonians, &c. cised, and had equally extinguished so many other outpourings, religious, political, or social, of man's extravagance or knavery! Would that "Ridiculum acri Fortius et melius magnas plerumque secat res." (Hor. Sat. lib. i. x.) world or of fashion, and which, in Wilkes or Mirabeau, so rapidly obliterated-the former in half an hour, as he boasted, and the latter probably in less-the first impression of their deterring features. In what estimation these philosophers, and more especially their coryphæi, Voltaire and Rousseau, were held by Napoleon, these pages have borne frequent testimony (see Gent. Mag. for February, 1843); but to his judgments of the former I may add the following. My venerated friend, the Marquess de Fontanes, who pronounced the splendid funeral eulogy on Washington, by appointment of Bonaparte, the 18th of February, 1800, and was subsequently placed at the head of the University, that great moral lever of imperial rule, which made education its tributary, and bent the young mind of France in idolatrous submission to her mighty chief, was favoured it is known with frequent confidential interviews at the Tuilleries. On one occasion, the Emperor thus addressed him, "Vous aimez Voltaire; vous avez tort; c'est un brouillon, un boutefeu, un esprit moqueur et faux .... il a sapé par le ridicule les fondemens de toute autorité divine et humaine: il a perverti son siécle; et, sur vingt de mes jeunes officiers, il y en a dix-neuf qui ont un volume de ce démon dans leur porte-manteau.' (Life by Roger.) The admiration of Fontanes for Voltaire, it is right to observe, by no means embraced the poet's philosophy, or antichristian sentiments, to which he always professed a conscientious opposition, both in his individual and official character. Napoleon's conviction of the dangerous influence of Rousseau was not less energetically felt or expressed. (See Gent. Mag. for February, 1843, p. 140.) The imperial delineation of Voltaire, recals that by Byron of him and Gibbon : THE learned writer of the article on the life of Chaucer in the last number of the Gentleman's Magazine has made a mistake which it is material to correct, because it relates to an interesting fact. In the text of p. 8 he says, Chaucer's "handsome annuity authorised him to solicit the hand of Philippa, eldest daughter of Sir Payne Roet;" but he gives in a note some lines from an ode by Hugh Holland, and remarks, "Yet Sir Harris says, 'It "has not been ascertained positively "whom Chaucer married; the state"ment that his wife was Philippa, "daughter of Sir P. Roet, scarcely "admits a doubt.' His wife's name, " however, was not Philippa Roet, "but Picard. See Life, p. 60 to 66, "and Godwin's Life, II. 374. She "probably died in 1387." I am thus represented as contradicting in p. 60 to 66 the opinion which I had immediately before so strongly expressed that the Poet married Philippa Roet. I fear, however, that the erudite writer of the article in question could not have read what I have actually written on this subject, because the pages to which he refers contain evidence that Philippa Pycard and Chaucer's wife were, beyond all doubt, distinct persons; and I have expressly said, in p. 62, "the Poet must, therefore, have married before September 1366, and his wife could not possibly have been the Philippa Pycard to whom the annuity of 51. was given in January 1370." Yours, &c. N. HARRIS NICOLAS. REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS. The History and Antiquities of the Parish of Hackney, Middlesex. By W. Robinson, LL.D. F.S.A. 2 vols. 8vo. Nor THE basis of a general history of the metropolitan county has been laid by the Rev. Daniel Lysons in his Environs of London, and his supplementary account of those Parishes in Middlesex not included in the Environs. can we, probably, from the arduous nature of the work, expect any fuller history of the whole county. It is therefore extremely desirable to have distinct histories of the more extensive parishes. We have at present Histories of Stoke Newington by James Brown; of Twickenham, by E. Ironside; of Shoreditch, by Sir H. Ellis; of Chelsea, Fulham, Hammersmith, and Kensington, by Thomas Faulkner; of Hampstead, by T. Park; of Uxbridge, by Geo. Redford and Tho. Harry Riches; of St. Giles's in the Fields, by J. Parton; of Clerkenwell, by the Rev. T. Cromwell, with prints by Messrs. Storer; of Islington, by J. Nelson; Account of A. Pugin's Views at Islington, by E. W. Brayley; and since, another History of Islington, by S. Lewis, jun.; of Isleworth, part of Brentford, and Hounslow, by G. J. Aungier; and of Tottenham, Edmonton, Enfield, and Stoke Newington, by Dr. W. Robinson. By the above list it will be seen how important a portion of the eastern part of the county had been before described by Dr. Robinson, to which he has now added the respectable parish of Hackney. Dr. Robinson has collected a large body of valuable materials and official documents relative to the district he has undertaken to describe, with which he has liberally supplied the public in the volumes before us. We hope he will not consider us ungrateful if we express our opinion that the work would have been improved by a considerable condensation, for sometimes we have discovered passages from various sources not a little contradictory to GENT. MAG. VOL. XXI. each other, without the value of each having been sufficiently considered. We think, too, that much of the first volume might have been omitted, particularly in the description of the old houses, where the author has been led away by his subject into much general history, equally applicable to any other place as Hackney; for instance, under the description of an old house (p. 77) called "The Templars' House" (built, probably, in the fifteenth century, and we do not see how it can be connected with the Knights Templars,) Dr. Robinson has entered very fully into the history of that military order. The same observation is applicable to the account of their rivals and successors, the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, (p. 83.) In the case of "The Black and White House," (p. 95,) built by a city merchant about 1578, there surely is no proof that it was the residence of royalty in its having had the royal arms in the windows,-but merely a token of the loyalty of its owners. The reputation of its having been the residence of the King of Bohemia introduces an account of his unfortunate alliance with his queen, Elizabeth. The tradition of Lord Vaux having had a house at Hackney (the exact spot not ascertained) gives rise to a very long history of the Gunpowder Plot. The account of the old mansion of Baumes, the residence of Sir G. Whitmore, is much confused and contradictory; but we want time and space to set it to rights. See pp. 154 and 158, &c. The accounts of the ancient gardens at Hackney, though not new, are amusing. What we now call plants were, a century and a half ago, generally termed greens. We think Dr. Lindley would consider "a warren of two acres, very full of coneys," no valuable addition to the Horticultural Gardens. The very popular measure of the Victoria Park, in the eastern suburbs of London, is properly noticed with deserved commendation. The manufactories at Hackney are little known to the inhabitants of the Y EFFIGY OF LADY LATIMER. metropolis generally. Mr. Rivieres's manufactory for perforating metallic plates is well worthy of a visit. The silk mills, which employed between 600 and 700 persons, have been discontinued. The accounts of extraordinary persons are spread out to too much length, particularly as one of these remarkables is the toocelebrated Turpin. Among the eminent persons, Milton the poet had little connexion with the place, having merely married, to his 2nd wife, the daughter of Capt. Woodcock, of Hackney. Katharine Philips was only at school there, as was also Augustus Henry Fitzroy (afterwards third Duke of Grafton, though Dr. Robinson does not give his title.) He was born in 1735,-not 1785, as printed in p. 281. The year of his death, 1811, is also omitted. Sir T. Heathcote only married a young lady from Hackney. The omission of these biographical notices might have been desirable, as out of place in a history of Hackney. " The second volume commences with the account of the old Church of St. Augustine, since called St. John, erroneously, as Newcourt, in his Repertorium, observes. The body of this church was destroyed when the new church was erected in 1797. Dr. Robinson says (p. 6,) it was founded by John Heron, esq.; but it appears in p. 8, one Heron was only a great benefactor when the church was repaired." In p. 9 Sir Thomas Heron, master of the Jewel Office to Henry VIII. is spoken of as a great benefactor. The church was clearly founded long before the time of Henry VIII. The Rowe chapel was not taken down, but the fine old monuments have fallen to decay. Representations of them, engraved nearly 100 years, at the expense of E. Rowe Mores, are preserved in Dr. Robinson's book. The will of Sir T. Rowe, lord mayor in 1568, is very curious; he invites the lord mayor, aldermen, and company of Merchant Taylors to attend his funeral, at eight in the morning, and his body to be buried before eleven; that there be a communion; and afterwards a dinner at his house at Shacklewell, for the lord mayor, aldermen, company, friends, mourners, priests, ministers, clerks, poor men, and parishioners, bequeathing 667. 138. 4d. for that purpose, and 107. for spiced bread to be given to the company, poor as well as rich. The fine old church ought not to have been taken down, nor would it probably at the present time, a better feeling having now happily arisen. Dr. Robinson properly observes, "This church, before its demolition, was extremely rich in monuments, some [few] of which, being considered worth preserving, were taken down and put up in the porches or vestibules of the new church. In most Christian countries the inscriptions or epitaphs on the monuments erected to perpetuate the memory of the dead are carefully preserved and registered in the church books; but in England they are (to the shame of our time be it said) broken down and almost utterly destroyed, and their brass inscriptions erased, torn away, and pilfered; by which the memory of many virtuous and noble persons deceased is extinguished, and the true understanding of families is darkened, as the course of their inheritance is thereby in a great measure interrupted. The ancient monuments, brasses, and inscriptions, which were formerly the pride and ornament of the old church, have suffered by the taste for modern improvements; and most of them are scattered abroad, and not to be found but in the private collections of individuals, and placed against the walls of passages leading to conservatories and other places of recreation and amusement." p. 18. Among other monuments destroyed was a fine one to Lady Latimer, with an effigy, exquisitely sculptured in stone, which is still concealed beneath dirt and rubbish, under the old tower. It would be highly creditable to the present rector and churchwardens to cause it to be cleaned and preserved in the new church, as it is evidently a portraiture of a noble lady, the daughter of Henry Earl of Worcester, and wife of John Neville, Lord Latimer. She died 1582. It is, besides, worthy preservation on its own account, as being an interesting and fine specimen of English sculpture. By the kind permission of Dr. Robinson we are enabled to lay his representation of this statue before our readers. Dr. Robinson has printed all the existing epitaphs in the mother church, as also all he could collect from Weever and other sources. The chapters of the work describing the new churches of West Hackney, the district chapel at Upper Clapton, St. Philip's Church at Dalston, St. Peter's Church at De Beauvoir Town, and St. James's Church at Clapton, are very satisfactory. The site and glebe of West Hackney were the gift of the late W. G. Daniel Tyssen, esq.; that at Dalston, of Mr. W. Rhodes; that at De Beauvoir Town, of R. Benyon de Beauvoir, esq.; and that at Clapton, of the Rev. T. B. Powell. This noble conduct of the wealthy proprietors is as it should be, and is highly commendable. Copies of the original grants and conveyances are preserved in Dr. Robinson's work. Accounts of the public schools, charities, &c. are also given at a very ample length; in short, nothing seems omitted that could in any way, however remote, be brought to bear in illustration of the history of Hackney. we After noticing the little attention paid (we suppose by the printer) to the names of authors referred to, such as Lyson for Lysons, Pepy for Pepys, Grainger for Granger, &c. &c. take our leave, lamenting the want of lucid arrangement sometimes manifest in the work, but grateful for the materials amassed by Dr. Robinson's persevering research. Architectural Illustrations of Durham Cathedral. By Robert William Billings. 4to. IN this volume will be found the most extensive series of architectural illustrations of any English cathedral which have as yet been produced. As the preface informs us, "It was commenced with the intention of making the architectural illustrations to one scale. This intention has been carried out, and the work as now completed forms, with a similar work by the author upon the cathedral church of Carlisle, the first series of parallel re |