no pretensions to high classic attainments, and yet his memory furnishes him with many recollections, which are modestly given, and impart a deeper interest to his narrative.

We do not feel we can better do the justice, which we think his book merits, than in simply stating the fact, that what we have read has created a strong desire to give the whole a careful perusal.

The two volumes are beautifully illustrated by eleven handsome engravings, while the clearness of the text, and the general beauty of their typographical execution, add much to their value.

Temper and Temperament, or Varieties of Character. By Mrs. ELLIS, author of The Women of England," etc. New-York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 82 Cliff-street. 1846.

The object of the two moral tales in this book is to prove the importance of a similarity in temperament, as an important ingredient in the happiness of married life. The author appears to think, that" temper is too generally considered only, as either bad or good; while, possibly, no two individuals in the world would agree in what was really a good or a bad temper, as affected themselves; for as well might the physician endeavor to simplify his treatment of disease, by referring it only to a good or a bad constitution of body, as the moralist, judging only by degree, might pronounce upon temper, in this summary and unphilosophical manner."

To illustrate her views she has given a narrative in two tales, of ill-assorted tempers in married life, the result of which is what would be anticipated— anything but reasonable happiness.

We think the moral to be drawn from this book is good; and the stories are by no means devoid of interest.

WILEY & PUTNAM'S LIBRARY OF CHOICE READING. No. LXIV., Memoirs and Essays illustrative of Art, Literature, and Social Morals. By Mrs. JAMESON, author of "The Characteristics of Women," "Memoirs of Female Sovereigns," "Winter Studies and Summer Rambles," etc., etc. New-York: Wiley & Putnam, 161 Broadway. 1846.

Little need be said to excite a desire to read anything from the pen of the highly gifted writer of these memoirs and essays.

Those who have been heretofore gratified by her pleasing and instructive productions, will not fail to possess themselves of her " Description of the House of Titian;" of what she has to say of Adelaide Kemble, and the Lyrical Drama, The Xanthean Marbles, our countryman, Washington Alston,Woman's Mission, and Woman's Position; and on the relative social position of mothers and governesses. All which will be found in the number under notice of Wiley & Putnam's Library of Choice Reading.

Pictorial History of England. To be completed in about forty numbers. Harper & Brothers, 82 Cliff-street. 1846. Price twenty-cents per number. Five numbers of this beautiful work have already made their appearance, commencing with an introductory view of the original population, and primitive history of the British isles. We have then, Book 1, embracing the British and Roman period, from B. C. 55 to A. D. 449. In No. 2, commences Book 2d, including the period from the arrival of the Saxons to the arrival of the Normans, from A. D. 449 to 1066, which is continued through Nos. 3 and 4. In No. 5, the period from the Norman conquest to the death of King John, A. D. 1066 to 1216, commenced.

In each period this history is divided into heads, as follows: 1st. Civil and Military Transactions. 2d. History of Religion. 3d. Constitution, Government and Laws. 4th. National Industry. 5th. Literature, Science and the Fine Arts. 6th. Manners and Customs. 7th. Condition of the People.

By thus dividing the history into periods, and separating the subjects under different heads, an opportunity presents itself, to give to great advantage the pictorial illustrations. Thus, under the 1st head, we have scenes of battles, plates of the armor of the period, &c. &c.; under the 2d head, views of the religious ceremonies of every kind; under 3d head, engraved likenesses of the kings and great men, modes of punishment, &c.; under 4th head, plates of the various processes of manufactures, of agriculture and agricultural implements, of ships, &c., &c.; under 5th head, agricultural specimens, coins, musical instruments, sculpture, drawing, engraving, &c., &c.; under the 6th head, costumes, dresses, amusements, &c., &c.

All the plates are of fine execution, and show the progress of society in a manner much more striking than is in the power of the most descriptive style of narrative. The eye is one of the senses through which the mind instantaneously receives impressions, and it is obvious, pictorial illustrations greatly aid in fixing upon the memory distinct ideas. Besides plates illustrative of the objects arranged under the respective heads, there are many beautiful engravings of castles, rural scenery, &c., which much add to the beauty and interest of the work, which, taken as a whole, is a very valuable addition to the means of acquiring an accurate knowledge of English history, which cannot fail of being eminently useful, and much sought after.

Harpers' Illustrated Shakspeare, Nos. 95 and 96, concluding the Play of King John, with Notes, &c.

Magnificent as have been the previous numbers of this inimitable edition of Shakspeare, these numbers maintain their full rank and style in every respect The Heroines of Shakspeare, with Letter-Press Illustrations. By Mrs. JAMESON. Embracing an entire re-print of her work--" Characteristics of Women," from the last London edition. New-York: Wiley & Putnam. 1846.

This is a splendid edition of this most delightful work, too well known to need eulogy from us; though we feel an irresistible desire, just to say, that we consider it one of the most fascinating of the productions of this accomplished author. Surely no admirer of the immortal bard would be without a copy of Mrs. Jameson's Heroines of Shakspeare. The plates are splendid.

The Bible, the Koran, and the Talmud; or, Biblical Legends of the Mussulmans. Compiled from Arabic sources, and compared with Jewish Traditions. By Dr. GEORGE WEIL, Librarian of the University of Heidelberg, Fellow of the Asiatic Society of Paris, &c., &c., &c. Translated from the German, with occasional Notes. New-York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 82 Cliff-street. 1846.

It appears from the preface that the leading ideas of these Mahomedan legends are contained in the Koran, and as a justification for these publications, the author goes on to state, that "our Redeemer has committed to us, in part, the propagation of his holy faith, by which alone he declares that mankind shall attain to that holiness, peace and glory, for which they have been created. The exhibition, therefore, by the stewards of the gospel, of a false religion, in which, as in the case before us, one hundred and twenty millions of our immortal race are at this moment staking their all, cannot but be important, at once to awaken within us feelings of deep and active charity for those benighted multitudes, and to furnish us with the requisite intelligence for effectually combating these grievous errors with the weapons of truth." And if these legends meet with public favor, the author proposes, in a future work, "to discuss the legendary principle at some length, and show the analogy of its practical working in the Jewish, the Mahomedan, and the Roman Catholic religion."

French Domestic Cookery, combining Elegance with Economy; Describing New Culinary Implements and Processes; the Management of the Table; Instructions for Carving; French, German, Polish, Spanish and Italian Cookery, in twelve hundred receipts; besides a variety of New Modes of Keeping and Storing Provisions, Domestic Hints, &c., Management of Wines, &c. With many Engravings. New-York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 82 Cliff-street. 1846.

The preface announces to the readers that "the present volume is an adapted translation of one of the most popular treatises on French cookery. 'La cuisiniere de la Campagne et de la Ville.' Paris, Audot, 1846."

Of course, to know this, is to be well assured of the value of the information contained in this volume, on the subject of which it treats; for the French cookery is not only the best in the world, but French cooks know more about cookery, in general, as a science, than those of any other nation, as is very well known to all who have any knowledge of the subject.

WILEY & PUTNAM'S LIBRARY OF AMERICAN BOOKS. No. 17 and 18.-Moses, from an old Manse. By NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE-in two parts. New-York and London: Wiley & Putnam, 161 Broadway; 6 Waterloo Place. Price 50 cents.

We think the author of these volumes has been somewhat unfortunate in the title he has given the work. We have seen the show cards for some little time at the doors of the bookstores, and were very much at a loss to imagine what could be the contents of a book with such a title. It certainly never occurred to us that we should find it to contain twenty-three separate tales, which are very pleasingly written, and of very good moral tendency.

The Oregon Territory; its History and Discovery; including an account of the Convention of the Escurial, also Treaties and Negotiations between the United States and Great Britain, held at various times, for the settlement of a boundary line; and an examination of the whole question in respect to facts, and the law of nations. By TRAVERS TWISS, D. C. L., F. R. S., Professor of Political Economy in the University of Oxford, and Advocate in Doctors' Commons. New-York: D. Appleton & Co., 200 Broadway. Philadelphia: George L. Appleton & Co., 148 Chestnut-street. Cincinnati: Derby, Bradley & Co., 113 Main-street, 1846.

This book will be found to possess much interest, as a dispassionate view of the whole matter, undertaken with the laudable design of aiding in a peaceful solution of the question, so long threatening to disturb the harmony between two powerful nations, which, though happily now adjusted, should not lose its interest with the intelligent portion of the community.

Monthly Series of Useful Reading. New-York: Leavitt, Trow & Co. No. 1. The Life of Julius Cæsar. No. 2. Glimpses of the Dark Ages.

The Series of which these two small volumes are the commencement, is a re-publication of an excellent and valuable library of English works, of an elevated character, adapted to the taste and wants of that portion of the community, who have not time and opportunities for larger works on the same subject. The cheap form in which this Series is got up places it within the reach of all classes. The Life of Julius Cæsar is of so interesting a character, that it is said 12,000 copies were sold in London within the first month of its publication. The Glimpses of the Dark Ages gives a graphic sketch of the state of society in Europe from the fifth to the twelfth century.

SKETCH OF THE COMMERCIAL HISTORY OF DENMARK. Nothing appears worthy of credit with regard to the chronology of Denmark, prior to the year A. D. 801. Their own historians date further back, but they were not much known to others till the very early part of the ninth century. Getricus was then their king, and it was at this period they commenced their ravages of Saxony, Friesland and the Netherlands, which excited Charlemagne's just resentment, and, it is said, this caused Getricus first to fortify the frontier of his kingdom next to Germany; and about the same time they landed in Ireland, according to Sir James Ware, in his "Irish Antiquities."

In 808, the Danes and the Norwegians continued more and more to infest the British seas, and in this and the following century they proved eminently successful. In the year 845, says Voltaire, "they had the audacity to sail up the Seine as far as Paris, which then had only wooden houses, and the inhabitants, with their king, Charles the Bald, flying from thence with their best effects, the Normans, (as they were called,) burnt their city, and were afterwards shamefully bought off by that wretched monarch, with fourteen thousand marks of silver, which only emboldened them the more."

Their fleets were commanded by the sons of Regner, king of Denmark, who ravaged the coasts of France, while another fleet laid Scotland and Ireland under contribution. They penetrated the Rhine to Cologne in 839, and burnt that city, with Treves and Nimeguen. At Aix-la-Chapelle they turned the palace into a stable, destroying churches, &c. everywhere. From France they landed in Gallicia, but were driven from thence by King Remer I. with the loss of seventy of their ships. They next plundered Seville and the adjacent country, and finally sailed up the Mediterranean and pillaged several towns in Italy. In 848 they surprised Bordeaux, and took William, duke of Gascony,

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prisoner. In this manner they continued from time to time till the year 890, to ravage and plunder the rest of Europe. In this latter year, Mezerai says, two Norman leaders entered the river Meuse with ninety thousand men, leaving ten thousand to guard their vessels, but they were in the end defeated by Arnold, king of Germany." In king Egbert's time, (834,) they landed in England, and also subdued a great part of Ireland. It is even said, they commenced to build Dublin, Waterford and Limerick, with some other maritime towns, and to have kept them even to the coming of the English under Henry II. In 869 they landed in the county of Fife, in Scotland, and committed great ravages, and also conquered Northumberland.

In 876, Alfred the Great defeated at sea one hundred and twenty Danish vessels, and sunk most of them, and ten years afterwards, near the Isle of Wight, he took or destroyed their whole fleet. This monarch is said to have fought fifty-six battles with the Danes, and finally obliged those of that nation, who were in possession of Northumberland, East Anglesea and Mercia, to acknowledge him to be the sovereign of all England. In the year 890, Alan, duke of Bretagne, is said to have slain fourteen thousand six hundred of them.

Having, under their great chieftain, Rolla, forced a settlement in France ever since 895, in 905 they forbore all ravages and devastations, and being in possession of the city of Rouen, fixed their residence there; they now, instead of destroying the neighboring castles, began to fortify them, in order to maintain their settlement in that country. They continued to increase their conquests, and in 909, says Mezerai, "they were encouraged by the rival princes and great lords of France, who' made use of them against each other, till in 912 their famous leader, Rolla, embracing Christianity, Charles the Simple not only made a truce with him, but, making a virtue of necessity, gave him in perpetuity, that part of Neustria, since, from thence named, Normandy, creating him duke of that country; and for the further securing his friendship, gave him his own daughter to wife." After which, great bodies of Normans settled in France; and Rolla, instead of sacking and burning, now improved Rouen, his capital residence.

In 964, Denmark, according to "Scholiast on Adami Bremensis Historia Ecclesiastica," was in this year entirely converted to the Christian religion. "King Harold VI. and all his people now openly professing it."

This did not, however, put an end to their predatory warfare, for in 980 they ravaged Scotland and the English coasts, and in 982 laid siege to London and greatly damaged it, but could not make themselves masters of it; this they did also in 994 and 998, but without success; yet they desolated Devonshire, Cornwall and Wales, wintering in the Isle of Wight, and laying waste Hampshire and Sussex. In this way they continued to wage this kind of warfare, until, in 1017, under Canute the Great, they finally conquered England. In 1044, they attempted the conquest of Scotland, but king Duncan sent Macbeth and Banquo against them, who defeated them with great slaughter.

In 1196, according to Meursicus's Historica Danica, published in Amsterdam in 1638, and other Danish historians, Canute V., king of Denmark, must have been a very potent prince, in the first named year,