2

too modern. It belongs rather to the vigour in action, and his self-indulgence
eighteenth than to the fifteenth century: the in repose, his unbounded uxoriousness united
Hastings of Shakspeare is a gay, sanguine, to an equally unrestrained licentiousness,
unscrupulous courtier-less individualized, which made him over and over risk his
but more probable.
crown to please a wife, to whom he was
Among the best of the subordinate actors systematically unfaithful, his cruelty, the
in this part of the work, are Marmaduke result not of malignity but of indifference to
Nevile and Friar Bungay. Each believes in human suffering, his pride, and his love
the supernatural powers of Warner. But, of popularity, all these marked and con-
in the undepraved mind of Nevile, this trasted qualities were supplied by history.
belief produces merely awe. Bungay, con- Sir Edward has made excellent use of excel-
scious of the purposes to which such powers lent materials. There are few passages in
would be turned in his own hands, looks fiction more happy in outline or more
on their possessor with terror and hate. dramatic in detail than his attempt on Lady
Each of them has more humour than is Anne.
usual among Sir Edward's characters; the The picture of Richard has little resem-
union in Bungay's person of the necromancer, blance to that given by Shakspeare. The
the Merry Andrew, and the friar, is happily Richard of the "Last of the Barons" is cau-
conceived and executed. So are the hardi- tious and demure. His voice is sweet, his
hood of Nevile and his care of his dress, his features are unchanging-his unrelenting will,
love for Sybil, and his suspicion that she has his boldness, and his ambition, are all
bewitched him, his loyalty to his chief and covered by a mild unobtrusive composure.
his indifference to his king. His final disap- The mother of Shakspeare's Richard tells
pearance in Edward's triumph is well
managed. To have killed him, would have
been an unnecessary aggravation of the
gloom of the catastrophe; and he was not
of sufficient importance to be marked as the
only survivor of his party.

him,

«Tetchy and wayward was thine infancy;

Thy schooldays frightful, desperate, wild, and furious,

Thy prime of manhood daring, bold, and venturous;

Thine age confirmed, proud, subtle, sly, and bloody,

More mild, but yet more harmful, kind in hatred."

speare has most dwelt, his mildness of manner is merely comparative. It is bestowed only on those whom he wishes to deceive. His language to his enemies, and even to his friends, as soon as they cease to be useful, is nothing but hatred, scorn, or defiance. It is not to a dissembler that Queen Elizabeth complains:

Among the historical characters, the most striking is Warwick. This was very desirable, but not easy. We have already remarked the difficulty of giving to a perfect character distinctness or interest. During During the period occupied by the "Last the first seven books, that is to say, during of the Barons," he was under twenty-one, more than two-thirds of the whole work, therefore in his prime of manhood-daring, Warwick is perfect. He is wise, magnan- bold, and venturous, before he had learned imous, brave, affectionate, liberal, patriotic-to be subtle, sly, and mild. But even in in short, he is covered with virtues. But the latter part of his life, on which Shakthese virtues do not, as is usually the case, conceal the figure over which they are spread, and give us a gorgeous phantom instead of a man. He is as distinct as the mixed character of Warner or of Hastings. This is probably owing in part to the peculiarity of his position-a subject almost equal in rank and far superior in power to his king; partly to his manner, which Sir Edward with great skill has made both stately and frank; but more than all probably, to the reader's knowledge that this moral and intellectural hero is to fall; that when the appropriate temptation comes, wisdom and public spirit and loyalty are to give way; and that, to revenge a private injury, the great statesman and patriot will attempt to change the dynasty of his country, will employ civil war and foreign intervention, and perish, as the welfare of England required him to do, in the struggle.

"My Lord of Gloucester, I have too long borne
Your blunt upbraidings and your bitter scoffs.
By heaven, I will acquaint his Majesty
Of these gross taunts I often have endured.
I had rather be a country servant maid
Than a great queen, with this condition,
To be so baited, scorned, and stormed at."

Now, is there any caution or reserve in his answer?

"What! threat you me with telling of the king?
Tell him and spare not; look, what I have said
I will avouch in presence of the king."
His own account of himself agrees with

Edward is well painted; but the task was easier. His talents, his courage, his hers:

but not less dry, of Anglo-Catholic theolo- | production afterwards is the mere disintergians. Nor were their opponents backward ment of corpses. The authors of this Ecclein showing that they too had relics. The siastical Library have long been numbered Reformers had to re-appear, and after them among the dead. But there are legitimate the Puritans; and we believe the early uses even of bones. They may be used, not Anabaptists were not omitted; while Ro- for popular agitation, as by Ambrose; but manists, budding or full-blown, sent forth the also, as by Professor Owen, to throw more Mediævals. And now there is marching light on the wonderful works of God. So past us, like the last beadle in a long proces- may these ancient works, though nearly all sion, unconscious that the important person- lifeless in themselves, be very useful to those ages have all passed by, and that the spec- who study God's noblest work, the human tators are tired to death of the show, a cele- mind, and the history of its opinions. But, brated Archdeacon, bearing the mortal re- if they are to answer this purpose, it is nemains of one Dr. Adrian Saravia. So closes cessary that the selection should be perfectly the great High-church procession, with Arch- impartial; and, that, free from any reference deacon Denison for its last hierophant, and to questions disputed in these times or any Dr. Saravia for its last relic. temporary object, it should have no other aim than to throw the fullest and truest light upon the times in which each writer who is republished lived. If Mr. Bohn acts upon this principle, as we believe he has acted hitherto, his books will be very useful, though

the great Public. He has exercised a wise discretion in giving most of the places in his series to historical works. And he has selected the right foundation-stone, for a course of dogmatic fathers, in the works of Philo-Judæus, who, although a Jew, had more influence on Christian thought, and especially on the mode of interpreting Scripture prevalent in the Christian Church, than almost any Christian writer.

Each of these publications was intended for the times, and fairly answered its purpose. The works, and even the authors' names, seemed strange enough at first; but, by degrees, people began to admire the stature of the men, the ponderous learning, of course only to a select circle, and not to the verbose rhetoric, or even, in some cases, the unmeasured vituperation, so superior to the puny growth of our degenerate times. By degrees they began to be familiar with their names, and to discover that their doctrines were the very same in which they had been catechised as children. Homilies, and tracts, and legends, and novels followed, all intended "for the times." And we were told to wonder at the miracles of good that these revived antiquities had done. But We take opportunity by this recent pubnow all are retiring into their respective lication, to direct our theological readers to corners again: the writers may continue ob- Philo, and the first two great men of Christjects of vague reverence, and their bones be ian Alexandria, who are his legitimate greatdug up again from time to time: their works grandchildren, Clement and Origen. In our will undoubtedly be all very useful to eccle- consideration of the two last, we shall take siastical antiquarians, but probably not one as our companion Mr. Bohringer, a Zurich book in all the heavy series will have the divine, who has published a course of Church slightest permanent effect upon the popular history in biographies. Mr. Böhringer's mind for while nothing is easier than the book is liberal and pious; inspired with that mechanical labour of disinterring corpses, reverence for antiquity which is increasing it passes the power of zealous theologian so fast among the German Protestants; and able editor and enterprising publisher, pleasant and useful enough for those who to give life to what is dead. We fear that merely wish for a general idea of the great the result of all will be, that many,-sick names of the first few centuries; but of litof seeing the past ransacked for the purposes tle use to the more exact inquirer, as the of present controversy, will nauseate history altogether, and even abandon, as not a few have done already, that portion of their faith which rests on historic grounds.

writer never cites any one of his authorities. We shall receive great assistance on many points from Herzog's Real-Encyklopädie, a magnificent new work, of which the first We do not think that Mr. Bohn's Eccle- volume only has reached us; but which, siastical Library will fare differently from from the array of great names displayed in its predecessors, or that the works of which its list of contributors, promises to become it is composed can ever pass into general a completer ecclesiastical manual than anycirculation. A few books, doubtless, are thing at present existing. Lastly, we shall immortal, and those cannot and do not die; apply to Mr. Kingsley's Lectures for a wide but almost all owe the same debt of nature as human beings. They die, when their vital energies are exhausted: and their re

view of our whole field. They suggest, as all his works do, subjects for thought in plenty; but they remind us too often of the

f

heart,) the best situations in the city were closely united party, and were hated by their all occupied by consecrated ground;* and fellow-citizens with that cordial hatred, nothing vile or refuse was thought worthy which indifference and superstition always of their gods. The approach to their tem- unite in bearing to conscientious exclusiveples was through spacious quadrangles, sur- ness. The remaining section of the popularounded with colonnades of lofty pillars, tion were the Greeks, acknowledged as the planted within with avenues of palm-trees, first in rank of the three. They plumed the back-wall of the cloister painted in fres- themselves on their descent from Alexander's co, and inlaid with foreign marbles. The Macedonians, and also on their undisputed temple itself shone with gold and silver intellectual superiority. Their worship was, vessels, set with precious stones from India no doubt, an art-worship only, little mixed and Ethiopia, while the sacrarium was con- either with belief or superstition; the shrine cealed by hangings of gold embroidery. If of their temples would be occupied by beautithe visitor asked to see the god of the tem- ful statues; and their architecture and arple, an attendant led him with a solemn look, rangements would be distinguished by deliand intoning a hymn of praise in the Egyp-cate taste rather than barbaric magnificence. tian tongue, lifted up a corner of the veil, Magic was an art which has always flourishand shewed him lying on a couch of purple ed wonderfully in Egypt, and each of these a snake, or a cat, or a crocodile. But the three sections had its own. Mr. Kingsley section of the population most interesting to introduces in Hypatia, and not without hisus were the Jews, who had been settled there torical authority, an Egyptian Mesmerist. since Alexander's time. They can hardly Dealers with familiar spirits were in great have numbered less than 200,000; and had request, especially among Alexandrian laa municipal organization and magistrates of dies. The Pagans conjured, and the Christtheir own. They had entirely lost their na- ians exorcised, demons; but all believed in tive language, and though they still looked the power that could be exercised over them on Jerusalem as their mother and sacred by spells and words of might. Nay, even city, they considered Egypt their native the clever and liberal-minded Origen believland, and celebrated there the feasts which ed, that a word in its native language has the law of Moses confines to Jerusalem. greater power over unseen beings than one They were industrious, and keen men of translated;* though singularly enough the business then as ever. We shall see shortly, name, to whose letters and syllables he himwhen we come to speak of their great Rabbi, self imputed the greatest power, was itself that their religious views had been much one, not, indeed, translated, yet greatly liberalized; but they still held the cardinal changed by its adoption, into a foreign lantruths, and performed the ceremonies, of guage,—IHΣOYΣ. their religion, and would rather die than For an account of the previous literary admit an image, or even an inscription of character of Alexandria, before it possessed idolatrous tendency, into their houses of a philosophical school of its own, we must prayer, or make the outward sign of apostasy go to Mr. Kingsley's lectures. To him its by eating swine's flesh. These houses of literature seems to have been a mere hotprayer were erected in all parts of the city; house plant, forced by royal patronage, until and there their Sabbath was employed, as a new source of life arose in the works of Philo expresses it, in philosophizing accord- Philo, and, soon after, a second in Christianing to their own native philosophy. The ity. But this earlier literary period had description given of them tallies with that left to the later one valuable legacy, in the of the synagogues in the New Testament; public libraries attached to various public and they probably differed little either in institutions. It is natural to ask what sort of appearance, or in mode of worship, from a literary apparatus these contained. I think Protestant places of worship in our day, except perhaps in this, that the monopoly of teaching and ministering was not assigned in each to a single man, but any Jew of wisdom and piety might expect to share the invitation : "Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on." The Jews formed a compact and

* Τὰ πλεῖστα καὶ ἀναγκαιότατα μέρη τετεμένισται, Phil. c. Flacc. The most necessary part is, of course, that most available for building purposes. + Clem. Alex. Pæd. + Acts xiii. 15.

that we can answer, with great certainty, that they contained the whole Greek literature, but nothing more. There were, of course, the few Oriental authors who had written in Greek, or whose works had been translated, and the more numerous pseudo-oriental forgeries; a few Alexandrian Rabbis, who may have had correspondence with their Babylonian brethren; and, above all, there was the Septuagint: but there were no works in the Oriental tongues; or, if there were a

*Origen c. Cels., i. 25.