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This is nature, as also is the plaint of Barbara Allan,' the affecting tale of Fair Helen of Kirconnell Lee,'

Gilderoy,' and the Braes of Yarrow,' from the pen of Hamilton of Bangour.

In the tales, which form the second part, we are presented with Peblis to the Play' and Christis Kirk of the Greene,' written by James I., a prince of great genius and of rare accomplishments for the age in which he lived. These have been so often the subjects of criticism, that further remarks on them are superfluous. They are followed by a very spirited tale, entitled The Heir of Linne,' which we point out as a striking description of the ill effects of dissipation in a young man of family. The Farmer's Ha', a kind of companion to Ferguson's Farmer's Ingle, concludes the book. The evening occurrences, the. gossip of a large farm house, the loquacious tailor and garrulous gude wife, the jeering maidens, the wheedling pedlar, the insulting gauger, "dressed in a little brief authority," the whining beggars, and the sagacious herdsman, are painted with a force of coloring, that, in its line, rivals Teniers himself.

We now reach the third and last part of the work, containing the songs. They are very numerous, and exhibit many traits of taste and genius. They chant the loves, depict the manners, and record the actions, of a rude but gallant people, with a brevity of description, a tenderness of feeling, and an energy of language, that take a fast hold on the mind. We are sorry we have not room for lengthened extracts; at the same time that among such a blaze of beauties we feel doubtful on which to fix. The following is of the plaintive kind. The Braes

o' Gleniffer.'

Keen blaws the wind o'er the braes o' Gleniffer,

The auld castle turrets are cover'd wi' snaw?
How chang'd sin the time that I met wi' my lover
Amang the green bushes by Stanley-green shaw!
The wild flowers o' Simmer were springing sae bonny:
The mavis sang sweet frae the green birken tree;
But far to the camp they hae march'd my dear Jonnie,
And now it is winter wi' nature and me.

Then ilk thing around us was blythesome and cheerie;
Then ilk thing around us was bonny and braw;
Now naething is heard but the wind whistling drearie;
Now naething is seen but the wide spreading snaw.

The trees are a' bare and the birds mute and dowie,
They shake the cauld drift frae their wings as they flee;
They chirp out their plaints seeming wae for my Johnie;
'Tis winter wi' them, and 'tis winter wi' me.

Yon cauld sleety cloud as it skiffs the bleak mountain,
And shakes the dark firs on its stey rocky brae,
While down the deep glen bawls the sna-flooded fountain,
That murmur'd sae sweet to my laddie and me.
'Tis no the loud roar of the wintry wind swelling,
'Tis no the cauld blast brings the tear i' my e'e;
For O gin I saw but my bonnie Scots callan,

The dark days o' winter were simmer to me!"—

It may not be amiss to apprise the reader, that this soft and pathetic ballad is from the pen of Tannahill, the author of that beautiful song so justly a favorite with the northern public at present, entitled Jessie, the flower of Dumblaine.' Of Tannahill we know little, but that little is interesting. In the humble situation of a weaver at Glasgow, he devoted his leisure hours to the muse. She proved propitious, and his songs are now familiar in the mouths of his countrymen. We are often doomed to bewail the untimely fate of Genius, and to mourn over the loss of men gifted with the finest sensibility and parts the most fascinating. From causes nearly allied to each other proceeded the fatuity of Swift, the melancholy of Cowper, the perturbation of Collins, the eccentricities of Burns, and the extravagancies of Chatterton. To the list of the votaries of genius thus unfortunate, must the name of Tannahill be added; for he fell a victim to the morbid sensibility of his mind, and in the year 1810, was found drowned in the Clyde.

Upon the whole, we are well pleased with this collection. We are aware that the editor had before him an extensive field, abounding with beautiful and variegated flowers; but it was interspersed with many weeds. Much must of course have depended on his selection of the materials,—on his rejecting the vulgar, and retaining the elegant: and this he has done judiciously. He has rejected the compositions that might have offended modesty; but without being so fastidious as to omit those broader delineations of nature which mark the honest, but homely character of his forefathers, and give a faithful picture of the manners of good old times.

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ART. XIX. History of the House of Romanof, the present Imperial Russian Dynasty, from the earliest period to the time of Peter the Great; intended as an introduction to a history of the life and reign of that celebrated Monarch; and including the Russian history from the first accession of the family to the throne. London: Cadell and Davies, 1815. Pr. 6s.

THIS work was originally written as an Introduction to the History of the Life and Reign of Peter the Great; and the degree of encouragement extended to the present publication, will determine the appearance of the latter more important undertaking. These records are constructed on a principle of selection in regard to facts; while minute and uninteresting details are avoided. We wish that histories were oftener written on the same plan. The author claims credit for the exertion of more industry and research than will appear on the surface of his labors; and we are not inclined to dispute his claims. The style is elegant and easy, but not without occasional quaintness and affectation; and the writer sometimes indulges in traits of humor, which, if neither obtrusive nor unrefined, are still rather below the dignity of history.

The interest of the narrative begins with nearly the opening of the 17th century, and with the reign of Michael, of the House of Romanof, which was allied to the ancient House of Ruric both by marriage and descent. Michael was the grandfather of Peter the Great; and the reign of his son Alexy was upon the whole that of a wise, powerful, and beneficent monarch. His second wife, Natalia Nariskin, was the mother of Peter; and, after the short sway of Feodor the eldest son of Alexy, his other children by a former wife were joined with Peter in the government during his minority. From the yoke of his sister Sophia, who enjoyed the chief influence in the united government, Peter was emancipated by his own vigor of character, after he had attained his 16th year. The beginning of the administration of the Triumvirs (Sophia, Ivan, and Peter) had been marked by domestic commotions, raised by the intrigues of the House of Milolafski, and to which, besides many other victims, several members of the family of Nariskin were sacrificed by the insurgents. The author, having given an ani

mated description of these horrors, closes the history with the following passages:

"The re-conducting of Sophia to her monastery at Moscow, finally concluded her political career, and placed Peter the Great in undisputed possession of the throne of Russia. In this treatment of his fallen rival, the young Tzar afforded another striking instance of united justice and clemency. The personal and mental resemblance between this unfortunate princess, and the Empress Catherine II. is so minute, yet so strongly marked, that scarcely any one, acquainted in the least with the life of Catherine, can fail to have been forcibly struck by it. Both equally admirable for their beauty, of manners equally popular and engaging, of almost parallel mental acquirements, and genius equally extensive; uniting literary to their other accomplishments, and alike the patrons of learning, and the promoters of useful knowledge: yet in both ambition alike predominant, and tarnishing the lustre of so many excellencies. In one respect, however, Sophia has very considerably the advantage. Her virtue, the breath of suspicion has barely tainted: and to her superior virtue, it is not improbable, that she was indebted for the loss of a throne, and of all the cares and heart-aches ever attendant on one acquired by usurpation.

"As to the mock Tzar, Ivan, he possessed all the easy good-nature and harmlessness of an idiot. He was of a weak and sickly constitution, and liable to convulsions, or attacks of epilepsy. It is, however, probable, that he did not owe his mental imbecility entirely to these, but to nature. For Schleissing, who was at Moscow during Sophia's regency, says, that he was naturally so ill-formed, that he could neither rightly see, read, nor speak: and that the upper part of his face was so unseemly, that he constantly kept it concealed in public, by means of a green shade. In short, were this a place to describe the other Triumvir, Peter, and the pen of a Clarendon undertook the task, a more striking and extraordinary group could not probably be witnessed.

"Ivan still retained the empty title of sovereignty; and his name continued to be united with that of his brother, in the public ordinances. With this, his friends could have no occasion for complaint. It was all of power he had enjoyed under Sophia, and all that Nature had made him capable of enjoying. He ever lived on the most friendly terms with his brother, for whom he had the greatest affection. Ivan did but survive these events four years.

"Thus having conducted the reader, to the best of our ability, through perplexed and gloomy paths, to the period when Peter the Great had the courage to become a real sovereign, a brighter and more inviting prospect gradually widens on our view. Here, therefore, we shall conclude the first portion or Book of this History, in which we purpose five more (should it be our fortune to proceed) to be included. The second will end with that period, when the Reformer of Russia set out on his first travels. The Battle of Pultowa will conclude the third; the transfer of the seat of Government, the fourth; the fifth will finish at the peace of Neustadt: and the last finally close with that memorable and awful scene which robbed the world for ever of the Hero and Legislator of the North.

From the body of the work, we give an amusing extract respecting the second marriage of the Czar Alexy.

"Though the Tzar had recourse to the ancient usage of his country, prior to the celebration of these second nuptials, M. Stæhlin tells us his choice had already been decided; for that he had previously seen, and become enamoured of Natalia, at the house of his minister Matveof, under whose protection she had been placed, and of whom she was the relative. To this course the minister had persuaded him; too prudent, needlessly, to find food for that envy, which will ever follow a monarch's favourite.

"The conduct of these marriages of the Tzars, partaking more of the manners of Asia than of Europe, seems, by reason of its singularity, entitled in this place to some attention.

"The subjugation of Russia, by the Tartars, had introduced many of the usages of Asia: but it was not till the kingdoms of Casan and Astracan formed appendages to the dominions of the Tzars, that this, of the sovereign's selection of a wife from amongst his own subjects, had been adopted. On these occasions, it was usual to cause the most beautiful virgins of the provinces, to assemble at the imperial residence. The grand mistress of the court received them at her apartments: they had separate chambers appointed, but ate together.

"Writers by no means agree, as to the private customs observed on these occasions. Neither does it seem probable that any one, unless particularly attendant at the court, should acquire authentic information on a subject of so much delicacy-in fact, on usages which probably were not defined, but might vary with the sovereign's pleasure, as he proved a Commodus or a Scipio.

"On the day fixed for the Tzar's selection of his bride, he repaired, accompanied by a very ancient Boiar, to the temporary residence of these virgins. Here, seated on a throne, they presented themselves in succession to his curious regards, prostrating themselves before him. On the naked bosom of each, he cast a richly embroidered handkerchief, ornamented with pearls and diamonds; and after they had retired, she who was the object of his choice was presented with a bridal habit, the first intimation given her of the honor intended. The other candidates were generally espoused by some of the nobles and officers of the court; who availed themselves of the opportunity afforded by the assemblage of so much beauty.

"Subsequent ceremonies, previous to, as well as after the consummation of marriage, displayed still more of the refined voluptuousness and barbaric splendor of the Asiatics."

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