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Leader (1850-1860), 24th December 1859, Edition 2 of 2, Page 19, No. 509. Dec; 24, 1859.J THE LEADER 1399...

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      . ; . ^ District Duties Dukint;. Tiik Kk...

      causes of discontent was our ; legal provisions for the recovery of small debts . To this he attributes the S unthal rebellion , and the ill-feeling prevailing throug hout the North-west provinces . The villagers at Manpore , he tells us , joined in the murder of English ladies and children ; their conduct being the result of the action of our civil courts . They were , for the most part , dispossessed landholders of the smaller class , and many of them B rahmins- —a caste who rarely joined in such deeds .

      The effect of the fall of Delhi on the native mind demonstrated the religious character of the orig inal movement . The indiscreet zeal among the missionaries is much censured ; though frequently deprecated by their superiors , it is sometimes excessive and ill-timed . The ingratitude of the moneyed classes is thus exemplified : — "In the month of October , 1857 , when sadly pressed by the deficiency of means to enable me to meet the necessary disbursements of the district . I called on the Suharunpore mahajuns or bankers , to furnish me with by no means a heavy loan . This they positively refused to do , declaring their

      inability to meet ruy wishes ; that is , to that Government who has never imposed any description of tax upon this class ( a great oversight , by the way ) , and through whose protection alone they had been enabled to accumulate their wealth , these men refused a portion of that capital which would have disappeared vith the Government which had fostered them . At such u juncture , iudeed , their refusal would have been of little moment ; for had I not almost immediately received an unexpected supply

      from other quarters , these vermin might have learnt that necessity is sometimes superior to laws , and that we had not protected their property at the risk of our lives without expecting some reasonable return , should circumstances render it necessary . But never will Indian bankers , while they can avoid it , lend money to the state , as they somewhat justly argue , that the Government , on seeing their , wealth , might at last open its eyes , and suggest some trifle towards the expense of defending their vast accumulations . "

      Our author ' s experiences seem to have somewhat . disheartened him . He takes rather a desponding view . " Had , " he says , " the alliance Of the Seiks , prior to the outbreak , been judiciously courted by the Hindustani , hardly a European would have escaped in all Northern India . " Of the classes of Hindoos most averse to our rule , the Rajpoots and Chutries are the worst . Their impression was , that witJi the suppression of the revolt , their religion , not their race , had been conquered . The Hindustani mind , however , is pliable , and has now adapted itself to the change . Never has the success of Christian missionaries been so great in the Ganges-Jumna Doab , as since our re-occupation of that part of the country . The book before us merits attention .

      No. 509. Dec; 24, 1859.J The Leader 1399...

      No . 509 . Dec ; 24 , 1859 . J THE LEADER 1399 *

      Tale3 Piioh Mohkiik's 1'Lays. By Dncrc B...

      TALE 3 PIIOH MOHKIiK'S 1 'LAYS . By Dncrc Barrett Lonu « , «¦( ' •— UhapmAu wd Hall . We all recollect the delig htful tales that Charles Lamb constructed from tho dramas of Shakspearc . It was a happy idea with Mr . Lennard that led him to Moliere with the same view . Sixteen stories are here given from the plays of the great comic writer of Franco- They are exceedingl y well told , nncl come upon , us , familiar as are the Lennard

      among those for whose benefit it was intended . " The analysis of "Tartuffe" is accomplished in a masterly style . Not a trait is lost in the transfer so skilfully , so felicitousl y is it photographed . We have . been also much pleased with the version of " Le- Bourgeois G-entilhomme , " and "Le Malade Imaginable . " Both are rendered with spirit and accuracy . The . wit is brought out with precision and point ; and the sentences are

      chiselled with the sharpness and skill of a literary sculptor ; . To continue the figure , we may add , that the marble , too , is of the highest polish . The works of Moliere present instances in which the matter and form are equally excellent . The setting of the diamond is of as much value as the jewel itself . Mr . Lennard has not been unmindful of this peculiarity in the style of Moliere . The publication ought to be one of the most attractive works of the season .

      subjects , with admirable freshness . Mr . retains the vivacity of the original treatment ; and sometimes , oven , we feel more interested in this modification of the narrative than in the drama itself . This is the case , for instance , with " bagnarelle . " Tho liveliness of the incidonts and tho neatness of tho outline remain , while what might bo tedious in tlie dialogue has been altogether eliminated . " Brevity ig the soul of wit ; and hero brevity has boon consulted with tho happiest result .

      Sometimes Mr . Lennard has accompanied hjstra-Uuction with a alight critical commentary , or Historical notico . This service ho has done in the case of " Tarturte , " which ho describeens MoliOre a chef-( Tauvre . Ho defends it from the charge of an irreligious tendency , and cites Hallnm on the point , who rujqs that tho comedy is so well conctuotou , that it guards most cnreftilly against any intringpuaont ofthe boundaries between tho reality ana its falso appearances . According to him , no exception at nil can bo taken against its moral ; and Jjo alyly oounaels those who take umbrage at tuo ?? Tattuffe" to read it again , » for there may bo good , reason to suspect that they are themselves

      Tuavkls Ix Morocco. By The Late James Ri...

      TUAVKLS IX MOROCCO . By the late James Richardson . Edited by his Widow . 2 vols . — Charles J . Skeet . At the present time , when the old contest between the Spaniard and the Moor appears to have been revived , any book , with a competent authority to support its claims , that treats of Morocco must possess great interest . The late James Richardson has left imperishable records of his energy and ability in the path of researches in Central Africa and the Saharan desert , and every remark of his will be a contribution to what may be called the science of travel . One remark may be accepted in Umine—that the Moorish women were never so profligate as since the arrival of the French in Algeria . But we must take this observation of our author's with some modification ; for he likewise * states that the licentious actions of the men

      Most of them have fair complexions ; their rose and jasmine faces * their pure wax-like delicate features , and their exceedingly expressive and bewitching eyes , would fascinate the most fastidious of European connoisseurs of female beauty . " . This statement is very curious , and suggestive of a world of reflections , which will undoubtedly arise spontaneously in the reader ' s mind , but on which we cannot enlarge . We could have desiderated more information on the political relations of Trance and Spain with Morocco ; but , unfortunately , we find nothing in these two volumes that could fairly be quoted iii illustration of the quarrel now existing between the two Catholic powers and the Mahomedan Moor . In other respects * undoubtedly , they are highly instructive . However , they have not been carefull y edited ; grammatical and typographical errors being frequent .

      and women , particularly on the feast days , present the worst side ofthe character of the Moors . The presence of the French , after all deductions are made , must have a civilising tendency . The prospects of the Jews in Barbary are iin-? roving , and the ambition of Jewesses to obtain Jhristlan husbands is very great . They have some privileges not permitted to the male sex . The ^ . tlas Jews are physically superior to their brethren who reside among the Moors , and are better off , being permitted to bear arms , and wearing the same attTre as the mountaineers , from whom they are not distinguishable .

      " As to the peculiarities of the religion of the Atlas Jews , they are said not to have the Pentateuch and the law in the same order as Jews generally . They are unacquainted with Ezra , or Christ ; they did not go to Babylon at . the captivity , but were dispersed over Africa at that period . They are a species of Caraaites , or Jewish Protestants . Shadai is the name which they apply to the Supreme Being , when speaking of him . Their written law begins by stating that the world was many thousand old when the present race of men

      years was formed , which , curiously enough , agrees with the researches of modern geology . The present race of men are the joint offspring of different and distinct human species ) The deluge is not mentioned by them . God , it is said , appeared to Xsi \ - moelin a dream , and tol . l him he must separate from Isaac , and go to the desert , where he would make him a great nation . There would ever alter bo enmity between the two races , as at this day there is tho greatest animosity between the Jews

      and Mahometans . . . " Tho great nucleus of these bhelouh Jews is in Jchel Mclgc , or the vast ridge of tho Atlas , capped with eternal snows ; and they hold communications with the . Jews of Ale Mousa , Frouga or Misfiiva . They rarely descend to tho plains or cities of the empire , and look upon the rest of the Jews of this country as heretics . Isolation thus begets onnnty and mistrust , as in other cases . A few years ago . a number oamo to Mogador . and wore not at all ploasodwith their visit , finding fault with evorybrethrenTheso Jewish

      mounthing among tliolr . taineers are ' supposed to be very numerous , in their homos , they are inaccessible . « o they livo m a wild independence , iirofosolng a creed aa free as thoir own mountain airs . God , who mado the liMa , made likewise man ' s froodom to abido tlioroin . Before taking loaf of tho Maroquino Israolltos , x must say something of thoir personal appearance . Both in Tangier and Mogador , I was iortunato enough to bo acquainted with families , who could boast of tho moat perfeob and classic typos of Jowiau ftuialo loveliness , Alas , that those toutoMhouJi bo only charming animals , their minds and aflfooUons being left uncultivated , or converted into caves , of unclean and tormenting passions . The Jewesses , in general , until they become enormously stout 1 ana weighed down with obesity , are of extreme boauty .

      Poems. By The Author Of " John Halifax."...

      POEMS . By the Author of " John Halifax . "—Hurst and JBlackett . Miss LIuloch , whose merits as a prose-writer have received public acknowledgment , has , it appears , been in the habit of contributing occasional verses to Chambers' and other journals . In this publication she has claimed her errant offspring , and assembled them in one family , in honour of the Christmas season . These poems—( for , notwithstanding the author ' s modest doubt , they are such)— -are very . peculiar , and perhaps bear on them the stamp of originality . ' The sentiment of piety is eminently conspicuous . Like Spinoza , Miss Muloch nlay ^ be said to be " intoxicated with deity . " This idea is omnipresent in her verses . Sometimes it is loudly

      pronouncedas thus : — . " O Thou supreme All-satisfying'and immutable Oiie , It is enough , to be absorbed in Thee And vanish—thoug-h'twere only to a voice That through all ages , with perpetual joy , Goes evermore loud crying , 'God ! God ! God ! The predominance of this sentiment marks out Miss Muloch as a poet of the highest class . She is a Hebrew of the Hebrews , and should be reckoned as one of the sweet singers of Israel , a daughter of the prophets . There are poets of many kinds , as well as of many degrees . There is the feeble singer , to whom rythmical sound is sufficient ; and who , with imperfect rhyme and syntax , makes tentative efforts at verse in the process of self-eduoation . Next , there is the

      commonsense singer , who gives expression to maxims , common-places and literal descriptions . Then comes the intellectual singer , who solicits the aid of fancy and embellishes his theme , whether love or patriotism , with p leasant conceits , figures , and illustrations . To a higher elevation climbs the imaginative poet , and invests with abstract beauty the more abstruse conceptions of man and nature which he is gifted to form . At length appears the inspired poet , not always intelligible , who breathes the pure other of ideas and thoughts , and with difficulty invests his immortal creations with oarthly shapes . Ofthe last of thusu is , decidedly , Miss Muloch . Hence her sublime dissatisfaction with the imperfect and shifting seunud , whose illusory qualities she has experienced ;—her forced rcsio-nation to the actual , and hur wish to make

      the best of it ¦;— -her continual yearning for an in- , visible beloved ;—hor sympathies with nuns and solitaires , and her general sense that in a blighted world the condition of the recluse is the happiest , and the life of the novice or the Sister ot Mercy . the most virtuous and beneficial . Poetry to her id tho means of arming herself against the disappointments that tho affections suffer in an illassorted world , and in finding a remedy for the wounds incurred by tliu too-sonsitivo in their temporal attachments . From all this she ( lies to the Divine , and would find solace in that serener radiance , which tho fiercer contact of the merely human forbids . She has formed her own world--a sinless paradise , a supernatural hi Ion ., with the tree of life in it , but none of knowledge } in whioh Innocence would substitute Virtue . Our poetess , however , has an eve for tho external features ot tho natural world , and sometimes ; catches the points of a p icture with amg u ar fulioity . JLue Following poem , which is graced with an illustration in tlio book , is a favourable specimen of the writer ' s powers : — , A BTRHAM'B SINGING , O how beautiful lu Morning I How tho Buuboaiiw Btrlko tho daisies , AndI theiklnff-oupa nil tho meadow , Likoft goldon-shloldod urmy Muruhinff to tho uplands fWr I—

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 24, 1859, page 19, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_24121859/page/19/