On this page

• Text (2)

  Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

  • 

    Untitled Article

  • 

    Untitled Article

• Transcript

  • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

    Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

    Untitled Article

    area , a whirling circle of . half-stripped girls danced to the monotonous beat of a tom-tom-Presently the formal ring was broken , and each female stepping out singly , danced according to her individual fancy . Some were wild , same were soft , some were tame , and some were Bery .- ' . After so many years ITiave no distinct recollection of the characteristic movements of . these semi-savaj ^ s , especially as the claret and champagne rather fermented in my brain , and possessed me with the idea that it was my duty to mingle in the bounding throng . I resolved that the barbarians should have a taste of Italian quality ! Accordingly , I leaped from the hammock where I had swung idly during the scene , and beginning with a balances and an avant-deux , terminated my terpsichorean exhibition by a regular ' double shuffle' and sailor ' s hornpipe . The delirious laughter , cracked sides , rollicking fun , and outrageous merriment , with which nay feats were received , are unimaginable by sober-sided people . Tiredof my single exhibition , I seized the prettiest of the group by her slim , shining : waist , and whirled her round and round the court in the quickest of waltzes , until , with a tiss , I laid her giddy and panting on the floor . Then , grasping another—anotheranother—and another—and treating each to the same dizzy swim , I was about waltzing the whole seraglio into quiescence , when who should rise before us but the staring and yawning Mongol

    If this is the Mnd of thing that is to be given us in books so heralded and pushed into celebrity , * " warm" writing 5 s setting in upon us . There are extracts , to be sure , giving an account of " slave-packing , " and other matters-of-fact relating to the slave-trade ; but we judge it is not the " matter-of-fact" that predominates in the book . We cannot decide on the character of the book as a whole till we see it ; but we conjecture it is one of those concoctions of "the stunning" which have begun to abound of late . Two things strike us in connexion with the book . In the first place , it seems ib us , criticism is becoming far too tolerant of books pretending to be records of facts , and yet not duly authenticated , as to name , date , and place . It was all very veil for Defoe to construct 9 . Robinson Crusoe , and other stories , put of materials which his genius was capable of expanding ; but we would set a limit to these imitations now . If we are to have novels , let us have novels , purporting to be such ; if we are to have histories , let us have histories authenticated uch

    as s ; vre do not object even to historical novels , professing to be suca— -butto your books of travels in which the traveller % mythical , to biographies of adventurers edited by literary men from materials furnished by the adventurers , arid concocted into narratives of ^ thrilling interest , " in whjch fact and fiction , are inextricably commingled , so that you cannot say which is which , we have a decided aversion . In the present case we do not know what are the relations of Mr . Bbahtz Mater to Captain Canot , or how iar the two are identical ; biat we haye our suspicions ; aud if Mr . Bbabttz Maibb ' s professed editorship is but a literary r « 5 e , we shall ] set our faces against him and it . Again it appears to us that , in ; the present / book , we have another example of the extraordinary knack which authors and publishers are acquiring , by setting their heads together , of ensuring world-wide popularity and sale fo-r a book . The thing began with Xfncle Torn ? s Cabin —a novel of fifth-rate merit , written honestly , and with serious intention by a well-meaning woman ; and wHch , by a

    combination of circumstances , was set agoing all over the world till it ran like wildfire- Arid now in the wake of this book , and pushed by arts taught by its success , we are having LampUghters , and other such manufactures , running the same course , arid perhaps less deservedly . We doubt not Captain Canot is intended for the same market , and spiced with " voluptuous mouths , " ^ heavingmulatto bospms » " " slim , shiny waists , " and other condiments of the kind to mate its progress easier and surer . ~ £ &rop 6 & of tlxia increase among us of literature concocted on the principle of the ^ stunning , " and its effects on literature of true and deep merit , we may . refer to an article on Thackeray in the last number of the Revue des DewMondes . The author of the article , M . E . D . Forgues , reviews the entire literary career of our celebrated novelist , and , in a more conscien ^ tious manner than is common , endeavours to make his countrymen acquainted with the whole series of Mr . Thackebax ' s yrorks . Speaking of Henry Esmond , and particularising the many merits of that exquisite novel , M . Forgoes says :

    The work had erery quality , except that which mates a book popular . This , indeed , it could not have , by its very nature , and because it contained fine studies , appreciated only by the dilettanti , and sealed letters for the vulgar—" caviare to the million , '" as Shakspeare has it . Moreover , the History of Henry Esmond appeared in 1852 , at the same moment with another famous history , the History of Uncle Tom . America , this time , beat Ejngiand ; but I know not if the fortune of the battle was absolutely determined by the relative amount of talent ontho one Bide and on the other . Certainly , one must recognise a much higher political and social aim in the singularly happy book or Mrs . Beechor Stowo ; tint It ' would be supremel y unjust to deny to Thackeray , in the purely literary field , an ability far above that of his victorious rival . " Iforgot to put a nipper in my novel ( J ' ai oubli ^ de mettre un uegre dnna mon roman ) " said hep with a little touch of irony , when he saw that , this time , the popularity was setting in elsewhere .

    We cannot , of courao , vouch for the authenticity of the mot here attributed to Thackeray ; but it is a very good one . Our " stunning" authors are even improving upon the receipt of the " nigger" in a novel as an ingredient for insuring popularity ; they are putting in handsome she-mulattoes , with whom you can waltz till you are " giddy and panting , " And thia ia Literature ! It is like something else that we ; could name !

    Untitled Article

    simple lucid style , like his , makes the map a landscape with very little aid from the imagination , and enables us to see the things , in some degree , aa he saw them . Nor are the passing glimpses of the human kind , dwelling in Asiatic Turkey and Russian Georgia and the Caucasus , scarcely less graphically imparted to the mind—the Turk , the Kurd , the Cossack , the Circassian , the Russian soldier and the Russian officer—are Tery fairly sketched , as each figures in turn . While , therefore , these volumes are useful and instructive , they are also agreeable and amusing—at least to those who look for intelligence and common sense in the works they peruse .

    The scope of these volumes shows that with ordinary treatment thev could not fail to interest . All Europe has felt some apprehensions for tie safety of Constantinople . It is in these volumes that will be found the best description of the famous natural line of defence which covers so completely all the land approaches to the capital—a line of defence which , although loosel y spoken of by other writers , has only been fully made out by General Macintosh . Nor is the discovery of this Torres Vedras the only service rendered by him to the cause of Turkey . The much depreciated lines at Bulair , at the neck of the small peninsula of Gallipoli were suggested by our sharp-eyed traveller , long before there was question of sending troops into the Dardanelles . Having described tbese important matters ; having questioned , on good grounds , the adequacy of the batteries protecting both the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus ; he carries us through the Balkan , to Shumla , and thence he takes us down the Danube , sketching each fort and its merits as he goes along—from Belgrade to Ismail . These details are , however , drawn from the -writings of others , not from personal " observation ,

    and Chesney and Moltke supply accounts in some respects fuller in detail . Of course every inch of ground has its interest , but the novelty of the tour begins with the departure of the General from Constantinople for Trebea ^ pnde , and thence onwardi by Baiboot , Erzeroum , Kara , Toprah-kaleh , and Diadeen to Bayazeed . It may easily be conceived that an intelligent soldier thus going over -the route of the Russian advance in 1829 , finds sufficient to describe and comment upon , with a view to defence against a similar incursion . In general terms the country may be described as very strong , offering endless opportunities for defensive warfare , and a few for decisive resistance under peculiar advantages . But no steps had been taken to obstruct the great routes , with a view to the ever-present contingency of war with Russia . The curse of the whole empire , at the date of this tour —the weakness of the central power and the disorder of the local authorities - —was peculiarly felt , and the evidences of transition were visible on every side . Hence it followed that the military force , the redifs , or militia , were badly trained , and indeed scarcely thought of—the power of the chiefs , who had heretofore Kept the army supplied , having been completely broken . ¦

    But interesting as is the route from Trebizonde to Bayazeed , that from Tabreez to Odessa , through the Caucasus , far surpasses it . General Macintosh , starting from Tabreez , approached the Caucasus by Nakshivan , Eri-van Gumri , Tiflis , and so oh through the pass of Dariel to Stavropol , Taganrog , and Odessa . It was during this journey that he took occasion to examine the new fort at Gumri , then only in process of erection . His mode of doing this was characteristic and soldierlike . Knowing that the commandant would not permit him to enter the works if he sought permission , he rode at once up to the works , passed the Cossack guard , per favour of a semi-military costume , and so carefully surveyed the interior of the place . The same evening he dined with the officer in command , but , as he anticipated , he could not obtain permission to enter the works . This , however , was scarcely necessary , for the survey of the morning enabled him the next day to make

    out a tolerably accurate plan of the fortress . It was in front of this fortress , on the right bank of the Arpachai that the action known as the Kurouk-dere was recently fought . Were the Russians strong numerically , the result of that battle should have given them possession of the whole pasialic of Kars . It should be remarked that the last war left in the hands of Russia a series of frontier posts of great importance , which she has carefully strengthened , and in some sense created , as in the case of Gumri , so that unless the present war terminate in the excision of so much territory south of the Caucasus , the Russian conquest of Asiatic Turkej' , including Syria , is only matter of time . B y far too little attention , as it seems to us , has been paid to the Asian campaign ; the risk may not be immediate ; the evil may be capable of reparation ; but it is -very great . Should Russia have Asian successes and acquisitions to match with ours in Europe , it is perfectly clear that we must either

    dictate terms less advantageous than are desirable , or we must wrest from the enemy what he had won , and something in addition . But that would require a long campaign . It is remarkable , as showing the shortsightedness or the venality of Turkish rulers , that the timber used in the construction of Gumri should have all been carried thither from Turkish territory , under pretext of using it in the construction of-dwelling-houses , bazaars , and caravanseraica . But it is said that the Pasha of Kars , who feigned ignorance , was engaged in the timber contract himself ! So that the Turkish mountains were cleared of timber , and tlie Russian frontier garnished with a new fortress from whence the Emperor held the Sultan ' s city of Kars at his mercy . From Gumri to Tiflis the road is full of interest—strong undulating country , often steep and wild , varied by patches of verdant park-like scenery , and well-watered vales . Of Tiflis , it is recorded by our

    slxarp-THE SEAT Off WAR . A Military Tour in European Turkey , the Crimea , and on the Eastern Shores of the Stack Seas including routes acrost the Balkan into Bulgaria , and Excursion * in the Turkish , Russian and Persian Provinces of the Caucasian ranyc : with strategical observations on the probable scene of the operations of ( he allied expeditionary force . By Major-Gonorul A . F . Macintosh , K . H ., F . R . & . R ., P . G . S . With maps , in two volumeB . london : Longmans , 1854 . Gbnebax . Macintosh , when ho drew up the title-page of his book , seems to have determined to be as specific aa an inventory , and as accurate aa the note-book of a Quarter-Master . It is indeed a difficult task to frame a title sufficiently comprehensive or sufficiently the reverse to fit the case of

    certain books . But , happily in thia case , the gallant author has suitably described two unpretending volumes , rich in matter of fact , and as large in scope as the advertisement indicates to tliq reader . The book is called a Military Tour because it is chiefly mado u p of military topography , but the general reader will bo greatly mistaken it he c&st 1 the Volunrtea aside aa therefore useless to him . The advantage of a pdUtyaxy guido through the countries mentioned in the title-page , considerably nv ordinary timea , becomes almost invaluable now , even to the least irovlike reader . An author , with an eye like General Mackintosh , and a

    eyed author , that " the exterior mado a considerable show , " but that " that does not meet the eye ia foul and neglected . " Neither is it impregnable in a military point of view . On his passage through the Caucasus , General Macintosh saw quite sufficient to show that the Russians only occupy the posts actually in their hnnds ; that they aro over on the alert to guard against the sudden and murderous assaults of the Circassians ; that the mail requires an escort , and a pretty strong one too ; and that everything betokened the unquenchable freedom of the gallant mountaineers . Ho also remarks that the strength of the fortified poata of communication between Tiflis and Ekatcrinograd has been exaggerated ; that a woll-mountcd horseman might lean into some ; that a few cannon planted on the mountains would make otuera untenable ; but , alas ! the Circassians sadly want artillery . If the Bussiana were in aucb . straits when they possessed the Blaok Sea coast of the Caucasus , wo can readily imagine what their condition must be now .

    Untitled Article

    880 THE LEADER . [ Saturday ,

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 16, 1854, page 880, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2056/page/16/