general, though he is pretty accurate when he speaks of the higher classes, he is utterly out when he descends to the lower. For instance, speaking of the latter in page 4, vol. I. he tells us that— "The distress consists in this: that the people, instead of having three or four meals a day, with tea, cold meat, bread and butter, beef-steaks, or roast meat, were now obliged to content themselves with two, consisting only of meat and potatoes." And a little afterwards, he adds, that— "So intractable and obstinate are the English common people rendered by their universal comfort, and the certainty of obtaining employment if they vigorously seek it." Now, unfortunately, all of us who have lived a little in the rural districts, and know how far nine and ten shillings go in this country of indirect taxation, and how often, for want of employment, our labourers in the prime of life come to the parish, could contradict our visitor in this flourishing description of rural sturdiness and overflow of comfort. "Two meals of meat and potatoes !" Why, in few parts of the country does the peasant see meat on his trencher more than once, or at most, twice a-week. This mistake our noble visitor resolutely perseveres in, and very complacently reiterates; although when he comes into Wales, where for the first time he seems to make himself practically acquainted with any part of our peasantry, he amuses himself by a poetical picture of a miserable ruinous hut, in the midst of which sat an old woman spinning in silence, while some naked children lay on the ground, gnawing dry crusts of bread. This, however, our German, who is excessively sentimental, does not think fit to consider any draw-back to that charming portrait of "meat and potatoes" which he favoured us with at first. Neither, perhaps, is our philosophizing itinerant much more near to the mark, when in page 146, vol. I. he assures us, with a sententious positiveness that savours of experience, that the Welsh country girls are as "chaste as Vestals." We must warn the Princely pedestrian,—who by the way, as he afterwards informs us, is, by a damsel of no high degree, (yet a favourite withal in an honest way,) mistaken for a Jew,-not to believe that his own fortune in these matters is an infallible characteristic of national incorruptibility, and we will civilly remind him, since he is fond of moral poetry, of those lines in the Cinna. 66 L'Exemple souvent n'est qu'un miroir trompeur His unresting Highness very soon arrives in Ireland. He sees a portrait of Burke, which, he assures us, "announces the orator who never glossed over his own interest with affected enthusiasm for others." Unhappily for the fidelity of the portrait, there never was any man who more, in his writings and speeches, affected enthusiasm for others, than the original, and who being more fervently guided by his passions, was less influenced by his interests. This is a trivial inaccuracy, but it shows one of two things, either that our Prince had never read Burke, or that he read him with a curious infelicity. In general, it is better even for a Traveller in Ireland, to know what he is talking about. We pass over another little criticism, equally rapid and sweeping, in which we are told that " Byron is our second poet, (for after Shakspeare, the palm is surely his);" by informing Prince Pückler Muskau, that in English literature there is yet extant one John Milton, whom we are not quite disposed to see thus suddenly thrust down-will his Highness tell us to what grade of celebrity? Passing from the critic to the statesman, our Tourist, (in page 305, vol. I. of his work,) who is very much displeased with the ignorance of Germans about our political situation, obligingly enlightens them with the intelligence, that " in England, almost the whole soil belongs either to the Government, the Church, or the powerful Aristocracy." This is something like the man who, never having been out of Stony Stratford, and being asked which were the chief cities of England, replied, "London, York, and Stony Stratford." What Stony Stratford is in comparison to York and London, the property of soil vested in Government is to that vested in the Church and the Aristocracy. This is a blunder of somewhat a serious description, for to a German reader it must convey a notion of the power of our Government wholly distinct from the truth. In the same page occurs, however, an acute and just remark— "That contracts of leases, in this country so exceedingly common, obviate many of the inconveniencies of the distribution of landed property, without diminishing its great utility to the State." In page 25, vol. II. our ingenious traveller, carried away by his lively fancy, tells us a sad story of an Irish Lord K, who calls on a Mr. F, at six o'clock in the morning, when he was in bed, and, "in perfect coolness," blows out his brains. On narrating this fact, (His Highness is great in a story!) which happened in Ireland, and in the worst of Irish times, the accomplished tourist draws the following inference :- "The sequel proves how lightly the laws sit on great men in England, when there is not a still greater who has an interest in putting them in force. Lord K- was indeed brought to trial; but as he had taken good care to arrange the affair with the only two witnesses, and to get them out of the way, he was acquitted for want of evidence. No man in England can be tried twice for the same offence; so that from this moment, in spite of the perfect notoriety of the murder, all danger to the murderer was at an end." Now, in the first place, this said murder did not, as we have seen, happen in England; and, secondly, if it had, the laws would not have been to blame; the witnesses went out of the way, and the law does not hang a man without witnesses; it was, therefore, not from remitting the law, but from adhering to it, that Lord K escaped. Well, but his Highness has not half done with Lord Kyet; for he goes on to tell us that this same Lord K's eldest son had married while yet a minor in Sicily-had already three children by her, &c., when he receives a most affectionate invitation from his father to return to Ireland. He does so; and his worthy sire employs all his influence to get the marriage annulled-succeeds, the son marries again, a rich heiress, and diverts himself, after his father's death, by going to law with his mother. Hereupon our sagacious Prince, who is particularly fond of clenching his narratives with an instructive remark, exclaims :— "Here is a picture of the manners of the great and noble of the eighteenth century!" An observer of a higher merit than Göthe's protegé, instead of this enthusiastic exclamation, would have added after his story, that these Irish "manners" were to be carefully distinguished from the English, and not have suffered Germany to suppose, by calling an anomaly a picture, that we amused ourselves in the eighteenth century with shooting gentlemen in bed before breakfast-getting rid of the hangman-marrying young women in Sicily in order to repudiate themand making fierce law on our mothers when we had no pleasanter sin in contemplation. We pass over some little errors, which betray, however, either an inexact or a credulous mind; such as the information he gives us as to the salary of the Irish Viceroy, and the exaggerating assurance that Mr. Beckford paid fifty guineas a week to the owner of a nursery garden for permission to gather what flowers he liked * we will only content ourselves with observing that the following anecdote is not "a characteristic trait of England," as our vivacious Tourist is pleased to inform us : "The (mail) coachman who drove us had lost two hundred pounds in this same unlucky match, (a boxing-match,) and only laughed at it, giving us significantly to understand that he should soon find another dupe, who should pay it him back with interest. What advances must the march of intellect' make on the Continent before the postilions of the Prince of Tour and Taxis, or the Eilwagen drivers of the Herr von Nagler, will be able to lay such bets with their passengers!" Now would not all this give the German people to understand that our mail-coachmen were in the habit of betting two hundred pounds upon boxing-matches; an accidental occurrence, if indeed, as is most probable, the coachman was not hoaxing the "foren gemmen," is not, allow us to suggest to your Highness, a characteristic trait." 66 The two principal portraits which the Tourist has afforded us-for though he professes in his title-pages to give us anecdotes of "distinguished public characters," he is exceedingly sparing in his selection are both Irish. O'Connell is one, and Lady Morgan the other. There is some, but not a very strong likeness, between the portraits and the originals. The Prince insists a good deal upon O'Connell's "martial" appearance, and assures us that he looks more like a general of Napoleon's than a Dublin advocate. We confess we see nothing military in the person or air of the remarkable man he speaks of, unless it be reserved for military men alone to possess a fine chest, and six feet of stature. Nor do we think that any thing whatsoever in O'Connell's manner testifies "his very high opinion of himself." On the contrary, we have met with few men (and this is a general remark), who, having played a prominent part in the world's drama, are in common intercourse so little egotistical or assuming. The great characteristics of O'Connell's manner are the peculiar and winning softness-the goodnatured ease and the power of conciliation which it possessesand which, it must be confessed, differ widely from the notions a stranger would form of the wild and tumultuous agitator. Of course we speak of the ordinary bearing; when the passions are once aroused, all conventional formalities and external manners bend before the stormy We would lay a wager that we could reckon up in these two thin volumes at least a hundred mistakes of one sort or the other. Not even a church is described but there are half a dozen errors in the description,-not even an anecdote recited but there are so many exaggerations that the anecdote is suddenly swelled into a romance; and yet, with all this amplitude of error, we repeat that Prince Pückler Muskau has (accuracy apart!) made his work one of the best sketch-books of travel that has lately appeared. In what a delightful state then must be that class of literature! inspiration. Our traveller, however, does justice to O'Connell's remarkable freedom from bigotry, and general toleration of opposing opinions in religion. No man in the House of Commons utters sentiments of more enlarged and liberal Christianity; and this is the more singular, for in politics the Member for Clare is any thing but a philosopher it is always the common-place of the argument he especially loves to seize; and one cause of his oratorical success is, that though he is an excellent replier, he is never a subtle reasoner. The Prince attends the Catholic Association, and hears O'Connell and Shiel, but gives us no clear notion, nor even attempts it, of the peculiar characteristics of either. The fact is, that our writer is more graphic in copying inanimate nature, than in describing persons. He paints landscapes well, and portraits indifferently. His remarks on Lady Morgan we shall notice hereafter. We have said thus much of his defects, because the book has been far too indiscriminately praised -because it will receive from the rank of the traveller, the nature of the travels, and in spite of its faults, its counterbalancing merits, a pretty general perusal; and because we think it right that not only in England, but also in Germany, where this periodical has some circulation, and, please God! that circulation shall be yet more general, the observations of our visitor should be considered rather as designed to entertain, than calculated to instruct. The merits of the Tourist consist in a vivid eye for scenery, and an eloquent vein of description; an agreeable and sententious faculty of remark, of which we shall give samples, and a fine, healthy, cheerful tone of mind, which compensates for a thousand faults, and betokens one of the most valuable properties of temper with which a traveller can commence his researches. We now subjoin some passages which, beside their recommendation of brevity, appear to us among the best and most characteristic traits of the author's powers of observation. "Never had woman a sweeter temper;' this word is like 'gentle,' untranslateable. Only the nation which invented comfort' was capable of conceiving good temper,' for good temper' is to the moral, what comfort' is to the physical man." "With 'gentleness' in his own character, comfort' in his house, and 'good temper' in his wife, the earthly felicity of man is complete." "Such acquaintanceships (of a day) I like; they leave no time for dissembling; ignorant of each other's social relations, each values in the other only the "The love of music in England is a mere affair of fashion. There is no nation in Europe which pays music better, or understands it worse." We now subjoin two passages, the one of considerable grace and delicacy of expression, the other of some depth and much truth. They (the stars) are the characters by which God has from all time spoken to the soul of man; and yet I had thought not of those heavenly lights, so long as the earthly ones sparkled before me. But thus is it ever, when Earth forsakes us we seek Heaven.' "Politics, in the highest signification of the word, is the religion of modern times. Should crusades now be undertaken, that alone would be the object. The notion of representative Chambers has now-a-days a more electric effect than that of a ruling Church." So much for our German visitor. Let us now look to ourselves; let us English men and women reap whatever good we can collect from the observations of others. What in our manners, what in our character seems ridiculous, or unamiable; let us examine well whether it be deserved. It is for these useful lessons that we have chiefly singled out this work for review. In the first place, dear countrywomen, our tourist does not think the better of you for those airs of prudery and reserve which it pleases you to assume. He draws a contrast between you and the Irishwomen, rather to the advantage of the latter. Now we know there is not a creature in the world like an Englishwoman. But we think with our Tourist, that she has much to learn from the sparkle-the grace-the warm, yet not forward vivacity of her "Sister of Erin." An Englishwoman is always so singularly afraid of showing her heart. Believe us, dear countrywomen, there is no immodesty in good dispositions, and no indecorum in generous impulses ! The traveller also notes in us that miserable want of a vigorous independence in opinion, which undoubtedly contaminates and degrades our national character, and is at once the cause of fashion and its consequence. "An Englishman," says he justly, " is much less guided by his own observation than is generally imagined; he always attaches himself to some party, with whose eyes he sees." Hence, as the tourist remarks in the same part of his work, " character means (in a country where appearance has more weight than in any other) not the result or sum of a man's moral and intellectual qualities, but his reputation." That is to say, that we think well or ill of a person, not from what he is, but from what is said of him. We ourself, the writer of the present article, in other places than this, have constantly dinned this truth into our countrymen's ears-we hope with some success; and now that they see how much it not only tends to diminish their respectability in the eyes of foreigners, but also to belie that fancied sturdy, manly character of which they affect to be proud; perhaps they will begin seriously and earnestly to judge for themselves-not seek to know what Mr. So-and-so says of a book, or Lady Such-anone of a person-but out with the truth, and shame the devil "Fashion!" Our Tourist also observes on the mechanical nature of our religion, and says, very justly, that with us it is not a matter of feeling but of "good taste." We think it mauvais ton to affect the deist, and in the words of the author, "we regard a man who neglects church, just in the same light as one who eats fish with a knife."* Here, as men deem it insincerity, and women indelicacy, to show affection, so both sexes unite in deeming it hypocrisy to be fervent. We are a regular people, not a devout one. But what in 1828 and 29 * In the same page is a hint to the novelists of "fashionable life." The German noble sneers, as he well may, at our English horror in seeing a foreign ambassador put, in eating, his knife in his mouth. Now really thorough-bred people never regard these minutiæ of the table, in which, according to some writers, they are supposed to dwell in decencies for ever." The "Yes and No" of Lord Normanby (now Lord Mulgrave) is perhaps the best and most faithful picture of " Good Society" which our circulating libraries afford. Lord Mulgrave, besides being a very clever man, is likely to be an excellent judge of the habits and train of thought existent in the circle he describes, and in which he himself is not only a nobleman, but an influential and distinguished person; and we were the more particularly pleased to perceive that in that novel he strikes dumb the Lackey School, and makes his "fine gentleman" scorn all the little vulgarities of conventiontake ale at his pleasure, and publicly connect himself with cheese. The fact is, that the great proof of the true gentleman in all countries and in all grades of life, is INDEPENDENCE! |