brought forward by our author as a powerful motive to contentment. "Possibly," says he, "what we now look upon as the greatest misfortune, is not really such in itself. For my own part, I question not but our souls in a separate state will look back on their lives in quite another view than what they had of them in the body; and that what they now consider as misfortunes and disappointments, will very often appear to have been escapes and blessings." The essays on "Cheerfulness" 1 present us with a most pleasing view of the author's habitual temper of mind, and are written with great perspicuity of argument, and in a strain of the most persuasive eloquence. The definitions of mirth and cheerfulness, with which the first essay opens, are uncommonly just and beautiful. "Mirth," says he, "is short and transient, cheerfulness fixed and permanent. Mirth is like a flash of lightning, that breaks through a gloom of clouds, and glitters for a moment; cheerfulness keeps up a kind of daylight in the mind, and fills it with a steady and perpetual serenity. He considers cheerfulness in three points of view-as it regards ourselves, or those we converse with, or the Author of our being; and affirms that nothing but guilt or infidelity ought reasonably to deprive us of its blessings. He details its salutary effects both upon the health of the body and mind, delivers observations on the goodness of the Deity in rendering creation in all its parts subservient to the promotion of this desirable state, and concludes by recommending a taste for natural history, and by inculcating a religious sense of obligation to the Creator of all that is good and beautiful. "The cheerfulness of heart," he observes, "which springs up in us from the survey of nature's works is an admirable preparation for gratitude. The mind has gone a great way toward praise and thanksgiving that is filled with such secret gladness. A grateful reflection on the Supreme Cause who produces it sanctifies it in the soul, and gives it its proper value. Such an habitual disposition of mind consecrates every field and wood, turns an ordinary walk into a morning or evening sacrifice, and will improve those transient gleams of joy which naturally brighten up and refresh the soul on such occasions, into an inviolable and perpetual state of bliss and happiness." The piety of Addison was founded on a clear and rational view of the attributes of the Deity, and of the doctrines of Christianity; and in the "Spectator" more especially, he has seized every opportunity of supporting and illustrating the great and momentous truths of natural and revealed religion. His essays on "the Supreme Being," on the "Omnipresence of the Deity," and on the "Immortality of the Soul," exhibit the power and goodness of the Creator in a manner at once sublime and philosophic. I consider. 1 "Spectator," Nos. 381, 387, 393. 3 2 Ibid., No. 531. indeed, the paper on "Omnipresence and Omniscience" as one of the most perfect, impressive, and instructive pieces of composition that ever flowed from the pen of an uninspired moralist.1 Of the literary character of Addison, the preceding essays have attempted to delineate the leading features, and will, it is probable, impress upon the mind of the reader a very high idea of its excellence and utility. To him, in the first place, may we ascribe the formation of a style truly classical and pure, whose simplicity and grace have not yet been surpassed, and which, presenting a model of unprecedented elegance, laid the foundation for a general and increasing attention to the beauty and harmony of composition. His critical powers were admirably adapted to awaken and inform the public mind; to teach the general principles by which excellence may be attained; and, above all, to infuse a relish for the noblest productions of taste and genius. In humor, no man in this country, save Shakspeare, has excelled him; he possessed the faculty of an almost intuitive discrimination of what was ludicrous and characteristic in each individual, and, at the same time, the most happy facility in so tinting and grouping his paintings that, while he never overstepped the modesty of nature, the result was alike rich in comic effect, in warmth of coloring, and in originality of design. Though his poetry, it must be confessed, is not remarkable for the energies of fancy, the tales, visions, and allegories dispersed through his periodical writings make abundant recompense for the defect, and very amply prove that, in the conception and execution of these exquisite pieces, no talent of the genuine bard, except that of versification, lay dormant or unemployed. It is, however, the appropriate, the transcendent praise of Addison, that he steadily and uniformly, and in a manner peculiarly his own, exerted these great qualities in teaching and disseminating a love for morality and religion. He it was who, following the example of the divine Socrates, first stripped philosophy in this island of her scholastic garb, and bade her, clothed in the robes of elegant simplicity, allure and charm the multitude. He saw his countrymen become better as they became wiser; he saw them, through his instructions, feel and own the beauty of holiness and virtue; and for this we may affirm, posterity, however distant or refined, shall revere and bless his memory. CHARACTER OF DR. JOHNSON. Let us now recapitulate the various channels into which the efforts of Dr. Johnson were directed. As a Poet he cannot claim a station in the first rank. He is a See "Compendium of English Literature," p. 361. disciple of Pope; all that strong sentiment, in nervous language and harmonious metre can effect, he possesses in a high degree. We may further affirm that his "London," his "Vanity of Human Wishes," his "Prologue on the Opening of Drury-Lane Theatre," and his "Stanzas on the Death of Levet," will never die. To excellence as a Bibliographer he had many pretensions; strength of memory, an insatiable love of books, and a most extraordinary facility in acquiring an intimacy with their contents. What he has produced in this department is not of much extent, but it is well performed. His merits as a Biographer are so prominent as to be beyond all dispute. His Lives of Savage, of Cowley, of Dryden, and of Pope are masterpieces, which, in many respects, can fear no rivalry. An intimate acquaintance with the human heart, and the most skilful introduction of moral and monitory precept, combine to render many of his productions under this head unspeakably valuable to the dearest interests of mankind. It must not be concealed, however, that they are occasionally deformed by his prejudices, his aversions, and his constitutional gloom. In his character as an Essayist, though essentially different in mode from, he ranks next in value to, Addison. He lashes the vices rather than ridicules the follies of mankind; and his wit and humor are, by no means, so delicate and finely shaded as those of his predecessor. In force, in dignity, in splendor of eloquence; in correctness of style, melody of cadence, and rotundity of period; in precision of argument and perspicuity of inference, he is much superior to the author of the "Spectator;" but, on the other hand, he must yield the palm in ease and sweetness, in simplicity and vivacity. The three great faults, indeed, of Johnson as an essayist, are, a style too uniformly labored and majestic for the purposes of a popular essay, a want of variety in the choice of subject, and, in his survey of human life, a tone too gloomy and austere, too querulous and desponding. The "Rambler" is, however, notwithstanding these defects, a work that, in vigor of execution and comprehensiveness of utility, will not easily be paralleled; it is, in fact, a vast treasury of moral precept and ethic instruction. The reputation of Johnson as a Philologer appears to be somewhat on the decline. The attention which has been lately paid to lexicography has laid open many omissions and defects in his Dictionary; but it should be considered that a work of this kind must necessarily be defective; and that with our author rests the sole merit of having chalked out a plan, which, if not filled up by his own execution, must, there is every reason to think, be closely followed by his emulators, to attain the perfection at which he aimed. When we consider Johnson under the appellation of a Novelist, it is impossible not to regret that "Rasselas" is the only work on which he can properly found a claim to the title. Yet we must add that, if in beauty of imagery, sublimity of sentiment, and knowledge of men and manners, too much praise cannot be given to this philosophic tale, it is obligatory on us to confess that it is greatly deficient in two essential qualifications of a legitimate novel, plot and incident. "Rasselas," indeed, is merely the vehicle of the author's opinions on human life, and which, we are sorry to remark, partake of the same gloom which darkens the pages of the "Rambler." A very few lines will sketch our author's pretensions to the honors of a Commentator. The plan of his edition of Shakspeare has been much and justly admired; and no greater proof can be given of its excellence than that every subsequent annotator has pursued the path which he had laid open. He was himself, however, too indolent, and too deficient in the very line of reading which he had recommended for the illustration of his bard, to carry his own instructions into effect; his edition, therefore, though it has been the parent of the best that we possess, is now of little value. Not much, I am afraid, can be said in favor of our author as a Politician. He was at one time a most furious Jacobite, and his tenets at all times, with regard to legislation, were vehement, confined, and partial; so arbitrary, indeed, as to be frequently repugnant to the spirit of the British Constitution. He was, however, a high-flown Tory on principle; and his political pamphlets, though deficient in candor, display considerable subtlety in point of argument, and much energy and perspicuity of style. With a few deductions for prejudices which he had early imbibed, his merits as a Tourist will appear great and unclouded. His object was to analyze and compare men, manners, and modes of life; and his volume is at once elegant, philosophic, and ingenious. That he is entitled, in the most honorable sense of the term, to the appellation of a Critic, those who shall merely peruse his Preface to Shakspeare, and his Lives of Cowley, Dryden, and Pope, will not probably deny. Since the days of Quintilian, indeed, no better specimens of criticism than these have been given to the world. How highly is it to be lamented then, that, prosecuting the study of his "Lives," we find the residue for the most part tinctured and deformed by relentless prejudices; by party-zeal and unfeeling dogmatism; by a spirit systematically hostile to received opinion, and unfriendly to contemporary merit. With all these defects, however, and they are strikingly prominent, great has been the benefit derived to elegant literature from the publication of his "Critical Biography." It has established an era in the Republic of Letters; it has set an example in this country, which has been assiduously followed, of recording the events attendant on the lives, the studies, and publications of literary men; and it has given birth to a widely-extending taste for critical disquisitions. From the usual tenor of his style, it was not to be expected that our great moralist would excel as an Epistolary Writer. The letters of Johnson, however, though sometimes not entirely free from his customary elaboration, are, in general, graceful, easy, and perspicuous. They fully develop the character of the man; some are gloomy, some pathetic and beautifully moral; others lively, domestic, and interesting. If they cannot be said to rival the letters of Cowper, yet will they still take their station among the best epistolary collections in our language. The opinions and principles of the doctor as a Theologian are chiefly to be gathered from his conversation, as preserved by Mr. Boswell, and from his prayers. He appears from these to have been a zealous High-churchman, with a strong bias toward some of the Roman Catholic tenets. His piety and devotion were warm and sincere; and his prayers, the language of which is altogether plain, simple, and unadorned, teach us that his faith, his humility, and gratitude were great. From an ardent desire of further evidence with regard to the state of the departed, he was solicitous to ascertain the possibility of the reappearance of the dead. His anxiety on this subject rendered him superstitious, though not credulous; for he was, in a very extraordinary degree, minute and cautious in examining the supposed proofs, and was, more than once, instrumental in detecting their fallacy, and exposing the arts of imposture. To many of his Sermons much praise is due for their perspicuity of style, their felicity of illustration, and their sound practical morality. We may, indeed, close this summary with the affirmation that, if Addison be excepted, no writer of the eighteenth century can be said to have contributed so highly, so copiously, and so permanently, to the improvement of our literature and language as Johnson. Whether considered as a Biographer, an Essayist, a Lexicographer, or a Critic, he is alike entitled to the gratitude of his country and of mankind. SIR EGERTON BRYDGES, 1762-1837. SAMUEL EGERTON BRYDGES, the distinguished antiquary in English Literature, was the son of Edward Brydges, Esq., of Wootton Court, in Kent, and was born at that place on the 30th of November, 1762. After the usual preparatory studies, he entered Queen's College, Cambridge, in October, 1780, with the character of a good classical scholar, who excelled in the composition of Latin as well as Eng |