mendous crisis, and this nothing but the creations of true genius can inspire. Lord Byron, notwithstanding his pretensions to the contrary, seems to have been very sensible to criticism. "When I first saw the review of my Hours of Idleness,' I was furious; in such a rage as I never have been in since. · "I dined that day with Scroope Davies, and drank three bottles of claret to drown it; but it only boiled the more. That critique was a masterpiece of low wit, a tissue of scurrilous abuse. I remember there was a great deal of vulgar trash in it which was meant for humor, about people being thankful for what they could get,' not looking a gift horse in the mouth,' and such stable expressions. The severity of The Quarterly' killed poor Keats, and neglect, Kirk White; but I was made of different stuff, of tougher materials. So far from their bullying me, or deterring me from writing, I was bent on falsifying their raven predictions, and deter. mined to show them, croak as they would, that it was not the last time they should hear from me. I set to work immediately, and in good earnest, and produced in a year The English Bards and Scotch Reviewers." For the first four days after it was announced, I was very nervous about its fate. Generally speaking, the first fortnight decides the public opinion of a new book. This made a prodigious impression, more perhaps, than any of my works except The Corsair.' The effect on his Lordship of a perusal of Mr. Southey's reply to a Note of Byron's Two Foscari, is well described by Capt. Medwin, and gives an insight into the motives which the first of modern poets allowed to regulate his conduct. I never shall forget his countenance as he glanced rapidly over the contents. He looked perfectly awful: his color changed almost prismatically; his lips were as pale as death. He said not a word. He read it a second time, and with more attention than his rage at first permitted, commenting on some of the passages as he went on. When he had finished, he threw down the paper, and asked me if I thought there was any thing of a personal nature in the reply that demanded satisfaction; as, if there was, he would instantly set off for England and call Southey to an account,muttering something about whips, and branding-irons, and gibbets, and wounding the heart of a woman,-words of Mr. Southey's. I said that, as to personality, his own expressions of "cowardly ferocity," "pitiful renegado," " hireling," much stronger than any in the letter before me. He paused a moment, and said: Perhaps you are right: but I will consider of it. You have not seen my 'Vision of Judgment.' I wish I had a copy to show you; but the only one I have is in London. I had almost decided not to publish it, but it shall now go forth to the world." Lord Byron's opinions of his cotemporaries are interesting enough; although apparently very much biassed by personal prepossessions. The following account of Scott's involuntary confession of his authorship of the Waverly novels, we think extremely questionable : "Scott as much as owned himself the author of Waverly' to me in Murray's shop," replied he. "I was talking to him about that novel, and Vol. II. No. IX. 28 lamented that its author had not carried back the story nearer to the time of the Revolution. Scott entirely off his guard, said, Ay, might have done so, but'-There he stopped. It was in vain to attempt to correct himself: he looked confused, and relieved his embarrassment by a precipitate retreat." The poet and the orator are seldom united in the same individual. Fox made some wretched verses, of which he was always very vain, and which we believe have been praised by some of his panegyrists. Lord Byron was quite as unsuccessful in the bouse of Lords. "I only addressed the House twice, and made little impression. They told me that my manner of speaking was not dignified enough for the Lords, but was more calculated for the Commons. I believe it was a Don Juan kind of speech. The two occasions were, the Catholic Question, and (I think he said) some Manchester affair.”* Our limits prevent us from extending our remarks upon the remainder of the Conversations.' We cannot refrain however, from making one observation here, in which many of our readers we believe will join us; which is, that Shelley is more properly the hero of the Conversations' than Lord Byron. We hope we shall not be considered as overlooking or extenuating Shelley's irreligion, when we regret, that the odium which his infidelity has created has been very unnecessarily extended to his character and reputation as a poet. Southey's unmanly abuse of Shelley in the Quarterly-his dark and malignant insinuations against a private character which (with the exception of his religious errors) we believe was perfectly irreproachable-and his illiberal depreciation of his unquestionable powers, have already, we are aware, moved the scorn of every generous and honest heart. But the injustice done to Shelley has never been repaired. The voice of calumny has gone abroad against him, threatening his fame and dishonoring his memory. His friends are few, and dare not stem the tide of obloquy that is fast carrying his name beyond the reach or opportunity of rescue. Surely, if youth and inexperience can excuse, and if worth and virtue can expiate, the faults of indiscretion and the follies of delusion, Shelley has not merited the unceasing and unpitying persecution which has followed him to the latest moment of his life; and if, as we believe, there is a redeeming energy and living vigor in the works of genius, neither to be crushed by violence nor blighted by neglect, we do not yet despair to see the day, when the rare and varied powers of this highly gifted bard *We believe it is generally known that these two speeches were complete failures. will no longer be concealed beneath the cloud that he himself, with singular perverseness, has gathered round his name. We shall conclude this article, already too long, by inserting the following very interesting account of the burning of Shelley's body, referring our readers to the book before us, for much valuable information respecting the short but eventful life of this unfortunate young poet. "18th August, 1822.-On the occasion of Shelley's melancholy fate I revisited Pisa, and on the day of my arrival learnt that Lord Byron was gone to the sea-shore, to assist in performing the last offices to his friend. We came to a spot marked by an old and withered trunk of a fir-tree; and near it, on the beach, stood a solitary hut covered with reeds. The situa tion was well calculated for a poet's grave. A few weeks before I had ridden with him and Lord Byron to this very spot, which I afterwards visited more than once. In front was a magnificent extent of the blue and windless Mediterranean, with the Isles of Elba and Gorgona,-Lord Byron's yacht at anchor in the offing; on the other side an almost boundless extent of sandy wilderness, uncultivated and uninhabited, here and there interspersed in tufts with underwood curved by the sea-breeze, and stunted by the barren and dry nature of the soil in which it grew. At equal distances along the coast stood high square towers, for the double purpose of guarding the coast from smuggling, and enforcing the quarantine laws. This view was bounded by an immense extent of the Italian Alps, which are here particularly picturesque from their volcanic and manifold appearances, and which being composed of white marble, give their summits the resemblance of snow. "As a foreground to this picture appeared as extraordinary a group. Lord Byron and Trelawney were seen standing over the burning pile, with some of the soldiers of the guard; and Leigh Hunt, whose feelings and nerves could not carry him through the scene of horror, lying back in the carriage, the four post horses ready to drop with the intensity of the noon-day sun. The stillness of all around was yet more felt by the shrill scream of a solitary curlew, which, perhaps attracted by the body, wheeled in such narrow circles round the pile that it might have been struck with the hand, and was so fearless that it could not be driven away." His remains were then deposited in the burial-ground with those of his friend Keats, near Caius Cestius's Pyramid, "a spot so beautiful, that it might almost make one in love with death." Message from the President of the United States, to both Houses of Congress, at the commencement of the second session of the eighteenth Congress. Washington. Gales & Seaton. 1824. pp. 19. Documents accompanying the Message of the President of the United States, &c. Washington. Gales & Seaton. 1824. pp. 176. In the messages of the President at the opening of Congress, most of the leading events of the preceding year are generally brought under review. In the paper before us, a very appropriate allusion is made to the visit of LA FAYETTE, in which the chief magistrate has but expressed the sentiments of the whole body of the American people. Our commercial relations with foreign powers-the slave trade-reclamations on the governments of Europe for spoliations upon our lawful commerce-piracy in the West Indies-internal improvements and financial concerns, are the other principal topics of the message. The principles adopted by our government as to commerce were early developed. In addition to the cases cited by the President of the treaty of 1778 with France, and of 1785 with Prussia, we may refer for the views entertained by the United States on this subject to the Report of Mr. Jefferson, made in 1791, immediately before his retiring from the office of Secretary of State. "Instead of embarrassing commerce under piles of regulating laws, duties, and prohibitions," it was desirable that it should, in the language of the paper referred to, "be relieved from all its shackles in all parts of the world. Would even a single nation begin with the United States, this system of free commerce, it would be advisable to begin it with that nation. But should any nation, contrary to the wishes of America, suppose it may better find its advantages by continuing its system of prohibitions, duties, and regulations, it would behove the United States to protect their citizens, their commerce, and navigation by counter prohibitions, duties, and regulations also."* Commercial reciprocity has ever been favored by our government, and if, in some cases, as in the existing commercial convention with France, countervailing duties have been established, they are not imputable to the United States. It is a source of no small satisfaction to find that the true principles of trade have not only been acted on by the old governments of Europe, and our commerce with several of them placed on a footing of perfect reciprocity," but that they are about to be established in our intercourse with the new states of Spanish America. A treaty of commerce has been signed with Colombia, and the death of our Plenipotentiary alone prevented the completion of similar arrangements with Buenos Ayres. 66 It appears that besides the supression of the slave trade, several important subjects have been proposed for negotiation between this country and Great Britain. Among the topics for diplomatic discussion is "the commercial 5 Marsh. Wash. 484. intercourse between the United States and the colonial possessions of Great Britain in America and the West Indies; and the claim of the United States to the navigation of the river St. Lawrence."* It is well known that the convention, now in force between us and Great Britain, only relates to the trade with the mother country, and that our intercourse with the West Indies has, since the peace, been subject to those fluctuations to which countervailing duties give rise, and which must always be mutually injurious. To allude to the provisions of the various retaliatory acts passed by the British Parliament and American Congress, during the period referred to, can serve no good purpose, especially, as although the subject has not, as yet, been arranged to our satisfaction," an approach to that result has been made by legislative acts, whereby many serious impediments, which had been raised by the parties in defence of their respective claims, were removed." That the same principles, which led to the adoption of the existing convention, would cause its provisions to be extended to the colonies, cannot be doubted. Now, indeed, that English statesmen seem fully sensible that the legislative regulation of trade is opposed to the sound principles of political science, we have every reason to expect exertions on their part to break down the barriers, which, in peace, have presented almost as great obstacles to a free intercourse between nations as those which are created by a state of war. When, however, false maxims are acted on for a considerable time, it is no easy task to restore the body politic to a sound condition. Regulations create artificial interests, and all changes, even those which true policy dictates, must be injurious to fixed capital and to particu lar classes of individuals. It requires, therefore, some degree of moral courage for a politician, in the common sense of the term, to attempt a reform. The alterations in the English laws of navigation and commerce within a few years have been as great, as a respect for deep-rooted prejudices and artificial interests would permit. Many of the regulations of Great Britain owed their origin to the peculiar situation of that country in relation to other powers. While England prohibited, and other nations tolerated the slave trade, the British government considered themselves bound to give to their own islands the exclusive right of supplying England with the productions, which were their staple commodities. While on this point, we cannot avoid quoting a few words from a work whose utility in disseminating correct notions of political economy, however we may be sometimes compelled to differ from it on other points, we ought always to be willing to acknow *Documents, &c. p. 27. Message, &c. p. 5. |