to the Author's dear friend and sister Poetess, Caroline Bowles,' in some lines which express a salutary, feeling,

'How frail the tenure of existence here.'

We should be unwilling to receive these lays as the Poet's last.

Art. IX. Biographical Sketches and Authentic Anecdotes of Dogs. By Captain Thomas Brown. 12mo. pp. 570. Price 8s. 6d. Edinburgh. 1829.

WE

E are at some loss how to deal with this amusing book. It cannot be recommended to general reading, since some of the details, although important to breeders, are exceedingly disgusting in themselves. Neither is it likely to obtain so implicit a credence, as if a more severe criticism had presided over its compilation. There is altogether a want of discrimination about the work, which will interfere with its popularity; and this is the more to be regretted, because great and successful pains have been taken in the accumulation of facts, and some valuable additions are made to the great mass of evidence, in favour of the intelligence and affectionate fidelity of the dog. Many of the anecdotes, however, are curious only to those who have never observed the habits of this more than 'half-reasoning' animal; and some of them derive their originality merely from a want of attention to peculiarities which are every day before our eyes. For instance, there is a wonderful account, which has gone the round of the newspapers, of a speaking dog, who is said to articulate the word 'William,' in immediate address to a person of that name; and we are left to suppose, that the term is actually used by the animal, in its application to the man. That the syllables in question, or something very like them, are really emitted by the beast, we are the less inclined to doubt, because we have ourselves frequently heard similar sounds sent forth, much in the same way. We have the honour to be on exceedingly intimate terms with a half-bred poodle, of excellent sense and temper, but who has a great dislike to caresses long continued. If patted on the head, or stroked for, more than a few seconds, he begins to move his lips; his tongue turns white; he shews his teeth; whines, or, in Captain Brown's phrase, treats the hearer with a gurring voluntary;' and at length, very distinctly articulates sundry words of one and two syllables, among which, well, well,' bang, bang,' are very plain, and William' equally so, though in a lower and more muttering tone. Luckily, as there is no William' in the family, there is no temptation to congratulate the dog on having studied

the enunciation of his name; and the affair resolves itself into involuntary movements of the larynx and tongue.

It is not often that we are in a story-telling humour, and now that we are in the mood, we will so far give way to it, as to venture a tale of canine freakishness, the meaning and moral of which we shall leave to others for explanation. A favourite cat and dog were at high romps in a room where a lady was sitting, whose attention was attracted by the gambols of the animals. At length, the dog ceased abruptly from his sport, and ran hastily out of the apartment, while his companion retired beneath a chair, and dropped into a quiet doze. After some time, he returned and looked eagerly about the room for his playmate, whom he soon spied out and dragged from her retreat, took up in his mouth, and again left the room. The singularity of these manœuvres excited the curiosity of the lady, and she followed the dog, who had fairly carried puss into the garden, and proceeding to the brink of a hole which he had dug during his previous absence, commenced the awful ceremony of burying her alive. The cat felt and expressed strong objections to this uncivil and unauthorized process; and her struggles reduced him to the necessity of employing one paw in the act of holding her down, while with the other he enacted the sexton: she was, however, too lithe and nimble to be managed by one pair of paws, and at last effected her escape.

One more anecdote, which we received from the lips of the friend to whom the circumstance occurred, and we have done with a sort of gossiping that we begin to feel rather infra dig. He was bathing in the river Lea, near Hackney, and having taken a deep plunge, was trying how long he could remain under water. While thus immersed, he felt his shoulder firmly seized by two formidable rows of teeth, and forthwith commenced a rapid and extemporaneous discussion of the question, whether sharks ever found their way up the Thames and its tributaries. A few seconds settled the point, for, on looking round, he saw the large benevolent eyes of a fine Newfoundland dog staring him full in the face. He rose to the surface, and suffered himself to be steered ashore by his new acquaintance, who expressed the utmost joy, and wagged his tail with much selfcomplacency, in the full conviction that he had saved a valuable life. After the requisite acknowledgments, our friend prepared to finish his bath; but, as often as he approached the bank for that purpose, the dog interposed in the most determined manner, shewed his teeth, and by a significant growl, intimated such a thorough-going opposition to the intention, that it was perforce abandoned.

There are not a few curious points of inquiry connected with these matters, that might have obtained more specific notice

than has been given them by Captain Brown. Both Toplady and Wesley maintained the immortality of beasts; and we have never heard any better argument against it, than the wise question, whether we thought that fleas and rattle-snakes would inhabit paradise. This, however, is a thesis on which we are not disposed to waste either time or ink; but, on the minor question, concerning the existence of the reasoning faculty in the domesticable animals, we have no misgivings whatever. We have witnessed, in dogs, actions quite impossible to be accounted for in any other way; at least, if putting fact to fact and drawing a just inference, be an exercise of reason. We could cite, too, facts that would go nigh to prove that these animals are capable, to a considerable extent, and independently of tone, looks, or gesture, of understanding conversation in which they are concerned. But for these investigations, this is not the place; nor shall we aid them by extensive extract from Captain Brown, a large portion of whose collectanea has been long familiar to the public. Among the anecdotes which are new to us, occurs the following from the communications of Sir Walter Scott.

"The wisest dog I ever had was what is called the Bull-Dog Terrier. I taught him to understand a great many words, insomuch that I am positive that the communication betwixt the canine species and ourselves might be greatly enlarged. Camp once bit the baker, who was bringing bread to the family. I beat him, and explained the enormity of his offence; after which, to the last moment of his life, he never heard the least allusion to the story, in whatever voice or tone it was mentioned, without getting up and retiring into the darkest corner of the room with great appearance of distress. Then if you said, 'The baker was well paid', or 'The baker was not hurt after all', Camp came forth from his hiding-place, capered, and barked, and rejoiced. When he was unable, towards the end of his life, to attend me when on horseback, he used to watch for my return, and the servant used to tell him, his master was coming down the hill, or through the moor'; and although he did not use any gesture to explain his meaning, Camp was never known to mistake him, but either went out at the front to go up the hill, or at the back to get down to the moor-side. He certainly had a singular knowledge of spoken language." p. 408.

The wood-cuts are, we have no doubt, faithful representations of the different animals, but we cannot speak highly of their execution.

VOL. II.-N.S.

EE

Art. X. Some Account of the Life of Reginald Heber, D.D., Bishop of Calcutta. With a Portrait. 18mo. pp. 240. Price 5s. London. 1829.

IT is understood, that a detailed memoir of Bishop Heber's life is in the course of preparation by the person who 'knew and loved him the best. In the mean time, we venture 'to collect such scattered particulars as have been published by 'writers having access to authentic sources of intelligence, and 'present them in one connected view.' In other words, this is a catchpenny compilation of scraps and extracts from the Bishop's Journal, the Notes to Clarke's Travels, the Quarterly Review, &c., hastily got up, in order to anticipate the authentic memoir which is announced to be in preparation. Of the fitness of the Writer to be the Biographer of Heber, the following paragraph will enable our readers to judge.

A sanguine spirit has gone forth thither (to the East), expecting ends without means-hailing the most equivocal symptoms as infallible signs of conversion-prompting replies to the listless heathen, and then recording those parrot-words as spontaneous tokens of grace. To every sentence which one of the Missionaries addressed to a man before him, covered with cow-dug, he received as an answer, "Nisam ! (most certain!) pronounced with great gravity, and accompanied by a sober nod of the head. "I was much cheered", says the worthy teacher, "by his approving so cordially the doctrines of salvation" ;and if here the questions had ended, this man would have had as good a right to be enrolled among the lists of converted heathens as many more; but, unluckily, it was further asked, "How old are you? "How long have you been Sunyasee?"-to which he replied, with the same emphasis as before, Nisam! Nisam!' p. 91.

Whether the Writer has invented this story or not, is immaterial: the lie is in its application. How acutely pained would Bishop Heber have been, could he have foreseen the perverse use that would be made of his name and authority! How would he have shrunk from the fulsome and dishonouring praise that has been lavished upon his character, by some who have little claim to a kindred spirit, and who cherish his memory chiefly for what he was not! The bigot and the worldling would fain represent the good Bishop of Calcutta as such a one as themselves; and his example has been eagerly adduced as a model of Christian excellence, for the purpose of discountenancing the high-toned piety which he would have approved, and the evangelical labours in which, when on earth, he rejoiced to concur. If any thing could injure his memory, it would be the indiscreet and misjudging eulogies of his panegyrists. A writer in the Quarterly Review compares his death to that of Fletcher of Madely! What conceivable analogy was there between their careers or characters?

Art. X1. Life of Mahomet.

Published under the Superintendence of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. 8vo. pp. 32. Price 6d. London, 1829.

THE publications of a Society established under such high auspices, having on its committee the names of some of the most distinguished men of science and letters among our contemporaries, might seem to repel and defy the attempt to subject them to an anonymous court of criticism. It might be presumed, that nothing short of first-rate excellence would distinguish the compositions put forth under the Imprimatur of so illustrious a confederacy; that no job-work, no journey-work, no juvenile essaying or venerable prosing, would be allowed to find its way to the public with the accumulated sanction of such a chairman and vice-chairman, and so many noble lords and right honourable and learned personages. We should, indeed, have felt somewhat more assured of this, had the responsibility been less widely distributed,-we were going to say dissipated. Experience has sufficiently taught us, that large committees are very inefficient bodies,-feeble in council, and a most impotent executive; in fact, little better than a pretence, for what is the duty of so many, is the business of none.

The name of one responsible editor would have given us stronger assurance that the works of the Society would be competently looked after, than the whole three columns of patronizing lords and gentlemen.

Nevertheless, we have taken it for granted, that the Library of Useful Knowledge is in every way worthy of its Society and its avowed object; and as to the series of scientific treatises which have appeared, we entertain no doubt that they will be found equally competent and popular. Hydrostatics, Mechanics, Heat, Navigation, Algebra,-these are branches of 'useful knowledge' which we could confidently commit to the care of the august body who have undertaken to render them accessible to the lower classes in the cheapest and plainest form. No one would undertake to treat of such subjects, who had not a respectable acquaintance with them; and the requisite qualifications are of a tangible and specific kind, easily ascertained. It is otherwise with such mixed subjects as come under the heads of history and biography. These may be, and frequently are undertaken by persons utterly unqualified to handle them; and at the same time, it depends absolutely upon the complex qualifications of the writer,-his literary competency, his veracity and impartiality, his correct views of moral and religious principles, his knowledge of human nature, and his means of information as regards the proper authorities, whether the performance