uninteresting. Mr Scott, a poet entirely national, has naturally enough awakened national enthusiasm in his favour. The mere local interest of the scenery has been added to his other attractions; and his poems have been the companion and the guide of those, who sought to explore the, beauties of his native country. In reviewing a poem of this description, it is usual to begin with an analysis of the story. After due consideration, we do not see any advantages attendant on this practice. To those who have read the poem, it must be superfluous; to those who have not, it is impairing the pleasure they are to derive from it. Even to those who are destined never to peruse it, such a meagre outline can communicate no portion of the pleasure which it is calculated to yield. A better idea may perhaps be conveyed by giving a brief sketch of the persons who figure as its leading cha racters. The most prominent, by far, and the one who excites the greatest interest, is Bertram. This personage had originally been a buccaneer, and, in that savage and adventurous character, had roved over all the American coasts. Such a course of life had obliterated every trace of gentleness or mercy, which might have been implanted in his rugged nature. He appears now as an accomplished ruffian, insensible to every claim of pity or remorse, and only to be shaken by the terrors of superstition. The terrible energy of his character, his matchless force and courage, and the dreadful scenes into which he precipitates himself, inspire, however, a species of admiration and fearful interest. This cannot be said of the high-born sharer of his guilt, Oswald Wycliffe, whose villany, mingled with cowardice, inspires only disgust. A more interesting object is found in Martham, once a bold and warlike leader, but who, betrayed into an in voluntary crime, has become the prey of ceaseless remorse. A character strongly contrasted with all these, and very ill-suited to the rude period in which he lived is Wilfred. Although he be the minstrel of the poem, he is not drawn with that fond partiality, which the author has shewn in his other productions for that gifted character. He seems rather to exhibit him as a beacon, to deter others from rashly devoting themselves to similar pursuits. This votary of the Muse is represented as unfit for all active life, a visionary, and finally the victim of hopeless love. Matilda and Redmond are the proper heroine and hero of the tale; they are, as usual, adorned with every accomplishment; are formed for each other, and finally united. They do not, however, appear till far on in the poem, and never occupy any very prominent share in the reader's atten tion. Among the subordinate characters, we may mention Denzil, the leader of a party of robbers, and the associate of Bertram. But we viewed with more pleasure one of his band, Edmund, a youth and a poet, who, not yet hardened, rues, at every interval, his guilty trade, and laments his days of innocence, and the maid whom he has forsaken. His songs, and simple lamentations, form one of the most interesting parts of the poem. It is now time to present our readers with some specimens of the execution of Rokeby. We shall begin with the description of Wilfrid, the love sick minstrel. Wilfrid, docile, soft, and mild, With one fair form to grace his side; Ant And placed him in her circle, free Her day-dreams truth, and truth a dream. Woe to the youth whom Fancy gains, And woe to those who traiu such youth, More wouldst thou know-yon tower sur-vey, Yon couch unpressed since parting day, TO THE MOON. Hail to thy cold and clouded beam, Pale pilgrim of the troubled sky! Hail, though the mists that o'er thee stream Lend to thy brow their sullen dye! How should thy pure and peaceful eye Untroubled view our scenes below, Or how a tearless beam supply To light a world of war and woe! Fair Queen! I will not blame thee now, Still are the thoughts to memory dear, They hid my blush, and calmed my fear, Then did I swear thy ray serene Was formed to light some lonely dell, By two fond lovers only seen, Reflected from the crystal well; Or quivering on the lattice bright, We shall now present a specimen of a very opposite description. It relates to Bertram, before whose eyes the combined influence of remorse and superstition call up a visionary form. Instead of flying from it, his fierce hardihood prompts him to pursue and seek to grasp it. Thus, as a man, a youth, a child, As As bursts the levin in its wrath, Foot, hand, and knee their aid must lend. And by the stones spurn'd from the bank, See, he emerges !desperate now What heart or foot shall dare to climb ? And downward holds its headlong way, Our readers may now be desirous to see an example of Mr Scott's descriptive powers. The following passage paints the aspect of Rokeby it. self, and of the romantic scenery on the Tees, immediately adjoining. Of different mood, a deeper sigh Pointing the stream rejoicing free, As champions, when their band is broke, A stern and lone, yet lovely road, That flings the froth from curb and bit, The cliffs, that rear the haughty head It is now time to introduce our, readers to the heroine of the piece. Wreathed Wreathed in its dark-brown rings, her hair Half hid Matilda's forehead fair, Half hid and half revealed to view Her full dark eye of hazel hue. The rose, with faint and feeble streak, So slightly tinged the maiden's cheek, That you had said her hue was pale ; But if she faced the summer gale, Or spoke, or sung, or quicker moved, Or heard the praise of those she loved, Or when of interest was expressed Aught that waked feeling in her breast, The mantling blood in ready play Rivalled the blush of rising day. There was a soft and pensive grace, A cast of thought upon her face, That suited well the forehead high, The eye-lash dark and down-cast eye; The mild expression spoke a mind In duty firm, composed, resigned;'Tis that which Roman art has given, To mark their maiden Queen of heaven. In hours of sport, that mood gave way To Fancy's light and frolic play, And when the dance, or tale, or song, In harmless mirth sped time along, Full oft her doating sire would call His Maud the merriest of them all. But days of war, and civil crime, Allowed but ill such festal time, And her soft pensiveness of brow Had deepened into sadness now. In Marston field her father ta'en, Her friends dispersed, brave Mortham slain, While every ill her soul foretold, From Oswald's thirst of power and gold, And boding thoughts that she must part With a soft vision of her heart.--All lowered around the lovely maid, To darken her dejection's shade. The description of the conflagration of the castle of Rokeby is both striking in itself, and may, from some wellknown circumstances, excite the curi osity of our readers. Mr Scott, we think, has evidently been on his guard against a certain imitation of his style, and has guarded successfully. Soon murkier clouds the hall enfold, Matilda saw-for frequent broke, From the dim casements gusts of smoke. Oft Matilda looked behind, As up the vale of Tees they wind, On the appearance of any new work of a well-known author, the first question always is, if it be better or worse than its predecessors; and the public seem to read chiefly with the view of ascertaining this comparative merit. For our parts, if we have derived great pleasure from a poem, we are satisfied with its absolute excellence, and do not think it very necessary to try it by this relative standard. We have not there fore made any elaborate comparison; yet, were we asked the question, we should give the following, as our general impression :-The poetical merits of the composition appear to us very much on a level with Mr Scott's former works, but the general effect effect not quite so pleasing. The cause appears to us to arise chiefly from the choice of the subject, and particularly of the characters. The. principal actors in the poem are all ruffians of the lowest description. The energy indeed of Bertram's character somewhat redeems his villany, yet not so as to fit him to be, as he is, the leading personage. The marauders, and fierce chieftains of an earlier age, were not, perhaps, according to strict morality, superior to these; yet the great scale on which their crimes were performed, and the involuntary admiration of rank and power, threw round them a romantic interest, which cannot be excited by the common robbers and ruffians of modern society. We feel, perhaps, a national jealeusy, to see Mr Scott's muse passing the Tweed; we would willingly lure him back to feudal and Scottish themes. New Works published in Edinburgh. E NCYCLOPEDIA Britannica; or a Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature. Fifth edition, enlarged and improved. llustrated by nearly 600 Engravings. Vol. I. Part I. 4to. 18s. Rokeby, a Poem. By Walter Scott, Esq. 4to. 21. 25. Journal of a Residence in India. By Maria Graham. 4to. 17.115.6d. Travels in the island of Iceland, during the summer of the year 1810. By Sir George Mackenzie, Bart. Second edition. 4to. 3/. 3s. Fauna Orcadensis; or the Natural History of the Quadrupeds, Birds, Reptiles, and Fishes, of Orkney and Shetland. By the Rev. George Low, Minister of Birsa and Haray. From a MS. in the possession of Mr Elford Leaoh, M. D. F. L. S. 4to. 11. Is. Essay on the Principles of Transla tion, 3d edition, with large additions and alterations. By the late Lord Woodhouselee. 8vo. 12s. Report on Weights and Measures. By a Committee of the Highland Society. 8vo. 2s. 6d. Supplement to the View of the political state of Scotland. By James Brydges, Esq. W. S. 8vo. 1s. Literary Intelligence. PROPOSALS have been circulated for reprinting in London, the French Moniteur, verbatim et literatim, and the names of subscribers are invited at eight guineas per annum. Among other reasons, it is alledged that, "in regard to foreign news, the English press is now nearly in the same state of degradation as the press of Russia; that the foreign intelligence is garbled and miserably translated, chiefly by one hand in a public office; that important facts are often suppressed, coloured, and distorted; that French Bulletins and other documents are often kept back for successive days, for stock-jobbing and other corrupt purposes; and, in fine, that few or no foreign papers now reach London, except through Ministers, or Newspapers under controul." The Moniteur abounds in literary and philosophical articles, and its republication in London would, we should think, be extensively patronized. The Rev. H. H. Baber, of the British Museum, has completed his publication of a Fac-simile of the Greek Text of the Book of Psalms, as preserved in that most ancient Manuscript of the LXX. Version of the Old Testament, the Codex Alexan'drinus. The same gentleman intends to publish, by subscription, a Fac-simile of the Pentateuch after the same manuscript. He remarks, in his prospectus, that the Codex Alexandrinus is a Greek Manuscript, comprising the |