of verse which deserves to be transmitted to posterity in company with this specimen of prose. "There came a knight from Palestine And left his groom behind At a very great distance indeed.” Another fault which we have to find with the rhetoric of Mr. Burges, is the manner in which at times he accumulates and spins out illustrations of propositions which can be demonstrated far more efficaciously by a few words. Condensation and succinctness, indeed, are never very remarkable in the oratory of Mr. B. any more than in that of most of his fellow-legislators and speakers. We doubt if an anecdote will ever be related of any of them, like that recorded of Phocion, who, it is said, appearing one day as he was about to ascend the tribune immersed in reverie, and being asked the cause, replied, "I am thinking how I shall contrive to abridge what I have to say." The following passage is an instance of the defect we have just mentioned. "Sir, the principle of self-defence runs throughout the whole animated world, and is a law to man, beast, bird, fish, insect, what no eye can see.' Look with your glass at the living atoms which in myriads, people the light; each one is armed, and by the little wars of self-defence, preserves his own existence. He fights his brief battle, reproduces himself, and dies in the same hour when, and in the bosom of the same bright sunbeam where, he was born. The little ichneumon, deified in Egypt for his successful wars against the crocodile, not only defends himself against that ferocious enemy of so many living things, but, by courage and stratagem, he leaps into the open jaws of his powerful adversary, wins his way to his very vitals, gnaws asunder the cords of life, and then, boring a passage for himself through the side of his conquered enemy, leaves the monster dead or dying on the shore of the Nile. The leviathan of the ocean, which wars and feeds on all the families of the seas, is assailed and subdued by one of the lesser fishes, a diminutive adversary, named from the sword which he wears; endowed with the instinctive valour and skill of self-defence, he plunges, when pursued, and, rising swiftly, and with a deadly aim, under the defenceless body of his enemy, avenges and secures himself. You have seen those little birds which build their nests, and sing in the trees, near every farmstead, as you travel any part of our country. They are always on their defence; never waiting to gather themselves into brigades, each one darts singly on the coming hawk, and drives the marauder from his little neighbourhood. "Its power to guard itself each creature feels. One animal lifts his heel, and spurns his adversary; another tosses him with his horns; a third dashes at him with his armed head; and a fourth raises a paw, and strikes with no purpose of a second blow. The principle of maternity is a part of the principle of self-defence. How often does a cruel boy hardly escape with his eyes, when he climbs a tree to plunder the nest of a robin? What do you see in the farm-yard more valiant than the hen in defence of her brood? The shepherd will tell you that the sheep itself, in defence of her lamb, is no less brave than the dog trained and trusted to guard the flock. What man will do, or dare, more in defence of himself than a mother will do, or dare, in defence of her child? The right of self-defence is so incidental, and so perfectly a law of nature, that every effort made by any creature, in pursuance of this law, is cheered and encouraged by a feeling and expression of approbation in the mind, or by the voice of every beholder of it. "A knowledge of the right which every man has to defend his own life, has not been communicated to us by any human teachings; but was given to us at our creation, among those primitive instincts which were wrought into the very fabric of our existence, by the hand of the Creator himself. The right of self-defence depends on no law made by man: for, unless it were a law of nature, and brought into existence with life itself, there must have been a time when, because no such law had been enacted by man, he could have had no such right; and to have defended his own life would have been a crime against his own nature. Now, by the common consent of all mankind, and without any law enacted for that purpose, every man is, by every human tribunal, justified in using so much violence in defence of his own life as will preserve himself, and prevent the assailant from attempting further aggression. Nay, Sir, this great law of our nature creates and places an obligation on every man to defend that life bestowed on him by his Creator; and if, when assailed, he does not do this by all the means in his power, he consents to his own murder, and is guilty of a crime, in the forum of conscience, equal, at least, in its enormity, to that of suicide itself." This "principle of self-defence" would have fully authorized, we think, those who were listening to the above establishment of it, to shut their ears and turn their attention to something else before it was half completed. How different the mode in which Cicero demonstrates the same proposition, although compression is certainly not his predominant trait. The passage is worth extracting here, by way of contrast, often as it may have been quoted: "Est igitur hæc, Judices, non scripta, sed nata lex: quam non didicimus, accepimus, legimus; verùm ex naturâ ipsâ arripuimus, hausimus, expressimus: ad quam non docti, sed facti; non instituti, sed imbuti sumus: ut si vita nostra in aliquas insidias, si in vim, si in tela aut latronum, aut inimicorum incidisset, omnis honesta ratio esset expediendæ salutis. Silent leges inter arma, nec se exspectari jubent; cùm ei, qui exspectare velit, antè injusta pœna luenda sit, quàm justa repetenda." Who would not be more disposed to acquiesce in the Roman, than in the American orator's assertion? The very pains which are taken to prove its truth by Mr. Burges, seem to involve it in doubt; whilst the careless boldness with which it is urged in the other place, may be said to compel conviction. A few powerful strokes, by the hand of the master, and the object to be made manifest is brought out into the fullest relief, vivid with light, and resistless in its impression; whilst all the elaboration and minuteness of the less gifted pencil serve only to distract attention and weaken the effect. This same fault of diffuseness is also too often observable in the logic of Mr. Burges, energetic and powerful as it frequently is, to enable us to apply to his oratory the remark of Hume upon the eloquence of Demosthenes, that "It is vehement reasoning without any appearance of art: it is disdain, anger, boldness, freedom, involved in a continued stream of argument”—or that of Fenelon: "C'est un raisonnement serré et pressant, ce sont des sentimens généreux d'une ame qui ne conçoit rien que de grand, c'est un discours qui croît et qui se fortifie à chaque parole par des raisons nouvelles, c'est un enchaînement de figures hardies et touchantes; vous ne sauriez le lire sans voir qu'il porte la république dans le fond de son cœur: c'est la nature qui parle elle-même dans ses transports; l'art est si achevé, qu'il n'y paroît point; rien n'égala jamais sa rapidité et sa véhemence."* These two descriptions, by the way, of the resistless reasoning of the prince of ancient orators, might furnish a sufficient refutation of the plea which has been urged in support of the superiority of modern eloquence, that it is the eloquence of reason, whilst that of Greece and Rome is the eloquence of passion. The latter is replete with the most severe and cogent logic; ratiocination of the strongest kind is the basis of its principal master-pieces, as in the oration on the Crown and that for Milo; and it is only because its impassioned parts are so much more strikingly affecting and brilliant from their very nature, that some plausibility has been given to the assertion we have mentioned, of the inferiority of its argumentative excellence. No eloquence, indeed, whose essence is mere passion, can exert any durable sway. The mind cannot be long maintained in a state of high-wrought excitement; and constant appeals to the feelings soon begin to lose their force. Their grand effect results from their superinducement, if we may so speak, upon argument-when they are brought in to finish the work which argument has commenced, by causing that to be felt of which the judgment has been convinced. It was on this account that the ancient writers on eloquence insisted that philosophy was a constituent portion of it, in order that the orator might, in the first place, be able to discover and exhibit truth, and then to awaken affection for her charms. The speaker who should always endeavour to effect this, before he has accomplished the other object, could never obtain any permanent influence with any society of men in either ancient or modern days. It is certain, however, that more of that faculty which is called genius is requisite for moving the passions than for convincing the understanding, and that even if the ancients were inferior to the moderns in ratiocination, their superior power of influencing the affections would entitle them to the palm of eloquence. How many comparatively are there who can show us what is true; how few are there who can entice or impel us to feel and act in accordance with it! It is our passions much oftener than the errors of reason, that interfere with our perception and observance of truth, and to operate upon those is essential for the removal of the impediment; *"It is close and urgent reasoning; it is the expression of the generous sentiments of a soul which conceives nothing but what is great; it is a discourse which grows and strengthens at every word by fresh reasons; it is a chain of bold and impressive figures: you cannot read him without perceiving that he carries the republic in the depths of his heart. It is nature that speaks herself in his transports; art is so perfect that it does not appear; nothing ever equalled his rapidity and vehe mence." but how difficult is it to strike the proper chords, so as to cause them to return the desired sounds. Pectus est, according to Quintillian, quod disertum facit—it is the bosom which makes the eloquent man-and in the same way, the noblest eloquence must have reference to the bosom. From it spring the sublimest thoughts, and to it such thoughts must be addressed. The mere understanding cannot grasp them. The oratorical weapon which Mr. Burges wields with the greatest efficacy, and which he seems most fond of employing, is sarcasm. In the use of this, he is perhaps unsurpassed in the United States; yet it is oftener, in his hands, a weapon like the massive broad-sword with which Richard the lion-hearted, in the admirable scene in "The Talisman," cleaves the bar of iron in twain, than resembling the keen and polished scymitar with which Saladin accomplishes the more difficult feat of severing the pliant cushion. His satire frequently wants the edge which refinement would impart to it, and at times it proceeds to a degree of coarseness altogether inexcusable. Nothing, for instance, can extenuate his famous retort upon Randolph-not even the provocations which that eccentric individual was wont to give. It trespasses beyond the utmost allowable bounds; and might be affirmed to speak almost as strongly against the utterer of it, as against the person at whom it was directed. We have dwelt thus freely on the defects which appear to us to detract from the eloquence of Mr. Burges, because we deem him no common man-one whose influence is justly considerable. Of such individuals, it is doubly important that the faults should be pointed out and understood, in order that these may be hindered, as far as possible, from doing that harm which their association with excellence might enable them to inflict. As to his merits, we could easily, if we had space, adduce abundant evidence of them from his productions in the volume before us; but they have already spoken to the world for themselves, in language far too eloquent and convincing, to require our humble aid in the way of embla zonment. ART. VII-A Tour through North America; together with a comprehensive view of the Canadas and United States, as adapted for Agricultural Emigration. By PATRICK SHIRREFF, Farmer, Mungoswells, East Lothian. Edinburgh: 1835. WHEN it was known that M. A. de Humboldt was soon to set out to make researches concerning the institutions and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of America, there was a general expectation of an important addition to modern science. The Baron was familiar with most of the branches of human knowledge. To a practical acquaintance with physics and astronomy, he united the opposite acquirements of an antiquary and a philologist. He had long been remarkable for an ardent love of truth, for his amiable and pure philosophy, and for his indefatigable and systematic industry. Scientific men had, therefore, reason to expect much from his travels; and their expectations were not disappointed. "Le Voyage de Humboldt et Bonpland," is a work of almost unparalleled extent and richness, and is also a remarkable record of human courage and perseverance. Had M. de Humboldt travelled in the northern, instead of the southern continent of America, his researches would have been more useful to civil society, and could hardly have been less important to natural science. He passed through some parts of the United States, on his way back to Europe, but his sojourn was very short, and this country may never again be visited by an author approaching to him in character or attainments. Travelling in our republic, seems to have been monopolized by literary pretenders and needy adventurers. In ancient times, Thales, Pythagoras, and Plato, visited distant regions in order to increase their knowledge and benefit their countrymen. Their absence was protracted to years, and the result of their laborious observation given with modesty and caution. But now, with the assistance of steamboats and railways, the vast territory of the United States is traversed in a few weeks; the manners and customs of its inhabitants, its political and economical institutions, are all gathered up in this hasty flight; its present condition is fully described and explained, and what is more, its destinies are boldly traced. The number of books about America, now thrown off the English press, is extraordinary, and the load of scandal and abuse heaped upon us from all sides, has really become awful.. But our sturdy citizens have, notwithstanding, gone on to gather their crops, to fill their warehouses, and freight their ships. The blessings of tranquillity and contentment have not been taken away from us; and while many of the governments of Europe seem tottering to their fall, our republic exists unmoved, prosperous and independent. From the censure implied in these remarks, must be excepted |