those who receive the doctrines of the great Swedish Seer-Swedenborg. The principles illustrated are these: that the unity of the Christian spirit is compatible with diversity of belief-that error may be innocent, or rather, that false doctrines do not condemn, unless willingly adopted into the life; that salvation is possible in whatsoever heresy, and even among Mohammedans and Pagans; and that the true Christian Church is universal, embracing within its ample spiritual folds men of every persuasion and of every tongue, who have lived honestly, according to the best light Vouchsafed them, under the circumstances in which they were placed by Providence. It is the end for which a man lives, says Mr. Barrett, which determines his character, and not his speculative opinions on theology, or anything else, nor the name by which he is called. The object of Mr. Barrett's book is to show that these are the teachings of Swedenborg; so that there is not much of his own writing in it, but liberal extracts from his author. It has struck us as peculiar, by the way, that the greater part of those who adopt Swedenborg, when they come to explain his system, usually resort to this method. It would seem as if they had either not thoroughly digested his principles in their own minds, or as if they felt bound always to give his sentiments in his own words. With the exception of Mr. Henry James, of this city, and Dr. Wilkinson, of London, we scarcely know a writer, among this class of men, who evinces any originality, or any spontaneous freshness, in his explanations of either philosophy or theology. The master seems to sit upon them as an incubus, paralyzing their faculties, or at least confining them to the driest repetition of his formulas and phrases. Why is this? Will not some expositor of the old Scandinavian sage give us a reason for so curious an intellectual phenomenon? HISTORIES.-The Life of Sir William Pepperill, Bart., by USHER PARSONS, is an account of the only native of New England, as we are told on the title-page, who was created a baronet during our colonial connection with the mother country. This is some ground of distinction, certainly; but Sir William possessed other and better titles to remembrance. He was the hero of the expedition to Louisburg, "the greatest warlike enterprise of our colonial his tory," which took place in 1745, and in which he displayed extraordinary activity, judgment and courage. For his conduct in the siege he was knighted by the king, and his little army received a public welcome in Boston and other cities. A brief but spirited description of the whole affair will be found in the closing pages of Bancroft's third volume, with a map of the town, the fortifications, and the position of the contending French and colonists. The "strongest fortress of North America," says Bancroft, "capitulated to an amy of undisciplined New England mechanics, farmers and fishermen." The materials of Mr. Usher are drawn partly from an old package of letters, which had been exposed, for half a century, in an old shed on the Pepperill estate, consisting of letters to and from correspondents, and partly from manuscripts in the possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society. He has used them judiciously, and made a valuable volume out of them, which not only describes the progress of the famous siege, with more particularity than has hitherto been done, but throws light upon contemporary history, and preserves the memory of a remarkable character. -We class the little work with the title Cotton is King, among histories, because, though its primary object is to vindicate the institution of slavery, its principal value consists in the historical details which it gives of the growth of the cotton trade, and also of the movements undertaken toward the amelioration of its cultivators, the negroes. The writer endeavors to show, by this history, that slavery has increased with the increase of the efforts made against it; that it is altogether impregnable upon any moral grounds, and that it is so inwrought into the interests of the manufactures and commerce of the world, that any attempts to unsettle it would produce the most disastrous results. As it is the monopoly of the culture of cotton, which imparts to slavery its economical value, the author argues that the system will continue as long as this monopoly is maintained. Slave-labor products have become necessities of life to the extent of more than half the commercial articles supplied to the Christian world. The future efforts of the Abolitionists are, therefore, destined to be as impotent as they have been in the past. But, the wri ter thinks, something might be done if the manufacturing monopoly of Great Britain, the offspring of her pretended "free-trade," could be overthrown, or if the free colored people, who are adapted to work in tropical climates, should devote themselves to the production, in Liberia or somewhere else, of the tropical commodity. He does not profess to be a friend of slavery, which, he says, is neither a malum in se nor a divine institution, as fanatics on either side contend, but is a social despotism, incident to certain states of society, and which can only be removed by great social causes. His book, written in an independent spirit, contains, with considerable error, a great many thoughts which it will be profitable for all parties in the slavery quarrel to read. NOVELS.-A good, a piquant novel is, to the professional reader of that kind of literature, like a glass of soda water after a surfeit. It exhilirates his faculties and cleanses the bosom of much "perilous stuff We have that hangs upon the heart." found specimens of such novels in the diverting little tales of Mr. CHARLES READE, recently republished from the English editions, by Ticknor & Fields, whose good taste is proverbial. The first is named Peg Woffington, and is founded upon incidents in the life of the famous actress of that name, and the second Christie Johnstone, in which, the scene is laid among the rude fisheries of New Haven, near Edinburgh. Most excellent reading are they both, fresh, lively, sensible, characteristic, and as full of meat as any nut. It is difficult to say which one of the two is the more admirable. Peg Woffiington, because it relates to public and well-known persons, men and women who figure in dramatic history-will likely prove more generally acceptable to the mass of readers; but Christie has so much of the real life of the people in it, is so marked by strong and bold touches, that it will make a more permanent impression on the discerning few. The leading qualities of both works are,-originality of form running, almost, but not quite, into eccentricity ready and genial wit--a keen insight into character-accurate, but picturesque, description of persons and events-sound, manly sense--and a mastery of dramatic art. The incidents are few, and not at all "thrilling," after the stereotyped models, but they are brought together with such a perception of "effective situations," as the play-wrights say, that the reader is alternately exploding with laughter, or suffused in tears. Either work, in fact, is as good as a play, and much better than most plays, for vivacious dialogue, discrimination of character, and plot. We welcome Mr. Reade as, another genius added to the brilliant corps of our fictitious writers. The same publishers furnish us with a neat and affecting story, called the School of Life, by ANNA MARY HOWITT, the author of those charming sketches of "An Art Student in Munich," and daughter of Mary Howitt, whose wreaths, as a poet and talewriter, she promises to inherit, as well as her name. We remark, in her works, the same amiable sympathy in all the struggles and trials of the poorer and middling classes of society, and the same application to them of a sweet Christian philosophy, which have rendered the books of the mother a household treasure wherever the English language is read. -Among the American romances of the day, those which have chiefly engaged our attention are, first, Ernest Grey, or the Sins of Society, a tale of New York life, in which the writer powerfully depicts the evil influences of that unrelenting scorn and aversion with which society pursues the criminal, even after he shall have paid the penalty of his offenses, and given evidence of a disposition to improve his life. She notices, also, incidentally, the defects of our prison discipline, which, she argues, is the worst that could be devised, so far as purposes of reforming the criminal are concerned. In the illustrations of these principles she has drawn her materials from actual facts, and the pictures she presents, skillfully colored as they are, ought to have the effect of directing the inquiries of those who have the right to inquire into the abuses complained of. The story, as a story, abounds in interest, and evinces a knowledge of the every-day life of the people, which is quite marvelous in a refined and cultivated woman. 2d. Mary Lyndon, or the Revelations of a Life, a work of the intense and passionate school, looking upon the darker side of present things, but cherishing the most earnest hope of a better and brighter future. The scene is laid, at the outset, in New England, and afterward in New York, and the characters that are meant to represent the people, are the people among us every day. The heroine, a morbidly sensitive New England girl, badly educated, and with no very agreeable surroundings, gets very religious, turns Quaker, marries a hard and unsympathizing man whom she afterward deserts, and then runs the gauntlet of the various schemes of reform, which, a few years since, addled New England. In the midst of her new happiness, her husband steals her daughter, which puts her in a world of trouble, but the girl is stolen back again, not long after, and our heroine comes to New York, where, after lecturing on physiology, writing novels, and various vicissitudes, she meets with an extraordinary young man, whom she marries, and is now very happy. There is some earnest and powerful writing in the story, but not much dramatic or artistic talent, nor much interest as a story. We have no doubt that it is an actual transcript from the life of an imaginative, and somewhat fantastic person, whose memory of her sorrows, however, has overpowered her art. A good many of the "Apostles" of various kind of new things, figure in the work under a very thin disguise, and a good many of all the modern notions, from Swedenbourgianism to Bloomerism, and the water-cure, are jumbled together in its philosophy. Among the personages of this Life-Revelation, Poe and Albert Brisbane are mentioned by name, and Alcott, Charles Lane, Henry Wright, Dr. Lazarus, and Mr. and Mrs. Gove Nichols, are easily recognized. There is, however, in these sketches of character, though taken from life, little real portraiture, and little discernment of the inmost springs of conduct. The writer is too intensely reflective and sentimental to describe well, while she seems to be somewhat bewildered by the multitude of "theories" that have passed through her head. But, on the subject of "Free Love," and the "Rights of Woman," she appears to be remarkably clear and decided. 3d. Peeps from a Belfry, by the Rev. Frederick W. Shelton, is a series of quiet and genial sketches of parish life, which combine instruction with entertainment, and seriousness with humor. author is one of the keenest observers, as well as most graceful writers, in our country, and inculcates, in all his works, that The # serene and cheerful wisdom, which is one of the highest graces of true religion. He is a master of pathetic emotions, and knows how, by a few simple touches, to move the deepest founts of feeling in the heart. 4th. The several tales, which Mr. Peterson, of Philadelphia, has published, deserve a more elaborate notice than our space allows us to write at this time. The Kate Aylesford, by C. J. PETERSON, is a romantic but truthful story of the refugees of New Jersey, during the time of the Revolution, told with simplicity and earnestness, but with great dramatic effect. This kind of historical novel has gone out of date for the present, but Mr. Peterson has revived it with a rare knowledge of its capabilities, as a means of moving the emotions and giving pleasure.-The Ellen Norbury of EMERSON BENNETT, whose previous works have related chiefly to border life, and scenes of Indian and prairie warfare, introduces us into the no less savage and desolate regions, inhabited by the poorer and degraded classes of a large city. Associating himself with Mr. Muller, a benevolent gentleman of Philadelphia, who has made it the duty of his life to search out cases of distress and destitution, and to relieve them if he could, the author became familiar with many of the most abandoned characters, and the most horrible scenes, incident to a corrupt civilization, and out of these materials he has constructed his book. It is almost needless for us to say, that it is consequently one of the most thrilling and even painful interest, leading the reader to doubt whether such men and such occurrences could be found in our day and generation; but we are assured that every description is derived from actual facts, and every character is a counterpart of real life. Yet, the writer has allowed some gleams of light to fall upon his dark pictures, and he relieves the details of misfortune and misery, by the contrast of happiness and beauty. Beside these original novels, Mr. Peterson has issued an edition of that truthful and charming novel of German life, the Initials, one of permanent value and entertainment; and what is especially to be noticed, a complete edition of Dickens' Works, modeled after the best London edition, and containing all the original illustrations, furnished by Cruikshank. This edition comprises twelve neat and convenient volumes, which will be gratefully welcomed by the innumerable admirers of that most versatile, witty and pathetic of the modern English novelists. MISCELLANIES.-The Literary and Historical Miscellanies of our distinguished historian, GEORGE BANCROFT, will hardly add to his reputation; but what is, perhaps, the highest praise, they will not detract from it. His characteristics as a writer and thinker are so marked, his excellences and defects so obvious, that they are to be found in all his works alike, in the brief essay no less than in the protracted history. The skillful critic will discern the same hand in these early studies in German literature, or in these occasional addresses, which he finds in the History of the Colonization of the United States. There is the same breadth of view, the same penetration of insight, the same nervous vigor of expression, and the same brilliant rhetorical finish; with, also, some of the same occasional vagueness of thought and inflation of style. This general similarity is the more remarkable, because these Essays cover a period of more than a quarter of a century; the first are dated from 1824, and the last from 1854. We do not, of course, mean that they are all of equal merit. Some of them, as the sketches of German literature for instance, evince an immaturity, which is in striking contrast with the varied skill and maturity of others, such as the Dissertation on the Progress of Mankind, read to the Historical Society of this city. Could the author write them over again, he would, doubtless, write them quite differently. He would not now indulge, we suspect, in so superficial a view of Goethe as he has allowed to stand among his early and hasty interpretations of the German writers. But, in spite of these more juvenile errors, his writings exhibit many of the same qualities of mind throughout; and, from reading the essays, one might easily predict the historian. The ablest article in the volume, as it appears to us, and the most in accordance with the peculiar endowments of the writer, is that on the Decline of the Roman People, which, apart from its general historical interest, has a special adaptation to the circumstances of our own country. Mr Bancroft shows, with convincing clearness of statement, and a touching eloquence, that the real causes of the downfall of the great republic of Italy, were the existence of slavery, and its inevitable adjunct, the monopoly of the land. Michelet, in his too rapid History of Rome, had taken essentially the same view; but he has not developed it, by any means, with the same logical concatenation of events or fullness of details. Nor has Michelet done the ample justice to the sagacity and character of the elder Gracchus, which the truth required, and which the more decided republican sympathies of Mr. Bancroft have enabled him to render. This vindication of the Gracchi is honorable to his sentiments, while the fearlessness with which he has portrayed the influence of slavery on the wealth, manners, and virtues of nations, entitles him to the thanks of every man sincerely interested in the well-being of humanity. Mr. Bancroft's Address before the Historical Society, caused a good deal of surprise at the time, by one or two crude pantheistical sentences, which, we are happy to see, he has suppressed. As it stands, it is a most brillant performance; and yet, we confess, to some extent, an unsatisfactory one. It runs over too vast a field to be as complete as it ought to be in every part, and its teachings, consequently, are rather suggestions, than fully developed thoughts. We wish that the author had taken advantage of the opportunity to give us a more connected and copious illustration of his views of the Philosophy of History, which he barely hints at now; but which, after having passed his life in historical researches, he must be so capable of treating with profundity and profit. We know of no subject, apart from the great purpose of his life, the History of America, on which would rather see his pen employed. -It was by no will of his own, that the miscellaneous contributions of HENRY WARD BEECHER to the Independent took the name of the Star Papers, for as they had been distinguished from others by the signature of a Star, it was very natural that they should come to be called the Star Articles. This fact will excuse the apparent affectation and singularity of the title of his book, which contains such of those contributions as are not controversial. In other words, these papers relate to travels, art, and rural affairs, and exhibit the great orator of the platform in quite a new aspect, as the lover of the country, as a trout fisher, and as an observer of men. Passing the vacations of his professional labors in the country, he has written about the subjects which attract his attention during those holiday seasons. He has written in a free and easy style, adapted to the holiday character of the topics. Emancipated from the restraints, the toils, and the battle of an active clerical career, as well as from the noise and dirt of cities, and escaping into the silence, the seclusion, and the rampant freedom of the country, he gives up heart and mind to the inspirations of the change, with all the animal vivacity of a boy let loose from school, or of a colt that has broken its halter. He scampers over hill and meadow; he revels among trees, he luxuriates in flowers, he gets into ecstacies over brooks, and he is lifted up to the seventh heaven by a sunset. It is highly honorable to Mr. Beecher's sympathies, to the goodness of his heart and the integrity of his mind, that he can abandon himself so joyously to the simpler influences of nature. His enemies, who think of him only as the stern reformer, will think the better of him for these amiable traits; and his friends, who love him warmly, will love him all the more for his child-like enthusiasms. But we ought to warn Mr. Beecher, and through him the public, that the kind of writing which he has adopted here, is not his true function. It may do very well by way of recreation; but he and his readers must not suppose that it is a genuine thing. His true place is in the pulpit or on the platform, and not among lilies or trouts. He is by nature a speaker--a prophet, perhaps but not a poet. He has a sensibility to poetic things, as every good speaker must have; he loves nature, no doubt; but he has no special vocation to write about nature or beauty. What he does write is correct enough, and interests and amuses us, by its abounding animal spirit, but is still a little too much in the tumultuous oratorical vein. One expects to hear the clapping of hands at the end of the sentences. It is not quiet, deep, unpretending, racy, such as all good rural description is, and ought to be. It is not like the easy touches in Wolfert's Roost, for instance; or like White of Selborne, or Walton, or Evelyn, in his Silvia. The sweet repose, the dewy coolness, the ab sence of all excitement, save the gentle and most healthful, which are the characteristics of the country, are not the prevailing characteristics of these sketches. Or, if Mr. Beecher will read a page of Thomson's Seasons (a work not to be despised by any means), and then a page of Wordsworth, or, better still, a page of the more genial Chaucer, he will understand what we mean. It is simply that he is "The not "native and to the manner born." Yet, we are grateful to Mr. Beecher for his book, because we trust that it will have an influence in drawing our people from the rush and crush of their too feverish town and city life to the quiet and dignity of the country. With a nature as beautiful and varied as any in the world, there never was a people needing more than ourselves the refreshment and solace of country life, in its better forms. period at which we have arrived," says Miss Cooper, in her thoughtful and charming introduction to the "Rhyme and Reason of Country Life," "is rife with high excitement; the fever of commercial speculation, the agitation of political passions, the mental exertion required by the rapid progress of science, by the ever recurring controversies of philosophy, and, above all, that spirit of personal ambition and emulation, so wearing upon the individual, and yet so very common in America, all unite to produce a combination of circumstances, rendering it very desirable that we should turn, as frequently as possible, into paths of a more quiet and peaceful character. We need repose of mind. We need the shade of the trees and the play of healthful breezes to refresh our heated brow. We need the cup of water, pure from the spring, to cool our parched lips; we need the flowers, to soothe without flattery; the birds, to cheer without excitement; we need the view of the green turf to teach us the humility of the grave; and we need the view of the open heavens to tell us where all human hopes should centre." Should Mr. Beecher's book, then, aid in bringing about this end, it will have contributed to human happiness as much, perhaps, as the more ambitious reforms at which he directly labors. -The new Gazetteer of the World, by LIPPINCOTT, GRAMBO & Co., is the completest work of the kind that we ever examined. It embraces not merely a larger variety of names than previous volumes |