The second powerful element in Berlioz's compositions is the in fluence of Beethoven's gigantic works. The grand forms of the German master's symphonies impressed him with competitive zeal, and what has been described as the "poetical idea" in Beethoven's creations soon began to run riot in the enthusiastic mind of the young medical student. But, in accordance with the aversion of iiis national character to indistinct ideal notions, he tried to con dense the poetical essence of his inspiration in the tangible shape of a story, and in this manner became the father of what is generally called " programme-music. "Whether the author of such works as Harold en Italie, or the Episode dc la Vie d un Artiste, may lay claim to the prophet's cloak is difficult to decide; he must at any rate be accepted as a man strong in his own convictions, "a swallower of formulas," and faithful ally in the great cause of nature versus traditional artificiality, of Shakespeare against pseudo-classicism. Under such circumstances we can hardly be surprised at seeing Berlioz appreciated sooner and more lastingly in Germany than in his own country. Schumann and Liszt were, as we have men tioned, at various periods amongst the foremost promoters of his music. We subjoin a list of the more important worka by Berlioz not mentioned above, viz., the symphonies Rom&o et Juliette (1834), and Damnation da Faust (1846); the operas Beatrice ct Benedict (1862), and Les Troyens (1866); a Requiem, and Tristia, a work for chorus and orchestra, written on the death of his wife. Of his spirited literary productions we mention his Voyage musical en Allemagne ct en Italie (1845), Les Soirees d Orchcstre (1853), A travers Chant (1862), and his incomparable Trait's, d 1 Instrumenta tion (1844). The characteristics of Berlioz's literary style are French verve and esprit, occasionally combined with English humour and German depth of idea. The time has hardly yet ai rived for judging finally of Berlioz's position in the history of his art. His original ideis, his poetical intentions, nobody can deny; the question is whether ho possesses genuine creative power to carry out these in tentions, and, first of all, that broad touch of nature which leads fro;n subjective feeling to objective rendering, and which alone can establish a lasting rapport between a great artist and posterity. To decide this question the performances of his works have as yet, un fortunately, been too few and far between. In England, particu larly, only a very small fraction of his compositions has been heard.
BERMUDAS, Somers's Islands, or Summer Islands, a group in the Atlantic Ocean, the seat of a British colony, in lat. 32 20 N. and long. 64 50 W., about 600 miles E. by S. from Cape Hatteras on the American coast. They lie to the south of a coral reef or atoll, whij J. extends about 24 miles in length from N.E. to S.W., by 12 in breadth. The largest of the series is Great Bermuda, or Long Island, enclosing on the east Harrington or Little Sound, and on the west the Great Sound, which is thickly studded with islets, and protected on the north by the islands of Somerseb, Boaz, and Inland. The remaining members of the group, St George's, Paget's, Smith's, St David's, Cooper's, Nonsuch, &c., lie to the east, and form a semicircle round Castle Harbour. The islands are wholly composed of a white granular limestone of various degrees of hard ness, from the crystalline " base rock," as it is called, to friable grit. It seems that they are in a state of subsid ence and not of elevation. The caves which usually appear in limestone formations are well represented, many of them running far into the land and displaying a rich variety of stalagmites and stalactites. Among the less ordinary geo logical phenomena may be mentioned the " sand glacier " at Elbow Bay. The surface soil is a carious kind of reel earth, which is also found in ochre -like strata throughout the limestone. It is generally mixed with vegetable matter and coral sand. There is a total want of streams and wells of fresh water, and the inhabitants are dependent on the rain, which they collect and preserve in tanks. The climate of the Bermudas has a reputation for uni13althines3 which is hardly borne out, for the ordinary death-rate is only 22 per 1000. Yellow fever and typhus, however, have on some occasions raged with extreme violence, and the former las appeared four times within the space of thirty years. The maximum reading of the thermometer is about 85 8, and its minimum 49, the mean annual temperature being 70 Fahr., and that of March 65. Vegetation is very rapid, and the soil is clad in a mantle of almost perpetual,Teen. The principal kind of tree is the so-called "Bermudas edar," really a species of juniper, which furnishes timber or small vessels. The shores are fringed with the manjrove; the prickly pear grows luxuriantly in the most oarren districts; and wherever the ground is left to itself the sage-bush springs up profusely. The citron, sour orange, [emon, and lime grow wild; but the apple and peach do not come to perfection. The loquat, an introduction from China, thrives admirably. The gooseberry, currant, and raspberry, all run to wood. The oleander bush, with all its beauty, is almost a nuisance. The soil is very fertile in the growth of esculent plants and roots; and a consider able trade has grown up within recent years between Bermudas and New York, principally in arrowroot, of excellent quality, onions, Irish potatoes, and tomatoes. Regular steam communication between the island and that city is maintained, the Government subsidizing the vessels. The total value of the export of these articles in 1872 was 64,030. Medicinal plants, as fne castor-oil plant, aloe, and jalap, come to great perfection without culture; and coffee, indigo, cotton, and tobacco are also of spontaneous growth. Tobacco curing ceased about 1707. Few oxen or sheep are reared in the colony, a supply being obtained from North America; but goats are kept by a large number of the inhabitants. The ass is the usual beast of burden. The indigenous Mammalia are very few, and the only Reptilia are a small lizard and the green turtle. Birds, how ever, especially aquatic species, are very numerous, one of the commonest being the cardinal-grosbeak. The list in cludes the cat-bird, blue-bird, kingfisher, ground-dove, blue heron, sandpiper, moorhen, tropic bird, and Carolina crake. Insects are comparatively few; but ants swarm destructively in the heat of the year, and a species of ant-lion, a cicada (scissor-grinder), and the chigre or jigger, are common. Fish are plentiful round the coasts, and the whale-fishery was once an important industry. Gold-fish, introduced from Demerara, swarm in the ditches.
