"'But he lay like a warrior taking his rest,
With his martial cloak around him.'
"'I should have taken the whole,' said Shelley, 'for a rough sketch of Campbell's.'
"'No,' replied Lord Byron, 'Campbell would have claimed it, had it been his.'
"The Memoir contains the fullest details on the subject of the authorship, Mr. Wolfe's claim to which was also fully established by the Rev. Dr. Miller, late Fellow of Trinity, Dublin, and author of Lectures on the Philosophy of Modern History."
[With regard to the French translation, professing to be a monody on Lally Tollendal, and to be found in the Appendix to his Memoirs, it was only a clever hoax from the ready pen of Father Prout, and first appeared in Bentley's Miscellany. No greater proof of the inconvenience of facetiæ of this peculiar nature can be required than the circumstance, that the fiction, after a time, gets mistaken for a fact: and, as we learn in the present case, the translation has been quoted in a French newspaper as if it was really what it pretends to be.]
IRON RAILINGS ROUND ST. PAUL'S.
As the removal of the iron railing which surrounds St. Paul's Churchyard is now said to be in contemplation, P. C. S. S. imagines that it may not be unacceptable to the readers of "Notes and Queries," if he transcribes the following account of it from Hasted's Kent, vol. ii. p. 382 , which is to be found in his description of the Parish of Lamberhurst:—
"It was called Gloucester Furnace in honour of the Duke of Gloucester, Queen Anne's son, who, in the year 1698, visited it from Tunbridge Wells. The iron rails round St. Paul's Churchyard, in London, were cast at this furnace. They compose the most magnificent balustrade, perhaps, in the universe, being of the height of five feet six inches, in which there are, at intervals, seven iron gates of beautiful workmanship, which, together with the rails, weigh two hundred tons and eighty-one pounds; the whole of which cost 6d. per pound, and with other charges, amounted to the sum of 11 ,202l. 0s. 6d."
MISCELLANEOUS.
NOTES ON BOOKS, CATALOGUES, SALES, ETC.
If there was any ground, and we are inclined to believe there was, for the objection urged by the judicious few against that interesting series of illustrations of English history, Lodge's Illustrious Portraits, namely, that in engraving the portraits selected, truth had often times been sacrificed to effect; so that one had a better picture, though a less faithful copy,—such an objection cannot be urged against a work to which our attention has just been directed, Harding's Historical Portraits. In this endeavour to bring before us the men of past time, each "in his habit as he lived," the scrupulous accuracy with which Mr. Harding copies an old portrait has been well seconded by the engravers, so that this work is unrivalled for the fidelity with which it exhibits, as by a Daguerrotype, copies in little of some very curious portraits of old-world worthies. The collection is limited in extent; but, as it contains plates of individuals of whom no other engraving exists, will be a treasure to illustrators of Clarendon, Granger, &c. Among the most interesting subjects are Henry VIII. and Charles V., from the remarkable picture formerly at Strawberry Hill; Sir Robert Dudley, son of Elizabeth's favourite; Lord Russel of Thornhaugh, from the picture at Woburn; Speaker Lenthall; and the remarkable portrait of Henry Carey Viscount Falkland, dressed in white, painted by Van Somer, which suggested to Horace Walpole his Castle of Otranto.
Messrs. Sotheby and Co. will sell on Thursday next, a small but superb collection of drawings by modern artists; and on the following Monday will commence a six days' sale of the third portion of the important stock of prints of Messrs. Smith; comprising some of the works of the most eminent engravers of the continental and English schools, including a matchless collection of the works of the Master of Fontainebleau, engravers' proofs of book plates, and a few fine drawings.
We have received the following Catalogues:—J. Petheram's (94. High Holborn) Catalogue, Part CXI., No. 5. for 1850 of Old and New Books; and J. Miller's (43. Chandos Street) Catalogue No. 5. for 1850 of Books Old and New.
BOOKS AND ODD VOLUMES
WANTED TO PURCHASE.
(In continuation of Lists in former Nos.)
NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS.
Although we have this week again enlarged Notes and Queries from 16 to 24 pages, in fulfilment of our promise to do so when the number and extent of our communications called for it, we have been compelled to omit many Notes, Queries, and Replies of great interest.
Our attention has been called by more than one of our earliest contributors to the inconvenience of the single initial, which they had originally adopted, being assumed by subsequent correspondents, who probably had no idea that the A., B., or C., by which they thought to distinguish their communications, was already in use. Will our friends avoid this in future by prefixing another letter or two to their favourite A., B., or C.
Errata.—No. 25. p. 398. col. 2. line 44., for "L. D." read "L. R."; No. 26. p. 416. col. 2. line 52., for "Beattie" read "Bentley"; and the Latin Epigram, p. 422., should commence "Lougè" instead of "Longi," and be subscribed "T. D." instead of "W. (1)."
