Sketch of a South-Sea Whaling Voyage"-is &c. in the metropolis. We could have wished the full of perilous and marvellous adventure-of letter-press upon a more extensive scale. Asi the most stirring and exciting interest; almost is, however, this will be found to be the only setting the wildness of romance at defiance. History of London' in which the narrative With one or two exceptions, the illustrative brought down to the reign of the present Sove engravings in wood, though not finely executed, reign, Her Majesty Queen Victoria." In th are spirited and effective. As a whole, the latter portion of the work; which appears t work constitutes a valuable addition to our have been undertaken by Mr. Harral on "the stores of knowledge. sudden and lamented decease" of Mr. Fearnside a surprising mass of information is lightly yet small number of pages. Oliver Twist; or, the Parish Boy's Progress. judiciously arranged within a comparatively By "Boz." 3 vols. Bentley. SINCE the memorable days of John Poole's Paul Pry, nothing has acquired the popularity which attends the " sayings and doings" of " Boz" otherwise Charles Dickens, in his Pickwick Club, Nicholas Nickleby, and Oliver Twist; a series of performances which, independently of the mass of gratification they have afforded to the reading public, constitute just so many "cut-and-come-again" dishes, for the special advantage of the truly original dramatists of our day. How often poor Pickwick may have been dragged upon the stage, heaven only knows. Nicholas Nickleby has been prematurely finished, at the Adelphi, without his father's consent; may still be seen there, for sixpence or a shilling, evening; and similar honours have been conferred upon Oliver Twist in that temple of classic fame," the Surrey !" Had poor Oliver made his entrée at the Aldine Chambers somewhat earlier than he did, we should have been happy to pay our respects to him in a style superior to what we can now accomplish. After figuring through many successive numbers of Bentley's Miscellany, he has been recently brought before the public in a separate and individual form, and in a degree more elegantly attired than was his wont; his embellishments, however, remaining as of old. We heartily wish him success in his new career, which promises, we understand, to be a brilliant one. Mr. Dickens has another vessel upon the stocks, if not already launched, under the sonorous name of Barnaby Rudge. We should like to meet Barnaby in Paternoster Row. The History of London: illustrated by Views in A HANDSOME drawing-room volume, contain- Sketches of Judaism and the Jews. The Millwrights and Engineer's Pocket Director. By John Bennett, author of " Artificers' Lexicon, &c." 2nd. edition. 1839 This little vade mecum comprehends the prices of millwork, machinery, &c. with numerous calculations, estimates, and tables, the weights of iron, copper, brass, &c, and a variety of miscellaneous information of practical utility. The prices, &c. are all brought down to the present period. The Legal Guide. Richards and Co. THIS little weekly publication appears to be "progressing" satisfactorily. It presents much useful information, not only to the profession but to the public at large. THE THEATRES, CONCERTS, &c. Devoted as we are in spirit to all the best interests of the drama, we have no private, party, or personal feelings to gratify. In opinion, and in the expression of opinion, we are "free as air;" we have not the slightest intercourse, directly or indirectly, with any actor or actress upon the stage; and thus the readers of The Aldine Magazine may at least rely upon the honesty of their theatrical critic. At all times we must be concise rather than diffuse in our strictures: this week, in particular, we must be brief, sketchy, and almost exclusively introductory. For the present season, Drury Lane Theatre, though arrogating the epithet national, seems determined to rest its claim upon public favour chiefly on Opera, Spectacle, and Ballet; in neither of which, however, notwithstanding the liberal and unsparing expenditure of Mr. Bunn, the manager, has it yet been eminently ormance. accessful. Loder's opera of Francis the First is adebted for its lingering existence almost solely to he popularity of the singers engaged in its perIn the spectacle of Charlemagne, Van Imburgh and his quadrupedial colleagues of the rest have run a dashing course for the past month. The sight is an impressive one, but, in dignity and espectability, altogether unworthy of a national estalishment. The Spirit of Air, a sort of clumsy ersion, as it has been termed, of La Sylphide, is musing from the exploits of Wieland, as the North Wind, from the vigorous exhibition of Gilbert, and he exquisite dancing of Mlle. Elsler. As a ballet, however, the piece has little interest or meaning. For he delectation of little masters and misses, we shall of course have something new and wonderful at Christmas. At Covent Garden, Macready has evinced a more chaste and classical judgment, and his efforts have beeu proportionately rewarded. As it is now performed, The Tempest impresses the mind of the spectator with the most vivid idea of a really " enchanted island." The restoration and revival of this play reflect the highest credit upon the manager. The Tempest, Macbeth, and The Lady of Lyons, are here the reigning favourites. Auxiliary to these is a capital new farce, entitled Chaos is come again. It has much of the spirit of the olden time in this class of the drama. But we are in want of two or three new and good acting plays from Knowles, Bulwer, and the like. Why the manager should have been at the trouble of disencumbering Cato, and the The Royal Oak, from the dust of years, we are at a loss to comprehend. The Haymarket, the best theatre in town for enjoying the legitimate drama, has been infinitely more successful under the management of Webster than it ever was during the long and injudicious career of Morris. Excepting at the St. James's, under Braham, a more lamentable want of tact and judgment was apparent at the Haymarket, under Morris, than at any theatre in the metropolis. The more recent novelties here are Sheridan Knowles's Maid of Mariendorpt, from the late Miss Anna Maria Porter's beautiful novel of the The Village of Mariendorpt ; and Haynes Bayly's farce of Mr. Greenfinch. The leading speculation at the Adelphi, this season, has been the exhibition of the Bayaderes; a failure, we presume, so far as the treasury of the theatre may be concerned. To us, the dancing of our own chimney-sweepers on May-day is a thousand times more amusing. Still, as the bona fide dance of a foreign, remote, and very ancient nation, the display of the Bayaderes is not without interest. Yates has been more fortunate with the admir-| able drama of Louise de Lignerolles, by Miss Pardoe, the enterprising and accomplished author of The City of the Sultan, The River and the Desert, &c. As a first attempt for the stage, this is one of the most successful, and most deservedly successful, we ever witnessed. As another happy effort, Yates has dramatised the story of Nicholas Nickleby, with an exccedingly strong and effective cast of character. Mrs. Keeley, one of the cleverest little women in London, is worth her weight in gold, as the poor, deserted, forlorn, mal-treated Smike. Her performance of this part alone is sufficient to immortalize her as an actress. Yates, as Mantalini; O. Smith, as Newman Noggs; and Wilkinson, as Squeers, are all excellent. Ever, without exception, the best conducted theatre in the metropolis, the Olympic appears to be running a career as brilliant as though Madame Vestris herself were still the presiding goddess of the scene. In the management we find a most able substitute in Mr. Planché: on the stage, however, we both miss and want Madame. The latest of a long line of fortunate novelties brought forward here (The Printer's Devil, Ask no Questions, Sons and Systems, The Idol's Birthday, &c.) is The Court of Old Fritz; in which Farren, the only prime cock-salmon in the market, as he once truly though conceitedly styled himself, personates two of the dramatis persona. Frederick the Great and Voltaire! Think of Farren as Count Bertrand (Prince Talleyrand) in The Minister and the Mercer, and then imagine him, or, what will be infinitely better, go and see him as Frederick the Great and as Voltaire. When Farren first appeared upon the London boards, some of our soi-disant actors said, that every part he played was Lord Ogleby. Pshaw! There is not an actor living who possesses greater versatility of talent than Farren, or who so completely loses his own identity in that of the character he represents. SIGHTS OF THE METROPOLIS. Under this head it is our intention to notice all public exhibitions of the fine arts, of scientific skill, of mechanical ingenuity, from those of painting and sculpture, at the Royal Academy, to that of a patent nutmeg-grater in a garret. None too high, none too low-we shall be glad to see them all. At this season of the year few exhibitions are open; simply for the reason, that there are few people in town to go and see them. Even now, however, there are some "Sights of the Metropolis," besides St. Paul's and the Monument, which are worth looking at. We shall indicate-not describe, for they are not quite new-two or three of the more interesting. A Model of the Battle of Waterloo, in which the entire field of action, with 95,000 distinct figures appears, is to be seen at the Egyptian Hall, in Piccadilly. This model is the result of immense labour and ingenuity, directed by the mind of a military officer possessing the fullest and the most accurate information that the different governments of Europe could furnish. The cost of its production has been enormous. It should be visited by every Englishman. The clearness of its effect is heightened by the intense brilliancy of the Drummond lights. As a morning exhibition, the Bayaderes are also at the Egyptian Hall. Perhaps they are seen there to more advantage than at the theatre. At Burford's Panorama, in Leicester Square, two paintings are on view-The City of Canton, and The Bay of Islands, New Zealand. These pictures are soon to be replaced by others. The Adelaide Gallery of Science, in the Lowther Arcade, is daily increasing in interest and importance. An establishment, founded upon similar principles and for the promotion of a similar object, has recently been opened in Regent Street North, under the title of The Polytechnic Institution. We hope soon to be in a position to pay these galleries the attention to which they are justly entitled. LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. MEDICO-BOTANICAL SOCIETY. The first meeting for the season was held on Wednesday evening. Dr. Sigmond commenced by delivering a lecture on the cultivation of the tea plant. The learned professor, after adverting to the mystery in which the system of the Chinese in preparing tea had been for some centuries enveloped, proceeded to explain its culture. It appeared that when the time for picking the finest sorts of tea arrived, the labourers employed were compelled to avoid gross food, and adopt the purest diet; and moreover, that they performed the operation in gloves. The authorities quoted showed that this extreme delicacy was for the purpose of preventing the slightest injury to the leaf from the breath or skin. It would be well if this example of cleanliness were followed by the teadealers of England. The Chinese who could afford it drank their tea strong; and they had a proverb by which the poverty of the individual was implied, "Who drinks weak tea and eats insipid rice." Samples were exhibited of every variety of tea imported into this country and the Continent. Among other varieties there were some fine specimens of the Pekoe used in Russia, the "caravan teas," which are brought overland through Kiachta, and the Howqua's mixture tea. That the Hong merchants used not generally to deliver for exportation their finer sorts there was no doubt; for it was proved by the fact, that since the opening of the trade many new varieties had been brought to England, and, amongst others, he would mention the "Howqua's Mixture," which had now become a standard tea in this country. The flower of the China tea-plant had a fine and fragrant aroma, and differed in the form of its blossoms from the lately-discovered Assam tea-shrub. The learned professor ably illustrated his observations by elegant paintings, the property of Mrs. Morrison. WORKS IN THE PRESS. Dr. Charles Severn is preparing for publication extracts from the manuscripts of the Rev. J. Ward, A.M., Vicar of Stratford-upon-Avon from 1661 to 1681, the originals of which are preserved in the Library of the Medical Society of London. They contain novel particulars respecting Shakspeare and his cotemporaries, and will be published by sion of the Council of the Medical Society. TISING OFFICE, ALDINE CHAMBERS, PATERNOSTER Row, shall be promptly noticed, under their respective titles, in the Literary and Fine Arts' Departments of the Magazine. TO SUBSCRIBERS & CORRESPONDENTS. All communications for the EDITOR of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE (Letters, Books, Manuscripts, Cards of Admission to Exhibitions, Concert Tickets, &c.) are requested to be sent to him, Postage-free, at the Printer's, Mr. MASTERS, No. 33, Aldersgate street. It is with extreme regret, that from the space occupied by matter of an introductory nature-from the unavoidable length of some articles-and from other causes, we are under the necessity of postponing, for a week, several valuable contributions, Notices of New Books, &c. "LETTERS TO MY SON AT ROME," No. II. in our next. We shall be glad to hear again from → at his earliest convenience. To R. B. Yes. POETRY-good poetry-real poetry, will always be acceptable to the EDITOR of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE, provided the respective pieces are not of too great a length. From our old and valued friend, W. F., we shall be happy to receive a few antiquarian scraps connected with literary subjects. The EDITOR will most readily avail himself of the paper which has reached him respecting the first introduction of gas into the metropolis. We have not seen the book referred to by L.M.D.: if he will send us a copy, it shall be duly noticed in the proper place. Our kind friend, W. C. S., at Doncaster, must not forget his promise. A MUSICAL AMATEUR" is informed, that if he will transmit tickets for the performance alluded to, it shall not pass unnoticed. We shall always be happy to attend to the claims of genius and merit. BOOKS JUST PUBLISHED. New Year's Gift, silk, 1s. 6d... Wedding Present, do. 1s. 6d... Morrison on the Acts of the Apostles, 4s... Connolly's Journey to India, 2 vols. 8vo., 24s..... James's Book of the Passions, 3 vols. 8vo., 31s. 6d.. Clarke's Tales and Sketches, cloth, 10s. 6d. Pereira's Materia Medica, Part I., 16s... Genlis' Manual du permis-Voyage, in three languages, 6s. 6d... Tales of the Ancients and Moderns Verified, foolscap, 8vo. 3s. . Tales of my Niece, 18mo. 2s... Philosophy of Acquisitiveness, 2s... Wesley's Highway Account Book, 4to. 2s. 6d... Epitome of Phrenology, 6d... Crombie's Gymnasium, 2 vols, 8vo., 21s. . Physical Geography, 1 vol. 8vo., 6s..... Reid's Catechism of Heat, 9d..... Hunter's Livy, Book 21 to 25, 4s.... Mahon's England, vol. 3., 18s.... Combie's Clavis Gymnasii, 6s... Reynolds's Arithmetic, 2s... Book of the United States, 18s... Vision of Kubita, svo., 2s... Missionary Convention, 6s... Bush's Notes on Joshua, 6s.... Memoirs of Mrs. Taylor, 6s..... Parker's Missionary Tour, have I been About, by a Lady, 18mo., 2s. 6d... Demon of the 8vo., 8s... Anatomical Remembrancer, 2d ed., 3s. 6d... What Winds, a poem. 2s... Game Act, 3s. 6d... The only Daughter, TO THE PUBLISHING TRADE. BOOKSELLERS, PRINTSELLERS, &c. It is respectfully intimated to PUBLISHERS, BOOKSELLERS, PRINTSELLERS, &c., that their advertising favours will at all times receive the most sedulous attention on the Wrapper of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE. Also, that their Announcements of Works preparing for the Press will be inserted in the body of the Maga. zine. Such new Books, Engravings, and other productions connected with Literature and the Fine Arts as may be forwarded to the EDITOR, at the Printer's, No. 33, Aldersgate-street, or at the ALDINE ADVER 3 vols.. 31s. 6d... Minstrel Melodies, a collection of songs, 58. Memoirs of the Wernerian Natural History Society, 8vo., vol. 7, 18s... Lardner's Encyclopedia, Vol. 109 (1st vol. of Swainson's Fishes).... Gardner's Music and Friends, 2 vols. 8vo., 24s... Tales of Enterprize, 2s. 6d... Domestic Hints, by a Lady, 2s. 6d... The Women of England, by Mrs. Ellis, 9s... Galbraith's Piece Goods calculated, 1s. 6d... Douglas's Ready Reckoner, 1s... Book of Family Prayer, 1s. 6d... Dr. Castle's Translation of the Pharmacopoeia Lond., 4s... Burder's First Latin Exercise, 1s. 6d..... Scripture Illustration from Scott's Bible, 36s..... Wreath of Wild Flowers, 7s. 6d ... Irvinese's London Flora, 10s.... The Meteorologist, 1s.... Carpenter's Physiology, 8vo., 15s... Cutch; or, Sketches of Western India. By Mrs. Postans, 8vo. 14s. LONDON Printed by Joseph Masters, 33, Aldersgate Street. Published every Saturday at the Aldine Chambers, 12, Paternoster Row, by William West, and sold by all Booksellers and Newsvenders. THE ALDINE MAGAZINE OF Biography, Bibliography, Criticism, and the Arts. VOL. I. No. 2. DECEMBER 8, 1838. PRICE 3d. For the Accommodation of Subscribers in the Country, and Abroad, the Weekly Numbers of The Aldine Magazine are re-issued in Monthly Parts, and forwarded with the other Magazines.-Orders received by all Booksellers, Newsvenders, &c. REDUCTION OF POSTAGE. In the Prospectus of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE, it was intimated that each succeeding Number, after the first, should commence with a brief Original Paper, or "Leading Article," on some popular topic of the day. It is intended that these papers shall be devoted chiefly, though not exclusively, to the interests of literature, science, and the fine arts, more especially as those subjects may involve the interests of the community at large. In this view, although nothing absolutely new can be advanced upon the point, we are not aware of any topic in which the sympathies of the people are so strong, so general, as in the desire-the demand of a reduction of postage. It is a question in which all the moral affections are concernedin which the buyer as well as the seller has a claim-in which the promotion of trade, commerce, and manufactures, as well as of literature, science, and the arts, is deeply implicated-in which the increase of the property of individuals, and consequently the increase of the revenue of the State,—and again, consequently, THE ADVANCING PROSPERITY AND GREATNESS OF THE COUNTRY, are at stake. From the Land's End to John O'Groat's the cry is universal for a reduction of postage—for a universal PENNY POSTAGE. Sooner or later and it will not be long first-the demand must be conceded. And why should it not be conceded instanter ? It is no longer a question of revenue. It was shewn, before a Committee of the House of Commons, that the average cost of a letter to the receiver is 64d., whilst the cost to Government, even for letters to the remotest distances within the island, is considerably under a penny! It was also proved, from incontrovertible evidence, that, making full and liberal allowance for all the additional expenses that would be incurred by the Post Office, for an increase of labour consequent upon the increased number of letters which would result from the reduction of postage to a charge of one penny for each letter, be the distance long or short, would be amply met by an increase of five and a half VOL. I. NO. II. fold on the number of letters now carried. That is, if the increase were to be only five and a half fold the revenue would sustain no diminution of its present annual amount. On the other hand, there was every reason to suppose, from numerous calculations by the most competent authorities, that the actual increase in the number of letters, consequent on the reduction of postage to a penny for each letter, would not be less than fifteen fold. Thus, instead of a diminution of the revenue of the Post Office, there would be a considerable increase. Yet, even were it otherwise-were there to be a positive diminution in the Post Office receiptsthe loss would be abundantly compensated for, from a thousand sources, in the aggregate revenue of the State. From a mass of evidence delivered before the Committee of the House of Commons, it was apparent that, in cases almost innumerable, for manufacturing, commercial, and trading establishments, the annual profits would be increased, by the adoption of a universal penny postage, from 25 to 50, 75, and even 100 per cent. From the increase of produce and of consumption what advantages must occur to the State, no less than to individuals, from the additional amount of duties to be paid on innumerable articles employed and consumed! To illustrate this position, it would be unnecessary to dwell upon the facilities which would be given by the conveyance of letters not exceeding half an ounce each in weight, for a penny, to the transit of samples of various sorts-of auctioneers' catalogues and particulars-of booksellers' catalogues of new and of second-hand books—of prices current-of market letters, and notices— of patterns of drapery, silks, ribbons, laces, &c. -to say nothing of friendly and domestic correspondence of every possible description. The mind, as well as the eye, is too frequently distracted by having a multitude of objects placed before it at once. To give force there is nothing like concentration. We shall therefore follow the example of Sterne, when, to illustrate the wretchedness and misery attendant on incarceration, he took a single cap C ive, and placed him in a cell. We shall tak e a single case-our own-with reference to THE ALDINE MAGAZINE. Such of our readers as may be disposed to pursue their inquiries on this important subject, and to make themselves masters of its details, will do well to refer to Mr. Ashurst's pamphlet, entitled Facts and Reasons in support of Mr. Rowland Hill's Plan for a Universal Penny Postage. LETTER II. Aldine Chambers, Paternoster Row, With the view of extending the sale, and promoting the interest of the publication in various respects, we should immediately, had we a penny postage of which to avail ourselves, issue 20,000 letters, addressed to individuals likely to patronise the undertaking. This we could accomplish, paying the postage, at a cost LETTERS TO MY SON AT ROME. of 831. 6s. 8d.; a positive addition of so much to the Post Office revenue. If by this process we should be enabled to add (an exceedingly probable result) 1000 copies to our circulation, it would make a difference, in our weekly returns, of about 91. 7s. 6d. ; in those of the year, of 4877. 10s. Repeating the dispatch of 20,000 letters four times in the year, we should give an increase to the Post Office revenue of 3331. 6s. 8d. If the cost of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE were a shilling per number instead of three pence, the difference in our weekly returns, effected by the sale of only one additional thousand, would be 377. 10s. or 1,9501. a-year. This calculation applies in substance to every other periodical publication, and to every bookseller, as proprietor of periodical publications, in the kingdom, and with equal force in the case of all literary works whatever. MY DEAR SON, You ask me the site of the Aldine Cham bers. They are situated in Paternoster Row, within sixty yards of Cheapside, and of the highest ground in this great City, as it appears by a well known memorial affixed to a wall in Pannier Alley: "When you have searched the City round, You'll still find this the highest ground." You will, therefore perceive, that the ALDINE holds an elevated position. It is also within sixty yards of the northern side and grand entrance to St. Paul's, of which I should command a grand view were the eastern side of Canon Alley levelled with the ground. Then, Whilst upon this principle the proprietors however, the Bible and Crown, the King's of THE ALDINE MAGAZINE would be materially head, and a hive of sweets, would be levelled increasing their own profits, they would be in with it; and this would be as bad as levelling an equal proportion adding to the revenue of a Cannon against the Canons of the Church. the State; not only by heightening the receipts But I must explain this seeming parable. The of the Post Office department, but also by an Bible and Crown have, for upwards of a century, enlarged payment of the duties imposed upon constituted the sign of the Messrs. Rivington, the paper, and other articles employed in the whose highly respectable and venerable estabwork, to the amount of about one seventh of lishment faces me—that is, with its back front. the entire cost. This case is applicable, with I believe the Messrs. Rivington to be the very variations, to every instance of manufacture oldest surviving family of booksellers in Lonand productive labour that can be named. As don. They have not only been booksellers and Dr. Lardner has remarked, the Post Office re- agents to the Universities of Oxford and Camvenue, as it is now levied, is "a most iniquitous bridge, in the sale of bibles, common prayer tax upon the affections, the morals, upon every and classical books, but were also appointed social good, and upon every thing that it is de- booksellers to the Society for promoting Chrissirable to cultivate among a people in a state tian Knowledge, nearly from its commenceof progressive civilization. It is a tax on ment. The first work that has come under knowledge, a tax on science, and a tax on lite- my notice, with their name attached, was A rature." It is the more oppressive too, as it Defence of the Church and its Ministry," pubis not, and cannot be required, by the exigencies lished in 1718, but they have shop bill-heads of the state; for it has been shewn that, by the in their possession of so early a date as 1710. required alteration-by the adoption of a uni- Thus you will perceive, they have been pillars versal penny postage—the nation at large would and supporters of the Church, with undeviating be incalculably benefited, and the revenue of principles, for considerably more than a century, the State would not be diminished, but increased. from their commencement. It is my intention We repeat, therefore, that sooner or later- to give a biographical sketch of this family, and it will not be long first-the demand MUST during four generations. This I have prepared; be conceded. and it will be followed by biographical notices 66 |