From a work so comprehensive and varied as this is, it is difficult to determine what passages to select, in order to give the best idea of what the reader will find in it most worthy of notice. But we cannot go wrong in calling attention to some of the Prince's remarkable expressions of opinion which are scattered through the book. In a memorandum by the Prince, which he gave to Lord John Russell, on Italian affairs, there is the following pregnant and judicious passage: those of our readers who recollect the political events of the day (1847) will not fail to remember the occasion referred to by the Prince : 'What will be Lord Minto's position at Rome? Will he be a minister accredited to the Pope, or a member of the British Cabinet? He will be opposed by the Corps Diplomatique, at the head of which the Austrian ambassador is supreme, who will be supported (if only underhand) by his French colleague. These two great Catholic powers have means in their hands to influence the Vatican, which we cannot dream of competing with. The probability is that Lord Minto will have very little real influence, and will be made responsible for every act of a doubtful nature, and of which he may have been totally ignorant.' These are surely very wise suggestions, and very remarkable as coming from a young man only twenty-eight years of age. Lord John Russell assured Her Majesty, that the views expressed in the memorandum entirely coincided with the course of conduct which Lord Palmerston and himself had agreed to recommend to the Queen. In a subsequent letter to Lord John upon the same subject the Prince observes: 'England has, by her own energies and the fortunate circumstances in which she has been placed, acquired a start in civilisation, liberty, and prosperity over all other countries. Her popular institutions are most developed and perfected, and she has run through a development which the other countries will yet in succession have to pass through. England's mission, duty, and interest is, to put herself at the head of the diffusion of civilisation and the attainment of liberty. Let her mode of acting, however, be that of fostering and protecting every effort made by a State to advance in that direction, but not of pressing upon any State an advance which is not the result of its own impulse. Civilisation and liberal institutions must be of organic growth and of national development, if they are to prosper and lead to the happiness of a people. Any stage in that development missed, any jump made in it, is sure to lead to confusion, and to retard that very development which we desire. Institutions not answering the state of society for which they are intended must work ill, even if these institutions should be better than the state that society is in. Let England, England, therefore, be careful (in her zeal for progress) not to push any nation beyond its own march, and not to impose upon any nation what that nation does not itself produce; but let her declare herself the protector and friend of all States engaged in progress, and let them acquire that confidence in England that she will, if necessary, defend them at her own risk and expense. This will give her the most powerful moral position that any country ever maintained.' To the same effect the Prince wrote on another occasion : 'We are frequently inclined to plunge States into constitutional reforms towards which they have no inclination. This I hold to be quite wrong (vide Spain, Portugal, Greece), although it is Lord Palmerston's hobby; but, on the other hand, Í maintain that England's true position is to be the defence and support (die Schutz-Macht) of States, whose independent development is sought to be impeded from without.' Again, with what sagacity and boldness the Prince comments, in a letter to Baron Stockmar, upon the King of Prussia's speech. "I have to-day read with alarm the King of Prussia's Speech, which in my vile word-for-word translation into English produces a truly strange impression. Those who know and love the King recognise him and his views and feelings in every word, and will be grateful to him for the frankness with which he expresses them; but if we put ourselves into the position of a cold critical public, our heart sinks. What confusion of ideas! And what boldness in a King to speak extempore; and at such a moment, and at such length, not only to touch all the most terrible and difficult topics, but to plunge into them slap-dash, to call God to witness, to promise, threaten, protest, &c." 'In writing to Baron Stockmar a few days later the Prince remarks on two qualities in the character of King Frederick William, which were soon found to interfere fatally with his powers to deal with the problems of practical politics. "The King lets himself be misled by similes which captivate his fancy, which he carries out only so far as they suit his purpose, and which frequently by no means reflect the true state of things, but satisfy because they are clever and suggestive (geistreich). This makes close discussion with him impossible."' This last remark of the Prince Consort will be allowed by observant men to be singularly shrewd. Most of the greatest errors in the world find a large support in similes which captivate the fancy, but do not serve to enlighten the understanding. His character of Pope Pius IX. is equally striking :'The Pope is the counterpart of the King of Prussia: great impulsiveness, half-digested political ideas, little acuteness of intellect, : with a great deal of cultivated intelligence (Geist), and accessibility to outward influences. The rock on which both split is the belief that they can set their subjects in motion, and keep the direction and spread of the movement entirely in their own hands; nay, that they alone possess the right to control the movement, because it emanates from them?" In conclusion, we would cite a remark that was made by the Prince Consort, which we think, though it is not of a political or diplomatic nature, deserves much consideration in the present time. ""I don't understand," he would often say, "people making a business of shooting, and going out for the whole day. I like it as an amusement for a few hours. Die Leute hier (in England) wollen ein Geschäft daraus machen.' We said at the commencement of this article, that Mr. Theodore Martin had been very fortunate in having to portray the life of one who was so deeply interested in, and so thoroughly conversant with, most of the principal events of his time. There is, however, one drawback against which the author has had to contend. The Prince Consort's character was of that tempered, proportionate, and thoroughly well-conditioned nature, which does not admit of any of those violent contrasts which are wont, especially at first sight, to make a character interesting. The world in general is much fascinated by what is picturesque in character. A hero such as Cortes, pious and unscrupulous, polite and cruel, amiable and fierce, inevitably amuses, astonishes, and attracts us. The reader likes to read about these strange contrasts, and perhaps, plumes himself upon the fact that if he has not the greatness, at least he has not the inconsistency, of the hero of the story. In reality there was something in the Prince Consort's character which entirely relieved its noble gravity and consistency. As we have intimated before, he was one of the most humorous of men-humorous in contra-distinction to witty; and the kind of humour was peculiarly British. It pervaded all descriptions he gave of anything that he had seen; it was lambent and not forked; and in short was of the kind that does not admit of repetition. Moreover, as the Prince had a great dislike to giving pain, and to saying anything that was ill-natured, his humour never expressed itself in those short, sharp, sayings, which are easily recollected and readily repeated. Still, this humorous nature of the Prince formed a great and ever present relief to the somewhat stern quality of virtue which was always to be perceived in him as the ground-work of his character. As As an instance of this sternness, we may mention the feelings of the Prince as regards the conduct of Louis Philippe in the disastrous business of the Spanish marriages. It is evident that the Queen was inclined to forgive that conduct; but the Prince could not, feeling that if truth had deserted the rest of the world, it ought to find a resting-place in the bosoms of Kings.' We have endeavoured to give a general review of this important and suggestive work. It is, however, a work of which extracts give but a faint notion, and it must be read throughout before a just opinion can be formed of the continuous labour, of the strict adherence to duty, and of the exceeding intelligence devoted to British interests, which this portion of the Life of the Prince Consort' reveals to us. We have not dwelt much upon the purely domestic details which are described in this volume. These are, however, peculiarly fascinating, and, through the writer's skill, they have the special charm of being felt, rather than insisted on. Throughout the narrative it is clearly to be seen that the Prince Consort was a good husband, a good father, and a kind master; such a man, in short, as may be adopted by fathers for their own model, and set as an example before their sons. We congratulate the biographer upon the conclusion of this first volume, and look forward with hopefulness to the future volume or volumes, with which he may favour us. At the same time, we cannot help remarking upon one of his singular merits as a biographer, namely, that he entirely effaces himself in his work, and that the reader is never withdrawn from the contemplation of the life of the hero by any prominence of the personality of the biographer. It is only when we pause to reflect on the impression as to the Prince, his character, and influence, which has been left upon our minds, that we appreciate the skill and artistic reserve which have produced so living and harmonious a picture from the complicated materials with which he has had to deal. M. Discours prononcé par ART. IV.-I. Le Barreau Anglais. 2. Hortensius. An Historical Essay on the Office and Duties of an Advocate. By William Forsyth, LL.D., Q.C., M.P. 2nd Edition. London, 1874. 8vo. 3. A Guide 3. A Guide to the Inns of Court and Chancery. By Robert R. Pearce, Esq. London, 1855. 8vo. 4. Remarks upon the Jurisdiction of the Inns of Court. By Frederick Calvert, Esq., Q.C. London, 1874. 8vo. 5. Speech of Sir Roundell Palmer, Q.C., M.P., delivered at the Annual Meeting of the Legal Education Association, in the Middle Temple Hall, on Wednesday the 29th November, 1871. With a Report of the Proceedings. London, 1871. 8vo. 6. Fusion: an Elementary Lecture, delivered Nov. 28, 1872, at the request of the Incorporated Law Society. By Freeman Oliver Haynes, Esq. London, 1873. 7. Origines Juridiciales. By Wm. Dugdale, Esq., Norroy King of Arms. Second Edition. London, 1671. 4to. 8vo. 8. Report from the Select Committee on Legal Education: ordered by the House of Commons to be printed, 25th August, 1846. 4to. 9. Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the arrangements in the Inns of Court and Inns of Chancery, for promoting the study of Law and Jurisprudence. London, 1855. 4to. MR. R. FORSYTH, in his Hortensius,' of which a second and improved edition has now been published, has given, with much learning and literary ability, an historical sketch of the Advocate's office and functions, and described the origin and career of the profession in Greece and Rome, France and England. Hortensius, the famous Roman Advocate, has been selected by the author as The Advocate par excellence, and his name has therefore been taken as the title of this interesting work. Cicero had before paid a similar compliment to his friend and contemporary. Yet, Hortensius was guilty of such misconduct in the affair of Minucius Basilus,* that, had he lived in England in our days and been a member of an Inn of Court, the Benchers would probably have disbarred him. The English Bar has always kept itself remarkably free from the accusation of perverting privileges to the accomplishment of fraudulent objects, and has, for more than five centuries, held a high place in the estimation of the public, not only for learning and eloquence, but for honourable conduct. The profession is a favourite with the English nation. It has acted as an elastic band, uniting the aristocracy with the classes below it. The younger sons of the nobility, when possessed of sufficient mental energy for the Bar, have cheerfully entered its ranks, to gain there, by a successful career, wealth not otherwise attain *Cicero, 'De Officiis,' iii. 18. able |