from the English, and strongly separated by manners and hostility. -Now if an Englishman has all these comforts combined in his dwelling, he enjoys the highest degree of pleasure, when he sits round the fire with his family; and, even should he not speak a word, it affords him entertainment enough to see the fire. Α fireside is to him the ideal of pleasure; when he pronounces that word, he immediately thinks of his family, and the train of ideas puts him in a good humor. The English are indeed, par excellence, as they say themselves, the marrying nation; they, therefore, find as little fault with the marriage-hunting of their ladies as they do with the careless marriages of their idle poor, and even Pitt was often obliged to submit to the reproaches of the opposition for his bachelor's life the English are, besides, by the melancholy tincture in their temperament, as much inclined to sentimentality as to spleen. Truly, their family life is an honorable and amiable trait in the national character. Even the coldest Englishman will become cheerful and confiding at the fireside; pride will give way to a well-founded self-respect, heightened by hospitality; unfeigned kindness is shown to every one who is received into the circle round the fire, instead of the reserve which custom, fashion, and national character prescribe in social intercourse. In short, English humor, wit, and sense are seen in their proper light by the blaze of the coal fire, and one may take it for granted, that strangers who have travelled in England and afterwards reviled the nation, never had an opportunity of sitting round a fire with an English family. For the rest, this attachment to domestic life offers a stronger guarantee for morality than the high Anglican church, which is, in some respects, as rotten as the once glorious rotten boroughs. No wonder that the said fireside is often a favorite theme with which novel-writers connect the descriptions of persons and situations, that have gained so much praise for English literature, though they may be accused sometimes of being too long. Certainly there is no reader who does not experience a pleasurable feeling, on reading Goldsmith's description of his good vicar enthroned near the fireside with his family around him and his little ones on his knee. It would be advisable for foreign novel-writers who place the scene of action in England, not to forget that fireside, when they wish to display their humor, if they be fortunate enough to possess any. The feeling of the most complete security from the aggressions of policemen or fellow-citizens, as well as a free unconfined will in his house, which is granted to the English by the common law, do not contribute a little to this pleasure; it is indeed not considered as one of the comforts, but their undisturbed enjoyment is thereby assured, and that self-respect which is connected with them is augmented or preserved. Should he be tormented by creditors, he has the agree able prospect of entering the Fleet, or some other prison, and thus against his will acquiring the rights of the corporation. In the mean time, he may, near his fireside, forget his cares and quietly enjoy his comforts, for no bailiff will dare to enter his dwelling without being let in. If he did so, he might with full right treat him as a housebreaker, and, if he pleased, shoot the unwelcome guest, like a gallant adventurer. John Bull is not a little proud of the privilege, "My house is my castle;" and gives him pleasure to boast of it on every favorable occasion, and practically to demonstrate it before all the world. When Sir Frances Burdett was to be sent to the Tower by order of the House of Commons, and the officer of parliament, to whom admission could not be refused, had not yet appeared, there arose a popular tumult before the house, on which occasion Castlereagh thought it necessary to order some troops out. Sir Francis Burdett, on his side, did himself the pleasure of placing pieces of cannon at the windows and pointing them at the troops, and Castlereagh, on being informed of this, quietly said, "They could not prevent Sir Francis Burdett from doing it." Unfortunately, the suspicion with which an Englishman views everybody who enters his house, deprives the foreign traveller of much enjoyment; for John Bull does not willingly let anybody cross his threshold who is unknown to him, or who has not been recommended to him, or, in fine, who has not business to transact with him. Thus, the treasures of art which English wealth has collected from all parts of Europe are shut up from the stranger, who is the more tantalized by the letters of Prince Puckler Muskau, whose station gave him access to them. But even the defunct was once in danger of being treated as a thief, having, to gratify his curiosity, without the knowledge of Lord R- -, smuggled himself into his park by bribing the gate-keeper. Another time he was even obliged, to satisfy his passion for parks, to climb over the wall like a gallant poacher. He Though in this way the scale of comforts is so tolerably filled that John could bear his cloudy days and even the defeat of his party, there still remains a comfort, the want of which even in the happiest circumstances would render him very uncomfortable, and destroy all his good-humor; namely a newspaper with his breakfast. He would rather do without toast with his tea than be deprived of his gigantic morning paper; for a breakfast without a journal is for him an election without an election dinner, or an Irishman without a bull. John Bull does not, it is true, place such implicit faith in that oracle, the press, as Jay's Parisian badaud, who kept his bed because he read in the newspapers that he had broken his leg; but, however, he reads them with such conscientiousness, that he does not overlook a letter. not only wishes to see his political opinion reproduced in them every morning, but he reads with so much the more pleasure the "Chronique Scandaleuse" of the town, the less he troubles himself about scandal in society, the more careful and suspicious he is concerning his property, the more he is amused by accounts of robberies, housebreaking, and swindling; though he never risks his money in bets, or gives his wife cause to fear that he should break a leg at a foxhunt, he never misses reading the interesting sporting intelligence, comprising accounts of hunts, races, cockfights, &c. Neither does he omit the verses and the fatal accidents, of which regular accounts are sent from the most distant parts of the kingdom, and in which the EngJish take so much interest, that they become as tiresome to the stranger as the importance they attach to the success of a favorite racer on the turf. Although John Bull may have, besides, a particular whim for some individual comforts, he will feel himself pretty well off with those we have described. There are, indeed, some secondary things wanting, for instance, a dressing-case for travelling how : ever, this belongs rather to the dandy, and the real John Bull can as well do without it as the army could dispense with those store-waggons, laden with hair-hrushes, which the soldiers of Soult once captured, but which were probably only intended for a few regiments of dandies and exclusives, such as the Guards, &c. Now, should he feel himself tolerably well off with all those comforts, though he may long for one or two more, he will assume the air of a philosopher, and think, with Goldsmith, "Man wants but little here below, Nor wants that little long." A DREAM. THE balm of sleep fell o'er me, and I dreamt- A fair and lovely land, round which the sea Eolian, charmed the listening scene-'twas sweet Around, the trees waved with their beauteous fruits,- Rolled cloudless. And overhead, the sky With ecstasy I wandered How sweet, thought I, to dwell in such a place, And, oh! if there were one to dwell with me,- Scarce the wish Was uttered, when forth she came to meet me, Her golden hair in wavy ringlets hung "And art thou here, my love, and wilt thou stay? And be beloved! Here in this place we 'll dwell;- A long, long kiss. "Oh! never more we part!" A shadowy unsubstantial dream. ARTISTS AND WORKS OF ART IN ENGLAND. BY DR. WAGEN, DIRECTOR OF THE PICTURE GALLERY IN BERLIN. VISIT TO THE DUKE OF SUTHERLAND. LONDON, 20th May, 1835.-At last I have some notion of the dwel ling and mode of life of an English duke. Provided with two letters of introduction by the kindness of the Duchess of Cumberland and the Princess Louise of Prussia, I waited on the Duke of Sutherland, who received me in the most friendly manner, and conducted me through his palace. It is distinguished from all others in London by extent, stately proportion, richness of material, and beauty of situation. It was begun by the late Duke of York, under the superintendence of the architect Wyatt, and after his death bought and enlarged by the Marquis of Stafford, the father of the present Duke of Sutherland. A fine prospect is enjoyed from the windows, of the Green Park on one side, and on the other of St. James's, with its mighty trees, above whose luxuriant foliage rise the towers of Westminster Abbey. The eye turns, however, willingly to the interior of the apartments, where, besides the magnificence of furniture, draperies, and carpets, it finds the nobler enjoyments arising from the contemplation of works of art. The marble chimney-pieces are adorned sometimes with antique busts and reliefs, sometimes with elegant vases, of various rare kinds of stone, after the most celebrated antiques. The finest ornaments of the palace, however, are the pictures of the Italian, Flemish, Spanish, and modern English schools; a collection which the duke, one of the richest men in England, is constantly endea voring to enrich still more. The gallery, situated in the new story which the present possessor has added to the original building, is lighted from above, and will soon contain all the most valuable of his paintings. The duke in his youth spent some time at the Prussian court, and the numerous portraits of our royal family seem to indicate that he has retained a lively remembrance of the period. Among them is a marble bust of our departed queen, by Rauch, after the monument by the same artist at Charlottenburg. I had afterwards the honor of being introduced to the duchess, whose uncommon beauty, in the true English style, is heightened by an expression of great intelligence and sweetness of disposition. Perhaps the most imposing part of the mansion is the staircase. This vast space, which passes through every floor in the house, is admirably lighted by a lantern from above, and by its excellent proportions, by the coloring of the walls, where the giallo antico has been most happily imitated, and by the balustrade richly ornamented with gilt bronze, produces a most stately and imposing effect. It reminded me in a most lively manner of the mighty space so frequently met with in the palaces of Genoa. I will soon write to you more in detail concerning the picture-gallery, to which the kindness of the duke has allowed me daily access, and I shall then endeavor to give you some idea of the inestimable treasures of art that England has been collecting, especially from the time of the French Revolution to the present day. BALL AT DEVONSHIRE HOUSE. I left a party at half-past eleven o'clock to go to a ball at the Duke of Devonshire's, for which I had received a card. The line of car. riages was so long that a full hour elapsed before I was able to gain admission. The house was splendidly lighted up, and as I approached I was greeted with ravishing strains of music. The first apartments were so thronged with the beau monde, that I had some difficulty in making my way through them. The duke conversed with me a short time in the most friendly manner, and gave me an invitation to a breakfast at his villa at Chiswick for the 13th. The quantity of light, almost equalling that of day, and the splendor of the decorations, were worthy of the guests assembled. One small room, whose walls were covered with rose-colored drapery and look. ing-glass, and in the midst of which were placed a number of exquisite flowers, filling the air with their fragrance, and delighting the eye by their gay variety of hue, was particularly admired. Its charm was completed by the slender sylph-like forms of the young Englishwomen of the higher classes whom this fashionable ball had attracted in unusual numbers. Although myself no artist, my long continued familiarity with their works has accustomed me to view all objects with an artist's eye; and a more glorious opportunity for contemplations of this description than this ball afforded could hardly have been found. I was able to yield myself up to them with less interruption, as there were but few in this vast assemblage to whom I was personally known. I remarked many specimens of distinguished beauty in both sexes-many a living Vandyke, with those delicate regular features, clear, warm, transparent com. plexion, and fair hair, which he caught so incomparably well. Still more striking and piquant were many faces of quite southern character, with black hair and strongly-marked brows. These may perhaps be the descendants of the ancient Britons, for the invading Saxon and Norman races were fair. There was one girl whose exquisitely graceful head would have enraptured Guido, and one young man, who appeared to me almost a perfect model of symmetry and beauty; the dark, deep set, dreaming eyes, the beautifully cut mouth, where a touch of refined sensuality, mingled with a slight expression of melancholy, would have afforded to a Grecian artist the most admirable model for a youthful Bacchus. As he was very young, and evidently still new to these circles, there was as yet no trace of that self-sufficient consciousness of beauty which so powerfully diminishes its impression. His countenance received a new charm when his glances rested for a long time, with evident plea. sure, on a lovely blonde, whose brilliant eyes shone with all the radiant light of youth and joy. Perhaps you may feel some curiosity to bear the names of some of these beauties; but, for my part, I should as soon have thought of asking the Latin names of the flowers in a garden. I was too |