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endeavoured to raise against England, in a matter where she asks only what she in return admits to all mankind, and which is asked only in the common interest and common safety of the whole maritime world.

The truth, the plain unvarnished truth and common sense will be sufficient to dissipate all jealousy about the principle; and there are abundant means by which the practical inconvenience may be reduced almost-if not absolutely-to nothing. For this purpose it would be very desirable to know what cases of inconvenience have actually occurred. We hear of complaints, but we have never heard the details of any one cause of complaint, and we suspect that had they been very serious we should have heard more about them: but whatever they may be, no one can doubt that every effort ought to be made to prevent, as far as possible, their recurrence. Any British officer, of experience enough to be intrusted with a command, will, in three cases out of four, be able to distinguish at a glance, or by exchanging a word through a trumpet, an American ship from any other that he can have a right to visit-except perhaps the British. In any case, the inquiry ought to be so conducted that in the event of mistake there should be at least no discourtesy, and as little delay as possible, to complain of; and in the rare cases in which any injurious delay or inconvenience should occur, the officer, or the country, according to the circumstances, would be held liable to make good any damage occasioned to an innocent party-just as a magistrate or policeman would, in such a case as we have before supposed, have to make reparation to a person whom they should have indiscreetly or erroneously arrested.

There is, however, one point of our system for suppressing the slave-trade which we think objectionable in itself, and still more so as tending to produce the inconveniences which we deprecate: we mean the bounty to her Majesty's ships for the re-capture of slaves. These rewards stand, we humbly conceive, on entirely different grounds from belligerent prize-in an erroneous, as we think, imitation of which they have been established. We will not enter into a detail of the many reasons for which we should wish to see this practice wholly abolished: it is sufficient for our present purpose to say that it seems at variance with the spirit of disinterested humanity, which we know, but which foreign nations were, for a long time, so reluctant to believe, to be the real motive of our zeal against slave-trading.

But there is a short and easy mode of arranging this question, which would leave nothing to doubt or accident, and would wholly remove all possibility of difference between America and us on the subject. We mean-a diplomatic arrangement between the

countries;

countries; and certainly there never was a more propitious moment for such an experiment. Even as we are writing these lines, we have had the great satisfaction of hearing that a joint Convention has been very recently signed by Austria, England, France, Prussia, and Russia, by which each power agrees-in furtherance of the suppression of the slave-trade-to grant to the cruisers of the other powers warrants to search-in certain specified cases-and, if slaves be found, to send in for adjudication ships bearing its national flag. This great step-the greatest, we believe, yet made towards the suppression of the slave-trade on the seas, does infinite honour to all the contracting parties, and will, we are confident, be received with such satisfaction throughout Europe as to silence the petty and interested cavils of a party in France, which-from the triple motive of opposition to M. Guizot, hatred of England, and zeal for the slave-trade-has been very angry at the prospect of this happy arrangement. With Brazil, Denmark, Holland, Naples, Portugal, Sardinia, Spain, and Sweden, we had already similar conventions; and thus there is an unanimous concurrence in this great principle of, we may say, the whole civilized world-except America; and we cannot believe that she will long consent to exclude herself from so honourable an alliance. But-whether it is to be done by a Convention, or some special application of the general principles before stated we cannot bring ourselves to doubt that this question may be easily, and will be speedily arranged.

We conclude with repeating the expression of our anxious but respectful hope-we might say our conviction-that, taking them altogether, the points of difference existing between England and America are so inconsiderable, compared with the vast importance of the common interests which should unite them, that the wise and honest statesmen who now principally influence the foreign relations of the two countries will be enabled to bring all those differences to an early, honourable, and final close, and to give to that community of interests such additional cordiality and confidence as may make our two countries in feeling-what, as compared with the rest of mankind, we really are-independent but friendly branches of one great family.

NOTE.

280

NOTE-concerning the Article on the Order of the Garier, &c., in No. CXXXVI.

We have received various letters complaining of omissions in our account of the actual representatives of our old royal families, in an article of last Number. We did not profess to name all the existing representatives of every branch, but only the chief representative-the person to whom, were the succession to open to that branch, the royal inheritance would go. Thus, in the case of the Prince of Modena: he was mentioned as the head of that particular line of the House of Saroy in which the blood of Charles I. survives. We did not enumerate more than the two other persons next included in that line: the Duchess of Angoulême, her husband, and the children of the late Duke of Berri, are farther off in that line of Savoy, and therefore they, with others, were omitted. King Louis Philippe comes after them, as a descendant from the Stuart family; but he was mentioned because he represents another line of that blood, namely, the blood of James I. In like manner, when a princess of ancient date had been married more than once, we seldom mentioned more as to her than the representative of her first marriage. Thus we did not mention Sir A. Edmonstone, of Duntreath, though this Baronet undoubtedly springs from the second marriage of a Scottish princess; and his house have, ever since the time of King Robert II., borne the double tressure on their shield, in token of that high connexion.

After these illustrations we need not explain why we did not state that Lord Stourton descends from Thomas de Brotherton through the Howards; or that the Duke of Rutland comes from Anne Plantagenet, as well as Lord de Ros. In both cases the prime royalty of the blood has been dissevered from the male representation of the great families that were honoured with the royal alliance.

THE

QUARTERLY REVIEW.

ART. I.-1. Collection des Chroniques Nationales Françaises. Par M. Buchon. 36 vols. Paris, 1826.

2. Collection Complete des Mémoires relatifs à l'Histoire de France. Par M. Petitot. Première Série, 52 vols. Seconde Série, par MM. Petitot et Monmerqué, 78 vols. Paris, 1819-1829.

3. Collection des Mémoires relatifs à l'Histoire de France. Par M. Guizot. 30 vols. Paris, 1823-1835.

4. Archives Curieuses de l'Histoire de France. Premiere Série, 15 vols. Seconde Série, 12 vols. Paris, 1834-1841.

5. Procès de Jeanne d'Arc. Par Jules Quicherat. Premier tome. Paris, 1841.

IF

F we compare the progress of historical publications in France and England during the last twenty or thirty years we shall find but little ground for self-gratulation. Our Record Commission comprised most able men: it was animated by the best intentions; but in its results it has brought forth only misshapen and abortive works-all begun apparently without rule or method -scarce any yet completed, and scarce any deserving to be so all of different forms and sizes-and alike only in the enormous amount of the expense incurred, and the almost utter worthlessness of the information afforded. Never before, according to the farmer's phrase, was there so much cry and so much cost with so little wool. Amongst the French, on the contrary, there have been-without the need of government grants or government commissions—some well-combined undertakings to collect, arrange, and publish the most valuable documents in their language, from their early chronicles down to their modern memoirs. These have been printed in regular succession, and in one uniform and convenient size, affording to the public a clear and excellent type, combined with a'moderate price. We do not pretend to have read at any time all or nearly all the two hundred volumes which our title-page displays. Some of their contents also were known to us from former and separate publications; but so far as our reading in this edition has extended, we have found the biographical introductions clear, critical, and able, and the text, while not overlaid,. sufficiently explained, with notes. We think very great praise is due to the various editors, MM. Buchon, Petitot, Monmerqué,

VOL. LXIX. NO. CXXXVIII.

U

merqué, and last, not least, that eminent statesman who now presides over the councils of his country. And we heartily commend these volumes to the purchase and perusal of all who value French history-to the emulation of all who value our own.

To review in a few pages several hundred volumes and several hundred years would be a vain and frivolous attempt. We shall prefer to single out some one period and some one subject, which we shall endeavour to illustrate, not only from the publications now before us, but from whatever other sources may supply. Let us take one of the most remarkable characters in ancient or modern times, Joan of Arc, the Maid of Orleans. The eighth volume of M. Petitot's Collection' contains many ancient documents referring to her history, an original letter, for example, from the Sire de Laval to his mother, describing her appearance at Court -and some memoirs written, beyond all doubt, by a contemporary, since the writer refers to information which he received from the chiefs at the siege of Orleans; nay, written probably, as M. Petitot conjectures from their abrupt termination, in the very year of that siege.

But these are by no means the only nor the most important documents to be consulted. It is well known that at the trial in 1431, Joan was herself examined at great length, together with many other witnesses. A new trial of revision,' with the view to clear her memory from the stain of the first, was undertaken by order of King Charles in 1456; and at this second trial several of her kinsmen, of her attendants, of her companions in arms, appeared to give their testimony. Now, manuscript copies of all these remarkable depositions exist in the public libraries, both of Paris and Geneva. They have been illustrated by MM. de Laverdy and Lebrun de Charmettes, and more recently by the superior skill of De Barante and Sismondi.* Of these last we shall especially avail ourselves; and by combining and comparing such original records, many of them descending to the most familiar details, and nearly all unknown till more recent times, we hope to make the English reader, at least, better acquainted than he may hitherto have been with the real character and history of the heroine.

Joan was the child of Jacques d'Arc, and of Isabeau Romée his wife, poor villagers of Domremy, on the borders of Lorraine. She had one sister, who appears to have died in childhood, and three brothers. When asked at her trial what had been her age on first coming to King Charles's Court, she answered, nineteen. The good rule of making a large addition to a lady's own declaration of her years does not appear needful in this case: her own

De Barante, Histoire des Ducs de Bourgogne, vol. v. pp. 270-360, and vol. vi. pp. 1.140; Sismondi, Histoire des Français, vol. xiii. pp. 115-194.

declaration

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