the Paradise Lost, the other the Pilgrim's Progress."

With this citation, we must close our observations on the Critical and Historical Essays, and proceed to the consideration of Mr. Macaulay's poetry.

with the actual life and manners of the early Romans; with the bravery and fortitude of the Roman character; and the patriotic devotion and fidelity, which was the distinction of the Roman citizen. Some of the singular traditions which make up the early portions of Roman history, and which, before the advent of Niebuhr, were regarded as mere ridio ulous fables, Macaulay has here restored to us in shape which can be supposed to resemble that in which they were originally sung by the early Latin minstrels. Identifying himself with these minstrels, and adopting what he conceives to have been the ideas and sentiments by which they were inspired, he has given us spirited versions of the stories of Horatius Cocles, the battle of the Lake Regillus, the death of Virginia, and the prophecy of Copys. The style is bold, abrupt, and energetic, and but little tinged with imagery; and the narration proceeds with a rapidity and directness not unlike the hurrying movements of an army in the height of conflict.

On this, it is not our intention to say much. One small volume contains all he has written, or, at any rate, chosen to preserve by publication. His Lays of the Roundheads, contributed in his college-days to Knight's Magazine, appear to have been left uncollected in the pages of that journal; and of the Lays of the League, published in the same periodical, he has only reprinted Ivry-A Song of the Huguenots; and a short fragment, entitled The Armada, as examples of those performances. His brilliant reputation as a reviewer and an essayist has obscured the milder shining of his first poetical attempts; and it was pretty well forgotten that he had ever written verses, when, in 1842, he surprised and gratified the public by his Lays of Ancient Rome. The applause which greeted the appearance of this volume was rather more enthusiastic than The lay of" Horatius" is supposed to have discriminating; owing, perhaps, somewhat been "made about the year of the city 360," to the circumstance, that no such work had and describes how Horatius, with two combeen expected from the author, and also to panions, defended the bridge across the Tiber, the further fact, that, for some years previous- in the face of a large army brought against ly, there had been little poetry of any striking the city, under the command of Lars* Porsena morit published. There is no doubt that the of Clusium, in Etruria, for the purpose of reLays are masterly productions of this class; establishing the kingly family of the Tarbut it is quite as certain that they do not quins, whom the Roman people had recently belong to the higher kinds of poetry. As a expelled. -"The Battle of the Lake Regillus" man of poetical genius, Macaulay cannot be is represented to have been produced about said to rank with the greater minds of his ninety years after the lay of Horatius. Some age; not with Wordsworth, Byron, Coleridge, persons mentioned in the Horatius are introKeats, or Shelley, or even with Scott; his posi- duced again, and certain appellations and tion is on some lower elevation, on some ledge epithets used in that ballad are purposely reor pinnacle of Parnassus, where the air is less peated; "for," remarks Mr. Macaulay, "in ethereal, and where the awful voices of the an age of ballad poetry, it scarcely ever fails gods are heard with less distinctness. He is to happen, that certain phrases come to be not so remarkable for originality or compre- appropriated to certain men and things, and hensiveness of poetic power, as for his skill are regularly applied to those men and things, in dealing with poctical materials. His by every minstrel." This lay is supposed to prominent excellences are those of the gifted have been "sung at the feast of Castor and and well-practised artist. The Roman Lays Pollux;" and it relates how the Romans are forcible and eloquent versifications of an- gained a victory over the Latines near Lake cient Roman legends; but most of the essen- Regillus, through being visibly assisted by tial poetry they contain belongs rather to the those deities- the much-honored "great subjects than to the conceptions of the writ- twin-brethren ;" and how the feast, in comNo man sees his object more clearly than memoration of their august services, came to Macaulay, or can paint it more vividly to the be first instituted. Of course, the poet's obperceptions of his reader. No one is more ject, in this and the other ballads, is to furstudious of the effects of contrast, and the ap-nish us with animated descriptions of Roman propriate grouping of events and incidents. scenery and manners, and to illustrate, as thorNo one can surpass him in the art of producing a vivid and picturesque impression. With true poetic sympathy, he projects himself into the scenes and incidents to be described, and depicts them with a minute distinctness, as of one speaking with the authority of a witness. These abrupt martial chants of his do really make us, to some extent, acquainted

er.

66

oughly as possible, the habits, actions, and modes of feeling which characterized the Roman people. Virginia" is the story of a maiden who was stabbed by her father, to save her from dishonor; and it purports to be "fragments of a lay sung in the Forum,"

*Lars, lar, signifies a lord or chief.

read continuously; their merit is not to be seen in isolated passages, but lies in the substance and progressive interest of the story, and in the spirit and animation with which it is developed. The only way of furnishing a fair specimen of the Lays, would be to quote one of them entire; but as their length, and other obvious reasons, preclude us from doing this, the best method open to us seems to be that of selecting from some given ballad such pas sages as can be detached, and connecting them with a prose epitome of the remainder. The lay of "Horatius" appears best adapted to such a plan; and in this way we accordingly proceed to deal with it.

It opens with the announcement that Lars Porsena had sworn by the "Nine Gods" to restore "the great house of Tarquin ;" and he accordingly sends messengers to call together, from the several towns and villages of Etruria, all the people capable of bearing arms, naming a day on which they were to assemble, preparatory to the march to Rome. His commands are instantaneously obeyed : —

The horsemen and the footmen
Are pouring in amain
From many a stately market-place,
From many a fruitful plain;
From many a lonely hamlet,
Which, hid by beech and pine,
Like an eagle's nest, hangs on the crest
Of purple Apennine.

on the day when certain tribunes of the commons had been elected for the fifth time, in the year of the city 382. It commemorates the reestablishment of the tribuneship as a power in the state, on the downfall of the decemvirate, or Council of Ten, by which Rome, during the ascendency of the patricians, had been governed and oppressed; the immediate cause of that downfall being an attempt made by Appius Claudius Crassus, one of the Ten, upon the chastity of a beautiful young girl of humble birth. "The story ran, that the decemvir, unable to succeed by bribes and solicitations, resorted to an outrageous act of tyranny. A vile dependent of the Claudian house laid claim to the damsel as his slave. The cause was brought before the tribunal of Appius. The wicked magistrate, in defiance of the clearest proofs, gave judgment for the claimant. But the girl's father, a brave soldier, saved her from servitude and dishonor by stabbing her to the heart in the sight of the whole Forum. That blow was the signal for a general explosion. Camp and city rose at once; the Ten were pulled down; the tribuneship was reestablished; and Appius escaped the hands of the executioner only by a voluntary death." This ballad, though not the happiest in versification, is perhaps the most interesting of the series. The "Prophecy of Copys" relates to the founding of Rome, and in it the supposed minstrel runs over some of the principal events connected with its early history. Copys is From many places specified by name; the an imaginary seer of the time of Romulus, united forces amounting to fourscore thousand old and sightless; and his prophecy is repre-foot and ten thousand horsemen. "Thirty sented as being addressed to that personage chosen prophets," esteemed "the wisest of the when he visited the seer, just before his departure from Alba for the purpose of founding a new city. The lay is stated to have been "sung at the banquet in the Capitol, on the day whereon Manius Curius Dentatus, a second time consul, triumphed over King Pyrrhus and the Tarentines, in the year of the city 479." Like all the others, it is written with much spirit, but it is less attractive than the rest, on account of its lacking the interest which attaches to personal exploits and adventure. Romulus is too remote and too hypothetical a being for human sympathy to be concerned with; whilst the war with the Tarentines is referred to in terms too vague and general to make anything approaching to a powerful impression. This may very well accord with the shadowy peculiarities of prophecy, but it unquestionably impairs the interest of the ballad. The collection altogether, however, forms a lively representation of some of the most prominent features of Roman life and manners, as far as such a picture can be rendered from the legends and traditions in which the primitive facts of Roman history are embodied.

It has been observed that, to be properly appreciated, Mr. Macaulay's ballads must be

land," are officially consulted respecting the prospects of the enterprise, and they with one accord encourage Porsena to proceed with it, and promise him a "return in glory." Meanwhile, from all the country about the Tiber, the people, in tumult and consternation, hastily take flight to Rome; and for two days and nights the roads, for a mile around the city, were stopped up by the multitude. Aged folks on crutches, women with young children, sick men borne on litters, and troops of sunburnt husbandmen with staves and reapinghooks, and droves of mules and asses laden with skins of wine, and endless flocks of cattle, and trains of wagons, creaking beneath the weight of household goods; these, in thick confusion and impatience, throng for entrance at the gates. From the Tarpeian rock, the pale burghers behold at midnight the line of blazing villages which marks the advances of the enemy; and every hour some hasty horseman comes in with new tidings of dismay. Eastward and westward, the whole country is ravaged and burnt up; the fortress of Janiculum* is stormed, and the guards thereof are

* Janiculum was a hill beyond the Tiber, which had been incorporated within the city, and fortified as an outpost, or bulwark, against Etruria.

slain; and now the way is clear for the destroy-] ing foemen right up to the Tiber bridge. In haste, and with aching hearts, the consul and the senate go down to the River-gate, and there hold a council standing;" short time, indeed, there was for "musing or debate;" and the consul instantly decides that "the bridge must straight go down;" for Janiculum being lost, nothing else could save the city. Just then, a scout comes in to say, that" Lars Porsena is here ;" and the consul,

"Hew down the bridge, Sir Consul,
With all the speed ye may;
I, with two more to help me,
Will hold the foe in play.
In yon straight path a thousand
May well be stopped by three.
Now who will stand on either hand,
And keep the bridge with me?"

forward, and offer to support him in the un-
Spurius Lartius, and strong Herminius, step
dertaking, and the consul expresses his ap-

turning his eye westward, perceives the storm
of dust which is raised by the army on its proval.

march. And nearer comes the whirlwind of
its motion; and louder and more distinctly,
from underneath the rolling cloud, is heard the
sounding of the trumpets, and the trampling
and the nameless hum, that announce the
nearness of a multitude. "In broken gleams
of dark-blue light," a long array of spears and
helmets is gradually discerned, and the ban-
ners of proud chiefs rise high above; and,
higher than all, is seen the "banner of proud
Clusium." The warlike lords of many cities
are seen and recognized; and among them is
Lars Porsena, in an "ivory car," with
Mamilius, Prince of Latium, riding by the
wheel on one side, and on the other "false
Sextus, that wrought the deed of shame,"
alluding to the outrage on Lucretia. The
presence of Sextus excites the scorn and
curses of the Romans.

"Horatius," quoth the consul,

"As thou sayest, so let it be."
And straight against that great array
Forth went the dauntless three.
For Romans in Rome's quarrel

Spared neither land nor gold;
Nor son nor wife, nor limb, nor life,
In the brave days of old.

Then none was for a party;

Then all were for the state;
Then the great man helped the poor,

And the poor man loved the great
Then lands were fairly portioned;
Then spoils were fairly sold:
The Romans were like brothers

In the brave days of old.

While the three are tightening on their harness, the consul and the people proceed to break down the bridge; and meanwhile the Tuscan army advances slowly to the spot where the dauntless three stand waiting to oppose the entire host. Presently three chieftains from the hostile ranks confront them, and are instantly struck down, and follow, and fall in like manner. Horatius, slain by the brave Romans. Many others however, gets wounded in the thigh, whereat the Tuscans for a while rejoice; yet he still stands up with his companions, and the three successfully defend the bridge against all assailants, until such time as the people behind them have loosened it ready for falling. As it hangs tottering above the stream, the Fathers call loudly to Horatius and the others to come back before it drops:

Alone stood brave Horatius,

But constant still in mind;
Thrice thirty thousand foes before,

And the broad flood behind.
"Down with him!" cried false Sextus,
With a smile on his pale face.
"Now yield thee," cried Lars Porsena,
"Now yield thee to our grace."

Round turned he, as not deigning

Those craven ranks to see ;
Nought spake he to Lars Porsena,
To Sextus nought spake he;
But he saw on Palatinus

The white porch of his home;
And he spake to the noble river
That rolls by the towers of Rome :

"O Tiber! Father Tiber!

To whom the Romans pray,
A Roman's life, a Roman's arms,
Take thou in charge this day."
So he spake, and speaking, sheathed
The good sword by his side,
And with his harness on his back,
Plunged headlong in the tide.

No sound of joy or sorrow

Was heard from either bank;

But friends and foes in dumb surprise,
With parted lips and straining eyes,
Stood gazing where he sank;
And when above the surges

They saw his crest appear,

All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry,
And even the ranks of Tuscany
Could scarce forbear to cheer.

But fiercely ran the current,
Swollen high by months of rain;
And fast his blood was flowing,
And he was sore in pain,
And heavy with his armor,

And spent with changing blows;
And oft they thought him sinking,
But still again he rose.

Ne'er, I ween, did swimmer,
In such an evil case,
Struggle through such a raging flood
Safe to the landing-place:
But his limbs were borne up bravely
By the brave heart within,
And our good Father Tiber
Bare bravely up his chin.

"Curse on him!" quoth false Sextus ;
"Will not the villain drown?
But for this stay, ere close of day

We should have sacked the town!"

"Heaven help him !" quoth Lars Porsena,
"And bring him safe to shore ;
For such a gallant feat of arms
Was never seen before."

And now, with shouts and clapping,
And noise of weeping loud,
He enters through the River-gate,
Borne by the joyous crowd.

They gave him of the corn-land,
That was of public right,

As much as two strong oxen

Could plough from morn till night; And they made a molten image,

And set it up on high;

And there it stands unto this day
To witness if I lie.

It stands in the Comitium,
Plain for all folks to see-
Horatius in his harness,
Halting upon one knee :
And underneath is written,
In letters all of gold,
How valiantly he kept the bridge
In the brave days of old.

And still his name sounds stirring
Unto the men of Rome,

As the trumpet-blast that cries to them
To charge the Volscian home;
And wives still pray to Juno

For boys with hearts as bold
As his who kept the bridge so well
In the brave days of old.

And in the nights of winter,

When the cold north winds blow,
And the long howling of the wolves
Is heard amidst the snow;
When round the lonely cottage
Roars loud the tempest's din,
And the good logs of Algidus
Roar louder yet within;

When the oldest cask is opened,

And the largest lamp is lit ;
When the chestnuts glow in the embers,
And the kid turns on the spit;
When young and old in circle

Around the firebrands close;
When the girls are weaving baskets,
And the lads are shaping bows ;`

When the goodman mends his armor,
And trims his helmet's plume;
When the goodwife's shuttle merrily
Goes flashing through the loom;
With weeping and with laughter
Still is the story told,

How well Horatius kept the bridge
In the brave days of old.

The reader must acknowledge these to be strong and stirring verses, bespeaking a fine no mean place among his poetical contempotalent in the author, such as entitles him to raries. Excepting the metrical romances of Scott, we know of no poetry devoted to warlike subjects which can justly be considered more vigorous and excellent. Indeed, in many of the nicer touches of execution, Macaulay surpasses Scott, and turns his matter to a more graceful and adroit effect than Sir

338

WRITINGS OF T. B. MACAULAY.

Walter could have done. His versification is in general more flexible and fluent; rugged phrases and bald expressions less frequently occur; and, upon the whole, Macaulay may be said to have given the ballad-form of poetry a more polished and finished shape than it had ever reached in the hands of preceding writers. Of the specific worth of such poe-erly accounted a history of the great constitry, there need be little said. It is plain that it makes no appeal to the more profound interests or emotions of human nature; it reveals no great or influential truths; it enforces no lofty views of man and his relations; it is simply a refined divertisement- a beautiful and pleasant product of the fancy, fit for the entertainment of a vacant or a pensive hour. But it is not to be overlooked, that it has no pretensions to a higher aim; although, such as it is, it completely fulfils its purpose. Nor let it be ever said, that the time spent in reading it is thrown away; for, in presenting attractive pictures of ancient nobleness, in the sympathy which it excites for deeds of heroism, generosity, and faithfulness, it does unquestionably communicate a portion of that influence by which men are stimulated to kindred deeds and virtues. The tone that pervades the Lays is eminently healthful, robust, and manly: it has something of the old Roman virtus in it-manliness, hardihood, intense appreciation of whatever becomes a man; and he assuredly deserves well of the community who, in enervated and artificial times, infuses into it any portion of that old invincibility of mind and spirit, or even arouses it to a temporary admiration of any of the memorable manifestations of such a temper. Something of this service the Lays of Ancient Rome are calculated to render; and they are further valuable, as having a tendency to counteract that feeble superfineness of sentiment and imagery which has become too much the characteristic of our recent poetry. Young poets would do well to study diligently these homely and but little-adorned productions, and learn how incomparably more effective is a chaste and vigorous simplicity of style and diction, than can be any profusion or display of elaborated ornament. In his History of England, Mr. Macaulay has purposed to write the history of our country, from the accession of James II. down to a time which is within the memory of men still living. The two volumes that have been issued present us with a rapid survey of the condition of Britain under the various forms of social life and government which it underwent from the invasion by the Romans to the accession of the Stuarts; followed by a comprehensive account of the origin of the disputes which brought Charles I. into collision with his parliament-the wars and confusions that succeeded-the Protectorate of Cromwell the Restoration and the reign of

Charles II. - and the final contest between king and people, which resulted in the memo rable Revolution of 1688. The second volume closes with the proclamation of William and Mary; and, as the preliminary sketch occupies but little more than half a volume, the work, so far as it has proceeded, may be prop

tutional struggle which led to the expulsion
of James II., and the settlement of the crown
upon the Prince of Orange. In subsequent
volumes, the author purposes to relate "how
the new settlement was, during many troubled
years, successfully defended against foreign
and domestic enemies; how, under that set-
tlement, the authority of law and the security
of property were found to be compatible with
a liberty of discussion and of individual action
never before known; how, from the auspicious
union of order and freedom, sprang a prosper-
ity, of which the annals of human affairs had
furnished no example; how our country, from
a state of ignominious vassalage, rapidly rose
to the place of umpire among European pow-
ers; how her opulence and her martial glory
grew together; how, by wise and resolute
good faith, was gradually established a public
credit, fruitful of marvels which, to the states-
man of any former age, would have seemed
incredible; how a gigantic commerce gave
birth to a maritime power, compared with
which every other maritime power, ancient or
modern, sinks into insignificance; how Scot-
land, after ages of enmity, was at length united
to England - not merely by legal bonds, but
by indissoluble ties of interest and affection;
how, in America, the British colonies rapidly
became far mightier and wealthier than the
realms which Cortez and Pizarro had added to
the dominions of Charles V.; how, in Asia,
British adventurers founded an empire not
less splendid and more durable than that of
Alexander."

considers it not the less his duty to record
faithfully the disasters which the country has
But, in connection with these triumphs, he
at intervals sustained, as well as the great na-
tional crimes and follies which are more hu-
miliating than disasters. He conceives, how-
ever, that "the general effect of this checkered
narrative will be to excite thankfulness in all
religious minds, and hope in the breasts of all
patriots. For the history of our country dur-
ing the last hundred and sixty years, is emi-
nently the history of physical, of moral, and
of intellectual improvement. Those who com-
pare the age on which their lot has fallen with
a golden age which exists only in their imag-
ination, may talk of degeneracy and decay;
but no man who is correctly informed as to
the past, will be disposed to take a morose or
desponding view of the present."

materially from all preceding histories in the
In one important respect, this history differs