God! there is good warlike show of steel heads on her decks, and her rowers have sinews!

'Tis said he is a gay gallant, my liege, and spendeth great incomes upon his apparel; yet I have heard he knoweth how to use steel as well as glitter in gold!"

"Certes, he shall here have opportunity," said the French king. "Methinks such gairish outside should be a braggart's! We will try him. See, he hath anchored his gilded plaything by the Doge's galley, which with its iron prow, steel plated poop, tall black sides and warlike garniture contrasts it well."

The Doge, in the meanwhile, the brave, blind old Dandolo, received the newly arrived knight on board his galley with an affectionate embrace, and leading him into his room of state, there discoursed with him of Venice. The same afternoon, Charles of Anjou gave an entertainment to the chief knights of Venice and of France, in his princely tent. The young knight Medici di Contavini was invited and came. He was a tall, finely moulded young man, clad in armor of Damascus steel, embossed and inlaid with gold. His hose were silk, worked with gold; he wore a collar of diamonds, clasped with an emerald, and jewels of great beauty sparkled on the cross of his sword. The pole of his lance was of cedar wood, inlaid with silver, and an amethyst was set in its handle. Gloves of chamois, worked with the needle in brilliant devices, and scented with perfumes, were on his hands, and a gorgeous cap, adorned with a priceless pearl, was upon his head. He was mounted on a snow-white palfrey, with housings of cloth of gold, with a tread as dainty as a lady's. When Charles of Anjou, who was clad in mailed steel, without ornament, saw him approach, he spoke some words of contempt to those around him, and when he came up, received him with ill grace, not concealing his dislike. The Venetian knight did not heed this manner; but gracefully saluted him, and dismounting, gave his palfrey in charge to a page, who, scarce less richly attired than his master, had attended him, riding a slenderlimbed snow-white Arabian.

"Now, by my knighthood," said Anjou to an English knight, "I have not seen in Christendom such discredit to Christian arms. He bringeth contempt on chivalry, and is only fit for spoil to these mussulmen, who, if they know what a gay popinjay we had in camp, would make a special sally for his capture. So long as they know they would get only steel and iron knocks, they have kept close enough."

Thus spoke the brave and rough French prince before the banquet began; and took thence no further heed of the knight of Venice; who mating with cavaliers of his own age, soon made himself quite at his ease.

The entertainment was sumptuous and hospitable as became a prince's board. The discourse among the guests was of the long leaguer that probably was before them ere they could take the city. Many a plan was discussed for shortening the siege; but none pleased the prince, who, knowing the strength of the walls, was content to get the victory by-and-by with patient waiting for it. After several knights had spoke their minds of the matter, the young Venetian knight, Medici di Contavini, having listened to each with great attention, rose up and said,

"It were no difficult matter, methinks, to take this city! The infidels are brave only in their defences! A well-directed attack upon the gate over against St. Sophia, would be successful, and entrance once made, the place would fall into our hands."

"It were easy to get words, sir Venetian," scornfully answered Charles of Anjou, who with all the knights present, had looked on the speaker with surprise; "words are easily

got but deeds we want!""

"My liege," said a young French knight present, "this gilded cavalier did openly boast without the tents, before we sat down to the repast, that he with a thousand men could easily take the city; and wondering much that we should lay thus quietly before its gates."

"Said he so?" shouted Anjou fiercely. "I did, noble prince," said the young Medici in a firm tone.

"Then by the throne of France, you shall not want the occasion to put your words to proof!

"If you will place at my command one thousand men, I will, ere to-morrow's sun, plant the standard of St. Marc where over yonder gate now waves the crescent of the infidel!

"Good words these, fair sir," said Charles, who was not a little astonished to hear such come from a "boudoir knight," as he had contemptuously termed him when he first beheld him. "Seven times we have been driven back from her gates with great loss of life."

"Give me the men I ask, and the deeds they betoken shall be as good," answered Medici de Contavini, with quiet determination. "If I fail, let my head answer it."

"By Saint Dennis! but his speech rings like good metal, if there be gilt atop," said the prince to those near by. "Thou shalt have thy wish, sir knight. As this is a venture of thy own seeking, and in which we have little faith, and do consent to it only to punish thy vain boasting, the condition of thy failure shall be the loss of thy spurs; they being of gold will serve the soldiers better than they will have done thee, by being coined into sterling bezants."

The Venetian knight little heeded the con

temptuous manner of the French king, nor the smiles of the knights, who could not help comparing his bravery of words with the fippery of his apparelling.

When wilt thou go on this emprise to take the city for us, sir knight of the casket? asked the king's fool.

"I am now ready, good fool; wilt be my esquire?" replied the knight playfully; so that all wondered that he kept his temper so coolly.

"Art ready say'st thou?" demanded the king! ""Tis two hours to the setting of the sun, a short time, forsooth, in which to take a city. But so doughty a knight need not have many minutes in achieving the exploit he boasts of. If thou art ready, I will soon have not only one, but five thousand halberds, and a hundred lances a-saddle!"

The young Venetian smiled haughtily, and rising from the table, went out, the knights and gentlemen also going after him. At the prince's command, a thousand stout men-atarms, all in iron breast and back pieces filed before his tent; and a hundred knights mounted on proud and pawing horses, with great bravery of targets and glittering lances, their banners all displayed, pranced by with waving of plumes, and beneath each corselet a buoyant heart and bold.

All the while the young Venetian knight, whose words had called forth this warlike cavalcade, stood near the prince, calm and unmoved, watching the brave show of war. When he saw that all had passed by, and were ready marshalled on the plain, he turned to his page and spoke low in his ear. The boy left him, and the prince said,

"Now, sir Venetian, the lances I lend thee are in rest, waiting thee to mount. By the mass, I look to see thy jewelled mail rolling in the dust beneath yonder towers, if thou darest trust thy perfumed locks so near them! But the issue be thine !"

"Noble prince of Anjou, that a knight's valor lieth not in his apparel but in his heart, I trust this day to teach thee and thy gentle," answered Medici di Contavini.

men,

The prince was about to reply hastily, when his attention was drawn to an esquire of gigantic stature, armed cap-à-pie, in plain iron mail, mounted upon a brown horse of

large size, and leading a jet black steed glittering with Milan mail. This esquire rode up to the Venetian knight, and dismounting, gave him a polished steel helmet in place of his golden one, which his page took from him; an iron collar for the jewelled one he wore; a cuirass of proof mail, and a sword with an iron hilt, in exchange for the one with the jewelled handle; stout gauntlets of steel replaced his perfumed chamois gloves; and iron boots with iron spurs, the embroidered hose. 'The transformation was soon made; and the late beau cavalier stood before the surprised Charles of Anjou, a wellappointed knight, clad in steel from head to heel. Ere he could express his surprise, Medici di Contavini receiving his horse from his esquire, leaped into his steel saddle and sat erect thereon, before the prince and the whole camp of warriors. Charles of Anjou gazed a moment upon the warlike and knightly figure which the Venetian presented, then struck his gauntlet-armed hand upon his thigh, and swore ne'er knight of braver presence had sat on horseback before him.

"Fore God! brave Venetian, I have done thee wrong, I fear me," said Anjou bluntly. "Let the issue of this day tell," answered the knight of Venice quietly. "If you have given me these brave knights and soldiers to aid me in my enterprise, let me at once lead them forth."

The knight of Medici then placed himself at the head of the troops, the trumpets sounded with loud and stirring notes; and in sight of the whole French army and fleet of Venetian galleys, the young Venetian knight rode at easy pace across the plain, towards the city walls. When the Mussulmen, from the towers and battlements, beheld this warlike array approaching the principal gate of their city, the alarm flew round that the whole christian army was moving to the attack. The infidel leaders gathered their forces at the weakest points, the walls were trebly manned, and every preparation was made to meet the anticipated assault.

The entrance of an old seneschal, with a fresh supply of wine, here caused the cavalier to pause in his narrative.

VOL. III. NO. I.

6

HAL.

their fallacy. In the spirit rather of a good purpose and a cheerful trust, would we greet our readers. We desire to preserve those characteristics which have thus far distinguished the Miscellany. The cordial manner in which the literary merit and mechanical beauty of the work, has been recognised throughout the country, justify us in believing that to maintain our place in public estimation, we have but to persevere in the same course, availing ourselves of such improvements as time and occasion afford. We have promises of assistance from many friends, of whose ability to charm and instruct, the public have had ample evidence. In mere names, however, we have but slender faith; and although the services of many contributors known to fame, have been secured, we consider the nominal reputation of our writers as secondary to the actual excellence of their arti

cles; and we hope that many papers from anonymous sources, will commend themselves to the intelligent reader, by their intrinsic interest and value. With such views we would bespeak a kindly reception from the readers of the Miscellany, and indulge the hope that we shall prove worthy of their welcome. We would fain make this monthly visiter a cheering guest in many dwellings, to breathe sweet counsel into the weary mind, echo the warm feelings of youth, win the dawning intellect to the love of truth and beauty, enliven the solitary, satisfy, in a measure, the judicious, and last, though not least, lend wings to some hours of the gentle and fair. To do this we must be met in a genial mood, and with something of that friendly confidence with which we tender all our well-wishers the greetings of the season.

MANY interesting works are in preparation or have recently appeared. Among the latter none will be received with more lively interest by general readers, than the additional Travels of Mr. Stephens in Central America. The interest which his former books and the reports of other visiters have excited in that comparatively unknown portion of the world, will cause his new work to be sought for with avidity. Cooper has successfully resumed the original scene of his triumphs-the sea, in his new novel of "Wing and Wing." Those subscribers to " Arcturus," whose names were transferred to our list when that magazine ceased, will remember "The Career of Puffer Hopkins," by Cornelius Matthews, which appeared in its successive numbers. The work has been completed and published in a handsome volume, by D. Appleton & Co., with illustrations by H. K. Browne (Phiz.) We regret that want of space will oblige us to defer a notice of George Lunt's "Age of Gold and other Poems," just issued in elegant style by W. D. Ticknor. Park Benjamin's poem delivered before the Mercantile Library Association, has appeared in a neat pamphlet. It is very creditable on account of its simple diction, and many passages of felicitous satire. We are happy to learn to that W. D. Ticknor of Boston, is about to issue a volume of poems by Albert Pike. Few American bards have manifested more of the true poetic fire than this writer. Some of the imagery in his " Hymns to the Gods," originally published in Willis's Magazine, is worthy of Keats. Longfellow's new poems will meet with a wide and cordial greeting. John Keese, the editor of the "Poets of America," has in press

a splendid volume entitled "The Hesperian." It will contain ten long American Poems, beautifully illustrated from original designs. All lovers of native literature will rejoice to learn that R. H. Dana is making arrangements to bring out a new and more complete edition of his writings.

THE UNITED STATES ALMANAC; or Complete Ephemeris, for the year 1843. Philadelphia: Published by E. H. Butler.

This work is the most useful annual of the season, and we hope its success will amply repay the publisher's enterprise. The Astronomical department appears to have been arranged with great skill and attention. The editor of the volume is John Downes, late of the North Eastern Boundary Survey; but, if we do not err in our surmise, there are traces in the scientific calculations, of the valuable assistance of one of the best practical astronomers in the country, whose attainments, however, are better appreciated abroad than at home. Every engineer in America should possess a copy of the United States Almanac, as it contains numerous tables admirably adapted to the wants of that important profession. The statistics, particularly those relating to the Population, Public Debts and Internal Resources of the several states, are very complete and authentic. Altogether, this Almanac is one of the most valuable compends we have

seen.

ELOQUENCE OF NATURE AND OTHER POEMS. Hartford: 1842.

S. Dryden Phelps will see the time, if his life is

spared, when he will regret the publication of this volume, notwithstanding the conviction expressed in the preface. Books of this character we can never encounter without pain, because they indicate so much that is good in motive and feeling, with so little that is effective in expression. We doubt not that the author of this volume is a very estimable character, and worthy of the esteem of those "personal friends" to whom his poems are dedicated; yet we cannot but feel that the latter did him a wrong, when they failed to point out the impolicy and bad taste of giving to the public, effusions so crude and imitative.

AMERICAN NOTES FOR GENERAL CIRCULATION, By Charles Dickens.

It is singular to observe the universal anxiety still felt throughout this vast country, when a work appears from a foreign source, devoted to American manners and institutions. Few seem to reflect that the actual value of such works depends upon the peculiar fitness of the individual for the task he assumes. Perhaps the rarest combination of talent is that which enables a man to pass good judgment upon the thousand agencies and facts which go to form the character of a country. Writers of every degree of calibre have taken upon themselves to discuss the United States, as if it were a subject as easily treated as a question of the passing moment Meantime native writers, whose experience and patriotism qualify them to speak with authority, are almost wholly unregarded. We make these remarks with no view of disparaging Dickens's Notes, but merely to indicate their appropriate rank. As a pleasant, graphic picture of a very rapid tour, the book is very agreeable and written with much liveliness. Several passages, such as the description of the Eastern Penitentiary, the voyage out, etc., remind us, by their vividness and truth to nature, of some of the best parts of his earlier works. The true spirit of humanity, which is the most endearing of this author's traits, is also delightfully evident in these pages. We heartily cominend the good taste which induced him so scrupulously to avoid personalities. His visit was too brief to allow of much exactitude of detail, and we think the artist predominates so much over the philosopher in his mind, that it would have been absurd to expect comprehensive views of the great questions which the destinies of this land are every day illustrating. Instead of original reasoning and novel principles like those of De Tocqueville, we find in the "Notes" an entertaining picture of things as they are, drawn hy a genial hand and in a frank and pleasant style. Thus much had we written, when a letter from a friend in the interior was received, containing a somewhat different, but very discriminating view of the subject, and we cannot better conclude our notice, than by adopting his language:

"You ask me what I think of Dickens's Notes. The book, like everything he writes, is clever exceedingly clever. I think, too, that it is written in a fair spirit; that is, that he meant to be just and candid, but it shows a narrowness of mind altogether unworthy of the genius of the author. Boz, you know, has ever been a favorite of mine, and I grieve, therefore, to discover that his chief mental characteristic is rather keenness than scope of observation. I say 'discover,' for until he wrote this book, and attempted to handle themes to which I had always believed him fully equal, I never dreamed of his total deficiency in that liberality of feeling which, as it characterizes every well-educated gentleman, I always wish to believe is born with nature's noblemen - the man of genius from whatsoever rank he may have sprung. But when do I find this rank savor of vulgarity? I'll tell you, my friend. I apply the same test to this cleverest of British travellers, that we country people do to your Broadway flashers, who sometimes come among us to astonish the natives. He shows his cockney breeding in his impatience of difficulties, which would amuse a born gentleman. I would venture a small wager that Lord Morpeth would not remember the canal boat and hard staging which so perceptibly affected Mr. Dickens's views of this country. He, Dickens, went into the steamer, expecting the comforts and steadiness of London. He stayed at Boston, was well fed and bedded, and was pleased with all he saw. He travelled again, and all was bad, and his ill-humor grew with his journey. It has been evidently his first journey, and his pains and perils are very amusing, and the dangers he describes are not magnified beyond what his fears made them at the time. I trust his strictures may reform the press, but I fear we will not be able to cut down the trees without leaving stumps, or to filter the Mississippi for a year or two."

"He traversed a country ten times more extensive than all Great Britain; a country which, within his own lifetime, has been the abode of the savage and he found cities, and steamboats, and stage-coaches. He wonders that they do not equal those of England; yet there is no portion of this country between the Mississippi and the Atlantic, which is not safer to travel, and has not better roads, than England had one hundred years ago, when she was more than fourteen times as old! There is no part of the world where a man can go the same distance in any one direction, with the same speed, and comfort, and convenience that he can in this; and if Mr. Dickens would start from the coast of France, and travel twelve hundred miles in any one direction, he would find it to be the case, and excepting England and France, there is no country where he would not find worse accommodations."

"Fifty years ago we had a population of some three millions, and our western limits were then what is now considered our sea-board; yet the traveller sees large cities where the stumps of the primitive forest have not had time to rot, and marvels not that the cities but the stumps are there! He sails down rivers which, within his own recollection, have been only navigated by the bark canoe of the Indian, and wonders that the boats do not surpass those of his own more wealthy country. He travels in stage coaches, where twenty years since he could not have gone on foot and kept his scalp, and is astonished at the bad taverns and worse roads, and rougher population. What ages have hardly effected at home, he expects to find more perfect here, and that like Minerva, we had sprung full grown from our parent country."

"All this part of the book is exaggerated and overdrawn."

"His accounts of our bridges and improve