ceal their excessive emotion. Gustavus was, perhaps, the most collected of the motley throng; and as soon as the violence of feeling had a little subsided he gave the signal to proceed. The lofty folding doors of the grand saloon were then thrown open, which were closed as soon as the principal persons had passed within, and the mournful cavalcade proceeded through the magnificent suite of state apartments to the royal bed-chamber, where the litter was gently rested, and the king carefully lifted to the couch whence he arose no more!'

After the regency of the Duke of Sudermania, Gustavus the Fourth ascended the throne of Sweden. The weak and eccentric character of this ill-fated sovereign is matter of common knowledge. He seems never to have been firmly seated on his throne, but he undoubtedly precipitated his fall by a series of the most infatuated actions. Many interesting illustrations of his reign and character will be found in these pages, but we are restrained from a more ample view of their contents by the feeling of uncertainty in point of authenticity, to which we have before adverted. Some severe criticisms on other writers, particularly on some of our northern tourists, are inserted in the

notes.

Art. IV. Anecdotes and Characters of the House of Brunswick, illustrative of the Courts of Hanover and London, from the Act of Settlement to the Youth of George the Third; including an original Memoir of the Electress Sophia: and a Journal, said to have been written by the unhappy Consort of George the First, the Princess Sophia Dorothea. By John Brown, Author of the "Northern Courts," &c. 8vo. pp. 266. Price 9s. London. 1821.

INCE writing the preceding article, which has been lying by us some time, our attention has been attracted by this new volume of scandalous biography from the same Mr. John Brown. It will require but a very few words from us, to give our readers a pretty distinct idea of the nature and object of this à propos publication.

Part the first consists of an Extract from a scarce Work, entitled "Memoirs of the Love and State Intrigues of the "Court of Hanover, from the Marriage of the Princess of "Zell, to the tragical Death of Count Konigsmark." The author is said to be unknown; its authenticity, therefore, is extremely questionable, and Mr. Brown's conjecture, that it was the production of some partisan of the House of Stuart, is fully borne out by the virulence it breathes. Mr. B., however, gives us neither the date nor the printer's name, nor specifies the size of the volume he quotes from, in order to certify us of its existence. Part II. is a translation from a German work which the Author had put into his hands, when at Stockholm in the summer of 1808, by Brigadier General Sir Levett Hanson,

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ex-chamberlain to the last reigning Duke of Modena: it is entitled "An old Courtier to a young Prince," and purports to have been addressed, as a posthumous work, to Frederick Prince of Wales, the grandfather of His present Majesty. Part III. is a translation from another part of the same German manuscript, and contains the "Journal of the Princess Doro "thea," which was found, or pretended to have been found, 'concealed in a piece of furniture which stood in her apartment ' in the castle (on the Ahler) where she was first confined.'To assert that it is a genuine document,' gravely remarks Mr. Brown, might be unfair.' It certainly would be a very useless assertion, for a more clumsy forgery never obtained credence; if the term forgery can indeed be fairly applied to what was evidently intended as a work of imagination, a mere historical novel. There is one very amusing passage in the Journal, where the Princess is made to say, 'I am, and for ever am to be, ⚫ debarred the use of pen, ink, paper, or books;' which delectable blunder, Mr. John Brown attempts to account for by supposing that perhaps it was not till the Princess had been some time confined, that she obtained those important articles,' From this, the reader may judge what value is to be set on the whole of the scarce and curious work,' in the possession of Sir Levett Hanson. Part IV. is made up of Extracts from the "Memoirs of John Ker, Esq. of Kersland," published in London in 1727.' This date, however, we are at a loss to reconcile with the fact of his being committed to the King's Bench prison for the printing and publishing of the said Memoirs as grossly libellous and seditious, in the year 1726. Parts VI. and VII. are copied from Walpole's "Reminiscences;" Part VIII. from Mrs. Smith's History of England; Part IX. from "Anec"dotes of George the Third, bis Court and Family." At last we come to a portion of the work which is entirely original,' and never before published; consisting of original character'istic traits of the youth of George the Third,' taken from the lips of two venerable Scotch gardeners, by the Editor. One of these hoary-headed chroniclers, named John Lowe, is said to have been residing at the time, (Feb. 1820) at Stoke Newington, in the possession of unimpaired sight and memory. He retained the most vivid recollection of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and affirmed that he never knew of any death, excepting only that of the late Princess Charlotte, which was so generally and deeply regretted as his. John Lowe and his venerable senior, whose name is not given, declared their firm belief, that no improper intimacy subsisted between the royal widow and Lord Bute; affirming, that the utmost cordiality was manifest between Lord and Lady Bute, and that a confidential intimacy subsisted between the Princess and her ladyship. They pointedly repro

bated the conduct of the Princess, however, in allowing certain of her favourites to insult, as far as they durst presume, the governor of her son, the late King. When asked whether Prince George was a shy and backward boy, embarrassed in his manners, and dull at his book, John Lowe replied that it was not true; adding:

"It was reported, and very generally believed, among the upper servants and in the gardens, that the Princess did all she could to retard the progress of Prince George's learning, setting him against his preceptors, as I have previously stated, to strengthen her control over him; and the same motive was assigned for her keeping him so greatly secluded, and making, or endeavouring to make him wear a black ribbon round his neck, and dress like a boy. The under housekeeper at Kew, told me, about seven years before the old King, George the Second, died, that the Princess said to Prince George, in her hearing, Why are you so anxious to wear a cravat, George? ⚫ that will not make you a man a day sooner.' Very true, madam,' said he, nor will the paltry riband always make me think myself a boy, whatever it may do other people The next day he refused to wear it; and his mother, when she perceived he was determined, was too good a judge of his disposition to interfere."

Then, perhaps, you think the King was stubborn in his temper if irritated; sullen in his manner and unforgiving?" "He was not capricious, Sir, nor fuli of megrims, but generally rational, and I believe, to my soul, always just, to the very best of his power; and when he knew he was in the right, he could not be blamed for being firm. I don't consider it was stubbornness: he was calm and sedate; when out of temper, he had a habit of hanging his under lip, and looking glumpy, but I don't think he bore malice; although he might long continue to remember an offence, he never forgot a favour. Depend on it, Sir, he was a fine youth, quite the gentleman in his carriage; but I often thought he had something heavy on his mind; the squabbles in the family distressed him; the coarse manner of the old King, in speaking of his father, hurt him very much; he was very partial to his uncle, Duke William, whom his mother could not endure; he was too good a son to find fault with the Princess Dowager; but I firmly believe he was greatly agitated at times, and distressed in mind, on her account."

"Do you think it arose from any secret dread, lest the Duke of Cumberland, his uncle, and Lord Bute and his mother, would attempt to throw any obstacle in the way of his rights as heir to the crown, in case the aged King had died before he was eighteen?" "I can't pretend to give any opinion on these points: they are above my capacity; but this I know, that the young man seemed to enjoy himself so thoroughly in his field sports, in his healthful and innocent recreations in the country, his gardening, and music parties, that I really think he did not care how long his grandfather lived. He was out hunting on the morning when the old King, George the Second, died: several horsemen started to find the new King, and announce his accession to the throne. Is it certain,' said the Prince to the

first who arrived, that my honoured old grandfather is dead? Per haps he has only fallen down in a fit. King George the Second is certainly dead, and you are now King George the Third; and God bless and long preserve your Majesty,' said the messenger, offering to kneel. This the young Monarch would not permit. Putting his hand in his pocket, he gave the man money; it was twelve guineas and a half. Take this,' said he, messenger! it is all the money I have if I am indeed your King, the last happy day of my life has passed! You may rely upon this being truth, Sir, and surely it does not show as if he were impatient to reign.'

Speaking of the religious sentiments of George the Third, the venerable narrator stated, that he seemed naturally religious; was always regular in his attendance whenever prayers were read; whilst his brothers had endless excuses to offer on account of absence, and made game at the chaplains, calling their brother George "an old woman" for paying them any respect: he did not think there was any secret policy in this demeanour of Prince George; he could not believe it arose from any Jesuitical or other instruction in arbitrary principles of government; but wholly and exclusively from innate modesty and worth.'

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We have a hearsay account, given by Mr. Brown from his recollections of what he was told, twelve years ago, by Sir Levett Hanson, on the authority of a gentleman who belonged to the Prince's household,—of the King's early attachment to Lady Sarah Lennox, and of the secret machinations employed to induce him to sacrifice his private inclinations to state policy. Mr. Brown with very commendable honesty confesses, that at the distance of twelve years, and with the want of memorandums • to refresh the memory, it would be going too far to assert that 'every fact is correctly stated as it was communicated.' But why then eke out an octavo volume with recitals which have so incalculably small a chance of being accurate? Frederick, Prince of Wales, is said to have repeatedly told his son, Prince George, that as he was an English boy, he should, if he pleased, have an English wife; observing, that by continually intermarrying with German women, the Royal family would remain for ever Germanised, and distinct from the nation they governed,' If Frederick made this declaration, it did credit to his feelings; but we cannot admit the anecdote as authentic on such doubtful testimony. And this remark applies to all that is interesting in the volume, with the exception of the testimony of old John Lowe, which we cannot reject without impeaching Mr. Brown's veracity, and which bears internal marks of probability.

Of the greater part of the volume it is not speaking, in terms too strong for the occasion, to say that it is absolutely worthless. A grosser instance of book-making, we have scarcely ever been called upon to expose. The parallel which is attempted to be

drawn between the unhappy consort of George the First, and the present Queen, is evidently intended to impart a factitious interest to the contents of the volume. So far, however, from there being the closest possible analogy between the conspiracies · of which those Princesses were the victims,' the cases have scarcely any circumstance in common.

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Mr. Brown's professions of loyal veneration for his late Majesty, will not avail to excuse the bad tendency of the disgusting abuse which his Selections' contain, of preceding sovereigns. His design was, we dare say, no other than Ker of Kersland, in his letter to the Secretary of State, humbly avows as the motive for publishing his "Memoirs:"The printing and publishing my Memoirs was my own act and deed, and designed solely for my own benefit.' But we hope that Mr. Brown will henceforth turn his attention to more reputable ways and means of serving his purpose than such trashy compilations as the present, or renounce at once the trade of authorship.

Art. V. Three Months passed in the Mountains East of Rome, during the Year 1819. By Maria Graham, Author of "Journal of a Residence in India." 8vo. pp. 312. [6 plates.] London. 1820.

WE

E are well pleased to hear again from this very intelligent and interesting Writer. Few of her country women have been so great travellers, and few travellers have turned their opportunities of observation to better account. Women are said, we think with justice, to be the best letter-writers; and we should be tempted to assign to them the praise of being the best tourists, had we a few more female writers like Maria Graham to adduce in support of the assertion.

The district which is the scene of the present narrative, has scarcely ever been explored by a foreigner visiter. The English, from whom it should seem that no tract of inhabited earth can effectually seclude itself, had never been known to have ventured so far into the Roman highlands. It was in order to avoid the great heat of Rome during the summer of 1819, that Mrs. Graham, together with her husband and a friend, formed the resolution to spend a few weeks in some of the neighbouring villages. The object of the work is, to describe the present state of the inhabitants; to shew the peasants of the hills as they are, and as they probably have been, with little change, since" Rome was at her height;" to give such an account of "their actual manners as may enable others to form a judgement of their moral and political condition, and to account for some of those irregularities which we do not easily imagine to be 'consistent with the civilized state of Europe, but which for 'centuries have existed in the patrimony of the church.'

Poli, which was the first station of the Travellers, is twenty