CHORUS. Blest be love, to whom we owe Till song and painting learned from him." We wish, it is true, that the last stanza, beginning with the words had been entirely omitted, for it contains a conceit, which is quite unworthy of the rest. But, upon the whole, the story is prettily told-albeit, in a sort of verse not much above that which "gentlemen may write with ease." In pronouncing an opinion on the poetry of this work, for we do not pretend to be judges of the music, we must descend to the consideration of lines and words. We will, therefore, select in the first instance such lines as appear to us very harsh and unmetrical. Take, for instance, the following: "A chapel, fronting towards the sea."-p. 100. "The assembled throng rushed towards the sea."-p. 190. Now we are sorry to say that we could increase, without difficulty, the number of these prosaic verses. They occur, for the most part, in the narrative which connects the songs; but as we are far more desirous of upholding than depreciating Mr. Moore's reputation, we would recommend that part of the poem in particular to his revision. Above all, we cannot help feeling that the line Waiting till we, good swimmers,”—p. 182, is inserted merely for the rhyme, and is totally unworthy of its place. Our criticism, we have said, would compel us to descend to words as well as lines, and we feel accordingly that we cannot close. our remarks without noticing a few terms which to us appear improper : "A picture 'twas of early days. Of glorious Greece, ere yet those rays Of high, immortal mind were her's That made mankind her worshippers.”—p. 101. Now, as far as the compliment in these lines to Greece is concerned, it is very well deserved; but there is a little German cant in this use of the word mind, which we notice only because the Cockneys are fond of employing it so. Again, Mr. Moore speaks, somewhat inelegantly we think, of the bright look's witchery," as applied to the looks of a young lady; and uses the word "sung" in the following and other lines, as if it were the perfect and not the participle of "sing." Thus "the minstrel, at the close, Sunk, while he sung, to feign'd repose." We are aware that Johnson, Gibbon, and other good writers, use the word "sung" in this way; but we submit that, according to the more modern idiom, the line should run Sank, while he sang, to feign'd repose, and thus the perfect tense would be distinguished in both cases from the participle. We could easily extend this head of verbal criticism, but we dislike the subject. Yet, as our regard for impartiality of opinion compelled us to enter on it, the same feeling induces us to subjoin some passages, which we deem highly poetical, from the narrative. Has the reader ever been on a river in the evening, and listened to the sounds of music as they died away in the distance? If so, he must have felt that they "Floated along its azure tide Floated in light, as if the lay Had mix'd with sunset's fading ray, And light and song together died!”—p. 97. But, however poetical this idea, the following description of Fancy is worthy of Milton: We would willingly insert the description of Minerva standing "by her own bright Attic flood," but, in that case, we should not be able to treat our readers with the following extract :— "Oh the blest hour, when those who've been Through peril's paths by land and sea, Lock'd in our arms again are seen Smiling in glad security When heart to heart we fondly strain, And ask, though answer'd oft before, ་་ Such is the scene, so full of joy, In conclusion, we can assure our readers that the "Second Evening's" entertainment is not at all inferior to the first, and we hope that Mr. Moore will attend to our friendly hints in any future soirée to which he may invite us. ART. IX. — An Introductory Lecture, delivered publicly in King's College, London. By the Rev. M. S. ALEXANDER, Professor of Hebrew and Rabbinical Literature in the College. London: Fellowes; Hatchard and Son. Dublin: Curry. 1832. pp. 29. A MAN may be a very great scholar without being very proud of his learning. Indeed, when pride is found to co-exist with great knowledge, it only shows how little influence great attainments have in producing moral improvement. Professor Alexander may, for aught we can estimate, be worthy of being placed beside his ancient namesake, but that the Almighty should be expected to exercise a special inference, and settle down this wonderful teacher of Hebrew in King's College, near Somerset House, is more, we think, than a full inquiry into the matter will justify. Yet our Professor does not hesitate to declare to the world, "I feel so persuaded, from various circumstances, that I have not been placed here without the all-ruling and guiding hand of Providence, that I feel every encouragement humbly to look for the Divine assistance, without which, all our strength is perfect weakness. This assistance it will be my constant endeavour to seek; and with it, I hope to fill the situation assigned to me with credit to the supporters and managers of this Institution, and to that important part of literature which I have the honour to profess." Poor infantile King's College! why is she not satisfied with going on as the rest of the world moves forward. Oxford and Cambridge are satisfied to take their professors by the decision of mere mortal elections, but what is there in King's College that its masters should be selected by a clap of thunder, or some other heavenly signal, to astonish the world. A sketch of the history of the Hebrew Rabbinical Literature, and a summary of the advantages of studying it from the subjects of the present Lecture. With respect to the first, the material VOL. I. (1833) No. II. T point is, that after the return form the Babylonish captivity, the Hebrew ceased to be a living language. The language had existed without any system of grammar or lexicographical organization; it was altogether continued by tradition. In this part of the Lecture, the author gives an account of the vowel points, a subject of great curiosity as a peculiarity of the Hebrew language : "The Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two consonants, which, combined with the points-or particular marks placed under or above the letters-form syllables. The authority of the latter has for centuries been the subject of controversy. Some have considered them part of the original text, and, therefore, of divine origin. Others have denied this, and maintained that they were a mere invention of the Rabbins, and have, therefore, altogether rejected them. During the middle ages it was the generally received opinion that they were restored with the Text by Ezra and the Synagogue Magna; but Elias Levita, an eminent Hebrew grammarian, (born 1469, in Bavaria, and died 1549, who taught at Rome and Venice, and was the teacher of Fagius, Munster, and others,) first began to question their authority; and this gave rise to the general controversy. But although their antiquity and divine origin are questioned, yet their utility is now generally admitted, and even if they do not exactly possess the original form of the Hebrew vowels, it is still very possible that they correctly convey to us the original sounds. This is a circumstance of great importance. Many arguments against the points go, after all, only to set them aside, in respect to their present forms. And it seems to be forgotten, that such arguments never touch their claim to convey the right sound, which is by far the most important part of the subject. My present limits do not admit of my entering into a detailed account of the arguments which have been advanced on both sides; they are given at some length in the Rev. T. H. Horne's Introduction to the Scriptures (vol. ii. pp. 6-8.) Historical facts are wanting to decide the question. It is possible, indeed, that whilst the Hebrew was a living language, there was less necessity for such guides; the pronounciation was well known, and, perhaps, even as some modern opponents of the points have imagined— the four letters, commonly called Matres Lectiones,' may have served, in some measure, to regulate it; but when the language ceased to be spoken, it was necessary for its restorers and upholders to add some visible signs, in order to preserve the true reading. That the Hebrew manuscripts in the Synagogues are found, to this day, without points, is no argument whatever against them, inasmuch as their omission is a saving of labour, and makes the Text appear clearer and more beautiful. But the fact is decidedly in their favour, that the Jews are more scrupulous about reading those very unpointed manuscripts strictly according to the points and accents. We cannot, therefore, but strongly recommend it to the student, in the first instance, to learn to read with them; which, on the whole, he will find the easiest method, and, after due practice, he will be able to read any Hebrew, with or without points."-pp. 15-17. Having concluded the historical account of the Hebrew language, Professor Alexander comes to the most important part of his lecture, namely, the advantages to be derived from an accurate acquaintance with the literature in the Hebrew: First it is, if not strictly necessary, certainly highly advantage. ous to the student of theology. In a town in the north of England, the author saw a placard in the window of a teacher of Hebrew with these words,-" How can you be a clergyman without a knowledge of Hebrew?" Mr. Alexander pursues the subject still farther, and as it is one of great interest to a country in which the interpretation of the Bible forms so large a portion of the duties of every man, we feel justified in devoting a place to the just observations of the Professor : " 1. As Christians and Students of Divinity, we value-at least we ought to value-the Scriptures above all other books, as those which contain the charter of our salvation, that book which is, and ought to be, as it was to King David, 'A lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our path.' -(Psalm cxix. 105.) How great, then, must be the delight and the benefit of being able to read that blessed book in the original language? a delight and a benefit which cannot possibly be realized in translations. Every man of letters knows, that no translation, even of profane writings, can convey the force and beauty of the original, much less the translations of the Scriptures, however excellent those translations may be, and however plain and intelligible in every thing that concerns our eternal interests. But it is not sufficient to be able merely to make out a few verses by the help of translations or a Lexicon, but the student should endeavour to acquire a fluency in reading the original text, and explain one part of the Scriptures by the other. Here we may mention, "2. The advantage of being able to read the Rabbinical writings, on account of the light which they throw on the Scriptures. These are generally decried as worse than useless; but it can only arise from ignorance of them. It is true, they contain much that is absurd and erroneous, and in many instances they even most awfully pervert the sense of the Scriptures; but nevertheless, they contain much that is most useful, and calculated to throw light upon them. This it will be my endeavour to point out in the course of my instructions. I do not, however, wish to be understood, as if I considered them indispensable, and that private Christians cannot understand their Bibles without them. This has of late become a somewhat favourite notion with Neologians, and certainly borders on Romanism. The sound and judicious student will know where to draw the line. "3. A knowledge of the original Scriptures will greatly tend to tranquallize the mind of the believer on points about which he is often unsettled and uneasy. For example, about the authorised version. Many who possessed but a very slight and superficial knowledge of Hebrew, have attempted to fix canons respecting things uncertain, and have shown doubt and indecision respecting things well determined. This would be bad enough even in classical literature, but with respect to the Scriptures, it is most pernicious. Such persons presume to legislate in matters of sacred criticism, and sometimes overawe us by their display of learning, saying, It is so and so in the Hebrew; the Syriac has it so and so;' whereby the faith of simple believers in the Scriptures is often shaken, and in this manner, too, great errors are often propagated. An accurate acquaintance with the original will counteract this. Where the authorised version may |