but, like most of his other works, is deficient in unity of design. The author appears afraid to advance a single step without the assistance of some authority. The grammar teems with references, and we meet continually with the names of Becker, Buttmann, Thiersch, Rask, Grimm, Matthiæ, &c. &c. Now, though it is undeniable that an acquaintance with the opinions of German scholars on the subject of general grammar is, in the present state of philology, necessary to all who would write on the subject, surely such knowledge should not be substituted for our own opinions, but should rather be used as an instrument to assist us in arriving at independent conclusions. Notwithstanding these great names, some of the definitions in the early part of the grammar do not appear very clear. In page 2 of the first edition of the Etymology, we find "the name of every thing is called a noun substantive, or merely a substantive." It is true that to this definition a note is appended, to the following effect: "The word thing is here used in a loose way to express any object that has or is conceived by the mind to have an independent existence;" but surely it never can be necessary to use words in a loose way, and least of all in a definition. In the course of the book we find the old terms nominative, genitive, dative, and even ablative; active and passive voices of verbs, and a continual reference to the practice of Latin and Greek Grammar. It should be however observed, that the book is professedly written for classical schools, which may perhaps account for the profusion of ancient forms which meets the eye in every page.

Mr. Latham's grammar differs materially from the other two. His comparison of the old Saxon forms with the modern English, his classification of verbs under the heads of weak and strong forms, and his remarks on the derivation and construction of English words, afford evidence of laborious investigation and research, and are a valuable contribution towards reducing our language within its proper limits. The book seems intended rather for reference, than to be used as a practical grammar; for the author can hardly intend that all his remarks should be committed to memory. We should also remark, that it does not contain a single exercise throughout, -a deficiency which should certainly be supplied in future editions.

In making these observations, the writer disclaims any other

motive than a sincere desire to see justice done to a very much neglected branch of our literature. He is of opinion that those into whose hands the subject of English Grammar has fallen, have been generally, from their peculiar pursuits or prejudices, disqualified for the task. He thinks it the duty of a philosophical grammarian, not only to exhibit the forms of a language as they exist, but to endeavour to lay down some reason for their existing in the state in which they are found. If he can do nothing more than arrange the forms of the language in classes, dependent upon no recognized principle, and held together by no other link than the mere appearance they present to the eye, he contributes nothing whatever to a clearer understanding of his subject-nay, it is even questionable whether his work does not tend to involve it in greater obscurity. He must not be satisfied with a knowledge of facts; he must reason upon those facts, and must investigate their causes; he must shew that there is a natural principle which operates on language uniformly under similar circumstances; that so-called irregularities are not irregularities, but that they are all obedient to fixed laws. He must explain the nature of these laws, shew how they operate, and what circumstances modify their effects. He must never lose sight of the fact that language preceded grammar, that the laws of language are founded in nature, and that consequently grammar is nothing but a collection of facts referable to the operations of the human mind; that it is a statistical record of human philosophy, exhibiting the forms in which nations express their notions and thoughts, and depicting their modes and habits of thinking. In addition to this, the English grammarian must bring to his task an accurate knowledge of all the northern European dialects, their affinities and peculiarities, and must, of course, be critically informed in his own language and literature. Until a writer appears who possesses at least some of these qualifications, we must be content to wait for a philosophical English Grammar. The publication of the above works, however, proves the beginning of a conviction, that something more satisfactory must be done to promote the study of English philology, as well as to redeem us from the disgrace of having allowed the philosophy of our language to fall into such utter neglect.

G. F. GRAHAM.

XXVI.

NOTICES OF RECENT PUBLICATIONS.

APOLLON'S ANKUNFT IN DELPHI, von P. W. Forchhammer. Kiel, 1840, 4to. (London: Williams and Norgate.)

THIS is a dissertation, in which a picture on an Etruscan mirror is explained and illustrated by ingenious views of mythology. The mirror represents, according to Forchhammer, the surrender of the Delphic oracle to Apollo by Poseidon and Themis. He contends that the gods of the Grecian mythology ought to be viewed, not only as symbols of the powers of nature, but also in connection with the operation of those powers at the different seasons of the year, and in particular places. In his view, Poseidon is the god, not so much of the sea as of the waters which cover the earth; Themis is the goddess of rising vapour; and Apollo the power who dries the earth, both by draining off the water and by causing it to evaporate. In Greece, therefore, where the winter is not so much the cold as the wet season (xεpúr from xéw), Poseidon is the deity of winter, Themis of the first opening spring, and Apollo of the spring itself, "the youthful god of the youthful world." At Delphi, among the swollen streams which flow from mount Parnassus in winter, there is one which pours out of a cave (ĉɛλøúç), and which was compared by the ancients to a serpent with a swollen belly (Delphyne or Delphine), which devoured all the little brooks, and washed the plain of Cirrha, and whose wings and bloody hair reaching to the stars were symbols of the vapours which rose to the sky from the prevailing waters. This season corresponds to the period during which Delphi, with its oracle, was possessed by Poseidon and Ge (earth). But as the year advances the waters begin to drain away, and to disperse in vapour. Then, according to the myth, Ge resigns her share in the oracle to her daughter Themis. Next comes the advent of the god of spring, who, by shooting out his sun-beams like arrows, destroys the serpent-river. The Delphine serpent now becomes a decaying carcase (Pytho). The torrent is reduced to the brook Cassotis, but its vapours are still the source of inspiration, and rising from beneath the temple of the god, they give forth their oracles. The advent of Apollo the Delphinian, the slayer of Pytho, is now complete, and Themis resigns to him her share in the oracle. Poseidon also retires from Delphi, receiving in exchange the island of Calauria, off Troezen, where inundations prevail in the

spring. Placed thus in full possession of the oracle, Apollo gives forth his responses in the spring, in the month Pythios. Still, the existence of the oracle depends on the vapour arising from the brook Cassotis, and accordingly, when it is entirely dried up by the fierce heats of summer, Apollo is said to be robbed of his tripod by the more powerful Herakles, who is only induced to relinquish his prize by a tempest which is sent by Zeus, the god of the atmosphere, and which restores the moisture that the heat, symbolized by Herakles, had destroyed. On the return of winter, Poseidon, who had been absent in Æthiopia during the summer, the season of the inundation of the Nile, comes back to Delphi, from which Apollo again retires. It was the Greek belief that the oracle was untrustworthy during this season, on account of the absence of the god.

For the full developement of the views which we have thus imperfectly sketched, and for their illustration by the Etruscan mirror in question, and by other works of art, we must refer the reader to Forchhammer's pamphlet, which, as will be evident from the above remarks, opens a wide field for discussion.

DIE GEBURT DER ATHENE, von P. W. Forchhammer. Kiel, 1841, 4to. (London: Williams and Norgate.)

THIS is another ingenious dissertation, in which Forchhammer gives a physical explanation of the myth of the birth of Athena out of the head of Zeus, and illustrates his view by an explanation of a painting on an Etruscan vase, in which the birth of Athena is represented.

Baßpiov Mvoiaußol. BABRII FABULE IAMBICE CXXIII., nunc primum editæ. J. F. Boissonade recensuit, Latine convertit, annotavit. (Paris and London: Firmin Didot, 1844, 8vo.)

IN No. IV., p. 140, of the Classical Museum, we mentioned the extraordinary literary discoveries made by M. Minoides Minas, and it is with pleasure that we now announce the publication of the choliambic fables of Babrius, which were for centuries believed to be lost, and for the speedy publication of which we are indebted to the zeal of M. de Villemain, who intrusted the office of editing them to M. Boissonade, one of the most industrious among modern scholars. The MS. of these fables was found by M. Minas in a library of the convent of St. Laura, on Mount Athos; it was in a most deplorable condition, and the monks demanded so exorbitant a price for it, that M. Minas did not feel

justified in purchasing it, and accordingly took only a copy of it to Paris. From this transcript M. Boissonade has edited the fables, which are presented to the world for the first time since their loss in the middle ages, and have literally been rescued from dust and vermin by the patient industry of M. Minas and the editor. There is a report, that at one time there existed at Grotta Ferrara a MS. containing thirty fables of Babrius, and another was discovered a few years ago in Spain, but nothing has hitherto appeared in print, except some fragments gleaned from Suidas and other grammarians, and a few entire fables, which were published in 1835 by Knoch. The fragments which do not occur in the fables of the newly-discovered collection have been added to it by Boissonade; the others, of course, now appear in their proper places, or are quoted in the notes; for most of them are quoted by the grammarians in prose, though in many cases it is still evident that the fables from which they are taken were written in verse. It has hitherto been the common opinion that Babrius lived before the time of Augustus, but the question has become very doubtful by some passages in the newly-discovered fables, for in one of the two procemia (p. 208), Babrius addresses a son of one βασιλεὺς ̓Αλέξανδρος, who seems to be the same as the Branchus mentioned in two other places (p. 2, and Fab. LXXIV.), and whom Boissonade is inclined to look upon as a son of the emperor Severus Alexander. The one hundred and twenty-three fables are arranged in alphabetical order, that is, according to the initial letter of each poem; but the present collection does not go further than the letter O; so that a considerable number of fables is still wanting. The whole appears to have been divided into two books, or as Avienus calls them volumina; for there are two procemia, one at the beginning of the collection, and another before the beginning of the letter M, which probably formed the beginning of the second book. M. Boissonade believes that Babrius was a Roman, and that his full name was Valerius Babrius. This would account for some blunders in his versification, though many of them must undoubtedly be set down to the transcriber. The editor has endeavoured to remedy the defects of his transcript, partly by conjectural emendation, and partly by the assistance of such fragments as were known before. The Latin translation which he has added, though it was scarcely necessary, is plain and lucid. We can heartily recommend to our readers the perusal and study of these venerable relics of antiquity which have come to light so unexpectedly.