the pantheism of the East, and its sublime sacrifice of the Individual to the Universal and Absolute.

'Hegel," says his disciple, "had now imperceptibly come to be a great power in Berlin, and indeed in Prussia. It was the fashion to hear him. Men of all ranks frequented his lectures. Students from all parts of Germany, from all European nations, Poles especially, but also Greeks and Scandanavians, sat at his feet, and listened to his magic words, which he, fumbling among the papers on his desk, coughing, taking snuff, repeating himself, laboriously uttered. The depth of the contents filled the souls of his auditors, and set them a-glow with the purest enthusiasm. That some attended his lectures from motives of mere self-interest, is to be supposed. People saw, as before intimated, in becoming Hegelians, or in the appearance of being such, a means of place-gaining. They hoped to recommend themselves effectively, thereby, not only to Hegel, but also to the counsellors and to the minister himself. But with the majority, the enthusiasm was sincere, and under its influence the Berlin University passed through one of its fairest epochs."

The enthusiastic school of our philosopher had its morbid eruptions of extravagant eulogy, in prose and in verse. Great expectations were indulged, proclaimed, and exagerated by mutual stimulation. They celebrated in Hegel a new Socrates, then an Alexander of the spirit-world, and then a speculative world-creating Brahma. Some even got so far as to reverence him as a "philosophical redeemer of the world." A grand notion with these disciples seems to have been that they were attaining certainty instead of belief, knowledge in place of opinion. As one of their rhymes expressed it:

The light of Hegelianism, it was fondly hoped, would speedily illuminate France and all western Europe-which anticipation was but poorly realized, as would appear from the curt allusions of Rosenkranz, in concluding what he says of

the relations of Cousin to Hegel. The birthday eulogiums on Hegel, in 1826, were the culmination of this hitherto growing tendency to render him worship as a demigod. His biographer records the fact with a sigh that "everything in this world has its epoch."

Hegel was concerned in founding a critical journal in 1827, called the "Berliner Jahrbuch für Kritik." The State having failed to respond to Hegel's wishes in this regard, Cotta, the famous publisher, undertook its publication. Hegel's co-laborers in this work were Varnaghen Von Ense, Marheineke the theologian, Schultze the physiologist, Boeckh and Bopp, philologists, and Hotho the aesthetic. The general management first undertaken by Gans, and afterwards by Leopold von Henning. Meanwhile, Hegel saw his philosophy and its language gradually extending through Europe. At Paris, Cousin was then in sympathy with him, and he had followers, or at least friends, in Van Ghert and Seber at Brussels; Dr. Kiehl at the Hague; Heiberg at Keil, afterwards at Copenhagen; Tengstrüm, Sundwall, and Lauvell (teaching the Hegelian philosophy in the Swedish language) in Finland; and others. Such an extension opened a grand "perspective in the future" for Hegel's work, yet with the promise also of sharp encounters with adversaries, and to meet these, such an organ as the Jahrbucher was needed. Hegel wrote for it in the first year, an article on the Bhagavat-Gita, in review of W. von Humboldt on the Indian Religion. A second contribution was on Solger's posthumous writings and correspondence, and yet another was published in the same year, on Hamanu. One of the most memorable of all his articles for this periodical, was that, written in 1829, on the "Aphorisms on Absolute Knowing and Not-Knowing," a work by Councillor-of-Justice Geschel. This article contains a distinct avowal of faith in Christianity-if there were otherwise, indeed, any doubt as to Hegel's commitment on the subject. About this time he also wrote his "Proof of the Being of God," in which is shown, in an indubitable way, his belief in a personal God. Rosenkranz, however, chooses the word "subject," in place of "person," as applied to the Deity. Hegel's last two crit

iques, in 1831, were devoted to the elements which were afterward most energetic against his philosophy, to wit, the views of Schelling and those of Herbart.

Hegel became rector of the Berlin University in 1830, the same year in which the July revolution occurred in France, and in which the adoption of the Augsburg Confession was celebrated (June 25) by the German Protestants. In his inaugural oration, Hegel spoke of the sola fides justificat of the Confession, as the Magna Charta of Protestantism.

The English Reform Bill discussions, in 1831, awakened in him the lively interest in political affairs which he felt in other days. Strange to say-at least had we not seen how, since his Berlin advancement especially, conservative and monarchical tendencies had grown upon him; he leaned strongly to the side of kingly autocracy-he was decidedly opposed to increasing the power of the people by an extension of the elective franchise.

In 1831, the Asiatic cholera made its appearance at Berlin. Hegel's family withdrew from the city to Kreuzberg, to be followed by him as soon as the holidays began. Hence it happened that his birthday (August 27th) was celebrated outside of the city, only a few of his friends joining him on that occasion, in a cheerful repast, and in lively converse, at a pleasure ground near Kreuzberg. It was an entertainment which afforded much enjoyment to all. Hegel's sons sympathized with his quiet and happy emotion. Scarcely had coffee been served, after the champagne, when a fearful thunder-storm arose, which speedily terminated the festivities. As autumn came on he resumed his labors, completing the preparation of a new edition of his "Logic," the preface to which bears date November 7th. He also began his lectures in the city, though the cholera was still prevailing, and spoke with more ardor than usual, "transporting" all who heard him.

We have dwelt thus particularly on the birthday celebration of this year, because it was his last. Never was the news of any death more sudden and unexpected, than that of Hegel. On the anniversary of the death of Leibnitz, November 14, 1831, at the close of day, Hegel expired.

On

Sunday, the 13th, at 11 o'clock in the morning, he was attacked by cholera, in its most virulent form, and the fatal termination came at a quarter past five in the evening, on Monday. His family were about him to the last, and his death was easy and calm. On Wednesday, he was buried, and his disciples, Marheineke and Forster, spoke at his grave. His sister, Christine, long years before disappointed in love, and for some time past living apart from him, died by suicide, the following February-a broken-hearted sufferer. Great was the shock to all Germany, and deep the sorrow of all of Hegel's scholars everywhere, on learning that he was no more.

Thus, rapidly and lightly touching upon some of the more prominent points of the philosopher's career in life, and never more than pausing for a moment at the threshold of his philosophy. We have at length seen him laid by the side of Fichte, to rise no more to the work of this world. Gladly would we add to the illustrations of his character, and to the aphorisms and words of his philosophy already given, were it not unreasonably to prolong our article. And beyond this still remains the labor we have not attempted here, of assigning to Hegel his place, in our estimate, among the generations of philosophers, and of weighing the value of his endeavors in the past, or their present and prospective influence. We are no partisans of his much less are we his indiscriminate worshippers. But we have failed in our purpose, if it does not appear, from what we have written, that Hegel was no mere idle dreamer, wasting his life among abstractions, unintelligible to the world; but a practical, sincere man, writing to be understood, aiming to elevate and educate the race, and exerting a rare power and influence upon cultivated men, as well as enjoying the friendship and esteem of the most eminent men of his time.

ART. VII.—Monthly Magazines, Weekly Papers, and other Periodicals. New York, Philadelphia, Boston, &c. 1868.

VERILY, we Americans are a wonderfully "fast" people, although it is ourselves that say it most. Nowhere else is

old Father Time outstripped as he is with us. Our European rivals deny that we are a modest people; and yet we are constantly performing miracles, while we as constantly maintain that the age of miracles is past-nay sometimes deny that there ever was such an age! If this be not modesty, we should like to know what is. In other countries, neither January nor May, nor any other month, cold or warm, arrives until it is regularly due, as set down in the almanacs; but in our country each arrives at least a fortnight in advance, provided no serious accidents occur. Even in this case there can only be a few exceptions; for though it may still be only autumn on one corner of the street, it is far advanced in winter on another, and Winter though a premature birth, laughs at Autumn, because he, too, did not come into the world before his time!

Everybody knows that an American magazine which does not see the light some weeks in advance must be a dull, slow affair. Thus, while we write this line, towards the middle of December, we see before us a dozen of January magazines, the majority having "records of the month." Even the wonders of the telegraph cannot approach this; no operator that we have ever heard of could send a January telegram, even to his beloved one, in the middle of December.

This, naturally suggests the question, Have we prophets amongst us? Our answer is,-Must we not regard the editor of every one of the monthlies before us, somewhat in that light? But we read that in the olden time, there were, at least, two kinds of prophets, the true and the false. Perhaps it is the same at the present day; if so, in which category shall we place our prophetic confrères?

Before attempting to decide so grave a question, let us take some notice of the circumstances in which they are placed. If the public will only hear those who pretend to have the prophetic gift, what is the honest story teller to do? We are bound to remember that he cannot afford to be out of work more than the industrious chambermaid, who, in order to get employment, when in need of it, where "no Catholic need apply," presents herself as an orthodox