civilization and modified by the Christian religion. Ethology would find good materials in these Récits. Owing to the title, and to the want of interest generally felt for the 'Merovingiens,' Thierry's work seems to have had few readers here. Had the public been aware that these Merovingian narratives were explanatory of the social state of the sixth century, that they gave a vivid picture of the Barbarian, Roman and Christian elements in a state of imperfect fusion,— that they brought the vigour and wild energy of the Gauls face to face with the last remains of Roman greatness and luxury, kept in imperfect check by Christianity,- and that they treated of subjects not merely French, but universal in their interest, and indispensable for the historical student rightly to understand, then indeed more attention would have been bestowed upon the work. We assure our readers that the 'Récits' contain this and much else,—that in spite of an unattractive title, few works are so attractive. To the general reader it is as exciting as a novel; to the student it is full of grave, important matter. The 'Dix Ans d'Etudes Historiques' is an interesting work to all interested in the author: it is a collection of his various essays on historical subjects, in which he put forth his first notions in all their adventurous imperfection. The preface, which gives an account of his studies, is manly and touching. Thierry's brother, Amedée, is also a writer of reputation; his 'Histoire des Gaules' is an authority often cited.

The remaining historians demand only a passing notice here; they do not claim our attention as having contributed on any large scale to the art or science of history. SISMONDI, the greatest, whose recent loss the world of letters deplores, brought to the task a zeal and patience which constituted him a giant amongst annalists. His 'Histoire des Français' is the most complete, as it is the most erudite and vast of all the general histories of France; but it belongs to the old school, in merits as in faults.

The popularity and voluminous mediocrity of M. CAPEFIGUE are not to be passed over in silence. The reputation he enjoys is not enviable: he is accused of inventing documents to suit his purposes, and has been convicted of misquoting his authorities. He uses history as a vehicle for

voluminous pamphleteering. Feudalism—a picturesque feudalism of grim barons clad in mail, and virtuous priests checking audacious vice-is the object of his impassioned regrets; and he loses no opportunity of comparing the feebleness, heartlessness and monotony of the present social life with the vigour, faith and variety of that of the middle ages. In fairness let us note that Philippe Auguste' is the least bad of his works; indeed it is, in some respects, not without considerable merit.

Passing over a host of diligent writers, more or less serviceable in their respective departments, but having no place on the summits of history, we come to MM. Mignet and Thiers, who claim notice as philosophical writers.

M. MIGNET has written a history, or epitome of the French Revolution, in two volumes. Every portion of it bears the impress of rigid compression-a quality the rarest now in all literature. The style is brief, rapid and aphoristic: the portraits are sketched by a few decisive touches only the important events are introduced, and the narrative is sacrificed to philosophical disquisition: many of the remarks are admirable, and quite as many absurd. Mignet is dogmatical; he delivers an axiom, and seldom stops to defend or explain it. This style is well suited to his philosophy, renders it imposing and prevents its weakness from being apparent. When we have said that his philosophy is dogmatic fatalism, we have said enough for the reader to judge of its historical futility. Though it be superfluous here to demolish the sophistry on which such a doctrine rests, it may not be useless to cite an instance of its application. Robespierre falls, and the philosophy of his fall is, according to Mignet, this: "Il 'faut alors qu'on tombe par ce qui a servi à vous éléver: "il faut, homme de faction, qu'on périsse par les échafauds, "comme les conquerans par la guerre." If there be one thing more absurd than this reflection, it is the il faut which announces the dogma as an eternal necessity.

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M. THIERS has adopted the philosophy of his friend, and published an improvisation of the History of the French Revolution. Brilliant as an improvisation, it is almost worthless as a history; its inaccuracy is so excessive, its philosophy so absurd. But it has literary merits,-animated style, effect

ive rhetoric, theatrical grouping and shrewd remark. It became popular at once,-one certain sign of inferiority in a grave work.

Those who wish to see the errors and crimes of the Revolution excused as abstract necessities, and not as human failings, from the study of which great lessons may be drawn; those who, grateful for the good which that outburst has accomplished, would fain have the dark side draped from view by an imposing, terrible 'il faut,' and would have all its errors justified according to the ways of Providence and the new school of philosophy, those persons will accept Mignet and Thiers as historians, and only those. But what a madness is noble endeavour,-what a mockery is humanity in its 'afflicted will' struggling against wild instincts and brute passions,-what a futile labour is philosophy, if all history can be rightly explained by an 'il faut'! Burn the pen, shut up the book, still the eager throbbing brain, O youthful student! Enjoy the present, the future is not; and the past has but one word which you can read, in resignation or despair,ΑΝΑΓΚΗ.

Fortunately history is not to be thus explained: fortunately the doctrine of fatalism is a mere sophistical abuse of language, which leaves the disciple just where it found him, and those who desire fruitful conceptions will not be led astray by its delusive formulas. We have endeavoured to show that history is subject to certain laws, the knowledge of which though difficult is possible, and that a science is in process of organization which must eventually produce important results for society.

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ARTICLE IV.

1. Report of the Commissioners for inquiring into Bankruptcy and Insolvency. Presented to both Houses of Parliament by command of Her Majesty, 1840.

2. An Act for the Amendment of the Law of Bankruptcy. 5 & 6 Vic., cap. 122. Royal Assent, 12th Aug. 1842. 3. An Act for the Relief of Insolvent Debtors. 5 & 6 Vic., cap. 116. Royal Assent, 12th Aug. 1842.

4. Rules and Orders made in pursuance of the above Acts. 12th Nov. 1842.

THE state of the law of Debtor and Creditor in a nation is no mean test of the actual stage of civilization to which the people of that nation have attained; and in commercial communities especially, certainty and promptitude in the enforcement of contracts are matters of primary necessity. Certainty is the soul of commerce. The vast and complicated system of credit which prevails in this country could only be sustained by laws fitted to secure a literal performance of the engagements by which traders are successively bound to one another; and the comparatively small number of instances in which resort is had to the law to compel the fulfilment of contracts between solvent parties, proves that, upon the whole, our law of debtor and creditor is well adapted to provide the required security. But there is another large division of the subject where the law has hitherto been in a state by no means satisfactory. In all that numerous class of cases where the person who has engaged to pay money is unable to perform his contract,-in cases of bankruptcy and insolvency,-the law, until a recent period, has been utterly disgraceful to a civilized and commercial nation.

In earlier times, when the commerce of Europe was in its infancy, the profits of traders were large, consisting mainly in payment for the personal labour and risk of buying goods in one country and transporting them to another; the capital employed was small, and,—dangers of imperfect navigation and exactions of" barons bold" being escaped,-the returns were certain. Bankruptcy, or inability to perform pecuniary en

gagements, was then deemed, and not altogether unjustly, an actual crime.

In the commercial cities of Italy a trader who became insolvent was imprisoned, and his bench (banco) in the exchange broken (rotto), with every mark of contumely and disgrace, whilst his creditors took possession of his effects, which were divided amongst them. Though something of the same kind probably prevailed amongst merchants in this country, most of whom were foreigners, the law recognised no other means of satisfying a trader's debts than the application of his effects upon the seizure of them at the suit of individual creditors, or by the actual imprisonment of his person under process also issued at the instance of particular creditors. In this state of the law it was obvious that a few creditors might get paid in full and exhaust the effects of the insolvent trader, whilst others, equally meritorious, would get nothing. In the reign of Henry VIII. the growing commerce of England loudly called for a remedy of this evil, and accordingly in 1542 we have the first bankrupt-law (34 & 35 Hen. VIII. c. 4.), intituled "An Act against such persons who do make Bankrupt." This act was conceived in the severe spirit of the times. The most stringent means were authorized to secure the person and property of the insolvent trader, who, being very often a foreigner, was always suspected of a design to escape out of the kingdom; and, although he was deprived of his all, which was divided amongst his creditors, they might still sue him for the deficiency-he was left entirely at their mercy.

This act was, however, expressly directed against fraudulent traders, persons who, in the words of the preamble, "craftily obtaining into their hands great substance of other men's goods, do suddenly flee to parts unknown." The "bodies," as well as the lands and goods of the "offenders," were ordered to be taken by the direction of the lord chancellor and the other high officers of state named in the act. Powers were given for examining the "offender's" debtors, as well as all persons suspected of having any of his goods in their possession; and full disclosure was enforced by a penalty of double the value of the concealed goods, to be distributed amongst the bankrupt's creditors. The same forfeiture was