KOULI KHAN. THE attempts on India by the reigning sovereign of Persia bring to our recollection the fate of the most memorable of Persian warriors. In the year 1739, exactly a century ago, the famous Kouli Khan, the Shah of Persia, invaded India, and, after defeating the Mogul army in a great battle, took possession of Delhi. He spared the lives of the leading people, a singular instance of lenity in Asiatic war, and so wholly opposite to his own reckless polity, that it was accounted for only by a mysterious influence. But his original habits soon returned; and, on his determination being known to put a large number of the inhabitants of the capital to the sword, his tent was attacked by five Indians, in the midst of his army; and after a desperate defence, in which he killed two of them, he was struck to the heart. THE Persians are coming, Of corpses are full; Have finish'd the war. And now with his omrahs He sits on his throne, With kings for his captains, The East for his own. The gems on his turban, The gems on his shawl Flash fire-but his glance Flashes brighter than all. There, proud Aurungzebe! Stand thy princes in chains, But, though fallen, they remember Thy blood in their veins : With toil and with battle Their faces are wan; But their frown is as haughty As thine, Kouli Khan. Then gazed the dark Sultan, His bosom heaved high, For he ponder'd the thought Shall they live? shall they die? "Let them die" - from its scabbard His dagger outsprang; "Let them live" in the scabbard 'Twas dash'd with a clang. Then the herald came forth, He thrice bow'd to the throne: Like a pillar of topaz "The Shah asks three questions : If answer'd, ye stand; Then out broke the words- Are like banners unfurl'd; "Next, reckon the wealth " I will answer, dark Sultan, Dark Sultan, awake! Shall thy journey be done! Were it mountains of gold, Then loud swell'd the trumpet, "Still the axe," said the Sultan, "Must smite the Vizier, For the blood of my bravest Has reek'd on his spear. "What, tiger! more blood? Well, what prize shall be mine, If he stand on this spot Ere yon sun shall decline ?" "Take the half of my throne!" -"Mighty Shah, he is here!" -The beard was cast off, But there stood no Faquier. For the form bow'd to earth, And the forehead so pale, There stood in his beauty A youth sheathed in mail. Still brighter and brighter " I am Uriel," he spake- Of the star-studded throne, The Angel of Mercy, To save the undone. "They are saved-Thou art saved ! For each drop of their gore Would have burn'd on thy soul, Like the red molten ore, In the bridegroom's was wreathed. And the vine hid the cottage, The sheep fill'd the fold, Like the corn in the ear. The fiend fill'd the man- * In the final suppression of the Janissaries in 1823, it is computed that 20,000 of those insolent mercenaries were put to the sword or sent into exile. † The Victorious Sultan-one of his many titles. See Sir Grenville Temple's Travels. Among the many reforms effected by the vigorous and grasping intellect of Mahmoud, not the least important was his proscription of the old cumbrous military costume, and adoption of the European uniform, the wearing of which he rigidly enforced. Sound the trump for the Mighty ! Who dash'd from the camp, 7. Where sickles were swords! INSCRIPTION IN THE NEW EDITION OF MRS HEMANS'S WORKS. BY B. SIMMONS. HIGH be their meed who here, at last, have heap'd The flowers long scatter'd from THY gleaming crown- Babbles of sufferings which herself provoked- Long be thy lucid memory a spell To test their truth who mock the minstrel art, • FRENCH LITERATURE OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. BY VILLEMAIN. PART II. We have traced, in a former article, the outline of French literature during the first or creative portion of the eighteenth century, when it was illustrated in different departments by the eloquence of Buffon, the ingenuity of Montesquieu, the fervid enthusiasm of Rousseau, and the universal talent of Voltaire. Of these, the three last impressed the deepest and most durable traces on the literature and the mind of Europe: Montesquieu, by the novelty and occasional sagacity which he mingled with much false taste in style, rash assumption of facts, and hasty generalisation in reasoning; Rousseau, by that semblance of conviction, that passionate exaggeration of sentiments and principles, derived from his own morbid propensities, which gave to his studied essays the appearance, and something of the influence, of unpremeditated popular orations, in which all Europe was his forum; and Voltaire, by his power of popularizing the most abstract discussions, insinuating philosophy into the fugitive literature of the day, making wit subservient to argument, and lending to every thing he touched the charm of a style conspicuous for its finish and simplicity. This portion of the eighteenth century was the period of original and independent production, when France, instead of receiving the rules of taste or the models of composition from other countries, imposed her own laws on them, impressed the stamp of her habits of thought upon all Europe, and enjoyed a literary supremacy more absolute and universal than any which had existed since the age of Augustus. The unhesitating and enthusiastic reception at first accorded to the French philosophy of the eighteenth century by the rest of Europe, now appears to us matter of astonishment. Under all the disguises of humanity, literature, zeal for improvement, removal of prejudices, and banishment of supersti. tion, with which the aim of the French philosophers was studiously invested, the principle of determined hostility to monarchy, to the privileged classes, and to that religion by which the existing state of things was cemented and upheld, now appears so palpable, that we wonder how it could have been overlooked by those whose interests were so deeply involved in the change. To us it appears evident that the doctrines thus eagerly embraced by princes and nobles, Were silently engendering of the day This handwriting on the wall, warning kings and princes that their dominion was departing from them, which presented to them but unintelligible characters, has become abundantly significant when read by the collected light of the past. For the French Revolution has furnished the commentary of reality upon all the delusive doctrines of human perfectibility, and taught us the folly of expecting the regeneration of mankind by means of an infidel philosophy, which, while it flatters the vanity, overlooks entirely the inherent depravity, of man. But to the eighteenth century a new El Dorado appeared to NO. CCLXXXVII, VOL, XLVI. be opened, exciting curiosity, inviting experiment, holding out golden hopes of social amelioration, universal disinterestedness and philanthropy, political equality and primitive simplicity; pregnant, in short, with all those delusive visions of improvement which are found to recur at intervals in the progress of society; and of which, it would seem, man can hardly be cured even by the lessons of a sad and often recurring experience. Long accustomed to contemplate human nature as its selfish and savage character had been tamed and moulded by the salutary restraints of a longestablished faith and settled govern X |