to which it refers. It is a travesty of the governor's speech of January, 1825. A stanza or two may show its quality: To Tallmadge of the upper house, It seems by general admission, Bargaining, building, and bee-hiving. (The dream of philosophic man), From New Orleans to the Bay of Fundy, I've climb'd my country's loftiest tree, And reach'd its highest bough-save one; Still mocks my eagle wing and eye, For though but second in command, An admiral's on the seas. And, if Ambition can ask more, A princely pride creates, Because it gives me kindred claims To greatness with those glorious names, Of the new pieces from the manuscripts of both authors, one published in the Evening Post as recently as 1830, strikes us as peculiarly happy in its satire. It is entitled " Epistle to Robert Hogbin, Esq., one of the Committee of WorkingMen, &c., at the Westchester Hotel, Bowery;" a person who would appear to have been something of an agrarian in his reforms. There is little danger of error in attributing this piece to the poet Halleck: Mr. Hogbin, I work as a weaver of rhyme, There is much in a name, and I'll lay you a wager (Two small jugs from Reynolds') that Nature design'd, When she found you, that you should become the drummajor In that sweet piece of music, the "Grand March of Mind." A Hogbin! a Hogbin! how cheering the shout Yes, there's much in a name, and a Hogbin so fit is Bids men leave their workshops to work in committees, For that great moral purpose, whose impulse divine And their own wedded wives to protect yours and mine. That we working-men prophets are sadly mistaken, Whom your ancestors housed, if we judge by his name. When the moment arrives that we've won the good fight, And broken the chains of laws, churches, and marriages, When no infants are born under six feet in height, And our chimney-sweeps mount up a flue in their carriages; That glorious time when our daughters and sons Yours, A WORKING-MAN. In addition to these and other new pieces, the work is enriched by a body of illustrative notes, which do great credit to the editor, Mr. John B. Moreau, to whose sympathies with the poems, as a New Yorker, the Bradford Club is indebted in the first instance for this choice publication. The Book of the Signers; Containing fac-simile Letters of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, illustrated with engravings of their Residences, Portraits, &c. Edited by Wm. Brotherhead. Philadelphia: Wm. Brotherhead. 1861. 4to. THIS is a highly creditable volume, for the idea and execution of which great praise is due. The Signers will ever be objects of reverence to every American heart. A letter, with the portrait, or tomb, or residence of each of those who pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor, cannot fail to possess an abiding and elevating interest. American Historical and Literary Curiosities; consisting of Fac Similes of Original Documents Relating to the Events of the Revolution, &c., &c.; with a variety of Reliques, Antiquities, and Modern Autographs. Collected and edited by John Jay Smith and John F. Watson. Sixth edition. New York: G. P. Putnam. 1861. 4to. MR. PUTNAM has issued a new edition of the first series of "Smith's American Historical and Liter ary Curiosities." Mr. Smith was the first to furnish a treat of this kind to American readers, and his success was deservedly great. For this present edition, the plates have been redrawn and many new ones added. The subjects range widely, portraits of Washington, memorials of Carver, Penn, Lord Baltimore, André's Mischianza Ticket, Arnold's Commission, Fac-similes of old Papers, &c. Like the second series, the success of which has called for the revival of this, it is well worthy a place in every American library and drawing-room. Considerations on some of the Elements and Conditions of Social Welfare and Human Progress; being Academic and Occasional Discourses, and other Pieces. By C. S. Henry, D. D. New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1860. 12mo, 415 pp. THE author well observes that "this volume contains some things not quite in unison with the tone of popular opinion;" but unless we are to consider popular opinion in every country, and at each successive period to be the criterion of divine truth, we may well bear to hear some words of honest censure and prophetic warning. Amid the turmoil of party, the exaggerations of heated enthusiasm, and the strife of mere politicians, fundamental truths are often lost sight of; and this is especially a period when the calm, thoughtful, philosophic mind should speak clearly. Historical and Literary Intelligence. BUST OF GENERAL WAYNE.-The people of Westchester, Pennsylvania, are moving to place in the court-house a marble bust of Gen. Wayne, as a monument to his memory. There is not a simple tablet, monument, or bust to Wayne, in his native county. A meeting was held in September, and the model by Wm. Marshall Swayne, adopted. It is proposed to effect it by subscription, each subscriber to the amount of a dollar to receive a steel engraving of the bust. Addison May, Esq., Westchester, Penn., is the treasurer of the fund. WM. L. STONE is preparing the "Life of Sir William Johnson," commenced by his father, the author of the Lives of Brant and Red Jacket. From the extensive collection of manuscripts which he made, the work cannot fail to be an important addition to the histories of the Colonial period. STRICKLAND, of Milwaukee, publishes "The Chronicles of Milwaukee; a narrative, biographical and descriptive history of the town, its founders, first settlers," &c. J. HAMMOND TRUMBULL, Esq., has been for some time paying especial attention to the life of Rev. Thomas Hooker, and within a year and a half has discovered and deciphered three exceedingly interesting manuscripts. The first is the notes of Mr. Hooker's first and second Election Sermons, preached in 1638 and '39. The second, his long letter to Gov. Winthrop, of Massachusetts, in defence of Connecticut against the unjust imputations of his correspondent, is published in the first volume of the Connecticut Historical Society's collections, and the most valuable contribution to the early history of the colony that has been made for many years. The third is Mr. Hooker's Thanksgiving Sermon, preached at Hartford, Oct. 4, 1638. The Hartford Press gives an extract from the transcript of the original, made at the time, by Matthew Grant, of Windsor. The text was 1 Sam. vii. 12. MESSRS. WELLES & GILLETTE announce a kind of private Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages, to be called "The Doomsday Book of the State of New York," and designed to contain a complete record of the family registers of all the residents of this State; the volumes containing these records to remain permanently on deposit in the library of the New York Historical Society. MR. JOHN RUSSELL SMITH, is about to publish, in the style of his "Library of Old Authors," a reprint of "Philip Freneau's Poetical Works," from the Philadelphia edition of 1786, with a biographical introduction, to be printed by Whittinghain. THE Imperial Library of Paris has just been enriched by the presentation of a collection of American coins numbering 380 pieces: 5 gold, 86 silver, and the rest copper. The present was made by Mr. Vattemare. THE Messrs. Brockhaus of Leipsic have just brought out the catalogue of "Books on America." The collection comprises only 435 articles, but is particularly rich in early tracts and pamphlets relative to the history of the New Netherlands, including the Breeden Raedt of 1649, the Kort Verhael van Nieuw-Nederlandts, 1662, Wassenaer's Historical Collections, and many other similar rarities. A pamphlet, hitherto unknown, relating to the Delaware, is priced at 100 thalers. VOL. V.] THE HISTORICAL MAGAZINE. FEBRUARY, 1861. General Department. A BIBLIOGRAPHICAL ACCOUNT OF THE THE interest which attaches to the voyages of Columbus, can never diminish, and we feel great pleasure in inserting, by the kind permission of Mr. James Lenox, the following bibliographical account of the first editions of the four voyages of the Discoverer of America, taken from his privately-printed work on the second voyage, "Nicolaus Syllacius de Insulis Nuper Inventis." These works are of the greatest rarity, few have ever seen any of them, still fewer can ever hope to possess them. Yet they are the cornerstones of an American collection, and in making them generally known, we feel that we are essentially carrying out the object of the Historical Magazine: [No. 2. the titles, colophons, and woodcuts of the different volumes. First Voyage. A. The only perfect copy of this edition now in my possession, was formerly in the library of M. Libri. It is described by M. Brunet (Manuel, vol. i., p. 734, 2d column), but with some typographical mistakes. He calls it "very rare, and certainly one of the oldest editions known of the first letter of this celebrated navigator." It is a small 8vo, without place, date, or printer's name; in black-letter type; and consists of ten leaves, without signatures, catchwords, or pagination, except as mentioned below. A full page contains twenty-seven lines. There are eight woodcuts, one of which is a repetition. On the recto of the first leaf is a woodcut representing the arms of "Castile and Leon;" on the verso of the same leaf, is a woodcut of a ship, with the words "Oceanica Classis." (I.) On the recto of the second leaf is the title, commencing, "De insulis inuentis,” and below, eleven lines: "De Insulis inuentis | Epistola Cristoferi Colom (cui etas nostra | multù debet: de Insulis in mari Indico nup | inuētis. Ad quas perquirendas octavo antea mense: auspiciis et ere Inuictissimi Fernandi | Hispaniarum Regis missus fuerat) ad Mag | nificum dñm Raphalem Sanxis: eiusde sere lis ac liberatus vir Aliander d Cosco: ab His pano ydeomate in latinù conuertit: tercio kls Maij. M.cccc.xciij. Pontificatus Alexandri | Sexti Anno Primo." The contemporaneous accounts of the voyages of Columbus, are very rare. In some instances only a single copy of an edition is at present known; and in others the narrations existed exclusively in manuscript until the present century. Mr. Brunet, in his "Manuel du Libraire," and Mr. Major, in the introduction to the nissimi Regis Thesaurariù missa. quam nobi "Select Letters of Columbus" printed for the Hakluyt Society, have given lists of the editions then known. But these publications necessarily exclude such a full bibliographical notice of the volumes as may be desired by persons who are The title contains the name of Ferdinand unable to examine the original editions for them- only. Each line has been underruled with red selves. The history and contents of the docu-ink. Below the title are thirteen lines of text, ments published by Mr. Major, are detailed by him in a minute and very satisfactory manner; but in his work, and in the "Manuel," there are some omissions and a few errors in the collations; arising probably from the carelessness of the printer. It is almost impossible to describe in words the slight variations by which one edition is distinguished from another. An attempt will be made in this paper to overcome these difficulties by the introduction of fac-simile copies of HIST. MAG. VOL. V. 5 the initial Q is very small, and is inserted with a pen. At the bottom of the page on the right side is the letter or number j. On the verso of this leaf is a woodcut, with the title, "Insula hyspana." (See fac-simile, No. II.) On the recto of the third leaf are twenty-six lines of text, and at the bottom, on the right, the number ij. On the verso is a woodcut representing several islands. A copy is given in (III.) Signor Bossi supposes that all the cuts in this |