11 JULY 1868, Page 22

Thoughts of a Lifetime. By the Author of Utopia at

Home- (Triibner.)—" Genius," says the author, in his preface, "is the greatest. of all crimes. I have been very, very guilty." This self-accusation is, as far as we are able to judge, somewhat morbid. We despair of being able to give our readers any idea of this book. The writer has two 'pet' aversions, boarding schools and the law of copyright. "Curet be

law that makes the poet rich," ho cries, in a fine frenzy. He has pet schemes too numerous to mention. One of them proposes to distribute the human race into twenty-five empires. This will of course involve, considerable alteration of the map of the world. Englishmen will be interested in learning that they are to receive /Egypt and the Faroe Isles. The Welsh may possibly not be so gratified to be told that the author "hopes that they will succeed in colonizing Patagonia." It is- interesting to see him turn aside from those mighty cares for an instant to tell us how we ought to distinguish our chessmen (he scorns the foolish names of rook, bishop, &c., and would have them marked A, B, C, &c.), and explain a "very entertaining game at whist for two." Our amusement provided for, he returns with admirable gravity to discuss his projects for the welfare of the human race. We can at least say that he has our good wishes.