25 SEPTEMBER 1858, Page 17

NEW NOVELS. EVA DESMOND—DEATRICE CENCI. • THE elongated composition which has

grown to be a trait of the ambitious " tale" appears in Era Desmond in the three volumed novel. A whole chapter is devoted to the description of an Irish country-house and grounds, including a notice of the furniture ; while English houses and scenery are inventoried in a like detail. People are described with more minuteness than in the Hue and Cry, one of the parson heroes being depicted even to the length of his coat and the fitting of his vest, in these matters, however, there is an observing eye, that seizes the characteristic points of things. The efforts after an appearance of style in Eva's paternal Irish home and the real sordid incompleteness are truthful ; Ernest Clifton, spite of minuteness, stands before the reader as a some- what burly clerical prig ; while the practised novel-reader can skip the long descriptions. The last may indeed be drags ; but the great drag of the book consists in the frequent dialogues about nothing—the persons and scenes introduced that have no direct influence on the story, and the writer's pet people, who are rather of the class bore.

It may be doubted whether the author had any distinct purpose in view beyond chronicling her observations, and pouring forth i her ideas n a novel-form. The purpose as indicated in the story is to exhibit the punishment that overtakes a marriage for interest, especially when the Mammon-lover has already won the heart of another lady, but is induced by parental anger and family arts to give up the woman to whom he has avowed his love, though he has not, we are told, " engaged " himself. The idea is better than the execution. This not only fails in the way already intimated by over-detailed description, and unat- tractive dialogues, but by a want of consistency as well in moral character as in the events of life. Ernest Clifton is represented as a man of high intellect, lofty purpose, and a very paragon of truthfulness and straightforwardness. Yet at the any threats of his father, and the arts of his family, he coarsely if not cruelly breaks with his beloved, and is besides shabby in self-excuse ; for he goes upon the notion that he had not engaged himself, and a man who is not engaged is not committed. This ideal of a divine next allows himself to be persuaded to marry for money, while his heart is attached to another, his rich wife being plain and dull into the bargain. However Nemesis is on the watch. In ad- dition to the domestic unhappiness that must naturally follow such a match, the Reverend Ernest Clifton has the mortification of seeing Eva married, and the universal attraction ; his own wife becomes deranged ; he loses part of the money for which he sold himself; he is perverted to Romanism, and then doubting about his new church, finally dies of his exertions in a mission, which he had undertaken to divert his distraction.

Except the inevitable misery of a marriage so unprincipled and ill-assorted, the other miseries are peculiar. They do not spring as a moral necessity from the original fount, especially the aposta- cy ; unless it be held that clergymen in trouble are liable to change their religion. The career of Eva is equally impro- bable. She marries a clergyman of wonderful learning and abi- lity, but reserved and timid till he gets upon his own ground. Him she brings out, managing himself, his house, his parish ; stimulates him to write and publish, and finally sees him a bishop. There is the same moral drawback or inconsistency in Eva as in Ernest. She is painted as retaining her old passion too long and too intensely after marriage to win the readers approval;

i nor s it likely. Single people preserve the memory of old loves better than the married. Washington Irving tells us that it is your old bachelor who is tender to the last married men gene- rally getting the sentimental knocked out of them.

Eva Desmond is undoubtedly distinguished by occasional felicitous closeness of observation, and a fluency as well as vigour of style. Whether the writer is likely to advance greatly in novel-writing, we cannot undertake to say. Superfluous matter may always be struck out; but it is more promising not to see it put in, especially when, though not essential to the action of the story, much of it is interwoven with the structure. Power the work possesses but not in dramatic passion ; at least its exhibi- tion is avoided. We do not see the matrimonial sufferings of Ernest Clifton, we only hear of them. The manner in which he is half-forced, half-persuaded out of one match into another, is not shown but told. In a quieter way, there is truthfulness in the development of character. Here is an example of the manner n which the marriage they have made reacts upon the Clifton family, when they hear of Eva's success and hnd the sort of person Ernest has wedded. This conversation between father and daughter takes place the night before the Cliftons are going to meet Eva at a flower show.

"'I dare say Eva will think of our lost darling when she sees little Wan

• Bra Desmond; or Mutation. In three volumes. Published by Smith and Elder.

Beatrice Cenci. An Historical Novel of the Sixteenth Century. By F. D. Geer. rani. Translated by Charles Ales. Scott. Published by Bosworth and Harrison. alone,' said Mr. Clifton, sorrowfully, to Agnes the evening before the fifteenth.

"'Perhaps so,' said Agnes, 'but Eva's feelings are so changed.' "'Could hardly be, I should think, towards that little angel who was so fond of her.'

" I don't know. I fancy estrangement so complete as Eva's extends to everything connected with the family. I cannot think she has any interest in us. Pleasant as her manner was at the ball, it grieved me to the heart ; I seemed not a shade more to her than Clara or any one else ; we that were once such friends ; that gay company smile instead of the old heart-lit man- ner.' Agnes' eyes filled.

" That unfortunate attachment of Ernest's has caused much that was vexatious, one way or other. The last man in the world one would have expected to give way to a fancy in that rash way. His marrying Eva was out of the question ; she will never have a penny except the 6001. that is left of her mother's fortune, and not that, if that father of hers can contrive any means of making away with it ; still, money is not everything, and I could wish that Ernest was unmarried yet.'

" So could I,' said Agnes, decidedly. " 'When this marriage was first mooted, I did not believe Clara to be the nonentity she is : the Herberts over-rated her sadly ; puffed her up out of all reason.'

" always knew they were doing that; but I thought Ernest could judge for himself. If he thought he could be happy with her, her money was a great object, as without getting a large fortune, you know you have often said, he never could keep up this place.' "'He might have got a sufficient fortune with a more companionable person ; Chewton Deane did. I have heard they thought of Clara for him until they saw her ; and Ernest is such a handsome, worthy fellow !' Mr. Clifton spoke with a father's pride. " 'Yes ; but Ernest would never look out for a fortune like Mr. Chewton Deane did. He fell iu love with Eva, I do believe, without knowing he was doing so. Clara he married because it was done for him by his friends ; he never would have married her if he had been let alone. And as to looking about him for some girl with a sufficient fortune, laying himself out to win, and then marrying her, he would never do it : you know, papa, he would

not.'

" suppose not,' replied her father, with a sigh. Happy the man who has no children.'" There are some subjects which are too repelling not to say re- volting in their nature for artistic treatment, at least to modern English notions ; and the story of Beatrice Cenci is one of them. No power or felicitous skill can reconcile to healthy minds the two main incidents of the story, or inspire an attractive interest in the horrible tale. Even the original author of this Italian novel, though he has changed the actual incidents, so that Bea- trice is no longer subject to outrage or the murderer of her father, has still a glimpse of its unfitness for popular literature. Signor Gu.erazzi says his tale "will be read by the maidens of my native land " ; but he adds, "when the youth they love approaches, they will blush and hurry to conceal it." The imaginative qualities of the Signor are not more conspicu- ous than his logical, though the translator has done his best for the book by retrenching "redundancies of style " ; by omitting "many pages by which the progress of the story appears unne- cessarily retarded.; and above all in the modification of certain horrors little adapted to our country or civilization." He might have gone further in this last way ; for the reader is treated to scenes of torture in the inquisition, which if they fail to horrify, fail through the incapacity of the author to realize his concep- tions.

The alterations made in the story to the effect already men- tioned, are said to be founded on documents discovered during the Revolutionary times of 1848; but no particulars of any kind are given, nor can we credit the statement. The novel is just such a contrivance as an Italian "liberal," without much com- mon sense and no capacity for fiction would vamp up in his zeal to attack the Pope and the Papal government. One half of the book is occupied with what is designed to be a dramatic exhibi- tion of old Cenci's cruel and brutal nature, and the remainder to an exposition of the modes by which the Pope and his nephew with their instruments contrive to destroy the whole of the Cenci family in order to confiscate their property to his Holiness. The story of this last portion sufficiently explains the untrustworthi- ness of the tale of discovered documents ; for the proceedings are not touched, in fact their authenticity is confirmed. The advo- cate of Beatrice induces her to confess in order that he may de- fend her on a public trial, when he trusts to obtain an acquittal. The absurdity of such a scheme is only matched by the unlikeli- hood of its record.

Critically speaking, the development of old CencPs character is more repugnant to probability than even the trial. There have been bold and shameless villains who have not shrunk in certain companies and on certain occasions from avowing their character, as Chartres. But Count Francesco Cenci parades his villainous nature on all occasions, to all with whom he comes in contact, and that without purpose or motive, generally finishing by gra- tuitous insult. Thus he is described as inviting the most distin- guished churchmen and nobles of Rome to a banquet, and driving them from table by the brutality of his sentiments, dismisses them thus.

"The guests made signs to each other to depart. Beatrice looked transfixed, Lucretia sobbed, and Bernardino concealed his face in her lap.

"All rose from table, and Prince Colonna said, 'Let us depart quickly, for the wrath of God will soon overtake this impious house.'

" Amen, dieo robis, quia anus vestruni ins traditurus est,' quoted the Count, smiling blandly. "Actuated by a sudden impulse, all lifted their hands in malediction and horror, as if in the act of stoning the blasphemer. " ' Hold, signori, hold' ! roared Cenci. What means this ? Are you going to rehearse a tragedy ? Why affect such dislike to blood, Monsig- nori Cardinals, while you dress in crimson ? You are but charlatans, who sell crucifixes as antidotes at a fair; Pharisees, who would compel the Lord, were lie to return to the world, to take refuge at Mecca or Medina, and become a Mahommedan. I know you well, my noble friends and rels. tires. I am a necromancer, and can cause the dead to speak. You under. stand me ; but I cannot allow you to leave my house thus unceremoniously You must honour me a little longer, and join me first in a toast given as holocaust of my revenge : 'To the death of all my children.' Nay, you turn away? You seem somewhat troubled. I see I must give you leave to depart.' He is raving mad,' said the treasurer ; have always considered him wicked enough to make the angels weep.' "'Say rather,' rejoined Colonna, 'to make Satan grind his teeth. We must chain him as we would some ferocious animal.'

"After his diabolical toast Cenci sat down quietly ; but on seeing his guests surround him in a menacing attitude, he raised his head and cried, Olympic. ' ! "In an instant the guests themselves were surrounded by a number of bandits armed to the teeth. Cenci resumed calmly, You are learned men, monsignori, and should remember the feast given by Domitian to the sena- tors • but fear not ; I shall not give the order, 'Out with the fruit' ! prudent men ! Know you not that if Francesco Cenci is no longer the hot iron he was in his youth, he is still warm enough to scorch you all ? member that my vengeance is the sealed letter of a king—it confabs death. You may depart now ; but if you care for the soundness of your throats you will not allow a word to escape you, otherwise life will escape with it.' "