PORTRAIT OF SIR WALTER SCOTT.
THE loss of one whom we loved or revered, renders sacred for the time every thing that reminds us of him. Nay, the more rude and humble the memorial, perhaps the greater is its effect ; for the mind is touched at finding that so slight a cause should kindle so vivid a recol- lection; or the sudden and unlooked-for recalling to mind of the friend we have lost, overcomes the check of reason, and the tide of sorrow flows for the moment unrestrained. Thus we account for the effect produced on us by a homely, yet forcible, wood-engraving of Sir Wamit Scorr, prefixed to a brief memoir on a printed sheet, and forming No. II. of a Popular Portrait Gallery. It is a likeness that conveys enough of the general character of the physiognomy of the illustrious poet and novelist, to impress the features of the man upon the memory of those who see it. Thousands who were more familiar with his works than with the name of their author, and who feel a generous and grateful sorrow for the loss of one who has contributed so much to the stun of their quietest and best enjoyments, will peruse, perhaps for the first time in this wood-cut, the manly features of the Author of Waverley.
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