20 FEBRUARY 1864, Page 21

CURRENT LITERATURE.

Pictures of the Past, and Other Poems. By William Bradfield. (Longman and Co.)—Judging from what the author says of himself, we imagine that he might have produced a very pleasant little volume on the antiquities and legends of the county in which he resides. He has, however, chosen to write poems. There is, of course, no account- ing for tastes, but whatever value these verses may have for the writer and his friends, they have little for the public. "The Pictures of the Past" are, perhaps, not so good as the miscellaneous poems, but the dis- tinction is a fine one.