THOMAS MILLER'S RURAL SKETCHES.

Jr seems at first sight a singular thing, that the uneducated should attach the most weight to words,—evidently attributing to them a value in themselves, instead of regarding them as only the repre- sentatives of ideas or inwges : yet so it is. Of all littkateurs sprung from the labouring millions, BURNS alone regarded his dic- tion merely as a vehicle for his thoughts,—and that, by the by, only in poetry, or perhaps in his country dialect ; for there is much "fine writing in his prose, and his verse often approaches inflation when he uses English. The rule obtains as we ascend in the scale : the half-educated, or the scholastic youth who has escaped too soon from the fertile, both seem to think that there is some magic virtue in the nice choice or cunning arrangement of mere words ; whilst those who have been regularly drilled in grammars, nonsense verses, and college themes, appear, like a pastrycook's apprentice, to have been Cloyed with kickshaws, and get a taste for something solid. The Doctor or M.A., his nature so ordaining, may be dull, or twaddling, or verbose enough ; but he seldom attempts to glorify his dirty water by blowing it into bladders.

From this general failing Mr. MILLER is not free. Brought up in the country ; traversing it in all directions, seasons' and times, in the exercise of his trade of basket-making ; living from inffincy amongst the humbler classes, and mixing familiarly with all their varieties ; no man would seem more fitted to paint truly both rural scenery and rural characters. Yet he does not do it, because he cannot rely upon Nature as she is. He talks much about her, and her unsophisticated beauties ; but he cannot divest himself of the notion that he can improve her, either by refining her rusticity, or exalting her: by his commentary. Another defect in this writer, and an equally common one, is, an imitated style ; and his models are the worst he could have selected, especially for his topics, being sometimes WASHINGTON IRVING and sometimes LEIGH HUNT. A classically-simple style—which, after all, is only a style reflect- ing a true image of things as they are—may be studied and imitated with profit, for it is applicable to all purposes : a style whose cha- racteristic is some prominent quality, whether of elegance, quaint- ness, affectation, or any other thing, is only fit for a limited range of subjects ; and even they require to be looked at with the original author's frame of mind.

These drawbacks to Mr. MILLER'S permanent standing—and, we think, to so great a temporary success as we should wish to see him attain—are less conspicuous in his present volume of Rural Sketches : and if he would avoid filling so much space with mere personal feelings or opinions, and boldly resolve to give his obser-

vations fair play, and present Nature as she is, we think he might

produce something that should take a place beside WASHINGTON IRVING and MARY HOWITT, though in a different walk. The tale

of "Bonny Bell," for example, in the volume before us, is a true picture of humble life, in despite of some fine touches, which a

revision would remove. But how much more effective would it have been had Mr. MILLER omitted the introduction of his own and his schoolfellows' thoughts and feelings' and began at once with "Twenty years ago, not a lovelier girl brought her butter and eggf, to Gainsborough market, than Isabella Howe."

Leaving generals for particulars, the volume before us contains twenty-one papers, for the most part on rural subjects. They eon. sist of portraits—as "The Old Coachman ;" or characters with an under current of story—as "The Old Fisherman ; " or sketches of manners—as" The Old Customs of Travelling," and " Rural Court. ship ; " tales of reality—as "Bonny Bell," already mentioned; or of sentiment—as "Mary Gray ;" or of humour—as "The Young Outlaw ; " and sometimes the author varies his themes by a review of rural poet—as in his notice of BROWN'S Pastorals, and" Shep. herd's Pipe." Of the kind of reading to be met with, subject to the drawbacks indicated, a specimen will suffice from "The Country Fair,"— scene a public-house.

Such was the scene, when in staggered Jack Straw, rolling drunk, with the

sergeant's cap on, singing-

" If I had a bean for a soldier would go, Do you think I'd say uo? No! not I; Not a sigh would I draw, when his red coat I saw,

But a cheer I'd give for his bravery."

" What ! have yo' listed, Jack ?" interrogated half a dozen voices in as many- tones.

"I have my lads," answered he singing—" And I never will follow the plough-tail again.' I've listed for a hotficer, an' if any o' yo's a mind to list wi' me (hiccup), I'll gi' yo' a shilling in his =jester's name an' list you for full sargent." "You mean full private," said an old man, who had hitherto sat unobserved in the corner ; "you mean full private, same as they'll make you when they get you up to th' regiment. I once listed, thirty years ago, for a colonel; and when I got up to tiv regiment, and I told 'em what I'd listed for, they laughed at me, and says yo're above a colonel ; so I was above one, for our colonel only stood five feet five, and I stood near upon six feet, so they made me a grenadier." " I don't care," answered Jack Straw, "I took his =jester's money to be a hofficer (hiccup), an' be one I will, or else I'll not carve according to the arti-

cals o' war. Now,' says afore I took the money, sargent,' says I, 'I list for an hofficer." Yes,' says he ; 'will you be captain, lieutenant, or ensign?'

Ensign,' says I. ' Very well,' says he, and he put it down in black and white ; you may go into the parlour and ax him ;-" and away we went, John Straw, ensign, leading the way. In the parlour all was confusion : a good-looking rosy-checked girl R89 pulling at the arm of her drunken lover, and exclaiming, " Dinna list, fommy, dinnalist ; o' yo'll brake my heart : dinna list hint, Mi. Soldier."

" I will list,' said the rough rustic ; "give me a shilling to serve his most

gracious majester Mr. King "William: not be a clodhopper all the born days of mv life, and put up we your one and offs." " Oh ! dilute list him, Mr. Sargent ! " exclaimed the girl, "for his poor old mother would run stark mad if he was to go for a soldier, and I'm sure I dare not show may face at hoam wehout him. His mother's sure to lay all the blame on me and say as he listed for love, and then whatever am I to do?"

" not list him while he's tipsy," replied the sergeant, saying a thousand pretty thinrrs to the distressed damsel, and accompanying every sentence with a knowing 'twinkle of the eye. By the aid of another maiden, however, the drunken swain was -led off; and on throwing up the parlour window we could perceive him and his sweetheart in the garden, she promising not to see Fred Giles again, upon condition that he no more whistled out Squire Thornton'