We were skimming over the pages of the Third Number
of Bentley's Miscellany at the railroad rate at which the light ar- ticles in Magazines require to be read, when suddenly we found our pace slackening, and our progress getting gradually slower and slower, until we were aware ot being deeply engaged in the process of thought. The cause of this Magazine phenomenon was soon apparent: we had left the unsubstantial element of " manlier," and gat into that of matter—and matter in a condensed form too. "A Passage in the Life of Beaumarchais" had arrested our at- tention. It is condensed from his own narrative by Mr. HOGARTH, who has prefaced it with a sketch of the author and hero of the tale. We will not spoil the reader's pleasure by describing the neidents, but be content with saying that it is one of those
remarkable chapters in " the romance of real life" which prove that " truth is stranger than fiction," and we may add, in this case more interesting and pleasant.
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