Frank Allerton : an Autobiography. By Augustus Mongredien. 3 vols.
(Samuel Tinsley.)—This book has something of the character of an historical novel, though historical personages are but sparingly in- troduced, being alluded to rather than presented. The scene is laid at the time just preceding the Jacobite rising of 1745,—we speak of the main action of the story, for the plan of the book is to sketch the life of the supposed writer until his fortune happily settles down into an un- eventful happiness. Nor is there indeed anything better in the novel than some of these earlier sketches, as that of the learned doctor to whom the hero is sent for his education, and who is so successful a trimmer between Jacobites and Whigs, leaving both in the happy belief that his principles are sound, as they consider soundness, while in reality he cares for nothing but Latin, Greek, and divinity. The hero's adven- tures when his fortunes approach to a crisis, his unwilling share in the political movements of the time, and his love-affairs, are told with much force. The scene in which Brerewood's villainy is unmasked is especially vigorous. Altogether, this is a quite readable story.
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