incerity of their praise by
suggestions of improvement in its detail, and hints for its further
extension. They may feel assured that such hints and such suggestions
shall not be lost sight of. For instance, one respected correspondent
hints that as we have very properly adopted Dr. Maitland's suggestion
with regard to Herbert's edition of Ame's _Typographical Antiquities_,
namely, that of "offering a receptacle for illustrations, additions, and
corrections," and invited "our readers to take advantage of our columns
to carry out Dr. Maitland's suggestions," we should open our columns
with equal readiness to the correction and illustration of more modern
and more popular works. We entirely concur with him; but in reference to
this subject there is a distinction which must be borne in mind. Our own
literature, like that of every other country, consists of two classes of
books. We have the books of pretenders to knowledge, the hasty, crude,
imperfect, but often for the time attractive and popular volumes of the
Ned Purdons of the day. These books have a use--such as it is--and thus
answer their purpose; but it would be for the credit of our literature,
and save a world of trouble, if they were forgotten as soon as they had
done so. To illustrate such books, to add to their information or
correct their blunders, would be useless and almost ridiculous. They
should be left to die of mere powerlessness and exhaustion, or to wither
under the wholesome influence of a just and manly criticism.

But there are books of another kind--books {18} which our worthy
bibliopoles designate as "standard works." These are the books of
competent workmen--books which are the result of honest labour and
research, and which from the moment of their publication assume a
permanent station in our national literature. Even in such books there
are many things incomplete, many things erroneous. But it is the
interest of every man that such books should be rendered as complete as
possible; and whatever tends to illustrate or correct works of that
class will be sure of insertion in our columns.

We would point to Macaulay's _England_, and Hallam's _Introduction to
the Literary History of the 15th, 16th, and 17th Centuries_, his _Middle
Ages_, and his _Constitutional History_, and we may add, as
illustrations of a different kind, _The Annals of the Stage_ of our
excellent friend Mr. Collier, and _The Handbook of London_ of our valued
contributor Mr. Pet