is
uniform with the same publisher's library edition of Southey and
Moore, contains eight hundred pages of closely printed matter, and
includes every thing that Byron wrote in verse. It does honor to the
enterprise and taste of the publishers, and will doubtless have a
circulation commensurate with its merits. As long as our American
booksellers evince a disposition to publish classical works in so
beautiful a form, it is a pleasant duty of the press to commend their
editions. We cordially wish success to all speculations which imply a
confidence in the public taste.

It would be needless here to express any opinion of the intellectual
or moral character of Byron's poems. Everybody's mind is made up on
those points. The present edition is admirably adapted to convey to
the reader Byron's idea of himself, the opinions formed of him by his
contemporaries, and the effect of his several works on the public mind
as they appeared. It contains an immense number of notes by Moore,
Scott, Jeffrey, Campbell, Wilson, Rogers, Heber, Milman, Gifford,
Ellis, Bridges, and others, which will be found extremely useful and
entertaining. Extracts are taken from Byron's own diary, and from the
recorders of his conversations, giving an accurate impression of each
poem, as regards its time and manner of composition, the feelings from
which it sprung, and the opinion he entertained of its reception by
the public. Profuse quotations are made from the first draught of each
poem, showing how some of the most striking ideas were originally
written, and the improvements introduced in their expression by the
author's "sober second thoughts." The opinions expressed of the
various poems by the leading reviews of the time, including the
criticisms of Scott, Jeffrey, Gifford, Heber, and others, are largely
quoted. Added to these are numerous notes, explaining allusions, or
illustrating images which the common reader might be supposed not to
understand. Taken altogether, the edition will enable almost any
person to obtain a clear understanding of Byron and his works, without
any trouble or inconvenience. There is no other edition which can
compare with it in this respect.

Many of the notes are exceedingly curious, and if not absolutely new,
have been gathered from such a wide variety of sources, as to be novel
to a majority of readers. We have been struck with the impression
which Byron's energy made upon Dr. Parr, the veteran linguist. After
readi