ib. A Manual of Entomology, Nos. v. and vi. De Foe's Journal of the Plague Year.-Family Library, No. LII. Encyclopædia Britannica, Parts LII. and LIII. Stanfield's Coast Scenery.-Views in the British Channel, &c., Part II. -Arboretum Britannicum, Part VII. CONSTITUTIONAL MAGAZINE. AUGUST, 1835. ADDRESS TO THE PUBLIC. THE object aimed at in this periodical is to bring before the Public a Magazine unfettered by past associations, and to place it on a level with, or in advance of, Public Opinion. By so doing we conceive that, as far as our ability extends, we shall be the better able to make ourselves useful to the great cause we have at heart-improvement in our literary, social, and political institutions. The contents of this periodical will consist of original communications, and of critical disquisitions on books, combining the character of Quarterly and Monthly journals, and blending the recondite information of the one with the light and graphic writings of the other: to these will be added a copious Review of the Literature of the Month. In common with our contemporaries, we view the present anomalous condition of Literature with regret. All the higher branches of authorship are in a great measure neglected, whilst the press is inundated by light works, few of which are destined for more than an ephemeral existence. A transition has been at work in our national taste for reading; but we have reason to hope, that, before long, works of a more stable and classic character will be in demand. Republications of old authors have aided a return to a purer and better literary standard, and our assistance shall not be wanting to encourage every advance towards a consummation so desirable. Const. Mag.-No. 1. A We are living in a period of unexampled social changes. Large bodies of our lower orders have sunk into an abyss of poverty and pauperism; and a complete revolution has been suddenly effected in the industrial character of our population. The causes which have led to this, and the remedial agencies best fitted for restoring them to a state of comfort and contentment, will occupy some considerable portion of our attention. Civil and ecclesiastical institutions are undergoing a searching ordeal. We would preserve in these whatever is excellent, whilst we would with unsparing but cautious hand remove every thing cumbersome or injurious. The science of government is eminently practical, and the great aim of our statesmen should be to apply remedies directly to the evil intended to be removed. The only true wisdom, with States, as with individuals, is to adapt existing institutions to present emergencies. In discussing these important topics, we shall never lose sight of the vast interests which are at stake, nor shall we ever suffer ourselves to be led into the error of confounding right with party. There is one feature we intend to give our work-the entire absence of which has oftentimes been severely felt by ourselves, and this is an Index to Books reviewed from one publicationday to another, specifying the when and the where. To authors, a register of this kind has long been a desideratum, as few of them have opportunities for seeing the different literary papers and Magazines. Here we shall relieve them from a dilemma-and the Index will also become a valuable and unique source of reference to libraries and the public at large, enabling book-buyers to seek out at once for a critical notice of every new work. PUBLIC OPINION-PARTIES-THE MINISTRY. If we were asked for a test of the advanced spirit of the age, we should answer-the peaceful power of Public Opinion. The eras of Cade, of Wilkes, and of Gordon, are past. Then, discontented bodies of men, rising in isolated masses, disturbed the safety of the community, and for periods more or less lengthened set law and social order at defiance. Public Opinion, till latterly, meant feelings of partial distress or fancied hardship, and had little or no influence upon the conduct of Government; but now it is the voice of an enlightened people-of a people become conscious of their power, and determined to use it. At no period of our history, therefore, was it of such paramount importance, that the public mind should be governed and instructed. We are not amongst those who feel either surprise or terror at the rapid strides intelligence has made amongst us. The changes which society has undergone since the beginning of the century, have forced men to think; and this developement of thought has led to the extension of education, and by this means opened facilities for inquiry, which have been eagerly taken advantage of. The blind spirit of feudalism perished in the wars of the Roses; religious fanaticism was at its zenith in the time of the Commonwealth; and passionate loyalty for the monarch faded in the reign of the Second Charles, and has given way before the aristocratic barriers, which have strictly environed the throne since the days of the Third William. It is no longer in the power of the Crown to appoint a Government from personal favouritism, or for the purpose of executing its own projects. The will of the people has planted itself firmly on the threshold of the palace, and no private intrigue can displace it. The growth of this power has been gradual, although its full developement was speedy and decisive. It is not a peculiarity confined to our day-that of seeing a majority, or even a minority, of the people, forcing its opinions on the national councils; but it is peculiar to have Public Opinion the actual basis of a Government. The fundamental principles laid down by the Whig leaders during the reign of William the Third, that our Constitution was one of law, not of persons-that allegiance and protection were relative duties that loyalty consisted in a ready obedience to the prince, so long as his commands were lawful—and that the Government being an ordinance of man sanctioned by Scripture, was subject to constitutional change, sapped the foundation of arbitrary rule; and, although since that time these great truths have been now and then overlooked, and the destinies of the country confided to men who governed for themselves, and not for the people, the impulse then given has operated steadily. One after another, some of the many evils that have pressed upon the country have been modified, or altogether removed; and Reform, instead of being the watchword of a party, has become the cry of a nation. To those who are familiar with the political history of the early part of the reign of George the Third, some very close coincidences will be found between the struggle of parties then, and at the present time. The first two monarchs of the Hanoverian dynasty were merely agents in the hands of a party, and were without personal power. The Whigs were in the ascendant, and held undisputed sway; nor was it till the administration of Mr. Pelham, in 1744, that the Tories formed part, and that a small part, of a stable Government. The power of the Whig aristocracy was omnipotent on the accession of George the Third; and the very first step he took was to overturn its influence. His early education had filled his mind with ideas of prerogative, as the lesson continually repeated to him by his mother was, "Be King;" on his Accession, therefore, he set about the task, the consequences of which were a stormy and unhappy period, that produced powerful and injurious impressions upon his mind. Mr. Pitt, afterwards the Earl of Chatham, was the life and soul of the existing administration. We are not about to write a eulogy on this statesman :-his self-confidence, his genius, and his good fortune, had placed him as almost undisputed ruler of the destinies of the nation. Fox, (Lord Holland) his great political opponent, his "twin star" of parliamentary eloquence, was abominated by the Tories,-still powerful, though completely in abeyance; and this dislike threw a great weight into |