FOREIGN LITERARY NOTES.
A French party in Mauritius have started a new journal, called Madagascar. The name indicates its object—it is to promote the annexation to France of the great African island.
A curious discovery has recently been made in the records of the Calcutta High Court which may serve to throw additional light on the history of the time of Clive. Some of the papers relating to the trial of Nandkumar have been unearthed, and among them is the judgment, with a long note appended in some old system of stenography, giving what purport to be the true reasons for the lightness of the punishment inflicted. A lithographic copy of the note is to be sent to England for decipherment.
Mr. Swinburne’s new tragedy, “Marino Faliero,” is dedicated to Aurelio Saffi, the Italian patriot. This will indicate that the striking chapter of Venetian history upon which the drama is based has been treated in some measure politically. The chronicle, however, has been faithfully followed as to incidents.
Mr. J. A. Symonds is engaged upon the sequel to his Renaissance in Italy. This book will deal with the period between 1530 and 1600. Mr. Symonds proposes to treat of the changes effected in Italian politics, society, and culture by the Spanish ascendancy and the Catholic revival. He will probably call the book Italy and the Council of Trent.
Herr W. Friedrich, of Leipzig, will publish shortly a history of Russian literature, by Alexander von Reinhold, forming vol. vii. of the series, “Geschichte der Weltlitteraturen im Einzeldarstellungen.” The prospectus, issued by the publishers, claims that the book will far surpass in completeness and accuracy all previous works on this subject.