Recollecting the pleasure which we formerly received from
the inventive genius and sprightly talents of the deceased author of these volumes,
we took them up with an avidity and a confidence which precluded all idea of
disappointment. If, said we to ourselves, these tales be genuine, (of which, we are
told in the preface, the widow of Marmontel has given the public an assurance,) we shall be much entertained: for, though
the vigor of his mind may be in some degree abated, and the brilliancy of his setting
may not altogether equal that of his meridian sun, yet Marmontel must be Marmontel; and this new collection of Moral Tales must, by their prominent features,
evince their affinity to those of which we gave an account in an early volume of our
Review. (See M.R. vol. xxx. p. 59.) This consanguinity is proved indeed by
indisputable marks; and, being the production of his graver years, these tales are
more moral than those which were before published. If, also, they have lost some of
the exuberance which distinguished the former, our opinion of them will shew that
the
merit of these is not lessened on that account.—The editor says that they will be
found to possess equal merit with those tales which have given celebrity to the name
of Marmontel; —that they display, in captivating language, invention, interest, ease, and
elegance; that the moral which they inculcate is always amiable and pure; and in
short that it has been the principal object of the author, to form the mind and taste
of the rising generation, and to develop those germs of virtuous sentiments which
nature has implanted in the human heart.—A publication of such a tendency, we can
have no reluctance in recommending to the British public.

The introductory tale is intitled the Evening Meeting;
and it describes a society of intimate friends, who, during the commotions of Paris,
assembled at the country-house of a Madame de Verval.
As this lady was a great lover of stories, and possessed the talent of reciting them
in the most natural and agreeable manner, she proposed that, for amusement, each of
the party should in turn form and recount a tale, including the most interesting
events of their life, without invading the sacred recesses of confidence. This
proposition being accepted by the whole party, each narrates a personal memoir; and
the general conclusion from the whole is that the parts of
ii[Page 543]our lives, which have contributed most to our happiness, are those which
have originated in virtuous sentiments, or have been occupied in acts of
benevolence.

The second tale is called the Tripod of Helen; and its object seems to be to
ridicule the pride of philosophy, and to shew the limits of science. Marmontel might have taken these lines of Pope for his motto: In parts superior what advantage lies?Say, for thou canst, what is it to be wise?'Tis but to know how little can be known, To see all others' faults and feel our own.² space between stanzas This doctrine is illustrated with great vivacity of imagination, and
excellent satire; and here we recognize the hand of Marmontel himself. The scene is laid in remote antiquity. He supposes that Helen and Menelaus, being reconciled after the
destruction of Troy, were returning to Lacedæmon, when they were assailed by a
violent tempest as they were passing through the Cyclades, and were in imminent
danger of being wrecked on the island of Cos. At this instant, Helen invoked the inconstant God of the ocean to
protect a female whose disposition was so similar to his own; and, in order to give
effect to her prayer, she presented him with a Golden Tripod, which had been saved
from the pillage of Troy. On throwing this offering into the sea, the storm subsided,
and the danger disappeared.—During six hundred years, this tripod lay at the bottom
of the ocean: but at last it was again brought to light by some fishermen. After some
contention about the property, between the neighbouring islands, it was wisely agreed
to refer the matter to the decision of the Delphic Oracle; who settled the dispute
by
ordering the tripod to be presented to the Wisest of the
Wise. Where however, were they to find this distinguished personage? They
were puzzled to ascertain to which of the seven wise men, who flourished in Greece
at
that period, this title belonged: but, apprehending that this was a question which
the philosophers themselves could easily determine, they appoint deputies to wait
on
them respectively; who commence with an application to Thales, the Milesian, their neighbour.

This philosopher, however, fairly confesses that all his knowledge has only served
to
convince him how little he knows; and that he continues
his researches only with the view of encouraging his disciples, and in the hope that
time, in his wonder-working progress, may lift up some corner of the immense veil
of
nature. He therefore advises them to offer the tripod to Solon, who pursues the straight path to usefulness in the study of man, and
whose object is to render him better and happier.—In consequence, the deputies next
apply to the Athenian legislator, but with no better success. Solon re-[Page 544]fers them to Bias, Bias to Chilo the
Spartan, &c. and thus the tripod is bandied about from sage to sage; each of
whom, acknowledging his own insufficiency and weakness, rejects the epithet of the Wisest of the Wise. In this conduct, perhaps, they
are represented as much wiser than they really were; for here it appears that they
knew themselves, which is one of the most difficult
attainments. The seven wise men of Greece, each rejecting for himself the high
compliment of the Wisest of the Wise, agree to give
their several definitions of wisdom; and to award the tripod to him who should unite
its characters in the highest degree. One defines it to consist in an unalterable tranquillity of mind, under all the diversities
of fortune; another, in a profound self knowledge,
applied in rendering ourselves good and happy; a third, in the moderation of our desires; the fourth, in the power of regulating the present, and preparing for the
future, by the experience of the past; another, in a
strength of mind which is capable of resisting the passions; and the sixth,
in the absolute empire of reason over the will.—
Scarcely are these definitions of wisdom given, when Bias concludes by deciding that these attributes can never unite in any
individual mortal, and that they can belong only to a God. Hence, it is decreed that
the Golden Tripod should be carried to the temple at Delphos, and there consecrated
to Apollo.

Having but lately received these volumes, and having now approached to the close of
our present Appendix, we cannot enter into an analysis of the other tales which they
contain: but we shall subjoin the titles of them, in order to give our readers some
idea of their nature and subjects. III. The Lesson of
Misfortune. IV. The School of Friendship: in
which we have a tutor resembling Sir
Charles Grandison, and a pupil not unlike Emily Jervis, innocently in love with him.
V. The Generous Breton. VI. The Error of a good Father. This tale was related by Cideville to Voltaire when he was ill:—the descriptions in it are beautifully pathetic. VII. The Casket. VIII. The
Self-Rivals. IX. The Villages Breakfasts. X.
The Watermen of Besons. XI. It must be so. XII. The Hermits of Murica. XIII. Palemon, an
Arcadian Pastoral, from two pictures by Poussin. XIV. Fire-side-recollection. XV. The Mountain of the two Lovers.

Some of these tales were printed in the Mercure³ in the years
1789, 90, 91, and 92. They abound with genuine satire and wit, with pathetic
sentiment and sound sense.

Prefixed to the 1st vol. is a portrait of the author; under which is a memorandum
that Jean-Francois Marmontel was born on the 11th of July 1723, and died at Abbeville, Dec 29, 1799.