instead of a
government of laws, then the partisans of Cromwell are justified in
their eulogies. It appears to us that the only ground on which the
Protector's tyranny is more endurable than the king's, consists in the
fact that from its nature it could not be permanent, and could not
establish itself into the dignity of a precedent. It was a power
depending neither on the assent of the people, nor on laws and
institutions, but simply on the character of one man. As far as it
went, it did no good in any way to the cause of freedom, for to
Cromwell's government, and to the fanaticism which preceded it, we owe
the reaction of Charles the Second's reign, when licentiousness in
manners, and servility in politics succeeded in making virtue and
freedom synonymous with hypocrisy and cant.

In regard to Cromwell's massacres in Ireland, which even Mr. Headley
denounces as uncivilized, a great deal of nonsense has been written by
Carlyle. The fact is that Cromwell, in these matters, acted as Cortez
did in Mexico, and Pizarro in Peru, and deserves no more charity. If
he performed them from policy, as Carlyle intimates, he must be
considered a disciple of Machiavelli and the Devil; if he performed
them from religious bigotry, he may rank with St. Dominic and Charles
the Ninth. We are sick of hearing brutality and wickedness, either in
Puritan or Catholic, extenuated on the ground of bigotry. This bigotry
which prompts inhuman deeds, is not an excuse for sin, but the
greatest of spiritual sins. It indicates a condition of mind in which
the individual deifies his malignant passions.

We are sorry that Mr. Headley has written his biography with such a
marked leaning to Cromwell. We believe that a large majority of
readers will obtain their notions of the Protector from his pages, and
that they will be no better republicans thereby. The very brilliancy
and ability of his work will only make it more influential upon the
popular mind.

_A Supplement to the Plays of William Shakspeare.
Comprising Seven Dramas which have been ascribed to his
Pen but are not included with his Writings in Modern
Editions. Edited, with Notes, and an Introduction to
each Play, by William Gilmore Simms. New York: Geo. F.
Cooledge & Brother. 1 vol. 8vo._

The public are under obligations to Mr. Simms, not only for reprinting
a series of dramas which are objects of curiosity from their
connection with the name of Shakspeare,