But Prescott was not more ardent in the prosecution of his own
inquiries than in furthering those of others; and he displayed in this,
as in many like instances, the same noble spirit which, since his death,
has been so gracefully acknowledged by Mr. Motley.
Of the manner in which the work is executed it would be, perhaps,
premature to speak. We have no hesitation, however, in assigning to Mr.
Kirk's most fascinating narrative a place with the great achievements of
genius in the department he has chosen to fill. His advent among the
historians will be welcomed the world over. A glance at the copy placed
in our hands has enabled us to indicate its nature. The two volumes
about to appear bring the story down to the crisis of Charles's fate,
the moment when he became involved in a war with the Swiss. A third
volume, now in course of preparation, will complete the eventful tale.
We think it not unlikely that to the American reader the first half of
the history will seem, at the present time, to possess a peculiar
interest. For this part of the work contains the last great struggle
between the French crown and the feudal princes,--a struggle involving
the question whether France was to form one nation or to be divided into
a number of petty states.
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