having accomplished the object for which he left his native land, he came to England, and, after an interval of repose, determined upon making a tour of the country, the better to acquaint himself with the condition of its inhabitants.' After making this tour, and visiting various continental countries, he returned to England, where he devoted himself to a political career; and since 1812, he has for the most part had a seat in the House of Commons. His parliamentary history since 1818 has been that of a reformer of abuses and enemy of monopoly, and he is respected even by those who differ from him in opinion. Our next specimen is-- 'Thackeray, William Makepeace, author, was born in India, in 1811. He is of good family, and was originally intended for the bar, of which he is now a member. He kept seven or eight terms at Cambridge, but left the university without taking a degree, for the purpose of becoming an artist. After about three years' desultory practice, he devoted himself to literature, abandoning the design of making a position as a painter, and only employed his pictorial talents in illustration of his own writings. For a short time, he conducted a literary and artistic review, similar in plan to the _Athenaeum_; but the new journal, although characterised by great ability, perished in competition with established rivals. He also, with the assistance of Dr Maginn, started a newspaper; but this was unsuccessful. His first distinction was won as a writer in _Fraser's Magazine_, _Punch_, and other periodicals of character. In the latter amusing periodical appeared his _Jeames's Diary_, a clever satire on the follies of the railway mania, exposing the hollow foundation upon which railway fortunes and reputations were made. His _Snob Papers_, published in the same manner, have since been collected and reprinted with great success. His satire is as keen as that of Fielding. His _Paris Sketch-Book_ appeared in 1840. His _Irish Sketch-Book_, with numerous engravings drawn by the author, was published in 1845. In the next year, appeared his _Notes of a Journey from Cornhill to Grand Cairo_; and in 1847, the first numbers of _Vanity Fair_ appeared, in the proper name of their author. This, Thackeray's first fully-developed novel, has been followed by _Arthur Pendennis_, completed in 1851. His Christmas-book, entitled _The Kickleburies on the Rhine_, was attacked by a writer in the _Times_; whereupon Mr Thackeray replied, in a very unmistakable way, in a preface to the second edition of the work. The critic fared very badly in the contest.' The charge made against Mr Thackeray is, that he abuses the characters of the literary class with a view apparently of catering to public prejudice. We believe that any such imputation is entirely unfounded; and that Mr Thackeray's observations on the infirmities of authors are due to an honest exposition of his subject. Mr Thackeray has lately imparted much delight