In February, 1815, "Guy Mannering" was published, the second in the
series of the Waverley Novels, and was received by the intelligent
reading classes with even more _éclat_ than "Waverley," to which it is
superior in many respects. It plunges at once _in medias res_, without
the long and labored introductory chapters of its predecessor. It is
interesting from first to last, and is an elaborate and well-told tale,
written _con amore_, when Scott was in the maturity of his powers. It is
full of incident and is delightful in humor. Its chief excellence is in
the loftiness of its sentiments,--being one of the healthiest and
wholesomest novels ever written, appealing to the heart as well as to
the intellect, to be read over and over again, like "The Vicar of
Wakefield," without weariness. It may be too aristocratic in its tone to
please everybody, but it portrays the sentiments of its age in reference
to squires and Scottish lairds, who were more distinguished for
uprightness and manly duties than for brains and culture.

The fascination with which Scott always depicts the virtues of
hospitality and trust in humanity makes a strong impression on the
imagination. His heroes and heroines are not remarkable for genius, but
shine in the higher glories of domestic affection and fidelity to
trusts. Two characters in particular are original creations,--"Dominie
Sampson" and "Meg Merrilies," whom no reader can forget,--the one,
ludicrous for his simplicity; and the other a gypsy woman, weird and
strange, more like a witch than a sibyl, but intensely human, and
capable of the strongest attachment for those she loved.

"The easy and transparent flow of the style of this novel; its beautiful
simplicity; the wild magnificence of its sketches of scenery; the rapid
and ever brightening interest of the narrative; the unaffected kindness