conceptions. His fictions are sometimes historical, sometimes of
the present day, and sometimes, so far as can be discovered, have
little or no reference either to time or space. In any case, he
generally contents himself with a very slight embroidery of
outward manners,--the faintest possible counterfeit of real
life,--and endeavors to create an interest by some less obvious
peculiarity of the subject. Occasionally a breath of Nature, a
raindrop of pathos and tenderness, or a gleam of humor, will find
its way into the midst of his fantastic imagery, and make us feel
as if, after all, we were yet within the limits of our native
earth. We will only add to this very cursory notice that M. de
l'Aubepine's productions, if the reader chance to take them in
precisely the proper point of view, may amuse a leisure hour as
well as those of a brighter man; if otherwise, they can hardly
fail to look excessively like nonsense.

Our author is voluminous; he continues to write and publish with
as much praiseworthy and indefatigable prolixity as if his
efforts were crowned with the brilliant success that so justly
attends those of Eugene Sue. His first appearance was by a
collection of stories in a long series of volumes entitled
"Contes deux fois racontees." The titles of some of his more
recent works (we quote from memory) are as follows: "Le Voyage
Celeste a Chemin de Fer," 3 tom., 1838; "Le nouveau Pere Adam et
la nouvelle Mere Eve," 2 tom., 1839; "Roderic; ou le Serpent a
l'estomac," 2 tom., 1840; "Le Culte du Feu," a folio volume of
ponderous research into the religion and ritual of the old
Persian Ghebers, published in 1841; "La Soiree du Chateau en
Espagne," 1 tom., 8vo, 1842; and "L'Artiste du Beau; ou le
Papillon Mecanique," 5 tom., 4to, 1843. Our somewhat wearisome