“Hoc Ithacus velit, et magno mercentur Atridae.”—­Virgil.

For ourselves, we confess that all our old Grecian feelings would be alive on approaching the fountain of Melainudros, where, as the tradition runs, or as the priests relate, Homer was restored to sight.

We now come to the “Grecian Patterson,” or “Cary,” which Mr. Gell has begun to publish; and really he has carried the epic rule of concealing the person of the author to as great a length as either of the above-mentioned heroes of itinerary writ.  We hear nothing of his “hair-breadth ’scapes” by sea or land; and we do not even know, for the greater part of his journey through Argolis, whether he relates what he has seen or what he has heard.  Prom other parts of the book, we find the former to be the case:  but, though there have been tourists and “strangers” in other countries, who have kindly permitted their readers to learn rather too much of their sweet selves, yet it is possible to carry delicacy, or cautious silence, or whatever it may be called, to the contrary extreme.  We think that Mr. Gell has fallen into this error, so opposite to that of his numerous brethren.  It is offensive, indeed, to be told what a man has eaten for dinner, or how pathetic he was on certain occasions; but we like to know that there is a being yet living who describes the scenes to which he introduces us; and that it is not a mere translation from Strabo or Pausanias which we are reading, or a commentary on those authors.  This reflection leads us to the concluding remark in Mr. Gell’s preface (by much the most interesting part of his book) to his Itinerary of Greece, in which he thus expresses himself:—­

“The confusion of the modern with the ancient names of places in this volume is absolutely unavoidable; they are, however, mentioned in such a manner, that the reader will soon be accustomed to the indiscriminate use of them.  The necessity of applying the ancient appellations to the different routes, will be evident from the total ignorance of the public on the subject of the modern names, which, having never appeared in print, are only known to the few individuals who have visited the country.

“What could appear less intelligible to the reader, or less useful to the traveller, than a route from Chione and Zaracca to Kutchukmadi, from thence to Krabata to Schoenochorio, and by the mills of Peali, while every one is in some degree acquainted with the names of Stymphalus, Nemea, Mycenae, Lyrceia, Lerna, and Tegea?”

Although this may be very true inasmuch as it relates to the reader, yet to the traveller we must observe, in opposition to Mr. Gell, that nothing can be less useful than the designation of his route according to the ancient names.  We might as well, and with as much chance of arriving at the place of our destination, talk to a Hounslow post-boy about making haste to Augusta, as apply to our Turkish guide in modern