WE had barely time to announce in our last number, the sad intelligence of the death of Mr. Downing, Wc had hoped to present this month, an elaborate memoir, prepared by an intimate friend of Mr. D.,but unavoidable circumstances have prevented its preparation at so early a day. It will be given in a future number, accompanied by a portrait of Mr.Downing, We cannot, however, suffer the occasion to pass without paying some feeble tribute to the memory of one who was endeared to every lover of bis country - to every admirer of the beautiful, and expressing our ardent appreciation of his worth.

His sudden and untimely death has fallen with a crushing weight on the hearts of his friends, and upon the public generally, as a common calamity. The place he occupied is now a blank - the commanding position to which be had carved his way, will wait long for a claimant. Though comparatively a young man, he bad earned a reputation for ability, and enjoyed a popularity, which few have been fortunate enough to win. Without the advantage of a liberal education, - forced from youth to rely upon his own unaided exertions, - at the early age of thirty-seven years be had elevated himself to an enviable rank among the first minds of the age- At whatever point of view we regard him, we arc compelled to admire the symmetry of his character, the rigor of his mind, the versatility of his talents, and that healthful flow of enthusiastic feeling which mark* bis writings. There are those who can work out beautiful thoughts in marble, who can clothe them in the touching language of poetry, or bid them flow in the rounded periods and convincing strains of oratory, but few minds seem possessed of the power to add by art to the beauty of nature, and make the des-ert blossom like the rose.

Mr. Downing first claims our attention as a practical Horticulturist and Nur-serymen. Unlike the majority of working-men, he did not busy himself exclusively in the manipulations and detail of his art, though in these eminently successful, but labored to discover the first principles of his profession, and to bring it np to its proper rank in the science and the fine arts. When we consider the discouraging circumstances under which he wrought, both in the means of prosecuting his work, and the apathy of public sentiment, we wonder that he should have produced a treatise so perfect) in- its kind, so elaborate and finished as his Landscape Gabdbhing. He handles with apparent ease, the subtil topics of abstract beauty, the moral and social influence of its development in nature, and what is more remarkable, he is equally at home in carrying his theory into practice. This work first appeared in 1841, and though an elegant and costly book, has now passed through four editions. It was the first publication on the subject by an American author, and so completely unknown was the art, that the manuscript remained some time in the hands of the author without a publisher.

It was, however, a complete triumph, and may be said to have almost created a taste for ornamental gardening - it certainly refined and elevated it.

The discussion of a disposition and adornment of the grounds pertaining to a residence, naturally led to the subject of Architecture, With all the branches of this art, Mr. Downing was familiar, and his Cottage Residences and Country Houses, display with great effect his admirable taste. He discusses the meaning and expression of Architecture, in a profound and comprehensive manner; and following, what seems to have been a motto with him - "Never to lose sight of good sense," - he shows the absurdity of adopting ancient architecture as the highest form of the art, and argues the necessity of a peculiar national style of building. That he founded a distinct school, we do not assert; but from many sources, and particularly from his own varied culture, sound judgment, and correct taste, he drew just what seemed best adapted to the wants and capacity of the country.

The Fruits and Fruit-Trees of America, which was issued in 1846, presents to great advantage, the penological research and experience of Mr. Downing. This work is admirably executed, and has met with universal favor. These works of Mr. Downing have given this country a rank among other nations in Horticulture and Rural Taste, and exerted a wide influence upon the improvement of our own gardens and houses. Many a residence, beautified by his skill, many a smiling lawn, and gracefully disposed group of foliage, remain as fit monuments to his memory, and many a home, made happier by his teachings, will be saddened by his death.

In the editorship of the Horticulturist, he has shown, perhaps, better than in his other writings, the peculiar fitness of his talents to educate the popular taste for the beautiful in nature and art. The success which has attended this periodical, and the increased attention which is being paid to Landscape Gardening, Horticulture and Rural Decoration, are proof of the beneficial influence of his labors. Whether we read his Letters from England, which exhibit a refined literary taste, and a delicate appreciation of, and full acquaintance with, the pleasures of a scholarly and cultivated mind, or the plain sayings and wholesome counsel of an "Old Digger," we recognise the same sterling sense and discriminating judgment. Mr. Downing was not by eminence a theorist. It was not his aim to build castles too grand and lofty for human realization, or to show the power of his intellect by forming conceptions, which imagination only could give being to. The great question with him, was, bow much of the really beautiful can be made subservient to the public good? how far can elegance and utility be combined? how much of the spirit of the amateur can be infused into the mass of the rural population? He has answered these questions by his deeds.

Mr. Downing was an American, and all his thinking and acting tended toward the welfare and elevation of his country. Very much of his deserved popularity is owing to his ability to popularise whatever he wrote upon. He seized upon what was most needed, and upon that alone, and with striking point and directness, presented it in such form, that his conclusions were irresistible.