4 "It might be worth while even to raise the question whether the weakness of mediæval science and philosophy was not connected rather with excess of practice than with excess of theory. What we justly stigmatize as the subordination of philosophy to theology is, in other words, a subordination of science to a formulated conception of human welfare, with a strictly mundane if also with a transcendental side. The question is not unimportant, for it indicates that the essence of scholasticism is present, not wherever there is metaphysic, but wherever the spirit of truth is subordinated to any preconceived practical intent, whether mundane or extra mundane." Mr. Bosanquet's critical perception appears, to mention another detail, in his quoting with approval the exquisite passage in "The Return of the Native" describing the change in the modern sense for landscape beauty. It is time for a generation freely to acknowledge its debt, which owes to Mr. Hardy such an enlargement of the æsthetic horizon, so new an insight into those mysterious and heart-thrilling aspects of nature, which under his touch are composed into a choric setting for the intense pathos of human life. This "History of Esthetic" is designed for the benefit not only of "professed students of philosophy," but also of the general reader. If that unfortunate being, who is nowadays expected to feel a mild but intelligent interest in every subject of human inquiry, from Actinism to Zoötomy, inclusive, is not deterred by a somewhat rigid technicality of diction, he will be amply rewarded for the slight strain upon his attention. Most of us find it pleasant to sink back, in our travels, on the cushions of a "palace car," even while an obtrusive luxuriousness of upholstery reminds us that we live in an age of comfort-worshipping materialism; yet there are some, certainly, who can forget even the muscular tax of miles in that interesting English vehicle appropriately known as a brake, when the road lies through Westmoreland or Merionethshire,—a figure which is decidedly unjust to Mr. Bosanquet; for to journey with him and breathe the exhilaration of his penetrative and original thought, a far less arduous exertion is necessary. MARIAN MEAD. He loves the birds and the flowers with a keenness of feeling which only his intellectual affinities can understand; but he loves whatever is fine in the realm of literature as well. If his reading has not been wide it has been close, and the masterpieces that have come down to us through the centuries have taught him to think and to speak with subtle penetration and delicacy. But he is not merely a reflector of other men's good things. He has good things of his own to bring forth, and always in a quiet, modest way, that makes one doubly grateful for them. Naturally, with this there is a strong personal quality given out, and the reader is impressed with the feeling that it would be an even greater privilege to know the man than it is to know the writer. Mr. Torrey's latest book is entitled "The Foot-path Way" (Houghton), the title being suggestive of the road which he, in common with the fraternity of naturalists, finds it most congenial and profitable to saunter along in making his favorite out-door observations. The volume comprises a bundle of papers, one short of a dozen, of very even texture and attractiveness. Two relating to our humming-bird, under the titles of "A Widow and Twins" and "The Male Ruby-Throat," contain original investigations regarding this fascinating little sprite, which are of especial interest to the Roosts," and, in fact, of each essay in the volume. ornithologist. The same may be said of "Robin A single extract from his pages will serve to show the style and character of Mr. Torrey's work. A female humming-bird had been circling around its tiny baby with a peculiar flight, and our author observes: "It was a beautiful act,- beautiful beyond the power of any words of mine to set forth; an expression of maternal ectasy, I could not doubt, answering to the rapturous caresses and endearments in which mothers of human infants are so frequently seen indulging. Three days afterward, to my delight, I saw it repeated in every particular, as if to confirm my opinion of its significance. The sight repaid all my watchings thrice over, and even now I feel my heart growing warm at the recollection of it. Strange thoughtlessness, is it not, which allows mothers capable of such passionate devotion, tiny, defenseless things, to be slaughtered by the million for the enhancement of woman's charms!" Rambles and observations of a naturalist. DR. CHARLES C. ABBOTT's new volume of natural-history sketches, entitled "Recent Rambles," is a work on which its publishers (Lippincott) have expended no little pains. There is quite a holiday air about the book, with its heavy pressed paper, clear letterpress, and neat cover. But the illustrations are the praiseworthy feature of the work. Photographs of actual scenes, they reproduce with admirable distinctness passages from forest, meadow, and water, which excite a lively enthusiasm by their beauty. It would seem that the pictorial art could not be carried further to serve all requirements in its association with literature. The story of the book is epitomized in its title. It is a plain matter-of-fact account of the author's more notable pedestrian excursions during the last two years. He walks abroad with open eye, and so full knowledge of the habits of different wild animals, and of the varying aspects of nature, that he is able to catch and interpret all their movements and changes with quick intelligence. Dr. Abbott does not give the results of prolonged study of any particular species in his volume, but of the swift comprehensive glances at chance objects by the way, which a skilled observer will make during a short ramble undertaken without special aim. "A Vagrant Chronicle of the Earth and Sky." ANOTHER" vagrant chronicle of the earth and sky" comes from the pen of Martha McCulloch Williams, and with the well-chosen title" Field-Farings" (Harper). The perusal of a few paragraphs suffices to prove that the author has the insight and the talent for patient and vigilant watchfulness which are the chief gifts in the equipment of the naturalist. third essential faculty for whoever would be a successful recorder of his observations,- an easy, unaffected diction,- has not yet been acquired by her. There is too much labor in the construction of her But a sentences, too frequent a use of coined words, such as awailing and aglisten, which, permissible in verse, render prose unbearably stilted. Salient phases of far-western life and manners. "THE West from a Car-Window" (Harper) is the collective title of a series of eight papers on some salient phases of far-western life and manners, by Richard Harding Davis, that readers of "Harper's Magazine" will recall with pleasure. The title of the book is an unfortunate one, in that it does scant justice to the really graphic and pithy quality of its contents. Mr. Davis is an alert and eager observer, with an unusually keen eye for local and individual peculiarities; and his stay in western mining camps, army posts, ranches, reservations, etc., was prolonged enough to furnish him with material for a set of outline sketches of frontier types almost as vivid as Bret Harte's fanciful efforts in the same field, and much more accurate. The author's account of the mining camp at Creede is very amusing. Although he did not see the Poker Flat outcasts, the Chesterfieldian Mr. Oakhurst, Yuba Bill, Colonel Starbottle ("Starbuckle" he calls him), and the rest, he did see some sufficiently picturesque blackguards, and hits them off neatly. At the time of Mr. Davis's arrival in Creede there was no lack of social excitement; indeed, the season must have been at its height, as we learn that "there was a prize-fight at Billy Woods's, a pie-eating match at Kernan's, a Mexican circus in the bottom near Wagon Wheel Gap, a religious service at Watrous and Bannigan's gambling house, and the first wedding in the history of the town." The last event was a brilliant one, even for Creede: The bride was the sister of Billy Woods's barkeeper, and Stony' . Sargeant, a faro-dealer at 'Soapy 'Smith's, was the groom. A Justice of the Peace performed the ceremony, and Edward De Vinne, the Tramp Poet, offered a few appropriate and well-chosen remarks. after which Woods and Smith, who run rival gambling-houses, out-did each other in the extravagant practice of opening wine'." "All of these," adds Mr. Davis with the pardonable pride of a participant. were prominent citizens." The volume is illustrated with prints from photographs, and some spirited drawings by Frederick Remington. 66 A blockade runner's story of his adventures. A VOLUME of the "Adventure Series" (Macmillan) that will especially interest American readers is "The Adventures of a Blockade Runner," by William Watson, author of "Life in the Confederate Army." Mr. Watson was forced to engage in the dangerous traffic that forms the burden of his story, by stress of conditions brought about by the war; and he saw enough of the service, chiefly in small-craft traffic in the Gulf towards the close of hostilities. to give a fairly satisfactory first-hand view of this not unimportant phase of the "late unpleasantness." On one occasion his schooner, the "Rob Roy," was overhauled by the "Alabama." The boarding officer "asked a good deal about New Orleans and the feeling there under Banks, and remarked that he thought it was a great pity they had recalled Butler from New Orleans, as his actions there were doing a great deal of good to the Confederate cause. He then said he supposed that, being such a short time out, we would not be short of provisions? He said his reasons for asking this were, that capturing so many American vessels as they did, which were often loaded with provisions, and as they had no port to take them into, they had to destroy them, taking out of them first whatever they could use or stow away to advantage, so that they were generally overstocked with provisions, and often helped neutral vessels when in need. Although for this they seemed to get very little credit, and he spoke somewhat reproachfully about the bad name which they considered had been unjustly attached to them." The story is told in a modest, straightforward way that speaks for its veracity. WITH the view of promoting and A sensible and useful edition aiding the study of Goethe's masterof Goethe's Faust. work as a whole, Professor Calvin Thomas of Michigan University has undertaken a two-volume edition of "Faust" (Heath's "Modern Languages"). The first volume is now ready, and the editor promises the second at no very distant date. We take pleasure in commending the scholarly and temperate way in which the editing of Part I. has been done. Professor Thomas is not an expositor of the futile class styled by Friedrich Vischer allegorische Erklärungsphilister"; and the manful way in which he has resisted, in Part I.. the peculiar temptations that beset » Faust" editors. 66 gives promise of an equally sane and helpful edition of the more perilous Part II. The editor's s prefatory remarks as to Part II.—which he sensibly declines to regard as a mass of riddles, allegories, and deep abstractions requiring some sort of occult wisdom for their interpretation' - may be quoted as indicating his methods: "The simple truth is, that no key and no special order of intelligence are needed. The Second Part of Faust,' to be sure, is not literature for children, or for the weak-minded, or for the very indolent; but neither is the First Part. I only wish to urge that anyone who reads and enjoys the First Part (by which I mean the whole First Part, and not simply the love-story) should be able to read and enjoy the Second Part also. Let him read the Second Part of Faust' as he reads other poetry; with a free play of intelligence to respond to its infinite suggestiveness, but without ever imagining that the text is a Chinese puzzle." The introduction and notes are helpful and scholarly, and the volume presents mechanically a more inviting appearance than one looks for in a text-book. Famous Women of the French Court. . THE Messrs. Scribners have added to their deservedly successful translations of M. Saint-Amand's "Famous Women of the French Court" series, "The Duchess of Berry and The Court of Louis XVIII.,"—the first of a set of three volumes treating of the Princess Marie Caroline of Naples, who became by her marriage with the Duke of Berry (murdered by Louvel) the central female figure of the French court during the reign of Louis XVIII. and Charles X. The volume presents a series of brilliant pictures of a period of French court history that should be better known than it is. M. SaintAmand has treated his material in his usual way and with his usual skill, citing freely contemporary comment and gossip, and condensing to the last degree compatible with thorough readableness. To say that the book is as entertaining as its predecessors is commendation enough. their interest is as diversified as it is great. Few books of popular science have been so useful in our day as these collections of essays. They have filled with enthusiasm many a youthful mind, and have contributed not a little to clarify minds of maturer development. Such a paper as the famous Belfast address of 1874, for example, is as readable to-day as it was when delivered, and has lost little of its force with the lapse of time. A GROUP of pleasant little essays upon art, by Mr. Theodore Child (Harper), have been collected into a miniature volume entitled "The Desire of Beauty." In these papers the author discusses such subjects as art criticism, the errors of the realist, and the education of the eye. The discussion is cultivated and urbane, but the narrow limits imposed hardly admit of its being profound. It might be described as after-dinner chat of the more serious sort. "THE Love of the World," by Miss Mary Emily Case (Century Co.), is a book of religious meditations, “a jotting down," as the author says, "of scattered thoughts, grouped under more or less appropriate headings." The term "religious" is used in a broad sense; indeed, the author expressly states it as her conviction that "there is nothing which is not, or may not be, religious, sin only excepted." The book is a very small one, and is tastefully printed. IN "A Little Swiss Sojourn," Mr. W. D. Howells describes in his charming way the experiences of a few weeks in the Canton Vaud, at Montreux, Vevay, and Villeneuve. Mr. Howells is at his best in sketches of travel, and this little volume of the "Black and White " series (Harpers) should find its way to many a vestpocket. We should add that it is simply but prettily illustrated. MR. GEORGE F. PARKER'S "Life of Grover Cleveland" (Cassell) is too good a book to be described as campaign literature, although it appears at a time when it is sure to be taken as such. A peculiarly interesting chapter of the book is the estimate of the ex-President furnished by Mr. Richard Watson Gilder for publication in this connection. Both this work and Mr. Parker's recent edition of the writings of Mr. Cleveland are books of more than temporary value. THE latest paper-covered fiction includes the following books: "Passing the Love of Women," by Mrs. J. H. Needell (Appleton); "In Old St. Stephens," by Miss Jeanie Drake (Appleton); "Tween Snow and Fire," a tale of the Kaffir war, by Mr. Bertram Mitford (Cassell); "Strange Tales of a Nihilist," by Mr. William Le Queux (Cassell); "The Golden Bottle," by Mr. Ignatius Donnelly (D. D. Merrill Co.); "The Gilded Fly," a political satire, by Mr. Harold Payne (Price-McGill Co.); "The Adopted Daughter," by Mr. Edgar Fawcett (Neely); and "Love's Temptation," by Miss Emilie Edwards (N. C. Smith Co.). SOME recently published text-books for school use are entitled to a word of mention. "The Beginner's American History" by Mr. D. H. Montgomery (Ginn) is intended as an introduction to "The Leading Facts of American History" by the same author. It is simple and anecdotal in style. Dr. Wm. J. Milne has added a "Standard Arithmetic" (American Book Co.) to his series of mathematical text-books. "A Course in Zoölogy" (Lippincott) is a translation and adaptation, by Dr. W. H. Greene, of a French book, the authors of the original being MM. C. de Montmahon and H. Beauregard. The work is used as the basis of instruction in this subject by the secondary schools of France. 66 "A PLEA for the Gospel" (Crowell) is the title given to a collection of four sermons by the Rev. George D. Herron, of Burlington, Iowa. The Central Teaching of Jesus Christ" (Macmillan), by Thomas Delaney Bernard, Canon and Chancellor of Wells, is a study and exposition of St. John XIII. to XVII. inclusive. The work is based upon a series of lectures, which, however, it by no means reproduces. "Our Birthdays," by the Rev. A. C. Thompson (Crowell), is a collection of birthday greetings addressed to friends who have passed the scriptural limit of age. There is a greeting for every year from seventy-one to one hundred-altogether, thirty essays in miniature. Two or three volumes of short stories call for a word of mention. Mrs. Rebecca Harding Davis is the author of "Silhouettes of American Life" (Scribner), a volume of exquisite sketches that are hardly more than etchings, but varied in scene and rich in human interest. The Tales of a Garrison Town" (D. D. Merrill Co.) are a dozen or more in number, the joint work of Messrs. Arthur Wentworth Eaton and Craven Langstroth Betts. The town to which they take us is Halifax, and the garrison an English one. Miss Mary J. Safford's" Lorelei and Other Stories" (Price-McGill Co.) are reprinted from various periodicals. THE following novels have recently appeared: "That Wild Wheel" (meaning the wheel of Fortune), by Mrs. Frances Eleanor Trollope (Harpers); 66 Maid Marian and Robin Hood," a reasonably fresh treatment of a hackneyed theme, by Mr. J. E. Muddock (Lippincott); "Englishman's Haven," which tells of Louisbourg and its fall, by Mr. W. J. Gordon (Appleton); "Other Things Being Equal,” a California story, by Miss Emma Wolf (McClurg); and "The Snare of the Fowler," by the popular Mrs. Alexander (Cassell). LITERARY NOTES AND NEWS. "St. Nicholas" for November has a three-page poem by the late Mr. Whittier, dated December 15, 1891. It is entitled "An Outdoor Reception." "Alfred Lord Tennyson - -a Study of His Life and Work," by Mr. Arthur Waugh, will be published at once in England. Mrs. Ritchie's new book, "Records of Tennyson, Ruskin and Browning," is to be published by Messrs. Macmillan & Co. Longmans, Green & Co., will soon publish Mr. Lang's "Green Fairy Book," uniform with the " Blue” and Red" volumes already familiar. 66 Mr. Rossiter Johnson calls attention to the fact that Lord Tennyson's work, often called voluminous, averages only about two lines a day for the whole period of its production. "Harper's Magazine" for November contains the last of Mr. Lowell's lectures on the Elizabethan dramatists, the subject being "Massinger and Ford." We may soon expect these lectures in a volume. Thomas Whittaker will publish at once "Robin Redbreast, a Story for Girls," by Mrs. Molesworth, and "A Candle in the Sea," a story of the life-saving service, by Mr. Edward A. Rand. The Scribners will issue shortly a volume containing three plays by Mr. Robert Louis Stevenson and Mr. W. E. Henley. The plays are "Deacon Brodie," "Beau Austin," and "Admiral Guinea." Professor Krall, of Vienna, has discovered an ancient Etruscan book among the wrappings of an Egyptian mummy in the museum of Agram. It is likely to prove the key to the decipherment of the Etruscan language. D. Appleton & Co. will publish immediately a twovolume edition of the life of Lincoln by Herudon and Weik, with an introduction by Mr. Horace White; also, "Warriors of the Crescent," a story by Mr. W. H. Davenport Adams. S. C. Griggs & Co. have now in press a translation, by Mrs. Mary Bushnell Coleman, of M. Lavisse's "Frederick the Great." The work has had much success in France and Germany, and is said to be entirely worthy of the author's great reputation. A series of articles on the portraits of Tennyson, by Mr. Theodore Watts, will soon appear in "The Magazine of Art." The selection of the illustrations has been approved by Lord Tennyson's family, and includes all the authentic likenesses. Continental critics seem to prefer "Enoch Arden" to Tennyson's other works. There are of this poem seven French, six German, two Dutch, and two Italian translations, besides translations into Spanish, Hungarian, Bohemian, and Norwegian. The "Easy Chair" department of "Harper's Magazine" is to be discontinued, Mr. Curtis's last paper under this head being published in the November number. The department was started in 1851, with Mr. Donald G. Mitchell as its writer. Mr. Curtis took a part of the Chair in 1853, and became its sole occupant in 1859. Frederick Keppel & Co., of Chicago, New York, and Paris, issue a handsomely illustrated "Catalogue of Etchings and Engravings," mostly published by them. It includes over five hundred numbers, and will be mailed to any address upon receipt of the nominal sum of ten cents. Among the numbers we notice Rajon's portrait of Tennyson, in three forms. Professor Scartazzini's "Handbook to Dante" has been translated by Mr. A. J. Butler and will shortly be published by Messrs. Macmillan & Co., who also aunounce Mr. C. L. Shadwell's text and translation of "The Purgatory," with introductory essay by Mr. Walter Pater. We already have an American translation of Scartazzini, made by Mr. Thomas Davidson several years ago. The announcements of Longmans, Green & Co. include: "Deer-Stalking in the Highlands of Scotland,” by Lieut.-General H. H. Crealock, in a sumptuous edition limited to 250 copies; “Fifty Years in the Making of Australian History," by Sir Henry Parkes; "The Ruined Cities of Mashonaland," by Mr. Theodore Bent; "The Toilers of the Field," by the late Richard Jefferies; and "King Poppy," a poem by Owen Meredith. Thomas Woolner, R.A., died in London October 7, the day after Lord Tennyson's death. He was born in 1825. His work as a sculptor has been of the ablest of his generation. His bust of Tennyson, in the library of Trinity College, Cambridge, is one of his best-known works. As a poet, he published "My Beautiful Lady" (1863), lyrics collected from "The Germ," and three long blank verse poems: "Pygmalion" (1881), “Silenus" (1884), and "Tiresias" (1886). George Howland, Principal of the Chicago High School from 1857 to 1880, and Superintendent of the entire public school system of the city from 1880 to 1891, died at his home in Chicago, October 21, 1892, at the age of sixty-eight. Besides one or two slender volumes of verse, and some poetical translations from Homer and Horace, Mr. Howland published a complete translation, in English hexameters, of the "Eneid," and a volume entitled "Practical Hints to Teachers in the Public Schools," in the "International Education" series. "Science" for October 7 announces an enlargement to double the present size, provided the necessary support be forthcoming. In case the plan is carried out, one half of each number will be prepared and printed in London, thus assuring for the journal an international character. The publisher states that nearly $100,000 was expended upon "Science" during its early years, being contributed by two gentlemen whose names he is not at liberty to print. The review has deteriorated considerably of late, and the announcement of its probable improvement is welcome. Mr. R. S. Blackmore, replying to a query concerning the metrical character of many passages in his novels, has recently made the following statement: "It does seem, when one comes to measure, that I have (without the least intention) fallen into some sort of rhythm, which argues perhaps weakness or too mechanical pulsation -as a man counts his steps to encourage weary feet. However, it does not matter much, for I am not of such mark as to lead the young astray." It is difficult, in spite of this disclaimer, quite to believe in the absence of intention, when the effect is so very evident as it is in " Lorna Doone." TOPICS IN LEADING PERIODICALS. America Discovered by Phoenicians. T. C. Johnson. Calif'n. Burmese Art. Illus. Magazine of Art. Cholera and Commerce. Erastus Wiman. North American. Municipal Institutions in America. Jos. Chamberlain. Forum. Santa Lucia Mountains. Illus. Mary L. White. Overland. Trees, Economical. F. Le R. Sargent. Popular Science. Women's Colleges, Normal Training in. Eductional Review. LIST OF NEW BOOKS. [The following list, embracing 70 titles, includes all books received by THE DIAL since last issue.] ESSAYS AND LITERATURE. The Nature and Elements of Poetry. By Edmund Clarence Stedman. With photogravure frontispiece, 8vo, pp. 338, gilt top, uncut edges. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. $1.50. Dante and Beatrice : An Essay in Interpretation. By Lewis F. Mott, M.S. 18mo, pp. 48. W. R. Jenkins. Paper, 25 cts. Americanisms and Briticisms, with Other Essays on Other Isms. By Brander Matthews. With portrait, 24mo, pp. 190. $1.00. HISTORY. The Cradle of the Columbos. By the Rev. Hugh Flattery, author of "The Pope of the New Crusade." 16mo, pp. 46. U.S. Book Co. Paper, 50 cts. Old South Leaflets, Nos. 29 to 37. Comprising nine papers, as follows: The Discovery of America, Strabo's Introduction to Geography, The Voyages to Vinland, Marco Polo on Japan and Java, Columbus's Letter to Gabriel Sanchez, Amerigo Vespucci's Pirst Voyage, Cortez on the City of Mexico, Death of De Soto, Voyages of the Cabots. D. C. Heath & Co. Each, 5 cts. POETRY. Poems. By Julia C. R. Dorr. Complete edition, with portrait, Svo, pp. 471, gilt top. Charles Scribner's Sons. $2.50. Poems of Gun and Rod. By Ernest McGaffey. Illus. by H. E. Butler. Svo, pp. 140. Charles Scribner's Sons. $1.75. |