navigation of Africa by the Phoenicians six hundred years before Christ. It is entitled "The Voyage of Ithobal." Ithobal is a sea captain of Tyre, who takes service with Neku, King of Egypt, to explore the unknown waters beyond the Red Sea. After picturesque scenes at Tyre, where he buys in the slave market, with a priceless pearl, an African princess, made captive in the dark continent, and alone knowing its secrets, he builds three ships at Suez and sets forth.

All this is minutely described, together with full details of the voyage of 15,000 miles round Africa. Returning with two out of the three ships, after numerous and exciting adventures, which bring out almost every feature of African life and scenery, Ithobal relates the story of his enterprise in a discourse of seven days before the throne of Pharaoh, who loads with honors the successful captain, the princess (his wife), and his crews. It is the opinion of many that the poet has never done anything better than this prophetic and imaginative production, which is at once forceful and original, but most faithful to fact, reality, and geography.

is

The Voyage of Ithobal"' mainly composed in the same meter as the "Light of Asia " and the " Light of the World." 226 pp. 12mo.CHICAGO RECORD-HERALD.

ASIA AND EUROPE.

Mr. Meredith Townsend's book is for the most part a reprint of essays which have appeared in various periodicals and which "are directed to one end, a description of those inherent differences between Europe and Asia which forbid one continent permanently to conquer the other." The subject is interesting and important; it is treated under many aspects, some more directly relevant than others.

Of the former the chief papers are those which deal with the influence of Europe on Asia; the relative attractions of Mohammedanism and Christianity for Asiatics; the difference between English and Asiatic feeling; race-hatred, patriotism, and fanaticism in Asia; and the question which all thinking men who have served in India have put to themselves, Will England retain India? Mr. Townsend thinks she will not, and “that the empire which came in a day will disappear in a night; " that "it is a structure built on nothing, without foundations, without buttresses, held in its place by some force the origin of which is undiscoverable and the nature of which has never been explained." And he appears to believe the catastrophe will happen from internal disturbance rather than from external aggression. However this may be, the public interested in that country will do well to study the pages of this volume, for though they contain some things which may not be approved by persons whose experience, specially concerning the warlike races of the North and West, is wider and more intimate, yet there is much which cannot be commended too highly. Nothing is wiser than the insistence in many parts of the book on the vast and beneficial effect of good manners; natives are very critical judges of the bearing of Europeans with whom they have to deal, and are less tolerant of lapses of this sort than of many others which middle-class Englishmen are brought up to think of greater importance. The volume has some of the defects which are to be found in reprints of the kind; there are references to events which were naturally present to all minds when the articles were written, but now are as naturally forgotten so far as to make them irritating substitutes for dates, and occasionally sentences are somewhat obscure. Still, as we have already indicated, the book will repay reading. 388 pp. 8vo.-LONDON ATHENÆUM,

THE WOULDBEGOODS.

This interesting book for young people relates the adventures of a certain English family of boys and girls, the Bastable family, and some friends who come to visit them at a country house. It is a story of children, and interesting to children over ten years of age. But there are many fine touches of unconscious humor in the tale told by the eldest boy, Oswald, which make the story equally attractive for "grown-ups.' The name "Wouldbegoods'' is that of a society formed among themselves by the children to help them in keeping in the straight path of duty; the "Book of Golden Deeds is the record of the times when they succeed in keeping to that narrow path. Mrs. Bland knows her subject thoroughly, and gives in this book a good picture of English boys and girls. 313 PP.

12mo.

THE KING'S MESSENGER.

"The King's Messenger" is a stirring romance of the most romantic part of the New World, "old New Orleans," in the days when Louisiana was a trackless wilderness of impenetrable swampland and gloomy forest, and the whole life of the little colony centered in the defenseless collection of huts on the muddy banks of the Mississippi, which has since grown into a great city. With its growth, the old city has never lost the glamor of romance and poetry with which the peculiar circumstances of its settlement and civilization have invested it, and there is not a stone in its old streets or a piece of masonry about its ancient buildings that does not allure the eye of the artist and fill the brain of the romancer with poetic dreams.

Mrs. Antrobus, who is a native of the Creole city, and loves it as only its children can, has succeeded in re

producing for us in her story the existence of the little French settlement marvelously well, and her familiarity with the local atmosphere has enabled her to give the tale a setting as romantic and picturesque as the reality.

Madame Jeanne Poché, the King's Messenger, is a brave young woman, reared in the luxurious atmosphere of the French court, who leaves her husband to bear a secret packet to New France. Upon her arrival, she learns that the packet threatens the life of Laville, the man who has rescued her from death, and with whom she has fallen in love. life is sought by his enemies, and just after having discovered their love for each other, he is dispatched by the authorities into the wilderness in order that he may meet death at the hands of the Indians.

His

As soon as he is gone, Madame Poché discovers the plot and sends after him. The villain, Rossart, who also loves her, intercepts her message, but it reaches him in time to enable him to escape the Indians. Rossart, however, has kept his appointment for him, and surprises Jeanne at the trysting-place. Laville arrives soon after in time to save her, but is convinced that she intended to meet Rossart and refuses to have anything more to do with her. Monsieur Poché also arrives about the same time, and complications thicken. Finally Laville is brought to trial by his enemies, and is triumphantly acquitted through the testimony of Jeanne, at the risk of her own reputation, which leads to a duel between Rossart and her husband, in which the latter is disposed of, and thus she is left free to marry the man of her heart.

The story is well told throughout and is full of brilliant bits of coloring, and the glimpses of gay French life we get in it make it a charming and delightful romance, which it will do anyone good to read.

St. J. G.

Tell me you loved me once but hate me now,

Tell me you thought me fair, but cease to think,

Tell me you felt the power from which you shrink,

Curse out our Paradise, but still allow

That once it was your proud life's food and drink.

Give harshness heavy play and disavow
The loving vows that did our being link,
Beat out all passion as you would desire,
Turn all its strength into unearthly hate,
Show black contempt in place of lovers' red;
But grant the graciousness of former fire,
Remembering over all our past estate.
Despise our kisses now, yet must they be
Possessions ever dear to memory.

LOVE IN OUR VILLAGE AND

JAN OXBER.

Both books by Orme Agnus. They are daintily bound in white and gold and are of equal size and style. Provincial life is the naïve and rather comical atmosphere which breathes through these volumes. It is the kind of life found in small and very old-fashioned English country villages.

"Love In Our Village" is the better book, and tells much that is laughably quaint and characteristic.

The

The flirtations of country youths and maidens, their shy and somewhat awkward ways of making love, their enthusiasms, their sorrows, and, above all, their delightfully provincial selves are depicted in a most truthful and interesting manner. love of a "village poet" is unusually well told and shows us much that is pathetic as well as bright and wholesome. The patois is excellent and brings out the cramped characters with which we have to deal, in a very homely, agreeable and forceful way. The egotism and self-sufficiency of these village beaux and belles is quite as evident and well depicted as the more common bashful uncertainty to which they more generally incline.

"Jan Oxber" is not so fine a story as the other, nor is it as wholesome and characteristic. It is more of a personal narrative and not so much a country sketch. There is much tragedy and the story contains disagreeable "morale" which, of course, takes away much of the simple and delightfully natural atmosphere with which the other book is so pleasantly charged. charged. "Jan" is a character in the "village," one who has laughed, suffered and endeared himself among his little peoples. Nevertheless, he seems either weak or unnecessarily violentan unbalanced quantity of unschooled ignorance. We are sorry for him in his troubles, but consider his stupidity and lack of keenness. His blundering slowness of action finally reaches its goal and relieves our anxiety by a beast explosion of long smoldering.

As works full of local truth and natural home expression, the books certainly are adequately successful. As rural pictures of amusing design and original coloring they are tremely creditable.

ex

CAPTAIN RAVENSHAW. Mr. Stevens has given us a wellwritten, thoroughly exciting and picturesque story in these experiences of