CURRENT LITERATURE.
CHRISTMAS BOOKS.
Rome and the Campagna. By R. Burns, M.A. (Deighton and Bell ; Boll and Daldy.)—This is a handsome volume, handsome enough both within and without to take high rank in the class to which it is assigned, but it derives its value not from gorgeous binding, nor from its illustra- tions, though these are numerous and excellent of their kind, but from its literary contents. Mr. Burns describes his book as "an historical and topographical description of the site, buildings, and neighbourhood of ancient Rome," and he has brought to the task of this description the highest qualifications. After an "introduction," treating of Romano- Greek architecture, and two preliminary chapters, in which are respec- tively the "site " and the "climate of Rome," we come to the subject proper of the work. "Rome before the time of Serving Tullius," "The Servian walls," "The walls of Aurelian and Honorius," " The Forum before and after the time of Julius Caner," "The Fora of the Emperor," are successively described ; in fact, we are taken through every part of Rome and the neighbourhood by a guide who is at once a laborious anti- quarian and a finished scholar. It is in its bearing onRoman literature and history that this work has its chief interest to the present writer. As such it cannot be estimated too highly. Not only does it contain the results of the latest researches, but it collects, as it has not, to our knowledge, been collected before, all the available information on the subject, and illustrates this with copious quotations from the writers of antiquity. It would be a most profitable exercise for a young scholar (we mean, of course, one arrived at a certain stage of progress) to take the "Index of Quotations from Ancient Authors," which occupy nearly eight closely- printed quarto pages, and work through them, or through each part of them as belongs to the books which he is studying. He will get thereby, we are sure, more vividness and greater unity into his conceptions of Roman life and Roman affairs in general, than he could attain in any other way. Anyone who desires to make an addition of great and permanent value to the library of some aspirant after the higher scholarship cannot find a better choice than this volume.—The Mountains and Lakes of Switzerland. (Bell and Daldy.)—This hand- some volume is illustrated with sixty-four picturesque views, after draw- ings taken from original sketches by C. Pyne," and has " descriptive notes by the Rev. Jerome J. Manion" The illustrations are done with an application of chrome-lithography which produces an excellent effect. The views are introduced, as ordinary engravings might be, into the body of the text. They are very delicately coloured, and certainly give a very pretty appearance to the book. The descriptive text is very read- able.—To The Riviera: Pen and Pencil Sketches from Cannes to Genoa (Bell and Daldy), the Dean of Canterbury contributes both the illustra- tions (some copied from photographs excepted) and the letterpress. The Dean possibly wields the pen with more professional skill than the pencil. His sketches, however, are attractive, and the distances especially appear to be skilfully managed. We prefer him, however, as he is interpreted to us by the engraver, than as he appears in the chromo-lithograph. These last are unequal in merit, the colouring being sometimes crude and unattractive.— Spanish Pictures drawn with Pen and Pencil. (Religions Tract Society.) --The chief attraction in this volume, though it is generally praise- worthy, will be certain sketches by M. Gustave Dore. They are not, perhaps, in his best style, for he seems to us to excel in imaginative landscape; and some are almost caricatures,—the watchmen, for instance, on p. 84, a fault with which his figures may sometimes be charged ? but others are very spirited, the gipsy chief, e y., on p. 81.—The Cat's Pilgrimage. By J. A. Fronde. (Edmonton and Douglas.)—Mr. Fronde submits, like other great men, to be pressed into the service of the children ; but seems to forget, we are bound to say, who are his masters. A cat who asks, " What are we here for ?" and seeks to
be answered by the bee and the owl, finding at last satisfaction in the philosophy of the fox, is a creature whom the young people, happily for themselves, cannot possibly understand. Of course Mr.
Fronde is very clever and amusing. But we do not admire the personal appearance of his cat.—The same objection is the only unfavourable
criticism which we have to make on Tony and Puss, translated from the French of P. J. Stahl, with illustrations by Lorenz Frolich (Seeleys). M. Frfilich, we need hardly say, always draws children with admirable skill, and hero is quite equal to himself ; but though "Tony" is charming in every way, " Pass " is rather too much like a weasel to please us. It is, however, a charming volume, as those who remember the " Butterfly Chase " of last year, and other old favourites, such as 4‘ Mademoiselle Lili," will easily believe.—Mr. Tegg publishes a volume of Eighty-Two Illustrations, by George Craikshank. They are taken from volumes which are more or less familiar to the public,—" The Life of Nelson," "The Beauties of Washington" (one especially ad- mirable picture we mast notice amongst these, " I Philosopher mounted on a Comet "), " Defoe's Plague of London," &c. There is an inconvenience about these republications. Considerations of size, for instance, separate one lot of illustrations of "Knickerbocker's History of New York," from another lot which were published under the title of"Beauties of Washington Irving," but really belong to the same book. But George Craikshank one cannot see too often. —Home Chat with our Young Folks, by C. L. Mateaux (Cassell and Co.), is a volume of miscellaneous information about men and things, about Columbus, for instance, about the Boscobel oak, about bears, about George Stephen- son, in fact, about "people and things they [the young folks] see or hear about," which seems of good quality.—The Happy Nursery, by Ellis A. Davidson (Cassell and Co.), is a book which is intended to help mothers and nurses in keeping little ones busy, and therefore happy. For this end, besides giving tales and bits of poetry, of which indeed the children have already a plentiful supply, it describes games, toys, .tc., gives recipes for making things, for instance, just as in another sphere of life a cookery-book does. This seems to us a very valuable portion of the book. There is a recipe for making "a box with a lid that will open " out of cardboard, which is in itself an invaluable treasure, not the less ifo, because to nine children out of ten the actual box will never be anything but a hope.—We have to notice a second edition of an admirable work, of which we have on a former occasion spoken with high praise, —The Universe; or, the Infinitely Great and the Infinitely Little. By F. A. Pouchet, M.D. (Blaokie and Son.)—The new edition contains a considerable amount of additions, some, we notice, concerning that won- derful people, so human in their crime (they enslave weaker tribes) the ants. The Universe is one of the best books of the class that wo have seen. — Among "Children's Picture-Books," we have My Mother's Picture- Book and Routledge's Coloured Picture-Book (Routledge), each containing fear stories, which are also published separately. "My Mother," "The White Cat," and others " quas mine perscribere longum est," appear again, drawn and coloured as carefully as these things always are for our young masters. In the second of these volumes we have been par- ticularly struck with " The Fairy Ship," which is of the grotesque-imag- inative kind, and " The Adventures of Putty," humorous high-art, both admirable. Some very cheap little picture-books, four good pictures for threepence, should be mentioned.--Aunt Louisa's Home Companions is a book about animals ; the legendary animals of the nursery world, such as the cow that jumped over the moon, the real animals of that duller world that lies without, where cows, and perhaps it is well, cannot jump over a hedge. The animals are excellently well done, the texture of the fur, Ac., especially being thoroughly life-like.
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