10 DECEMBER 1887, Page 9

The Arabian Nights' Entertainment. A. new edition, Revised, with Notes,

by the Rev. George Tyler Townsend, M.A. (F. Warne and Co.)—Mr. Townsend's notes are useful as far as they go. This is not very far,—indeed, anything elaborate would have been out of place. But we may ask what is meant by saying, d propos of the words "the year 1557 of the epocha of the great Alexander," "the era of the Selettoides, the successora to Alexander the Great." Why the succesaors ? "The era of the Selecuidas " had oertainly not begun in 834 B.0 , to which, putting together the dates mentioned above and that of 653 Hegira, we are brought back. Boys will scarcely look for their chronology to the Arabian Nights ; still, it is as well to be correct. As to the revision, we are assured that "the most innocent-minded maiden may read these stories aloud to her brothers and sisters." It has been made from the version published in 1811 by Dr. Jonathan Scott, of the East India College. Most of the editions corns through the French of M. °attend, who translated the Night, in 1704. The illustrations, some of them plain and some coloured, are fairly good, but do not add materially to the attractions of the book.—We have also a little volume, Sindbad the Sailor (Routledge and Sons), with some very pretty illustrations by Mr. Maurice say.