10 NOVEMBER 1906, Page 23

The Hearth of Hutton. By W. J. Eccott. (W. Blackwood

and Sons. 6s.)—Mr. Eccott is a picturesque writer, but in giving a description of the '46 he challenges comparisons which are not to his advantage. If, however, one might take the present book on its merits, and pretend that the author is the first in that particular historical field, it would be possible to say a good deal

in its favour. The reader will not believe that Helen Hylton, the hero's wife, would have blackened her own fame in order to be revenged cu a quondam lover; but apart from the domestic interest, the story is romantic and credible. The struggle at Falkirk is well drawn, and makes a stirring end to the book. Altogether, the historical side of the novel is more lifelike than the story proper.