It is still something of a shock to realize, in
reading Com- mander Keble Chatterton's last paragraphs, that the activity which is the subject of his book, Sailing the Seas (Chapman and Hall, 18s.) has at last come to amend. The last deep-sea British sailing vessel has already departed, the fishing vessels arc growing yearly scarcer, and it is not unlikely that by the end of this century the sole representative of the ancient craft will be the yachtsman, at least among civilized peoples. It is therefore well that we should have this short, popular history written while there are still men who can interpret the old drawings and accounts by the light of a similar experience. This is faithfully done in the book under review, from the first records of sailing in the big sea-going barges of the Egyptians down to the Brixham trawlers, of wh:ch there are now only eighty or so left. It is a fascinating subject, and handled with that practical interest and lucidity of explana- tion which it demands. The only criticism possible is that, in a work intended as an introduction to the subject, a biblio- graphy would have been welcome. The illustrations alone, reproduced for the most part from contemporary prints and drawings, are occupation and interest for an afternoon, and they are carefully related to the text in a way too seldom found in popular histories.
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