11 JULY 1885, Page 25

Leicester : an Autobiography. By Francis W. Adams. (George Redway.)—This

book purports to be the autobiography of a young man of considerable poetic power, who is thrown upon the world at an early age. The chapters relating to his school-days, with much that is strained and in questionable taste, combine a great deal that shows insight into character; but from the moment that Leicester leaves Colchester the book assnmes a character so objectionable that we are unable to find terms strong enough for its condemnation. The purposeless egotist who does duty for a hero, first endeavours to persuade his cousin to leave her husband with him, and then consoles himself for his failure by seducing an innocent work-girl whom he had once befriended. Such a plot could hardly fail to be objectionable ; as treated in the present volumes, it is revolting.