Rolling in Riches. 3 vols. (Tinsley Brothers.)—This is a novel
of a kind of which the world ought by this time to be getting pretty well tired. The time has gone by for these galleries of conventional carica- tures, every one ticketed with his appropriate name, last by any chance we should fail to perceive what he is meant for. Adolphus. Badger is the son of a city trader, who has risen from being a gamin to the rank of a millionaire. He determines on his father's death to " cut the shop," prefixes a "de" to his name as well as the title of "captain," buys a great house in the country, and tries to get into society. Of course ho makes all sorts of mistakes, and undergoes various misadventures, among others, the rather unusual incident of having his sham castle blown down by the wind. Of course, also, he has his guide, philosopher, and friend, who is naturally called " Spongeman." Then there is a sham serious family, labelled by the name of " Sim," perhaps the most odious caricature in the book. Who can be even amused when the worldly-minded Evangelical thus addresses his daughter,—"Ah I my dear child, let yours be the pleasing task to convert this worldly- minded youth. He is young and impressionable,—you may wean him from the world's unsatisfying ways ; and the good seed once sown, oh I may you gather it again into your own bosom." And the daughter replies :—" Oh, papa! if I am made providentially the humble instru- ment of his conversion, my life will not have been spent in vain. I don't think he is so bad-looking, after all"? We fancy that most people
of sense do not care about reading of how people make fools of them- selves, not even if it be described far more cleverly than the author of Rolling in Riches can do. All that we can say for the book is that there is no bigamy or murder in it.
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