15 SEPTEMBER 1900, Page 25

The Leaguer of Ladysmith, November 2nd, 1899—February 28th, 1900. By

Captain Clive Dixon. (Eyre and Spottiswoode. 3s. 6d.) —This i3 a book of quite admirable sketches of men and things in the siege of Ladysmith. Captain Dixon takes, of course, the humorous aide of things, but his humour is always of the pleasantest kind, and though it naturally assumes the form of cari- cature, it does not prevent the draughtsman from showing much sense of the artistic. "The Cattle Guard" is quite a triumph in this way. Drawings 1 and 2 give us the panic caused by the " First Shell," and the indifference shown to the " Lad Shell." In the first civilians and soldiers are scattered in pairs; in the second, afternoon tea is going on undisturbed ; one dismounted man is smoking his pipe, another is enjoying a siesta. Not the least amusing is the picture of the bathers disturbed by a Sunday shell. The Boers commonly passed the day without firing, but the sight of our men bathing infuriated them. With them cleanliness is a long way off godliness.