17 JUNE 1893, Page 25

Rambles in the Lake Country, and other Travel Sketches. By

Edwin Waugh. Edited by George Milner. (Heywood.)—The late " Manchester Poet" wrote much also in prose, and the present volume, a selection from various articles, " may be regarded," says the writer, "as representative of an extraordinary amount of work done by Edwin Waugh in the department of descriptive writing." The reader will catch something of the traveller's delight as he follows his steps in the Lake District, in Devonshire, in the Isle of Man, on the Orwell and elsewhere, for Mr. Waugh's enthusiasm awakens sympathy ; his style is well fitted to his theme, and if he visits familiar spots he generally sees them with fresh eyes. It was, however, scarcely wise of the editor to include in this volume "A Run up the Rhine," which contains nothing either of incident or description to distinguish it from what has been said by every one who has ventured to give his impressions of that familiar river. Mr. Waugh always writes pleasantly and .often extremely well about home travel ; but the observations made during his first foreign tour are superfluous. What is the use of his informing his readers that the finest scenery of the Rhine lies between Coblenz and Bingen, or retelling the story of Bishop Hatto with the help of Southey's ballad, or describing 'the length, breadth, and height of a cathedral like Cologne