The Annals of Manchester. Edited by William E. A. Axon.
(Heywood, Manchester.)—Valuable as this book doubtless is, and interesting as must be a considerable part of its contents to Man- chester men in the first place, and to Englishmen generally, we cannot honestly say that it is attractive. This the very form forbids, the facts recorded being put in the baldest form known to literature, one that may almost be called pre-literary, being ranged, that is, under years. Sometimes these entries are irrelevant. In order, we suppose, to avoid too long a gap, we find, under 311, the fact that Constantine assumed the purple at York in that year, York being "the capital of the district which included Manchester." The connection here is shadowy enough ; but what are we to say of the next, under the year 367, which tells us how the Picts, Scots, and " Saxons made a combined invasion into Southern Briton, and were driven back by Theodosius. How far Lancashire suffered is not known "P Naturally, the items of information begin to be more to the point as we proceed. About later years we should be inclined to complain that quite insignificant local events are accorded a place to which they are scarcely entitled. A severe revision might have reduced this volume to a more manageable size. Perhaps there is something to be said for even an excess of fellness. The volume, however, becomes an index rather than a literary work. Under the year 1852, we find two items in juxtaposition which require some explanation. Were there two meetings of the Council of the Anti-Corn-Law League held in Newell's Buildings on March 2nd, in both of which Mr. G. Wilson was in the chair, at one of which "subscriptions promised amounted to £27,520," while at the other, "£27,700 was subscribed within half-an-hoar." It looks as if the scissors had been used not very intelligently here.
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