20 SEPTEMBER 1884, Page 24

Tfriel ; or, a Voyage to Other Worlds. By the

Rev. W. S. Lech- Ssyrma, M.A. (Wyman and Sons.)—If the author is right, this

globe on which we dwell is not the best of all possible worlds. The Venusians—a barbarous but perhaps judicious derivative from Venus —the Martials, even the fish-like inhabitants of Jupiter, seem to have managed affairs more wisely, and to be more virtuous and happy than the denizens of earth. Mr. Lach-Szyrma has woven into his romance what is known, or probably guessed, of the conditions of existence, if existence there be, in the planets nearest to us. We are not told, however, how the Martials resist the tremendous storms that are supposed to agitate their atmosphere. The book is an ingenious exercise of imagination, and will help the reader to realise some interesting facts.