24 MARCH 1883, Page 25

William I., German Emperor, and King of Prussia. By W.

Beatty-Kingston. (Routledge.)—Mr. Kingston was special corre- spondent to the Daily Telegraph during the Franco-German war, and its representative at Berlin during the seven following years. Of these opportunities he has made use to write this agreeable little memoir of the Emperor. We cannot, of course, look to it for a thorough and searching analysis of his character as a ruler. For this, the time has not yet come. But the book does what it pro- fesses to do satisfactorily. The vindication of William I.'s conduct during the troubles of 1848 is noteworthy. The Crown Prince, as he then was, had no authority whatever in the capital, and steadily refused to give any orders. It is probable that his sympathies were not with the popular party, and that the inhabitants of Berlin perceived this, and hated him for it ; but it is tolerably clear that he did nothing to deserve the odium which necessitated his temporary exile.