25 MARCH 1865, Page 21

The Day - Star Prophet. By Mrs. Alfred Annan. (Hurst and Blackett.)

—If Mrs. Allnutt cannot be said to have quite succeeded in giving adequate poetical expression to the character and history of St. John the Baptist, she cannot be said to have failed.. The descriptive and narra- tive power which this poem manifests is very considerable, and the author never falls below a certain line of excellence. It is only in those parts which demand force and fire of expression, as in the preaching of John, or which require the poet to touch the sources of horror and pity, as in the account of the saint's death, that we recognise the limitation of Mrs. Allnutt's ability. She writes with real because unexaggerated reverence, and the lover of sacred poetry will find much to admire in her handsomely-printed volume.