27 JUNE 1908, Page 8

Florence. By Edward Hutton. (Methuen and Co. 6s.)- Runny Days

in Italy. By Elise Lathrop. (T. Werner Laurie. 10s. 6d. net.)-The Old Venetian Palaces. By Thomas Okey. Illus- trated by Trevor Haddon. (J. M. Dent and Co. 21s. net.)-These three books may be called illustrated guide-books, not merely because illustrations form part of their substance, but because they deal largely with the picturesque aspects of Italy as regards her landscape, history, and art.-To these books may be added Mr. George Elgood's Italian Gardens (Longmans and Co., 42s. net). The artist has studied his subject exhaustively, but, we regret to say, prosaically, for in these water-colours the wonderful poetry and romance of the villa gardens of Italy have escaped the painter.