6 FEBRUARY 1875, Page 24

Baiting the Trap : a Novel. By Jean Middlemas, author

of "Lil " and "Wild Georgie." (Chapman and Ball.)—This novel is a falling- off from its predecessors. Both "Lil" and "Wild Georgie " had merit which, although it was of a rude and inarticulate kind, was evident enough to lead us to believe that the author of those stories had not altogether mistaken her vocation when she took to novel- writing. Baiting the Trap forces us to alter that opinion. It is foolish, clumsy, extravagant, and vulgar.