7 AUGUST 1909, Page 26

The Transmigration of Souls. By D. Alfred Bertholet. Trans- . lated

by tho Rev. H. J. Chaytor. (Harper and Brothers. 2s. 6d. net.)—This volume belongs to the publishers' "Library of Living Thought." We are inclined to doubt whether the subject properly comes under such a description. The doctrine supplied a want. Human life is so short, the aspirations of the soul are so large, that they demand a larger space for their fulfilment ; or, on the other hand, the degradation of the soul can be so great that means for its purification, stronger and more varied than are possible in the ordinary conditions of life, seem necessary. But these problems now present a different aspect. Setting aside the crude belief of Islam, no non-Christian thinker believes fully and decidedly in life after death, and the Christian finds a more excellent way than metempsychosis can supply. This little volume, however, is worth reading. The doctrine filled a con- siderable space in time past, and it is well to be instructed about its various forms and phases by one who has studied the subject thoroughly.