One of the world's best travel-books is Travels in Tartary,
Thibet and China, 1844-46, by Hue and Gabet. It is brought out again in scholarly fashion at a price moderate for the bulk. (Translated by William Hazlitt. Edited with an Introduction by Professor Paul Pelliot. 2 vols. Routledge. 25s.) Pro- fessor Pelliot in his introduction gives guidance as to how far the Abbe Hue who wrote the book is to be trusted in detail. The conclusion is that he " invented" nothing, but " trans- posed his material in order to please. The souvenirs are an artistic creation." Nothing could be truer. The artist, who was the less important of the two travellers, gOt—and on the whole deserved—the greater reputation. It is not surprising that ,when these two missionaries returned to ordinary duty as priests they neither gave nor found complete satisfaction. They had lived through an unmartial but not the less epic Odyssey, and in Hue's pages we get the colour of life much more than the odour of sanctity. May Providence be lenient to his delinquencies and reward him for the benefaction bestowed on mankind, sharing this guerdon with William Hazlitt, who accomplished from Hue's text probably the best translation in any language.
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