TALES. — Pity 'Tis, 'Tis True : a Tale of Monaco. By
" Zitto." (Remington.)—We need hardly say that the chief subject of "A Tale of Monaco" is the gaming-table, its fascinations and its perils. " Zitto " combines with this another not obviously connected with it, the follies and meannesses of religious people. All schools fall under her impartial reprobation, from " Anglican Sisters " to Evan. gelical old maids. Of course, she will say that it is only the pseudo- religions whom she satirises. This is a very dubious defence. There are plenty of wickeduesses and follies which may well occupy the satirist's pen, before it should deal with religion, which, on the whole even " Zitto" would probably acknowledge, benefits rather than in. jures mankind. The tale is written with considerable smartness and vigour. We do not think the plot well constructed, and certainly ' the machinery used for bringing about the catastrophe is ill- contrived. There are sufficient causes for suicide at Monaco, without inventing anonymous letters sent by religions enthusiasts in their zeal for sonls.— On/y a Twelvemonth ; or, the County Asylum. (Marcus Ward and Co.)—Here the motive of the story is to expose the abuses of lunatic asylums, the insufficiency of the precautions which are taken in the admission of inmates, and the treatment to which these inmates are subjected. The book is evidently the outcome of experience ; whether it has been obtained first-hand or second-hand, we have no means of determining. Apart from the matter of the cruelty of the attendants, the real cause of the mischief was the folly of the victim's father. As long as there are selfishness, stupidity, and cowardice in friends, so long will patients, who, even if lunatic, would be better at home, be sent to places which can only do them harm.—The Fate of Madame la Tour : a Story of the Great Salt Lake. By Mrs. A. G. Paddock. (Sampson Low and Co.)—This book has the form of fiction, but it professes to be a record of facts ; nor is there anything in it that, so far as our know- ledge of the matter goes, is not fully borne out by evidence. The theme is, of course, the misdoing of the Mormon rulers, the abomin- able iniquities perpetrated at their commnad, and the misery caused by their social system. It is a painful story, concerning the United States in the first place, for the Government of Washington is surely to blame for the supineness which it has shown in dealing with this monstrous evil, but also touching ourselves, and other European nations, which furnish from their miserable or ignorant populations the dupes of the Mormon emissaries. As we write, we see that the Bill abolishing polygamy has been unanimously assented to by the House of Representatives. Mr. George Q. Cannon is not now a Member of that body ; but he was quite recently the Delegate from "Utah. If Um document on p. 305 is true, he ought to have shared the fate of Bishop Lee.
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