CURRENT LITERATURE.
On comparing the issue of the Statesman's Year-Book for 1887 with its immediate predecessor, we find that its new editor, Mr. Scott Keltie, still continues in his career of retrenchment, reform, and extension. He might do a little more than he has yet done to condense the statements given of the Constitutions of different Staten; he would thus save space, and prevent his volume reaching unwieldy dimensions. There are some excellent new features in this year's volume. Of these we notice, in particular, succinct accounts of Indian land-tenure and agriculture ; figures relating to the names of different countries, which have been evidently revised by competent hands; census statistics of Germany up to December, 1885, and of France up to May, 1886; the Budgets of Germany, Italy, Denmark, Brazil, and other States ; the trade atatistios of Turkey; and the latest figures bearing upon the population of Russia. In a single page, Mr. Keltie tells the story of recent German expansion, from which it appears that the African territory, extending from the southern slope of Kilimandjaro to the Rovarna River, which by the international treaty of 1886 has been assigned to Germany, exceeds 100,000 square miles, while the Australasian dominions of the Fatherland include 70,300 square miles of Northern New Guinea, not to speak of the Bismarck Archipelago and the Solomon group, with a total area of 24,000 square miles, which have been snapped up within the last two years or so. The most notable novelty in the Year-Book, however, is the general view of the Colonial possessions of Great Britain, with area, population, date of acquisition, and form of government, and including detailed notices of the minor Colonies, which appears as a supplement to the fade and figures relating to Great Britain itself. Bat with snob frequent disquisitious on Imperial Federation as we now have, Mr. Keltie would do well to carry this idea a step farther in 1888, and group all our Colonies and Dependencies, without exception, under or behind Great Britain. As things are, it is rather irritating to be confronted with, "Natal, see p. 766; " " Canada, see p. 580;" and "Australasia, see p. 885." Upper Burundi is now incorporated with India in this volume; and Cores has been detached from China, and assigned a separate place. But is this not a little premature ? No doubt, Cores is regarded by European countries as a practically autonomous State ; but then, Mr. Keltie shoal(' remember how busy a China pervaded by the epirit of the Marquis Tseng, is in converting shadowy suzerainties into actual sovereignties. Why, too, does he so resolutely ignore the existence of an independent Abyssinia,—though he notes the Italian possession of Massowah ? Can Ras Aida have offended him by declining, in answer to a post-card, to furnish a fall list of his epearmen ? When doe consideration is given to omissions, however, it most be allowed that the Statesman's Year-Book stands at last on a level of equality, so far as usefulness is concerned, with the " Almanach de Gotha," and it is not crushed, like that admirable annual, beneath the weight of genealogies, as Tarpeia was crushed beneath the weight of the Sabine bracelets. Bat why do not ite pub- lishers positively fix a day for its appearance P Sometimes it is issued in January, sometimes in February ; this year it does not put in an appearance till the second week of March, stumbling into the market like a befogged and belated postman. Why not fix positively February 1st, which is either shortly before or immediately after the opening of Parliament, for its publication ?
Previous page
