History of the Family of Maestwell (Mansell, Mengel). By F.r.
P. Statham. Vol. I. (Kagan Paul. 42e. net.)—This elaborate family history, based on materials collected by Colonel C. A. Maunsell, belongs to the old school rather than the now, and contains far too many controversial and speculative matters. It is highly improbable that John Mantel, Henry III.'s favourite, was entitled to an honoured place in the family pedigree ; he was the son of a priest, according to Matthew Paris, and was himself in Orders —the most opulent clerk that the chronicler lied ever 'leant of—so that he cannot have founded a reputable family. The first prominent member of the
existing family was Sir Rhya Maisel, a stout soldier of Henry VIII., who secured Margam Abbey for his share of the Reformation spoils ; and the next was his grandson Sir Robert, who was Treasurer of the Navy under James I., and had a good record of service at sea and a bad record as a corrupt official on land. With him this first vollime ends. It is strange to find among the family portraits, admirably reproduced, a Tudor gentleman described as of the fourteenth century and a late Stuart squire described as au Eliza-
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