Mr. Hamsher is one of those facetious fellows who give
their bicycles . pet names. The experienced travel-book reader will therefore expect to be frequently bored by the cycle's human reactions to bad roads, steep hills and punctures. He will be, unless he skips the offending passages. He will then be left with. a. fairlY interesting series of. glimpses of the countries between Leipzig and Istanbul. The author was a stranger to the Balkans, but his know- ledge of languages enabled him to get along . without much difficulty. The Balkans. By Bicycle (Witherby, 8s. 6d.) is superficial and adds little to our know- ledge of the people or politics of the Balkan countries. As Mr. Hamsher is a student of politics and foreign affairs he might have dived a little deeper. But no one begins to under- stand a strange country until it ceases to appear strange. Unfortunately Mr. Hamsher never stayed long enough in one place for this to happen.
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