Mary My/es. By Mrs. Edmonds. 2 vols. (Remington.)—The author does
not do herself justice by the way in which she intro- duces her hero and heroine. She, having an afternoon's holiday, prepares to enjoy it by letting down her hair, taking off her stockings, putting on a pair of blue velvet slippers, and running off into the woods, where she falls asleep under a tree. He appears upon the scene by " flinging himself, portmanteau in hand, over a haha fence" (an exceedingly difficult feat, as he must have had to " take off " from lower ground), and, after seeing the sleeping beauty, remarks, " Deg certC " (he is very particular about the circumflex, for he repeats it after six lines). The story itself is better than this beginning,—a tale of love steadfast under diffi- culties, and finally triumphant. There are the usual adverse circumstances, opposition and misapprehension, the latter par- ticularly grievous, as the young lady has just been refusing the gentleman whom the hero suspects her of favouring. This device is somewhat worn, and might conveniently be excluded from the repertoire of the novelist. There is some good writing in Mary .Myles, but there are also marks of carelessness and extravagance.
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