THE ST. LAWRENCE RIVER.
The St. Lawrence River. By George Waldo Browne. (G. P. Putnam's Sons. 15s. net.)—If the St. Lawrence had as many centuries of history as the Rhine, there would be nothing like it in the world. It is in some respects far superior to the European river,—in its estuary, for instance, magnificent beyond example, whereas the Rhine has not even a mouth ; but its human interest is less, as the Amazon is less than the Tweed, though it could swallow the Scottish stream without sensible effort. Still, the "Historical" section of Mr. Browne's volume is not to be despised, for it was on the banks of the St. Lawrence, at Montreal and Quebec, to mention two places out of many, that the long struggle between the Frank and the Saxon for the New World was fought out. Mr. Browne tells this story with its antecedents and consequences in a vigorous fashion, not the least of his merits being his power of compressing much into a small space. The narrative is illustrated by reproductions of old drawings, &c. The " Picturesque " element is worthily represented by some admirable photographs. There is an excellent map of the river, which, it will be remembered, is some four times as long as the Thames (if we take Anticosti as answering to the Nore), and begins as a full-grown stream.
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