LETTERS OF EMILIA RUSSELL GURNEY.
Letters of Emilia Russell Gurney. Edited by her Niece, Ellen Mary Gurney. (J. Nisbet and Co. 12s. 6d.)—This is a book of which there is little to be said, not because there is any lack of interest and value in its contents, but because it does not lend itself to comment. It is sometimes said that the art of letter- Writing is extinct; if any one is disposed to believe this, let him go through this volume. He will find a great number of letters which have all the good qualities that this kind of writing can possess. The editor has very wisely given us an opportunity of seeing the correspondence; we often have the privilege of reading both letter and answer, and we gain much by it. There is one especially of the friends with whom Mrs. Gurney had frequent communication whose letters are rich in thought of the most suggestive kind. This is, of course, the chief characteristic of the volume; scarcely less valuable, however, are the notices of persons whom Mrs. Gurney and her friends met, such as Erskine of Linlathen, Thomas Carlyle, F. D. Maurice, among others. There is one of Mr. Harris of Brocton (the man who so influenced Laurence Oliphant). In the light of what happened afterwards, it is curious to read Mrs. Gurney's com- ment :—" I did not feel, as with Mr. Maurice, or Mr. Erskine, or Mr. Campbell, this is indeed a holy, spiritual man: but I did feel most strongly, this is an honest, perfectly simple, good man." (An index would have been a convenient addition to the book, as showing where these notices of interesting personalities are to be found.) There are some touches of humour in the letters--e.g., the recorded comments on the portrait which supplies a frontispiece—and there are shrewd observations on national characteristics. We cannot too warmly recommend this book.
Previous page
