3 AUGUST 1889, Page 24

The Secret of the Lamas. (Cassell and Co.)—This " Tale

of Thibet" belongs to the literature of the marvellous. A young English officer falls into the hands of the Buddhists, professes himself to be a disciple, and is initiated into the mysteries in a way that strongly reminds one of the accounts commonly given of the Eleusinian mysteries. So far it is comparatively plain- sailing, but when we come to marvellous telepathic phenomena, and mysterious powers by which Aylward (the hero of the story) influences the actions of people thousands of miles away, it is another matter. One is inclined to say, incredulu.s odi. Still, The Secret of the Lamas, credible or not, is a book that can be read, and its sensations are at least wholesome.