Our Literary Deluge. By Francis W. Halsey. (Grant Richards. 3s.
6d.)—Mr. Halsey puts together in this volume some interest- ing facts, and exercises a sound and sober criticism. We think that now and then he is a little hard on books that he dislikes. The "Quo Vadis ?" of Sienlriewicz, for instance, scarcely deserves the condemnation passed upon it. It is certainly not fitted for reading aloud in a girls' school, a process actually begun, to the knowledge of the writer of this notice, but soon dropped ; but it is "on the right side." As to the £10 for "Paradise Lost," we must remember that there are a hundred readers now for one in 1670, and must multiply the sum by that number to begin with, and then by two and a half for the difference in purchasing value. If such a basis for calculation were adopted, the price would work out at 482,500. But on the whole, Mr. lhisey seems to us judicious and reasonable. He treats of the common forms of literature—fiction, biography, poetry—and has some- thing worth reading to say about each. On collecting too, he has something to tell us, and collecting is an inexhaustible subject. The collecting world changes its idols with embarrassing rapidity. There is hardly anything so worthless that it will not take up ; but it is not long in recovering its sanity, or, we should rather say, in changing its madness. As to the subject which gives a title to the volume, Mr. Halsey is as helpless as the rest of us; practically all that he has to say is,—do not buy what is not worth buying. We cannot help thinking that he is a little too patriotic in chap. 10. The State of Iowa, it seem, has published a list of two hundred books for school-reading. "Of
English writers now living the list contains scarcely a representa- tive." And Mr. Halsey approves, though he allows that "the strong leaning towards American authors may have its unfavour- able side from the point of view of pure literature, but scarcely from any other vital point," What could be more, or indeed so, vital P
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