The Riviera: Etchings and Vignettes. By A. Amsted. With Notes
by the Artist. (Seeley and Co.)—Round About Snowdon. Thirty Plates. By T. Huson, R.I., R.P.E. With Notes by J. J. Hissey. (Seeley and Co.)—If Christmas has its draw- backs, we cannot reckon among them the illustrated works of which the season is fruitful. Here are two books of beauty, one of them testifying to the charms of winter in the South, and the other to the delights of summer in our Northern clime. For those of us who are unable to exchange fogs and cold for the sunny Paradise illustrated by Mr. Ansted, his fine etchings may afford a measure of compensation. With the exception of a few pas-
sages, among which must be reckoned Mr. Ansted's defence of M. Garnier's architectural work at Monte Carlo, there is little novelty in the letterpress, but it sufficiently serves its purpose by introducing readers to the etchings and vignettes. These are drawn by an etcher blessed with a fine sense of what is beautiful and a skilful hand in giving expression to it. Delicacy and ease in execution are the characteristics of Mr. Ansted's work. The volume is "a thing of beauty."—Mr.. Huson's thirty plates of North Wales scenery are said to be executed entirely by the artist, and are from his own paintings. Very bold and impressive they are, and recall many a scene of mountain and river, of rushing stream and woodland, of lonely moorland and of village loveliness. Home-keeping Englishmen, if any such there be in our day, have the consolation of knowing that there are charms in the scenery of these islands, always fresh and satisfying, and in their way not to be surpassed else- where. Mr. Huson's volume shows as effectively as a good artist's work can, the wealth of beauty which lies almost at our doors.
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