Guardian du lieu suivant : London, Greater London, England • Page 44

114A THE GUARDIAN, DECEMBER 6, 1899. A Pair of Them. By Jano H. Spcttigne. (Blackie, 2s.

There is no particular plot in this bright little story, which describes the adventures of two enterprising boys, who must certainly have been born to bo hanged. The reader quite expbctB that all their expeditions to tlio Chough" will end in the dia covory of a smuggler or a shipwrecked man, and it is disappointing when no such result follows. Mfss Spettigue falls into the common error of making the boys' conversation too old for their years, but they blow themselves up with gunpowder, discover smugglers' caves, and otherwise behave in a natural manner. Little Village Folk, by A. 13.

ltomney (Blackie, 2s. is a collection of pretty little tales of Irish children. "Judy's Journey," Polly Crudcn's Doll," and How Tim found a Loprechaun," are particularly good, although it might bo objected to tho last-named, that, with four younger brothers and sisters, Tim would have known tho difference between a leprechaun and a baby. Tho illustrations in no way add to the attractiveness of tho book. The Oirl by Bessie Marcbant (Blackie, 2s.

tells tho adventures of some English girls who are carried prisoners to tho mysterious city of Ramoor by a personago known as the Great Nom, who is Wuzoer to the Rajah of Beshawur. The wholo story is so impossible that it is not worth while to criticise it in detail; otherwise it might be objected that rich parents are scarcely likely to have kept a girl of fourteen in India. Mignonne, by Jennie Chappoll (Blackie, is also rather an impossible story. Miss Prior, who has tho charge of little Mignonno Hume during Mr. Hume's absence in Ceylon, takes advantage of an illness which destroys tho child's memory to report her death to her family.

Of courso, although brought up for two years as Miss Prior's niece, Mignonne regains her recollection of tho past, and is happily restored to her father and brothers. Marget at the Manse. By Ethel F. Ileddlo. (Wells, Gardner, is housekeeper and purveyor of gossip to tho minister of Pitcurlio, who is supposed to relate theso tales.

Miss Ileddlo has exercised a praiseworthy moderation in tho matter of dialect, and her sketches of homely lifo in a fishing villago on tho east coast of Scotland are very pretty. Cannio Carstairs," Passing by on tho Other Side," and argot's Siller" are specially praiseworthy. Utmemher the Maine. By Gordon Stables. (Nisbet, This is a story of tho Spanish-American War.

As it deals with events which are fresh in tho minds of most of us, Dr. Gordon tables seems to avoid bringing his boy heroes through as many impossible situations as usual, and, strange to say, neither was on board tho Merrimac when it was sunk to block the Spanish fleet. Tho author, on tho whole, gives us a graphic account of the war, and as he makes no pretence of writing history, his strong partisanship is of little consequence. More attention should havo boon paid to tho proof-sheets; tho havoc mado by tho printer among well-known quotations from tho poet is distressing. A Land of Heroes, by W.

L. O'Hyrno (Blackie, 2s. is said to bo a collection of stories from early Irish history. Interesting and varied as they are, tho somewhat bald stylo of historic narrative does not suit such legonds as Lir's Children," or Deirdro and the Sons of Usnaeh." To realise their overmastering beauty and pathos, tho reader should turn to such a version as Miss Fiona Maoleod has given us in Tho Laughter of Peterkin." Mr. O'Byrne has taken away the glamour, and vory littlo elso remains.

This is tho more to be regretted as ho has bestowed far moro labour on his book than is usual with a writer for young people He has also had tho kindness to spell tho Gaelic names phonetically, so as to make them intelligible to tho ordinary reader, and has appended a most useful list of the names of persons and places in their proper forms. The Elephant's Apology, by Alice T. Morris (Blackie, 2s. is a delightful littlo book of short stories, in which animals play an important part. Miss Morris has a refreshing sonso of humour, and her touch is light and spirited.

7'he Suitors of by Norman Garstin (John Lane, is not so much a fairy story as a mediivval phantasy, in which kings, knights, sea-robbers, and Venus herself are all involved. The illustrations by Charles Robinson are not beautiful in thomsolves, and do not assist our conception of tho scenes. The Princess of Urartu, by Sheila Braino (Blackie, is in every respect a thoroughly enjoyable book. How Joan of Hearts was christened, how her brother lost his heart, how Joan foil into the clutches of tho Mugwump, and how she WHS delivered, is delightfully told by Miss Braino. Tho numerous illustrations by Miss 'Woodward aro as charming as the letterpress.

The Scarlet Herring. By Judgo Parry. (Smith, Elder, Gs.) Since tho appearance, four years ago, of that inconiparablo book for children, Katawampus," we, and no doubt the children, have always looked forward with pleasurable anticipation to dud no Parry's Christmas book. Great was our disappointment in 189G, when Butterscotia appeared, for it was dull and tiresome, and wo bogan to wonder if the Judgo wore to be a man of one book. In 1897 "Tho First Book of Krab" quite set our minds at rest on that score and in 1898 a disappointment came again, but this time beoauso there was no book at all and we heard that the author was seriously ill.

This year wo are able to congratulate Judgo Parry on his recovery and ourselves on tho possession of another book from his pen. The Scarlet Herring is but tho name of one story in a collection of six, and is by no moans tho best of thorn. Tho placo of honour should bo given to a shorter tale outitlod Tho Gay Umbrella." Tho adventures of this umbrella, which was invented by Puok," aud was designed to turn old folks into youug folks again, form somo of tho most amusing reading wo havo come aoross in this year's Christmas books Judge Parry has the peculiar gift of being able to write for both childron and their parents at the same time. Ho can write about fairies, and nymphs, and talking animals in the way whioh childrou lovo, and ho can describe the children thomsolves with all tho littlo touches which aro the result of intimate acquaintance and which go straight to the hearts of tho parents. We havo never been quite satisfied with tho illustrations to Judgo Parry '8 books; neither, apparently, has he, for this time ho has ohosou a new artist, but Mr.

Rusdeu's work is hardly moro satisfactory than Mr. Macgrogor's, although perhaps the book iB concerned with an attack by two or three hundred Indians on the little settlement of Brookfield and its heroic defence by some thirty or forty men; For the sake of his boy-readers Mr. Ellis makes a good share of the fighting and more than his share of the danger fall to the lot of a Puritan youth of fourteen and if Hugh Underwood's exploits do not excite breathless interes and enthusiasm, then we know nothing of boy-nature and what boys like to read about. The one flaw in the book is its ending, Chap. xxvi.

(the last but one) has a strong dramatic finish, and we would gladly close the book there; but Mr. Ellis has thought fit to follow it by a dull and lengthy historical essay which should have come in the introduction" or have been treated as an "appendix," in either of which cases the experienced reader would probably have omitted it. Singing-Time. A Child's Song-book. By Arthur Somervell Somervell has written some delicate and melodious music to certain old verses which we all know very wel and all children love.

We havo not yet reached the modern child who will refuse to repeat with fervour the words of Thank you, pretty cow written by Jane Taylor fifty years ago aud, although it is possible that wo may some day find the genera tion of children who will prefer Ta-ra-ra-boam-de-ay," Mr. Somervell's setting of tho older words will help to prolong their life. Besides Miss Taylor's verses, the well-known Little drops of water," and an even better-known children's hymn, we notice sundry lines which we take to be Mr. Somervell's own Placing this fact side by side with the dedication to Viola Katherine, and Leonard," we come to the conclusion that the music and somo of tho words were written in the first place for Mr. Somervell's own children, and that the publishing has been an afterthought.

This is, perhaps, their best claim to recognition, for children aro severe critics, even of their parents, and if Mr. Somervell's songs havo received the approval of his fire-side critics wo may be sure that they will bo hailed with pleasure elsewhere For our own part we like Tho Black Dog and Only Ono tho best of tho ten, and the only fault we have to find with tho others is that a certain similarity of melody tends to monotony. Under the Cactus Flag. By Nora Archibald Smith. (Gay and Bird, pretty, readable littlo story, introducing excellent scenes from Mexican lifo.

The there is a love is kept in duo proportion aud tho interest made to centre round the ordinary affairs of everyday life in a newly settled town in Mexico. Altogether this is a thoroughly healthy book for the "young person." Danish Fairg and Folk Tales. By J. Christian Bay. (Harper, 5s.) In his prefaco Mr.

Bay apologises for his title and warns us that the tales published in this volume aro Danish" only inasmuch as they havo been collected among the population of Denmark and coloured by tho thinking and doing of the people of that country. A largo number of them are our old friends with very slight alterations in their clothing, others aro new to us but old and new alike will bo heartily welcomed by the little folk into whoso hands they may fall, for they aro brightly written and their number almost inexhaustible. Tommy Smith's Animals. By Edmund Selous. (Methuen, 2s.

lid.) series of stories about such animals as a little boy would bo likely to meet with in everyday life. They aro written with the intention of inculcating lessons of kindness and mercy, and, at tho same time, of teaching tho reader pome interesting facts of natural history. Somo children will like them, but they miss tho "natural" touch which would appeal to all. We are unable to feel that either Tommy or his animal friends aro real, and tho illustrations do nothing whatever to help us. Cooper's First Term.

By Thomas Cobb. (Grant Richards, Most writers for boys seem to bo possessed with a great four lost in the courso of time the traditional methods of breaking bounds, shirking work, bullying littlo boys, and deceiving masters should be forgotten. They therefore record them in story-books designed to bo otherwise attractive to tho schoolboy mind and so ensure that tho lesson inculcated will find an audience. But for the most part such stories are redeemed by the character of one or moro roul boy heroes or by tho record of some stirring adventure. Tho book us lacks any Buch redeeming feature.

It is the story of a commonplace school, with commonplace boys and commonplace masters, the chroniclo of whose sayings and doings is of very little interest and can have no good effect on tho minds of tho boys for whom it is written. Humpehtiltzkin. By Mrs. Hugh Bell. Hugh Bell adds a new number to her charming collection of Fairy Talo Plays aud How to Act Them." Every one knows tho story of Rumpelstiltzkin, so we need merely say that it lends itself readily to dramatic representation, and that Mrs.

Bell has transformed it from tho tale to the play with marked success. Two lioysin Wyoming. By Edward Ellis. Mr. Ellis 's books for boys in tho Deerfoot" aud Log Cabin I series have always been great favourites, and his readers will hail a new volume with pleasure.

The adventures of two American boys, who are given a month's holiday from school in order that they may go and inspect a ranch in Wyoming which has unexpectedly become tho property of the father of one of them, here given. As to the decoration of the book, if Mr Bvam had been content only to illustrate it with his full-page pi 0 we should have had no stint our praise All of the something of the brilliancy and richness of Rossetti himself. But the pleasure given by these really fine illustrations is completely marred by tho needless borders to every page, which aro painfully vulgar, and everything which borders ought not to be. The design for the cover is even worse, and we are left wondering how the artist can have put into the illustration of a single book work of such extraordinarily different quality. Jack ofAWTrades.

By J. J. Bell. (Lane, 3s. have become so accustomed to finding Mr.

Charles Robinsou's name associated with some daiuty book of dainty stories or verse for children that it is a shock to our sensibility to renew our acquaintance with him this year under very different Mr. tho plotures aro moro suited to a child's taste The Child's Song and Game Book. By H. Keatley Moore, Mus.Bao. (Swan Sonuensohoin, 3s.

book of action songs for the Kindergarten, with a dedication to Madame Michaolis, carries its oredoutials on its titlo-page. There are over thirty songs and wo havo tried many of them. Tho music is simple, melodious, and correct, aud the words such as very littlo children seem to find pleasure in siugiug, though to us they may appear a little commonplace and the tunes somewhat monotonous. Uncrowning a King. By Edward S.

Ellis. (Cassell aud 2s. of the early days of the settling oi America, when raids from Iudians were froqueut and fatal, have never ceased to fascinate. Year after year they are written, reviewed, and read, aud year after year the old stories appeal to us and Cud us over ready with renewed interest. Mr.

Ellis has chosen a thrilling incident in the year 1G75, when the revolt of the Indians, known as King Philip's war, was at its height. Tho main part of cannot fail to bo full of stirring incidents. Red Indians, grizzly bears, wolves, rattlesnakes, and cowboys appear on every page tho scenery is romantic, tho food precarious, but always forthcoming when ueeded, and tho hairbreadth escapes occur with a regularity aud frequency whioh leave nothing to be desired. For the rest, tho story is thoroughly healthy, and the emotions it will excite in tho minds of boy readers will bo manly and invigorating. The Brownies Abroad.

By Palmer Cox. (Fisher Unwin, Gs.) We havo never been able to be enthusiastic about tho Brownies," but tho regularity with which Mr. Cox's books appear every Christmas and the cordial reoeption given to them by little folk, seem to point to the conclusion that the fault lies in our want of power to appreciate aud not in the books themselves. Last year the Brownies took a voyago round the world this year they are still abroad," but tho word in this case means "abroad" as it applies to Americans, not to English people and little folks who do not remember this will be puzzled at finding the travellers at Chester, on the Thames, at the Zoo, and at the Lakes of Killarney. But wherever they aro and whatever they do is made interesting and amusing by Mr.

Cox's fluout verse and comical illustrations, in which wo aro sure his readers will find no falliug off. Mother Goose in Prose. By L. Frank Ban in. (Duckworth, book contains an introduction, twenty-two stories, and twelve illustrations, and weighs very nearly three pounds, so that from the point of view of quantity it is a wonderfully cheap book.

But it is inconvenient to handle, the pictures are clever without being pleasing, aud, on the whole, wo believe that children, like ourselves, will prefer their Mother Gooso iu her old dress rather than in these new feathers, which make her finer, but less attractive. Tales from Boccaccio Done into English. By Joseph Jacobs. Illustrated by Byatn Shaw. (Allen, 7s.

Jacobs's latest Christmas book is hardly likely to enjoy the popularity of its predecessors. It is addressed rather to "grown-ups" than to children, and elderly readers who know Chaucer's Tale of Grisilde," Keats's Isabella," and Tennyson's "Falcon" certainly prefer theso masterly rehaudlings of three out of the cute, but although the book as it stands win nov four stories ho has selected to the rather stiff translation which is unacceptable present to a child, we do not tuinn wau J. J. Bell has written some very fair nonsense however, we believe will appeal less to children than to their elders, and Mr. Robinson has been inspired to illustrate then in a manner which wo cannot think will appeal to any one.

They -ire decidedly clever," but the cleverness is bought at tho expense 0 good taste, suitability, beauty of form, or fact, of everything which should go to make a picture-book for children Wee Folk, Good Folk. By Allen Harker. (Duckworth 3s. have so often quarrelled with the writers of stories about children for giving no indication iu their titles that tl- 0 stories are by no means fittobe put into the handsof children themselves that we are grateful to Mr. Harker for tho sub-title to Ins book which leaves us in no doubt as to tho readers for whom the stories are intended.

Wee Folk, Good Folk, is a collection of child stories for older folk, and as such they are heartily welcome Chooks," who found such difficulties in mastering the contents of a thiu flabby littlo grey book concerned with tho iniquities "Dan Chooks," who know every grass at the road-side ana could havo beaten any member of class A into fits at a geology "viva;" Chooks, who, according to tho exigencies of art, slmidd have died in the last chapter but luckily lives to bo a tall' boy i charming all through, aud to knOw and bo known hy him was undoubtely a distinction." Fuzzy-Wuzzv," anoilnV of Mr. Harker's children, with the delightful unconsciousness of a child, finds a disreputable undergraduate who has been good to lying druuk and incapable by the. roadside and watches by him. cold and hungry aud lonely, because his friend was hurled and all alone," and by his devotion arouses the repentance in the fallen nature which ultimately leads to his reformation. Grizell," in a third story, is led by her lovo for her nephew to put aside her social prejudices and pride an I to hold out tho hand help aud friendship to her somewhat disreputable wife.

But we cannot attempt to online any more of the stories, as each ono should he read in its entirety. We would only suggest that, though each one is is almost perfect in its should ad vise tho reader not to be led away by the temptation to pass from one good thing to another, but to allow each story a wide margin, (or just as pictures full of delicate detail suffer from being crowded together in an exhibition, so do Mr. Harker's stories if read at a or at most two, should be taken at a time and the pleasure of the book prolonged. Little Folk of Many Lands. By Louise Jordan Miln.

(Murray 7 12s. Gd.) Miln's book is, in her own words, "an attempt to show some of the children of the globe iu their liab.ts as they live," and we havo only one quarrel with the authors description. She is far too modest in calling her bock an attempt." We ran think of no ono moro thoroughly competent to write a book of this kiud than Mrs. Miln. She is equipped on all sides.

Gifted with a natural lovo of and sympathy wiui children, the devoted mother of live, a traveller from the early au'e of three years, and possessed of a very pleasantly descriptive st I'-, she lacks nothing to make her task easy and successful. In the book before us children of all nations, of all ir. even- variety of dress and Papooses, brown Burnxj -e babies, Eskimos, Kaffirs, Soudanese, Hawaiians, Cuban-, Canadians, and a host of out in such colours, touched in with a band so skilful, that when we close Hi" chapter or the book wo feel that we too have lived amongst an 1 oved them. Tho reality of the sketches is strengthened by the admirable photographs with which the book is illustrated; thry are not merely pictures or representations of "types," each photograph is that of a living child or group of children, many of whom were personal friends of tho author. Altogether the volume is a very charming oue our only difficulty is in assigning it a place in catalogue.

Is it meant for child readers or for grown -ups If for children it is a pity that Mrs. Miln introduces allusions to sin-h a question as the advantages and disadvantages of the French system of small families and openly advocates the sending of giris to French convent schools merely that they may learn line manners," and if it is meant for older readers the title is a little deceptive. But in any case we are quite sure that whoever it will be, on the whole, as warm iu their admiration as we are ourselves. A Book of FI fin Rhymes. By "Norman." (Gay and Bird, 5s.) words and illustrations (which are by Carton Moore Park) are very fairly good, although there is little to distinguish them from numbers of similar verses and pictures.

notice, however, with pleasure the sparing use of colour and the tendency to keep what colour there is in dense masses, which are well throw up on the black -and -white backgrounds. Pictures for Little Fnglanders. By A. S. Forrest and Frank Green.

(Dean and 3s. small children who like gaily coloured pictures will be pleased with this book, but we cannot believe that patriotism, worthy of the name, can be taught by means of poor verses and illustrations which are but glorified editions of the penny-plain-and-twopence-coloured sheets which are hawked about the streets at the time of the Lord Mayor's Show. The Grimcrack Jin Alphabet. By Ingles Rhode. and Son, 3s; Mr.

Lear's famous Book of Nonsense, nonsense-making has been a kind of pastime, considered net unworthy of persons of even some literary skill. But the grower part of the verses are unredeemed foolishness, and they are showered upon us in such quantities that it is difficult to believe they can find a market. However, as iu the present instance, they sometimes form an excuse for some clever illustrations, ana the pictures in tho present volume are both clever and amusing, so much so as to lead us to regret that Mr. Rhode has not found better verse to illustrate Told in the Twilight. By Blanche McManus.

(Artlmr Pearson, 2s. McManus has taken somo famous om stories, such as "Undine," "Rip Van Winkle," and Whittington," and has retold them; other tales, such as iw Swineherd" and The Ugly Duckling," she has printed from an edition of Hans Andersen; ono or two have been, written for her by friends, and The Pied Piper "is Brownings poem complete. Altogether there are ten stones, ana MoManus has illustrate them with about the same number oi.