The Cumulative Book Review Digest Devoted to the Valuation of Current Literature Digests of reviews appearing in January—December 1905, magazines (continued 20)
Reading edition
“The development of the story is skilfully managed, the conversations as a rule are very entertaining, and the whole book has the touch of a bright, keen, thoroughly trained woman, not by nature a novelist, but able to turn her hand to the writing of fiction with unusual adroitness both of judgment and skill.”
+ + Outlook. 79: 707. Mr. 18, ‘05. 120w.
“Is unusually witty and readable.”
+ Outlook. 79: 772. Ap. 1, ‘05. 110w.
“The treatment meets the theme but half way. It ought to be a masterpiece and it is not.”
+ — Reader. 6: 243. Jl. ‘05. 200w.
Oppenheim, E. Phillips. Master mummer. †$1.50. Little.
A plotting archduchess hides her orphaned niece, direct heir to the family’s millions, away in a convent, and substitutes her own daughter’s claim to the fortune. By merest chance a young author living a struggling bohemian life becomes the protector of the unfortunate girl as she emerges into the world for a brief moment. His efforts are strongly seconded by the “master mummer” a great actor, who had loved the girl’s mother. Together they foil every attempt of the arch-plotters, and bring about well-merited happiness.
“It has an ingenious plot, and a steady stream of romantic and dramatic incident; he writes well, too, without exaggeration, and with pretty touches of sentiment. In construction, management, style, and variety of incident, we can recommend ‘The master mummer’ as one of the best stories of its kind that has appeared for some time.”
+ + Acad. 68: 420. Ap. 15, ‘05. 200w.
“The book has the exciting and the dramatic elements that will render it popular with a large class of readers who are less critical about the form, presentation and probability of a tale than they are about its absorbing interest.”
+ — Arena. 34: 217. Ag. ‘05. 840w.
— + Ath. 1905, 1: 492. Ap. 15. 240w.
“Not that there is anything extraordinary or remarkable or great or strong or wise or literary about it—it’s just a good story.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 365. Je. 3, ‘05. 470w.
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 392. Je. 17, ‘05. 140w.
“The story is frank melodrama, but is readable in its own particular line.”
+ Spec. 94: 754. My. 20, ‘05. 180w.
263Oppenheim, Edward Phillips. Mysterious Mr. Sabin. $1.50. Little.
Mr. Oppenheim’s former books, “A prince of sinners,” and “Anna, the adventuress,” as well as the present story, make an incognito personage the central figure. The mystery in each case is the sort to be dealt with non-professionally. The mysterious Mr. Sabin is an unscrupulous French royalist who aids the German government in a conspiracy of war against England. His part in the plot is that of securing valuable papers recording the coast defenses of England, for which services he demands Germany’s conquest of France, and the restoration of the monarchy in the person of Prince Henri and his cousin, Helene of Bourbon. The coveted papers are the guarded possession of an English admiral “partly crazed by the tragic destruction of the Victoria, but still so profoundly wise on naval matters and coast defenses that the spies of rival empires lay siege to a study in which he works at plans to save his country.” Princess Helene figures in a pretty romance which in spite of threatening intrigue keeps free from politics and diplomatic complications.
“It is one of the most clever mystery tales of recent years, abounding in highly dramatic situations, with a strong and well-sustained love interest. In the present story there are many situations and happenings that are highly improbable, and in some instances practically impossible. Barring this grave fault, however, the story is almost all that the lover of romantic fiction could desire.”
+ + — Arena. 33: 564. My. ‘05. 520w.
“We have the impression that the tale is, in fact, not a new one; however, it is not bad of its kind.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 102. F. 18, ‘05. 480w.
“The book has more thrills and less probability to the square inch of text than can be found anywhere outside the pages of a dime novel.”
+ — Pub. Opin. 38: 256. F. 18, ‘05. 280w.
“Skilful in plot.”
+ Reader. 5: 619. Ap. ‘05. 500w.
“It is all glaringly impossible, yet not without power or real fascination.”
+ — R. of Rs. 31: 757. Je. ‘05. 110w.
Oppenheim, Lassa. International law. *$6.50. Longmans.
This, the first of a two-volume treatise, deals with international law in time of peace. An introduction discussing the foundation and development of the law of nations is followed by four parts: States as subjects of the laws of nations; State territory, the open sea, and individuals as the objects of the laws of nations; Diplomatic envoys, and the like, as agents of states in their international relations; and International transactions. The work aims to be an elementary text.
“Taken all in all, Mr. Oppenheim has given us the best treatment of the Law of Peace that we have as yet had.” Leo S. Rowe.
+ + + Ann. Am. Acad. 26: 610. S. ‘05. 280w.
“The merit of the volume is that it presents a fair, well-balanced summary of accepted results, and that it puts the reader in touch with the best modern literature of the subject.”
+ + — Lond. Times. 4: 158. My. 19, ‘05. 450w.
Orcutt, William Dana. Flower of destiny: an episode of the second empire; with il. by Charlotte Weber. †$1.25. McClurg.
A charmingly told story of the romance of Napoleon III. and Mlle. Eugénie de Montijo which ends with the crown of violets in the forest of Compiégne.
+ + Dial. 38: 293. Je. 1, ‘05. 170w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 295. My. 6, ‘05. 280w.
“Altogether makes a pretty little gift to carry with one on a summer vacation.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 390. Je. 17, ‘05. 120w.
“A pretty romance.”
+ Outlook. 80: 391. Je. 10, ‘05. 30w.
“But great names of themselves do not make a story, and in ‘The flower of destiny’ we have little else to look to.”
— Reader. 6: 478. S. ‘05. 110w.
Orczy, Baroness. Scarlet pimpernel. †$1.50. Putnam.
“The Scarlet pimpernel is the leader of a little band of titled young Englishmen who make it their business—and pleasure—during the reign of terror to assist condemned or suspected emigrés to escape to England. An interesting complication arises when the young Frenchwoman married to the lazy, careless English lord finds that in putting the French agent on the trail of the scarlet pimpernel to save her brother’s life she has in reality condemned her husband to death. Of course, he doesn’t die, and of course they all, or most of all, lived happily ever after.”—Pub. Opin.
“A thrilling story.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 671. O. 14, ‘05. 300w.
+ Pub. Opin. 39: 506. O. 14, ‘05. 200w.
* “A melodramatic but picturesque and well told tale.”
+ Sat. R. 100: 315. S. 2, ‘05. 80w.
Osborn, Frank C. Osborn’s tables of moments of inertia and squares of radii gyration, to which have been added tables of the working strengths of steel columns, the working strengths of timber beams and columns, standard loads and unit stresses and constants for determining stresses in swing bridges. $3. Osborn eng. co., Cleveland, O.
A thoroly modernized edition based upon the work of fifteen years ago.
“Though it does not meet all the needs of the structural designer in its specific field, it promises to be a useful desk companion and to regain much of its former prestige.”
+ + — Engin. N. 53: 638. Je. 15, ‘05. 440w.
Osborn, Hartwell, and others. Trials and triumphs: the record of the Fifty-fifth Ohio volunteer infantry. *$2.50. McClurg.
“The Fifty-fifth Ohio was recruited in Huron county (of which Norwalk is the county-seat), after the reverses at Bull Run had stirred the North to greater efforts; it had its full share of the campaigns in Virginia, Tennessee, and Georgia, and of the terrible work at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. This is related with clearness and graphic power by Captain Osborn; and, besides the narrative, the book is unusually complete in regimental statistics, sketches of officers and citizens, and personal notes and recollections of soldiers. Photographs, both ‘wartime’ and modern, have been reproduced in profusion.”—Dial.
“The work is in every way a real contribution to the literature of the great struggle.”
+ + Dial. 38: 157. Mr. 1, ‘05. 210w.
“Its record presents a good picture of the most stirring events of the war. East and West.”
+ Nation. 80: 112. F. 9. ‘05. 390w.
“It is a book of incomparable interest to the veterans of the old command, of considerable value to historians, and not without interest also for the general reader.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 467. Jl. 15, ‘05. 1200w.
* Osbourne, Lloyd. Baby Bullet, the bubble of destiny. †$1.50. Appleton.
“Baby Bullet is a motor car, a fifteenth hand ‘crock’ of early French design, joyfully presented to two American ladies, a girl and a schoolmarm, who are discovered by the roadside wearily enjoying a tramp in England. The 264donor ... runs away lest his gift should be thrust back upon him. Baby is in a state of sulks, and the two Americans climb into her, and hire a carter to tow them behind a furniture van. At cross-roads they meet another car, a gigantic and glorious machine, with the power of sixty horses, unfortunately unavailable because her mécanicien has forgotten the gasolene.... The American owner of the big car borrows petrol from the American owners of the little, and tows them in exchange. The result is a week of wild romance and a thoroughly amusing book.”—Acad.
* “The light dexterous writing of the book pleases us like clever juggling.”
+ Acad. 68: 1231. N. 25, ‘05. 360w.
* “The narrative is ingeniously contrived and ought to appeal to a large public.”
+ Critic. 47: 579. D. ‘05. 60w.
* + Outlook. 81: 380. O. 14, ‘05. 80w.
* “The story abounds in slang and is neither exciting nor amusing.”
— Sat. R. 100: 689. N. 25, ‘05. 50w.
* “The narrative moves at a speed suitable to the subject, and the pitch of high-spirited comedy is never lowered.”
+ Spec. 95: 985. D. 9, ‘05. 200w.
Osbourne, Lloyd. Motormaniacs. †75c. Bobbs.
This little pocket-book contains four short love stories, in each of which an automobile is chief matchmaker. In the “Motormaniacs,” a break down brings the right man into the story opportunely, and in “The great bubble syndicate,” “Coal oil Johnny” and “Jones,” a Fearless, a Despereaux, and a Porchar-Mufflin car play important roles.
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 380. Je. 10, ‘05. 210w.
“Lively, ingenious, and amusing.”
+ Outlook. 80: 393. Je. 10, ‘05. 4w.
Osgood, Herbert Levi. American colonies in the 17th century. 2v. **$5. Macmillan.
“The first [volume] is given over to the abortive experiments of Gilbert and Raleigh in founding settlements in the New world, to the first proprietary province, Virginia, and to the corporate colonies of New England; the second, to the later proprietary provinces and to a systematic survey of the colonies as a whole, at the close of the period under discussion.”—Outlook.
“In the main, however, the difficulties of the book are of a kind almost inevitable from the nature of the topic chosen, and the serious reader will find it not only instructive, but full of interest. For the student of our institutional beginnings, Professor Osgood has provided one of the few treatises which are really indispensable.” Evarts B. Greene.
+ + Ann. Am. Acad. 25: 149. Ja. ‘05. 1530w.
“Method of presentation and clarity of statement are other commendatory traits.”
+ + Outlook. 79: 754. Mr. 25, ‘05. 2380w.
O’Shea, Michael Vincent. Education as adjustment: educational theory viewed in the light of contemporary thought. *$1.50. Longmans.
“This new work, which is centered around the idea of adjustment, is divided into three parts. In Part I. the present status of education as a science is faithfully described.... The last chapter of Part I. treats of the data for a science of education, discussing the respective values of the various classes of facts contributed by the study of biographies, autobiographies, and the survival of the fittest in education, as well as by the experimentation and research advocated by sane leaders in the child-study movement. Especially valuable is the section which explains the evolutionary point of view.... Part II. examines the meaning and aim of education.... Chapters VI., VII., and VIII. of Part II. deal respectively with the implications of adjustment as the end in education, with adjustment as affected by social organization, and with the general effect of adjustment upon teaching.... The method of obtaining adjustment is treated in Part III.... Chapters XIII. and XIV. are devoted to the doctrine of formal discipline.”—Educ. R.
“Looked at as a whole, ‘Education as adjustment’ does not reveal marked originality; but it is a luminous and vigorous presentation of the best educational thought of the present day. It is, furthermore, refreshing in that it betrays neither superficiality nor dogmatism. His work, tho written in untechnical, popular language, is, nevertheless, neither inane nor inaccurate. It is worthy of occupying a valued place among the text-books used in normal schools and college schools of education.” W. S. Sutton.
+ + + Educ. R. 29: 191. F. ‘05. 1610w.
Osler, William. Aequanimitas, and other addresses to medical students, nurses, practitioners. *$2. Blakiston.
A collection of 18 addresses and essays all pertaining to medicine. The title gives the keynote to the volume, the successful nurse or doctor must be imperturbable. Dr. Osler gives a review of medical science in the nineteenth century, and his thoughts on education, investigation, ethics, religion, and the conduct of life. He gives advice to young physicians, suggestions as to their relations to both patients and nurses, and tells them that the master-word of progress is “Work.”
“Dr. Osler’s extensive sympathy, his elevation of thought, his insistence on worthy ideals, his wide reading are all strikingly exhibited in the volume before us.”
+ + Cath. World. 81: 546. Jl. ‘05. 1060w.
“The style of Dr. Osler is most felicitous; and those who think they care but little for the professional aspect of this volume, will be charmed by its graceful expressions, its acute suggestions, its thorough good sense.”
+ + Nation. 80: 193. Mr. 9, ‘05. 1600w.
Osler, William. Science and immortality. **85c. Houghton.
The frankly agnostic spirit of modern “intellectuals” dealt with in this volume is best summed up by quotations from the text itself: “Though his philosophy find nothing to support it, ... the scientific student should be ready to acknowledge the value of a belief in the hereafter as an asset in human life.... He cannot be dogmatic and deny the possibility of a future state, ... he will ask to be left, reserving his judgment, but still inquiring.... Science is organized knowledge, and knowledge is of things we see. Now the things that are seen are temporal: of the things that are unseen science knows nothing, and has at present no means of knowing anything.”
“The simple and charming style of the writer, as well as his apt quotations from the masters, makes this book a delight to read.”
+ — Am. J. of Theol. 9: 400. Ap. ‘05. 200w.
Reviewed by E. T. B.
+ Atlan. 95: 138. Ja. ‘05. 320w.
Reviewed by H. B. Alexander.
Bookm. 21: 521. Jl. ‘05. 960w.
“The importance of this little book is quite out of proportion to its size. He writes with evident honesty. It is a crystallized statement of much that had been in solution, as it were, heretofore; it makes us know where the majority of modern scientists stand with regard to the only matters that they themselves consider more important than science itself.”
+ + Cath. World. 80: 816. Mr. ‘05. 1450w.
“The argument is not of the strenuous sort; the words flow gently and naturally, as they expose the mellowed thought of a mature and reverent mind.” T. D. A. Cockerell.
+ Dial. 38: 87. F. 1, ‘05. 380w.
“The brief pages of this lecture are of delightful literary charm and of great interest 265as indicating the trend of present thought on the subject of the future life.”
+ + Ind. 58: 1072. My. 11, ‘05. 260w.
+ Reader. 5: 786. My. ‘05. 210w.
Osterhout, Winthrop John Van Leuven. Experiments with plants; with a preface by L. H. Bailey. *$1.25. Macmillan.
In this convenient handbook “Professor Osterhout of the University of California has given us hints for the experimental study of living-plants by means of the very simplest apparatus ... and suggests innumerable contrivances which are to be made off-hand in any house, and with which the plant can be severely cross-examined.... It is one of the most helpful laboratory handbooks, and it deserves wide employment in all classes of plant-laboratories.” (Nation.)
“On the whole we may commend it as one of the very best of its class, and in some respects in advance of any similar book known to us. An excellent index adds to its value.”
+ + + Ath. 1905, 2: 84. Jl. 15. 500w.
“The book on the whole will be most valuable for teachers of botany in high schools.”
+ + Ind. 59: 270. Ag. 3, ‘05. 110w.
“The text is, for the greater part, extremely clear and interesting, and needed only rather better illustrations to come into the very first rank of attractive text-books.”
+ + — Nation. 80: 414. My. 25, ‘05. 240w.
“In spite of some faults, the book will be found of value to anyone compelled to give a course of physiological botany under conditions which preclude the use of ordinary laboratory fittings.”
+ + — Nature. 72: 364. Ag. 17, ‘05. 460w.
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 538. Ag. 19, ‘05. 230w.
Ottley, Rev. Robert Lawrence. Religion of Israel: a historical sketch. *$1. Macmillan.
“The main strength of Canon Ottley’s contribution to the now voluminous literature on the subject lies in his able and earnest effort to harmonize modern theory with church tradition.... The chapters ... likely to be read with some special eagerness are those on ‘The primitive religion of the Semites,’ ‘The contact of Judaism with Hellenism,’ and ‘The final stage in pre-Christian Judaism.’”—Ath.
“Those belonging to the author’s school of thought—and their number is very considerable—will, however, maintain that the good points of the book far outweigh its drawbacks. We are ourselves able to commend it as an earnest and serious contribution to a perplexing and deeply interesting problem.”
+ + — Ath. 1905, 2: 239. Ag. 19. 430w.
“There is no work in English which tells in such brief compass the story of Israel’s faith from Moses to the Pharisees with such painstaking loyalty to establish fact.”
+ + + Ind. 59: 876. O. 12, ‘05. 310w.
* “A compact, semi-popular account of the development of Hebrew religion, as understood by a cautious and moderate critic.”
+ Ind. 59: 1160. N. 16, ‘05. 20w.
“It is well drawn and puts much into a small volume in clear as well as concise form.”
+ + Outlook. 80: 886. Ag. 5, ‘05. 130w.
“The compiling is well done, and for a popular sketch of Old Testament theology we do not know of anything better.”
+ + Sat. R. 100: 188. Ag. 5, ‘05. 150w.
“His exposition is in fact an admirable specimen of the higher criticism, exercised with discretion by one who is neither fettered by traditional beliefs, nor bent, as some of the critical school seem to be, on breaking with them altogether. We are not always in agreement with the conclusions reached.”
+ + — Spec. 94: 900. Je. 17, ‘05. 120w.
Ottman, Rev. Ford C. Unfolding of the ages in the Revelation of John. **$2. Baker.
Written in an expository style, conciliatory rather than controversial, this work upon Revelation throws a new light upon the symbolism of the book. The author accepts and advocates the theory that “everything from the fourth chapter to the end of the book is still future and will follow the removal of the church from the earth at the appearing of our Lord.”
— Outlook. 80: 395. Je. 10, ‘05. 310w.
Pub. Opin. 39: 60. Jl. 8, ‘05. 130w.
* Our best society. †$1.50. Putnam.
“This story narrates the adventures among the rich, vain, and reasonably well-cultivated of New York of a young writer and his nice wife, and contains vivid and veracious pictures of the dinner party, the coaching party, the theatre party, and many other ‘social functions,’ glimpses of literary, artistic, and dramatic ‘sets,’ with a study of the manners of a mannerless age, and a hint or two of its morals.”—N. Y. Times.
* “This is not a great novel, nor even a good one, but it counts because the author has caught the real levity of mannerism in that filmy world.”
+ Ind. 59: 1151. N. 16, ‘05. 110w.
* “Another book in which the comedy of contemporary American society is adroitly set forth and in a unhackneyed way.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 656. O. 7, ‘05. 180w.
* “A certain skill and comprehension of the situation is evidently possessed by the anonymous author.”
+ Outlook. 81: 429. O. 21, ‘05. 100w.
Our holidays; their meaning and spirit. *65c. Century.
This group of stories belongs to the “Historical stories” retold from St. Nicholas. Beginning with All-hallow-eve, each holiday is taken up in turn, with both its historical and present day significance emphasized.
* + N. Y. Times. 10: 761. N. 11, ‘05. 60w.
* Outram, James. In the heart of the Canadian Rockies. **$3. Macmillan.
“Mr. Outram has the remarkable record of nineteen ‘first ascents’ of peaks among the Canadian Rockies, including the highest mountain in Canada yet conquered by the mountaineer. He describes his experiences among these majestic peaks with the enthusiasm that might be expected of so experienced a mountain-climber.”—Outlook.
* “Mr. Outram certainly has had some unusual adventures amid the Selkirks and Rockies, which he described with animation and a genuine command of professional terminology.”
+ + Nation. 81: 485. D. 14, ‘05. 550w.
* + N. Y. Times. 10: 753. N. 4, ‘05. 220w.
* + Outlook. 81: 941. D. 16, ‘05. 50w.
Overton, Gwendolen. Captains of the world. †$1.50. Macmillan.
The relations of labor and capital form the basis of this story in which appear “The young mechanic who becomes a leader of trades-unions; the lovely daughter of the plutocrat mill-owner, who cannot marry the Italian prince and fortune-hunter because the remembrance of the mechanic haunts her; the contrasted pictures of boundless wealth and the misery of the poor strikers and their families on the brink of starvation.” (Critic.)
“There is nothing in this book that can be called original in matter or effective in manner.”
— Critic. 46: 94. Ja. ‘05. 130w.
266“This underworld of labor among the iron furnaces, this moneyed aristocracy, so resentful of its origin, so tenacious of its position, are etched in with keenness and delicacy. Such books as this, with their sympathetic comprehension, absence of rancor or partisan bias, make for a better understanding and ultimate peace.”
+ + Reader. 5: 624. Ap. ‘05. 520w.
* Oxley, James MacDonald. Family on wheels; adapted from the French by J. M. Oxley. †75c. Crowell.
Four interesting French children left orphans, with a mountebank’s wagon, an old horse, a trick dog and a remarkably clever elephant as their sole possessions, bravely continue the business of their father, and give little performances in one little provincial town after another to earn a scant living. They meet with many adventures and suffer many hardships, but in the end the happiness of all seems assured. The children are plucky little things thruout, the dog and the elephant are heroic, and the hearts of both young and old readers will go out to them all.
* “An odd and attractive story.”
+ Nation. 81: 450. N. 30, ‘05. 90w.
* “A readable story.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 895. D. 16, ‘05. 100w.
* “A story, tender, humorous, pathetic, carrying the charm of the French from which it is adapted, and appealing to any child or adult interested in animals.”
+ Outlook. 81: 576. N. 4, ‘05. 60w.
* + R. of Rs. 32: 765. D. ‘05. 60w.
P
Page, Curtis Hidden, ed. British poets of the nineteenth century. $2. Sanborn.
Selections from Wordsworth, Coleridge, Scott, Byron, Shelley, Keats, Landor, Tennyson, the Brownings, Clough, Arnold, Rossetti, Morris, and Swinburne. There are also classified “reference lists” indicating for each poet the various editions of his works, and all biographies and important essays.
* + Critic. 47: 574. D. ‘05. 100w.
“The selections are very full and for the most part complete poems. They are designed to give the best of each poet’s work and to give some representation of each important period and class of his work. Selected such poems as would be prescribed for a college student.”
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 11. Ja. 7, ‘05. 330w.
* Page, Curtis Hidden, ed. Chief American poets: selected poems by Bryant, Poe, Emerson, Longfellow, Whittier, Holmes, Lowell, Whitman, and Lanier. *$1.75. Houghton.
“This volume, Mr. Page tells us, is in no sense an anthology ... it ‘attempts to give, for each one of the authors included, all the material needed to show his development and achievement, and to give a first knowledge of him as man and poet.’ The selection therefore, has been made very full, and includes many poems of considerable length.... The poems of each author are arranged in chronological order and dated. Brief biographical sketches present a summary of each author’s life, and there are notes and reference lists.”—Outlook.
* “A book to be heartily commended for small home libraries.”
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 764. N. 11, ‘05. 150w.
* “The whole work done with thorough intelligence and good taste.”
+ + Outlook. 81: 680. N. 18, ‘05. 120w.
Page, Curtis Hidden, ed. See Rabelais, Francois.
Page, Thomas Nelson. Negro: the southerner’s problem. **$1.25. Scribner.
“Mr. Page believes that there are only two possible ways to solve the negro question in the South—either the negro must be removed, or he must be elevated. Granted that the former method is out of the question, it only remains to improve him by education.... The old idea of educating the negro just as a white man is educated ... has been found to be fallacious. The kind of education that Mr. Page advocates for the negro is, in brief, just the kind that is given by such institutions as Tuskegee and Hampton.”—R. of Rs.
Ann. Am. Acad. 25: 343. Mr. ‘05. 240w.
“A book the central interest of which is psychological rather than scientific.” W. E. Burghardt Du Bois.
+ — Dial. 38: 315. My. 1, ‘03. 1850w.
“The book shows neither depth of thought nor thoroughness of research, but is chiefly notable as the portrayal of the well-known views of the less liberal leaders of the South with high authority and great literary skill.”
+ — Ind. 58: 556. Mr. 9, ‘05. 860w.
“We do not doubt his wish to deal candidly with his subject, but we are forced to the conclusion that he lacks the unbiased mind which would enable him to do so. His statements are too sweeping, and are not supported in all cases by the actual facts, as has, we believe, been shown.” Isabel Eaton.
— Int. J. Ethics. 15 :518. Jl. ‘05. 2130w.
“Mr. Page’s book is honest, kindly, and, barring a few extravagances, moderate.”
+ + — Nation. 81: 280. O. 5, ‘05. 1320w.
“A temperate discussion of the race question from a southerner’s point of view.”
+ + R. of Rs. 31: 127. Ja. ‘05. 130w.
Paget, Violet. See Lee, Vernon, pseud.
* Paine, Albert Bigelow. Little garden calendar for boys and girls. $1. Altemus.
“A chatty and truthful account of many of the most interesting phases of plant-life. The subject of dispersal and its advantages, of movements, and of pollination and the like, are briefly and well-treated. The account of the servants which work for the flower is admirably presented.” (Nation.) “The book is arranged according to the calendar, and the illustrations are from photographs especially made for each chapter.” (Critic.)
* + Critic. 47: 576. D. ‘05. 40w.
* Dial. 39: 46. Jl. 16, ‘05. 40w.
* + Nation. 81: 340. O. 26, ‘05. 190w.
Paine, Albert Bigelow. Thomas Nast. $5. Macmillan.
This account of the life and times of “The father of the American cartoon,” illustrated with hundreds of his drawings, is virtually a political history of our country during the Civil war, and for twenty years after.
“It is a story full of striking incident and human interest, skilfully unrolling the picturesque career of a genius who had within him the potentialities of an American Hogarth.” Chas. H. Levermore.
+ + Am. Hist. R. 10: 907. Jl. ‘05. 740w.
“In this life of Nast, Mr. Paine has evinced excellent judgment and wise discrimination; yet the work is characterized by that genuine sympathy that is one of the requisites of a good biography. It is a valuable work.”
+ + Arena. 33: 335. Mr. ‘05. 850w.
“Mr. Paine’s book is an exceptionally good piece of work. He has not attempted a minute personal biography; he has given a series of striking pictures, which enable one to look over Nast’s shoulder, so to speak, and to study at 267close range some of the most stirring periods in the history of the nation and of New York city.” A. B. Maurice.
+ Bookm. 20: 458. Ja. ‘05. 2850w.
“Paine has told of his life and described his struggles in a manner worthy of the subject.”
+ + Critic. 46: 92. Ja. ‘05. 130w.
“It covers the artist’s life in a thorough and interesting way, and is adequately illustrated.” Ingram A. Pyle.
+ + Dial. 38: 318. My. 1, ‘05. 1930w.
“The author is an enthusiast, and must be followed in the light of his enthusiasm. In narrating the history of the caricaturist, he follows that of his own times, and in this way has made, for anyone who desires to understand the United States from 1860 to 1896, not only a very entertaining, but a very useful volume.”
+ + Nation. 80: 141. F. 16, ‘05. 810w.
“There is more history than biography in the attractive volume.”
+ + R. of Rs. 31: 248. F. ‘05. 130w.
Palmer, A. Emerson. New York public school. *$1. Macmillan.
A history of free education in the city of New York, authorized by the board of education and written by its secretary. The book celebrates the centenary of the founding of the New York free school system and the proceeds are to go to the public school teachers’ retirement fund. The history of the free school society and of the public school society which succeeded it in 1826 are given, also an account of other schools, all of which were finally merged into the existing system. The story of the establishment and success of school libraries is told in detail. There are portraits, illustrations, and an introduction by Seth Low.
“The book meets a distinct need.” Henry Davidson Sheldon.
+ Dial. 38: 270. Ap. 16, ‘05. 170w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 148. Mr. 11, ‘05. 1730w. (Abstract of contents.)
R. of Rs. 31: 511. Ap. ‘05. 80w.
Palmer, Frederick. With Kuroki in Manchuria. **$1.50. Scribner.
The author, a newspaper correspondent of experience in Eastern campaigns, writes an account of his five months in the field. The book is dedicated to the Japanese infantry and their skill and readiness, and contrasted with the Russian war methods. The volume is illustrated by numerous photographs.
“His entire book is vividly written, and will be found as informing as it is interesting in its accounts of the actual fighting.” W. Rice.
+ + Dial. 38: 9. Ja. 1, ‘05. 460w.
“It is fascinating, this collection of field letters. This truthful and vivid portrayal is delightful.”
+ + + Nation. 80: 14. Ja. 5, ‘05. 1630w.
Palmer, William T. English lakes. *$6. Macmillan.
Fifteen English lakes “ranging from the lordly Windermere and Ullswater, ten and a half and nine miles long, respectively, to Loweswater and Rydalmere, which hardly exceed the larger tarns in area” are reproduced here. The seventy-five illustrations in color produce a panorama effect which is heightened by the descriptive matter of the text.
* + Acad. 68: 911. S. 2, ‘05. 170w.
“Mr. Palmer has written with taste and with commendable reserve in distinguishing between poetic feeling and sentimentalism.”
+ + Outlook. 81: 278. S. 30, ‘05. 150w.
* “One finds a good deal of pleasure of a certain kind in turning over his pages, if also some irritation.”
+ — Spec. 95: 759. N. 11, ‘05. 1260w.
Paret, Jahlal Parmly. Lawn tennis. **$2. Macmillan.
This article, by the foremost American authority on the game, contains a history of tennis itself and of the leading players here and abroad. It gives technical instruction, from the first rudiments to the most advanced theories, and treats of the care of courts and management of tournaments. There is a chapter on lacrosse by William H. Madden. The volume is copiously illustrated.
“This is one of the best-written and most scientific treatises on lawn-tennis that we have yet had, and forms a suitable companion to similar works by Mr. Eustace Miles, Mr. H. W. Wilberforce, and Mr. W. Baddeley.”
+ + + Ath. 1905, 2: 272. Ag. 26. 1050w.
“Will be valuable to every player of the game.”
+ + Ind. 58: 1253. Je. 1, ‘05. 30w.
“A treatise which will be heartily welcomed by all lovers of this healthy game.”
+ + Nature. 71: 436. Mr. 9, ‘05. 280w.
“Knows the conditions of play in this country and abroad equally well. While Mr. Paret’s statement that lawn tennis may be taught nearly as well by written instruction as by personal direction may be seriously questioned, his remarks on the strategy of the game and the physical training for big matches are full of common sense and instruction that apply equally well to other forms of exercise.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 84. F. 11, ‘05. 1110w. (Survey of contents.)
“Mr. Paret who is an authority on tennis, treats of the past, present, and future of the sport.”
+ R. of Rs. 31: 255. F. ‘05. 70w.
* Parker, Edward Harper. China and religion. **$3.50. Dutton.
“This history of religion in China has the merit of being both critical and impartial.... The story of the imported religions—Christianity in various forms, Buddhism, Mohammedanism, Judaism—is sketched in successive chapters, and lastly Shintoism ... which the Japanese are now endeavoring to introduce.... Towards missionaries, of whom Americans now constitute the majority if only Protestants are counted, Professor Parker’s attitude is both respectful and critical, but full value is assigned to their medical, charitable, and educational work.”—Outlook.
* “Prof. Parker’s book is a storehouse of learning; it is free from bigotry, and contains a fair and honest statement of what the relations of the Chinese have been and are towards foreign religions.”
+ + Ath. 1905, 2: 603. N. 4, 920w.
* “As the fruit of scholarly research pursued in a sympathetic spirit, this history, most timely for the present interest in the now beginning renaissance of China, should command the attention of those who would understand the past which it builds upon.”
+ Outlook. 81: 680. N. 18, ‘05. 200w.
Parmele, Mary Platt. Short history of Russia. *$1. Scribner.
A new edition of this history of a great power which brings the account down to June, 1904 and the siege of Port Arthur. It contains a good index and a list of the princes of Russia from Rurik to Nicholas II.
N. Y. Times. 10: 310. My. 13, ‘05. 240w.
* Parrish, Randall. Historic Illinois: the romance of the earlier days. **$2. McClurg.
Mr. Parrish’s hope has been to provide a readable, interesting history of Illinois, emphasizing the picturesque phases that would appeal to the reader in a popular sense. He has related the adventures of such men as La Salle, Henri 268de Tonty and George Rogers Clarke, depicted the struggles with the Indians, traced the history of old landmarks, and brought his narrative down to the coming of the railroad, concluding with a chapter on “Historic spots as they appear to-day.”
Parrish, Randall. Sword of the old frontier: a tale of Fort Chartres and Detroit. †$1.50. McClurg.
A “plain account of sundry adventures befalling Chevalier Raoul de Coubert, one time captain in the Hussars of Languedoc, during the year 1763,” in which he gallantly draws his sword for France and his English lady-love in the stirring times of Pontiac’s conspiracy. Meeting with treachery from both white men and red, he takes desperate chances, escapes from his enemies and wins honor, wealth, and love.
* + Critic. 47: 579. D. ‘05. 20w.
Parsons, Ellen C. Christus liberator. **30c. Macmillan.
There have been four preceding volumes in this missionary text book series. “In this course an Introduction to the Study of Missions and Outline Studies of India, China and Japan have already been issued and studied.” This volume is an outline study of Africa. “Sir Harry Johnston furnishes an introductory sketch of the geography, races, and history of the Dark Continent, while the body of the book is devoted to an account of the rise and progress of Protestant missions in the several countries.”
“Concise, well written and readable book.”
+ + Ind. 59: 875. O. 12, ‘05. 450w.
“It is necessarily cursory, but it is certainly comprehensive. The good example of the book remains even when the English student has noted such occasional lapses.”
+ + — Lond. Times. 4: 325. O. 6, ‘05. 410w.
“A useful handbook, containing much information in a compact and readable form.”
+ + Nation. 81: 219. S. 14, ‘05. 130w.
“We recommend these volumes as especially valuable for the members of Christian Endeavor societies, and for pastoral use by ministers endeavoring to awaken in their churches an intelligent interest in Christian missions.”
+ + Outlook. 80: 789. Jl. 22, ‘05. 220w.
+ Spec. 95: 435. S. 23, ‘05. 220w.
Paston, George, pseud. See Symonds, E. M.
Pattee, Fred Lewis. House of the black ring. $1.50. Holt.
A story centred around a mysterious log cabin in a valley among the Seven mountains. The valley is owned by a tyrant squire and farmed by sturdy Pennsylvania Dutchmen. The squire’s daughter, the first to thwart her father’s will, falls in love with the son of a new-comer to the valley, whose business enterprise threatens the squire’s undisputed sway. There is hard feeling, and there is murder, but all is made clear by the discovery of a cave under the cabin, and in the happiness of the squire’s daughter the traditional curse of “the house of the black ring” is lifted.
Reviewed by Frederic Taber Cooper.
+ — Bookm. 21: 600. Ag. ‘05. 230w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 251. Ap. 15, ‘05. 210w.
“It is not from the literary side an artistic book, but it at least may be described as both readable and amusing.”
+ — Outlook. 79: 1059. Ap. 29, ‘05. 90w.
Patterson, Charles Brodie. Measure of a man. $1.20. Funk.
An optimistic message of good will to all men, basing its cheer upon the supposition that in the great economy of the universe nothing is lost. Mr. Patterson discusses, in part 1, the “natural,” the “rational,” the “psychic,” and the “spiritual” man. In part II, he considers the Son of man “as man,” “as idealist,” “as teacher,” and “as healer,” in the last division giving the philosophy and therapy of mental healing.
“It may be said to represent his ripest thought and to epitomize in a remarkably clear and comprehensible manner the philosophy, ethics and therapy contained in his preceding books.”
+ + Arena. 34: 108. Jl. ‘05. 1320w.
Paul, Herbert Woodfield. History of modern England. 5v. ea. **$2.50. Macmillan.
This is a political history of England and its relations with the rest of the world, beginning with the last Whig government of 1846. Volumes 1 and 2 bring the story down to the death of Lord Palmerston, Oct. 18, 1865. Volume 3 deals with the eleven years following, covering important administrations of Gladstone and Disraeli, and closing on the eve of the crisis in the East, 1876.
+ + Acad. 68: 463. Ap. 29, ‘05. 1240w. (Review of Vol. III.)
“It is clear, vigorous, and direct. Its movement is rapid, its interest seldom lags. It is preëminently readable, and, as a natural corollary, highly entertaining. His opinions and especially his estimates of character are often improbable, not infrequently absurd. This, as has been said, will probably remain the most serious criticism of a book in most other ways excellent. Such work as that of Mr. Paul may not be judged by the standards of final and definitive statement.” Wilbur C. Abbott.
+ + — Am. Hist. R. 10: 430. Ja. ‘05. 1810w. (Review of v. 1 and 2.)
“On the whole, matters become of importance to the author when they rise above the political horizon, and too often not till then. Mr. Paul’s vigor seems unimpaired thus far ... his courage seems tempered somewhat more by discretion, and his politics diluted with somewhat more of those matters which find little place in Parliamentary debate or Times editorial.” Wilbur C. Abbott.
+ + — Am. Hist. R. 11: 161. O. ‘05. 860w. (Review of v. 3.)
“Though written with the ability and impartiality of its predecessors, it is not so well proportioned.”
+ + — Ath. 1905, 2: 10. Jl. 1. 1050w. (Review of v. 3.)
“There is no reason to suppose that Mr. Paul could not have done better work, had he chosen.” Edward Fuller.
— — Bookm. 21: 608. Ag. ‘05. 840w. (Review of v. 3.)
“Here, much more than in the earlier volumes, he offers valuable characterizations of activities and of men not wholly concerned with the purely political field.” E. D. Adams.
+ + + Dial. 39: 90. Ag. 16, ‘05. 890w. (Review of v. 3.)
“Generally speaking, he has impartiality and insight, and his survey of a group of historic facts, more especially of a social or religious movement, is often just and penetrating.”
+ + — Ind. 59: 39. Jl. 6, ‘05. 680w. (Review of v. 1-3.)
“A most charming style. His book is exceedingly good reading.”
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 291. My. 6, ‘05. 900w. (Review of v. 3.)
* + + N. Y. Times. 10: 883. D. 9, ‘05. 290w. (Review of v. 4.)
“The third volume now at hand, exhibits the characteristics of its predecessors. The charmingly incisive, direct, easy, and epigrammatic style, the vivid informativeness, the detachment, the liberality of judgment which distinguished them are apparent. The treatment, too, remains the same, with all its virtues and its defects.”
+ + — Outlook. 80: 880. Ag. 5, ‘05. 1980w. (Review of v. 3.)
“On the whole, it is an invaluable political history of the past sixty years.”
+ + R. of Rs. 32: 509. O. ‘05. 120w. (Review of v. 3.)
269“We do not know where else to find so good a narrative of domestic politics from 1865 to 1876. If it is rarely deep, it is never dull; if it is occasionally bitter, it is almost always impartial.”
+ + — Spec. 94: 674. My. 6, ‘05. 1630w. (Review of v. 3.)
Payne, William Morton, ed. American literary criticism. See Wampum library of American literature. v. 2.
Peace congress. Official report of the thirteenth universal peace congress, held at Boston, Massachusetts, U. S. A., Oct. 3 to 8, 1904; reported by W: edited by the secretary of the congress. pa. n.p. Peace congress committee (B. F. Trueblood, sec’y), Boston.
A stenographic report of the proceedings of the Universal peace congress, Oct. 3-8, 1904, including the addresses given in Boston and a brief résumé of the numerous successful and influential meetings held after its close in several cities. An account of the preceding peace congresses, not only of those held in the modern series beginning 1889, but also of the remarkable series of conferences held from 1843 to 1853 is prefixed.
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 160. Mr. 11, ‘05. 100w.
Peake, Elmore Elliott. House of Hawley. †$1.50. Appleton.
The story of a family in southern Illinois which had remained true to the Union, but was southern in all its traditions. The heroine has to contend against the whole connection and their prejudices in order to marry a young Republican lawyer. Her grandfather, Major Elias, head of the family, his quiet wife, and their lazy son are lifelike, their southern ways are well pictured; and descriptions of such things as a chase with blood hounds after a negro house-breaker, a negro barn dance, and an electioneering expedition with Chicago politicians, add greatly to the interest and the atmosphere of the book.
“A careful picture of average life in a small town in southern Illinois, drawn with a loving accuracy of minor detail, and pleasantly aglow with local color, both physical and social. A skillful touch. There is a wholesome womanliness about Mr. Peake’s heroines that makes them seem very convincing. Most of the men, however, impress one as rather poor specimens of humanity.”
+ Bookm. 21: 181. Ap. ‘05. 410w.
“The book fails of greatness because the plot is too slight and does not trouble the deep places that exist in the life of every town, however isolated; nor does it ruffle the soul of the reader.”
— + Ind. 59: 392. Ag. 17, ‘05. 250w.
“The interest of the book lies not in the story, but in descriptive passages. The story, if it shows no particular art or invention, it remains true that it is about the sort of thing which would have been likely to happen in the place where the author has chosen to plant it.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 141. Mr. 4, ‘05. 550w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 392. Je. 17, ‘05. 130w.
+ Outlook. 79: 503. F. 25, ‘05. 110w.
Pease, Edward R. Case for municipal drink trade. P. S. King & son.
“The argument for the municipalization of the liquor traffic is here set forth as follows: The system of licensing does not stand the tests of efficiency, consequently some drastic reform is called for; high license is incomplete and politically impracticable; local veto is wrong in principle and likely to be futile in practice; municipalization is the only other method suggested.”—J. Pol. Econ.
Reviewed by I. W. Howerth.
+ + J. Pol. Econ. 13: 137. D. ‘04. 140w. (States argument of book.)
Pease, George William. Outline of a Bible-school curriculum. *$1.50. Univ. of Chicago press.
“Those who are interested in raising the standard of biblical instruction in this country will find ... many valuable suggestions. In this book there are outlines for reading and study courses for the kindergarten and primary grades, as well as for the junior, intermediate and senior departments.”—R. of Rs.
“The most exhaustive study of this subject that has yet appeared. Predominantly from the psychological point of view, but with careful study also of the biblical side.”
+ + + Bib. World. 25: 160. F. ‘05. 30w.
“This book will prove of great practical service to many Sunday-school teachers because it is specific, and should be suggestive to students of religious education because of its scope and detail. It is too timely not to be read now.” Richard Morse Hodge.
+ + Bib. World. 25: 376. My. ‘05. 880w.
“Any one desirous of pursuing independent lessons with a class of any grade would find help in these outlines.”
+ Ind. 58: 1012. My. 4, ‘05. 70w.
“Its value lies rather in its application of an intelligent educational philosophy to a concrete and apparently practical scheme.”
+ + Outlook. 79: 144. Ja. 14, ‘05. 340w.
“The book is fully in line with the principles and methods advocated by the Religious education association.”
+ + R. of Rs. 31: 254. F. ‘05. 80w.
“The minute topical references will be of great help to any serious Sunday school teacher.”
+ + School R. 13: 653. O. ‘05. 60w.
* Peck, Ellen Brainerd. Songs by the sedges. $1. Badger, R: G.
A little volume of verse which sings of old-fashioned gardens and fields, of rosemary and bitter-sweet, and of the minuet and the spinet. There is a time-long-ago atmosphere to many of the poems.
Peck, Harry Thurston. William Hickling Prescott. **75c. Macmillan.
This study of Prescott gives an account of the historian’s life and personality and a criticism of his works. An opening chapter treats of “The New England historians,” then follow biographical chapters based largely upon the letters and memoranda contained in Ticknor’s “Life of Prescott,” and a discussion of Prescott’s work and its merits.
“A volume seemingly of no distinctive merit.”
+ — Am. Hist. R. 10: 935. Jl. ‘05. 50w.
“With the exception of his introductory chapter, Professor Peck has produced, it seems to me, an excellent biographical and critical account of ... the accomplished author of ‘The conquest of Mexico.’ Here and there a careless sentence may be found as well as a trivial error or two.” W. P. Trent.
+ + — Bookm. 21: 382. Je. ‘05. 1260w.
“It is of real interest for its discussion of the historical accuracy and permanent value of his works.”
+ + Critic. 47: 283. S. ‘05. 90w.
“Professor Peck writes of Prescott pleasantly and in his usual popular vein.”
+ + Ind. 58: 1128. My. 18, ‘05. 130w.
“His view of Prescott strictly as a writer ... is concise, clear, and judicious. The introductory chapter, on the literary history of the country, is to say the least, eccentric.”
+ + — Nation. 80: 489. Je. 15, ‘05. 450w.
“For the most part his narrative is plain pedestrian ‘copy’ quite lacking in the distinction which the author praises in the historian, equally lacking in ‘fire’ and the ‘intimate touch.’”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 322. My. 20, ‘05. 1420w.
270“Now and again Dr Peck allows an excess of enthusiasm to overpower his judgment, but, as a rule, he is discriminating.”
+ + — Outlook. 80: 248. My. 27, ‘05. 260w.
+ Pub. Opin. 39: 94. Jl. 15, ‘05. 250w.
R. of Rs. 31: 766. Je. ‘05. 150w.
Peck, Theodora. Hester of the Grants: a romance of Old Bennington. †$1.50. Fox.
Revolutionary times in the Green mountain state when it was a part of the so-called Hampshire Grants furnish the setting of this story whose incidents center mainly about Bennington. A real flesh and blood girl patriot, quite as daring as the usual historical novel heroine but a bit more winsome is the leading spirit, while a turn coat father, two despicable soldier lovers and one gallant one, General Stark, and Ethan and Ira Allen figure prominently.
“A panorama of the times which deserves careful reading and much commendation.”
+ + Dial. 38: 392. Je. 1, ‘05. 160w.
+ Ind. 59: 395. Ag. 17, ‘05. 60w.
“We are persuaded that she has it in her to write a book well worth the reading, which, despite its merits, ‘Hester of the Grants’ is not.”
— N. Y. Times. 10: 380. Je. 10, ‘05. 300w.
“On the whole is a very good story of its kind.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 391. Je. 17, ‘05. 90w.
“The author has opened one of the most dramatic pages in American history, and adorned it with a picture worthy of the text.”
+ Reader. 6: 359. Ag. ‘05. 310w.
Peckham, George Williams, and Peckham, Elizabeth Gifford. Wasps, social and solitary; with an introd. by John Burroughs. **$1.50. Houghton.
Mr. Peckham and his wife have made a close study of the lives, habits, intelligence, and individuality of wasps, and they tell about their investigations in a way that is none the less instructive because it is interesting.
“The book has good and vivid illustrations, but it would have been better if the actual size of the insects had been indicated in every case.”
+ + — Acad. 68: 743. Jl. 15, ‘05. 310w.
+ + Ath. 1905, 2: 150. Jl. 29. 720w.
“There is ‘a hidden wealth of thought and of austerity’ which makes the book a worthy contribution to science and a monument of patient and skillful research in a difficult field.” E. T. Brewster.
+ + + Atlan. 96: 687. N. ‘05. 600w.
“While exceedingly pleasant reading, the book is in no sense ‘written down’ to its audience, nor popularized in the sense of being diluted to superficiality.”
+ + Critic. 47: 480. N. ‘05. 170w.
“The book is written so untechnically that a reader who does not know a wasp from a bee can understand and enjoy it.” May Estelle Cook.
+ + + Dial. 38: 387. Je. 1, ‘05. 590w.
“The charm of the book is in the directness with which the story is told, and in the obvious sympathy manifested by the authors with the struggles and aims of the active little nest-makers. While the book is engagingly written, it is also scientifically accurate.”
+ + + Nation 80: 444. Je. 1, ‘05. 680w.
“Important work on the manners and customs of North American wasps.” W. F. K.
+ + + Nature. 72: 395. Ag. 24, ‘05. 160w.
+ + + N. Y. Times. 10: 219. Ap. 8, ‘05. 840w. (Abstract of book.)
“An outdoor book as entertaining as it is instructive.”
+ + + Outlook. 80: 196. My. 20, ‘05. 90w.
+ + Pub. Opin. 38: 867. Je. 3, ‘05. 140w.
“This book reminds one of Fabre’s work. It is not so well written, but its information is quite as curious and close as Fabre’s, and we should say as trustworthy.”
+ + — Sat. R. 100: sup. 10. O. 14, ‘05. 150w.
“There is much detail which, however valuable in itself from the scientific point of view, overwhelms the ‘general reader.’ This individual may be forgiven for wishing that the authors would sometimes give him more generalization or summaries of their observations.”
+ + — Spec. 95: 697. N. 4, ‘05. 310w.
Peel, George. Friends of England. *$3.50. Dutton.
Mr. Peel establishes, elucidates, and illustrates two large propositions in this companion volume to his “Enemies of England”: first, that England built up her empire beyond the seas thru the necessity of defence, and not by accident nor by deliberate motives of expansion; second, the same European pressure from without is the chief cause of the maintenance of the empire.
“Mr. Peel is no pedant, no formalist, no Dryasdust. Intensely interested in his subject, he writes of it with animation; eager to convince, though not with the sophist’s eagerness, he is precise whether right or wrong and at all times clear.”
+ + Acad. 68: 270. Mr. 18, ‘05. 1420w.
“The subjects with which Mr. Peel deals are of the deepest interest, and he shows wide reading on every page.”
+ + Ath. 1905, 1: 335. Mr. 18. 660w.
“There is enough truth and enough originality in his interpretation of the Empire to have made his book an extraordinary one, if only he had not allowed this enthusiasm to get the better of his judgment. It brings out a phase of imperial politics too much neglected by past writers.” Frederic Austin Ogg.
+ + — Dial. 39: 88. Ag. 16, ‘05. 1930w.
“The whole book is worth reading as a sober and well-informed discussion of the great questions of world politics with which it deals.”
+ + — N. Y. Times. 10: 328. My. 20, ‘05. 670w.
“A well-written work, Mr. Peel’s book is of value as developing a theory which, if acceptable only with obvious limitations, will assist to a clearer appreciation of some broad historical movements than has generally obtained.”
+ + — Outlook. 81: 275. S. 30, ‘05. 1930w.
“The tale told is fragmentary and unconvincing, and has been better told before.”
— — + Sat. R. 100: 21. Jl. 1, ‘05. 1510w.
“Mr. Peel has the sense of organic movement without which history is merely a dull chronicle of accidents; and he has also the gift of wide perspective. Our only criticism is that in his endeavour to be perfectly clear he sometimes is a little prolix, and that now and then he is carried by rhetoric into a slight overstatement. The matter is on the whole admirably arranged and attractively presented.”
+ + — Spec. 94: 439. Mr. 25, ‘05. 1780w.
Peet, Louis Harman. Trees and shrubs of Central park. $2. Manhattan press.
Mr. Peet says: “The purpose of this book is to put within the reach of the non-technical city nature lover a handy means of identifying trees and shrubs which he meets in his park rambles.” On sixteen maps covering the park, two thousand trees and shrubs have been plotted; a table accompanying the maps gives both the common and botanical names. There is also an index to the common names, wherein the number of the page, chapter, map and location is placed for quick reference.
* + + Critic. 47: 480. N. ‘05. 90w.
Nation. 80: 132. F. 16, ‘05. 60w.
“We cannot too much commend the fullness and accuracy of the lists which Mr. Peet here gives us.”
+ + Nation. 80: 381. My. 11, ‘05. 430w.
“It is not only a description of the trees, but is a real guide and companion, pointing out that which it describes in a manner that is wholly comprehensible to the reader. The text is lucid and readable.”
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 212. Ap. 8, ‘05. 420w.
271* “In every particular it is a handy and useful little volume.”
+ + + N. Y. Times. 10: 860. D. 2, ‘05. 120w.
+ + + R. of Rs. 32: 127. Jl. ‘05. 80w.
Pemberton, Max. Hundred days. †$1.50. Appleton.
Napoleon’s hundred days between Elba and Waterloo form the setting of this historical novel which exploits the adventures of a young Englishman and a French maid in the secret service of Napoleon. “Mr. Pemberton has borrowed the very lady who appears in Mr. Bernard Shaw’s ‘Man of destiny’—Mr. Shaw himself borrowed the lady from more or less authentic history—and provided her with adventures enough to fill the usual number of pages which, outwardly, at least, constitute a novel.” (N. Y. Times.)
“It is a stirring tale, and the characterization is skillful. Occasionally the author’s style fails him.”
+ — Ath. 1905, 2: 432. S. 30. 290w.
“The story offers the conventional blend of fact and romantic fiction, is narrated in somewhat indistinct fashion, and proves but moderately exciting.” Wm. M. Payne.
+ — Dial. 39: 208. O. 1, ‘05. 100w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 621. S. 23, ‘05. 250w.
“The story is stirring and the tale is picturesquely told; the plot is hackneyed.”
+ — Outlook. 81: 279. S. 30, ‘05. 60w.
Pepys, Sir William Weller. Later Pepys; ed. with introd., by Alice C. C. Gaussen. 2v. *$7.50. Lane.
“The letters included in these two handsomely bound and finely illustrated volumes have been selected from the correspondence of Sir William Pepys between the years 1758 and 1825. Sir William Pepys was a descendant of the elder branch of the family to which Samuel Pepys belonged, and was generally well-known in the latter part of the eighteenth century as a friend, and in some cases the intimate, of distinguished literary characters of the period. His letters are therefore primarily of literary interest, very little reference being made in them to ordinary political or social conditions of the times, even the stirring events of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars receiving but scant notice.”—Am. Hist. R.
“The only direct historical interest is in the occasional references to contemporary historical writers and criticisms upon them. They frequently do present some striking incident, or some intimate characterization of figures in the field of contemporaneous literature. In this connection alone are they valuable for the student of history.” E. D. Adams.
+ Am. Hist. R. 10: 688. Ap. ‘05. 210w.
“Sir William’s letters, though sometimes dull and prosy, often catch something of the vivacity of his correspondents, and those to his son in school and college are delightful.”
+ Critic. 46: 92. Ja. ‘05. 150w.
Perkin, Frederick Mollwo. Practical methods of electrochemistry. *$1.60. Longmans.
“After a general account of electrical magnitudes and units, measuring instruments, and electrolytic apparatus, the author gives practical instructions for electrochemical analysis.... The last and longest section of the book deals with preparative electrochemistry.... The references to original papers are numerous, and a convenient table of five-figure logarithms, with instructions for its use, is contained in an appendix.”—Nature.
“The practical instructions are on the whole adequate and accurate, so that the student could acquire with little assistance a sufficient acquaintance with the working methods of electrochemistry. Whilst the book is satisfactory in this the most important feature, it shows in other respects many signs of hasty composition, which greatly detract from its value.”
+ + — Nature. 72: 5. My. 4, ‘05. 530w.
Perrin, Raymond St. James. Evolution of knowledge. *$1.50. Baker.
In his review of philosophy the author compares the chief systems of ancient and modern thought, “the object being to measure the approach of each system to the goal of philosophy which is the demonstration of the unity of all things ... to demonstrate the fact that knowledge can be unified by co-ordinating the sciences.” Pt. I. deals with the pre-evolution period of Greece, England, Scotland, Germany and France; pt. II. discusses the evolutionary philosophy of Spencer and Lewes. The keynote of the treatment is that religious devotion and intelligence must develop together.
Ath. 1905, 2: 269. Ag. 26. 80w.
Outlook. 79: 1059. Ap. 29, ‘05. 140w.
“In the demonstration of his thesis the author enters such a labyrinth of the metaphysical and mystical that we altogether refuse his lead.”
+ — Pub. Opin. 39: 60. Jl. 8, ‘05. 160w.
* “Interesting, if not quite fascinating.”
+ — Spec. 95: 697. N. 4, ‘05. 320w.
Perris, George Herbert. Russia in revolution. **$3. Brentano’s.
“Mr. Perris’s volume on ‘Russia in revolution’ is a sketch of the Russian revolutionary movement from about 1870 down to the present time. It consists chiefly of a series of short biographies of the principal leaders of the Liberal movement, together with a few chapters on the Russian government, and on the financial and economic conditions of the country.... The subject, however, is an interesting one, and the personal sketches and life stories of Stepniak, Volkhovsky, Dr. Soskice, Mark Broido, Mme. Kovalsky, and numbers of other revolutionists, often recounted in their own words, are significant and thrilling.”—Lond. Times.
“Is lively and interesting, but somewhat open to the charge that he fails to name a good many of his sources and some of his equally interesting rivals. Mr. Perris takes pains and knows his subject.”
+ + — Ath. 1905, 1: 590. My. 13. 180w.
“It cannot be said that the author has anything very new to tell us, and most of his information has been obtained at second-hand. He sees Russia only from the point of view of the extremists.”
— + Lond. Times. 4: 176. Je. 9, ‘05. 520w.
“These quotations will serve to show M. Perris’s sincere effort to be fair and impartial, but the same paragraph furnishes two other quotations which equally well illustrate his defective vision in consequence of his prejudice against nearly everything in Russia in its present form.”
+ — Nation. 80: 504. Je. 22, ‘05. 1740w.
“The chief value of this book, however, lies in the personal (and frequently pitiful) records and brief autobiographies of the martyrs in the cause of Russian political liberty, and also in the miscellaneous data on topics which are not contained in Russian government reports.” Wolf von Schierbrand.
+ + — N. Y. Times. 10: 386. Je. 17, ‘05. 940w.
“No doubt the book is put together in an easy, entertaining fashion. Although from a non-revolutionary standpoint most of its deductions are untenable, the chapters touching upon the economic and political condition of the country are not without value and interest.”
+ Sat. R. 100: 121. Jl. 22, ‘05. 520w.
“In arrangement it is not free from defects, particularly from a tendency to retraverse the same or similar ground; but this drawback is connected with what is perhaps Mr. Perris’s most distinctive claim on the attention of his 272readers,—his extensive and intimate acquaintance with Russian revolutionists, over a long period.”
+ — Spec. 95: 321. S. 2, ‘05. 1880w.
Perry, Bliss. Amateur spirit. **$1.25. Houghton.
Six essays in which the author commends “combining the professional’s skill with the zest and enthusiasm of the amateur.” There are two chapters on the college professor, and one entitled “Hawthorne at North Adams.”
“There is a flavour of this conscious condescension in these essays, and it takes away from the charm which they possess in spite of it, charm both of phrase and anecdote. The ideas are not very subtle; nor have they any marked freshness; but to the main idea we heartily respond. Mr. Perry is not precise enough; he does not know that different things in life should be approached in a different spirit.”
+ — Acad. 68: 332. Mr. 25, ‘05. 670w.
“In spite of what we have just said, the quality of the best of the contemporary American essayists is rare; and outside Mr. Howells and Mr. Alden we know no one who possesses greater gifts of taste and style than Mr. Bliss Perry.”
+ + Ath. 1905, 1: 558. My. 6. 720w.
* “No one wants to hear the crack of a whip in these leisurely papers, but there might be a little more mental activity without any sign of the strain.” F. M. Colby.
+ — Bookm. 20: 473. Ja. ‘05. 880w.
“To apply to him words of his own, he is one of the ‘speculative, amused, undeluded children of this world.’ Sanity, balance, kindliness, unite with insight and imagination to give his pages their peculiar charm.”
+ + Dial. 38: 93. F. 1, ‘05. 310w.
“The curious thing about Mr. Perry’s plea for The amateur spirit is that it should seem to slight so glaringly the virtue of the mean.”
+ Ind. 58: 383. F. 16, ‘05. 200w.
“All the six essays in the volume have some reference to the working of the amateur spirit in the world.”
+ Nation. 80: 138. F. 16, ‘05. 940w. (Survey of contents.)
“The six essays in this volume are very pleasing examples of what American writers can do in this branch of literature.”
+ Spec. 94: 925. Je. 24, ‘05. 290w.
Peters, John Punnett. Early Hebrew story: its historical background. **$1.25. Putnam.
“The substance of the book was delivered as lectures on the Bond foundation at Bangor theological seminary in November, 1903.... In chap. 1, ‘Introductory: literary and archæological,’ the author gives a simple, yet clear, sketch of his conception of the literary origin of the early books of the Bible, and a general view of the history of Palestine before the Israelitish occupation.... In chap. 2, ‘The formation of Israel: The origin of the twelve tribes,’ the view that a group of Aramean tribes settled among and absorbed tribes already resident in Canaan is worked out with considerable detail. In chap. 3, ‘The patriarchs and the shrines of Israel,’ it is pointed out that the stories of the patriarchs cluster about certain shrines.... In chap. 4, ‘Survivals—legendary and mythical.’ Dr. Peters gathers together a considerable residuum of material, which remains after one has subtracted from the patriarchal stories the elements representing tribal movements and sanctuary traditions, and in which survivals of myths or legends are probably to be found. Chap. 5, ‘Cosmogony and primeval history,’ deals with Gen., chaps. 1-11, which is analyzed into its various elements.... Chap. 6, ‘The moral value of early Hebrew story,’ forms a fitting climax to the whole.”—Bib. World.
“The book is written for the ordinary reader of the Bible, is unencumbered by erudite notes, is written in a clear and attractive style, and can be strongly recommended to the untechnical reader, who desires to learn how critical study affects the early books of the Bible. The book throughout bears evidence of wide reading. The marvel is that in such a work, where evidence is often scanty and much has to be supplied from analogies often remote, one finds so little from which to dissent. The work merits high praise and deserves a wide recognition.” George A. Barton.
+ + Bib. World. 25: 313. Ap. ‘05. 790w.
“The book is uncommonly readable.”
+ + Critic. 47: 191. Ag. ‘05. 90w.
“We can very heartily recommend the book. It is thoroughly readable, pre-eminently scholarly and entirely trustworthy; it is replete with valuable archæological knowledge; it has all the marks of an accomplished exegete, and its conclusions are in harmony with those of many able scholars of the present day.”
+ + Ind. 58: 841. Ap. 13, ‘05. 760w.
* “Wealth of archaeological information lends special value to Dr. Peters’ scholarly ‘Early Hebrew story.’”
+ Ind. 50: 1160. N. 16, ‘05. 20w.
* Peters, Madison Clinton. Jews in America: a short story of their part in the building of the republic; commemorating the 250th anniversary of their settlement. $1. Winston.
The author has prepared this volume for popular use and states in his preface: “It is a book of facts rather than opinions.... The book is written with the hope that it may modify the views which the Gentile world holds with regard to the position of the Jew, and the author’s fervent prayer is that its facts may lead Christians to grant to the possession of the Jew the mental, moral, social and spiritual qualifications which history affirms.” To this end he has set forth facts culled from various sources showing the part which the Jew played in the discovery of America, in pre-revolutionary settlements, in the wars of the republic, American politics, finance, arts and sciences. There are also chapters upon The number of Jews in the United States, Characteristics of the Jews, and Anti-Semitism in America. The volume is illustrated with photographs of Jews prominent in various professions.
* N. Y. Times. 10: 762. N. 11, ‘05. 330w.
* Peters, Madison Clinton. Will the coming man marry? and other studies on the problem of home and marriage. $1. Winston.
Under such titles as: How to be happy though married; Why so many divorces? The ideal wife; The duties of a husband; Money and matrimony; The culture of the child; The home and the higher education of women; Woman’s rights; and Good mothers the makers of great nations, Dr. Peters emphasizes the serious side of matrimony, gives good advice to both husband and wife, and discusses education, deplores modern extravagance, and makes many suggestions, which, if followed, will help to make daily life easier and more worth while to both the married and the unmarried.
Peterson, Maude Gridley. How to know wild fruits: a guide to plants when not in flower, by means of fruit and leaf; il. by Mary Elizabeth Herbert. **$1.50. Macmillan.
“We have examined every one of the 80 woodcuts in this volume, and must pronounce them correct and helpful ... while descriptions of three hundred fruit-bearing plants are careful and scientific enough, and a key will send the botanist to the order and species, the plants are arranged for the use of the casual student by the color of their fruits.”—Ind.
* “This study opens to amateurs a new and comparatively unfamiliar field and one in which 273the writers of botanical handbooks have heretofore made few contributions.”
+ Country Cal. 1: 492. S. ‘05. 70w.
“It meets a want, and we are glad to recommend it as a useful guide.”
+ + Ind. 58: 1256. Je. 1, ‘05. 150w.
“As a help to the beginner and a means of stimulating observation it may be commended. It is well got up, remarkably free from misprints, appropriately illustrated, and provided with an index of vernacular names and one of the Latin designations of the plants described.”
+ + Nature. 72: 428. Ag. 31, ‘05. 450w.
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 370. Je. 10, ‘05. 220w.
Outlook. 80: 444. Je. 17, ‘05. 20w.
+ + R. of Rs. 32: 127. Jl. ‘05. 110w.
Spec. 94: 948. Je. 24, ‘05. 120w.
Petrie, William Matthew Flinders. History of Egypt from the XIXth to the XXXth dynasties. (History of Egypt, v. 3.) *$2.25. Scribner.
“This is not a work on manners and customs or religion, but is purely history, very largely original and representing the author’s own researches and conclusions.... The period covered in this volume extends from the beginning of the nineteenth dynasty, about 1300 B. C., the most brilliant period in Egyptian history, to 342 B. C., when the last native king of the thirtieth dynasty lost the throne, and the rule passed over to the Persian Ochus. This period is illustrated by 161 pictures of monuments, mainly halftones, with all the known cartouches.... When we remember that the period treated covers the entire relation of Israel to Egypt, from Abraham to Jeremiah, the value of the volume to biblical students is obvious.”—Ind.
“His English is still slipshod. The lists of the monuments of every king, with provenance and abiding place, that he gives will be extremely useful to students; and for the care and pains that he has bestowed on their compilation all Egyptologists should be grateful.”
+ + — Ath. 1905, 2: 434. S. 30. 760w.
+ + + Ind. 59: 933. O. 19, ‘05. 220w.
+ + + N. Y. Times. 10: 654. O. 7, ‘05. 720w.
+ + + Outlook. 81: 334. O. 7, ‘05. 120w.
“We may not always assent to his conclusions and combinations, but the archæological facts on which they are founded are stated without omission or bias, and the conclusions themselves are often brilliant, usually ingenious and always stimulating.”
+ + + Sat. R. 100: 343. S. 9, ‘05. 1100w.
Pettit, Henry. Twentieth-century idealist. †$1.50. Grafton press.
“The heroine, who ‘loves and seeks the truth for its own sake,’ is a young and charming girl. She has her own ideas of the ‘true’ faith, and tells them to those who argue with her. Adele Cultus, her parents, and her friend, join two gentlemen in a trip to the Orient. Paul Warder falls in love with the heroine. Together they visit the many interesting places, and finally come to understand each other very well.”—N. Y. Times.
“This novel ... is probably an attempt to write biography in the form of fiction. It is an introspective, retrospective, meditative, idealistic tale.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 317. My. 13, ‘05. 240w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 392. Je. 17, ‘05. 120w.
Peyton, William Wynne. Three greatest forces in the world, and the making of Western civilization, pt. I, The incarnation. *$1.40. Macmillan.
“This trinity of forces is constituted, says the author, by the Incarnation, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection.... In the present volume, limited to the first of the triad, he insists at length on the extension of virgin generation from the lower creation, as in bees, to the higher creation, as in the virgin birth of Christ.”—Outlook.
“While the author is a man of considerable originality and independence of thought he is too much lacking in critical judgment and too fond of large sounding generalities to make his work of value.”
— + Ind. 59: 152. Jl. 20, ‘05. 80w.
+ — Outlook. 80: 346. Je. 3, ‘05. 160w.
Pfleiderer, Otto. Early Christian conception of Christ; its significance and value in the history of religion. *$1.25. Putnam.
“An expansion of a lecture delivered by the author before the International theological congress at Amsterdam, in September, 1903.... The book has been divided into five chapters—‘Christ as son of God,’ ‘Christ as conqueror of Satan,’ ‘Christ as a wonder-worker,’ ‘Christ as the conqueror of death and the life-giver,’ ‘Christ as the king of kings and lord of lords.’”—N. Y. Times.
* Am. J. Theol. 9: 773. O. ‘05. 620w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 182. Mr. 25, ‘05. 320w.
Spec. 94: 750. My. 20, ‘05. 410w.
* Phelps, Albert. Louisiana; a record of expansion. **$1.10. Houghton.
“It has been Mr. Phelps’s effort in this latest addition to the ‘American commonwealths’ series to give a broad survey setting forth Louisiana and its place in the development of the United States.” (Outlook). “The fortunes of Louisiana under French and Spanish rule are described in the first half of the volume, and its history as part of the United States forms the second half of the volume.” (N. Y. Times.)
* “While the specialist may not find much that is new in this work, it has for the general reader the advantage of being based upon the sources, and is not a mere compilation.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 760. N. 11, ‘05. 350w.
* “From the narrative standpoint little fault is to be found, the style being graceful and flowing and the interest unfailingly sustained.”
+ — Outlook. 81: 682. N. 18, ‘05. 170w.
Phelps, Charles Edward Davis. Accolade. †$1.50. Lippincott.
In this story of the fourteenth century “the hero, son of a worthy Englishman, being kidnapped into France by a ship’s captain, betakes himself to Italy, wins a knighthood through gallantry, and returns to his native England with wealth and honor just in time to prevent his sweetheart from entering a convent for lack of him. The poets are reverenced in the persons of Chaucer and Petrarch, and it is from a careful study of the writings of the former that the rather difficult and multifarious dialects of Mr. Phelps’s book are constructed.... The rudeness of the England of the period and the refinement of Italy serve as foils, each for the other, and the whole tale is in the nature of a treasure house for the student of customs.” (Dial.)
“The book shows the most careful study and great painstaking, and abounds in varied adventure.”
+ Dial. 38: 393. Je. 1, ‘05. 160w.
“It cannot be said that the mantle of the old storyteller has descended upon the modern.”
— N. Y. Times. 10: 356. Je. 3, ‘05. 320w.
“At times the Chaucerian English in the sprightly conversations daunts even the conqueror of polyglot dialect, but the real interest of the tale carries him safely through to the satisfactory final scenes.”
+ — Outlook. 80: 137. My. 13, ‘05. 90w.
* Philippi, Adolf. Florence; tr. from the German by P. G. Konody. *$1.50. Scribner.
“In commendably brief space the author gives 274us a comprehensive survey of Florentine history, the part played by all its leading citizens both in politics, literature, and art, the origin of all its important buildings, with extensive architectural notes about them and excellent illustrations of its churches, palaces, groups of sculpture, altar-pieces, frescoes, and noteworthy details.” (Nation.) There are 170 illustrations. The lives of the Florentine painters and descriptions of their principal works are also given making the volume a good supplementary guide book for the artistic traveler.
* “The book suffers from being crudely translated from the German.”
+ — Nation. 81: 430. N. 23, ‘05. 510w.
* + N. Y. Times. 10: 874. D. 9, ‘05. 130w.
* Outlook. 81: 576. N. 4, ‘05. 30w.
Phillips, David Graham. Deluge. †$1.50. Bobbs.
The hero of Mr. Graham’s story is as intrepid in love as in battling against Wall street magnates. Simply stated, he is a man who won’t be downed,—in the world of finance when a power rises against him he hunts for a tiger to fight the bull, and in the battle with giants, makes his escape; as for his romance, he quietly determines to marry a girl in a social world above him, carries his point, and then proceeds to win her love.
* “As usual, he has written a readable story, but its extravagance deprives it of any claim to be taken seriously.”
+ — Outlook. 81: 887. D. 9, ‘05. 90w.
“If the author, as one must infer, intended that we should admire Blacklock, he is likely to be disappointed.”
+ — Pub. Opin. 39: 633. N. 11, ‘05. 260w.
* — R. of Rs. 32: 757. D. ‘05, 60w.
Phillips, David Graham. Plum tree. $1.50. Bobbs.
A story of the tree of political plums. A young country lawyer is driven by poverty to accept an assemblyman’s salary from the hands of a “boss,” and when his conscience forces him to vote against a bad bill he is thrown out of office. He becomes a reform county prosecutor, but fails in re-election and accepts a position as lawyer for the power company which he had been actively fighting. He makes a rich but loveless marriage, becomes a United States senator, and in the end, looking back upon the seething furnace of corruption thru which he has passed, finds comfort in the love of the girl he had renounced in his days of poverty.
“It is in our judgment far and away the most important novel of recent years, because it unmasks present political conditions in a manner so graphic, so convincing and so compelling that it cannot fail to arouse the thoughtful to the deadly peril which confronts our people.”
+ + + Arena. 33: 663. Je. ‘05. 6180w.
“This novel is definitely better than its predecessors, even though its author has not even yet progressed very far in the art of portraying women.”
+ Critic. 46: 564. Je. ‘05. 80w.
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 294. My. 6, ‘05. 760w.
N. Y. Times. 10: 389. Je. 17, ‘05. 130w.
+ Outlook. 79: 858. Ap. 1, ‘05. 150w.
+ Pub. Opin. 38: 676. Ap. 29, ‘05. 320w.
* Phillips, David Graham. Reign of gilt. **$1. Pott.
“This work consists of a series of brilliant essays dealing with the overshadowing questions of the hour—Plutocracy and Democracy. The first half of the volume deals with plutocracy.... Such subjects as Plutocracy at home, Youth among the money-maniacs, Caste-compellers, Pauper-making, The made-over White house, and Europe laughs, are discussed.... The second half of the volume is entitled ‘Democracy.’ In this division Mr. Phillips considers such subjects as The compeller of equality, Democracy’s dynamo, A nation of dreamers, Not generosity, but justice, The inevitable ideal, Our allies from abroad, The real American woman, and The man of to-day and to-morrow.”—Arena.
* “Therefore, we say that he who loves the republic should buy, read and circulate ‘The reign of gilt.’ The more such books are circulated, the more certainly and swiftly will come the democratic reaction for which we are all striving.”
+ + + Arena. 34: 661. D. ‘05. 1610w.
* “It is a most vital subject, and one upon which Mr. Phillips speaks earnestly and with an iteration almost Rooseveltian.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 832. D. 2, ‘05. 150w.
Phillips, David Graham. Social secretary. †$1.50. Bobbs.
The delightful story of the daughter of an old Washington family, who undertakes to carry a western senator’s wife to the top of the official-social wave, and succeeds. Incidentally she is rewarded for her service by a large salary and—something more. The various types of people found in the struggle for social and political supremacy at the national capital are well and amusingly drawn.
* “It is not up to the level Mr. Phillips has maintained in his latest works.”
+ Arena. 34: 664. D. ‘05. 740w.
* + Ind. 59: 1482. D. 21, ‘05. 160w.
“Mr. Phillips’s airy tale is a fascinating one, and, perhaps, if one looks closely, he may find beneath the daintily flavored meringue some food for thought.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 650. O. 7, ‘05. 270w.
* “Besides the froth there is some really admirable character drawing in the story.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 821. D. 2, ‘05. 130w.
“The story is distinctly clever and humorous.”
+ + Outlook. 81: 529. O. 28, ‘05. 150w.
Phillips, E. C. See Looker, Mrs. Horace B.
Phillips, Henry Wallace. Plain Mary Smith: a romance of Red Saunders. †$1.50. Century.
Red Saunders’ first appearance as the principal figure in a long story will delight readers who have known his sturdy traits and original humor in short story fiction. Not being able to stand up under the indignities heaped upon him by a father who “felt some scornful toward the Almighty for such a weak and frivolous institution as Heaven,” the lad when eighteen runs away to sea; and on board the Matilda bound for Panama, he meets Plain Mary Smith—plain only in name. How he enters into her romance only as the champion of the real lover, and how he fights Panamans at the close of a lively revolution with quart cans of tomatoes are phases of a humorously interesting tale.
“Adventures follow one another swiftly, and Red Saunders relates them all with wit and vigorous bad grammar.”
+ Outlook. 81: 429. O. 21, ‘05. 90w.
“In the relation of the narrative there is much of the humorous whimsicality of subject and style which has distinguished Mr. Phillips’s shorter stories. Yet there is also a regrettable thinness.”
+ Pub. Opin. 39: 633. N. 11, ‘05. 250w.
Phillips, Stephen. Sin of David. **$1.25. Macmillan.
This three act drama, is not biblical, altho it is founded on an action analogous to that of David to Uriah, the Hittite. The play opens in the army of Cromwell and proceeds during the course of the English civil war. It is the story of the love of Sir Hubert Lisle for the wife of a Puritan captain, the crime which made 275their marriage possible, and their punishment.
“It is, however, creditable accomplishment, and up to the level of Mr. Phillips’s previous work.”
+ + Ath. 1905, 1: 155. F. 4. 840w.
“‘The sin of David’ is even cleverer than ‘Herod’ and ‘Ulysses’ in its superficial dramatic quality, its superficial poetry. But the true dramatic fire is not in it.” Ferris Greenslet.
+ + — Atlan. 96: 422. S. ‘05. 140w.
“To one who has read all four plays of Mr. Phillips it appears unhappily evident that The sin of David is inferior in movement to Ulysses, even as this must rank below Herod, nor is it equal in pathos to Paolo and Francesca. There are passages in the play which would drag in presentation.” Louis H. Gray.
+ + — Bookm. 20: 554. F. ‘05. 970w.
“Has the fine literary qualities we associate with the name of the author. But as an acting play it can have at best a success of esteem, for while there are some strong and moving scenes in it, the general air is of the closet rather than the stage.” J. B. G.
+ + Critic. 46: 91. Ja. ‘05. 710w.
“The verse is dignified and filled with a haunting melodious charm.”
+ Dial. 38: 47. Ja. 16, ‘05. 440w.
* + — Ind. 59: 1162. N. 16, ‘05. 110w.
“A play better calculated to ‘place’ him critically than any of its predecessors. The chief impression made by it is that it is the product of a moderate poetic faculty guided by an industrious and self-poised intelligence.”
+ + Nation. 80: 72. Ja. 26, ‘05. 590w.
“As a play it ranks lowest in the four plays Mr. Phillips has written; this position it maintains as a poem. The work is deftly knitted together; it has beauty of form, if not many beauties of line; but it has no great situations.”
+ — Reader. 5: 382. F. ‘05. 560w.
R. of Rs. 31: 251. F. ‘05. 40w.
Phillips, Thomas W. Church of Christ, by a layman. *$1. Funk.
This volume is the result of a layman’s investigation of religious truth from heathen, Jewish and Christian standpoints. Under two general divisions, The history of pardon, and Evidence of pardon and the church as an organization, it makes a plea for unity, sets forth the original phases of Christianity, reviews all cases of pardon in the New Testament, and compares Jesus with other religious teachers.
* “The author sketches the history of Christianity with all the assurance of ignorance and then with equal assurance expounds his own theological views.”
— Acad. 68: 1259. D. 2, ‘05. 70w.
+ Outlook. 80: 836. Jl. 29, ‘05. 250w.
+ R. of Rs. 32: 512. O. ‘05. 80w.
Phillpotts, Eden. The farm of the dagger. $1.50. Dodd.
A story of a family feud in Dartmoor, early in the nineteenth century. The hero is an English gentleman, and a captured American plays an important role in the exciting tale, which ends in the sacrifice of the parents and the happy union of the lovers.
Reviewed by W. M. Payne.
+ Dial. 38: 17. Ja. 1, ‘05. 120w.
Phillpotts, Eden. Knock at a venture. †$1.50. Macmillan.
Sketches of Dartmoor men and women told largely in dialect. There is grim humor and homely tragedy, there are three cornered love affairs and affairs with more corners, there are old men and young, but all are real. The stories include, The mound by the way, The crossways; Corban; A pickaxe and a spade; and Benjamin’s mess.
Acad. 68: 906. S. 2, ‘05. 310w.
“Mr. Phillpotts writes always picturesquely, and often with surprising vividness.”
+ Ath. 1905, 2: 368. S. 16. 370w.
“Written in a light vein for the most part, yet laden also with a certain quaint and primitive philosophy.” Frederic Taber Cooper.
+ Bookm. 22: 234. N. ‘05. 470w.
“He knows his people and presents them to us with truth and vigour. There are no false notes. The last touch is wanting, the spell that can send a glow of life and beauty over every page; and they remain readable stories, lively and convincing, but not very new.”
+ Lond. Times. 4: 287. S. 8, ‘05. 400w.
“Dartmoor sketches in sombre shades, and excellent of their kind. There is a suggestion of Hardy, too, without Mr. Hardy’s later morbidness.”
+ + N. Y. Times. 10: 606. S. 16, ‘05. 510w.
“Taken as a whole, the volume leaves a delightful impression of quaint character, soft dialect, and exuberant but not grotesque fancy.”
+ Outlook. 81: 280. S. 30, ‘05. 110w.
* + Outlook. 81: 712. N. 25, ‘05. 120w.
Pub. Opin. 39: 477. O. 7, ‘05. 200w.
Phillpotts, Eden. Secret woman. $1.50. Macmillan.
This is another story of Dartmoor, and the Dartmoor peasants the author knows so well. After twenty years of married life, Anthony Redvers, the father of the two grown sons, finds relief from the temperamental coldness of his wife, in an intrigue with an unknown woman. The discovery, the revenge of the wife and the beautiful devotion of the younger son fill out the plot.
“It is a remarkable novel, a living, breathing piece of work.”
+ + Acad. 68: 83. Ja. 28, ‘05. 260w.
“Is constructed on what is almost a Sophoclean scale. Mr. Phillpotts moves simply among primitive emotions, and moves with great natural insight. He has psychological subtlety, and he has great tenderness. He has a sense of the dramatic which materially assists him. Too much praise cannot be given to the author for his handling of this big theme. The characterization is always good, and sometimes more than good.”
+ + Ath. 1905, 1: 105. Ja. 28, 610w.
+ — Cath. World. 81: 550. Jl. ‘05. 130w.
“Those who care to read literature and not mere books will find what they want in this great novel.” Charlotte Harwood.
+ + + Critic. 46: 378. Ap. ‘05. 830w.
“A study that rivals ‘The scarlet letter’ in earnestness and psychological penetration.” Wm. M. Payne.
+ + Dial. 38: 389. Je. 1, ‘05. 280w.
“The psychology of a weak man and a strong woman is etched with the hand of a master.”
+ + + Ind. 58: 559. Mr. 9, ‘05. 290w.
* “‘The secret woman’ is a great story of the wrong kind.”
+ — Ind. 59: 1153. N. 16, ‘05. 80w.
“Mr. Phillpotts’s strongest story. A tragedy as grim and inexorable as any ever told by ancient Greek. He knows his Devon peasants, and it is with humility that we enter one or two protests against his portrayal. One may wish the theme less painful, our keen joy in the perfection of literary workmanship less marred by the continual constriction of heart to which the author compels us. It is not only its author’s masterpiece, but it is far in advance of anything he has yet written—and that is to give it higher praise than almost any other comparison with contemporary fiction could afford.”
+ + + N. Y. Times. 10: 83. F. 11, ‘05. 700w.
“A book of unusual power and passion—by far the best work in fiction that Mr. Phillpotts has put forth within the past two or three years. There are at least four characters in this book that are original in conception, carefully consistent 276throughout, and subtle in their psychological development. Altogether the situation is as strange as it is compelling in its force, and it is handled with skill and vigor. In all, this is a grim but forceful romance.”
+ + Outlook. 79: 350. F. 4, ‘05. 240w.
“It is a story of terrible frankness, dealing without evasion with the elemental forces of the human tragedy, but without morbid interest or curiosity, and binding the penalty to the sin.”
+ Outlook. 79: 773. Ap. 1, ‘05. 100w.
“Assuredly the best novel of Mr. Eden Phillpotts.”
+ + R. of Rs. 31: 756. Je. ‘05. 230w.
“His themes are simple, but they are far too heavily orchestrated. Thus his style, though marked by fine descriptive passages, threatens to become laboured and ornate, and is occasionally disfigured by recondite epithets and literary preciosities. He seems to us to err by the artificial and deliberate invention of incidents designed to enhance the tragic quality of the narrative, by a piling up of the agony which defeats its own aim, and suggests the element of gratuitousness where all should march inevitably to the crowning catastrophe.”
+ — Spec. 94: 331. Mr. 4, ‘05. 1130w.
Picard, George H. Bishop’s niece, †$1.25. Turner, H. B.
“Although the comic element is the last that one expects in a story of ‘mixed marriages,’ that is to say of matrimonial alliances between Catholic and Protestant, it is really very droll, thanks to the demure eccentricity of his pacific Lordship, the Bishop of Isle Madame, and the contrasted orthodoxy of his brother, a domineering layman.”—N. Y. Times.
“A neat piece of literary workmanship.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 301. My. 6, ‘05. 90w.
“The little story shows ingenuity, a quaint humor, and some pretty fancies.”
+ N. Y. Times. 10: 379. Je. 10, ‘05. 260w.
“Is a well-balanced little conceit with delicate and simple humor.”
+ Pub. Opin. 39: 158. Jl. 29, ‘05. 230w.
Pidgin, Charles Felton. Little Burr: the Warwick of America. $1.50. Robinson-Luce.
A book which deals with the youth of Aaron Burr, and his career in the Revolutionary war. It tells of his marriage, chronicles the birth of his daughter Theodosia, and thruout contradicts all accepted ideas of his character by presenting him as a noble gentleman, true to his ideals and the victim of unmerited social and political ostracism.
“Is not very coherent as fiction.”
— N. Y. Times. 10: 261. Ap. 22, ‘05. 480w.
Pier, Arthur Stanwood. Ancient grudge. †$1.50. Houghton.
“‘The ancient grudge’ is the irksome sense of obligation felt by one young man to another who has saved his life as a boy, and in the main the novel is a study of the divergent temperaments of these two men. They are students at Harvard together, live in the same town, love the same girl, and in the end the mercurial, sanguine, visionary Stewart dies heroically and dramatically, while the heroism of Keith (who as a boy has saved his friend’s life) takes the form of steady persistence and strength of mind and purpose. To some extent the story deals with labor questions, but, while it presents some phases of the problem in an interesting way, it does not go very deeply into the subject.”—Outlook.