Chapter 22

“His style is so simple and his chapters are so enlivened with interesting incidents and sensible criticisms that even readers entirely unfamiliar with diplomatic work will have no difficulty in understanding and enjoying him.”

“Tho technical in part as setting forth the rules and procedure of diplomatic intercourse, it has been prepared for the general reader and, needless to say, it has the literary distinction which characterizes the works of this experienced and able writer on diplomacy.”

Fountain, Paul.Eleven eaglets of the west. **$3. Dutton.

The “eleven eaglets” of the title are the states or territories of California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada. The work “is the record of several journeys made by the author in the days when the Wild West was, with a few exceptions, still a wilderness. He travelled with a strong party, and was usually, if not always, accompanied by a waggon, which, with infinite labour and astonishing success, was dragged through forests, over rocky heights, and across sandy deserts.... [The book] will have permanent interest as an account of the extreme West as it was forty years ago.” (Ath.)

“He tells the story of his adventures in a simple, straightforward way, but the conclusions which he sometimes draws from them are not altogether convincing.”

“The pictures which he presents of the western states which have already changed so greatly are assuredly worthy of preservation.”

“Any one unfamiliar with that section of the continent would carry away from the perusal of his book a most confused impression of its geographical features, and of either its past or its present social and industrial conditions.”

“One sees that the author is an observer of catholicity. His book, though the travels are travels of so long ago, is singularly refreshing. Informing enough also, though you need not pin your faith too utterly to all the things that are said.”

Fowler, Rev. Charles Henry.Missionary addresses. *$1. West. Meth. bk.

A group of seven missionary addresses on the following subjects: Missions and world movements. Our opportunity. The reflex influence of missions. The message, Home and heathen missions contrasted, The field. The supreme need of the heathen and Divinity of the missionary idea.

Fowler, Ellen Thorneycroft (Mrs. Alfred Laurence Felkin).The subjection of Isabel Carnaby. †$1.50. Dodd.

The reappearance of Isabel Carnaby, married and happy makes this story a sequel to Mrs. Felkin’s “Concerning Isabel Carnaby.” “First we have our old friend Isabel, who heroically refrains from sacrificing to a purely personal whim the whole of her husband’s political career; secondly, a half-caste girl, married to a good-natured imbecile of an Englishman whom she finds it impossible to love until (in the disguise of a man) she has felt the weight of his, literally, heavy hand; thirdly a parson whose desertion of his wife, arising from a sequence of incredible occurrences, is by her endured with a meekness which is happily as incredible.” (Ath.)

“In general, the smart and good-natured aphorisms in which the book abounds seem to us as remote from reality as is the framework of the story.”

“In ‘The subjection of Isabel Carnaby’, Miss Fowler has come almost within sight of the borderland of the masterpieces.”

“Somewhat long and extremely loquacious new novel. The author is far too deeply engaged in upholding a thesis to linger for long over any of the facts which she chronicles.”

“The combination of fun with brilliance is her own, absolutely. Her ceaseless sense of the incongruity of congruities, and vice versa, makes an effect as of punning with ideas. There are a few excellent little sermons in the book, and many evidences that the writer thinks her thoughts in the language of David and Paul.”

“Mrs. Felkin appears to be a good woman and a loving wife who had nothing particular to say, and in the course of 357 pages has said it very well.”

“Miss Fowler is an author of irresistible wit and cleverness.”

“This story of her married life is not satisfying, although it is full of those clever generalizations for which the writer has a special gift.”

“The story is neither deep nor vital, but it is entertaining and refreshing.”

“The reader’s feeling of gratitude to her is not due for any subtle analysis of character, but for the brilliant powers of repartee with which she invests her characters.”

Fowler, Nathaniel Clark, jr.Starting in life: what each calling offers ambitious boys and young men; il. by Charles Copeland. **$1.50. Little.

Authoritative and practical is this guide to the selection of a calling in life. The author has summoned to his aid successful representatives of each of the thirty different lines of work discussed. The book represents composite opinions on the advantages and disadvantages of all the vocations of life which young men are likely to enter.

Fowles, George Milton.Down in Porto Rico. 75c. Meth. bk.

“This is an unpretending little volume, giving in plain, matter-of-fact way a description of the island, its inhabitants, and their characteristics and customs.”—Outlook.

“His account, moreover, is marked by a strong religious bias.” H. E. Coblentz.

“It is written in a fair spirit, is neither critical nor eulogistic, but simply descriptive, is free from all affectation of fine writing, but is not characterized by either brilliance of style, pictorial description, or philosophic generalizations.”

France, Jacques Anatole Thibault.Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard, tr. and introd. by Lafcadio Hearn. †$1.25. Harper.

A new edition of this delightful story of that dear old man, Sylvestre Bonnard, member of the Institute and scholar of world-wide reputation, who has lived a long life in the congenial companionship of his books and his cat, treasuring thru the years the memory of the love of his youth. When he finds the daughter of his Clémentine poor and abused he seeks, with a child-like ignorance of the world’s ways, to help her and in so doing commits his great crime: but by it he gains his point and becomes god-father to Jeanne’s romance and to her children.

“Even Lafcadio Hearn’s translation can hardly render in English all the charm of this wholly delightful story in which M. France put all the grace of style and delicacy of characterization which are his in his inspired moments.”

“The story has had many translators, but of them all the translator of the present edition, Lafcadio Hearn, has been most happy in preserving the elusive fragrance of sentiment in this beautiful old rose-jar of a book.”

“Mr. Hearn’s skill as a translator is admirably shown in this book. There are some trifling errors of date in the story.”

Francis of Assisi, St. (Giovanni Francisco Bernadone Assisi).Writings of Saint Francis of Assisi, newly tr. into English, with introd. and notes by Father Paschal Robinson. $1. Dolphin press.

“A simple, tasteful volume containing the work of Saint Francis, including a group of six letters translated by Father Paschal Robinson, of the Order of Friars Minor. The translator supplies an introduction which gives some account of the writings, makes some comment on their quality, and gives a brief history of the manuscripts and the various editions. A series of notes, an appendix relating to doubtful, lost, and spurious writings, and a bibliography, withan index, give the volume ... a completeness which many books of this kind lack.”—Outlook.

“Altogether, the volume is that of a thoroughly devout scholar, and should take the place of much of the well-meaning literature of St. Francis which has become so common of recent years, but has little to commend it except its good intentions.”

“We may pronounce the apparatus of this book to be the best bit of modern work done in English on S. Francis of Assisi. The actual translation is to our mind the least unsatisfactory, as it certainly is the least important, part of the book.”

“Father Robinson has done an excellent piece of work, carefully avoiding giving offence to those who, while admiring St. Francis, do not accept the Roman obedience.”

Frankau, Mrs. Julia (Frank Danby, pseud.).Sphinx’s lawyer. †$1.50. Stokes.

A story which perpetuates the spirit of a dead man, a “moral lunatic” thru the wife’s unceasing energy to carry on his cult. “Errington Welch-Kennard, the lawyer, is apparently the high priest of a band of admirers who revolve about the ‘sofa-bed’ of Sybil Algernon Heseltine, for the avowed purpose of keeping alive the dead man’s notorious memory. At much damage to his reputation, the hero has stood by her and her husband through their worst days and now consoles the widow with a genuine friendship which the pair are content to let the world misunderstand. Sybil’s revenge upon fate is to draw young men under the blighting influence of her husband’s life and work, but having a real affection for the lawyer, she bestirs herself to find him a wife, judging that at forty, after an unsavoury career which has exhausted his resources, nothing else can secure him safety and happiness.” (Bookm.)

“The book is irredeemiably vulgar; vulgar in design, vulgar in execution.”

“A mistake both in its motive and its manner.”

“The book is good enough to provoke interest. For the robust, ‘The sphinx’s lawyer’ is not insipid reading; and granted her chosen milieu, Mrs. Frankau does not needlessly offend the timid.” Mary Moss.

“Her book is simply bestial in its implications. There is a skill in the exhibition no doubt, but to any right-minded person it is disgusting.”

“A clever woman who uses her talent perversely is about what we have learned to think of the writer who calls herself ‘Frank Danby.’” Wm. M. Payne.

Franklin, Benjamin.Writings of Benjamin Franklin; collected and ed., with a life and introd. by Albert H. Smyth. **$3. Macmillan.

When complete, this ten-volume work will be “almost certain to be the final edition of Franklin’s work and correspondence.” (Outlook.) It is authoritative, and is compiled from original sources, with material arranged in chronological order. The author “has utilized the Franklin papers, obtained in 1903 by the University of Pennsylvania, as well as the famous Stevens collection in the Library of Congress, and the thirteen thousand documents that are the property of the American Philosophical society. He has also ransacked the archives of Great Britain and of four continental nations, and has made many interesting ‘finds.’ Furthermore, he has taken pains to secure accurate transcripts and has corrected more than two thousand errors that had crept into former editions.” (Forum.) Two volumes have thus far appeared.

“What promises to be the most complete edition of Franklin and one of the most valuable contributions to American historical and literary scholarship. His own labors to add to the materials amassed by his immediate predecessor have evidently been very great and successful.” W. P. Trent.

“Admirable new edition.” Paul Elmer More.

“It would be easy to quarrel with Mr. Smyth for the scantiness and rather vague purpose of his notes. But in other and more essential respects this edition deserves the highest praise. It is far more complete than any hitherto published.”

“As the third general compilation of Franklin’s writings, it must stand against the works of Sparks and Bigelow; and if the promises made are performed, it will surpass in scope and in utility these earlier issues.”

“In one instance Mr. Smyth has traced the author of two of these rejected essays, and in other instances he omits them because they are ‘dull and trivial.’ The editor’s notes are excellent, but it is puzzling to know how the name of Jarman should have been explained only on its third appearance, and why a reference to Whitefield (p. 234) is allowed to remain concealed in the initials only.”

“While Mr. Smyth has not found much that was new in this period, his careful observance of textual accuracy much increases the value of what is printed.”

“In every respect the book is admirably fitted for library use.”

“As this excellent edition of Franklin’s writings approaches completion its superiority over all former editions is increasingly evident.”

Franklin, Benjamin.Selections from the writings of Benjamin Franklin; ed. by U. Waldo Cutler. 35c. Crowell.

“Its carefully chosen selections should be put by the side of the ‘Autobiography’ on the shelves of the many Americans who are interested in the history and literature of their country, but are unable to allow themselves the luxury ofowning either of the two best editions of Franklin’s works.” W. P. Trent.

Franklin, Benjamin.Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin; printed from the full and authentic text, ed. by William MacDonald. *$1.25. Dutton.

Reviewed by W. P. Trent.

Franklin, Benjamin.His life, written by himself; condensed for school use, with notes and a continuation of his life by D. H. Montgomery, with an introd. by W. P. Trent. *40c. Ginn.

The essential portions of Franklin’s autobiography have been retained, to which has been added interesting matter drawn from his other writings. The text is annotated, and of special importance is Professor Trent’s introduction.

Franklin, Frank George.Legislative history of naturalization in the United States. *$1.50. Univ. of Chicago press.

This study covers the subject of naturalization from the Revolutionary war to 1861 and in it the author has “sought to exhibit the course of opinion” upon the subject “chiefly as it manifested itself in discussion, reports, and legislation at the central forum of American political life.” A good bibliography and index are appended.

“Unfortunately the scope of the work is too narrow to give it more than a very limited value to the student of citizenship. As a purely ‘legislative history,’ however, there is little to criticize,—except that, it should be brought down to date so as to cover recent legislation.”

“The mass of details given by the author ... prevents the mind from clearly grasping the important matter contained in the work. The value and importance of the study, however, cannot be overlooked.”

“This work presents a careful and exhaustive study.”

“A decidedly useful monograph. The book is not conspicuous for literary graces, its author manifestly being wholly absorbed in the task of accumulating the facts.”

Frantz, Henri.French pottery and porcelain. *$2.50. Scribner.

In this late addition to the “Newnes’ library of applied arts,” “The wonderful variety of French ceramics, from the private factory of Hélè de Hengest at Château d’Orion, in the time of Francis I down to the marvels turned out by the Sevres ovens and their extraordinary artistic and useful achievements in crockery in this book molded into a coherent chronicle of events, full of romance and story.... Not a town or a hamlet which produced a marvel of Faience escapes notice. The wonderful Faience violin, a masterpiece of Rouen as well as the polychrome bas-reliefs of Monstiers receive proportional attention in text and illustrations.”—N. Y. Times.

“The chief objection to the book taken by itself, without comparison with others of the series, is that no attempt is made to carry out the promise of the title. There are signs that the work has been written by some one not familiar with English, or else translated by some one not wholly competent, or not very careful. On the whole, the most important part of the book is its illustrations. These have been made and the examples selected with considerable good taste and thoroughness.”

“The volume is most comprehensive, particularly in its records of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.”

Fraser, John Foster.Canada as it is. $2. Cassell.

“This volume is a fair example of modern ‘special correspondent’ book-making. It is clever, confident, readable, and full of salient points and hurried slangy presentations of political situations.” (Spec.) The author “neglects no aspect of the country—the fruit-gardens of Ontario, the factories of Montreal and Toronto, the wheat-fields of Manitoba, the passes of the Rocky mountains, or the lumber forests of British Columbia. Mr. Foster Fraser has looked into every nook and cranny of all these countries with keen journalistic eye, and has swiftly penned his impressions.” (Acad.)

“The writing is always strong, vigorous, effective. Altogether, this is one of the best books on Canada that has been produced for a long time.”

“Presents a fairly accurate picture of the Dominion and its policy.”

“Gifted with a quick eye, and the wide if not always very deep knowledge of the experienced journalist, he has produced an entirely readable little volume.” Lawrence J. Burpee.

“Much of this is set forth attractively in Mr. Fraser’s little book.”

“In short, Mr. Foster Fraser’s book on the Dominion is both strong and weak in the sense in which his previous work on the United States was strong and weak. There is an undoubted fascination in the cocksure statements conveyed through short, crisp, though occasionally jerky sentences.”

Fraser, John Foster.Pictures from the Balkans. $2. Cassell.

The author’s wanderings led him from Belgrade thru Servia, across the Turkish frontier, thru Albania and various parts of Macedonia, Bulgaria, in and out thru cities and wild mountainous country. He tells, in a pleasing fashion of the people and things which he encountered, of the strange medley of nations, governments and religions, of all the contending forces which go to make up that whirlpool known as the Balkans. Forty full page plates from photographs illustrate the volume.

“The author’s impartiality leads him into a certain amount of contradiction.”

“Mr. Fraser ... contrives to convey a considerable amount of information in an entertaining form, which makes no very exacting demands upon the attention of the reader.”

“When he avoids politics and mingles with the people and restrains his air of British indifference and intolerance, he is quite charming—particularly in his descriptions of gardens and tobacco-fields and where other elements of natural scenery arouse his artistic instincts.”

Fraser, Mary (Crawford) (Mrs. Hugh Fraser).In the shadow of the Lord: a romance of the Washingtons. †$1.50. Holt.

Mary Ball who repulsed an unworthy Scottishlover became the second wife of Augustine Washington and sailed with him to Virginia. It is the account of these happenings that opens this romance of the Washingtons. “In due course George is born, and it is his early life which forms the chief interest of the book. He makes an attractive, but somewhat pedantic young hero, but is, indeed, too difficult a subject for Mrs. Fraser, who writes with far more sympathy of his father, a fine old gentleman, and of his mother, a woman who lived and died ‘in the shadow of the Lord,’ than she does of the young lad.” (Lond. Times.)

“The characterization, which is the mainstay of such a book, is excellent throughout.”

“Mrs. Fraser’s portrait of Washington hardly fills the frame of one’s ideal. Upon the whole, however, the novel is a creditable and interesting picture of colonial days.”

“She is too ponderous in her study of child life.”

“If placed in the hands of an intelligent person who, by some anomalous circumstance, had never heard of George Washington, the book would still—ay perhaps more—appeal to the heart and mind as a splendid biography of a splendid family.”

“The story is well arranged, the persons concerned are sufficiently lifelike and the general effect ... is dignified, and wholesome.”

“It is a mistake to weary the reader with details of domestic events, marriages, births, and so on, which have nothing to do with the story.”

“Mrs. Fraser has made her book hang together rather more closely than is the case with most historical novels.”

Fraser, William Alexander.Thirteen men. †$1.50. Appleton.

Thirteen stories of life in Canada and the East Indies. One of the men happens to be a fighting ram, one a king cobra, another a coon, and still another a collie dog, but they claim the reader’s interest no less than the “squaw-man,” the college-bred man and the Scotch lumberman.

“One ought not to quarrel with Mr. Fraser’s stories for what they are not when they are so much that is clever and interesting. For they are about things that grip the heart, and they march along with a brave, gay manner that is like a whiff of sea wind.”

“In these stories the matter as well as the manner shows the deadening influence of facile imitation.”

Frazer, James G.Lectures on the early history of the kingship. *$2.75. Macmillan.

These lectures deal with the early history of kingship, and in sketching a general theory of its evolution show that “it was as sagacious magicians rather than valiant warriors that men first gained kingship.” (Outlook.) The first part of the discussion is introductory and illustrative of savage beliefs in general, the second part surveys the field of savage chieftainship and the third part deals with the classical evidence.

“The points here mentioned detract little from the charm of the work, and those who turn to these lectures for a foretaste of the new ‘Golden bough’ will find, as of old, skilful exposition of the argument, allied to elegance of diction and no little learning.”

“He has made a notable contribution to the literature of primitive sociology.” George Elliott Howard.

“It is the effect of a good book not only to teach, but also to stimulate and suggest, and we think this the best and highest quality and one that will recommend these lectures to all intelligent readers, as well as to the learned.”

“In his handling of the Mediterranean religions, whether he is concerned with legend or with cult, his judgments lack authority and the impress of special insight or adequate study.” Lewis R. Farnell.

“Of Dr. Frazer’s charm of style and literary skill in arranging his material it is needless to speak, and the points noted above detract in no way from the interest of the book, which, indeed, might rest its reputation on the classical material alone.” N. W. T.

“It would not be hazardous to say that Dr. Frazer has shown himself to be the most learned of English scholars. Altogether here as elsewhere in recent years, Dr. Frazer shows himself more ingenious than convincing.” Joseph Jacobs.

“Not often nowadays does one come upon so ingenious a piece of original study as these lectures.”

“Interesting and suggestive work.”

Freeman, Rev. James Edward.Man and the Master. 75c. Whittaker.

The chapters on the life of the Master “simply deal with certain phases or aspects of that life and seek to lay emphasis upon cardinal characteristics” without attempting to set forth any chronological order.

“While there is nothing in these pages which has not been said before, there is nothing which does not need to be said again and again, and it is all said briefly, warmly, impressively.”

Freeman, Mrs. Mary Eleanor (Wilkins).Debtor.†$1.50. Harper.

“It is the story itself, with its unlovely incidents too often and too minutely related, that is disappointing.”

“No better book of the honest, old-fashioned kind has appeared this year.”

“Not worth telling in its bare outlines, it is made into a masterpiece of Mrs. Freeman’s method.”

“This is the most unconventional story that Mrs. Freeman has written ... the dénouement is at once artistically and ethically satisfying.”

“The book is full of little vignettes of village life charmingly depicted, and the story is well put together.”

Freer, William Bowen.Philippine experiences of an American teacher; a narrative of work and travel in the Philippine islands. **$1.50. Scribner.

“This is a narrative of three years of teaching and travel in the Philippines.... It is particularly interesting for the light it throws on many phases of life and character not noticedto any extent in other books; and the testimony it furnishes of the real progress of American educational work in the island is extremely gratifying.... The book is illustrated with reproductions of photographs of scenery and life.” (Critic.) The author hopes that his book “will result in a better appreciation of some desirable traits of Filipino character, in a stronger conviction of the unwisdom of granting at this time, any greater degree of self-government than the Filipinos already possess, and in a fuller understanding of the work that is being done in the public schools in the attempt to fit the people for the eventual exercise of complete autonomy.”

“The book is especially valuable for the near views that it gives of the everyday life of the islanders, their manners and customs, and their personal characteristics.”

“His story, told with a simplicity that recalls ‘Robinson Crusoe,’ conveys a more vivid and life like picture of life among the Filipinos than is to be found in more pretentious volumes.”

“The best part of the book is that which describes the methods employed by the teachers.”

“An easily read, unpretentious, but informative and interesting book.”

“His work is a valuable one. The book is especially valuable for its pictures of the home life, the personal characteristics, the customs of the plain people of the islands. It is a study from the ground up.” George R. Bishop.

“Although his style has no distinction, and is sometimes marred by carelessness, it is unaffected. The author has shown skill in selecting the human, the concrete, the picturesque, to present to his readers, and in giving at the same time the impression that he has shown the typical.”

“This narrative of his work and travel in the islands therefore sheds more light on the special conditions which we were called on to face there than all the works of dilettante political economists who have sought to tell the needs of the islands and the short comings of American rule.”

French, Allen.Pelham and his friend Tim. †$1.50. Little.

A stirring story for boys in which two chums have various exciting adventures, the chief of which grows out of a mill strike. The tale teaches wholesome lessons of comradeship and charity.

“Mr. French has infused vigor and action into his pages.”

“A good, wholesome book for boys, and one that will hold their interest from the first page to the last.”

French, Anne Warner (Mrs. Charles Ellis French) (Anne Warner, pseud.).Seeing France with Uncle John. †$1.50. Century.

France as seen with Uncle John is a veritable scenic railway, for the lively and loquacious old gentleman drags his two nieces over the entire map of that interesting country at a rate which makes not only their sightseeing, but the conduct of their love affairs, of which he disapproves, a difficult proposition. His running comment upon the places and things visited is most amusing and forms a clever satire upon the Uncle John type of American. There is much wit, and under the wit wisdom, and the traveler may profitably read it not only for entertainment but as an example of how not to see France.

“Falls so far below what she has taught her readers to expect that even her enemies, if she has any, must be sorry that she has published it. The book provides merely a mild sort of entertainment.”

“It is quite impossible to read this little satire by Anne Warner without laughter.”

French, Anne Warner (Mrs. Charles Ellis French).Susan Clegg and her neighbors’ affairs, †$1. Little.

Susan Clegg once more—nor has she forgotten the little matter of occupying the gossip-stage’s center, and doing the principal bit of talking herself. Mrs. Lathrop is as cheerful a listener as ever, and readily susceptible to Susan’s versions of neighborhood happenings.

“We do not think, however, that the present volume is quite up to the former short stories by this author, and from our point-of-view it is very inferior to ‘The rejuvenation of Aunt Mary.’”

“Latent pathos, the soul of true humor, is entirely absent from the book. The author nearly always relies on grotesque situations, and here her skill is such that the counterfeit often rings like the current coin.”

“Her observations are marked by philosophy as well as wit.”

French, Lillie Hamilton.Mrs. Van Twiller’s salon. †$1.50. Pott.

Mrs. Van Twiller gathers about her various types of New York society—an artist, a scribe of social doings, a professor, a major, various men of the world, etc.—and dominates the group in characteristic modern salon fashion.

“An amusing volume on the order of the ‘Potiphar papers.’”

“The book is not only eminently readable, but very suggestive.”

French, Samuel Livingston.Army of the Potomac from 1861 to 1863. $2.50. Pub. soc. of New York.

A “concise and effective” history of the movements of the army of the Potomac whose purpose is to award the honors impartially, and to frame an absolutely unbiased and correct judgment concerning the various commanders.

“Purports to set forth ‘an absolutely unbiased and correct judgment concerning the various commanders.’ The volume consists largely of extracts from documentary material, which the author uses in such a way as effectually to thwart the purpose stated above.”

“The volume is composed mainly of extracts from official documents and letters, chosen to bolster up the rather absurd and discredited positions taken by the author.”

“Unfortunately excerpt and comment are jumbled together without sufficient typographical distinction between the two, and it is often difficult to tell what is official record and whatis Mr. French. The proofreading, moreover, is frequently of a sort to add to the reader’s distress. But the matter collated is of the greatest value.”

“He succeeds in shedding considerable new light upon many acts of the Army of the Potomac and its commanders.”

Frenssen, Gustav.Holy land; exclusive authorized tr. of “Hilligenlei;” tr. from the German by Mary Agnes Hamilton. †$1.50. Estes.

“It is less a continuous tale than a collection of charming scenes—simple poetic, realistic—of the lives of humble folk working and striving in a little harbour town in Holstein. The keynote of the book is struck by Hule Beiderwand, ever watching for the coming of a ‘brave man who shall bring the whole land beneath his sword until it is a holy land in deed as in name.’”—Acad.

“Is an exceptionally interesting book, informed throughout with strong and tender feeling. Miss Hamilton’s translation is excellent, especially as reproducing the atmosphere of poetry and romance and of spiritual enthusiasm which is essentially a charm of the original work.”

“Recommend it most heartily to all who regard the art of fiction as something more than a clever spinning of plots and a pleasant arrangement of words.”

“The fundamental impression which it is the author’s purpose to produce is created by a long succession of delicate touches, working upon the subconsciousness of the reader, and gradually combining in cumulative effect.” Wm. M. Payne.

“With the exception of a few passages which bear evidence of a struggle with the style of the original, the translator’s painstaking work has been successful.”

“Though the preacher Frenssen may justify some chapters by his seriousness of ethical purpose, the artist can offer no apology for his offenses against the canons of good taste.”

Frenssen, Gustav.Jorn Uhl; tr. by F. S. Delmer. †$1.50. Estes.

“To quote his own comment on a German landscape, ‘It was all clearly and finely and most lovingly painted, with a touch of plain rustic honesty, and a rough, hearty fruitfulness in it.’” Mary Moss.

“Frenssen tells his story with unique power. He tells it from his own soul. He is a vivisector of his subject’s soul. He probes to the primitive spring of action and of feeling. The style is just the vesture which such truth would seem to demand. It is direct, primitive, and as a rule, bald. It is also live, searching and moving.”

Friedenwald, Herbert.Declaration of independence. **$2. Macmillan.

“Dr. Friedenwald would do well to simplify his style, which is curiously involved.”

Friedrich-Friedrich, Emmy von (Emmy von Rhoden, pseud.).Young violinist; tr. from the 12th ed. of the German of Emma von Rhoden, by Mary E. Ireland. $1. Saalfield.

A pathetic story with a happy ending following the hardships and final happiness of Mignon Marconi, who, when her father died had as an only inheritance her beloved violin. She runs away from cruel treatment, is cared for by a band of traveling musicians and finally becomes the adopted daughter of a lady bountiful.

Friswell, Laura Hain.In the sixties and seventies. **$3.50. Turner, H. B.

“A pleasing volume of personal impressions of literary and social people of note.... The author is the daughter of an English essayist and novelist who had agreeable and friendly relations with Thackeray, Cruikshank, Thomas Cooper the Chartist, Kingsley, and other noted men of his generation, while Miss Friswell has many anecdotes of her own acquaintance, Sir Walter Besant, his collaborator, Mr. J. S. Rice, Sir Henry Stanley, William Black, and many writers of our own day.”—Outlook.

“Is unfortunately disfigured by a good deal of triviality; some egotism, for which, however, the author apologizes handsomely; and one or two indiscreet passages.”

“As a record of ‘Impressions of literary people and others,’ it is vivid, rapid, thoroughly entertaining and seldom frivolous, and, despite occasional carelessness ... generally well written.” Percy F. Bicknell.

“The contents are not quite worthy of the excellent paper and print of this handsome volume. They would have been more in place in a magazine. This is mainly because there is nothing whatever of political interest and it is usually their politics that make English memoirs worth reading.”

“Her book is of interest.”

“The book is cheerful reading, and, while it is occasionally trivial, is in the main a good specimen of a class of books which entertain one’s leisure hours in a most satisfactory way.”

“The book is curiously without ‘purple patches’ ... but it is good to read.”

From servitude to service: the history and work of Southern institutions for the education of the negro. *$1.10. Am. Unitar.

“By its freedom from the polemic spirit and by its adherence to actual facts and conditions, this book is a valuable contribution to our understanding of what is happening to the negro.”

Frothingham, Eugenia Brooks.Evasion. †$1.50. Houghton.

“About two men and a girl. The weak-willed Apollo cheats at cards, and the strong Antaeus shoulders the blame. The girl marries Apollo out of pity and to help her family, regretting it only once, but for a long time.” (Pub. Opin.) “‘The evasion’ contains a plot absorbing enough to hold one’s attention tensely to the end, but it will be remembered longer for its vivid portrayal of the lives of the idle rich and the convincingcontrast drawn in its pages between these seemingly useless members of society and the big majority that counts.” (N. Y. Times.)

“Her style is cosmopolitan and her point of view that of the dweller in both continents, but her spiritual outlook is of the younger world, and to the end we are left in doubt whether she is on the side of authority, or of negation.”

“There is much that is admirable about the volume. But the prologue strikes the wrong note.” Frederic Taber Cooper.

“It is so good that one wishes it were better. Miss Frothingham should studiously avoid the morbid and overstrained effects which are her most serious menace as a novelist.”

“The great army of happy folk who need no warning will find its picture of Boston as accurate as the picture of New York in ‘The house of mirth.’”

“The story is interesting, well constructed, and written with charm and spirit.”

Reviewed by Louise Collier Willcox.

“The story is strong, and like many strong things not especially pleasant.”

Fuchs, Karl Johannes.Trade policy of Great Britain and her colonies since 1860, tr. by Constance H. M. Archibald. *$2.50. Macmillan.

“It is marked by so much of a scientific spirit as to be a really useful aid towards the study of our fiscal history during the period which it covers.”

Fuller, Caroline Macomber.Flight of puss Pandora. †$1.50. Little.

Weejums, the alley cat’s kitten, has a formidable rival in Pandora, the apartment cat. Miss Fuller’s pets have a way of opening homes and human hearts for near inspection. But the scrutiny results in lessons of observation and human kindness.

“An animal tale which will please all children who love cats.”

Fuller, Hubert Bruce.Purchase of Florida; its history and diplomacy. *$2.50. Burrows.

“This elaborate monograph ... was suggested by the author’s conviction that the epoch identified with the acquisition of Florida and with our early entanglement with Spain had not received adequate treatment at the hands of historians, and that a careful elucidation of this period and of the events which marked the struggle to secure New Orleans and the Mississippi would contribute a pregnant and interesting chapter in our national history. For his material Mr. Fuller has gone direct to original sources.”—Lit. D.

“The result of these investigations has enabled him to present in a new light many momentous episodes in the early diplomatic history of the nation.”

“Excellent as is Mr. Fuller’s book and valuable as are the new facts that it contains, it is open to two serious criticisms. The material upon which it is based is inadequate, and the knowledge which it displays of European diplomatic situations is insufficient.”

“Mr. Fuller’s account of this whole affair is the best we know of.”

“Close revision should be had in the event of another edition, and the work thus be made still more valuable to historical students, who will undoubtedly welcome it if only because it gives ready access to much documentary information hitherto not generally available.”

“A scholarly monograph.”

Fuller, Robert Higginson.Golden hope a story of the time of King Alexander the Great.†$1.50. Macmillan.

“The story is told in a style in which care and the exactness of historical detail are nicely mingled with the charm of genuine sensitiveness to the romantic situation. The book is a fine story of adventure.”

Fyvie, John.Some literary eccentrics. **$3. Pott.

Eleven studies whose best present Landor, Hazlitt and George Wither. The other “eccentrics” are Thomas Day, Crabb Robinson, Douglas Jerrold, King James I, Sir John Mandeville, Babbage, Beckford and John Buncle.

“Taken for no more than it professes to be, the book is a good one.”

“They are hardly worth binding up into a book. They add very little to our knowledge, and they are not a work of a writer alive to the picturesqueness of the past or sensitive to the harmonies of the English language.”

Back to IndexNext