which Maspero puts before that of Bab- This
favorite
book was begun by Châ-
ylonia.
ylonia.
Warner - World's Best Literature - v30 - Guide to Systematic Readings
338 (#374) ############################################
338
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
abundantly testified Bentley's genius as a was forty per cent. The Irish were bit.
controversialist. As a scholar, a learned terly enraged, became turbulent, and every
critic, and a university educator, Bentley effort was made to conciliate them. A
stands not only at the highest level, but report sustaining Wood, which had been
at the head of the stream which has drawn up by Sir Robert Walpole, was
come down to our time. There began answered by Swift in these letters. Swift,
with him a broad and thorough scholar- who viewed Wood's patent as a death-
ship in Greek and Latin literature, which blow to Irish independence, asserts that
before him was only beginning to get the English Parliament cannot, without
under way. He is thus to scholars one usurpation, maintain the power of bind-
of the great names of learning and of ing Ireland by laws to which it does not
letters.
consent. This assertion led to the arrest
ttle of the Books, The, by Jona-
of the printer of the letters; but the grand
Battle
Swift
than Swift, was written in 1697, but
jury refused to find a true bill.
remained in manuscript until 1704. It
triumphed, and Wood's patent was re-
voked. The Letters) were published in
was a travesty on the endless contro-
1724; the sub-title being, “very proper
versy over the relative merits of the
ancients and moderns, first raised in
to be kept in every family. ”
France by Perrault
. Its immediate cause: A
rtevelde, Philip van, a tragedy, by
Swift's Sir Henry Taylor: 1834. One of the
patron, Sir William Temple, as to the best English tragedies since Shakespeare,
genuineness of the Letters of Phalaris. ) by an author distinguished for his pro-
(See previous article. )
test, in the spirit of Wordsworth, against
In the satire, the Bee, representing the the extreme sentimentalism of Byron.
ancients who go direct to nature, and His (Isaac Comnenus) (1827)—a drama
the Spider, representing the moderns picturing the scene at Constantinople
weaving their webs from within, have a when the hero was Roman (Byzantine)
sharp dispute in a library, where the
emperor there (1057–59 A. D. ) – was
books have mutinied and taken sides, mainly a preliminary study for his mas-
preparatory to battle. In the description terpiece, the (Van Artevelde); in which,
of this battle, Swift's terrible arrows of with noble thought and admirable power,
wit fly thick and fast, Dryden and Bent- he brings back the stress and storm of
ley coming in for a goodly share of their fourteenth-century life. The father of
destructive force. Nothing is left of the Philip, the great Jacob van Artevelde, an
poor moderns when he has finished with immensely rich brewer, eloquent and en-
them, The work, despite its vast clev- ergetic, had played a great part as popu-
erness, was not taken with entire serious-
lar leader at Ghent, 1335-45; and it fell
ness by Swift's contemporaries. He was to his son to figure similarly in 1381, but
not then the great Dean; and besides, to be slain in a great defeat of the forces
he was dealing with subjects he was not of Ghent the next year. Taylor's tragedy
competent to treat. It remains, however,
recalls the events of these two years.
a brilliant monument to his satirical
Two songs -
powers, and to the spirit of destruction
Quoth tongue of neither maid nor wife
which impelled him even as a youth to
and
audacious attacks on great names.
"If I had the wings of a dove –"
Drapier. Letters, The, by Jonathan
have been pronounced worthy of Shakes-
. These famous letters took
peare, although his lyrical efforts gener-
their name from their signature, «M. B.
ally were laboriously artificial. He had
Drapier. ” They were written to protest
very little eye to the stage, - was in fact
against an unjust aggression of the Crown,
more a poet than a dramatist, and a poet
which, at a time of great scarcity of cop-
of thought especially,– but he used great
per coin in Ireland, had granted a patent
care in his studies of character.
to furnish this to one William Wood, who
was
to share his profits with the Duchess Barneveld, John of, Advocate of Hola
of Kendal, the
. In
whose influence the patent had been ob- this brilliant biography, the author shows
tained. These profits were to be derived that as William the Silent is called the
from the difference between the real and author of the independence of the Dutch
the nominal value of the halfpence, which Provinces, so John of Barneveld deserves
-B
>
## p. 339 (#375) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
339
the title of the Founder of the Dutch Of Barneveld's place in history the au-
Republic. ” The Advocate and Keeper thor says: -“He was a public man in
of the Great Seal of the Province of the fullest sense of the word; and without
Holland, the most powerful of the seven his presence and influence the record of
provinces of the Netherlands, was virtu- Holland, France, Britain, and Germany
ally “prime minister, president, attorney- might have been essentially modified.
general, finance minister, and minister of The Republic was so integral a part of
foreign affairs, of the whole republic. that system which divided Europe into
Standing in the background and veiled two great hostile camps, according to
from public view behind “Their High creeds rather than frontiers, that the his-
Mightinesses, the States-General, the tory of its foremost citizen touches at
Advocate was really their spokesman, or every point the general history of Christ-
practically the States-General themselves, endom. ”
in all important measures at home and
abroad, during those years which inter- Havelock the Dane. This legend is
connected with the founding of
vened between the truce with Spain in
Grimsby in Lincolnshire; and was writ-
1609 and the outbreak of the Thirty Years'
ten in English and French verse about
War in 1618.
1280 A. D. The English version was lost
Born in Amersfoort in 1547, of the an-
for many years, but at last found in a
cient and knightly house of Oldenbarne-
manuscript of 'Lives of the Saints. )
veld, he received his education in the
The author is unknown; the time of the
universities of Holland, France, Italy,
story probably about the sixth century.
and Germany, and became one of the
Havelock, prince of Denmark, is left to
first civilians of his time, the friend and
the care of Earl Godard, who hires a
trusted councilor of William the Silent,
fisherman, Grim, to drown him; but he,
and the chief negotiator of the peace with
perceiving a miraculous light about the
Spain. The tragedy with which his life
child, dares not put him to death, and
ended owes itself, as Mr. Motley points
carries him to England. The boy grows
out, to the opposition between the princi-
up, and finds work with the cook of
ple of States-rights and religious freedom
Godrich, an earl who has in his charge
advocated by Barneveld, and that of the
the late king's daughter, Goldborough,
national and church supremacy maintained
whom he has promised to marry to the
by Prince Maurice the Stadtholder, whose
strongest and fairest man he can find.
desire to be recognized as king had met
In a trial of strength, Havelock (puts
with Barneveld's prompt opposition. The
Arminian doctrine of free-will, as over
the stone » farther than any other; and
Godrich, who wants the kingdom for his
against the Calvinists' principle of predes-
son, marries Goldborough to this kitchen
tination, had led to religious divisions
scullion. The princess is dissatisfied
among the provinces; and Barneveld's
with the union; but in the night sees
bold defense of the freedom of individual
the same miraculous light, and a cross
belief resulted at length in his arrest and
on Havelock's shoulder. He awakes im-
that of his companion and former pupil,
mediately afterwards, and tells her he
Hugo Grotius, both of whom were con-
has dreamed that all England and Den-
demned to execution. His son, engaging
mark were his own.
later in a conspiracy of revenge against
He goes therefore
to Denmark; and after performing deeds
the Stadtholder, was also with the other
of great valor, is proclaimed king. Re-
conspirators arrested and put to death.
turning with an army to England, he
The historian obtained his materials
makes Godrich a prisoner; and with
largely from the Advocate's letters and
other MS. archives of the Dutch govern-
Goldborough is crowned at London,
where they reign for sixty years.
mcnt, and experienced no little difficulty
in deciphering those papers covered now Heldenbuch, a given succes-
with the satirical dust of centuries, writ. sively to several versions of a col-
ten in the small, crabbed, exasperating lection of German legends from the
characters which make Barneveld's handthirteenth century. The first Helden-
writing almost cryptographic; but which buch) was printed in Strasburg, probably
were once, «sealed with the Great Seal in the year 1470; the second in Dresden
of the haughty burgher aristocracy, doc-
The latter version was almost
uments which occupied the close atten- entirely divested of the quaint poetic
tion of the cabinets of Christendom. ” charm of the original legends by the
name
in 1472.
## p. 340 (#376) ############################################
340
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
(
romance
dry, pedantic style of one of the editors, reign of João I. , the Infante Dom Pedro
by whose name the collection is known, wrote a sonnet in praise of Vasco Lo-
- Kasper von der Roen. The older vol- beira, “the inventor of the Books of Chiv-
ume, however, preserved the spirit of the alry. ” Cervantes, whose own
thirteenth century with admirable fidel- was the death-knell of these unnatural
ity, both in its text and in the delight- and preternatural extravaganzas, names
fully naive illustrations which accompany
this as one of the three romances spared
it.
in the burning of Don Quixote's library,
Among the heroic myths which appear “because it was the first of the kind and
in the original Heldenbuch) are the an- the best. ” It depicts a time «not many
cient Gothic legends of King Laurin) years after the passion of our Redeemer,”
and "The Rose Garden at Worms, to- when Garinter, a Christian, was king of
gether with three from the Lombard lesser Britain, Languines King of Scot-
cycle, Ornit, (Wolfdietrich,' and (Hug- land, Perion King of Gaul, and Lesuarte
dietrich. ) These have been rendered King of Great Britain. The scene is laid
into Modern High German in the pres- in such mystic parts of the earth as the
ent century by Karl Josef Simrock, whose island of Windsor, the forest of Anga-
scholarly and sympathetic translation duza, and “Sobradisa which borders upon
makes his Kleines Heldenbuch) as val- Serolis. ) The manly love of the three
uable a contribution to the history of brother knights, their honor, fidelity, and
German literature as was the original bravery, are noble types of the ideal of
collection of the same name.
the chivalric romance. It is to the inter-
polations and additions of the Spanish
Amadis of Gaul, by Vasco Lobeira. and French translators through whom the
Robert Southey, in the introduction romance has come down to us, that we owe
to his English version of this romance, the gross and offensive passages which
says:
(((Amadis of Gaul) is among prose, mar the otherwise pure and charming
what (Orlando Furioso) is among metri- | narrative.
cal romances, not the oldest of its kind
but the best. It is however so old as
,
This History des Romains,' first
est bloom of chivalry, the days of the published in 1879 in Paris, is the most
Black Prince and the glorious reign of elaborate and complete of the works of
Edward III. in the two realms of Eng- Victor Duruy.
It is the result very
land and France. It is a tale of the
largely of original research. The edition
knightly career of Amadis and his two
of Mahaffy, published in 1883, has no
brothers, Galaor and Florestan, the sons superior, and perhaps no equal, as a
of King Perion of Gaul. The name of popular history of Rome. The modern
the knight's mistress is Oriana; but many edition, as published in 1894, is very at:
are the damsels, ladies, and queens, whom tractive; having over
three thousand
he rescues in peril, not without wound- well-selected engravings,
ing their hearts, but remaining loyal to maps and plans, besides numerous other
the last to his liege lady — his marriage | chromo-lithographs.
with whom terminates, in Southey's opin- This work covers the whole subject of
ion, the narration of the original author. Roman history, and is the best work
The remaining adventures after the of reference; having, unlike the works
Fourth Book are, as he thinks, added by of Merivale and Gibbon, a
the Spanish translator Garcia Ordonez de dex, which enables the ordinary reader
Montalvo, and exhibit a much lower type to find any fact required.
Unlike Monim-
both of literary style and of morals. The sen, Duruy sifts tradition and tries to
author is a Portuguese who was born at infer from it the real value of Roman
Porto; fought at Aljubarrota, where he history. In regard to the illustrations,
was knighted by King João; and died at Duruy's book stands alone; giving the
Elvas, 1403. The oldest version estant reader all kinds of illustration and local
is that of Montalvo in Spanish, and the color, so as to let him read the history
oldest edition is supposed to be that of of Rome with all the lights which archæ-
Seville, 1526. But the
ological research can afford.
familiar to the Spanish discoverers of Beginning with a speculative descrip,
America, and must have enjoyed a wide tion of the geographical, political, and
popularity since the time when, in the
religious conditions of Italy before the
1
to have belonged to the age of the fairs Rome History of, by Victor Duruy.
19
11
one hundred
general in-
romance
was
## p. 341 (#377) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
341
.
establishment of Roman power, the his-
tory of Rome is traced in eight volumes,
each of which has two sections, from its
founding, 753 B. C. , to its division and
fall in 359 A. D. The history has four-
teen main periods; the first being Rome
under the Kings,' 753-510 B. C. , and
the (Formation of the Roman People);
and the last, "The Christian Empire
from Constantine to Theodosius ) (306-
395 A. D. ).
)
well as his victories restored a transient
splendor to the Eastern Empire.
III. The third from the revival of the
Western Empire to the taking of Con-
stantinople by the Turks. It is, then,
a history of the civilized world for thir-
teen centuries, during which paganism
was breaking down, and Christianity
was superseding it; and so bridges over
the chasm between the old world and
the new.
The great criticism of the work has
always been upon the point of Gibbon's
estimate of the nature and influence of
Christianity.
Aside from this, it can safely be said
that modern scholarship finds very little
that is essential to be changed in Gib-
bon's wonderful studies; while his noble
dignity of style and his picturesqueness
of narration make this still the most
fascinating of histories.
Decline and Fall of the Roman
Empire, The, by Edward Gibbon.
“ It was at Rome, on the 15th of Octo-
ber 1764, as I sat musing amidst the
ruins of the capitol, while the bare-
footed friars were singing vespers in
the temple of Jupiter, that the idea of
writing the decline and fall of the city
first entered my mind,” wrote Gibbon
in his autobiography. In 1776 the first
volume of the great work was finished.
Its success
was tremendous; and the
reputation of the author was firmly es-
tablished before the religious world
could prepare itself for an attack on its
famous 15th and 16th chapters. The
last volume was finished on the 27th
of June 1787, at Lausanne, whither he
had retired for quiet and economy. In
his Memoirs) he tells the hour of his
release from those protracted labors —
between eleven o'clock and midnight;
and records his first emotions of joy on
the recovery of his freedom, and then
the sober melancholy that succeeded it
when he realized that his life's work
was done.
(The Decline and Fall) has been pro-
nounced by many the greatest achieve-
ment of human thought and erudition
in the department of history. The
tremendous scope of the work is best
explained by a brief citation from the
author's preface to the first volume:
<< The memorable series of revolutions
which, in the course of thirteen cen-
turies, gradually undermined, and at
length destroyed, the solid fabric of
human greatness, may, with some pro-
priety, be divided into the three follow-
ing periods: I. The first of these periods
may be traced from the age of Trajan
and the . Antonines, when the Roman
monarchy, having attained its full
strength and maturity, began to verge
toward its decline.
II. The sec-
ond may be supposed to begin with the
reign of Justinian, who by his laws as
Edward Gibbon, the Autobiography
of. What goes at present under
this title is a compilation made by Lord
Sheffield, Gibbon's literary executor,
from six different sketches left by the
author in an unfinished state. The first
edition appeared in 1796, with the com-
plete edition of his works. «In the fifty-
second year of my age,” he begins,
(after the completion of an arduous
work, I now propose to employ some
moments of my leisure in reviewing the
simple transactions of a private and lit-
erary life. This modest, unaffected tone
characterizes the book. The sincerity of
the revelations is full of real soberness
and dignity. The author of the De-
cline and Fall of the Roman Empire)
recounts the years of preparation that
preceded his masterpiece, and the diffi-
culties conquered. Macaulay's (school-
boy » doubtless knows the lines concern-
ing the origin at Rome of his first
conception of the history — when he was
(musing amidst the ruins of the capitol,
while the barefooted friars were sing-
ing vespers in the temple of Jupiter. ”
And many other passages are hardly less
familiar. Had he lived, Gibbon would
doubtless have completed these memoirs;
but as they are, the simple, straightfor-
ward records of a famous student's la-
bors and aims, who by his manly char-
acter made many lasting friendships, they
form one of the most interesting, bril-
liant, and suggestive autobiographies in
the English language.
## p. 342 (#378) ############################################
342
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
Gºds
ods in Greece, The (in certain sanct-
uaries recently excavated). Being
eight lectures given at the Lowell Insti-
tute in 1890. By Louis Dyer, 1891. A
volume of studies designed to represent
Greek religious thought in its best aspects.
The gods dealt with are: (1) Demeter
and Persephone, the two great goddesses
of Eleusis in Attica; (2) Dionysos, also
worshiped in Eleusis — his early cult in
Attica; (3) Æsculapius and his worship,
especially at Athens and Epidaurus; (4)
Aphrodite and her worship at Old Pa-
phos; and (5) Apollo at the Holy Island
of Delos — The Delian Apollo. Of all
these greater gods of Greece, sanctuaries
where they were specially worshiped have
been recently brought to light, through
excavations of traditional sites, where
were shrines of healing for the body and
of special salvation for the soul, dedi-
cated by immemorial worship in the Hel-
lenic world; shrines where, Mr. Dyer
says, «the beautiful and ennobling reli-
gion, first of Greece, and then — through
Greece and Rome- of all the ancient
world,” had its growth, and where that
old-time worship of ideals grew purer
and purer, until its inner significance and
truth were gathered in by Christianity. ”
The volume is one of importance to the
study of Greek culture.
3
.
3
1
slayer, however, must first pluck a bough
from the oak of the divinity, in order
that through it the divine life might
take possession of him. The work is
one rich in information in the field of
folk-lore.
Israe
srael Among the Nations: A STUDY
OF THE JEWS AND ANTI-SEMITISM. By
Anatole Leroy-Beaulieu. Translated by
Frances Hellman. (1896. ) A specially
careful, thoughtful, philosophical study
of the facts bearing upon the charac-
ter of the Jew in history and his place
in modern life. It is not so much a
defense of the Jews against complaint
and prejudice, as it is an impartial ex-
amination of the Jewish situation, and
a summary of interesting facts in regard
to the seven or eight millions of Jews
scattered amongst five or six hundred
millions of Christians in Europe and
America, or Mohammedans in Asia. The
author is a Frenchman and a Christian,
who specially desires to
see France
maintain the ground taken in the eman-
cipation of the Jews by the French Rev.
olution. He is familiar with the Jewish
situation in Russia, Poland, Roumania,
and Hungary, where Jewish concentra-
tion is greatest, where Israel's centre
of gravity” is found,-a vast reservoir
of Jews in the centre of Europe, whose
overflow tends towards the West," and
in view of whose movements it appears
not unlikely that the old European and
especially the young American States
will be swept by a long tidal wave of
Jewish emigration. The reader of the
story, with its episodes of discussion, will
get a clear view of many interesting
points touching Jewish origins and de-
velopments, and will find himself in a
position to fairly judge the Jewish prob-
lem. There is no lack of sympathy in
the writer, yet he frankly says that
(modern Israel would seem to be mor-
ally, as well as physically, a dying
race. »
Conscience, he says, “has be-
come contracted and obscured »); and "as
to honor, where could the Jew possibly
have learnt its meaning ?
beaten, re-
viled, scorned, abused by everybody. "
Jerusalem, The History of, by Sir
Walter Besant and Professor E. H.
Palmer. (1871, 1888. ) A history pub-
lished under the auspices of the society
known as “The Palestine Exploration
Fund. ” It covers a period and is com-
piled from materials not included in any
IN
»
Golde
olden Bough, The: A Study
COMPARATIVE RELIGION, by James
George Fraser. (2 vols. , 1890. ) A special
part from a general work on primitive
superstition and religion (not yet pub-
lished), in which an eminent scholar in
this field has attempted, by a study of
popular customs and superstitions in
modern Europe, - the living superstitions
of the peasantry, and especially those
connected with trees and plants,— to find
out the origin of certain features of the
worship of Diana at the little woodland
lake of Nemi. The idea seems to have
been that a god was incarnate in plant
life, and that a bough plucked from the
oak of the divinity would convey this
life. Mr. Fraser's study is a very elab-
orate one, and only by following his
learned pages is it possible to go fully
into the primitive notions to which he
refers. The priest of the temple at Nemi
was expected to obtain the post by slay-
ing its occupant, and to be himself slain
by his successor. He was considered the
incarnation of the divinity, and bound
to be killed while in full vigor. The
## p. 343 (#379) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
343
other work. It begins with the siege by southwest, and again by the Hittites
Titus, 70 A. D. , and continues to the from the north, prepared the way for
fourteenth century; including the early Israelite invasion and settlement; upon
Christian period, the Moslem invasion, which followed the rise and domination
the mediæval pilgrimages, the pilgrim- of Assyria, under which Israel was des-
ages by Mohammedans, the Crusades, tined to be blotted out. The story of all
the Latin Kingdom from 1099 A. D. to this, including the earliest rise, and the
1291, the victorious career of Saladin, development for many centuries, of He-
the Crusade of the Children, and other brew power and culture, gives M. Mas-
episodes in the history of the city and pero's pages very great interest. The
of the country. The use of Crusading wealth of illustration, all of it strictly
and Arabic sources for the preparation instructive, showing scenes in nature and
of the work, and the auspices under ancient objects from photographs, adds
which it has been published, give this very much to the reader's interest and to
history a value universally recognized. the value of the work. The two superb
volumes are virtually the story of the
ancient Eastern world for 3,000 years, or
Esypt and Chaldæa: The Dawn of
Civilization, by G. Maspero. Re- from 3850 B. C. to 850 B. C. And the
vised edition. Translated by M. L. latest discoveries indicate that a record
McClure. Introduction by A. H. Sayce. may be made out going back through an
With' map and over 470 illustrations. A earlier 3,000 years to about 7000 B. C.
work devoted to the earlier history of
Egypt and Babylonia; especially full and Genius of Christianity, The, by Fran-
valuable for the early history of Egypt, çois Auguste de Châteaubriand.
which Maspero puts before that of Bab- This favorite book was begun by Châ-
ylonia. “Chaldæa” is a comparatively late teaubriand during his period of exile in
name for Babylonia; and since Maspero England; though it was first published
wrote, new discoveries have carried the in France at the moment when Bona-
«dawn” very far back in Babylonia, to parte, then First Consul, was endeavor.
a date much earlier than that of the ear- ing to restore Catholicism as the official
liest known records of origins in Egypt. religion of the country. The object of
In a later volume, Egypt, Syria, and the "Genius) was to illustrate and prove
Assyria: The Struggle of the Nations,' the triumph of religious sentiment, or
M. Maspero has carried on the story of more exactly, of the Roman Catholic
the early Oriental world, its remarkable cult. The framework upon which all is
civilization, its religious developments, constructed is a sentence found near the
and its wars of conquest and empire, beginning of the work, to the effect that
down to a time in the last half of the of all religions that have ever existed,
ninth century B. C. , when Ahab was the the Christian religion is the most poetic,
King of Israel in northern Palestine. the most humane, the most favorable to
Babylon had risen and extended her in- liberty, to literature, and to the arts.
fluence westward as early as 2250 B. C. ; The book is divided into four parts, the
and even this was 1,500 years later than first of which treats of the mysteries, the
Sargon I. , who had carried his arms from moralities, the truth of the Scriptures,
the Euphrates to the peninsula of Sinai the existence of God, and the immor-
on the confines of Egypt. As early at tality of the soul. The second and third
least as this, Asiatic conquerors had parts bear upon the poetics of Christ-
founded a “Hyksos” dominion in Egypt, | ianity, and upon the fine arts and letters.
which lasted more than six and a half The fourth is devoted to a minute study
centuries (661 years, to about 1600 B. C. ). of the < Christian cult. » However pious
At this last date a remarkable civilization the feeling which prompted the composi-
filled the region between the Euphrates tion of the (Genius,' it by no means en-
and the Mediterranean; and to this, M. titles its author to a position among
Maspero devotes an elaborate chapter, religious writers. Critics have shown us
including a most interesting account of that, at most, he was devoted only to
the Canaanites and their kindred the the rude Christianity of the Dark Ages,
Phænicians, whose commerce westward to vague and almost inexplicable.
It was
Cyprus and North Africa and Greece was but the external, the picturesque, the
a notable fact of the time. The con- sensuous side of religion that impressed
quest of the region by Egypt from the him. He loved the vast and gloomy
>>
## p. 344 (#380) ############################################
344
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
cathedral, dimly lighted and sweet with a scientific demonstration of this hope.
incense, the low chanting of the priests, Yet he asks with earnestness, why, when
the silent movements of the acolytes, all living in harmony with eternal truths,
the pomp, magnificence, and mystery we should ever despair, or be troubled
of the holy rites. It was this only that overmuch. «Have we not eternity in
gave him pleasure, and through his ar- our thought, infinitude in our view, and
tistic sensibilities alone. In short, he God for our guide ? ” The book is one
regarded religion much as he did some of enormous labor and research, several
old Gothic ruin by moonlight, - a some- thousand books having been consulted in
thing majestic, grand, romantic, a fit sub- the twelve years given to its production.
ject to be treated by a man of letters. An appendix which is a masterpiece of
bibliography, compiled by Ezra Abbot,
Future Life, A Critical History of Jr. , contains the titles of more than fifty-
the Doctrine of a, by Wm. R. Al- three hundred distinct works chronologi-
ger, with a complete bibliography of the cally arranged.
subject by Ezra Abbot, Jr. , 1860. The
aim of this book is to exhibit, without Foundations of Belief, The, Being
NOTES INTRODUCTORY TO THE STUDY
prejudice or special pleading, the thoughts
of THEOLOGY, by Arthur James Balfour.
and imaginations of mankind concerning
the eternal destiny of the human soul, –
A work answering to its title, as the au-
thor states, in only the narrowest sense
as these thoughts and imaginations have
of the word “theology”; the writer's pur-
spontaneously arisen in the consciousness
of the race. The volume is divided into
pose being, not immediate aid to theo-
five parts. Part First treats of the the-
logical study, but attention to certain
ories of the soul's origin, the history of
preliminaries to be settled before com-
death, the grounds of the belief in a fu-
ing to that study. “My object,”
says
Mr. Balfour, «is to recommend a par-
ture life, and theories of the soul's desti-
nation. Part Second, devoted to ethnic
ticular way of looking at the world-
problems which we are all compelled to
thoughts concerning a future life, sets
face. ” He also states that he has de-
forth the barbarian notions, the Druidic
doctrine, the Scandinavian doctrine, the
signed his work for the general reader.
Etruscan, Egyptian, Brahmanic
It is a study calculated to assist thought-
and
Buddhist, Persian, Hebrew, Rabbinical,
ful inquirers to adjust the relations of
belief to doubt, and to maintain a healthy
Greek and Roman, and Mohammedan
balance of the mind in presence of gen-
doctrine of immortality, with an explan-
eral unsettlement of traditional beliefs.
atory survey of the whole field and its
myths. Part Third contains the New
Its specific question addressed to the
Testament teachings, with the theories
doubter is whether belief in «a living
God » is not required even by science,
of Jesus, of Peter, Paul, John, and the
authors of the various gospels.
and still more by ethics, æsthetics, and
Part
theology.
Fourth explains the Christian doctrines,
Near the close of his book
Mr. Balfour says:
(( What I have so far
- the patriotic, the mediæval, and the
tried to establish is this,—that the great
modern. Part Fifth presents historical
body of our beliefs, scientific, ethical,
and critical dissertations, the ancient
mysteries, metempsychosis, the resurrec-
æsthetic, theological, form a more coher-
ent and satisfactory whole if we consider
tion of the flesh, the idea of a hell, the
five theoretic modes of salvation, recog-
them in a Theistic setting, than if we
consider them in a Naturalistic setting. ”
nition of friends in a future life, the
local fate of man, a chapter on the crit-
In a few concluding pages the further
ical history of disbelief in the life after
question is raised whether this Theistic
setting is not found in its best form in
death, and one on the morality of the
doctrine of a future life. Purposely set-
Christianity as a Doctrine of Incarna-
tion and Supernatural Revelation.
ting aside any argument from revelation,
but comparing the beliefs of all peoples
Freedom of the Will, on the, by Jona-
in all times; reasoning from analogy; than Edwards, D. D. , 1754. A book
and philosophically regarding the vast of American origin, made famous by the
scale of being revealed to us in this closeness of its reasoning, the boldness of
world, the essayist regards the existence its doctrine of necessity, and its bearing
of a future life as a scientific probability. upon the religious questions raised con-
But he admits that we are yet far from cerning Calvinism of the old type by the
## p. 345 (#381) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
345
are
rise of more liberal ideas. Its author had it was lasting; and it was translated into
been a preacher and pastor of intellectual Greek Hebrew, German, French, and
distinction and of intense piety for twenty- Anglo-Saxon, at an early period. The
four years at Northampton, Massachu- Anglo-Saxon version was by Alfred the
setts, when his objection to permitting Great; and is the oldest monument of any
persons not full church-members to re- importance in Anglo-Saxon literature. It
ceive the communion and have their child- has been imitated by Chaucer in the
ren baptized, led to his retirement, and (Testament of Love,' by James I. of Scot-
acceptance of a missionary position at land in the Kinges Quhair, and by many
Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Near the other distinguished writers. In some sort,
middle of his seven years thus spent, he it connects the period of classic literature
wrote his book 'On the Freedom of the with that of the Middle Ages, of which
Will, not so much with reference to the Boëthius was one of the favorite authors;
philosophical question, as with reference and in classic purity of style and elevation
to the question between Calvinism of the of thought, is fully equal to the works of
extreme type and more liberal views. the philosophers of Greece and Rome,
The philosophical doctrine set forth in the while, at the same time, it shows the influ-
book, that the law of causality extends to ence of Christian ideals.
“It is,” says
every action; that there is in the mind no Gibbon, “a golden volume, not unworthy
power of willing without a motive; that of the leisure of Plato or Tully. ”
the will always follows the greatest seem-
ing good; that what this may be to any Golden Lotus, The, and Other Le-
mind depends upon the character of the
gends of Japan, by Edward Greey,
person, or, in the religious phraseology legends of the bouzu (priest) and hana-
1883. This book is filled in part with
of the book, upon the state of the person's
soul; and that liberty only extends to a*
shika (professional story-teller), and in
power of doing not of willing,— had been
part with descriptions of the life of the
modern Japanese.
the Greek doctrine in Aristotle and his
The legends
predecessors. The book on human free-
gracefully introduced by informal narra-
tion of the circumstances which invite
dom reflected its author, both in its doc-
trine and in its thoroughly benevolent and
their recital. They have been chosen to
show their native charm, and to illustrate
pious intent.
phases of national character; some of
Consolations of Philosophy, The, by
them coming down from a long obliter-
, ,
This work - called in
ated past, and losing, in the journey,
Latin De Consolatione Philosophica)-
nothing of their native attractiveness.
was written in prison just before the au-
Colloquialisms and idiomatic expressions
thor was put to death in 525 by Theodoric,
are allowed their place as philological
whose favorite minister he had been be-
forms of great significance. Mr. Greey's
fore his incarceration. It is divided into
original descriptions are characterized by
five books; and has for its object to prove
buoyancy, humor, and grace.
from reason, the existence of Providence Faery mucen, Thea metrical i comance
of to the
Edmund Spenser, dedicated to
prisoner, and tells him she is his guardian, Queen Elizabeth, was published in 1590.
Philosophy, come to console him in his
The poet was already known by his (Shep-
misfortunes and point out their remedy. herd's Calendar,' but the appearance of
Then ensues a dialogue in which are dis- the first three books of the Faery Queen)
cussed all the questions that have troubled brought him fame. The last three books
humanity: the origin of evil, God's om- appeared in 1595-96, and celebrated many
niscience, man's free will, etc. The (Con- people of Spenser's day. For instance,
solations) are alternately in prose and Queen Elizabeth is Mercilla; Mary Stuart,
verse; a method afterwards adopted by Duessa; Henry IV. of France, Burbon;
many authors in imitation of Boëthius, Charles IX. of France, Pollente; and Sir
who was himself influenced by a work of Walter Raleigh, Timias.
Marcianus Capella entitled De Nuptiis an allegory, founded on the manners and
Philologiæ et Mercurii. ? Most of the customs of chivalry, with the aim of por-
verses are suggested by passages in Sen- traying a perfect knight. Spenser planned
eca, then the greatest moral authority in twelve books, treating of the twelve moral
the West, outside of Christianity. The virtues; but only six are now in existence.
success of the work was as immense as These are: The Legend of the Red Cross
The poem is
## p. 346 (#382) ############################################
346
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
. .
Knight, typifying holiness; The Legend as the best are sketches on the romances
of Sir Guyon, temperance; The Legend of of chivalry and the Italian novelists. His
Britomartis, chastity; The Legend of Cam- facts are massed in a workmanlike man-
bel and Friamond, friendship; The Legend ner, and presented in a clear style, de-
of Artegall, justice; and The Legend of void of ornament, but used with vigor
Sir Calidore, courtesy. To these is some- and effectiveness.
times added a fragment on Mutability.
“In the Faery Queen, Spenser says, “I
'ssays, Modern and Classical, by
mean Glory in my general intention; but,
These studies reveal a pure literary taste,
in my particular, I conceive the most ex-
cellent and glorious person of our Sov-
refined and strengthened by sound schol-
ereign the Queen and her Kingdom in
arship. Every essay is enriched with re-
Faery Land. ” He supposes that the Fa-
sources of knowledge outside its own
immediate scope. The spiritual in poetry
ery Queen held a superb feast, lasting
twelve days, on each of which a complaint
or in art appeals strongly to the author.
His essay on V'irgil, full of acute ob-
was presented. To redress these twelve
injuries twelve knights sally forth; and
servations as it is, dwells most fondly on
during his adventures, each knight proves
the poet's supreme elegance, tenderness,
and stateliness, and on the haunting music
himself the hero of some particular virtue.
Besides these twelve knights there is one
with which his verse is surcharged. Much
general hero, Prince Arthur, who repre-
of Rossetti's art,” he says, “in speech and
color, spends itself in the effort to com-
sents magnificence. In every book he
municate the incommunicable, ) -- and it
appears; and his aim is to discover and
win Gloriana, or glory. The characters
is his own love for, and comprehension of,
the incommunicable that leads the essay-
are numerous, being drawn from classic
mythology, mediæval romance, and the
ist to choose many of his subjects: Marcus
poet's fancy. The scene is usually the
Aurelius, The Greek Oracles, George Sand,
wood where dragons are killed, where
Victor Hugo, The Religion of Beauty,
knights wander and meet with advent-
George Eliot, and Renan — «that subtlest
ures of all kinds, where magicians attempt
of seekers after God. ) Penetrative, lumi-
their evil spells, and where all wrongs are
nous, and fascinating, the essays of Mr.
vanquished. Each canto is filled with
Myers show also an exquisite apprecia-
incidents and short narratives; among
tion of beauty and the balance of a rare
the most beautiful of which are Una with
scholar.
the Lion; and Britomartis's vision of the Dickens. The Life of Charles, by
, ,
Forster.
(3 vols.
The Faery Queen' has always been ad- This book of many defects has the ex-
mired by poets; and it was on the advice cellence of being entertaining. It fol-
of a poet, Sir Walter Raleigh, that Spen- lows the life of its subject from his
ser published the great work.
birth in poverty and obscurity in 1812,
to his death in riches and fame in 1870.
Fiction, History of the, by John Dunlop. It extenuates nothing, because the bio-
(1814. ) This familiar work, the fruit grapher was incapable of seeing a foible,
of many years' accumulation of materials, much more a fault, in the character and
broke ground in a new field. It was the conduct of the friend whom he admired
first attempt made in England to trace
more than he loved him. The
the development of the novel from its poverty and sensitiveness of the lad, his
earliest beginnings in Greece to the posi- menial work and his sense of responsi-
tion it held early in this century. Con- bility for his elders, his thirst for knowl.
sidering the difficulties of the pioneer, the edge and for the graces of life, his
work is remarkably comprehensive and training to be a reporter, his experience
exact. Though later writers have dis-
a newspaper, his early sketches, his
proved certain of the author's theories, first success in Pickwick,' his sudden
as for instance his idea of the rise of the reputation and prosperity, his first visit
Greek novel, or the connection of the to America and his disillusionment,
Gesta Romanorum with subsequent out- the history of his novels, of his read-
growths of popular tales, his book still re- ings, of his friendships, of his home
mains a good introduction for the student life, of his second triumphant journey in
of fiction. The sections upon Oriental the United States, - this time to read
and modern fiction are least satisfactory, from his own books, - his whimsical and
even
on
## p. 347 (#383) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
347
fun-loving nature, his agreeableness as a
Elizabeth
Gold Elsie, by E. Marlitt.
father, a comrade, and a host, his gen-
Faber, the Gold Elsie of the story,
erosity, his respect for his profession, so called from her sunny hair, is the
the sum of the qualities that made him daughter of a forest clerk, whose ances-
both by temperament and performance try is at first wrapped in doubt, but who,
a great actor, — all these things are fully in the course of the story, is explained
set forth in the elaborate tribute which to be a lineal descendant of the noble
the biographer pays to his friend. The family of Von Greswits. Leaving Berlin
books are interesting because the mass on account of poverty, the family retire
of material is interesting. But it must to a ruined castle called Nordeck, in the
be admitted that they give an exagger- Thuringian Mountains, an inheritance left
ated impression of one side of the char- to Gold Elsie's mother by its late owner,
acter of Dickens,— his energetic, restless, a distant relative whose hand she had
insatiable activity,- and fail to do justice refused. Through her wonderful musical
to his less self-conscious and more lov- talent, Elsie becomes acquainted with
able qualities. They are, however, to be the family at Castle Lindhof, the aristoc-
reckoned among the important literary racy of the neighborhood; and there is
biographies of the time.
played out the usual love story, with its
misunderstandings, reconciliations, and
Cesa
esar Birotteau, The Greatness and final happy ending. The hero is Rudolph
Decline of, by Honoré de Balzac. von Walde, the owner of the castle, while
This novel pictures in a striking and ac- the villain is Émile Hollfeid. The no-
curate manner the bourgeois life of Paris bility of virtue and the nobility of birth
at the time of the Restoration. César are strongly contrasted in this story;
Birotteau, a native of the provinces, while the «simple faith” which is more
comes to the city in his youth, works than “Norman blood » is given its due
his way up until he becomes the propri- meed of praise.
etor of a perfumery establishment, and
amasses a considerable fortune. He is
a Girl, by Wilhelmine von Hil-
decorated with the Cross of the Legion
lern. (1865. ) This book is the
of Honor, in consequence of having been romance of a soul; the agonies, the sick-
an ardent Loyalist; and this mark of ness unto death, and the recovery, of a
distinction, coupled with his financial suc- noble mind. Ernestine von Hartwich,
cess, causes him to become more and embittered by the fact that she is only
more ambitious. He grows extravagant, a girl," a shortcoming which has caused
indulges in speculation, and loses every- her father's hate and mother's death,
thing. This stroke of misfortune brings determines to equal a man in achieve-
out the strength of character which, dur- ment,- in scientific attainments and in
ing his prosperity, had remained con- mental usefulness, – that her sex shall no
cealed beneath many petty foibles. In longer be made to her a reproach and
this story the life of the French shop- even a crime. This desire is taken ad-
keeper who values his credit as his vantage of by an unscrupulous uncle
dearest possession, and his failure as who will profit by her death. Secluding
practically death, is faithfully portrayed. her from the world, he attempts to
The other characters in the book are undermine her health by feeding her
lifelike portraits. Constance, the faith- feverish ambitions. Her mind is de-
ful and sensible wife of Birotteau, and veloped at the expense of every human
his gentle daughter Césarine, are in feelingevery womanly instinct, and
pleasing contrast to many of the women every religious emotion. She is shunned
Balzac has painted. Du Tillet, the un- by women, envied and humiliated by
scrupulous clerk, who repays his master's men, regarded by her servants and the
kindness by hatred and dishonesty; Ro- neighboring peasantry as a witch. It is
quin the notary; Vauquelin the great through the door of love, opened for her
chemist; and Pillerault, uncle of Con- by Johannes Mollner, that she finally
stance,- are all striking individualities. leaves the wilderness of false aims, un-
The book is free from any objectionable natural ambitions, and unsatisfactory
atmosphere, and is exceedingly realistic results, to enjoy for the first time the
to manners and customs. It has charm of womanhood, human compan-
been admirably translated into English ionship, and belief in God. The story is
by Katharine Prescott Wormeley.
overloaded with didacticism; its logic
Only
as
## p. 348 (#384) ############################################
348
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
fails, inasmuch as the poor girl is an in-
voluntary martyr; and its exaggeration
and sentimentality do not appeal to the
English reader. But the book is a great
favorite in Germany, where it has been
considered a powerful argument against
what is called the higher education of
women,
most impenetrable disguises for the pur-
suit of his inquiries.
The dénouement, gradually unfolded
toward the close of the story, shows Pros-
per to have been the innocent victim of
a plot. Madame Fauvel has had, before
her marriage to the banker, an illegiti-
mate son by the Marquis de Clameran,
an arrant rogue who poses throughout as
the benefactor of the Fauvels. De Clam-
eran has caused Raoul de Lagors to per-
sonate this son (who is really dead).
Raoul is introduced in Fauvel's home as
Madame's nephew, though she believes
him to be her son.
After frightening her into revealing the
secrets of the bank-safe, Raoul commits
the robbery. Her lips are sealed by her
fear that her early life will become known
to her husband. De Clameran plays upon
these fears to force Madame Fauvel to
induce Madeleine, her niece, to marry
him. Madeleine consents in order to
save her aunt, though she is really in
love with Prosper.
The plot is at last discovered; Raoul
escapes, De Clameran becomes insane,
Madame Fauvel is forgiven, and Prosper
marries Madeleine.
a
Friend Fritz ('L’Ami Fritz'), by the
collaborating French authors Erck-
mann-Chatrian, was published in 1876.
It is a charming Alsatian story of the
middle nineteenth century, in which the
hero is Fritz, a comfortable burgher with
money enough to indulge his liking for
good eating and drinking, and a stout
defender of bachelorhood. He is a kindly,
jovial, simple-natured fellow, with
broad, merry face and a big laugh. His
dear friend David, an old rabbi, is al-
ways urging him to marry; but the rich
widows of the town set their caps for
him in vain. At dinner one day Fritz
wagers David his favorite vineyard that
he will never take a wife. David wins,
for the invulnerable bachelor succumbs
to the charms of Suzel, the pretty sixteen-
year-old daughter of his farm-manager.
Fritz learns that he that loveth not
knoweth not God, for God is love. ) Old
David deeds the vineyard he has won
to Suzel for her dowry, and dances at
her wedding. The tale is a sweet idyl
of provincial and country life, full of pleas-
ing folk and pleasant scenes, described
with loving fidelity. Friend Fritz) was
dramatized and was very successful as a
play.
File No. 113, by Emile Gaboriau, a
French novel, introducing the au-
thor's favorite detective, M. Lecoq, ap-
peared in 1867. The scene is laid in the
Paris of the day; and the title indicates
the case file number in the records of the
detective bureau.
The story opens with the public details
of a daring robbery which has been
committed in the banking-house of M.
Fauvel. Suspicion points to Prosper
Bertomy, the head cashier.
The deep
mysteries of the case are fathomed by
Fanferlot, a shrewd detective, and Le-
coq. his superior in both skill and posi-
tion. Lecoq figures as a French Sherlock
Holmes, though his methods are essen-
tially different. He is pictured as possess-
ing surpassing insight, intelligence, and
patient determination; employing the
reason
French Humorists, The, by Walter
Besant. (1873. ) Succeeding the au-
thor's admirable work on early French
poetry, the present volume is for that
somewhat incomplete, omitting
even Clément Marot; and Voltaire, for
other reasons no less valid.
After introducing the trouvère and
chanson of mediæval times, the author
takes up representative humorists (the
designation is a broad one) from each
century from the twelfth to our own.
The studies present admirable pictures
of the authors' life-conditions and the
literary atmosphere they breathed. Ac-
companying these discriminating and
delightfully original studies are trans-
lations of pieces to show the character
and genius of the authors treated. There
are in all about twenty-five writers to
whom large treatment is given, promi-
nent among them Rabelais, Montaigne,
Scarron, La Fontaine, Boileau, Molière,
Beaumarchais, and Béranger. There fol-
low a number of exhaustive and learned
inquiries into such famous productions
as the Romance of the Rose) and (La
Satyre Ménippée, not to mention the
historical, critical, and interpretative no-
tices of the authors' famous books.
338
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
abundantly testified Bentley's genius as a was forty per cent. The Irish were bit.
controversialist. As a scholar, a learned terly enraged, became turbulent, and every
critic, and a university educator, Bentley effort was made to conciliate them. A
stands not only at the highest level, but report sustaining Wood, which had been
at the head of the stream which has drawn up by Sir Robert Walpole, was
come down to our time. There began answered by Swift in these letters. Swift,
with him a broad and thorough scholar- who viewed Wood's patent as a death-
ship in Greek and Latin literature, which blow to Irish independence, asserts that
before him was only beginning to get the English Parliament cannot, without
under way. He is thus to scholars one usurpation, maintain the power of bind-
of the great names of learning and of ing Ireland by laws to which it does not
letters.
consent. This assertion led to the arrest
ttle of the Books, The, by Jona-
of the printer of the letters; but the grand
Battle
Swift
than Swift, was written in 1697, but
jury refused to find a true bill.
remained in manuscript until 1704. It
triumphed, and Wood's patent was re-
voked. The Letters) were published in
was a travesty on the endless contro-
1724; the sub-title being, “very proper
versy over the relative merits of the
ancients and moderns, first raised in
to be kept in every family. ”
France by Perrault
. Its immediate cause: A
rtevelde, Philip van, a tragedy, by
Swift's Sir Henry Taylor: 1834. One of the
patron, Sir William Temple, as to the best English tragedies since Shakespeare,
genuineness of the Letters of Phalaris. ) by an author distinguished for his pro-
(See previous article. )
test, in the spirit of Wordsworth, against
In the satire, the Bee, representing the the extreme sentimentalism of Byron.
ancients who go direct to nature, and His (Isaac Comnenus) (1827)—a drama
the Spider, representing the moderns picturing the scene at Constantinople
weaving their webs from within, have a when the hero was Roman (Byzantine)
sharp dispute in a library, where the
emperor there (1057–59 A. D. ) – was
books have mutinied and taken sides, mainly a preliminary study for his mas-
preparatory to battle. In the description terpiece, the (Van Artevelde); in which,
of this battle, Swift's terrible arrows of with noble thought and admirable power,
wit fly thick and fast, Dryden and Bent- he brings back the stress and storm of
ley coming in for a goodly share of their fourteenth-century life. The father of
destructive force. Nothing is left of the Philip, the great Jacob van Artevelde, an
poor moderns when he has finished with immensely rich brewer, eloquent and en-
them, The work, despite its vast clev- ergetic, had played a great part as popu-
erness, was not taken with entire serious-
lar leader at Ghent, 1335-45; and it fell
ness by Swift's contemporaries. He was to his son to figure similarly in 1381, but
not then the great Dean; and besides, to be slain in a great defeat of the forces
he was dealing with subjects he was not of Ghent the next year. Taylor's tragedy
competent to treat. It remains, however,
recalls the events of these two years.
a brilliant monument to his satirical
Two songs -
powers, and to the spirit of destruction
Quoth tongue of neither maid nor wife
which impelled him even as a youth to
and
audacious attacks on great names.
"If I had the wings of a dove –"
Drapier. Letters, The, by Jonathan
have been pronounced worthy of Shakes-
. These famous letters took
peare, although his lyrical efforts gener-
their name from their signature, «M. B.
ally were laboriously artificial. He had
Drapier. ” They were written to protest
very little eye to the stage, - was in fact
against an unjust aggression of the Crown,
more a poet than a dramatist, and a poet
which, at a time of great scarcity of cop-
of thought especially,– but he used great
per coin in Ireland, had granted a patent
care in his studies of character.
to furnish this to one William Wood, who
was
to share his profits with the Duchess Barneveld, John of, Advocate of Hola
of Kendal, the
. In
whose influence the patent had been ob- this brilliant biography, the author shows
tained. These profits were to be derived that as William the Silent is called the
from the difference between the real and author of the independence of the Dutch
the nominal value of the halfpence, which Provinces, so John of Barneveld deserves
-B
>
## p. 339 (#375) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
339
the title of the Founder of the Dutch Of Barneveld's place in history the au-
Republic. ” The Advocate and Keeper thor says: -“He was a public man in
of the Great Seal of the Province of the fullest sense of the word; and without
Holland, the most powerful of the seven his presence and influence the record of
provinces of the Netherlands, was virtu- Holland, France, Britain, and Germany
ally “prime minister, president, attorney- might have been essentially modified.
general, finance minister, and minister of The Republic was so integral a part of
foreign affairs, of the whole republic. that system which divided Europe into
Standing in the background and veiled two great hostile camps, according to
from public view behind “Their High creeds rather than frontiers, that the his-
Mightinesses, the States-General, the tory of its foremost citizen touches at
Advocate was really their spokesman, or every point the general history of Christ-
practically the States-General themselves, endom. ”
in all important measures at home and
abroad, during those years which inter- Havelock the Dane. This legend is
connected with the founding of
vened between the truce with Spain in
Grimsby in Lincolnshire; and was writ-
1609 and the outbreak of the Thirty Years'
ten in English and French verse about
War in 1618.
1280 A. D. The English version was lost
Born in Amersfoort in 1547, of the an-
for many years, but at last found in a
cient and knightly house of Oldenbarne-
manuscript of 'Lives of the Saints. )
veld, he received his education in the
The author is unknown; the time of the
universities of Holland, France, Italy,
story probably about the sixth century.
and Germany, and became one of the
Havelock, prince of Denmark, is left to
first civilians of his time, the friend and
the care of Earl Godard, who hires a
trusted councilor of William the Silent,
fisherman, Grim, to drown him; but he,
and the chief negotiator of the peace with
perceiving a miraculous light about the
Spain. The tragedy with which his life
child, dares not put him to death, and
ended owes itself, as Mr. Motley points
carries him to England. The boy grows
out, to the opposition between the princi-
up, and finds work with the cook of
ple of States-rights and religious freedom
Godrich, an earl who has in his charge
advocated by Barneveld, and that of the
the late king's daughter, Goldborough,
national and church supremacy maintained
whom he has promised to marry to the
by Prince Maurice the Stadtholder, whose
strongest and fairest man he can find.
desire to be recognized as king had met
In a trial of strength, Havelock (puts
with Barneveld's prompt opposition. The
Arminian doctrine of free-will, as over
the stone » farther than any other; and
Godrich, who wants the kingdom for his
against the Calvinists' principle of predes-
son, marries Goldborough to this kitchen
tination, had led to religious divisions
scullion. The princess is dissatisfied
among the provinces; and Barneveld's
with the union; but in the night sees
bold defense of the freedom of individual
the same miraculous light, and a cross
belief resulted at length in his arrest and
on Havelock's shoulder. He awakes im-
that of his companion and former pupil,
mediately afterwards, and tells her he
Hugo Grotius, both of whom were con-
has dreamed that all England and Den-
demned to execution. His son, engaging
mark were his own.
later in a conspiracy of revenge against
He goes therefore
to Denmark; and after performing deeds
the Stadtholder, was also with the other
of great valor, is proclaimed king. Re-
conspirators arrested and put to death.
turning with an army to England, he
The historian obtained his materials
makes Godrich a prisoner; and with
largely from the Advocate's letters and
other MS. archives of the Dutch govern-
Goldborough is crowned at London,
where they reign for sixty years.
mcnt, and experienced no little difficulty
in deciphering those papers covered now Heldenbuch, a given succes-
with the satirical dust of centuries, writ. sively to several versions of a col-
ten in the small, crabbed, exasperating lection of German legends from the
characters which make Barneveld's handthirteenth century. The first Helden-
writing almost cryptographic; but which buch) was printed in Strasburg, probably
were once, «sealed with the Great Seal in the year 1470; the second in Dresden
of the haughty burgher aristocracy, doc-
The latter version was almost
uments which occupied the close atten- entirely divested of the quaint poetic
tion of the cabinets of Christendom. ” charm of the original legends by the
name
in 1472.
## p. 340 (#376) ############################################
340
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
(
romance
dry, pedantic style of one of the editors, reign of João I. , the Infante Dom Pedro
by whose name the collection is known, wrote a sonnet in praise of Vasco Lo-
- Kasper von der Roen. The older vol- beira, “the inventor of the Books of Chiv-
ume, however, preserved the spirit of the alry. ” Cervantes, whose own
thirteenth century with admirable fidel- was the death-knell of these unnatural
ity, both in its text and in the delight- and preternatural extravaganzas, names
fully naive illustrations which accompany
this as one of the three romances spared
it.
in the burning of Don Quixote's library,
Among the heroic myths which appear “because it was the first of the kind and
in the original Heldenbuch) are the an- the best. ” It depicts a time «not many
cient Gothic legends of King Laurin) years after the passion of our Redeemer,”
and "The Rose Garden at Worms, to- when Garinter, a Christian, was king of
gether with three from the Lombard lesser Britain, Languines King of Scot-
cycle, Ornit, (Wolfdietrich,' and (Hug- land, Perion King of Gaul, and Lesuarte
dietrich. ) These have been rendered King of Great Britain. The scene is laid
into Modern High German in the pres- in such mystic parts of the earth as the
ent century by Karl Josef Simrock, whose island of Windsor, the forest of Anga-
scholarly and sympathetic translation duza, and “Sobradisa which borders upon
makes his Kleines Heldenbuch) as val- Serolis. ) The manly love of the three
uable a contribution to the history of brother knights, their honor, fidelity, and
German literature as was the original bravery, are noble types of the ideal of
collection of the same name.
the chivalric romance. It is to the inter-
polations and additions of the Spanish
Amadis of Gaul, by Vasco Lobeira. and French translators through whom the
Robert Southey, in the introduction romance has come down to us, that we owe
to his English version of this romance, the gross and offensive passages which
says:
(((Amadis of Gaul) is among prose, mar the otherwise pure and charming
what (Orlando Furioso) is among metri- | narrative.
cal romances, not the oldest of its kind
but the best. It is however so old as
,
This History des Romains,' first
est bloom of chivalry, the days of the published in 1879 in Paris, is the most
Black Prince and the glorious reign of elaborate and complete of the works of
Edward III. in the two realms of Eng- Victor Duruy.
It is the result very
land and France. It is a tale of the
largely of original research. The edition
knightly career of Amadis and his two
of Mahaffy, published in 1883, has no
brothers, Galaor and Florestan, the sons superior, and perhaps no equal, as a
of King Perion of Gaul. The name of popular history of Rome. The modern
the knight's mistress is Oriana; but many edition, as published in 1894, is very at:
are the damsels, ladies, and queens, whom tractive; having over
three thousand
he rescues in peril, not without wound- well-selected engravings,
ing their hearts, but remaining loyal to maps and plans, besides numerous other
the last to his liege lady — his marriage | chromo-lithographs.
with whom terminates, in Southey's opin- This work covers the whole subject of
ion, the narration of the original author. Roman history, and is the best work
The remaining adventures after the of reference; having, unlike the works
Fourth Book are, as he thinks, added by of Merivale and Gibbon, a
the Spanish translator Garcia Ordonez de dex, which enables the ordinary reader
Montalvo, and exhibit a much lower type to find any fact required.
Unlike Monim-
both of literary style and of morals. The sen, Duruy sifts tradition and tries to
author is a Portuguese who was born at infer from it the real value of Roman
Porto; fought at Aljubarrota, where he history. In regard to the illustrations,
was knighted by King João; and died at Duruy's book stands alone; giving the
Elvas, 1403. The oldest version estant reader all kinds of illustration and local
is that of Montalvo in Spanish, and the color, so as to let him read the history
oldest edition is supposed to be that of of Rome with all the lights which archæ-
Seville, 1526. But the
ological research can afford.
familiar to the Spanish discoverers of Beginning with a speculative descrip,
America, and must have enjoyed a wide tion of the geographical, political, and
popularity since the time when, in the
religious conditions of Italy before the
1
to have belonged to the age of the fairs Rome History of, by Victor Duruy.
19
11
one hundred
general in-
romance
was
## p. 341 (#377) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
341
.
establishment of Roman power, the his-
tory of Rome is traced in eight volumes,
each of which has two sections, from its
founding, 753 B. C. , to its division and
fall in 359 A. D. The history has four-
teen main periods; the first being Rome
under the Kings,' 753-510 B. C. , and
the (Formation of the Roman People);
and the last, "The Christian Empire
from Constantine to Theodosius ) (306-
395 A. D. ).
)
well as his victories restored a transient
splendor to the Eastern Empire.
III. The third from the revival of the
Western Empire to the taking of Con-
stantinople by the Turks. It is, then,
a history of the civilized world for thir-
teen centuries, during which paganism
was breaking down, and Christianity
was superseding it; and so bridges over
the chasm between the old world and
the new.
The great criticism of the work has
always been upon the point of Gibbon's
estimate of the nature and influence of
Christianity.
Aside from this, it can safely be said
that modern scholarship finds very little
that is essential to be changed in Gib-
bon's wonderful studies; while his noble
dignity of style and his picturesqueness
of narration make this still the most
fascinating of histories.
Decline and Fall of the Roman
Empire, The, by Edward Gibbon.
“ It was at Rome, on the 15th of Octo-
ber 1764, as I sat musing amidst the
ruins of the capitol, while the bare-
footed friars were singing vespers in
the temple of Jupiter, that the idea of
writing the decline and fall of the city
first entered my mind,” wrote Gibbon
in his autobiography. In 1776 the first
volume of the great work was finished.
Its success
was tremendous; and the
reputation of the author was firmly es-
tablished before the religious world
could prepare itself for an attack on its
famous 15th and 16th chapters. The
last volume was finished on the 27th
of June 1787, at Lausanne, whither he
had retired for quiet and economy. In
his Memoirs) he tells the hour of his
release from those protracted labors —
between eleven o'clock and midnight;
and records his first emotions of joy on
the recovery of his freedom, and then
the sober melancholy that succeeded it
when he realized that his life's work
was done.
(The Decline and Fall) has been pro-
nounced by many the greatest achieve-
ment of human thought and erudition
in the department of history. The
tremendous scope of the work is best
explained by a brief citation from the
author's preface to the first volume:
<< The memorable series of revolutions
which, in the course of thirteen cen-
turies, gradually undermined, and at
length destroyed, the solid fabric of
human greatness, may, with some pro-
priety, be divided into the three follow-
ing periods: I. The first of these periods
may be traced from the age of Trajan
and the . Antonines, when the Roman
monarchy, having attained its full
strength and maturity, began to verge
toward its decline.
II. The sec-
ond may be supposed to begin with the
reign of Justinian, who by his laws as
Edward Gibbon, the Autobiography
of. What goes at present under
this title is a compilation made by Lord
Sheffield, Gibbon's literary executor,
from six different sketches left by the
author in an unfinished state. The first
edition appeared in 1796, with the com-
plete edition of his works. «In the fifty-
second year of my age,” he begins,
(after the completion of an arduous
work, I now propose to employ some
moments of my leisure in reviewing the
simple transactions of a private and lit-
erary life. This modest, unaffected tone
characterizes the book. The sincerity of
the revelations is full of real soberness
and dignity. The author of the De-
cline and Fall of the Roman Empire)
recounts the years of preparation that
preceded his masterpiece, and the diffi-
culties conquered. Macaulay's (school-
boy » doubtless knows the lines concern-
ing the origin at Rome of his first
conception of the history — when he was
(musing amidst the ruins of the capitol,
while the barefooted friars were sing-
ing vespers in the temple of Jupiter. ”
And many other passages are hardly less
familiar. Had he lived, Gibbon would
doubtless have completed these memoirs;
but as they are, the simple, straightfor-
ward records of a famous student's la-
bors and aims, who by his manly char-
acter made many lasting friendships, they
form one of the most interesting, bril-
liant, and suggestive autobiographies in
the English language.
## p. 342 (#378) ############################################
342
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
Gºds
ods in Greece, The (in certain sanct-
uaries recently excavated). Being
eight lectures given at the Lowell Insti-
tute in 1890. By Louis Dyer, 1891. A
volume of studies designed to represent
Greek religious thought in its best aspects.
The gods dealt with are: (1) Demeter
and Persephone, the two great goddesses
of Eleusis in Attica; (2) Dionysos, also
worshiped in Eleusis — his early cult in
Attica; (3) Æsculapius and his worship,
especially at Athens and Epidaurus; (4)
Aphrodite and her worship at Old Pa-
phos; and (5) Apollo at the Holy Island
of Delos — The Delian Apollo. Of all
these greater gods of Greece, sanctuaries
where they were specially worshiped have
been recently brought to light, through
excavations of traditional sites, where
were shrines of healing for the body and
of special salvation for the soul, dedi-
cated by immemorial worship in the Hel-
lenic world; shrines where, Mr. Dyer
says, «the beautiful and ennobling reli-
gion, first of Greece, and then — through
Greece and Rome- of all the ancient
world,” had its growth, and where that
old-time worship of ideals grew purer
and purer, until its inner significance and
truth were gathered in by Christianity. ”
The volume is one of importance to the
study of Greek culture.
3
.
3
1
slayer, however, must first pluck a bough
from the oak of the divinity, in order
that through it the divine life might
take possession of him. The work is
one rich in information in the field of
folk-lore.
Israe
srael Among the Nations: A STUDY
OF THE JEWS AND ANTI-SEMITISM. By
Anatole Leroy-Beaulieu. Translated by
Frances Hellman. (1896. ) A specially
careful, thoughtful, philosophical study
of the facts bearing upon the charac-
ter of the Jew in history and his place
in modern life. It is not so much a
defense of the Jews against complaint
and prejudice, as it is an impartial ex-
amination of the Jewish situation, and
a summary of interesting facts in regard
to the seven or eight millions of Jews
scattered amongst five or six hundred
millions of Christians in Europe and
America, or Mohammedans in Asia. The
author is a Frenchman and a Christian,
who specially desires to
see France
maintain the ground taken in the eman-
cipation of the Jews by the French Rev.
olution. He is familiar with the Jewish
situation in Russia, Poland, Roumania,
and Hungary, where Jewish concentra-
tion is greatest, where Israel's centre
of gravity” is found,-a vast reservoir
of Jews in the centre of Europe, whose
overflow tends towards the West," and
in view of whose movements it appears
not unlikely that the old European and
especially the young American States
will be swept by a long tidal wave of
Jewish emigration. The reader of the
story, with its episodes of discussion, will
get a clear view of many interesting
points touching Jewish origins and de-
velopments, and will find himself in a
position to fairly judge the Jewish prob-
lem. There is no lack of sympathy in
the writer, yet he frankly says that
(modern Israel would seem to be mor-
ally, as well as physically, a dying
race. »
Conscience, he says, “has be-
come contracted and obscured »); and "as
to honor, where could the Jew possibly
have learnt its meaning ?
beaten, re-
viled, scorned, abused by everybody. "
Jerusalem, The History of, by Sir
Walter Besant and Professor E. H.
Palmer. (1871, 1888. ) A history pub-
lished under the auspices of the society
known as “The Palestine Exploration
Fund. ” It covers a period and is com-
piled from materials not included in any
IN
»
Golde
olden Bough, The: A Study
COMPARATIVE RELIGION, by James
George Fraser. (2 vols. , 1890. ) A special
part from a general work on primitive
superstition and religion (not yet pub-
lished), in which an eminent scholar in
this field has attempted, by a study of
popular customs and superstitions in
modern Europe, - the living superstitions
of the peasantry, and especially those
connected with trees and plants,— to find
out the origin of certain features of the
worship of Diana at the little woodland
lake of Nemi. The idea seems to have
been that a god was incarnate in plant
life, and that a bough plucked from the
oak of the divinity would convey this
life. Mr. Fraser's study is a very elab-
orate one, and only by following his
learned pages is it possible to go fully
into the primitive notions to which he
refers. The priest of the temple at Nemi
was expected to obtain the post by slay-
ing its occupant, and to be himself slain
by his successor. He was considered the
incarnation of the divinity, and bound
to be killed while in full vigor. The
## p. 343 (#379) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
343
other work. It begins with the siege by southwest, and again by the Hittites
Titus, 70 A. D. , and continues to the from the north, prepared the way for
fourteenth century; including the early Israelite invasion and settlement; upon
Christian period, the Moslem invasion, which followed the rise and domination
the mediæval pilgrimages, the pilgrim- of Assyria, under which Israel was des-
ages by Mohammedans, the Crusades, tined to be blotted out. The story of all
the Latin Kingdom from 1099 A. D. to this, including the earliest rise, and the
1291, the victorious career of Saladin, development for many centuries, of He-
the Crusade of the Children, and other brew power and culture, gives M. Mas-
episodes in the history of the city and pero's pages very great interest. The
of the country. The use of Crusading wealth of illustration, all of it strictly
and Arabic sources for the preparation instructive, showing scenes in nature and
of the work, and the auspices under ancient objects from photographs, adds
which it has been published, give this very much to the reader's interest and to
history a value universally recognized. the value of the work. The two superb
volumes are virtually the story of the
ancient Eastern world for 3,000 years, or
Esypt and Chaldæa: The Dawn of
Civilization, by G. Maspero. Re- from 3850 B. C. to 850 B. C. And the
vised edition. Translated by M. L. latest discoveries indicate that a record
McClure. Introduction by A. H. Sayce. may be made out going back through an
With' map and over 470 illustrations. A earlier 3,000 years to about 7000 B. C.
work devoted to the earlier history of
Egypt and Babylonia; especially full and Genius of Christianity, The, by Fran-
valuable for the early history of Egypt, çois Auguste de Châteaubriand.
which Maspero puts before that of Bab- This favorite book was begun by Châ-
ylonia. “Chaldæa” is a comparatively late teaubriand during his period of exile in
name for Babylonia; and since Maspero England; though it was first published
wrote, new discoveries have carried the in France at the moment when Bona-
«dawn” very far back in Babylonia, to parte, then First Consul, was endeavor.
a date much earlier than that of the ear- ing to restore Catholicism as the official
liest known records of origins in Egypt. religion of the country. The object of
In a later volume, Egypt, Syria, and the "Genius) was to illustrate and prove
Assyria: The Struggle of the Nations,' the triumph of religious sentiment, or
M. Maspero has carried on the story of more exactly, of the Roman Catholic
the early Oriental world, its remarkable cult. The framework upon which all is
civilization, its religious developments, constructed is a sentence found near the
and its wars of conquest and empire, beginning of the work, to the effect that
down to a time in the last half of the of all religions that have ever existed,
ninth century B. C. , when Ahab was the the Christian religion is the most poetic,
King of Israel in northern Palestine. the most humane, the most favorable to
Babylon had risen and extended her in- liberty, to literature, and to the arts.
fluence westward as early as 2250 B. C. ; The book is divided into four parts, the
and even this was 1,500 years later than first of which treats of the mysteries, the
Sargon I. , who had carried his arms from moralities, the truth of the Scriptures,
the Euphrates to the peninsula of Sinai the existence of God, and the immor-
on the confines of Egypt. As early at tality of the soul. The second and third
least as this, Asiatic conquerors had parts bear upon the poetics of Christ-
founded a “Hyksos” dominion in Egypt, | ianity, and upon the fine arts and letters.
which lasted more than six and a half The fourth is devoted to a minute study
centuries (661 years, to about 1600 B. C. ). of the < Christian cult. » However pious
At this last date a remarkable civilization the feeling which prompted the composi-
filled the region between the Euphrates tion of the (Genius,' it by no means en-
and the Mediterranean; and to this, M. titles its author to a position among
Maspero devotes an elaborate chapter, religious writers. Critics have shown us
including a most interesting account of that, at most, he was devoted only to
the Canaanites and their kindred the the rude Christianity of the Dark Ages,
Phænicians, whose commerce westward to vague and almost inexplicable.
It was
Cyprus and North Africa and Greece was but the external, the picturesque, the
a notable fact of the time. The con- sensuous side of religion that impressed
quest of the region by Egypt from the him. He loved the vast and gloomy
>>
## p. 344 (#380) ############################################
344
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
cathedral, dimly lighted and sweet with a scientific demonstration of this hope.
incense, the low chanting of the priests, Yet he asks with earnestness, why, when
the silent movements of the acolytes, all living in harmony with eternal truths,
the pomp, magnificence, and mystery we should ever despair, or be troubled
of the holy rites. It was this only that overmuch. «Have we not eternity in
gave him pleasure, and through his ar- our thought, infinitude in our view, and
tistic sensibilities alone. In short, he God for our guide ? ” The book is one
regarded religion much as he did some of enormous labor and research, several
old Gothic ruin by moonlight, - a some- thousand books having been consulted in
thing majestic, grand, romantic, a fit sub- the twelve years given to its production.
ject to be treated by a man of letters. An appendix which is a masterpiece of
bibliography, compiled by Ezra Abbot,
Future Life, A Critical History of Jr. , contains the titles of more than fifty-
the Doctrine of a, by Wm. R. Al- three hundred distinct works chronologi-
ger, with a complete bibliography of the cally arranged.
subject by Ezra Abbot, Jr. , 1860. The
aim of this book is to exhibit, without Foundations of Belief, The, Being
NOTES INTRODUCTORY TO THE STUDY
prejudice or special pleading, the thoughts
of THEOLOGY, by Arthur James Balfour.
and imaginations of mankind concerning
the eternal destiny of the human soul, –
A work answering to its title, as the au-
thor states, in only the narrowest sense
as these thoughts and imaginations have
of the word “theology”; the writer's pur-
spontaneously arisen in the consciousness
of the race. The volume is divided into
pose being, not immediate aid to theo-
five parts. Part First treats of the the-
logical study, but attention to certain
ories of the soul's origin, the history of
preliminaries to be settled before com-
death, the grounds of the belief in a fu-
ing to that study. “My object,”
says
Mr. Balfour, «is to recommend a par-
ture life, and theories of the soul's desti-
nation. Part Second, devoted to ethnic
ticular way of looking at the world-
problems which we are all compelled to
thoughts concerning a future life, sets
face. ” He also states that he has de-
forth the barbarian notions, the Druidic
doctrine, the Scandinavian doctrine, the
signed his work for the general reader.
Etruscan, Egyptian, Brahmanic
It is a study calculated to assist thought-
and
Buddhist, Persian, Hebrew, Rabbinical,
ful inquirers to adjust the relations of
belief to doubt, and to maintain a healthy
Greek and Roman, and Mohammedan
balance of the mind in presence of gen-
doctrine of immortality, with an explan-
eral unsettlement of traditional beliefs.
atory survey of the whole field and its
myths. Part Third contains the New
Its specific question addressed to the
Testament teachings, with the theories
doubter is whether belief in «a living
God » is not required even by science,
of Jesus, of Peter, Paul, John, and the
authors of the various gospels.
and still more by ethics, æsthetics, and
Part
theology.
Fourth explains the Christian doctrines,
Near the close of his book
Mr. Balfour says:
(( What I have so far
- the patriotic, the mediæval, and the
tried to establish is this,—that the great
modern. Part Fifth presents historical
body of our beliefs, scientific, ethical,
and critical dissertations, the ancient
mysteries, metempsychosis, the resurrec-
æsthetic, theological, form a more coher-
ent and satisfactory whole if we consider
tion of the flesh, the idea of a hell, the
five theoretic modes of salvation, recog-
them in a Theistic setting, than if we
consider them in a Naturalistic setting. ”
nition of friends in a future life, the
local fate of man, a chapter on the crit-
In a few concluding pages the further
ical history of disbelief in the life after
question is raised whether this Theistic
setting is not found in its best form in
death, and one on the morality of the
doctrine of a future life. Purposely set-
Christianity as a Doctrine of Incarna-
tion and Supernatural Revelation.
ting aside any argument from revelation,
but comparing the beliefs of all peoples
Freedom of the Will, on the, by Jona-
in all times; reasoning from analogy; than Edwards, D. D. , 1754. A book
and philosophically regarding the vast of American origin, made famous by the
scale of being revealed to us in this closeness of its reasoning, the boldness of
world, the essayist regards the existence its doctrine of necessity, and its bearing
of a future life as a scientific probability. upon the religious questions raised con-
But he admits that we are yet far from cerning Calvinism of the old type by the
## p. 345 (#381) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
345
are
rise of more liberal ideas. Its author had it was lasting; and it was translated into
been a preacher and pastor of intellectual Greek Hebrew, German, French, and
distinction and of intense piety for twenty- Anglo-Saxon, at an early period. The
four years at Northampton, Massachu- Anglo-Saxon version was by Alfred the
setts, when his objection to permitting Great; and is the oldest monument of any
persons not full church-members to re- importance in Anglo-Saxon literature. It
ceive the communion and have their child- has been imitated by Chaucer in the
ren baptized, led to his retirement, and (Testament of Love,' by James I. of Scot-
acceptance of a missionary position at land in the Kinges Quhair, and by many
Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Near the other distinguished writers. In some sort,
middle of his seven years thus spent, he it connects the period of classic literature
wrote his book 'On the Freedom of the with that of the Middle Ages, of which
Will, not so much with reference to the Boëthius was one of the favorite authors;
philosophical question, as with reference and in classic purity of style and elevation
to the question between Calvinism of the of thought, is fully equal to the works of
extreme type and more liberal views. the philosophers of Greece and Rome,
The philosophical doctrine set forth in the while, at the same time, it shows the influ-
book, that the law of causality extends to ence of Christian ideals.
“It is,” says
every action; that there is in the mind no Gibbon, “a golden volume, not unworthy
power of willing without a motive; that of the leisure of Plato or Tully. ”
the will always follows the greatest seem-
ing good; that what this may be to any Golden Lotus, The, and Other Le-
mind depends upon the character of the
gends of Japan, by Edward Greey,
person, or, in the religious phraseology legends of the bouzu (priest) and hana-
1883. This book is filled in part with
of the book, upon the state of the person's
soul; and that liberty only extends to a*
shika (professional story-teller), and in
power of doing not of willing,— had been
part with descriptions of the life of the
modern Japanese.
the Greek doctrine in Aristotle and his
The legends
predecessors. The book on human free-
gracefully introduced by informal narra-
tion of the circumstances which invite
dom reflected its author, both in its doc-
trine and in its thoroughly benevolent and
their recital. They have been chosen to
show their native charm, and to illustrate
pious intent.
phases of national character; some of
Consolations of Philosophy, The, by
them coming down from a long obliter-
, ,
This work - called in
ated past, and losing, in the journey,
Latin De Consolatione Philosophica)-
nothing of their native attractiveness.
was written in prison just before the au-
Colloquialisms and idiomatic expressions
thor was put to death in 525 by Theodoric,
are allowed their place as philological
whose favorite minister he had been be-
forms of great significance. Mr. Greey's
fore his incarceration. It is divided into
original descriptions are characterized by
five books; and has for its object to prove
buoyancy, humor, and grace.
from reason, the existence of Providence Faery mucen, Thea metrical i comance
of to the
Edmund Spenser, dedicated to
prisoner, and tells him she is his guardian, Queen Elizabeth, was published in 1590.
Philosophy, come to console him in his
The poet was already known by his (Shep-
misfortunes and point out their remedy. herd's Calendar,' but the appearance of
Then ensues a dialogue in which are dis- the first three books of the Faery Queen)
cussed all the questions that have troubled brought him fame. The last three books
humanity: the origin of evil, God's om- appeared in 1595-96, and celebrated many
niscience, man's free will, etc. The (Con- people of Spenser's day. For instance,
solations) are alternately in prose and Queen Elizabeth is Mercilla; Mary Stuart,
verse; a method afterwards adopted by Duessa; Henry IV. of France, Burbon;
many authors in imitation of Boëthius, Charles IX. of France, Pollente; and Sir
who was himself influenced by a work of Walter Raleigh, Timias.
Marcianus Capella entitled De Nuptiis an allegory, founded on the manners and
Philologiæ et Mercurii. ? Most of the customs of chivalry, with the aim of por-
verses are suggested by passages in Sen- traying a perfect knight. Spenser planned
eca, then the greatest moral authority in twelve books, treating of the twelve moral
the West, outside of Christianity. The virtues; but only six are now in existence.
success of the work was as immense as These are: The Legend of the Red Cross
The poem is
## p. 346 (#382) ############################################
346
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
. .
Knight, typifying holiness; The Legend as the best are sketches on the romances
of Sir Guyon, temperance; The Legend of of chivalry and the Italian novelists. His
Britomartis, chastity; The Legend of Cam- facts are massed in a workmanlike man-
bel and Friamond, friendship; The Legend ner, and presented in a clear style, de-
of Artegall, justice; and The Legend of void of ornament, but used with vigor
Sir Calidore, courtesy. To these is some- and effectiveness.
times added a fragment on Mutability.
“In the Faery Queen, Spenser says, “I
'ssays, Modern and Classical, by
mean Glory in my general intention; but,
These studies reveal a pure literary taste,
in my particular, I conceive the most ex-
cellent and glorious person of our Sov-
refined and strengthened by sound schol-
ereign the Queen and her Kingdom in
arship. Every essay is enriched with re-
Faery Land. ” He supposes that the Fa-
sources of knowledge outside its own
immediate scope. The spiritual in poetry
ery Queen held a superb feast, lasting
twelve days, on each of which a complaint
or in art appeals strongly to the author.
His essay on V'irgil, full of acute ob-
was presented. To redress these twelve
injuries twelve knights sally forth; and
servations as it is, dwells most fondly on
during his adventures, each knight proves
the poet's supreme elegance, tenderness,
and stateliness, and on the haunting music
himself the hero of some particular virtue.
Besides these twelve knights there is one
with which his verse is surcharged. Much
general hero, Prince Arthur, who repre-
of Rossetti's art,” he says, “in speech and
color, spends itself in the effort to com-
sents magnificence. In every book he
municate the incommunicable, ) -- and it
appears; and his aim is to discover and
win Gloriana, or glory. The characters
is his own love for, and comprehension of,
the incommunicable that leads the essay-
are numerous, being drawn from classic
mythology, mediæval romance, and the
ist to choose many of his subjects: Marcus
poet's fancy. The scene is usually the
Aurelius, The Greek Oracles, George Sand,
wood where dragons are killed, where
Victor Hugo, The Religion of Beauty,
knights wander and meet with advent-
George Eliot, and Renan — «that subtlest
ures of all kinds, where magicians attempt
of seekers after God. ) Penetrative, lumi-
their evil spells, and where all wrongs are
nous, and fascinating, the essays of Mr.
vanquished. Each canto is filled with
Myers show also an exquisite apprecia-
incidents and short narratives; among
tion of beauty and the balance of a rare
the most beautiful of which are Una with
scholar.
the Lion; and Britomartis's vision of the Dickens. The Life of Charles, by
, ,
Forster.
(3 vols.
The Faery Queen' has always been ad- This book of many defects has the ex-
mired by poets; and it was on the advice cellence of being entertaining. It fol-
of a poet, Sir Walter Raleigh, that Spen- lows the life of its subject from his
ser published the great work.
birth in poverty and obscurity in 1812,
to his death in riches and fame in 1870.
Fiction, History of the, by John Dunlop. It extenuates nothing, because the bio-
(1814. ) This familiar work, the fruit grapher was incapable of seeing a foible,
of many years' accumulation of materials, much more a fault, in the character and
broke ground in a new field. It was the conduct of the friend whom he admired
first attempt made in England to trace
more than he loved him. The
the development of the novel from its poverty and sensitiveness of the lad, his
earliest beginnings in Greece to the posi- menial work and his sense of responsi-
tion it held early in this century. Con- bility for his elders, his thirst for knowl.
sidering the difficulties of the pioneer, the edge and for the graces of life, his
work is remarkably comprehensive and training to be a reporter, his experience
exact. Though later writers have dis-
a newspaper, his early sketches, his
proved certain of the author's theories, first success in Pickwick,' his sudden
as for instance his idea of the rise of the reputation and prosperity, his first visit
Greek novel, or the connection of the to America and his disillusionment,
Gesta Romanorum with subsequent out- the history of his novels, of his read-
growths of popular tales, his book still re- ings, of his friendships, of his home
mains a good introduction for the student life, of his second triumphant journey in
of fiction. The sections upon Oriental the United States, - this time to read
and modern fiction are least satisfactory, from his own books, - his whimsical and
even
on
## p. 347 (#383) ############################################
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
347
fun-loving nature, his agreeableness as a
Elizabeth
Gold Elsie, by E. Marlitt.
father, a comrade, and a host, his gen-
Faber, the Gold Elsie of the story,
erosity, his respect for his profession, so called from her sunny hair, is the
the sum of the qualities that made him daughter of a forest clerk, whose ances-
both by temperament and performance try is at first wrapped in doubt, but who,
a great actor, — all these things are fully in the course of the story, is explained
set forth in the elaborate tribute which to be a lineal descendant of the noble
the biographer pays to his friend. The family of Von Greswits. Leaving Berlin
books are interesting because the mass on account of poverty, the family retire
of material is interesting. But it must to a ruined castle called Nordeck, in the
be admitted that they give an exagger- Thuringian Mountains, an inheritance left
ated impression of one side of the char- to Gold Elsie's mother by its late owner,
acter of Dickens,— his energetic, restless, a distant relative whose hand she had
insatiable activity,- and fail to do justice refused. Through her wonderful musical
to his less self-conscious and more lov- talent, Elsie becomes acquainted with
able qualities. They are, however, to be the family at Castle Lindhof, the aristoc-
reckoned among the important literary racy of the neighborhood; and there is
biographies of the time.
played out the usual love story, with its
misunderstandings, reconciliations, and
Cesa
esar Birotteau, The Greatness and final happy ending. The hero is Rudolph
Decline of, by Honoré de Balzac. von Walde, the owner of the castle, while
This novel pictures in a striking and ac- the villain is Émile Hollfeid. The no-
curate manner the bourgeois life of Paris bility of virtue and the nobility of birth
at the time of the Restoration. César are strongly contrasted in this story;
Birotteau, a native of the provinces, while the «simple faith” which is more
comes to the city in his youth, works than “Norman blood » is given its due
his way up until he becomes the propri- meed of praise.
etor of a perfumery establishment, and
amasses a considerable fortune. He is
a Girl, by Wilhelmine von Hil-
decorated with the Cross of the Legion
lern. (1865. ) This book is the
of Honor, in consequence of having been romance of a soul; the agonies, the sick-
an ardent Loyalist; and this mark of ness unto death, and the recovery, of a
distinction, coupled with his financial suc- noble mind. Ernestine von Hartwich,
cess, causes him to become more and embittered by the fact that she is only
more ambitious. He grows extravagant, a girl," a shortcoming which has caused
indulges in speculation, and loses every- her father's hate and mother's death,
thing. This stroke of misfortune brings determines to equal a man in achieve-
out the strength of character which, dur- ment,- in scientific attainments and in
ing his prosperity, had remained con- mental usefulness, – that her sex shall no
cealed beneath many petty foibles. In longer be made to her a reproach and
this story the life of the French shop- even a crime. This desire is taken ad-
keeper who values his credit as his vantage of by an unscrupulous uncle
dearest possession, and his failure as who will profit by her death. Secluding
practically death, is faithfully portrayed. her from the world, he attempts to
The other characters in the book are undermine her health by feeding her
lifelike portraits. Constance, the faith- feverish ambitions. Her mind is de-
ful and sensible wife of Birotteau, and veloped at the expense of every human
his gentle daughter Césarine, are in feelingevery womanly instinct, and
pleasing contrast to many of the women every religious emotion. She is shunned
Balzac has painted. Du Tillet, the un- by women, envied and humiliated by
scrupulous clerk, who repays his master's men, regarded by her servants and the
kindness by hatred and dishonesty; Ro- neighboring peasantry as a witch. It is
quin the notary; Vauquelin the great through the door of love, opened for her
chemist; and Pillerault, uncle of Con- by Johannes Mollner, that she finally
stance,- are all striking individualities. leaves the wilderness of false aims, un-
The book is free from any objectionable natural ambitions, and unsatisfactory
atmosphere, and is exceedingly realistic results, to enjoy for the first time the
to manners and customs. It has charm of womanhood, human compan-
been admirably translated into English ionship, and belief in God. The story is
by Katharine Prescott Wormeley.
overloaded with didacticism; its logic
Only
as
## p. 348 (#384) ############################################
348
SYNOPSES OF NOTED BOOKS
fails, inasmuch as the poor girl is an in-
voluntary martyr; and its exaggeration
and sentimentality do not appeal to the
English reader. But the book is a great
favorite in Germany, where it has been
considered a powerful argument against
what is called the higher education of
women,
most impenetrable disguises for the pur-
suit of his inquiries.
The dénouement, gradually unfolded
toward the close of the story, shows Pros-
per to have been the innocent victim of
a plot. Madame Fauvel has had, before
her marriage to the banker, an illegiti-
mate son by the Marquis de Clameran,
an arrant rogue who poses throughout as
the benefactor of the Fauvels. De Clam-
eran has caused Raoul de Lagors to per-
sonate this son (who is really dead).
Raoul is introduced in Fauvel's home as
Madame's nephew, though she believes
him to be her son.
After frightening her into revealing the
secrets of the bank-safe, Raoul commits
the robbery. Her lips are sealed by her
fear that her early life will become known
to her husband. De Clameran plays upon
these fears to force Madame Fauvel to
induce Madeleine, her niece, to marry
him. Madeleine consents in order to
save her aunt, though she is really in
love with Prosper.
The plot is at last discovered; Raoul
escapes, De Clameran becomes insane,
Madame Fauvel is forgiven, and Prosper
marries Madeleine.
a
Friend Fritz ('L’Ami Fritz'), by the
collaborating French authors Erck-
mann-Chatrian, was published in 1876.
It is a charming Alsatian story of the
middle nineteenth century, in which the
hero is Fritz, a comfortable burgher with
money enough to indulge his liking for
good eating and drinking, and a stout
defender of bachelorhood. He is a kindly,
jovial, simple-natured fellow, with
broad, merry face and a big laugh. His
dear friend David, an old rabbi, is al-
ways urging him to marry; but the rich
widows of the town set their caps for
him in vain. At dinner one day Fritz
wagers David his favorite vineyard that
he will never take a wife. David wins,
for the invulnerable bachelor succumbs
to the charms of Suzel, the pretty sixteen-
year-old daughter of his farm-manager.
Fritz learns that he that loveth not
knoweth not God, for God is love. ) Old
David deeds the vineyard he has won
to Suzel for her dowry, and dances at
her wedding. The tale is a sweet idyl
of provincial and country life, full of pleas-
ing folk and pleasant scenes, described
with loving fidelity. Friend Fritz) was
dramatized and was very successful as a
play.
File No. 113, by Emile Gaboriau, a
French novel, introducing the au-
thor's favorite detective, M. Lecoq, ap-
peared in 1867. The scene is laid in the
Paris of the day; and the title indicates
the case file number in the records of the
detective bureau.
The story opens with the public details
of a daring robbery which has been
committed in the banking-house of M.
Fauvel. Suspicion points to Prosper
Bertomy, the head cashier.
The deep
mysteries of the case are fathomed by
Fanferlot, a shrewd detective, and Le-
coq. his superior in both skill and posi-
tion. Lecoq figures as a French Sherlock
Holmes, though his methods are essen-
tially different. He is pictured as possess-
ing surpassing insight, intelligence, and
patient determination; employing the
reason
French Humorists, The, by Walter
Besant. (1873. ) Succeeding the au-
thor's admirable work on early French
poetry, the present volume is for that
somewhat incomplete, omitting
even Clément Marot; and Voltaire, for
other reasons no less valid.
After introducing the trouvère and
chanson of mediæval times, the author
takes up representative humorists (the
designation is a broad one) from each
century from the twelfth to our own.
The studies present admirable pictures
of the authors' life-conditions and the
literary atmosphere they breathed. Ac-
companying these discriminating and
delightfully original studies are trans-
lations of pieces to show the character
and genius of the authors treated. There
are in all about twenty-five writers to
whom large treatment is given, promi-
nent among them Rabelais, Montaigne,
Scarron, La Fontaine, Boileau, Molière,
Beaumarchais, and Béranger. There fol-
low a number of exhaustive and learned
inquiries into such famous productions
as the Romance of the Rose) and (La
Satyre Ménippée, not to mention the
historical, critical, and interpretative no-
tices of the authors' famous books.
