264 Short Notices.
Old-Lore Miscellany of Orkney, Shetland, Caithness, and Suther- land, Vol. II., and Vol. III., Parts I. and II., {Old-Lore Series, Vols. II. and III.) Edit, by Alfred W. Johnston and Amy Johnston. Viking Club, 1909-10.
Folklore students should keep themselves in touch with this and other publications of the Viking Club, or they will miss many use- ful notes. The Parts of the Old-Lore Series before us include articles on " Orkney Folk-lore," " Some References to Witchcraft and Charming from Caithness and Sutherland Church Records," and " Tammy Hay and the Fairies," and short notes on witchcraft, fairies, 'forespoken' animals, counting-out rhymes, "casting the heart," New Year songs, etc. Other matters of interest are articles on the odal families of Orkney {i.e. families whose estates were subject to odal sub-division), and lists of Shetland names of animals etc. We heartily welcome this active co-operation in the collection of a section of British folklore.
As Old as the Moon. Cuban Legends : Folklore of the Antillas. By Florence Jackson Stoddard. New York : Double- day, Page & Co., 1909. 8vo, pp. xxv4-205. 111.
This volume is a collection of the myths and tales of the Antilles and the Lucayas or Bahama islands, from allusions and brief mentions in historic chronicles and narratives of the Spanish conquerors' adventures etc. Unfortunately the author gives no references to her sources and no exact translations of the original passages, but says " these fragments I have had to piece together bit by bit, feeling for what was unsaid to complete what was given for a consistent whole " (p. x). In consequence, a book contain- ing much interesting folklore of a little-known people has been rendered of small use to the student by the setting and burnishing processes which have certainly made it an attractive " story book."
Books for Review should be addressed to
The Editor of Folk-Lore,
c/o David Nutt,
57-59 Long Acre, London, W.C.
