Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 7.djvu/556

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NOTES AND QUERIES. [io s. VIL JUNK s, 1907.


The Coriihi/l Magazine maintains a high level of interest. The latest novel by the author of ' Elizabeth and her German Garden,' which has already been applauded in book form, here finishes its serial publication. ' Magdalen to Magdalene,' a little set of verses from the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford to Mr. A. C. Benson of Cambridge, is neatly turned, but is hardly notable. We know of many better occasional verses which remain imprinted, though they are not written, perhaps, to so busy a literary man as Mr. Benson. ' To Khartoum,' by Sir Henry Craik, is a record of great interest ; he has good gifts for description, and he finds much to admire in the Gordon College at Khartoum, which, unlike many memorials of heroes, is flourishing under admirable management. Mrs. Richmond Ritchie in the twelfth of her 'Blackstick Papers,' deals charmingly with " Mabys" which means the Metropolitan Association for Befriending Young Ser- vants, and its gracious founder, Mrs. Nassau Senior. " Mabys " is now a middle-aged institution, but one full of life and vigour, and reflecting the utmost credit on the energy, tact, and kindliness of the workers who control its fortunes. It has a maga- zine of its own, and thousands of votaries. Mrs. Ritchie gives a delightful account of a visit to the chief home of the Association, the Mount at Reigate. We wish that notices of such philanthropic work by sympathetic and experienced hands were more frequent in the press, instead of the oft-repeated adulation of the follies and frivolities of the smart. Mr. Thomas Seccombe writes a well-considered article on ' Henry Fielding,' which will appeal alike to the expert and to the general reader who has little acquaintance with Fielding. Mr. Seccombe has abundant knowledge, but we cannot praise his style. Mr. C. R. L. Fletcher in 'Wanted, More Knowledge,' refers to the tantalizing glimpses of social and legal procedure preserved in the records of the Sussex Quarter Sessions in the middle of the seventeenth century. Latin was, he found, rare in the entries. Persons convicted for capital felonies in many instances pleaded benefit of clergy, and got off with being burnt in the hand. Thieves were branded with the letter T on the " brawn of the thumb," but by whom and where remains obscure.

The Gentleman's Magazine has an article on ' Frederick, Prince of Wales,' by Lewis Melville, which is entertaining, but hardly novel in its material. Dr. N. E. Yorke-Davies considers the puzzling question of ' Harmless Beverages in rela- tion to Health,' and writes with long experience in treating ailments of malnutrition by diet. Mr. Carl Bock has an article with illustrations on 'Chinese Beggars.' 'Sylvanus Urban's Notebook' might be better done, though we are glad to see that room has been found for a commendation of the Wyclif Society. The one thing that The Gentle- man's Magazine ought to retain is a note of scholar- ship. This appears in the verses entitled ' The Incunabulum's Tale ' by Mr. C. W. Brodribb, but the articles in general do not seem to aim at much more than the usual level of magazine- writing, which is not high.

The Burlington Magazine opens with a repro- duction of a fine picture by Henry Wyatt, ' A Man with a Hawk.' Wyatt is comparatively unknown, and worked for Sir T. Lawrence. Hence it is suggested that some of Lawrence's pictures are really his. The present example is certainly re- markable. ' The Trend of the Art Market ' is an


important short editorial. Mr. P. M. Turner, con- tinuing his articles on ' The British School in the Louvre,' is severe on the pictures attributed to Gainsborough, Reynolds, and Raeburn. Only in the case of Lawrence is the artist properly repre- sented there. ' The Water-Colour Method of Mr. William Callow' is the result of some questions put to the venerable master, who has reached the great age of ninety-six. Mr. R. E. Fry adds a note on the best paper for water-colours. ' Past Excava- tions at Herculanean' shows how beautiful were the treasures found in the submerged city by exca- vators between 1709 and 1876. This article has several fine illustrations. Dr. Hans W. Singer con- tributes some useful supplementary notes on some mezzotints by MacArdell and Valentine Green ; and there is, as usual, a short summary of art in France, Germany, and America.

The Shilling Burlington which was published in the middle of last month is an able summary of its bigger parent. It offers such excellent comment and illustration that it is remarkably cheap. We can well believe that there is a wide public for it, as has, indeed, been acknowledged by those who thought it at the outset an unprofitable venture.

MR. A. H. BULLEN announces for immediate

Enblication ' Early English Lyrics,' chosen by Mr. . K. Chambers and Mr. F. Sidgwick, which has been in preparation over a year. It is an anthology of English lyrical poetry from the earliest days to 1550, and will be found to contain many poems new to the general reader. The poems are annotated throughout, and an essay on 'Some Aspects of Mediaeval Lyric,' by Mr. E. K. Chambers, is included.

STUDENTS of Elizabethan drama are eagerly awaiting the second volume of Mr. W. W. Greg's edition of Henslowe's 'Diary.' This is now in the press ; but the editor will issue through Mr. Bullen a companion volume, ' Henslowe Papers,' almost immediately. This volume contains reprints of documents, mostly at Dulwich, supplementing the knowledge derived from the 'Diary,' and also of certain dramatic "Plots," which were hung up in the theatre to assist the performers.


We must call special attention to the following notices :

ON all communications must be written the name and address of the sender, not necessarily for pub- lication, but as a guarantee of good faith.

WE cannot undertake to answer queries privately, nor can we advise correspondents as to the value of old books and other objects or as to the means of disposing of them.

R. L. MORETON (" When late I attempted your pity to move "). J. P. Kemble's ' The Panel,' Act I. sc. i. See Mr. Gurney Benham's note on this in ' Cassell's Book of Quotations,' p. 184.

NOTICE.

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