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English Literature and Composition; a Guide to Candidates in those Departments in the Indian Civil Service: with ExaminationPapers and Specimens of Answers. By the Rev. R. DEMAUS, M.A. Author of ' Class-Book of English Prose,' &c. Fcp. 8vo. pp. 180, price 3s. 6d. cloth. [February 6, 1866.

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NE of the chief benefits that have resulted from the introduction of the system of com. petitive examination into the public service, is that public attention has thereby been directed to the character of the English education given at our great seats of learning. In the Author's opinion the examinations for the Indian Civil Service, which have for the first time asserted the right of the English language to rank on a par with the other, traditional, branches of a liberal education, have equally shown how imperfectly the youth of the higher schools and universities are trained in the literature and language of their native country. But it has been objected that English is peculiarly liable to be 'crammed' for examination purposes; and the term 'cram. ming' is used in so many senses that it is not easy to answer an objection that has no definite meaning. Wherever there is an examination there must be some method better than others of preparing for it, and this has often been stigmatised as cramming. A perusal of the examination-papers in this book will show, that what is usually understood as reprehensible cramming' will not be of much service to the candidate; and unless the character of the examination alters materially for the worse, the student will find his best preparation not in any ingenious cramming,' but in honest study and in vigorous intellectual

effort.

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The present work is intended to guide candidates in their preparation.

The study of English has been so recently elevated into prime importance, that students and even in some cases their tutors have felt somewhat at a loss how to proceed: and, more generally than is supposed, the candidates are left to work for themselves without assistance or advice. An attempt is therefore made in this work to suggest some useful methods of study. The various questions proposed have been printed as the best index of the extent to which the student must carry his reading; and as very great difficulty has been felt in knowing exactly the kind of answers required, four of the papers have been answered in full, in the manner in which, it is believed, they ought to be answered. A very few hints on composition have been appended; and the subjects actually given at the examinations have been added, that the candidate may know what is expected of him in this department.

Elementary Geography for the Junior Classes in Schools, containing Two Courses, I. Introductory and British, II. Outlines of General Geography; with Questions and Exercises and a Pronouncing Vocabulary. By RICHARD HILEY, Author of several approved New English and Latin School Books. Edition, entirely rewritten and enlarged. 18mo. pp. 144, price 1s. 6d. cloth.

THE

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[January 20, 1866.

territorial and political changes which have taken place in various parts of the world since the first appearance of this work have rendered it necessary to rewrite the treatise from first to last, while the additions made to geographical knowledge have induced the Author materially to extend his plan. The present edition, therefore (the Ninth, Jan. 1866), must be regarded as an entirely new work.

The principle upon which the new series of geographical works, of which the present forms the introductory volume, has been drawn up, is the selection of a few points only at a time for explanation. The mere elementary portions of the present volume will be withdrawn from the sequel; while those of permanent requirement will be expanded, and additional points introduced, according to the orderly development of the subject and the progress of the pupil.

In accordance with this principle, the present Manual contains only those leading points of Geography which are most suitable and intelligible to beginners, and which must be well impressed on the mind to form a solid ground-work for subsequent progress. It comprises two elementary courses, divided into lessons of moderate length, with questions and exercises annexed to each.

In Course First, the early lessons contain progressive elementary information, accompanied with simple illustrative diagrams adapted to young persons totally ignorant of the subject. The pupil is next conducted by gentle stages through the lessons on England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.

Course Second contains a first outline of general Geography with regard to the extent, population, surface, climate, soil, and manufactures of the various countries of the world.

As part of the general plan, the correct pronunciation of the geographical names has, throughout both courses, been regularly supplied, wherever any difficulty presented itself. A pronouncing vocabulary, also, of all or nearly all the proper names occurring in the work, is given at the close, to render it complete.

A Collection of Two Hundred Chess Problems, composed by F. HEALEY, including the Problems to which the Prizes were awarded by the Committees of the Era, the Manchester, the Birmingham, and the Bristol Chess Problem Tournaments; accompanied by the Solutions. Pp. 278, with 200 Diagrams on Wood. Crown 8vo. price 5s. cloth. [Jan. 30, 1866. THIE Author ventures to hope that the present collection will be found to exhibit some fea

THE

tures especially distinctive of English problems. The great body of Chess amateurs have always felt an especial interest in the composition and solution of problems; and the innumerable solutions constantly forwarded to the newspapers all agree in attesting the increasing popularity of problem-making and solving.

Problems are indeed the poetry of Chess; but it cannot fail to strike the student with surprise when he discovers how few names, comparatively speaking, are inscribed on the roll of inventors. The present volume, it is hoped, may enable the reader to apprehend the real distinctions between the ancient and modern school of problematists.

the accounts given in existing works on the subject of a science which, grounded on merely imaginary principles, has been gradually developed into a system of the minutest accuracy.

A sketch of the early history of the science will be found in the pages of this treatise, in which it has been the special effort of the Author to avoid the objections of unnecessary amplifi- | cation or too great conciseness which may be urged against almost every work on the science of heraldry. In such works it has been the usual custom either to engrave the illustrations on metal or draw them on stone, and to print them on sheets containing a dozen or more, and frequently to bind them together at the end of the book, thus rendering constant reference tedious and irksome. In this volume the diagrams, each duly shaded so as to represent their

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proper heraldic colours, will be found embodied in the text, which treats principally of the laws and usages regulating the heraldry of Gentlemen.

A Practical Guide for British Shipmasters to United States Ports. By PIERREPONT EDWARDS, Esq. Her Britannic Majesty's Vice-Consul at New York. Post 8vo. pp. 334, price 8s. 6d. cloth. [Feb. 1, 1866. THE Author of this work has been during the last nine years Her Majesty's Vice-Consul at New York, where, from its extensive trade, carried on largely by British ships, he has found the want of such a work so simplified, that shipmasters may find in it their duties defined, as to eventualities likely to arise, without hunting through the Acts and Statutes that have been passed to govern them. The Author has, however, given the authorities from which he has arrived at his decisions, quoting legal ones, or special Acts covering the different cases. He has begun with the rights and duties at the home and followed the vessel on the voyage to port, her port of destination in the United States, giving the regulations of all the principal ports there as to pilots, port charges, quarantine, &c. which will have to govern the Master on arrival.

As suits against the vessel in relation to the seamen, cargo, and other matters, arise in United States' ports, the Author has also noticed these, giving the latest decisions of the American Courts with regard to them.

This work will, it is believed, be found of great use, not only to Masters of vessels bound to United States' ports, but (as containing the rights and duties of Masters and seamen) to shipmasters and shipowners generally.

The Food Supplies of Western Europe; being Letters written during a Tour in France, Switzerland, Belgium, and Holland in the Autumn of 1865. To which is appended a Paper on the Production of Food read in the Department of Political Economy at the International Social Science Congress at Berne, 1865. By JOSEPH FISHER. Fep. 8vo. pp. 288, price 5s. 6d. cloth. [Feb. 20, 1866. HE letters were written, and many of them published in the Morning Herald, in reply to the question, Where shall we get meat?' Statistical information respecting the agricul tural products of European states, is not published by our Government in a separate form, but is mixed with the statistics of population, exports and imports, &c., and spread through a large

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number of blue-books, which contain a mass of figures. The writer of these letters, anxious for more perfect information with respect to the agriculture of foreign countries, endeavoured, by correspondence, to acquaint himself with the details of production in every country in Europe, and, finding some difficulty in obtaining information, applied to the Foreign Office and the Board of Trade. Both these departments have acceded to his request, and the Secretaries of Legation will in future furnish the latest intelligence respecting foreign agriculture. Wishing, however, to see for himself what were the sources from whence a supply of food might come, and what was the condition of the people of the Western countries of Europe, the Author paid a rapid visit last autumn to France, Switzerland, Belgium, and Holland; and from those countries the letters which compose this work were written. In the course of his travels he endeavoured to obtain the latest statistical information in the countries he visited, to condense that which he has collected, and to present it in as concise and readable a form as possible in the present volume; which is not confined to mere agricultural information, but describes the condition of the people of the countries he visited, the state of the manufactures, and the aspect of the scenery.

THIS book is intended to afford advice to parents

THIS is to be connected with im

becile, idiotic, and feeble-minded children. It relates to the nursing, training, and teaching of these unfortunate beings, and slight reference is made to their medical treatment. The system of teaching advised may be carried out at home or in asylums. The description of the nature of the defects of the mind and body in the imbecile, idiotic, and other cases which approach the lowest types of the perfect-minded, is followed by a classification, and each class is illustrated by cases. A chapter on the general principles of the education and training is succeeded by one in which these principles are applied to the different classes. The necessary qualifications of nurses, teachers, and attendants are considered, and the details for the asylum and home management, as

regards furniture and appliances, are given. Parts of the book refer especially to the clothing, dietaries, and hours, bathing and washing, drill, gymnastics, and special exercises. The method of developing speech is described, and the description of the manner in which bad habits are eradicated is followed by details of the instruction on morals, temper and religion. Some hints on the medical treatment are succeeded by advice to the poor in the management of their idiot children, and the general results of the system of education are then given.

The Authors have endeavoured to treat their subject practically, and give reasons why the theories of idiocy and its allied affections have not formed part of their work. It is the first book on the subject which has appeared in the English language.

The Stars, in Twelve Maps, on the Gnomonic Projection, collected, in duplicate, in four plates. By RICHARD A. PROCTOR, B.A. Author of Saturn and its System,' late Scholar of St. John's College, Cambridge, and King's College, London. Royal 4to. price, complete, with Introduction, 7s. Steel plates, coloured, 2s. 6d. each; Stereo plates, 6d. each. [February 28, 1866. THESE Maps possess the following properties,

never yet combined in a single series of star maps:-The celestial sphere is presented in a moderate number of maps, on the gnomonic projection, with little distortion or variation of scale, and the constellations of each complete hemisphere are visible at a glance in their proper relative positions.

The steel plates present the stars, their names, numbers, letters, &c.; the constellation outlines, figures, &c.; meridians, declination-parallels, longitude and latitude lines, &c. &c. The stereo plates present the stars and milky way only, on a black background.

The History of Sugar and Sugar-Yielding Plants; together with an Epitome of every Notable Process of Sugar Extraction Manufacture from the Earliest Times to the Present. By WILLIAM REED. Crown 8vo. pp. 214, price 5s. cloth. [January 25, 1866. THE THE recent legislation on the subject of the

sugar duties renders it probable that a treatise on the finance and distribution, as well as on the production of sugar in its chief varieties, may be not unacceptable to the public. The accuracy of the statistics given in the present work may be depended upon, as they have been derived prin

cipally from parliamentary papers, which prove the fact of an increase in the consumption of sugar of which few seem to be aware.

The direct purpose of the present volume is twofold (1), to furnish a means of easy reference, by which the developments in the commercial relations of sugar may be progressively traced; and (2) to supply a sketch of the natural history and sources of sugar, together with notices of the most important processes for its extraction and refining.

At the same time, the Author has felt it necessary to notice the social and political questions on which the subject of sugar has an immediate bearing, and more particularly the institution of negro slavery, as having its origin determined by considerations of sugar culture. Prices of sugar from 1319 to 1864 are given, with notes on special features observable in different years. The work concludes with a chapter on the consumption of raw sugar in the United Kingdom from 1701 to 1864, and of refined from 1844 to 1864 inclusive, with brief notes on the consumption in America, France, Russia, Austria, Spain, and Portugal.

THIS volume, although an entire work in itself,

ings on the Gospels, the first part of which has already appeared. It differs little in plan from the former volume, beyond the addition of rather more matter of an explanatory character in the several sections.

Every earnest reader of the Bible is perplexed, and sometimes startled by the many obscurities and seeming inconsistencies with which he meets. It has been the intention of the Author to give condensed explanations of such passages, as far as they have appeared to him to occur in the Gospels. The term Every-day Difficulties' is not intended to convey the idea merely of those difficulties which are of a simple or superficial character. Wherever an educated person might find some decided obstacle to his right understanding of the sacred writings, that portion has been selected for brief discussion.

Each passage is, in general, treated in a separate section, which is adapted either for reading aloud or as an aid to the private perusal of the Holy Scriptures. At the head of the section the

passage in question is printed; and wherever it has appeared necessary, in order to carry out the connexion, other contiguous verses are added in different type. Copious foot-notes are given, containing much additional matter and numerous references to the works of reliable authors, with few exceptions such as may easily be consulted by the reader. Naturally, the same or similar difficulties often occur in the other Gospels; such passages are noted before the several sections, and a complete table is placed at the beginning of each volume for convenience of reference. An index of the subjects is added, and an introduction prefixed, exhibiting the characteristics of the Evangelists.

The main object of the Author has been to point out to the general reader, within brief limits and in an intelligible form, what is known to the more advanced modern student; and to show those who have not the time or the opportunity to search for themselves the perfections and consistencies of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Nature's Parables; or, the Voice of Nature Illustrative of Christian Life. By the Rev. C. I. ATHERTON. Fcp. 8vo. pp. 140, price 2s. 6d. cloth. [January 23, 1866.

CHRI

HRISTIAN LIFE, having its source and strength in the love of God, draws on every field of the Creator's government for illustration and sympathy. In this book the Author has taken from Scripture various passages which speak of the blessedness of Christian living, and draw their force from the 'nature parable,' which represents the life of the Christian as beginning in darkness and the gloom of sin, wakening (chapter 1.) at the approaching dawn. But this light, when once it has dawned, grows in purity and might. And as the influence is seen externally, so is it shown internally, for the Christian 'grows as the lily' (chapter 3). This growth in holiness will also have fertilising effect, like the spring, whose waters fail not' (chapter 4). The Christian is also as 'the tree planted by the river side' (chapter 5); and as his strength is derived from God (chapter 7), so the natural life, which is dry and withered under the effect of the scorching sun of this world, is refreshed in the night season of repentance and sorrow and trial. In the race of life they that wait on the Lord mount up with wings as the eagle' (chapter 8); and in the midst of the storms of life they flee to the refuge of Christ, who is like 'the shadow of a great rock in a weary land' (chapter 9), while in all his sorrows his heart is cheered by looking onwards to the land of rest, where every storm shall have ceased.

Eastern Gleams: Metrical Essays and Poems on the Gospel History. Fcp. 8vo. pp. 174, price 3s. 6d. cloth. [February 19, 1866.

As the title indicates, this volume is designed to

illustrate in verse, though without any formal or elaborate plan, the scenes and events of the divine history, the subject of which is that great Light of the World, whose rising was in the East. The first Essay, on 'The Gospels,' is a sort of introductory argument on the intrinsic witness presented in the character and life of JESUS, as drawn by the Evangelists, to the reality of that life, whose image, portrayed in the pages of Holy Writ, is not only indelibly graven on the mystic walls of the Church of every age which consecrates His memory, but lives imperishably in the great traditions of history and art. Most of the poems, which embody in their sequence the leading incidents in the life of our Lord, without attempting minute description, seek to convey the impressions that might be awakened while surveying the actual scenery, whose landscapes are the ever-living framework of that portraiture. Others express

thoughts often suggested by some of those pictorial illustrations which vitalize the scenes of the history to the mental vision, and help to give them an ideal 'habitation' among our living human interests, and a place such as no mere dreams of fiction could ever hold in relation to the events and circumstances of everyday life.

have been urged against it. The question of the Canon is also considered; and reasons are assigned for believing that the whole of the books recognised as Scripture by Josephus and others after the destruction of Jerusalem, are not identical with the whole of those recognised by our Lord and the Jews of his time before that destruction. It is further maintained that the only writings that can with certainty be proved to have been recognised by our Lord as Scripture are the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.' The division 'the Prophets' is indeed so understood as to include most of the historical books; but the third division, the Psalms,' is regarded as containing the Psalms only. In a brief Appendix the question of the discrepancies and canon of the books of the New Testament is considered.

The Kabbalah, its Doctrines, Development, and Literature: an Essay read before the Lit. and Philos. Soc. of Liverpool, Oct. 1863, and reprinted by permission. By C. D. GINSBURG, LL.D. 8vo. pp. 172, price 78. 6d. cloth. [November 8, 1865.

THE design of this Essay is to furnish the student of history and philosophy with a manual to the Kabbalah, as there is no separate treatise in English on this esoteric doctrine. The Essay consists of three parts. In the first part the Author describes this system of medieval philosophy, giving both the originals and an English translation of extracts from the primary documents which propound this system, as well as sundry diagrams and tables. In the second part he traces the origin and date of this esoteric doctrine, and gives an analysis and exposition of the ancient documents embodying this system; and in the third part he gives a chronological and bibliographical account of the principal works written on the Kabbalah from its origin to the present day. Appended to this manual are indices and a glossary.

CROWE'S Library History of FRANCE.-The Fourth Volume of Mr. EYRE EVANS CROWE'S ' History of France from Clovis and Charlemagne to the Accession of Napoléon III.' is in the press.

A New Handbook for Readers' at the British 'Museum,' by THOMAS NICHOLS, is nearly ready for publication.

'The DIARY of the Right Hon. WILLIAM 'WINDHAM, M.P. from 1783 to 1809,' edited by Mrs. HENRY BARING, is expected to be ready in March, forming one volume octavo.

D'AUBIGNE'S HISTORY of the REFORMATION.The Fourth Volume of the Rev. Dr. J. H. MERLE D'AUBIGNE'S History of the Reformation in the Time of CALVIN,' is in the press.