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the whole assumed form; it was alive with meaning. The science of history had long before passed from this experimental stage of fact-gathering into the philosophic stage of reading the connection and relation of these facts, but the study of history had not taken this advance step. This principle, which had vivified historical science, which had breathed life into the higher study of history, and which is now changing the character of the preparatory study, is the principle of the growth and unity of history. Through an understanding of the past we may understand the events of today-we may even anticipate the happenings of tomorrow.

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on these very expeditions, to return a little later with their plunder. We see these Norsemen setting forth to settle in Northumberland and in Normandy, to come together again after the battle of Hastings. It all has a new interest, which was lacking in the subject before. But, in spite of this interest, the struggles of petty kings are recounted with a fullness of treatment that becomes monotonous. We lose interest in these contests, which are almost without distinguishing features, long before we begin to see the Norse nationality developing itself. The style of treatment is generally interesting and simple, though we doubt the ability of the pupil to compreThis changed view of historical study has brought hend what is meant by the assertion that the subforward the topical method of study in our colleges, vassals "held in fief a royal estate" (p. 54); and the and this has necessitated the changes in the prepara- statement that the peasants were deprived of their tory work. The younger pupils are wholly unable allodium (p. 55), reminds one of the story of the to understand the development of the national rela- old lady who, on hearing of the similar deprivation tions. The ideas presented to them must be con- of the English by William the Conqueror, remarked: crete. They may understand the actions of men and "Poor creatures, and in that cold climate, too! of bodies of men, for their young imaginations clothe How did they keep warm?" The use of the inside the characters of history with flesh and blood. If pages of the covers for the maps throughout this their information is sufficiently complete, the rulers series, is a good practice, both for the preservation of nations and the leaders of men become real to of the map and for convenience of reference; but in them. But the idea of a nation is an abstract one. this particular book the historical map is rendered The nation has no visible body for them to see, and useless by the adoption of a spelling that differs from they cannot be expected to understand it, as distin- that used in the text of the book, and by the omisguished from the people on the one side, and the sion of the names of several of the places. territorial position of the people on the other. The first work in history must be confined to giving a clear idea of the principal actors in the nation's history, and of the social life in times past. Movements may be displayed, their effects may be shown, but only in the broad outlines. The foundation of historical study is being laid, the framework is being erected; the finishing work must come later. But, as this work determines the character of the future structure, it is of the greatest importance that it should be well done-that the outlines should be correct.

To prepare text-books for this class of work, is an undertaking full of difficulty. Perhaps the most difficult feature of the task is the perspective. To retain a just perspective in these microscopic productions of a nation's life, is an undertaking of no small magnitude, as is shown in The Story of Norway.1 Here the early history is treated with considerable detail, while the later history is condensed almost to a chronological list of kings. It is true that there is a special interest in the earlier history, resulting from the numerous incursions of the Norsemen into England. The present reviewer remembers that as a child he looked upon those men as coming from some mysterious country, wholly unconnected with our modern Norway. But here we have the other point of view, which gives clearness and reality to the movements. We stand on the shores of this mysterious land, and see the vikings push off their boats

1 The Story of Norway. By H. H. Boyesen. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1886. For sale in San Francisco by Strickland & Pierson.

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While the excellencies of "Norway' are thus marred by defects of treatment, The Story of Germany 2 probably fulfils the requirements of this elementary work as well as they can be met. The gen eral principles are correctly stated, and the foundation for a just appreciation of the German history is laid. The statements are made sufficiently simple to be understood by the pupil, and at the same time the style is entertaining. The illustrations in this book, as in The Story of Norway, are good, but we should like to see several of them replaced by historical maps. The kingdoms and principalities are frequently located by a reference to their modern geographical position; but this does not give the clearness of conception that is gained by a map. The history of the German people is one peculiarly disconnected with the territorial position of the present German Empire, and the resulting confusion causes much of the difficulty of presenting the subject to young pupils: A few historical maps would materially aid in clearing away this confusion, and might with advantage take the place of some of the illustrations that have no more than a territorial connection with the text.

The Story of Spain 3 points out more clearly than any of its predecessors what must necessarily be the

2 The Story of Germany. By S. Baring-Gould and Arthur Gilman. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1886. For sale in San Francisco by Strickland & Pier

son.

3 The Story of Spain. By Edward Everett Hale and Susan Hale. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1886. For sale in San Francisco by Samuel Carson & Co.

greatest utility of this series. The books are evidently written to be read rather than to be studied. And from this point of view they can certainly accomplish a good purpose, in spreading a familiarity with the more prominent events of the history, and in creating an interest in the subject which would probably not be gained by study in the school-room. But in preparing a book for immature and untrained minds, the fact should be kept in view, that such reading leaves only the impressions of the bolder outlines. Certain broad facts and general sequences fix themselves; the details are soon forgotten. Therefore, even more care should be exercised in emphasizing the historical perspective in these books than is usually necessary in elementary text-books of history. The national growth should be shown; the international development, if we may so call the development of the relations among the various nations, and the influence of each upon the development of the others, should be pointed out in its general features, though anything like detail here is impracticable; and the geographical positions and boundaries should be as clearly defined as is possible.

It is here that the whole series seems to be lacking: the narratives are indistinct from the historical point of view. Nothing beyond the surface events seems to have been in the minds of the authors as they wrote. This is probably an effect of the subordination of the historical to the literary, both in the selection of the authors and in their carrying out of the work. And, indeed, the literary excellence of the stories is generally conspicuous. The "story of Spain" is told with a picturesque effect and a vivid interest which will undoubtedly do much to incite in its readers a desire to know more of this land of romance. The poetical selections, which are rather a feature in the book, are appropriate; and, though a just appreciation of their beauties requires a mind more matured than those to which the book is addressed, their spirit and the taste with which they have been selected cannot fail to have an elevating effect upon all who read the book.

This outline of historical knowledge which is thus drawn, may be filled in in part in the second stage of the preparatory work. The elementary work has exercised the memory of the pupil; now the reasoning powers begin to be called upon. The philosophy of history is still beyond his reach, but he may be introduced into the methods of study; he may become familiar with the ideas of more advanced treatment. He passes from the study of individual rulers to the study of peoples; he advances from the geographical work of locating kingdoms to the scientific work of studying their institutions. Mr. Towle's Young People's History of England attempts "to show the growth of the political liberties By George M. 1886. For sale in

1

Young People's History of England. Towle. Boston: Lee & Shepard.

San Francisco by Chilion Beach.

of the English people, and to indicate in some degree . . . the changes in the social condition, and the advance in literature and arts of the English between one period and another." The attempt is indeed partly successful, but the whole tone of the book stamps it as one of the class of text-books, already too numerous, which are made only to sell.

Somewhat superior to this book in tone, is Underwood's revision of Guest's Lectures on English History,2 delivered before the College for Men and Women in London. The book is exceedingly popular in tone, and lacks a unity in development of the institutions. The individual steps of this development are fairly well stated, it is true, but there is a lack of connection which gives the effect of a series of pictures rather than of one whole. The description of the social life of England five hundred years ago, though quite unsatisfactory as a literary production, is nevertheless of great utility, in enabling the pupil to understand the movements of those times. This representation of the social life shows how much the author depends on the literary productions of the past for his information. There is, in fact, throughout the book a greater knowledge shown of literary writers than of historical writers. We doubt whether Shakspere would generally receive as much consideration as an historical authority as our author seems inclined to accord him (p. 317). A little more care would also have prevented such typographical mistakes as that (on p. 500) where the assertion is made that William "would have been glad to repeat the Test and Corporation Acts," whereas the meaning is that he would have been glad to repeal them. On the whole, the book is however a good one, and presents the history of England more comprehensively and better than the average school text-book.

The compression of the life history of the world, set forth in narrative form within the compass of a school book, is a task which might well appall any author. Such an undertaking requires a power of condensation, combined with clearness of statement, such as few possess. But to attempt to set forth these condensed facts in such form as to show the development and tendencies of the world's history, would seem to be almost hopeless. In view of the difficulty of his undertaking, Professor Fisher has succeeded wonderfully well. The advance toward universal unity is the idea which he attempts to enforce, and that it is so clearly presented is one of the greatest merits of the book. The tone is scholarly throughout, and the power of condensation, without loss of clearness, seems to be almost perfect. The important events, not merely of the development of political institutions, but also of the advance of learning and the arts, are well stated; and, in small

2 Handbook of English History. By M. J. Guest and F. H. Underwood. Boston: Lee & Shepard. 1886. 3 Outlines of Universal History. By George P. Fisher. New York: Ivison, Blakeman, Taylor & Co.

er type, much detail has been introduced. This condensation, however, while one of the most admirable features of the book, is at the same time its greatest weakness. The following passage, taken at haphazard, well illustrates this strength and weakness: "Charles 1. in dignity of person far excelled his father. He had more skill and more courage; but he had the same theory of arbitrary government, and acted as if insincerity and the breaking of promises were excusable in defense of it. His strife with Parliament began at once. They would not grant supplies of money without a redress of grievances, and the removal of Buckingham, the King's favorite. War had begun with Spain before the close of the last reign. An expedition was now sent to Cadiz, but it accomplished nothing. Buckingham was impeached; but before the trial ended, the King dissolved Parliament. A year later he went over to war with France. He was then obliged (1628) to grant to his third Parliament their Petition of Right, which condemned his recent illegal doings-arbitrary taxes and imprisonment, the billeting of soldiers on householders, proceedings of martial law. A few months later Buckingham was assassinated by John Fenton, at Portsmouth," etc. (p. 436).

This statement, to one already familiar with English history, is excellent. All the facts of the situation are presented in the most effective manner. But to one not familiar with the subject, it is merely a disconnected statement of unconnected facts. The student would be confused by the overpowering array of facts, unless he was already acquainted with the general incidents of the history. Before this book could be practically useful, the student would have to master the individual histories of the different countries of Europe and of the United States. The difficulty, it will be seen, is one connected with the subject, and not with this particular book. And, indeed, after the necessary foundation has been laid, we know of no text-book for this grade of work that would exceed this in utility and scholarly accuracy. France under Richelieu and Mazarin,1 MR. PERKINS is fortunate in the period that he has selected for his history. None is richer than this in interesting characters and really fascinating episodes, and none has left such a mass of records bearing upon the social and political life of the time. It was an era of social brilliancy and political corruption, of pasquinades and burlesques, of brilliant and unscrupulous men, and of women deplorable as wives and mothers, but charming as individuals. And

the actors in the drama of the time seem to have deemed it proper to leave for posterity their inner thoughts and the record of their motives, in letters and memoirs. That brilliant and corrupt society of the Hotel de Longueville and the Louvre, whose 1 France under Mazarin, with a Review of the Administration of Richelieu. By James Breck Perkins. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1886. For sale in San Francisco by Strickland & Pierson.

shining lights burn across two centuries with scarcely diminished radiance, can be studied almost as closely as we can study the society of our own day. And a clever debater could go far toward demolishing one of the strongest arguments of the advocates of “Woman's Rights"- that the admission of woman into politics would tend to purify it-by a presentation of that curious mixture of love and political intrigue which is exhibited in the history of the Fronde.

But the period possesses a higher interest, and one which the author of "France under Richelieu and Mazarin" fully recognizes, in the fact that the two administrations reviewed fixed definitely the charac ter of the French government for a hundred and fifty years, determined absolutism, and not constitutional liberty, as the political system of five generations, and in the end made revolution, and not reform, the only possible means of national rehabilitation. It is more than doubtful whether, had earnest efforts been really made in the direction of constitutional development, they could have succeeded; the spirit of liberty was absent, the temperament of the people was not a liberty-loving one. France had to drink the cup of absolutism to the dregs. But-and Mr. Perkins is to be commended for the clear way in which he shows itno such effort was made. The civil war was a "burlesque revolution," and neither nobility nor people had heart in the struggle supposed to be for popular rights.

Of the two great ministers whose administrationfor in truth the rule of the latter was but the continuation of that of the former--this history records, the personality of the former is so much more striking, so much nobler, than that of the latter, that our imagi nation has glorified the "great Cardinal," while we have grown to regard his successor as a meaner and smaller Machiavel. Mcst of us, indeed, have taken our estimate of Mazarin, not from history, but from the romances of Dumas. But the impartial student of the period must admit this estimate to be wrong; covetous and grasping as he was, unattractive as were his personal qualities, we must still admit a great degree of practical ability in the character of this wily Italian. Indeed, the time was not one to develop the highest statesmanship. Regard for the popular welfare, interest in the well-being of the citizen and the family-these were not characteristic of the statesmanship of the first half of the seventeenth century in continental Europe. National glory, rather, the extension of national boundaries, were the ends of political effort. And herein Mazarin was supremely successful; being so, what mattered poverty, distress, grinding taxation at home?

Mr. Perkins is not a great historian. In that wider historical instinct which recognizes the relation of scattered events, and their bearings one on the other, he is deficient. But, from the voluminous authorities at hand, he has constructed an interesting and useful narrative, and one which, in the absence of any other connected narrative of the time, will prob

ably be accepted as an authority. He is careful in his review of those sources of information-the State papers, the "Cornets" of Mazarin, the mass of correspondence and notes-which the French government has of late generously thrown open to the historical student, and we have to thank him for assiduous industry and painstaking thoroughness. The following extracts will, perhaps, serve to show his capacity for historical generalization. In speaking of the French Protestants, he says:

"The Huguenots had much in common with the Puritans. Their creed was largely the same; they professed the same Calvinistic tenets; they favored the same strict and formal morality; they suffered oppression from a dominant church, whose members they regarded as the servants of mammon, and far removed from the pure truths of God .. They took up arms against a government which they believed was disregarding earthly laws, and persecuting God's saints.

"Yet the Huguenot party ended in failure, and the Puritan party attained unto victory. Not only in the brief rule of Cromwell, but in the subsequent history of England, Puritan principles won the day. The established church, indeed, still holds to its stately ceremonial and its ancient service. Its bishops still proclaim their apostolic succession. A peer in lawn sleeves sits in the bishop's chair in St. Paul's; a dean with surplice and stole preaches in Westminster Abbey; but England has become Puritan. . . . The Englishman of today wears a Puritan dress; his Sunday is the Puritan Sunday; his morals are Puritan; his political rights are those for which the Puritans fought. The clergy of the established church, in all but manners and external dress, are a Puritan clergy.

"Far different is the history of the Huguenot movement in France. The difference in the result is, of course, chiefly due to the difference in the nations. A party like the Puritans could not have gained a complete victory among a people like the French. But there were many elements of weakness among the Huguenots. The alliance of the nobles was ultimately an injury; they acted as leaders, and when they deserted the cause, the mass of the party were incapable of guiding themselves. Not the storms of adversity, but the greatness of the temptations, took the nobles from the reformed faith. The French

Protestants lacked, also, that spirit of discipline which would make them equally formidable in war and respected in peace. They had, indeed, their

circles and assemblies; but division was too often found in the assemblies, and disobedience among the cities and separate circles. The Huguenots, moreover, did not seek to obtain a more liberal government and greater protection in person and belief for all subjects, and thus gain the alliance of many who would have been in political, if not in doctrinal, sympathy with them."

Altogether, Mr. Perkins may be commended for

the success of his undertaking. He has produced a readable and valuable history of the second class; and while heretofore the student of the Fronde and the era of Mazarin has been compelled to have recourse to many works, not always easily obtainable, he will now be enabled to make reference to a connected narrative.

We heartily welcome such efforts in the field of American literature. One such work as this is worth many score of the alleged novels with which it is deluged.

History of California.1

THESE two handsome volumes have neither preface, index, nor formal termination. They begin with the discovery, come down to the admission of the State into the Union in 1850, and there the narrative stops short. Considering the questions that would be raised, and the feelings that would be stirred up by a history of the State of California, and that so many of the actors in that history are alive, it was probably wise to stop thus. But Mr. Hittell's merits as a careful investigator and a good narrator are such that we regret this resolution of his—if such it be. He might, at least, continue his work in the form of annals, with references to authorities. While such a book would lose the more vivid qualities of a narrative, it would furnish an invaluable guide and basis for subsequent laborers in the field.

Mr. Hittell's first volume is chiefly devoted to the history of the missions. The second contains that of the period of the Mexican governors, together with a sketch of California topography, natural history, and the natives; and it ends with the account of the American immigration, and of the final transfer to the United States. Mr. Hittell has worked with industry, impartiality, and in a genuinely historical spirit. Readers not familiar with the early history of California will be surprised to find how much of interest there is in the story of the obscure efforts of a few missionaries to civilize the coast Indians, scanty in numbers, degraded in condition, and low in the scale of intellect, and to organize them into self-sustaining communities.

A historical parallel, to which we believe Mr. Hittell does not allude, must forcibly strike every reader with a general knowledge of American historythe parallel between the work of the Spanish pioneers in California and the English pioneers in New England. In both enterprises a religious motive was a principal one; the conversion of the Indians an important object; dealings with the natives a principal part of their experience; the actual result, first a subjugation and then an extermination, of these natives; and in both cases there can be traced a gradual recession of the spiritual motive for the European immigration, and a corresponding increase of the influence of temporal considerations. The founding of a common

1 History of California. By Theodore H. Hittell. Vols. 1, 2. San Francisco: Pacific Press Publishing House and Occidental Publishing Co. 1886.

wealth has a more prominent purpose with the Puritans, the establishment of missions with the Catholics; but differences and similarities alike render the comparison instructive. Minor parallelisms can be cited. Eliot, the apostle to the Indians, might be compared with Father Juan Ugarte, in Lower, and Father Junipero Serra, in Upper California; Captain Church, the redoubted soldier of King Philip's War, with that celebrated Indian fighter, Ensign Gabriel Moraga; the dubious relations of the New England men to their Dutch neighbors in New York, with those of the Californians to the Russians north of San Francisco Bay; the hardships of the first settlers on the sterile coast of Plymouth, and the spread of their settlements into more fertile districts, with the first missionary labors at the remote and barren extremity of Lower California, and their subsequent extension northward. For what we know, Mr. Hittell may intend to develop this chapter in comparative history. We trust he will.

Mr. Hittell's references to the doings of Fremont in the Bear Flag year indicate no knowledge of the new sources used by Professor Royce in the recent damaging exposure of those transactions. Accordingly, he says nothing of Consul Larkin's operations in favor of a peaceful annexation; and his statement as to Fremont's reasons for returning from Oregon and for his subsequent movements, is, of necessity, quite speculative. At the same time it contains nothing in contravention of Professor Royce's views.

It is earnestly to be wished that Mr. Hittell should complete the account which these two volumes leave half told. If he will not do this, he should-as, perhaps, he intends-add a preface, and, above all, an index, to the work. So much is really due to his readers and to himself.

Briefer Notice.

Bietigheim is an account of the fall of the GerInan and Russian Empires in 1891, before the allied arms of America, England, and France, on the battlefield of Bietigheim, and of the consequences thereof. The device is getting rather trite, but Bietigheim is in execution better than most of its class, and is redeemed from insignificance by some really clever political science, in the account of the efforts to establish popular governments on the wreck of the empires. Popular revolution overthrew the thrones shortly after the crushing defeat of Bietigheim; and while still only provisional governments held the reins, another great popular movement, under the lead of able and disinterested men, established a socialistic republic, of the Marx school. This went beautifully 1 Bietigheim. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. 1886.

as long as times were good, by means of mutual forbearance; but the effect upon it of conflicting interests is very shrewdly foretold, as well as the minor difficulties attending the administration of the system.- -Of the world-poets, Dante is least admired by the ordinary student; probably because he is the least understood. Achilles, capricious and moody, and Ulysses, with his followers wandering over unknown seas, arouse and sustain the interest of the most casual reader. Quarrels about beautiful maidens, or an ambition to found a city, possess a human interest which appeals to even the unlettered: but a picture of human souls subjected to every conceiv able variety of physical torment, is at once so realistic and so horrible that the poetic art is not appar

ent.

The object of all fine art is the production of pleasurable emotions ; and what pleasure can we derive from a succession of pictures in all of which we see only intense misery and the most abject despair? Evidently, Dante saw something beyond, as all do who place him with Homer, Goethe, and Milton. The author of A Study of Dante 2-Miss Susan E. Blow-endeavors to show that "the Divina Commedia is the outcome of a profound and exhaustive reflection upon the facts of the moral world," and that the different forms of future punishment, as represented in the "Inferno," are but the necessary result of an unchangeable moral law. Consequently, the grandeur and sublimity of the poem can only be appreciated when it is thoroughly read in the light of a psychological knowledge of the human mind. This, together with a familiarity with the theology which prevailed in Dante's time, will enable the student to see in the Divina Commedia a sublimity of thought which could only proceed from a soul oppressed with a sense of the infinite love and infinite justice of God.- -The Jewish Altar3 discusses the question: "Was the ritual of the Jewish Church intended to be prophetic of Christ?" "The ritual" appears to mean the offering of sacrifices on the altar. It is reasoned that this was not prophetic : for, after a thousand years, the Jews did not recognize their Messiah when he came; was God's plan for teaching, then, a failure? If, however, the object of the Mosaic ritual was to train the Jewish mind to a concep tion of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, then it was not a failure. The treatise is of use as opposing the so-called "spiritualizing tendency ❞—the disposition to force fanciful allegorical meanings from Scripture.

2 A Study of Dante. By Miss Susan E. Blow. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1886.

D.D. New York. 8 The Jewish Altar. By the late John Leighton, Funk & Wagnalls. 1886. For

Sale in San Francisco by Phillips & Hunt.

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