The Sun.
London, England, 1858-12-11 00:00:00

LITERATUR.E.

Tents and Tent Life. By Godfrey Rhodes, Captain
94th Regiment. Illustrated. Smith and Elder.
The author of this work, having been one of
those who ruffered from the overthrow of the tents
in the Crimea by the hurricane of the 14th of
November, 1854, turned his attention to the prin-
ciples of the construction of tents, with a view to
improve their efficiency. His object was to increase
the stability and rigidity of the tents, without
materially adding to their weight; and having
carefully studied the tents of all nations, and noted
their defects and advantages, he has succeeded to
his own satisfaction in planning the construction
of field and hospital tents. He traces with the
energy of one who is thoroughly interested in
his subject the history of tent•making from the
days when "Abraham sat in the door of his tent,"
to the rude dwellings of the Esquimaux or the Red
Indian of the present day. His accounts are brief
and succinct, and in no way tedious. The illus-
trations arc numerous, and comprehensible to the
uninitiated. Here is a description of a monarch's
tent in the olden days :--
" The pavilion of Alexander the Great was of enormous
dimensions, and is represented as being capable of contain-
taining 100 beds. The roof, one mass of gilded designs,
was suppofted by eight pillars, covered with gold. In the
centre was placed his throne, which was a mass of gold :
from it he delivered his judgments. This pavilion is said
to have been the most gorgeous ever seen. His body-
guard, or armed court attendants, consisted of 500 persons,
clothed in magnificent attire, covered with gold embroidery.
Their duty was to guard the interior entrances, so that no
unauthorised individual could approach the sovereign
without complying with the usual court regulations.—
(From the fifteen books of the Deipnosophiste d'Athenee.)"
The author takes the opportunity of introducing
incidental anecdotes to enliven his pages. The
following is an amusing passage from the narra-
tive of a traveller in Asiatic Turkey :
" The day after our arrival I prepared to make the Kurds
a visit, when one of them entered my tent, and without
further ceremony examined scrupulously everything it
contained. I begged him to retire. But why ? the sun
is hot, your tent serves for shade, and I shall stay in it.'
However, the chief of the caravan, who knew that these
visits were not always agreeable to me, relieved me of his
presence by inviting him to take coffee. When I went to
their encampment with some companions, it so happened
that the first tent we entered was his. Oh, oh I' ex-
claimed he, here you are —you would have driven mo
away from your tent just now. Think you that I would
do the same to you ? It would be a disgrace to me—
no, sit thee down, I shall give thee coffee and a pipe
—and learn how much more estimable a character is a
Kurd than a dog of a Christian, or a citizen with his
smooth tongue l' I was rather astonished at a compli-
ment I expected so little, and I tried to make him un-
derstand that my European costume frequently exposed
me to rudeness and importunity. 'ln that case,' said
he, why not stay at home why come and walk about
a Kurd camp, where no one in all their lives ever saw
a European ? It is curiosity that brings you hero ; why
not indulge the same feeling in others P'
Captain Rhodes gives the following description of
his own invention :

" The advantages the author claims for his own patent
tents over all others are their great portability and strength
to resist storms, as well as the ease and rapidity with which
they can be pitched and struck. It will be seen that the
form of the tent is a curvilineac octagon, whereby it is less
liable to catch the wind than the perpendicular wall and
conical sides of tents constructed on the old system. The
most striking peculiarity is the total absence of the centre
pole. The frame of the tent is formed of stout ribs of ash,
bamboo, or any other flexible material. The ends of the
ribs are inserted into a wooden head, fitted with iron
sockets, and the butts are thrust into the ground, passing
through a double-twisted rope, having fixed loops at equal
distances. In this position the ribs have a strong resem-
blance to those of an expanded umbrella. The rope through
which the butts of the ribs pass is well pegged to the
ground, and the canvas cover thrown over the framework,
and secured within the tent by leather straps to the
ground or circular rope.
" Additional security or firmness is given by outside
storm-ropes, radiating from the cover at the back of each
rib. In connexion with these are six inside storm-ropes
for the hospital tent.
The canvas used is double and waterproof, and, if re-
quired, the strong canvas covering in which the whole tent
is rolled up can be divided into two parts, and buttoned to
the inside of the tent, the buttons being provided for the
purpose, thereby affording a material ground-support to the
whole of the canvas around the bottom of the tent, when
the rifles and knapsacks of the men are placed thereon ;
this prevents the ground current of air from blowing direct
on the men when lying down.
" Perfect ventilation is another advantage, and fires can
be lighted within the tents, the smoke escaping through the
ventilation holes at the top, which are etaily covered or
uncovered as needed. • - •

" The tents generally are of white double cotton canvas,
but the guard tents for outpost duties will be of a dark
grey colour, as less liable to attract observation at a dis-
tance. The guard tent can be struck and packed in three
or four minutes, even by men unaccustomed to their
management."

An account of the methods of encamping an army
in ancient and modern times, and of the best plan
for doing so, the selection of the ground in a sani-
tary point of view, the management of horses, &c.,
is given at the conclusion of the volume.

Florence. A Tale. By M. C. Hammond. James
Blackwood.
This tale is evidently the production of a young
and enthusiastic writer, who will probably improve
with time and experience. There is no lack of
incident in the plot, or animation in the style, but
the usual faults of a young writer are equally mani-
fest. The events themselves are not so improbable
for the pages of fiction, but the style of the conver-
sations is remarkably high-flown for ordinary mor-
tals ; and a young lady who talked French and.
Italian, and quoted poetry as frequently as the fair
Florence, in general society would certainly be
esteemed a maiden of more learning than taste or
good breeding. In this, however, she only partakes
largely of the general tendency of every ose in the
boA. They are all good linguists, and well read
in the English poets, and have no idea of allowing
these accomplishments to remain unused. Accord-
ingly, if we find two or three consecutive pages
without a line of verse or a foreign word, it is an
event of rare occurrence. It is needless to observe
that, however much an occasional quotation may
give point to a sentence, or illustrate a thought,
such constant recurrence weakens the style, and is
contrary to the rules of all classic and elegant
writing. The same must be said of the high-toned
sentiments so constantly uttered on all occasions
by the heroes and heroines. But these faults are
common to most young writers, who, nevertheless,
may be authors of eminence in future days, and.
the present work shows talent and command of
language. There is a somewhat curious parallel
in the cases of Augusta and. Geraldine, but the
moral of the two is not altogether correct, for
Augusta,• who deceived her parents and lent herself
to a clandestine marriage, was happy ever after, as
fairy tales say ; while Geraldine, who, although
mistaken, endeavoured to keep her promise, died
broken-heurted. The case of Augusta should have
been put differently, as it is rarely, even in this
world, that such deceit is altogether
prosperous.
Notwithstanding all its deficienciesx a a
and
e
gancies, the book will ratify many novel readers,
and affords fair prom* of better things for the
future.