The Portland daily press., 1868-05-14
Terms $500 per- annu,,., in adrance.

many admirable specimens, The writer
has some positive merits which are NOT
common. He writes with the utmost literary
conscientousness, and care; his versi6eation
polished and fluent his fancy refined and
uehcate' Many passages show singular ts-
iio''y oI conception, and charming graCs
"u oitch eioquence of expression. Many
true ana beautiful thoughts also present
themselves, and he shows an honest syln Dathy
with all that is highest and purest. He "a
not a profound thinker, and his philo,onbv
is tainted with that affectation of sentimental
cynicism which is so fashionable with h.
school, but his sneers never wound very
deeply or touch the things which are holy
and he is never impure like Swinburne. Un-
Ike the latter poet also, though occasionally
lapSlng into obscurity of expression, he does
not study to speak after the manner of the
Sphinx.
The poems in these volumes are divided into
two heads. The first has the subtitle Csroni-
cIes and Characters, and the second contains
long poem entitled OrvdH or ihe Fool Of Time,
and several shorter pieces, trSnslatons, etc (.
The poems in the first division are occasional
in their character, suggested by various bistor-
zeal incidents and perSonsges, and illustrate
the spirit of successive eras of human pro-
gress. Thus we have "Tales from Herodotus;'
"Thanatos Athanatou." dramatic fragment
on the sacrifice of Calvary; "Neoplatonism;"
"The Mohammedsn Era" its legends and ro-
mances; and ballads. romances and lyrics il
lustrating medieval, early Italian, and modern
European history, to all of which is attached
some personal interest. Under the title Here
and There" are collected some love songs and
kindred illusions 1t will be seen that here 10
scope and verge enough for the display of the
poets best power; and the manner in which
he has treated this wide diversity Of topics
must add to his already enviaB7e reputation
and largely increase the number Of his admir-
ers. Fer the seaside or the summer cation
anywhere, the thoughtful reader win find few
pleasanter companions than these new VOL
umes OF Owen Meredith's.
For sale by Hall L. Davis"
A TREATISE ON MErEoRoLoaY, with az Col
lectlon OF Meteorological TSoIs5. By Elias
LoOmis, LII. d. New York: Harper &
Brothers. 8 vo. PIP. 311.
Three hundred pages, all about the weather
which is an apt topic for brief conversation
but rather tedious TOR a treatise. Prof Loomis
has treated his subject after the scientific
method, registering simply the facss and the
ories which mark the present stage of investi-
cation, and briefly describing the instruments
now in use. 1t is fair to say that in this at
tempt he has succeeded admirably His book
is as full of facts as Mr.. Gradgrind's memory,
and we observe with great satisfaction that
the remarkable display of shooting stars at
Greenwich on the 14th of November, 1856, is
faithfully recorded. As this was one of the
few instances in which the newspaper report
er was right and the saUdnt wrong, we take
pleasure in reminding readers that the Green
wich exhibition was described next morning
in special dispatch by ocean telegraph to the
New York Herald and pronounced impossible
by Prof Loomis in letter printed in the New
York Post o day later. The next steamer, it
will be remembered, confirmed the Herald's
report. As we were saying, Professor Loomis
has gathered into his volume all the most i'm
portant results of recent researches, and has
thus rendered real service to all inquirers
who want facts merely. 1t is a work hitherto
uninterrupted well worth doing, and we'll DONE
1t is questionable, nevertheless, whether the
historical method may not be better adapted to
the present state of the science; whether
there is not still room for a work on this SUBJ
ject, which tracing lightly the progress and
methods and results of investigation in the
various departments of meteorolegy, shall
have human as well as a scientific interest,
and point more clearly to the 'se1us of the
difficult problems still to be solved
For sale by Hall L. Davis.