The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-04-26
New Books.

The DAISY CHAIN; OR ASPIRATIONS. A Family
Chronicle. By Miss Yonge. New York: D.
Appleton. & Co. 1871.
A new and handsome edition OF this we'll
known novel appears in good time. The
public are so surfeited with s'blood-and-
%.'thunder'' stories that they will welcome
gladly "a family chronicle which is healthy
in tone without being goody, and deeply in
teresting without being sensational. For
young persons, (not children, } it is a charm
ing book, and the author needednot to apol-
osize for its length. Miss Yonge's endeavor
is to trace the effect Of those aspirations
which are a part Of every youthful nature,
andte cause the young to think whether their
hopes and upward breathings are truly up
wards and founded in holiness. This may
be called the moral Of this simple and at
~tractive tale.
For sale by John Russell, King street.
MUSINGS OVER THE sCHRIsrIAN YEAR. AND
.iLYRA INNoCENT1uM." By Charlotte Mary
Recollections OF the Rev. John Keble, gath
cred by several friends. New York: D. APP
pleton & Co. 1871.
This book, written by the authoress OF
1.-THE Heir of Radcliffe" is an elaborate tri-
bule to one OF the best and meekest Of men,
the Rev. John Keble, known in religio-lite-
rary circles as the author of the "Christian
"Year;" and is creditable to the afectionste
heart of Miss Yonge. 1t will interest only
such readers, however, as have become
familiar with Keble's hymns, and share Miss
Yonge's affection for the author, for the
book is made up Of "reminiscences OF Mr..
Keble, and reflections suggested by the
hymns in the "Christian Year."
For sale by John Russell, King street.
On THE GENESIS OF SPECIES. By st. George
Mlvart, F. 3. s. New York: D. Appleton d
Co.
This book is probably the most interest
ing and philosophical of the t~reatises which
have been called forth by the discussion in
the scientific world Of the Darwinian theory
of Natural Selection. Mr.. Miyart is him
self a scientific man OF repute, but ne does
not assume to compete with Mr.. Darwin as
an observer or as an original student OF the
facts OF his science; but takes these chiefly
from Mr. Darwin's own works. As o rea-
soner in this field Mr.. Mivart certainly shows
unusual skill; and while he is a ready disci-
pie of Darwin in many OF his principles, he
shows strong reasons for modifying some OF
the theories recently put forward by that
naturalist. BE accepts the principle Of natu-
ral selection as one of the important agencies
in the development OF the organic world; but
he does not believe it to be exclusive in its
operation. Holding that all species OF living
things have been produced from other forms,
he insists that some innate force, tending
always to vary in directions determined
always by itself, and not by external circum-
stances, has acted in 'leaps," or sudden
and wide deviations from hereditary types,
to produce new species. This view, so much
harder for the ordinary mind to accept even
than Mr.. Darwin's theory, is sustained by
him with a mass of arguments quite sufi-
'cient to require close thought Of the most
resolute Darwinian. The indications in sci
entifc quarters now are that the theory of
natural selection, which for a time promised
to make ardent disciples OF the whole world
OF naturalists, is likely to be- accepted only
as a partial solution Of the great problem
and as a stepping stone to the discovery OF
a law Of development, rather than as the
final statement of the law itself.