The Portland daily press., 1873-12-13
TERMS $500 PER ANNUMIN ADVANCE.

hVed IN tne same house, and glimpse of the
home OIL wordsworth, where she snept some
time with her father who was a fr;end or tho
poet She admired Wordsworth,. roa,r,.
she almost adored her fathers nb;,oso,h,
and she loved Southey, who guided her stud.
les, giving her the use of his library, and the
aid and encouragement which she needed In
the pursuit of knowledge, as being the best
man che had ever known. With the natural
greatness of her intellectual powers, strength.
ened by intercourse with such minds as
Coleridge, Southey and Wordsworth, what
wonder that she should become marvel of
Intellectual achievements, subtle and power
ful in metaphysics and radiant in spirituality.
She only escaped great fame by her extreme
modesty, hardly considering herself woman
OF letters, as she said. Her letters are enjoy
able in the extreme, abounding in brilliant
discussions on art and poetry, philosophical
speculations upon religion, and literary crid-
cisms OF varied character. The book may
not contain the elerents of popularity, but
will be fascinating to appreciative readers
1t is adorned with beautiful steel portrait,
and bemished by a very ugly one which
must be from picture made when long necks
were in favor, and which is made positively
hideous by the elongation which the artist
gives tins feature.
Published by Harper Bros, N. Y. For
sale by Loring, Short & Harmon.
Miss Tbtstledown, by Sophie May.
How many eyes will shine, when Miss This
rledown FIyaway mods from the boaghs OF
the Christmas Tree. "Brother Hols' is
with hcr-a boy after our own hearts; frank
brave, and perfect slave to "Topknot," as
who indeed would not be? Here are Grace
and Lucy and Prudy and Dotty Dimple, all
fresh and sweet; sometimes good and-ah,
what piry!-often naughty, but always real
flesh and blood children. As for ''rhe Polly
woman" two wonderful things come of her.
One Is new-why we almost told, and that
would have spoilt everything. Wait few
days, little folk, and you shall find out the Sc
cret. Thank you, kind Sophie May, tor send
ing this new gem of a book, and right Merry
Christmas to you, from every one of us.
Boston Lee and Shepard. Portland, Lor-
ing Short and Harmon.
The Arena aud the Throne. ny j..
Townsend, -. ID.
According to preface and contents litera-
ry ''Topsy:' q" Wood
The subjects herein discussed were first
treated with no thought of publication. They
grew into their present shape while the au-
thor was engaged in professional duties in
the pulpit and lecture-room. One day they
formed voluntary relationship, looked like
book, were presented to the publishers, and
| accepted.
A perusal OF the book confirms this ac-
count of its genesis; it is a book made up
OF disconnected material forced by the book
making necessity into volume. That is
the book that ''grows." When the students'
commonplace boo. is well filed, it "looks
like book;' or on his study table, heaped
with disorderly mass of papers, the preach
er and lecturer may notice lone day. that
some OF his lectures are in juxtaposition with
some OF his sermons; that is, they ''fall into
voluntary relat 'onship." The book into which
enters no designing plans or unifying though,
but is merely an aggregation of notes, with
paraphrase and comment, or a collation. of
lectures aud sermons, may, indeed be said to
have grown, but all of book there is about 1t
is, in absence of the creative purpose, due to
the printing and binding product of the
mandatory.
1t is no disparagement to this book 10 lnti-
mate that it came into existence in this way,
for some OF our best books, notably those by
Emerson, are subject to the same imputation.
On the contrary, it is a work which to con-
siderable class of readers, indeed, to nearly
all, will be interesting and instructive. Our
author is clearly not of the first rank; but
Mischief disqualification for the highest hon
ors-his giving way to ad captandum rhet-
oric and argument-will give him sufficient
title to popular acceptance and applause.
His work will undoubtedly be generally read,
and, generally, with both pleasure aud profit,
Published by Lee & Shepard. For sale by
Bailey & Noyes. A