The Portland daily press., 1873-06-07
TERMS SIS. 90 PER ANNUM IN .nv,yCU
against Fire. Nv "a.

Bird.
This is an exceedingly practica, vol,,,n.
which should be read by everyone The an.
thor has devoted much attention and tbopeb,
to 'he subject OF fires, their causes and tba
management of theu. Having taken for b;s
motto the good old proverb that Gan o,noo
OF prevention is worth pound of cure.r
MI. Bird gives many valuable hints as n
necessary precautions and the various simple
means by which fire may be prevented from
spreading. In particular he urges the use of
safety elevators 10 warehouses, as greatly les
sening the danger of fire; and without con-
demnlnS the Mansard roof, warns builde.s of
the inevitable dangers which must result
from using such light and combustible mate-
iials in their construction. He stronclv nd.
vises that preparations against fire be made
in every building, such as small eneipes
buckets, hatchets, etc. The perusal of this
book cannot fail to be useful to every one.
and should have wide circulation.
Published by Hurd g. Houghton, New
York. For sale by Loring, Short & Har-
mon.
thor of"Tke viliege ON the CIiG.o
Few novelists have the power OF expression,
the delicate touch, the exquisite refinement
ane depth of feeling, that Miss Thackeray
possesses in so great degree. To read "Old
Kepsington" is like walking in a sunny old
garden, sweet with mingled, undefinable per-
fumes of old-fashioned flowers with quaint
names, where birds call to each other from
the gray boughs OF mossy peartrees, and
thought Is dream. 1t is novel thoroughly
human in its interest; and in the de!ineation
OF character, Miss Thackeray displays finest
instinct and original conception. The story
goes on quietly, never, for a page,
lacking interest, and when at length
we come to the happy ending of the
romance, We lay the book down with regret
that we must part with people whose story
we have followed with so much sympathy.
want oil space, and indeed the difficulty of
selecting passages among so mapy exquisite
bits of word painting-preyent orr making
extracts from this charming book. So we
must Re content to advise our readers in Sc
lecting volumes for seaside or mountain read
ing, in the approaching summer vacation, by
no means to overlook "Old Ksnsington."
Published by Harper Bros, New York.
For sale by Loring, Short and Harmon.
Chance Acquaintance. w. ID. HoweiIs.
Mr.. Howells is undoubtedly one of the
most genuine, genial and elegant of Ameri-
can writers. His style is always bright,
graceful and finished; while his descriptive
power and an unfaing fund of refined
humor form rare combination. ga Chance
Acquaintance" is the story of the adventures
of the Ellisons, husband, wife and sister
whom the many readers of Mr.. Howelrs
previous book, "Their Wedding Journey, will
recognize at once as old friends of whom it is
pleasant to see more. While on the way to
Quebec, they encounter Bostonian, Mr.. Ar
buton---a type of those elevated and Disagree
able tr..its which equally are the pride of some
ofthe jeunesse doree of the modern Athens OF
course with charming naire and warm-heart-
ed heroine like Kitty Ellison, even the disad-
vantage ofsuch an uncompromisiDg hero could
not prevent the author from building ro-
nance from his materials. To those
readers who may be little disap-
pointed at the rather abrupt ter
termination of the story-we would suggest,
as word of comfort, that we are sure Mr..
Howells will not leave things at loose ends,
but will gather up the threads of his story in
future volume; which, like ''Their Wedding
Journey" and "a Chance Acquaintance
shall be a delightful mixture of guidebook
and novel, The book, red-edged and daintily
bound, is published by Messrs. j. R. Osgood
and Co.
For sale by Loring, Short and Harmon.
Ready Money Moriiboy.
A novel of English life, quite powerfully
written in a bright and easy stye. The au-
thor is evidently an admirer of Dickens; but
is by no means mere copyist, and has sue
ceeded in writing very entertaining novel
which gives evidence of humor. keen obser-
vation and genuine feeling. Published by
]. r. Osgood and Co. For sale by Bailey
and Noyes.
From Messrs. Harper Bros, we have re-
ceived a copy of ''Bleak House." which forms
one of the volumes of their Household edi-
tion of Dickens. Its clear type, careful and
| spirited Illustrations and unexceptionable me-
chanical execution render this edition of
Dickens novels very attractive one. For
sale by Loring. Short and Harmon
Murph,'s Master, BY james Payn. An
thor of"Carlyons Years "CeciIs Tryst,
etc etc.
A novel of Irish life, very well written, in
an original and vigorous style. 1t belongs to
that class of fiction distinctively intended to
delineate Irish character; and that of Muir
ply, the real hero of the book is very wildly
drawn and lifelike. The wild wit, the faith
fulness which attaches him for life and death
to ''Master Frank" the contradictory trait,
OF this strange nature, form a strong and
unique sketch. In brief-ths is novel aside
from and beyond the ordinary.
Published by Harpe, Bros. New York.
For sale by Loring Short & Harmon.