The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1877-12-12
RECENT PUBLICATIONS.


volumes, were the regulation presents on Christ
mas or New Year. where book was the proper
thing to be given. The ''get up" of these ANIMALS
was of the most expensive kind. They were filled
with costly engravings the text was furnished by
the best known literary people, and the bindings
were brave with Russia-eather and gilt. They
we're the mere toys of the holidays, however rich
and elegant, and we're not expected to be of much
more permanent interest than Christmas plum
cake To them succeeded Books of Beauty and
Foaoers of loneliness and such like ephemerG,
with the names of foe ladies and distinguished
poets on their ttle-pages, to help them to success
Their day also passed then came the handsomely
bound Wordsworth, or Scott, or Byron, or Camp
bell, as the holiday gift from friend to another.
But within short period, better system still
has been iuaugurated We have now as gift books,
the illustrated single poem of some well-knowr
author, as Coerdge's Ancient Mariner and Whit
tiers Sno,o Bound, and Longfellow's Ringing Of
the Crane or some fine prose classic OF me Ian
guage, as Hyperion, and Rip Van WtHhte. a00
Back Log Studies, presented with ali the fiscl
nation that the best mechanical settingforth car
give them. This is vast Improvement 10 every
way. Due honor is done to works Of rea! genius,
whose interest is in no wise dependent upon the
accessories of rich binding and beautiful pictorial
illustration and yet which are capable OF being EN-
phasized by all the art of the printer.
| This years Holiday Book which heads the Us
goods list, is HawthorDe's weird and wondrou'
romance The Scarlet Letter-the one piece Of
writing which does more credit to American liers-
ture simply as piece of very perfect art, than
any other book ever written this side of the water.
It affords five tragic situations most suitable for
the pencil; and their spirit has been admirably
caught by the artist, Mary Hallock-or as she has
become since she soVery admirably illustrated last
year, The Skeleton IN ArnaOr-Mrs Foote. Moth.
ing better than thst-pothing as good, ever came
from an American pencil In the book before US.
We have the same foe. appreciative handling.-
The pictures are very numerous, and as specimens
of wood engraving, they certainly do the greatest
credit to both designer and engrsver to both Mrs.
Foote and Mr.. Anthony. 1t is wonderful how this
artist can be so effective in her renderngs of the
human face in its contrasts-youth and age Her
Virgins of the Church in this book-how fresh and
round their curves How clear their wide-opep
eyes And the Procession of the old magistrates
what wrinkled and care-worn and sombre WIS.,
ages Beautifully is Little Pearl made to stand
out before US in the quaint garmenture of the Pur.
itan day and the anguish is never off Mr. Dim
mesdale's countenance. Here and there picture
fails somewhat, as the group of three upon the
scsffold at midnight but as a general thing, the
spirit of each scene is wonderfully caught. The
head and tail pieces and the initial lettering would
have set an old moukish ScriptoriuS half crazy,
| could he have dreamed of such, as he sat in his
coister, Illuminating his Misssls The paper is of
that ivory tint aud thickness and smoothDess so
pleasant to eye and touch; and the binding is OF
various styles of luxury. We have been special in
our enumeration OF the points OF this holiday book,
because of their exceptional worth and richness.
GL1IPsEs OF THE Coming. By Richard Gleason
Greene, Minister Of Trinity church, Orange New
Jersey A. d. L. Randolph Co., New York.
This is striking and very suggestive little vol
ume upon The Second Adveat But it deals with
the difficult question in way quite different from
what we might expect, for when writer chooses
this theme, it is almost foregone conclusion that
he advocates the generally received theory of TIE
Second Adventists, of speedy personal coming OF
toe Son of Man Mr.. Greene avows it as his in
tention in setting out upon this discussion, to be
guided solely by the Word of God. He desires to
advance no hypothesis of his OWL; but he does aim
to show that the life of God was personal in His
Son, and that through all the succession Of the
ages, Christ has been looked to as I" The Coming
One" He came at His incarnation His kingdom
has been set up: it is coming more and more it is
being daily administered wherever the Holy Spirit
is working in men hearts, BUTT Is not visible to
mortal eyes: the personal Coming has not material
manifestations the final Advent is only the con-
summated presence OF the Son operating upon all
humanity, and so resulting in the Latter Day glory
he lays much stress upon the declaration that
Christ going forth is prepared as the morning
the approach Of which is so gradual that it
may be said to begin to 20 forth at midnight
He heaps up passages OF Scripture to show that the
time is carefully kept hidden-is declared to be
unknown" He notes certain great epoch" Of
the final Coming-as, a MLleaium--a Resurrection
The Apostacy-the Judgment-the RecOmpeaSe
He has strange idea about a continuous resurrec
tion-that it has been and is now going on and
instances the risngs from the dead OF the saints at
the Cruci6xion. In his Second Part, the author
treats the Millenisl Coming and the Coming at the
fua Judgment. He eects the literal 1000 years
and considers the period simply as an sOa of his
tory. He says in spiritual sense, this @)n may
have begun on the day of Pentecost, and he de-
precates the charity modern Christians have for the
mistake of the Apostles and early believers about
the Advent as being immediate, and condemns the
rafting wisdom that would measure God s
&c ms smartly on the disls OF our patent clocks.
He thinks Chrst's reign cannot be what zoe mean
by personal one, inssmuch as flesh and blood cam
not be cognizaut of spirit, aud unless mortas were
indued with spiritual vision, they could not be said
to be aware of Christs person
We cannot follow out Mr.. Greene'S theories in
regard to the Resurrection: Some of them are GER
taiuly rather original. As we have said, the book
is very suggestive, full of out-cf the-way thought,
and yet more eminently reverent. The impression
it leaves on the mind of the reader is eevating and
very solemn, however much we may differ from the
author in his conclusions. NJ j. Z.
COOP HOLIDAY Books FOR CHILDREN. Ely
son & Ysncey, successors to j. T. Ellyson, Of this
city, Wholesale Booksellers and Stationers, HIP