The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-09-29
An Index 20 AppIetons Cyciopwdia.


An Index to AppIetons Cycioprdia.
At first sight encyclopaedia, with Its al
phabetical arrangement. might seem OF all
books to least require n table of contents. Yet
the necessity OF an index is plain enough to
those who are in the habit OF using such
work. 1t is safe 10 say that the majority OF mi
nor data collected must be sought under gem
eral heads. and that a more specific distribu-
ton OF details could not be attained without
preposterous dstcnsion Of volume. Take. for
instance. some mprehensive article on Russian
or Polish or Czech or Provencal literature or the
account Of some invention OF age-long growth.
ike the use Of types or the steam engine, and
should we not expect TO find incidentally men,
toned II hundred individuals and multitude
of subordinate facts which could not with any
reasonable regard to space and cost. be sepa-
rately treated2 Here we touch practical de-
feet inscparable from tho best Encyclopaedia. be-
cause inherent IN the conditions Of its econ
omy. The want can never be fully met. but it
may be measurably answered by n judiciously
planned and patiently executed index. This
adjunct DR.. T. j. CoNANT. assisted by his daugh-
tor. Miss BLANDfHA CoNANT. have undertaken
to supply for "Appletons' American Cylopm-
dia." in n large octave volume Of eight hun
drcd and ten pages.
1t may be proper TO define what Is meant by a
judiciously planned index. OF course 1t cannot
hope to be exhaustive. for such nm aim would
70 far TO swell u merely anclary performance
to the proportions Of the principal work. At
the same time the quantity OF matter winnowed
from collective expositions and rccassined
under particular heads must be very considera-
bic. otherwise the book fails to offer mn ade-
quatc reason for It's existence Now what nice
H..
called for in this business of analysis and solec-
ton How Is It possible without something
like a mastery Of "A broad or intricate theme. to
distinguish which Of It's aspects may ftly re-
ceivo the emphasis of special indication-which
actors or agencies may be passed over. and
which. on the other hand. will challenge curl
osity and deserve TO arrest attention. 1t would
be cnsy. indeed. TO name scores Of topics as to
which the function OF indcxing could not be
performed TO the thorough satisfaction OF ex-
peris without an experts acquaintance with
the subject annyzed. No index probably. was
ever made which did not dlsappoint specialists
in one direction or anothor-wherein matters
were not omitted which student might esteem
OF capital moment. while some data inserted
might in his Judgment be OF quite secondary
import.
Perhaps wo are only justified in asking that
the index makers to such work as a cyclic
pRdia shall satisfy. not tho cxacting requisi-
tons Of the specialist. but the moderate de-
mands OF the general reader. possessing n
tolerably comprehensive though not profound
culture. This task. which OF itself Ia delicate
and onerous enough. has been accomplished
with creditnbie measure OF success by Dr.
Congnt and his daughter. No doubt we can
best exempiiy the kind of merit we have
sought AMI usually found in this performance
by citing here and there certain omissions
which seem 60 Ms Deficiencies. promising that
such dsappointments have been by no means
frequent in a somewhat extended examination
OF the volume.
Let us glance. for instance ut n subject which
OF late years hns been invested with much in
tercst. and which. II We may Judge from recent
kilograms. is likely 10 keep It's hold on the pub
lie mind W. mean the modern and so 10 speak
CONTEMPORARY history " central Asia. We scnn
this index in vain for the names Of Mozafrar
Eddin. the Amir OF Bukhara; Of Shir Ali. Amir
Of Cabul. tho most powerful OF Moslem sover-
eiGns next to the Ottoman sultan; Of the late
remarkable givcniurcr. Yacub Khan who
reared u transient throne in kashgar or Of that
extraordinary Moslcm fanatic and reformcr
the late Akhund 81 Swat. who was for many
years the Pope or Caliph OF the Hindoo frontier
There is no reference TO some OF the Turkish
statesmen who have most distinguished them
selves during tie last quarter of a ceniury-for
example. 20 Al Pasha. the organizer Of Crete to
Midhlt Pasha o. tho Armenian. Nubar Pasha
Pass n to Italian politics we lind Minchetti
meni oned. hut we miss the more eminent
names 81 Depreiis and Carroll. and in
Italian literature So conspicuous n name as
Angelo di Gubernatis is lacking. Among con-
temporary French men Of letters we do not see
ha vai liz orift I,au
Taillnnder or the publisher Buloz founder OF
the Recue des Dr'H .Mondes or Aphonse Dau-
Diet. quite generally esteemed the most promis-
ins Of the later French novelsts. or Andre
Thcuriet. who ranks not far below him. Nor
is II easy TO understand why Garhorau should
figure IN these pages and not Bdldt-why Gus
tave Droz but not Emile lola. We observe. too,
some omissions in the gallery OF French poets.
past and present. such MS Vllon and Baude-
iairc, which are hard to reconcile with the nd
mission Of certain others. Ii is strange alao
10 find such an author as Sacher- Masoch NIB
sent while Miss Muhbach is present in tho
roll Of German romance writer's. And we
confess ourselves equally incapable Of guess
ing why William Black and Thomas Hardy
should he PASSED over when other English
novclists Of inferior standing. whose reputa-
ton, moreover, is Of no earlier dato. are here
principle Of selection is oven less Ineligible.
Gogol. the novelist finds place. but not the poet
Nrhrnsof, and, what is moro extraor binary.
both Tourcenc1 and Tolstoy are overlooked
We may add that the so-callcd Socialist Reform
ers OF Germany who are commanding lust now
SO large a share OF public attention receive
very slight notice from DR.. Conant. Karl Marx
is mentioned but not Prof Winkelblech. so
widely known by his writings under the sigma
ture OF Mario. or Jagetzow. oX-Mnister OF
Agriculture perhaps the most distinguished ex
FOUNDER of tho new economy" or Lassalle. its
most efficient proRagandist. or Schultz Del
iisch. tho apostle Of the German cooperative
movement. Finally. we note the non-appenr-
nnce In these pages OF such travellers as Pre-
walsky aud Rchthofen.
Now II is possible that some Of the names
cited do not occur in the ENCYCLOPAEDIA to which
this index is an adjunct. but wo can youch that
very many Of them can be discovered under mr.
tlcles with whichthe careers or achievements of
those personsare naturally associated. Their alb
scnce. therefore. in DR.. Conants companion
book may be accounted defect. without i'm
mol inn flta hf.,h