The Portland daily press., 1879-08-02
SATURDAY, MORNING, AUGUST 2.

would-be dramatic crime His novels of cred
table society were exceedingly good; they were
realistic and minute to the degree of modern
French novels-with the saving difference that
they treated of honest and wholesome things. At
present the tone and style of MIR. Trollope's
work appears to be in rapid process OF deterior-
alton. 1t is not unlikely that he is trying to
write in manner not natural to him, but sug
gested by the comments of those who find his
works "slow''. If this be the case a speedy
return to his former style would be both easy
and advisable. The author of Orley Farm and
Phineas Finn has distinct place of his own
in modern fiction and should by this time I'M
derstand his power and his limits. Thackeray's
Henry Esmond is also reprinted in the Frank
lin Square Series. Still another volume is DR..
w. j. Fitzpatrick's racy. brilliant and essen
TALLY readable Life of Charles Lever.
Our Smoking Husbands, authors Publish
ing Company is the title of little paper vol
ume, at the moderate price of ten cents which
contains three NOVELTIES. These stories con-
tain much good, sound sense upon the desira-
bility OF encouraging harmless pleasures at
home. The literary merit of the book is little;
but many wife, disposed to find fault if the
scent of cigars clings to her curtains, will find
useful hints in its pages.
Messrs. Harper offer rich budget of Half
Hour volumes: Marmion; Cowpers Task; The
Lady of the Lake; and Sheridan's Rivals and
School for Scandal portland: Loring, Short
& Harmony
Conference Papers. Chas Hodge, d. ID.
New York, Chas. Scribner's Sons. Portland,
Loring, Short & Harmon. This is volume
of analysis of discourses delivered over series
of years ON Sabbath afternoons to the students
of the Theological Seminary at Princeton, N.
j. 1t was the design of the good custom insti-
tuted in the lecture course, of which these are
part, to bring the young preachers together
and away from their weekly work and to in
fuse into them specially warm and spiritual
inspiration. Whoever recalls DIR. Archibald
Alexander of Princeton and his individualiz
ing way as he seemed to take all hearts into
his hand, or Dr. Goodrich of New Haven, ap-
pealing to the youth before him, to redeem the
time, can well imagine the powerful influence
which these discourses of Dr. Hodge must
have welded, despite his comparative defcien-
cies in eloquence. OF course like all skeletons
they are somewhat dead and dry We cannot
ask of all men to be as fresh and suggestive in
their condensed utterance as were Robertson
or Martineau. But everywhere they display,
the same characteristics, as the great volumes
of the Systematic Theology Logical, di-
dactic, clear-too clear to be always sound, we
fear. There is thorough, though antiquated
'eehlriYue, the letter of the Word is swallowed
"hoie and without division, or rumination.
anu with all an unqualified assurance of pos
sesslnS the very mind of God ON all truth.
Limited, however, as the scope and reach of
such man and such a school may appear to
many, they have the very great advantage, in
addressing the preachers of our day, not only
OF the courage, but of the defnteness of their
convictions. 1t will do the rising teachers of
the coming age the greatest possible service
as they think they are pushing their victorious
legions farther and farther into our continents
to measure themselves with this old-time war
rior, and instead of flanking, to conquer few
of his solid positions. f.