Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-01-31
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

& Bros, New York, and is for sale by A. L.
Bancroft & Co., San Francisco. There are
delightful essays on the Method of Folk
lore, the Curiosities and Genesis of Legend
and Myth, the Marvels of Hindoo My
theology, the Doctrines of Strange Beliefs,
on Fetichism, the Art of Savages, Star
Myths, etc. A more interesting volume
has not recently appeared. While engaged
in the study of Greek and Indian and
savage mythologies. the author became i'm
pressed with a sense of the inadequacy of
the prevalent method of comparative my
tholocy. This method is based on the be-
lief that myths are the result of a disease
OF language, as the pearl is the result of
disease of the oyster 1t is argued, says
Professor Lang that men at some period, or
periods, spoke in singular style Of colored
and concrete language, and that their chill
dren retained the phrases of this language
after losing hold OF the original mean
ing. The consequence was the
growth of myths about supposed
persons, whose names had originally been
mere appellations In conformity with
this hypothesis the method of comparative
mythology examines the proper names
which occur in myths in the search for
KEY to the meaning of the story To ex-
pose the objections to this theory and point
out the true methods of analysis is the
task Professor Lang has undertaken and
has accomplished completely. More than
this we cannot now well say, since 10 state
in Just fullness his methods of pathological
inquiry and his system of fathoming myths
and legends would not be possible in the
limited space at command.
Marvin Crawfords latest work is entitled
''An American Politician II is from the
press of Houghton, Mitiiin 4 Co.. Boston.
and is for sale by c. 8 HouEhton. Sscra-
mento, NJ 81 %. Crawford's . Roman Sing
err . Mr.. lsaacs" and - DR.. Claudius.
were successes and brought the author into
sudden and deserved prominence. In the
present work he displays the same cunning
of hand and the same art of reading and
reproducing character. But it is not a
work of such finish as any one of its pre-
decessors. 1t is full of passages of yiger,
but they are made so by very coarse brush
marks. OF course the subject demanded a
treatment that naturally would present
rough touches. But even these should be
put in with care, which Mr.. Crawford does
not seem to have bestowed on this work TO
the same extent that was so patent in his
earlier works So far as the political ideas
expressed are concerned, and political
plotting and s0liloquiZing are involved, the
work does not command the respect OF
those who have at all considered politics rs
a science or government as the possibility
of being the highest EXPRESSION of human
wisdom. Mr.. Crawford evidently needs
broader exnerience in noIiticaI life and
deeper reading in political economy to
qualify him as Il critic.
The popular Science Monthly" for
February ~ ApnIeton & Go New YorLl
is notably rich IN naners addressed 70 The
hast tastc and higbnst culture yet tbara
is rot an article in the number fiat viii
NOT interest and may not he read With
clear nnderstandina nv fh"se of the ve,.z,
Tn1itod edncat:onai ON; .or.,,n;ties Ano,,!,
The chief naners we inytn '- atten-inn t.
fbese {. The Iigbt and Wra-inr of Railway
FmnIoves " hy Wn, Tbn,nm s. y .ttC al
rnIating Machines Inv N Fdonorj rnc,. .
,.Tha I ar',ar In,nnrt of criantifc FG,,co'
tion " Nv W Powell. " Fyointion and
Dc1tip, of Nf.n NV w ' = SI,o "'r!
..5n},,i,nr and liz TvtraI.t;nr ;, Nv T. e.
lyar9ford tnrl, {. phIIiraI rrai5;nr ~
(,;rls" h. M N If,ii n n =. ;. FIJI
=: So.
II p Arnsbv. ..I,hoinrs its Hama ana
It's Travels" by DR.. Naxton Pettenkofer
" The Chemistry Of Cookery by ". Mat
tieu Williams SicE-rates ana Death
rates, by CT. T. Campbell. NJ. d.: Prop
critics and Constitution of Sea-water. by
NJ. Antoine de Saporta. Whv Birds SIM .
by Dr.. b. Plaezek Sketch of Sir David
Brewster"
Tlo :. 0,.e,lo,,d ATortI,1..,. for ro1,,.,or,,
lsa,1 rrsl,, ,''t - 49,, go.
an ,+tr;,-, t.1.I
ta,,t. I'D 10 i,,';i, ti,
and cJiIoriaI no,a +nsa iead;n ,r .'@
,,.lI.tbl' nf ,,ntico .,,rbo 10. ~ -
So,th' AI,,nrin, ~. ~ r,irl,,i,i,l
:. Vintnr pinfnros ~, W,.5E f:ra,,t e. h.,
Tiiian n Gh1er :. Fi.b-natsin6 iinc;a,s
by Edward R3berts: Tie Bells Of San
Tavirr Del Rae : Nv Ciiptnn Scoi1a ~.
RI 90 r. i' az ri!a,o'i ,''i bare,
sound - hyS CIarte ,Tbo o.,
New Trials > bv r r McFarIand of tbe
Superior Court. Sacramento: business
and The BaXtons;" - Early Presbyteriau-
ism in California; by Albert Williams
Indian Education Applied to the San
Carlos Reservation" by Francis +. A. Darr;
Two Sonnets of Lost Love" by Milcent
WaShburn Shinn How Shall We Fdu-
cate Our Bows :" a Roman Festival"
by Nav l.. Cheney.
Tho "A+lantic Monthly, for Fohr,o,.,-
CHmobtnn Mitfiin 4. Co Roston( is nno;,
orr tahIr and is = verv inferestinr, nn,,1bber
Among the leading naners are "A Marsh
IsIand' Inv sarah 6rne Iewatt Iseriai
story s.yV;ntar Rirds ahort RoSto1 ;, i,--
Bradford Tnrrav . MADAME Mobi' hoy
salon and her Friends" bv Katb1aaI,
O'Meara "A Sbeaf of Sonnets > fEIIen
Terrv's Beatrice The Resolve On first
Reading Lando.'s Hellenics. Bacb's St
Matthew Passion Music, The Passing of
the Year, by Helen Gray Cone; THE
Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains"
by Charles Egbert Craddock The Quest
for the Grail of Ancient Art" by William
Shields Liscomb; "a Country Gentleman"
by NJ. 0. W. Oliphant; The New Port
folio" by Oliver Wendell Holmes; Ma
thaniel Hawthorne and his Wife y Z" Mr..
Parkman's Montcalm and Wolfe" and the
regular departments and reviews.
"On Land and Sea is novel by VIM.
H. Themes, illustrative of life and scenes
in 1S43, 1914 and 1915 in California and
upon the Pacific coast. 1t is from the press
OF DeWolfe, Fiske d Co., Boston. 1t is