New-York tribune., 1885-03-27
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

hoolr sThe English Goveruess at the o'""o'o
Court.p has given us in the present Volume some
thing more than its ttle-page promises. Inc shsn'
narrative of travel is a framework upon which sio
has exhibited great variety or lntorh"'""
respecting tho history. scenery, archteeture' ANU
opit,es. races religions and customs OF part oi
India-more particularly OF Hindostan proper
which she visited many years ago. Inc rosu'U - "
entirely unsystcmatc MISCELLANY, wn0" 'ho '
fishers have thrown at us wltEoue eiIher an 'n
or even a tabe of cOntents--an on'hco Ae'''''' VIZ
art of Matchmaking of which no sei-respooVins
house ought to DO capable; ana the ulsoruo' "
acyrayated by the fact that Mrs. Leonowens studi-
onsly ignores the date of her random ooserVa'ona'
30 that beyond the circumstance that they "o NV ~
rocent wa do not know to what period Ia tiio
,nodern devolopment of India theY refer. iho
sociol condition of the great Empire has oeen 81
much affected by British rule. ana presents 30 many
nrobloms that this lack of precision must DO Gull
sidered a serious blemish
With all its defects however the book mas deciueu
merits. Mrs Leonowens was not q nero tourist
travelIer She married and spent many years IN
India. and had opportunities not only OF seeing
Apg,o-Indian life but-of examining the domestic
rtarors of the better class OF Hndo6s and FORMING
i,timacies with Hindoo women. The freshest ana
most valuable of her recollcctons relate Uo teSo
orceptioual advantages z and some OF her nohio
scepes are remarkably vivid ana strlkiuR. o'n''
traveller, haye described tho penetralia OF Indian
bousehods but their visits have usually haa too
much the air of ceremony and SNOW WHO MT"
Ieonoweos seems to have been received on az more
friendly and satsfa Ctory footing. Probably sno
bro,gbt away rather more favorable impression
of .Hindoo morality and manners than 1.-The iacts
uarrant Int most realers will know how to make
allowance for natural prepossossoas' Among 'n0
most successful passages in the booR We may "o'o
the narrative of a visit to old Parsee priest ana
astrologer IN Bombay, u brilliant description oi
Parsee wedding. the story OF how Mrs' Leono"en'
made trouble by chautably going TO see SIGN
pundit and an admirable account of festival anu
dramatic performance in the house OF q rch hlnuoo
ocntleman of Bombay. nautch dance was one
of the features of this gorgeous entertainment ana
Mrs Leonowens was so much interested III IL InaU
she afterward visited the establishment III which
the nautch girls lived and were taught their art'
Here she found over hundred young girls VINO
were leased for of years to the propretors oi
the business Ia man and hs.wlfe lodged I'D dormi-
torres and trained in gymnasium by corps Vi
female instructors.
THE EVOLUTION OF DoDD." in his Struggle for the
survival OF the Flttest in Himself BY wLLLiAa
HAwLRY SMITH. 16mo. Fp. lo3 d. LothIOp
nrhis is story for schoolteachers, showing how
bow of wnak but wilful. nature. with a POSITIVE
inclination toward evil courses, was brought TO tne
edgc of ruin by incompetent instructors and lnally
s,ved through the influence of one good master III
is written with vigor and smartness, and exposes
several of tho weakest points IN our system OF
pubc education, such as the employment OF oau
teachers the rigid application of machine-methous'
and the assumption that boys and girls can DO
trained by books without the development OF clar-
acter The critical portions of the tale, however,
are more valuable than the constructive portions
The successful teacher Mr.. Bright, is man of tact
encounters
rebeDious Dodd gare we'll told but it must be
confessed that his influence over his pupil is IN
suifolently described and the "evolntion OF
'Dodd'" remains after all unaccounted for
PILOT FORTUNE BY MAFS 1S e oIsOiSn m REEyfs Mn pG
EMILY READ. 16mo. pp. 34o. hougnIon' NhiihH ~
The meaning of the title of this novel is explained
Inv the motto from Shakespeare. "Fortune brings
in some boats that are not kteered !" and IN more
than one respect it is well chosen. For mere Is
storv IN which good and bad Things seem TO happen
law chance. in which people do not make their
destinies. but suaer what they have not deserved
and enjoy what they have not earned We may as
well confess that arc glad OF IT. One does get
tired of novels with a moral. and long for a mere
story in which the evolution OF fate is as mysterious
as il is apt to be in life. Pilot Fortune moreover
is tale of the coast and the sea- and salty title
bedts it. The scene issIaid principally on small
exclusively by fshcrfok. and every page is scented
nv the brnv spray and shaken by the ocean breath.
We cau1 recall few recent. novels which are so
thoronnhly and delightfully."- filed with ithe spirit OF
anecnliar locality and the essential character OF
a ueculiar population. Herein 1t VIII at once
suggest comparison with another successful Amer
ican noyel-which however, it does not in the least
resemble-we meanj MissIH Howards HGuenn" The
dissertations of scenery the aspects of storm and
sunshine of windy cliff. and rock-enciosed shlnge,
md resoundng shore, the narratives OF marine
adventure and Of danger on the midnight sea, are
wonderfully fresh and vivid and the whole BOOK,
while ID is never overstralned. Is written VIVID an
animation and n gusto which cannot but affect the
reader. The story has element Of mystery and
surprse which takes the place of elaborate. plot
and il is by no means lacking in stirring incident;
one scene that of the sensational meeting which
brings events to their crisis, is managed with con-
adorable dramatic art. The interest OF the story,
however lies principally the deineation OF the
character of piquante heroine and III contrast OF
conduct between a pair of lovers-a Fascinating
yachtsrnan amiable enough in easy weather, but
without the dbre for an emergency, and selt-con-
tanned islander iOf heavenly constancy and
penerosity 1t must be admitted that MIiy belongs
10 somewhat too common type OF novel-grl, winch
,one but female novcsts ever draw, and none but
women we suspect. over admire; admire IN books
for women would not put up with them in real life
She is beautiful and good, but she is petulant
wilful. dissatisfied, unreasonable. and saucy Her
behavior is extremely bad-so bad that charming as
she ,s one finds 1t impossible to make excuses for
her. vet she does win our .sympathes. and We feel
that Pilot Fortune has only done the right thing
when her boat comes safely in. There are some
improbabiities in the story, which almost reach tie
level of the impossble but In spite OF these and