New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-07-12
NEW PUBLICATIONS
RECENT NOVELS

RtyI<BA. by NtkOLA NAriIftNIith oo"Os- 4
Translated from the Russian by IsABsL F. HAPGoop
limo, Pr 2so. Thomas Y. crows'l & Co.
EFrIE oGILvIE ny MIRA oIIrHASr 12mo. PIP go
Alta. story of the Lost Island BY Mrs G. GREGORY
ssIrI. l6mo PIP 2s4 Harper u Bros.
THE STORY OF Don %Irr sy%p Sr Hss o. r 's
delpha: J. T. Lppincott TO-
THE CRUISE OF THE ALABAMA BY ONE OF TIE
CRrw. l6mo PIP l50 Houghten. Aifiiin q Co.
THE DARK CITY; OR. CUSTOMS OF THE CookNEis
BY LEANprR RICHARDSON. svo. PIP 10 boston
Doyle 4 whittlc.
THE srRANGEsr STORY EVER TOLD. By NORMAN
DUvAr- PIP. 80. Cincinnati: Woodrnh' Gaze " ~
The publisher Of Taras Bulba announces bis IN
tentor TO issue other works of Gogo whose stores
though long popular in his own country. nave h"V
hitherto been translated into English. Inc pres
ent tale is enc of old Russia and the wild los
sacks 1t is an historical romance. and introduces
Tho reader to novel sceues and conditions OF lie ii
the Cossacks are not half civilized today IN inc
,hirtecnth century they were bur few degrees re-
moved from absolute savagery. They Posses>eu"
rude and partial freedom, imagined themselves 'n
dependent. lived like all semi-savage races III
aternstions Of excess and privation, thougnt moro
of military proves than of any other attainment
despised learning with all the bitterness oil ah''u"
ism toward the spiritual and Afforded III the'r cop
tinual lawless raids and fierce contentious nioio
than enough material for the romancef' i"'"
Bulba the hero or this story, was 'ous" "iU
rough old Cossack colonel having TWO so"s WIN
had inst completed make-beileVe euuca'o"''
course at so-caIled university, where the prihcpd
stndy WAS scholastic logic the most utterly barren
and time asting rubbish ever invented ry nun an
pervcrsity and folly.
Old Taras though he had sent his boys to school,
had a profound land justifabel contempt for the
educational process through which they had gone
and IA soon as they returned home lie took them to
The Sctch. where the Cossack headquarters we're
tben found and the national assembly net. Inc
account OF life at the Setch is realistic and inter
csting Drinking and gambling were the princlpa
amusements among the fierce Cossacks there as
semblcd and when idleness began to pail on them
they Organized a raid upon the Turks or the foles'
and carried fire and sword far and wide Oogoi
has introduced touch Of psthos to his story. and
II has plenty of rude heroism; but the stage Oh
existence he has chosen to study is low one and
il is not easy TO feel much sympathy with those
born brigands the Cossacks VIII n occasionally Tue
fables arr, turned upon them and they are punished
merciles,lv by their enemies. The implication OF
the story is that the Sech was nest OF ROBBERS
and murdereIs who had not the capacity to found
settled empire, but played the part OF sort OF
Northern Bedouins. There is some power in the
book. but its novelty will attract more than It's
skill and it is not calculated to exhibit Gogols best
qualities.
"Enie Ogilvie" appears to mark a period OF
rather slack water in Mrs ELEPHANTS productive
ness Nothing that she writes is ever dull or less
than interesting but some of her works are better
than others 1t is true that the story called ior
sub ;ued treatment. The life OF young glrl III
uuiot Scotch hamlet afforded no opportunity lot
vivid coloring and it's interest must depend chiefly
upon lfelike portraitures of such odd aud unlisudi
characters as may present themselves. Oh char
acter drawing there is enough, and 1t is ioI the
most part good The Dempster sisters, ana ME-
Orlvc Eiies fussy stepmOther and the minister
are each and all excellent The exceptions are
the Diroms, the parvenu family that comes TO IN
habit the immortal hall The girls of this family
seem rather unnatural They more resemble
Developments from Du Maurlers satircs on inc
aesthetic school than studies from real life As,
moreover, they do not manifest any genuine leel-
ing for anything even when tested by great
catastrophe, their unreality is enphasized The
story is "a pleasant one but it is not finished, ana
some doubt is left as to Low it ought to hnlsE
After making every reasonable allowance too 1t is
ant to be impressed on the reader that Ellie was
difficult young oman to live with
Mrs. Gregory Smith relieves us of the necessity
of making cou>parisons between her fiction and
reality by boldly putting her story where criticism
cannot follow. She has chosen the legendary
Island of Atlantis for the scene of her drama and
in the circumstances there is nothing to hinder her
from giving free rein TO her imagination. she has
indeed followed PlatOs account in the tnGRs IN
describing the interior arrangements OF Atlantis
but for all the rest of the narrative broad license
has been used The end of Atlantis according TO
the statement made to Scion by the Egyptian priests.
was by a tremendous catacysm. prolonged and ter
Iible earthquakes eliminating in the complete sub
sidence of the island IN the According to
the Indian TheoSOphists the Atlautcans had become
at once so wise and wicked that 1t was necessary to
exterminate them. They had mastered the oc-
cult laws Of nature that they were able to WELD
her great forces for their own ends. and as their
civilization like our own was purely materallstlc
the power they thus attained was employed for
evil ends and TO the increasing danger OF the rest OF
the human family. Now story might he made on
this foundation winch would be full of interest but
IT would require another Bulwer to write it. Mrs.
Smith hos done her best, and some of her descrp
ton as IN particular that of the final catastrophe,
is really spirited But she is not sufficiently satu
rated with the occultIsm which must play leading
part in any such conception, and The result Is
comparative failure. The stOry of Atlantis yet
awaits the fitting chronlcer Mr.. DOnnelly has
prepared a plausible argument for the existence
and destruction of the island backed by the sound
ings of ii. NJ. s Challenger, and now it is in order
for some to accomplish the resurrectionary task
which Mrs. Smith has attempted with but partial
success. 1t is certainly Il fascinating subject
The story of Don Mh as told by his friend John
Pouche Whacker, is nOndescript book The
author Mr. Nirginlus Dabney, is a Sodtherner
whom the results of the war of the rebellion APP
pear to ha sc ranked and who has endeavored in
this volume TO show what mischief the North dld
in destroying the od-fashoned Southern existence,
and what noble creatures were then brought to
ruin and dsorganizatIon. Mr. Dahney has vicious
tendency to irrelevant and verbose disquisItion.
lie appears to think this witty and ingenious, but
it is very doubtful whether the average reader will
agree with him. To get at his story he has made it
necessary TO wade through an intOlerably long