New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-12-09
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
,,,rp ,rrD ROCKS.

NEW PUDLIOA AA~
CONF ILLUSTRATED BOOKS
cup1srMAs CAROL. BY CHARLES pl shamnsti
ls las ,ss' D Boston 81 8. T. Casspo 1887
MorrHi W.. 8 a NoRriisM New-Yok: Casscli q TO-
ESQ. w. VIZ.
ENGLAND. SCOTLAND AND IRELAND By BI0i 7; v,
d dsGs. 1,uufledse 4 Sons Ncw-York, 1887.
~,,E ERERs GALLERY With Letter Press New
1iA York: ". e. Gottsbergar. 1885
Tn the forty-three years which have passe" since
D,ckens's Christmas Carol" was ~r''0"' S
hecvms . classic in Christmas literature anu
scrooee. Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim remain !"
1870, of thousands personagrs of more reality tnan
,ost Of tho characters Of history. There ""re
a.. rrseopceived and very vivid ideas OF rea'efS
and the conceptions of artists for new iiuS'is'o'
=. .rcoun,er. The Carol has been symp"the''-
c.llv illustrated, and n new venture mns' Vi "'.
. nrroo, many cherished ideas II 1t IS 10 rep''co
the old. For these reasons this expermFn' wac
hazardous but the feeble results nee little c'"'"o
alton. We cannot thank the puOiisner ior '"''o
ducine a disturbing element into our "eu'o'
the Carol" but the sense OF irritation WIZ"
the lover OF Dickens will leave these ora"'nss WIN
be a. transient az the drawings themselves tne
unrips fruit Of the hot-house growth OF "iilns'ra
t;ous for the holidays" The spirit of the Carol
bas apprcciated tho quaintness and humor anu
ha.rtioess To which Scrooges earlier experiences
ssrve as the merest foil. Wherever 'ne n"H"'"
ION mo IL heard the name OF Cratchi' cA'' "p
vivid cicture of Mrs Cratchit's entrance with the
,xorJerfni pudding We cannot accept MT
far pepsiaips prim New. England clearinghouse
kcener as a likeness of Mrs. Cratchit flushed o"t
smiling proudly." and we know that BOB ala no'
look a. If he were sorrowfuly Calculating wne'n''
there would be enough to go around"
Mr. Cbominski's s1ccess with ghosts is not con-
sp:cuous, but we do not mean to say that tne WORN
Of either artist is unrellev eddy bad There are some
,.srv GOOD drawjpps but there are few which are
really characteristic; and the lack OF in'e'gen'
svmpathy With the subject is apparent tbrousn"uL
No one of Dickens's characters has been uowiv
dressed in Q earb which will last The original
DRAWN "a have been done IN gouache. cravon cnar-
coal and pen and ink and the reproduction OF these
,nediums lends q touch OF variety when ~ on
HANGED by the IF colored inks Inc cover VI
sape gree aud white with gold stamping molly Tree
rcliefs on white panels aud white Is DO worse t"An
the average The holiday books of the season leave
n vivid memory Of tawdry covers, unbeautiiui' In
appropriate and not durable.
Of the cominoner kind of holiday book cover
designed both to indicate the nature OF the con-
tents and to catch tho eye" upon a counter. "
Mothers Soug" is o very fair example MISS
Nortnam has executed various drawings of children
which like the landscapes are mnch prettihed'
and these arc reproduced in wood engra Slngs
There are also many head and tail pieces ana norai
designs printed in ink so very delicate IN tnt tnat
some of these minor drawings must DO taken Oh
faith Mrs. Brine's verses for children are appro-
pirate to the popular character of the book.
After q Max O'Relrs" pungent dissertations upon
English life and character we naturally entertain
some antcipstions of picturesque survey or the
three kin gdoms" by Ere 'cbman. But NJ. Whats
u n most disappointing travelling companion ex-
cent for those conscientiously bent upon "seli-m-
provement" He has laOoriously constructed
mammoth gude-book. a work !epIete With facts
and statistics, but 10y no means exhiarating ihere
is a plethora OF "useful information in this
encyclopedic voiume aud here and there the
author records some interesting observations Out
1picturesqueness" Is seldom apparent in text or
illustrations There are 600 of the latter. consist
ing of engravings and process prints and the motto
IN nearly every case has been literal expression of
definite facts. No doubt they have their use but
the less said of their pictorial quality the better,
aud we are led to infer that many OF the plates
have seen better days.
The aEbcrs Gallery" is a collection of photo
granbs Of paintings inspired by scenes in GeUrg
Tbers's romauces OF the artists represented Alma
Tadema. Laura Tadema, II. Kaultach, w. A.
Beer and T. Keller are the only ones known at all
an this country outside of those whose national
svmpathies lead them to follow German art with
especial attention 1t is unfortunate that we have
no adequate idea Of current German art, hut IL is
perfectly trae that the late Meyer Won Bremen, a
painter of sentimental domestic genres. has repre-
sented to many of us the beginning and end Of
modern art 10 Germany. This collection. however.
is not likely TO supply our deficiencies in knowl-
edge and the highly finished, sharply defued
photographs which arc similar to those shown in
some of our foreign bookstores nave the fault of
excessive exclamation. They become tresome.
Readers of Ebers will find them of some interest
for they FORM of course, an uncommonIy elaborate
series of illustrations of his works A drawing by
Alma aderna REPRODUCED here is worth attention
as study OF the nude figure. and there are several
pictures recalling not inadequatey the spendor OF
ancient Egypt But with the tendencies of our
own feeling for art the Ebers Gallery" has little
to do