The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-04-15
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

A White Umbrella in Mexico. By f. Hop
kinson Smith. Boston: Houghton, Miffiin
& Co, Portland: Loring, Short IL HARMONY
1t is seldom one sees so charming a book of
travels, of artistic impressions, as this one
Of Mr.. Smiths. We yield ourselves wholly
to the spell of his fascinating pencil as we
accept his invitation ito share with him the
cool and quiet of his white umbrella" in
Mexico. A panorama Of the picturesque
life of Mexico, the land Of sunshine and
flowers, is unrolled before us, and we
see quaint old converts and cathedrals, adobe
houses, piquant, dark-eyed senoritas, de-
lightful pictures Of the markets, and the va
ried phases Of the street life. Everywhere
is hospitality, courtesy and skindliness. The
shadows which darken the lives of this Pc
cyliar people are touched lightly. Mr.. Smith
shows us the sunny side of this enchanted
land. The illustrations are typo-gravures,
by w. Kurtz, from the authors sketches.
Passe Rose. By Arthur Sherburne Hardy.
Boston: Houghton, Mif1in & Co.. Port
land; Loring, Short & Harmony Passe Rose
is q romance, pure and simple. In no wise
an historical novel. it yet gives us glimpse
Of the Court Of Charlemagne, seen through
the hazy veil which the Imagination of the
artist Qor Prof. Hardy is an artist has
thrown over it. leaving no garish stage effects,
but merging the memorable light Of realism
into the soft changing OF mo might and star
| light and the hues of rOseate dawn. Medic
val in thought, intent and feeling, it has been
| with no modern touch that the author has
conceived and executed this exquisite work.
There is not a false note or jangling chord
in the whole enchanting harmony. 1t is in
stinct with life, with emotion, with the pur-
| est passion. Indeed no element is wanting
to make Passe Rose one of the most perfect
romances of the day to those who read it as
whole. That 1t has been cut in pieces to
fit the columns of monthly magazine is to
the loss Of those who have seen it only in
that form, and to the serious injury of the
book. One might as well tear the Venus di
Medlci limb from limb and expect us from
the fragments to judge of the beauty of the
whole statue.
Essays on God and Man; or A Philosophi-
cal Inquiry into the Principles of Religion.
By the Rev. Henry Truro Bray. M. A., B. D.,
LII. d. Pastor Of Christ Church, Bonneville,
Mo. (St. Louis: Holt Publishing Coz This
Is singular work, and remarkably compre-
hensive, not In the sense of being easily COM
pretended, but because the author takes us
'from Dan to Beersheba," as it were, and
covers-how Satisfactorily the readers of
this volume must iudge-an immense amount
Of ground. DR.. Bray feels that we are drift
ing away from old beliefs; that "the power
of the church Of the past will continue lit
tie longer to govern the opinions of women;
but over the minds of men she has lost all
influence" He does admit later ON that "a
fen supplemented men," with whom he evil
IDENTIFY classes all women Stand for your
rights, sisters y ARE still awed by her threats
and established by her promises; but" he
adds, 'the intellect OF the scorld has undoubt-
eddy lost all faith in the church of the past"
Fortunately DR.. Bray has it in his power to
make our loss good by giving us something
much better, and tells us that "a judge" (the
case ought really to be tried by jury pro-
nounces God and Man ''the Hottest. the pro-
foundest, the purest, the most beautiful work,
he ever had in his hands," The volume is
printed.partly in the English language, but
contains much French and large proportion
of Greek. Not being "up" in our Greek, we
feel quite unequal to passing decided opin-
ion upon the work as whole. The author.
however, does not suggest. but "proyes all
things. so there can be no room for argu-
ment, and evidently, as Sidney Smith said of
DR.. Whewell, Ibis foible is omniscience."