Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1893-04-30
EDITORS BOOK TABLE
"sToRlEs FROM THE RAeeIs," BY
Or. ABRkM iSAACS.
Opis Reads Coiossus"--Uis-
torioai Register. &c.

| this art.
Very few of us have very definite ideas
IA TO what is in the Talmud-beyond q
vague tradition that it is some sort Of
digest OF compendium Of Jewish law. It
ia in fact we are told a literature extend
! ing over nearly thousand years. giving
expression to es varied views az is thus
possible, grave. CAV. learned, witty, heavy
and light. 1t is with an effort to illustrate
| the phases OF life and thought in old
/ Judea, manifested in these minds, that
/ these stories have been culled and col
| lected. Some OF them have already ap-
reared in magazine and Newspaper me-
! DUNN the Atlantic Monthly, Sunday School
Times. and Harper's BGrdr.
There is nothing new under the sun"
/ said Solomon or some other wise man, and
we find IN these selections themes and
phases recalling the legends and figures
with which we are already acquainted.
| There is Faust and Rip Van WInkle and
Baron Munchausen. Even Uncle Remus's
| Brer Fox. already in these pages, outwit-
ted Brer Wolf.
The chapters on "Rabbinical Romance"
| and Rabbinlcal Humor" arc among the
richest. As 70 the former tho idyls Of
the Patriarchs. the valiant woman of
Proverbs, tho love scenes Of the Song Of
Songs proved the forerunnors." The old
| German legend Of the wives carrying from
| the besiegod castle on their shoulders their
| husbands as the greatest treasures hos its
! counterpart in the wife who, about 20 be
! divorced and allowed to take whatever Is
/ best IN tn house as an everlasting posses
| sion, chooses her husband. Indeed. the
| Jewish ideal Of womanhood, as found in
| these tales Of the rabbis-and the Bible
| bears this out-was a noble and lofty one.
! Here ara some of the savings called into
! bouquet: Descend a step 10 gam
/ wife" iii she be smaller than thou art,
bend O little and whisper in her ear"
"vex not thy wife, for she is easily moved
| 10 tears: with zeal and solicitude honor
thy wife, for II is the vile that crowns the
home with n blessing; who has no wife
has nothing good. no JOY, no blessing. no
/ peace" who IS best taught?-he wEo
! has learned from his mother
But woman is treated not only with tom
! dernass she becomes very often fit subiect
I for satire ID the tahle-,alk of these wise
]
/ Adams side. and not from another portion
/ Of his body. II the head had been Sc
/ lcctod she would have been too proud; If
! the eve. too wantOn; If the mouth. too
/ lOQuaUOus II the heart. too passionate;
| II the hands. too busting If the feet too
! much Of q gadabOut modest SIDE was
! chosen. that she should be mOdest-anI
vet int IS added woman has a share Of all
| the faults WeutlOnei.N Again, II Is SAID
! of Solomon that the great King, overhead
! inc a bird boast 20 MS mate that he could,
/ If he wished, crush every bono IN Solo
/ mons body and oyeIturu his palace, IN
| Qured what was meant by all this.
! was merely joking came the rep!';
was only foollng my wlfe-s husbands
/ privilege
A large number of legends have natural
| IL become grouped about Solomon. until
| lie is represented as little but mighty
| cOniurer and sOrCerer-Gll-pOWeT all
rich, and very clever at saving bright
| things. His wisdom takes on the form OF
| cunning u overcome the GEM and eXtort
! secrets, and the atmosphere 10 the same as
| that IN the " Arabian Nights Generally,
| however, some moral Is added as lesson,
( and even solomon in his pride, whenever
I he grows bOastful is taught true humility.
! The interview with the Queen OF Sbeba
| descends into the propOunding and IN
! travelling OF riddles and enigmas. what
j that, -" asked the Queen, which comes
! like dust from tho earth whose food ~
! dust. which IS poured out Ike water, ana
| which Eliminates the houseS" Naph-
thai came the ready answer. Again, the
! Queen placed two wreaths before the
! monarch, ono artificial and one real, ask
/ ing 70 distinguish between the two, where
| upon Solomon opened the window ana
! bee anghtlug upon the natural wreath told
/ him what he wished to know.
I. fIrlv. do mol IA
wise In hyberbole. His vessel Is carried IN
! far aloft by tremendous wave that com
! ing close to star the people on board
we're scorched by the heat. The eartA's
/ daily rotation Is illustrated by the pretty
! fable that a basket, being hung on the spot
] where the heavens and earth X SEQ niue
/ later could not be found. but 10 after
! twentv-four hours It was again IN the same
position IN the same spot. The " hsh
! stories are too good 20 bear repetition
as all such. they must DO examined when
! fresh The whole series OF tales COM
prised IN this dainty volume constitutes
| a atrlng Of pearls and with oil their eXaRe-
| gcratlCn and entertainment there flows
! beneath and through them strong cur-
rent Of humanity-a feeling for the unlVer-
sally beating heart Of all mankind.
| The French Htr0hdi0n. BY CHARLES Id
| WARD M,LLKr. lato of Balliol College.
| Oxford. lecturer in history on the stan
of the oxford University Extension.
| New York: CHARLES SCRIBNER'S Sons.
J 1898. Pages 3y7. 12mo. 81 net
I For sale by West Johnston & Co.
This IS one Of the series Of university
! extension mammals edited by Professor
! William Knight. professor of philosophy
| IN tho University Of -. Andrews, and puO-
! Gshed simultaneously by John Murray in
! London and the Scribners IN New lora.
| Other volumes have treated The Sc and
! Abuse of Money. " The Fine Arts" " Inc
! Philosophy Of the Beautiful" English
! Colonization aud Enpire. Inc IA,eIs,
| tDre of France" The Realm OF Nature"
The Study Of animal Life" ETC., etc.
! ~ niversity extension" a. this latest Of
/ tempt TO popular.le education Is termed.
/ may be reckCned an actual fact IN ing
D Land certainly IN the educational ana
university centres of Oxford, Cambridge,
/ and London. 4 PRIOR one might nave
thought that II would have received IT'S
J most serious opposition from these sources.
In reality the movement IS fed bv them,
and the success shows the wonderful
democratic ald sOcalistc tendency or
tho ACE. which has crept even into educa-
/ t.onal matters. The enthusiasm ana IN
I forest in the general meeting IN OAIOTo
last summer bore ample testimony IN
/ Ike manner this interest has been taAcn
nm IN America, especially by college pro
( frssors. and the headquarters have been
in thar most Anghcan-disposed OF al cur
largo cities Philadelphia. When Phua-
deiphia can support its cricket ciuo anu
other forms of Anelomania We may
well expect the English university
extension interest 10 have taken an early
and strong hold there. And the good Work
( done is not 90 be discounted
The aim Of this series Of manuals is 10
educate rather than TO inform. Hence
man details are omitted and only those
accounted which illustrate the working OK
general laws and tho development OF prln-
c.ples. They are prepared with view 70
tho historic evolution OF subject and
also 10 its philosophical slgnihcance;;
/ They give, therefore, in convenient and
Iosical and lucid form the results OF more
spccial investigators IN toe teid-each
work being intended to take. IN mea-
sure. the place of the teacher and act as
ouide N the mass of matter which the
moor jll-inforned student would else
have TO wade through.
Ip the special case before us works like
those of De TocQueyllie, lame, Iichelet,
IONS Blanc, Won Sybel, and others on the
French Revolution have been used. a
general gummary is reached IN explaining
the causes of the French Revolution. IN
] Q9npcfS showing