Birmingham age-herald., 1895-02-22
GOSSIP FROM BOOKLAND.


 England to one in America. Whether 1t is because there are more clever writers there than here, or whether it is because the news of new writer spreads sooner over the little island than over our big continent, the writer does not pretend to say. However, an author that has de- manded large share of success, and " ho quite took the reading public by storm was Mir. Anthony Hope, and bis first success, 'trbe Prisoner of Zenda,' story that excited a great deal of admiration. The author, whose name is Hawkins, had writ- ten several stories for Cassell's sometime previous.
 Within short while followed ''The God in the Car, - "The Dolly Dialogue'' and 'tThe Indiscrotion of the Duchess"
 This latter work is just what the name implies, an indiscretion, but only an ''in- discretion,' and it is somewhat pardona- ble if lively, vivacious young duchess, housed all alone in charming chateau, though dreadfully remote one, should beguile two gentlemen friends into visiting her to relieve the tedium consequent upon the absence of her liege lord, gruff old bear, in distant Algiers, or to be more truthful, supposed to be in Algiers.
 Mir. Hope knows how to tell good story, and spices his dialogues with epi- grammatic wit and Lrite bluntness of repartee.
 1t is to be expected there should be deal of Irritation in work of this kind, but a few days are covered by the experiences, and yet how fast, complicated, confusin g and Intervening is the rush of action. Two very jolly, whole-souled fellows are MT. Aycon and his friend, Gustave de Berensac.
 stMoney is the temptation you see, - said Aycon.
 ''Mon Deu, to have none is greater, '' and Gustave shook his head solemny.
 When Aycon and Gustave arrived at the chateau of the duchess the duke was SUD- posed to be in Algiers. 'The whole house. hold,D explained the duchess, "consists of an old man and four women, counting
 ''And they are all-" began Gustave.
 "Discreet?" she asked, lnterrupting
 "Oh, they will not tell the truth. Never fear. my dear Gustave.'
 But the open hearted Gustave feels im- -pelled to leave when he learns there is D O chaperone to the little party. Aycon daliie5 few hours longer with the duchess, -iu- tending to take later train, but a most readable and entertaining little story is the outcome before the genial disposed and clever Aycon catches that later train, and some one happens along whom he deems perfectly worthy of his ardent heart and entirely worthy of the numerous difficult ties and adventures to win.
 There are some subjects which are prac- IIc8lly l0eADHusblDl6, duQ Ouo LII tuCLh iS the French revolution. No writer, how ever frivolous, can write of this period without becoming serious. No reader, however careless end dcsultory, can read without being fascinated. History reads like some thrilling fiction, brilliant, kale1- doscopic and ever changing, event succeeds event, each transcending the previous one.
 
 "Red Cap and Blue Jacket,'' by George Dunn. is fascinating story, fall of wit, I~o~ 1r;<x ~s-tE l thel story will repay all lovers of romance and the French revolution.
 'The first chapter or two of the story of Evolution may be headed the Struggle for Life,' but take the book as a whole and it
 So writes Henry Drnmmond in his latest work, 'The Ascent of Man, and 2 most entertaining, instructive and delightful story he makes of his book, giving the reader with the thrilling recital of love tale the story of the material world and man; and Fiske, in the "Dsstiny of Man '' says, "On the earth there will never be a higher creature than man.''
 The keynote of the teaching of MT. Dar- win was "the struggle for life." This was his most conspicuous fact, and this fact fixed itself in the popular mind and, in it's estimate, mistook Darwinism for evolution-a specific theory of evolution applicable to single department for uni
  Darwinism, that is, "the struggle for life" were the foundations of all nature, was assumed, but the truth has been ob- scured, if not to Mir. Darwin, at least to all tor in evolution existed, while MT. Drummond assumes that 1.-the truth is there are two struggles for life in every living thing-the struggle for life and the struggle for the life of others.
 This book heartily comments itself to all thinking minds regardless of the fact that they may not be evolutionists, as it gives succinct and clear conception of the theories of evolution. MT. Drummond au0ss Rpsfn M as tb sayns pressed upon me-that the greatest thing a human soul ever does in this world is to see something and tell what it saw in a plain way"
 s And with this object in view MT. Drum mond strives to "tell in plain way'' a few of the things which science is now see- ing with regard to the ascent of man, and as the source of incalculable information to the average reader the book is doubly ac- ceptable.
 in the opening chapter MT. Drummond reviews evolution in general, and says: "Evolution has done for time what astron- omy has done for space. Evolution in- a change in mans whole view of the world and of life. If he (the scientisD in- sists upon including man in his scheme of evolution he must see to it that he include the whole man and all that is in man, and all the work and thought and life and in- spiration of man. The great moral facts, the moral consciousness, so far as it is real, must come within it's scope;n and further he says: "The functions discharged by all living things, plant and animal, are two in number. The first Is nutrition, the sec- ond is reproduction. The first is the basis of the struggle for life, the second of the struggle for the life of others.p
 And it is this proposition, this basis of