The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-10-26

England, is one of the most dramatic
features of the narrative where all is
full of that strange fascination and pic
turesqueness which is so marked feat
ure in the history of that brilliant and
terrible French people.
Townsend Harris First American En-
voy in Japan. By William Elliot Grifis.
Boston and New York Houghton,
Miff1in & Co. 1896 Portland, Lcr-
ing, Short & Harmon. Now that public
attention is so drawn to Japan, this
volume will be particularly welcomed.
1t tells, very largely through his own
journals, the difficulties that lay in the
way of our first Envoy to Japan, his
final conquest of them, and the good
work accomplished through his discretion
and patience. The style of these journals
is rather matter-of-fact, simply setting
down events without very much of COM
ment or enlargement upon them. But
the facts themselves are just now of
peculiar interest, and there are many in
teresting and very amusing descriptions
of Japanese manners in high life among
the public functionaries-as the account
Of the tea-drinking with the Japanese
governor, the "small present" received
from the Prince of Tamba, consisting of
four trays of Japan bonbons, made of
sugar, rice -four, fruit. nuts, etc. In
deed, there is curious mixture of
childishness in all this treaty making
Ion
ese digniuaries that reads oddly enough.
Through it all, however, Mr.. Harris
seems to have borne himself with wisdom
and courtesy, and showed high courage,
as we'll as tact in the conduct of delicate
affairs of State.
Gypsy's Cousin Joy. By Elizabeth
Stuart Phelps. New York: Dodd,
Mead & Co. From the Publisher. Price
81. so. } Last year "Gypsy BreyJon'' made
it's temperance in new dress which
won the appreciation of the young people,
and made many new friends among
them. The publishers have been encour
aged by the warm reception which this
initial volume of the series met with, to
issue another Gypsy story-Gypsy's Cous-
in Joy, for which Mrs. Phelps Ward has
written an interesting introduction.
Miss Mary Fairman Clark, who has illus
trated both volumes, is fast making q
of Juveniles, and those who saw her work
in the first volume will be pleased to
| learn that she has also drawn the illus
trations for the second. This popular
series, it need scarce be said, is peculiarly
adapted for children of an early and ten
der age.
Other Times and Other Seasons. By
Laurence Hutton. New York: Harper
& Brothers; Portland: Loring, Short &
Harmon A series of fifteen brief essays
tracing the origin OF some of our modern
games and customs, and telling of the
beginnings of the observance of some of
the days we celebrate. The titles of these
essays are, Football, Prize-fghts, Tennis
Golf, Boat-races, Transportation, Tobac
CO. Coffee, A Cannon Of Bacon, ST.
Valentines Day, April-fool's Day, Good
Friday, May-day The Fifth of Novem-
Der, and Christmas-day.
In each of the essays various authors,
ranging from Herodotus to Brander
Matthews, are releyantly quoted; and
while some of these subjects may appeal
more strongly to one person than to an
other, perhaps, to the general reader, the
more interesting essays are those on foot
ball Opp. 1.1O), Prize-fghts Opp. 70-S4),
A Cannon of Bacon Opp. 95-104), and
Christmas-da Opp. 163-1S1.)
/ The Academic French Course. In &C.
cordanoe with the latest gram NAUTICAL
rules adopted by the French Academy.
By Antoine Mazzarelli, professor of Mod
ern Languages and Literature, French
Classics, etc. New York, Cincinnati
and Chicago: American Book Company
Price $1.0O). This appears to be very
skillfully prepared book for the student
of the French language. The readin g
lessons are progressive, taking the stu
dent along gradually from simple phrases
to more difficult and complicated sentences
and explaining the grammar of the Ian
| Qudg6 pdrl petSSu. L u0 tOCc1 Uu dIo
very conveniently arranged, and in the
appendix there is a general French Eng
lish and an English French vocabulary.
Pony Tracks. Written and Illustrated
by Frederick Remington. (New York
Harper & Brothers; Portland: Loring,
Short & Harmony These sketches of life
upon the plains were originally published
in Harper's Magazine They have now
been collected and form an exceedingly
entertainin volume They are fifteen
in number and are entitled Chasing
Major General, Lieut.. Casey's Last
Scout, The Sioux Outbreak in Dakota,
An Outpost of Civilization, A Rodeo at
Los Ojos, In the Sierra Madre with the
Punehers Black Water and Shadows,
Coaching in chihuahua, Stubble and
Slough in Daokta, Policing the Yellow
stone. A Model Squadron, The Affair of
the til of July, The Colonel of the First
| Cvcle Infantry. A Merry Christmas in a