The herald., 1898-11-13
ROCKS AND THEIR MAKERS

the mysterious religion of Egypt. In his
preface he says: That clue was afforded
| by comparison of the secret passages and
| chambers contained in the great pyramid
or secret house of Memphis, to which the
Egyptians of old gave the little of the
Light, with the sacred passages and
chambers portrayed In the papyrus de-
scribing what we of today call The Book
of the Dead but which the ancient priests
called The Book of the Master of the Sc
| cret House.
And so this volume is called 1.-The Book
Of the Master and in 1t our author tells
of the wonders and mysteries of Egyr:.
| and the Interpretation OF its religion
| through these. 1t is a rarely interesting
volume. charmingly illustrated, ans. tells
us more of interest than any other volume
of its compass has ever told us.
O O O
GRACE OMALLEY. By Robert Machray.
New York: Freredick A. Stokes COM
pany.
This story OF Grace O'Malley, princess
and pirate, told by Robert Machray red
shank and rebel. is one of the most dashing
| and rollickng stories of the day. Renari
| Mcdonald, Scot of the western ISLE 1t is
| who tells this strange story When boy
his life was saved by Grace O'Maliey, on
board her fathers ship. where he had been
|
adrift to starve or be swallowed up by the
sea. He at once became the servant and
slave of this daughter of the king of the
sea, as Owen O'Malley came to be known
! to him. Taere were wild times there. wars
and privateering and pirates, too, and 1t is
of the widest happenings that the book
deals. with no dull periods in it ALL
MODERN POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS.
BY Simeon Z. Baldwin, LII. d. Little,
Brown a. Co.
/ The author of this solid work is we'll
qualified to speak to American citizens. He
is the honored president of the American
Social Science association. and was at one
time at the head of the American Bar as
sociation. Few men would be listsned to
with more respect upon the great topics
treated in this notable volume. In the
space here allotted it is impossible 10 do
more than set out the plan and scope OF the
work.
The chief among modern political insti-
tutions are held to be these, and they ave
elaborately treated in the order here given:
The foundation of all government on the
consent of the majority of the people.
Religious liberty.
The written constitution the supreme
law.
The protection by law of the individual.
against himself.
The combination of political absolutism
with democracy.
The secret ballot
Simpler and surer methods of legal pro-
cedure
Freedom of incorporation under general
laws.
Minority representation in office.
The regulation of the succession to the
dead in the interest of the state.
International arbitration.
To the above Mr.. Baldwin would add the
Monroe doctrine for the United States.
This is a broad plan of work, but all the
topics are fully treated, and the conclusions
are calm, and it seems to US, sound. There
ia very little of the controversial spirit.
ard the judicial tone pervades the whole
book, which, on the whole, is an admra-
BILE contribution to the current discussion
of vital themes
THE BLACK CURTAIN. A NOVEL. BY
Flora Haines Loughead, author of THE
Man Who Was Guilty" and THE Aban-
doned Claim" $3.50. Houghton, Mifflin
& Co.
Mrs Flora Haines Loughead, the author
of two successful novels. "The Man Who
Was Guilty" apd "The Abandoned Claim"
and of short sttries in many journals. is
New England woman by parentage a west
erner by birth ami a Californian by adop
tion-a type of origin productive in most
cases of excellent results in vigor, refine
ment and integrity of character Her home
is in the hills near Santa Barbara. and it is
there her new story is cast. 1t is strictly
California story. Mrs Loughead knows
the ways of the people among whom she
lives, and she knows the animals and birds
and flowers. She knows the beautiful and
also the dark ways of California weather.
very unusual weather sometimes. She
knows how the forest fires sometimes
scorch. how the water course dries up in
bad years, and how it happens that sud-
den flood may wash away whole bank
where was gold once. and how a paper
house may climb an oak tree.
Mrs. Loughead, too. knows about land
laws and water rights. and how to stand
off young man who settles on unsurveyed
land alongside of Amy Judth-at least
how to make them at length neghbors who
have no end of things in common, notwith-
standing the distress of the black curtain,
and what it might hide. in the lonely dwell
ing of Mr.. Paul Armtage. We shall not
draw this curtain, or tell one thing, or
give one hint of the many ingenious dips.
spurs and angles in this charming story
delightfully."- blended. and is one of the
good things of the year.
o o O
BOB, SON OF BATTLE. BY Alfred Olli-
want. Doubleday & Mcclure Co.
Here is Scotch story of dogs and shep-
herds-the dogs come first here-and if we
mistake not it is going to turn out to be
a story that will live. There are dogs and
dogs. but none, in the opinion of these
shepherds, like "the gray dogs of Ken
muir" The last one of this famous race
belonged to James Moore, master of Ken
muir and is seemed to have been gener-
ally agreed that Jamnias Thornton had it
right when he declared that "a proper gray
dog has the brains of man and the ways
of a woman
"Owd" Bob, they called him the whole
country round, even from the first, for all
knew what he was to be, and in the sense
OF being great he was already old. How he
played and how he laughed; how he teased
old Whitecap till that gray gander all but
expired of apopeXy and impotence: how
he ran the road bun calf and aroused
the Wratfiof portly SOW, mother of many.
Is OF little account, but it was serious busi-
ness when the master would call him from
his pranks with, Bob, lad, see It's time
we learned you your letters" And 50 the
business of life began for that dog. Of
whom the simple farmer-folk of the Dale
land still love 10 talk-Bob, son of Battle
last of the gray dogs of Kenmuir.
But, beside James Moore and the gray
dog, there was Adam McAdam. strange
little man and his Red Wull a dog that
was next to Owd Bob in all the wiles of
herdlng. And then there was Maggie
Moore and David McAdam and no end of
feuds between the ''old uns," and odd mix
lures of love and distrust between the