New-York tribune., 1899-12-02

I UTST0RIC TOWNS OLE T7E MIDDLE
Edited by Lyman p Powell. Illustrated (Amenrn-
lean Historic Towns). Octave pp. xxx 49,
G. P. Putnam's Sons
MORE COLONIAL HoMEsTEADs, AND THEIR THEIR
Pp' oi4ls X. 40. G. p. i Putnam's Sons
WILLIAM CowPER.. BY. Marion Harland. Illus US
trated Giterary Hearthstoncs: Studies Of the
Octave. Octave -i1 pp. x, 2S7 G. P Putnams Sons.
CHARLOTTE BRoNTE AT HOME. BY. Marion
garland h rated terary M W4eTs
and Thinkers). Octave pp. xi, SS G. p. Put
MANS Sons.
sCoTLANp's RUINED ABB ABBEYs. BY Howard ard
Crosby Butler. A NJ With Illustrations by the
Author octave. PIP. XXX. 2S7 The Macmillan
Company
The first volume in the series Of American
Historic Towns was devoted to New England.
The second deals with the Middle States, and
embraces brief but comprehensive essays on
New-York, Saratoga, Albany Philadelphia, Buff
falo, Pittsburg and six other famous cities. AS
in the earlier volume, each city is treated by
different author and there is general intro
duction by still another contributor, In this
case the latter being DR.. Albert Shaw, who
traverses the broad significance Of the region
in which the cities found. The essays are
all so well written that we shrink from making
selections that might seem invidious Never
theless, we must refer especially to Mr.. Batter
dar's account Of New-York City and Mr.. Samuel
Harden Churchs description of Pittsburg. OF
course, all the authors have been handicapped in
the matter Of space. To give for example, an
adequate account Of Albany in thirtyseven
pages some Of which. moreover. have TO be
given over to Illustrations. requires condensa-
ton Of the most drastic sort. But the con-
tributors to this volume have worked with ex
emplary ingenuity. They are terse, but they
are not bald; they find room. more or less, for
the human interest despite their limitations; and
indeed, the outcome Of their labors commands
admiration and respect Volumes like this one
do much to popularize the civic and Topographic
cal history of America. The plan Of the en-
terprise has been judiciously formed and IT is
being we'll carried out
Marion Harland adopted pleasant and sue
cessful line OF writing when she produced her
book on Some Colonial Homesteads and Their
Stories" Her taste for the bypaths of history
is reinforced by a genial method of putting her
Investigations into literary FORM These works,
partly historical, partly biographical partly
anecdotic are published about the holiday time,
and although they are readable in June we'll
as in December there Is certain fitness in
their appearance Just before Christmas. The
publishers give the author good press work and
opposite illustrations and her volumes are at
tractively bound They belong to the class Of
gift books with a serious element. This year
Marion Harland gives US More Colonial Home
steads and Their Stories" and two volumes
devoted respectively TO Cowper and Charlotte
Bronte in q series bearing the general title of
Literary Hearthstones" All three books
prettily got UP and all three entertaining.
In the work on Colonial homesteads the authors
plan is TO sketch houses more or less historic,
and the Americans-more or less famous-who
have occupied them. Thus. Johnson Hail. at
Johnstown. N Y; the Stockton homestead, at
Princeton; the two Schuyler homesteads. at
Albany and divers other celebrated mansions
serve as starting points from which the author
rambes gathering she goes little fragments
Of personalia, data relating to Colonial history,
and many Of those little things unimportant
enough in themselves sometimes. but so
full to the reader who wishes to realize the at
mosphere and social movement Of time that is
| gone The note is always personal It is ef-
fective in the book on Colonial homesteads, and
no less in the two volumes Cowper and
! Charlotte Bronte. These biographies do not
pretend TO be critical, to summarize in any
! learned way the books Of the two famous au-
thors commemorated. They aim rather at
showing Cowper and Charlotte Bronte In their
| daily life personalities more than authors. The
writer has read her authorities with care and
whenever it has been practicable she has
verified by personal investigation what she has
heard and read. We have as the result two
| narratives excellent records and distinctly
readable. Anecdotes are introduced with tact;
the treatment OF both authors is sympathetic
and characterized by good Judgment
Mr.. Butler alludes in the preface to his volume
or the ruined abbeys Of Scotland, to fact
which the layman, If not the architectural
student. has often found extremely troublesome
to wit: that the medieval architecture OF Scot
land, though amply treated In scholarly books
has hitherto had to be studied chiefly in publi-
cations too bulky for general use The author
Of the present convenient study has been a.
lecturer on architecture in Princeton University
He is conversant with the technical side of his
subject and to any architectural student Of
the abbeys he offers trustworthy guidance. But
he writes especially for those who desire not
only instruction but an introduction to the
romance and history with which those ancient
walls are saturated. The pilgrim who reaches
Dunfermlne. for example will see the ruins In
a new light when he has read Mr.. Buffers In
teresting sketch OF the fabric. Encountering
two doors in the western wall. he will not Won
der what the significance OF that one may have
been which communicated with the kitchen Of
the royal palace. He will have learned from
Mr. Buffers book that the monks had certain
| stipulated rights in that kitchen. Through
out the early history Of the abbey. these rights
were strictly observed; but as the abbey grew and
the number Of monks and pentents increased
this privilege became a great annoyance to the
royal purveyor and constant drain upon the
royal purse, until Alexander II cut off this time
honored source OF supply and granted to the
monastery the lands OF Dollar as a substitute"
The spectacle unfolded by this book is melan-
choly enough. might be judged from the
title. Ruins. ruins and always ruins make the
| authors theme But there Is heautv left IN