The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-12-18

Forty Years Of Active Service. BY
Charles T. O'Ferrall. Cloth; hand
Neale Publishing Company, Broad
way. Fifth avenue and Twenty
third street. Price, 81.
col. O'Farrall was a Governor of
Virginia, a politician in the best sense
a judge and a Confederate veteran.
His book, according to the title page,
Is some history of the war between
the Confederacy and the Union and
the events leading up to it, with remi-
niscences of the struggle and accounts
of the authors experiences of four
wears from private to lieutenant colo
mel and acting colonel in the cavalry
of the Army of Northern Virginia;
also much of the history of Virginia
and the nation in which the author
took part for many years in political
conventions and on the hastings and
as a lawyer, member of the Legislature
OF Virginia, judge, member of the
House of Representatives of the United
States and Governor of Virginia.
In this work the author has drawn
graphic pen pictures of his contem-
poraries in public life, and has quoted
copiously from their brilliant speeches
on the floor of the House of Represent
tatiVes, especially those pregnant with
sarcasm, humor and wit. The young
man entering politics can take this
volume as a handbook, and with it he
can begin his public life with the
knowledge usually acquired only as
the result of many years of experience.
1t is a condensed history of many of
the important political questions that
have been presented to the American
people for solution in the past forty
years, and is of as much value to the
Republican as to the Democrat
The book from the first page to the
last has been written in the spirit of
fairness. good nature, and with the
desire to avoid arousing sectional ami
mosities AS the author says of the
whole work. it is written in the spirit
of a fraternal union of the two sec
tons of our once divided but now re-
united land"
The History of North America. Guy
Carleton Lee, Phi. D., Editor in
chief. Cloth binding; gilt tops;
rough edges; illustrated Philadel-
phia: George Barrie & Sons, 1913
Walnut street.
This history of North America may
justly be regarded as one of the most
remarkable works of its kind, ever pub
lished.
Few persons can realize what is in
volved in the preparation of such
work as The History of North Amer
lea" 1t is, however, less difficult to
realize the spirit of enterprise that
must influence the publishers of such
a work, to whom the question "Will
il pay?" must present itself with in
vincble force The final difficulty was
removed by the acceptance of the re-
sponsibility of publishing by the firm
of George Barrie & Sons, Philadelphia,
whose select editions cover a wide
range of literature and are familiar
and treasured friends in the libraries
of two continents.
We are now in a position to pass
judgment on The History of North
America" for four volumes of the Sc
ries are before us. The first of these
is entitled Discovery and Explora-
ton" and presents the reader with a
review of the status of geogra phical
science and navigation in the Old
World; traces the causes and influ-
ences that led to the turning of the
prows of the venturesome mariners to
the unknown West, and reviews the
traditional and recorded visits of the
ancents and the e-Columbian Voy-
ages'-the missionaries, the Norsemen,
with transcripts from the Sagas as
to their journeys and settlements in
America The original voyage of Co
lumbus is given at length, and. al
though 1t occupies so considerable
part of the volume. it's peculiar inter-
est is such that we would not have it