The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1907-07-20

Wilfred Campbell, the Canadian poet,
has been spending some time In Scot
land, one Of the results of which is
novel "Ian of the Orcades." 1t Is a
tale of intrigue and adventure and
love in feudal Scotland.
Starting in Life" Is another book
which processes to aid young people in
determining the choice of calling or
profession. Thirty occupations are
presented and their advantages and
disadvantages set forth. The author
is Nathaniel C. Fowler, Jr.
An exquisite little story, beautiful
in it's fancies and in it's telling, is
''The Story and Song of Black Rod
erick," by Dora Sigerson, which re-
cites the story of the unloved bride
and how she saved her husbands soul
from the place of torment.
A book on Jamaica" was announced
by the Macmillan Company on the day
when the news was received OF the
earthquake at Kingston. It contains
an account of the history and chief
features of Jamaica and is illustrated
in color. The book is written by A. s.
Forrest and dedicated to Sir Alfred
Jones.
Francis Coutts, who has inherited
much of the wealth Of the Baroness
Burdett- Coutts, is a man of literary
taste. He soon will publish two I'M
portant books, one a volume of poems
containing few lyrics and some 5000
lines of blank verse, the other vol
ume of criticism of the book of Job,
concerning which Mr.. Coutts has an
entirely new view.
George AIDE, as we have not been
allowed to forget, has "been abroad"
You would know 1t from "In Pastures
New" If in no other way. He wrote
some diverting papers to keep himself
in our memory while he was away,
and these are now gathered into a
book. 1t carries the hall mark of the
AIDE humor, but is much less embroid-
cred with slang than most Of Mr..
AIDES work. That is not to say that
Mr.. AIDE Is not as amusing as ever, but
that he Is somewhat chastened. An
drew Lang might try him again.
Now that letter writing is fast dying
out as an art through the pressure of
modern life and the availability Of
modern inventions for communication
and travel, books of letters written in
the old days have peculiar charm.
Three books Of this kind of unusual
literary interest are the collection of
letters In the personal and literary cor
respondence Of Robert, Earl of Lytton
(Owen Incredibly, edited by his daugh-
ter, Lady Betty Balfour; The Letters
Of William Blake" and 1.-THE Life and
Letters of the First Earl of Durham"
The biography of the Earl of Durham
has been prepared from family papers
and contains an unpublished poem by
Byron.
Hector Macpherson, Jr., the young
est expert astronomer in the world,
although only eighteen years Of age,
has produced two notable astronomical
works, Astronomers of To-day" and
"A Century's Progress in Astronomy"
He Is the son Of a Scottish journalist
and lives near Edinburgh. When u
years of age he began to show strong
interest in the subject of astronomy and
fitted up corner Of his home as an
observatory with telescODe star mans.
etc. In order to obtain accurate in
formation for his books the youthful
author learned French, German and
italian, and corresponded with the
leading astronomers each in his ma
tive language. He IL member Of the
Societe Astronomique de France, and
also a member of the Societe Beige
d Astronomie.