New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-09-19
BOOKS And AUTHORS.
Current Talk of Things Present
and to Come.

Current Talk OF Things FTeSent
and to Come.
The editor Of THE Atlantic Monthly" Mr..
Bliss Perry has In press volume Of essays on
themes of peculiar interest to him through his
association with that magazine. He calls his
book Park Street Papers," and treats In it of
THE Atlantic" and OF magazine editing in gen.
eral Hawthorne, Longfellow. Whittier and
AIdrich are also dealt with IN his pages
Mr. Andrew Lang brings strange bit OF
news to market. Sir Walter Scott" he says,
"zvas offered a large sum e he would lay the
scene of Waverley novel in a new American
hotel! He never did so, and queer novel it
would have been If he had. The fact is not, 1
think. recorded by any OF his biographers: my
recollection is that came across it among the
letters and manuscripts at Abbotsford- 1t
would be well if we could have chapter and
verse for so comtcal incident.
Sir Mortimer Durand- formerly British Am
bassador in this country, has written a life OF
Nadar Shah, the Turcoman conQueror OF Persia
in the eighteenth century. He has cast the
biography in the form Of romance
The hooks of "reminiscences promised for the
i7fe
daughter. Lady Richie It will bring together
the .eBlackstick Papers" which were first
printed from time to time in the ''Cornhill Mag
azina" Another book in this department, from
which we are pretty certain to derive charming
entertainment will be the "Old and Odd Mem
cries" of the Hon Lionel Tollemache- AS his
letters to 1.-The Spectator" used often TO snow
he has Known many Of the most interesting
neople Of the last half century. Anecdotes OF
them will probably abound in his forthcoming
volume.
Professor Arthur L. rockingham, Of Prince
+on "a the author of q work which the Macr11lI-
Ian Company announces on THE Monuments OF
Christian Rome" In il he covers the develop
nent of art in Rome during thousand years
In the first half of the book political, social and
religious facts are co-ordinated with the history
of art In the second the monuments and WORKS
of art are arranged and described under the
general head OF architecture, sculpture paint
ing and the subsidiary arts
That splendid Survey OF London" to which
the late Sir Walter Besant devoted himself with
so much enthusiasm, is soon TO De completed
His last volume, the one on LONDON III 'he
Nineteenth Century" is now in press. great
mort Of It Is in Sir Walter Besants own hand
treat the nineteenth century historically as ne
,os still In #. SO he treated it in manner sug-
o.+,,g q hird's-eye view inviting the co-opera-
+,o- ~ others who knew special subjects to fill
in details.
H Rose author of the best Of all the
nouuIar biographies Of Napoleon, and MI. A NJ
RroadIey have elaborated in the preparation
Of q book on 'Dumouriez and the Defence OF
England against Napoleon" Dumouriez was
E,,encb officer who went over TO the enemy,
being employed by the English government to
o,,7 IN drawing UP a scheme for the defence OF
a.. co,,ntrv against the Emperor. The authors
~ The forthcoming volume have had access to
hts own COPY of this project. and they have
Gonna ,,non other unpublished documents of con-
siderable importance.
The china of Delft is described in book ny
Mrs. N Hudson Moore, which the Frederick e
c+oras Company will soon publish The author
brings together a quantity Of information for
Tho Guidance Of the collector she gives a set of
.uoda-,arks in facsimile and she illustrates her
ages with photographs of beautiful specimens |
+-oy7, many noted collections. The book is the |
e-s+ IN q series projected by Mrs. Moore. The |
raxt ons will be devoted to "Wedgwood-
PRESIDENT John NJ Thomas OF Middleoury |
.c,I1age In 'sThe Christian Faith and the Old |
7-as+aroent'' (Thonlas Y. Crowell & Coz, under |
.aIes 70 show that when rules Of historical and |
,i+o-ary criticism are applied vigorously to the |
14.hravv Scriptures the result is essentially con-
+ottve and in no wise menacing TO Christian
belief Indeed, a burden which has weighed TOO
peavilv on the spirit of the Church may De said
:. -,aos awav with the traditional view of the
p,nIa Bv placing all the writings on dead I
1a,,e1 of authority Christians have frequently
derived a biblical" sanction for ethics some
-, Iasa than Christian Cromweifs Zest 1
FOR the inprecatory psalms and Luther's excuse
tor pbilfp OF Hesse's bgamy illustrate this ten
danny Moreover the failure TO see in the Old 1
Testament a record OF a progressive revelation
of God to man has given rise to an ailegortcal
rne+hod of Interpretation. with the consequence
that some of the noblest practical utterances of
Tho nrophets have been shorn Of moral vigor
ns made TO do service pretentious predic-
lions.
Mr. Thomas assures Us that, thanks to the
critical method the harm which results from
,rorniscuous adoption OF the ancient prscepts
6 obviatad for the modern Christian. One now
has the privilege Of reading Ineligible his
tory of Israel and OF working his way close to
the creators of the worlds highest religious
truths. Religion Jesus proclaimed It is the