New-York tribune., 1910-10-22
HERO TALES AND FAIRY LORE
Some Early Volumes of the Sea-
sons Juveniles.

=
stor,. of the Grail and the Passing OF
a.+t,,r,, charles Scribner's Sons) his
series Of handsome volumes "e'o'ou -
the reteling of the tales or ihe iaole
Round for younger readers the IouI Noi-
umes constituting the compiete worn
heine bv the way, not unworthy OF the
ettention of their elders, for Mr.. Pyle
does not underrate the intelligence OF
his chosen audience. His method of tell
inc and his stvle are appropriate TO his
subject. ably and consistently baseu
mon the originals from which he mas
drawn of his illustrations nothing heed
be said.
In Hero Myths of the British Race
~ Y CroweU & Coz Mr.. Nj. l. Ebbutt'
NJ A gives 10 the adjective its widest
significance,
Saxon O.. Dane OF Norman we.
Teuton or Celt or whatever We DE-
He ranges from Beowulf to ROBIN
Hood and Hereward the Wake taking
in on the way Constantine and Elena
Roland as we'll as Sir Gawayne. and
CuchuIain. His aim is to show 10 MS
Young readers their ancestors Ideals or
heroism and loyalty. Of all the virtues
at different times in their evolution, and
to afford them at the same time glimpses
of the environment in which they lived
and which colored their versions OF the
tales. The book wanders from the
beaten track to heroes now generally
forgotten. and will therefore be helpful
and suggestive TO older readers. with
the shifting Of our educational aims
from, the cultural to the severely praCti-
cal books of this kind aro acquiring a
new value as supplementary home read
ing. The siXty-four illustrations are by
no fewer than I've British artists. among
them Mr.. Bysm Shaw and Mr. j. H. F
Bacon. There is IL touch Of DoTe's gi-
gantir realism in the torn limbs and
exposed bones of the drawings ot
Beowulfs prowess.
Miss Eleanor HUI claims Cuchulain
for Ireland alone in The Bows Cuchu-
lain IT :. CroveIl & CO.. In her able
introduction to the volume she seT=
These tales have : sprightltness and
huovsnc1 not possessed bv the Arthurlan
tales thev are fresher, more hurnor-
Gus. more diversified. and the charac-
ters. more especially those Of the women,
are more firmly and variously drawn
To ernnhasize this view. the author has
drawn upon the later. more poetic. as
we'll as upon the earliest and more vlrils
versions Of the legends. In the inter
est of younger readers she has some
what modified the central situation OF
the "Sickbed of Cuchulain." So here IS
the highest ideal Of chtvalry created by
the Gaelic temperament set forth capa-
bly, by q student of standing. There are
sixteen fun-page illustrations in colors.
THE Heroic Life and Exploits Of S1es-
fried the Dragon Slayer (CroweIl(, re-
told BY Dora Ford Madeley, is a book
for Younger children, confined 10 the
facts Of the German legend, which must
not be confounded with the SCandina-
Wan tales upon which Wagner drew. II
has no Interior educational purpose.
Miss Lillian Gask has made a capital
collection OF Folk Tales from Many
Lands" ct. Y. Crowell & Coz, Ger
many, Bohemia and Russia, Brittany
Arabia and Italy, and retold them sim
ply for younger children. Most Of them
will be new to the youngsters, and. one
is inclined TO believe. to students OF
folk tales as well. The Illustrations in
colors and black and white by Mr.. Willy
Pogany add TO the appearance of
handsome book. A useful and at the
same time interesting work on Greek
mythology is Mr.. r. a. Farrar's 'Old
Greek Nature Stories (T. Y Crowell q
Coz. II not only retelIs the nature
myths connected with the different gods
of OLYMPUS. but also gives a clear eN-
position Of the Greek conception of
Nature and of the origin Of the images
in which it clothed her phenomena, from
flowers to volcanoes. The illustrations
are reproductions cf paintings by Mi
chael Angelo Guido REM, Lord Leigh
ton, G. = Watts and W. H. Rinehart A
capital piece Of work. II is with genu
inc pleasure that one dips into the Chi
nese Fairy Stories" TT. y. Crowell &
Coz. told by Mr.. Norman Hinsdale Pit
man. they are SO engaging in their sim
pie directness the lessons they incul-
cate are SO timely for the children of
the Occident-duty toward parents, re-
spect for old age fidelity to trust as
sumed and the like Mythical animals
are not forgotten nor is a touch Of more
poetic invention lacking.