... London, September 5th, 1900. One of the most beautiful books that I have seen for a long time is entitled:-- Madame Dame Dianne de Poytiers, la Grande Seneschale de Normandie, Duchesse de Valentinois. A Monograph by Marie Hay. (John& E. Bumpus, Ltd.) Dianne de Poytiers, whose association with Henry II. of France is known to all the world, is here made the' subject of an exceedingly interesting ...

... A LITERARY LETTER- -Omar Khayyam Once More. London, September 12th, 1900. T n the current number of Longman's Magazine Mr. Andrew Lang writes as follows As to Omar, as far as his quatrains have merit, I attribute it to the late Mr. Edward Fitzgerald (stc), the friend of Tennyson. Not being a Persian scholar, i do not pretend to know (or care much) what Persian or Persians wrote the original ...

... London, September igth, igoo. Mrs. Wilfrid Meynell, whose little book on John Ruskin in the Modern English Writers series has naturally attracted very much attention through its thoughtfulness and suggestiveness, has dedicated that book to Lieut.-General Sir W. F. Butler, K.C.B. The conjunction of names tempts me to illustrate this letter with a picture of Mrs. Meynell as a child, when she ...

... A LITERARY LETTER Concerning Miss Marie Corelli. London, September 26th, 1900. The multitude of books that publishers are now putting forth must be an embarrassment to the reviewer and to the newspaper that publishes reviews. THE SPHERE boasts the special distinction that it does not review books, and is thus saved from a dilemma arising from the limitation of space. I would, however, refer my ...

... London, October ioth, 1900. I was in the shop of a large London bookseller the other day, and he was complaining bitterly that publishers had held back the Christmas books on account of the war. I was somewhat astonished that he should be demanding Christmas books in October, but he said people were constantly coming in about them, and he had absolutely nothing to supply. That state of things ...

... r London, October 17th, 1900. I am pleased that the Society of Arts should have affixed a tablet to the house in Hunter Street, Brunswick Square, in which John Ruskin was born. The letters are in white on a chocolate background. The legend runs as follows:-- John Ruskin, Artist and Author. B. 1819. D. 1900. Dy the way, Mr. George Allen's plan for a uniform edition of Mr. Ruskin's writings had ...

... yi Literary Letter. Each year that England clothes herself with May She takes thy likeness on her. Time hath spun Fresh raiment all in vain and strange array For earth and man's new spirit, fain to shun Things past for dreams of better to be won. Through many a century since thy funeral chime Rang, and men deemed it death's most direful crime T o have spared not thee for very love or shame And ...

... London, October 31st, igoo. AS might have been expected, the centenary of Macaulay passed with far less éclat than the quincentenary of Chaucer. The reason for this is surely largely that Chaucer was primarily a great man of letters, Macaulay primarily a great parliamentarian. The career of a politician, as Mr. Gladstone had the shrewdness to recognise, is ephemeral. To the man in the street ...

... London, November 7th, 1900. On the second page of this issue I give a list of new books received during the week. A friendly publisher suggests, however, that in addition to this list, inevitably long at this season of the year, I should mention from week to week six new books that everyone ought to read. That is exceedingly easy. Here, tor example, are the six that I wish to recom mend for ...

... London, November 14th, 1900. I had occasion to run down to Droitwich last Saturday to see a friend who was making use of that mysterious cure, the brine baths. In the smoking- room of the very comfortable Worcestershire Hotel I heard an interesting conversation on the recent sale of the great estate of the neighbourhood, Westwood. On the table was the auctioneer's prospectus giving some ...

... A LITERARY LETTER-- The Best Christmas Books for Children. London, December 12th, 1900. The subject of all interest just now is children's books. It seems only yesterday that booksellers were complaining to me that the war and the election had prevented the issue of these books, and they had nothing to sell that the public wanted. Why the public should want Christmas books some months before ...

... London, December 19th, 1900. The six books that I desire to recommend this week are:-- 1. Sussex. By F. G. Brabant. Illustrated by Edmund H. New. (Methuen& Co.) 2. Sir Joshua Reynolds, First President of the Royal Academy. By Sir Walter Armstrong. (IV. Heintmann.) 3. The Oxford Book of English Verse. Edited by A. T. Quiller-Couch. India paper edition. (Clarendon Press.) 4. Montes the Matador, ...