LITERATURE, CONTINENTAL, IN 1872. 



461 



tical art has appeared, under the title of Het 

 GildeboeTc. It is the organ of the St. Bernulf 

 Guild, in Utrecht. Two parts have been issued 

 of a splendid work, edited by 0. Ed. Taurel. 

 Besides the letter-press there will be twenty- 

 four copper-plates, intended to illustrate 

 "Christian Art in Holland and Flanders," 

 from Van Eyck's time down to the days of 

 Otto Venius. Among the contributors are the 

 most distinguished writers on art-matters in 

 Holland and Belgium. There is more activity 

 among novelists. Much that is good appears 

 in the Guldens-Editie, which still continues. 

 "A Burgher's Daughter in the Seventeenth 

 Century," by J. M. E. Dercksen, has been par- 

 ticularly successful. The first edition of it 

 was exhausted in six weeks. Besides, Madame 

 Elise van Calcar has given to the world the 

 first volume of a story, called "Children of 

 Our Century," and A. Pierson promises a con- 

 tinuation of his romance, " Intimis." J. Keller 

 is preparing a new work, under the title of 

 " Derailleren." J. ten Brink and J. J. Cremer 

 are also busy, while P. A. S. van Limburg 

 Brouwer has published a philosophico-histori- 

 cal novel, " Akbar," the scene of which is laid 

 in the East. 



The older Dutch literature is not in a much 

 better condition than the modern. Holland 

 has displayed more energy in the compilation 

 of lexicons. Among these, J. H. van Dale's 

 "New Dictionary of the Dutch Tongue," 

 which had got as far as the letter N when the 

 compiler died at Sluis, on the 19th of May, de- 

 serves mention ; and there is some prospect 

 of its being continued by a competent hand. 

 A. C. Oudeman's "Middle-Netherlandish Glos- 

 sary," a useful and thoroughly scientific work, 

 is making rapid progress, and this year has 

 reached the Letter L. Of Von Sicherer's Dic- 

 tionary, four new parts (down to S) have ap- 

 peared this year. 



Among general histories of Dutch literature 

 we have the useful and comprehensive Hand- 

 book of Dr. W. J. A. Jonckbloet, which, 

 properly speaking, is an extract from the 

 writer's large " History of Literature," in two 

 volumes, the second of which also appeared 

 this summer ; and the second volume of the 

 German translation, by Madame Pauline 

 Schneider, has left the press. 



In natural science, also, there is a dearth of 

 novelty. 



I need not speak here of the periodical 

 literature, which is extremely active in Hol- 

 land. Several new journals have been started 

 and others enlarged during the present year. 

 The number of books and magazines for chil- 

 dren is also large. 



HUNGARY, Since the Hungarians have been 

 masters of their own destinies, the rapidity 

 with which enlightenment has spread, the 

 eagerness with which the Parliament votes large 

 sums for educational purposes, and particular- 

 ly the enthusiasm which animates all classes 

 of society for progress and civilization, are 



astonishing. To justify, if but imperfectly, my 

 remark, I must begin with the Official Report 

 of the Ministry for Public Instruction, a care- 

 ful and elaborate expose. In 1857, i. e., under 

 the Austrian rule, 828,500 children attended 

 the popular schools ; in 1869, when self-gov- 

 ernment was only two years old, the number 

 rose to 1,092,977. In the following year the 

 figures became still higher; and, according to 

 the latest Official Report, 1,237,320 children 

 are taught in the various partly private, part- 

 ly governmental schools of the country. Be- 

 sides, there has been called into life a second 

 university in the capital of Transylvania, en- 

 dowed with all the adjuncts required by the 

 age ; and this, the most easterly outpost of 

 ^European learning, will certainly contribute 

 to the propag'ation of Western life in the 

 hitherto dimly illuminated region of South- 

 eastern Europe. The National Museum, so 

 utterly neglected in former times, is flourish- 

 ing under the able direction of the zealous and 

 learned Mr. Francis Pulszky, and its valuable 

 library, its gallery of pictures, and its zoologi- 

 cal and archaeological collections grow from 

 day to day. An ethnographical section has 

 also been opened in the last year, and the im- 

 mense care bestowed upon the institute has 

 greatly increased the interest felt in it. Since 

 the year 1867, when visitors amounted only to 

 5,841, their numbers have gradually increased, 

 and during the past year amounted to the 

 astounding number of 180,729. A similar in- 

 crease is observable in the case of the Exhibi- 

 tions of Fine Arts, and of the private learned 

 societies, and your readers will learn with 

 interest that a Hungarian Geographical Society 

 has been called into life during the last year. 

 So much for the conditions of general cul- 

 ture. In literature the foremost place belongs 

 to those minute learned researches in the 

 sphere of the Hungarian language to be found 

 in Mr. P. Hunfalvy's book on the Konda Vo- 

 gul dialect of the Finn-Ugric branch of lan- 

 guages, which are more cultivated in Hungary 

 than anywhere else; or in "Az Igeidok" 

 ("The Temporal Forms"), by G. Szarvas, 

 where the author tries to settle the still doubt- 

 ful use of certain temporal forms of the Hun- 

 garian verb. M. Szarvas has based his studies 

 upon a diligent perusal of the oldest Hungarian 

 linguistic monuments, and, although his theo- 

 ries cannot be generally accepted, the Acade- 

 my has done rightly in awarding to the author 

 the linguistic prize. "We congratulate this 

 learned society on its endeavors to free the 

 Hungarian language, noted for its fine Orien- 

 tal, i.e., Altaic, structure, from intruding Ger- 

 manisms, and the essays of Messrs. Imre and 

 Thewrewk, although far from exhausting this 

 subject, deserve full attention. Surrounded 

 by Teutonic, Romanic, and Slavonian ele- 

 ments, the language of the Magyars has always 

 had a hard fight against foreign intruders, and, 

 when we consider the genuine Altaic spirit of 

 her proverbs, and the syntactical forms pre- 



