LITERATURE, CONTINENTAL, IN 1878. 



LITERATURE, ENGLISH. 489 



of the East, and barely alluded to the war, but 

 devoted its whole strength to the study of so- 

 cial problems and the internal condition of the 

 country. At last one of its trusted contribu- 

 tors, Mr. Engelhardt, in his " Village Letters," 

 showed by convincing testimony the feeling 

 of the peasants even in remote provinces, their 

 readiness to bear sacrifices and make contribu- 

 tions for the sake of the country and the cause, 

 and, above all, the interest which they took in 

 the events of the day. Newspapers have pen- 

 etrated during the last two years into social 

 strata throughout the country where before 

 they were almost or entirely unknown. In the 

 literary journals foreign writers take the lead. 

 The "European Messenger" and the "Russian 

 Messenger" are full of original articles by 

 French writers, with Zola and Tissot as regular 

 contributors. The best of the war literature 

 is the " Campaign Letters," by Prince Alexis 

 Tseretelef. The death of Nekrasof at the very 

 beginning of the year has left Russia without 

 a great poet. Count Golenistchef-Kutuzof, in 

 his "Calm and Storm," shows much promise. 

 The great dramatic success of the year was 

 "The Marriage of Bielughin," by a new writer, 

 N. Solovief. Among new novels there are 

 three of unusual merit, though signed by none 

 of the great names: "A Quarter of a Century 

 Back," by B. M. Markevitch; "The Stone of 

 Sisyphus," by K. N. Leontief, a story of life in 

 Epirus ; and " Youthful Victories," by A. Po- 

 tiekhin, a tale of peasant life of great interest. 

 Russian historical studies, so noticeable of late 

 years, continue. Professor Solovief, besides 

 the twenty-eighth volume of his " History of 

 Russia," concerned with the reign of Cath- 

 arine II., has published a separate work 

 on "Alexander I., his Policy and Diploma- 

 cy." "New Letters of Pushkin," including 

 seventy-five letters to the poet's wife, are of 

 great importance to an accurate estimate of his 

 life. The book on " Landed Property," pub- 

 lished more than a year ago by Prince Vassil- 

 tchikof, has given rise to a very hot discussion, 

 from which Tchitcherin and Professor Guer- 

 rier have borne off the palm in their "Russian 

 Dilettanti3m." The whole number of publica- 

 tions of all kinds in Russia was 3,655 for the 

 year 1877. For the first ten months of 1878, 

 so far as is known, there were 4,183 separate 

 publications, including 109 issues in Lettish, 

 81 in Esthonian, 198 in Polish, 78 in Jewish, 

 23 in Tartar, 18 in Arabic, besides a few in 

 Kirghiz, Jagatai, Georgian, Armenian, Fin- 

 nish, German, French, and most European lan- 

 guages. 



SPAIN. An epic poem, "La Atlantida," 

 written in the Catalonian dialect by Verda- 

 guer, and accompanied by a translation into 

 Spanish by Palau, deserves attention on ac- 

 count of the lofty ideas it contains and its ex- 

 cellent versification. The only dramatic works 

 of importance are "En el pilar y la Cruz," by 

 Echegaray ; " Consuelo," by Ayala ; and a dra- 

 ma by Cano, " La Opinion Publica." The last 



has produced a deep impression in theatrical 

 circles ; it belongs to the French realistic school. 

 Works of fiction of the present year are mostly 

 second-rate ; two, however, by Valera and 

 Galdos, are worth reading. Books on moral, 

 political, and natural science give hopeful signs 

 of progress in a branch of literature hitherto 

 little cultivated in Spain. 



Among the best productions of the year 

 which treat of social sciences are Azcarate's 

 " Constitucion Inglesa " and " La Politica del 

 Continente." The most important work on 

 the natural sciences of the year is " Principles 

 de Geologia y Paleontologia," by Landerer, 

 with examples from the geology of Spain. 

 Oliver's "Historia del Derecho en Catalufia, 

 Mallorca, y Valencia," is a model of scientific 

 exposition on political, administrative, and 

 civil law. The volume of " Cartas de Indias " 

 is a fine folio edition, illustrated with facsimile 

 letters and old maps ; 108 letters are given of 

 important persons connected with the conquest 

 of America and the Philippine Islands in the 

 sixteenth century, commencing with Columbus 

 and Amerigo Vespucci. These letters afford 

 a vivid picture of the conflicts which existed 

 between the religious and civil South Ameri- 

 can authorities. Arteche has brought out the 

 third volume of his " Guerra de la Indepen- 

 dencia," a very valuable contribution to the 

 literature of the Peninsular War. In " Histo- 

 ria Politica y Literaria de los Trovadores," by 

 Balaguer, the poetry and language of the 

 Troubadours . and their influence on European 

 countries are critically studied. Saavedra's 

 " Discurso " on entering the Spanish Academy 

 is an excellent monograph on the literature 

 aljamiada of the Spanish Moors. 



SWEDEN. Carlson, relieved of his ministe- 

 rial duties, will be able to complete his history 

 of Sweden. In theology, Billing's " Confession 

 of the Lutheran Church " attempts to recon- 

 cile science and religion. An anonymous book, 

 "What we Know, What we Believe, and 

 What we Will," reflects the prevailing skepti- 

 cal idealism. Lysander's study of the author 

 Alrnquist, as well as that of Brandes on Teg- 

 ner, attracted much attention. Treatises on 

 local geology and botany, and on natural his- 

 tory, have been published by Angelin, Na- 

 thorst, and Thomson. In polite literature, the 

 stories of A. Strindberg are original and mer- 

 itorious, as well as his drama " Master Olof." 



LITERATURE, ENGLISH. The pathetic 

 reflection is often indulged that among us the 

 men of thought and cultivation withdraw them- 

 selves from attention to public affairs. From 

 the standpoint of literature in England there 

 does not seem to be room for this complaint. 

 Of the large number of books and occasional 

 publications, a very considerable if not the 

 largest part is composed of productions called 

 forth by questions of the day, political, eco- 

 nomical, theological, and the like, and com- 

 paratively few that aspire to permanent recog- 

 nition ; and men of the highest powers are 



