494 



LITERATURE, BRITISH, IN 1881. 



in this country, if it has been effective at all, 

 has product-el n directly contrary result. In 

 certain departments, such as science, travel 

 and adventure, fiction, British literature seems 

 to be as active as ever; and there is little or no 

 diminution in works devoted to the discussion 

 of critical and crucial questions of the day. 



In thtl<i'jif,tl and religion* literature there 

 is not much of moment to be noted. The Rev. 

 T. K. Cheyne, in his "The Prophecies of 

 Isaiah " (London, C. Kegan Paul & Co.), gives 

 a new translation, together with a commen- 

 tary ;md appendices. Mr. Cheyne is a follower 

 of Ewald, the famous German critic, and has 

 made the writings of Isaiah his special study. 

 Dr. E. II. Plurnptre contributes to the useful 

 series, " The Cambridge Bible for Schools," a 

 volume on " Ecclesiastes, or the Preacher." It 

 is a charming work, replete with scholarship 

 and high literary culture. The last two vol- 

 umes of " The Speaker's Commentary on the 

 New Testament " (London, John Murray), ed- 

 ited by Canon F. C. Cook, quite sustain the 

 reputation of the preceding volumes. Some 

 of the ablest talent and learning of the English 

 Church finds place in this now .completed work. 

 Dr. W. Milligan, Professor in the University of 

 Aberdeen, is author of a very valuable work 

 on " The Resurrection of our Lord " (Mac- 

 inillan & Co.). It ranks among the best pro- 

 ductions of the year. "The New Testament 

 in the Original Greek," vol. i, Text ; vol. ii, 

 Introduction and Appendix (Macmillan & Co.), 

 we have before alluded to, in connection with 

 the revised version of the New Testament. 

 The service which Drs. Westcott and Hort 

 have here rendered to the best interests of bib- 

 lical learning and criticism is beyond all praise. 

 Under the title ''Everlasting Punishment," be- 

 ing lectures delivered in London, Dean E. M. 

 Goulburn furnishes a very timely and weighty 

 contribution to the question which Canon Far- 

 rar, Dr. Pusey, and others have been discuss- 

 ing of late years. The second edition (London, 

 Rivingtons) is revised and enlarged. Canon 

 II. M. Luckok's "Studies in the History of the 

 Book of Common Prayer " (Rivingtons) ex- 

 hibits excellent scholarship and ability. It is a 

 volume of superior merit on this topic. " The 

 Old Testament in the Jewish Church " (Edin- 

 burgh, A. & C. Black) is the title of W. Rob- 

 ertson Smith's somewhat famous lectures on 

 biblical criticism. These lectures are well 

 known in America, and are variously esteemed 

 by students of the orthodox or more liberal 

 denominations. In this connection it should 

 be stated that Dr. Littledale's " Plain Reasons 

 against joining the Church of Rome " (Chris- 

 tian Knowledge Society) was found to be so 

 severe and telling adversely to the Roman 

 claims and assumptions, that it was necessary 

 to provide an answer. This is supplied by 

 Father Ryder, of the Oratory, in a small vol- 

 ume like Littledale's, entitled " Catholic Con- 

 troversy : a Reply to Dr. Littledale's Plain Rea- 

 sons" (London, Burns & Gates). It is acute 



and able. Dr. J. Cairns's "Unbelief in the 

 Eighteenth Century " (Edinburgh, Black) is a 

 volume of moderate size, and is, on the whole, 

 a useful if not very profound contribution to 

 apologetics at the present day. 



In Ilittory there are no special triumphs to 

 record, no works of any great importance 

 having appeared. Professor G. Rawlinson's 

 " History of Ancient Egypt " (Longmans) is a 

 work of real value, and forms a fitting com- 

 panion to his most important production, " The 

 Five Great Monarchies of the Ancient World." 

 J. A. Froude's " English in Ireland " (Long- 

 mans) appears in a new edition, to which Mr. 

 F. has appended a concluding chapter dealing 

 with Irish politics in the present day. "Let- 

 ters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, of the 

 Reign of Henry VIII," Vol. v, arranged and 

 catalogued by James Gairdner (Longmans), 

 form a part of the valuable series of state pa- 

 pers begun by the late Dr. Brewer, Master of 

 the Rolls. The present volume is admirably 

 arranged and edited. Similar in character is 

 the "Calendar of State Papers," relating to 

 Ireland in the reign of James I, edited by Dr. 

 C. M. Russell and J. P. Prendergast. F. W. 

 Longman, in his "Epochs of History," gives 

 a very readable and carefully prepared account 

 of "Frederick the Great and the Seven Years' 

 "War." The Hakluyt Society sends out, as its 

 latest issue, Father F. Alvarez's " Narrative of 

 the Portuguese Embassy to Abyssinia during 

 the Years 1520-27." It is translated by Lord 

 Stanley of Alderley, and is an excellent addi- 

 tion to material for history. S. R. Gardi- 

 ner and J. B. Mullinger, in their " Introduc- 

 tion to English History " (C. Kegan Paul & 

 Co.), show forth the best fruits of sound judg- 

 ment, scrupulous accuracy, and strict impar- 

 tiality. The list of authorities is particularly 

 valuable. In this connection E. A. Freeman's 

 "Historical Geography of Europe" (Long- 

 mans) deserves special mention. It is worthy 

 of his high reputation, and is a positive gain to 

 historical and political science. The volume 

 of maps accompanying adds not a little to the 

 value and interest of the work. The first vol- 

 ume of C. A. Fyffe's " History of Modern Eu- 

 rope " begins at the outbreak of the Revolu- 

 tionary War, in 1792, and extends to the acces- 

 sion of Louis XVIII, in 1814. It is a vigorous 

 and brilliant sketch, and promises well for the 

 character and value of the volumes yet to 

 come. 



The Biography of the year is, as in previous 

 years, varied and unusually full. John Morley, 

 in his "Life of Richard Cobden " (Chapman 

 & Hall), has furnished a very satisfactory 

 memoir of the statesman, and made also an 

 excellent addition to contemporaneous history 

 and politics. Mrs. Hardcastle writes a life of 

 her father, " John, Lord Campbell " (John 

 Murray), being a selection from his autobiog- 

 raphy, diary, and letters. It is a work of 

 real merit. " P. Fitzgerald's "Life of George 

 IV " (Tinsley Brothers) gives pretty fully that 



