LITEKATURE, CONTINENTAL, IN 1881. 



499 



representation of minorities in elections, a ques- 

 tion which preoccupies public opinion, there 

 are sundry works of importance. M. Perin, 

 ex-Professor of the University of Louvain, who 

 was the leader of the Ultramontanes, has pub- 

 lished a remarkable book on the "Doctrines 

 Economiques depuis un Siecle." Hector Denis, 

 professor at Brussels, has studied the question 

 of the income-tax Professor Victor Brants, 

 of the Catholic University of Louvain, has com- 

 piled an interesting account of "L'Economie 

 Sociale au Moyen Age." Dr. C6sar de Paepe 

 has published a French translation of a pam- 

 phlet of Lassalle's, and has added to it an essay 

 on the German socialist. Louis Borguet has 

 a translation of Minghetti's " Lo Stato e la 

 Chiesa," with an introduction by M. Emile de 

 Laveleye; there is a volume by the latter 

 author on " Le Socialisme Contemporain," and 

 four essays on "La Question Monetaire en 

 1881." 



Three philosophical works have especially 

 attracted notice during the past year: " De la 

 Connaissance de Soi-meme," an essay on ana- 

 lytic psychology by Professor Charles Loomans; 

 " La Liberte et ses Effets Mecaniques," by J. 

 Delboeuf; and "L'Essai sur la Morale Stoici- 

 enne," by Professor Em. Hannot. 



Jurisprudence has furnished a contingent of 

 remarkable works. Professor F. Laurent has 

 published several volumes of his work on "Le 

 Droit Civil International." Ernest Nys has 

 written on " La Guerre Maritime." Edmond 

 Picard has excited violent clamors by his pam- 

 phlet, " La Confection Vicieuse des Lois en 

 Belgique," a satire on the legislation of the 

 Belgian Chambers. 



The history of fine arts occupies an honor- 

 able position. F. A. Gevaert, who has pub- 

 lished the second volume of his " Histoire de 

 la Musique dans 1'Antiquite," has studied the 

 rhythm, metre, chords, and general structure 

 of antique compositions, instruments, lyrical 

 monody, instrumental soli, choral dances, mu- 

 sic in the Greek drama, and finally the deca- 

 dence of musical art among the ancients. Al- 

 phonse Wauters has written a monograph on 

 Bernard van Orley. Max Rooses has supplied 

 curious details concerning the engravers of the 

 Rubens school in " Les Freres Wienicx a 1'Im- 

 primerie Plantinienne." Canon de Haerne has 

 published a " Coup d'CEil Historique sur 1'Art 

 Espagnol en rapport avec 1'Art Flamand." 

 Vanden Brando's " Geschiedenis der Antwerp- 

 sche Schilderschool," a masterpiece of histor- 

 ical accuracy ; " Un Congres de Peintres a 

 Bruges en 1468," by M. Alexander Pinchart : 

 " L'Art et la Liberte," by Lucien Solvay, and 

 " Les Caracteres de 1'Ecole Francaise Moderne 

 de Peinture," by Emile Leclercq, treat of the 

 present epoch. 



Two original volumes of poetry have ap- 

 peared, " La Mer E16gante," by M. Georges 

 Rodenbach ; and Theodore Hannon's " Rimes 

 de Joie." A materialistic and eccentric style 

 mars the poetic effect of the latter. 



There is a whole series of novels and novel- 

 ettes. 



In literary criticism Frederic Faber has 

 written on Jean Francois de Bastide, a French 

 libeler of the past century ; and G. Eeckhoud 

 has published a volume of details on Hendrik 

 Conscience. 



The most original works produced in Bel- 

 gium are written in Flemish. New works of 

 Flemish poetry are by J. de Geyter, Hansen, 

 Amandus de Vos, Guido Gezelle, Pol de Mont, 

 the late Alfred Wenstenraed. Staes, Rens, and 

 others. J. Vuylsteke has printed in a single 

 volume his " Verzamelde Gedichten." 



Besides works of fiction by Van Cuyck, Jans- 

 sens, Van Haesendonck, and Jan Bouchery, 

 Geiregat's " Vergeet-mij-nietjes " and " Alde- 

 nardiana " by MM. Teirlinck-Styns are note- 

 worthy. The new Amandus de Vos's novel, 

 "Een Vlaamsche Jongen," which ' appeared 

 under the pen-name of " Wazenaar," produces 

 the effect of a new book, so conscientiously has 

 the author revised his work. 



BOHEMIA. The activity that marks the be- 

 ginning of a new era for Bohemian literature has 

 in 1881 mainly found expression in the maga- 

 zines. Jaroslav Verchlicky' has two more vol- 

 umes of original verse, " Nov6 Epick6 Basne " 

 and "Pouti k Eldoradu" ("On the Pilgrim- 

 age to Eldorado "). A long narrative poem, 

 " Twardowsky'," from the same pen, appeared 

 in the periodical "Lnmir." Svatopluk Cech 

 and Julius Zeyer are both poets and romancers. 

 Cech contributed minor poems and sketches 

 to his magazine, the "Kvety." Zeyer wrote 

 a novel, " Zrada v Dome Han " (" The Treason 

 in -the House of Han "), on a Chinese theme as 

 a continuation of a series, " The Tales of Sho- 

 shana." A young poet, Karel Leger, issued 

 two volumes of verse, "Basne " ("Poems") 

 and "Zapomenut6 Sny" ("Forgotten Dreams"), 

 including echoes of the Russian national bal- 

 lads and lyrics. In a narrative poem by Otokar 

 Cervinka, " Ales Romanov," the hero is a 

 young enthusiast of 1848. Adolf Heyduk, the 

 Burns of Bohemia, wrote "Dudak" ("The 

 Bagpiper"). Irma Geisslova's "Divok6 Ko- 

 reni" ("Wild Weeds") contains lively and 

 original fancies. 



The drama, the weakest part of Bohemian 

 literature, seems to be improving. The open- 

 ing of the new national theatre at Prague stim- 

 ulated writers, nor were they checked by the 

 burning down of the grand edifice almost im- 

 mediately after its completion. A new fund 

 of a million florins was raised by public sub- 

 scription in less than a month, and the theatre 

 will soon rise from its ashes. The historical 

 drama suffers from the police restrictions, no 

 historical personage nor theme, however dis- 

 tant in time, being allowed to figure on the 

 stage if connected with the national political 

 and religious struggles. " Harant's Wife," 

 from the chronicles of the " Thirty Years' War," 

 by E. Krasnohorska, a lady, was one of the 

 notable plays of the year, as was also Durdik's 



