LITKUA'ITKK, ( ONT1NKNTAI,. 



407 



Natioiiale," completed by the son of 

 theauthor : as \\ell as the works <>f Mgr. Nann'che 

 and Can. .11 D.u-i-. 1'oullet's book, we are told, 

 i; an e\. -client review of the development 

 ..f ill.- in-lit ut ions <!' the Low Countries previous 

 to th<- French annexation of 1794. A. Henri 

 ha- writ i ni a fairly impartial account of "the 

 secular feud between two races and two lan- 

 guages in Belgium." while Ch. \Voesle, the Min- 

 i State, is said to have produced a verita- 

 ble sensation by his " Neutral ite Beige, la Bel- 

 giquc et la France," in which Belgian policy is 

 valiantly defended. Special periods and localities 

 ha\c been treated by J. Prederichs, who has 

 thrown li^hton a dark subject in his " Le Grand 

 Cotiseil Ambulatoire des Dues de Bourgogne et 

 des Archiducs d'Autriche (1446-1504)"; H. 

 Vanilcr Linden, said to be a young writer of 

 promise (" Ilistoire de ^Constitution de la Ville 

 de Lnuvain au Moyen Age"); Prosper Claeys, 

 with a three-volume "Ilistoire du Theatre a 

 (Jand "; and A. Vlaminck, in his " Origines de 

 la Ville de Gand." Monographs on Jean le 

 .Ma ire (by J. Stecher) and Jacques Le Roy (by 

 De Raadt) should also be noted. A number of 

 learned contributions to the history of other 

 lands are likewise to be recorded. An important 

 production is Martin Philippson's "Histoire du 

 Kegne de Marie Stuart," a very impartial work 

 by one who formerly held a professorship in 

 the Brussels University. Gen. Wauwermans has 

 issued a volume on " Henri le Navigateur et 

 1' Academic Portugaise de Sagres," and special 

 aspects of French history have been elucidated 

 notably in three works; these are: "Theories 

 Politiques et le Droit International en France 

 jusqu'au XVIII 8 Siecle," byE. Nys; L. Leclere's 

 " Les Rapports de la Papaute et de la France 

 sous Philippe III (1270-'85)"; and Fredericks 

 monograph on " Robert le Bougre," Pope Greg- 

 ory IX's first inquisitor in France. "Ele- 

 mens de^Paleographie et de Diplomatique du 

 Moyen Age *' has been brought out by Canon 

 Reusens. And, finally, touching on the two 

 extremes of ancient and contemporary history, 

 we have resumes of the progress of Assyriology 

 during the last eleven years, and of Latin epig- 

 raphy during the last fifty, by Father Delattre 

 and M. Waltzing, respectively, and a volume of 

 recollections of the war in the Balkans, by P. F. 

 Levaux, entitled " Ghazi Osman Pacha." 



In the field of political and social science, the 

 most notable publication, to which the Govern- 

 ment awarded the prize of 5,000 francs found- 

 ed for books of this character, has been Emile 

 de Laveleye's " Le Gouvernement dans la Demo- 

 crat ic." The book was brought out. just before 

 the death of the noted publicist, who was en- 

 gaged upon a treatise on political economy at 

 the time of his decease. Other new works in 

 th is department are "Associations Professionelles 

 d' Artisans et d'Ouvriers" (two volumes), social- 

 istic in tendency, by E. Vander Velde ; " Etudes 

 sur les Questions Ouvrieres," by De Queker ; and 

 two works on Belgian affairs : " Les Masuirs " 

 (researches into ancient forms of collective prop- 

 erty), by P. Errera, and " Les Finances Com- 

 munales en Belgique." by Louis Richald. S. 

 Deploige's brochure, " Le Referendum en Suisse." 

 is on a subject which seems to have received in- 

 creased attention in recent years. Furthermore, 



we have X. FrancotteV " Anthropologie 

 inelle" (concerned with the theories of Loi 

 and Bertillon), L. Franck's " Essai sur la Con- 

 dition Politique de laFemme" ("crowned" by 

 the Paris Faculty of Law), and a volume on 

 " Les Civilizations animales," by P. Combes. 

 The principal contributions in the domain of 

 theology have been "Los Religions dc la Chine." 

 by .Mgr. de liarlez, and " L'Idee de Dieu d'apn'-s 

 1' Anthropologie et 1'Ilistoiru " (Ilibbert Lectures), 

 by Count Goblet d'Alviella. 

 'The history of the arts in Belgium has 

 been contributed to in the following works: 

 "Les Peintres Verriers d'Anvers," by C. van 

 Cauwenbergs : " La Sculpture et les Arts Plas- 

 tiques au Pays de Liege et sur les Bords de la 

 Meuse," by J. Helbig; "Les Tapisseries de 

 Tournai," by E. Soil ; and " L'Hotel de Ville de 

 beau (1526^'30)," by A. Goovaerts. Here may 

 be named also Countess Marie de Villermont's 

 curious and profusely illustrated " Ilistoire de 

 la Coiffure." In literary history and criticism, 

 there have been F. Nautet's " Ilistoire des 

 Lettres Beiges d'Expression Franaise," P. Berg- 

 mans's " Etude sur 1'Eloquence Parlementaire 

 Beige sous le Regime Hollandais (1815-'30)," 

 Abbe Stiernet's " Histoire de la Litterature 

 Fransaise au Moyen Age et au XVI e Siecle," 

 an essay on " Le Labeur de la Prose " by Gustave 

 Abel, and a monograph on Ibsen by Ch. Sarolea. 

 A prodigious number of works of fiction in 

 the French language have been issued during 

 the year, and yet, queerly enough, we are told 

 that the Belgians distrust their French littera- 

 teurs. Beginning with the old school of novel- 

 ists, we have notably Xavier de Reul's "Le 

 Chevalier Forelle." "Cycle. Patibulaire" and 

 " Dames de Volupte " are the two latest novels 

 of Georges Eckhoud and C. Lemonnier, probably 

 the two strongest men in the realistic camp, 

 and both books have been characterized as 

 " decidedly crude." "La Jeune Belgique," the 

 new school of "younger men." is attracting 

 much attention. The founder of the movement, 

 Maurice Warlomont (" Max Waller"), who died 

 a few years ago, left a delightful tale, " Daisy," 

 which has been published. Maurice Maeter- 

 linck, of the production of whose strange plays 

 in Paris, London, Copenhagen, and Brussels the 

 press has brought us word, has refused the 

 quinquennial prize for dramatic literature 

 which had been won by his " Princess Maleine," 

 and has also brought out two new dramas, " I .- - 

 sept Princesses" and "Pelleas et Melisande," 

 which appear to hfvve been accorded a more 

 favorable reception than his former works. As 

 to the poetry that has been published, it is char- 

 acterized as generally exceedingly careful in 

 form but lacking in originality. 



In Flemish literature the year's publication 

 of books also includes works of importance. 

 Here, too, we find an active interest in historical 

 studies. Paul Fredericq has issued the first vol- 

 ume of a " Geschiedenis der Inquisitie in de Ne- 

 derlanden"; Frans de Potter has continued his 

 great work on Ghent, and has also made re- 

 searches concerning the manners and customs 

 of the Flemings in the thirteenth and fourtenth 

 centuries: J. Frederichs, who, as we have seen, 

 writes also in French, describes a singular sect 

 of Antwerpian libertines in his "De Secte der 



