140 
NATURE 
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[Fune 19, 1873 
upon the contrivances used for fishing. ‘There, too, as in 
other portions of his route, he became familiar with the 
ways of Spanish priests, and formed his experiences of 
native hospitality, besides learning something of the 
system of wholesale plunder which is carried on almost 
with impunity, on sea and on land, in this as in all other 
portions of the islands, where it is likely to pay. It ap- 
pears, from the author’s statements, that piracy is frequent 
on the coast, and that the country is likewise exposed to 
gangs of lawless marauders, against whom the Govern- 
ment is almost powerless, while the people are generally 
deprived of firearms, or, when provided with them, don’t 
know how to use them, Occasionally they make 
descents upon the land, plundering wherever they go, 
often accompanying their rapacity with deeds of violence, 
even murder, and constantly carrying away their victims 
as prisoners. 
Of the land and sea journeys of M. Jagor, generally, it 
may be said that they are full of incident, and that he 
never allows anything to escape his notice which may 
appear to him to be likely to have interest in the eyes 
of Europeans. From volcanic eruptions to the many odd 
incidents that presented themselves to him on his journey, 
nothing is unworthy of his attention, nor beyond his 
graphic power. His style is at once quiet, simple, and 
effective, and will delight every reader of German, by the 
ease with which it portrays the grandest or the most 
simple objects. He is always deeply impressed with the 
grandeur of the scenery through which his path lies, 
heightened as it often is by the beauty and luxuriance of 
tropical vegetation, and the majesty of primeval forests 
which extend their dense masses to the sea-margin. The 
natural productions of the country—animal, mineral, and 
vegetable—are the subject of copious mention ; and in 
connection with this part of the subject he has been at great 
pains to examine for himself, and put on record, the 
industrial and Governmental conditions under which all 
this mineral and other wealth is, or rather is not, made 
available for commerce. This is remarkably seen in his 
chapters on Manila hemp, and on the Government 
tobacco monopoly. 
One of the most curious and interesting portions of the 
whole book is the twentieth chapter, which describes 
some remarkable antiquities in the narrow San Francisco 
strait, a locality whose picturesqueness the author extols, 
questioning much “whether the ocean anywhere laves a 
spot of such rich and peculiar beauty.” The substance 
of this chapter, together with a few other portions of the 
work, has already appeared in Bastian and Hartmann’s 
“ Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie.” The remains referred to 
are certain ancient sarcophagi found in cavities in a 
series of marble-like rocks situated near the eastern en- 
trance to the straits, and in a few other remarkable locali- 
ties. These rocks rise out at seato a height of a hundred 
feet. Their summits are dome-shaped, and their bases 
are much worn by the action of the sea. In these cavities 
the ancient Pintados, a race of tattooed Indians, and some 
other natives of the Archipelago, deposited the remains 
of their wives and elders as before adverted to, They 
placed them in carefully closed coffins along with the 
objects which in life they deemed most precious. Slaves 
were sacrificed at their burial, in order that they might 
not be without attendants in the next world. These spots 
were regarded with superstitious awe by the natives, who 
believed them to be haunted. A young Spanish clergy- 
man led an expedition to some of the caves, and after 
some religious ceremonies, wrecked the coffins, and 
turned their contents into the sea. The superstition still 
lingers about the rocks, although.much weakened. The 
author had some difficulty in finding men resolute 
enough to accompany him on an expedition having a 
somewhat different object in view, that of bringing away 
some of the relics. He succeeded, however, and the 
trophies were deposited by him in the Zoological Museum 
of Berlin University. 
Profs. Roth and Virchow have contributed to the 
scientific portion of the book—the former dealing mi- 
nutely with the geology of the group, the latter with its 
ancient and its more recent inhabitants. A copious ap- 
pendix contains articles treating of the Islands under 
every possible aspect—historical, antiquarian, commercial, 
and governmental. The book is handsomely got up, and 
is printed in Roman characters, now getting more and more 
into use in Germany, and it is enriched with numerous 
admirably executed engravings, in various styles, from 
drawings made by the author on the spot, or obtained by 
him during his journey. A beautifully executed map is 
added, and the whole volume may be said to be an im- 
portant and valuable contribution to the literature of its 
class. 
MILLER’S ROMANCE OF ASTRONOMY 
The Romance of Astronomy. By R. Kalley Miller, 
M.A. (Macmillan & Co., 1873.) 
T is in days of strongly marked utilitarianism, when so 
much is brought into the market that was never 
intended to go there, and so much of what is there is 
unfortunately rated at its marketable value only, that 
corresponding efforts should be made, by those who 
have the welfare of society at heart, to maintain the due 
balance of the human intellect by the cultivation of its 
imaginative faculty. It is here that poetry affords the 
noblest aid ; and even the profusion of modern fiction 
may be looked upon by the philanthropist with less 
regret ; if only moderately sensible and well-guided, it 
may lend important assistance in obviating that degene- 
ration which would be the sure result of undue and exces- 
sive mental development in any one direction. 
The work now before us, a curious little book with a 
curious title, may in this view of things not be without its 
value. It is a reprint and enlargement of some popular 
lectures which appeared in the Light Blue; and the 
author tells us that his object “has not been so much to 
instruct as to entertain, and possibly in some cases to 
inspire a taste which might lead to the further prosecution 
of a most fascinating study ; and this will be his apology 
for passing over many important parts of the subject, and 
simply selecting a few points here and there which seem 
to afford scope for striking or amusing amplification.” 
And in pursuance of this design, he brings before us a 
series of speculations as to the possible condition of other 
worlds, where fancy is allowed as full a range as the most 
romantic of readers can desire. As an amusing instance 
of his peculiar vein, the following passage may be cited : 
“The part of the moon which appears bright to-us must 
