oy 
30 
NATLOGIRIE 
[Marcu 14, 1912 
diate British influence the traveller feels the im- 
pression of “having stepped back in the pages of 
history to medieval times. This illusion is further 
enhanced by ancestral castles’ and a working 
feudal system.” This being so, the author might 
perhaps be criticised on the score of anachronism 
when he tells his story in good colloquial 
language of the most modern kind, and even 
makes the native characters on his stage con- 
-—The Selkirks from Asulkan Pass. 
Fic. 2 
verse in it—were it not that the change from the 
conventional biblical style in rendering native. 
speech is frankly refreshing. The Aden _hinter- 
land merges into a region which is one of the 
least known in the world—the seat of an early 
civilisation which must either have existed under 
more favourable climatic conditions than now 
obtain there, or must have learned means of con- 
tending against conditions now forbidding settle- 
ment, if not mere passage. Mr. Bury clearly feels 
NO. 2211,) VOL.! 89] 
From ‘‘ The Canadian Rockies.” 
| the 
| for 
regret at having stood on the threshold of the 
unknown without entering it. | Nevertheless, he 
adds much to the knowledge of the parts which 
he visited—their geography, their inhabitants, 
and their fauna. History is dealt with in an 
appendix, as well as ina preface by Major-General 
Maitland, an ex-political resident at Aden. A 
compliment is due to the few lines which close 
the book, entitled “A Desert Vesper.” 
Sir Edward Durand’s book is 
the record of a mighty hunter, 
though it makes ‘‘no pretence of 
posing as a sporting classic.” In 
its pages will be found stories of 
practically every form of sport 
in India. from tiger-shooting to 
mahseer-fishing. The writer had 
exceptional opportunities of en- 
joying the best sport that the 
country could furnish. His ex- 
periences, therefore, should serve 
as a guide. to others, and his 
stories are often made to point a 
moral. He writes, perhaps, on 
no subject with more authority 
than on horses in his third chap- 
ter, at the opening of which he 
says, “I have had a large num- 
ber pass through my hands, from 
racers and hunters to _ polo 
ponies.” He greatly favours the 
Arab, with its ‘‘cannon-bone of 
the consistence of ivory ”’—in re- 
spect of this particular feature 
there is an interesting compari- 
son between various _ breeds. 
This chapter is full of sound ad- 
vice. There are very effective 
illustrations in half-tone from 
drawings portraying the chase 
of the tiger, wild pig, and other 
animals. 
It is difficult to realise that the 
bulk of the matter which makes 
up Capt. Orr’s history of North- 
ern Nigeria deals with events 
confined within the last decade. 
It was in 1900 that the British 
Government assumed direct con- 
trol in this territory. This form 
of administration had been pre- 
ceded by chartered company ad- 
ministration, but Sir George 
Goldie had shown that “the 
absorption of the company in 
Imperial Government” was a_ process 
contemplated when the company first applied 
its charter. The company had deserved 
well of the Empire as an administrative 
organisation; it had to contend not only with 
internal native opposition, but with external 
complications, until the Anglo-French Convention 
of 1808 settled the frontier question. Having had 
assistance from Sir George Goldie himself and 
the Earl of Scarborough, Capt. Orr is able to tell 
