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NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 



A Breath from the Veldt. By John Guille Millais, Author of 

 * Game Birds and Shooting Sketches.' With Illustrations 

 by the Author, and Frontispiece by Sir J. E. Millais, R.A. 

 4to, pp. i-x; 1-236. London : Henry Sotheran & Co. 1895. 



The former volume on Game-birds by this author was 

 reviewed in 'The Zoologist' for 1894 (pp. 354-358). It dealt 

 exclusively with the Grouse family, and the field of observation 

 was Scotland, chiefly Perthshire. In the handsome quarto now 

 before us the scenery is of a very different character. Mr. Millais 

 takes us into South Africa, — Beaufort, Karroo, Colesberg, and 

 part of the Orange Free State, — where we are introduced to many 

 of the characteristic animals, chiefly big game, which delight the 

 heart of the hunter and naturalist. 



Mr. Millais possesses this advantage over his contemporaries 

 who have written of African sport and travel, — he is not dependent 

 upon an artist who has never seen what he attempts to draw, but 

 is able to furnish his own illustrations made upon the spot. This 

 undoubtedly is a very great advantage, especially in the case of 

 those wild animals whose portraits hitherto have been taken from 

 museum specimens " with all faults." It is comparatively easy, of 

 course, to correct faulty outlines, and to depict an animal in repose; 

 but the difficulty is to convey an accurate idea of its natural 

 appearance when in motion. Capt. Swayne has attempted some- 

 thing of the sort in his excellent book on Somaliland, which was 

 reviewed in this Journal only last year (pp. 315-318) ; but his 

 attempt fell short of perfection for want of that artistic training 

 which has served Mr. Millais in such good stead. In this respect 

 Mr. Millais has made a new departure, and he has succeeded in 

 graphically reproducing a series of outlines instantaneously photo- 

 graphed in his mind's eye, and at once transferred to paper, which 

 are as striking as they are novel to all but those who, like himself, 

 have seen what he depicts. This may be said to be the chief 

 feature of his work ; but it is not the only feature. His descrip- 

 tions in the text bear the stamp of close observation, and the 

 details which he gives of the habits of many South African 

 mammals and birds supply gaps in the published accounts of 

 previous writers which will be very acceptable to naturalists. 



