( £25 ) 

 NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 



Wild Life on a Tidal Water : the Adventures of a House-boat and 

 her Crew. By P. H. Emerson. Illustrated with 30 Photo- 

 etchings. Together with an Appendix " Breydon, Past 

 and Present." London : Sampson Low, Marston & Co. 

 4to., pp. 145. 



We do not know who first introduced the fashion of writing 

 handbooks to the Norfolk Broads, but whoever the author may 

 have been, he has had many copyists, and, to judge by the books 

 which continue to appear, the supply of such guides bids fair to 

 exceed the demand. As might be expected, they are of very 

 unequal merit. 



From the naturalist's point of view we have read nothing 

 better than the description of a Norfolk Broad in summer and in 

 winter, with all its wealth of bird -life, to be found in the late 

 Henry Stevenson's * Birds of Norfolk.' But this is no more 

 than was to be expected from so accomplished an observer, who, 

 from a life-long residence within easy reach of the Broads, was 

 intimately acquainted with most of them. The case is far 

 otherwise with the majority of visitors ; or at least with those 

 who have essayed to write guide-books to the Broads. Their 

 experience, as a rule has been limited to a few weeks, and their 

 knowledge of natural history is of the slenderest description. 

 The least pretentious, and perhaps on that account the most 

 acceptable volumes of the kind, are those in which the writers 

 have attempted no more than an account of a pleasant holiday 

 spent in exploring some of the Norfolk broads and rivers, with 

 such statistics as are likely to be of use to those inclined to 

 follow their course. 



In the handsomely illustrated quarto volume before us we have 

 something more than this — something beyond the mere narrative 

 of an enjoyable summer cruise. In the thirty photo -etchings on 

 toned paper there is a direct appeal to the artistic feeling of the 

 reader, who is presented with some of the most striking views 

 obtainable en route from the deck of a house-boat. They are of 

 unequal merit, owing to the difficulty of focussing when working 

 with a quick exposure shutter on a swift tideway, and the 

 difficulty in securing proper paper, since that which is admired 



