ANIMAL STORY BOOKS. 
257 
ANIMAL STORY BOOKS.'= 
The fascination attaching to stories about animals has held sway from very 
early times, and has in no way lessened in these latter days. Last Christmas we 
were rejoicing in the new fun^le-book ; and Mr. Lang now takes the animals in 
hand, lie carries us back to I’liny and Plutarch, to Androcles (who is evidently 
a great favourite with the publisher, as the same picture of him is printed twice), 
and “ the days of Tiberius the Emperor,” and then, by way of the Uog of 
Montargis — Dickens lovers will remember the inimitable account of his drama as 
performed by one of the “dogs of shy neighbourhoods” — and Cowper’s hares 
and Jesse’s dogs — whose legends, we fear, are a little of the nature of the Balliol 
dog story lately published by the Spectator — down to “ the dog Oscar” and “ Fire- 
eating Djijam,” who may be styled, like the portraits in the Strand Magazine, 
“present day.” The world, indeed, is in some sense the poorer for the loss of 
these two, for they were clever and interesting. But as Oscar killed pigeons — 
and buried them — although this was the result of previous (and (juite harmless) 
attacks upop seagulls, and Djijam had too great a fondness for taking lighted logs 
off the fire and carrying red-hot cinders into his box-bed, it is perhaps as well 
that their careers were not unduly prolonged. Then there are wonderful cats, 
one of whom is — or was — “on friendly terms with young rabbits,” and “wiles 
away a spare hour by having a game with a mouse ” ; and tales about all sorts of 
creatures — birds, beasts, and fishes, to say nothing of frogs and other “small deer” 
— tales so varied, so entertaining, and — we must add — so marvellous that they 
form no inapt continuation of the series of fairy books with which Mr. Lang has 
enlivened previous Christmases. The marvellous, indeed, occupies no small 
share of the volume ; and as Mr. Lang himself, although guaranteeing that “ the 
stories are all true, more or less" — an ominous qualification — admits that “it is 
possible that M. Dumas and M. Theophile Gautier rather improved upon their 
tales,” and owns that he has his doubts “about the bears and serpents in the 
tales by the Baron Wogan,” we may be excused if we claim that freedom of 
judgment which the average Englishman is prone to exercise liberally on most 
matters. 
The older stories from Pliny are rendered into quaint English by Mrs. Lang, 
but we suspect the editor has given them the benefit of his supervision. Here 
is one : — 
“ In the days of Tiberius the Emperor, there was a young raven hatched in a 
nest upon the church of Castor and Pollux, which to make trial how he could fly, 
took his first flight into a shoemaker’s shop, just out against the said church. 
The master of the shop was well enough content to receive this bird as commended 
to him from so sacred a place, and in that regard set great store by it. This 
raven in short time being acquainted with man’s speech, began to speak, and 
every morning would fly up to the top of the Rostra, or public pulpit for orations, 
when, turning to the open Forum, or market place, he would salute and bid good- 
morrow to Tiberius Cxsar, and after him to Germanicus and Drusus, the young 
princes, every one by their names, and anon the people of Rome also that passed 
by ; and when he had so done, afterwards would fly again to the shoe-maker’s 
shop aforesaid. This duty practised, yea, and continued for many years together, 
to the great wonder and admiration of all men. 
“ Now it fell out so that another shoemaker, who had taken the next shop unto 
him, either upon a malicious envy, or some sudden spleen of passion and anger, 
killed the raven. Whereat the people took such indignation that they, rising in 
an uproar, first drove him out of that street, and made that quarter of the city too 
hot for him ; and not long after murdered him for it. But contrariwise, the carcase 
of this raven was solemnly interred, and the funeral performed with all the cere- 
monial obsequies that could be devised. For the corpse of this bird was bestowed 
in a coffin, couch, or bed, and the same bedecked with chaplets of fresh flowers of 
* The Animal Story Book. Edited by Andrew Lang. With numerous 
illustrations by H. J. Ford. Longmans, 6s. 
Cat and Bird Stories from the '■‘■Spectator." W’ith an introduction by J. St. 
Loe Strachey. Fisher Unwin, 5s. 
