under moral compulsion her promise of a munificent contribution to a monument of the poet, she does not hesitate to pay a reverential tribute to his memory.

MESSRS. TILLOTSON & SON announce the forthcoming publication of an English story by the Queen of Roumania (" Carmen Sylvia"), who is on a visit to England. Messrs. Tillotson have also secured stories by Mrs. Oliphant, Mr. Robert Buchanan, Mr. Bret Harte, the Marquis of Lorne, Mr. Justin McCarthy, Mr. James Payn, Mr. Clark Russell, and Mr. Hawley Smart, original publication of which will take place in the newspaper press of both hemispheres.

THE well-known publishing firm of W. & R. Chambers, of Edinburgh and London, has been turned into a limited liability company, the capital being £100,000. The shares are not being offered to the public, but are to be divided among the Chambers family and the employés.

THE eleventh volume of the new edition of De Quincey's collected writings (Edinburgh : A. & C. Black) continues and concludes the essays in literary theory and criticism. They may be said to deal with three periods of literature: (1) English writers of the eighteenth century, from Swift to Junius; (2) the modern Germans-Lessing, Goethe, and Jean Paul Richter; and (3) some of De Quincey's own contemporaries, including Shelley, Keats, and Landor. We observe that the editor, Professor David Masson, refuses to reprint De Quin. cey's early review of Carlyle's translation of "Wilhelm Meister," on the ground that De Quincey had deliberately omitted it from his Collected Writings.

A COLLECTION of all the existing Copyright Laws and Treaties is being prepared by Mr. G. Hedeler, of Leipzig; and the first part, containing Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Great Britain, and the United States, will be published in a few days. This collection differs from all previous works of the kind on the one hand in containing the exact text of the enactments, and on the other in the omission of all obsolete matter.

THE well-known "Lutherforscher," Dr. Buchwald, has had the good fortune to make two interesting discoveries in the Municipal Library at Zwickau. He has found two books

with marginalia in Luther's handwriting. The first of these, printed probably in 1493 or 1494, is "Johannis de Trittenhem abbatis Spanhemensis, ordinis sancti Benedicti de observantia Burssfeldensi Liber lugubris de statu et ruina monastici ordinis; omnibus religiosis ac devotis viris non minus utilis quam jucundus." The manuscript remarks in Luther's writing show that he read this book while he was still an Augustinian monk. The book itself is rich in suggestions on the need of reforming the monastic system, and doubtless had a considerable effect on the reformer's mind, and represented his own early standpoint. The other book, "Opuscula Anselmi Archiepiscopi Cantuariensis ordinis Sancti Benedicti," also contains numerous remarks upon the margin from Luther's pen. A bookmark was found within this latter volume, containing the words, in Luther's handwriting, "Ve vobis qui ridetis, quia flebitis olim. At vos nunc qui fletis certe gaudebitis olim." Out of the nine books of the Rector Daum'schen Bibliothek which were formerly in Luther's possession, seven have now been found.

STUDENTS of English mediæval literature will be gratified to learn that an exact reprint of "The Golden Legend" as originally set forth by William Caxton is in preparation, under the joint editorship of Mr. William Morris and Mr. F. S. Ellis. If it is found practicable to obtain the use of a copy of the first edition it is proposed to reproduce that text with scrupulous accuracy, supplementing it with a glossary and index. In place of the black letter, to the use of which there are manifold objections, a fount of types newly designed by Mr. Morris after the fashion of those employed by Nicholas Jenson will be substituted. In view of the extreme value of the original, it will be necessary to make a complete transcript of the whole work, amounting to about a thousand closely printed folio pages, and where absolute accuracy is aimed at this must be done by the editor himself or carried on under his own eye. Some time must necessarily elapse, therefore, before the work can go to press, though it will be proceeded with immediately. The editors have agreed to give their labors gratuitously in consideration of Mr. Quaritch bearing all expenses of production. As the impression will be a limited one, subscribers would do well to send their names to the publisher forthwith.

IN Gustav zu Putlitz, born in 1820 of an aristocratic family, Germany has just lost a writer of considerable merit, who distinguished himself as novelist, poet, and dramatist. He first made for himself a name by his charming idyllic fairy tales, "Was sich der Wald erzählt," which enjoyed great popularity in Germany and other countries forty years ago. Several of his comedies and dramas were very successful on the stage, more particularly his "Testament des Grossen Kurfürsten," which is a dramatic vindication of the Princess Electress Dorothea, who was accused of having induced her husband, the Prince Elector Frederick William, to make a will to the detriment of the unity of Brandenburg. Putlitz, who was active as Hofmarschall in 1867-68 to the late Emperor Frederick when Crown Prince, and subsequently as Intendant of the Karlsruhe Theatre, was a noble-minded character, and enjoyed the esteem of all politi. cal parties.

MISCELLANY.

"the

looked up at the sun. "On the whole," he said last year, on a very solemn occasion, state of things in Russia is sad. The people's minds are wofully dark, and there is no sign of the coming dawn." Nor is it likely that day will break for many generations yet to come. Under a Government that systematically refuses to allow the people intellectual or moral instruction, that closes up elementary schools, appoints profligates to teach in higher educational establishments, banishes forever devoted apostles who, like Colonel Pashkoff, of the Horse Guards, were vigorously and successfully cleansing the Augean stables of moral filth-under such a Government there can be but faint hope of better things. English readers cannot realize the profound bitterness of heart with which a Russian who loves his country discusses these things with his fellowcountrymen. It is gall and wormwood to him to have to write of them to foreigners. But there is no other way of influencing rulers who are impervious to shame. The Government is responsible for a state of things which every honest Russian admits to be a scandalous disgrace to the civilized world. The side on which man comes into contact with the fathomless depths of spiritual nature is closed up in the Russian, made inaccessible to the waves and surges of the spiritual ocean. There is no ideal. The video meliora proboque, productive in most men of a salutary dissatisfaction with themselves and nerving them to the perform. ance of higher things, is here completely lacking. The ordinary Russian knows no better than he does, and it is forbidden to teach him. His falls are not, like that of Antæus, a source of increased strength. There is no honest effort to make the dead of to-day the rung of a Jacob's ladder, by which to ascend to a higher level to-morrow, and so onward to perfection. No matter how deep he may sink in the well of vice he descries no loadstar in the artificial night above him, no faintest glimmer or twinkle to suggest that high over his head arches an infinite starry heaven, and not a mere amalgam of clouds, mist, and fog. His eyes are not lighted up by even a stray gleam of that transcendental reason which is of all ages and most men. They are murky, sad, blinded, as it were, by the smoke of extin guished spiritual fire. In a word, the life of a Russian is not a progress; it is a station, a filthy hovel, magnified into an abiding mansion by vision as distorted as that of Titania when she mistook Bottom the joiner for Adonis.-Fortnightly Review.

RUSSIAN MORALITY. - A more robust faith in humanity and a more intimate acquaintance with Russians make one hope rather than believe that their truly rich nature may be endowed with some irrepressibly recuperative force, to enable it to assume its original form under more auspicious circumstances, to impel their many latent qualities to work their way onward and upward through the hard crust of ages, till they burst into the light of day and fertilize the field of European civilization. The genuine Russian gentleman and the ideal Russian lady-both exist, and are to be found among sectarian peasants as well as in certain exclusive salons of St. Petersburgare among the noblest specimens of civilized humanity; the refreshing unconventionality of thought and expression, the graceful simplicity of manner, the wonderful delicacy of feeling, the generous aspirations and noble yearnings-might, if they grew to be the characteristics of the nation, effect great things. But is there any serious hope of this? Let the Archbishop of Kherson and Odessa reply, who, himself sprung from the people, has spent a long life in their midst working for their weal, like a solitary swallow hopelessly coming to make spring before the sap stirs within the trees, the frail blossoms are hung out on the branches, or even the snowdrop has

INTRODUCTION.

A NUMBER of guests were once gathered together under the hospitable roof of a rich man, and it came to pass one day that, their conversation took a serious turn, the theme being hunan life. They discussed persons who were present and persons who were absent; but they were unable to find among all their acquaintances one single man who was satisfied with his life. Not that any one of them had reason to grumble at fortune; but not one of them could pretend to look upon the life he was leading as one worthy of a Christian. They all admitted that they were squandering away their existence in a worldly manner, caring only for themselves and their families, taking no thought of their neighbor and still less of God.

Such was the gist of their remarks, and they were singularly unanimous in finding NEW SERIES.-VOL. LII., No. 6.

themselves guilty of leading godless, unChristian lives.

"Why, then, go on living in this miserable way?" exclaimed a youth who had taken part in the discussion: "why continue to do what we ourselves condemn ? Are we not masters of our own lives, free to modify and change them at our will? Abcut one thing we are all perfectly clear; our luxury, our effeminacy, our riches, but more than all else our overwhelming pride and our consequent isolation from our brethren are hurrying us on to irreparable ruin. In order that we may become distinguished and wealthy we are forced to deprive ourselves of all that constitutes the joy of human life: we live huddled together in cities, we grow lax and enervated, undermine our health and in spite of all our amusements die of ennui and of regret that our life is so far removed from what it should be. Now,

why should we live so, why thus ruthlessly blast our whole life, wantonly trample upon a priceless boon conferred upon us by God? I, for one, will no longer debase myself by living as heretofore. My unfinished course of studies I will cast to the winds, for they can lead me to naught else but that bitterly painful existence of which you are all now complaining. I will renounce my estates and retire to the country, where I shall spend all my time with the poor. I will work in their midst, will inure myself to such manual labor as they perform, and should my intellectual culture be needful to them, I will impart it, not through the medium of establishments and books, but directly, living and working among them as among brothers. Yes," he concluded, casting an interrogative glance at his father, who stood there listening to his words, "I have taken my decision."

"Your desire is noble at bottom," said his father," but it is the unripe fruit of an undeveloped brain. To you everything appears thus feasible, because you have not yet tasted life. What would become of us and the world at large if we were to pursue everything that seemed good and desirable! The realization of all these desirable things is generally very difficult and complicated. It is no easy matter to make headway even along a smooth and well-beaten track; but how hard must it not be when we have to set to work to make new roads of our own? Such a task is only for those members of the community who have grown perfectly mature and have assimilated the highest and best that is accessible to man. To you the ordering of life upon wholly new lines seems mere child's play, because to you life is still a scaled book. This is the outcome of the thoughtlessness and pride of youth. Hence it is that we sedate people, older in years and wiser in knowledge, are indispensable, in order to moderate your fiery outburst and give you the benefit of our experience, while it is your duty to submit to us and be guided by our riper wisdom. Yours will be a life of activity in future years at present you are in a period of growth and developinent. Wait till your education is completed; finish your studies, develop your faculties to their fullest capacity, stand on your own legs, form your own convictions and then adopt the new life you have been

sketching for us, if you feel that you possess the needful strength. For the present you are only expected to obey those who are guiding you for your own good and you are not called upon to remodel human life on a new basis."

The young man remained silent, and his elders agreed that his father's advice was sound.

Our

"You are perfectly right," cried a married man of middle age, addressing his remarks to the last speaker. "No doubt our young friend there, utterly devoid as he is of experience, may easily go astray in his gropings after new ways in the labyrinth of life, nor can his resolve be seriously regarded as steadfast. At the same time, however, we are all agreed that the lives we are leading run counter to the promptings of our consciences and are productive of no good results to ourselves. Hence we cannot but look with favor on the desire to effect a thorough change in our manner of living. young friend there may, likely enough, mistake his own fancy for a logical conclusion worked out by his reason, but I am no longer a young man and I will tell you what I think and feel on the subject. Following attentively the discussion that bas taken place here this, evening, the selfsame thought that occurred to him suggested itself to me. It is perfectly obvious to me that the life I am leading cannot possibly confer upon me happiness or peace of conscience. Reason and experience alike emphatically urge this truth upon me. What, then, am I waiting for? From morning to night I am toiling and moiling for my family, with the 10sult that myself and my family, far from living in harmony with God's will, are sinking day by day deeper and deeper in the slough of sin. You work hard for your family, but in the long run your family is not one whit the better for your labor, because your efforts are not a real benefit to it. Hence I often ask myself whether it would not be much better if I were to change my life completely and realize the ideas which our young friend there has so clearly set before us, taking no thought of my wife or children, but caring only for my soul. It is not without reason that Paul says: He that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. . . . He that is unmarried careth for the

6

things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord.'"

Alinost before the speaker could recite this short text to the end all the women present, his own wife among the number, indignantly protested.

"You should have thought of this long before," exclaimed an elderly lady who had been attentively listening. "You have made your bed, and must lie in it. That would be a pretty state of things in which every one who found it difficult to maintain his wife and family might shirk his duty by merely signifying a wish to save his soul. This is but fraud and baseness. A man ought to be able to live a good upright life in the bosom of his family; to save yourself alone needs no great art-nay, more, it is even contrary to Christ's teaching. God commands us to love others, and here are you wanting to injure others for God's sake The truth is that a married man has certain well-defined duties and obligations, and he should not neglect them. It is quite a different thing when the family is already cared for, brought up and all its members put standing on their own legs. Then you may do as you like for your self. But surely no one has a right to do anything tending to break up his family?""

To this the married man did not assent. "It is not my purpose," he replied, "to abandon my family. I merely contend that it is my duty to bring up my family, my children, in an unworldly manner, not accustoming them to live for their own pleasures, but, as was suggested a few moments ago, inuring them to want, to work, teaching them to give a helpinghand to their fellows and, above all, to treat all men as brothers. And to this end, it is indispensable to renounce distinction and riches.

"It is quite absurd for you to go talk ing about breaking in others to the new life while you yourself are farther from it than any of us," exclaimed his wife, with much warmth. "You have always lived in the lap of luxury from your childhood upward, and why should you now wish to torture your wife and children? Let them grow up in peace and quiet, and then leave them to undertake for themselves whatever line of life commends itself to them, but don't you go compelling them to embrace this way of living or that."

The married man made no reply, but an aged man sitting near him delivered himself as follows: "It is quite true, no doubt, that a married man who has accustomed his family to ease and comfort should not deprive them of it all of a sudden. There is also great force in the argument that once the education of the children has been begun on certain lines, it is much better to continue and complete it than to break it off and commence something else, especially as the children themselves, when grown up, will not fail to choose the way that is best for them. I am therefore of opinion that it is difficult -nay, and sinful, too--for a married man to change his life. It is quite a different matter with us old men, whom God Himself, so to say, has commanded to do so. I may be allowed to speak for myself: I live practically without any duties or obligations whatever. I live, if the truth must be told, solely for my belly; I eat, drink, rest myself, and am myself disgusted and sick of it all. me it is high time to abandon this wretched life, distribute my earthly goods, and to live now, at least, on the eve of my death, as God ordained that Christians should live.''

Now surely, for

But even the old man found no support. His niece was present and his godchild, all of whose children he held at the baptismal font, and gratified with presents on holidays ever since, and also his own They one and all objected.

son.

"No, no," said his son. "You have worked quite hard enough in your time, and it is meet that you should now rest and not kill yourself outright. You have lived for sixty years with your tastes and habits, and it is not at this time of day that you can think of giving them up. The outcome of any such attempt would be that you would subject yourself to great torture with no result whatever.''

Quite so, chimed in his niece; "and when you are in want you will be out of sorts and will be always grumbling, and consequently you will be sinning more grievously than ever before. Besides, God is merciful and pardons all sinners, not to speak of such a dear good uncle as yourself.''

"Yes, and why should we stir in this matter at all?" asked another old man of the same age as the uncle. "You and I have perhaps two days more to live.