LIBER'S NOTE-BOOK

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2723, 18 March 1916, Page 9

LIBER'S NOTE-BOOK

VThe Queen's Gift Book,

One of the most praiseworthy institutions established in connection with the war is Queen Mary's Convalescent 'Auxiliary Hospital, , at Roehampton, which is exclusively devoted to sailors and soldiers who have lost thejr limbs during the war. On Novembor 1 last 2400 cases were on tho hospital register, and, alas, 1250 other patients were ready, or nearly ready, to be admitted. Tbeso numbers do not take into account tho amputation cases since August last, of which, it is feared, thero are a great number. The work dono at this splendid institution includes not only the fitting of the poor maimed soldiers and sailors with .artificial limbs, made on the premises by.the most skilled British and American limbmakers, but ihe training of the men for various occupations. Officers and men from the Overseas Dominions are Teceived and cared for _ equally with those from the Mother ' Country, and already a number of gallant fellows from Canada. Australia, and New Zealand are at the main home at Roehampton and its annexes. Naturally, the of keeping up such an inetitu-

tion is very heavy. With a view to raising a portion atiea3t of the funds required there has recently been published a volume! entitled ,"The Queen's Gift Book" (Hodder and Stoughton; per S. and W. Mackay). | Issued at the extremely reasonable price of half-a-crown(New ' Zealand price 3s. 6d.), tho volume, a handsome ,quarto in format,' contains an exceptionally rich store of literary and artistic features. The authors represented include: Mesdames Humphrey Ward, Maud Diver, H. de la Pasture, Beatrice Harraden, Et'iel 51. Dell, and J. E. Buckrose; the Hon. Arthur Balfour, who contributes a brief but eminently thoughtful essay on "The Pleasures of Readin," Sir James M. Barrie, Sir A. Conan Doyle, Sir Gilbert Parker, and Messrs. John Galsworthy, E. F. Benson, John Buchan, Hall Caine, Joseph Gon■rad, Jeffrey Famoll, John Oxen Sain, Neil' Munro, and Ernest Thompson Seton. The illustrations include a. series of extremely interesting portraits of the Royal Family, from originals by A. S. Cope, R.A., and colour plates by W. Hatherill, R. 1., C. M. Padday, R. 1., W. Russell Flint, A.R.M.S., E. Blampied, Eugene Hastain, W. Heath Robinjson, M. E. Gray, and Dudley Hardy, R. 1., and a specially delightful study of child life by Mr. Arthur Rackham. Tho frontispiece is a finely-coloured. portrait of Queen Mary from a .painting by William Llewellyn, A.R.A., which hangs in Buckingham Palace. The volume also contains a. large number of effective drawings by tho best British artists in black and white. Quite apart from the excellent object to which the total profits, from the sale of "The Queen's Gift Book'' will devoted, the- volume is astonishingly good value for the modest price for which it can be obtained, and I hcipe to hear that the New Zeaiand sales have been very large. The first edition of tho book sent out by the publishers. consisted. of no fewer than half a million copies, and when the last -mail left England a second edition was being called for. The booksellers of one city alone, Manchester, subscribed for 25,000 copies. Naples and Southern Italy. To the long series of works ,qn Italy, written by Mr. Edward Hutton, and published by Messrs. Methuen, has been added'yet another-volume, "Naples and Southern Italy." . There is probably no other living Englishman who has made so close a study of Italian history and topography as Mr. Hutton, and this latest production of his ■ well-stored mind and graceful pen is fully as interesting as its predecessors.. To the average Englishman who visits Italy, and to whom Florence, Rome, and Naples may be comparatively familiar, Southern Italy in generally terra incognita. An excursion made to Sorrento or Amalfi, and he returns to Naples, all .unconscious of, or deliberately ignoring, the many ourious and interesting : towns of Calabria. Up to a few years ago, it is true, the fear of brigands, and the knowledge that hotel accommodation was of the most primitive character, may have been deterrents, but to-day the brigands have disappear- ■ ed, the coastal railway ' runs " right round the heel of Italy, and gradually the country is becoming more and .more "visited by tourists. Hutton makes, an admirable cicerone, and even those who oannot visit Italy can enjoy his delightful book. The volume contains a number of illustrations, the originals of which wero. painted by. Mr. Frank. Crisp, to whom the book is dedicated, 1 and who, formerly a member of the 28th London Regiment (Artiste 1 Rifles), and at the time of his death, a second lieutenant in the Ist Battalion, Grena- • dier' Guards, was killed in . action on January ,5 last.year, at the age of 32. (New Zealand price, 7s. 6d.)

Eden Phlllpotti . Eden _Phillpo'tts is . the subject of an interesting article; biographical and critical, in the January number of "The Bookman" . (Hodder -and_ ; Stoughton). Born in India, where his father was Politipal Agent: in. the Rajputana, the future novelist'came-to, England when still a hoy and was educated in Plymouth. He first -began life 'as an insurance clerk, and at . one time! being an excellent amateur aotor, had thoughts of a -professional. stage career. Finally, however, he turned to literature, and after some hard experiences in; London, joined the editorial staff 'of the now defunot "Black and White," and spent his leisure time in planning a series of novels, which should be, as it were, the comedie humaine of Dart- ; m00r.... The first book of the Dartmoor series, "The Children of the Mist" ("Lying Prophets" was actually his first novel), was at once hailed by the critics as the work-of a writer who was to be reckoned with. "Sons of the Morning" and "The River'' (this latter a special favourite of mine) followed, and Mr. Phillpotts was soon fairly; established as a successful novelist. * Mr. 0. E. Evans, the writer of the "Bookman" appreciation, instances "The I Mother" as one of the "most sympathetic of Mr. Phillpotts' novels," but for my own, part I consider the novelist is represented at his highest and best in that powerful story "The Secret Woman" and in "The Thief of Virtue." • This latter novel is, it has always seemed to me, quite on a level with the best of Hardy's work. In lighter vein, "Widdicombe Fair" is an excellent story. ' Mr. Phillpotts has recently projected a- new series of stories dealing with the minor industries of the West Country he knows and loves so well. The first of the series, "Brunei's Tower" (reviewed in these columns last year) deals with the pottery industry. The second, "Old Delabole," copies of'which are now on sale in the Dominion, lias for its background a famous old slate quarrying village in Cornwall, where men worked bcforo Shakespeare wrote. Mr. Evans's article should be read by all who enjoy a Phillpotts novel'and would like to know something of the author s personality and methods of work. In "The Bookman Gallery/' , Mr. Robb Lawson gives a sympathetic and interesting review of the work of that singularly original "writer Mr. # J- Bcresford, whose "House in Demetrius Road" and the trilogy which relates the life histor.f of Jacob_ Stahl nave been so widely read and discussed.

A Publisher's Memories. One of the_ oldest established of Am'erican publishing firms is that of Putnanis, now known as G. P. Putnam s Sons. TTie story of the Putnam publishing house lias now been told -m Mr. G. H. Putnam's "Memories of a Publisher," who has not a few interesting stories to tell of American and English literary celebrities. Here is an amusing littlo personal remimscenco of the historian Freeman: "I noticed that at times Freeman s great beard of a distinctive reddish yellow tint was irregular in its cut. Ihe daughters explained that this was usually due to to fact that tho father did •his work in the evening between two candles, and that, as he became sleepy, lie would nod first to one side and then to tho othor. Tho beard, catchmr: fire in one of tho candles, naturally did not always burn evenly, and it was invjiortant, therefore, for the daughters to take charge in tho morning of the clippin" needed to restore the equilibrium. I was .told later in Oriel where Ireo

man was for many rears a valued fellow, that oil a Christmas festivity ho had taken charge of the important duty of the ignition of the plnm pudding. He poured the spirit over the pudding, and then, burying his beard in tho great disli, succeeded in Betting fir© to pudding and board together."