BOOKS OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2902, 14 October 1916, Page 13

BOOKS OF THE DAY.

Periods on Patriotism. From the Oxford University Press (Humphrey Milford) come-two beauti-fully-printed littlo booklets,- "Saint Francis of Assibi': Scci-.eg from His Life and Legend After Giuoto,"- with an introduction and note's by G. F. Hill; and "The Ideal of Citizenship," being the speech of Pericles over those fallen in tho war; translated from the Greek of Thucydides, by A. F. . Zimmern. •The two booklets belong to a. series of little masterpieces of thought and art issued under the title of "Memorabilia.'-' Printed in the beautiful Riccardi type, designed by Mr. H. P. Home, ana used m the production of so many_ delightful volumes issued by the Medici Sooioty, these booklets are peculiarly suitable . for presents. _ The legend of Saint Francis of Assisi is set forth in a series of dainty little photogravure reproductions, in miniature, of Giotto s famous paintings. Mr. G. F. Hill's introduction and notos. are all that could be desired, being laudably' brief; and ; informative; \j The reprint of the Pericles oration, "written of a small provincial city in the untried youth of the world," 'will always, says Mr. Zimmeni, "find an echo- whenever. men and nations aro being true to themselves, whether in tho tranches of Mukden, or in the cemetery of; Gcttjjsr burg." Pericles and Abraham Lincoln. were not .very much' alike. But common deeds beget a common; language, and great statesmen, like great poets; speak to one another from pe'ak: to peak. Let us stand in 'the valley and listen. From the world-famous speech, of . the great Greek 1 orator I feel impelled to inako the following extract, which rings as true to-day .'of the brave Britons who have battled against twentieth-century despotism as of the ancient Greeks who gave their lives' for the country they loved so well:—

If I haro chanted tho glories of the city, it was these men and their like who set hand to array her," With them, na with few among Greeks, words cannot magnify the deeds-that they have done. Such an. end as we'have here Beems indeed to show ns what a good life is, from its first signs of power to lis final consummation.' For even whorS life's previous record showed faults and., failures, it is just to weigh the last brave , hour of devotion . against them all. There they wiped out evil with goo<l, and ; did the city more service rs soldiers than they did her harm tn private life. There no hearts grew faint because they loved riches more than honour; none shirked tho issue in the poor man's dreams of wealth. All these they put aside to strike a blow for the city. Counting the quest to avenge her honour as the most glorious of . all ventures, and leaving Hope, the uncertain goddess, to send them what she -would, they faced the foe as they drew near him in. the strength of their own manhood, and when tho shook of battle came, they chose rather to suffer the uttermost than to win, life by weakness! Eo their memory has . escaped the. reproaches of men's lips, but they bore instead on their bodies the marks of men's -hands; and,' in a moment of time, et tho climax of their hves, were rapt away from a world filled, : for their dying eyes, not with terror but with glory.

_ A better substitute for the old-fash-ionedi Ohristmasvoard. with., fit's bafi|f> sentimentality?'th&lr these "delightfully- 7 produbed bookletsr could .snot' imagined. (Price Is. Bd. each.)

War Speeches by Mr. Hughes. A welcome; and just now, when' the Commonwealth is in such a state of excitement over the question of conscription, a very useful publication, is " The Day' and After: War Speeches by the lit. Hon. W. M.'. Hughes, Prime Minister of Australia" " (Cassell and Co.). With some of the speeches, delivered in Great Britain, and here collected, my readers may have been made familiar by newspaper reports. Others will be new to them. ' AU are worth reading, characterised as they are by ft spirit of stalwart patriotism, and expressed in that simply eloquent language which 60 strongly appeals to the popular ,mind v , Mr. Lloyd George contributes an' interestingV - ' introduction, that ''Speeches are like shells, i'ou may have a shell perfect in form and polish, but through inade-. quate or defective propellant,';'failing; to reach the object at which it is aim-; ed, or, owing to some imperfection'in its detonating arrangements, failing to explode if it' gets there." lie Minister _ of Munitions then, applies his simile -to Mr. Hughes's speeches. ■"Read these speeches," he says, "and ■you will' find that the sentences get home, and that their detonating quality is of the highest order. The percentage of and Tjlinds' is imperceptibly low." Referring, to the task Sir. Hughes has at. present on hand, Mr. Lloyd George says : "He realises the impending danger to Britain arid to British laeals of . freedoiri and right, and with intensity he is endeavoring to rouse hia-fellow-citiiens to the same understanding of the lurking disaster and to a resolve to take allnecessary • action' to avert it." ' A better antidote to the mischievously disloyal agitation by which the 'Tied Feds," Sinn Fein sympathisers, and revolutionary labour agitators are seeking to poison the minds of the workers of Australia and New Zealand could not be found than' in these eloquent and eminently sensible speeches of the Commonwealth's Prime Minister. (Price Is. 3d.)

Conan Doyle on the War. In May last the Italian Government expressed a desire that some independent observer from Great Britain should pisit their lines and report his impres T Bions: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was asked to undertake the mission, and stipulated that ,he should be allowed to visit the British and French lines first, in order that he might have sorno itandard of comparison. The result is a series of well-written articles which have now been gathered together in a little paper-backed volume, entitled "A Visit to Three Fronts, June, 1916" (Hodder and'. Stoughton). Modest in size, the little book gives a wonderfully comprehensive and effective account of what is being . done on the Western front and of tho terrible difficulties with which .the Italians have had to contend. The author was greatly impressed with the splendid work of the Italian engineer officers. In many of their devices for protecting tho men who do exposed work,-the Italians are, he says, much ahead of' us, and he recommends that one of .'their: engineers should bs a member of the British Headquarters Staff. Hp Went right up to the firing line, passing'atburst dugout by the roadside where eight medical officers had been' kineoTby one jhell. v;.-

There was ono torrible voice that broke cut from time to time in the mountains— the angry voice _ of the "Holy Roman •Empire." When it came all other sounds rliea down into nothing. It was—bo I r-as told—the master gun, the vast Kl- - giant which brought, down the pride of Liego and Namur. The Austrians. have brought ono or more from Innsbruck. The assure me, how-; ever, as we have ourselves discovered, feat in trench ,wotk beyoiui a certain

point the size of the gun makes little matter.

The author warmly admires the Italians, who, he says, possible disadvantage, economic and political." He regards the British Tommies with mingled' . prido ,and_ personal' affection; But. it is the part played by . the French which clearly arouses his greatest enthusiasm, and it is to be hoped that the ohapter headed "A Glimpso of tho French Line" has, by this time, been translated into Frcnch and widely circulated. Officors, men, civilians, and French women —all havo displayed _ a ! patient heroism, a grim determination to conquer, which cannot well be paralleled in history. I have 6pace to spare but for one short quotation: Next morning we were down in tho front, trenches again at another portion of. the line. Far away on our right, from a spot named the Observatory, we could see the extreme left of th.o Verdun position and the shells bursting on the Fills Morto. To the ndrth of lis was a broad expanse of sunny France, nestling villages, scattered chateaux, rustic churches, and, all as inaccessible as if. it . were- the moon.-It is a terrible thing,' this German bar—a thing unthinkable to Britons. To stand on the edge of Torkshiro aniJook into Lancashire feeling that it is in other hands, that our fellow-countrymen, are suffering' there -and,' 1 waiting,'waiting for "help, and that wo> cannot, after two years, dome a yard nearer to them— would it not break our hearts? Can I wonder thero is no smile upon tho grim faces' of these Frenolimen?- But 'when tlio bar.'is' broken, when.the lino sweeps forward, as most surely it will, when Fronch" bayonets gleam onyonder uplands,'and French flags break from those village spires—oh, what a day it will bo! Men. will .'die thatj day /from; tho ptire delirious joy o? it.- 'We cannot think what it means to France, and the less so .. because, she stands so nobly patient waiting for her'hour.

Much has happened since those words ■were -written in /une last, and although the day of final victory may still be far distant for our ever-gallant Allies, as for ourselves, what is happening on the Somme must to-day'bo greatly .rejoicing the splendidly patient French. (New Zealand prioe, 9d.)

The Carnation Book. One of the niost popular of flowers is tho carnation, of. which the science of latter-day horticulture has produced so many charming varieties. In. "The Carnation Boor' (Cassell and Co.), Mr. W. W. Thomas, editor of "The Gardener," discourses pleasantly and usefully upon the border carnation, and adds some interesting notes on the perpetual flowering carnation, which latter, he says, has made'rapid progress in public favour within recent years, and is now unsurpassed as a greenhouse flower for winter and It is the object of the "Carnation Book" to show that "by growing both types of flower it-is possible to have carnations in bloom all the year round. Detailed and practical information is given as to layering, planting, and general cultivation. The illustrations are numerous, and although not in colour are very beautiful.' (N.Z. price,- Is. 6d.) Early Otago. A few months ago there were discovered in England a series..of letters i.firitteniby the late Key. Thomas Burns, D.D./ one'of 'the' founders'of, and the fir6t:minister"to;; the; Otago settlement. These letters, which contain valuable first-hand references to the early days of the province of Otago, have been printed in the . Dunedin "Star," andhave now been republished in pamphlet form at the office of that, journal. Unfortunately one section (1852-1857) was lost on board the ill-fated Arabic, which was torpedoed and sunk off the Irish coast. The letters, which have been edited by Mr. J. W. H. Bannerman, form an exceedingly interesting contribution, to the early history of the Dominion, and collectors will do well to secure a copy. TEe price is 6d.