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    Sciekcs, Etc.] ; THE LMOft 649

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    works giving more elaborate information....

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    THE ROMANCE OF THE RANKS ; OR, ANECDOTES...

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    Objects Being Attained, The Squadron Was...

    interesting chapters fall of racy descriptions of manners and customs , and portraits of native princes and nobles with whom the Doctor formec pleasant acquaintanceship ; then we are introduced to an old friend of Sir John Bowring ' book , the second King , Professor t > f the Pali language , litterateur and student of the English language . Here is his Majesty " athome . " «_ " We entered a large room , and passed from one end of it into a royal snuggery . Here the King received us in an unostentatious and gentlemanly manner . He wore a rich black satin jacket over an embroidered skirt , and a changeable peach-blossom sarongwit ! i embroidered slippers . The room had tnaroon

    , a long table in the centre , covered with a silk cloth , and over it hung a punka . On each side of the room were hair-seat sofas , and over that on one side , was a coloured lithograph of Queen Victoria , Prince Albert , and five of their childrena present to the King . Over the opposite sofa was hung a map of the United States ; and at each side of it an oil portrait of Presidents Washington and Pierce—recently presented . A very large alabaster vase , and several small paintings , were among the decorations of the apartment ; and in the corners were correct statuettes of Napoleon , Wellington , Siamese

    Prince Albert and Victoria , modelled by a artist , after engravings . One end of this apartment opened upon a smaller one , in which , neatly arranged , were his electrical and philosophical apparatus and on one side of it opened into a secluded study , in which were many elegant and convenient arrangements : chemical apparatus and tests : a silver mounted desk ; handsome brass field bed , and brass , morocco-covered rocking-chair . In this study , and in the main apartriierit , were book-cases , filled with standard authors , American and English ; in general literature , history , science , theology , and

    military affairs . " Having effected a treaty with the King of Siam the squadron proceeded to Simoda , where , notwithstanding the terms of the treaty of 1 S 52 , it was not without much skirmishing upon the part of the reluctant Japanese , and the exercise of considerable determination by the Commodore and Mr . Harris ; that the latter gentleman was perr xnitted to remain in his new capacityr—a useful hint to the out-going English Consul . Having at length succeeded , the officers visited the streets and bazaar , made purchases of lacquer ware , and although the Doctor found the Japaneset > not by any means so moral as they have been painted , he found the tradesmen and their assistants so honest

    that by comparison they shamed his own countrymen . Although the information contained in the chapter devoted to Japan is but little , that little is good and valuable , as being the experience of a shrewd arid truthful observer . Thus far , the first two portions of the book ; the third division is filled with the " doings" of Americans and English in China during the recent war , but , with the exception of an admirable view of the now Anglicised and Americanised city of Shanghai , it does not present much information . It is known interesting to those who like to obtain from a rival point of view the

    English proceedings among the Celestials during the stormy events from the affair of the lorcha , " Arrow , " to the taking of Canton , the capture of Yeh , the reign of terror in Hong Kong during the assassinations by the " Braves , " the Easing or Alutn poisonings , and the after quarrels of the Uimafc ' ched Kilkenny cat-like officials , which have been recently somewhat flippantly characterised by the lending journal as " a storm in a tea-pot . " Further , in justice to the Doctor we may add , that " feranicwoi" ' is the most interesting and truth-like of modern books , of travels in these now all-important countries of China , Siam , and Japan .

    Sciekcs, Etc.] ; The Lmoft 649

    Sciekcs , Etc . ] ; THE LMOft 649

    Works Giving More Elaborate Information....

    works giving more elaborate information . The author then proceeds to Descriptive Geograph y ^ properly so called , which occupies more than 300 closely-printed pages , and which , taken in connexion with the previous volume and maps , brings within the reach of the student the chief facts and doctrines of modern geographical science . It is not long since geography ,- as ordinarily taught , afforded only an exercise to the memory , which was crammed with a multitude of facts uninteresting and useless , because they were isolated and unconnected with any generalisation that could excite the imagination or gratify the intellect . 2 STow , however , the rise of physical geography and the increase of information concerning the actual

    contour and Structure of the most important portions of the globe have imparted a new character to geographical study , and from being one of the driest it has become one of the most interesting pursuits , having for its chief difficulty the want of a concentration of materials scattered through a multitude of volumes . To a large extent , the work before us has removed this obstacle , and a great service would be rendered to popular education if it were well studied by those whose function is to teach . We have had opportunities of witnessing the contracted effect Upon pupils , of the common-place method of teaching , and of good oral lessons on physical and descriptive

    name , and the Orba . The basin of the Tanaro wears the aspect of an elevated plain intersected with deep valleys . . ¦ " The Scrivia and Coppo traverse a fertile country , and fall into the Po on the limit of its upper basin . The affluents of the left are , the Clusone , which rises in Mont Gerie ' vre , arid receiving one affluent from the pass of Abries , falls into the main stream after a course of about fifty iniles . " The Doria Biparia , also rising in Mont Genovre and connecting the passes of that mountain with those of Mont Cenis at the Pas de Susa , it is divided from the Dbria Baltea by the smaller " affluents , Stura and Orca . ,.. * : '" . " The Doria Baltea rises from two sources id Mont Blanc , and which open the passes of the Great and Little St . Bernard , communicating with the upper , valleys of the Khone and Isere : it receives numerous torrents , and has a rapid course over a deep and rocky bed . " The Seria , which has its sources iu the southern declivities of Mont Rosa ; it is a stream of considerable size , but unimportant , as not opening communication across the Alps ; it receives the Ceryio from the right . The upper course of this river is through a wild mountain valley , its lower through a flat country , through which it forms anabranches , and is connected with the other affluents on the right and left by canals ; its extreme length may be estimated at eighty-five miles ; it is the stream intermediate in character as in position between the upper and middle basins of the Po . "

    geography . In the one case the portions of the globe under discussion seemed to the pupil as dead as the lesson itself ; in the other all started into life as the effect of the position of masses of land and water , the direction and complication of coast lines , the nature of slopes , and the disposition of mountain chains came into view . Much of this kind of information has been popularised in this country' by cheap editions of the works of Humboldt , and by Guyot ' s " Earth and Man , " and we cannot doubt that a desire has been created for more detailed instruction such as the

    present book will afford . From the condensation required to keep the work within the requisite bounds and price , the reader will hot expect that brilliancy of description and beauty of style necessary for pleasant reading ; but in addition to aiding systematic study it will prove useful as a sort of dictionary for inference * when the character of any particular country is a matter of special interest . As an illustration of this we quote a few passages from the geography of Italy , that will throw light upon the positions and operations of the armies now contending in the valley of the Po .

    THE SCENE OF WAR . " The ' Upper Course of the Po . —This river , the Padus or Eridanus of the ancients , rises in the eastern precipices of Mont Viso , at an elevation of above 6 , 500 feet , in immediate proximity to the sources of the Durance ; and flowing first to the south and by east to north , and then again by east to south , takes a double course formed by two semicircular arcs , having diameters of about seventy-five miles , and giving to the upper basins of the Po a length of about 125 miles ; while its breadth , from the sources of the Dora Baltea on the north to those of the Bormida on the south , will exceed 150 .

    " The steepness , of the southern and eastern slopes of the Alps gives great rapidity to the upper waters of the Po and its northern afHuents , and therefore on arriving at the level plain , at the foot , they are subject to serious inundations ; the course of the river becomes tortuous , its stream sluggish , obstructed by shoals and sand-banks , and forming numerous channels ; this character becomes apparent even in its upper basin , at tho eastern extremity of which the river attains a breadth of about 1 , 500 feet . " ThO affluents of the upper basin are on the right : tho Vraita , tho Maira , and tho Grana , which , uniting together , fall into tho main stream ; the former rises in Col d'Agnello , and opens a passage intp Franco . These are separated from the Tanaro , the next ts of

    A MANUAL OV GKOaRAl'HIOAL SOIHXCItJ . Pnrkor and Son . TnB present volume contains two parts , one on Ancient Geography , by the Rev . W . h . Bovan , and the other on Maritime Discovery and Modern Geography , by tho Rev . C . G . Nicolay . The first p ortion , which occupies about a quarter of the book , aflordH a succinct , well-written account ot ancient writers and discoveries , which will prove sufficient for general purposes of education or roforence . Anything more elaborate than a sketch of this branch of the subject would be out of place in a work whose main object ia to exhibit tho soionce as it is , and in whioh historical matter can only bo introduced incidentally . The Bcoond portion begins with a summary of Maritime Discovery , rendered additionally useful by references to

    affluent of tho river from tho right , by the heigh Montforrat , which , projecting from tho maritime Alps , obtrude themselves on tho course of the Po and turn it northward , as already noticed , and fill tho second semi-circular arc } and while the Tanaro collects the streams which fall from tho southern slope , the main stream flowing round those to the north does not receive any affluent from them . " The Tanaro passes along tho diameter of the semicircle above alluded to , in an irregular north-oast course . This is a considerable stream , rising in tho Col do Tende . and having a course of 125 miles , for forty of which it ia navigable : it haaseveral affluents , some of whioh are considerable j on the left the Sleno and the Stevra , and on the right tho Bormida , formed by the confluence of two streams of the same

    The Romance Of The Ranks ; Or, Anecdotes...

    THE ROMANCE OF THE RANKS ; OR , ANECDOTES . EPISODES , AND SOCIAL INCIDENTS OF MILITARY LIFE . By J . W . J . Connolly , Quartermaster of the Royal Engineers , Author of the " History of the Royal Sappers and MiuerB . " In 2 vols . ' * r ' Longman and Co . When collecting the materials for his " History of the Royal Sappers and Miners , " Mr . Quartermaster Connolly found many little " episodes of social life , " chiefly relating to the corps , that were hardly suitable for the graver work , but which were hio-hly interesting so far as they illustrated the " inner life " of the British soldier better than any work that could be written specially on the

    subject . The latter has been the authors mam object in publishing these volumes . It was a good idea to paint the character of the soldier in all the phases of iris life from his actions . A man can best be judged by his deeds , and , so far as the Royal Sappers go , this work gives us a good insight into their habits and customs . But as there is a great deal of difference in the character of the men that constitute the Sappers and Miners , and other bodies of our army , —there is a vast deal of difference in the men in the Guards and the men in the Sappers—men of a totally different class ; and as Mt \ . Quartermaster Connolly ' s work scarcelbe

    only treats of the Sappers it can y said to be more than an instalment ( a very good one , we admit ) towards our knowledge of the character of the British soldier . From the title of the work we expected , of course , to find some anecdotes selected from all regiments of our army . Had Mr . Connolly extended his field of operation his work would have been more interesting and certainly more amusing—necessarily so , from the larger quantity of material he would have had to choose from . Many of the incidents contained in the present work could then have been omitted , some curtailed , and the colouring of others dispensed with . That the interest of some of the best " sketches of character" should be spoiled to the civilian by the withholding the actor ' s name is no fault of Mr . Connolly ' s . The names of theso persons will , of course , be recognised in the army . Here our fault-finding ends . We had marked several sketches to quote , but owing to our lengthened remarks we can give but two or throe j and here is tKc first , called—A Ghostly Mistake . — S n , one of tho sick orderlies of Woolwich , was directed to remove from a certain ward a gunner who had just coasou tho mortal struggle . Taking tho shell , he went by mistake to the bedsidoof a poor sufferer , almost gone , t 0 « WtaSSto you want-with mo ? " muttered tho dvina man , every word coating him a pang . ToTut you into this box I" said tho orderly , with unfeeling coolness . „ .. . „ ?• But-- ! nray you won't—ior- ^ -I am still allvo I " Hold your tongue I" rejoined B—n , reproachfully 4 < Won't you think tho doctor knows better than you ? " # Hero is another , which , wo are told , is horribly true in tho time of war : — A Homsitui , Soi-diuk . — -An engineer of the

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), May 21, 1859, page 17, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_21051859/page/17/