MYTHS.
Tire appearance at this time of seven substantial volumes devoted to myths and legends does not impress one with any sense of war economy practised by publishers or expected of the public. Messrs. Harrap send us five of these. Two of them have to do with Egyptian mythology only. The more serious of them is Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt. (7s. 6d. net),, The author, Mr. Lewis Spence, has studied the religions and mythology of more than one continent, and this fact has its advantages : it also has its temptations to see analogies and press them where it is really uncertain that resemblances are not superficial and fortuitous. Mr. Spence is. therefore on the defensive against such specialists as Dr. Budge. The book consists by no means of the bare legends, but contains a great deal of interesting information about the history, sociology, and art of ancient Egypt. It is illustrated with photographs of buildings and of museum pieces (the mummied eats are delight- ful), and with some original coloured pictures by Miss Evelyn Paul of scenes from the stories.—Stories of Egyptian Cods and Heroes, by F. H. Brooksbank (5s. net), is less ambitious, but it too has enough explanatory matter to enable the reader to get the right perspective. It is well illustrated with a dozen coloured plates by Miss Paul. Her "Coming of Osiris and Isis" is charming, but seine of the others do not show her at her best. --A third volume, of wider scope, is Thomas Bulfinch's Age of Fable, revised in part by liar. Spence and reissued under the title of The Golden Age of Myth and Legend (6s. net). It contains a great mass of Greek, Roman, Oriental, Scandinavian, and Celtic legends. A particular point made by Bulfinch was to quote English poets and others whose allusions he considered une intelligible to the ignorant. It is fully illustrated with photo- graphs of statues and well-known pictures and some originalt work—The next two volumes take us to Germany in an age of comparative happiness and innocence. Mr. Spence is sesame sible for Hero Tales and Legends of the Rhine (10s. 6d. net). The great river abounds with excellent matter for such a hook, stories little known or made familiar in opera or verse, Mr. Spence again adds useful information with a, map. The illus- trations include sixteen excellent drawings of romantic scenes, by Mr. Louis Weider ; there are also pictures in colour by various painters.—The Stories of Wagner's Operas (7s. 6d. net) are retold by Mr. J. W. MeSpadden, with a short introduction. The manner is suitable for young readers. The book is illus- trated in colour by two competent artists, Ferdinand Lecke and' Hermann Hendrick. With regard to these five books, we must point out that some of Mr. Lecke's pictures appear in both the German volumes ; several of Miss Paul's appear in loth, the Egyptian books, and one appears yet a third time in the Bulfinch volume. Whether this practice is to be reckoned at prodigal of illustration or economical of employment, we leave to others to decide.—Mrs. John Lang has compiled a big Boole of Myths (T. C.' and E. C. Jack, 7s. 6d. net) for Children. The majority of the tales are Greek in origin, but she includes some from Egypt and Scandinavia. Like Bulfinch, she wants her` young readers to be able to recognize allusions in their wider reading. There are twenty adequate but not especially pleasing pictures by. Miss Helen Stratton.—Lastly, there. is . a corn- • paratively modest volume, IVender Tales from the Greek amt. Roman Myths, by Gladys Davidson (Blackie and Son, 2s. 661.). These again owe their descent directly to such books as The Heroes, Tanglewood Tales, and Professor Church's works. Thie collection is illustrated with excellent photographs of classica4 sculpture and some original pictures in monochrome by Mr. H. R. Millar and other artists.
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