Scout's Head; or, St. Nectan's Bell. By Frederick Langbridge- (Warne
and Co.)—Mr. Langbridge has written here a story that will excite, entertain, and, we should hope, instruct its young readers. It is good in itself, though a critical reader would not find it difficult to discover in it improbabilities, and possibly in- consistencies. But its interest never flags. We follow the fortunes of the hero and his sister, and of Martha Beck, with particular interest, and we part from them with regret. But the good things in the story are perhaps better than the story itself. John Narbeth's solemn promise to abstain from strong drink, with its curious reminiscences of the Marriage Service, is amusing ; and the scene of the proposal, where the elderly parson drops down on his knees, and the servant-girl, coming in at the moment, thinks it a prayer-meeting and drops down beside him„ is very good comedy indeed.
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