The Tuscan Republics Florence, Siena, Pisa, and Lucca, with Genoa.
By Belle Duffy. (Fisher IInwin, London ; G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York.)—We fully appreciate the difficulty of compressing the necessary amount of information into the limits of the space at the disposal of any writer for the " Story of the Nations " series. Illustrated, indexed, carefully and succinctly compiled as is this volume, it remains, we are afraid, too bald for reading and too brief for reference. Its use will be with teachers or for tourists, who may fill up its meagre outlines, and, keeping its well-arranged skeleton, may endeavour to clothe this with some characteristic life. It will thus make a good text-book, though, by itself, perhaps it would scarcely be attractive enough to introduce any one to the study of the communistic problems ; and we think that, without destroying the proportion of her drawing, greater judg- ment might have been exercised by the writer in putting in her
light and shade. But, as she says As an example of sudden, spontaneous growth, yielding original and splendid social results, the Italian republics are unique in history the commune itself becomes an unit of fascinating individuality and force. Taken altogether, there are no more instructive examples of self-help and self-destruction, of rapid rise and complete extinction, than are offered by the Commonwealths which for five hundred years controlled the destinies of Tuscany and Liguria."
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