THE MAGAZINES.

THE Nineteenth Century for October contains, among other papers, one of considerable literary merit. This is "A Winter's Walk in Canada," by Mr. Arnold Haultain, a writer with whom we have been previously unacquainted. The article does not admit either of condensation or of extract; but those who read it will find Canada, the Canada of popular

imagination, the "Lady of Snows," brought to their minds in a most delightful way. We have the more pleasure in noticing this paper because really good writing, owing charm to itself rather than to subject, grows scarce in our magazines.— Many readers will turn to the "Fragments of Mr. Glad- stone's Conversation," by the Hon. Mrs. G-oodhart (nge Rendel). The fragments are not very illuminating, though one of them shows that Mr. Gladstone had little comprehen. sion of the humorous; but these two stories are of value :— " There is a fact,'" said Mr. Gladstone in 1889, " I have often mentioned, and I will mention it again, because I think it is im- portant. It has been my lot to dispose of some fifty preferments in the Church—higher preferments I mean—such as bishoprics and deaneries. Not one of the men I have appointed has ever asked me for anything. That is the literal and absolute fact, and I don't know that anything could be said more honourable to the Church of England as a body."

"Talking three years later in England of the recently published book, An Englishman in .Paris, Mr. Gladstone said that Count (now Prince) Minder told him he was with Moltke when the latter first heard of Macmalion's march to relieve Bazaine in 1870. Moltke, who was seated at a table with a map before him threw up his hands in astonishment. Then he brought his right hand sharply down upon the map, saying, shall have him there.' The spot he pointed to was Sedan.'

" Concerning an Imprisoned Rani," by Cornelia Sorabji, will interest all who wish to understand India. It brings

before us a picture of a woman seldom found in the West, as timid under new circumstances as a child, who, when franti

with desire to escape, dared hardly enter a train lest she should break her "purdah," and so be disgraced in her own eyes, as an English lady would be if she were seen without clothes in the Strand, yet who for years endured solitary confinement, with her child, without sufficient food or clothing, rather than that he should lose his hereditary rights. The intolerable meanness which flecks the occasional splendour of Indian princely life is brought out by Mrs. Sorabji with remarkable literary skill. —There is a good description of President Roosevelt by Mr. W. Laird Clowes, who shows, among other things, that Colonel Roosevelt has always wished and intended to be President, though he stood aside for Mr. McKinley; and an explanation of Anarchism by Mr. G. Jacob Holyoake. He repudiates with horror murderous Anarchists, comparing them to the miscreants of the Terror, but he believes the explanation of them to be that they are the slaves of impatience. They are that, or else the slaves of envy. Be objects also to their theory, observing that the objection to lawful government and order is simply a reversion to the savage state. That state is a bad one. "The irreconcilable philosopher who is out of it thinks he would be better in it. Let him try it The opportunity is open to him. There are

savages of the purest type who will be glad to receive him— and eat him when meals runs short." Mr. Holyoake sums up his position in one of the wisest apophthegms we have lately read. The Anarchist, he says, is in theory an indi- vidualist run mad, " but he who is to be a law unto himself should have a perfect self." The writer can remember the day when Mr. Holyoake was considered a dangerous atheistic rebel

against society.

The rot tnightly publishes a careful defence of Lord Lans- downe's policy as Foreign Secretary by Mr. H. Whales, who

professes to gather his evidence from Blue-books. It is very well done as a bit of special pleading, but is vitiated through- out by the assumption that Lord Lansdowne has succeeded, as, for instance, in the conflict with Russia. It is asserted that the Russian diplomatists have been compelled to relax their grip on Manchuria in consequence of Lord Lansdowne's adroitness, firmness, and other good qualities. As we hold that Russia has not given way, and that the effort to make her give way was a most unwise one, the defence seems to us rather futile; but it is worth reading as a short and well-put statement from an admirer's side.—Captain Gambier sends a tirade against Russia, interesting chiefly because it is directed against an abuse hitherto not much abused. He declares that Russia is sacrificed to a greedy but penniless aristocracy which is more dangerous than the Nihilists, and for whose sons, relatives, and hangers-on civil or military employment must be found. He believes the finance of Russia to be in consequence desperate, and that nevertheless she is egging on France to threaten Turkey in order to baffle German schemes for influence at Constantinople. The result is a total loss of British influence not only there, but every- where else, the whole Continent believing that we have become a negligible quantity. That is, of course, very humiliat;ng —though it is odd, if that is the case, that the Continent should think it needful to combine against us—but that being so, what course ought we to pursue ? Captain Gambier does not give us even a hint. We were never so low in the esteem of Europe, and apparently we must remain so until some Government arises which will do something not specified. Meanwhile France loses heavily by her alliance with Russia, which would be comforting only Germany hates us much worse than France. Everybody hates us, in fact, and if we do not perish it will be no fault of Lord Salisbury, who is so weak and so ready to make concessions—that at this moment France is fortifying her coasts against a British descent.

We confess we do not see either strength or enlightenment to be gained from all that ; but we admit that it is a view which somehow pleases a considerable section of the reading public.—As a counterpoise to this view we have in the next article, on "British Statesmanship," an argument by "A Diplomat" that British diplomacy is on the whole not wanting in skill, and that though other nations are rising, we have still "a good place in the sun," and may be content if we only defend what we possess.—" An Onlooker" writes a warm, even a rapturous, estimate of Lord Curzon, who, he says, has aroused affection among the millions of India by his pity for their sufferings in the famine. The Viceroy's policy in all directions is eulogistically described, and he him- self praised as a man who has revived faith in the Viceroyalty.

Much of the eulogium is well deserved, especially as regards Lord Curzon's effort to master " the demon of writing" which has invaded India, and his resolution that when discussion

has been sufficient action shall follow ; but a little more moderation would make the laudation far more effective. It is very difficult to ascertain what the millions in India do

and do not appreciate, and we can hardly admit that their appreciation is the highest test without giving up the dogma, which is the foundation of our rule, that we are better qualified to judge what is good for them than they are. A Viceroy who sought only the enthusiastic applause of the majority would prohibit the eating of beef.

The most attractive article in the Contemporary Review, which reached us too late for detailed notice, is Mr. Poultney Bigelow's vivid and sympathetic sketch of President

Roosevelt. The following passage will be read with especial interest :—

" Those who look to Roosevelt as likely to inaugurate a policy of ill will towards England will be much disappointed. The man who could write as he has written of England is not the man to

seek war with any Power, least of all with a Power with whose history he is thoroughly familiar. The papers just now are full of guesses as to his probable actions, as to changes in the Cabinet,. as to alleged differences with his colleagues. All these guesses may be right; but until Mr. Roosevelt's actions speak for them. selves, we may do well to think of him as we did of William II. after 1888. He is not the man to ignore the forces about him. No man more than Roosevelt appreciates the remarkable combi- nation of talent represented by John Hay, and to talk of those two as being enemies, or even quarrelling, is absurd. Such men do not quarrel, nor do they make their complaints in the presence of newspaper reporters. John Hay is heartily weary of office; he has been ready to lay his burden down at any time; he is happiest as a man of letters ; he has of late suffered much family bereave- ment; he has a natural aversion to continue at his post unless there are very strong reasons why he should do so. Under the circumstances, I can imagine that Roosevelt will do all in his power to hold Mr. Hay at his side, at least for the moment. Ultimately, however, I have little doubt but that Roosevelt, like William IL, will seek to be his own Prime Minister."

Mr. Poultney Bigelow's frequent comparisons of President Roosevelt with the Kaiser derive a special interest from the

fact that he was the schoolmate of the latter in Germany, and a fellow-student of Mr. Roosevelt at the law school of Columbia University.

Any anticipations of sensational disclosures excited by the appearance in the National Review of an article on "Some, Lessons from the South African War" from the pen of Sir Charles Warren will speedily be disappointed on perusal of

the contents. Sir Charles Warren shows an admirable dis- cretion in avoiding the burning questions and personal ' aspects of the campaign, and his article resolves itself in great measure into a temperate but severe criticism of the primary education of the soldier as at present organised. "The material is all there; it is the practice that is required." We may note that Sir Charles Warren supports the policy of Sir Redvers Buller in making the relief of Ladysmith of primary importance in the scheme of opera- tions, without committing himself to any criticism of the strategy adopted. But he is evidently inclined, as the result of our Natal experiences, to lay down the general canon, in direct contravention of the Drill Book of 1896, that the prospects of success vary directly with the length of the line of advance. Imperfect training, an uneconomic system, "the absence of regulations defining the duties and functions of general officers in their several grades," and, above all, the Drill Book of 1896, these in Sir Charles Warren's view are the causes of failure in our recent campaign—Mr. Whitmore's paper on the succession to the Premiership arrives at much the same conclusions as those recently stated in our columns, and by much the same process. Mr. Whitmore has no difficulty in showing, firstly, that Mr. Balfour is the natural successor, and that any other choice would be abnormal ; and secondly, that his qualities, in spite of newspaper mis- representation, are such as to render him a fit and proper statesman for the post.—Of the two portraits of President Roosevelt, one given by the editor, and the other by Mr.

Maurice Low, we are inclined for many reasons to think the latter by far the more accurate. Mr. Maxse regards the new President as a dangerous Monroeist. Here is Mr. Low's appreciation :—

" Theodore Roosevelt, the youngest man who ever sat in the presidential chair, is a man of whom much may be expected. He is young, vigorous, determined. He has superb courage, and has never feared to show it. He has a mind and will of his own. He has fought corruption in civil life with the same boldness that he has led his men to the charge on the field of battle. He is student and author ; few men have made a deeper study of the lives of his predecessors than he. He has served the Government which he now administers, in more than one capacity ; he has governed the great State of New York, governed it as one might expect him to govern it—honestly and well, courageously defying pcli- ticians, with equal courage carrying out his own policy because he knew it to be right. Such a man, a man of intellect, with a grasp of public affairs, who knows the world, who has mixed much with all classes both in his own country and abroad, must prove a worthy successor to the immortals who have given undying fame to the American Presidency. Later I hope t9 be able to give a more critical analysis of President Roosevelt ; for the present, it is enough to say that the destinies of the United States are safe in his hands."

Mr. Low's monthly article on American affairs is also interesting for its powerful attack on the license of the

Yellow Press as an incentive to Anarchism, and his analysis of the financial methods of municipal politics in New York.

—We may also notice Mr. Seaton's able vindication of Sir Hudson Lowe from the ill-grounded attacks of Lord Rose- bery. Sir Hudson Lowe may deserve condemnation, but cer- tainly not on the superficial and manipulated evidence brought forward by Lord Rosebery.—" Boss" Platt as limned by Mr. Gustavus Myers, the historian of Tammany, is an even more sinister figure than Mr. Croker.

The place of honour in the Monthly Review is given to an anonymous editorial symposium on the game of bridge, started by a strong and evidently bond-fide indictment of the vulgar social tyranny exerted by the game from the pen of a matron with a marriageable daughter. "In one house we stayed in, this August, the men began to play directly after breakfast, and one of them told me be had played for eighteen hours, only stopping for meals. Why should these people, who were sensible enough not long ago, now think a clever and beauti- ful girl a disagreeable member of society if she is not ready to spend her days on the same treadmill on which they waste their time ? " The other contributors treat the subject from their ill-temper at bridge, matrons with marriageable daughters a more or less cynical point of view, though there is force in the contention that it is not bridge, but the people who play it who are to blame. Thirty years ago it was much the same whenpoker was introduced here by General Schenck. Besides, if socially eligible young men reveal their vulgarity, their avarice, or ought to be very thankful of the warning, and seek their sons- in-law elsewhere.—For the rest, the number is rather solid. But we may commend Mrs. Bishop's valuable "Notes on Morocco," the outcome of a thousand-mile ride throughout that Empire, in which she emphasises, amongst other points, the deterioration of the Arab breed owing to admixture of black blood, the steady clad cle of law and order under the present Sultan, and the infamous extortions and cruelties practised by the officials, with, as their inevitable result, the steady consolidation of French influence by means of the system of "protection papers." Morocco, according to Mrs. Bishop. can never be reformed from within, and though she does not say so in so many words, it is tolerably evident that she anticipates a solution on lines parallel to that of the Cuban problem.—Another most interesting paper is that of Mr. A. R. Colquhoun on the Russification of Manchuria, based on personal observation during a recent trip through that province, up the Amur and along the Trans-Siberian Railway. The process of transformation is progressing by leaps and bounds," but the weak point in Russia's rule in the East is that the movement is artificially stimulated. "All the impetus comes from Government, which initiates, carries out, and subsidises everything The colonist is selected, imported, and started in life by the Russian Govern- ment, and those members of the Russian family—Poles, Finns, Germans—who might have produced healthy competi- tion by their superior knowledge and more enterprising char- acter, are excluded, and the big, lazy, fatalistic moujik is left to muddle on alone." The influx of Chinese or Japanese into Eastern Siberia is at present guarded against by restrictive legis- lation, but none the less constitutes a formidable danger. On the other hand, Mr. Colquhoun notes that immense progress has been made in Transbaikalia, and even more between Irkutsk and Europe. On the mutual relations of Great Britain and Russia in the Far East Mr. Colquhoun speaks with moderation. He has no illusions as to the disinterestedness of Russia's policy of commercial or territorial expansion, but none the less he cannot help feeling that "if we as a nation could only grasp the situation, could realise, as Germans have realised, the opportunities afforded by this bringing of the East into close touch with the West, we might reap some benefits from the great changes wrought by the enterprise of Russia." But now, while there are only two English firms to be met with in the four thousand miles between Vladivostock and European Russia, there are four hundred Germans in Vladivostock, the principal firms throughout Siberia are German, and German is the foreign language of commerce. —Mrs. Woods sends a fine "Song of Home-coming," and Mr. Symons contributes an acute appreciation of Keats, marred, however, by some irrelevant disparagement of Tennyson..

The new Blackwood furnishes an admirable maange of belles-lettres, criticism, and instruction. The author of the article on "The Truth about the Liberal Party," who appeals to the Liberal Imperialists to drop Home-rule, quotes a sin- gularly appropriate remark made by Scott to Southey in 1807, apropos of the Whig policy of the Edinburgh Who

ever thought he did a service to a person engaged in an arduous conflict by proving to him, or attempting to prove to

him, that he must necessarily be beaten? And what effect can such language have but to accelerate the accomplishment of the prophecy which it contains?" —Mr. Alexander llichie ii

"China Revisited" gives a very striking account of the un. favourable impression made on our Indian troops by the low habits of some of the European soldiers : "These Sahibs ! Then there must be a sweeper caste among the Sahibs."

Mr. W. B. Harris's paper on the Moslem confraternities of North Africa is also interesting. He dismisses as mere fables the rumours of the military organisation and equipment of the Senussi. "His sole force and power is his own prestige, and the missionary enterprise of his devotees, who carry his reputation all over North Africa." But while ridiculing the idea of a vast united movement, or holy war, Mr. Harris admits the possibility of the Senussi building up an Empire in Northern Central Africa,—i.e., between the Bahr el Ghazal and Lake Chad.—We may also mention Mr. Andrew

Lang's fascinating paper on "Games in Old and Modem France," showing inter alia that "the English educated

classes took up the popular pastimes, such as cricket, proved, organised, and codified them, just when the higher social ranks of France were abandoning even games already organised " ; a suggestive review of the astronomical work done by Nansen's expedition; and "Moira O'Neill's " ex- quisite poem, "The Little Son," from which we may quote the third stanza :--

" When my pretty son's awake, oeh, the care o' him I'll take! An' we'll never pass a gentle place between the dark an' day; If he's lovely in his sleep, on his face a veil I'll keep,

Or the wee folk an' the good folk might be wantin' him away."

The Anglo-Saxon reaches this quarter its tenth number, and Mrs. Cornwallis-West may be congratulated on having done what few people thought she would be able to do,—that maintain her beautifully bound, printed, and illustrated tri- monthly miscellany over a considerable period. The first place in this issue of the Anglo-Saxon has an interesting paper by Mr. Fyvie on "The Most Gorgeous Lady

Blessington." We are somewhat surprised that he does not quote Leigh Hunt's greasy but clever eulogy of Lady Blessington—Leigh Hunt actually called her "a Grace after dinner, a Venus grown fat "—but there is a most delightful touch in regard to Thackeray. After the executions were levied in Gore House and a sale had to take place, Lady Blessington's French valet wrote his mistress a letter describing the sale such as M. Mirobolant might have written had he turned

cynical. In it he says, after describing, how twenty thousand people went to view the furniture and effects: "M. Thackeray est venu aussi, et avait lea larmes Zara yeux en partant. C'est pent-etre la seule personne que j'ai vne. reellement affecte en votre depart." How delighted Thackeray would have been-to moralise over this epitaph on the departed glories of Gore House. But there is something even more Thackerayan in the remark quoted from Mr. S. C. Hall's Memoirs of a Long Life. After hinting scandal as to Lady Blessington's ante-nuptial rela-

tions with Lord Blessington, he proceeds to declare that there- fore "Mrs. Hall never accompanied meth her evenings, though she was a frequent day-caller." That is really magnificent, and

suggests the passage in Vanity Fair in which Little Tom Eaves gives his reasons for going to Lord Steyne's parties.

Nothing but real life could afford the picture of a virtue which was good enough for a call, but not equal to an evening party. It is like the Dowager's description of a country neighbour and his family,—" People you could ask to lunch,

but not to dinner." We have only criticised one paper in the Anglo-Saxon, not because the others are not worth notice, for they are, especially Mr. Corbett's article in regard to the war

censorship in the days of Elizabeth, but solely because We have space for no more.