Magic And Masonry.

to personages who are , apparently , in no way connected with the plot . Belgravia ia to bo commended for both its literary and pictorial contents . Among the former we havo noted the " Rajah , " " Thornleigh Moat , " " Chantry Manor House , " and " The Haunted Lighthouse ; " among the latter the illustration to tho very neat little poem

by Mr . Savile-Clarke , entitled " J'aimo les Militaires . " Wo are glad the number of serials in Tinsleys' is reduced to two . These , which are commenced this month , give promise of being , if anything , above the high average which has almost invariably marked the tales in this magazine . Tho first of these , " The Duchess of Rosemary-Lane" is from the pen of Mr . Farjeon , and if , as the story

, is developed , we find the same descriptive power , the same insight into human character as we havo evidence of in tho prologue to the story . it is certain the fame of the writer will be wonderfully increased . Mr . Grant is tho author of tho other serial , which is entitled , " Did she love him ? " and here , too , as far as we can judge at present ,

there is every prospect of a well-written and well constructed tale . Of the occasional papers we like most Mr . W . Davenport Adam ' s " A Dream of Fair Women , " and " Dog-Violet and Mignonette . " Dr . Maurice Davies , besides his " Social Status Quo , " contributes No . 1 of " Love Songs of All Nations . " Wo quote it in full .

LOVE-LORN ( from tho Persian of Giami . ) " I fly to hide my heart ' s distress Far from the city ' s noises loud , Far from the cold and callous crowd , Into the quiet wilderness . One only mate my heart will

own—Thy peerless self ; and , failing thee , Though girt with hundred friends , must bo Like him who owns it , quite alone . But in the vast and lonely waste I hear no voices wild or rude ; My only friend is solitude ,

And then at least ono joy I tasto . Those in the body are not there , But , as the silent sands I pace , Thine ever beauteous spirit-face Haunts mo in visions bright and fair . 'Tis naught to me , although the rose

Her sensuous odour scatters around , Or gorgeous carpets swathe the ground—No luxury my bosom knows I pray my spirit thns : ' Begone ! Apart from her , I fain would die !' And still my spirit makes reply , 1 Hope lives while life remains ; live on . '

Tho new serials in Cassell ' s Family Magazine , namely " Caught in the Briars , " and " Two Points of View , " fully justify the good opinion we formed of them from the opening chapters . They will certainly add to the reputation of the writers . A Family Doctor offers some very sensible remarks on " Winter Clothing and Winter Comfort , " Mr . A . G . Payne advises his readers " How to give a Nice Little

Supper , " and we imagine tho reader will be very unwise if he rejects the advice of so practical a teacher . Captain Webb lays great stress on tho necessity for making " Swimming a part of Education , " and as our newly-joined brother is the greatest swimmer the world has ever known , the counsel he offers must carry weight . There is an amusing paper on " What becomes of the Lost Luggage , " and another

headed " 'Penny Dreadfuls' and their Readers . " Of the other items in the programme , those treating of " Rockwork and Ferns , " of " Little Accidents , and How to Deal with Them , " " Some Curiosities of Music , " and " Travelling Third Class , " deserve to be read , nor is the way-bill provided by " The Gatherer " in any respect less attractive than usual .

In the Leisure Hour is commenced " A Tale of tho American War of Independence , " by Frances Browne . The reader will find it very interesting . Of the other contents , must be mentioned Dr . Rimbault on " Old Nursery Rhymes , " " A Trip to Palmyra aud the Desert , " by the Rev . W . Wright , B . A ., of Damascus , " Open Spaces and Resting Places , " " Wooden Wonders of America , " and " England's

National Curse . " What this last is , our readers need hardly be told . Its companion publication , Sunday at Home , is filled with the usual excellent matter , among which Dr . Stoughton ' s No . I . of " Westminster Abbey , " and "A Jew ' s First Impressions of England , and First Intercourse with Christians , " will be found the most readable . Both these periodicals aro well illustrated , tho frontispiece to each being

admirable . The last number of All the Year Round- is more than usually acceptable . Not only does it contain the usnal programme , including the old serial , " A Charming Fellow , " a new talo , " Griffiths' Double , " a further contribution to the series of " Remarkable Adventures , " John Lowe , of Mississippi's Scheme Notoriety , being the subject of

tho present sketch , with several other contributions of considerable merit . We have also tho extra Christmas number , entitled " Davy's Locker , " aud . if there are any of our friends who have not yet read this interesting story , we advise them to do so without further loss of time . Perhaps the ablest and most powerful writing will bo found

in the two chapters headed , respectively , " The Partner s Story , " aud "The Commissioner ' s Story . " There is this to be said also . Sundry of the personages figure in both the stories , and thus the one helps us to obtain a bettor and clearer insight into the action of the other . The other parts of the book possess almost equal merit with these .

The editor of the New Quarterly is to bo congratulated on tho excellence of the present number . A conspicuous feature in this periodica ! is the absence of all serial fiction , but there are always two complete tales in each number . The present contains a novelette , entitled "The Mill of Saint Herbot , " * by Katharine S . Macqnoid , and "The Vergaro , " a talc by the Countess Galefcti , both of which aio calculated to please the reader . The editor contributes

Magic And Masonry.

an admirable paper on " Current Literature and Current Criticism . " Mr . John Latouche , whoso Travels in Portugal formed so pleasant a feature in tho earlier parts describes , in detail , " Lawn Tennis , " criticising the rules , and offering several valuable suggestions . There is an eminently readable paper on " Almanacs , " by Mr . Mortimer Collins , and another by Miss Do Rothschild , on Hebrew Women . " Backward Ho ! " by Frances Power Cobbe must bo read

in order to be justly appreciated . To many of the views which the writer gives expression , we imasrino no serious objection can be taken , especially in the matter of architecture , in which there is no question the public taste of the present day baa sadly deteriorated from that of former days , when tho world was not so highly civilised as it is said to be now . The one other article is from the pen of Mr . Robert Buchanan , and contains a striking comparison between "iEschyhis and Victor Hugo . " This , too , is a well-written , scholarly paper .

The Drama.

THE DRAMA .

" Clytie " at the Olympic . — " A Quiet Rubber " at the Court . A NOVEL by Mr . Hatton , which has lately appeared in the pages of the Gentleman ' s Magazine , has been adapted for tho stage by ^ he author , and has been produced in its dramatic form , firstly at Liverpool , and , on Monday last , at the OLYMPIC . Far better novels than " Clytie " havo failed , when dramatized , to make any success on

the stage : tho very analysation of character , and of motive , which may create the success of tho book , are almost certain to cause the failure of the drama , and the action which , in tho novel , may be extended over years , must , for dramatic purposes , be compressed into a space of time so short as to throw over it an air of impossibility . The story of " Clytie " is one that is rather well worn , and would

hardly create surprise if it figured as the plot of a transpontive melodrama . Mary Waller , the lady honoured by this classical appellation , is the grand-daughter of the organist of Durham Cathedral—young and pretty , but of course poor ; she is blessed with a pair of lovers , Tom Mayfield , a student , with honest intentions , and Philip Rainsford , tho ordinary military libertine . Weary of her quiet home , and

dazzled by the promises of Rainsford , she agrees to elope with him , bnt repenting at tho last moment , he converts the elopement into an abduction . We then find her in his chambers in London , where , all his persuasion proving useless , he is about to proceed to personal violence , when intorruped by the arrival of Tom Mayfield , and the usual tableau of triumphant virtue follows . In the next act we find

her married to Tom , who has succeeded to a peerage , and is now Lord St . Bernard ; but her enemy , Rainsford , renders her life miserable by the circulation of scandalous reports as toher moral character ; she is obliged to take some step to clear her reputation , and a sensational libel case at Bow Street is tho result . The lawyer , employed by Rainsford , so tortures her with questions referring to her stay in

the latter s chambers as to upset her reason , and drive her to desert her home . Retribution , however , speedily follows ; a duel is agreed upon between Lord St . Bernard and Rainsford ; tho latter attempts to murder his adversary , and is afterwards killed in fair fight , leaving behind him a written confession , which completely clears Clytie of any blame : the persecuted lady is found at her native place , and at

length restored to reason and to her friends . There is not one incident hero which has not been seen on the stage over and over again ; there is no novelty in the situations , no freshness in the characters , no redeeming cleverness in the dialogue ; the piece is in the last degree commonplace . The only surprise lies in the fact that such an ordinary melodrama should have been produced afc the O ' ympio .

Miss Henrietta Hodgson makes a welcome re-a . ppsarance , as th . 3 heroine , and acts pleasantly , as always ; but sho hardly looks the informed girl that Clytie , in tho beginning of the play , is repre-en ed to be . Mr . Hay well and Miss Howard are agreeable in smaller parts , and Mr . Odell , as the lawyer , overacts so much as to become the conspicuous failure of tho cast . But where the play itself is so deficient ,

we shall not attribute much blame to the artists . Mr . Hare has added to his already strong programme at tho COURT a thoroughly charming little one act piece , adapted from" LaPartiede Piquet . " Lord Kilelare , an old nobleman rich in blue h ' ood and in nofcbingelse , isaguestin the house of a rich manufacturer , Mr . Sullivan , to whose daughter Mary his son Charles is engaged . Lord Kilelare is

under deep obligations to his host , but his pride of birth is so great a-i to lead him into words and actions inevitably hurtful to the pride of one less well born than himself . After an interview , in which many irritations of this kind have been borne with great self-restraint by Mr . Sullivan , the four sit down to a rubber at whist ; Lord Kilelare is unreasonably proud of his play , and on a revoke which he has made

being pointed out to him by Mr . Sullivan , a quarrel ensues , and is carried so far that the nobleman quits the room to pack his portmanteau and leave the house . The young couple can think of onl y ono expedient to arrange matters . On Lord Kilclare ' s return to { the room for something forgotten , Charles , who is a doctor , administers chloroform to him ; the room and whist table are quickly rearranged ,

and all traces of tho disturbance removed . On Kilclare ' s awaking , he is , with some trouble , persuaded that tho quarrel has been merel y a dream , and all ends happily . The plot is slight , but admirably worked out , and the dialogue shows great neatness and polish . Mr . Hare himself takes the role of Lord Kilelare , and shows another of ttu . se . eabinefc studies of aristocratic old men in which he is so skilled

Remembering his Sam Gerridge , wo shall be very sorry to find Mr . Hare devoting himself to one class of character exclusivel y , but it must bo said that his acting in this class is perfect . Every change of feeling and temper in the proud , irritable old nobleman is shown with admirable expression . Hardl y less praise mast be awarded to

the Sullivan of Mr . C . Kelly , who plays wit ha breadth of stylo which eontrasts admirably with the mora elaborated acting of Mr . Hare . The young people are carefully impersonated by Miss Piowdon and Mr . Herbert , and the whole performance is marked by a finish which u'ds fair to make this theatre a worthy rival to the Prince of Wales ' s ,