Reviews.

REVIEWS .

All Books intended for Beview should be addressed to the Editor of The Freemason ' s Chronicle , 23 Great Queen Street . W . C . The Political Summary . Containing the chief interesting events ,

and a List of the principal Bills passed in each year of the present Reign , with Tables showing Income and Expenditure in each year , & c . Also List of Administrations from 1837 to 1882 . Complete in two Books . One Penny Each . Published by H . W . Allen , Ave Maria-lane , London , E . C .

4 . S UMMARY of this kind possesses a very considerable value for purposes of reference , provided it satisfies certain conditions , the principal of which are ( 1 ) clearness and conciseness of arrangement ; ( 2 ) accuracy . The compilers specify among the sources from which they have taken their information " Hansard " and the Times newsnaoer . and better sources than these for ensuring accuracy it would

have been impossible to select . The arrangement of a summary depends on the ability of the compiler , aud Mr . Hime and Bro . Littelton Wilday have proved in this instance that they possess the requisite qualifications for such a task . Their method is excellent . Each year has its interesting events ranged under it on the days of their occurrence , and over each is placed the particular

administration that was in power during its , or a part of its continuance . Nothing could have been better save in one respect . There should have been uniformity in superscribing these Administrations . For instance , during the first eight months of 1811 the late Lord Melbourne was Prime Minister , and during tbe remaining four months

the late Sir Robert Peel , Bart ., aud to the heading " Melbourne and Sir R . Peel's Administration , " no objection need betaken . In 1816 Sir Kobert Peel resigned , aud the late Lord John , afterwards Earl Russell , succeeded him . For the sake of consistency , therefore , the heading should have been " Sir R . Peel ' s and Lord John Russell's Admin ' s-

trations , whereas , it is "Sir R . Peel's Administration , " which is true only of the first half of the year . In 1852 the description accords with that of 1841 and so it does again in 1855 , when the late Lord Aberdeen was Prime Minister for a brief period and the late Lord Palraerston for the rest of the year . The next change of Ministry occurred in 1858 , Lord Palmerston being succeeded by the late Earl

of Derby in February , yet the whole of this year is assigned to "Viscount Palmerston ' s Administration . " Similarly 1859 was divided in about equal parts between Lord Derby's and Lord Palmerston ' s Administration , yet the year is wholly assigned to that of the former . In 1866 , a better , and what we hold to be correct , system is adopted . The late Earl Russell was Minister for the first

half and the late Earl of Derby for the second half , and the year accordingly is divided between the two . There is no objection to the heading "Lord Derby ' s and Mr . Disraeli ' s Administrations" for 1868 , because the two were virtually one and the same Ministry , and Mr . Gladstone did not take office till 9 th December , while again in 1874 and 1880 , the former of which was divided between Mr .

Gladstone and Mr . Disraeli , and the latter between the late Earl of Beaconsfield and Mr . Gladstone , what wc have expressed our opinion is the proper arrangement is adopted . We consider this threefold variety ia a mistake . With this exception the plan adopted is a good one , while the events of each year are clearly and concisely described .

We have not , of course , been at the pains of examining all the events that have been deemed worthy of note with a view to testing their accuracy—we could not have spared the time for snch a purpose . We have ; however , glanced here and there at hazard , and though we have found the majority of the entries correct , we have also lighted on some which do not quite explain themselves and which ,

in future issues , it will be as well to rectify . Thus we have in 1842 against "August 26 " the following "Treaty of Peace concluded with China , " & c ., & o „ and on "December 8 " again , "Peace with China . '' - In 1843 a « ' " February 17 " stands " Sir Charles Napier ' s victory over Scinde chiefs at Meeanee , " and later in the year this was followed up by a second victory at Hyderabad , yet on " December 20 " we are told that the " Scinde War commenced . "

H , ? ' ' as regai ^ 8 the eventful years 1857-8 , the commencement of the IndiaD Mutiny is set down for " Jan . 23 , " and is said to have been caused by the belief formed by the Sepoys about the greased cartrid ges . This was , no donbfc , one of many pretexts for the revolt ; "at the Mutiny proper dates from tbe outbreak at Meerufc , in May—We °° ° t remember the exact day—and the subsequent march of the routineers on Delhi , where they massacred the English and set up the ^ ° gQl as their sovereign . The recapture bv Sir Archdale Wilson , of

. ? lty ° f Delhi , after a six days' fight in September , is unnoticed , OM in 1858 against " Sep . 11 , " we have the Battle of Delhi , though ™ e mutiny was virtually at an end on the latter date . Then the second relief of Lucknow , in November 1858 , when Sir C . Campbell tin " t ^ ' ^ aD d children aud other non-combatants , and retired '" ' re-mforcements arrived , is omitted . In 1867 " April 18 " we

Lib 1 ntered , " Withdrawal of Mr . Gladstone from leadership of fes P * y . " Of conrse , onr memory may be at fault , yet we cona « th ^ - ° remember anything of the kind having happened , nor , pp Jy -Liberal party were in a majority , do we think it likely it < ip ? , hftve happened , especially as , in 1868 , "Apr . 30 , " we read , line ., "" pyeueu , ets ^ eeiuiiy as , iu louo , iiyi-. ou , wo icuu , 0

The Ve ? Dment defeated by 65 on Mr . Gladstone ' s Irish Church Bill . " havo * - "i ? S nation of hia leadership by Mr . Gladstone of which wo was sn Ke took P iace after hia defeat ia 187 < i ' ' > vhen be littlB ^ Ceeded ky the Marquis of Hartington . Somo other errors of Wa . * ° ffleut should also be noted . The late Princess Alice waa rWt li Jnl y 1862—she was engaged at the time of her father ' s

Wales "" k ' 1863 , and * k ° Parliamentary grant to the Prince of a « inum mT , occa 810 n of his marriage was £ 40 , 000 , not £ 100 , 000 p-r no doubt- ^ eTOnne 9 of h ' Dooby of Cornwall raise his inco 11 , » t , to the latter sum , but Parliament has no control over these ,

Reviews.

which are his property , so long as he remains Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall , whioh will be till he becomes King . We have noted these errors of omission and commission in no uu « friendly spirit , but rather at the invitation of the compilers . There is no doubt their " Political Summary" has been well conceived , and well carried out , but errors in a compilation of such a character aro inevitable , and we have no doubt that in future issues—which we shall heartily welcome—they will have disappeared .

The Alphabet of Gardening . By Shirley Hibberd , F . R . H . S ., Editor of tbe " Gardeners' Magazine . " Published at the Office of the " Gardeners' Magazine , " 4 Ave Maria Lane , E . G ., and at Manchester , Birmingham , Sheffield , Edinburgh and Glasgow . OUR horticultural readers are no doubt aware that one of the principal authorities in gardening is Mr . Shirley Hibberd , whose numerous

works on the subject havo long since established themselves firmly in the estimation of those for whose special behoof they are written . This " Alphabet of Gardening " ia essentially practioal in its character , and will be equally an assistance to those who do their gardening within modest limits , and those who aspire to the higher aud more ambitious flights of tbe art horticultural . It is written in a pleasant style and the information it contains will be found most serviceable .

A new local metropolitan journal has recently been started in the shape of tbe Clapham Free Press , It is issued weekly , ' and a circulation of 5000 is guaranteed . It contains news chiefly of local interest , bat it has one distinguishing feature in its Masonio column , which gives the principal Craft doings in the district iu which it circulates , as well as those that are likely to prove noteworthy to Craftsmen generally .

The remains of Mrs . Thomas , wife of Bro . J . T . Thomas , CO ., of Queen Victoria-street , were interred , on Tuesday last , at Erith Cemetery , in the presence of a circle of surviving relatives and friends . Mrs . Thomas had been ailing some time , and on the night of the 8 th insfc . she was taken

seriously ill , at her residence , Bryn Towy , Lewisham Highroad , remaining unconscious till she died , on the following day , the immediato cause being apoplexy . Much sympathy is felt for Bro . Thomas and his family at thia sad and unlocked for event .

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