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TABLE TALK.

REISSUE OF THE "ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA.”

APID progress is being made with the new volumes of the

Encyclopædia Britannica, and before the spring of the present year has ripened into summer the whole of what is to be called the tenth edition will presumably be in the hands of the public. In front of me as I write are Volumes V., VI., and VII. (XXIX., XXX., and XXXI. of the completed work), which contain the portion of the alphabet between Glarus and Previsa in Janina, European Turkey. Seldom has progress so rapid and effective been so noiselessly accomplished. Like the machinery with which the work deals, the movement is smooth, easy, and-except by its results— scarcely perceptible. The task now nearing completion is a wonderful product of combined labour, and counts among the most striking and honourable results of the co-operation which, until years comparatively recent, was imperfectly understood; and the owner of the latest edition of the Encyclopædia may plume himself upon the possession, not only of "a new, distinctive, and independent library of reference," but of the Apologia of the day for its own existence and work. The great creative manifestations of the busiest and most scientific of the ages are explained by those whose labours have made it what it is. In encyclopædias, as in other things, there is no absolute finality; but the man of to-day, whatever be the line in which his energies manifest themselves, is to be congratulated on possessing the latest record of development and knowledge.

FIFTH OF THE NEW VOLUMES OF THE 66 ENCYCLOPEDIA
BRITANNICA."

TH

HE prefatory essay to the fifth volume, by Mr. Benjamin Kidd, is upon the application of the doctrine of evolution to sociological theories and problems. This involves a new departure in English modes of thought; sociology, in spite of the frequency with which, since the days of Auguste Comte, it has come into mention,

'The Times and A. & C. Black.

having not previously, as I believe, achieved full exposition in an English encyclopædia. Far too abstruse for me to deal with is the question. Sociology, however, which is now studied in connection with Darwinism as expounded by Mr. Wallace, is likely to be treated independently when its place in the alphabet is reached. Another subject neither less important nor less novel is the great question of "Heredity," which is discussed by Dr. Chalmers Mitchell, Lecturer on Biology. For the most curious and complex problems of our existence explanation is here to be sought; but the points discussed are once more beyond the reach of one who has only a sentence or two in which to discuss a book. "Hypnotism," by Dr. Shadwell, opens out another dark corner into which much light is not yet likely to be poured. "Income Tax," by Sir H. G. Murray, comes too near home for altogether dispassionate survey. The same may perhaps be said of "Influenza "—which, again, is in the hands of Dr. Shadwell. "Inebriety" and "Irrigation" are matters which have assumed great importance within recent years. "Italy" and "Japan" deserve to be closely studied. It is pleasant to find Mr. Austin Dobson writing on his favourite subject of Hogarth, and the late Sir Walter Besant discussing Richard Jefferies. Colonel Watson, C.M.G., speaks of Gordon with much judgment and some reticence. Mr. F. W. Hodge has an important contribution on that rapidly disappearing race, the Indians of North America.

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CONTENTS OF THE SIXTH VOLUME.

O furnish a synopsis of what is being and has been done is a task beyond the powers of a mind less encyclopædic than is the work itself. I can but, following out what has previously been said, indicate a few heads of highest importance under which the latest advance is chronicled. Lord Davey, F.R.S., for England, and the Hon. Dr. Simeon E. Baldwin, Judge of the Supreme Court of Errors, Connecticut, for America, are responsible for the account of the recent changes in the "Law" of their respective countrieschanges which, in the case of the machinery for the administration of the English law, are of the utmost importance. They are described, indeed, as revolutionary by one of the most temperate and judicial minds of the day. The same authority declares that procedure, thanks to the steps towards the pursuit of law and equity, has been simplified, and technicalities have been reduced to "a dangerous minimum." Technical knowledge is necessary to understand the extent to which recent legislation has influenced the status and emoluments of counsel. Especially important is what is said

about County Courts, the progress towards codification, and other matters. Geographical articles stand apart, and bring up questions of highest political significance. Among the matters of most widespread importance treated in Volume VI., all of which are in the hands of admitted experts, are Local Government, London Mammalia, Martial Law (by the Deputy Judge-Advocate-General), Medical Education, Medical Jurisprudence, Metallurgy, Methodism (written partly by the late Rev. Hugh Price Hughes), the Moon, the Mormon Church, and Morocco. These are of very different length, and, in a sense, of different value; but are alike authoritative, and, so far as modern knowledge extends, final.

IN

CONTENTS OF THE SEVENTH VOLUME.

N the seventh (thirty-first) volume the article that first arrests attention is that on Newspapers. No fewer than eight writers take part in this, the most generally known being Mr. Alfred C. Harmsworth, who writes on the Halfpenny Press, and Mr. Clement K. Shorter, who deals with Illustrated Journalism. It has been found possible to separate newspapers from other periodicals, and the bulk of the space is naturally accorded to the great morning newspapers of various countries. Rather curiously, the Gentleman's Magazine finds mention under Illustrated Journalism, reference being made to the map of the country round Carlisle given in 1746 to illustrate the Scottish rising in 1745. In the same volume was a portrait of the Duke of Cumberland. In 1747 the Gentleman's gave a bird'seye view of Genoa to illustrate the rising there; and in 1751 an obituary notice of Edward Bright of Malden, Essex, who weighed 42 stones, was accompanied by a portrait. Among the discomforting signs connected with journalism are named, directly or by implication, the tendency to American methods, and the demand for personal information concerning public characters. With these things may be classed the colossal ignorance which seems to form an essential part of the equipment of the journalist-and not seldom of the reader. Motor Vehicles find naturally their mention for the first time in the new volumes, and abundant illustrations of them are afforded. W. Martin Conway, president of the Alpine Club, dwells on the dangers that attend mountaineering. Dr. G. Hogarth, Director of the Cretan Exploration Fund, deals with Mycenaean Civilisation, a subject of profound interest to scholars. Sir D. Mackenzie Wallace explains the nature, aims, and procedure of Nihilism. Parliament is, or was, in the hands of the late Sir Archibald Milman. Mr. Tedder's paper on periodicals constitutes a brief-too brief-supplement to

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newspapers. Among papers of profound interest for various causes may be mentioned geographical and political contributions such as are found under Newfoundland, New Guinea, New South Wales, Orange River Colony, Polar Regions, &c.; subjects such as Pathology, Physiology, Photography, in which a fine record of advance is supplied; and political subjects such as National Debt, Poor Laws, and Population. In the later volumes, as in the earlier, the illustrations, especially the reproductions of pictures, are an attractive feature.

A

A SUGGESTION TO DICTIONARY-MAKERS.

RE the laws regarding dictionaries as inflexible as those of the Medes and Persians? It appears to be granted that geographical names of certain classes are not to be given, while others indicating mere abstractions, such as the termination "isms," may find a place, as well as the latest abominations of the uncultivated journalist. In the latest number of the great English Dictionary issued by Dr. J. A. H. Murray and his coadjutors, which embraces the letter Q, I seek in vain for the word “Quirinal.” This is, of course, as much a place-name as Westminster Abbey or the British Museum. Yet it is not always used as such. Is it not at times expressive of regal as distinguished from papal rule, and is not the Quirinal opposed to the Vatican, which no one would think of omitting? I have read within a week or two the words "accredited to the Quirinal," and I can fancy many needing an explanation of the phrase. Of course, if we include Quirinal, we should also include "Escurial"; to which I say, Why not? The purport of a dictionary is to supply information, as well as to explain the derivation of words and furnish their history. I throw out this suggestion, since I had myself occasion to consult the dictionary for Quirinal-and found it not. I am not seeking to oppose my opinion to that of the scholars to whom we owe a book which I regard with unmixed admiration as a treasure the equivalent of which no other country can claim.

SYLVANUS URBAN.

THE

GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE.

MARCH 1903.

MASTER OF THE SITUATION.

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By G. B. O'HALLORAN.

S the revenue cutter "Argus" dropped anchor in the roads outside Watermouth for the fifth time in January in the notable year 1740, the populace of that tiny community sent up, in accordance with custom, a subdued shriek of laughter. But the merry faces took on an expression of orderliness and respect when the warship's gig drew in to the shore and landed Lieutenant the Honourable Peter Crackthorpe upon the quay. The Honourable Peter's official rank was no indication of his age, which hovered on dubious wing somewhere in the altitudes of the fifties; nor, on the other hand, was his age a sign of naval ability. Severe of aspect, haughty in demeanour, with carriage erect to the angle of defiance, he stood confessed a martinet of martinets. The men of the "Argus" regarded their commander with a lively awe, and related each to the other most convincing stories of Lieutenant Crackthorpe's unsparing devotion to useless minutiæ. He possessed, indeed, a very lust of punctilio, and his transference to so lowly a position as captain of the "Argus," which was consecrated to the task of chasing smugglers and spreading terror of the law amongst the jolly freetraders of the East Anglian coast, was the direct outcome of an incident whose details came to the ears of the Lords of the Admiralty in an unembellished edition. Somewhat previously to the date of his removal to the "Argus," family influence had been so far exerted in the nation's benefit as to procure the gazetting of the VOL. CCXCIV. NO. 2067. Q

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