and gives an exceedingly frank picture of "the disconcerting singularities of a civilisation which is, nevertheless, in certain respects infinitely more refined than our own." The words occur in the middle of a description of a grand banquet given in Pekin, in the summer of 1912, in honour of a rebel general who had rallied to the President of the republic, and had come to take up the official post which was the reward of his change of party. The host was an important mandarin, in close connection with Yuan Chi Kai, and the place chosen a huge European hotel in the foreign quarter. The attitude of the dignified Chinese party to the cosmopolitan crowd which filled the hotel is admirably depicted; but the banquet ended with the brutal murder of the guest of the evening and of his secretary, at the orders of their host. There are other similar tales, and M. Rodes describes Yuan Chi Kai as the Supermandarin, with all the prudence, ruse, dissimulation, and implacable ferocity of his caste, put into action with a skill which was sufficient to replace the genius which he did not possess. But the author makes it clear that the mandarins are not the whole of China. He gives an impressive account of the ruins of the city of Hankow, which was totally destroyed in the autumn of 1911 by a general of the imperial troops, who burnt it as the easiest method of ousting a rebel army which had taken refuge there. The city smouldered for a week, and when M. Rodes visited the ruins in December 1911 there was little left save heaps of bricks. Another visit, twenty months later, showed him the city "in full resurrection. The yellow swarm filled anew the labyrinth of small paved streets, at whose sides the houses were springing up every day as if by enchantment." He adds, "Once again I saw the people of China, the innumerable people of petty traders and farmers, opposing, to the worst calamities, their unwearying resignation, their admirable tenacity of life. After panic, on the morrow of massacre, pillage and fire, they build up once again their roof-trees, reopen their tiny shops, over which the altar of their ancestors presides; they bend anew over their fields, and are soon able, owing to their inexhaustible fertility, to fill up the wide gaps made by death. Blemishes must disappear before this marvellous vitality, which is worthy of our most serious meditation." The same note occurs again and again elsewhere: "The perpetual miracle of China is this constantly renewed force of instinct, this unceasing triumph of life over all the powers of death and destruction." The book is well worthy of the attention of geographers, who will find in it incidentally many curious facts. AFRICA. Croquis et Souvenirs de la Nigérie du Nord. By ISABELLA VISCHER. Avec une carte et des illustrations dans le texte et hors texte. Préface de M. de Dr. F. SARASIN. Paris: Attinger Frères, 1917. Written in simple French, in a style which is always clear and interesting, this book gives a vivid and arresting series of pictures of life and customs in Northern Nigeria. It is in the form of letters which Mme. Vischer wrote to her people in Switzerland during the years 1912-1916. Her husband, whom she joined in 1912, had been at first a missionary, then an official in the Colonial Government, and in 1909 he was asked to take over the newly created department of Public Instruction, and in that service had to organise all the native schools. Mme. Vischer had many opportunities of seeing the country as she travelled with her husband when he went to inspect schools. These journeys by train, by cape cart, on horseback, or by steamboat are graphically described, and in all places they were most respectfully and kindly received by Emirs, teachers, and scholars who in many ways showed their gratitude. Two chapters give a most vivid description of sailing on the Niger and the Benue, where, after the dryness of Kano, and the granite rocks of Ruma, the luxuriant vegetation on the banks made a very sharp contrast. It is difficult to pick out any letter which is more interesting than another. The first tells of the author's arrival and landing at Lagos, and her journey to Kano; while the second describes the different types of native, as shown by the servants in her own household. She has chapters on her garden, her horse, the birds, various Mohammedan festivals and customs, and the Hausa work in leather, copper, carved wood, and embroideries. The last chapter is headed "The White Man's Burden." The book is written with an affectionate understanding of the people, and a charming appreciation of the country, and will give readers a very clear picture of Northern Nigeria as well as some enjoyable hours. Marching on Tanga (with General Smuts in East Africa), By FRANCIS BRETT YOUNG. London: W. Collins, Sons and Co., Ltd., 1917. Price 6s. net. This most interesting book reads more like a story of exploration and adventure than the account of a military campaign. The author has keen powers of observation, and a true naturalist's appreciation of the beauties and wonders of the wild tropical country which he pictures with striking effect. Captain Brett Young was one of the medical officers with General Smuts's army in the advance southwards from Taveta, undertaken with the object of driving the Germans from the Tanga railway, and, if possible, outflanking them. They succeeded in capturing the railway line, but the Germans escaped. As an impression of an exciting campaign the narrative presents a vivid picture, but it appeals to us even more as a realistic description of East African scenery. One follows with fascination the long and arduous march from the slopes of Kilimanjaro down the valley of the Pangani river, sometimes through waterless, thorny scrub, and then into the dark miasma of the dense tropical jungle, in which the lions and big game were much less to be feared than the plagues of mosquitoes and other poisonous insects. Through this savage and hostile country they toiled along footsore and weary under a burning sun by day, with nights of bitter cold. At every turning there was the danger of surprise from the enemy, but the Germans seemed determined not to risk any decisive action, and the only fighting was with their retreating rearguard. The worst enemy in the campaign was the country itself, and the casualties from German guns were trifling compared to the losses from fever and dysentery. As medical officer Captain Young had a hard and strenuous time. He often had large numbers of sick and wounded left to his care in the jungle, without any adequate assistance or any hospital equipment, except what he could improvise, and added to these difficulties there was continual suffering from want of food and especially of water. But amidst all the hardships of the expedition it is a pleasure to find the most charming descriptions of the wonderful scenery, the mysterious sounds of the forest, the beauty of the flowers, the singing of birds, the brilliant butterflies and dragonflies. The qualities requisite for the ideal explorer are many, but Captain Young possesses them in a remarkable degree, together with exceptional descriptive powers as a writer. We therefore venture to hope that he may revisit this weird and beautiful country in times of peace to discover more of its wonders and to find the key of its destiny. BOOKS RECEIVED. In France and Flanders with the Fighting Men. By LAUCHLAN MACLEAN WATT. Crown 8vo. Pp. x + 208. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1917. Price 3s. 6d. net. From Gallipoli to Baghdad. By WM. EWING, A.C., D.D. Crown 8vo. Pp. xii +306. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1917. Price 5s. net. La Soberania Chilena en las Islas al sur del Canal Beagle. By J. GUILLERMO GUERRA. Medium 8vo. Pp. 416. With Maps. Santiago de Chile: Imprenta Universitaria, 1917. Presented by the Author. The Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai. Translated from the Tamil by order of the Government of Madras. Edited by H. DODWELL, M.A., Curator, Madras Record Office. Vol. v. Demy 8vo. Pp. xiv + 471. Madras: Printed by the Superintendent, Government Press, 1917. Price 4s. 6d. La Révolution Russe. By CLAUDE ANET. À Petrograd et aux Armées (Mars-Mai, 1917). Crown 8vo. Pp. 332. Paris: Librairie Payot et Cie, 1917.. Price 3 fr. Dans l'Incendie Tropical-Angkor, Java, Burma, India (Octobre 1912-Mars 1913). By MARCEL GENLIS. Crown 8vo. Pp. 241. Paris: Librairie PlonNourrit et Cie, 1917. Price 3 fr. 50 c. Ptolemy's Maps of Northern Europe: A Reconstruction of the Prototypes. By GUDMUND SCHÜTTE. Medium 8vo. Pp. 150. With Maps and Illustrations. Copenhagen, 1917. Presented by the Author. James Geikie: The Man and the Geologist. By MARION I. NEWBIGIN, D.Sc. (Lond.), and J. S. FLETT, M.A., LL.D., F.R.S. Medium 8vo. Pp. viii + 227. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd, 1917. Price 7s. 6d. net. The Question of Alsace-Lorraine. Pp. 31. Alsace-Lorraine in England. Pp. 36. Published by La Ligue Patriotique des Alsaciens-Lorrains, 18 Green Street, London, W.C. 2. British Rainfall, 1916. By HUGH ROBERT MILL and C. SALTER. Fifty-sixth annual volume. London: Edward Stanford, 1917. Price 10s. Census of the Commonwealth of Australia. Appendix. Vol. 1.: The Mathematical Theory of Population, of its Character and Fluctuatione, and of the Factors which influence them. By G. H. KNIBBS, G.M.G., F.S.S., F.R.A.S., etc. Melbourne, 1917. Colonial Reports (Annual). - Trinidad and Tobago (930); Gibraltar (931); Bahamas (932); St. Helena (933); Ceylon (934); Malta (935); Gambia (936); British Guiana (937): Falkland Islands (938); Sierra Leone (939); Straits Settlements (940). British Guiana Blue Book, 1916. Dem rara: Printed by "The Argosy " Company, Ltd., Georgetown, 1917. Department of the Interior.- The Mount Rainier National Park, The Rocky Mountain National Park, The Crater Lake National Park, The Mesa Verde National Park, The Yellowstone National Park, The Wind Cave National Park, The Sequoia and General Grant National Parks. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1917. Publishers forwarding books for review will greatly oblige by marking the price in clear figures, especially in the case of foreign books. W. & A. K. JOHNSTON'S WALL MAP OF EURASIA COMPRISES all the Continents of Europe and Asia. Coastline, Rivers, and Lakes are clearly defined, and Physical Features boldly and distinctly drawn. The Land is tinted according to its elevation in shades of green and brown, and the Sea according to its depth in shades of blue. The Land Contours range from 500 to 20,000 feet, and the Submarine Contours from 100 to 4000 fathoms. Main Railway Lines are shown, and Principal Townsare indicated by the initial letter of the name. Size, 50 by 42 inches. Scale, 1:9,800,000 or 147 miles to an inch. Price, on Cloth, Rollers, and Varnished, 12s. each. LIST OF W. & A. K. JOHNSTON'S BATHY-OROGRAPHICAL WALL MAPS *India-No. I. Railways, Industries, Population, Political Divisions. w. A. K. JOHNSTON, Ltd. Edina Works and 2 St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh. When answering this Advertisement, please mention this Magazine. NOV 7 '72-10 AM 1. THE SURVEY ATLAS OF SCOTLAND A SERIES OF SIXTY-EIGHT PLATES OF MAPS AND PLANS, WITH T Designed by and prepared under the direction of J. G. BARTHOLOMEW, LL.D., F. R. G. S. of half-an-inch to the mile, the topography HIS Atlas presents, on a uniform scale of the country at the present day in a series of forty-five section-maps; in another series of maps it gives a graphic summary of its historical, physical, political, and economic features. All the topographical maps and plans have been submitted to competent local authorities for the insertion of new railways, roads, mansion-houses, hotels, etc., and the deletion of such as no longer exist. The colouring shows height of land and depth of sea and lochs according to contour lines. Eight representative maps from Blaeu's Atlas of 1654, reproduced in facsimile, form an interesting comparison with the present-day topography. The general maps, with explanatory text, illustrate Physiography, Geology, Meteorology, Demography, and History. Price, £2, 2s. net, bound in Cloth; or £2, 12s. 6d. net, in Half-Morocco, gilt. THE CITIZEN'S ATLAS OF THE WORLD T Edited by J. G. BARTHOLOMEW, LL.D., F. R. G. S. CONTAINS 156 Large pages of beautifully coloured Maps (each Plate measures about 144 × 18 inches); an Index of 70 pages; a descriptive Gazetteer of over 50,000 Names; Introductory Text and Geographical Statistics; a Coloured Frontispiece, "Flags of All Nations." HIS popular, comprehensive, and beautiful Atlas now occupies a prominent position as a Standard work of reference throughout the English-speaking world. The maps have been brought thoroughly up-to-date, and while very full of detail, are easily read owing to the clearness of the engraving. The Atlas is equipped with an Index of some 25,000 names, and also a Gazetteer giving brief descriptions of about 50,000 places. Such a work of reference is indispensable to every one who desires to follow intelligently the momentous and stirring events resulting from the titanic struggle of the nations in the present world-wide war. The boundaries of States may undergo change hereafter, but whatever alterations may be made after the war, the value of the Atlas for reference purposes will still remain. Price (strongly bound in cloth), 25s. net. A Complete Prospectus of these Works free on application. JOHN BARTHOLOMEW & CO. The Geographical Institute, Duncan Street, Edinburgh. When answering this Advertisement, please mention this Magazine. |