NOTES ON BOOKS, SALES, CATALOGUES, ETC.
Professor De Morgan has just furnished a new contribution to L' Art de vérifier les Dates, in the shape of a small but most useful and practical book, entitled The Book of Almanacks, with an Index of Reference, by which the Almanack may be found for every year, whether in the Old Style or New, from any Epoch Ancient or Modern up to A. D. 2000. With means of finding the Day of any New or Full Moon from B. C. 2000 to A. D. 2000. An example will show, better even than this ample title-page, the great utility of this work to the historical enquirer. Walter Scott, speaking of the battle of Bannockburn, which was fought on the day of St. John the Baptist, June 24, 1314, says,
"It was a night of lovely June,
High rose in cloudless blue the moon."
Now, should the reader be desirous of testing the accuracy of this statement, (and how many statements have ere this been tested by the fact of the moon's age!), he turns to Professor De Morgan's Index, which at 1314 gives Epact 3., Dominical Letter F., Number of Almanack 17. Turning to this almanack, he finds that the 24th June was on a Monday; from the Introduction (p. xiii.) and a very easy calculation, he learns that the full moon of June, 1314, would be on the 27th, or within a day, and from a more exact method (at p. xiv.), that the full moon was within two hours of nine A.M., on the 28th. So that Sir Walter was correct, there being more than half moon on the night of which he was speaking. Such an instance as the one cited will show how valuable the Book of Almanacks must prove to all historical students, and what a ready test it furnishes as to accuracy of dates, &c. It must take its place on every shelf beside Sir H. Nicolas' Chronology of History.
We doubt not that many of our readers share our feeling as to the importance of children's books, from the influence they may be destined to exercise upon generations yet unborn. To all such we shall be doing acceptable service by pointing out Mrs. Alfred Gatty's little volume, The Fairy Godmothers and other Tales, as one which combines the two essentials of good books for children; namely, imagination to attract, and sound morals to instruct. Both these requisites will be found in Mrs. Gatty's most pleasing collection of tales, which do not require the very clever frontispiece by Miss Barker to render the volume an acceptable gift to all "good little Masters and Mistresses."
Messrs. Sotheby and Wilkinson (3. Wellington Street, Strand) will commence on Monday a six-days' Sale of most interesting Autograph Letters, Historical Documents, and original MSS. of distinguished writers, as that of Kenilworth in the Autograph of Sir W. Scott, of Madoc in that of Southey, unpublished poems by Burns, and Le Second Manuscrit venu de St. Hélène. One of the most curious Lots is No. 1035, Shakspeare's play of Henry IV., two parts condensed into one,—a contemporary and unique Manuscript, being the only one known to exist of any of the productions by the Sweet Bard of Avon. It is presumed to be a playhouse copy with corrections in the Autograph of Sir Edward Deering of Surrenden, in Kent, (who died in 1644); and, as no printed copy is known to contain the various corrections and alterations therein, is supposed to have been so corrected for the purposes of private representation, it being well known that theatricals formed a portion of the amusements in vogue at that baronet's country seat during the early portion of the reign of James I. Our readers will remember that the Shakspeare Society showed their sense of its value by printing it under the editorship of Mr. Halliwell.
Catalogues Received.—Emerson Charnley's (45. Bigg Market, Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Catalogue Part IV. of Books Old and New; W. Brown's (46. High Holborn) Catalogue Part LIII. of Valuable Second-hand Books.