In demy 8vo, with 16 illustrations on art paper 16s. net.
Few British seamen of the first half of the nineteenth century had a longer or more eventful career than the subject of this volume. Entering the Navy at the age of thirteen, he served his Sovereign and country with great distinction for nearly sixty years in many parts of the world; while in 1833 he accepted the command of the Portuguese Constitutional Fleet, and, by his victory over that of the usurper Dom Miguel off Cape St. Vincent, largely contributed to place the little Queen, Donna Maria da Gloria, on her throne. A man of indomitable courage and boundless energy, a strict disciplinarian yet invariably just, and of the most kindly and generous disposition, “Black Charley,” as he was called in the Navy, enjoyed the esteem and confidence of all who served under him and was adored by the men; and it is sad to reflect that his last years should have been clouded by the shameful treatment he received at the hands of the incompetent and selfish politicians, who were muddling the affairs of this country during the war with Russia, and who did not hesitate to make him the scapegoat for their own blunders. To vindicate the memory of this great seaman, now recognised by all competent naval authorities to have been the victim of the most gross injustice, is one of the chief objects of this work, for which purpose a mass of valuable material, including the whole of Sir Charles Napier’s correspondence with the Admiralty during the Baltic Expedition of 1854, has been placed at the author’s disposal by his relatives; and the book, which contains a great number of interesting and amusing anecdotes of naval life in days gone by, cannot fail to appeal to a wide circle of readers.
Indo-China and its Primitive People
By CAPTAIN HENRY BAUDESSON
With 60 Illustrations from photographs by the author.
In demy 8vo, cloth gilt, 16s. net.
In the course of his travels Captain Baudesson carefully observed the curious customs of the Moï and Chams, the uncultured people of Indo-China, among whom he dwelt for many years. The author not only describes their rites and habits, but he endeavours to show the origin of their ceremonies with those of civilization. The story of these travels is presented in vivid language and is full of local and picturesque colour. The reader is initiated into the life of the jungle, in which, day by day, the hardy pioneers lived. Tigers and elephants were frequently encountered during the journey of the mission, and many members of the expedition were wounded by the poisoned arrows of the natives, while jungle fever and malaria made havoc among them.
François Villon
His Life and Times
1431–1463