THE LETTER-BAG OF LADY ELIZABETH SPENCER STANHOPE. By A. M. W. Stirling. Author of “Coke of Norfolk,” and “Annals of a Yorkshire House.” With a Colour Plate, 3 in Photogravure, and 27 other Illustrations. 2 vols. Demy 8vo. 32s. net.
⁂ “Extracts might be multiplied indefinitely, but we have given enough to show the richness of the mine. We have nothing but praise for the editor’s work, and can conscientiously commend this book equally to the student oi manners and the lover of lively anecdote.”—Standard.
MEMOIRS OF THE COURT OF ENGLAND IN 1675. By Marie Catherine Comtesse d’Aulnoy. Translated from the original French by Mrs. William Henry Arthur. Edited, Revised, and with Annotations (including an account of Lucy Walter) by George David Gilbert. With Illustrations. Demy 8vo. 21s. net.
⁂ When the Comte de Gramont went back to France and Mr. Pepys decided that to save his eyesight it was essential that he should suspend his Diary, the records of delectable gossip of the ever interesting Restoration Court became, of necessity, sadly curtailed. Indeed, of the second decade of the Golden Days the sedate Evelyn has hitherto been almost the only source of information available to the public. Though the Memoirs of the Countess d’Aulnoy have always been known to students, they have never received the respect they undoubtedly merit, for until Mr. Gilbert, whose hobby is the social history of this period, took the matter in hand, no-one had succeeded in either deciphering the identity of the leading characters of the Memoirs or of verifying the statements made therein. To achieve this has been for some years his labour of love and an unique contribution to Court and Domestic history is the crown of his labours. The Memoirs, which have only to be known to rank with the sparkling “Comte de Gramont” (which they much resemble), contain amusing anecdotes and vivid portraits of King Charles II., his son the Duke of Monmouth, Prince Rupert, Buckingham, and other ruffling “Hectors” of those romantic days. Among the ladies we notice the Queen, the Duchess of Norfolk and Richmond, and the lively and vivacious Maids of Honour. The new Nell Gwynn matter is of particular interest. The Memoirs are fully illustrated with portraits, not reproduced before, from the collection of the Duke of Portland and others.
AUSTRIA: HER PEOPLE AND THEIR HOMELANDS. By James Baker, F.R.G.S. With 48 Pictures in Colour by Donald Maxwell. Demy 8vo. 21s. net.
⁂ The Empire of Austria with its strangely diversified population of many tongues is but little known to English readers. The Capital and a few famous interesting places, such as Carlsbad, Marienbad, the glorious Tyrol, and such cities as Golden Prague and Innsbruck are known to the English and Americans; but the remarkable scenery of the Upper Elbe, the Ultava or Moldau and the Danube, the interesting peasantry in their brilliant costumes, the wild mountain gorges, are quite outside the ken of the ordinary traveller. The volume is written by one who since 1873 has continually visited various parts of the Empire and has already written much upon Austria and her people. Mr. Baker was lately decorated by the Emperor Francis Joseph for his literary work and was also voted the Great Silver Medal by the Prague Senate. The volume is illustrated with 48 beautiful water-colour pictures by Mr. Donald Maxwell, the well-known artist of the Graphic, who has made several journeys to Austria for studies for this volume.
TAPESTRIES: THEIR ORIGIN, HISTORY, AND RENAISSANCE. By George Leland Hunter. With four full-page Plates in Colour, and 147 Half-tone Engravings. Square 8vo. Cloth. 16s. net.
⁂ This is a fascinating book on a fascinating subject. It is written by a scholar whose passion for accuracy and original research did not prevent him from making a story easy to read. It answers the questions people are always asking as to how tapestries differ from paintings, and good tapestries from bad tapestries. It will interest lovers of paintings and rugs and history and fiction, for it shows how tapestries compare with paintings in picture interest, with rugs in texture interest, and with historic and other novels in romantic interest; presenting on a magnificent scale the stories of the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Æneid and the Metamorphoses, the Bible and the Saints, Ancient and Medieval History and Romance. In a word, the book is indispensable to lovers of art and literature in general, as well as to tapestry amateurs, owners and dealers.
FROM STUDIO TO STAGE. By Weedon Grossmith. With 32 full-page Illustrations. Demy 8vo. 16s. net.