exposition of which has heretofore been confined to ambitious and
expensive treatises, this volume has no equal. In style it is clear and
attractive; its critical estimates are based upon thorough and extensive
knowledge and sound judgment, and the illustrations reproduce, as
accurately as wood engravings can do, the leading works of the famous
Italian masters, while anecdotes of these great artists and curious
facts regarding their works give popular interest to the volume.
=The Human Body.=
WONDERS OF THE HUMAN BODY. From the French of A. LE PILEUR, Doctor of
Medicine. Illustrated by 45 Engravings by LEVEILLÉ. One volume 12mo. $1
50
_For specimen illustration see page 24._
While sufficiently minute in anatomical and physiological details to
satisfy those who desire to go deeper into such studies than many may
deem necessary, this work is nevertheless written so that it may form
part of the domestic library. Mothers and daughters may read it without
being repelled or shocked; and the young will find their interest
sustained by incidental digressions to more attractive matters. Such are
the pages referring to phrenology and to music, which accompany the
anatomical description of the skull and of the organs of voice; and the
chapter on artistic expression which closes the book. Numerous simple
but attractive engravings elucidate the work.
=Architecture.=
WONDERS OF ARCHITECTURE. Translated from the French of M. LEFÉVRE; to
which is added a chapter on English Architecture by R. DONALD. With 50
illustrations. One volume 12mo $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 25._
The object of the _Wonders of Architecture_ is to supply, in as
accessible and popular a form as the nature of the subject admits, a
connected and comprehensive sketch of the chief architectural
achievements of ancient and modern times. Commencing with the rudest
dawnings of architectural science as exemplified in the Celtic
monuments, a carefully compiled and authentic record is given of the
most remarkable temples, palaces, columns, towers, cathedrals, bridges,
viaducts, churches, and buildings of every description which the genius
of man has constructed; and as these are all described in chronological
order, according to the eras to which they belong, they form a connected
narrative of the development of architecture, in which the history and
progress of the art can be authentically traced. Care has been taken to
popularize the theme as much as possible, to make the descriptions plain
and vivid, to render the text free from mere technicalities, and to
convey a correct and truthful impression of the various objects that are
enumerated.
=Ocean Depths.=
BOTTOM OF THE SEA. By L. SONREL. Translated and edited by ELIHU RICH,
translator of "Cazin's Heat," &c., with 68 woodcuts. (_Printed on Tinted
Paper_) One vol 12mo $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 26._
Written in a popular and attractive style, this volume affords much
useful information about the sea, its depth, color, and temperature; its
action in deep water and on the shores; the exuberance of life in the
depths of the ocean, and the numberless phenomena, anecdotes,
adventures, and perils connected therewith. The illustrations are very
numerous, and specially graphic and attractive.
CRITICAL NOTICE.
This book is well illustrated throughout, and is admirably adapted to
those who require light scientific reading.--_Nature_.
=Lighthouses and Lightships.=
LIGHTHOUSES AND LIGHTSHIPS. By W.H.D. ADAMS. With sixty illustrations.
One volume 12mo. _Printed on tinted paper_ $1 50
The aim of this volume is to furnish in a popular and intelligible form
a description of the Lighthouse _as it is_ and _as it was_, of the rude
Roman pharos, or old sea-tower, with its flickering fire of wood or
coal, and the modern Lighthouse, shapely and yet substantial, with its
powerful illuminating apparatus of lamps and lenses, shining ten, or
twelve, or twenty miles across the waters. The author gives a
descriptive and historical account of their mode of construction and
organization, based on the best authorities, and revised by competent
critics. Sketches are furnished of the most remarkable Lighthouses in
the Old World, and a graphic narration is presented of the mode of life
of their keepers.
CRITICAL NOTICES.
"The book is full of interest."--_N.Y. Commercial Advertiser_.
"The whole subject is treated in a manner at once interesting and
instructive."--_Rochester Democrat_.
"The illustrations are full, and excellently engraved."--_Phil. Morning
Post_.
=Acoustics.=
THE WONDERS OF ACOUSTICS; or, THE PHENOMENA OF SOUND. By R. RADAU. With
110 illustrations. One volume 12mo. _Printed on tinted paper_ $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 27._
No overweight of technicalities encumber the author's ample and
exceedingly instructive disquisition; but by presenting the results of
curious investigation, by anecdote, by all manner of striking
illustration, and by the aid of numerous pictures, he throws a popular
interest about one of the most suggestive and beautiful of the sciences.
The book opens with an attractive chapter on "Sound in Nature," in which
the language of animals, nocturnal life in the forests, and kindred
subjects are discussed. Among the topics treated of later in the work
are such as "Effects of Sound, on Living Beings," "Velocity of Sound,"
"The Notes," "The Voice, Music, and Science." This volume forms a
valuable addition to the series.
=Bodily Strength and Skill.=
WONDERS OF BODILY STRENGTH AND SKILL. Translated and enlarged from the
French of GUILLAUME DEPPING, by CHARLES RUSSELL. Illustrated with
seventy engravings on wood, many of them full page. One vol. 12mo.
_Printed on tinted paper_ $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 28._
This is decidedly one of the most interesting volumes of the Library of
Wonders. In it the author has collected, from every available source,
anecdotes descriptive of the most remarkable exhibitions of Physical
Strength and Skill, whether in the form of individual feats, or of
national games, from the earliest ages down to the present time. The
author has simply endeavored to make a collection of "Wonders of Bodily
Strength and Skill," from the Literature of all countries, and if any of
them may be assigned to the region of the improbable, he most
respectfully refers doubting inquirers to the original sources. The
grace and skill displayed in the illustrations, which are numerous and
striking, make the volume singularly attractive.
=Balloons.=
WONDERFUL BALLOON ASCENTS. From the French of F. MARION. With thirty
illustrations on wood, many of them full page One volume 12mo. _Printed
on tinted paper_ $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 29._
This volume gives an interesting history of balloons and balloon
voyages, written in an exceedingly readable and graphic style, which
will commend itself to the reader.
The history of the balloon is fully narrated, from its first stages up
to the present time, and the most memorable balloon voyages are herein
described in a most thrilling manner. The illustrations are exceedingly
taken in character.
CRITICAL NOTICE.
"Written in a popular style and with illustrations that give
completeness to the text,... beautifully illustrated, and will be a
fascinating reading book, especially for the young,"--_London
Bookseller_.
=Wonderful Escapes.=
WONDERFUL ESCAPES. Revised from the French of F. BERNARD, and original
chapters added by RICHARD WHITEING. With twenty-six full-page plates.
One volume 12mo. _Printed on tinted paper_ $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 30._
This volume of the "Library of Wonders" is an exceedingly interesting
addition to the series, narrating as it does in the most thrilling
manner the wonderful escapes of noted prisoners, political as well as
criminal. The escapes of over forty well known personages are described
in this book, and their history may be relied upon as entirely accurate,
obtained from official sources. Among the characters treated of we may
mention Marius, Benvenuto Cellini, Grotius, Cardinal de Retz, Baron
Trenck, and Marie de Medicis. A number of full-page plates picturing the
prisoners in the most fearful moments of their escapes accompany the
volume.
=The Heavens.=
WONDERS OF THE HEAVENS. By CAMILLE FLAMMARION. From the French by Mrs.
NORMAN LOCKYER. With forty-eight illustrations. One volume, 12mo $1 50
_For specimen illustration see page 32._
M. FLAMMARION is excelled by none in that peculiar tact, which is so
rare, of bringing within popular comprehension the great facts of
Astronomical Science. Familiar illustrations and a glowing and eloquent
style, make this volume one of the most valuable, as it is one of the
most comprehensive manuals extant upon the absorbingly interesting
subject of which it treats.
ALSO IN PRESS:
WONDERS OF ENGRAVING,
WONDERS OF VEGETATION,
WONDERS OF SCULPTURE,
THE INVISIBLE WORLD,
ELECTRICITY,
HYDRAULICS.
_Due announcement of the appearance of the above new issues of this
series will be given hereafter as they approach completion._