They are full without being tedious, and condensed without being
obscure. About half the second part is very wisely devoted to an
exposition of the Ninth Article of the Apostles’ Creed—“The Holy
Catholic Church”—which is to be commended, as, indeed, may be the whole
book, just as highly to the attention of earnest and inquiring
non-Catholics as of Catholics. As a whole, the book serves two great
ends: it is a solemn warning against the prevalent evils of the day,
unbelief and hatred of the truth; also, a judicious and able exposition
of the two great facts in the Christian belief, God and the church. The
work has this advantage over more learned treatises on the same
subjects: that while it commands the attention of the highest, it is
within the comprehension of any person of ordinary intelligence. We know
of no work in English better adapted to afford Catholics whose
opportunities of study have not been very great a clear and intelligent
reason for the faith that is in them. The catechism, noticed at the
head, in addition to the usual instruction, contains a short form of
morning and evening prayers, instructions for confession, prayers at
Mass and before and after communion, as well as a brief but useful
summary of sacred history.
THE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL SPELLER AND DEFINER: Embracing graded lessons in
spelling, definitions, pronunciation, and synonymes; proper names and
geographical terms; a choice selection of sentences for dictation;
and a condensed study of English etymology; also ecclesiastical
terms, etc. By E. D. Farrell. New York: The Catholic Publication
Society Co. 1877.
With the exception of Swinton’s, there is scarcely a speller in general
circulation through the schools of this country which is worthy of the
name. Whatever is valuable in many of them has been unscrupulously
pilfered, directly or indirectly, from Sullivan’s _Spelling-Book
Superseded_, the text-book used in the Irish national schools; and
doubtless it is all the better for the pupils that it has been so. The
present work possesses at least one merit: it is a brave departure from
the well-beaten path of the plagiarist. Not that it is completely
original; that is impossible; but it is as nearly so as is compatible
with utility. It has strong marks of individuality in every page and
lesson, and is evidently the production, not of a mere book-maker, but
of an experienced instructor of youth, who has felt, in common with
other teachers, the necessity of more thought in the conception, and
system in the arrangement, of lessons in orthography.
We find, after a careful inspection, that the work contains information,
not to be found in similar works, on Anglo-Saxon roots, ecclesiastical
terms, noted names of fiction and of distinguished persons; words
relating to various occupations and sciences, etc., all of which are
strict essentials to a useful education. Miscellaneous words and
definitions, Latin roots and English derivatives, and miscellaneous
sentences for dictation occupy nearly half the volume, the remainder
being distributed between twenty-six other subdivisions of the subject;
and well-informed and competent teachers will say that such an
apportionment of the space is right.
We have noticed what we consider a few imperfections, unimportant,
doubtless, but needing emendation—viz., on page 33 this definition:
“Assassinate, to attack and murder a person of importance.”
Assassination is not necessarily restricted to persons of importance.
The author also takes the trouble to correct such pronunciations as _pī
an´ o_ for pĭ ä´ no, _thrissle_ for thistle, _akrawst_ for across. Of
what use is the teacher, if the book must attend to such matters? He
also orders us, on page 114, not to pronounce ge-og _jog_ in the words
geography and geometry. There are pupils who pronounce these words
joggraphy and jommetry, we know, and such is evidently the error against
which he wishes to guard. These oversights, so prevalent in other
spellers, are, fortunately, of rare occurrence in this, and a little
careful revision will render the book still more worthy of the title, to
which it has already such strong claims, of the model speller of the
present day.
MISSA DE BEATA MARIA ET MISSA IN FESTIS DUPLICIBUS, ITEM IN DOMINICIS
ADVENTUS ET QUADRAGESIMÆ: uti in Graduali Romano et Ordinario Missæ,
ab illustri Domino Frederico Pustet, S. Sedis Apost. typographo, “sub
auspiciis SS. D. N. Pii IX., curante Sacr. Rit. Cong.” Cum permissu
superiorum. Opus II. Published by the author, P. Ignatius Trueg,
O.S.B., St. Vincent’s Abbey, Beatty P.O., Pa.
We heartily congratulate all who may be interested in the study or
execution of Gregorian chant upon the production of this work. Within a
very few years the study of the holy chant of St. Gregory has occupied
the attention of church musicians both in Europe and America, and many
notable efforts have been made to restore it to its rightful place in
the sanctuary. In fact, there is a true revival and reformation of
church music in progress.
One of the chief difficulties which presents itself to the ordinary
modern musician who acts as choir-master or organist is the simple
melodic form of the chant with its musical notation as it is printed in
all authorized office-books. Unaccustomed to its tonality, he makes
wretched work of the phrasing and accentuation, and his execution is
like that of a schoolboy spelling his words before pronouncing them.
Ignorant also of its modality, his attempts at harmony are more wretched
still. Under the hands of such performers the chant becomes poor
_music_, without expression, in the minor key.
Translations of the chant into modern notation harmonized with a view to
giving some notion of the distinctive character of the various modes,
are therefore a necessity for all who have not made such a thorough
study of the chant as to enable them to read from the original notation
and harmonize it at sight.
The present work of Rev. F. Trueg has been composed to supply this want,
and will be found in many respects to be superior to the greater number
of such translations hitherto published. It comprises the three masses
of the _Graduale Romanum_ as given in the Ratisbon edition—viz., for
feasts of the Blessed Virgin, for double feasts, and for the Sundays in
Advent and Lent, together with the responses at Mass. The harmonization
is arranged in such a manner that it serves not only as an instrumental
(organ or string quartette) accompaniment, but also, if so preferred,
for a vocal execution in four parts without instrumental accompaniment.
Some excellent remarks also accompany it by way of preface, explaining
the notation employed, and giving some valuable hints as to the proper
_tempo_ to be observed.
We commend its careful study to organists and chanters, and trust that
it may receive such patronage as to warrant the composer in completing
his design of publishing the entire _Graduale_ and _Antiphonarium_ in
the same form.
BLANCHE CAREY; OR, SCENES IN MANY LANDS. By Patricia. New York: P.
O’Shea. 1877.
“Blanche Carey was a charming girl of twenty-two summers, beautiful and
accomplished. She had just completed her education at a fashionable
boarding-school, and was gifted with those graces which constitute the
true characteristics of woman. She was the admired of all who knew her,
the pride of the family circle, the delight of society, unrivalled in
intellectual attainments. If we add to these beauty and grace of form,
the picture is complete.”
_Phew!_ And we are only at the first page. What is one to say of so
oppressively perfect a heroine? But “the picture” is _not_ “complete”
yet; for in the second page the inventory of her qualities and
accomplishments is continued in this thrilling style: “The harp she
fingered with unrivalled skill; the piano keys she swept like a
whirlwind” (good gracious!), “while she executed on the guitar with no
less grace and finish.” We are slightly at a loss to understand whether
or not this highly-accomplished young lady performed all these startling
feats at once, as the author would seem to imply. The picture of a girl
“fingering” the harp with unrivalled skill, “sweeping” the piano-keys
“like a whirlwind,” while she “executes” on the guitar “with no less
grace and finish” than a whirlwind presumably, is something that
certainly possesses the merit of novelty. “Finding that she was already
proficient in music, she did not wish to devote further time to
painting”—why, we do not know. However, “it’s of no consequence,” as Mr.
Toots would say.
Blanche goes to Rome and sees the Holy Father, who “was quite affable”
to her, she assures us. Here is one of the “Scenes in Many Lands”:
“Our Irish tourists” (Blanche and her grandfather, a Mr. O’Rourke) “had
already made quite a sojourn in Italy, and to the old gentleman’s
astonishment, as he entered the coffee-room with his granddaughter
leaning on his arm, both apparently fatigued after a long drive in the
suburbs” (we are at a loss to understand whether the writer means by
“suburbs” the suburbs of Italy or the suburbs of the coffee-room), “they
observed a young man of prepossessing appearance seated at an opposite
table, gazing at them very earnestly. His travelling companions were two
ladies. One of them, though by no means elderly, might be taken for his
mother; the other young and somewhat coquettish in manner—evidently his
sister from the striking resemblance she bore him. _All denoted the air
of the Parisian._
“‘That gentleman must be going to make our acquaintance,’ said Blanche.
‘He must, I imagine, be dying to know us. All three are looking at us. I
know they are French _by the way they drink wine_.’
“The party in question rose to adjourn to their apartments. As they left
the room, Frank Mortimer—for such was his name—glanced several times at
Blanche. _She, of course, not condescending to notice the supposed
curiosity, evaded it._”
Artful yet discreet Blanche! Of course she makes his acquaintance in the
next page—we have only reached page 6 yet, so that it will be seen
events move rapidly—and here is how she makes it:
“Having waited for some moments in the pretty boudoir, looking out on a
veranda of orange-trees not yet in blossom” (we copy _verbatim_),
“Blanche was humming one of her favorite airs, ‘Beautiful Isle of the
Sea,’ which she imperceptibly changed to ‘Let each man learn to know
himself.’ Frank entered _on the words_, and seemed slightly confused for
an instant, but, quickly recovering his composure, he addressed his
visitors _with the ease and grace of a debonair_.”
“May we not hope to meet _ye_ in Paris?” is one of the questions put by
the easy and graceful “debonair” to his visitors. He falls in love with
Blanche, of course, though he confesses that he “almost fell in love
once with a lady from South America,” and no wonder. “She was a most
perfect creature in face and form; that delicate cast of countenance
with an exquisite profile; hair that might be called golden, coiled _on
the tip of her head_.”
The parting at the end of the first chapter, between Blanche and Frank,
is not altogether as poetical as it might have been made. The train
whistle interferes with it considerably. “A whistle, and all was
confusion; everybody astir to get on board. A second one, and Frank
started to take leave. He tried to speak, but it was impossible. His
face quivered with emotion. He pressed the hand of Blanche in silence,
and, darting out of the carriage, he encountered Mr. O’Rourke at the
door. Bidding him a hasty farewell, he was soon lost in the crowd. ‘What
a fool I am!’ he thought, ‘but _I am human nature_. Yet is it not a
weakness to bow to its dictates? Should I ever meet that gifted creature
again, I will tell her all....’ He wiped the cold perspiration from his
forehead, and, with a sigh, tried to forget his misery.”
What a fool he was indeed! Yet he said one sensible thing: “‘Oh!’ said
Blanche, laughing, ‘am I not a favored child of fortune? When I go home
I shall write a novel or some work of fiction.’
“Frank Mortimer smiled as the words fell from her lips. ‘Heaven save
you,’ he said, ‘from such a fate!’”
Frank’s prayer was not heard, seemingly, and the result, we suppose, is
_Blanche Carey_. We have not got beyond the first chapter of this
fascinating “work of fiction,” and we are not likely to get beyond it.
The reader may easily judge of its attractions by the extracts given,
which were positively too tempting to pass by.
THE LETTERS OF REV. JAMES MAHER, D.D., LATE P.P. OF CARLOW-GRAIGUE, ON
RELIGIOUS SUBJECTS. With a memoir. Edited by the Rt. Rev. Patrick
Francis Moran, D.D., Bishop of Ossory. Dublin: Browne & Nolan. 1877.
Seldom do we have an opportunity to welcome the appearance of so
valuable a book as this, which is the embodiment of those sentiments,
views, and convictions that distinguish the modern Irish priest. Few men
loved his religion and his native land with a more intense fervor than
Father Maher. This double love nourished his frame, increased his
strength, stimulated his thoughts, nerved his heart, and underlay every
thought and action of his life. He was a man who simply delighted in
every opportunity of saying a word or doing a deed in behalf of his
creed or his country. As a controversialist his enthusiasm made him
almost bitter, but with that bitterness which is born of zeal for the
truth. A man of stalwart frame and magnificent proportions, he exercised
a magnetic influence over his listeners by his presence alone.
Throughout the entire range of controversial literature it would be hard
to find anything equal to his scathing arraignment of Archbishop Whately
_apropos_ of the Nunnery Inspection bill: “I have myself,” he writes,
“two sisters and eighteen nieces who, following the call of Heaven, have
selected the religious life. Some of them are in convents in England,
some in Ireland, some in America; all engaged in the noble service of
forming the tender minds of the children of the poor to virtue, for
whose sake and the sake of their Father in heaven they most willingly
surrendered in the morning of life all earthly prospects. I well
remember what they were under the paternal roof. I know what they are in
the cloister. I have never lost sight of them; and as to their
happiness, to which I could not be indifferent, I have only to affirm,
which I do most solemnly, that I have never known people more happy,
more joyous, more light-hearted, or with such buoyant hopes as good
_religieuses_. Their character, my lord, is unknown and will remain a
mystery to that world for which Christ refused to pray.” These are the
brave words of one of the most conspicuous champions of religious
freedom, and one of the most determined antagonists of the smelling
committee who strove to insult the purest and noblest of women. His
spirit is not dead among his _confrères_ in the Irish vineyard, for
Cardinal Cullen, the nephew of Father Maher, and the distinguished
prelate who has given these inestimable letters to the world—a near
relative of the great priest—lives to represent every feeling and pulse
of his heart.
SPECIALISTS AND SPECIALTIES IN MEDICINE. Address delivered before the
Alumni Association of the Medical Department of the University of
Vermont. Burlington. 1876.
This address of Dr. Henry, though unpretending in form, is exceedingly
well timed and full of suggestiveness. The doctor evidently belongs to
the conservative class of his profession, who long for the day when
eminent respectability, which is the escutcheon of the medical man in
European countries, will be fairly won and worn by every one who
subscribes M.D. to his name. As a consequence, he is the bitter enemy of
every form of quackery and undue pretentiousness. He certainly handles
_soi-disant_ specialists without gloves, and gives the best of reasons
why the community should rebel against their assumption of skill. Too
many so-called specialists are men who have devoted their time and
attention to a special branch of the profession while entirely
neglecting the others. This is illogical and cannot be done. Medicine is
a science whose parts are bound together as indissolubly as the stages
of a reasoning process, and whoever imagines that he can master one
department without a knowledge of the others simply follows the advice
of Dogberry. We have oculists and aurists and gynœcologists without
number who have no knowledge of general pathology. This is altogether
wrong. The true _raison d’être_ of a specialist is that, having
profoundly studied the science of medicine, he finds that his natural
aptitude or taste draws him to one branch of the profession rather than
to others. In this manner only have the prominent and highly-reputed
specialists in Europe and among ourselves won their fame and fortune.
Dr. Henry, in a clear and trenchant style, demonstrates the absurdity of
specialties, as such.
MONGRELISM. By Watson F. Quinby M.D. Wilmington, Del.: James & Webb.
This curious monogram is worth perusing, if for no other reason than the
fanciful and novel views which it presents. The author attributes many
of our present social evils to mongrelism, or the admixture of distinct
types of men. He finds in the Book of Revelation the foreshadowing of
the natural distribution of men into white, red, and black, deeming the
three similarly colored horses to be typical of those three branches of
the human family, while the fourth horse, on which sat Death, he
considers to be the emblem of mongrelia. He opposes J. J. Rousseau’s
idea that man’s primitive condition was one of barbarism, and contends
that historical and archæological discoveries prove rather a
retrogression than an improvement. The Chinaman is Dr. Quinby’s ideal of
a mongrel. In the land of flowers every art once flourished, learning
was cultivated, the harpist filled the air with sweetest strains, and
the poet sang delicious lays in the beautiful vale of Cashmere, till the
bane of mongrelism fell on it and all progress ceased. Mexico and South
America are other evidences of the pernicious influence of hybridism.
The conclusions of the author are in many instances sound, but his
reasoning is too fanciful to satisfy a sober-minded reader. His
statement that the rapid influx of Chinese into our midst is fraught
with mighty perils is well worth pondering over, and no true statesman
will shun the serious consideration of this knotty problem.
JACK. From the French of Alphonse Daudet. By Mary Neal Sherwood,
translator of _Sidonie_. Boston: Estes & Lauriat. 1877.
Another painful story by this gifted author. It is cleverly told and the
treatment is highly artistic, showing all that careful finish that
French writers bestow even on their smallest characters. The characters
in this story are most of them wretched enough. Lovers of the real in
fiction will find them realistic enough. There is a tone of hopelessness
and helplessness in _Jack_, as in _Sidonie_, that is very disheartening.
According to M. Daudet, a relentless Fate would seem to clutch some
miserable mortals, and hold them till death came as a happy release.
“The mother cried in a tone of horror, ‘Dead’?” “No,” said old Rivals;
“no—_delivered_,” are the last lines of _Jack_.
There is much truth and also much untruth in the lesson of the book.
Social surroundings, of course, influence very materially the growth,
physical and moral, of lives. But they are not everything; over and
above them all is a man’s own will, and that is the true lever of his
life. “Jack” only needed a little more resolution and nerve to have made
him a very useful member of society instead of a nincompoop. As in
_Sidonie_, so here, the minor characters are to us the most interesting.
The humor in _Jack_ is unfortunately less in quantity and more sardonic
in quality than in _Sidonie_. We suppose it is hopeless to expect M.
Daudet to look for once at the brighter side of life and find his heroes
and heroines among respectable people. Meanwhile, we give him all praise
as a very powerful artist, though a very unpleasing one. He is fortunate
in his American translator.
MCGEE’S ILLUSTRATED WEEKLY: Devoted to Catholic Art, Literature, and
Education. Vol. I. New York: J. A. McGee, Publisher. 1877.
An illustrated Catholic weekly journal, which should successfully
compete in point of illustration and literary workmanship with the
numerous non-Catholic and anti-Catholic—we had almost said
diabolic—journals that are so abundant to-day, was something greatly
needed in this country. Various attempts have been made in the past to
establish such a journal. They were so many failures. The volume which
forms the subject of the present notice is certainly the most successful
we have yet seen here, and we have great hopes that, with an increased
patronage, which it certainly deserves, it may be all we could wish it
to be. It has advanced very much, both in style of illustration, in
selection of subjects, and above all in editorial character and ability
on its own earlier numbers.
The publisher has had the good fortune as well as the good sense to
secure a really able editor in Col. James E. McGee, who, in addition to
being an excellent writer, possesses that sound journalistic sense and
judgment without which the very best matter is simply wasted in a
publication of this kind. Most of the illustrated journals of the day
are so much mental and moral poison, and the deadliest are those that
are most generally liked and enjoy the widest circulation. To furnish an
antidote to this bane is a good as well as a bold work, which deserves
well of Catholics everywhere. We most heartily wish continued success to
the new venture.
THE BIBLE OF HUMANITY. By Jules Michelet. Translated from the French by
Vincenzo Calfa. With a new and complete index. New York: J. W.
Bouton. 1877.
This is a translation of what may be called a sensational romance by
Jules Michelet, founded on the earliest records of various races of the
human family, including the Old and the New Testament. The author runs
riot amidst these ancient documents; and his disordered imagination
misinterprets them unscrupulously, denies boldly what does not answer
his purpose, and invents at pleasure, until in the end nothing is left
on the mind of the reader except the impression of a defying, scoffing,
and voluptuous disciple of M. Voltaire—Jules Michelet.
The translation is in good English; we have no reason to think it is not
faithfully done.
THE POETICAL AND PROSE WRITINGS OF CHARLES SPRAGUE. New edition. With a
portrait and a biographical sketch. Boston: A. Williams & Co. 1876.
Mr. Sprague’s writings, whether in prose or poetry, are of that kind, we
fear, that are not destined to live long in men’s memories, however much
immediate interest and attention they may excite at the time of their
publication. His verse was smooth enough and sweet enough as a rule,
with little or nothing in it to jar on sensitive feelings, and little or
nothing in it also to rouse feeling of any kind. The present edition is
handsomely brought out.
ANNALS OF OUR LADY OF THE SACRED HEART. Monthly bulletin of the
Archconfraternity of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, published with the
approbation of Rt. Rev. Edgar P. Wadhams, Bishop of Ogdensburg.
Printed for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, by Chas. E.
Holbrook, Watertown, N. Y.
We have received the first number of this little publication, the object
of which is best set forth in the words of the dedication “to the
clergy, religious communities, colleges, institutions of learning, and
Catholic societies of America.” “The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of
Jesus established at Watertown earnestly recommend to the zeal of
Catholics the monthly publication entitled _Annals of Our Lady of the
Sacred Heart_. Its object is to make known and to propagate in America,
and in the English possessions, the admirable devotion to Our Lady of
the Sacred Heart, and, through Mary, to lead souls to the Sacred Heart
of Jesus.” The publication begins with the June number.
THE CATHOLIC PARENTS’ FRIEND. Devoted to the cause of Catholic
education. Edited monthly by M. Wallrath, pastor of the Church of the
Immaculate Conception, Colusa, California. Numbers for May, June, and
July, 1877.