Review.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 361, 11 January 1879, Page 22

Review.

We have been favored with a pamphlet, written by a lady in this city, and entitled “ A Day’s Ride Through the Indian Alps, 1869, and on the March.” On reading the first two pages we were inclined to fear that our verdict would be less favorable than we could have wished. lu the words of the author, who began by describing wooded mountain scenery, and indulged in a certain amount of word-painting, we felt that “ notwithstanding all this we were beginning to feel extremely hungry, and to wonder what we should be able to get” in the way of food for criticism. However, we were speedily interested in the graphic sketch of a day’s ride in India, the pleasant anecdotes of the little incidents of the day, and the lively pen and ink portraits of tbe individuals of the party, combine to make the first part of the pamphlet a very successful essay. “ On the March ” is a longer and more pretentious article, and as a whole is equally, if not more, successful than the first. The bustle of the march is well pour tray ed, and the style of writing is chatty, and the interest in the story is well maintained throughout. An anecdote of a stately drum-major, who was commissioned to deliver up a lady’s chignon which had been picked up, and who presented it on the point of his sword to the colonel, before a crowd of folks is ludicrous, but of this our readers must judge for themselves, as the portions we have marked for extract do not include this story. Of the well-known Taj-Majal tbe author describes it thus tersely and well : —“ The shape of the Taj is that of an irregular octagon, it is surmounted by a dome, supported by four smaller structures of the same kind, and decorated with a number of diminutive minarets. * The height of the building, from the terrace to the gilt crescent at the summit of the dome, is about 296ft.,’ says the author of ' From Galcutta to the Snowy Range,’ who adds that ‘ It occupies a square (with the corners cut off) of 186 ft. The terrace, minarets, and the building itself, are all of the purest white marble, which is perfectly dazzling in the sunlight. It is superbly inlaid with precious stones, disposed in beautiful designs, and abounds with the most exquisite sculptured work imaginable.” A most stirring description of the regiment crossing the River Arumble attracted our attention, but the concluding paragraph is too good to be passed over - . It runs as follows : Our coachman tried to make the horses rush up, but they came back faster than they had gone up. Every one was cross, and amongst the Grossest were the colonel and my husband. The former came to me and hoped, as blandly as he could under the exasperating circumstance that I had got safely over tbe river. Then, aside to my husband, “ D—n it, C —, get that confounded carriage of yours out of the way.” One more extract and we have done. It is a description of a pass:—lt really was a fearfullooking place ! Fancy a rough road cut strait up the side of a x*oeky mountain, with flights of stone steps for carts and heavy carriages of all sorts to get up with here and there a terrace or plateau to rest on * This road was also vei'y nax-row, and on one side yawned a deep ravine, with a roai'ing river below. No wonder my husband sounded the halt, and let the men rest for an houi', and have their dinnei’s, in order to I'ecruit their strength for the work that was before them. The natives are wretched creatures where anything like physical force is required of them, and were worse than useless for helping up the baggage; besides, they had enough to do to look after their bullocks, elephants, camels, &c., &c.; and so the poor men had plenty on their hands ; they had to pull, and haul, and propel, and use all their cunning, to keep a garry which had gained a few yards of ascent, from running backwards, or peidiaps falling over the cliff; while the officers were here and there and everywhere, ordering, shouting, and occasionally using their whips or the fiat of their swords on the lazy natives. If a second edition of the pamphlet is issued we hope such an eye-sore as “ guard d' honeur” for “garde d’ honneur” may be corrected. The wide breaks between the paragraphs on page 4 are unsightly. The spelling of the word “syce” as “ cyce,” and “sahib” as “ sahab,” is unusual, and the better known form might have been adhered to. We should be glad of an explanation of such words as “ eumberbund,” “ courtee,” &c. But after all these are only slight blemishes on two happily conceived and well executed sketches that we can recommend to our readers, hoping that the writer may yet learn to speak of the Hutt in more flattering terms than as the “ dreary New Zealand Hutt.” SOCIAL LIFE IN CHINA. One of the English papers published in China gives regularly a translation of the Pchin Gazettes as they are issued. This gazette is the oldest newspaper in the world, files of it being in existence to a date anterior to the birth of Christ. It is printed on silk, and some of the announcements in it give a strange insight into the peculiar customs of the Chinese. On the 11th of July last the following amusing account is given of the laches of a Mr. Kai Chao, who is reported by an official for that

he, “ Kai Chao, an assistant secretary of a boarcl at Moulcden, temporarily in retirement while mourning for his father, purchased land under an assumed name, and refused to pay the taxes upon it, cruelly maltreating the magistrate’s underlings, who were sent to demand the money. He now proposes, the man’s guilt having been clearly established, to inflict a hundred blows upon him. Having already been cashiered, the question of his dismissal from the public service need not of course be considered. Referred to the Board of Punishments.” On the 12fcix July it is announced that : “The Court of Sacrificial Worship reminds his Majesty that on the 10th August, the birthday of the Senior Empress, certain sacrificial rites have to be performed in the inner chamber of the T’ai Miao, or Hall of Imperial Ancestry,” and has received the Imperial command, “ Let She AT perform the necessary observances.” An unfortunate commissioner got into hot water over this fete day, for another decree says :—“ The financial commissioner of Kweichow, when it recently became his duty to present a memorial of birthday congratulations, erroneously offered them to tbe Senior Empress Dowager. This is a gross piece of carelessness, and we command that Wu Te be handed over to the board for the determination of a penalty.” The Emperor’s birthday fell on the 27th July, and poor Wu Te mistook the one for the other. Another amusing announcement is the case of a Prefect, or Mandarin, at Kiansu, who was falsely accused of having been a common servant once to ah official in another part of the empire. ITis Majesty was so shocked that the order was at once issued to degrade one who was only earthenware, but he was fine porcelain after all, the Gazette saying, “ As Liu Wen is found to be of respectable origin, and not to have served in the menial position of an underling, We restore him to his rank and status.” It is a matter of conjecture whether Liu Wen got a Royal Commission for compensation, like certaiu persons in this enlightened land, but we doubt if he did. A “ Taotai” —whatever that is—has his biogi'aphy published officially as an example to all the subjects of the Brother of the Sun and Lord of the Moon, for the following reasons :—“ The GovernorGeneral reports that the deceased officer, having relinquished his official duties and gone on a distant journey, died from the effects of the fatigue endured in bearing back his father’s remains from so great a distance. His filial piety is indeed commendable, and We sanction the compilation of his official biography.” But though there is much to smile at, there are other decrees far differently worded. The following notice, the last we give, is unpleasant :—Fu Chung-hin and two others quarrelled with some persons and killed three of them. It appears by the official report that tbe murdered persons “ took advantage of their official position to levy excessive exactions, destx*oyed records and demanded taxes over and over again from the same individual,” Fu Chung-hin being one of the victims of their extortion. From him, as he refused to pay, they took a piece of land and farmed it themselves, treating his demand for restitution of the property with contempt and indolence. “Fu Chung-hin, with l’age and hatred in his heart, swore that he would kill them, aud to this end prepared a feast to which he invited those who, like himself, had been the victims of his enemies’ greed and avarice. He imparted his plans to them, and some agreed to aid him. The murderer fled after the deed, but Fu Chung-hin, however, seeing it was impossible to evade the grasp of the law, soon gave himself up, and admitted that he was the chief offender. His companions were shortly arrested, and a trial held, at which the above facts were elicited. The law lays down that whosoever shall be guilty of slaying three persons of one family, provided that these have not committed crimes punishable by death, shall be executed by a slow and painful process. Fu Chung-hin, in accordance with this law, has been led forth, bound, to a public place, and slowly sliced to death.” His Imperial Majesty might have exercised his i - oyal clemeney on this occasion, which happened on the 13th July last.