BOOK NOTICES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15321, 8 December 1911, Page 8

BOOK NOTICES.

"The Piraki il/>g (E Piianji Ahau Koe) "j or " Diary of Captain Hcn:plomau." With introduction, glossary, illustrations, .and map, by the present owner. Oxford Univemity Pi*.«»: Henry Frowdo (clotli, gilt, 65.) In llio diary and log of tho nmtor wlialcr. Captain Hcmploman, wo lmvo a vaJiiabio addition to tho early histoiy of New Zealand (between Doccnibor 4, 1336, and March 13, 1844). The MSS. 'tliemselvea arc safely deposited ih tlia Chrktchnrch Museum. They are tho property of the gentleman modestly described oil the title pago, "Present Owner," whose personality is, however, very thinly disguised, being that of a well-known rt«ident of Pit&ki, for many, years chairman of the Akaroa County "Council. It wa3 in 1877, two years after Mr Adsod'b arrival from England, that he first heard "of any, old records in connection with Piraki," and ho immediately sot to work to obtain further particulars. Ho found old .Captain Homplemau "jealously guard, ing his treseured privaio papers from public scrutiny in the interests of his 'claim,'" Mid learned that Henipbman had promised the papers after his -Icatli to Mr Justin Ay Imor, R.M., ooroner, etc., of the Akaroa district. Mr Aylmer very kindly made the same promise to Mr Anson. _ It is tbeso papers, consisting chiefly of a log and diary, which aro now given to the public. Theee pages purport to be an exact reprint of tho MSS., with "all tho mistakes in spelling, faulty expressions, illiterate diction, etc., and \iithont any alteration or reconstruction whatever in the text." Tho necessary explanations and elucidations aro provided in the glossary-index, which is a most excellent piooe of work, showing erudition and research. Tho "log" taelf u 0 f value as being the "earliest extant record of the life of hardship, privation, and danger habitually endured by the adventurous whaler in the Southern Seas, of the ironically named Pacific Ocean." For this 'particular work has tho unnsual peculiarity of being not only a seaman's "log," but a landman's "diaiy"; and it contoina not merely "the sailor-liko daily chronicles of the wind and weather experienced some 70 years ago, which should ba of much interest to the meteorologist of to-day," but many little touches respecting climatic conditions on shore which may help to settle sonio disputed 1-ainls of the present day. Thus under nate December 19/1837, Captain Hem pieman 6»T6 1 'must here make a remark about the weather; one any it is very hot with Hot winds when on a Stiden it will change to cold, and that cold that there is no difference between Summer and Winter, this very day tho oil of tho lamps frozed in the, Houses, tho weather in general so far advanced'in tho Summer has been'very bad, theMenat work about tho Captn. J louse but so very cold with 'Missling Snow and rain that very littio work was .done."' This diary also enables iK to fix the exact date of Bishop Selwyn's firel landing in tho South Island, and the approximate dates of the Ngai Tahu retaliatory expeditions against Te ltauparaha in Cloudy Bay, while it also gives "evidence of "tho changing formation of the const line along tho Ninety Mile Beach." But undoubtedly thespscial valuo attaching to this record'lies in the unique period with which it deals. "Beginning in tho wild cannibal days of 1835, witnessing the birth, in 1840, of another British dtnghter-State, and ending with the peacefully established .'ottlement of three rival nationalities, under properly constituted British magisterial authority, ill the now civilised and prosperous district of Akaroa." It also settles (tie sometimes disputed point of the dale of the British ownership of that district. foT it gives tho text of Governor liobwin'n " Letter of Secret Instructions to Caiitain Stanley, R.N.," to hoist the British flag and take possession of Banks Peninsula and the South Island generally before, ho should bo anticipated by tho commander of the French corvette L'Aube, which had already started with that intention. It will bn «cn that there is much of interest to the historian, the scientist, and tho student of human nature in tliia simple unadorned " Log of an old Whaler." To this Mr Anson adds an admirable biographical sketch of the old man, which, with his portrait, gives us a fine presentment of the' hard-bitten, storling, autocratic, despotic, illiterate skipper, who ruled his own men with a rod of iron and utood " no nonsense " from tho ingratiating Natives. Tho editor's task haa evidently been a labour of love, and his introduction, glossary, index, photos., and mag of the district givo just that amount of information necessary to complete tint usefulness of the text. "Uncanny Country." By B. E. Banyan. Duncdm, Cbiistchurch, etc,: Whitcombe and Tombs. (Fancy cover, H-lut-tTalod, Is 6d.) This daintily produced booklet is u delight to the eyes as well aa to the mind. Tiioee who are familiaT with Miss Uaughan's work ns a poet know well the boauty, power, and fino technique of " Shinglo Short," " Reuben," ami other vetses, and thoso who have read I her two 80-calkd proac booklets tind |thc H»me merits in "The Finest Walk in the World" and "Snow Kings of the Southern Alps." We say "so-called," because the prose of a true poot is quite as poetical as his poetry; it is only the form which «]ifttrs. hi this case there are whole iong passages which only require a slight recasting to appear as tho most attractive blank verse. One of these is the opening paragwjili in which we are introduce! to "tho littio blue pool" set in "the i..ost beautiful of mosses, the tenderest ferns . . . the graceful, feathery, waving boughs of manuka," and behold the "skyblue water turu white, snow white " with the hidden forces within and bccyme suddenly ' a bullock of struggling foam." Other equally fine passages depict the Champagne Pool at Wairakei and the Great Goyser at Wairoa—the latter, "a fair white fountain of water . . . ascending and descending—ite crystal column continues to Btand up in the airyet no; not stand; but in every shower and drop incessantly withdrawn, incessantly replenished, mount and mount, fall and fall, in every part of iteolf —yet still sustain its whole stature and full form. Here climbing all shafted crystal, there, descending all diamonds. ,■. Inconstantly constant, the true figure of any individual life." Not less excellent are her descriptions of tho weird honors of Rotorua and its neighbourhood. And aero again it is tho ecarco veilod power which appeals to tho poet, that power which draws the beholder with infinite force until "you begin to think that you would like to stop and play with some of tlicso dark delights, to experiment with some of these energetic operators. As soon an you begiu to feel like this it would be wise to gat away from Tikitere," ln?t, like the man of whom she speaks in another place, the fascination becomes an obsession I believe it has got into my blood. It if. me. . There is nothing I lont; for more than to see another eruption. At the cost of human life? Yes, even that; for it would need that to bo thoroughly itself."' A sentiment which Miss Baughan assures us is not "inhuman, but iiltra-hiimsn, springing from no hatred or indifference to 'Man, but from tho sense of a Ileal Existence other r.han his, and a susceptibility to its dignitv and worth. The green biish. eilm and lovely. Itas its devotees; the eea, witfi il« In*, dom, the pure and steadfast snow, havn each their worshippers. WhyshonM it be denied to the volcanic mystery and power? tor in no case is it the mere phenomena that evokes this love and reverence. Not loaves by themselves, not salt water, or snow, m steam, have power, swro!v. I/) impress the eonl of man." It is t.Tie mystery that lies behini-the "Soul of Natorc."

" those dim days wnon Moxamitinn 111 reigned over Janis and Sir l'rosper lo Gat tvd ventured to Morgraunt, as has b«cn related clsowlwro." And it is therefore in the " Forest Lovers " that v/e must tock tho truo prologue to tho presont story. Yet "Tho Song of Renny" is complete in iUelf, and u an admirable inclusion into thai strango land oF romance which appears (folly as real to Mr Hewlett as tno "open-air" experiences with which most pcojiJo associate his name. Tho present- story deals with tho fortunes of I.Ik; "evil hoitso of Rcnny," as embodied in the advontnros of the three orphwed cousins, Sabine, Mabilla, and JI old is, beautiful, lonely, solitary maidens, each a different branch of tho great 11 winy family, and each alono because father and' brothers have been ruthlewly flain, generally by foes of their mm household. At drat it. Foems ns if there would be prolonged and t<irriblo struggles for supremacy between tlio tiireo hoiiMscs each supported by her own lovers and friends, not to mention that pitiless gaoler of tho Middle Ages—her husband; bat the skilful author brings things to a happier conclusion by introducing tho truo spirit of chivalry, and Bringing out the truth of tho old "Song of Renny" When a Martyr wears tho Robo, A virgin !ho Crown, And tho CiirtUe finds a middle, Rcnny ball) its own. Tho stony is' vivid and ptctureequo, and qiiit-o up to tho level of Mr liow!ett.'s former books of this type. " Tho Poetical Works of William Clay." Melbourne: Thomas C. Lolhiau. (Cloth, gilt edges, 3a 6d.) Tho poems in this volumo have, with one or two 'exceptions, already appeared in print. As they'wero corrected by William Gay shortly before Iris death, (hey aro presented to tho reader by tho editor, Mr J. Glen Oliphant, to whom we are also indobted for a short and appreciative memoir of tho author, from which wo gather a sad story of niisundorflUndings,.. frustrated talents, disappointed hopes,. lingering poverty, and a long illnoss borne with heroic fortitude and an early death. The editor has done his '.rcrrk well, and gives us a characteristic seloc- • tion—lyric, narrative, epic, and dramatic —including Gray's longest and finest piece, "Christ on Olympus." Gay was not an Australian poet. His work is general, not local, and might havo been written anywhere. It secured a fair measure of recognition in his Jifc-time-firat of all, in Dunodin, while ho was a patient in the Hospital—ond should keep his memory green amongst us for many ycarc. Ilk thought was ahvn-ys robust, vigorous, and acnto, and his artistic senso lod him to repress any tendency to sentimentality. His sonnets arc felicitous and noteworthy, especially those on "Death," " Lanrenco Oliphant," "Inconstancy," "Rcsurpe," "Tho Quest Divine," and "A Sonnet of *Empire." ''A Textbook of Mining Geology." Kot Iho um of Alining Students and Minors. By James Park, Professor of Mining in the University of Otago. With 109 illustrations and threo plates. Third edition. London: Charles Griflin and Co. (Ltd.). (6s not.) Th-3 first two editions of this work weio imued within a year, and, as we predicted in our notice of the recond edition, the third edition has not bocn long in making its appearance. Tho author in his preface tells us that the present edition lias been Tevkcd throughout. A good deal of now matter has also been added, and in this way Mio ne\r ireue contains nbotrt 100 pages more than its predeoesJoiTi. We notice that the position occupied by the pay-wash in alluvial drifts is discussed at considerable length, and much new information added in respcct of tho power of flowing water to move gravel and to concentrate the valuable contents in lead*. A detailed description o? the lodes of the Itoefton gold, field makos a useful supplement to the geology of gold-veins. Jt is interesting to olwerve that tho author has been able to incorporate the rwults of his own operations linde in Tasmania, llcndigo, Western .Australia, and Europe. The celebrated saddle rwfo of Hcndigo, which belong to a distinctive and socnowhat remarkable type of ore-body, have added sine? .1868 no less than £70jC03,000 to the wealth of Victoria, and in no part of the globe can wo iind a better example of tno vast importance of systematic geological surveys than on this historic

goldfield. The saddle rcofa consist of arch-lifco bodies of gold-bearing quartz thai conform to the bodding-pl&nes of tha enclosing errantry-rock. Tho rocks themoelvw aro arranged in tho form of a groat elliptical tloano which in traversed from end to end by a number of largo a«d small oonrugatioai in tho areata of which ths gold-be«ring bodies of oro occur. By Ion" and patient research, tho Victorian geological Rurvov haa unccecdrd in mapping Iho axes of the anticlinal fold*, and in this way hao been able to guido the minor into the gold-bearing channel* of tho <ountrv, thereby avoiding milch disappointment and loss in tho conduct of tho underground operations. A now feature of tho present, edition is a miccinct description of tho salt deposits of lOuropo furnwhod bv the Jlacck'cl Professor of Geology at Jena University. Many worked-out examples of tho method of mcaanring' the thickiieos of strata and locating sw»mn of coal from boro-holes noiv appoar for tho first time at tlw end of CSi/ipt/or IV. Tho chanters on "Oreo and Minerals Economically Considered" ami on the '' Examination and Valuation of Mjnsa" havo been amplified and oarofnlly revised. Mining geology has during the past dccackt developed into an important and higlily-spccialisod department of geology. It concerns itaolf chioflr with the niodo of oocurrcmco, formation, distribution, and origin of ail arcs and minerals of oconomio importance. It bears tho same relationship to theoretical geology that engineering docs to mathematics; honoo in a sense it may bo callcd applied- geology- Profcflwr Park's " Miming " in a useful manual on all that relates to tho valimblo ores and metals, as well as coil and petroleum. It was not long in establishing itself as a standard textbook at homo and abroad, and its euccem must ba gratifying both to him and his publishers. "Satyrs and Sunlight." By Hugh M'toae. Melbourne: Thomas C. Lothian. (Cloth, gilt cdg«i; 3e 6J.) Mr M'Crne's book of poems is very aptly named. Tho strings of his lyre a«'<op the wholo gamut of human pas fti<ais and emotions—those. symbolised by the term "satyr" no less than thoee lirradiated «md vivified by tlw sun of youth, love, and happiness. Tho varied fcope of his verso is well epitomised in the lines beginning: Wo dreamed—wo dreamed of love, and stara, and wntors <lcop, Of shining, elcani-kitßod wavoa and tears, Of fallen worlu.i, lorn from a wilderness of lights— Wo dreamed of ships, of staves, and spears. Tho broken garment of tho night, tlw solemn rise Of mm to sky, tho bubbling noto Of birds now wakod, tho whistling of tho urchin wind, Tho whito aail of a fifthcr-boat —and so on through dreams of " tiger's jL'llow eves," of " Kings who fought with kings liks dogs for bones," "of muffled boat oars," ''soul-lcra smiles," " poisoned amber wine," and " whispered nansjlitincffi." Most of Mr M'Crac'a poems have been printed in the Bulletin, which is in itself a milßcient .cachet. They arc dedicated to Mr A. C. Stephens, and the present is the second edition offered to the public. All of this carries the of unusual merit and distinction. "Falgc 'Evidence." Bv E. Phillips Opperrhcrm. • London: Ward, Ix>ck, and Co. (Cloth, gilt; illustrated; 3s 6d.) A pleasing awl romantic story. The " False Evidence" is brought by one brother against dndther, by one soldier against hie comrade, with tho result that an rraiofx'iit man is branded "coward" ami " liar, 1 ' di«iis»d from tho array, and from his father's heart, while the rial culprit reigns in his stead. How this wrong is righted by tho son of the injured man, and hovr in tho end hato is vanqnWied by love, which remains,. as ever, " lord of all," is Mr Phillips Oppenlieim'fi story, told in his usual pleasant and attractive style,