LONDON: HAMPSTEAD: The Keats' Relics.-Sir Charles Dilke has intimated his intention of devising an important collection of Keats' manuscripts and mementoes to the Hampstead public libraries. It comprises several objects of great interest, most of which are now exhibited on loan at the Chelsea Public Library. They will remain there for a time; but, in view of the connection existing between Keats and Mr. C. W. Dilke (to whom several of the letters in the collection are addressed) and Hampstead, Sir Charles has expressed his intention of bequeathing them to the Hampstead libraries. LONDON: LAMBETH: Memorial to William Blake.—It is gratifying to find that William Blake, the poet-artist, who died in poverty and neglect just seventy-two years ago, is not without honour, even in Lambeth, where he lived for many years and did some of his best and most original work. In a recently published monograph on William Blake, Dr. Richard Garnett reproached Lambeth with not having put up even a tablet to Blake's memory. Mr. J. Francis Bursill took this to heart, and the result has been that, with the help of a few Lambeth artists, sculptors and writers, a beautiful “William Blake Memorial" has been prepared, and will in the course of a week or two be placed in the Central Lambeth Library. The memorial, which is of Irish marble and bronze, includes a bas-relief of Blake's own design, "Death's Door," with a medallion of Blake (from the remarkable portrait by Phillips) and a suitable inscription, which has been written by Dr. Garnett, who will unveil the memorial. The sculptor is Mr. Nicholls of Lambeth, a great admirer of Blake, who has produced a memorial worthy of Blake's memory and of Lambeth art. NEW MILLS, DERBYSHIRE: Opening of the Free Library.-The New Mills Free Library will be opened by the Duke of Devonshire on 30th September. It is situated in a new wing of the Town Hall, and has been built at the expense of Mr. James Hibbert of New Mills, who has also given 2000 volumes. There are also about 1300 volumes selected from the library of the late Mechanics' Institution. NORWICH: Reopening of the Norfolk and Norwich Library.-The Norfolk and Norwich Library is a very Phoenix. Destroyed by fire on the August Bank Holiday of last year, it was reopened on 2nd August, much the same in appearance, but considerably improved in internal arrangement. Already 10,000 volumes are on the shelves, and 5000 more are ready to be placed there, so that a fourth of the total number (60,000) possessed before the catastrophe of last year has already been made up. The institution has been in existence since 1784, and it is to be confidently hoped that it will speedily be restored to its old position as one of the very finest public libraries in the kingdom. STROMNESS, N.B.: To have its Free Library. The late Mrs. Marjory Skea or Corrigall, Stromness, having left the residue of her estate, estimated at about £1000, to found a free library for Stromness, steps are about to be taken to give effect to the terms of her will. Mr. Andrew Carnegie of Skibo, having been approached on the subject, has offered to contribute a sum of £250 towards stocking the library with books. UNITED STATES. PENNSYLVANIA: Gift to the University Library. The Library of the University of Pennsylvania has been enriched by the acquisition of an extremely valuable bibliographical collection connected with the aboriginal tongues of North and South America. Professor D. G. Brin ton, the donor, is a member of the University staff, and the number of items comprised by his gift amounts to 2200. A proportion of these consists of rare pamphlets that are not contained in any other library. OFFICIAL GAZETTE. Parker (Gill, assistant secretary of the Leeds Institute of Science, Art and Literature, has been appointed, out of seventy-five applicants, curator of the Ruskin Museum, Sheffield. OBITUARY. Wright (William) D.D.-We regret to record the death of the Rev. Dr. William Wright, Editorial Superintendent of the British and Foreign Bible Society for over twenty years. Though not a member of the Library Association, Dr. Wright took great interest in its work, and arranged for the meeting held at the Bible House in March, 1895, to inspect the Francis Fry collection of Bibles, when he contributed an exceedingly interesting paper on “Remarkable Bibles". His life was a somewhat eventful one. He was an able linguist, his knowledge of oriental languages being acquired by a long residence in the East. He was a constant contributor to the periodical press, but probably was better known of late by his book “The Brontës in Ireland,” which drew forth much criticism of an adverse kind—not as to the style of the work but upon the matters contained in it, which were characterised as mainly folk-lore. It is not generally known that Dr. Wright was a native of the district wherein the scenes of the book are laid, and he must all his life have been familiar with many of the Brontë stories which he relates. He certainly gave them to the world in good faith, and with implicit belief in them. Fact or fiction, the book is a valuable contribution to the literature of the subject. Captain Mayne Reid was also a native of the same district, and Dr. Wright had the intention of writing an adequate life of the romancist. The learned doctor's most important work was "The Empire of the Hittites". The writer of these lines enjoyed Dr. Wright's friendship for several years, and can bear testimony to his most genial nature and to his interest in all that concerned his wide circle of friends. He will be greatly missed, especially at the Bible House, which, after all, had his best interest and energies, and where he planned, guided and counselled more translations and revisions of Holy Scripture than any of his contemporaries. NOTEWORTHY BOOKS OF THE MONTH. (English list compiled by F. J. BURGOYNE.) WORKS PUBLISHED BETWEEN 22ND JULY, AND 21ST AUGUST, 1899. ANDRÉ (Ed. C.). De l'esclavage à Madagascar. Paris: Rousseau. 8vo. 6 fr. BOOTHBY (Guy). Love made manifest. Crn. 8vo. 376 pp.; 5 illus. Ward, Lock. 5s. BROWN (W. Harvey). On the south African frontier. 260 pp.; 32 illus.; 2 maps. Dy. 8vo. Low. 12s. 6d. net. CAROL (Jean). Les deux routes du Caucase: notes d'un touriste. Paris: Hachette. Sm. 8vo. 4 fr. CHAMBERS (G. F.). The story of eclipses. 18mo. 260 pp.; illus. Newnes. IS. CHARABOT (E.), DUPONT (J.), et PILLET (L.). Les huiles et essentielles et leurs principaux constituants. Paris: Béranger. 8vo. (figures et tableaux). 20 fr. COPPÉE (François). A voix haute discours et allocutions. Paris: Lemerre. Sm. 8vo. 3 fr. 50. FALKNER (J. Meade). A history of Oxfordshire. Dy. 8vo. 327 pp. Stock. 7s. 6d. FOWLER (J. H.). Manual of essay writing. Crn. 8vo. 174 pp. Black. 2s. 6d. GRACE (W. G.). Cricketing reminiscences. Dy. 8vo. 544 pp.; 80 illus. and port. Bowden. 6s. 3s. 6d. HARRISON (F.). Annals of an old manor house, Sutton Place, Guild- net. HISCOX (G. D.). Mechanical movements, powers, devices, etc. Dy. 8vo. 406 pp. 1649 illus. Low. 12s. 6d. net. INDEX to the periodicals of 1898; compiled by Miss Hetherington. Imp. 8vo. H. Marshall. IOS. net. LEO XIII. Pope Leo XIII.: his life and work. By J. De Narfon. Trans. by G. A. Raper. Dy. 8vo. 328 pp. Chapman & Hall. 7s. 6d. LITTLE (Marion). Essays on Robert Browning. Crn. 8vo. 204 pp. Sonnenschein. 3s. 6d. MARKHAM (C. A.). French Hall-marks on plate. Crn. 8vo. 72 pp.; 431 stamps. Gibbings. 5s. MURRAY'S handbook for Wilts and Dorset. New ed. Crn. 8vo. 760 PP.; 5 maps. Murray. 6s. SAVAGE (R. H.). 28. Hacienda on the hill. Crn. 8vo. 226 pp. Routledge. SNELL (A. T.). Electric motive power. Second ed. Dy. 8vo. 418 pp.; illus. Electrician Co. 10s. 6d. SPINGARN (J. E.). History of literary criticism in the Renaissance. Crn. 8vo. Macmillan. 6s. net. STEP (Ed.). Romance of wild flowers. Crn. 8vo. 358 pp.; 200 illus. Warne. 6s. TOWNSEND (W. G. P.). Embroidery, or, the craft of the needle. Crn. 8vo. 132 pp.; 70 illus. Truslove. 3s. 6d. net. UZANNE (Octave). La locomotion à travers l'histoire. Illustrations de Eugène Courboin. Paris: Ollendorff. 8vo. 40 fr. VAN DYCK (Sir Anthony). By H. Knackfuss; trans. by Dodgson. Ry. 8vo. 90 pp.; 55 illus. Grevel. 4s. net. VERNE (Jules). Le testament d'un excentrique, rère partie. Paris: Hetzel. Sm. 8vo. 3 fr. WALFORD (L. B.). Leddy Marget. Cheap ed. 236 pp. Longmans. 2s. 6d. WATSON (John). English lake district fisheries (Angler's Library). Crn. 8vo. 284 pp.; illus. Lawrence & Bullen. 5s. Q OUR JUNIOR COLLEAGUES' CORNER. (Conducted by JOHN J. OGLE.) UESTIONS on the subjects included in the syllabus of the Library Association's examinations, and on matters affecting library work generally, are invited from assistants engaged in the larger, and librarians of the smaller libraries. All signed communications addressed to Mr. J. J. OGLE, FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY, BOOTLE, will, as far as possible, be replied to in the pages of The Library Association Record. A pen name should be given for use in the "Corner ". [Librarians will greatly oblige by bringing the "Corner" under the notice of their Junior Colleagues.] Winter Plans. This is the month of the making of plans for winter study; now is the time when some of my junior colleagues will be looking forward to joining various classes, and as they scan the prospectuses of local educational institutions the uppermost thought will be "what subject am I to take up?" The answers will be various, but not so various as if the scope were less limited. Let those who complain of the absence from their neighhood of classes in professional subjects, make a choice of a language, say Latin, or French, or German, or Greek; or of Logic, the grammar of correct thinking; or of Physiography, to obtain an insight into the methods of Modern Science; or take a period of English Literature and study it carefully with much reading of small but representative classic works. Even if no public classes are available much may be done by private study. I would not, however, recommend any one to study a modern language without a master. When this is done there is always too much to unlearn-a harder process than to learn. This objection applies with less force to Latin or Greek, which are seldom spoken now. |