International studio (24.1904/1905(1905))

Book Reviews

qualities of the worker’s nature should teach him
to seek knowledge in every variety of his business,
since by possessing such knowledge alone he can
increase the efficiency of his work, besides adding
to his own pleasure in the meantime.
London as an Art City. By Mrs. Steuart
Erskine. i6mo. Pages 95. Illustrated.
New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. (Im-
ported.) $1.00 net.
Nuremberg. By Herman Uhde-Bernays.
i6mo. Pages 85. Illustrated. New York:
Charles Scribner’s Sons (Imported). Si.00 net.
In recent issues of The International Studio
we have called the attention of our readers to the
artistic little volumes comprising the Langham
Series of Art Monographs, edited by Selwyn
Brinton, M. A. The two volumes under discussion
at present are Nos. VI. and VII. of this series.
In “London as an Art City” the author gives us
a bird’s-eye view of the progress of art in England,
from the earliest times to the present day. The
principal subjects treated of are: Westminster
Abbey—St. Paul’s Cathedral—Literary London—
The Public and Private Collections—The Art of
Modern London. The illustrations are reproduc-
tions of the works of Romney, J. M. W. Turner,
Rossetti, Fragonard, and others; the frontispiece
being a representation of London Bridge, by J.
McNeil Whistler. The old gates of London, in the
initial letters and tail-pieces, are copied from a rare
print, in the possession of a private individual.
“Nuremberg,” No. VII of the Langham Series,
was published only a few months ago in Germany.
In this work the art treasures of the old mural city
receive particular attention. The illustrations,
several of which are coloured, are excellent repre-
sentations of the churches and public buildings.
The tail-pieces are from original designs by Diirer
and other artists.
The Art Crafts for Beginners. By Frank G.
Sanford, nmo. Pages 250. Illustrated.
New York: The Century Company. $1.20
net.
Mr. Frank G. Sanford, director of the Arts and
Crafts Department of Chautauqua, has prepared a
book which tells simply and helpfully how to begin
and advance in Design, Woodworking, Pyrography,
Sheet-metal Working, Leather Work, Bookbinding,
Clay Modelling, Basketry and Bead Work. The
treatment is terse, careful and suggestive. As a
useful little manual for the teacher and as a practical
guide for the amateur, this book should prove of

great value. The author in his introduction calls
attention to the fact that not many years ago the
study of the arts was considered to be an ornament,
rather than an essential, in education; but the
growing interest in the crafts, shown in our own
and in foreign countries, proves the old idea to be
erroneous. So rapid has been the progress in the
development of the desire for beauty and its realiza-
tion in objects of our immediate environment, that
some attempt to teach at least the elements of the
arts and crafts is now made in nearly all schools.
The craft work in this book, while of such a nature
as will especially appeal to amateurs, is arranged
in progressive lessons of increasing difficulty, so
that it may easily be adapted to school conditions.
It is illustrated with working drawings by the
author, and with photographs.
France. By Joel Cook. 8vo. Pages 386+481.
Illustrated. In two volumes. Philadelphia;
Henry T. Coates & Co. Cloth, $4.00 net;
leather, $8.00 net.
In some sense, at any rate, Mr. Joel Cook’s
“France” is complementary to Bodley’s excellent
contribution to English literature on the same sub-
ject, taken from an entirely different point of view.
Mr. Bodley’s work was concerned rather with
national and political institutions and the people of
the country; whereas Mr. Cook’s is with the more
generally popular historic and romantic features—
and how richly fraught that is with vital interest
and picturesque charm, a mere mention of that
side of French life calls to mind.
The book begins by describing the visitor’s
journey across the English Channel, with the ports
and places upon both shores to which tourists
usually go, and the routes by which nearly every
American traveller first enters the land of the “sun-
loving Gauls.” The routes to Paris from Calais,
Boulogne, Dieppe and Havre are then followed,
and the capital city and its suburban attractions are
described. The remaining portion of the work is
arranged upon routes of travel taken in all direc-
tions from Paris: Southward through Champagne
to Provence and the Rhone valley, to the Medi-
terranean and the Riviera; westward into quaint
and charming Brittany and the region of the Loire;
southwestward to the Bay of Biscay and the Pyre-
nees; and northeastward into Flanders. In the
latter is included Belgium which is so closely allied
to France in geography, language and history. The
description closes with the eastern frontier of
France, the German boundary, the scene of so
many conflicts during the centuries, and the story

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