"Tun Buiwce oF Live.—By C, Harold Smith, D. Appleion & Ca, New must be nearly two years ice we reviewed "Hahwedia" a story of the young man's adventures in New Zealand, when he was very much younger than he is now. And some seventy odd summers have passed over a very advenaurous head. "The Bridge of a very human document, the story of the author's career, written in a most engaging style and with a most refreshing frankness. He tells a plain unadorned tale, as if he were sitting on the other side of the fire reminiscing over the days gone by, from the small naughtinesses of boyhood, to the wilder oats of adolescence, through the vicissitudes of a varied career, to the summit of achievement. And, too, he takes one into all parts of the world, with the wide open eyes of the born traveller. Sorae of his tales are typical travellers' stories, but well told withal, Yet we may not agree with his philosophy, even when it is viewed from the shadowy end of the hriige, for he says: "Maybe when one earthly journey is ended and ice reach the farther shore, the purpose of the Infinite Mind may be mae clear to us...... Until then, as ive travel the Bridge of Life, tin know:. ing, unseeing, let us bow to Lily Luck and the Goddess of Chance godmothers of Fate and Destiny." We hope that this old gentleman, leven though he draws a moral from life with which we ennnot agree, will be many more years travelling the Bridge of Life before he reaches his destination, Miss Elizabeth Strickland, grand-daughter of "Martin Schoolday," is shortly to be my l. The late Sir Charles Strick land was the original of "Marti A collection of 60,000 books has been presented by' the British Government to the University Tokyo for their new library which replaces the one destroyed by the great earthquake of 1923. The cost of the books was £25,000, ani there have been a number of private donations, Miss Mary Atherton, whose new novel, "The Strange Hope," will he published during the autuann, is a direct descendant of Sir Thomas Bodley, founder of the Bodleian Libracy. She is a great-niece of Me. J. E, C, Bodley, whose books fon France are s0 well known, private lite she is Mrs, Frank Wore thing ton Simon, During the War green envelopes were issued to units at the front that through their use men might have their letters censored at the Base instead of by their Come Officer, In @ volume entitled "Green Envelopes" a collection has been made of everyday yet remarke able letters written by a number of men, from "a typical English ville age," who went to the War in their local Yeomanry. The Squire, H., the curate, the gardener, the exoom, became' the Colonel, Company Officers, troopers, unusual method proves both inten ious and attractive in showing what was going on in the War. Mre Murray will publish the book short Miss Richmal Crompton has achieved a reputa nas the writer william" stories, fest book, "Sugar and Spice" she has turned her attention to maturer characters and subtler themes, and has presented us with a dozen or so studies of matrimonial entanglements, leavened by her une failing wit and by her keen insight into the perversity of human nature, The long arm of coincidence stretched to a rather surprising ex= tent in one or two of these stories, but the characters live, and the easy sweep of the narrative carries the reader through to the end, The closing story is perhaps the hest in: the volume; its climax is both clever and unexpected, Ara. Florence Ayscough, a well known resident in Shanghai " of former years, has yet another book on the eve of publication. This will be "Tu Fu" and the publishers are Jonathan Cape. The book is due this month, July, "Tu Fu" deals with the life of the Chinese poet of the eighth century, the days when the mighty Tang dynasty in China, was mounting to its ruin. Tu Fuy who lived at court and was a poet, knew favour and disfavour, rebel lion, honour, and, at last, an exe ife's wanderings. His poems ree cord what he saw: they show an Empire spied on by disaster, but they mirror, too, a sensitive," bree ceiving, grave soul. Mrs. Ayscough, author of "A Chinese Mirror." and "The Autobiography of a Chinese Dog," has translated the poems, and by means of them and her own interpreting and linking narrative, she constructs his life and has good reason to call it his'autobiography. There are maps, plans,—indexes, and an historical year record, and the illustrations in black and whites by a modern Chinese artist, are delicate and moving. The book should undoubtedly meet the same success Mys, Ayscough's other Publications have enjoyed,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.