nor
Normandy, which has indeed a western coast of its own, but cannot be
said to form part of the western coast of France. Nor does Brittany
include "the _whole_ western coast," or even the larger portion of it,
while it could not have been "detached from the hold of Lewis," inasmuch
as he had never held it. As little will that remark apply to the other
provinces on the western coast, as these were still in his possession.
Who are meant, therefore, by the "possessors" of this misty coast, and
why the English king is said to have lain "in their rear," can only be
conjectured. It is a small blunder that the French king's brother is
called "Francis" instead of Charles, since we must not suspect Mr. Green
of confounding him with the duke of Brittany, who bore the former name.
But the whole passage, in connection with what follows it, indicates
that the author has mixed up the state of affairs at two very close, but
very distinct, conjunctures. Many similar instances of defective
knowledge might be cited, nor are they confined to this early period.
The remark, in regard to Charles of Austria (the emperor Charles V.),
that "the madness of his mother left him _next heir_ of Castille" is
nonsense: he was her heir in any case, while through her madness he
became nominally joint, and virtually sole, ruler of the kingdom. His
son Philip had not been "twice a widower" when he married Mary of
England, and the assertion that "he owed his victory at Gravelines
mainly to the opportune arrival of ten English ships of war" is
patriotic, but foolish. That "Catholicism alone united the burgher of
the Netherlands to the noble of Castille, or Milanese and Neapolitan to
the Aztec of Mexico and Peru," would be an incomprehensible statement
even if Peru had been inhabited by the Aztecs. Such errors, however,
cannot seriously impair the value of Mr. Green's work. Its merits, as
regards both matter and form, are solid and varied. The scale on which
it was planned adapts it admirably to the gap which it was intended to
fill, and, except in the latter portions, its comparative brevity of
treatment excludes neither important facts nor modifying views. No
shorter work could give the reader any adequate knowledge or conceptions
in regard to English history, and no longer work is needed to make him
fully acquainted with its essential features.

White Wings: A Yachting Romance. By William Black. New York: Harper
& Brothers.--Roy and Viola. By