A Superb Gift 'book

Messrs. Jamos R. Ogood & Co. liave established a conmopolltai) rather than a national ruputation alone in their illustrated hol iday gift books. To tue teclinlcal facilities of a great house tliey have fldded tlie finest artlatlc taste in selectlng and presenting the graphic portions of the work, and plctarei and poems blend uto a harmonious unity. Tliis elegant holiday line of gir'tbooks began ia 1S81 with "Lucile," followed by "The Princess," "The Lady of the Lake," and now by the noble poem of 'Marmion." It is an interesting hut of in9ide literal history to hear the methods adopted to secure these picturea that are really portralta of places. Special artists employed by the Osgood house have passed inonths in Scotland onder the dlrectlon of Mr. A. V. S. Anthony, and the sketches are made with absolute fidelity to the scènes. The archffiológtcal details of figures and cornposition of groups and genre are very iinely cousidered, and that these details are worked out by such artists as Garrett, Fredericks, Fenn. Schell, and Merrell, is a fact sulticient to indícate their quality. The very atmosphere of the days of chivahy lingers in the pages of the Marmion of this year, and the knightly surroundings are admirably depioted. The figure pieces from Mr. Fredericks are especially a delight, so strong and impressive are they. Not with less exquisite art are wrought the landscapes. Here panorama after panorama unfolds itself before us as we turn the pages, the light resling on Cheviot Peak, the "castled steep of Xorhain, Whitby's "cloistered pile," the quiet lovliness of LocK Vennachor, the Denby hills, and Bothwell's turrets ; and the "uncultured breast" of Blackford, and "the till of Twisel Bridge" - all these and more art; given to us in revelations of wild Scottish beauty. The dedication of each canto is arranged with emblematic horder in dnintiest design, and the hcad and tuil piecea scat tered through the book are marvels of decorative beauty. Xever had a poem of stately and inmortal beauty a inore iitting setting, and Messrs. Ü3good & Co. are to be congratulated on having produced a pictured poem that is a perpetual and ever-renewing joy and dclight. The Chrlstlan Union says : "The Illustrationa are perviuled by spirit of the poera. The flgure pieces are clear, utrong, and ertective; the arcliitectural HlU8tration8 of whlcli there are many. are very Impressive, and bringout strongly the feudal background of the story; wliile iu the landscapes we ilud both the sublimlty and the lovellness of Scotch scenery. Thisedltion of "Marmion" is, In a word.aworthy fonu for a great classic." The Boston Courier adds: Taken as a whoie, this Ulustrated editinn of ''Marmion" seerns to us the most entlrely satlsfactory 11luxlrated book ever publixlied in the country aud one to whlcli we can Irlumphantly point shouIdidtscuHHion arise In regard to the auperiority of Airierican engravers over all tbe world. It Is butjusttce toadd that the excellence of the volume is immeasurabty enhancedbythe superb prlntiDg, every plate being made to teil for iu best.1' Tn-o or threc anachronifms have been charged to Mr. Jlowells's new story, "The Hise of Silas Lapham," because one ol' the characters speaks of Daisy Millerism before Henry James's novel appeared, and another is described as n-ini; a'type-nriter in 1873. Mr. Howellsmeetfc the charge in an open letter to be printed in the January Century, in whicli he claima that in aiiuing at contení porar}' effect '"the general truth is sometiraes better than the specilied fact." The ills which llesh is heir to are more ofteu due to impuritios iu the blood than is generally supposed. The puriiication of this vital lluid enables the system to ward off its worst enemies. There is no doubt that Hood"s Saraaparilla is one of the best blood purifl'ers in the world, and we feel confident that those who give it ft trial will not be dlsappointeJ.