Literary Note

The August number of Harper's Magazine containa a large amount of fiction. Besidea a story by Richard Harding Davi?, called "His Bad Angel", and a one-seene play by Mr. W. D. Howell?, entitled "Bride Roses", tbere are short atories by Herbert Ward, F. Mary Wilson and Mrs. E. Levi Brown. The lastnamed writer, who is the wife of a colored minister in ihe South, has constructed a tale of unusual power. Tlie subject of Animal Speech, which is noif attracting much attention in the Bcientific world, will be treated by Trof. E. P. Evans in the opening article of the August Popular Science Monthly. Prof. Evans gives much stnking evidence to show that animáis commuuicate among themselves by vocal sounds, and that many of them learn the meaning of human speech.- D. Appleton & Co., New York, X. Y. T'ie.A&ruRt Century will be, as usual, the r'.idBummer holiday nnmber. lts 9hief feature will be "Phillips Broüks' Letters to Children," which will include a great nnmber of delightful letters written from abroad by the late Bishop Brooks to the children of his brothers iimilies. They present a little-known' and most iuteresting side of the life and character of the rreat preacher.- The Century Co., New York, N. Y. Har peí 's Weekly for Ust week contains an exteneively illustrated article on the great National Yellowatone Paik. Therearefourfull pages of illustrations. Other timely subjects are the silver question in Colorado, with a portrait of Governor Waite, and a page of illustrations from pbotographs; a page of portraits of leading Germán politicians in the Germán Keichslag who have been closely connected with the discussion ofthefamous Arrny Bill; and picturep relating to the recent trouble between Fraiice and Siam.- Harper Broe., New York, N. Y. The Atlantic Monthly for August contains an arücle by Professor Natbaniel S. Shaler of Harvard University entitled "Relations of Academie and Technical Instruction." The author proves by arguments drawn from bistory and from his long experience as a teacher that the technical school to be successful , that ie to do the best for its students, must be a part of a university. In the September number General Francis A. Walker, President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will have a paper entitled "The Technical School and the University ." Tnese two articles by men of high authority, representing both Bides of this important question, should be of the greatest value to all teachers and others interested in education. - Houghton, Mifflin fc Co., Boston, Mass. Gamaliel Bradford, Esq., of Boston, the well-known writer on city government, is the author of a paper on "Our Failures in Municpal Government," which has been issued as No. 88 of the Publications of American Academy of Political and Social Science. Philadelphia. The author compares the city government of Birmingham, England with that of Quincy, Mass. The latter city recently adopted a plan of government containing many novel features. In concluding his paper Mr. Bradford Bays that the main point tobe discussed is whether reform in city affaire is to be soughff throughimproved machinery for bringing public opinión to bear, just as we should do with the force of Bteam or electricity, or whether we are to accept as final the methods which have come down to ub in the last hundred years and limit ourselves to manipulation of the methods of voting. The July New England Magazine is a I bright Bummery number, the very thing I to while away the tedium of railroad I travel or to complete the luxury of I reation at the seashore or in the I tains. The editora have put it together I with due regard to the season, aud it is I oae of the best of the midsummer I azines. There is more fiction than I ual, and it íb of the highest quality, and deala with unhackneyed subjects. Amnng the contributors are Rev. Julius I H. Ward writing on the White Mountains; Price Collier on "A Frontier Army Post": Hetiry Lambert on "Foresta and Foreetry"; Walter Blackburn Harte on I "The Conimon and Human in I ture"; Oscar Fay Adams. "In the I Bteps of Jane Au8ten," a description of 1 the homes and haunts of the author of I "Pride and Prejudice" and "Northanger Abby"; and Zitella Cocke, "The Mockin? Bird."- Pub. at 5 Park Square, Boston, Mass. A valuable contribution to the New Political Economy is a monograph on ,'Cost and Expense" by Professor Simon N. Patten. It ispubliahed bythe American Acadenjy of Political and Social Science PuilaJelphia. ïhis paper, which will prove of great interest to all economie studente, is in the nature of a continuation of Professor Patten's mono. graph on"Costand Utility," issued some time Bince by the Academy. The purpose of the present paper is explaned as follows ly the authoi: "The relation of cost to utility cannot be fully understood until the relation of cosí to expensa is explained. In the theoiy ofvalue, the use of the terms cost and expense is such that two distinct concepta of production are confused with each other, and henee these terma are often used assynonyms, when they shouid have dietinct ideas atteched to thetn. A contract of these terms ai d of the ideas they shouid convty inustbe made before the theory of prosperity can be clearly distinguished from a theory of valué. I shall thereforfl complete uiy argument by presenting the subject anew from this point of view." People entertaining at their couutry homes will welcome with delight the full accurate description of the receiving and entertaining of a houseful of guests which Mrs. Burton Kingsland gives in a practical article on "Entertaining in the Country," in the August Ladies' Home Journal. The magazine is mnde still further interesting because of the publication of the music and wordsofthe beautiful song, "My Star", by Kate Llewellyn Fitch- one of the f imous Journal prizo compcsitions for the encouragement of American musical composition. Mrs. Himilton Mott contiibuteB a valuable artiule on "Sending a Girl to Boarding-School," replete with information on every point connected with boarding -school life. Younger mothers will fiad Doctor ell's timely article oa "Children at the Seashore," and Miss Scovil's on "Children in the country," full of seasonable and usei'ul suggeetions on the care of their little ones during the eummer outing. Edward W. Bok discusses the question of modern houfcekeeping and its effect apon women. Palmer Cox with his inimitable "Brownies," Kben E. Rexford with his valuable "Midsumnier in the Garden," Miss Parloa in "Everything About the House" and Miss llooper in "Home Dressmakintr," all contribute to make tnia August Journal, with its exquisite cover, de8igned by Frank O. Small, particularly attractive, and worth many times its modest price of ten cente.- The Curtis Pub. Co., Philadelphia, Pa. Ten cents per number or one dollar per year. Tbe contenta of late numbers of The LivingAge exhibit the usual widerange of eubjects and nice discriminatioii in their selection, characteristic of this leading eclectic magazine. Foremost in value and interest is an article entitled "Literary Diecoveries in Egypt." The article givesa full account of numerous clay tablets, sotne of them made of Nile mud, covered with cuneiform inscriptione, unearthed within a few years at Teil el-Amarna, and which prove to be a correspondence between certain kings of Egypt who lived in the 15th century B. C, and their contemporánea and dependents. From these letters the reader will gain a fair insight into the social life of that time in Syria, Babyion and Palestine. Prominent articles of the issues of the present month are "The Chatham Islands and Their Story," by Henry O. Forbes; "Aspects of Tennyson. Tennyson as a Nature-Poet," by Theodore Watt?; "Our First Ambassadors to Ruseia," by Julián Corbett; "Fontainebleau" and "St. William of Norwieh," by Augustus Jessop. Scarcely second to these in interest are many others, notably "The Journal to Stella," by Austin Dobson; "The Influence ofClimate on Race," by J. W. Fortescue; "Is the Universe Infinite," by Sir Robert Ball; 'Addiscombe: The East India Company's Military College," by W. Broadfooi; "Some Thoughts on Pascal," "A Walk in Alexandria," by AUred E. P. Raymund Dowling; and "Romance of the National Gallery," by Emily Constance Cook. These numbers contain also some short stories and poetry. The subscription price of The Living Age is S8.00 a year, postpaid. - Littell & Co., Publishers, Bofton, Mass.