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tain removable obstacles to the better realization of man's possibilities, and to suggest a few reforms tending to increased social sanity, efficiency, and happiness. His book, in short, is a thoughtful and thoroughly understandable treatise in social psychology, and it complements admirably his previously published "Human Nature in Politics." It is the work of a close observer, a clear thinker, and a real humanitarian.

Christian Faith (The). By Theodore Haering, D.D. Translated by John Dickie, M.A., and George Ferries, D.D. In 2 vols. The George H. Doran Company, New York. $6.

Professor Haering is a conservative theologian of the Ritschlian school and a prominent representative of the movement to readjust the old Lutheran theology to modern requirements. These volumes will interest those who are not yet prepared to regard the theology of the Reformation period, whether Luther's or Calvin's, as hopelessly broken down. An elaborate introduction deals with the difficulty implied by their title. It concedes that "no dogmatic of any age is identical with the saving truth of the Christian faith," and that "it passes away with the age to which it belongs" into the history of dogma. Professor Haering's work presents the New Lutheran view of "the Christian Faith as a Coherent System" of theological doctrines. Among these, for example, is the origin of sin. After discussing several theories-what is transmitted from the first sin, and how it is transmitted-he states " the remodeled doctrine of the Church," and remarks that it "is not re.. garded as a perfectly satisfactory solution even by all who accept it. . . . An ultimate enigma presents itself." Following this several pages are devoted to "The Concept of the Devil," pro and con, leaving it an open question. It is difficult to resist the impression that this labored work of nearly a thousand octavo pages is essentially misleading. It tends to obscure the vital distinction, always to be insisted on, between Christian faith, the consent of conscience and will to follow Christ in faithful struggle for the righteousness of God, and theological belief, the assent of the intellect to religious doctrines. Historical Christ (The). By Frederick C. Cony

beare, M.A., F.B.A. The Open Court Publishing Company, Chicago. $1.50.

A theory recently set afloat, that Jesus is a wholly mythical person, identified with an (alleged) Sun-god, "Joshua," worshiped by an (alleged) Jewish sect, has drawn more attention than it deserved. Dr. Conybeare's pungent and smashing treatment of it as 'preposterous," a product of "mingled temerity and ignorance," possible only to "obstinately shut eyes," is the more crushing because coming from a critic outside of Church interests, and motived only by the scorn for pseudo-scholarship that fulminates through his pages.

The New York "Sun" is to move from the old brick building on the corner of Nassau and Frankfort Streets, which it has occupied for half a century and which is one of the landmarks of the city, to the American Tract Society Building, corner of Nassau and Spruce Streets. How the "Sun" could keep at the head of the journalistic procession amid the changes of fifty years and still find room for its production in the old-fashioned home of its youth has been one of the mysteries of newspaperdom.

Dogwood and persimmon, formerly regarded as worthless woods, are, according to a writer in the "Country Gentleman, now supplying the shuttle market of the world, entirely superseding the boxwood of the East for this purpose.

A theatrical journal says that in a new farce playing in New York real refreshments are consumed, the list reading: Fifteen cents' worth of radishes, twenty-five cents' worth of celery, a portion of fish, a plate of toast, one quart of Rhine wine, one magnum of champagne (the genuine article), four bottles of seltzer, and eight cups of tea. The pièce de résistance seems to be inadequate to sustain the libations of this particular menu.

Professor Bliss Perry, in the "Youth's Companion," deplores the lack of serious reading on the part of college men.. "Their ignorance of the great books of the last three hundred years, even in their own literature," he says, "is amazing." When it comes to the classics, Professor Perry says: "I do not believe that there are twenty-five undergraduates of either Yale or Harvard who have read, during the past academic year, twenty-five pages of a Latin or Greek book simply for their own pleasure and profit in reading and without reference to the demands of the curriculum."

The "Evening Telegram," of New York, which contains many pages of "exchange' advertisements, occasionally prints some curious announcements from those who have things they do not want. This, for instance, from a recent issue: "Three old freight cars for sale; have been used for shipping hogs." Who would buy this man's wares, even among the heterogeneous readers of a daily paper?

During the year 1913, throughout the world, a total of 542 vessels of over 100 tons were lost or condemned-295 steamers and 247 sailing vessels. These figures, according to "Lloyd's Register of Shipping," are lower than for several years. During the previous year 720 vessels were lost.

Handing out religious tracts by colporters in the large cities does not seem to be so common as it once was; but one occasionally receives a

"The French Revolution seems a trite subject for a magazine feature; yet in the opening chapter on that topic by H. Belloc in the September "Century one finds freshness and insight. Here is a sentence that illustrates M. Belloc's knowledge of his own countrymen: "The French do things themselves, a point in which they differ from the more practical nations. For instance: MacMahon, the soldier and president, used to brush his own coat every morning."

When the London "Times" sold for sixpence -or was it threepence?—the poet Tennyson, according to the Montreal" Witness," hired it for a penny an hour. On being expostulated with by a friend for a cold reception, Tennyson, so this story goes, said: "I am a poor man and can't afford to buy the Times,' so I have it from the stationer for an hour, for which he charges a penny. Why will people select just that hour to come and call on me?"

"Now that we have the railroads down," says a newspaper correspondent, "why not go further and make them furnish Pullman cars lined with asbestos to keep them cool? The present steel sleeper is a furnace." The tradition that the cars should be "comfortable," with heavy plush upholstery, is probably responsible for the uncomfortableness of the Pullmans in summer. Some inventor should design seats with removable upholstery, so that the cars could be adapted for either hot or cold weather.

A once familiar figure in army and political life passed away in the recent death of General Powell Clayton at the age of ninety. General Clayton served in the Civil War, first as captain and later as brigadier-general. He was successively Governor of Arkansas and United States Senator. A close friend of General Grant, he was one of the "306" who became famous for their devotion to that leader in the Chicago Convention of 1880.

Redondo Bea

Public Librar

HAMILTON W. MABIE, Associate Editor

HE principal news of the fifth week of the war-September 2 to 9-is of great changes in the alignment of the opposing forces in northern France.

The advance of the German Army of the Right swept on to within sight of the outer fortifications of Paris. The heavy line of forts from La Fère to Rheims did not cause

any noticeable halt. What happened to these forts will be one of the most interesting questions to be answered when the "fog of war" has lifted.

The Russo-Japanese War and the Balkan War led all military men to believe that modern fortifications, if not impregnable, could at least be counted on to impede an advancing army for weeks or months. Liège, Longwy, and Mauberge resisted stubbornly. But Huy, Namur, and the La Fère forts, supposed to be the strongest of all, seem to have fallen ingloriously. Lille was evacuated without a blow. It is of course possible that no serious effort was made to defend them. But this matter of the forts is the prime mystery of the war, so far.

The advance of this German Army of the Right is not so impressive when the fortifications are left out of the reckoning. It is evident that the Allies have not regarded any of the lines they have abandoned as the proper position for a decisive battle. They have stubbornly contested every German advance, but they have not resisted with that desperate determination which in case of defeat means utter rout. Always so far they have retired in good order. And, in military parlance, their forces are still "intact."

It is hard to conceive of the impetuous French accepting the dilatory tactics of

Fabius. But perhaps cool-headed English advice added to the lessons of their earlier reverses have persuaded them that discretion is the better part of valor. It is hard to believe that they have retreated so far voluntarily. But it seems fairly certain that they have always retired rather than risk a defeat which would cripple them.

PARIS FAILS TO SEDUCE

On the 5th of September came the surprising news that the German Army of the Right, which had been rolling steadily southward towards Paris, had suddenly turned

east.

It was manifestly unwise for the Germans to attempt to invest Paris with an active army still in the field. But the gay city has been the object of so many invasions that it had settled down to the hardships of a protracted siege. Suddenly, without any explanation, the French War Office announced that the Allied Army, instead of being to the north of the city, was in touch with the Germans in the valley of the Marne to the east. The fear of a siege was premature.

We have been told only the facts of this move; we can only guess at its cause.

OSTEND

More than a week ago we heard that English marines had occupied Ostend in force. Then the censorship closed with a snap and no more news came of operations in that vicinity. There could be no reason for this move except to hold the place as a base for the landing of troops.

It was obvious that if the Allies could conjure up an extra army there was no place they would rather have it than somewhere along the coast of the Channel, where,

operating in conjunction with the plucky veteran army of Belgium, it could harass the German rear and cut their lines of communication.

But where were the troops to come from? England had already sent her available force. French regiments might be brought up from the south. Portugal is bound by treaty to fight beside England. Then there is the French army in Morocco. But all these possible sources were at least problematic and at most not very numerous. The English Colonial troops were far off.

For the last few days rumor has followed rumor that Russian troops have been brought by the Arctic Sea from Archangelsk to Scotland, by rail to Dover and across the Channel to Ostend. A newspaper in Rome printed a story that a quarter of a million Russians are now with the Allies in France. Any one who has ever ridden on the jogging Russian railway from Moscow up to Archangelsk-it is single-tracked, as I remember-will be very doubtful whether Russia could get so many troops up to the Arctic. And the transporting of them to Scotland would be too slow an operation to give this story credibility. But where there is so much smoke there is likely to be some fire. And even fifty thousand Cossacks might cause the Germans much trouble. And in the five weeks since war was declared there has been ample time to bring up native troops from India, the small force of British regulars in the West Indies, and part, at least, of the Canadian forces. It is not at all improbable that a hundred thousand or more trained soldiers have been landed at Ostend.

That the Germans have turned a large force in this direction is indicated by Belgian despatches.

So it may be that the German Army of the Right, finding its lines of communication through Belgium seriously threatened, had had to move east to assure supplies by the valley of the Meuse. If this should prove to be the true motive for the German shift, it is a very serious matter for them.

THE ARMIES OF THE CENTER

But another guess is at least as probable. The easiest road for a German invasion of France is that now occupied by the opposing Armies of the Center. From their great base at Metz the Germans would advance up the valley of the Moselle, and from Trèves they would come down

through Luxemburg towards Verdun. It is here that the French anticipated the main attack. At the time of the outbreak of hostilities the French War Office published a map of "The War Zone," showing which districts were under "martial law." It indicates clearly where they expected the fighting to be.

Although we have heard little definite news from this "theater," it is probable that the greatest number of soldiers have been concentrated there by both sides. We know that this French Army of the Center attempted an extensive offensive movement. They advanced at least as far as Giyet, and probably to Namur. The Germans drove them back to Verdun, and here the French have held fast. There has been no news of any serious change of front here for a fortnight. We will very likely learn later that the most desperate and murderous fighting has been in this neighborhood.

The German Army of the Right, operating from Aix-la-Chapelle through Belgium, was evidently trying to crush the Allies' Left or to break through between it and their Center. In this it has apparently failed, but it has succeeded in getting to the south and west of the Verdun position. Now, if it can advance due east, it will strike this Center Army of the French, which its own Center has battered in vain, on the flank.

Verdun is the apex of an acute angle. The right wing of this French Army of the Center extends in a southeasterly direction to Nancy; its left wing, southwesterly to Vitry-le-François. Vitry-le-François. The Germans from Metz are pounding somewhere on the right wingbetween Nancy and Verdun. From Luxemburg they are throwing all their available weight near the apex-the fortress of Verdun. Now, if the German Army of the Right can crush into the other side of the angle-the left wing of this French Center—it may well force the defenders to give somewhere. And once this front is broken, it would be excessively hard for the French to pull out without a crushing defeat.

But such an attempt by the German Army of the Right would be exceedingly dangerous. It leaves out of the counting the Allied Anglo-French Army of the Left, which, in spite of its losses and continued retirement, has been heavily reinforced, and has had at least two days of rest. to be still" intact." left in them after

It's forces are reported If there is any offensive their long retreat, they