Books Received.

Jesus, and other Sermons to children, by J. V, B. Shrewsbury. (96 pages 24mo). London: T. Woolmer, Castle Street, E.C. Twenty-one very little sermons for little people, full of precious truth, illustrated with anecdote. They are fragments of Sunday morning addresses delivered to a Wesleyan congregation, at which it was the custom of the preacher to devote five minutes of the time, especially to the children. The collection will be found suggestive to teachers, though it is not free from statements and expressions which would be unintelligible to those those we are accustomed to regard as children.

School and Home, (Volume III. 232 pages small 8vo). London: Systematic Bible Teaching Mission, Paternoster Row.—A very closely printed mass of useful matter, compiled with the view of assisting parents and others to give religious instruction to their children. There is doubtless far too little of home religious teaching by parents, and what is given is often very desultory; so that any help to make such instruction more methodical and orthodox must be heartily welcomed, at the same time it must be remembered that one of the charms of such teaching is naturalness and freedom from constraint which might be spoilt by a too close adherence to any rigid system. Taken as a guide, for which it is doubtless intended, "School and Home" may prove a valuable help; but followed in every detail it might render home teaching unhomely.

The Jukes, by R. L. Dugdale. (120 pages small 8vo). New York and London: G. P. Putnam's Sons, "The Knickerbocker Press." The Jukes" is a pseudonym used to protect from aspersion worthy members of the family therein studied, and for convenience of treatment, to reduce the forty-two family names included in the lineage to one generic application. The book was published originally in 1877, but, as Sir. Round (the Secretary of the New York Prison Association) observes in his introductory remarks, it is as fresh to-day as it was then." The design of the work has been to produce a record and study of the relations of crime, pauperism, disease and heredity, in furtherance of the view expressed by M. Beltrani-Scalia (Inspector of Prisons in Italy), who has said, "Until we have studied crime in its perpetrators, and in all its relations and different aspects, we shall never be able to discover the best means to prevent or correct it, nor can we say that penitentiary science has made any great progress." Mr. Dugdale in July, 1874, at the request of the New York Prison Association, commenced a visit to the country gaols, and having found in one of them six persons under four family names, who turned out to be blood relations, he was led to make further enquiries and ultimately a thorough investigation. He afterwards tabulated and reported upon the results of his labours as recorded in the work before us. The information comprises particulars as to genealogies, intemperance, social habits, diseases, pauperism, out-door relief, and crimes, all derived from reliable sources. 22.74 of the prisoners examined were "Refuge Boys," i.e., had been sent to a Reformatory, School Ship, Industrial School, or House of Refuge; and some evidence is given suggestive of evil arising from want of proper management and discipline in the New York House of Refuge, but upon this we offer no opinion. As may be well imagined, Mr. Dugdale, in search of information undertook several perilous adventures, casting himself on some occasions upon the mercy of known high way men and murderers. We are told that this book "is known, read, and valued wherever the civilization of the world has advanced far enough to be alarmed at the increase of crime, and to be concerned in reducing the criminal classes." We may hope, therefore, that the facts here brought together may afford not only matter for interesting observation and curiosity, but also a basis on which to found practical reforms in the treatment of crime.