Another volume of the Entertaining Series, published since that just
noticed, contains a selection of _Criminal Trials_, amongst which are
those of Throckmorton and the Duke of Norfolk, for treason. They are, in
the main, reprints from the State Trials, which the professional editor
states to contain a large fund of instruction and _entertainment_. We
have been deceived in the latter quality, though we must admit that in
judicious hands, a volume of untiring interest might be wrought up from
the State records. As they are, their dulness and prolixity are past
endurance. As the present work proceeds in chronological order, it will
doubtless improve in its entertaining character, since no class of
literature has been more enriched by the publication of journals,
diaries, &c., than historical biography, which will thus enable the
editor to enliven his pages with characteristic traits of the principal
actors. This has been done, to some extent, in the portion before us,
and in like manner fits the volume for popular reading.

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MANNERS & CUSTOMS OF ALL NATIONS.


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FIRE TEMPLES IN PERSIA.

[Illustration: Persian Temple]