I have selected only one--"Theodora Phranza," which, besides being
well written, has the merit of dealing with a somewhat neglected
period. Stories possessing a background of History are to be found
in "Tales from Blackwood," as also in "Wilson's Tales of the
Borders," but their extremely slight character seemed scarcely to
justify insertion; while not even the high literary position
attained by him on other grounds reconciled me to either of Allan
Cunningham's novels--"Sir Michael Scott" and "Paul Jones."

Of the Foreign novelists appearing in my list, several have been
already named, but Marchese D'Azeglio, F. D. Guerrazzi, Cesare
Cantu, "W. Alexis" (G. Haring), H. Laube, Louise Mulbach (Klara M.
Mundt), Nicolas Josika, Viktor Rydberg, Hendrik Conscience, Xavier
B. Saintine, Amedee Achard, and "Erckmann-Chatrian" here call for
notice as not coming under strictly Contemporary classification. I
would forestall the criticism that two writers have been passed
over whose fame is greater than any of those just mentioned, viz.:
"Stendhal" (Henri Beyle) and Alphonse Daudet. Beyle's "La
Chartreuse de Parme," though containing the oft-praised account of
Waterloo, is far more Psychological than Historical; and Daudet's
"Robert Helmont," while it depicts (under Diary form) certain
aspects of the Franco-German War, has hardly any plot running
through it. As the Waterloo and Franco-German War periods were
amply illustrated in numerous other novels of more assured
suitability, I had the less hesitation in deciding against the two
works just named. In the selections from Foreign Historical
Fiction nothing more has been attempted than to include the leading
examples; most of these, it will be found, have been translated
into English.