Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 20, 1909.djvu/292

 252 Reviews.

and bodied shojos of the sea when they ascend to view the newly- born sacred mountain Fujiyama. In "Yosojo's CamelUaTree" the goddess Fujiyama cures the smallpox.

Other stories tell of miraculous swords, and of transmigration beliefs. The monkey which perishes from over-exertion in forag- ing for the priest who is copying a holy book is reborn as lord of a province, the pilgrim who is robbed and dies returns in the form of myriads of fireflies to torment and kill the thief, the dead son returns as a white snake to strangle his father's murderer, and the soul of the samurai whose love is rejected by the fisher girl passes into the complaining sea-gulls.

It would take much more space merely to name the other interesting items in this delightful collection, and, to add to our satisfaction, the preface implies that many notes are still unpub- lished. We may therefore look forward with eagerness to the issue of a second volume as interesting as the present one, which can be highly commended alike to the folklorist and to all who are, or can be, interested in the Land of Reed Plains and Fresh Rice Ears. A. R. Wright.

The Fijians. A Study of the Decay of Custom. By Basil Thomson. Heinemann, 1908. 8vo, pp. xx -1-396.

The many fascinating books of Mr. Basil Thomson about the peoples of the Pacific will lead the readers of this volume to expect a graphic and sympathetic account of native life, and in this they will not be disappointed. Much that the author has already published, either in his lighter works or in the admirable Report on the causes of the decrease of population in Fiji, is here made readily accessible, while nearly every chapter contains some addition to our knowledge. The greatest value of the book, however, lies in the general impression of the people and their lives which is given in this record written by one capable of true sympathy with natives and their point of view.

The account of the Fijian religion is especially valuable. The