The  last  essay  considers  the  influence
of  the  work  of  Pheidias  upon  the  Attic
sculpture  of  the  period  immediately  suc-
ceeding the  age  of  Pericles.  The  sculpt-
ure of  Pheidias  was  that  of  idealism,
divine  and  religious  sculpture,  serving  to
portray  forms  worthy  of  indwelling  di-
vinity. Dr.  Waldstein's  discussion  not
only  brings  out  the  fact  that  Pheidias
was  the  greatest  creator  of  ideals  or
creative  thinker  of  the  Greek  race, —  the
Greek  Shakespeare,  one  might  say, —  but
it  touches  as  well  upon  Greek  art  gen-
erally; and  with  a  view  to  this  wider
study  some  important  papers  are  added
in  an  appendix.
Rome,  A  General  History  of,  from
the  foundation  of  the  City  to  the
fall  of  Augustulus,  753  B.  C.-476  A.  D.,
by  Charles  Merivale.  (1875.)  A  work
specially  designed  for  the  general  reader
seeking  to  be  informed  of  the  most
noted    incidents,    the    most    remarkable


characters,  and  the  main  course  <^
events,  together  with  their  causes  and
consequences.  The  three  principal  stages
separately  noted  are  that  of  the  antiqui-
ties; that  of  the  marvelously  rich  <*  dra-
matic»  period,  crowded  with  the  great
figures  of  the  best  age  of  Rome;  and
that  of  the  dissolution  of  ancient  so-
ciety and  the  changes  wrought  by  the
influence  of  Christianity.  It  is  this  third
stage  which  Dr.  Merivale  considers  of
most  vital  interest,  and  his  treatment  of
which  gives  to  his  work  an  exceptional
value.
In  his  earlier  and  larger  work,  <A
History  of  the  Romans  under  the  Em-
pire >  (8  vols.,  1865),  Dr.  Merivale  ex-
actly filled,  with  a  work  of  the  highest
authority  and  value,  the  gap  between
Mommsen  and  Gibbon,  60  B.  C.-180  A.  D.
