of his pleasant volumes of autobiography, "LeRoman d'un Enfant," he has given a very pleasing account of hischildhood, which was most tenderly cared for and

i," an Indian flower which loves to blush unseen. He was nevergiven to books or study (when he was received at the French Academy,he had the courage to say, "Loti ne sait pas lire"), and it was notuntil his thirtieth year that he was persuaded to write down andpublish certain curious experiences at Constantinople, in "Aziyade," aboo

c discussion in a manner which did him great credit. While takingpart as a naval officer in the Tonquin war, Loti had exposed in aParisian newspaper a series of scandals which succeeded on the captureof Hue, and, being recalled, he was now suspended from the service formore than a year. He continued for some time nearly silent, but in1886, he published a novel of life among the Breton fisher-folk,entitled "Pecheurs d'Islande"; this has been the most popular of allhis writings. In 1887 he brought out a volume of extraordinary merit,which has never received the attention it deserves; this is "Prop

o the Holy Land in threevolumes, "Le Desert," "Jerusalem," "La Galilee" (1895-96), and he haswritten one novel, "Ramentcho" (1897), a story of manners in theBasque province, which is quite on a level with his best work. In 1898he collected his

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