The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 15, 1897, Page 23

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, AUGUST 15, 1897. 23 THE YEAR’S GOOD NOVELS. Among the many i were read’ at the recent conference of the American Library Association in Philadelphia those of particular i rest, not only to libra- rians but to the outside reading world, were papers on books of the pr the fine arts, childre ent year. History, books and fiction were all well treated, valuable and in some cases ngent criticisms leing given. We getin Lese the librarian’s standpoint, as the libra- rian is enabled to note the real popularity of a book. 1tisof decided interest to study the literary output of the year irem the Jibiarian's poiut of view. The paper upon fiction by Haines, now counected with nal of this city,and the newly elected re- corder of the American Library Association, deserves more than ordinasy attention. Miss ecied 100 of a list of iss Helen E 1000, and presents the ocd and bad qualitiesin and pleasantly brief eriti Her task was not periormed it without waveri bave becn stated frankly, however mu may be objected 1o by doubt in the minds of arers s 10 her Fposition upon certain clesses of fiction sna effect upon the nd tbe public. She believes strongly real, lasiing good of good novels, but, Itis, of course, In the one word “good” that the | whole difficuity lles. lierary puint of view & morally questionable; of literary quals any , bave er others, qu the muliltude of readers whose lack of intellectual percejtion is not criminal, even though iz be re ETettabie al exclude oo rigidly the forme oL represent of jiterature; e lstier be sbsolutely bann s privi few und oiscriminatt ured many. A lib ary must ed for readers of mature in. hat are for not de ung pe e for g ictive papers which he Librery Jour- | the leading novels of | an easy one, but she has | | *‘Trooper Peter Halket of Mashonaland’’ intoa library. On this point Miss Haines says: er arraignment and denunclation of outh Africa, and the inci- very harrowing aud very hor- rible, but i: Is written with ail the mystical ten- a y characterisiic of Olive Schremer. I do not know whether it is desirable to put it on the list or not. Personally, 1do not think it is particularly | canger Grant’s “Stories of Naples and Cammora’ receives the praise of being onme of the best books of the year, the tales of Naples' fisher- folk and of the sirange secret society called the Cammora having a fideiity. # kindliness It is a b British cruel'ies in dents descrived ars of tone and a description of detail that make them more like actual expericnces than storfes. ENGLAND’S QUEEN AT HOME. 1 { PRIV AT FE OF } ber of the Royal Ho | pleton & Co.” For saie In this City Doxey, Pa'ace Hotel. Price $1 50. Somewhat of a curioslty is this detailed | record of the life of her Majesty Queen Victo- | i, ana while the book is scarcelv deserving | of praise asa literary production it acquires JEEN—By a Mem New York: D. Ap- by William | importance, in spite of its ¢ from the great sovereign whose priva he author | has had the opportunity to closely observe. To most Americans Victoria is a venerable | figure whose character, both as a woman and us a ruler, has been on the whole admirable, and they will be pleased to be told some of the | minor facts &s (0 how she spends her days in | that exalted position; whi'e those Americans who are most rabid in their dislike of royalty would probably admit thatsn old lady with an income of several million dollars a year and yossession of grand palaces isa character c interest, aside {rom the iact of beinz a queen. It might be guessed that the member of the al household who wrote the book is one of maids of honor, although we are toid therein that these meids are strictly prohibit- «d from talking of the Queen’s private life. Tnere is an amount of seemingly unconscious adul which 1o those who are not subjects appears slightly absurd. Much of the volume at all. Itlsin just deciding how | is made tedious by the dragging in of the most far 10 go that the a ty lies. inconsequent details. There is noattempt to Within the past rihere has been a slacking | treat any of the important historic incidents the tide of erotic fiction, but at the same time | of the reign, and the author announces, **My there have developed two distinct classes of ) goncern is merely with the petty personal de- novels which cannot be jgnored in the lierature | tqy(5 of the greatest woman of her time.” of the day, but which are note the less harmful |\ 1000 e more or less interesting things in toeir influence. The first may be called, from | | Jsct® B IOTS & Mt Hyooftne the books which wost thoroughly 1epresent t, | To.2ied i the bool Gl el kexmoten fictlon. These are the anatyses of dis. | PI8in. unpretentious style in which her Ma- eascd souls, siudies of distorted lives, of which Jesty dre s in her private life. One day as she RICIeheils. “Godt Falliree? ona: Bicosch = Ceris | Was dN r stables & newly appointed R | equerry & and called out, “My good The second consis:s of the slum stories that have | WOman, You must get out of this. Strangers sprung in:o such astonisbing vogne within the st vear or so—the Ma Arties, and other ildren of the Jago. whoreveal 1o us the vice sery hednes s al crea cities w d clear e un- soitened ints of art. B we say “Thes are true: diseased sou's exist, and ere are p ague spots in great cities.’ That Is so, but w ot use treatises on psychomania for family reading, nor ao we send our sons ar daughters to stale becr dives or opium joints tha they may learn what life is, and when a novelist devotes hims to tne exp of what is m epulsive, 1 becomes th those who have charge of exercise & cens e books r selection.” nt tt ship in the Miss Haines denounced the st here no great books nowadays. ment ing the fact ithin one twelvemor such w “Quo Vadis,” “Weir of miston,” Gearge Tresss Tommy.” “On the Face of “The Choir Invisible” last two she considered we he native side in and she shows him, ) , in his child igious dian questi sirabi no 1y of this book for general circulation Miss Haines sa I do not sce how that ques ion can be ra) Low the bock can hurt sny one. It is not wri for children. It is not about chi dren. It isabout men avd women in a time of fierce conflic, in But how I do not see ho its stern teachi al conditions or ifsiuterp: any one. eted As for “The Choir Invisible,” Miss Hair refers deeply to its deseriptive beauty and charm of spirituality, adding at the close: In its picture of the Kentucky of a cen it recalls Irving’s Ralph Ringwood, but | gentler picture, and one of the most p easant things about it is Lhat it stows not only the rough uncouthness of the ploneer days but the gentie hood and the culture apd the talent thas were rep- resented there, and 1hat we &re 100 apt 0 0 veriook and ignore In our ideas America. 10 It wou'd be interesting to mention the titles of this list of 100 novels, buta few at least of the most notable can be briefly touched upon. Bourdillon's “Nephele’’ is considercd one of | the most charming books of lust year, al- thot having little recognition, and is likened more to a prose poem than a novel. Mrs. Burnbam’s “Miss Archer Archer” is de- lightfully compared to icecream soda, being timental 1n & vivacious and atiractive manner; not in the least strong, ueither a siudy.” The honor of being the best collec- tion of short stories published auring the year 1alls 10 ““The Cat and the Cherub.” ‘having the claim of popular and no other. “Phroso” is considered the best, ‘“‘but miles below ‘The Prisoner of Zenda,’ and the Princess Ostra stories are <o artficial, padded and superficial that it is hard 1o seein them any lasting qualitfes’’ Keightley’s *Last Recruit of Clare’s” and O'Grad s ior historical movels, the latter being em- phatically styled “a shiling-shocker rather than en hisiorical novel.” Robert Barr's “‘The Mutable Many” and «The Descendant,” published at first anony- mously, but recently announced to be by a young Southern woman, Elien Glesgow, are ireated at some length. “lhe central idea of ““The Mutable Many,” eays Miss Haines, “seems to be that no matter what the right of the cause of labor, and though the cause of capital may have the cause of right on its e, labor will generally lose in the struggle, on account of qualities inherent in iiself.” Sie says the book is crude, has the trail of a jouraalist, asail of Barr's books have, but yet is torcible ana gives both sides. The other book, “The Descendant,” says our librarian critic, is strong, but very unpleasant in parts the whole teaching being that strength rooted in itself is weakness, and that weakness, ani- mated by love, is strength. A brief discussion arose over d’Annunzio’s book, but most of the librarians declined to cxpress opinions. Ope member said he thought “The Triumph of Death” was one of the worst books he had ever read,and an. other emphatically denounced it as not fit for g library. Another member, however, liked both of @ Annunzio’s books very mucb, but denounced the translations as execrable. Stephen Crane’s works were not treated in a very eulogistic manner. When Benjamin Swif’s “Nency Noon” was mentioned a mem- ber assailed it as & miserable hook for a li- brary, and said it would not be fit to give to & young person to read, while another called itawesk, swupid imitation of Meredith. Brander Matthews' ,“Talcs of Fantasy Founded in Fact” was dismissed with the curt remark that they do not amount 10 any- thing at »ll. Some doubt was expressed &s to the adyisability of omitting Olive Schreiner's the pioneers of | hony Hope's books are treated gingerly, | “In the | Wake of King James'' are condemned as in- are not allowed here.” In a chapter describ- ing the Queen as hostess, we are told that g Kings and Emperors are always eted by Victoria with first a deep reverence 1 theu a kiss, and thisceremony is repeated on their departure. pretty sentiment of the Empress isex- pressed in a pretty way when, in deseribing Windsor Pelace and the especial treasures e1n, the writer says that the resting he Koh-i-nooris in the grand cori t more than the big diamond, the the gold and the rare china does ty prize the plain Bible, bound in ather, that belonged to her faithiul servant, General Gordon.” But how odd to republicans, born and bred, sounds the e: pression, “her faftbiul servant” We ca iink of the hero Goraon being the faithiul servant of Engiand, but not of the sovereign. Pernaps it makes littie difference, for, by rt of fiction acquiesced in by the majority of hmen, Vicioria is the state, Neverthe- vis ilver and Maj pl E less 1o us the form of expression still rings with something of the old arrogance of royalty which was once so boldly assumed and tersely expressed { Louis XI1V's famous remark, tate is 1" ce of gossip is this: “From the hour of her accession the cold formalities of state and the necessary restraint that lies be- een tw d overw and’ subject separated the mother.”” This independent med the Duchess of Kent ade with vexation and disappointment. A sto 1 oria which proves that, at lesst her younger days, her being a | sover i1 not interfere with her being also | very much of a woman. The first proposed chanre of Ministry after her accession t Peel, and in accord with bt was made to replace the ladies who surrounded the Queen’s th others of more Tory tendencies. g Queen pluckily refused to part t old favorites,. The great Duke of ! ton used all his influence and powers suasion unavailingly on the perverse girl. The matter was deemed of such vitsl ce that Peel refused to take office, preme political power of the naiion was from its course by a bed-chamber inci. What a staggerer this is for those who assert tnat the Queen is only nominally the ruler of the British empire. In the chapter on the maids of honor an amusing record is given of the rules and regu- | lations established for them by Queen Hen- etta Maria in the vain attempt to restrain their license. These officials of the royal houschold had gained by long custom a sort of prerogative for being frolicsome, and es- pecially in the gay days of the later Stuarts ¢ the title of meidsof honor hud an exquisite | ring of irony in it. It seems from this account | that their folly was never fully restrained till | the reign of Victoria, who has, by her com- bination of goodness and strength of charac. | ter, made the office a most decorous and im- portant one, requiring a very accomplished and industrious person to fiil it proper.y. | Manyincdents are related showing that the | Queen possesses a lovable and unpretentious { character. The effect of the book will be to add to the impression that Victoria is a sweet | and noble woman as we.l as & Queen and an Emp:ess. OF TIMELY INTEREST. ALASKA—By Miner W. Bruce. eattle, Wash. : Lowman & Ianford. For sale in this Clty by Tarcwell, Mitchell & Willis, Monigomery stieet. Jrice 7b cents At the present time, when the goldfields of the Northwest are attracting o much atten- tion, Alaska 15 of far more interest than it has been for yesrs, and the issue of this book was | well timed. It teilsof the history, resources, | routes and scenery of that region. There are | & number of good illustrations and s large map included in its pages. POETRY. THE ISLAND LILY—By Blanche Fearing. Chi- cago: Donohue & Henneberry. A neatly illustrated booklet containing & poem ‘n biank verse. It is an idyl of the Isles of Shoals, which isles lie off the coast of New Englend. It eloquentiy tells the storyofa “Lily of the Islands’’ who was falthful through sil the prime of life o an absent lover. The style of verse is like *“Emnoch Arden,” but the story differs by making the woman, Constance, more constant than Annie was. | | FROM THE RUSSIAN. DREAM TALES AND PROSE POEMS — By Ivan Tureeney. New York: Macmillan & Co., Price $1 25. These samples of Slav literature are of the weird order, One of the stories tells of a stu- dious youth who has been all hislife a recluse, and who is in love witha maiden who visits bim as an apparttion. Shortly aiter one of these visions he dies in an ecstasy of deligat. The prose poems are very short sketches, each containing some wise or pretty thought. Tug LAark. The sweetest singer. volumes complete. At Doxey’s, Two =l MRS. MARGARET OLIPHANT. By the death several wecks ago of Mrs. Margaret Oliphant the world sustained the loss of one of the most prolific Her literary career extended over very nearly half a century, and when she died more than Her latest work, ‘“‘Women Novelists of writers of English literature. Queen Victo one hundred volumes had come from her pen, seventy of them being novels. Reign,” has just been published. Unlike many of her contemporaries, Mrs. Oliphant always wrote the purest English, and though she never por- | | trayed any characters that will live in fiction, her work was marked with a strong individuality. Ethically, and as | literature, her stories were good. MORE AUGUST MAGAZINES. du Bois. The author, himself a negro and yinstance of “The Prairie States.” Ad-| | [a recont graduate from Harvard Univer-[miral P. H. Colomb, R. N, deals with| | i | si akes u grapbic s 1 e disad- | “The P sh Warships' De- | s Jitan, sity, makes 1 grapbic statementof the disad- | “The Progress of British V = o oD '!_a" | vantages under which his race is struggling, | sign,” and Dr. Alvah H, Doty writes very ‘ _With five delightful siories in the August| nq gescribes from his own personal experi- | entertainingly about “Quarantine Methods.” | Cosmopolitan, one might judge that it was in- | ence «pow it feels to be a problem.” More | E. T. Hargrove, president of tne theosophical | tended solely for light reading in midsui- | gisinenly Literary features are: “Some Unpub- | socleties in America, Europe and Australasia, mer, but & second glance shows that it con- | tains as well much of serious interest. The second paper by tbe special commissioner sent by the Cosmopolitan to India tells a tale the like of which has in any periodical. We Lave in histories see- ond-hand accounts of great famines, but they lack that startling distinctness which comes from beholaing at first hand the sights de- scribed. Twenty millions of people slowly starving to death, many of them in sight of the railways! No American can form idea of the state of affairs now exist- ing In India. Mr, Hawthorne hsas gone into the interfor and stood among the deaa and dying. It is the first time that we have had an American investization of the condition of uffairs in India. The report will open the eves, not only of the civilized world, but of the English Parlinment and the Queen herself, to the necessity of extraordinary exer- tion in behalf of these urfortunate millions President Dwight of Yale furnishes montl’s consideration of the question, “Does Moderu College Education Iducate in the | Broadest and Most Liberal Sense of the Term?” A charmiogly iilustrated and charmingly writ- ten article on ‘“Japan’s Stage and Grea'est | Actor,” by Rober: F. Porter; the second part | of Le Galiienne's “New Rendering of the Ru- baiyat”; a sketch of that most wonderful cru- sader Godirey de Bouillon, and a new poem by Bret Harie are also part of the contents of tuis August Cosmoyolitan. | i \ | E Atlantic Monthly. T here are two papers in the midsummer is- sue (August) of the Atlantic which shou!d be read by every one who appreciates the benuty and usefulness of our great forests. John Muir, author of “The Mouutains of Califor nis,” and the most charming writer sbout mountains and forests that we have, con- Forests.” It is & glowing and appreciative powerful arraignment of the neglect that has allowed 50 large & part of them to be de- stroyed or taken out of Government control. Supplementing this paper there is an itorial articie on ‘*‘Our Forest Policy in Suspense.” In this pajer tbe duty of the Government to inaugurale a definite and vigorous policy is insisted upon and a powerful plea made for the preserva- tion of our forests. There are also two other papers that can naturally be spoken of to- gether, which are striking studies of two very dissimilar communities in this country. Wil liam Allen Wnite, the well-known Kansas editor and the author of a volume of strikivg stories of Kansas life, writes on “A Typical Kansas Community.” He gives a description of life in a typical community in this much- discussed State—describes t'ie people, their amusemeats, their social life, and shows the significance of the town in its sociological and economic aspects. Alvan F. faunborn, who has already contributed to the Atlantic & number of discriminating studies of New England life, writes on sachusetts Shoe Town,” describing the changes that have taken placs in & shoe- making town since the rise and development of this great industry. A paper of unusual strength ar< significance, both ou ac- count of the author and the subject, is ‘Strivings of the Negro People,” by W. E. B, idom before appeared | any | this | tributes the opening paper on “The American | description of tbeir beauty and weaith, and a | ed- | “A Mas- | { lished Letters of Dean Swi | distinguished English critic | ters, George Birkbeck il lin Criticsm and After,” by Thayer, an effort to explain | cism is to-day at a standstill; quent in ‘Art and Literature,” by 1i, the great Italian criminolozist, a rc of the us» made of the delinquent ciasse great nrtists and great writers; and “Verse Under Piosaic Conditions,” a review of recent vooks of verse, showing why 8o many poets now are small poets. An anonymous paper of un- usual quality is entitied “The Coufession of a | Lover of Romance,” The author tells how an | earnest lover of & stirring story in these times | | | edited by the and man of let- The Pause William R, why criti- **The D; nrico few of subjective fiction is forced to read a ho about pirates. The fiction of this numbe | remarkable both in quantity and qualit ib’rnncui Courtenay Baylor contributes | opening chapter of & picturesque stor |of Virginian life, 1in two paris, en- | | is = tiled “Butterfield & Co' Other storius | are “Out of Bondsge,”” by Rowland | . Robinson, and “The Holy Picture,” | | by Marriet . Bradiey. “The Juggler,” | Charles Egberi Craddock’s latest story, iscom- | pleted in this numter. and Guy H. Scull con- ; | tributesa sketch of unusual quality entitled I “Within the Walls.” Harper’s. ‘ A special feature of the midsummer Har- | per’s is its short stories. The opening articie ‘ | | | is a story by Frederic Remington, of Indian- | fighting in winer, entitled “A Sergeant of the | Orphan Troop.” The illustrations are by the author, and include the frontispicce of the | number, in color. In adlition there nre seven | | comple e storins. “Sharon’s Cnoice” is & hu- | morous sketch of Jife in a Western town, by Owen Wisier, and is sympathetically ilins- trated by A. B. Frost. “The Cobbler in the | Devil's Kitchen” is a characteristic romance of voysgeur days in Mackinsc, by Mary Hart- | | well Catherwood, illustrated by C. Carleton. | *“In the Rip" is a story of farm life in Maine, by Bliss Perry, illustrated by A. B. Frost. “The Merrying of Esther” is a story of coun- try life, by Mary M. Mears. *A Fashionable Hero” is a story of the eity, by Mary Berri Chapman, and ‘A Fable ior Maidens,” by Alice Duer, is an amusing little comment on the leminine attitude toward marrying, put in the guise of a fairy tale. The “Editor’s Drawer” opens with **A Prearranged Acci- dent,” a farce by Albert Lee. North American Review. The North American Review presents for Au- gust a table of contents noteble for varlety and timeliness. The opening pages contain | the second and concluding portion of “General | Grant's Letters to » Friend,” the sume extend- | | ing over a most fnteresting period of the illus- trious soldier’s carcer. Edmund Gosse fur- nishes a brilliant essay on “Ten Yeers of Eng- lish Literature,” and “Has Judaism a Fu- ture?” is a question very thoughtfully considered by Professor Abram 8. Isamcs. | The Hon, Henry C. Ide, late Chief Jus- | tice of Sumos, ‘writes upon “Our Inter- €st in Samoa,” and General Greem B. Raum contributes a treuchant erticie on +*Shail the Civi! Service Orders be Amended?” Michael G, Mulhail, F.88,, presentsihefourth paper in his series of articles on *‘The Prog- ress of the United States,” treating in this | forcibiy considers *“The | Charles C.Millard. “TheTelegraph Monopoly,” | the sequel to “Hamlet,” Emily Dickey Beery. | #Ihe Creative Man,” Btinson Jarvis. discusses the subject of “Theosophy and Ethics,” and Alexander R. 8mith, secretary of the American Merchant Marine Association, port Bounty Prop- osition Under the title of “Speaker Reed and the House of Represeniatives,” Mayo W, Hazeltine eriticizes the article on *How the House Does Business,” which was con- tributed to the June number of the Review by Speaker Reed. The Ion. James H. Eckels, Comptroller of the Currency, discusses ‘*The Menace of Legislation” and the injury in- flicted upon the interests of the coun- try at large by the tendency of law-makers to subject the undertakings of private citizens to legislative inquiry. Other topics cleverly dealt with are: *Pooling Railroad Earnings,” Ly J. A. Latcha: “How the Red Cross Soclety Works,” by Jane Marsh Parker, and *'The Op- portunity of the Girls’ Private School,” by Charlotte W. Porter. The Arena. Following are the principsl contents of the August Arens: “Evolution: What it Is and What It Is Not,” Dr. David Starr Joraan. “Has Wealth a Limitation?” Robert N. Reeves. “The Battle of the Money Metals: 1. “Bimetal- lism Simplified,” George H. Lepper; 1L *Bi- metallism Extinguished,” John Clark Rid- path, -The Segregation and Permanent Jsolation of Crimina.s,” Norman Robinson. “How to Increase National Wealth by the Em- pioymentof Paralyzed Industry,” B. 0. Flower. “An Open Letter to Eastern Capitalists,” part xiii, Professor Frank Parsons. “The Pro- visional Government of the Cubans,” Thomas W. Steep. “A Noted American Preacher,” Dunean MacDermid, “The Civie Outlook, Henry Randall Waite, Ph.D. *The Tempest,” Dv Mavrier's “The Martian” Doxey’s. at * A SCHOOL BOOK. FIRST BOOK OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY— By Ralph & Tarr. New york: The Macm llan Company. For sale in this City by William Doxey, Palace Hotel. Price $3. The autsor of this work is a professor of dynamic geology aud vhysical geography in Cornell University. Itisintended as an ele- mentary study, and the subject is presentea in such & way as to put it forward in its more modern aspect, and particularly to include the new physiography, or science of land form. There are 8 nuwber of good illustrations and maps. | A BIT OF RECENT HISTORY. 1HE HAWAITAN INCIDENT—Ey J. A. Gillla. Boston: Lee & Shepard. Frice, cloth, 81 25; parer, 50 cents. An examination of Mr. Cleveland’s attitude toward the revolution of 1893 is here given by an suthor who believes that his action in the matter has been greatly misrepresented, and in many quarters completely misunderstood. The book gives & bistory of the whole transac- tion. The probability that these islands will soon become & part of the United States will add to the interest of the subject. . — RECENT library purchase. Fine sets of books, Doxey’s. Lok HERE AND THERE. The Chicago Chapbook is now going in for politics. What a fall, my countrymen! Itis said that Ian Maclaren’s new book is called “The House by the Houff,” and in England 1t will be published as a serial in Macmillan’s Magszine. Cinderella's glass slipper was given her, no', by the original teller of the French tale, but by the English transiator, who mistook slip- pers of vair, or fur, for slippers of verre, or glass. Professor Max Mauiler, in his latest edition of Chips irom a German Workshop, holds that mythology is the result of a period of moral decay and a falling away from high moral and spiritual views. During his lifetime the ordinary readec wends his way through 2000 miles of print. The average novel of 300 pages contains one mile of reading; that is, the eyes travel over 1760 yards while reading the book. Mrs. Felicia Hemans, who discovered “‘the stern and rock-bound cosst” of Plymouth, and who is the only writer of imaginative litera- ture produced by Liverpool, is to have & monu- ment there, if the money can be raised. The father of Anthony Hope, the novelist, is | Rev. E. C. Hawkins, vicar of a historic London | church—St. Bride’s—on Fieet street. In this church are buried Richardsou, the novelist; Lovelace, the cavalier poet; the Earl ot Dor- set, Dryden’s patrou; Wynken de Worde, the printer; Flaxman, the sculptor, and other men of note. Frank Mathew, whose “The Wood of the Brambles,” published last year, was received | as the great Irish novel, has finished & new story 1o which he has given tbe tit.e **A Child in the Temple.” This will be publishedina few days by John Lane. All Mr. Mathew’s work is distinguished by s strength and deli- | cacy of style which is full of charm. Count Tolstoi is reported by the London Daily Mail to be writing a new novel, the scene of which opens in a law court. A young woman, tried for theft, is sentenced to exile in Siberia. One of the jurymen recognizes her as & victim of his own, with the result | that he accompanies her to Siberia and snares her hardships, thus doing penance for his early sin. The Century Magazine will offer twelve prizes of $250 each, three a year, for four suc- cessive years, to college graduates receiving the degree of bachelor of arts, for the best poem, the best essay and the best short story. Graduates must submit their work before June 1 of the year succeeding graduation, and the young men and women who came out of col- lege in June, 1897, are to have first chance at the prizes. Miss Elizabeth Lowe, who died recently in London, had been the editor of the London Queen for thirty-three years, Her brother trained nis sister in journalistic work at a period when the woman journalist had scarce appeared on the scone. When Miss Lowe 100k the editorship of the Queen, the paper con- tained sixteen pages; now it numbers from 100 to nearly 150, and is the most important of English papers devoted to feminine in- terests. The Eunglish Echo says that Marion Craw- ford is one of the “least paragraphed” of mod- ern literary men, and that personally he is almost unknown to nis special constituency. He is about 40 years of age and was born in Italy, of American parents. He was educated at Concord, N. H., Trinity College, Cambridge, England, and Heiaelberg, Germany. He is a convert to Romanism. He is said to be ‘‘a handsome man, with a handsome wife and a clever sister.” In tnese days, when popular books run | through so many editions, many persons are puzz.ed over what an edition really is. Tech- | nically it is known that an edition consists of | 1000 books, yet here, for fnstance, is “Senti- mental Tommy” in its fifth edition and thirty- fifth thonsand and dozens of other books in the same situation, and & publisher will send out an edition of 500 books of verse and 1000 il the book is prose, each man following his own sweet will. Dresden, the capital of Saxony, owns a sin- gular plece of property—a morning newspaper, the Dresdener Anzeiger, '1his daily, upon the death of its last proprietor, was bequeathed to the city upon the condition that all profits arising therefrom should be spent upon the public parks, as has been steadily done. The paper continues to hold the respect of all citizens, for the trust has been carried outin its broadest spirit, and the power has never been employed to foster any school of opinions —social, political or religious. There are various ways of facing calamities. A correspondent of the Bombay Gazette vouches for the following incident concerning the recent earthquake in India: “On asking our head babu what he did when he felt the squake he replied: ‘Well, sir, I ran into the room where my wife and old mother were, to find them so frightened that they could not run, so I commended them to God and ran outside mysell’” A philosophic spirit is one of the best of the gifts of the gods in lif#'s tribulations; but, to the Western mind at all events, philosophy such as this goes a little 100 fa An interesting cricket match was played in England lately between two elevens, in whica Mr. Barrie and Conan Doyle figured ascap- tains. There were several artists in the game, and among them Alfred Parsons, Herkomer and F. D. Millet. Artists never are such muiffs auball as are tne writers, and Mr. Herkomer quite distinguished himself, though Conan Doyle showed himself to be a tireless bowler. Which side won is rather obscure. Mr. Barrie having argued it out gquite conciusively that hiz men had made the most runs, it may be inferred that they were the losers. Where was Audrew Lang? At goif, or fishing, or fin- ishing up his book on ghosts 7 A translation of & modern Greek novel will be issued from The Bodley Head within the mext week or two. It is the work of Gregory Xenopoulous, who is perhaps the leading figure in the not very large group of present - time Greek noyelists. In Greece the people as & rule marry early, and here & certain study is made on that text. The title of the novel is “The Stepmother,” and it nas been translated by Mrs. Edmonds, who thoroughly knows the Greek kingdom and its language. In mapy of his writings Xenopo- lous has taken ZJla ss & master, but “The Stepmother” is hardly Zolaesque, It has been discovered that the rhythmie curse over the grave of Shskespeare to the effect that he who disturbs those bones will be pursued by malignant fate Is identical in idea with that which King Ashmanezer, ruler of the Sidonians, caused to b2 engraved on his intended sarcophagus, which was removed from Sidon to Paris. The curse, thousands of years o.der than thet of Shakespeare, did not avail, and the excavating spoilsman braved the sdjuration, which translated runs: *I rest in this tomb in the place which I have buiit. My adjuration to all the ruling powers and to men is: ‘Let noone open this restinw place nor trouble me in tois resting place by disturbing the couch of my slumbers. For all men who should open this tomb of my rest there shall be no rest with the departed; they shall not be buried in a grave and there shall be to them ueither son nor seed; neither root b:low nor fruit above, nor honor among the iiving under the sun. ———— “Quo Vapis,” by Sienkiewicz, at Doxey’s, Y LITERARY NOTES. The Roxburghe (England) press is spending neariy $50,000 on its new edition of Dickens. Messrs. Downey & Co. will publish James Payn’s new novel, “Another burtnen,” in London. Alexander Gardener of London has just pub lished “American Humorists, Recent and Living,” by Robert Ford. Mr. F. Anstey has a new book, which has for a title “Baboo Jubberjes.” It will be pub- lished In London by Dent. There will be a new biography of Charles | Dickens, written by George Gissing. Thepub- lishers are Messrs. Blackie & Son, London. “La Fedor,” Alphonse Daudet's new novel, is just published in Paris. M. Daudet is a ter- rible sufferer from nervous rheumatism, but this book is said to show no evidence of weak- ness. | M. Maeterlinck’s latest volume (to be pub- | lished shortly by Dodd, Mead & Co.) presents | bim in the character of a philosopher and an | esthetician, is its title, he Treasuryof the Humbie' Lamson, Wolffe & Co. announce that they have just secured for publication, fn book | form only, theserial rights being withheld, a | new nistorical novel of abont 90,000 words, by Mrs. Burton Harrison, entitled “A Son of the Old Dominion.” The Macmillan Company announces “The Household of the Lafayettes.”” by Edith Sichel, | aseries of papers, with illustrations, dealing | with the period of the Revolution. The same house has in press a transiation of Dr. C. | SchnabeVs “Handbook of Metallurgy,”” brought | up to date. The American Book Company has in pressa series of volumes of stories relating to varions Statesof the Union. Mr. Howells contributcs | & collection of Ohio stories, Mr. Stockton one for New Jersey and Mr. Joel Chandler Harris one for Georgia. Thero will presumably be other volumes forthcoming. The Roxburghe Press has just Issued the first of a series of works on Historical Women.” This initial volume of course con- cerns “Victoria, Queen and Empress,” and is written by Richard Davoy, author of that curie ous collection of short storfes entitied “The Sand Sew,” and of several otuer books. The Home Publishing Company, New York City, have nearly ready a new novel by Archi- ! bald Clavering Gunter, entitled “The Power | of Woman.” It will be issued in two parts, bearing the separate titles, *Susan Turnbull” and “‘Ballybo Bey.”’ These parts will follow each other at an interval of two weeks. “Autour de Homore de Balzac,” by the Vicomte de Spoeiberch de Lovenjoul, is the latest contribution to the life history of the greatest of all modern romance writers. M. | de Lovenjoul was well acquainted with Balzac, and he shows the close intimacy between Theophile Gautier and the subject of his memoir. Calman Levy of Paris is the pub- lisher. Dodd, Mead & Co., New York, have in prepa- ration Ian Maclaren’s new religious book, “The Potter's Wheel.” They have also in pre- paration an “lan Maclaren Year Book and Calendar.” They will publish shorty “The Romance of Civilization in the United States,” by G. Barnett Smith, which covers the perfod from the earliest times to the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers. Zangwill Is an earnest and conscientious | worker, as his books testify, and no reviewer | 18 quite es critical or quite as difficult to please as he is where his own work is concerned. Tais being 50 it is not surprising to hear that Dreamers of the Ghetto” is pot nearly ready and instead of appearing in the autumn, as tirst intended, its publication will very prol | bly be deferred until the spring. Colonel John Hay, our British Embassador, delivered s speech & few weeks back upon the unveiling in Westminster Abbey of & bust of Sir Walter Scott. This speech will shostly be issued as a little book by John Lane, the au- thor's English publisner. Its publication will bring to mind Colonel Hay's volume of “Poems” and “Castillian Days,” a book of essays, both published in this country by Houghton, Miffin & Co. An interesting volume will be ‘‘Chronicles of the Bank of England,” written by B. B, Turner, one of the officials, The bock will have for illustrations copies of rare old prints in which the bank figures. The various com- mercial storms the Old Lady of Threadneedle street has iweathered are accurately de- scribed. Thatold Iady started in 1694 with & capital of £1,200,000. The Eaglish publishers are the Messrs. Sonnenschein. The late William Morris’ new romance, “The Water of the Wondrous Isles,” will be ready very shortly for En h readers. Itis now at the binder’s, who fs dressing it in limp vellum, with silk ties. It is in double columns, with red shoulder aotes. Two hundred and fifty paper copies are to be is- sued by the Kelmscott Press at 3 guineas each. Of these only seventy paper copies and one vellum remain, says the London Tele- graph. Brentano’s announce for immediate publi- cation, “Colonial Verses—Mount Vernon,” by Ruth Lawrence. A series of verses, with ac- companying illustrations, of the home of Washington, showing the drawing-room, the banquet-room, the music-room, the stairway, the garden, the spinning-house and Washing- ton’s tomb. These verses will appeal toall who have read of or visited the home of Wash- ington. They most happiiy poriray the spirit of colonial manner In McClure's Magaziae for September will be reproduced a superb life-cast of the face of Henry Clay, made by John H. I. Browere in 1825, when Clay was 48 years old. It isprob= ably the most real and vivid likeness of Clay in existence, and it has never becn published. In the same number of McClure’s will be re- produced the only portrait ever vainted of Mrs. Henry Clay. This also has never been published. Nutes by Charles Henry Hart will relate the history of the portraits and the cir- cumstances under which they were produced. J. B. Lippincott Company have ready “Mon« taigne, and Other Essuys, Chiefly Biographi- cal,” by Thomas Carlyle, a collection oi con- tributions to Brewster's Edinburgh Encyclo- pedia, written between 1820 and 1823, and not hitherto published in pook form. Among | the subjects of these biographies are Lady Mary Wortley Moutagu, Montesquien, Necker, Nelson, Murngo Park, the two William Pitts and others of less note. S. R. Crockett intro- duces the essays with a sympathetic foreword. There are also just out ‘‘Cabot’s Discovery of North America,” by G. E. Weave, and a new novel in the Lotos Library, “Mrs. Crichton’s reditor,” by Mrs. Alexander. Messrs. Dodd, Meaa & Co. announce ‘‘the Polychrome Bible,” edited by Professor Panl Haupt. This is & new English version of the 0ld Testament, with the composite structure of the books exhibited in polychrome, with historieal and explanatory notes and nu- merous illustrations from nature and the monuments of Egypt and Assyrin. In Octo- ber will appear “Judges,” by Professor George F. Mcore, “Isaiah,” by Professor T. K. Cheyne, and “Psatms,” by Professor J. Wellhausen. A large part of the Polychrome Bible has been published with the Hebrew text, but the vol- umes annouaced above are the first of the English version o e -——— See the Kate Douglas Wiggin window, Doxey’s. .