LITERARY NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 65, 17 March 1900, Page 2 (Supplement)

LITERARY NOTES.

Nearly 1000 youngsters sent in competition lists for the "Daily News'" £10 prize for the "Best Hundred Books for Children," and the poll is now published. As the fathers and mothers of the youthful readers (i.e., subscribers to the "Daily News") belong mostly to the Liberal and dissenting upper middle classes, some of its features are distinctly interesting. Here are the first six books on the list: —

Robinson Crusoe 921 Anderson's Fairy Tales.. 877 Alice in Wonderland- 867 Tom Brown's Schooldays SSI Pilgrim's Progress 824 Grimm's Fairy Tales «07

You will notice Defoe holds his own excellently, and the other five alone attain unto over 800. Thence comes a heavy fall in numbers. According to the'"Daily News" youngsters Mrs Ewing's "Jackanapes," Mrs Molesworth's "Carrots," and (alas!) Dr. Farrar's "Eric" all beat Stevenson's "Kidnapped." Kipling's "Jungle Book" (No. :l) had 575 champions, but for "Jitugle Hook" (No. 2) there were only 280. ""Treasure Island" boasts 705 votes, and in must youngster's libraries beats "Robinson Crusoe." Here, however, "Little Women," "Arabian .Nights" and "Fauntleroy" are preferred to Stevenson's best, "Pickwick" only attained 192, far below "Vice Versa" and "CopperfielO." The committee, in publishing the poll, bill not i\s yet the winner of the prize, say: —

"Too much importance must evidently not be attached to position on the poll, for it will be observed that some exceedingly popular nxrthors lose position there from the fact that they have written several books popular enough to split up their vote. The competitors have been chary of givingl too many of their votes to one author; hence, if the popularity of the author is to be gauged from the above list, it must be measured rather by the total votes given to his or her works than by the first place taken by him or her on the poll. Our readers can draw many conclusions for themselves, having this list and the number of. votes before them.1"

Fill1 the best word picture of the late Professor Kuskin is Miss May Batenian's admirable article in "Black and White." Here is a passage describing a call from the Master. Miss Bateman writes: —"It is strange how often one's memories arrange, themselves in picture form. The second or third day that Mr Kuskin ever spent with us is typical of many others. . . .

In the eeutjr- cf a group, of w'mii grown-ups and children alike formed part, Mr Kuskin sat, books and pictures in hand; either the original manuscript and etchings of -Miss Alexander's "Roadside Songs of Tuscany" or the proof's, and Mr Ilollyer's clever photographs—l forget which. Hut I know that as lie read from the one and showed us the other, lie held us under a spell which left us breathless and subdued, which comes back and holds me now, years after. It was a pathetic sight in a way—the bent silver head and scholarly form, with the student droop from the neck- —the one arm thrown caressingly round the child on his knee, the other resting on the open folio. He was not content with merely reading; often at the close of a passage he would turn back to explain the derivation of a word or to illuminate some unfamiliar passage. Thus I remember how he himself told us the story of Beatrice, the Tuscan peasant girl, to whom, on her marriage morn, there came a Heaven-sent gift of song by which she was ever afterwards inspired; and, again, the story of the widow Echvige, whose poverty was such that she and her children were left at last quite destitute, save for one scanty meal. And how, when her little child Tonina suggested that they should eat all the food at once, because God had taught them to pray for "daily bread" and He would be sure to provide more for the morrow, she took the words as a message from heaven, and did as the child bade her— to find in the dawn a goodly store of food and fuel outside her door. Perhaps it was the tone of Mr.Ruskin's voice which so impressed us. I know that as we listened the colour and atmosphere of the Italian village life seemed with us, and the people lived and moved for us, our friends and neighbours."

Which are .the most popular of ilip Ruskiu masterpieces, excluding, of course, "Modern Painters" and the "Stories of Venice," still too expensive for the average pocket? Mr Allan, the sage's publisher, makes the following list: —

"Sesame, and Lillies" 40,000 "Fronde Agrestes" .;!4.000 "The Crown of Wild Olive" 31,000 "Unto This Last" UO.OOO "Seven Lumps" 29,000 "King of the Golden River" 22,000 "Queen of the Air" 14,000 "Time and Tide" 13,000 "A Joy For Ever" 32,000 "Mornings in Florence"... 31,000 "The Eagle's Nest" 11,000

At the famous Mackenzie sale ten years ago a matchless first edition of the "King- of the Golden River" (perhaps the best written and illustrated fairy tale extant) excited my intensest desires, and I bid for it tip to £5 (writes our London correspondent). It was knocked down for ten guineas. This, bear in mind, being a booklet which you ca.n get i n Us present edition to-day for half-a-crown. The Doyle plates were, however, in finest condition, and the copy perfectly clean. The auctioneer said it was ones of. the fines! he had ever seen. Tp-claj the buyer (Lord Roseberry I was told) could get £15 15/, or even £20, for it.

A nonsensical newspaper squabble between rival Caanbridffe journalists was investigated by Mr Justice Ridley and a jury at the Camibridg'e assizes. Public interest in the dispute airoise solely from the fact thar the names of one or two eminent public men were brought into the matter, namely, Sir Alfred Milner and, incidentally, Mr Endyard Kipling. ]\fr Humphreys, the plaintiff, published, it Beenus* in the "Cum;* ■bridge Magazine" a series of articles entitled "Kipling1 and Co., by McTurk, of Stalky and Co." These memoirs •were written from manuscript given 'him by "McTurk" —the pseudonym of Mr G. C. Beresford, a. schoolfellow of Mr Kipling-—and from conversation with Mr Beresford1 and from what Mr Kipling had written in the "Ytoivth's Companion." Tihereupoil Mr Catling1, the defendant, in his paper, the "Cantab," impugned the authenticity of the articles in the following" terms: —"McTurk Criticising Kipling and Co. —Our readers may imagine the surprise with which we read the following1 criticisms from the real McTurk on the articles now ap^

peaiing* in tlie "Cambridge i\l.ugnzlne" under the title of 'Kipling- and Co.* Wishing to lea,rn the true facts of the, case, "wo arranged an interview wIMi the gentleman, and we are informed Tjy him that the articles in. question, are, in their Bonn and many details, iii, fabrication. They luive no niiilhcntieity. The first article wnw, it is true, the outcome, of an interview ■with McTrork, to whom a, proof was submitted; but even this was only approved on condition that it shoiiht ■be submitted to Mr Kipling for his approval. This was not done; but that may pass. As for the ln«t three articles, or instalments, they are entirely unaiithenticated, inasmudli as not only were they not written l),y j\LeTm*k, 'bat no yarocfi* wjefre e\ eu submitted to him." Such remarks, plaintiff contended, constituted a. serious libel. The jury eventually awarded -Mi- Humphreys £10, bis lordship observing tflmt the whole thing- seemed a ca.se of much iiici.o about nothing. I may add myself (says our London correspondent) there is jio doubt that .\k-Turk. wus Air Bercsl'ord, who is an artist living in St. John's Wood, and ■that thei original iof the reflo'iibtable ►Stalky is Captain Lionel Charles 'Hun'sterville, now a staff oilicer of the Indian army. But a neighbour of mine luid it from Afv Be res ford himself that although "Stalky and Co.'' may be said to be "founded on fact" there is a huge amount of superstructure drawn fiiom Kipling's vivid imagination. Our London correspondent, writes: The »reat West County novelist. 11. 1). lila.ekmore, died at' his .Middlesex home, at Teddington, on Satin-flay afternoon, just twenty-four hours before the Duke iof Teck. Mr Blackinore was personally unknown in literary circles or by the public. In Hi is .later years he ran '.Market Gardens hi the Tliames Vnlley—described in ."Kit ami Kitty." 'Tis a legend of the Stivile Club that once when he arrived to lunch thcire with a friend he smelt so little of literature and so. powerfully of market garden that the hall porters refused to admit him. Probably 1 shall raise a htowl of reprobation from some when 1 allege, that, despite his output of upwards ;of a score of novels, Btackmore was ■ really a "Single Speech Hamilton." Jn 18G9 he produced a great romance ctf the West called "Dorna Doone." It succeedwl and for forty years produced him a comfortable income. 1 have no doubt it will continue to do SO for his family till tlhe copyright runs out. Then the book will take its place forever alongside "Robinson Cruoe." "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and other imino-rtals. "Jii accordance witli the rule that an author seldom knows liiiS. best work, -Air Hlaekmore preferred "SpringtKwe-n," a ta.le of the Napoleonic wars, to "Lorna Doone." "Alice LorraJne" sold best next to the latter, and a fi-.w liked "Chustowell." As a/romancist of the West he had not, .however, the wide audiences of Whyte Melville ("Katerfelto" makes you* smell Kxmoor), Baring-Gould '("John Iliprrini;-," "The Ga.ve-roeks," etc.), and Quiller-Couch,whose "Deadman's "Rock" refers generally to the "Hodman" (local pronunciation) at '.Uewijpissey.