LITERARY.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 192, 15 August 1925, Page 22

LITERARY.

Thomas Hardy was eighty-five on June 2. "The Reigning Sovereign of English literature," the "Manchester Guardian" calls him in an eloquent appreciation.

"Punch" recently quoted Gilbert's well-known lines:

Ob, I am a cook and a oaptaln bold, And the mate of the Nancy brig, And a bosun tight, and a mldshlpmlte, And the crew of the captain's gig. This recalls the fact that these verses and others of the "Bab Ballads" were rejected by the editor fifty years ago as "too cannibalistic" for his readers' taste.

A. D. Godley, Public Orator at Oxford, who died in July, 'was noted as a scholar, a wit, and a writer of light verse. He came of a well-known family, of which J. R. Godley, the founder of the Canterbury settlement, was a member. He is mostly widely known by his humorous verße, which is to be found in the anthologies. Typical of his humour is the poem about the Greek ultimatum to Britain to surrender the Isle of Wight. An indignant and united Britain prepares for war, but the Greek admiral appeals to Englishmen not to turn their guns on the men that fought at Marathon and Salamis, "the men of Homer's gifted line—the sons of Socrates" — whereupon Britain lays down her arms and the Isle of Wight is handed over. Some of our readers may know his verses on Christmae: — When-you roam from shop to shop, Seeking, till you nearly drop, Christinas cards and small donations For the maw of your relations,' Questing vainly '"mid the heap Kor a thing that's nice, and cheap; Think, and check the rising tear, Chrlstmaß comes but once a year.

A stupid and most unfair review in the London "Weekly Westminster" of Mr. W. P. Reeves' "The Long White Cloud" drew some warm protests from New Zealand. The reviewer made the astonishing comment that the book was "unrelieved by any wit or literary artistry." In a recent number the editor makes the following amends: "We have a high regard for Mr. Pember Beeves, who won our golden opinions when he was in England [he was still in England when this was written], but we had not read his book when it went out to a trusted reviewer. Anyhow, literary criticism is, in our judgment, nearly all personal opinion, whicu is highly fallible. The notice of our reviewer was signed; his opinion was his affair, and not ours. We, personally, have had a book cut to pieces in a journal the editorial of which was quite friendly to us; but nothing happened, even to the book. And now we will add that we have read 'The Long White Cloud,' and in our personal opinion our reviewer was wrong in his view that the book is without merit, artistically. If England were always as fortunate in having its prospects and its affairs described with the lucidity, ease, and fairness with which Mr. Reeves has presented New Zealand, then we at home would be fortunate."

Authors are getting very modest (writes J. C. Squire in the "Observer"). I have just been reading a book of verse of which every page is perforated all along the inner margin of the divisions between stamps on a sheet are perforated. At the beginning the considerate bard has a note quite serious, stating that nobody will be pleased with all his verses, and that he wishes his readers to tear out those pages which they don't like (if possible passing them along to some other persons who may) and keep what they like, though it be but a single poem. Aud (adds Mr. Squire), here is Ronald A. Knox, towards the end of a short work of fiction, "The Viaduct Murder," shyly inserting this footnote: "To the Reader: This chapter may be omitted it" the book be thought too long."

Under the name of "New Zealand Today" a fine record of the scenic, sporting and other attractions of New Zealand, and the country's industries, has been produced by Mr. Vivian E. Page, and printed by Coulls Somerville Wilkie Ltd., Dunedin and Wellington. It appears to have been produced primarily in connection with the forthcoming International Exhibition at Dunedin, and has been prepared by arrangement with the Department of Industries and Commerce, and under the auspices of the exhibition authorities and other public bodies. Mr. Page was the publisher of the ambitious "Progressive New Zealand," which was issued last year, and Mr. L. S. Fanning, a well-known Wellington journalist, who edited this production, also edits "New Zealand Today." The book, which is royal quarto, contains over 300 pages, and gives, besides an admirable pictorial idea of New Zealand, much information about its progress and attractions. The illustrations are numerous, well-selected and beautifully produced. The editor says the book is "designed to assist the New Zealand Publicity Office in spreading the knowledge of New Zealand s right to recognition as one of the world's best playgrounds—best for the body and best for the soul," and he has produced something which should serve this purpose.

NOTKELS. The idea of a secret society that alms at the destruction of civilisation is popular with novelists. Mr, M. Marshall in "The Pedlar" adorns his with two highly sinister Chinese, and a mysterious nidi-' vidual called the Pedlar, gives it a pedigree that takes in infinitely far back into history, and locates its meeting place in an English country house. A distinguished scientist who has a military secret of the highest importance, a Russian adventuress, a gallant young Englishman on leave from the diplomatic service, and, of course, a charming heroine, go to make up the cast of a sensational but somewhat unconvincing book. Allen and Unwin are the publishers. "Swift Adventure," by Jane Cardinal (Allen and Unwin) is a novel with a purpose. It demonstrates the hardships and the minor discomforts of clerks, typistcs and workmen in the great factories of England, where power is delegated to managers whose business qualities may be good, but characters may be bad. There is a criminal interest and a love episode to enliven the "purpose," and as a story of young people in business, for readers in similar cases, it has a special appeal, but is not classifiable aa high-class literature.

Herbert Jenkins sends us a new mystery story (opened with the conventional dead body), by Nancy and John Oakley. This story is of the variety which in our youthful days was known as "railway literature," as it was purchased chiefly by travellers about to endure the manifold discomforts of a long train journey. It does not seem fair to be too critical about style, or probabilities and conventions. In r«adin_ "The I—»t Ho—_

"Parody is often humour's way of paying tribute to genius," says Sir Owen Seaman, himself a great parodist.

Anatole France's French publishers sold to the trade 300,000 copies of his books during the two months following his death.

It is said that Victor Hugo's copyrights, which will expire in 1935, are still bringing his descendants about £2000 a year.

Brunton Stephens is an Australian classic, and it was a good idea to issue in the Platypus series of cheap books (Cornstalk Publishing Co., through Angus and Robertson) a selection of his verse. Stephens, we should say, would live through his elevated verse on national subjects. The bulk of the verses in this volume are ephemeral in subject and treatment. He could write of national hopes, destinies and achievements with dignity and vision. "The Dominion of Australia," a forecast written in 1877, is a fine poem, and so is "The Dominion" of three years later. "Fulfilment," written on tlie same theme in 1901, when federation had been achieved, is secure of a place in Australian poetry. It contains the fine verse which has been quoted in this paper for its application to the part played by our "amateur" soldiers in the Great War. O ye, our dead, who at the call Fared forth to fall as heroes fall, Whose consecrated souls we failed To note beneath the common guise, Till all-revealing Death unveiled The splendour of your sacrifice; Now crowned with more than perishable bays. Immortal in your country's love and praise, Te too have portion In this day of days! This little book would be better for a short biographical sketch. VEHEMENT ECONOMICS.

Economics has been called the dismal science, but in these two books—in the stylo at any rate —thero is too much vehemence to leave a great amount of room for dismalness. When economists become convinced that they have a panacea, or that they have lighted on a secret denied to others, they sometimes show a scorn for other points of view that becomes amusing. "The Solution of Unemployment," by W. H. Wakinshaw, is a book of considerable size devoted to the exposition of Major Douglas* social credit theory, which, in the last two or three years, has promoted a good deal of discussion at Home. Tho Douglas idea is to replace existing currency with one based on goods. All money is nothing else but goods-tickets and its expansion can be indefinite, and should keep pace with the net gain in (the production of now goods. The "Douglas Price Factor," "by calculating and furnishing the extra Tickets simultaneously with the Goods, releases us from our economic fallacy now in consequence silently but relentlessly hurrying Humanity into a second and even greater World-Conflict." The book is an impassioned attack on our present system of currency and the influence and ramifications of the money power. Mr. Wakinshaw argues that the world is in an impasse and can be aaved only by the Douglas method. The power and sincerity of the argument are convincing, but we are distrustful of panaceas. There is value, however, in the book's challenge to orthodoxy, and the mass of facts and opinions which the enthusiasm of the author has collected is useful to the student of economics. He quotes from criticisms delivered in the New Zealand Parliament. The book is ] published by Andrew Reid and Company Newcastle-on-Tyne. Mr. W. H. Emmett's "The Marxian Economio Handbook and Glossary," is described as "a complete elementary primer, with glossary of 700 terms, addenda, and appendices, containing all the essentials for understanding Marx's 'Capitalist Production.' It is also the advanced student's text-book, the first to display the sequence and interrelations of Marx's great work, and contains many detailed epitomes, interpretations, and explanations, together with corrections of hundreds of general mishaps and errors hitherto unnoticed." Mr. Emmett, whose address is Sydney— .are we to regard this as an Australian contribution to economics?—thinks that both friends and foes have misunderstood Marx, and apparently he is the only man who really understands him. Two hundred and fifty pages are devoted to the true exposition of Marxian doctrines, and another hundred to a glossary and appendices. His intolerance and intellectual arrogance are colossal. For example, "just as, in some perilous positions, a person's only hope is to be either a fool or a liar, so apologetic economists, who presume to attack Marx's colossal work, either as a whole or in any detail, have no choice but to misunderstand the work or deliberately to misconstrue it." Or the description of nineteenth century Liberalism as "propaganda apparently for liberty of the masses, but in reality it was only for liberty of capital and of 'progressive' capitalist exploitation of the working class." Economics, since Ricardo, have been characterised by "all kinds of ignorant or impudent rubbish." Capitalists and their hireling economists, however, do not get all the whacks. Mr. Emmett is good enough to refer to "tiresome Socialist rubbish." We may repeat his word and say that those who can believe that good can proceed from a mind capable of producing such rubbish, may find something of value in the book. Allen and Unwin are the publishers. ■ ■ , =a