LITERARY NOTES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 80, 28 December 1907, Page 13

LITERARY NOTES.

.When''fTho.Dominions -of ,-the Boundary" came to this. Dominion, foe notice, tho reviewer, reading on and on, right-into the advertisements at the back, came upon the publisher's announcement of a new quarterly, magazine,. "The Heart of. tho Rose." This periodica) was to. deal ;',with tho affairs of Heaven and Holl, and Purgatory and Faeryland,',' and, it .was ~to appeal to those "who had caught a : glimpse of the joyousness of Hoaren.the loneliness of. Hell, the horror of Purgatory, or the wisdom of Faerylaiid." It has not reached us yet, but a criticism of tho first number, by ''Elzevir," of tho iMelbourno "Argus/' is to hand,.- He', declares that there is nothing .about Hell ' in, it. There are,: howevor, ■many, things of. interest and some things of real beauty": "There are at loast four..excellent poems, and oho in particular—it 'is; called r '.Whispers'—wljich is worthy of the' Elizabethans. There is also a finoly .and sympathetically written article on Charles B.videlairo, - which <hts cmly by excess of brevity. I should hesitate to affirm that all the writers, without excepton, are sanobut on this point; one must not enquire too curiously,, lest one should bo set down as what the author of the article on Baudelaire calls 'a coarse and pseudo-scien-' tific alienist.' I was also about to note, as a fact of natural history,'that mystics do not mako very good proof-readers; but I forbear. What I tool:; for, misprints may-npt be misprints at all. . They, may be symbolism."

"Father Benson's new book, "Lord of the World" is intensely dramatic and - exciting. The subject, says Mr." Benson, "is a parablp of, tho religious crisis which may be expected to take place a century hence if the linos'of the. present-day. controversies aro produced indefinitely. It does not profess to bo even the most amateurish of 'prophecies.' Tho novel, however, is not at all theological; rather it is' distinctly sensational, and includes some violently dramatic points." The author ventures to prophesy that a century, henco there will be, at any rato in the Western World, but ,two religious camps — thoso of Catholicism and Humanitarianism— and that these two will be in fierce opposition, and this opposition will take the form of .stem legislation and bloodshed.

/ In the "Pall Mall Magazine" is told tho story of "Omar Khayyam" 'and tho famous bookseller Berliard Quaritch. The first edition foil flat. Nobody bought tho btjok. FitzGcrald. brought the remainder of his stock of copies to,Quaritch, who put'them into his outside: box at a penny a copy. It is said that Rossctti found it first, read it to a , selcet company ot Swinburne arid thoir friends, and in this way a day or two served to disperse a couple of hundred unconsidered trifles that aro now worth their weight in gold. • ,

Whore did Mr. Kipling get tho name "Kim"? A correspondent of an American literary paper says that it must bo an echo of tho author's reading 6f the "Book of Mormon." In his account of his adventures in Salt Lake ' City, Mr. Kipling says that he wont about "armed with tho 'Book of Mormon' for better comprehension," and goes on to say: "Very sincerely did I sympathise with tho inspired brothers, as I waded through thoir joint ■ production. As a liumblo follow-worker in the field of fiction, I knew what it was to got good names for ono's characters. But Joseph and Hyrum were harder bestead than over I have been, and bolder men to boot. They created Teancum and Coriantumy Pahoran, Kishkumon and Gadianton, and other priceless names which tho memory does not hold." Ho docs pcJ wontion Kim here, but (tho "Daily

Mail" points out) Kim was tho son of 0110 Morianton, and his name and deeds were engraved on tho golden plates which Joseph Smith is supposed to have received from Heaven. It is very likely that so simple a name, among all the other elaborate Wardour Street creations, may havo impressed itself on tho novolist's mind; "Kim" >vil! probably live, along with some of tho short stories and some of the poems, after much of Mr. Kipling's work is forgotten, and it would be interesting to fix tho genesis of tho name. '

It appears from the just-published biography of Sir Charles: Wyndham that he lias always boon keenly interested in tho career of Mr. Bernard Shaw, though ho has nevor acted in one of his plays. Asked one day if he had ever contemplated appearing in a Shavian production, Sir Charles gavo a reminiscent smile, which broadened, wo aro told, into a littlo chuckle. "Oh, yes, Bernard Shaw was very anxious for mo to appear in some of his productions. I remember his coming to nio some years ago to road mo one of his plays. ,Wo greeted 0110 another, and sat down, one each side of a little table. Thore seemed to be no sign of a play in hjs hand. Presently lie put his hand in his brcast-pocket and produced,a small notebook, which lie placed upon the'table! Then ho dived into another pocket, and produced another note-bools, a little bit larger than the first. He proceeded in this fashion to ransack hi 3 pockets until no less than seven small note-books lay upon the tabic. 'That's the play,' said Mr. Snaw, complacontly. 'I always writo my plays on tho tops of 'buses, so I havo to use note-books.' " This particular play, wo are informed, was "The Philanderer." - .

■ The death of Sir Lewis Morris last month recalled .to a.writer in the "Manchester Guardian" the interesting story of tho poet's sudden achievement of a reputation. Ho was unknown, unappreciated, and hardly read until on Juno 25, 1877, tho late John Bright uncovered tho statue-to Richard Cobdou presented by Mr. Booth to tho town of Bradford. In the course of his , speech Bright referred to the great sorrow of his lifo at Loaniington and to Cobdon's call to hiin to find relief from sorrow in the toil of working for tho repeal of tho Corn Laws. Amongst tho thousands of Bradford men listening there was none unmoved, and to those eager, sympathetic listeners the spoaker later in tho speech said: "I havo lately boon 7ending a poejq which has interested mo very much, a poem called 'The Epic of Hades.' Many of you have never heard; of it, and raany_ of you havo never seen it. It is, as I view it, another gem added to the great wealth of the,poetry of our language." The linos were~. • For knowledge is a steep which few may : . climb, ' While duty is a path which all may tread. ' The result was almost magical. As soon as the meeting was over a gentleman who was on the platform made his way across the square to tho'leading, bookseller's shop' to obtain a copy of "The Epic of Hades," only to find that scores of .people had been before him. The' astonished bookseller telegraphed for all the copies the publishers had on hand to be sent on at-once to. satisfy the hundreds of orders for the book he took that afternoon. The day after all England read the speech, and-the following day the flow of brders from every town in'the kingdom began. No fpwer than thirteen editions were called for in four years.

"Tho zeal, the labour, the resourcefulness of our novelists remind us,',' says the New York ' "'Nation," "of the'. Frorieh . agriculturist, who succeeds in wresting"-'from- ''a half-aero : of' soil ari average-', prosperity far higher than that of any other European nation. . Twenty years ,ago a new ..type of novel might last a decade/,perhaps. To-day, less than half tliat tiino will Cover thti budding, bloom, and fading away of the historical tale, tho detective stor t v, the Wild West romance,'the precocious child 'comic,' or. tho political novel. . . In qthor words, tho manorial system' of. somo fifteen or twenty •years, ago' is fast being .transformed intp.a system -of peasant, : ■ Thero are, of course, striking, exceptions to be noted. Jack London is still lord paramount in Alaska;,'JJercival Gibbon, to .go.abroad, holds'all South Africa under his peri; G; B. Lancaster's away extends over lian continent; Robert Hichcns is grand sheik of tho'Sahara.' .But even with these it is only a question of time before \thoy will be compollod to share their broad acres witli newer men. Now, the curious thing about our .literary peasant proprietors is .that, quite unlike their real agricultural prototypes, they seem, to have t-lio-power to nurso out of their little gardens whatever,/crop their heart' may. desire. And ,the. desire of their heart is naturally that particular staple which happens to'bib in greatest demand, or, as wo have put.it' before, iwhich is ■ the. fashion of the hour." .....

"Tho Professor of . English Literature in the University of-Liverpool has. collected, a number of his essays, and has . published them, in a volumo called 'Modern Studies' '(Arnold). . ... .' Tho 'most striking' essay, in Professor Elton's volume,". says tho. "Liverpool Daily Post," "deals, with 'Mysticism.' Here the man of .letters turns aside from the pursuit of aesthetic ■ perfection, and reveals himself as a. gracious ■ and keen thinker. Mr. Elton, no doubt, was drawn to the' subject by the extreme . beauty ot much mystic literature. Most of us at somo time of life, have! felt tho charm, and' have yielded to the spiritual anodyne offored by Thomas a Kompis. Others have-'obtained tho samo hypnotism of soul under tlio influence of Schopenhauer. And Air. Elton, beholding, all over tho world the traffic in drugs for the spirit of man, cries aloud that 'the work of rescuing any promising soul from these quagmires ought to be part of a reasonable educational programme.' .-, When tho mystics, tell us that man is in a train, and is being carried forward through a tunnel without', knowing which going, only feeling that ho is in the dark and doing nothing, and that it' is not his part to jump out, and that it is his part to go to sleep, let us reply that it is his part to do neither, but to strive with all liis strongth and knpwledgo to reach the engine and get his hand on tho throttle' valvo, even if he must die in tho endeavour."

In that pleasant, gossipy magazine, the "Book Monthly," somo of the chief London publishers have ownocl to their literary preferences. Mr. John Murray, an accomplished scholar, who has edited many books, indicates his preference tor history and biography. He is also a student of theology. His favourite Jiving novelist is Ivipling. Mr. Murray, delivered from tho fear of Macaulay, says that Croker's. edition of Boswell is tho best, and I am not prepared to say_ that ho is altogether mistakon. Mr. Frederick Macmillan givos a long list of books, on most of which ho would bo prepared to answer ail examination papor. There are many novelists in the list, but there are other books, including "Mr. Sponge's Sporting .Tour," Iluxloy's "Scicnco and Hebrew Tradition" and "Scionco and Christian. Tradition." Another favourite of Mr. Macmillan is Whyte Melville's "Riding Recollections." Mr. Heinemann montions Do Quincoy's "Suspiria." Mr. C. E. Mallet, M.P.,- partner l in .ilcssrs. James Nisbct and Co., tolls us that in tho House of Commons an ancient rigid rulo, which he venturps to think uncivilised, forbids members to read novels in the library. ■ Mr. John Lano says, with perhaps somo wickednoss: "I am ,old-faphioned enough 'to read with great enjoyment most of Lo Gallienno's poems and prose." The Hon. L. J. Batlmrst, of Alston Ilivors, Ltd., prefers sporting books, and ho also mentions "Mr. Spougo's Sporting Tour." . Mr. Arthur Spurgeon. of Cassell and Co., mentions Thomas Hardy and John Richard Green. Mr. Eveleigh Nash likes "Esmondj" "Vanity Fair," and "Adam Bedo." Mr. J. M. Dent, in more serious literature, would fain bo a studoht of Wordsworth and Shakespeare.

Mrs. Mary Jane Holmos has just died at Brockport, in the Nov,' York State, and wo learn noiv that sho v.'»s 0110 of tho most popular of nil novelists. Her record of aggregate salos of 2,000,000 copies for her thiit.v-nino boob is said to bo inferior to that of Mr. E. P. Roo, but it is good. Tho roninrkablo thing about Airs. Holmes's popularity is its persistence, although her books aro "essentially tho books of another generation." Of courso Dickens has a persistept popularity, but it would bo disturbing to lind that .it is

not only tho Immortals who aro immortal. What is tho preservative that has so far saved Mrs. Holmes from the oblivion which commonly overtakes all but tho greatest? An ingenious critic in the Now York "Evening Post" suggests that her success has endured becauso her books are "made up of phrases rojccted by other novelists because tlioy wero crude and trite and hackneyed." Nowadays even tho most casual writer likes to say something clever or fresh if it occurs to. him, but this remarkablo woman, it seems, never deviated from tho beaten path. Tlig hackneyod phraso became so because it "caught on. Who, then, that is withouttho affectations that become second nature can resist a whole bagful of what at one time or another has fired the popular imagination?—" Manchester Guardian."

Mr. A. C. Bonson's new volume, "Tho Altar Firo," which has just beon published by Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co., purports to bo tho, diary of a sincere and successful novelist, and wo must suppose that a good many of tho incidents doscribed aro autobiographical, for although Mr. Benson is not chielly a novelist, he is a highly successful author, and no doubt suffers somewhat from the penalties attaching to literary success. Among tho many little glimpses he affords of tho kind of notice that comes'to a man known all over the world by his hooks is the following: — "It comes homo to me that the book has been a success; it began by slaying its thousands, like Saul, and now it has slain its tens of thousands. It has brought mo hosts of letters from all sorts of people, somo of them very delightful and oncouraging, many very pleasant—just grateful and simple letters of thanks—somo vulgar and impertinent, somo strangely intimate. . . of these letters are intensely pathetic, 'affccting, heart-rending; an invalid lady writes to say that sho would "like to. know me, and will I como to the North of England to see her? A man writes a pretonious letter to ask mo to go and stay with him for a week. He-has nothing to offer, ho says, but plain fare and rather cramped quarters; but ho, has thought deeply, ho adds, on, many of the problems on which I touch, and thinks that lie could throw light upon some of thom. Imagino | what reserves of wisdom and interest ho must consider that ho possesses! ■ Then thero aro patronising letters from peoplo who say that I ' nave put into words thoughts which they havo, always- had and which they nover took the' trouble to writo down; then thero are requests for autographs, and 'sentiments,' arid suggestions for new books. A man writes to say that I could do untold good if I. would writo a book with a' purpose, and ventures to propose that I should take up anti-vivisection." In the first volumo of tlio now "Cambridge History of English Litcraturo"—be com T pioted'in 14 volumes—stress is laid on.tho extraordinary continuity of English. literature and of the -.permanonco of certain leadr ing featnres. Speaking of the fragments of Old English poetry that we possess, tlio writor, Mr. A. R. Waller says:—'"lliey aro not thoso of a literature in tho making, but of a school which had 1 passed through, its age of transition from ruder elements. The days of apprenticeship wero over; tho Englishman of tho days of 'Beowulf and.Widsith! and 'The Seafaror' know what he wished to say and said it, without oxhibiting, auy apparent trace of groping after things dimly seen or apprehended. And from these days to our own, in spito of periods of decadence',: of apparent death, of great superficial -change, tho chief constituents of English literature— a rellectivo spirit, attachment to naturo, a certain carelessness of 'art,' lovo of home country, and an ever-present consciousness that there aro things worso than death —these have, in the-main, continued unaltered. 'Death is hotter,' says Wiglaf'in 'Beowulf,' .'for'-every knight than ignominious life,' and though Claudio feels death to be 'a fearful thing,' tho is only iittored to .enable Shakespeare to .respond through the lips of Isabella, 'And shamed life a hateful.' "

An interesting relic of Browning is _to bo facsimile by tho Carnegio Institution'OMVashington. . This is tho "old sqiiaro yollotf book" in which that pact found tho story of : "Tho Ring and tho Book,':'and which' ho picked up, as ho tells us lV'.tho introduction to his most ambitious work,'for a "lira" oil.a bookstall in Florence:—; . y Small-quarto sizo, part print, part manu- ■ script : ... , i : . ..i A hook in shape, but really pure crude fact. Secreted from man's life when hearts beat hard. And brains, high blooded, ticked two centuries since. Three-fifths of tho book wero mado up from tho printed shcots in ■ which tho caso of Guido Francoschini and his wife had be<2n.dpscribed at tho time when- it.set RomO in'a ferment,'and. tho rosti had been added for nticcssary amplification and explanation iy somo nameless contemporary scribc . and amateur of tho criminal, courts. Thus thero can bo no doubt that tho volumo is unique."