LITERARY NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CXIV, Issue 38, 13 August 1932, Page 22

LITERARY NOTES

BOOKS AND AUTHORS There has just been published a gardening book,written 210 years ago by John EvelyV, the dairist, Which, has only lately been .discovered. It is now printed for the first time, edited by Mr. Geoffrey Keynes. 1 "My /Grandfather, '-John Wilkes Booth,'Vbylzola Forrester Page, is announced for publication in New York. The biography bears the subtitle,."The Amazing Pacts I.'Have Discovered About His Life and Death." It was John "Wilkes Booth :■. who assassinated President Lincoln in 1865.-:" Mr. S. L. Bensusan, whose latest book is called : "A Child-of Chance," has acted as a, special correspondent in many, countries; including Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany,' Morocco, ■ and Canada. He has also been an art critic and editor of several journals, and is the author;of.- some twenty books. Mr. John, Gaisworthy/ the president of the International P;B.N; Club, is to visit Yugoslavia, next;year- for its annual conference,, which.'lvUl be held at Dub'ro'vnik. The: president of the Yugoslav branch is Dr. Stepanovitch, the translator of Shakespeare into Serbian. Gilbertians are looking forward to two; books," "The Lost Bab Ballads," fiom the early volumes of "Fun," and a newly-discovered Gilbert play, "A Colossal Idea," both of them illustrated by Mr; Tqwnley'Searle, who is well known for; his ingenious bibliography of Savoy «opera> ,- ; , Both are coming from Putnam.' ':..';! r . . ". Mr. Hugh. Walpole asserts that lie has solved for himself "the tiresome problem" of what books one would like to hayei ona desert- island; "With his old Chambers's Encyclopaedia, Dent's new One, six volumes of Dumas, Shakespeare, and the recently; issued Hazlitt Omnibus, lie is sure that he could live happily until a ship showed on the horizon; ■ ....... ■• - - --, For some time (states a London paper) negotiations have been in progress for the amalgamation of "TJ«> Methodist Times'? and "The Methodist .Leader." These negotiations are now in process of completion, and it' is proposed to publish the new journal early in September under the title of "The Methodist Times and Leader." This journal will be of increased size as compared with both "The Methodist Times" and "The Methodist Leader." The Rev. Dr. Benjamin Gregory, D.Litt., will be the editor of the new paper. The Rev. Phil J., Fisher, editor of "The Methodist Leader^" will be associated with Dr. Gregory as co-editor. Tho assistant-editor will be Mr. R. G. Burnett. A very attractive glimpse of Queen Victoria is given in "The Times" extracts froni Mr. Buckle's new volume of the Letters which describes how "after luncheon" slie "did a lesson in Hindustani with Abdul, whu has just returned from India," but "it did not go very Tvell," as she had "forgotten a good deal, and not practised at all during his six months' absence." But by the date of the Diamond. Jubilee Her - Majesty was sufficiently ad-vanced-to speak a few words, in Hindustani to some of the Sikhs. There are few things in our Royal history more creditable and more touching than this picture of a venerable lady going back to lesson books as a matter of public duty. A new volume of essays by Fellows of the Boyal Society of Literature, edited by Mr. John Drinkwater.and entitled "The Eighteen-Sixties,'' will be published shortly by tho Cambridge University Press. This will be a companion volume to "The EighteenSeventies" and "Eighteen-Eighties." The essays are entitled: '' Sir Henry Taylor," by Lascelles Abercrombie; "Arthur Hugh Clough," by Humbert "Wolfe; "The Early Novels of "Wilkie Collins," by "Walter de la Mare-; "Exit Planche —Enter Gilbert," by Harley Granville-Barker; "'Punch' in the j 'Sixties," by C. L. Graves; "Historians in the 'Sixties," by F. E. Boas; "Eneas Sweetland Dallas," by John Drinkwater-; <'Whyt(i-Melville," by the Hon. Sir John Fortescue; "Science in the 'Sixties," by Sir Oliver Lodger | The London "Observer" invited its readers to state —giving their reasons— of which character in fiction they would themselves most like to be the acknowledged model. ■ The threo prize winners severally selected Mark Tapley, "because he embodies tho spirit of England that won the war and paidj taxes in January, 1932"; Alice, "because of her coolness, courage, and resource in meeting difficult and unusual situations"; and the,fat boy in "Pickwick," "because he was fat, could sleep, and wa3 therefore happy." Many competitors chose Elizabeth Bennett in "Pride and Prejudice." Several Dickens characters, in addition to those' mentioned, figured in the. list. The favourites in Thackeray were Colonel Newcombe, Major Dobbin, and Becky Sharp. Of the Scott heroines most votes went to Jeanie Deans. Aa appeal to pay more attention to spiritual values, and thus help in curing some of tho world's ills, is "Our Common Way," a thoughtful little publication by. George Eeklawson (Christchurch), ' ■