LITERARY NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1898, 19 June 1890, Page 39

LITERARY NOTES.

Ouida's new novel is to be called " Syrlin." There is a steady increase of the popularity of English novels in Germany.

Miss Austen's six novels have been enthusitically admired by Sir Walter iScott, by Sydney Smith, by Lord Macaulay, by George Eliot, by Walter Bagehot, and almost all the finest judges of delicate literary workmanship.

Mr Gladstone, at the invitation of the editor (Mr Thomas Catling), has just written a lengthy 'article for Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper. It deals with the social progress of the people — presenting a review of the past, a study of the present, and a hopeful anticipation of the future of labour. After maintaining its present form for 47 years, Lloyd's is about to be enlarged ; and Mr Gladstone's

article will be the first of a series of contributions by leading writers.

Most of Shelley's verses, and the vast majority of literary poetry generally, are unsingable, while, on the other hand, every scrap of seemingly careless lyric interspersed through Shakespeare's plays is immediately translatable into audible song. Every singer knows that he can sing " Full fathoms five thy father lies," or " Come into these yellow sands ! " or " Under the greenwood tree," though perhaps he could give no full and sufficient reason for the fact. — Athenaaum.

Dr Remegius Stolzle, the Professor of Philosophy at Wurzburg, states, in a letter to Karl Blind in London, that he has discovered a number of manuscripts in the town library of Augsburg and in the university library of Brlangen, containing the transcript of writings and notes on Aristotelean works made by Giordano Bruno, the Italian philosopher, who was burnt at Rome in 1600, at the order of the Inquisition. Some letters of a German friend of Bruno have ako been found referring to the travels, studies, and publications of the ex-monk during his sojourn in Germany. The whole will be published in the forthcoming edition of the works of Giordano Bruno, which is to come out in Italy.

The work of a Scots professor would be considered light by a hard-working lawyer, doctor, or man of letters ; and it is not much of an exaggeration to say that between lecturing, reading examination papers, and all hia other duties combined, bis work amounts to six hours a day for five days a week during six months a year. While the English don has to be more or less in evidence at his university seat throughout the whole year, the Scots professor has six months absolutely at his own disposal to devote to Switzerland or Niagara, to golf or literature or pure tobacco. — Observer.

Messrs Methuen will shortly publish " An Industrial History of England," by Mr H, de B. Gibbins, late scholar of Wadham College. The book will aim, says the Athenaoum, at giving a concise account of the industrial development of England, with references to 1 its connection with politics and social movements, suitable for general readers and for those who have not time to study the subject in larger volumes. It will contain maps of England at various periods, representing the distribution of population and manufactures, &c. This volume will form the first of a series, which Messrs Methuen have in preparation, of handbooks on subjects historical; literary, and economic, designed to meet the wants of university extension students and home reading circles.

The work by Mr W. H. Dawson, of Skipton, on Prince Bismarck as a social reformer, which Messrs Swan Sonnenschein and Co., of London, are publishing, will appear in a few days. The title is " Prince Bismarck and State Socialism : an Exposition of the Social and Economic Legislation of Germany since 1870 ; " and the chapters are as follows : — Theory of Btate Socialism, early economic policy of Prussia, Prince Bismarck's social principles, the new empire, abandonment of Freetrade, the ?State "as monopolist, State railways, industrial legislation, insurance of the working classes, Bismarck/a principles of taxation, and tho colonial eva. An appendix deals with the Li.bour Conference and other questions,

It is not always safe, says the Literary World, for a known writer to act as intermediary in forwarding another author's MS. to a magazine, The editor may make a mistake and publish the article or story with the name of the known author. A mistake of this kind happened to the gentleman who writes under the name of Lewis Carroll, and\ who now finds it necessary to state that " The Land of Idleness," which appeared in. Aunt Judy's Magazine for August 1881, was • not written by him, bnt by the Fraulein Ida Lackowitz, whose MS. he had forwarded to the editor. Another error which has crept , into print in an important monthly review is that "Alice" vas in any way suggested fcb Mr Carroll by Tom Hood's " From Nowhere to the North Pole." The latter, appeared nine years after •• Alice."

William Oowper was born in 1731, suffered much during his younger life from a mental malady which caused great depression ot spirits, recovered, under medical treatment, in 1765, and again fe}l into depression through a nervous fever. He began to compose poetry about 1780 as a relief. Many of his productions are of the highest beauty, and they open up a new field of poetry in home life and the simple events of every-day exigence. "The Task" proved the most popular of his poems, and "John Gilpin's Ride " is still classed among masterpieces of humorou,a Y«rae, In the last six years of his life his hopeless depression returned. He died in 1800.

Dr Johann Bernoulli, of Bale, was sent toRome in the autumn of 1888 to make researches in the Vatican Library for documents bearing upon the history of the city of! Bale. Bale is the first of the Swiss cantons which has availed itself of the liberate, with whioh the present Pope has opensdf *•' he Vatican Library to historical students.. results of Dr Bernoulli's laboui will be f oun d in the first volume of the new "UcV undenbuch." He found the documents. %> xnresslv relating to Bale to be fewer than V. c had expected ; but as he examined and. \loted\ 10 ted down as many as 700, up to the pontificate of Clement IV, relating to Bwit2/ cr ] and and of great importance to the elucidation of the history of the Swiss Federation, he is particularly anxious that thp, Swiss Federal Council should appoint a, commission to examine and report upon the Swiss documents m the Vatican. He states that they are rich in illustration of the morals of the clerev the rise and progress of the mendicant orders, the conflict over the celibacy, the legitimation of the children of priests, the history of local heresies, and the "literally countless endeavours for ecclesiastical ie - form."—Athenasum,

A child can wash clothes with Sunlight Soap by following ilirecfcioi.s.— [Advt.]

—Boy of Twelve (looking up from his book; •« Ma. if the planet Sirius went out suddenly and became extinct, we should not know of it until 20 years afterwards, because it takes 20 years for the light of the planet to reach the earth." Ma: "Well, that wouldn t be a very serious matter."

(Continued on page 41),