LITER'ATURE and LIFE

Otago Witness, Issue 3757, 16 March 1926, Page 78

LITER'ATURE and LIFE

TO THOMAS HARDY ON HIS EIUHTYTHIRD BIRTHDAY. A breath of hope, for those who have known despair; Of victory, for those who have drunk defeat; Of harvest, when the wounded fields lie bare, Oi but a mist of green foreruns the wheat; A breath of love, when all we loved lies dead: Of beauty, too remote for tongue to tell; Of joy, when sorrow veiled and bowed the head; Of heaven, for those that daily walked in . Hell; — His musio breathes it, for his wrestling soul Through agonies of denial postulates 1 All that young eyes affirm. He proves his goal Divine, because he mourns the fast-barred gates; And by his grief for love and hope brought low Proves that the Highest ne’er would have it —Alfred Noyes, in the Sunday Times. \LL SOULS’ DAY, Close-wrapped in living thought I stand Where death a> d daybreak divide the land, Death and daybreak on either hand For exit and for entry; While shapes like wind-blown shadows pass, Lost and lamenting, "Alas, alas. This body is only shrivelling grass, And the soul a starlit sentry Who guards, and as he comes and goes, Points now to daybreak’s burning rose, And now toward worldhood's charnel close Leans with regrctlesg warning .. .” I hear them thus—o thus I hear My doomed companions crowding near UnUl my faith, absolved from fear, ’ Singa out into the morning, And tells them how we travel far. From life to life; from star to star; Exult, unknowing what we are; And quell the obscene derision Of demon-haunters* in our heart We work for worms and have no part In Thee, O ultimate power who an* Our victory and our vision. —Siegfried Sassoon, in the London Mercury.

PRIVY COUNCIL DIARISTS.

Sir A 1 meric Fitzroy's Memoirs naturally set one thinking about the celebrated case of Greville’s (says a writer in John o’ London’s Weekly). He also, having been Clerk of the Privy Council, told many lively stories about the royalties and other celebrities whom he had met while performing his clerical functions. In his case also there were clamorous protests that clerks of the council ought not to keep diaries, and that any diaries which they did keep ought to be burnt, or kept locked up for a few hundreds of years in the strongrooms of banks.

Greville thought otherwise. He was satisfied that his diary would furnish useful footnotes'to history. He had no sordid purpose in view in keeping it. Neither he nor any member of his family ever made r penny out of it. Very possibly he never realised that there was any money worth considering to be made out of it. He gave it to Henry Eeeve, Registrar of the Privy Council and editor of the Edinburgh Review, satisfied that Reeve would handle the indiscretions discreetly, and hold them back long enough, but not too long. The full story is told in a momorandum published in Reeve’s own memoirs, edited by J. K. Laughton. On January 7, 18G5, Reeve received from Greville a note requesting him to “call on him for a matter, as he expressed it, not very important, but partly of a personal and partly of a literary character.” He went to see him in his rooms in Bruton street, and Greville said:

Reeve, I am getting devilish old, and I think in all probability I have not long to live. I have therefore been considering what I ought to do with the journals I have kept on all important occasions for so many years of iny life. They amount, I think, to 90 volumes, and extend over nearly 50 years. . . . Will you take charge of them? . . They contain a good deal of curious matter, as you know, which may be of interest hereafter. I can do nothing better than leave them in your hands. You will be judge whether any part of them, and what, can be published

Reeve carried off four of the volumes to look through, and a further conversation took place a few days later:—

I asked him about the passages in cipher. He Baid he had invented this cipher himself for the purpose of his journal; that he could read it. but nobody else. That he would read to me the passages in cipher if I would bnng them to him; but he added :

“ For that matter the truth is the greater part of them had better be omitted, as they relate to things which are better forgotten. So the matter was settled. Greville died in his sleep liefore the month was out. Reeve waited nine years, and then published a first instalment of the diary, carrying Greville’s story down to the date of Queen Victoria’s accession. He had omitted a good deal; but in order to satisfy everybody he would have had to omit everything, for Greville wielded a bitter and scathing pen, and wrote as one of the inner circle who was no respecter of persons, ne detested George IV, and despised William IV,

Here is a passage about the former which supplies a fair illustration of his tone:—

He leads a most extraordinary life—never gets up till 0 iu the afternoon. They come to him and open the window curtains at oor 7 o’clock in the morning; he breakfasts in bed, does whatever business he can be brought to transact in bed, too; he reads every newspaper quite through, dozes three or four hours, gets up in time for dinner, and goes to bed between 10 and 11. He sleeps very ill, and rings his bell 40 times in the night; if he wants to know the hour, though a watch hangs cloee to hro, he will have hia valet de chambre down rather than turn his head to look at it. The same thing if lie wants a glass of water; he won’t stretch out his hand to get it With much more to the same effect, some very scandalous anecdotes about his Majesty’s relations with Lady Convngliam. So the storm hurst with furious force on the heads of both the dead Greville and the living Reeve. The memory of the former was reviled in epigrams of which the following is a sample:— For fifty years he listened at the door, And heard some secrets, and invented more; These he wrote down, and statesmen, queens, and kings "Were all degraded into common things. Though most have passed away, some still remain To whom 3uch scandal gives a needles pain, And though they smilo and say, " ’Tis only Greville,” They wish him, Reeve, and Longman at tho devil. Compliments also were forthcoming. Reeve was warmly congratulated on his work by Earl Russell, the Earl of Derby, Delane of The Times, and Queen Sophie of the Netherlands. On the other hand, his old friend, Abraham Hayward, attacked him so fiercely in the Quarterly Review that the two men never spoke again. Queen Victoria also signified her displeasure. It is not known for certain which passages in the work were specially displeasing to her; but a guess may be hazarded. The reflections on her uncles can hardly have affected her very much; but there is one reference to her own personal appearance which she may very well have resented. If Reeve had been a courtier he would certainly have bluepencilled that passage. Yet one remains, on the whole, glad that Greville kept the diary, and that Reeve did not suppress it. Truth is a jewel with many facets, and indiscretion gives us an instructive glimpse of several of them. Without it, Court history and political history would too often be nothing more than the care-fully-doctored chronicle of an organised hypocrisy. It gives verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative. Greville’s indiscretion, among other services which it has rendered, made Mr Lvtton Strachey’s sardonic history possible. BOOKS OF THE DAY. A MONUMENTAL WORK. “The Illustrated Australian Encvclopaadia.” Edited by Arthur Wilberforce Jose and Herbert James Carter. Volume I, A to Lys. Australia: Angus and Robertson (Limited), Sydney. The publishing house of Angus and Robertson has placed the reading public of Australia and New Zealand under many a debt of gratitude, and the publication of this .latest book marks an important milestone in the history of the enterprising firm. To have succeeded in producing at the first attempt a reference book which compels favourable comparison with the old-established works of the Old World is a commendable achievement. The Encyclopaedia. it is explained in the preface, was first projected in 1912 as a historical and biographical record, but the outbreak of war in 1914 temporarily halted its progress. When it was again taken up in 1917 it was decided to includ • articles on scientific subjects also. The delavs proved beneficial, for it has meant the enlargement of the scope of the book, and the me of documents which were not available when the work wag first undertaken.

In the production of a modern work of reference it I*3 necessary to hare the assistance of the leading authorities on scientific, historical, and ether important questions. Otherwise the purchaser cannot, feel that measure of confidence whieh makes the hook the last word on the matter consulted. In the making nf the Australian Encyclopaedia. 144 contributors, each an authority on his subject, have taken part, besides many others who have assisted in supervising and sub-editing. From this alone it mnv he gathered that the hook is most exhaustive. The fullest satisfaction comes, however, the reader consults the page*, of the hook in search of information. Whether it he art, natural history, botany, exploration (by land, or sea), birds, hospitals. Labour Parties, men of mark, snakes—everything, in fact—this book supplies thfc facts desired. It is, indeed, just what it purports to be—a compendium of information on all subiecta. In its 768 pages are scores of Illustrations and drawings, and the coloured plates are well executed. Printed in clear type the hook at once becomes the reference work of Australia, and the second volume will be awaited

with interest by those fortunate enough to possess the first volume. THE ROMANCE OF THE MISSISSIPPI. “The Power ami the Glory.” A romance of the great La Salle. By Gilbert Parker. (Cloth, 7s Oil net.) Hodder and Stoughton, London. Sir Gilbert Parker is pre-eminently the novelist of Canada, and in this romance of the great French explorer who, setting forth from Canada, made his way by river and lake to tributaries of the Mississippi, and then sailed down the great river to the Gulf of Mexico, he lias a subject of epic interest. In the latter half of the seventeenth century, it was uncertain whether England or France was to be the dominant power in North America. The genius of La Salle saw in the great waterway of the Mississippi a means of extending the power of France from the St. Lawrence through the continent of North America. Inadequately supported by the French Government. and hampered by the intrigues of the Jesuits, lie led the way, laid the foundations of France’s power in the Mississippi basin, and perished in the wilds by the hand of an assassin, without sc2ing the fruition of his labours. In his brief preface, Sir Gilbert Parker alludes to the recent beatification of two Jesuit missionaries in Canada, who, shortly before the events recorded in his story, were cruelly martyred by the Indians. He pays tribute to the heroism of these missionary explorers, to whose company La Salle was allied by equal self-devotion and courage, opposed as were his aims to theirs. Canada and the United States are the heirs of the heroism of Jesuit and lay explorer alike. The virulent opposition of the Jesuits to La Salle is shown in the story as the source of all the worst difficulties lie met with in the pursuit of his enterprise. The Jesuits desired to make their order supreme in “New France.” They were bent on Christianising the Indians, civilising them along their ow'n lines, and employing material gains to the profit of their order. Thus they were antagonistic to the ordinary trader and the extension of secular sway over the Indians. Sir Gilbert Parker’s storv shows them as pursuing La Salle with implacable hostility, making use of the opposition of English traders, personal jealousies, and malignancies to frustrate La Salle’s plans, and to remove him by the assassin’s hand. In France their agents were ever at work to prejudice La Salle and his cause with the king and a.i who possessed power or influence. The opening of the story shows La Salle, newly returned from exploration in the Great Lakes .region, being welcomed at Quebec by the Governor, Count Frontenac, who shared the aspirations of La Salle for France’s expansion in North America, and did his best to promote the explorer’s enterprise. Bnt Frontenac was opposed by the Intendant, Duchesneau, a tool of the Jesuits, who, whatever his precise official powers, see’*' to have counted for nearly as much as the Governor himself. In the course of the story we accompany La Salle on his subsequent journeys of exploration and colonisation, and are frequently transported to the French Court, to which La Salle made several visits in order to advance his cause in person. The author gives a favourable view of Louis XIV, representing him as a patriotic and enlightened monarch, whose days were mainly occupied with hard work. “L’etat, e’est moi” is an often-quoted saying of the king’s, and from Sir Gilbert Parker’s account, he certainly, did not shirk the toils of government. He is shown as indulging in capricious and arbitrary acts in a way which scarcely bears out the author’s favourable estimate of his character. Among t T, e fictitious personages of the story are two women of totally opposed natures: the evil and vindictive Barbe Ranard, a tool, with her husband, of the Jesuits, and ready for all evil on her own account, and the sincere and courageous girl, Lya Darois, who ardently sympathises with La Salle anu his aims, while her father is in the camp of La Salle’s enemies. A book with La Salle and his wanderings as its central theme could hardly be uninteresting even if written by an author of power inferior to Sir Gilbert Parker’s. But in spite of the variety of character, scene, and incident, the book does not escape heaviness. The duty of adhering to history as regards La Salle and the important facts of his career seems to hamper the author’s constructive ability; the chronicler overpowers the artist. The author lias a trick of enlightening the reader as to the antecedents of various personages by something similar to stage directions inserted into conversations, which thus fail in naturalness. Otherwise there is some stiffness of style. Have we not plenty of English words that Sir Gilbert must use the French adjective “incroyable.” “She (Barbe) was of the most incroyable kind.” But the book is a long and full one, and if read in a leisurely fashion, inav be much better appreciated than if rushed through in pursuit of “the story.” AMONG THE NATIVES. “ My Crowded Solitude.” By Jack M‘Laren. (Cloth, illustrated, 12s Cd net.) London: T. Fisher Unwin (Limited). This book, by the writer of “ My Odyssey,” deals with eight years spent by the

author at little-known Cape York, the northern extremity of Australia, among the most backward race of people in the world to-day. After long wandering of the South Pacific Islands Mr M‘Laron decided to establish a coconut plantation at Cape York, aud his account of that adventurous undertaking is unique. He gives extraordinarily powerful descriptions of the dangers, hardships, and compensations of the life, also accounts of strange native customs. The author has brought sympathy and insight to his aid in writing this book, and this is best displayed in his descriptions of the natives, their customs, and their likes and dislikes. At those times when the natives deserted him he was alone, and his description of these experiences is very well done. The book is well illustrated from photographs taken on the spot. FUN. “ More Quotable Anecdotes.” By D. B. Knox, author of “ Quotable Anecdotes,” “ Children’s Funny Sayings.” (Cloth, 3s 6d net.) London: T. Fisher Unwin (Limited). The compiler of “ Quotable Anecdotes” has followed up his success with a volume of “ More Quotable Anecdotes.” It will be hailed with amused smiles, for there is a laugh on every page, and in spite of the time when it appears hardly a single venerable chestnut can be found in the collection. Mr Knox has proved to be a successful collector—“ Quotable Anecdotes ” has exhausted seven editions in two years. The present collection promises to be equally popular. It is divided into sections, which helps the seeker to find the appropriate joke or quotation for the occasion. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED. The Cawthron Institute at Nelson has published a chemistry department bulletin, Cold Storage Investigations: Season 1925,” written by N. M‘Clelland and L. VV. Tiller. The following subjects are treated upon:—(I) Flesh Collapse (Its Difference from Brown Heart), the Internal Breakdown and the Control of It; (2) Storage of Pears; (3) “ Gas ” Storage of Apples. There are 1925 tables, and a list of books dealing with the subject of fruit, followed by five black ami white plates. This should be an interesting book to fruitgrowers.

From the librarian of the Alexander Turnbull Library comes a bulletin containing a list of 100 representative New Zealand books. It has been published to send.to English libraries, as many hold few books of New Zealand literature. The book lists come under the headings of bibliography, religion, sociology, science, description, and history, etc., the last three-named classes attracting writers much more than the others. Three periodicals—the “ Government Official Year Book,” the “ Transactions of the New Zealand Institute,” and “ The Journal of the Polynesian Society ” have been included in the list, which should prove a great help to English librarians.

The March number of the Home (the Australian journal of quality) is touched with much Australian colour. There are articles dealing with Australian fashions for autumn, and many and charming are the models displayed. One particularly good page is “ Australia Through English Eyes,” by Jean Curlewis. This writer has been engaged to conduct “ The Clearing House ” for the Home. A little article, “ A Bush Garden,” by R. B. M., gives a glimpse into the work of the bush women. The children’s page is especially interesting, as it is the first page the Home has had. All the kiddies will want to join under Captain John’s flag. William Cane’s

“ The Methods of Mendosa ” is the principal story. Sylvia Shaw describes European plays in “ Some Playgoing in Europe.” Other articles include “In Quest of the Cummerbund,” by Frank Middlemiss; “Melbourne Musings,” and “ French Poets Pay Tribute to Oscar Wilde,” by Isabel Ramsay.

Articles by Messrs R. B. Tennant and J. R. Maries, which appeared in the Journal of Agriculture on irrigation, with special reference to the conditions in Central Otago, have been conveniently reprinted in bulletin form. They should prove of great value to settlers in the irrigated and irrigable areas.