Literary Notes.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5322, 29 July 1895, Page 3

Literary Notes.

London, May 31. The remarkable promise shown by that pathetic study of child- life, "Misunderstood," has never been redeemed by Florence Montgomery, whose subsequent work rose little, if at ali, above the commonplace. "Colonel Norton" is mainly concerned with the transformation of a woman's oharacter. In the prologue she seems utterly selfish and soulless. In vol. 1 she is discovered an angel of unselfishness, religion, charity, purity and devotion to others. The mystery ia how, when and why did she ohange ? Colonel Norton, a solemn prig, chases it through two out of three volumes. What the third containe I know not. Having solved the seoret of the lovely peeress's reformation, I felt no longer interested in the book, and returned it, without thanks, to Mudie's. In " Sir Robert's Fortune," Mrs Oliphant tells a simple, and (if the truth must be told), rather tiresome story of life in a lonely shooting-box on a Scotch moor. Thither Sir Robert's niece Lily is banished with her old nurse Beenie, because of her refusal to give np Ronald Lumsden, a penniless barrister whom her nncle believes to be a fortune-hunter. In this notion, to some extent, Sir Robert is right, though Ronald in his way loves Lily, too, and her money would be of no use to him without her love. He follows her to Dalrugas, and the old servants wink at the lovers meeting on the moor. Ultimately Lumsden, by aa infamous falsehood, penuadeß Mr Blythe, the village minister, to marry him to Lily. He casts a vile and cruel stigma on the girl. "Then you are a blackguard," cries the old man, but to save his old friend's niece from dishonour he consents to unite her in the bonds of wedlcck to her lover. Professional honour keeps Mr Blythe silent, and Lily never learns the aspersion cast npon her fair fame by her husband. The young wife, carelesß of Sir Robert's money, wants to proclaim her marriage from tbe housetops; but Lumsden over persu tdes her again and again to say nothing, and, even when a baby comes, circumstances and the loneliness of Dalrugas combine to keep the secret. Suddenly one day Sir Robert turns up at the lodge unexpectedly, and Lily joyfully reflects th truth must now out. But Ronald arrives in time to kidnap the child regardless of the mother, who is taken very ill in consequence. By this time she sees her husband in his true light, and when later he pretends their child is dead great bitternesß grows up in her heart against him. But at last Sir Robert falls ill and dies suspecting nothing, and Ronald triumphantly proclaims himself at the funeral tbe husband of the heiress, and generally scandalises the county. The baby 3omes back, but Lily refuses to forgive ber husband. He has dragged her through the noire to gain this money, and Bhe baa a superstitious feeling it will bring them bad luck. Lumsden scoffs, and proceeds characteristically to dismiss the old servants, through whose infidelity to Sir Robert he was enabled to court Lily. Their wrath at this black ingratitude is great. Dugal, the keeper, shakes his flat at the young man. Ronald stepßbaok.forgetf ul of his posi '.ion at tbe top of a long flight of steep stone stairs. He slips, falls, and a second or so later lies at the foot with a broken neck. One feels some such end was alone possible, as Lily and her husband could never have been happy to- i gether after what had passed between them. In her contribution to the Autonym Library Mrß Oliphant adds another to her seneß of ."Neighbours on the Green" village storieß. The scene alternates between the squire's residence or great house and the cottage of a beautiful stranger, who passes as a widow. The Squire is hopelessly in love with tbe eeducive dame, and she seems to reciprocate till a bronzed and bearded stranger turns up. I know that stranger. He figures frequently in fiction. This time, however, the situation is well handled and the close most artistic. Winter's Weekly has this month followed Sola's Journal to the limbo which eventually swallows up all such pretentious failures. Many other weeklies, lingering on precariously, are bound for the same bourne. I could count upon my fingers those iadubitably paying well. To-Day continuea to go ahead. Mr Jerome knows how to keep expenses down and circulation up. You don't find him giving £50 for half a dozen trumpery verseß with Kipling's name at the end. Mr Cust, with Mr Astor at his back may indulge in euoh expensive vagaries, but the commonplace person calmly prigs (with acknowledgments) any decent lines the poem contains. The New Budget is from an artistic and literary point of view a great success, but Mr Furniss's notions are far too extravagant to allow of either it or any other paper he has to do with paying. The amount of shareholders' coin this clever caricaturist and wretched man of business got through with the aid of Liha JoJco in a few montho was prodigious. The best chance really for the New Budget would be to give Mr Lewiß Hind supreme control, with strict orders to keep expenses down to paying point. He could and, I believe, would make it a profitable property ere long. Mr J. F. Hogan's reminiecences of his recent tour in Canada and your part of the world will be published forthwith under the title of "The Sister Dominions." Professor Jenke, of the University College, Liverpool, has written the history of the Australasian colonies from their foundation to the year 1893. The book will appear immediately as the new volume in the Cambridge Historical series, edited by Professor Prothero, of Edinburgh. Messrs Muller aud Co., of Amsterdam, announce a photo-lithographed reproduction of Abel Tasman's manuscript journal of the discovery of Auatralia, together with an English translation and historical and geographical notes by the best English and Dutch scholars on the subject. The manuscript forms about 200 pages, including 53 maps and designs. The versions hitherto published in English and Dutch have been neither accurate nor complete. The same firm have also in hand fifteen large maps of the seventeenth century, showing the various epochs in the Cartography of Australia, as understood by the Dutch cartographers. Only one hundred copies will be published, so that intending subscribers ought to ] write to Herren Frederick Muller aud Co. Amsterdam, on the subject at once. Mr Gilbert Parker is back again in London, and has brought with him his winter's work in the shape of two new novels. It is Mr Marriott Watson's luck to be a few monthß behind tha times with his contribution to Mr John's Lane's notable or notorious Keynote series. If "At The Corner " had appeared simultaneously with " George Egerton's " firßt volume it might, like that great work, be now in a tenth edition. Unquestionably such powerful though sordid and ghastly studies of sexmania as the New Zealand novelist's titletale and " The House of Shame" are, from a puiely artistic standpoint, far abler, far I more thrilling and far better written than anything in " Discords." But, unfortunately for Mr Watson, we are just at present in the first fierce spasm of a. strong revulsion of publio taste and feeling. Certain recent literary productions stank so abominably that even the most tolerant began to exhibit disgust. Then "Tho Philistine" spoke out, prodding the reading public's conscience with considerable effect. And finally came the unmasking of Oscar Wilde. It doesn't do now to say you musn't judge a man by his books. "What about Oscar?" ia the reply. So we are all very virtuous, and very determined to sit on the sex- maniac school, "Cruel only to be kind," &o. This accounts for the manner in which Mr Watson's book has been receivejl in certain quarters, and for the severity of the reviewers' judgment. I hope myself _ it may discourage him from again following the same track. Apart from moral considerations, tales dealing with nothing save the varieties and subtleties of lawless passion begin to bore one unspeakably.