The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1867-11-24
NOTES ON NEW PUBLICATIONS.


Nu1ES YIN NEW 1V0AALA4 A0Ncs
->-~>-e->~-~~~~~~>~~-~--~~
Worse Than Topper.
TIE SKxTos's TALE AND OTHER P0Exs. BY
Theodore Tilton. Sheldon h Co. 1867.
There Is something in tho world worse than Topper
Upper so broadly. openly, evidently without salt that
he might have bsen the very captain Of tho Ship Of
Fools; but he Is honestly what he 10 He makes no
DISCUSSES. He does not pork himself up 10 literary
prettiness and ge~gaws and try 70 pass for one Who
has drank champagne with the wits On the contrary,
he brays forth his absolute folly with unctuous confess
son a. though h. had no other fear than that people
should mistake him for a man Of sense.
~ 'nis there Is what 10 called literary conscience
inere 10 Kind Of virtue We are enabled 10 take the
man AZ ms true value and enjoy him as tho type OF
duness II IN no other way He can bs trusted 70 b
always dali
II 10 therefore, great deal worse than this 10 be
upper and not Upper; to DO Upper and Triton too
TO be quite dull, TO live in the same Intellectual
vacuy, 10 pass the round OF days and nights equally
void Of thought worth communicating even by the
deaf and dumb alphabet and wooden fingers; and vet
to have perception Of certain of the conventiouaes
Of the world Of 10 be able admire certain Of the
minor beauties Of literature and TO dress one's
bald stupidity into spigams and verscles II an ass
should attempt to sing ike . canary.
Here 10 Iilton with tho sTals or Sextono why il
should be the tale Of sexton and why the sexton
should tell IL cannot see. II might have been tho
coalheaver's story tho boot and shoe makers story
repairing neatly done) with equal propriety Perhaps
it 10 that being much about churches and seeing what
poor, helpless mortals the sections usually are Tlson
thought that the safest sort OF person on whom to put
his dulnesa
Then, again, why should the sexton tell II. II has
been told at least eighty times before this and why
should one be kept from his grave-dggng 10 20 over
again. Il seems that fellow loved girl and married
her, and her father dishkng the match locked her M
She escaped and joined her husband The father never
knew who let her out Eventually the husband and
wife both died. This il the sexton's story Imagine
II told in 20 much bare prose- reelcd on and cut into
lines Of given length to look like poetry and you have
the whole magnificent achievement.
We sincerely hope that the sections will NOT take this
80 quietly Is lton thought they would Shall the rspu.
ation Of respectable portion Of tho community be thus
trled with Justice. forbid III We are sure that II any
man holding the position Of . sexton told this story
he has not enough Imagination to sweep out church,
and thus 10 seen what harm the story may do 70 the
craft The sections have fair cause OF action and
should defend the dignity Of their calling.
Allan Grants Love In Letters.
avery one likes TO read love ettcrs writes Mrs. Teresa
Yelveron, Who II the wide circulation Of her own lovo
thority Allan Grant, has acted upon this theory ana
collected together the love letters OF fty cslebrities
volume is published BY the Csrleons, with appropriate
ali these spstlss can be called love letters for
half dozen OF them are from to men, and one OF
Chas lambs playful quaint and graceful letters to his
friend hoxon seems 20 have found It's way in by
dent But most OF them bear some relation 70 love or
love makng-some complete expositions OF that
mystic craft Ninon do l. Enclos, for instance whom
most celebrated Of evenseensn Century 1' ooum..sss
goes into full analysis Of tho tender pas
sion, and explains 70 her hopeful pupil the
amour With elegance and success and how 70 obtain
the greatest possible .amussment' without commitsng
niaaing with - beautiful Countess, widow" and q
he - but "a novice In galautry the famous couresan
she nsass Of the art e .sa
Mr. Allan Grant takes to inform us with comrIets
success" careful study Of the witty, easy vrtued
Ninons directions viii doubtless as the compiler
claims in his prefsce 70 give Ito those in lies green
spring opportunity Of acquiring from the experience
q Others some knowledge Of tho pleasant pursuit Of
To ths end the unfolding Of the selfish ssnuality
Heoss. the ASoess viii also contribute Nor should
one overlook the love history Of Julie dc Espnasse
beauty than for virtue" and Of whom the compiler
says that she had many other lovers besides the one
whom the letters he quotes addressed and was in
fact 1.-THE most famous among modern Aspasian and
Phrynesthe most celebrated trdriGG that Paris pos
sssssd 'Enviabls distinction sure passport into the
mat q Pssrsrch in purity and that Of Tssso IL
KING Henry the Eighth, Queen Elizabeth Lord Nelson
vrtuous people who shine in the collection have fallen
into select company; but even they must take back
necessity Of love- and sxhorts her willing proos 70
put away romantic notions' and 70 make use Of the
passion IN the way she recommends a. an amusement,
II there any growing taste for compilations such a
this ws are noticing, IL ID mot healthy sign Of the
siderable moral responsibility The fauIt with mot OF
oar leading publishing houses 10 that they are always
what they DO publish 10 England The name Of "Hur
ray Smith, Eldsrn or .sBlackwoodo on the title
page Of new book Is generally |. guarantee Of solid
pointed narrative Here the imprnts Of "Ticknors'
"Harpsrs" and "Caretonsn give such solid sssur-
aucs
Paper Novels.
Tho paper covered novels in their chocolate colored
wrappers. have become instituon They are psnti-
full cheap and trashy. Specimen bricks from four New
York publishing houses lie before us-Hsrpsrs', Daw-
ley. Brady and Dooady. Two are reprints from tho
English, one Is translation from the French and one
70 original These English rsprins must DO tolerated
long ~ American authors refrain from writing Ameri-
can publishers from purchasing American siories Az
but a. mean, half disguised stsaings they arc
mean and contemplate. The Harpen are the
mSisfsrous serials are nsd With EnsI.n tsss
vanished and vamped up 10 look like the native article
Bus High and Low, medley Of stories published BY
Dawiey. comes up 70 anything the Harpes have ever
perpetrated. Young bloods starr Up town In Finn
avenue stages and pull up az Lady Blanks reception in
Eaton square, whore they scatter sovsrcigns among
nupksyA Wall street seems somehow 70 lead out OF
Cheapsde and all the people who ~ for tho lussra
%oss EnSS q costume. ana wear shs mos. ..So
ratsly English side whisks1 There 10 unfortunate
young man with . black mustache, Who undertakes
railroad journey from New YORK 70 Philadelphia, and
TOe b arrestsd 10 the coffee room Of English Inn
'sNo Mans Friend,n published BY Harpers D . rather
cleverly written story BY y. W. Robinson, who has pre-
vously given one or Two fairly successful novels
The hero starts out ~ 40 mans frend and st.smpts
very indsrsntly 70 square his conduct BY that line Of
action He nduges In many eccentrlcities with stl
more eccentric young lady, whom he finally maniss az
Lucia Dsrs, 81 ,TIIia' (xn saraA A. Dorsey, is
story o. American HE Psss3s.y s9ld en4 aststicsly
nct b ciassed among loyal literature. We
and brightest inisllects inevitably associated,
- - page 100. with warm. sympathy for The South.