The New York herald., 1870-02-16
TERATURE.

NcvACW ana CRITICISM OF Now Books.
UT BEoApwAY AND Irs SiausL Lie Story.
by Eleanor Kirk. New YORK: CARTON, publisher.
The author OF this WORK is known among q certain
hterary" Class In this city the writer OF numer-
Gus magazine articles touching the quests Of wo-
mans wroaaa. up Broadway' Is, so far as we are
aware, the nrst lengthy WORK from her pen, and we
could wsf for the sake Of truo womanhood, tnat II
WAS anything else than what 1t is. We are told
that IL 10 true story. 1t narrates the experiences
OF the author with one OF that wretcned class CT
women known might walkers,n whom Mrs.
Kirk discovers by means or her beggar child and
whom she rescues from degradation. visits her De-
trayer, ana learns from him that he sti cherisles
an ardent affection for the fallen woman and his
illcgitinatc child. TIE wind up - that Mr. Blank
marres Mary (snch Is her nlinc), aud the PAIR are
now enjoying earthly felicity.
Such, In brief, Is up Broadway or rather such
Is the "5tory.n Had 1t rested with The marriage OF
Mary we should positively have gwen 1t no no tic 0
whatever. Az literary production It cannot be
commented. rho style ls that OF the very trashy
sensational American and English novel. Mrs. Kirk
writes with contemptaous disregard of the propris-
tics OF the English language. In endeavorng to
depict low lie she utterly laiia II she did nor
assure US tDat hers "a true storyn we should
unnesitatingIy refuse 10 belicvo that cergymen
moving ~ the highest society visit low dens on Null
berry street FOR Immoral purposes. Many OF them
probably do 20 astray, but they generally possess
sufficient intelligence to AVOID such LOCALITY as
Mary's howell was situated In. Wealthy men ana
men VINO hold good social positions do not usually
pursue might walkersn whose terrible avocaton
Is almost soely piled, rs any ponce report will
snow, and as vSnous wosks tlat we have
ignorant ana depravei class Oi men, or no social
standing ana OF small means wnerewitn To crafty
their BRUSH appetses. Furthermore, however
iSQ N Nra
DO not think tnat little girls are given 10 Lhloso-
phizinH, even under ne most agyravatihg circum-
stances, as the daughter OF Mary Ii made ~ pulOso-
phiLe IN this book Ana wnen Mrs. KIRK enters into
"high life" she is equally unlortuna.e Broad street
DroAers are not necessarily renneu IN their manners;
we ear indeed that some OF them are actually coarse,
illiterate persons, aud that very many are gwen 20
the use OF slang phrases when ION Inc street"
BUT MRS. XIX describes gentleman WHO, III u dla-
losue win her, speaks OF Erie ~ Ol regular BEN
der" aud promises 10 be with her 'ln Jliy." He
Also desires 10 know what poor unfortunate In "a
tight place, and cOniesses that Lre has treated him
uncommony Wol-"thanks TO bright eye to the
wildward.u We deeply regret that tnis broker did
not explain whether lt was absolutely necc ,sary for
bright eyes 10 Do directed windwArd II mortal de-
sired To be .uncoinmonly welp' treated. Az Tor IA
regular bendero "a JIify' and "a tight place,u we
have neard tucse phrases used among men, but we
think they are seldom, II ever addressed ny q gen-
enlan 10 lady save In Jest between lntimates.
We think that we have sunicienty SHOWN "Up
Broadway TO be utterly unworthy OF serious con-
sideration as literary production. There is how
ever, Sequel" winch explains the object with
whcn the story was written, or pernclous Char
actcr that the Dook is Invested with an Importance
IL could not Otherwise have possessed. The moral
we are asked deduce from the trashy story il to
be found IN our stringent marriage laws. Mrs. Kirk
believes IN 'atinlties.n Albers u. Hchards0n, she
fouly murdeIed.n lie was as mucn O martyr as
Lincoln. She desires ITO do away, as far as possl-
BILE, with the old established idea tnaL marriage by
priest or minister Is God-ordaned rte.n IL IN her
opinion that 1.-The day that prostitution In so-called
married llle Is abandoned, that day Will SHOW
fewer ~ brazen females on our streets and fewer
adalterers.' In contracting matrimonial alliances
there IL not sufficient consideration gwen 10
illness % and SYMPATHY" ' suossaaeas ' to n,sr. ssr
rlage, II man anu woman find. latter mu.
tual ana conscientious effort, that they are unable
" keep that tine miiriage) vow; tnRt instead OF
attracting they repei eaCa other more and more
the longer they i've to4etner u IL dicult ior any
should remain in oondaae.n As regards the form c
ing OF second Tie, 1.-THE guarantee against
second mistake must he with the indiyiau-
ais tuemsolves.o Mis-. XIX writes quite lippantly
ABOUT 'che benefits OF experiencen in contracting
tnis new alliance but she does not tell wnat the
woman u to 40 II u proves u mistake Shall sne
form third, fourth, a Dftil ana on 70 the end
or the chapterf We should Judge this 70 be her idea
Tor she tells us directly after that All the business
anteed; everything must be tried for, and all pro-
testantism IS but sIipplng or OF the guaranteed
noose."
We havo selected the quotations given in the
foregoing paragraph haphazard from the book
Can society conceive any doctrine, short of
Let us Imagine tnis book placed In the
hands OF young girls aud their IDEAS or the
married state lOrmed upon the theories mere pro-
mugated. 10 It NOS disgraceful that y publisner
OF standing and respectabliity should be found Will
ing to AID Ia the dissemination Of principle that
aims at the destruction Of the most sacred pillar OF
our social isbricY We can hardly decide whether
1t Is more damnabe to write or to publish such
narratives ~ that before as. A. few years
ago "Up Broadway and Its "Sequoiu could have
appeared from no other press than that OF the ndi
viduA VINO published tue Ddv's DDt,ags OF those
times Unfortunately we md the press Of the pres
ent day advocating this doctrine OF freedom Ia
marriage gravely disclosing the question OF
"amqlresn and defending the act OF woman Ia
Deserving her husband ior another man whose liber-
uno arts had deadened her 70 duty to shame, 10 vr
tue. And is solely because tho subject has attained
80 much prominence that We notice this BOOK IN
the HERALD. We can no longer ignore or treat 1t
contem ptuously. AS In Rome, Athens, Sparta and
almost every other part OF the pagan world ~ tha
past 1t seems destined TO convulse Christian clvui-
xation In the future 1t Is therefore, our daty 70
AID the ttrtu0us In repessing 1t and to recommend
that every moral parent place WORKS advocating the
pernicious doctrine upon his or her tate, e1p,lr'-
DatoTtous Certainly while thcfo ~ everything in
up Broadway" TO disgust we can Dad Eothlnx In
1t that ID instructive or entertaining 10
m oar nj nrtanr mir