The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-02-06
LITERARY CHIT.CHAT.

TIE LATE LOUIS NAPOLEON had an ambition
which was never realized, to shine In literature.
His Hstoire de Jules Cesar" Is very dry in style.
It's historical value is OF the smallest, and after
running its publishers, the work has fallen into
total obscurity. At an earlier period Napoleon
was equally ambitious to try his hand at journal
ism, and contributed political articles to the press
which were entirely forgotten in twenty-iour
hours.
WIEN CHARLES DICKENS first saw Venice he thus
wrote to his friend Forster, with characteristic
thusiasm:-
Nothing in the world that you ever heard Of
Venice is equal to the magnificent and stupend0us
reality. The widest visions Of the Arabian Nights
nothing to the piazzas OF ST. Mark and the first
impression OF the inside of the church. The g0r-
geous and wonderful reality Of Venice is beyond
the fancy Of the widest dreamer. Opium couldn't
build such place; enchantmcnt couldn't shadow
it forth IN vision. never saw the thing before
that should be afraid to describe. But to tell
what Venice is feel to be an impossibility.
The Tau Mai Gazette has been criticising at
great length and in series Of articles Mr.. John
Stuart Mil and his opinions. 1t says English young
women have derived from his writings an enlignt-
ened notion that the "careerr of the Madonna is
too limited one, and that modern political
economy can provide them with much more lucra-
tive occupation than nursing the baby.
In MISS AMELIA EDWARDS new story, "1n the
Days OF My YOUTH" she writes the lfe Of student
OF the QUARTER Latin, In Paris or course Miss Id
wards who is an Englishwoman OF character, has
no personal knowledge of what she writes. But
she has read up carefully in Beranger, Balzac and
De Musset STILL she has largely fulfilled Horace
walpoles words and spent her time in making
"true copies Of original things that never existed"
TWENTY THOUSAND COPIES OF cheap edition Of
Dr. Channings works have been sold by the Amer
lean Unitarian Association since 1870.
ft,r-
English Text Society" is the most successful. It
was organized in 1864, for the reprinting of rare
early English books in prose and poetry, and has
published sixtytwo volumes up to 1878. 1t Is sup
ported by subscriptions at one guinea per annum,
each subscriber being entitled to receive all the
issues OF the year. The publications for 1886 and
1866 are already out OF print but 1t is proposed To
reprint them II new subscribers enough are found.
The feature OF the texts is their strict literal del
ity. reproducing the exact photography Of the Old
English originals, whether Ms. or printed. Among
the notable books thus far produced from the thir-
teenth to the sixteenth century are Sir David
Lyndesay's works, arthur" "Lancelot OF the
Lake, "Piers the Plowman," 'Merlin," "Levin's
Vocabulary "The Knight de la Tour Landry"
''Havelok the Dane" "Queen Elizabeth's vocabu-
larry" 'Chaucer's Boethius' and "Caxton's Book Of
Curtesye."
1.-THE LIFE OF LOUISE LATEAU- has been trans
lated from the French Of DR.. Lefbova by J. L. Shep-
pard and published by the Protectory Publishing
House. II is an interesting narrative of the stip.
mata and ecstaces OF this extraordinary woman.
and cannot fail to be Of interest TO the lovers oi
mysterious and miraculous manifestations and IA
the curious generally.
THE EMINENT DUTCH POET, DR.. Hacke Won Myn.
den, who made reputation by his translation a
Dante's works. died recently at the Hague,