New-York tribune., 1873-05-24
BRITISH LITERATURE.
so,1r prCENr PUBLICATIONS.

DICKENS
,~oox THE REeuIAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
LONDON, May 2-0f the May Day number OF
~Fors avigerat nothing TO say that 1t is readable,
since Mr. Rusin thought proper to write treatise on
the Greek aorst (which he would be quite competent to
ao) he woud find to make the Greek aorist inter
estins TO the women and laborers whom he addressed
but in this number he undertakes TO answer grave
Suestion-why prices are so high and that question
which becoming very vital TO most people In this coun
try long since heard of lady, rich, titled, and
leader fashion, who been reducing her establish
cutting of foOtman here pair OF horses thei
giving many dinners and parties less than USUAL
and avowing that she could longer afford 10 hVe vi
the old scale. hardly know article OF necessity vi
luxury winch has advanced in price WITHIN the aS'
six months, and most OF them have advanced "i'ni"
ihe last three and many two or three advances
have been made, and moro are promised IL you go o
one OF the great firms which issue priced catalogues OF
their gOods-Often Dig as monthly magaIihe-you
md narrow slip pasted the cover or uue-page hor
ing You that Messrs. A. b. owing 10 the recent rise III
wages and in the prices Of all articles used In tne
manufacture have with great regret, been obliged 10
ndvance slightly all the prices in the catalogue say
from 10 to 25 per cent And the catalogue seH ooupt
ess represenis an advance from some other point MI
Ruskn quotes correspondent who writes TO MN shat
her weekly bills are double what they used TO be- yet
that every servant asks higher wages each time she
engages one This 1t is which leads Mr. Ruskn to
declare that be must explain the meaning o IL al once
and his explanation is this;
Te weekly bills are double because the greater part
OF the labor OF the people OF Eogland is spent unpro
ducuvey that is to say In producing IRON plates IRON
floating about internal orrcsses standing still Internal
mischevOus locOmotOn, internal lawsuits IN
ferna parliamentary elOcuton, internal beer and M
tCrnal Cazetes, magazines statues ana pictures C1-
the labor spent ia producing tnese internal art-
ces annually aud put against It the labor spent in pro-
ducng food! The only wonder is that the weekly blls
are tenfod instead of double. For this poor house
Wife, mind yOu cannot feed her children with any one,
or any quantity OF these Internal articles. Children can
only be fed with divine articles Their mother can IN
deed, get TO London cheap, but she has no business
there; she can buy all the mornings news for
see Gustsve Dores pictures and had better tho
devlD for shilling; she can be carried through any
quantity of filthy streets on tramway for tnreepence
hut It much her life worth 10 walk IN Them OF
as her modestys worth to look into print snop IN
them Nay let her have but to 20 on foot quarter OF
mile the West End, she dares not take her purse III
her pocket let her little dog follow her T1ese are
her privileges and facilities, in the capital OF evIuZa-
ton But Of these will bring meat or flour into her
own village Far tho contrary Ine sheep anu @ GOrn
which the fields OF her village produce are carried away
from 20 feed the makers OF Armstrong guns Ahu er
weekly bills are double"
Perhaps the not very good, but Of the fact
which 1t attempts for there is unhappy, no
doubt whatever That the state Of society resulting
from high prices helping 10 produce them does not
please Mr. Ruskn, may be gathered from another pas
rage After Characteristic onslaught upon the houses
OF which the London suburbs are now composed Mr..
Ruskin proceeds:
Of those houses probably not the th part are possessed
OF one common manly or womanly skill, kno@ledge, OF
means OF happiness The men indeed write. and
accounts aud 20 70 town every day to get their y
ing by dong SO tine women and children can perhaps
read storybOOks, dance IN vulgar manner, and play
the piano with dull dexterities for exhibition; but
not a member of the whole family can in general, c)ok
sweep, knock in nail drive . stake or spin thread.
Tney still less capable OF 1uer work. Ihey know
nothing pantnc sculpture architecture OF science
inaccuraey much or less account TO them
for Mr. Peppers ghost, aud make them dsDeeye IN the
existence Of any other ghost but that particularly the
week days and Good Words on SUNDAYS. and are
entirely Ignorant OF al the standard literature DeIOns
ing 10 their own country or 10 any Otner Tney never
think OF taking walk and, the roads fer slx miles
round them Oelng ankle deep in mud and hlnts, tney
could not il they would THey cannot ENJOY their gar
dens for they have neither sense strength enough
u work III them Tue women ana glTiS nave no pleas
but IN calling ON each other III lalse haiI cheap
dresses Of gaudy stufs machine made and highheeled
boots OF Wuich tue pattern was set 20 tnein "
prostitutes OF the lowest order: the men nave no lac
uy, beyond that OF cheating in business no pleasures
but IN smoking or eating ana no IDEAS nr any eapaCy
OF forming IDEAS OF anything at mas ye1 Oeen uohe ol
great or seen OF good, IN this world
The classes above depicted not described as excep
tonal on the contrary, that is the typical condition
OF fvesixhs least, of the rising middle classes
about London" They DO not live. but dodgers IN
houses which not houses but "damp shells OF
brick" and which their own, but packing
cases in which they temporarily stored, for bad
USE or not even that but evans full mOnkeys that
have lost OF their legs )" respecting whom, we
are further told "The abOrers in Regents Park-wth
Mr.. Darwn's pardon-are OF another species, less
passive aud Infinitely witder Here, behold, you
have group Of gegarious creatures that cannot climb
and entirely initiative, not the apes, occasionally
for the humOr IT, but all their lives longs che builders
trying to build as Christians did though swnd
ling every brick they lay and tho dodgers TO 1--we
like the Duke OF Dcyonshire on the salaries of railroad
clerks!" There is for nigh prices, though not
given as such.
It's pleasant learn from note at the end Of this
number that the circulation OF the "Fors increases
Foco So hmm Ike
Ruskn aud 70 read him. and believe that the general
influence OF what he writes healthlu and anmating,
be his mistakes what they may. Not a number OF 1t
which does not rouse the anger Of some believer IN
shams which, OF itself service 10 those who do not
The newspapers cOatrve quarrel with him. also, moro
or less, and more than one Of them has advised Mr.
Ruskin to stop writing; ungratefuly forgetting how
many paragraphs he supplies them material for daro
not suggest that Mr.. Ruskn is himself becoming IN
sense, a journalist. lie would forgive anybody
who said that There difficulty in getting copies OF
the FOrs, though the announces that they are
sold only by Mr.. e. Allen, Heahheld Cottage, Keston,
Kent have not the least idea where Heatiheld Cot
tags "a, but Mr. g. Allen does NOT refuse 10 sell 10 the
trade aud my bookseller supplies me with them as resu
book likely 10 be of much interest 10 students OF
natural science is The Cruise OF IL NJ > Curacao
the South Sea Islands IN 1867 BY julius Brenck
lev N. A., f. r. g. s. Imp. syO, pp. 457. Qongmans)
In these days OF cheap DoOkInaklng, TINS volume Is
worth notice for It's GOOD Workmanship, Delhg wen
printed fairy-CoOd paper Uhough without pretense
20 art-tYpOgraphy), and Illustrated very cOpOusy win
wood engravinRs and chrOmOlthOgraphs or Kind su-
peuOr 10 the should be glad to set THIS down
70 credit OF the publishers but am told that the
book was manufactured at the authors expense,
aud is not expected 20 "pay" Mr.. Brenckley
enthusiastic amateur, an explorer, ana q man
O scientific culture, who was invited by the Commodore
IN command Of the steam irgate Curacao 70 accompany
him cruise that vessel was about making In the
archipelagoes OF the Western Pacific. A collection OF
natural and artificial objects and this book were the re-
suits. Part OF the collection IS in the British Museum
Tie book was labor OF love aud patience aud it has
melancholy interest from the fact that Its author died
few weeks before its appearance lie may be reInem-
bered In America, where he Travelled mucn, spending
some months among the Indians exploring the Pacific
coast and making what Is described a. a remarKaDle
and adventurous Journey IN 1885 from san Francisco 70