New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-02-16
BOSTON.
LITERARY NOTES.

MORNING sKy-MR HowEIIs ON RALPH KELLER
THE POETRY or THIS HuMBER-" PATIENCE
DOW" BY MARIAN DoUGIAs-wHo WRITES THE
NEW NOVEL;
IFgoM A REGULAR COMMANDMENT OF THE IhibuhEj
BOsToN, Feb. IA have been requested 10
contradict bsseless rumor started by know not whom
that Mr. Howells the present accomplished editor OF
TA< Atlantic Aonhiy intended TO resign his post with
the commencement Of new volume, IN July Ihere
no task In the world which MI Howelis prefers W DIS
present one and he has no intention OF laying ASIDE
There 10 no editor the world whom hessrs hurd "
Houghton would prefer to Nj Howels and thoy nave
no intention OF allowing him 10 take leave OF them IL
is case Of they both like" as tho girl SAYS when she
pulls her pretty lite fortuneteins mower 10 piece
with her" He lkes she likes they beth Ike"
The proofsheets OF the March Atlantic have come 10
hand. Aldrich opens the number with resh Install
ment of Prudence Palfrey," that is most Interesting
An episode OF mining experience III Montana, "hich ~
contains good enough and dramatic enough FOR bFe'
Harte Three more numbers will conclude tins tae'
and then Osgood q Co. t. make book OF ~ Ing
numbers 10 como will be by no means quiet whoever
10 led by the New England pastoral air OF the opening
10 think this tale unlike the couIee OF true love- ana
runs smooth will lie well undeoeved before he gets W
the end OF it,
Media val Naturalist, 10y j. HA. Bone isa quaint
and curious account OF remarkable poem on ha'ura
history written by one Philippe de Thaun III the I1.n
century and under the patronage Of Queen Alice. the
Fair Maid OF Brabsnt" the second wie oi King henry
the First o. England DE Jhaun was directed 10 enoouS
in single poem all the Wisdom OF the concerning
the beasts Of held and forest the iows OF inc a
and Of the deep He drew the largest P"r'
OF his materials from certain Latin ueatises IN exist
ence at time, experimenting them with his own op
seryations But one manuscript copy Of this Anglo
Norman poem has down to our tine ana tha' Ia III
the British Museum. 1t No beyond measure quaint ana
amusing have space only for one peculiarly OF 'pe
King Of Beasts, which fancy Is unknown 10 Jules
Gerard ana the other ohunters Of this sener
alton. namely, the singular attributes OF his Dushy t'
! When hungry, Leo trotted 10 convenient place,
traced out wide Enclosure by dasgS s M qn '"a
sand, leaving an opeh,ne Ttis pecnIary Of the
lions tan mark-at least we have Philippe dc Thaun's
peotnr victim walks into the charmed ineiosure the
lion rushes out closes tho entrance WIN adragkhnB
prev in true leonne fashion Is that the only use OF
The lions tail When the hunter pursues closely the
cunning beast swings its bushy appeIdage lusS aOoui
| wiping out its foot prints ~ 1t dashes onward
You might live in menageros, or speud anxious days
over natural histories, and make 40 such marvellous
discoveries set down here. Read ana you snail
know the tricks and manners Of beavers, and hyenas
and dragons and elephants. ard saamanders, aud all
creatures that lived ia fable OF out OF II. III
"Johns Trial" r. Deming gives NJ sketch almost as
good rs his Ida Ann" In the January number, ana
that high praise Life ia tine Backwoods OK CANADA
is little tedious that is in keeping with the sub
iect, or perhaps, grows out OF IT, There Is nothing
especially romantic In bad bread bad walking. O. r.
Lathrop in the briefest possible sketch, gives Us
character study which somehow impresses ns more
than "his reason" 1t IL Just stcid old farmer
| Jogging along "in market-waRon," tired ana sleepy
| and discouraged. Bat he had known sorrow HIS Only
son had been drowned, Sumner day, IN tue bright
! calm water in which he went bathing with some
friends FUN OF life and fun" The father had lived In
this boy for twenty years and then suddenly 1t all
ended All the mans purpose In life all his hope all
his expectation, we're drowned too that Summer dai
and now he Old and tired aud Just went on driving
in the s nights into town. for nothing but daily bread
As be drives away patient and sad ia Che grdy DAWN
n.y. he fingers, q strangely pathetic figure, IN your
fancy
Baddeck and that sort OF thing is always good sort
OF thing" 1t is particularly good ia this numDer, and
am happy to say that at last the travellers have got to
BaddecR. IL anybody wants 10 know where the ADO
rhymes of California" came FROM Stephen Powers
brings strong array OF evidence To prove that Heads
burg was 1.-THE approximate cite Of Chinese colony
planted IN the far past voluntarily or nyoluntaIy,
which spread into the interior, sonh east aud north
meeting earlier Tungusc migration near Mount
Shasta that IT, the southernmost Of the great water
sheds between the Columbia and the Sacramento This
would make the California indiana proper, and possibly
also the Arizonian and Mexican Aztecs' OF Chinese
origin and the Indians OF Oregon the Plains and the
Atlantic states. Tungusic."
"Mose Evans" IL continued but this number Is less
interesting than the last for, as have noticed In other
works OF his Mr.. Boxer is writer of uuequa!y dis
tributed power The present however, bids far to be
the best tale he has ever told.
The remaining prose papers are owen Browns
Escape from HarpeIs FerrY by the late Ralph Keeer.
aud brief tribute 10 Keeler memory by Mr.. Howells.
The hero Of "Vagabond Adventures had survived so
much that II almost Impossible but that he must
have escaped that last danger OF all and viii como
back, day vet, TO tell the public OF his perils.
But" says Mr. Howells:
II he is really gone- he fell overheard from that
Spanish steamer on the coast of Cuba, as is more
hkey stabbed and thrown into tue by the Span
ish officer who doubtless believed himself dangerously
compromised IN his confidence TO him, when nc found
that he was not Frenchman hut an American news
paper correspondence must this the
OF him. still is not easy To uk OF him with other than
a smiling regret, the whole cheerful tenor OF his life
prevails single fact of his He for
iune the readers of his auobi0grI phcal sketches
know great friends, but lie took hardship
and privatOn Lightly that they scarcely seemed adj
versity in their relation TO him. he espoused poverty
with such bravery that you half believed her prosperity
IN disguise.
Tie salient facts of Lis career, which follow this
tract have already been fully given in The TRIB
UNE, but the last paragraphs Of MI Howeils's little
memorial just and genial that cannot resist the
temptation to quote them;
He was not a perfect character. but ho had qualities
that in better adjustment 20 to form the highest char
acIeT good WILL kud heartedness sensityeness, and
OF Oriental submission and American amiabilIty
under the strokes of tate He had philosophy. not
but newly formulated, Of which he was fun wnen
and which he eXpounded joyously Pat your finger
the present moment and enjoy IL; IL IS the only one
you we Will haveP Ii il imaginable Of
subtle he that in his extremity 10 come miser
ably the sad Irony lurking in this creed might
ceive a instant's recognition.
Ia many ways his lie hecms to me her0cal-more
heroca than no which is apt TO be the with
and their lives and though 1t is not example, IL
is full OF lessons OF patience, perseverance, and honor
able aspiration. lie had doue everything for himself
he had made the friends who helped him; and
accomplished a good deal more than who
coed more spectacularly
Peace be 10 his most kindly spirit