The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-01-11
Literary Gossip.
The Masque of Poets and Other Books
Printed and in Press.

II
| thrs, series at Harper & Brothers will be
Hume, by Professor Huxley 1t is promised
| for next week.
A second edition of o. B. Frothinaham's
Life Of Gerirt Smith, book which attracted
wide attention year ago, is announced as
forthcoming at G. P. Putnam's Sons
Bayard Taylor when hs died had only begun
bis Life Of Goethe. His plan was tina. IL
should comprise three volumes. aud bss:dss q
biography of Goethe he intended to make il
kind OF literary history of Germany during
the eighteenth century. He had made copous
notes of the work, bat they will not prove iu-
telligible, perhaps to anyone else.
Three books on financial subjects are in
press at G. 2. Putnam'5 Sons Secretary
Schurz writes one Of them-The Currency Of
the Country-Which is No. II in ths s.ries of
Economic Monographs. Judgs ROBBERS w.
Hughes, of Vitginis, uuder the title, The
Currency Question, argues against inf ssionis,s
and the supporters of State backs aud local
money. No IL of the Economic Moeogoaphs is
by Nj. L. Scud Ter, who writes on National
Banking.
Mendelssohh's letters to Madome Mo.chel.s,
heretofore unpublished, will b. printed in
Harper's Monthly for February. They hsy.
been edited and translated by Madame Nos.
chelss herself, who is still living in London.
and are said to give very interesting glmpses of
the domestic life aud of the friendship of the
great composer. In one of the letters he in
closed song, which, by SOME iuadvertence,
has never been published until now, The
words are By Heiue, the title being I'm Kahn.
The letter which accompanies the song has this
allusion to ii: "rhough don't know hether
you still care for me or my songs, yet l have
put this one in from old habit, whether you
sing it or not, but wish you would"
"When William Black writes a novel he
seizes hold of two young people who haven't
the slightest sy ympashy with each other, gets
them in love, tortures them mex press.bly for
few mouths, and then browns them as merci-
lessly as small boy ties kitten to a brick and
dips il ia the wash-tub. off hand Criuc.
1t is promised that the Tile Club 10 the next
Scrbner's will be the fnest illustrated paper
ever published 10 magazine.
The International Review for January coma,
to as with the announcement that hencefor,h
1t will be Issued monthly that each monthly
number Will contain nearly as many pages 40
the bi-monthly numbers contained; shat the
annual snb,cription price will rsuain AZ $500,
and the prics for sioge numbers will be re-
duced TO so cents. The further announcement,
is also made that with the Msreh numher the
editorship will be assumed by Me-. John T.
Morse, Jr., author of the "Life of Alexander
Hamilsen," "Famous Trials," etc., Mr.. Henry
Cabot Lodge, formerly Editor Of the North
American Revisw, ard author of The Life of
George Cabot Mr.. Henry Barr Barnes the
present editor, will retain bis connection with
the Review as, more especially, business editor
ane msnsger
Some of the friends of the late Bayard Tay-
lor think of getting mp memoirs OF the dead
author, with a view both to doing full justice
to his memory and to beneftiDg his widow
and daughter, who are, it is feared, left in
rather straightened circumstances. Nearly all
of them-and they were many-hsve had long
and very interesting private letters from him,
while at home and abroad, on literature, art,
society, national tiajts and prominent men aud
women. These are said to bs much superior
to any of his public correspondence, because
they have greater freedom, freshness and
fervor. He had been in the habit of corre-
spending for years with the most noted littera-
teurs 10 Great Britain, France, Italy and Ger
many, and had in his collection auy number of
delightful letters from such men as Tennysou,
Browning, Lewes. Swinburne, Charles Reade,
Wilkie Oollins, Dickens, Renan, Tame, Cher
buliez, Hugo, Auerbacb, Spiehageu, Hack
lander, Humboldt, Manzoni, Torgeusff and
many others. These are on great variety of
topics, and would bs an invaluable addition to
the proposed memoire, which, with in numera-
BILE particulars or Taylor's strictly private life,
ought certainly to make verS interesting work:
Bayard Taylo intimates say that he showed
with and to them degree Of geniality and
winningness, and 3 certain charm of disposition
and manner, not to ba found ia any Of bis
books.-New York Times.
novelty in magazine liieratars is au-
nounced for the Midwinter Scribner-a paper
on Aerial Navigation, by the poet Stsdman,
who confesses this to be his hobby, aud does
not hesitate to Print ssnguine conviction that
we are on the eve Of solution of the problem
of air travel. Mr.. Stedman also reprints some
designs made by him years ago to Illustrate his
own theories, which, by the way, have already
received the commendation of an eminent en-
gineer and expert Apart from the writer's
own speculations which are said tD be very
plausible, the article will have value as a rec
ord of what has actually been accomplished or
proved futile in this line of scientific exper-.
ment. .sfH
IA Masque Of Poets,'' says the New York
Tribune, recently published 10 Boston by
Messrs. Roberts Brothers, has given rise to sew
eral curious errors of Judgment with regard to
the authorship of different poems. We learn
from uuquestionable authority that the lines
entitled Qaestion and No Ans wer, universally
ascribed to DR.. o. w. Holmes, were in fact
written by Lord Houghton; that One Hundred
aud One, which has been set down as the pro-
duction OF r. W. Emerson, was written by
Miss H. w. Preston; that e c. Stedman is the
author of Provencal Lovers aud not Mr. Ssod-
dard or Miss Preston, as stated By the news
papers. 1t may also be mentioned that Trans
fguration was writtsn By Miss Alcoit; Pill.
grims by tho late 81. d. Thoresu; Red Tape,
and My Heart, Cannot Still Il, by James
Russell Lowell; and A Lovers Test by Bayard
Taylor. Mr.. G. H Boxer is the author of a
Song before Singing, which has also been
fatherei upon Tennyson aud Longfellow; the
ballad of Husband aud Wife is by Miss Rosseit;
and Horizon and A Womaa's Death Wound
by 81. II. w. e. Charming writes the Chill
dren's Song; William AlliDgham writes Amy
Margaret. Aubrey de We're is the author of
ED, A. B. Acott Of Eumenides, and Mrs.
Aunlb ElcluS OIL 1ueuCrltUs, WHICH naS Oeed
claimed, as matter of course, for Mr.. Sted-
mar The Unseen Preacher is by Miss E. S.
Phelps, October Sunday by John Weiss, Bene-
dcun Domino by Susan Coolidge. attributed
also by the riddle guessers, TO III. III My
Lady's Voice by r. r. Bowker, Through a
Window Pane by j. j. Piatt, Awakening by
Mrs. Celia Thaxter, and The Marshes # Glynn
by Sidney Lauier." The Boston Transcript
adds: A great many additional ''errors Of
judgment might be cited: A Fallen House,
really written By Louise Chandler houltou.
has been sscribed to Dante Rossetti. A
Mood of Cleopatra, by Edgar FAwcett. has
been ascribed to Robert Buchanan, II. b. Stod-
dard and I. B. Aldrich. The Buuch of Wild
Flowers, written by the author of Dsirdre has
been ascribed to Jean Ingelow and Philip
Boutke Marston. Guy Veraon, which a dis
tinRuished poet compares favorably with By
rol's Dop Juso, has been ascribed to John G.
SAKE. rhe Search, ascribed to L. b Aldrich,
is By James T. Fields. There are also many
contributors to the volume who have not bees
mentioned in connection with the authorship.
snch as Margaret j. Preston, II. w. Glider,
g. p Lathrop, III. Ii. Boyesen, viii Wsllsce
Harney, Nora Perry, Elizabeth Akers Allen,
John j. Pistt, Mary MsDes Dodge, r. E. Fran
cillon, Tieo. MARI ais, "Vioet Fame"
Raroes g. hava haono nnhl;oa