Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-12-01

Exploits or Bogus Literary Fell
lows in This Direction.

u0haQn NeWs.l
Among the accomplishments Of
Vivian Grey was that Of forging au-
t~ographs. He would decorate a lady's
album with the signatures ofSir Wal
ter Scott and Lord Byron, and throw
in that Of Mr.. Disraeli. By such arts,
and by his knowledge Of the recipe for
catching the aroma Of green tea,
young Mr.. Grey won the hearts Of the
fair, and Of our country 5 arlstocracy
By precisely the same arts NJ. Vrain
Lucas got 10000 francs, or, in round
numbers, about 10000, out Of NJ.
Michel Chasles, not many years ago.
1t will be remembered that u. Chasles
purchased from NJ. Lucas a collection
of~autograph letters by Rabelais, Pas
sal and orher famous authers. or
course all these, if real, would have
been Of the highest value. The auto
graphs Of the great French writers are
very rare. NJ. Lucas has Just got three
months Imprisonment for presenting
himself without authority in Paris
On the whole, then, it may be doubted
whether he has put his acknowledged
talents to the bess employment The
signature Of many a mere Philistine
Of a merchant or banker could be
counterfsited With more lucrative re-
suit than that Of Montaiune or Cor
nellie. Thelisk Of detection, too. il
not much greater. The history Of
literary %tGrgeries is almost inexhaus-
tible. O0omacsitgs was an early
practitioner, and tempered vith the
text Of oracies. Solon, TOO, is expect
ed Of haying interpreted, for political
purposes some lines in the Hliad. That
first edition Of Hesiod's works which
Pausanias saw at Ascra, inscribed on
tablets Of lead, was it genuine or a
forgery2 When the rival dynasties Of
Alexandria aud Of Selucia began emu
lousy to collect rare books, it is re-
ported that the Greeks freely forged
early copies of Homer, Hesiod and
the dramatiste. Indeed, Ma Paley's
HOmerie theory, if we have succeeded
in understanding it, is that
our Homer Is a literary
swindle. When Leeantius was
eager to purchase an Odyssey that
came into the market, and seemed to
be as old as Homers time, he was, ON
this theory. no more than the credu.
lous Michael Chasles Of his period.
As to the later forgeries of the Greeks.
they sts not to be numbered. The
letters Of Plato, the letters Of Pba-
laris, many Of the later oracles. the
Orphic verses, the epistle in which
Agbarus describes our Lord, the
works Of Dionysius, the Areopegite-
all these and a hundred others we owe
to the MM Vrain Lucas of antiquity.
But we need not 80 so far as to be-
llevs, with a recent critic, that the
learned POgeio was the author of the
Annals Of Tocitus." The French
have not been far behind the eogginq
Greeks in literary forgories. Even
the acute Pixerecourt, we believe.
had acquired two Ms. letters of Marie
Antoinette so exactly similar that
he had to shut bis eyes, shuttle the
pair, and burn one a trandom, thereby
securing the uniQueness Of the other.
Poor M. Soieviol, who bought thea
trical portraits and autographs, was
trightfully swindled. Some rogue got
hold of him and sold him at intervals
contemporary sketches and letters ol
all the famed old comedians-Moliere
ia Grange, Hardy Mont1eury. and
the rest. NJ. Soloviol published 4
history Of Moliere's troupe, with en-.
cravings from these designs. which
can only be accepted by true believer,
and in the spirit Of faith. One can
not resist a lingering suspicion thai
NJ. Arsens Houssaye's singular elch.
ings, after previously unpublished por-
traits Of Molieres actresses, camef0la
some unholy modern mandatory.
Not, Of course, that NJ. Houssaye
himself would play such & trick on
the public, but is it impossible that
some one played a trick on NJ. Hous-
saye2 The poems Of Clotilde lie Sur
vile are another example of French
ingenuity; as were the verses pro-