New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-12-17
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

JAMES FENoRE SooPFPR Y Professor S@S pp SOC
a. Men Of LISTERS SeriesJ Housh'on' MiI-
Gin Co.
h,ograrhv Of Cooper has long been wanted.
II Aid in AL. but up 10 this time only biIef and
inaccurate biographical notIces-eNcepS MI Dry
ants memorial oratiOn--have appeared or our most
widely read author Mr. Cooper himself prepared
,his NEGLECT. On his death bed one of his last in
inucticns to his family was that they should an-
thorize no Liostaphy.' The dying request has been
,tor,,lv and scrupulouss respected, and it has long
been regretted that flal p.etl should stand In the
WY of ,usticp to tho authors memory and lame.
In preparing frs WORK Professor Lounsbury has
bpon derived of the use of certain material whlcE
would have exhibited the most lcvabIe sue VI
Coopers character il, his domestic lie. ana perhaps
have revealed more clearly his motives aud ]uue-
ments. And the deprivation has thrown great aoul-
tional labor upon the biographer, NhO mas Ia" 10
search personal recOections and Tie columns VI
hundreds of forgotten uowspaoers and other pnn!i-
cations for the story OF Coopers lite. Under the
circumstances no one but q trained scholar coulu
arrived at the satisfactory result of this vol
ume We have here a model biography. we ven
lure to believe that the accuracy Of ITS statements
will not I've challenged, its absolute impartlahty
Will not be Questioned the sense OF literary propor-
,jou in the use OF material will he appreciated by
all who ate ca nable Of Judging the critical acnmen
will he intensely ielishcd, and 10 the mass OF Ieau
ers who Gaze lttlo Tor facts or npatlaity, or NJ
crary FORM or criticism, the story OF the lie VIII
have something OF the fascination OF ore o. the au'
thor's own romauccS. For the book is chafmlheIJ
written, with . felicity ana visor OF dcAoh 'nat
are notable oven IN time when styiels conA"eiod
rs important substance, and with hunlor SUPRA
ling, Iacy and never obtruSlyc.
The novels OF Cooper read by generation
tI,t Knows nothing OF the man, or at most has
misarDrcLrnsicn Of his character created Ivy the
fading mcincry Of the controversies which occupied
his later wears. As a story-tclcr he retains Pc
reqaia! hold upon the POI ular liking. and bsfopo-
l7rity is perhaps as great in EuroTe as in America
Tho traveller TODAY sees everywhere in Germany,
italy and France in book shOps and Oh news STANDS
the novels OF Cooper exposed for sale as H. he were
q new writer Thssuccsss IF his fiction began win
ne spy IN ISL. In spite Of It's Amesca" or
lain in was iavorabiv received in England. BDt II
the Fuglisu opinion WAS la7OE9h'e says our Oos.
ropher tie French opinion might fairly be called
enthusiastic. 4 version OF 1t appeared ID I2''s ~
1S22: its repdia alton spread in every direction;
trapslafiuns followed one after another INTO all te
cultivated tongues Of modern Europe, and in all it
net the same degree OF favor. Nor has the !arse OF
fine seriously shaken ~ popularity. HE career
Of success which began sixty years ago mas s"heroi
ylcis,itudeS hut never suspension and to this hour
the name OF Harvey Birch IS one OF the best known
in fiction. No tale produced during the present
century has ,roDa5iy had - extensive ciroula-
ton In 1926 "Tbe Last Of the Mohcans" made
its appearance The popularity Of Cooper WAS then
at it's height His stories had extended the Iame 81
his native land among all cultivated peoples His
works were more than read. They were ID most
eases dgamatl-d and acted as soon ~ published
artists We'd with each other in illustrating them.
and I'm, newspapers broke out into poetry about
Them His Continental famo was unrvalled-it
conld lie fairly said to hold its own with that OF
Waller Scott long before he went 90 Europe his
hooks appearel simultaneously in America Eng
lanl and France. They were speedily translated
into German and Italian, and 10 most instances
found their way into tho other cultivated tongues
Of Europe No other American before or since mas
enjoyed 50 wide a contemporary popularity. This
,el undated for many years. Five editions
of ." Tho Prairie" il $50 were published smulta-
ueoasly: two in Paris-cue in Irouch and one in
Cnclish; one in London; one in Berlin; and one IN
pbilalepAia. Rut even ,his success was soon TO be
surpassed II is hard says the b0grapher TO credit
the accounts that are given on unimpeachable tss-
tjmonv In 1888 Professor Morse wrcte: " In every
city of Europe have visited the works OF Cooper
were consplcuously placed IN the windows of every
book-shop They are published as soon as lie pro-
duces them in thirty-lOur different places IN Eu-
rope They have been seen ~ American travellers
in the languages OF Turkey and Persia in Const9n-
tinope. in Egypt at Jerusalem. at Ispahan.'
And ad the biUgrdpher, the sale OF his works has
kaown 10 abatement sInce his death. 1t goes on
constantly to an extcnt that will surprise anyone
who has not made an examination OF this particular
point.
I.was perhaps sensc Of his literary services to
the fans of his country that made Cooper pecul
iarly sensitive to the Injustice Of the personal az
lacks upon him. For lie had deep love for his
country No other man OF letters has there been in
America. says Professor LOuusbury, or perhaps IN
any other land, to whom this mas been passion so
absorbing. 1t entered into tho very deepest feel
ings of his heart. Even in the storms of calumny
which fell upon him in his later years, if the fame
of his patriotism seemed at times to die away, any
little circumstance was sure TO revive II. HIS
study Americanism made him unpopular in Eng
land. His personal pride was equal to that Of the
whole British arstOcracy, and pride in his country
exceeded even his personal price. The ignorant
criticism which amused most Americans was apt TO
make him indignant. No compliment, in partcu-
lar could be paid TO him individually at tie
pense OF lis country This was a practice, how
ever. which the Encshman OF that day and the
biUgrspher might have ADDED OF this Day seemed
10 regard as the cOnsummate crown of adalatIon.
Depreciation OF America of any sort lie resented at
doncc. II conversation touched upon matters dis
agreeable 20 the United States,-whch far
from being an uncommon toric-lt was very much
lis practice instead of listening TO it patiently TO
bring up matters discreditable to Great Britain.
CooIer lost early by his bearing IN English society
nuch OF the favor which he had on by his writ
ings. In 1881 paper in COlburDs NeW NoRthly,
after paying tribute 10 his somewhat aggressive
said Yet he tn ri littia coo
sderation The OF Intellectual greatness. he
rna,lnr nf LIZ IL.