The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1883-06-16

Sandean And Gsorgs Sand.
ne. Jules Sandeau vas not Eenius of
| the first order, but he won renown In the
days when there wera intellectual giants.
ranging eyer every field of literature;
and having survived his early comrades
except M. Victor Hugo, the greatest OF
them ell, he found himself In his later
years the acknowledged superior OF most
| fiction writer's of the new races. He is
famous also for having been the sponsor
s'in literis, of Amantine Aurore Dude
want, better known as George Sand.
though it was not he who taught that
igifted woman how to write, but she, on
the contrary, first put pen into his
hand when he Was but twenty years Of
/ age and she was twenty Sam
deau's influence over the woman
who IN the first place appropri-
ated half his name after taking his whole
heart seems, while it lasted. to have been
great, by his own confession. She said
in her Memoirs that she could never at
tach herself to men who could not hold
sway over her reason, and this is shown
| by the distinguished, If somewhat mixed.
list of persons whom she chose, turn by
| turn, to be her companions or mentors
Alfred de Musset, Frederic Chopin, the
composer; Michel de Bourges, Robert
de Lamennais and Pierrie LeroDx. Had
French law permitted divorce, Nine.
Dudevant would probably have married
Jules Sandeau when she separated from
her husband, and it is doubtful whether
he would have been any happier for this
arrangement. His mind was not of
strength to resist hers very long, and it
may be that he was too fond of her, for
he grieved sincerely when he discovered
that constancy was not one Of her lead
| ing virtue.
| Soon after she had parted from him
newspaper published that the pair had
| quarreled, upon which George Sand
wrote with all the bravery of French
woman to say that no one who knew San
deau could quarrel withsa being SO gen.
tie, and to the end OF her life sne took
sisterly interest in his career, sending
| him long letters whenever he published
book, and reviewing his work with
care OF once affectionate and shrewd. It
is to be hoped that some of these letters
will be published, as they embody yalua-
| BILE criticisms. There was one In partic-
| ular that Sandeau delighted to show to
his friends; it was written in 1866, soon
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Academy and when good natured peo-
pie were saying that he had been elect
ed by this learned body merely out of
compliment to his Egeria. George Sand
declared in her letter that she saw no
reason Why she should not sit in the
Academy too, "but as to your claims"
she adddd, "who that has read your
tales will dispute them? You sit as the
/ <ko%sx ,fs hrzk ~
q school to which belong all authors who
write without pretentions, simply aud
powerfully, books that are taken up with
curiosity, read with interest, and laid
down with regret All this was true
Sandeau was no great weaver of plots, or
word painter, but he was q charming
"raconteur." At the time he began to
write publishers may have told him that
there was no demand" for the kind Of
novels which he supplied, but though
the public may cry against .such works,
it is always ready to receive them, aud
Sandeau achieved rapid popularity,
even with rivals like Hugo, Alexandra
Dumas, Balzac, Charles de Bernard,
Frederic Soudie and Eugene Sue COM
peting with him for public favor.
The art which Jules Sandeau culti-
waited was one much more difficult of i'm
itation, though it might not seem SO as
first glance. He was classic-not
Il that he claimed that title-who made hit
mothers of families decorous, his priests
men of proper lives, his soldiers honor
able and his judges honest; and Jet his
characters were no more alike than Gv-
ing men are alike because they may
wear the same costume or uniform. He
| could delineate oddities with q light
touch, and as he rejected improbability
from his stories. he was obliged to draw
very thoughtfully upon his imagination
for novel situations. Always . slow
worker he liked to consult popular opin-
ion about his writings before they were
! consigned to the publisher, and to dc
this he had recourse to the device oi
preparing two or three copies of his man.
uscripts and leaving them in public
places with his name and address on
;. them. It speaks we'll for the literary
: taste of tho French people that the man
uscripts were invariably read by ths
finder, and in this way Sandeau collect
ed some pretty compliments. But hs
!. also met with some cruel notifications
not too scrupulous person found ont
OF his manuscripts and sent il 20 thl
publisher as production of his own ;bui
). fhe publisher refused it as being poo
= work. Sandeau somehow got to hear o
: this, and, mild as he was in temper, h'
couldn't stomach the affront. He sent
;, the manuscript to the publisher with hi
: name, and of course it was accepted thi
:. time. Upon this he wrote bitter lette
= but the publisher explained that th
y first manuscript had been placed in th,
Z hands of reader, whereas the secon,
J. had been pernsed with the utmost sd
!. miration, by himself s'This makes th
). matter worse, said poor Sandeau; ''th
: reader may be Of the same opinion still,
;. and he was 80 much affected that he re
vised the book all though before b
9 would permit 1t TO be printed. This ma!
d serve to show what conscientious wri
J. ter he was. and Why his books are no
Il likely to 60 ont out Of fashion. Easy g
a they are to read, they we're CAREFUL.
d prepared in every line, and the autho
{. grudged no labor in correcting an,
d faults that might be pointed out in then
d no matter by whom.
d ssThere is good in everything, Is
4 familiar saying; and the Lowell Oitizel
= gives fresh proof Of its truth as follows
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