The Arkansaw traveler., 1883-07-07

within the radius of it's influence. The picture drawn of tals paecemeAi extinction of e Axn csr <sxsmsvss, of the hand-to- throat tussie between the two principles, Sell quickly. and turn over your capital as oilen ss possible" and = Sell high il you sell al all,v Is wonderfully graphic. Net masserful as the treatment of this whole theme is. there is another pom, Tn An Bonheur des Dames.r which to the student of con;emporar literature, es- pecially of French literature, IS of quite supreme interest il only as straw that shows which way the wind Is blowing. This Is the character of Denise. the shop girl- To our experience this Denise IS a wholly new applrision in Preach icsion. IL has been noticed more than once. of late, that certain French writers sho~ symptoms ct breaking through the titm wall ot distinct nationality which has so surrounded and hemmed-in frcnch literature for eeniuries. Hitherto the in- iuence exeued by French belles-le;,res. as shosn in the French novel. French poetry and ,he French drama, has been. indeed. catholic in cert i,n sense. in-as much as il has penetrated to the very ends ot the earth But the literary in ,ercourse between France and the other coun,ries has been lacking ,n all hnef reciprocity. Although II IS now some time since France gave cordial welcome to the literature of England and Ger many. since English and German books began 10 be read and even studied Tn France. this reading and study has made, upon the whole. marellously little im- pression upon the French literary spirit. | ntil very recently. indeed. French li'era- iure has cas, back no reflection ot the work of other countries the French point of view. so to speak. has re- manned unchanged unoosmopoh,an. be- cause so thoroughly and exclusively French. Many readers must remenoei the sogt of astonIshment with which they found an occasional touch Q, genuine Ansle-SANan huma, m Aiphonsc nau- de, tf,nt so unspeakabiy rare m a French wll;ef ;hag one htIiiy knew Whai io make of it. baujets pclahellc Itaf instance n ' fainont ieIne q ktsslci Anc x afAWn a> aH tnsltshnan mtghi a.Hc dt..Na hm The writer point e' eew ls 10 longer Nei0siXcN fcnt sei2 henssc ,s, to as, a stlll more stfik- lns example at 4 th n4elcf dfaan in an aa l sensh way n iact. of q ehaiaete con, eised at the outset as no ircachman has ever eonceiued one before. No, 1 tha, Denise Is not a French woman. even d typical French woman to her yep marrow. for this she assuredly is; but tha, she Is by no means the woman that French poets and novelists have hitherto drawn for us. She is every inch heroine in humble way d girl of upright nA- ,ure. of good understanding, aftectionate, devoted, of large sympa,hles. Moreover she is yirtuous. just in the way that thousands upon thousands of French women at< sirtuous. but also just Tn the way tha, no French novelist has eve, | found Il worth his while to make woman virtuous. She has no high-fiown notions of honor. or the dignity of her sex she |, l good by instinct. by a sort of uneonse ious 1 homely logic, bu, not from any formu lated principle of lite. nor fom any higf i moral sentiment. Thrown into the mlds ! of temptation, and very real temptation ] too. she does not soar above Il on tht wings os of sentimental Reclamation. anc by elinging ,o gorgeous distractions She shows no predllectSon for virtue. with capital \. but Is only naturally and m, stinetlHely intent upon being personaIl, virtuous In face of her clear. health, honesty of nature. the most subtitle tempt. aiions lose their subtleiy no sort of m clo- dramatic tnsel can make her see the wrong io be anything bu, ugly Her utter dign V of character neither needs the nllsp of the consciousness si d mls- ,ion. nuT seeks :o al.n.t.s. itself If ac- cors.anCc with the rules oi ,heatr.cal effect. She simply does her duly be cause Il seems iliosteAl no, to do si. In word. VI tuousncss IS 10 her. noi an afidlr of sentiment, social consideration or F sthetic fitness. but purely and s,mpi, matter of course. Mourct, the pro prietor of the establishment. IS in low, with her. a shop gitl ; she IS in love wi,l hlm. She cannot see way 10 being h.. wif.. and she will be nothing else. Tn, resul, seems to her to be perfectly simple 10 need TO complex argument. Moure, l asks her
 Bu, what are you afraid off
 Bu, she already raised her head and looked him full in the face, sayin; with a smile at once gentle and courage ous
 I'm afrai of nothing sir : only on, does what one pleases, doesn't one
 don, want to that IS all.
 In word Denise Is one of Lola's sa- preme masterpieces. We know os the like of her n n other French novel Indeed. in al fiction. the only chafae,ei she much resembles IS tae Austen Fanny ra 2 in M .nsaeid iuk 4aa i1enise Is gG.te aa reach |. tAngj Iuee .s Egghsh.