New-York tribune., 1884-11-14
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
. BOOK.

Boston. y . ,,,,,.s |
When. some fourteen years ago, MI ri'As','i .. |
admirable translation of the Ruhaiyat VI o .,
Khovydn first appeared under the auspices oil M M
Ouaritch in modest anonymous edition. 'no " |
e,ary world was quick to appreciate the exceneacc
of tho work and 10 scizc upon the remafha"'e
on,lorics bet wccn the thought OF the twen'h o'"-
tuty Oriental philosopher and that whi'h ~ III.
ei,,a ,f tho uincteeuih canuty has hocn huFanccu
as tho last word Of modern science iioie' WI"
tho dns, of 500 years thick mon IT, was po''"
which misht have been written within tho 'weNo-
,,,,,h Il, an Asnoaticl which indeed formed w
uendnut a. that " city of Dreadful Night whi'h
,nosi clearly cXpfrssea The pessiniHh ol 'nh"hha'
reasoning, Omnf khayynin 40 douht sttnss''A '"
attain an optimistic view, bat ~ tho chd IN ~ w
one with Thomson. Blind necessity, both agree
poyerns every thing The old Persian mochA ~
himself, however, and connsels present ehjoS "'"''
"Wasto not your hour he says,
Nor in the vain pursuit
This and That cndCRNOr ana llsiWei
Better he iocund with the finllIui ulnps,
Than sadien after none, or bitter, fruit"
There is no Wedge 10 he had oi tue hereafter,
hWe came like Water. and like Wind we CO."
Heaven and He'll are the shadows of our own
moods An iron destiny cnthrals us.
We are "moving shadow shapes" puppets with
which the master of the show diverts hiinse1, anu
then zone by one back i'll the closet lays. luis Is
Mon of Omar the Persian. But instead of falling
into the blank despair of the CITY OF Dreadful
Night he decorates bis Agnosticism with Oriehtai
sensuousness wrcathes garlands of roses about IL,
and affects an ability to drown thought in the cup
. YESTERDAY mis- days madness did prepare;
To,norrow's silence, Triumph or despair; ,o, ,r,r
Drink for YOU know not whence you came. nor WY
Drink for you know not why you co. nor "nerc
The agony of thought, however. is real: the
Bacchic chant has hollow ring. But the skill OF
the translator has made of Omars quatra'ns sor'
M eclogue full of suggestiveness full also OF poetic
FIRE and sweetness; IN word, Valuaoic coh'riou
ton TO literature and to thought
1t has been reserved for Mr. Elihu Vedder 10 carry
forward. complete and enhance the value and sig
hi6cance of Omar's work by enrching it with the
nobest and profoundest drawings that ever any
noet has been honored withal. 1t is scarcely possi-
b,e 70 bestow too high praise upon the magnlicent
work as il leaves the hands of the publishers 10
say that it is splendid trophy of American art IS
no far short of the full scope of the performance as
to seem almost belitt ing. 1t indeed triumph OF
art in the broadest sense, for 1t is an unequaIeo
union of sympathy and creative genius MI
Vedder had, as he says. been haunted oy
Omar Khayyam for years. those pregnant
ouatrains had gradually translated themselves into
that language of symbolism which is the hlpha
and Omega of perfect understanding and conpetc
intellectual accord. Aud at length he has yielded
20 the lonc-crowing tendency of his mind and mas
made these beautiful and expressive drawings thns
adding to the poem the most precious and profound
commentary conceivable.
The drawings. regarded merely as works OF art,
nre lovely. majestic and satisfying The publishers
have left nothing undone which could add to then
effectiveness. The form of the volume Is n large
buarto The plates are eleven by eighi-and-a-lah
inches. The process is the alberype. The result is
,.,t,., of bn ffSf
And those designs are remarkable as the IN
s,irotions of the poet. The thought OF the
latter IL embodied in them, but win
mn added grace and sometimes even
with n more lucid insight As drawings. without
reference 10 their close connection with the teN
they are delightful and laudahle. But as intefpie-
tatinns they prove that the dIauchisman lnmseh
has walked through that Valley OF the Shauow
whose luld light Is projected on to the phlioSo
phrrs page mud that bs artis-sonl has ansoioeu
,n symbols the impressions which took the form oi
la,inories in the mcntal alcnbic Of 'he writer.
1be krv-note is struck on the cover of the book
,vtrt, 10 ti,avna swirl. symhoizine the approarh o
meihoi 90 tSistpnce, lts tcinpoiary iiSation ~
lin, aud is subsequent dissipation into the eiet-
Neitv opiiaird elemental forms Ana this sehihrant
svnhnl irauupais with subtle variations through
NAT ihn drawings ihp thafatlpiisiics ~ tue 10
sisns afs LARGE hHhilit ~ punteiiiuii siiishini
NHien ~ .Hana ani power ~ tho treatment, ahh
,4uaith nf sansWuas beauty ehasieheH ahh plrNa'r'
bV tha sirl ,ing majesty ana ibllhphlhh' ~ w"
,bousht rram pnnlV alllstle polhi of NlhW
these drawings arc enlinenllY satisfying lhe
artists lust confidence in his technical skl ana lh
the resources of his art has gwen Ia every design
at once a repose ani "A completeness when are 'ho
lall-marks of true genius, Tie sweeping now ol
tho lines is most enjoyable, as shown with specal
felicity in "'rhe blowing Rose "lhe Throne oi
Saturn" The Cup OF Love" " The Cupoi Death'"
"Ihc Bitter Cup" The Souls Answer, " The song
I'm the Wilderness" and Love Ainghted at the
sigbt of Ielr There is not one of these superb de-
signs which will not repay-which does mol Ill iac'
demand-prolonged and repeated examinations ;
aud Familiarity with them constantly reveals new
beauties and sources of pleasure Mr.. Nedder mas
ACCOMPLISHED really great work in illustrating the
Rubaiyat of Omar the tent-maker, and II Is one
the commercial value of which is absolutely GER
tain 10 appreciate rapidly. The philosophy OF the
astronomer-poet need not be accepted by anv one,
bpt il must be admitted that as presented
nv the genius of Mr.. Fitzgerald he
has dealt powerfully and gracefully
with the great life problems over
which all of us have at some time pondered III Is
indeed noble poem, and Mr.. Vedder has Illus
trated it most nobly. As showing what intellect
and art can do when working together in complete
harmony the work is emphatcally triumph. and
n will take its place in the very first rank, not only
of American srt-work, but of the art-work oil the
period.
The drawings of Mr.. vcddcr arc ffty-six in num-
ber The text is incorporated with the designs, ap
bearing in tablets in the plates The ordinary edi-
lion which is issued at SO, is printed on very
heavy white paper, which gives full effect to the
drawings Mr.. Vedder has furnished not only
tho drawings but frontispiece, designs for
the inside lining, and for the cover,
and ALI these are in complete harmony and are full
.< Loo,.r An od;6on de hire of 100 copies only