New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-04-24
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
ESSAYS IN EOLK-LOKE.

lore The first CONCLUSION u WIN" '
lcads-and also almost the Iast-iS iha' UNIV ]"
nothing new under 5he sun 'ha' al 'nc '"''@'
woith saying all the jokes worth h"N"H' "'''
said and made not merely hundfeus' "u' '"""
sands NJ wears ago. and that, as that dIeadlul
s'.ss;n,;st Tomson wrote-"The world rolls round
forever like mill"-repeating its stale old stories
49,, axims with wearisomc lclatlon
each new generation taking cic"l' i"
.,1, with fatuous conceit, for the
colonization Of thoughts and fancles ana laplcS
all Of which claim hoary antiquity. MI 'iouS-
tom in his Popular Tales and flctlons threw
creat deal of light upon this Interesting SUD-
;ect collecting in his volumes mass OF German
Italian French and English research, ana "Volnihe
with sound Judgment most OF the snares lh'o "n''"
so many of the comparative my BIOLOGISTS ""N'
folio, in their eagcrneSs to forllA pei 'hc"I's
T., tho nrcsent volume he addresses Wid'r an"
moro popular audience, with capital sele''oh
Of wit and wisdom from such prohhc p"' ''"'o
known magazines as the "nlls'ah u '""u' ',"
.Lc Talmud Since Emanuel DeutSch prous"' ,"'
Talmud into notice, some years ago, "''''''
If selections from it have been puolish'", in"''"
Int few of them have been el'her J"oi''o"''
arranged or we'll introduced. Inc Spe'i'i'"S -
,colmudic parable. fable and apothesm gwen pS
Az C,,ouston are striking and characteristic, ana
,,;u bo found full of a libcralty of sentiment I"
no sought vainly in the theological literature u
the Christian doctors during the Middle Ages
Tho Jews had been prosecuted for centuries
when they put on record as part oil 'leii Id" SUI"
sentiments as these 1t is our duN u "'"i"
tain the heather poor along win 1hoSc 81 o"'
own nation, We must visit their Si'h' "''"
administer 10 their relief. bury 'I'l' "'''
!. r,,a hoo,bcn that dwell ont Of the land OF
L.
since they only follow the customs OF 'hclI
S..ta,s "The Nous men of the heather Will
,ovo tbeir norton in the next world II -
'~,on,f,, n deceive or ovcr-rcach any one
- q hcathcn" This last ma\lm
os.a;r,r does not appear TO have
hoon cenerallv lived mp to. but neither has II
a'or boon lived ND TO by Chrstcndom; and for
,o,r ,oriods there was no form OF intolerance 100
Gov roochinc and savage TO be INDUCED ny 'hi's-
,iors not only toward Jews but toward one an
o,hor Tho Talmud has however. been to some eN-
font avenged upon its prosecutors. iol II Is 'F"iN
oscsrtaned that many of the tales In the "'S''
pranorum" SO largely used by the me'""'N"i
orks and nrcachers-owed ITS best '1cs an"
,arables 10 the despiscd and condemned VI"
lavish commentary The Rabbis. Us mere repre-
.on.od anncar remarkably broad-mindcd ana '''V
from bigotrv The clear insight ana p'o''""'
nietv Of their observations must S,''"'
,oadcr Their sincerity is indupi'aoe ~ '"''
;ntellectual force is great. ana '"N "'' Nv
diverted from their purpose. when j. ''' P"'S"''
=, ,bo ,ruth by any strataGcm. no matter no"
; mr. snecous Mr. Cloustor. IN bringing
,orctber the Persian Saadi and these Ne''r"''
pabbis we'll illustrated The dlherrh''s "'
,ween the two civilizations-and the r's''""''i'''
also The latter derive mainly from 'o'''n'on
lose Of Orientasm and common manners ""'
oustoms The former indicate fundamch'ni us
,i,c,ions of Intellectual procedure, ra"i'a'N vi
''''' ,rars Of regarding life. The inferior
oriousness and intensity Of the moh"'"'iS''
11ah,ou intelligence are plainly apparent ana
certain lack of grace and supplehesS - ''''P'
1911 ~, majesty of thought and diction
porhans what strikes the thouehtiu! reao'r
100, ;s tho constant evidence OF the pressure Oh
a,~. u,on the whole race which casts gloom
- ,h. most archaic aphorisms. Lie Is SHOW
o.d tbe summer advanccth: only small portion
,ema;neth: art thou still sothinl? says N"""i'
and in the graceful fable of " The Nleh'lhs"" HI"
,bs Ant"-adapted since into almost every I"n-u'-'
-, Furone-the painful moral j. taught when has
caused so many perpeXcd modeInS 10 "oh"ci
,,be,her life is worth living. conditioned rs II j..
II is also. perhaps. rather dlSconTashs - ho''
that the behavior Of the Ant 10 Inc NlsWlhHaI''
,houqh doubtless strictly in accord WIN rh' u'il-
tartan philosophy. appeals principally 10 sei'Sh-
ness and caousne>s 10 the sunerlhss "i o'"cIS
which is certainly not pleasing 10 contemplate
whatever NAV be said for IFS material prudence.
The fable. in plain truth. is an argument for mig
gardliness onite as much warning against
sloth. II is worse: il is a sordid assault upon
.e.tbe,icisn for it implies that the lovely music
Of tho NIGHTINGALE had no solid value and that
!, was merely a wicked or foolish waste Of time.
M wonder that free spirits have been turned
AGAINST the Ant and that they have cIoiced ln
Sir John Iubboclls elaborate exposure OF that
offensive little models stupidity and mcchanicaL
unintelisent activities.
Mr. Clouston has gathered number 81 the
curious parrot stories with which Onental hc'lon
abounds In the East the parrot evidently oc.
cupied for long time place analogous to that
held in the FOLKLORE of other nations by the foN,
the rabbit the jaclSal, the wolf, etc. There ar"
also anecdotes of magic bowls which cannot be
cmpticd, trees and fountains Of lie. ana many
other oddities The Rabbinical legends. tales ana
aphorisms are followed by a translation Of the
famous Arabian love-tac, Leila and Neinoun,
and three separate papers on the Apocryphai Life
Of Acsop." the Ignorance Of the Clergy III the
Middlc-Aces" and the Boards Of Our Fathers
conclude the volume. In regard 10 The second of
these essays. Mr. Couston does not appear 10 have
zone TO any of the authorities the other side.
No doubt there must have been very many grossly
ignorant priests and monks all over Europe in
fhc Middle Ages. The evidence on that hand APP
pears 70 be overwhelming. But there j. much
10 be said against sweeping condemnation OF the
medieval clergy. and the strongest arguments
and facts will be found in such works as Matt
lands Dark Ages and Kenclm Digbys Ages
of Faith nlitcracy in the Middle Ages was, il
must be remembered regarded outside Of the
church rather as distinction than As q rcproach.
No baron bold" would have been expected TO
he able to sign his own name and kings and queens
who had to make their mark were By no means
uncommon. Alfred the Great, it has been said,
was twelve years old before any could ne
found learned enough 10 teach him the alphabet,
and not much if anything was thought Of that.
The Church not clear of illiteracy III those
times but il sheltered and fostrred nearly all the
learning there WAS and IFS clOiStprs kent alive