Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-12
Some Washington Rocks,

way and another with the government and its
various institutions and whose personal quail
| fications and inclinations not less than their
Official duties lead them into lines Of study and
| investigation, the natural outcome of which is .
printed book of greater or less value in purely
Literary point OF view. Quite aside from this
class Of publications, which is increasing in
numbers and Importance every year. il MAJ be
| said chat Washington adds her full share and
more to the general literature of the period;
and there is a marked growth in this direction,
| also,-the increase keeping a. least pace with
| the constantly widening circle of scholarly
| people drawn hither by both the social attrac-
| tons and the intellectual advantages of the ma
| tional capital Neither time nor space is avail
able N this connection for the presentation of
anything like complete enumeration for pur-
| poses Of illustration. Nor is a full showing or
! critical analysis necessary. The purpose Of
| these hastily written paragraphs is merely to
make brief mention of some Of the books by
Washingtonians lately published.
- First in importance on the current list is
Mr.. Henry Adams History Of the United
States" covering the interesting and important
period embraced between the years 1900 and
1913. published in seven volumes (Charles
Scribners Sons) at intervals during the past
couple OF years. and later volume of Hstori-
cal Essays (same publshers) recently from the
press. Both works are everywhere recognized
/ as valuable contribution to our historical
| Literature. and the forma! history is certain to
| take permanent place as the standard author
| ity on the period it covers.
OF all the later publications Of the year
none is attracting more attention or likely to
exert an influence wider or more powerful
than Mr.. George Remnants siberia and the
Exile System, recently issued in two sumptu-
Gus and profusely illustrated volumes by the
| Century Company This work is. as our readers
know, the result of Mr.. Remnants later travels
through Siberia, and. WHILE as a record of
travei and observation. il gives to the world a
new and more correct idea than il has hitherto
had of the physical character and wonderful
| resources of the Russian penal provinces the
author was inspired by a much loftier motive
than the qualification of a tourists curiosity OF
| mere desire for adventure. 1t presents a study
OF life III one of Its most terrible and pathetic
phases IN style so sincere earnest and graphic
| thai the revelations he makes must eventually
IN the nature OF things, have a bearing in Rus
sla somewhat akin to tina: which Mrs. Stoves
! famous story had on the institution of slavery
IN this country. In every respect it will add
likewise to the already high reputation Of the
| author as writer and thinker.
In another vein. but hardly less attracti We
in its way ION the Border with Crook"
| Charles Scribners Sons) by Capt John G.
Bourke. who. though in active service in
| the army, is sufficiently identified in one
way aad another with this city to be regarded
as Washingtonian. 1t is one of the few
military narratives which the uon-miiitarv
reader will thoroughly enjoy, and it possesses
marked value, wIthal, for the side light it
| throws on questions of grave importance
The oid-time frontier-lIne of the country has
| become well nigh invisible in these latter
days-trodden out Of sight by the marches
| of General Crook and those who followed him
| through the most perilous of Indian cam
palgns. and this fact materially enhances the
| interest of Capt Bourke's clever aggregation
of sketches. There is no attempt al anything
| like biography. effort in the direction of dry
historical record; every page teens with incl
dent of exceeding interest. related by one whose
knowledge of the happenings was peculiarly
personal. Deadly conflicts. long marches pr-
vations and s1deriugs bring out the authors
graphic powers of descriptions; men and meth
DDS conaervatiyely discussed humor
abounds. Various phases of the Indian ques-
ton are clcyerly debated and conclusions are
reached that do not always precisely accord
| with the policy of the government OF Gen
Crook there Is much new matter, noticeably in
connection with the Apache difficulty which
| made every officer III the army either a follower
| of Crook or al adherent of Miles. The story is
dispassionately told, but the testimony is all
| there Fifteen years OF service as Crook chief
| OF staff nurtured loyalty which death does
not AFFECT made possible the accumulation Of
such a mass OF valuable material and resulted
in the publication of this volume of skillfulIy
related fact.
Viewed from purely literary point per-
haps the most ambitious output of the year
by Washington author is dramatic
poem just published by the United States
Book Co., New York, entitled "Launcelot
and Guenevere." by Mr.. Richard Hoyey.
a comparatively Young but urquestionably
gifted writer. As the title of the poem indi-
Gates, it is based on the Arthurian legends
made familiar to readers Of the present period
by Tennyson, but in treatment it bears no re-
! semblance to the laureate's version. The poem
proper is preceded by sort Of poetic fantasy
| entitled 'The Quest of Merlin" which deals
with the supernatural and introduces the in
visible population of the earth and air and for
which what msr be called the average reader ia
likely to care but little IN the poem proper
| the author shows considerable knowledge of
stage requirements and strong dramatic feel
| ing and 1t contains throughout many fine
| passages. While 1t may not be admitted that
the book fully justities the high claims that
| have been made for Mr.. Hovey by some Of his
too partial friends, it is very much more than
a mere promise Of better things. IT is in itself
is little risk in predicting that it win call wide
attention to its author and point him out e
the foremost of the younger poets of the day.
In "A Study in Corneille," (John Murphy 4
| Co., Baltimore Mr.. Leo Davis Lodge. Profes-
sor of the French Language and Literature in
the Columbian University, has endeavored TO
enable readers unacquainted with the French
language to know something Of the life, genius
and character of the greatest of French drama
fists. This he does by tracing the develop
mont of the French drama, and describing the
formative period Of Corneille's career, sketch-
ing the state of France in the early part of the
VII century, giving an account OF Che poets
early writings, and Of the full bloom OF his
genius, telling the story Of lie Cid !" "Horsee,"
CHINA, and "Polyeucte," respectively. and
| finally describing the downfall OF C1as.icism
and the rise Of Bomsnticism, with q sketch Of
the development Of the drama from the time Of
Corneille to the present day. Prof. Lodge has
performed his self-imposed task in : manner
throughout creditable to himself and in 3 way
| that viii b ut once eutertaantng end upeful .
4 A.