The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-04-10


her grace and her faults. He is the type
of the France that, stated with pleasure
rushed to disaster. leans psychology. as
you have read La Terre,' you are &C.
quainted with. He represents the new
social c0uehs, new stratum, and Is in
some way emblematic of the French OF the
future. Now, L will confess to you, that
when began writing my book, and had
this idea of this friendship, expected to
be able to produce by its means q much
greater effect than l think | have done.
This friendship has not yielded all that
had hoped for"
I interrupted: "Being invariably dis
satisfied with your work as whole, it is
only natural that you should be discon-
tented with its details. You are so severe
critic of yourself that we will not accept
this avowal."
1.-THE first section of eight chapters,
then, treats of the action of the Seventh
corps before Sedan. 1t opens with aIlu-
sions to the tritiing defeats on the from
tier, which shows the Seventh corps
crowded back on to Rheims, but the prin-
cipal subject of these chapters is the terri
BILE march from Rheims to Sedan. 1t is en-
epic event. pregnant with the irony of
fate, aud, to my thinking, one of the most
tragic military episodes that history
records. There is no fighting described in
this part; indeed, the only battle that l
describe is Sedan. The tragedy lies in the
exposition of the fault that gradually led
up to the terrible disaster. One follows
the movements of the Inflated corps,
knowing what terrible shadow of defeat,
disaster and death overhangs it. 1t was a
wonderful corps, and the way it was man
aged was wonderful in its Grass stupidity.
My second part is entirely devoted to de-
scription of the battle of Sedan in all Its
phases, seen from all sides. / have omit
ted nothing which can help to a compre-
henslon of that enormous episode in the
history of France and the world. Now we
are with Napoleon, now with the emperor
of Germany, now with the bourgeois of
Sedan, now with the Franc-tireurs in the
woods. Each movement of troops that
contributes to the final denouement is ex-
posed. l have endeavored to be complete,
but, as | have said, | had too little space
for the immense amount of material in my
hands. / have also endeavored to speak
the plain truth without either fear or IA
vor. The reader will be aroused to COM
passion with the sufferings, bodily and
mental, of the heroic and martyred
army, Just as he will be aroused to indig-
nation at the conduct of its chiefs, which
fell little short of downright dementia.
1t has been my duty to be severely criti-
cal, and l have not shrunk from the re-
sponsibility of wounding, where it was
right and just to do SO, susceptibiiities
which l see no reason for respecting. L
dare say there will he some outcry at my
blame, but am Indifferent, having spoken
the truth.
1.-The last part of my novel is played cut
in Sedan after the battle. From thence
the reader follows the rest of tine history
of the war as it develops in other parts of
France until it eliminates in the out
break of the commune and the final efon-
drement fa.ling-in) of Paris in a sea of
fire and an ocean of blood. The last chap
ter of the book Is an account of Paris in
flames, of Paris with its cutters running
with blood. hope by this means to pro-
duce graduation of effect-the catastrophe
of Sedan, which ends the second part, FOL-
lowed up by the still greater catastrophe
of the last chapter. To resume: The first
part of my novel is the march from
Rheims to Sedan, the second Is the catas-
trophe of Sedan from inception to de-
movement, and the third is the efondre-
ment, not of Paris alone, but of the whole
of old-time France, with the denouement
of the burning of Paris, the flames of
which clear away not only an old regime.
but whole psychological state. and pre-
pare fresh field for new and regener-
ated people. For, observe that my book,
as far as outward construction goes,
divided into three parts, may also
De divided into a novel of historical
and a novel of psychological interest.
1t tells tale of many adventures, but it
cal studies of French society as it was at
the outbreak of the war. My novels have
always been written with higher aim
than merely to amuse. l have so high an
opinion of the novel as means of express
sion-I consider it parallel with lyrical
poetry as the highest form of literary ex-
preston, Just as IN the last century the
drama was the highest form of expression
that it is on this account that | have
chosen it az tine form in which to present
to the world what wish to say on the So
cial, scientific and psychological problems
that occupy the minds of thinking men.
But for this l might have sad what l
wanted to say to the world in another
form. But the novel has today risen from
the place which it held in the last century
at the table of the banquet of letters. 1t
was then the idle pastime OF the hour. and
sat low down between the table and the
idyll. Today it contains, or may be made
to contain, everything, and it is because
that is my creed that l am a novelist. I
have, to my thinking, certain contribu-
tions to make to the thought of tho
world on certain subjects, and l have
chosen the novel as the best way of
communicating these contributions to the
world. Thus The Crash, in the form of
a very precise and accurate relation of q
series of historical facts-in other words,
in the form of realistic historical novel
is document on the psychology of France
in 1870 This will explain to you the num-
Der of characters which figure in the book
Each character represents one etdt dame
psychologi4ue of the France of the day If
my work be well doEe the reader will be
able to understand what was in mems
minds and what was the bent of mems
minds-what they thought and how they
thought at that period"
After pause, ". lola added, as if sneak
ing 10 himself, 1T is true that / sometimes
ask myself if this is the role of the novel
after all"
| said nothing for a while, but waited to
hear whether the master would have more
to say on question on the solution of
which, it seems to me, the whole future of
the novel is at stake. But, he saying no
more. after that muttering aside, asked
him if lie would give me some insight into
the genesis of such work as he is now
engaged upon-from what beginnings so
colossal construction raises itself.
II have no subject whatever to start
with" he said; "oniy the idea of q sub
ject. In this case had the idea OF a novel
about the war. and the catastrophe end
fal.ing-in of the empire. / never trouble
to search for a subject, but having an
epoch or phase of life in my mind, set to
work to read up all that can find that
will instruct and inform me on that epoch
and that subject. AS | read the charac-
ters suggest themselves. The pe-souages
spring from the epoch itself. NY readings
give me in due course my subject. Thus
in this novel, which incarnates The military
spirit of the time, each phase of the
subject suggested a character. The sub
ject was to oe war. | had to consider war
in its relation to various classes of So
ciety war uts-G-ris the bourgeois, war
tis-d-ris the peasant, war vis-a-uis the