Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1892-01-21

PEASANT to commit suicide renews the
interest in the French authors works
that has been stirred up from time to
time during the last few years by the
publication of his stories. His strongest
clam to fame is based upon his short
stories. The volume called "The Odd
Number" was very favorably noticed at
the time of its publication few years
ago, some American critics going the
length of claiming this collection to be
the most perfect bakers dozen OF stories
ever gotten together between two covers.
But de Maupassant is not the only for
eign author who has won the highest
praise during the last five years, and it is
noticeable how many more foreign than
English writers come in for the most
enthusiastic commentator of our critics.
1t seems to be the literary manifestation
OF the spirit that in society is Anglo
mania, this search for foreign idols for
our worship. Tolstoi, Ibsen, Balzac, de
Maupassant and the Spanish luminary
Valdes, all in turn have been exalted to
the highest of high places. Is this not
an affected taste? Or is it only an effort
to rid ourselves OF insularity of opinion :?
Taking de Maupassants careful studies
OF dull f ench peasants as an example, is
it true that we appreciate all the shades
OF misunderstanding in foreign peasantry
az heartily, as intelligently, as stories Of
our own people. told by men of equal
ability? Much of the delicacy of de Maui
PEASANTS hair strokes is lost by our lack
Of knowledge of the surroundings and
historical setting of his tales. When an
American writer tells us that his hero is
a Georgian, who finds himself for the
first time in New York,-this simple
statement suggests hundred other prob
able concomitants-wea are upon our own
ground and our knowledge puts us in
touch with the story-teler and throws
side lights upon the play that at once be-
gins. Is this the case when We hear that
two Breton peasants were in barracks
near Corr de Vote? There is no CORE
spending knowledge, we know not what
to expect but have to accept that state
ment, and those that follow blindlv as q
child follows the events Of a fairy tale.
In novel there is space to create an
atmosphere in which the characters live
and breath and we may become accli-
mated to the foreign air, but the nature
of the short story precludes this. They
are written for keen, impatient French
audience, who resent superfuous word
Of explanation; the impressions are
touched in with few light strokes. trust
ing to just those associated mental
images that we cannot possess, and,
moreover, are written in foreign tongue
and for most OF us have to he put into
English. If it could be proved that with
all these deductions the foreign short
story still deserves its present rating it
would be to prove that our native writer's
are OF hopelessly inferior order, since
they labor under none OF these disadvant-
ages, and if their ability were equa their
results should be much more satisfactory
to their fellow-countrymen.
Conspicuous for its beauty among the
new books is Walter Learned's collection
Of verse called Treasury OF Favorite
POEMS" The binding is very dainty,
the white, traced with gold, OF the back
giving place on the sides to cloth OF gold
sprinkled with lavender cyclamen. 1t is
profusely illustrated with pictures that
are rather unsatisfactory because they
look as if they were ready-made and not
especially intended for the text. For in
stance, Burns Farewell to Nancy is
illustrated by modern-looking young
woman kissing a moustached young man,
who seems TO be a leader of Germans.
with the lines below,
Never motor never parted,
We had ne'er been oken-hearted''
seems much too fervent for such stylish
young people to have uttered But,
apart from this, the collection IS very
good, and contains most Of those poems
that everybody half knows by heart, be-
cause they have touched the heart The
collection is much more catholic than
Palgrave's famous Golden Treasury, !"
since it includes verse all the way from
George Herbert's quaint religious lines
through Bret Harte's "Her Letter.
Il. Ii. W.