New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-08-27
LITERARY NOTES.

Mr.. A. b. Frost's humorous sketches as clever IN
conception they are skful In execution are 10 W
tho subject OF an article by Mr.. II. c. Gunner Accom-
panied by some entirely new drawings by MI. fros''
this article will appear In the October Harper
India has monv native authors who uncom-
monty busy last year. The list OF publications IN the
vernacular is a long one. There were biographies o'
Socrates Gibbon, Sir Henry Laurence Aorahsh Lii"
coin Richard Golden and others there were "orAS o
history politics and music and there were movers ana
plays In great quantity. The plots Of many OF these
turned mon the ouorrels OF daughter-inaw with her
mother in law. and on the unhappiness OF educated
women married TO uneducated men.
A pessim,stic New Engander is dolefu In "The
session Herald, over the people read In the sum-
NOR at argues very poorly" he says. lor the
average cultivation OF the people that they feao 80
little and make such bad choice OF what they are 10
read. II shows that the great majority are easily
satisfied intellectually. and that the nearer you come u
commonplace the you are on their intellectual
level No one can spend day on the PazzaS OF our
summer hotels without obtaining abundant evidence OF
the slender cultivation which is 10 be found among
great many people who are apparently weh-Dfeo anu
who pass In society for persons OF some c''''duon
We have dwet upon the trash which our women icau'
and n NAV be asked, What about the men? Ana the
repy Is that it is seldom that the men read at an
Unless man has n direct literary tendency In his NE
or has kept UP his interest in books ana papers iro
his schoodays he Is apt In middle HE 10 DC "ilnv
the inclination to read book through. unless IL h0'
within his immediate work. in an hour OF rco'c"uoA
the hook is the last thing be thought Of you never
..tch those men reading trash They may talk trasi'
M, us. IN them is full OF entertainment WITHOUT TO-
sorting TO books all. They put their spare s'rehs
into something else. And, really hot muon - ~ "
expected on the literary side from e'her men VI
women who have given themselves so uhrcser'euis "
business or 10 society that they have never serous'
1T Improvement
loading occupations. The summer leisure illustrates
painfully the Intellectual quality OF these pcopo' "'
causes them 10 put forth their worst ana "e'Ne u'
They are not at home where one mas 10 DC 'i'o '''
nisher of his own amusement ana they uo ho' n'o"
n good book from poor one. 1t Is the thhs u w ~
read something and they take up what como' 'n0
bandicst."
MI. s, vo,pmc of Ruskin letters, privately
sn,oa nv an Ergllshman for the benefit OF his
friends Is TO be followed by a second, ana pe'iap
third In one Letter Ct this first Voiuh'c ','
Ruslln's father ontiCSes tie criucs OF MS SON.
INV sons last little book" he writes. Zine i"o f",'
nc calls himself safe guide in art hut says as wri'er
he ca,not approach Carlyle or Tennysoh' Inc io
views quote the arrogant assertion and leave OUT inc
modest one Is this allowed TO be honest c1'lcism!
Mr. Wise who is bringing out these Ruskn letters
Is also printing In the same way series vi "n'
published Shelley letters. lie owns the Originals
of most OF the letters in these volumes.
An English writer says that II Is an instance Oh
misdrected zeal while so many priceless letters
of CARLYLE lie unknown for lack OF pubic or II
fisher, the and washedout matter 10 DC ound
III his lately published lectures on literature sho"iu
be twice edited.
Even the adorers of Carlyle sometimes grow treo
OF his talk about the veractes" and wonder whether
indeed he WAS supremely sincere in every movement
Of his mind critic in 1.-The London spectator
takes leave to doubt. Carlyle" he says. was rs
came reason. Nay, his mannerism often led him INTO
anectations and afectaOns cannot be caiIed inc
most r,gidly vcraciois OF the forms OF speech III
would be impossible to initiate him so sNltuly as ne
has often been inflated. If it were not essential 10
CaryIe TO write in Carlycsein other words, 10 try ana
moud nature INTO the favorite attitudes and aspects
Of his own thought, even wnen he must nave seen
clearly that he putting violence upon her Inc
artist who Is a mannerist well an artist cannot
help falsifying a little when he sees what might oe
easily adapted to his avortc school OF conception
And in this sense undoubtedly Carlyle fell into formula
and into more or less theatrical attitudes which he
had discovered his own unique power TO render with
thrilling effect. His utter genuineness,' as Professor
Nichol calls his manner seems to us more than oouot
full A great artist, who is also great mannerist
can never be utterly genuine. His mannerism over
laws his sincerity Of visiOn What Turner was as
\ landscape painter. Carlyle was. to very great
extent as literary writer. and Turner's latest style
the style in which he painted The Angel standing IN
the SUM- Tor instance, was not unlike the st{!e III
which parts OF the Latter Day iainphcts anu ohoo0
Ing Niagara were written