New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-01-19
ILLUSTRATED BOOKS.
TUE wopK or AMERICAN ARTISTS.

answer TO the question that might HUI i'
be asked to-day in pafaphrase OF sidney 80 ,a,
{" who illustrates an American book'-hoV ~
o-e,r written by an American, as so many
worthless hooks usually are, but n genuine oooA'
q hook like Mrs. stoves, that Is pecui",,
urodnct OF our soil. that has stood the wear anu '
~ several decades and promises to survive many
ora after the crelties that inspired 1t nave peeh
hurled in oblivion by both North and SOUTH "hen
orr hest turn their attention 10 inc
.t r,ocnum opns for holiday times they Ordinarily
IooL abroad for their inspiration and we nave NUS
eotti,s Blessed Damozel" illustrated by hehSon wy
the Lamias and the "Odes and Sonnets" OF hea's'
Illustrated by Will II. Low; the "Rubaiyat' OF omar
Kbavyam illustrated by Veddcr: the " hesperiaeS
., Uerrick or the "Old Songs" OF other Enensn
Wrists illustrated BY Edwin Abbey who is now crowh
ing his career with series of illustrations 1or inc
comedies OF Shakespeare No one coud OBJECT 10 'hc
high ideals which this brief list proves mat some Vi
our artists are following. Mr.. Abbey and Mr. Nedder
particularly could probably never ma any heius
more congenial and consequently more advisable IMAM
those they have made their own. and we can only
congratulate them upon their success up TO the present
time and wish them more OF II. But WHY shouu
undertakings like theirs, praiseworthy As uncy rc
be regarded as almost the sole objects OF the black
and white artists loftiest ambition p? America abounds
In material for his pen brush. yet 1t Is only now
and then that the appearance OF Dooh
like this Of Mrs. stoves and Mr.. kemoieS
testifes appreciation OF IT, Ihcre Is
Cooper. Cooper Is. or ought to be, an America"
classic Why is lie not made the hero of an edition
deluxe with Illustrations drawn with afieconate care
Does any novelist Of adventure from Defoe to dumas
prcscnt more fertile field the illustrator TAKE
any oae Of bis best romances at random take Inc
Deersayer." or The Last Of the Nohirans or " Inc
Pathfinder" and its pages Will furnish form types
enough and situations enoughto nothing of scenic
motives which still exist in American landscape-to
satisfy the most exscng OF draughtsnen. barley tried
his hand on the Misunderstanding" tales. Tie larres
he won thereby from a less cultivated generation heh
our fading rapidly. but that is Dasley's fault
not Coopcrs. Darleys designs are nervccss ana tire
some bat Cooper wesriei The lover OF dramas
enacted by wholesome human beings in the depths OF
the virgin forest. and he volts for illustrator Mr.
Remington could give frstTate Cooper as fr as me
Indian side Of that author is conccrncd-witness ms
illustrations to "Hlawatha" forming realistic accom-
paniment TO a poem that has much ideality in it, to be
sure. but rot losing any OF their value at the same
time because true In every detail 10 Indian charac-
terstics Until this edition Of Iiawatha" Lcngellow
owed little to the illustrators. for no artist had de-
voted himself to his with enthusiasm as strong
Mr.. Rsming ton's-and sustained 1t rs long INC
"Autocrat's " Last Leaf and his one l}oss Shay
have been sympsthetcally illustrated; so has Mr.
Lowel's "vision Of SIR Launfal" Mr.. Whittier has
attracted q clever pencil occs<ionalyMr. Church did
excellent figure piece FOR his " st. Greg0rv's Guest
but Hawthorne. the first Of the New England writer's
and. will have 1t. the greatest literary genius OF
We recall edition Of Tie scarlet Letter
to which an American artist had contributed something
In black and white. but We are glad that we cannot
remember his name. The Marble Faun.' when II
was brought ont in holiday edition year or two
ago. was embelllsbed. hardly say illustrated
with Photographic plates OF Roman localities ana
Antiquities "The House Of the Gables. Doctor
Grlm,hawe's Secret THE Scarlet Letter " and The
Tanglewocd Tales all these afford a region Of ex
hauscss interest il archite trre. costume and customs
and few regions, moreover, novosic literature, have
moro fascinating reaches than this hss 10 tempt the
curious and penetrativc illustrator who wrap him
SELF as in magic cloak in the spirit Of his author and
travel with him far beyond the confines of the printed
page The only illustrated edition Of Poe's masterpiece
that Lave that does il justice even remotely is the
work Of a Frenchman. Dore
Possibly it is Just the poetic, imaginative quality in
Hawthorne and Poe that warns the average American
artist of their preserves. Certainly ii is the absence
Of H. except as an accidental feature, in Uncle Toms
Cabin that has permitted Mr.. Kemblc 10 acqut him
self as bonorably ne has. Our illustrators are
nurturcd, indeed they be said to have been created
by our periodicals. which in their sketches OF travel
and current happenings and in their novelties Of
"Society' naturally offer the artist opportunity
10 work with his eye the object than to call into
play his imaginative faculty. Eut this dealing wiIi
the actual pIosac side things has its advantages
and those advantage arc illustrated by the edi
ton OF Uncle Toms Cabin Here we have book
iu OF homely scenes and characters that go happily
into black and white. 1t is American through and
through and as 1t OF affairs that has
passed away, and with types that dying out every
year. 1: IS well that effort should be made TO send it
to pOsterty perfect pic ture possible. That
Is why the edition appears to Us 20 be judicous
production. The publishers could not make pretty
book Of it, but they could seriously increase its
value as q document and that they have dCnc having
Mr. Kembie's pencil at their disposal. 1t + because
Mr. Ke:nble has fulfilled his task cOnsccntously that
nA afnrtt he
first question asked in the course Of these remarks
lie has illustrated an American book in the right
spirit. industrously and Discriminatory and he has
kept his eye the object. His work is uneven. His
portraits Of TOpsy and Of Tom himself are dlsap-
pointing, and his white people from Chrstmsscard-
Ike Eva 10 w0odeny George, are nearly all super
iuous But most OF his darkeys are plainly studied
from living models. He has caught the IOguish fun
In the bead-liko cye Of the pichaninny, the good
nataired vaouity In its mothers face. the almost
brutis! Of It's fathers features, and the
mysterious Lalfuncanny glance Of its grandmother.
There is the latent hunJr o: the negro lurking every
where in old and young types. Having regard to the
cOlored characters alone, and more especially TO the
least exceptional types. to the rag tag OF representa-
tive place at the South, these sketches help Us to
realize tic air Of the plantation. That is their prime
merit. The white actors in the drama, with ticir far
moro complex characters win all reveal themselves
with Infinite little differences TO different readers rs
time goc> Bu; the darkeys who environ them VIII
doubtless be accepted, with moderate reservations.
as NJ. Kembe has pictured them, through succeeding
generations Tie publishers have aimed at TinfTcins
Tie artists mission by using good paper and printing
presses, but they have thongeSSly vtated the value
of their mechanical by using silk for the binding,
niasy and detestable makeslliit.
1t is twenty five years since Mr.. HOwes wrote
his Venetian Life,' but time has not slacAened the
playful familiar TOW OF spirits which aniiratcs its
STYLE nor faded the coorS with which deep knowledge
OF his subject enabled him to endow IT, In 4 pref
atory note to the illustrated edition lately pub
lished by Houghton g. Miiin lie reminds the
reader that the book was written at time
when the Austrians held the city the