Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1894-09-15
Fashion in Literature.

Time was when the literary crafts
man. whether doing fine work in gems
of thought or merely hacking away ut
some tough and knotty question of the
hour. concerned himself little wi ~
tickle Dame Fashion. He was content
to hit his subject with force and pre-
cision. or to carve, polish and set in
fit surroundings any jewels his plod-
ding fancy might uncarth. To-day
fashion is juggernaut and rides over
everything. including the author and
all that in him is. If he wants shckels
i'll his purse, and it goes without say
ing he does, if he would ride on the
top wave of fame. then must he bow
to the dictates OF the hour If literary
fashion DEGREES bad grammar. mac
culatc spelling and the use. in season
and out. of an cXccrablc dialcct-poS-
Sibly once spoken in remote country
districts. but now largely thing Of
the past-and by no means Il char
actrriStic of our people, then must the
would-be popular writer forget that
delicate precision of expression. his
AtiliSonian inheritance, the dignity of
classic phrase the grace of Gallic
idiom. and tumble together il mass of
dolblr negatives. plural subjects and
singular verbs. words clipped of final
$yllhblrS suggestive of Il herd of dock
tailed horses. and crude vulgarisms
that the dcvotce of fashion would not
tolerate outside of Il book for mo-
mrnt. 1t is il fad of the times, how
ever. and the author who can do it
fairly GallopS into position ut the head
of the line.
Or fashion decides that immortality
shall be interesting. and presto. the
sweet homely virtues. the simple faith
of the fathers pail on the taste; the
author. if he is squcamiSh. dons a
mental rubber coat and long-lcggcd
boots. and founders about in mud and
miro till he produces Il bit of litera-
tnrr t:I Suiting the spirit of the time.
If hypnotism. atheism. naturaliSm or
any other ism rules the hour. he must
''Ahhl" in that to the extent of his
knowledge. or that of some other fcl-
low. and-to tampcr with Popr-stuff
our heads with all such reading us
never should be read
Explain thing till all men doubt it
And write about it and about it.
If not an American literature we are
building up, it is simply up-to-date
writing. If the phrases which it de-
pict> are not cphemcral. the authors
vogue is. A wcli-rcad woman Sug-
:.rstcd Il work of the kind though not
without literary merit. as prize for Il
whist clubs victorious combatant. A
chorus of dissenting voices rose THAT
thing. Why. it is two years old. We
must have some book more swell than
that One can look with genial an
diligence on fashions foiblcS. but when
it is Il question of making the Literal
turc. as of making the history of
great nation, full-grown in other re-
$p"ctS, too much is ut stake. Literal
turc which began with Prcscotts,
Motlcys. Websters. EvcrcttS: with
Bryants. Longfcllows. EmersonS,
should not dwindlr to mcagre dialect
and cheap ScnSationalism. One would
invoke the spirits of the fathers. mas
t"rS of the grand and forccful English
tongue. to aid us in Stcnminy the tur
cid flood. in escaping from the float
in" masses of "Bc-you-a-goin's and
'l-,lmno-as-Id-or which to-day
prrva,lc so-callcd current literature
Boston Transcript.