New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-08-08
NOTES ON BOOKS.

,,,pN-MR. STANLEY WEYMAN-
THE GREAT THREE-vOLUME
NOVEL CONTROVERSY.
London. July 2s
-. raward D!cey has written a good book on
w. under the title "A Peasant State; which
D' ,sv Of the English newspapers transformed
no "a Pleasant State; which is different. Bull
nv ,uebt 10 be interesting to the good Ameri-
,or more reasons than one. She has in
".re worked out her own salvation. and in so
=. abe did not. the two men who most helped
vere Americans, Mr.. Macgahan and the Rev
.,,s Washburn. principal OF Robert College
"" ronstantinople. Yet the two are hardy
.,,oned IN Mr. Diceys book. Having, as one
.,s critics said tersely and Justly, 10 give an
..unt Of the formation of the Bulgarian state
~ Emitted the two men who above all others
~. instrumental in that formation.
o. neither of them was unknown. Mr.. Mac
So, was the man who reused England and
e.,.sd Europe with his appalling and perfectly
~ narrative Of the atrocities practtsed on the
r,,.rans BY the Turks. He was one OF the
.,-.,,ost journalists of his time. man OF ex-
-,rarv energy and courage, writer with
IT,. ,,r picturesque description. simple lifelike
s..,ive and often eloquent in phrase.-witness
-. "ssobelefY hoarse with battle" and Macga-
-. vision Of him in that state at Pevna. None
o., man Of exceptional and very high qualities
". hova done the work Macgahan did before
w. arr,ne the Russo-Turksh war. Of which the
..,,u NJ Rulgaria from Turkish misrue was
-. aim and. TO some extent. one result He de-
80 q recognition Of his immense services in
.,ch a book as Mr.. Diceys
o. Aid Mr.. Washburn. Does Mr.. Dicey know
A.. among the people of the Balkans. peasants
..a others. Mr. Washburn Is called the Father of
n.,..r,ao II he had known II he would hardly
60. ,sf, out the father when describing the
.-.r,, .. the SON Mr. Washburn's interest in
pr,s,ria sprang originally, l think. from the
.sarca Of Bulgarian students in the college
s.r,ssa with American money Of which he is the
,..a Ri, ne Il one Of those men who have pas
.,o, for freedom and justice. and passionate
..,,Ad ~ Injustice and oppression. These pas
aor. and sentiments and principles. which are
.ls, American he implanted in the youthful Bull
.srian breast He sOwed the seeds of Freedom,
and they ;ell upon good soil. He was In posi-
tim to know the truth from both sides; from
the Turks among whom he lived as well as from
the Bulearans II Is | imagine. too soon 10 tell
the whole truth about his contributions to Bull
,srlan independence. about the means he used.
about the influence he gained. and how he used
n But Of the fact there is and can be no ques-
ton. His name is on the lips OF every Bulgarian
peasant and ever with blessing and oeauu-
full tribute Of gratitude
Mr.. Dcey seems 10 have come singulariy little
IN actual contact with the people whose biog-
.raphy he was writing. He went 10 Bulgaria In
order to write book about II. spent some months
there made himself master Of much. and. as We
zee missed much. He saw from the outside He
got up the facts as competent and accomplished
writer Of long experience does and can. He has
statistics and politics and finance and much other
useful knowledge. But If ne had really lived
among the people he could never have missed as
ne has two Of the essential facts OF the history
he undertook TO write.
II does not matter 10 Macgahan who Is In his
grave by the banks Of the Bosphorus. II matters
not much to Mr. Washburn. who holds and has
long held as president Of the admirable Robert
College, high and honorable position. But 1t
matters 10 the public, and also to those who
knew Macgaban and who have. as l have,
close personal interest in Mr.. Washburn. whose
cousin am. Macaghan was ore Of the Journalists
0. whom II Is impossible TO speak too highly or
too often OF course he is likely 10 be forgotten
He was only a journalist. and what is a Journal
E! His work. as Mr.. Dcey. himself Journal
st remarks, is ephemera No doubt II is. but
not always the influence OF 1t nor the memory
d II or Of him. Macgahan's influence and work
1--we In the life and freedom Of Bulgaria They
I've also-which is less matter-in the memory
ia few Of his colleagues who knew and honored
him, and honor him still.
asked the other day at the Librarians. who
md n,,gh, N iepd mo hooks a 4 "A
On the whole, moderate annual charge, FOR Mr..
Stanley Weymans STORY OF Francis Cludde.'
They had not a copy or not copy In. But
surely" said. you keep in stock all Mr. Wey-
mans books The amable manager. who Is
also very wdeawake person. met my question
b. saying in his usual obliging spirit that he
would send at once 20 the publishers for the book,
which should have In the course OF the evening.
Then ne explained the scarcity OF this romance,
Its momentary scarcity in his own shop. 1t Is
ne earliest Of Mr.. Weyman's writings. At first.
The circulation Of them was limited. The libra
rams took the usual number Of copies and distrib-
usd mos, Of them to people whose literary tastes
are determined for them by the intelligent libra
nan Then they ceased to be fresh. Such de-
nand as there had been fell off, and the libra
hans, as their habit is, sold all but few copies.
''S7enIy MI. NeEIldn, uTsl VIII tHc liNuoc
athe Wolf" and then still more so with "A Cen
"man Of France" became famous There was a
rush for his books. and when the new books had
een devoured. customers began to ask. as did
m'he old ones. which had gone out of the mar
W The new carried the old on their back. 1--WE
settng fresh supplies daily" added my friend
VIZ the demand outruns them" The volume
INCH came that evening fresh not only
p1lf .1lsha hntf rnf "a
'm edition. and probably large edition. OF a
""x which had made no mark on its first ap
ra'snee. Probably but a few hundred had beer
nd
~ the Story Of Francis Cludde" has the same
s~nV az the later and more famous ones. The
'Ssa OF the master is there. The touch Is almos
urn; the style picturesque and full: the
"" goes at a gallop Love and adventure fol