The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-09-29
THE LITERARY REVOLUTION.

states that on the Esd Qhat is to say on
last Sunday 1t would begin the publica.
lion of "Outre Mer," the new work bv Paul
Bourget on the United States, and it adds
Tie courteous permission to do this we owe
TO James Gordon Bennett, and we thank him
for II the more warmly since this same permits
sion amounts 10 complete literary revolution.
III Is, in TACT, we believe, the first time tn a
work OF such merit appears simultaneously IN
TWO languages In two such important news
Papers, and never before has there been such a
diffusion across the continents CT the same
thought on the same days and, as II we're. al
the same hour.
This is certainly step in progress since
the New York publishers used TO produce
English novels from early proOfsheets
But the event possesses significance from
another point of view. The Figaro makes
1t the test for little discourse OH Ameri-
can journalism, which, with some errors,
contains measure of truth. 1t says:
In older days there was in America a wide
difference between the newspaper and the
magazine. To the magazine was reserved ex-
cusively the domain of letters. The news
paper, on the contrary, was regarded as a pub
LEGATION OF purely utilitarian iype-strlpped
from the outset of all artistic CHARACTER pub
LEGATION OF enormous compass, but of positive
nature, dealing with the mass OF important
news. but restricting self to the production OF
sort OF instantaneous mold OF daily life. with
out Literature. chrOnique or feullletOn. This
offensive distinc ion exists no longer, and the
Classification IL implies, once SO fully accepted,
is now and henceforward inaccurate.
Our Partisan contemporary is in error
when he says that American newspapers
have been devoid of 'litarature, chrou-
ique aud feuileton." With few exceT-
tons they have always devoted space to
fiction and social chronicles; if they have
not cut Their column rules in two, so as
to make room for a feuilleton at the boz
t)m OF the page, their departure from
French usage in this respect has been a
mere matter of makeup. THE CALL has
always recog lied the public demand for
fiction. and has faithfully endeavOred to
supply il; the same course has been pur-
sued by other daily papers, though. in the
East, This department Of journ alism has
generally been relegated to the Sunday
editions. The principle is quite clear.
Man is endowed with fancy as well as
reason, and a periodical cannot win his
favor unless it caters t. bOth. Indeed.
the appetite for imaginative writing is far
more generally distributed than ia COM
monty snip; osed. We just now read that
eX-SecretarY Whitney spent lis time on
his return ocean TITO in reading one novel
after another; and Charles a. Dana, who
is nearly so. is an insatiate devourer of
love stories. American newspapers have
not been so dull as TO ignore the instinct.
That the newspapers will supersede the
magazines as vehicl s for the distribution
of the best class of fiction Is likely enough.
At the present time, leaving serial tales
and heavy essays out of the list, the light
matter in Hdrper'S, the Century and
Scribper'S is written BY about ten persons,
whose stories follow each other in endless
succession. The stories are good, very
good. as rule. but there is monotony in
them which sooner or later wearies the
reader Even so admirable a writer as
Miss Wilkins cannot help repeating her.
self when she grinds ont sorry after story.
The reader groans-ToWours perdrir!
This fashion has, moreover, the evil effect
Of restricting magazine writing TO a select
coterie. or staff as it is called. and of ex-
GLIDING from the channels by which the
public is best reached young beginners
who might with proper encouragement be-
come shining lights in letters.
The evil will cure Itself Dy the extension
of the department of fiction in the daily
papers. They need not unduly diminish
the space allowed TO politics. finance and
the events of the day. They can do full
justice to these and yet have room for
works If fiction worthy Of the American
Intellect. Mr.. Bennett has set the ex-
ample. he will not want for followers
In the East there are papers which could
afford to pay Rudyard Kipling or Du Maui
rier sums which would appall the maya
zine publishers. and it is odds that the
exclusive publication OF new novel by
such authors would be more profitable
than the best news SCOOP. The best re-
suit of such revolution would be the
development iu this country of new race
of KIpIings and Du Mauriers.