New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-12-08

aa IN detail WIN II Dumas failed to toucn 'i'
hearts Of his countrymen. as Is toieraoS .aav
I'm the minds of his unpreJudlceo CITIES ~ .,,th
give him fame and fortune? Why' IL ne VIZ w.,
out charming his contemporaries, did they eiec'
him TO the Academic FRANCHISE? Because III '"o
first place the firm and lucid quality OF ms pio'e
has placed It among the best examples Oh ,.
style Secondly he has never written WI. 80
out It's being packed with meaning re mas ~ -,
fectIon the incsive eloquence which Is perhaps TIC
most admirable quality in the literature OF n's
,,or When he speaks you must listen for whe'her
vou like II or not Il Is evident at once that He '"'
something to say and Is saying 1t Win all '"e a."
thority Of one who Is master OF his suoJee' ""u -
his style Finally, his subject has always ~
drawn from near at hand. from the very mn
stream of French social life. from the ceh're VI .
perience THIS seems to contradict 'he
that he lacks soul But we talking OF France
where society is far more important tnan the mu'
yLiual and where the observation OF the piay"ie"
or the novelist is never remarked until IL mas s"o"
the connection between the unit and the sum- "n'
1t has seized the movement OF Things anu give" W.
drift of social phenomena for the sake OF Inc
nbenomena no, for the sake Of the Individual man
Dumas Is n master Of this kind or oD5erVat'o'
We can recall no figure Of his which bears the MARKS
OF creative genius, and therefore OF au'horita''.
communion with spiritual ideas win tHe sp""'
fires OF action in But the sources OIL ma"
action II we are to believe Dumas, can be traced III
are TO bow our heads with fatalistc acquiescehce
hefore an imnenetrable mystery. "Ilka," TO return
to the most recent volume bearing his name, SHOWS
his strength and his limitations lie taxes ~
chances no leaps into the dark The dark Is the dark
for him because he has neither imaginauoh hui
poetic rapture to light him into the gun but' do
he says in the opehing passage OF "llka, writing
with no pretence to fancy, "Jai va peaucoup oe
chooses; TAI connu beaucoup de gems; par tempera-
ment d'abord par profession ensuite, tai beaucolp
regarde ct beaucoup ana.yse; avec ce.a uhe me
MORE implacab.e qu me met a rinstant sous eS
yeux les moindres incidents de ma vie'-and II you
will trust to this foundation he VIII interest yo'
perhaps.
Ilka is a curious, remarkable and an original
woman International as Dumas himself. and. in
deed showing in the bizarre episode over whch the
author chiefly fingers, an fcness OF feeling which
unavoldably throws you back upon the author
own cast OF mind; but commanding your attention.
nevertheless, and emerging from the narrative IN
absolute clarity and v.vdness OF FORM the oe-
feet in the work lies In its passioness its blood
less nature Some amount Of cyncism can De
borne-any amount of 1t when ii is accompanied py
some reliance on the eternal spirit IN man, pu'
Dumas will have none of such reliance he loi.o"S
Ika's character through such ramlficauons as are
at the mercy of a sharp eye and subtle sense
Of touch What he cannot see what ne cannot ieei
love for example or the human causes OF human
doubt-he cannot understand, and he leaves theh
outside the reckoning. When you consider all mat
it implies. the laconic termination TO the taie Ell.
titled pile on Face, Is of the most cynica.
things in modern fiction. And you don't reel that
II IS because NJ. Dumas has weighed the human
heart and found it wanting 1t Is because ne mas
tried to weigh Il and given up the task lie begs
the question.
1t Is not many years since noted French painter
depicted him reading his latest drama TO the as
sembed soc!etaires In one Of the historic chambers
of the house of Moliere. Has he made 1t more his
toric? 1t seems hardly probable. To turn to the
Theatre Compet. with ali those giitterng prefaces
to note the swift and righteous execution OF MS
wit; to feel the inauguration of debate az he felt
It and makes his public feel II whether they VIII
or no; to look back his three score years ana
ten with an appreciation OF their unbsndng hdelity
to an admirable habit of clear thinking and clear
writing; 10 recall the entertainment afforded by
his novels for all their innocence OF one beguillng
charm--to do all this is to carry admiration OF Du-
mas to the point OF indulgence and Of regard But
then comes back that OF hardness OF opacity
In his work as Of a place whence there Is no issue.
There Is that absence Of one beguiling charm. You
remember Dumas pere. Sainte- Beuve, Balzac, Meri-
NEE. and you remember again. with Dumas f1is.
"les Goncourt" lola, Bourget, Maupassant, Ca
tule Mendes and the rest The first you feel
sure will be remembered always; Of the others no
man ia sure. .f