New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-08-04
CERVANTES.
QUESTIONS SUGGESTED BY MR.. wATTs's
ENLARGED BIOGRAPHY.

Mr. Watts has Willingly or unwttingly fol-
lowed the example OF James Dykes Campbell
who first made his life Of Colerdge preface 10
Co.eridge's poems. and then enlarged II In
separate work. One could wish that all dog
raphers had to go through this discipline lhere
would be fewer two-volume monstrosites' ana
biographies would become good stories" in every
sense of that pliabe phrase Mr. Watts mas to'd
a thoroughly good story with only such breaks
here and there the lapses Of literary TRADITION
have forced upon him. Merely for the sake Oh
the romantic element In the career OF Cervantes.
II would be pleasant to read more about the Dat
tie Of Lepanto and the captivity In Al
g.ers Mr. Watts's excuse Is good as 10
Lepanto. namely. that the narrative was
well told In Sir W. Stirling Maxwelrs life OF Don
John Of Austria But he has gone into details
ON the origin OF chivalric romance subject
which has been well nigh written TO death With
out bringing the argument 10 conclusion on
which even majority Of literary experts agree
Mr. Watts simply takes sides against the Ara
bian hypothesis Of Warrior and in favor OF Ritson
though II is Ritson much modified. HIS digres-
sion on this topic is interesting but the very fact
that he made 1t warrants one in criticising him
for not also going out of his way to give
sketch Of Lepanto sufficient to show how private
soldiers like Cervantes who were in some meas
ure their own commanders had 10 fight Mr.
Wattss account Of the affair In the "Encyclo-
paedia Britannica is better than the fragment
airy illusions in the present volume.
The key to Mr.. Watts's biographical view, as
we'll as his critical estimate of Cervantes. is that
the works particularly the Don Quixoie' were
q direct outgrowth Of the experience OF the man
In the less important writings. for example the
drama which embodied incidents OF slave life in
Algeria. one Of the two plays by Cervantes which
have been preserved this experience was set forth
crudely with little though, OF the inexhaustible
humor and the profound pathos underlying It,
These minor works were those simply OF good
story teller who earned his living such as II was.
1.,d delighted his hearers or his readers. The
number Of men who can do as much as this Is
endless Cervantes had no sooner opened way
than one shallower. but more cunning than he.
Lope de Vega. took the very bread out Of his
mouth by developing to the uttermost all the de-
vices for entertaining the public which Cervantes
invented Lope is Mr.. Wattss pet aversion. His
scandalous career and his still more scandalous
literary contrivances for making the public pay
the cost Of his vices. the ephemeral character OF
his works, the hypocrisy Of the devotion with
which his life concluded-all these provoke the
ire Of Cervantes's latest bographer. He thinks
nothing too malignant for Lope to have plotted
in the effort to ruin Ceryantes. In particular he
suspects him Of completely in the one hitherto
insoluble mystery Of Cervantes's literary career.
This relates TO the origin the authorship and the
purpose OF the forgery which purpor,ed 70 be a
sequel to the first part Of Don Quixote." Ger
vantes completed the work himself in his own
way. But while he was at work upon the second
part. OF which he mprudently published sug
gestion beforehand. there appeared work which
carried Don Quixote through n series Of adven-
,ot', ch,,th I'm, In yoaAh
This book was not presented to the public as the
work Of Cervantes. On the contrary. 1t revealed
plainly the design of making Cervantes and the
characters which he had created ridiculous The
author took upon himself the name Of Alonzo
Fernandez de Avellaneda but his actual identity
has remained unknown to the present day.
Were 1t not for certain malicious strokes par
ticulary in the preface. the paradox might be
maintained that Cervantes himself prvy
to this piece. since 1t unquestonably added to
the eagerness with which the second part OF
Don Qu:xote" from his own hand was awaited
by the people who had read the first part. The
spurious book fell into oblivion as the
one ii was meant to forestall issued from the
press, and vas only revived by the curiosity Of
literary outside Of Spain. Considering the
temper Of the times and the practice Of writer's.
even the malicious phrases alluded to might
have been endured by Cervantes with equan-
unity. The disguised author Knocked Cervantes
because Of his old age and bad temper. twitted
him with having written the first part Of his
work ia prison. and with having more tongue
than hands. The alluson here being to a defect
Of speech and the manned left hand OF Cervantes.
which had been mangled and rendered useless
by a ball from an arQuebuse at the battle OF
Lepanto These were all revilngs of sort that
could be easily answered Old age no crime
Cervantess temper. though satircal. was not
churlish Few men in his day wrote more In
diligently than he concerning the works OF
others. His broken hand was patent OF no
bility rather than topic for censure, and his
defect OF speech never affected his pen.
The sarcastic replies Of Cervantes in his own
second part TO his critic and imitator could also
be worked into a plausible theory that the whole
quarrel was a bit OF comedy violently overdone
Several Of those who have discussed the subject
take the ground that the anger OF Cervantes was
out Of proportion to the provocation which he
received Mr. Watts refuses to admit this. But
he is after Lope de Vega with vindictive pur
pose. He Is convinced that. II ever the letters
OF that abandoned playwright see the light OF
print the whole mystery Of Avellaneda and the
so-called forgery will be explained 1t happens
that a vigilant German has already lighted upon
one letter OF Lope's which contains an alusion
10 Ceryantes la this case Lope lie giving his
correspondent the latest news from the capital
"Of poets | speak not" he writes. Many are
in the bud for next year. but there are none 81
bad as Cervantes or so foolish as TO praise
Don Quixote.'" And again. speaking Of satire.
1T Is a thing as hateful to me as my little books
are to Almendares "a poor poep and my plays
to Cervantes" There are those who say that
these phrases belray no deadly feeling on the
part Of the successful dramatst toward the man
whom no had indeed rather ungenerously sup
planted, No more Ia said IN tact than cervan,ea
himaeIf had glXen warrant for IN speakinE OF hia