The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-01-04
NEW MAGAZINES.

There are two rather notable papers
Of travel In the January Century. One
is by Marion Crawford and is entitled
"A Kaleidoscope of Rome" 1t Is kind
of musing over the glories of old and
the pitiableness of new Rome with sun
dry side remarks thrown in-as for in
stance. apropos of nothing. 1T Is
common to speak OF the crimes done in
the name of religion since the world's $
beginning. One forgets the sins done
for the sake of fashion. which are far
more numerous and far more base. One
forgets the hard-earned wages squan-
dered on worthless finery and, step
higher in the scale, the men of small
means ruined by their wives eytrava-
gance-the men who. to satisfy woman's
fancies, have gambled, have cheated.
have stolen, and have been ruined at
last; the children that have been robbed
OF n decent bringing up by vain and
reckless mothers: worst of all, the mil
lions of innocent girls who, since history
began, have sold their souls for an orna-
ment. for a frock, for tinsel gim
crack. There was a great deal of sound
good sense in mptuary laws" The
other Is by Thomas A. Janvier. and de-
scribes very yentertainingly. "A Feastday
on the Rhone." Mrs. Wards new serial
progresses finely. and there is an acces-
sion of interestto Professor Sloanes life
of Napoleon. which here treats of Bona
parte as the dictator of continental
Europe.
There are two conceits in the January
Philistine either of which would alone
be worth double the price of admission
(or rather acquisition). The first pur-
ports to be Il letter from Ruskin protest.
ing in true Ruskinian lustiness against
manners and things in general and the
second is Elbert Hubbard's sprightly
narrative describing the reasons which
led to the more or less signal failure of
certain initially promising and roseate
experiment in communism. Concern
ing the latter we refer the inquiring
reader to the thing itself; but as to the
former, 1t doesn't take great penetra-
tion to discover Mr.. Hubbard's handi-
work in that also, which probably ac-
counts for its enjoyableness. Witness
its peroration. and then dare to tell me
that IL isn't true to life:" Whenever
therefore, any new industry is started
such as this of picture making. the
making of beautiful handmade books
with a text to match), or handmade
lace or delicate precious things born of
a marriage of hand and brain, l pray
you patronize 1t and thus do yourselves
and the maker good. And to makers of
these precious things. I say, If you have
done no good by painting pictures and
making beautiful books, at least you
have done no serious mischief. a bad
picture is indeed a geeZle thing to have
in the house, and in Il certain sense a
jabberwocky thing, but dull book is
harmless and often looks well on the
center table, and neither will blow the
roof off. whereas, of most things
which the English. French and Ger
mans are paid for making nowadays
tt.t. loo.
know the best thing we can possibly
hope is that they may be useless. and
the net result of them-zero. There
fore l do pray that you will give your
attention to good things-buy books and
read them and annoy your neighbors no
more than conscience dictates and
emergencies demand"
Four excellent portraits Of operate
celebrities, namely Mile. Francis Sa
vile, Nine. Nordica, Pol. Plancon and
Heinrich Meyn, appear in the January
Looker-On, together with one capital
short story, one play and five special
articles, not to speak of Henry T. Fink's
musical comment and gossip and Will
lam II. Fleming's dramatic notes and
book reviews. The special articles
are by Frederic Dean. who writes of
la Nayarraise;" w. j. Henderson, who
discourses upon The New Tristan and
Isolde;" Philip Hale, who writes con-
cerning The Fantastical Jules La
forgne:" Francis Walker, who describes
"a Singers outing" and w. ]. Rolfe.
whose paper. the leading and by all
odds the most interesting one of the
number, treats of "Shakespeare's Allu
sions to Music" The lover Of music.
who does not read the Looker-On with
regularity misses much.