The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-06-18
BeIlamyism Once More.

After q long interval of silence Ed
lie another book dealing with social
problems after the manner of Looking
Backward" 1t will be called Equal
ity," but as to its tenets we are not in
formed further than that it will in
volVe in some respects an answer to
critics of his natlonalistic and Coop
erative policy. A note from the pub
Usher tells us that publication will be
simultaneous in the United States
Great Britain, France, Germany, Swift
zerland, Belgium, Spain and Italy, from
which it is to be inferred that a large
sale is expected. But that would be
only a natural expectation after the
success of Looking Backward" of
which over 100000 copies have been sold
in this country alone, and which has
been translated into nearly every civ
ilzed tongue.
Since the time Of the publication Of
"Ben Hur" no such an instance of sud
denly acquired popularity has been
known In American letters as that
which followed the production of
Looking Backward" The author of
this interesting book duplicated By
ron's experience of awakening one
morning to find himself famous. Prior
to that time he had been known in the
journalistic and literary circles of
Springfield, Mass, as a man of vigor-
Gus ideas and diversified culture, whose
editorials in Mr.. Bowles' Republican
were not simply we'll written. but Of
ten unique in originality and Virllity
but of whom no startling literary
achievement on broad scale was for a
moment expected. We have been told
that Looking Backward" was written
for the greater part during the inter-
Yals In Mr. Bellamy's daily toll as a
newspaper worker one favorite time
and place for its composition being dur
ing the noon hour at a little table in
one of the German beer saloons in
Springfield, whittier the author was ac,
eustomed to go for his lunch. This
may be fairy tale, although 1t was
told to us by Mr. Bellamy's cousnj but
in the soeialistic undertone of the book
one may almost perceive the reflex OF
German restaurant.
1t was the shrewd Judgment or good
fortune of Mr.. Bellamy to put forth
this work just at the time when the
| public mind was In a humor to dabble
In sociology Of the visionary kind.
Political and economic conditions had
| bred an unrest which among the ignor-
| ant tended to violence and, among the
| learned, to speculative socialism, Mo-
| body knew just what he wanted, but
everybody fancied he wanted some-
thing new In social customs and gov
ernment, and declined to be happy un-
Ill he got ii. In this emergency came
Bellamy with his irideseent nationalis-
tie dream, and In day the field was
his. We have never been able to de-
termine to our own satisfaction
whether the spasm of mental specula-
tiop which his book melted worked
finally for good or evil, 1t was a com
plex eddy Of intellectual agitation whose
counter currents battle close investiga-
toni but upon the whole we incline to
the belief that the net effect has been
perHicious, Dissatisfaction has been
created with conditions that can never
he ohangedi the inevitable has been
painted IN eol0rs which make 1t harder
than ever TO endure, and about the only
! gain at all Is that some minds previous