New-York tribune., 1897-01-25
LITERARY NOTES.

not appear 10 have won It's way in England with
the speed and assurance that It's title seems 10
promise
Professor skeat throws interesting light on an
old subject In a communication TO THE Academy.
He writes from Cambridge: "Excalibur Was the
name OF Arthur's sword: do not remember 10 nave
met with an explanation OF the name In perusihE
q MSS Of the fourteenth century iateiy came
across the expression 'cultellum ex caibe mean
ing a steel knife 1t occurs as probable that
the name Excalbur was simply suggested by TINS
medieval phrase 'ex calbe. and means hei'her
more nor less than made Of steel
TIL. first writer 10 follow In the train OF MT Hen
lev and the Earl OF Loveace in the deincaiion OF
IA pvron Is Mr.. Clement X Shorter. He found
his Bronts book q successful venture. so he mas
concluded TO make a volume about Byron WIN spe
cial reference TO the poets inherited traits anu 'e
Celtic strain in his blood Just when the WORK VIII
appear Is not yet known
Professor Max Muller has passed the proofs OF "'s
.Cor,r,hu,ions TO the Science OF Mythology ana
the book will be brought out In two voiurnes os VI"
yonemans this month or next. II nils OUT Inc u"
orv upon which the Professor has been ehsaseu
for many years. The other volumes arc s
.sc,snce OF Language" and Science OF Religion
Y. would be interesting 10 know II an ioea ac'ua'
so.s se,ze different individuals simultaneously
when those individuals are not IN any way III eo
nunicat,on with one another. How IL H. ior eA
ample that Mr.. Horatio T. Brown shouo nv upO'.
,ha idea OF getting out a new edition OF Nasa'i d.
,.o .au,s time that Mr.. and Mrs. BlashneId ano
Mr. Hopk,ns thought OF getting out theirs ih'
news OF Mr. Browns edition comes from 'o'
where Il IS announced. indeed. that ne Is maA'"s
r.w .,ran,le,ion' Of the Lives" The books are 10
ha richly illustrated and will have many "''
tom. Mr. Brown is a writer ana conio'sseui ~ - =.
s,,c, trea exper,ence and taste that his EDITION -
hound 10 be n good one. Nevertheless IL VIII na''
20 b. very very good 10 invaidate 'ne A"'e''"
edition 10 which we have referred
r.. a.urh,er Of Samuel Lover Mrs fanhy
schm.d has written some recoiectons oi "e
<...a- ,o- the forthcoming Century. The paper
will hs ACCOMPANIED by some drawings ana le''e''
renroduced from an album OF Lovers wnich IS no"
4, tho hands OF his grandson. Victor Herbert me
musician.
r, co,,,,ers have acquired the copyright OF
,hose novels by George Meredith which nave mere
.o.o-e been IN the hands OF another American pun
Usher and hence they remain the sole 'epieso'
lives q, the novelis, IN this country. Inc same
,ovsa a,nounces in conjunction with John Murray
~ London the famous three volumes OF ni'"','
unnuh,jshed Gibboniana. The scribners nave aiSo
A.. ,-ass new and revised edition or Sione!
yr,a-.s work on The English Novel and VIII
bring out in the american History series n 100
h~ professor John w Burgess on The M'oue
P<iod'
Nv. Sarah Grand has written large part OF
,.- Now novel but the book II IS beiieveo VIII no'
u. published for nearly year. Ihe au'no' -.
t..avenlv Twins" Is never strong IN heaI'n, anu
cannot write rapidly. II ia said 'ha' 'ho o'''0
has been OF much beneft &c her
~. coun,,,ee Of the Gibbon Commentator
cough. 70 erect memorial tablet TO tho historian
4, IN. chapel ~ Magdalen College and suo.',P
.,or was opened Recently the presioen, anu i
lows haye formally declined the memorial anu VI"
,rna. have been applied 10 IN. purchase for each
srhscriher o. a copy % the new EDITION VI "'
autobiography which IS coming out
.,,a.., interest Of the literary world mas
,.., s,rred by the announcement OF tne reoe" w
cove-v in Egyp, OF a copy OF bacchSii'ee pn s
~. na,vru. containing this treasure mas Jus' o
.s.oa ~ the British Museum. and Mr.. hehSo" 10
rox emploved in reading H. with VIZ" "
,,s snaedv publication. 1t contains roue"'s
,,mated about thirty columns OF soou' '
,h-es lines apiece Half OF these coiu'''"' "
,-sc.,cauy complete. and * is hoped thar 'he ""'e
Gus s-ali fragments which accompany '"e ps p"ps ~ -,
ava which have not yet been thoroughly ehoush III
vsstigated 10 determine their connection win INC
uho,e NAV serve to I'LL wholly or parNaly some
a, the raps Some Of the fragments have ALREADY
b4er fitted into their places The manuscript ap
cear. 20 belong 10 the first century b. C.
yVhila The volume will by means restore 70 us
.he entirety OF Bacchylides's work X Will 1urh'sh
suffcent to give US clear impression OF MS s.'ie
and means Of estimating his poetical genius sew
eral odes are preserved entire and there are a'se
,,o,tions Of many others Most OF them are fpifk'ah
naas written IN honor ot victors IN the various
games O.ymp.an. Nemesn. Pythan and lstnmlah
Among the vctors so celebrated are Hero OF SEfa-
cuse, in whose honor appear TWO poems Te'a'ng 70
the same victory tina, celebrated ny Pincar. lhs
confirms the tradition that Bacchyldes was faNor-
TIA Of Hero and for time attached 10 MS court
ant Incidentally also. the tradition that between
him and Pniar strong rivalry existed O'"eI
,.cto-s celebrated are Alexiiamos o. Metapontum'
Te,s.as o. Aig!na Automeies Of Phius and LacAon
OF Keos
IN a private letter Nr Kenyon. the only one VINO
ts. We. read the poems states his first impressions
derived from his reading while performing the work
o. decpherment and transcription: My feeling IS that
I.onginus cor whoever wrote the DE Sroimitaie) }
was right IN comparing him with Hyperei'es He is.
think easier than Pindar. has graceful and pleas
ant style and picturesque poetical vocabulary. buy
is without either Pindars strength and spendor or
his forced and strained turns o. expression
The Information which have heretofore mad
concerning Baccayides has been relatively slight We
possess about forty ff;y fragments. mostly pre-
served in the form OF incidental citation In other
authors. particularly in Ahenaeus. These have been
collected by Neue and by Bergk in his "Griech!sche
Iyrik" They afford. however. little opportunity for
an estimate of his genius. Il is aso known that ne
was contemporary OF Smondes and Pindar. and
lived about 5l0-ii0 r. c. He was q native OF
the same Island Ckeosp Prodicus and S!monldes,
and was a nephew Of the latter. Though no; rated
by ancient critics IN the rs rank Of lyric writer's
-. e as the peer OF Smondes and Pindar-he was
assigned a place in the canon OF the nine lyric poets.
and was rnucn read and admired all through Greek
ard Roman times. One OF his most fervent admirers
was for Instance the Emperor Julian.
The addition within the last few years OF the oratons
@. Hypereides the Poliisia OF Aristotle, the mines
OF Herondas and now Of the poems OF Bacchylides
70 our stock Of Greek literature inspires the hope that
much OF that priceless material which has hitherto
been given up lost. may yet be recovered and re-
stored the use Of mankind
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