davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The times., 1897-10-31
ably be done. tHarper's Weekly Club, 9l-
93 Fifth avenue, New York city.)
"rhe Hermit of Nottingham.p .

6hoemakers should stick to their lasts,
says the proyerb- The abstract truisIn
thereof applies TO the case Of Charles
Conrad Abbott, naturalist, who has lett
nis sphere for little journey after
laurels as novelist. His effort Ia this
field Is ''The Hermit of Nottingham, y
a story OF how young Philadelphian
crossed into Jersey and met, wooed, and
won a little Quakeress.
Mr.. Abbott hasn't the art or the artifice
of an accomplished fictionist Moreover,
he lacks the fundamental qualification Of
a story teller, Imagination; the qualfica-
ton which conjures up theme and theory
and embelishes ana ndbeaUtifies with d hun
dred touches which are the gift of in.
spiratior, ds well as the breath Of genius
for the work. Ii is net hard to imagine
that anyone who writes correct English
and has as extensive a familiarity with
the old types Of Enghsh fiction as Mr..
Abbott evidences, could write about as
good novel as The Hermit OF Noting
ham,
But sometimes in a graceful metaphor
or an apt siniie, or d descriptive digres.
Sion, the writer shows his real metal
Scratch hsnovelist. and iyoun find his skin
a veneer; underneath ) the naturalist. lie
knows Nature and her birds, flowers and
trees, her roads ana ravines, and all her
multipleX attractiveness. He has often
charmed us in his bird books, for with his
feathered friends hes:s al home. He knows
OF what he is writing, and therefore Ian
guage is 10 effort. In his story his st yle
is laburee and forced. He hasn't the
grasp on human nature that he has on
ANIMAL nature. and he hasn't command
even Of the machinery OF noyel building.
tie pats poinpois dramatic sentences into
the mouths of commonplace people, his
characters utter long speeches, which
should have been given as the novelist s
analysis Of their mental workings, which
they Themselves do not understand he
permits artificial soliIoquiss, and, above All.
he hasn't the gift OF presenting cctumon
places with significance.
In tone the story is healthy aud normal
the characters arc pronounced in their DOM
inant phases, and the denouancnt does not
suffer much III prcttiness and desirahleness *
because 1t is anticipated from the begin.
ming. But Mr. AbbO 1 is a so much better
writer of natures birds than OF artificial
human beings that we feel inclined IL
dampen his ambitions rs novelist and beg
HIM TO 20 abroad in. the fields aud dells
again 20 tell US more of the yoIcs of nature
which he hears with such sensitive ears
and records with a SO faithful pen The
publishers have made beautiful book OF
his script. philadelphia j. b. Lippincotu
& Co Washington: Woodward & Lolhrop
Sl25.)
The times., 1897-10-31
Seven Cases of Servant Girl.

John Kendrick Bangs has chosen for the
heroines oT his newest book of stories seven
specimens OF servant girl. The type is
suffIcieIuy familiar To the ma jority Of his
readers to place him before a rather more
than usually critical audience. The vicissi-
tudes of the serK ant question are part Of
the experience of everyone W ho Keeps
house, and While this renders Mr.. Bangs
readers the more exacting, it places them
in position to be more apprec ci. tive, and
If the stories had been Of more merit
a. pieces of humorous realism, his readers
might be more enthusiastic.
1T ma interest the readers of this col
lection OF tales, if there should be any
such, says the author, in his preface TO
know that the Incidents upon which these
stories are h9 sed are, unfortuna tely, wholly
truthful" MIR. Rangs writes with CON
viction that suggests the suspicion that he
knows the Perkins household somew hat
better than a man is a pt to know any other
than his own He calls his little volume
Paste Jewels" They are designed to be
the recital OF tie experiences OF young
married couple-Thaddeus and Bessie Per
kins ia their struggles with the aXigencics
Of housek eeaing. They start out with
servants who give evidence of being
Jewels" but short acquaintance with
them d:scloses that they areonly paste"
''The Emancipation of Thaddeus" is the
first story. II is the familiar case of the
subiugatiOn of A pair of young house
keepers by couple OF old family treasures
.'Iirad.ey's Jewel is an account of the
only perfect servant who is supposed ever
20 have lived: how her perfection was tou
much for her, and how she wentmad. I'm
expected Pomp at the Perkins y tells how
Mrs. Z. conquered fate and gloriously
saved a dinner party. In "A Strange Ban
quet' we find recital of the unaocount-
able and weird doings of d servant, who
seemed to have an inherent mania for giving
dinner parties There is story of Jane, -
paste jewel, who deterioTates under the
gentle sway OF kindness, but finds her
redemption III harsh and abusive treatment.
There is scarcely one of these paste jewels
that most readers have not known.
The idea of Mr.. Bangs sketches VIII at
onee te recognized as d singularly happy
one with rich deposit of humcr. A first
thought one credits his playful pen as the
oae TO draw these domestic pictures. Their
hBmor, however Is OF a mild and harmless
chdtdStet- iheN give one All the pre-
liminary sensations TO hearty laughter,
hut the merry laugh Is never called forth.
In the crescendo OF merit the servant girl
stories should have come some time back
In this writer's series of stories. They ha e
the promise Of which some of his other
work approaches nearer to the fulflIln,.,-.
To borrow a term from -SlY'
co,,,ruitte drama, he las
,su ene iiFfdrtupst.. r,io.ai,a or
making an anti-climax. New York: Har
The times., 1897-10-31
More Manhattan stories.

The Harpers have gathered together
an even dozen of Brander Matthews little
stories which have from time TO tine
appeared IN their periodicals., and repub-
iisb them under one cover. and under the
title, .outlines in Local Color The color
is lo.ai TO New york The twelvt. bits Of
fiction are hazy and light, mere sketches.
They are graphic, but, as implied in the
title, mere outlines.
The most complete and careful OF the
sketches is THE Vigil of Mcdowell Sutro,"
inwhichthe author describes & he nightpasSed
in Union Square by a young Californian
Who, though unaccustOned 20 poverty,
found himself penniless in New York CITY.
II is a vivid and interesting piece of
writing, with flashes OF huTnor, some
pathoS, ard much realistic description and
Characterization
MIR. Matthews runs the Whole ganut of
New York life and character, from the haut
ton atthe h0rSe-show TO the habitucs Of the
park bencheson a June night. The ''Rehear-
sal OF New Play gives a glimpse ofstage
life, wien the players are busy giving tie
finishing touches to d prospective produc-
tion. The solo Orchestra is a narrative
OF one OF ta2se interesting gentlemen who
simultaneously play drum and cymhaIs
Tith their feet, fiddle with their hands
and reed pipes with their mouths.
Theother stories are a Wall Street Woo
ing A Spring Flood in Broadway IAN
Irrepress.t3e Conflict - Candle in the
Plate. .''sAea and Women and Horses. and
in the Watches Of the Night = Tbara ara
The times., 1897-10-31
Three Beautiful Books.

A new edition Of ''TwiXt Cupid and
CrOesus" one OF the most delightful bits Of
romance ever penned, has just appeared,
and should commend itself 10 all lovers OF
fun and artistic beauty. 1t is, in brief, the
story OF a love affair told by the docu-
rnenIs in tile case all Of which, letters,
notes, teleCrams and newspaper clippings,
are accUraE ely reproduced. Opposite each
document is an illustration Of peculiar pal
ness, and TOO much cannot be said Ia
praise Of the illustrator. The pretty girl,
the rich cad, and the poor but aristocradc
young lover alternate with quaint and
cUmically charming Cupids in all stages
OF delight, perpleNity and Woe. The writ
Ing is As Characteristic as the dictiol-
The story begins with d telegram annOunc-
ine thu maiden's arrival in town. Notes
which follow show Jv'inges or jealousy on
the part OF the nance, as the rich rival
appears on the scene On each occasion
The lovers wreJh is carefully soothed b.
the lady. till the climax arrives in the shape
OF a proposal from Beaker, the millionaire.
The two letters get into the wrong
envelopes. WRATH expostuiationsI ragei
tears, and the departure OF the maiden for
Europe. Following this, clipping, puI-
porting TO be from the New York Tribune,
announcing the arrival III Paris of the in
5ured maiden, and evidently on the same
steamer, in a hurry. dearest Jack" The
whole thing is unique, dainty and mirth-
provoking.
By tie same author is RI S. Y. p
novelette,, which is as carefully printed
and illustrated, though not so original in
arrangement II is simply a short nc
count Of a plot 70 test tie fealty of a
young man by the writing Of a bogas
letter. There is a good cal of human
nature IN IL, aud it is cleverly written
The Same publishers have issued a little
volume OF daiuty love-veEse, entitled Rose
Leaves, by Henry Clayton Hopkins, il
lustrated by Lee Woodward Zeigler. The
dedication ITO LYDIA" suggests lavender
and Ot-pourri, and side-curls, and softly
flowing draperies, and the illustrations
carry out TINS suggestion The verse is "A
sort Of Cross between Tom Moore ard
SNvinburne; one little song, especially, be
ing strongly reminiscent Of the latter
(wiliams wilkins Company, Baltimore.
Md
The times., 1897-10-31
per s. Bros. washington: Woodward
s LotnrOp. SD
"The Campaign of Marengo.'


Herbert II. Sargent is the author OF a
history of, and the commentary upon, THE
Campaign OF Marengo.' He is u soldier by
profession, lieutenant OF the Second
Cavalry, United States Army, and tie au-
thor OF Napoleon Bonaparte's First Cam
paign,'' and in his preface he says the
book as written Tor both soldier and civil
ian. 1t is. however, work with a dis
Cinct and almost exclusive appeal to those
who make d study OF a profession of the
science or war
After the successes of Egypt, when Ma
poleon returned in October of 1899 to
Francs, lie found an alliance between
Austria anG England, with tile avowed
and determined purpose TO crush the
French republic. Alarengo was the scene,
eight moaths later, of the decisive battle
of the campaign. There the Corsican, with
only 10000 soldiers, resisted defeated and
Routed Gen. sielts with his 80 900 Aus
trians. The reason of the triumph of the
lesser % uneven forces, ana the methods
OF the victor, is always an interesting
study TO the professional soldier and the
scholarly hisuoriah. The astonishing fea,
ture OF this battle was, however, the
fact that the French were defeated in de
tail by the Austriaus iil the morning, and
in the aft.rnuon they rallied and snatched
Il complete victory from the fire.
aiT Sargent comedies the brilliancy uf
Napoleon operations III point Of strate-
gic Dianeuvers and far-reaching results,
but he ciiticizes him for his execution Of
his plans. These and other technical ques-
tioIs OF the Work can appeal only To tie
critical Judgment OF militarycx There
are four maps at the end OF the hook Illus
tratirs the salient features of the campaign
tChieago; A. g. McClurg & Co. Washing
ton: nallantyne & Sons. 81 .5o)
The times., 1897-10-31
f41tIjt-ll|17lt[.t7a-l f4Ij-l 3

many descriptive passa yes of varying merit
Here is one duplicated in every society col
umn of the season:
The atmosphere was heavy with the per
fune of flowers, which Were banked mp
high on the mantelpieces and the tables,
while thick festoOns of smilax were pen
dant from all The gas fixtures anu over
all the mirrors. Palms stood in The cor
ners and in the fireplaces. and at one end
OF the hail they We're massed as screen,
through which gliNpSes could be caught
of the bright uniforms of The Hungarian
band
That is commonplace and unworthy OF Il
place in Mr. Matthews books. Very much
better, a descriptive gem indeed, is this
picture OF February day on Sixth ave
nue.:
Taere had been hesitating fall of snow
in the morning. but before noon il lad
turned into a mild and fitful rain that had
finally modified itself into a ciin nglng
mist as evening drew near. The heavy
snOWSUOrm OF tne last of January hac ieIt
the streets high on both sides with banks
that thawed swiftly whenever the sun
came out again, the water running from
them into the broad cutters, and then
freezing hard at night, when the cold wind
swept acpOss the city. Now, at night
Iali after d nuggN dag, SickentnS siusn
had spread itself ireaCherously over all the
Crossings. The shop girls going home had
to pick their way cautiously from corner 10
corner. under the iron pillars supporting
the station of tn. elcVat ell road.
Tram followed Tram overhead, each
closts on the others heels, and the clouds
of steam swirled down as the engines
came to a full stop, with a shrIll grinding
of the brakes. from the skeleton spans
Of the elevated road moisture dripped on
the ca ble cars below, a. tney ruululeu along
with tneiT bells Clanging sharply W hen they
neared the crossings. The atmosphere was
tniek win damp haze, and there was
a halo about every yellow globe IN the
Of ha is4r r. a
ners of the avenue. More frequent, as the
dismal day wore 10 an end, was the hoarse
and luguI rious tOohng Of The Jerry -boals
ia East River
New York: Harper & Bros. Wash
irgton Woodward x Lothrop, 81 .50.i
The times., 1897-10-31
"AIan Ransford.-

This is story by Ellen Douglas Deland
and di5Gesignedt tor reading by boysand girls
Tie Characters are young PhilaGelphians.
It's purpose is to entertain and, a { the same
time, show that the innocent intimacy of
boys and girls has a good influence on both
sexes Tie narrative grows into ii pretty
love story toward the end There are
vivaciouS descriptions OF the plot of the girls
TO invade the forbiddeu grounds OF the mu-
scum and the disasters that ensued; a
football match between Harvard and
Pennsylvania, and class day at Harvard
(New York Harper & Bros. Washington
Woodward & Lothrop S1.50.)
The times., 1897-10-31
LITERARY NOTES.

Mrs. Ole Bull is making another strenu-
Gus effort this winter to establish a lit
erary salon in Boston, OF, more properly
in Cambridge. Last season her house was
the resort OF those who loved to dip into
strange philosophy, especially while the
Oriental adept, the Swami Yivek ana ia. dis
coursed there Oh Brahmin and Buddhist
philasophies. This year her doors are
thrown uprn to IL course Of iectur Is or talks
on high bus miscellaneous topics delivered u
by various uotables, including certain
Harvard professors. A few weeks ago the
discourse WAS given by talented Scotch
man Mr.. Davids. The subject was the La.
ocoon, ami the feature Of main interest Mr..
Davids' scholarly presentation OF the close
identity of the moral ideas OF the Greeks
and the Semitic peoples. In another lecture
he show that the Greeks were in the main
of Semitic blood. On that occasion the great
hall of the Bull mansion Was literally pack
ed. This event was eclipsed, however, on
a recent Sunday afternoon, when Joseph
jefferson, who was Mrs. Bull Is guest, dis
coursed ON dramatic expression. 1T was
a notable sight" says d Boston correspond
ent, to see grave Harvard dons as well as
students, women OF fashion as well as
danes of severe intellectual countenance,
gathered together to feast upon the words
of an actor who was not giving dramatic
performance. Not only was the grand old
teakwood hall filled. but the audience
oyerflowed into the adjoining dining hail
and thence into the quaint old Norwegian
room, filling even the InediaevaI Morse
chairs and settle that graced its walls
And Mr.. Jefferson-what rare old man
he is off the stage when he is not a wit
by proxy, but let's his own niInble, native
wit have full play-was fairly pelted
with questions at the close, and each one
he parried or answered d With an aptnsss as
swift as it was keen and subtle.''
The times., 1897-10-31
In Alemoriam.
OLIVIA srsAN cLEMENs.

(Died August s, 1896; aged "a
In affair valley-oh, how long ago, how long
agOi-
Where ali the broad expanse was clothed
IN vines,
And fruitful fields and meadows starred
with flowers,
And clear streams wandered at their idle
Will,
And suu lakes slept, their Furnished sur
faces
A dream of painted clouds, and soft airs
Went whispering with odorOus breath,
And all was peace-in that fair vale.
Smut from the troubled world, a nameleS
hamlet drOwsed-
Hard by, apart, temple stood;
And strangers from the outer world
Passing, noted it with tired eyes.
And seeing, saw it not:
4 gl1npS, o1 It's fair form an wering
mOmentary thrill
And they passed on, careless and una Ware
They could not know the cunning of its
make;
They coaid not know the secret shut up in
its heart;
Only the uwelers of the hamlet knew;
gold;
What marble seemed, as ivory;
The glories that enriched the milky sur
faces
The trailing vines and interviewer flowers,
And tropic birds a-wing, clothed all in
They kuew ior what they were. not what
they seemed.
EncruSlug, al OF gems, not peTishable
splendors of the brush
They knew the secret spot where one must
stand
They knew the surest hour, the proper
slant OF sun
To gather in, unmarried, undimmed,
The vision of the 1ane in all its fairy
grace,
A fainung dream against the opal sky
And more than this. They knew
That IN ire temples inmost place spirts
dwelt,
Made all OF light!
For giimpses of it they had caught
Beyond the curtains when the priests
That served the altar came and went.
All loved that light and held it dear
That had this partial grace,
But the adoring priests alone who lived
by DAY and night submerged in its I'M
mortal glow
Knew ali its power and depth, and could
appraise the loss
II it SnodIo fade and fail and come no
more
All this was long ago-so long agol
The light burned on; and they that woT-
shipd it,
And they that caught its flash at intervals
and held it dear,
Contented lived in its secure possession. An,
How long ago it was
And then when they
Were nothing fearing, and Gods peace
was In the air,
And none was propheS ying harm
The vast disaster fell:
wucrr ant the temple when the sun wenf
down
Was vacant desert when 1t rose againl
All, yes 'Tis ages since it chancedl
So long agoit was,
That from the memory OF the hamIet-folx
the Light has passed
They scarce believing, ROW, tha tonce twas.
or il believing. yet not missing il,
And reconciIed To have it gone.
Not so the priests! Oh, not so
The stricken ones that served it day and
night,
Adorins It, abiding in the healing of its
peace;
They stand, yet, where erst they stood
Speeenless In that dim morning long ago;
And still they gaze, as then they gazed,
And murmur, 1T will come again;
1t know our paiu-it knowS-it knows
All, surely it viii come again"
Mark Twain. in HaTper's Magazine,
The times., 1897-10-31

An ninventory of the promises of the maga-
zines for the New Year discioses the
following features: The Atlantic is SO proud
of its own anniversary number that it viii
have memorial numbers, celebrating the
semi-centenniaIs OF Vanity Fair and OF
'.Bigelow Papers - The Century Will
have a novelty Mrs. Burton Harrison, Good
Americans Harper's offers 'Roden's
Corner, by Henry Seton Merriam. Features
of McC,ure's viii be Charles A. Dana S
"reminiscences and Chapters of the Life
of Christ by Ian Maclaren. Scribner's
coup de force is Henry Cabot Lodges
STORY of the Revolution"
The times., 1897-10-31

a writer in the Pail Mall Gazette has
been disconrsiug on that exhaustless sub
Ject, the earnings OF authors Tennys0n
is set down by this writer as having made
fI2 o0oa year hy his poems, while Brown
ing earned 42 900, and Swinburne 81 .0o0.
Hymn-writine, if this statistician is to be
believed, Is the most remuneratiye sort of
yersisying, Or he sets down Mr.. n L. Moody
az having made R250.0OO by his religious
verse. Mrs Humphrey Ward leads the
list of English novellsts, having earned
96O,O 900 in eight years with five books,
one of theIu, Bessie Costren," being
barely more than short story. Mr. Kip
ling las broken his own record, according
to the cattle dispatches 1t is understood
that roi the poem, which is to be written
for the first number OF Literature, which
is to be issued under the auspices of the
London Times Rudyard Kipling VIII be
paid 81 q word. 1t is entitled, white
Horses is in ten stanzas of eight lines
each. and is appropriate for Trafalgar
Day, trt without word of politics in it.
The Critic.
The times., 1897-10-31

In a letter to Current Literature correct
Ing a little note that has been going the
rounds of the press, Miss Maria Audubon,
granddaughter of the naturalist, John
James Audubon, says: The work of COM
piling my grandfather's journals has been
completed, and illustrations are now being
selected for it. should like to correct an
item that has been going through the press.
l have been twelve years collecting my uii1-
terial, but only two in arranging 1t for pub
lcation. There has been no translation
necessary, beyond occasional words and
phrases, as the journals are written in very
beautiful English. Part of the writing was
very small and required a reading-g glass,
butth greater part is legible, though often
faded.i
The times., 1897-10-31
A Choice of Nliseries.

tFrom the Indianapolis JournaL)
I'm tell You what to do" said the man
who knows it all. IF you are in doubt
about your plumbing a little peppermint
poured into the pipes win reveal any leak
But" said the householder, where tho
dickens aIc l 10 live until the peppermint
s.nsr gets ont OF the house: tell ne that?s
The times., 1897-10-31

Mr.. Frank R. Stockton is putting the
finishing touches to a series OF historical
stories concerning the buccaneers and
pirates OF the Atlantic coast. The sketches
will appear in st. Nicholas before their
issue in Look form. He has also just eoni-
pleted short romantic story Of life III
New Orleans, which will be published in
the Century Magazine.
The times., 1897-10-31

Gen. Lew Wallace will shortly publish
a hook containing two long poems ''Tke
wooing of Mulkatoon" and ''Commodus."
The first is an Oriental love story; the sec
ond, a play founded upon dramatic in
cident III .he time of Rome's greatest glory.
Ger, Wallace has worked long and care
fully on these poems, and this venture in
new field will be watched with interest.
The times., 1897-10-31

The late Mr.. George NJ. P uIlman, creator
and president of the Pullman Palace Car
Company, gave 100000 to the Art Mu-
scum in jackson Park. Chicago, presented to
the city OF bronze group of statuary. and
gave to the city of Pullman, which he
founded, many thousand volumes for its
public library.
The times., 1897-10-31

Though Mark Twain's new book is
known in America as Following the Equa-
tor the English publishers have retained
The original title, The Surviving Innocent
Abruad's
The times., 1897-10-31
Medical Snort.

(Fron the Chicago News.N
Gunn-Dr. Cubebs was very successful On
his recent hunting trip.
Dunn-How did he manage it? Prescribe
for the game2
The times., 1897-10-31

ten to twelv efrancs month, ,includingtheir
food. Tpc captains of the three large cara
vels had each eighty francs month. As
for Columbus himself, who had the title OF
admiral, he was paid 1000 francs 4 year.
The times., 1897-10-31

The literary event of the NONE ent is the
appearance of NJ. Anatole France 5 Name
quin d'Osler." which is the sequel tu the
"Onns du Mail which was one of the Wit
test anG most successful of this brilliant
authors productions, writes Rowland troug
from Paris. But, though nothing from NJ
Anatole frances pen is to be despised and
tlie average of his work is extraordinarily
high, his adIRIrers are unanimous in pro-
claiming this most recent addition to his
works I" ne his cher d'oeuyre. surprising
all that he has yet written in polished deli
cacy of styl" in philusophie humor. ana IN
audacity OF thought NJ. Anatole France.
who was olIlylately admitted tothe French
Academy, and has not yet been officially
received by that august body, has for years
supplied the intellectual sources from
which much that sells well in the modern
French book shop is obviously derived. He
is paradoxical and has the independentten
dencies in his manner of estimating men and
laws whica not seldom characterize the
pure ,hirker ami scholar, who isolates him
self In his intellectually from too close
q contact with practical life.