New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-12-11
WILLIAM BLACK DEAD.
AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS SKETCH OF THE
NOTED ENGLISH NOvELIST-LIST
OF HIS WORKS.
London Dec 1O-The death IS announced Of
William Black the novelist


London. Dec. 1O-The death is announced Of
William Black the novelist.
In short biography CT himself. written in 1877
for London publication. William Black said:
am Informed on what hold 10 be excellent az
thority. that l was born IN Glasgow OF either
November 70 or 70 isE-the precise day Is not
point likely to drive TIE world into convusions OF
dispute I never had any systematized education
10 speak OF but managed 10 pick Up vast array
OF smatterings-a crude and confused jumbo O.
hydraulics, Latin verbs. vegetable physiology
Czernvs exercises for the plano. ard dozen other
things: perhaps not unnatural outcome OF a..
when was that found myself engaged. at one ana
the same time a translation o. Ivy WhitA
was 10 exec in literary accuracy anything me
world had ever seen before. on the formati9n OF d
complete collection OF British hoWerinS p'ah's-'n7
grasses ard cryDtogams were tribe peyoh' NJ
and on the construction-on pa?erof 2 machine
which should demonstrate the pOssibl!iT q per
petual notion The translation Of Livy did rot ge'
beyond haif book or so: that monument CT ."'"-
Ing is AZ the disposa. CT any puoshe; VINO VIII pay
for It. The perpetual motion machine was never
forwarded 10 the ROYAL Society, but rs phantom on
nsper a; least succeeded Ia pulling q good nan,
worthy oersors who could only bling against i th-
objection tha. In tine friction would destroy the
nccharlsm-a ruerile and vulgar argument Ine
scsnt herba:ium remains 10 this day poor enough
trca Sdre-nOuse or HOldl.4~a. 4y41' '"N :" 80
ure-house Of memories ~ nnumerahie and feaith-
ful wander.rss by hi ard moorland and s'asnors'
through the rain and sunlight. and teau'llul 80
OF the Western Highlands Bat me chl'i.-'
Of ny ambitions was 20 become landscape i@''1''
and I abored away For a year or two at the GOV
ernment hool Of Art and presented my i''e'N
with the most horrible Nominations In waieT-co1ot
ani oil san artist l was a complete failure ana
60 qualified for becoming in after h.e-ioE 'h'-
= art critic. -,
NJ first essay in literature took the ioGm Oh
series cf elaborate articles the cnel writer's u
tie dav. and these forwarded anonymously 10
the es.,o- az Glasgow daily newspaper wnch Is
now dead Thev appeared. so far as can reco'-
ieci In large type and In prominent pos''o'' 49,
70 doubt the public came 10 the cohc'uS'o'. '"'1
there was something graveIy wrong about TINS %
tia, theory O. NJ Ruszin. or some hidden virtue
never before discovered in this or the oIheE passage
~ Mr. Chares K.ncsley when ths lmPo' AM
critic nointed these things out. think was theA
ahou. seventeen or eighteen. do not k"o"
whether Mr. Ruskn ever amended MS "a!S :"
obedience TO nv serious remonstIanoes' ana an
afraid - Carlyle never needed the protests
made in Carlyese. against Catylese' Du' TIC
public was doubtless impressed
Nv next departure series Of sketches OF
rarnbles in the country. written IN IMITATION u
! Christopher North. These were conuiouteo ~
The Weekly CITIZEN" then ard now cohouc'eu
by Mr. James Hedderwick. author G; Lays Oh
Middle Age" and charming essay!st. suose-
oue,.l,, .o,naa the staff Of The Citizen and
yyon- through the ordinary curriculum or becoming
in turn dramatic critic musical critic a couIo
pay The Blue Bells Of Scotland VII" 20"
hands, reviewer and assistant suD-eH!'o'' ~
On one occasion--thoufh am really ashamed 20
NIKE tho confessional wrote leading article on
the American civil War ano severely condemned
the miserable tactics Of a particular general io'-
get whom.
left Glasgow for London in 1854 and very soon
became faciie manufacturer OF leading arucies'
IN 1896 The Morning Star sent ne out as its spe-
iai correspondent 10 describe the Prusso-Austr!an
war my chief qualification for the task being that
knew about enough German TO enable me 10 ask
Tor a railway ticket. and that mad attehuNeN
studied the wars q the Jews In the history o.
JosephGs that being the only secular book which
we children were allowed TO read OF Sunday even
Ing never saw any fighting, but managed 20
get forward In time see the dead bodies !yng on
the field OF Konigsratz-aDd very pretty s'sHl
that was .iy subsequent connection with Journal
ism may be Briefly summed up. vas for bout a
year Editor Of The London Revie~.' and AFTER
ward for & short period. OF The Examiner Then
e.. three or four years was assistant editor OF
The Daily News" ~ career a. Journalist end
ed n 1915.
Now l come 70 NY novels had written an1
published r. Glasgow q short story n one volume
there vas nothing n Il, In 1865 published Love
or Narraee" IN three Volumes. Not having read
this story sine l have only vague impression
thar 4 aimed at the reconstruction o. the whole
social system. that II was largely Favored wl'n
Feuerbachs Essence OF Christianity" and that Il
deaed the Pruss.an nation. A yolns aGthor. VINO
has no established pgo.c % whom ~ Directly ap-
peals naturally turns 10 the h.1d'e ..',eA e''s re-
Viewers. 10 learn II tAere IS any merit II rs 2ovt
IL cannot. ct course. accept the judgment OF rs
friend. te.auss his .ren isapart from the newt
abe mid prasc-are generally possessed oy me Ge-
.usOn that they know the oElgin1.s OF ms cnaf-
s.uateriais" which ie has worked up" Bat
never could quite make out what tie reviewers
Vas strikins example Of the d5s.ruct.ve effect on
fiction o. Her,e.t Spence p5;hosoPhy' s ana
in shown ne aw;.. results in allowing soePt.cal
person "a % Sttre foiouei This vas Combine
1ia ~ The sGetchef OF dees-shoo.ing are very ven
done but he book obtained a greater success nan
tr ed 10 cure my OF his Weitschmerz by rerov-
Ing MIN lntO tae freer and nor JOYOUS ne OF az
was 5I5lisn5d anogmonslv-for various reason
in 81 and thl1k the BOOK must have nten prstty
seen !, slnce urder various titles and saise4. via
.s 9i 1:p.s. s7s rao sT,4 ge Aalea,1.ss Of
pnae;oi "a book in which here Is noting stragse
O. ing S SH wSs ro1d II roma4,e Iun
ts s mostly BY Amcricans-as srfhcieuty ac-
c,yss. e'@iiebocE 20 tie villages roads nd ms to
be me, win or tha' delrhtfu Journey.
a Princes Of Thule, ap9sared in is3 md since
pie on both SIDES c: the Atlantic. they beng ap-
Parenily ignorant 90 AXE moeern literature
he pronuncisto9 q rs t;;le The controversy
RACED Dlos fe.celv r. America. and the cortas On
would seem 70 have spread inro Canada. for the
other DAY got a pamphle, c9nt11inins a number
recc-.l.e Guest, IN W. had hecn written ~ mem
bers n the Canadian House If Commons and pre-
sa....1 o.. I'D Drferr. Three Feathers
nv next novel The Saturday Review. said thai
IRIS w4s q very good book. ant The Spectator,
errearirg or tire day. said Il was a very bad
one and when asfet ny fFienas wsish / was 10
IL r.t The fact Is had by his time been
studying he c:af, u STORYTELLING FOR aroat tes
sritgrfe-r2ert from the Young gentlemen who
fresh frora college were equally ready 10 lecture
Chsrc5lor Of the EXohecuei about MS ignorance
~ he first principles q taaetor and Prove - an
srrican traveller tha. rs statements Of what he