The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-02-11
LITERARY GOSSIP

The novels that sold best in Deem
Der were "Quo Vadis," Hugh Wynne,"
THE Choir Invisible" The Christian
Captains Courageous and I'm Ke-
dar's Tents" The first three a led
all others for months. The second is
by a northern writer and the third by
a southern. The others are English,
except the first, which is by a Pole.
Mrs. Craigie C:John Oliver Hobbes'')
is a successful and brilliant novelist.
She vas born in Boston and has both
Puritan and American Tory blood in
her veins.
John ~Sargeaunt in The New York
"Bookman' contends that the great
DR.. Sam Johnson was not the intense
English Tory as is supposed, but was
no little of a Wing. He says he was
a Tory because he was Indifferent to
the forms of government" His closest
friends were among tine Wings and he
admired Edmund Burke above wi
others who was a Wing leader.
England has some very clever ballad
writer's living. One Of them, Henry
Newbolt, is particularly good. The
| specimens we AVE read from his vol
ume are not only animated, vivid and
simple. but have a genuine ballad Tilt
that is unmistakable. His f1uency and
directness are most prominent.
London 'L%iterature'' considers Mark
Twain's new book, more TraTnps
Abroad" altogether inferior to his two
very popular and amusing books,
'"Tom Sawyer and "Huckleberry
Finn" But Mark is funny and f~arcical
and roIlicking in spite Of the critics.
In the beginning of his latest he says:
'nwo members of my family elected
to go with me, also a carbuncle. The
dictionary says a c~arbuncle is a kind
Of jewel. Humour is out of place in a
dictionary"
Max Pemberton ranks among the
best of the new school of English novel
lists. hls volume OF stories he calls
Queen of the Testers, and Her Strange
Adventures in Paris" is much praised
for it's dramatic interest and invention.
1t is said to be full Of comedy.
The recent life of the French sceptic,
Ernest Renan, by Nine. Darmisteter
is regarded with favor 10y American
and English critics of position. 1t is
said to have much charm as a literary
production, but cannot rank with the
few great biographies, for no woman
yet has been able to write a biography
of the first rank. Mr.. Richard H. Stod-
dard, in The New York Mail and Ex-
press, writing Of the clever biography
of a writer of much Importance in his
country, incidentally writes this:
1.-The peculiar cast of mind and direc-
ton Of thought essential to the equip
ment of a biOgrapher who is worthy of
the NAME, is one of the rarest of hui
man endow7nents, so far, indeed, in the
world of English letters that all its
great biographies may be counted on
the fingers of one hand-BosWell, Lock-
hart, MoOre-three men, but no woman,
though many women nave attempted
biographies, as they have attempted
histories, which are merely biographies
writ large" and are forgotten"
This is perhaps just. Boswell's Life
| Of DR.. Samuel Johnson" mot Ben JON
son, the Elizabethan dramatist, as
l SOlle SuppOSGJ. 1CChldII IIlc VI
Sir Walter Scott" (the biographer
married SCOTS daughter,) and Tom
MoOre's Life of Lord Byron" are great
| specimens of biographical writing, and
the, excellence is in the order given.
To these we would add three as per-
haps the best Of all others, namely,
Stanley's Life of DR.. Thomas Ar
mold" (of Rugby fame), Trevelyan's
life of Lord Macaulay," (the biog-
rapher the great historians nephew,
! and Trevelyan's Life of Charles James
| Fox" (the earlier years.. Whether
| Mahan's recent life of Lord Nelson will
| take it's rank with either of those we
| cannot forecast.
| We notice that Mr.. Stoddard, a sue
| cessful poet-critic, has justly a very
| high admiration of the elder Dumas,