New-York tribune., 1898-10-30

pafby ana WISDOM generally Wnlch MI. Statnam
has put into his novel and interesting little vol
lme we only be grateful
We are apprecative Of Mr.. Thomas Hutchin-
sons labors too, revealed by the long intro
duction and copiOus notes to his reprint OF the
"]y rica. Ballads" of 1893. He provides an ex-
cellent machinery for the study, not merely OF
the poems themselves. bat Of all that they I'M
ply travorsing with much skill the bibliogIaph-
ical relations Of the subject and that moIass OF
pc1sonalia in which it is imbedded. lie re-
counts the tangled story Of Wordsworth feia-
tons with Coleridge at the time the BALLADS
were composed and printed, and goes INTO the
equally compile ated matters which conncct 'he
iconoclastic pair with Southey, LLOYD ana i-anp'
One must be patient to follow nm III hiS IT,
s.arches. The subject is little dOsV' aiso
little tedious. But at bottom ii is extremely
interesting, and impossible FOR s'uoeht VI
Coleridge and Wordsworth TO ignore Since We
must rummage this old corner OF literary MS
tory We are at least glad to do so in company
with Mr Hutchinson, who is in love with the
task and IS admirably equipped. Anc theh he
rewards US for our respectful attention d! sN-
trc the "Banads" 70 US in a handsomely lllA'o
vU,Gme.
Nj To,ey links Gray's name TO Coieridge's
III.
former FOR the Pit; Press Series and praise
hin, as pioneer Of romance, saying that ne
,ad holped 20 prepare public for Macpherson
Re lave croa, stress upon the value OF Ora!
Scandinavian studies Significant they "eI''
10 6oubt. but Cray the precursor is OF less con-
SEQUENCE than The Gray whom We cherlsh lor
certain rare quality inseparabie from MS VERSE
and his alone. There is a most prodGlous ooo9
of notes in this book-about two hunofeo pas's
O. Them TO eighty pages Of Gray-but we hho
Tho editors learning helpful and his inousuy
nc inapt.
DY Gollanczs lricf Introduction 70 his Nolume
@. selections from the Poetry for Children by
Cha,ies and Mary Lamb could not b. bettered
--ho pl.asant fancy and genial notes which he
u,j1clos in this address ITO the Gentle Readef
.xa.tlv s,,ir the sweetness and quantncss OF the
,lc-fa sbjoned rhymes Miss Green's drawings
admirably reproduced il cOlors, are also Yer!
ha~monjous With the text Il would De absurd
e magnify the merits Of this verse because OF
e.. authorship 1t is staid, simple, common
1la.e But 4 admOnishes childish minds win
intelligence. tenderness and little CLEANS o.
erjet humor. To Ierrnt IL was wise.
Nc Trov.rines "Sonnets from N" foTtu-
,,,eser aye welcome IN the beautiful edition FOR
which NJ. J. A. duncan anu NHiIS''P"'i ''i'
have drawn some artistic borders ana ihiuais'
The arrangement Of single sonnet 10 page Is
agreeable and the collection as WhoIe is pet
ter off away from the great quantity OF INFERIOR
work which swelis Mrs. Browning 6 literary pag-
gage The manufacture of he book is unusually
bttractive.
-,hn "Canbridge Edition Of the Poets edited
by NJ Scudder and published by me housh-
,nro { invaluable We have had occasion before
This 10 praise the dignihed Noiumes' WIN
,,ei- convenient double columns. small but clear
tvpe. and careful notes. Hence we took up Dr.
Rolfe's "Tennyson,' in this series, win the
pleasantest anticipatons. The publishers nave
ss usual justified this confidence; the book az
G hook is admirable. But with the best VIII In
the world we cannot find the notes as uniformly
rood as they ought TO be. Why prefix to the
.-rlne. An ode" In the Poems by TWO Broth
srs " the observ alton that it is remarkable Iof
,nacinatjop and for versifcation as the work OF
a boy of sixteen?" The date would nave peeh
.nficient Why explain that Demos is the
Greek name for the common people heaoers
Of Tennyson are presumably intelligent. why
finally mention that when Tennyson speaks, III
-Io.ksley Hall Sixty Years After" OF 'Inalden
,sncics valloWing IN the troughs or ZoIalshi'
,o g "slluding to the realistic French novel,
..,n. The Dreyfus case has not filed Zoias hle
.. e,,,b an extent that all his other exploits are
+o,co,.en These "rlimpses at the obvious only
80. e,,nDrnuously 20 increase the bulk OF Dr'
Rolfc's notes and 20 obscure the!E OCCASIONAL
merit
The Only new poet Of consequence We nave I"