The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-06-26


Moro. rising with It's grlnning tiers OF can
non, battery above battery. were reflected
ye.tati I'm speculss.n as X It had been In a
mirror" The vivid pen-landscape cecu-
pies many pages OF story which has few
equals Tor hu-nor, rowing characters and
true or.ny flavor.
A paragraph or two with special mean
ing for Americans az this tine occurs IN
Conan poyie,s last book "A Desert
Drama" Apropos q Engiands occasa-
ton IN Egypt, says Col Cochrane. char
acter who apparently represents the au-
thor's OWL sentiments: II think that be-
hind national interests and diplomacy and
all that. there lies grea: guiding force.
a Providence. in fact which IS forever
getting the best out OF each nation and
using IL FOR the good cf the whole. When
nation ceases 70 respond. il is tine that
ehs went into hospital for few centuries.
Ike spain or Greece-the virtue has gone
out CT her" Heading!y "a typical edu-
Gated fankeel mods approval and the
cosoEe! proceeds: Each has It's own mis-
sion, Germany Is predominant in alb
sract thought; France in literature art
and grace. But We and you--for the Eng
iisa-speakers ara all in the same boat
We and YOU have among our best men a
nlgheT conception OF moral sense and pub
lie duty than Is 10 &c found In any other
people" II is in such chance rays that We
may Judge OF the inner light OF aUlity be-
tween English speakers"
The literary editor OF the New. York
IF'nahe says: We have noticed a curious
huctua.ion in the efficiency OF proofread-
ers For months their m.nlstrations were
without flaw. Book after book was ex-
amined. and not a misprint was discov-
cred. Now suddenly the discipline is
slackened: the proofreader, like any other
mortal. has grown weary or careless. and
the types under his charge riot madly.
Within the last few weeks a really serious
disturbance seems to have broken out
and errors have been piled upon errors
until we have wondered whether or no. a
deliberate campaign against accuracy had
been Instituted. A work published In two
volumes the other day--by a firm which
In two or three years has won high rank
through the purity Of Its Typography and
It's presswork in general
is fairly dotted with nnss-speiled words
Yet these volumes are printed on exquisite
paper. the binding is artistic. and one Is
asked to pay good price for them. The
proofreader should be admonished. We
have cited one illustration OF their late
lapse from their usually high standard. We
could cite dozen more.
The English papers are filled with anec-
dotes Of Mr.. Gladstone. They devote pages
TO what he has sad and what others have
said about him. The Academy gives nearly
six pages TO 'Mr. Gladstone as a Literary
Critic" quoting from his published cri-
ticisms and private letters which latter,
you may be sure, were made as public
as the printed compliments. According to
the Academy Mr.. Gladstone frankly
liked people to give him books and he
generally took the trouble TO tell them so.
II II was not letter. it was a postcard.
that the happy author got-generally TO
the great gain of the publisher" There is
no doubt that Mr.. Gladstone's praise did
much TO make Tho Journal OF Marie
Bashklrtseff' famous. though ! am inclin-
cd to think that 50 novel and remarkable
a performance would have found its audi
ence even without the valuable aid OF Mr..
Giadstone's eulogy He spoke highly Of
Sonya Kovalevsky. but though her book
was even more remarkable than that OF
the Bashkiw seff IL did not attract the
same attention. which would seem 70
prove that his endorsement was a great
help TO q book, but was by no means
guarantee OF success. There are those Who
think tina, he made" Mrs Humphrey
Ward by his praise Of Robert Elsmere.'
+ am sure that ne attracted attention TO
the book, but Mrs. Ward Is not a writer
whose success could be made by any one
person other than herself The public
wanted her books or they would not have
read them, even with Mr.. Giadstones in
dorsement. He spoke almost as highly OF
Miss Margaret Lees Divorce" in the col
umns 81 The Nineteenth Century, ard gave
Il splendid start. but it had no Elsnerian
success.
TIE speakers at the recent Booksellers
dinner In London who erdeavored 10 throw
light on the present condition of literature
were very happy in their excursions-to
get the light-outside OF literature. says
the New York Tribune. Some OF them
rated the public sharply, as was eminent
ly proper. because as Mr.. Lang put l..
the consumers of literature ''do not con-
sumo enough" and what they do consume
IS OF the wrong sort. The responsible
OF the public cannot be TOO often reiter-
ated. II the world Is reading trash today
II is because the world has a deep, I'M
quenchahie lllmitable passion for trash.
But II seems a great pity that some one
at that dinner could not nave pointed out
that many OF the Ills from which literature
is suffering are 20 he found. like other
human ills, inside. MIR Zangw.il rises. for
example. to respond 90 a toast. He is
sandwiched In between Mr. James Bryce.
serious politician and man o. letters, and
Mr. Andrew Lang scholar. The listeners
being polite. take MT Zaugwtli serious
" they take either OF his fellow speak
ers. When the report of the proceedings
reaches the public that estimable body Is
hree as being Of equal weight. Then MIR
Bryce. perhaps, wonders way people would
"a soon read Mr. Xangwtll Mr. Lang. the
mcaiocrify as soon rs the scholar Litera-
tUrc II II IS 20 be in gGoI case. must not
anly urge the consumer 20 reform bat
mus; put its own house In or.ler and
through its countless organs make plata
;e difference between trash and fine work
'astead o. taking every opportunity 10
plaster the good and the bad with the
me comp! iSant brush. Democracy ard
- theory 90 the equality % mankind
Vii so, foy mankind, but IN letters there
- 40 more pernicious ioc;r.ne Gan the
doctrine thar ere man Is as good as an
other.
In The Writer for this month =. Mac
Donald writes the following seif-eXplaus-
Org article. entitled 4 Word 20 Exchange
tditorS.' In a Big Sunday pager recent
= . poem % mina WAS reprinted. with
re>i.t "a the magazine In ssiich L origin
s.!Y appeared. ou- without cte6i- "a me-
.te author. e.s1 TO cal attention ~
"a A9t IS zoo common Ceg.ec; on the far
2 exchange FtttTo~s. namely. Ignoring ,hs
.sE nor 81 .ssg- r-ruge.f writers y-.v.