Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-09-15

"Oomedie Humane, 80 volumes, pub
fishers, after repeated efforts and heavy
expenditure, failed to popularize him.
asked Miss Wormley what chance
an inexperienced person had of earning
a livelihood by translation.
"Discouragement is all / can give, y
was the reply, "and that is always
painful. It is very important matter
to discourage the inexperienced from
attempting translation as means Of
livelihood. Not week passes that dc
not receive letters from persons asking
me to assist them in obtaining such
work. I have never sought translation
for myself. All my work has been done
at the request of publishers. =
The smattering of continental Ian
guages to be had in our public schools
and state universities and the promi-
nence attained by such women as Miss
Wormley, Mary j. Serrano, Elizabeth
Gilbert Martin Mary J. Stafford, Isabel
Hapgood Cora Hamilton Bell and
Louise Seymour Houghton are largely
responsible for the growing army of
women who besiege publishers and ed
itors for work
An erroneous impression prevails that
a person incapable of doing other liter
ary work can easily serve as translator.
Much Englished foreign matter now on
the market would seem to justify the
impression. On the publisher falls the
brunt of this public grievance, but the
publishers role in the mangling of for
eign books is "another story, which,
if better known, would place the blame
where it belongs-the foreign author
who gives the right of translation to the
incompetent translator, leaving the pub
Usher no choice.
What are the requisites of good
translator? The consensus of the profess
sionals sums it up in a thorough knowl
edge of the foreign language, a copious
English vocabulary. a good English lit
erary style and the power to enter into
the spirit Of the foreign author. The
latter some continental critics consider
the most essential requisite to good
translation. A peep into Miss Worm
ley's mental workshop cannot fail to
enlighten the inexperienced as to the
knowledge and labor involved in the
production of good translation.
"Before proceeding to translate
volume, +" said Miss Wormley, 81 get
my mind thoroughly permeated with
the thought Of the author. never sac
rifice the authors thought to the ad-
justment of my own difficulties. put
the original text into as literal English
as possible, translating the French as
closely as can be done without forfeiting
the literary quality of the English Two
essentials must never be forgotten by
the translator. emphasizes Miss Worm
ley the thought of the author and
the literary quality of the English. .
Miss Wormley gives three months
work to a single volume of Balzac,
while she can '.do up" Dumas in much
less time. He needs to be translated,
she adds, with something of his own
Tilt and 60.
Translators, as rule, she thinks,
cling too slavishly to the author S mere
words, the mechanical part, his vehicle
They would preserve his thought and
do better work If they were little
freer.
Miss Wormley, who has married
since her completion of the "Comedie
Humane, Moliere, Dumas and Bour-
get, is probably the best paid of the
American women translators.
To Mrs. Mary J. Serrano American
readers are largely indebted for their
only acquaintance with the story writ
ers of Spain. Mrs. Serrano is hand
some woman of Irish birth. Fairly in
life she married Spaniard, with whom
she went to South America, where her
life was passed with natives of Spain.
She is not only mistress of the Spanish
language, but is in sympathetic and in
telligent touch with their much misun-
derstood character. To her knowledge
of Spanish temperament, no less than
her linguistic accomplishments. is due
her success in interpreting their best
novelists to English readers.
Her career as translator began after
her widowhood Her first work was
"Peput Ximenes, by Juan Valera,
Spanish minister to the United States,
whom she met at Washington. At the
request of Harper Bros. she did .sDona
Perfecta, by Galdoz, for which w
d. Howells wrote a preface. The list
now includes novels Of Valera, A1arcon
and Emilia Pardo Bazan. Mrs. Serrano
is now employed largely by the Span
ish legation. She finds the translation
of state documents more remunerativa