New-York tribune., 1899-12-02
HOLIDAY EDITIONS.
REPRINTS OF GOOD FICTION. NEW AND
OLD, WITH ILLUSTRATIONS.

Century Company. ,
sARAC1NEscA BY wa MsriHn T5awyo'V In Two Volumes
Octave pp. ix S76 VII S46 The Macn'A''"
Company ,s ry,o,,ro
Do ils Doubleday & Mcclure Company
sooner or later II was inevitable that in the
,r.nerat,on OF specially illustrated editions ior
the holidays the publishers should ma " ue
sirable 10 print the works OF living authors "'
,va, as Of the dead This not only because 'iie
nonular classics threaten to become eNhaus'eu
hut because so many books OF our own genera
tion deserve TO be put in permanent loriii' WV"
every luxury that the printer. bincer anu nus
traitor can provide. This is true IN nioie '""''
-. ealS ~ l;tcrarv endeavor. but in none more
,,,r,,etakabIv than in that Of fiction. Novels
oro rroduced In these modern times to an e"-
TON. appalng enough. and, naturaily' tne
greater number Of them are allowed very VIII.
,ngly TO slip into oblivion. But out OF 're ste"'
mass a few every year. are bound 10 sui'i'e'
and these we always rejoice 10 see repuoi'e"eu
with the care that is ordinarily gwen as N"''
ter of course to the classics
DIR. Mitchelrs Hugh Wynne" justnes' II any
novel of the last few years does JUSTIFY lts pun
ucation in special form. It is not only the oeS'
thing he has done. but IT is one OF 'he oes'
novels dealing with the American HeVolulioi
-. ,,+.or AS we observed at the time OF lis
S',,,,,oa+,or the author is not so much TO be ad-
rnired for the abundance of his local color ds
for his tactful handling Of It, Costume man
ners topography. politics all the Things wheie-
with he might have constructed an hisloii0"i
namphlet-which is the usual procedure aids'
~ the latter day historical novellst-he mas
rightly regarded as subsidiary TO the centrai
motive Of his story. There is love moti'e'
with divers interesting developments OF char-
acter sprnging from 1t, and Hugh Wynne' IN
stead Of taking its place among the archSeoios4-
cal novels stands forth as mover OF HVelS
human interest. with creatures in 1t Of flesh
and blood. 1t is good fiction, and IL IS eoou
literature, trustworthy as to its facts, orielnai
&c 20 tts imaginative elements, and written in
good style. The two volumes OF the ne" Ooi-
tinental Edition" are very fair TO look upon IN
,ba,r delicate yellow binding. with floral deco
ration and artistic lettering. Inside. they re-
ceive lust the establishment they require Mr..
Harvard Pyle's illustrations are conceived win
svnopathy and understanding: they are executed
with the skill of a brilliant dr9ughtsman. In
addition TO these. there are number OF MS
tortcal portraits and views reproduced nom ola
prints Taken together. the many illustrations
really enrich the text, making the environment
of the story more vivid and tangible. Dr'
Mitchell does not lean upon this gallery. he IS
TOO good an artist himself 10 omit any necee-
sary details. But there is no denying that the
passage in which. for example Mr. William Bar
tram is found in his garden gains by the Juxta-
position OF a beautiful drawing OF the old bar
tram house made from the building Itself IN
short the author and his illustrators work TO-
gether. The result is fascinating edition or
valuable addition to American fiction.
Mr. Crawford has some very interesting things
70 say in the preface to the new edition OF
"Saracinesca-" That book was first published
fourteen wears ago. Since that time the Roman
life OF the period with which the story deals
has suffered many changes. From having
been study Of Manners says he. familiar
TO all who knew Rome well in the middle OF
the nineteenth century, 'Saracinesca mas al
ready come to be regarded as a contribution
to the social history Of a past time The
Barons Of the Middle Ages fortified themselves
In their dwellings. even within the city walls
and did as they pleased, keeping their secrets
from the outer world. In my own youth theT
descendants lived in moral strongholds, de-
Tended at every point by prejudices. traditions
and unchanging methods. which concealed their
real lives from their fellow-men almost as
effectually as the stone walls and closed gates
of their ancestors castles could have done. But
since that time, broad streets have cut
through the dark lanes and byways OF old
Rome admitting light and air TO the depths OF
the oity, SO also newer customs have pene-
trated to the heart of the old patriarchal life
The long sleeping energies Of an ancient society
have mobilized 10 take an active part In the
struggles Of modern existence. and modes Of
ittla frOr Of
rest of Europe have terminated an almost fossie
civilization" While believing that If his book
is still widely read that fact is due TO the
humanity OF its story, quite as much as 10
the care bestowed upon historic and social de-
tails Mr. Crawford observes that he modelled
his characters from actual types familiar to
him in his youth and he attributes his sue
cess TO the reality which he thus secured. This
is reasonable and modest. but venture to say
that "Saracinesca" owes It's success first and
last TO nothing more nor less than the authors
gift for romance in the absence OF which not
even the most faithful portraiture OF interesting
types would have counted to any great extent
We value the social picture. but we value
the story still more. We value that narra-
tive charm which Mr.. Crawford possesses in rare
measure. After ALL It does not matter that
Corona, for example, may have had a proto-
type In the Roman society Of the time with
which the novel deals. The main point is that
she is a living creature to She might have
been created entirely out Of the authors imagi-
nation, and il such were the case we would
only have a higher respect for him. Corona is
bewtching one Of the most engaging charac-
ters in modern Action and, while the others In
the book may not be lovable, although some
are dangerous rivals in the affection Of the
reader, they are all equally vitalized. The plot
OF "Saracinesca" is one Of the very best in the
whole long range OF Mr.. Crawford's work. He
never told a better story or told 1t in better
way The present edition It would be difficult
10 praise too highly. In Mr. Orson Lowell an
illustrator has been found with keen eye for
the rictortal nnntives In the hook hest adapted