The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-21

Bret Reviews of Important aud Interesting
New Publications.

IlenTy htllLeT mas translated IL lk, II. Russell,
puhlisherl. Ia something that should please
any reader. II has plenty OF strong dramatic
quality. plenty OF delightful fancy and it would
be hard to say too good word for the English
rendering. The person OF particular fascina-
ton here. Rautendelein, Ia a figure to be re.
memhered most engaging creature she Ia,
combining oil mortal attractions with the
finest fairy qualities. With what a tongue OF
music with what lghtnces and prettiness OF
imagination. with what charming afHectation
OF petulance. does she address tho bewildered
bee that is constrained to buzz about her az
she combs her shining hair in tho opening
scene:
Thou buszing. golden wight whence com'st thou
here2
Thou sipper of sweets, thou little wax,nakeri
Nnyl tease me not thou Stubborn good for naugha
Dost htarS Besone! Tia time combed my hair
With Grannyn golden comb. Should delay
smell Scold me Wien she comes. Begope. | sayl
WHAT Loiter ny stillr Away, away with tlesi
Am rosebush! Are my lips q roseP
On to the wood with thee, beyond the brook
There, there. my pretty bee. bloom cowslips fail.
And crocusos and violctr-thou canst suck
Thy I'LL Of them. Dost think Jest? No, no
quick Get thee home Thou TT not in favor here.
Thou knowest Granny owes thee many grudge
For furnishing the church with altar lights
Come Must speak again Go not too far!
Hey'-Chimney'-Pnh some smoke across the glade
To drive this naughty. wilful bee"
Creatures OF the woods and streams were an
much in love with Rautendelein az was the
vagrant bee. The satyr OF the neighborbood
wasavery rude and boisterous wooer. who
might easily have offended her with his con.
versation II she had been less sensible and less
gifted with spirit OF humor: and the Nickel.
mann. agray old half-deity. who used to come
up dripping and shining from the we'll was
always urging her to n n hon ekaa nj uvitl,
him under the water. Heinrich the bell
FOUNDER. II mortal. younger than tho Nickel
mann and hnndsomer than the satyr. was tho
one who succeeded in engaging the affections
OF Rautendeen His feet were peater than
the satyr's. and the shape OF his ears was more
agreeable and. moreover he had tho fire and
mbition peculiar to mortals and was con-
sumed by desire to cast a bell of perfect
sound To be sure. ho was married. and
he was a father as we'll as hus-
band 1t ia upon this complication
exactly that the story turns. Mr.. Meltzer in
his Introduction supposes that Heinrich repre-
sents humanity struggling toward an ideal
and hampered by earthly bonds. that Rauten-
delen represents nature. and that the other
characters all have an allegorical Significance.
This Is reasonable conclusion. and the story
IL beautiful when so regarded, as 1t 10 II It 10
regarded merely az a fortuitous and unsigni-
lynx tdIe IL tno WHO OF h6lnTlCn euHera
upon one page. so does Rautendeein suffer
upon another and altogether there is a jul bic
OF duty and distraction. OF suffering and de-
light. all merging and interchanging. as in
life. AS for the ambition OF Heinrich. and
what 1t amounts to In the circumstances. let
the Nickelmann be heard:
Quoraxi BrekekekeI! so there he lies.
This master earthworm. in his moss grown house.
He's deaf and blind. while crookback imps creep
Like the gray imps upon tho mountain side.
Now they uplift their shadowy hands and threateni
Now they go wrnging them as II in painl
He sleeps. He does not hear the moaning pinesI
The low. malignant piping of the elves
That makes the Oldest FIR trees quake and thrill.
And. like hen that Aops her foolish wings.
Beat their own bou9hs against their quvering hanksi
Now he grows chillier. as tho winteraray
Searches tho marrow in his bones. And still,
Even in sleep. he tolls!
Give over, fool! Thou canst not fight with aodl
Twas God that raised thee up to thy strength
And now. since thou art weak. He casts thee down.
Vain is thy sacrifice. For Sin ia Sin.
Thou hast not wrung from God the right to change
Evil to good. wages give to guilt.
Thou'rt foul with stains. Thy garments reek with
blood.
Now. call thou meier so loud tho gentle hand
That might have washed thee clean tn sect
Black spirits gather in the hills and dales.
Soon in thine anguished ear the sound shall ring
or tho wild huntsman and the baying houndsl
They know what game they hunt And now. be-
hold
The giant builders Of the air upraise
Castles of cloud with monstrous walls and towers.
Frowning and grim. they against thy heights,
Eager to crush thy work. and thee, and all!
! Heinrich sinned against the conventions.
| which are the best rule and safeguard that We
| know. since they represent tina wisdom gath
| cred from the experience OF the ages. Never
| Al IL iat ha Fao ~
! ton OF Rautendelein. and 1t 10 the resulting
problem. precisely. that fascinates and terri
! fes us, Heinrich. under the urgencies Of his
| conscience, denied Rautendel and she de-
scended into the waters with her old wooer.
| the Nickemann. This may mean that she
| drowned herself and II such 10 the meaning OF
| it, It augments the tragedy. The tale Is sad
and beautiful and there is magic in its telling.
Tomake trouble is the cons picuous privilege
! OF the novelist who would be lurld. placid
| life. uuvexsd by soul-harrowing misadvsn-
! lures affords to him scant scope for exercise
Hence, il he finds himself with young man
| and young woman on his hands. and trouble
| does not naturally arise. he must imagine It,
| When Rufus Coleman. the Sunday editor OF .
yellow journal that for purposes OF fiction 10
| disguised as The Neu York Eclipse. brought
| his colossal. II somewhat perverted intelli-
| Rence to bear upon the fact that he loved Miss
| MarJory wainwright ne told hsr So She told
her father. who WAS professor and as Mar
| jory, Coleman and tho professor are characters
manipulated by Mr. stephen Crane in work
| OF moderately disturbing fiction entitled
| Active Service" Stokes. 1t is not surprising
| that at this point the trouble begins.
| When MarIory told the professor. he was
| seated in his study He WAS writing a
book He grew red behind the ears and
rather rudely snarisd Get out" She did
| not get out and 80 he proceeded to explain
| that he had no desire to welcome into
| the family a person whom he described as
| "a witless knave who edits the Sunday
| edition OF great outrage upon our sensibili-
ties" He drew tn" line. Mauory wept She
sat down 'walnG amid the ruins Of her
| tumbled hopes Her skies had turned to paper
! and her trees were bits OF green sponge" As
| for Coleman. he was too busy TO worry. He
| was getting next Sundays paper ready, and he
| had to see that the photograph Of the one-eyed
| baby with no arms was provided with sum-