The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-04-16
RECENT LITERARY NEWS.
"RECORD-UNIONv NOTES OF
BOOKS AND AUTHORS.
Historic Matters-New Works
Bookmen Of the World
Critical Comment.

title OF James. Lane Aliens new novel.
=
1t is said that Rudyard Kipling's 1lrst
literary work was a series OF schooa-
boy lyrics, which have never been pun
lished, but were printed for private CIR
culation among friends and relatives
when he was in his sixteenth year
These lyrics, we are told, showed the
facile gift of rhyme and the unexpected
command of appropriate words |hlcn
have always marked his work
Miss nj. Betham- Edwards has "rlt-
ten a novel Of pastoral life, which she
calls THE Lord of the Harvest.
New York Tribune In her stories
of workingmen and the life OF manu-
featuring towns Octave Thanet miss
Alice FRENCH has displayed a knoWi-
edge and perception of masculine CHAR
acter unusual in a woman. something
of this she feels that she owes 10 her
youngest brother, Robert French. VINO
died last year at the age of %. OF this
young man a friend says in Current
Literature: ION graduating from Har-
ward in order the better to learn how
to take charge of his business, he went
of which he was part owner, beginning
at the bottom and accepting all the
conditions of the workingman He
went up, step by step, until at the time
of his death he had served his apprep-
ticeship, and was ready to take his
place at the head of his special branch
of the business.
A reproduction of H. Phillips por-
trait of George Borrow is presented IN
Professor Knapp's biography of the au-
thor of 'Lavengro." Borrow's remark
able good looks att 81 are thus described
by Mr.. Berkeley, vicar of the Cornish
parish of ST. Cleer: Il was much
struck by his appearance. He must
have been, / should say, full six feet
four inches in hight very we'll built
man. with somewhat of a military car
riage, snow white hair, dark, strongly
marked eyebrows, his countenance
pleasing, betokening calm firmness, self
confidence and a mind under control,
though capable of passion. His frame
was without heaviness but evidently
very powerful. His hands were small
for his size, beautifully formed and
very white. He was very vain of his
hands, which, he used to say, he de-
rived from his mother, who was of
Huguenot extraction. He was, when in
the vein, a delightful talker. 1t viii
give some idea of the effect of his APP
pearance if / recount a circumstance
which occurred on his first visit to the
vicarage My eldest son, then between
10 and IL years of age, having been
introduced, stood with eyes fixed on
him fer some moments, and then, with
out speaking, left the apartment. He
passed into the room where his mother
was engaged with some ladies. and
cried out: We'll, mother, that is
man tie could find no other words
to express his admiration"
New York Evening Post: Edgar SAL
tus, commenting on the fact that the
late Mr. Halsey, better known as "Old
Sqeuth," made $4,000 by his sensa-
ticnaa stories, says: But there are
some who have done and some who are
doing better yet Mr. Moody, for in
stance. Already one book of his has
brought him in over twice that amount.
Then there is Mr.. Kiphng He began
modestly. To-day he accepts % cents
per word in England and 30 cents here.
We don't blame him On the contrary.
The point is. though, where at that rate
Is Old Sleuth; where, too, is Mr.. Moody?
Mrs. Humphrey Ward is less monopoli-
tan. In eight years, with four novels,
this lady has cleared $500 600. Should
she be spared to us. she may beat Scott,
who made S2,000,000 At present she
is only $4,000 behind Anthony Troll
lope, 100000 behind Bulwer and $500
coo behind Dickens. That is nothing.
For a poem entitled Sleep" Tennyson
received a guinea a word. For the
Miserables," Hugo received SSO,00O,
and for 'Sappho." Daudet received
100000. The sums which Miss Corelli,
that delicious bareback, sawdust circus
rider of the fountain pen, has gathered
together, while unbelievable, are
wholly deserved. There is but one lit
erary cuss who has done better. What
his name is escapes us. We forget, too,
the titles of his works. They are of the
variety known as subscription, and on
their sales he has built square Chi
cage block. There should be a moral to
all tales. and for the benefit of young
writers, there is one to this: In Htera-
ture, virtuosity is its own reward"
The Criterion: One of my most
interesting friends is the boy who
blacks my boots. He manages to keep
up with the times on literary topics,
and his point of view is not always the
hackneyed one. Yesterday, as i sat
down. I said. We'll, what's new?" He
turned up my trousers and rubbed his
brush into the backing Der Brown
sngs' Letters is der freshest piece er
beef in der market. Soy, dey was
boids."
What do you admire in that cores
pondence?' l asked.
why, DER gift er repression If l
no poet. I'd drop inter PONIES like most
lovers does, but here's desc twin boids
er song sendin' deir billet COOS to each
udder. an prose is good enough fer der
bot err dem. Well, it's like me self,
after all | don't black me own shoes.
See? Poytry was de ting dot buttered
his bread, an der sol had been writin'
poytry from de void go, so wen he
Wrote to her an her to him, dey didn'
waste no marketable stuff on each I'D
der I guess dey was glad to shut Off
der poetic stream. But, soy, ain II
funny? A litterery gent or loidy gets
dead an den der gillie w'ot reads der
maggyzeenes is hot fer any OF postal
card der deceased may have writ, but
If Robert Browning had writ er love
postal for publication in his life time de
editors would ha' given him er couple
er nits- Even in Stevenson's letters
(udder foot, please,) dey's lots er stuff
dat Seribners's wouldn' ha' printed il
dey'd had it in 'I3. But now. in 90.