The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-07-08
II Itj. li=|@1ltl t|(.l t1|11
The Historical Novel.

For some occult reason tnere mas peth
during the last Ave years, among novel
writers and publishers, a peculiar epidemic
which may be called the historical novel
mania The market has been simply Hood
ed with novels by writers known and I'M
known. having the flavor Of bygone days In
them. and the thoughtful observer of cur
rent literary events is moved TO ask, Wig
is it thus?'
The history of fiction in the United
States is an Interesting subject of study at
any time, and by reviewing 1t briefly one
may come upon some Of the influences
which have helped to cause this present in
sanity. The beginning was with Irving and
Hawthorne-story- teilers and artists pure
and simple, taking their material where
they found it. in contemporary life or oiss-
where as they CHANGED TO see good sub
jects for character work and for the half
poetic Interpretation of life which charau-
terized the work Of both.
The humanitarian agitation of the hfties
developed three or four avowed novels
of purpose. intended to portray oon;emTo-
rary society in such way as 10 open tie
Toms Cabin" and bred, on this side OF
the water: Yeast" in England; An ais
of a Sportsman in Russia, and ID X rs
fearless arraignment OF existing EAgi sh
Institutions we're all part OF the SINE
SETTLING. swirling world-current- Even
the philosophic mind of George Eliot fe!t
the tendency and expressed 1t in re *
Holt" Then there came a reaction, and
f1s nrtFC
simple portrayal OF human society for the
sake of its endlessly interesting va
riations and complications. The pop 1lsri-
~ of this kind of novel was due to simple
interest In life as 1t is. Anything in tie
way of teaching a lesson was stud ously
avoided. The period of tranquility lore
its natural fruit in another reaction, ana
We have had the social problem rovel nd
the religious novel, coming almost at the
same time-"Robert Elsmere" and TIL
by
But there were numerous people who
did not like either; the religious novel
readers were shocked at the social problem
story. and the novel devourers averreo that
the religious novel wearied them exceed
ingly. Thus there came demand Tor
novels of adventure. OF action, fa- enough
removed from the present not TO suggest
anything that could offend, yet dealing to
some extent with the serious side of life,
md having that spice Of Instruction which
come people think is always TO be found
in a story dealing with historical facts.
When one comes to think about it, it Is
a little difficult to see why it is more i'm
portant to know how people lived, and
behaved and felt in France in the days
OF LOUIS XIV than to know how French
people live, and think, and feel, in this
year OF our Lord 1900; and yet there
are people who will peacefully peruse the
life Of La Pompadour and be piously
mortified at Balzac and Daudet That is
part of the general Queerness OF human
nature.
The demand for a novel which shall be
both instructive and interesting. and not
shock anybody, is one of the sources ot
the popularity Of the historical novel; and
the eternal power of reaction is another.
Moreover, from the point of view of the
author there are powerful reasons why
the historical novel should have flooded
the market. II is a good deal easier to Sit
in library and hunt up records of the
time of Queen Elizabeth or Henry Beau
clerc, and reproduce part OF the lie oil
the common people from the very .mper-
feet data to be had, than TO write of the
common people Of our own day and gen
GRAFTON and make their lives appear in
teresting and exciting. If. for example,
a man like Frank Spearnan undertakes to
portray the real romance and thrill Of the
life of q railroad engineer-one OF the ne
roes Of this commonplace age-he has a
subject as fine as anything in the Middle
Ages, for II is just as brave to stick to
ones engine and be slowly roasted or
ecalded to death for the sake OF saving
the people IN the train, as it ever was 20
rescue heroiDes from bGfnlng castle IL
the Middle Ages.
But IL Mr. Spearman makes any slips in
his local color or in the Interpretation OF
his characters he is liable to be called
down" IN very short order by the engi-
neer himself, who will read the book
When, on the contrary, S. BarinS-Gould
writes OF the Welsh peasant in the time oil
Henry he is in no danger of being cor
rected By any Of the people of whom he
writes, because they have all been dead for
several hundred years. Frank Norris can
not write Of a surgical operation without
having every detail absolutely perfect, but
Gonaa Doyle can portray lie adventures
q his white Company" without being
corrected by anybody except the historians
q he makes a mistake; and with reason
able care he can avoid making one. That
rs one reason why tie historical novel is
numerous. Almost anybody can write one
hfter fashion, and get an audience Tor IL.
And there is no danger of hitting the pet
bre1udices of anyone by abusing popular
institutions When Winston Churchill
wrote Richard Carver he could make his
hero irreproachable because fighting for
cause long since RELOCATED to the pages of
history. Everybody agrees that it was
right for the American colonies to fight for
their independence. But supposing Thorn
as Nelson Page or Paul Laurence Dunbar
should write novel, of equal power and
interest, dealing with one side or the 9TH
er, or both sides, Of the franchise difficult
~ In the Southern States, imagine the
hornets nest that would be upset In con-
sequence! In fact 1t is doubtful whether
the bump of caution of the average pub
Usher would allow him to take the book at
all.
There are only two reasons for the ~
istence Of historical novel. One is that
human nature truthfully portrayed is al
ways interesting. and good story. like
Emerson's Thodora is Its own excuse for
being. Scott wrote of human nature. and
his historical novels will always stand high
among the classics for that reason, and
for their peculiar half-legendary, half-po-
etc charm. They are sagas, poems, ira
dftions, epics; they may be true to history
or they may not, but they are good stories
Thackeray's Henry Esmond' is human
nature pure and simple; the historical se,
ting is subordinate to the human interest
But neither OF these authors thought Of
"instructing'' his readers in the mere facts
OF history. Another reason for the
existence OF historical fiction is that, by
showing the tendencies and influences
which have made human nature what II Is,
II may be guide in the difficulties of the
present. The same old struggles between
conflicting tendencies in the State are go
tng on now as in the time of Henry VIII