New-York tribune., 1900-05-12
SOME U1GAZINE NOTES.
INTERESTING THINGS IN TIE MAY
NUMBERS.

The teller of the quaint and often touching
"Tiverton Tales" Miss Alice Brown, has tried
her hand. and not unsuccessfully. at complete
novel. In April Showers published in the
May "Lippncott she has set forth an effective
and not too ambitious story of American rural
life and character. Humor and tenderness play
over it's groundwork of shrewd understanding
of bucolic traits. and a delicate poetic fancy
softens many a sordid detail. The work is
good that should be glad to find the author
attempting something more important-studying
masculine character meanwhile. for her women
are wrought out with more skill than are her
men,
The stray leaves from Mr.. Thomas Bailey
Aldrich's notebook form a particularly agreeable
portion of the May Century" Most of Mr..
Aldrich's readers have lamented that he does lot
oftener appear in print. Does this leaf explain
his reticence? I'm his blotted memorandum
book two Of suggestions for
says. sketches and lyrics which 1 have not
written and shall never write. I sooner jot
down idea than the desire to use 1t leaves
me, and 1 turn away to do something unpre-
meditated. The shabby volume has become a
sort of Potters Field where bury my literary
Intentions, good and bad, without any belief In
their resurrection
Another leaf contains this dainty bit of
verse, OF a fancy, he reminds US. las old
poetry and the exaggeration of lovers:
Up roos the some, and up roos Emeiye.
-Chaucer.
When some hand has partly drawn
The cloudy curtains OF her bed
And my lady's golden head
Glimmers in the dusk like dawn,
Then methinks is day begun.
Later. when her dream has ceased
And my lady softly wakes.
Then 1t is as when the East
A sudden rosy magic takes
From the cloud d-enfoded sun,
And full day breaks!
Many of the poets notes are on literary mat
ters-witness these:
We do not and cannot, read the novels which
most delighted our ancestors. Some Of our own
popular fiction is doubtless poor but poor
in a different fashion. There is always a heavy
demand for fresh medocrity. In every gen
Grafton the least cultivated taste has the largest
appetite.
The art of the realistic novelist sometimes
seems akin to that of the Chinese tailor who
perpetuated the old patch on the new trousers.
True art selects and paraphrases but seldom
gives a verbatim translation
/ have observed-and trust shall long con-
tinue in the quality Of observer-that whenever
a Boston writer dies New-York Immediately be-
comes a great literary centre
Mr. Henry NJ. Aidens editorial "reminiscences
presented in the current Harper" are full
of interest and inspire the wish that he might
some day give us 1uEtner details or his friend
ships and correspondence with the noted authors
of his time Charles Reade was once one of the
most popular Of Harper contributors and OF
him Mr. Alden says: While his novels OF the
later period were intended to reflect the life of
his own day-as Is shown by his method OF
transcribing from newspapers into voluminous
scrapbooks the chronicles Of striking incidents
and situations for their in his iction-hs
short stories in the same period referred back, as
to their motive and material. to older type.
The essential features Of historical dramatic
scenes appealed to him. did the contemporary
scrapbook chronicles. II story had been told
before. that was objection to his use OF it, but
rather an incentive. A good story could not be
invented except in the original sense OF invent
/. e.. it must be found He often sent his manu-
scripts to me, keeping no copy. Once. In the
second part OF series. he left II to me to sup
ply the name of character used In the first
part and which he had forgotten. The habit of
telling old stories probably prompted his under
taking a series of Bible stories. and telling them
In the idiomatic phrase OF the day. even toier-
ating unmistakable slang. In his story Of Ne
hemiah, remember. he used this phrase: The
Prophet did not smell . rat bad . liberal