The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-09-02
The Literary Outlook.

the PUBIC IS concerned. II gets several
hundred new volumes. more or less worth
while. and cares little how the prelimina-
~ work was done. Suffice it to say that
the public generally gets what Il warts
on. of the lot
n fair idea o. the proportion of fact and
fiction to be had this fall may be obtained
from the list of one New York publisher,
who. out of thirteen books announced for
September. includes nine novels or vol
umes Of short stories one beck of histori-
cal tales. one work of pure history and
one volume on China. The general av
erage, l venture 10 say. is aboIt one vol
ume bearing on Chinese topics 20 tea or
twelve others.
1 have looked almost in vain for forth
coming books by the well known authors,
but most Of them are not ready with any
thing for this fall William Dean How
ellis is represented by the publication OF
two plays in one -olume, An Indian
Giver" and THE Smoking Car Henry
James brings out THE Scft Side" nov
ell; Edwin Markham has a second volume
Of verse in printing; Andrew Lang, a hog
raphy of Prince Charles Edward; MIrie
Corelli and Hall Caine are in the field with
much heralded novels; Stephen Cranes
boy stories are in press, and Conan noy,e
has almost completed his history of the
South African war, which he hopes TO have
included in this falls grist. OF the au-
thors who will not be in the field with
new books before spring are our own his
torical romancers, Miss Mary tombstone,
Churchill, Ford. Major. and Stephens, Mrs.
Ward, Mrs. Burnett, Kipling, Hope, Wey-
man. Barr, Stephen. Phillips, and many
others.
It IS reported that Stephen Cranes nov
el will be completed by Mrs. Crane, in
stead of Robert Barr, who is too full OF his
own work to undertake the commission.
The friends of Crane have always shared
Cranes regret that he never found any
thing half so thrilling in real war as the
scenes which he drew from his own strong
imagination. Some one, l don't know who.
and il matters not at all, has propounded
the theory that just this condition is an
attribute of genius-that Cranes genius
was all he needed to give him the power
of describing come phases of life better
than if he had meddled first with the kinds
OF life he described. Most matter of fact
people refuse to agree-life to be described
must be lived and understood, and expe-
rience of some sort must be had before
literature can begin. Yet The Red Badge
OF Courage" stands nearer 10 real literature
than any subsequent war sketches Crane
did. On the other hand, ii will be the vivid
descriptions Of things seen that will give
G. W. Stevens future fame.
After all, the controversy does not mat
ter SO much, provided that the writer's
themselves do not stop giving US good
books to present claims one way or the
other. Only, the subject leads TO another
important consideration-the new fields for
writing and their effect on literature in
general.
The temptation nowadays for authors is
to rush 10 the front Of action for mate
rial.''s' We have had Kipling and Doyle
at the seat Of war in South Africa, -ot TO
mention a score or more of the best war
correspondents in the world, and this fall
and the coming spring viii see results.
What will be the effect On real litera-
ture2 is an interesting question. China is
now the present greatest interest. We
shalI have fact and fiction drawn from this
field Just as we have had fact and fiction |
from South Africa. Cuba, and the Philip |
pines. but how much of what has been |
and what will be written will stand the /
test OF ten years time, say, not to sIeak |
of future fame? 1t has a certain refec- |
ton on literature. as all world move
ments nave, yet somehow permanence is |
not often a quality. The novels that seem |
to draw the reading public for a term of |
years and which make bid for future |
fame are the novels Of life at home. The |
American public wants American novels, ]
or novels that represent life similar TO
our own. Our own civil war VIII offer 1
for future writers field equal, perhaps, to /
what the Revolution has already offered /
and the great industrial movements now I
taking place in the United States will |
furnish material for as many more sue |
cessful books. These are things which 1
require more gifted pen than action at !
distance. and the possession of such |
pen giIl bring rich reward.
II has been long time since we have
heard of the great Middle West but we +
are about to have another discovery in that /
great land made known. Perhaps ! should l
have said three or four discoveries, fer /
there is more than one promising NOEL |
expected from the valley OF the Mississippi /
this season. Wisconsin presents one claim
ant for recognition IN Elmore Elliott |
Peabe, whose short stories have appeared
in a number Of magazines lately. His first |
book, THE Darlingtons'' will be publish |
ed IN q week or two. and those who have !
had look at the advance sheets are en-. /
thusisstic in its praise. i deals with the |
fortunes of a typical well-to-do family. |
1
dist minister Of liberal views. who falls |
in love with her. 1t is said that the author |
worried more over a name for his book !
than in the entire work on fits contents. !
Speaking OF this point, Mr.. Peake re-
marked that James Lane Allen character
fzed his books in his own mind as boys or 1
girls. Mr.. Peake could not be sure OF the !
sex OF his first book. but he says from (
the solicItude with which / watch its first 4
efforts suspect it is toddiing infant"
Michigan enters the field in the parson /
of Stewart Edward White, whom Robert /
Barr halls as a coming novelist His novel, 4
however, goes farther West for its scene /
OF action. as it's name, THE Westerners," /
implies 1 an Lot sure but that the book
will not see light before spring Magazine /
readers may remember recent short story
by Mr.. White, in which the hero narrowly .
escaped lynching at the hands OF q mob I
who rnistook him for horsethief. II was
m experience which changed the hero
from an idealistic TO a realistic writer. and (
the story he wrote of his lynching ex-
perience won for him his lady love. our
interest in Mr. White is quiekoned by the
knowledge which just comes to hand to
abe effect that he himself had the same
narrow escape from lxnehing as the hero
OF his tale. II he has put as much realism
into his novel, 1.-THE Wcsteraers' will
not lack dramatic interest.
OF the known Western writer's. Hamlin
Garland will be represented by "The Ea-
giles Heart" q Western story, and Frank
Norris viii probably finish the frst volume
of his Wheat novel, whose scene will
be laid in California.
have just finished looking over a novel.
called a Soul In Bronze" which has no /
little power in exhibiting the immutabIlity |
OF race and social conditions Its hero |
is an educatad Indian who iovos ava &c