New-York tribune., 1900-01-07

River"
| 1t from the mother of the late Earl of
Tankerville that Disraeli borrowed the unhack-
neyed name. 'Corisande," of the heroine of
| "Lothar.'
Mr.. Morleys system in preparing his biog-
| raphy of Gladstone appears to be a wise one.
| 1t would be life task to read through the vulu-
mnous mass of letters which Gladstone was
so fond Of wrting-hs plan therefore is to
make selections of letters which throw special
! light on the character and work of his subject
Clever assistants make copies of usable epistles,
and Mr.. Morley edits and decides upon them.
What did TennysOn think about Browning's
| poetry? Archbishop Benson says in his diary:
! Il wonder whether l have anywhere put down
a walk with BRADLEY and Tennyson. Bradley
had been reading me The Grammarian's Fu-
neral and he said Wen ask Tennyson whether
! BrownnS's writing large is poetry no
! Tennyson's answer was: IN think about it,. In
a walk a week later, apropos of nothing, he OBJ
served: I have thought and it is We had no
idea for a moment as to what he spoke Of
Mr.. E. F. Benson's clever, rather trihing and
once fashionable novel "DOdo," the pivot
! of a funny little story which is told in England.
The novelists venerable father is said to have
had no taste for the kind of stories which his
son is most apt in framing. Just after "Dodo'
had taken the town by storm, Archbishop Ben
son went down to Tonbridge School to preside at
a special function There was large gathering.
and the Archbishop made speech, in which be
dwelt on the bygone customs of English pubic
school life many of which, he said, ARE
extinct as the Then he paused. 1t
hard to divine the traditional simile which
on his tongue. A smile went round the room,
spreading till it broke into a burst of laughter,
in which the Archbishop joined The sentence
! was never finished.
| The novest's brother Mr. A c. Benson de-
MES in the just published life of his father the
often repeated story that the Yorkes in shirley
rGplesent re- charlotte Bronte's impression of the
SidgWicks, in whose house she spent some time
/ as SOVerness. 1t is, however. admitted that 4
youthful member of the family who is now a
well behaved vicar, threw Bible at Miss
Brontes head. Mr.. Benson conveys to the reader
the idea that the lady morbid and eXacting;
mat II she was asked to walk to church with the
tamlly she resented the request extra
vice eXacted from her, and if she was not asked
she felt that she being excluded from the
family circle. We doubt the justice of this view
but the reader may have it for what it IS
worth.
Mr. Mr., David Dwight Wells's amusing little story. .
Her Ladyship's Elephant" is circulating
n ITS tWenty-frst impression, and very well IL
deserves its popularity.
A photographer discussing recently the diff
fculties of drawing up complete lists of book
rarities of the first rank told this story in illus
tratiOn: In preparing list of certain early
English Bible. he found that Lee Wilson had
recorded two perfect copies, one at Bristol and
another elsewhere He wrote to the librarians
at both places Cor particulars. The reply in one
case was that the perfect copy was imperfect,
and in the other that the copy perfect
! except that it wanted all the leaves!
There are fewer than ninety-six transla-
!
Museum. Apart from TIE great languages OF the
| world, these tTanslatiOns in Danish. Polish,
ManX, Armenian, Ieelandic and Bohemian.
The first story which Punch is publishing in
pursuance of his plan is The Debut If
Bimbash Joyce by DR.. Conan Doyle. This
lection is a peculiarly happy one, seeing that
DR.. DOye's kinsman. Richard Doyle, a wall
liable and honorable member of the early staff
of Mr.. Punch
Dr. Doyle is just of the most popular
authors in England-hut this fact is due
much to his writings to his having voIun-
teered for active service in South Africa
A copy of the Kelmscott Press Chaucer has
just been sold in London for $500.
Two stories about the late Mr.. Quartch: He
did not like smoking his shop and if any
body transgressed would say: Sir, this is not a
place to smoke in; it is place for books" He
often sent his assistants to book sales with cat
aogues marked at the volumes he wanted. also
go. On one occasion assistant went beyond
the figure marked opposite book, and later Mr..
Quaritch said: well. you can have. the book
altogether on paying for it, you can give me
a check for the difference in the amounts" But
that was only his way, and the purchase turned
out very well indeed
Henry r. Scnkiewiczs new novel, The
Knights of the Cross is to be published in
complete form by Little, Brown & Co. as soon
as Mr.. Curtin translates the small remaining
--rtion Of the second half. The author is stlI
~eaged upon the conclusion.