New-York tribune., 1901-08-03
BOOKS AND AUTHORS.
CURRENT TALK OF THINGS PRESENT
AND TO COME.

| Mr. Henry Seton Merriman has drawn from
| Northern Spain the local color for his new
| novel THE Velvet Glove" which Dodd. Mead
| & Co. have in press. Carlists and Jesuits
take part in the action. The characters in the
| book all Spanish.
Mr. Herbert Vivian whose amusing revival of
Dr. Johnson's Rambler has lately been noticed
| in The Tribune has a keen eye for the pict-
| uresque He has let us know this In more than
| one book of travel, and his publishers. Long
] mans, Green & Co, now announce a Volume'
written in collaboration with Olive vivian.
| which ought 10 show this useful literary gift
| of his to greater advantage than ever. 1t is
| called THE Romance of Religion and it de-
scribes IN a couple of dozen chapters. divers
| interesting religious ceremonies and pageants
| observed in many lands. Spain, Italy, France
and the Orient provide the authors with their
| themes There will be a generous number OF
| illustrations. from photographs.
The life of a theatrical periodical Is not the
| longest thing in the world. Paris, London New
York, and. doubtless. every other great capital
can point to weeklies and monthlies founded In
honor of the playhouse, only to be aoanuoneo
| and forgotten after a certain period OF pros
| neritv. 1t is to be hoped that the latest candi-
| date for success in this field, "The Theatre
| monthly published in New-York, will have bet
| ter luck than that which has attended so many
of its predecessors. 1t is edited, in sprlghtly
VEIN by Mr. Arthur Hornblow. who diversif1es
his news paragraphs with special articles from
various sources. The text is sufficient In guam
tity. but It remains less noticeable than the
numerous illustrations. which are first rate half
tone reproductions from photographs of the ac-
tors and actresses of the hour. Scenes from
plays are also pictured. The cover is printed in
colors that for the current number bearing
vivid portrait Of Mr.. James X. Hackett as Don
Caesar. in the new play, Don Csesar's Return.
which is to be presented by him in this city next
month.
E p. Dutton & Co. will publish in a few days
a stout ouarto by Mr.. Arthur H Beavan called
Imperial London" 1t will present kind Of
panorama OF the British metropolis. There will
be fifty illustrations. drawn by Mr.. Hanslip
Fletcher and a photogravure will form the
frontispiece. The same publishers will bring
out simultaneously with this work. volume
entitled Lake Geneva and its Literary Land
marks" by Mr. Francis Gribble This Is book
of anecdotal history. in which such famous per-
sonages as Votaire. Gibbon. Rousseau Madame
de StaeI Calvin. John Knox and the Prisoner
of Chillon are portrayed in more or less gossipy
fashion.
The new novel. as yet unnamed. upon which
Mr. Theodore Watts-Dutton has been at work
| IS to appear in print in the autumn. The pros
pect can be contemplated without very deep
emotion The author OF "Aylwin" failed TO de-
monstrate in that volume that he has the ro-
mancers gift. But look forward with much
interest TO the memoirs which Mr.. Watts-Dun-
ton expects TO publish in few months His
friendships with Swinburne. Rossetu. Morris
and several other important figures in Victorian
| IIa
has known in fact scores Of the authors of his
time. His volume OF reminiscence ought 10 he
very rich in literary personalia and the fruits
| of life spent in close contact with many OF
| the literary movements of the nineteenth cent
! ury.
| A new novel may sell 10 the extent of hum
| dred thousand copies. but the author Of that
novel need not natter himself that he is break
] ing the record" The sale OF Ben Hur' goes
right on The latest report from the publishers
states that nearly 725,ooo copies of General
WaIlace's novel have been sold.
The Frederick A Stokes Company will pub
| lsh in this country the new edition Of Shake
speare which the Constables. of Edinburgh are
! printing in ten folio volumes. Great attention
| is being paid to the typographical side OF this
enterprise. We glad to hear that while the
desperately decorative" that-like so much of
| the work produced by Morris and his followers
| 1t will spoil the pleasure Of the reader. This Is
| to be "a Shakespeare TO read" say the publish
| ers. Mr. Henley. the editor, win eschew notes
4 and conjectures There 10 be ten portraits
/ OF Shakespeare. Jonson. Fletcher. Burbage.
Southampton and Pembroke distributed through
the volumes The edition is TO run to 900 num-
bered sets. of which 800 will be for sale in
| America.
The recent expulsion OF George Kennan from
| the Russian Empire has redireoted attention TO
his book, siberia and the Exile System" which
made profound sensation on it's first appear
| ance ten years ago. The book has not lacked
| appreciation at any time. but a decided fllip is
| always given to the circulation of any work
| when some special occurrence brings its author
| anew into the public eye.
The c. NJ Clark Publishing Company OF
| Boston, which will publish before long Mr. G
| F. Pidgin's "Blennerhassett," a novel dealing
| with the fortunes OF Aaron Burr, has hit upon
| an ingenious method of rousing interest i'm the
| book in advance. A neatly printed pamphlet Of
| fourteen pages which have just received is
| made up OF chapter from the story. II is the
| twenty-fourth chapter that is thus brought into
service. and it has been wisely chosen. as il is
of a character to wake curiosity about "Bien-
| nerhassett"
Julia Cartwright CMrs Henry Ady) is 10 follow
| up her interesting volume Beatrice d Este
Duchess OF Milan. with similar study of Isa-
bella D'Este Gonzaga, wife of Ludovico Sforza
Duke of Milan. This work like the earlier pub