The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-12-08
LITERARY NOTES

The four books on the Scribner list
that have been running very strongly
have all made distinct advances in cir
culation during the last 10 days, show
ing the permanence of their selling
qualities. The record stands now as
follows:
1.-THE Cavalier, by George w. Ca
BILE, 65th thousand; Lives of the Hunt
ed" by Ernest Thompson-Seton 10th
thousand 1.-THE Ruling Passion, by
Henry Van Dyke, 50th thousand; and
Amos judd" by j. A. Mitchell, with
colored illustrations by Keller, S5th
thousand.
These figures have all been earned
since October l, when the earliest of
them, 1.-The Cavalier" was published
October II, and the other two Octo-
Der 10.
Probably the only book ever dedi-
Gated to a newspaper is Mr.. William
Allen Whites "Strategems and
SpoiIs-Stories of Love and Politics. )"
Here is Mr.. Whites dedication:
To
The Kansas City Star
An Honest Newspaper
and to
William r. Nelson, James B. Runnion,
Thomas w. Johnson, Jr.,
and
Alexander Butts
who made it,
This book is respectfully
Dedicated.
Here is a chance for curiosity hunt
ers and antiquaries. Was there ever
another book dedication similar to
this?
The latest book of letters is an
Company, New York. 1t is entitled
Letters of Mildred's Mother to Mil
bred" written by E. D. Price, better
known in his literary work as THE
Man Behind the Scenes. 1t embodies
a series of humorous sketches upon
stage life which satirize the famous
Elizabeth letters. They originally APP
peared in the New York Telegraph and
proved immensely dfverting to a great
number of people who would line to
preserve them between covers.
A second edition of "The Garden of
a Commuters Wife" is just issued by
The Macmillan Company. This bright,
glowing record of sunshine and flowers,
of books and dogs, of happiness in a
garden in summer and by the fireside
in winter, is likely to find many read
ers during the coming holiday season.
While it may be classed with ELIZA
beth and Her German Garden" in its
general outlook of life, it is confessed
ly written by an American, and thera-
in lies the difference, one of kind rath-
er than of degree. Each is pervaded
with a quiet humor
Little, Brown & Co. have just COM
pleted the publication of their VaIois
Edition of the Romances of Alexandra
Dumas in 40 volumes. There are two
styles, cloth and half morocco. 1t is
uniform with the Centenary Balzac.
The popularity of Truth Dexter
continues, and the fortieth thousand
has just been printed by Little, Brown
& Co.
Mary Catherine Crowley, author of
GA Daughter of New France" which
has gone into a sixth edition, has
written a new novel, which will be pub
lished in 1902.
Lillian Whiting, in her new book
'World Beautiful in Books says
1.-THE Ramona" of Helen Hunt Jack
son will retain it's recognized place as
a novel of purpose; and THE Master
Knot of Human Fate" by Ellis Mere
dith, is one of the most brilliant works
in intellectual quality in modern fic-
ton. The historical novel, that at
tanned its highest degree of excellence
in "ROmola," certainly reached its
greatest popular success in "Quo
Vadis, by Henryk Sienkiewicz,-a
story that fairly touches into life and
light again the time of Nero, and it
is the work which has the distinction
pf 1podiTar in lon al l,o
novels of this order; closely followed,
indeed, by Richard Yea and Nay, -
and by the Richard Carvel" and "The
Crisis" of Winston Churchill
1t will be remembered that Congress,
last winter, made liberal appropria-
tons for the establishment of a bureau
of standards at Washington. The Ma
tional Physical Laboratory of Great
Britain was established, two years ago,
and being thus further advanced than
our own serves somewhat as a model;
an article by its director, DIR. r. T.
Glazebrook, in the last number of The
Popular Science Monthly is thus of
interest at the present time. The au-
thor gives full and ample illustrated
descriptions of the laboratory in
Bushy Park and of the objects of a
national physical laboratory.
The first place in The Popular Science
Monthly for December is given to an
article by ex-President T. C. Men
denhall, entitled "A Mechanical Solu-
ton of a Literary Problem" Under
the authors direction the length of
the words used by different authors
was counted and the relative mum
Der of words of two, three, four, etc,
letters was determined Two million
words were counted, which gave char
acteristic curves of different authors.
Thus the curves for Shakespeare and
Bacon are so entirely different as to
show that there was no common au-
thorship.
John Morley's fine tribute to Mr..
Gladstone, on the occasion Of the re-
cent unwilling of the Gladstone monu-
ment at Manchester, forms the leading
article in The Living Age, for Deem
Der Z. 1t derives added interest from
the fact that Mr.. Morley is Mr. Glad
stones chosen biographer; and the
present appreciation of him furnishes
a sort of fOretaste of the great work
upon which Mr.. Morley is engaged.
Norman Hapgoods new life of
Washington is not without it's lighter
side. The occasional vigorous profan-
lty Of the father of his country makes
several dashes necessary in the quota
tons from Washington's letters, and
the testimony of a personal friend and
fellow soldier is given to the effect
that at Monmouth the commander-in-
chief "swore till the leaves shook on
the trees" never have I enjoyed such
swearing before or since. Sir, on that
ever memorable day he swore like an
angel from heaven" Nothing was Sc
likely to drive Washington to profan-
ity as cowardice, which he hated with
all the bitterness of a fighting man
He once threw an inkstand at an off
Ger who lacked cn1raea Whan his