The Washington times., 1901-07-21
Miscellaneous. Rooks.

|
Miscellaneous Books.
Everyday Thoughts in Prose anC
verse Is the altogether misleading it'll
OF new book by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Inc thoughts are not everyday, not il
the least; the prose is struggling poetry
and the verse is--oue would scarcely lik,
to say what. The book ought to hav,
been called something else.
The author of Poems of Passion,
Poems of Pleasure" Men. Women anC
Emotions, Poems of Power" AN Err
ring Woman's Love- and things of that
sort ought not to try TO write everyday
thoughts. 1t is impracticable. 1t is like
Laura Jean I.ibbey writing n cook hook
or Old Sleuth editing the correspond snct
column of an agricultural weekly
something is due to propriety. There are
not many people who could take a dose
of Ella Wheeler Wilcox every day.
Most of these thoughts have been
evoked by letters which unhappy or per-
picked people have written to the papers
| ABOUT their troubles The unhappy per-
son in former generations carried his or
her troubles to the priest, the doctor, or
the Clergyman; the modern unhappy per-
son takes them to the New York Jour
| nal' and Mrs. Wilcox
A considerable part of the book is
taken up with advice to silly people not
to be themselves; and it is to be rerem-
bered that even Solomon did not seem to
be quite certain whether or not TO an
| swer fool according to his folly If a
| girl does not know whether or not she
| ought to allow a married Ean to make
love TO her, or wife does not unders; and
that she ought to let her husband spend
q rtta..
oiie evening a week out, or a young man
| does not see that he cannot expect the
Whoie earth with a gold fence around it
unless he has the price thereof, 1t is
doubtful If Mrs. Wilcox or anybody else
can do much good TO the unfortunate
thus constituted. But there is no par
tieular harm in her trying Chicago: w.
B. CoESey & Coz
Johnson's Physical Culture" is a little
volume of hints on hygiene and the sim
piest Kind of gymnastics. 1t is intended
mainly for public school work, but it
would be worth the while of any parent
to buy and read it. The exercises are
intended for children in the primary
grades. Richmond. Va: B. f. johnson
Publishing Company
What Is a Kindergarten?" is the title
OF small book by George Hansen, a land
scape architect. The style is quaint. but
not unplcesing. betraying, as it does the
foreign blood of the author 1t takes up
the subject of kindergarten from the
original point of view-dealing with it as
literal "children's garden" and is
mainly devoted to advice as to the plants.
SHRUBS, ana flowers to be used in the
decoration of grounds belonging to such
an institution. Oddly enough, kindergar-
tens are usually situated in towns where
there IS no ground at all, but there would
be advantage in, adopting Mr. Hansen's
suggestion that they should be surrounded
with gardens. tSan Francisco: Elder &
Shepard)
"A Textbook of Astronomy" by
George C. Comstock director of the
Washburn Observatory and professor of
astronomy in the University of yiscon.
sin, is a book intended primarily as a |
textbook in schools. The teacher OF |
astronomy in any high school or small |
coilese is likely to find il interesting, and !
perhaps valuable. 1t is carefully and
clearly written, and the reader is urged |
10 make speciality of the experimental |
SIDE OF the subject making observations
as accurate as the means at hand will |
allow There is a photography of pop
uiar literature Upon astronomy at the
end of the volume. and it is suggested
that some, If not all, of the works men
TONED may profftably be added TO the
school library. The Illustrations are ex
cellent, and the book viii not come arniss
to the amateur student, though not writ
ten as a popular work on astronomy.
New York: ID. Appleton & Co sI3O)
title of a book by Philip A Robinson. in
which the subject of money is fully dis
cussed and arguments against bimetal-
ism and in favor of the single standard
are advanced. There is nothing much
that is new in it, and while IL will inter
est those who are interested in the sub
Iect to the extent of wanting to read |
everything that is written about it. II
does not appeal to the public in general
Washington: The Neale Company
"Love-in-a- Mist" is the rather odd title |
II volume of poems by Post Wheeler. |
The name is familiar to most readers of |
he newspapers, and has probably been
'egarded as a pseudonym; but it is not
dr. Wheeler has been called the Steph-
n Phillips of America" and the desig-
lation is not a bad one.
Inc poems are OF All sorts, and possess |
tut one popularity in common; none of
hem is carelessly written. Perhaps the
alient quality in the book, considered as
whole, is its suggestiveness. The author
GEMS never to have said all that could ;
e said, in any poem; his ideas and
hrases beget a train of reflections in the
mind of TIE reader; and sometimes, it ,
must be confessed, these reflections are
what in the world he is driv-
ng at. There is but little in the book |
'hich will appeal TO a large public The
My sort of poem which does this. as
ule, Is the lyric, and there is but little E
T the lyric quality In Mr.. Wheeler's work t
le has one or two mannerisms which are i
lightly annoying; one of them is the +
onstant tendency to the use of the word t
little t
a characteristic specimen of the briefer =
oems-ard there are no very long ones I
this: {
THREE THINGS = =
Three things there be that are all sweet n
Sweetest of all things vanishing
And dearest, dearest far Of all:
A child's kiss, stumbling so and feet, S
Straight falling rain of later spring, A
Loved footsteps coming up hall G
weird in its suggestiveness. IL I
ltitled THE Md Musician"
A harp would Ia harp whose touch
In sunlight stIr-hTe, glamoured dusk, a
Would prick my fine as musk =,
Whose voice would charm me oyeTmuch. u
1t must be strung all cunningy, d
Its cords fne-wOve and musc-mad, T
Like her dark hair that made glad a,
To singing when | wound il free. -