The age-herald., 1901-05-05


 The most notable event in the magazine world of course is the first installment of Audrey" in The Atlantic Monthly. When the announcement was made that Miss Johnston's new work would not ap- pear until the early summer, 1t seemed very long while to wait, and required much patience on the part of those who were so eager for her new work. But the time slipped rapidly away as time will, and now we have the opening chap ters of her third book But they are not enough. after the long wait, and ad- hiring readers will find 1t very hard to wait another long month before learn ing more if this new delightful creature of Virginian soil-"Audrey." In the three chapters given three of Miss Johnston's most delightful qualities as a writer are charmingly emphasized. First her grace full, easy style which has played no little part In winning the wide popularity of her works. Not that a good style always wins popularity by any means but it adds definite charm to those oftentimes in definable qualities which claim and demand success. Second only to her style is the authors beautiful descrip- tions.
 It is useless to detach a sentence here or there as an illustration for each eX- quiste description Is but link in who that gives beauty and picturesqueness to the text. Next, and very difficult thing to do, is her splendid ability to produce vivid mental pictures of scenes she pre- sents In so short a compass as three chapters there are two beautiful pictures which stand out vividly and clearly, thrown into even higher relief by the et1 r1t x.tro rr1ai portant affairs. In the first chapter the meeting in the mountain valley of the gay party of Virginia horsemen. the supper, the joyous toasts and the admiring won der of the pioneers family form picture
 which will not soon fade away from the mentality. Some ten years later the scene changes and we have the May-day cele- bration in Jamestown. The description
 of the scene and particularly of its par ticipants forms another exquisite picture
 to treasure long in the fancy, and "Au- drey is delightfully."- launched and claims
 the readers deepest interest for the very human heroine. These are three delight
 full characteristics to be held by any one writer but in, fiction there is another
 which Is equally important. Much has
 been written recently in regard to "the burden of Insignificant conversation" and
 it applies, fear, even to Miss Johnston's opening chapters of Audrey"
 Birmingham readers especially are all
 ways glad to note an article from the pen of MT. William Garrott Brown of Ala
 bama, now librarian at Harvard Univer- sity His article In the Atlantic Monthly on "The Ku Klux Movement is one of the most interesting as we'll as profound articles ever written upon this really
 unique and fascinating subject. Mir
 Brown says: When the civil war ended, the little town of Pulaski, Tenn, well
 comed home a. band of young men who. though they were veterans of hard-fought fields, were for the most part no older than the mass of college students. A Southern country town, even in the hal cyon days before the war was not par ticularly lively place: and Pulaski In 1866 was doubtless rather tame to fellows who had seen Pickett charge at Gettysburg or galloped over the country with Morgan and Wheeler. A group of them, assem- bled In law office one evening in May. 1868, were discussing ways and means of having a livelier ime. Some one sug- gested club or society. An organization with no very definite aims was effected, and at a second meeting. week later. names were proposed and discussed.
 Some one pronounced the Greek word "Kuklcs," meaning a circle. From
 ''Kuklos'' to ..Ku Klux" was an easy transition. and .Klan%. followed "Ku Klux'' as naturally as 'dumpty" follows i.humpty'' It. semsgs that the only sim portant clause in the oath of membership was d promise of absolute secrecy. The disguise, as Is we'll known, was a white mask, tall cardboard hat. a robe that covered the whole person, and when mounted a cover for the horses feet. Af ter very interesting description of the leading incidents of the period and what 1t meant to the South Mir Brown con- cludes writing of the conditions in the South, When Congress interfered and undid their work, and they stood passive until they could see what the Congress sional scheme would be like. They found 1t bad, oppressive, unwise. impossible. They bore it awhile in silence. Then in silence they made ups their minds to re- sist. What form could their resistance ! take? It must be revolutionary, for they had formally renounced the right of se- cession. It could not be open war, for they were powerless to fight. So they made secret revolution.
 Their rebellion could not raise Its head, so 1t went underground. In summing up the question by asking did the end justify the means, MT. Brown promtply writes: | "One is ready to declare, not, perhaps that the end Justified the means, but that never before was an end so clearly worth 1 fightin for made so clearly unattainable
 
 is very valuable one and should be read, especially by our boys and girls, as giv- I Ing them clear, thoughtful and concise estimate of this unique period of our his- ! tory. As to the latter clause of MT.
 Browns article we must remember with i charity that the author has lived for a , long while north of Mason and Dixon's
 line.
 Those who are interested in the forth coming publication which will contain the
 autobiography of Captain Dreyfus,. to-
 gether with his diary kept on Devil s Island, will no doubt be glad to read ex- tracts from the manuscript in McClure's s
 Magazine for the present month. The
 wonder Is that poor Dreyfus ever lived
 through all the terrible experiences that he endured so bravely. and 1t will take
 a stout heart and a firm mind to read
 with equanimity the record of these expe-
 riences. Surely the specimen given in
 McClure's will be sufficient for even the most phlegmatic without whole volume of the same terribly tragic recital One can scarcely realize that so near the Twentieth century, such things could oc- cur in the heart of the gayest and most fascinating capital in Europe. And yet I can personally testify that these suffer- ings of his poor human being were not in any way regretted by the gay Paris ians but that with iercest zeal in their hearts they ever demanded his second