The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-05-07

and incompetents in this country who
try to p~ooh-pooh great Sir Walter,
and make him quite commonplace and
far below the present standard Of fic-
tive excellence. We nave read several
such attacks and u sympathy was
Gus not for the greatest of crea-
tive minds in English since Shakes
peare, but for h writer's who saw SO
little when they read. Mr.. George w.
Smalley, the American correspondent
Of The London Times, writes interest
ingly Of the popular taste and the
"mechanicar' quality of the novels
now appearing. His contention is, as
We see it given in the New York Trib-
une, that nothing ever turned put of
a lathe was more purely mechanical
than these works. They are laborious;
they involve patient toll at the desk;
they are, perhaps, conscientious in re-
spect of their documentary basis, and
they are equally remote from history
and from fiction in any true sense of
either word" MI. Smalley's remark
as to the tombstone, says the Tribune,
whereby the meretricious quality of
these books may be discovered is es-
chapter of 'Kenilworth' or a chapter
of Henry Esmond,'" he says, land he
has all the apparatus he needs for
judging Of the modern books which
masquerade under this title of histor-
ical novel;" The words are conclusive.
But how is the reader who is appar-
emily content with the rubbish to be
made to read masterpieces? There is
the rub"
Last year we think three new edi-
tons of SCOTS novels appeared, and
this year a splendid edition is being
One Mr.. H. B. Balloon
writes a little ook or Stevenson, a
gifted countrymen of Sir Walter Scott,
later. This eulogist of the young
er writer thinks the Great Wizard of
North" had "a commonplace
Think of hat as you Eead "Old
and "Kenilworth," and
1.-The Bride of Lammermoor," and
Guy Mannering," and THE Anti
quarry" and 1.-The Heart of Midlothian"
and 'Ivanhoe,'' and Rob Roy" and
then exclaim "Oh, earth, earth,
That admirable living Scotch
critic. ~essayist, novelist, historian, bio
grapher, andrew Lang, takes this Mr.
Scotch too, we guess, in
hand, and roasts him over a slow fire.
Bajldon said of Scott with sue
low mind that he had never been
disturbed by speculation ON the deeper
problems of life, philosophy and re-
Scott believed in the Holy
Bible as he told his gifted son-in-law
and admirable ~biographer, Lockhart
he was near his death, he believ-
ed in Scotland, he believed in himself |
md in truth and in hsnor, and with |
mis- splendid genius was united health |
sound judgment. But read what
Mr.. Lang says: "Sir Walter was not |
idiot" he reminds Mr.. Balloon. |
Like other men he saw the deeper |
but he also say that what
be, it was worth no more than other |
peoples gueSSes, and what are they |
To babbIs abou these ulti- |
unsearchable mysteries is +Na
part of a mind really commonplace.
Every six-shilhng, whip
,ter drags problems into his fustian; |
he is incurably commonplace.
not because he is dauntlesslY origin
al" The ~caustic, ac2te critic of. The
Tribune mends Mr.. Lang's lick with
his pointed comment: We are sorry
for Mr. Balloon. But in fairness it
must be admitted that he is only Incl |
to be sermonized. THE seri- |
ous culprit is the "six-shilling whip |
the ever present mediocritg who
oores US interminably with his jejune
about Man, Life, Immortali- |
ty and a lot of other things that ne al |
spells with a capital letter. We |
are grateful once more to Mr.. Lang forl
the nail on the head, for putting
the false Originality" of which we
hear 50 much in it's proper, place"