The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-10-12
AN EXCURSION INTO THE
DOMAIN OF LITERATURE
Dr. Kingsbury Discourses Delightfully."- of Books and
Writers. Bishop Wilson's 'Witness to Christ
The Day of the New Literature.

T. w. H. Crosland, an English writer,
has published a book that attracts no
little attention in Great Britain. 1t is en-
titled THE Unspeakable Scot" and it
is a vile, slanderous attack upon the
scotch generally. 1t is bitter and SCOT
fng. and is an effort to ridcule and de-
fame the people of Scotland. 1t will be
probably replied to by more than one an
gered son of Scotia, and it is to be hoped
that the man with the bludgeon will be so
handled as to make him wish he had been
less insolent and aggressive. country
that has produced so many illustrious
and gifted men is not to be despised and
abused by even an English literary bully
and hater. He is said to make conten-
ton that mo man was ever born north
of the Tweed who was not an arrant,
knave and hypocrite.' Think of a fellow
daring to affirm this of any people who
were either civilized or half civilized.
Scotlands roll of great men is long
end imposing. At the head stand Sir
Walter Scott and Robert Burns, two i'm
mortals in letters.
Mrs. Elizabeth d. B. Stoddard, woman
of literary gifts and authorship, beins
9th novelist and poet, died on August
LIST. 1902 aged seventy nine She was the
wife of the we'll known critic and poet,
Richard II enry Stoddard, of New York
city.
Mrs Augusta Wilson, better known as
Miss Evans, of Mobile, Ala, who wrote
several novels in war-times, and after
and before is out with a new book she
calls "A Speckled Bird" The publishers
10 how i=GtI
COO copies as the first edition. During
the great war her story called "Beulah'
was much read. In 1862, she published
''Macaria" After that she published
.Vashti," 'InfeIice,' and AT the Mercy
of Tiberius." | have never had the GU
rjosity to read any of these books. Her
most famous story was st. Elmo,
think. but Of its real merits, know
nothing. It is supposed TO BE- initiative
Of Charlotte Broutcs famous and write
"Jauc Eyre" Her books have been
laughed at, even ridiculed. because OF
their Astounding winds of laundering
sound" her parade of the classical, her
manifest study of encyclopedias her
hombast and fustian and 'hiShfultln
rhetoric and descriptions. But OF these
| have no personal knowledge. In the
midst of he awful food OF fiction ana
wan-like romance and bad limitations OF
Scott. she is a bold woman to venture III
oId age to try her fortunes once more
MS n Southern writer of novels.
The magazines have been cynor;Eg the
really Dreadful character Of Dumas, the
elder, who was half negro. lie was
utterly unprincipled reckless and
proiligatc of the first order. He was
compound of rare gifts and most debased
nature; of the widest excuses, III"
lowest possible morals, and the most
stupendous extravaganza. VAIN aosuru,
desperate in wickedness. ana with 1t an
full of good nature and charltaple III
pulscs. The New YORK BoOkman' I'LL us
July issue, had paper on thlS nus.
popular of French nOveli5ts. The study oi
this eminent story teller Will aStonlsh
the readers OF the great trllogy Oh this
great novelist. who are not acqudlhtcu
with his astounding performances anu
his real character. We Gull rev On
tracts from the Bookman to let III the
light:
"Hc at least was a consistent PROM
gate. He was not in the strict sense an
honest man. and he was not what is now
so much more admired. a conscientious
III.
pleasure to do bad actions, and he held
himself free for his own pleasure to
write bad books. But he would.
in fact. borrow from anybody if he were
driven to it, even from history or from
shakespeare. This indifference to indebted
ness. this disdain of originality, cannot
but appear contemplate to the current
artistic spirit Nobody is quite
certain that any idea which Dumas pre-
scented was invented by him. Nobody is
quite certain that any line which Dumas
published was written by him. But for
all that, we know that Dumas was, and
must have been, a great man. 1t
WAS i'm this dramatic sequence that
Dumas was greatest and most readable; !
he cxccllcd in a kind of systematic dis
astcr and kind of ORDERLY crime. He
was after ALL Frenehman in more
wavs than one. and with all his violence
worIdIincss and appetite there remains
i'm his work something fundamentally
logical"
OF the intenscst depravity he had high
genius. art tact. taste. solidity fascina-
ton. and as "A story teller has never been
SURPASSED. and if ever equalled, it was by
Scott from whom he had learned much
as was the case with Hugo. Balzac and
some other French story writer's. The
debauchcries of Dumas were enormous,
aud his novels are not clean. immoral
tone pervades them. That Will not offend
tons of thousands of readers of this par
ticular time.
Mr.. Tom Dixon is soon to begin a
lecture tour. He is now writing SECOND
novel. and it will illustrate the Ku kluX
era. He will probably do for this time
cf trial for the South what he is said to
have done with much of power in the
Reconstruction era. THE Leopard
Spots continues to sell we'll The pub
fishers announce that IS, 900 copies have
been published. The New York Bookman
for September gives information as to its
continued sale in certain cities OF the
six greatest selling novels i'm August. it