Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-02-14

In his introduction to "A Guide to
the Best Historical Novels" published
by G.. P. Putnam's Sons, Jonathan
Nield observes that historical novels
the scenes of which are laid in the
pre-Christian eras, or generally In an
cient times, lack vividness in compare
son with those dealing with times near
err the present. This suggests the dir
lemma which is bound to confront the
historical novelist. If he writes of the
DAYS of old for which he can find the
most careful sifted estimates ana state
ment of events, he will lose that first
hand grip proper to the lfellke quallty
of good fiction. On the other hand, if
he turns to nearer times ne must ran
into the errors which seem inevitable
in contemporary judgment. The moral
may be that he should choose the mid
die period, a time neither ancient nor
of the recent past. But this does not
touch the core of the trouble. Perhaps
the difficulty lies in tendency among
writer's today to consider that famil-
iarity with the history of a period is
the real essential for the production of
a story laid in that time. One reads up
the wars of old France or the political
intrigues under Elizabeth and, presto.
we have a book. But we have right
to demand of the imaginative writer
that he gives us story first and fore
most, and that its being laid in a time
/ gone by must be merely incidental.
Arthur Morrison is writing new
novel. a serious one, and not "slum"
story He is also at work upon a book
| to be entitled 1.-The Painters of Japan"
He has collected a mass of valuable
| information from Japanese sources.
| Charles Major has been writing a
novel in an entirely different field from
anything that he has hitherto attempt
ed, ard his publishers, The Macmillan
Company, will have it ready for publ
| cation early in the spring. Its title has
not yet been chosen.
A queer title, 1.-The Transit of the
| Red Dragon has been bestowed by
| Mr.. Eden Phillpotts upon his new nov
| Ell. 1t will be brought out this month.
Mrs .Elinor Glyn, the author of THE
Visits of Elizabeth will, it is UNDER
stood. observe life and society in this
country for purposes of authorship.
She is contemplating a journey hither
| this year.
Andrew Lang, whose pen is never
| firing, intends to bring out collected
edition of his works. Let us hope that
he will omit none of his delightful YER
ses. People may disagree with Mr..
Lang-disagree violently perhaps-but
they will never find him dull.
Miss Corelli has been talking about
| literature to a philosophical society at
| Manchester, devoting some portion OF
! her discourse to the trials of authors.
| Some of these trials she, of course, at
| tributed TO those heartless and careless
| persons called reviewers. Here is one
+ Of her protests: f"Nor should we decide
| that the sentiments expressed by the
| characters in the book are the Sent1-
| nents of the author, or that when some
| very dreadful or thrilling scene is de-
| scribed the author must have expert
enced' the same. By this argument
| Shakespeare must have experienced
4 the sensations of a murder in order e
i
| auired a personal acquaintance with
Richard Occur de Lion before produc-
| ing his magnificent novel 'The Tails
man. and Dickens needed to have liv-
ed during the French Revolution for
any experience of The Tale of Two
Cities Strange as it may seem, said
! Miss Corelli, 1.-The grandest poems, the
| finest, fiction, are the productions OF
tauthors who have never had, and never
could have, the experience they dea
/ with except in Imagination. Most OF the
| great imaginative works of the worlc
are beyond experience. To the poe
land romancist imagination is expert
ence. 1t is the eye of the soul which
sees all earth and all heaven Miss
| Corelli concluded by saying that al
authors worthy of the name had un'
speakable joy in their work, and per-
formed that work in the hope to cheer
refine or elevate at least one soul IN
million.