New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-11-06
"BITS OF GOSSIP"
Mrs. Rebecca Harding DaUis .
"reminiscences.
SCRIBNERS

BITS OF GOSSIP. By Rebecca Harding DavA
16mo. PIP 2ss- HOughton Mifiiin & Co
Taking up once more a brilliant pen which has
been too long idle Mrs Davis has here set
down various entertaining "reminiscences OF her
childhood and young womanhood. She has
much to say of the Oldtime simple life of
isolated Virginia village-one far away from
the centre of things that after Presidential
election a month often passed before the man
on a galloping horse brought us the name of the
successful candidate" She the border
in the early COS something Of 'griIn-visaged
war; she has known men and women who were
among the most famous Americans of their
time. These soldiers poets, philosophers poll
ticians. reformers, are very much alive in her
pages, described as they are with huInor. sympa-
thy and unfailinS candor.
She gives US some interesting glimpses Of DE-
Holmes. who. BY the way, spent a summer
morning in wandering through Mount Auburn
with her in 4 mood half merry and half sad
He told her that he believed he knew every grave
in the old villages within a radius OF thirty
miles from Boston. He searched out the his
tories of these long forgotten seepers and when
have found out all about them" he said, they
seem like my friends lying there" Every
spring, he added. "as soon the grass begins
to come up. go my rounds to visit them and
see now my dead men doP' Holmes preached
the value of a hobby in the rush of American
work and worry, and practised what he preached
with camera and violin
Under his is, literary table. too was a little box.
FURNISHED 3I+ with jigsaw lathe etc. 1t ran in and
1uI on grooves; ike car on a railway. He showed
II contriyed that he said: but only my friends
hard at W6rk fgoPie think am shut in here
am making jirncracks But if any of The fnn C
goes under the table an 1G ann shSSeso, Ava it
tb54c ci IN IN character-pen handr' And he
trick. 10y over MS successful
VI the great men whom the author has met,
ii-t"thorhe was the only who did not sink
INTO an ordinary citizen at close approach
Even in his own house" she says. he was
Ike Banquo's ghost among the thames at the
banquet She declares that his portrait gives
no loea OF the singular melancholy charm of his
iace-'there was a mysterious power in it which
never have seen elsewhere in nictura stain.
or human being" She notes that healthy. COM
monplace people felt toward the solitary man a
tender sympathy such they would give to a
SICK child. and she quotes old Salem black
smith as saying to her: Nathaniel was queer
even as boy. He certainly was queer But
you humored him You TAINTED to humor him
Concerning A B. Alcott. that self-deceivfns
imitation philosopher, the Virginian when She
visited Concord. had Illusions though she
perceived that Emerson's faith In the man was
so sincere and simple that it was almost painful
to witness" She gives us an amusing glimpse
of the sage devouring roast beef at Hawthorne's
table and advocating afterward devotion 10
pears diet spiritually precious 70 the body
and soul of man. Mrs Davis describes Emerson
eager explorer of souls without inter
est in the intelligence he had finished exploiting
He took from each man his drop of stored
honey. and after that the counted for no
more to him than any other robbed bee. I do
not think that even the worship which his disci-
pies gave him interested him enough to either
amuse annoy him" 1t is worth while quotin;
what he said to his visitor regarding Thoreau
as an interesting study:
"ThOreau?' He hesitated thinking. going appar-
emily the bottom of the matter, and said pres
emily: Henry often reminded OF an animal in
human form. lie had the eye OF a bird the scent
of dog, the most acute delicate intelIieenCe-but
no soul No. he repeated. shaking his head with
decision Henry could not have had a human soul
Stories of war time. stories OF her fathers
idol. Henry Clay; stories of the abOHtionist lead
ers, and of strange people less known. hold the
reader to the end OF book which might well
be longer than II Is.