The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-07-12
NEWS OF THE BOOK WORLD

From Gold snuff-6 Box to Gold Cigarette
Case--Llfe as Reflected In Fiction OF
Modern Life OF Hundred Years Ago.
Is the Cigarette EVIL Extending Among
the Ultra "Smart"?-The Heroic in
Francis Parkman, Whose Life, BY
sedgeWick, Is Just out-The "Who
Struck Billy Patterson" Of Literature.
century ago the badge Of ''smartness"
in high life-high because moving upon
a plane supported by coupons, dividends.
rents or annuities of some sort-was the
gold snuTbox. Today the badge of the
same level Is the gold cigarette case.
Ihls, at least, Is the testimony of fiction
literature; AID we are told that literature
reflects life. The Uneasy Chairs tor
tured occupant does not recall definitely
just at the moment any who wore the
gold snuffbox badge, but it could name
three new novels-one American thru and
thru another English, third Dutch
all read within the past week, in each of
which some important character is con-
cerned about his gold cigarette-case. Did
l say his? I should have said Ibis or
her.n For with the growing prominence
OF the gold cigarette-case among the ul.
ira fashionable is also noted more fire.
quent mention Of the woman cigarette
smoker, IN the same circles, shocking tho
1t may be, even to those familiar with
the fact that some who belong to that
portion of humanity known as lovely
women are given to the use Of the weed
IN mild form. And that is another re-
Election Of life in literature.
Well, what are we going to do about it:
Some may say I'm your gold and jeweled
snurbox days women took snuff and
very estimable women, too; why shouldn't
women smoke cigarettes?" But there is
a difference, If in nothing more than tina,
Of obtrusiveness. Yet the best answer is
the appeal ad homine1n. How would YOU
like to see the worthy women of your owr
household adopt the practice? Or what
would you come to think of the ---
Avenue Euchre club if you should learr
that its very proper members colored thei,
pretty fingers with cigarette stain %,
soiled their dainty gowns with cigarette
ashes, while between games they dis:
cussed their respective chances Of win.
ming the head prize? Oh dear, no! o.
course, they don't, and they're not goins
to, but what if they did or should? AnC
that suggests the question as to how fal
other levels of society will initiate the
high Notwithstanding level. Are the
women of other levels going to climb u1
or fall down-to that level to any con.
siderable degree?
From the contemplation of one Of the
foibles of the amusement hunting, frivo.
lous minded, extremely rich to the ''heroit
career of Francis Parkman," whose biog.
raphy, by Henry D. sedgwick, is the lat.
series is tremendous leap John Fiske
once alluded to Pontiac and his conspiracy
as 1.-The theme Of one of the most prillian,
and fascinating books that have beer
written by any historian since the days.o Of
Herodotus, !" referring to Parkman' s ''Po1:
t1ac., Yet the man who wrote Pontiac
and other histories of highest authority
worked under conditions of physical anc
mental distress that would have caused
most men to give up in despair all hope
of achieving anything that would be con.
sidered worth while. This Is accentuatec
by the fact that Parkman as youth "hac
profound respect for physical strength
invalidism of all kinds" Then, too. Al
the outset he 'felt himself spurred for
ward irrestibly. It was like rider whose
horse had got the bit between his teeth.
He realized a danger which others Wer,
not aware of, yet he went on at his work
His eyes gave out, but still he continued
using the eyes Of others. He went to tn.
Rocky mountains and lived among a row
ing band of Sioux Indians, but there thu
impulse to pursue his Investigations wa.
always upon him, and he was finall,
obliged to return to civilization and for
| time lay aside all work. But fdleness wa
not, to 4 be endured. So he set to work
Yet how many would have been willing, It,
try to do anything at all under the con
ditions that he saw before him? This l!
the way he himself tells it:
After while-as anything was better tina,
1dleness-l resolved on cautiously attempting tt
make use OF the documents already collected TO
The Conspiracy of Pontiac They We're real
the brain was least rebellious, and wrote with
out the use of sight, by means of sort is liter
airy gr1diron or frame of parallel wires, lai,
on the page to guide the hand For SOM
months the average rate of progress did not eS
coed three or four lines day.
What a lesson in patience and per
sistence! r... =
It is of this man that Mr.. sedgwicl
writes in happy vein, with facile pen an,
with sound judgment, making this addi
| ton to the series one greatly to be de
sired.
Some of Tom Masson's best work
printed in Life, has been put into
dainty little volume called In Merry Meas
ure. Merry measures are all one find
therein, aside from the pictures, and the,
fit the measure, too. Here is a small
sample:
She set fire to my heart and fed ~
Incendiary maid!
The flames thruout the structure snread
And left me all dismayed.
|. Yet now with fear no more start
Cupid. contractor came,
He's built for me fireproof heart ~
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