The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-10-25
NEWS OF THE BOOK WORLD
THE UNEASY CHAIR

Richard lie SaIilenne as an Advocate
OF Free Love.-Possibly it is making the
statement too strong to say that Richard
LIE Gallienne Is an advocate Of free love,
but 1t Is not too much to say that he
comes very near being that He himself
declares In Old Love Stories Retold for
AN instructive monogamy, based on nat
ural selection, spiritual, mental and ply
sical-a spontaneous even an eager, mon
ogamy and not merely an arbitrary legal
fiat
This doctrine OF matrimony, Mr.. LIE
Gallienne sets forth In his retelling Of
the love story of Shelley and Mary God
win. In nutshell Shelley found life
with his wife, Harriet, irksome,. "im-
possible" Besides, he believed" she had
been unfaithful to him. Mary Goodwin he
believed to be his affinity. Therefore he
eloped with Mary. He made Harriet's
supposed unfaithfulness and the fact that
she irked him his justification for un-
faithfulness to her and for exposing an
other innocent woman to the whims of
character which his experience with Har-
r1et should have taught him was at leas.
uncertain. At least at that time he could
give neither himself nor Mary reason
able assurance that some day soon Mary
would not be as Impossible" as Har-
riet had become. Yet Mr.. LIE Gallienne
attempts to justify Shelley's elopement
with Mary. He says: -.
Many lovers, indeed, before Shelley and Mary,
had taken the law into their own hands, but the
difference between their stories and this story
is that they have rather represented lawlessness,
whereas, Shelley and Mary break an old law
only to make new one and better law, or,
at least merely to illustrate it's necessity.
Shelley and Mary stand, not so much for rebel
l1ous passion as for commonsense in the regu1a-
ton of the difficult partnership of the sexes.
They represent the right Of human beings to cor
rect their matrimonial mistakes, right even
yet stupidity superstitiously denied.
This. If new, would be astounding. II
man is to be permitted to correct his
own matrimonial mistakes" under the
spell Of his latest passion, which, Of
course, he will be. convinced is the guide
to that "instinctive monogamy" for which
nature has sealed him, what basis is
there for per1nanency of the marriage
bond?
But to return to the book "Old Love
Stories Retold." It Is written in Mr.. LIE
Gallienne's pleasing and tempting style.
1t contains the stories Of Dante and Bea-
trice, Aucassin and Nicolete. Sir Philip
Sidney and Lady Penelope Devereaux,
Shelley and Mary Goodwin, John Keats and
Fanny Brawne, Heine and Mathilde Fer
dinand Lassalle and Helen Won Donniges,
and Abelard and Heloise. The illustra-
lions, decorations, print and binding are
all suited to the subject matter, making
in all book Of much attractiveness, ex-
cept for Mr.. LIE Gall1ennes peculiar ideas
as to methods for correcting matrimonial
mistakes. P
For the Lover Of Art and Student Of
ScuIpture.-Uniform with Russell Sturgis'
How to Judge Architecture" is The APP
probation Of Sculpture, by the same au-
thor. The book Is one to stimulate inter-
est and study In sculpture. 1t is one of
much lucid comment on sculpture, an
cient and modern, illustrated with many
fine plates of masterpieces of different
ages. -