The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-06-03
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In fHn IINMN NNNNN NfINifWHN Nv WNst-fsf
have published What pfoiabiy vtn ~ 81
rsp,sd ~ Tho an hofitative and NAL bfe
eIsV Risha,d Bgrioe ~ fHoals watoHt.
sbose mans NJ the autioe ~ no 'IAfe ~
Idsafd Fitzgerald Ia No doiht faullisT
IN many readers N is utn tweivs yesfs
.isee tho biography ~ Burton ~ hts widow
sss bo,ira,l IN fhsas colunne We NV not
se0v ~ fhs tire what 80 nov lelrn that
, ta,be,lo iotarsst OF trhed ~ inst bonn
(, soe,oa hat iady Burton waa tlIen stfichrn
do,sn with an iHciftbie disetee, that death
hung rvrr her ~ her fen hsN alona ths
rstef and ihtt op her lips wae conettntly
Tho 1iea'i1n 'shtli I live W. oofBpiets
nv ts.k3" Complete N she did IN q esnee
t,, We sfe assured in tbs pteface ~ thu
royh bnfnre ta that M one f~pcuGniesd
morr Clearly than herarif tbs numerous
shpt,emnina A. ~ her loyal attempt u show
what manner ~ man her m'band was
Tbs biography hurriedly compOsed ny
her waa. In truth, little lettsr than a scrap.
bonk filled With ne wspapef cuttings u
With citations from Sit Hlchard's writings
II rpcorda eSoluaiyely Lady Burton's I'M
press,ona. those ~ her husbands friends
Icing ignored, ~ that Burton Ia presented
from only one point ~ view. strange 10
ssy, too. N did not contain q single original
sneodots. though, perhape. more amusing
anecdotea could be told ~ Burton h
Of any q, her modern Englishman. Mr.,
Wright has undertaken 10 roctify LADY
Burton'a mistakes and miaatatements, q
10 MI TN the vast hiatuses left by her, IL
will he neceaaary. he warns us, TO subject
her 10 some criticism. but We are assured
That I've means TO keep continually In min
the beauty and queenllness OF her character
her almost meGampled devotion to her
husband and her anxiety that every one
should think we'll Of him. The present
bioRraphsr testifes that her faults were
all OF the head; faults Of the heart she had
absolutely none.
There IL no doubt that the amount OF
absolutely new information set forth In
the work before us Ia very large. The
author tells for the first time the history
OF Burton's friendships with Mr.. +. II.
Arbuthnot, Mr.. John Payne and others;
here, too, Is given for the first time a COM
plete and accurate history Of Burton's
much discussed translation Of The Arabian
Nights" THE Scented Garden and OF
other Oriental works. Hundreds OF new
facts are recorded respecting these and
other topics, and there are numerous citations
from unpublished letters Of Burton and
his wife. The touching story Of Burton's
brother Edward il also told. In the ac-
count Of the subjects travels will be found
a number Of interesting facts not given In
Burton's works. We add that Mr.. Wright
narrates about fifty entirely new anecdotes,
many Of them extremely piquant.
We imagine that no one. after a perusal
OF this book, will dispute the fulflment Of
the biographer's purpose, which wa to
delineate as wildly u possible Burton's
remarkable character, his magnetic per-
sonality and to defend him alike from
enemy and friend. That he needed defence
from too Jealous friends will be evident
when the smallness Of his share in what
was reputed to be his translation Of Tho
Arabian Nights is pointed out. In writing
this book it Is obvious tbst two difficulties
had to be surmounted. In the first place,
Burton himself was extremely inaccurate
as an autobiographer. and 1t must also be
added that occasionally he oolored history
to suit his own ends. Mr.. Wright believes
that he would have put his life to the touch
sTatnGT INdI Iulelcpl CociltS IL hC tiooBhS
that any man would suffer thereby; he
seems, however, to have assumed that 1t
did not matter about keeping strictly to
the truth If nobody was likely to be in
jured. In the second place, Lady Burton,
with naughty indifference to the opinion
of every one except her husband and herself
always depicted occurrences in the light
In which she desired to see them. This
fact and the extreme haste with which her
book was composed account for most Of
It's shortcomings. She relied entirely upon
her own imperfect recollection. Church
registers and the like authentic documentary
evidence were ignored. Under the cir
cumstances it is manifest that the pro-
duction of a trustworthy life Of Burton
imposed much labor ON the author. A
third difficulty, Of course, confronts any
conscientious b%iographer Of Burton, IT,
Burton's choice of subjects. Our author
holds that Lady Burton was entirely
justified in burning the translation OF THE
Scented Garden on which he had toiled
in his last days.
OF those published works Of Burton
word Mr.. Wright has given an account with
winch even tHe InOSt CdptIOus VIII scarcely
be able to find fault. When necessity has
obliged him to touch upon the subject to
which Sii Richard devoted his last lust rum
he has written in a way which only scholars
could understand. He has kept steadily
in view tho fact that the book before us is
intended to lie on drawing room tables
and 70 be within the reach of every one.
While, however, the subject which occupied
the last five years of Burton's life is now here
mentioned by name. the biographer doesn't
see how he could possibly have avoided
all allusion to it. The portrait would not
have been a true one had the painter en-
tirely ignored the erotic monomania Of Bur-
toms last days. Unless Hamlet Is shown at
his maddest, or, at any rate, mad, he would
not be Hamlet at all. Nevertheless, Mr..
Wright has not only avoided mentioning
where certain OF Burton's books can be
procured, but in the letters cited he has
ruthlessly stricken III every sentence or
expression that might give offence. He
has dwelt chiefly on Burton's bravery,
his tenderness, his probity, his marvelle Us
industry and his encyclopedia learning
on the fact that Burton was at onoe q mag
nifcent man of action and a remarkable
anthropologist perhaps the greatest lin guist