The Washington herald., 1907-08-04
By HECTOR FULLER.

By HECTOR FULLER.
There seems to De coterie of critics IN
London who find delight in smashing lit
erary idols. a week or two ago some
one hitherto unknown pulverized Bernard
Shaw; there are many who take a fling
at Alfred Austin. because he is poet
laureate. and now there comes an icono-
clast who drags poor Mr.. Theodore Watts
Dunton from his sacred retreat. Mr.
Watts Dunton kept very much to himself.
but still cut a large figure in English ar
tistic and literary life. until he wrote
the novel, "Alwyn." II was hailed as
masterpiece, If not Of fiction, then of
style. and there are some who still so
regard it. Others did not Ike it, and
SOME few could not understand It. and
were not ashamed 10 say so. But AL
wyn" has passed into forgetfulness. and
now Mr.. Watts-Dunton has come before
the public again with a sonnet sequence
on THE Work Of Cecil Rhodes The
critic Of the London Tribune classes this
sonnet sequence with the poets Jubilee
Greeting at Spithead " and declares that
the two poems convict the writer OF an
affinity with the laureate Pye and Rob
ert Montgomery. Not content with this.
the critic goes on 10 say that 1T Is not a
Colossus that he oarves, but finikin little
canoes on cherry stones and charges
Mr.. Watts-DuntOn with poverty OF
imagination" The criticism. which is
pretty exhaustive, and rather dishearten-
ing, winds up thus:
Il Mr.. Watts-Dunton had been an ordinary
minor poet 50 much elaboration would have heeu
ineXcusahle III crushing a caterpillar under the
wheel u common sense. But when poetry and lit
eTsture have such difficulty in making their voice
heard among the huhbub Of the FCciaime # pop
ular fcti0u ana seHsationalisn IL would be a qTaye
dcrciiCtiCH Of duty in the critic not 10 examine
with scrupniCUs and exhaustive care claims put for
ward ustentatiWI=y. and almost p0ntifcally by one
who has been elevated. rightly or wrongly into the
position Of a Judge and ruler over English cll-
ture
And there you are.
The record OF book popularity at the
Public Library during the week Just
closed shows that in nonfiction the
greatest call was for Batchelder's 'Prin-
ciple of Design" and Hudson's Law Of
Psychic Phenomena" In fiction the de-
manu- fffl- IVA ~ -sAti 6fAtt rAlisE 1bI
Short" and Mrs Virgins New Chron-
icles Of Rebecca,' while the Juveniles de-
manded Lang's Violet Fairy Book. and
AlcOtt's Little Women" There was a
steady demand for books about building
and especially those that deal with the
subject Of concrete. On the general sub
ject of building. Richey's Building Me
chanics, and Hooper's Country Houses"
az N.
concrete was also in demand.
There Is 10 be a new biographical and
critical study of Richard Jefferies, the
English naturalist and essayist, who lust
fell short Of achieving the highest rank
in the literature of his subject. Mr.. Ed
ward Thomas is TO write it, and he makes
the usual appeal for such letters and pa
pers as may be in possession of his hero s
friends.
A book that is exciting some comment
is Landor's Suppressed Commentary on
Charles James Fox" It is filed with
pQuant and mordant criticisms. and
there is literary comment Of no small
value. especially what is said of Virgil.
of Ovid, Of Spenser, of Ariosto, of Racine
and of Euripides. OF Dryden, Landor SAYS
that "Of his poems a part seem to have
been composed in a brothel, the remain
der In a gin shop" OF the young Fox.
that ito the principles of a Frenchman
he added the habits of a Malay" OF Can
ming, he wrote that che is among those
sour productions which acquire an early
tinge Of maturity, and drop off. It is
idleness or unwariness in those who pick
them up and taste them. and folly or
shame in those who do not spit them
out." He considered VOltaire an epIto-
ire of the French, versatile, lively vain.
lyiGg, shameless, unfeeling, unprinclpled.
and ambitious" and he thought that
no man was ever so we'll formed to gov
ern France as Bonaparte. He was chosen
TO fill his Office as thief-takers are
chosen for theirs; from knowing the
wants and habits of the abandoned and
II is now announced that sufficient
money has been subscribed for the DUR
chase of COleridge's cottage at Neither
but that goo is necessary
for its maintenance. An appeal for this
sum IS therefore made to all lovers of
English poetry, and subscriptions NAV be
sent TO the treasurer, Rev. W. Gresweu
Dodington Rectory. Somerset, England.
The new volume of 'The American Ma
ton" series. published last week, Re
construction, Political, and Economic" Is |
notable, not only because it is a thor