The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-02-03
BY HECTOR FULLER.


by F. J. Britten. and "A History OF
Tapestry" by W. G. Thomson.
Il have never read a bad French novel
and never intend to do so: it is bad
enough TO know that such books exist.
and that their sale Is permitted In some
places. That is an Illuminating bit Of
tolerant literary criticism contained in a
volume Of sermons called Jonathan
Upglade" There are. unfortunately. too
many people in the world who hold that
ignorance is good ground for criticism.
Clement Shorter, one Of the best of
the writer's on that smart London lit
erary journal. The Sphere. declares that
America viii never produce any great
authors He gives a curious reason for
his declaration. saying that as long as
we continue 70 spell program and honor
without the ~ We cannot be expected
to write great things. II love America
and the Americans" he says, but !
hope my affection does not compel me 10
accept its literature as more than medi-
OGRE. That is the reason why it Is so
popular IL is on this account that dur
ing the past thirty years the great
healthy, sensible middle class in England
has read nearly as many American books
as English"
This is n rather curious criticism. and
sounds. somehow. as n there were the
markings of n joke concealed somewhere;
but then English humor Is so ponderous
and life is so strenuous over on this side
of the Atlantic that few Of US have time
TO puzzle out British joke.
The latest volume In the collected edi-
ton Of Ibsen's works, which is being
edited by Mr. William Archer, contains
the well-known Brand" the mystical
drama which really marked an epoch in
the life of Ibsen and which reveals the
poet in Ibsen as we'll as the social re-
former. II was written long before "A
Dolls House" or Ghosts" Brand" was
written about fifteen months after Ibsen
had left Norway as an exile, and It was
written IN Rome. Brand was no doubt
originally intended" says Mr.. Archer. in
his introduction 20 the volume. "to be
simply an embodiment OF Ibsen's own
heroic ideal Of character Brand was To
be the ideal antitype Of the Norwegian
people. But Ibsen'5 own completely of
nature. and. perhaps also. his keen dra-
matte instinct. interfered with this simple
scheme. The ideal type grew human and
individual; the Titan going forth with
drawn sword against the world became
a struggling and ag0nized soul, swayed
by doubts and tangled 10y illusion; the
vices he denOunces are represented by
men drawn mostly with a genial, humor-
Gus, and. in the case Of the humane old
doctor with a kindly and sympathetic
hand
Il was while writing Brand" Ibsen
himself has told US, that he kept a live
scorpion on his desk in a glass jar where
he could watch its savagery.
John Keudrick Bangs. in the fftieth
anniversary number Of Harper's Weekly.
writes Of his experiences as editor Of that
periodical. and mentions an editorial
crisis which. he confesses. he was unable
10 face The weekly had been made up
for one particular week, and was filed 10
overlooking. but it had been forgotten
that an arrangement had been made by
which Rudyard Kipling was 10 cable a
weekly account of the South African
situation With the weekly fun there
arrived one Of Kipling's cables. It was
made up of 3.001 words of significant in
terest and could by no means be ignored;
the copyright would be lost unless the
cable was used at once. A four-page sup
plement was hastily decided on. to be
suitably Illustrated, but then came the
difficulty. FOR the editorial mind was all
at sea over a 3090-wOrd article from a
writer with strongly individual style
which came from the wire without a
comma, 4 period q semicolon. or Capi-
tai letter. It did have. however. the
usual errors that creep into q cable In
transmission. Writes Mr. Bangs. 7
yield 20 no man In my admiration for the
genius of RUiyard Kiping, and I would
cheerfulIy join a vigilance committee
whose avowed object is the skinnlng Of
that Yale professor who recently an
noUnced IN a lecture that Mr. Klpling
made a mistake in getting well after his
distressing illness in 1899, but 7 frankly
confess that l hope never again 70 have
10 edit one Of his cabled stories.
1t required genius equal to his own
so 10 capitalize and TO pUnCtuate that ar
ticie that it would read Ike the real
thing. and I doubt if I succeeded. 7
never dared to read the article after II
was published. and my associate read the
proofs, SO that 10 this day I am not
aware whether or not got the story
straight"
Things are not always what they
seem" We have been wont to wonder at
the magnifcence of the great days OF
Versailles. and perhaps 20 envy them a
little. But in a recent book on the sub
jeCt by @. F. Brady, we learn that the
glories have been. overvaunted and the
utilities overlooked To begin with, the
palace was far from being a comfortable
lodging place. Marble halls with i'm
meuse windows Uouis XIV. who lived
Toy the most part II public, liked both
space and air. were often worse than
chilly, and in very harsh weather the
Kings wine frCZe on his dinner table
Gorgeous they were, the marble halls. the
mirrors, and the silver furniture-which
must eventually go to the melting pot
but behind this magnifcence was neither
LONELINESS nor ease, nor any kind Of COSY
cheer The best apartments were well
enough, making due allowance for the