Los Angeles herald., 1907-11-23

Jack Downing" Mrs. Partington,"
Nathaniel Ward, "Artemus Ward"
"Orpheus c. Kerr" "Bill Arp" and
others. Representative contributors
to Volume II are Widow Bedott,"
Petroleum v. Nasby" and "The Dan
bury News Man."
ILasuji Miyakawa, whose book, Life
of Japan" was published this month by
the Baker & Taylor Co., was, curl
ously enough, the attorney for the
Japanese school children who had
been expelled from the public schools
of San Francisco. There is certain
curious significance in now finding his
Life of Japan so evidently inspired
by a friendliness for things American
and 'cxpressing so great a debt of
gratitude on the part of the enlight-
ened Japanese toward this country.
The book is ably written, and may, in
point of fact, be called special plead
ing in favor of a greater friendship
between the two countries.
Again Elinor Glyn has startled the
novel-reading world. She made people sit
up and rub their yes when she published
1.-THE Visits of Elizabeth and they Will
sit up again and rub their eyes harder
after reading "Three Weeks" The two
books are as wide apart as the poles. The
former was amusing. witty and without
sentiment. The latter is clever-Mrs Glyn
is always clever; but it is not amusing,
and 1t reeks with sentiment "The Visits
of Elizabeth" was not proper story, but
compared with 'Three Weeks" it is the
soul of propriety. / can see no excuse for
this book. Daudet's "Sapho" was bold
book, but it had purpose as any one
who read it could see. Three Weeks
hot ,Is,Ssc
il be to prove that young man of %
may have a liaison with woman of 50
and be the better for it. 1t is lucky that
this liaison lasted but three weeks. 1t
could not have run on much longer. Such
hothouse passions are bound to burn out
The whole book seems to me overwrought
and unnatural. There is too much per-
fume, too much of an appeal to the sensu-
GUS To me the man and the woman are
not real. and yet saw young girl weep
as tholiAh she had lost a dear friend when
she finished this story, and a man of
sterling qualities told me he thought 1t Il
''beautiful idyll"! To me it is only tale
of Illicit love, cleverly told to be sure
but not worth the telling-certainly not in
such unvarnished language. Mrs. Glyn
in the preface to the American edition of
FER book sets up the defense against nor
English critics that it is the story of two
Souls and not to be treated as the stoiy Y
of an ordinary, everyday man AMI
woman. To spell Soul with a capital s
deceives a great many good people, as
does the spelling of affinity with capital
A. but it does not deceive every one.--
'',rhe Lounger,' in Putnars Monthly.
s.
Miss Marie Corelli has often been ac-
cused of being literary syndicate. but
the suggestion that she is responsible for
the books of Robert Hichens is certainly
new. Frederick A Stokes company has
| lust received the following letter:
"Are you are liberty to tell me who
Robert Hichens isa | have just finished
The Garden Oh Allah and have an in
tense curiosity to know something of the
9uthor
"The style is so like that of Marie
Corelli that am tempted to believe that
! she has assumed new name through
some caprice and has started to make a
new fame for herself
"If ycu tell me shall be greatly
obliged.
Luckily the publishers were able to
give the information.
The interest in "The Garden of Allah
has been so steadily maintained during
its life of more than two years that the
publishers have just Issued an edition de
! luxe containing thirty-two illustrations
Eof the scenes of the novel from photo
graphs taken for the purpose