Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-08-18
English Woman Novelist
Rebuked by Moslem Sheikh

LONDON, August Z 1907
| MT ONELISTS, both men and women.
N receive many queer letters-letters
| OF praise, OF condemnation. of all
sorts But Miss Winifred Graham. the
English authoress is probably unique in
having received an epIstoIary roast from
a high and mighty sleikh OF the Soudanese
desert. In the course of 1t she and all
other women are told their value from tho
Mohammedan viewpoint, which is, 1t seems,
that they are of no consequence in the uni
verse, except as potential mothers
World Without End" written by Miss
Graham was published few months ago.
one OF its most interesting features is
detailed and picturesque description of the
hitherto hidden mysteries of a MosIem
| SHRINE This Mohammedan holy OF holies'
Is strictly forbidden to the eyes of all in
ndels and Christian dogs"
! Strange as II may seem a copy Of tho
! novel found Its way into the desert Perhaps
a cooks tourist threw 1t aside or left IL
at some stopping place on the Nile. At any
rate an Arab presented a copy to Sheikh
All Mohammed of Moudiriat- Darfour,
known as The holy man OF the desert"
The laying bare of the secrets OF a Mos
lem shrine Mortified him and the discovery
! that woman had done this intensified
! the horror. So the learned sheikh composed
a long screed, which his secretary prepared,
and sent 1t to Miss Graham. through her
publishers. This document begins:
-
I'm the name of God. the Most Gracious,
and after salutng yourself.
| I'VE have received one of your books and
have noted its contents through one OF our
! friends who has come to US from remote
| countries and joined u.s.
After which introduction the sheikh pro-
ceeds to rebuke the novelist for venturing
| to deal with a religious subject which de-
mands very careful investigation" and
| Declares
You are a woman and have no value in
| the universe, except that you might be a
| mother; you will bring down upon yourself
| the displeasure OF the Almighty God and
| he Will punish you"
Then follows a stern Pronunciation of the
| 'calumnies which you have spread abroad
| concerning this sacred country" and in
| closing the authoress is urged to send her
son. If she has one, to Mecca TO pray for
! her forgiveness.
All London is laughing with Paris at the
latest story anent Prof. Cesare Lombroso.
| the anthropologist The murderer Of the
moment In Paris is Soleilland He has been
| found guilty of the remarkably brutal
murder of little girl. In these dull days
the French newspapers made much of the
| crime, one in particular publishing a photo
graph Of 1.-The hands of Soleilland." The
| learned professor obliged with n full de-
scription Of their characteristics. CLEANED
| from the photograph. The right hand, he
declared, was what is called in neuropath-
ology, the apes hand and contained every
| mark of the criminal born" The left hand
revealed. so the professor said, that the
murderer was possessed of excessive assy-
metry, as 1t differed exceedingly from the
| right hand and therefore the owner was
born for the misfortune Of humanity"
Soon after all this was published NJ Ber-
! tillon announced that the photograph was a
| fake: that the hands did not belong to the
murderer. The right hand is that of a
man who washes down carriages in a liv-
| have led blameless lives.
1t is limited that Prof. Lombroso is now
! anxious to say something about the hands
OF certain Paris newspaperman.
Decidedly interesting is a report made
| regarding the popularity Of reading matter
among the convicts in British prisons.
Monte Crsto" is prime favorite. prison.
ers presumably lingering long over its
thrilling escape episode. But of all authors
Miss Braddon easily takes first place Her
"Ishmael' is the novel most in demand.
Next in popularity is "Ouida" and Under
comes Donovan" by Edna Lyall. Other
popular novelists are Mrs. Henry Wood
David Christie Murray. George Eliot.
Thackeray, Dickens. Rolf Boldrewood, Max
Pemberton and Frank Barrett.
=
One who knows "Ouida" intimately de-
clares that the stories recently told Of her
life in London years ago are Wild and lu-
dicrous inventions. Miss de la Rance lived
the simple life instead of In pomp and state.
With woman companion she had a little
apartment at the Langham Hotel that old
London house much beloved by American
travellers particularly decade or two ago.
She never gave any parties but modest and
very early evening receptions. and though
the invitation cards bore the words eau
series intimes. cigarettes permises," the
description of these entertainments is Tea,
seltzer-water and turn out" Among the
made Paris his home
Americans who admire George Eliot have
fiocked in such large numbers TO her old
home in Nuneaton to view Grin House,
where she spent her childhood. that the
Warwick authorities have decided to charge
a fee of twelve cents a head to visitors in
the future. The county uses the building
as a public school, and no particular notice
was taken OF the casual American or Eng
fish visitors. But of late the house has
American visitor and It is now worth the
while to make a charge for admission.
Copyrights OF famous works are falling in
on all sides The copyright OF Alice In
Wonderland" Will die this year. But there
Will scarcely be flood of cheap editions Of
this nonsense classic" for the illustra-
tions by Sir John Tenniel, which go for
much of the books popularity. still remain
copyright. alice in Wonderland" was first
published forty years ago by Messrs. Mac
milan. One million and a half copies in the
various editions have been sold, quite apart