The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-11-03
.Old Books to Read. Old Wood to Burn Old Friends to Love.

There was q strange acharm in allow ing the whole multitude of fancies to come whispering about ones senses. The entire house was silent. One could well imagine how perfectly here might the cares of day go to sleep and leave one to snatch a joyous feeling of dis enthallment
 It was here that Peter Pan had been created. and the whole spirit e1d at mosphere of the play imagined forth. Before these burning coals and within this perfect quiet and simplicity must have easily been recalled the stories or the secret world and midnight pranks of fairyism. The whole band of .fairie5- ancient and modern; pirates, Indians, crocodiles and wolves. elves and spirits, could not but come fitting between fancy's eyes and the leapng flames of tho fireplace.
 Even as 1 stared l thought for minute they were making themselves visible to me upon the mantlepiece above until closer scrunity proved them to be toy animals-a wolf q lion and dog with an abbreviated l-unmistakably 'Nana"-all doubtless, the gift of some enthusiastic youthful admirer.
 l had taken up the book nearest me as it lay open on the French wall table. It was a first edition copy of Lewis Carols .Alice in Wonderland" Along one wide margin had been written these woi ds by hand seemingly impatient enough to have wished the thought would take impress of itself upon the pages.
 s'It is as easily possible to recognize A child who has been brought up on the humor of Lewis Carol from one who has not as to know instantly an- other in whom the poetry and drawings of Kate Greenway have more deeply implanted sense of the sweetnss and comforting beauty of her children. What Carol approached in his day. Barrie has today perfected by his subtler methods and finer understanding of the child mind.'
 On a chail close by, in an open port folio. lay an unfinished manuscript or a letter, which made me feel keenly like an intruder. and was silent wit ness of how few such as I ever came into the house.
 But I chose rather to examine the curious looking sofa in which l was then sitting. There was enougl about if to make it seem like an old friend. At any rate it brought back to me the impression felt once in an antique shop in the French quarter of New Orleans.
 The shopman despairing of selling me any old family plate or genuine Roch- ambeau swords" had coaxed me into sitting on sofa which he described as being made of pear wood. It, too, had delicate arms like the one on which now sat and also uncomfortable looking spindle less-so that now, as then, I suddenly felt myself too large and burly for 1t and decided to stand.
 was surrounded on three sides by hook shelves which lowered a foot or nore above my shoulders. There was the same diversity of taste here that I had noticed about the books in the hall way.
 lust behind at the end of the sofa and easily taken down by one Nho would read while reclining, was a remarkably con,nIete set of volumes on Egypt, an cient and modern. There were books on the Khedive, on the building of the celebrated dam at Asscunan and elabor- ate plates of the great Assyrian and Egyptian excavations. Most of them were bedecked along their margins by curious little circles and other strange penciIIings done by the hand of their owner.
 The set of shelves at the opposite end of the sofa was entirely given to Shake speare and his commentators. It seemed to me a fine openness of mind, which could as freely accord shelf space to such established authorities as Ward, Fieay, Furnfvall and Furness-and at the same time to the laugh -provoker. Jackson, who for one S..akesperian note. which IS obvious, had a genius for offering them, which are all wrong.
 There is not much wall space for pictures because of the great allowance made for books. But whatever each bit s4 wall held took one far aYay, as If