The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-12-28

About Persia a former attakhe Of the
legation Of France at the Court OF Persia,
The facts and impressions are the iatter's
the setting of them in order the for
mer's. The book, together with the views
and photographs from life, gives as faith
full a presentation of the mysteries of the
land of Xerxes as an Occidental can hops
10 achieve. IN the authors discussion OF
the woman question in Persia, it is curious
to note that Persian husbands do not ap-
prove of the reading Of novels by the fe-
male members of their families. Whether
they are read is not stated
Comparatively few people among those
who handle the decorated holiday books
have any idea of the care and thought ex-
pended in their production. In the case
of The Other Wise Man" of Henry van
Dyke, the rather remarkable form III
which this Christmas tale has appeared
this season suggests the sort of value such
n voluf e nay represent. The parchment
paper, for example, was prepared III imita-
ton of old monastery scrolls. The type
was patterned from the letters found in
some fine old manuscripts of the Roman
vatican Library and the Laurentian LII
brary in Florence, after permission had
been obtained to photograph these pnges.
Those who were to set type for the book
were tutored in the pen-drawing of ancient
letters. their Illumination and design, as
prevailed before the invention of printing.
The young Italian, Enrico Monetti, who
did the illuminating, was brought from
the Florentine library to this country for
the work.
In THE True Patrick Henry" by George
Morgan, the aristocrauc "~Tuckahoes" of
Colonial times in Virginia are represented
as having been opposed politically by the
ftOnyhaacfs nf tI,a DIftn u fdpa faoinn xyharo
t%uckahoes never grow. An old-timer, COM
menting on the book the other day, said,
with reference to the curious term: '"rhe
author does not tell us as TO the origin of
tho nickname. Perhaps not one historical
student in a thousand knows. / happen to
know because / had 1t by word of mouth.
straight down. The Scotch-Irish backed
Patrick Henry. They were thick in the
upper counties, and were laxative; and
Quoth he filed the air when they were
around. The 'Qo'hees' of Mr.. Morgan's
book are really 'Quoth-hees.'"
Americans who nave a knowledge of
foreign dramatic literature are increasing
in numbers each year. but few know of
Franz Grillparzer, the Shakespeare Of
Austria" There has just been published
the first comprehensive biography Of the
great Vienna dramatist in the English
language. The author Of the work, Gus
tave Pollak, himself a Viennese by birth,
has been a lifelong student of the lltera-
ture and political history of his native
land. As a contributor to the New York
Nation since 1874, and to the New York
Evening Post since 1851, he has had abun-
dant opportunity Of attesting his familiar
ity with Austrian topics. The volume is
an outgrowth of two lectures on Austrian
Bramatists'' delivered by him at the Johns
Hopkins University, Baltimore. in April.
1906.
The Hon. WhiteIaw Reid contributes an
appreciation of Thackeray to the current
London Book Monthly. which places
pleasant emphasis upon the regard which
the personality of the novelist inspired IN
this country, II never had the good for
tune to meet MIR. Thackeray in America"
says Mr.. Reid, though I did meet soon
afterwards your other great novelist of
hat period. But for years I was constant
ly hearing gossip about Thacloeray from
those who had met him during his visits
TO us. like the genial publisher who was
his guide, philosopher and friend among
the Brahmins of Boston, or like the Old
of New York. Their accounts
ran all one way. They admired his talk.
and they loved him. They pictured him
as big, hearty and very human. They
didn't find him playing the lion. the least
little bit. and we may hope he didn't find
us playing the spread eagle too much.
They pointed out the corner in the Cen
tury Club where he used to sit exchanging
literary chat, or, in Yankee parlance,
swapping Stories with a group Of club
men about him. They could tell you years
afterwards what had been Thackeray's
favorite chair, and some had even been so
observant of the least frifies about the
great man as to know what particular con-
in a club tumbler had been his
orite might cap"
The Baroness Won Hutten, whose new
novel, 1.-THE Halo" has just been pub
lished, has enjoyed a life with more than
the ordinary modicum of variety n in
terest, while she Is still at the age when
a lady may be tr~uthfully designated as
young. She was born and passed her
in this country. When still in
her teens she went abroad with her par
ents and studied music and singing in
Rome and Florence. 1t was in Florence
that she formed a friendship with the
late Hugo Cr~ackauthorpe, who discovered
a distinctly original talent in her and
inspired her with the desire to write. 1t
was in this city, too, that she met the
fair-haired, athletic young Bavarian
baron, a descendant of Ulrich Won Hut
ten, who wooed her in French because
he knew little English, and his future
bride less German. In her husbands an
cestrsl home, the romantic old Castle Of
~Steinbach. with its gray stone turrets and
time-worn walls, Baroness Won Hutton
writes her novels. She is, above all things,
cosmopolitan, and has enjoyed rare OPP
portunities of exercising her powers of OBJ
servation in many out-of-the-way corners
of the world, as well as in New York
and in most OF the capitals of Europe. Be
sides her literary talent, the Baroness Won
Hutton is a brilliant conversationalist, and
she sings and plays ch~armingly.