The Washington herald., 1907-12-01
THE WORLD OF BOOKS
LITERARY GLEANINGS AND GOSSIP

No mine so rich in anecdote OF cele-
hrated men as is the Diary Of William
Allinghame, just published by Macmll-
ians. has been opened for many a day.
Allinghame. an Irishman and a poet Of
some distinction. knew Familiarity most Of
the great Victorians, and in his journal
sketched Tennyson, Carlyle. and Leigh
Hunt among others. in the life Of or
dinary intercourse. Tennyson. I'm particu-
lar. stands out in these pages i'm that ro-
bust personality which always surprises
those who know him only through his
poetry. But il is not only Of the major
celebrities that the Irishman has enter
tanning "reminiscences. He seemed to have
the faculty of drawing eyerybody's hest
stories-probably he told some himself
and his diary Is packed with entries like
this:
Prof Owens true ghost story q the uisger's head
falling out n a medical Students bag hopping
down a steep street tn Iancaster0 and buuapin.,
against the door Of who had been a slave
dealer. and who. seeing H. was near frightened TO
deatn Story Of parish clerk who. In parsons ah-
scncc. csSayed % console a dying parishiOner He
was bad chap. your reverence. % And what did
you say 20 comfort him g.: Il told him ne was sure
70 80 % he'll. and that he ought 20 be thankful to
have he'll 10 60 TO-"
Here is the record Of book popularity
at the Public Library for the past week:
Non-hction: Campbell New Theology"
Shaler. Masters Of Fate" Fiction: Mrs.
Wharton. Fruit of the Tree" Mrs.
Burnett. Shuttle" Juvenile: Alcott.
Eight Cousins" the Arabian Nights"
and Lang's Orange Fairy Book" Among
other popular subjects has been that Of
house decoration. In this field there have
been calls for Wharton's Decoration Of
Houses and Haweis' Art Of Decora-
ton Italian description and travel has
also been popular In this subject the
calls have been for Aliens Cities Of
Northern Italy and Bagots Italian
Lakes"
Convinced that the cause Of peace it.
self is jeopardized by the exaggerations
and oversight of its noisier followers. /
have thought it expedient 70 collect un-
der one cover a few articles in which
the rationale and Justification of war
and of its procedure have been cousid-
cred under different aspects" says Capt
A. T.. Mahan,. I'm the preface to his new
book. some Neglected Aspects of War,
which Little. Brown. & Co. are pub
fishing To Capt Mahans articles on
The Moral Aspect of War" The Prac-
tical Aspect Of War" War from the
Christian Standpoint and The Hague
Conference of 1907, and the Question Of
Immunity for Belligerent Merchant Ship
ping,' have been added an important
paper on the topic, The Power That
Makes for Peace" by Henry ). Prtt-
chett, formerly president OF the Massa-
chusetts Institute Of Technology. and a
discussion on THE Capture OF Private
Property at Sea-" by Julian Corbett. a
well-known English authority on naval
subjects.
When "Dodo' appeared some fourteen
years ago, it was greeted with consterna-
ton and delight. IL was so utterly au-
dacious. frivolous. and cheerful; so un-
like anything TO be expected from the
son of an archbishop
But a good deal Of water has flowed
under the bridges since then. and Mr.
+. +. Benson has taken his place among
the serious uovelists of England. His
new book, "Sheavcs, which Doubleday
Page & Co. published on the fifteenth Of
last month, is a full-growu novel which
paints real people in real and serious
situations, and takes firm hold Of the
sympathies Of its readers. Il viii mark
an important stage I'm the evolution Cf
a novelist.
After reading Nicolay's book on Ma
poleon at the Boulogne Camp" it Is easy
to understand the deep enthusiasm and
love which the French soldiers had for
their Little Corporal" This book is
filled with anecdotes and descriptions Of
Napoleon's life with his soldiers. his
wide personal knowledge Of their needs,
and his care for their welfare one anec-
dote recoUnts how Napoleon discovered
that the shoulders Of mis- soldiers were
being CALLED by the defective adjustment
of straps passing over the epauets
Turning TO the officers he addressed to
them this memorable reproach: Ask
her sons to shed blood for the glory OF
France. and they will do II. but do not
let my soldiers bleed shamefully like
iII-harnessed mules. Steel alone. makes
honorable wounds.
One Of Mrs. Deland's Old Chester tales
An Encore" is issued by Harpers in at
tractivc holiday suise. II is bound in a
volume by itself. heavy paper. large type.
and widely decorated margins Of foliage
design. combining to give it a size and
dignity approaching one hundred pages.
Mrs. Delands stories need no praise. and
Il is gratifying 10 see that i'm the present
volume Alice Barber Stephens has thor
oughly and sympathetically caught their
spirit.
a now work on the writer's OF the Jew
fish faith has just appeared. written by
Prof Israel Abrahams Of the University
Of Cambridge. which is called short HIS
tory of Jewish Literature. From the Fall
of the Temple 70 4. D.. to the Era OF
Emancipation. 1856 A. D. IL is a concise
manual on a much neglected section of
Jewish literature. serving both as work
for general reading and as textbook
for elementary stud. The author, a high
authority i'm this b,dnch OF learning. has
covered sUccintIy the seventeen centuries
reviewed. and has impaired color and Wv
idness 10 his pages 10y selecting prominent
personalities round which to group whole
cycles of facts. At the end Of each chap
ter references are given 10 various works
in English on the same themes.
NIessrs. G.. 2. Putnam's Sons viii short
ly publish "a notable original contribution
20 history which cannot fail TO attract
attention. 1t is the work OF Martin
Hume. cae of the foremost OF living
English historians. who has made the
subject Of Spain's greatness and decad-
ance lis own. and whose books are as