The Washington herald., 1907-09-08

ont very angrily al some one who said
she was always talking about clever
people, such as Johnson and Sheridan.
Now, you don't know the meaning Of
clever" she sald Sheridan might be
olever-scamps often are: but Johnson
hadn't spark of 'cleverallty' In him"
That remark really gives the essence
Of Johnson and the key TO the great
qualities Of his work for. in his case.
even more than in most. the prose was
the man. Whoever wants "cleverality." ."
whoever wants what Mr. Bernard Shaw
is supplying 10 the present generation.
had best leave Johnson alone. The
signal merit of JOhnsOn's writings is
that he always means what he says and
always says what he means, He may
often have talked for victory; but, ex-
cept perhaps. in the political pamphlet
he always wrote for truth.
A correspondent Of the London
Globe. referring to an entertaining ar
ticle on walking sticks, recalls one Of
the most important OF those cherished
possessions OF men. great and small.
namely. the large oak stick Of Dr.
Samuel Johnson. In addition to being
a walking stick, he says. it served as
a measure for one nail was driven
into It at the length Of a foot; another
at that Of q yard The doctor thought
Of making a present Of It 20 some
museum, but he lost Il IN the island
Of Null. and was very angry In eOnse-
quence. Boswell could not persuade
him out OF the suspicion that it had
been stolen. no. no. my friend said
Johnson, IT IS not TO be expected that
any man in Null who has got Il will
part with IT, Consider. sir. the value
Of such a piece OF timber here"
Mrs. Edith Wharton's new novel. "The
Fruit Of the Tree" will soon be brought
cut in book form by the Scribners. They
announce also for publication this season
F. Hopkinson Smiths Romance Of an
/ Old-fashioned Gentleman" A +. W. Ma
/ sons new story, "The Broken Road" and
/ Quiller-COuch's novel, Major Vigoureux."
The American whom Cooper painted In
his pages is the American in the max
Ing, writes Brander Matthews in the At
lantic Monthly for September; "and Il Is
the earlier makers Of America that no has
depicted with sympathetic sincerlty-the
soldier, the sailor. the settler, the back
wo0dsman, sturdy types all OF them. that
gave no false impression OF US TO the best
Of the world. And In thus portraying the
men who made possible tn: nation as we
know Il to-day. he performed a splendid
/ service 10 the country he loved devoutly.
/ And his service To our litera ture is equal
/ ly obvious He wrote the first American
T historical novel, which remains 10 this
day one Of the best. He was the first 10
venture a story Of the sea- and no one
Of the writers who have followed in his
wake has yet equaled his earliest at
/ tempt He was the first 10 tell tales Of
/ the frontier, Of the backwp0ds. OF the
/ prairie. He stands forth even now the
! foremost representative In fiction OF the
/ United states as a whole-for Hawthorne.
a more delicate artist i'm romance, Is OF
/ his section all compact. and his genius
/ lacked TT noUrishment when its tentacles
/ did not, cling 20 the stony New England
/ Of his birth, Well might Bryant assert
l that the glory which Cooper Justly won
/ was reflected on his country, Of whose
literary independence he was the pio-
neer."
A translation has lately been published
Of the essential part OF VI. Desclozeaux's
/ Gabrielle distress" The author makes
a curious speculation apropos Of the fact
/ that the favOrite died Just as arrange
meuts were being made for her marriage
/ to Henri ". He says: "a few DAYS more
and we should never have known Marie
( de Aiedicis and Louis XIII and the
wretched favorites OF both mother and
son. Richelieu would not have crushed
| feudalism Louis XIV would not have
wasted the fruitful soil Of France; Louis
XIV would not have brought his kingdom
/ 10 ruin"
| DR.. Howard Furness tells a story OF
/ how he had secured an autograph poem
/ Of Walt Whitman's for a friend and how
surprised and pleased the good gray poet
was on receiving a check for 500. DR..
/ Furness had been informed by one OF HIS
/ friends that he would be willing to give
/ 500 for a copy Of Captain. Ny Cap
/ tain" IN Whitman's own hand Know
| ing Whitman well, he secured the auto
graph copy without trouble. but when
| later he handed his friends check to
| Whitman the poet was both surprised,
and pleased
why, Horace" he said, this IS quite
| q bonanza"
| DR.. Furness went on to comment upon
| Whitman's splendid physical appearance.
/ Meeting the poet upon the street one day,
/ he could not help expressing his admira-
/ tiUn.
You certainly arc a very handsome
man. Walt" ne said. You'll pardon my
saying so, won't your"
/ "Oh, I like it. Horace, I like it." was
] Whitman's frank reply.
/ The Century Company has obtained
from an italian noblewoman. LIsl CIpri-
ani an unusual manuscript that will be
/ published this fall under title of "A
Tuscan Childhood" It is the record Of
her own childhood, and Il is said to
present an authentic picture Of domestic
life in an italian patrician family.
In the Sunday edition Of the New York
| Herald there appears a poem by Mr.
William Sheppard which most aptIy ex-
presses a mood that may be said to be
universally felt at times by thinking
men. He calls it "ObllQuity." and It will
be worth pondering:
Have Tho gods besotted my vision that It sees all
things awry?
That it notes but the false in the real, that e
Ilarks but the truth in a LEI
Hosannahs have for the beauty that ransoms
vessel q shame,
But never hymn for the splendoCs that capture
the glerdon Of fame.
When the crowd shouts loud IN its boastfrl rlee
o'eT a bloody YictOry's gain
Ny heart goes out to the vanquished host and the