The San Francisco call., 1909-12-19
''The Arabian Nights"

Eolted by Kate Douglas Ntggln ana Nora a
Smith and Illustrated by MaSheld Parrish.
Published BY Charles Scribner's Sons. New
York Price $3.50
The beautiful new Arabian Nights,
which is Illustrated IN color by Maxheld
Parrish. is edited by Kate Douglas
Wiggin and her sister. Nora Archibald
Smith. In the course OF an unusually
fine preface the editors say:
Little excuse IS needed. perhaps, Tor
any fresh selection from the famous
Tales Of a Thousand and One Nights,
provided IL be representative enough
and worthy enough. to enlist a new
army Of youthful readers. OF the 264 be-
wildering, unparalleled stories, the true
lover can hardly spare one. yet there
must always be favorites, even among
these. We have chosen some OF the
most delightful in our opinion. some.
too. that chanced 10 appeal particularly
TO the genius Of the artist. II, enticed
by our choice and the beauty of the
pictures. we manage 10 attract few
thousand more true lovers TO the foun-
tain-boOk. we shall have served our
humble turn. The only real danger lies
IN neglecting it, in rearing a child who
does not know IL and has never fallen
under its spell
When a child has once read OF
Prince Agib. Of Gullnare OF Perieade.
Sinbad or Codadad, IN this or any other
volume Of its kind, the magic Will have
been instilled into the blood, for the
oriental favor IN the Arab tales is like
nothing so much as magic. True enough
they are a vast storehouse Of infOrma-
tiOn concerning the manners and the
customs the spirit and the life of the
Moslem east (and the youthful reader
does not have to study Lanes learned
footnotes to imbibe all this), but be-
yOnd and above the knowledge Of his
tory and geography thus gained there
comes something finer and subtler as
well as something more vital The
scene is Indian, Egyptian, Arabian.
Persian; but Bagdad and Balsora. Grand
Cairo, the silver Tigris and the bloom
ing gardens Of Damascus, though they
can be found, indeed, on the map, live
much more truly in that enchanted
realism that rises Ger the foam of per-
ilous seas Ia fairy lands forlorn.' What
craft can sail those perilcus seas like
the book that has been called a great
three decker 10 carry tired people TO
Islands Of the Blast?s The Immortal
fragment says Sir Robert Burton. who
perhaps knew the Arabian Nights as
did no other European. will never be
superseded in the infallible judgment
Of childhood. The marvellous magma
tveness OF the tales produces an insen-
sible brightness of mind and an in
crease Of fancy power, making one
dream that behind them lies the new
and unseen, the strange and unexpected
lin fact all the glamour of the un-
known
The tales selected are The History Of
the Fisherman and the Genie" sThe
Young King Of the Black Isles" The
Story OF Prince Agib,7 "Sinbad in the
valley of Diamonds "Sinbad and the
Giant" Aladdin and the Wonderful
Lamp" "Ali-Baba and the Forty
Thieves" Prince Codadad and mis-
Brother" "Gulnare, Queen Of the Sea. .
The City Of Brass" The Story of the
Talking Bird. the Singing Tree and the
Golden Water" No criticism car be
made OF the selection Of stories. but one
cannot but miss all reference TO Scheher-
ezade. the supposed teller Of the tales.
without whom we must believe there
would have been no Arabian Nights. .