The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-03-27
fHB NOVEL As IT SHOULD BIB
q TAM ABOIT BOOkS WITH
TH0AtS NELSON PAGE.

-Hasm % the Prshaem Nosel-Popu-
larity 90 y BoUk nna Ias Merit
neOader Views Sf the msaaang PubIse.
Thomas Nelson faEe. Who nov maksa
bis Snne i'm Washington. came up 20 New
Work the other day 10 say gOod-by to hla
brother an law. Bryan IAthrop OF ChioaRo,
Who was leaving for the Mediterranean
After some persuasion he conasnted 10
talk about novels and criticism of the
present day
Mr. Page has never lived quite far
enough or quite long enough away from
his native State 90 lose hia virginia ac-
rent. and when you talk with him Il 10
like hearing one 81 the characters in I'm
Ole Virginia or in -Marse Chan" or one
IT his other stories % SoSthern life. He
Inherited. for instance. the broad a.
which q New Yorker or q westerE1sr usu-
ally has 10 import. Then he says Cyril
which IN typically virginian. and as
Southerners have always done and Bos-
'oniAns have been learning to do Of late
years he uses an only when IL occurs
at the beginning Of a word
Time deals very gently with Mr. Page
According Co his bioeraphers he ia in his
nfty-seventh year. but his hair and mus
tachs. which are naturally light in color.
seem hardly 20 have felt the frost Hie
ayes twinkle easily and Il he makes a
statement that seems severe IL u softened
oy their expression. His voice in CONVEX
cation 10 low and well modulaeed, and you
feel that he 10 earnest In what he says.
What am I doing nowP" he said. re-
paating the question. well have been
asked TO write . boys life Of Gen. Lee.
aud have Il In mind 60 write boys lives
oe several great men. something in simple
language that will portray them to younger
minds. Than I want 20 write a novel
something along tho lines Of John Marvel.
Assistant 90 show the hardships in social
conditions a. affecting women. I believe
novel 10 the proper form in which TO do
this. because q novel ought to portray
life
BY what does the public judge bOok'-
he was asked
Mr.. Page shifted his position IN his
chair and leaned forward.
OF course ! have tried TO work out
What the public judges by he said
slowly. but ! am far from certain that
have reached any right conclusion.
In the first place We must distinguish
absolutely between the popularity OF
. hook and ia merit
The hest seller may be the best book
of q season. bur il IL a question whether
IL 10 likely 90 be. The quality that makes
q book survive even for q short time
10 wholly different from that which puts
u among the best sellers. To survive
y must he true to human nature and
must contain some sound reflection OF
life. whereas the best seller need not
ps~se@s either quality. though il must
NJ course have q temporary interest.
An literary memoirs talk about q
hook Of the season and in ninety nine
cases out OF a hundred after their partic-
ular season no one has ever heard Of them
Newspaper criticism can affect very
seriously the sale Of book. and possibly
many hook has been killed in its infancy
NV zharr"ned pens OF adverse critics
tut I question whether after a book gets
On its feet criticism can affect it IN the
least except "a 20 mere popularity. II
IL has merit 10 will reAch those who know
merit.
4 arm OF course Mr. .gs said par
snthetically. speaking generally. No
author is likely 10 feel that his own merits
are quite appreciated Moreover We
are all given TO thinking that favorable
criticism il our due and that the unfav-
orabla sort ~ inspired not 80 much by
personal animosity an by stupidity ON
the part OF the critic.
-One thing that strikes me very forciblv
10 the difference between the way in
which American books are received la
England and the manner in which Eng
Iish books are received ON this side. While
knglieh essays appear IN me- TO be better
generally than ours our novel seems to
me quite ~ good a. the English pro-
ductions Of that class. The only diner
sncs possibly n that our people like 10
read about English life. thinking they
will absorb eomething remarkable. where
as an English reader cares absolutely
nothing about anything outside Of Eng
land unless it bs a tale OF adventure.
But for one favorable notice Of an Ameri-
can book in England YOU will find fifty
81 an English book IN America
Mr.. Page vas asked what he thought
of the problsm novel
-Of course every novel worth % the
name must deal with life IN soTne form OF
phase he replied. but what l under
stand by the term a. usually EMPLOYED.
a problem novel deals with the seAuaI
relation In some form and mainly empha-
sizes that relation. such a novel IL
seams TO me, ~ not only absolutely worth
less but wholly vicions.
1T may be written with great art. az
~ MANY French novels are. but even
rhis does not relieve II from viciousness.
And when the Anglo-Saxon with his or
her cumsiness undertakes TO deal with
y problem novel OF this sort IL amounts TO
simply exploiting the sexual relation for
rhe purpose Of sale and the result is gene
rally merely vulgar indecrncy. however
popular such a book may become.
7 think there was time when books
that are now praised and talked about
and written about would not have been
tolerated. feel that there 10 no vital
subject which may not he properly
written about " handled properly such
I. book may be- as clear a. II il we're a
roru on the morning. Take for example
The Heart OF Midlothian Adam Beste.
M The Scarist Letter. and there are
many others like them. which can only
10 good at the same time that they en-
fertain.
There vas a time when az least Adam
0~te' and The Scarlet Lstter' were
GENERALLY deened very close TO the verge
"A iuproppiety. Views have broadsned
.iucs that time and ths2e are now accepted
=, ,ba.r trVas valtls This I bnlieyve t0 be