The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-01-09

the butterfly has vanished l say Lucine
! Finch advisedly, for titles do not be-
long to her, and little for endearment's
! sake; Tor dearness is as definitely char
aeteristic of her grace and originality.
! petiteness Off 1 may so far disregard
! etymology), intellect, charm, humor, or
any other of the myriad traits that go
J 10 make up her personality. 1t Is as use-
] less 70 say from whence she came
though 1t was from Alabama-or at what
period she took up her life upon this
star. | misdoubt she will be older at 20
Or was younger at II, though at z,
prophecy. retrospectively that she was
sage and seer.
Her supreme raison d. etre, her organic
role in life, seems to me- to be the en-
bodiment of that matchless poetry and
tradition that came TO us incarnate in
the African race. as 1t belonged to the old
south. Never in the history of the world
shall we know such a literature again.
she Is the reincarnation of the old me-
gro nanny. whose loving arms Graded
her babyhood, and, through nanny, the
embodiment Of the poetry, the imagina-
ton, the madness, the picturesque piety
! and superstition. the eternal youth of the
mysterious African race.
ITO see Little Lucine Finch in the SIM
plest of settings. the scene lighted only
by candles, giving utterance to mammy's
story of the Creation. of Simon Peter, OF
Moses. of Noah. of Jonah and the Whale,
OF Dives and Lazarus, is to witness some
thing more marvellous than the greatest
bit of acting ever achieved. There before
you lie the old negro nurse, fired by the
tragic eloquence of her tragic race,
racked and torn by pious zeal. her face
Illuminated with the light of inspiration,
exhorting. expounding, admonishing, NOR
alizing, and, through II all, unfolding
with dramatic fervor and child-ike real
ism the mighty epics of the gospel.
'sOne would wish that this wonderful
material might be put into permanent
form (for probably even Little Lucine
Finch is mortaD 1 doubt not that this
sorceress who transmits them by word
of mouth is quite capable of welding an
enchanted pen.
so much for this contradiction of
terms which goes under the name of
Lucine Finch. This sketch Is only for
those who think they know her-no 9TH
ers will understand; nor, indeed. Will
these: nor do 1; nor can anyone-certainly
not those who think they do-least of all
the little lady herself"
Very well, Miss Ellen M. Boult- A lot
of ''us' old Birmingham people think we
know Miss Finch and each one of us
have delighted in her deserved success.
Trans Himalaya, Discoveries and Ad-
ventures in Tibet by DR.. Sven He
din. CThe Macmillan Coz
This literary production of the first
class. two volumes, containing ten maps,
eight colored plates and about 400 other
Illustrations from photographs and
sketches by the author describes DR..
Hedin's remarkable journey to Tibet.
1t is believed by those In authority that
the story of DR.. Sven Hedins remarka-
BILE journey to Tibet is undoubtedly the
most important record of adventurous
travel and exploration of 1909, and the
most valuable in its geographical results.
1t Is written in a straightforward, SYM
pathetic style that fixes the attention of
the reader, and. though the book-com-
plete In two volumes-is long. the interest
is so well maintained that 1t never be-
comes wearisome.
In concluding his book dealing with a
former journey. DIR. Hedin spoke Of the
impossibility of giving a complete de-
scription of the internal structure of IT,
bet its mountains and valleys. its rivers
and lakes, while SO large a part Of the
country was still unknown. He said
then: Instead of losing myself in con-
lectures or arriving at confused results
owing to lack of material, / would rather
see with my own eyes the unknown dis
tricts in the midst of northern Tibet, and,
above ALL visit the extensive areas of en-
tirely UNEMPLOYED country which stretch
to the north of the upper Brahmapatra,
and have not been traversed by Euro
peans or Indian pundits." In the early
part of 1905 DR.. Hedin resolved to un-
dertake the task before the year was
out he had entered on It; and the pres
ent volumes record his experiences over
a period of nearly three years, which his
arduous journey occupied.
set, for at Simla he heard that the Brit
ish government had refused his request
for permission to pass into Tibet across
the Indian frontier, and repeated efforts
on Lord Minto's part were powerless to
alter this ultimatum. Nothing daunted,
DR.. Hedin determined that nothwith-
standing, he would carry out his inten-
tion But he had to use strategy, and it
was with the announcement of visiting
Eastern Turkestan that he at length set
forth from Leh with large caravan of
men, horses and mules. 1t was when
they reached the mountains, where the
descriptions of scenery are full of awe
inspiring beauty, and are often most
POLITICALLY expressed, that DR.. Hedin's
real difficulties began. The intense cold
was scarcely to be borne and the poor
animals succumbed one after another.
But the always diminishing caravan
struggled bravely on through the forbid
den land till the Pabla (part of the main
chain of the Trans Himalaya) was crossed
and they descended into the valley of the
Brahmaputra and arrived at the great
religious metropolis of Tashi-lunpo just
in time to witness the annual celebra-
ton of the most important festival of
Lamaism. DIR. Hedin received permission
to attend religious ceremonies on which
no other European has ever laid eyes,
and In this great fortress of Buddhism,
the very name OF which is almost I'M
known outside of Tibet obtained a singu-
/ lar insight into the strange and mys-
! terious religion of the Tibetans. He was
accorded the honor OF an interview with
His Holiness, the Tash Lama, one of the
two supreme pontiffs Of Lamaism, in the
eyes Of his people, holier man than the
discredited fugitive. the Dalai Lama. DR..
Hedn also visited near the monastery
at Linga, one of those caves frequent In
Tibet, in which, buried alive, hermit
spends his years till death comes to his
release
For many years Dr. Hedin had set his
heart upon entering the forbidden city
of Lhasa. To gain this he had risked his
life more than once and endured hard
ships of which few men would be capa-
BILE. On his last journey he was almost
within striking distance of the longed-for
goal when his thoughts and wishes
changed. This he explains:
'In Lhasa could add nothing to the
knowledge acquired by YOunghusbands
expedition two years before. On the Sc
lala l had conceived a great fancy for
the Trans-H imalaya, and no geograph-
icaI nrohlen IN "a rth had greater at