The sun., 1910-05-07
ETETE WITH ROBERT HTURICK
FHE FUTURE or TEE ANERI-
can NOVEL FULL o. HOPE.
piaSs Net TakiRg the Place u NoSeis
-,Mare Readers and WTiters-shSEt
Breath Novels ami large Pieturea
IA n Life-Wr. lIrrrtrt'a New naoA.

aaemtngly As heedless ot the Tact that
osrtAin Il his novels had been barred
from certain libraries a. of the fact that
be had been placed AZ the top of the liss
nf present day novelista by some critics
aud publishers Il is his theory tha' the
artist works. does his hest. gives forth
the product. and that is the end of it
80 far a. the artists relation TO the pub
Eo ia concerned; 30 he does not often
Indulge in interviews.
why should the public have the right
"a know the why and the how and the
wherefore after have published book
hs asked on the occasion Of the present
interview IL has the novel. the best
can do. and that should be enough.
To suggestion Of the public interest in
the man and HE work he replied:
sOh. 7 know that IL the newspapers
point Of view. and the puhlic's suppose.
Put 7 cannot SO IL that way Why ne
went on warmly. Il don't make myself
public property. Il has no clairn on me.
What is left of me after have given the
tbeok
The book. that part Of me have given
N 20 buy 20 read. 70 throw away. 70 do
with a. Il chooses. and I do not object.
but the rest of ma II should leave alone
until give out another piece
IL " like the business 81 the butcher
who sells meat. or the grocer who soils
PGgs- Because the grocer contributes TO
the publics demand for eggs that does
nos make him a public property. a.
But interrupted the interviewer tri-
lpmphantly. he has 70 stand sponsor for
thoee egg. He has to defend them II
'Ghey are bad and
oh. no laughed the novelist. 'he is
irserely put out - business
80 there the matter n public against
author according ~ Mr. Herriok. stood
and stands although IN this case he
irelented enough N make some observa-
tens on the conditions and tendencies
81 present day fiction. and these obssrva-
tons are of unusual interest "a coming
from the creator of Together a novel
which The pulsetakers Of the reading
public declare would have been a total
failure only ten years ago.
-Of course ! admire the old things
~ aaid. and from many technical stand
POINTS which would not interest you
bere; for ! an university lecturer az
well a. a novelist Al % the things Of
to-day I'm afraid YOU will bs shocked at
nv ignorance
In The last year I've Rad four Of the
new hooks 'Tono Bungay' and Ann We
rpnioa and the song Of songs and and
nov I've q vague idea there was a fourth.
hut I'm sure can't recollect IT, he said
hslplsssly. and I think I've looked at
one or two Others
SO you $50 cannot speak eH cathsda.
7 Do not like 10 talk about people whose
works haven't rad. nor do like 10 talk
about the work of contemporaries
may have an opinion: may have rad
q story IN a magazine on a railroad train
by 9 well known writer and I may have
shought u was = soft thing: hut remarks
"a contemporaries. even whsn well In
tsntioned. are detestable from the point
of view of the artist
Not that the artists view of the work
h not important. ~ regards technical
matters and such: as Important a. that
.sf the critic perhaps. but neither is -
wsry important after all The work itself
4 the thing
That the theatre is taking the place
1T the novel II a statsment going the
rounds to-day can't 49, any renais-
'nance ~ the drama There IL more gen
leral interest In plays which are on ahiEher
lsvel. but no man has appeared Of SUM-
rent power n give a renaissance % the
d1zms
The drama has q broad appeal. be-
uominR continually broader as time goes
IN: but this h due 70 the nature and
sunditions Of our cities az the present time.
II think. aud n the temDerament of our
people rather than directly 10 the plays
fhemnelves The novel continues 20 make
its appeal however. and % a different
Rndienoe generally. although there h a
crossing an times. The novel h going on
now az ALWAYS Being an informal his
toFian Of civilization. ! realize that II q
. commonplace. obvious statement but
M 10 true.
zone reason Il has been felt that the
novel " declining ia because % the lack
1T very aTge sales ! take that a. good.
q hopeful sign. Audiences are dividing
fhemselves There are more writer's nov
than In the days Of David Har1m' and
smaller individual audiences though a
larger collective audience. Good English
and French novels are manifestly apprs-
.riatsd. Y a. Wells's popularity - largely
IN this country.
AT present. in my opinion. there is
.neither an EnGlishman nor an American
Of especially great importance writing.
Tha older generation with Mr. HOwells
and Mr. james is passing and there h In
the new No me who by one book may
b. classed with Tolstoy or FlaubeTt.
One reason for this condition may be
found I think IN the desire ~ the pub
iehers n got out books NJ cheapiy a.
possible This has tended 10 develop
what call the short breath novel n SIXTY
or seventy thousand words possibly.
-Fiut the novel is intrinsioally a long
afair. several technical reasons might .
cited % show why this Ia 40. The novels
which have lived ara not short stories
woven around some central figure. Yet
the methods of the short story are the
methods ~ The Inner Shrine. an anony-
ln0usly written succesa n year ago;
eemUerament made that SORT dominant
Il for a time. n a novel lives Il IL not
nv such methods; Il must give large
-rhs Old Wives Tale and Joseph
NAn-e' are on larger oanva-es So IL
WTliam Alien Whites 4 Certain Rich
Man and think the very fact that this
LAST book. which h by no means easy
~ read. achieved the HCce-s Il did & a
VERY hopsful sign for the future u the
Amarican novel and IL relation % the
reading public
The American audience YOU go. was
she frat demGrratir audience where
svcrv nna. ~ all Glasses and conditions
RnoL n reading books and this naturally
RauEied natter. Il u decidedly an