New-York tribune., 1911-04-02

verse criticism OF her plays was pecul.
iarIy Irritating to her-she was sure that
| II was either ignorant or III natured.
/ She once wrote to Thomas Hardy urging
him to write long play. and concluding
thus: 1T seems almost impudent to beg
man OF your great genius to submit
work to iIliterate and vulgar dramatic
critics"
A Nervous Celebrity.
The London correspondent OF The
Manchester Guardian" describes Mrs.
Craige as a very nervous woman-espe.
cialIy toward the close Of her life. when
she began to give lectures and make
speeches:
Thi. was curious.y shown at meeting
I'm Iincoln's Inn Hall. She had been In.
vited to take part In the annual ladieS
night debate OF the Hardwicke Society,
and. as usual. a large and distinguishes
10 speak John Oliver Hobbies" produced
number OF sinai! typewrtten sheets.
which she proceeded to read. By sons
mistake her speech occupied only hye min.
fore the audience realized the fact, dis
concerning silence ensued The lady re-.
mained standing facing the still expectant
company Turning sa a, ass bsr 70 on my y. e1r,..
form. she said tremulously: Il have
finished What had / better do now? 4
friendly hint to sit down was Immediately
accepted, and an awkward pause ended. =
Tho AIeott House.
The purchase and preservation by q
Concord organization OF the house in
that Massachusetts town where A.
Bronson AIcott once lived with his ador.
ing family, and wherein his daughter
Louisa wrote Little Women" are now
contemplated. 1t is not project with
which outsiders can have much sym.
pathy. It is an illustration of the pro.
yincialism that would unduly exalt
achievements which, however genuine
are undoubtedly modest. Miss Alcott
wrote several children's books which
were much admired in her time. and one,
at least, had a great popular succee:
but her abilities hardly deserve co&.
memoration in a shrine for pilgrimage
purposes. a kind and practical woman
herself, she would have been the first to
say use that money for the sad and
suffering" AS for Bronson Alcott. he
was the most shallow Of pseudo phos.
ophers, whose transcendental theories
and trite plattudes were far from use.
full to his generation.
About Drake.
Sir Francis brakes personality ana
career will be treated in a forthcoming
book in which unpublished family docu.
ments and other interesting records win
be used Lady Elliott Drake is editing
the work.
A Question Of Rights.
Nearly thirty years ago NJ. AnatoA
France wrote History OF France" the
copyright Of which he sold 10 NJ lie.
merre, the Partisan publisher. The man.
uscript has been lying in seclusion all
that time, but now the publisher wishes
to bring II out, and 20 that end has sent
to the author the first batch OF proofs
for correction. Will NJ. France correct
them? Not he; he objects to publication
on the ground that the work in question
was naturally Influenced by the ideas
which he held at the time OF compost.
ton. It seems to be an untenable posi-
ton. and one calling for amicable ar.
rangement.
An Old Novel Returns.
That very sentimental musical novel,
Charles Auchester," Is 10 be one Of the
reprints OF "Everyman's Library" It
is many years since Miss Elizabeth Sars
Sheppard drew in those pages her truly
"hifalutin' portraits of Mendelssohn.
Clara Novello and Sterndale Bennett. IL
will be interesting to note whether the