The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1911-03-09
Literary News and Notes.

Lippincott's Magazine seems determine
ed to outdo itself during 1911 for the
general excellence of its contents. Fol-
lowing the wholly admirable issues for
January and February, with their COM
plete novels by iona Gale and George
Randolph Chester, comes the March
number, no whit behind. The complete
novel is ''The Little Brown Shoe" by
Ella Middleton Tybout, who has '"rhe
Smuggler, ''The Wife of the Secretary
of State" and other we'll liked books to
her credit. The plot is an unusual one,
! with a cleverly sustained mystery, the
clue to which is "the little brown shoe. :"
The scenes are laid in southern noun
tain region, some Of the leading charac-
tiers being society folk, others humble
mountaineers. All are realistically de-
picted, and all have definite parts in the
plot. There is no cropping about or pad
ding, as in so many stories. The author
has had clearly defined end in view. and
she has worked toward it in mastery
fashion. The story shows distinct adj
vance over her previous work. The
short stories are carefully selected lot,
covering wide range of themes.
Our British cousins can never get out
of their heads the idea that at some time
in the future Canada will be the object
of American territorial ambition. That
consideration inspires every particle Of
comment in London dailies as summarize
ed in the new issue of Current Literature
for March. There was good reason for
the letter which President Taft wrote at
the last moment on this subject, and it is
in itself piquant commentary upon the
mass of British and Canadian press COM
ment brought together by the great
magazine of timeliness. In collecting
contemporary press opinion upon every
question of the hour in this way Current
Literature renders peculiarly valuable
service. 1t handles the Mexican situa-
ton from the same angle. Its depart
ment Of persons in the foreground in,
cludes this month Barnes, a political
Brandeis, certainly man Of the moment,
if not of the future. The striking arti-
cles collected from many places include
study of David Graham Phillips, study
of Byron by Whitelaw Reid, and the
miracle of Marguerite Audoux, the Paris
dressmaker who has written master
piece. The work of the creator of new
basis for love between the sexes, the late
Francis Cation, is studied dispassionate-
ly. New phases Of the war against war
receive attention, as do, in short, all the
aspects of the activity which during the
past month has made the history of the
world.
Two sharply contrasted articles draw
especial attention to the March Atlantic.
One, "a Word to the Rich, by Henry L.
HigginSon, the Boston banker and phil
anthropist, gives very frankly, the ideas
of a rich man, bred in the individualistic
school, who believes that the money
which society has enabled him to make
is trust fund to be returned to the pub
lie. The other, "Class- Consciousness,
by Vida D. Scudder, is defence of the
principles of collectivism by writer
who does not believe that any amount of
philanthropy displayed in the spending
of money atones for the current methods
of making it. The place of honor in
the number is given to "a Criticism of
Two-Party Politics." by j. N. Larned,
which questions theories which most
Americans have regarded as automatic.
Much pleasant variety is given to the
magazine by Meredith Nicholson's en-
PERTAINING paper on 'The Provincial
American" piece of unusual reminis-
cence by IA Step-Daughter Of the
Prairie,'' an amusing paan "In Praise
of Parrots" by Franklin James, and a
bit of roaring farce by Ellis Parker But
Ter. Parents will read with especial in
terest "Boys and the Theatre. by Fred
erick Winsor, while DR.. Goldsbury's
Recreation through the Senses" appeals
to everybody. Mention should also be
made Of John Muir's enthusiastic jour-
nal of the, Sierra, ''The Slave Plantation
in Retrospect" by Winthrop More Dan
iels, and long instalment of Mr.. Gals
worthy's novel, 1.-THE Patricians. There
are poems in the number by Charles
Grant Matthews and Lee Wilson Dodd,
and unusual stories by Henry Seidel Can
by and Ellen Duvall.