Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-02-08
DICKENS A GENIUS
Work of Great Author Praised
at New York Meeting.
MANY PAY HIM TRIBUTE
His Writings Not q Shelf Full of
Books, But q Room Full Of People,"
Says Hamilton W. Mabie.

NEW YORK, February s.-"You may
question his art, but you cannot question
his genius. When you speak OF Dickens
You think not of shelf full of books,
but OF room full Of people," said Ham
tlton Wright Mabie at Carnegie Hall last
night when he called to order the meet
ing commemorative the centennial ami
versary Of the novelist's birth.
Eighteen hundred people were there.
Forgetting and forgiving the unkindly
pen with which he drew most of his
pictures Of their sex. two-thirds Of the
eighteen hundred were women, and to
those who thought Of the contrasting
kindness Of the pen with which he drew
his children it seemed strange that a
messenger boy who waited forlornly on
the steps that led to the stage was the
only child to be seen.
William Watson was among the
speakers to represent the poets profess
sion; President John H. Finley was
among them to represent the educators;
DIR. Eigin r. L. Gould was there to repre-
sent the critics: Augustus Thomas to
Matthison to represent the actors, and
DR.. Henry van Dyke to represent the
authors. The audience itself ran the
gamut Of those who love the artist him
self.
Dickens Fund Here, pa, 900.
DR.. Mabie announced that the testi-
monial fund being raised in America for
the five dependent granddaughter Of
Dickens had reached $500 The English
fund has reached $35. Co., and the Ameri-
can members of the centenary commit
tee issued another appeal last night for
contributions with w tn bo
gap between the two.
Mr.. Watson. whose ruddy face and
heavy chin give him little Of the poet
aspect, won a welcome that brought
he had read the Zines" he composed
of Dickens birth at Portsmouth, on
the embattled tides" concluded:
And still undimmed his conquering weapons shine
On On, his ,, bright sword no spot Of rust appears;
His soul goes forth to battle, and in the face
OF Whatsoever is false or cruel or base
Being armed With pity and fove ana scorn divine
Immortal laughter and immortal tears.
Devoted Lover Of Mankind"
DR.. Finley sketched again the picture
of New York that Dickens drew upon
his first visit here just seventy years
ago. DR.. Gould called the novelist a
devoted lover Of mankind in analysing
the appeals he made to his readers Miss
Matthison read Little Dorothy's Party"
and MIR. Thomas descanted upon the
fact that though many of Dickens
books had been dramatized, mo com
munity was ever satisfied with the trans
Ter OF his stories to the stage"
But, Mr.. Thomas added, he lived
the strength of the simple words. The
peoples vocabulary is like Antaeus, Il,
gains strength each time it touches earth.
NO war song was ever frazzled into
polsyllabes; nobody ever wrote a lula
dramatist. but he was the greatest of
dramatic novelists. The theater and its
people for generations Will be his debt
DIR. Van Dyke repeated in somewhat
amended form the address he delivered
earlier in the evening at the Academy
of Music, Brooklyn, under the auspices
OF the Brooklyn Institute. He was late
In reaching the hall. and the time was
great number of letters and kilograms
received by the League for Political Edu-
cation. the Civic Forum and the centen-
airy committee, which combined interests
for the meeting.
Well Known People Present.
On the platform were George Haven
110llltLOu I1Oll, TIC xtct lHOuldS
r. Slicer. Henry Clews A. s. FTrssell.
Prof. John Bates Clark. Rollo Ogden,
William H. Bliss. Prof. Samuel McCune
Lindsey. Robert Erskine Ely, DR.. Henry
NJ. Leipziger and Mrs. Anna Carlin Spen-
Ger.
In the boxes were Mrs. Watson, George
Lawrence, whose mother was a cousin
of Dickens. and Mrs. Lawrence, Edith
Peumert of the Royal Theater, Copen-
hagen, Robert Underwood johnson, Mrs.
Won r. Phelps. Miss Spence. Isaac N.
Seligman, John H. Patterson, Lindsey
Russell. Miss Blanche Potter, E. w.
Coggeshall, Jacob H. Schiff, J. Woolsey
Shepard, Miss A. Barton Hepburn and
Jokichi Takamime.
On the floor of the hall were Mr.. and
Mrs. c. NJ. Bergstresser. Miss Catherine
A. Bliss Miss Jean A. Broadhurst, Mrs.
8. o. Brown, Mrs. R Mem. Colfelt, Mrs.
Charles Douglass. Mrs. Henry Edsall,
Mrs. T. N. Ewell. William L. Findley,
Mrs. Harry H. Flagler, Mr.. and Mrs.
John Greenough, Mrs. J. B. F.. HERE
shoff, Mrs. Gilbert E. Jones. Mrs. Rice
Lewis Julian, Miss Charlotte Taylor
Jane, Mrs. David H. McAlpin, Mr.. and
Mrs. James Tolman Pyle, Mrs. Herbert
l.. Satterlee, Mrs. Charles Stewart Smith,
Mrs. Frederick Stevens, Mrs. D. M. Tur-
nure, Mrs. Samuel Untermyer, Mrs. A.
G. Williams and Mrs. ]. A. r. Worthing-
ton.
Grave Covered With Flowers.
LONDON, February s.-The centenary
NJ ttn oP( rlo