The sun., 1918-07-28
By EDWARD N. TEALL.


thing of sensation among the Philis-
tines by raking Mr.. Porter's literary
reputation over the Goals Of criticism
and burning away everything but an ac-
cusation of having written what America
is proud to have had him write for it
short stories. If an o. Henry or Am
brose Bieree novel might be shown up as
an expanded and glorified short story,
what shall We say of the pretentious
novels that have less than half the matter,
power and effect of one of the brilliant
bits of fiction that leaped from those two
fire tipped pensf
The discussion is fruitless until it is
agreed that not all o. Henry stories, not
all Ambrose Bierce stories, are true o.
Henry, true A. Bierce. We have to test.
reject, select. o. Henry has been col
lected in popular" form, and now we
have Bierce made accessible to the multi
tude in his completeness. We hope, for
the qualification of not Legitimate curl
OoltS, W i've W set Tue tlLle NHtfl IucSC
two authors shall have passed the stage
Of selection, guided by particular and
narrow minor interests, and when the
final sitting of their works on broad and
permanent considerations shall have been
erected by time-and the change that
brings forth, or fails TO bring forth, a
publisher acute enough to embody accu
rately the popular verdict
A Publishers Enterprise.
The first volume of The Collected
Works Of Ambrose Bterce in make
up and at price that will suit the
average or general reader comes
from the young, ambitious and c,everly
guided house of Boni & Liveright. 1t is
called In the Midst Of Life (Tales Of
Soldiers and Cirilians). 1t would not
have been quite so interesting to get this
collection from one of the longer estab-
lished firms. 1t adds flavor to the
enterprise TO complement the SAVIOR of
the authorship. And it is certainly a
fine acquisition for the Boni e.
Lveright "list'!
In this present volume the war stories
occupy three-ffths of the space. They
are civil war stories. 1t is surprising
or perhaps it isn't; at any rate, it is
worthy Of note-how the output of civil
war matter continues and how interest
in it persists. Even the world war in
defence of civilization seems to have
stimulated rather than checked it.
Without pretending to have gone
deeply into the matter, we may note two
books, issued since the grea, war began,
which seem to have been successful:
Rossiter Johnsons The Fight for the
Republic &c. p Putnam's Sons) and
One Young Soldier, by Ira Seymour
Dodd (Dodd, Mead & Company. Of
these books, one is history with a new
"angle," the other reprint of a eollee-
ton first published as The Song Of the
Rappahannock consisting of stories and
sketches embodying the experience and
observation of participant in Federal
operations in the field There have been
others, but these are at The easy surface
of recollection, and are sufficient for the
present purpose. They help to confirm
the publishers judgment in putting out
Just this part of Bierce's writings at
Just this time.
Bierce the Unsparing.
Coming fresh from the stories, how
ever, one inclines to doubt the wisdom
of this course Not at all, let it be most
distinctly understood, the wisdom, the
necessity even, of the project as a whole!
But Bierce spared no ones feelings.
The war in his stories is the real thing.
No detail is skipped because it is CHASTITY.
You even have to examine the pages care
fully before you can be quite sure that he
does not seek them out, and discard others,
equally true in the picture, in order to
include more and more of the horrors.