The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-09-08


he is doing trying to do entirely out Of his work
he would succeed completely. And succeed COM
pletcy he never does. How nearly he can come to
complete success we know from some of KPLINa,
o. HENRY, most Of CONRAD, one book Of THOMAS
HARDY s-we name few modern writers just for
the sake of specific and instantly familiar illustra
ton.
Mrs WHARTON is sometimes spoken Of as pupil
of HENRY JAMES, and the resemblance is strong in
some of her work to that Of JAMES, but she is not
his pupil. 1t is simply case of the similar prod
ucts Of largely similar inheritances and environ
ment Both these writers were from birth well to
do, both had exceptional education and lived and
moved in cultivated surroundings. Their endow-
ments were not unlike, though more disparate than
their circumstances. JAMES had greater gift and
ruined it more completely The Portrait of Lady
is the everlasting witness of what he might have
done by the fact of what in that superb novel, he
did do Ethan Frome, The House of MIth and
Summer are all inferior to The Portrait of Lady
and all superior to JAMES later work.
The Geometry of Opinion.
If any one tells you otherwise it is because he is
thinking in terms Of art and not in terms of life.
And some will tell you otherwise, for the world
never has lacked those to whom art was more than
life, just as the world has never lacked those to
whom future life was more than the life Of this
earth.
With these we have no quarrel; we can but
spect them; Con made them so. 1t takes all kinds
of people, we agree to make world if that is so,
manfestly it takes all kinds Of views to get the true
view.
In any triangle the sum of all three angles is
equal to two right angles. IT, therefore, of the
angles Of the triangle is right angle the sum Of
the other two will equal right angle. The angle
of outlook which only the artistry in piece
of literary work added to the angle of outlook which
sees only the livingness in the same work may make
the right angle which we all aspire to look from.
We, the People.
WE, the people, have no use for ceverness at
w the expense of sincerity, for fine lines at
the expense of ute strength for color at the cost
of wholesomeness for astheticsm at the expense Of
sanity.
We, the people, want the best as COP gives to
see the best; if you say that our tastes second
rate you impeach the Power that made us. You
may add corollary indictment against yourselves
who have not shown us anything better.
We, the people, ancient and ever Young.
What to us, are your heresies, your nicely critical
balancings, your formulas for progress, your
Dgs about Art your hair tearing and lamentaton
and your curses over the "bourgeoisie''7
We, the people, have made kings and YOU cannot
dethrone them. Do your best to assassinate
CHARLES DIcKENs, if you like. After you have
succeeded in Staying our kings land you will never
succeed) you may set up your literary Socialist
State in which no writer will be any better than
any other writer and 10 man will own his soul.
We, the people, the people of merry England.
the people Of republican France, the people Of
broad America, Of generous Australia, of the isf
ands of the sea-we, the people, are sovereign and
free If you have anything to say to us YOU may
4 an1y aHyInl toto ,nnl
But when YOU would tell us what must like aud
what must read and whom must revere and
why must conform our minds and opinions to
your critical perceptions Cor perversions) when
You tell us these things you presume too far. And
we, the people, will not give you the satsfac
ton of posing martyrs-for we let you rave.
Here is our picture from the close of chapter
of a book called A Short History of England:
- He in whose honour all had been said and sung
stirred, and stepped across the border Of Belgium.
Then were spread out before mems eyes all the
beauties of his culture and all the benefits of his