New-York tribune., 1921-02-27

XN TITH one eye on the ccnsors,
" James Branch Cabell has
completed his most recent adj
6ition TO the Jurgen- Domnei
cycle, tales of the legendary Poictesme
country.
Hardened by his bitter experience
With the i'll fated Jurgen, which was
suppressed by the New York Society
for the Prevention of Vice, Mr.. Csbell
has grown over-cautious. AT times he
fairly coddles the Vice Society agents.
When he comes to a passage which he
fears might aggrayate these guardians
Uf the public morals he neatly side
steps with 4but this must not be told"
If 1t Can BE Tole
II ever the bans are lifted and lit
ersture is permitted to run riot again,
possibly Mr.. Cabeli will emulate Philip
Gibbs, the war correspondent, and
bring ont volume of Now It Can Be
fold. 1t might make rather interest
ing reading for those who so in for
that sort of thing,
Cabell points out that in the orig
inal medieval romances, from which
the tradition of his story comes, "both
IN their prose and metrical form, there
are occasional allusions to natural
processes which make these stories
Unfit to be placed in the hands of
American readers, who, as body, at
test their respectability by insisting
that their parents we're guilty Of un-
T1eutionable conduct; and such pas
ssges, of course, necessitate consider
able editing"
Later he hopes chat the Jurgen epos
may some day be made accessible to
American readers"
Various Dedications
A novelty in the way of dedication is
introduced in Figures of Earth. The
book is divided into five parts and &
foreword, each Of which is respect
fully inscribed to stanch friend who
stood by to lend a helping hand or an
encouraging smile when Jurgen piled
up on the rocks of legal controversy.
So we find these names iumortalized
in the Cabellisn pages: Sinclair Lewis,
Wilson Follett, Louis Untermeyer,
Fl. L. Mencken, Hugh Walpole and
Joseph Hergesheimer.
In his Now 1t Can Be Told perhaps
Mr.. Cabell will reverse this system
and dedicate each chapter to an arch
enemy-to the censors and critics who
have treated his works with no respect
or affection.
We seem to be drumming up quite q
little trade for this purely tentative
volume. Mr.. Cabell may not fall in
with the idea at all. But still we have
no notion that tha censor will ever be
less vigilant than he is to-day. The
now-it-can-be-told" era in literature
probably will never return. We are
not progressing IN that direction.
But with all his watchfulness Cabell
has done splcndidly with his story of
Manuel of the High Head. We like
best the chapter in which Manuel deals
with the stork.
The Magic of Manuel
A: the start of his career Manuel
has sacrificed his sweetheart, NiaSer,
that he may go on and follow his own
desire. Later he regrets this and
wishes Nisfer back. Not until he
learns the magic OF the Apsarasas can
ne do anything about it. Then he
models Nisfer in clay and draws her
soul into the figure with his magic.
Niafer complains rather plsintivcly
that Manuel has botchcd one of her
legs quite miserably in his modelling
but, on the whole, they live happily
until Naefer decides that she wants
baby.
Eyes, yes, baby or twol" says
Manuel. ~ think myself that you'd
be an excellent idea, while we are
waiting for Queen Stultitis to make up
her subjects minds and have nothing
else In particular to do"
Manuel promises to look into the
matter and scquaint himself with the
local customs in the country in which
they are living. He remembers that
the stork IS under personal obligation
TO him, but ne wants to be sure what
tho people of Philistia do about babies.
"Still. Manuel" says Niafer, "the
Philistines themselves have babies, and
do not see how they could have con-