Evening star., 1922-12-23
The Library Table.
BY THE BOOKLOVER.

agree with me in my preferences
! wonder whether the mention OF my
| selections will not, cause an answer
| ing thrill from the readers of this
| column?
| = :: !. :;
/ Although Charles Dickens publish
! ed "A Christmas CAROL in December,
tiS43, this ghost story OF Christmas"
is just as fresh and good as She year
il was written. 1t has the quality of
never growing old. If, as / hope,
YOU are by this time thoroughly i'm
bued with the spirit Of Christmas you
Will want to get down the volume
Of your Dickens containing it and
read the ''Christmas Carol" as exact
lly suited to your mood. If perchance
you find in yourself any tendency to
I steel yourself against the Christmas
/ spirit, go with Scrooge on his
/ journeys with the Ghost Of Christmas
Fast. with the Ghost of Christmas
| Present and with the Ghost of Christ
| mas Yet to Come. Your experiences
! viii, | am sure. put You into a diff
fer"nt frame of mind. Especially at
! tend the Cratchit family'S Christmas
! dinner. If you are inclined to be
| satisfied only with sumptuous
| Christmas, joining in Imagination i'll
| their plain but substantial fare. in
| their mcrrimrnt and their love for
each other. VIII show You that hap
| piness does not dcp"pd on luxury, but
comes from within. With Tiny Tim
you. too. Will find yourself saying,
| Good bless us every one.
= i
My favoritc Christmas poem and, /
believe. the faVvrite Of most children
| of whatever age. is ~ Visit From
! 81. Nicholas" better known, perhaps,
! h.! its first tw" lines:
j. TWAS th" night hefor" Christmas,
. when all through the house
! Not = creature was stirring. not even
I; mouse.
! hav. always had u special fond
! ness for these TWO lines about ST.
! Nicholas:
! lie had "A broad face ard little
round belly.
That shook, when h" laughed, Ike
bowlful Of jelly
Although this poem was written
, more than fifty Years ago. II right!
continues universal faNprite. It's
author. Cl.ncrtC & Moore. was eighty
| two years old when u" wrote il for
his children and grandchildren. and.
as il has proved. for children the
I world over.
! Segucls ar. popular ct Unpopular,
! accord'up, t" tn" liking "f the reader
fer the original book one who has
loved Mrs Numrhry Wards Mar
celia is pleased 10 continue her ac-
qGHimtanc" in sir George Tressady.
on the other hand, If one has had
quite enough of IL" social pranks of
/ Stephen Mckenna's Lady barbara
| Neave. in ..Lady Lilith," on" reads
half-h"artedly, or not at all. the con-
tiuuation of them in The Sixth
Sense" The Education Of Eric Lane
and The Secret Victory" 1t is not
often that the logical order is reNers-
,.d and Il sequel Is written frst. ana
,he beginning Of the story afterward.
but that is " hat Dorothy Cantield has
done. in her TWO books. The Brin-
ming cup of last year and Rough
Ifewn'' OF this year. In spite Of the
tupSy-.urvy feeling it gives one |"
read the conclusion and then TO go
back ard read the beginning. those
who became Interested in Neale and
NIarist. and their children in their
Vermont home in The trimming
Gun will certainly read of the chlld-
hood and youth OF Neale and Mar:se
I q.
"Eoueh- -Hewu.'
, Just as the vital statistics Of our
human Kind are Of great interest I"
soriologists and the rest of us, so
the births. lives and deaths of maya
zines are of interest to readers. Some,
! like babes. start small, grow up and
! live vigorously. only 70 withcr and
! die early: few seem almost to have
, immortal lives: some start full grown,
but often cUIfle to an untim"ly END:
some change not only their sizes h4t
their VERY natures to such an extent
as to become almost unrecognlZable.
! one of the most famous periodicals
ever published was the Spectator "t
Addison d steele. II was. however.
! issued continuously for less than two
wears early in the eighteenth century,
with a short revival after two years
of silence The present English jour
nal of opinion of the same name.
; edited by j. St. Loe Strachey. is not IN
any sense a continuation of the ear
, liCr publication. Coming down to our
own day, il is not usually known that
! the Cosmopolitan was started as the
house organ of 4 firm manufacturing
desks and other office Specialties. and
that during its first period the read
ing matter was solely designed to
float the advertising After few
wears of service to trade. the Cosno-
poIitan was bought by the late J"hn
| Rrisbcn Walker who made OF II Il
great literary success. parity by pun
fishing ii at 10 cents a copy. Later
still il was gathered into the Hearst
fold and became what it is.
& x j: =
Two recent births in the magazine
world, started off vigorously and
with apparent promise of useful lives,
are the Harvard business Review and
Foreign Affairs. The former is the
quarterly journal of the Graduate
School of Business Administration of
Harvard University and is issued in
excellent FORM The first number is
filled with practical information for
men outside of academic circles. For
eign Affairs is likewise a quarterly, so
handsomely printed as to be joy TO
one who takes pleasure III good ty-
biography. Its purpose is announced
to he ITO promote the discussion of
current questions of international in
terest and to serve as a natural me
MUM for the expression of the best
thought. not only of this country. but
of Europe. when 1t wishes to address
itself on these topics to the American
public.
* x - *
Though drama is, of course, meant 10
be acted, yet there is some drama that
gives almost more pleasure when read
in an armchair by the fire. with plenty
of time to smile over the humor and to
reread the cleverest bits of conversa-
ton and best imaginative descriptions.
OF all living dramatists Bernard Shaw