Evening star., 1923-02-17
The Library Table
ny THE BooKLovER.

Ahk ehee tho blstrlct OF COiufnpid
leads the entire country, has already
been quoted in The Star, comment on
the Significance Of the tabulation is
especially appropriate to this column.
] have long held that Washington's
population has the largest and prob
ably the most intelligent reading ap-
petite In the country. But here are
concrete facts, which furnish strong
evidence that this is true. Figures
have been worked out by states and
sections giving the percentage of
Digest subscribers to the general
population. These figures show that the
District leads with 3.51 per cent Of It's
population as subscribers to the Di-
gest. The next highest record is
That Of California, whose percentage
~ 2.S3. For the entire United States
the percentage is 1.29.
n I: Il y
In recording the impressive showing
made by the District, which is far
and away ahead of any competitor"
the Digest states that the reason
may be found in the fact that a
considerable portion of washington's
Inhabitants are selected from the ma
tion at large because of their mental
and intellectual ability. Cynics may
scoff at the presence of these quali-
Ties among congressman; neyerthe-
less there is multitude Of civil serv-
Ice employees, attaches and the like
VINO are chosen because of their edu-
cation" The Digest further refers
10 the population of Washington as
n MOL n -
should therefore be excluded from
any group totals.
1t seems to me that it is fair to
conclude that the preference of the
Districts population for this high
class weekly would be found to be
matched if an analysis could be
made OF the circulations of other
leading magazines with good literary
standards and of the book buying and
reading habits here. Washington
supports many bookstores, whose
numbers seem to be constantly in
creasing, and they all appear TO be
doing a thriving business. Their
managers report that good books are
tify the conclusion that the Digests
estimate of Washington's literary
tastes is sustained by the books read.
The Public Library. which is in close
touch with the reading tastes of the
public, has long reported an insa-
table appetite for books on the part
of Washington's population. and that
the demands for the best books al
ways far exceed the lbrary's ability
TO meet them. In all of these evil
dences of the keen demand of Wash
ingtonians for good books and maga-
zines the Booklover takes keen delight.
The House That Died. is tho title
OF the most recent novel Of the
French traditionalist. Henry Bor-
deaux, that has been translated into
English. The younger son in family
OF peasants Is murdered by his broth
er. The murderer is never publicly
accused, but each OF the five mem
bers of the family, in turn. expiates
the crime. At last even the old house
expiates also, and after sheltering
generations of Converts for three
centuries 1t is abandoned to decay.
Books, like other commodities, are
often produced to meet well defined
wants The universal interest in
people prominent in the public eye
is responsible for the publication of
the various fat and dumpy diction-
aries of cotemporary biography. so
useful in editorial rooms. libraries
and administrative ofices. The cur
rent volume of Who's Who in
America" issued biennially. and now
in its twelfth edition. has sketches
of more than $4,000 people in its 5000
pages: The English who's Who"
includes more than 10000 biographies
in it's 5000 pages. After suspend
German "Wer lists has just appear
ed with more than 10000 sketches in
it's 1900 pages There is also a
who's Who in Canada" and for
tered $500 prominent people, whose
deeds are recorded in 1900 pages
Similar books have also been pub
lished for other foreign countries
but none recently, so far as ] know.
The sketches in such books are
nished by the subjects. ordinarily
bare statements OF fact. but they are
none the less often highly interesting
reading.
Rex Beach was in business in Chi
cago when he received his inspira-
ton 10 become an author II was
doing very well in the f1rebrick busi-
ness" he writes, when a friend of
mine showed some stories he had
written for a harvester company's
trade journal. 1 determined that if
this fathead could write and sell his
stuff. another fathead could. So 7
sat right down and wrote a piece
about Alaska. 1 sent it on to Nc
Clure's Magazine, thinking to start
at the top and let it work down to
the Poultryman's Review by the
natural law of gravitation. But Mo
Clure's accepted the story and asked
bricks out of the window and went
to work at the author business
The recent death of katherine
Mansfield, just as she was making a
place for herself among the British
fictionists of the younger generation
is loss to the literary world. Her
reputation rests on her two volumes
of short stories, Bliss and Other
Stories" and Tho Garden Party and
Other Stories" both of which in their
subtlety, compression and delicate
technique suggest Tchekov. Kath-
crime Mansfield was the wife of the
English critic, j. Middleton Murry
author of Countries of the Mind
Essays in Literary Criticism" recent
ly published.
X \. x X
Writing on the influence of Thomas
Paine's writings in the cause of the
American revolution, Gamaliel Brad
ford says in the February Harpers
Magazine:
His words burn everywhere with a
large and splendid ardor for demo-
cratic ideals, for liberty, equality and
opportunity for every one.
He preached federal union; that petty
joal0uSieS and