Evening star., 1924-10-11
The Library Table
5BY TaE DoOkLovER

On the coffin plate Of Joseph Con-
| rad. when he was buried a4 canter-
oury, In August. was his full Polish
, nSme--Joseph Teodor Conrad korzen-
tcvski. So thoroughly had Conrad
| become identified with English fiction,
as one of it's leaders in the twentieth
century. that many persons had prob
ably forgotten his Polish birth and
| the fact that. when he began to write.
three languages we're open to him
Pollen. French and Engiish-all of
| which he used with fiuency. He chose
English because that language prom.
! ised him larger public. Conrad
| wrote nothing but log books until he
| was 36. and he was not an old man
when he died. His health had been
weakened and his life was probably
shortened by the tropical fever con-
tracfed on a voyage UP the kongo in
search of material for one OF his
| books: but. though he never reached
the biblical three score years and
ten" he had two careers, one Of ac-
tion. on the sea. and one Of thought.
in literature, either of which would
be considered amply sufficient as .
life work by the average man.
K y =
!. a quarter Of a century ago, when
Hall Caine and Marie Corelli were
''hcst sellers" Joseph Conrad. then an
| obscure beginner in literature, though
mani with half a lifetime OF seaman
ship behind him. had sea tale &C
, cepted for serial publication by the
Pail Mall Magazine. That tale was
''Ty phoon. now recognized as one of
che mosst dramatic and realistic of all
takes nf storm at sea- Other books
follow ad--morc sea tales, tales of the
Malay Archipelago and the South
Seas. tales Of Africa, tales Of Southern
France, and Spain, all more or less
exotic and full Of romance. but all
true to human experience, often his
own experience. Conrad wrote Of his
aims: ~ have tried with almost flial
regard to render the vibration OF life
in. the. great world of waters, in the
hearts OF simple men who have for
ages tsaversed the solitudes, and also
that something sentieni which seems
TO dwell in ships-thc creatures Of
their hands and tho objects OF their
care. So he created a master hum
bug in setting of ship life in The
Nigger of the Narcixsus," pictures Of
various seas he had Travelled in Mir
ror of the Sea- the marriage Of a
Malay girl with d white trader in AL
| mayors Folly" the discovery of a ma
tive princess in n jungle in IAN Out
casa of the Islands" and a daring res
! cue with hopeless love in The Res
cueS' Youth" Chance" Lord Jim"
and Victory" show the same quality
of exotic atmosphere, with perhaps
more' interest in human psychology.
t"Arro~v of Cold is a romance of roy
alist and revolutionary intrigue, To-
| Gated in Southern France, and THE
Rover" Conrad's last published novel.
| relates the last adventure Of an old
sea ROVE. of the period imm iAtely
! following, the French Revolution. To
| lovers Of Conrad it brings 2 pzng to
think THAI no more subtly studied, ex-
qusitc'y worded ronances will come
| from his hand.
! In tho miniature library OF the
! Queens dolls house, which formed
! one of tho most interesting exhibit s
at the British Empire exhibition at
| Wenbley Park are tiny volumes
which are the original work OF more
| than 40 authors. In one book. on
nine small pages, Sir James N. Bar
/ rie wrote the following:
| AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
!. Chapter !.
! At six twas thus l wrote my name,
d; James Barrie
Chapter =.
At twelve it was not quite the same.
! James N. Barrie.
! Chapter J.
J At twenty thus, with a caress
James M. Barrie.
Chapter l.
I. Al thirty 7 admired 1t less,
Jas. NJ. Barrie.
| Chapter 5.
| At forty-d~e il was so,
| ]. N. Barrie.
nf
And soon l think the N will so,
j. Barrie.
! Chapter =
CLEpvoD
lone tear for twenty's youthful swank,
And then the name becomes a blank.
The End.
| -.- = y
/ Readers who enjoy the boudoil
memoir type of literature may now
add to their reading a new volume OF
French eighteenth century letters
| The Letters Of Madame" translated
for the first time by Gertrude Scott
iStevenson. The letters are the CORE
s,pondence OF Elizabeth Charlotte OF
Bavaria, Princess Palatin, Duchess OF
Orleans, called Madame at the court
of Louis XIV. The writer was the
! sister-in law of Louis XIV and was a
woman possessed of intelligence. wide
general information, S1VAC1ty ana nU-
NOR. The period covered is 1s6l170S.
Madame was. like Nine. de Sevigne,
Ian indefatigable letter writer and only
a small selection from her large cor
irespondence is included in this vol
ume She writes: -Four days q week
4 devote to correspondence. On Mon
day ] write to Savoy. on Wedn esday
to Medena, and on Friday and Sunday
4 write enormous letters to my aunt
in Hanover. go to Paris three times
a week, and also write daily to my
friends who live there" One wonders
how Madame found any time for iv-
ing the court life, about which she
wrote so entertainingly. She seems
however, to have lived very fully and
Ito have had many interests. She
/ loved clothes, all the amusements and
| sports Of fashionable life, gossip and
goa ndal, the literature OF the day and
politics. She had numerous friends
and acquaintances among the great
ones of the period, and writes about
them with delightful candor. Nine
de Maintenon she calls that old haE
and the exiled James II OF England
she inds deadly dull" She is equal
lily candid about herself, and writes: Il
lam as square as dice. my skin Is red
Itinged with yellow; am beginning tc
grow gray and have peppef-and-sal'
treaseS; there are wrinkles on m3
forehead and round my eyes; my nose
is crooked, as it always Was. and Is
| pftted with smallpox, to boot, aS are