Evening star., 1930-12-13
THE LIBRARY TABLE


When Thomas Hardy published Tess
Of the D'Urbervilles, he was the sub
ject Of so much abuse that a mediocre
man might have been overwhelmed.
Hardy took 1t all very calmly and even
drew considerable amusement from the
hypocrisy and provincialism of some Of
his critics. Some anecdotes in this con-
nection are told by Florence Emily
Hardy, Hardy's second wife. in THE
Later Years of Thomas Hardy, 1892
1928" q sequel to The Early Years Of
Thomas Hardy" published year or so
ago. She says: "Among other curious
results from the publication of the
book was that 1t started q rumor of
Hardy's theological beliefs, which lived,
and spread and grew, so that 1t was
never completely extinguished. Near
the end of the story he had used the
sentence, The President of the Immortals
had finished his sport with Tess "
Hardy's idea Of ironie fate was thus
interpreted by one critic, Hardy pos
tulates an all-powerful being endowed
with the baser human passions, who
turns everything to EVIL and rejoices in
the mischief he has wrought" Another
critic said, ITO him evil Is not so much
a mystery, a problem, as the willful
malice of his god" Hardy's comment
on these criticisms was. "Under this
species of criticism If an author were
to say 'Aeolus maliciously tuggsd at her
garments, and tore her hair in his
wrath the sapient critic would no
doubt announce that authors evil creed
to be that the wind is a powerful being
endowed with the baser human
passions, etc., etc"
After the appearance Of "Tess" Hardy
received many letters from strangers,
some from husbands whose experiences
had borne a resemblance to that of
Angel Claire, though more, many more.
from wives with past like that of
Tess, but who had not told their hus-
bands, and asking for his counsel under
the burden Of their concealment Some
Of these were educated women of good
position and Hardy used to say the
singular thing was that they should
have put themselves in the power of a
stranger by these revelations (their
names having often been given, though
sometimes initials at a post office only !"
Once at a dinner party where Hardy
was a guest, Tess" was under discus
sion and opinions differed as to the
justice of her hanging. A well known
society woman, wife Of statesman.
snapped out: Hanged? They ought ali
70 have been hanged" jeanette L.
Glider, writing in the New York
World, said: when finished the story
! opened the windows and let in the
fresh air and I turned to my book
shelves and said, Thank God for Kip
ing and Stevenson, Barrie and Mrs.
Humphry Ward! Here are four great
writers who have never trailed their
talents in the dirt" A prominent ac-
tor. asked to play in a dramatization of
Tess" said frankly that "he could
not play such a dubious character as
Angel Claire (Which would have suited
him precisely, because 1 have my name
to make and it would risk my reputa-
ton with the public If I played any
thing but a heroic character without
spot. In spite of Tess" or perhaps
partly because Of 1t. Hardy's ashes were
accorded burial in Westminster Abbey,
on January IA, 1928.
Y X X +
Irony, bitter at times, a sense of fu-
tllity, but also humor, pervade "Vaga-
oonds," Knut Hamsun's most recent
novel. Most Of the characters are
Vagabonds or wanderers, searching for
means Of livelihood, but, in addition
q that, for something else which will
give TO a Sordid, monotonous life a fia-
vor OF adventure, perhaps of romance.
continuity of effort is not possible to
she vagabond nature any more than is
hard work. Always, to change the
scene seems to promise success. but
success Is as elusive as the little mem
who, for the imaginative, people the
mountain heights and receSses of Nor
way. The black, loamy soil of the
Midwest United States tempts these
Vagabonds Of rocky Norway, Just as it
has in, reality tempted many hard
working Norwegians who came over
here and energetically labored to sue
cess. But the vagabonds cannot stay
long even where the soil Yields richly
for their labors. They drift back and
forth and in the end are about where
tney were In the beginning.
y #*
John Galsworthy. in the forewerd to
ms new collection Of short stories, ION
Forsyte Change" explains this addition
to the Forsyte chronicles after the
Swan Song" had been sung: "It is
hard to part suddenly and finally from
those with whom one has lived SO long;
and these footnotes do really.
think, help to fill in and round out
the chronicles of the Forsyte family"
The slight stories in the volume do
perhaps I'LL in certain gaps in the
family history, but the gaps were so
small that they were not noticeable.
and the stories are not of absorbing
interest. The marriage of Miss Julia
Forsyte at the age of 40 to Mr.. Sep
timus Small, the rebellion of Mrs.
Forsyte against her husband
until she secured from him an allow
ance Settled on her from her own
dowry, the love-sick lingering of
5oames against a lamp post outside
Irene's window few weeks before his
marriage to her, the disappointments
of Marian Forsyte because of her un-
worldly genius-husband, and the mar
row squeak" of Timothy Forsyte who
almost proposed marriage to the mot
quite nice" Hatty Beecher, are among
the best episodes related. The very
best OF the stories is "Soames and the
Flag" which tells of the reactions of
Soames Forsyte to the World War.
OF the stories in Edith Wharton's new
volume, Certain People" only two are
N what We have come to consider her
usual manner-"Atrophy," a slight
sketch of the defeat Of q beautiful
woman at the hands of the timid but
nard spinster sister of her lover, and
After Holbein," a piece of real art,
created about the character of an old
man and an old woman who will not
release their hold on the worldly life
hey have loved. In two of the stories
Mrs. Wharton goes to the borders of
,he Eastern Mediterranean for her
oackground-"A Bottle of Perrier" Is a
irst-rate mystery story, and 'Dieu
i'Amour" is a medieval tale of Cyprus,
BASED on tradition. The last story in
The volume, MFR. JONES'" is a ghost
story. The ghostly Mr.. Jones haunts
The blue parlor of the long=neglected
country house of Bells in Sussex and
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