6 TOE SUNDAY OREGOXIAy. PORTLAND; DECE3rBER 10, 1911.
son&
i
- . Tsirti- WHolly
StOry,Of i-lierarjr - " r
Told by Centenaries and Best
Sellers. Magazine Combines and
Government Suits. It Has Seen
Most Valuable Private Ubrarjr Go
"Under the Hammer" and a Half
Score of Finds'"of High Interest
and Real Worth-
ASK the -Man In the Street" what
ha Happened of literary Interest
1 In Mil and the chance are he'll
not be able to get beyond the "Blue
I w mischance of Upton Sinclair and
that paean In print "Why do Beau
tiful Women Marry Nat Goodwin?"
If he add that the Government ha
discovered a magazine trust and I
w hotfoot after It. and that the widow
of Stonewall J-kon haa been rtmplnf
on the trail of Mil Mary Johnston, for
Telarepresentlng" the greatest of
Amerlran cavalry leaders, he will feel
rure he baa well covered the (round.
Actually, a present-day letter In
Iheir mo'e permanent regard are held,
such gossipy happening as these are.
of course, but the sparks thrown from
the fire of really- orth while events,
and no more Indicative of the year than
the "circus version" of Richard HI"
which was offered the German admir
ers of the greatest English poet.
Dr. Owea'a Dtaarlaa.
Certain "sensations" are. however, to
be chronicled. Shakespeare's Immortal
self figured twice In addition to Herr
Bonn's bizarre venture J:t referred to.
Dr. Orvllle Owen, for instance, gathered
unto himself mighty newspaper pub
licity (if nothing else( spending much
time and money digging under the bed
of the Wye. at Chepstow, not only to
bring to light actual and no-longer-to-he-joabted
proof that Francis Bacon
wrote the finest drsma in the language
but also that he decapitated the Strat
fordian whose name he had used and
-onrealed his head In the black mud of
the little river.
Thn W. s. Booth has jumped into
the arena once more, this time attack
ing the authenticity of the famous
DroesSout portrait of the Bard of Avon
and. for the moment, making almost a
much tir as Prln.-ess lule of Sax
ony and Kartn Mlrhaells did for a
lenger time with their extraordinarily
intimate" books. "My Own Story" and 1
"The Dangerous Age." '
The gamut of the uneiperted. Indeed,
has been run from the frame ends I by
assassination and suicldei of such wide,
ly read authors as IevH Graham. I'bll
!lpa and Mvrtle Reed, down to the com.
ic opra announcement of a Passaic
t.V J. lover who sealed hi engage
ment not with a ring, but with a set of
poesy volume ranging from Huso to
Jack London, and of a reltaioua censor
in far-away perl. who ha officially
banned Verne a "Trip to the Moon." In
asmuch aa the voyacer in that frantic
tale were shot up Into the air t the
fair goddess of night--which waa clear
. ly sacrrhglous, as the moon Is Mahom
et roftin and really mustn't be fired
upon.
A couple of other "attacks" called for
brief headlines. The t'athollca denounce
the new "U'lttanU-a" In blirase the
nut outspoken, anj a certain L. S.
naer. or r ra n k ron -on -.Main. branded
a forgerie some of the most notable
books In the wonderful Hoe library.
B;it the one onslaught eems to have
amounted to nothlnr. and the other waa
disproved almost before the newspaper
ink waa dry.
la Library Alcoves.
Mention of the dispersal of the world
famous library of the late Robert lint
bring up a happening not merely of
note In tha rear already drawing
toward It close, but something which
prorrtee to be more or lee of a land
mark for long time to come or. If not
landmark, then may one write that the
sale of these precious volume have
et many a new high-water mark?
No gathering of book ever made by a
private Individual waa finer in certain
Tine" of the bibliophile activities,
while the whole collection showed such
in average of merit a well nigh to
discourage any from attempting It
qual In the future. For single1 volume
to li In the thousands waa an occur--ence
only usual, while the total
reached at last waa close upon 12.
Following at the heela of this cam
cable newa of the vast sums paid In
London for tha treasure of the Huth
library, which, even after half a hun
dred of the choicest "lots" had been
given the British Museum, astonished
the book world with what was left.
Then H. E. Huntington, of Los Angeles,
ha coolly paid a little matter of SI.,
tso.ooo to acquire the Lamb and Wal
ton. Cervante and Franklin. Defoe and
Caxton tomes of Dwight Church of New
York. In the light of which transac
tiona the scattering of the libraries
of tre late K. C. Sredman. L. M. Power
and Judge Jacob Klein pale.
In this same connection lMl's annal
must find place for two other entries,
the flrt to debit and the second to
credit. In January a $;;.00n.000 fire In
the Albany Capitol building of the Em
pire State destroyed practically price
less historic and geneoioglc archive,
and in May. New York City witnessed
the opening of the doors of the von
irous building which now house' the
Asror-Lenox-Tllden book collection. It
is by far the finest torehoue of liter
ature the whole earth around.
Literary "K1
It looked at on thrilling instant a
though F. F. Ayre wa going to pro
duce a "find" of literary aort along
side of which the combined Huth-Hoe-Ohurch
treasure would fade Into In
significance, for It wa announced that
he had been in direct communication
with one Robert Browning, playing
long-distance amanuenala In order to
bring back to this mundane sphere a
few more poetic trifle of the departed.
So "Bell and Wing" waa purchased
with a beating heart. Its whole 1261
large, long pkges (not counting the in
dex) but the "message" was obscure!
On the other hand. :here have been au
thentic additions to the poetry of the
mighty voices of a day that Is gone.
"A whole nest of poem by A hlttier"
has been unearthed at Amesbury by S.
T. Pickard. and hitherto unpublished
verse by Poe has been set to type, and
some three doten MS3. of Trahrme
have been discovered In London by Ber.
tram DobeJI. poems ranking the Ja
cobean writer foot-to-foot with Herbert
and Craahaw and Vaugban.
Then the art authorities at Rome
have located beyond further cavil not
merely the alte. but the veritable ruin
of the Sabine farm given the poet Hor
ace by the generous Maecenas, while
the first genuinely authentic portrait
of "Don Quixote" Cervante haa been
chanced upon at Nledo. pain.
" Fiction haa been thrice blessed In
mucb the same way. Lady Ritchie ha
found two unfinished manuscripts by
her father, the great Thackeray: an
unpublished novel by Balzac, set to,
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paper out of compliment to the Duchess
de Dlno. haa been uncovered among
that famoua lady's papers, and a frag
ment of a tale by that Charles Rrade
whom Meredith styled "chief novelist
of his century." haa appeared In one of
the English reviews. Popularly speak
ing, such things will be of wider ap
peal than the third (posthumous) ser
ies of Matthew Arnold's "Essay In
Criticism" or Dr. Harnack'a announce
ment that he ha discovered In the
Meteoron Monastery a "Commentary on
the Book of Revelation" In the Holo
graph of Origin.
Recalllag the Ore at.
Apropo of the Apocalypae. as well
a of "William Makepeace Goliath."
as Mr. Qulller-Couch has fitly dubbed
the giant of Victorian tale-tellers. It
should be set down In such summary
as this that widespread and serious at
tention has been paid, aince -January
lat was here, to anniversaries of
"Tl.e Book of Books" and to Mr.
Thackeray' ever-charming self. The
tercentenary of the Holy Bible was
marked honorably the world over; the
100th recalling of the birth of the cre
ator of Becky and Pendennls and Barry
Lyndon well-nigh as broadly.
Notice waa paid, too, to the eenten
narlea of Mrs. Stowe. Sumner. Gree
ley. John Bright and Wendell Phil
lips. But these suffered somewhat in
comparison, a did also, and to a
greater degree. Boileau and Hume and
Bishop Ken, to whose name fell bi
centenaries. Nearly a dozen others of "the mighty
dead that yet live" were remembered
as the weeks passed. A Bunyan win
dow was (at last) unveiled In West
minster, and the birthplace of Carlyle
at Kcclefechan waa taken over by a
London syndicate for preservation and
fit display. Similarly the boyhood
home of Mark Twain, at Hannibal, Mo.,
has been acquired by those who will
car for and maintain It. and step are
being taken to like end both In con
nection with the old Alcott house at
Concord, and Joaquin Miller' log
cabin, built by the picturesque poet
a quarter -of a century ago on Wash
ington's Sixteenth street. The proposed
Poe monument In Baltimore Is not
yet a fact, but that city haa unveiled
a commemorative stone to Francis
Scott Key. New- York ha another such
memorial of the poet Bryant, and In
gersoll has been set up In bronse In
Peoria.
The January centenary of the Aca-
demia della Crusca in Florence waa
made the occasion for beginning anew
the great Italian dictionary, work upon
which haa lain so long neglected
through the failure of the Roman gov
ernment to fulfill Ita promises, and yet
another Koyai (.ommission in the
peninsula has mHde an excellent etart
on a complete "National Edition" of
the writings of Leonardo da Vinci. To
keep step in some measure with such
genuine gain of lettered sort, the
I nited State ha been told that James
Loeb. the retired banker, will now de
vote hi time and wealth to a new
translation and publication of all the
great rlnsslc. authors, the "set" to run
to eomcthing more than 200 volume.
Bre Books and "Beat Sellers."
Having thus arrived at new books,
one is brought face to face with the
necessity of listing at least a few' of
the more than 13,000 titles which have
poured from Amerl-an presses. Ob
viously It l not a possible thing to. do
In brief, and open to the greatest
difficulties even In extenso. A bare
dozen of "serious kind" may, however,
safely be named as giving sure prom
ise of permanent worth and If the
Kipling-Fletcher collaboration Is not
included it Is solely because even Kip
ling verse cannot wholly make up for
such "history to ragtime" (to quote one
review) as the Imperialist laureate's
fellow worker has produced. The oth
ers are a follows, the title being given
In alphabetical order:
"Letters of R. L. Stevenson."
"Life and Time of Cavour." William
Roscoe Thayer.
"Martin Luther." Dr. A. C. McGlffert.
"Autobiography of Richard Wagner."
"Some Problems of Philosophy." Will
lam James.
"The New Hesperides" (verse), Joel
Ellas Spingarn.
"The Sinking Man". (verse), Josephine
Preston Peabody.
The Unknown Ilo" (travel). Pierre
de Coulevaln. "
"The West In the East." Price Col
lier. "The Women of the Caesars." Gug
llelmo Ferrero.
In the realm of fiction the "best sell
ers" are not always the best books,
and yet In the list of 1911' popular
proposing, more than one Item appears
f-ZJS- .SA TA- MA J-AS42cKVO
Anno sT&fv'y.
of abiding merit. "The Broad High
way," to name a single instance, a
first-book by Jeffrey Farnol, has been
compared by sober critics With the
work of Richard Jeffries. Borrow and
Dickens. Smollett and Fielding, Dumas
and Sterne and "R. L. S." The 10 titles
which have this year enjoyed the major
part of the public demand, according
to the ranking given them by the
monthly lists of American book Btores
and libraries, are these:
"The Broad Highway," Jeffrey Far
nol. ' "Queed." Henry Sydnor Harrison.
"The Prodigal Judge." Vaughan Kes
ter. "The Long Roll," Mary Johnston.
"The Common Law," R. W. Chambers.
"The Glory of Clementina," William
J. Locke.
"The Miller of Old Church." Ellen
Glasgow.
"Miss Gibbie Gault," Kate Langley
Boscher.
"The Ne'er-Do-Well." Rex Beach.
As lasting over from 1910's produc
tion. "The Rosary," "Molly Make-Be-lleve,"
and "Mary Cary" have stood
high. Of large promise at this writing-,
though too recently issued yet to
have caught up with the-stories above
mentioned, are "Hop" Smith's Kennedy
Square," "The Inside of the Cup," by,
Winston Churchill. Hewlett's latest tale
of mediaeval romance. "The Song of
Rennv." and (perhaps above all others
in permanent charm). Barrie's "Peter
an'd Wendy."
Honor and Prize.
The incentive to French taletellers
has been vastly Increased of late by an
announcement by the Academy of a
new "Grand Prix" of $2000, to be award
ed annually to the author adjudged to
MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR CITY'S TRIBUTE TO BOGUS SCALES
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4
the scale. An article weighing a pound
could be made to weigh a pound and a
half by merely moving the counterbal
ance a few Inches. Still another scale
was found with a string suspended
down into a box on which the scale
rested. On the string were small
bolts which pulled down on the bal
ance of the scale, making a difference
of several ounces In all articles
weighed. Needless to say, the differ
ence was In favor of the dealer.
All types of scales are adjutable,
making- it possible for the dealer to
cheat the customer out of several
ounces by merely moving a little burr
on the top of the scale. This fact ha
made the work of the City Sealer diffi
cult. Inasmuch as the dealer is able to
adjust -the scale, so It will weigh Im
properly In less than a minutes after
the Sealer tests it and puts on the of
ficial city seal.
There is a way to detect scales han
dled In this way. The Indicator should
point at zero. If it does not It Is safe
to say the dealer has elicited the aid
of his scale in making his business pay.
Bored weights form a source of com
plaint in scales used in weighing coal
and. other large commodities. A small
hole drilled In a weight may make a
difference of many pounds In a ton of
coal. The City Sealer discovered a
set of drilled weights" some time ago
which had probably been busyv for
years making 1900 pounds of coal
weigh a ton. Deprived of his bogus
weights, the dealer retired from busi
ness. Most modern scales are said by the
Sealer to be accurate. They afford but
little opportunity of manipulation ex
cept by a dealer who defrauds by using
his hands on the weighing pan. No
scale- can be Invented to prevent this.
The only way the practice can be elim
inated Is by concerted watchfulness
on the part of housewives.
' Cheek up Dealer.
A a matter of fact the crude scale
used in China for centuries, made of
string and wood, is more acucrate than
many styles of modern scales. The Chi
nese scale consists of a piece of taper
ing wood about two feet In length. On
each end Is suspended a string. One
of these holds a pound weight and the
other a pan. Three pieces of string
are tied in holes in the piece of wood.
The Chinaman holds the scale by one
of these strings and can accurately
weigh by his scales many pounds.
The advice of the City Sealer is for
every housewife to purchase a set of
scales and liquid measures which stand
the city's official test. The Sealer will
test any scale taken to his office or
will make tests at your home If you
telephone him. Every purchase made
should be weighed as soon as it
reaches your home. Then you have
an efficient and dependable means of
checking up on your dealer.-
Do your purchasing by the pound or
ounce, so that it will be possible to try
out the goods by weight. It is ob
vious that a scale must be secured
which is accurate and it is necessary
that the Sealer test it.
Another important bit of advice of
fered by the Sealer is that every per
son learn to read a scale. This can be
done at the grocery store or at. home.
The housewife should be able to tell
as quickly as the grocer the number
of ounces as well as pounds indicated
by a dial on a scale.
A warning is given against the prac
tice of gossip in stores. A dishonest
grocer may engage you in conversation
and detract your attention from the
scales while he shortweights you sev
eral ounces on your purchases.
The Sealer says many butchers are
very accommodating and obliging In
their efforts to trim your meat for you.
This is always after it -has been
weighed, you will notice. The dealer
then keeps the trimmings which you
have paid for. The Government has
issued a book decrying this practice
and giving a score or more of recipes
which can be used in making tempt
ing dishes of meat trimmings.
have produced the work of fiction most
"d'une inspiration elevee." For the
current twelve-month no recipient was
named, though several similar honors
have been conferred in the French cap
ital; $1600 to Charles Peguy for his
"Mystere de" la Charite de Jeanne d' Arc ":
$700 to Louis Bertrand; $500 to Colonel
Barattler for a scholarly work on Af
rica, and $400 to Paul Renaudin for his
"Ce qui Memeure." James Hazen Hyde's
$200 prize for that manuscript book
which promises best to draw together
the peoples of America and France will
not be first awarded till 1912, but the
Loubat prize in Germany, offered for a
similar end ($750), has just gone to
Professor A. B. Faust of Cornell for his
"The German Element in the United
States." The English government has
pensioned Joseph Conrad and W. B.
Yeats, the one receiving $500 a year
and the other $750.
For the first time almost within the
memory of living man, the ranks of the
academic "Immortals" Just referred to
are now filled to the proverbial 40, and
cynical scoffers are saying it's & shame
that no one ever talks of the academy
save in connection with vacancies to
be filled. The latest four elevated to
this premier honor in the Continental
literature world are: M. de Regnier,
a verse-maker and critic; General
Langlois. rather more famous with
sword than pen; Henri Roujon, a di
rector of the Beaux Arts, and Denis
Cochin, a Journalist of literary sort,
with something of a reputation for par.
llamentary oratory and a sort of au
thority on foreign political relations.
Now word of new "acamedies" comes
both from New York and Tokio. The
Occidental Association, proposing to en
courage the elevation of literature in
general. Is purely the work of a group
of individuals of high aims and, in the
main, of some personal achievement;
the Oriental attempt, on the other hand,
is eminently "official," with all the
power of a most paternal government
behind it and more than one censor at
work to support its findings.
Some Old World Happenings.
Japan is taking active steps again to
draw closer to western peoples, having
sent over to talk to us Inazo Nitobe,
the author of "Bushido." Germany has
likewise dispatched Rudolf Herzog, the
novelist, and Gustave Lanson, profes
sor of letters at the Sorbonne, has come
from France. In return we have au
thorized George Viereck to lecture on
the "Poets of America" at Berlin, where
C. A. Smith, of the University of Vir
ginia, has Just closed a most success
ful series of similar discourses, while
W. H. Schofield has gone over from
Harvard to treat of "Chivalry in Eng
lish Literature" before the Parisians.
A quartet of Old World Happenings
in academic circles are: The Septem
ber celebrations in honor of the oOOth
birthday of Scotland's St. Andrews; the
election of Mr. Carnegie as Lord Rector
of Aberdeen; the establishment at Ox
ford of a chair in American history, and
the institution of a professorship in
English fiction by the Royal Society.
On this side It should be mentioned that
Princeton has set up a University Press,
following in the recent footsteps of
Yale, that "The Old Wives Taie" of
Peele has for the first time in cen
turies been given adequate revival at
Middlebury College, Vermont, and that
a certain educational institution in the
Middle West has put itself on record
as preferring Ibsen and Bernard Shaw
to Master-Shakespeare, the writings of
kthe last named having been found
"licentious, unclean and generally ob
jectionable," while the author has been
branded at a cheap grandstand
player."
Writing the other day to the London
Telegraph, Arnold Bennett (himself al
most an event n any "literary year" of
the last three or four), said:
"Literature is a hard word to define.
That it usually means little more than
the written expression of the thought
of man is as obvious as that such an
understanding is much too narrow.
That which makes the literature of any
people touches every phase of their ac
tual lives, and runs the scale from the
sublime down to the ridiculous. And
we should so think of it."
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