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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 1914)
I r-3 i ; "f . i '.'1 THE t OREGON SUNDAY JOURNAL, PORTLAND, SUNDAY MORNING, ' DECE M BER V 1 3, 1914. "WAR SAYS W. D. Dean of American Authors Does Not Believe That Such Conflicts as the 'resent Furnish the Novelist, Poet, or tist with, the Material for Masterpieces. 5TOP5 LITERATURE." HOWELLS i Drama WAR stop literature. This Is the belief of a man who for more than a. J quarter of a century has been in the f rofat rank of the werld'a novelists, who wrote "The Rise ''of Silas Lap ham" and "A Modern J Instance" and nearly a hundred other sympathetic interpretations of American life. William Dean HowclfeJ was the third writer to whom the reporter had put the qucBtion, "What effect will the ' present war have on literature?" And ho was the first to give a direct an swer. . - A famous French dramatist had re plied: "I am not a prophet. I have enough to do to understand the pres ent and the past; I cannot concern myself with the future;" A famous English short story writer had said: "The war has already inspired some splendid poetry; It may also Inspire treat plays and novelsbut, of course, we cannot tell as yet." But Mr. llowells said, quite sim ply: - "War stops literature." He aaid it as unemotionally as if he were elating a familiar axiom. ITe does not consider it an, axiom, however. For he supplied proof. "I have never believed," he said, "that great events produced great lit erature. They seldom call forth the great creative powers of man. In poetry, it is not, the poems of occasion that endure, but the poems that have come into being independently, not as the result of momentous happenings. "This war does not furnish the poet, the novelist, and the dramatist with the material of literature. For in stance, the Germans, aa everyone will . admit, have shown extraordinary val or. But we do not think of celebrating that valor in poetry; it does not thrill the modern writers as such valor thrilled the writers at, bygone cen turies. "When we think of the valor of the Germans, our emotion Is not admiration but pity. ' "And the reason for this is that fighting is no longer our Ideal. Fight ing was not a great ideal, and there lore it is no longer our ideal. All that old material of literature the clash ing of ' swords, the thunder of shot and tihell. the great clouds of smoke, the Mood and fury all thi has gone out from literature. It is an anachron ism." ' : . No Literature From Civil War "But the American Civil war pro duced literature, did it not?" asked the reporter. "What great literature ,dld it pro duce?" asked. Mr. Howejls i,n turn. "As I look back over! my life' and recall to mind the great number of books that the Civil war inspired I. find that I am thinking of things that the American people have for gotten. They did not become litera ture, these poems and stories that came in such quantities and seemed so important in the sixties. "These were the novels of J. V. De Forest, for instance. They were well written, they were Interesting, they described some phases of the Civil war truthfully and vividly. Wa read them when they were written but you probably have never heard of them. No one reads them now. They were literature, but that about which they were written has ceased to be of literary Interest. "Of course, the Civlt war, because of - Its peculiar nature,? was" followed by an expansion, intellectual as well . a social and economic. And this ex . panslon undoubtedly had. its bene JAPANESE Tn a recent article Theodore Roose velt writes: "in the Journal of the Military Service institute for the monthsof November and December of the present year will be found a quo- 1 tation from a Japanese military paper, the Comrades' Magazine, which dis plays an amount of practical good sense, together with patriotism and devotion to the welfare of the average man. which could well be copied by our people, and which is worthy of study bv every intelligent American." The article referred to In the Journal of the Military Service institution is bv .lames Wevmouth. and is a repub lication from the United Service Maga iln of England: it contains Informa tion drawn from the Japanese peri odical and other Japanese sources. Extracts, follow: Form Letter Sent to Families of. Japanese Array Recruits by the Regimental Commander. I CONGRATULATE you on your ever increasing good health, I have the honor to inform you that Mr. has Joined the regi ment under my command, and has duly , handed himself over to my care. From today he has been enrolled as a soldier of the empire, and I beg that you will have nor anxiety on his account. During his stay in barracks he will be under the orders of officers in whom ho may have complete con fidence. These will act as your sub stitutes in his education and train ing. You may rest assured that on his return home ha will deserve all praise as a hard working citizen who has become an efficient and loyal sol dier of the empire. . ( The education to which I have re ferred comprises a varied curriculum. To the novice the wtork will appear mors difficult than It is in actual fact, but the routine does not differ ratly from that to which he has been accustomed at school. Fronr the time that he rises In: the morning to the time that he sleeps peacefully in his bed his work an his meals are regulated by a given signaf, Which hs obeys together With his comrades. He will be taught diligence and precision. It Is only those who before enlist ment. have led lives of idleness that will find military service irksome. ficial effect on literature. : But the Civil war Itself did not have, could not have, literary expression. "Of all th writings which the Civil ,- war directly inspired, I can think Of only one -that has endured to be called literature. That is Low ell's Commemoration Ode. "War stops literature. It is an up heaval of civilization, a return to bar barism; it means death to all the arts. Kven the preparation- for war stops lit erature. I.t stopped it in Germany years ago. -A little anecdote Is signifi cant. - "I was in Florence about 1883, long after the Franco-Prussian war, and there I met the editor of a great Ger man literary weekly I will not tell you its name, or his. He was a man of refinement and education, and I have not forgottem his great kindness to my own fiction. One day I askfed him about the German novelists of the day. "Militarism Killed German Novel." ' "He said: "There aTe no longer any German novelists worthy of the name. Our new ideal has stopped all that Militarism is our new Ideal the ideal of Duty and it has killed our imagU nation. So the German novel is dead. " "Why is It. then," asked the report er, "that Russia, a nation of militaristic ideals, has produced so many great novels during the past century?" "Russia is not Germany," answered the man who taught Americans to read Turgenleff. "The people of Russia are not militaristic an the people of Ger many are militaristic. Jn Germany war has for a generation been the chief idea of every one. The nation has had a militarist obsession. And this, natu rally, has stifled the Imagination. "But . in Russia nothing of the sort has happened. Whatever the designs of the ruling classes may be, the peo ple of Russia keep their simplicity, their large intellectuality and spirit uality. And, therefore, their imagina tion and other great intellectual and spiritual gifts find expression in their great novels and plays. "I i well remember how the Russian novelists impressed me when I was a young man. They opened to me what seemed to be a new world and it wai only the real world. There is Tchec koff have you read his "Orchard"? What life, what color, what beauty of truth ate in that book! "Then there is Turgenleff how grateful I am for his books! It must be 30 years since I first read him. Thomas Sargent Perry of Boston, a man of the greatest culture, was al most the first American to read Tur genleff. Stedman read Turgenleff in those dss, too. Soon all of the young er, writers were reading him. 'I remember very well a dinner at Wnltelaw Reid's house in Iexington avenue, when some of us young men were enthusiastic over the Russian novel, and the author we mentioned most frequently was Turgenlefr. "Dr. J. G. Holland, the poet Who edited The Century, lived across the fstreet from Mr. -Reid, and during the 'evening he came over and Joined us. He listened to us for a long time In silence, hardly speaking a word. When he rose to go, he said: "I have been listening lo the conversation of these young men for over an hour. They have been talking about books. And I have never before heard the names of any - of the authors they have men tioned.' "' "Were those the days," asked the re porter, "in which you first read Tol stoy?" "That was long before the time," answered Mr. Howells. "Tolstoy after ward meant everything to me his philosophy as well as his art far more than Turgenieff. Tolstoy did not love all his writing. He loved the thing that he wrote about, the thing that he lived and taught equality. And-equality is the best thins? in the world. It is the thing for which the Best of Men lived and died. MILITARY DOCUMENTS PRAISED BY Although, as I have said, the dis cipline is not crushing, there Is one thing which It is indeed difficult to learn. That is the military spirit, or esprit de corps, as this discipline of character is called. ; This discipline stands out preeminent above all 'other training. Both in peace and in war it is only the man who is perfect in-this branch of training who . can truly be termed a fine soldier. -- -fi-It is of great advantage in rihia branch of training that the company commander should have a personal . interview with the relatives of the re cruits. At any rate, the company com mander will, from , time to time, con sult with the relatives an acquaint them with the recruit's progress. I will, therefore, set forth a few points to which I wish to draw your particu lar attention: e 1. It is impossible in this short compass to express all that is meant by the military spirit- It may best be understood by a non-professional to comprise ' I. straightforwardness, up rightness, honesty. In the army every effort is made to foster, this. Idea. For this purpose the company commander stands in the relation of parent, and ir; that identical manner studies tho recruit's disposition, ordinary .conduct, idiosyncrasies, habits and physical weaknesses. He endeavors to improve the good and to eradicate the bad. In order that the company com mander may polish ' the recruit, it is requested that parents will be frank in giving details as to their son's char acter. If this Is done the company commander will be only too happy to exert himself to the utmost in train ing -the recruit's character. If you tell the company commander in confidence you may have no fear that he .will be- - tray your secret. 2. The work that will be required of him will not e beyond his powers. But If In the hiidst of his numerous - duties his spirit fails, if! he becomes depressed, if, to use a vulvar phrase. ty 1 1 , t j "Hp- i X . , I u m . '' " - f v - I x-x-y: ft-.- N-NvV Si . ? . '4 it . t-' '1 ' ' 'V S -A- .i ? .jsv; fi I t v -' . - J 4 - r - i Z. 5 ? '- - - " f , vi, 'vw-v -hfc? :4 ' 2$,'" u& : - MJ t:WvW-i i i iti'J 'ifai iiivi i-Jh.A.j..a.-i . -- ,J "I never met Tolstoy," said Mr. How ells. "But I once sent him a message of appreciation after he had sent a message to me. Tolstoy was great in the way he wrote as fell as in what They Show 'the of Its Soldiers "his spirit stinks," if he cherishes an effeminate disposition,' the Instruction will suddenly become-distasteful and the recruit will drop behind his- com rades. On breaking ;the regulations he' will be punished, and eventually become an habitual criminal. I ahould Indeed he sorry , that such a thing should happen. If one were to inquire into the origin of crime, in-the ma jority of cases it would be traced to" wine and women, followed by dis honesty and debt. Another cause of crime is the receipt of bad news from his family, which plunges him Into anxiety and melancholy. There are no other causes of crime than these.' In many of the recruits' homes" in convenience is. felt at the reduction of the . number of persons available for tht family businessv However, the in convenience is for the sake of the emperor's service, and I therefore ' re quest that you -will refrain from send ing news - likely; to cause the recruit anxiety. "Wrlte'to him from time, to time words of encouragement. Oa ac-casion-s (When -he visits his home , on leave do jrour utmost to .keep up his spirits and to Infuse courage into him against his-return to barracks. - I will now enlarge on the .topic of wine 'and "women. . : '. . ,3s I particularly request- that ) you will .'refrains from , sending the man money. Money induces him to acquire luxurious habits ;and to become ad dicted to -wine and "women; to pile -on dishonesty' to dishonesty; - to commit , all sorts of irregularities;- to do Ir ! reparable injury ; to ; liis physique, for which his posterity will- suffer. - The parents', feelings" of pity thus" become transformed into'the groan's enemy: It is not uncommon for those who come kmmwmw yro-.y William Dean Howells. he wrote. Tolstoy's' force is a moral force. His great art is as simple as nature." j "Do you think that the Russian nov- elists have Influenced your work?" Solicitous Care by the Mikado's from, a wellj-to-do family to receive from four to six shillings as monthly pocket.monejfc. When the man enlists the parents imagine that this amount is still needed,' and thus the- good habits of jsifiiplicity, which we with great pains 'strive to Inculcate, are t' i - i - - undone. The j man ; who receives money f romj his family engenders ideas of extravagance among his sim ple comrades. The men . who do not receive popket money become covet ous, and finally! corrupted. There are few W' not a ho thus, embarrass others. It is almost' superfluous f,or me to explain that at the time of entry the recruit receives a complete outfit - of everything! that is necessary, includv . ing underclothing and toilet requisites.' The men cut each other's r hair with the clippets-i The bath is - provided ' daily: : . j ;;- ' -Thei food; provided Is slightly better than that eaten by the middle - classes of the neighborhood .in which the troops are 'located. ' The food Is meas ured "out to each man, and to Insure that it.is wholesome, it is always in spected by . the medical officer : before ii?Suev U ;.j "-.V. ;-..,; Clocks ate) provided where necessary In .barracks, jand all Important times rare notified-by bugle call. It is not necessary, theref ore, -. f or the " man to have a watch for his pocket. ' If the man? falls sick he at once re ceives mfedical "attention. Slight cases . are- treated, in ' barracks, - while serious cases are peit to . hosnitaL. ' Careful ; treatment, jmedlclne,' nourishment and all necessaries; are provided gratis by the government. " The man' may re cover without anxiety. ' " Again,"If he breaks anything In bar bracks Tor dbgsJ others damage,'. lie is not made - to pay compensation. ' If his 1 , .i t - - ' s .... -. - ' --y yy.v y -X-Wf- owww-w Jx-jf-Tfi--.- asked the reporter. "I think," Mr. Howells replied, "that I had determined what I was to do be-' fore I read any Russian novels.' I first thought that It was necessary to write Which Is Taken Government. clothing or boots need repair,, that can be done in barracks. Further, every ten days he receives . his pay as pocket money. Mr. Wey mouth states that the-pay is 76 cents a month.) .If his tastes are not ex travagant he can live, very comfort ably. There are some men whose laudable ambition It is to put by their pay, and even to-remit It home to their parents. If only the man is patient . he. does not feel the lack of money. ' As previously intimated, money sent to the recruit becomes his enemy. I rbeg you, therefore, on no account to send him money. If he asks for money, please write to the company commander for advice. The company - commander will then make inquiries and inform you accordingly. The contents of this letter I made known in a speech to the' gentlemen who- accompanied the recruits to bar racks, but for the benefit of those who were not present I . forward this ad ' vice in writing. Therefore if there is '-'anything in this lettet which you ,do .not' understand please1 Inquire freely from the company commander. - ' Finally, X beg to report that the man has made a safe entry into" barracks, and "'congratulate him on the honor of ; having his name enrolled on the mil- itary register. - j ' (Signed). ........ Speech Jelivered by the Itegimental Commander to Japanese Sol . diers Entering the Rsserve. YOU have' now completed your training and have become effi cient soldiers of he empire. -., In i. whatever '. capacity you - henceforth -t serve your. country, you will look back n this day of returning, to your homes as terminating a stage in the history only about things that I knew hap al ready been written about. Certain things had already been in books; there fore, I thought, they legitimately wer literary subjects and I might Write about them. "But soon I. knew that thia J was wrong, that I must get myl idea ma- ' terial, not out of books, but out of life. And I also knew that it (was not necessary for nie to look at life through English spectacles. Most of our writers had been looking at life through Kngllsh spectacles; they had been closely following In tho footsteps of Knglish novelists. I saw that around me were the. materials for my work, I saw around me llfe whole some, natural, human. 'I saw a young, free, nergetlc so ciety. I saw a society in which lovo the greatest and most beautiful thing in the world was innocent; a society In which the relation between man and woman was simple and pure. Here. I thought, are the materials for novels. "Why should I go back to the people of bygone ages and of lands not my own?" "Do you think," asked the reporter, "that .romanticism has lost its hold on the novelists?'" Mr. Howells smiled. "When real ism," he said, "is once in a novelist's bloo he never can degenerate into romanticism. Romanticism is no lon ger a literary force among Englinh cpeaking authors. Romanticism - be longs to the days In which war was an aim, an ideal. Instead of a tragio accident. It is something foreign to us. And literature must be native to the soil, affected, of course, by the culture of our lands and ages, but es sentially of the people of the land and time in which it is produced. Real ism is the material of democracy. And no great literature or art can arise outside of the democracy." . Necessity No Help to Writing. Tolstoy was mentioned again, and Mr. Howells was asked if ha did not think that the Russian novelist's 'cus tom of devoting a part of every day to work that was not literary showed that all writers would be better off if they were obliged to make a living in some other way than by writing. Mr. Howells gave his answer with considerable vigor. His calm blue eyes lost sqmething of their kindli ness and his lips were .compressed Into a straight thin line before he said: "I certainly do not think so. ,The artist in letters or in linen siould have leisure in which to perforrr his valuable service to society. The his tory of literature is full of heart breaking instances of writers v hose productive careers were retardei 1 by their inability to earn a livin r at their chosen profession. The telief that poverty helps a writer is e upid and wrong. Necessity is not and. never has been an incentive. Poverty is not and never has been an incen tive. Writers and other creative art ists are hindered, not helped, by lack of leisure. "I remember my own early experi ences and I know that my writing suf fered very much because I could not devote all my time to it. I had to spend 10 hours. In drudgery for every two that I spent on my real work. The fact that authors who have given -the world things that It treasurers are forced to live in a state of anxiety. over their finances Is lamentable. This anxiety cannot but have a restrictive influence on literature. It is not want, but the fear of want, that kills." "Still, in spite of their precarious financial condition, modern authors are doing good work, are they not?" asked the reporter. "Certainly they are," answered Mr. Howells, "the novelists especially. There is Robert Herrick, for example. His novels are interesting stories, and they also are faithful reflections of. American life. Will Harpen's work is admirable. It has splendid realism , and fine humor. Perhaps one thing COL. ROOSEVELT of your lives and as a day of rejoicing. You will keep its lessons forever in your hearts. The warm welcome from your friends and relatives will in crease the pleasure of your return. Now that we part I pray that you may prosper, and as a parting gift offer you some advice. ' 1. In modern war organization the reservists ' greatly outnumber the . soldiers In the active army. By calling up reservists to Join the colors the organization of our army for 'War la completed. And, therefore, as a aup plement to the active, army there exists, as I suppose you know, a Reserve Soldiers' association.- 'Today you have completed your training In the active army and are transferred accordingly to the main portion of the national army. But you will nevr, have done with liability to military service. I want to impress thia upon you so that you may fortify your char acters accordingly. 2. The spirit of the "Imperial Re script to Soldiers" is not the exclusive possession of military men, but it la the spirit of Japan.. You will therefore make the spirit of the rescript domi nate your whole life, studying it care- . fully, and basing your ordinary con duct thereon. Make your lives pure and offer them as' a votive light to its spirit. You will then without fall be worthy reserve soldiers. 3. After your return to your homes you will strive your utmost f the good of the Reserve Soldiers', asocia tion, which exists for the purpose of fostering the military spirit of our country. - You mut discourage frivol ity, ostentation, arul. the dangerAus principles which have recently shown a tendency to Kpread. By taking the lead In acting up to the principles of the rescript, do your best to. convert jour countrymen to its maxims of purity and honesty. -. ' ) ' (Some instances of - prevalent dis honest practices are given, including shutting of their work by workmen, commercial frauds, etc.) During the that has -kept It. so far, from' an ap preciation so general as it will one day receive, is the fact that it deals, for the most part, with one special locality, a certain part of Georgia. ' "And in Spain what excellent nov- , elists they have there and have had for a long time! The realistic movement reached Spain long before it reached England and the United States, 'in face, the English-speaking countries ' were the last to accept It. l'have takPn ' great pleasure in the workn ; of Ar mando Valdes. Then there rfre Pere Galdos and Emilia Pardo Rasan, and . that priest who wrote a realistic, novpl about Madrid society. All thes novel ists are realists, and realists of power. "Then there are the great Seandina- . vians. I hope that I may some time at tempt to express a little of my grati tude for the pleasure that BJornson's ' works have given me." The reporter asked, "What i do, you think of contemporary poetry?" "I admire chiefly that of Thomas Hardy," said Mr. Howells. "Ills poems have force and -actuality and music 'and charm. Maseficld I like, with res ervations. Theree modern poets who give me groat pleasure are Thomas Hardy, William Watson and i Charles Hanson Towne.- The first One of Mr. Towne'a poems that I read was 'Man hattan.' I have not forgotten the truth of that poetio interpretation of New York. His poems are beautiful and they are full of humanity; In his latent book there is a poem called "A Ballad, of Shame and liread' that moved me deeply. It is a slight thing, but it is wonderfully powerful. Like all of Towne's poetry, t is warm wltii human sympathy." "Do you think," asked the reporter, "that the great social problems of the day, the feminine unrest, for instance, are finding their expression in litera ture?" "No," said Mr. Howells, "I cannot call to mind any adequate literary exi presslon of the woman movement. Per haps this is because the women who know most about it and feel it most strongly are not writers. ' The best things that have been said about 'wo man suffrage in our time have been said by Charlotte Perkins Gtlman. hfr has written the noblest satire sin! Lowell. What wit she has, and what courage! Once I heard her address a - meeting of single, taxers. Now, the single taxers are all right so far as they go, but. they don't go far enough. The single taxers heckled her. but he had a retort ready for every interrup tion. She stood there with her brave smile and talked them all down." Praise for Brieux. "Do you think that Ibsen exprcwwHi the modern feminine unrest in 'The Doll's House.'?" Mr. Howells was asked. "Ibsen seldom expressed .things," was his reply. "He suggested them, mooted theih. but he did. not express them. The-Doll's House' Con .not ex press the meaning of unrest. It sug gests it. Ibsen thl you where you stood, not where ta go." Mr. Howells had recently presided 'a t a 'meeting which was addresned by Mr. Brieux, and he expressed great admira1 tlon for the work of the French dra- niatist. "He is a great dramatist," he said. "He has given faithful reports of life, and faithful reports o life are neces sarily criticisms of life. All great novels "are criticisms of .life.' And I think that the poets will concern them seivert more and more with the life around them. It is possible that soon we may have an epic in Vhlch the poet deals with the events of contem porary life." . Mr. Howells is keenly awake to the effect which the war Is having on con ditions in the United States. ; And In his sympathy for the society which- In evitably mv.st suffer for a war in which it is not directly concerned, the active interest of the novelist was evi dent. "If ail this only could be re flected in a book!" he said. "If some novelist could Interpret it!" .j late war, even, some cruel frauds were perpetrated on the troops, package containing comforts for the troops from friends aH home being pilfered en route. 4. Especially must you be on your guard against luxury and ostentation. Do not try to dress in a style above your Income. At any Inspection of reservists there are many who mis behave in this manner, and so , bring discredit on the Reserve Soldiers' as sociation. You must take well to heart the rescript on frugality and save our country from' luxury. (The coloneh then goes on to ex plain that by being diligent in their daily occupations they can best fit themselves for war. lie warns them again against luxury.) As your pros perity increases you Increase-' thereby the prosperity of Japan.- By- setting an example of good conduct y'ou will strengthen the military spirit "of - the nation. You ' must always remember -that in proportion as a country be comes rich the necessity fof an effic ient army .increases (He .asks . the rm to send him postcards reporting their safe returri to their homes. They must pay great attention to the rules -of hygiene so as to be physically Jit for any emergency). j 5. It it were possible I should like U give you .each a ault' of uniform.' but owing to present ; financial oon-1 ditions. I regret that; I am unable t do so. ' Hut a regulation has been made whereby, from - thia "year, on ward, all -soldiers 'will be sent : back; to their homes In uniform This suit of uniform is to be returned! by post through -th headquarters of youf regimental district. It has .'been th TSrustom, even with the parents of poor households, who have perhaps ' shed tears uf blood in doing - so, to prepare good clothea against -their son'a' turn. I hope; that thia bad practice' will ceas. ':".-' ' "" i ' In conclusion, I wish you all a sale - return '-to your homes, '. , . ' V"".' ,'-,..- . 11 IS f . 13 i -.5? i i i i II I i. 1' 'I if .if f : 1 ,; J"; I- V 1 i