Springfield weekly Republican. [volume], February 08, 1917, Page 8, Image 8

About Springfield weekly Republican. [volume] (Springfield, Mass.) 1851-1946

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8
BOOKS and AUTHORS
A STUDY OF EGOTISM
IN GERMAN PHILOSOPHY
BPROF SANTA YANA’S NEW BOOK
the Attack Extended to All Meta
physical Idealism
The philosophical views of Prof G.
Santayana need to he taken into ac
count In considering his new book.
•‘Egotism in German Philosophy”
(Scribner’s). For the work, besides
being a trenchant attack on German
thought, must he regarded to some ex
tent a polemic in behalf of a particu
lar point of view. Prof Santayana, like
the man in the street, distrusts meta
physical idealism. Resolving things
Into thoughts, and creating an a
priori reality in place of the world of
objects and sensations, is in his view,
among the least excusable of intel
lectual denauches.
His own position has been called
•'ironclad materialism” and “poetic
naturalism.” In his earlier books he
has given a wistful picture of the im
potence cf mind in a universe nf
which it is an interesting, but un
necessary phenomenon. A certain
noetic whimsicalness, a tendency to
subtle paradox, pervades Prof San-
Tayana’s think’ne. and makes it hard
Pi reduce his idea® to a system. Ry
his own admission much of his writ
p sng is figurative and allusive—playful
£it misht be called. Rut his opposi
ttnn to German idealism, and all its
derivatives, stands out clearly.
On the other hand, idealism is the
keynote of his speculation. But it is
idealism as common sense under
stands the term —the idealism that
creates a world “nearer to the heart’s
desire.” ns the pessimistic poet sings.
Only Prof Santayana is very particu
lar as to how this ideal world shall he
constructed. It must be an orderly
arrangement of instincts dominated bv
reason, and producing a life that ®hall
«* self-sufficing fn Its intellectual
fruits. Reason thus becomes a func-
Tien nf Nature and ultimately Nature's
Justification. Aristotle’s method is
grafted U p on Plato’s asp’raHon. Every -
thinr is to be attained j n t^e real
world, but the purpose nf the real
world is to minister to humane and
spiritual values. Religion is the state
of the soul ;n which this purpose of
the world is directly appr»hend=d and
consciously made the anal nf actMi
RelfKfons are largely mythical, but
express, with varying: degrees of suc
cess the fundamental aspiration for
the ideal.
Tflstead of beinc pent-ptir, Mlvllinl.
IsMc or romantic. Prof Santayana’s
Philosophy l s just th e reverse. He
quarrels, to be sure, with bhose whose
values are “unnatural." hot he quar
re.s no less with those whose values
?re personal. In “Ecotism in German
milosophy." a work of art and of
subtle criticism, like all of Prof San
ta) anas books, Goethe's eentism is
condemned, while his humanism is up
held Probably no other writer of Eng
lish to-day achieves Prof Santayana's
poised and modulated style, or the
same playful and allusive expression
of an idea. The following passage
about Goethe is a good example:—
"The development of the «elf was
the onlv duty, if only the self was de
veloped widely and securely enough,
with insight, calmness and godlike ir
responsibility. ... Every tender
passion opened before him a primrose
-path into which his inexorable genius
led him to wander. If in passing he
must bread down some flower, that
was a great sorrow to him: but per
haps that, very sorrow and his inevita
ble remorse were the most needful and
precious elements in the experience.
Every pathetic sweetheart in turn was
a sort of Belgium to him: he violated
her neutrality with a sigh; his heart
hied for her Innocent sufferings, nnd
he never said afterward In self-de
fense. like 'be German chancellor, that
ahe was - n better than she should
have been."
Tn Prof Santayana’s view It is this
flame romantic egotism the prefers
“egotism" to "egoism" throughout)
tahich inspires the German transcen
dentelist philosophy. For what is this
philosophy except the resolute shutting
up of the philosopher in a world of
his own creation, where he can at
once view the real world with .
tempt and dictate practical courses of
statecraft That are precisely what th A
political rulers demand? German phi
losophy dethrones the natural world
and calls it an idea created bv the ego
for its own purposes. But the pur
poses prove to he nothing but the at-
ta inmen t of the various objects of its
will. In following this will ft per
suades itself that it is following
destiny. It is wild—the spirit of the
bull in the arena. It scorns mor» hap
piness. “Happiness seems to the Ger
man moralists something nnheroie. an
abdication before externa! things, a
victory of the senses over the will.
They think the pursuit of happiness
low. materialistic and selfish. Thev
i -Wish everybody to sacrifice or rather
to forget happiness and to do 'deeds' ”
| Prof Santayana’s sentences have an
essence which is not ail thought—;
there Is an esthetic emotion as well
This makes his animosities seem morel
virulent than is probably the ease
Often he delights in subtlety for Its
own sake: and, occasionally, one
fears, only those who are trained In
traditional philosophy and have taken
a skeptical attitude toward it. will,
appreciate the precise meaning of his
gibes. However, it should not be
forgotten that this subtlety Is often
the servant of insight. In particular,
the criticism of Goethe and the com
parison between Schopenhauer’s pes
simism and Nietzsche’s optimism will
be found full of happy dlscoveties. In
the "superman” naive and romantic
egotism, of course, reaches its cli
max. But Prof Santayana tells you
that Nietzsche's confusion of good
and evil is only what is to be found
! in Hegel end his “academic follow
ers In England and America." As
an example of Prof Santayana's wit,
one mav quote a portion of a foot
note: “Winkelmann seems hardly a
German; his learning was deficient
and his heart was humble. He did
not patronize the ancients, he believed
in them.”
Thia book is not to lie regarded as
a Judicial examination of Germ in
philosophy. It proceeds by flashes
of inspiration, mingled with fine-spun
ratiocination, and all wrought into
an orderly and beautiful product.
Much of the philosophical criticism
is as sound as It is trenchant. But
one needs to bear tn mind Prof San
tayana's own philosophy and also
the Spanish temperament, which,
though the author is hardly a Chris
tian. yet makes him accept Catholi
cism as poetry, and causes him to
reject the Reformation as merely
•ttipM and rebellious prose. (One ele-
of Protestantism which the Ger-
mans retained, is its -vital faith or
self-trust in the animal will”; the oth
er element of Protestantism —the les
sons of experience—the Germans, he
says, have abandoned.) This book
will be read for the elusive wit. the
poetic metaphor, and the poise and
proportion of the language by those
who do not share the author’s scorn
of humbler and more prosaic, if less
consistent, modes of life than those
of his philosophy, and perhaps also
by those who find something ideal
even in metaphysical idealism.
LORD CROMERS VIEWS
Political Essays of Famous
Egyptian Administrator Who
Has Just Died
The recently issued volume of “Po
litical and Literary Essays” by the
earl of Cromer, who died in London
on Monday at the age of 76. scarcely
deserves the title of “Literary Essays” •
at all. since it is made up almost en
tirely of essays of purely political |
character. Its author, however, de- i
fends his choice cf title by explaining |
in his preface that he thought it de
sirable to make the title in this third ■
volume (Macmillan company; $3.25) |
uniform with that of the two preced- 1
ing volumes. The only literary essays
in the entire collection are reviews of ;
Sir Sidney Lee’s “Life of Shakespeare”
■find “Lord Curzon's war poems.” The
remaining essays deal almost exclu-'
sively with books pertaining to the
war that have come into print since .
August. 1914. and therefore the earl
of Cromer's comments have to da
Jaigelv with war and noltics.
In i eviewing these war books the
#*ar! of Cromer, distinguished states
man though he is. suffers from the
handicap natural to a representative
of one of the warring powers, the I
feeling of intense partisanship. Yet I
from the beginning to the end of h’s
col’cction of essays it is evident that
he has made an attempt to overcome
bis inclinntion to see solely the Eng- j
lish ®ide nf the question and to give
th® German foeman the benefit of tb* 5
doubt. He is. at least, reasonably
temperate in his praise of England
He is also reasonably sympathetic
about the plight of Austria, caught
as she is between the devil nf Slav
aggression on the one hand and the
deep sea of German encroachment
on the other.. In his comment unnn
Signor Virginin Gayda’s book, in dis
cussing the complications whi^h
modern Austria face®. he savs: “Final-
Iv. it would be both unjust a'd un
generous not tn recognize that the
political be^ of thorns on which fat
has destined that modern Austria
should lie. is not wholly of her own
making. It has in its essential fea
tures been created by the onward
march nf democracy, which has given
an immense impulse to the national
ist movement throughout the world.
Th 3 political problems which have
arisen out of that ar« nf surpassing
difficulty.”
His attitude toward Germany is dis
tinctly acrimonious. He has much
tn sav abnut the “arrogant lust for •
conquest and world dominion with
which Germanv is manifestly inspired. .
“and over which it is throwing “a
transparent veil of pseudo-nationalist '
principle tn hide its crude brutality.”
He does not hesitate tn make the most
slashing criticisms nf German his
torians in a review of Antoine Guib
land's book on that subject, and he
says without anv attempt to qualify '
his assertion that while “nralse mav
be awarded to German industry- and '
research no claim to any predomi- '
nence r.f genius or originality can in
anv single case b® admitted.” H?
lavs th* s responsibility fnr the war.
which he calls “the least excusable
crime which the vorld has ever wit- (
nessed.” entirely upon the shoulders
of the Germans. grants that Ger- 1
man patriotism, however mistaken so 1
its manifestations, is the genuine and 1
not the spurious article.
Americans will agree with many nf .
th#* stricture® on German policy. There
will be less sympathy with him when j
he betrays the attitude of the British ’
tory and imperialist. He argues, for';
example, that England’s mistakes In , '
her governing policies may. as a rule,
be attributed to an excessive leaning ।'
in the direction of democracy, saying I :
that democratic rul°. though infinite- : (
ly preferable to absolutism in any:'
form, has its defects. He defends
England’s attitude in the Ulster mat- ; '
ter by saying that “the world has vet J
tn discover a method, other than that j
of the employment nf force, for deal
ing <dth recalcitrant minorities.” “Al->
mosj everv nation in Europe has its''
UlstH’." he adds His every reference j
to England makes it evident that ’ «
believes her tn bn championing the 1
। cause of civilization in rhe pres
ent struggle.
A certain narrow ferocity is evi
dent In the essays in which Lord
Cromer comments upon America’s at
titude in the war and upon President
Wilson’s policy toward the belligerent
nations. "On every point.’’ he sav®.
“German ideals run diametrically
counter to all the principles of gov
ernment which American people hold j
most sacred. British ideals, on the
contrary, are in complete conformity
with those principles.” In so far as
British Ideals are democratic—and
they are increasingly so—this is true. ;
Certain it is. however, that a very
large proportion of the American pop-1
ulatlon will quarrel with Lord
Cromer’s estimate of the chief ex
ecutive. His criticism is summed up
in these words:—
“President Wilson had one of the
grandest opportunities ever offered tn
i a statesman. He failed to seize It.
I He lias allowed all the best elements
lit the great nation over whose for
। tunes he temnorarily presides to be
exposed to that for which no material
gain can compensate—a loss of self
respect. He has made democracy the
laughing stock cf the absolutist gov
ernments of the world, whose diplo
matists have hypnotized him with
honeyed words, whilst their agents,
more rightly Interpreting the wishes:
nf their masters, have continued tn j
blow (in American factories, slaughter
peaceful American citizens on the
seas, and tear to shreds all those In
ternational treaties of which it has
been the proud boast of American de
mocracy t 0 pose as the foremost
champion."
These are almost the words of an
angry or disappointed politician. It
has heen said of Lord Cromer that his
deeds were wiser and more moderate
than his theories. And there era not
a few evidences of practical states
manship in these voltimes
IRISH POETS
Ppems and Plays hy Padraic Colum —
Mr Stephens's “Green Branches”
“Wild Earth, and Other Poems.” by
Padraic Colum (Holt. $1.25). takes
added Interest from the fact that the
young Irish author Is now In the Unit
ed States. The collection Is mostly
•concerned with Irish peastant life,
which it Interprets with the charm
that is In wild rhythms skilfully knit
into rare music. These peasant songs
are close to the soil, and they nre
tinged with a pessimism that accepts
faith neither cheerfully nor mourn
fully.
Three plays hy Mr Colum. "The Fld
dler'a Houae,” “The Land” and “Thom-
THE SPRINGFIELD WEEKLY REPUBLICAN: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1917
as Muskerry.” grouped in one volume
(Little. Brown; $1.25). interpret this
sr.m people in another and perhaps
rot so satisfactory a medium. They
have a definite thesis sequence. “The
Land" exemplifies the conflict between
the individual and the family group:
“The Fiddler’s House” carries the same
conflict into a family of aristocratic
traditions, and "Thomas Muskerrv”
adapts It to middle-class surrounding®
The work of another and more wide
ly known Irish poet. James Stephens,
in "Green Br. ches,” including a
short sequence. "The Autumn In Ire-,
land, 1915," “The Spring in Ireland.
1916.” and “Joy Re With Us.” The
book, published by the Macmillan com
pany ($1.75). is handsomely printed!
from type, with decorated margins, in j
a limited edition of 500 copies. There |
is a sober restraint in the lines, partlc- ;
ularly in "The Spring in Ireland, i
1916." that is far removed from the’
indignation that burns in the lines o? |
Mr Stephens's prose account of the
same tragic year and season.
A THOUGHTFUL ESSAYIST
——
I “Workfellows in Social Progres
sion,” by Kate Stephens
i A type of essay that agreeably min
■ gles scholarship and meditation is
j provided by Kato Stephens in her vol
ume of papers called “Workfellows tn
! Social Progression” (Sturgis and Wal
’ ton company; $1.50). She analyzes
-the past understandingly. and bases
her conclusions on the results of read-
' ing and research. Her purpose is to
i show us how the past contributes to ■
progress in the present, or to clear our j
minds with regard to some idea in 1
which she is strongly Interested, or.
which she has taken up for the sake of j
the intellectual pleasure to be derived I
! from it. An excellent example of the ,
; later object is the essay on Joshua Syl- :
: vester. a 16th and 17th century Puri- I
tan. who shared King James’s hatred !
of tobacco, and who wrote a pamphlet i
in the vigorous controversial style of j
his day. called “Tobacco Battered and j
Pipes Shattered.”
In Mie more serious vein which pre- !
dominates throughout the book Miss :
Stephens discloses the optimistic spirit |
vshich is indicated in her title. Her !
arguments are never prosaic, and she ;
is always delighting the reader by j
bringing in some forgotten or over- i
looked or entirely unfamiliar reference. .
In the course of an essay proving that I
there is social progress she quotes the |
prophecy of Joseph Glanvill in a work i
called “The Vanity of Dogmatizing.”
published in 1661: "I doubt not but
posterity will find many things, that
are now but rumors, verified into
practical realities. . . .To them
that come after it may be as ordinary
to buy a pair of wings to fly into re
motest regions, as now a pair of boots i
to ride a journey." Or. in another cs- |
say. in tracing the early history of :
England, she quotes the original of the .
familiar saying. “Britons never will be
slaves." It is found in the writings of
Hegesippus. who lived 200 years after
Caesar: "Britanni quid esse servitns
ignorabant. soli sibi nati. sempef s ibi
Jiberi." By a happy knack she keens
ber essays on Mie level of the concrete
—a thing not always done by the
learned writers who engage in airy dis
quisition in our serious American re
views.
The phrase about Britons is a dew
to Miss Stephens's sympathies. She is
a strong believer in the English idea
of liberty and in the aims and ideals of
the Puritans, to whose spiritual con
quests and devotion to education she
does full justice. It is perhaps far
fetched to trace the country newspaper
tn the Puritans’ love of reading their
Bible: but the process at least shows
us what we owe tn the Puritans’ love
of reading their Bible. The wonderful
words in which the aim of the found
ers of Harvard college is embodied
might well have been quoted. And the
moral idealism of the American peo
ple. overshadowed at times, never per
haps wholly dominant, yet never
wholly extinguished. she attrib
utes. rs De Tocqueville does in his;
famous bonk, to the alms with :
which our forefather® sailed to these [
shore®. Of course, sooner or later
commercial motives were mingled
with ideal motives, and the hard life
of New England helped many a man
as Miss Stephens says, tn combine
"religious fervor with a shrewd and
craftv individualism.” Miss Stenhens
proves nne of th#* most instructive
of present-day writers abnut the Pu
ritans. and there is great need to keep
alive their spirit and renew the “ex
hortation® against voluptuousness.”
with which their voices nnre filled
our “English Israel.” “Aside from
these Puritans." says Miss Stephens,
“no moderns have taken into their
own live® the stern sincerity and con
tempt for material prosperity, the fer
vor fnr the moral law that informed
the prnnhets nf that ancient people.’’
It is interesting to rnmpare with this
view the »hoorv eft^n advanced bv
devout Catholic writers that the Puri
tans’ contemnt for esthetic value® anH
for human hanniness developed the
habits nf practical industrv nut of
which our modern materialistic and
capitalistic society has grown up.
Tn her chapter nn Marv Astell and
other forerunners of women’s collegi- [
ate education Mis® Stephen.® hetrays
a certain impatience with Lord Ches- I
tertnp over his uncomplimentary re- |
marks on women. Her sarcasm lasts
only a moment, hut she should not
have allowed a lanse from the his
torian’s zeal to judge a man accord
ing to the standards nf his time and
class, and in the lioht of his own ex
nerienres. Her argument fnr the use
of “women” instead nf the abstract
“vroman” is nne that will commend
itself to many, and is not marked by
acerbity or undue sex-consciousness.
The ISth-eenturv “female” has hap
pily been given un in general writing.
“OPEN THAT DOOR”
An Int rod net ion to the Pleasures and
Benefits of Literature
In many ways an interesting book,
and one with a wholly conrmendah’e
aim. is Open That Door." by R. Stur- j
gi® Ingersoll (Lippincott; $1). In this
volume the writer seeks to popularize
literature, which is the door in ques- j
tion. and which the writer represents !
as locked to the stupidly complacent I
who are content because they “have i
three satisfactory meals a doy t work |
that is not ton arduous, a warm bed
at night.” Acquaintance with litera- j
tore, on the other hand, brings with
it the eager interest in life which the j
small hoy possesses who fancies the
world his own pleasure dome. “No
man can read the journals of that
mystic Nature lover. Henry David
Thoreau, without having his next trip
to the country nne of greater pleasure.
. . . No man can read the novels
of some great gobbler of life, such as
the LSth-century Tobias Smotlet. with
out finding the city life of our 20th
century more human, more satisfying,
mure exciting."
This is a ;;mall book—of 159 pages
and nine chapters: “Walled in." “The
open door." "Reading fiction with an
eye on life.” "History and your vote,”
“Clio’s vintage." “The poet and the
reader." “The children of Pan," “Men
behind hooks.” “Keeping up with life."
The style throughout is informal, even
colloquial. The main tenets are quite
indisputable. Every now and\ then
one comes to an arresting sentence
like. “If you have not read The French
Revolution* (Carlyles), read It at
once." The total effect of the book
will be stimulating— to those who are
not already wide readers of more or
less discriminating taste.
Yet a text-book on literature, as this
after nil is. should bear the scrutiny
! of scholar and pupil alike, of those
I who are on the writer’s plane, that is.
as well as those who are in the
' benches in front of him. Barrett
। Wendell's “English Composition” is
a ready illustration of this kind of
। advice wnich one would not regret
j being overheard giving. Mr Ingersoll
I will stoop to conquer. Sentences like
"It is an insincere attempt to be the
highest of the highbrows,” or “Any
। one can be an 'also ran' ” suggests
: the raucous voice of the old-time
| evangelist. Now and again the sopho
moric note booms, which Is found in
an opening sentence: “The sponsor of
j this little book should make humble
I apologies in behalf of his phrenological
egocentric bump;" hut that tone quiets
down shortly into earnest argument.
With somewhat the effect of a climax,
doubtless designed, the Intellectual j
level of the hook rises as the reader
proceeds, until the spirit of the clos
ing chapters attains a level of ex
tremely good criticism and luring com
ment and quotation. One cannot but
wish the book well.
WATSON AS SATIRICAL POET
Many Dislikes and Some Admira
tions in “Retrogression and
Other Poems”
Defense of tradition in literature
; and. in particular, defense of the po
; etic art against slovenliness, crabbed
ness, vagueness and other modern
I fashions is the purpose that has in
-1 spired William Watson’s “Retrogres
sion and Other Poems” (John Lane
company; $1,251. in which we have
the welcome phenomenon of a skilful
poet attempting literary criticism in
verse. Not always does he attain the
aphoristic character of Pope, and not
often the sprightly wit and pungency
of Lowell. Moreover, some of the
rhymed epigrams seem inspired by ill
nature. with the malice 111-concealed.
But. on the whole, the book can be
recommended for its bracing effect.
In “Retrogression” Mr Watson tells
us the object of his song. It Is to
rebuke those who shun
The comely phrase, the wellborn herd
and use
The loose lipped lingo of the street.
If those who follow this style excuse
themselves on the plea that they are
seeking to imitate Nature, here is Mr
Watson to remind them of that Nature
. . . whose lapidary seas
Labor a pebble without ease.
TUI they unto perfection■ bring
That miracle of polishing:
Who never negligently ret
Fashioned an April violet.
Nor would forgive, did June disclose
Pnceremoniously the rose.
Mr Watson addresses a number cf
poets, critics and clerics whom he dis
likes. sometimes because of what they
represent, sometimes because of what
they are. or what Mr Watson thinks
they are. “The Yapping Cur” is hard
ly above the level of abuse, though
it is elaborately phrased—too elabor
ately to have the edge of poised caus
ticity Again, tartness, not judicious
rebuke, is achieved by the lines “to a
successful man”: —
. . . 'twas your good fortune not to
start
Handicapped with a conscience or a
heart.
A lack of true aphoristic quality—
four lines of thought, say. extended
into eight lines of verse—dajnages
some of the others. But there are
some notably good things, one bring :
"On Milton’s use of the sonnet”: —
A hundred Poets bead proud necks to
bear
This yoke, this bondage. He alone
could don
His badges of subjection with the alt
Of one who puts a King's regalia on |
Here is true literary criticism con
dct.sed in a quatrain that is wortn
remembering. And later, inspired by
warm feeling. Mr Watson produces a
poem of two lines that is a master-
Piece: —
Threadbare his songs seem now. to let
tered ken;
Thev wore born threadbare next the
hearts of men.
As another noem in the collection
deea honor to Thomas Hood, it has
b n assumed that Hood is the poet
addressed here.
Tn the last pages of the book Mr
Watson gives a number of personal
poems—often of fine feeling and rich
expression. Affection for his wife,
her country (Ireland), and his chil
dren. or admiration for a good man
who is doing humane work—Mr Wat
son’s kindlier emotions naturally
turn into better poetry than his
literary ideas do. Yet the greatest
public interest will perhaps be felt in
the polemic verse, which challenges
attention even when not entirely
successful. Literary’ readers will
take much pleasure in guessing at the
if«ntities of the authors addressed.
Shaw is plainly meant as the man who
gave a lift
To noor old Shakespeare's tottering repu
tation
a Chesterton is Indicated by
The eternal trickle of this blameless quill.
This book of poems is worthy of a
wide reading in conjunction with Mr
Wrtson’s recem essay on "Pencraft.’
They are both inspired by the same
valuable literary purpose.
MODERN GERMAN LITERATURE
Ils Spirit Interpreted by Lndwig
Lewisohn
Ludwig Lewisohn in "The Spirit
of Modern German Literature”
(Huebsch; $1). tilts at American re
spectability and by implication, de
fends the spirit of individualism which
has appeared in German and other
continental literatures. Mr Lewisohn
wants us to understand that "the laws
of human conduct” have not "settled
into a permanent rigidness.” What
this has to do with the judgment of
literature is not immediately ap
parent. In one chapter Mr Lewisohn
is saving—and. one believes, truly—
that the critic needs "a deep sense
of the nature of life and a sensitive
perception of living beauty.” In the
next he is telling us that German
literature is concerned with the'
struggle of the true personality to
possess itself.” and implying that thin
s .newnat ruthless process Is the
symptom of a new morality that la
coming Into the world.
Literature. then. is dynamic—
moralist or immoralist. Now to
appraise the egoistic spirit In Ger
man literature is one thing. and
properly the work of so well-informed
an interpreter as Mr Lewisohn; but
to hold a brief for its moral (or Im
moral) contentions Is to Invite us
once more to judge all literature on
moral grounds. The critic’s old Im
munity is gone. He is no longer
concerned with the truth and beauty
of an interpretation of life. He must
grapple with the moral ideas of the
author, and. if need be. defend eo
ciotv against the author’s propaganda.
Well, of course, this Is not wholly
new. No sound critic has heen so
engrossed In “art for art’s sake” that
he has been willing to overlook any
deliberately subversive tendencies fn
u work of art; only, aa a matter of
fact, such tendencies are seldom
found in any great work of litera
ture. Balzac pictures immorality with
creative imaginabion and true artistic
force. But there is no immorality in the
picture. On the other hand, Zola em
ploys naturalism for a moral purpose;
but his moral purpose does not add to
the truth of his pictures. Nor does
, propagandism add to the truth pre
| sented by any contemporary writer —
I whether English (as Galsworthy) or
: German. When a novelist employs
I his art for an antisocial purpose—
I as. one believes, very few do. even
among the naturalists, who are main
ly concerned with copying phenomena
—then the critic willy-nilly becomes a
moralist.
Unhappily Mr Lewisohn, who
might have b#cn very Informing,
is too concerned with Hinging his
challenge in the face of the Amer
ican public to give us a compre
hensive account of modern Ger
man literature, of which we no doubt
1 now too little. One has heard a good
deal of the new morality in connec
tion with German schemes for devel
opment—political as well as personal.
Eor a criticis:.! of that spirit we
have to turn to such a hook as San- I
tayana's "Egotism in German phil- i
sophv.” If Mr Lewishon had been!
content merely to intern-et the egoism
of modern German literature, one
would have welcomed his attempt; he
has alas! thought fit to defend it with
nib giving us the penetrating survey
of it that we had a right to expect.
BRITISH ARTS AND CRAFTS
The Studio Presents Examples of
Work Done In Art Schools
The latest volume of the Studio.
John Lane's quarterly illustrated pub
lication devoted to artistic matters, is
“Arts and Crafts.” being a "review nf
the work executed by students in the
leading art schools of Great Britain
and Ireland.” Some of the schools
whose work is represented here are
supported by the "rates"—nr by taxa
tion. as we say in this country.
Much interest will be felt In the ex
amples of work done at the Birming
ham municipal school of art. These
are memory drawings by pupils from
17 to 22 years old.
The volume is filled with various
kinds of decorative and applied art,
and it is safe to say that an oppor
tunity is afforded of judging the
achievements ot the various art
schools, A brief article is devoted to
each school. The American reader ts
interested to see that many of the
art schools have a close connection
with the principal industrv of the
region in which they are situated.
Thus North London is a center of
piano manufacturing, and the Camden
school of art. which is situated there,
gives special attention to the require
ments of this trade. The school, how
ever. is specially noted for its jewelrv
and silversmiths' work. Lambeth has
for more than one century been fa
mous for its marble works, .ind at the
South London technical school par
ticular attention is given to modeling
and carving of all kinds. In Hoxton
furniture is an important product, and
the Shoreditch technical institute lays
stres s on cabinetmaking and its allied
crafts, in fact, this school was es
tablished bv the London county coun
cil with the object of maintaining
a high standard of skill in this group
of trades. In Bradford. Eng., design
for the woolen trades are naturally
taught, just as textile designs are
taught in Lowell and Fall River In
this state.
At the London county council cen
tral school of arts and crafts an en
tire book may be produced—printing.
Illustrations and binding. The atten
tion paid to artistic teaching by Brit
ish municipal authorities is perhaps
greater than Americans imagine. Yet
all this instruction is of very recent
origin, most of the schools dating
from the 'Bos and '9os—a date which
shows that the missionary zeal n”
Ruskin and Morris and others ii; r
great Victorian age produced tangible
results.
The articles are brief, and do not
describe in detail the work of the
various schools. The book exists for
the sake of the illustrations, and
these, as in all the editions of the
Studio, are of a high order. The
works chosen for illustration, except
in the case of the Birmingham school,
are finished products. The price Is
$3 cloth. $2.50 paper.
CUBA'S EARLY HISTORY
Fresh. Material Brought to Light by
Miss I. A. Wright
In the archives of the Indies at Se
ville. Spain, there exist thousands of
well-preserved manuscripts dealing
with the early history of the Spanish
settlements in the West Indies. South
America, Mexico, etc. They consist of
letters, reports, and other documents
of the various governors, royal of
ficials. bishops, municipal and eccle
siastical councils and the letters and
records of distinguished and even
humble citizens. Although this valu
able collection is freely open to his
torians and students, they have
availed themselves of but a small part
of it.
It has been left to an American au
thor. Miss I. A. Wright, to make use
of these government records in writ
ing the "Early History of Cuba. 1492-
1589” (Macmillan company; $2). How
many Americans realize that the isl
and of Cuba, to assure whose liberty
the United States entered into tHe
war with Spain in 1898. has a history
which antedates the landing of the
Pilgrims by nearly 150 years? Cuba
was discox-ered by Columbus on his
first voyage in 1492. and the city of
Havana was founded in 1516.
The natives were friendly and at
first welcomed the Spanish adventur
ers. but soon learned to hate them.
All that the latter cared for was gold.
They despised manual labor, and to
procure for themselves the precious
metal they enslaved the natives, treat
ing them witli such ferocious cruelty
that in a few years the native Cuban
: population became almost extinct. Al
though one Spanish priest (Bartoli he
de las Casas) ccpoused th» cause of
the Cubans and obtamei! royal edicts
affording them a measure or protec
tion. these were evaded by rapacious
officials whose Interests lay In anoth
er direction. When the native popu
lation became exhausted, the Span
iards re*orted to Negro slavery
In reading the book, one is struck
by the ihcapacity of the Spaniards
successfully to manage their colonies.
One corrupt and greedy governor fol
lowed another: in the meantime the
towns decayed and the Island's com
merce languished.
Miss Wright's book is Interesting
and readable throughout. She tells us
of the starting of Cortes's memorable
expedition to conquer Mexico. Her
narrative breaks off with the begin
ning of trouble between the Spaniards
and the French and English. While
it is to be regretted that she did pot
bring her research down to a later
date, the “Early History of Cuba" will
have lasting value tor the light it
throws on the development ot the
Spanish colonial empire.
LEGENDS OF VOLCANOES
Hawaiian Folk Lore Collected by
W. D. Westervelt
In “Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes”
(Ellis press). William Drake Wester
velt of Honolulu, has added another
to the valuable books containing those
Hawaiian myths and folk tales that
he has been so indefatigable in col
lecting and translating. He has ren
dered an inestimable service to science,
for, largely through his efforts, we are
promised a mythology of this part of
the Polynesian race equaled in com
pleteness by the known mythology
of few primitive peoples.
The anthropologists of our museums
and universities who have the oppor
tunity to study primitive races at first
hand are so few in number that it
would seem impossible for them to
cover the wide field offered them ade
quately. It must be left to such men
as Mr Westervelt, near the people
of whom he writes, acquainted with
their habits and language, interested in
the study of their customs, and. above
al), with th® gift of expression, to sup
plement the work of the professional
scientists. It is a pity for this branch
of sclera .• that there are not more like
him.
The present volume contains the
legends cf Pele, the goddess of fire.
Iliiaka, her sister and the goddess of
lightning, and their family. It is evi
dent from the number of legends in
cluded in the present volume and from
the omissions bhat brevity has forced
on Mr Westervelt that the part of
Hawaiian mythology which deals with
volcanoes and kindred phenomena is
unusually large. This is to be ex
pected when one considers that not
only the islands themselves of vol
canic origin, but many of the vol
canoes are still acMve. It is the
prodigious and fear-inspiring phe
nomena of Nature that have been
most fertile of folk-tales in all races.
The similarity of the tales to those
of other island groups in the same
linguistic family, show that they were
undoubtedly in close and persistent
communication. Their similarity to
the volcano legend of other races
shows the striking manner in which
similar phenomena give rise to similar
supernatural explanation in widely
separated groups.
T. A. Jaggar. Jr., of the Massa
chur institute of technology con
teibutea a foreword to the book, and
an appendix treating of the geology
and volcar ism of the islands is includ
ed. The author. In the latter, speaks
of the work done by F. A. Perret and
the Springfield volcanic research so
ciety in the Hawaiian islands. It is
perhaps to be regretted that so many
illustrations cf meur.tains and vol
canoes of distant lands should have
been included, especially when they
have no relation to the text.
AN ANALYSIS OF INDIA
Capt Wren's “Driftwood Spars”
Has Political Bearing
Although he has written but one or
two novels heretofore. Capt Percival
Christopher Wren must be given a
foremost place among novelists spe
cializing in Anglo-Indian plots. His
latest story. “Driftwood Spars” (Long
mans: $1.35) is not only a strikingly
realistic picture ot under-the-surface
conditions in India, but it presents
an .intimate analysis ot the character
of the native Hindu only possible to a
man of penetrating intuition, a stu
dent of human nature, and one who
has dwelt in close association with
the oriental. The narrative, which
hardly presents the development of a
formal plot, it concerns three prin
cipals—a half-caste army officer. Capt
John Ross-Elliston; an Englishwom
an. Mrs Dearman, and a Somali boy
■ is Ross-Elliston’s voluntary slave.
T.;csj three drift together in an In
dian garrison town from far distant
points, and there take their respective
roles in the tragedy that forms the
climax.
Two-thirds of the narrative is con
cerned with Ross-Elliston's career in
British officialdom. Outwardly he be
trays no evidence of his mixed blood.
He is a man to win the admiration
of those who love lion-like bravery,
lightning resourcefulness and chivalry.
But it is the momentary ascendancy
of the oriental blood that leads to
the crime responsible for his tragic
end.
In the course of the absorbing nar
rative, Capt Wren is bitterly satirical
at the expense of English societies
which meddle in Indian affairs in an
effort to "uplift” the native and the
stupid officials who misuse their op
portunities to mold into loyal citizens
the plastic Hindu youths coming under
their influence. He shows how these
youths are won over and poisoned in
mind by adroit preachers of sedition,
while teachers and officials go blindly
forward neglecting the opportunities
for good directly before them.
The author finds an outlet for a
vein of ironic humor in developing the
character of the Somali boy. In like
manner he also pays his respects to
pompous army officers, self-satisfied
English “trippers” and meddling “re
formers.” not neglecting to make sub
tle allusions to Teutonic intrigues
among the more unruly elements of
the Indian empire. The author believes
that there is a large proportion ot
officials who know the native, his
psychology, hit customs and ways, and
who are wisely guiding the destinies of
India. It is a clever and highly-in
teresting book.
FROM THE GOLDEN BOOKS
“Since Cleopatra Died”
["Antony and Cleonatra:” Act IV.;
Scene XIV.]
[Tl.omas Wentworth Higginson.]
"Sin.-e Cleopatra died!" long years are
nast
In Antony’s fancy, since the deed was
done.
Love counts its epochs, not from sun
to sun.
But by the heart's throb. Mercilessly
fast
Time has swept onward, since she
looked her last
On life a queen. For him the sands
have run
Whole ages t'.-.rough their glass, and
kings have won
And lost their coniines o’er earth’s
auro face vast
Since Cleopatra died. Ah, Love and
Pain
Make their own measures of all things
that be.
No clock’s slow ticking marks their
deathless strain,
The life they own is not the life we
see:
Love’s Mingle moment is eternity:
Eternity, a thought in Shakespeare’s
brain!
The New York Judge who "punished"
a man for expressing prejudice against
the colored race b.v striking bls name
from the Jury list at least gave official
recognition of the dignity and honor
of jury service. That the offender mav
have been pleased to escape the risk
of such service la another matter.
BOSTON LITERARY LETTER
LIFE OF EDWARD CARPENTER
—
A Slow-Growing Democrat — An
English Family at Brighton —
How They Developed Each Other
and England
From Our Special Correspondent
WESTFIELD, N. J.. Tues., Jan. 30.
“Slowsure Britain’s secular might”
has long been known to the world,
but perhaps never so well illustrated
as in the present Edward Carpen
ter and his last year’s book, entitled
“My Days and Dreams,” which covers
330 pages, with an appendix of 30
more; and several portraits and other
illustrations. Edward Carpenter was
last year 72 years old and ne proceeds
slowly to describe what has happened
to him in every one of those years.
It took him 20 or 30 to find out what
he and the rest of England were suf
fering from. B.v that time he was
educated, capable of visiting America,
of giving lectures and of speaking
rather superciliously of Emerson, on
whom he called in the year 1877. This
was less than five years before Emer
son’s death. Carpenter describes him
as "very charming and friendly”:—
I stayed one niclit nt his bouse, and
dined with him and bis wife, and his
daughter Ellen. His failure of memory
for names was considerable, and there
was Iha fixed look of nge often In his eye;
but otherwise he was active In body, and
full of fun and enjoyment of intellectual
life. His eyes were grayish blue.—alto
gether a wonderful, bird-like look about
bis face, enhanced by his wav of jerking
bls bend forward, -the lonk sometimes
very straight and intense, then followed
by a charming, placid smile, like moon
light nn the sea. His domestic life seemed
admirable.
All this shows that Carpenter really
saw the man and listened to him; but
after al), he sums up by saying: “It
was Whitman I came out to see, and
he. in interest and grandeur of per
sonality outtowered them all.” Name
ly: Bryant. Dr Holmes. Prof Benja
min Pierce, J. R. Lowell, Charles
Norton and other Americans. He
spent a night or two with John Bur
roughs, whom he thought “worth a
good many Holmeses and Lowells."
Everyone to his taste.
All this shows (along with his other
essays, in prose or verse) that little as
he understood England, and long as
it took him to find her out. he knew
far less abcut America. That curious
inability to see America as it is, which
has misled and still misleads so many
millions of educated Englishmen,
seems to have settled down upon
Carpenter like a London fog. He
could have learned more about
democracy in six months in America,
than he did actually find out in 50
years of England and France. Emer
son's epigram was: “A horizon of
brass, of the exact diameter of his
umbrella, surrounds the Englishman
on all sides.” He found our friend.
Thomas Cholmondeley. a noted excep
tion; but him he described to me as
“singularly verdant.” For all practical
purposes, ten words of Emerson are
worth pages of English books and
newspapers, written by a million Eng
lishmen. Such are the painful dif
ferences between one human being
and another. Emerson’s 12 months
in England taught him more about
Carpenter's own country, than Car
penter himself has found out in his
whole 72 years. The precision of the
equinoves could not have taught him
so much (were he permitted to fol
low that study for a million years),
as Emerson gained by his prodigious
superiority of nature. My new life of
Thoreau gives in Cholmondeley'S
words the real contrast between
Emerson and Whitman, which Car
penter will never discover.
By what the American Elder
called a. “great and unscrupulous
Providence Carpenter was brought
into acquaintance and even a
certain relationship. through a
cousin with that romantic rascal.
Edward Trelawny—the A-al friend
of Shelley, but a false friend
both of Mrs Shelley and to Lord
Byrcn. T have written much about
this personage, and know a great
deal more about him than most per
sons who take an interest in his
brutal character. What Carpenter
says in regard tn Trelawney’s four
or five marriages is this: —
After his rettirn tn England, somewhere
about 1840. Trel-wnev (after a visit to
(bls country) fell In love with a certain
I adv Goring, and flnnliv induced ber to
leave her bus-md and live with btm. And
it was this, which at a later period led
to my acquaintance with hl m * Laay 6or-
Jhe’s son. by the late Lord Harry, mar
ried a cousin of mine: and when a bov or
1G or 17 I u®ed occasionally to go and stay
with the mung pair at Hlgbden. near
Worthing, v here they lived, and where I
was initiated in the mysteries of cours
ing ferre.ti.ig. etc. Charles Goring, my
cousin's hnaband. was the very type of
the "bold bad baronet of the sb Hing
novel®-a type common then, though al
most extltct now.-a rather handsome
man with tierce twirlable mustache, and
thoroughly bearish , manners, given to
swearing and drinking, and devoted to
his dogs and guns. hatever induced my
cousln-w) o was the sweetest and gen
tlest of girls-to marry him I do not
know Bit that is always the wav-the
mild and forgiving women marry the
wicked men and. course, make the lat
ter all the wicke- ** In course of time
he grew a little tired of hi® wife /there
were no children^ and behaved badly to
ward her. Then his mother died—whom
he had not seen since she ran awar with
Trelawnv. 27» or more years before: nnd
so. seized with compunction after all this
time Charles Goring went on a pilgrim
age to hl® mother’s adopted home: found
there Trelawny nnd his mother’s daughter
by Trelawnv—his own stepsister, by that
time a rather beautiful girl or young
woman. ... ,
Tn IS7R T found Trelawny nt the house
which he was then occupying in Pelham
Crescrnt a quite old man of 87 or SS.
rugged to a decree, with sunken eyes nnd
protecting cheek hones, but with a strange
gleam of fire about him even at that nge
—not unlike some semiextinct volcano—
and the appearance of what had once
been s rather massive and powerful frame.
He was sitting in a high chair near the
fire with a n!le of books on the floor be
side him. “Yon nre interested in SheL
lev." lie said And then without waiting
for a mnlv “He was our greatest poet
since Shakespeare.” “Ho couldn’t hnve
been the pnet ho was if he had not heen
an athlest.”
'I hat wa< a nrettv cood beginning: he
rolled out the “Athlest” with evident sat
isfaction. He went on to .express hl®
contempt fnr the eon temporal nnets. like
Ttnnyson nnd Browning; then returned to
Shelley: “I nm not sure ho wasn’t the
greatest man we have over had: nil those
other® lust tinker with the surface; Shel
ley goes down to t*m roots.” Wo talked
a little about ludbldnnl norm®. 1 forgot
x.-hnt Tbon ho took un nne nf thn books
besldp him—n Godwin’s “Political Jim.
tlcp.“ and road erf rants from If—always
with n cbn’nn " hlch showed his hatred of
modern olvßizatinn.
Ho directed attontlon tn nn oil painting
over the mantelpiece! “Do you know who
that Is?” I guessed. It was a portrait —
anpnrently not a very good one—of Marv.
Shelley’® wife; the face was rnther milk
nnd watery in ovnresslnn. "Sho did him
no cond." ho snld—”wn« nlwnvs n drag
on him—shook II nt? him with lonlmmleti and
the cnnventlon® of social life “ (Trolnwnv
wn® never unite fair to nnv one he did
nnf like, nm! It was evident he did not
like Marv— though In the earlier days nf
their a’^unintanco hp had ^ertahilv been
fond of her). “Poets.” he continued,
“ought never to marry. It’s the greatest
mistake- A poet might to be free as Mr—
free tn say and dn ’-hat he plea®e«-ari<l
he cannot be free If he 1® married.” This
was pretty good fnr a man who bnd
boon so much married Trelawny!
He had had four when nt least-nn nne
knew how mnnv more. Hl® first wife (ns
nnne*re frnm tho “Yonnger Rnn”» was n
girl nf Borneo Tim second wn* the ) 'dv
who filled the gan betw^hi I*l3 and
The third / Greek, th#* sister of
Odygieus; the fourth was the former
•
Lsdy Goring. His second wile. It was
said, was only a small woman, and when
she was “nanxhty" be would dangle her by
(he scruff of (he neck out of the window
until she was good agaiu.
Carpenter was of an English oli
gr.rch!c household of some 10 persons
at Brighton, all of them educated, with
more or less income, some of them
able to make their own wav; the oth
ers clinging, with more or less In
ability. to the decaying wreck ot tbe
oligarchy. The problem for Edward
was to get out of that enchanted con
dition. working toward democracy. He
has done so after 50 years, and be
longs to a party of some force In Eng
land. But this party'does not furnish
real leaders, nor very capable follow
ers. The Carpenters have developed
each other, held on to a small propertv
and distinguished themselves along
with several friends who are men
tioned here. But men like John Burn,
and Lloyd George. In times of stress
like the present, force themselves to
the front, combine with able oligarchs
like Arthur Balfour, and make Car
penter and his friends serve as mere
appendages, or even obstacles, in the
way of democratic progress. From aH
this results a rather dull book, but
wdth passages of much Interest ar.d
sincerity. It is published in London
by George Allen.
A LYRIC ARTIST
“The Collected Poems of William
H. Davies”
Tbe fact that the latest garnering cf
the verse of a contemporary BriMsh
writer to be brought out in this coun
try has nothing at all to do with the
war is easily explained. “The Collect
ed Poems of William H. Davies” (Al
fred A. Knopf; $1.25) represents the
poet’s own selection from, his writings,
and includes several which have not
previously appeared in print. Even
the verse taken from manuscript, how
ever. is not new in the sense of being
concerned with contemporary affairs.
The virtues of lyric brevity and mu
sical compactness are Mr Davies’s
in a notable degree. These 190 pages
contain no ■fewer than 123 separate
compositions. The shortness of n
poem is not. of course, any more a
criterion of its excellence than is its
length, hut the fact remains that any
one can be diffuse—witness the Words
worth of "The Excursion"—whereas
not everyone can be concise. And
nothing, however short, can be concise
if it has nothing to say.
Hut this truly p.-rical poet has every
where a definite utterance. It is rare
ly complex, but it is always beautiful.
It is usually concerned with common
places. but they arc the grand com
monplaces of wind and weather, chil
dren. love and death. "A Great Time”
was quoted in The Republican’s review
of the. more recent "Georgian Poetry.”
but it will endure repetition: —
Sweet Chance, that led mv steps abroad.
Beyond the town, where wild flowers
crow -
A rainbow and a cuckoo. Lord:
How rich and great tbe times are now!
Know, all vo sheep
And cows, that keep
On staring Hint I stand so long
In grass that’s wet from heavy rain.
A rainbow nnd n cuckoo's snug
May never eome together again.
Mar never eome
Tills side the tomb.
Mr Davies, by the way. who is not
so well known in this country as he
deserves to be. will soon have an op
portunity’ to broaden his acquaintance,
when a contemplated trip to America
becomes a reality.
“EARGENESS OF HEART"
Give to thy people ns to one of .dd.
Largeness of heart and wisdom tn dis
cern;
Whereever truth Is questioned make us
bold
The right to vindicate (he wrong to
spurn.
Destiny the barriers whereby our souls
Are kept enslaved to customs or to
creed;
Let not our thoughts and ways be run 1n
molds
Of sentiment. Upon no broken reed
Of popular opinion let us lean;
Make us to stand upright as sons of
God;
Broaden our vision, keep our senses keen.
Rule us, if need be, with the Iron rod;
But leave us not to our shortsightedness.
Rebuke our greed, our bland hypocrisy.
And give us courage meekly to confess
Our weaknesses.—our foolish bigotry.
Largeness of heart! O how we crave this
gift
Whereby we triumph through the pow
er of love.
Becoming lever with the grave to lift
Our brothers from the slough to nights
above.
Where they may see the laud of corn und
w|ne.
And learn to choose the things that
make for peace.
The priceless treasures of the life ’ivine:
The riches that forevermore increase.
Mrs O. G. Adams.
Meredith. N. H.. October 30. 1916.
EMIGRANTS
' (A Fairy 'Pale of Science.)
Least of all earth-born germs, hid from
man's eyes.
Yet stronger than the strong, where
great things die.
These Infinitely small soar to the -skies.
And where the mighty fall these atoms
fly.
Caught up in atmospheric current's swirl.
L'udauuted by tierce Inter-stellar cold.
Upon the zodiac’s luminous stream of
pearl.
Swift as the light, their fearless course
they hold.
At distances undreamed, the travelers
frail
Pass glowing planets and vast fiery sun;
Star beyond star and emigrants assail.
Until the world that waits them is Liard
won.
Upon a barren adamantine strand
The voyagers disbark. their journey o'er:
Life comes with them unto n Lifeless
land.
They pioneer the rose on that drear
shore.
The highest in the humblest conquers
The least may greatest be in .desperate
strife;
The little ones of earth receive heaven's
call,
And somewhere ever waits a world for
life!
Susanne Alics Ranlett.
Auburndale. Mass.. January 8. 1917.
Note. —Science affirms that life has Its
rise on the heavenly bodies by the passage
ffom one to another of life germs through
interstellar space.
Circus elephants hauling heavy carts
through Berlin’s snow-blocked streets
have been an Interesting sigpt recent
ly. according to special dispatcher P.
T. Barnum used to have an elephant
at work on his farm at Bridgepot b— at
work while the trains were passing. He
admitted In hia autobiography that as
a farm animal the pachyderm was un
profitable. but that as an advertiser it
was a success.