New-York tribune., August 21, 1910, Page 7, Image 19

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FICTION.
Old Hermit and Some Modem
Travellers.
CBJKBnSO By ■*■ Ayscough. 12mo. pp.
*-- 2ii. G. 1' l'utr.ani's Sons.
mmnr wtiTOS VUP By C. X. and A. M. William-
TH^° lUas^tod in color by F. Melville Da
Mmd and F. UJwenhefan. Brno, pp. 345.
DcaMeday. page & Co.
JOHN MARSirS MIL.UONS. A V \KRATIVF By
CharVos Klein and Arthur Hornblow. inustm
ttaa by Samuel ■ ban. 12am, pp. 34.. The
O. W. Dtllingnam Company.
Mr. Ayscough's fictional biogmpliy of the
simple hermit, who. late En the fifteenth cen
tury, was dragged from his long contemplative
life of rigorous asceticism to rule inefficiently
r.nd in hopeless confusion over Christendom as
Pope Celestino V. is an interesting study of the
ir.an, but an altogether insufficient picture of his
t:m<\ The average reader is not sufficiently
fujniliar with the Church history or. for that
matter, the secular history of th.it tangled
period of mediaeval rivalries and intrigue to till
in the lacking environment and atmosphere, the
ro?ult being as great ■ bewilderment in the
rcacers mind as was created ■:: Celestino's own
after bis unwelcome elevation. Celesttoo was
servant of God, according to the ideals of his
time; his inexperience, his ignorance of the
world unfitted him for the task of a servos SOT
ronfffl Dei; his voluntary abdication after four
noaths w as the only way cut for him and for
the Church. The study of the religious temper
axaeat. of the •"called" soul, is, however, a worthy
effort cf the imagination.
One Usotcs what to expect from the William
sons, end they may be relied upon to produce it
every time Their successive automobile trip
ctories, part guide book and part cloying ro-
T.ar.c<% resemble each other rather closely, but
vfcy chd'?' 1 a formula that has evidently found
-jjTOgo^t f-'cr in the public eye? So here we
are o£ once more on a motoring tour, this time
"lcrs the Riviera, and nee more the profes
cjcnsl chauffeur is not ..:...: he appears to be.
Viihor is I^ady Tumour's maid, who rides be
rffle biin on the front seal Tl second day out
thp t^lis him that he is a gentleman, he tells
v . r ♦}}-• £ he is a lady, and each acknowledges
eh *3 rt - Both are immensely amused by the
nilzaritv o f the parvenue .'....■ Tumour, whose
husband, a decent chap, has on his money and
tfezailiions by the ma nu Picture of a pill. The
jristocrals xnasaueradins as servants do not
rjjcars p,vj true — as aristocrats — but we
j.-0-x from many romances of high life that
tirls sni good taste are not necessarily allied,
-lie Moict ".. ":" is just the light sort of book
| fcrtho?-? who like their romance "fluffy." The
Xnniaisons h^ve a happy knack of suggesting
Ox atoospfcere cf tho open, of sunshine and the
joy of living of healthy youth.
The latest rr°^ act °' the collaboration be
nrecn Mr. Charles Klein, dramatist, and Mr.
Arthur Homblow, novelist and "novelizer," is a
r-arrative version cf Mr. Klein's play "The Next
of Kin." produced last season. Mr. Bbrablow is
fi-ddznd successful hand at this kind of vrork,
\ jhici £»£ i's uses, since people in this country
rar<-r.i'y cm not, or will not, read plays in
fic;«it numbers to make their publication
■jStible. while yet they are carious to know
,hat they are about," Mr. Klein, who is a
■:xaust with many purposes, exposes In "John
• - V ■ 'velixation is callt-d,
*2E ENTOMBMENT (FRAGMENT).
' "- tbe engraving by A: In a ifM I llH.ll!
XEW-YORK DAILY TRTBIXE, SUNDAY, AT GIST 21, 1010.
the corrupt influence which political "pull" may
exert on the judiciary. A young girl is the
heiress of the millions, but others claim them,
wherefore, after a vain questioning of the legit
imacy of her birth, a conspiracy is entered upon
to have the law declare her of unsound mind.
The lawyer politician is a villain after the popu
lar heart, and his plot plausible enough to make
the story of timely interest.
a
TIIE PRINCE'S EXPERIMENT.
How lie Pluuptd Ilia Hand Into a Cauldron
of Boiling Lead.
From The Manchester Guardian.
A correspondent sends us the following ex
tract from a penny life of King Edward: "
While studying chemistry under Dr. Playfair
he was one day being shown a curious experi
ment, and after taking the precaution to wash
his hands with ammonia to remove any grease
that might be on them, the professor said:
"Now, sir. if you have faith in science you will
plunge your right hand Into that cauldron of
boiling lead and ladle it out into the cold water
•hat is standing by." "Are you serious?" ask d
the prince. "Perfectly," was the reply. "If you
tell me to do it. I will," said the prince. "I do
tell you," replied Playfair: and the King, with
out the slightest sign of fear, plunged his hand
into the burning liquid and ladled it out with
perfect impunity.
"Can any of your scientific readers say,*" asks
our correspondent, "whether the experiment re
ferred to may be performed with 'perfect im
punity' under the conditions named; and. sec
ondly, whether it was ever actually performed
by the late Kin??" We- only say that if any
scientist, however eminent, told us to perform
the experiment, we should decline without hesi
tation, and we advise every reader of the penny
life in question to take the same view.
On thf story of the late King and the boiling
lead experiment, referred to in yesterday's "Mis
cellany." a correspondent writes: In the fifth
edition of the late Professor Tyndall's "Heat a
Mode of Motion." published in isTT,. chapter 5,
page IT.?, paragrai h 200, will be found the fol
lowing reference to the spheroidal condition as
sumed by liquids: "M. Boutigny has lent new-
Interest to this subject by expanding the fit-id
of illustration and ;- 1 ; -1> in?? it t<> the explana
tion of many extraordinary effects. If the hand be
wet. It may be passed through ■< stream of molten
metal without injury. I have M. Boutigny
pass his wet hand through a sir- am <>i molten
iron and toss with his fingers the fused metal
from a crucible; a blacksmith will lick a whit.
hot iron without f.:,r <■;" burning his tongue.
Tne tongue Is effectui Sly preserved from contact
with the iron by the rapor developed, and it
was t<> the rapor of the carbonic acid, which
shielded me from its contact, that 1 owed my
safety when the substance was put into my
mouth To the same j n -t.--t ivt- influence many
escapes from the fiery ordeal of ancient times
have been attributed by M. Boutigny." Perhaps
I this may interest your correspondent. But th< re
are many scientific experiments which may be
I performed "with impunity" under well defined
conditions, but the difficulty of being absolutely
certain that those <..ii.iitK.ns are present im
ports so grave a risk into the matter that such
experiments are best left to experts
THE FRENCH PEASANT
Some Clever Sketches of Him at
Home.
Paris. August EL
M. Charles Louis Philippe's "Dans la Petite
Ville." brought out by Fasqudle, describes life
in a charming village- of Bourhonnais, and
makes a truthful analysis of the French peas
ant. It is more conversational and sketchy
than the classic works which Balzac and Zola
devoted to the same subject. M. Philippe's book
is full of amusing short stories, anecdotes and
village tales and is replete with humor, irony
and subtle sensibility. It is, in its way, a little
gem of rural observations, a rustic sketch book
having the charm of Mi>s Mitfords "Our Vil
lage."' Although written in a light, almost flip
pant vein, it is worthy of being placed beside
"Les Paysans" and "La Terre,"' thus completing
a literary, triptych portrait of that mysterious.
EDEL
• Giulio OampugnuLa.)
GANY.Y
(From the t ngravintJ b;
cautious, thrifty, industrious, avaricious, fe
rocious individual, the French peasant.
"La Vie a Paris," by M. Jules Claretie, pub
lished by Fasquelle, presents in bright, i ietu
resijue pencillings the social, literary and artis
tic balance sheet of the last year. During
twenty years no important event or interest
ing episode has escaped this alert observer's
opera glass, and his weekly chronicle in "L.c
Temps'' forms, a sort of Parisian log book, or
diary, that will I"- a treasure for future his
torians. M. Claretie is, above ail, a journalist,
notwithstanding the heavy drafts upon his time
caused by his duties as administrator general
of the Com£die Francaise and as a member of
the Academy. C. I. B.
7/7/; FIDDLER'S FAREWELL.
Alfred Noyes, in Blackwoods Magazine.
Witli my fiddle to my shoulder,
And my hair turning gray.
And mj heart growing older
I must shuffle on my v>;i\ !
Tim' there's not ;i hearth to greet n:o
1 must i< -p as 1 sow d.
And — th« Mii:.<t shall meet me
At the turn of th< road.
< ». the whin's a du«ky yellow
Ami the road a i i«y v\ hite,
And tin blackbird's '.-.11 is mellow
At the falling of night :
And there's honey in th< heather
Where we'll maki our last abode.
;\1 y t unes and me together
At the turn i l the road.
I have fi'l'ii. d for j our city
Thro' market-pl ice and inn!
I have poured forth my pity
On your sorrow and your sin!
But your riches are your burden.
And your pleasure is your goadJ
I've the whip-gold for guerdon
At the turn of the road.
Your village-lights '11 call nr*
As the lights of home the dead;
But a black night b< fall me
Err your pillows r< st my head!
Cod be pniise.J. th© 1 like a jewel
Every cottage casement showed.
Then 's a star that's not so cruel
At the turn of the road.
Nay, beautiful and kindly
An- the faces drawing nigh.
Bat I gize on them blindly
And hasten, hasten ry;
For O, n<» face of irondi m
< >n earth has ever glowed
lake the One that waits me yonder
At the turn of the road.
Her face is lit with splendor.
She dwells beyond the skies;
But de< p, d«-ep and tender
Are the tears in her eyes:
The angels see them glistening
Tn pity f.»r my load.
And — she's waiting there, she's list* :;insf.
At the turn of the road.
LITERARY NOTES.
Mrs. W. K. Clifford, is a novelist from whom
■we h<ar only too seldom, so it is good news
that a pretty love story from her pen is among
the autumn books. "Sir George's Objection" it
is called.
The Duttons announce two new hooks on de
cidfdly picturesque ar.d interesting subjects.
One is "The Navy of Venice," by Mrs. Alethea
Wiel. She enters a field which has been unac
countably neglected. Her illustrations are from
Old drawings of Venetian warships and old pict
ures of famous sea lights. The other book is
Mr. Ezra Pound's study of the Treub::dours
and other early poets in Southerr Europe. Ho
calls his work "The Spirit of Re manee."
Mr. Bram Stoker, whose "Dragila" has shown
that he has a faculty for picturesque narrative,
is presently bringing out a volume on "Famous
Impostors." In it he discourses of various
kinds of humbugs, including pretenders to royal
honors, financial scamps and queer religious
types. Sturgis it Walton will print the book.
Nearly every ■writer on the Italian Renais
sance finds occasion to pay more or less atten
tion to the mercenary captains who spent part
of their time fighting the battles of this or that
petty dfspot, and otherwise devoted th- mselves
to marauding on their own account. But it
must be some twenty years since Temple Leader
published his monograph on Sir John I'awk
wood, and since then we do not recall any simi
lar study of one of these sanguinary figures;
There should be a place, therefore, for "The
Great C'ondottiere." the book which the lady
who calls herself Christopher Hare is to pub
lish this winter through the John Lane Com
pany. She has so very good a subject that we
shall await her work with interest tinged with
solicitude.
Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner" will figure
among the holiday picture books this season.
Mr. Willy Pogany, the Hungarian artist, has
been making a series of illustrations for the
poem, following in some ways the manner of
Durer.
Mr. Lewis Melville's "I^ife and Letters of
William Beckford," just published here by Duf
field & Co.. is an alluring book. It is well illus
trated and beautifully printed on paper which,
by itself adds to the pleasure of the reader. We
note with appreciation the inclusion of a good
bibliography. Here are some passages from the
author's summing up of his hero's character:
There was no vice in him; he was not a roi:£,
nor was he unduly addicted to the pleasures of the
table; while such hobbies as he bad — the collection
of pictures, prints and books — were virtues. At
tacked early in life by a vile slander, he held his
head high and let only an intimate friend here and
there suspect how sorely ho was hurt by the un
founded charge. lie would not even condescend to
deny the accusation ; and his seclusion at Fonthill
— though, as has been said, this seclusion has been
grossly exaggerated — a dignified protest
against it. His pride was great, and nothing could
break it down. . . . He was, too, extremely
charitable, though for this quality he obtained no
credit in his lifetime, because he never allowed his
name to appear In any lists. He did gorvi by
stealth. . . . Beckford had his weaknesses, of
course. He was egotistical, Impetuous and impe
rious. He was also too fond of praise, and tolerated
such a man as John Britton, who beslavered him
with flattery in his lifetime and slandered him
dead. lie was inclined, especially in his later days,
to take himself very seriously, hut his sense of
honor (humor?) always saved him from becoming
ridiculous; and if at one time he aimed at being
the English milord of Continental fancy, a char
acter gent-rally contemptible, he was yet pre
served from conton-pt by his great intellectual
ability. . . . Beckford was a considerate host
and a delightful companion. He had a thorough
knowledge of the world and understood the mo
tives of men and women better than they desired-
He was not a deep scholar, but lie was, as
we have seen, undoubtedly a singularly accom
plished man.
Obviously, Mr. Melville has been at r«ii riS to
do justice to :s man who has hitherto received
only inadequate attention from biographical
writers. It is odd that so original a type should
have waited so long for really sympathetic
treatment.
It is a long time since anything has been
heard of Dr. Max Nordau, whose ideas on "De
generation" rna<l< quite a stir. He hr.s :i book
in press on "The Meaning of History."
A new periodical is soon to be laun< hed under
the imprint of Adam B»»dge (Inc.). It will be
called "Arts and Decoration," and the first
number is l<> appear in October. From the
prospectus we gather that it will especially
appeal to the makers of ironies, treating all
manner of decorative subjects, but purely
;t sthetic as well as practical motives will receive
due attention.
Prom certain fiction that he has published w«
have inferred thai Mr. Frankfort Moore is es
pecially interested in Goldsmith and his period.
it now appears that he has for some time been
engaged upon a biography of that "golef< n"
writer, and the volume is announced for this
autumn.
Th.- Sturgis A- Walton Company will issue in
the autumn what promises to be a charming
volume, the "Leittrs to Several Persons of
Honor." written in the seventeenth century, by
John Donne. ?.!r. Charles E. Merrill, jr., has
• dir.d th" book, rt'hlch will bo printed in a
limited edition.
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